《Classroom Of The Elite Year 2》


 Chapter 1: Prologue: Operating Behind the Scenes

    <h4>Chapter 1: Prologue: Operating Behind the Scenes</h4>


    Going back in time to a certain day in February two months earlier...


    In a meeting room, within a certain facility somewhere in Tokyo, a man believed to be in his 40''s was reading out information disyed on a screen.


    A teenager was quietly listening in.


    A 15-year old teenager, soon to be entering high school.


    That being said, their identity wasn''t that of an ordinary child.


    They were somebody who had been given a special education from the secret facility known as the White Room.


    "With this, we''ve now gone over the data for Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka and the other 156 second-year students. Have youmitted everything to memory?"


    The man, Tsukishiro, was showing this teenager all of the data that they had collected on the students of a certain high school over the course of thest year. Not only did it have standard information such as their full names, date of birth, and former schools, but it even had information on their parents and siblings, grades and aplishments since early childhood, and even who they typically interacted with. It was a top-secret meeting with detailed information that even the school''s homeroom teachers weren''t allowed to see.


    "I believe you''re already aware of this, but it''s crucial that Ayanok��ji-kun is expelled and returned to the White Room before the end of April. After all, we can''t afford to prolong the n any longer. Please be clever about how you do it though. Make sure the public learns nothing. If the government hears of this, that person... Sensei''s name might be stained, I''m afraid."


    After Tsukishiro''s exnation, the White Room student slowly raised their hand.


    "So you''re saying that I shouldn''t attract unnecessary attention, right?"


    "That''s right. That''s precisely why only someone like you, who can pose as a student, is able to do this. I''ll do whatever I can to support you, but Sakayanagi''s faction is definitely going to be more vignt from now on. That limits anyrge moves I can make."


    The teenager showed signs of understanding, but a certain look of dissatisfaction could be seen on their face, one that Tsukishiro wasn''t able to overlook.


    "You seem to have someints, I can see it on your face."


    Tsukishiro turned around and nced at the picture of Ayanok��ji on the screen behind him, then turned back and met the teenager''s eyes.


    "You aren''t pleased that he, Ayanok��ji-kun, is being praised as our masterpiece, are you? Not only are they sending me out there, but they even went so far as to interrupt the experiments and send you out when the White Room had only just resumed operations again. I must say, it does feel like far too courteous of a response. As someone raised within the same facility, the humiliation you''re feeling must be unbearable."


    Tsukishiro strongly emphasized this point as he exined.


    He was looking to get the teenager to surpass their own potential by fanning their sense of rivalry.


    ''Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka is our masterpiece.''


    Each time they hear these words, Tsukishiro thought it would invoke feelings ofpetition lurking within the teenager''s mind.


    To Tsukishiro it probably seemed as though he had dealt with everything wlessly, but in reality, he had misread one crucial part of it.


    There was an idea that been painstakingly instilled within the mind''s of those in the White Room:


    [Be someone who can surpass Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.]


    This idea had led them to feel a sense of ''hatred''. One that a third-party like Tsukishiro, who hadn''t been raised in the White Room, would never be able to understand.


    At times, this hatred would swell up to the point where they couldn''t contain it anymore, causing them to act recklessly.


    "The stage has been set. All that''s left is for you to make use of the full extent of your abilities. I took a look at your file, and I have noints. If you really do have this level of talent, expelling him should be a walk in the park, right?"


    His exnation ended along with a distorted provocation. Tsukishiro then powered off the screen.


    The room became engulfed in darkness in a moment, but before long, the room was yet again enveloped in the lights shining from the ceiling.


    "Well then, we''ll leave it at that if you don''t have any further questions. Time is so very precious, after all."


    Hearing this, the teenager turned their back and began to leave the room as if nothing had happened.


    Tsukishiro was slightly bothered by their calm attitude.


    His intuition told him that he had made a mistake at some point during his exnation.


    However, it was impossible to take back words he had already said.


    "One thing�� There is one thing I forgot to confirm with you."


    He called to the teenager, speaking to their back as they had stopped just before they left the room.


    "You aren''t hiding something from me, are you?"


    Even if the teenager was on his side, everyone in the institution wasn''t always on the same page, and Tsukishiro knew that.


    If the two of them didn''t see eye-to-eye from the beginning, something that could''ve gone smoothly might end up going awry.


    That was why he had called out to the teenager.


    Without turning around, the teenager simply nodded their head before silently leaving the room.


    Once he was alone, Tsukishiro turned off the lights once again before reshifting his attention back to the screen.


    Disyed upon it was all of Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka''s data from his time in the White Room.


    "I don''t really like using these types of words to describe things, but... he really is a monster."


    It goes without saying that his academic abilities were excellent, but his physical abilities could put adults to shame.


    His track record of fights against professional fighters was lined with nothing but victories.


    "A battle between two fellow White Room students... I wonder how it would turn out in a fair fight?"


    Of course, Tsukishiro had already devised a clever n to ensure that he would win.


    But even so, victory wasn''t guaranteed.


    "It''s hunt or be hunted. It may be a game between children, but it will certainly still be an interesting one."


    As an adult, Tsukishiro wasn''t worried. He just slowly took his time executing the mission he had been tasked with.


    Cover


    Illustration 1


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    *Illustration 12

 Chapter 2 - 1: True Ability

    <h4>Chapter 2: Chapter 1: True Ability</h4>


    It was a certain year, long after people had be familiar with the 21st century.


    As the world was facing all sorts of different problems, Japan was also at a turning point of its own.


    Between declining birth rates, an aging poption, environmental issues, and a fall in national power, Japanese society was beginning to show signs of decay.


    In order to rebuild from the ground up, the government began seriously focusing its efforts on cultivating its human resources.


    And, as one part of this shift in policy, a certain high school was established.


    The goal of this school is to gather various students from all over the country and foster them into individuals equipped to take on the outside world.


    [Advanced Nurturing High School]


    One of the most distinctive features of this school is that it doesn''t consider an applicant''s middle school grades when selecting who they enroll.


    The students chosen through the school''s custom selection criteria have a wide variety of characteristics.


    There are those who can study, but struggle when ites tomunication. And there are others who excel at athletics but struggle in their academics.


    Some, on the other hand, don''t even seem to have a single redeeming quality, and yet the school still lumps them together with the rest and teaches them all just the same.


    It''s a learning system that would be unthinkable at an ordinary high school.


    Despite all of the vastly different personalities, these students are prompted to live their lives in groups andpete with each other for the sake of their ss.


    The purpose behind all of this is probably to create the necessary foundation for them to take part in apetitive society and survive as a group.


    And, those who are deemed as unqualified are doomed to the fate of expulsion without the slightest bit of mercy from the school.


    Students won''t be able to survive at this school by simply being able to y sports or study effectively.


    Each school year is divided up into four different sses, ranging from ss A to ss D.


    At the time of enrollment, each ss is assigned 40 students, for a total of 160 students overall.


    All that being said, there are other aspects of this school that makes it so dramatically different from other high schools.


    Starting off with the basics, students aren''t allowed tomunicate with the outside world until the day they graduate, three years after enrollment. At the same time, they are prohibited from leaving school grounds and forced to live within school-provided dormitories. That being said, the school boasts an immenselyrge campus, fully equipped with all sorts of facilities to support its students with anything they could ever want or need during their time there. There''s also arge-scalemercial establishment for the exclusive use of students and school personnel called ''The Keyaki Mall'' that has everything the students might ever need, varying from cafes and volume-sales electronics stores to barbershops and karaoke parlors. And, even if there happens to be something the mall doesn''t sell, students can always purchase and order it over the inte.


    Furthermore, students are provided with a form of money called ''private points'', which they can use to make these purchases throughout their time at the school. These points have an easy to understand one-to-one exchange rate with the Japanese yen, and can be used as real money.


    However, these private points don''t just appear out of thin air.


    Every month, the students are provided with private points equal to their current number of ss points times 100.


    In other words, in order to stock up on the private points that the students need to live their lives, securing these ss points became the first priority.


    There are several ways to earn these ss points, but the most standard method involves clearing challenges given by the school called ''special exams''.


    Basically, during these special exams, the four sses wouldpete against each other, with those whoe out on top gaining ss points and thoseing out on the bottom losing ss points. If a certain ss ends up with 1000 ss points, then the students of that ss would earn a monthly allowance equivalent to 100,000 yen. Conversely, should a ss continuously lose these exams, their ss points would eventually plummet down to zero and they would be provided with a monthly allowance of zero private points as a result.


    This inseparably interlinked rtionship between ss points and private points is probably the school''s way of getting students with different ways of thinking to work together for themon goal of preserving their ss points. This is because, for students, securing arge sum of ss points means that they would be securing the perfect, fulfilling school life that everyone wanted.


    However, the charm of Advanced Nurturing High School went even one step further than that.


    The school''s biggest selling point came from being a member of ss A upon graduation. The students who managed to win it all were granted the luxury of being able to move forward to any university or employment opportunity they desired. Even in the most extreme cases, whether it be a university boasting the lowest imaginable eptance rates or a major first-sspany, the students would be guaranteed to get in with a free pass. However, this didn''t mean they could afford to be overly optimistic. After being epted, if one''s raw potential wasn''t enough to get the job done, it''s only natural that they would be screened out and eliminated eventually.


    Even so, there was no denying that this was still an exceedingly attractive offering.


    I guess this is probably a good enough overview of Advanced Nurturing High School.


    I, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, am currently a student enrolled in this remarkable high school where I''ll soon be embarking on my second year.


    As of April 1st, I''m a student in ss D, with a total of 275 ss points. This means that every month, I''ll receive approximately 30,000 yen''s worth of private points. Incidentally, the current highest ranked ss, ss A, was led by Sakayanagi with an overwhelming total of 1119 points. Following behind that is ss B, led by Ichinose, with 542. And following only just barely behind that was ss C, led by Ry��en, with 540.


    Whenparing our ss with the other sses, the difference in ss points may seemrge, but even so, it may be more urate to say that the gap between us has shrunk.


    The extent to which we can close this gap over the course of this next year would make all the difference.


    ������


    TL Notes:


    Note: 100,000 yen is like $930 for those that don''t know. Just a heads up.

 Chapter 3 - 2: A New Stage

    <h4>Chapter 3: Chapter 2: A New Stage</h4>


    After a long and yet somehow short spring break hade to an end, the day of the opening ceremony finally arrived. We moved out of our old, familiar first-year ssroom and relocated to a new one for second-years. At a nce, the desk and chairs seemed to be the same, but for whatever reason, the room gave off a different feeling. The first thing that awaited us as we arrived in this new ssroom was a message ''disyed'' on the ckboard.


    [Sit down in the same seat you usedst year and wait for further instructions.]


    Last year, the ckboard was one that the teachers would write on with chalk.


    However, the ckboard before me was a ckboard, yet not at the same time.


    Put simply, it had been reced by arge monitor.


    The school had probably chosen to install it this year, judging from the fact that it was shining with a radiance that made it seem like it had juste out of the box.


    The students who arrived in the ssroom after me also seemed rather surprised when they saw the monitor. Either way, I made my way to where I satst year, the window seat in the very back of the room, and sat down as instructed.


    Later on after this, the opening ceremony would be held in the gymnasium.


    After that, the homeroom teachers would spend the next two hours or so briefing us on this year''s schedule and other important details before dismissing us sometime before noon.


    The students still seemed to be a little out of it since spring break had only just ended. Friends who hadn''t met up with each other over the break began excitedly talking about all sorts of things like what they had been doing over the holidays.


    "Yo."


    I was leisurely surfing the inte on my phone when I heard a voice call out to me.


    It was my ssmate Miyake Akito, a member of a small group I had be good friends with.


    "I''ve been a little worried about you cuz you didn''t really hang out with the group all that much over spring break."


    What Akito said was true. I hadn''t interacted with the Ayanok��ji group over the break almost at all.


    Or rather, I had been so upied with other matters that I ended up neglecting them.


    "Don''t get me wrong, there''s no rule stating you''ve gotta hang out with us, but even Haruka was kinda worried, and on top of that, Airi really seemed like she was thinking about you a lot."


    Akito was essentially advising me to keep the feelings of the girls in our group in mind.


    "My bad. I''ll hang out with you guys more often moving forward."


    "That sounds good to me. I was feeling pretty lonely without you too, you know."


    I felt sorta uneasy hearing a friend tell me something like that, but it wasn''t exactly a bad feeling.


    It didn''t seem like Akito nned on staying for very long, as he casually raised his hand and went back to his own seat.


    As he did, I found myself thinking about how I had found myself a truly good friend.


    After all, he had gone out of his way to give me some good-natured advice like that.


    Once he was back at his seat, I didn''t feel like ying around on my phone anymore, so I decided to listen in on what some of my ssmates were talking about.


    The topic had shifted from what people had done during spring break to the newly enrolled students.


    Tomorrow was the school''s entrance ceremony where the iing first-year students would enter the school.


    Last year, our ss D had taken the school''s good treatment for granted and had the rug pulled out from under us shortly after enrollment, but that was the natural consequence for our actions at the time.


    We had been given 1000 ss points when we first came here. In other words, we had been given the equivalent of 100,000 yen every month. Spirits were high as students burnt up their points, recklessly buying whatever they wanted under the impression that they''d receive the same amount at the start of every month. Meanwhile, being tardy or not even showing up to ss happened more and more, and a fair number of students had fallen into the habit of talking with their friends or dozing off during lectures.


    On the other hand, the diligent students were so focused on themselves that they didn''t pay any attention to the behavior of those around them.


    These diligent students probably had several reasons for why they didn''t speak up about it, but the main reason was probably the fact that the school let the problem children do whatever they pleased. After all, if the teachers weren''t doing anything about it, why should they?


    However, you could say that all of this had been nothing more than the first ''special exam'' the school had in store for us.


    The school was seeing whether or not we would realize that this was different from thepulsory education we went through during elementary and middle school.


    Testing us as high school students, trying to find out whether or not we were capable of doing what we needed to be doing without being told.


    And our superb ss D was presented with the lowest possible assessment the special exam could''ve given us.


    The following month, on the first of May, our ss points dropped down to zero, sending our monthly allowance of private points plummeting down to a wonderful zero as well.


    For the rest of the year, ss D went through one trial after the next, but after falling to the very bottom once, our ss slowly began piecing itself back together, maturing and growing closer in the process. At one point, we had even managed to rise up to ss C, but after the results of the end-of-term exam, we were unfortunately relegated back down to ss D. That being said, we still managed to recover an overall total of 275 ss points over the course of the year. There''s still a huge gap between our ss and ss A, but in order to reach the top, ites down to just how much we''re able to close that gap over the course of this next year.


    "G''mornin''~"


    The lively voice of a girl filled the room. Immediately afterward, the female students who were already in the ssroom responded one after another, gathering around the girl in question. It was Karuizawa Kei, the leading figure of the girls in the ss. The number of girls gathered around her kept increasing, and just like that, they started talking about the same things they had already discussed with each other not too long ago.


    It was only just the other day that I began dating Kei.


    As of right now, the only other person who knew about that was Kei herself.


    As I thought back on what had happened while I listened in on their discussions, a surprised voice more akin to a scream spread throughout the ssroom. I looked over to see what was going on and immediately noticed what had caused themotion.


    You could say that it was a reasonable reaction after seeing the appearance of the girl who had quietly entered the ssroom.


    Without acknowledging the attention she was getting, the female student simply went over to her seat. That is, the seat right next to mine.


    Her once long, beautiful ck hair was now short, not even reaching down to her shoulders.


    She had chosen to cut her hair after reconciling with Horikita Manabu, her older brother, and bidding farewell to her former self.


    I personally wasn''t surprised because I had already known about it beforehand, but if this was the first time I had seen it, I would''ve probably reacted just like the people around her.


    "S-Suzune...? Wha... What''s up with your hair!?"


    The one who shouted this out was none other than Sud�� Ken, a male student who had fallen in love with Horikita.


    He had broken away from the chat he was having with one of his buddies and rushed over to us.


    He was apanied by one other person, a girl who also seemed bewildered over Horikita''s sudden change in appearance.


    "Horikita-san, that is... quite the drastic makeover. I''m surprised."


    Said girl was Kushida Kiky��, one of our ssmates who had attended the same middle school as Horikita.


    *Illustration


    "Is it really so strange that I chose to get a haircut?"


    Horikita red not only at Sud��, but also at the many students who were staring at her.


    "N-no, rather than strange, it''s more, surprising, ya know...? It like, makes you seem like a totally different person... Uhm, that''s not to say it makes you look bad or anything. Short hair actually looks really good on you. W-wouldn''t you agree, Kushida?"


    Although it gave a strong impression, for Sud��, things like the length of Horikita''s hair were trivial.


    In fact, he readily weed his crush''s new look, emphasizing that he really approved of it.


    On the other hand, the one Sud�� had sought agreement from, Kushida, was unable to hide her bewildered expression.


    "I think... so? Yeah. I think it really suits you, but... did something happen?"


    It didn''t seem like Kushida wanted to share her full thoughts on the topic, as she shifted the conversation toward finding out why Horikita had cut her hair.


    "Whattaya mean by ''did something happen''!?"


    Before Horikita could answer, Sud�� eagerly butted in with a question of his own.


    "Like... maybe she had her heartbroken, or something?"


    "H-h-h-heartbroken!?"


    "If I had to say, I suppose I''d call it my way of showing my resolve."


    Horikita replied in no time at all, dispelling any further spection that she had done this out of heartache.


    "T-that makes sense. There''s no way you''d be dealing with an unrequited love or anything, right? Right?"


    Despite saying that, Sud�� seemed to be breaking out in a cold sweat.


    "This year, as a second-year student, I''ll be fighting to bring ss D to the top. I wanted to do what I could in order to make that happen."


    "Ah, I see. Well... I guess I''ll do the opposite and try growing my hair out."


    Kushida sounded cute and innocent, but somehow, I was able to pick up on the true meaning behind her words.


    She felt disgusted that her hair was now the same length as the person she hated. I didn''t think anybody would take what she said seriously, but it was possible that she might actually grow it out. I couldn''t help but imagine the raging emotions hidden inside her words.


    "If you''re satisfied, could you both return to your seats?"


    Horikita prompted them to leave. After all, she didn''t want to have people gawking over how long or short her hair was.


    Although her haircut had made waves with those around her, Horikita seemed somewhat unhappy about all the attention she was getting for it.


    She was in a bad mood, but fortunately, the bell rang shortly afterward, bringing an end to the ongoing chatter.

 Chapter 4: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 4: 2.1</h4>


    Several days had passed since the opening ceremony. The weekend came and went, and it was Monday once again.


    A peaceful school life. A daily routine constantly repeating itself over and over again.


    The start of the new school year brought about many changes, the most notable of which being that the ckboards had be digital and that all of our textbooks had been reced with electronic tablets. I looked down at the brand new tablet that the school had distributed the week before.


    All supplementary ss materials were also now on these tablets, truly highlighting just how poprized electronic books had be these days.


    Each student had been given one of their own, and high-speed charging ports had been freshly installed at the back of the ssroom. Portable battery chargers had also been made avable to us whenever we needed, just in case our tablets were to run out of power during ss. While, as a general rule, we weren''t allowed to bring our tablets back to the dorms with us, we could always transfer any data we needed over the school''s wirelesswork and use that at home instead.


    The cumbersome number of textbooks we used to have was now stored within one 12-inch tablet. Not only did it make it easy to utilize visual aids like graphics or photographs, but it also had support for more globalized uses, allowing us to seamlesslymunicate with foreigners during our English sses.


    For a school overseen by the government, it seemed rather behind the curve when it came to introducing these changes.


    At the same time, it was hard to say whether or not these changes had been the right thing to do.


    The value of these changes would greatly depend on whether or not the students needed them in order to integrate with societyter on down the line.


    This year, the scope of our studies would naturally be more difficult than it was during our first year. I had no frame of reference topare this to, but it seemed reasonable enough to assume that this school was at least above average in terms of difficulty. I found myself wondering if Sud��, Ike, and some of the other students would be able to keep up on their own. In order to prevent any of them from being expelled, they''d need more support than ever before.


    All in all, most of the major changes had to do with the digitalization of the education system, but if I had to name something else, it would probably be how we could now choose where we wanted to sit through the use of private points. I moved from my old window seat to the desk right next to the hallway at the back of the room. The seats next to the hallway generally weren''t very popr because of all of the traffic, but that wasn''t really something I cared about.


    And, while I was running into the new first-year students more often over the course of my day to day life, I wasn''t involved in any club activities, so I hadn''t actually spoken with any of them yet. Last year, the first time I properly spoke with one of the upperssmen was when I needed to collect old exam questions for a special exam, so it wasn''t exactly strange that they hadn''t spoken with me yet.


    In short, the first several days of the new school year had been pretty quiet.


    "Everyone''s here, right?"


    Our homeroom teacher, Chabashira, walked in the ssroom only seconds after the bell rang.


    As morning homeroom began, she took her ce behind the teaching podium with an extremely serious look on her face.


    This, coupled with the fact that there were no regr sses scheduled for both first and second period today, meant that it was safe to assume something was about to happen.


    Our brief, peaceful break was about toe to an end.


    "Sensei, is there a special exam?"


    Ike asked a question before Chabashira even had a chance to open her mouth.


    From the look of it, he had probably spoken because of restlessness, not as some sort of joke.


    Chabashira understood this as well, so she didn''t reprimand him for speaking out of turn.


    In the past, every time a new special exam reared its head, most of our ssmates would feel consumed by anxiety and suspense.


    But now, special exams felt more like hurdles we had to get over on our road to the top.


    The ss''s mindset had begun to change, to face toward the future.


    "I understand that you''re concerned, but there''s something I''m gonna need all of you to do before I get to answering that. Something very important for the rest of your life here at this school."


    Chabashira took out her phone and held it up for us as she spoke.


    "Everyone, take out your phones and ce them on your desks. If you didn''t bring it with you, you''ll have to go back to your dorm and get it, but... I doubt any of you forgot."


    Nowadays, cellr phones have be one of life''s necessities. You could probably even say that it was the number one most important thing to have on you at all times.


    Before long, 39 phones had been ced on the desks. After quickly checking to make sure nobody had forgotten theirs, Chabashira continued speaking.


    "So, the first thing you all need to do is navigate to the school''s homepage and install a new application. It should be avable to download any second now. The official name of the app is ''Over All Ability'', but once it''s finished installing it''ll show up as just ''OAA'' on your phone."


    The ckboard switched over to a different screen, where a captioned live-action video demonstration began to y.


    You could say that this was one of the various conveniences that had been brought to us thanks to the new technology.


    After following along with the exnation given to us in the video and sessfully installing the app, an icon of what appeared to be an illustration of the school together with the letters ''OAA'' showed up on my phone''s home screen.


    "Put your phones down after you''ve finished installing the app. Raise your hand if there''s something you don''t understand."


    The instation process was extremely simple. Everyone here was experienced with using their cell phones, so everything progressed without a hitch.


    "You''re not the only ones doing this either. Right now, every student in the school is installing it. From here on out, this app will be a very useful tool for you here at Advanced Nurturing High School. Well, seeing is believing as they say, so go ahead and get it running."


    I pressed the icon on my home screen tounch the app, but my phone''s camera came up instead.


    "Just take a picture of your student ID card with your camera and it''ll take care of the initial setup process."


    Following along with her instructions, I took a picture of my ID card. The app then scanned the card for various pieces of information like my ID number and portrait photograph and continued with the login process.


    "At this point, each of you should have your own personal ount. Moving forward, you won''t need to login anymore, as your ount is linked directly to your phone, so please be careful not to lose it."


    After finally logging into the app, several different menus showed up.


    "This app holds the personal data of all students across every school year. For example, if you press on the menu for ss 2-D, your names will be disyed in alphabetical order. Go ahead and try it."


    The school pictures and full names of all 39 of us were listed in alphabetical order on the screen, just like she said they''d be.


    "You''re free to look at any profile you want, but you should probably take a look at your own first."


    I tapped on my own name as Chabashira suggested.


    I expected to be met with basic information like my date of birth, but that wasn''t the case at all.


    Instead, I was presented with data I had never seen before.


    ss 2-D �C Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka


    First-Year Evaluation


    Academic Ability: C (51)


    Physical Ability: C+ (60)


    Adaptability: D+ (37)


    Social Contribution: C+ (60)


    Overall Ability: C (51)


    "S-sensei, my scores look like they''ve been converted into video game stats!?"


    "That''s right. The school calcted those ratings for each of you based on your aplishments up until the end of your first year. Of course, you also aren''t the only ones who can ess this information; It''s possible for students of any ss or school year to ess whoever''s info they want. The system was adopted because we believe it''ll be an important tool for the future of your education."


    In other words, the purpose of this OAA app was to provide a numerical evaluation of everybody''s abilities. On the side, it also seemed like it could be used to send public messages to every student in the school.


    There was a question mark icon on the top right corner of the screen that, upon being pressed, presented me with a detailed description of each of the different categories on my profile.


    Academic Ability: Primarily calcted based on your written exam scores conducted throughout the school year.


    Physical Ability: Calcted based on your performance in physical education sses, club activities, special exams, and other physical endeavors.


    Adaptability: Calcted based on your capacity to adapt to the world around you. This includes, but is not limited to, whether or not you consistently demonstrate the ability to think on your feet, yourmunication skills, the size of your social circle, and whether or not you act in a way befitting of your social standing amongst said circle.


    Social Contribution: Calcted based on a variety of factors, such as your general attitude during ss, your attendance record, the presence of any potentially problematic behavior, or your contribution to the school through programs like the student council.


    Overall Ability: A student''sprehensive ability is derived from each of the four values calcted above. However, the effect Social Contribution has on the overall score is reduced by halfpared to the other three values.


    �� Form for how Overall Ability is calcted:


    (Academic Ability + Physical Ability + Adaptability + (Social Contribution * 0.5)) �� 350 * 100 (Rounded)


    I see. With evaluation criteria like this, I could understand why my Adaptability rating was lower than the others.


    After all, the size of my social circle and mymunication skills weren''t very high by any standard.


    My ratings for the other categories were reasonable, given that they were calcted based on various things that I did on a day-to-day basis.


    Alongside the information for my first year, there were additional pages for my second and third-year information, but those were currently nk.


    "Right now, only the ratings for your first year are disyed, but from today onward, new ratings will be reflected on the second-year page as they be avable. They''ll be updated on the first day of each month, the same day private points are distributed. As an example, Sud��, your current Academic Ability rating is an E, but if you were to get full marks on the next written exam, you''d receive an A+ for Academic Ability on your second-year page."


    This meant that our second-year ratings would be evaluated separately from our first-year ratings. Furthermore, the ratings for each year would always be held on record. Even if Sud�� were to get full marks on April''s first written exam and get an A+ rating, if he were to take a zero on the next exam, he''d end up with a C rating, or something along those lines. And after a full year of that, our average rating would be what''s left in the end.


    One of the most noteworthy features of this app was that it allowed us to check up on not only our own ss, but every other ss as well. Before this, I couldn''t find out about students I had never interacted with without personally going out and gathering information, but now, with just a nce at the app, I could find out anyone''s name, face, and what kind of ratings they had gotten, regardless of whether they were in my school year or not. Incidentally, the data for the first-year students seemed to be based on information from back in their third year of middle school along with the results of their entrance exam. This meant that Academic Ability, Physical Ability, and Social Contribution ratings aside, it was possible that their Adaptability ratings may not be very reliable.


    It was a useful grade checking tool... Or, no, there had to be more to it than that.


    The app was obviously meant to y an important role of some sort.


    "There are probably some students here who aren''t satisfied with their ratings and feel frustrated with how they''ll be kept on a record like this. But to those students, I can only say that you''re the ones who spent thest year acting as you did."


    The closer one''s important ratings like Academic Ability and Physical Ability were to an E, the more disgraced one would feel as a student.


    "However, your first-year ratings are a thing of the past, and they won''t have any influence on the evaluations you''ll be getting as a second-year. In other words, it''s important that those of you who received unsatisfactory results take advantage of this opportunity to improve yourselves. The school expects that being able to visualize your progress will help promote growth like that."


    Since the app holds a record of personal ratings that anybody can look at, many students would probably start putting in effort in order to make themselves look as good as possible. This would probably have some sort of promotional effect on getting better ratings like Chabashira said it would, but...


    "Sensei, why is Social Contribution the only one that''s factored in differently than the other three categories?"


    This question came from Hirata Y��suke, who had been wondering about why the Social Contribution category had less than half of the influence on Overall Abilitypared to the other three.


    "Academic Ability, Physical ability, and Adaptability. The school considers these three categories to be extremely important. Social Contribution, on the other hand, is a little different. Social Contribution is based on morals and manners. It''s an assessment of what you look like as a student in a general sense, considering things like the tone and attitude you take with your teachers, the presence of absences or tardies on your attendance record, whether or not you''re willing to abide by various rules, and even the influence of your voice and the uracy of your words. It covers the type ofmon-sense abilities that you can''t afford not to have, so the impact it has on Overall Ability is lower as a result."


    Unlike the first three categories, where you couldn''t just improve dramatically overnight, you had the ability to greatly improve Social Contribution-rted skills any time you wanted just by changing your mindset and the way you went about doing things. That was the difference.


    "This app considers everyone equally. It doesn''t matter what ss you''re in or where you are amongst your peers, the app evaluates you just the same. As it is now, you could say that those of you with high ratings in the Overall Ability category have done something worthy of praise as individuals."


    In the app, the students were listed in alphabetical order, but it also seemed to be equipped with a sorting function.


    And thanks to that, there was no need for me to look through each student in ss 2-D one by one to find out who had the highest Overall Ability rating.


    Upon testing out the sorting feature, I found that Y��suke was the one to take that spot.


    ss 2-D �C Hirata Y��suke


    First-Year Evaluation


    Academic Ability: B+ (76)


    Physical Ability: B+ (79)


    Adaptability: B (75)


    Social Contribution: A- (85)


    Overall Ability: B+ (78)


    Y��suke''s excellence was obvious after just one look at his numbers. His ratings were objectively high-level all across the board. If he hadn''t exposed his weakness at the end of the first-year, his scores might''ve been even higher.


    On the other hand, when sorted in descending order, Ike was the one to take the top spot with an Overall Ability score of 37.


    Right below Ike was the name Sakura Airi, with the same Overall Ability score of 37.


    Sud��, somebody that many students had expected to take the lowest ce on the rankings, was actually ced several ces above that.


    ss 2-D �C Sud�� Ken


    First-Year Evaluation


    Academic Ability: E+ (20)


    Physical Ability: A+ (96)


    Adaptability: D+ (40)


    Social Contribution: E+ (19)


    Overall Ability: C (47)


    His Academic Ability and Social Contribution ratings were both profoundly low, given his bad behaviorst year. However, his rating for Physical Ability was more than enough topensate for that, saving him from the bottom of the list. Upon further inspection, I found that, out of every student in the second year, he was the only one who had gotten A+ in the Physical Ability category.


    Sud�� had grown both academically and mentally whenpared to when he first came to this school, and his ratings would probably only continue to get better as time went on.


    "On another note, while this doesn''t directly have anything to do with ss D, there are special exceptions in ce for second-year students. ss 2-A''s Sakayanagi Arisu''s Physical Ability rating will take on the same value as the student with the lowest Physical Ability rating in the school year."


    Sakayanagi Arisu had been physically handicapped from birth.


    She had to use a cane to get around, even while walking.


    In other words, physical activity wasn''t something she was capable of, even if she wanted to.


    Having said that, the Physical Ability category couldn''t just be removed from the calction for her overall score. So in that sense, having her take up the same score as the lowest ced student seemed like a reasonablepromise.


    At any rate, this tool for visualizing abilities was probably an integral part of Nagumo''s proposed individualist meritocracy.


    "I''m sure this app will distinguish itself as an important tool, not only for changing your mindsets and improving yourselves, but also for interacting with others since you''ll now have a medium to quickly familiarize yourselves with the names and faces of students regardless of what school year they''re in. However... I also think there''s more to it than that. This is just my own personal spection, but... maybe a year from now, students who fail to keep their Overall Ability rating above a certain threshold will be given some kind of penalty of sorts."


    "Penalty... You''re not saying, like, expulsion, are you Sensei...?"


    "It''s possible. But, as I said, this is just spection. It''s not a cold hard fact or anything. But the closer your Overall Ability rating is to an E, the more dangerous of a position you''re in. It''s best you keep that in mind."


    For the time being, Ike and Airi were ranked at the bottom, with both of their Overall Ability ratings close to an E.


    If they spent this next year doing the same things they didst year, they''d be in hot water.


    "Some of you are also probably dissatisfied with how the school''s assessment may not line up with what you think you should''ve gotten, but keep in mind that this is just how the school sees you as of right now. If you''re dissatisfied, then you''ve got this next year to prove us wrong. After all, the school isn''t infallible."


    "B-but Sensei, how are we supposed to do that!?"


    Ike frantically raised his hand as he asked, having realized that he was at the bottom of the ranks.


    "Well, as an example, the uracy of the Physical Ability rating depends on whether or not a student takes part in club activities. If you''re confident in your abilities, it might be a good idea to join a club."


    Chabashira was saying that students who showed their abilities to the school would generally end up getting better results. That being said, it still depended on the individual. If a student were to appeal to the school in a bad way, it could end uping back to bite them.


    "It''s like we''re fighting on our own."


    Horikita''s quiet muttering didn''t go unheard by Chabashira.


    To Horikita, it probably felt like the introduction of this app did away with the notion of ss-focusedpetition she hade to expect during her first year here.


    And she probably wasn''t the only person who felt this way either.


    "You''re both right and wrong, Horikita. The school approved and implemented a proposal by the current student council president, Nagumo Miyabi, and that is the very system we''re introducing this year."


    So Nagumo''s dream of creating a system where individuals are evaluated based on their own merits was finally being realized. The reason why he wasn''t very activest year must''ve been because he was busy pouring his time and resources into making this app.


    "But, the fact that the school''s emphasis lies on working together as a ss still hasn''t changed. Keep that in mind as you work hard to improve yourselves every day."


    With the apps installed and the following exnation finished, the first period came to an end. As soon as the break between periods started, everyone''s eyes were immediately glued to the screen of their cell phones. Not only did they want to see their own ratings, they also wanted to know how their ssmates and the rest of the school were doing.


    "I ain''t happy with how they''re treatin'' me like I''ve got lessmon sense than K��enji!"


    Sud��ined loudly as he scowled at K��enji,pletely fixated on the ratings of the app.


    I eavesdropped on his conversation (though, he was speaking so loudly it was hard not to hear him) while looking to confirm what he was saying on the app.


    ss 2-D �C K��enji Rokusuke


    First-Year Evaluation


    Academic Ability: B (71)


    Physical Ability: B+��78��


    Adaptability: D- (24)


    Social Contribution: D- (25)


    Overall Ability: C (53)


    K��enji had received high ratings in both Academic Ability and Physical Ability, which made sense given that he had demonstrated a certain degree of proficiency during our standard sses and tests.


    "What''re you on about? Your Physical Ability rating is like, way higher than his anyway."


    Ike, who didn''t have any particrly outstanding ratings of his own, enviouslyined right back to Sud��.


    "That''s cuz K��enji isn''t taking this shit seriously. It''s hard toe to terms with."


    K��enji''s physical abilities were extraordinarily high, just like Sud�� said. His potential was on the same level as Sud��''s or maybe even greater, but, he wasn''t a member of any club and his participation during PE sses wasrgely dependent on his mood, so there was no way to tell for sure. Unless he''s personally invested, he was one to just suddenly give up on something or skip out on doing it altogether. It wasn''t even all that umon for him to not even lift a finger in the first ce either. Sud��, on the other hand, tackled physical problems head-on and always pounded out top-ss results, no matter what task he''s been faced with. Even though their physical abilities may be simr, it was obvious why there was such a great difference in the ratings they had been given.


    That being said, the category Sud�� was upset about was the Social Contribution category.


    That is, the category that had to do with morals and manners.


    In that regard, K��enji, the one being singled out and criticized, was just as much of a problem child as Sud��.


    It seemed that Sud�� couldn''t stand the fact that his Social Contribution rating was the lower of the two of them, even though that was only just barely the case.


    It''s not like I couldn''t understand why Sud�� wanted toin, but...


    The reason why K��enji''s Social Contribution rating was higher than Sud��''s was probably because he hadn''t had as many opportunities to cause problems for the ss or the school. Given the suspensions and violent behavior Sud�� exhibitedst year, the fact that he was below K��enji wasn''t all that surprising.


    Even though K��enji himself could hear everything Sud�� said, he paid no heed to any of it.


    He also hadn''t bothered with using the OAA app any more than necessary, unlike those around him who werepletely engrossed with it.


    Over the course of thest year, K��enji was probably the one who had changed the least.


    In any case, thanks to this app, we were now able to quantify the results of our first year at this school.


    And, there were both advantages and disadvantages for us as a result.


    For example, the existence of the Overall Ability category had created a provisionalpetency ranking of sorts.


    Now, if a troublesome special exam were to take ce again, the ss probably wouldn''t even need to discuss who the expulsion candidates would be. The students with the lowest overall scores would be the ones in the hot seat.


    Deep down, Airi, who was ranked at the very bottom together with Ike, probably wasn''t very happy about that either.

 Chapter 5: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 5: 2.2</h4>


    With the introduction of the OAA app still on everyone''s minds, the second period began.


    And yet, the ss was probably more concerned that Chabashira would officially start getting into ''that'' now.


    Unsurprisingly, this prediction had been spot-on.


    "Now, I''ll give you guys an overview of the next special exam."


    With that, Chabashira broached the subject, almost as if she was starting off a normal, everyday lesson.


    "The first special exam you''ll be taking this year will incorporate new experiences that you''ve nevere across before, just like with the introduction of the app."


    Was this Tsukishiro''s doing, or was Nagumo the one behind it? Either way, the school seemed to be going through some major changes.


    "The bottom line is that the exam will take the form of a written test where you second-years will be partnering up with the newly admitted first-years."


    "Partnered with... the first-years...?"


    We had only rarely ever done something that skipped across the different school years before.


    There were exceptions to this such as the training camp, but the established trend was for sses of the same year topete against each other.


    Had the barrier between school years been broken due to the introduction of the OAA app?


    "This special exam will primarily focus on your test-taking andmunication skills."


    Test-taking skills andmunication skills.


    Two concepts that, at first nce, didn''t seem to have anything to do with each other.


    "The importance of test-taking skills needs no further exnation. However, before now, this school has never had any in-depth interaction between students of different school years other than during things like athletics festivals or training camps. Therefore, the school determined that yourmunication skills have fallen by the wayside."


    "B-but we''ll still bepeting with others in our own school year, right? Something feels suspicious about this."


    The idea of getting heavily involved with the first-years seemed to make Ike a bit frustrated.


    "It''s not like I don''t understand where you''reing from, but try and think about it objectively for a second. In your first year after entering the workforce, the people youe in contact with won''t be fresh graduates like you. Some will be in their second year at the job, while others will be veterans touting 20 or 30 years, and you''ll bepeting with them all the same. Despite the huge gap in experience, they very well might be rivals for you."


    "That''s... well, I guess I can imagine that."


    "While the world as a whole is slowly shifting over to a meritocracy, many Japanesepanies are still bound up in the concepts of seniority and lifetime employment. For those of you who felt that it would be ufortable to interact with your upper or underssmen when you heard about this special exam, I suggest that you reconsider. Put in a way that''s easy for you to understand, let''s consider the concept of grade skipping. Grade skipping is a fairlymonce urrence in other countries like America, Britain, and Germany. In those countries, it isn''t all that rare for small, young children to study together with high school or college students. Can any of you imagine or even ept the idea of an elementary school student studying together with you here, in this ssroom?"


    At Chabashira''s inclination, the ss began to visualize the scenario. A scenario that they almost certainly weren''t able toprehend. They must have felt that it was strange or even impossible.


    It''s true that there were hardly any cases of students skipping grade levels in Japan. Although specific conditions had to be met, most people were probably unaware that it was even possible. In Japan, the concept doesn''t really align with the status quo where the education system is rtively linear. But, that doesn''t necessarily mean that Japan wasn''t willing to consider the concept in and of itself. For example, the White Room didn''t conform to this structure of education, so I could understand this fairly well.


    However, I was certain that this wasn''t all there was to what Chabashira was saying.


    It wasn''t just about imitating what other countries are doing. It''s also essential for Japan to adopt an education style suited to the Japanese climate. Chabashira was most likely aware of this herself, but had no choice but to give this exnation to us as instructed by the higher-ups.


    "In the future, there will probably be more cases where you''llpete against the first and third-year students. However, this particr exam is about helping you build cooperative rtionships, so do well to keep that in mind."


    I found myself wondering if this was the reason why the special exam required both test-taking andmunication skills. Some students seemed to be unable to wrap their heads around what the rules would be like, as they looked visibly confused at this point.


    "The easiest way to get all of you to understand would be to remind you of one of the special exams you went throughst year. You can think of this exam as an improved version of the Paper Shuffle exam, where you were partnered up from among your ssmates."


    Paper Shuffle.


    It was a special exam where we partnered up with a ssmate and tackled a written exam together.


    Essentially, this meant that we''d be partnering up with one of the first-years this time instead of partnering up with a ssmate.


    Even though that seemed to be the only difference, it was quite arge one.


    "You''re free to partner up with anyone you want from the first-year students. The testing period willst until the end of the month, which is about two weeks from now. You''ll have plenty of time to both carefully choose your partner and focus on your studies."


    With a special exam like this, it made sense why they had us install the OAA app.


    The first-years wouldn''t be familiar with the names and faces of the upperssmen.


    And naturally, the second-years wouldn''t be familiar with the names and faces of the underssmen either.


    During the Paper Shuffle examst year, we were able to freely choose our partners aftering up with some workarounds thanks to the fact that the exam''s partnering system was handled from within the ss.


    In other words, students who weren''t very good at studying were able to just rely on someone else to survive the exam. However, the exam this time around would be different. Partnerships would be made on the premise that both sides would be looking for excellent students to pair up with. Moreover, instead of partnering up with our peers, we''d be partnering up with underssmen we had little to no rtionship with. The circumstances we were facing now in our second year were different from our first.


    Above all else, it takes a fair amount of time to build up a trusting rtionship from scratch.


    Without the app, it would almost certainly be impossible to establish a meaningful rtionship in just two weeks'' time.


    But thanks to OAA, some shortcuts could be taken since you could just match someone''s face to their name in the app.


    Furthermore, since the app also provides you with a rough idea of a prospective student''s academic abilities, it''d be easy to use it as a reference when making your decision on who to partner up with.


    "You''ll be tested on five subjects on the day of the exam. Each subject will be worth 100 points, for a total of 500 points. Now for the most important part... this time, you''ll be evaluated based on two different standards. The first being your results as a ss, and the second being your results as an individual."


    Chabashira tapped on the screen of the ckboard, bringing up the details for the special exam that she had just talked about.


    ss Rewards (Split Based on School Year):


    The inter-sspetition will be based on the average score of each ss in your school year. This will be derived from thebined scores of each person in the ss added together with their respective partners.


    Each ss will be rewarded with either 50, 30, 10, or 0 ss points, based on how their overall average scorepares to the other sses in their school year.


    Individual Rewards:


    You will be graded based on thebined score of you and your partner.


    The top five pairings will each receive a special reward of 100,000 private points.


    The top 30% of pairings will each receive 10,000 private points.


    In the event a pairing''sbined score fails to exceed 500 points, the second-year student will be expelled from the school and the first-year student will not receive any private points for the next three months, regardless of how many ss points they might have.


    Additionally, any student judged to have deliberately marked questions incorrectly or otherwise found to have manipted or lowered their scores will be expelled regardless of their school year. Simrly, in the event a third party is found to have forced a student to lower his or her score, said third party will be expelled from the school as well.


    "You should already be somewhat aware of this, but in this exam, the students with high Academic Ability ratings will be sought after first."


    If OAA didn''t exist, nobody would''ve been able to find out the true abilities of the other students. But now, with the advent of the app, that information was exposed for all to see. The lower your Academic Ability rating was, the harder it''d be to find a partner.


    In all likelihood, the students who seemed weaker academically would get left in the dust.


    Smart students would naturally join up with a smart partner and aim for the top rewards. Academically insecure students would also seek out intelligent partners in order to survive. The students with weak academic abilities would inevitably partner up together and, in the end, probably fall below the 500 point baseline. In which case, the harsh reality is that second-year students would then be expelled from the school.


    The second-year students understood how the school worked and had developedsting friendships with many of the people in their ss.


    Even if they didn''t go after the top rewards, they would probably still move to help support their ssmates.


    The first-year students, however, hadn''t had the chance to get very close to their ss yet. As a result, the concept of somebody that they''re not very close friends with having to go without private points for three months probably wouldn''t seem like a very big deal. It would be just like at the beginning ofst year when most of ss D was fine with abandoning Sud��... No, it would be even more extreme than that.


    "Partnerships will be formed once both sides agree to it, and you can finalize the process by confirming it on the app. You''re allowed to form your partnerships whenever you want after this, but once you''ve confirmed who you''re going to pair up with, you won''t be allowed to change to someone else."


    With that being said, it would be difficult to make an immediate decision unless your partner''s academic abilities were insanely high.


    A careless decision could lead to regretter on.


    The monitor on the ckboard updated, presenting us with information on choosing partners.


    Rules and Regtions for Choosing a Partner:


    Once per day, you are allowed to send a partnership application to a prospective student through OAA. (If the other party does not ept, the application will be reset after 24 hours.)


    If the other party epts your application, the partnership will be finalized and you won''t be allowed to cancel it thereafter.


    �� The only exceptions being extenuating, unavoidable circumstances such as expulsion or serious illness.


    Once a partnership has been finalized, the information disyed on the OAA app will be updated at 8:00 AM the next morning and no new applications to either student will be epted.


    �� The details about who a person has chosen to partner up with won''t be listed on their profile.


    Due to these restrictions, one couldn''t just send out arge number of applications at random. And, even if you sent an application to somebody, you wouldn''t know if they ended up partnering up with another student on that same day until 8:00 AM the next morning, meaning that it was possible for you to waste an application entirely.


    To be fair, I don''t know if anyone would actually ept an application from a student they didn''t know all that well anyway.


    It''s possible that these rules were implemented to help obscure who partnered up with whom. After all, if the information was updated as soon as a pair formed, it''d be rather easy to analyze the overall strength of each ss.


    "Sensei! There''s no way that one of the first-years is gonna wanna pair up with me! Is an idiot like me really supposta rely onmunication skills in order to get through this!?"


    Ike''sment was understandable.


    Unless all of the good partner options were taken already, the probability that somebody would actually want to pair up with someone with a poor Academic Ability rating was very low.


    Or at least, that''s how it should be as long as nothing shady happens.


    "Don''t worry. It has been set up so that, no matter how many of you are unable to find partners, nobody will be left without one. This is because, in the event that you don''t pair up with somebody, a partner will be randomly selected for you at 8:00 AM on the day of the exam."


    Upon hearing that there were protective measures in ce, Ike breathed out a sigh of relief.


    "That being said, those who aren''t able to find themselves a partner before the deadline shouldn''t expect the same level of treatment as those who do. Therefore, pairs formed past the deadline will be subject to a 5% penalty to their overall score."


    This short reprievested only a second, as the ss collectively groaned the moment Chabashira mentioned the penalty.


    While you''d still be allowed to take the exam, you''d be put at a fairly painful disadvantage.


    "Sensei, there have been three expulsions amongst the second-year students so far. Won''t the first-year students have three people left over?"


    Upon hearing Y��suke''s trivial question, Chabashira replied indifferently.


    "The three extra students will have their exam scores doubled to make up for their missing partner. However, they''ll also be subject to the very same 5% penalty, so there probably won''t be very many of them who would want to face the exam alone."


    Essentially, one person would be ying out both roles. It seemed that the three first-year students leftover at the end wouldn''t have anything to worry about as long as their academic abilities were good enough.


    Either way, I couldn''t afford to be worrying about just Ike and Sud�� during this special exam.


    After all, this was going to be an exceedingly difficult special exam for me as well.


    The reason it was going to be so difficult was the rule where, if my partner and I didn''t score over 500 points, I''d be expelled from the school. Put another way, this meant that my partner absolutely had to score at least 1 point in order to clear the special exam. Even if I were to get full marks in each of the five subjects, if my partner scored a 0, my expulsion would be set in stone.


    Under normal circumstances, this would be an extremely pointed, dangerous rule. Because the first-year students aren''t at risk of expulsion, if they purposefully took a low score and threw the exam, this rule meant that the second-year student would be unreasonably forced out of the school... However, in order to prevent that from happening, the school hade up with another rule.


    [Any student judged to have deliberately marked questions incorrectly or otherwise found to have manipted or lowered their scores will be expelled regardless of their school year. Simrly, in the event a third party is found to have forced a student to lower his or her score, said third party will be expelled from the school as well.]


    This rule was probably an extremely indispensable factor behind the legitimization of this special exam.


    It was designed to protect against unfair behavior such as threatening the other party that you''d cut corners or demanding for them to hand over private points. It made it impossible to tantly misbehave during the exam. In a sense, it meant that the average student would be more robustly protected by the rules.


    However, even though the rule would usually be more than enough, it still fell short of ensuring anything.


    Because�� for the White Room student, it was apletely different story.


    The White Room student was setting up on the premise of being expelledter anyway, so this rule wasn''t a deterrent to them at all.


    If they sessfully managed to pair up with me, they''d most likely end up taking a 0 without even the slightest hesitation.


    In other words, if I chose the White Room student as my partner, I''d be done for. Even though the special exam only just started, I already had at least a 1 in 160 chance of being expelled.


    Typically, there''d at least be a rule stating something like: ''In the event one student is expelled from the school due to dishonest conduct, the other will be treated as though they passed the exam without any further penalty.'' However, based on everything I had heard so far, there was no way of guaranteeing that.


    The reason why nobody bothered to ask about it is because everyone was under the same self-serving assumption, convinced that nobody would dare do something that would deliberately get themself expelled. No, that wasn''t the only reason.


    In the unlikely event that somebody actually did, the school itself would probably deal with it quickly.


    After all, the school most likely felt that it would be far too harsh to expel a student who simply got caught up in their partner''s unfair behavior. However, if I was the one who ended up getting caught up in it, that man would probably force me out of the school without batting an eye.


    He''d say it was my fault for partnering up with somebody who didn''t take the exam seriously.


    He had set up a small loophole in the rules so that he could react flexibly depending on the student in question.


    The image of that man, Tsukishiro, rose up in the back of my mind. I had no doubt that he was the one who had concocted these rules.


    There was no way he wouldn''t take advantage of this opportunity. If I was too slow at finding a partner, the regr students would start getting chosen one after another and my chances of ending up with the White Room student would go up.


    It''d be nice if I could act quickly and pair up with somebody that doesn''t seem like they came from the White Room, but ording to the OAA app, my Academic Ability rating was a C. I didn''t have the luxury of being able to choose whoever I wanted.


    Having said that, even if I wanted to choose someone with an extremely low Academic Ability rating, my C rating wouldn''t be enough to dispel their worries about the exam, so they probably wouldn''t be willing to partner up with me.


    In which case, the logical conclusion was to find a partner with a rating simr to mine that I wouldn''t have any issues pairing up with, but it''s possible that my opponent was already lying in wait in anticipation of that.


    Even though we had only just been told the rules, it was already clear that this exam would be more challenging than any other special exam we had taken before.


    "Sensei. How difficult are the exam questions going to be?"


    With the raise of her hand, Horikita asked Chabashira a crucial question that most of the ss was probably wondering about.


    "To tell you the truth, there are many extremely difficult questions on the exam. It''ll definitely be one of the most challenging exams you''ve taken so far. But... that''s only the case if you''re looking to get a high score on it. The exam has been designed so that even students with an E rating in Academic Ability can score at least 150 points without any prior preparation. With a couple days of studying under your belt, 200 points should be more than manageable. This is only a rough estimate, but��"


    Chabashira cut off mid-sentence as she disyed a table of estimated scores for the exam split up by Academic Ability rating.


    E Rating �C Between 150 and 200 Points


    D Rating �C Between 200 and 250 Points


    C Rating �C Between 250 and 300 Points


    B Rating �C Around 350 Points


    A Rating �C Around 400 Points


    "If you study properly, you should be able to get a score close to those shown here. However, don''t forget that if you''re conceited and neglect your studies, you may end up with a lower score than this."


    Chabashira was saying that we shouldn''t just blindly trust the scores being shown to us on the monitor.


    "In addition, as you can see from the part of the table that says that students with an A rating are expected to score around 400 points overall, it''s unlikely that anyone will score over 90 points in each subject, let alone get a perfect score."


    This was probably what she was talking about back when she said it would be one of the most challenging exams we had taken so far.


    In any case, this simply meant that, if two students with E ratings were to pair up with each other, the second-year student would be at risk of facing expulsion.


    "That should be everything for the overview of the special exam you''ll be taking in April. Get ready to buckle down and do your best."


    At this point, Chabashira began to exin the scope of topics that''d be covered in the test for each subject.


    ording to her, as long as we went back over the material we learnedst year, we should be fine for the most part.

 Chapter 6: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 6: 2.3</h4>


    Once the break between sses began, many students inevitably went and gathered around Y��suke.


    Upon seeing that, Horikita quickly got up from her seat and joined them.


    I decided to listen in on their conversation as well, for the time being.


    "W-w-w-what should I do, Hirata!? My Academic Ability rating is an E! I''m screwed!"


    With his head in his hands, Ike begged Y��suke for help.


    Y��suke looked out over the whole ss as he tried to calm Ike down.


    "Let''s calm down first, and then we''ll settle on a course of action."


    "Yes, there''s no need to panic in the slightest."


    "B-but!!"


    "This certainly won''t be an easy exam, that''s for sure. A second-year student with an E rating in Academic Ability needs to pair up with a first-year student with at least a B to ensure they''ll score above 500. But, conversely, this exam should be fairly low-stakes as long as they pair up with somebody with at least a B rating."


    She made it seem like the condition required to ovee the exam wasn''t veryplicated, perhaps to calm him down.


    "Furthermore, we''ve gone through simr exams together as a ss over ourst year here. If we coordinate and study as best we can like we''ve done in the past, it shouldn''t be impossible for you to score over 250 or 300 points."


    "Yes. It''s exactly as Horikita-san says. If we work together, we should all be able to get through the exam safely."


    Y��suke echoed Horikita''s standpoint and the people around them gradually started to calm down.


    "The important part of all of this is that you don''t partner up with someone without thinking it through first. Even if you think it''s urgent, you shouldn''t rush the process unless a first-year student with at least a B rating is willing to pair up with you."


    It was true that, if you got ahead of yourself and partnered up with someone early on, your decision would be set in stone for the rest of the exam.


    You had to make sure that you and your partner would definitely score above the 500 point baseline.


    "As for those of you with a B+ rating or higher, I''d like for you to take a good objective look at the situation. It might be important for us to reserve a certain number of our more skilled students in order to save everyone. At any rate, regardless of whether you''re good at studying or not, if somethinges up please consult either Hirata-kun or me."


    Horikita only asked them for the bare minimum: to avoid making a panicked decision. The honor students such as Keisei and Mii-chan nodded along without hesitation, indicating their willingness to cooperate. Horikita could''ve taken on the responsibility of sorting out the negotiations for everyone in the ss, but that would''ve made it more difficult for the partner-making process to run smoothly. There would be lots ofpetition for every prospective partner, so every second would be essential.


    "For now, I''m going to try and negotiate with the first-years who joined the ser club. It seems like some of them are good at studying, so I''m thinking we might be able to get them to partner with us."


    After Horikita finished talking, Y��suke proposed his own idea to her. It was a good strategy to approach problems with more numbers.


    "Can I count on you for that? It''d be reassuring to have your support."


    Nevertheless, club activities were outside of Horikita''s zone of influence. Y��suke smiled kindly and nodded.


    "Additionally, I think we should consider holding a hearing for the students with Academic Ability ratings below a C-, just in case."


    "That''s a good decision. Let''s work together to help everyone find partners."


    Exining the n of action to the entire ss at such an early stage would probably make all the difference. Not only would the weaker students receive helpful feedback, they''d also feel assured that nobody would be abandoning them.


    "Horikita-san, just one more thing. Some��"


    "Some of the students who have ratings above a C aren''t very good atmunicating. I''ll also follow up with those of us who''d struggle to find partners for reasons other than poor academics."


    Their thoughts were so in tune that they understood each other without even needing to discuss it in detail.


    Only a few words were needed for the two of them to be in perfect sync with each other.


    "Thank you. That''d be very helpful."


    Horikita and Y��suke continued their conversation without any hups, sorting out the situation into a form that they were both satisfied with.


    At one point, they used to butt heads with each other, but now they worked unbelievably well together.


    It wasn''t just that Horikita had be more amiable, Y��suke''s flexible way of thinking had also yed a part in it.


    "By the way, Sud��-kun, what about the basketball club? A few first-year students must''ve joined by now as well, right?"


    Horikita inquired of Sud��, who was utterly devoted to his club.


    However, Sud�� seemed somewhat ufortable as he looked away.


    "Y-yeah. But..."


    "But?"


    "Club started a few days ago and all, but, well, we''ve kinda gone full-on Spartan on ''em... or how should I say it? We''ve been pretty harsh on ''em, ya know?"


    "You mean you''ve been intimidating them?"


    "Well, I guess it might be like that. Basketball can be pretty hardcore, aight?"


    The point was that he might''ve already gotten himself into a position where his underssmen didn''t like him.


    Of course, this was all because of how seriously he took basketball.


    Underssmen had a tendency to be very divided on seniors who are strict during practice.


    "Alright. Just focus on your studies and don''t worry yourself too much about the special exam."


    "O-ok."


    It would be counterproductive if Sud�� tried to do something and messed it up, so Horikita gave him a firm warning to focus on something else instead.

 Chapter 7: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 7: 2.4</h4>


    Later on, during the lunch break, Horikita called me out to the hallway after I finished eating.


    "I want to talk about something that isn''t suitable for the ssroom. By talking out here, we''ll know if someone is listening in on us."


    "So? Does it have to do with the new special exam?"


    "Yes. Chabashira-sensei said that this new special exam will be considerably difficult. It''ll be problematic for the academically weaker students, but it''s an ideal setting for ourpetition."


    She must''ve intended to get our personal business out of the way first, so she started with that.


    During the spring break, Horikita and I had promised something to each other. Namely, that we''dpete to see who got the higher score in one subject of a written exam. If I won, Horikita would join the Student Council, and if she won, I''d use, without reservation, the abilities I''d been hiding this past year for the benefit of our ss. They had announced that even students with an A rating in Academic Ability would struggle to get more than 90 points. With an exam that difficult, we wouldn''t botch thepetition with a draw because both of us got perfect scores.


    "I trust you have noints?"


    She wanted to confirm that I had no objections to settling it with the next written exam.


    "Of course."


    As there was no point in dragging it out any longer, I naturally agreed with her.


    "That''s great. Then, let''s move on to the next topic."


    Satisfied with the reaffirmation of our agreement, she took out her phone.


    Then, sheunched the OAA app we had installed just this morning.


    "I looked up the number of students in the first year with Academic Ability ratings of a B or higher. There are 17 in ss A, 13 in B, 13 in C, and 11 in D."


    54 in total. A reasonable percentage, you could say.


    "There are 4 students in our ss that have an E rating in Academic Ability. Make that 12 if you include those with D ratings. There should be more than enough firepower avable amongst all the first-years to cover for them."


    "The question then bes, how many of the first-year honor students can we draw to our side?"


    Even though there were 54 of them, they would inevitably be hotly contested. The slightest opening could lead to all of them getting snatched away from us.


    "Yes. The ss that ends up with the most of those 54 students will naturally have an advantage. On the other hand, the ss that ends up with the students with a D+ or lower will be at a disadvantage."


    The app they just introduced to us was packed with extremely useful functionality.


    The ss that made the best use of it would probably have the best chance ofing out on top.


    "Sakayanagi-san, Ry��en-kun, and even Ichinose-san. Odds are that they''ll all make their first move today."


    Of all the leaders, ss A''s Sakayanagi would probably go on the attack straight away.


    Thanks to the fact that her ss had the fewest number of students who weren''t confident in their academic abilities, the only thing she had to do was entice the smarter first-year students over to her side. The overall stability of ss A was easy to see with just a nce at the app, even for the new students. If they worked together, they could rake in the rewards for the top scorers all in one go.


    Meanwhile, that simply wasn''t an option we had avable to us.


    "First and foremost, we need to prioritize helping our ssmates with Ds or Es get paired up with higher ranking students."


    Horikita nodded lightly in agreement.


    "I won''t say it''s perfect or anything, but I tried making a list for who we should prioritize finding partners for. Either way, I think we need to start by taking care of Sud��-kun first."


    "Hold on. It''s true that Sud�� was given an E in Academic Ability, but is that really the case?"


    Sud��''s grades were so horrendous when he first enrolled here that he had received an E rating as a result.


    However, in thetter half of his first year, his academic performance slowly began to improve.


    In other words, his current abilities were probably better than what was reflected for him by the school.


    "Right... He''s certainly grown by leaps and boundspared to how he was before. Even during spring break, he spent his time studying in order to make up for the stuff he missed earlier in the year."


    "Were you tutoring him the entire time?"


    "Of course not. I don''t have the time to keep himpany every day. He''s already learned how to study by himself to a certain extent. I just checked in on his progress every so often and gave him feedback on how he was doing."


    "Hoh...?"


    I thought Sud�� was only studying due to Horikita, but this was an honestly admirable development.


    "To be honest, Sud��-kun is at a slightly higher level in my book... When Ipare him to other students, I feel like he''s between a D and D+."


    Of course, this was nothing more than optimistic spection.


    However, as someone who knew just how Sud�� was a year ago, he had indeed matured quite a lot.


    "If I''m not mistaken, Sud�� used to panic a lot more when he heard about a new special exam. I''d expected him to be upset this time, but he was prettyposed instead."


    Then again, he did make quite a fuss about losing to K��enji in the Social Contribution category.


    "You think his Academic Ability ratings are above a D, and yet you ced him above Ike in priority on your list?"


    "His personality and outward appearance had arge role to y in that. What he said this morning about how he''s heavy-handed with the newbies in the basketball club had a part to y in it too."


    Apparently, it seemed like she wasn''t being partial to Sud�� after all. She had reached this conclusion after properly analyzing all the factors.


    "If you were a first-year student who knew nothing about any of the second-years... who would you find it easier to pair with, Ike-kun or Sud��-kun? Considering that, on the surface, they both have the same rating."


    "Well, it would have to be Ike."


    Thebination of Sud��''s tall stature, red hair, and harsh tone of voice gave off a terrifying impression.


    If I had to pair up with someone at their academic level, I''d prefer to go with Ike, who was easier to deal with.


    "Nevermind finding a partner that wouldpensate for hisck of academic skills, it''d probably be difficult to find him a willing partner in the first ce."


    This was the exact reason why she chose him as the student she wanted to sort everything out for first.


    "Got it. If possible, we want to get him paired up with a first-year with at least a B- in Academic Ability, right?"


    "Yes. I think he''ll definitely make it through that way. I''d like to get moving as soon as possible, so will you help?"


    "Help? I don''t think there''s anything I can do, though."


    "Just stay by my side and tell me what you think. Having someone I can trust close by would be great."


    "So, you''re saying that you trust me?"


    "I trust you the most out of our ssmates who act independently."


    With the way she phrased it, I couldn''t tell if she trusted me much or not...


    "Or, perhaps sparing even a single minute from your studies makes you worried about losing your match with me?"


    Her provocation was rather counterproductive.


    It was like she had given me a perfect excuse to avoid helping her. All I had to do was say that I was worried and study in my room.


    "I''m very worried about��"


    Just as I was about to gratefully take advantage of that excuse, my cell phone vibrated.


    It was because Ichinose Honami, the leader of ss 2-B, had posted a message in the global chat the school had provided for us in the app. The message was��


    [I have been given permission to host a meet-and-greet for the first and second-year students in the gym today from 4:00 to 5:00 PM. If you can spare the time, please feel free to join!]


    This message was undoubtedly a lifesaver for the students who had been racking their brains about how to make contact with the first-years.


    "As expected of Ichinose-san. She acted with due consideration for everyone, not just her own ss."


    Although it''s unclear just how many students would attend, it''d be safe to assume that there would be a decent turnout.


    It was more than possible that some people might establish partnerships on the spot.


    However, instead of joy, a hint of frustration could be seen on Horikita''s face.


    Perhaps she had been nning a simr strategy.


    "What''s wrong? The special exam only just started, you know."


    "Yes, you''re right. It seems like our first order of business has been decided for us."


    By that, she must mean participating in this meet-and-greet after school.


    And before I knew it, I was being roped into helping her out.


    Well, I suppose it''s not that bad if I''m just keeping herpany...


    It seemed Horikita knew exactly what I was thinking, as she looked me in the eyes like she was testing me.


    "Alright, I''ll go."


    "Oh? You''re actually going to lend a hand? I thought you''ve been avoiding metely, but... you''ve be awfully cooperative, haven''t you?"


    Brazenly imposing on me like this despite being aware that I''ve been avoiding her was really quite the feat.


    "I was just thinking of taking a closer look and seeing what kind of strategy youe up with."


    "I see. It was premature of me to say you''d be cooperative."


    Even so, Horikita seemed to be willing to ept this, rtively satisfied with meing as apromise. This was all just as front, however, as this was an exam where I had no other choice but to take action myself in order to survive. Acting together with Horikita simply made a bunch of things easier.


    "In which case, you can just treat what I say next as though I''m talking to myself. While it''s true that our primary goal here is to get students like Sud��-kun and Ike-kun over the finish line,petition between outstanding students is one of the fundamental principles of this special exam. So naturally, we have to pay close attention to the movements of Ry��en-kun and Sakayanagi-san... That is to say, we have to pay close attention to their strategies."


    Although what she was saying was obvious, the Horikita of the past wouldn''t have thought it through to this point.


    She would''ve focused solely on helping Sud�� and the rest of her ss survive, neglecting to pay any attention to her enemies'' strategies.


    This time, however, she was being very cautious from the start.


    "Of course, at this point, there''s no way to know what kind of tricks those two will pull. That being said, I believe private points will y a key role in their strategies."


    Private points, or in other words, money. Horikita believed that, in this school, the power of private points spoke for itself. For the time being, there was nomon factor connecting the first and second-year students. This meant that using private points would be the best way to quickly settle discussions with them.


    "I don''t know how much financial power ss A and ss C have right now, but if it turns into apetition over the excellent students, they might very well take up the strategy of just buying them outright."


    "Right. Private points will be the easiest thing to understand as far as the first-year students are concerned."


    Anybody could imagine the process of taking private points and exchanging them for the assistance of students with study skills. Though, if you irresponsibly used piles of money to fight this battle, you''d probably run out of private points in the blink of an eye. This was especially true for us in ss D as we had a sluggish financial situation for the past year. It was incredibly obvious that the amount of private points we had, our financial power, was significantly lower than that of the other sses.


    "Under normal circumstances, we should invest our funds to secure a fixed number of students for ourselves as well."


    The reason I said this was because, fundamentally, the only way to fight money is with more money. We had to y the money game, asking ourselves who can stack the bills higher.


    However, the fact that Horikita seemed frustrated about the message Ichinose posted in the global chat earlier must mean...


    "Let''s start by scouting out the meet-and-greet. I can take action if the opportunity presents itself, but I have no intention to rush things. Are you fine with that?"


    It seemed like she still hadn''t settled on a course of action herself, as she didn''t say anything further than that.


    "As an aside, Ayanok��ji-kun. Can I safely assume that you''ll find yourself a partner on your own?"


    "Would you find me one if I asked you to?"


    "Objectively speaking, your Academic Ability rating is a C, so it pretty much doesn''t matter who you pair up with. It should be easy enough for me to take care of while I''m at it, though."


    "Well then, I''ll reach out to you if I''m in trouble."


    If a first-year student decides to pair with Horikita or Y��suke, I could rule out the possibility of them being from the White Room. It wouldn''t be impossible for me to reach out just before the pairing is finalized and switch ces with them. However, if my opponent knew all about this ahead of time, it was also possible that they might predict that I''d choose to do that if I''m in trouble. Since I''d have to watch out for them outmaneuvering me, it''d be hard to say that this would definitively keep me in the clear. Furthermore, the first-year student who decided to pair up with Horikita or Y��suke wouldn''t be very happy with having me rece them, so they probably wouldn''t ept the change very easily either.


    "It''d be better if you didn''t take your time with it. It''s not like there''s nothing to be worried about. The 5% penalty for running out of time won''te cheap."


    "That''s true."


    While I didn''t intend to take too long with it, I was concerned about the student who hade from the White Room.


    There wasn''t a doubt in my mind that they had blended in with the first-year students.

 Chapter 8 - 3: The Problematic Group of First-Years

    <h4>Chapter 8: Chapter 3: The Problematic Group of First-Years</h4>


    Dozens of students, both first and second-year, had gathered together in the gymnasium. The majority of those in attendance were first-year students. Most of them probably saw this meet-and-greet as an important opportunity to meet other students. Since I wasn''t acquainted with any of the attending first-year students yet, the first thing I did was check to see who among the second-years had decided to participate.


    The leader of ss A, Sakayanagi, was nowhere to be seen. I did, however, catch sight of Hashimoto Masayoshi, but it wasn''t clear if he was here as her substitute or not. Sakayanagi''s legs weren''t very strong. Her range of motion was limited, and she couldn''t move very fast. Hashimoto yed an important role in helping herpensate for that. As far as I could tell, Hashimoto was the only member of ss A who was here. Moreover, he didn''t seem to be going out of his way to speak to anyone in particr.


    He was probably here on some sort of reconnaissance, figuring out who everybody got into contact with during the meet-and-greet.


    As the organizing ss of the event, about half of the students from ss B were present, Ichinose included. I could see Kanzaki standing together with her to support her. However, I didn''t get the impression that, as a group, the rest of ss B was academically insecure or influential. If anything, it seemed like the students in attendance were the more sociable students in their ss. On the other hand, there didn''t seem to be any students from ss C participating in this event. It was as if they hadpletely disregarded the idea of the meet-and-greet from the very beginning. From this one gathering of students, you could roughly grasp the intentions of each of the different second-year sses. But for Horikita, the second-year students weren''t the important ones today.


    The important ones were the first-years we hadn''t had much of a chance to get to know yet.


    As first-years who had only just enrolled in the school, they shouldn''t know their left from right yet.


    The fact that they were suddenly being asked to pair up with second-year students probably put many of them at aplete loss about what to do. During the event, theytched onto their ssmates, that is, the students they were already familiar with.


    Seeing this, Ichinose decided to avoid bringing up the special exam in the first ce. Instead, she focused on trying to make friends with the first-years by introducing herself and sparking up casual conversations with them. Of course, this didn''t mean that everyone opened their heart to her right away.


    Having understood this, Ichinose didn''t rush the process. She approached them with a gentle smile on her face, slowly melting away the walls of ice that had closed off their hearts. It only took a few minutes of close observation to get a rough idea of what would happen next.


    "Instead of prioritizing the special exam, she''s focusing on building up rtionships based on mutual trust. What an incredibly Ichinose-san way of doing things; A dazzling approach that not just anyone would be able to implement."


    Horikita spoke, expressing her first impression of this meet-and-greet.


    Strategically, it was unknown to what extent ss B would make use of this, but it was extremely important nheless.


    Ichinose''s actions provided benefits for first and second-years alike.


    Horikita had described Ichinose as ''dazzling'' for trying to take on such an active role.


    From a look at the profile of Horikita''s face, I could catch a glimpse of the strategy she had begun to formte.


    "Are you thinking of a simr strategy yourself?"


    "...I am. A strategy based on private points would be too much for our ss to handle. That''s why I thought it''d be important for us to establish a trusting rtionship with the first-year students. But, we''re no match for Ichinose-san when ites to doing that. Or rather, that sort of strategy is pretty much her exclusive way of doing things."


    A certain ''something'' was necessary in order to get the other party to ept you as their partner. That ''something'' could be all sorts of things like private points, trust, friendship, or even obligation.


    "The face and name of ss 2-B''s Ichinose Honami have already be well-known amongst many of the first-year students. The anxious students will flock to her, and I''m certain that she''ll live up to their expectations."


    "Yeah."


    They wouldn''t bother with trying to approach a ss like ours that they didn''t even know anything about.


    "But, even if we can''t replicate that dazzling approach of hers, we still have options."


    Apparently, Horikita had gleaned some sort of idea from this meet-and-greet event.


    The key to this probably had to do with how she was constantly looking at the first-year students as she used the OAA app.


    It didn''t seem like Horikita had any intention of leaving just yet, as she continued to observe the first-years.


    I wasn''t the only one watching her observe the first-years either, as arge figure showed up beside her.


    "But you know what I think? Everyst one of ''em looks damn wimpy to me."


    Next to Horikita, Sud�� thoughtlessly shared his own impression of the first-years he had been looking at.


    He had originally nned to head straight to his club activities after ss today, but the school had epted Ichinose''s request to hold a meet-and-greet and hastily decided that it''d be held in the gymnasium until 5:00, so he had asked to apany Horikita to the event instead.


    Horikita had tly turned him down, saying that he didn''t need toe, but he probably thought it was fine toe since he''d be heading to the gymter on either way.


    "Don''t re at them for no reason. We gain nothing by scaring them."


    "I ain''t ring though. This is just the face I was born with. Well say what ya want, but is it really alright to be taking it easy like this? Won''t the smart guys get snatched up by Ichinose? Shouldn''t we go and say somethin to ''em?"


    Sud�� impatiently spoke to Horikita, saying that it''d be better to reach out to the first-year students as soon as possible. Even if a student that wasn''t from ss 2-B made advances on one of the first-years at the meet-and-greet, Ichinose wouldn''t be angry about it. In fact, she''d probably be happy instead.


    "What are you gonna do, Horikita?"


    I was curious about Horikita''s actions, so I asked her a question as well.


    "Do you really think we can out-socialize ss 2-B in a ce like this?"


    For the time being, Ichinose seemed to be cing more emphasis on saving the first-year students than winning the exam for her own ss.


    Nobody from ss B had even left the event yet, and they seemed to be trying to deepen their friendship with the first-years.


    The first-year students had probably picked up on their raw enthusiasm as well.


    "Well, I don''t think so."


    I conceded to Horikita''s question. It might be possible to out-socialize ss B for Y��suke or Kushida, but the three of uscked the ability to do something like that.


    She must''vee here knowing full well that that was the case.


    When the meet-and-greet really began picking up steam, Horikita finally took action.


    "Let''s get going."


    That is, rather than participate in the meeting and greeting, we were leaving instead.


    This meant that Horikita hadn''t nned on trying to win over the first-years at this event in the first ce.


    "Is that really okay, Suzune?"


    "More than half of the students invited to this didn''t even attend. Those are the students I''m going to negotiate with."


    In other words, she was looking to target the first-year students who didn''t bother with what Ichinose had to offer.


    At the same time, however, winning over those students wouldn''te easily.


    Some of them were students who felt like they could find a partner on their own without relying on others or simply didn''t have the courage to attend the meet-and-greet. Some might have even alreadye up with a strategy for the exam. Whatever the case, it''d be safe to assume that most of them would have rather entric personalities.


    "Let''s hear your basis for thinking that."


    "There are two reasons. Based on my observations earlier, there was a higher proportion of academically insecure students out of those attending the meet-and-greet. Right now, we need to be looking for students with a B- rating as a bare minimum. That is to say, we need to find confident students who are ready to put up a fight without even going to the meet-and-greet."


    I see. With that being the case, it definitely made a certain amount of sense for us to give up on the meet-and-greet.


    "Our top priority is not to pair up students who have A ratings in Academic Ability. Instead, we need to coax the academically gifted students into covering up for the weaker ones so that nobody gets expelled."


    However, even if ss 2-B chose to save a fair number of the first-years who came to the meet-and-greet, there would naturally be some first-years left out. Moreover, Ichinose was probably going to prioritize rescuing the worse-off students over the more academically capable ones. We could''ve stuck around and picked from the leftover rtively capable students ss 2-B wasn''t able to help.


    Her second reason seemed to have something to do with that.


    "Besides, there was a slight inconsistency in the people who showed up for the meet-and-greet that didn''t have anything to do with Academic Ability ratings."


    "Inconsistency?"


    "The students from ss 1-D didn''t attend the event at all."


    They didn''t attend at all? That was indeed an interesting inconsistency.


    "It seems like you understand, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Horikita seemed to catch on to what I was thinking, but...


    "Huh? Is there some kinda meaning behind ss 1-D not attending or somethin''?"


    Sud�� tilted his head, unable to understand the significance behind this.


    "There are 40 people in ss 1-D. Some of them don''t know how to study, and others aren''t very good at socializing. But despite that, not even a single person from ss 1-D participated in the event, which obviously reflects the will of the ss as a whole."


    Clearly, somebody had taken control of the ss and convinced them not to participate in the meet-and-greet.


    It was unusual, considering that only a short amount of time had passed since they had enrolled here.


    "So, you''re saying that ss 1-D already has a leader, and they''re the one who refused to attend the meet-and-greet...?"


    "If there''s someone we can negotiate with at the ss level, it isn''t necessary to try and bargain with people at the individual level."


    In other words, her strategy was to have the students in ss 2-D and ss 1-D cover up for each other.


    "That''s reasonable, but like, wouldn''t it be hard as heck to win the special exam?"


    It wasn''t a bad idea in that it would prevent expulsions, but it would also make it impossible for us to beat the other sses.


    "You''re right. In that sense, I don''t n on engaging in the inter-sspetition this time around."


    "I get that I''m not in any position to say anything and all, but like, is that really alright?"


    "Yes. There''s no problem at all."


    Horikita spoke definitively. Although there were some fundamental differences in the way they were each going about it, Horikita''s strategy was pretty much the same as Ichinose''s.


    At the end of the day, the concept was to give up on the valuable chance to gain ss points in the special exam.


    ss A''s Hashimoto had already left the gymnasium, probably because he had finished up with his investigation of Ichinose''s meet-and-greet.


    Horikita followed in Hashimoto''s tracks as she headed toward the exit, Sud�� and I tagging along behind her.


    However, just before we walked through the door, I turned and looked at Ichinose onest time.


    She was talking to the first-year students with a smile on her face,pletely oblivious to our presence.


    Ichinose would readily extend a helping hand to any student, no matter how low their Academic Ability rating is.


    She had ditched the idea of taking the top spot in the special exam and was instead fighting to prevent any of her own ssmates from being expelled.


    It was pretty much identical to what Horikita was nning to do, just with a different approach.


    However, in essence, were they truly the same thing?


    "Yo."


    After we left the gymnasium, Hashimoto called out to us as if he had been waiting for us.


    "Ichinose sure is the same as always, eh?"


    "It seems like she has her heart set on saving her ssmates along with the first-years."


    "Sure does. As things are right now, she won''t be a threat. Doesn''t she realise bringing idiots onto her side is just gonna drag her down? It''s like she''s tossing her chances of winning in the trash."


    Hashimoto spoke as if he couldn''t wrap his head around it. There was no way he could''ve realized that Horikita was going to execute pretty much the exact same strategy. After all, the fact that Horikita also nned on giving up thepetition was an idea he had never even considered.


    "Perhaps she set up the event precisely because she knew the first-years were going to drag her down?"


    "Aaah, I see. You''ve got a point there."


    "ss A... no, Sakayanagi-san understood everything without even having toe to the meet-and-greet. She had already anticipated which students would show up. That''s why she didn''t participate, isn''t it?"


    "Well, maybe."


    Even so, she had probably sent Hashimoto in alone as a scout.


    "So, how does ss A intend to draw the honor students over to your side?"


    "That''s up to our Princess to figure out. I''m just here to follow orders, ya feel?"


    With that, Hashimoto left, apparently satisfied with what he had talked to us about.


    "Don''t trust a word that bastard Hashimoto says, Suzune."


    Sud�� spoke up after Hashimoto was out of earshot.


    "I don''t need to be told that. Though, are you saying you''re well-acquainted with Hashimoto-kun?"


    "Not even a little."


    Sud��''s response was confident, if not cocky.


    "...I see. Well, ss A has a huge advantage just by being ss A. To some extent, I suppose it''s only natural that they''ll have people flocking over to them."


    Having enrolled in this school, it was only a matter of time until the first-years realized that ss A was the best of the best.


    Even if they weren''t aware of that fact right now, word would spread soon enough.


    "Anyway, let''s get moving. It hasn''t gotten toote, so there should still be some ss 1-D students at the school somewhere."


    We headed off toward the first-year ssrooms to try and find out what had gone on inside ss 1-D.


    While the eyes of her surroundings were focused on the meet-and-greet, Horikita seemed to be taking hold of the opportunity that had presented itself to her.

 Chapter 9: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 9: 3.1</h4>


    We made our way to the floor where the first-year ssrooms were located, a ce where we had spent our days not too long ago.


    There didn''t seem to be very many students lingering in the area, given that most of them had gone to the gymnasium.


    We silently observed the students in the ssrooms from ss 1-A through 1-C, but once they realized that a group of upperssmen were watching them, they ufortably turned and looked away from us. The fact that they weren''t very receptive to our sudden intrusion wasn''t all that surprising.


    Those who didn''t care were few in number, as most probably hated the ufortable atmosphere our presence had created.


    This atmosphere would only get worse in the days toe as well. The second-year students would constantly reach out to the first-years at all times of the day, desperate to find themselves a partner as soon as possible. However, doing so would be a risky gamble that may end up backfiring on them.


    But even so, within each of the ssrooms we checked, we could see first-year students engaged in light-hearted conversations with each other.


    They might have felt like there was no need to worry about the special exam, or perhaps they didn''t think that the exam was a very big deal yet.


    "It seems like most of the students who stayed behind aren''t worried at all, just as expected."


    "Ain''t that nice. Even though I''m freaking out over here."


    Even if a pair were to score less than 500 points during the exam, the first-year student would just be cut off from earning private points for the next three months. While this would undoubtedly be a great loss for them, it probably didn''t feel that critical since they should''ve gotten their first payment just after the entrance ceremony.


    "Kuku. You''re awfullyte, eh Suzune?"


    Horikita was just about to finish up her inspection of ss 1-C when she was greeted by a familiar voice.


    The voice belonged to none other than ss 2-C''s Ry��en Kakeru, who had his eyes fixed on us daringly.


    The door leading to ss 1-D was behind him, and it seemed as though he had juste out of it.


    "Ry��en-kun, are you here to observe the first-years as well? I don''t think I saw you at the meet-and-greet."


    "It was all just a buncha dipshits groupin'' up in the gym, right? Going there''d be a waste of time."


    Ry��en had adopted the same strategy as Horikita. That is, to go after the students who didn''t attend the meet and greet.


    Based on his tone, it seemed reasonable to assume that he was aiming for the best students the first year had to offer.


    He had gotten here a mere 20-30 minutes earlier than us, but...


    With that much time, it was possible that he had already sessfully scouted several people.


    We''d have to wait until 8:00 AM tomorrow morning to see what pairings he had made.


    "Chill out. I haven''t found anyone yet."


    Horikita and Sud�� wouldn''t trust his words very easily.


    That is, at least until the app is updated with the pairings that had been finalized for ss 2-C.


    "Looks like you don''t believe me."


    "At the very least, I''m going to take everything you say with a grain of salt."


    "That so? Seems like I''ve be quite the untrustworthy person!"


    "Oh? But I''ve never once treated you with anything resembling trust before, though?"


    "Kukuku, ain''t that true."


    Sud�� red daggers at Ry��en, seemingly displeased with the joking nature of his back-and-forth with Horikita.


    The average person would probably shrink back in fear from the sharp look Sud�� was giving off, but it had no effect on somebody like Ry��en.


    "I see you got yourself a bodyguard, but god did you choose a dumb one."


    "Whadja say!?"


    Horikita casually held out her hand to stop Sud��, who was on the verge of losing his temper.


    "Oh my, does one need brains to be a bodyguard? Talk about a pot calling the kettle ck."


    With her hand still holding Sud�� back, Horikita stared straight back at Ry��en, her gaze unfaltering.


    "Are you looking to scare the first-years? You do know that attitude of yours will end up backfiring on you, right?"


    The first-year students would probably shrink back upon seeing Ry��en walk around as if he owned the ce.


    "I thought that with a couple light threats they''d immediately agree to help. Somethin'' like that."


    Horikita had responded to his provocations tit for tat, but this time, Ry��en confirmed what she asked him instead.


    "...You''re kidding. Do you really think that''s an eptable way of doing things?"


    "Who gives a damn about whether it''s eptable. What''s wrong with a couple of threats? We were told we couldn''t threaten someone to get a lower score on the exams back when the rules were exined, but I don''t remember being told we couldn''t use some threats to help pair up with people."


    "That''s because it should be obvious without the rules even needing to say it! You''re the one in hot water if something goes wrong."


    "Then how ''bout you make somethin'' go wrong for me then? I ain''t dumb enough to get caught either way."


    His words were as confident as ever.


    Not only was it extremely likely that he''d threaten the first-years, he even went so far as to dere that the truth about it wouldn''t get out either.


    Regardless of whether he was telling the truth or not, Horikita should''ve realized once again that Ry��en would always toe the line.


    "Well, then do what you want. Just know that if I ever find any evidence, I won''t think twice about reporting you."


    She probably meant these words as some sort of deterrent, but it most likely didn''t have any effect on Ry��en.


    "Then what? Who''re you gonna persuade?"


    Thinking there was no need to respond, Horikita kept her mouth shut.


    "You figured somethin'' out while you were at the meet-and-greet, didn''t you? Then you came running over here to check out everyone else?"


    "The same as you then, perhaps?"


    "Kuku. Maybe."


    With that, Ry��en continued to address Horikita, almost as if he was trying to spice things up.


    "If that''s the case, I''ll clue ya in on somethin'' since we''re on the same wavelength here. The first-years this time around only just enrolled here, and yet they''re awfully calm don''tcha think? That is, there''s a good chance that the people from the school told ''em how things work around here."


    If what he was saying was true, it would be quite the unexpected piece of information. Back when we first came to the schoolst April, we had no idea how things worked and goofed off the whole time. Of course, ss A and ss B were far moreposed than we were, but that could probably be attributed to therge difference in our perspective backgrounds.


    But in this instance, Ry��en wasn''t just talking about a specific ss, but the entire school year as a whole.


    Did the school do this in order to have the first and second-year students partner up from the very beginning?


    Or perhaps the school had another motive altogether?


    "Could it be that this batch of first-years just have things figured out and we were exceptionally dull inparison?"


    "Seems like some of ''em have already started up on bringing their sses together. It''s too early."


    Even if they began to take action the moment the special exam was announced, there was no way they would''ve been able toe together this quickly.


    Ry��en was saying that this wouldn''t be the case unless something had happened beforehand, that is, right after they entered the school.


    "...What kind of cowardly trick are you trying to pull by telling me all of this?"


    "It''s nothin'' like that. I can''t just beat down my opponents in a special exam like this. But, I''ll have to pull some strings in order toe out on top overall."


    This wasn''t an easy special exam to get students from the other sses expelled. After all, the strong anonymity of the partnering system made it difficult to know who people were partnered with. It would be extremely difficult to figure out who somebody paired up with the OAA app unless they went around telling everyone or you collected information. Even if you managed to get a student with a low Academic Ability rating to partner up with someone specific in a rival ss, it''d be virtually impossible to force them to throw the exam. If they were to score lower than their Academic Ability rating would suggest they were capable of, the school would deem it as intentional and they''d be expelled regardless of what school year they''re in.


    In the end, the only thing that would influence the oue of this exam was the raw ability of your own ss and the first-year student you paired up with. In terms of strategy, you needed to focus on persuading as many high-performance first-years into joining your ss as possible. Put all of this together, and it wouldn''t be easy for ss 2-C to take the top spot in the exam, as their Overall Ability ratings didn''t seem very good from an outsider''s perspective.


    There was no way that ss 2-C woulde out on top if they decided topete with ss 2-A from a financial standpoint, and their fundamental academic skills were off by miles as well. Things would be tough for them no matter how many private points they invested in trying to entice the first-years. With that being the case, they should give up on the top overall score and instead focus on getting their hands on the rewards given out to the pairs who score in the top 30% in the individualpetition.


    Of course, there was no way Horikita would mention all of this to Ry��en. After all, if ss 2-C didn''tpete with ss 2-A to take the top spot overall, we''d be the ones put in a tough spot. Instead of letting ss 2-A effortlessly snatch up the win, I''d like to see the two sses going at it in arge-scale tug-of-war and wear each other out, even if only a little.


    "Just try your best so you don''t get left in the dust."


    "I could say the same to you. Your concern ispletely unwarranted."


    "Kuku, my bad my bad."


    With that, Ry��en set off, leaving the first-year ssrooms behind him.


    The amount of time he had spent here had been far too short to get things done.


    "The first-year students might be more opposed to negotiating with us than I expected."


    It made sense that they''d be hesitant if they really had been told about the true, desperate nature of the school.


    "Then shouldn''t we negotiate with ''em as soon as possible or somethin''?"


    "Yes... Of course we should, it''s just..."


    Horikita turned and looked further on down the hallway.


    Her eyes were fixated on the ssroom of ss 1-D.


    "Let''s get goin''. Come on."


    Sud�� urged us to keep moving forward to the ssroom ahead of us.


    "I''m afraid it may not be that simple."


    It seemed Horikita had noticed it during the conversation earlier as well.


    From the time Ry��en walked out of the ssroom to the time he left, not even a single student hade out into the hallway.


    We couldn''t hear a single sounding from inside as we approached either.


    Our suspicions were confirmed when we finally arrived at the ssroom and opened up the door.


    "W-what the hell''s goin'' on here!?"


    Panicked, Sud�� scanned the room from one end to the other.


    "Negotiating with ss 1-D may be far, far more difficult than I expected."


    The ssroom waspletely empty, not a single soul to be found.


    It seemed as though the forty students who hadn''t attended the meet-and-greet had vanished without a trace.


    "This ss as a whole might be more troublesome than I thought."


    However, we couldn''t just stand around feeling anxious about it forever.


    After all, we needed to take measures of our own before the other sses began moving in earnest.


    Horikita''s battle would start tomorrow, from the moment when she finally makes contact with the students from ss 1-D.


    I also needed to go home and memorize the names and appearances of all the first-year students on the OAA app.


    Horikita had her battle to fight, and I had mine.


    And so, on the very day the special exam was first announced, a total of 22 sets of partners had been finalized.


    ������


    TL Notes:


    confusedtls team went and wrote a troll ending for this part. The n was to post it and act like it was real and linking the real ending in the TL note here, but They chickened out and ended up choosing to do the opposite. You can read it here if you want: /VJU3d2jY. I''ve been told it''s funny, but it has a bunch of inside jokes that they make fun of about the trantion process, so it might not all make sense. Feel free to take a look.

 Chapter 10: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 10: 3.2</h4>


    The next day, at the end of lunch break, the situation took a sharp turn.


    Everyone was waiting patiently in the ssroom for our afternoon lessons to begin after having finished up with their meals.


    "H-hey, some first-years seem to be headed over here!"


    The one who called this out was my ssmate, Miyamoto.


    The special exam would only be possible with the cooperation of the first and second-year students.


    That was why, given the circumstances, I didn''t think we needed to be so surprised by this, but apparently the rest of the ss didn''t feel the same.


    "They must have an awful lot of courage toe to their upperssman''s ssroom."


    As I pondered about it, Y��suke spoke up to exin it to me.


    "Imagine if we went to visit the third-year students. We''d probably be much more careful about it, right?"


    "That''s true..."


    It''d be a different story if we were on close terms with a lot of the upperssmen, but that wasn''t the case for the first-years.


    For most students, it would probably feel like they were marching into enemy territory.


    So in that sense, a few people showing up like this may very well be something worth being surprised about.


    Y��suke went out to the hallway to take a look, so I tagged along with him.


    Horikita and Sud�� followed close behind us as well.


    The first person that I noticed was a young man with arge build.


    There were several reasons he stood out. The first being that he was about the same height as Sud��.


    But even more than that, the confident, brazen way he walked down the dead-center of the second-year hallway was profoundly impressive.


    The second-year students shrunk back and avoided him as he walked by instead of the other way around. A female student walking just a little behind him.


    Having noticed that this wasn''t some simple act done for the sake of looking for a partner, Horikita went out and stood in front of the male student, blocking his path. Sud�� followed suit shortly after.


    For some reason, as the confrontation with the two first-year students began, the first person they looked at was me, even though I had been watching from a distance.


    Not long after that, they looked away, shifting their focus over to Horikita.


    I thought back on the information I memorized on the OAA app yesterday.


    From the look of it, Horikita would being in contact with that ss earlier than expected.


    "Who''s this chick?"


    "Please wait just a moment... Ah, found it."


    The girl fiddled around on her phone for a moment before showing the boy her screen.


    "ss 2-D, Horikita Suzune. Academic Ability A-, eh?"


    The girl spoke much more politelypared to the boy, so the two of them came across as an odd pairing.


    The boy then turned and looked at Sud��, who was standing next to Horikita.


    Once again, the girl fiddled around with her phone and showed him the screen, just like she had done with Horikita.


    "Sud�� Ken? ...Hah!"


    After seeing Sud��''s ratings, the young man scoffed demeaningly.


    "I am known as Nanase, a student from ss 1-D. And this here is my ssmate H��"


    "H��sen."


    *Illustration


    The duo introduced themselves byst name only. To supplement, the bulky male student''s full name was H��sen Kazuomi, while the girl''s was Nanase Tsubasa.


    Both of them were genuine ss 1-D students, just like she said they were.


    Students from the very ss we hadn''t been able to meet yesterday. Although their sudden appearance here was definitely unexpected, for Horikita, it was both a blessing and a curse. The reason being that, it wasn''t exactly a good idea to start negotiations with them right now, given the presence of students from the other sses.


    "For a couple of new students, the two of you have gone and done something pretty drastic. I admire your courage."


    "Hah? You admire what now? Damn full of yourself aren''t ya bitch?"


    "You reckon she''s the one full of herself? Fuck off with that cheeky attitude, first-year punk."


    H��sen red up at Horikita, prompting Sud�� to re up as well and cut into the conversation.


    Even though they were about the same height, H��sen''s build was a sizerger, so Sud�� looked small inparison.


    "An E+ in Academic Ability? Seems you''re just as retarded as ya look."


    "Wanna say that again!?"


    Sud�� got angrier, but H��sen just ignored him and continued talking.


    "Well, fuck it. Seems like there''s only a buncha ss D twerps here anyway. Works for me."


    "And what is that supposed to mean?"


    "You guys are the shit at the bottom of the barrel. You wouldn''t even be able to find partners without beggin'' our ss for it. So I''ll lend you ipetent retards a hand, aight? You get what I''m sayin''?"


    H��sen responded to Horikita''s question and posed her one of his own, almost as if he was testing her.


    "So, you''re essentially saying you want to partner up with us? And yet you''re asking with an arrogant attitude like this?"


    "No shit I am. You should be the ones begging us to partner with you. I did you idiots a favor by dragging myself over here."


    H��sen challenged her, brushing aside her viewpoint and asserting his own.


    "So hurry the fuck up, get your heads on the fuckin'' floor and beg."


    As she held Sud�� back from letting his temper get to him, Horikita spoke up once again.


    "You seem to be misunderstanding something. Our positions are equal."


    She spoke with even more conviction than before, paying no mind to the physical disparity between H��sen and herself.


    "Equal? Could you let that retarded friend of yours be the only one spewing bullshit?"


    "You''re in ss D just like we are. You''re no different from us."


    "You just don''t get it. If we felt like it, we could do all sorts of things to trash like you. You don''t want shit getting outta hand, right? If so, then know your ce and start waggin'' your tail for me."


    Apparently, this H��sen guy had already noticed the special advantage the first-years had against us.


    "And just what are these ''things''


    you could do to us?"


    Horikita should''ve been well aware of what the answer was, but she still dared to question him, wanting H��sen to be the one to say it.


    "You get it, don''tcha? We''ve got the means to intentionally tank our scores on the exams."


    Upon hearing his words, Horikita bit down on her lip a little.


    "Huh? The hell are you sayin'', you first-year bastard! Cuttin'' corners on the exam''ll get you thrown outta school!"


    "Stop it, Sud��-kun. Losing your temper all of a sudden like this is a bad habit of yours."


    "But..."


    I could understand why H��sen''s excessively aggressive way of speaking made Sud�� want to lose his temper.


    However, what H��sen was saying wasn''t untrue.


    "Sure, the rules say you''ll get expelled if you get caught throwing the exam. But the penalty thates with not findin'' a partner by exam day is different. That''s only a problem for you second-years, yeah?"


    If you ran out of time, a random partner would be chosen for you.


    Furthermore, you''d receive a 5% penalty on your total overall score.


    Since the second-year students had to face the danger of expulsion, they''d feel the effects of this penalty more than the first-years.


    "I-is that really true!?"


    Unable to believe it, Sud�� sent Horikita a look that demanded confirmation.


    But the only thing Horikita could answer with was a nod.


    "Wouldn''t you be strangling yourselves by doing that? Are you really alright with sustaining losses immediately after enrollment?"


    If they incurred a penalty, their chance of scoring above 500 points would naturally go down.


    "It won''t be as much of a pain in the ass for us as it will for you second-years though. Right?"


    H��sen sought confirmation from Nanase, who was standing just behind him.


    "Yes. It is said that we wouldn''t receive private points for 3 months, but at most, that would only be 240,000 points. I don''t believe it would be a fatal problem."


    "You get it now, Horikita-senpai?"


    H��sen stood before Horikita, an upperssman, as if he was the one with higher standing.


    Having seen that, Sud�� couldn''t hold himself back anymore.


    However, he still had enough willpower to prevent himself from throwing a punch, choosing instead to take up an imposing, aggressive stance in front of Horikita.


    "You lookin'' to fight?"


    H��sen challenged Sud�� without even a trace of hesitation in his voice.


    "You''re a cocky one, ain''tcha!?"


    "Don''t lose yourposure, Sud��-kun. You''re well aware of how it is at this school, right?"


    It wasn''t surprising that the first-years didn''t know about this, but the hallways here were constantly under school surveince.


    As the surveince cameras were always running, if something were to happen, the school would dig up the footage to use as evidence.


    "I know..."


    Having been repeatedly admonished by Horikita, Sud�� stood down despite his irritation.


    His short fuse was definitely one of his faults, but at the very least he was willing to listen to Horikita.


    Sud�� turned and looked away from H��sen, but as he did, H��sen raised his hand and shoved him in the chest.


    "Woah!?"


    At that moment, Sud�� lost his bnce and fell backwards onto the floor, catching himself with his hands.


    "Are you just some tall-ass bitch? I barely touched ya!"


    Even the second-years who had been watching the situation unfold couldn''t hide their shock at H��sen''s excessively reckless behavior.


    Considering how immensely audacious it was, it wouldn''t be surprising if this was considered an act of violence.


    If he understood the difficulty and risk that came with exercising violence at this school, he never would''ve done this.


    This new batch of first-years were apparently more familiar with the school''s inner-workings than those of previous years.


    If they really did know more about the school like Ry��en imed yesterday, then I had no choice but to say that H��sen''s conduct here had been straight-up reckless.


    Do they not actually know as much about the school as I thought they did?


    No, that didn''t seem to be the case here. If that were the case...


    "You son of a bitch!"


    Despite having almost regained hisposure earlier, Sud�� realized what H��sen had done to him, and was seconds away from exploding with all of the fury he had kept bottled up inside.


    However, before that could happen, a young man who had been watching the situation from a distance jumped in between them.


    "The hell are you doin''!?"


    It was ss 2-C''s Ishizaki Daichi. While he was normally categorised as a delinquent who was quick to lose his temper, he was also a guy with a lot of heart. It seemed like he wasn''t able to hold himself back any longer upon seeing how cruelly Sud��, one of his peers, was being treated.


    "These second-year guys just keep poppin'' up like cockroaches."


    H��sen let show an amused expression, while the girl who introduced herself as Nanase very tactfully brought him back under control.


    "Didn''t youe here to have a discussion, H��sen-kun? If you came here because you wanted to get violent, I''ll be taking my leave."


    "Violent? I just touched him same as I would petting a cat. My bad, Sud��."


    He addressed the second-year student in front of him without using honorifics, almost as if he was spitting on him.


    "Oi! Being an asshole has its limits, got it!?"


    Ishizaki reached out his arm, looking to grab H��sen by the cor of his shirt.


    The moment he saw the arm moving toward him, the corners of H��sen''s mouth just barely crept up into a smile.


    "Give it up unless you wanna die, Ishizaki."


    Ishizaki''s arm stopped mid-air, only moments away from taking hold of H��sen''s shirt.


    The warning hade from none other than Ry��en, who had apparently been watching the situation from the sidelines as well.


    "Wh-why are you stopping me!?"


    Ishizaki was visibly confused by the fact that Ry��en had stopped him.


    "To think you''d step in. What are you doing?"


    Ibuki, a student from the same ss, also spoke up, surprised by Ry��en''s sudden involvement.


    Ry��en didn''t hate these kinds of confrontations, far from it. He usually weed them with open arms.


    If the moment called for it, he wouldn''t hesitate to throw down, regardless of whether surveince cameras were present or not.


    Which was exactly why the fact that he had stopped the fight from happening was so unexpected.


    Ry��en sent Ishizaki back, and then proceeded to approach H��sen himself.


    "So you''re my opponent now? You look piss weakpared to that retard Sud�� over there."


    Given that Ry��en''s physique didn''t seem all thatrge or impressive, H��sen spoke his mind.


    "I''ve heard a lot about you. A guy named ''H��sen'' was a bit of a local celebrity back where I''m from. I certainly never thought you''d have such a retarded lookin'' face, though."


    Ry��en insulted H��sen with the exact same word that H��sen had used to repeatedly insult Sud��. It was truly the typical Ry��en behavior. Normally, Ry��en was our ss''s enemy, but seeing him take a stand in a confrontation like this was reassuring. In fact, Sud�� had even managed to sessfully get a hold of himself thanks to the change in atmosphere.


    "Y-you know this guy, Ry��en-san?"


    "You just say Ry��en?"


    H��sen''s facial expression changed upon hearing Ry��en''s name, his slight smile turning into a wide, toothy grin.


    "Oi oi, seriously? This must be fate or somethin''. I''ve heard so many rumours about you that it pissed me off, Ry��en."


    "Looks like you''ve got enough brain cells to at least remember someone''s name."


    The two of them had apparently known each other for quite some time now. It seemed like H��sen was from somewhere rtively close to Ry��en''s hometown.


    In any case, judging from the interactions between Ry��en, and his ssmates Ishizaki and Ibuki, it seemed safe to say that he had made aplete revival. Although he had stepped down for a short while, he had takenmand of ss 2-C all over again.


    "However, for the Ry��en to have such a scrawny-lookin'' body... What a let down."


    "And I guess you''re as much of a muscle-head as I imagined."


    "I''ve went to lookin'' to pay you a visit a buncha times to beat the shit out of you, but we never met. You were being a lil'' bitch and hiding from me back then, weren''t you? You ran away and left all the work to your underlings, or am I wrong?"


    "Kuku, fate was on your side, H��sen. If you had crossed paths with me back then, you wouldn''t be nearly as full of yourself as you are now. Seems you''ve gotten lucky since you don''t know what it''s like to experience defeat yet."


    "I was sure you were just runnin'' away with your tail between your legs. But if you''re sayin'' that''s not the case, how ''bout we set the record straight right here, right now."


    H��sen clenched hisrge hand into a fist, disying his confidence.


    If H��sen really knew Ry��en from back during his middle school days, his impression shouldn''t be that different from our own impressions of him. Perhaps he didn''t see Ry��en as someone you wouldn''t want to make an enemy of?


    "Chill out. I''m not gonna exchange blows with a gori when there''s nothing in it for me."


    Despite having been offered a fight, Ry��en ignored his provocation and refused.


    Of course, it was because there was no way he could fight in a ce like this, but...


    Ishizaki and the others probably thought Ry��en would ept the offer, even if they had to change ces to do so.


    "Is this guy really all that scary? He''s bigger than Sud�� and all, but..."


    "Who knows."


    It didn''t seem like Ry��en had any intention of giving an answer right now. He just let show a slight smile before giving his next directions to his ssmates.


    "Let''s call it a day."


    "Are you really gonna just let a first-year look down on you like this?"


    Ibuki was well aware that Ry��en was the type of person who''d exchange blows with anyone, no matter who it was, so she couldn''t help but ask him this.


    "Hah! We can settle this any time we want. It doesn''t have to be now."


    Ry��en responded to Ibuki with apletely calm, collected attitude.


    While it would''ve been best for it to end with that, H��sen walked forward, closing the distance between himself and Ry��en.


    "Is that chick also one of your underlings?"


    He posed this question to Ry��en, having been watching as they talked with each other just moments earlier.


    "Well, somethin'' like that."


    "Huh? Who? Who died and made you the boss of me?"


    "What, you even have chicks doin'' your dirty work?"


    "I could say the same to you. You''re the one who brought along that pretty lil'' doll of yours, aren''t you?"


    In a simr fashion, H��sen had the girl named Nanase standing right next to him.


    "She ain''t my underling. Well, I don''t really give a fuck either way. Let''s take this outside, Ry��en."


    "I told you I ain''t doin'' that."


    No matter how many times H��sen provoked him, Ry��en still wouldn''t get caught up in it.


    And, as if to symbolize that, he turned his back on H��sen, illustrating his intention to withdraw.


    "That so? Well then��"


    Ry��en wasn''t biting, and H��sen didn''t seem to find that very funny. All of a sudden, he casually extended his arm out toward Ibuki. She tried to brush his arm away as he did so, but...


    Just before she could knock his arm away, H��sen''s movements elerated, and hetched his hand around her neck and raised her up in the air.


    "!?"


    Ibuki frantically tried to rip his arm away as the fight or flight response flooded her brain.


    However, H��sen smiled fearlessly, his arm unyielding as if it had been cast from steel.


    Ry��en turned back around, taking notice of what was happening to Ibuki.


    She did whatever she could with her hands and legs to try and get away, but H��sen didn''t budge in the slightest.


    "Haha! Just you try and escape, girl. That, or I don''t mind if all of you pussy-ass onlookerse at me as well."


    Instead of fearlessness, his expression exuded an aura of absolute self-confidence.


    That being said, getting involved in the situation certainly wasn''t an easy choice to make either. If you were to cause amotion in a ce like this, the school would naturally end up catching wind of it. Given that the school would inevitably get involved, nobody did anything. Nobody, that is, except for Ry��en, who stepped forward despite the surprise. He put himself right up in H��sen''s face, not so much to strike a blow on H��sen as it was to save Ibuki. Ry��en kicked at H��sen repeatedly, but H��sen just casually shrugged it off even though his movement was restricted with one of his hands around Ibuki''s neck.


    "You bastard!"


    At that point, Ishizaki, who Ry��en had previously told to stop, joined in as well.


    It was turning into the type ofmotion that made it hard to imagine that we were in the hallway of a school.


    "Yes... yes! It was worthin'' all the way out to this school after all!"


    A full-blown fight could start at any second.


    However, Nanase, who had been watching in silence the entire time, opened her mouth to speak.


    "Please stop, H��sen-kun."


    H��sen was making a show out of going up against two opponents despite being handicapped by his hold on Ibuki, but when his ssmate Nanase called out to him, the show stopped.


    "What did you just say?"


    Rather than just obediently following her request, he made full disy of his irritation over the fact that she interfered.


    "The upperssmen have been worried about the surveince cameras for a while now. Based on the circumstances, I''ve determined that there''s nothing to be gained byshing out here."


    "No shit. I know that already. That''s why I''m fuckin'' around with ''em, aight?"


    He admitted he was aware that our actions were limited due to the surveince cameras.


    In which case, the series of actions H��sen had taken here were still iprehensible.


    H��sen proceeded to ignore Nanase''s request and refocused his attention on the fight unfolding before him. At that point, however, Nanase became even more forceful with her words.


    "If you know what you''re doing, then that''s all the more reason to stop. If you continue to waste time with this pointless quarrelling, I''ll take matters into my own hands. You have me considering whether or not to tell everyone about ''that'', right here, right now."


    Upon hearing her mention the abstract term ''that'', H��sen stopped for a second time.


    Then, with a dull, tedious look on his face, he released his grip, dropping Ibuki down to the floor, coughing violently as she did.


    "Aight then, Nanase. But, just know that if you betray my expectations, I won''t show any mercy, even to a girl like you."


    "I''ll dly take you up on that when the timees."


    No matter how much H��sen intimidated her, Nanase still spoke confidently.


    She seemed so calm andposed that the fact that she was in front of the second-year ssrooms didn''t even seem to matter to her.


    Nevertheless, this H��sen guy was no ordinary person. Amongst all of the second-year students, there were a fair number who were proud of their fighting abilities. There were guys like Ry��en, Sud��, and Albert. However, despite being a first-year student, I could tell from just a glimpse that H��sen was the real deal. Even if I were to confront him, I probably wouldn''t be able to keep him in check. Since I had only seen a glimpse of what he was capable of, I couldn''t even predict what would happen if he went all-out. The reason why Ry��en tried to stop Ishizaki from acting carelessly was probably because he judged that engaging in a simple fist-fight would put them at a disadvantage. An outrageous first-year had arrived.


    "I''ll stop. We did what we came for. Let''s get outta here, Nanase."


    "Yes. That''s a wise choice."


    Seemingly satisfied with everything except the fight, H��sen turned and looked at Ry��en onest time.


    "If you prostrate yourself to me, I suppose I could let you pair up with me, Ry��en-paisen."


    "Sorry, but I only work together with humans. I have no intention of being with a wild gori."


    "What a shame."


    However, this unexpected turn of events didn''t end with that.


    Because, besides H��sen and Nanase, there was one other first-year student who had been watching as the situation unfolded the entire time.


    This student had probably gotten on H��sen''s nerves, as he turned his attention to them at the end.


    "You just gonna slink around and watch, Fucker?"


    "A wise man keeps away from danger. Perhaps you''ve never heard the proverb?"


    With that, the first-year boy eloquently fended off the scowling H��sen''s question.


    "A friendly conversation is one thing, but it''s not a very good idea for you to cause any more trouble here, H��sen-kun. I think you should be the one to withdraw first. Do you disagree?"


    As the boy spoke those words of advice, an adult finally arrived in the hallway.


    "What are you doing here, H��sen?"


    A lone man donned in a suit hade in order to break up the turmoil of the students.


    And, when the man spoke, many of the second-year students who had been watching from the sidelines fled to their ssrooms.


    "H��sen, I understand that you feel restless, but I''m sure you''ve been hounded on the school''s rules to the point where your ears hurt."


    "Yeah yeah, I get it."


    "If you really get it, then go on and disperse. You shouldn''t fight in the hallways."


    "This shit wasn''t even a fight."


    With a scornfulugh, H��sen put his hands into his pockets and turned away.


    He had backed down unexpectedly easily, giving off an order for Nanase to retreat as well.


    "I''ll see yater, Horikita."


    Housen expressly dropped Horikita''s name before he left... no, rather, it was more like he was saying this to ss 2-D as a whole.


    "I''m sorry for the disturbance."


    With that, Nanase bowed her head in a final apology, sessfully drawing an end to the situation.


    And then, when she raised her head, she looked at me once more before she left. It was the same look as the one she gave me when she first arrived here. That is, an inquisitive look that seemed as though she was probing for something.


    But, as soon as I noticed she was looking at me, she immediately looked away and ran after H��sen.


    "I must apologize to all of you. The students of my ss have caused you trouble."


    The teacher apologized to Horikita, who had been watching the situation unfold from nearby.


    "No..."


    "While I''m at it, please allow me to introduce myself. I''m the one who''s been put in charge of ss 1-D, Shiba Katsunori. Although I''ve only just arrived at this school, I''m looking forward to getting to know you moving forward."


    After a brief self-introduction, Shiba-sensei turned around to follow after H��sen and Nanase.


    Then, as if to change ces with Shiba-sensei, the eloquent first-year student who fended off H��sen came and bowed to the second-years.


    "It seems that my peer, H��sen-kun, has gone and troubled the upperssmen. I shall present you with yet another apology on the behalf of the first-year student body."


    Unlike H��sen, he seemed to be a student who was well versed in the art ofmunication.


    "We first-years still don''t really understand this whole special exam thing. I apologize for the inconvenience, but we''d appreciate it if you all could take care of us."


    After finishing up with his apology-sh-introduction, the student began to turn his head, implying that he was about to leave as well.


    But then, he suddenly noticed something, or rather, someone.


    A small group of girls from ss 2-D had just gotten back from eating lunch together.


    It consisted of four people: Matsushita, Kushida, Sat��, and Mii-chan.


    He stared at one of them, Kushida, with a surprised expression on his face.


    "Everyone seems kinda shaken. What happened, Horikita-san?"


    Despite taking notice of the student''s presence, Kushida reached out to Horikita, curious to find out about what had taken ce here.


    "Nothing you guys need to worry about."


    "Is that so?"


    At Horikita''s dismissal, Kushida shrugged, ready to return to the ssroom together with her friends.


    "Uhm... Are you Kushida-senpai, by any chance?"


    "Eh?"


    Having heard someone speak up to her, Kushida turned back around. I found myself wondering if the fact that the student knew Kushida''s name meant that they were acquaintances from the past, but...


    "Erm?"


    Kushida looked at him with visible confusion in her eyes. The atmosphere between them seemed to leave no room for familiarity.


    "Don''t you recognize me? I suppose it''s understandable if you don''t but, it''s me, Yagami Takuya."


    After hearing his name, Kushida thought it over for a little bit before it dawned on her.


    "Yamagi... Ah! That Yagami-kun!?"


    "Indeed, that Yagami. It''s been a while, hasn''t it!"


    "So you came to this school too, Yagami-kun! What an amazing coincidence!"


    "I certainly never thought I''d see Kushida-senpai again here!"


    "You two know each other?"


    Sat�� asked curiously, to which Kushida nodded.


    "Yep. Although, we''ve hardly ever interacted with each other. Yagami Takuya-kun. He gave me the impression that he was incredibly smart. We never said very much to each other outside of greetings because we were in different school years, though."


    "Do you know anything about this?"


    I whispered to Horikita to check what she knew and she responded immediately.


    "Well, not really."


    "You don''t seem to remember much of anything about your old ssmates, do you?"


    "You''re not wrong. Back then, I didn''t have the time to pay attention to people I didn''t have any interest in."


    Apparently, she really didn''t remember... or rather, she didn''t even pay attention to it in the first ce.


    Given that she didn''t even bother to pay attention to her own ssmates, there was no way that she''d remember an underssmen.


    Well, even though Kushida didn''t remember him at first, a boy probably wouldn''t be able to forget about Kushida once they''ve seen her.


    After all, that was just how eye-catching her appearance truly was.


    "I''m really quite lucky to attend the same school as Kushida-senpai, who I admired so much, again."


    "That''s too much..."


    Kushida responded with humility. However, if she really did go to the same middle school as Yagami, a few concerns came to mind.


    "Does this Yagami guy know about ''you-know-what''?"


    I whispered to Horikita once again. My use of the term ''you-know-what'' was, of course, referring to Kushida''s past.


    Back during her time in middle school, Kushida had brought about the destruction of her own ss.


    Furthermore, she saw Horikita, someone who had gone to middle school together with her and knew the truth about what had happened, as her enemy. This is because Kushida felt that it was dangerous for somebody to know what she was capable of, and wanted to get rid of Horikita as a result.


    Since he had also gone to the same middle school, it wouldn''t be strange if Yagami knew the story as well, but...


    "I wouldn''t be surprised if he did, but there''s no guarantee either way."


    In which case, Yagami''s presence here wasn''t very reassuring as far as Kushida was concerned.


    Since there were people who came from the same middle school in our grade, it made sense that people from the same school could be in the other grades as well.


    "I know this is sudden, but if it''s you, Kushida-senpai, then I''d have noints. Would you be willing to partner up with me?"


    Although he had only just met her again, Yagami made his offer, holding out his hand with a smile on his face.


    *Illustration


    Was he trying to emphasize that he didn''t know anything about her past? Or was it that it didn''t matter even if he did?


    "Would you really be fine with someone like me? You should pair up with someone who''s better at studying, Yagami-kun."


    Yagami Takuya''s Academic Ability rating was an A, that is, nothing short of impable, so Kushida''s modesty was understandable.


    Horikita, who was messing with her cell phone right beside me, was looking to confirm his rating for herself in the OAA app.


    "I don''t know my left from right at this school yet, so I''d like to partner with somebody I can trust."


    Even though the app could tell you about somebody''s academics, it wouldn''t tell you a thing about their personality.


    That being the case, Yagami had probably decided that it''d be better to choose somebody that he knew would produce reliable results.


    "Erm, well, let me think about it for a little bit, I guess...?"


    It wasn''t clear whether it was because she was wary of Yagami, or there was some other reason, but Kushida decided to put his offer on hold for the time being.


    "Why of course. I''ll hold off on partnering up with anyone and patiently await your reply, Kushida-senpai."


    With an A rating in Academic Ability, there was no need for him to find himself a partner immediately.


    Therefore, Yagami calmly agreed to her request.


    "Damn, how lucky. I wouldn''t have hesitated to pair up with ya if it were me..."


    Given his E+ rating, Sud�� seemed jealous of Kushida''s ability to pick and choose who she''d be pairing up with.


    "Then you should try harder moving forward."


    "I''ll definitely get me some way better scores!"


    He was longing to improve himself, dissatisfied with staying where he was now.


    I distanced myself from Horikita and the others for a moment.


    It was because I saw Haruka beckoning me toe over to where she was standing.


    She was together with the rest of the members of the Ayanok��ji Group: Akito, Keisei, and Sakura.


    "H-he was super scary, huh?"


    The very first thing I heard after joining up with them was Airi''s impression of H��sen.


    "It sure feels like there''s a buncha troublemakers like Sud��-kun and Ry��en-kun in this new batch of first-years, huh?"


    Having watched the whole ordeal y out from a distance, Haruka spoke, her words filled with exasperation.


    Standing right beside her was Akito, who was motionlessly staring down at the end of the hallway where H��sen had disappeared.


    "Miyachi? What''s wrong?"


    "One hell of a guy just enrolled here. This school might get pretty stormy moving forward. That guy... H��sen is so strong that Sud�� and Ry��en can''t evenpare to him."


    "What? You know him too, Miyachi?"


    "I''ve never seen him in person or anything, but Ry��en and H��sen are both quite famous back where I''m from."


    Akito apparently used to live somewhat close to the middle schools that Ry��en and H��sen attended.


    "Put simply, the gang leader at my school was pretty confident in his fighting skills, but one day somethin'' happened and the guy just up and disappeared all of a sudden. Not long after that, I started hearing stories about how some first-year middle schooler named H��sen had beaten him to a pulp in a one-on-one and sent him to the hospital despite being two years younger than him."


    "G-gang leader? This is like something straight outta one of those delinquent manga! It''s like, kinda spooky."


    "The ce I''m from is famous for how it''s always attracting all sorts of delinquents."


    "Huh..."


    Akito had been using a lot of words Haruka hadn''t heard very often, so she looked a bit bewildered.


    "And just like that, H��sen went around, tightening his grip on each of the middle schools in the area, one after another."


    "Isn''t Ry��en-kun famous too? It seemed like this was the first time those two met, though."


    "I get the sense they just never happened to run into each other is all."


    "Say, were you a delinquent too, Miyachi?"


    "I... I''ve stopped doing that sorta stuff. I''m a proper student these days."


    "So you were a delinquent after all."


    "...I had a bad temper until my second year of middle school. Ever since then I channelled all of it into archery."


    "So, in other words, you''re saying you were a delinquent, right?"


    Akito scratched his head ufortably as Haruka constantly hounded him with strange questions.


    "Is that a bad thing?"


    "Not rea~lly. Instead, it''s like, kinda super cool, isn''t it?"


    "It''s not cool at all."


    It seemed like the reason why Akito was so well-informed when it came to fighting was because he had been on both sides of the issue before. It was true that we had seen things from him that suggested it before, from his nerves of steel to the agility of his movements.


    "Since you''re a former delinquent, what if you went and showed H��sen what''s what?"


    "Stop joking around. I''m one to choose my opponent before I fight with someone, and there''s no way that I''d choose to fight H��sen."


    Akito raised a white g before a fight even took ce. His words and conduct were such that, rather than admitting his own weakness, he emphasized and acknowledged H��sen''s strength.


    Ibuki had a good enough sense forbat as well, but she couldn''t do a single thing to stop H��sen earlier.


    The difference in their physiques was overwhelming. Moreover, she had been no match for him in terms of speed either.


    ������


    TL Notes:


    Housen''s lines are absolutely hell to trante. He speaks really differently than any other character in the series, and I hope I managed to capture that for all of you in how I tranted them. I put in a ton of effort so I hope it''s fun to read how he speaks. Either way, it took me way more effort and energy to trante Housen than I expected it would, so that was the reason for some of the dy.

 Chapter 11: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 11: 3.3</h4>


    After school, I was approached by Horikita, just like yesterday.


    As we were about to leave the ssroom together, Sud�� came along, strong-arming his way into apanying us. Although Horikita tried to turn him down like she didst time, she was apparently persuaded by his desire to lend a hand until he managed to find a partner. She agreed to it under the condition that it didn''t get in the way of his studies or participation in his club activities, and began to take action from there. For Horikita to be this gentle, or perhaps I should say epting, certainly felt unexpected.


    However, there was probably a perfectly good reason for it.


    There were only about ten days left until the special exam. Given the high difficulty of the written tests, it would be ideal for Sud�� to secure a time and ce where he could focus on his studies, even if only a little. But, if he''s always worried about Horikita''s movements, he wouldn''t be able to concentrate. It was clear that Horikita wanted to find Sud�� a partner as soon as possible so he could make the time to focus on studying.


    Though Horikita had a solid understanding of the man named Sud�� Ken, there was one crucial aspect she had yet to understand. Namely, Sud��''s feelings for her. She hadn''t realized that there was a reason he always wanted to be by her side.


    Of course, there was no way I''d point this out to her. After all, it was one of Sud��''s most important motivators.


    Instead of heading toward the first-year ssrooms, Horikita led us in the direction of the Keyaki Mall.


    Perhaps it was because the first-year students had caused trouble in the second-year area during lunch today.


    She was being considerate so as to ensure that a simr development wouldn''t happen again.


    Or maybe she had decided against it because of H��sen, the problem child from ss 1-D?


    I''d find out soon enough either way.


    "Gotta say, there''s a lot goin'' on here. These first-years are really makin'' a lotta noise."


    As soon as we entered the mall, Sud�� crammed his left pinky finger into his ear, seemingly irritated.


    He spoke bluntly, sharing his impression of the first-year students spread out before him.


    "There are certainly a lot of students hanging around, aren''t there?"


    They were all over the ce, happily chatting amongst each other about what they''d like to buy or eat.


    "And yet I''m out here seriously lookin'' for a partner."


    Dedicating several days to finding a partner wasn''t just a good idea for second-year students, but for first-years as well. However, there was a huge discrepancy between the students of the two grade levels.


    That is, the difference in our understanding of special exams.


    Very few of the first-year students felt a sense of urgency, just like the students we saw yesterday after school.


    This became even more pronounced after we had left the campus.


    "It''s understandable isn''t it? It''s no different from how it was back when we were first-years."


    "I suppose that''s true..."


    The students had received arge sum of private points just aftering to the school, and they naturally spent their days living in idle amusement as a result.


    Even if they were from ss A, it didn''t make very much of a difference.


    No matter the method, the degree to which they would indulge themselves was the same.


    The most troublesome part of all of this was the difference in punishments for the first and second-year students.


    Compared to expulsion, the first-years would only have to suffer through three months without private points.


    "Just look at ''em, messin'' around without a care in the world."


    "You''re one to talk, Sud��-kun. Have you already forgotten what you were like as a first-year?"


    "I-I didn''t forget... I''ve reflected on it a lot, okay?"


    After all, he had been the first student to be under threat of expulsion.


    However, the relief measures we had used to save him back then weren''t avable to us anymore.


    The privileges that came with being new had long since been used up.


    "For the time being, how about we try and reach out to some of them?"


    Horikita said, spotting a group of three male first-year students seated together on one of the mall benches, cracking jokes with each other.


    Their names were Kaga, Mikami, and Shiratori. The three of them were students of ss 1-D with Academic Ability ratings of B- or higher. Before reaching out to them, Horikita first made sure to look them up on the app, just in case.


    It seemed like she was still looking to go after students from ss 1-D after all.


    "Could I trouble you guys for a second?"


    "...What is it?"


    They could probably tell that they were being approached by upperssmen just by looking at us.


    Their cheerful-looking expressions had faded away, reced instead with vignce and caution.


    "We''re searching for partners for the uing special exam. You guys don''t have partners yet, right?"


    "Eh, ah, yes. We haven''t paired up with anyone yet."


    "If you don''t mind, could we discuss it on the premise of pairing up with us?"


    "We don''t mind at all. Right guys?"


    After hearing our proposal, the three of them nodded as if they had discussed this in advance. It was an unexpectedly good response, and it felt like they had lowered their guards a bit.


    Sud�� was also shocked by their favorable attitude, letting show a slightly surprised expression.


    "However, I''m very sorry to say this, but our top priority right now is to find��"


    "Partners who can prevent those of you with low Academic Ability ratings from being expelled, right?"


    It seemed that this notion had already spread amongst the first-years.


    "Yes. If you guys are already aware of that, then our discussion will be much easier."


    "Let''s see... so you''d like for one of us to partner up with... Sud��-senpai?"


    They spoke confidently since they had checked our OAA profiles on their cell phones as well.


    "That''s right. He''s one of them. There are several others as well, though."


    "Ah, I see. So his Academic Ability rating is an E+...? This could be tricky."


    The words he chose were tactful, but it was clear that he was emphasizing Sud��''s low academic performance.


    While everything the first-year had said was true, Sud�� still seemed a little ticked off, but somehow he just barely managed to prevent it from showing on his face.


    "If it''s you, Shiratori, it should be fine, right?"


    Kaga and Mikami turned the focus over to Shiratori, who was seated on the right end of the bench.


    "As it stands now, my Academic Ability rating is an A."


    "So it seems. If you''re willing to partner up with him, then I have nothing more to say."


    "Alright then... how about this?"


    Shiratori gestured toward Horikita, showing her his hand with all five fingers raised as he made his proposition.


    For a moment, Horikita didn''t quite understand what he meant, so she shot a look back over at Sud�� and I. This prompted Shiratori to speak up again.


    "Oh gosh. You want us to partner up, right? If so, a certain something is absolutely necessary, don''t you think?"


    Hearing those words, Horikita finally understood.


    "...I suppose you''re referring to private points?"


    "Of course. If I partnered up with somebody smart, I could aim for the top spot. Since I''d be giving up the potential rewards thate withing out on top by partnering up with somebody who has a low Academic Ability rating, it''s only natural that there bepensation, wouldn''t you say?"


    "What!? You wanna take points from us? And 50,000 points at that...? That''s way too many!"


    For Sud��, who had been leading a life where he was constantly low on funds, this was an outrageous amount of points.


    "Senpai, please stop joking around. How could I possibly ept 50,000?"


    "Ah?"


    "500,000. If you give me 500,000 points, I''ll happily partner up with you right here, right now."


    "F-five hundred thousand!?"


    "There will be consequences if somebody gets expelled from your ss, right? We''ve done our fair share of looking into this as well."


    It was apparent that there was a vast difference between the first-years now and how we werest year.


    They had started to understand the structure of the school''s system, and furthermore, knew the value that they themselves brought to the table.


    Between those of us here, it was hard to tell who was an upperssman and who was an underssman.


    That''s just how the situation could be interpreted.


    "You''re not wrong that pairing with somebody who has a lower Academic Ability rating would call for some degree ofpensation."


    "O-oi, Suzune, I ain''t even got close to 500,000 points though?"


    "I know that, so be quiet for a second."


    The three first-years had strained smiles on their face once they overheard Sud�� carelessly leak his poor financial situation.


    "It''s natural to desire points, but is chasing after short-sighted greed really worth it?"


    "What are you saying?"


    Shiratori, as the representative of the three of them, asked Horikita to borate.


    "What I mean is that, if you were to do us a favor here, we might be able help you out in a simr situationter on down the line."


    Horikita was trying to persuade them that, if they made a loan that didn''t involve private points, they''d be ced at an advantage in the future.


    "Aside from Horikita-senpai, who has an A in Academic Ability, I can''t imagine that Sud��-senpai or Ayanok��ji-senpai would be very helpful to us, though?"


    "That''s not necessarily true. There''s more to this school than just academics. There are also times where athletic ability is required."


    This was particrly applicable to Sud��, as he was the only second-year student who had an A+ rating in Physical Ability.


    Horikita was looking to use this as a weapon, but...


    "I know that, but at the end of the day you guys are still ss D, right? If I was looking to curry favors, I''d rather reach out to ss A or B."


    Shiratori responded, havinge to a calm, objective judgment.


    At this point, Horikita probably understood it as well.


    "...I see. So that''s how it is, huh?"


    Having taken into ount the number of private points involved and how smoothly they had handled our offer, it wasn''t necessary to think about it very deeply.


    "W-what does that mean?"


    "Before you arrived, we were consulted by another ss of second-year students."


    "And they told you not to sell your academic ability for cheap, right?"


    "Yes. Please know that we won''t be partnering with you if you can''t put up a suitable number of points."


    Despite facing such clear rejection from Shiratori and his friends, Horikita still didn''t back down.


    "If that''s the case, then it''s certainly true that you can''t sell yourselves cheaply. However, I find myself wondering if they really approached you at all?"


    "What do you mean?"


    At that, Shiratori''s expression seemed somewhat discontent, as if his pride that came with his A-rated Academic Ability had been wounded.


    "You guys are in ss D, just the same as us. I don''t believe the higher-ranked sses would''ve approached you so easily."


    This was Horikita''s bluff. If one had a high Academic Ability rating, they would be useful in this exam, even if they were a student in ss D.


    She had said this for the sake of confirming who it was that had reached out to them, and the details of what had been said.


    Shiratori objected to her assertion in a slightly rough tone, having seemingly been instigated due to his wounded pride.


    "It''s true. We were invited by Hashimoto-senpai from ss 2-A. And, we''ve also been approached by ss 2-C, offering us a fair sum of points to partner up with them. Right guys?"


    The two others nodded along in agreement.


    "And it''s not just us either. Practically all of the smart ones out there have been approached by now."


    The ones who were seeking to buy them out were ss 2-A and ss 2-C, just as Horikita had predicted.


    "I see... In which case, there''s no way for us to respond to your expectations right now."


    "Ah, but we won''t turn you down if you have the points for it. We''ll be observing the situation for the next week or so. If you can offer 500,000 points in that time, we''d be d to partner up, even with someone like Sud��-senpai."


    500,000 private points. The amount it would take to ensure that you wouldn''t have to face expulsion.


    It was arge sum alright, but from another angle, it was the price that came with buying your own safety.


    However, a definite decision couldn''t be made right now, nor should it be.


    "By the way... How many points did Hashimoto-kun and the others offer you?"


    She wanted to know exactly how many points were on the table here, but Shiratori and the others weren''t that naive.


    "We promised not to share that information. The only thing I''ll say is that, if you have 500,000 points, we''ll willingly help you out."


    "I understand. I''ll take it into consideration. In any case, could I ask you three for a favor? Could you perhaps introduce us to some of your other ssmates?"


    "Introduce?"


    "We''ve already nned on cooperating with your ss, at least to some extent. But it''ll take a lot of time and effort to approach each of you one by one and exin the same things from scratch. If possible, I was hoping you guys could gather some people together and we could have a concrete discussion from there."


    She briefly brushed upon the idea of working together, but didn''t articte what exactly that was about.


    The three of them exchanged nces with one another, but their facial expressions seemed slightly embarrassed.


    "That''s... entrusting us with something like that... it''ll be kinda difficult, right guys?"


    "Yeah. If we went ahead and did that on our own, H��sen-kun would probably get angry with us."


    The name ''H��sen'' hade up as the three of them discussed the topic.


    From their words and behavior, I got a sense of the fear they had for him.


    "I''m sorry Senpai, but could you please ask this of someone else...?"


    Sure enough, that guy was the one who held the key to ss 1-D.


    Having noticed the obvious change in atmosphere, Horikita decided not to pursue the matter any further.


    "Thank you. I''ll reach out to you if I need anything else."


    "O-okay. We''ll be waiting."


    We walked away from the bench and began heading toward the cafe on the second floor of the mall. I discreetly looked behind us as we went, only to see Shiratori hurriedly making a call on his cell phone.


    "Although we''ve gotten some information, it''s hard to say we''ve made any real progress. The only thing I''m sure of is that they''ll cooperate as long as we provide them with the absurd sum of 500,000 points."


    "They''re really takin'' advantage of us with these ridiculous requirements and all."


    "It''s a ridiculous sum of points, that''s for sure. But at the end of the day, there''s also no reason for them to sell themselves short."


    Not selling yourself short was even more important for those who had gotten an A rating in Academic Ability.


    Compared to aiming for the 100,000 points you''d get from taking a top spot in the exam, this was a far better method.


    "So like, the only way I''m gonna save myself is by payin'' somebody with private points?"


    "It''s hard to say there''ll be anybody willing to help you for free."


    The notion that points were required to establish rtionships had already spread throughout the student mindset. It was best to assume that not only Shiratori and his friends, but the first-year student body as a whole knew about the system of exchanging private points. This was all probably part of Sakayanagi and Ry��en''s strategy. Normally, exchanging points for favors was looked down upon and doing so should, in theory, be done in secret. However, now thatrge-scale buy-out tactics had taken center stage, they had forced the first-years to acknowledge that providing services withoutpensation would be equivalent to taking a loss.


    Nevertheless, something in our earlier conversation with Shiratori and his friends had caught my attention.


    Even though it seems that they had already been approached by the other sses, Shiratori had still said that he''d be willing to wait a week. Even if they had set aside the time to fish for points, it bothered me that the three of them were in agreement on that course of action from the very beginning. There should also be students who''d want the reassurance of locking down a partner as soon as possible.


    Was it that those three just happened to be confident, or...?


    "If we keep randomly asking around like this, we''ll probably keep getting the same answers, won''t we?"


    The fact that we had our eyes on ss 1-D was fine, the problem was what came after that.


    I was also caught up on what they had said about H��sen getting angry if they went and did something on their own.


    And from the way they were speaking, it was clear that H��sen Kazuomi was the one in control of ss 1-D.


    "H��sen probably gave instructions to his ssmates. Telling them something like: ''I don''t care who the fuck you pair up with, but only do so right away if they fork over 500k. Otherwise just put a hold on it and wait, even if they''re from ss A.''"


    "But, with somethin'' like that, wouldn''t ss 1-D end up gettin'' left in the dust?"


    "It means that he''s already made preparations for that exact situation."


    "Wha? I don''t get it."


    "The second-years are the ones who are afraid of the penalty thates with not finding a partner by the deadline. He''s looking to use that penalty as a weapon, wringing as many private points out of us as possible."


    If all of the honors students outside of ss 1-D had already been bought out, we''d have no choice but to spend big in order to get ss 1-D''s help. Even with prices of one or two million.


    "It''s a reckless strategy, one withplete disregard for anything that''ll happenter on down the line."


    "So can you formally exin your n for how you''re going to handle it?"


    We had already seen through ss 1-D''s principles and strategy. Having taken that into ount, I wanted to know what Horikita was thinking, thus my question.


    Would she look to drive a wedge in the aggressive buy-out contest ss 2-A and ss 2-C had engaged in? Or perhaps she would go the same route as Ichinose and try to establish a trusting rtionship by epting the more academically inferior students, winning over the help of the honors students along the way?


    "I had decided on three goals for us back when I first heard about this special exam."


    "Three goals?"


    Sud�� seemed to bear an interest in this topic, as he leaned in closer out of curiosity.


    "The most important one is to not let anyone get expelled, this one goes without saying."


    At that, Sud�� nodded.


    "The next is that we try to get third ce or higher in the overall ss ranking."


    "Third ce? Does that mean you gave up on first and second from the get go?"


    "Nobody said anything about giving up. I just said third ce or higher."


    While it was true that the exact phrasing of her words had included both first and second ce, somehow it didn''t feel as though that was the case.


    This likely had something to do with her third goal.


    "The third is to avoid participating in any mary exchanges. I intend to take action with these three principles in mind."


    "Eh...? B-but..."


    "I understand what you want to say. We won''t win at all if we don''tpete with private points. But, even if we fight using every point that our ss has, the risks simply don''t outweigh the returns. Let''s say we managed to get first ce overall. In that case we''d only get 50 ss points. Spread that out over the course of a year and the ss would only end up with just over 2 million points."


    With 5000 points per month multiplied by a total of 39 people, subtracting the points that had already been distributed in April, we''d receive a total of 2,145,000 points over the course of the remaining eleven months.


    "Assuming that we''d be spending 500,000 per person, we''d be in the red after five people. You''re not so optimistic that you''d think we can win overall with only four first-years with A-rated Academic Ability, are you?"


    Even if we were to carry that forward for the next two years, that is, until graduation, that would only be 4,485,000 private points. We''d only be able to draw in a maximum of eleven people. Moreover, this was based on the prerequisite that we not only recruit them for 500,000 points at the very most, but take first ce in the overall ss ranking as well. Given the risks, it would most likely be more efficient to wait for a future special exam and make use of our private points then.


    "Private points aren''t equal to ss points. I''m well aware that there''s more to it than just what we get in return. However, I think that even if we pooled all of our points together, our chances of winning would be slim to none, so we shouldn''t try and force it. Am I wrong, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "No. Your deduction is correct."


    Originally, the difference in academic skill between ss 2-D and ss 2-A was painfully obvious. I didn''t think we''d have the advantage needed to win overall, even if we managed to recruit eleven people. Of course, Horikita would probably adapt to the needs of the situation. I could imagine that she''d be willing to provide private points if there was somebody who''d lend a hand for 50,000-100,000. She just didn''t want the ss to get caught up in a mary battle.


    "In order to meet these three goals, I still think we should look to negotiate with ss 1-D."


    "B-but why? With H��sen calling the shots, they wouldn''t be willin'' to partner with us if we don''t fork over at least half a million, right?"


    "That''s only the case for honor students. However, there are several students in ss 1-D with ratings in the C range, and even more who are lower than that. What do you think would happen if they were just left like that?"


    "What would happen...?"


    "Students who should''ve been able to receive help would instead receive a penalty, and the situation would be unstable."


    I responded in Sud��''s stead, to which Horikita nodded and continued.


    "There''s no reason for them to intentionally give up the private points they receive every month. In other words, at some point, H��sen-kun will have no choice but to change his stance."


    Even if all of the honor students managed to sell their skills for 500,000 each, none of the other students would be able to use that method. Whether or not the second-years would have anybody expelled aside, for the first-year''s battle, H��sen would end up falling behind.


    "If he has his eyes on victory, there should definitely be an opportunity to take advantage of."


    It seemed that Horikita intended to oppose ss 1-D, the ss everybody wanted to avoid.


    "Although, having all 39 of us try and take on H��sen-kun''s ss would be dangerous. We have to do our best to reduce the risk as much as possible."


    If our negotiations were to fail, the students with low academic performance would be the ones in trouble.


    "With the exam having just begun, it isn''t strange that some people have unreasonable conditions you''d have to meet in order to partner up with them."


    "Well I hope so... For someone like me, I ain''t so sure a partner even exists in the first ce."


    "In any case, to find a good partner, we have no choice but to start reaching out to a whole bunch of people."


    "Heyo~ If you''re looking for a good partner, there''s one right over here."


    As we were walking up the stairs, headed to the cafe on the second floor, we heard a voice call out from behind us. We turned around to see a schoolgirl, watching us from the first floor with a wide smile on her face. As soon as our eyes met, she casually began to make her way up the stairs.


    Horikita was the first person to let suspicion show on her face.


    "Were you eavesdropping on us?"


    "Don''t be like that, Senpai. I just called out cuz I happened to overhear you is all! Uhm..."


    She spoke without looking at Sud�� and me at all, her eyes fixed on Horikita the entire time.


    "Senpai, what''s your name and Academic Ability rating?"


    "...I''m Horikita from ss 2-D. My Academic Ability rating is an A-. Why are you asking?"


    "For real? You''re pretty smart."


    "And your name is?"


    "I''m Amasawa Ichika from ss 1-A. I''ve gotta A in Academic Ability, kinda same as you, Horikita-senpai."


    She was an intelligent student, contrary to what her gal-like appearance would lead you to believe.


    Horikita double checked the app just to be sure.


    "If you''re gonna go for the top spot, how ''bout partnering up with me?"


    Amasawa asked without even bothering to ask about Horikita''s background.


    If two people with an A rating and an A- rating were to team up together, taking first wouldn''t be outside the realm of possibility. Given that Horikita had intentionally lowered her own scores for Sud��''s sake in the past, it wouldn''t be too much of a stretch to say that her real rating was closer to an A.


    Though this was an unexpected development, Horikita might end up deciding on her own partner before Sud�� and the others.


    After all, an A-rated student had reached out to her, even though it had happened by chance.


    If Horikita were to ask her to pair up with a student who had a worse rating now, she may end up scaring Amasawa off.


    "I appreciate your offer, but I''m not looking for my own partner right now. Instead of me, could I perhaps ask if you''d be willing to partner with him...?"


    Horikita went for it anyway, bearing the risk of introducing Sud��.


    Although Sud�� was a little perplexed, he lightly bowed his head in greeting.


    "Lemme see, and what is this Sud��-senpai''s Academic Ability?"


    "E+. Not good by any stretch of the imagination."


    Not good was an understatement. He was in the running for the lowest rating of the entire school year.


    Amasawa had probably already figured this out for herself thanks to the app as well.


    "I see~ So basically you''re trying to find him a partner in order to prevent him from getting kicked outta here."


    Having grasped the situation, Amasawa looked over at Sud��.


    "E+? Forget taking the top spot, if we''re together, we''d prolly end up cing a lil below average."


    "That''s right. There''s basically nothing in it for you."


    At this point, I thought Amasawa would bring up the topic of private points, but that didn''t happen.


    "Welp, since you''re asking, I guess I wouldn''t mind helping out."


    Compared to the three guys from earlier, this was an undoubtedly better response.


    She then shifted her sights in my direction.


    "What about this Senpai? Does he need a partner too?"


    "His rating is a C, so he''s not as much of a priority. Though, if Sud��-kun isn''t good enough for you, I''d be grateful if you could at least partner up with him."


    "No, that''s��"


    Even though Horikita was being generous, I had no choice but to put a stop to the idea.


    After all, I couldn''t afford to decide on a partner without thinking it through first.


    "Are you dissatisfied with something about her?"


    "Not exactly, it''s just��"


    "Hey hey wait a sec. I haven''t said that I''ll like, actually pair up with either of them yet, okay?"


    Having noticed that the conversation was moving forward without her, Amasawa put a stop to it.


    "Do you have any conditions that need to be met for you to partner up with one of them?"


    "Conditions, conditions... Yeah, I guess I''ve got the right to make some of those as well, huh?"


    Horikita had broached the topic here in order to try and pressure Amasawa into naming her requirements.


    Her fundamental goal of not engaging in a financial battle with the other sses probably hadn''t changed, but, if Amasawa''s price was cheap enough, there would be room for consideration. After that, all we could do is pray that she wouldn''t ask for an absurd amount of points like Shiratori and his friends had earlier. However...


    "I''d say I like strong, powerful people, ya feel?"


    Amasawa smiled devilishly as she brought up something that seemed to have nothing to do with the special exam.


    "What on earth are you talking about?"


    Horikita furrowed her eyebrows out of suspicion, having expected the conversation to go from academics to private points.


    "For me it''s like, I''ve been super worried about what to do for this exam, you know? Should I go for the top spot and study as hard as I can and by pairing up with somebody smart like Horikita-senpai...? That, or should I just try to get through it without having to worry all that much? And, if I were to choose not to worry about it too much, I might as well pair up with someone I''m interested in, right?"


    It was certainly a better decision than working together with somebody you hated or somebody who didn''t care at all.


    "And I''m particrly interested in strong, powerful guys."


    At this point, she repeated what she had said moments earlier a second time.


    Horikita''s head was spinning, trying its best to understand what Amasawa was saying.


    "So in other words... you want to know if Sud��-kun is strong or not?"


    "Correct. And I''m not talking about being mentally strong, it''s about being physically strong. Well, from his physique, he looks like he does a lot of sports and stuff, so that gives me a solid idea of where he''s at."


    Amasawa turned and pointed at Sud��, a student who should be irrelevant to those who have an A rating in Academic Ability.


    Although he was somewhat shy, Sud�� was confident in his body, so he nodded and began to pose a bit for her.


    "You wanna partner with me?"


    Saying that, Amasawa reached out to caress Sud��''s cheek.


    "W-well, you''d be better off if I had an A in Academic Ability and all though... Would you really be okay with me?"


    "If you''re really as strong as you say."


    With that, she traced her slender finger across Sud��''s chest, mesmerizing him with her bewitching appearance.


    "I-I''m strong."


    "You''re a confident guy, huh? I don''t hate that."


    "What exactly do you mean by ''strong and powerful''?"


    As the one in charge of supervising Sud��, Horikita expressed her uncertainty as to what Amasawa was referring to.


    "It means what it means. I like strong guys who are good at fighting. That''s why I want to partner up with somebody who''s, like, nice and powerful."


    "If that''s the case, then I think Sud��-kun will live up to your expectations. I can attest to his physical strength."


    "I won''t be convinced with just words alone~ I''ll have to make sure of it with my own eyes."


    "...With your own eyes?"


    "I''m saying like, go gather up all of the strong guys in the second year and have ''em, like, fight each other or something. Then I''lle along and partner up with the one who wins."


    "Are you joking? There''s no way we could do something like that."


    "Why not? I''ve been like,pletely serious this whole time, alright?"


    "Let''s go, Suzune. We''re wasting our time here."


    By now, Sud�� didn''t think Amasawa was being serious either, so he cut in as well.


    It was like he was admonishing himself for falling for Amasawa''s seductive charms, even if only for a moment.


    "I don''t particrly mind if you just forget about this entire conversation."


    She was saying that, to her, this was nothing more than a bonus game.


    There certainly wasn''t any dire need for her to go out of her way and partner up with an E+ student.


    Given the perfection of her rating and ss, she would probably always have someone willing to pay.


    To some extent, you could even call us lucky. If we agreed, Sud�� would gain the right to partner up with an A-rated student. Even if it didn''t end up happening, it''s not like there would be any penalty either.


    "You''re really not just messing around with us? You''re beingpletely serious?"


    As she asked this, the look in Horikita''s eyes was the true essence of seriousness itself.


    "Of course I am."


    "I see. In that case, we''ll have to hear you out seriously as well then."


    "O-oi Suzune?"


    "Good~ Good~ I want to pair up with somebody strong."


    "Alright then, Sud��-kun, you should ept her offer."


    "W-wait, Suzune. There''s no way we''ll just like, be allowed to start a fight at school. Things get outta hand real quick. Remember that stuff that happenedst year? Or even earlier today at lunch when that H��sen guy came to stir shit up a little bit?"


    Last year, Sud�� got into a fight with the guys in Ry��en''s ss, which ended up turning into a huge ordeal.


    And earlier today, amotion broke out when H��sen visited our ssroom.


    "It''s true that fighting isn''t something to be admired. However, if both sides are willing, then there shouldn''t be a problem. Wouldn''t you agree, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    I took a moment to consider Horikita''s intentions behind asking me this.


    If you were to ask if there was a problem, then the answer would naturally be yes.


    Win or lose, even if both parties decide not to oppose the fight and go at it, there''s no way that the school would tolerate something that essentially boiled down to a duel between students.


    However, Horikita''s response made it sound as though she was condoning the fight.


    "You''re right. There''s no way the school''s staff would approve of the fight if they caught wind of it. But if it''s mutually agreed upon by the students, then it shouldn''t really be a big deal."


    I answered as though I didn''t have a problem with it.


    "O-oi, Ayanok��ji!"


    "Additionally, out of everyone in the second year, nobody can hope to match Sud��-kun in a fight."


    "Yep."


    While Sud�� didn''t quite understand, Horikita and I were taking turns passing the conversation back and forth.


    The important thing here wasn''t that we had agreed to fight.


    It was to emphasize that we were confident that Sud�� was the absolute strongest without even fighting at all.


    "To be honest, Sud��-kun, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for you. Normally, it would be extremely difficult for you to pair up with an A-ranked student. However, Amasawa-san is saying that she''d be okay with being your partner. Furthermore, she''s doing it based on strength in a fighting contest, something you''re better at than anyone else. You shouldn''t hesitate to agree to it."


    It was highly unlikely that any of the second-years would agree to participate in a careless fight like this since they were familiar with the rules of the school.


    Moreover, since their opponent would be Sud��, the oue would be as clear as day.


    In other words, even if we epted this offer now, there was a good chance that a fight would never actually happen at all. And, in the off chance that someone stepped up to the challenge, Sud�� could simply turn the tables on them.


    "Sweet! This is great! I''m like, getting really excited."


    Amasawa, having just enrolled here, naturally didn''t understand any of this.


    There was no way she could understand that this was different from an ordinary middle or high school.


    "However, could you promise us one thing first? If nobody shows up to the fight other than Sud��-kun, you''ll have to partner up with him."


    With this, Horikita was looking to put forward an important stiption.


    After all, if Amasawa didn''t agree now, the discussion wouldn''t be able to move forward any further.


    "Sure, I''ll promise you that. If nobody shows up to challenge him, I''ll treat it as his win by default."


    With Amasawa''s verbal promise in ce, Horikita was satisfied.


    "Are you fine with all of this, Sud��-kun?"


    "Ah, yeah. If you''re okay with it, Suzune, then I''m okay with it too."


    Sud�� clenched his fists and bumped them together in front of him.


    For Horikita, Amasawa''s proposal must have been a product of chance, and a priceless one at that.


    "Welp, I''ll advertise it through the general chat of the app. I''ll ask anyone who thinks they''re confident in their strength to contact me by the end of the day today to participate."


    "Heh. Anybody that shows is gonna get their ass kicked."


    Conveniently, Sud�� didn''t seem to understand Horikita''s intentions here.


    He was getting excited about the prospect of genuinely throwing down with someone.


    "Would it be alright if we decide on the location? I''d like to avoid letting the school catch onto us."


    "Mhm. You Senpais prolly know better than I do, so I''ll leave that to you~"


    It seemed that Amasawa had finished typing out her message, so she turned to us for onest confirmation before sending it out.


    "Alrighty, with this, the battle should be all set. That fine with you?"


    As Horikita nodded in response, Amasawa slowly looked between the three of us.


    And then, she turned off the screen of her phone and put it back into her pocket.


    "Actually, never~mind."


    At first I thought that she had suddenly changed her mind, but that didn''t seem to be the case.


    Judging from her facial expression, I could see that she was also trying to sound us out, testing us.


    However, both Horikita and Sud�� were baffled by Amasawa''s sudden change of pace.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Even if I posted the advertisement, I doubt anyone would show up. Looking at Sud��-senpai''s physique and Horikita-senpai and Ayanok��ji-senpai''s attitude, I can already understand that Sudou-senpai''s strength is like, top-ss amongst all of the second-years."


    She had managed to reach the conclusion that there was no real need topare second-years through a fight at all.


    It seemed that the charade Horikita and I had put on,bined with Sud��''s natural reaction, had been even more effective than we had intended.


    If she had noticed we were acting after the advertisement was posted, Horikita probably wouldn''t have let her take it back.


    In order to prevent Amasawa from realizing that we had been putting on a show this whole time, Horikita expressed her discontent.


    "Are you just toying with us?"


    "No way, nothing like that. It''s so obvious that nobody''ll show that it ain''t much fun, you feel? I just wanna enjoy confirming that he''s the strongest with my own eyes is all. So please don''t be mad at me, Senpai."


    Amasawa pressed her forefinger to her lips as she thought it over for a moment.


    "I''ll still give ya a chance though, so forgive me."


    Although Horikita wanted to maintain control, she had gotten caught up in Amasawa''s unique way of doing things.


    She didn''t seem to be very good at dealing with this type of person.


    "Other than strong guys, I guess I like a guy who can cook, how''s that?"


    "Cook?"


    Amasawa''s new suggestion was, once again,pletely unrted to the special exam.


    "Sud��-senpai, was it? You think you can make me a home-cooked meal? A suuuper tasty one?"


    "A-a home-cooked meal!?"


    Sud��, who had been brimming with confidence just moments earlier, was practically floored by her unexpected request.


    "Of course, not only does it gotta be scrumptious, but you''ve also gotta make what I ask you to."


    "W-well, I''ve never cooked a meal in my life and��"


    "That so? Well I guess I gotta take back my offer, huh?"


    Horikita cuts in, not wanting to let that happen.


    "Would it perhaps be okay for me to substitute in for Sud��-kun?"


    "That''s no good. I told you didn''t I? That I like a guy who can cook? If I''m not partnering with a good cooking man, then what''s the point in partnering at all?"


    In other words, it didn''t matter how well one could cook. If they were a girl, she wouldn''t consider them.


    "If Sud��-senpai can''t do it, then why not, like, give up and go find one of your ssmates who can? Ah! Is it cuz, even if you managed to find someone fast enough, I still wouldn''t pair up with Sud��-senpai?"


    Amasawa grinned devilishly.


    "How ''bout you try and make Sud��-senpai into a cooking pro now? I wonder if you''ll have time for that though. I''m a popr girl, so like, if you''re too slow I might settle on a partner already."


    This wasn''t just a mere warning. She was saying that, sometime soon, she would decide on her partner.


    There were plenty of excellent second-year students other than Horikita.


    There was no need for her to take the risk of partnering up with somebody like Sud�� just for the sake of it.


    Put into words, this was just a whim, a mere yful impulse shown by the girl named Amasawa.


    If she were to change her mind, even slightly, that would be the end of it.


    However, a ssmate with poor academic skill was one thing, but if they had to be male and also skilled at cooking... Nobody came to mind at this point.


    In which case, this request from Amasawa might just be a dead end as far as ss 2-D was concerned.


    Giving up and reaching out to other students would probably be a much better use of our time.


    Seeing that we were unable to give her an answer, Amasawa spoke up again.


    "I get it I get it. Well then, I''ll do you guys a special service. Normally I''d wanna pair up with a guy who''s real good at cooking, but... if you can satisfy my tongue, I guess I can, like, pair up with Sud��-senpai for you since he''s such a strong fighter and all."


    With this, Amasawa offered a small concession to her proposal.


    Amasawa wanted to pair up with a guy who was either a strong fighter or a skilled cook.


    That being the case, her tastes would certainly be satisfied with apromise like this.


    "By doing it like this, it''d be kinda simr to partnering up with a good cook and a strong fighter at the same time."


    Essentially, she''d be willing to partner with Sud�� as long as her tastes were satisfied, regardless of whether it was another guy doing the cooking or not.


    I found myself wondering just how Horikita was going to respond to Amasawa''s desire...


    But, the problem was that no such student woulde to mind.


    Furthermore, there wasn''t nearly enough time to have somebody train for it now.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun. If I''m not mistaken, you bragged to me before that you were good at cooking, right?"


    What was Horikita thinking, asking me something like this so openly?


    I had never once told her that, much less bragged to her about it.


    It would''ve been easy to deny it, but it seemed as though we needed to be on the same page here.


    There wouldn''t be very many opportunities for Sud�� to pair up with someone who had an A in Academic Ability.


    "It wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say that cooking is my only strong point."


    "That''s true, isn''t it? If Amasawa-san is willing to permit it, how about Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "As long as it''s a guy, it doesn''t matter to me. But are you really a good cook? You can say whatever you want, but like, I''mma judge you pretty hard, okay?"


    "Of course he''ll be fine. Isn''t that right?"


    "Well, yeah."


    Just as soon as I affirmed it, Amasawa pped her hands.


    "Alrighty then! How about you show me what you''re really made of? Let''s go now!"


    The situation was developing far too rapidly. However, this was essentially Amasawa making an ultimatum.


    She didn''t want to give me an opportunity to go and learn cooking by extending this out for longer than it needed to be.


    She wanted to find out whether or not I was really a skilled cook.


    As things were now, since Horikita had lied to keep Amasawa interested, there was no way she could agree to Amasawa''s request.


    If I were to cook with my current skills, they still didn''t amount to very much.


    And even if she wasn''t very strict with her judgment, I was certain that I still wouldn''t make the cut.


    "While I''d love to do that, could you please give us a little time? Ayanok��ji-kun and I have been reaching out to first-year students in order to find partners for our ssmates. Besides Sud��-kun, there are plenty of other students we have to help. We''ll be put in an awfully tough spot if the other sses end up beating us to the punch. Even at this very moment, our rivals are out there searching for partners as well."


    Horikita proceeded to exin our situation, prompting to see if Amasawa understood where we wereing from.


    "If possible, I''d like to hold off until after school on Friday."


    With that, Horikita firmly rejected Amasawa''s desire to have her home-cooked meal presented to her today.


    What''s more is that she tried to postpone the ordeal for several days, that is, until Friday after school.


    She also mentioned that we''d be able to make time for it on the weekend as well.


    "I see. I certainly don''t wanna take up all your time just talking to me."


    At that, Amasawa put forward a different offer.


    "I''m fine with doing itter tonight though. Would that work for you two?"


    "A first-year student visiting the second-year dorm in the dead of night would lead to problems. Moral problems if the meeting ce is in a boy''s room."


    "I see~ But waiting until the weekend is kinda iffy, ya know? I''d lose out on my chance to partner up with another senpai... Right?"


    As expected, Horikita''s suggestion to wait until the weekend didn''t make it very far.


    This time, Amasawa rigidly presented us with her terms.


    "But since this has been a fated encounter, I''ll give you guys just one day. If you can''t serve me a home-cooked meal after school tomorrow, then let''s just pretend this conversation never happened. That sound good?"


    This was probably the verystpromise Amasawa was willing to make.


    I got the impression that, if we were any greedier, Amasawa would back out immediately.


    If Horikita were to misread her and attempt to haggle any further...


    "Okay. There''s certainly no denying that this will ce quite a burden on you. Plus, you don''t want to give us the opportunity to practice, isn''t that right?"


    "Oh no, I haven''t been thinking about that."


    "...Alright. Can I ask that you hold true to these new conditions?"


    We only had one day to prepare. However, if we didn''t do it like this, we wouldn''t be able to hold onto Amasawa.


    It may have looked like an act of desperation from Horikita, but she still settled on those conditions anyway.


    "It''s decided then."


    Amasawa readily agreed,pletely satisfied with meeting up tomorrow after school, as she herself had proposed.


    "However, this is provided that you don''t change your mind on us like you did earlier. We''re not ying around here either."


    "Okay~ I promise. If I judge that his cooking skills are the real deal, then I''ll partner up with Sud��-senpai."


    Although it was just a verbal promise, Amasawa nodded along as she responded.


    "I''m beggin'' you Ayanok��ji! Please, use your cooking skills to somehow secure me a partner!"


    I agreed given the circumstances but I hadn''t expected the situation to turn out this way.


    "Well then, how about we meet up in front of Keyaki Mall at 4:30 after school tomorrow, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "Keyaki Mall? Not the dorms?"


    "The dish I''m gonna have you make for me is a secret. And you''re naturally gonna have to purchase the ingredients and stuff too, right?"


    I see. She was essentially saying that everything from what I purchase to how I cook it was going to be a part of her judgment.


    "Could Ie along as well?"


    Horikita asked, probably looking to offer me advice so that our lie didn''t get exposed.


    However, her opponent wasn''t going to let that happen very easily.


    "No way~ You might help him out through hidden eye signals or something. I''ll make sure my judgement is strict~"


    In other words, tomorrow, I would have to make do on my own.


    "You''ll be fine, right Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "Yeah. No problem."


    For the time being, I would honestly do what I could, but this had be quite a big deal.


    "Well then, I''ll see you tomorrow. Bye bye~"


    Satisfied, Amasawa left, headed back down the staircase.


    "Horikita, I think you''re already aware of this, but��"


    "Be quiet for now. I''lle up with a n."


    While she said she woulde up with a n, she only had one day toe up with one.


    With my minimal cooking skills, how much could I actually do?

 Chapter 12 - 4: Ichika’s Test

    <h4>Chapter 12: Chapter 4: Ichika��s Test</h4>


    It was already Wednesday, the third day of the special exam.


    OAA was refreshed for the second time at 8 AM, and naturally, the number of choices had gone down yet again.


    "34 new pairs have been formed, huh?"


    Combined with Tuesday, that meant 56 pairs had been formed in total.


    Considering that the maximum number of pairs was 157, this meant that over thirty percent of students had already decided on their partners.


    ss 2-B had driven the partner formation yesterday. Therefore, many of these probably had to do with Ichinose.


    It seemed like the first-year students had carefully considered their options after the meet-and-greet and decided to form pairs.


    Essentially, I could confirm that most of the first-year students with low Academic Ability ratings had paired up with students in Ichinose''s ss.


    Aside from that, several of the first-year honor students had found partners now along with several students from ss 2-C. From this, I could infer that they had been sessful in their negotiations. In our ss, starting with Kushida, five people had settled on their partners. I checked the page for ss 1-B and found that Yagami Takuya had found a partner as well. It was possible that he had joined hands with Kushida.


    But the strange thing was, not even a single person from ss 1-D had partnered up yet.


    This waspletely unprecedented whenpared to the rest of the first-year and the entirety of the second-year.


    If I didn''t make my move soon, it seemed like I might not be able to do anything when the time finally arrived.


    In the first ce, there was no way that somebody would take an objective look at my rating and ask me to join up with them. It''s only natural that students would want to pair up with somebody smart, regardless of how good or bad their own rating was. Unlike the second-year students, who had reached the point where they were capable of taking action for the sake of their own ss, the first-year students probably wouldn''t take the time to worry about their surroundings. They''d probably be more inclined to see their very own ssmates as rivals instead.


    For them, I would be put on the back burner. That is, at least until everybody with high ratings was taken already.


    For that reason, Tsukishiro must''ve instructed his enforcer to not let this chance slip by.


    Naturally, anybody who would reach out to pair up with me, or who would allow me to pair up with them, would be a big red g.


    That said, if I kept hesitating without deciding on a partner forever, the chances of being paired up with Tsukishiro''s enforcer would only continue to go up. I needed to be absolutely certain that the student I chose wasn''t the enforcer, but that probably wasn''t going to be easy.


    At the end of the day, I had no idea what kind of performance they were putting on to disguise themself.


    I had memorized the names, faces, and ratings of everyone on the app, but I hadn''t been able to glean any hints from that.


    If all 160 of the first-years were against me, I would be facing an inescapable, sure-fire checkmate.


    But, that would be absurd. That would be impossible for somebody to pull off, even for Tsukishiro, but...


    No, that wasn''t the right way to be approaching this.


    The important thing here was for me toe up with a way to survive, even if everyone was against me.


    At any rate, for now, I''d track down somebody safe from the 104 students that were left.


    There was no gender bias in the children raised within the White Room. Since their pedagogy treated boys and girls equally, it was impossible for me to narrow down my selection with that in mind.


    In which case, how should I go about checking people off the list? One possible way to do so was to check their body type or physique.


    The meals provided within the White Room were controlled down to the smallest detail. It was basically impossible for the children growing up in that environment to be obese. Thus, a simple n came to mind... If I were to choose an overweight student, I''d be able to avoid the White Room student.


    However, this n was not without ws. It was more than possible that the White Room student began preparing for my expulsion several months ago. Thinking about it that way, it wasn''t out of the question for them to have taken the time to gain or lose weight ordingly. Doing something like that would be trivial for those who had endured the relentless curriculum of the White Room.


    But, even if I were to put all of that aside, it''s doubtful whether or not I''d be able to select a student with a sub-standard body type. I couldn''t say for sure since the OAA app doesn''t provide a full-body picture, but there were only about two students in the first year who were obviously overweight.


    Even so, I still couldn''t discount the possibility that both of them had been sent by Tsukishiro. After all, I''m assuming that it''s not only the White Room student who had been sent as an enforcer, but ordinary students as well.


    They could''ve been approached with promises of admission to a better college or university if they were to get me expelled.


    My next thought was whether or not I could narrow it down based on Academic Ability rating, but that, too, would be difficult.


    For a student from the White Room, getting a perfect score on the entrance exam wouldn''t be difficult in the slightest. They''d be able to get an A or A+ rating in Academic Ability with ease. Put in other words, that meant that they''d be able to control their rating however they wanted.


    They must''ve been informed about the introduction of the OAA system as well.


    It wouldn''t be surprising by any stretch of the imagination if they were patiently lying in wait, equipped with an E rating in Academic Ability.


    Simrly, it was also impossible to narrow it down based on ss affiliation, such as being a member of ss 1-A or ss 1-D.


    I had known this from the very start, but there was simply no way I could narrow down my list of suspects right now.


    I knew what I needed to do.


    I needed to investigate each student with my own eyes and verify their authenticity myself. If I could confirm that someone wasn''t an enemy, I''d be able to partner up with them, or perhaps even get them to cooperate with me moving forward.


    I proceeded to set a rule for myself.


    Today, from when school started, through lunch, and all the way until school was over, I would reach out to each and every first-year student I came across. From there, I''d try and get them to cooperate with me. Since there was no way Tsukishiro had sent in an opponent who''d be identified through mere observation, I had no choice but to fight with the element of luck to minimize any potential interference.


    With a C in Academic Ability, my rating was by no means high, so I couldn''t exactly use it as a weapon. However, it''s not like nobody would be willing to partner up with me. If I searched around long enough, I''d probably find at least a few people.

 Chapter 13: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 13: 4.1</h4>


    I left the dorms and started making my way to school.


    Soon enough, I spotted two first-year girls chatting with each other as they walked.


    Their names were Kurihara Kasuga and Konishi Tetsuko. Both of them from ss 1-A.


    Unfortunately, both of them were academically excellent students who had found partners on the first day of the exam. Asking one of them to be my partner wasn''t a viable option.


    Well, the fact that they had already decided on their partners wasn''t that much of a problem.


    In fact, you could even say they were the best choice avable for me to coborate with. It''s just, how do I put this, it was kinda hard to call out to them...


    Even though we had no choice but to find partners due to the special exam, what would a second-year boy approaching two girls look like from an outsider''s perspective? I found myself getting caught up thinking about that.


    I didn''t have the courage to just call out and wish them good morning like Y��suke would, but having said that, confidently asking them to introduce me to someone who''d pair up with me was out of the question as well.


    Be that as it may, I had to at least try. Giving in now wouldn''t get me anywhere. I hardened my resolve to reach out to them, but I found myself wondering what I should do about the timing. Instead of interrupting them while they were happily chatting with each other, I felt like I should patiently wait for apse in their conversation.


    "Good morning to you, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    As I was watching them, a voice called out to me from behind.


    The third first-year student I ran into today was Nanase Tsubasa, the girl who had been together with H��sen just a few days ago.


    She looked at me with a carefree smile on her face.


    "Ah, good morning."


    I certainly hadn''t expected anyone to call out to me, so there was an awkward pause between the two of us for a moment.


    "Do you need something from those two? Would you like me to call out to them for you?"


    Despite Nanase''s proposition, as a first-year student herself, the conversation the two girls were having would most likely turn into a conversation between the three of them. That would only serve to increase the burden for me.


    "No, it''s alright."


    "Oh, is that so?"


    Nanase pondered out loud, walking along at about the same pace as me.


    An unexpected conversation with Nanase had begun while I was thinking about when to reach out to the girls. I was quite thankful that she had spared me the trouble of being the one to reach out to somebody, but...


    There was no way that a first-year student had called out to me by coincidence. It was quite possible that she had been waiting for me to go to school and timed her approach ordingly. This wasn''t just restricted to Nanase either. This should be the baseline assumption for any and all students who take the initiative to talk to me. Just like Amasawa yesterday, this wasn''t someone I approached, but someone who approached me.


    "I do apologise for H��sen-kun''s rudeness the other day."


    "No, I wasn''t directly affected by it, so you don''t need to apologise to me."


    "But there is no doubting that we caused a nuisance. While I hade along with H��sen-kun to stop him from acting out like that, I''m now fully aware of just how powerless I truly was."


    Compared to H��sen''s rough, violent nature, Nanase spoke with a very sociable, polite tone, which gave off a very good impression. And with her B Academic Ability rating, she was essentially the ideal partner. It wouldn''t be strange if somebody other than me had scouted her already either, but as of now, on the third day, she still hadn''t partnered up with anybody yet.


    However, that was probably due to ss 1-D''s n.


    In addition to Academic Ability, her ratings were all high and well rounded, as her Physical Ability, Adaptability, and Social Contribution ratings were all at a C+ or better. At a nce, I couldn''t find any problems with her at all. For that reason, I found myself wondering why Nanase Tsubasa had been ced in ss D. At a fundamental level, there was a strong tendency for the students assigned to ss D to have something wrong with them. For example, on the surface, people like Y��suke and Kushida didn''t seem to have a single w. However, once I actually found out more about them, I came to understand that that wasn''t the case.


    In other words, I couldn''t reject the possibility that Nanase had some sort oftent problem like that. Then again, as of now, there was no guarantee that this year''s ss 1-D would fall under this same tendency.


    In my opinion, I''m perfectly fine with someone having a few problems with their personality or sense of values. Even if I asked her to partner up with me or asked her to coborate with me, the only thing that mattered was whether or not Nanase Tsubasa was on Tsukishiro''s side. Back when she was together with H��sen during our first meeting, she had looked at me with eyes that worried me a little, but... Now, those eyes were nowhere to be seen; Her gazepletely natural.


    "Have you decided on your partner for this special exam yet?"


    I decided to pick up the conversation in order to learn more about this person known as Nanase.


    "Me? No, I haven''t decided on anyone yet."


    "Then, have people been reaching out to you?"


    "Indeed. So far, I have been approached by upperssmen from ss 2-A and ss 2-C."


    As expected for someone with a B in Academic Ability. It seems people have been reaching out to her after all.


    "Why haven''t you agreed to anyone yet?"


    I decided to dig further into it. I honestly didn''t know if she would say it had to do with academic performance or points.


    "My apologies, but I''m unable to answer that."


    With that, Nanase bowed her head in apology.


    "You don''t have to answer if you don''t want to; It''s not something you need to apologize for."


    At this point, it didn''t seem like I''d be able to find out if this was her personal problem or a problem of ss 1-D as a whole.


    That being the case, let''s try attacking from a slightly different angle.


    "If it''s okay with you, how about we have our fellow D sses work together to find suitable partners for each other?"


    I offered her a proposal, one that included myself. Horikita thought that ss 1-D was important, and H��sen seemed to have some sort of feelings for ss 2-D too. It certainly wasn''t a bad proposal.


    "Cooperation between sses...?"


    "Yeah. Many students are trying to pair up with the academically stronger students for the sake of their own ratings. But, as a consequence, the academically weaker students won''t be chosen and would therefore be left out. If the academically weaker students were to pair up together, students of both school years, yours and mine, would be exposing themselves to the danger of expulsion."


    "Yes. I understand that. If possible, I wish to avoid that as well."


    "Of course. For that, an appropriate amount of bnce is needed. Although we have to give up on taking one of the top spots, we must find partners who will ensure that nobody fails."


    We''re ss D students. That is, we''re overwhelmingly inferior in the eyes of those around us.


    And that is why ss 1-D, ced just the same as us in the social hierarchy, would be likely to ept this proposal.


    "So how about it?"


    "I am in agreement. As much as possible, I would like to cooperate with you, Ayanok��ji-senpai. It''s just..."


    "Just?"


    "I don''t know how willing my ssmates will be to lend a hand. Furthermore, some of the more academically confident students are already on the verge of secretly deciding on a partner."


    Many of the students who had the potential to be the mainstays of this exam were aiming for the top spots after having decided on a solid partner. This was certainly the case for the two ss 1-A girls walking in front of us as well.


    The reason why ss 1-D hadn''t finalized their partners was probably because of apletely different issue, such as points.


    The most important part of the test is therge point reward given the top 30% of partners. By helping out the academically weaker students, it meant giving up on that reward.


    "We don''t need everyone to cooperate. With the right amount of coordination, we should be able to get through the special exam without enlisting the help of too many people."


    As long as we managed to get a portion of the ss onboard, it wouldn''t be too much of a problem.


    "That''s true. However, it''s not like there aren''t other issues thate with that."


    Nanase expressed her approval for the proposal itself, but her facial expression made her seem hesitant.


    I understood the cause for that without even needing to think about it.


    "H��sen... wasn''t it? It seems like that guy''s got a lot of influence over ss 1-D, huh?"


    I stuck my nose even further into the internal affairs of ss 1-D.


    I brought up a tidbit of information that I was fairly certain of from our discussion with Shiratori the other day.


    "Yes. Many of the boys and girls of the ss have already started obediently following H��sen-kun''s orders."


    My feelings of spection turned into confidence.


    Sure enough, H��sen had already seized control of the ss and had apparently made it his own.


    H��sen might have also been the one behind the strategy that made it harder for the ss to decide on their partners.


    If that was really the case, then H��sen was not only a student who brandishes his physical prowess, but one who possesses the insight, observational skill, andposure to take an extensive view of his surroundings.


    "Are you in a bit of a unique position, Nanase? You didn''t seem to be afraid of H��sen back then."


    "That''s because I will never yield to violence."


    She responded with an intensity that I couldn''t even imagine given her appearance.


    Her words weren''t said casually. Rather, there was something else, something hidden, backing them up.


    I felt like I could see that confidence, or something simr to it, peeking out from within the pure color of her eyes.


    "Senpai... what do you think of violence?"


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "Are you for it? Or are you against it?"


    If she was looking to find out how I felt about H��sen''s way of doing things, then there was only one answer I could give her.


    "If I had to choose from between the two, I guess I''d say I''m for it."


    I spoke definitively.


    I was expecting her to give some sort of reaction immediately, but I was met with silence instead. When I turned and looked toward Nanase to gauge her facial expression, her docile visage from earlier had all but disappeared.


    Her eyes were the same as they were when she had looked at me just before she leftst time we met.


    A few moments passed as I waited for her response...


    "If I had to choose, I would be for it too."


    Her answer, which could be taken as the truth or a lie, came without so much as a trace of emotion.


    Had H��sen acknowledged her intense desire to not yield to violence and kept her beside him because of it?


    No... It wasn''t just that.


    Back then, H��sen had shown a strong reaction when Nanase brought up the term ''that''.


    There wasn''t even a shred of evidence saying that H��sen had a stronger character than Nanase.


    Although that was weighing on my mind, it probably wasn''t something I could ask her about here and now.


    After all, I didn''t see her as someone who would unnecessarily talk about something that shouldn''t be said.


    I shouldn''t do anything foolish that would raise her guard just yet.


    At this point, I wondered if I should just pull back for the time being. After all, there would probably be another chance to try againter with Horikita.


    "In any case, if H��sen''s the one deciding the course of action for your ss, going about implementing this might be difficult."


    Giving up, I began thinking about making contact with the other sses while maintaining a good rtionship with Nanase, but...


    "Uhm, if you''re okay with it... Would you like for me to try setting something up for you?"


    She responded with that, perhaps because she thought that my proposal for a cooperative rtionship was a good idea.


    "I appreciate your offer, but are you sure?"


    "Yes. However, I don''t know how many students will be willing to cooperate, so I cannot make any promises. In the worst case, it might just be me. Would that be alright with you?"


    Nanase put that forward, interested to hear my response.


    For the sake of our ssmates, it was important for Horikita and me to take every opportunity avable to us to develop a connection with ss 1-D.


    "Of course. I''m sure Horikita will be pleased as well."


    "Is Horikita-senpai the leader of ss 2-D?"


    "Yeah. She''s the one holding the ss together right now."


    I decided that I''d need to inform Horikita that it''d be better to set up a discussion with ss 1-D with Nanase''s help. Though, if I were to tell Horikita this face to face in the ssroom, the subject matter would make me stand out a little bit, so I found myself wondering what exactly I should do.


    "Ah... I may not be able to get back to you about this immediately. Is that still alright?"


    "I understand. I''ll also try to set things up on my end as soon as possible."


    "Okay!"


    I then exchanged contact information with Nanase and we agreed to get in touchter.

 Chapter 14: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 14: 4.2</h4>


    After confirming that Horikita hadn''t entered the school building yet, I decided to wait for her at the entryway for a bit.


    After all, if we were to have this conversation in the ssroom, we would end up attracting undue attention.


    Before long, Horikita showed up and looked at me curiously, not having realized yet that I had been waiting for her.


    "Good morning. Are you meeting someone?"


    "Meeting someone? Well, it''s something like that. They''ve just arrived."


    "Is that so?"


    She lightly looked over her shoulder only to turn back and face me once she realized that there was nobody behind us that I was acquainted with.


    "Me?"


    "Yeah. There''s something I''d like to run by you really quick."


    "Something so important that you''d expressly take the time to wait for me?"


    The two of us began walking together.


    "Important...? Yeah, I think it has the potential to be important. I had the chance to speak with Nanase Tsubasa from ss 1-D earlier, so I tried offering her and her ss a decent proposal."


    "Ah, and what did you propose?"


    "I brought up the idea of having ss 1-D and ss 2-D coborate with each other."


    "Knowing you, that''s quite a momentous decision."


    Horikita herself must''ve been worried about how we were going to form a rtionship with ss 1-D.


    I steeled my resolve, fully prepared for her to get mad at me for making the proposal without her permission, but...


    "Are you aware of ss 1-D''s partner situation?"


    "Yeah. Not even a single one of them has decided on their partner yet. Sakayanagi and Ry��en are probably putting them off too."


    It was only natural that the second-year students would focus their attention on the honor students from the other sses who were willing to cooperate for a reasonable number of points rather than those from ss 1-D who expected an incrediblyrge number for the same thing.


    "I''m certain that there''s much more to it than that. It would require a certain amount of effort for them toply with H��sen-kun''s aggressive strategy. From the perspective of the upper sses, dedicating any time to ss 1-D would only serve to increase the amount of work they''d need to do."


    "Maybe."


    "Anyway, did you make this proposal to Nanase-san after having understood the difficulties that woulde with confronting H��sen-kun? Or did you reach out to her with the intention of secretly cooperating with her, hoping that H��sen-kun wouldn''t notice?"


    "What do you think?"


    I intentionally turned the question back on Horikita without giving that much of an answer. If she had given up on the idea of working with ss 1-D at this point, I was okay with calling the proposal off.


    "I''ve taken the time to reevaluate the state of the special exam. Would you be willing to hear me out?"


    "I''m not confident that I can give you any meaningful advice."


    "I''m not expecting anything."


    It seemed like she just wanted to share her thoughts with me.


    It probably had to do with what I brought up about ss 1-D just moments earlier.


    "To start out, and this is obvious, but when you look at the first-year student body as a whole, the academically gifted students are naturally more popr as partners."


    "Yeah. Shiratori mentioned how he had been approached with point-based offers from ss 2-A and ss 2-C already."


    "However, between Shiratori-kun and his friends, none of them have made a decision yet. It seems fair to assume that ss A and ss C were unable to reach an agreement on how many points they would offer them. Either way, the 500,000 point offer they presented to us is far too expensive no matter how you look at it."


    Even asking for 200,000 points would be unreasonably high, given that the reward was only 100,000 points for the top five pairs and 10,000 points for the top 30%.


    "It makes you wonder how many points Hashimoto-kun and the others offered them, doesn''t it?"


    "Who knows. I''d guess that it was probably nowhere near 500,000."


    It was impossible to know unless you were somebody who was actually involved in the negotiations.


    "I''d put forward that there wasn''t that much of a difference in the number offered by the two sses. No, if anything, I''d say that ss A''s offers have probably been smaller."


    She had most likely deduced this by keeping tabs on the OAA app up until this morning.


    Between the two sses, ss 2-C had more students who had decided on their partners.


    "ss A naturally has the advantage over ss C in terms of brand value. Unless there''s a noteworthy difference in the number of points they''re offering, more people would end up choosing ss A. From all of this, we can conclude that ss A is looking to appeal to first-years by coupling points together with their value as a ss. Whereas ss C, on the other hand, is trying to muscle their way through with more points since they lose out in terms of brand value."


    I lightly nodded along in agreement.


    "Ry��en-kun''s thought process here is a bit strange as well, don''t you think? In this exam, drawing the top performers over to your side is fundamentally essential if you want to win. However, that means that ss C will have no choice but topete financially with ss A. If they y that money game with each other, ss C certainly wouldn''t stand a chance. If anything, it seems reckless for them to aim for first ce overall."


    Even though Ry��en had said something about using threats to get the first-years to pair up with his ss, there was no doubt that, as of right now, this was apetition that he had slim chances of winning.


    "They should go after students who don''t ovep with ss A, even if it means lowering the bar a little bit."


    It''d be much safer for them to go after second ce overall. Going after the students with a B- or C+ rating would be more than enough for that.


    "Well, trying to guess what he''s thinking is pointless, but... I''ll just get on with the main point here. The remaining ss, ss 2-B, is trying to build up a trusting rtionship with the first-year students, drawing them into their fold regardless of Academic Ability rating as a way of providing salvation to the weak and vulnerable. ss 1-D aside, most of the students with a D rating or lower have been saved already by Ichinose-san."


    Horikita paused, looking back to make sure that nobody was eavesdropping on us before continuing.


    "I''ve decided that our current objective is to focus on the average, ordinary students in each ss. That is, students with ratings in the C+ to B- range."


    The students in that range probably wouldn''t be approached withrge offers and there were still a lot of them left without partners too.


    Reaching out to them while ss A and ss C were still scrambling for the top performers was a smart move.


    "Then, does that mean that you''re giving up on your n to focus on ss 1-D?"


    "No, that''s still happening. In fact, it feels increasingly as though that''s our most optimal choice."


    "Are you saying you''ll abandon the ordinary students from the other sses?"


    Doing so would be an overly drastic decision. As ss 2-D, we took a backseatpared to the other sses, so we needed to finalize as many partners as possible as soon as possible.


    "They''ll y a part in all of this as well. While it may be a bit crude, I intend to set up a fake money game of sorts to help us stall for time. Unlike the honor students, the ordinary students probably aren''t expecting to receive any attractiverge-point offers. That being the case, we''ll give them a taste of the luxury they''re missing out on, disillusion them into thinking that they''re worth a little something."


    "So the goal is to force Sakayanagi and Ry��en to use their points not just for the top performers, but the ordinary students as well?"


    "While I''m skeptical about just how effective it will be, it will at least manage to attract some attention. And in the meantime, I''m going to start cutting into ss 1-D. That''s why this proposal of yours is just what I''ve been wanting to hear. After all, I was just thinking of getting in contact with Nanase-san myself."


    "But, isn''t H��sen the one that wants to y a money game like this?"


    "He certainly does. However, is he really just looking for points? Back when he came marching into the second-year hallway, he told me: ''You wouldn''t even be able to find partners without beggin'' our ss for it. So I''ll lend you ipetent retards a hand, aight?'' In other words, his goal is our ss itself. Would he really say something like that if all he wanted was points?"


    Horikita made the assertion that there should be room for negotiation beyond the scope of private points.


    "The fact that he tacked on an ''I''ll see yater, Horikita'' at the end just before he left hints at it as well."


    "That''s for sure. It''s safe to say that H��sen only has his eye on ss 2-D."


    This time around, Horikita had abandoned the top spot in exchange for three goals: not letting anyone get expelled, getting third ce or higher in the overall ss rankings, and not participating in any mary exchanges. It wouldn''t be easy, but that was precisely why we were focusing on ss 1-D.


    "Nheless, it''s fair to assume H��sen-kun won''t be easy to deal with. Either way, I have a backup n."


    Apparently, Horikita had made other arrangements that even I didn''t know about.


    "We''re currently in discussion with part of ss 1-B about potentially fostering a cooperative rtionship with each other."


    "By ss 1-B... are you talking about that Yagami guy from the same middle school as you and Kushida?"


    I thought back to the most recent OAA update earlier this morning where I saw that both Yagami and Kushida had already decided on a partner.


    "Kushida-san and Yagami-kun partnered up yesterday. Regretfully, I don''t remember anything about my underssmen back then, but he might just be the key to all of this. He seems to trust Kushida-san quite a lot, so we''ve already begun negotiations behind the scenes. If all goes well, we can increase our number of coborators."


    Though this was definitely good news, there was still something about it that worried me.


    "Are you the one giving instruction to Kushida?"


    Given that Kushida hated everything about Horikita, it was still unknown to what extent she would really be willing to cooperate.


    "I''m well aware that it will be difficult given our current rtionship. That''s why I''m pushing forward the conversation with Hirata-kun as the middleman."


    "I see. If that''s the case, Kushida can''t afford to cut any corners."


    If Kushida''s negotiations with Yagami managed to pull even just a couple of students over to our side, then a portion of ss 2-D''s partner problem would be solved, allowing the ss to start focusing its attention on studying instead.

 Chapter 15: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 15: 4.3</h4>


    "Good morning Horikita-san. Do you have a moment?"


    During the break after first period, Y��suke went and paid a visit to Horikita at her seat.


    For whatever reason, I decided to watch over them from my own seat.


    "I went around talking to a bunch of people yesterday, but it''s proving difficult to get anybody to cooperate. A couple people told me they''d be willing to pair up, but..."


    Despite being fellowrades of the ser club, the recruitment process didn''t seem to be progressing very smoothly. After all, getting the first-year students who had only just joined the club topletely open up to him would be difficult, even for somebody like Y��suke.


    "They asked you for points, didn''t they?"


    Upon seeing Y��suke nod in response, Horikita continued.


    "They''ve got the opportunity to sell themselves at a high price. It''s not surprising."


    Private point buyout tactics had spread throughout the entirety of the first year, just as I had imagined.


    "I was told that ss 2-A reached out to them, asking them to pair up, but then ss 2-C went and offered points for the same thing. It''s not just the guys I talked to either. ss C has tried to poach nearly everybody that ss A has reached out to as well."


    "It''s only natural since the smart students are so hotly contested."


    Deep down, Horikita had already predicted this.


    However, what Y��suke said next was a little bit different.


    "Though, it seems that they''ve even reached out to some students with C or D ratings. I''ve even heard stories that they were willing to payrge sums of points for them as well."


    "So you''re saying that they aren''t necessarily prioritising the academically stronger students?"


    "As far as I can tell, at least."


    "Alright. If you can remember anybody''s name in specific, could you perhaps share them with me?"


    "Of course."


    Y��suke listed off the names of the first-year students that he knew ss A had given offers to. Horikita then looked each of those names up in the app and quickly understood what was happening.


    Even though those who had been approached had low Academic Ability ratings, they each had something exceptional about them outside of that. They were valued for their excellent Physical Ability, Adaptability, or Social Contribution ratings instead.


    "I see... As expected, I should say."


    "Instead of getting caught up on the short-run, they''re probably thinking about the long-run."


    This wouldn''t necessarily be the only exam where we''d have to cooperate with the first-year students. That being the case, non-academic skills would naturally be essential. The thought process is that, by providing a lifeline to the students who are academically insecure now, they would be helpful in their own field of expertiseter on down the line. It was a decent n.


    Setting that aside, the interesting thing about this was that Ry��en''s ss was doing it as well.


    Instead of just aiming for the students with high Academic Ability ratings, they were closely following in Sakayanagi''s footsteps.


    "It would be great if we could do that too, but..."


    "That would be difficult, wouldn''t it?"


    We were students of ss D whereas Sakayanagi was from ss A.


    Even those who had only just enrolled here should already know which ss had the better image.


    Considering their future, it was perfectly understandable that they''d prefer to lean on the more superior ss when they need help.


    "Thank you. Might I ask that you continue to look into this?"


    "Yeah. I''ll report back to you if I find out anything else."


    Y��suke beamed at Horikita with a bright, refreshing smile and went back to his seat.


    Shortly thereafter, I received a text message from Horikita.


    [So there you have it.]


    I see. It seemed as though she caught on to the fact that I had been eavesdropping on them.


    [Hirata-kun is truly reliable, isn''t he?]


    [I guess.]


    He had butt heads with Horikita at one point, but now that was water under the bridge.


    As someone who always gave 100% for the sake of the ss, he was a very reliable person.


    Of course, his intelligence andmunication skills were nothing to scoff at, but his biggest strength was his trustworthiness.


    He had a strong track record that made people believe that he could handle anything.


    That was also why Horikita was willing to freely discuss strategy with him.


    [As ss D, we have to bear with the handicap. It''s an uphill battle.]


    [We don''t have any other choice. Good luck.]


    [You do know that you need to y your part as well, right?]


    [You mean the thing with Nanase?]


    [Yes. Can you reply to her as soon as possible? Tell her we''re ready at any time.]


    She wanted to move forward with it quickly; To strike while the iron is hot, as they say.


    After all, if we didn''t, the other sses would snatch away all of the talented students from us.


    [Well, I''ll get to it tomorrow. I''ve got to take care of that other problem first.]


    [Of course I know that.]

 Chapter 16: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 16: 4.4</h4>


    By the time school was done for the day, I still hadn''t heard back from Nanase.


    Even if she were to say that everything was ready to go today, it''s not like Horikita and I would be able to take action anyway.


    There was still a more pressing issue that needed to be dealt with first.


    And that was my arrangement with Amasawa to make her a home-cooked meal. As long as my cooking was up to snuff, it was an exceptional opportunity to get her to partner up with Sud��. That being said, it was by no means an easy task.


    When I arrived at the entrance of Keyaki Mall ten minutes before the appointed time, it didn''t seem that Amasawa had arrived yet. Instead of fiddling around with my cell phone or something, I just casually observed the students entering the mall from where I stood. The students, ranging from first-years to third-years, were happily chatting about this and that as they steadily flowed into the shopping center. The temperature had felt warmer than usual this morning, but as evening approached, it was beginning to cool down. The temperature would probably drop even further by the time night came around.


    Finally, just before the appointed time, Amasawa showed up.


    "Perfectly done~ Ayanok��ji-senpai~"


    As soon as we met up, she smiled broadly and nodded her head several times, as if she was satisfied with something.


    "What are you talking about?"


    "You waited at the meeting ce before the girl showed up. Without doing anything like, excessive either~"


    She was surprisingly perceptive. Or, perhaps I should say that she had a solid understanding of my actions, no matter how trivial they might have seemed.


    By ''excessive'', she was probably referring to the fact that I wasn''t messing with my phone or making a call.


    Soon, I had to face Amasawa''s test. In other words, I had to buckle down and cook something for her by hand. That being the case, the time I spent standing here could''ve been a goodst-minute opportunity to look up recipes and take various other countermeasures. A good analogy is that it would''ve been no different from staring at the textbook right up until the chime of the bell on the day of a test. Of course, doing so in and of itself wouldn''t have vited any of the rules Amasawa had put forth.


    However, being on my phone like that might make me seem like somebody who wasn''t confident in his cooking.


    The same thing went for making a phone call, as it could''ve given off the impression that I had been discussing the matter with somebody else. Therefore, in order to highlight myposure, I deliberately didn''t do anything that would seem excessive. I had nned on instilling this image of me within Amasawa without her realizing it, but it appeared as though she had seen through me from the very beginning.


    "Well then Ayanok��ji-senpai, shall we go?"


    Amasawa spoke as soon as she joined up with me and the two of us entered the mall together.


    "To buy ingredients, right?"


    "Oh yeah. That too~ You''ve gotta buy the stuff you''ll make for me. Do you have the points~?"


    "I should."


    In truth, I really didn''t have all that many left, but I wouldn''t say anything unnecessary like that in front of one of my underssmen.


    "Good! I don''t need to hold back then~ Lemme see... I think I heard my ssmates say that they sell all the essentials here, but... I wonder where the shopping baskets are~?"


    Instead of heading for the supermarket, Amasawa walked straight into ''Hamming'', a shop specialized in selling home goods and other daily necessities, and picked up a blue shopping basket that she had found near the entrance.


    The words ''That too~'' that she had said earlier weighed on my mind.


    Although I knew I was supposed to cook her a meal, did this mean that there was something else I had to do other than buying ingredients?


    Amasawa stopped by the section where the kitchenware was on disy.


    This brought back memories of how, when I first enrolled here, I had made several trips to this very store to buy all of the things I needed.


    It wasn''t just the school''s students who made use of these supplies, but also the faculty members and the employees who worked in the cafeteria or the cafes around campus, so the store had a particrlyrge section set aside for kitchenware. I could remember the first time I came here and how it was difficult to find what I was looking for right away.


    From the look of it, they hade out with an assortment of new products since myst visit a long time ago.


    Perhaps the fact that Amasawa had stopped by here meant that she was looking to buy some specific specialized equipment or something? After all, the store had peelers, graters, mortars, and countless other cooking utensils. Given all of the variety, there were naturally several that I didn''t own as well. Either way, it was just weird that she hadn''t bothered to run any of this by me. It made sense to me that she''d at least check to see which utensils I did or didn''t have first. Considering our current time constraints, it would''ve been easy for her to ask me about it as we walked together, but...


    I held back my desire to ask her about it, allowing Amasawa to remain in control for the time being.


    I opted to try and bring up a subject that had nothing to do with cooking utensils.


    "Have you done any cooking of your own before, Amasawa?"


    "Me? Not at all. I''m not the type to just whip up a meal on my own. I''m the kinda girl who''d rather let others cook for me than make things for myself."


    She exined such before stopping in her tracks, having apparently arrived at her destination.


    The journey so far had gone without a hitch. She looked away from me, fixing her eyes upon the shelf of goods in front of us.


    For a couple dozen seconds or so, she stood there, lost in thought with her arms crossed, almost as if she was troubled by something.


    Then, as if having made up her mind, she nodded confidently, muttering an ''Alright~'' to herself as she did so.


    "To start out we''ll need a cutting board, right? Then a kitchen knife? Then there''s bowls and a whisk, and after that we''ll need a pot and adle as well, huh~?"


    She tossed each item into the basket one after the next as she listed them out loud.


    Thest item she put in was a big round spoon, which, apparently, was known as adle.


    "Hold on a second. I have almost all of these things you''re getting back in my room already."


    I was struck with a bad premonition about this, so I hurriedly began to speak up, but...


    "It''s fine, it''s fine. I''m just having you buy these exclusively for when you cook for me."


    She''s just having me buy these for what now...? The cutting board she had put in the basket was of an even higher quality than the one I was using in my own room right now. It seemed like it was made out of hinoki cypress and cost just over 4000 points. All of the other items were high-ss as well.


    At this point, it didn''t seem like she was finished yet as she went off once again, setting her sights on the next set of shelves. Her troubled demeanour from earlier was nowhere to be seen, as she proceeded to take hold of a small fruit knife without hesitating in the slightest.


    "For someone to im to be a skilled cook, owning a Petty knife is an absolute must, wouldn''t you say~?"


    She spoke in a casual, rxed tone as she tossed the knife into her basket. For a stupid amateur like me who didn''t even know that fruit knives were also known as Petty knives, that knife was very expensive, priced at nearly 3000 points. Even though there were numerous cheaper options on disy next to the knife she had chosen, she didn''t even feign an attempt at acting like she was interested in them. As far as I could tell, the difference in price ultimately boiled down to whether or not it was being sold with a sheath and whether or not it had been manufactured within Japan. But even then, the knife she had chosen was still an excessively luxurious one.


    Apparently, a skilled chef was expected to have mastered the use of this kind of tiny cooking knife.


    "This is just a question, but the one who''s paying..."


    "Well, that would be you of course, right Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    I already knew I was supposed to be paying here, but the total was easily over 15,000 points by now. Since it hase to this, I might as well throw away the cheap one I had been using up until now. If I thought of the food I''d make for myself using these high-ss tools when I cook on my own in the future, then maybe I coulde to terms with the purchases somehow...?


    "Ah, like I mentioned earlier, you''re buying these to cook for me exclusively, so don''t go wearing them out with everyday use, got it?"


    "Are you some sort of demon?"


    I got ahead of myself and vocalized my stingy thoughts, but Amasawa had unnervingly anticipated that.


    "You can call it quits now if you want to, you know~?"


    She spoke provocatively, her hands still clutching onto the handle of the blue shopping basket.


    She had grabbed onto my weakness, fully aware that there was no way I could refuse, dancing in the palm of her hand.


    15,000 points was an unbelievably cheap price to pay for getting Sud�� partnered up with an A-rated student. I had no choice but to cut my losses and make a decision.


    "No, I understand. I''ll ept all of your conditions, so feel free to buy whatever you want."


    "Do you think I''m a bad girl?"


    "I wouldn''t say that."


    Amasawa fixed her eyes on mine and then, having seeminglye to realize something, smiled broadly.


    "Then everything should be A-okay, Senpai."


    In the end, it was decided that I would purchase everything, from the pot to thedle and all sorts of things in between.


    Each item, bought under the horrifying condition that I would only use it when cooking for her.

 Chapter 17: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 17: 4.5</h4>


    Afterward, we went to the supermarket to buy the ingredients, the thing we hade to the mall for in the first ce.


    Altogether I had ended up spending about 20,000 private points. Needless to say, I had never purchased this many things at once before. The stic bags I was carrying were so heavy that the handles dug into my fingers.


    My guess as to what exactly Amasawa was taking into consideration and what she wanted me to make with these ingredients was as good as anybody else''s. This was because she had me purchase all sorts of things from vegetables to meat to fruit, and everything else in between.


    However, there were a few dishes that came to mind. For example, the presence of nam  and chili peppers helped to narrow down the options.


    Nevertheless, it was still hard to say. It''d be perfectly fine if she nned on having me use all of the ingredients, but it was more than possible that she had mixed in several fakes as well in order to mess with me. After witnessing everything she had said and done throughout the day today, I couldn''t help but harbor these suspicions. It was probably safe to assume that it''d be virtually impossible to narrow down the dish she wanted me to make for her at this point.


    "Okie dokie~! That should be it! Let''s go to your dorm room now, okay Senpai?"


    She spoke with a level of enthusiasm one would expect from a girl who was headed over to her boyfriend''s room, but I didn''t feel even an ounce of excitement about it. If I didn''t manage to cook her a dish she was happy with, all negotiations would probably be broken off then and there. Not to mention that the task this time was to cook her something ''delicious'', which was an inherently abstract benchmark to base things off of.


    If she never had any intention of letting me pass this little test of hers from the very beginning, then all of this had been nothing more than a futile waste of points and time. But for now, it didn''t seem like I had any other choice but toe to terms with whatever development took ce.


    I hadn''t realized that Horikita''s split-second decision yesterday would''ve led to something so heavy and troublesome.


    Originally, I hadn''t said anything to Horikita and Sud�� before since I was fine with covering the expenses, but now I had half a mind to discuss the costs with them after I washed my hands of all of this.


    It would be best to set that matter aside for the time being though.


    In order to confront the current situation as straightforwardly as possible, I decided to pitch Amasawa one of the questions I had been wanting to ask her.


    "Wanting to eat a meal made by a guy you don''t even know is a little strange, don''t you think? Wouldn''t somebody usually be fairly opposed to something like that?"


    This was just my own self-centered opinion, but I felt like it was something that people would generally be reluctant to do.


    Meals weren''t just made for show, they were made to be put into the mouth and swallowed down into the stomach.


    One would normally be concerned about who cooked the meal and how it was made, as these factors were directly rted to both taste and hygiene.


    Then, as you got to know the person cooking for you and began to trust their dishes, that past feeling of reluctance would gradually begin to die down.


    "Think so? But, like, it isn''t all that different from eating at a restaurant? With like, some stranger doing their thing in the kitchen to whip you up a meal, there''s no way you can know what''s going on back there."


    It was true that none of us knew exactly how the food was made in the school''s cafeteria, for example.


    However, while those two scenarios might appear to be the same on the surface, they were in fact ringly different.


    "Even if a restaurant were to make a simple rice ball, they''d still adhere to sanitation guidelines. That''spletely different from how it is when cooking on our own, isn''t it?"


    "So? I feel like it''s fine if the chef is cooking right in front of you. Cuz then you can like, see the look on their face and how they go about making it and all. You''d be able to check and make sure they''re being sanitary too. Conversely, aren''t some kitchens in restaurants like, totally hidden away from you? Some ces are also like, super sketchy with bugs and stuff crawling around everywhere, right?"


    Amasawa put forward the opinion that, as long as she witnessed it with her own two eyes, it didn''t matter who made the food, even if they were a stranger.


    "Besides, I think I''ve got a pretty good idea about how this school works. I''d have to live sparingly if I somehow ended up without any points, yeah? But like, if I get Senpai to cook for me, I wouldn''t have to worry about that."


    There it was. In other words, if the meal I cooked for her this time tasted good enough, she fully intended toe sponge off me again in the future.


    She was essentially looking to secure a reliable meal ticket in the event of an emergency.


    It would probably be a good opportunity for me to improve my cooking skills, but I was hesitant to say whether or not she''d be willing to pay for the cost of the ingredients.


    "You get where I''ming from?"


    "More or less."


    Amasawa shed a white, toothy smile.


    But there was still something that didn''t sit right with me. Was a second-year student, and a male student at that, really the best person to reach out to about it? I''d imagine that asking this of one the ssmates you were closer to or somebody of the same sex would make things much easierter on down the road.


    Well, I''m not exactlyining though, since I was looking to gain something out of it.


    "Anyway, I''m super picky about taste~ If it''s not yummy enough, the deal''s off, okay?"


    "I get it. Just because I make the dish doesn''t mean it''ll be good enough for you."


    In that respect, the hurdle was by no means low, but I had no other choice but to put my head down and do my best.


    The cooking skills that Horikita had spent thest night teaching me were all that mattered now.


    I wondered just how much I''d be able to leverage her training in the short time it had been since we epted Amasawa''s proposal yesterday.


    But even so, Amasawa probably wasn''t someone I''d be able to deceive very easily.


    I could guess from the ingredients she had chosen that she was eager to test my skills.


    Before long, we had arrived at the entrance to the dorms.


    Amasawa looked up at the building with her hand ced above her brow, shielding her eyes from the rays of the sun.


    "The second-year dorms are like, kinda unsettling."


    Despite saying that, she didn''t look very nervous at all.


    Rather, she gave off the impression that one would expect from somebody enjoying themself while they were out having fun.


    "Ah, but I guess it''s got the same, like, look to it as the first-year dorms."


    She shared her thoughts after taking a good long look at the exterior of the building and surveying the inside of the lobby.


    "That wouldn''t be surprising."


    I just casually went along with what she was saying, even though I had never visited any of the other dormitories before.


    We drew the attention of some of the students from the other sses when we passed by them.


    I suppose it was only natural though, since I appeared to be bringing a first-year girl back to my room with me- with groceries in hand, at that.


    Amasawa casually waved to the onlooking upperssmen as we passed them by, but it was making us stand out, so I wanted her to stop.


    I hurriedly ushered her to my room before any strange rumors had a chance to spread.


    "Pardon the intru~sion. Wow, you''ve really got it all nice and tidy, huh? It''s like, super clean too~"


    "I just cleaned upst night because I knew I''d be having an underssman over."


    I had done so to ensure there wasn''t anything to insinuate that I had spent the entire night studying how to cook.


    Now�� The sequence of events from here on out was vitally important.


    After setting down the bags of groceries and kitchen utensils on the floor by the kitchen along with my school bag, the first thing I did was go and set the water in my electric kettle to boil. Then, I faced toward the living area and prompted for Amasawa to take a seat.


    I could''ve seated her in a spot where she couldn''t see the kitchen, but I made sure not to do that.


    It was essential that I have her take a position where she could see what I was doing from the side if she felt like she wanted to.


    "I''ll make coffee. Feel free to turn on the TV if you want."


    "Thanks, Senpai."


    Then, I made her coffee after the water began to boil, giving it to her before asking her to hold on for a bit.


    Amasawa picked up the remote I had ced on the table and began to flip through the channels.


    While it was by no means foolproof, there was a solid, convenient reason for me to have her drown out the sound with the TV.


    Instigating her into watching the TV by cing the remote control nearby had been the correct idea after all.


    Once I confirmed that she had turned the TV on, I then went back toward the kitchen, moving in such a way that emphasized that I wanted to get started immediately. I needed to make sure I could stop her from watching what I was doing if she actually started watching, but luckily it didn''t seem like she wanted to do that.


    "Oh, looking up anything on your phone is against the rules, okay~?"


    She looked over, warning me.


    "How strict. I''m pretty sure that most people nowadays cook and look up recipes at the same time."


    "You scaaared~?"


    "No, nothing like that."


    "Sounds wonderful then. Cuz in my book, a good cook is somebody who knows the recipe by heart."


    While Amasawa hadn''t mentioned anything about that being the case yesterday, I just went along with it anyway.


    After all, I had already predicted that this would be one of her requirements.


    "Well, I''ll just leave my phone on the bed then."


    I went and plugged my phone into the charger and left it ced on my bed.


    Amasawa nodded contentedly and picked up her cup of coffee.


    "I''d like to get started before it getste, so what dish am I making?"


    "Alright, I''ll tell you~ The dish you''re gonna make is... tom yum goong!"


    "Tom yum goong... is it?"


    This seemed to be the reason for the presence of the chili peppers and nam , two indispensable ingredients of Thai cuisine.


    "Could you make it for me~? Please, Seeenpai~?"


    The dish Amasawa had tasked me with was tom yum goong.


    Of course, I had never made this dish in my life.


    I had never even really heard of it before, let alone actually tasted it.


    It was the kind of food that they had never served to us back in the White Room either.


    I had seen enough TV to know that the dish was popr amongst women, but that was the extent of my knowledge.


    If I had to make it on my own right now, I probably wouldn''t be able toplete the dish properly.


    Not only did I have no clue what exact ingredients were in it, but I also didn''t have the slightest idea of how to go about making it.


    So then, one might ask what in the world had I spent all that time doingst night?


    I didn''t spend the time doing something reckless like attempting to memorize the recipes for every dish in the history of mankind.


    I didn''t spend the time mastering basic cooking procedures either.


    It would''ve been utter nonsense to spend time memorizing recipes given that there was a possibility that Amasawa might''ve allowed me to follow one on my phone.


    Once it had been decided that I''d be cooking Amasawa a meal, Horikita went about setting two different ns into motion.


    The first had to do with learning the basic usage of things like kitchen knives and the various techniques that came involved with that.


    I had spent most of my time practicing things like slicing, shredding, dicing, and chopping. That is, techniques that helped to broadcast a tant disy of culinary skill, even at a nce.


    Of course, my skills in this regard were no more than mere child''s y whenpared to those of a professional chef.


    They were just at the level where an average person wouldn''t be ashamed to boast about it a little.


    It was something impossible for an ordinary person to master in only half a day, but I was confident in my ability to pick up new things quickly.


    I had probably managed to reach the skill level of somebody who cooked their own meal at least a couple of times a week.


    This was something I had aplished thanks to the fact that I hadn''t even spent one second learning about recipes or how to make something.


    However, with that being the case, there was obviously no possible way I could know how to make whatever dish Amasawa ended up tasking me with.


    And that was where the second n came into y: A method for checking recipes in real-time using a cell phone. But, Amasawa had expressly prohibited me from looking at my phone and it was currently being held hostage on my bed.


    Even if I had hidden a tablet or something somewhere nearby, I probably wouldn''t have any openings to look at it.


    In fact, we were expecting that Amasawa would most likely turn a watchful eye over to me from time to time. Working around Amasawa''s blind spot, I took out a tiny little device less than 2cm in diameter from my right-hand pocket.


    At first nce, the device looked like an ordinary earplug, and I casually inserted it into my right ear, knowing that Amasawa wouldn''t be able to see.


    I then proceeded to just barely clear my throat as a signal.


    And then��


    [I''ve been able to hear everything loud and clear so far. I never would''ve guessed that she''d ask you to make tom yum goong.]


    I could hear Horikita''s voice through the miniature wireless earpiece that I had inserted into my right ear.


    The strategy was to have Horikita feed me recipe instructions in real-time since she could freely ess herputer in her own room. Sud��''s cell phone had been stored inside my school bag that I had ced near my feet, which was rying all of the outgoing noise into the wireless earpiece. I had been on a call with Horikita since before I even arrived at the mall earlier.


    In the time Amasawa and I were shopping at the mall, Horikita had already gone back home and finished making all of the necessary preparations.


    The wireless earpiece was something the two of us had bought yesterday as well.


    If it started to seem like Amasawa was about to get up from her seat ande over to see how I was doing, I could simply pretend to scratch my head as I retrieved the earpiece and put it back into my pocket. After all, since she was keeping an eye on me, I was more than capable of keeping an eye on her in return.


    Thanks to this, I could cook without having to worry about the recipe. We had also established several discrete signals in the event Horikita were to give an instruction too quickly or I wanted to hear an exnation over again.


    From here on out, however, everything would hinge on how well Horikita and I were able to cooperate.


    Even if I knew what ingredients and tools I''d be using, I didn''t have any sort of visual reference.


    After all, I had to make a dish that I didn''t know very much about, and I had to make it perfectly.


    The challenge was how to go about giving specific, reproducible instructions through a pretty much one-sided conversation.


    [By the way, there''s something I''d like you to check with Amasawa-san first.]


    I took Horikita''s question and put it into my own words before asking.


    "Amasawa. There''s no need to use a whisk or a Petty knife to make tom yum goong. If there''s something else you want me to make for you afterward, just go ahead and tell me now."


    It''d be troublesome if she wanted me to cook something else for herter, so I asked for her to bring it up ahead of time as Horikita instructed.


    "I was gonna ask for itter, but I was thinking of having you peel me an apple."


    It seemed like Amasawa had nned on asking for something else afterward, as suspected.


    "You''re free to enjoy the leftover ingredients all you want, Senpai. Oh, and I''ll have you use the rest of those utensils we bought next time Ie over, okay~?"


    The Petty knife that I wasn''t sure I would actually end up using would actually serve a purpose today, but it seemed like I could put away most of the rest of the stuff for now.


    [It''s a good thing I had you check. I taught you how to use a fruit knife yesterday, so you can handle the apple, right?]


    I didn''t know how far I''d get with only a day''s worth of training, but that much would probably be fine.


    [Our goal is a cooking time of about 15 to 30 minutes. You ready?]


    Welp�� Let''s see how well I can do.

 Chapter 18: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 18: 4.6</h4>


    Although it had taken slightly longer than expected, I had managed to make the tom yum goong approximately as instructed.


    And now, the time hade to have Amasawa try thepleted dish.


    I never would''ve guessed that I''d be serving a home cooked meal to a girl I had only just met.


    I ced the tom yum goong on the table before turning around anding right back with an apple in hand.


    It seemed necessary to demonstrate that I was capable of handling the Petty knife in front of Amasawa.


    "I usually use a normal kitchen knife to peel apples, so using this might be a little awkward, but��"


    I spoke these words as a preface to help cushion the blow and set about peeling the apple.


    "Wow~ How amazing! You''re doing perfectly! The way you handle that knife gets full marks from me!"


    It wasn''t professional-looking or anything, but at the very least it didn''t look like it was the first time I had ever touched a knife.


    I thenid out the freshly cut apple slices before her.


    "By the way, when I think of tom yum goong, the first thing thates to mind istro. Do you not like that or something?"


    Cntro was not one of the ingredients that she had me buy today.


    "I do though? It''s just like, I thought you might figure out what the dish was if we gottro."


    She had been on guard, having deliberately chosen to leave out thetro; That is, she had taken steps to prevent me from pulling any cheap tricks on her. I could understand that she had done so in order to avoid showing me an opening, but it was pretty excessive for her to go that far.


    "Would you mind if I start getting everything cleaned up?"


    I asked, taking the opportunity to put the cutting board and Petty knife that I had used for the apple back in the kitchen.


    "No no no. You''ve gotta sit down right there and wait for the judge to give her verdict, okay?"


    She protested, demanding that I sit down right in front of her.


    Unable to go against her, I gave up on cleaning and made my way back into the living room, just as instructed.


    "Alrighty then, time to dig in~"


    Amasawa slowly carried a spoonful of hot tom yum goong into her mouth.


    She didn''t seem to mind having me sit here and stare at her as she ate at all.


    Though in that regard I wasn''t one to mind either, so she and I were one and the same.


    After she eventually finished eating, Amasawa sped her hands together, seemingly satisfied.


    "Thank you for the meal."


    She didn''t seem to be the type of girl who only ate small portions, as she had eaten everyst bite of the dish.


    The thing was... I had tasted it before serving it to her, but I had no way to be sure if it tasted right or not.


    I hadn''t made any mistakes with the measurements or anything, so I didn''t think there should be any problems.


    Even so, if Amasawa were to say that it still wasn''t good enough, then this battle would mark the end of the war.


    A war in which we had lost.


    "Your tom yum goong��"


    She paused for a moment before handing down her judgment.


    "Yeah, I guess it was just barely good enough. It wasn''t, like, super delicious or anything, but I think it tasted good enough for me to wanna try it again."


    She had yet to bring up the part that I cared about most: Whether I had passed or failed.


    "Well for now, I''ll clean up, kay?"


    With that, Amasawa picked up her bowl, spoon, and the other dishes on the table and headed over to the kitchen.


    She didn''t just ce the dishes in the sink, but instead began tidying up the entire kitchen for some reason.


    "I''ll take care of it from here."


    "It''s fine, it''s fine~ I''m the one who forced you to cook for me, so at least lemme do this much. Go sit back and rx, Senpai. I''m terrible at cooking, but I''m pretty good at cleaning up afterward since I always helped out my mom with it."


    "Well, I''ll take you up on that then. By the way, about our deal... what do you think?"


    Amasawa grew silent as she proceeded to tidy up the kitchen.


    Only the sound of the evening news ying on the TV could be heard.


    "Oh that''s right~ I''ve gotta announce the results soon, don''t I? It''s kinda tricky though~."


    As she thought about it, Amasawa didn''t seem to be happy with the position of the ribbon holding up her right ponytail, as she unfastened the ribbon and began to tie it back on, using her reflection on the screen of her phone like a mirror.


    Not long after, just as she finished tying back up her hair, she delivered her verdict.


    "As I said just a little bit ago, it was just barely good enough. After all, your technique wasn''t terrible, and the taste wasn''t like, bad either."


    "Only just barely? How harsh."


    "Well, I did say I was really picky about taste."


    Amasawa grinned, looking at me as she spoke.


    "I suppose I could say that whether or not I''lle back and eat here next time depends on how hard you work, Senpai."


    This meant that my cooking skills weren''t at the level where she wanted to drop by and ask me to cook her a meal very often.


    Though she had said it was just barely good enough, I still didn''t know if this meant I had passed or not.


    "So this deal with Sud�� was a failure, then?"


    I was somewhat hesitant about confirming it with her, but I decided to ask anyway.


    "While I can''t exactly say you passed, it''s true that you can cook. I had you buy all sorts of expensive stuff and like, you did let me eat for free, so I guess I''ve gotta repay you for that. I''ll pair up with Sud��-senpai, outta respect for your efforts."


    Although it hadn''t been enough to satisfy her, it seemed like, for the time being, I had managed to just barely meet her standards.


    She told me the good news just as I started to think that this might be a little difficult, letting out a sigh of relief.


    "I''m almost done cleaning up, so just hold tight for a bit, kay?"


    I couldn''t just stare at her as she diligently fixed up the kitchen, so I decided to just sit back and watch the news on TV as I waited for her.


    Before long, Amasawa came back to the living room, content with the state of the kitchen. She then took out her phone and submitted an application to partner up with Sud��, showing me the screen as she did. As long as Sud�� responded to her offer by the end of the day today, their partnership would be set in stone.


    "Sud��''s off doing club activities right now, so I''ll have him ept itter. Is that alright with you?"


    While this wasn''t exactly a lie, the real reason was that I had his cell phone, so he couldn''t use it right now.


    "Totally okay with me~ Anywho, I don''t wanna stay out toote, so I''ll be heading back now. See yater, Ayanok��ji-senpai!"


    The n had gone by without a hitch, as Amasawa headed toward the front door to leave.


    "Amasawa. Thanks for being willing to pair up with Sud��. You''ve done a lot for him, and Horikita too."


    "Yes yes~ You can shower me with as much appreciation as you want, kay?"


    She quipped back with a light-hearted reply as she put on her shoes.


    "In the meantime, there''s something I''d like to ask you about, but..."


    Just as I was about to state what it was, Amasawa finished putting on her shoes and nced over at me.


    "Is it that you want me to act as the intermediary between our sses?"


    She responded in my ce. Her cement in ss A and her A-rated Academic Ability weren''t just for show, after all.


    Essentially, she was a quick thinker who spoke without the slightest trace of doubt in her words.


    "You''re not wrong. There are quite a lot of students in my ss who are having trouble finding a partner, just like Sud��. It''d be great if you could introduce us to some people who''d be willing to help us out."


    "So~rry, but I don''t think that''s possible."


    Amasawa lightly put both hands together in front of herself to apologize. She had turned down my request without a second thought.


    "Ah, it''s not because of you or Horikita-senpai, okay? I totally think that I can trust you guys, but like, I''m not real close with the rest of my ssmates. Remember how I was all by myself when I first met you guys yesterday?"


    "Now that you mention it, yeah."


    Back then, many students were at the Keyaki Mall together with their friends, but Amasawa had been there alone.


    "I guess you could say that I like,ck delicacy or something, but it''s cuz I''m not the type to sugarcoat my words. It''s hard to make friends with people like that, you feel? So I can''t help you Senpai. Sorry?"


    "No it''s fine. The fact that you''re willing to partner up with Sud�� is already enough for me. If you run into any problems, feel free to rely on me. I might be able to do something to lend a hand."


    "Mhm, thanks~ Anywho, see yater~ Bye-bye~!"


    While I failed to establish a connection with ss 1-A, this was more than enough for the time being.


    "I guess that''s that."


    After I hung up the ongoing call on Sud��''s phone, I called Horikita using my own.


    [Well done. It looks like everything worked out one way or another.]


    Words of appreciation practically flew out of Horikita''s mouth as soon as she picked up the call.


    "I get the feeling that we were saved by Amasawa''s merciful judgment, though."


    [Even so, this has gone and solved Sud��''s problem. It''s quite the aplishment.]


    It was wrong of us to have cheated Amasawa, but we made it through in the end nheless.


    The only thing left to do now was wait for Sud�� toe pick up his phone from my room and ept the application.


    And given the time, he''d probably show up soon.


    [Why did you ask Amasawa-san to act as our intermediary with ss 1-A? Her personality and number of friends aside, you can imagine how difficult it would be for her to negotiate with ss 2-D, right?]


    Horikita had never mentioned winning over ss 1-A back when she wasying out her strategy for this special exam.


    The sole reason for this was the difficulty that woulde with trying to establish a cooperative rtionship with each other.


    "It was just a formality. It''s true that our ss is having a hard time finding partners, so it would''ve seemed unnatural if I didn''t try to put that into words."


    If we didn''t have any other options, we needed to give off the impression that we were grasping at straws when reaching out to others.


    Not doing so could be taken as a sign that our ss was pushing forward with another strategy.


    [In other words... You didn''t want Amasawa-san to realize that we''ve given up on winning over ss 1-A from the very beginning, focusing our attention on ss 1-B and ss 1-D instead?]


    In fact, Horikita hadn''t even considered winning over ss 1-A through Amasawa since she already had the other two sses in mind. From the very beginning, she had decided that she could make the most of the fortunate scenario and just have her partner up with Sud��.


    "Neither of us know what kind of person that Amasawa girl really is. That''s why what happened today could leak out to the other first-year sses, or maybe even the rest of the second-year as a whole. I only acted after taking that into ount. I might just be worrying too much, though."


    Having heard my exnation, Horikita sank into silence for a bit.


    "What''s wrong?"


    [Your way of thinking is... How do I put it...? Extremely calcted, and yet clever.]


    "It''s no big deal, really."


    [No, it is a big deal. It seems quite obvious when you say it after the fact, but it''s apletely different thing for you to think so far ahead in the moment. I think I better understand the reason why my elder brother paid so much attention to you now. However, if I was having this conversation with the you from the past, you wouldn''t have bothered to tell me anything specific like this. What changed?]


    Horikita asked me a question, curious about the seeminglyplete change in my behavior.


    "I don''t have any ulterior motives or anything. Anyway, our next problem is what to do about the remaining students. I''ll let you know when I hear back from Nanase."


    [Yeah, you''re right. I''ll be waiting.]


    After finishing up my call with Horikita, I went to check on the state of the kitchen.


    The kitchen was spick and span. Not only had the dishes been washed, but the sink and countertops had been meticulously polished off. The way it looked now was by no means inferior to how it was when I first came to the room one year ago. The cutting board, tes, kitchen knife, Petty knife, pot,dle, and everything else I had used had all been neatly put away as well. There was nothing toin about.


    Although it had been spearheaded by Horikita, this was the first time I had interacted so closely with a first-year student. If Amasawa was the one from the White Room, it wouldn''t have been strange if she tried to pull something, but I didn''t see any evidence of that.


    I still n to err on the side of caution, but...


    Given the way she spoke and carried herself, the knowledge Amasawa possessed was nothing out of the ordinary for a normal high school student.


    It would probably be difficult for someone who had only just left the White Room to take on the same mannerisms as her.


    "Most importantly, the chance of Amasawa being the White Room student disappeared when she paired up with Sud��, right?"


    I could also discount the other first-year students who had already decided on a partner. At least, that''s what I would say if I had to make a judgement given the information currently at my disposal. However, it still felt far too early to make that assertion, no matter who it was.


    While it may be true that partnering up with me would be the fastest way to get me expelled, that was only one of many potential strategies they might have. There was a possibility that the White Room student might be looking for another opening by intentionally passing up on the special exam.


    Themon knowledge of a high school student wasn''t something that could be mastered overnight, but with enough time, that wouldn''t be true either.


    Besides, there were select parts of Amasawa''s speech and conduct that bothered me.


    It probably wasn''t anything I needed to worry about, but it was probably for the best topletely crush any and all concerns I had first.


    This didn''t just apply to Amasawa either. The same was true of H��sen and Nanase, who I woulde in contact with in the near future. Out of the many second-year students present when they came to the second-year ssrooms, I was the first they had locked eyes with.


    I should be suspicious of any and every student whoes into close contact with me, regardless of whether they converse with me or not.


    Because from here on out, I''d be stepping into more dangerous territory to find myself a partner.


    Later that night, I received a message from Nanase.


    [May we meet up after school tomorrow?]

 Chapter 19: 4.7

    <h4>Chapter 19: 4.7</h4>


    That same day, around the time when Ayanok��ji was cooking for Amasawa, three students from ss 2-A, Sakayanagi, Kamuro, and Kit��, had gathered at a cafe in the Keyaki Mall to hold a discussion.


    "It happened again. It seems that the students we reached out to have all gotten offers from ss C. Moreover, it seems that ss C has been offering students 10,000 points just to turn down any offers they receive from our ss, no strings attached."


    Kamuro was on the phone with Hashimoto, rying his findings to Sakayanagi from across the table.


    "10,000 points, just for deciding not to join up with us? Is that stupid or what?"


    After quickly expressing her own thoughts on the matter, Kamuro then continued to put forward the rest of the information as she got it from Hashimoto.


    ss 2-C was offering 100,000 private points as an advance payment just for agreeing to partner up with them. Then, after it had been confirmed that the pair had scored more than 501 points on the exam, they were apparently offering an additional 100,000 private points, meaning 200,000 points in total.


    "Fufu. It seems that Ry��en-kun fully intends to see this match through to the end."


    "What are you gonna do? Should we fight back with private points too?"


    "If we fought the financial battle, we simply wouldn''t lose. However, beating him with his own strategy wouldck a certain... artistic potency, don''t you think?"


    "Artistic potency...? If we need to be dishing out 100,000 or 200,000 points, then shouldn''t we be doing it? The first-years obviously think there''s a lot to gain from going after private points."


    Word had already spread that the first-years held the advantage in this exam. A standard had been set, where the honor students would choose their partners in exchange for private points.


    Sakayanagi responded to Kamuro''s advice with a simple, silent smile, prompting Kamuro to speak up again.


    "So you''re just fine with losing? To Ry��en?"


    "First of all, there''s quite arge difference in the academic prowess of Ry��en-kun''s ss and our own. Should he look to ovee this with the strength of the first-year students, he has no choice but to entice a considerable number of them. Furthermore, even if he manages to do so, his victory is by no means absolute."


    "Maybe so. But, that doesn''t mean we''re absolutely gonna win either, right?"


    "Right indeed. Let''s assume Ry��en-kun were to gather up a good number of students with Academic Ability ratings in the A range. That would just barely manage to put him on equal footing with us, would it not? Even if we don''t do anything, our odds of winning would be at a solid 50%."


    However, put the other way around, that meant that there was a 50% chance that they might lose as well.


    Kamuro wasn''t getting heated because she wanted to win the exam or anything.


    It was because it was hard to believe that Sakayanagi, the girl sitting right in front of her, would go down without doing anything about it.


    "What do you think would happen if we were to announce that we''d pay the same amount as Ry��en-kun?"


    "What would happen? Well, Ry��en would pay even more, yeah?"


    "Right you are. His offer would surely swell up to 200,000, maybe even 300,000 points."


    "But if we offer them enough, we''d definitely be able to pull the honor students over to our side."


    "And we''d pay a truly massive number of points inpensation for that. There''s no express need for us to risk losing thousands upon millions of points. Wouldn''t you agree?"


    "Are you saying we can win over the students even if we offer them less points? I don''t think the first-years have a very deep understanding of the power of the ss A brand, though."


    Kamuro refused to back down, but it didn''t seem like Sakayanagi had the slightest intention of fighting a mary battle.


    "I''m well aware that Ry��en-kun wants to take first ce overall. Compared to the cash-oriented deal he struck with Katsuragi-kunst year, it seems that he''spletely changed policies."


    "He was gonna save up 20 million points for himself and move to ss A, right?"


    "He''s had quite the change of heart since, I believe. He''s finally realized the importance of ss points. No, rather, he''s changed direction for the sake of winning for his ss."


    So far, Sakayanagi and Ry��en had yet to exchange a single word with each other during this special exam.


    However, it seemed as though the two were striking up a back-and-forth conversation with each other using their strategies.


    "So... you''re just okay with it? With us not making use of our private points?"


    "My my, Masumi-san. When have I ever said I wouldn''t make use of our points?"


    "Wha? But weren''t you just saying thatpeting with pointscked an artistic something or whatever?"


    "Please tell Hashimoto to tell the first-years that we''re willing to match Ry��en-kun''s offer."


    Kamuro pursed her lips, having heard Sakanyagi''s puzzling instructions.


    "However�� Even if the first-year students agree to our offer, don''t finalize the agreement with them."


    "Hah? I seriously don''t understand what the heck you''re getting at here."


    "Fufufu. Ry��en-kun''s strategy is actually rather convenient for me."


    "I don''t even know what''s what anymore..."


    [Isn''t it fine? If the princess says it isn''t necessary, then let''s just do as she says.]


    Hashimoto, who had been listening in on the conversation over the phone, chimed in.


    "...I guess I''m fine either way."


    Even if an agreement was reached with respect to the amount of points, Sakayanagi had deliberately instructed not to finalize the partnerships.


    Although Kamuro didn''t understand, she once again ryed the details of Sakayanagi''s ns to Hashimoto.


    As she did so, Sakayanagi gazed at Kamuro tenderly, wondering if she had been just a little too mean with her mischief.


    So, she began to exin, so as to give a hint to Kamuro about what was happening.


    "Ry��en-kun''s grand strategy isn''t an inherently bad one. By going around contacting the first-years like he has, he has seeded in forcing me to participate in this money game of his. However, he''s been dead set on trying topete for the exact same students that we are, which is a clear miscalction on his part. As ss C is the more inferior ss overall, he should be focusing his attention on the students with high academic potential first and move forward from there."


    However, Ry��en wasn''t doing that. Amongst all the students ss A was reaching out to, some had potential in areas outside of Academic Ability, yet Ry��en was trying to snatch them up as well.


    "Does this mean that guy''s got a ton of private points saved up?"


    "Well, who knows? Even if he has the points he needs, he might not actually be able to make use of all of them, does that make sense?"


    "No, that''d be crazy. He''s only able to make all these aggressive offers because he''s got the points for it, right?"


    "It''s possible to make an offer without even a single point to your name. All you''d have to do is pretend you have the points on hand."


    Kamuro couldn''t understand what Ry��en would gain by doing something like that.


    "If it weren''t for Ry��en-kun, we''d be able to win over a lot of talented first-year students with just our ss A reputation. But by offering to buy students with points, he''s forced us to y this money game as well. So whates after that, then? He''ll jack up his offer to make us pay as many points as possible."


    "I see... So that''s how it is?"


    As a result, even if ss A managed to get their hands on a talented student, the fact that they would have to pay hundreds upon thousands of private points to the first-year students would only serve to benefit thepetition between the second-year sses.


    "But we''re at the disadvantage then, aren''t we? His strategy''s been working time and time again."


    "There''s no need for us to get worked up at this stage. He''s only bought off a few students, so let him have his fun for now. He''s simply misread a few crucial details. He thinks that our good reputation is nothing more than abel, a status that can go away if people start to see us in a bad light. Additionally, he''s mistakenly determined that he can get people to coborate with himter just by handing over some points."


    "I don''t quite get it, but we''ll be fine as long as we follow your instructions from earlier, yeah?"


    "Yes. That should be enough for now."


    "I don''t like it. It still feels like we''re being forced to go along with Ry��en''s strategy. If we keep getting dragged along like this, I dunno how things''ll turn out for us."


    "Please rest assured. It won''t turn out that way. We''ll win this little game without running into any problems at all."


    Unable to keep up with yet another inexplicable exnation from Sakayanagi, Kamuro let out a sigh.


    "There''s no reason for you to rack your brains at this point in time, so please just don''t let yourself be swayed by Ry��en-kun. This special exam is nothing more than a prelude for what''s toe next. Right now we''re just keeping each other in check as we attempt to sound out the other''s next move."


    "I''m just about ready to give up trying to understand you at all."


    "Although... If possible, I hope he doesn''t end this by self-destructing. It wouldn''t be very much fun to finish this so easily."


    Sakayanagi gazed out of the window beside her, praying that her oing opponent was somebody worth facing off against.

 Chapter 20: 4.8

    <h4>Chapter 20: 4.8</h4>


    On that same day, around two hours after Sakayanagi and Kumuro had finished up their discussion, Ry��en met up with Ishizaki and Ibuki in a Karaoke Room.


    "It seems that ss 1-B student we were after for 200,000 asked to put the offer on hold, Ry��en-san."


    After receiving an update on his phone, Ishizaki reported the information to Ry��en. Despite that, Ibuki was the one to respond.


    "The hell? Is 200,000 not enough somehow?"


    "No, it seems like Sakanyagi went and said ss A would offer the same amount as us..."


    "Sounds like they really don''t wanna lose to us. Can we even keep going on like this? It''ll be tough."


    "ss A has a considerable number of private points, right? I''m thinking we''re in pretty hot water here too..."


    Despite Ishizaki and Ibuki''s ensuingmentary and the new information, Ry��en simply sat there messing around with his phone,pletely unfazed.


    "R-Ry��en-san?"


    "Chix. I already know what they''re up to."


    Ry��en sent a nce over to his empty ss, and within seconds, Ishizaki was refilling it with water.


    "Tell ''em we''ll pay 100,000 up front and 200,000 after the exam."


    "S-seriously? That much?"


    300,000 in total. The number of points in y had grown evenrger.


    "Most of the first-years won''t make a decision either way. They''ll all be waiting for Sakayanagi to counter."


    "Wouldn''t we just end up screwin'' ourselves over waiting around for that?"


    If they were short on funds, they wouldn''t be able to do anything.


    "Seems it''s impossible topete with Sakayanagi after all... How''s about we look to aim for second ce instead...?"


    "I agree with Ishizaki. If we offer the same amount, we''d lose out cuz of ss A''s rep."


    Ry��en simplyughed after hearing Ishizaki and Ibuki''s analysis.


    "Ha! That little girl''s probably got a triumphant look on her face right about now."


    "She''s just seen through your way of doing things. Even if we can put up a good fight with private points, they''ve just got a better rep than us."


    "ss A''s reputation is nothin'' more than a petty decoration right now. Given how much those guys value their rep, the trust they''ll lose when it alles tumbling down''ll be immeasurable."


    "Even if that''s true, what''re we gonna do about points? It ain''t the end of the world if the offer goes up to 300,000 or 400,000, but we couldn''t possibly pay that much to everyone!"


    "There''s no need to pay. I don''t n on working with shameless brats who keep asking for points without knowing the limit."


    "...Eh?"


    "I''m not lookin'' to try and do somethin'' like that this time. I''m in the process of learnin'' about this new batch of first-years; Findin'' out what kinda people they are. They say money is the key that opens all doors, but a chump who''s down to cooperate for a whole buncha points is the type of chump we can get onto our side whenever we want. All we gotta do is fork over some points when we really need ''em to help and that''s that. I''m lookin'' for the guys who intuitively understand the bigger picture here."


    "Sorry but, I''ve got no clue what you''re on about..."


    "That little girl prolly thinks I''m out here with my sights set on first ce, but I never had any intention of goin'' after such a measly number of ss points. If we''re gonna fuck over ss A, we''ve just gotta wait for a chance when the ss points are gonna fluctuate even more than this."


    "So, you just set this all up to figure out which of the first-years areplete pushovers?"


    "It was obvious that we might just keep jacking up our offer from the very beginning, and yet some students chose to partner up with our ss already. Why do you think they chose to do that?"


    "Eh...? Come to think of it, why did they do that?"


    At first, ss C had offered 50,000 points up front and another 50,000 after the exam.


    Although this amount wasn''t insanely high or anything, several students had already been willing to join forces with ss C.


    "You... Before closing out a deal with somebody, you always went to meet with ''em one-on-one... Did you threaten ''em or something?"


    "Well, maybe a little, but you''ve got the right idea."


    They would be lured in with offers of 300,000 or 400,000 points, only to yield after a personal interview with Ry��en.


    In the end, the amount settled on was always far lower than what it had appeared to be on the surface.


    "I''m just takin'' a look at the first-years, seein'' if they smart enough to understand that I''m far better than Sakayanagi."


    He was cherry picking the students who could instinctively notice the winning ss without being caught up with things like points or reputation.


    Those were the students Ry��en Kakeru was truly searching for in this special exam.


    His real goal for this year was set far in the future, where he would drag down Sakayanagi, taking the rest of ss A down along with her.

 Chapter 21 - 5: Class D and Class D

    <h4>Chapter 21: Chapter 5: ss D and ss D</h4>


    Thursday; The weekend would soon be upon us. I brought Horikita along with me to the library after sses were done for the day.


    This was because we had arranged to hold a discussion with the ss 1-D students that Nanase would be bringing along with her today.


    On the way to the library, Horikita and I spoke with each other about the special exam.


    "Have you taken a look at today''s OAA update yet?"


    "17 more pairs were finalized, bringing the total up to 73."


    While the number of new pairs wasn''t all that unexpected, there was one thing that made this update distinctly different from the previous two.


    Two students from ss 1-D had decided on a partner.


    Slight traces of activity could be seen within the ss that hadid dormant over the past three days.


    "I''m a little annoyed. I thought H��sen-kun would wait and see how the situation developed for a little while longer. I tried to make some light conversations with several ss 1-D students during lunch today, but they all just brushed me off by saying they didn''t know anything about the two students who were involved."


    "There''s a fine line between them actually not knowing anything and them having a gag order in ce."


    It wouldn''t be surprising if they had been instructed not to leak any information nor partner up with someone unless they receive a substantial number of points.


    "That''s true. Either way, it''s good that we''ve decided to meet with Nanase-san after this. If it''s her, we might be able to ask her about it too."


    Horikita had only ever made contact with Nanase once, and they had never really had a proper conversation with each other.


    Nevertheless, Nanase, the girl who had been together with H��sen, stood out as a student who seemed easy tomunicate with.


    I had personally felt a strong impression of honesty back when I had spoken with her.


    Somehow, she had a straightforward, upright personality that reminded me of Ichinose.


    We arrived at the library and set foot inside.


    "Oh my. It seems the library has some rare visitors."


    The first person to greet us was not Nanase, but rather, ss 2-C''s Shiina Hiyori.


    As expected of a bookworm, it seemed she had made her way here as soon as school was out for the day.


    "It might be just a little noisy today. We''re here to have a discussion with some first-year students about the special exam."


    "I see. Well, I think the seats at the far end of the room should be good for that. That way, you won''t be too much of a nuisance to the other library patrons, so it should be alright for you to talk a bit. If someone tries to approach you, you''ll be able to notice right away."


    We opted to take the advice that Hiyori had considerately offered to us.


    "Are things going well in ss C?"


    "Yes. There''s a lot going on right now."


    Because our sses were directpetitors, it was difficult for her to let us know about the internal affairs of her ss.


    We parted ways with Hiyori after exchanging a few more simple words and decided to go take a seat since we had arrived before Nanase. Although I was vaguely concerned about Hiyori''s situation, I went along with Horikita to the seats at the far end of the room.


    "Nanase-san aside, now that we''re getting involved with ss 1-D, the question is whether or not H��sen-kun will show up."


    "That''s right. Whether or not hees with her will make all the difference."


    Since there weren''t any prior restrictions on who coulde, there was no guarantee that H��sen wouldn''t tag along with her.


    In which case, we would have to negotiate a big deal under rather turbulent conditions.


    "Can I ask you something before we get to the full-blown discussion? Have you been studying?"


    "Well, somewhat. Is there something wrong with that?"


    "As I''ve got the advantage of choosing the subject we''llpete in, I''ve just been wondering if you''ve been taking enough time to study."


    "Why? Are you trying to show humanity to your enemy or something?"


    "No way. I''m not so kind that I''d give up my own advantage. This is apetition I must win."


    Although she says this, she still seemed to care about whether I was studying properly or not.


    In other words, she was worried that I''d end up making excuses if I lost our bet, saying that I had been too busy with the special exam to study.


    "I could say the same to you, given that you''ve spent all your time trying to put ss 2-D in order recently."


    "I''m just as diligent with my studies as always, so there are no problems on my end."


    It seemed she was pretty confident in her daily study routine.


    "Don''t worry. I''m not going to lose."


    "It''s fine if that''s the case, but..."


    She didn''t exactly trust me so she didn''t really think I was taking our bet very seriously.


    There was one more thing I wanted to ask her in rtion to that. Horikita had many different shoes to fill. On top of working to organize the ss, she had to both study for herself, and tutor others. I wasn''t sure if she could keep this pace until the day of the exam. However, just as I was about to ask her about it, Nanase arrived at the library alone. She noticed the two of us immediately, bowing her head before she approached. It seemed that H��sen wouldn''t be showing up for the initial discussion.


    "Sorry to have kept you waiting, Senpai."


    "We only just got here ourselves."


    Greetings were shared as Horikita motioned for Nanase to take the seat on the other side of the table. The discussion had begun.


    "I''ll reintroduce myself... I''m Horikita Suzune. Thank you for taking the time to hold this discussion with us today."


    "I�� No, that''s not right... I am known as Nanase Tsubasa. I haven''t done anything worthy of your thanks. Rather, I should be the one expressing my thanks to the two of you." (TLN: The first ''I'' Nanase uses here is Boku, whereas the second and all future pronouns she uses for herself in this part is Watashi. I have no idea how to trante it so I''m just doing this to exin it as it''s an important detailter.)


    They were fellow ss D students, both having started from the very bottom.


    As soon as she heard Nanase''s polite introduction and response, Horikita cut to the chase.


    "This might seem rather intrusive, but could I ask you about something?"


    "Of course."


    "First of all, as a baseline premise, I''d like to hear about ss 1-D''s policy moving forward. Only today did two students in your ss finally decide on their partners. However, the direction of the remaining 38 students is still up in the air. You''re one of them, aren''t you Nanase-san?"


    While it wasn''t known if it was H��sen or another ss 1-D student, it was clear that somebody was giving the ss instructions.


    "You''re correct. I thought that you''d inquire about that. You asked Kajiwara-kun this very same question earlier today, right?"


    Kajiwara was the name of one of the many students in ss 1-D. Apparently, Nanase had already found out that Horikita had attempted to contact several ss 1-D students during lunch today. In which case, it seemed reasonable to assume that Nanase also knew that we had contacted Shiratori and his friends on the first day of the exam.


    "I''m surprised. It seems you guys do a great job reporting,municating, and discussing things."


    "Many students have already begun taking action in ordance with H��sen-kun''s orders."


    Instead of being ambiguous, Nanase readily confirmed that H��sen was the one in charge.


    "Is it because of his aggressive attitude? No... I think there''s more to it than that. What on earth did he do?"


    Nanase pondered for a moment before finally opening her mouth to speak.


    "I''m immensely sorry, but I''m afraid I can''t provide you with any specifics. It''s a strategy that H��sen-kun hase up with in order to unify the ss. Although I don''t know if his strategy is correct or not, leaking the information to an outsider would be an act of betrayal."


    "Oh well. You''ve made the correct choice."


    In response to Horikita''s words, Nanase lightly bowed her head in appreciation. Just because we were her upperssmen didn''t mean she had to tell us everything. Just as she had expressed in her conversation with me yesterday, Nanase possessed the resolution expected of a student devoted to her ss.


    "Then, let''s get down to business. I''d like to know if our ss can coborate with ss 1-D, just like the two people who finalized their partners yesterday."


    "I believe you''ve heard this from Shiratori-kun already, but our doors are always open to you. As long as you present us with at least a fixed number of private points, we''ll ept the partnership without the slightest bit of hesitation."


    Sure enough, our conversation with Shiratori and his friends had managed to reach H��sen''s ears.


    From this, I could hazard a guess that the two ss 1-D students in question had been bought for arge number of private points.


    "But what I''m asking for today ispletely different from settling an agreement with points."


    "I understand that. I heard a little about it from Ayanok��ji-senpai before, but you''re looking to establish a cooperative rtionship where our sses help cover for the more academically incapable students, correct?"


    "That''s right. The fact that you''vee here despite knowing that, already leads me to believe that we have room to negotiate, right?"


    "There is�� or at least that''s what I''d like to think."


    With that, Nanase''s expression clouded over before she continued.


    "H��sen-kun''s way of thinking is thoroughly rooted in the mindset of individualism, and he enforces that on those around him. At this rate, the students with low Academic Ability ratings won''t be able to find partners and will end up getting left behind. While it''s not a very big problem that they''ll lose out on three months of private points, I fear that they''ll be branded as losers who weren''t able to find themselves a partner. Well, no, that might not be that big of an issue either... What really gets to me is the thought that this individualistic mindset might never go away, preventing us from being able to unite as a ss in the future."


    After hearing what Nanase had to say, Horikita vocalized her predictions on what she thought might happen to ss 1-D moving forward.


    "Yeah. If nobody is ever willing to help the ss as a whole, the ongoing individualist battle would naturally elerate. The weaker students would have no choice but to fend for themselves. And, as soon as that bes the expected standard, nobody will be willing to help each other, even if somebody asks for it. The ss wouldn''t be in any position to do something if confronted with an exam that requires cohesion."


    That was why, in order to avoid that, Nanase was willing to single-handedly take part in negotiations with Horikita.


    "You''re not afraid of H��sen-kun, Nanase-san?"


    "Yes."


    An immediate, unfazed response. And then, Nanase turned and set her sights on me for the first time since we started the discussion. She had that same look in her eyes that I had seen only twice before. I was reminded of what I had heard yesterday, when she had said ''I will never yield to violence.'' Although I wasn''t without concerns about her identity, Nanase may very well be the only person capable of bringing ss 1-D over to our side.


    If we had truly met through a chance encounter, then I was honestly grateful for her.


    "Then, let me ask you more of an in-depth question here. How many students are struggling to find partners right now in ss 1-D? Please tell me to the extent you know you can answer, Academic Ability ratings aside."


    While the OAA app would tell you which students hadn''t found a partner yet, it didn''t say anything about whether or not a given student was likely to find a partner.


    For that, you had no choice but to ask somebody personally involved with the ss in order to find out.


    "At this point, I believe that approximately fifteen students would find it difficult to search for a partner on their own."


    "Fifteen... That''s more than I expected."


    However, many ss 2-D students hadn''t decided on a partner yet either.


    As long as they coordinated properly, there should be enough room for our sses to work together.


    "Nanase-san. If you''ll allow for it, I''d like toe to an agreement with you and your ss."


    "An agreement, is it?"


    "I''m hoping that you and I can decide on abination of fifteen sets of partners and get this over with all at once. It wouldn''t matter what Academic Ability rating they might have. And, naturally, there wouldn''t be any points involved either. It would be an equal, coborative rtionship based on helping those who need to be helped."


    In other words, a rtionship based on an understanding of mutual concessions andpromises.


    As we would be giving and taking from each other, private points and feelings wouldn''t need to get involved.


    The chances of somebody being expelled would go down a lot with the establishment of this agreement alone.


    However, things weren''t that simple, and both Horikita and Nanase were aware of that as well.


    "This is on the premise that we can make that agreement in the first ce, but there is no guarantee that we will be able to save those in Horikita-senpai''s ss with Academic Ability in the vicinity of an E rating. The majority of the students in my ss who are struggling to find partners have Academic Ability ratings of C or D."


    If, for example, the maximum Academic Ability rating they were willing to put forward was a C+, there would still be huge risks associated with pairing them up with someone who has an E rating from our ss. It wouldn''t be unreasonable to say that, for us, the disadvantages would be far more prevalent.


    "That''s why I''ll need you to do your best to make sure it doesn''t turn out like that."


    "Yes, I know. Even if that''s the case, I still don''t believe we wille to an agreement very easily."


    Nanase spoke her thoughts without denying anything.


    "H��sen-kun would never allow us to help you out for free. Especially not now."


    ss 2-A had managed to maintain a high number of ss points ever since enrollment and had an ample amount of funds saved up as a result. ss 2-C, despite coughing up arge number of points to save Ry��entest year, had the luxury of a steady supply of funds due to their contract with Katsuragi and ss A. The ss 2-C students probably had a certain amount of points saved up as well.


    Given that the two sses were contending for students with such a huge number of points on the table, it was only natural for the first-years to sell themselves to the highest bidder.


    You could say that H��sen''s n, the policy he had put in ce, was the best way to handle this exam.


    However, while asking prices were high across the board, there was no doubt that ss 1-D was asking for much higher prices than all the other first-year sses.


    This was evident by the low number of ss 1-D students who had already finalized their partners.


    "Even though it would benefit everyone in his ss? There shouldn''t be any downsides in it for him."


    The downside was that the students who weren''t able to join with a partner wouldn''t receive the private points they would''ve gotten otherwise. Though, this was probably implied by this point.


    "I understand what you''re trying to say, Horikita-senpai. I can also get behind the vast majority of what you''ve outlined for me so far."


    It looked like, personally, Nanase was impressed with Horikita''s proposition.


    However.


    "It''s just... I still don''t think H��sen-kun will allow it."


    There was a short silence. I could vaguely guess what she happened to be thinking about, so I spoke up.


    "The only thing I know for sure is that H��sen isn''t just collecting points for himself."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I originally thought H��sen was demanding a huge number of points for partnerships because he wanted to horde all of the points for himself. But if that were the case, he''d be actively looking to help his ssmates with low Academic Ability ratings. In the most extreme scenario, he''d be reaching out to those students, telling them to just hand over the points they''d get and he''d find them a partner."


    "That''s indeed true... Three month''s worth of private points is nothing to sneeze at. I''d rather give half of the points to H��sen-kun and save myself instead of failing the exam and not getting any points at all."


    Judging from his actions so far and what I could gather from conversations with Nanase, that wasn''t what he was doing at all.


    "It''s just as Ayanok��ji-senpai has spected. H��sen-kun has not received anypensation from our ssmates."


    He was controlling the ss, imposing rules.


    And then, when someone breaks those rules, they''d bepletely ostracized by H��sen and the students who followed him.


    Therefore, they wouldn''t dare find a partner without H��sen''s permission. They couldn''t.


    The ss 1-D students didn''t show up at the meet-and-greet because they knew it''d be useless to attend from the very beginning.


    "Couldn''t you use your influence to control even a couple of the academically capable students in your ss?"


    Horikita wasn''t asking for anything in return for her proposal. It was merely an act of mutual cooperation between sses.


    Compared to the second-year students, the first-year students didn''t have as much of an emotional attachment to their ss and friends.


    It was just too unreasonable to expect them to have bonded within the first week or two after enrollment.


    "I''ve tried asking several of them, but none have said that they''d be willing to consider it."


    "Sopensation is still an absolute requirement?"


    "If we only need a couple of people, couldn''t we just make an agreement using points?"


    I asked Horikita the question. If our goal was to take first ce overall like ss 2-A and 2-C, we''d need an enormous sum of points to recruit such arge number of capable students. However, since our goal is just to prevent expulsions, we only needed to recruit a couple students, so the mary cost would be reduced ordingly.


    "Yes... If we really end up with no other options, that''s what we''ll have to do. But a rtionship built upon private points can only be further maintained with more private points. I want a rtionship that goes beyond that."


    After responding to me, Horikita turned and looked straight at Nanase.


    "What do you mean by that, Horikita-senpai?"


    "Right now, the first-years and second-years are on different ying fields. First-years like you are at the advantage because you don''t have to bear the risks of expulsion. However, that dynamic surely won''tst forever. Sooner orter, the day wille when you have to face the risk of expulsion as well. If you''ve never done anything more than establish rtionships that revolve around points, what are you going to do when the timees and ss 1-D doesn''t have enough?"


    While some students would probably be saved, chances are that there would also be those who would not.


    "That''s why I want to work with you as equals without creating a hierarchical rtionship based on points. And, I want to build up trust. A special rtionship of trust thates from being in different school years."


    With this, Horikita was advocating that, when a ss 1-D student was in trouble, they''ll be able to consult with us on an equal footing. In short, it was simr to the trust-focused strategy Ichinose was implementing.


    The primary difference being that it didn''t require the entire grade''s cooperation, but just that of a single ss.


    Horikita wasn''t looking to appeal to everyone. She was just limiting the scope of our cooperative efforts to ss 1-D.


    We had already embarked on the fourth day of the special exam. We couldn''t afford to waste too much of our time.


    This had probably given Nanase a solid understanding of Horikita''s intentions.


    But even so, her strained expression never brightened.


    "Ipletely understand what you''re saying, but I don''t think my peers can understand that yet. Most of the first-year student body is eager to save up as many private points as possible. Given that, partnering up with somebody without any form ofpensation would be seen as nothing more than a waste."


    In this respect, the only option was to give them time to understand how the school worked.


    "So basically, you''re saying that there are two obstacles to working together with ss 1-D right now. Persuading H��sen-kun, and persuading the honor students who want points. Thetter of which remains the same no matter which ss you''re dealing with, but..."


    It was true that, at least on the surface, the benefits that woulde with working together with ss 1-D seemed small because of the many obstacles, H��sen in particr, that would need to be ovee. However, the reality was different.


    Was Horikita aware of this as well?


    "Please let me discuss things with H��sen-kun."


    Horikita voiced her request, having decided that it was impossible to move discussions forward any further than this without H��sen.


    "You''re right... If we want to push this rtionship any further, I suppose there''s no getting around it."


    "I''d be ready to meet with him right now, if that''s alright with you."


    "Okay. I''ll go call him."


    Nanase took out her cell phone and headed toward the entrance of the library.


    "It seems that H��sen-kun''s influence is more widespread than I imagined."


    "Yeah."


    "Trying to work together with ss 1-D like this... I''m not making a mistake, right?"


    "Establishing a rtionship that looks forward to the future isn''t a bad idea. You could even say that it''ll be essential. Sakayanagi and Ry��en have been trying to build up trusting rtionships with the talented first-year students using their reputation and points. Ichinose doesn''t have any points whatsoever, but she''s trying to build up her own trusting rtionships by saving the weak. And your strategy is simr to Ichinose, but you''re trying to build up trust with only one ss, right? The strategies all take different shapes and sizes, but in the end they''re all the same. You''re already in the process of bing a leader capable ofpeting with the three of them."


    Horikita nodded lightly upon hearing my words. With this, it was up to her to make sure that the negotiations ran smoothly.


    After waiting for a while, we noticed Nanase poke her head back through the entrance and beckon us over to her.


    "I wonder if something happened?"


    "Let''s go and find out."


    The two of us left the library and joined back up with Nanase.


    "Pardon me, Senpais. Uhm... H��sen-kun is on the line."


    Nanase held out her muted phone, presenting it to Horikita.


    Horikita took the phone, set it to speaker mode, and set about confronting H��sen.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting."


    [Yo. I''ve heard the gist of it from Nanase.]


    "I''d like to meet in person and exin it to you myself, if I could."


    [No need. Meetin'' up won''t do jack shit.]


    After an audibleugh in the background of the call, H��sen spoke.


    "By that... you mean you''re not even willing to negotiate?"


    [Exactly. I didn''t even wanna talk with ya on the phone, but Nanase was bein'' stuck up ''bout it.]


    "But H��sen-kun, I think we should consider what Horikita-senpai has to say."


    [Shut up bitch. Who the fuck you think you are? Huh? I''ll fucking kill you.]


    "I have no interest in being killed, but please meet with Horikita-senpai at least this once."


    [Don''t contact me again unless yer willin'' to fork over the points.]


    Nanase tried to say something else, but H��sen hung up the call.


    She immediately tried to call him back, but no matter how many times she called, he never picked up the phone.


    "...I''m very sorry!"


    Nanase lowered her head as far as she possibly could, apologizing to the two of us.


    But Nanase hadn''t done anything wrong.


    "Raise your head. My n ispletely different from H��sen-kun''s, so it''s not going to be easy to get things right. I''m very grateful that you''ve been willing to lend us a hand like this."


    "That..."


    "Let''s leave it at that for today. We''ll have toe up with something if we want to discuss things with H��sen-kun. Either way, I''d like to get this wrapped up by the end of this week."


    Any longer than that and Horikita would probably have to shift her focus to a different ss. That said, I really hoped it wouldn''t turn out that way. Fighting the other three sses for students after most of them have already been taken would take an almost daunting amount of effort.


    "I''m very happy that you haven''t given up yet, Horikita-senpai, but..."


    Nanase held back the words that were about to leave her mouth. She had probably wanted to say that it was impossible to form an equal, coborative rtionship with H��sen, but thought it would all be over if she did.


    "At least he got a sense for what I want to do. That should be enough for now."


    Though time was running out and patience was wearing thin, Horikita reassured Nanase as she brought the conversation to a close.


    Horikita offered that we all return together, but it seemed like Nanase had somewhere she needed to go.


    And then, after telling us that she hoped to meet up with us in the library again tomorrow, she left.


    Perhaps she went off to go meet up with H��sen.


    "Let''s head out. I still have a lot left to do today."


    It seems that Horikita has ns to hold a study session with Sud�� and a few others after she got back to her room.


    "Ah, and it''s about time you rify what your n is with finding your own partner too. Are you going to figure it out on your own, or do you n on delegating it to me as well? It might affect how things turn outter on down the line."


    After all, if we managed to start negotiations with H��sen, we''d have to make adjustments to the exact number of people involved in the agreement.


    "There''s already somebody I have in mind for that."


    "So instead of looking for somebody with a certain Academic Ability rating, you''re looking for somebody specific? Who?"


    "That''s a secret."


    "A secret...? Do you really need to keep it from me?"


    "I only have a surface-level impression of them right now myself."


    "Does it really matter that much? Everybody''s had to do what they can to get help, you do know that right?"


    "You''re not wrong. I thought I''d have a better idea today, but... Well, I''ll make my decision by the end of this week at thetest."


    "If you say so, but... I can''t make any promises if youe crying to me at thest minute, alright?"


    "I''ll keep that in mind. Anyway, I was meaning to ask earlier, but how are you feeling?"


    "...Are you worried about me?"


    "While there''s no need to worry about your stamina right now, there''s still a fair bit of time until the special exam."


    If she were to run out of energy right before the end, it could possibly affect her performance on the day of the exam.


    She was holding study sessions day after day, coupled with all the time she had spent dealing with Amasawa''s cooking challenge yesterday.


    It''s only natural that fatigue would gradually continue to umte.


    "It''s true that I might be wearing myself out, but I don''t have time to rest right now. I''m not going to copse until the special exam is over."


    Rather than a simple show of courage, this was more like she had adopted a mentality fitting of someone looking to lead the ss into battle.


    Y��suke and Kushida offering their help was one thing, but students with excellent Academic Ability ratings like Keisei and Mii-chan had also offered to help Horikita ever since the very beginning of the exam. As such, Horikita decided to push forward with her n to work together with ss 1-D in the future.


    After all, if the leader falters, unable to make decisions, it would only serve as a bad influence on the ss as a whole.


    In a race against time, the most crucial part of all of this was figuring out how to solidify our ss''s course of action during the early stages of the exam.

 Chapter 22: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 22: 5.1</h4>


    It was a bit chilly that night. I stood in my kitchen, cooking with therge quantity of leftover ingredients from yesterday''s shopping spree. Of course, this time I was using recipes and videos as references for what I was doing.


    I was making the dish that I had made for Amasawa before, wanting to try it for myself.


    The name of the dish, tom yum goong, was abination of three different Thai words, meaning ''boiled'', ''mixed'', and ''shrimp'' respectively.


    "It''s got a unique taste, but it isn''t bad."


    The way its spicy yet sour vor spread through my mouth and its distinct aroma pierced my nose made it seem like it''d be an addictive dish for certain types of people.


    After cleaning up, I turned on the venttion fan above my stove, looking to let out the smell that had filled the room. I eventually noticed my phone vibrating on my bed, the sound drowned out by the noise of the fan. I thought about just calling backter, but it never stopped ringing, so I picked up.


    [You took like, forever to pick up.]


    This was the first time Kei had been the one to contact me in a few days now. Thest time was back when the special exam had just begun.


    The first thing out of her mouth was aint.


    [You''re the one who told me to call around this time. Get a grip, would ya?]


    "My bad. So, did you find out about that thing I asked you to look into this morning?"


    [I''m only calling cuz I did my research properly, so don''t you think you aren''t, like, being grateful enough?]


    "I''m very grateful. So...?"


    [It doesn''t seem like you''re grateful at all... Well, whatever. ording to the store person, only one of ''em has been sold since April. They told me that they like, pretty much never sell that modelpared to the other simr ones they''ve got, and that they''re lucky to sell even one or two of ''em a year. But the thing is, apparently one of the new students tried buying one too.]


    There was no need to tell me about the identity of the person who bought one recently. I was far more interested in the new student who tried to buy one.


    "Tried buying one, huh...? So they didn''t buy one, then?"


    There was no physical way this new first-year student wouldn''t have been able to buy it unless they had done something absurd like spending all of their points immediately after they first came to the school.


    And, given this year''s batch of new students, I didn''t think they''d do something that foolish.


    [I tried asking the clerk about that too, just in case. Apparently, just as the first-year was about to pay for it at the register, somebody else showed up and stopped them from going through with the sale. Anywho, the clerk told me the student who tried to buy one looked...]


    As Kei described the student''s appearance, I began to sort out the situation in my head.


    It was a little... no, considerably different from what I had in mind at first.


    I never would''ve expected that ''that person'' would be involved in all of this.


    "Did the clerk say anything about the person who stopped the first-year from buying it?"


    [Nope, they didn''t know much about that. They just said they were pretty sure it was a girl.]


    Students have to present their student ID card to make purchases, so while the clerk knew the name of the person who tried to buy the item, they didn''t know anything about the person who stopped the sale.


    [Is my information useful?]


    "Yeah. It might be much more useful than I thought it''d be."


    [Hehe, I''m like, super talented, after all. Make sure you thank me properly, kay? But like, why''d you have me look into something like this? I seriously don''t get it at all.]


    "Me neither."


    [Wha?]


    I had hoped that having her ask around would help exin the mysterious behavior, but this development was far beyond anything I had imagined.


    In fact, because it was so far off from what I had imagined, it made me wonder if any of this was even relevant at all.


    "Come to think of it, I heard that you''ve already found a partner for the special exam."


    [Ah, yep. Shimazaki-san from ss 1-B, was it? Feels like I''ve been saved thanks to Kushida-san.]


    Now that our main business had been dealt with, I changed the topic ever so slightly.


    "I don''t think you''ve got a bad partner, but Kei, have you been studying properly?"


    [Well, uh, how do I put it...? Like, I was thinkin'' it''d be fine if I like, just put it off ''tilter, you know?]


    I knew it. I hadn''t heard anything about her attending one of the study sessions yet.


    "This exam isn''t something you can get through all on your own. Your rating is a D+. If you aren''t careful with your grades, you might end up sufferingter."


    [I know I know, I just can''t get myself interested, and like... even if I went to a study group, it''s not like you''d be there or anything.]


    "So what, you''d study diligently as long as I''m around?"


    [...Uh, yeah? I''d work hard in front of my boyfriend.]


    I wasn''t sure if that was true or not, but since she said so, the solution was obvious.


    "Then let''s see... How about youe over to my room at around 6:00 tomorrow?"


    Considering that we''d be meeting with Nanase after school tomorrow, that seemed like a fair enough time to schedule things.


    [I cane hang out at your ce!?]


    "You''ll be here to study, not to hang out."


    [Eh?]


    Don''t ''eh'' me.


    "I''ll help you study. That should at least get you motivated, right?"


    To start out, I''d evaluate the full extent of her abilities.


    And if it turns out that she needs to participate in additional study sessions, then I''d urge her to do so.


    [You''re worried cuz you''d be real sad if your girlfriend were to get expelled, huh~?]


    She suddenly asked, noteworthy traces of excitement in her voice, almost as if she thought she had the upper hand now. I was tempted to tease her a little bit in response, but I figured that she''d feel more motivated to study if I just went along with her and agreed.


    "Well, naturally? If the girlfriend which I had only just started dating got herself expelled, it''d be noughing matter."


    [I-I see~ That''s true isn''t it! Well then, I guess I have no other choice. I actually had all sorts of things nned for tomorrow, but I''ll make a special appearance, just for you.]


    While it wasn''t very straightforward, it was a small price to pay to get her to push forward with her studies.


    [What should I bring with me?]


    "I have everything you''d need in my room already. Just don''t bete and that should be fine."


    [Okay~!]


    "Well then, I''ll be hanging up now."


    [Wha!? Hold up! Wait! We''ve, like, only talked about the special exam and studying so far, though!]


    Apparently, she wanted to chat about somethingpletely unrted to any of that.


    "I guess you''re right about that."


    [Hrmph, you seriously...]


    While we didn''t talk about anything rted to the exam or studying after that, she continued to chew me out nheless.

 Chapter 23: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 23: 5.2</h4>


    On Friday, the fifth day of the special exam, the number of pairs finalized had increased to 81, meaning that a little over half of all students had made their decisions. The number of students in ss 2-D who had found a partner had begun to increase as well.


    The same was true of those whom I was close with. I had already known about Kei''s decision due to our talk yesterday, but both Airi and Haruka from the Ayanok��ji Group made theirs as well. The driving force behind this had been none other than Kushida. She wasrgely responsible for introducing our ssmates to students from ss 1-B thanks to her coboration with Yagami, an underssman from the same middle school as her. However, this was by no means a perfect solution for everything. Although Yagami was gradually gaining a positive reputation within his own ss, it didn''t seem like he had any intention of being a leader. As such, he was simply cooperating with us as an individual. It wasn''t reasonable to expect him to be able to provide enough students to cover for everyone who needed a partner in ss 2-D.


    Yagami had offered his help under only one condition: That he partner up with Kushida.


    And, as indicated by the information provided in the OAA app, that was exactly what had happened yesterday.


    We had to use Kushida, one of our more academically capable students, but Horikita didn''t seem to be dissatisfied with that in the slightest because the benefits had far outweighed the cost incurred. Besides, we still had several talented students left on the table, such as Y��suke, Keisei, Mii-chan, Matsushita, and even Horikita herself.


    In any case, just because one''s partner had been finalized didn''t mean that one could just take it easy.


    A proper amount of studying was a reality that simply couldn''t be avoided.


    In fact, you could say that the exam had only truly started once one''s partner had been chosen.


    Even though I didn''t speak with them very much, I could feel a sense of unity in our ss as everyone began to help each other out.


    It was probably only possible because we wererades who had stuck together through thick and thin over the course of the past year.


    But despite the unified atmosphere��


    One student rose up from his seat, seemingly about to return home for the day.


    Horikita proceeded to speak up to him, as if she had been waiting for him to attempt to leave.


    "It seems you still haven''t found a partner yet, K��enji-kun."


    "And what''s wrong with that?"


    This was an intervention with the only person in the ss who wasn''t a part of this sense of unity.


    "As your fellow ssmate, I just thought I''d ask you about your current situation."


    Even for students that usually did things on their own, they''d normally still talk about it with others so you''d still know what they were up to.


    But K��enji wasn''t one to say anything to anyone, so it was hard to know what he was up to.


    "You''re smart. You''ve never even considered the idea that you might get expelled, have you?"


    "Of course."


    "Fair enough. Knowing you, even if you were to pair with a student with ratings simr to Ike-kun, you''d get close to 400 points easily. I think you''re pretty safe."


    Generally speaking, one would want to make use of K��enji as one of the most academically capable students in the ss.


    That was probably why Horikita had reached out to him, but sure enough...


    "Fufufu. I have no intention of doing anything for this special exam. All that matters is that the one who bes my partner scores at least 150 points. As long as they aplish the bare minimum, it should be effortless for me to attain a score that exceeds the passing criteria."


    ording to Chabashira, everyone should be able to score a total of 150 points on the exam at the very least. Unless you were in my shoes and you ended up partnering with the White Room enforcer, it was unthinkable that one''s partner would intentionally score a zero.


    However, the need to rely on your partner was inevitable.


    Indeed. You would probably never find somebody that was 100% guaranteed to score at least one point on the exam, no matter how hard you looked. Both first and second-year students had to move forward on the assumption that their partner would score at least 150 points, but this was no more than a 99.9% guarantee. In order to make that guarantee as close to 100% as possible, the school hade up with a rule, stating that students whose scores deviate from what was expected of them, given their Academic Ability ratings, would be expelled. And it was because of this that K��enji could afford to be confident.


    He didn''t need to go to the trouble of attending discussions or building up rtionships with the new students.


    "In other words, you''re saying that it doesn''t matter who you end up partnering with, right? If so, would you allow me to find someone for you? I know you think you''ll be fine no matter who you end up with, but it''d be safest to avoid incurring the 5% penalty that woulde with not finding a partner."


    She was offering to just leave everything to her, a proposition that had essentially no visible downsides.


    "You''re definitely not wrong, but allow me to refuse."


    "...Why? Can I ask that you give me a reason?"


    "Because I am who I am, naturally."


    Simply put, he didn''t want to be used at Horikita''s convenience.


    K��enji was K��enji regardless of the situation.


    If I were to find myself in a position where I had to make use of K��enji in order toe out on top, then I probably should''ve done something different before getting into that position in the first ce.


    "Satisfied?"


    Having been asked this, there was nothing more Horikita could say.


    After all, K��enji wasn''t an opponent she could force into action even if she tried. It would be a waste of effort.


    "Yes. For now. But, you can''t keep going on like this forever. When the timees and the ss really has to work together, you''ll have to do your part as well."


    She wasn''t talking about this particr special exam. Rather, she had her sights set on what woulde after that.


    Horikita wanted him to keep that in mind.


    "I understand why you''d want to rely on somebody as perfect and wless as me, but I probably won''t take part in a~ny of that."


    Unwilling to lend his ear to Horikita any further, K��enji turned and left the ssroom, headed off to who-knows-where.


    "K��enji is impossible, isn''t he?"


    I poked my nose into what had happened and spoke up, albeit somewhat unintentionally.


    "I''m just irritated because our ss would be so much stronger if he took things seriously."


    There was nothing more frustrating than having a secret weapon you couldn''t control.


    It was the feeling of expectation that made her despair when he didn''t perform as she thought he would.


    "If it were me, I wouldn''t have counted on him from the very start."


    For the sake of the future, it would probably be easier for her to think of K��enji as an exception and leave it at that.


    "I won''t give up."


    "...Is that so?"


    Well, while running around in circles aplishing nothing wasn''t the best use of time, at least she was motivated.

 Chapter 24: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 24: 5.3</h4>


    From the moment we stepped foot into the library, I noticed that it was shrouded in apletely different atmospherepared to the other day. Many students, both first and second-years, were gathered inside, notebooks and tablets spread out before them as they participated in what appeared to be various different study groups.


    It seemed most students hadn''t growncent after finding a partner, instead, they had begun taking action right away.


    For some reason, I was reminded of back when our ss held a study session here a year ago.


    "Well this is a bit troubling. There are more people here than before, so we might stand out a bit."


    "Let''s just try to blend in then."


    Fortunately, the seats we used yesterday at the back of the library were still avable.


    Since it wouldn''t have been strange if the seats were upied, I turned and looked over at a certain someone elsewhere in the library.


    It wasn''t long before Hiyori noticed my gaze and waved at me with a gentle smile on her face as she approached us.


    "I thought that Ayanok��ji-kun and Horikita-san would surely visit today as well, so I made a special request and had these seats reserved for you."


    "Are you sure that''s fine?"


    "It would be a different story if the library was close to maximum capacity, but there''s no need to worry about that."


    Given the size of the library, there was plenty of space for everyone. Nheless, I appreciated her consideration.


    "Please go ahead, feel free to take all the time you need to discuss."


    With that, Hiyori left, not particrly interested in lingering around any further.


    "She''s awfully kind, isn''t she? Do you think she overheard our conversation yesterday?"


    "It''s hard to say. I think it''d be difficult given the distance though."


    We sat in the same seats as yesterday, as they had been expressly left open for us.


    And then, we took out all of our study materials from our bags and began acting like we were there to study.


    However, no matter how long we waited, Nanase never showed up.


    "Nanase-san. She''ste."


    The meeting time was supposed to be after school at 4:30, but it was already past 5:00.


    I had sent her multiple messages by now, but it seemed like she hadn''t read any of them yet. At this rate we might have to personally go and check up on her, though that in itself would be tricky since we didn''t know her current location.


    "Should we go take a look in the first-year ssrooms for the time being...?"


    Just as we were about to go look for her, Nanase showed up at the entrance to the library, seemingly flustered.


    Once she noticed where we were, she approached our table, visibly out of breath.


    "I-I apologize. I''ve kept you waiting for quite some time...!"


    "It''s fine. I was just worried that something might''ve happened to you along the way."


    "I was busy negotiating with H��sen-kun, trying to get him toe along with me somehow."


    "Is that so... It doesn''t look like there''s been much progress on that front."


    Given that she hade alone, it didn''t seem like anybody else would be joining us.


    "That said, he didn''t stop you froming to talk with us today?"


    "He did not. He probably doesn''t think that anything will be finalized without him."


    No matter how much Nanase may try on her own, H��sen had the final say.


    Given his confidence, he probably couldn''t care less about micromanaging every little thing Nanase wanted to do.


    "It seems that we have no choice but to force him to meet up with us after all."


    "That''s..."


    "I already understand that things won''t be resolved easily. But unless we discuss this in person, we''ll just keep beating around the bush forever."


    That seemed like thest thing Horikita wanted to do without further preparation.


    "That is certainly so... But..."


    Nanase''s words trailed off as she seemed somewhat hesitant about something, but she quickly made up her mind and continued.


    "Horikita-senpai wants to build an equal, coborative rtionship with ss 1-D no matter what it takes, right? Or am I misunderstanding something?"


    "Yes. That''s exactly right."


    "Then... might I get you to hear out a proposal of mine?"


    From the sound of it, Nanase hade here with a few ideas of her own.


    "Even if I were to suggest to H��sen-kun that we enter into an equal, coborative rtionship, it''s clear that I would end up being rejected. I think it would be the same even if Horikita-senpai were to meet up with him personally. That being the case, how about you and I proceed with negotiations in secret?"


    "Proceed with negotiations in secret? But your ssmates wouldn''t just obey without H��sen-kun''s permission, would they?"


    "Yes. However, that''s because I have yet toe forward as a leader."


    With that, Nanase presented us with an unexpected proposal.


    "I have judged that my ss will not survive for much longer if we continue with H��sen-kun''s way of doing things. So, it is my hope that I be the leader of ss-D before his dangerous ideals be instilled in the ss''s mindset. And, as a stepping stone for that, I''d like to form a rtionship with ss 2-D."


    Both Horikita and I had never expected that she would propose something like this.


    A tale of how Nanase Tsubasa would defeat H��sen and be the leader of ss 1-D.


    If that happened, Horikita''s goal of establishing an equal, coborative rtionship suddenly wouldn''t be that far off anymore.


    "We don''t have the basis to judge which one of you is better suited to be leader. Either way, the only thing I can say for sure is that we''re running out of time."


    With the special exam fast approaching, we simply couldn''t afford to get involved in a fight over leadership right now.


    "Many of my ssmates don''t approve of H��sen-kun''s way of doing things. In fact, after bringing it up thesest few days, I''ve managed to get seven of them to agree to help me."


    "And that''s not just students with low Academic Ability ratings?"


    "Yes. Of those seven students who are willing to negotiate, three have Academic Ability ratings of a B- or higher."


    "...I see."


    Horikita pondered over this for a moment. Three people was by no means perfect, but if that number were to increase just a bit further, forming a coborative rtionship with Nanase as the focal point might not be the worst idea after all.


    "Wouldn''t it be problematic if H��sen-kun realizes what we''re doing?"


    "Needless to say, that would be a disaster. That''s why we''d have to keep everything secret from now until the deadline for choosing our partners on the day of the exam. If we submit the applications at the veryst minute, he won''t notice anything."


    "But then it''d be difficult to win over the students who can study, wouldn''t it?"


    There was no changing the fact that the students with high Academic Ability ratings wanted to receive private points aspensation.


    "Our ss will helppensate you for that. Those of us who aren''t very good at studying will get to avoid the three-month penalty thanks to you and your ssmates. In other words, they''ll have three months'' worth of points to help supplement your losses. That way, even if you pay 200,000 points to help win over these students, you''ll ultimately end up getting your money back. Although it would be for far less than the 500,000 points per person that H��sen-kun is after, it should still be within the scope that my ssmates would find eptable."


    In short, this meant that they would be cleaning up their own mess.


    Originally, we were the ones who had to entice the honor students with points, but with this strategy, the less capable ss 1-D students would be the ones using their funds to help entice their peers.


    "This way, we won''t cause any problems for you and your ss. Of course, H��sen-kun will get angry once he learns of what we''ve done, but I will take full responsibility so that no harm befalls those who have lent a hand. What do you think?"


    "That''s... No matter how much you want to be your ss''s leader, wouldn''t this proposal ce far too much of a burden on you?"


    "It''s fine. You''ve gone through the trouble of extending a helping hand, so I don''t want to lose out on the trust you''ve shown or the opportunity you''ve presented me with."


    Nanase seemed to be saying that it was a cheap price to pay if it meant that her ssmates would be saved.


    "Besides, even if I''m not recognized as my ss''s leader, at least I''ll have helped your ss in this exam."


    If you only considered the immediate profits, then Nanase''s proposal was by no means unattractive.


    I found myself wondering how Horikita would respond to it.


    "Thanks to this, I''m now absolutely certain that I want to have a coborative rtionship with ss 1-D."


    "So, does that mean that you''re okay with my proposal?"


    "No. I can''t take you up on your proposal."


    "But there''s no other way..."


    "All of ss 1-D''s problems will be solved if you could just get H��sen-kun onto your side. I don''t think you actually want to be your ss''s leader; You just don''t like the way H��sen-kun is doing things, do you? That being the case, if H��sen agrees to negotiate, there should be plenty of students willing to pair up, right?"


    "That''s... well, yes. I''m sure of it."


    "Plus, if you and H��sen-kun are in conflict with each other, it''s possible that ss 1-D will be split into two instead of being united as one. There''s no way I''d let that happen. So, how about you let me help you change his mind instead?"


    Apparently, this conversation with Nanase had caused Horikita to realize something as well.


    That, as long as we can get through H��sen, the rest of our problems would be solved.


    "It''s a risky gamble. If we fail, it may not be possible for ss 1-D and ss 2-D to work together in the future."


    "I''m prepared for that... Well, that''s not true. I think there''s a good chance that our sses can work together. And that''s not just me, I''m sure that H��sen-kun is thinking the same thing."


    "Even though he was so rude to you over the phone yesterday?"


    "I''ll just tell myself that he was being tsundere. At least for now."


    Having understood what Horikita was trying to say, Nanase nodded in agreement.


    "I was right to make time to meet with Horikita-senpai and Ayanok��ji-senpai again today. It seems my hunch wasn''t incorrect after all."


    "What do you mean by that? I rejected your proposal, didn''t I?"


    "No, you didn''t reject anything. You and I have been on the same page since the very beginning."


    "That... Does that mean you were thinking of trying to persuade him this whole time as well?"


    "That''s right."


    Apparently, the proposal Nanase had put forward about bing her ss''s leader had been a test of sorts.


    She had given Horikita the choice to slight the future of ss 1-D in favor of short-term profit. If Horikita had taken her up on the offer, she wouldn''t have been willing to coborate with us any further.


    "Just as Horikita-senpai said earlier, we''re running out of time. We can''t move forward without getting the two of you in the same room together, even if it means we have to force the matter. Could you give me some time so I can get everything in order for the two of you to meet? I''ll definitely bring H��sen-kun before you by Sunday, the day after tomorrow."


    It didn''t seem like Nanase was testing us this time, given how earnestly she lowered her head to Horikita.


    By waiting until Sunday, the amount of time we had left would naturally decrease by that much more.


    Due to this, Horikita turned and looked at me, her eyes hesitantly seeking confirmation.


    Thinking that there was nothing wrong with taking a risk, I nodded to her in response, and with that, the hesitation in her eyes vanished.


    "I believe you. I''ll look forward to meeting with H��sen-kun on Sunday, the day after tomorrow."


    "Yes... Absolutely. However, I''d like to avoid meeting in a public ce as much as possible. After all, H��sen-kun may act rather reckless depending on the circumstances."


    "Alright. Then how about we rent a Karaoke room? I''m also fine with meeting up at night sometime if that''s more convenient for him."


    Indeed, meeting in the dead of night on a Sunday would substantially reduce the risk of being seen by others.


    "I understand. I''ll make sure he knows."


    Just as the conversation was beginning toe together, Horikita''s cell phone vibrated.


    After looking over the message she had received, she let out a sigh.


    "What''s up?"


    "The study session. It seems like they''re short on hands since I''m not there."


    Before I realized it, it was already 5:30.


    "I think we''ve just about wrapped up this conversation. Could I ask that you take care of the rest, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Will do."


    After a light bow to Nanase, Horikita quickly gathered up her things and left for the study session.


    Horikita was responsible for supporting the entire ss, and as such, was always tasked with moving about everywhere.


    "Horikita-senpai is quite busy."


    "That''s what it takes to lead a ss."


    "I hope I can be an amazing student like her a year from now..."


    "Horikita didn''t ask about this in detail, but what do you n on saying to lure H��sen out?"


    "That... Well, while I don''t mind answering that for you, why don''t you tell me about yourself first, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "About me?"


    The sun was beginning to set for the day, dying the world outside a brilliant shade of orange.


    "Horikita-senpai is the leader of your ss, but you''re different, aren''t you?"


    I see. Nanase wasn''t sure if it was appropriate for me to be here or not.


    If I said that Horikita was just forcing me toe along with her, that''d probably be enough to shut her up.


    "Senpai... What kind of person are you?"


    When I didn''t answer, Nanase propped her arm up on the table so as to hide part of her face.


    It seemed like somewhat of a defensive posture, done so as to prevent anyone other than me from seeing her mouth and eyes.


    "Won''t you answer?"


    "It doesn''t seem like you''re looking to ask me about my rtionship with Horikita, are you?"


    It was something different than that. She was looking to ask about what kind of human being I was.


    "Yes. I suspect that Ayanok��ji-senpai may be a wicked, dirty person. At least, that''s what I think."


    Her words were both intense and direct. Though, despite that, Nanase was looking at me with eyes full of honesty and confidence. I wasn''t sure what I had done to make her look at me that way. Given all of our interactions so far, she couldn''t have been able to find out very much about me. While she and I weren''t the mostpatible, I couldn''t remember saying anything that would warrant her calling me ''wicked''. Nanase Tsubasa may in fact be the enforcer who I''ve been looking for.


    There was a reason why I suspected this.


    Even though my expulsion was the primary objective for the White Room student, there would probably be more to it for them than that. They would surely look to make contact with me up close, interested in observing the human being known as Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka. At least, that''s how I saw it. They weren''t merely interested in my expulsion; They wanted to prove that they were better than me. If they didn''t, ''that man'' would never approve of them.


    This was probably the thought process I would have if I was the one tasked with expelling the person known as Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka. However, for someone supposedly from the White Room, her words felt a bit out-of-ce.


    "When I''m with you like this, Ayanok��ji-senpai seems like an ordinary person to me."


    "By that, are you saying that you normally see me as an unordinary person?"


    "...No. That''s not it."


    Although Nanase denied it, I found myself wondering if that was what she truly thought.


    I had met with Nanase a total of four times now, and I had noticed that strange look of hers each time. It seemed as though I was just about to find out where she hade from, but I could feel my chance to pry deeper slip away from me.


    "I''m sorry, please forget I ever asked. The most important thing right now is figuring out how our sses can cooperate with each other."


    Together, we rose up from our seats and turned to leave the library.


    As we dispersed, I remembered that there was something I wanted to ask of her.


    "Come to think of it, back when we first met, you said that you''d only lose out on 240,000 private points if you lost three months worth of points. Why was that?"


    By now, Nanase''s expression had gone back to usual, without even a trace of how it had been only moments earlier.


    "Why, you ask? I simply calcted that, as long as our ss maintained the 800 ss points given to us upon enrollment for three months, one person would end up with 240,000 points..."


    Nanase responded as if bewildered that I had even asked.


    Apparently, this new batch of first-years had started out with a different sum of ss points than we had.


    "The number of ss points we were given at the beginning ofst year was 1000."


    "Eh? So you''re saying that there''s a 200 point difference then?"


    "That seems to be the case. I wonder what it''s like for ss 1-A and 1-B?"


    "I believe they have 800 points as well. At least, that''s how Shiba-sensei exined it to us."


    Why was there no official notice though? I would think that it would feel somewhat unfair if they found out that they were given fewer ss points than in previous years. Was it because 80,000 points a month was still quite a lot, so the school didn''t think it mattered very much? No, if that was the case, the school would have notified them of that from the start. It would''ve made more sense for the school toe clean about it to the students rather than try to hide it and give them a reason to be dissatisfiedter.


    There were probably several other things different fromst year that I still didn''t know about.


    "You know that your lifestyle has an influence on your ss points, right?"


    Back when Shiba-sensei, the homeroom teacher of ss 1-D, broke up the conflict in front of the second-year ssrooms, he had mentioned something rted to that, saying: ''I''m sure you''ve been hounded on the school''s rules to the point where your ears hurt.''


    "Yes. We''ve been told that tardies, absences, and talking during ss can all affect our ss points."


    Was it possible that the school had lowered the initial amount of ss points aspensation for exining the rules to them at the start of the year? Even if the school tried to hide it, the first-years would''ve probably realized the importance of following the rules due to the Social Contribution category in the OAA app.


    Although I could ept this line of reasoning, Nanase seemed to be lost in thought altogether.


    Then, she let show an expression that seemed as though she had thought of something, but that disappeared almost immediately.


    It was very subtle. Something that I had only noticed because I had met with her so many times over the past several days.


    However, since Nanase didn''t seem to want to say anything, I had no interest in asking her about it.


    Together, we left the library and, after a while, we arrived at the school''s entrance.


    "Well then, Senpai, I''ll take my leave now."


    "Nanase. This isn''t meant as a way of thanking you for telling me about your ss points earlier, but have you ever heard about something called a protection point?"


    As we were about to part ways, I called out to her and asked her onest question.


    "Protection points? No, this is the first I''ve heard of them."


    "It''s a point system where a student who has one can use it to protect themselves from an expulsion. Although, even amongst all of the second-years, only a select few students have one, so it''s not surprising that you didn''t know."


    "I see. That''s good to know... But why are you telling me this?"


    "You gave me information. I just thought I should return the favor."


    Saying no more than that, she and I parted ways.


    I had decided to test Nanase. To see if she had the skills to make the best use of the information I had given her.

 Chapter 25: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 25: 5.4</h4>


    Although it had taken some time, thanks to Nanase''s evesting cooperation, it had been decided that we would attempt to hold a discussion with H��sen, albeit a bit forcefully. There was no way to tell where things would go from here, but it was definitely a step in the right direction.


    Shortly before 6:00 PM, my doorbell rang.


    Kei arrived, donned in her school uniform instead of casual clothes, perhaps because she had only just gotten back to the dorms.


    "You know, there''s a lotta people around at this time of day, so I had to be like, super careful. I even used the stairs."


    There probably weren''t very many girls who would visit a boy''s room all by themselves, and even fewer who would stay there for a long period of time.


    That type of behavior didn''t happen very often unless the boy and girl were in a rtionship.


    "Well then, how about we get started?"


    "Huh? Can''t we like, do somethin'' else first?"


    Instead of taking out her study materials, Kei voiced her desire to chat with me.


    However, time was limited. Theter in the day it got, the less time there would be left to study.


    "If there are no problems with your academics, I''d be d to chat with you as much as you''d like."


    "Hmph..."


    "To start out, we need to find out where your strengths and weaknesses lie."


    "How do we find out?"


    "With these."


    I took out five test sheets. Keisei had created them for the Ayanok��ji Group to check our strengths and weaknesses. They were extremely convenient, given how much time it would take to go and pick out questions to get everything prepared. Horikita and Y��suke often made use of them during their study sessions as well.


    "Most of our ssmates have been tested with these already."


    "Really..."


    "There''s a time limit of 10 minutes per sheet. Go ahead and get started."


    "Fiiine."


    Although reluctant, Kei began to work on the first sheet.


    And then, 50 minutester, she copsed onto the table listlessly.


    "I''m soooooo tired of this...!"


    "Good work. Though, I''m surprised you actually manage to concentrate on normal tests."


    "It''s cuz I already had a full day of sses. It''s not easy for me to like, switch back into study mode."


    I quickly finished grading thest sheet as I listened to herin.


    "I see. I think I have a grasp at where your abilities lie."


    "H-how did I do?"


    She didn''t seem to know what she herself was capable of, as she looked at me with eyes filled with both anticipation and anxiety.


    "You''ll definitely be attending Y��suke''s study sessions starting tomorrow."


    "Eeeh!?"


    "It''s nothing worth panicking over. However, if you don''t study, you''ll only be a stone''s throw from being expelled."


    "B-but like, my partner, Shimazaki-san, has a B-. Shouldn''t I be fine?"


    "You need to score 501 points to pass this special exam. You haven''t studied enough, but you''re expected to score around 200 points. Shimazaki will get around 350. A total of 550 is hardly enough to put you into the safe zone. Furthermore, if Shimazaki hates studying just as much as you do, there''s a good chance that they might score less than 300 points."


    If that were to happen, the two of them would probably fall below the 501 point safety line.


    "I think I''m like, gettin'' a little scared all of a sudden..."


    "That''s why it''s important that you get yourself into a position where you can score 250 points on the exam as soon as possible."


    This test was designed so that even D+ students could score that well. That is, as long as they studied properly.


    "Uhm, well, I''ve got a question for you."


    "A question?"


    "You''re tryin'' to tutor me and all, but Kiyotaka, you''ve got a C rating right now, right? It looks ordinary, but you can actually, like... score way better than that, right?"


    "Something like that."


    "You''re like this with your fighting skills too. Why do you go so far to hide everything?"


    "I don''t want to stand out, so I don''t put in the effort with my grades."


    "Well then, like, how many points could you get if you got serious?"


    "Who knows."


    "Stop avoiding the question and tell me already~!"


    She pushed my shoulder and asked me with a smile on her face.


    "I''ll dly answer your question as long as you attend the study sessions starting tomorrow."


    "I''ll go I''ll go. I felt like, a sense of danger from what you said earlier anyway."


    "Instead of telling you how many points I could get, I''ll tell you how many points I''ve decided to get."


    "W-what the heck? You''re saying some crazy stuff."


    The exam had five subjects in total. Since one subject had to be saved for mypetition with Horikita, I had no intention of cutting any corners at all.


    However, if I went all out in all five subjects, my reputation among others would changepletely.


    "400 points."


    "...Seriously? Wait a sec, 400 points is..."


    "The equivalent of an A rating in Academic Ability."


    Even amongst our ssmates, it was a domain that only a few honor students like Keisei and Horikita could hope to reach.


    To be precise, it would''ve been more urate to say nearly 400 points, but I felt no need to correct myself.


    "And you''re sayin'' you think you can score that well?"


    "Of course. There hasn''t been a problem I couldn''t solve ever since I enrolled here."


    I didn''t know how many high-difficulty questions this exam would contain, butpared to what I studied back in the White Room, it seemed fair to assume the exam wouldn''t be that difficult.


    After noticing that she looked physically incapable of understanding what I was talking about, I decided to call Kei back to reality.


    "Now that I''ve seen what you''re working with, I want you to keep that sense of danger of yours in mind and concentrate on your studies."


    "Well... I guess I''ll study with you for a bit and then head back home..."


    It was only just past 7:00, so I didn''t think there was an issue with working hard for another hour or so.


    It would probably be useful to see more so that I could tell Y��suke about Kei''s current skill level tomorrow.


    "Alright. Ready to get started then?"


    "Right here, right here."


    "Hm?"


    I had intended to get into it right away, but Kei began patting the floor right next to her with her hand.


    "Come sit here and teach me."

 Chapter 26: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 26: 5.5</h4>


    For a little over an hour, the two of us studied together in my room as I casually gave Kei advice.


    All in all, I got the impression that she had a good head on her shoulders, but the fact that she hadn''t been diligent with her studies up until now had held her back from reaching her full potential. Though, I had no intention of pointing that out to her.


    If she had simply made a habit out of neglecting her studies ever since early childhood, then I would probably say something to her. However, in her case, she hadn''t been able to receive a normal, proper education due to the bullying she faced back in her middle school days.


    She hadn''t properly learned some of the fundamentals that came with a middle school education, so she was having a hard time with her lessons in high school.


    Taking all of that into consideration, I''d say she was doing surprisingly well.


    Gently guiding her, allowing her to pursue the answers on her own was probably the correct way to go about tutoring her.


    If she could get to the point where she starts to feel like studying isn''t painful anymore, she would probably grow and mature a lot, just like Sud��.


    "Hey..."


    "What''s wrong?"


    Kei suddenly began staring at the floor in front of her.


    And then, after what seemed like several seconds, she reached out and picked up something.


    I wondered if it was just a piece of trash or some dust or something, but...


    "The heck is this?"


    As she spoke, she held out her arm in front of me, showing me what she had found between her index finger and her thumb.


    It was a single, long strand of red hair.


    "That''s a hair, right?"


    When I said what I thought it was, Kei''s expression instantly twisted in anger.


    "A red hair! A freaking long hair at that! No matter how you look at it, this is a girl''s hair!"


    She was right. Given the length, it was physically impossible for it to be my own hair.


    And, of course, the hair type was alsopletely different. It''s owner immediately came to mind. I had no doubt that it had belonged to Amasawa Ichika, who hade over to have a meal just the other day.


    "Who did you have over!?"


    She asked, probably because nobody came to mind with this type of hair out of all of our ssmates.


    "Is this that one thing? Jealousy...?"


    "Is that a bad thing!? I''m your girlfriend Kiyotaka! I have the right to stick my nose in all sorts of stuff!"


    This was my first time hearing of such a right. Either way, I should take this as a lesson.


    After inviting a girl over to my room, I would make sure to clean it thoroughly from now on.


    I took this knowledge to heart, and yet the disaster continued. As I was deliberating over how I should go about exining things to Kei, the sound of the doorbell unexpectedly echoed throughout the room. After which, a video feed of the dorm''s lobby was disyed on the monitor near the entryway.


    Not only was I, the room''s owner, curious about who it was, but Kei was as well. The two of us went over to take a look at the screen.


    Thereupon, we saw none other than Amasawa, waving her hand at the camera with a wide grin on her face.


    The first to react was not me, but Kei, the red strand of hair still clutched tightly in her hand.


    "A girl I''ve never seen before with red hair..."


    She looked like she was trying to solve the riddle on some children''s mystery TV show.


    Kei reached out and pressed the call button before I could get the chance to do so myself.


    "Who is it!?"


    Kei spoke through the speaker, her voice filled with undisguised anger, to which Amasawa naturally jumped back in surprise.


    "Huh? Room 401... This is Ayanok��ji-senpai''s room... right?"


    I forcefully pulled Kei''s arm away and took over.


    "Sorry, it''s me. What do you want?"


    Although this was an unannounced visitor, there was no way I could let Kei handle it like this. Amasawa aside, given the high-traffic of the lobby, it would be a problem if somebody overheard that Kei and I were together.


    "Ah, do you havepany? Should Ie backter? I''d like toe up and talk with you a bit, but..."


    I looked at Kei. Although she was ring at me, she gestured to have Amasawae instead of ordering me to send her away.


    Apparently, she wanted to make sure that the hair was Amasawa''s.


    "No, it''s fine. Come on up."


    I pressed the auto-lock release button and momentster, Amasawa went inside the elevator.


    "Are you sure you''re fine with this? Letting another student find out that you''re here?"


    "...Whatever."


    It seemed as though Kei was so incredibly mad that she had lost sight of herself.


    Kei was the one who said that she wanted to keep our boyfriend-girlfriend rtionship a secret from those around us right now.


    If we ran into somebody in this situation, it''s possible that rumors about it might start to spread.


    "Well, it''s toote now, right? We''ve got no choice but to try and trick her somehow."


    At any rate, Amasawa had already heard Kei''s voice, so driving Kei out before she got here wouldn''t aplish very much.


    Rather, we had to consider the possibility that doing so might make Amasawa even more suspicious.


    Roughly a minuteter, Amasawa reached the fourth floor and rang the doorbell to my room.


    "I''ll let her in, so just sit here and wait for now."


    "I... I get it."


    I went to the front door and greeted Amasawa.


    "Sorry for the sudden visit~ Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    She studied my expression for a moment before sending a calcting look at the shoes in the entryway.


    How do I put it... Is this what was referred to as ''a woman''s intuition''?


    "Girlfriend?"


    She threw out a straightforward question with a wide grin on her face.


    "What can I do for you?"


    "How perverse~ Well, to tell you the truth, I think I might''ve left something in your roomst time I was here."


    "What is it?"


    "My favorite hair tie. I can''t find it anywhere..."


    So, after realizing that it had gone missing, she hade here to try and look for it?


    "Well,e on in."


    I couldn''t just make her stand and wait in the hallway, so I decided to let here inside


    Instead of making petty excuses about the hair Kei had found, it would probably be faster to have Amasawa exin it herself.


    "Pardon the intru~sion."


    Amasawa walked straight in,pletely unconcerned about the presence of my other visitor. It seemed that she had only just gotten back from school, as she still had her school bag in hand.


    And then, she met face-to-face with Kei, who was waiting further inside.


    "Oh, hello~ I''m Amasawa Ichika~"


    "Hello."


    Kei looked obviously unhappy, but she seemed to be doing her best to endure it in her own way.


    "You''re a senpai, right? I''d lo~ve to hear your name."


    "...Karuizawa Kei."


    "Karuizawa-senpai, is it~? Ah, seems like you guys have been studying together, huh? Are you his girlfriend by any chance? Ayanok��ji-senpai dodged the question a lil bit ago, but I''d still love to know."


    Amasawa''s ability to ask what she wanted without the slightest hesitation was a true talent in and of itself.


    "That''s got nothin'' to do with you. What about it anyway? What''s your rtionship with Kiyotaka?"


    Although she undoubtedly noticed that something was up given the way Kei called me by my given name, Amasawa took a look around the room.


    "Hold on and I''ll answer that question in a moment. Hmm, I don''t see it at a nce... I''m sure that I took it off back when I was herest time though. Well... maybe it got swept under something somewhere."


    At that, Amasawa knelt down and began taking a look under my bed,pletely disregarding the scowl on Kei''s face. As she did, the hem of her skirt went up, naturally drawing focus to the size of her rear.


    "Ah... Senpai. This might be a bit too naughty for me to handle."


    Still kneeling next to the bed, Amasawa turned her head and looked at me. She spoke with a voice that seemed to emphasize that she was doing this on purpose.


    Kei suddenly looked back toward me, ring.


    "I''ll look for it."


    Trading ces with Amasawa, I started off by checking to see if the hair tie had ended up underneath my bed somehow.


    "Hey, can you like, not just ignore what I said!? Answer my question!"


    "Hmm, Ayanok��ji-senpai is my... How should I put it... My exclusive, personal chef?"


    "Huh? What the hell?"


    Having heard a response she couldn''t make sense of, Kei turned to me again, the look in her eyes even harsher than before.


    "She''s Sud��''s partner. We met because of something trivial and I ended up cooking a single meal for her."


    "Sorry, but I don''t understand what you''re getting at. Why were you cooking for Sud��-kun''s partner?"


    Given that I had only given her a summary of what had happened, her confusion was certainly understandable.


    I proceeded to re-exin it in further detail as I continued to search for the hair tie under the bed.


    Shortly after I finished exining it for a second time, Amasawa spoke up again.


    "Could I go check in the kitchen, just in case? I might''ve taken it off when I was washing the dishes. Ah, Senpai, please just continue searching inside the room. Perhaps it''s under the dresser?"


    "Alright."


    I didn''t find anything under the bed, so I began searching the area around the dresser instead.


    Unsatisfied with my second exnation, Kei came and crouched beside me, whispering to me in a low, hushed voice.


    "Hang on... You said there might or might not be a hair tie here... What''s that supposed to mean!?"


    "I told you. I invited Amasawa over and cooked her a meal. That''s it."


    "I-is that really all?"


    "Of course it is."


    "...Really really?"


    It didn''t seem like I could get her to believe me with a verbal exnation alone.


    "I''m gonna go check with that girl and see if you''re telling the truth."


    With that, Kei tried to stand up, but I forcefully grabbed her arm and stopped her.


    And then, I quickly brought my index finger to her lips, subtly instructing her to keep quiet.


    Quick on the uptake when it matters most, Kei kept herself from making a fuss.


    "You search around here with me as well."


    "I-I understand."


    Even though she didn''t understand my intentions, she managed to recognize that it was important and began to help me with the search.


    "Ah! Ayanok��ji-senpai, I found it~!"


    Amasawa''s voice rang out from inside the kitchen.


    Together, Kei and I looked toward the kitchen, only to see Amasawa presenting us the hair tie in the palm of her hand.


    "Looks like it fell into the gap between the counter and the fridge."


    Amasawa grinned happily as she put it into her pocket.


    "It feels like I''m interrupting something, so I''ll be on my way."


    "Sorry for all themotion."


    "No it''s fine. I shouldn''t have forgotten it in the first ce. Well, sorry to have bothered the two of you~"


    Amasawa immediately went to pick up her bag and put on her shoes in the entryway.


    "But now that I think of it, Senpai isn''t one to be underestimated either~ I didn''t expect you to have such a cute girlfriend."


    After saying that, Amasawa put her finger up against her cheek, making a show of thinking about something.


    "Speaking of which, you know what? It''s prolly not a good idea for it to just be the two of us next time you cook for me, huh?"


    "Obviously!"


    "In that case�� Let''s have Karuizawa-senpai eat together with us the next time~ Anywho, sayonara~!"


    Amasawa came and went just like a storm passing through.


    "Seems like you''ve met an awfully cute kouhai, huh Kiyotaka?"


    "You probably aren''t going to listen to me no matter what I say, are you?"


    The studious mood between us had already disappeared, but I still had to keep exining the truth to her until she was satisfied.

 Chapter 27: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 27: 5.6</h4>


    Friday passed by, and Saturday, the first day of the weekend, had arrived.


    There had been many opportunities to get involved with the first-year students these past five days, partially thanks to the influence of the special exam. There was our encounter with Amasawa, a student from ss 1-A, that had led to me cooking a homemade meal in order to secure Sud�� a partner. And then, not long after, there was a discussion with Nanase to work out an agreement between our ss and ss 1-D.


    In other news, Kushida had managed to make connections with Yagami, a student from ss 1-B. And thanks to Yagami''s help, several students, such as Kei, had managed to find partners for themselves as well. This special exam would be evaluated differently depending on the person looking at it, but it may be particrly meaningful in terms of interaction between the school years.


    Many students have already learned the names and faces of the upper and underssmen, and some even know their ratings.


    Furthermore, we''ve found out about the different inclinations of each of the sses.


    ss 1-A doesn''t have a clear leader at the moment, giving off the impression that each student was free to take action on their own. One reason as to why this was allowed was the high academic capability of the ss as a whole. True to its name, ss 1-A had the highest number of students with Academic Ability ratings of B- or higher. Many of the more academically capable students had taken the initiative to negotiate contracts with ss 2-A and ss 2-C for points. While the ss naturally had several students with D-level Academic Ability ratings, these students still excelled in other ways, so ss 2-A had gone out of its way to pick them up as well. Of the 40 students in the ss, 34 had already decided on their partner.


    ss 1-B was simr to ss 1-A in the sense that no clear leader had emerged yet. Additionally, the academically capable students were also selling themselves off as partners one after the next. The main difference being that many of them had partnered up with students in ss 2-C instead of ss 2-A. This was probably due to the fact that Ry��en had offered more points than Sakayanagi, but the details of the situation were still unclear for the time being. Currently, 33 of the 40 students had decided on their partners.


    ss 1-D was currently led by H��sen, who had taken control of the ss with an iron fist. It was essentially no different than what Ry��en had done with his own ssst year. The most noteworthy thing about them was that they had decided upon the fewest number of partners out of all the sses. We would probably find out more once we met with them thising Sunday.


    And finally, there was ss 1-C, the one ss that I hadn''t gotten involved with at all over this past week. I had already memorized the names of each of the students, but I hadn''t heard anything about the ss, even from Horikita. The primary reason for this is that most of the ss 1-C students had signed partnership contracts with ss 2-B after attending the meet-and-greet Ichinose set up at the start of the week. Of their 40 students, 10 had yet to decide on their partners, but none of those 10 had Academic Ability ratings below a D-. In other words, as a ss, they had seeded in securing a safe position for almost everybody. Given that, ss 1-C might have some sort of ss mediator who had utilized the meet-and-greet to sessfully save their ssmates.


    Later in the afternoon, Iunched the OAA app to take a look at all the partners that had been finalized as of today.


    "105 pairs. Roughly 70%, huh?"


    Considering the number of students who were in the library yesterday, it seems that the majority of students wanted to get this over with by the weekend. There also seemed to be more movement in ss 1-D, as now a total of 8 partners had been decided. I didn''t know if the weekend had made H��sen feel impatient, or...


    Anyway, the number of students who had yet to decide on a partner was 55 for the first-years and 52 for the second-years.


    If the White Room enforcer was among those 55 students, the odds of partnering up with them was getting pretty high.


    In all honesty, there was no way to 100% guarantee that I''d be able to avoid choosing the White Room student.


    Of course, the only reason for that is because they don''t give off any scent at all. I''ve been prolonging the process, holding out hope for some sort of evidence that would allow me to decide that somebody was safe, but that strategy was about to reach its limit. I probably had to make my decision before my options narrowed down even further.


    Even though negotiations with ss 1-D would happen soon, I felt as though I should be prepared for other options.


    I decided to head to the Keyaki Mallter this afternoon to try and open up my possibilities.

 Chapter 28: 5.7

    <h4>Chapter 28: 5.7</h4>


    Naturally, the Keyaki Mall on a Saturday evening was practically overflowing with students.


    Students who had already decided on their partners for the special exam, in particr. Since they didn''t need to worry about finding a partner for themselves, they were free to devote their attention to studying for next week''s exam together with their friends or simply hang out and rx.


    I hadn''t personally made contact with every first-year student yet, but even so, I felt like if there was anybody from the White Room in the area, I would''ve encountered them by now. However, I didn''t get that kind of special impression from anybody I had seen so far.


    If I had to give an example of the impression I was looking for, the time when I talked to Nanase in the library was the first thing that came to mind. I suspected that Tsukishiro or someone with close ties to him had taught the White Room enforcer how to behave like a ''student''. Though, the problem didn''t have anything to do with whether they had a certain personality or not.


    The problem was that they were thoroughly hiding any traces of their true identity.


    It was somewhat simr to how I was back when I first came to this school one year ago.


    There were certain disadvantages and drawbacks to growing up without knowing anything about the real world.


    One such disadvantage was that I didn''t know what it meant to be a ''student''.


    Such a thing had never been taught to us back in the White Room, as they never intended for us to attend school in the first ce.


    That was why, in the beginning, I arbitrarily decided to create a character and use it to put on an act.


    I tried all sorts of things, like changing the tone of my voice or being more talkative than I normally was.


    I took on the role of a slightly impertinent student who looked at the world a little bit differently.


    Though... in the end, the acting began to feel tedious and unsustainable, so I eventually reverted back to my true self.


    I hade to realize that, even if I didn''t hide my true self, I could still live on as a student. However, the person who had been sent to infiltrate the school was different.


    They were putting on the appearance of a normal student for the sole purpose of keeping their identity a secret from me. I had no way of knowing if those I met were just ordinary students, or were just acting like one. Either way, they probably wouldn''t make their presence known to me very easily.


    Anybody capable of surviving in that world absolutely cannot be underestimated, no matter their gender.


    Even though I was confident that I woulde out on top in terms of individual skill, I was still in an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position since I was being forced to stay on the defensive. My opponent could use any means at their disposal to force my expulsion, while the only thing I could do to protect myself was try and see through their strategy.


    On my way back from a quick stop at Hamming, I happened to run into Sakayanagi.


    "It seems you''ve been quite proactive about interacting with the first-year students recently, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "That''s because the students with low ratings have no choice but to fight for their lives. I''ve just been helping Horikita find partners for Sud�� and Ike."


    "I see. Indeed, if one of those two were to draw the short end of the stick and match with a bad partner, I can say with certainty that they''d be faced with expulsion."


    Although Sakayanagi seemed at least somewhat convinced with my excuse, she didn''t stop there.


    "However, is that really all there is to it, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "In order to get you expelled, I would imagine that the White Room might send somebody... an enforcer of sorts to infiltrate the first-year students. Even if you got a perfect score, if your partner gets a zero, the both of you would be expelled from the school. That''s why I''ve been thinking that this exam might be particrly troublesome for you."


    I tried to feign ignorance, but given what she had said, it seemed as though this was something she had been aware of since the very beginning instead of something that she had just thought up out of the blue.


    "There''s no way you can maintain a peaceful school life indefinitely, you know? If your opponent feels like it, they may even be willing to expose your true abilities to everyone. Nevertheless, if you''re still able to maintain an enjoyable school life despite that, then I suppose my fears are unfounded."


    "Well, you don''t need to worry about that."


    "And could I get you to tell me your rationale for that?"


    "I''ve decided to abandon my old way of thinking. I don''t n on hiding anything from now on."


    For me, right now, continuing with my school life was my top priority.


    If I kept being fixated on the wrong things, there was a chance that I might have the rug pulled out from under me.


    "So that''s how it is. You''ve already revealed some of your abilities to certain individuals such as Mashima-sensei, so it''d probably be more convenient to just disclose everything altogether, huh?"


    Sakayanagi replied, having dly lent her ear to my exnation.


    "Back to the issue at hand; If you still haven''t found a partner yet, how about I help you out and save you some time? There aren''t many left, but I''m familiar with some first-years that don''t have partners yet. They''re not the types to cause you any trouble."


    Thanks to her own investigative efforts, it seemed that Sakayanagi had gone out of her way to leave behind a couple of safe students for me.


    "That''s quite generous of you, but I''m afraid I must decline."


    "Is it that you don''t trust my judgment?"


    She had already seen through me since long ago, knowing full well that I needed to make my decision soon.


    "I acknowledge your abilities, but I''ll decide my own fate for myself."


    If I met a tragic end after entrusting my fate to somebody else, I would probably be filled with regret.


    "Besides, I think I''ve already figured out what I need to do."


    "Is that so? Well in that case, I won''t say anything more. I''ll be watching to see what you do from afar, Ayanok��ji-kun. I look forward to the day when we can have our rematch."


    With that, Sakayanagi bowed her head and walked away. She had never even entertained the idea that I might get expelled. In a sense, you could say that she had ced a great deal of trust in me.

 Chapter 29: 5.8

    <h4>Chapter 29: 5.8</h4>


    On the way back from the Keyaki Mall...


    "Uhm, do you, perhaps, have a minute?"


    A somewhatzy voice of a boy called out to me from behind.


    I turned around to find a boy and girl staring straight at me. The girl, repeatedly shifting her gaze between her cell phone and myself, was Tsubaki Sakurako from ss 1-C. The boy beside her was her ssmate, Utomiya Riku.


    "You''re ss 2-D''s... Ayanok��ji-senpai, correct?"


    I couldn''t see what was on the screen of her phone from where I was, but she most likely had the OAA app open.


    "I''m Utomiya, and her name is Tsubaki. Could we talk with you for a bit about bing partners for this special exam?"


    "Partners?"


    "Yes. We''re currently going around searching for upperssmen with Academic Ability ratings of a C or higher who are willing to cooperate with us."


    Since I hade out today in search of a partner, this development felt far too good to be true. It almost felt as if they had been waiting for me.


    I didn''t know whether or not I should trust an undisguised attempt at contacting me.


    Well, making my decision based on timing alone would probably be the most dangerous mistake of all.


    "I''ve been having some trouble finding a partner myself. Could you give me some more details?"


    With the app, you could grasp a student''s face, name, and ratings. However, you''d naturally be left in the dark with respect to their personality. This was why meeting face-to-face and talking with each other was so necessary, as it helped you determine if you could trust the other party.


    Incidentally, while Utomiya had already decided on his partner, Tsubaki had yet to find one. Since her Academic Ability rating of a C- was by no means high, she probably wanted to partner up with somebody who had a C rating or higher.


    That said, it wasn''t clear if they were searching for Tsubaki''s sake or for one of their ssmates.


    "Instead of standing here, how about we discuss things at the cafe?"


    Spearheading the conversation, Utomiya respectfully proposed a change of location.


    This certainly wasn''t a topic that could be decided in only a minute or two, so I epted his proposition.


    Although it was quite crowded, the three of us took up some empty seats in a vacant part of the cafe.


    "This may seem sudden, but could you please hear us out?"


    Utomiya turned and looked toward Tsubaki, signaling for her to start speaking.


    "Thing is, I don''t like owing favors or being in someone''s debt or anything. I wanna one-off kinda deal with no strings attached."


    Tsubaki seemed a little aloof, looking down at her fingernails as she spoke.


    Between a C and a C-, the ratings were nearly identical, more or less.


    So given the simrity, neither party would really have the upper hand if they were to pair up.


    "Can I ask something that''s bothering me?"


    "Please, go ahead."


    "Most students have Academic Ability ratings at or around a C. Why didn''t she find a partner earlier?"


    Out of everybody in the second year, there should''ve been several students who would''ve been more than happy to team up with Tsubaki.


    They wouldn''t get a high score, but they''d at least manage to avoid expulsion.


    The fact that she still hadn''t found a partner almost a full week into the exam weighed on my mind.


    "That''s��"


    Utomiya choked upon his words a bit.


    Noticing this, Tsubaki made proper eye contact with me for the first time.


    "It''s my fault. I never said anything about it."


    Using Tsubaki''s words as a starting point, Utomiya proceeded to add on his own exnation.


    "Initially, Tsubaki didn''t consult anyone about finding a partner. But when Friday came around, I guess she started getting impatient... since she came and told me about what she wanted to do."


    So, in a race against time, Utomiya began doing all he could to help out his ssmate.


    After all, most of their other ssmates had already decided on their partners.


    Even though they still had one more week to find somebody, a certain amount of anxiety was nothing out of the ordinary.


    "With Tsubaki''s academic ability, the 5% penalty might be a problem."


    This seemed to be the reason why they had approached me, a student with a C rating.


    If there were no special circumstances, I would''ve probably agreed to their proposition without even a moment''s hesitation.


    However, there was a reason why I couldn''t make such a hasty decision. This scenario was extremely simr to the one I had imagined back when the rules of this special exam were first exined to us.


    That, the students I was most likely to pair up with were those with a simr Academic Ability rating to my own.


    And now, Tsubaki, a student with a C- rating, hade along in search of a partner.


    This was my first time meeting both Tsubaki and Utomiya, so I needed to sound them out before I could make my decision.


    "I''d like to ask you something. Earlier, you said you''ve been going around searching for upperssmen. How many people did you reach out to before me?"


    I decided to start by asking something simple, but Utomiya''s response was rather unexpected.


    "I''m sorry, the words I chose were a bit misleading; You''re actually the first person we''ve approached."


    Utomiya offered me an apology before I had the chance to probe any further.


    "So, if you aren''t willing to partner up with her, we''ll have to search for someone who will."


    "Oh, so I just happened to be the first person you reached out to."


    "Actually, there''s a reason why we chose to meet you first. We figured that there might be a private point requirement if we asked somebody from ss 2-A or ss 2-C."


    I see. It''s certainly true that, as it is now, the first-year students were being bought off by the second-year students.


    Given the circumstances, it wouldn''t be surprising if somebody demanded that some points be provided in exchange for partnering up with Tsubaki. However, in practice, she wouldn''t be making any demands of students with high Academic Ability ratings. There were still plenty of students without partners, so she could simply pair up with somebody without paying anything. It was unlikely that they hadn''t already considered this.


    That said, it would be a bit strange if I told them it would be fine if they partnered up with someone from ss 2-A or 2-C even though I hadn''t decided on a partner myself yet.


    Objectively speaking, there wasn''t even a single reason for me to reject their offer.


    My options here were limited.


    "While I haven''t decided on my partner yet, I already have a candidate in mind. In fact, we''ve spoken with each other several times now about working together."


    This was a half-lie, but neither of them had any way of confirming that.


    Furthermore, if this was enough to make them back down, then the two of them were most likely innocent.


    "So that''s how it is... I see."


    Utomiya nced over at Tsubaki with a troubled expression on his face.


    "Then I guess there''s no use, right? Seems like it''ll be faster to search for somebody else."


    Tsubaki tried to back down the moment she found out I already had a partner candidate in mind.


    "I''d like to ask, just for reference... which first-year student are you nning to pair up with?"


    While Tsubaki herself tried to pull away, Utomiya kept on going at it.


    "I can''t tell you that. The only thing I''ll say for sure is that they aren''t in ss 1-C."


    Though I didn''t give any exnation about why I couldn''t tell him, he should''ve been able to guess the reason well enough.


    That, I wouldn''t give information to an enemy, a rival, of the student I was looking to work with.


    "Let''s go Utomiya-kun. We shouldn''t waste any more of Ayanok��ji-senpai''s time like this."


    "...You''re right."


    I was grateful that they had reached out to me, but I couldn''t make such a hasty decision.


    There was far too little data on Tsubaki Sakurako.


    "Just in case, here''s my contact information."


    Utomiya handed me a slip of paper with his contact information written on it that he had prepared beforehand.


    "It''s a bit self-serving for me to say this, but I might contact you if I''m turned down by the person I''m thinking of working with. In which case, if you''re still willing to partner up with me at the time, then please let me know."


    "Understood. Let''s go Tsubaki."


    At Utomiya''s prompting, Tsubaki uncrossed her arms and stood up from her seat.


    And then, she lightly bowed before leaving together with Utomiya, in search of somebody else to partner up with.


    "Tsubaki Sakurako and Utomiya Riku, huh? I''ll have to keep them in mind."


    Now that I had thrown away a chance to secure my partner, my actions moving forward would be of the utmost importance.


    After all, it wouldn''t be very funny if I partnered up with another first-year student and ended up drawing the short end of the stick.

 Chapter 30: 5.9

    <h4>Chapter 30: 5.9</h4>


    That same day, two girls from ss 2-D were walking together side-by-side.


    There was me, Karuizawa Kei, and my friend, Sat�� Maya-san. The two of us used to hang out together all the time. That is, up until a few months ago. Recently, we had started seeing each other much less frequently. It wasn''t like we had gotten into a fight with each other or anything. It was just that I unconsciously began to feel guilty, and it was getting difficult for me to stay in touch with her as a result.


    "Sorry for calling you up all of a sudden, Karuizawa-san."


    "No, it''s totally fine. I''ve been wanting to hang out with you too, Sat��-san. Anywho, it''s sure been a long time since we''ve hung out together like this, huh?"


    "Yeah, it sure has. We used to hang out together all the time back when we first enrolled here~"


    "So, whatta ya wanna do? It''s a little early for lunch, isn''t it?"


    Walking slightly ahead of her, I threw out a question about what our ns were as I lightly tilted my head in contemtion.


    It was only a little past 11:00 AM.


    Earlier today, Sat��-san called and asked if I wanted to walk around the Keyaki Mall together with her.


    However, she responded in a hurry just as we approached the entrance to the mall.


    "Uhm."


    "Hmm?"


    "How about... we head over this way instead?"


    Sat��-san pointed at the path that led to the school buildings, apletely different direction from the mall.


    "To school? Is there somethin'' you gotta do there? But it''s the weekend, and I''m pretty sure you can''t go in there without your uniform, right?"


    "It''s not that I wanna go to the school building or anything, it''s just... I wanna go somewhere without a lotta people around right now."


    I furrowed my brow, unable to understand what exactly she was trying to say.


    Well, I actually had a sneaking suspicion about what this would be about.


    But I just pushed it to the back of my mind so as to convince myself that I was wrong.


    I simply continued pretending; Acting like I hadn''t noticed anything.


    "What''s the matter Sat��-san? It''s not like you to say somethin'' like that. You not feeling well?"


    "...I just wanna talk with you a bit, kay?"


    I had a bad feeling about where this was going, but I didn''t have the luxury of turning her down here.


    So, I happily nodded along and the two of us split off from the Keyaki Mall, headed in the direction of the school.


    We came upon a ce where there weren''t any other people around; A ce where nobody should be able to overhear our conversation.


    "Go ahead and talk. Don''t mince your words either. We''re friends, right?"


    My words were by no means gentle. Instead, they were extremely cruel.


    And even though I knew this, I couldn''t hold myself back from saying them.


    After all, I''m Karuizawa Kei, the leader of the girls in ss 2-D.


    A selfish, self-centered person who doesn''t pay much mind to the feelings of others.


    If I wasn''t, the image I had maintained up until now would crumble.


    Sat��-san probably had that very same impression of me as well.


    That was why she wouldn''t feel dejected or angry about how I spoke to her.


    Instead, she''d jump to her own conclusions. That I, Karuizawa Kei, was the type of girl who wouldn''t take what she had to say seriously. That I''d just ze over it and stop there.


    I was even hoping that, by some chance, she''d be satisfied with that.


    That she''d choose to avoid souring our rtionship by having this conversation with me in the first ce.


    However�� Sat��-san didn''t stop.


    "Karuizawa-san... Why did you break up with Hirata-kun?"


    "Eh? Haven''t I already told you?"


    Although her question wasn''t directly rted to Kiyotaka, it was enough to make my heart race.


    Even so, I managed to prevent it from showing on my face thanks to everything I had experienced up until now.


    "I mean, yeah you''ve told me and all it''s just... it didn''t really feel right."


    "Really? Well, I guess it was a bit of a waste. Wait, are you like, trying to be Hirata-kun''s new girlfriend or somethin''?"


    I was hoping that she would indicate that she already had lost interest in Kiyotaka.


    This was essentially my way of confirming that with her. However, my question fell on deaf ears as she responded with words that came at me like an attack straight out of nowhere.


    "For example, maybe you broke up with Hirata-kun ''cause you actually had some other objective in mind?"


    Ah, so she was aware of it after all. About the fact that I had fallen in love with Kiyotaka, and that my rtionship with him had changed...


    "What the��? I don''t understand what you''re saying at all though?"


    To this day, I had been deliberately maintaining the guise of my normal, usual self.


    Even if, sooner orter, the dayes when my rtionship with Kiyotaka has to be revealed, I had no choice but to turn and run away from her usation since I had decided to keep it a secret.


    No matter what she brought to the table, I was fully prepared to smooth it over before anything got out of hand.


    Or, well, I thought I was.


    "... Karuizawa-san... Are you dating Ayanok��ji-kun or something?"


    "Eh...?"


    I received an unexpected blow. I didn''t have the time to respond to this attack, a strike from behind.


    It may have been different if I was dealing with someone else, but in the face of Sat��-san, this moment of hesitation was akin to a fatal wound.


    She had, as if it waspletely natural, seen through my heart.


    If she had only asked whether or not I liked him, I definitely would''ve been able to cover it up.


    But her question had gone a level deeper than that.


    "...So I was right after all?"


    "Eh!? No no no, hold on! What makes you think that!?"


    Of course, I denied it. Regardless of whether it meant anything or not, I denied it.


    After all, there was simply no way I could admit to it right here, right now.


    "With me, that, why..."


    My words of denial trailed off as I saw the look in her eyes.


    Eyes that seemed like they were about to cry, and yet contained traces of anger at the same time.


    And it made sense. After all, she had trusted me enough to reach out and ask about entering into a rtionship with Kiyotaka.


    And then, I helped her. All while hiding the fact that I was starting to be attracted to Kiyotaka myself. If I were in her shoes, I''d probably want to p me across the face for going out with Kiyotaka after everything that had happened.


    At this point, it didn''t matter what I said. She had already convinced herself that she was right.


    "Were you already interested in him back when I asked you to help me get closer to him? Did you like him even before that?"


    "W-wait, hold on. I..."


    I had no choice but to face the brunt of Sat��-san''s questions.


    "I... I said the same thing to Matsushita-san and the others too. I told them that I wondered if the reason you broke up with Hirata-kun was because you liked Ayanok��ji-kun. But I''m not just guessing here either, okay? I''m pretty sure about it, so like, that''s why I brought this up."


    I had already heard that Matsushita-san was suspicious of my rtionship with Kiyotaka.


    There was nowhere left for me to run now.


    "Please just tell me the truth. Otherwise... I don''t think I''ll be able to think of you as a friend anymore."


    Her words were charged with strong emotion.


    If anything, she was trying all she could to be my friend, up until the very end.


    "Well..."


    I simply couldn''t turn a blind eye to that serious, earnest look in her eyes.


    I didn''t know where to start.


    No, it''d surely be futile to try and conceal it.


    I would tell her everything. Confiding in her was the very least I could do to apologize.


    "I... It''s just as you''ve said. I''m dating Ayano... No, I''m dating Kiyotaka."


    Sat��-san naturally had a very strong reaction upon hearing this.


    Even though she had confessed to Kiyotaka and gotten rejected before, she still had lingering feelings for him.


    It''s only because she and I ended up liking the same person that I could understand how she felt.


    "You call him Kiyotaka, huh?"


    I wanted to run and hide from her cold gaze, but I couldn''t.


    "We got together right at the end of spring break. It really hasn''t been that long."


    "I mostly want to know when you started liking him."


    "...I''m not sure exactly when. But, back when you first reached out to me, I had already started to think of Kiyotaka as a member of the opposite sex."


    "I see..."


    It didn''t seem like she was satisfied with my answer.


    "You''re angry, aren''t you?"


    Up until just a moment ago, her eyes had been locked with mine, but now she couldn''t match my gaze at all.


    "What did you expect? You knew about my feelings and yet you went and got closer to him behind my back."


    There wasn''t anything I could say to refute her.


    "Although, he rejected my confession, so... I have no right to be angry or anything. It''s just..."


    A warm spring breeze gently blew past my face.


    Only after a distinct, clear sound rang out did I realize that she had pped me across my left cheek.


    "With that, we''re even... alright, Karuizawa-san?"


    The fact that she had pped me went beyond my expectations.


    For her, my actions were probably just that unforgivable.


    "How about you hit me one more time?"


    I decided that I might as well offer her my right cheek too.


    After all, even now, the pain she had suffered was still far greater than my own.


    "No, That... I don''t think I''m brave enough for that... I''m sorry for hitting you..."


    "Nope. I''m the one who''s sorry. Falling for the same person as you and all..."


    "It can''t be helped. Ayanok��ji-kun''s really cool, and he''s way better-looking than Hirata-kun."


    Before I knew it, I found myself spreading my arms and pulling Sat��-san into a tight hug.


    "Wha, wait, what are you doing Karuizawa-san!?"


    "...I''m so sorry!"


    "I-it''s fine, really..."


    Although I felt overwhelmingly remorseful, I simply couldn''t hold back the happiness building within that hadpelled me to embrace her.


    Two people falling for the same person is difficult. However, it also meant that the both of us understood his charm.


    This wasn''t the time to decide who won or lost.


    After all, I''m sure that the number of people who fall for his charms will only continue to increase moving forward.


    And I''ll have to fight so that I don''t lose to any of them.


    If I make light of my position as his girlfriend, I''ll surely have the rug swept out from under me.


    Sat��-san may end up bing one of my rivals as well.


    "Wanna go for some tea together?"


    Still locked in my embrace, Sat��-san nodded her head, agreeing to my fickle request.

 Chapter 31 - 6: The Sound of Expulsion

    <h4>Chapter 31: Chapter 6: The Sound of Expulsion</h4>


    Sunday evening. The time was nearing 8:30 PM; The designated day had finally arrived.


    The uing discussion would most likely determine whether or not we could join hands with ss 1-D.


    Or rather, we needed to make certain that we did.


    The majority of students outside of ss 1-D and ss 2-D had already found partners.


    If this discussion doesn''t bring about the desired results, we might be forced to make multiplerge concessions in order to avoid facing any penalties.


    Horikita and I would be joined by Sud��, who had strongly insisted on apanying us.


    While it was probably somewhat rted to his desire to be together with Horikita, I was pretty sure it was mostly because he was wary of H��sen. H��sen was the type of person who, depending on how the discussion went, might very well raise his hand against a girl. Sud�� wanted to be there to protect her from that. Of course, Horikita turned him down, saying that his presence was unnecessary, but Sud�� refused to back down. However, no matter how much he begged, Horikita maintained her stance and refused to let him join us. She believed that the uing discussion would be very serious, and had judged that Sud��''s presence would only hold us back. Ultimately, I ended up intervening on Sud��''s behalf.


    This was because, just in case things went south, I could have Sud�� take action instead of me.


    Sud��''s abilities should probably be more than enough to keep H��sen in check.


    In the end, Horikita allowed him to join us on the condition that he wouldn''t interrupt the discussion or make any threats.


    "Hey man!"


    I went down to the dorm''s lobby early to meet up with them, only to find that Sud�� had already arrived, waiting on one of the couches.


    Furthermore, he looked at me with a bright, energetic smile on his face.


    It looks like I need to correct what I said earlier.


    It wasn''t only ''somewhat rted'' to his desire to be together with Horikita; He really wanted to be with her.


    "Have you been studying for the exam?"


    "Of course. Sorry, but I''m gonna get at least 250 points this time."


    Given his current Academic Ability rating of an E, if he really were to score more than 250 points, that''d be a huge achievement.


    It would be enough to bump his Academic Ability rating all the way up to a C during next month''s assessment.


    This wasn''t just him spouting off empty words. He had apparently worked hard enough to muster up the confidence to back them up.


    He was rarely everte for ss anymore, and his attitude during lessons was exceedingly serious and diligent.


    "You''ve changed a lot... Seems like you''ve started to enjoy studying."


    "It ain''t like I enjoy it man. But I''ll tell ya, it sure feels good to solve those problems. And when Suzune praises me, I get so pumped up that it feels like I can study forever!"


    That thorny attitude of his from back when we first came here had gradually started to die down. A rash temper didn''t seem like the easiest habit to break, but if Suzune''s presence was enough to help him stay on his feet, that was good enough for me.


    Unable to contain his excitement, Sud�� stood up and went to look at the video feed of the inside of the elevator.


    After which, he sat back down and began fiddling with his phone and running his hand through his hair. Before long, he was getting up again.


    He seemed somewhat like a young boy who was about to go on his very first date.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji."


    Realizing that I had been looking at him, Sud�� quietly muttered to me, his eyes still locked onto the camera feed on the wall.


    "If I confess to her right now, d''ya think Suzune would ept it?"


    Before I knew it, the expression peeking out from the profile of his face hadpletely hardened up.


    Given how serious he was, I probably couldn''t just dodge the question by giving him a half-baked response.


    "Probably not."


    While it may have been discouraging, that was my honest, objective opinion from a third party perspective.


    I was almost certain that he wouldn''t be satisfied with my answer, but...


    "Right?"


    Sud�� agreed without batting an eye, as if to say he had already known the answer deep within.


    "I know Suzune''s not the kinda girl to go for love and romance and all that. But like, it''s not just that... There''s no way that''d she be attracted to me as I am right now. How many times has my arrogance caused trouble for her by now? For the whole ss?"


    As a result, he didn''t think there was any way that Horikita would want to date him right now.


    "I''m workin'' hard these days aight? But I''m not gonna pretend that it cancels out the burden I''ve put on everyone else. These next two years, I''mma do my best to improve my strengths and make up for my weaknesses, little by little. That way, by the time we graduate, I''ll definitely be useful to the ss."


    "That so? It''s definitely possible."


    Sud�� was quickly bing a valuable asset due to his unparalleled physical abilities.


    He probably had the potential to develop into somebody indispensable, just like Y��suke or Kushida.


    He''s alsoe to be able to take a more objective look at himself.


    In the face of his extensive growth, I felt like I wanted to ask him something.


    "Say you put in all the effort and be the most distinguished student in our ss... and yet, Horikita still doesn''t look at you. What would you do then? Would you stop studying?"


    There is always the chance that one might regress to their former self upon learning that all their efforts have been for naught.


    This was particrly true as Sud�� was working hard for Horikita.


    "''Course I''d wanna stop. Hell, I''d prolly wanna die. There''s even a chance I might end up punchin'' someone. But the thing is, Suzune would prolly be disappointed in me if I did, right? It''d be superme if I gave up on my studies or went on a rampage or somethin''. So yeah, I''ll pass on that."


    A splendid response. And to top that off, I felt certain that his intentions were genuine. That said, there was no way to know for sure until the worstes to pass. No matter how much one resolves themself ahead of time, once they experience the pain, that resolve all but crumbles.


    At any rate, if he''s this confident now, then I guess I don''t need to worry for the time being.


    "Oh, looks like she''sing."


    We could see Horikita board the elevator through the camera. Sud�� stood up and turned his back to the elevator, seemingly restless as he began taking deep breaths and stretching out his arms in some show of radio calisthenics to calm himself down.


    Before long, the elevator arrived on the first floor as Sud�� continued with his breathing exercises.


    "Sorry I kept you waiting. What is Sud��-kun doing?"


    "Taking deep breaths it seems."


    Horikita looked slightly curious for a moment, but she quickly returned to her usual stiff expression.


    We set off to the designated meeting ce. That is, the Karaoke parlor in the Keyaki Mall. It was an extremely popr spot forte-night hangouts as it was open until 10:00 PM seven days a week.


    This goes without saying, but Karaoke was one of the many recreational facilities on campus. It was a ce primarily used to relieve stress and chat with friends, but at this school, it had yet another vitally important draw to it.


    And that was its high degree of privacy. It was an ideal ce for holding detailed discussions outside of the realm of the public eye.


    Out of any ce on campus, it was the most convenient location to meet without being noticed by others.


    Of course, in terms of privacy alone, there was no ce better than one''s own room at the dormitory, but that wasn''t suitable for specific people.


    With the special examing up next week, it didn''t seem like there were very many people around at this time of day.


    Given that, one might say that this was the best time to hold a secret discussion with H��sen.


    "Hey. You guys really think we can get that shitty first-year brat to work with us?"


    "If I didn''t think we could cooperate with them, I wouldn''t have spent so much time trying in the first ce."


    That''s all there was to it. We had set out today precisely because we believed that it was possible.


    "The majority of the academically capable students have already been taken by Sakayanagi-san and Ry��en-kun. On the other hand, Ichinose-san has be a beacon of hope for the weak. At this point, if we want to change tactics, we''d have no choice but to fight with points or with trust."


    "Right... We ain''t beating Sakayanagi and Ry��en in points, and we ain''t no match for Ichinose when ites to trust..."


    "Exactly. That is why H��sen-kun''s existence provides us with both a crisis and an opportunity."


    H��sen didn''t care about the allure of the ss A brand or some half-baked sum of private points.


    Furthermore, he didn''t so much as nce at Ichinose''s offer of assistance.


    And that was why we, ss D, had a chance.


    "So we just gotta see just how much we can get ''em to agree to without giving anything up."


    "Indeed. As time runs out, the ones at stake will be us second-year students. Since many students have already found a partner, we won''t be able to avoid being put at a disadvantage."


    If we decline the terms H��sen presents us with, he would simply let our partners be decided at random without giving it a second thought. He wouldn''t care at all about the fact that his own ssmates would be penalized as well.


    I was interested in seeing how Horikita would confront him.

 Chapter 32: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 32: 6.1</h4>


    "By the way... The meeting''s at 9, right? Aren''t we way too early?"


    There was still about half an hour until the promised time.


    "It''s fine. I want to get there early."


    Sud�� couldn''t quite understand Horikita''s reasoning, but he kept his mouth shut and followed along.


    Perhaps she wanted to be on the lookout for some sort of foul y, or maybe she just wanted some time topose herself.


    Either way, Sud�� only thought of our opponent as a first-year student, whereas Horikita didn''t seem to be lowering her guard in the slightest.


    It might even seem like she was being excessively cautious, but since our opponent was H��sen himself, there was no such thing as being too careful.


    After receiving a slip of paper with the room number and the receipt from an employee, the three of us headed off to our designated Karaoke room.


    "Could you let Nanase-san know we''re here for me?"


    "Alright."


    I sent a message to Nanase, telling her that we had already arrived, along with our room number.


    She replied not long after, saying that they should be here by the scheduled time.


    "Let''s go ahead and order our own drinks first then."


    "Shouldn''t we wait for them?"


    "It''s fine."


    After we each picked out a drink from the drink menu, she directed our attention to the food menu.


    "You can order something if you want. What would you like?"


    "Then I''d like me some fries. That alright?"


    "That''s fine with me."


    With that, Horikita went to thendline telephone that came furnished in every Karaoke room and ced the order.


    Feeling somewhat relieved by the fact that food was on the way, Sud�� went and nervously picked up the microphone from the table.


    "Ehm, well, we''ve got some spare time and all so how ''bout singing a song or two? Eh Suzune?"


    "I''m not interested."


    "Not interested?"


    Horikita made the three of us arrive early, and then asked us if we''d like to order food and drinks.


    For Sud��, singing a couple of songs probably felt like the next logical step, and had it been someone else, they most likely would''ve agreed.


    The feeling of disappointment was written all over his face, probably because he wanted to hear Horikita''s singing voice.


    "Sud��-kun. Just to remind you again, absolutely do not say anything unnecessary, okay?"


    "I-I understand, but like, shouldn''t you be tellin'' Ayanok��ji that too?"


    "He''s not the type of person to talk when it isn''t needed. Rather, he doesn''t even talk when he ought to."


    Instead of praising me, Horikita took this opportunity to vent herints.


    Sud�� pouted his lip, seemingly displeased with Horikita''s answer.


    After a while, once the appointed time arrived, Nanase showed up at the room''s entrance.


    "Sorry to keep you all waiting."


    "Outta the way Nanase."


    A voice rang out from behind her, forcing her a step further inside as H��sen Kazuomi finally made his appearance.


    "So you came on time. I was nearly certain that you''d bete."


    Horikita was saying that she wouldn''t have been surprised if H��sen had arrivedte on purpose just to irritate her, much like how Miyamoto Musashi had arrivedte for his duel against Sasaki Kojir�� on Ganry��jima.


    "I''mma punctual guy when I wanna be. I don''t like chumps who try''n make shit difficult just cuz you''re a littlete. That aside, seems to me like you got here mighty early... Were ya really that afraid of keepin'' me waitin'' for ya? Don''t be such a pussy."


    "What a selfish interpretation. We were just taking advantage of this rare opportunity to enjoy ourselves."


    With that, Horikita motioned for H��sen to take a look at the state of the room.


    There were several drinks, some empty, on the table along with some half-eaten food.


    All of it set up to look as though we had been enjoying a Karaoke session only moments earlier.


    "Looks like it."


    Albeit informally, the battle between the two of them had already begun.


    "Well whatever. We''ll find out whether yer lyin'' or not soon enough."


    H��sen slouched down on one of the sofas and spread out his legs, taking up about three peoples'' worth of space all for himself.


    He sat in a way that one would expect from a bigshot, making it difficult to imagine that the man in front of us was actually a first-year student.


    "So? From what Nanase''s told me, sounds like you lot want my ss to help ya out."


    From the sound of it, he seemed to think that ss 1-D was alreadypletely under his control, his property.


    It had only been about two weeks since he came to this school, and yet he spoke without even the slightest hint of uncertainty in his voice.


    "It''s slightly different from that. We''re looking to have our two sses coborate with each other. There would be no difference in status between us, a rtionship of equality so to speak."


    "Oh really? So you aren''t gonna bring up the fact that you''re one grade up on us, eh? Ain''t lettin'' yer seniority get to yer head. Smart move."


    As H��sen spoke, Nanase quietly observed without expressing any of her own thoughts on the matter.


    Given that she had taken up the crucial role of a mediator and that she was the only person that H��sen had brought with him to the discussion, it was probably safe to assume that Nanase was someone that H��sen acknowledged.


    I found myself wondering if he was impressed with her courageous ability to state that she wouldn''t yield to his threats of violence or if it was something else entirely. Either way, there was still a way to force her hand and pull Nanase over to our side.


    "I''m well aware that a certain number of first-year students don''t care very much about their ssmates being in trouble. However, if you take a look at us, at our ss, I''m sure you''ll understand that sooner orter there wille a time when you''ll need the assistance of your peers."


    "So, yer sayin'' we should work together and avoid havin'' anyone flunk out? That right?"


    "If you really do possess so much authority over your ss that you''vee to see your ssmates as your own property, then that only makes this whole process that much more convenient. All it should take is onemand and you''d have most of your ssmates ready to follow, right?"


    Instead of answering, H��sen thrust his left pinky finger into his ear and started twisting it around for a bit.


    And then, once he was done, he held it up and blew on it in Horikita''s direction.


    Sud��''s expression hardened immediately, but he kept in line with Horikita''s warning and did his best to put up with it.


    His clenched fists were shaking, pressed up against his thighs.


    However, Horikita simply epted H��sen''s tantly vulgar conduct head-on.


    "Would you stop?"


    "In the first ce..."


    It wasn''t clear if H��senpletely ignored Horikita''s question or not, as he began to speak with what seemed like a different topic in mind.


    "You''re the leader of ss 2-D, yeah?"


    He finally got down to business, verifying that Horikita was somebody worth speaking with.


    "You could say that."


    "I don''t think there''s anything out of ce about Horikita-senpai being the leader, given her abilities."


    For the first time since they arrived, Nanase opened her mouth and directly addressed H��sen.


    "Then I''ll give this ''leader'' here a warning. I ain''t got any intention of cooperating with this retarded ''equality'' shit of yours."


    It didn''t seem like he was going to make this easy for us after all.


    It was inevitable that there would be some sort of contrast between us, who wanted to protect our ssmates at any cost, and H��sen, who didn''t particrly care about his.


    Not to mention, between expulsion and three months without private points, there was far too much of a difference in our respective penalties for failing the exam.


    "Is that right? Well I suppose that is the type of person you are."


    "If you can figure out that much, then why don''tcha stop being so fuckin'' stingy then? I''m all ears."


    "All ears? What are you expecting? Do you really think we''ll pay you in order to get you to help us?"


    Despite the fact that we were in a less than favorable position, Horikita didn''t back down, refusing to concede an inch.


    "You''ll pay. I''m sure you will. There ain''t jack shit you can do without spendin'' at this point. Nanase. Water."


    H��sen voiced his demands to Nanase as he skimmed over the Karaoke menu.


    To this, Nanase nodded and ced an order for some water over the phone.


    "I know that I''m repeating myself here, but our proposal for you is based on equality. It has nothing to do with either of us handing over points, goods, or any other form ofpensation."


    "If you''re gonna keep spoutin'' off that shit, then I guess I don''t gotta stick around waitin'' for the water to get here."


    There wasn''t a shred of hesitation on his face as he began making a show of brushing nonexistent dust off his thighs, implying that he would soon stand up and leave.


    "Please hold on a moment, H��sen-kun. I think you should wait for Horikita-senpai to finish first."


    Nanase, who had been quietly listening off to the side, prompted him to stop.


    "Let her finish? That shit ain''t necessary."


    "No, it is. If we continue as things are now, our ss will never be able toe together."


    Horikita stoically observed as the two first-years made their exchange.


    "Who gives a fuck? Disobedient trash should be left to rot. It ain''t much of a problem if we lose some nobodies anyway."


    "That''s not right."


    "Nanase, are you an idiot?"


    H��sen exhaled loudly, seemingly more so out of exasperation than anger.


    "I don''t get anythin'' from epting their conditions like some little bitch. What''s in it for me?"


    "I understand what you''re saying, H��sen-kun, I do. It''s certainly true that Horikita-senpai and the other second-year students are more desperate to protect their ssmates than we are. In fact, there''s even a reason as to why they have no choice but to protect them. If we don''t lend them a hand, their ssmates run the risk of being expelled. Even if they''re pretending to be tough right now, at some point they''ll have to concede, and that''s exactly what you''re waiting for, isn''t it?"


    Based on her words, it seemed like Nanase had chosen to speak because she knew exactly what H��sen was trying to do.


    "I don''t think there''s anything necessarily wrong with your strategy, H��sen-kun. While the other sses were scrambling to search for partners, you stayed firm, intentionally foregoing the early stages of inter-ss negotiations. All of it done for the sake of securing yourself the upper handter on."


    As the deadline inched closer and closer, the remaining second-year students who hadn''t found partners would begin to feel more and more impatient.


    And as a result, even students who weren''t originally worth spending any points on would suddenly find themselves going for a decent rate.


    "Since you''re so clear on it already, how ''bout you try''n tell me why I should throw this Horikita chick a bone then?"


    "A rtionship of mutual trust."


    Nanase turned and looked toward Horikita for a moment, to which Horikita nodded in response.


    "Don''t make meugh. Mutual trust? That''s some good-for-nothin'' shit right there. Fuckin'' useless."


    "Are you sure about that?"


    Nanase took H��sen head-on, challenging him as she proceeded to speak once again.


    "It''s true that we may not need to give up very much for this special exam. However, the same might not be true for future exams, right? If you end up making enemies out of all of the second-years now, then it''s possible that you might not be able to find yourself a partnerter, regardless of how many points you offer them. While you''d be fine if you just had to deal with taking the 5% penalty, what do you think would happen if the person you end up together with intentionally flunks the exam? You wouldn''t be able to avoid being expelled. That''s what."


    "Ha! You really think some chump has the balls to sacrifice themself like that?"


    "I''ll have you know that I''ve heard that this school has something known as protection points."


    At that, Nanase shifted her gaze away from H��sen and locked eyes with Horikita for the first time.


    Protection points. The very thing that I had mentioned at the end of our conversation in the library on Friday.


    Although Horikita was slightly surprised to hear Nanase talk about them, she immediately grasped what Nanase was going for and nodded along in agreement.


    "Nanase-san is correct. They are a special type of point that can waive one single instance of an expulsion penalty."


    From the look on H��sen''s face, there was no doubting that this was also the first time he had heard of them.


    "It''s understandable that you''ve never heard of them before, given that you only just enrolled here. That''s why you should keep them in mind. If there happens to be some sort of simr exam to this one in the future, if the person you partner with is in possession of a protection point, then... well, depending on the situation, you might end up being forcibly expelled all by yourself."


    If you''re one to make enemies with others, the more you make, the more likely you are to receive the shorter end of the stick.


    It follows that, the more someone hated H��sen, the more likely they''d be to use whatever means necessary to get him expelled.


    "That''s why it''s important to start building up trust with others, wouldn''t you agree?"


    "I see. So you two retards had a few stupid tricks up your sleeves to try''n deal with me, eh?"


    "I am a first-year student, so naturally my top priority is ss 1-D. Plus, H��sen-kun, I believe that you''re vital for the wellbeing of our ss, so I don''t want you to make the mistake of being shortsighted."


    Horikita had put in the effort to understand H��sen before turning her focus over to Nanase.


    She had managed to get Nanase to cooperate with her, and together, they delivered the final blow.


    The tides had started to turn ever so slightly.


    All that remained was to wait and see if H��sen would ept our proposal once he fully understood everything.


    To see if he''d still ask for some sort ofpensation, resolved to face the disadvantages that wouldeter.


    "I get that the two of ya went through the trouble ofin'' up with all this, but�� I ain''t gonna cooperate on equal footing."


    Horikita and Nanase had gone through the effortying out all of the groundwork to get him to agree.


    And yet, H��sen turned the two of them down without even pretending to think about it.


    "Oi H��sen. You seriously sure you''re prepared to make an enemy out of us second-ye��"


    Sud��''s temper began to re, but Horikita held him back before he could finish.


    "Stop. He still hasn''t left the negotiating table just yet."


    "The girl''s right. Don''t go jumpin'' to conclusions."


    H��sen was still slouched back on the couch, showing no signs of leaving any time soon, his attitude as bullish and arrogant as ever.


    "Then what''s next? We have no intention of forming a non-equal rtionship."


    "No shit. You''ve made that fuckin'' clear already. You''ve got guts, I''ll tell ya that."


    He slowly pped his hands in apuse, seemingly praising Horikita for her strenuous efforts.


    "That said, this shitty rtionship idea of yours ain''t even ''equal'' in the first ce."


    "So you''re saying that if we can prove that our offer is equal, you''ll cooperate with us?"


    "Eh, you could say that."


    "Well now I''m confused. Why don''t you think it''d be equal? We''d both be under the same conditions."


    "You''ve got some nerve to try''n y up this trusting rtionship crap, but that shit''s gotta go both ways. And that ain''t enough for me, either. It''s real nice of ya to tell us about how we might end up in a simr situation at some point. Brings fuckin'' tears to my eyes. But that''s just youin'' up with shit, nothin'' you can say for sure, isn''t it?"


    H��sen certainly had a point here.


    At a fundamental level, Horikita''s proposal was based on the premise that our sses would support one another. However, we were the ones who really needed the help right now. The deal would only truly be equal once ss 1-D needed our help at some point in the future.


    It was an insurance policy, so to speak, and there was a good chance they wouldn''t be able to make use of it.


    "So I see. Well, since you''re at it, how about you tell us what exactly it is you want then? Just as a reference."


    "Fork over a million private points as coteral. If we evere cryin'' to you guys for help, I''ll dly pay ya back in full."


    The amount was quite reasonablepared to how much it would cost us to strike a deal with the other sses.


    However, if they never ended up making use of the insurance policy, they''d essentially just be getting a million points for free.


    In short, everyst point would end up directly in H��sen''s pocket.


    "If this trusting rtionship shit of yours is really all that important, then what''s the big deal?"


    If they really ended up needing our helpter on down the line, then the deposit would definitely find its way back to us at some point.


    "If yer worried, how ''bout I put it in writing?"


    While a written contract would be recognized and enforced by the school, that was based on the premise that H��sen actually asked for our help in the first ce.


    There was a chance that he might resort to using it if he found himself at risk of expulsion, but it didn''t seem very likely that he''d give up so many points just to help his ssmates.


    In other words, it would be far more dangerous than simply handing over some points and signing a contract.


    H��sen wasn''t just some cocksure musclehead. He had made his move with the utmost skill and precision.


    A calcting, formidable opponent, just like Ry��en.


    "It''s true that what you''re saying isn''tpletely unreasonable. That said, I still cannot agree to your terms."


    "That so? What a pity. I went through the effort of showin'' you a way outta this, and yet here you are makin'' shit difficult still."


    "Indeed."


    It didn''t seem like Horikita intended topromise if it meant letting H��sen line his own pockets. But with the way things were headed, it seemed like we might end up having to let our partners be decided at random. In which case, we''d have no choice but to have our ssmates with low Academic Ability ratings flee to the other sses, even if it meant burning the necessary funds to do so.


    "Ha!"


    After forcing out a shortugh, H��sen leaned forward from his slouched position on the couch for the first time since he sat down.


    And then, he reached out at Horikita and grabbed the cor of her shirt.


    The first one to react to this was Sud��, who had been attentively keeping watch from right beside her.


    With a seething re in his eyes, he grabbed the brawny first-year student''s arm.


    "Oi, bastard... Don''t raise your hand against a girl."


    "Oho, so the biggest retard here''s finally taken center stage?"


    "Cool it Sud��-kun."


    "But��!"


    "No buts. Negotiations aren''t over yet."


    While it seemed as though negotiations had broken down, H��sen hadn''t yet explicitly stated so himself.


    "You''ve got eyes fu confidence there. You really think I won''t beat the shit outta a girl? Or maybe you''re try''nna abuse the fact that yer a lowly bitch so you can beat me?"


    "What an inappropriate thing to say in this day and age. How about dialing back on the misogyny to avoid turning the women of the world against you?"


    "Well then how ''bout I give you a better option. If you can beat me in a fight, I''ll agree to yer little proposal. How''s that?"


    At that, H��sen presented us with a rather childish offer.


    "How ''bout I take you up on that then? Got a problem with that?"


    "It can be you, that dull-lookin'' Ayanok��ji guy over there, or even this bitch. Fuck it, why not all three of you at once?"


    H��sen spoke brazenly.


    "It''s fine, right Suzune? If I win, we''ll be done with all this crap. Besides, I''m really, really fuckin'' fed up with this bastard already."


    Sud�� was reaching the limits of his patience with H��sen, whose hand was still clutched onto Horikita''s cor.


    "Deciding the oue of this negotiation with a fight is far too absurd. Even if it''s the only card we have left to y, we still shouldn''t agree to it."


    "Why not? The bastard said he was fine with it, I don''t see a problem."


    Ignoring Sud��''s objections, Horikita calmly put her thoughts into words.


    "I really thought you''d be a little smarter than this, H��sen-kun. Not too long ago, back when you first showed up outside of the second-year ssrooms, the things you said gave me the impression that you wanted our sses to work together. I felt the same. I felt like it''d be wonderful if we could cooperate as fellow ss D students."


    "Well, I mighta said somethin'' like that."


    "But�� It seems like that was just a misunderstanding on my part. You didn''t actually think that at all."


    Horikita closed her eyes for a moment and calmed herself before continuing.


    "This discussion is over."


    In the end, it was not H��sen who ended up calling off the negotiations, but Horikita herself.


    The moment the words crossed her lips, slight traces of anger peeked through H��sen''s previously untroubled expression.


    Then, H��sen released his grip on Horikita''s shirt, and seeing this, Sud�� swallowed his anger, let go of H��sen''s arm, and began to resituate himself in his seat.


    But less than a split secondter��


    Ssh! Droplets of water scattered throughout the Karaoke room.


    H��sen had picked up his cup of water and had sshed it on Horikita''s face.


    There was probably no way that Horikita could''ve seen iting before it happened.


    But, before she could make even a single sound, Sud�� was already up on the table, moments away from throwing himself at H��sen.


    "You motherfucker!!!"


    Sud�� had already been doing whatever he could to keep his temper in check before this, but he finally lost all sense of reason due to what had just taken ce.


    Nobody could me him for losing his cool, after all, the girl he liked had just been humiliated before his very eyes.


    H��sen, on the other hand, remained as smug and contemptuous as ever.


    "Stop!"


    As Sud�� charged at him, bellowing with rage, Horikita called out with a stern voice, drawing him to a stop.


    If she had called out even one secondter, Sud��''s fist would''ve smashed directly into H��sen''s cheek.


    "Sud��-kun... Don''t fall into his trap so carelessly."


    "I know dammit, but still!"


    Horikita locked eyes with H��sen without even bothering to dry her wet hair.


    "If you''re displeased with the fact that negotiations have broken down, then perhaps you should''ve conducted yourself a little better."


    Horikita had wanted to establish a cooperative rtionship with H��sen no matter the cost.


    And yet, at this point, even she understood the futility of any further discussion.


    After a short staredown between the two of them, Horikita turned and looked away, as if to say she had seen everything she needed to.


    "Let''s go."


    "R-really?"


    Although Sud�� was frustrated, he asked Horikita again, just to make sure.


    "Are you sure, H��sen-kun?"


    Nanase asked H��sen the same question at nearly the same time.


    "Yeah?"


    "I personally think we should''ve cooperated with Horikita-senpai."


    "Hah! They''re the ones who called it off. You want me to go over there and stop ''em?"


    And so, the discussion ended without H��sen saying anything further, and just like that the two parties dissolved.


    I discreetly cast a sidelong nce over at Horikita. After all, today''s failure would undoubtedly create a lot of problems moving forward.


    But from where I stood, Horikita''s expression didn''t seem discouraged at all.


    Judging by the look on her face, it didn''t seem like this was over just yet.


    ������


    TL Notes:


    Okay I''m going to educate you guys now. Kiyotaka makes a cultural reference about Miyamoto Musashi and his duel on a Japanese ind. This happened around 1600, and is, as far as I can tell, something that literally happened. I think this was back in samurai times, but I''m no Japanese historian so I only know what the Wikipedia article tells me. Should you want to understand the story for yourself, I''ll provide you a link here. I can tell you that this isn''t some super-abstract reference and is something most, if not every Japanese person would know about.


    Another important note is that the Karaoke employee provided them with the receipt before they went to the room. In Japanese this is very typical. You go in, stay a while, and then when you leave you make your payment. You''ll see this in one of the lines of the next part where they pay before leaving.

 Chapter 33: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 33: 6.2</h4>


    Once Horikita had paid our tab, the three of us left the Karaoke parlor together. While it seemed like this was the end of the entire ordeal, H��sen and Nanase followed us from behind. As we walked, Sud�� asionally looked over his shoulder to re at them menacingly, but didn''t go so far as to voice hisints since they had the same route back.


    H��sen, having noticed what Sud�� was doing, called out to us somewhat suspiciously.


    "Hold it!"


    "There''s no reason for us to wait for you. We''re done talking."


    Horikita turned a deaf ear to him, but H��sen didn''t show any signs of backing down.


    It seemed that Horikita''s all-or-nothing gamble was moving in the right direction.


    "Aight, I admit it. You were right Horikita. That day, I went out lookin'' to meet up with ss 2-D. After I got here, it didn''t take me all that long to realize that ss D was the wimpiest bunch in the school. Instead of bein'' treated like a joke by the rest of the sses, I figured it''d be fastest to just go''n work with you guys, bein'' fellow D ssers an'' all."


    Looks like H��sen had indeed been sending signals to ss 2-D back then, just as Horikita had predicted.


    That said, whether or not his goal had been to form that same cooperative, equal rtionship with Horikita was a different matter altogether.


    "So?"


    "So? You sure ya don''t wanna continue the discussion? You and I are simr,rades even. Two leaders who thought''a the same thing."


    "As long as you intend to keep making ridiculous demands, nothing is going to change."


    "What, you really just gonna go in blind? Takin'' the penalty and lettin'' yer shit get figured out randomly?"


    "Yep. I''m fully prepared to take the penalty if we have to."


    While it was certainly a painful position to be in, it wasn''t anything we wouldn''t be able to ovee.


    Thanks to the efforts of Kushida and the others, many of those with D and E ratings had already found partners, pretty much guaranteeing their safety.


    "I see. Then how ''bout I propose you somethin'' like this?"


    Horikita hadn''t agreed to reopen negotiations, and yet H��sen began talking all on his own.


    "I''ll order the chumps from my ss to pair up with ya, so fork over the points. Two mill."


    Instead of conceding, H��sen forced the discussion back open and jacked up the price even higher.


    "Two million? Seems you''ve finally gone off the deep end, hmm?"


    "You''re free to say whatever you want, but this is your only way to guarantee that none of ya flunk out. Most of the guys from the other sses have found partners already. You won''t end up with jack shit by bein'' stingy. Or perhaps you actually want me to tten you?"


    At this point, we arrived at the junction of the two paths for the first and second-year dormitories.


    Horikita came to a stop before turning around to respond to him.


    "tten? And just how do you n on doing that? By intentionally tanking your scores? You wouldn''t be brave enough to do that. You couldn''t. After all, you have toply with the rules just like everybody else. That being said, all that my ssmates and I need to do is focus on securing at least 501 points no matter what randombinations end up happening."


    "Ain''t no need to go with somethin'' soplicated. I''ll tten ya with this thing right here."


    With a fearless grin, H��sen held up his fist.


    "Rule by violence, huh? People like you are a dime a dozen, it seems."


    "I don''t give a fuck what you think ''bout it. This is how I do things."


    "How nice. In that case, it doesn''t seem like we''ll ever see eye-to-eye then."


    At that, Horikita began walking once more.


    It didn''t seem like she had any intention of backing down until the very end.


    Or, perhaps I should say that she couldn''t afford to show weakness to an opponent like H��sen.


    If she did, she would never be treated as an equal ever again.


    "Hold it."


    "What now?"


    "I get it. I''ll think about what you''ve said."


    At thest moment possible, H��sen said something I hadn''t expected him to say.


    "What are you trying to say?"


    "Try''nna keep the upper hand ''til the veryst minute, shit like that''s only natural in a negotiation, yeah?"


    By that, H��sen was saying that all of this had just been a part of his strategy to try and force a concession out of Horikita.


    "Then in other words, you''re agreeing to enter into apletely equal rtionship with us?"


    "Think of it like our discussion goin'' into overtime. There''s prolly people watchin'' here though, so how ''bout we go somece else?"


    It was around 10:00 PM on a Sunday night. While most students should be back home by now, if somebody did show up, they''d definitely be able to overhear our conversation.


    "Even so, we can''t bring you into the dormitories with us."


    Given the curfew, there was no longer anywhere suitable enough to continue the discussion.


    However, time was running short and neither party wanted to drag this out any longer than they had to.


    "Wherever is fine. Behind the dorm, somece else, don''t matter to me. Won''t take long."


    H��sen was brimming with confidence, so Horikita didn''t have much of a reason to turn him down.


    After all, despite having pushed him away at first, having H��sen chase after her like this was exactly what she had been hoping for.


    "...Fine. I''ll give you ten minutes."


    "Over there then."


    H��sen led us to the first-year dorms which had belonged to the third-year studentsst year.


    And then, we circled around the front of the building and headed over to the back.


    It was a dark, quiet area that didn''t serve any particr use other than being a ce to dispose of trash, so it seemed safe to assume that we wouldn''t run into anybody given howte it was.


    "Then let''s continue this, shall we? Our conditions haven''t changed at all. You''re fine with that, right?"


    "Well..."


    As a gesture to highlight his consideration, H��sen crossed his arms for a moment.


    Shortly thereafter, he uncrossed his arms and extended his right hand with three fingers raised into the air.


    "Three mill. You fork over that much, an'' I''ll save all your retarded ssmates right away."


    Everybody present, myself included, was absolutely stunned at his ridiculous proposal.


    "What the heck are you even saying?"


    It was wholly,pletely dumbfounding. Even Horikita couldn''t help but sigh a few times.


    H��sen was supposed to be trying to salvage the discussion, not jacking up the price even further.


    It seemed as though he had gone beyond the realm ofmon sense at this point.


    "Are you fuckin'' deaf, bitch? I said you fork over three mill, and we''ll work shit out."


    "What, are you fuckin'' with us? Suzune''s already told ya that we ain''t handin'' over a single point!"


    "I ain''t jokin''. After all, I went through all the effort of givin'' you lot another chance here, didn''t I?"


    He spoke as though he was the one who had arranged all of this in the first ce.


    "I tried to give you another chance, but it seems like that was apse of judgment after all..."


    The chance that H��sen might make a forthright decision had been asting glimmer of hope, but in the end, that faith had been misced.


    "Stop right there! You really think you can just leave?"


    H��sen lightly mmed his fist against the wall beside him, putting his intimidating attitude on full disy.


    "Oh, so just because we''re behind the dorms, you want to solve this with one of your signature violent outbursts, is that it? Do you really think you''re going to get away with that?"


    "At the very least, I''ll get to beat the livin'' shit outta you fuckheads. How''s that?"


    "Fine, do as you please."


    Shaking her head, Horikita began to make her exit.


    She probably didn''t think that H��sen would actually make things physical.


    However��


    Nanase, who had been standing off to the side, turned and looked away.


    Almost as though she had foreseen what was going to happen next.


    H��sen made his move.


    "Suzune!!"


    Sud�� frantically shouted out as he rushed toward her and pulled her back.


    H��sen''s foot swiftly swept through the very same spot where Horikita had been standing only moments before.


    And then, just like that, the huge first-year proceeded to charge straight at her.


    "?! What the��!"


    At this point, Horikita finally realized that H��sen was serious, but her body was frozen and wouldn''t move as she wanted it to.


    To protect her, Sud�� forced himself between the two of them, catching the blow with his body.


    "Guh!"


    "Hahaha! Let''s see just how much you can take!"


    "Bring it on! I won''t show any mercy to a bastard who raises his hand against Suzune!"


    Laughing happily, H��senunched an attack on Sud��.


    And, having reached the limit of his patience long ago, Sud�� responded in full.


    "Wha, what the hell is this guy thinking...!?"


    It was understandable that Horikita would feel shaken by themencement of an all-out brawl before her very eyes.


    No matter how unmonitored this location truly was, it would still be quite problematic if they were caught.


    It might not be enough for an outright expulsion, but suspension surely wouldn''t be off the table.


    "Horikita-senpai, could it be that, perhaps this school is a little different from how it was before?"


    Nanase, who had been watching this inexplicable turn of events go down with a somewhat cold look on her face, asked Horikita a question.


    "Just as you upperssmen are more familiar with the events ofst year, we first-year students have a greater understanding of the current systems in ce."


    "What do you mean...?"


    "Shortly after enrollment, several first-years representatives were called to the student council room to receive a personal exnation from President Nagumo. He said that, from this year onward, the students would be allowed certain freedoms in order to make the school into more of a meritocracy."


    "Are you telling me that fighting is one of those freedoms?"


    "I wouldn''t say that. Although, from what H��sen-kun has confirmed, the President has stated that a certain amount of in-fighting amongst students is unavoidable, and therefore promised that it wouldn''t be judged as harshly as it was in the past."


    Compared to Horikita''s older brother Manabu, Nagumo had a more tolerant mindset when it came to fighting.


    Since the student council acted as an arbitrator in disputes between students, if it were true that they were now tolerant of a certain amount of fighting, then it would certainly be difficult for this to lead to proper recourse.


    As the conversation between Horikita and Nanase progressed, the fight between Sud�� and H��sen had already started to tilt in one direction.


    "Oraa!"


    Even whenpared to Sud��''s naturally high strength and quick reflexes, H��sen''s were on yet another level as he proceeded to m Sud�� up against the wall.


    H��sen then went on to grab Sud�� by the cor with both hands and forced him upward, causing both his legs to lift up into the air.


    "B-bastard!"


    Having lost his ground in more ways than one, Sud�� put forward a desperate show of resistance, but given his position, there wasn''t much he could do.


    With his targetpletely immobilized, H��sen began applying pressure on his hold, as if trying to cram him into the wall itself.


    "Kh! S-son of a bitch!"


    Sud��tched onto H��sen''s arms and, despite his limited space, struck a blow with his knee, causing H��sen to stagger slightly.


    He then took advantage of the opportunity to free himself from H��sen''s grasp, only for H��sen tond a direct kick momentster. While Sud�� had prepared himself to withstand the blow, the sheer force of it sent him smashing into the wall behind.


    The two had appeared to be an equal match for one another before the fight began, but after seeing the way it had been progressing, the difference between them was considerable.


    Given his tendency to constantly make enemies out of others, Sud�� had most likely been involved in several fights before this.


    His athletic skill and physique had been honed throughout years of ying basketball, so he had probably never met somebody who could match up to him before.


    H��sen, however, was even more exceptional. Compared to Sud��, H��sen had probably taken part in an inconceivable number of fights and braved his way through countless other dangerous situations. The difference in experience was as clear as day. Hisrge build and strong arms felt out-of-ce given that there was only a one year age gap between them. And yet, despite his massive size, he was still remarkably quick on his feet. His natural talent was certainly a sight to behold.


    This was the reason why even Ry��en of all people had restrained himself from fighting him.


    Ry��en knew that he simply wasn''t an opponent that could be beaten in straightforward hand-to-handbat.


    But even so, Sud�� wouldn''t go down that easily. After all, his sheer strength went nearly unparalleled out of everyone in our school year. However, that simply meant that he''d be H��sen''s punching bag until he did.


    H��sen proceeded to unleash an unrelenting barrage of punches down on Sud��.


    Even though Sud�� wanted to seize any opportunity he could to strike back, he already had his hands full with parrying H��sen''s attacks.


    Every time he tried to shift onto the offensive, even if only slightly, another blow woulde and instantly pierce through his defenses.


    "None of us have anything to gain from doing things like this!"


    Horikita shouted out, but H��sen wasn''t listening. At this point, it''d be impossible to stop H��sen with words alone.


    Her voice did, however, reach Sud��, who nced in her direction for a split second.


    Horikita''s voice, the voice of the girl that he had to protect, somehow ignited a me within him.


    "Graaaah!!!"


    With the resolve to sacrifice himself if need be, he lunged at H��sen and pushed him away from the wall, trying what he could to knock over his opponent.


    "Oho. So you wanna try''ne at me with raw power, eh?"


    H��sen took the impact of Sud��''srge frame head-on, sneering as he grabbed hold of Sud��''s body and lifted him up again.


    "W-woaah!?"


    He then spun around in a half-circle before dropping Sud�� back down and pushing him away with his left hand, effectively swapping ces with him.


    "Was bein'' up against the wall too much for ya? This should be enough of a handicap, so fuckin'' man up ande at me!"


    "Stop fucking with me!"


    Sud�� roared out, his engine running at full-throttle.


    He readied himself to charge at H��sen, fullymitted to taking the upper hand, but before he could��


    "Oi Sud��, take a look at Horikita''s face. She''s rin'' at you somethin'' fierce, ah?"


    As he spoke, H��sen unclenched his fists and pointed at Horikita, who was standing behind Sud��.


    Just as their fight was reaching its peak, H��sen dropped his guard. At this point, Sud�� suddenly realized that he had lost his cool and had gotten himself wrapped up in a full-on brawl. Worried about how angry Horikita must be with him for breaking his promise, he turned his back on the formidable enemy standing in front of him.


    Of course, it wasn''t like Horikita was pleased with Sud�� fighting like this.


    However, her expression was not one of anger, but one of worry and distress over not knowing what she needed to do.


    She could only scream out to him, begging for him to turn back around. Only watch as he let show this one fatal moment of carelessness.


    By the time he realized that he had screwed up, it was already toote.


    With a fiendish grin on his face, H��sen smashed his fist straight into Sud��''s cheek while his back was turned.


    A scathing blow that had seeminglye out of nowhere.


    Although Sud�� was more than capable of taking a punch, he had probably never experienced a blow like this before.


    If he had been an ordinary student without any neck training, then this punch might have had very serious consequences.


    He flew backward with such force that he slid across the ground after hended, unable to so much as even attempt to cushion the fall.


    "Guh��!?"


    Sud�� cried out with an almost inaudible voice, nearly fainting from the onset of pain.


    Even though he had been winning without the use of underhanded tricks, H��sen had deliberately chosen to end it by setting up this simple trap instead.


    He had wanted to hurt him, not only physically, but mentally as well. It didn''t seem like Sud�� had lost consciousness though, as he was writhing about on the ground in pure agony.


    After witnessing everything I had seen today, I found myself re-evaluating just what kind of person H��sen Kazuomi truly was.


    What was he thinking? What was he feeling? What had driven him toe to today''s negotiations in the first ce? Horikita was right when she said that he sounded like he wanted to join up with our ss back when we first met him. Furthermore, he had even admitted earlier that he saw the value in having the two D sses work together. Up until just recently, he had been making full use of his advantageous position in order to pressure us, and that hadn''t exactly been that bad of an approach to take.


    However, once he saw just how unwilling to bend Horikita truly was, he probably figured out that his approach wasn''t going to work.


    He had realized that, if nothing changed, Horikita would give up on trying to work together. But even then, instead of looking topromise, he chose to dial up the aggression even further, eventually leading to some insanely belligerent behavior.


    He had dumped water on Horikita earlier, and now he had gone so far as to force a serious confrontation with Sud��.


    Just how could he maintain such a cocky, violent attitude when there were suspension and expulsion on the line?


    I had been wondering this very question for a long time now.


    Did he really just think he could decide everything with violence alone?


    That didn''t seem right either. It didn''t seem reasonable to think he was that stupid.


    In which case, what was he after? What in the world was H��sen getting out of forcing a fight like this?


    "Aight, seems that your trusty bodyguard''s eatin'' the dirt. Who''s next?"


    H��sen began to approach, alternating his gaze between Horikita and me as he did.


    Despite the fact that he had only just been fighting Sud��, his breathing wasn''tbored in the slightest.


    "Do... Do you really think we will submit to violence?"


    "If not, then I''mma beat the shit outta you, get you to cry a bit n'' have you write out a couple of them binding agreements. An'' if you say no to that, then I''mma keepin'' back, chasin'' you fuckheads down ''til you''re dead on the floor."


    No matter how tolerant the student council may be when ites to fighting, there would still be problems if it went too far. Besides, if he forced her to sign some sort of written agreement under these circumstances, there was no way that it would hold upter on. It was also possible for us to pretend to obey him in order to get out of this, but Horikita probably wouldn''t do that. After all, yielding to H��sen''s way of doing things simply wasn''t an option.


    "...So be it. I''ll be the one to stop you then."


    Horikita steeled her resolve and took up a fighting stance.


    "Ooh, interesting. If you wanna throw down, then I''d be d to take ya up on that."


    H��sen probably didn''t expect Horikita to have any fighting or martial arts experience whatsoever.


    But he wasn''t an opponent who would fall for a cheap trick like this either, something that Horikita still hadn''t managed to understand just yet.


    All of a sudden, without any prior warning, H��sen lurched out his arm.


    Horikita nimbly slipped past his reach and proceeded to go for a knockout blow with a strike aimed at his jaw.


    She had bet everything on settling this with a single, instantaneous strike.


    "Oh?"


    However, before the strike could make contact, H��sen grabbed hold of her delicate wrist without so much as batting an eye.


    "Damn bitch, that was a pretty good move there. But��"


    H��sen lifted his other hand high up into the air and swung down hard, pping Horikita across the face.


    Horikita tried what she could to dodge or protect herself, but in the face of H��sen''s overwhelming speed and power, there was simply nothing she could do but take a direct hit. Her body was blown away as if she had been struck with a fist instead. She tumbled over onto the ground, cushioning herself as she fell.


    "S-Suzune!"


    Sud�� cried out as he tried his best to get back on his feet, his teeth clenched in pain.


    But his legs wouldn''t move how he wanted, so he couldn''t stand up properly.


    "Yo Horikita. Let''s make a fuckin'' deal already."


    Horikita looked up at H��sen from where she was on the ground as the first-year student closed in on her, voicing his demands.


    "Five million points. That much, and all your problems''ll go away. How ''bout it?"


    The asking price had skyrocketed even further. So high, in fact, that we couldn''t afford to pay it even if we wanted to.


    "W-what kind of sick joke is this...? Ayanok��ji-kun... Call someone, call the teachers..."


    Adult intervention was probably the only way left to contain the situation at this point.


    Alternatively, if arge number of people were to gather, even H��sen would have no choice but to rein in his fist.


    "So this is what you''ve been reduced to...? Well, I guess it makes sense. But are you sure you wanna nark on me? Even though none of you did jack shit, what do you fuckers n on doin'' ''bout the fact that you two tried throwin'' punches as well? You really wanna get suspended along with me?"


    Even if we appealed that we had only acted out of self-defense, we would inevitably face some kind of repercussions as well.


    That being said, we''d still be much better off having a third party intervene than we would letting things continue going like this.


    "You son of a bitch!!"


    "Stay down retard!"


    Back up on his feet, Sud�� threw himself at H��sen once again, only to be mercilessly kicked back down to the ground. Afterwhich, the first-year finally set his sights on me.


    "How long you n on watchin'' there fucker?"


    "R-run away... Ayanok��ji... Kun..."


    "Run away? Don''t even think about it. You pussy out here, an'' I''ll see to it that these two doormats are in for a whole new world of pain!"


    Even now, I kept thinking.


    What exactly did H��sen want out of this?


    Was he really trying to force us to meet demands that had no chance of ever being epted?


    No, that was just far too unrealistic.


    "Horikita. I''ll give ya onest chance."


    "...Last?"


    "If you submit to me right here, right now, an'' fork over the points�� I''ll let Ayanok��ji live."


    With that, H��sen stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled something out. It had gotten fairly dark outside, so for a moment it was hard to tell what exactly it was, but once he unveiled its pointed edge, a silver shine glimmered in the moonlight.


    "W-what are you, that...!?"


    "Somethin'' wrong with your eyes? It''s a knife, in an'' simple!"


    From the way the de sparkled, it was clearly different from one of those retractable toy des that were often used for party tricks and the like.


    "If you turn me down again, I''ll stab Ayanok��ji with this."


    "Stop fooling around!"


    "I ain''t fuckin'' with you, tho? I''ll dly stab this punk if it means gettin'' my hands on the points."


    Wielding the knife in his right hand, H��sen slowly turned to face me.


    "Still, even after all this I still can''t wrap my damn head around it. What makes a punk like you so fuckin'' special?"


    With his eyes locked on mine, H��sen spoke, his voiceced with exasperation.


    "Fuck it, maybe I didn''t even need to go an'' do all this risky shit in the first ce!"


    From the way he was talking, it seemed like the ridiculous chain of events that he had orchestrated so far had all been done because he was wary of something. Expecting something.


    He drew closer to me, one step at a time.


    However, Nanase, his very own ssmate, jammed herself in between the two of us, stopping him in his tracks.


    "Please don''t go any further! I can''t approve of your methods after all... I can''t!"


    She spread out her arms in an attempt to block his path.


    "Outta the way, Nanase. Your ass is only here to keep ''em from escapin'', so know your fuckin'' ce."


    "I made the decision to lend you my strength until the very end, telling myself that it was for the good of the ss. No matter how deplorable your strategy was, I thought I''d be willing to ept it. But I see now that I was mistaken."


    With her feet firmly nted between H��sen and I, she shifted her gaze over to Horikita.


    "Horikita-senpai, working together with H��sen-kun has been impossible from the very beginning. You were inspired to cooperate with us after hearing him mention ss 2-D back when we came to meet with you in front of the second-year ssrooms, but... That was just a ploy to get things to progress to this point. Even if you pay the outrageous fee he''s been asking of you, you''d still be subjected to this same fate."


    Naturally, Horikita''s distresspiled even further upon hearing Nanasey out such a shocking revtion.


    No matter how hard she tried to negotiate, H��sen never would''ve epted anyway. And this wasn''t her fault either. None of us could''ve predicted that things would turn out like this.


    All things considered, this iprehensible series of events probably came down to an imbnce of information. H��sen and Nanase had been given intel that we hadn''t. That being the case, there was no way we could''ve had a proper negotiation in the first ce.


    "All your yammering is pissin'' me off. You''re the one who asked me to deal with this shit to begin with. Our ss''ll rake in shitloads of money if we take out this Ayanok��ji guy. Just think of the advantage it''d give us."


    "That is true. However, I just can''t figure out the reason why we need to target him like this."


    "That shit ain''t got nothing to do with me. If you''re gonna get in my way, then you can fuck off as well!"


    H��sen readied a wide swing and swept Nanase aside with the palm of his hand, just as he had done to Horikita earlier.


    As I stood alone, watching this scene y out in front of me, I arrived at one, single conclusion. And with it, everything fit into ce.


    "Prepare yourself, Ayanok��ji!"


    He came at me, lethal weapon in hand. Naturally, everybody present was fully expecting him to try and stab me with it.


    Laughing, he raised the knife up above his head.


    I could feel my mind begin to clear as I lowered my stance.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun��!"


    While most people would''ve tried to escape, I rushed at him instead.


    And as I did, everyone watching must''ve thought that I''d gone mad.


    After all, running head-first into an opponent with a knife wasn''t really a mark of sanity.


    Especially when said opponent was somebody as formidable as H��sen. H��sen''s smile widened even further as I did so. He probably thought that I was a fool for jumping at him.


    But I wasn''t trying to prevent myself from being stabbed at all.


    As I drew closer, H��sen swung his arm, bringing the knife down, slicing through the air.


    The target of that knife, what its de sought�� was not my body.


    It was his very own.


    I used my left hand to stop the descending de from reaching its desired target.


    I wasn''t trying to grab H��sen''s hand or avoid it, but instead let the de pierce through my palm.


    "Wha��!?"


    This was clearly not what H��sen had expected of me. It would''ve been nearly impossible to predict my actions beforehand.


    After all, who would''ve thought that someone would deliberately let themself be stabbed?


    The arm driving the de froze to a halt, and with it, H��sen''s smile vanished as well.


    "You... Ayanok��ji!"


    He was confused. Anyone in their right mind would''ve been after seeing what I had done to myself.


    In most cases, my actions here would be seen as hazardous, self-destructive even.


    Fresh, bright blood soon began spurting out from the wound on my palm.


    "That knife, or to be more urate, that petty knife, it''s the one I bought, isn''t it?"


    "The fuck are you on about...?"


    "You were going to stab yourself in the thigh with my own knife. After that, you''d raise a fuss to the school about your injury, and use that as evidence to get me expelled. That was your n, wasn''t it?"


    From the way he gripped the knife in his hand, it was obvious that it wasn''t meant to stab an opponent. He had faced the de upward to make it look like someone else had stabbed him. Furthermore, he had taken hold of the handle in reverse, so as to allow himself to drive the de into his leg more effectively.


    "Ha! So even though you managed to piece it all together, you still came an'' got stabbed yourself? You outta your mind?"


    H��sen looked a bit shaken as he let out a dryugh.


    "This was the best way topletely shut you down. Besides, I don''t think we''re that different. After all, you came here fully prepared to sustain a major wound as well."


    Even if they knew that it was the correct course of action, most people wouldn''t be willing to follow through with such a dangerous act of self-harm like this. This was the primary reason why he would''ve been able to stab himself and frame me for it.


    "It seems like there''s some sort of pseudo-special exam in effect that was only given to a limited number of you first-years. And based on your conversation with Nanase, it sounds like the premise of that exam is to have me expelled. So to that end, you began to spin up a n. It''d start with you luring us out here and forcing us into a fight. Then, after smacking Sud�� and Horikita around a bit, you''d say that I pulled out a knife that I carried with me in case of an emergency and stabbed you with it in a fit of rage, eventually leading to my expulsion. That''s the absurd narrative you were trying to build this time."


    Even if the student council was going to be more tolerant, wielding a knife in a fight wouldn''t be excused with just a suspension.


    It would warrant an expulsion, or it could even end up resulting in criminal charges.


    "I''d heard you were hot shit, but you seemed pretty fuckin'' wimpy to me, so I didn''t really think all that much of ya. To think you''de an'' let yourself get stabbed... How''d you know the knife was yours?"


    "I''ve done some investigating of my own. As of yesterday, I was still the only one to have bought that model of Petty knife. So it''s only natural that I''d put the pieces together upon seeing you pull out the exact same one."


    I could''ve easily slipped past the knife and grabbed hold of H��sen''s arm. But doing that wouldn''t have solved the fundamental issue at hand here. All he would''ve had to do is create some distance and start his n all over again. In order to prevent him from doing that, I had no other choice but to get stabbed myself.


    H��sen tried to let go of the knife, but I used my own hand to lock his fist in ce.


    "...The hell...? Who the fuck are you...?"


    Having witnessed my strength firsthand, theposure H��sen had maintained so far waspletely blown away.


    "Now then, what''s next? Even though I''m the owner of the knife, you''re the one who stabbed me with it. Moreover, an investigation will reveal that you tried to buy the same model of knife before. If you can''t find a way to talk your way out of this, you''ll be expelled, H��sen."


    While my fingerprints were on the knife''s handle, H��sen''s were as well. And the fact that the knife was now pierced through my palm wasn''t something that could be exined away very easily. His very own strategy had ended up backfiring on him.


    "So you thought this far ahead...!?"


    After glowering at me for a moment, H��sen released his grip and took his distance, leaving the knife pierced through my palm.


    And with that, the tables hadpletely turned on him.


    Meanwhile, Horikita and Sud�� had slowly gotten back on their feet and were now recovering their strength.


    "A-are you okay, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Ayanok��ji..."


    "Don''t worry about me."


    It wasn''t unreasonable for them to be concerned about my condition, but this wasn''t the time to be worrying about that.


    The most important thing now was to make sure that H��sen wasn''t given another opening.


    "How much info do you bastards even have...? Wait, Nanase, did you fuckin'' nark to ''em?"


    "I didn''t tell them anything."


    "I first felt like something was out of ce back when Amasawa and I went shopping at the Keyaki Mall together."


    Surprised to hear me drop Amasawa''s name, Horikita spoke up herself.


    "Amasawa-san? Are you saying that she''s mixed up in all this...?"


    "Yeah. ording to the store clerk, just as H��sen was about to finish paying for the knife, she reached out and stopped him from going through with the purchase."


    After responding to Horikita, I turned back to H��sen.


    "You''re the one who came up with this ridiculous strategy, but Amasawa is the one who helped refine it to perfection. After all, if you stabbed yourself with your own knife, it would naturally lead to problems once the school investigated what happened. However, if you could somehow get me to buy the knife instead, then that would have the potential to change everything."


    The reason why Amasawa and H��sen had chosen to use this expensive Petty knife because it was the only one that came bundled together with a sheath, making it the most convenient option avable.


    Of course, while there were a variety of other ways to conceal a naked de, it would''ve been faster and easier to just buy one with a sheath given the added portability.


    Back when I went shopping with Amasawa, she had managed to locate and pick out this exact knife without searching for it at all, even though that should''ve been the first time she had been in that store. And this was only the first thing that stuck with me. On Friday, she had shown up at my room saying that she had lost her hair tie, but that had been nothing more than an excuse to recover the knife. It''s natural to assume that she had nted it there beforehand or simply lied about leaving it there at all. Furthermore, since there was a possibility that I might notice that it was missing if she recovered it too soon, she waited, dying her move until thest possible moment. After that, she just needed to get the knife out of my room without getting any fingerprints on it and hand it over to H��sen.


    If she hadn''t been able to retrieve the knife, then they probably would''ve chosen to postpone the n.


    "Tch, I never shouldda trusted that random chick in the first ce."


    "No, it was thanks to Amasawa that this n took shape at all. Without her help, everything would''ve fallen apart."


    "Whatever. Seems to me like you''ve got the upper hand now. Ain''t that right Sempai? So what now?"


    On top of everything else that had happened, the blood from my hand had stained H��sen''s clothes. There was no way he could talk his way out of this now.


    Even if he took back the knife and stabbed himself in the thigh, it simply wasn''t possible for him toe out on top anymore.


    Of course, even if he tried to do that, I''d just use my full strength to stop him.


    Chances were that H��sen had already discerned that for himself as well.


    The important part is what would happen next.


    "Horikita, Sud��, and I can all promise to keep quiet about what happened tonight. How''s that?"


    "What are you sayin''? You really gonna throw away your chance to get me kicked outta here?"


    "In exchange for not doing that, I have two conditions."


    "Two?"


    He probably knew the first without me even having to say it.


    "The first is that you agree to form an equal, cooperative rtionship between our two sses."


    "Well it ain''t like I got much of a choice between that an'' expulsion. So what''s the second?"


    "I want you to partner up with me for this special exam."


    From the time I firstid eyes on H��sen, I found myself thinking that if I was in any position to select whoever I wanted, then he''d be my first choice by far. While there were several reasons for this, the biggest was that he didn''t care about attracting attention due to his problematic behavior. If I were in Tsukishiro''s shoes, I probably would''ve instructed my enforcer to avoid standing out as much as possible. I had been considering the option of privately reaching out to him to discuss the idea of working together if Horikita''s discussion ended up falling through. So in that sense, this series of events had turned out to be quite convenient for me.


    "...Are you serious?"


    "You''ve only just enrolled here, so I''m sure there are plenty of things you haven''t gotten a chance to do yet. If you get expelled now, it''ll all be over before you can enjoy doing any of them. I don''t know how things went back when you were in middle school, but the rumors saying that you''re an equal match for Ry��en will end up staying that way. And that''s all anybody will remember you for. At least, from what I''ve seen of Ry��en over the past year he''s been here, you can''t even reallypare to him as you are right now."


    "You motherfucker...!"


    Obviously, the young man known as H��sen Kazuomi had an unshakable sense of pride.


    It came from an egotistical, habitual belief that he was one of the strongest people around.


    Even though he was probably a step above Ry��en in terms of physical strength, the fact that I had said that Ry��en was better was uneptable for him.


    But most of all, there was no way he''d manage to tolerate the fact that I had outsmarted him.


    He had a B+ Academic Ability rating, so if he were to hold back and flunk the exam, he would definitely get expelled.


    That said, it didn''t seem reasonable to think that he''d choose to sacrifice himself to take revenge on me. While H��sen was about as close to innocent as one could get, the fact of the matter was that there was really no way for me to be 100% certain that he wasn''t from the White Room. In that respect, no matter how much I tried, I wouldn''t be able to clear him from all suspicion. However, after what happened here tonight, things were different. Even if H��sen held back on the exam, the fact that I had been stabbed would still remain.


    As long as I made it painfully clear that something unusual had gone on behind the scenes, even Tsukishiro wouldn''t be able to force my expulsion immediately.


    The school would set up an investigation to find out exactly what had happened, and H��sen''s decision to take a zero on the exam would be put up for deliberation.


    Whatever tricks Tsukishiro might try to pull, I''d stay firm as a rock until expulsion was no longer on the table.


    "Fuckin'' good shit there, Ayanok��ji-sempai! You''re the first opponent who''s gotten my blood boilin'' like this. Just forcin'' you to surrender won''t be enough for me anymore. I''m gonna beat you to death instead, so I hope you''re lookin'' forward to it."


    The faint traces of shakiness that he had shown earlier were a thing of the past. By now, H��sen had already shifted his focus to preparing for his next fight.


    "I will remain here. There''s something I feel I should exin to Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Huh? What''re you gonna tell ''em, Nanase?"


    "Something that I''ve decided will be useful to ss 1-D as a whole. Ayanok��ji-senpai and Horikita-senpai are already very wary of us. That being the case, wouldn''t it be better if we had them stay vignt of the other sses as well?"


    "Suit yourself."


    While the details of what she was saying were unclear, H��sen epted Nanase''s proposal.


    In the end, H��sen was the first person to leave and head back to the dormitory.

 Chapter 34: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 34: 6.3</h4>


    It was now just the three of us and the first-year Nanase.


    While there were a couple of things to discuss given what had happened, one matter took precedence over any of that.


    And that was calming down Horikita, who had lost her cool upon seeing the knife pierced through my left hand.


    "W-what should we do...? Should we, uhm, p-pull the knife out?"


    The usually level-headed Horikita had probably never been in a situation like this one before.


    "No. I know it isn''t exactly pleasant to look at, but it''s better to leave the knife where it is for now."


    If the knife wasn''t pulled out properly, I''d run a very real risk of hemorrhaging blood.


    "More importantly, are you two okay?"


    "Compared to you, I''m practically unscathed..."


    "Yeah... I''m fine too."


    Sud�� came closer to get a better look and grimaced upon seeing the grotesque state of my hand.


    "Dude, how can you stay so calm with your hand like that?"


    "Hmm, I don''t know."


    I was just doing things as I usually did, there wasn''t really anything special to it.


    "But, man... I didn''t know you were like, so strong..."


    "I just tried what I could to block the knife."


    "...That''s not what it looked like to me though."


    He voiced his honest impression of my confrontation with H��sen earlier.


    Sud�� had braved his way through a fair number of fights in his time, so it didn''t seem like I''d be able to deceive him, or Horikita as well for that matter.


    With my right hand, I took out my cell phone and called Chabashira.


    "Something''s happened that I need a bit of help with. Could you quicklye meet me behind the first-year dorms? Alone, of course. Also, please bring a bath towel with you."


    Although Chabashira seemed confused by my sudden call, she managed to sense the urgency of the situation and promised to head over immediately. In the meantime, it was for the best that we stay put and wait for her to arrive.


    It would be dangerous if other students saw the state of my hand while we changed locations.


    At any rate... even after seeing the aftermath up close, Nanase didn''t seem phased in the slightest.


    Despite the fact that there was a knife pierced through my palm and blood scattered around, she was perfectly calm andposed.


    The visually intense, graphic nature of the scene didn''t affect her at all.


    "Could you exin what happened here for us, Nanase?"


    "If I don''t, then it seems that ss 1-D will be ced in quite a tough position, so I will."


    "You were aware that the negotiations were going to turn out like this... Is that correct?"


    "Correct. The n was to have H��sen-kun stab himself in the thigh to get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled."


    She spoke without reserve, exining their n in the same polite tone as always.


    "Are you saying that the kindness you''ve shown us was all just part of an act meant to fulfill that goal?"


    "No, nothing of the sort, Horikita-senpai. I truly did want to join hands with you and establish a supporting rtionship between our two sses. It''s just... targeting Ayanok��ji-senpai had been our top priority, that''s all."


    The reason why both H��sen and Nanase had been so fixated on ss 2-D was simply because I was a member of it.


    "Why was that your goal? I don''t remember pardoning you for what happened here tonight, those were Ayanok��ji-kun''s words, not mine. Depending on your exnation, I might just end up reporting this to the school straight away."


    Horikita pressed Nanase for answers, unable to fathom why I was getting targeted.


    "While I do agree that there was a problem with our method, the school actually condones the notion of taking action to get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled. Only a select few first-year students currently know about this, but it''s possible to receive a tremendous number of private points just for forcing his expulsion."


    Atst, the reason why H��sen had gone after me had finallye to light.


    "We were told that the student who manages to expel Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka of ss 2-D will receive a bulk sum of 20 million private points. That''s the special exam that was given to us."


    "I don''t understand what you''re saying. That doesn''t make any sense. Who on earth woulde up with such an outrageous, stupid special exam?"


    Nanase held her tongue, unwilling to respond to Horikita''s inquiry.


    "...For now, I''ve said everything I needed to say. With this, you should realize just how cautious you need to be of the other first-year sses, right Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    She didn''t go into it very deeply, revealing only the bare minimum required to convey the idea. Needless to say, if H��sen and Nanase knew about this ''special exam'', then Amasawa probably did as well. Extending that logic, it only made sense that students in sses 1-B and 1-C were also in on it.


    "You don''t really expect me to ept such an answer, do you? The fact of the matter is that Ayanok��ji-kun received a grievous injur��"


    Horikita began hounding Nanase with questions for my sake, so I cut in to stop her.


    "It''s alright Horikita. A general understanding of the situation is more than enough. I appreciate the help, Nanase."


    "For the sake of my ss, of ss 1-D, I chose to cooperate with H��sen-kun knowing full well just how awful his methods truly were. Because, if the 20 million point bounty were to fall into the hands of another ss, it would bring about serious ramifications for us moving forward."


    With 20 million points, you would only have enough to buy a single ticket to ss A.


    But given the utility during special exams such as this one, the more financial clout your ss had, the better off you''d be.


    "However, that was not the only reason why I cooperated with H��sen-kun."


    Nanase''s tone was soft and calm, and yet there was something about the way she looked at me, a sharp but subtle glint in her eyes.


    "I*... simply didn''t believe a person like you would be suitable for this school, Ayanok��ji-senpai." [TLN: She uses boku here again.]


    This was the first time that Nanase had ever directed these apparent feelings of hatred toward me.


    Yet, I couldn''t figure out why.


    Shortly thereafter, Nanase bowed her head and left this ce behind.


    ������


    Fairly Important TL Notes:


    So I usually don''t like writing out notes like this, but in this case I have to make an exception. For those that don''t know, Japanese has multiple first-person pronouns. English only uses ''I'' or ''me'' for this purpose, but Japanese has more than 10, all used for different purposes, ages, and genders. Every character in the series (so far), has only ever used one of these to refer to themselves, and used it consistently thereafter. Apart from one time where she slipped up in a previous chapter, Nanase has exclusively used or watashi. This is a typically gender-neutral, maybe a little feminine, pronoun that Horikita and most serious respectful female characters (and Kouenji) also use. In thest spoken line of this part, Nanase says:


    "I*... simply didn''t believe a person like you would be suitable for this school, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    The asterisk here is my way of conveying that the first-person pronoun that she uses here is or ''boku'', which is a first-person pronoun primarily used by younger males. Now, Hirata and Ike both also use boku, but they use (the kanji) to say it instead of writing it in the stylized, katakana form that Nanase has used it in. The important part about this is that, with this, Nanase is now only the second character in the series to use their first-person pronoun written in katakana. The first character is Kiyotaka, with his use of ''Ore'', which is even more of a masculine pronoun than boku. Hosen, Ryuen, Sudo, and most of the more manly characters all use ''Ore'' as well, but they use the kanji to do it, not the katakana, making Kiyotaka a special case. By having Nanase''s boku written in katakana as well, the author is highlighting or emphasizing some sort of connection between Kiyotaka and herself. (Which is, unfortunately, untrantable into the Englishnguage.)


    Therefore, there are two key things to note here that are hard to convey in an English trantion. The first is that she is using a different, more masculine pronoun for some unknown reason, and the second is that she''s also using the pronoun in its katakana form instead of it''s kanji form, just as Kiyotaka uses when referring to himself with his own pronoun.


    I hope this information has helped you to understand the sheer impact of this final line of Nanase''s on a better level than you would have without knowing this.

 Chapter 35: Epilogue: An Intensifying Mystery

    <h4>Chapter 35: Epilogue: An Intensifying Mystery</h4>


    The following Monday, Nanase and Horikita got together and sessfully ironed out the details of the agreement between our two sses. By Tuesday, all 157 pairs had been formed, and everyone had shifted their focus over to the uing written exams. Although K��enji remained uncooperative until the very end, he instantly agreed to partner up with Nanase at her request, surprising both myself and Horikita.


    While my left hand had sustained quite the injury, I could confidently say that the results were well worth it. Many students were surprised to see my hand wrapped up in bandages, but thanks to Chabashira and Mashima-sensei, the matter was kept confidential. This allowed the special exam to move forward without anyone else finding out about what happened.


    Even though there had been many opportunities to interact with the first-year students over these past two weeks, I still wasn''t able to discern the identity of the White Room student. Given theck of action throughout the special exam, it made me question whether or not they even existed in the first ce. It was safe to assume that I needed to stay wary of all the first-years I hade into close contact with.


    Normally, one might think that they could rule out H��sen due to the fact that several students knew about him from back in middle school. However, neither Ry��en nor Akito had actually met him in person before. In other words, there was a chance he was an imposter who had contacted the real H��sen and taken on his identity.


    As for Nanase, even though she didn''t appear to bear any ill will toward me at first nce, upon delving deeper there were several factors that couldn''t be overlooked, such as the method she had used to get close to me, her attitude after we left the karaoke parlor, and the reason she had chosen to contact me in the first ce.


    And then there was Amasawa, who had joined hands with H��sen to try and get me expelled. But even then, it was more than possible that she might''ve just been after the 20 million point bounty on my head.


    In any case, I still didn''t have a single shred of evidence to connect any of them to the White Room.


    If I showed even the slightest hint of weakness, I could be swallowed whole, and it seemed like this would continue to be the case for a while.


    And just like that... May 1st had finally arrived. The day that the results of the special exam were to be announced.


    During the 6th and final period of the day, some time was set aside to present our scores.


    "I will now present the results of the special exam. While everything will be disyed up here on the ckboard, it will be disyed on your tablets as well so you can check what you want in detail."


    Thanks to our tablets, we could zoom in on the scores we wanted to check without even looking at the board.


    I could feel Horikita''s eyes fixated on me. There was no doubt that this special exam had been the most difficult one yet. It was highly unlikely that the two of us would end up getting the same score.


    On the day of the exam, Horikita had chosen math as the subject for the two of us topete over.


    Before long, the screen on the ckboard swapped over and the test results were disyed on our tablets.


    Most students didn''t care about the scores of others, prioritizing their own scores instead.


    I, on the other hand, prioritized checking the performance of our ss as a whole.


    In terms of expulsions... it seemed like we had sessfully managed to avoid losing anyone.


    Upon sorting the overall scores in ascending order, the lowestbined score was 579. From the look of it, everyone had gotten through the exam without a hitch. While everyone had undoubtedly tried their best, it wasn''t like the school would have hit us with such an unreasonably difficult special exam right at the start of the year. In fact, Ike, Sat��, and many others had all easily managed to score more than 250 points. This meant that, back when Chabashira showed us that table of estimated scores at the start of the exam she had probably intentionally lowered the values.


    As everyone began to see their scores, sighs of relief and joy-filled shouts could be heard throughout the ssroom.


    With that out of the way, it was time to check Horikita''s score as well. I filtered the results to only show math and had the results disyed in descending order.


    As the subject selected for ourpetition, Horikita had scored an impressive total of 87 points. Given that the next score after hers was Keisei''s with an 84, I couldn''t even imagine the effort she must''ve put into studying. The students after Keisei all had high Academic Ability ratings at or around an A. That said, the 80 point threshold seemed like a huge barrier for most students, no matter the subject. After all, roughly 10% of the exam was based on concepts that wentpletely beyond the scope of the first-year curriculum, not to mention the difficulty of the exam itself.


    As the ss was brimming with delight over sessfully getting through another exam, amotion gradually began to arise amongst some of the students.


    Of course, I was already well aware of what had happened. Chabashira was staring at me from up at the podium, along with several other students who had realized what happened. This reaction was understandable though, given that my name was ced just above Horikita in the results for the math test.


    "A p-perfect score...!? This... Seriously?"


    Nobody in the ss had managed to score above a 90 on any given test, no matter the subject.


    That is, except for me and my score in math.


    Incidentally, I scored around a 70 in each of the other subjects.


    Most students probably couldn''t understand why I had scored so phenomenally well on only one of the tests.


    These written exams had been several times more difficult than I had anticipated. While there was a rtively high risk of getting a perfect score, I had very deliberately refused to cut any corners with my performance. It would inevitably attract the attention of my ssmates and the entire school as a whole, but after considering what Tsukishiro was likely to do in the future, I figured that it wouldn''t be a problem to show a glimpse of this side of myself beforehand.


    In fact, from a future perspective, making the first move would probably end up saving me a lot of troubleter on.


    Under normal circumstances, Sud�� would probably be raising a fuss together with Ike. And while he was surprised, he simply remained seated and quietly stared at me.


    Given that he already knew about the actions I had taken so far and the incident that had taken ce with H��sen several days ago, it made sense that he would be somewhat less surprised than the other students.


    In any case, this past April, things had started to change quite a lot. At this point, the students who were staring at me with strange gazes would probably begin asking questions, and I needed to be prepared to answer them.


    Since ss was still in session, nobody was able to reach out to talk to me about my scores, but that changed once school was out for the day.


    As soon as Chabashira dismissed us, the first person to approach me wasn''t Horikita, but Keisei of the Ayanok��ji Group.


    "Kiyotaka, do you have a moment?"


    It would be no exaggeration to say that Keisei boasted the highest grades out of anyone in ss D, so he knew well just how difficult it was to get a perfect score. He undoubtedly had his fair share of questions about what had happened.


    "I''m sorry, but could you postpone that for now, Yukimura-kun? I''d like to have a few words with him first."


    Before I could respond, Horikita cut in and pushed him away.


    "Yeah. Sorry, Keisei. We''ll talkter."


    "Ah, sure."


    As I left the ssroom together with Horikita, many of my ssmates had their eyes locked on me, not just Keisei, Haruka, and Airi.


    After walking together in silence for a bit, Horikita eventually stopped and, upon confirming that we were alone, turned around to face me.


    "I won''t make any excuses. I did everything I possibly could, and got a score that I''m satisfied with."


    "Are you sure you don''t want a rematch?"


    "I couldn''t even understand what those final questions meant, let alone try to solve them. I don''t even know when I''m expected to learn those concepts the usual way."


    "Theory of measurement, Lebesgue integrals... maybe sometime around college, I think?"


    I didn''t know very much about that sort of thing, so I couldn''t give her an exact answer.


    After all, even if I were to tell her that I learned how to do them as a child, it would be of no help at all.


    "...Forget it. It was stupid of me to even ask in the first ce."


    As if she had given up on something, Horikita forced out a sigh and stared at me with a clouded look in her eyes.


    "It''s frustrating, but I admit defeat. The events of thesest couple days have pretty much forced me to recognize your abilities. Dragging my heels any more than this would just be foolishness on my part."


    Horikita had fought admirably, but praising her now seemed like it would probably end up backfiring on me.


    "About the conditions you set earlier��"


    "Ah, there you are, Ayanok��ji."


    Horikita was interrupted just as she was probably about to start talking about the Student Council.


    It was our homeroom teacher, Chabashira, who had apparentlye looking for me.


    "What do you want from me?"


    "How awfully cold. Where would you be if not for my help the other day?"


    "Indeed. You were very helpful back then."


    "I''m going home for today. We''ll talkter."


    Naturally, Horikita didn''t seem willing to talk in Chabashira''s presence, so she proceeded to excuse herself.


    Once Horikita was out of sight, Chabashira turned to face me.


    "I see I''ve interrupted you, but it''s urgent. Acting Director Tsukishiro is asking for you. Come."


    "I see."


    It was so important that I absolutely had to be told, even if that meant interrupting someone to do so.


    Keeping a few steps ahead of me with her eyes fixed forward, Chabashira began to talk.


    "Just so you know... ording to Mashima-sensei, it seems like Acting Director Tsukishiro didn''t do anything out of the ordinary during the special exam."


    "That makes sense. After all, he took action ahead of time. That is, during the preparatory phase of the exam."


    During the exam itself, he was simply waiting for the results.


    "What are the chances that things might get more heavy-handed moving forward?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "Being stabbed with a knife is noughing matter, you know. Your father took action, didn''t he?"


    "My hand has nothing to do with that."


    I hadn''t told Chabashira the details of what had happened. Of course, the same went for the 20 million point bounty. I didn''t think she had heard about any of it elsewhere either.


    "If that''s the case, then it''s fine. I was thinking he might have tried to restrain you and take you out of the school by force."


    "He''d need a certain amount of manpower for that. It''s nothing you need to be worrying about."


    Something like that could work on a small rabbit of sorts, but a human being would be a different story.


    "Great. I need you here, I need you to be useful for me. Your perfect score on the math test has made it clear to me just how special you really are after all."


    Getting a perfect score had many downsides and, while few, this was but one of the side effects.


    Before long, we arrived at the reception office.


    Leaving Chabashira behind, I ventured into the room alone.


    "Thank you foring all the way out here to meet me, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Sending my homeroom teacher toe and get me like this... What are you nning? She might suspect something."


    I said nothing of the fact that I had already drawn Chabashira over to my side.


    I put on an act, pretending that I was surprised about suddenly being called upon by the Acting Director.


    "Well, as the Acting Director, it wouldn''t be proper for me toe to your ssroom, now would it?"


    He kindly motioned for me to take a seat, but I disregarded it, choosing to stand instead.


    Upon noting that, he finally began to talk.


    "Now that April hase to a close, have you managed to figure out who the student I sent is? I was just thinking I should ask to find out."


    This seemed to be rted to his promise that he would back off if I managed to discover the identity of the White Room student by the end of April.


    "Unfortunately, I still don''t have any idea of who it might be."


    "What a concise response. Shouldn''t you at least list off the names of the students who you found reasonably suspicious?"


    "I won''t speak of things I''m not certain of. At least, not in this situation."


    "I see. So that child has managed to stay hidden quite well, it seems."


    With a satisfied expression, Tsukishiro nodded, almost as if he were impressed with the enforcer''s performance thus far.


    "I haven''t been able to sense their presence at all. They''ve managed to cover their tracks quite beautifully."


    "They''ve worked hard these past several months on a specially-built curriculum tailored to make them into a full-fledged high school student."


    So, he had taken such borate measures ahead of time, is it? Well, if not, there would be no point in bringing it up.


    "It seems that you, on the other hand, had to go through quite a lot of trouble when you first came here. Between your speech, attitude, way of thinking, and even how you chose to spend your time, you were highly unnatural in all respects."


    Tsukishiro grinned in amusement, as if he''d been watching from close by all along.


    It seemed like he was merely teasing me, attempting to emphasize the notion that he was inplete control of the situation.


    "The image of what an ordinary high school student should be like was something I had toe up with on my own after all."


    "Anyway, at least you didn''t manage to catch onto their identity. I''m satisfied with that. You can leave now."


    With this, Tsukishiro dismissed me, bringing our discussion to a close. He didn''t seem to have any intention of pressing me about the bandage wrapped around my left hand. However, I stood my ground and continued to speak.


    "Acting Director Tsukishiro, could it be that you miscalcted something?"


    "And whatever do you mean by that?"


    "It''s already May. Didn''t you want to have this settled by the end of April?"


    "No no. There''s no need to rush things. I''ve been given a surprisingly long extension."


    "Is that so? I was thinking that you must''ve run into some... unexpected trouble."


    "How interesting. And what''s your basis for that?"


    "At the very least, I got the impression that you''d been fully prepared to force my expulsion this time around. The only thing that needed to happen was for the White Room student to make contact and partner up with me. However, none of the first-year students ever ended up doing something like that."


    Of course, there were those such as Tsubaki who had wanted to pair up with me, but I wasn''t going to count something as trivial as that.


    "In fact, I''m almost tempted to start thinking that there isn''t even a White Room student amongst the first-years at all."


    "But you don''t really think that, do you?"


    "It just seemed unconvincing, is all."


    "Well, thanks to the OAA app, I was aware that you were having trouble finding yourself a partner up until about halfway through the exam. However, you are an exceptional person. As such, it was determined that it would be too risky to send in my enforcer only to have you uncover their identity so easily. I thought that it would be wiser to try for another time instead."


    "How easygoing."


    "Maybe so."


    "Or perhaps the White Room student disobeyed your orders and took action of their own ord. When put that way, everything seems to fit together quite nicely."


    "Dear lord. You suree up with some interesting ideas."


    Amused, Tsukishiro narrowed his eyes; Taking a sip from the cup of tea he had prepared on his desk.


    After a brief moment of silence, he put the cup down.


    "Very well. It''s a bother to have you seek credibility from my words and the like, but I''ll admit it. It''s true that I had nned on guaranteeing your expulsion this time around. However, that child simply disregarded it."


    While Tsukishiro had denied it at first, he promptly changed his tune and admitted the truth.


    "They''re just a child, after all. So if they''re just going through a ssic rebellious phase, it''s fairly endearing, but if not... then I might not be able to take this matter so lightly."


    The very student that Tsukishiro had sent to infiltrate the school had gone and disobeyed his orders.


    If that really were the case, it would be a heavy situation indeed.


    "Do take care, Ayanok��ji-kun. I wasn''t the one who chose to send in someone from the White Room this time. Furthermore, seeing that the enforcer is disregarding my instructions and acting of their own discretion, I fear that the higher-ups may very well be thinking of something suspicious."


    "Did they give up on you? Your performance has been fairly terrible."


    "That may be true. However, the fact that I was told to have you expelled hasn''t changed. Even if I''m being used as a pawn, I''ll simply continue to follow the orders I receive. If I fail and end up getting cast aside, well, that''s that. I''ll simply move on to my next posting."


    I had thought of the White Room student and Tsukishiro as one and the same. But now, with this, there was an emerging possibility that the rtionship between them wasn''t quite so cut and dry. That said, if what he was saying was true, then why?


    If they worked together to expel me, they''d certainly have a better chance of seeding.


    Or, was this all just a bluff meant to deceive me?


    Was the White Room student running wild...? Or was ''that man'' pulling the strings from behind the scenes?


    In terms of probability, I''d say that each of these two options was equally likely.


    It was also important for me to keep in mind just how deceptive the man known as Tsukishiro really was.


    He didn''t seem hurried, nor was he diposed in the slightest.


    "Onest thing... If that child is going so far as to ignore your father''s intentions, then depending on the circumstances, you might even be better off choosing to get expelled yourself. After all, the more unshakable your position as the White Room''s magnum opus may be, the more unfathomable the envy and hatred you''d receive for it. I shudder to even imagine what will be of you before they''re satisfied."


    In the face of Tsukishiro''s serious, and yetical warning, I simply turned around and walked away, leaving the reception room behind.


    Special Exam ? Overall Ranking


    1st ce ? ss 2-A ? Average Score: 725


    2nd ce ? ss 2-C ? Average Score: 673


    3rd ce ? ss 2-D ? Average Score: 640


    4th ce ? ss 2-B ? Average Score: 621


    ss points as of May 1:


    ss 2-A, led by Sakayanagi ? 1169 points


    ss 2-B, led by Ry��en ? 565 points


    ss 2-C, led by Ichinose ? 539 points


    ss 2-D, led by Horikita ? 283 points

 Chapter 36: Short Story 1 : Horikita Suzune SS – What’s the Fuss About My Hair

    <h4>Chapter 36: Short Story 1 : Horikita Suzune SS �C What��s the Fuss About My Hair</h4>


    It''s been a long chain of unfortunate events after I left my house this morning.


    When people I know notice me, they look at my hair in surprise. Then they start whispering between themselves.


    Everyone''s cutting their hair or letting it grow.


    It shouldn''t be a big deal.


    But it was still fine with people from other sses.


    The problem was this. When I entered the ssroom, all my ssmates had an even bigger reaction.


    ?S-Suzune...? You, eh, hair... what happened to your hair!??


    Sudou-kun, who was merrily talking with Ike-kun and the others, looked at me and raised his voice.


    The students who hadn''t noticed me yet thus also directed their nces at me.


    It was also the same for Kushida-san, who despised me.


    ?Horikita-san, you really went through a total image change... what a surprise.?


    ?Is it that weird to change my hairstyle??


    I tried asking Sudou-kun who seemingly had the strongest opinions about it.


    ?N-no well, it''s not weird, it''s just, it just surprised me... you just changed your image with that hair... well, it''s not that it doesn''t suit you or anything. Short hair is fine too, you know. R-right? Kushida??


    Cutting your hair leads to a change in your image.


    That''s certainly true after all.


    ?It, sure does. I think it suits you. But... has something happened??


    It seems Kushida-san was more interested in why I cut my hair rather than my change of image itself.


    I''m not sure I can use this as reference forter, but I''ll remember it just in case.


    ?What do ya'' mean, something happened??


    ?For example... unrequited love??


    ?U-u-u-unrequited love!??


    It was to show my resolution to separate the me from the past with the me from now, I''m not heartbroken in the slightest.


    They made such a bad guess that I had to refute it at once.


    ?It''s more like showing my resolution if I have to say it.?


    The biggest reason is because I don''t want my best memory of my brother tainted with descriptions such as unrequited love.


    ?I-is that so, yeah, no way you''re heartbroken, yeah??


    ?We are 2nd years now so we shall soon have to fight to raise our ss up. That''s why, I want to do all the things I possibly can do.?


    Yes. I... want to be a person who can support everyone in my ss.


    And then we shall reach ss A��.


    I lightly stroked my short, flowing hair while once again hardening my will in my heart.

 Chapter 37: Short Story 2 : Karuizawa Kei SS – A Time Just for Them Alone

    <h4>Chapter 37: Short Story 2 : Karuizawa Kei SS �C A Time Just for Them Alone</h4>


    The surprising point wasn''t that he said how many points he wanted to take, or how many he could manage. That was made it so impressive.


    ?400 points.?


    The amount he casually said he would take would be a pipe dream if I had said the same.


    ?...You serious? If I remember right, 400 points would be...?


    I tried to remember what Chabashira-sensei had exined.


    ?Academics level A.?


    ?Y-you think just wishing it makes you able to do it??


    You normally wouldn''t get that many points just by merely studying.


    In other words, he was saying that he couldpete with Yukimura as of now too?


    ?Ites natural to me , but I haven''t encountered any problems I thought I couldn''t solve since I entered this school.?


    I''m done. I can''t follow what he is saying...really. He''s so awesome.


    So that means, it may be weird, but what he is saying is basically that he can control how many points he get?


    A-and, doesn''t it sound like he could archieve full score if he decided to get serious?...


    But his answer was so unrealistic that I couldn''t keep up with him.


    I don''t think I''m lying when I say that my face probably looked like I was in the clouds right now.


    ?It''s because I can see everything that I know the risks and want you to focus.?


    At any rate, I should listen to his warning since since he''s so impressive.


    But it''s true that my heart wasn''t leaping out of joy by the idea of studying with Horikita and the rest.


    ?Well... maybe I should study a bit before I leave...?


    Yes, I think I can do my best if it''s together with my boyfriend.


    ?I see. Then let''s start at once.?


    He easily agreed to my modest wish.


    I became more positive by seeing his appearance in front of me as he opened the notes and instructed me.


    ?Here, here.?


    ?Hmm??


    If that''s the case, better to sit side-by-side instead of facing one another.


    I tapped the spot beside me, weing him toe over.


    ?Teach me from here, then?


    He didn''t reject me, and slowly went over and sat down beside me.


    It was if a gentle breeze had taken his scent along with it.


    I became so happy that I for a moment didn''t care about studying at all. But I took the reins once again and focused.


    In order to spend a fun school life with Kiyotaka.

 Chapter 38: Short Story 3 : Nanase Tsubasa SS – What is Reflected in Her Eyes

    <h4>Chapter 38: Short Story 3 : Nanase Tsubasa SS �C What is Reflected in Her Eyes</h4>


    After leaving the dorm, I nze at the wave of studentsing and going for some time.


    Students from all the years are inhabitating the same grounds at this school.


    There are no adults nor children to be seen. I was yet again reminded how special this environment is.


    Will it be possible to live a calm and rxed life here, I wonder?


    But it is certainly an unknown environment that I''ve never encountered in my life thus far.


    I''d wanted to enjoy the scenery that was spreading out beyond me forever, but that wasn''t meant to be.


    That''s because I spotted Ayanokouji-senpai.


    He surely won''t notice me at this distance I suppose.


    Plus, he seems to be focusing on two students from ss 1-A walking in front of him.


    I think those two already have partners so he was perhaps worrying about whether to ask them for help.


    Ignoring him getting any closer to ss 1-A wouldn''t be a merit.


    I start running, closing the distance before matching Ayanokouji-senpai''s pace.


    ?Good morning, Ayanokouji-senpai.?


    I call out to him in a natural way and make him notice me.


    I definitely think I managed a perfect smile.


    ?Ah, good morning.?


    He seems bewildered when I enter the scene, perhaps because he wasn''t expecting it seems.


    ?Do you have any business with those two in front? Shall I call them out for you??


    I knew he would reject the offer, but I still suggested it anyway.


    ?No, it''s okay.?


    ?Really??


    I begin to walk beside him after getting the answer I was expecting.


    But, how shall I say it? Ayanokouji-senpai''s presence is unusually peculiar.


    Rather than calling it thin, it would be better to call it an absentminded sharpened de.


    It made me feel like just lightly touching it with a finger was enough to give you a deep wound...that kind of existence.


    But that''s perhaps why he was a special person.


    Good or evil. Which of them we was, is the only thing important to me.


    ?I''m sorry for how rude Housen was


    the other day.?


    ?No, I wasn''t directly harmed in any way so you don''t need to apologise.?


    ?But there''s no lie to say he troubled you. I''m following him to stop him from doing those kind of things, but... how shall I say it? Not being able to to anything is painful...?


    I will force him to deepen his rtionship with ss 1-D by actively getting him involved.


    Depending on how it goes, he may possibly seek out my cooperation to be his partner.


    No... that possibility is close to 0 for the moment.


    He is only an unknown existance for me as of now.


    My thoughts regarding him and how urate those are were, are just spection on my end.


    Anyway, to prevent myself from acting any more unnatural, I continued my act.


    By doing that he should call out to me in due time.


    ?Have you decided on any candidates to be your partner for this special exam??


    He avoided asking directly while taking the first step towards me.


    If he really is a special person, he would have grasped my situation from the OAA app already.


    ?Me you mean? I haven''t decided yet.?


    ?Well, but you have been asked, right??


    This conversation is just a formality.


    ?I suppose so. I''ve been asked by some upperssmen from ss 2-A and 2-D more or less.?


    ?Any reasons for now answering them??


    Why am I not answering them?


    That''s just because that''s the direction I''m going for. That''s the only thing I could answer with...


    ?I''m sorry, but I can''t answer that.?


    There is of course, no way I can tell him that at this point in time.


    ?Not answering a question you don''t want to be asked is the right choice, no need to apologise.?


    He seems to know that I can''t answer him from the very beginning.


    ?It it''s okay for you, how about joining forces between our sses and find suiting partners between us??


    And then he made a drastic proposition towards me.


    ?You mean to cooperate...right??


    But that''s what I had wanted in the first ce.


    If he hadn''t suggested it, I would have done it instead.


    So that means my first contact with him probably is a sess.


    I looked at Ayanokouji-senpai, while deeply in my thoughts. His image reflected in my eyes.


    ��You can''t judge people by their apperances.


    That''s a sentiment I hold strongly.

 Chapter 39: Short Story 4 : Nanase Tsubasa Tapestry SS – The Voice in my Heart

    <h4>Chapter 39: Short Story 4 : Nanase Tsubasa Tapestry SS �C The Voice in my Heart</h4>


    ?Horikita-senpai sure is busy.? I muttered as I saw her leave the library.


    ?That''s part of her work to hold the ss together after all.?


    ?I wish I can be someone as splendid as her too, by next year...?


    ?Horikita didn''t ask you in detail about this but, how are you going to convince Housen??


    That amounts to nothing more than a small detail to me. But this may be my chance since Horikita-senpai isn''t here.


    ?That... I don''t have a problem answering that question but only if, if you can tell me about you.?


    ?About me??


    ?Horikita-senpai is the leader of your ss. You aren''t anything like that, right??


    ?What�� kind of person are you, senpai??


    I wasn''t even aware of it. I asked him this question without thinking at all. I''d be better if I''d stopped right here, but I still continued, willpower in every word I said as he looked at me in silence.


    ?Will you tell me??


    About what I wanted to know. What kind of person are you?


    I started to think I''d asked him in a wrong way somehow and that he hadn''t understood me...


    ?What you want to know isn''t about her rtionship with me, it seems.?


    He replied as if he''d understood everything I wanted to ask. I can''t stand back aftering this far.


    It may be a bit reckless of me, but I may get the answer I just had to know.


    ?Yes, I think you are a wicked and a filthy human being, Ayanokouji-senpai.?


    It would be natural for him to be angry. But he listened to me. Not even a twitch of his eyebrows. As if he was trying to read behind my words.


    But I''d managed to calm myself at this point.


    I told myself that it was way too early for me to hope for results at this point in time. We''d just met after all.


    ?As far as I can see, you look like a regr human being, Ayanokouji-senpai.?


    ?So, does that mean you are looking at me as someone who is not??


    ?...no. That''s not it.?


    I thought I''de too close so I decided to retreat. Anything I hastily tell him now will only be a demerit to me. I know.


    ?I''m sorry, please forget I said anything. What''s important now is whether we can reach some understanding and cooperate between our sses.?


    I''d expected him to pursue the topic, but he didn''t.


    Was it because he''d understood everything I''d wanted to ask? Or is it...

 Chapter 40: Y2V1.05 : Auction x Seat Change

    <h4>Chapter 40: Y2V1.05 : Auction x Seat Change</h4>


    There is no guarantee that the things taken for granted until yesterday will continue to stay that way.


    It''s not just people or your surroundings, even material stuff as well.


    The desks and chairs which were melting into our daily lives. The sense of difort from one of them missing wasn''t easy to get used to: the empty seat caused by the expulsion of a student.


    The seat on my left was empty from the beginning, but the one across that empty once again belonged to Kouenji. And the seat in front of his used to belong to someone who used to be here.


    Looking at that empty space, I reminisced about the events taking ce right after the opening ceremony.


    1


    April. After being led into our new ssrooms, the newly appointed 2nd year students was met with a new event.


    "Well then, looks like everyone is here." After verifying all 39 seats were upied, Chabashira began speaking as if not wanting to waste more time.


    "As the opening ceremony has ended, your second year has officially started. Thus, the first thing we have to do is to change your seats." While our ssrooms may change, I''d believed we keep the same spots for all three years, but that doesn''t seem to be the case. Hearing this, some of the students began tough merrily among themselves. Still, there were a few who weren''t that pleased with the news. Anyway, it looks like seating changes were something that usually happen, I guess.


    "We are now going to decide on which seat you are going use for this year. Most of you have changed seats a lot during elementary school and middle school. Most of you probably used lottery to decide on the seats I presume as that''s the standard. It doesn''t take much time and it''s fair." I have personally no memory of ever changing my seat. Whenever a student didn''t show up in the White Room, their seats would remain empty that whole day. The next day, their seat would be removed entirely.


    As Chabashira said, doing it by lottery seems to be the easiest option.


    "This school has also used lottery for most part. This will change from today as we will be implementing a new method never used before." Chabashira presented a chart on the monitor. All 40 seats were disyed. 5 columns and 8 rows. The seat in the upper left near the windows was number 1. The seats behind were number 2 and number 3. The seat I was sitting in right now was 2nd counting from the back and number 7 ording to the chart. Horikita''s seat to my right was the 7th on the 2nd column so it would be number 15.


    "There are 39 students in this ss so one seat will obviously be empty. The most unpopr seat among the 5 seats at the back will be left as the empty one." Those seats would be number 8, 16, 24, 32 and 40. Since we aren''t going to decide using lottery, her mentioning the most unpopr must indicate something.


    The interesting point was that in those boxes indicating the seats were another set of numbers.


    For example, the seat closest to the door at the right, number 33, was marked with 6000 pr. My own seat was marked with 60 000 pr, so it was expensive. The seat right behind me was 80 000 pr. It was the most expensive one.


    <Illustrations>


    1 �C 45 000pr, 9 �C 4500pr, 17 �C 2000pr,


    25 �C 4500pr, 33 �C 6000pr,


    2 �C 30 000pr, 10 �C 4500pr, 18 �C 1500pr,


    26 �C 3500pr, 34 �C 7000pr,


    3 �C 32 000pr, 11 �C 3000pr, 19 �C 1500pr,


    27 �C 3000pr, 35 �C 9000pr,


    4 �C 35 000pr, 12 �C 3000pr, 20 �C 1000pr,


    28 �C 3000pr, 36 �C 12 000pr,


    5 �C 40 000pr, 13 �C 4500pr, 21 �C 1500pr,


    29 �C 4500pr, 37 �C 15 000pr,


    6 �C 50 000pr, 14 �C 6000pr, 22 �C 2500pr,


    30 �C 6000pr, 38 �C 20 000pr,


    7 �C 60 000pr, 15 �C 10 000pr, 23 �C 4000pr,


    31 �C 10 000pr, 39 �C 25 000pr,


    8 �C 80 000pr, 16 �C 65 000pr, 24 �C 50 000pr,


    32 �C 60 000pr, 40 �C 40 000pr,


    The ''pr'' behind those numbers must be the S-System''s abbreviation of Private Points, no doubt.


    "I think you have realized what these numbers mean, but this is the starting price, the ''lowest bid'' per say."


    To think we''d have to pete'' and bid for our own seats.


    The seats by the window and the corridors were popr in general and the closer you got to the centre of the ssroom; the market value tended to drop it seems. And the seats towards the back were all rather expensive. The seats in front were rather cheap, maybe because they were the closest to the teacher in front. The exception was the seat up in front by the window and it was probably seen as somewhat special as the value on it was remarkable. Seats that a lot of students want will be more expensive in other words. No students should have exactly zero private points right now, but if that was the case, they wouldn''t even be able to buy their own seat.


    "We will now take bids for the seats of your choice starting from number 1. If there are multiple bidders for a seat, the highest bid will get the seat. If nobody bids for a seat, we will repeat the bidding but set the lowest bid to half of the previous round. There is no 3rd bidding round. If there are several seats left after bidding is done there will be a lottery at the end, and it will be free. If there any of you don''t mind any seat, do remain silent until the end.


    I see. So, if a student doesn''t care where they sit, they can just sit on standby and still receive a seat without paying any points at the end.


    To think the 2nd round will be half the price. This means it would be better to wait for the 2nd round I guess, but that means it''s likely that the seat you were aiming for could be sniped by someone else. And, since the 2nd round started with a lower bid, who knows what may happen with all thatpetition.


    Taking the price during the 1st round in mind, you may have to read your opponents'' mind and pay more than them. Depending on how it ends, it may even be cheaper to just bid during the 1st round instead.


    "While some of you may be dissatisfied by having to use up your Private Points for this, but this may also be a chance for you to be able to sit where you want depending on how you look at it." Certainly, this could many students the feeling of ''satisfaction'' that you don''t get using the lottery system. Nothing beats getting to sit where you want after all. On the other hand, it means other students will be forced topromise.


    "Students who haven''t ced a bid can do so as often as they want. However, once you win a seat, you aren''t allowed to change so please take that into consideration." "What are you aiming for?" I tried asking my neighbour as there was a high chance we would get separated after today.


    "Anywhere is fine, really. I''d just watch until the end. I have no intention of wasting any Private Points on this foolishness." That would mean there was a high chance she would end up at the front or in the middle.


    "We don''t have much time, let''s begin. First up is seat number 1." First round, the ce by the window at the front. The lowest bid allowed was 45 000pr. Any seats by the windows weren''t cheap and this one was the 7th most expensive one.


    I''m not sure any students would even raise their hand...


    The students were looking at one another, no signs of anyone wanting to bid.


    It was inly just way too expensive, right?


    No, there''s more.


    I noticed one more thing about this game of changing seats.


    While getting to choose where to sit was important, what was at least important, maybe even more, was whether you had friends surrounding you. That must be the case.


    Sudou was easy to read he was turning around and taking nces at Horikita.


    If Horikita willingly chose one of the cheaper seats in the middle, Sudou will aim for any seats close to her. Seat number 12, 19, 28 or 21, may be the most unpopr seats, but to Sudou,


    they were worth a treasure. While cheap, it was the ones with the highest value to him.


    Still, Horikita doesn''t seem to have any intention of buying any seats right now so he''s choice of strategies are limited right now. If he ends up just watching it all unfold, he may have to just pray for the random assignments at the end. That may look like he''s lost the game before it even started, however.


    I could give him some advice to raise his chances of winning but... well, this isn''t limited to just Horikita and Sudou after all. Depending on my advice on how to sit beside the one he wants, to get the seat he wants, it could all end up just backfiring. Romance wasn''t the only motive;


    poprity was another one and sitting close to Yousuke or Kushida must be the aim of a lot of the students. A seat which had no value at first nce, may be the one with most value in the end.


    Bidding for our seats, right? This may be quite interesting after all.


    And so, nobody would be bidding for the first seat in the first ce.


    Despite it being by the windows, it was in the front row, it was expensive, and you had no control who would end up behind or your right. There was no way anyone would want to be the first one bidding.


    "Excuse me, teacher! Can we talk among each other first?" The girl, Maezono, asked.


    "We want to avoid seats getting reserved at the start, so you are not allowed to intervene." If we could discuss this with one another first, we would easily be able to sit with the people we wanted, and a lot of students ced their hopes on Maezono''s proposal. Chabashira promptly shot it down, however.


    "However, it may be hard to just buy a seat just because you are told to do so. You aren''t allowed to talk among each other, no small talk. But I will allow you, just this time, to use your tablets or your phones to text each other. No more interferences allowed from now on however." Us using our tablets or phones tomunicate was no problem it seems.


    Starting from Maezono, the rest of our ss quickly took actions.


    If any students were way into messaging each other, the others could simply just ignore them without them be a hindrance. If any seats they wanted got taken, they had no right toin.


    Most girls looked at their phones and began concentrating. After a bit, the boys started doing the same. But while all that happened, time continued to pass.


    "�� Nobody has imed seat number 1. We will then move on to the next seat. Those bidding for seat number 2, raise your hands." The students were all just in the starting phase of their discussions so, but Chabashira simply continued.


    [Hey, how about we all group up?] As the bidding for seat number 2 began, I received a message from Haruka. A message for the whole Ayanokouji-group.


    Then as if waiting for that moment, the message was marked as viewed by everyone.


    [Well, not a bad idea. That could be fun.]


    Keisei replied in agreement.


    [So which area would be good?] [Number 13, 14, 15, 21, 22 and 23 would all be fine, don''t you think?] Not counting the seats at the back or in the corners, she suggested these seats. They were cheap and rather close to the windows. Not a bad choice.


    [I agree! I don''t care where if you are there with me] Airi added.


    [I rather like 35 or 36 myself as it''s close to the hallway. But it''s so expensive as heck so to me that''s fine] It wasn''t Akito''s optimal choice, but he agreed to it.


    [So how do we do it? Number 15 is a bit pricey still] Seeing as we all agreed to sit together, Keisei moved the conversation forwards.


    The seat Haruka mentioned, number 15 was expensive at 10 000pr.


    [Since I suggested it, I will try to get it I think] And so, the seats we were aiming for was set in stone.


    Number 13 for Keisei, 14 for Akito, 15 for Haruka, 22 for me and 23 for Airi. But this was rather hard to aplish for sure.


    We also had to assume other students wanted to group together with their friends.


    When it came to the bidding itself, it all depended on how high it went and that would influence our decisions.


    Few students opted to bid during the 1st round. The bidding for the 5th and 6th seats were ignored and it was time to bid for the seat I was sitting at.


    I was quite interested in getting this seat again, but 60 000pr will make even me hesitate.


    And I couldn''t ignore the will of my group either.


    Then the bidding for the most expensive seat started, the one furthest at the back by the windows at 80 000pr.


    "Anyone bidding for the 8th seat, please raise your hands." Four people raised their hand. The boys: Sotomura, Okitani and Miyamoto. As for the girls, only Onodera raised her hand.


    "Four people? Then look at your tablets and enter a higher bid. Enter all the digits up to thest one." After a bit, everyone was done and Chabashira confirmed the results.


    "The highest bid is�� 100 001pr by Miyamoto." "Alright! Wasn''t cheap but I got the window seat at the back!" 100 000pr is just ridiculous. I saw the others looking a bit disappointed but epting the loss.


    Guess that means the gap between their bid and the winner wasrge, I guess.


    In other words, Miyamoto had secured the most popr seat for one year.


    Maybe it was rather cheap depending on how you look at it.


    Seeing how Miyamoto had gained seat number 8, as the first person to do so, though rather surprisingly, the others began to act. While seat number 9 was skipped, seats from 10 to 12 were sessfully secured by some girls who all had nopetitors. We arrived at the seats we were aiming for, starting with number 13.


    "Those bidding for seat number 13, raise your hands." Keisei''s hand shot up in the air. As for the other students also bidding for it�� none.


    "Seat number 13 is secured by Yukimura for 4500pr." Keisei quickly finalized the payment on his phone, and thus his seat as well. The first seat for our group easily secured, followed by Akito gaining the 14th seat.


    Soon the bidding for seat 15 arrived.


    Haruka was of course bidding for it, but Ike also raised his hand. I wasn''t surprised at all. It was probably due to Miyamoto gaining seat number 8 that Ike wanted to bid for this one.


    "Both of you, please ce your bids."


    This was a battle they couldn''t afford to lose since they both wanted toplete their own groups.


    But since this seat costs 10 000pr, who knows what they will end up bidding.


    Since neither were allowed to discuss it with the others, they had to enter something they could afford on their own.


    "Seems like you are done. Then let''s look at the results." The results were projected on the monitor.


    "Seat number 15 is�� taken by Haruka with 30 000pr." Ohhhh, could be heard across the room.


    It was three times the lowest bid. Seems like she did her best to secure her seat among the others in the Ayanokouj-group.


    "The hell, 30 000 points!? I just lost by an inch!" He screamed, but strangely enough, he didn''t look that frustrated.


    He may have said it was an inch, but the gap must have beenrger, I guess?


    Anyway, that left my and Airi''s seats left.


    The seat behind Haruka was taken by the Professor with nopetition. Since Miyamoto was sitting furthest at the back it seems its value had been reduced as nobody wanted topete for it. On the other hand, Haruka seems to be displeased by it. The value of the seats was ever changing, and it was telling by her face.


    Then seats 17 and 18 was up for bidding but nobody did.


    We arrived the seats closer to the centre with seat number 19. This one was rather cheap at only 1500pr. The one raising her hand for this seat I didn''t think would get a bid was no other than Wang Mei-Yui, Mii-chan. There was reason she wanted that spot. I wanted to give some advice to Sudou but hesitated and perhaps she realized it on her own. If someone wanted to save their points, they could have just waited until the end like Horikita. But going to the trouble of paying for such a seat?


    She had nopetition of course and got it easily. Then we moved to seat number 20. It was the cheapest seat at 1000pr, right in the middle. The ces in front and back of this seat were most likely going to end up being the least popr.


    "Those bidding for seat number 20, raise your hands." Since it was the cheapest seat as I mentioned earlier, nobody would usually raise their hands. If they were worried at the price, it was better to just wait for the random seats after all. Even waiting for the second round with half the starting bid wouldn''t be a bad choice either.


    The only human willing to sacrifice himself for this spot was of course��him.


    Chabashira looked at that raised arm.


    "Seat number 20 goes to Hirata, nopetitors." And thus, Hirata who so valued his ss was left in the least popr seat.


    At this very moment, the atmosphere in the ss changed.


    The situation in ss suddenly changed once Hirata was put into that very cheap seat.


    There should be several girls in ss who liked Yousuke. Thus, the seat right in front, back left and right of him shot up in value.


    The girl who got seat number 12, Ishikura was left agitated at this surprising oue.


    While the heat was going up, the bidding for seat number 21 began.


    The first one who raised their hands were, surprisingly enough, Kushida. Several other girls also looked like they wanted to pursue, but that wasn''t so easy after all since it looked like they already had decided on which seat to take on the chat.


    No matter how much they wanted to sit by him, they couldn''t make light of their friendship. In other words, Kushida aiming for seat 21 can be said to be expected as that was what they all had agreed on beforehand.


    Yousuke and Kushida. To think the top two most popr students would end up there. The chain of actions resulting from the information blockade. No, this wasn''t that surprising, maybe this was the most likely oue from the beginning? The seat''s values would get reduced towards the centre of the room and this they became the least popr spots that nobody wanted to take. If nobody took those seats during the 1st round, then the second, they wouldin when you were assigned those seats. There is no way Yousuke would have ignored that possibility and therefore tried to do something with it. It was inevitable he would offer himself for his ssmates'' sakes. And the one after Yousuke, Kushida probably took a simr stance as well. They both contributed to their ss by taking seats number 20 and 21.


    ��I see, that''s how it goes after all.


    The fact Mii-chan took seat 19 mean she already anticipated that Yousuke would throw himself at number 20. I can''t be certain, but now that Yousuke had taken that seat, all seats around him after this will fetch a premium. Even seat 19 at 1500pr would have a lot ofpetitors. And there was also the fact that tantly trying to aim for a seat closer to him would expose her feelings for him too. By securing her seat in advance she avoidedpetitors and was within reach of Yousuke at the same time. In that sense, Mii-chan''s strategy worked to a perfection.


    She was a cut above Sudou, a splendid performance.


    "We will move towards the next seat then. Those bidding for seat number 22, raise your hands." Chabashira started taking bids for the next chair as our ssmates started to get rowdy, taking sidelong nces at each other.


    It was my turn to secure a seat.


    As I was raising my hand, I noticed that another one shooting up.


    "Yes! Me, me!" It was Ike who had previously fought Haruka for her seat and lost.


    I had assumed he was likely to gather around seat 8, but it seems he has moved to this area instead.


    Looking at Miyamoto and his friends'' expressions, it seems Ike had gone on some sort of rampage.


    It was a disy of desire to sit right behind Kushida.


    The eyes of a girl who he had been getting closer totely, Shinohara, looked at him coldly.


    But he didn''t seem to notice it as he excitedly yelled.


    "I won''t lose, Ayanokouji!" You''re wrong, I don''t care about sitting behind Kushida or whatever...


    The mood made it easy to misunderstand my intentions. If I was to bid too high, it would seem as if I really, really wanted to sit beside Kushida. That being said, going too low meant I wouldn''t be able to get that seat.


    Normally, that seat would go for 2500pr, a reasonable price. Looking at how the oues of the previous bidding rounds, going for 4 times the starting price seems to work. 10 000pr then?


    I entered 10 500pr on my tablet and sent my bid.


    Soon, the results were in.


    "Seat number 22 goes to... Ike with 30 000pr." A roaring current went through the ss.


    Ike managed to secure his seat paying 12 times the starting amount.


    It was simply overkill.


    I was honestly terrified of this Kushida-effect.


    "Oh yeah!!" The person himself didn''t look like his expense was hurting at all in his excitement.


    Even we repeated this round two or three times, there was no way I was going to pay 30 000pr.


    During my bidding, the group chat was proceeding.


    [What shall I do, what should I do?] Airi was starting to panic due to this unforeseen event.


    [Kiyopon unable to get that seat hurts us, but it will be fine. The seats by the windows are still free, 5, 6 and 7. Anyway, you should try to secure the seats we agreed on.] Taking Haruka''s advice in mind, Airi raised her hand.


    It was true there were 3 free seats by the windows, but they were all expensive.


    Even though the starting price would get halved by the 2nd round, it was a big problem for me moneywise.


    Well, my problems aside, the question now what whether Airi could get a seat near Haruka or not. It was the important seat number 23, but with it being right behind Ike, nobody else wanted to bid for it.


    Airi managed to get the seat to the right of Haruka and they both smiled at each other.


    I was the only one in my own group without a seat.


    Then the bidding for the seat at the back in the middle started. It was quite expensive but perhaps due to the rows of boys to the left, Kouenji managed to secure it withoutpetition.


    The seat on Airi''s right was rather cheap, but it being so far from the other members, it felt wrong to say it was part of their group.


    ... What should I do now?


    [Hey, can you go for 5, 6 or 7? They aren''t cheap though] [Honestly speaking, it will depend on the price. And there will be several people aiming for those starting the next round.] [How about we all threw in the points so you could just go for it? With 100 000 or 150 000pr?] [No, I will be ying into the school''s hands then.] This special game to change seats. No, maybe it was like a special exam even. While we could get the seat we wanted, all the points would go back to the school. That sum would be quiterge at that.


    Those private points would be an important resource whenpeting against the other sses. Paying that much wasn''t in our best interests.


    [I agree with Kiyotaka. The private points spent on this will weaken our ss.] [I know but, but then Kiyopon will be separated from the rest of us, right?] Thepetition for the seats by the windows will surely fierce. It won''t be easy.


    By the way, there were people beyond the Ayanokouji group who was interested in which seat I was aiming for as well. I can think of Karuizawa Kei as one of them.


    She was a ssmate I had spent a year with and someone I confessed to during spring break.


    She reciprocated and we officially became lovers.


    That was still unknown to our ssmates and the rest of the school.


    I recalled the phone call from Kei the night before the opening ceremony.


    [Can we... Is it okay to keep our rtionship a secret from everyone?], she asked me.


    My reply was this:


    [If that''s what you want].


    The cons would have outweighed the pros, but this had changed just recently.


    I wanted to tell her that if she wanted to tell others, she should do so.


    And the result of that was...


    [Sorry, but can we keep it a secret for a bit then? I smell trouble, you know?] That was her reply. I consented of course.


    There was for example, Kei''s friend Satou who had just confessed to me. Kei had been supporting her at that time and if she was told we had be a couple, their friendship may be at stake. And then there was the fake rtionship with Yousuke. If Kei suddenly went out with me, that may lead to unnecessary rumours too. It was a decision based on that fear.


    [What seat are you aiming for?] A message from a new sender outside of my group arrived.


    I knew who had sent it without looking at the name, it was Kei.


    The fact she had stayed silent until now was probably because she was chatting with her friends and because there were still a lot of empty seats left for grabs so no need to worry or something like that.


    However, Chabashira had already begun taking bids for seat number 30.


    She was probably taking interest in the fact I hadn''t made any moves ever since bidding for the seat behind Kushida.


    [I want to secure a window seat, but that seems difficult now.] While we were texting, seats were secured one by one. Minami managed to get seat 31 close to Airi, and we moved to seat 32.


    [It looked like you were trying to group with Yukimura and them, right? What will you do now?


    Even if you''re still unsure, just tell me, okay?] She sent as if she had anticipated this beforehand.


    I wonder what was she nning to do with that information?


    While our rtionship was still unknown to them, her tantly trying to secure a seat next to me would look strange to others. Satou or Matsushita would easily see through her.


    [I know at least what you are thinking about, you know?] I received another message while I was thinking.


    [Just for reference].


    For reference, eh?


    I honestly should try to think of a ce then.


    To be honest, anywhere was fine really. It anything, it was easier to spell out what I wanted to avoid and that was being in the centre. People will be going back and forth and that would happen during lessons as well, thus it being so cheap.


    [If I really had to pick a seat, then maybe, yeah, the one at the back, number 40 I guess] [Sounds like you, got it] The first round was over, and we moved on to the 2nd bidding round with half the starting prices.


    The seats of notice were several empty ones by the windows and the areas around Hirata and Kushida. The seats close to the hallway should be somewhat attractive as well, but I''m not sure how many would take the bite. I should be aiming for seat number 3 by Keisei, Akito and Haruka, but thepetition and price for that one will be high.


    While people didn''t bid for those seats during the 1st round, this time there were several. The time between when Chabashira started taking bids for a seat to her moving to the next one was a mere 5 seconds. This was repeated again and again.


    So, from seat 5 to 7, I was nning on waiting 4 seconds before raising my hand, a strategy trying to scout for otherpetitors. Though I never managed to apply that strategy as several people started bidding for seats from 5 to 6. I ended up just observing the market forces. Seat number 5 with the halved price of 20 000pr went for 70 000pr. Seat number 6, originally at 25 000pr went for over 80 000pr. And the students who didn''t win continued to bid on the next seats. The battle for seat 7 looks like a brewing war at this point...


    Miyamoto who bid over 10 000 at an early stage must have felt ted. If they didn''t manage to secure their spots after the 2nd round, it would all be decided at random. That most likely affected the prices as well.


    In other words, they wanted to avoid being assigned at the seats at the front in the middle at all costs. Seat number 7 wasing up for grabs. I wanted to fight for it within reason and decided to bid 100 000pr for it.


    To think this seat I''m currently sitting on would be worth this much.


    To think this seat I''ve been sitting on like it was the most natural thing in the word, would be this valuable.


    The result was�� "Seat number 7 goes to Ijuuin with 115 000pr" I lost with 15 000pr and had to leave the seat to Ijuuin, thus failing in regrouping with my group.


    [Sorry, that didn''t go well] [Kyo-chan taking number 21 was unexpected so... what are you going to do now, Kiyopon?] [Seat 31 next to Airi is already taken. Sorry, but now that it hase to this, can I just choose whichever I can?] No matter how much I struggled, there was no way I was able to sit together with them anymore.


    I had to settle for somewhere I could ept with no regrets.


    I got their permission and started to look objectively at this case.


    Interestingly enough, whether it was luck or not, the bidding proceeded until seat 40 without anyone bidding as if they were all steeling for the random assignments. Thus, I was able to get seat 40 withoutpetition. 20 000pr wasn''t cheap but being able to secure a seat like this in the corner could be said to be a good buy after all.


    In the end, after the 2nd round, seat 17, 25, 32 and 37 were still empty. The remaining students were Horikita, Sudou and Okiya. Just three students left.


    "Seat 32 will be left empty while the 3 remining seats will be randomly assigned thest 3 students. I have prepared tickets with the seat numbers so pleasee and draw yours." Whether it was luck or abilities was hard to say, but the end was to be determined by a simple lottery, no machineries.


    For Sudou, this was his one and only chance after staying silent until the very end.


    Seat 17 was next to 25 so Okiya only had to draw 37.


    If that truly happened, he would win a seat next to her. It wasn''t that unreasonable. But if either Horikita or he drew 37, everything would fall apart.


    While taking a deep breath Sudou went forward and drew his lot. The other two soon drew theirs.


    And then the time of judgment had arrived.


    Sudou taking a firm stance unveiled his number with excitement before closing both of his eyes while gritting his teeth.,


    Horikita and Okiya unveiled theirs and returned the lot back to Chabashira before walking to their seats.


    "Horikita gets seat number 17, Okiya gets 25 and Sudou gets 37." Biding for the right time until the very end, Sudou drew the one number that spelled his doom.


    Sudou, you really have no luck at this...


    Sudou went to his seat bathed in a shower of sympathetic nces.


    Trantion : confusedtls


    /


    Y2V1.05 Trantion : cinnamontrantions


    /

 Chapter 41: Prologue: The White Room student’s monologue

    <h4>Chapter 41: Prologue:?The White Room student��s monologue</h4>


    This very moment, in a 1st year ssroom within the Advanced Nurturing high school.


    The teacher was teaching a coarse and extremely low level curriculum.


    Students my age were actually scratching their heads when faced with a question that bored me to tears.


    I then created an illusion with a bunch of kindergarten students with me as an adult in the midst of them.


    This wasn''t the first time, but Imented the futility of the learning here, and the waste of precious time.


    Every now and then, a certain someone popped into my head.


    Because, just like that, the emotion known as "hatred" leaked out of my heart, reminding me why I''m here. And power would inadvertently pour into my right hand that held the pen of the tablet.


    Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.


    When did I first be aware of that name?


    Even if I tried to remember it, it was hard to recall the exact date.


    But I''m pretty sure, however, that the name had been etched in my memory for as long as I could remember.


    No one who studied in the White Room didn''t know that name.


    That was why.


    The reason for this was simple. He was better than any student, at any grade or age.


    Noone could surpass the 4th generation Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.


    As a result, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was set up to be the perfect model.


    Just one small child, but he had a huge impact on the entire White Room.


    It wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say that those of us in the 5th generation, a year below him, had been influenced the most by him.


    It was said that no matter how extreme a training program was, he was able to leave behind a legacy of excellence.


    However, as for that, I was the same. I''ve always been the one to have exceptional grades among the 5th generation.


    I''ve always proven that I was more of a genius than everyone else.


    But...genius as I am, I''ve never been praised even once.


    As for the reason, I don''t think I need to say it.


    It was always the same cold words that came from the instructor''s mouth.


    "Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was much better than you a year ago"


    No matter how hard I tried, no matter how excellent my grades were, I still wasn''t recognized.


    All I got weremands, telling me to catch up to the unreachable, god-like being.


    Some of those who studied in the same room as me began to "worship" Ayanokouji Kiyotaka who had been made a God.


    What a shame.


    They originally epted education to be number 1, but they gave up on bing number 1 themselves.


    That kind of person, how could they survive the White Room till the end?


    In the end, I didn''t need to snicker at how the group was eliminated one by one.


    However, I wasn''t entirely without periods of weakness. While it''s true I didn''t worship him, I suspected that the figure known as Ayanokouji Kiyotaka didn''t actually exist, and instead was just a character used to motivate us.


    The instructors must have seen right through my feelings.


    One day, I received the instructor''s orders to be taken to one of the visiting rooms used by the outsiders.


    It was through ayer of ss, but there, for the first time, I was able to confirm the existence of Ayanokouji Kiyotaka with my own eyes.


    He couldn''t have known I was looking at him, but he yed down his surprising grades.


    To this day, I still remember his figure, and shiver without even realizing it.


    However, ask me if I felt like I was looking at a God, and I would strongly deny it.


    That''s not how it works. That existence is our enemy.


    "Worship" wasn''t fine. Only "hatred" was a feeling that could make us grow.


    Yes, it was the feeling of hatred that was making my body tremble. It was because of my nonstop hatred for him that allowed me to sessfully stay at the White Room until the end.


    But at the end of the day, reverence, hatred, and the like were just an individual''s private feelings or thoughts.


    To the people in the organization, what the students thought weren''t important.


    The ultimate goal of the White Room wasn''t to create people who could be number 1.


    Instead, it was to establish the research that could allow for mass production of exceptional people.


    That was the real reason for the White Room''s existence.


    It didn''t matter if it was me or Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. As long as it was an example of a sess, it didn''t matter who it was.


    And that was why-failures were of no value.


    In other words, if Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was chosen as the sess story, then what would happen to the meaning of my existence, who was currently doing all this studying?


    It would only be considered as one of many failures, ending a life as a worthless one.


    What a tragic end of a road.


    I would end up in the same ce as the students who were eliminated.


    How could I agree to such a thing?


    I needed to prove that "Ayanokouji Kiyotaka" wasn''t number one by all means necessary.


    I had to be recognized by that organization as the true sess story.


    And then a once in a lifetime opportunity presented itself to me.


    Ayanokouji Kiyotaka breaks his orders, refusing toe back to the recently restarted White Room.


    Thanks to this, the me who had never interacted with him before obtained a chance to contact Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.


    -That''s right.


    The unique opportunity for me to bury him had finally arrived.


    And for that reason, it was better to just throw out this fabricatedmon sense.


    By all ounts, killing him...was also one way to solve this problem.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


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    *Illustration 13

 Chapter 42 - 1: School life is changing

    <h4>Chapter 42: Chapter 1: School life is changing</h4>


    On that day, ss 2-D faced a strange situation that it had never experienced before.


    Teruhiko Yukimura''s right leg trembled, as he looked towards the entrance of the ssroom again and again.


    "Can you calm down a little? It hasn''t even been 5 minutes since Kiyopon left. He was called out by the teacher, right? It''s going to be a while."


    Hasebe Haruka, a ssmate and close friend, spoke to Yukimura.


    Sakura Airi and Miyake Akito sat around her.


    "I''m calm... don''t worry."Yukimura answered. Although he stopped shaking his leg temporarily, it didn''t take long for him to tense up again. He quietly shook his leg up and down, and it rustled his trousers..


    Yukimura was nning to talk to Ayanokouji after school, but he gave up temporarily because of Horikita''s appearance. Then he heard from her that Chabashira had called him away and he had gone off somewhere, so he resorted to waiting in the ssroom for him to return. Hasebe sighed, somewhat helplessly, and looked out the window.


    Knowing full well that Yukimura didn''t normally shake his leg, she quickly realized that there was no point in trying to calm him down anymore. The atmosphere in the 2nd year ss D''s ssroom was heavy.


    The May sky that ushered in the spring was so azure and clear, so beautiful, Hasebe thought to herself.


    Then, she thought about it all over again. How had the situation be like this?


    The first and second years had paired up for the special exam in April.


    In the fifth subject test of that exam,, their friend Ayanokouji Kiyotaka achieved a perfect score in math.


    If it were a normal test, it wouldn''t be surprising to see students get a perfect score.


    With the academically strong Yukimura in the lead, students who got a perfect score would appear every now and then. Of course, asionally an unexpected hidden student would get a perfect score. These people either studied really hard before the exams, or they got lucky with how much the exam covered.


    But this exam was like a world away from the previous one.


    Of course, even though she wasn''t as strong as Yukimura, Hasebe had still vaguely noticed it.


    In this special exam, regardless of the subject, the only one in the ss that had achieved a perfect score was Ayanokouji himself.


    It couldn''t be exined by cramming beforehand or by chance.


    "It''s only been 6 minutes, huh... I don''t think he''lle back yet."


    As a friend,she couldn''t leave the restless Yukimura alone. Hasebe was nning to move on to apletely different topic, but at the end, decided to stay with Yukimura, and leave the topic of the conversation to him. Although the reason for doing this was mainly because she thought she would be able to distract him a little, Hasebe herself wanted to know how incredible was the fact that Ayanokouji had achieved that perfect score in math."


    "Was the question that hard?"


    Hearing the question, Yukimura nodded his head without hesitation.


    "It''s not a question of whether it''s hard or not. I didn''t even understand the meaning of the question during the exam."


    What Yukimura meant was that it wasn''t that he couldn''t solve the answer; it was that he couldn''t even understand the question itself.


    "After the exam, I tried to analyze the question through my memory and found that it waspletely out of range for a highschool student. In other words, this was a question that we shouldn''t have been able to solve."


    "What''s up with that? What''s the school''s problem? It''s not even a question of what''s beyond the range of an exam anymore."


    "It really is unreasonable. That''s why the points you could get for each subject dropped drastically. But, there were also a lot of questions that weren''t as hard as what Chabshira told us they would be."


    In addition to forcing in a few unexpectedly difficult questions, there were also several low-level questions mixed in.


    So, in other words, this exam was prepared so that even if you couldn''t get a perfect score, you also wouldn''t get a low score.


    "So they made up for it by raising our average score?"


    "After all, exam results are directly linked to expulsion. It was a big help to the ss."


    This in itself was something to be happy about, but to Yukimura, it was just a small thing.


    "Ayanokouji got a perfect score, which should be impossible. I...it''s like I''m witnessing a magic trick!"


    The fact that he specifically used hisst name to call him showed Yukimura''s resentment.


    "S-so he solved such a question, Kiyotaka-kun sure is amazing!"


    To try to change the current dreary atmosphere slightly, Sakura said this with a sage smile on her face.


    But this seemed to have the opposite effect, and Yukimura''s face tightened even more.


    "I''ve worked to understand everyone''s academic abilities during our first year, at least at a certain level. That''s why I''m so surprised by this result because I judged that no one could do the question, based on that."


    "Do tell me more."


    Hearing the Ayanokouji group''s conversation, Shinohara joined in.


    Before he knew it, many of his ssmates were listening to what Yukimura was saying.


    "You''ve all checked the tablet, right? Is there anyone in the ss who got a perfect score in one of the subjects? No, look at the other sses as well, and it''ll be clear. Look at the entirety of the 2nd year. Not a single student, not even Ichinose or Sakayanagi, got a perfect score."


    Facts spoke louder than words. Yukimura brought the reality of what happened and put it on the table.


    Using the tablet, you could see the results of the exams outside ss 2D.


    "I didn''t even notice. You can even see the results of the other sses. Why is that?"


    The shocked Shinohara took the tablet handed to her, and swiped incredulously.


    "Who knows. Maybe it''s because of the introduction of the OAA, or maybe it''s some other reason. No matter what the reason is, we''ll have to wait until the announcement of the details of the next exam to know the answer."


    "Waaah, I hate this! Wouldn''t this mean that a lot of people will know my scores? This is the worst!"


    Karuizawa Kei, the leader of the girls in the ss said this as shemented.


    Then she went on to say this:


    "Maybe Ayanokouji-kun is just a math genius! You know, sometimes in those TV dramas and stuff, isn''t there, like, a protagonist that only uses math or something to solve the murder case? I''m getting that kind of feeling."


    Hearing the words of Karuizawa, which although was from a different direction but just as tone deaf, Yukimura dismissed it with a dumbfounded expression.


    "Then tell me, why didn''t he get a perfect score on his previous math tests? If he can solve questions of the kind that came this time, it doesn''t make sense for him to not have gotten a full score or something close to it all along.


    Yukimura retorted forcefully, as if he felt that the other person had utterly missed the point.


    "What''s the point in asking me that? Well, maybe it''s something like, he studied really hard during the spring break or something?"


    Karuizawa''s off-the-point answer caused Yukimura to steadily grow more and more irritated.


    "This isn''t something that can be done in a short amount of time. Even if he had studied at a higher level than I could imagine, it doesn''t exin how he was able to solve questions that are far beyond the knowledge of a high school student! If you can''t even understand that, then keep your mouth shut."


    His blunt response irritated Karuizawa as well, and it all gradually approached the boiling point.


    "I don''t know anything about that. So can you stop getting so angry so easily? You''re pissing me off."


    "Yeah, yeah! Isn''t it weird that you''re taking your anger out on Karuizawa-san?"


    Maezono immediately fired back at Yukimura, helping out Karuizawa.


    Karuizawa, who had gained an ally, immediately turned around and started digging into what Yukimura had said.


    "You''ve got a big mouth, but couldn''t it just be that you didn''t understand the question? Maybe it''s just you that couldn''t solve the question, but the question itself wasn''t that hard, was it?"


    Karuizawa knew deep down that her words were far fetched.


    But she didn''t change her attitude, because she felt as if she had to y the fool here.


    However, as the atmosphere heated up at the scene, the doubts surrounding Ayanokouji inevitably grew deeper.


    "Have you forgotten already? The question was such that even Sakayanagi and Ichinose couldn''t get full marks."


    "Then maybe he just happened to know that question?"


    "I just said-"


    Yukimura had already surpassed the realm of anger and had reached the point of speechlessness.


    And then, in order to organize his emotions, he began to exin.


    "I... well, basically, that guy... could probably be good at math at an unbelievable degree, I think."


    "So what''s the problem? That''s what I said, that he was a math genius, right?"


    "That''s not the main point. If that''s the case, then that guy-"


    "Ah, sorry for interrupting. I had a thought..."


    Just as the conversation was taking an unexpected turn, Minami Setsuya threw himself into the fray.


    "Ayanokouji getting a perfect score is indeed confusing, and I don''t think there''s anything strange with what Yukimura said. It''s just that, isn''t this happening too suddenly? After all, he''s never gotten any amazing marks before."


    This time the statement was as if to add to what Yukimura had said, yetunching doubts from a different direction at the same time.


    "That''s why I was wondering, has this Ayanokouji done something shady?"


    What began to ur in the minds of Yukimura and many other students was the idea of "Ayanokouji is a math genius". However, another opinion that rejected that head-on had alsoe up.


    The doubt of "What if he didn''t do it with his own strength?"


    "It''s definitely possible. Like seeing the question paper beforehand or something. Remember, didn''t that happen in the 1st year as well? It was the one test that asked the exact same questions as the previous years!"


    Remembering this, Kanji Ike said loudly.


    A year ago in the spring, his ssmate got the past questions from a 3rd year. It was an extremely difficult test, but if you could remember the answers, anyone could get a high score.


    "But assuming that the questions were exactly the same as those in the past, isn''t it weird that he didn''t give us that information? And it''s also weird that no one in the other sses noticed it as well."


    Hearing Ike''s statement, Miyamoto calmly pointed out the parts that he couldn''t ept.


    "Then... it''s the method that must not be named, knowing the answer to the question in advance...? Cheating."


    "Cheat? How would he even cheat?"


    Shinohara, who was standing beside him, asked him that in response to his vague statement.


    "Hacking the schoolputers and stealing the answers or something! Isn''t that possible!"


    "That''s as stupid as what Karuizawa said..."


    Yukimura had a headache, in the face of the ss''s already unmanageable mess.


    Yet miraculously, it was through this spective topic that the time began to flow solidly.


    The heat of the discussion focused around the possibility that Ayanokouji hadn''t solved the problem with his own strength, instead getting the answer in some other way.


    Considering that he never scored high before, this was probably the natural course for the discussion.


    But the one who reversed the direction was Sudo Ken, who had been listening silently until then.


    He stood up, and his towering 186cm tall frame instantly gathered the attention of the entire ss.


    "You seem to be getting rather excited, but there isn''t even a shred of evidence of Ayanokouji cheating, is there? Don''t just jump to conclusions when the person in question isn''t here."


    The words themselves were perfectly reasonable, but the fact that those words came out of Sudo surprised everyone.


    In particr, Ike, who had been good friends with Sudou for a long time, didn''t seem pleased.


    "What do you mean, Ken? Don''t tell me you''re taking Ayanokouji''s side?"


    "That''s not what I meant. But there is no way he was easily able to see the question paper, right?... I just thought that it''s more likely that he got that perfect score with his own abilities."


    The 2nd half of what he said wasn''t as clear, but he expressed his opinion nheless.


    "If we''re talking about ability, his academic score in OAAst month was lower than mine, right? It would have been impossible if he was not cheating!"


    Miyamoto, who had looked at the just updated OAA data after school, said as if he had already decided that Ayanokouji had cheated.


    "That just means he''s different fromst year. Anyone can grow."


    "Isn''t it just as Sudo-kun says? After all, Sudo-kun''s academic ability surpassed Miyamoto-kun''s too."


    Kei''s sharp criticism embarrassed Miyamoto for a moment.


    One year ago, calling Sudo the worst in the entire year wasn''t an exaggeration. But now, after the OAA was updated, his academic ability had suddenly climbed to 54. It was only one more point than Miyamoto''s 53, but it was still higher.


    "We-well, that''s because Sudo was studying hard, I acknowledge his growth, but...but Ayanokouji is growing too much, too fast!"


    "So that''s why there''s a possibility that he''s holding back, just like Koenji!"


    Now, Karuizawa''s previous point of him being a math genius started up again.


    It seemed like the conversation hade full circle, and was headed towards an even worse direction.


    "Well isn''t that even more of a problem? Doesn''t that mean he didn''t contribute to the ss?"


    Points that could have been scored, but he didn''t go for them.


    If he really were hiding his strength, then there would be nothing wrong with what Ike just said.


    Sudo and the others, who always had a good rtionship in their friend circle, were about to be plunged into internal strife.


    Judging that they couldn''t let this drag on any longer, one of the students acted as the arbitrator.


    "Let''s all calm down a bit. We can''t solve the problem by just getting heated up here, can we?"


    At a time when the ss''s atmosphere was getting worse, Hirata Yosuke stepped in and pressed the pause button. Hirata, who usually took the lead in unifying the ss, kept quiet until the very end this time. He decided to wait until he was sure of what the ss was considering, what they were thinking, before acting to break the impasse.


    Hirata first spoke to Sudo gently.


    "Sudo-kun, isn''t it almost time for your club activities?"


    "Eh? Ahhhh, now that you say that..."


    The reality check suddenly woke Sudo up.


    "I know you''re concerned about this topic, but there are many things that are uncertain right now. I do not think it is good to let your club activities be affected by mere spection. You know by now that the "I''ll bete just this one time" excuse won''t work, right?"


    Hirata judged that the primary goal for now was to reduce the number of students in the ssroom.


    He calmed down Sudo and the others, who had gotten so hot headed that they''d forgotten about their club activities. The introduction of the OAA had caused the number of students concerned about their grades to skyrocket, Sudo included.


    Sudo picked up his bag quietly, after briefly ncing at the back of Suzune, who hadn''t said a word through the entiremotion, left the ssroom. The other students who belonged to clubs followed suit.


    "I have to go too. I''m sorry, I''ll leave Keisei to you."


    "Yeah. Miyhi, see youter."


    Miyake, who was a member of the Ayanokouji group, packed up his archery club things and left the turbulent atmosphere of the ssroom, with Sakura and Hasebe seeing him off.


    Although there were a few more students who left, more than half of the ss still remained in the ssroom.

 Chapter 43: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 43: 1.1</h4>


    Our ss D had just finished our first special exam after bing 2nd years.


    Although I injured my left hand in the conflict against Hosen, I managed to eliminate my risk of getting expelled. The wound which was the price I paid for that would probably take a while to heal, but that couldn''t be helped.


    Under Tsukishiro''s watch, I left the reception room, and as soon as the door was closed I let out a short breath.


    And now, my daily routine of a carefree student life would finally return...


    As if the current situation would allow for such naive thoughts.


    Besides, the current environment had already begun to drift away from everyday life.


    In the eyes of many students, being called to talk with the Acting Director was an astonishing thing. As I thought about it, I had to ept the reality in front of my eyes, the reality that I couldn''t do anything about.


    I could only conclude like this: I had escaped to this school, but there was now a chain that would follow me forever. After all, the only way to be free of it was to get expelled.


    "Looks like you''re done talking?"


    "Well, yeah."


    Chabashira, who was waiting not far from the reception room, casually joined me.


    I was a bit dejected, looking at Chabashira''s figure, but I didn''t let it show on my face.


    As of now, Tsukishiro didn''t know that I was working with Chabashira, who was the homeroom teacher of ss 2-D, and Mashima-sensei of ss 2-A. In that situation, Chabashira was waiting here for me after I had been summoned by Tsukishiro. What was that if not unnatural?


    If you thought of it as Chabashira''s duty as a ss teacher to summon me, I guess it wasn''t a problem; but this was Tsukishiro, so I couldn''t rule out the possibility of this being one of his traps. Because of that, my intention was for her to have left without meeting me again.


    For an ordinary student teacher pair, it would be unnatural for the teacher to wait around for the student.


    If she were calmer, Chabashira might have arrived at that conclusion herself.


    She must have been influenced by the fact that I got a perfect score in math, and that I had made part of my strength public. It''s not like I couldn''t understand her restlessness, but this was careless of her.


    In her defence, she and I have very different ideas of that man.


    To Chabashira, the foremost thing was that he was connected to the father of one of her students.


    After all, she didn''t know anything about the background of the White Room, so it was excusable.


    It was only natural that our sense of caution and warmth towards him differed.


    And such, I won''t make anyments about it..


    The only thing I could do now was leave the scene as fast as possible, so I continued walking forward.


    "You''ll be a bit of a celebrity from now on."


    I was wondering what she would say, and it turned out to be about that.


    "I''m not too happy about it, but it was a necessary measure. I can only assume that this is within the bounds of what is permitted."


    "Ignoring the students in the other sses for a moment, how are you going to exin it to your own ss? You''ve always done your best to try and seem inconspicuous, but suddenly you get a perfect score in that difficult math test. Of course they won''t leave you alone now. Have you prepared for this scenario beforehand?"


    I ignored her words as I thought about what to do for the rest of the day.


    I''d left my bag in the ssroom, so I had to go back.


    "There''s no use in acting in advance. I''ll start from this stage."


    Specifically telling my ssmates beforehand that I was going to get a perfect score in math in the special exam would have been a questionable thing to do.


    "This is going to be hard for you. Prepare yourself to be bombarded with questions."


    "I know."


    If you already had some idea of what was going to happen, couldn''t you just let me go now?


    "Can we stop here? If I''m walking with a teacher alone from now on, it''ll attract a lot of unnecessary attention."


    I know, I know. Chabashira muttered as she headed towards the office.


    She looked like she was trying her best to suppress her emotions, but I could easily tell that she was overflowing with joy.


    Compared to the rest of the homeroom teachers, she seemed to be the one who maintained the most distance from her students, but in reality, she might actually be the closest. It was precisely because of the regrets she has from the time she was a student that her hard-to-suppress feelings came out.


    In front of the average student, her poker face would be sufficient... but to me, it was justical. Being easy to manipte was an advantage, but now it was just getting in the way.


    There was no point in wasting my energy on Chabashira, so I cast her into the back of my mind for the time being.


    After that, I tried to call Horikita, and although it connected, she didn''t pick up.


    I then tried sending her a simple text, but she didn''t read it.


    "Can''t be helped, huh."


    Right now, Horikita seemed like the most helpful person to resolve the situation, due to the past year, her involvement in the mathematics duel and the matters rting to the student council.


    Exining the situation a bit would allow for a bit more flexibility. If possible, I would have liked to have prepared a bit first, but it looks like we''ll have to do it off the cuff.


    I could already see my ssroom.


    I wonder what it was like in the ssroom just after my perfect score in math came out.


    It would be ideal if almost all the students went back to their dormitories like normal.


    As soon as I got back to the ssroom, I could see that the scene in front of me differed from what I had been hoping for.


    It had been just about thirty minutes since I''d been summoned by Tsukishiro.


    Normally, arge majority of the students would have left the school already.


    However, even though the only students in the ssroom were the ones who didn''t have club activities, there were still quite a few that remained.


    Their objective went without saying. It had to be me.


    For those who experienced the atmosphere of the scene and the way they were looking at me, it was clear as day.


    Horikita, who hadn''t answered my call before, was also here.


    Looks like Horikita had assessed the situation better than I would have expected.


    I didn''t have time to express my gratitude, because as soon as I stepped in, a horde of students descended on me.


    The one leading the charge was a member of the Ayanokouji group, Keisei. In stark contrast to the overjoyed Chabashira, his expression was somewhat resentful.


    "I''m sorry I couldn''t talk to you when you called out earlier."


    Keisei wanted to talk to me right after school, but Horikita''s appearance cut him off, so I first apologized for that.


    "That''s fine. I take it you have time now? I have a few questions I want to ask."


    Haruka and Airi, who were also from the Ayanokouji group, gathered around him.


    Akito wasn''t there, probably due to the club activities I had mentioned before.


    And arge portion of the other spectators also pricked up their ears and watched the situation.


    "You... what''s with the 100 points in math? I checked the scores of all the other 2nd years with the OAA, and even Ichinose and Sakayanagi didn''t get perfect scores. You''re the only one in the entire year."


    Normally, just getting a good score in an exam wouldn''t create this kind of atmosphere.


    But this exam was an entirely different beast.


    In particr, the more academic ability a student had, the more they could grasp the abnormality of getting a perfect score in this exam.


    It seemed like even those who were too academically weak to understand it themselves had also understood that abnormality after the students around them told them about it.


    "About that-"


    My eyes wandered over to Horikita, whose seat was in the front row, to ask for help.


    "Well, let me exin this."


    Normally by this time, Horikita would have returned to the dorm, but she must have seen the situation with the remaining students in the ssroom and decided to stay. An urate judgement. Because of the fact that her attention was on me this whole time, I did not need to confirm with her that she had stayed back to try and help me smooth things over.


    To help collect the dispersed attention, she stood up and walked up to my side.


    "I''m... asking Kiyotaka."


    Keisei expressed his intense disgust at Horikita, who had stepped in as an unnecessary outsider.


    "Yes. But, Yukimura-kun, I am the one who has the answers you are looking for."


    "... What do you mean?"


    Because she had used a deliberately mystifying expression, Horikita managed to gather the attention of Keisei and all the other students with a single sentence.


    "Yukimura-kun and I- no, the entire 2nd year couldn''t get this perfect score, so how was Ayanokouji-kun able to achieve that? Don''t you all think that''s inconceivable?"


    Horikita directed the question to Keisei, but everyone on the scene was definitely thinking it too.


    "That''s right... To be honest, my head is a mess. I said this before, right? The questions at the end of the paper were impossible to solve. But Kiyotaka did them all like nobody''s business, and I just can''t understand it."


    In fact, when the exam concluded, I remember that part of the ss were extremely shocked with the content of the exam. Starting with Keisei and Yosuke, the students who had the best grades were discussing the extremely difficult questions. The topic had even spread over to the Ayanokouji group, and I remember that instead of giving a clear answer as to whether I''d solved it or not, I vaguely dodged the question.


    "Kiyotaka should know very well that nobody in the ss could solve those problems. Yet we didn''t even see him brag about how he solved them. Isn''t that weird? It even makes it seem like he has something he can''t reveal... maybe he did something bad, and knew the answers from the start, or something like that."


    "He cheated... Of course, it''s not surprising that you want to think that."


    Horikita took Keisei''s euphemistically phrased words and put them bluntly.


    Keisei looked away in embarrassment, but Horikita continued to pursue the topic.


    "In this situation, it''s hard not to be suspicious. If I were a student who knew nothing, I would definitely feel the same way, and believe that Ayanokouji-kun had been secretly cheating. However, that isn''t the case here."


    Horikita took a breath, and scanned the students who were watching her.


    "I''m nning to exin the same thing for the people who aren''t here now. To solve the mystery of Ayanokouji-kun''s perfect score, we''ll have to go back to spring ofst year."


    Spring ofst year. In other words, the time in which we first came to this school.


    "We have since switched seats, but it must still be fresh in your memory that until recently, we were seatmates, right? Not long after school started, when I was talking to Ayanokouji-kun, I happened to find out that he was extremely good at academics... Even better than me."


    "Better than you in academics? Hold on. I remember Kiyotaka''s scores being about average all around since school started. I''m sorry, but I can''t see anything about it being worthy of special attention. Isn''t his grade on the OAA a C, the overall average?"


    Even Keisei''s sharp question which came from his clear memory of the past didn''t faze Horikita.


    "Of course. That''s because my strategy was already in motion before the first exam waspleted."


    As Horikita said that, she moved away from me, towards the lectern. This was meant to shift the focus of all the students. She must have done this to draw attention away from me.


    I did think that she would help me out, but the way she did it was better than I expected.


    "From the very start he had the knowledge to get perfect scores in math. As I knew this before anyone else, I thought up a little strategy."


    "...A little strategy?"


    For Keisei, he wouldn''t have just one or two questions.


    He had to be wondering how I had obtained that knowledge.


    But for now, Horikita moved away from that, and continued on with the topic.


    On not how I had obtained that knowledge, but about why it was necessary to conceal my academic excellence.


    Horikita merely treated it as a focal point to attract the attention of the other people onto this point.


    "Last April, we of ss D were overjoyed to have received such arge sum of money. I''m ashamed to say that I was also one of them. But I had a feeling something unexpected was going to happen in turn. During that time, I asked Ayanokouji-kun, who sat next to me, if he could hold back in the exam. You could call this a reserve tactic or a trump card. Of course, I told him to keep it at a level which wouldn''t hold the ss back. And that''s how his academic ability got rated C by the school."


    Horikita spun the utterly unremarkable academic ability that I''d maintained until now as a part of a formted strategy. Of course, if people carefully looked back at what happened a year ago, some would definitely find it weird. The fact that Horikita back then wasn''t someone who could get along with others, what the exact time was when Horikita noticed that I was good at academics, et cetera. There were holes everywhere.


    However, to most people, memories from a year ago were of a distant past. Unlike the intense events that had been engraved into the hippocampus itself, that scene did not make a deep impression, so it was even more forgettable.


    Only a handful of people would be able to remember those events as if it were yesterday.


    Most would go, "so it was like that, huh" and use their imagination to fill in the gaps in memory.


    Of course, it wouldn''t pass for people such as Keisei who had a strong sense of mistrust.


    He didn''t let go of Horikita, and went after the parts that would be difficult to exin.


    "...Your words are hardly convincing. If you had doubts surrounding the rules of the school, it would be beneficial for the ss as a whole for him to get higher scores from the start. Since he got a perfect score on this exam, getting an A or A+ in academic ability isn''t impossible. You could say it was just one person''s grades, but even that could''ve slowly increased the number of points of our ss."


    Keisei expressed that he waspletely unable to grasp the advantages of this reserve strategy.


    "That, huh. If we were only looking at the ss points in front of us, that would be fine. But if he had gone all out from the start �C what do you think would''ve happened to Ayanokouji by now? No, to put it more urately, what do you think his future would have been like?''


    Faced with Keisei''s mistrust, Horikita improvised and took it head on without running away.


    She was so eloquent it was like she nned this all out from the start.


    "What I think his future would have been like...?"


    As he didn''t understand, Keisei repeated the question, so Horikita started to borate.


    "Let us go by what Yukimura-kun said, and assume that Ayanokouji-kun had gone all out since April ofst year. If that was the case, then by May, Sakayanagi-san, Ichinose-san, and Ryuuen-kun would definitely have learned of his name. If they ignored the person who was the best in math in the entire year, he would be an obstacle to them sooner orter. It wouldn''t be surprising if someone moved to try and get him expelled."


    "So you''re saying, people might have targeted him?"


    "Correct. Anything can happen in this school. After all, there was even an exam which forcibly expelled people through an intra-ss vote. And in fact, at that time, Ayanokouji-kun was at risk of dropping out due to Sakayanagi-san''s strategy. Although that was when he waspletely average and was coincidentally chosen as a patsy, it''s possible that it really was aimed at him."


    Horikita was saying that ording to the situation, the one who got expelled might have been me instead of Yamauchi.


    "No, that''s wrong. If Kiyotaka had been serious from the start, even if we were to put Yamauchi and him at different ends of a bnce the result would have been clear as day."


    "I wonder. In order to avoid getting expelled, Yamauchi would have been more careful when making his moves, and Sakayanagi-san''s strategy would have been moreplex and harder to see through. Besides, Yamauchi-kun had at least had more people close to him than Ayanokouji-kun. As the things put on both ends of the scales would be different, opinions would follow that change."


    If it continued on like this, it would end up as nothing more than arguing for the sake of argument, so Keisei was unable to investigate this point in depth.


    Even if he brought up any of the other exams, the logic would be the same.


    "...So why are you revealing this now? If you carelessly reveal his strength, the results will be the same. He''s been drawing attention now that you suddenly showed his strength to everyone, and soon he could also be a target."


    Keisei thought that there was no difference in the risks of going all out from the start and going all out now.


    But it seemed like Horikita was expecting him to say that, and showed no signs of panicking.


    "No, there''s a huge difference between showing his strength a year ago and revealing his strength now. In the past year, the unity of our ss D had grown by leaps and bounds, and each of us has grown in individual strength. We''ve be able to make the right decisions."


    I''m sure that if he looked back at himself a year ago, Keisei would have seen it the same way.


    "It isn''t just Ayanokouji-kun. Let''s say, yes... He isn''t here, but it might be easier to understand with the example of Sudo-kun. This timest year, he was hard to look at, and undoubtedly the biggest burden to our ss. But what about now? Although there''s still remnants of his wild nature left over, he has improved dramatically. In terms of academic ability, he''s shown outstanding growth. And with his already excellent physical abilitiesbined, his OAA evaluation as of May is even higher than yours, Yukimura-kun."


    Keisei was still above him in April, but with this exam, Sudo turned the tables on him.


    She struck Keisei with the irrefutable fact of the OAA overall evaluation score.


    "When we first entered this school, did either of us have the strength or willingness to protect Sudo-kun?"


    For those students who had discussed whether they should abandon Sudo, who didn''t even bother thinking of ways to save him, would they have been able to seriously try and protect a fellow ssmate? That''s what Horikita meant. However, if Sudo was in trouble now, Keisei would definitely rack his brains along with the others to think of a strategy to protect him.


    "But now, if someone has their attention on Ayanokouji-kun, we could now work together to protect him. That is how I have judged it. And that''s why I''ve made Ayanokouji-kun''s true strength public, and started to raise the overall strength of our ss."


    There were already some students that had epted what she had said.


    However, more than half of the students still harboured doubts.


    Then again, Horikita didn''t have the material to be able to convince everyone.


    Since the entire story was varnished with lies, it was inevitable that it woulde off at points.


    Of course, it wasn''t as if it was impossible to strike a truce for now.


    However, things would be different if we had much stronger backup.


    After confirming that most of the attention was on Horikita, I looked at Yousuke.


    The boy who enjoyed the absolute trust of the ss.


    Although Yousuke was facing Horikita, he would asionally pretend to look around while actually observing me. Then, when he judged that it wouldn''t be noticed, he met my eyes.


    Just like with the other students, there were a lot of things I didn''t tell Yousuke. If it had been any other student, they would probably be just as suspicious or doubtful of me as Keisei and the others were, and would join them in throwing harsh questions at me; but I had nothing to worry about only from Yousuke.


    He would give the highest priority to the thing that would be the best for the ss as a whole.


    In the current situation, even without being told he clearly understood what his role was.


    "I understand, if only a little bit, this reserve strategy of yours, Horikita. On that basis, I have another question. Is Ayanokouji outstanding at math alone?"


    "I can''tment on that at this stage."


    Horikita calmly responded to Keisei''s question.


    "The student known as Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, has he shown the full extent of his abilities, or is he still holding back? No matter what the "real truth" is, we can hide it to ensure Ayanokouji continues to remain a thorn on their side for the other sses."


    "That�`"


    "I see. I clearly understand what Horikita-san is trying to say."


    Just as Keisei was about to press on Horikita, he was hit by covering fire from Yousuke, who had been observing from the start.


    And then Yousuke slowly made his way over to Horikita''s side.


    "I didn''t get it at first, but I''ve been listening to the discussion, and now I understand. It''s true that an enemy whose abilities are unknown can be dangerous. They will then want to know more and try to gather information. But if even our own ssmates don''t know the truth, it''ll be pointless for them to keep digging."


    By lucidly conveying it to everyone around them, he supported Horikita and filled in the gaps in her arguments.


    Judging that Yousuke was her ally, Horikita joined in step with him and agreed.


    "Yeah. He''s bound to attract attention in the future anyway, so let''s just make full use of him. Letting our opponents see him as an unknown factor is the better course of action. There might even be students outside listening in on us right now. This is that kind of school."


    Everyone nced towards the hallway. Was the student known as Ayanokouji only good at math, or did his excellence extend to the other subjects? We will mislead the other sses and make them wonder about how much of a threat I should be considered. When mixed with Yousuke''s, Horikita''s words immediately became heavier.


    "Horikita-san really is good, isn''t she? I''m a little moved."


    Right then, Kei struck with a casual statement.


    "Don''t you think so as well, Shinohara-san?"


    Then she sought agreement from her own friend, Shinohara.


    I think she was trying to split the others'' attention by drawing it away from my abilities and elevating Horikita as well. Even though I hadn''t given Kei a signal or instructions like I did with Yosuke, she instantly understood what she had to do and did it.


    "That''s right! I feel like I''ve been seeing Horikita-san and Ayanokouji-kun talking secretly for a long time now, but it turns out that they''re really just doing it for the ss!"


    When she first came to school, Horikita didn''t talk to anyone but me.


    This fact, in the end, turned out to be useful material.


    And now, it seems like it gave us a sense of credibility.


    The brilliant way in which Yosuke and Kei covered for us surreptitiously had an outstanding effect. The group mentality of "If Yosuke and the others think it''s true, then it must be true" was also working powerfully.


    "A strategy of hiding our strength.... That''s true, the other sses must also be quite shocked now."


    Even Keisei, who had been suspicious up to now was no exception


    "Although I didn''tpletely understand the situation of the school, I thought keeping an insurance n would be good. I don''t know if this is fortunate or unfortunate, but Ayanokouji-kun is bad atmunicating, and it seems like he didn''t like to stand out. For those reasons as well, I also wanted him to hide it."


    Horikita expressed that the strategy was possible because both of our ns happened to line up.


    She then looked away from Keisei, and addressed the ss.


    "That''s the secret of how Ayanokouji-kun got a full score in math. Sorry for surprising you all."


    Horikita had but one chance at it, and she survived beautifully and prevailed. But if we let them hang around here for too long, questions might start sprouting up again.


    "I think it would be better if we left it at that for now. As Horikita-san said, the walls have ears."


    Yousuke closed the topic cleanly, and exined to the others why it would be bad to keep talking like this. The smarter the student was, the more doubts they would have, but at the same time, as the smarter they were, they more likely they would realise that this wasn''t a conversation we ought to have here. The proof of this was that even the never ending verbal onught of Keisei stopped.


    In a way, you could say that this meeting diverted their doubts to some extent.


    And thanks to Horikita''s achievements which surpassed my imagination, it would be easier for me to act in the future.


    Even if I showed my strength outside of mathematics, it could be exined by the fact that I had been concealing it. The preparation that she did here was crucial.


    I''m honestly grateful to her for dealing with this without even preparing with me in advance.

 Chapter 44: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 44: 1.2</h4>


    The ssroom after dismissal.


    The students dispersed, weing thete end to the school day.


    I''ll thank Horikita and Yosuke another day. They might have understood what I intended, as Horikita was the first to leave. While, Yosuke wasughing with the girls with Kei at the centre as they started walking out the ssroom, just like normal. I picked my bag up, mixed in with everyone, and walked out into the hallway.


    My day would have been considered over... But the situation now wasn''t as simple.


    Although it''s enough for making everyone understand the main points, personal problems were different.


    A few people chased after me right away. I knew without even thinking that they were members of the Ayanokouji group. Among the people approaching from behind, there was someone at the front whose footsteps sounded intense. There was no need to look back to know how much frustration Keisei had built up


    I pretended not to notice and continued to walk forward. After a bit, he spoke to me.


    "Kiyotaka."


    I slowed to a halt after my name was called.


    Looking back, all three of them still had stiff expressions.


    "Going back without even saying hello, isn''t that a bit cruel?"


    Haruka, the most outspoken of the group, forcefully spoke.


    Representing both the severe Keisei at the front and the concerned Airi at the back, she expressed what they both wanted to say.


    This seemed to have an effect, as the emotional Keisei who was on the verge of bursting kept his mouth shut for the time being.


    After taking a breath, he said this once more.


    "Why didn''t you tell us before?... If it''s to hide information as Horikita said, does that mean that you don''t trust us at all?"


    Although he acknowledged Horikita''s statements to an extent, he still looked dissatisfied.


    That was par for the course.


    It was like I crushed Keisei''s feelings as he was kindly, and seriously, teaching me.


    Because they were clear on this point, Haruka and Airi were also following him.


    The easy way to get this over with was to put all the me on Horikita.


    But I couldn''t bear doing such a thing to her, as she''d just crucially helped me right before.


    No, this sentiment was unnecessary. There was a need to think about the future.


    Keisei was an excellent student, and he was not one of the slow ones in the ss in terms of urately judging situations. But if I don''t positively ept him, I''ll just be making him carry a strong psychological burden from now on. And if he couldn''t function properly, it would be damaging to the ss. It also wouldn''t be good for Horikita who held the reins of power.


    "I''ve always trusted you guys. But I judged that not revealing it to anyone was better for the n in the future. It''s because I''ve been so close to you guys that I''ve had to stifle my desire to tell you and keep quiet."


    Instead of cing the me on someone else, I told Keisei that it was my own judgement. Even though he approached aggressively, seeing that he hesitated to say what he wanted after listening to Haruka, doing this would make him have no choice but to move his emotions to the side.


    "Ipletely understand your anger over this incident. After all, this is rted to the group you''re closest with, and you even tutored me. I''m truly sorry."


    Anyone would feel ufortable if the person you were teaching was hiding that is better than you.


    And I guess Haruka and Airi by his side felt the same.


    Haruka heard my apology from the side, and she didn''t say anything else.


    She probably judged that she had to let Keisei think, and digest it on his own, so she kept silent.


    "To be honest, I''m still angry. You could have told me from the start that you didn''t need to be taught, that you could have passed the exam without any problems, and that you could have handled it on your own."


    "You''re right."


    To Keisei, my situation and background didn''t matter.


    It''s only natural that he wanted me to have told him from the start.


    "And based on what Horikita said, you''ll continue to hold back after this, right? If you don''t tell me which subject you will and will not hold back in, I can''tpletely trust you."


    From now on, Keisei will always have his doubts. Stuff like, "what was this guy good at, and what was he not good at."


    As someone who taught others, he had to think badly of having someone as strange as that close to him.


    "I want out of this group- Well, I''d be lying if I said I didn''t have that thought."


    "Yukimuu, are you serious?"


    Haruka, who had remained silent, spoke up.


    After all, it''s impossible to stay silent after hearing that.


    "Yeah, I''m serious. Until I heard Horikita''s exnation, I was determined to leave because I didn''t think Kiyotaka could be trusted at all. But...even so, after being in the same group for so long, I can still understand some things. I know that Kiyotaka isn''t a bad person. Since he was hiding something for the sake of the entire ss, it''s understandable that he didn''t want to tell anyone. Kiyotaka could have told me that he didn''t need tutoring, that is true, but he''s bad with words, so he couldn''t say it. I can understand that too."


    Keisei clenched his fists and said it without trying to hide it.


    "It''s just...yeah, it''s just... I need some time to sort my thoughts out."


    Saying that, Keisei deliberately sighed loudly.


    "There''s no advantage in taking this further... In the end, what I wanted to say, what I wanted to express is... it doesn''t matter even if you hide your strength in other areas. It''s not like you''re holding the ss back like Koenji, so no one has the right toin. If I continue to criticize you forcefully, the atmosphere will be even worse."


    Arguably the most dissatisfied and unconvinced person, Keisei, chose to suppress those feelings for the sake of the Ayanokouji group, as well as his fellow ssmates.


    "Even though my rational side is clear with that, I can''t suppress it emotionally, so I''ll need to reflect on that. Next, I''ll recognize the part of your strength that you revealed as a real thing. As for the other subjects, I''ll continue to use my previous assumption that you''re passable, and I''ll continue to tutor you. Is that fine?"


    In a situation where our friendship could copse, this was definitely a valuable proposal.


    I had no reason to refuse, so I nodded my head and straightforwardly epted.


    "Thank you, Keisei."


    I chose to express my gratitude in words.


    Airi, who had witnessed everything, finally found the courage to speak.


    "H-how about you two do a...reconciliation handshake?"


    "A reconciliation handshake? That''s nice!"


    Hearing Airi''s proposal, Haruka expressed her agreement.


    Feeling the heavy, depressed atmosphere being gradually dispelled, Keisei immediately shook his head.


    "Don''t, it''s embarrassing."


    Haruka quickly grabbed the right hand of Keisei who wanted to refuse. She also grabbed my right hand at basically the same time.


    "Alright, make up!"


    Saying that, she shoved our hands together, forcing us to shake them.


    We didn''t prepare our hands to shake, so they just touched each other.


    "If you don''t shake hands, I won''t let go, alright?"


    "I know, I know...!"


    Perhaps having his hand touch mine in this half-assed handshake was even more humiliating, as Keisei gave in in the end.


    With that, the two of us shook hands, a symbol of our official reconciliation.


    "I''m fine with it, but Akito still doesn''t know anything."


    "Miyhi probably won''t be a problem. I think he''ll just ept Kiyopon like normal right?"


    "...That''s true."


    Keisei thought for a bit. He quickly came to the same conclusion after thinking about his image of Akito.


    "Well, everything''s back to normal. It feels we''ve taken a huge weight off our shoulders, right?"


    Right~? Haruka and Airi looked at each other, both agreeing.


    "In any case, you''ve be a celebrity so quickly, Kiyopon... That..."


    Haruka stared at me like she remembered something, and became stiff.


    The three of us waited for her to continue, but she didn''t seem like she was going to.


    "What''s wrong, Haruka-chan?"


    Airi, worried about the Haruka who stopped moving, said something to her.


    At that moment, she continued, as if the magic had be undone.


    "Oh, ahh. Well, it''s nothing. Anyway, it''s going to be hard for you since you''re a celebrity now!"


    "Isn''t getting full marks a bit excessive? Sakayanagi, who was 2nd in the year, got 91 points."


    After Keisei acknowledged me, his worries shifted to something else.


    "Speaking of Sakayanagi-san, she got simr scores in all her subjects, right?"


    Airi tried to think back.


    She got 91 points in math, and surprisingly, she had simr scores in the other subjects. Considering the difficulty of the exams, she was a student who was undoubtedly extremely good at academics. In the entire year, she was definitely second only to me. What was more impressive was that she hadn''t studied in an extraordinary environment like the White Room. In that case, it wasn''t an exaggeration for her to call herself a genius.


    "I know she was smart, but ever since the introduction of the OAA, her strength has be more apparent."


    Although there was regret in his voice, Keisei honestly acknowledged Sakayanagi''s strength.


    There was no need to doubt her high scores in the past, but her strength had now reached another level.


    Had she deliberately held back, or had she started to study outside of ss?


    No matter what, there''s no doubt she''d be more of a problem than before, and even more of an opponent we had to beat.


    "As amemoration of our conciliation, why don''t we meet at Keyaki mall once Miyhi''s club activities end?


    There wasn''t a single person who refused Haruka''s suggestion.

 Chapter 45: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 45: 1.3</h4>


    Morning 7 am, in front of Keyaki mall.


    I came here before them and silently waited for them.


    As the one who caused the chaos, I thought it''d be better not keep anyone waiting, especially today.


    "I''ve arrived too early..."


    The clock right now pointed to 6:30.


    Even so, I didn''t find waiting to be painful. Rather, it wouldn''t be much of a stretch to call it one of my special skills.


    It was nice to have some time to empty my mind.


    However, although it wasn''t a small price, things changed into something troublesome.


    In other words, me being alone would attract attention instead. Other than the 3rd years, my grades could be seen by everyone, so the entire year''s attention will soon be on me. I''m afraid that the inquisitive eyes of my senpais and kouhais will be on me for a while.


    I had nothing to do for the time being, and so I just stood there. Suddenly, my phone vibrated, and so I took it out, noticing a message from the Ayanokouji group. Airi said that she was leaving the dormitory now. The other 4 had all read the message.


    I haven''t told them I was already here, and so I just skimmed through their respective statuses.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, are you waiting for someone?"


    I wasn''t paying attention since I was immersed with my phone. It was Ichinose who called out to me, so I lifted my head.


    She was apanied by her ssmate Kanzaki. Although the school prided itself on it''srge school area, the ces students went to were limited. As a result, if you waited at the Keyaki mall entrance, a ce where many students frequented, bumping into people you knew was normal.


    "I''m waiting for my friends to go eat. How about you guys?"


    There was nothing to hide about it, so I answered honestly.


    Ichinose and Kanzaki replied in time with each other, without even exchanging looks.


    "We''re doing something simr, aren''t we?"


    "Yes."


    Kanzaki curtly replied. But his gaze was more focused on Ichinose than it was on me.


    Something simr, eh? But even if something was simr, it was also different.


    "Say, I''ve seen your exam results. You actually got a perfect score in math, that''s amazing!"


    "Judging fromst year''s OAA, you shouldn''t have the strength to get a full score."


    Ichinose didn''t raise any questions about me hiding my strength. Kanzaki, on the other hand, opposed her, not hiding his displeasure in his words in the slightest.


    "There''s a lot of reasons for this. It was only after discussing with myrades that I decided to hide the fact that I''m good at math."


    I exined it like that. If it were Ichinose and Kanzaki, they would understand the situation to an extent.


    They should be able to use their imaginations to reinforce what I''ve said to make it moreplete.


    Usually, exining it like that would be enough. But this time, Kanzaki''s sharp nce didn''t fade.


    "So you''re saying that you''ve been hiding it all this time. It looks like you''re even more of an issue than I thought."


    "Kanzaki-kun, don''t say it like that. No matter what ss it is, they''ll have their own ideas, and of course, their own strategies."


    Kanzaki epted Ichinose''s criticism as a matter of course.


    "That''s true. He didn''t use dirty tricks as Ryuuen did as well. Still, there''s a few things I don''t like about him. Ichinose, you should be very aware of the fact that it''s not at all easy to be able to solve that extremely difficult question to get full marks. He says he''s following hisrade''s instructions but-"


    Kanzaki was about to continue, but Ichinose stopped him with a rare forceful tone.


    "Ayanokouji-kun is not our enemy."


    Ichinose was very dissatisfied with Kanzaki''s thorny, hostile attitude. It''s true that that sort of attitude was rare for Kanzaki, but if I had to choose who had the correct attitude, I''d definitely select Kanzaki, who was on guard.


    "Our alliance has been dissolved. There''s no doubt that ss 2-D is our enemy."


    "That''s...but there''s no point for us to engage in a pointless dispute!"


    "This isn''t a dispute. It''s just necessary for us to know the true strength of our opponent."


    "Ayanokouji-kun did indeed hide the fact that he was good at math; this was a fact that had been hidden."


    Kanzaki took a step forward; now the distance between us was less than the distance between him and Ichinose.


    "Then, what else? Is it just math? No, it can''t be just math. What other abilities are you hiding? Did you hide those legs you''re so proud of duringst year''s sports festival because of orders from yourrades? To ss B... No, ss C, the worst thing is that you still have other strengths hidden away."


    "However, there''s a limit to test scores. No matter how good you are at studying, the max you can get on a subject is 100 points, and the highest grade is an A+. Even if he gets full marks in all of them, there''s not much of a gap between him and Sakayanagi-san, the second in the year."


    In reality, there was only a 9 point difference between Sakayanagi-san and me.


    Even if we had the same difference in all five subjects, it would only add up to 45 points. Ichinose didn''t think that was much of a threat.


    "Our overall scores in ss C are much higher than that. The point difference from Ayanokouji-kun after showing his true strength, we just have to make up for that with our whole ss.


    "That might be true if it''s just a written test... but-"


    "We should stop here, Kanzaki-kun. You also know that this isn''t a thing we should be arguing about heatedly here, right?"


    Ichinose, who had always been a pacifist, was worried that if we kept arguing intensely in front of Keyaki mall, which was a crowded ce, it would sooner orter descend into chaos.


    "It seems like I''ve indeed lost my cool."


    Kanzaki, perhaps thinking that continuing the argument here wouldn''t solve the problem, shut his mouth, and helplessly averted his gaze.


    "I''ll go first."


    With that, Kanzaki left Ichinose here, and quickly disappeared into Keyaki mall.


    We quietly looked at him leaving.


    "I''m sorry, but given the current situation, Kanzaki-kun definitely doesn''t have much legroom."


    ss B, which had always maintained its position, had now fallen to ss C.


    Given the failure of the style of fighting that had worked so far, the entire ss had no choice but to change its direction. In this situation, it was understandable that he was like that.


    Or rather, the Ichinose who was still able to be pleasant to me in this situation was the one who was different.


    Kanzaki was starting to think they should abandon their naivety in the future, and he was right.


    "Was it me that''s wrong...?"


    Ichinose wasn''tpletely unaware of what Kanzaki was thinking.


    But even if she did, she still decided to follow herself.


    There was a world of difference between that and knowing nothing but obstinately clinging to one''s course.


    "Do you remember what I told you before?"


    "Yes, you told me to stick with my ssmates and go forward, right, didn''t you?"


    "There may be students who want to change their own ss appearing from now on, just like Kanzaki. Or there may be some that are dissatisfied with you and want to stop you. Maybe even some that will betray the ss too. It won''t be surprising to think some will do whatever just to make a change. ss 1-B, the ss that only you protected, that ss doesn''t exist anymore."


    Of all students of 2-C, those words were likely to resonate with Ichinose the most.


    "No matter what happens from here, I want for you to trust your ssmates, put their safety first and continue the fight."


    "It''s okay. I''m definitely going to protect them. If therees a time someone from my ss has to leave, I think I will be the first one."


    She wasn''t putting up a bold front, Ichinose will certainly do so.


    She would take responsibility for the ss'' recession and choose to leave the school first.


    "I''m relieved to hear that, but there''s one thing I''m dissatisfied with."


    "Dissatisfied...?"


    She somehow didn''t take the hint as she tilted her head slightly.


    "I won''t ever let you get expelled."


    There was a need to make her remember the most important thing.


    For this year, it was of utmost importance that she will continue running forward without ever stopping.


    I looked her in the eyes, lighting a zing fire inside the depths of her pupils.


    What she received wasn''t darkness.


    It was a light that would never fade.


    If there was a possibility that light would spread in the wrong direction, I would take it myself.


    "T-that... y-yeah... I''ll ...definitely...stay."


    She looked up at me and mumbled, embarrassed.


    "Y-you.... Are really amazing, Ayanokouji-kun..." To think you managed to get a perfect score at such a difficult exam."


    She said while looking another way as if trying to change the subject.


    "It may be my only redeeming feature at school, though."


    "Even so that''s still amazing. It just means you have a weapon that won''t lose to anyone else."


    "You are the same too. You certainly have such a weapon yourself."


    "That would be nice, but..."


    But there was ack of people around her who could proficiently wield it.


    It wasn''t that she wasn''t blessed with good ssmates.


    It was due to the cons of this weapon.


    Ichinose''s ability to include people was strong enough to kill off her own ssmates'' individualities.


    They would depend on others. Thus the vicious circle made them lose even more of their individualism.


    "...I need to leave soon. We''re standing too much out here, and I feel bad letting Kanzaki wait for me."


    I nodded slightly and saw her off, watching her trailing figure.


    Thinking that it was almost time to meet up, I pulled out my phone again to confirm it.


    "What were you talking about with Ichinose-san just now?"


    Suddenly, Haruka''s voice came from a little bit away.


    I looked over, and Akito, Keisei, and Airi had all arrived, looking over at me uniformly.


    It looked like the other group members had already gotten together while I was talking to Ichinose.


    "My perfect score in math."


    "No wonder. After all, the better you are at academics, the more they would be conscious about it."


    As soon as I exined it with a sensible reason, Keisei immediately looked like he understood.


    But there was something off about Haruka.


    She didn''t ask further, and quickly returned to her usual expression.


    Tomorrow, starting from the 2nd of May, we were about to wee the arrival of the Golden Week.


    The students had all passed their special exams without a hitch, so I''m sure we''ll all be enjoying the holiday carefreely.

 Chapter 46: 1.4

    <h4>Chapter 46: 1.4</h4>


    That Golden Week ended in a sh, and we were back to our school lives.


    The scenery remained the same, but everyday life began to change slowly.


    "... Yo."


    In the morning just after the break, Sudou was the first person I ran into, near the shoe locker at the school.


    It was just a run-in with a ssmate, but it was also part of that changing everyday life.


    "It hasn''t been easy for you for a while. Are you alright now?"


    "No problem. It''s the same as before. I made it through Golden Week with no problems."


    "I see. You know, this vacation went by real quick."


    I walked side by side with Sudou, who had adjusted his walking pace to match mine, to the ssroom.


    Because he had to leave the ssroom for his club activities, Sudou must have heard the details from Ike or Hondou afterwards.


    I didn''t need to tell him what happened in that ssroom, as he should have understood everything.


    "So you were hiding the fact you''re good at studying because of Suzune''s strategy, right?"


    I nodded my head a bit in agreement, and Sudou pouted a bit. He looked away from me and turned straight ahead.


    "Well, you two have been close ever since school started. A bitte now, but I understand that."


    "We didn''t get along. If anything, at first it was more like we wanted to keep our distance from each other."


    "It was like that? Sorry, didn''t look like that to me."


    That was probably because Sudou was viewing Horikita as a person of the opposite sex.


    There was no point in me pointing that out, so I skipped over his words.


    "I heard about it from Yousuke afterwards. You put in a good word for me, didn''t you?"


    "I can''t say I was covering for you; I was only stating the facts."


    "You call them facts, but you didn''t know the truth at that time either."


    "''Course I know that!"


    Sudou got a bit angry and pouted again, as he spoke again.


    "It was a secret that you''re a genius at math, but is the fact that you''re good at fighting also a secret?"


    To Sudou, this aspect was apparently more important than the bit about math.


    "I don''t know what you mean."


    I pretended not to understand what he was talking about.


    However, Sudou was no longer the kind of person to back down on hearing that.


    "Don''t y dumb with me. I fought with Housen, so I''m clear on it. His superhuman strength is the real deal. And he''s faster than anyone I''ve fought so far. Honestly, he''s a monster."


    Sudou said that it was precisely because he had confronted him that he was able to experience it first hand.


    "That was the first time I''ve ever felt scared in a fight. Even now his smiling face is burnt into my brain."


    Stopping, he poked his temple with his left index finger two, three times.


    "You were scared, huh. Even so, it looked like you fought bravely for Horikita."


    "Well, there was no other choice. That guy has more than a few screws loose."


    I couldn''t deny that. From what I''ve seen up close, Housen''s obsession with violence was truly extraordinary.


    "But you had a chance to win, too, didn''t you?"


    A few days before, Sudou was KO''d by Housen only because he got baited.


    In a situation that required one to keep their opponent in their sights, Housen used Horikita as bait to make Sudou expose his defenseless side.


    It turned out to be fatal for Sudou, and ended the fight with his defeat.


    "Who knows... In a real, serious fight, I don''t think I can win against him."


    Sudou was definitely not weak. If Sudou, who had excellent physical ability and coordination, talked about Housen like this, he was not one to be trifled with.


    Even carefully selected people such as Horikita''s older brother, Horikita Manabu, who had studied martial arts, or Albert, who was born with a remarkable body, could not beat Housen in a fight.


    "Hey- that''s not what I wanted to talk about! My affairs don''t matter."


    At that moment, Sudou looked at my face.


    "You... you surpassed that monster Housen''s strength and stopped him. I''m not wrong, am I?"


    Something like "I reflexively used more power than I normally can" certainly wouldn''t work on Sudou anymore.


    It''s natural for him to associate that with, "this guy also got a perfect score in math, so it''s not surprising."


    And there were things he could see only because of his fondness for Horikita.


    "And you''re sure it wasn''t just a misunderstanding, Sudou?"


    "Yeah, that''s right."


    Sudou grabbed my biceps with his right hand.


    To confirm how powerful my muscles were, Sudou lightly gripped them several times and said, "I''ve had this feeling sincest year, when I saw you at the pool. You weren''t even participating in any club activities, but you had a super muscr body. It''s hard to tell with clothes on, but those firm muscles... you wouldn''t get those without considerable training."


    Sudou has focused on his body and trained regrly. There was no point in trying to fool him anymore.


    Saying something like I work out on my own after getting out of bed has no chance of convincing him.


    He wasn''t merely watching. When touched like this, my body itself would tell him the truth.


    "Speaking of that, your grip strength when we measured it before the sports festival was around 60kg, right?"


    Sudou gradually thought back aboutst year.


    "That time, I already thought that was amazing... but you were holding back. How much can you grip exactly?"


    "Who knows. I honestly don''t know."


    "You don''t know?"


    "I don''t remember ever measuring my grip strength properly."


    "How is that even possible? We have physical evaluations so many times in primary and middle school!"


    I honestly don''t remember.


    Of course, there were periodical physical examinations in the white room. They collected vastly more data than what a normal school''s physical examinations would measure.


    However, only the instructor would know those things.


    The instructor wouldn''t bother telling individual students the details of their values.


    And then the students themselves had no interest in the numbers that changed every day.


    It was because they only saw them as numbers that went up or down.


    However, while I was training to maintain my body every day, my physical ability was slowly decreasing now whenpared to when I was in the white room.


    "You really don''t know?" Sudou said. He was looking straight into my eyes, so he must''ve understood that I wasn''t lying.


    "Back then, I heard that a grip strength of 60kg was the average for a 1st year at high school, so I adjusted my strength to around that. I was trying not to stand out."


    Later, I learned that this was higher than average, and I remember being a little surprised.


    "I''m talking about you, how strong is the real you?"


    A questing heart filled with envy and jealousy.


    "How strong... huh."


    Depending on what the reference point was, the answer and perception would change with it.


    While I was thinking�`


    "Forget it. You don''t have to answer."


    Sudou withdrew his own question as if he was refusing my answer.


    Even if I tell him everything about my situation here, it wasn''t something just anyone could understand.


    In the end, it wasn''t something that could be expressed clearly with just a few words.


    "Powerful or not, there''s no point if I don''t see it with my own eyes."


    He let go of my bicep that he had grabbed earlier.


    Sudou, just like Keisei, had started to digest things by himself.


    "But I understand now that you''re a pretty unbelievable guy. You''re seriously powerful, Ayanokouji."


    "Doesn''t it upset you that I''ve always been hiding my strength?"


    "Well, in the beginning I thought, ''what''s with that?'', and I get how Yukimura feels. If I feel like I''m already super powerful, it sure wouldn''t feel good to know that someone by my side was hiding his powers and is actually more powerful than me. But it''s not like I can''t understand what you''re thinking, you don''t like to stand out, right? Somehow, I''vee to understand your approach, I guess."


    From Sudou came a reply that I wasn''t expecting at all.


    "It would definitely be a lie if I said I didn''t care, but I''m doing my best in my own way to grow. That''s got nothing to do with how other guys are, that''s what I think."


    Cater to yourself, not other people.


    He said that as if to instruct himself to be someone that would be the best for himself.


    "Besides, no matter how amazing you are, at basketball, I''m definitely better."


    For the first time today, Sudouughed boldly.


    It was a statement brimming with confidence, about something he didn''t even need to confirm.


    Of course, it was indisputable.


    Even if I had yed once or twice, the result was extremely clear. I had no chance of winning.


    "If it''s basketball, we can have a match any time!"


    "Spare me. I don''t want to be your punching bag."


    "Hahahahah! I see you understand that!"


    As long as people have something they''re better at than others at, their mood would find it easy to rx.


    "So I won''t talk about the situation with Housen to anyone. I feel like this was very roundabout, but that was what I wanted to say today."


    "Alright."


    I appreciated him from the bottom of my heart, for his consideration for me.


    "Ah yes, let''s not talk about Housen again, but can I ask onest thing?"


    "If it''s something that I can answer."


    "Did you not think I would tell anybody else about the fight with Housen?"


    A sudden question, perhaps one that was bound to be asked during the conversation.


    If Sudou had been a witness, there was every possibility that I''d have to force him to keep quiet about it.


    Of course, just in case, I thought about asking Horikita to force his mouth shut about it, but after that night, and the full score in math afterwards, I could guess what he was thinking from Sudou''s eyes.


    "If it were the old Sudou, I probably would''ve arranged for it. I''d even go so far as to request Horikita to tell you to keep quiet."


    "If it were the old me?"


    "From the OAA evaluation, the one with the highest growth in ss D is you. Unlike the time when you were hotheaded, You''re now able to calmly assess the situation. That''s why I didn''t take any measures."


    This decision was based on my own analysis of Sudou Ken.


    But if it were another student such as Ike or Hondou in that situation, there could have been different developments.


    "I feel like... I''m being talked up to."


    Sudou had a surprised expression, and sighed in admiration.


    "I''m totally convinced. Doesn''t feel bad to know that you have a high opinion of me."


    Saying that, Sudou brought his face close to mine.


    "There''s one more question I''d like to ask. You and Suzune..."


    "We''re not dating."


    As I took my distance from the face that was far too close, I used a "it''s the truth" attitude to reply to him.


    "Oh..."


    The instant reply made Sudou skirt a bit.


    "For that, well, it''s not like I''m telling you not to date her. Suzune is free to go out with me, or you, or anyone else if she wants. But, well, if you''re deliberately hiding it, then I won''t have any mercy on you."


    "Okay, okay... If, by any chance, that happens, I''ll tell you right away, alright?"


    "Good. Wait, no, that''s not o�`! ...k, but, no, that''s fine."


    Now that he''d asked everything he wanted to ask, Sudou breathed out a sigh of relief.


    "It might be colding from a friend of Haruki, but I''m d you didn''t get expelled during the ss vote. There''s no doubt that you''re someone we need to rise up to ss A. See youter, Ayanokouji."


    Saying that, Sudou picked up his pace a little, and moved towards the ssroom.


    Was it meant to hide that we were talking to bystanders?


    "Someone we need to rise to ss A...huh."


    I never thought that I''d get such an evaluation from Sudou.


    However, I wasn''t the kind of person that the ss currently needed.


    There was no doubt that Sudou himself was indispensable to the ss.

 Chapter 68: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 68: 4.6</h4>


    After Ayanokouji left, Kiryuuin remained where she was.


    It was her daily routine to spend her time in leisure.


    In her vision, there suddenly appeared the swaying blonde hair that she had be ustomed to seeing.


    Next to him stood Kiriyama, the vice president of the student council, who had just left.


    "Hey hey, the loyal dog came back with his master eh?"


    "What...?"


    "If you''re getting mad at this, then that means that you know what I''m talking about. Right now, no one should know who''s the loyal dog and who''s the owner, as I don''t remember dering who was who. I''m simply stating from the perspective of an outsider who doesn''t know anything. Why? Because the one who left and as returned is you, Kiriyama, and so that fits the image of a loyal dog."


    Kiryuuin said this once again to the approaching Kiriyama, and Nagumo who was standing by.


    "This woman''s a real pain in the ass..."


    "You''ve got a dirty mouth, Kiriyama, it doesn''t suit the image of a serious vice president."


    "Nagumo, you''re wasting your time on this woman. You know that, right?"


    "Agreed. So can the two of you disappear from my sight right now? It''s a waste of my precious time."


    "Who the hell do you think you are? You''re the one-"


    "Kiryuuin, please don''t mock my beloved student council member."


    Nagumo tapped Kiriyama on the shoulder and interrupted him. He forced Kiriyama to move away a little, and stood in front of Kiryuuin.


    "A belovedrade? You didn''t say that with any sort of emotion at all."


    "That''s just your imagination."


    "Well. What does the student council president want from me? I thought I''d never see you again."


    "If possible, I too don''t want to stay here for longer than I have to."


    With that, Nagumo forcibly sat down beside Kiryuuin.


    "You''re beautiful but charmless, and I don''t have much interest in charmless women."


    "I have charm. It''s just that I haven''t met a man who could draw it out yet."


    "If there''s a man who can bring out the charming side of you, I''d like to meet him."


    "Me too. But putting aside your personal tastes, why aren''t I popr?"


    "Women with too high an ability are hard to deal with. Unfortunately, I don''t like those types either."


    "I see, if that''s the case then I''ll never be able to meet your standards. If being too excellent is the reason why I haven''t found a boyfriend, then I understand."


    After the meaningless banter with Kiryuuin, Nagumo got to the point.


    "I heard something from Kiriyama. I would have never thought that someone who wasn''t interested in both Horikita-senpai or I, would be interested in Ayanokouji. I was surprised when I heard that."


    "Is that why you havee to see me? The student council president has too much time on his hands."


    "I''ve finished my administrative work, so there''s a lot of free time."


    "You seem to have misunderstood something. I''m not a person who doesn''t care about other people, Nagumo. I talk to people I''m interested in. There was a time when I was interested in you and Horikita Manabu."


    Saying that, Kiryuuin gently stroked the ends of Nagumo''s bangs.


    "Your hair is well maintained. I know you take even better care of it than I do, a woman. I''m sure you''re extremely popr, student council president. How''s your love life been in these past 3 years?"


    "Someone who has never been with a man before, can understand the fundamentals of love?"


    "It''s true that I''ve never been in a rtionship, but that''s nothing to be ashamed of. Rather, I should say that it has raised my value?"


    "Like always, your way of thinking is rather strange."


    A meaningless conversation between them started up again, but Nagumo immediately returned to the topic at hand.


    "So... Ayanokouji? Is he someone worth keeping an eye on?"


    "Since he''s such a cute underssman, I paid him some lip service, but that''s all."


    "That''s it? So does that mean you don''t care anymore?"


    "I''ll leave it on hold for now. We had a face to face talk, but I wasn''t able to grasp his true motives. Although you can''t really call that an ability, he was at least more interesting than you, the student council president, who I lost my interest in."


    "You''re the only one in the 3rd year who can say such disrespectful things to me."


    Then Nagumo brought his mouth close to Kiryuuin''s ear and whispered.


    "If you think you''re better than me, then let me show you your ce, alright?"


    Nagumo challenged her to the uninhabited ind exam.


    "The moment you lose, you''ll lose something immeasurable, student council president. However, it seems you''ve misunderstood something, student council president. I''m not underestimating you. I don''t have the leadership skills that you or Horikita Manabu possessed. I''m no good at making friends either, in fact I''ve never had someone who I could consider a friend, let alone a close one. You know that, right?"


    Nagumo moved his mouth away from her ear, bored.


    "However, if we''re talking about the other elements, it''s different."


    Although he had moved his mouth away from her ear, the distance between their faces was less than 40 centimetres.


    Kiryuuin gazed at Nagumo with her sharp eyes.


    "Are you saying I''m inferior to you in some aspects?"


    "Well well, can you really say that there''s definitely nothing in which you''re inferior to me at?"


    "I have given you several chances to prove that, but till now you haven''t done anything, and as a result ended up in ss B."


    Up till now, Nagumo hadpeted with Kiriyama''s ss many times in the past special exams.


    However, Kiryuuin never helped, and they eventually fell from ss A to ss B.


    "Certainly, if you only look at the results, I failed miserably."


    Kiriyama simply red at Kiryuuin, who was merrily talking, but didn''t interfere with their conversation.


    "Well, I know that you''re not the type of person who cares much about being in either ss A or B."


    Marking the end of their conversation, Nagumo stood up.


    "Sorry for being a nuisance, Kiryuuin. Enjoy the remainder of your school life."


    Nagumo left her with those words, and prepared to leave.


    "Although I said I would put his evaluation at hold, I think he''s an interesting student."


    "What?"


    "You wanted some answers about Ayanokouji, didn''t you?


    One of the reasons for approaching her was to find out what Kiryuuin thought about Ayanokouji.


    "Interesting? I think his personality is far from it."


    Kiryuuinughed, as she saw that the fish had eaten the bait.


    "There''s a saying, that a predator doesn''t reveal his fangs, right? He seems to have gotten a perfect score in a difficult test."


    "There are people who hate being in the limelight and hide their talents. I''ve defeated all of them, and they weren''t very interesting."


    After he said that, Nagumo turned his attention to Kiriyama, who was waiting for him.


    "If I had to say, it''s his aura. I feel that he has a different aura from you and Horikita Manabu."


    "How abstract."


    "Then why don''t you test him?"


    "Of course, that''s what I''m thinking of doing. In the next uninhabited ind exam, I might be able to see his true power."


    "You seem to be bored ever since Horikita Manabu left. So this underssmen should be a good ymate for you, eh? If you''re really serious, then you''ll definitely get 1st ce in the uing exam."


    "Of course I''ll get 1st ce. Or maybe it''ll be Kiriyama, who''s been dying to fight me. But to get control of the whole podium, I still need more groups, right? I''ll give you this role, Kiryuuin. If necessary, I''ll even help you findrades."


    And now, he finally spoke about the main reason he contacted Kiryuuin.


    Kiryuuinughed, as if she understood.


    "I see. So you came here to ask for my help?"


    "Although letting the underssmen get 3rd ce wouldn''t be too bad, I''m not that soft."


    "You have a lot of pieces on the chessboard right? You don''t have to rely on me."


    "So you''re not interested?"


    "The top 50% is enough for me. Sorry that you had toe all this way for nothing."


    Nagumo seemed to be expecting that for his answer, and turned around.


    "That''s just how you are. We''re both 3rd years, but it seemed to be a waste of time to try to talk to you like that."


    Nagumo gave instructions to withdraw and headed over to Kiriyama.


    "Since you came all the way here, I''ll give you some tips."


    "You to me? Sorry, but I don''t need any advice from someone below me."


    "With that logic, nobody can give you any advice".


    Kiryuuin, who was behind Nagumo, continued talking after he mocked her.


    "Then listen as if this were a monologue. You should look at what''s going on in front of you, instead of ying with your underssmen. If you pay too much attention to those behind you, you''ll get badly hurt."


    "What a boring monologue."


    It was a waste of time to remain there any longer, so Nagumo left.

 Chapter 69 - 5: An Invitation

    <h4>Chapter 69: Chapter 5:?An Invitation</h4>


    As the prelude of the Uninhabited Ind Special exam came to an end, skirmishes red up from ce to ce, However these were but the final remnants of what was an extremely tense period. With only one week left, the group formation stage was entering its climax. By this point, more than 90% of the students at the school were in small groups of 2 or 3, and now their fates were bound together. Ishizaki, Matsushita, and the others who had invited me to join their groups had gradually given up on trying to do so. After all, theter you formed a group, the more danger you''d be in.


    I wonder what the remaining 10% will decide to do by next Friday. While I was pondering upon that, I received an email. It was a little after 9:30 AM on a Saturday morning, and the sender was Ishizaki from ss 2-B. I''ve been in touch with him a lottely, but this time, the content was different from what I usually received from him. He asked me toe to the cafe as Ryuuen was calling me. The wording of the email didn''t make it seem like a request, so I guess they weren''t giving me a choice in the matter..


    Of course, I could have turned him down, but then they would hold Ishizaki responsible for that. Although I had ns to hang out with the Ayanokouji Group today, they were thankfully for around 1:00pm, so this probably wouldn''t affect that. So I got ready, and 15 minutester, I was on my way to Keyaki mall.


    15 minutes would be enough to get there on time. As the group formation stage was just abouting to a close, it seemed like Ryuuen was breaking the silence he had maintained and was finally making his move.


    As of now, Ryuuen hasn''t formed a group with anyone. It is possible that he would invite me to his group, but I don''t think it was likely. Following this line of thought, I''m interested in what he would say beside that.


    On my way to the Keyaki mall, I ran into Kanzaki, who was probably on his way back from the convenience store.


    Two 2-liter stic bottles could be seen in his stic bag.


    "Going to Keyaki mall at this time?"


    "I won''t have any time to rx after the exam starts, after all."


    Since I had time to spare, I went up to him to talk.


    "It seems like most of the people in ss D have formed groups, but you''re still on your own?"


    "Unlike the others, I don''t have many friends, so."


    I was hoping to exchange a few jokes and have a light conversation, but Kanzaki remained serious.


    "You and Horikita, are both of you going to act as reinforcements for your ss''s groups? After all, excellent students could leave their mark in any group during the exam."


    Recently, as Kanzaki''s opinion of me rose, he also became more wary of me. Therefore, to him that must''ve seemed like the only possibility,


    "At least for now. You''re still solo, Kanzaki, so that must mean you''re performing that role as well."


    ss C''s Kanzaki was the same. He hadn''t teamed up with anyone yet.


    "Ayanokouji, Ichinose seems to trust you a lot, but can ''we'' really trust you?"


    "If I said you could trust me, would you, Kanzaki?"


    "I''d consider it, at least."


    The bottles chilled the air around them and water droplets condensed on them.


    The summer heat of over 30 degrees mercilessly came down upon us.


    "Although we''ve broken off the alliance, I don''t consider Ichinose to be an enemy."


    I told Kanzaki seriously. That wasn''t a lie.


    "That statement leaves a lot of room for interpretation. Are you saying you don''t consider ss C to be an enemy?"


    I thought I''d be able to sneak that past him with that, but Kanzaki''s guard was higher than I''d expected.


    "Kanazki, what do you want from me?"


    He seemed different than his usual self, almost like he was trying to push me into something.


    If I saw the direction he was trying to lead the conversation, I could get an idea of what he wanted.


    "Are you trying to get some sort of statement from me and have Ichinose to listen to it?"


    "You... Ichinose...no, we underestimated your perceptiveness. When we first met, I had this weird feeling, but I couldn''t quite put my finger on it. Finally, I can clearly see what it was. You''re the reason ss D is making such great progress."


    "Who knows?"


    "I''m simply going toe out and ask you for help. Ichinose trusts you a lot. That is why I want you to tell her yourself: the way she is right now, she isn''t good enough."


    A drop of water from the stic bag fell to the ground as he closed the distance between us.


    "So you''re expecting that to change the way Ichinose thinks?"


    "That''s right."


    "Sorry, but I can''t help you. I''d like to keep seeing her own way of dealing with things."


    "So you want to see us, your enemy, fall?"


    "I can''t fault you for reading too deeply into it, but..."


    I thought about it for a moment. At this stage, What fate awaited Ichinose was anyone''s guess. However, when she''s fallen so far the next fall would surely be herst...


    Just for a second, I was conflicted as to whether or not I should tell Kanzaki what I was thinking. However, I immediately stopped myself. Doing such an unnecessary thing I hadn''t ounted for wouldn''t improve the situation.


    Rather, it would only end up contaminating them.


    "Well, fundamentally speaking, one has to care of their own ss by themselves. Isn''t that right?"


    "...Yeah. I might have been too childish."


    Kanzaki bowed his head to me, as if he was regretting his actions.


    "I was going toe up with a solution on my own. But I thought there was a way to fix the problem without doing that, that there was an easy way out, so I tried to take it."


    Kanzaki walked back to his dormitory after saying that.


    As he was running out of options, he must''ve be desperate. But, as they say, a cornered rat can even bite the cat.


    In the next special exam, Kanzaki will also stand in our way as a formidable opponent.

 Chapter 70: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 70: 5.1</h4>


    I arrived at the cafe at Keyaki mall a little ahead of the appointed time. As I was paying for my drink at the counter, two guys who wouldn''t usually be together came up to me.


    One of them was Ryuuen, who had called me, and the other one was...


    "You said there was someone else, were you talking about Ayanokouji?"


    Kohei Katsuragi of ss 2-A looked at me with a stiff expression.


    I wouldn''t go so far as to say that they were like oil and water, but the two men in front of me were definitely not on great terms with each other.


    "What kind of meeting is this supposed to be, anyway?"


    "What, do you want to stand while we talk? Sit down."


    Ryuuen was smiling suspiciously. Following his instructions I took an empty seat.


    The atmosphere was peculiar, it was like nothing I had ever experienced before.


    "You never had the vibe of an ordinary student, Ayanokouji, but that was quite the trick you hid up your sleeve. Getting a perfect score on that test!"


    Katsuragi, who hadn''t even talked to me once since the beginning of the 2nd year, suddenly got down to business.


    "Kuku, don''t admire him too much, Katsuragi�C that''s in the past."


    "The past? You ought to be careful when an unexpectedly strong enemy appears. You''ve gotten too cocky after defeating Ichinose''s ss B."


    "Fuck off. Ichinose was off sinking on her own, she was never even on my radar."


    Sure enough, this unexpectedbination of people immediately built up a sinister atmosphere.


    "...So? Tell me why you called me."


    Katsuragi''s words confirmed that Ryuuen was the host of this meeting, and so I waited with him for Ryuuen to speak.


    "What''s the hurry? Just chill man!"


    "There''s no way I can chill. if people see me with you, I''ll be in trouble."


    Katsuragi was concerned about the people around him, so it wasn''t surprising that he urged Ryuuen to get to the point.


    Even though it was the morning of a day off, there were still a lot of students around.


    I was sure that our ssmates would be shocked to see us together.


    "What is ss A aiming for in the next exam?"


    "What do you mean, aiming for? I''m sure everyone is aiming for the same thing."


    "Are you aiming to monopolize the ss points? Or is it something else? I''ve checked the groupposition using the OAA, and while you guys seem to have formed groups with ss C and D, Kitou seems to be alone. And then, no matter how you spin it, Ichinose, Shibata and Sakayanagi being in a group together smells fishy. Are you working together?"


    I was also interested in that. In addition to the three people Ryuuen named, ss A''s Hashimoto, and Kamuro,had formed a group with one of ss C''s best students, Ninomiya. And then, the "More People" special card that Asakura was supposed to have, was now with Hashimoto from ss A. This couldn''t be a mere coincidence.


    "You''re free to interpret it however you want, but I cannot confirm anything."


    "I don''t want any of that diplomatic crap, I want just straight answers."


    "Then, let me make this simple for you. I''m not going to tell you anything about this, you bastard." Katsuragi explicitly dered.


    Even though Katsuragi and Sakayanagi were rivals in their ss, he would never reveal their ns to Ryuuen, who was their enemy.


    "Only on the day of the exam shall we know how Sakayanagi will act, and no one will know before she says so. If you want to know despite this, you should go ask her directly."


    "Oh, so you don''t know just because she doesn''t trust you?"


    "Well, that might be true."


    Like Ryuuen said, Katsuragi didn''t necessarily know the situation ss A was in. He was perhaps the only one in ss A who wasn''t a member of the Sakayanagi faction, and so was their enemy. It was a well-known fact that didn''t need to be mentioned.


    Anyway, all of this was just a preamble.


    "This is really sad, Katsuragi. This timest year, I considered you a worthy opponent in my strategies. However not a single trace of that person remains. It looks like it''s the end of the road for the loser of the faction war, eh?"


    "Didn''t you also lose to Ishizaki that one time?"


    Katsuragi retorted. Ryuuen wasughing throughout.


    "Don''t you want to crawl back to the top again? That Totsuka who was holding you back, he is gone now, right?"


    Katsuragi suddenly mmed his right fist onto the table. Because Yahiko admired him so much, he couldn''t hide his anger any longer.


    "If you wanted to make me angry, then you''ve seeded, Ryuuen. Are you satisfied now?"


    "What, you still can''t let those emotions out? I''m a little relieved."


    Ryuuen pped his hands thrice, and then said to Katsuragi.


    "Don''t you think it''ll be an interesting development if we manage to get Sakayanagi expelled from the next special exam?"


    "What?!"


    "If that girl isn''t here, then ss-A will cease to have a leader. That way, you''ll be able to return to your position as leader once again."


    "I don''t know what you''re nning to do, but that''s impossible. Even if you trap her on the ind, she has plenty of private points for relief. Also if by chance, something does incapacitate her, she still has protection points to fall back on."


    It was extremely difficult to get Sakayanagi, who had both enough private and protection points, expelled.


    "That''s true, if you want her gone, you''ll have to stab her at least twice. Well, getting her expelled in the next exam was a joke. The objective for the uninhabited ind exam isn''t to kick your enemies down, but to climb up."


    I could see Ryuuen gradually steer the conversation to the main topic of the meeting.


    "The reward for getting 1st to 3rd ce is enough to get within shooting distance of ss A, but the rules seem to be a bit troublesome. So, I wanted to prepare in advance."


    "Is this why you called me and Ayanokouji here?"


    "Exactly."


    No matter what the strategy was, I didn''t think Katsuragi would easily agree to it. Although I think Katsuragi didn''t consider Sakayanagi favourably at least, if he made an enemy of her, he would be striking at his own ss. Maybe it would''ve worked at the start of the leadership struggle, but now it would only have a negative impact.


    "Even so, Ichinose really did agree to team up with that woman. Did you guys butter her up well, or was it because she''s so ipetent that she thought that was all she could do? Right?"


    "I don''t know. And if Sakayanagi heard that question, she''d ask you the same thing. Not many people would like being on your team. You''re a delinquent, after all."


    Instead of betraying Sakayanagi, Katsuragi stood up for her with his reply.


    "In that case, everyone here''s that kind of delinquent."


    The three of us hadn''t formed a group with anyone yet, and were working alone.


    But why did he try to incite Katsuragi? It was obvious that Katsuragi wouldn''t betray Sakayanagi easily, no matter how much he tried to incite him.


    Or... was it to confirm that he wouldn''t betray Sakayanagi?


    "Good for you, Katsuragi. Obnoxiously righteous as always. Not bad."


    "ttering me won''t work, Ryuuen."


    Ryuuen finally decided to get down to business, and straightened his posture.


    "The most important thing about this special exam is to not lose any points from the 2nd year. I don''t want the 1st and 3rd years filling their pockets with my money. For that, we need to at least form an alliance, right? If you rely only on your own ss, you''llckbat power."


    At the time when the group formations tage wasing to an end, Ryuuen was proposing that we work together.


    "If the small fry in ss B were added into this group, then I''d be better off fighting alone, but if I can draw in some firepower from elsewhere, then it''d be a different story."


    He looked at Katsuragi with an evil smile.


    "No way, are you asking me to work with you?"


    "Not just you. Ayanokouji as well, who''s spaced out over there just listening to us talk."


    He then turned his attention to me.


    "... me too?"


    "Why would I call you here if you weren''t."


    I thought this was so unlikely, but he''s seriously asking me to help!


    "I refuse. Although ss A would get the rewards too, I don''t want to be on a team with someone like you."


    "What a rash decision. You''ve gotta hear me out till the end."


    "That''s not necessary. But�C Why did you call Ayanokouji? I want to know that first."


    "Why are you asking?"


    "It was surprising that he got a perfect score in math in the special exam at the end of April. I agree that he has a high ability in academics. But can you really say that he''s the right person to choose if you want to win?"


    Although Katsuragi immediately rejected the proposal to coborate, he expressed his doubts on Ryuuen''s strategy.


    He seemed to be unable to ept it, because this strategy was formted with me in mind.


    "You think I came up with a half-assed strategy?"


    "That''s right. If you get Ayanokouji in, it''ll reduce the ss point reward to one thirds each. Since you''re inviting me from ss A anyway, wouldn''t it be better to invite Kitou to the group? Besides, if we need three sses, Kanzaki from ss C is still alone, and he should''ve priority over Ayanokouji."


    Katsuragi acted as an advisor, rmending suitable candidates.


    "Someone who doesn''t know about him wouldn''t understand, but I made the right choice. Right, Ayanokouji?"


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about."


    I echoed Katsuragi, and shrugged as if to say I didn''t know why I''d been called.


    "Stop with that poor acting. You''re the man who beat me and shut me up."


    Ryuuen said that with nary a consideration for my preferences about that matter.


    Although it could be considered a joke, in this situation, Katsuragi didn''t seem to think so.


    "To shut you up?... Is that true?"


    He turned to Ryuuen and I to confirm if it was the truth.


    "Ah, I got my ass handed to me. Thanks to that, I almost decided to quit school."


    When he heard this, Katsuragi started connecting the dots.


    If he connected it with the fact that Ryuuen left the limelight at a certain point, it would be easy for him to imagine it.


    "Come on, admit it, Ayanokouji. Even if you continue to hide it from Katsuragi like that, I''ll just keep talking, yeah?"


    Saying all these unnecessary things, it''s almost as if he was threatening me.


    "Even if I do admit it, do you think I''ll help you?"


    "Well, like with Katsuragi, it won''t be that simple."


    Katsuragi, who was listening to us, sighed.


    "No, I can''t ept this after all. I can''t believe that Ayanokouji beat you. Coming back to what I said earlier, if you have three sses working together, even if youe in first ce, you''ll only get an average of 100 points. The gap between you and ss A will be impossible to close."


    Katsuragi strongly questioned the importance of this group''s existence.


    "Yeah yeah,pletely forgot about that. As an advisor, you''re certainty qualified."


    Ryuuen shed a grin as he said that and turned his attention to Katsuragi again.


    Even in this situation, Ryuuen maintained his frivolous attitude.


    "I see, proposing to join forces with three sses inefficiently, and sayingplete nonsense like Ayanokouji beating you, it seems like you didn''t intend to negotiate seriously from the beginning."


    Katsuragi, who still thought that Ryuuen was joking, prepared to leave his seat.


    "A serious negotiation? You knew that was impossible from the start, didn''t you? But you still came. Were you asked to spy for ss A?"


    Katsuragi agreed to a meeting that he could have refused.


    But indeed, there must have been a reason behind it.


    "You''re a dead man, and you''re looking for a chance toe back to life. Am I right?"


    Totsuka Yahiko, a great admirer of Katsuragi, was expelled from the school because of Sakayanagi.


    And now, Ryuuen was trying to find out if Katsuragi had forgiven Sakayanagi for doing so.


    "Whether or not that''s true, it has nothing to do with you."


    "Since you''re already here, hear me out to the end."


    "No matter what you say, there''s no chance of me working with you. It''s true that I have a semi-antagonistic rtionship with Sakayanagi. However, I don''t want to trouble my ssmates. I don''t want to work with you."


    Hearing Katsuragi''s words, Ryuuen pped his hands happily again.


    Looks like he was waiting for Katsuragi to say these words all along.


    "Don''t want to cause trouble for others? Sincest year''s uninhabited ind exam, you guys in ss A have been diligently transferring money to me every month because of that contract you made with me, did you forget that?"


    Katsuragi, still standing, shifted his attention to Ryuuen once again.


    "It was a fair contract, we got 200 points from your ss, and in return ss-A pays off the loan. All of my actions were only to lead ss-A along a better path."


    "Sure, if you only look at the numbers. However, what about the psychological impact that your ss suffers every month? Why should all of you have to share your private points with us for so long?"


    Humans were surprisingly greedy creatures. Even if they had agreed to pay in advance, they would still feel dissatisfied with their purchase. Month after month, Ryuuen continued to squeeze 20,000 points from every student in ss A. Even if there were one less person now, the total amount of private points taken from their entire ss was still 780,000. That was 9.36 million points a year. That would have been fine if the recipient was an ally of sorts, but continuously paying tribute to the man who posed the greatest threat to their position was something they wouldn''t be very happy about. And finally, the contract wasn''t signed by Sakayanagi, their current leader, but by Katsuragi, who had receded into the shadows by now.


    "It doesn''t feel good, does it, Katsuragi? Losing, and not being able to get revenge."


    "So... So what!?"


    Katsuragi got angry again, and it looked as if he was about to grab Ryuuen.


    As he had found what he wanted in those eyes, Ryuuen said:


    "Come to ss B, Katsuragi."


    Such an extremely bold invitation by Ryuuen.


    Katsuragi forgot his anger for a second as he contemted Ryuuen''s sudden proposal.


    "Are you crazy? You''re asking me toe to ss B?"


    "Of course, we''ll pay for the points you don''t have."


    "Even if you have the necessary points, why should Ie to ss B? You think I would give up my ce in ss A?"


    "I''ll soon defeat Sakayanagi, and then the entire ss A will fall. In other words, remaining in ss A is worthless, right?"


    Without Sakayanagi, their head, it would be difficult for ss A to continue fighting on the front lines.


    "How much do you have on hand?"


    "... About 1.8 million points."


    "What, you''ve been saving up after all! Even if you''re rotten, you''re still in ss A, eh?"


    It''s true, it was still far from the 20 million points needed. Even with the monthly remittances from the school and the money collected from ss A, it only added up to 800,000 points filling Ryuuen''s wallet every month. It would be really weird if he had even 10 million points on hand right now.


    Knowing that he would be rebuffed, he took out a piece of paper and put it on the table.


    "You''ve seen this before, yeah? It''s the contract I sighed with youst year."


    "... yes."


    "After negotiating with Sakayanagi, I''m giving this thing up for 5 million points."


    Although it was quite high, if you simply calcted the amount he would be paid until graduation, it was around 10 million points. Moreover, their psychological burden of constantly giving away their points to Ryuuen would be eliminated. No matter how you looked at it, it was a bad deal for Ryuuen.


    Of course, if he were to sell the contract for an immediate reimbursement albeit half the original value, Sakayanagi would be able to predict what Ryuuen would do with the money. In the case of this exam, it would be to make the best team, or to collect stronger cards.


    However, Sakayanagi epted such a favourable proposal despite knowing the risks.


    If I were Sakayanagi, I would have agreed to Ryuuen''s proposal as well.


    "Did you tell her that the points would be used for stealing me?"


    "Don''t tell me that you think Sakayanagi would reject the proposal if I said that?"


    "... No, it''s Sakayanagi, she''d ept it."


    Katsuragi didn''t think Sakayanagi would reject a proposal which had nothing but benefits for them.


    "You''re not going to get a chance like this again, Katsuragi."


    He would use money from nullifying the contract that bound Katsuragi, to steal him away.


    In other words, it''s paying a huge sum of 20 million points to Katsuragi.


    And it would allow Katsuragi to fight against Sakayanagi openly.


    "Why... Would you go that far for someone like me?"


    "Heh, Katsuragi, you have a surprisingly low opinion of yourself. Though, to be honest, you''re not going cheap."


    In the end, the only thing Ryuuen wanted to do was to beat ss A. Even if Sakayanagi was defeated and expelled, it was still not a good thing for Katsuragi to remain there. If Katsuragi, who valued defense, returned to his position as a leader, ss A would inevitably be a sturdy fortress.


    However, if Katsuragi left first, and Sakayanagi was expelledter, ss A would copse.


    That''s why Ryuuen was willing to pay as much as it takes.


    In addition to that, Katsuragi also had high individual ability. ording to the OAA, Katsuragi would be the top student in ss B.


    "The 5 million for nullifying the contract plus your current bnce. The remaining points have been collected from the ss. I''ve forced them into poverty to wee you to our ss!"


    Between May till the end of July alone, 39 people can umte nearly 6.5 million private points. The remainder would be about 200,000 private points per student. Of course, ss B''s funds would be exhausted for a short time, but if they could get a top student, it''d be worth it. Ryuuen took out another contract which he had prepared in advance. On it, the use of the 20 million points provided was written, as well as the arrangements for Katsuragi''s transfer to ss B.


    "Come on, sign it. Using 20 million points to change sses requires several conditions. You can''t force a person to change sses. In the end, the person must agree, and then use his or her funds to transfer to any ss of their choosing."


    The contract was to prevent Katsuragi from taking this huge sum of money and using it for other purposes.


    Well, even if Katsuragi really used this much money for whatever he liked, he would be suspected of fraud by the school.


    In other words, the purpose of this contract was not to prevent Katsuragi from doing anything dishonest.


    Instead, it was a contract to keep him from changing his mindter on.


    "You seem to be serious."


    "It all worked out, right, Katsuragi? You''ve been on your own until now, which makes it easier to invite you into our ss."


    If Katsuragi had grouped up with someone, this wouldn''t have happened.


    "This is your fate. ept it."


    After remaining quiet for a while, Katsuragi sat back down on his chair, as though he had thought it through.


    Katsuragi had buried his desire for vengeance against Sakayanagi in his heart.


    Ryuuen brilliantly exploited this, and sessfully brought him into his ranks. Thus, Katsuragi came under his banner. One thing was for sure, this would be of great benefit to Ryuuen''s ss. The gap with ss A had indeed been narrowed.


    Katsuragi slowly signed the contract.


    "Although I don''t really care that you brought me into your ranks, what exactly are you looking for? You won''t mind it if I speak my mind?"


    "Suit yourself. Your stubborn opinions mighte in handy sometimes."


    That was what Ryuuen said after receiving the signed contract. This was the first time in the history of this school that an individual had moved to another ss. However, instead of moving up to ss A, they went down to ss B. You could say it was a coincidence that these two circumstances ovepped. The first was that it was possible only because Ryuuen ruled his ss like a dictator, and could get their points with a singlemand. The second was that there was a person who was isted in ss A, and was disgruntled and vengeful towards the leader. For them, if there''s something to be worried about, it would be the fact that they would be fighting for their lives in the uninhabited ind exam. Since, the number of students who could afford the luxury of paying the penalty were limited.


    "Hey, Ayanokouji. What are you doing?"


    "Eh?"


    Ryuuen asked me with a baffled expression, as I poured water into the remaining one-fifth of the coffee.


    "Nothing. I was just wondering what it would taste like if I suddenly diluted the coffee 3 or 4 times the normal amount."


    After bluntly answering the question, both Ryuuen and Katsuragi looked even more bewildered than they did before.


    "...You''re a strange one, Ayanokouji."


    Katsuragi said that with a disgusted look on his face.


    "So, what are you going to do with Ayanokouji? If you include a student from ss D in the group, the rewards you''ll get will be split in two-thirds."


    "No one said anything about him joining the group."


    "Then, what do we need from him?"


    "Why, it''s the Trial card he received."


    Ryuuen mentioned the card that had been given to me.


    "Sell it to me."


    I thought he would request me to cooperate with him, but that was what this was about.


    "You just bought Katsuragi, so I''m sure your funding situation isn''t so good. Can you prepare enough money?"


    "I''ll be able to get 500,000 points or so. That should be enough."


    Indeed, this was the only chance I''ve got to sell the Trial card. Although I can''t say it''s a good deal, at least I can get some money for Kei.


    "I have one condition. Make a student in your ss that has a Half Off card exchange their card with one of our students that has the Free Ride card. If you ept that, I''ll sell the trial card to you."


    If she couldn''t form a big group of 6, and if Kei was hit with the penalty of expulsion with a group of 3 students, she could still limit the points she would have to pay for relief to 1 million using the Half Off card. Being able to definitively keep her safe was a big deal.


    "Kuku, I guess it''s settled then. Half Off card, eh? It just so happens that Katsuragi has it, right?"


    "I won''t have much money anyway. There would be no point in holding on to the Half Off card."


    So Katsuragi had been assigned the Half Off card.


    If Ryuuen has the Trial card and gets first ce, he can get 450 ss Points at once.


    With that ss B''s ss Points would also break the 1000 point barrier.

 Chapter 71: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 71: 5.2</h4>


    Soon, it was July 16th, the deadline for the formation of small groups.


    As I was doing my morning routine, I received a phone call from Ishizaki.


    "Yo, Ayanokouji. Morning."


    "It sure is rare for you to call me."


    "Today''s thest day for forming small groups, right? I have something important to talk to you about."


    "Is it about Nishino? Last I checked, she hadn''t formed a group."


    I hadn''t checked the OAA this morning though. Did the situation change?


    "In the end, she couldn''t find anyone in her ss to team up with, so she asked Ichinose to help her. Now, Tsube from ss C will help her out."


    Ah, Hitomi Tsube from ss 2-C. She was an excellent student with more than a B in both Academic and Physical Ability.


    "That''s great."


    "Yeah. That means almost all of us have formed a group of 2 or more people. Except..."


    There was a student in ss B who hadn''t formed a group yet.


    "Ibuki, right?"


    "Yeah. Ibuki''s on her own. Is there anyone who would group up with her?"


    "It''s risky to take the special exam by yourself. I understand how you feel."


    I could tell from the way Ishizaki spoke that he had tried to persuade her many times, but had failed.


    "Give me some time. I think I have an idea."


    "Seriously? Sorry about dumping this on you so early in the morning!"


    I told Ishizaki that I would call himter, and then hung up.


    Then I decided to try and contact someone who might group up with Ibuki.


    Fortunately, that person hadn''t left the dormitory yet, so I decided to meet her in the lobby.


    In the elevator after mine was Horikita, the person I was waiting to meet.


    Horikita was also one of the few students who, even now, didn''t seem like they were about to group.


    "What are you going to do about your group?"


    "It''s toote to bring that up. Anyway, I''m not going to group up with anyone this time. If you consider that the maximum number of people in a group is 6, it''s not a bad idea to go alone."


    "I know you''re doing that so you can act as the situation demands. But what if you get sick and are eliminated? If you can''t pay the incredibly high penalty, you''ll be expelled."


    I know I don''t need to go out of my way to remind her of that, but.


    "I am aware that I''ll have to bear that amount of risk. Isn''t that why you''re not in a group as well?"


    "But, my risks and your risks are different."


    "What''s the difference?"


    "You had a problem with your health during the uninhabited ind examst year."


    "I can''t believe you''re bringing up something which happened a year ago. Anyone can get sick."


    "Yeah. However, you also took a break in the winter due to a fever. That makes it twice in one year."


    "You just happened to spend the year without taking a leave of absence. Do you think that means you won''t get sick this time?"


    "In terms of taking care of myself, I''m more confident than you are."


    When faced with the fact that I had perfect attendance, she had to ept this.


    "I see. It''s true that I''m not as good as you at taking care of myself. I admit that. But even if that''s the case, making it out as something to be worried about�C"


    Horikita looked into my eyes. Her tone had started to heat up earlier, so she calmed herself down.


    "It''s enough that you know. I had no intention of opposing you."


    One must thoroughly take care of their health.


    If she was strongly aware of that, then it was fine.


    "But even so, it''s dangerous to go alone."


    "Yeah."


    "In our ss, only you, I, and Koenji haven''t formed a group yet, us three. The rest of our ssmates have formed a small group of at least two people. It''s safer to form a group of two, if possible."


    "You and Koenji are the only ones left in the ss. That means there''s no way to form a group anymore."


    "That''s only in our ss."


    "Are there any girls left who haven''t formed a group?"


    "Ah, there''s one person I can think of."


    "Who are you talking about?"


    "Ibuki from ss 2-B. Didn''t you check the OAA?"


    "Well,st I checked I did notice that she was alone."


    "Ishizaki is worried because Ibuki doesn''t have anyone to group up with. How about grouping up with her for the special exam, Horikita?"


    "Me and Ibuki?"


    "If it''s two girls, you can merge with any other small groupter. Why don''t we just hear them out?"


    "That''s true, having some kind of insurance would be better... All right, I''ll hear her out."


    Maybe she just couldn''t ignore this, and so, promised to meet with Ibuki.


    I contacted Ishizaki and asked him to meet me during the lunch break.

 Chapter 72: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 72: 5.3</h4>


    During the lunch break, I took Horikita to where I was supposed to meet Ishizaki.


    "Hey, Ayanokouji! Over here!"


    Ishizaki was practically hopping as he arrived, and when he saw me from afar he waved his hand.


    Next to him was Ibuki, who was staring at me with her arm folded in displeasure.


    "Did she agree to this?"


    "From the look on her face, I''m not sure."


    Looks like she was in a bad mood after hearing the ns of forming a group.


    I guess Ishizaki brought her here without exining the situation in much detail.


    "Hurry up ande over!"


    Ishizaki exuded the enthusiasm of a bunny.


    "You seem to be close friends."


    Horikita was slightly creeped out by Ishizaki''s attitude.


    "He''s a nice guy."


    "Even so, I wouldn''t get too close to him."


    He was simr to Sudou in terms of enthusiasm, but Ishizaki was different in his own way.


    "What''s going on? Why are Ayanokouji and Horikita here?"


    Ah, so she wasn''t told beforehand.


    Horikita and I looked at each other. It wasn''t smart to let Ishizaki do the talking here.


    "Actually, there''s something we wanted to discuss, so I asked Ishizaki to call you, Ibuki."


    I had no choice, so I started to exin on the spot.


    "And?"


    "I heard that in the next special exam, you''re going to gopete by yourself?"


    "That''s my choice."


    She replied curtly, as if there was no room for discussion.


    "I''ve told you a few times, that it''s better to group up."


    "I don''t need it."


    "Well, you say that but the fact is there''s no one who wants to team up with you."


    Ishizaki just had to say something. Was he trying to help her or get in her way?


    I turned to him, and remained silent.


    "Huh? What''s wrong, Ayanokouji?"


    But... Ishizaki didn''t understand my intentions, and questioned me instead.


    "It''s nothing. By the way, Horikita here is the same as Ibuki, she hasn''t teamed up with anyone yet."


    "So?"


    "Next exam, if you don''t form a group, you''ll be at a disadvantage. Even if it''s not three people, if at least the two of you form a group, then even in the worst case scenario, if one of you gets eliminated, you''ll be able to continue."


    She should now understand what I meant.


    "And there''s not much time left before the deadline."


    "Don''t tell me you want me to group up with Horikita?"


    "Well, that''s about right."


    "Ha? Who died and made you boss?"


    "Apart from your physical ability... You''re not much good at anything else."


    "Hey, you too, don''t say whatever you want"


    Ibuki impetuously drew close.


    Then she stared at Ishizaki, who was standing behind her with an absent-minded look on his face.


    "You too, you want me to group up with Horikita to help them out, don''t you?"


    "I didn''t know it would be Horikita, but wouldn''t it be great if you formed a group?"


    "I already hate this guy a lot, but my hatred for Horikita is even higher than that."


    ''This guy'', I think she was referring to me. That was polite. Using her finger to directly point at the person in front of her.


    "Ayanokouji, she doesn''t seem to like you very much."


    "I didn''t even realize it. Although, she seems to hate you even more than me."


    "I''m honored."


    Ibuki seemed stung by Horikita and I whispering to each other, and didn''t bother hiding her displeasure.


    "I don''t know if Horikita asked you or whatever the reason, but there''s no way I''m going to team up with that girl."


    It seemed like she really had a grudge against Horikita.


    She stubbornly refused to listen to what I had to say.


    "Ah, but I don''t remember saying I wanted to be in a group with you."


    Observing Ibuki''s attitude, Horikita attempted to provoke her.


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    "Looks like you''ve got things mixed up. You''ve been left behind because nobody wanted to be with you, and I didn''t group up with anyone because I wanted to fight alone. Although we''re both lone wolves, our situations are not the same.


    Horikita replied, almost astonished. However, it lit a fire in Ibuki, and she said:


    "I''m also on my own because I want to be. Anyway, you say you want to go it alone, that''s perfect. It''s a challenge, Horikita!"


    She shifted her gaze from me to Horikita.


    "Can I ask you something? Why do you want to fight me? It''s true that wepeted at the uninhabited ind exam and during the sports festival, but that wasn''t anything special right?"


    "You''re the only one who thinks that."


    As far as I know, Ibuki beat Horikita in their fight on the uninhabited ind, but Horikita won in the 100 meter race at the sports festival.


    One win, one loss. Though it''s hard to say that they were at their best. Horikita had a high fever during the uninhabited ind exam, so that was a big disadvantage for her while during the sports festival Ibuki was so fixated on Horikita that she lost her pace in the sports festival. In other words, there was no way to determine who was better.


    Even on the rooftop, after I beat both Ryuuen and Ibuki, she still challenged me againter on.


    In short, she''s the kind of person who can''t ept anything until she knows for sure who was the stronger one.


    This time, she wanted topete against Horikita in the uninhabited ind exam through survival.


    If you think about it that way, there was no way that Ibuki and Horikita would be able to work together.


    "It seems like this was a waste of time."


    "Wait. Do you ept? Or no?"


    "I am going in alone, but I''m not choosing to work alone throughout. When the special exams start, I''ll merge with another group if necessary."


    If it had been a one-on-one match it would be possible to decide the winner, but now it wouldn''t be a fair fight.


    "Lame!"


    "Lameness Isn''t a reason to change the way I take the test."


    Letting Ibuki know that she was wasting her energy, Horikita rebuffed her.


    "If you insist on fighting alone, then even if I form a group, try not to lose. If you win, then I''ll recognise you a bit."


    "...Not better."


    Looks like negotiations seem to have broken down as it was impossible for Horikita and Ibuki to team up.


    However, provoking her until the end would definitely have strengthened Ibuki''s resolve to fight on her own. I softly apologized to Ishizaki, and then went back to the ssroom with Horikita.


    "You knew from the start that Ibuki wouldn''t be able to ept it, right? You''re too kind."


    "I wanted to provoke her into doing something reckless in order to disqualify her."


    Horikita wasn''t being honest with herself, but this kind of answer felt very much like her.

 Chapter 73: Epilogue: The Calm Before the Storm

    <h4>Chapter 73: Epilogue:?The Calm Before the Storm</h4>


    The end of the first semester hade much sooner than I had anticipated.


    We had to move on to our next objective as soon as possible.


    It''s been a year since west left school and headed for the port, where we boarded arge passenger ship to some unknown deserted ind. This time not even a moment of respite was given, and tomorrow morning, the special exams would be announced to start. The students, who were told to gather in the ssroom for a brief exnation, went to their sses, waiting for their homeroom teacher to show up. Meanwhile, there was a brief checklist on the screen with reminders like, "Is there anything you have forgotten?"


    You were allowed to bring a change of underwear for up to a week, which was necessary to maintain hygiene. Cell phones were required, but they''d probably be confiscated at the start of the exam. Even if you were allowed to bring one, there wouldn''t be a signal on the ind, so it''d just be extra baggage. They were probably there for paying your penalty or buying items on the ship.


    While waiting for the sound of the bell to signify the start, Keisei, who seemed to be once again checking to make sure he hadn''t forgotten anything, came to my seat with a grim expression on his face.


    "Honestly, surviving on an uninhabited ind isn''t something very good at. You might as well ask me to catch a cloud."


    "It''s no wonder, given it''s so far from the norm."


    "But it''s even harder on the girls, so I can''t reallyin."


    Unlike boys, there are some predicaments unique to girls, so this kind of exam would be even more difficult for them.


    Of course, the school had done their best to take it into ount but that didn''t make the hard part of the exam any easier.


    "Although we''repeting in different groups, I still want to do what I can to help out."


    Although it was a special exam he wasn''tfortable with, Keisei was determined to do everything he could to protect hisrades.


    "Yeah. There should be some way we can cooperate, so I''ll lend a hand when the timees."


    I promised to help them as much as I could.


    "But, are you alright going alone? If you get sick, it''s over. If by any chance you receive the penalty, you''d have to pay 6 million points... It''d all be over in an instant."


    "My perfect attendance record at least until now is one of the few things that I''m proud of."


    "You''re starting to sound a bit sarcastictely, you know?"


    Keisei, who wasughing, returned to his seat. Shortly after, the bell rang to announce a new battle, and the 39 members of ss 2-D took their seats.


    As she entered the ssroom, Chabashira''s natural expression turned serious, and the atmosphere grew heavy.


    "It''s the start of summer vacation today, but you guys look like you''re having a tough time. Well, I suppose that can''t be helped."


    Chabashira activated the screen and her tablet.


    "Then we''ll start with the final check. If you''re not feeling well now, you have to report it."


    Confirmation of personal belongings and physical condition. After that, the schedule and necessary items were disyed again. Fortunately, there were no sick students in ss 2-D, so everything went by smoothly. Koeunji was obedient, which was to be expected of a student who chose to fight alone instead of in a group.


    "No problems, that''s great."


    Chabashira turned off the monitor a few minutester, after confirming all the necessary things before leaving for the exam.


    Then, to get everyone''s attention, she gently tapped her hand once on the lectern.


    "This is not your first time taking a special exam. You have been fighting in this school for more than a year, and have ovee all manner of hardships. Nheless, this special exam will not be easy to pass."


    It was advice from Chabashira, or you could say it was a sort of warning.


    The teacher''s advice to our ss 2-D is that we should never getcent.


    "It''s inevitable that this exam will be harder than anything else you''ve faced before."


    Chabashira intently looked at the students, as if she were trying to imprint each student''s face onto her mind.


    "I''ve only got one wish for all of you. If you can, don''t let a single one of your ssmates disappear, and return to this ssroom once again."


    Chabashira hoped that this exam wouldn''t be a one way ticket for us.


    "We''ll gather in the court in 10 minutes for a roll call. Remember to go to the bathroom first, if you need to."


    Since we didn''t have much time, the students left in a hurry.


    When Akito and the group gathered around my seat near the entrance, I stood up with my luggage.


    Almost at the same time, Kouenji stood up and spoke to one of the students instead of the hallway.


    "Can I talk to you for a minute, okay? Horikita girl."


    It was a rare behavior that attracted not only mine, but also the attention of the students who remained in the ssroom.


    "It''s rare for you toe to talk to me of your own volition."


    It seems Horikita felt the same.


    "There''s something I''d like to talk about regarding the special exam that''s about to begin."


    "Oh my, you finally feel like helping us, right?"


    "Let''s just say that you''re half right."


    Horikita looked suspicious upon hearing Kouenji''s unexpected words.


    I knew very well that Kouenji wasn''t the type to help others that easily.


    "What''s your objective? Can you tell me the other half of what you mean to say?"


    "The ss points for the top three groups. You have an EXTREME DESIRE for them, right?"


    "Of course. Depending on how many points we can get, the order of the sses could change by a great magnitude."


    "Then let me make a suggestion, alright? If I get a good result on the uninhabited ind exam, I want you to promise me full FREEDOM."


    The ss went silent for a moment, due to Kouenji''s inconceivable statement.


    Although it had a condition, he expressed his intention to seriously participate in the special exam.


    "Promise you full freedom... That''s an unexpected proposal. Allowing you to continue and do as you please, as you did before, right?"


    "Exactement! Not only should I be allowed that, but you should also work hard to remove every obstacle in my way like a dray horse, you know?"


    So he''s saying, for example, likest year''s ss Vote, if a special exam was held in the future to expel students not needed in the ss, she''d have to protect Kouenji unconditionally.


    "That''s not something I can easily agree to. Everyone else in the ss probably feels the same"


    If you were in this ss, helping out was the minimum obligation..


    It wouldn''t be easy to obtain permission to simply watch on like a spectator.


    "Consider it to be an advance payment before graduation."


    He''d make a contribution to the ss for the next special exam, and from there on he''d do whatever he wanted, this was the sort of deal he wanted.


    "Looks like you too can feel the crisis looming over your head. Your ssmates won''t just forgive your carefree speech and antics forever. If a special exam like the ss vote is held again, you''d be made into their scapegoat."


    Even for the weirdo Kouenji, avoiding a crisis would be difficult depending upon the exam''s contents.


    "There''s no need for such drastic proposals. Can''t you just be like everyone else?"


    Naturally, Horikita kicked away and rejected Kouenji''s proposal.


    But even if she rejected it now, Kouenji wouldn''t have helped us in the future special exams anyway.


    If he does, it''d only be when he was cornered.


    If that was the case right now, getting him to give his all only on this exam was certainly an option, but...


    "Sorry Kouenji-kun, I put too much value on your talent to let you do "just alright" on this exam and be a spectatorter on. It just doesn''t sit right with me."


    After taking various factors into ount, Horikita came to this decision.


    "I see. In other words, negotiations have broken down, right?"


    "��-Not exactly. If I can add some conditions to it, it''d be an eptable proposal."


    Although she might have rejected it, Horikita seemed to have other ideas.


    "A vague answer like getting a good result won''t do. The school has prepared a reward for the group that finishes in 1st ce in this exam. If you get first ce on your own, that might be reason enough for us to consider this an advance payment till graduation."


    If Kouenji, who wasn''t in a group with anyone, won alone, he''d receive 300 ss points. It was probably enough to pay for the total contribution he would have been expected to make before graduation. Nheless, taking 1st ce among over 100 groups wouldn''t be easy, even for Kouenji.


    "I see, I see. Certainly, you seem like you will be satisfied if I get 1st ce by myself, riiight?"


    Kouenjiughed loudly at this good deal.


    "No problem, let''s consider this a done deal!"


    "No, that''s not enough."


    Kouenji made a gesture as if he was going to ept this ridiculous proposal, but Horikita immediately added that it wasn''t enough yet.


    "I haven''t finished telling you my conditions yet. I''ll have to work with you because of your big talk, but if we don''t get first ce in the end, it''s a problem for us too."


    "In other words?''


    "If you don''t get first ce, then you will have to help the ss in the future, such as the next special exam, and get results. You have to make this promise to me."


    At this moment, I could clearly hear Keisei''s breathing next to me, as he watched the entire spectacle unfold. You could call this a beautifully added condition. If by any chance Kouenji came in first ce, it would be fine. Even if he didn''te in first, he''d have to contribute to the next special exam as an additional condition. No matter what happened, ss D had nothing to lose.


    Now it was up to Kouenji to decide if he''d ept the additional condition...


    "I see that you''ve given a confident ORDER, Horikita girl."


    "If you agree to the aforementioned conditions, I''ll ept your proposal."


    "Then it''s a deal. Horikita girl, please don''t forget the conditions I mentioned."


    Even if there was an additional condition, Kouenji expressed that he wouldn''t refuse them.


    "Do you really n to win first ce by yourself?"


    "After all, there is nothing I can''t doooo."


    Even though Horikita had such an insane condition, Kouenji confidently epted it, which surprised her.


    "Then, since we''ve finished talking. I''ll be taking my leave."


    Kouenji seemed to be satisfied with the agreement reached in the negotiation and left the ssroom.


    No one spoke to Kouenji, and only watched him leave.


    "I have no idea how serious Kouenji will get this time..."


    "Well, that''s true."


    "But this is a rare opportunity. I have managed to get him to promise us his futuremitment in the end."


    Although I honestly didn''t think you could trust him, this was an unprecedented development.


    In order for him to live a carefree school life, Kouenji needed corresponding backup. If he continued to do whatever he wanted like before, he would fall down in priority of the students that should be protected. Even if he didn''t say anything this time, he''d be forced to take countermeasures at some point down the line.


    However, if Horikita, the leader of ss D, acknowledged his n, it would be a different story.


    "If he actually could get a rank in the top spots, it would be great, we could surpass the other sses like that."


    Horikita said, turning her attention to me.


    "Wee in first, and Kouenjies in 2nd or 3rd. If we can do that, our ss will gain a huge advantage, and we''ll be able to redeem ourselves after falling behind up to now."


    If you did some simple calctions, if ss 2-D gained 400, or 500 ss Points, the total ss Points we have would reach 700-800 in total, and that would be enough to take us to ss B in one go.


    And on top of that, Kouenji would have to leave his mark in the next special exam as well...


    "Well, there''s one part that I''m ufortable with. I can never anticipate what Kouenji is going to do."


    Whether it be academic or physical ability, if you talk about whether he is fulfilling his true potential or not, he probably isn''t. The only thing that''s certain is that he''s extraordinarily talented.


    "That''s true, but to easily take the top spot is apletely different matter altogether."


    The fiercepetitors and representatives of the other sses, Sakayanagi, Ichinose, and Ryuuen, were also aiming for that very same goal.


    Of course, that wasn''t all. From what I''ve gathered till now, there was the up anding group of the first years consisting of Housen and Amasawa. Then there were the elites of the 3rd year- Nagumo, Kiriyama and Kiryuuin. All of whom were aiming for first ce.


    Although I haven''t actually said it aloud till now, I''m going in this exam with the goal of getting a high spot for myself.


    Who was going to make their throne on top of the hill in 2 weeks time?


    And who would be leaving the school?


    Our long summer was about to begin.


    Part 1


    "We''re inte July already. It''s certainly getting hotter, right?"


    Tsukishiro mumbled as he looked down at the numerousrge busses entering the school.


    "Yes, you are right."


    A first year student replied back without any emotions behind those words.


    Tsukishiro didn''t face them and continued talking.


    "Please, are you done with your analysis yet? Prolonging it anymore won''t help you."


    "You''re saying I should�� expel Ayanokouji Kiyotaka?"


    "Is that too much for you?"


    "It''s confirmed that he isn''t an easy opponent to beat. No, it''s something we''ve known from the very beginning."


    "I''ll cooperate as much as I can. That being said, I can''t possibly provide any more support than this."


    Hearing this, the student remembered how Tsukishiro was pressuring them forward with this n.


    "You mean you''ve been forced to be unreasonable?"


    "Yes. I''ve been quite unreasonable with pressuring for an increase in the budget for this special exam. More importantly, I''ve also been forced to silence the school authorities about the strict rules I ced for the exam, after all."


    "So it will be difficult to continue as the temporary chairman?"


    "Probably. The allegations against Chairman Sakayanagi should have cleared by now. I can see my role here ending soon. That''s why I''ve prepared some splendid fireworks for the end. I want you to expel Ayanokouji Kiyotaka by any means necessary, is that clear?"


    "��Yes. I won''t hesitate anymore."


    "That''s good to hear. In that case, you''re free to go berserk during this...special exam. Once everything is taken care of, you will also return to your previous life. We will both return to the ''ce'' we are supposed to be."


    A girl''s left hand was tightly clenched upon hearing this as if it were brimming with natural power. Tsukishiro gently smiled upon seeing that from his side view.


    "I''m expecting great things from you�� Nanase Tsubasa-san."

 Chapter 74: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori SS – An excuse

    <h4>Chapter 74: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori SS �C An excuse</h4>


    Me and Albert-kun were waiting quietly on standby right around the corner.


    We could hear the voices from the energetic Ishizaki-kun and the calm Ayanokouji-kun from a slight distance.


    To create the small group for the special exam which was scheduled to be held on an uninhabited ind.


    Our first choice of student to invite wasn''t Sakayanagi-san, Ichinose-san or even Horikita-san. I and Ishizaki-kun both shared this sentiment.


    Ishizaki-kun''s idea to call out to Ayanokouji and invite him before anyone could was probably right.


    Before long, we appeared before Ayanokouji-kun who showed a surprised look at the sight of Albert-kun.


    ?Good day, Ayanokouji-kun.?


    ?That''s quite an unusual mix of members you have there.?


    ?Maybe so.?


    Us three usually didn''t move together as a group so Ayanokouji had all the right to think it was strange.


    ?This isn''t quite the ce this, let''s move!?


    ?Move? To where??


    ?Hmm, let''s see... I haven''t really thought of that!?


    It was a rushed n so it was no wonder Ishizaki-kun hadn''t nned anything after this.


    I could easily have said something to him, but I decided to not advise him on anything.


    ?I have a really bad feeling about this so, can I leave now??


    He probably sensed the danger in front of him so he asked if he could go back.


    ?What''s sup with that, aren''t you free right now? We won''t let you go!?


    Our breaths in sync, I and Albert-kun went behind Ayanokouji-kun.


    ?You won''t let me leave... what??


    ?I am sorry Ayanokouji-kun! But we can''t let you leave!?


    Albert has holding his nk in a tight grip.


    And I secured his other arms to prevent him from escaping.


    ?Wha...??


    He didn''t expect us to use force so it was no wonder he looked so confused.


    But the truth is, even if we invited him with forceful means, I already predicted it would be futile.


    He was probably going to join one of the groups made up only by ss D students, or he would go solo.


    In either case, a person who was likely to be the key to their victory wouldn''t be able to join any other sses that easily.


    But even so, I chose to encourage Ishizaki-kun''s n and apany him with it.


    ?We are attracting to much attention here so let''s move on Ishizaki-kun.?


    If you want to know why, I only wanted to...


    Yes, I only wanted... to meet Ayanokouji-kun.


    I decided to cooperate since I wanted an excuse.


    I put slightly more force into my embrace.


    I was looking forward to the time we would spend together, even for just a second longer��

 Chapter 75: Short Story 2 : Amasawa Ichika SS – What is Reflected in Her Eyes

    <h4>Chapter 75: Short Story 2 : Amasawa Ichika SS �C What is Reflected in Her Eyes</h4>


    I was wearing my favourite clothing that day while humming a song.


    ?Will he think I''m cute??


    I''ve been keeping an eye on Karuizawa Kei from ss 2-D for almost 2 weeks.


    She''s been going to the caf��, the karaoke, all over the Keyaki mall really.


    Her ymates were the girls from her ss, so that time was a waste to me.


    Thanks to me oveing this hardship and hanging on until the very end, finally, this day hase.


    Karuizawa was returning straight to the 2nd year dorm today, a bit unusual.


    As if it was intuition, I rushed out to the lobby on the first floor and watched her as she went inside her own room.


    After waiting for a bit, I took the elevator and arrived a the floor where her room was.


    And while I was waiting for her toe out, I stood on standby close to the emergency stairs while holding my breath.


    One hour after the school ended, she appeared in the corridor wearing her school uniform.


    Looks like she''s ready for her secret date.


    My heart was dancing as I confirmed she went to the Ayanokouji-senpai''s floor. I quickly left the 2nd year dorm and returned to my own room.


    ?Hmm, perfect!?


    It was done in a really bothersome order, but now I can change into some cute clothes!


    It''d be a waste if I''m not cute enough.


    ?Ah, yes yes! Can''t forget this.?


    I slipped a small, amorous box I''d bought at the convenience store earlier into my pocket.


    After finishing changing my clothes, I quickly left the first year dorm.


    I wanted so much to go straight to the 2nd year dorm, but I headed towards the Keyaki mall first.


    I then quickly threw whatever food ingredients in the shopping cart.


    I wasn''t particr with the ingredients I chose.


    I picked up vegetables, fresh meat products, things that spoiled easily in general and went to pay.


    Then, I once again headed towards the 2nd year dorm.


    Luckily, it was at that time Nomura Shuuji also returned so I followed him from behind and got past the auto lock.


    I used the emergency stairs and headed for room 401 where Ayanokouji-senpai and Karuizawa were.


    My heart was beating fast and I tried to calm myself until I reached the door of his room.


    I assumed I would be seen through the peephole on the door so I hid the bag with the fresh ingredients in a dead corner.


    Okay! All preparations are done!


    I rang the door chime and began the visit without prior notice.


    After a lingering silence, I felt senpai through the door.


    ?Se~npai.?


    I called out to him in a sweet voice. He must be watching me at this moment.


    His sight must have been anchored to the sight my cute appearance reflected in that little lens.


    But that wasn''t enough.


    I had to make him know me even more.


    For that reason, I have to make him invite me into the room using whatever means.


    It''s alright. I can predict all the ways he will try to reject me.


    Two arrows, three arrows. No matter how many fire, he will lose the means to fight back.


    To get close to a strong opponent, it was necessary to pierce at their weaknesses.


    I will thoroughly aim at his few weaknesses.


    As I saw the door slowly being opened, I made a big smile.


    ?It''s me!?


    I wonder what face he will wee me with... I''m looking so forward to that.

 Chapter 76: Short Story 3 : Horikita Suzune SS – He Who Stands Beside Me

    <h4>Chapter 76: Short Story 3 : Horikita Suzune SS �C He Who Stands Beside Me</h4>


    ?You wish to join the student council??


    When I told him I wanted to join the council, president Nagumo looked surprised at me.


    ?I wonder, what in the world happened to you for this to happen? I''ll honestly say I somehow don''t want to say yes.?


    ?So that means you won''t ept me then??


    ?That''s not it. I''m just taking the stance of not rejecting anyone whoes to me. If there are any free positions or it''s possible to enter, I''ll let anyone in. I''m also not interested in their motives. Whether it''s for the OAA''s sake, future job prospects or sense of justice, it''s all up to you. But, you are different, Horikita Suzune. I have to insist on a condition for you.?


    As Horikita Manabu''s sister, it seems it was necessary for me toplete some kind of task.


    ?What is that condition??


    I prepare myself to receive it and ask him.


    ?Tell me the reason why you, at this point in time, want to join the student council.?


    It wasn''t something I had imagined, but I can''t refuse still.


    Even if I made some stupid lie here, he surely won''t be surprised.


    That being said, I can''t mention it was rted to Ayanokouji-kun either.


    ?I had a discord with my brother. And I enrolled into this school to make peace. But ever since I entered, my rtionship with my brother never changed. He never would have epted someone like me who actually never showed any signs of growth. I spent a whole year without being able to have a properly talk with with until the veryst moments.?


    I answered, feeling my heart beating faster.


    And he who listened close by didn''t say anything either.


    If it all ended without me able to enter the council, he would surely be disappointed.


    I want to avoid that at all costs.


    Disappointed? I? Did I want to avoid disappointing him?


    My heart was rocked by this feeling I hadn''t realised.


    How was he seeing me right now?


    I was a bit interested in that.


    The fact he wasn''t a normal student was something I knew even before he got that perfect score in maths.


    President Nagumo who was speaking in front of me and acknowledged by my brother is certainly an amazing student, no doubt about that... but ifpared to Ayanokouji-kun that impressions strangely changes everything.


    There was no doubt I unconsciously valued him highly, though.


    While a part of me wanted to learn of his true abilities, I realised there was another one who wanted something else.


    I wanted him to acknowledge me, that is.


    Maybe one of the reasons I went to join the council with a positive attitude was because of that?


    ...That wasn''t my intention.


    I waved away these odd thoughts I had. I had to focus on the things I had to do first.


    I had to enter the student council and confirm President Nagumo''s movements.


    That was a crucial task.


    I took the reins of the feelings that started deviating, and waved away these idle thoughts I had.


    ?There are no other student council members from the 2nd grade aside for Honami right now so we''ve been troubled by that. Wee to the Student Council. I''ll have you work hard as a council member from today, Suzune.?


    I took his left hand he held out towards me.


    ?Of course.?


    It would never be an amicable rtionship.


    But, there was certainly things I could learn from him who stood beside my brother.


    I will take that experience and once again grow.


    By doing so, Ayanokouji-kun will surely acknowledge me.


    By that time... we definitely will be right on the doorsteps to ss A.


    That was a premonition I couldn''t shake away.

 Chapter 77: Short Story 4 : Tsubaki Sakurako – What Could Be Seen From That Back

    <h4>Chapter 77: Short Story 4 : Tsubaki Sakurako �C What Could Be Seen From That Back</h4>


    If I was asked about what I was best at, I would without hesitation say it was my insight and intuition.


    On the way back to the dorms from the Keyaki mall.


    I was watching Ayanokouji-senpai''s back disappear inside a convenience store.


    I had been silently trailing him until now, but he hadn''t shown any signs of having noticed me.


    But, he had definitely noticed me.


    His usual mannerism, his behaviour, was like that of a normal high schooler.


    He looked just like a normal student you could find anywhere.


    I stayed a proper distance from him, and took one lollipop I saw close to me before calling out to him.


    But still, there was no need for me to assume that possibility after all I guess.


    He didn''t pay any attention to me and just put the necessary stuff into his shopping basket.


    Before long, I called out to him right before he was about to pay.


    ?Excuse me~~??


    If I decided to watch him leave, there won''t be any chances left for today.


    ?You were Tsubaki, right? Do you need something from me??


    Even when I directed his attention towards me, he didn''t seem surprised at all.


    He didn''t bring up the fact I''d watched him in the caf�� as well.


    ?There''s something I want to speak to you about, so could you wait outside for a moment??


    Buying at least a lollipop was the least I could do to show courtesy towards the shop and not just window shopping.


    ...I guess? Maybe it was the work of the store clerk after all.


    ?Thanks for waiting for me.?


    I removed the wrapping paper of the lollipop as I started walking. To say the truth, I''m not good at holding conversations.


    I wasn''t particrly bad at being with people from the opposite gender. I was just bad at talking.


    ?So what did you want to talk about??


    He asked me the reason I had contacted him.


    ?There was something he had to tell you if I happen to meet you now Ayanokouji-senpai.?


    For now, I had to buy enough time for Utoumiya-kun to arrive.


    ?Utoumiya-kun did??


    As if he had read what I was thinking, he urately asked.


    ?Guess I was right.?


    As expected of him... is that the right way to say it?


    ?He said he would head over here, at once.?


    I can''t dig into his deep psyche just yet.


    There is more than enough time, no need for hurrying. Slowly but surely.


    And then��


    Tranted by botman


    /

 Chapter 78: Prologue: The Monologue of Nanase Tsubasa

    <h4>Chapter 78: Prologue: The Monologue of Nanase Tsubasa</h4>


    I can still vividly remember the shock I felt that day.


    Of the cruel reality that presented itself to me without warning.


    The light of the evening sun shining throughout the old apartment.


    A long,rge shadow slowly swinging from side to side like the pendulum of a grandfather clock.


    Despite looking straight at it, I couldn''t understand a thing.


    That warm hand that would caress my head.


    That gentle smile that healed my soul.


    That sincere gaze that taught me admiration.


    That silent, nk expression that brought me to the edge of despair.


    A strong, gentle person who worked harder than anybody else without ever giving up.


    In no way is it right for such a person to forever remain unable to grasp hold of their dream.


    Of course, I am well aware that I''m contradicting myself here.


    But I can''t forgive.


    It''s difficult for one to fight while burdened with feelings of guilt.


    Therefore, they assert their legitimacy and fight under the banner of their own brand of ''justice'' instead.


    And as long as they have that justice... As long as they cling onto that very conviction, they can continue to fight.


    But I, with my own fragile heart, simply cannot support such a ''justice''.


    And that''s why, ��I�� will.


    [TL note : From here on out, I will be using ��I����I''m����My��and other simr terms to refer to when Nanase uses ''boku'' instead of her usual ''watashi''. It will be far more natural to read that way, and I won''t need to leave trantion notes every time she does it moving forward. If you ever see me using these brackets around one of her terms, it''s me signalling that she''s speaking with boku. Just a heads up.]


    That way... I can retain the will to defeat Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka for real.


    To send him back to the ce he''s meant to be.


    Because, if I don''t, there will surely be a second or even third victim that follows.


    And that alone must be avoided, no matter the cost.


    Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka stood before me, his eyes fixed in my direction.


    If there''s ever a ce or time for me to end all of this�� It''s right here. Right now.


    And then, I can finally move on to the next step.


    After all, my true objective lies far beyond defeating him.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


    *Illustration 2


    *Illustration 3


    *Illustration 4


    *Illustration 5


    *Illustration 6


    *Illustration 7


    *Illustration 8


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    *Illustration 10


    *Illustration 11


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    *Illustration 13


    *Illustration 14


    *Illustration 15

 Chapter 79 - 1: Different Strategies Amidst Different People

    <h4>Chapter 79: Chapter 1: Different Strategies Amidst Different People</h4>


    July 20th. A sprawling deserted ind of evesting summer. A wide, crystal-clear ocean beneath a high, blue sky.


    It had been decided that this would be where the students would be spending their next two weeks.


    On a cloudless night, the view of the stars dotting the sky would probably be enough to take one''s breath away.


    Chatting with friends, sitting shoulder to shoulder with that special someone always on your mind.


    Sitting around a fire, dancing, making merry; A page taken straight out of the book of youth.


    Given such youthful fantasies, one might be tempted to think that this was the beginning of a grand summer vacation envied by everyone.


    However, for the students of Advanced Nurturing High School, this uninhabited ind would be the location of a major exam.


    "This is a much bigger ind than thest one, just like Mashima-sensei said it''d be."


    Hirata Y��suke spoke up from right beside me.


    Indeed, in terms of size, this ind was considerablyrger than the one we went to one year ago.


    Furthermore, the exam held thereupon was scaled up ordingly as well.


    "We''ll only have to stay there for two weeks, but some students might end up having to retire at some point."


    "Yeah, I think there''s a high chance that something unexpected might end up happening. Securing water will probably be our first priority."


    We could feel the heat and humidity even from onboard the ship.


    The red heat zing down from the summer sun was scorching the sandy beaches of the ind.


    On this day,te into the month of July, the temperatures were recorded at nearly 40 degrees Celsius. Y��suke''s concerns were right on the money; We would need to avoid being negligent and stay cautious of heatstroke and dehydration.


    As the ship drew closer to the ind, the full extent of the situation at hand started to be clearer and clearer.


    "I wonder if people used to live here?"


    "Maybe."


    A well-maintained harbor had graduallye into view, exuding apletely different aura than that of the rest of the ind.


    Instead of circling around the ind''s perimeter, the ship seemed to be heading straight for one of the ports.


    The countdown until the beginning of the special exam was drawing closer. Despite his soft expression, Y��suke''s hands were clenched onto the deck''s railing. Over the course of these next two weeks, the entire student body would be undergoing massive changes. sses would rise and fall, certain students would face expulsion, and none of it would be unexpected in the slightest. It was entirely possible that we might find ourselves in apletely different environment next semester. And for Y��suke, who yearns for peace, that would be anything but desirable.


    It wouldn''t be strange if he had been subconsciously bottling up his strength inside himself as a result.


    Finally, an announcement was broadcast throughout the ship for the students to prepare to disembark.


    "Have you resolved yourself, Y��suke?"


    As danger encroached upon the tranquility and peace that he strove to protect, I chose to pose him a question, my tone strong and serious.


    Although he felt anxious, Y��suke fixed his gaze on my own and nodded his head a single time.


    "I''ll put forth every effort so I have no regrets. That''s the only thing I can do for the ss."


    It wasn''t like he wanted someone to get expelled. Not at all.


    It''s just, there was simply no way that our ss could avoid taking any casualties this time.


    So with that in mind, he and I set off to leave the deck.

 Chapter 80: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 80: 1.1</h4>


    July 19th, the day before wended on the ind. 12:36 PM.


    The Saint Venus, a 12-story luxury liner, was pushing south-southwest upon the sea.


    On the rtively unpopr aft deck of the ship, my girlfriend, Karuizawa Kei, signaled me over with a wave of her hand.


    After making sure that there was nobody else around, we stood beside one another and stared out at the sea.


    "Such an amazing view, huh...?"


    The illumination of the sun on the water''s surface made it sparkle like a studded jewel.


    Kei fondly looked out at the ocean, a sense of romance encased in her gaze.


    "Didn''t you already see itst year?"


    "I mean, I saw a bit of it, but like, the view just wasn''t as important as hanging out with my friends onboard the ship and all."


    She confided in me, slightly embarrassed.


    Well, this was understandable. For many students, that was their first time on board a luxury liner.


    Rather than sit back and take in the scenery, it''s only natural to want to be with friends and explore the ship.


    The ship we were on this year, The Saint Venus, was said to be the thirdrgest Japanese-registered ship on the ocean with a carrying capacity of over 700 passengers.


    Starting from the front desk in the 5th-floor entrance lobby, the upper floors came equipped with a movie theater, pool, gym, cafes, restaurants, a public bath with a panoramic view, and even a game corner. In terms of quality, the facilities were as good, if not better than they werest year. It would probably take more than a day or two to fully enjoy them all.


    Needless to say, there was also a doctor''s office and sickbay, as well as a system to handle any unforeseen circumstances that may ur.


    "So anyway like, is it really okay for us to be on a date together out in the open like this...?"


    Kei looked around restlessly, seemingly unable to settle her nerves.


    "While I can''t guarantee that nobody will see us, we should be fine for the time being."


    The mess hall had opened up at 11:00 AM today, with the first-years being the first to eat their lunch. They ate early due to a briefing session held for them at noon. The second and third-years, on the other hand, began lunch an hourter. As such, the majority of students should still be feasting on a luxurious banquet right about now.


    This period of time before our own briefing session at 1:00 PM was probably one of the few rare moments when the two of us could be alone together.


    "There are so many students this year... Maybe that''s why they want to exin things to us before we get on the ind?"


    "That might be part of it, but that''s most likely not the only reason."


    At a little over an hour, the estimated duration of the briefing session was quite a bit longer thanst year. They probably didn''t want to hold the exnation out on the beach out of consideration of the scorching heat. If the school had us listen to a long-winded exnation while exposed to direct sunlight, a fair number of students would inevitably copse from heatstroke. It was probably a matter of safety instead of efficiency.


    "It still kinda doesn''t feel real..."


    "Well, it''s not every day that you get the chance to go on a cruise ship like this. It''s understandable that things might feel somewhat surreal."


    I responded both calmly and objectively, but Kei simply sighed in exasperation.


    "Not that... I''m talking ''bout how it doesn''t feel real that I''m goin'' out with you. You''re so smart, and yet you totally miss the mark about this kinda stuff, huh?"


    Kei and I had started dating as of spring break this year.


    Even though several months had already passed, we still hadn''t gone on any real dates together. A normal high school couple would walk to and from school or hang out together after ss every day, but due to the fact that we were hiding our rtionship, our dates happened far less frequently than other couples.


    Even when the two of us managed to find the time to be alone together, we had no choice but to meet up in secret like this.


    It seemed fair to say that opportunities to develop our rtionship were truly few and far between.


    "How about you, Kiyotaka? Does it feel real to you?"


    "Well, I wonder. I''d say it does and it doesn''t."


    "The heck?"


    That Kei and I had be boyfriend and girlfriend was an unshakable fact.


    However, there still hadn''t been any visible developments in our rtionship.


    "I just never imagined that the two of us would get to meet up in secret outside like this."


    "Well, I guess."


    Kei let out a sigh as she gazed upon the distant horizon.


    "Depending on what we''re told about the special exam in the uing briefing session, there might be a few things I''ll need you to do for me."


    "Alright. Only if it''s something I''m capable of though."


    Telling her this had been my primary motive for calling her out here in the first ce. That said, since we were free to use our cell phones until the end of the day today, it would''ve been easier to convey the necessary details over the phone instead. Essentially, there was no need for me to go out of my way to risk meeting up like this. Physically meeting up together just because we''re dating was truly a different, interesting experience.


    A little while after that, an announcement was broadcast throughout the ship that the first-year briefing session hade to a close.


    "Sounds like the first-years are done. We can''t go together, so I''ll head off first."


    Knowing it''d draw suspicion if the two of us were seen walking together, Kei took the initiative and left the deck alone.


    Shortly thereafter, it was time for the second-year students to switch ces with the first-years and gather at the movie theater.


    Upon entering, we were informed that there was no assigned seating, so we were free to sit wherever we wanted.


    There were those who took a seat at random and those who sat together with all of their closest friends, but the ones who stood out the most were those who were clustered in their small groups. It madeplete sense, though. After all, they wererades who''d be fighting together as one throughout the next two weeks. As such, it would simply be more efficient for them to listen to the briefing as a group so they could share their thoughts with one another as it went on.


    Since I was a solo participant, I weaved my way through the various groups and found a ce to sit in a small opening amongst them.


    Of course, the seat I chose was not in the front, but near the back where it was less conspicuous.


    "...Ugh. Why the hell are you sitting here?"


    As one might expect, these seats would be highly sought after by any solo student with a simr mindset to my own.


    Consequently, the person sitting in the seat beside mine was none other than ss 2-B''s Ibuki Mio.


    "You didn''t sit there on purpose, right?"


    "Not at all."


    She and I had ended up in the same ce simply because we had both followed the same train of thought.


    "I''m goin'' somewhere else, so don''t you dare follow me, got it?"


    She stood up and began to take her distance, seemingly unable to stomach the thought of being next to me.


    While I had no intention of stopping her, many of the remaining seats had already started to fill up.


    Be it to the left or right, there were alreadyrge groups of people idly chatting amongst themselves throughout the entire theater.


    Ibuki paused, having noticed this as well.


    There was nowhere left for a lone student to escape to anymore. As ast resort, she looked to sit down in the seat one away from me, but moments before she could, ss 2-A''s Kit�� Hayato plopped himself down, taking away her chance.


    Ibuki openly glowered at him, but Kit�� paid it no mind and simply folded his arms.


    At this point, she had two choices: return to the seat next to me or go sit amongst the masses.


    After weighing her options, she reluctantly chose to sit back down in her original seat, forced to listen to the briefing while sandwiched between Kit�� and myself.


    But... no matter how much she hated sitting here, she seemed to hate the thought of being mixed in with the groups even more.


    Otherwise, despite being a girl, she wouldn''t have gone through all the trouble of taking on the special exam alone.


    In any case, I decided to put the matter with Ibuki aside and focus on the briefing, turning my attention to what was happening at the front of the theater.


    "Now then, everyone, I''ll be exining the rules for the uninhabited ind special exam."


    Just likest year, the one in charge of the exnation was ss 2-A''s homeroom teacher, Mashima-sensei.


    He stood in front of the screen and began to speak with microphone in hand.


    "Starting tomorrow, your stay on the ind willst for the next two weeks. The fundamental idea of the exam is the same as it wasst year, in that you''ll be expected to live autonomously during your time on the ind. In the event that a student is found to be unable to continue due to an injury or illness, or to have taken part in a serious vition of the rules, they will be unterally and forcibly retired from the exam. I''m sure the fact that you were supposed to form small groups of up to three people is still fresh in your mind. However, once the exam is underway and a certain condition is met, the size restriction will be lifted and small groups will be allowed to work together, raising the maximum group size to six. Furthermore, in the event that all members of a given group should retire, the students will be disqualified and their rankings will be finalized ordingly."


    The students of the five lowest-ranked groups in the school would find themselves subject to expulsion. However, the expulsion could be nullified by paying a fixed number of private points. A one-person group would need to pay six million points, while a three-person group would only need to pay two million per person. Essentially, the more people a group had, the less each member would have to pay. That said, only those who could afford to pay their dues would be saved. Since the students with deep pockets were inevitably few in number, this system wasn''t all that relevant to the majority of students.


    Additionally, for the bottom three groups, arge number of ss points would be deducted from the sses of each group member. So not only would the students at fault be expelled, but they''d leave behind a great burden for their remaining ssmates as well.


    At this point, the dire necessity of avoiding the bottom five ranks had probably already taken precedence over anything else for every group.


    "While I know you''re all excited to spend the next two weeks on the ind, there are still a few crucial things you''ll need to know first."


    Indeed. We still hadn''t been told how our ''rankings'' would be determined so far.


    "Each group will be fighting to earn ''points'' to determine their rank."


    With this, the theater''s massive screen turned on, attracting the attention of the nearly 160 students present.


    Uninhabited Ind Special Exam �C Overview


    ?For two weeks, groups willpete with each other to earn points in a survival exam.


    ?In the event that all members of a group retire during the exam, the group in question will be immediately disqualified.


    (All points earned prior to disqualification will be invalidated and the group''s ranking will be finalized immediately.)


    In other words, no matter how many points a group managed to earn, if everyone in the group ended up retiring, all their efforts would''ve been for naught. While earning points was undoubtedly important, sticking around until the end of the exam took on a much higher priority.


    A map of the uninhabited ind that we would bending on tomorrow was shown along with the overview. There were horizontal and vertical lines drawn over the ind like a grid, evenly dividing it into cells.


    "There are two ways to score points. The first is via the ''Basic Movement'' rule, whereby you will be directed to go to one of the 100 cells on the map in specified intervals. For example, let''s say that your starting position is D9 where the port is located, and area C8 has been designated as your destination. The first three groups to arrive at area C8 will receive an ''Early Bird Bonus'', with the first receiving 10 points, the second receiving 5 points, and the third receiving 3 points. Furthermore, everybody who arrives at the area within the fixed interval will receive an individual ''Arrival Bonus'' of 1 point. Therefore, should a three-person group arrive first, they would receive the 10-point Early Bird Bonus in addition to the 3 points they would get for the Arrival Bonus, for a collective total of 13 points. In the case of a two-person group, they would only receive 2 points for the Arrival Bonus, for a total of 12."


    It was more than possible that some groups might do something reckless in their pursuit of the top spot. However, thepetition would be taking ce on an uninhabited ind, not in the middle of a city. It was safe to assume that the rough ind paths would present many obstacles, so there was a good chance that something unexpected might cause injury. No matter how quickly a group may rack up points, they would be immediately disqualified once the entire group retires. Their points would be forfeit and all their efforts would go down the drain.


    "The designated area for the Basic Movement rule will change three times a day on the first andst day of the exam, on the remaining twelve days, however, it''ll change four times a day. The targeted time intervals will be from 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Then, after a two-hour break, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM and 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM."


    We would earn points by reaching designated areas within fixed two-hour periods. Given that thest interval ended at 5:00 PM, the school was probably being considerate of the risks that woulde with having us move around after dark.


    "Please also keep in mind that, should a group fail to reach a designated area three times in a row, they will lose one point. Additionally, should it happen four times in a row, this penalty will extend to two points and further increase to three points for the fifth. As the number of consecutive misses continues to increase, so will the counter for the penalty. However, should the group break the chain, the counter will reset to 0, and the penalty will restart from 1 point should the group fail to reach the designated areas three times in a row again."


    This meant that, depending on the situation, groups might repeatedly exhaust their stamina and fail to reach the designated area in time, constantly hemorrhaging points in the process.


    Conversely, let''s say a group tries to coast through the exam by pitching camp at the starting area and only dedicates their time to earning points from the designated areas that pop up nearby... A strategy like this would be effectively useless. In which case, if no other groups ended up retiring, they would probably sink to the bottom of the standings, subjecting themselves to expulsion and a penalty for their sses.


    "When ites to whether or not a group has missed a designated area, you''ll be safe as long as a single member of your group manages to get there in time. Therefore, it isn''t necessary for every member of a group to reach a given area. Of course, the Arrival Bonus will still only be awarded based on the number of people who do."


    Mashima-sensei''s words caused a bit of a stir amongst the students.


    As an example, if only one person from a group of three were to reach a designated area, the group as a whole would get a one-point Arrival Bonus and avoid the penalty. In short, simply having more people would put a group at an overwhelming advantage when ites to earning points. Even if they cleared areas at the same rate, those who were participating alone or in groups of two would find themselves falling behind whether they liked it or not.


    "There is one caveat to this, however. The Early Bird Bonus given to the first three groups will only be given if nobody in the group has retired and all of its members arrive at the area. Furthermore, the arrival time of thest group member will be used to decide the rankings for the bonus."


    This seemed like a reasonable rule. If only one person was needed to secure the Early Bird Bonus, it would allow groups to game the system by only sending their physically capable members to the areas. Alternatively, it would allow groups to split up and scatter their members across the ind to cover more ground and wait for new areas to appear. If something like that were to happen, groups with fewer members probably wouldn''t stand a chance. Thanks to this caveat, solo groups had an opportunity toe out on top, albeit a small one.


    But, even with this rule in ce, there was still no refuting the fact that having more people was overwhelmingly more advantageous.


    "Of the 100 areas on the map, some are clearly inessible. For instance, B1, C1, F10, and G10 all lie entirely within the ocean, and as such, these areas will never be chosen for the Basic Movement rule."


    As Mashima-sensei spoke, several of the unreachable areas of the on-screen map were shaded red and discarded.


    "There are also certain restrictions in ce that help decide how designated areas will be chosen. Three out of four times a day, the next designated area will be within two cellsterally or one cell diagonally of the previously designated area."


    With this in ce, traveling between the different areas within the time limit didn''t seem like it would be all that difficult.


    Since you''d have two hours to reach the next area, a group could reasonably make the journey with plenty of time to spare.


    However, the designated area would be changing four times a day, not three.


    In other words, there was one interval when the restriction wouldn''t apply.


    "There is an exception to this restriction, however. Of the four new area selections that happen per day, one will shift to apletely random, unknown location. As an example, it''s possible for the designated area to randomly shift from D2 to D9. That said, this random designation will never ur twice in a row. The same applies should the random designation happen during the fourth and final interval of a given day, as it then wouldn''t be chosen for the first interval on the day after."


    While it was only once a day, the fact that the designated area''s next location was unknown was a big deal.


    Moving from the northernmost part of the ind all the way to the deepest part of the south simply wouldn''t be possible within two hours.


    No matter how much energy a group might have, they''d be forced to give up on trying to get there in time.


    If a group were to try and chase after a distant area, they might exhaust their stamina or get into an ident of some sort that would prevent them from traveling for a while. As such, they might fail to arrive at the next designated area in time, and potentially even miss the next area after that. It then stood to reason that they would not only miss three areas in a row, but possibly even fail to reach any new areas that would be designatedter on.


    In a situation like that, forget scoring more points. Maintaining those on hand would already be hard enough.


    This was a truly frightening possibility that all of us would need to bear in mind.


    Would it be better to push forward recklessly and set out for each new designated area, or try to avoid taking risks and move conservatively, fully prepared to miss out on arriving on time every once in a while? Either way, groups would need to be flexible, adapting their ns based on the abilities of their members.


    "Also, while the same area will never be designated twice in a row, it''s entirely possible for it to designate D2, then D3, and then D2 again. Furthermore, if a group is already present in an area when it gets designated, they''ll receive the one-point Arrival Bonus for each member present, but won''t be eligible for the Early Bird Bonus. Please make sure to keep that in mind."


    In short, if a group had their sights set on getting the Early Bird Bonus, moving around needlessly could be risky.


    In order to get the next Early Bird Bonus, a group would be left with only two choices: wait within the previously designated area, or move out of the range the next area would be restricted to. However, in thetter case, they would still face the risk of ending up in a randomly designated area.


    "That should be everything you need to know about the Basic Movement rule. An overview will be shown on the screen."


    The Basic Movement Rule �C Overview


    ?A new designated area will be announced four times a day. (On the first andst day of the exam, there will only be three with no random designation.)


    ?The target intervals are 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM, 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, and 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM.


    ?Three times a day, the site of the next designated area will be within two cellsterally or one cell diagonally of the previous area.


    ?Once a day, the next designated area will be randomly selected out of all essible areas on the map. (Random designation will never ur twice in a row.)


    ?The first three groups to arrive at a designated area will receive an Early Bird Bonus based on their arrival order, with the first getting 10 points, the second getting 5 points, and the third getting 3 points.


    ��The time in which all members of a group have arrived in the area will be used to determine the ranking of the bonus.


    ?Everyone who arrives at the designated area within the time interval will receive an Arrival Bonus of one point.


    ?In the event that a group is already present in the next designated area when it gets selected, they will receive the one-point Arrival Bonus, but will not be eligible for the Early Bird Bonus.


    ?Groups will be penalized should they fail to arrive at the designated area three times in a row. Points will continue to be deducted based on the number of consecutive misses. (However, once the group breaks the chain of misses, the penalty counter will be reset to zero.)


    The overview disyed on the screen went just as Mashima-sensei had exined.


    "Before I get started with exining the second way to score points, there''s something I''d like for all of you to take a look at."


    At that, Mashima-sensei looked over toward Hoshinomiya-sensei, the homeroom teacher of ss 2-C, who came up on stage and handed him something.


    He then raised it up in the air to show us what appeared to be a digital wristwatch.


    "Starting tomorrow, all students will be required to wear one of these watches until the end of the exam. You will also be provided with a tablet that pairs with the watch, but I''ll get to that a bitter."


    An erged image of the watch and details about its functionalities appeared on the screen.


    "Your watch will be an indispensable tool for you, not only for telling the time but also for earning points. This is because the watch is what will be calcting all of the bonuses provided by the Basic Movement rule. Moreover, it alsoes equipped with a variety of useful features, such as notifications for when you enter a designated area within the interval. Since the watch can be prone to a slight timeg at times, it''s possible that your points might not be awarded if you arrive at thest moment or leave the area immediately after getting there, so keep that in mind. Make sure to check for the notification to see if the points have been awarded properly or not."


    All in all, nothing would ever be possible without the watch.


    "Additionally, the school will continuously monitor the wearer''s body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, blood oxygen level, sleep cycle, stress levels, and so on. If any of these go beyond a prescribed level, it will sound off a ''Warning Alert''."


    Mashima-sensei temporarily handed the microphone to Hoshinomiya-sensei and began to put on the watch. It didn''t seem like someone could put it on by themselves, because a staff member had toe out and use a special tool to fasten it onto his wrist.


    Before long, Mashima-sensei finished putting on the watch and the different metrics he mentioned earlier, such as the heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature were shown in real-time on the screen.


    From the look of it, the school was capable of monitoring the health and wellbeing of every student all at once.


    "I''ll give you all an example. Now this is hypothetical, but let''s say my body temperature rises above 38 degrees Celsius."


    Shortly after he said that, a high-pitched alert began emanating from the watch.


    "This is the Warning Alert. Since the sound is only meant to be a warning, it''s automatically configured to stop ringing after five seconds."


    After five seconds, the high-pitched noise stopped.


    "However, if any of the metrics continue to stay beyond the prescribed level, the Warning Alert will sound off again ten minutester."


    As a test, the second Warning Alert went off, the sound a bit louder than the first one.


    Once again, the alert stopped after five seconds.


    "That was the second Warning Alert. Should the issue persist for yet another five minutes, then��"


    The ring sound of the third alert echoed across the room. It was easily the loudest noise toe from the watch so far.


    "Instead of a ''Warning Alert'', this final alert is known as an ''Emergency Alert''. Should this happen, you''ll have 24 hours to undergo a medical checkup back at the starting area. If you disregard the emergency or fail to show up in time, you''ll be penalized with retirement or other potential punishments depending on the situation. Unlike the previous two alerts, the Emergency Alert will sound off continuously unless you manually disable it. Should it go off for longer than five minutes, a faculty member and medical personnel wille rushing to your location based on the watch''s GPS."


    The idea here was that help would be on the way in the event that a student was grievously injured, immobilized, or unconscious. Naturally, it was of the utmost importance that the alert didn''t sound off unless absolutely required.


    "As you must have seen earlier, special tools are required to fasten and unfasten the watch from your wrist to prevent dishonest practices during the exam. With the way it''s configured, the watch will automatically stop tallying points should it be forcibly removed in any way, shape, or form."


    Essentially, this prevented groups from cheating when one of their members fell sick or something. For instance, it would stop someone from taking off their watch and having someone else score points in their ce.


    "Additionally, should your watch get physically damaged by a strong impact or malfunction for some reason while still under normal operating conditions, the point-scoring functionality will be disabled. Should this happen, you''ll have to return to the starting area to have your watch swapped out for a new one."


    While you wouldn''t be penalized if your watch happened to break or malfunction, it was still quite painful that you''d have to go without earning points. On top of that, it also sucked that you had to go all the way back to the starting area to get it reced.


    "Alright, now that you all have an understanding of the watch itself, let''s revisit the Basic Movement rule for a moment. During the exam, not every group will be directed to the same designated areas. Each watches pre-programmed with one of twelve different ''Tables''. Tables are better exined with an example, so let''s say that this watch I''m wearing here uses Table A, and the first three designated areas I''m given are D8, D7, and C6. On the other hand, let''s say that Hoshinomiya-sensei has a watch that uses Table B. The first three areas she''d be given would bepletely different, such as D10, E9, and F8 or something like that. In other words, from the first day of the exam to thest, every single designated area you''re given has been decided internally since before the exam even started."


    This was something I had been wondering about ever since I first heard the term ''designated area''.


    If the entire exam was just the entire student body heading to the same destination over and over, it would devolve into nothing more than a race to see which group could make it through the same track the fastest.


    However, with twelve different tracks, things were extremely different.


    While those in Table A would still bepeting with the rest of Table A, their next designated area might ovep with those in Table B or C from time to time. As such, several differentpetitions would always be taking ce at the same time.


    After three days, the groups would probably be scattered all throughout the uninhabited ind.


    "Needless to say, every member of a group will be assigned to the same table. In the event that you form arge group during the exam, any new members will be reassigned to the main group''s table, so there shouldn''t be a problem even if the groups originally had two different tables."


    In another light, the existence of twelve distinct tables made it virtually impossible to earn points through the Basic Movement rule by working together with groups assigned to another table.


    I looked down at my left arm and envisioned a watch being fastened onto it. If the watch I was given had been tampered with, Tsukishiro could have it break or malfunction to interfere with my ability to score points. That said, he wouldn''t be able to do that very many times.


    If it happened once or twice, it could be passed off as a coincidence. But if it continued happening three or four times without any visible reason as to why, it would undoubtedly raise suspicions. I felt like if it happened at all, it would only be once or twice at most. While I''d probably have to give up onpeting for the top spot, I should still be able to avoid sinking down to the bottom as long as I managed to stockpile a solid number of points.


    So, while I''d definitely have to keep this in mind, it didn''t seem like I needed to be particrly vignt about it.


    Watch Overview


    ?The school will continuously monitor the health and wellbeing of all students via a specially provided wristwatch.


    ?If any physical or digital abnormalities are detected in the watch, all further point acquisitions will be disabled and a checkup will be required.


    ?Provides the user with alerts regarding any health abnormalities. A Warning Alert can be disregarded, but in the event of an Emergency Alert, the user must return to the starting area. (Failure to return to the starting area within 24 hours may result in retirement.)


    ?The watches pre-programmed with one of twelve different Tables. The order in which designated areas are assigned differs between each Table.


    ?If an Emergency Alert goes off for at least five minutes without being disabled by the user, a medical team will be dispatched to the user''s location. (In the event of a dire emergency such as cardiac arrest or a sharp drop in blood pressure, the team wille immediately.)


    Earning points with the Basic Movement rule would be possible for essentially anybody in good health, but physical abilities such as speed and stamina would have a huge influence on who ended up with the valuable Early Bird Bonuses. In that sense, students who weren''t confident in their physical abilities would probably have a slim chance ofing out on top overall.


    In other words, the second way to earn points most likely had to do with students using their heads instead.


    "Next, I''ll exin the second way to earn points. Simply put, you can earn points bypleting ''Tasks'' set up throughout the ind. These Tasks will be held in a variety of different ces and can take ce at any time between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM. They''ll be spread out amongst the 100 different cells of the map, but more than one Task can appear within the same area. Let''s start off with some examples."


    An example of a Task appeared on the screen.


    It looked like a red dot, showing up somewhere within the C3 area.


    "These red dots mark the location of a Task, and they can only be seen on the tablet you''re provided with. As students, you won''t be able to predict when or where one of these identifying red dots will appear, nor can you predict what kind of Task will show up next. You''ll only know for sure once you see one on your tablet."


    Task:��Math Test��- ssification: Academic Ability


    Participation Deadline: Groups must register within one hour of the Task''s appearance.


    Number of Participants Per Group: One.


    Registration Limit: Further entry will be closed once a total of ten groups have registered.


    Win Condition: Participants will be ranked based on how many points they can score within a stipted time period. (The subject matter of the test will differ depending on the school year of the participant, but the overall difficulty level will be scaled to the same standard.)


    Rewards: 1st ce �C 5 points, 2nd ce �C 3 points, 3rd ce �C 1 point. Additionally, all award-winners will be given one day''s worth of provisions.


    Task:��Shot Put��- ssification: Physical Ability


    Participation Deadline: Groups must register within 30 minutes of the Task''s appearance.


    Number of Participants Per Group: Three. (Groups with four or more members must select at most three to participate.)


    Registration Limit: Further entry will be closed once a total of six groups have registered.


    Win Condition: Participants will be ranked based on the aggregate distance thrown by all three group members.


    Rewards: 1st ce �C 10 points, 2nd ce �C 5 points, 3rd ce �C 3 points. All participants will receive one free prize of their choice.


    Task:��Fishing��- ssification: Other


    Participation Deadline: Groups must register within two hours of the Task''s appearance.


    Number of Participants Per Group: Two. (Groups with three or more members must select at most two to participate.)


    Registration Limit: Further entry will be closed once a total of eight groups have registered.


    Win Condition: The participant who catches thergest fish within one hour will win.


    Rewards: 1st ce �C 15 points.


    "Tasks will all be split up into three general categories, with 40% being centered around Academic Ability, 30% around Physical Ability, and 30% Other. The Tasks that fall into this Other category are fairly diverse, with some requiring finer skills and others relying simply on luck alone, so do try to keep that in mind going forward. Of course, it''s also possible for the same Task to show up more than once."


    While I had been curious about what the school woulde up with for the second method, I never thought they''d go this far with it.


    With this, non-physical skills would also y arge part in the oue of the exam.


    The proportions they set were all perfectly bnced as well, with only 30% of all Tasks ssified under Physical Ability.


    "School faculty or exam managerial staff will always be on standby at the Task location. If you want to participate, they''ll help finalize your registration with your watch and tablet."


    Whether it be Basic Movement or Tasks, the notion of the exam being tougher for groups with fewer people seemed to apply across the board.


    "On your tablets, you''ll be able to see where the Task will be held along with all of the information you can see up here on the screen right now. Also, make sure you don''t forget that any information about a given Task will only disappear from your tablets once the Task has concluded."


    Put simply, there was a chance that a Task might still show up on our tablets even though it was already in progress. Or, in other words, it was possible to go through all the effort of traveling to a Task location, only to find that you were toote and there was no longer any room left for you to participate.


    "Starting on the fourth day of the exam, some Tasks will begin to provide a different reward: the ability to increase the maximum size of your group. If your group takes first ce, you''ll unlock three additional spots. Second ce will then unlock two, and third ce will unlock one. For a solo group to increase its size to six, they would have to take both first and second ce at least one time each. A three-person group, on the other hand, would only need to take first ce a single time. Once arge group has reached the 6-man size limit, they won''t be allowed to register for these Tasks anymore."


    While we had heard the term rge group'' used countless times by now, we apparently had to earn the right to form them via Tasks. Even though you wouldn''t earn any points or provisions for winning, increasing the number of people in your group was a boon all of its own.


    "Should you manage to satisfy the conditions required to increase the maximum size of your group, you just need to initiate a ''Main Link'' request with your watch when you want to take in another group. After that, the other group just needs to initiate a ''Pair Link'' request with their own watch and bring the two watches into physical contact with each other to begin with the link approval process. It should take about ten seconds, during which you''ll still be allowed to cancel."


    So this was what Mashima-sensei meant back when he said that any new members would be reassigned to the main group''s table.


    "All that being said, Tasks that grant permission to increase the size of your group will be limited in number. Chances are that only about 20 to 30% of all groups will end up earning the right to do so. Using these two methods, you willpete for points, the results of which will be reflected in your overall rankings. Oh, and I forgot to mention this, but when two groups link up, their points will be averaged together."


    While it would be possible to help out struggling students by bringing them into your group, you would be taking on a proportionate amount of risk in doing so. If a one-person group had 30 points and a five-person group had 120 points, their average after joining up together would be 75 points. The average would always be lower as long as the two groups didn''t have the same number of points upon entering into the agreement.


    However, since increasing the maximum size of your group would turn into an overwhelming advantage as the exam went forward, a temporarily lower score wouldn''t be that big a deal.


    Nevertheless, for students who were on their own, this just made it all the more difficult for them to merge with other groups.


    With the points you''d be giving up, there didn''t seem to be any merit in pulling somebody into your group unless they were an incredibly exceptional student.


    Task Overview


    ?Tasks may appear at any time from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM. (On the first day of the exam, they''ll appear starting at 10:00 AM and on the final day of the exam, they''ll stop appearing at 3:00 PM.)


    ?Tasks are split up into three general categories, and it''s possible for the same Task to show up more than once. The category distributions are as follows: 40% Academic Ability, 30% Physical Ability, and 30% Other.


    ?Task appearance time is unpredictable. In order to find out the current status of a given Task, groups must physically travel to the Task location.


    ?Depending on the Task, sessful top-ranking participants will be awarded points, provisions, or even the ability to increase maximum group size.


    In any case, from everything I had heard so far, the uninhabited ind exam seemed fairly simple.


    It essentially just boiled down to racking up points through the Basic Movement rule and Tasks.


    "Next, I''d like to wee our school''s Acting Director, who has a few words he''d like to share with everyone."


    With that, Mashima-sensei surrendered the microphone to Tsukishiro, who had alreadye up on stage.


    He slowly surveyed the second-years in the audience, his usual faint smile stretched across his face.


    "I am Tsukishiro, your Acting Director. This uninhabited ind exam is proving to be the most unprecedented,rgest-scale special exam yet. So, while it''s only natural that you should think to brace yourselves, I ask that you make sure not to lose sight of what it means to be a student."


    As he addressed the crowded theater, his eyes momentarily stopped, locked in my direction for a fraction of a second.


    A slight pause that went unnoticed by the rest of the students.


    "I have just a few words of caution for you all. As both your guardian and protector, the school strives to ensure your safety and wellbeing to the greatest extent possible. But even so, it simply isn''t possible for us to keep tabs on everything that happens while you''re on the ind. There''s a rather... sensitive matter that seems to happen all too often these days due to the differences between boys and girls."


    The several school faculty members listening on the sidelines seemed a little shaken by the fact that Tsukishiro had broached such a topic.


    "In the event of sexual misconduct, the school will not hesitate to impose severe penalties, including immediate expulsion. Furthermore, if we judge that it was done with malicious intent, we will also report the matter to the police. Please be sure to remember this."


    While he didn''t state it outright, he was essentially telling us to keep it in our pants.


    Expulsion was already a big enough deal on its own, but with police being thrown in on top of that, it should serve as more than enough of a deterrent.


    "Oh, and one more thing. As your stay on the ind gets longer, tension and bitterness can understandably begin to build up. The shortage of food and water can, at times, lead to altercations between students. When ites to such disputes�� my personal policy is to look the other way, at least to a certain extent."


    His words brought forth a strong reaction, not from the students in the audience, but the faculty members around him.


    Tsukishiro''s policy didn''t seem to line up with the school''s.


    Mashima-sensei drew close and whispered something into Tsukishiro''s ear.


    If I had to guess, Mashima-sensei was probably telling him not to say something so self-serving.


    After listening to everything Mashima had to say, Tsukishiro politely motioned for him to step down.


    "Just now, I was told to retract what I said about condoning disputes that arise between students."


    Tsukishiro openly spoke of what Mashima-sensei had just told him.


    "However, I won''t be doing that. If I must put forward a reason, it''s because it''s virtually impossible for there to be no friction between students. Trouble is bound to present itself where it must, after all."


    Upon hearing this, Mashima-sensei''s expression turned dark.


    "Of course, though I say I condone it, that doesn''t mean I endorse it. I''m simply looking past the asional dispute. The school will still mercilessly intervene in matters it deems severe enough. With the school''s rules in mind, acts such as looting or using another student''s belongings without express consent will never go unpunished. In some cases, students will face immediate retirement, while in others, expulsion may not be off the table."


    In short, although we were free, he was by no means granting us the freedom to do whatever we wanted.


    The Acting Director''s personal warning had probably put the students on-edge all over again.


    However, his warning could also be taken as a challenge to me at the same time.


    "This is all I have for you. I hope you all conduct yourselves in a manner befitting students of our Advanced Nurturing High School."


    With his brief speech finished, Tsukishiro returned the microphone to Mashima-sensei.


    "Thank you very much, Acting Director Tsukishiro. As the final part of today''s briefing, I''d like to take a moment to talk about the food, tools, and other things you''ll need during your time on the ind. I''ll start out by exining the special type of points you''ll need to make purchases while on the ind."


    Microphone in hand, Mashima-sensei instructed several staff members to push a huge cart out on stage, filled with all sorts of different goods and provisions.


    "Everybody will be given a base of 5000 points. You''re free to use them to buy whatever you''d like from what you see up here. And, students who have a ''Head Start'' card will receive an additional 2500 points on top of that."


    As he spoke, staff began distributing a thick manual to the audience, starting from the front row.


    It seemed to be a catalog detailing the goods avable for purchase this time around.


    Offering such arge amount of merchandise would call for quite a lot of funding. At a cursory nce, there were products from both major manufacturers and ones I had never heard of before, all seemingly provided to the school under the terms of some sort of sponsorship. As the school was under the direct control of the government, it followed that this exam might double as some form of manufacturer''s test.


    "All of the products up for sale are listed in the Uninhabited Ind Survival Manual being distributed to you right now. You can discuss amongst your group about what you want to buy, or just decide on your own, the choice is up to you. Purchases can be made from now until 6:00 AM tomorrow, but you can also choose to save some points forter. You''ll be allowed to make additional purchases at a shop located at the port in the starting area. However, making purchases on the ind will cost twice as much, so please keep that in mind."


    You could save some points to buy necessities like food or water in the event of an emergency, but double the price was by no means cheap.


    "There will be free-to-use toilets and showers back at the starting area and, as of the second day, there will also be a ce where we provide potable water. Try to make good use of these resources if you ever happen to be in the area. However, you won''t be allowed to take any water back with you; You''ll be required to drink it all on-site."


    For most students, it would be reassuring to have a secure ce to stop by if the need arose.


    "Beyond that, we''ll also distribute free amenities, such as toothbrushes, shirts, and underwear. That way, if you ever run out, just go back to the starting area and we''ll provide you with as much as you need."


    Other essentials, such as portable toilets, bug spray, sunscreen, and feminine hygiene products, would apparently also be distributed.


    To start out, I chose to take a closer look at the listed merchandise and prices in the manual they gave us. From tents, fishing poles, and walkie-talkies to basic food and water, the selection of items avable to us had grown significantly sincest year. And, as expected, there was no shortage of recreational products either, with things like stylish swimsuits, beach balls, and pool rings. Some items even offered a daily rental system, providing students with the opportunity to get their hands on something at an affordable cost, albeit temporarily.


    Fun and games aside, with a two-week stay on an uninhabited ind, securing a reliable source of both food and water took precedence above all.


    This held especially true for drinking water, which cost 100 points for 500ml, 150 points for a liter, and 250 points for two liters. At double the price, it would be extremely expensive to buyter on.


    There was also an in-bottle water purifier avable. Drinking river water straight from the source would be dangerous, so one would normally need to sterilize it by boiling it first. But instead of going through all that hassle, you could use one of these purifiers to filter out over 99.9% of all E. Coli, Echinocus, and other such bacteria and microbes present in the water, making itpletely safe to drink. The price, however, was 4000 points; So high that a solo student couldn''t dream of affording one. For a group of three, a single purifier could filter about 150 liters of water, so just one would be more than enough. Of course, no matter how well it''s filtered, many students would probably still hold reservations about drinking river water, and there was no proof that it waspletely risk-free either. Furthermore, if by any chance it were to break or get lost, it would be nothing more than a waste of points.


    As for the bags and backpacks needed to carry equipment while on the ind, there were options ranging from as small as 20 liters to asrge as 80, and from the look of it, the size had no effect on the cost. While therger ones would be more convenient since they could carry more, the corresponding weight would be that much heavier, so you''d need to choose carefully. Plus, if you went with a bag that didn''t fit your body type, it would add on an extrayer of physical strain.


    Meats, fish, and other perishables were also avable for purchase, but they came at high prices and would be difficult to preserve for longer periods of time. Even if you used a cooler with some ice in it, you''d probably only be able to extend the shelf life by about a day. As a result, it seemed like canned goods were the way to go.


    In that regard, there was a wide selection, ranging from staples like yakitori and luncheon meats to other items like gomoku vegetables, kinpira gobo, corn, and pork miso soup. They were all a fair bit cheaper than the more portable alternatives as well. However, since it would also take some time to eat, portable options would probably be better for those who wanted to cover ground more quickly.


    A single person tent cost 1000 points, a two-to-three person tent cost 1500, and the one for six people, thergest option avable, cost 2500. Altogether, this meant that the more people you had, the more cost-effective your options would be. That being said, buying arge tent right from the start would entail plenty of risks. It wasn''t set in stone that you''d get to link up with another group, and the weight of having to carry therger tent around with you wasn''t something to make light of either.


    Plus, it was strictly prohibited for boys and girls to sleep in the same tent.


    In other words, even if you had a six-person tent, there was no getting around the fact that you''d have to split up the two sexes somehow.


    Mashima-sensei spoke up once again, providing further insight as the students perused their manuals.


    "When ites to whether or not a group can share some of their food or provisions with others, the decision is left entirely up to you. The school is fine with you doing whatever you want with what you have while on the ind."


    It sounded like we were being given permission to share food with groups in need. While there was no need to help those from other grades, you might as well lend a hand to those from your own when you can. This held especially true for your own ssmates, in which case it would definitely be worthwhile to help out if possible. Though, there was no guarantee that we''d be provided with anywhere near enough food to go around sharing it as we pleased.


    "Later, you''ll all be given a special tablet along with your watch. Your tablet will be an essential tool for monitoring basic information, so be sure to charge it whenever you''re at the starting area or one of the Task locations. Now, I''ll provide you with an overview of what your tablets can do."


    Tablet Overview


    ?A small tablet will be issued to every student.


    ?Provides a digital map of the ind, allowing real-time verification of any active designated area and the user''s current location.


    ?Provides information about nearby Task locations, prospective rewards, and so on.


    ?Allows confirmation of the current standings of the top and bottom groups. This will be avable starting on the fourth day of the exam andst until the end of the twelfth day. (Users will only be shown a point breakdown of the top ten groups, bottom ten groups, and their own group.)


    ?The GPS searching feature will be unlocked from the sixth day onward, allowing the user to find the physical location of any student on the ind. (However, each search will cost the user 1 point.)


    ?Disys any notification messages from the school in the event that an exam-wide issue has taken ce.


    ?Should the tablet''s battery run out, it can be charged at the starting area or one of many designated charging locations. (Total battery life is estimated at around eight hours of continuous application use.)


    While it was nice that you didn''t have to worry about charging the tablet, the battery level would still drop even if you weren''t actively using it. As such, it''d probably just be safer to buy a portable charger. Losing the ability to check your whereabouts due to a dead battery would be fatal. Besides, even though you could charge it at one of the various charging locations, you''d be giving up on any potential opportunities elsewhere while you waited for it to charge.


    Next was the part allowing us to confirm the standings of the top and bottom groups. This seemed like an extremely helpful feature for keeping tabs on how the top groups were faring and finding out who was falling behind, but... You''d probably be better off not getting too attached to it.


    The fact that it wouldn''t be avable for the first three days and thest two days should always be kept in mind.


    On top of all that, we were apparently also being given the ability to search for anybody''s exact location from the sixth day onward. Chances were that it would be used primarily as a means to help groups merge up with each other or help locate the asional lost group member. That said, the cost that came along with it meant that it couldn''t be used any more than necessary.


    "In order to let you see how much you can fit in the different backpacks and check out some of the other products, we''ve prepared a hands-on demonstration in the other room. Feel free toe up front and take a look as well. The exhibition will be open until the date changes over at midnight tonight."


    With that, the briefing session seemed to be over, with Mashima-sensei finally turning off the microphone.


    The students began to gather up near the front, eager to get a closer look at some of the products disyed on stage.


    I sat and watched as this happened, wondering what exactly I should be doing. On one hand, I wanted to go take a look at the products myself, but on the other, I didn''t have the courage to squeeze myself into the crowd.


    Ibuki seemed to be going through the same dilemma, as she was idly staring at the front of the theater.


    Having somehow noticed that I was checking up on her, she turned to face me with a re in her eyes.


    "What."


    "How do I put it? I was just thinking that our personalities can be troublesome sometimes. It''s difficult for us to mix in with that crowd."


    "Hah? I ain''t like you. I could do it if I wanted."


    She seemed displeased about being lumped in together with me.


    With newfound determination, Ibuki stood up and left, pushing her way into the crowd of students. From the next seat over, Kit�� didn''t seem to pay this any mind, as he just sat quietly while flipping through the manual.


    For Kit��, a solitarybatant just like Ibuki and me, selecting the right provisions would be crucial.


    I could remember being impressed by the way he held his own against Sud�� on the court duringst year''s end-of-term exam. He had yed an excellent match, especially so considering his opponent was someone who spent his time training in the basketball club every day. That alone helped highlight the extent of his physical, athletic prowess.


    He was not someone to be taken lightly, regardless of whether or not he nned on linking up with another groupter on.


    "Graaaaaagh!"


    A loud wailing grunt could be hearding from up at the front of the theater. The culprit was none other than ss 2-B''s Ishizaki. He was struggling to stand up straight with one of thergest-sized backpacks strapped to his back.


    "What in the world is he doing?"


    I overheard one of the students seated nearby as they asked one of their friends about it.


    "Seems like he''s trying to carry a whole lot of water in that backpack or somethin''."


    He had apparentlye up with some sort of strategy to carry a lot of water at once, but, well, water is heavy. Drinking water was an undoubtedly valuable resource, but it just wasn''t a good idea to try and carry so much with you at once. While we wouldn''t be climbing mountains or anything, weight was still a definite enemy here. It was important to try and travel as light as possible so as not to overload yourself by even a single gram.


    In other words, water, an indispensable necessity, was something we''d need to restock constantly. We had no choice but to make use of rainwater, seawater, or whatever other water sources we could find on-site, or earn it as a reward forpleting a Task.


    Alternatively, with a sufficiently well-organized group, another option could be to designate someone to haul the team''s water. It would be a fairly solid strategy if your group nned on staying in one ce for an extended period of time. Ultimately, the things you would need would change depending on how you nned to tackle the exam.


    There was simply no clear-cut answer here.


    I took a moment to mentally break down the rules of the special exam and reorganize the key points from scratch.


    For the next two weeks, we''d be living on an uninhabited ind andpeting with the rest of the school to earn points and determine our rankings. It was important to note that, no matter how many points a group piled up, they''d be immediately disqualified if every member retires. The ten highest and lowest-ranked groups would be revealed on the fourth day of the exam. And finally, starting on the sixth day, you could spend one point to find out the current location of any student on the ind.


    It was time toe to a decision and pick out what I''d be bringing along with me.

 Chapter 81 - 2: The Curtain Rises on the Uninhabited Island Exam

    <h4>Chapter 81: Chapter 2: The Curtain Rises on the Uninhabited Ind Exam</h4>


    8:40 AM. The cruise ship slowly pulled up to the dock.


    That is, the uninhabited ind special exam was finally about to begin.


    There would be a grand total of 157 different groups participating, with sizes ranging anywhere from one to four members.


    As a breakdown, there were 36 first-year exclusive four-person groups, 81 three-person groups, 32 two-person groups, and 8 solo groups. And in the end, five of them would be gone.


    Tensions began to rise as my ssmates gathered together, and once everyone was present, we all headed off to the ship''s gangway. Since we weren''t instructed to form an orderly line or anything, the school seemed to be tacitly allowing us to chat amongst ourselves as we awaited further instruction. That is, as long as we stayed together as a ss.


    The starting area for all groups was area D9. Since there wouldn''t be any randomly designated areas on the first andst day, the next area would be within two cellsterally or one cell diagonally from here for a total of 12 potential options.


    However, the area two cells to the south, theoretical D11, didn''t exist, so truth be told, there were really only 11 options.


    This first day could be thought of as an opportunity to familiarize ourselves with a new environment when we didn''t even know our left from right yet.


    After a brief announcement, we waited for our turn to disembark the ship, bags and backpacks in hand after receiving them not too long ago.


    For my provisions, I ended up choosing a tent, two liters of water, three 500ml water bottles, 12 portable meals, a shlight, a portable battery charger, a pot, a lighter, and a set of paper cups, for a cumtive total of 4960 points. Altogether, there was still plenty of free space left in my backpack, even after adding in all of the free essentials. So, even if I won additional provisionster on by clearing Tasks, I wouldn''t have to worry about not having the space to carry them around.


    ording to the announcement, we would be disembarking in the same order as yesterday''s briefing sessions, with the first-year students getting off before the rest of us.


    It seemed like the first-years would finish getting off the ship by around 9:00 AM, the time when the first designated area was to be announced.


    It made sense to think that this had been arranged to give the first-years a slight advantage.


    On the other hand, it put the second and third-year students at a disadvantage, albeit only once.


    Furthermore, since ss A was also the first to disembark, ss D would be put at an even greater disadvantage.


    The total difference would only be an initial 15 to 30 minutes or so, but factoring in our limited travel time, it would still be a fairly sizable setback.


    "Good morning. Did you sleep well yesterday?"


    As I waited, I was approached from behind by Horikita, who was carrying a backpack of her own.


    "Well, more or less. How about you? Are you feeling sick at all?"


    "I see you''re still patronizing me about what happenedst year."


    "I''m not patronizing you. Just messing with you is all."


    She looked at me with an expression of annoyance, wordlessly telling me that there wasn''t any difference.


    "You''re awfully chipper even though such a serious special exam is about to start."


    "There''s no use getting worked up at this point. It''d just be a waste of energy. For that matter, have you heard about the third-year boy who got sick?"


    "Yes, I have. I''m just d that it didn''t happen to one of our ssmates."


    If you fell sick before the start of the exam, you''d be forced to retire without even getting to step foot on the ind. In this case, the retired third-year would have to stay in the doctor''s office or sickbay until his health improved. And even after recovery, he would be stuck on the ship, unable to do anything but pray for his group to pull through. Fortunately, he had been part of a group of three, so the fact that he had avoided getting kicked out of the school altogether on the very first day was a silver lining to an otherwise terrible mess. Although, for the students of the other school years, having one of the bottom slots get filled sooner rather thanter was probably exactly what they''d want.


    By now, the first-years were almost finished and it would soon be the second-years'' turn to get off the ship. The clock struck 9:00 AM and with it, my watch sounded off the first alert of the exam.


    As if in unison, practically every student pulled out their tablet and began to check the details, myself included. After all, if we did so once we were off the ship, we''d lose out on time.


    The first area I would be heading to was... D7. Just two cells north of the starting area.


    I inclined my tablet''s screen in Horikita''s direction, prompting her to tell me her own designated area.


    "Mine is F9. Looks like the two of us have different Tables."


    "Seems like it."


    Since we all started from the same ce, it was possible that both our areas might ovep somewhat even if we didn''t have the same Table, but it looked like Horikita and I would be going in twopletely different directions.


    There were a total of 12 Tables. If the resulting 12 designated areas were all guaranteed to be different during every interval, you would essentially bepeting against the same 13 or so groups the entire exam. In reality, however, it would be safe to expect designated areas to ovep between Tables fairly often.


    In any case, even if you weren''t setting your sights on the top three groups, it would still be important to begin piling up points, one point at a time.


    Furthermore, it''d be best to try and avoid getting caught off guard by any randomly designated areas that might pop up all of a sudden.


    "I won''t worry about you anymore, then. At least try to manage a decently high ranking."


    "As much as I''d love to do that, it''d be pretty funny if I were the only one in the ss to get expelled from all this."


    I responded as I put my tablet back into my backpack.


    "That... would be troublesome."


    For her to say that she would be troubled without me was a bit shocking.


    "I lent you some points just the other day. I''d be mad if I didn''t get any back."


    "...That''s what you''re worried about?"


    She made a show out of tilting her head to the side in confusion, as if to ask what other reason there possibly could have been for her to worry.


    "I know you have that contract with Kushida-san, so I can''t me you for being troubled for money, but man up and do something about it."


    "That almost hurts to hear."


    If I ran into a sudden, urgent expense, I might not be able toe up with the money in time. I hadn''t even been able to raise the funds to protect Kei from expulsion without help.


    "You better not push yourself too hard, Horikita. A solitary girl like you has a tough fight ahead of her. You should look to join up with another group or find yourself an opportunity to bring someone into yours as soon as possible."


    "Thanks for your most exceptional advice then."


    She sounded a bit suspicious, but it didn''t seem like she was that worried.


    Horikita was leagues ahead of where she was a year ago; As she was now, she should be more than capable of identifying her own limitations.


    "Speaking of which, the conditions for merging groups certainly seem strict, so we''ll need to pay attention to that."


    "The point averaging, huh."


    The longer it took to merge with another group, the more problematic it would be to average the points together.


    However, if you managed to max out your group size early on, you''d reap the benefits all the way until the very end of the exam. Earning six points just for reaching a single designated area would be huge, and you could even get seven if your group had the ''More People'' card. Compare this to a solo group who would have to toil over every single point, and the difference was clear as day.


    From the moment they were off the ship, the first-year students quickly set off without the slightest hesitation. And since there weren''t any Tasks yet, the second and third-year students would most likely do the same, choosing to head toward their first designated area once they were finally off the ship.


    When I finally stepped foot in the harbor, I decided to stand back and take a look at the general flow of things instead of rushing off to my destination.


    I needed to make sure to set aside about an hour to an hour and a half for traveling, but there shouldn''t be any problem with waiting around for about 30 minutes as long as I kept track of time. If you didn''t have your sights set on getting the Early Bird Bonus, there was no difference in how many points you''d earn for arriving after an hour or so.


    "There don''t seem to be any second-year groups in a hurry or anything. Well, it''s not a very good idea topete for this first designated area anyway. Even if they rushed to try and catch up, they''d still be over 10 minutes behind the first-years in the lead. Closing a gap like that would use up a lot of stamina, don''t you think?"


    Havinge off the ship herself, Horikita approached me yet again.


    "Given the disadvantage, it''s only natural that people would want to take it slow at first."


    As they disembarked right after ss 1-D, students from ss 2-A might have a slight chance of catching up in time, but it didn''t seem like they were going out of their way to do that.


    "Anyway, it''s really hot, isn''t it...? I''m d I thought ahead to get a hat. Are you fine without one?"


    "I don''t have enough points left to buy one. I''ll figure something out."


    While Horikita and I were chatting, a young man gantly strode past us. From the brief look I managed to get of his smiling face, he gave off the impression that he would be enjoying these two grueling weeks to the utmost extent possible.


    "K��enji... Do you really think that guy will take this special exam seriously?"


    "Who knows... While he''s agreed to my bet, there''s no telling what he''ll do."


    "It''s a coin flip. That is, whether he''ll really take action or not."


    K��enji had promised Horikita that, if he didn''t take first ce in this special exam, he would cooperate during the next. But, this promise wasn''t really held up by anything. There was nopelling force, no binding agreement put in ce, so if he didn''t want to keep his word, that would be it.


    However, Horikita was gradually bing more and more recognized as the leader of our ss, so if K��enji chose to betray her trust, he could rest assured that none of our ssmates would lift a finger to help him when faced with a difficult exam in the future.


    An oue like that wouldn''t be very desirable, even for somebody like K��enji...


    I was personally looking forward to witnessing K��enji''s performance during this special exam.


    "Let''s friggin'' goooo! I''ve got my sights set on numbah one, baby!"


    Not too far from us, a lone male student broke into a full-on sprint straight toward the sandy beach: ss 2-B''s Ishizaki. He was shouting loudly, but Nishino, his group member, was just trailing behind him, not really making any effort to run and chase after him like he wanted. And then there was Tsube, who was watching the two of them from the rear with an awkward smile on her face.


    "Oi, hurry up Nishino! You too Tsube!"


    "It''s super hot so don''t go askin'' for the impossible! I mean, like, we can''t even catch up to the first-years anymore. Sheesh."


    "Well, uhm, at least it''s good that Ishizaki-kun is motivated, yeah?"


    Tsube looked at Nishino with a somewhat exasperated expression as she tried to smooth things out between the two of them.


    I had heard that Nishino was fairly isted from the rest of her ss, but it seemed like Tsube was making an active effort to try and get close to her.


    "If we give up, then it''s all over! The first-years might get careless and slip up, you never know!"


    "You seriously wanna go after ''em? Forget that. It''s like, such a total waste of energy."


    "Woah woah, c''mon, don''t be like that!"


    Both Nishino and Tsube stood in stark contrast to Ishizaki, who was practically bursting with energy.


    "How ''bout you just go ahead without us then?"


    "We won''t get the Early Bird Bonus if we do that though! Besides... it''d suck if we got split up or somethin''."


    Right now, the only thing you could check on your tablet was your own current location. Even amongst members of the same group, it would only be possible to find out where somebody else was once the GPS searching feature unlocked on the sixth day.


    If you got separated from your group before then, you''d have a hard time meeting up with them again.


    Seemingly unaware that I had been watching the whole exchange, Ishizaki reluctantly gave in and went back to Nishino and Tsube to match their pace.


    I could understand his impatience, but there was no need to be in such a hurry straight from the get-go.


    "Found you!"


    All of a sudden, a firm, almost angry, voice called out to us.


    The owner of said voice approached us, fiercely ring at Horikita.


    "What do you want?"


    "Want? I don''t ''want'' anything. Just makin'' sure you know I''m never gonna lose to you...!"


    Having apparently approached Horikita just to say that, Ibuki turned on her heel and set off to the north all by herself.


    "Good grief... I wonder if she properly understands just how difficult this exam is?"


    "She seemed quite motivated. It must be nice to have a rival."


    At my light teasing, Horikita forced out a deep sigh.


    "I don''t see myself as her rival at all though? Well whatever, she''s going north and I''ll be going east, so it seems we''ve got different Tables too. There''s that at least."


    After all, if they had the same Table, they might bump into each other every now and again.


    One of the few benefits of being alone had to do with the designated area''s Early Bird Bonus. Since you didn''t have to rely on anyone else, the only thing limiting your potential was your own two feet.


    "Well, it''s about time for me to get going."


    With that, Horikita made sure her hat was snug on her head and set off to the east. Though, not long after she started walking, she stopped and looked back in my direction for some reason. Just as I thought there might be something she had forgotten to mention, she looked away and set off once again.


    After watching a fair number of students head out, I realized that I hadn''t seen any third-year students pass by yet even though they should''ve started getting off the ship already. As such, I decided to turn around and check on what was happening.


    As I did so, I saw a fair number of third-year students walking in my direction. Even from a distance, I could tell that every single one of them was calm andposed, significantly more so than the first and second-years had been.


    From the numbers, it seemed like students from ss 3-B had just about finished disembarking, so I took a moment to try and catch a glimpse of Nagumo. However, I couldn''t find him anywhere.


    As I continued to look for him, the third-year students who were walking toward me eventually caught up and began to pass by.


    "You''re still here, Ayanok��ji?"


    Hearing someone address me, I gave up on my search and returned my attention to the third-years nearby.


    "Good morning, Kiry��in-senpai. Is there anything strange about that? I''d imagine that many groups would choose to refine their strategies here at the starting area."


    "But you''re alone, right? You should be fine to think it over while you walk."


    She expressed her doubts about my decision to stay at the starting area.


    While I already knew she wasn''t an ordinary person, she really had a keen eye for detail.


    "If there''s something you wanna know, I can help exin it to you."


    "Thanks, but it''s fine. After all, you''re a third-year student, Kiry��in-senpai. A directpetitor to second-year students such as myself."


    Upon politely declining her offer, she didn''t say anything more on the matter, simply choosing to meet my gaze with her own instead.


    "There''s something... enchanting about seeing the entire student body scatter throughout the uninhabited ind. Though there are more than 400 of us, we''re nothing but insignificant specks of dust inparison."


    Kiry��in spoke casually, watching as the various groups of students began to disperse throughout the ind.


    Despite being a third-year student, she was also among those who chose to tackle the exam alone.


    While this exam wasn''t exactly going to be a walk in the park, she didn''t seem even the slightest bit anxious or restless about it.


    In fact, she seemed to give off the faint impression that she was looking forward to it.


    "By the way, what''s your first designated area?"


    "D7."


    "Hoh? Sounds like we''ve got the same destination then. At least for this first one."


    Kiry��in looked at me happily, letting show a white, toothy smile.


    "Please don''t be too hard on me, then."


    "Right back at you. Well, I''m gonna head out. You wannae along?"


    "No, but thanks for the offer. I doubt I''d be able to keep up with you, Senpai."


    "I guess we''ll find out if that''s true or not soon enough."


    Leaving me with that, Kiry��in walked off toward the sandy beach all by herself.


    I continued to linger around the area for a little bit longer, but ultimately never caught sight of Nagumo.


    And just like that, a few minutes after Kiry��in left, I set off as well.


    For the time being, I''d leisurely make my way to my first designated area.


    One of the most important parts of this exam was making sure not to miss out on the easy points that came with reaching the designated areas. You could earn 5 to 10 points all at once if you seeded at Tasks or got your hands on an Early Bird Bonus, but that would require a good mix of physical ability, academic ability, and luck when facingpetitors. Therefore, I felt pretty confident that the true core of all of this came down to stockpiling points, one point at a time.


    So with that in mind, I once again pulled out my tablet and opened up the map.


    As a whole, the map was divided up into 100 different areas, with each area running 500 meters vertically and 700 meters horizontally.


    For my first move, I needed to go from area D9 to the edge of D7. Since I was already near the center of D9, I needed to walk about 750 meters in a straight line.


    At a standard pace of about 80 meters per minute, it''d be very easy to cover. At that rate, without taking any external factors into ount, I should be able to reach the designated area in around nine minutes. But, as one would imagine, there was a fair chance that the path ahead would neither be t nor straight. Faced with such a thick forest, I could run into steep slopes or cliffs that make it impossible to proceed. And as a result, the journey as a whole would probably take several times longer than usual. The highest point of the ind was about 300 meters above sea level, so a decent amount of uphill travel was to be expected. Furthermore, as time went on, the weight of your backpack and gradual wear and tear on your stamina would get in the way of your ability to keep moving forward.


    So, even if everything went smoothly, it was probably better for me to expect this to take about three times as long, or around 30 minutes. And if the path ahead was particrly treacherous, it could easily take over an hour.


    With the exception of the first andst day, there would be four designated area shifts per day. As such, there was a decent chance that I might end up taking the same path several times over the course of the exam. It''d probably serve me well to keep my past movements in mind, along with how long it had taken me to move from ce to ce.

 Chapter 82: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 82: 2.1</h4>


    Before long, the t, even ground gave way to a dense thicket of trees.


    And just like that, I reminisced about the ind fromst year''s exam as I entered the forest.


    I hadn''t really noticed itst year because I had been moving together with my ssmates, but it wasn''t exactly easy to make it through the forest like this. Unsurprisingly, it was difficult to keep moving in a straight line, and getting a proper foothold on the forest floor was much more challenging than expected. The presence of such a huge harbor seemed to indicate that the ind hadn''t always been uninhabited, but even so, that very well could''ve been something of the distant past.


    From time to time, I would spot gigantic webs stretched between the trees, presumably spun by spiders several centimeters in size. Students who were afraid of insects would definitely have a hellish journey awaiting them. It reminded me of the wildlife advisory notice that had been included in our manuals.


    It was impossible to go to your destination by traveling in a simple straight line, but on the other hand, taking a detour would cause you to lose all sense of direction, no questions asked. If you didn''t have some sort of tool to help you find your way, it''d be difficult to reach your designated area. The only reason the trip wasn''t already down-right impossible was due to the tablet I was holding right now.


    While on the ind, being able to confirm your own location at any time would be an indispensable asset.


    As long as you moved with your GPS in hand, the path ahead would always be open to you.


    Although, even without the tablet, the probability of getting lost during this first interval was quite low.


    I could see several groups in front of me fumbling about as they made the trek forward.


    And since I could also hear voices talking behind me, it seemed reasonable to think that essentially everyone nearby was taking the same route to this first destination. So as long as you followed after the students in the lead, the risks of injury or running into a swarm of insects or something would go down ordingly.


    Few groups would have the courage to recklessly plunge their way into an unexplored forest right off the bat.


    Those who had given up on the first area''s Early Bird Bonus were simply moving along as though they were in the middle of a field trip.


    After a while, I caught sight of Haruka, Airi, and Akito, who had stopped to look at their tablets together. From the look of it, they were talking amongst themselves as they confirmed their surroundings.


    As I began to draw closer, I could hear them exchange views with each other about their next designated area.


    "You guys talking about what to do next?"


    I called out to insert myself into their conversation, to which the three of them nodded their heads all at once.


    "Our first area was D8, so like, we''re done already, yeah?"


    The edge of area D8 came not too long after stepping foot into the forest, so it seems they had already managed to earn their points earlier. I didn''t really feel the need to ask about how many they had earned, since it was nearly guaranteed to be only the three-point Arrival Bonus.


    "It''s pretty hot, and there isn''t any shade out on the beach, so we came here to specte about the next area."


    As a whole, you''d certainly be better off trying to ount for where the next designated area might appear at.


    "What area do you have, Kiyotaka?"


    "D7; One cell north from here."


    "That so? A buncha students have already gone up ahead, but, well, one point is one point I guess."


    "If we had the same Table, we could have traveled together..."


    Airi muttered to herself quietly, seemingly disappointed.


    Even though we were split up into different groups, this exam still had a surprising variety of ways for students to work with each other.


    There were even several rules that facilitated this, such as the ability to share food or lend and borrow equipment to each other. Plus, if two groups had the same Table, they''d essentially have the same destination, so it would definitely be easy for them to stick together.


    Of course, there were downsides to this as well. The more groups there were working together, the more difficult it''d be for them to keep pace with one another. Furthermore, each group would have their own opinions and goals, inevitably leading to increasedpetition for Task participation. This could easily be a major source of conflict if the groups didn''te up with some sort of contingency n in case there was only one more space left for a Task.


    In this particr case, you could say that it was fortunate that we didn''t have the same Table. It was absolutely critical that I avoid working together with people that might hold me back, so this had effectively spared me the trouble of having to turn them down.


    "There are twelve Tables, so the odds weren''t great from the start. In any case, for now I think I should get to my designated area sooner rather thanter."


    "Yeah. We''ve gotta get moving to our next area sometime soon anyway, so go ahead."


    "It kinda sucks though. I hope we can meet up again somewhere when we''ve all got more time to spare."


    Haruka bid me farewell with Airi waving goodbye from behind her. And with that, I turned my back to the three of them and continued my journey to area D7.


    After about 30 more minutes of walking, I finally arrived at my first designated area, causing my watch to sound off a few times.


    I took a look at the notification on the watch, which said that I had been given an Arrival Bonus of one point.


    I also noticed that I was given the option to adjust the notification volume, but I chose to leave it as-is for now. Just to make sure everything was working properly, I took out my tablet and found a matching record for the bonus in the point transaction history.


    Since each area didn''t seem all that big when viewed on the map, it almost felt like you''d always find yourself running into other students. But once you were actually out on the ind, it gave off apletely different impression.


    Even if there really were students scattered around you, it''d be difficult to catch sight of them because of all the trees.


    Although I couldn''t see anyone around right now, I felt fairly certain that a good number of students were in the area somewhere.


    In which case, they had probably gone in deeper, opting to move closer to the area''s center to make it easier to head out to the next designated area and gather information.


    I searched for a clearing in the forest with this assumption in mind, and before long, my field of vision suddenly opened up.


    Sure enough, arge number of students had gathered together in the same ce. The race to the next designated area would be apetition between students of all school years, so it''s understandable that they''d look to raise their chances of winning, even if only slightly. Furthermore, the only way to find out who had the same Table as you was toe and take a look first-hand.


    By going through this process a few times, you could get a rough idea of who your direct rivals were.


    I took a quick headcount, for a total of 29 people present, myself included. As far as I could tell, it felt safe to assume that there were more students elsewhere in the area.


    "Good morning to you, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    As I took note of the names and faces of everyone present, a female student noticed my presence and approached with a greeting: Nanase Tsubasa of ss 1-D. Her fellow group members, Amasawa and H��sen, were nowhere to be seen, prompting me to wonder if they were out exploring nearby or hade up with a strategy of some sort and left the area already.


    "What happened to the other two? Aren''t groups supposed to stick together for the most part? Seems better to do it that way to me at least. Especially at first."


    I put forward a question, interested in seeing how she would respond.


    "They said they''d scout out the area and then we all split up. So I decided toe check how many other groups were here."


    Apparently, she had chosen to do the same thing that I had.


    Since I had arrivedte, she probably had a better grasp of thepetition than I did.


    There were still many things I didn''t know about Nanase. For the time being, I felt pretty confident that nothing good woulde out of lingering around here any more than necessary.


    "I think I''m going to leave. It can''t hurt to take a look around."


    "Indeed! You''re all alone, so please be careful Senpai. Goodbye, then."


    She readily set me loose and walked over to where a cluster of first-year students had gathered.


    With my brief exchange with Nanase finished, I left. After walking for a bit, I found a ce to sit, set down my backpack, and took out my tablet. I wanted to avoid wasting energy if at all possible.


    In total, it had taken me about 50 minutes to reach the designated area. Since there was a break, the next area would be announced in slightly over 3 hours. Tasks, on the other hand, would start showing up very soon.


    I patiently watched the clock; Waiting until it was finally 10:00 AM.


    And then, I promptly began tob through the locations, details, and rewards of the various Tasks that popped up on the map.


    I''d have to decide between waiting for the next designated area and trying to go for a Task based on what I found.


    To start out, there were a total of 14 different Tasks. One of which had appeared in the upper left corner of area D7, the area I was currently in. This was by far the closest. I could see several of the students within my field of vision immediately head off toward the northwest, probably intending to check out the details of the Task as they walked.


    The Task in question was called ''Fire Starter''. 5 points would be awarded to the first group that managed to start a fire using a specially-provided tool. There was no reward for second ce or below.


    Another Task, albeit slightly farther away, had appeared in the central part of area E7 called ''English Test''. It had a participation limit of two people per group, with first-ce receiving 5 points, second ce 3 points, and third ce 1 point.


    More students seemed to be headed that way than for the Fire Starter Task.


    Starting a fire wasn''t going to be easy, especially for anyone who hadn''t actually done so before. Rather than trying to tackle it, it made far more sense to try their hand at English that they were already familiar with.


    There was also a ''Geography Test'' task in area D8, but only one group went in that direction.


    The reason that there was such a difference between this Task and the English Test could be primarily attributed to the area in which it had appeared.


    Area D8 had arge number of students with another Table. And even though it was only one cell to the south, it would still take time to get there. You''d hardly have a chance of beating the students who were already close by.


    While there was a 60-minute registration deadline, it would probably hit max capacity long before that.


    Heading toward the Task at area C6 was yet another option, albeit the furthest away of those I had considered so far.


    It was called ''Grip Strength Measurement'', and seemed to be split up based on gender. Furthermore, it had a longer registration deadline of 120 minutes.


    It seemed like a perfectly reasonable option, but I had to keep in mind that those who weren''t able to register for the Fire Starter Task would probably choose to head over to it instead. Plus, if the next designated area appeared off to the east, I''d have to travel a considerable distance from C6 to get there.


    Speaking of distance, the furthest of the 14 Tasks was all the way in area G3, a Task called ''Trivia Test''. It was a high-value Task that one person from each group could participate in, where first ce would be awarded with 10 points. Even though the registration deadline was 180 minutes, there was still a chance that you''d run out of time before you could get there. And, if you went to G3, there was a high probability that you''d have to give up on reaching your next designated area, so you couldn''t make the journey without giving it a lot of thought first.


    However, if everything went smoothly, you could effortlessly earn 10 points with this Task alone.


    "What an interesting exam."


    In a sense, we were free to choose whatever option we wanted.


    There were a full three hours until the next designated area would be announced. I got up from where I was sitting, having ultimately decided to head for the Grip Strength Measurement Task in area C6. The students who had gone to see if they could participate in the Fire Starter Task would inevitably waste a little time, so this was my chance to steal a march on them.


    As I walked, I began to carefully look over each of the Tasks I didn''t n on participating in, all for the sake of memorizing everything about the different locations and types of Tasks that might appear.

 Chapter 83: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 83: 2.2</h4>


    "Yoo~hoo~ Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    I arrived at the C6 Task site after about 40 minutes of walking, only to find ss 2-C''s homeroom teacher, Hoshinomiya-sensei, lying in wait inside a tent in an attempt to escape the scorching heat of the sun.


    Furthermore, nearly 20 students from all three school years could be seen in the surrounding area.


    "You came all the way here, but unfortunately, registration closed up about five minutes ago."


    Other than Hoshinomiya-sensei, there was a second adult who I had never seen before in the process of exining the Task to the gathered students.


    "So it seems."


    With that being the case, there was no point in me staying here any longer. I tried to leave, not really wanting to be around Hoshinomiya-sensei any more than necessary, but she grabbed me by the arm just as I turned to go.


    "Oh don''t be in such a hurry! Feel free to sit back and watch for a while~."


    "Don''t you think it''s wrong for a teacher to encroach on a student''s time just for their own convenience?"


    "Awh, c''mon~ Don''t exaggerate! You''ll have oodles of time after this~."


    As a teacher, she should be fully aware of the true nature of this exam, where a split-second judgment could very well mean the difference between a win and a loss, but... she still didn''t seem to have any intention of letting me go.


    "Myst designated area was D7, so it''s more than possible that my next will be here in area C6. If that happens, will you take responsibility for causing me to lose out on the Early Bird Bonus?"


    At that, Hoshinomiya-sensei hurriedly let go of my arm and took a few paces back to distance herself.


    "C-cruel! Don''t be like that Ayanok��ji-kun, teasing is a no-no~ I just wanted to chat a lil'' bit, that''s all. It''s like, I''ve been feelin'' pretty grumpy recently, so how ''bout you sit back and hear me out?"


    While she had let go of my arm, it didn''t seem like she wanted our conversation to end yet.


    I reluctantly decided to keep herpany and listen to her, at least for a little while.


    "It''s been since the end-of-term exam, yeah? Since we''ve talked one-on-one like this, that is."


    "That''s true."


    Given that she had witnessed mepeting firsthand back then, along with my recent perfect score in mathematics, it wasn''t difficult to imagine that she was now more wary of me than ever before.


    "Anywho, you''ve been attracting a lotta attention recently, you know? I didn''t think you were the type that liked standing out."


    "I don''t."


    "Then why''d you get that perfect score in math? I mean like, I think it''s pretty weird that you just went and got ''em all right. There was even a problem that I wouldn''t have been able to get."


    From the perspective of someone who potentially saw herself as Chabashira''s rival, it made sense that she didn''t really like the way things had yed out, but for some reason, it felt as though she was taking all of that out on me.


    "Are you sure? I think there are plenty of students capable of solving that sort of problem, though."


    "Are there? Hmm... Are you like, guessing? Even if I assume you''re right here, I''d expect them to be like, ss A or B students at least. And what ss are you in again, Ayanok��ji-kun? A... B... C... Oh that''s right, ss D. Just say it out loud with me, ''ss D''. This might sound rude or something, but the first thing thates to mind for me when I say it is aughable ce chock full of problem children, filled to the brim with nothing but defects. And yet you wanna tell me that there are kids with outrageous specs like you mixed in with all that?"


    "While I don''t know about me, I think there are plenty of outstanding students in ss 2-D. Moreover, if you take a look at ss 1-D, there are plenty of outstanding students there too, don''t you think?"


    I wasn''t particrly informed about the third-year students, so I didn''t say anything about them, just to be safe.


    "Uh... That''s true and all, but like... the school''s policies have changed a bit sincest year, yeah?"


    Even though she asked me this, there was no way that I''d know the answer to that.


    In the midst of our pointless conversation, the Grip Strength Measurement Task began in front of us, with a third-year student named Oshio being the first on deck. They seemed to be going in the order in which they had registered for the Task. And, among all the participants was my fellow ssmate, Sud��. His group members, Ike and Hond��, were nowhere to be seen, suggesting that he had probably split off and rushed here on his own to secure a spot in the Task.


    "I''ll agree that there are some outstanding ss D kids out there, sure, but I don''t think they''re good enough to keep their ss together or anything. When ites to you though, I get the impression that you''ve influenced your surroundings."


    I''ve influenced my surroundings, is it? It shouldn''te off that way though, at least not from an outsider''s perspective.


    From the sound of it, she was awfully familiar with the circumstances at y on my side of things.


    It was probably fair to assume that she had gathered a solid amount of information at some point without me noticing.


    "Anyway, I''ve really like, lost my cool here. This is the first time I''ve ever had a ss go and drop down to ss C like this. I dunno how to say it exactly. I mean, there always used to be an order to things. ss A wouldpete with ss B while ss C and ss D went at each other, you feel me~?"


    If what she was saying was true, then this ''order'' was now certainly a thing of the past.


    "I really thought that this ss would be the one to reach ss A, but... well..."


    She openly voiced her dissatisfaction about the current state of ss 2-C.


    "Isn''t it your duty as the homeroom teacher to do something about that?"


    "What a cruel thing to say~!"


    She covered her ears with her hands, unwilling to listen to anything more on the matter.


    She was like an adult who hadn''t finished growing up yet, or more precisely, a woman who had never truly graduated from her years as a student.


    "Ah! Me, me! You know what, Sensei''s got a totally revolutionary idea for you! Just like how Katsuragi-kun transferred to ss 2-B, Ayanok��ji-kun can transfer over to my ss! How ''bout it?"


    This wasn''t revolutionary at all. It was the kind of idea that even the likes of Ishizaki coulde up with.


    "I was wondering where you were going with this. You''ve really put forward something oundish, haven''t you?"


    "You''ll aim for ss A together with us, right? Right?"


    She reached out for my arm again as she spoke. Her movements were those of a woman who saw physical contact with the opposite sex as her own personal weapon, but just before she touched my wrist, she faltered.


    Having recalled my earlier warning, she pulled back her hand and shook her head a few times so as to keep herself in check.


    "I wouldn''t be able toe up with 20 million points even if I saved up until the day I graduate. Furthermore, as things are now, even if I found a way to prepare such arge number of points, there''s no way to tell which ss will be ss A in the end. So don''t you think it would be wiser to wait until the final moment and see how things y out instead?"


    Not to mention, you''d be hard-pressed to find students interested in transferring to her ss given that it had just recently dropped down to ss C.


    "Y-you don''t have to say it so impartially..."


    If you somehow managed to secure the right to transfer sses, it went without saying that you wouldn''t use it until you were right on the verge of graduating.


    That is, unless you happened to get poached free-of-charge by one of the other sses like Katsuragi. Although... virtually none of the worthwhile students would jump at the opportunity to demote to one of the lower sses, so that was bound to end up failing as well. Even on the off chance that someone agreed to go through with it, whether or not that single person would be enough to raise the ss all the way to ss A was yet another matter.


    All of a sudden, the various groups of students in front of us began to swell with excitement as a new first-ce result came in.


    Oshio, having apparently just been knocked down to second ce, had a disgruntled expression on his face.


    "Sud��-kun has changed an awful lot, don''tcha think? I wonder who''s responsible."


    "Just for the record, it wasn''t me."


    While I might have yed a key part in it, Sud��''s growth could be predominantly attributed to Horikita.


    Shortly afterward, everyone finished having their grip measured, but in the end, nobody was able to beat Sud��''s first-ce score.


    And with that, Sud��''s group earned five additional points, for a likely total of eight. Compared to the measly one point I had earned in the same time frame, the difference was worlds apart.


    As soon as thepetition came to an end, the various students began to disperse; No doubt headed from Task to Task like a flock of migratory birds.


    "Then, I should get going as well."


    Since she had lost her excuse to keep me here, Hoshinomiya relented and sent me on my way.


    "There are two weeks until the end of the exam. I''m prolly gonna get sent around the ind a lot, so maybe we''ll meet each other again~."


    I didn''t want to see her again if at all possible. With that thought in mind, I left the Task site.

 Chapter 84: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 84: 2.3</h4>


    Afterward, I made my way to two other new Task sites that showed up, but in both cases, other groups had already registered for all the spots before I arrived, so I ultimately never got a chance to participate. When the clock struck 1:00 PM, I went to my second designated area, B7, earning nothing but the one-point Arrival Bonus. Come 3:00 PM, my third was announced as D7 once again, the same as my first. I had arrived there not too long ago now, once again earning nothing but the Arrival Bonus.


    I had traveled back and forth and received 2 whole points for my efforts. However, with a cumtive total of only 3 points for the first day, I felt pretty confident that I was one of the lowest-ranked groups out there.


    Even so, there was absolutely no reason to be discouraged. It was only the first day of the exam and the various groups hadn''t spread all throughout the ind just yet. As such,petition was going to be fierce no matter what. Even if I forced myself to pick up the pace, that didn''t change the fact that it was difficult to rack up points on my own and the drain on my supply of drinking water would be intense as well.


    The day''s three Basic Movement intervals were over, and now it was time to prepare for tomorrow.


    "Senpai."


    I ran into Nanase a second time, the two of us crossing paths in a ce simr to the one she and I had met at this morning.


    "Second time today huh?"


    "Indeed. What a coincidence."


    She seemed to be taking action on her own again as there was no sign of H��sen or Amasawa anywhere.


    "How did it go for you today?"


    "I did what I could and earned 3 points. You?"


    "Well, when ites to designated areas, the three of us earned 8 points. I didn''t manage to make it to the second area in time, but I took first ce in a Task instead, so we''re at 13 points altogether."


    "Sounds like you''re off to a good start."


    She hadn''t arrived at one of the designated areas, but that wasn''t a very big deal. In groups of two or more, as long as somebody stepped foot in the designated area, it wouldn''t count as a ''miss''. At the end of the day, if you''re scoring arge number of points for the time you spend elsewhere, just as Nanase did, you''d stille out ahead.


    "Well then, Senpai, if you''ll excuse me."


    After a brief conversation that almost felt closer to a status report, the two of us parted ways.


    It was just before 5:00 PM. I began to walk through the forest, looking to decide where I''d be camping for the night. If I pitched my tent somewhere in the sunlight, the temperature inside would increase rapidly.


    Even after the sun goes down, there''d still be a chance that the heat hadn''t dissipated yet.


    As such, it was probably best to try and find a ce that wasn''t under direct sunlight.


    I went east, eventually stopping somewhere near the edge of E7.


    Between all the students, school faculty members, and exam managerial staff, there should be over 500 people on the ind. But without designated areas or Tasks, you never really ran into other people all that often. In a way, that served as proof for just how dense the forest truly was.


    Because of the heat and humidity, I chose to set up camp in a rtively open area. I took my two liter bottle out of my backpack and poured the water into a paper cup. Drinking straight from the bottle would do nothing to prevent the bacteria inside my mouth from contaminating the rest of the water. With high temperatures like these, letting the bacteria grow from inside the bottle could lead to serious health hazards. There was just no reason to put your health on the line because of something so trivial. Having said that, once opened, bottled water didn''t have that long of a shelf life anyway. If I wanted to drink the water while it was still in its best condition, I''d have to get through it all by the end of the day today. Though, that wasn''t really an option here with the future as uncertain as it was.


    For the first day or two, it shouldn''t be that difficult to get by with all the food and water you bought at the start of the exam. But once your food reserves ran dry, the situation would gradually start to deteriorate. Of course, there was always the option of registering for Tasks for the participation rewards that you would get regardless of whether you won or not. However, from what I had seen on my tablet, there weren''t very many Tasks that fit under that category. Furthermore, there wasn''t a doubt in my mind that the ones that did would be far more contested than usual.


    I turned on my tablet to reflect on this. There had been a total 68 Tasks held throughout the day today.


    While I had no idea if students actually managed to participate in them, there were 14 Tasks that provided all participants with a certain amount of mineral water.


    At a rate of roughly one in five Tasks overall, this was by no means a reliable number of opportunities.


    The interesting thing about all of this, however, were the Tasks that were essentially justpetitions disguised as student relief measures.


    The order in which students arrived at thesepetitive relief Tasks was directly rted to the amount of relief they''d receive, with the student that arrived first receiving 2 liters of water, the second 1.5 liters, and the third 1 liter. Everyone else from fourth to thirtieth would receive 500ml.


    That being said, they wouldn''t receive very many points, with first ce earning 3 points, second ce 2 points, and third ce 1 point.


    But even so, they were still extremely important, providing students with a reliable, unbiased supply of water.


    And�� it was certainly worth noting that thesepetitive relief Tasks ounted for 8 of the 14 Tasks that provided students with water. So on the first day, not only were there 8 Tasks with identical terms and conditions, but their physical locations and registration timeframes had all been very evenly distributed as well. If these Tasks continued to show up from the second day onward, then...


    Well, as long as you could consistently get there in time, you shouldn''t have to worry very much about water.


    After finishing off one of my portable meals, brushing my teeth, and going to the restroom, I decided to go lie down inside my tent to avoid wasting energy and prepare for the day ahead.


    Starting tomorrow, I''d get serious, redoubling my efforts to earn points and essential resources.

 Chapter 85: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 85: 2.4</h4>


    I went to bed early, but I woke up in the middle of the night and sat myself up.


    From what I could see through the gap in the mesh fabric of my tent, the world outside was veiled in total darkness, so much so that you couldn''t even see an inch in front of you.


    The only things I could hear were the buzzing of insects and the asional sound of something running through the grass.


    When it came to camping deep within the forest, the entire experience was a battle against solitude.


    It was probably a fairly harsh environment for a lone girl like Horikita or Ibuki.


    Just to go to the bathroom, they''d have to dedicate time and effort to assemble an improvised toilet outside somewhere.


    I sat in my tent, quietly holding my breath.


    For me, the harshest thing about this was that... Acting Director Tsukishiro would undoubtedlye after me at some point, looking to have me expelled from the school.


    If his n was toe at me head-on, he would need to have me drop down to the bottom five groups somehow.


    However, that strategy would be far too unrealistic.


    The student was in nearlyplete control over whether they''d earn points or not. Even though everyone was doing what they could to survive, I probably wouldn''t have to worry about cing in the bottom five as long as I stayed diligent about my area movements and Tasks. With that being the case, the Acting Director would most likelye at me with a different, more indirect strategy.


    There was a chance he might try to make me lose out on points by making my watch break or malfunction, but an approach like that didn''t seem very practical. Though, it was also possible that he might have put some sort of system in ce to prevent me from scoring points altogether. If both my watch and tablet had been tampered with, then I''d have to consider the possibility that the points currently reflected on my tablet might not really be there at all.


    Of course, if the discrepancy between my watch and the school''s internal logs wasrge enough, I''d voice the issue with the school, and I don''t exactly think that''s something Tsukishiro would want. Hypothetically speaking, even if he had me lose out on three day''s worth of points, I would still be able to recover from it. If his n was that careless, Mashima-sensei and other involved parties would start to suspect something. Instead of carrying out such a half-assed strategy, it made more sense that he''d trying at me from another angle.


    So, looking at it from Tsukishiro''s point of view, what would be the best way to get me expelled from the school?


    Well, if I could make use of the White Room student, then I''d probably have them force my retirement through illness or injury. After all, with something serious like a broken arm, the school would instantly deem you unfit to continue with the exam.


    In other words, I''d have themunch an attack on me here in the vast, unmonitored forest.


    It would be a straightforward, surefire way to get me expelled.


    It would be difficult for the school to tell whether or not my injuries had been caused by another human.


    As someone from the White Room myself, I felt pretty confident that the enforcer had the skills to make it all seem like an ident.

 Chapter 86 - 3: Travel Companion

    <h4>Chapter 86: Chapter 3: Travel Companion</h4>


    I woke up at 6:30 the next morning. From the way the dazzling sunshine lit up the inside of my tent, I could tell that it was a bright sunny day without even needing to go outside.


    A world of green spread out before my eyes as I emerged from my tent in the sweltering heat.


    "Seems like choosing somewhere out of the direct sunlight was the right choice after all."


    Even though I had walked a little further to find a good spot, setting up my tent in a consistently shady ce had been the smart thing to do.


    After a quick breakfast of one of my portable meals and some water, I packed up my tent and waited for 7:00 AM.


    Most students should already be awake by now and waiting for the exam to begin for the day. Designated areas would be my top priority, but I''d consider changing focus if a Task showed up somewhere nearby. That is, depending on the details and rewards.


    Then, at 7 o''clock, a notification was sent to my watch.


    I set my tablet on myp and powered it on before refreshing the map.


    My current location was area D7. So where would I be traveling today?


    The area highlighted on my map was�� E8.


    The location closest to where I had chosen to set up camp for the night.


    Put another way, I was in an ideal position to go after the Early Bird Bonus this time.


    Without wasting even a second, I immediately set off.


    I had spent the first day sitting back and taking a look at the situation, but from today onward, I would gradually begin to pick up the pace.


    Before too long, I stepped foot into area E8 and received a confirmation notification on my watch.


    As my entire group had arrived, I was given the full 10 point reward for a first-ce finish.


    In one fell swoop, I managed to recover from yesterday''s deficit. You could even say that things were going a little too well.


    Since I had the time, it''d be best if I could lock in some Task wins as well, but...


    There were no Tasks that a solo group could register for in the surrounding area, with the closest one all the way over in B8. Given the time it would take to go there and back, I felt that I should probably just pass up on the opportunity for now.


    Since I didn''t know when some other Task might show up, I''d just keep an eye on the map as I waited for my next move.

 Chapter 87: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 87: 3.1</h4>


    The designated area announced at 9:00 AM was area E6.


    I arrived a bit slower than I had for thest area, as I received a 5-point reward notification foring in second ce.


    And at 1:00 PM, after the two-hour break, the third designated area was area F7.


    Even though I started a bit off to the southwest, my sess streak continued, racking up an additional 5 points for another second-ce finish.


    Most of the Tasks that showed up along the way required at least two people to participate. I felt pretty sure that a fair number of students went to them too, something I was grateful for as someone who moved alone.


    I had gotten 23 points so far today, for a total of 26 whenbined with the 3 I earned yesterday.


    While this was certainly good progress, a group of three would have at least 18 points as long as they had been steadily piling up Arrival Bonuses. Even though I was on a hot streak, the difference was almost negligible.


    If I lost pace even slightly, I''d begin falling behind again. I may have gotten second ce twice, but put another way, that just meant that I had missed out on first ce twice. There may very well be some unknown, powerful opponent who had the same Table.


    For the time being, I decided to head back to area E6 and wait for a Task that I could participate in to appear.


    So far, all three of the designated areas today had been normally selected.


    In other words, the uing fourth and final area of the day would be the first randomly designated area of the exam.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, it seems we meet again."


    As I sat down to take a break, Nanase showed up on her own again.


    There had been six designated areas so far. And throughout those six, I had crossed paths with Nanase three times now.


    "By any chance, do you think that we might share the same Table?"


    "Maybe."


    Since we had been running into each other so often, it wouldn''t be that strange if our tables ovepped with each other.


    Though at the end of the day, it didn''t really matter to me if we had the same Table or not. The thing I was concerned about was the fact that we were running into each other so much. For argument''s sake, even if she and I had been going to the same destination, the probability of meeting face-to-face like we have been shouldn''t be this high. Not only would our routes be different, but our time spent traveling and staying in the different areas would be as well. I hadn''t noticed anything that would lead me to think she had been following me, so I guess you could say that it had been nothing more than a coincidence, but was that really the case...?


    Without any further evidence, figuring out whether or not she actually shared a Table with me would be impossible. Nanase was in a group together with Amasawa and H��sen. This meant that, by entrusting her fellow group members with arriving at the designated areas, she wouldn''t be penalized for missing them. While the group wouldn''t be able to get any Early Bird Bonuses, they could still steadily pile up points, two points at a time.


    I could theoretically find out something by paying attention to the alerts she might get on her watch, but there was a chance that she had muted that already.


    Ourst two encounters hadn''t gone on very long, so I thought that she''d leave immediately this time around as well, but instead, she paused for a moment and looked at me.


    "Um, Ayanok��ji-senpai, there''s a favor I''d like to ask of you."


    "A favor?"


    "If it''s not too much trouble, would you perhaps allow me to apany you for a while?"


    "Apany me? What do you mean by that?"


    No matter how incredibly likely it was that she and I had the same Table, the special exam had been set up in such a way that made it essentially impossible for students of different school years to coborate. Neither party stood to gain anything from it.


    "To tell you the truth, a slight issue came up as my group was talkingst night. Both H��sen-kun and Amasawa-san felt that we would be better off if we all acted independently, so everything more or less fell apart."


    Even though they were all part of the same group, there wasn''t any rule stating that they had to work together.


    Of course, there were many advantages to working together as a unit, but independent action was another viable strategy for students who didn''t have any problems with working alone.


    "I''ve crossed paths with you a total of three times now, Senpai. From what I''ve seen from our encounters, I believe that you''ve managed to reach the designated area faster than me. That is of course, except for the first time. I fear that if I''m on my own, it won''t be long before I start to fall behind the designated areas."


    "Don''t you think it''s possible that I just happened to be faster than you thesest two times?"


    "That may be so indeed, but either way, I''ve still recognized you as a step above someone as inexperienced as myself."


    Although her words sung me praises, it didn''t seem like these were her true feelings at all.


    "I don''t think it''s a very wise idea to travel together with someone in a different school year."


    "You''re saying that due to the influence it would have on Early Bird Bonuses and the increasedpetition for Tasks, correct?"


    "There would be a conflict of interest if we came across a Task that only had room for one more group."


    "I would be perfectly fine with taking the back seat in that regard, Ayanok��ji-senpai. I would only step foot into the designated area after you''ve checked to make sure you''ve received your points and Bonuses. That way, it shouldn''t ce you at a disadvantage. As for Tasks, I''ll just defer to you should there only be one space remaining."


    So she had no problem with abandoning the valuable Tasks and Early Bird Bonuses?


    There was absolutely no physical way I''d rmend doing that.


    "You''d ultimately lose points by doing that, Nanase."


    "This is my first uninhabited ind exam, and you''ve already proven the extent of your physical abilities during your fight with H��sen-kun. It would be immensely helpful to me if I could have you choose a suitable route for us to take."


    While she said it would help, it didn''t seem like she really needed it given how she had moved around the ind on her own today without any issue.


    There was really no reason for her to take on the risk of traveling together with me.


    "Even if we assume that I''m going to choose the most suitable route, would you be able to keep pace with me? Sometimes the path I choose might even be dangerous. Would you really be able to do it?"


    I already knew the answer to this question and yet I chose to ask anyway.


    After all, I figured that her response may help reveal the reason behind her strange behavior.


    However, her response was different from what I had expected.


    "I''m fairly confident in my stamina. ...You''re not uncertain because you think I might hold you back, it''s more that you''re not able to trust me, isn''t it?"


    Nanase had previously teamed up with H��sen and Amasawa to try and force my expulsion.


    In that regard, I was certainly a fair ways off from trusting her.


    But even if I turned her down here, she was free to follow after me if she wanted to. I didn''t exactly have much of a choice when it came to that.


    Though, if she began awkwardly tailing after me from a distance, it would seem unnatural if we were seen by a third party. It wouldn''t be impossible for me to give her the slip or anything, but doing that would just be a waste of energy. After all, we would inevitably cross paths again at some point if we both had the same Table.


    That being the case, I felt like it''d just be less of a hassle in the long run to fold and allow her to tag along.


    "Alright. If that''s what you want, then go ahead."


    "Thank you very much."


    After letting show a delighted smile, Nanase bowed to me deeply.


    "We just have to make sure you and I really have the same Table. We on the same page?"


    "Indeed! The notion that we''ve just coincidentally shared some of the same designated areas is certainly feasible, so further investigation is the natural first step. What do we do for now though? It seems we still have some time until the next designation happens."


    It was only half-past one in the afternoon, so we still had more than an hour to spare.


    "True... Oh, on that note, some Tasks just showed up."


    Several new Tasks appeared on my tablet.


    I looked over the Tasks in the surrounding area and quickly decided where to go.


    Then, I showed her the screen and pointed at the Task we''d be heading for as I began to exin our next steps.


    "It looks like there''s a quiz-type Task right under area F8. We''ll go there."


    "It''s fairly close by too!"


    "Yeah. After we''re done there, if the next designated area shows up too far away from us, I think we''ll give up on trying to get there in time."


    Since reaching the next area might not be very practical, I wanted to rack up points by clearing Tasks instead.


    "Understood. Please lead the way."


    In truth, I wanted to head for the ''Football Juggling'' Task that appeared in area E5, but the route and distance made it much more difficult to reach than area F8.


    In any case, I first wanted to find out exactly what Nanase was capable of.

 Chapter 88: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 88: 3.2</h4>


    "We should be able to see it any time now."


    "Right!"


    We crossed over into area F8 with our sights set on reaching the Task, tablets in hand to confirm our location as we pushed forward.


    "By the way Senpai, this Task we''re looking to take on seems rather challenging, wouldn''t you agree?"


    "Well, it''s a quiz, so it''s true that there can be a lot to cover."


    The ''Quiz'' Task took on a format where the genre of its questions would be chosen from several different options.


    While it would be an easy Task to participate in because it was entirely multiple-choice, it would probably be difficult to win if you didn''t have a solid grounding in both liberal arts and sciences. Participation would be done as a group, and up to 12 groups could participate. Put simply, therger the size of your group, the more minds you''d have to work with and the greater your advantage would be.


    "That said, I should have a decent enough chance depending on the genre they choose."


    "That may be so, but... you actually wanted to go after the Task in area E5, didn''t you Senpai?"


    I had deliberately changed my route to try and amodate her, but it sounded like she had seen through me.


    "I''ll admit that I considered it, but it was honestly fifty-fifty. It''s nothing you need to worry about."


    "I''m d to hear that. However, I''m simply here to apany you, so please don''t make any concessions for my sake, okay?"


    "You don''t need to remind me. Besides, the quiz is better when ites to rewards anyway."


    The ''Quiz'' Task gave 8 points for first ce, 4 points for second, and 2 for third. Furthermore, you''d receive a bonus based on the number of people in your group who took part, allowing you to choose from a list of provisions to receive food or water.


    It was an ideal way to replenish what you had consumed over the past two days.


    Before long, the Task site came into view, and from the look of it, a decent number of people had already gathered there.


    "Yo! Ayanok��ji! There''s only three spots left! Get in before it''s toote!"


    Having noticed my arrival, my ssmate Sud�� shouted out as he beckoned me over.


    "Seems he''s right. Let''s hurry."


    Nanase nodded in response, and together, we ran over to the Task andpleted the registration process.


    We weren''t given any more information about the genre of the quiz, leaving us to wonder what kind of questions would show up.


    At this point, we were effectively on standby until a twelfth group showed up or the registration deadline passed in around 30 minutes.


    Ike was sitting down a bit away from the registration desk, waiting for the quiz to begin, but overall he seemed a little out of it.


    He was clearly somewhat bored and disinterested, and Hond�� seemed to be having a hard time striking up a conversation with him, so he was just off killing time by himself. You could say that the greatest strength of Sud��''s group was the enhanced teamwork that came from their close friendship, but it wasn''t clear how well that was really working out for them.


    "Is everything going well on your end?"


    I tried pitching a question to Sud��, the only one who really seemed willing to talk right now.


    "I''m doin'' aight'' on points. Took third in one of our designated areas today, and first in two Tasks so far as well."


    "I wasn''t able to participate myself, but I watched you ce first in that Grip Strength Measurement Task yesterday. By arge margin too."


    "Hell, you were gonna join in too!? If that happened you wouldda prolly given me a run for my money, so lucky me eh?"


    Sud�� made a show of wiping imaginary sweat from his brow in a slightly exaggerated manner.


    "What about your group? Any problems there?"


    "Well, I guess we''re runnin'' outta water faster than expected... Kinda feels like I mighta been runnin'' around too much."


    Apparently, the side effects of going all-out these first two days had finally caught up to him.


    "But ya know, we can get that stuff back from doin'' Tasks, so I''d say we''re doin'' okay."


    With that said, however, Sud��''s expression took on a more difficult undertone.


    "Though, well, Ike''s been kinda out of it."


    "Why?"


    "Dunno... He was acting kinda strange before the exam, but he''s just glossed over it all by sayin'' nothing''s wrong."


    What happened with Shinohara had apparently left asting impact on Ike''s mental state.


    The uninhabited ind exam was already well underway, with the second day more than half-finished.


    And meanwhile, the girl Ike was smitten for, Shinohara, was spending her time together with his rival, Komiya.


    So in that light, it made sense that he couldn''t stop himself from worrying about it.


    "I get that you''re worried, but a Task is a Task. If the three of youe together and give it your best, it shouldn''t be hard toe out on top."


    "Oh yeah, speakin'' of which Ayanok��ji, you''re on your own right? Will you be alright on the quiz?"


    "Well, it depends on whether or not they choose a genre I''m good at."


    Without responding, Sud�� noticed Nanase standing beside me and turned his attention over to her.


    "Heye to think of it... You''re a first-year, yeah? What''s your name again...?"


    Sud�� had taken part in the fight with H��sen a few months back, so it was only natural that Nanase would look familiar to him.


    "It''s Nanase, Sud��-senpai."


    Instead of ogling the pretty girl in front of him, Sud�� took on an extremely serious expression.


    "...Ey Ayanok��ji, c''mere a sec."


    He suddenly wrapped his arm around my neck and pulled me aside, taking some distance away from Nanase.


    "Looks to me like you came here with her, but you know she''s an enemy right? The hell are you doing?"


    "She just asked if she could tag along with me since there''s a good chance that we have the same Table."


    "Wha? Even if you got the same Table what''s the point in doin'' that? That chick is workin'' together with H��sen to get you kicked outta here right? This shit ain''t safe man."


    It seemed like, in his own unique way, Sud�� was genuinely worried about me.


    "You might be right."


    However, I wasn''t naive enough to think she was apanying me for no reason.


    "You''ve got no sense of danger do you... Well, I get you''re all calm like this cuz you know you''ll get through it, but... If you run into trouble make sure you let me know aight?"


    I nodded in response to Sud��''s sentiment, and while he wasn''t entirely satisfied, he seemed willing enough to back down.


    "If she was givin'' you a hard time, I was gonna have her buzz off, but if yer sayin'' it''s fine, then I guess I''ll leave it be."


    Just as he said that, thest group finished registering and preparations for the beginning of the quiz went underway.


    "We can talk more afterward. A Task is a Task, just like you said, so let''s do our best."


    At that, Sud�� went back over to Ike and Hond��. Each of the 12 participating groups then took out their registered tablet and readied themselves for the uing questions. And when the time finally came, the quiz genre was disyed on our screens.


    ��Quiz Genre?Anime��


    Huh? Anime?


    Before my mind had a chance to fullyprehend the words that showed up on my tablet, the first question began.


    ��Question 1: Which of the following is the correct title of the Thirteenth episode of TV Anime Mobile Samurai Bombdam?��


    1)��Farewell Bombdam�� 2)��Burn! Bombdam�� 3)��Shouting Bombdam�� 4)��A Bombdam''s Tears��


    "...What the hell is this?"


    I spoke involuntarily, the words practically escaping from my mouth.


    It obviously had something to do with anime given the genre and question, but beyond that, I hadn''t the slightest clue as to what the correct answer was.


    "Forreal!? This is uber-mega-easy!"


    From nearby, Hond�� shouted out in excitement, sping his tablet tightly as he selected the answer.


    Easy? This question was easy?


    Bombdam... Bombdam... What in the world did that even mean?


    The genre definitely fell way outside of my area of expertise, but even so, I was the one who had gotten myself into this, so I was going to put forth every effort to see it through.


    I just needed to stay calm. Since there were four possible options, there was a 25% chance that I''d answer correctly even if I chose at random.


    If I were to attempt to make a guess, unlike titles 1 through 3, title 4 was the only one that had the word ''Bombdam''e at the beginning. Perhaps that was some sort of hint? I decided to take a stab at it and go with the fourth option. Not long after I did, the time limit was reached and the correct answer was disyed.


    ��Correct Answer: Option 2 �C ''Burn! Bombdam''��


    My attempt at reasoning had been futile, my answer, incorrect.


    I focused my attention on the second question, feeling a faint sense of dizziness as I stood under the scorching summer sun.


    ��Question 2: Which of the following artists sang the opening theme of TV Anime Dashu Sea Chicken?��


    [TL Note : There are two anime references in this part. The first to Mobile Suit Gundam, and the second to some anime/work that I''m not sure of. I spent a few hours asking around my Japanese friends and through many websites and it''s not clear what reference Dashu Sea Chicken is making. "Sea Chicken" is a brand of Tuna in Japan, but that''s not enough to make it clear what''s happening here. Who knows honestly.]


    But reality was cruel.


    I was once again confronted with the fact I knew nothing of the chosen genre.


    Naturally, the second question waspletely beyond me as well. And this time, each of the four options looked effectively identical.


    And at that, I came to realize that participating any further would be nothing more than a waste of time.


    I proceeded to select answers at random, hoping that by some kind of miracle I''d manage to select the correct ones.


    After spending the next ten minutes answering the rest of the questions, I silently closed my tablet.


    Of the 20 questions on the quiz, the number I had gotten right was 4, for a correct answer rate of 20% overall. In other words, I had done worse than average. Unsurprisingly, the group that took first ce was Sud��''s group, with an astonishing 95% correct. After all, Ike and Hond�� seemed fairly reliable when it came to these kinds of questions. It wasn''t just straightforward academic and physical prowess that could prove useful, but misceneous knowledge as well. This all helped support what Chabashira had told us back before the exam had even started.


    "Those questions were all pretty challenging, huh?"


    With 5 correct answers, Nanase''s uracy rate was just about the same as mine.


    Essentially, it seemed safe to say that she knew nearly nothing about anime. And from a look at everyone else''s scores, it seemed like most of the other groups had the same experience with the quiz as we did.


    "We freakin'' did it Kanji!"


    As a member of the winning group, Sud�� put his hand up, looking to celebrate by sharing a high-five with his teammates.


    "Yay..."


    Ike gave a dispirited response and just barely touched hands with his teammates. Seeing this firsthand, I felt somewhat concerned, unsure if I should talk to Sud�� about what Ike was going through.


    While this was my second time running into him, there was no guarantee that we would meet again after this. If Ike were to find out that Shinohara and Komiya had begun dating or had otherwise gotten close to each other during the exam, he probably wouldn''t take it very well.


    However�� Was Sud�� really the right person to try and support Ike right now? To that end, I had my reservations. In an academic, physical, and even mental sense, Sud�� had no doubt matured from the person he used to be. But, whether or not he was capable of providing someone with delicate emotional support was a different story entirely.


    "Is something the matter?"


    Nanase asked me curiously.


    After all, with the Task finished, there was no reason to stick around any longer.


    "Is something wrong with Sud��-senpai''s group?"


    As she had been watching closely for a while now, Nanase got right to the heart of the matter.


    "As an uninvolved third-party, what does their group look like to you, Nanase? Well, I ask that, but I guess it''d be hard for you to conclude anything since you''ve never met any of them other than Sud�� before."


    "Indeed. Then could you perhaps fill me in and tell me a bit about them?"


    "Off on Sud��''s left is Ike Kanji, and to his right is Hond�� Ry��tar��. They''re the type of people who do stupid things and end up standing out in a bad way... or, well, I guess it might be better to say that they''re the type of people who easily get carried away. But, at the same time, they both really add a lot to the ss atmosphere."


    This definitely felt like an oversimplification.


    Though, I probably wasn''t mistaken either, but I''d keep that to myself.


    "They aren''t a studious bunch by any means so their group leaves a lot to be desired, but Sud�� has plenty of physical strength and Ike has the right skills and experience to camp out on an uninhabited ind. And Hond��... Well, Hond��''s a lively guy."


    It wasn''t a bad group of people to be with if the goal was just to get through the exam and enjoy yourself along the way.


    "Ike-senpai and Hond��-senpai, is it? They add a lot to the atmosphere...? From what I can tell, that doesn''t really seem to be the case for Ike-senpai; Could he be sick perhaps?"


    Despite having never met face-to-face, Nanase was still able to perceive that something was wrong.


    Based on the vibe he gave off right now, she was certainly correct in that he didn''t look like someone who added to the atmosphere at all.


    "It''s true that he''s usually livening things up in ss. While he seems to be in a bit of a funk right now, he should at least be fine physically."


    "So that''s what Ayanok��ji-senpai is worried about..."


    After everything that had been said so far, Nanase had probably gotten a sense for it as well.


    "Well, it is what it is. It''s troublesome, but I can''t always worry about the affairs of others. In the quiz, instead of cing in the top three, I ced all the way down at the bottom. They on the other hand took first. Composition aside, the group that racks up more points is the better one."


    Put simply, I was getting a bit ahead of myself by worrying about Sud��''s group when they were currently ahead of me in terms of overall score.


    "That''s just the nature of this special exam, isn''t it? As long as you y to your strengths, you''ll still stand a fighting chance. In that respect, it really puts into perspective just how much effort the school has put into all of this. After all, not only did they rent out this entire ind, they also crafted such arge-scalepetition that highlights the different strengths and weaknesses of the students."


    This may sound rude, but there simply weren''t many opportunities for students like Ike and Hond�� to y an active role back in the ssroom.


    A student''s duty primarily consisted of studying and sports, so it followed that those who struggled with both would eventually find themselves left in the dust.


    In this exam, however, other aspects had a chance to take center stage as well. I had previously been concerned about theck of bnce in Sud��''s group, but they seemed like they were going to be just fine.


    And because of that, Ike''s mental health was the only thing left standing in their way, which was a really tricky problem to solve...


    If he were in prime condition, this exam could''ve been his chance to be a dark horse and overturn his negative reputation.


    Be that as it may�� I cast a sidelong nce at the adults in the process of dismantling the Task site. While this school was clearly different from an ordinary high school, the sheer cost of such arge cruise ship, all the various equipment,bor, and everything else that had gone into a single special exam was unimaginable. Last year''s ind had been impressive, but this time the school had gone above and beyond.


    Not only was the budget on apletely different level, but the content was as well. Last year, we were told to work together as a ss, but this time around, we had been told to split up into a bunch of small groups and scurry to and fro throughout this vast, no-man''s ind. As such, minor, petty disputes between fellow students had the potential to blow up into something major and unprecedented.


    Additionally, matters of injury and illness were now incredibly pivotal. While a couple of scratches or a low fever probably wouldn''t pose too much of a problem, there was a dire need to keep in mind the possibility of a bone fracture, or potentially something even worse than that.


    Until the two-week exam has safely reached its conclusion, the school faculty members probably won''t have the luxury of rxing either.


    "Let''s get going."


    Rather than stand around here, we''d be better off heading toward the next designated area or looking for another Task to take part in.


    "Senpai, may I say something before we depart?"


    Just as I began to start walking, Nanase inserted herself in front of me and looked up to meet my eyes.


    "Once again, just to reiterate, please disregard my presence and choose what you truly believe to be the most ideal route. Okay, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    This uninhabited ind exam was such that, even if you took first every once in a while, that wouldn''t be enough to secure yourself the win. Coming out on top overall would be difficult if you didn''t steadily rack up victories throughout the entirety of the long, two-week battle. And, this said nothing of the fact thatrger groups had an inherent advantage. If you were on your own, that just meant you had to work harder to score more points than others.


    "I''ll say this one more time as well. I''m not letting your presence influence my decisions, so stop worrying about it."


    By this point, I had alreadye to a decision about my approach to this.


    An approach that looked to unravel the rules of the exam and the thought processes of those around me.


    If letting her apany me was going to get in the way of that, I wouldn''t have allowed it in the first ce.


    "I''m relieved to hear you say that. Please take care of me moving forward."


    After checking my watch, I took out my tablet.


    It was just about time for the fourth Basic Movement designation. It would be thest of the day, as well as the first randomly designated area of the exam. When the time came, I checked the map and found that I had gotten area I7.


    If we wanted to take the shortest path, we would have to cross over a mountain range.


    Having said that, if I chose to prioritize safety and take a detour, it would take quite a while to get there.


    However, this was where it got tricky, because this wasn''t an area we needed to get to.


    "Shall we depart?"


    "Before that, Nanase, I want to see your tablet."


    "Ah, that''s right. We still haven''t confirmed whether or not we have the same Table."


    While I was expecting her to at least be somewhat reluctant, Nanase pulled her tablet out of her backpack and showed me the map without hiding anything. And sure enough, her next destination was marked as I7, just the same as me.


    "It seems I have the same Table as Senpai after all."


    "I guess so."


    I couldn''t discount the possibility that our areas might have coincidentally ovepped across different Tables, but given everything else that had happened so far, it seemed reasonable enough to conclude that our Tables were the same.


    "With that out the way, let''s move on. Will we be going over the mountain range?"


    "No, I''m not going to go out of my way for the Arrival Bonus this time. Tasks appeared in both G8 and G9, so I''m thinking of finishing off the day by heading to those instead."


    Both Tasks were centered around academic concepts, with the first being called ''Math Problems'' and the second ''English Problems''.


    I felt pretty confident that I''d do well in them. That is, as long as I managed to make it there in time to register.


    "Then, which will we be pitching camp at today?"


    "Well... The first area tomorrow will be centered around area I7. If we get too close, we might identally start out in the next designated area. I''d like to avoid that if possible."


    Just to be sure, it felt like it would probably be safest to stick to area H9.


    "Once we''re done with the Tasks, I think we''ll head to H9 to set up camp."


    After hearing out my exnation, Nanase nodded along in agreement without a singleint.


    "Oi Ayanok��ji! Didja just say you''re gonna set up camp in H9?"


    Sud�� was just about to set out after wrapping up with the Task when he called out to me.


    "Is there something wrong with that?"


    "No, it''s just that our next designated area happens to be H9. Where you goin'' after this?"


    "For now we''re going to G8 and G9 for the Math and English Tasks."


    "Ugh, yeah, we''re gonna be avoidin'' those for sure."


    Sud�� muttered while scratching his head, as if he was saying something obvious.


    While it was a little further away, Sud��''s group would most likely be headed to the Task that appeared over in area E9 instead.


    "If ya want, how ''bout we all meet up after an'' camp together? Should be more fun with friends. I''d also like to hear whatcha think ''bout our strategies so far and see if you''ve got any suggestions."


    This was an unexpected proposal, but not a bad one. Moreover, I should probably praise him for his progressive attitude. Not to mention, the problem with Ike had been bothering me for a while as well.


    With a coincidental get-together like this, Ike probably wouldn''t feel like I had any ulterior motives in reaching out to him.


    "It''ll prolly be hard to find each other in the forest, so how ''bout we meet up on the beach in G9 instead?"


    Since it''d be easier to find each other on the beach, that was probably the better choice.


    "That sounds good. When should we look to meet?"


    "Since we''ll all be close by, how ''bout 5:30?"


    In which case, we''d probably be able to meet up without running into any problems after we all finished up with our Tasks.


    "Alright. See you on the beach in G9 at 5:30."


    With that, Sud�� and his friends set off in the other direction, looking to take on a different Task than us.


    Well, it''d be unreasonable to ask them to participate in an English or Math Task.


    It was only natural that they would look to challenge Tasks that suited them.


    "Turns out that we''ll be spending the night with them today. Do you have any problems with that, Nanase?"


    She''d be spending the night with four older guys, so it would make sense for her to be at least a little bit hesitant.


    Although, I guess it was probably better than having to spend the night camping alone with me.


    "It''s fine. I actually think it''ll be a good chance to get to know everyone."


    I was d to see that she seemed open to the idea.

 Chapter 89: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 89: 3.3</h4>


    Later, at around 5:30 PM, Nanase and I were waiting together on the beach when Sud��''s group finally showed up,ing from the direction of their designated area.


    "How''d it go?"


    "Ehhh... Not so great. After we split, a buncha new Tasks popped up so we ended up goin'' for three of ''em. We took third ce in one, but the other two had so many people that we couldn''t even register."


    Sud�� clicked his tongue in frustration, slightly short on breath. Nanase and I hadn''t made it to our Tasks in time to register either, so there were clearly quite a few students still in the surrounding area.


    "The second day only just ended, so don''t overwork yourselves."


    Although they had been racking up points like crazy, there was no denying that they were moving a little too quickly, something that Sud�� had even admitted himself. It wasmendable that Sud��, brimming with confidence in his power and stamina, was able to drag Ike along given his ambitionless, sullen demeanor, but they probably wouldn''t be able to maintain that pace forever.


    Hond��, in particr, was gasping for air as if he had just braved his way through the depths of hell. There was no way that he was okay with something so strenuous, but from the fact that he hadn''t vented even a singleint, it was probably safe to assume that he had simply resigned himself, devoting whatever energy he could to follow along instead.


    "First things first, let''s find a ce to camp. How ''bout it, Kanji?"


    Sud�� looked to Ike for a suggestion, prompting the absentminded boy to point off toward the forest.


    "Let''s go back to H9 for now. We passed by a clearing earlier. That should be good enough."


    At Ike''s listless reply, the five of us set off.


    "I really don''t get the impression that Ike-senpai is the life of the party that you made him out to be, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "He has a lot going on."


    "A lot...?"


    "I don''t feelfortable talking about it when it''s not my ce to do so. If you really want to know, you should ask him yourself."


    "You''re right. I''ll try asking him when I get the chance."


    Nanase responded cheerfully. That said, whether or not Ike would answer her honestly was a different matter.


    After following Ike for about twenty minutes, we arrived at a clearing in the forest.


    It was a solid campsite; So much so that there wouldn''t be much of a problem even if three or four groups decided to pitch tents here.


    "Welp, let''s get these tents set up pronto and get some grub. I''m starving."


    Sud�� patted his belly as he spoke, understandably famished after all the moving around he had done today.


    At that, both he and Hond�� looked over at Ike with eyes full of expectation.


    The reason for this was obvious, given the fishing rod sticking out of the back of Ike''s backpack. However, Ike simply stood there without taking notice of their expectant gazes, absentminded as ever.


    "Oi Kanji. Ain''tcha gonna go fishin'' tonight?"


    Sud�� pressed him more directly this time, his expectations soaring high due to their close proximity to the ocean.


    "Eh? Oh, uh, well... it''s already kindate and I''m pretty tired, so yeah. Sorry."


    If he had nned on going fishing, he probably would''ve stayed on the beach back when we all met up.


    Well that, or maybe he just didn''t have the drive to exert himself so much.


    "Well, I guess it can''t be helped then."


    Although Sud�� looked disappointed, he backed down rather quickly, not wanting to force the issue.


    Ike shook his head from side to side so as to keep himself from zoning out again before beginning to set up his tent.


    "Seems like his mind is somewhere else."


    Even Nanase, who knew nothing of the situation, was able to see through him. So in that light, saying that he seemed distracted almost seemed like an understatement.

 Chapter 90: 3.4

    <h4>Chapter 90: 3.4</h4>


    By the time we finished eating dinner, the sun had already set into the night. It was just around 8:00 PM, and we were all freely passing the time on our own. This ''freedom'' came with limitations, however, as it wouldn''t exactly be a wise choice to go on a stroll through the surrounding forest in the dark like this. There were mosquitos upon mosquitos out there, so we were essentially forced to stay cooped up in our tents.


    Given that, we naturally began conversing through the mesh fabric of our protective barriers.


    Nanase, Ike, and I all had our tents set up in a row. Hond��''s tent was set up directly across from Nanase''s with Sud��''s right beside it.


    "So Nanase-chan''s in ss D, huh? I never wouldda guessed."


    Hond�� seemed pretty happy to be talking with a girl, seeing as he was the one asking Nanase the most questions out of all of us.


    "No no. I''m really not a very capable person... ss D seems like an appropriate ce for me."


    "Eh? No way. If anything, we''re the incapable ones here, ain''t that right guys?"


    Hond�� burst out inughter alone, amused by his joke, but Sud��''s expression remained rigid. He wasying down on his back, staring at the roof of his tent without even trying to join in on the conversation. And while I couldn''t see what Ike was doing, he didn''t seem to be genuinely engaged with the conversation either since he wasn''t doing much more than passivelyment on what was being said from time to time.


    "The atmosphere feels down in the dumps. Kanji, Ken, what''s with you guys?"


    "Nothin'' really. But lemme warn ya Ry��tar��... Nanase ain''t trustworthy."


    "Wha? Why''s that?"


    Hond�� pressed his face up against the mesh screen of his tent and stared straight at Sud��, shocked about what his peer was saying about such a cute underssman.


    "No reason, really. Just stating a fact."


    "And what''s that supposed to mean!?"


    "It''s okay Hond��-senpai. I did something rather rude to Sud��-senpai in the past, that''s all."


    "Rude? So it''s not cuz he tried to touch you inappropriately or somethin''?"


    "You think I''d do somethin'' like that?"


    Even though he had somehowe up with the idea himself, Hond�� immediately realized the w in his logic after hearing Sud��''s response.


    "Well, it is true that you''ve always been devoted to Horikita. But like, what the hell happened then?"


    "It''s not somethin'' you need to know about."


    Sud�� shifted around so that his back was turned to the entrance. H��sen Kazuomi of ss 1-D had done something truly unforgivable to the girl Sud�� loved. And, the one who had colluded with him was none other than Nanase herself. From Sud��''s perspective, as someone who knew all the details, it made perfect sense for him to be wary of her. If Horikita were here, she probably would''ve said the same thing. Hond�� probably wasn''t fully satisfied, but since Nanase herself said it was fine, he didn''t really have the right to keep pressing Sud�� about it.


    "Well, alright then I guess... But Kanji''s been pretty out of it this whole time."


    "O-oh, uh, I... same old same old, ya know?"


    Ike began to panic, having suddenly be the topic of the conversation.


    "''Same old same old'' my ass. This is a good chance so I''ll juste out and say it: something''s been up with you since before the exam even began."


    "Sud�� took the words right out of my mouth. You''ve been really out of it man."


    Sud�� readjusted his posture to face toward us once again, clearly interested in where the conversation was headed.


    "What''re you guys saying? L-look, there''s this whole uninhabited ind exam, and like... I mean, I''m just under a lot of stress cuz there''s a chance I might get expelled. That''s all."


    "Stress? Yeah right. Weren''t you super pumped back when we first heard about this exam?"


    Ike had plenty of camping experience, and he even yed an active, important role duringst year''s ind exam. His close friends were well aware of this too, so there was no way they''d let him get out of this with an excuse like that.


    "Well, erm... That''s uh, but like..."


    Hearing as Ike incoherently struggled to put together a response, Nanase looked over at his tent and spoke.


    "Even though we''ve only just met, I also got the impression that you were rathercking in spirit."


    "What do you think Ayanok��ji?"


    Hond�� asked me for my opinion, prompting me to break my silence.


    Given the flow of the conversation so far, it''d probably be the most natural to just be honest and agree with them.


    "It''s been on my mind since we first met up earlier today."


    "See? All four of us managed to pick up on it."


    Ike had been pushed into a corner, left only to stammer as he tried toe up with a solid excuse.


    "Earlier, Ayanok��ji-senpai told me that you and Hond��-senpai are the type of people who add a lot to the ss'' atmosphere. But, so far, it just seems to me like your mind is somewhere else entirely... Is something troubling you, Ike-senpai?"


    In all likelihood, Ike was probably shocked that Nanase''s words had hit the nail right on the head even though she knew nothing about what had happened.


    "Uhm, how do I put it..."


    Ike frantically tried to find the right words.


    "C''mon, if you''re bothered by something juste out with it."


    "It''s prolly not a big deal anyway."


    Despite being two of his closest friends, they both seemed to think that Ike''s troubles would end up being trivial.


    And because of that, they just wanted him toe out with it already.


    However, their approach only seemed to make Ike more reluctant to speak.


    "Just forget about it..."


    "Could you two please hold off and give him a moment?"


    After hearing Ike''s dejected response, Nanase quietly whispered to Sud�� and Hond��.


    For a moment, Sud�� seemed indignant and offended, upset that Nanase had even asked, but once he took a look at Ike''s troubled expression, he realized that his friend might be going through something worse than he had been making it out to be.


    "There''s no need for us to hold off, Nanase-chan. In the end it''s probably nothin'' big."


    "No. It might be a bit too early to say that Ry��tar��. Let''s try waitin''."


    "Eh? A-ah... Well I guess we can try."


    Reading the room had never been one of Sud��''s strong points. From the look of it, however, he had gradually picked up on how to pay attention to his surroundings and notice the subtle nuances of a situation. This was probably yet another byproduct of Horikita''s teachings over thest year.


    The four of us quietly watched over Ike, making sure not to make him feel pressured to speak. Of course, it wouldn''t be easy for Ike to speak in a situation like this, but at the same time, he wouldn''t be able to turn tail and run away. We simply needed to wait for him to feel ready on his own.


    Eventually, after about ten minutes of silence, Ike made up his mind and began to open up.


    "To be honest... There''s... a girl I''ve had my eye on for a while now."


    Surprised, Sud�� and Hond�� turned and looked at each other through the screens of their tents.


    Hond�� then became very animated, excited about the sudden emergence of such an interesting topic.


    "What!? Who!? Who is it!?"


    "Let''s wait until Ike-senpai feels ready to tell us himself."


    Nanase gently intervened, looking to stop Hond�� from hounding Ike with questions.


    It was difficult to imagine that his current mental state hade about simply because he had a crush on someone. To that end, there had to be something else that had happened afterward to make him turn out like this. Nanase probably understood this as well.


    "H-hey but like, you''ve gotta dive in head-first with this kinda stuff!"


    "How about you calm down and wait to hear what Ike-senpai has to say? Instead of worrying about who he likes, don''t you think that it''s more important to find out how it rtes to the matter at hand? Or am I wrong?"


    Nanase''s words were calm, yet firm, bringing Hond�� screeching to a halt.


    "I-I guess you''re right."


    Upon being rebuked by his underssman, Hond�� seemed to realize that he was being tactless and awkwardly scratched at the back of his head.


    "The girl I like..."


    Once Ike began to speak, the two boys definitely let their imaginations run wild.


    Was she in our school year? A senpai? Or was she one of the new students?


    And, if she was in our school year, was she a ssmate?


    Popr, attractive girls like Kushida or Ichinose were no doubt the first toe to mind.


    "The girl I like is... uhm... Sh-Shinohara... Shinohara Satsuki."


    When they finally heard the name, for a moment it seemed like Sud�� and Hond�� were genuinely unable to process it.


    After all, to them, Ike and Shinohara must seem like nothing more than ssmates who butt heads with each other.


    She wasn''t exactly the best-looking girl out there either, so their confusion was perfectly understandable, given how much Ike had boasted about his ns to go out with a cute girl.


    "B-but Kanji, like... You''re on bad terms with Shinohara right? You''re always talkin'' about how crazy ugly she is."


    Hond�� asked, unable to stop himself from pointing out what seemed to be the most ring problem with the idea.


    "It''s not like I''ve been conscious of her from the start or anything. Hell, I hated her at first. But... I dunno why, but at some point I started caring about her and, well... I guess I didn''t wanna admit it to myself, so just went along pretending that I hadn''t fallen for her."


    He probably wasn''t lying when he said this. It was a natural scene for those of us who were forced to listen to Ike and Shinohara''s daily bickering sessions back in the ssroom.


    "I mean, if you like Shinohara, then why don''t you just go confess to her?"


    Sud�� offered a blunt, somewhat crude suggestion, but Ike replied with a tone of despair.


    "It''s just not that simple. Not anymore."


    "Did something happen, Ike-senpai?"


    "Shinohara is in a group together with Komiya right now. That guy... probably likes her too."


    At this point, Hond�� and Sud�� finally began to get a grasp of what was happening.


    "Plus, well... it seems like she sees him as someone special as well."


    A boy and a girl who were conscious of each other, working together in the same group to get through all of this. This exam was a crucial battle with our futures at the school hanging in the bnce, so the conditions were perfect for the formation of close bonds and strong feelings that weren''t there before.


    "I... I only realized that I was fallin'' in love with Shinohara a little while ago... So when this exam came around, I wanted to group up with her more than anything. But I just couldn''t be freaking honest about it so we started fightin'' like we always do... It''s pathetic... This whole time, I''ve just been searching for her..."


    Ike had been distracted for a while now; His eyes had been searching, chasing after a glimpse of Shinohara''s shadow.


    "Maybe I just got the wrong idea at some point, thinking she liked me somehow even though we argue so much... I''m such a loser. Even now I''ve got no idea what I shouldda done differently."


    There would always be times when you wonder if the feelings you have are mutual, just as Ike had. But even so, it was impossible for anybody to truly know the feelings of the other party.


    This was something I had experienced firsthand back when I confessed to Kei.


    "Can''t you just be honest with her, Ike-senpai? I don''t necessarily think that''d be a bad thing."


    Nanase shared her thoughts after hearing out what Ike had to say.


    "But... Shinohara''s together with that Komiya guy while I''m here in the friendzone."


    "I''m not so certain about that. This is just a guess, but... don''t you think Shinohara-senpai has just been waiting for you to draw the line?"


    "Draw the line...?"


    "From what I''ve been told, you''re someone who''s always bright and cheerful to everyone. Someone who often speaks what''s on your mind. Of course, I''m sure that Shinohara-senpai has a high opinion of you in this regard as well. That said, don''t you think she might wish she could be someone a little more special to you?"


    He often freely spoke what was on his mind, or put in other words, he often spoke without thinking.


    "Don''t you think maybe she wants you to be more upfront about your feelings?"


    It was already a well-established fact that Ike had feelings for Shinohara.


    And at the same time, I felt pretty confident that Shinohara had feelings for Ike as well.


    Yet, Ike constantly argued with her, sometimes even going so far as to make fun of her. He treated her no differently than one of his male friends.


    However, that alone probably wasn''t enough for her, just like Nanase said.


    "I..."


    "Ike-senpai, would you be happy if the girl you liked never took you seriously? There''s nothing wrong with trying to hide your embarrassment, but you won''t get anywhere if you don''t convey your feelings to her. Wouldn''t you want her to look at you a little more seriously as well?"


    You could gain new insight by looking at it from the other person''s perspective.


    How would it make you feel if the special someone who was always on your mind constantly spoke ill of you, day-in and day-out?


    "...Dammit."


    Ike hung his head and held his face in his hands. Right now, he was probably recalling memories of how he had treated Shinohara in the past and putting himself in her shoes, doing his best to understand how his actions had made her feel. Or no, given his reaction, he had probably already understood.


    "Feeling troubled about this isn''t a bad thing, per se, but you''re currently in the midst of a special exam where your future here is at stake. You wouldn''t be the only one expelled either; Your actions could very well drag Sud��-senpai and Hond��-senpai down along with you. I fully understand the feeling of wanting to go chasing after Shinohara-senpai, I do, but you should focus on fighting for survival first."


    Before I knew it, everyone present had been mesmerized by Nanase'' words.


    After all, she had responded to Ike''s woes far more sincerely than even his own best friends, but that wasn''t the only reason.


    "If you can''t meet... If you can never reunite with someone you care about... then you''ll never ever be able to let them know you love them again...!"


    There was no need to look at her expression. Just the sound of her voice alone was more than enough to make it clear.


    "Y-you, why are you crying?"


    Despite hissting distrust of Nanase, Sud�� spoke up in a panic.


    "Ike-senpai, you don''t have the time to be feeling caught up in your troubles, wouldn''t you agree?"


    Sud��''s question went unanswered as Nanase posed Ike one of her own,pletely disregarding the fact that tears were streaming down her own face.


    "...Yeah. I''ve gotta get through this exam safely first right?"


    Nanase''s words, the words of a here-before stranger and underssman, had touched Ike''s heart more than any of us could''ve expected.


    "Ken, Ry��tar��, I''m sorry guys. I... I''ve prolly troubled you two a heck of a lot these past two days, haven''t I?"


    Ike expressed his remorse, to which Sud����


    "No, you haven''t... Eh, well, maybe just a lil'' bit."


    He wasn''t able to get himself to say that there hadn''t been any problems, but that was probably for the best.


    "To be honest, I''m still anxious about Shinohara. But... that won''t matter anyway if I don''t get through the exam first. All my worrying, all this time I''ve spent, everything wouldda been in vain if we don''t pass."


    "Eyy, attaboy Kanji!"


    Hond�� agreed, shouting out so as to rally everyone''s spirit.


    Sometimes friends could be a nuisance, but in other cases they could be truly irreceable.


    I felt like this was my lesson, my takeaway from what had happened tonight.


    And as for the tears Nanase had shed, my gut was telling me that it hadn''t been a mere performance, nor had it been the result of her getting caught up in the atmosphere.

 Chapter 91 - 4: What it Means to Like Someone

    <h4>Chapter 91: Chapter 4: What it Means to Like Someone</h4>


    It was just after 6:00 in the morning, right about when the inside of my tent began to heat up, when I heard a voiceing from outside.


    "Uhm, Ayanok��ji-senpai, are you awake yet?"


    "Please wait a second, I''ll be right out."


    I emerged from within my tent, responding to Nanase''s call.


    "I''m sorry to bother you so early in the morning."


    "I was already awake so it''s fine. We need to start tidying up and get ready to head out soon anyway. What''s up?"


    I took a look around at the other tents and noticed that nobody else had woken up yet, so I kept my voice to a whisper.


    "It''s about Ike-senpai. Do you think I said a little too muchst night...?"


    "Well, rather than having said too much... To me it felt more like you just called it like it was."


    While I did think that she had gotten a bit too involved in his personal matters, it seemed like she had more or less reflected on it.


    "Thanks to you, Ike''s managed to get back on his feet. Or, I guess it''s more like he''s managed to finally take a stand. I think he appreciates what you''ve done for him."


    "You think so?"


    I nodded immediately, but she still seemed somewhat unconvinced.


    "I feel like Ike-senpai is in a sort-of precarious position right now. I''m afraid that yesterday''s discussion might backfire and cause him to act recklessly... That''s why I''m not sure if we should split off from them right away."


    "It''s not that I don''t understand how you feel, but..."


    While I was also worried about Ike''s mental state, traveling together with them woulde with great risks of its own. Our groups each hadpletely different Tables, so there was no way to predict where our designated areas would be.


    Depending on this next designation, we might have to head off in entirely different directions.


    Given that, I found myself wondering whether her feelings were genuine or perhaps something more artificial.


    If it was thetter, was she simply looking to keep me from going to the designated areas?


    No, a move like that felt far too weak and short-sighted.


    At some level, I couldn''t exactly dismiss the idea that she might hold me back, but...


    "It''s no good, huh... I thought so. If we split up with them, it would probably be impossible to meet back up again."


    "Well, let''s see..."


    I wouldn''t say it was the best idea out there, but I guess it wouldn''t be entirely impossible to implement.


    There would still be ways to keep an eye on Sud��''s group and stay on top of our own affairs at the same time.


    "It''s extreme, but as far as meeting back up with them is concerned, it shouldn''t be that difficult. It''s just a matter of deciding on a meeting ce in advance. Even if it''s a long distance away, as long as we have the stamina left to walk, it should still be possible."


    Be it designated areas or Tasks, the day''s obligations always came to an end by the time 5:00 PM came around.


    In other words, we were basically free to do whatever and go wherever we wanted from 5:00 PM to 7:00 AM the next day.


    "That''s true and all, but..."


    Of course, whether or not this was actually the correct course of action was another story altogether.


    The further away our designated areas were from each other, the tougher it would be to decide on a suitable meeting ce.


    "In any case, we should probably wait and see what designated area they get first."


    If their route waspletely different from ours, then it''d be for the best to give up on the idea sooner rather thanter.


    After packing up camp and eating breakfast, 7:00 AM came around and with it the announcement of the first designated area of the day.


    "H7, huh?"


    I wouldn''t say it was the worst oue, but it certainly wasn''t ideal by any stretch of the imagination.


    It wasn''t clear whether we''d be able to make it there within the next two hours or not.


    However, if we didn''t make it there in time, it would be our second missed area in a row.


    In which case, if the next area ended up being randomly designated and showed up somewhere off to the west of the mountain range, we''d really be in a pinch.


    "It would be quite troublesome if the randomly designated area were to happen at 9:00."


    Under the assumption that everything went smoothly for these next two hours, we''d probably only reach I7 or I8 at the very most.


    Of course, it''s not like it would be impossible to reach H7 in two hours, but...


    Getting Nanase involved in something so drastic woulde with an equivalent amount of risk.


    "We can always choose to conserve energy and miss the area for a second time."


    The point reduction penalty only began once a group had missed three area designations in a row.


    So in that sense, even if we didn''t make it to H7, we should still be fine...


    That being said, should the situation turn dire, we could very well be subject to the mercy of our destination, forever unable to find our way to the designated area in time.


    "Sud��, what designated area did you get?"


    "We got I8 so if you two are goin'' the same way we can head out together. I''m fired up so let''s get this done!"


    While our destinations were different, our routes would, for the most part, be the same.


    However, this turn of events was far from convenient. In fact, I felt more inclined to call it unfortunate instead.


    Thanks to this, I would be prevented from taking any extreme measures.


    If we were to go all out trying to get there, Ike and Hond�� would certainly not be able to match our pace.


    "We''re heading in the same direction again, so how about we stick together until we have to split up?"


    I figured we might as well travel together with them since we probably wouldn''t reach our area before the time limit anyway.


    After all, Ike''s situation was still a concern, and we''d at least be able to coborate should something happen along the way.


    "Sure thing. You down, Kanji?"


    "A-ah, of course."


    Ike looked somewhat flustered as he responded, the memories ofst night''s conversation probably still fresh in his mind.


    Nanase''s presence, that of a stranger, had helped to spur Ike forward.


    And while this had been an unfortunate beginning to the third day, there at least seemed to be some upsides to it working out the way it had.


    Under normal circumstances, Ike would crack jokes and try to smooth-talk Nanase, prattling off about how cute she was or something, but that wasn''t the case here at all. It would be undeniably outrageous if he acted that way after everything he said about Shinohara justst night. However, given that Ike was exactly the type of person who did undeniably outrageous things from time to time, the fact that he was showing restraint now may very well be proof that he was beginning to change.


    "Well, anyway. I guess I''ll lead, so you all can just follow me."


    With that, Ike rolled his shoulders, stretching them both out in their full range of motion before taking up the lead and setting out. He had gotten much more lively ever since we started traveling together with them. After all, a false show of courage wasn''t all that different from the real thing.


    "You don''t seem to be enjoying this very much, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Your expression is quite stiff."


    "It''s nothing out of the ordinary."


    "Is that so?"


    While it was true that I was somewhat bothered about our designated area, I felt pretty confident that I hadn''t let it show on my expression.


    "There''s no use worryin'' ''bout that. Ayanok��ji''s always got that sorta look on his face."


    Sud�� chimed in, having heard what we were saying from over his shoulder.


    I wasn''t sure if I should be thankful for his support or offended by it.


    "Well there''s your answer."


    I had slightly mixed feelings about it, but in the end I just went along with Sud��''s exnation.


    Sud�� let show a mischievous grin before heading up to the front and striking up a conversation with Ike.


    "You''re still thinking about Ike-senpai, aren''t you Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "You''re reading too far into it. I''m d to see that he''s grown up a bit, but honestly outside of that I''m not sure what you''re referring to."


    "...Is that so?"


    Since there was a chance that Ike and Sud�� might overhear what we were saying, I cut our conversation short.


    As he was now, Ike was certainly more energetic than he had been yesterday, so it wasn''t incorrect to say that he had grown up in a mental sense. In that respect, the response I had given Nanase technically hadn''t been a lie at all.


    However�� Most of this ''growth'' was superficial. This was nothing more than the first step of his journey of change. Depending on the situation, his progress may stagnate, or possibly even go through a major regression.


    People are not so simple that they can change just because they want to, a truth that Nanase also appeared to be well aware of. And to that end, she wanted to have me understand it as well. From off to the side, I could tell that her gaze was fixed on Ike as he walked in front of us, and upon seeing this, I couldn''t help but wonder to what extent her thoughts were really about Ike.


    From just ahead of us, Ike and the others raised their voices in surprise.


    A wild bird had suddenly spread its wings from further within the forest and took off into the open sky.


    It was the type of special, firsthand look at nature that we''d probably only get to experience on an uninhabited ind like this.


    At any rate, if I wanted to find out the truth about Nanase, my only real option seemed to be traveling together with her, at least for the foreseeable future.

 Chapter 92: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 92: 4.1</h4>


    It was nearly 9:00 AM, and we were currently in the southeast corner of area I8. The path ahead was rugged, but Nanase''s breathing wasn''tbored in the slightest. It seemed like she wouldn''t have any problems keeping up if I picked up the pace a bit. Sud��''s group had been together with us until just a few minutes ago, but the moment we arrived at I8, they ran off to take part in a Task that had appeared back in I9.


    "For now, let''s head over to J9."


    "This is to lower the chances of being in the next designated area at nine o''clock, correct?"


    "Yeah."


    From our current location, we should be able to reach J9 in only a few minutes.


    We pressed onward, arriving in J9 just three minutes short of 9:00 AM, our eyes glued to our tablets as we stepped foot into the area.


    For the three short minutes we had, we sat down on the ground and took a break as we waited for the second designated area to be announced.


    From where she was seated, Nanase peered at the screen of my tablet. Secondster, the clock struck nine.


    "Senpai..."


    Upon seeing the next area, Nanase looked up at me. It was the second random designation of the exam, but it wasn''t that far away at area J5. It would be a tricky journey if we went through the forest, so we could just head all the way east and travel north along the beach instead.


    Even if there were students on our Table who had sessfully made it to area H7, it would take them a lot of time to navigate through the forest.


    We had more distance to cover, but there was a chance we could surpass ourpetition in one fell swoop.


    When it came to random designations, the fact of the matter was that there was no way to tell where they would pop up.


    In this case, we were lucky that it had turned up within a reasonable range.


    We immediately resumed our journey without exchanging another word.


    It had been tacitly understood that we would take a path straight to the beach.


    Not even twenty minutester, we stepped foot on the sand in the northeast corner of I8, and from there, we pushed north along the shore.


    As we traveled, we passed through area J6, where we encountered several adults in the middle of setting something up.


    I cast them a sidelong nce as we passed through, then opened up my tablet to find that a Task had just appeared here.


    "Beach gs Showdown, huh?"


    Beach gs is a sporting event that was originally designed for lifeguards to train various skills essential to their practice, such as running speed and reflexes. A perfect fit for the sandy coastline.


    [TL Note : I looked up a bit of information about Beach gs, since I had never heard of it before. I tranted a few pages out of a Japanese dictionary that spoke about it:


    �ө`���ե�å��� (English: Beach gs) is an Australian life-saving sporting event performed by lifeguards meant to train various skills essential to their practice, such as their running speed and reflexes. It is sometimes performed in recreational contexts that don''t emphasize lifeguarding skill. The sport is usually performed on beaches and such in which several yers contend with each other for gs, of which there are less than the number of participants. The distance from the starting line to the gs is usually 20 meters, andpetitors start out byying prone on the ground with their back facing the gs.


    It''s highly akin to musical chairs, in that the person who does not get a g is eliminated and then one g is taken away and it repeats like that until there''s a winner. If you''re interested, I found a video of it here. Personally, I can''t fathom the sport, but I guess it''s moremon in Japan than America. Who knows.]


    They were apparently looking for eight boys and eight girls, who would be participating separately.


    Since only one person would be allowed to participate per group, the Task needed a total of eight different groups per gender.


    Only the first ce group would receive rewards, earning 6 points along with the ability to choose an additional reward out of several provided options.


    Outside of that, every group would receive a 500ml water bottle as a prize just for participating.


    Usually, new Tasks would be announced via the map on our tablets, but if you just so happened to be passing by while one was being set up, you''d be able to learn about it ahead of time. You''d get to register for the Task before any other group, but subsequently, you wouldn''t be able to discern what type of Task it was going to be until it started. Of course, if it was something straightforward, you could probably figure it out just by looking at what was being set up, but if it was some sort of academic test, that would be almost impossible.


    This Task, however, had a registration deadline of one hour. If we registered for it now, we''d be stuck in the nearby area, effectively casting aside any chance we had of earning an Early Bird Bonus by reaching our designated area.


    For that reason, I decided that we would look the other way for the time being and prioritize reaching our designated area instead.


    Not too long after, just as I began to feel like we had arrived in area J5, a notification showed up on my watch.


    "We did it Senpai."


    In total, it had taken us about an hour to get here. Under normal circumstances, taking a full hour to reach a designated area would only you the Arrival Bonus. However, I was apparently lucky enough to have been the first group to get here, whereas Nanase had secured herself the one-point Arrival Bonus, so we both came out ahead. Whether or not she would get the Early Bird Bonus as well depended entirely on Amasawa and H��sen, but I had no way of knowing about that.


    Since we had dealt with our designated area, our next step was to go back to area J6 and register for the Beach gs Task.


    The two of us went back the way we came, our sights set on earning umting as many points as we could.


    We were met with something unexpected when we arrived back at the Task site, however. A long line of students, both boys and girls, had already formed at the registration point. The area had been empty back when we passed by earlier, so just where did all of these peoplee from?


    "If we''re lucky, we might be able to take up thest spot?"


    "Perhaps. Maybe J6 is the designated area for another Table?"


    "Perhaps..."


    "Let''s go check it out for the time being."


    "Right!"

 Chapter 93: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 93: 4.2</h4>


    We entered area J6 and approached the Beach gs Task site.


    It looked like there were already more than eight boys participating, but there was no way to say for sure just yet.


    Since only one person per group was allowed to participate, I probably still had a chance.


    A male third-year student noticed us as we drew closer.


    His name was Kiriyama, the vice president of the student council. Up until a few seconds ago, he seemed to be enjoying himself as he chatted with his friends. However, his demeanor changed entirely the moment he caught sight of us, as he immediately rushed over to the staff member in charge of the Task and began to talk to them about something.


    While I was put off by his strange show of behavior, I simply approached the staff member myself and let them know I was looking to participate.


    Unfortunately, I was told that the student just ahead of me had apparently filled up thest spot in the boys'' category, making it impossible for me to participate. I watched as Kiriyama and the other boys who had registered left to go change their clothes in the makeshift changing rooms that the staff members had set up.


    The girls, on the other hand, only had seven entries, so there was still one more spot avable.


    "If Senpai can''t participate then I''ll sit this one out as well. I wouldn''t want to keep you waiting."


    "It''s okay, I wanted to take a break anyway. You should participate."


    "But..."


    "Since you''re surrendering all of the Early Bird Bonuses to me, the gap between our points is only going to get wider. I''m not saying anything about whether you''ll win or not, but you should just go for it if you think you stand a chance."


    There were still about ten minutes left until the registration deadline, but if Nanase entered, the Task would reach maximum capacity.


    In other words, she could immediatelypete in the Task without wasting any time.


    "Thank you very much. Well... I suppose I''ll go sign up then."


    If she had a decent chance of stealing away points from students of other school years, then she should take full advantage of it. Given that she was the one who had asked to apany me, she wasn''t really in a position to make willful decisions here. But even so, this was still a Task that she should be firm about participating in.


    A tent had been set up a bit off to the side for people to take refuge from the direct sunlight, so I moved over to it once Nanase left to change clothes.


    There were a variety of different swimsuits avable for the Task for both boys and girls. One might go so far as to say that thepetition truly began from the moment you decided on which one you would wear. Although, since there wasn''t going to be any swimming, it probably wouldn''t make that much of a difference no matter which one you went with.


    One by one, the boys began to emerge from the makeshift changing rooms, donned in their chosen swimwear. For the most part, they were all wearing standard loose-fitting swim trunks, with the only real difference between them being the pattern print of the fabric. The various students on standby began to cheer and hor as their friends came out into the open.


    I decided to take a closer look at the strange lineup of students who had assembled here. Each of the eight boys were third-year students. Simrly, on the girls'' side of things, there were seven third-years. Nanase, the sole first-year student, had only just barely managed to slip her way in.


    As a rule, only one person could participate per group, which meant that there were at least fifteen different groups of third-years gathered here right now. Regardless of whether they were here because of a nearby designated area or because of this Task alone, the fact that there weren''t any students from other school years present was undeniably abnormal.


    Given that, Vice President Kiriyama was certainly worth paying attention to. If arge number of people were all moving together just to ensure that he would take the win, then...


    I stood back and thought this over, and before long, everything was ready for the boys to begin their matches. The format of thepetition was the average bracketed tournament, where students wouldpete against each other in one-on-one matches in order to decide who would advance to the next round. Winning three straight matches would you the first ce spot. Therefore, I should be able to see if thepetition had been fixed for Kiriyama by watching the intensity of the other third-years.


    After all, the intensity of the matches would help dictate whether they were serious about winning or not.


    From the very first match, however, thepetition was unexpectedly fierce, with Kiriyama pitted against one of his very own ssmates. The two boys arose from face down on the ground and broke into a sprint at practically the same time. It was so neck-and-neck that they were both in the air as they dove for the g. You could even say that it all came down to the length of their arms. In the end, Kiriyama seized the g, and with it, the win.


    It wasn''t just that first match either. Time and time again, the third-years faced off, burning with determination toe out on top. It really didn''t seem like they were deliberately throwing for Kiriyama''s sake, or anyone else''s for that matter.


    They could be taking it seriously because I was watching, but that probably wasn''t the case here.


    Kiriyama wasn''t ''that'' wary of me, and even if he was, it was immensely unlikely that he''d be able to convince everyone else to follow along.


    In which case, what was the exnation for the crowd of third-year students currently spread out before me?


    It was possible that something beyond my expectations was happening here.


    Just as the boys'' matches were getting into full swing, the girls began to show up in their new change of clothes.


    Five of them had chosen the usual school regtion swimsuit. Nanase, meanwhile, had chosen an option that was far more bold and daring.


    It seemed like they were on standby, free to do as they wanted until the boys finished.


    Given that, I approached Nanase and called out to her.


    "Can I ask you something?"


    "What is it?"


    She looked over at me curiously, in the midst of doing warm-up exercises in a blue-green bikini.


    "I see that you chose a rather cute swimsuit. Is there a reason for that?"


    If she wanted to keep things simple, then a standard school swimsuit would''ve probably been more than enough.


    "A reason? From what I''ve seen of Beach gs on TV, girls usuallypete wearing swimsuits like this, right? I thought it''d be strange if I took part in a school swimsuit. Have I misunderstood something?"


    Well, if we''re talking about what''s shown on TV, then she wasn''t exactly wrong.


    After all, Beach gs is one of the most popr recreational activities for people thate to the beach.


    At that, Nanase turned her attention to the ongoing matches as she continued with her warm-up exercises.


    The final match ultimately drew to a close with a splendid victory for Kiriyama. This was only to be expected from someone who was trying to take down Nagumo. His skills seemed to be an urate representation of his B+ Physical Ability rating in the OAA app as well.


    The girls'' category was up next, meaning that Nanase would be participating soon. In fact, her name was called for the very first match, so she immediately went and took her position prone on the field. Her opponent was a third-year girl named Tomioka, who had a decent C+ Physical Ability rating. Nanase, on the other hand, was one step above that with a B+. That being said, a higher Physical Ability rating wouldn''t necessarily guarantee victory.


    Overall Ability would certainly have a part to y here, and furthermore, everybodyes with their own unique strengths and weaknesses.


    Whether or not a student had prior experience with Beach gs would also be important, but I felt pretty confident in thinking that it mostly came down to running speed and reflexes. This begged the question: Who was truly better between them? At the sound of the pistol, Nanase nimbly arose from the ground, kicked off from the sand, and burst toward the g in one swift motion.


    Tomioka lost before she even had the chance to put up a fight, left only to stare at the open sky with a dumbfounded expression.


    The timing of the nk was usually unpredictable, but in Nanase''s case, she had responded in perfect sync with the sound of the gun.


    That alone served as definitive proof that her reflexes were several magnitudes faster than Tomioka''s.


    The six remainingpetitors who had been watching from the sidelines had probably gotten a sense of just how formidable Nanase was as well. After the next three matches, the four semi-finalists were chosen, and Nanase''s speed and reflexes seemed to be a head above the rest.


    However, that was by no means reason for her to be careless. Between negligence, pride, and an assortment of other factors, there were plenty of things that may dull her reflexes, no matter how amazing they may be. And, no matter how much confidence she may ce in her running ability, if she were to get her foot caught in the sand and tripped, it would all be over.


    But at the end of the day, results rarely betray the favored oue.


    Nanase won her second match by anotherrge margin, and was now one step away from snatching up thepetition.


    "She''s a tough one."


    Kiriyama voiced his candid impression of Nanase as he spectated the matches.


    Of course, these words were not meant for me, but for his fellow group members.


    The other semifinal match went by and before long, the final matchup was decided. Nanase would be going up against a girl named Tokunaga, and this time, her opponent was someone with an identical B+ Physical Ability rating. Tokunaga had won herst two matches decisively, much in the same way that Nanase had. The final match had be a proper showdown between two worthypetitors.


    Up until this point, the onlooking crowd had been fairly rowdy, but everyone quieted down as the two girls took their positions and waited for the signal.


    The staff member fired off the pistol for thest time, the sound echoing out across the beach. And with it, the two girls burst into action, arising from the sand simultaneously. The opening movement was truly evenly matched, but the simrity between them only went that far.


    Not only did Nanase take the first step after getting up, but she propelled herself forward with a strength far superior to that of Tokunaga. And then, after a short sprint, she dove, cleanly wrenching the g out of the sand as she did.


    Tokunaga had been skilled enough to make it all the way to the final match, and given that she also had a wless opening, she must''ve realized the difference between herself and Nanase. A difference so apparent that she couldn''t even feel resentful about it, left only to smile bitterly with traces of astonishment in her expression. In the end, she asked Nanase for a handshake, paying due respect to the victor two years her junior.


    After leaving to wash off all the sand from her body and swimsuit, Nanase returned with her participatory bottle of water in hand.


    After fighting three fierce battles in this sweltering heat, a cold drink of water was probably just what her body needed.


    "That was andslide victory."


    With thepetition finished, I went to Nanase''s side and spoke up to her as she rested.


    "Thank you very much. I managed to get through it somehow."


    Her shoulders were moving up and down to some extent and she was definitely at least somewhat short on breath, but overall, I got the impression that she hadn''t really put forth that much effort. In fact, it seemed to me that she had won with strength and energy to spare. In a contest between a first-year student and a third-year student, it may seem at first nce that the first-year is at a disadvantage. Generally speaking, however, girls reach the full potential of their physical capabilities at a rtively earlier age. As a result, there was probably no real difference in the athletic capabilities of a girl at 15 or 16 and a girl at 18. The primary factor influencing the oue would have to be prior experience in the sport at hand, but in the case of Beach gs, that wasn''t something that many teenage girls would have.


    No�� was there even any point in trying to analyze it like this? The fact of the matter was that Nanase Tsubasa''s true Physical Ability rating was higher than what the OAA reflected. We had been told that the iing first-year students would have their ratings evaluated based on their performances during their third year of middle school, but we were already well into the start of summer.


    It had already been so long since the start of the year, and yet Nanase was still maintaining a B+ rating.


    To me it seemed like she was more than capable of getting an A- rating or even an A, but...


    "U-uhm, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "Hm?"


    "Seeing you stare at me so closely like that, it''s... well, it''s a little unsettling, you know...?"


    She looked away from me, a somewhat ufortable expression on her face.


    "Ah... Yeah. Sorry."


    It''d probably be fine to continue thinking about this once Nanase changed her clothes.


    With the Task finished, Kiriyama and the other third-year students immediately began preparing to pull out. It was probably safe to assume that they would be headed off to their next designated area or another Task site.


    At that, Kiriyama approached me for the first time since we showed up here.


    "Ayanok��ji, don''t say anything unnecessary."


    He said nothing further, simply turning his gaze toward the distant shoreline behind me.


    I looked over my shoulder, curious about what he meant, only to catch sight of several figures moving together along the sandbar.


    I immediately understood what Kiriyama meant.


    At some point, Nagumo, the student council president, had started messing about with some other third-year students in the ocean not too far away from the Task site.


    He must''ve realized that I was looking at him too as he proceeded to call out to me, subtly beckoning for me toe over.


    "I''ll say it again just to be sure: Don''t get in my way, got it?"


    "I understand."


    Together with the rest of his friends, Kiriyama headed off toward the forest, leaving the beach behind.


    "Nanase, I''m going to go talk with a senpai for a bit, so take your time getting dressed."


    "I will, thank you."


    I couldn''t exactly ignore Nagumo, so I figured that I might as well go talk with him, at least for a bit.


    Besides, there was something I was curious about myself.


    "From what I saw, it didn''t look like you were able to participate in that Task."


    "Aren''t we the same in that regard? Or did you juste here because of a nearby designated area?"


    "Hmm, who knows?"


    Nagumo smirked dismissively, evading the question.


    "How about youe take a swim with us?"


    "As much as I''d love to take you up on that offer, I didn''t have enough points left over to rent a swimsuit like you did, President Nagumo."


    It wasn''t just Nagumo either. Asahina and several other third-year students had also rented swimsuits.


    They had even gone so far as to rent a beach ball to y with at the same time, so it seemed like they had quite a bit to spare.


    "You seem awfullyposed, ying on the beach like this. I thought you''d be fighting tooth and nail to rack up points like the rest of us."


    "Well it''s important to take breaks, right? Besides... the real event starts tomorrow."


    Tomorrow, that is, the fourth day of the exam.


    The day when the top ten groups and bottom ten groups would be announced on our tablets.


    "If it turns out that a first or second-year group has managed to sneak into the top three, I''ll take action ordingly. First and second-years have no right to stand on the winners'' podium. You''re no exception either, so keep that in mind."


    In short, this meant that Nagumo had a strategy of some sort to prevent himself from losing.


    Provided, of course, that he wasn''t lying.


    "Thank you very much for your considerate advice."


    At the end of the day, Nagumo was the leader of ss 3-A, the ss that stood at the apex of the entire school.


    Moreover, he was the current president of the student council. Given his position, his words were most likely not just mere lip service.


    "However, I''m in a group alone. Rather than being at the top of the list, my name may very well show up at the bottom."


    "In that case, you''d better group up with someone as soon as possible. Horikita-senpai would probably be fairly disappointed if you self-destructed and got yourself expelled."


    "Nagumo. Come over here for a sec?"


    From a bit behind me, a third-year student named Masuwaka called out to Nagumo.


    Nagumo lightly raised his hand in response and proceeded to walk out of the ocean, headed over to where Masuwaka had motioned for them to talk.


    They had already been plenty close enough to have a conversation, but I guess they didn''t want me to overhear anything.


    At some point, Asahina stopped ying around in the ocean to take a look at what was happening, and after making sure that Nagumo was an adequate distance away, she approached me.


    "Heyo. Word is that you''re working alone?"


    "Well. You probably heard me earlier, but I''ve got a tough fight ahead of me."


    "That so...? Maybe that''s for the best though. If Miyabi were to start goin'' after you... things''d prolly get pretty dicey for ya, yeah? So here''s some advice. While you''ve got the chance, go meet up with as many groups as possible and������"


    "Asahina, it''s time. Let''s get going."


    Just as she was about to whisper something into my ear, Nagumo came back, causing her to swallow her words.


    "W-well, good luck."


    "Thanks."


    While she had stopped mid-sentence, I could more or less infer what she was going for.


    Nagumo Miyabi had a strategy that only he himself would be able to implement.


    A strategy that, if executed, would certainly make the fight ahead even more unsparing due to the peculiar nature of the exam.


    That said, whether or not he would actually use that strategy against me was yet another question.


    After all, as of right now, I was but a harmless existence that had no chance of taking up one of the top spots.

 Chapter 94: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 94: 4.3</h4>


    Our third designated area of the day was H5.


    We wouldn''t be able to get there by walking along the beach, but it was a rtively decent location, all things considered.


    "It''s a fair distance away, but we should easily be able to make it there without too much difficulty."


    "We should be able to manage it in an hour or so."


    Of course, if we wanted to go for the Early Bird Bonus, we''d need to move at a faster pace than we had this morning.


    However, even if we did, we''d probably only get a single point at most.


    It was the type of situation that made me want to escape to a nearby Task instead, but most of the avable Tasks were currently concentrated on the west side of the ind. Since we were in the east, we didn''t really have very many options avable to us.


    Given that, would it be better for us to rush to H5 to try and get the Early Bird Bonus, or just take it slow and settle for the one-point Arrival Bonus instead?


    It had already been three days since we first stepped foot on this ind; it was time to make a decision.


    "Nanase, how much water do you have?"


    "I used up thest of what I had on hand this morning. All I have left is the bottle I was given from participating in the Task earlier."


    We seemed to be in a simr spot, as I only had a single 500ml bottle left as well.


    Even though we were being conservative with our water consumption, if we kept having to travel long distances like this, we''d surely run out by the end of the day.


    In other words, there was a very real prospect of water shortage.


    I had bought 3.5 liters of water back when the exam began. Even if the other groups were being conservative with their water consumption like us, they''d probably start running out by today or tomorrow. It was unclear what overall percentage of groups this would apply to, but for the most part, things would be difficult moving forward.


    "This is our first major hurdle."


    "We''ll need to obtain fresh water somehow, won''t we Senpai?"


    If I were on my own, I''d opt to reach all four designated areas and clear nearby Tasks in the downtime. And after finishing up with everything for the day, I''d just return to the starting area to rehydrate and prepare for the next. This was one of the main strategies that I had been considering, but it''d be hard to execute with Nanase tagging along with me. She''d definitely go along with it if I exined it to her, but if she were to fall ill because of that, she''d have to retire from the exam.


    Though, I wasn''t exactly obligated to pay heed to an enemy underssmen.


    For the time being, I just kept walking toward our next destination.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, why did you decide to take part in the exam alone?"


    "I don''t have many friends, so I couldn''t find anyone to group up with."


    "That doesn''t seem to be the case to me."


    "I''m not lying. There really aren''t very many people I''d be willing to call a friend."


    "Even so, I''m sure you could''ve at least found someone."


    "Are you really that curious?"


    "Yes. Because no matter how you look at it, acting independently puts you at aplete disadvantage, wouldn''t you agree?"


    Nanase, who had been trailing behind me this whole time, quickly ran forward to keep pace beside me.


    Then, she looked at me, trying what she could to ascertain my true intentions.


    "Back when you faced off against H��sen-kun, your movements were different from those of a normal high school student, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "If you managed to notice something like that, then you''re not exactly a normal high school student either, Nanase."


    Nanase seemed a bit troubled by my immediate response and let show a somewhat forced smile.


    She then lightly scratched at her cheek before softly conceding with an ''I guess you''re right''.


    I could''ve taken the opportunity to press her on this if I wanted to, but it would''ve been entirely up to her if she would answer honestly or not.


    If she gave me some half-baked lie, I''d be able to see through it, but I didn''t think she''d make a mistake like that.


    "It''s true that acting independentlyes with many disadvantages. It shouldn''t be impossible for me to join up with another group during the exam, but if I don''t have a decent number of points when the timees, I''d just end up causing trouble for the other group."


    "Understandably so. After all, your score would be averaged together with theirs, regardless of how many people their group might have."


    "But, it seems fairly misguided toin. The school rmended that we form groups from the very beginning, so those of us who decided otherwise aren''t in any position toin."


    Regardless of whether you specifically decided not to form a group or couldn''t find one to join, it was still ultimately your own decision. Therefore, even if the rules put you at a disadvantage and got you expelled, you''d only be reaping what you yourself had sown.


    "Even so, it''s not like it''s impossible for me to win either. If I were to join a group that was struggling to umte enough points, there''s a chance that my presence might bring forth unexpected synergies."


    "So you chose to fight on your own in order to bring forth these synergies...? Is that what you''re saying, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "Well, I''m not sure. I was just talking in a general sense. Despite your misconception, you still shouldn''t discount the possibility that I simply struggled to find a group to join."


    "Fufu, that''s true. You certainly seem a bit inarticte at times."


    Despite her usual reservation, Nanase spoke her mind.


    "Have you always been like that?"


    "For the most part, aren''t people with my sort of disposition usually like this from the start?"


    "I don''t think so at all. Things happen that can cause someone with a gloomy disposition to be bright and spirited, and in the same vein, someone with a spirited disposition may be gloomy. That can happen, right?"


    While I could understand what she was trying to say, I had doubts about how much a person''s core nature was truly capable of change.


    "I hear you say that a naturally gloomy person can change, but I can''t help but feel like it would be forced."


    "Yet, though it may be forced, the fact that they can act cheerful is amazing in it''s own right."


    "...True."


    If I were suddenly told to adopt a bright, amiable persona, I wouldn''t be confident in my ability to see it through to the end.


    Of course, I could temporarily put on an act in front of people I didn''t usually interact with, but if you asked me if I could do that in front of my ssmates, then the answer would be a resounding no.


    "I don''t think I''d be able to do it. On that note, have you changed since you were in middle school, Nanase?"


    I managed to bring up the topic of middle school without it sounding too sudden.


    After all, somebody from the White Room certainly would''ve never attended middle school.


    Nanase paused to mull my question over for a brief moment.


    "I wonder. I don''t feel like I''ve changed very much since back then, but I probably have a little."


    In other words, there was something that made her think she had changed, even if only slightly.


    "In what way?"


    "In the past�� I get the sense that I used to smile more."


    So for her, the direction of change had been from ''light'' to ''dark''.


    "I also get the sense that I talk and go out with others far less often than I did back then."


    Was she telling the truth, or was this merely a lie she''d spun?


    "After all, an incident took ce that I believe changed me forever..."


    I found myself somewhat reluctant to ask what that ''incident'' was. She was the one who had initiated this conversation, and it felt as though she had been subtly trying to bait me into mentioning it, so I decided not to pry any further.


    Nanase patiently waited for me to say something, but at some point, she slowed her pace until she was trailing behind me once again. I took note of this, and opted to change the topic.


    "By the way, how''s your group fairing, Nanase? Are you guys doing alright on points?"


    "Yes. Between H��sen-kun and Amasawa-san, we''ve been earning quite a few from Tasks recently. I''m not sure which of the two has been contributing more, but either way, they appear to be doing more than me."


    If she was telling the truth, then her group was doing fairly well for itself.


    Depending on what Amasawa and H��sen had been doing, there was a possibility that they were earning Early Bird Bonuses as well, though that was just conjecture on my part.


    "Conversely, I might be in a risky spot."


    While I had been steadily racking up points, it was safe to assume that I was gradually sinking down toward the bottom ranks.


    A three-man group doing the same thing that I was would easily overtake my score.


    "Let''s do our best moving forward, Senpai."


    "Right."


    Before anything else, we needed to safely arrive at our next designated area.


    With that as our goal, the two of us proceeded to forge our way through the untamed forest.

 Chapter 95: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 95: 4.4</h4>


    1:55 PM. We arrived at our designated area, H5, in just under an hour.


    Although we only received a single point for our efforts, it was still an important step in the right direction.


    We had an hour until the next designation, so I wanted to go for a Task if at all possible.


    Earlier, most of the avable Tasks had been concentrated on the western half of the ind, but now they were slowly beginning to pop up over here on the east.


    "Can you keep going?"


    I posed Nanase a question, watching her sit down as soon as we arrived to take a drink of water.


    "Ah, yes!"


    While it was praiseworthy that she was able to keep up with me, there was no way that she wasn''t exhausted right now.


    "You should take it easy and rest here."


    "But..."


    She seemed to be worried that I''d leave and abandon her.


    "I''d say something if I wasn''t happy with having you apany me. I''m not just going to disappear. Moreover, if you push yourself too far now, it''s only going to make it tougher for you to keep upter, right? Although there won''t be another random designation today, we may need to run for the next area if I decide to go for the Early Bird Bonus. I won''t be able to slow down and wait for you if ites to that."


    Despite her frustrated expression, Nanase eventually acknowledged the limits of her endurance and nodded in agreement.


    I felt sorry for her, but this would allow me to move without any restrictions, albeit only temporarily.


    If I moved fast enough, I could probably make it to two or three of the Tasks sites in the nearby area, though whether or not I''d be able to participate in them was another matter.


    Here in area H5, a ''History Test'' Task would be starting soon, so I set off to go take part. The first-ce group would only receive five points, but if you won, you''d get additional food provisions, so I wanted to make sure I got there in time.


    Participation would be limited to only eight groups, which wasn''t a lot, so it''d be best if I moved quickly.


    Shortly after setting off, I managed to catch sight of two three-person groups racing against each other through the sea of trees, and from what it looked like, they were headed toward the History Task just like I was.


    Fortunately, they didn''t see me, so after slightly adjusting my route, I began to run as well. After all, if I took my time walking, they would beat me to the Task site.


    Without stopping, I advanced through the forest and eventually arrived at the Task site, only to find that a decent number of people had already assembled there.


    There was an adult present with a tablet in hand, though they weren''t a teacher from the school. I promptly called out to them.


    "Could I register for the Task?"


    "Yes. You''ll be the seventh group."


    Once I finished registering, the two groups I had seen earlier came running this way.


    Of which, the first student to draw close was Hashimoto, a fellow second-year.


    He noticed my presence but was far more interested in calling out to the staff member.


    "Can we still register!?"


    Hashimoto shouted, sweat dripping as though he had just finished running a marathon.


    "You would be the final group, but��"


    The staff shifted their sights to the students drawing close behind.


    Apart from Kamuro, who took up the lead, the next three were all first-years from the other group.


    Hashimoto''s third group member, however, wasgging quite a ways behind the rest.


    This Task was one that allowed you to work together with the rest of your group, but naturally, the staff on duty wasn''t going to wait for any members that hadn''t arrived yet. Making excuses about how close they were wouldn''t fly either, even if they were only 30 seconds away.


    If this group of first-years were to slip in while Hashimoto waited for hisst group member, they would snatch away his spot.


    Therefore, once Kamuro got close enough, Hashimoto��


    "We''re the only ones participating, just me and her."


    ��chose to cut off theirst member and register as just the two of them.


    The three first-years copsed to the ground in frustration. It must''ve been truly demoralizing to have put in so much effort to get here only to have it bear no fruit.


    Hashimoto, on the other hand, seemed content with this oue even though he had missed the chance for his entire group to participate. When it came to Tasks that allow you to participate as a group, the more people you had, the better off you''d be. That being said, there was a world of difference between being able to participate as a group and not being able to participate at all.


    "S-sorry, I, I co- I couldn''t make it in time...!"


    Once she finally arrived, Ninomiya sputtered out an apology as she gasped for breath, but naturally, her fellow group members didn''t seem to hold it against her.


    Ninomiya had an A- rating in Academic Ability, which was not to be made light of. Her Physical Ability rating, however, was a D-.


    "In any case, good work getting here, Masumi-chan."


    "Oh shut it. Don''t talk to me... It''s hot and I''m all sweaty now, this sucks...!"


    Kamuro, who was doing what she could to get her breathing under control, kept at a distance, waving Hashimoto away as he approached her. Her dismissal prompted him to turn toward me instead.


    "Come to think of it, this is the first time we''ve run into you this exam, Ayanok��ji. So you''re in the area too, eh...? To think you''re going at it alone too, brave stuff there. You doing alright on points?"


    "In all honesty, I wouldn''t be shocked if I ced in the bottom ten."


    "Stop pulling my leg. There''s no way a guy who doesn''t think he''s gonna win would choose to take on the exam alone."


    I honestly wasn''t in that great of a spot right now, but I didn''t really feel like showing him my tablet to prove it.


    "I hear what you''re saying, but when you end up showing up in the top ten tomorrow... what then?"


    He faced me with an inquisitive, somewhat tentative look in his eyes, but there was absolutely no way something like that was going to happen.


    "Well whatever, I''m just d this isn''t a math test. We wouldn''t stand a chance against a genius like you."


    "Alright everyone, the Task will now begin."


    "Whoops, looks like that''s enough chatter."


    Since thest group had registered, the Task began immediately.


    By actively seeking out and participating in Tasks, you''d often find yourself pitted against students from your own school year, much like how I was now. However, I had no intention of easing up on them.


    Besides, basically every question on the Test was four-option multiple choice, so even if I were to get a rtively high score, I could just say that I had gotten lucky after guessing at random.


    Although my attention was focused on my tablet, I would asionally catch glimpses of Hashimoto peering in my direction with a probing look in his eyes.


    He had been suspicious of me from fairly early onpared to most people, so this was understandable.


    At this point, I began to tackle the twenty test questions. Honestly, if you were to ask me whether I was good or bad at history as a subject, I''d be inclined to go with thetter. This was because, in the White Room, there wasn''t a particrly strong focus on teaching us history. Be that as it may, I was still familiar enough with the subject to have a grasp of the basics.


    Since each question only had four choices, I was able to answer them all correctly without any difficulties.


    After a short wait, the results were tallied and the final scores for each group were announced.


    I took first ce with a full 100 points, second ce went to a group of third-year students with 80 points, and third went to Hashimoto and Kamuro with 70.


    Once I received my points and food provisions, I immediately set off toward my next destination. But, Hashimoto followed close behind and quickly caught up with me.


    "You really kicked my ass back there. To think you were good at history as well."


    "I was surprised too. I got lucky on several questions since they were multiple choice."


    "So it was just pure luck, huh? I find that hard to believe."


    "Well, if you don''t believe me then there''s nothing I can do about that. I''m in a hurry right now, sorry."


    "Which Task are you going for next?"


    "I was nning on going for the chemistry Task. What about you?"


    I watched as he shot a look back at Kamuro who was following from behind. In all probability, his group had been thinking of doing the same thing.


    "What a shame. We''ll be going in different directions."


    Hashimoto was a cunning person. Instead of trying for the same Task as an opponent who was certain to take first ce, he would rather shift his sights elsewhere to have a better chance of winning, even if it would take a little longer to get there.


    In truth, however, he probably wanted to challenge the same Task as me in order to find out what I was really capable of.


    Upon hearing what Hashimoto said, Kamuro let show a look of tant disgust and reluctance.


    After all, having to go to a different Task would use up a lot more stamina.


    "See youter, Ayanok��ji."


    With Kamuro in tow, Hashimoto ran off, heading toward one of the other Tasks nearby. If he was following Sakayanagi''s instructions, then sooner orter, they would probably join up with Ichinose''s group and form a six-member team.

 Chapter 96: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 96: 4.5</h4>


    Following the history Task, I participated in the chemistry Task and took first ce again, racking up an additional five points.


    And thanks to that, with only one designated area left to go for the third day, I had umted a total of 48 points.


    A three-man group that had only been earning Arrival Bonuses, that is, a group that had foregone any Early Bird Bonuses and Tasks, would have a cumtive total of 30 points.


    Since there was no way for me to know what the group rankings were like yet, I could only specte about how well I was doing.


    Just before 3:00 PM, I reunited with Nanase. Shortly thereafter, thest designated area of the day was revealed: area I4.


    "Are you feeling better?"


    "Thanks to your concern earlier, my energy has recoveredpletely. I''m prepared for anything you might throw at me."


    This was thest thing on our list for the day, so since she was up for it, I figured that we might as well go full steam ahead.


    After deciding on a route, we swiftly began to move, our sights set on the Early Bird Bonus.


    We walked together in silence for a bit, but our surroundings were vastly different from before.


    "You know, I must say... There''s no decent path forward around here at all, is there?"


    "Yeah. When I looked at the map, I thought that this part of the ind would be easier to traverse than the D or E areas, but I suppose that was overly optimistic."


    Although the forest wasn''t so dense that the canopy abovepletely blotted out the sun, the ground below was still rough and difficult to get a proper foothold on. The path was such that, if you wanted to push forward in a specific direction, you''d have to constantly veer to the left and right to do so since it wasn''t possible to move in a straight line.


    The students who set foot on this part of the ind would probably have a pretty hard time with it.


    Any attempts at hastily running through woulde at the risk of having your foot get caught on something. Worse case scenario, you might even sustain an injury.


    "Uhm, Senpai, how do you n to go about securing more water?"


    While I had taken consecutive first ce victories in both the history and chemistry Tasks, water wasn''t given out as a reward for either of them.


    As such, my only remaining supply of drinking water was a single 500ml bottle.


    "If you feel that water takes precedence over reaching our designated area, then how about we go to the Task in H3 instead?"


    In area H3, a Task had shown up with roughly 50 minutes left until the registration deadline. Not only did it reward groups with points, but potable water as well. Furthermore, it was an entire two liter bottle.


    "It''ll probably be hotly contested."


    We discussed the idea, but I continued pushing forward without stopping.


    Soon, other groups would start to run low on water, just like the two of us.


    "Even if we can get water from the Tasks, the opportunities to do so are quite limited."


    On the first day of the exam, 68 Tasks had been held throughout the ind.


    On the second day, this number went up to 100. And as of today, the third day, there had already been 94.


    Although the number of Tasks was increasing day by day, it still wasn''t even close to the number of groups out there.


    There would be nothing toin about if it were possible for every group to win once per day. But even if you included the Tasks that rewarded the top three groups, there just weren''t enough. After all, many Tasks only offered rewards to the group that came in first ce.


    Of course, it didn''t help that a particrly skilled group could snatch up first ce three or four times in a single day either.


    Given all of that, it wouldn''t be unusual if there were already groups out there that had exhausted their supply of drinking water.


    If that happened to your group, you''d be forced to return to the starting area andpete within what was effectively an established safety zone.


    You wouldn''t be able to earn points normally since you wouldn''t be reaching most of your designated areas, and the Tasks that appeared in the nearby area would be incrediblypetitive. Forced to fight a losing battle, your situation would only continue to get worse as your points slowly dwindled away.


    The closer one''s designated area got to the northeast corner of the ind, the less control they would have over their ability to immediately rehydrate themselves.


    "You have something in mind, don''t you Senpai?"


    Nanase drew closer so as to walk side-by-side with me as she asked, her eyes peering over in my direction.


    "What makes you think that?"


    "The fact that you don''t seem very concerned about our impendingck of water."


    "Maybe I''m just thinking of leaving it up to chance."


    "T-that would be a bit of a problem for me..."


    Nanase made a difficult expression, thrown for a bit of a loop by my joke.


    "I originally nned on going back to the starting area in the event of an emergency."


    "Our current circumstances don''t really allow us to do that, right? It would take several hours to return to the harbor from here. And it would be even slower if we chose to do so at night."


    Naturally, it wasn''t a strategy that could be utilized from anywhere on the ind.


    The farther away you were from the starting area, the greater the strain would be on your time and stamina.


    "Even so, it''s still a strategy I''ve considered implementing."


    "Water is an absolute necessity, but if you do that way, you might end up getting hurt. I don''t think it''s a very wise idea, not by any stretch of the imagination."


    Her concerns here were definitely justified.


    "And yet, you''re telling me this dangerous idea is the only one you''ve been considering, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "If you look at the rules of this special exam, it''s clear that the only method to get more water is to purchase it at double the price back at the starting area or win it bypleting a Task."


    "That... Yes, I suppose you''re right about that."


    "And between those two methods, the only truly reliable method of getting safe, potable water is to buy it with points."


    "Safe, potable water huh...?"


    "Outside of that, you''d have to rely on natural sources of some sort, be it seawater, rainwater, or river water. This is allegedly an uninhabited ind, but we weren''t really informed about the ind''s history. If people used to live here, then it''s possible that the water has been contaminated."


    Of course, it was hard to imagine that the school would have use here if that were the case, but there was no way to be sure.


    "As a one-man group, if I were to get sick, I''d be done for. I''m not going to do anything that would put me at risk."


    "Forcing yourself to move across the ind at night is already more than risky enough."


    "If it fails, then that''s that."


    "...So you''re saying that, if it''s you, you won''t fail?"


    In any case, it was meaningless to continue talking about this at this point.


    After all, from the moment I allowed Nanase to apany me, I no longer had any intention of going through with the idea.


    "It''s a bitte to be bringing this up now, but I do have a way to utilize seawater or river water. If necessary, we can sterilize our own drinking water by boiling it in a pot that I''ve prepared."


    Upon hearing this, she let out a sigh of relief with her hand on her chest.


    After walking together for a while longer, Nanase eventually caught sight of the flowing river and hurriedly took out her tablet.


    "Uhm, Senpai, it seems we''ve gone off course. We need to go further to the east."


    We were supposed to be heading toward area I4, but we were currently moving toward the center of area H4 instead.


    If we wanted to get to I4 as quickly as possible, then we would need to go east, just as Nanase had said.


    "It''s fine. We aren''t aiming for the Early Bird Bonus this time."


    "Eh��?"


    Though she had her doubts about what was driving my decision, Nanase followed along.


    Eventually, we arrived near the center of area H4, where we encountered Sakagami-sensei, hard at work setting up a Task site.


    It seemed that my predictions so far were right after all. The site was exactly where I had thought it''d be.


    "Hello."


    "Oh... Ayanok��ji?"


    Although Sakagami-sensei looked surprised when I called out to him, it went without saying that somebody would have to set up a Task before it officially started, so there was always a possibility ofing across students early like this.


    "Is it alright if we''re the first ones to sign up, Sakagami-sensei?"


    "Yes."


    "This is great Senpai. We''re lucky to have found another Task before it showed on our tablets."


    "Lucky indeed."


    Sakagami-sensei didn''t seem to have the time to talk with us, and quickly got back to the construction of the site.


    After waiting for a few minutes, the clock struck 3:30.


    "Well then, you can register for the Task now."


    As soon as I heard this, I immediately approached Sakagami-sensei and reasserted my intention to participate.


    Nanase promptly followed suit after I finished the registration process on my tablet.


    "Though, I wonder what type of Task this is?"


    Just as Nanase was about to open up the map to try and answer the question herself, Sakagami-sensei spoke.


    "This is a Task where you earn water ording to the order in which you arrive, a race, essentially. Ayanok��ji, havinge in first, will receive 2 liters of water and three points. As you came in second, Nanase, you''ll receive 1.5 liters of water and two points."


    "That means�� We''ve already cleared the Task haven''t we? ...What a surprise."


    Sakagami-sensei went and retrieved the water we had won and presented it to each of us.


    "Luck is also an extension of your abilities, you two. Be proud."


    "...We are truly fortunate."


    Nanase seemed somewhat embarrassed as she bowed her head and epted the water.


    "With this, we won''t have to think about drinking water. Well, at least for a while."


    "Say... Could I perhaps confirm something with you?"


    Not long after we left the Task site, I looked back at Nanase who had stopped to ask me something.


    "What is it?"


    "If I''m not mistaken, I believe that you''re someone who can aim much higher, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Be it designated areas or Tasks, I''m sure you''re capable of scoring quite arge number of points."


    She was looking to confirm what had been weighing on her mind as we traveled together these past two days.


    "I never nned on exerting myself during the early stages of the exam. Since I''m on my own, it would all be over if I were to get sick or injured due to negligence."


    "But, with the way things are going now, aren''t you afraid that you''ll just continue to fall behind the other groups? No matter what, time efficiency is important. It isn''t something that you can work to ovee in a single day."


    She was saying that tirelessly working to rack up points was the only real approach avable.


    And as an approach, it was a steadfast one that the more prominent groups would undoubtedly look to implement.


    "Let''s just say that this is only one part of my strategy."


    "A strategy... that involves deliberately holding yourself back when ites to earning points?"


    I nodded and set off walking again. This wasn''t something that I wanted to go into more detail about with her.


    Even though we were traveling together, that didn''t change the fact that our different school years made us natural enemies. Moreover, there were many mysteries surrounding her as well.


    "Anyway, there''s still a chance for us to get the Early Bird Bonus at the designated area. Let''s hurry."


    "Y-yes."


    Nanase hurriedly scrambled to catch up with me as I left, and together, we quickly made our way to area I4.

 Chapter 97: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 97: 4.6</h4>


    Our streak of good luck didn''tst long. We arrived at area I4, but as one might expect, we didn''t receive the Early Bird Bonus. We weren''t fortunate enough toe across any prospective Tasks either.


    Although there was still plenty to be desired, the curtain fell on the third day of the exam.


    "Should we keep walking toward the riverside?"


    "Yeah. The terrain around here isn''t the best, and there aren''t many suitable ces to spend the night either. Let''s keep going."


    "Okay!"


    We cut a path south through the forest, pushing forward with our sights set on the river''s edge.


    After twenty minutes, we finally reached our destination.


    "Want to camp somewhere around here?"


    "That''s fine with me."


    Just as the two of us came to an agreement, I heard a voice somewhere off in the distance.


    "Heeey-! Ayanok��ji-!"


    A familiar voice,ing from a certain someone who was calling out to me from the other side of the river.


    It was Ike, who was standing there with a bunch of dead branches in his arms.


    "Ayanok��ji-! Nanase-! I thought it was you two-! So this is where you guys''ve been-!"


    He drew closer to the river, smiling with his pearly whites on full disy.


    "What an amazing coincidence-! Are you camping around here tonight, Ike-senpai-!?"


    We were forced to raise our voices as we spoke, futilely trying to drown out the sound of the river running in between us. After shouting back and forth like this for a bit, Ike finally sent the signal for us to just join him on the other side. At his instruction, Nanase and I went upstream along the river.


    Before long, we came upon and bridge near the south side of H4 and met up with him.


    Sud�� and Hond�� were also present, havinge over after hearing our voices.


    "Hold up, what was yourst designated area today, you two...?"


    "I4."


    Sud�� exchanged nces with his fellow group members, surprised by my response. Apparently, theirst area of the day had been I4 as well.


    "Man, what''re the odds!"


    This morning, we had all started out in the same location, and surprisingly, we ended the day in the same ce as well. Although, given that I had run into Sud�� several times now, there could be some sort of built-in tendency for our Tables to lead us to the same ces despite being different.


    At this point, we all decided to camp together again, just like we had yesterday.


    Since we were free for the rest of the day, we all went and did our own thing for a bit.


    Of course, we still worked together when necessary since we were all part of the same campsite.


    I told Nanase that I was going for a stroll and went off into the forest on my own. I didn''t have a particrly deep reason for doing this or anything, but if I had toe up with one, it would be to take a look around the area for other students. After all, with the exception of Nanase''s group, I still hadn''te across any others that seemed to have the same Table as me.


    I returned to the campsite around half an hourter, just in time to watch Ike light the campfire he had been working on.


    "You''re quite resourceful."


    "Well, you gotta do whatcha can to help out. You know how we were like, told beforehand that we''d be doin'' an exam out on an ind this time? I reckon most people went and looked up how to handle this kinda stuff ahead of time cuz of that."


    With his eyes fixed on the campfire in front of him, Ike continued.


    "But, well, there''s a difference between knowledge and experience, right? How should I put it... If you could do something just cuz you knew about it, nothing would be hard at all."


    It''s true that you can''t always replicate something just by reading a couple of articles or watching a video about it.


    You''d only be able to find out what you''re capable of by trying it out for yourself.


    "Ah, there you are, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "What''s up?"


    "You were gone for a while, so I went to look for you."


    Nanase turned her gaze over toward the forest as she spoke.


    From the sound of it, we had just missed each other when I came back.


    "Alrighty guys, I think it''s about time we had some grub."


    "Okay."


    Ike had a broad grin on his face as he went to retrieve a bucket from over by his tent.


    And then, he proudly showed us what was inside.


    "Wow, amazing...!"


    The bucket contained several fish that Ike had apparently caught at some point.


    "I had some time to kill back when my group was by the ocean, so I took the opportunity to catch a few. Let''s chow down!"


    In somewhat of a hurry, Ike started preparing dinner.


    At a nce, he seemed to be carrying on in good spirits, but it was obvious that he was just pretending.


    However, he seemed to be taking on the uninhabited ind exam with a far more level head than I thought he would, so for now, I guess there was nothing to worry about.


    "Something smells really good over here��"


    A group of three that happened to be passing through the area approached us, perhaps drawn in by the appetizing scent of the fish Ike was grilling. We were camping out in the open since we were next to the river, so it wasn''t surprising that they had seen us.


    What waspletely unexpected, however, was the identity of one of the three students in the group.


    "Ah-!"


    A girl, the second one to approach us, unintentionally let her voice slip and cried out upon making eye contact with me.


    "What wrong, Karuizawa-san?"


    "Oh, nothing. I was just, like, shocked ''bout them grilling fish is all."


    She spoke, trying what she could to cover up her surprise about coincidentally meeting up with me like this.


    The exam had only gone on for three days when I had my first encounter with Kei, but even so, she seemed to be doing fine so far.


    Her two fellow group members were from ss 2-A.


    Their names were Shimazaki Ikkei and Fukuyama Shinobu, and they were both very academically gifted students. While, as a whole, their group was rathercking when it came to physical strength and endurance, they certainly had the potential to im the top spot in any written test-based Tasks they managed to register for.


    "Hey, why don''t we camp here too? I think Ike-kun''d be willing to treat us."


    "Haah!? Why should I treat you!?"


    "C''mon, it''s not like you''ll run outta fish."


    "There''ll be less for us if you guys eat them! No way!"


    Ike didn''t really like Kei in the first ce, so he tantly refused.


    However, Sud�� pulled him aside and muttered a few words into his ear.


    "Dude, what''s the harm? She might know somethin'' ''bout Shinohara."


    Upon hearing that, Ike went silent.


    He still hadn''t been able to meet Shinohara on the ind yet.


    And since Kei was a ssmate, it was reasonable to assume that she''d remember if she had seen Shinohara somewhere before.


    "I-it can''t be helped! I guess I''ll just have to prepare for three more people!"


    "For real? Sweet! It''s a good thing I tried asking."


    Kei was only half-joking when she brought up the idea, but somehow, it led to her camping together with us.


    That said, preparing food would take time.


    It would probably be a while before Ike would finish grilling the additional fish.


    I announced that I''d be going into the forest for a bit, with Kei doing the same not too long afterward.


    Of course, we didn''t go in so far that we could get lost; just enough to make sure the others wouldn''t be able to see or hear us. We met at a fairlyrge tree and sat down together with our backs up against the trunk.


    "You seem to be doing alright."


    Kei''s group had secured 37 points over these past three days.


    At least for now, they weren''t doing all that badly.


    "I''m just relying on the other two, mostly. How about you, Kiyotaka?"


    "I''m doing well, all things considered."


    "Well, since it''s you we''re talking about, you''ll be fine for sure."


    Kei let out a noise as she stretched.


    "Anywho, I just wish this exam would end already... I can''t believe we''ve still got 11 more days of this."


    Considering the number of days we had remaining, there was no denying that we were still in the early phase of the exam.


    "By the way, has anything happened these past few days?"


    "You mean��that person��you told me about, right? Hmm, nope, nothinges to mind."


    Before the special exam started, I asked Kei to go check on a certain something for me.


    I did this in consideration of the possibility that the White Room student would try ande in contact with Kei.


    However, it didn''t seem like anything had happened so far.


    "Just in case, I''ve noted down everybody I''vee in contact with on my tablet."


    She opened up the notepad app on her tablet and showed me a list of all the different students and groups she''d interacted with over the past three days.


    It primarily consisted of second-years, with essentially no contact with first or third-years.


    As expected, they wouldn''t let themselves get caught that easily.


    "By. The. Way."


    "Hm?"


    She suddenly leaned in very close to my face and peered into my eyes.


    "I heard that first-year girl back at the campsite has been traveling around with you, Kiyotaka."


    "Word travels fast, it seems."


    "When I asked Ike-kun, he told me immediately though? Wait, that''s not the point here!"


    Even I, who was ignorant when it came to love, understood that a girlfriend would be concerned if they were to find out that their boyfriend had been willingly traveling together with another girl. Even if I were to list out a bunch of reasons behind the decision, I was fairly confident that I wouldn''t be able to convince her.


    I could talk of how Nanase might be involved in the expulsion n against me or how she might have a connection to the White Room, but...


    For Kei, things like that wouldn''t matter at all.


    At the end of the day, she would still be extremely upset and ufortable with the fact that I was working together with another girl.


    I drew in close to her face as I squeezed her hand in mine.


    "Are you worried? That I''m spending all this time alone with another girl?"


    "Wait wait wait, w-what? I''m not, like, worried or a... Of course I''m worried!"


    Kei tried acting tough at first, but she quickly dropped the act and confessed.


    "I''m just traveling together with Nanase in order to sessfully get through the special exam. That''s it."


    "...Really?"


    "Yeah. It goes without saying that I have no other intentions with her."


    "I believe you, but, but still like, when I think of you being alone with another girl... I hate it."


    Even though there was nothing between Nanase and me, as my girlfriend, it was only natural for Kei to feel anxious about it.


    In this situation, no amount of smooth-talking would be able to ease her heart.


    "Kei."


    When I called out her name, she turned and looked at me, her lips ever-so-slightly tapered into a defiant pout.


    I took full advantage of this opening to lean in and pressed my lips into hers, smothering the pout away.


    They must have only touched for less than a second.


    The sensation of her lips, my first kiss, was far softer than I had imagined.


    "Hu...h?"


    A muddled noise leaked out from her mouth, her mind still processing what had happened.


    In truth, I''d have liked to enjoy the moment for a while longer, but we were currently in the midst of a special exam on an uninhabited ind.


    It wouldn''t be surprising if somebody were to pass by while we were sitting here.


    "Wa? Huh? I, J-just now... a k-kiss? ...Eh? Eh!?"


    "Have faith in me and wait for now, okay?"


    At this, Kei absentmindedly nodded her head like a mechanical doll.


    If she was distraught about the fact that I was traveling together with Nanase, then the fastest way to get around it was to give her something more intense to think about instead.


    "The others may start to suspect something if we''re gone too long. You should head back."


    With that, I decided to have Kei, who was still in a daze, head back to the campsite.

 Chapter 98 - 5: The Invisible Enemy

    <h4>Chapter 98: Chapter 5: The Invisible Enemy</h4>


    It was just before 5:00 AM, around the time when the morning sun began to rise into the sky.


    While most students would probably still be asleep, I woke up to a strange sounding from outside my tent.


    It was a sound so subtle, so indistinct that, for a moment, I thought I might just be hearing things.


    I poked my head out of my tent to investigate further. And, although it was faint, I could definitely still hear it.


    A few secondster, Nanase peeked her head out of her tent as well, having apparently been woken up by the sound, just as I had.


    "Can you hear something?"


    "Yes... it''s faint, but I can hear an electronic noise of some sort."


    Perhaps due to its low proximity, the sound was so soft to the point that it almost blended in with the surroundings.


    It was possible for it to be an rming from a tablet, but this particr sound had been going on for far too long for that to be the case.


    "Do you think it might be an Emergency Alert?"


    "It''s definitely possible."


    I emerged from my tent before once again straining my ears to analyze the sound.


    It sounded simr to what Mashima-sensei had yed for us during his exnation back on the cruise ship.


    But from what I could hear, there was a slight echo to it, perhaps because it wasing from so deep within the forest.


    "It doesn''t sound like it''s going to stop any time soon, does it?"


    It had already been over a minute since I first noticed the sound. Warning Alerts were set up to go off twice, but both times they would be cut off after only five seconds. The only alert set to go off continuously like this was the Emergency Alert.


    "If I''m not mistaken, after five minutes��"


    "The school will locate you through the GPS in your watch and send help to your position?"


    If they were in a situation where they couldn''t afford to turn off the alert, then they could be in quite a precarious position.


    "Couldn''t we go find them before the school arrives?"


    "Why would we do that? Although it''s not pitch ck outside anymore, the visibility is still poor. And if we''re careless, we might run into danger ourselves."


    "Do you need a reason to go help someone?"


    She pierced me with eyes that were far too sincere to be described as angry.


    I could tell that, no matter what I chose to do, she wouldn''t back down, even if it meant going off to help on her own.


    "If we''re going to take action, it''d be better to have more people on board. Let''s wake up Sud�� and the others."


    "Right."


    We decided to wake up Sud��, Ike, and Hond��, who were still asleep in their tents.


    After coercing the three of them, all still half-asleep, out of their tents, we exined the situation and began to form a n.


    Our field of vision would be fairly limited inside the dim forest ahead of us, and without a light of some sort, it would be tricky to find a proper foothold on the rough terrain. As such, we would have to carefully light the path ahead of us as we pushed forward.


    Between the five of us, we had a total of three shlights. Nanase and I both had one, and so did Sud��''s group.


    It wasn''t enough, but we''d have to make do with what we had.


    Other than that, we also decided to take a tablet with us to ensure that we didn''t get lost.


    "Well, I guess I''ll lead the way."


    Spurred on by the circumstances at y, Ike volunteered to take the lead. Although, he didn''t exactly seem very enthusiastic about it.


    "I''m sorry, but could you please refrain?"


    "Eh? W-why?"


    "Given that it''s still fairly dark out, I cannot allow a technically unreliable person to take the lead. The job should be left to someone with good crisis management skills and the discernment to select an optimal route."


    "Well, but ya know... Outta all of us, I think I''m prolly the best one to��"


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, could I ask you to lead us? I''d be willing to follow your judgment without hesitation."


    Nanase cut Ike off, asking me to pave the way without even bothering to hear out his justification. After all, given the circumstances, every second counted.


    Coming up with some sort of excuse to try and convince him would be nothing but a waste of time.


    "Nanase, Ike, and I will each take a shlight. Nanase will be behind me, followed by Sud�� and Hond��. Ike, I''ll have you take up the rear."


    With our formation decided upon, I immediately began walking toward the source of the alert.


    "No...? Ah, I mean, that''s not a problem, but... Are you sure you''ll be alright, Ayanok��ji?"


    Just like that, Ike had been left in the dust, unable to fullye to grips with what was happening.


    "Don''t worry ''bout that. Just hurry up and follow along Kanji. Ayanok��ji''ll prolly be fine."


    Sud�� responded in my stead, forcefully grabbing Ike by the arm to get him to start walking.


    Like that, the five of us set off together.


    "There''s a real possibility of getting injured moving around like this, isn''t there?"


    Nanase provided casualmentary as we advanced through the forest.


    "Gosh, why the heck are we movin'' around so early in the mornin''?"


    Hond�� voiced hisints as he rubbed his sleepy eyes.


    "It ain''t all that strange. If the next designated area were super far away or somethin'', we''d have to start moving early like this in order to try''n get closer."


    For the most part, the school had chosen designated areas with some level of consideration in ce for how long it would take most groups to get there. With the existence of randomly designated areas, however, there were plenty of scenarios that could force groups to take action early in the morning orte at night.


    Little by little, we approached the source of the alert. Even now, it was still ring throughout the forest.


    The Emergency Alert was gradually growing louder and louder.


    No, there was something more to it than that...


    "If someone''s there, respond to us-!"


    Sud�� shouted out in the direction the sound wasing from, but nobody responded. There didn''t seem to be any movement in the area either.


    "Why aren''t they sayin'' anything...? D-do you think this might be the work of a g-ghost?"


    The sound had a certain ominous vibe to it due to the location we were in, and perhaps because of that, Hond�� began to tremble.


    "I think it just means that they''re in a situation where they can''t even call out for help."


    "If that''s the case, then they might be in a real bad spot."


    Either way, the only way to find out for sure was to keep pushing toward the source of the sound.


    We held back the urge to speed up our pace, choosing instead to err on the side of caution and carefully light the path forward as we continued to advance further into the depths of the forest.


    "Everyone, don''t you think the sound is a little... peculiar?"


    Nanase, who was trailing behind me, pointed out the unusual, out-of-ce nature of the sound.


    "Peculiar? Well, it certainly sounds eerie. That''s prolly just cuz we''ve been sloggin'' through this dark-ass forest though..."


    "No, that''s not what I��"


    "You''re talking about the frequency, right Nanase?"


    I looked over my shoulder and replied to her, to which she responded with a decisive nod of the head.


    "At first, I thought that the noise was simply echoing because it wasing from deep within the forest. But now that we''re closer, I realized that that''s not the case. Rather, I''m fairly certain that it''s actually two different sounds."


    An Emergency Alert would only go off when someone was in an exceptionally severe condition.


    So, the notion that two were going off at the same time wasn''t something any of us had been expecting.


    However, now that we were so close, it was clear.


    The definite rhythmic sound of two Emergency Alerts was ring out from what seemed to be the same location at about the same time.


    It had only seemed like there was an echo due to the fact that they were ever so slightly out of sync with each other.


    "Scary... Are you guys... Are you guys sure it''s safe to keep going...?"


    As the terrain ahead gradually began to incline upward, Hond�� began to voice even more concerns.


    Though, given that we were approaching a location where two people had been incapacitated in quick session, his fear wasn''t unreasonable.


    Soon, the sound became so incredibly loud that it seemed like we had finally arrived at our destination.


    We temporarily came to a stop and began tob the area with our shlights in search of the source.


    Not long thereafter, we found the figure of a certain boy copsed on the ground.


    "Is that... Komiya!?"


    The first one to recognize the boy''s identity was Sud��.


    He wasn''t wrong. It was indeed ss 2-B''s Komiya.


    "O-oi! The hell is this? P-pull yourself together man! Komiya!"


    Sud��, seemingly spurred on by the bonds he had forged as a fellow member of the basketball club, rushed over to the fallen Komiya in a panic.


    "Senpai..."


    "Yeah."


    Just as we had predicted, it wasn''t just one alert, but two.


    A second alert was sounding off from someone lying several meters away from where Komiya had copsed. The person in question was Kinoshita Minori, a fellow ssmate from ss 2-B. Although Nanase seemed momentarily baffled by the peculiar situation we had stumbled upon, she quickly rushed over to Kinoshita''s side.


    In order to try and piece together what had happened, I left Komiya and Kinoshita to the others as I went to survey the rest of the surrounding area. It weighed on my mind that I couldn''t find any trace of their third group member, Shinohara, nor any of their backpacks or other equipment.


    "Oi Komiya! What happened to Shinohara!?"


    "There''s no use, he''s not waking up at all..."


    I listened in as Sud�� and Ike spoke to each other about Komiya''s condition.


    They then manually turned off the Emergency Alerts, returning the forest to a state of tranquil silence.


    "Kinoshita-senpai won''t regain consciousness either. But, judging from all the dirt and scratches on her jersey, I''m afraid that..."


    As Nanase''s words trailed off, she turned and looked at the steep slope of the nearby cliff several meters in height.


    After assessing Komiya''s condition, Sud�� nodded along in agreement. They seemed to think that one of them had lost their footing and fell down the slope somehow, while the other had probably been dragged down as well after trying to save them.


    I drew closer to the slope to investigate, only to find that there were clear signs that somebody had recentlye tumbling down it.


    In other words, it was safe to assume that the somebody in question (or somebodies) were Komiya and Kinoshita.


    The visibility in this area was so poor that it was entirely possible that they could''ve lost their sense of direction. Moreover, the humidity was high and the ground was somewhat damp, making slipping a very likely possibility.


    I pointed my light down toward my feet. The ground was a bit muddy in some ces, so depending on where I stepped, my footprints would be left behind.


    By shining my light on the pathway, I could make out two distinct sets of footprints from when Sud�� and Nanase had rushed over to where Komiya and Kinoshita had ended up after their fall. Alongside those, however, were faint traces of what appeared to be a third, faded set of footprints.


    The footprints drew close to where Komiya and Kinoshita wereying, but abruptly turned back.


    While it wasn''t exactly clear if they were rted, this meant there was a possibility that someone else had been here recently.


    The thought that the footprints could''ve belonged to Shinohara crossed my mind, but it was hard to imagine that she would leave without trying to help them.


    Plus, even if she had gone to find help, she still would''ve rushed over to them to try and confirm their wellbeing first.


    Given that, Ipared the size of the footprints to my own shoes and found that they were on the smaller side. My shoe size was 26cm, but the mystery footprints, on the other hand, appeared to be 1.5 to 2cm smaller than that. Although I couldn''tpletely rule out the possibility that they had been left by a boy, it seemed much more likely that they had been made by a girl.


    Suddenly sensing an unknown presence off to the northwest, I kept my light trained on the ground and discreetly looked in its direction.


    However, the world around me was covered in ayer of darkness andin thick with trees, so I wasn''t able to see anyone there.


    I wondered if there was some reason for them, whoever it was, to feel guilty about not approaching us.


    Ultimately, I chose to disregard the presence for the time being and went to check the area around Kinoshita''s feet instead.


    I figured that there was a small chance that Kinoshita might''ve walked around the area before she lost consciousness.


    However, I found no evidence to suggest that she had been walking in the nearby vicinity.


    In any case, it was probably safe to assume that the footprints I had found belonged to an unidentified third party.


    Kinoshita''s face and clothes were dirty and covered in various scrapes and scratches just like Komiya, but there didn''t seem to be any major external injuries that I could see.


    "Everything else aside, the problem here is what''s going to happen after the teachers show up...?"


    The full extent of their injuries was unknown, but there was clearly no way for them to avoid being checked out by a medical team. If they had really lost consciousness after falling off the slope, a thorough medical examination would be necessary, and retirement would be all but guaranteed. They probably wouldn''t have enough time to wake up and try to gloss over what had happened with a lie of some sort.


    If Shinohara was in a simr situation somece else, then Komiya''s group would have all three people retire from the exam at the same time.


    And then, given that none of them had an ''Insurance Card'', expulsion would naturally be right around the corner.


    "Shinohara-!!"


    Ike shouted Shinohara''s name into the depths of the dimly-lit forest.


    If she was in the area, then she should''ve been able to respond to him, or at least send some kind of signal.


    The fact that she hadn''t meant that it was possible that she had gotten caught up in some kind of ident, much like Komiya and Kinoshita.


    Ike was about to run off to try and find her, but I hurriedly grabbed him before he could.


    "If you go charging into the forest without a tablet then you''ll just get yourself lost."


    "T-that''s, I know that but still!"


    "I understand that you''re anxious. After all, it is strange that she''s not responding despite your shouting."


    "Y-yeah. That''s why we gotta hurry up and find her!"


    "However, if she were seriously injured, her Emergency Alert would most likely be going off like Komiya and Kinoshita. Right?"


    Apart from the two Emergency Alerts from earlier, the forest was dead silent.


    "That''s... that''s... Well, you''re not wrong..."


    "And since Shinohara doesn''t seem to be anywhere nearby, we can assume that there''s a low chance that she''s sustained a major injury."


    "So, you''re sayin'' she might be lost...?"


    Of course, that was definitely a possibility here as well.


    "Ugh... guh...!"


    While everyone was baffled, unable to fully grasp the situation at hand, Komiya suddenly let out a weak, stifled groan.


    "Komiya! Can you hear me Komiya!?"


    Sud�� immediately called out to him, and he seemed to respond to this, meekly grabbing hold of the arm of Sud��''s jacket.


    Apparently, Komiya had managed to regain consciousness.


    A feeling of relief began to wash over us, but when Komiya finally opened his mouth to speak, that relief was just as quickly washed away.


    "M-my leg... it hurts...!"


    From the look of it, Komiya''s right leg was just fine, but his left was another matter. Anguish and agony showed on his face whenever he tried to move it.


    "Your fuckin'' leg man...!"


    Judging from the way Sud�� was shaking, I could deduce Komiya''s condition without needing to take a look for myself.


    In order to properly assess the situation, Nanase took a closer look at Kinoshita''s condition as well.


    "It isn''t just Komiya-senpai, Kinoshita-senpai''s left leg seems to be in terrible shape as well. Worst case scenario, it may even be broken."


    Not only had the two of them fallen off the same slope, but they had both seriously injured their left leg as well.


    I could''ve personally confirmed the extent of their injuries by feeling around the affected area myself, but very little good woulde out of doing so at this point.


    "If they have any bone contusions or fractures they''ll be disqualified, no questions asked."


    The fourth day of the exam hadn''t even officially started yet, so it was only natural to assume that nobody had retired so far. By that same logic, it stood to reason that their disqualification, and ensuing expulsion, was practically set in stone. Even if Shinohara was safe and sound, it would be difficult for her to umte a meaningful number of points on her own. Moreover, she herself was currently nowhere to be found.


    Be that as it may, there had to be more going on here than what meets the eye...


    What''s more, there was still a strange presence watching over us from the northwest.


    And yet, they didn''t make any moves, simply choosing to keep their distance instead. At first they kept their presence exceedingly faint, but as I continued to y dumb it gradually became more pronounced. It was as if they were daring me to pay attention to them already.


    At this point, Nanase suddenly left Kinoshita''s side and came over to me before whispering into my ear:


    "Something seems a bit off, don''t you think?"


    Sud�� and the others probably hadn''t caught onto it, but there was definitely something weird about this entire situation.


    "You''re right. They might''ve gotten caught up in trouble of some sort."


    It wouldn''t be that strange if this had only happened to one person, but the fact that they were both in the exact same condition was definitely cause for concern.


    "Komiya. Can you remember exactly what happened at the time of the ident?"


    While I could continue to theorize on my own, doing that would only get me so far. Therefore, I figured it would be better to ask Komiya outright instead.


    After all, I probably wouldn''t have the time to ask him once the school faculty members arrived.


    "I-I don''t know... it just happened out of nowhere. I suddenly felt something strike my calf and the next thing I knew I was rolling down the slope... Agh...!"


    His face twisted in pain as he once again tried to move his leg.


    "Your calf was hit by something?"


    "M-maybe? I don''t really remember very well... Sorry."


    His memory of the moment when the ident took ce was vague and fuzzy, but you couldn''t really hold that against him.


    "Kinoshita fell as well and ended up beside you. Do you know anything about what happened to her?"


    "Eh...? N-no, I have no idea. Why is Kinoshita here...? If I remember correctly, when it happened we..."


    Judging from Komiya''s reaction, it didn''t seem like Kinoshita had been the first one to fall down the slope.


    So, at the very least, I could assume that Komiya had fallen first.


    "That''s right...! Satsuki, where''s Satsuki!? Did she fall too!?"


    Enduring the pain as his memories came flooding back to him, Komiya cried out Shinohara''s name through gritted teeth. Ike''s expression darkened when he heard Komiya call Shinohara by her given name, but he knew that this was no time to be upset over something so trivial.


    "Shinohara is missing. Were you guys not moving together?"


    "Satsuki was�� Agh...!!"


    His left leg seemed to hurt so badly that it was difficult for him to keep talking properly.


    "You don''t have to force yourself."


    "N-no, I''m worried about Satsuki... Sorry Sud��, but can you help me sit up...?"


    "Y-yeah. But don''t overdo it."


    With Sud��''s support, Komiya slowly managed to prop himself up.


    "Komiya, where''s Shinohara!?"


    Ike shouted out a question of his own. Naturally, he was far more concerned about Komiya''s group than the rest of us.


    In fact, his inability to contain himself was so obvious that Komiya probably took note of it as well.


    "...I don''t know... We... We were trying to move quickly..."


    Komiya continued with his exnation, glimpses of pain and anguish asionally shing across his face.


    "Then, we were waiting... for Satsuki toe back..."


    "You were waiting? What? I don''t understand what you''re sayin'' here!"


    Komiya was struggling to provide proper context for what he was saying, so he shook his head a few times to try and focus his mind.


    He then slowly sifted through his memories as he tried to set up a proper timeline for us.


    "Let me start from the beginning. We were in a hurry because we missed thest two designated areas yesterday. After talking it outst night, we ultimately decided to try and close the distance early this morning... It was still fairly dark when we set out, so we were keeping tabs on each other as we traveled, but... at some point, Satsuki said she needed to go to the restroom, so she split off for a bit while Kinoshita and I waited for her to finish. Of course, we were using our shlights to keep track of each other..."


    He had calmed down quite a bitpared to back when he first woke up. Even though he was fraught with pain, it was obvious just how worried he was about Shinohara.


    "While we waited for Satsuki toe back, the two of us were looking down the slope over there and talking about whether we could use it as a shortcut. Just as I was thinking that it''d be pretty difficult to make our way down��"


    "That''s when something hit your calf, yes?"


    Having anticipated where he was going with this, Nanase cut in, prompting Komiya to nod in response.


    "I remember it hurt like hell... But the pain didn''tst long ''cause the next thing I knew I was rolling down the slope... And then, when I came to, Sud�� and the rest of you guys were here."


    Human limbs are by no means invincible. It''s not umon for them to unexpectedly sustain injuries at a moment''s notice.


    If Komiya had been the only one involved in this incident, then it would be simple enough to conclude that the pain of the impact had knocked him off his feet and sent him falling down the slope he was looking at.


    However, the fact that the same thing had happened to Kinoshita as well made it seem like I wasn''t quite seeing the full picture yet.


    Did she suddenly freak out upon seeing Komiya start to copse and end up falling with him when she tried to help...?


    Whatever the reason may be, the mysterious set of eyes watching over us and the unidentified set of footprints were definitely cause for concern.


    As I pondered about it, I suddenly heard movemente from the top of the slope.


    We all simultaneously turned our shlights in the direction it hade from, but there didn''t appear to be anyone there.


    It could''ve just been a small animal or something given how faint of a sound it had been, but...


    "Shinohara!?"


    Ike had only just begun to regain hisposure, but when he heard the sound, he immediately started running toward the slope.


    "Oi Kanji! Hold on! It''s dangerous!"


    The cries of his best friend fell on deaf ears, left only to echo throughout the dark forest.


    "Senpai, it''s too dangerous to let Ike-senpai go off on his own!"


    "I know. I''ll leave the tablet with you. Wait here until we get back."


    I was tempted to quickly go running after him, but Ike had his sights set on climbing what basically amounted to the face of a cliff.


    A slight dy wouldn''t be that much of a problem.


    "But won''t you be in trouble if you get lost without the tablet, Senpai?"


    "It''ll just get in the way of climbing the slope."


    Besides, climbing the slope with the tablet wasn''t the only risk at y here. In the unlikely event that something happened, it would be riskier for me to drop the tablet and lose it altogether. By simply leaving it with Nanase, it wouldn''t be impossible for her toe find us if we got lost or something went wrong either.


    Once Nanase took the tablet, I immediately went after Ike.


    Ike was eagerly wing his way up toward the source of the sound, but his movements were dangerous. By the time I finally caught up to him, I decided to show him a suitable path to navigate up the slope. It was clear as day that he would put up a fight if I tried to get him toe back with me.


    "A-Ayanok��ji!?"


    At first he probably thought that I hade to stop him as he was surprised when I quickly climbed past him. As a result, this surprise caused him to panic and try what he could to catch up with me.


    And in turn, panic gave rise to negligence. He stopped paying close attention to his footing and began to slip off of the slope.


    "Oh, ah...!?"


    I quickly reached down and grabbed Ike by the arm and helped to pull him back up.


    "Are you going to calm down and follow me or not? If you can''t then I''ll take you back by force."


    "...G-got it. I''ll chill out and follow you so... please don''t take me back..."


    Content with his response, I nodded and proceeded to lead the way up the slope.


    Although visibility was still poor, little by little the sun was beginning to light the path ahead.


    We took our time to climb safely, and once we reached the top, we came upon a narrow point that Komiya and Kinoshita had apparently fallen from.


    Ike was on his hands and knees as he tried to catch his breath, but his eyes were frantically scanning the surrounding area in search of Shinohara.


    I took a cursory look around the area myself, but there was nobody to be found.


    "Shinohara-!!"


    He called out Shinohara''s name with all the strength he could muster, desperately hoping that his voice would somehow reach her this time.


    There didn''t seem to be very many solid pathways, so it wasn''t impossible to imagine that Shinohara had fallen at some other point along the slope when she tried to get down.


    At this point, on the ground, I discovered three different backpacks that appeared to belong to Komiya, Kinoshita, and Shinohara.


    As far as I could tell, there wasn''t any evidence to suggest that someone had gone through them without permission.


    The three of them had probably decided to leave their bags here until Shinohara had gotten back from the bathroom.


    I could picture the scene of Komiya and Kinoshita standing here talking with each other about whether or not they should try to head down the slope.


    "Dammit, she''s not here either!"


    Ike struck the ground in frustration, dismayed about theck of a response. But then, at that very moment...


    "...Ike? Is that you?"


    Shinohara slowly stood up from within a thicket of bushes off in the distance.


    "Shinohara? Shinohara!!!"


    When she finally caught sight of the two of us, she immediately came running over, stumbling over her own feet as she did.


    She then threw herself into Ike''s chest, her body shaking and tears streaming down her face.


    "Y-you''ve been here this whole time?"


    "Y-yeah."


    "Then why didn''t you call out sooner!? Do you have any idea how worried I''ve been!?"


    "B-because..."


    Having seemingly recalled something hard to swallow, Shinohara began to tremble even more than before.


    With this, Ike must''ve understood that she wasn''t hiding due to ill-intentions.


    "K-Komiya-kun and Kinoshita-san, where are they!?"


    "They''re both seriously injured at the bottom of the slope, what the hell happened to them?"


    If her fellow group members had simply tripped and fallen down the slope, then Shinohara would''ve been frantic about trying to get down and help them.


    However, given that she didn''t do that and chose to single-mindedly hide in the bushes instead, something was definitely amiss here.


    She turned pale upon hearing that they were seriously injured, and after a moment, she opened her trembling lips.


    "I-I couldn''t move... I was scared, so scared... a-and... I saw..."


    "You saw? Saw what?"


    "...Komiya-kun and Kinoshita-san... Somebody... I saw somebody push them off..."


    ording to Shinohara, this wasn''t just an ident.


    "Somebody? Who the hell was it!?"


    "I-I don''t know! I really don''t! ...But why, why would they do such a thing!?"


    Ike clenched his teeth in frustration, watching as Shinohara copsed to the ground and broke down in tears.


    Essentially, she had been afraid that this ''somebody'' would find her too, so she hid, putting forth her full effort to erase all traces of her presence and shut out the sound of her surroundings.


    That being the case, it was no wonder that she didn''t immediately try to rush to her friends or respond to Ike''s calls. Although there was no conclusive evidence that what she was saying here was correct, I didn''t think Shinohara was the type of person who would conjure up a fabricated story like this.


    However, it would be a huge undertaking for ''someone'' to have snuck up behind them without being noticed.


    Furthermore, since they''d give away their position if they used a shlight, the perpetrator must''ve acted with a poor field of vision as well.


    "Do you remember seeing anyone sincest night? If there''s someone behind this, it would make any groups camping nearby into prime suspects."


    I decided to redirect the conversation a bit and asked Shinohara a question instead.


    "I think after 8:30st night... there were, um, first-years... Yeah... we came across a group of first-years camping out together... We passed them back that way."


    She pointed off to the north as she said this.


    "Do you know the names of those first-years? Anything you might know would be helpful."


    "Sorry, I don''t really know most of the first-years yet. All I remember is that there were three girls and one boy."


    If this was all she knew, I couldn''t exactly say it was very useful information.


    But if those first-years had attacked Komiya and Kinoshita as part of some sort of prank, it should be easy enough to catch the perpetrator.


    "For now, let''s head back down and meet up with Sud�� and the others. It won''t be long before the teachers arrive."


    "R-right."


    Going back down the way we came would be a bit risky for both Shinohara and Ike, so we opted to take a short detour instead.

 Chapter 99: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 99: 5.1</h4>


    About five minutes had passed since Ayanok��ji-senpai went running up the slope in pursuit of Ike-senpai.


    I gentlyid Kinoshita-senpai, who I had been holding in my arms, onto the ground beside Komiya-senpai.


    After which, I stood back up and quietly stared into the deep forest behind me.


    "Hey, what''s wrong?"


    Sud��-senpai spoke up, suspicious of my actions. I felt sorry about not responding to him, but I didn''t have the time to exin anything right now.


    Someone was clearly trying to provoke us.


    They had been watching over us this entire time, and although they were making their presence known, they had chosen not to approach us.


    Though, while their presence was obvious to me, it was no more than a subtle difference in the atmosphere that ordinary people wouldn''t be able to notice.


    But how long had they been there? Right, it had been since Ayanok��ji-senpai left to run up the slope.


    They were continuously emitting a viscous, demanding aura that only became more pronounced with time.


    I didn''t know what their motives or reasons for this were exactly, but that was irrelevant.


    After all, whoever they were, any information they had would still be valuable, given the current circumstances.


    I quietly set the tablet onto the ground and took a moment to steady my breathing.


    The presence was well aware that I had noticed them, yet they hadn''t moved an inch.


    They may have confidence in their speed, but so did I.


    "Sudou-senpai! Please take care of them until I''m back!"


    "Eh? Wha, hey!"


    The only thing I could be certain of, right here, right now, was that somebody was watching us.


    I kicked off the ground and broke into a sprint in one fluid motion, headed toward the direction of the presence.


    Even if they tried to escape in a panic, I should be able to close the distance when they turned around to run.


    And then, if they trip up on something, even if it''s only just for a second, I would catch them and force them to answer my questions.


    The distance between us was ten to twenty meters at most. As the morning sun continued to rise, the forest slowly began to light up. And even though the terrain was difficult to traverse, it didn''t take long before I caught up to them.


    However...!


    "So fast!"


    I managed to grab hold of the cuff of their jersey for a split second, but their movements were far too nimble.


    Making clever use of the surrounding trees, they skillfully managed to break free without showing hide nor hair of their identity.


    I chased after them at top speed, but despite my best efforts, the distance between us steadily proceeded to widen.


    "Damn!"


    In terms of speed and stamina, the two of us seemed evenly matched.


    That said, from the way they were effortlessly navigating the forest as they ran, their understanding of the terrain was clearly far superior to my own.


    Just how were they able to do that?


    Although my knowledge of the area was no doubt inferior, I still tried my best to ovee it.


    "Please wait! I simply want to talk to you!"


    I shouted as we continued to dash into the depths of the forest, but the person I was chasing showed no sign of stopping.


    It wasn''t that they hadn''t heard my cries either. No, they had chosen to ignore them.


    In which case, I was left with only one conclusion: That the person I was chasing definitely had something to hide.


    "The reason those two are hurt so badly is because of something you did, isn''t it!?"


    At this point, I decided to change strategies. I shouted out a harsh usation, looking to make them falter. To make some sort of mistake.


    After all, if I could get them to make a mistake before I did, I''d be able to close the distance in an instant.


    Even if I was wrong about their involvement in what had happened, as long as I could get them to trip or fall, nothing else would matter.


    However, instead of faltering, they began moving even faster than before.


    I held full confidence in my prior training and physical ability, at least to the point where I didn''t think I would lose to anyone else at this school.


    And yet, the distance between us only continued to widen.


    asionally, I would manage to recover lost ground, but that would neverst for long. It was clear that they were just toying with me, showing me just how superior they really were.


    They were taunting me; all but whispering the words ''catch me if you can'' into my ear.


    But, even so, I had no intention of giving up until the bitter end.


    If I couldn''t win in a contest of speed... then I''d win in a battle of stamina instead.


    For less than a second, a ray of light came streaming through the canopy above and I managed to catch sight of my opponent''s hair swaying in the wind as they ran.


    "What, you!?"


    The distinct, almost characteristic color and style of their hair was seared into the back of my eyes.


    I knew exactly where I had seen it before too.


    "Dammit...!"


    Before long, my foot got caught on the root of a tree, bringing an abrupt, unsatisfying end to our chase.


    "Haa, Haaaa...!"


    I had gotten distracted, caught off guard by a revtion that I never sawing.


    The fatigue and exhaustion I had built up came rushing at me all at once, and my breathing soon became erratic.


    "Haaaa, Haaa...! Haaa, Haaa...!"


    In order to calm the incessant beating of my heart, I closed my eyes and focused on getting my disordered breathing under control.


    Although I hadn''t been able to get a good look at them, there wasn''t a doubt in my mind.


    "Don''t tell me... They... pushed Komiya-senpai and Kinoshita-senpai...? But, why...?"


    My gaze continued to wander for a while, as if searching for the back of the person who had disappeared into the depths of the forest.

 Chapter 100: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 100: 5.2</h4>


    I led Shinohara and Ike on a detour that took about fifteen minutes in total.


    When we finally found a safe way to get down the slope, we happened to meet up with Nanase who was walking alone.


    "Why are you here Nanase?"


    Sud�� and the others should''ve still been quite a fair distance away from here.


    "That�� Uhm, I wasn''t able to see you and Ike-senpai anymore so I decided to go looking for you..."


    Nanase responded, and although her breathing was steady, her brow was covered in sweat.


    It seemed like she had been in quite a hurry toe find us, however, her eyes were looking somewhere else.


    "Are you searching for something?"


    "No, please don''t worry about it."


    She refused to borate further, keeping her gaze fixed in a specific direction as she stared on with a rigid expression.


    Then, as if a switch had been flipped, she turned and looked over toward Shinohara and Ike, who were trailing a fair distance behind me.


    "I''m d that you managed to find Shinohara-senpai safe and sound."


    Upon seeing Shinohara walking together with Ike, she let out a genuine sigh of relief.


    I had been walking ahead so far, so we waited until Ike and Shinohara caught up to us.


    "Sud��-senpai and the others are this way."


    As the one most familiar with the route back, Nanase took the reins and led the way.


    In the meantime, I decided to tell Nanase about what Shinohara had told us earlier.


    In particr, I told her that Shinohara had seen someone push Komiya and Kinoshita down the slope, but she didn''t know if the perpetrator was a boy or a girl.


    I also spoke of how she had held her breath and hid in fear of being discovered.


    And then, I shared one more piece of potentially vital information.


    "It seems that Shinohara and her friends passed a group of first-yearsst night."


    "First-years, you say?"


    "They probably set up camp somewhere nearby. But, she only said that they passed each other, so we can''t really say they''re the culprits here."


    "That''s true. Though, I wonder who the first-year students in question are? If we knew, then we might be able to poke around for information or at least find some clues."


    Even if they were somewhere in the surrounding area, it would be difficult to find them in this thick, overgrown forest. It might be a different story if they stayed in the same location for an extended length of time, but in all probability, they would be constantly on the move, heading toward their next destination. In fact, it was even possible that they were headed off in the opposite direction right now.


    In any case, it bugged me that first-year students were involved in this.


    After all, if one of them were the White Room student, they would''ve been able to do the deed without so much as batting an eye.


    Nanase remained silent for a while before eventually opening her mouth to speak.


    "Senpai. If... there really was someone out there willing to cause such a grievous injury, isn''t it strange that Komiya-senpai didn''t notice anybody?"


    "Yeah. Normally, you''d know if someone was there or not."


    Komiya definitely would''ve said something if he remembered seeing someone, even if they had been a student that he didn''t know the name of.


    However, his memory of the incident was vague, and from what it sounded like, they might not have been attacked at all.


    Was it really just a simple ident?


    Or, had someone truly managed to pull off this attack without being noticed?


    Assuming that it was even darker out when it happened, it would only make sense that the perpetrator had a light of some sort.


    "If it were you, Ayanok��ji-senpai, would you be able to do it without the two of them noticing?"


    "Me? Don''t be unreasonable."


    Although I evaded the question, it wouldn''t be impossible if I set my mind to it.


    In his earlier testimony, Komiya said that it all started when something suddenly struck his calf.


    In the same way, I would soundlessly approach from behind and kick his calf as a leading strike. In turn, he''d be sent tumbling down the slope, his face warped with pain. He probably wouldn''t even have the time to look back at me.


    "As for me... If I were to attack Komiya-senpai and Kinoshita-senpai... I don''t think it would be impossible. Well, depending on the timing. Though, of course, it would still be fairly difficult."


    She voiced her own conclusion. Rather than assert that Shinohara had imagined it, Nanase seemed to agree with the idea that someone had assaulted them.


    But, even if there was a culprit, their motive was unknown.


    Were they indirectly sending me a warning? No, the risks would be far too great if that were the case.


    Or perhaps... they were trying to emphasize that they weren''t afraid of taking on risks, no matter howrge they may be?


    It was also possible that some unforeseen turn of events had taken ce and they had no choice but to take action.


    But, as it stood, none of these theories felt very convincing. After all, it was more than possible that the culprit wasn''t the White Room student. Furthermore, there might not even be a culprit at all.


    "That said, it''s not clear why they were attacked in the first ce."


    Inevitably, Nanase arrived at the same conclusion that I had.


    The motive behind the attack. The most perplexing part of the entire situation.


    Before long, we made our way back to Sud�� and the others, but nothing had changed since we left.


    "Now it''s just a question of when the teachers will get here."


    It had already been half an hour since the Emergency Alert first went off, but there was still no sign of them anywhere.


    We were in the northeast corner of the ind, so it would take them an adequate amount of time to get here, even if they made use of a boat or helicopter.


    "Uhm~... Has something happened here?"


    Just as the situation began to stagnate, a group of several students appeared from within the forest and called out to us.


    Nanase and I briefly exchanged nces with each other. The students in question were a group of first-years: Mitsui Ayumi from ss 1-A, D��gami Mitsuko from ss 1-B, Tsubaki Sakurako from ss 1-C, and Makita Takashige from ss 1-D. Altogether, there were three girls and one boy, abination that fell in line with Shinohara''s testimony from earlier.


    As someone who had also heard Shinohara''s testimony, Ike looked at the four of them with a hint of wariness in his eyes.


    "There''s been a bit of trouble. These two fell down the slope and got injured pretty badly."


    Upon hearing this, the first-years exchanged nces for a moment.


    "We were camping nearby when we heard an alert go off and what sounded like somebody shouting... We chose to wait a little for it to get brighter out beforeing here to check on what had happened, just in case."


    The sound of the alert had been incredibly piercing, so it only made sense that they would hear it if they were in the area.


    "Anyway, could I ask if the injured are alright?"


    D��gami, the girl who was acting as the sole spokesperson for the group, looked fairly rmed, as did Makita and Mitsui.


    Tsubaki, in contrast, was perfectly calm.


    Despite being surrounded by upperssmen, two of which who were seriously injured, she didn''t appear to be phased at all.


    "They don''t seem alright, but it''s hard for any of us to say for sure. At this point, we''re just waiting for the teachers to get here."


    Like that, another thirty minutes passed.


    And then, around an hour after the Emergency Alert first went off, officials from the school finally arrived.


    The first to show up were Sakagami-sensei, the homeroom teacher of ss 2-B, and our own homeroom teacher, Chabashira. In addition, there were three adults who appeared to be medical personnel, for a total of five people.


    "Let''s get down to business and hear what happened here, shall we?"


    Sakagami-sensei spoke as he approached Komiya, who was sitting up, and Kinoshita, who was still lying unconscious beside him.


    Everyone began to gather around him, as if drawn in by the prospect of checking out a crime scene.


    Seeing this, I distanced myself from the group and approached Chabashira, who was looking in my direction.


    "From a cursory observation, it seems like it''ll be difficult for Komiya and Kinoshita to continue the exam."


    "Yes. Their retirement seems virtually unavoidable."


    Her expression was heavy, which was to be expected given that Komiya''s group included a student from her own ss.


    "Was it just a simple ident?"


    "Well... I imagine we''ll find out soon enough."


    After seeing to it that treatment was underway, Sakagami-sensei turned to the unscathed member of the group, Shinohara, and motioned for her to exin.


    Shinohara, however, took one look at the state of her friends and burst into tears all over again.


    "Crying isn''t going to get us anywhere, I hope you know that."


    Sakagami-sensei admonished her in a strict tone, prompting Ike to step forward to protect her.


    "Uhm, is it alright if I exin? Shinohara told me what happened."


    He apparently wanted to exin the situation to Sakagami-sensei on Shinohara''s behalf.


    "...Well, I suppose that''s fine. Go ahead and speak."


    "Shinohara said that they were pushed off the slope."


    I took a look at the slope in question as Ike repeated what Shinohara had told him earlier, but all of a sudden, his exnation somehow seemed hard to believe.


    "Pushed off? ...How awfully unsettling."


    "So they won''t have to retire because of that, right? That''s right, right?"


    "If that''s the truth, then yes, of course they won''t."


    "What do you mean ''if that''s the truth''? Shinohara said so herself!"


    "Then, I assume she must have evidence of some sort to back that up, yes?"


    Faced with Sakagami''s response, both Shinohara and Ike were left momentarily speechless, at an utter loss for words.


    "Y-you say that, but we''re not at the school! There aren''t any surveince cameras or anything like that!"


    "Though, if they were pushed, one of them must''ve at least seen the culprit''s face."


    "That''s��!"


    "So how about it, Shinohara-san? You can''t just keep crying, so how about you give us an answer?"


    The only evidence avable at the moment was Shinohara''s personal testimony as a member of the same group.


    Although I could try to mention the mysterious set of footprints I had identified earlier, the ground all throughout the nearby area had long since been trampled by a sizable number of people.


    Even if I were to bring them up, it wouldn''t aplish anything.


    "I-it was dark..."


    "Dark? So dark that you couldn''t see the culprit''s face?"


    In response, Shinohara nodded several times over, however Sakagami-sensei simply let out a deep sigh.


    "So, it was dark to the extent that you couldn''t see their face, and yet you were able to see them get pushed without any problems...? It pains me to say this, but that''s an awfully convenient tale you''ve spun, now isn''t it?"


    With that, Sakagami-sensei began to pressure Shinohara to confess as she broke into tears once more.


    She was crying to the point of incoherence, so she just kept nodding her head, trying what she could to affirm that she was telling the truth.


    "Shinohara would never lie!"


    "You''re her ssmate. It''s only natural that you would say that."


    "Are you saying that you don''t believe her!?"


    "If she''s telling the truth, then this is quite a serious matter. However, this testimony alone is not enough."


    "How could you! Then what''s gonna happen to Komiya and Kinoshita!?"


    "No matter how things y out, I''d say that their only real option is retirement. As their homeroom teacher, I certainly can''t say I''m happy to see them withdraw from the exam either, but from the look of their legs, it would be impossible for them to continue."


    It''s not like Sakagami-sensei was actively trying to be cruel here or anything like that.


    He was just being objective. The damage that had been done to their legs was by no means light enough that they''d be back on their feet in a day or two.


    "Given the current situation, we have no choice but to conclude that Shinohara-san is lying in order to gloss over the injuries caused by this ident."


    "You''re fuckin'' kidding me! Who in their right mind would buy that bullshit!?"


    Ike fought back in a ze of passion, holding onto Shinohara''s shoulders as she wept, but the response he got back was exceedingly cold.


    "I''ll overlook that careless outburst of yours just this once. Are we clear?"


    "Tsk...!"


    Realizing that he had said far too much to a teacher, Ike bit down on his lip.


    Together, Shinohara and Ike had been desperately pleading their case for a while now, and yet, there seemed to be something peculiar about the way Sakagami-sensei had been responding to them.


    "It seems that you already had a lot of this figured out before you got here, Chabashira-sensei."


    I expressed my thoughts to Chabashira as we stood beside each other, to which she nodded quietly.


    "We relied on Komiya and Kinoshita''s GPS signals to get here. Komiya''s Emergency Alert went off at 4:56:24 AM, whereas Kinoshita''s went off seven secondster. The only other signal that was in the nearby area in that timeframe was Shinohara''s and Shinohara''s alone."


    Chabashira responded, her eyes focused on a tablet in hand.


    It was just as I had expected.


    This meant that Sakagami-sensei had this very same information as well.


    If there had been even a single questionable GPS signal in the area, then there would''ve been room for suspicion. However, the information gathered from the GPS went against the notion that there was a culprit in the first ce. In which case, the only logical conclusion for the school officials to make was that Shinohara was fabricating the existence of an unknown third party, all for the sake of procuring a lighter sentence and protecting her fellow group members from retirement.


    "The first to arrive at the scene after the alerts went off was a group of five students, yourself included. The next to arrive was a group of four first-year students. We were thest to arrive."


    ording to the records, nobody else hade into contact with Komiya''s group before us.


    It should probably be safe to trust this information to a certain extent.


    Then... was it possible that the culprit wasn''t a student?


    The teachers and exam staff didn''t have to wear watches so they wouldn''t have a GPS signal.


    No�� that shouldn''t be the case here, right?


    I had a hypothesis in the works, but there were still a lot of points that didn''t quite add up yet, such as the fact that the teachers seemed to be missing something.


    "Chabashira-sensei. You''ll be heading back to the starting area with Komiya and Kinoshita after this, right?"


    "Yeah. We''ll do a more detailed examination of their injuries back on the ship."


    "There''s something I''d like you to investigate while you''re at it. Discreetly."


    I then lowered my voice and whispered something into her ear. Although she was slightly surprised by my request, she nodded in agreement nheless.


    Nevertheless, there was a more pressing matter at hand right now.


    With Komiya and Kinoshita''s retirement all but guaranteed at this point, Shinohara would be left to fend for herself.


    For her, surviving on her own for the next day or two must seem impossible, let alone the next week and a half.


    "I can''t... I-I can''t go on like this...! There''s no way I can do this alone...!"


    Ike watched as Shinohara fell to her knees, unable to find the right words tofort her.


    He simply stood there, stuck in a perpetual state of uncertainty about what to do next.


    I wasn''t the only one who took notice of this either.


    Komiya, moments away from being carried off on a stretcher by the medical personnel, had as well.


    "Ike...e here real quick."


    "W-what is it?"


    Komiya suddenly called out to Ike, motioning for him toe within arm''s reach.


    And then, caring not for strain on his injured body, he lurched out, wrapped his arm around Ike''s neck, and pulled him in close.


    "Show me how much of a man you are."


    After those few short words, Komiyaid back down, practically copsing onto the stretcher.


    Komiya had nned on confessing to Shinohara during this very exam.


    But it didn''t seem like he had done so yet.


    Perhaps, on the contrary, Shinohara had consulted him about Ike before he ever had the chance to make his feelings known.


    If so, then Komiya would be aware of just how much Shinohara cared for Ike.


    With those few short words, he had entrusted Shinohara, the girl he had sworn to protect with his own two hands, to Ike, his rival in love.


    "That''s gotta be tough..."


    Sud��mented as we all watched the medics carry Komiya away.


    It seemed that, after bearing witness to what had just taken ce, Sud�� had realized how hard this must''ve been for Komiya as well.


    My ssmates weren''t the only ones moving forward on the journey to adulthood. Day by day, Komiya was growing as well, just like Sud��.


    After a brief period of silence, Nanase addressed Shinohara, proposing an idea to help ovee the harsh situation she had been put into.


    "It''s possible to lighten the burden by bunkering down near the starting area. While you won''t be able to earn points from reaching designated areas, it should definitely be more than enough to help you avoid retirement."


    Indeed, this was most likely the best strategy that Shinohara had avable.


    In what remained of the two weeks we had on the ind, she would have to pin her hopes on other groups getting eliminated.


    Of course, if no other groups retired, then Shinohara would have no way to escape expulsion.


    Chabashira, having overheard Nanase''s suggestion, chimed in as well.


    "Shinohara. I don''t want it to sound like I''m expecting you to get expelled, but... what''s your n? It''ll be difficult to continue with the exam on your own."


    "I-I know..."


    "Then, like Nanase said, you can at least head back to the harbor and hold out until the end of the exam. It''s not like it would be impossible for you to pick up the Tasks that show up in the nearby area either."


    Their proposal was undoubtedly cruel, but it was the best option Shinohara could make now that she was on her own. If she tried to continue with the exam alone, then in all likelihood, she would end up burning out at some point. And once she ran out of stamina and provisions, she would eventually be forced to retire.


    However, if she changed her approach to the exam as a whole, she could hold out at the harbor and potentially even get help from groups that passed by. That way, she might be able to survive until the end.


    Ultimately, it was a far better alternative than the one currently in front of her: expulsion.


    Wiping away her tears, Shinohara slowly nodded her head.


    Seeing that, Chabashira said onest thing to her.


    "I hope that, somehow, you''re able to make it to the starting area on your own."


    "Yes... Understood."


    Since the school wasn''t allowed to provide any aid, Shinohara would have to get to the harbor all by herself.


    After the first-years and Sakagami-sensei left, Shinohara went to pick up her bag, only for Ike to hurriedly grab her wrist.


    "...What?"


    "D-don''t give me that...! Are you really just gonna go back to the starting area and wait there!?"


    "What other choice do I have? Komiya-kun and Kinoshita-san aren''t here anymore... There''s absolutely no way I can make it through this special exam on my own."


    "But, but like��"


    "I''m just gonna be expelled anyway, so leave me alone!"


    She jerked her arm away, breaking free of Ike''s grasp, and immediately turned to leave.


    "..."


    Ike stood frozen, his teeth clenched in silence.


    The Ike of the past probably wouldn''t have had the strength to keep moving forward, to keep trying.


    But Komiya''s words had given him the push he needed to take the next step.


    "I... I''ll do something about it!"


    He shouted after Shinohara, watching helplessly as she began to close herself off to the world around her.


    "Just stop. It''s impossible. Absolutely impossible."


    Shinohara just continued to walk without even considering entertaining Ike''s protests.


    "It''s not impossible!"


    Unable to stand and watch as she left, Ike sprinted after her and grabbed hold of her wrist for a second time.


    "Let me go...!"


    "I won''t! You think I''m gonna let you get expelled cuz of somethin'' like this?"


    "Why not!? This has nothing to do with you Ike! With me outta the way, there''ll be less of a chance for your group to get expelled... You should be happy!"


    "Happy? What kind of shit are you spouting!? There''s no way I''d be happy!"


    "Huh...?"


    "I mean, we''ll lose a whole lotta ss points if you get expelled! I''ve, uhm, you know, I''ve gotta stop that from happening! That''s why I''ll lend you a hand to make sure!"


    "Well, that''s true, but... What''ll you do if your group sinks down to the bottom because you''re helping me? Not to mention, it''ll just end up making trouble for Sud��-kun and Hond��-kun."


    "That��"


    "Ike, you never think things through, do you? If you keep going on like that, then sooner orter you''re gonna get yourself expelled."


    Shinohara smiled a somewhat exasperated smile and lightly shook off Ike''s hand.


    "Anyway, I''m not going to give up until the very end, so you should do your best too Ike."


    She tactfully rejected his offer before turning away for what seemed like the final time.


    "W-wait...!"


    Ike''s previously confident attitude had disappeared without a trace.


    There was nothing more he could do to stop Shinohara from leaving.


    "Kanji."


    Seeing this, Sud�� called out to Ike with a fearless smile on his face. He beat his chest twice, wordlessly encouraging his friend to persevere.


    At that, Ike tried to step forward once again, fueled by the support of his best friend.


    "Wait...! Wait Shinohara...! I, I just... so... that..."


    He desperately tried to squeeze out the right words, but he simply couldn''t find the strength.


    They were sitting right there, on the tip of his tongue, yet they just wouldn''te out.


    He needed onest push. This was the final stretch.


    But neither I nor Sud�� nor Nanase would be able to say the words for him.


    The only person who could do that was Ike himself.


    He had no choice but to suppress the fear within his heart and take thest step forward on his own.


    "Wait, I said wait!"


    "M-my god, you scared me. I heard you already, jeez... Is there still something you want from me?"


    "There is! There''s all sorts of stuff! I really don''t want you to get expelled! That''s why I''m gonna save you whether you like it or not!"


    The words he had chosen... weren''t elegant or beautiful like a confession of love.


    But even so, they embodied Ike''s way of doing things, as they were packed full of every ounce of emotion he could muster.


    "Right-oh! If this is how Kanji wants to do it, let''s discuss battle ns, Ry��tar��!"


    "G-gotcha!"


    Sud�� and Hond�� circled around and took a stand behind Ike, fully supporting his resolve to help Shinohara. They waved her over, beckoning for her toe and join them.


    "Huh...? What the? Are you guys stupid? Even though you shouldn''t waste your time on someone like me, you guys..."


    Unwilling to wait for a Shinohara who might not evene, Ike ran to her and took hold of her wrist for the third and final time.


    He was burning with a level of determination that seemed to shout to the world that he would never let go of her again.


    Upon seeing this, even the usually indifferent Chabashira cracked a slight smile.


    It must''ve been enough to make her feel like Shinohara would be in good hands, as she then disappeared into the forest, headed off in the same direction as Sakagami-sensei and the medical team.


    That being said, this was no time for blind optimism. After all, saving Shinohara certainly wouldn''t be easy.


    "In order to guarantee that you save Shinohara, she''ll have to join up with a group with at least three slots for extra group members."


    Once the four of them gathered together, I spoke up.


    It was hard to say whether or not Sud�� and his group would be able to win the rights to those three slots on their own.


    "It''d be most realistic to try''n ask for help from people in the same ss, right?"


    "I don''t believe there''s anything exactly wrong with that, but from what I recall of the rules for the exam, it''s impossible to find out which groups have earned the right to increase their maximum size. I also imagine that you''d be hard-pressed to find a group willing to take Shinohara-senpai in when two members of her group have already retired. Moreover, since losing pointses as a direct side-effect of the merging process, the entire notion is just riddled with numerous risks. All of that being the case, rather than going through the effort of forming another group, it may very well be more realistic for her to prioritize umting points. I think she should steadily score points from designated areas and use whatever time she has to spare to challenge Tasks."


    Nanase was rmending that Shinohara give up on merging with another group and focus on gathering points independently instead.


    "But wouldn''t it be better to assume that there won''t be any Tasks that she can win by herself? She''d prolly end up having to pin her hopes on getting lucky or some kinda freak coincidence where there aren''t enough participants or something."


    "Is there really no way for her to get into a group smoothly, Ayanok��ji?"


    In the midst of their conversation, Sud�� suddenly turned to me, looking to see if I had any ideas.


    "It''s not like it''s impossible. There is one idea thates to mind that has a high probability of working out."


    "R-really? What is it!?"


    I considered for a moment whether or not I should share it with them, but ultimately decided against it.


    If I told them my n now, a sliver of hope would be born amidst their despair.


    But at the same time, it would weaken their resolve to save Shinohara, so it was hard to say that it''d be worth it.


    It was important for Ike and the others to maintain a strongpetitive mindset until the very end of the exam.


    Not to mention that there were several things that had to be done in order to realize the n.


    I began walking toward where the luggage was located and instructed for Nanase to get ready to head out as well.


    "O-oi, Ayanok��ji? What''s this n of yours?"


    "The only thing you can do right now is have Ike take the lead in protecting Shinohara and focus on earning as many points as possible. Beyond that, you should try to take part in Tasks that increase the maximum number of people allowed in your group if you get the chance."


    "What are you gonna be doing?"


    "I''ll be setting up a contingency n of sorts just in case something goes wrong."


    For that very reason, I simply didn''t have the time to stay here and dawdle with Ike and the others.


    "But, like I said earlier, there''s no way to guarantee anything here. Furthermore, if any of our other ssmates were to fall into the bottom five as well, then... we might be forced to make a tough choice about who to save."


    I wanted to make sure they knew beforehand that we might have to give up on Shinohara at some point.


    This special exam was such that, as long as it held true that five groups would be subjected to the ultimate penalty, there would inevitably be students that couldn''t be saved.


    "Don''t forget that, Ike."


    "...I won''t."


    About two and a half hours after the whole ordeal began, we finally arrived back at our campsite with Shinohara in tow. It seemed that Kei''s group, who had been camping nearby, had already left for their next designated area.


    The backpacks that Komiya and Kinoshita had left behind were brought back by Sud�� and Ike respectively.


    "Sud��, take care of Ike and the others. Out of everyone, you''re the one capable of making the most sensible decisions."


    "R-right, leave it to me."


    Since the next designated area had already been announced, I retrieved my tablet from Nanase as I finished up with the final arrangements.


    "It seems like you''ve used up quite a lot of energy this morning..."


    "Please don''t worry. I still have enough to keep up with you."


    From today, the fourth day of the exam, onwards, the ten highest and lowest ranked groups would be revealed. Alongside that, it was also the day where Tasks that allow forrge group creation would be added to the pool. If one of these Tasks appear, it would probably reach max capacity in an instant and the ensuingpetition would most certainly be fierce.


    However, before any of that, we first needed to confirm our next designated area.


    The area we were given was area G3, which meant that we needed to go northwest from our current location.


    We were already half an hour behind schedule, so it was highly unlikely that we''d be able to get the Early Bird Bonus this time.


    Despite the fact that it would take at least an hour to get there, I decided to sate my curiosity and look at the current group standings first.


    Though I was interested in the groups that were in the lead, it was far more important to check the bottom five, as those were the ones who were at risk of expulsion.


    Interested as well, Nanase took a look at my tablet from over my shoulder.


    The bottom ten groups were sorted in a table from highest to lowest. The information disyed in the table was more detailed than expected, as it not only told us the members and scores of each group, but it even had a general breakdown of how they had earned their points.


    "This��"


    Of the bottom ten groups, seven wereposed of students from ss 3-B and ss 3-D. The group inst ce was a three-person group from ss 3-D with an overall total of 21 points. 5 of which were from Tasks and 16 were from designated areas. However, this particr group was the one who had someone retire due to illness on the very first day of the exam, so there was some room for sympathy.


    Of the remaining three, there was one second-year group and two first-year groups.


    The lone second-year group wasposed of three of my ssmates: Akito, Haruka, and Airi.


    "It seems that some of your ssmates are in a dangerous position, Senpai."


    Currently, they were ranked ninth from the bottom with a total of 28 points, which was worse than I expected. It required a certain amount of strength and fortitude to continuously travel between designated areas. Since they had Airi in their group, who tended to struggle when it came to stamina, it would probably be difficult to earn Arrival Bonuses.


    Meanwhile, there were two first-year groups in the bottom ten, but they were bothposed of two people each. Given that the first-years were allowed to form four-man groups from the beginning, it made sense that there wouldn''t be very many of them upying the bottom spots.


    "All things considered, it''s surprising. To think so many third-year students would be at the bottom..."


    Although it was certainly unexpected, I doubted that their poor performance was just due to ipetence.


    I decided to check the top rankingster and instead focused on telling Nanase what our n would be moving forward.


    "To start out I''m going to aim for the Arrival Bonus at G3. But, I''ll probably skip the designated areas thate after that for a while."


    "So there''s somewhere you want to go, even if it means missing out on the designated areas?"


    "Yeah. If you want to continue going for them, then we''ll have to split up at G3."


    "No no, I''ll stay with you. As long as Amasawa-san or H��sen-kun arrive in time, my group won''t miss out on the area... Besides, this has to do with the n you''ve thought of to save Shinohara-senpai, right?"


    After responding with a light nod, we set out. Once we reached G3, we''d head to the starting area.


    If possible, I wanted to make it there by sometime tomorrow.

 Chapter 101 - 6: The Aloof Wunderkind of Class 2-D

    <h4>Chapter 101: Chapter 6: The Aloof Wunderkind of ss 2-D</h4>


    At just before 7:00 AM the following day, the fifth of the exam, we were pushing south along the river from area D4 to D5. After we stepped foot in G3 yesterday, we decided to forego our next designated area, H4, and travel due west on our way back to the starting area. As a result, we missed out on the next two designations �� H6 and I7 �� as well, meaning that we had now missed three areas in a row.


    Unless a randomly designated area were to appear somewhere along our projected route by some miracle, that number would inevitably increase to four. Ultimately, the odds didn''t y out in our favor, as when the clock finally struck 7:00 AM, the first designated area of the day was revealed to be I8.


    Well, on the bright side, the designated area was so far away that it made it easier to detach from the matter since I wouldn''t have to fret about going through the effort to get there.


    Perhaps because it was so early in the morning, the gentle murmur of the nearby river was quite pleasant.


    If it hadn''t been for the bad news that came shortly thereafter, it would''ve been a pretty solid start to the day.


    "Shinohara-senpai''s situation doesn''t seem very optimistic..."


    Shinohara had been left to fend for herself after Komiya and Kinoshita retired yesterday. Even though Ike and Sud�� were doing what they could to support her, the number of points she could score on her own was, in the end, limited.


    As of yesterday, her group hadn''t been included in the bottom ten, but when we checked the rankings this morning, she had already dropped down to the bottom eight. From the fact that the groups ranked below her would earn points at a faster rate, she would probably sink down tost ce by tomorrow or the day after at thetest. Thanks to this, in an ironic twist of fate, Akito''s group had been spared from the bottom ranks, at least for the time being.


    Meanwhile, there were the current rankings for the top groups that I hadn''t gotten the chance to look at yesterday. In first ce was Nagumo''s group, made up entirely of students from ss 3-A, whereas second ce was held by Kiriyama''s group from ss 3-B. The two top representatives of the third year were fully ounted for.


    "Ah, Senpai. There''s someone fishing up ahead."


    A lone student came into view ahead of us. They were sitting on a rocky sidebar, leisurely passing the time with a fishing rod in hand. Due to their distinctive outward appearance, I recognized them immediately. They were a member of the one group I wanted to meet more than anyone else right now. I didn''t expect the chance to meet up with them toe so soon. Due to the nature of the exam and the size of the ind, finding one specific individual was akin to finding a needle in a haystack. I had even considered making use of the GPS searching feature once it was made avable tomorrow to attempt to meet with their group.


    I wanted to capitalize on this stroke of good luck no matter what.


    "Mind if we make a detour, Nanase?"


    Although several solid Tasks had popped up in the nearby area, we''d probably have to give up on them.


    "I''m just your travellingpanion, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Please don''t feel the need to ask for my opinion."


    I took her thoughtful words at face value and decided to approach the student.


    They hadn''t seemed to have noticed us yet, but I chose not to call out to them so as to not interrupt their fishing.


    Instead, we approached quietly, walking along the sandy gravel of the riverside.


    Before long, we drew in close enough for them to notice our presence, as they slowly turned to face us.


    "You started off on your own, but it doesn''t seem like you''ve dropped to the bottom ten yet."


    With these words, we were greeted by Katsuragi of ss 2-B, who openly weed us.


    "Somehow. But if I took it easy for a day, my rank would probably plummet."


    Having overheard themotion, Ry��en emerged from inside his tent and gave me a somewhat surprised look.


    "So you''re strollin'' ''round the ind with ass on your arm, eh? You get tired of that Karuizawa chick and ditch her?"


    "Karuizawa? Why are you bringing her up?"


    Katsuragi looked back at Ry��en, confused.


    "Kuku, it''s nothin''. Don''t mind it."


    "It seems you two have been doing pretty well for yourselves."


    You could easily check the top ten highest-ranked groups through the tablet. As of this morning, I had a cumtive total of 52 points, putting me in 74th ce overall. If you took into ount the fact that I was a one-man group, my cement was fairly high.


    Be that as it may, Ry��en and Katsuragi were ranked even higher, upying tenth ce with a cumtive total of 92 points.


    Of those 92 points, 29 hade from Arrival Bonuses, 41 from Early Bird Bonuses, and 22 from Tasks.


    "Oh shove it with the sarcasm. Isn''t that freak with a few screws loose one of your ssmates?"


    "Well, that''s true."


    The ''freak with a few screws loose'' that Ry��en was referring to was none other than K��enji.


    Like me, he was taking on the exam alone. But despite that, he currently sat in fourth ce. Out of all the groups in the top ten, he had earned the most points from Early Bird Bonuses, not to mention the noteworthy number of points he had racked up from Tasks as well, all for a cumtive total of 126 points. His performance so far had been truly outstanding with practically no room for error.


    However, there were still ten days left in the exam, including today. If an ident were to happen due to overexertion or injury, he would drop out of the top ten in an instant.


    In this two-week long exam on an uninhabited ind, we wouldn''t be given even a single day to rest our bodies. No matter who you were, stressing your body out day after day would inevitably lead to muscle damage. It would start with obvious symptoms like muscle pains and general soreness, and then, little by little, your legs would grow heavier as even simple tasks like walking became difficult. Furthermore, since we could only replenish the bare minimum of nutrients that our bodies needed while we were on the ind, you''d be afflicted by constant mental and physical fatigue as well.


    "What''s your next designated area?"


    "Hah?"


    "It''s already past 7:00 AM. You two sure seem to be taking it easy."


    "It was my decision."


    Katsuragi responded as he cast his line into the river.


    "We''ve been moving at a rapid pace these past four days as we worked on Tasks and map movement. That being said, our first designated area today turned out to be the random designation down in E10, so we''d have to push ourselves fairly hard if we wanted to arrive within the time limit. I decided that the one or two points we''d get for making it there wouldn''t be worth the effort."


    Ry��en let show a wry smile as he shrugged his shoulders. Ry��en was the type of person who always looked to push himself to the absolute limit, and yet Katsuragi had somehow managed to persuade him to take a break. Ishizaki or Kaneda probably wouldn''t have been able to control Ry��en to such an extent. It seemed that Katsuragi was already ying an important role as a member of ss 2-B.


    "So, have you caught anything?"


    Nanase posed a question to Katsuragi as she eyed the bobber in the river.


    "Sadly, not much. We''d have to go to the sea if we wanted to catch a lot of fish."


    In other words, they were fishing here simply as a way to pass the time.


    "I take it you''re doing fine on the food front, then?"


    While I didn''t know if he''d answer me honestly or not, I decided to take a stab at it anyway.


    "There''s plenty of food to gather from the sea, rivers, and forest. Water is no different too since all you have to do is boil river water."


    "But isn''t it risky to drink river water?"


    "You''re not wrong. Boiling it doesn''t guarantee that it''s perfectly safe, but that''s why I''m the only one who drinks it. Ry��en drinks the water we started out with and whatever we get from Tasks."


    They were managing the risks wlessly. By this point in the exam, there should be groups out there who were struggling to get by, but it looked like these two would be living steadily for quite a while.


    "It just so happens that I''ve been looking for you, Ry��en."


    "Lookin'' for me, eh?"


    "I assume you''re aware of which groups are in the bottom ten right now, right?"


    "Well, sure. I dunno what those idiots from my ss are doin'' down there in the bottom eight though."


    With two members out of the picture, their ie had dropped sharply, creating an ever-growing disparity between them and the other groups at the bottom.


    "Komiya and Kinoshita retired."


    The smile on Ry��en''s face disappeared instantly, reced with a serious expression.


    Katsuragi looked in my direction as well, his attention ripped away from the fishing pole in his hands.


    "They retired? What happened?"


    Since Katsuragi was now a full-fledged member of ss 2-B, both Komiya and Kinoshita were fellowrades that he needed to protect.


    Nanase spoke up in response to Katsuragi''s question.


    "They were seriously injured. It''s unlikely that either of them will be able to walk anytime soon."


    "Was it an ident?"


    "Well, that''s��"


    "ording to Shinohara, thest remaining member of their group, they were attacked by someone."


    "I assume this ''someone'' was kicked outta here right along with ''em then, right?"


    "Unfortunately, Shinohara''s testimony was the only evidence they had. Neither Komiya nor Kinoshita could recall whether they were actually attacked or not. The school should still be investigating it, but I wouldn''t get my hopes up."


    "They''re looking at it under the pretense that Shinohara-senpai lied because she didn''t want her fellow group members to retire."


    "What should we do Ry��en? Even if we manage to ce in the top three, it''ll be meaningless if Komiya and Kinoshita get expelled."


    If Shinohara''s group came inst ce, ss 2-D and 2-B would both suffer major setbacks.


    "You said you were lookin'' for me, right? Shinohara''s your ssmate, so I assume you''ve alreadye up with a n to stop the expulsions. Or am I wrong?"


    Of course, despite not knowing any of the details, Ry��en instinctively knew that I had thought of something.


    "Sorry Nanase, but I can''t let you listen to the rest of this conversation. The survival of the second-years is at stake here."


    "I understand."


    After confirming that Nanase had moved a sufficient distance away from us, I approached Ry��en and shared the details of my strategy with him.


    He could just tell Katsuragi about it himself afterward.


    "Kuku, I see. With a n like that there really is a way for Shinohara to survive. That said... will it all go smoothly?"


    "It should have a decent chance as long as you cooperate. The rest will happen naturally."


    "You''ve got balls changing shit up like this. If the other groups realize what''s happening, they''ll start takin'' action too."


    I responded with a small nod. That was the very reason why I didn''t want Nanase to overhear us. If the first-year students were to find out about it, it would probably lead to a confrontation between the second-year students and everyone else.


    "There are some clever first-year students out there as well. There''s a chance that they might catch on sooner than anticipated."


    It was also impossible to predict what the third-years would do if they found out.


    "If it were a couple of small fry I wouldn''t even hesitate to let ''em go, but Komiya and Kinoshita still have their uses."


    "So you''ll work with me... is that what you''re saying?"


    "Our interests align so there''s no way I wouldn''t take advantage of this strat of yours."


    Shinohara''s group was made up of students from both of our sses, after all.


    If we didn''t join hands here and now, it would be impossible to save any of them.


    "If you run into Ichinose, can you tell her the n as well?"


    "That doormat Ichinose aside, I don''t think Sakayanagi''ll choose to lend a hand so easily."


    "She''s not the type to sit back and let the first-years look down on her."


    "Kuku, I guess so."


    With that, our impromptu meeting came to an end. We said our farewells and immediately set out for the starting area.

 Chapter 102: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 102: 6.1</h4>


    Nanase and I were making our way south toward the starting area, but along the way, a Task appeared near the summit of area C5, so we adjusted our route ordingly. The Task in question was a one-on-one match of Tug of War. It had a short registration deadline of 40 minutes, and the number of participants was limited to two boys and two girls, so overall the conditions were iron-d. However, you would earn five points just for participating, and if you won, you would earn an additional ten points, for a total of fifteen.


    Due to the fact that the summit was just a short distance ahead of us, it would be more or less impossible for other students to beat us there unless they were already in the area. After taking into ount the fact that I would be missing my fourth designated area in a row soon (and would be losing two points as a result), I decided that we should go for it. Plus, there was a good chance that we would have fifteen points simply fall into ourps if nobody else showed up.


    Despite the high elevation of the mountain, we pushed forward at a rapid pace and arrived at the Task with around five minutes to spare.


    I thought that we would be the first to arrive, but apparently somebody had beaten us to the punch.


    This ''somebody'' seemed to have noticed our presence, but they made no effort to look in our direction.


    "He got here pretty quickly didn''t he? He must''ve been even closer than we were."


    "I wonder."


    Even if he had been toward the south side of C5 when the Task was announced, it should''ve still taken him a decent amount of time to get here.


    "I''m not sure whether this will help clear things up for you or not, but that''s K��enji Rokusuke."


    "K��enji...? The same K��enji from your ss who''s currently in fourth ce overall? ...Well, he does seem to give off an... aura of greatness of some sort."


    It was one thing that he had arrived earlier than us, but even stranger yet was the fact that, apart from the single bottle of mineral water he was holding, he didn''t have any bags or luggage with him.


    If he was traveling light, then it made sense that he would be able to climb to the summit faster than us, but...


    That would then mean that he had been moving around without a tablet, which I suppose was only to be expected of someone like K��enji.


    After taking a single sip of his water, he proceeded to pour the rest above his head, showering himself with what remained in the bottle. In a sense, it seemed as though he was basking in the satisfaction that came with ascending to the summit of the mountain.


    "Ah... such a splendidly handsome man I am, these drops of masculine beauty trickling down my magnificent body. It seems that I myself have powered up all the more since the year before."


    "He seems to be saying... something... Is he talking to us...?"


    "No, he''s definitely talking to himself. He''s probably just immersed in his own beauty."


    "I-is that so..."


    Puzzled, Nanase tilted her head, unable toprehend his behavior.


    I didn''t think that anyone else would show up, but there were only a few minutes left to register, so I figured that we should just focus on getting it over with. As such, the two of us went forward with the registration process and secured our spots in the Task. However, since the rules called for a one-on-one match split by gender, I would be forced to face-off against K��enji as we were the only boys who registered. Nanase, on the other hand, was the only girl to show up, so she won her category by default.


    "It seeeeems that my opponent is you, Ayanok��ji-boy."


    "That it does."


    In previous Tasks, I had indirectlypeted against my own ssmates by simply being a part of the crowd.


    However, this was the first time I had topete with a ssmate in a direct one-on-one match. Furthermore, the opponent of that match was none other than K��enji. I sincerely hoped that this wasn''t the start of something written in the stars.


    The staff member in charge of the Task presented us with a rope and instructed us to wrap the ends around our bodies.


    Given that my series of missed designations would only continue to increase, I wanted to secure as many points as possible, but...


    Instead of taking the win for myself when I wasn''t even a part of the top ten, it seemed more reasonable to concede the points to K��enji so that our ss would ultimately have a higher chance ofing out on top. With the fifteen points he''d get from winning, he would overtake Kiriyama''s score of 135 points and rise up to second ce all on his own, temporary as it may be.


    Anyway, if I was truly going to concede the win, it would be better to give up now so I didn''t waste more time or energy than necessary.


    I could simply take my five points, head back down the mountain, and resume my journey back to the harbor at the starting area.


    "The match will begin momentarily, so please prepare yourselves."


    "Is something the matter, Senpai?"


    As the staff notified us about the impending start of the match, Nanase noticed that I was lost in thought and looked to me with a question.


    "Well, I..."


    "Fufu, so you''re a man who thinks about things from the perspective of efficiency, hmmmm?"


    K��enji instantly gleaned my inner thoughts as if they had been written expressly on my face.


    "You were thinking that it would be best to abstain from the match rather than go to the trouble of facing off against me, weren''t you? After all, relinquishing the points to my fourth-ce self would indeed bring about the most benefit for our ss. As would it be the best use of our time."


    "Is... Is that true, Senpai?"


    "I have noints as long as it helps K��enji seed in the rankings."


    "Though, I doubt the Horikita-girl would be very satisfied with that, wouldn''t you agree? For her, it''s not hard to imagine it''d be preferable that I take second or third ce rather than first."


    He was so spot-on with his conjecture that a part of me wondered if he had somehow been listening in back when Horikita and I talked about this.


    "That''s limited to the situation where our own ssmates arepeting with each other for the top spot. As it stands now, your group is the only one in the top tenposed entirely of ss 2-D students, so if we were topete for points here, we''d just end up getting in each other''s way."


    "I, of course, understand, but that''s just poppycock. The fact that you believe you have a chance to prevail over me is the fundamental reason you''re having these wasteful thoughts. No matter who the opponent, the one to win this bout will be yours truly."


    K��enji had taken part in a fair number of Tasks so far and he had earned rewards in each and every one of them.


    Out of all the various groups spanning across the three different school years, he was the only one who had takenplete control like this.


    There had been some Tasks where he hade in first or second, but in those that had to do with strength or stamina, he swept first ce across the board.


    So as far as this Task was concerned, he understandably held absolute confidence that he would take first ce as well.


    "Ayanok��ji-boy, quit overselling your worth inside that head of yours. After all, it''s not every day that you''ll get the chance topete against my motivated self."


    The fact that he would believe in his own strengthe hell or high water was probably K��enji''s greatest charm.


    I slowly picked up the rope at my feet and wrapped it around my waist.


    "Now then, if you''ll each take up your positions, I''ll begin the countdown. You may start pulling when I get to zero."


    All I had to do was make it seem like I was putting in effort and then lose to him. That way I wouldn''t pointlessly waste any energy.


    "It doesn''t seem my wisdom has done much to motivate you."


    For K��enji, my true intentions were probably as transparent as they could possibly be.


    "Well, just try as best you can. Either way, just know that no matter how you may struggle, victory shan''t be smiling upon you this time."


    From the moment we each took hold of the rope, the countdown began.


    "������Three, two, one... Zero!"


    At the count of zero, I very lightly pulled the rope in my direction.


    Given how little force I was exerting, if K��enji were to make a serious effort, he''d probably drag me over the line in less than a second.


    However, the rope didn''t move in his direction at all.


    He stood across from me with a fearless smile painted onto his face, waiting for me to startpeting in earnest.


    While I didn''t have any intention of taking this seriously, I didn''t want to waste any time here either.


    That being the case, it might be more productive for me to fight back a little bit in order to make him feel threatened.


    If I were to suddenly start pulling with more force than he expected, he would have no choice but to panic and respond ordingly.


    There was more to winning Tug of War than just pulling at the rope with all your strength.


    There was the force of the friction of the rope in your hands, the force of the friction between your feet and the ground, as well as the normal force tying it all together.


    And to be even more precise, you''d also have to take into consideration the force of gravity.


    I maximized my grip on the rope and firmly nted my feet on the ground. I then inclined my body back without bending at the waist.


    And finally, by bending my knees and pulling the rope in close to my waist...


    The g marking the middle of the rope gave way in my direction ever so slightly. Everything was moving in ordance with my calctions.


    That said, the amount of give was smaller than expected.


    A heinous amount of force had begun to pull back on the rope, sealing away my counterattack in an instant.


    "To win at Tug of War, one needs not these paltry parlor tricks, but raw, unbridled power."


    It''s not like I was going easy on him, not by any means. However, the force he was exerting on the rope was so great that it drew the center g back to its ce in between us, returning the match to a state of equilibrium.


    From this, it seemed that K��enji and I were just about evenly matched when it came to arm strength.


    Not only that, he also weighed more than me. The most important factor in Tug of War may very well be weight, and since I lost in that respect, it would be difficult to beat him without securing an advantage in another way. If I used the full extent of my strength, I could easily turn this into a battle of attrition and wait for him to make a mistake of some sort, but that would be aplete waste of both time and energy. I did have another strategy I could use toe out on top, but it would be too early to use it now.


    As the rope painfully dug into my fingers and palms, I once again thought about the fact that our arm strength was evenly matched. The young man known as K��enji had physical capabilities in a league all their own. Even the likes of Sud�� and Albert, who were themselves exceptionally strong amongst high school students, were far inferior inparison. In fact, even the title ''Super High School-Level Student'' seemed far too mild for him.


    When I put strength into my arms and pulled on the rope for a second time, K��enji instantly sensed my movement and responded with an equivalent amount of force.


    Taking full advantage of the opportunity, I immediately rxed my grip and stopped pulling.


    Naturally, the rope was then pulled all the way in by K��enji, and just like that, the match was over.


    "So you chose to prioritize efficiency until the bitter end, did you?"


    K��enji seemed a little surprised, but with the oue decided, he apparently lost all interest in pursuing it any further as he didn''t say anything else.


    "It''s quite unfortunate, Senpai."


    "No, even if I were to seriously face off against him, I wouldn''t stand a chance. It''s only natural that it ended up this way."


    Overall, this Task had resulted in a gain of 20 points for groups ss 2-D students.


    That alone was more than enough to make the journey here worthwhile.


    "Can you keep going, Nanase?"


    "If I''m being honest, my legs are slightly sore."


    She rubbed the side of her thigh a little as she spoke.


    "But like I said back when I first joined up with you, please feel free to take action as you see fit, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    Her resolve to stay with me hadn''t wavered in the slightest.


    "Full speed ahead then."


    "Yes!"


    Apparently, K��enji had already started on some other route down the mountain in the brief period of time I was speaking with Nanase, as he was nowhere to be seen.

 Chapter 103: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 103: 6.2</h4>


    After around two more hours of travel, we finally arrived back at the harbor in the starting area.


    Nanase had startedgging behind during the final stretch of the journey, so she arrived about a minute after me,pletely out of breath.


    "Haaaa... I finally managed to catch up."


    She wiped her sweat with a hand towel as she tried to stabilize her breathing.


    "It''s hard to believe you''re a first-year high school girl. I didn''t expect you to have so much stamina."


    Throughout our time together so far, there had been several instances where her physical prowess had piqued my interest, but this had been the most intriguing by a long shot.


    "No no,pared to me, you''re not even short of breath, Ayanok��ji-senpai... You''re just as outstanding as I thought."


    "I''m just putting on a stoic front. Well, that aside, take a look over there."


    "Wow��! So many people!"


    Nanase, who had more or less caught her breath at this point, expressed her surprise about the sheer number of people bustling throughout the harbor.


    Not only could you buy additional supplies here with your leftover provision points, but you could also receive free medical treatment, take a refreshing shower, or even make use of one of the clean, well-kept restrooms.


    It was, so to speak, an oasis for the students. The one and only location on the ind where you could let your guard down and rx a bit.


    Whether it be those who were just stopping by due to the harbor''s proximity to theirst designated area or those who had made the choice to give up on the next few areas and take a break, students with all sorts of goals and motivations had gathered here.


    Furthermore, there were a fair number of school officials scrambling to and fro to handle the various needs and services of the harbor.


    "So... Why did wee all the way here to the starting area, Senpai?"


    "Before that, let''s check out the Task."


    "Ah, yes, I had forgotten about that."


    Just around the time when we stepped foot in area C8 on our way south from the Tug of War Task in C5, another Task had popped up in the starting area.


    The Task in question was called ''Open Water Swimming''.


    It entailed a race where the participants would have to swim approximately 2km from start to finish.


    While there had been plenty of physically demanding Tasks so far in the exam, the bar had been set drastically higher than usual for this one. Perhaps for that very reason, the Task also boasted thergest reward to date with 20 points.


    Since the starting area was such an easy location to ess, the Task should fill up fairly quickly. However, the number of students who would actually choose to register would inevitably be limited, given its demanding nature.


    It was also worth mentioning that the sea didn''t exactly seem calm today.


    Swimming in the open ocean waspletely different from swimming in a pool and because of the inherent danger involved, it would probably be safe to assume that they were restricted to holding the Task in the vicinity of the starting area.


    Lifeguards would surely be on standby, ready to jump into action in the event of an emergency.


    The Task registration desk seemed to be located at the far edge of the harbor, so we made our way over.


    From what I could see at a distance, there seemed to be a suitablyrge gathering there, but I couldn''t help but wonder if the size of the crowd was truly proportional to the number of registrations.


    Before long, the two of us arrived at the registration desk and dered our interest in entering thepetition.


    "I must apologize. Thest spot for the boy''s category filled up just a few minutes ago."


    The girl''s category, on the other hand, had just one spot remaining, making the situation highly reminiscent of the Beach gs Task from a few days ago.


    While the Task didn''t have a particrlyrge capacity or anything, I didn''t think so many students would actually choose to register.


    What surprised me the most, however, was...


    "Senpai... Is... Is that K��enji-senpai?"


    A young man could be seen standing with his back turned to the registration desk from just up ahead. And, sure enough, it was none other than K��enji.


    Seeing him here right after the Task was announced was... shocking to say the least.


    "Erm... Senpai..."


    "If you want topete in the Task, you''d better hurry up and register. That said, are you sure you''re feeling okay?"


    The journey here had by no means been an easy one.


    It wouldn''t even be surprising if she had already exhausted everyst drop of energy.


    She would need to recover her stamina in the brief period of time she had to change clothes before the Taskmenced.


    "Although I''m reluctant to say I''m in perfect condition... it''s a rare opportunity, so I''d like to give it my best shot."


    Despite the circumstances, she seemed to be fairly enthusiastic and motivated.


    "I''ll be waiting over there then. Come find me when it''s over."


    "Will do!"


    After seeing Nanase off, I decided to leave the Task registration area in the harbor for a bit.


    In the meantime, I wanted to make contact with a certain someone. In fact, meeting with this certain someone had been the main purpose behind mying all the way back to the starting area.


    Not too long after I started searching, I found the person I was looking for seated elegantly on a folding chair beneath a parasol that had been set up on the sandy beach.


    "Good day to you, Ayanok��ji-kun. It seems the weather is going to be awfully hot today, don''t you think?"


    "How are you doing, Sakayanagi?"


    "Reasonably well, I suppose. Ichinose-san and Shibata-kun are putting forth their best efforts for my sake, so I truly can''t ask for much more than that."


    Ichinose and Shibata were Sakayanagi''s fellow group members. She was participating in the exam in a pseudo-retired state because of her bad leg. Since she couldn''t move together with her group, they could only earn a maximum Arrival Bonus of two points per designated area.


    "I''ve been curious about whether or not your group is eligible for Early Bird Bonuses."


    If a group had someone retire, they would lose the ability to earn Early Bird Bonuses.


    Sakayanagi, however, was a special case.


    "The school has graciously decided to make an exception for my group. After all, it''s not my fault that I''m forced to stay sedentary."


    Even though her group wasn''t part of the top ten right now, it was probably safe to assume that they had achieved fairly decent results so far.


    "I must ask, what brings you to the starting area today?"


    "There were a few reasons, but the first didn''t y out ording to n."


    I shifted my gaze toward the Open Water Swimming Task that would probably begin any second now.


    "Unfortunately, the final spot was taken by K��enji."


    "He was in fourth ce just this morning, and yet now he''s already in second? As a ssmate of yours, he''s quite the prodigy, isn''t he?"


    "I hold the same opinion."


    Most of the top groups werepeting against one another with a fairly slim margin of points separating their scores. If K��enji were to take first in this swimming Task, he would temporarily shoot up to the first ce spot.


    "It should be about half an hour until the Task is over and Nanase-sanes back, so you''re wee toe join me if you''d like. The shade here is wonderfully refreshing, I must say."


    She motioned toward the open space underneath the parasol, granting me full permission to share her space.


    "How do you know about Nanase?"


    "Because I receive regr updates about the various going-ons of the ind."


    I had crossed paths with students from ss 2-A several times so far, so I suppose it wouldn''t be surprising if one of them had reported back to Sakayanagi here at the starting point. After all, traveling alone with an underssman �� and a girl at that �� definitely tended to stand out in a bad way.


    "Are you sure it''s okay for me to join you? I''m an enemy after all."


    The heat from the sun''s rays was so intense that it would be difficult to justify half an hour of direct exposure.


    By standing still under direct sunlight, you would just end up needlessly exhausting your stamina.


    "Fufu, by all means. Don''t be shy."


    She seemed to be saying that I, as someone who wasn''t part of the top ten, didn''t even amount to a perceivable threat.


    As I pondered over whether or not to take her up on her offer, the various students participating in the Task arrived on the beachfront and entered the water in preparation for the start of thepetition.


    Shortly thereafter, the boys began with their race.


    "How overwhelmingly one-sided."


    K��enji set out at top speed from the very start and proceeded to swim straight to the finish line,pletely outpacing the rest of thepetition. In other words, despite all the strength and stamina he had used while quickly traveling from area to area, he still had plenty left to spare.


    "It seems to me that K��enji-kun has been surprisingly motivated during this exam. Other groups must see him as quite the threat."


    As far as this particr special exam was concerned, one might even go so far as to say that he was a reliable member of ss 2-D.


    "Actually, there''s a favor I''d like to ask of you, Sakayanagi."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun himself is asking me? Well now isn''t that intriguing? Please, do go on."


    Most people wouldn''t even want to entertain a request from an enemy, but Sakayanagi''s eyes were sparkling with anticipation.


    "Five days have passed since the exam started, and yet only two people have retired."


    "Komiya-kun and Kinoshita-san, right? It seems you''re fairly well informed yourself."


    "Incidentally, I just happened to be there when they retired."


    Hearing this, the seemingly fascinated Sakayanagi nodded.


    "From what I''ve gathered by looking at the rankings, the remaining Shinohara-san still seems to be putting forth the effort to stay afloat... As such, I would reckon that she''s working with someone else now in order to get through the rest of the exam, is that right?"


    "Correct."


    "Though, given her abilities, it would be considerably difficult for her to navigate the second half of the battle on her own. Ideally, she should look to get absorbed by some other group sooner rather thanter... Ah, I see what you''re after."


    Even though I hadn''t said all that much yet, she had sessfully managed to deduce what I wanted to ask of her. Just like that, she continued:


    "So you want to get me to cooperate? Have you already met with Ry��en-kun?"


    "He''s on board with my n. It seems he thinks quite highly of Komiya and Kinoshita."


    "Is that so?"


    Sakayanagi let show an amused smile as she looked at me with discerning eyes.


    "It''s only natural that Ry��en-kun would lend a hand given the circumstances, but I don''t see any merit in doing so myself. At some level, I suppose that it would be prudent to prevent second-year ss Points from falling into the hands of the other school years. But to be honest, if there''s no harm done to ss 2-A, I don''t think it warrants any kind of intervention on my part."


    Although she had patiently listened to my request, that was markedly different from an agreement.


    "But, if you''re willing to stomach working with me under the same conditions, I wouldn''t be opposed to helping you out."


    Sakayanagi countered my request for a favor with an exceedingly fair proposal of her own. Thanks to her quick intuition, it seemed that negotiations would be finished quickly.


    "I''d like to agree to your condition, but Ick the necessary manpower right now."


    "I''ll dly wait for when you''re ready, of course. This strategy of yours will require both time and effort to execute, so if you want to take action, it''d be best to do so sooner rather thanter."


    "Right."


    Moreover, I had reason to believe that Nagumo has been carrying out a simr strategy from rtively early on as well.


    I had a suspicion that this type of strategy woulde into y more frequently throughout thetter half of the exam.


    "I''ll contact youter."


    "I''ll leave it to you to decide on a messenger then. Whether it be Horikita-san or Ry��en-kun, it''s of no concern to me."


    I nodded in response before promptly taking my leave, having decided that it would be for the best not to loiter for too long.


    After all, if I were to be seen together with Sakayanagi I would end up drawing far too much negative attention.


    After that, I once again returned to the center of the harbor.


    As I drew closer, I caught sight of a group of first-year students in the middle of purchasing an assortment of different supplies from Mashima-sensei. It seemed that he was the one in charge of selling provisions.


    Even though I was essentially out of provision points, I decided to stop by and take a look.


    "Hello."


    "Ah, Ayanok��ji. Perfect timing actually. I have something to tell you, so make it seem like you''re looking through the merchandise and listen up."


    I moved in line with his suggestion, casually dropping my gaze to the various goods on disy as I discreetly drew closer to him.


    "Acting Director Tsukishiro hasn''t done anything noteworthy so far, at least not since the exam started. I haven''t noticed him nning anything to interfere with you."


    "So you''re saying I don''t need to worry about him doing anything?"


    "...That''s what I''d like to tell you, but there are still certain things that seem a bit strange."


    "What do you mean?"


    I slowly moved through the merchandise on disy, asionally taking the products into my hands as I did.


    "In this exam, there''s no telling when or where someone might run into danger. In the event that a student suffers a particrly time-critical injury, the school has prepared a small boat and a helicopter to help expedite the rescue process."


    "That seems reasonable to me."


    The helicopter and the boat each had their individual uses, so it wasn''t strange that the school would have both prepared. If, for instance, a student were to run into trouble on the opposite side of the ind during a spell of bad weather, it would be better to make use of the boat, whereas the helicopter would win out in cases where every second mattered.


    "We originally nned on bringing along one helicopter and one boat, but for some reason we ended up bringing two boats. When I looked into it, I found that the Acting Director had arranged it as a supposed safety precaution."


    It seemed that, even as the exam went on, Mashima-sensei had been dutifully keeping tabs on even the smallest of details as he collected information on Tsukishiro''s movements.


    "So then, maybe it''s possible that he did so expecting the need for two boats to arise at once?"


    "That''s certainly true. In the end, it''s just something peculiar that I thought would be worth mentioning. Take it for what you will."


    What was originally supposed to be a single small rescue boat had apparently turned into two.


    However, though the boat may be small in size, it would inevitably be noticed once it started moving. It would probably be pretty difficult to send one out without an SOS signal from a student. Most importantly, even if they managed to mobilize the boat, the question still remained: What exactly did that have to do with me?


    "Where does the Acting Director usually spend his time?"


    "Generally, he stays in the tent where the monitoring equipment has been set up, making sure that nothing has gone wrong with any of the students'' watches. Of course, other staff members are in there monitoring the watches as well. Outside of that, he tends to go out and patrol the ind once or twice a day, sometimes for several hours at a time."


    "The Acting Director goes out of his way to patrol the ind, all on his own?"


    "Yes."


    Although it was unknown what exactly it was that he was doing, there was still one concrete takeaway I could glean from this. Namely, that there were several hours each day where nobody was watching him.


    "In any case, I have a bad feeling about all of this, so be sure to watch your back, Ayanok��ji."


    "Thank you for going to the trouble of providing me with this warning."


    I fully intended to stay as vignt as physically possible, but I still wouldn''t be able to forget about the exam. At the end of the day, no matter how wary I may be, I would continue to be bound by the Basic Movement rule.

 Chapter 104: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 104: 6.3</h4>


    The Open Water Swimming Task came and went, and even though Nanase ended up missing out on first ce, she managed to just narrowly slip into third and earn some points for her efforts.


    She had covered a long, harsh distance in a drastically short period of time, so all things considered, she had performed admirably.


    I was going to praise her for her efforts when she came back, but she looked discontent so I took a different approach.


    "That girl who took first ce is my ssmate Onodera. She''s a highly formidable opponent when ites to swimming, so you shouldn''t let the loss get to you."


    With a top member of the swimming club like Onodera as her opponent, Nanase had managed quite well for herself.


    "Yes. Onodera-senpai was certainly amazing. However, the one I''m truly concerned about is..."


    Nanase trailed off as she looked over her shoulder and fixed her gaze on a certain someone.


    That someone was none other than K��enji, the young man who had snatched away the first ce spot in the boy''s category in an overwhelming disy of superiority.


    "On top of making his way to the starting area faster than us, he won his match in record time."


    He stood refined as he looked out over the sea, and from what I could tell, his breathing wasn''tbored in the slightest.


    "He''s as much a freak as he is a superhuman. Thinking about him any more than necessary isn''t worth the time."


    Although I may say this, even I, as his fellow ssmate, have had to personally change my evaluation of him two or three times so far during this special exam. The Tug of War Task from earlier was only one such example of this.


    He held utterly unfathomable potential.


    If this was a glimpse of what he was truly capable of, then it would certainly be fair to call him a prodigy of some sort.


    Having been awarded a lump sum of 20 points from his win, K��enji had temporarily moved up to first ce overall.


    However, it would be incorrect to say that this put Nagumo at a disadvantage.


    Rather, the fact remained unchanged that Nagumo was in an overwhelmingly advantageous positionpared to K��enji.


    Moving forward, Nagumo would undoubtedly max out the size of his group through Tasks.


    Once his group hits six members, they would start earning points at an elerated rate and probably run away with the lead.


    No matter how extraordinary K��enji may be, in the end, he was acting alone. Hecked the human resources necessary toe out on top.


    Therefore, when push came to shove, I wondered how exactly K��enji nned on oveing this setback?


    At this point, we decided to rest until our next designated area was announced.


    We rehydrated ourselves with the free drinking water they had on site,id back, and enjoyed a well-earned break.


    Then, at 1:00 PM, the third designated area of the day was revealed.


    It was the random designation for the day, jumping straight from area H9 to area B6 �� from one side of the map to the other.


    I had missed a total of five areas in a row so far, costing me a sizable number of points due to the ramping penalty.


    As such, I wanted to reach this new designated area by any means necessary.


    "Senpai. In terms of distance it''s certainly manageable, but..."


    Having seen the area that had been designated on her own tablet, Nanase looked to me with shining eyes.


    "It''ll be hard if we try to go straight through the forest. However, we can take the beach in D8 and C8 and cut through a shorter patch of forest to the beach in B8 instead. Then, if we just head north from there, we can get to B6 without too much trouble."


    I finished her sentence for her and added a few thoughts of my own, prompting her to nod and stand up. Apparently, she had pictured this very same route.


    "Thankfully, I''ve been able to recover my strength and rehydrate a bit. I should be fine to push forward without issue."


    Although we were reluctant to part ways with the starting area, we once again set off toward the forests of the uninhabited ind.


    We could see plenty of other groups of students at first, but just as soon as we stepped foot into the forest, we found ourselves reunited with the familiar feeling of solitude.


    Unlike the sandy beaches where you were subject to the intense rays of direct sunlight, the muggy heat and humidity of the forest gnawed away your body.


    "We''ve only just started and I''m already thirsty."


    "I''m grateful that we could stay hydrated back at the starting area, but I''m going to miss the easy ess to water as well."


    Going from drinking as much water as we wanted to being forced to conserve water again felt worse than expected. That''s why, even though earning points came at a high priority, it''s only natural that there would be groups that try to stay somewhat nearby the starting area.


    "There are more groups huddled around the starting area than I expected. I wonder if that''s due to the stress and difficulty thates with living on the ind for four or five days in a row? What do you think, Senpai?"


    "I think that''s part of it, but that''s not the only reason. I''d say thergest factor is the revtion of the bottom ten groups."


    "...Is that so? Well, the expulsion penalty only applies to the bottom five groups, and since they were given the ability to find out their current situation through their tablets on the fourth day, I suppose it makes sense that they''ve growncent..."


    By the end of the third day, nearly every student had been putting forward their full effort to secure a position on the leaderboards. We had been set to meander around an unfamiliar uninhabited ind, told to pile up as many points as possible while being tossed around by Tasks and designated areas. All of this, just for the sake of escaping from the underlying threat known as ''expulsion''.


    On the fourth day, however, that all changed. Students began topare the points they had earned with those down at the bottom ranks. Using their first three days of ind life as a baseline of sorts, they''d make rough, arbitrary approximations of how many points they could earn in a day and use that to help decide whether or not they were at an advantage.


    "But, even if you have a 10 to 20 point lead on the bottom five, there''s no absolute guarantee that you''ll be safe, right? If it were me, I''d try my best to establish a 30 to 40 point lead and work to maintain it."


    "Of course, at some level, everyone knows that they should be doing it that way. After all, everyone wants to face the special exam with the resolve to give it their all from start to finish. But reality is not that kind. Just like how you and I are eager to get a drink of water right now, once you get a taste of something sweet, whatever resolve you might have is bound to falter."


    "I see... I suppose I can somewhat understand what you''re saying. For instance, even if you''ve resolved yourself to stay up all night to study on the day before a big test, once you start thinking about how much you want to take a quick nap, you''ll find yourself getting under the covers of your futon and end up identally sleeping until morning..."


    She looked embarrassed as she spoke, as though this was a retelling of something she had experienced firsthand.


    "Since the start of the fourth day, most groups should''ve started to run out of both food and water, and general fatigue has begun to set in as well. I think you can see that dropping in for a short visit at the starting area is the root cause here. If you see another group taking it easy in such afortable environment, it''s only natural that you would think to do so yourself, at least for a bit."


    In a world where nobody was taking a break in and around the starting area, most of the groups that stopped by would never be tempted to join in and instead choose to resume their journey.


    "I would imagine that the decision to stay and rest at the starting area woulde after a discussion between group members. They''d say something like: ''We have a lead for the time being, so let''s stay here for a bit and pick up some easy Tasks while we enjoy the free water and safety. Then, once we''ve secured a suitable amount of food and water, we''ll set out again.'' Well, that would probably be the gist of it, anyway."


    Nanase nodded along as I spoke, seemingly convinced. However, she sent a question my way only moments afterward.


    "Then, the correct choice is to give up on taking the easy way out and be stricter with yourself... that''s what you''re getting at, right?"


    "Nanase, you said that you''d want to establish a sizable lead and maintain it, but fatigue has started to catch up with you, hasn''t it? You''ve taken part in more physically demanding Tasks than I have too."


    "Y-yes. I know I said earlier that I''d work hard, but I must admit that my pace has actually slowed down by a fair bit since day one. I suspect that by tomorrow or the day after I''ll probably be even slower."


    Though she didn''t say it explicitly, the wear and tear on her body was probably more severe than I imagined.


    Energy spent participating in Tasks aside, just how many dozens of kilometers had she and I traveled in thesest five days?


    "Rest is important. There are times where you''ll have no choice but to overwork yourself to earn points, but the key to that is knowing when to push yourself and when to take a step back and take a break. You ultimately just have to avoid doing the same things as the majority of other students."


    Move when others have chosen to rest and rest when others have chosen to move.


    "I''ve been thinking that you''ve been taking on the exam fairly negligently these past few days, Ayanok��ji-senpai. But, you''ve just been conducting yourself that way because you don''t want to stand out too much during the first half, haven''t you?"


    "That''s about right. Of course, I''ll bite if an adequate opportunity presents itself, but even if I made it into a highly contested Task, the number of points I can earn would be limited."


    There had been many Tasks so far where I could''ve won if I had been given the chance to participate, but was never given that chance because someone else had already taken up thest spot.


    "Uhm, if I may ask... why are you telling me about your n? Up until now, it has always seemed that you''ve been looking to cate or deceive me whenever the topices up, Senpai."


    She wanted to know why, and rightfully so as well. After all, I didn''t normally let other people hear me talk like this.


    So then, why did I choose to share a select portion of my overall strategy with her instead of trying to cover it up like I usually did?


    Having spent thest several days traveling the ind together with her, I had naturallye to understand her better.


    The student named Nanase Tsubasa... What kind of personality did she have? What kind of mentality? She was a diligent honor student whose physical and academic capabilities were well above average. She was someone who followed instructions without voicing a singleint, but wouldn''t hesitate to speak her mind when she felt like something needed to be said. Above all, she had the confidence and resolve necessary to not break down easily.


    Altogether, this was just as much a strength as it was a weakness, as well as a fairly awkward way for someone to live their life. It was precisely because she was such a person that I couldn''t help but feel a sense of incongruity about the fact that she had chosen to join forces with someone like H��sen.


    Was it because she was trying to get me expelled as the White Room student?


    Or perhaps there was some other motive for it?


    Back when she first proposed the idea of traveling together with me, I thought that she was looking for an opportunity to strike when I showed a moment of weakness.


    For that very reason, I had tried to make myself seem rxed or careless on multiple asions during our time together.


    If she chose to strike while we were deep in the dark forest, her actions would be hidden from any prying eyes.


    But, in the end, Nanase never even tried to take advantage of the opportunities I gave her.


    Rather, between lending an ear to Ike''s troubles and helping Shinohara and the others when they were in danger, she always put forward a genuine effort to try and help those in need.


    "Put simply, there''s no questioning the fact you''re my enemy, Nanase. Not only because this exam requires us topete against each other as students from different school years, but also because there''s 20 million private points in it for you for getting me expelled."


    "...That''s right. After all, I tried to plot against you before, Senpai."


    "That being said, your actions so far have made it impossible for me to see you as an enemy."


    "Even though I''ve acted with tant hostility before...?"


    "Strange, isn''t it? Well, that aside, I''m also fairly certain that even if I didn''t say anything you''d still understand my strategy to some extent."


    She acted as though she was surprised when I said this, but deep down she should''ve already picked up on my true intentions.


    And despite the fact that she was already vaguely aware of my ns, she looked to feign ignorance so as to potentially find out something more.


    "But with all that being said, this is just my intuition."


    At this point, Nanase sank into silence.


    I had no intention of pressing her any further on the matter, perfectly content with quietly continuing our journey through the forest.


    For the time being, my top priority was reaching the next designated area.

 Chapter 105: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 105: 6.4</h4>


    "Phew~! Somehow we finally managed to make it to ourst area."


    With a heavy breath, Nanase copsed to the ground, sumbing to the fatigue guing her entire body.


    The fourth designated area of the day had been area B5, right above the previous area B6.


    For Nanase, even a short distance like that must''ve been considerably burdensome.


    "It seems like you''ve been pushing yourself quite a lot."


    She had been fine when we left the starting area, but after a while, her pace gradually began to slow down. Given the circumstances, I had been eyeing the possibility of leaving her behind and making my way to the designated area on my own, but she ultimately managed to persevere through sheer willpower alone.


    "To be honest, participating in that swimming Task was far too much for me."


    That Task had probably drained away just about everyst drop of spare energy she had.


    "Fortunately for you, we''re done for today. We can take it slow from here and look for a good ce to set up camp."


    We rested for a bit while we waited for her to feel ready to walk again, and then we set out in search of a suitable campsite.


    Before long, we came across arge opening in the forest where another group had already set up camp. It seemed as though they were getting ready for dinner, as there was an assortment of different cooking utensils lined up in front of their tents.


    It was a great location with plenty of space for us to set up for the night, but it felt like it would be awkward to do so when we weren''t particrly close to the other group. Just as we tried to pass them by and look elsewhere, one of the students called out to us.


    "Yo!"


    The student in question was Hamaguchi Tetsuya, a boy from ss 2-C. I lightly raised my hand in response, prompting Nanase to follow suit with a bow.


    "You guys in a hurry to get somewhere?"


    "No. We''ve already reached our designated area for the day. We were just thinking of finding somewhere a bit closer to the ocean."


    "Then how about you take it easy and stick around for a bit?"


    I hadn''t spoken with Hamaguchi sincest year''s ind exam and the exam on the cruise ship that was held on the way back.


    We had only spent a brief period of time together back then, and we had never interacted with one another outside of that.


    Our rtionship was in no way close enough to warrant calling each other friends...


    So then, why in the world was he looking to strike up a conversation with me?


    "Though, you don''t have to force yourself if you don''t want to."


    After a lengthy silence, he added in a couple of slightly apologetic words.


    Nanase had been following along without voicing even a singleint, but her fatigue was probably reaching its peak, so I figured we might as well take him up on his offer.


    "Well, I suppose we''ll take a short break."


    "Come on over then, make yourself at home."


    Hamaguchi ushered us over to his campsite as if he were inviting a couple of close friends into his room.


    The way he managed to create such a weing atmosphere was just what you would expect of one of Ichinose''s ssmates.


    That being said, what truly piqued my interest here was not Hamaguchi, but the other two members of his group.


    They hade out from within their tent not too long after Hamaguchi called out to us, having overheard the sound of our ensuing chatter.


    Their names were And�� Sayo and Minamikata Kozue.


    The entire time, they had been casting nces in my direction as they unabashedly whispered to each other about something.


    "If you two aren''t on board with Hamaguchi''s invitation, we''ll leave immediately."


    As students from different sses, if our presence made them ufortable, it would probably be better for us to leave.


    At least, that''s what I thought, but And�� hurriedly put a stop to that.


    "No, no, nothin'' like that. We were whisperin'' ''bout somethin'' else. It just so happens we wanted to talk with you, Ayanok��ji-kun, so it''s totally fine by us if you guys camp here tonight. Right Kozue?"


    With that, she looked to Minamikata, who nodded along several times in agreement.


    "If we''re all on the same page, then let''s take the opportunity to hold ourselves a wee party!"


    Saying that, Hamaguchi brought out a backpack from inside one of the tents.


    He then unfastened the zipper and opened it up, revealing a considerablyrge amount of canned food contained within.


    "That''s quite a lot."


    With just the amount I could currently see, a group could easily survive for a week.


    "As luck would have it, all three of us had the card that gave 50% more provision points when the exam started. That''s why we''ve got so much more food than other groups."


    Although I had already figured that out myself, I decided to make it seem like I was genuinely impressed by this. A usual group of three would''ve had 15000 provision points to work with, but Hamaguchi''s group had 22500. Even if they chose to buy a barbeque grill and a rich selection of meat, they''d still have plenty of points left to spare. Of course, purchases like that would be ill-fit for travel and transportation, given the weight.


    One of the primary strengths of ss 2-C was that its students practically never acted selfishly. In spite of that, one might be led to think that Hamaguchi''s group was being wasteful with their purchases, given the abundance of food and cooking supplies they had purchased, but that probably wasn''t the case here at all.


    Chances are that this was all Ichinose''s idea. It would be extremely difficult to move about the map with such arge amount of food. This was particrly true for cooking utensils and tools like gas stoves and such, which would just end up getting in the way. However, it''s a different story when someone is explicitly tasked with holding onto these things. Ichinose probably wanted to have some sort of system put in ce for students to share useful cooking tools with each other.


    As far as the rules of the special exam were concerned, the school had already officially stated that students were allowed to share food with other groups. So, in that sense, it felt fairly urate to think of these three as the kitchen keepers of ss 2-C.


    Hamaguchi pulled out a bundle of skewers from the backpack.


    "What an exceedingly interesting strategy."


    Nanase mumbled from off to the side, having seemingly gone through the same thought process that I had.


    "I suppose you could say that."


    "We first-years are rathercking in terms of solidarity. I would imagine that those of us willing to take action for the sake of another are few and far between."


    However, a strategy like this undoubtedly came with problems of its own.


    Staying back and guarding the food and supplies was certainly important, but in the process, you would run into issues scoring points for the exam.


    In the worst case, the penalty for missing out on designated areas could be mitigated by a single person. However, you''d still gradually get outpaced by the rest of thepetition. In which case, you''d inevitably find yourself standing on the doorstep to expulsion.


    "You guys alright with some yakiniku?"


    "Eh, what do you mean?"


    "We''ve at least gotta treat you guys to a solid dinner. Right you two?"


    When Hamaguchi looked to check with his fellow group members, the two girls responded with an immediate nod of their heads,pletely fine with the idea.


    Seeing this, I spoke up.


    "No, hold on a moment. I appreciate your sentiment, but there''s no way we can ept such a generous offer."


    "That''s right. Your food is far too valuable to be used on us."


    Although Nanase and I felt grateful for their show of goodwill, we both declined the offer. Despite this, however, Hamaguchi simply acted as if he hadn''t heard us and continued preparing the meal. He was really far too good-natured a person. Rather than waste the resources on us, students from other sses and school years, they should be using them to support their own ssmates in need.


    Without so much as a second thought, Hamaguchi proceeded to take out some packed meat from a cooler box stored inside the backpack.


    "You guys really don''t gotta worry ''bout it. We just so happened to get our hands on some nice beef as a reward from a Task today. It''s not gonnast for long in storage either way, so we might as well dig in while we can."


    He took the cuts of meat and began to pierce them with skewers. From the look of it, we were about to be served a full-blown meal.


    They even brought out a can of mosquito repent for us to use in order to make the atmosphere even more weing andfortable.


    "Is it... really, really okay for you to treat the likes of us to a meal like this?"


    "Oh stop it with the formalities. Don''t hold back."


    Even though their ss had a tendency to overly prioritize helping others, I still had to ask myself: why me?


    There was surely no way that they would go to these lengths for every student that passed them by.


    "Are you curious about why I called out to you?"


    "Considering that you''re also treating me to a meal, it definitely raises questions."


    After pausing for a bit toe up with the right words, Hamaguchi came out with it.


    "It''s cause we''ve been hearing a lot of talk about youtely, Ayanok��ji-kun. We wanted to get a chance to talk to you ourselves. Ain''t that right guys?"


    "Yep."


    Minamikata and And�� promptly agreed, fully on board with Hamaguchi''s reasoning.


    "What do you mean?"


    "Well, like... ya know..."


    And�� shot me a questioning nce, the look in her eyes all but saying: ''You DO get what I''m talkin'' about, right?''


    Once they realized that I genuinely had no idea what they were getting at, their expressions became even more surprised than before.


    "Eh? Wait, then has there really not been any progress yet? For real?"


    "No way! I thought for sure that they''d at least be at that ''more than friends, less than lovers'' stage by now!"


    "I know right? Honami-chan''s been dropping his name pretty much all the time these days."


    "Is that so?"


    "I know it''s not our ce to say this an'' all, but... is there even any reason why they shouldn''t be going out at this point?"


    While I had heard somewhere before that girls love talking about this kind of thing, was it really appropriate for them to do so right in front of the person himself?


    Nanase seemed to have connected the dots for herself by this point, as she was looking at me with keen, undivided interest filling her gaze.


    "...I''m not 100% certain I get what you two are going on about, but I don''t think we should go out with each other."


    "No no no no no no. What are you saying? I''ll say it again just to be sure, but you do know that this is THE Honami-chan we''re talkin'' about, right?"


    "I can''t really speak for all the boys out there, but prolly like 80 to 90% of the second-years like Honami-chan, right?"


    "That sounds like a safe bet to me."


    While there was certainly no denying the fact that Ichinose was popr with boys and girls alike, 90% was clearly an overstatement. Sud�� liked Horikita, Ike liked Shinohara, and that was no doubt just the tip of the iceberg.


    "You two are in different sses, sure, but you don''t have to let that get in the way of love! There''re tons of couples out there going steady with each other regardless of their ss or grade."


    "Isn''t the bigger issue here the fact that Ichinose isn''t even interested in me?"


    "Ooooo, is that modesty I see? You do know that you were quite the hit with the girls back when we first enrolled here, right Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    When I thought back on it, I could recall Kushida saying something rtively simr to that about a year ago.


    I simply didn''t take what she said at face value at the time, or rather, I chose not to think all that much about it.


    "It sounds like you''re quite a hit with thedies, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "No, I''m not. Nothing of the sort. No girls have ever said anything like that to me before."


    "Reeeally~? Ah, well I can think of one time when you came up in a conversation, but the topic changed real fast."


    "Well, ain''t no helpin'' that. There''s no way to tell if you''re gonna like a guy unless you up and talk with ''em face-to-face, and Ayanok��ji-kun wasn''t the type a'' guy to talk with people a year ago."


    "Doesn''t seem to me like he''s changed much since then either though~!"


    The two girls shared augh as they cracked a joke at my expense.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai has changed a little from how he used to be, then?"


    Nanase observed as the two chattered away before raising a question of her own.


    "Well, I guess in some ways he seems a lot... softer now?"


    The one to respond this time was Hamaguchi, who had only just returned from a trip to the restroom moments before Nanase asked her question. While I had never spoken with And�� or Minamikata before, I had spent a bit of time together with Hamaguchi during the exam on the cruise ship.


    He was pretty much the perfect person to give an objectiveparison of how much I had changed this past year.


    All of that aside... it didn''t seem to me like these three were afraid of the possibility of getting expelled. Of course, there was no way for me to tell exactly how many points they had, but there was no way that they were anywhere near the top of the leaderboards.


    If that''s the case, then...


    After we finished with dinner, we ended up deciding to ept their warm hospitality and chose to stay there for the night.

 Chapter 106 - 7: The First-Years Start to Move

    <h4>Chapter 106: Chapter 7: The First-Years Start to Move</h4>


    The sixth day of the exam. We started out by making a beeline south to our first designated area of the day, B6, where I took the first-ce Early Bird Bonus. After that, our second designated area was A5, which was fairly close, but we unfortunately only received the Arrival Bonus.


    Following closely after at 1:00 PM was the third area, which was the random designation over in area C3. There were a couple of different ways avable for us to get there. The first was to cut straight through the steep mountains of area B4. Though it wasn''t readily obvious from looking at the map, this route would probably require us to do a fair bit of rock climbing. A somewhat safer alternative to this was to move a bit further east from where we were now before going through the pass in area C4. Andstly there was the option of making a huge detour around the mountain range to area D5 and traveling north from there along the river.


    "I''m guessing that most of the other groups we''re up against are going to go through C4 or take a detour down and around."


    "I think so too."


    If we could sessfully navigate the slopes of A4 and B4, we''d have a very solid chance of securing the first-ce Early Bird Bonus.


    "While I don''t imagine that you''re in the best condition, we''re going to have to take on the risk anyway."


    "You want to take the direct path through A4 and B4, don''t you Senpai?"


    Nanase had somehow managed to keep up with me so far, but there was no telling if she''d make it this time.


    But apparently, she had already made up her mind about it, as she elected to follow along with me without any hesitation.


    Shortly thereafter, however, she found herself standing face-to-face with herrgest obstacle yet.


    We had only had to navigate a couple of fairly steep inclines and slopes so far, but the challenge before us now was far more akin to a sheer cliff.


    Whether you looked to the left or right, the cliff stretched on as far as the eye could see. Taking a slightly easier detour didn''t seem like it would be an option here.


    Now that it hade to this, we had two distinct options: Scale the mountain, or turn back and find another way.


    "I... I can do this!"


    Watching as she talked herself into it, I decided to let her go first and see how she''d hold up.


    She pulled a ribbon out of her backpack and tied up her long hair to make it easier to climb.


    "Ah...!"


    The very moment she started the climb, she made a mistake with her footing on the rock and came tumbling down to the ground.


    "Oww, that hurt...!"


    She gingerly rubbed at her bottom as she stood up again. Fortunately, she hadn''t been very high up when she fell. If she had been two meters higher, it probably wouldn''t have ended as well for her.


    The cliff was close to ten meters tall and in all honesty it didn''t even seem like it would even be that hard to climb. That being said, it would probably be challenging for Nanase to scale it by herself.


    "I guess that''s the end of the line."


    In reality, this obstacle was more challenging for her than I thought it''d be.


    She had done well to keep up with me these past six days, but it seemed like I would have to push on from here on my own.


    "I-I can do it!"


    "Even if you can, there''s no point if it takes up all your stamina just to get to the top. The entire reason why we''re scaling the mountain like this is to save time. Not everyone is going to end up taking a detour, so every second counts."


    In fact, pointlessly standing around and talking about this was already a massive waste of time, something that Nanase probably understood as well.


    "I''m going now. It''s up to you if you still want to insist on climbing, but you''re the one responsible for whatever happens."


    She looked tantly frustrated by this, but I simply turned my back on her, ced my hands on the rock, and began to ascend the cliff.


    Knowing her, I felt confident that she''d make the calm, rational decision here, so I didn''t have any intention of looking back to see what she ended up doing. Contrary to my expectations, however, I sensed her presence draw closer to me from behind and looked over my shoulder.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Please... don''t mind me. I''ve made the choice to follow after you of my own volition, Ayanok��ji-senpai...!"


    Saying that, she fearlessly reached out and took hold of the rock again.


    But, due to the lingering traces of fatigue still guing her body, she couldn''t put enough strength into her grip. Her arms began to shake as she clung to the face of the cliff.


    "If you''re not careful, you might end up facing consequences even worse than retirement."


    I warned her yet again, but she still seemed hell-bent on chasing after me.


    What exactly waspelling her to go so far to apany me?


    If she was trying to slow me down by being a hindrance, then in some ways, she was seeding.


    Being careful to maintain a secure foothold on the cliff, I climbed back down to around the halfway point and outstretched my hand to her.


    "Take my hand."


    "I, I can''t do that Senpai. I promised you that I wouldn''t get in your way back when I asked to apany you... So please, go on ahead and don''t worry about me. I beg you."


    "If I went ahead and you got injured, it''d leave a bad taste in my mouth. If you were down there begging me for help I might feel differently, but I''m the one making the decision in this case, so don''t worry about it."


    "But...!"


    "Isn''t it a waste of time to continue arguing about it like this?"


    After bringing attention to this for a second time, her hand was forced. There was nothing more that she could say.


    "...Alright."


    Although she was still slightly frustrated, she took hold of my hand. It was one thing that she wasn''t in peak physical condition right now, but even if she was, the question still remained on whether or not she''d be able to climb at all.


    "Senpai... Do you perhaps have prior rock climbing experience?"


    "No, this is my first time doing something like this."


    This exam required you to fumble through all sorts of things you''ve never tried before. Reaching out to help her like this probably wasn''t the correct approach either, given the various risks that came with it.


    "Is that so..."


    I guided her hands, showing her which spots she should grab on to.


    Though it was an inefficient way of going about it, we eventually managed to scale the cliff.


    However, we hadn''t crossed the finish line just yet. We had spent more than ten minutes simply getting up the cliff. Without a moment of rest, I set off once again. Now that I had helped her find her way up, she could take her time finding a way back down on her own. Shegged behind me for a bit at first, but her firm resolve hadn''t changed in the slightest as she quickly caught back up.


    As we continued to push forward, I couldn''t help but think that she had an uncanny resemnce to a loyal dog chasing after its owner.


    Before long, we finally arrived at area C3. Although it had taken a fair amount of time, none of ourpetitors seemed to have made it here yet, so I easily secured the first-ce Early Bird Bonus.


    "T-thank goodness...!"


    Even though she hadn''t even gotten the second-ce bonus for her efforts, Nanase let out a sigh of relief.


    We had a bit until the next designated area would be announced, so figured that I might as well keep herpany and rest for a while.


    Just like when we were at the top of the mountain, the light breeze that swept by from time to time was quite refreshing.


    "It''s been pretty calm out thesest few days but it''s pretty windy today, huh?"


    It had been consistently clear and sunny so far, but thick clouds had begun to fill the increasingly overcast sky.


    "It must''ve been surprising to suddenly get tossed onto a deserted ind right after entering highschool."


    "Of course it was. This really is such an amazing school."


    Nanase let show a shy, yet forced smile.


    "Senpai, do you enjoy it? This school?"


    "I guess. There have certainly been a handful of headaches to deal with, but I''ve never really thought of it as unenjoyable."


    For the most part the school seemed to be the same day by day, but in some ways it was quite different.


    I was simply enjoying my time here, content with the constant, subtle daily changes it brought into my life.


    "While it feels like graduation is a long ways away, it''ll probably be here in the blink of an eye. That''s why I think it''d be best to spend what time I do have without any regrets."


    "...Graduation..."


    "Is something wrong?"


    "O-oh, no. It''s nothing."


    There was something about Nanase, a certain air with the way she was acting, that seemedpletely different from the Nanase I had be ustomed to over these past several days.


    It was roughly identical to the feeling she gave off back when she first enrolled here.


    However, it was very faint. So faint, in fact, that if someone were to tell me that it was just my imagination, then I might even be inclined to believe them.


    If she really did have something on her mind, then I suppose I''ll just have to wait for her to tell me about it when the timees.

 Chapter 107: 7.1

    <h4>Chapter 107: 7.1</h4>


    At 9:00 PM on the sixth day of the exam, several first-year ss representatives had arranged to meet up together in area F9.


    The representatives in question were ss A''s Takahashi Osamu, ss B''s Yagami Takuya, ss C''s Utomiya Riku and Tsubaki Sakurako, and ss D''s H��sen Kazuomi. It would typically be difficult for such a diverse cast of students to meet up in one location given their separate Tables, but in this case, they had decided on a time and ce for the meeting before the exam even started.


    Furthermore, since the chosen location was on the beach, a bonfire would serve as a reliable signal for the meeting.


    Despite the fact that she hadn''t really done anything noteworthy or remarkable so far, the person who had spearheaded this get-together was... Tsubaki.


    The appointed time for the meeting had alreadye and gone, but H��sen still hadn''t arrived yet.


    "Tsubaki-san, it seems that H��sen-kun still hasn''t arrived yet."


    "Well, he doesn''t really seem the type to show up on time. Or maybe he''s just noting."


    The group decided to wait a little longer to see if he would show up, but before long, Takahashi raised his hand with an arm pressed against his abdomen.


    "Sorry guys... I''ve got a bit of a stomach ache so I''mma excuse myself. It... It might take a while!"


    With that, he hurriedly ran off toward the forest.


    As the group watched Takahashi take his leave, Yagami''s eyes were fixed on Tsubaki.


    "It''s certainly more convenient for all of us if everyone is present before we start, but..."


    Yagami trailed off, seemingly lost in thought, but he picked up where he left off only moments afterward.


    "While H��sen-kun still isn''t here yet, just a little should be fine, right?"


    Tsubaki, who had been silently staring at the bonfire, turned and looked toward Yagami.


    "What...?"


    "I was thinking that it''d be fine if you told us about this n of yours in detail."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You''ve been scheming something big, have you not? Otherwise you wouldn''t have proposed for all the representatives to meet together like this when thetter half of the exam is about to start. There''s no way you merely want us to report on our progress, right?"


    Tsubaki said nothing to this, choosing instead to simply keep her gaze locked onto Yagami.


    "Your OAA ratings are, at a nce, below average. In fact, there doesn''t seem to be anything remarkable about you in the slightest. However, from what I''ve seen during the battles we first-years have taken part in so far, you''ve been one to provide fairly critical insight from time to time. Furthermore..."


    "Furthermore?"


    "While on the surface it doesn''t seem like your ss has been doing anything to get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled, I suspect that you''ve actually been doing quite a bit of work behind the scenes. Utomiya-kun''s control of ss C is just a front. You''re the one pulling the strings from the shadows, aren''t you?"


    "Hmmm. You say some interesting stuff, Yagami-kun. So the reason you supported my proposal to set this up is cuz you knew I thought of something?"


    Back when Tsubaki first tried to set this up, the core personalities behind each ss hadn''t been willing to cooperate at all.


    After all, there was no way they would''ve been willing to listen to an obscure, seemingly irrelevant student like her.


    With that being the case, the reason why everyone had been willing to meet here today was because Yagami had been such a strong proponent for it.


    "From the very beginning, I''ve consistently advocated that the first-year student body should look to cooperate with one another. Even if you didn''t have a profound reason behind gathering us here today, Tsubaki-san, I felt like it would still be worthwhile just to make sure we all have a solid grasp of the current state of affairs."


    "Well, Yagami-kun, how ''bout I tell you something interesting?"


    "Something interesting? How immensely curious."


    "Though, do know that after you hear it... I won''t be able to guarantee anything."


    "...It must be something truly fascinating, then."


    Yagami felt slightly concerned, but he maintained hisposure and waited for Tsubaki to speak.


    "Yagami-kun, you said just now that Utomiya-kun and I''ve been scheming from the shadows to try''n get Ayanok��ji-senpai kicked outta school, yeah?"


    "Yes. At first nce, one might be led to believe that H��sen-kun and Amasawa-san were the only ones to take part in it during thest exam, but I think that you two were also targeting him."


    "A reward of 20 million private points, just for getting a senpai expelled? Just about anybody would find that attractive, yeah?"


    "That may be true for others, but not for me."


    Upon hearing Yagami''s t refusal, Tsubaki narrowed her eyes.


    "Not for you? Sorry, but I''m having a hard time believing that. You make yourself seem harmless, but aren''t you really lookin'' to get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled as well? Hell, you might even be more obsessed with it than H��sen-kun and Amasawa-san."


    "And what makes you think that? I haven''t done a single thing thus far."


    "It''s the kinda thing I can tell just by looking at you. I''ll have you know that I''ve gotta lotta confidence in my eye for people."


    At this, Yagami''s smile, while still present, became noticeably more strained.


    "It''s hard to imagine given the way you normally act, but like... I''d imagine that your n started out with pretending to be an ally so you could slowly get closer to him and stab ''em right in the back. Or am I wrong?"


    Tsubaki stared at Yagami with eyes that seemed to peer into the depths of his very being, making him unconsciously avert his gaze.


    While he had always had a hunch that Tsubaki wasn''t an ordinary student, the way her gaze practically bored into his skull made it seem even more extreme than he had anticipated.


    "You..."


    "Well whatever, we''ll get back to thatter. Getting back to the point, the situation''s currently looking kinda cruddy, wouldn''t you say?"


    "Kinda cruddy?"


    "Apparently, Nanase-san''s been sticking together with Ayanok��ji-senpai for a while now. I heard that he''s even given her permission to tag along too. I tried checking up on them with the GPS Search feature just to make sure, and sure enough, the both of ''em are up in area C3 together right now."


    "I see. So you''re saying that H��sen-kun''s already looking to make his next move?"


    "I''m saying that we gotta take action sooner rather thanter. If H��sen-kun gets Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled, it''ll all be over for the rest of us. If possible, I''d like to hear what kinda ns you''ve thought of to get Senpai kicked out, just as a reference. You get me?"


    "I already told you I don''t have..."


    Tsubaki leaned in closer to Yagami, her eyes brimming with conviction.


    "If you don''t willingly cooperate starting now, you might end up paying dearlyter."


    "Pay dearly...?"


    "Well, like, someone important to you''ll be in danger, or something like that."


    "S-surely you''re not going to do something to Kushida-senpai!?"


    Upon hearing Kushida''s namee up, a thin smile finally emerged on Tsubaki''s perpetually expressionless face.


    She knew that Yagami and Kushida had been connected for a long time now.


    Furthermore, she knew that there was something going on between them that he was looking to hide.


    "Ah, what''s that about Kushida-senpai? Do tell."


    "N-no, it''s nothing... I apologize, but there''s nothing more I can tell y��!?"


    Yagami''s words cut off as Utomiya suddenly came up from behind and forcefully restrained him in a Full Nelson hold.


    He resisted in an attempt to try and break free, but he didn''t have the strength needed to get away.


    "What, what are you doing Utomiya-kun...?"


    "Sorry Yagami. I don''t have anything against you, but... it can''t be helped."


    With this, it was clear that Yagami''s earlier suspicions of Tsubaki''s true involvement in ss 2-C had been correct all along.


    "I-I think of each and every first-year student as I would my own ssmate! Why don''t we just calm down and stop with this!?"


    "Either youe clean and tell us what you know, or you retire right here, right now. Those are your only options."


    Since the three of them were the only ones present, there was nobody Yagami could turn to for help.


    "Yagami-kun, I get that you think Kushida-senpai is like, the key to getting Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled, but why is that? How exactly do you n on making use of her?"


    "I can''t say..."


    When he refused to answer, Utomiya further tightened his hold on Yagami''s arms.


    "If you can''t say, then that must mean you really are up to something. Dontcha feel like confessing? Like gettin'' this over with?"


    "I�� Kushida-senpai is just..."


    Still not hearing the answer they wanted, Utomiya momentarily released his hold and proceeded to wrap his arm around Yagami''s neck instead.


    Yagami began to choke for air as he was constricted in a headlock.


    "Yer nearing your limit, Yagami-kun. If you don''t fess up now, I guess we''ll just haveta hear it from Kushida-senpai... directly."


    This wasn''t just some empty threat. Rather, it was obvious that Tsubaki would actually follow through with it.


    The fact that she was using Utomiya as a medium to carry out acts of violence and intimidation was more than enough proof for that.


    "I''ll ask you onest time. Will you confess or not?"


    Faced with no other real option, Yagami finally resigned himself and gave in.


    "...I understand. I''ll tell you everything."


    With his eyes to the ground, Yagami began to speak about the past of the girl named Kushida Kiky�� and Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka''s knowledge on the matter.


    Not long after he finished, Takahashi returned from within the forest.


    They all waited around for a while after that, but in the end, H��sen never showed up.

 Chapter 108 - 8: True Colors Revealed

    <h4>Chapter 108: Chapter 8: True Colors Revealed</h4>


    The dawn of the seventh day. So far, I had umted a grand total of 67 points.


    Hypothetically speaking, if a four-man group forewent all participation in Tasks and just focused on getting all of their Arrival Bonuses, they''d have 92 points. From that perspective, my score might make it seem like I was in a tough spot, but... there was more to this exam than that. My overall rank had been steadily going up thesest few days, and I was now at 51st ce. This helped illustrate just how difficult it truly was to continuously traverse the ind without missing any designated areas.


    Chances were that around half of all groups had pushed forward full steam ahead for the first three or four days until they exhausted their initial supply of food and water. And then, when their progress stagnated by the fifth day, they probably began setting their sights on the harbor to try and get back on their feet.


    However, it wouldn''t be easy for a group to get back into perfect shape. The physical stress and fatigue that had been continuously building up wouldn''t go away immediately. There was also no getting around the mental burden that came hand in hand with the prospect of traveling long distances.


    Furthermore, since they''d have no choice but to try and curb the loss of points from missing designated areas, they''d probably have to take alternative measures such as sending one of their fellow group members out on their own to reach designated areas. Though, while this would let them avoid the penalty, they''d be forced to give up on any Early Bird Bonuses and they''d only receive a one-point Arrival Bonus as well.


    Inparison, I had sessfully managed to conserve my energy. I felt just about the same as I did back when the exam started.


    I was ready to step it up a notch now that we were moving into the second half of the battle.


    In the meantime, K��enji had been steadily pushing forward, and it didn''t seem like he would be slowing down anytime soon.


    He was currently second ce on the leaderboard, and only trailed behind the first ce group, Nagumo''s, by a slim eight-point margin.


    When it came to the second-year groups in the top ten, Ry��en and Katsuragi''s group had gone up a spot and were now sitting in ninth ce.


    Well, all that aside������ I finished washing my face in the river and turned around to look at the tent behind me.


    Over the course of thest several days that we had been traveling together, Nanase had been a consistently early riser.


    But today, even though it was already 6:50 AM, she still hadn''te out of her tent. I couldn''t help but wonder if she had just overslept, or if there had been some sort of change in her health.


    After all, the burden on her body must be substantial due to all the traveling and Tasks she had done every day.


    After wiping off my face with a towel, I approached her tent and somewhat loudly rummaged through my bag as I brought out my tablet.


    Having heard the noise that I was making, Nanase finally emerged from her tent.


    "...Good morning to you, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Yeah, good morning. Are you feeling alright?"


    "Eh? Ah, yes. I''m feeling perfectly fine. Nothing wrong at all."


    While I had expected her to show signs of fatigue, neither her words nor her movements gave off that impression at all.


    She had apparently just not slept very well, as there were very slight bags visible under her eyes.


    "I''ve been checking the rankings while I waited. There''s a group of first-years that have been doing quite well for themselves so far."


    Of the ten groups currently at the top of the leaderboard, there were six third-year groups and three second-year groups, but only one made up of first-years.


    As it was now, the leaderboards were a perfect representation of the strength of the more senior, experienced students.


    "The group that''s doing well is Utomiya-kun and Yagami-kun''s, correct?"


    They had been in seventh ce yesterday, and as of this morning, they had risen up to sixth.


    The group consisted of three boys: Takahashi Osamu from ss 1-A, Yagami Takuya from ss 1-B, and Utomiya Riku from ss 1-C.


    "After all, amongst all the first-year groups, well... Yes, they''re definitely one of the best."


    Despite her use of the phrase ''one of the best'', her response had been fairly inarticte.


    "As a member of ss 1-D, it''s honestly difficult for me to earnestly support them in their efforts."


    "I see. That does make sense."


    Given the situation, ss 1-D would probably rather see students from the other school years seed than see Takahashi''s group get into the top three.


    "Nevertheless, our third-year senpais really are amazing, aren''t they? Every ss from ss 3-A to ss 3-D has someone currently in the top ten."


    This was something I also found impressive.


    As of this morning, the number of third-year groups in the top ten had increased to six, with Nagumo''s group up in first ce undoubtedly paving the way.


    Not only had they taken part in more Tasks than any other group, they had the most first-ce victories in those Tasks by an overwhelming margin.


    It was as though he wanted to illustrate the tenacity of the third-years to the rest of us.


    "That said, you''re also amazing, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Despite being all on your own, you''ve managed to earn quite arge number of points."


    "While that may be true, it won''t be easy for me to push into the top ranks from where I''m at now. At the end of the day, if you aren''t part of the top three, you won''t get the reward that matters most."


    Avoiding expulsion and taking the reward given to the top 50% of groups simply wouldn''t suffice.


    That probably wouldn''t even be enough to pay back the points that I borrowed from Horikita.


    "Although you say it won''t be easy, you don''t seem to be very anxious about it, Senpai."


    "I''m hoping for a miracle. People in other groups should start retiring soon enough."


    "...That is true, I suppose."


    As our conversation came to an end, we both looked up into the sky at just about the same time.


    We had been blessed with near-perfect weather for thest six days, but starting today, it was looking like things were going to be very different.


    Thick, grey clouds lined the sky and it looked like it would start pouring any minute. From what I saw in the weather forecast, it should start raining sometime this morning, meaning that we had two or three hours left at most.


    I personally hadn''t spent any of my provision points on rain gear. If my clothes and shoes were to get soaked, I''d have to spend extra energy dealing with the added weight and lower temperature. Additionally, the muddiness of the ground would limit our travel speed making our journey without the gear even more difficult


    We couldn''t check on the rankings of any group that wasn''t part of the top or bottom ten.


    As such, I wondered if Horikita, who was also traveling alone, would be okay. After all, we hadn''t seen each other at all since our conversation at the start of the exam. If she were to get sick or injured, her fate would be sealed.


    At any rate, I wanted to get the first designated area out the way before the weather took a turn for the worse.


    Once we finished packing up our things, I looked to see which area had been designated first.


    Fortunately, the first designation of the day was close to area C3.


    It shouldn''t take us long to get there from where we were now.


    But, just as I was about to put away my tablet, a notification popped up on the screen.


    If I wasn''t mistaken, the school would send out global messages like this in order to contact us.


    ��Depending on the state of the weather, Basic Movement and Tasks may be put on pause until further notice. Please be sure to keep an eye on your tablets for future updates.��


    Apparently, the weather was forcing the school to make a tough decision about the sustainability of the exam.


    Losing out on the opportunity to earn points for an extended period of time could prove fatal for the lower ranked groups.


    It didn''t seem like the school woulde to a decision until they absolutely had to, but this was a thought for another time.


    "Alright, let''s go."


    After taking a couple of steps, I noticed Nanase wasn''t following me. When I looked back, I saw that she was just absentmindedly standing there, seemingly unaware that I had even started walking.


    "Nanase?"


    Only after I called out her name did she realize she was being left behind.


    "Sorry, I''ming now!"


    She apologized as she hurriedly ran to catch up to me.


    If there was nothing wrong with her physically, then it was most likely a mental block that was causing her to act like this.


    Either way, the one thing I could say for certain was that something about her had changed somehow since yesterday.


    There hadn''t been any noteworthy changes in the way we had been interacting...


    Although, I didn''t think that she''d had the opportunity to make contact with a third-party either...

 Chapter 109: 8.1

    <h4>Chapter 109: 8.1</h4>


    After getting the ten-point Early Bird Bonus for our first area, we decided to wait for a suitable Task to pop up somewhere nearby. But, perhaps due to the poor weather, there were fewer Tasks showing up than yesterday and we couldn''t find any to participate in.


    In the end, we spent the next hour and a half leisurely killing time.


    Then, once 9:00 AM came around, the second area of the day was announced. This time, our destination was the randomly-designated area E2.


    For a random designation, this was honestly not that far away.


    I wanted to try and make it there if at all possible, but...


    "We''ll really have to think about how we''re going to get there, won''t we?"


    "Yeah."


    If we wanted to make it there as quickly as possible, taking a direct path over the mountains of D2 and D3 was probably the way to go.


    If the conditions outside had been like they were yesterday, I probably would''ve chosen this route in a heartbeat.


    However, the weather didn''t seem like it was going to hold up for very much longer.


    Once it starts raining, a usually well-traveled path would turn into a difficult one.


    "How should we proceed?"


    "Let''s see... Well, I guess it''s safest to take a detour."


    If it ended up looking too dangerous when it starts to pour, we could always give up halfway.


    "That''s understandable. Depending on what the weather''s like after this, we might not even be able to continue our journey."


    Though she said she understood, she had an unsatisfied look on her face.


    "But personally, I''d still like to go over the mountain."


    "If it starts raining, it''d be hard to find a proper foothold on the mountain. It''s too dangerous."


    Even I couldn''t say that I wasn''t afraid of slipping and taking a bad fall.


    "I believe that most of our rivals will choose to take a detour in anticipation of the weather. However, that''s why it''s a golden opportunity for you to pile up another first-ce Early Bird Bonus, don''t you think? Let''s make a run for it before it starts raining."


    Over thest several days we had been traveling together, she had never once opposed my decision on how to proceed.


    That was the very least she could do to maintainmon courtesy as someone who had asked to apany me.


    Of course, Nanase must have known that herself when she decided to say something.


    I don''t think she spoke up just because she wanted to change my mind either.


    "What if I don''t choose to go over the mountain?"


    In order to find out for myself, I decided to toss her a question.


    For a split second, she seemed hesitant about whether or not she should answer, but she ultimately fixed her eyes onto mine.


    "...In that case, I will try to go over the mountain on my own."


    "There''s a limit to how impractical you can get. H��sen and Amasawa might not even reach E2 in time to make a difference."


    Even if Nanase were to reach the designated area before anyone else, there was no guarantee that she would get her hands on the Early Bird Bonus.


    And even if she managed to make it over the mountain before the weather got bad, there wouldn''t be any point to it if the other two members of her group didn''t get there within a simr timeframe.


    So, why was she so fixated on pointlessly ascending a mountain this time around?


    While I didn''t really have a problem with letting her go on her own, it would be dangerous for a girl to try and get over the mountain all by herself.


    Although I didn''t exactly feel responsible for her, I''d at least like to see her off when I felt better about her future safety.


    Furthermore, I still hadn''t figured out why she asked to travel with me in the first ce.


    If I chose to part ways with her here, I''d probably never figure out the answer.


    "Alright. If you''ve already made up your mind then I''ll go with you."


    "Thank you very much, Senpai."


    As I looked at her expression, I came to understand something.


    That, she had been absolutely certain I would choose to follow her up the mountain.


    "Since we''ve decided on a route we should hurry up and get going."


    It would be pitiful if we only managed to earn one point after making such a big deal out of this.


    We made our way east for a while, but not too long after, the path ahead began to incline upward, and the wind started to pick up speed.


    The sky gradually turned into an even deeper, darker shade of grey. It seemed like the rain would starting down any minute now.


    I opened up my tablet to check our current location, and the GPS indicated that we were just about to reach the edge of area D3.


    As much as I had hoped that we could hold out until we managed to reach the designated area��


    I could hear Nanase begin to lose control of her breathing from behind me.


    We hadn''t done anything particrly strenuous yet today, so it seemed far too early for her to be already running out of breath.


    Was it because of all the fatigue she had built up over the past few days?


    If she wasn''t feeling well, then the right choice would be to set up a tent to rest and wait for the weather to clear up. If she were to catch a cold, her poor condition would be reported back to the school due to her watch.


    I decided to ever so slightly slow down my pace, only to the extent that she wouldn''t notice. If she decided to give up and ask for a break, we''d stop then and there. That being said, she certainly wasn''t the type to throw in the towel so easily. If it seemed like I needed to slow down even further, I''d have no choice but to force her to stop and figure out what to do from there.


    Step by step, the two of us silently made our way up the slope of the mountain. The temperature had dropped sharply and the humidity kept on increasing by the second. We were both wearing standard, school-issue running shoes that weren''t suitable for traversing terrain like this, not by any stretch of the imagination.


    Sure enough, the more we walked, the more Nanase continued to slow down. The time hade for me to make a decision.


    I stopped walking and turned around to face her.


    "Senpai...! I can still��!"


    "Give me your backpack."


    "Eh?"


    "You won''t be able to keep up with me while lugging around that backpack with you."


    "No way... How could possibly I have you carry around my things for me, Senpai!?"


    "You can say that once you''re capable of keeping up the pace. At this rate, I''ll have to give up on the Early Bird Bonus. That being the case, you might as well give me your bag so we can get going already."


    The need to maintain pretenses and the need to face reality were at odds with each other.


    And now that I had broached the matter, she no longer had the right to refuse.


    "But, my backpack is really quite heavy. I think it''ll be tough carrying around, even if it''s you, Senpai."


    "I''ll decide that for myself once you hand it over."


    "...Alright, I understand."


    Reluctantly conceding, Nanase took off her backpack and handed it over to me with a seemingly apologetic look on her face. Although its contents were different, its weight was surprisingly not all too different from my own.


    Given that, I should be able to maintain my initial pace without any added difficulty.


    Normally, it would be easiest to use your lower back muscles to help support the weight of a backpack, but given that I was already carrying one, that wasn''t really an option here.


    Instead, I chose to hold it in front of me and began moving forward once again.


    "A-are you sure you can carry it?"


    "You should get moving if you have the time to stand around and ask questions."


    Taking my advice to heart, Nanase promptly zipped her lips and began to walk.


    This time, she stuck close behind me, maintaining a consistent distance of around two meters as we pushed forward.

 Chapter 110: 8.2

    <h4>Chapter 110: 8.2</h4>


    The sky grew dimmer and dimmer by the second as the overall visibility of our surroundings began to get much, much worse.


    The wind was also getting stronger, and at times a particrly fierce gale woulde and violently blow down the slope.


    Despite all of this, the good news was that we were nearly finished with our journey to the top.


    All we had to do now was follow a rtively smoother path heading down the other side.


    Of course, we''d still have to make sure not to lose our footing somehow on our way back down, so we couldn''t be too careful.


    "I''ll be fine now that we''vee this far. My bag... I''ll carry it again from here."


    "Are you sure? I''d like to avoid wasting timeter by having to go through the process of handing it over again."


    "Yes, I''m sure. Thank you very much for helping me."


    I looked to confirm once more just to be sure, but she seemed confident, so I returned her bag.


    However, rather than sling it over her shoulder and wear it as she had earlier, she stood still and stared at it as she held it in her hands.


    "So? Ready to go?"


    I asked her this, but she didn''t even try to respond. It didn''t seem like the type of behavior you''d expect from someone who was in a hurry to get somewhere.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, I have something I''d like to ask you."


    "It''s seemed like you''ve been thinking about something ever since you first came out of your tent this morning."


    No, to be precise, I''d say she''s had this air of curiosity about her from the moment she first asked to apany me.


    "So... you noticed after all, huh?"


    Nanase didn''t seem very surprised by this as she just nodded along as she spoke.


    "There''s a reason why I''ve been sticking close to you these past few days, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    She stood there unmoving as she began to borate.


    It clearly went deeper than just being because we both had the same Table.


    Apparently, she was finally ready to tell me the answer that I had been looking for.


    "But before that, please allow me to apologize for something."


    She turned her back on me as she went and ced her backpack down at the base of arge tree.


    "I''m afraid you won''t be reaching area E2 today, Senpai."


    "That''s a strange thing to say. Aren''t we on our way there right now?"


    "The reason I wanted to head up the mountain was to lure you here, Senpai."


    In other words, Nanase''s target destination hadn''t been area E2, but rather where we were now �C the northern part of D3.


    "We''re probably the only two people up here right now."


    "Yes indeed. I believe that to be the case as well."


    With her backpack now out of the way, Nanase turned back to face me.


    "Over the course of thest six days I''ve been with you, I''ve been able to witness all sorts of things, Ayanok��ji-senpai. You''ve made a lot of friends at this school and built up a lot of trust for yourself. And, slowly but surely, you''ve demonstrated what you''re truly capable of."


    Thinking back on the first week of our time out here on the ind, Nanase began to summarize her impressions.


    "I''d also like to express my respect for the depth of the insight and physical prowess you''ve shown from time to time."


    "I don''t remember having done anything special though."


    "If that''s really the case, then that just makes you even more amazing, don''t you think?"


    Although she was throwing out praises left and right, her expression remained solemn.


    "But, Ayanok��ji-senpai, I don''t think you''re someone who belongs at this school."


    At this point, the aura around her began to change into something far different from what I had grown ustomed to over thest several days.


    "You don''t? Care to exin the reason for that?"


    To that, Nanase nodded as she slowly stood up and turned to look me in the eyes.


    "It''s because you''re from the White Room."


    After all this time, I finally heard the words ''The White Room''e from the mouth of another student.


    There were very few people who knew about the existence of that ce.


    Under more normal circumstances, I''d be able to say without a shadow of a doubt that she was the enforcer that Tsukishiro had sent in.


    "As you may have already guessed, I enrolled here in this school under Acting Director Tsukishiro''s orders. And more precisely, those orders were to get you expelled."


    The way that she wasying everything out in the open like this made it hard to imagine how she''d been dormant behind the scenes for so long, hiding her true intentions.


    "You could''ve done this at any point over thest few days, so why here? Why now? You must have had some other reason than just wanting to avoid the eyes of others, right?"


    "I''m going to knock you out here and injure you, setting off your Emergency Alert in the process. The teachers would thene running and force you to retire, thus resulting in your expulsion. Something like that."


    "So, something simr to what happened to Komiya and Kinoshita. Were you the one behind what happened to them as well?"


    "Well, hmm... What do you think, Senpai?"


    "I don''t really think you''d have been able to make it there and back in such a short timeframe, but if you were really from the White Room, I''m not so confident about that."


    Either way, it didn''t matter anymore at this point.


    "What happens if I tell the faculty members who came rushing to the scene that you were the one who had attacked me?"


    "I don''t think you''d be able to exin your way out of it. If you want to know why, it''s because the faculty member whoes here will undoubtedly be the Acting Director himself."


    There wouldn''t be any point in trying to defend myself. After all, no matter what evidence or proof I might have, Tsukishiro would still choose to side with Nanase in the end.


    "I see. So basically, losing to you here would be no different from being kicked out of school."


    I slowly began to take off my backpack.


    And then, after setting it down beside a suitable tree, I turned to face Nanase once again.


    "If Acting Director Tsukishiro sent you thinking you''d be able to take me down, then it looks like there''ll be no getting around having to fight seriously. Although, having said that, raising my hand against a girl could easily turn into a major issue in it''s own right."


    This probably wouldn''t just end as a harmless, childish scuffle.


    However, if it got to the point where I were to strike back at her, then that would be more than enough to warrant a penalty.


    There was no guarantee that Tsukishiro wouldn''t choose to retire, or rather, expel, the both of us just for exchanging blows.


    If we were evenly matched, it would be my loss.


    "If you''re looking for a way out of this, Senpai, then I believe your only option is abandoning your bag and running away."


    "Perhaps."


    "But, I''m afraid that would be futile as well."


    Trying to continue the exam without a tablet, a tent, or any other provisions would be suicide.


    For Nanase, this meant that no matter which choice I made, she was fully prepared to respond.


    "So, what will you do?"


    "Since it''se to this, there''s really only one choice I can make."


    I looked Nanase in the eye and steeled my resolve to fight.


    "So you''ve chosen to fight. But, do you think you''ll be saved by doing that? This might seem cowardly of me to say, but my loss is no different from your own loss, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Maybe so."


    As the conversation progressed forward, I created an opening, making myself seem vulnerable to any attack she might throw at me.


    However, Nanase didn''t engage immediately, clearly wary of the opening I was testing her with.


    It didn''t seem like she was the type to fight reckless battles. Rather, she took on a more orthodox approach where she looked to methodically force her opponent into the corner.


    Making a conscious effort to avoid getting caught up in your opponent''s pace had been the right choice for her to make.


    "I''ll be making my move, then."


    On top of all of this, the fact that she had gone out of her way to warn me ahead of time was proof enough that she wasn''t very fond of plotting from behind the scenes.


    Of course, that could easily be nothing more than a feint as well.


    Although the ground beneath us was rtively soft, it seemed like it would fulfill its role as the foundation for our fight quite well.


    "Hyaaah!!!"


    Kicking off against the soil, Nanase closed the distance between us in a single breath.


    Would she look to strike with her arms or would she instead focus on using her legs?


    Or perhaps she would make use of both?


    Under more usual circumstances, I would start out by closely analyzing my opponent''s fighting style like this.


    After all, if I were to strike back carelessly, Nanase might end up getting seriously injured.


    And, given what was said earlier, that would only serve to put me even more of a disadvantage.


    With that being the case, my next thought was to try and look to restrain her by force instead, but I feared that it was all too likely she had taken that into consideration as well.


    But even so�� it still wouldn''t be a very wise choice either way.


    Even though Nanase''s words alone weren''t very trustworthy, I had been sensing a presence following after us all throughout the entire day today.


    There was definitely somebody, or somebodies, watching to see how things yed out as they carefully maintained their distance.


    Whoever they were, if they weren''t reinforcements, then it was probably safe to assume that they had been tasked with recording conclusive evidence of what happened with a tablet or something.


    Therefore, given the situation, the only real choice I could make here was...


    After making a feint to her left, Nanase lunged straight at me with an outstretched arm.


    She didn''te at me with a fist, but a gentle, open palm. She had chosen to engage me with a grappling technique.


    Upon seeing this, I took action, and while my movements were dyed, I easily surpassed the speed of Nanase''s iing strike.


    Cleanly avoiding her arm, I extended my own, the blow aimed straight for her face.


    My fist, strongly clenched, stopped mere centimeters before making contact with Nanase''s forehead.


    "!"


    Since her kic vision was far better than that of an ordinary person, the threat of the impact unconsciously caused her to stiffen up.


    "That''s the first."


    If I hadn''t chosen to stop my fist, the blow would''ve decisively settled the oue of the fight.


    Nanase''s consciousness would''ve been blown away in an instant, leaving her to simply crumble on the spot.


    "Nanase, are you tired? Or was that hesitation? You should be capable of much more than this."


    Given everything she had shown me the past few days, she should at least be able to perform at a level above this.


    In the end, her resolve to hunt me down and force me into a corner wasn''t strong enough.


    "Do you think you can beat me without even trying to fight back...? Is that what this is?"


    I pulled back my fist without giving her an answer, and as I did, Nanase retreated, putting around two meters between us. This was temporary, however, as she then kicked off against the ground once again,ing at me slightly faster thanst time. Her left hand was clenched into a fist and, given the way she had lowered her stance, she seemed to be looking to strike with an uppercut.


    Dodging to the side just before she made contact, I sent my own fist exploding forward, aimed straight for her cheek.


    Of course, just likest time, I stopped one or two centimeters before making contact.


    "And that''s the second. If I had gone through with it, I could''ve knocked you out two times now."


    "But you didn''t go through with it."


    Her eyes were trained on my fist, frozen in the air in front of her, but she didn''t seem scared in the slightest.


    "That''s true."


    "Although you''re free to make this show of dominance all you want, you don''t stand a chance at winning if you don''t actually fight back."


    "I still wouldn''t stand a chance even if I did, though?"


    "Correct. So, what will you do?"


    From the sound of it, Nanase hadn''t been treating this seriously yet either.


    She was watching me closely, examining my movements. Pushing forward on the offensive as she thought about how to dodge whatever I threw at her next.


    "I''m not sure yet."


    "It would be great if you could figure that out while you''re still able to stand around and talk."


    At that, she suddenly sprang into action and grabbed hold of my right arm with a level of dexterity and strength that seemed to indicate that she was finally treating this seriously. It looked like she was nning to yank me straight down to the ground, so I steeled myself, counteracting her force with my own.


    There are many forms of martial arts that allow one to gain the upper hand against raw strength through the trained application of technique and skill, regardless of their gender or physique.


    However, that''s only the case when you were facing an opponent whose strength paled inparison to your skill.


    "What the��!?"


    Seeing that she was caught off guard by the rigidity of my body, I took advantage of the opening to attack.


    I went for an uppercut the moment she stopped trying to pull down on my arm. My left fist tore through the air, only stopping when it was less than a centimeter away from smashing into her lower jaw. The force of the swing had been so great that her long hair was sent dancing even though there hadn''t been an impact.


    "!!!"


    She stared down at my fist, her eyes wide, before eventually turning to me.


    "I''ll say this just in case you haven''t noticed, but this makes three times now."


    For the first time, her eyes began to waver as she matched my gaze.


    "It seems your strength is just as the rumors say, Ayanok��ji-senpai..."


    I couldn''t afford to fight back seriously right now. Breaking Nanase''s fighting spirit without actually hurting her was the only means I had at my disposal.


    I had to make her realize that I was an opponent she''d never be able to win against.


    "I know what you''re trying to do here, Senpai..."


    Apparently, Nanase was aware of this as well.


    "It''s true that it''s improbable that I''ll be able to win against you if we keep going on like this. I''ll admit to that."


    Had I broken her fighting spirit already...? No, that simply wasn''t possible.


    Her eyes were filled with a clear mixture of hatred and fervor as she looked at me.


    "''I''... may not be able to beat you."


    Nanase had been at my mercy throughout the course of our fight so far. But now, as she spoke, the slight traces of uncertainty in her expression, in the way she carried herself, began to disappear. Or, rather, it was like she had never once harbored uncertainty in the first ce.


    It was as if she was trying to bring together all of her thoughts, feelings, and emotions and consolidate them to reach a state of inner unity.


    After a brief period of silence, Nanase wordlessly kicked off against the ground once again, lurching forward at a high speed.


    I didn''t have the time to calmly analyze the situation anymore and was instead forced to focus my full attention on taking emergency evasive action. Her movements were now twice as fast as they were only moments earlier. I distanced myself far enough away to avoid her strike, and then took a few additional steps away from her on top of that.


    She red straight at me with a look so sharp it felt like it could kill a man.


    It was such a dramatic change that it was hard to believe she was still the same person. If I had taken thatst attack of hers directly, I would''ve suffered a substantial amount of damage. If I slipped up even once, she may very well end up taking the upper hand after all.


    The feeling she gave off was painfully different than anything I had seen from her before.


    "Therefore...��I��will. Right here, right now."


    The change from ''Watashi'' to��Boku��.


    There was no way that this simple change in the first-person pronoun she chose to use was enough to change her movements.


    But, even so, there was no denying that thisst attack of hers was on apletely different level than the first three she had opened up with.


    "Who are you?"


    Given the circumstances, I couldn''t help but ask her this question.


    "��I��came back from ''that ce'' in order to put a stop to you."


    ''That ce''? For a moment, I thought she might be referring to the White Room, but that didn''t seem to be the case.


    "From that dark... gloomy ce...��I��havee back."


    Even though I didn''t understand what in the world she was talking about, I couldn''t afford to be negligent.


    This new Nanase who referred to herself with��Boku��had shifted her fighting style from one that focused primarily on jiu-jitsu to karate. She came at me repeatedly with swift, lethal thrusts and jabs that, ifnded properly, would probably be powerful enough to knock out an adult man.


    After I got into the rhythm of parrying and dodging her repeated attacks, I began to contemte the mystery behind why she had changed her first-person pronoun.


    "Do you really think that you can keep dodging forever!?"


    In Nanase''s mind, she had probably convinced herself that if she just kept attacking, ten, twenty times over, one would eventually have to hit the mark. For that very reason, she had done away with all hesitation and pushed forward with her relentless barrage.


    If someone else were to bear witness to what was happening, they probably would''ve thought something simr.


    They''d think that there''s no way I''d be able to avoid everything she threw at me and eventually reach the conclusion that I''d have to strike back at some point to try and defend myself.


    "Ha, Haaa!!!"


    Nanase''s breathing began getting heavier and heavier as she continued with her onught.


    Naturally, there was no way she would be able to keep up with her rapid barrage of attacks forever.


    Still, if I never ended up fighting back, she''d be able to recover her strength at any time.


    "Whew... Haaa...!"


    Just as anticipated, Nanase soon ran out of breath and distanced herself to try and get it back under control.


    "Absolutely...��I''ll��absolutely defeat you... Absolutely... defeat... you..."


    She was chanting these select few words like a Buddhist monk would a mantra, all while looking at me as if I were a murderer.


    "��I��came back...��I��came back in order to bring you down..."


    "You came back? What are you talking about?"


    I hadn''t been able to understand what Nanase was going on about for quite a while now.


    "It makes sense that you don''t understand. After all, you and��I��have never met in-person before."


    If that was really true, then this excessive hatred she had for me didn''t really make any sense.


    I could imagine that the White Room student might bear a grudge against me even though I had never met them before.


    However, was Nanase really from the White Room?


    The tone of her voice was ever so slightly different than usual.


    While she still looked like a girl on the outside, it seemed as though her personality had be that of a man.


    "If you aren''t going to fight back, then that''s your decision.��I''ll��just have to do this over and over until you''re down on the ground��"


    It had been less than twenty seconds since she stopped attacking, but it seemed like it had been just long enough for her to recover her energy.


    "Hyaaah!!!"


    Her feelings of hatred for me seemed to be spurring her forward more and more, seeing as she came at me with the fastest jab I had seen from her today.


    Her slender, white hand came hurtling straight toward my face and her fist just barely grazed past the tips of my bangs.


    She seemed like the usual Nanase on the outside, but perhaps she had be someone else on the inside?


    As I asked myself this, another thought came to mind.


    Namely, the notion of split personalities, or what was officially known as dissociative identity disorder.


    Put inyman''s terms, it''s a mental disorder where two or more distinct personalities reside within a single individual.


    If Nanase had dissociative identity disorder, everything would make a lot more sense.


    There was more to this disorder than just a simple change in personality. From what I''ve been told, there have been rare cases where one of the personalities had a chronic illness, but the illness disappeared whenever the patient switched over to another personality.


    Under that same logic, it was more than possible that this separate��Boku��personality residing within Nanase possessed physical abilities even greater than the original.


    And, if this personality was that of a man, then she might even be able to demonstrate strength effectively identical to that.


    "You don''t seem like Nanase anymore."


    Upon hearing me say this, Nanase momentarily stopped with her onught, a visibly irritated expression on her face.


    "You still don''t get it, do you?"


    She red at me with her arm thrusted out in front of her; Her fists were shaking with rage just as much as the sound of her voice.


    "��I''m��not Nanase. The one standing here before you right now is... Matsuo Eiichiro."


    "Matsuo Eiichiro?"


    I had definitely heard the surname ''Matsuo'' before, and it hadn''t even been that long since thest time I heard it either. The name hade out of ''that man''s'' mouth back when he paid a visit to Advanced Nurturing High School. Given all of that, I had a fairly good idea of where this was headed.


    "The son of a man who was killed by your father."


    Seeing that I still didn''t seem to understand where she was going with this, she spoke up once again, havingpletely lost her patience.


    "This body has been borrowed.��I''m��right here, right now, all for the sake of bringing you down."


    "Borrowed? What a funny joke."


    It simply wasn''t possible for someone to take on the personality of another real human being.


    "If you think��I''m��joking, then please, be my guest."


    Nanase kicked off against the ground once more, her arms trembling violently.


    The traditional, orthodox attack style that she had used so far gradually began to change to something much more rough and unrestrained.


    "��I''m��here...��I��came all the way here just to see you fall!"


    And it wasn''t just her attack style, her movements in general had changed from being decisive and controlled to wild and violent.


    Her goal was to try and overwhelm me with speed and strength, although her movements became somewhat less efficient as a tradeoff.


    That being said, regardless of whether they were refined or not, it probably wouldn''t make much of a difference as long as she managed tond a hit on me.


    "��I''ll��make sure you suffer retribution!"


    Even though she had turned up the intensity, I wasn''t going to let myself get hit so easily. And after everything that had happened, Nanase should be more than aware of that as well.


    Although she was pretending to be calm andposed, she was the one whose back was really up against the wall here, not me.


    No matter how many short breaks she may take to recover her stamina, it was clear from the way her shoulders were heaving up and down that she was reaching her limit.


    However, it would be meaningless to try and wait for that limit to catch up to her. There was no way that I could see her choosing to back down any time soon. In fact, she''d probably choose to keep challenging me until the bitter end. I really had no other choice but to break her fighting spirit.


    "This is the first time��I''ve��encountered an opponent capable of dodging so many attacks like this. ...But, there''s no way you can keep it up forever. If it''s��me��... If��I''m��the one you''re up against... Then��I��can definitely defeat you!��I��know it!"


    Even though I was slowly chipping away at her will to go on, she still bore fangs at me as she tried what she could to bite back.


    "I think I understand what you''ve been trying to say."


    While I didn''t know the exact details of the situation, there was at least one thing that I had ascertained throughout all of this.


    After a few moments of mulling it over internally, I finished sorting out my thoughts and began to speak.


    "Nanase, you don''t have multiple personalities, nor did someone else''s personality take over you."


    "Like I said, if you think��I''m��joking, then please, be my guest. But there''s no getting around the fact that��I''m��the one right here in front of you."


    She raised her voice in denial as she stamped her feet into the ground.


    But, that and that alone was proof enough it didn''t exist.


    "No, it''s unfortunate, but I just don''t believe you. If this alternate personality of yours hadn''t been someone who actually existed elsewhere, then I suppose that I might''ve been able to believe you. However, you''re saying that ''Matsuo Eiichiro'', a person who exists here in real life, has gone and borrowed your body. And sorry, but that''s just far too unrealistic."


    "If... If that''s the case, then how do you exin��my��presence here!?"


    There was no need to think very hard about the answer to that. It truly wasn''t veryplicated.


    "You just took the liberty to dream up another personality inside of yourself. The reason you deliberately chose to change from using ''Watashi'' to��Boku��was to remind yourself of that."


    Nanase was, fundamentally, a nonviolent person.


    She didn''t like the thought of using violence and force to make her opponents submit to her.


    Even so, since she had to fight, she had no choice but to conjure up a personality to do the fighting for her.


    Or, put more simply, she had no choice but to ''act out'' this personality.


    "More than anything else, this force, this power is proof that��I''m��real!"


    With that, her fist came flying at me, no doubt faster and stronger than any punches she had thrown before the change.


    "You''re not showing me anything more than the strength you''ve always had in you, Nanase."


    Nanase''s face paled, seemingly shaken that I had managed to hit at the very core of the matter.


    "Y-you''re wrong!��I��...��I''m��Matsuo!"


    "If you really are this ''Matsuo'' person, then there''s no need for you to be so upset by this."


    As Matsuo, she could simply turn up her nose andugh at my tantly misguided reasoning.


    "There was something out of sorts about the way you were talking when you changed your first-person pronoun. It''s nothing more than a form of self-deception."


    She was just using the pronoun��Boku��as a trigger of sorts to make herself into a more aggressive person.


    "No!!!"


    "You want to believe that Matsuo''s personality resides within you... No, I''ll bet that deep down, even you don''t believe that."


    She was desperately trying to embrace the guise of self-deception, but couldn''t.


    "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"


    Unable to listen to my words for even a second longer, Nanase cried out and threw herself at me.


    The speed and sharpness she had disyed earlier was now nowhere to be seen. It had gotten to the point where I''d probably be able to avoid her with my eyes shut.


    "It''s time to give up Nanase. You can''t beat me."


    "Yes��I��can!��I��have to!"


    She extended her left arm and grabbed hold of the cor of my jersey.


    And then, having decided that this was the chance she had been waiting for, she raised her right fist and swung at me in a wide, dramatic arch.


    I was an easy target, wide open. And usually, there was probably no way that someone would be able to dodge from my position.


    But, despite my movements being limited by her stranglehold on my cor, I deftly avoided the punch as it came barreling straight at my face.


    "Tsk!"


    Another punch was sent flying toward me immediately afterward, yet I dodged it just the same as the first.


    "Why!? Why can''t��Ind a hit!?!? Why is this happening!?!?"


    A third, fourth, and fifth punch came flying, but try as she might, every attempt ended up with the same result.


    Fed up with the fact that her punches weren''tnding, she forcefully reached out to try and grab me by the hair.


    She probably thought that, if she could prevent me from moving my head, she''d finally be able to hit me.


    I seized her by the wrist just as it came close enough.


    "L-let go!"


    "Even if I let go, nothing would change."


    "Let go of��me��!!!"


    She forcefully tore her hand away before repeating the entire meaningless cycle all over again.


    Her fist came flying at me, only to once again punch through the open air. At this point, I''d already lost track of how many times we had gone through this.


    "Haa! Haa! Haaaa...!"


    She had finally reached her limit, both physically and mentally.


    "Why... Why...��I''m��so close and yet... Only a little more, and yet!"


    Nanase''s resolve to continue throwing herself at me had already disappeared.


    Trembling at the knees, she tried what she could to spurn her legs forward, but her body refused to fight.


    "From the very beginning, you were wrong to tell yourself that you''d eventuallynd a hit as long as you kept trying. At your level, even if you kept this up until the day you died, you''d never be able to hit me. Not even once."


    Of course, this was just a bluff.


    Nobody could avoid being hit forever, not even me.


    Nanase, however, had just been forced toe to terms with her failure tond even a single hit on me, so my words probably resonated with her.


    "If you really want me expelled, your best bet is to start ying the victim now. If you make your clothes seem disorderly, that alone would probably be enough to drive me into a corner."


    Even though it seemed like I was helping the enemy here, I knew Nanase wouldn''t choose to do that.


    After all, I didn''t think she really, truly wanted to get me expelled at all.


    "��I��...��I��!!!"


    She cried out as her knees finally gave in and copsed to the ground.


    No matter how much one mayy bare their fighting spirit, if, deep down, they had already given up, then doing so was merely an empty, meaningless gesture.

 Chapter 111: 8.3

    <h4>Chapter 111: 8.3</h4>


    The sound of the harsh wind resounded throughout the forest as I struggled to follow the tracks of two specific people.


    Just how hard did I have to work to make it to area D3 this morning...?


    It should only be a little longer... Or at least, that''s what I kept telling myself as I pushed forward, my legs trembling with every step I took.


    If they were to find out that I was following after them, then everything I''ve gone through, all my efforts so far, would be meaningless.


    Normally, when tailing after someone, it was necessary to keep them in your sights at all times so as not to lose track of them.


    That, of course, meant that the other party would be able to see you as well. There were certain inevitable risks that came along with doing something like this.


    But, no matter who the other party may be, there was absolutely no way they''d catch onto what I was doing.


    After all, even I wasn''t able to see Ayanok��ji, my target, from where I was right now.


    The key to this was a walkie-talkie hidden in the pocket of my jersey.


    Thanks to this walkie-talkie, I had been able to keep in touch with a certain someone who was helping me constantly pinpoint Ayanok��ji''s exact location.


    Ever since the sixth day, the entire student body had been given permission to use their points on the ''GPS Search'' feature on our tablets.


    As such, it was possible for my aplice and me to get a rough idea of Ayanok��ji''s location.


    Even if worse came to worst, I''d dly exhaust my own supply of points in order to track him down.


    No matter the method, there was something I absolutely had to get my hands on:


    Decisive, conclusive evidence.


    One way or another, I needed to get my hands on enough definitive proof to get Ayanok��ji expelled.


    I didn''t have any other options anymore. Horikita''s expulsion wasn''t what I should''ve been prioritizing all this time.


    I felt truly ashamed that, despite having always been vaguely aware of his true potential, I had always chosen to look the other way.


    In retrospect, I should''ve been more suspicious back when Ry��en stopped searching for ''X'' in ss D.


    Ayanok��ji had been involved in everything that had happened back then. Even after having my eyes opened to the truth, there was still a part of me that found it hard to believe. After all, he never seemed like anything more than your average, unremarkable, run-of-the-mill high school boy.


    My walkie-talkie sounded off from within my pocket. I was wearing a wireless earpiece, so I could listen in without having to stop.


    [Please hold on for a moment, Kushida-senpai. It seems the two of them have stopped not too far ahead of your current location.]


    "Haa, haa... really? They''re finally taking a break...?"


    Following the instructions I had received, I gratefully eased to a stop. With this, I could finally rest for a moment.


    [I know you must be tired, but please hang in there for just a little longer. The moment of truth shoulde along soon enough, and when it does, there won''t be anything left standing in your way.]


    My aplice shouldn''t have been able to hear what I said since I hadn''t been holding down the transmission button, but from what it sounded like, they had a perfect understanding of my current situation.


    "I get it, I get it..."


    At this point, I was just t-out irritated. It felt like a carrot was dangling just before my eyes, ever so slightly out of reach.


    I''d been out here risking my ass all on my own since the moment the sun came up, and there was still a ton of other stuff I had to get done after this too...


    My well-earned break onlysted for five short minutes, interrupted by further instructionsing through over the walkie-talkie.


    [There''s no sign of movement. It appears that they''ve stopped altogether. Do your best to conceal your presence and slowly make your way northwest. Also, don''t forget to take a recording with your tablet.]


    My aplices'' polite, dumbed-down way of exining things pissed me off, but at this point, I honestly just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.


    Suppressing the urge to run, I took my tablet out of my backpack and began heading northwest. Not too long afterward, I caught sight of two people off in the distance ahead of me.


    I watched as Nanase, frozen in ce, suddenly looked over her shoulder and said something to Ayanok��ji.


    Given that neither of them seemed to be wearing a backpack, I wondered if they really were taking a break after all.


    Iunched the camera app on my tablet and switched it over to recording mode.


    And then, I slowly inched as close as possible without revealing myself, carefully hiding among the trees, but no matter how hard I concentrated, the wind was so frustratingly loud that I couldn''t properly make out what they were saying.


    A surge of impatience coursed through my veins.


    My blood was boiling over with the gnawing desire to see them start hitting each other already.


    I might''ve been able to get a better idea of what their situation was like if I could just hear what they were talking about, but it was too dangerous.


    If I tried getting any closer than this, I''d run the risk of getting spotted by Nanase now that she had her head turned.


    For the time being, I needed to rein in my emotions. It''d be a little dicey, but my only choice at this point was to calm down and work my way around in search of a better, safer angle.


    I held my breath as I quietly began to move.


    After distancing myself from them a bit, my n was to skirt around the perimeter and������


    "W��!?!"


    Even though I should''ve beenpletely alone, a hand suddenly came out of nowhere and grabbed my shoulder.


    And just as I was about to raise my voice in shock, another hand immediately reached to cover up my mouth.


    Faced with such an unexpected turn of events, I quickly began to panic.


    As I did, a pair of glossy, alluring lips crept close to my ear.


    "Shh~ I get you''re surprised but you''ve like, gotta be quiet, Kushida-senpai. It''d be waaay bad if Ayanok��ji-senpai and Nanase-chan caught onto you, yeah?"


    From those sultry lips came a knowing voice that seemed as if it could pierce straight through my very soul.


    It was none other than Amasawa Ichika from ss 1-A, a girl who I had never had a formal conversation with before. In fact, you could even say that this was effectively our first time meeting each other.


    And yet, Amasawa clearly knew me, given that she knew my name.


    After being effectively dragged away from where Ayanok��ji and Nanase were, Amasawa finally let go of me.


    "Uhm... Why are you here, Amasawa-san?"


    I managed to somewhat regain myposure as I addressed her, eager to get her to fuck off.


    If the fight were to break out while I was wasting time with her, then everything would be ruined.


    I could feel my blood pressure rising, but even so, I couldn''t afford to lose my cool here.


    "I just happened to be passing through when I saw you acting all sneaky-sneaky, Senpai."


    "I wasn''t ''acting sneaky''. I was just... well, taking a walk on my own, that''s all."


    I knew that this was a poor excuse. After all, I was acting independently, separated from my group.


    Anyone with eyes could see that this was a strange situation.


    Moreover, Amasawa herself had already said that it would be bad if Ayanok��ji and Nanase caught on to what I was doing.


    As such, it''d make sense that she somehow knew about what I was really up to.


    Though, from what I''d been told, a select portion of the first-years already knew about me anyway.


    "Hmmm... That so?"


    Amasawa approached me with a somewhat suspicious look in her eyes.


    Come to think of it, how''d this Amasawa chick manage to get all the way out here without so much as a tablet or even a backpa������


    SMACK!!!


    A dry, out-of-ce sound echoed throughout the forest. It, of course, was no doubt drowned out by the overbearing sound of the wind.


    Just as I began to wonder where the sound hade from, I felt a sharp, stinging pain well up in my right cheek and covered it up with my hand.


    "W-what!?"


    "You came poking your nose around in the mountains all on your own, so like, what are you really trynna get at, Senpai?"


    "W-what do you mean? What are you talking about Amasawa-san!?"


    "Oh? I''m real excited to see how long you can keep hiding behind that mask of yours~."


    She drew closer once again as I feigned a sense of terror and fear over the fact that she had suddenly pped me across the face.


    "S-stop!"


    "No way I''m gonna stop now, silly~"


    Saying that, she raised an open palm up in the air.


    I immediately tried to cower back and protect myself, but she forced her way past nheless.


    SMACK!!!


    This time, she hit my other cheek and she hit hard.


    Despite my best attempt to block it, I simply couldn''t keep up with her overwhelming speed.


    "D-do you even understand what you''re doing!? You can''t do this!"


    "I know it may not seem like it, but I''m being pretty gentle with you. It totally shouldn''t hurt that bad."


    "Why though!? None of this makes any sense!"


    "So you don''t get it, huh~? Well alrighty then. I wonder if you''ll start connecting the dots if I start smacking you with my fist instead~?"


    "What?"


    My brain was still in the middle of processing her words when my vision suddenly began to warp and distort.


    I only registered the sound of something being struck a little afterward, and before I knew it, I was already on the ground looking up at the cloudy, overcast sky.


    Did... Did I get punched just now...?


    I felt an increasingly warm sensation on the side of my face, as if blood was slowly pooling up underneath the skin.


    My cheek began to burn and swell, aching with pain.


    "...wha, ah... Ah!!"


    "I''ll betcha that one hurt a lil'' didn''t it? Gotta say, you don''t usually get to experience getting beaten up like this, do ya?"


    I couldn''t make sense of it. This chick hade flying out of nowhere and started picking a fight with me, but why???


    And the fact that she was being so excessively violent made it all make even less sense.


    "So, how about I go for your other cheek next?"


    With that, Amasawa started approaching me all over again.


    Right now, the only thing I knew for sure was that this wasn''t just some sick joke of hers.


    I wanted to avoid being beaten senseless any more than I already had, no matter the cost.


    I did my best to ward off Amasawa''s outstretched hand, pushing her arm away.


    "Ah, uh, I-I''m sorry for pushing you, but you just hit me so suddenly..."


    "Still acting like a goody two shoes are you? You see, I know you real, reeeal well Kushida-senpai. You''re a nasty, vile woman who''s totally caught up in that cute lil'' face of yours. You feast off other people''s deepest darkest secrets, and if you ever get into trouble, you''ll dly self-destruct just to drag everyone else down along with you. A real piece of work through and through, ain''tcha?"


    "I don''t really understand what you''re talking about Amasawa-san... B-but, violence isn''t... allowed, right?"


    "Then why don''tcha go and cry to school about it? You might even be able to get me expelled. But just know that if you do that I''ll have to leave behind a parting gift, okay? Just for you, I''ll expose a~l~l of the dark, dirty middle school secrets you''ve been trying so hard to keep hidden and take away your status."


    "How...?"


    Amasawa''s sudden appearance without so much as a bottle of water in hand wasn''t just some mere coincidence. No... Something was very wrong here.


    "How do I know your secret? From the look on your face, it seems you''re thinking I heard it from Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    She looked at me with eyes that seemed to see through everything.


    "But, that would be in~correct. Nothing in this world gets past me. I''m a special existence, after all."


    "Nothing in this world..."


    "How about I give you an example? Ah, what about that time you tried to cozy up to Student Council President Nagumo, but got turned away at the door? Well, honestly, even if that ended up working out for you, I doubt he''d be willing to support your cause now that Horikita-senpai''s joined the student council."


    "How... How do you even know about tha��!"


    "Oh dear oh dear, how indeed~?"


    Amasawa smiled down at me as if I was just some toy for her to y with, and just like that, I had reached the very limit of my patience.


    "Who... Who fucking told you!?!?"


    "Ooo, you''ve finally shown your true colors! That said, you really need to shush, yeah? I get that the ind is real huge so it may seem like there''s no one around right now, but there''s no telling when someone else might show up."


    Amasawa crouched down and yfully tapped me on the nose, giving me a gentle, patronizing warning.


    That rotten, smug, condescending attitude of hers pissed me off to no end.


    "Stop it, you shitty bitch!"


    In a fit of uncontroble rage, a voice burst forth from the bottom of my heart.


    If you had only ever seen the outward mask of the girl named ''Kushida Kiky��'', then my words just now would probably seem surprising.


    But Amasawa didn''t seem surprised at all. Rather, she let out a giddyugh.


    "Ahahahaha! Mmm, now this suits you much, much better Kushida-senpai~!"


    Sure enough, this chick knew all about me, about the things I''d done.


    In fact, she seemed to know far, far more than the likes of Ayanok��ji and Horikita...


    "What... What the hell are you!?"


    "I''m not sure how to respond to a question like that. I''m just... well, I''m just here to save Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Save? Huh?"


    "Don''t try and hide it, Kushida-senpai. I can see through your every move. You were nning on finding some dirt on Ayanok��ji-senpai with that tablet you dropped over there to try and get him expelled, right?"


    "I don''t understand what you mean. Find dirt on him with my tablet? Huh?"


    Shit. This chick had already seen through everything... Some small part of me knew that it was pointless to try and resist any longer, but even so, I felt that I had no choice but to continue to do so, denying the truth until the bitter end.


    "You''ve been in a ss together with him for over a year already, and yet you still don''t understand anything, do ya Senpai? There''s like, no way Ayanok��ji-senpai would feel threatened by such a shallow disy of thinking."


    Amasawa turned her gaze toward where Ayanok��ji and Nanase should be.


    "Aaah, I really wanted to sit back and watch from a front-row seat. I''m sure he''ll defeat Nanase-chan without even hurting her. I reeeally wanted to see it~."


    After mumbling a few words to herself, she turned back to face me again.


    "I don''t know who put you up to this, but you''re really letting yourself get used, huh Kushida-senpai? No matter what things are like over there with Nanase-chan, I''m fairly certain that Ayanok��ji-senpai''s already noticed what you''ve been up to. There''s no way he wouldn''t, given like, how much of a silly amateur you are."


    "B-but I''ve put plenty of distance between us...!"


    "Eh? Plenty of distance, hmmm? Did I just hear you admit that you''ve been stalking him?"


    "W-well... I-I just thought those two being together was kinda weird is all..."


    "So you followed them out of curiosity? Headed up this rough mountain trail all on your own?"


    I felt like I should stop making excuses and answer her honestly, but my habitual impulse to try and escape won out in the end. I had no choice but to recognize Amasawa as a formidable enemy.


    "It''s got nothing to do with you."


    "Yes yes, I had a hunch you''d still be uncooperative. But, the thing is, it actually has quite a lot to do with me. After all, Ayanok��ji-senpai is a very special person to me."


    "Huh? What the heck...? Do you like him?"


    "I''d rather you note to such a vulgar conclusion~. It''s not that I ''like'' him romantically or anything, it''s more that I ''love'' him...? No, I suppose it''s much, much more than that... A feeling that goes far beyond the likes of love."


    "What?"


    "I said what I said. Anyway, I''ve gone outta my way to tell you a lot, so how about you head down the mountain and go back to your group like a good girl. The weather''s gonna turn bad any time now. This''ll prolly be yourst chance to turn back."


    "...Don''t fuck with me!"


    I took a clump of wet soil in hand and threw it at Amasawa as a means of rejection.


    "I''m going to get dirt on Ayanok��ji and get him kicked outta here, no matter what it takes...!"


    "Even if you get him expelled, that''s not going to solve anything. You do know that right?"


    I hade all this way, desperate to see my ambitions fulfilled.


    For all that, there was no way I''d back down to an underssman like her and leave empty-handed.


    "I''ll say it again. Ayanok��ji-senpai is a very special person to me. I''ll never allow him to get expelled by an outsider like you."


    Amasawa reached out and mercilessly grabbed hold of my bangs, wrenching up my head to draw my eyes level with her own.


    "Ah!!! Let go of me!"


    "Now why would I do that~?"


    Amasawa''s colorful eyes seemed like hollow, empty voids; The eyes of a person who had lost touch with reality.


    My body began to tremble as my instincts told me to escape, pleading for me to run away.


    "You freak! You''re not normal...!"


    "How curious~! To think you''d start shaking in fear of a girl younger than you. But, well, I think it''s best you cherish that wonderful feeling, Kushida-senpai~."


    Amasawa spoke highly of me in a strange, almost insulting way.


    She continued on, clearly uninterested in hearing what I had to say in response to this.


    "You think you''re cuter than everyone, smarter than everyone, better than everyone... In short, you''re just hopelessly in love with yourself, aren''t you Kushida-senpai? Your mouth waters at the thought of asserting your dominance, always eager to take hold of other people''s secrets. Nheless, you hate the thought of losing that control you crave, forever unable to forgive those that know your secrets. Personally, I don''t mind this messed-up personality of yours."


    I held back the urge to talk back and instead looked to process the situation.


    Clearly, this chick... this bitch already knew everything there was to know about me.


    For the time being, I had to cast aside questions like ''how'' and ''why''.


    With that in mind, I calmed my racing heart and stood up.


    "Earlier... What exactly were you trying to say?"


    I sorted out the rest of my thoughts, finally regaining myposure.


    The more I let my emotions get the better of me, the more I''d get caught up in her pace.


    "You know, it''s really quite amazing you made it this far on your own. Sure you''ve got your tablet and someone helping you, but like, that doesn''t change the fact that you walked here with your own two legs. You must''ve had quite a hard time lying to your fellow group members too. After all, breaking away from your groupes with quite a bit of risk, now doesn''t it? You toe the line of expulsion more and more by cutting back on the points you earn��"


    Once again, Amasawa knocked me off my feet and proceeded to look down on me from above.


    "However, cute lil'' Kushida-senpai wouldn''t overlook something so simple, now would she? Even if your actions put your group''s position at risk and you sank to the bottom of the leaderboards, I assume you''ve at least saved up the private points needed to ensure your own survival, yes?"


    Needless to say, her assumption hit right on the money.


    I was only acting so recklessly because I had secured the two million points necessary to stay out of danger.


    1.3 million of which hade from my own pocket, with ''that guy'' having supplied me the rest.


    "I''ll never lose... No matter what, I''ll never give up until the very end..."


    "Well then~, just how do you n on doing that~? Seems to me like you''re putty in my hands right now, Senpai."


    What Amasawa was saying was true, but...


    "��So what? Sure you''ve been able to mess with me, but when exactly did I lose?"


    The mes of determination burning within me would never be extinguished because of something so trivial.


    Instead of feeling shaken, I gradually began to regain a hold over my emotions.


    There was no need to panic. This just meant that I''d have to get rid of Amasawa as well. I''d get rid of anyone and everyone that got in my way.


    But, that wasn''t the only thing.


    "Oh...? This is far more than I imagined. You sure are one nasty bitch, Kushida-senpai, but there''s still one thing I admire about you. Your strength, strength in a mental sense that is, is quite praiseworthy. Rather than fear, it''s more like you''re overflowing with hatred. And it''s not just directed at me, but at anyone who finds out the truth about your past."


    Without so much as brushing the dirt and mud off my jersey, I stood back up again, just as I would no matter how many times it would take.


    If I had to, I''d even knock Amasawa off her feet right here, right now.


    "Don''t bother. You wouldn''t stand a chance against me even if I had my hands tied. Toodles~, Kushida-senpai~"


    She spoke as if she knew exactly what I was nning and proceeded to turn her back to me, giving me a perfect opportunity to throw myself at her.


    There was nothing going through my mind other than the tantalizing thought of pushing her over and pinning her down against the ground.


    However, she had apparently predicted that I''d do this as she effortlessly sidestepped my strike just in the nick of time.


    Not even a secondter, my legs were swept out from under me as I found myself crashing down yet again. This had happened so many times now that I had lost count.


    "G-gah...! Shit!"


    "We don''t get along very well, do we Senpai? I know you treat other people''s secrets like weapons to get what you want, but I don''t have any you can use against me. Even if you try to threaten me with violence, I''m stronger than most boys are. I''m also not particrly close with anyone, so taking a hostage won''t work either. If I had toe up with something, I suppose Ayanok��ji-senpai could be considered somewhat of a weakness, but... for someone like you, beating him would be just about as difficult as beating me. Are we on the same page?"


    She prattled on and on with the same kind of condescendingly casual tone that a shitty teacher would use.


    "Well, how about you, like, give up now? I''ve still gotta go see Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "...What are you gonna do? Tell him I''ve been stalking him?"


    "No no, I already told you there''s no point in doing that, silly. He already knows. But, who knows, maybe things''ll y out exactly how you want them to, Kushida-senpai. Maybe this little spat with Nanase will end up with Ayanok��ji-senpai getting kicked out of school. Sounds like your dreame true."


    "...After Ayank��ji''s out of here, it''ll be your turn... I''ll crush you for sure."


    "Aww, Kushida-senpai~. That''s cute, but the oue of our match was decided before it even began. I get that having those who know your secret expelled is your only way of protecting yourself, but that really only works with gentlemen like Ayanok��ji-senpai who don''t go around telling everybody the truth. If it were me, I''d do everything in my power to make sure your secret gets out before leaving the school, you do know that right?"


    "Hah...! Don''t make meugh. It''s true a shitty brat like you''d probably go and run their mouth about it, but it''s not like anyone would believe you. Most would probably pass it off as nonsense from someone who''s about to be expelled."


    "Well, sure? I doubt that very many would believe everything I say. However, it''d still manage to put a crack in the superficially wless persona of ''Kushida Kiky��'' you''ve created for yourself. Isn''t that more than enough?"


    Having apparently said all that she felt necessary, Amasawa disappeared into the forest, headed toward where Ayanok��ji and Nanase were.


    It wouldn''t be impossible for me to chase after her, but if I did... there wasn''t a doubt in my mind that she''d respond mercilessly.


    She''d probably choose to spread the secrets I hold without the slightest hesitation.


    And that would spell myplete and utter defeat.


    I sat in the forest alone, paralyzed, staring up at the sky.


    Ever so faintly, raindrops began to fall through the gaps of the dense foliage above.


    Theynded on my cheeks and proceeded to trickle down the back of my neck.


    "I... What am I even doing...?"


    I voiced my spiritless words to myself. Everything felt hollow. So much so that I couldn''t even find it in me to feel angry.


    First Ayanok��ji and now Amasawa... people threatening to disturb my calm, peaceful life kept showing up one after the other.


    No... It wasn''t just those two.


    They weren''t the only reasons why I had been forced to grovel with my knees down in the mud here today.


    I began to recall where all of this had started... The reason why it had ended up like this in the first ce.

 Chapter 112: 8.4

    <h4>Chapter 112: 8.4</h4>


    On the fifth day of my time on the uninhabited ind, I encountered a lone first-year student.


    Simply running into another student wasn''t a particrly unusual urrence. If one had been left to travel as they pleased throughout such a vast, spacious ind, it''s only natural that they''d eventually cross paths with someone, be they a ssmate or not. But such instances were, for the most part, merely coincidences.


    However, as far as this specific encounter was concerned, things were a little different. I had been contacted via a walkie-talkie I had secretly been entrusted with, and deliberately made arrangements to meet with this student ahead of time.


    After all, given the circumstances, I had no other choice but to meet up in person. I was greeted with a smiling face when we finally saw one another, a smile that I responded to with my own as I drew closer.


    And then, after confirming that there was nobody else in the surrounding area, I broke the ice.


    "I received your report over the walkie-talkie this morning. You''re going to exin what happened, right?"


    After a brief pause with no response, I decided to tack on the first-year student''s name as well.


    "Yagami-kun."


    The de-facto leader of ss 1-B: Yagami Takuya.


    "Thank you very much foring all the way out here on such short notice."


    "You can drop the formalities. I''m asking you to exin yourself."


    In response to my urgency, Yagami averted his gaze as if troubled by something.


    Shortly thereafter, he turned back and locked eyes with me once again.


    "Things have their way of taking a turn for the unexpected from time to time, Kushida-senpai."


    The way he spoke as though this was someone else''s problem absolutely infuriated me.


    It didn''t seem like this was going to get anywhere with me continuing to hide behind my mask.


    "What do you mean ''unexpected''? It''s your fault that those first-years found out about my past, right?"


    Back when Yagami contacted me this morning, he told me that a group of first-year students, Takahashi Osamu from ss 1-A, Tsubaki Sakurako and Utomiya Riku from ss 1-C, and H��sen Kazuomi from ss 1-D, had pressured him into confessing about me. Allegedly, the four of them had been suspicious of our rtionship from fairly early on and it had apparently been impossible for Yagami to talk his way out of it.


    This was by no means a problem that could just be swept under the rug with the type of half-assed response he was giving me.


    "Please allow me to apologize for that."


    "Seriously? Even if you apologize, it''s not like it''s gonna change anything."


    There were now four more people who knew my secret.


    At this point, there was nothing I could do about it on my own anymore.


    "Tsubaki-san and the others had been more informed than I anticipated. It was a surprise for me too."


    "A surprise? How stupid."


    "Please calm down Kushida-senpai. Tsubaki-san and the other first-years aren''t what''s important right now."


    "What?"


    "Their objective is purely to get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled from the school. I don''t think they''re very interested in what your past is like, Kushida-senpai."


    It didn''t matter if they were interested in it or not.


    I simply couldn''t stand the thought of living in the same general space as someone who had their hands on my sensitive information.


    Just why couldn''t anyone else understand that?


    "Besides, those four are all first-year students. They basically have nothing to do with a second-year like you, Kushida-senpai."


    "Hah! Don''t make meugh... You do know we''re in the middle of fighting each other on a freaking ind right now, right? When the timees that I have to go against them, they''ll have something to lord over my head!"


    Inevitably, this would end up putting me at a disadvantage.


    If they ckmailed me with the threat of disclosing everything, it wouldn''t matter what school year they were in; I''d have no choice but toply with their every demand.


    "Yes, I suppose that''s true. Looking at it from Senpai''s perspective, that must be awfully important."


    Yagami conceded, admitting to understanding where I wasing from.


    "That being said, it would be nigh-impossible to get those four expelled right now. Or am I wrong?"


    "Are you looking down on me? You''d best not get too carried away."


    "...I''m sorry. However, I still feel as though I made the best choice at the time."


    How exactly was it the ''best choice'' to b about my secrets without my permission?


    I just barely managed to suppress the urge to sock him right in the nose as he continued.


    "Do you remember what I told you back on the cruise ship? About how I was devising a strategy to expel Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    Of course I remembered that.


    Yagami hade up with a secret n to force Ayanok��ji out of school, one that he was going to implement once we were actually on the ind.


    However, he had only handed me a walkie-talkie at the time, leaving me in the dark about the exact details of what he was up to.


    "For your sake, Kushida-senpai, I''ll add on a few things to my strategy."


    "Add on?"


    "Once Ayanok��ji-senpai has been dealt with, I''ll make sure to have those four... unwee individuals shown to the exit as well. That should take care of the problem, right?"


    Yagami spoke without so much as a trace of guilt lining his voice.


    "For now, let''s think about getting a leg up on the rest of them. As it currently stands, even if Ayanok��ji-senpai''s expulsion goes by without a hitch, most of the credit will go to Tsubaki-san and the rest of ss 1-C. You and I won''t get a veryrge cut of the 20 million."


    "I don''t care about the points."


    "I understand, but having a huge sum of points at your disposal makes for a better safety to fall back on."


    This entire time, I had been reluctantly going along with all of Yagami''s ideas.


    Even if I didn''t want to, I didn''t really have any other choice given the situation I was in.


    However, I was at my limit. I couldn''t afford to sit around on this sinking ship any longer.


    "I''m done with you. It''s already clear enough that I decided to follow the wrong person."


    I hadn''te all the way here today just to have Yagami order me around like this.


    Rather, I came to draw the line and distance myself from him.


    "You can stille back from this."


    "It''s already toote."


    "No, it isn''t toote at all. In fact, I''d say that this is your chance."


    "Wha...?"


    "Currently, Ayanok��ji-senpai has his hands full with Nanase-san clinging onto him."


    "Nanase? Isn''t she that girl from ss 1-D? Don''t tell me she als��"


    "Please don''t worry. You can rest assured that Nanase-san knows nothing about your past, Senpai."


    "You know I can''t trust anything you say anymore, right?"


    "I truly apologize for betraying your trust. But, please, at least hear me out."


    Even though I had been making it painfully clear how irritated I was for quite a while now, Yagami simply refused to stop talking.


    "I told you previously that she''s working with H��sen-kun to try and get Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled, right? Well, I have a general idea of what their strategy is this time around as well."


    "...So? What is it? Talk."


    "Given that H��sen-kun is the one who came up with it, I''m fairly certain it''ll revolve around violence."


    "Violence? That''d be problematic, but I guess the Acting Director did say the school would be looking past any minor disputes that popped up between students. I can''t imagine that''d be enough to warrant expulsion though."


    "If it''s nothing more than a light scuffle, then yeah, that might be true. But what if it''s violent to the point of turning into a gruesome bloodbath? What then?"


    "H��sen certainly seems brutal enough to do something like that, but he''ll be the only one expelled if Ayanok��ji one-sidedly gets his ass handed to him, right?"


    Although Ayanok��ji would be disqualified from the exam due to his injuries, I found it hard to believe that he would be expelled on top of that.


    "I don''t think H��sen-kun will be the one squaring off with Ayanok��ji-senpai this time. As you said, H��sen-kun''s already got a bit of a reputation, so if a fight were to break out, he''d bear the brunt of the school''s suspicion."


    "If you say that, then..."


    "Yes. The one facing off with Ayanok��ji-senpai will instead be Nanase-san. Although, even if she raises her hand against him, I can''t imagine that he''ll strike back right away. However, if she really puts her all into it, he''ll inevitably have to do something to keep her at bay. Perhaps he''ll actually end up hitting her? Or maybe he''ll get on top of her and pin her down? Either way, the spectacle would surely be quite unsightly."


    Indeed, if those two were to duke it out with each other... well, needless to say, it would be a big deal.


    "So... You''re saying their n is to have Nanase tell the school that Ayanok��ji beat her up...?"


    "Precisely, and that''s why we need to keep an eye on her. Once she takes action, we''ll strike while the iron is hot."


    "Say you''re right about all of this, it''s not like we can do anything if we don''t know when the fight''ll happen, right? It''s not like we can just hover around them 24-7."


    "I''ve already got that covered. A certain somebody told me which day it''ll be taking ce."


    "A certain somebody...?"


    "While I can''t disclose their identity, they''re definitely trustworthy. Anyway, Nanase-san will be making her move on the seventh day of the exam. Though the exact timeframe is still unclear, chances are that once they''ve gotten somewhere remote enough..."


    Then and there, things would start getting ugly.


    "So, what exactly is your n here? Your n to get a leg up on the other first-years?"


    "Our tabletse with the ability to record videos, right? If we use that to record their fight, it''d be possible for us to get our hands on incriminating video evidence."


    If we turned the video evidence of their fight over to the school, expulsion would certainly be on the table.


    "But, a single video might not be enough to guarantee his expulsion."


    "It''d at least be enough to use as a threat. It''s even possible that he might choose to drop out on his own ord."


    I understood the gist of what Yagami was trying to tell me.


    If it really ended up ying out the way he said it would, taking a recording would indeed give us the upper hand.


    "I''d like to entrust the job of recording the video to you, Kushida-senpai."


    "Huh? Why does it have to be me...? Can''t you just do it yourself?"


    "Compared to me, it won''t seem unnatural if you''re the one approaching him."


    "That''s what you think. Ayanok��ji''s already super wary of me."


    "I''m a guy. At some level, it''d be expected of me to step up and intervene if a fight were to break out in front of me, making it too suspicious if I were to just stand there and take a video. However, you''d have the excuse of just being a delicate, terrified girl who, despite not being brave enough to intervene directly, at least managed to turn on her tablet and record what was happening. You''d be able to represent righteousness, refusing to cower in the face of injustice even though the perpetrator was a fellow ssmate."


    "While righteousness is great and all, I might end up being scorned by my peers for selling out one of my own."


    "In that case, you can just give the video to me. I''ll just say I got it from an anonymous source and leave it at that."


    Yagami was trying his best to persuade me, but as far as I was concerned, I was perfectly fine with letting Nanase or whoever else get rid of Ayanok��ji for me.


    That being said, it''d also be worthwhile for me to put in the effort if it meant increasing the odds of sess, even if only by 1%.


    "I just don''t want to be on a sinking ship any longer."


    "Naturally."


    "... So what''s your role in all of this? Are you just gonna pile this on me and wash your hands of it?"


    "Of course not. On the day of, I''ll be providing you back up over the walkie-talkie. Once the ''GPS Search'' feature is made avable tomorrow, I''ll be able to ry Ayanok��ji-senpai''s location to you at any time. That way, you''ll be able to maintain a safe distance while you tail them. Plus..."


    "Plus?"


    "There''s a chance Tsubaki-san is conspiring something too. She might try and pull something at the same time as us, so I''ll be poking around to try and find out what they''re up to as well."


    "What about that Utomiya guy you''re in a group with?"


    "He''s nothing more than Tsubaki-san''s pawn. There''s no need to worry about him being up to anything."


    It was important, if not necessary, to take anything Yagami had to say with a grain of salt.


    But right now, I didn''t really have much of a say in the matter anyway.


    "You''ll do it for me, right Kushida-senpai?"


    "...It''s not like I''ve got any other choice."


    There was no way out for me anymore.


    For the sake of protecting my position at this school... My status...


    I couldn''t afford to allow myself any more mistakes.

 Chapter 113: Epilogue: The Seeds of Unrest

    <h4>Chapter 113: Epilogue: The Seeds of Unrest</h4>


    "What a bother..."


    It was just past 7:00 AM on the seventh day of the exam, a time at which most groups would already be headed off to their first designated area. Ichinose Honami, however, simply let out a deep sigh as she stared down at the watch fastened onto her right wrist. Dark grey clouds lined the overcast skies above, threatening to drop their rain at a moment''s notice.


    "Ichinose, is it really broken?"


    Shibata S��, a fellow group member, asked as he peered down at her watch.


    "Yeah, seems like it. I think it happened this morning when I fell by the river and hit it on a rock."


    She had already tried everything she could think of to fix it once she noticed that it wasn''t working properly.


    But despite her best efforts, she hadn''t been able to get the GPS and heart rate monitor to function at all.


    Nothing showed up on the map when she tried to confirm her current position on her tablet either.


    With a broken watch, she wouldn''t be able to earn points from any designated areas or Tasks.


    Absolutely nothing good woulde from leaving it like this.


    "I guess we should be grateful we''re not on the other side of the ind, huh?"


    "Yeah, that''s for sure."


    Ichinose and her fellow group members were currently in the southwest of area E6. While the walk back to the starting area would only take about two hours, it would be fairly dangerous for her to make the trip on her own with a broken GPS.


    "For the time being, it looks like we''ll have no choice but to go back."


    Shibata sounded a bit peeved, but from the tone of his voice it was obvious that he wasn''t cing the me on Ichinose.


    "But��"


    Their first designated area of the day was area D5.


    In other words, they''d have to move in pretty much the opposite direction of the starting area.


    So not only would she have to miss out on the valuable Arrival Bonus, but the entire group would lose out on the chance to earn any Early Bird Bonuses as well. Though Ichinose understood what she had to do, she instead looked back at the three people, Kamuro, Hashimoto, and Ninomiya, who were waiting to depart behind her.


    "Well, since it''s busted I guess there''s no helping it, right Masumi-chan?"


    "If you head out now, you might make it back in time for the third area."


    As Hashimoto and Kamuro chimed in, Ninomiya, a fellow ssmate, also nodded along in agreement.


    From what it sounded like, it didn''t seem like any of them held this against her.


    Ichinose felt happy about this, but at the same time feelings of guilt began to well up inside her.


    Two days earlier, on the fifth day of the exam, Ichinose''s group had taken first ce in a Task that allowed groups to increase their maximum size, sessfully earning the right to take on three more people. And on the sixth day, they used the GPS Searching feature to merge with Hashimoto''s group, only for trouble to strike the very next morning.


    "Sorry you guys. I''ll definitely be back in time for the third designation."


    Now that a course of action had been decided on, every second mattered. She would need to move quickly in order to make her way back to her friends as soon as possible.


    "Well, guess I''ll stick with Ichinose."


    After Shibata''s self-nomination, Ichinose buckled down and together, the two of them set off toward the south.


    "Sorry Shibata-kun, for having to apany me like this."


    "It''s not like there''s anything you could''ve done about it, so don''t sweat the apology."


    "Yeah, that''s fair I guess."


    Just like that, Ichinose and Shibata spent the next hour or so walking south along the river until they arrived at area E9.


    By the time they stepped foot on the sandy beach, the starting area was close at hand.


    "We''re going a lot faster than I expected. Good work."


    All they needed to do now was push westward and they''d eventually turn up near the port.


    Even if they moved slowly, this final leg of the journey would only take less than half an hour.


    However, that meant that the round trip would take around an hour, so time was still of the essence.


    "Shibata-kun, why don''t you just head for the next designated area from here?"


    "No way. Even though it''s close, isn''t it still dangerous for you to head back alone? The forest is like a maze, you know that. And yeah it''s still daytime and all, but it''s really cloudy today, so rain..."


    Shibata looked up at the sky as he trailed off. It was currently 8:00 AM, and while it wasn''t raining yet, there was no telling when the weather would take a turn for the worse.


    "Yeah, I know it''s dangerous, but I should be able to make it back to the port from here without getting lost. If we want to catch up to the top groups, we can''t afford to miss out on even a single point. Besides, if it does start raining, we might not be able to meet back up with the others."


    Though it was somewhat greedy, Ichinose felt strongly that they should go after as many points as possible.


    "I just need to walk in a straight line. I''ll be fine."


    At the very least, she wanted to get Shibata back onto the field quickly so he could earn points for the group.


    As the one holding everyone back, she simply wanted to minimize the burden.


    "...Alright, but please don''t do anything foolish. If it starts raining, don''t try to force it, just wait until it stops, okay?"


    "Yep, I definitely won''t overdo it. After all, it''d be noughing matter if I got injured and was made to retire because of it."


    After promising to be careful, Ichinose waved her hand, urging Shibata to meet back up with Hashimoto and the others.


    And then, with the general directions Shibata had given still fresh in her mind, she set foot into the forest. Even if she couldn''t make it in time for the next designated area, her resolve to get back in time for the third drove her to keep pushing forward.


    Her feet moved even faster than her racing mind, eager to avoid wasting any time.


    Given that she hadn''t spotted a single person since she split off from Shibata, there didn''t seem to be anyone else in the area. Originally, she thought that she''d be able to ask another group for help if the need arose, but as time went by, she realized just how naive that line of thinking had truly been.


    After trudging forward for about ten minutes, the already-poor visibility of dimly-lit forest gradually began to deteriorate.


    The cause for this was obvious: the grey clouds lining the sky had be even thicker and darker than before.


    Though Ichinose had every intention of walking in a straight line, the dense thicket of trees standing in her way had other ns.


    The path, if you could even call it that, was treacherous. The moment she worked her way around one tree, two more would already be lying in wait just ahead.


    As time went by, she eventually began to lose confidence that she was walking straight at all.


    "Why does it feel like everything''s gone terribly wrong for some reason...?"


    A quietugh of self-derision crept past her lips. She had no choice but to keep pushing forward.


    After all, the port should theoretically only be a couple hundred meters away.


    She continued walking for twenty more minutes or so before finallying to a stop, at aplete and utter loss for what to do.


    If she hadn''t taken a wrong turn at some point, she definitely would''ve arrived at the port by now.


    "What... What am I even doing...?"


    She tried checking her tablet again, but just as before, her current location didn''t show on the map.


    Even if she attempted to head back the way she came, there was no guaranteeing that she''d be able to do so.


    Ichinose wasn''t usually the type to make rash decisions like this, but ever since her ss fell down to ss C, she found herself acting more and more impatient.


    But despite this impatience, she had sessfully managed to form a formidable group at the request of ss A''s leader, Sakayanagi.


    Therefore, in order to maintain parity with ss A, she needed now more than ever to demonstrate herpetency.


    She had no idea where she was or where she was going, but she had an obligation to push forward nheless.


    Where should she go? Which direction?


    So as to dispel the anxious questions running through her mind, Ichinose steeled herself and took a right step forward.


    Just then, a noise, ever so faint, came from somewhere up ahead.


    She momentarily deliberated over whether or not to shout out, excited by the prospect of running into somebody else, but she couldn''t discount the possibility that it had just been a wild animal of some sort.


    Thinking that she might as well just go and take a look for herself, Ichinose quietly began to move toward the source of the sound.


    Before long, the figures of two people came into view: Tsukishiro, the school''s Acting Director, and Shiba, the homeroom teacher of ss 1-D.


    Upon seeing them, Ichinose let out a deep, prolonged sigh of relief since she could now ask for directions to the port.


    However...


    She quickly realized that was the same naive line of thinking that had gotten her into this situation in the first ce. Even though this was an ident, that didn''t change the fact that she was currently in the middle of a special exam. Given that, it didn''t seem very likely that they would give her directions if she told them that she had lost her way.


    And while it would be one thing if her watch had broken due to some technical issue, given that she was the one who had broken it, well... If they were to chalk it up as her own responsibility, this precious chance to get out of the forest would slip through her fingers.


    Therefore, she wanted to find a way to hold onto the chance instead.


    A thought came to mind: that it might be for the best to just follow after them.


    They''d ideally just go back to the starting area from here, but if they ended up heading off to an uing Task site instead, other students would be bound to show up sooner orter. Either way, by following them she''d probably manage to avoid the worst-case scenario.


    After thinking about it for a bit longer, she ultimately settled on tailing them from behind.


    Since they seemed to be immersed in a conversation of some sort as they walked, she figured that she would be rtively hard to notice. And even in the off chance she did get caught, she didn''t think it''d be a very big deal as long as she feigned ignorance.


    "I asked you to confirm whether or not we''re in the clear to freely take action. How about it?"


    "It seems that will be difficult. I''ve found evidence to suggest that the teachers are keeping a keen eye on us. Among them, Mashima seems to be on particrly high alert..."


    The sound of their voices traveled clearly throughout the quiet, tranquil forest, allowing Ichinose to make out most of what they were saying.


    Though, she wasn''t very interested in the contents of their conversation, so she didn''t listen in very closely, choosing to focus primarily on staying concealed instead.


    "Aside from him, there''s one other teacher of note: Chabashira, ss 2-D''s homeroom teacher. She''s been searching through all the logs and records."


    "It''s because dragging the teachers into this was one of the few viable options he had left. Be it Chabashira-sensei or Mashima-sensei, there''s no doubt in my mind that their actions link back to Ayanok��ji-kun. Since Ayanok��ji-kun happened to be at the scene back then, it''s only natural that he managed to figure out the truth."


    However, everything changed the moment a certain, unexpected name came up.


    Ichinose held her breath with newfound interest.


    Ayanok��ji.


    A name that subconsciously made her heart throb whenever she heard it.


    The two men came to aplete stop before continuing, perhaps due to the sudden mention of this very name.


    "I''ve already altered the logs on our end, so I don''t believe they''ll be able to trace anything."


    "Thank you for that. However, they still might get their hands on something. If so, we''re not going to get another chance. We have to be sure to corner him this time."


    "Will it really be that simple to force his expulsion though? He''s the ������ of the White Room."


    "People are always so caught up with titles. He''s just a ������, that''s ������."


    White Room?


    Despite straining her ears to try andprehend what had been said, Ichinose couldn''t quite make out some of the words.


    The wind had suddenly picked up strength, the sound of the gale drowning out their voices.


    Ayanok��ji''s name together with the word ''expulsion'' ceaselessly echoed throughout her mind. Of all people, why were the Acting Director and a first-year teacher talking about something like that? Desperate to make out just a little bit more of their conversation, Ichinose unconsciously began to close the distance, a distance she otherwise knew she ought to maintain.


    "If he keeps ������ until thest day, let''s ������ him disappear in I2 ������ nned."


    Ichinose felt pretty certain that they wouldn''t be able to hear her, but just as she drew close enough to make out the gist of what was being said... At that very moment...


    The Acting Director''s head snapped backward, staring on with a sharp, pointed gaze.


    ''Danger''


    Her intuition, or perhaps her instincts, cried out this one word,pelling her to turn her back and run off as fast as her legs could carry her.


    However, her backpack weighed far too much, preventing her from picking up speed. As a snap judgment, she unbuckled the fasteners and hurled it into the thicket with as much strength as she could muster. If they were to pick it up, they''d be able to pin down her identity by looking at the tablet inside, but Ichinose was currently far too frantic to act with that level of foresight.


    While she was pretty sure that they hadn''t seen her face, there wasn''t a doubt in her mind that they had realized that someone was eavesdropping on them. That alone, she was certain of.


    Their entire conversation just now... was something she was never supposed to hear.


    It was a premonition, one that chilled her down to her very bones as she continued to run.


    She could definitely get away from them just fine, right?


    And there was definitely no way that they, of all people, woulde and chase her down, right?


    Yeah, everything was definitely going to be fine... Right?


    Definitely. Definitely. Definitely...


    From behind, the sound of twigs breaking and leaves crumbling underfoot could be heard. While Ichinose wasn''t that confident in her physical capabilities, she was very proud of her speed.


    Left, right, straight, the direction didn''t matter anymore.


    She just kept running,pletely lost within the forest, losing further control with every mindless step she took.


    There was a strange, almost surreal feeling that came with bearing witness to something that shouldn''t be seen.


    And it was that very feeling that drove her forward.


    "!!!"


    Ichinose''s eyes had been glued to the path ahead as she ran, sparing not even a single nce to where she had been cing her feet. So, in the midst of her delirium, her foot inevitably got caught on something, sending her toppling down to the forest floor. When she looked back, she saw the apparent culprit: arge tree root protruding up and out of the ground.


    Although there was a sharp, biting pain in her knee due to her fall, she endured it, doing what she could to try and get back up on her feet again.


    Just as she slowly began to put weight back into her legs, arge hand reached out and mped down on her left shoulder from behind.


    Ichinose immediately froze in ce, surprised to the point where her heart nearly stopped, and fearfully looked over her shoulder.


    "...If I''m not mistaken, you''re Ichinose Honami from ss 2-C, correct?"


    Intimidated by Shiba''s strong gaze, Ichinose sank back down to the ground again.


    "Ah- Uh- Y-yes, that''s correct..."


    With her rear end now on the forest floor, she tried desperately to scramble backward, but there was simply no escaping his discerning gaze.


    He stood, towering over Ichinose, his eyes filled with indecipherable emotion.


    "Why are you here?"


    "U-uhm, well, it seems that my watch is broken, so... I was going to get it looked at..."


    "I see. So that''s why there aren''t any GPS signals nearby."


    After a brief pause, he continued.


    "It doesn''t really matter how much you heard. Even if it was only a couple of words, for you to get yourself involved in this, well... it simply means you were unlucky."


    "Are... Are you saying that I''m going to be penalized for something?"


    "It has nothing to do with the school''s rules or penalties. We''re just going to have to dispose of you. Immediately."


    At that, Shiba slowly began to reach for Ichinose.


    "It''s a bit premature to resort to such violent methods, Shiba-sensei."


    Tsukishiro, having shown up slightlyte with Ichinose''s backpack in hand, spoke up to rein Shiba back in.


    "Yes, forgive me."


    At that, the Acting Director turned and looked at Ichinose with an ominous smile on his face.


    "Let''s go about this formally. Did you happen to hear anything, Ichinose-san?"


    "N-not at all. I didn''t hear anything..."


    Of course, that was a lie.


    While it had only been a few bits and pieces, Ichinose had indeed overheard their unsettling conversation.


    But no matter what she chose to say in response, they probably weren''t going to believe her anyway.


    "I''m not so naive as to trust those words of yours. As adults, we always have to assume the worst and act ordingly, so I have no choice but to proceed under the premise that you heard everything."


    Tsukishiro stood before Ichinose with an evaluative look in his eyes.


    And then, he crouched down to match her gaze with his own.


    "idental as it may have been, you still heard it all. Information that should''ve never reached your ears, and yet, here we are."


    Shiba simply stood back as he watched his superior, seemingly afraid of where it was headed.


    "If our conversation earlier were to leak to the public, Shiba-sensei and I would be in a great deal of trouble."


    "I-I really didn''t hear anyth��"


    "That''s not true. I''m speaking now under the firm premise that you did, remember?"


    Being told this, Ichinose could only swallow her bated breath.


    "Should we perhaps roughen you up a bit until you forget the memory, Ichinose-san? Your retirement would be soon to follow."


    Seeing her cower in fear, Tsukishiro smiled and stood back up.


    "I say that jokingly, of course. As the one entrusted with protecting this school, I would never truly say something like that. I too would like to avoid a violent solution if at all possible. Therefore, I''ll offer you a proposal. If you tell a soul about any of this, I''ll personally see to it that a groupposed entirely of ss 2-C students retires from the exam."


    "...!"


    "Naturally, this would be a group that doesn''t have the private points they''d need to save themselves."


    This was a slightly nicer way of saying that they would be subject to ''mandatory expulsion''.


    "Do you perhaps think it''d be impossible for me to do such a thing? As the man in control of the rules, fabricating a justification would be trivial. There''s no telling what might happen, especially out here on such an unsupervised, vast deserted ind."


    Tsukishiro narrowed his gaze, peering down at the terrified Ichinose.


    It was his way of tacitly asking her if she understood.


    "Acting Director Tsukishiro, rather than showing such leniency, wouldn''t it be better to exercise your authority here? If Ichinose were to disappear, I doubt that Chabashira and Mashima would notice. Those two are only cautious when ites to matters regarding Ayanok��ji."


    "You have a point. Well then, what do you think should be done instead, Shiba-sensei?"


    Without so much as a second thought, Shiba took out a pair of rubber gloves from his pocket.


    "If you''re willing to leave it to me, I''ll handle her myself."


    Any and all hopes that Ichinose had of getting away were long gone by now, leaving her with no choice but to wait for her sentencing as the two men discussed how to deal with her.


    From the mortified look on her face, it was clear that she couldn''t even begin to imagine what Shiba intended to do once he put on the gloves.


    The sight caused Tsukishiro to let show a tender smile.


    "Well, I''d rather not waste any more time on this."


    Saying that, Tsukishiro set down the backpack he was holding in front of Ichinose before stepping away again.


    "The port is located about 150 meters straight ahead of us. Do get going, if you would."


    "Y-yes sir...!"


    Ovee with a sense of panic, Ichinose hurriedly put on her backpack, desperate to get away as quickly as possible.


    "It''s not your enemies that you should be protecting, but your own ssmates. It would do you well to keep that in mind."


    Ichinose nodded in response before promptly setting off in the direction Tsukishiro had indicated.


    Once she had disappeared into the forest, Shiba sent a look of confusion toward Tsukishiro.


    "It''s fine. Just leave her be."


    "Are you sure? If she mentions this to Ayanok��ji, it''ll interfere with the n."


    He simply couldn''t shake the thought that there were still loose ends that ought to be dealt with somehow.


    "Unexpected setbacks happen all the time. That being the case, we''ll just have to adapt."


    Shiba still seemed visibly apprehensive about this, unable to perceive Tsukishiro''s true intentions.


    "Are you really that worried? I thought I gave her a rather effective warning."


    If she were to go back on her word, several of her ssmates would be expelled. Although it was just a threat, for someone like Ichinose who prioritized her ssmates above all else, it would''ve seemed far more real.


    "Regardless of her rtionship with Ayanok��ji-kun, the elimination of a formidable enemy like him would be great for ss C. She herself will alsoe to terms with that as time passes, so let''s just stay calm and see what happens, shall we?"


    A raindrop fell upon Tsukishiro''s cheek.


    "I was 99% certain that Nanase-san would fail, but it seems that she''s finally taken action. If everything goes ording to n, Ayanok��ji-kun''s Emergency Alert should go off any time now."


    Tsukishiro was perfectly calm as he spoke, without even the slightest trace of uncertainty in his voice.


    An outlook made possible thanks to his unwavering conviction.


    1


    The pouring rain began to get stronger.


    Having taken the time to cool her head ande to terms with her own feelings, Nanase spoke with a heavy tone.


    "It''s my loss... Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Can I take that to mean you''re finally convinced?"


    "Yes. It seems that, despite my best efforts, it truly isn''t possible for me to beat you Senpai."


    Having been seen through to her very core, she seemed resigned, as if all the spite and malice from earlier had been drained away.


    Making her stand down withoutying a finger on her had, in a way, been sessful.


    "If possible, how about you exin everything in detail? Why were you targeting me? If we don''t clear this up, there will be several issuester."


    "That''s fair. You have a right to know�� No, I want you to know, Senpai."


    She sat down as she spoke, having lost the strength to stay standing any longer.


    While her movements hadn''t been those of an ordinary person, it still didn''t seem like she was the White Room student.


    Her strength was definitely praiseworthy. So much so that she probably wouldn''t lose out against an opponent like Horikita or Ibuki.


    Compared to someone who hails from the White Room, however, she was far too rough around the edges.


    Moreover, it would be strange for the White Room student to bring up Matsuo''s name, of all things.


    So, in order to find out the truth, I patiently waited for her answer.


    "I... I enrolled in this school because I wanted to avenge my childhood friend."


    "Your childhood friend? You mean��"


    "Yes. Matsuo Eiichiro."


    I felt all but certain that she was referring to the son of the very butler who had taken care of me in the past.


    "I hadn''t truly realized it before enrolling here, but since this school ispletely isted from the outside world, there''s no way you could''ve known what happened, is there?"


    To her credit, Nanase wasn''t exactly wrong for thinking this. However, in this case, I happened to know at least a little bit about what had happened to the Matsuo family. After all, ''that man'' had mentioned it back when he had shown up to take me back to the White Room.


    At this point, Nanase calmly began to tell me everything.


    How Eiichiro had been forcibly expelled from the high school he had worked so hard to get into due to my father''s relentless scheming.


    How, no matter which school he tried to apply for afterward, he ended up suffering the exact same fate, eventually leading to him giving up on pursuing higher education altogether.


    How, upon finding out about this, his father hadmitted suicide, burning himself to death.


    And how, after his father''s death, he was left to do what he could to make ends meet by working a part-time job.


    Even though ''that man'' had already told me all of this, I simply chose to hold my tongue and listen.


    "From kindergarten up until the day he graduated from middle school, I was always together with Eiichiro-kun. He was a year above me and better than me at just about anything, from studies to the games we yed together... He was my inspiration, my role model."


    Nanase''s calm voice gradually began to grow heavier.


    "Even after he was kicked out of his home, Eiichiro-kun said he wouldn''t give up until the very end, and that''s when he started working. While we weren''t able to see each other as often, I didn''t think the rtionship between us would change."


    She continued without pause, speaking as though she was reliving the past.


    "Even though he had given up on his education... Even though he had lost his father... He told me that he wouldn''t give up... That he''d look toward the future and try his best... He even smiled... And yet..."


    Nanase''s voice began to shake, her fists clenched.


    "Earlier this year, on the evening of February 14th, I paid a visit to Eiichiro-kun''s apartment. He was trying so hard, so I was hoping to at least make him feel a little bit better, but��"


    Even without hearing the end of it, I could tell exactly where she was going with this:


    That, despite all his hard work, Matsuo Eiichiro had ultimately chosen to give up on his own life.


    "''If you can never meet again, then you''ll never be able to tell them how you feel.'' You said it yourself."


    I was reminded of what she said back when she was consoling Ike on the second day of the exam.


    In her case, she had been far toote for regrets. Heartfelt words would indeed be meaningless when said to a corpse.


    "I didn''t know very much about you or your father at the time. In fact, I had only just sent out my application to another high school when... that person appeared before me."


    "You mean Tsukishiro?"


    "Yes. Back then, Acting Director Tsukishiro told me why Eiichiro-kun''s life had been thrown into turmoil. He said that the root cause of all of it had been that someone named Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka had escaped from an establishment called ''The White Room'' by enrolling at a school named ''Advanced Nurturing High School'', and that he had made arrangements for me to enroll there myself."


    And so, she had taken him up on the offer in order to seek vengeance for the death of her childhood friend.


    "If I could sessfully get you expelled, he promised to let me meet your father, Senpai. Truth be told, I was going to ask your father to bow his head and apologize to Eiichiro-kun, but..."


    Even if she somehow managed to get me expelled, there was simply no way ''that man'' would ever choose to bow his head.


    Her words would''ve never managed to get through to him. Of that, I was certain.


    I was able to see the bigger picture at this point, but there were still several things that I didn''t understand.


    "Tsukishiro told me that he had sent in a student from the White Room. Was that just a bluff?"


    "Uhm, what do you mean by that, Senpai? I don''t really know much about this ''White Room'' thing to begin with."


    It didn''t seem like she was lying when she said this, so with that being the case, there were only two possible exnations I coulde up with.


    The first was that the enforcer he had sent wasn''t Nanase, but someone entirely different, be they from the White Room or not.


    While the other was that the very ''enforcer'' he had mentioned really was Nanase, and he had just wanted me to think that she was from the White Room.


    If it was thetter, then there wouldn''t be anyone else targeting me anymore.


    However, that felt pretty hard to imagine.


    Whenpared to the general public, Nanase was exceptionally talented, but her abilities fell short for an enforcer tasked with forcing my expulsion. Even Tsukishiro should''ve realized that it would end up like this.


    "I knew that you weren''t the one at fault, Ayanok��ji-senpai, but... I wanted... no, needed someone to take it out on... all my pent-up anger and frustration..."


    Upon hearing this, all sorts of things started to make sense. Her behavior ever since she first came here.


    Throughout all her attempts to have me expelled, there had also been several asions where she had stepped in to help me.


    Contradictory behavior that hade about because Nanase herself didn''t truly believe that she was doing the right thing.


    And today, convinced that she had Matsuo Eiichiro''s dying will at heart, she unleashed it all.


    We were high up on the mountain and the falling rain had cooled down the ground beneath our feet, causing a thick fog to enshroud the area.


    "I... I don''t know how I can face you anymore, Senpai... I''m so, so sorry..."


    Ashamed of herself and what she had done, Nanase covered her face with her hands, unable to look at me.


    Without saying a word, I waited patiently until she had calmed down.


    "You don''t need to apologize. The anger you feel is perfectly justified."


    The fact of the matter was that ''that man'' hadmitted such a grave crime just to bring me back.


    A cold-hearted, calcting being who doesn''t even see others as human.


    But, ironically enough, that was also a projection of myself.


    "I''ve failed to carry out the Acting Director''s orders. There''s no point in me staying here anymore."


    "Will you drop out?"


    "It''s the least I can do to atone for my actions."


    ''That man'' and I had always been simr.


    As long as we could protect ourselves, our own existence, it didn''t matter what happened to others.


    And neither of us believed in casually revealing our true nature to outsiders.


    However, despite our simrities, there was still a key difference.


    It all came down to whether or not we''d choose to discard the ignorant who stand in our way.


    That is, whether or not we were even capable of extending our hands.


    Extending his hand to an ignorant person was something ''that man'' would absolutely never do, and that was the decisive difference between us.


    I slowly reached out, extending my hand to Nanase.


    "Senpai...?"


    "If you''re really sorry, then please take back what you said just now."


    "What... do you mean...?"


    "You have nothing to feel ashamed of. You simply tried your best to avenge your friend. But there''s a reason I can''t lose to you, since I believe that staying here at this school is the only way I have of going against ''that man'', my father."


    While still unwilling to meet my gaze head-on, she lifted her head just enough to stare at my outstretched palm.


    "If I could be a bit selfish here, I''d rather not hear about you leaving the school. Instead, I''d like you to cooperate with me. Even now, Tsukishiro is probably scheming to use this special exam to expel me and present me as a gift to my father. If that were to happen, all the painstaking efforts Matsuo Eiichiro went through to get me into this school would be for nothing."


    "Are you saying that... I should''ve been doing the opposite this entire time?"


    "Can you lend me your hand?"


    Her delicate, smooth hand took hold of my own.


    "��It''s a promise."


    Though her hand was cold due to the rain, there was still a hint of warmth contained within.


    Nanase, whose head had been down for a while now, finally looked me in the eyes.


    This had nothing to do with whether she''d actually be able to help me or not.


    I just needed to make good use of her so that she could, even if I ended up only using her once and throwing her away.


    "You''ll catch a cold if you stay in the rain for too long, so let''s get going."


    "...Okay."

 Chapter 114: Short Story 1 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS – An Enjoyable Moment

    <h4>Chapter 114: Short Story 1 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS �C An Enjoyable Moment</h4>


    The 5th day of the special exam is fast approaching.


    But the only ones who felt time running fast are the strong students with lots of extra energy, or the ones like me who remained at the starting line.


    The physical and mental stress is generally felt throughout all sses.


    As long as they repeatedly throw theirselves into this harsh environment, bad injuries will definitely begin to appear at this stage.


    I clearly understand that from watching the people entering and leaving the harbour from the beach I''m at.


    "Oh my?"


    I notice someone approaching me and my cheeks softens.


    Without showing any signs of fatigue, he walks closer to me as usual.


    "Good day Ayanokouji-kun. It''s a rather hot day today, isn''t it?"


    "How are you?"


    He''s the same as always. There are many people who exhibit this kind of calmness. But as expected of him, a mere few days of living on this uninhabited ind doesn''t mean a thing to him.


    "About as usual, considering it''s me. I''m having Ichinose-san and Shibata-kun do their best so I can''t say it''s been too indulging."


    It doesn''t need to be said but...


    If I could move freely, I would dly have apanied them...


    "I wanted to ask you something, can you still receive the arrival rewards?"


    A question regarding the status of the exception that was me, the only one who was considered half-retired.


    It probably wasn''t the only reason he came here to me.


    I will consider it the appetiser before moving on to the main dish.


    "I''m d to say I''m still being recognised for that as it wasn''t my intention to retire after all."


    Thanks to that, Ichinose-san and Shibata-kun is properly able to receive the arrival rewards.


    It''s lower than the other top groups naturally, but that can''t be helped.


    "By the way, what affairs do you have foring to the starting spot today, may I ask?"


    "One of them was a waste of effort in the end."


    He replied as he gazed out towards the sea at the task now taking ce.


    "Thest spot was unfortunately taken by Kouenji already."


    That''s regrettable. I would have used my binocrs to spectate if he was participating.


    Kouenji''s performances was just a pain for us however.


    Even if I left my personal feelings out, I still would have liked to see Ayanokouji-kun do the honours instead.


    "He was 4th in the morning, but now he''s in 2nd ce it seems. He really is the Wunderkind of ss 2-D if I may say so."


    "We share the same opinion then."


    Kouenji-kun''s talent is unlimited. Ayanokouji-kun is probably feeling the weight of it directly on his skin.


    The fact Nanase-san isn''t by him now means there was an empty spot for the girls'' side.


    "It should take about 30 mins before the task is over and Nanase-sanes back. Please take a seat. It''s rather refreshing here in the shade."


    It wasn''t a suitable ce to entertain guests, but letting him stand there in the sun won''t do.


    "How did you know about Nanase?"


    "I regrly receive information from all over the ind."


    The main group has a transceiver which I use to contact them.


    As someone who can''t move her legs, it''s a necessary tool to process information, don''t you think?


    "Is that okay with you? I''m your enemy you know?"


    "Fufu, I don''t mind."


    Ayanokouji-kun is not in the top 10 as of now. He could still be included in another groupter and be a terrifying enemyter, but moving up as soloer is difficult. Furthermore, the amount of damage he has taken from fatigue is hard to guess.


    If so, being close to him makes it all more enjoyable am I right?


    It''s almost impossible to make time to be alone with him at the school. No need to concern ourselves with others. No need to think too much.


    The fact that he doesn''t seem to share that sentiment is a pity.


    While my heart is racing thinking about the conversation we are about to have...


    I always end up wishing it couldst forever. Even for just a moment longer.

 Chapter 115: Short Story 2 : Nanase Tsubasa SS – Unfathomable

    <h4>Chapter 115: Short Story 2 : Nanase Tsubasa SS �C Unfathomable</h4>


    Data shows that men have better stamina than women.


    But as far as I know, there isn''t that big of a difference between me and Ayanokouji-senpai.


    That belief stems from the confidence and conviction gained from training ever since I was small.


    But I now clearly understand that it was far too naive of me.


    Ayanokouji-senpai hasn''t been the least tired these recent days.


    He''s always at about 50-60 percent and clears every obstacle like nothing.


    He''s easily surpassing me, climbing the towering cliffs.


    If this goes on, I won''t manage to follow him.


    I have to avoid falling too far back no matter what.


    Fearing that everything would end, I forcibly made up my mind.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Don''t... mind me. I will, catch up to you, at my own pace...!"


    If I stopped climbing and fell down from here, that would mean I amounted to just that.


    I fervently stretched my arm and grabbed onto the rocky surface.


    While my mind was brimming with willpower, my hands were screaming at their limits.


    "Retiring will be the least of your worries if you fall from here."


    Whether I retired or not wasn''t that important to me.


    It was whether I could catch up to him or not. Everything depended on that.


    I focused on my arms and legs when suddenly he came back to me.


    "Grab on."


    Seeing how desperate I was, he held out his hand.


    "N-no, I won''t have it. Since one of the conditions for following you was that you wouldn''t help me... Don''t mind me and go on, please."


    Even though climbing here was so dangerous, he went down to me without a worry.


    He''s always collected and there are so many things I don''t know about it. As expected, this person isn''t normal.


    From what he brazenly did during the fight with Housen to this.


    "It would leave a bad aftertaste if I went ahead and you hurt yourself. It would be one thing if you asked me for it, but I''m offering this kindness of my own ord. Don''t mind it."


    "But...!"


    "We''re wasting time as we speak. Am I right?"


    I no longer had any ces I could escape to.


    The more I resisted, the more I realised how much I wasted his precious time.


    "...Yes."


    I couldn''t hide my frustration as I took his hand.


    "Senpai... have you ever climbed before?"


    "No, this is the first time I''m moving up like this."


    "Is that so..."


    He raised me along with my heavy backpack up.


    This person really possesses unfathomable abilities after all.


    I wonder if I''m even able to cross des with him...


    No, that''s not important.


    He''s definitely��definitely a person I have to defeat.


    And then I must drag out that person.


    That''s why I came to this school in the first ce.


    It''s the only goal I have.

 Chapter 116: Short Story 3 : Horikita Suzune SS – A Brief Farewell

    <h4>Chapter 116: Short Story 3 : Horikita Suzune SS �C A Brief Farewell</h4>


    "Well then, I''ll be leaving."


    I told Ayanokouji-kun as I began to take my leave, while adjusting my hat which shielded me from the sun.


    It seems he would be staying at the starting line since he just saw me off.


    I had to perform well as someone who was going solo these next two weeks.


    The same could be said about Ayanokouji-kun, but I probably didn''t need to worry about him.


    "...no need to worry, huh?"


    Without even realising, my thought patterns had inadvertently settled on this option


    As soon as I had heard the rules for this special exam, I had immediately realised just how difficult it would be to fight solo.


    For him though, there weren''t any reasons for concern


    I took a swift nce at him.


    He was still watching me with a slightly puzzled expression on his face


    After watching him score the highest possible marks in that math test and how he had handled Housen, I had realised he was much more than he let on. Was that why?


    It was probably a factor, but that wasn''t theplete story by far


    That''s because I''ve been watching him from up close this entire year. More than anyone else.


    He never panicked and remained calm no matter what. He was a person who would always find the right answer and win regardless of the situation he was in. .


    He had ws obviously. He couldn''t achieve certain goals without revealing some extent of his true abilities. Not to mention, he wasn''t particrly good atmunicating either.


    But he would shield those weaknesses by using others.


    I stopped looking back and took a strong step forward


    A new invisible feeling was growing.


    It probably wasn''t ''jealousy'' nor was it ''admiration''.


    I wanted to be someone who could stand shoulder to shoulder with him, I believe. Probably.


    But his style was fundamentally different from mine.


    Even if I tried to mimic him, it wouldn''t do me any good.


    I wanted to be someone who could cover his back, a partner he could rely on...


    "As if... I guess that wasn''t like me."


    I had somehow just ended up thinking that way.


    "First priority is to fight in the best way only I knew possible"


    That''s because the battle on this uninhabited ind was by no means going to be easy.

 Chapter 117: Short Story 4 : Nanase Tsubasa Tapestry SS – What could be seen from that back

    <h4>Chapter 117: Short Story 4 : Nanase Tsubasa Tapestry SS �C What could be seen from that back</h4>


    I lie face down on the sand, taking the required position and wait on standby.


    It''s the final match for the Beach gs event.


    My opponent is Tokunaga-senpai from the 3rd year. Her timing for thest 2 matches were wless.


    I think I have the advantage regarding power when kicking the sand, but any miss on my part will be lethal. Which means that as long as I don''t make a miss and get slowed down, she is someone I should beat.


    The sound of the pistol being fired reverberates throughout the beach.


    The same moment the sound reaches my ears, I stand up while turning around.


    At about the same time, I feel her take a simr stance and be convinced of my victory.


    Taking a small lead from the first moment, I then wholeheartedly went for the g.


    Ayanokouji-senpai is also watching this battle nearby.


    While showing too much of my abilities here is a demerit to me, I cannot hold back.


    I went all outpared to the two other people in my group.


    That''s because I feel like I have to show them my full power at all times.


    Before I knew it, the g is right in front of me and I stretch out my hand to take it.


    "Fuu..."


    Feeling relieved over securing the win in this final round I breath in and out to calm down.


    "What a terrifying 1st year. It''s my loss."


    Tokunaga-senpai, who came in after me, said as reached out her hand for a handshake.


    "Thank you so much, Tokunaga-senpai."


    "You know about me?"


    "I looked at the OAA app for any upperssmen I had to be wary of when preparing for this special exam."


    I managed to win since I knew she was athletic and didn''t let my guard down.


    I went with Tokunaga-senpai to wash off the sand before receiving the mineral water as reward for participating.


    "That was an overwhelming victory."


    While being refreshed by the cold water, Ayanokouji-senpai calls out to me.


    "Thank you so much. I managed to win somehow."


    He was thinking about something while staring at me.


    I try to not let it bother me and ignore it, but he still continues to stare.


    I somehow begin feeling a bit bothered by it or shall I say a bit distracted by it.


    I was wearing a swimsuit so I can''t help but feel a bit embarrassed by it.


    "H-hey, Ayanokouji-senpai?"


    "Hmm?"


    "I can''t really rx when you are, staring at me like that..."


    I instinctively said.


    I have never showed so much of my skin to anybody before so... yeah.


    "Whops, you''re right. My bad."


    He apologises and looks another way but I still can''t rx and turn my gaze somewhere else.


    I hope I can calm down a bit but...


    I am spending a lot of alone time with him during this uninhabited special exam.


    Which also means that we, a boy and a girl, are moving around together.


    That felt like �� a bit of problem to me.


    Oh, no no.


    If I continue thinking about this, my n will break down.


    Ayanokouji-senpai seems to be talking to Kiriyama-senpai so I''m going to change while I have the chance.


    I decide to go and wash these unexpected feelings off me.


    Tranted by : ??

 Chapter 118: Prologue : Ichika Amasawa’s Soliloquy

    <h4>Chapter 118: Prologue : Ichika Amasawa��s Soliloquy</h4>


    HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF THE TERM test-tube babies? I don''t think it''s called that anymore; now they call it in-vitro fertilization. I am someone who was a product of this so-called "in-vitro fertilization."


    Other than that, I know nothing about my backstory. I''ve never even seen the faces of my parents. What are they doing now, and why did they send me to the White Room? I don''t know the answer to these questions, but I wouldn''t ept them even if I did. Simply because I have no interest whatsoever. That is how I was raised in the White Room. All they told me was, "Your parents are both very talented people." They told me I was a special child who was qualified to be a genius.


    However, my very existence contradicts the meaning of the White Room. The ultimate goal for the White Room is to make all humans equal.


    The White Room exists to prove that human limitations are not determined by gic factors but by the environment that humans are raised. Therefore, the institution does not expect me, who has excellent gic factors, to master talents that others cannot. To the White Room, my existence is nothing more than an "experiment."


    I don''t necessarily disprove the White Room''s experiments, but do they honestly believe such a thing is possible?


    If you ask me, it''s impossible without a doubt.


    Intellect, character, and spirit will always differ among people. Don''t you think my existence is proof of that? My inner self has always shown a different mentality from my surroundings ever since I was a child. While I was obediently doing tasks in the White Room, I was constantly thinking about the meaning of this institution. Growing up for the sake of the White Room? Gambling my own life as nothing more than a contribution? Is my goal to be the most sessful experiment, and should I spend every day desperately trying to prove it? Don''t you think this way of living is quite unfortunate? Wouldn''t you want to live more freely? At least, that''s what I think. Trapped in that dark world for the rest of my life, I really can''t stand the thought.


    That is my stance on the matter, but this is nothing more than an irrelevant topic right now. The main topic is the existence of Kiyotaka Ayanok��ji. This was a person who achieved unsurpassed results in the White Room. Of course, when I first heard it, I took it with a grain of salt. What he had done so effortlessly is what I had been desperately trying to aplish for so long. Can you believe that? But oh well, after looking at his data and seeing him and talking to him, I realized it wasn''t just empty talk. He really is remarkable.


    But I''m sorry, senpai. I wanted to be yourpanion, but that won''t work now. In terms of how long I''ve known you, it''s been a very, very long time. However, you''ve only just met me. This brings me to wonder if I am more affectionate than I thought I was.


    As a worshiper of my senpai, please allow me to look at you from afar when "that time"es.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


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 Chapter 119 - 1: Active in The Dark

    <h4>Chapter 119: Chapter 1: Active in The Dark</h4>


    THE RAIN WAS GETTING STRONGER, and the fog was getting thicker. Now that my vision and hearing are reduced, I feel the nasty scent of someone approaching from behind. The sound of mud and water sshing on the ground rang out as if this person was deliberately trying to get our attention.


    Nanase also seems to have quickly noticed this unusual sound and scent. I look back to see the red hair of a student swaying around.


    "It seems like it''s going to rain heavily senpai." The person who had appeared out of the mist and rain was Ichika Amasawa of the 1st year A ss. Although I already knew that she was following a simr path as Nanase and me, I really didn''t think that it was a coincidence that we met here. It didn''t look like there were any other students in proximity to us, nor did it look like she was carrying a backpack or a tablet. How did she manage to find us? I assume she probably hid her belongings somewhere around here to reduce strain and then quietly followed us. Or perhaps she never had any luggage to begin with and was following us from the start. Maybe, someone searched for us through the GPS and transmitted our location through a wireless transceiver. Whatever the case may be, we can rule out the possibility that it was due to chance.


    Whatever her method to find us was, she certainly wasn''t a weing presence. Amasawa wasn''t empty-handed. In her left hand is a thick wooden stick. The type that''s perfect to beat people up with.


    I would assume Amasawa would take us by surprise; considering the weather conditions at the moment, it would have been rtively easy to hide until the time is right. In such dire situations, an undetected attack could be devastating. "Senpai, please get behind me."


    While I was thinking about the reason for Amasawa''s appearance, Nanase, who was clearly physically exhausted, stood next to me. Nanase stared at Amawawa without hiding her wariness.


    "Hmm? Wasn''t I supposed to be weed by Nanase? Look at this, my ownrade abandoning me. Or did you see me with this thing and found me intimidating?"


    Amasawa gently tossed the thick wooden stick towards her feet, dering herself non-threatening. But Nanase didn''t even show a slight change in her defensive posture.


    "You are not trustworthy at all."


    "Fufufu, you''re really too much, why would you say that? I''m so cute!"


    I don''t think that trust can be linked to cuteness at all, but that doesn''t matter.


    "What''s going on Nanase?" I ask her as she continuously stares down Amasawa.


    Amasawa had a side to her that no one could understand. To say that she was someone who had exceptional acting skills, as well as the ability to executeplex ns, would not be an exaggeration. It''s only natural to be wary; I''ve always done that. But there is no way to exin this unusual vignce of Nanase. However, it should be natural to have such a reaction on asions like these. You could assume Nanase was exaggerating because she is now on my side...


    "I''m not a bad person, am I, Ayanok��ji-senpai? So how about we just talk things over."


    "Please don''t listen to her senpai, she''s dangerous." To Amasawa, who isn''t showing any hostility, Nanase is disying staggering amounts of determination. Although Nanase''s statements seemed like unwarranted criticism, Amasawa didn''t seem to show any dissatisfaction.


    "Senpai, I must confess something to you. The slope where Shinoharasenpai''s group was attacked, you and Ike-senpai went up the same slope together right? The slope that caused Komiya-senpai and Kinoshita-senpai to withdraw." Having heard Shinohara''s voice call out, Ike had rushed up blindly. I followed him, seeing as it was quite dangerous to go up that slope alone. "During that incident, I sensed someone approach us and I chased after them." Nanase added.


    "Is that why you weren''t with Sud�� and the others when we returned after finding Shinohara?" I asked.


    Nanase nodded quietly.


    "And then what?"


    "Although I didn''t catch up with the person who ran away, I still managed to catch a glimpse of that unique hair." Saying so, Nanase slowly pointed towards Amasawa.


    "At that time, the person who was watching us was you, wasn''t it Amasawa-san?"


    "Fufu... oops! So, you saw me?"


    Rather than deny it, Amasawa simply confessed with a smile.


    There was no wavering in Amasawa''s attitude, nor was there surprise that she had been discovered. The person who was secretly watching us at the time was none other than Amasawa.


    "Did you hurt Komiya-senpai and the others?" asked Nanase abruptly.


    "Hmm? That''s too one sided, isn''t it? Maybe I just happened to be there."


    "In that case, there was no need to run away, right?"


    "Wouldn''t you run away when someone who has a terrifying look on their face chases you? I didn''t want them to suspect me." Amasawa replied.


    "I can''t believe it."


    "So you''re trying to make me out to be the one who attacked the seniors, Nanase-sama?"


    "I am sure you are. It''s almost impossible for me to be wrong here...."


    "You''re soooo sure, but you also feel the need to add the word "almost." You don''t know the truth, do you?"


    It was a deadlock between the two girls from the same group. They held each other in check with words.


    "Then can you swear that you''re not the one who attacked senpai and the others?"


    "I can promise, but whether that promise is the truth or not is none of your business, Nanase." Amasawa simply said there was no point in doing such a thing.


    "And even if it really was me who did that, then what would you do?"


    Instead of trying to get out of Nanase''s pursuit, it seems she keeps diving deeper and deeper. Although Nanase seemed to be overwhelmed by Amasawa''s aura, she continued on in order to pursue the truth.


    "Alright in that case, tell me why are you doing this? No, before that, exin how you were able to hide yourself from the GPS positioning system." To be perfectly honest, there was no need to confirm thatst point with Amasawa.


    "It''s not difficult to eliminate the GPS itself, just destroy the watch no?" Amasawa happily showed us the watch on her right hand.


    "That''s right~ Whether it''s intentional or not, a malfunction is a malfunction and I can just get a new one from the school for free."


    "But if you break your watch, shouldn''t the school find out?" Nanase questioned.


    "That''s true but until they find me, it is very difficult for them to determine the cause of the malfunction. Until then, I can do anything I want." There are more than 400 GPS signals on this ind. The disappearance of one or two signals would not be detected for a short time. Furthermore, the teacher''s priority was to ensure the safety of the students and not continually monitor the number of signals.


    "But the school will definitely trace it after a while, right? It''s only a matter of time before they find out."


    After Shinohara exined how she was attacked, the school would definitely get involved in the investigation. In the process, only Amasawa''s GPS signal had disappeared, making it highly likely that she was the culprit.


    But therein lies the problem.


    "If only Amasawa''s GPS signal disappeared when Komiya and the others were attacked, suspicion from the school is inevitable. However, it would be nothing more than just a suspicion as there is no other evidence to prove it. As long as there is no more direct evidence, it cannot be concluded that the culprit is her." I inform Nanase.


    "That��"


    From Nanase''s point of view, she had seen Amasawa directly, so it would be correct to assume the culprit was Amasawa. However, to prove a crime is much harder than just making an assumption. The school absolutely had to avoid awsuit that would cause Amasawa to drop out of the school due to a wrongful conviction.


    Initially, the watch was given to all the students in the uninhabited ind exam to ensure everyoneplies with the rules and so the school can maintain order. If it was easy to use, the purpose of the watch would fail.


    To avoid trouble, the watch had to be strictly regted. Watch changes caused by breakdowns could only be done once, with each breakdown consuming points. Too many malfunctions can lead to forced removal, etc.


    But the stricter the regtions, the more likely a loophole will be found and exploited. For example, ying tricks on the enemy''s watch to damage it identally. Moreover, if there is really an ident or any other situation on the schools'' part that leads to expulsion, it would be uneptable. This is something that must be avoided.


    "It''s customary that you try and poke holes in the rules, and if the school can''t find any evidence, anything is fine." Even if this argument was wild, what Amasawa said was correct.


    "That may be true, however, if there is no evidence I will act as a witness and prove that Amasawa was there." Counters Nanase.


    "The end result would be the same. A simple GPS malfunction and being present at the scene of the incident alone will only end in suspicion."


    If a violent person like Sud�� or Ry��en had been involved with this kind of disturbance, the school would be more suspicious. But the girl standing in front of me was nothing more than a harmless-looking first-year high school girl. With such insignificant evidence, the school authorities would not have deep suspicions. Not to mention, there was no testimony from Komiya and Kinoshita that they had been attacked. Shinohara could only give an ambiguous answer like, "I was attacked by someone but I don''t know who it was." This is the same nature of the testimony, "Nanase saw Amasawa."


    If there was no conclusive evidence, it would be impossible for the school to punish Amasawa. "And there it is Nanase."


    That said, I still don''t know what the reason is for Amasawa''s presence here. The atmosphere is merely filled with Nanase''s pursuing questions and Amasawa''s teasing words, and I don''t see any progress at all. The idea of going to do something productive... seems to have be a luxury. As for whether or not Amasawa was the one who hurt Komiya and the others, we''ll put it aside for now. To advance the stalemate, I''ll ask the next question.


    "What are you doing here, no, how did you find us?"


    At this point, we were drenched in the rain. Considering we had to continue the exam tomorrow, standing in the rain any longer should be avoided. I wish I could set up my tent right now and get out of the rain.


    "Don''t be so anxious, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Aren''t you happy we met in the middle of an uninhabited ind in such circumstances?"


    "I''m sorry, but it''s raining a lot more than I would like, so let''s get this over with."


    "Then, how about we set up the tent together and the two of us will spend a wonderful night here?" The fact that men and women can''t sleep inside the same tent is something the school emphasized, and there''s no way she didn''t know that.


    What a meaningless conversation. Was she stalling for time?


    "There''s no need to worry senpai. It''s no problem, even the school can''t monitor everything."


    Just as Amasawa was about to step closer to me, Nanase immediately moved to grab her arm.


    "What are you doing with that hand?"


    "You''re not nning to throw yourself at Ayanok��ji-senpai, are you?"


    "When did Nanase be Ayanok��ji-senpai''s knight? Didn''t you once n with H��sen-kun to make Ayanok��ji-senpai drop out of school?"


    Amasawa responded with a hint of annoyance.


    "That... has nothing to do with you. What did youe here for?"


    "I came here because I was lost and I needed help."


    She''s already telling unadulterated lies. Could it be that she came to see the duel between Nanase and I and the result afterwards? From Nanase''s attitude, I think Amasawa could tell that Nanase hadpletely fallen to me. No, if that was the case, there was no point in her nonsensical small talk.


    "I have something to say to Ayanok��ji-senpai. Can you please move aside.


    "Can''t you just tell me right here?" I question the meaning of Amasawa''s statement.


    "No, because it is about the White Room."


    Perhaps thinking that there was no point in her hiding identity any longer, Amasawa just revealed herself.


    Nanase looked at me with a surprised look.


    Throughout the first semester, I had been aware of the existence of another White Room student, a White Room "enforcer", but I had never been able to confirm this enforcer''s true identity.


    I certainly didn''t think it would be in the form of "confession" that I would find out about her existence.


    "Do you understand now? Irrelevant student~" Amasawa giggled while looking at Nanase.


    If Amasawa is really a White Room student, then Nanase is indeed considered an irrelevant person in this situation.


    "Let go of her hand, Nanase." I tell her.


    Despite her dissatisfaction, Nanase obeyed my instructions and released her hand.


    "That''s a good girl, Nanase. I don''t hate this kind of loyal dog feeling~" Saying that Amasawa slowly approached me.


    I think we can finally make some progress in this conversation.


    "I''m sorry, but with just Nanase as a precedent, I''m not going to confirm your existence as one from the White Room just by hearing the word "White Room."


    "Okay I can prove it to you if you want. But... it would be a bad for Nanase to hear it. You understand, right?" It''s the usual little devilish smile that looks at me.


    I wave my hand slightly at Nanase and give her themand for her to stay away. Although Nanase felt very resistant to the fact that Amasawa was getting closer to me, she obeyed my instructions. With the rain falling heavier and heavier, whispering a few meters away should not be heard by her. Standing on the muddy ground, Amasawa came close enough that I could practically touch her without fully extending my hand.


    "So where should I start?" Amasawa looked thoughtful as if she was saying to me, "You can understand right?"


    But her sudden appearance this time around was truly iprehensible. The White Room enforcer had been lurking until today, working on getting me expelled. However, the Amasawa in front of me exposed herself without taking any action. Most importantly, it was strange that she was hesitant to say anything until now. I can only assume that she''s trying to stall for time.


    Just when I was debating whether I should open the conversation by opening my mouth, Amasawa spoke up.


    "The curriculum you received when you were ten years old was on the base 5 construction theorem. When you were eleven years old, you learned about the theory of rtivity. I did the exam twice, so I remember it well."


    As if to show that we learned in the same ssroom, she told me details about my past.


    "Whether it was the interior or the hallway, or the room where we sleeped, everything was white in that world."


    It seemed that Amasawa knew the White Room much better than Nanase. It was also unlikely that she would find out about this from Tsukishiro. You can''t reveal anything about the White Room to people who have nothing to do with it. Even he knows that. In other words, it''s basically concluded that Amasawa was the enforcer. From the content of the conversation to her words and actions, all of them are in line with the aesthetics of a White Room student.


    "What is the advantage of revealing your identity by making a deliberate appearance?"


    "I suppose there is none, but I don''t care about that. I just wanted to show you that I''m not your enemy senpai."


    "That is contradictory. The students in the White Room are enforcers sent to this school to have me expelled. It is inconsistent to say that someone like you is not my enemy. It doesn''t make sense." Although Amasawa was drenched in water, she continued to speak.


    "The generations after the fourth generation harboured intense jealousy for you senpai. They thought if they used these White Room students with strong jealousy, it would be possible to make Ayanok��ji-senpai drop out of school and there was nothing wrong with that. The superiors simply chose the wrong person. They did not see that I was just a young girl who had a longing to be with Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Is that why you took the initiative to reveal your identity?"


    Amasawa nodded.


    "Then wouldn''t it have been better if you came and told me directly after entering school? You even managed to sneak into my room, so there were many opportunities to reveal your identity."


    "That may be true; however, no matter how much I longed for you before I saw you, it was just my self-imagination. It takes a certain amount of time to meet directly, talk, ande to a conclusion that, "Ahhh, it''s great to long for this person."


    In other words, if I''m not the ideal person that Amasawa thought I was, she would reject me. As the conversation progressed, this reason was tentatively established.


    "Do you understand now?"


    "Yes. The only people who can talk about the White Room in detail are the ones who lived there."


    "Yup that''s it. It feels amazing, to be an ordinary high school student who lives like this. I feel privileged to have experienced this special feeling until now. But I am more interested in allowing the other students in the White Room to have this same experience."


    "If you feel the same way as I do, you should also be aware of how interesting this ce is...."


    "I understand exactly what you''re trying to say senpai. I''ve wondered many times if I could be like a normal student and living a fun student life. I''m not good at making friends, and I don''t have that many people to talk to." Amasawa replied with a twinge of sadness in her voice.


    How do I put it? It''s really very simr to what I think.


    Although I had talked to Horikita, Ike, and others, there was still kind of a distance between us. I remembered a certain period when I couldn''t even consider them "friends" honestly. "But I don''tck themunication skills like my predecessors." Amasawa said as if reading my thoughts.


    "Basically, I learned the same curriculums as my senpais. But on the other hand, I also learned exclusive things for the fifth generation."


    Seeing as I didn''t intend to intervene, Amasawa continued on.


    "That is,munication and coboration skills. Until the fourth generation, due to the culture of individualism, the children who failed came out of there broken. And it was impossible for them tomunicate with children with poor grades. They are excellent and, of course, they have only been allowed to interact with people with the same excellence."


    If this is true, it exins why it is not difficult to understand why she can make emotional expressions. In my case, I can y specific acting roles for a short period. However, it was difficult to break the habit of living without emotion most of the time.


    "Still don''t trust me?"


    "I believe your origins, but I cannot ept the reason why you would tell me your identity."


    "As expected of a White Room student, you really are calm and collected. Don''t you think I would threaten you, senpai?"


    Seeing that I couldn''t answer that question, Amasawaughed it off.


    "Fufu, so, I''ve said everything I wanted to say. I''ll be taking my leave now, okay?" Amasawa turned around.


    It seemed her visit was to let me know that she was a White Room student.


    "What are you thinking, Amasawa?"


    "Didn''t I already say? I''m longing for you Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    She turned around and caressed my cheek with the tips of her wet fingers.


    "So, senpai is not allowed to be defeated without my permission." She whispered into my ear.


    Saying that she took her finger away from my face and started to walk away.


    Not allowed to be defeated? By who? Tsukishiro? Or perhaps the group of first-years who were given a 20 million bounty? Or is it...


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, are you okay? Did something happen to you?" Nanase walked back up to me with a concerned look in her eyes.


    I told the worried Nanase that she had nothing to be concerned about and looked at my backpack.


    "We''d better hurry and set the tent, we need to get out of this rain." I told her.


    Although I would like to organize all the information I just learned, there was a priority. "Well then, let''s work together and set up these tents quickly." Nanase said as she started to get to work.


    "Yes, let''s hurry."


    I answered that, but there was just one thing I had to confirm first. I had to confirm the footprints of the departing Amasawa.


    "Senpai...?" Nanase called out to me.


    "If I don''t hurry the rain will wash away the tracks." I say this as I can already see the footprints start to lose their shape.


    "Footprints? What about Amasawa''s footprint?" Nanase asked.


    "When Komiya and the others were injured, there were tracks left at the scene. Now I know they were the same size as Amasawa''s."


    In other words, just like Nanase witnessed, Amasawa had been there.


    "She really wasn''t there by coincidence, she really was the one who pushed them down right?"


    "I can''t say for sure. At that time, Amasawa was simply watching you and Sud��. There still isn''t any proof she was the attacker,"


    Nanase didn''t seem to immediately understand what I was trying to say.


    "Perhaps there is no definitive evidence but I think it should be possible to directly infer that she is the culprit, right?"


    "From the information we have now, Amasawa would indeed seem to be the culprit."


    "I think so, too. Although I''ve said it several times, I did see Amasawasan."


    Of course, I didn''t doubt that.


    "But you didn''t see her pushing them down."


    "That... well, but just now she confessed."


    "Whether that can be called a confession is still difficult to say at this stage. In the end, Amasawa simply said, "If I am the attacker." She never said directly confessed by implying that she was speaking hypothetically."


    "Perhaps she was afraid of being recorded?" "With this rain, and catching us off guard like this, do you think it''s necessary for her to be very alert?"


    A quick nce shows that this is not a recordable environment at all.


    "Even so, it is not absolute. Especially since she is also the object of Ayanok��ji-senpai''s vignce, it would be appropriate for her to consider the highest level of caution."


    "The victims were two students. If they are deliberately injured and as a result of that they''re ced in danger, the attacker must quickly escape aftermitting the crime. Why should the attacker go back to the scene and let someone see themselves?"


    Nanase retrieved her backpack while thinking.


    "Then... maybe she was worried about the injuries of Komiya-senpai and the others. I think this is the same psychology of how arsonists return to the scene of the crime."


    Indeed, it is said that arsonists will return to the scene. There are various exnations for this mentality, but it can''t simply be applied to this incident. If you look at Amasawa as the culprit in this way, you will only see the surface of the incident.


    "It is impossible for the White Room student sent by Tsukishiro to make this kind of mistake without being aware that, whatever happens, you do not run the risk of returning to the scene and the corresponding measures that surround it. In fact, Amasawa knew that Nanase would discover her at that time."


    To not miss anything, I continued to trace the tracks that were about to be destroyed.


    "Why would she give away her whereabouts even though she was being chased?"


    "I think she thought that since she couldn''t hide the fact you saw her, she came to contact us on her own initiative. If we report it to the school, even if we can''t prove it, it will be a problem for the school. And if we entrust the matter to Acting Director Tsukishiro, it will be dangerous.


    "Regarding this logic, it also contradicts her return to the scene of the crime." "Can''t it just be pinned on her careless nature?" "Impossible."


    Perhaps Amasawa had deliberately let Nanase discover her for some reason. With that, I managed to get a new hint from the tracks that I followed.


    "Sure enough, there are some points of Amasawa''s actions that can''t be ignored."


    "Something that can''t be ignored?"


    I followed her tracks that were about to be washed away by the rain.


    "It seems to be perfectly close towards my back, so if I trace it from there...." I mutter in my breath.


    "Hey, senpai."


    At this moment, Nanase also noticed a peculiar change for the first time.


    "There are someone else''s footprints."


    "Yes."


    These footprints were slightlyrger than Amasawa''s. But because it had beenpletely deformed at this point due to the rain, the exact size can''t be determined.


    "This person got very close to us at one point, and that''s where the footsteps are ruined. This is where that person''s footsteps converged with those of Amasawa. Then, from here, those enigmatic footsteps started to turn back.


    "In other words, before Amasawa contacted us, there was another...." Nanase realized that another mysterious individual had been following us.


    Whether it was a student or someone from the school, it would be impossible to determine it from the information we have at the moment.


    "Can you go get the thick wooden stick that Amasawa left behind?" I ask Nanase.


    "Yes, okay." Nanase brings me the stick that Amasawa had dropped.


    Looking at the stick, I finally got an answer to one of my spections.


    "Did you find anything?"


    "Have I found something? I can tell this stick would inflict reasonable amounts of damage to whoever got hit by it."


    Nanase takes the stick from my hands and studies it for a while until she notices something.


    "I don''t think she picked up this stick from around here."


    "Look. In order to make this stick a better weapon, excess parts were cut off. The current state of this wooden stick is too unnatural."


    "Did she intend to use this stick as a weapon to attack Ayanok��jisenpai?"


    "If Amasawa wanted to attack me, she wouldunch a surprise attack from the shadows. However, even though she had this weapon, she didn''t show any hints of hostility towards me. Not only that, she deliberately tried to get me to notice her."


    More can be inferred from these statements.


    "In other words, she did not n to attack me from the very beginning. It wasn''t Amasawa who held the stick at first, but the person who was about to leave, right?" Nanase asked me.


    The tracks approached us at a slow pace but then grew faster and faster as it turned backwards. Was the person avoiding detection, or were they running away?


    "But what''s the reason for this?" Nanase continued to ask.


    "ording to Amasawa, I am the existence she longs for. That''s why it seems reasonable to think that she stopped this nned assault on me." "Isn''t it too dangerous to consider her our ally just by that...?" Nanase did not seem to be sold on the fact Amasawa may be on our side.


    "Of course. But I can''t imagine who could be the owner of these tracks and they would want to attack me."


    "Maybe... is it someone rted to the school or something?"


    "That is possible, since I am a hanging bounty."


    I fully considered if this footprint belonged to one of the students who was looking for that reward. It was entirely conceivable that someone would take that risk to force me out of school.


    "Oh yeah!" Nanase seemed to have a thought of something and raised her voice.


    "Senpai, let''s do a GPS search now! It hasn''t been long since Amasawa-sans departure. Even if there was someone running at full speed, in this bad weather, they couldn''t get too, far right?"


    In fact, if we were to use the GPS search now, as long as there was an answer in the vicinity, all the suspects could be discovered at once. The answer could be close to us; we just need to find out who it is by examining all the possibilities in order.


    "Ah, but if that person destroys the watch like Amasawa-san, we won''t be able to find out right?" Nanase seemed to doubt her previous thought.


    "No, that is not the case. If you damage the watch, the GPS signal will disappear. What if there is another GPS signal other than Amasawa that disappears if I searched?


    "...Then we''ll be able to determine that person is the culprit."


    "Then, the person who wanted to attack me would definitely not break their watch."


    "In that case, wouldn''t it be a good idea to pay an extra point for the scan?"


    It had only been fifteen minutes since Amasawa had spoken to me. Not only do they need to escape the scene, but they also need to do whatever they can to get out of the area. With a little bit of luck, we might be able to find a slight trace of that person. Because of this, if I follow Nanase''s suggestion to do a GPS search now...


    "Do not use a GPS search."


    "Ah, why?" Nanase asks, confused.


    "No matter who the other party is, it is not surprising to develop a n that allows us to use GPS scanning to locate them. There is a chance that aplete outsider may show up on the scan."


    They are likely to use an insignificant person to lure us into pursuing in the wrong direction. Like the incident where Amasawa''s figure was witnessed by Nanase and the appearance of Amasawa here, we should be wary of being unterally fed information by the enemy.


    "It feels like such a waste."


    "If it were me, I wouldn''t be stupid enough to be seen. If this person forgot to consider a GPS search, then I don''t need to be afraid of this person at all."


    Nanase didn''t seem to understand, but she obeyed my decision. In any case, even after organizing my thoughts, I could not continue in this situation.I stopped the conversation and decided to quickly pitch the tent with Nanase.


    It had now changed from light rain to heavy rain.


    Nanase and I put our tents together face to face after we finally set them up, and we fled inside our tents to get away from the rain. We took off our wet sportswear uniforms, jackets, underwear and I wiped my body with a towel. I changed into reserve clothes and opened the zipper of the tent to look outside. Although it was just early in the morning, the surrounding area was as dark as night. It would be challenging to move at least for one day.


    As the raindrops barged unceremoniously into the tent, I had to zipper up, lie down, and start thinking quietly. I learned Nanase''s past and established the fact that Amasawa was a White Room student. However, not all the secrets hidden in the darkness havee to light.

 Chapter 120: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 120: 1.1</h4>


    In the midst of the continuing downpour, the school sent out an email.


    It was something that I had been expecting for a long time, and it was that today''s exam was to be suspended. The report also said it would be difficult to turn things around if the basics of getting around and events disappeared.


    Still, ways topensate were being considered to avoid putting students in a difficult situation. However, no matter what the school did to make up for it, the fact is that the exam is suspended today, and that would not change.


    While thepensation was effective from a total score point of view, the strategic ns developed by the teams would have to be reversed and reworked.


    For me, the suspension could not havee at a worse time.


    I had intended to peak into the second half of the race as a way to catch up with and earn points from groups that ran out of energy in the first half and couldn''t keep up the pace anymore. But since almost the entire 7th day was empty, everyone would be able to use the break to recover their strength.


    Of course, since the environment was not optimal, fatigue could not be fully recovered. Still, the ability to rest made a big difference.


    "... pai?"


    "Hmm?"


    Outside the tent, the rain was pouring down, and the sound was very loud, but there was a hint of a human voice wrapped up in it.


    "Sen...pai?"


    The voice that had previously called out to me sounded once again. The one who called out was probably Nanase in the tent across from mine. I opened the zipper again and peeked out through the mesh. Although the view was poor, it was not difficult to see the tent in front of me.


    "I have something I would like to talk to you about. Can Ie over to senpai''s side for a while?" Nanase proposed so through the tent.


    Nanase should know very well that the idea of a man and a woman crammed into a narrow tent is not appropriate; perhaps she''s forgotten? Then again, as far as the rules are concerned, it is only forbidden to share a bed and there is no problem if you are only spending a short time together. As long as the students don''t lose their rationality, there was no moral problem.


    That said, it was raining very hard. Even if the entrances are less than two meters apart, one will inevitably get wet.


    "I''m fine with it. Why don''t Ie over to your side?"


    When I said that, Nanase shook her head and opened the entrance to her tent. She spread her towel to protect her head and got ready. I hurriedly opened the entrance to wee her.


    After waiting for the right moment, Nanase jumped out of the tent and quickly ducked into mine. In less than one second, she was drenched, but the damage was kept to a minimum.


    "I''m really sorry for disturbing you while you''re resting, senpai."


    "No, it''s okay."


    Nanase was the one that was suffering at the moment. In addition to the forced march to reach this area, even if the cause was a misunderstanding, she had just fought a fierce battle with me. Although I thought she had something to discuss with me, she didn''t open her mouth right away. It seemed like she couldn''t say anything, which was understandable. For a while, we just sat in silence.


    "I''m a bit shameless, aren''t I?" Saying that Nanase lowered her head in apology.


    "Until recently, I was hostile towards senpai and even said some excessive things... but now I greet you with such intimacy. It just annoys you, right?"


    Only now has Nanase started to face this guilt.


    "I don''t care, and you don''t need to apologize anymore. At the very least, you should understand that there is no need for us to be hostile towards each other any longer, right?


    Although there were some parts that were a bit difficult to address at the moment, we are in the middle of a special exam. Mental confusion can be detrimental to actions and thoughts during the test.


    "I understand." Nanase once again bowed her head to me in acknowledgment.


    "So what? You must have something you want to tell me after going through the heavy rain?"


    "Ah, yes!" Nanase remembered what she came for and spoke up.


    "The sudden appearance of Amasawa-san was haunting my mind...


    When I think about how hard you are working, I can''t help but want to push her away."


    It looked like rather than having any purpose ining here, she was simply worried about me. Although it seemed a bit problematic for her to care more than I, the person in question, I appreciated her consideration.


    "I decided that Amasawa-san was the one who pushed Komiya-senpai and the others down. I always thought the reason why Amasawa-san didn''t show us her true self was a way to hide the truth. However, Ayanok��ji-senpai, you said that it wasn''t necessarily Amasawa-san that was the one who pushed them, which I found a bit confusing...."


    "Because as of now, the truth is still in the dark," I replied.


    Amasawa, the "suspect," is infinitely close to ck gray, but she isn''t yet utterly dyed ck.


    "What matters to me is the objective of the culprit. Whoever it is, what was their reason for doing something so dangerous?"


    "Perhaps it wouldn''t be so difficult if we don''t assume the answer first," I suggest. "Let''s start over without the assumption Amasawa is not the culprit and argue from there."


    By repeatedly exchanging opinions, it was sometimes possible to see things that would otherwise be invisible.


    A certain person pushed Komiya and the others down. Judging from the watch''sck of a GPS response, it was clearly not an unexpected event but a nned act.


    "Huh... but isn''t that a little strange?"


    Not long after the conversation started, Nanase ran into something iprehensible and frowned.


    "Are you saying that it would be strange if Amasawa-san really had nothing to do with this? Are you implying she simply happened toe across the attack on Komiya-senpai and the others when her watch broke by chance and happened to witness the whole thing from the sidelines by chance? She then happened to find us again by chance?"


    "It is difficult to call it a coincidence if there are several stacked matches. That is, if Amasawa had reasoned about Komiya''s case as if it had nothing to do with her, we could solve this case quickly."


    The idea arose that it was someone close to Amasawa who put pressure on Komiya and the others.


    "Even if the real culprit was not Amasawa-san, it might be someone she knew, right? So, is it possible that Amasawa-san is simply an aplice again?"


    "I think that''s it. The footprints we observed may also belong to the real culprit."


    If you consider that she was acting to help the real culprit, it would exin Amasawa''s actions.


    "Since the intention was to exercise violence, I guess their means are simr." Nanase repeatedly nodded as she felt the clues to her reasoning wereing together.


    "But..."


    At this point... How can I put it? I was starting to worry about somethingpletely unrted.


    "But what?" Nanase looked at me, puzzled, but I didn''t dare bring it up.


    Mostly since I was too embarrassed to ask her.


    It was the 7th day of living on the uninhabited ind. During this period, Nanase has been moving with me constantly, and there wasn''t really any free time to properly clean the body. But she did have the opportunity to rinse off the sand when she changed into her swimsuit at the beach for capture the g, and she must have taken a shower after the time she swam in the ocean.


    That said, the sweat that erupted after a day was disconcerting.


    Because of the small space in the tent, Nanase''s body odour, although slight, is gradually spreading; however, it is not an unpleasant smell. The smell of sweat can be covered up by frequent wiping, but this is strangely a nice smell. I wanted to ask about the principle of it, but it most certainly would not be "good senpai behaviour." It would most likely be ssified as


    "perverted senpai behaviour."


    "Nothing, it''s just a misunderstanding on my part. Don''t worry about it."


    "Is that so?" Nanase didn''t borate on my statement; she just nodded her head.


    Even though I have a girlfriend, I''m just a beginner. When ites to topics like these, there are many things I don''t know about. Antiperspirants and deodorants and things like that are pretty cheap, so she probably bought them. That''s the only answer I can think of right now.


    Although I started it myself, the topic became inexplicably awkward.


    Nanase didn''t seem to care, but it''s best I don''t ask her again.


    "Although I can''t confirm exactly what Amasawa did to Komiya and the others, I can roughly guess who is with her on her daily schedule." I inform Nanase.


    Nanase didn''t seem to understand what I meant by that and looked puzzled. I took out the tablet and tapped on the screen to show Nanase.


    "Doesn''t... that have your personal information Ayanok��ji-senpai? Is it really okay for you to show me this?" Nanase asked out of consideration.


    By personal information, she meant the scores I had. Points and rankings outside of the top 10 and bottom ten would not be publicly disclosed, so this was crucial private information.


    "I thought that you and I had built a rtionship in which we can trust each other, but it seems like it''s my mistake...." I said bluntly, to which she quickly looked up.


    "What?! I''m super grateful that you trust me!" She replied somewhat shy, somewhat happy, and somewhat apologetic.


    It was an expression of shame that she hadn''t been able to show up until now.


    "And since we''ve been together this entire time, you can probably guess how many points I''ve umted just by taking into consideration my movements, right?"


    Although there was also a part of the exam I had challenged alone, Nanase would probably assume I got first ce. So, I didn''t mind all that much showing her my score.


    "On the subject of past movements, it should be possible to know who Amasawa was with based on her daily schedule." I concluded.


    Nanase, however, had noticed something suspicious.


    "Eh? Shouldn''t senpai''s score... Shouldn''t it have more points?"


    "What do you mean?"


    Nanase asked this while running numbers through her head.


    "Reaching the bonus, the finishing points, and the event points... Minus the penalties, and I think you got 1st ce in the event you participated while I was resting...."


    Nanase''s memory was pretty good. This would be useful in the future.


    "You may have realized that my score should have been 88 points."


    "But now it''s 78 points, 10 points less. And I don''t think it''s due to a penalty..."


    "So how and why have those 10 points disappeared? Allow me to exin. Where we are going in this exam is posted four times a day along with the designated area. That is, from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. I used the GPS


    service from 7 in the morning on the 6th day, when it was de-prohibited, and I used it a total of 10 times, once per hour, not counting the break from noon to 12."


    "What could be seen doing this?" Was the reaction on her face. Nanase still didn''t seem to understand.


    "The GPS search is a very convenient tool to know the location of all the students throughout the ind. However, if you only use it once, you can only know their current position, and its usefulness is poor. But if you divide the day into 10 parts and search repeatedly, you can see many things that you could not before."


    By connecting the dots on a line, the trajectory of the person in one day can be traced. So, if someone used the search ten times, they might discover the fact that Nanase and I often moved together.


    "So that was the purpose for using your points. I see. Now we can know everyone''s destination every hour. Through that, we could find out who has the same itinerary with whom." Nanase nodded as if to demonstrate her understanding.


    "But on the sixth day, senpai didn''t seem to be using the tablet at all.


    Wouldn''t you forget everything? It would be hard to remember everything just like that, right?"


    "Impossible. It takes a long time to confirm the name and location of each person."


    I opened the photos folder to show her my images saved there.


    "After using the GPS search, I save screenshots. This way, I can use my free time to observe them and know what the others have done that day."


    I told Nanase as she peeked over my shoulder to look.


    You cannot send messages or photos to others during the exam.


    However, saving screenshots is a standard feature of the tablet, and it is certainly avable for use. By repeatedly using the map, zooming in and out, everyone''s locations can be recorded in detail.


    "Compare them at different times, and the actions of everyone else throughout the day are avable as information that can be viewed at any time."


    Instances such as before going to bed, in the morning when the test begins and during breaks. These moments are idle and are perfect for confirming locations. As the map has a detailed distribution of the events for that period, starting from the sixth day, I was able to record information about the groups, what events each student took, etc.


    "Wow senpai, you really did something like that? I didn''t even realize it."


    "Well, I wouldn''t let you notice it. I couldn''t have risked a potential enemy figuring out what I was doing since by the sixth day, I still didn''t know what kind of person you were." I give Nanase my honest thoughts.


    It would have been foolish to let Nanase, an enemy, know that I was using the GPS search. From confirming locations to checking event details, the tablet had a wide variety of uses. It didn''t seem unnatural that I was continuously using it.


    It was quite a simple process but very effective. Just follow the instructions for the specified area and corresponding event, and do a GPS


    search every hour, taking a screenshot.


    "With all due respect senpai, may I ask if this is worth paying 10 points for? Since it takes quite a long time just to analyze a person''s behaviour pattern. Maybe if you could share these images with others they might be worth something."


    The value of these images would be apparent if they could be easily emailed to friends. More people could use GPS searches at shorter intervals, and we could confirm this outside of exam hours. It would not be surprising if all the sses would do something like this.


    "Even with individual users, its value depends on how it is used. I think we can say for now that whether this is worth more or less than 10 points will be decided in the future."


    "Actually, there''s also one more piece of information you can find while looking at repeated GPS searches."


    If you look at the GPS by differentiating the grades, you can discover something new. Especially with the 3rd years, you can notice strange movements in their group actions.


    "For example, a part of the 3rd year groups behaved strangely throughout the day. And this strange group has to be rted to Nagumo''s group as well as Kiriyama''s group. Through that research, I found something interesting."


    Starting at 7:00 A.M. on the 6th day, I targeted only Nagumo''s group, observing their movements every hour.


    "First, at 7 in the morning, Nagumo''s group was in B8."


    "Could that mean that theirst area at the end of the 5th day was B8?"


    "That possibility is very likely, but they were in the southernmost part of the B8 area, perhaps thest area of the previous day was B9. In any case, when they came out, they only had the GPS signals of their own group members."


    An hourter, at 8 A.M., various groups began to gather around Nagumo. At 9 A.M., this trend became even more apparent as the other groups visibly gathered around Nagumo. From then on, therge group began to move together. The observation at 10:00 and 11:00 in the morning, the hours before lunch, revealed something different.


    "Many groups got together and moved together... It''s almost like a school of fish." Nanase observes.


    "The general effect of this isn''t that deep, but if you look at the small things you will see somethingpletely different."


    Hearing that, Nanase nodded twice. Then I showed her the maps until 3:00 in the afternoon.


    "Hold on... Is it possible to monopolize that event?"


    "No matter what the event is, as long as the 3rd years are properly organized, Nagumo can easily get first ce."


    It''s notplicated. It''s a simple strategy and very powerful.


    "But, in that case, no group other than Nagumo''s will score, right?


    Those groups cannot all be on the same schedule either. Cooperate with each other to allow a specific group to win... Although it is an idea that everyone has thought of before, it''s impossible to actually do it..."


    Other groups have other designated areas to go to. If they all dedicated themselves into getting Nagumo first ce, they wouldn''t get high points in the special exam.


    "Yeah, if we were to implement this strategy, we would have to ignore the general premise of the uninhabited ind exam. Speaking of which, why couldn''t we work together to aplish this strategy?" Nanase asked.


    "That''s because it has to do with ss points as well as expulsions, of course." I showed Nanase the members of the groups that had gathered around Nagumo.


    "This... the groups that serve as tes are the senpais of the lower sses..."


    "There is not a single ss A student in those groups."


    "The difference in ss points in the 3rd year sses is really exasperating. In other words, if ss B or D loses, it will not have an impact on the general battle of the 3rd year."


    Neither the first-year students nor the second-year students had entered the final stage of their ss showdowns. It is the obsession of wanting to move up to A ss that keeps the battles going.


    "The third years, however, can ignore the framework and make the 4


    sses work together."


    "The advantage of this strategy is that the group at the bottom can do whatever they want on the exam. Regardless of the score, even if they only get 1 point, their status as one of the lower sses will not change. They will only lose ss points, or someone will be expelled."


    "Wouldn''t their points be close to 0 if they fully support a designated group? It''s true that many of the third-grade groups are at the bottom, but they still have 20 points and 30 points."


    If you ignored the designation of the assigned area and all the exam events, of course, you wouldn''t be able to receive points. ording to Nanase, it wouldn''t be surprising if they would be penalized until they approached 0 points.


    I didn''t answer, prompting Nanase to think, and little by little she, started to realize it. In order to help her, I started to add something.


    "Once a strategy is recognized, its effectiveness decreases. How can they prevent this strategy from being detected?"


    "If there are 2-3 groups with 0 points, it is obvious that they did something, and this will be noticed by the other years. So, in order not to be noticed, they allow those groups to get some points." It seems Nanase came to a conclusion on her own.


    It was due to this that we can see how extraordinarily remarkable Nagumo''s power is. Several groups with 0 points would have been too revealing, and the time to find out Nagumo''s n would be significantly reduced if he let them earn some points.


    "There are many people supporting Nagumo, but each group has at least one person who steps on the designated area." I told Nanase.


    "To avoid stacking penalty points, right?"


    If you do this, you will be able to umte the minimum number of points.


    "Among the teams supporting the Nagumo group, there is alsopetition. As long as the first ce is awarded, the second and third ce can be obtained by others at their own initiative, so that the bottom group will have a change of ranking from time to time. It''s like they''re really struggling to get by, although that isn''t the case."


    This strategy would have been impossible to see through without scanning ten times with GPS. It turns out that even if you think it''s strange, it will just stagnate on suspicion.


    "Are they ready to help President Nagumo by dropping out of school?


    Don''t they think they should try to avoid dropping out even if they don''t get promoted to A ss?" Nanase asked with a confused look on her face.


    "There may be fanatics in there, but basically it''s like you say. In this scheme there must bepensation for those students that follow Nagumo."


    "Compensation from President Nagumo...?''


    "The sses below the third year B ss will not be able to graduate in A ss if they just umte points in the special exam. But what if being helped by Nagumo gives them the possibility of moving up to ss A?"


    "If that''s the only way, maybe people would choose to help..."


    If the choice is between graduating in ss B or lower and graduating from ss A, it is no wonder that most people would be willing to enlist with Nagumo.


    "I can''t seem to figure out whether it''s the school administration or the student president who''s running the exam..." Nanase questioned.


    "You aren''t wrong, Nanase. Nagumo hasplete control over his whole year. He doesn''t follow the rules; he makes and dictates them.


    The person who can create such a situation like this is really not someone to be underestimated. When you look at the history of the school, it isn''t an exaggeration to say that he is the first person, and thest person, who is capable of something like this.


    Of course, we 2nd years are not at the mercy of Nagumo, and he doesn''t get to control us as he pleases.


    On the fifth day of the special exam, I made a proposal to Ry��en and Sakayanagi. All 2nd year students would work together during a part of the exam and would work together toplete a specific project. Simply put, it was simr to Nagumo''s strategy. But it''s not like Nagumo''s n where only a specific group can get points. Because there ispetition between the second years, if there is disagreement about the score, there is no unification. Therefore, the cooperation is based on conditions other than the score. Sakayanagi and Ry��en had a group of various students that made them feel ufortable. Both parties reached an agreement through negotiation in the form of mutual support. For example, although we had an adverse rtionship with each other, we did not hesitate to work together whenever the stakes were the same, which is one of the things that makes 2nd year leaders so good.


    I think if it had been our first year, this n might not have been possible. This is a n that can be aplished because of the experience of fighting together for one and a half years.


    "I get it. So, you mean that, for you senpai, exchanging 10 points for this information is not a big risk, right?"


    "Nor have I given up my goal of reaching the top. I''m lucky that K��enji is still fighting. What I want are resources to support my peers at all times."


    "K��enji-senpai is really powerful, surpassing the group of Student Council President Nagumo by himself." Nanase remarked.


    K��enji is indeed very powerful. But this is slightly different from the truth. K��enji and Nagumo''s group formed a tug-of-war, as every student who looked at the high-ranking rankings would assume. "One person was evenly matched with Nagumo''s team" or something like that. But in reality, it was nothing more than an evenly matched performance by the Nagumo team.


    After the end of the two days in which the rankings are confirmed, Nagumo will maintain his leisurely status of second ce. Then he''ll sprint the remaining two days in which the rankings aren''t confirmed.


    This way, he can surpass the exhausted K��enji who has been pushing himself for the entire exam ande out on top. This method will not expose his "fixed" team that uses the other squads to gain points. When Nagumo decides to match K��enji''s pace, there will most likely be no chance of victory for us.


    "Let''s first use this information as a basis to investigate what moves Amasawa made on the sixth day."


    From this statement, Nanase would understand that there is extra value in using these 10 points.


    "It seems that Amasawa was not in her designated area during the morning."


    Normally, there was nothing special about spending the night in the same designated area as us since she followed the same path.


    But there was still a GPS signal two areas below us. This person seemed to be camping alone overnight as there were no ovepping signal points nearby.


    "This is an hour after the announcement of the designated area at 8:00


    A.M."


    "Our target was B6 right?"


    "It seems that Amasawa is going to B6 using a different route."


    Considering the distance she covered within the hour; means she was moving at a very fast speed. A lot faster than the average walking speed. Or perhaps she found another more efficient route. In any case, I didn''t think before she was a girl who could move alone in the forest.


    Confirming with the map for the next hour, Amasawa had reached C6, to the right of the designated area. She should have now left for the event next to the designated area, with time to spare.


    "It''s amazing, you can see everyone''s movements clearly on this map."


    It seems up until the sixth day; she had beenpleting the exam as seriously as the other students. I kept following her path from the 3rd screenshot to the 7th. There were no particrly strange actions, and about three more events werepleted after making sure to reach the designated area. Whether she got a ranking or not could actually be found out through the tablet, but it didn''t matter.


    "At least, at 5:00 P.M. on the 6th day, Amasawa did not approach us, and there is no sign of anything suspicious." I conclude.


    "Unfortunately, we haven''t made any progress then."


    "No, it''s enough, at least in my opinion. Amasawa is facing the test with a serious attitude. She didn''t let us discover her vulnerability under the GPS signal."


    In other words, the time when sheunched her operation was non-exam time. Although these time slots can also be scouted using GPS, it is already nothing more than a loss of points. Weter received a notice from the school that the point scoring was disabled and the suspension of today''s special exam.


    [Due to bad weather, the arrival bonuses on the 7th day, as well as the events, were only a quarterpleted, so the arrival bonus on thest day, the arrival payment and the event rewards go to be double. The weather forecast indicates that the weather will return to normal tomorrow morning.]


    However, thest daysted the same as the first day, with only ? of the normal time being useful. In that sense, would this be a correct way to distribute the time for recovering points?


    "This could be a factor for an investment."


    If the score is doubled on thest day, this will be considered the day that determines the winners for most people, and therefore setbacks are likely to ur.


    "The decision to give the news of the doubling of the score on thest day well in advance is correct. This allows us to re-examine the actions of the students in the second half of the exam."


    Since today has been a full rest day, the pace of distribution of physical force will change from tomorrow, and there are groups that will consider sprinting on thest day. It wouldn''t be surprising if someone took advantage of this slow time slot and increased their pace from day 8. But, for me, neither the bad weather nor the notice of double pay on thest day was the way I wanted it to unfold.


    I suddenly noticed that Nanase, who had be silent, seemed confused while staring wide-eyed at the tablet. I''m not sure if it''s her regr daze, but her eyes keep opening and closing.


    "Although it''s still daylight, wouldn''t it be better to sleep a little?" I suggest.


    "After forcing up that mountain during the morning, and fighting with me, Nanase''s strength should be exhausted. She had already exceeded her limit two or three times. The feeling of fatigue must have hit her already."


    "Oh, I''m sorry. Please forgive me."


    She panicked and tried to straighten her posture, but drowsiness is not something that could be chased away so easily. Not to mention the fact she was covered in sores.


    "In that case... I''ll go back to my tent to sleep."


    You are the only one who knows the best state of your own body.


    Continuing to doze off here would only be an inconvenience.


    "Good idea."


    Because of the rain, I don''t think I can move freely. In that case, I should just lie down and rest. I say that, but the tent wasn''t exactly afortable and quiet sanctuary. Easier said than done to properly rest in a ce like this.


    Nanase, who was about to leave, turned around and came towards me.


    "When it stops raining, I will go after Amasawa, since I know she is a White Room student. I am concerned about her movements."


    In fact, even though she had been following me all this time, I never noticed it. Since they were in the same group, Amasawa couldn''t be that harsh on Nanase.


    "It is a fact that Amasawa, as a student of the White Room, was able to pass all the tests at that age without any problem. In short, she is threatening.


    Don''t underestimate her based on factors like her gender, or her age." I utter a word of caution.


    "I don''t know the details, but she''s an extremely strong opponent, isn''t she?"


    She could surpass Sud�� and Ry��en in purebat power alone. Even if she can''t match them with her arm strength, her skills are unmatched by others. Nanase can''t win no matter how hard she tries.


    "H��sen-kun is in your group. Can''t he be of any use?" I point out to Nanase.


    "He is also, if measured by purebat power, not an opponent that I can keep in check and bnce."


    Nanase nodded in agreement, but it''s not just arm strength that''s dangerous. Rather, H��sen was not an opponent who acted solely on strength.


    "I think it''s highly unlikely that H��sen is a White Room student, but the whole Amasawa thing made me lose my certainty about it. Anyway, my businesses second. You have to protect yourself first."


    After our previous confrontation, forcing me to drop out of school might not be his main goal anymore. That idea has be entirely possible.


    "I''m not afraid of dropping out of school. I''ll do anything to protect Ayanok��ji-senpai," Nanase said with a look of pure determination. I tried to give her advice, but Nanase wouldn''t ept my words so easily.


    "Then let me put it differently, Nanase you might put me in a dangerous situation by acting without thinking, I want you to avoid risky actions as a favor to me."


    I told Nanase that I wasn''t worried about her but about myself in the future. Saying that Nanase''s brave expression became as soft as a puppy.


    "That... I can''t have that. I won''t give you any more trouble Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "It''s good that you think so, in any case, you have to act carefully now, understand?"


    "Of course. I''ll listen to you."


    Saying this, I hoped Nanase wouldn''t do anything unfavourable. It probably didn''t ur to her that she had already done something quite troublesome.


    After Nanase went back to her tent, my eyes fell once again toward the screen of the tablet. I wanted to confirm the scores for the higher-ranking groups as well as the lower-ranking groups. Then based on the score, I will begin to organize the current situation.


    [List of top ten groups]


    1. K��enji �C 168 pts. (2nd year)


    2. Nagumo �C 166 pts. (3rd year) [Group]


    3. Kiriyama �C 150 pts. (3rd years) [Group]


    4. Misoe �C 133 pts. (3rd years) [Group]


    5. Ochiai �C 133 pts. (3rd years) [Group]


    6. Ry��en �C 128 pts. (2ns year) [Group]


    7. Sakayanagi �C 127 pts. (2nd year) [Group]


    8. Takahashi �C 115 pts. (1 year) [Group]


    9. Kanzaki �C 104 pts. (2nd year) [Group]


    10. Kuronaga �C 101 pts. (3rd years) [Group]


    Then I was in 49th ce with 78 points. There is a 90-point gap between me and the first ce K��enji. Although it seemed like there was no way to reverse the score difference between us if I get first ce in cement points and bonus points... since there were four per day, I would be extremely close if I get first ce nine times in a row. Of course, this was only possible if there was no conflict with my opponents. If K��enji doesn''t slow down and continues to score at the current pace, his final score would be around 350 points. If I wanted to achieve that, I would have to earn about 40


    points a day. If it were the other groups, they would surely think "no way"


    and give up. But even K��enji, who was different from the rest, should slow down in the second half.


    "Tenth ce has 101 points? Huh?"


    When the uninhabited inds examination rules were exined, I would have expected that the overall group points should have been higher at this tipping point. Scores for the top ten groups, including my current score of 78, which ranks 49th, gave the impression of stagnation during the initial-mid period of the exam. It reached its peak on days two and three, and as fatigue began to make an appearance, the number of lost points, penalties and non-participants in the tests increased as they focused on reaching their designated areas.


    However, as the groups began to merge, the total number of groups decreased. This should not be forgotten either. It will take a significant improvement in my score in the second half of the exam to get to the top.


    And now, the 10th ce score became even more critical. It was a good choice to not push myself in the first half and conserve my strength silently.


    My strategy would have started to work on the eighth day, which is tomorrow, but since exams were suspended on the seventh day today due to heavy rain, it gives the students who were starting to show their fatigue a day to rest. I can expect the eighth and ninth days to be another boom in point earning. This is a special exam where you can''t seem to win if you go alone.


    But in this exam, the rules of basic movement and event distributions seem to have contradictions.


    If you aim to get to the designated area the fastest, you risk missing the event, and if you aim to get to the event, you have a high chance of missing the cement bonus. This is the same for both individuals and groups.


    Whether it is the arrival order reward, waiting for thest person in the group to set foot in the designated area, or that you must score first to score any points, the ways to score points vary.


    I don''t know if the rain will stop, but I''ll be using a new strategy for the second half of the exam starting tomorrow. I''m a little worried about Nanase and the other girls who I haven''t heard from in a while...

 Chapter 121 - 2: Blanket of Silence

    <h4>Chapter 121: Chapter 2: nket of Silence</h4>


    THE HEAVY RAIN thatsted until dawn cast an uneasy gloom over the students'' minds. But by 6 a.m., the clouds and rain disappeared as if in mockery, and it was as clear and sunny as the day before. That said, it took me some time to get back to the muddy trail because I was still in the forest where I couldn''t see the direct sunlight.


    "I need to solve my food problem soon..."


    As a high school student, I have no longer been able to maintain my daily caloric intake, and I''m slowly starting to run out of energy. It''s the first time I''ve been hungry in a long time because I''ve never trained in intentional starvation. It is possible to be active even without minimal hydration, but it isn''t something I want to do. It would leave me with a low immune system, and all sorts of illnesses would ensue. Of course, I could have chosen to eat wild animals or insects to fill my stomach, but that''s just an ultimate resort.


    You can also buy resources at the start location if you have any leftover points, but that can only be considered an emergency measure. In other words, there are only two ways to get a diet: getting a good score in an event or using points to buy it at the start location. However, thepetition for events where food is a reward will naturally be morepetitive in the future.


    "I''m ready to go." Nanase, who had packed up, came towards me with her backpack on her back.


    "Amasawa is basically just moving towards her designated area, right?"


    "From the number of points she acquired, it seems so. In that case, if I''m not bothering you, can you let me walk along to the next designated ce?" Nanase asks me with a kind tone.


    I silently nod my head in agreement. Since we''re heading towards the same ce, there isn''t any reason to part ways here. Not long into the walk, Nanase opens her mouth.


    "Amasawa followed us in the morning of the seventh day after the sixth night, right?


    Wouldn''t you assume that she found us on the morning of the seventh day by scanning?"


    Since there is no way to see the usage history of the GPS scans, there is no evidence that Amasawa used one. If we could know the score of their group, we could determine if Amasawa or H��sen used a scan. Since their group was neither in the top ten nor the bottom ten, the only person left who could confirm the point situation was Nanase, who was in the same group.


    "Of course I checked the tablet. But... from what I remember, we didn''t lose a single point that we had umted as of the morning of the seventh."


    This means Amasawa did not use the GPS search.


    "Although we don''t know where Amasawa-san was on the morning of the seventh day, we were moving pretty fast, so it would have been hard to catch up without being near us, right?"


    "Since it''s Amasawa, it might not have taken that much effort."


    Unlike Nanase and I, who were carrying a load, Amasawa was lightly loaded. Even if there was a certain distance, she should have been able to catch up.


    "Or perhaps, she learned of our whereabouts somehow."


    "Does that mean Amasawa asked someone about Ayanok��ji-senpai''s location?"


    "Possibly."


    No matter what method she used, it''s hard to get conclusive proof at this stage.

 Chapter 122: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 122: 2.1</h4>


    "Senpai, I guess this is where we say goodbye..."


    After moving from the D3 area to the E3 area and gaining a few points each, Nanase told me with a look of sadness.


    "How are you nning to rendezvous with Amasawa and H��sen?"


    GPS scanning is a very convenient way to find the enemy, but it''s hard to say whether it''s suitable for meeting up with teammates. Radio transceivers that you can use to talk with them directly may be more appropriate.


    "I don''t think I can find them if I move blindly, but I can''t use the points that I collected for a selfish action. For the moment, I will track the GPS location using only the points I just obtained. Then I''ll have to take my chances by going to the next designated area."


    This would be the least time-consuming way to do it. Any further search to look for Amasawa and H��sen will be saved when for she has time.


    Since it makes no sense to ask about Amasawa''s position here, I''ll keep listening to her.


    "If I want to find out the whereabouts of the first-year students, I need to be a first year. If I find any disturbing movement, I''ll rush back to Ayanok��ji-senpai to report it."


    Nanase is very enthusiastic, but it is quite dangerous to be alone in a situation like hers.


    "Don''t force yourself."


    Nanase bowed her head and left with her tablet in her hand. I wished she could join me again soon, but it depends on where the other two are. It would be easy if they were to just wander into the designated area. Still, since they''re two separate parties thinking and acting on their own, they will most definitely have different trajectories.


    After watching Nanase''s back disappear into the forest, I took out my tablet. At this point, I was finally one person again, and the second half of the game could begin.


    "It seems there aren''t any events in the vicinity..."


    Although there was an event only 400 meters away from here, 20


    minutes had passed since it started, and 35 minutes would have had passed in total, including the 15 minutes it would take me to arrive. And there were only five groups that could participate, which wasn''t that much.


    The situation is difficult, so I decided to be realistic and chose to take a break so I could avoid over-exerting myself. I''ll wait here for the announcement of the next designated area and regain my strength by resting.


    By nine o''clock, it was time to move. I took out my tablet and looked to see where the designated area was located. Depending on how far it is, I may have to alter my strategy to get there.


    Today, the random zone was the second designated area. It was E6, which isn''t too far. I immediately start to move while checking the current tablet to identify the event and set a direction.


    The key to getting as many points as possible is "efficiency." To achieve maximum efficiency, you need to eliminate the elements that will influence "luck."

 Chapter 123: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 123: 2.2</h4>


    By 4:00 P.M. I had finished the event I was participating in. As I was getting ready to leave, I heard someone call out to me.


    "A-Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    For the first time since we parted ways on day one of the special exam, Horikita and I met again. Although she looked surprised to see me, she didn''t seem particrly tired.


    "It''s been eight days." I call out back to her.


    "So it has."


    We had met in the F7 area for the first time since the exam started.


    "I came here to participate in this event. Where are you going?"


    "I''m going to G8. I was just passing through here, and you?" She replied.


    She seems to be heading in the same direction as me.


    "I''m headed to F8. The general direction seems to be the same."


    Since there isn''t anything more inefficient than standing and talking, we naturally started walking side by side. Since our route was the same for a while, going together made sense.


    "You''re more energetic than I thought. It looks like you''re still alone?"


    I question her.


    "Yeah. There are many difficulties, but there are equally as many easy aspects if you''re alone."


    It''s true that if you''re alone, you don''t need to care about other people and match your groups pace. I hadn''t seen Horikita in the bottom ten once, so she should be umting points smoothly. I was honestly surprised that she didn''t look tired.


    "Is it so strange to see that I''m doing well?"


    "Many students in our ss seem to be tired."


    "Has anything strange happened?"


    "Strange...? Oh, have you heard anything about Shinohara and her group?"


    "Yes, I only heard about it today."


    Horikita had stopped near the starting point where she was called by a second-year student from ss A. After Sakayanagi had shared my strategy with her, someone told her about Komiya''s exit from the exam.


    "You didn''t say no, did you?"


    "There was no reason to refuse. It was necessary to avoid Shinohara-san''s withdrawal from school. I heard that you were the first to find out about their ident, do you know the circumstances of what happened?"


    As someone who had witnessed the scene first-hand, I stated my opinion.


    "No, not particrly. I think it was an ident but there could be more than what''s on the surface."


    Of course, I concealed the fact that Amasawa was hiding nearby.


    "Shinohara''s group dropped in one breath and is now in the bottom seven. If this continues, they will be in danger of being expelled from school.


    We have to hurry up. If they don''t find a group to merge with, I''ll help her.


    Before I met with you, I was lucky enough toplete an event that granted me spots for additional members, and now there are three vacancies."


    That is good news. There are only a few challenges that raise the maximum quota for a group, and they''re usually the mostpetitive ones.


    Achieving first ce in one of them is not an easy event.


    "But if that happens, Shinohara and you will be the only ones who can umte points. If possible, I would like to work with Sakayanagi in a better way and let them be absorbed into a healthy group."


    Horikita agreed and nodded gently.


    From when I was walking around the ind during thest eight days, I could notice many more groups with walkie-talkies, more than I had imagined. As Sakayanagimunicated the matter of Shinohara to her ss A members, I noticed themunication in various ces.


    "I''ve seen a tendency to utilize walkie-talkie''s in the upper sses as a method ofmunication and a unified leader to give out instructions. The walkie-talkie''s can transmit information over long distances and can sometimes be surprisingly rewarding depending on how they are used."


    "If... If we had trusted each other a little more, I wonder if we could have done that."


    Perhaps this was quite hard to imagine as Horikita pursed the lips of her mouth tightly.


    I took out my tablet and checked if any new events had appeared. To my luck, an event appeared nearby where you will be awarded food just by participating. The number of epted groups was also quiterge, fifteen groups in total for this challenge.


    "Food is getting scarce. I''m going to take this event, what about you?"


    If you were aiming to get cement points, it would be more efficient to give up on this event and proceed to the designated area.


    "I don''t have much food left either, so I suppose I''ll participate in this too."


    Since our priorities are the same, we simultaneously changed our route and headed for the event. An event like this is quite rare, so thepetition to fill up the slots would be quite fierce.


    Horikita and I both picked up our pace and headed towards the event location. On our way, we encountered first-years and third-years with the same mindset. Of course, the probability of the second-year groups appearing became higher, as all of them are flocking in the same direction. At this point, most of them have started running. When surrounded by enemy teams, they most likely feel the pressure and have a stronger desire to reach the event before others.


    "Don''t worry about me Horikita. Go on and run."


    "If you don''t have food either, shouldn''t you run too?"


    "I don''t have the strength to run anymore."


    "Well it''s the same for me."


    Although anxious, she seems to be following the same principle as me of not consuming physical strength at will. Horikita, who was able to move alone with some ease, must have beenpleting the uninhabited ind exam at about the same pace as I was.


    After that, we caught up with the event and talked for a while with ssmates whom we hadn''t seen for a long time. Even if we start running to the designated area now, the cement payoff is no longer necessary. The time saved to share information with ssmates here will be more beneficial for the second part of the exam. Furthermore, many of the students still don''t know about Shinohara''s situation so it''s best we fill them in.


    Today, I earned 4 points for basic movement and 14 points for participating in the event. I''ve earned a total of 18 points today. That gives me a grand total of 96 points, and puts me in 23rd ce. The students became a lot more active today than on the fifth and sixth day, but there were still groups that didn''t move. Today was essentially the day to draw the line of distinction between the groups that have started pushing and the groups that are still warming up for the second half. The eighth day of the special exam battle was expected to be fierce, but in reality, it turned out to be quite a good day. The top ten groups score points did not change significantly.


    Tenth ce still belongs to Kuronaga''s group with 111 points as of today.


    Tomorrow I want to move up into a more desirable ranking, and I would like to see Sakayanagi in the near future if I can. I decided to fall asleep in the hopes that the designated area would head towards the starting point.

 Chapter 124 - 3: The battle against loneliness

    <h4>Chapter 124: Chapter 3: The battle against loneliness</h4>


    I BRUSHED AWAY THE COBWEBS that covered my clothes and slowly lowered my backpack. The ninth day of the uninhabited ind exam would be another hot day.


    Breathing heavily, I arrived at the fourth designated area without any incident. Finally, I had reached my destination as nned. Sweat flowing from my forehead came running down onto the bridge of my nose, so I wiped it away with my wrist. The fourth mandatory movement started at 3:00 P.M.


    It was a significant transfer from H9 to D5 area. It took me a lot of effort to reach the designated area within the specified time. I had bumped into an event on the way here, but I had chosen to ignore it to reduce the risk of being penalized.


    Since it took almost two hours to reach this area, very few groups arrived, and I managed to get third ce in cement points. I wasn''t unhappy with these results, but my wish to see Sakayanagi at the starting point hadn''te true.


    I didn''t want to mess around with the fact that I would overexert myself if I moved down there now. Although I had brushed shoulders with several groups of second-year ss A students, none of them were carrying radio transceivers. Perhaps I should force my way there tomorrow morning?


    No... that would be tricky. I suppose I''ll have to put the Sakayanagi case on hold for the time being and summarize the gains and losses of today.


    "All the points gained today add up to a total score of 112 points."


    Kuronaga, who held 10th ce, had a total of 123 points. With a difference of only 11 points between us, I had moved up to thirteenth ce.


    Considering it''ll soon be 5:00 P.M., the possibility of ending the day with this point difference is very high. Although my ideal ranking is eleventh ce, an 11-point difference is still within my tolerance range. Although this result arrived slightlyter than I had nned due to the Nanase incident and the bad weather, I''ve still reached the excellent position I had been nning for since the start of the exam.


    My ns revolved around getting a high ranking on the point board.


    Although it''s only thirteenth ce right now, and there''s some discrepancy, it doesn''t make a huge difference. What''s important is the matter of "staying below tenth ce." To get on the podium, it''s inevitable you''re going to need to umte points. But whether it''s a group of one person or a group of seven people using booster cards, you''ll be revealed the moment you hit the top ten rankings.


    The ideal ranking to avoid bing noticed and still get a high cement is eleventh ce. There are, however, several drawbacks to this strategy. The issue of managing your score bes quite difficult, and if you don''t control your scoring well, you''ll be thrown onto the top list, even if it''s just for a second. In that case, the strategy will have be aplete failure.


    The most significant disadvantage is that it''s very dependent on the tenth-ce scorer. The closer the tenth-ce score is to the first ce, the easier it will be to reverse it. The more significant the score difference is, the more difficult it will be to change it.


    That''s why the leading groups need to have an advantage over the rest. Demonstration of those "advantages" has been slower than expected, and now some groups are acting better than I assumed. It''s not a substitute, but the rtive advantage of the second years is that there''s no resistance from the lower sses and no pressure from the upper sses. The act of obstruction can also be seen as self-sacrifice, and there is no way to perform it without a certain margin of score.


    What I care about most of all right now is the movement of Nagumo.


    You would assume he would do something against K��enji, who is fighting for the top spot, but his GPS movements don''t seem like he''s nning anything at the moment. This might be better in the sense that they''re more focused on scoring points than taking down their rivals.


    "Even if I don''t win, it''ll be fine if K��enjies first or second."


    If I stay around 11th ce, I won''t be exposed. Even if I''m dyed by encountering Amasawa or any other first-year hindrance, I don''t have to worry about dropping in ranking. I need to stay hidden in the high range until the end of the twelfth day.


    After resting in the shade of a tree for a while, I put on my backpack and left this area for the next one, which is just a little further. I had been thinking about finding an open area just slightly away from the borderline.


    By the time the sun had set, and when I had to decide where to camp for the night, I saw a single tent for one person in sight. Since the entrance was zipped up, I assumed it''s unupied at the moment. I had nned to go to the bathroom, but before that, I got up and looked at my surroundings.


    "Nice ce, huh?"


    Such an open and t ce is hard to find on this ind. It would have been great if I couldy out my tent here, but I was an only male now, unlike when Nanase was here. If this other person was a female student, it would be a source of dispute again.


    But why is there a single tent?


    Did this person act separately from the group, or was it just one person? If it''s thetter, it could be someone I know, right? Before I pitched my tent, I wanted to know who else was there. I decided to stay here for a while to see what would happen. If the owner is out for a walk, they''ll definitely be back before sunset. Or if they''re sleeping right now, and I hear noises, I''ll try to talk to them.


    I suppose it would be more efficient to say something right now... but I would instead observe and let them take the first initiative.


    I waited about ten minutes, but there was no sign of anyoneing back, nor was there any noise from inside the tent. It may be possible this person is sleeping as there is no group to keep pace with.


    "Is anyone there?"


    I held my breath and waited for a reaction, but I didn''t hear anything.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m going to have to set up a tent nearby. Let me know if there''s any problem."


    With the premise that the other party isn''t there, I can have an excuse if they doe back and tell me to leave. Of course, it''s desirable to keep an adequate distance from that tent.


    Not too long after, I finished setting up my tent, although I was still curious about who the other person was. Once again, I''m pretty impressed with my skills of pitching tentspared tost year on the other uninhabited ind. Not only that, but I like one-person tents because I don''t need to worry about anyone else.


    Well maybe it''s because I think like that, I don''t have many friends.


    A cheerful person would say something like "A small tent-like this is boring." I wonder if there will be a day where I feel the same way.


    "I can''t imagine what it would be like..." I mutter to myself.


    It''s a future that will nevere.


    "I thought some weirdo hade along but it''s just you."


    As I was getting ready to change my clothes, someone called out behind me. Apparently, the owner of the lonely tent was Mio Ibuki of second-year ss B.


    "Did I disturb you?"


    "Not really."


    After answering me briefly, Ibuki started ring at me. I thought she would say something to me, but she immediately went back to the tent.


    Thinking she was acting a little strange, I decided to go see what she was doing.


    "Do you have a moment?"


    No answer.


    "I have something I want to ask you."


    I called her once more, but there wasn''t any response. However, I could hear a faint noise from inside the tent. I had assumed she was simply ignoring me, but she seemed to be doing something.


    "I''m going to open it if you aren''t protesting..."


    Just in case, I waited thirty seconds before opening the curtain to Ibuki''s tent.


    "...What?"


    When I looked inside, Ibuki seemed to be biting something.


    "You''re really�C No, what are you eating?"


    "Jerky," she replied.


    "Jerky? I didn''t see that in the uninhabited ind manual they distributed..."


    That means she bought raw meat and cooked it herself. But making beef jerky alone should take a lot of time and effort. Above all, in the beginning, Ibuki had left challenging words for Horikita and immediately headed for the designated area. If you carry raw meat with you, it''s evident that it will go bad in a few hours due to this heat. So, I have to assume that the entire sophomore ss B had a line for making jerky.


    TL Note: Jerky is lean trimmed meat that has been cut into strips and dried to prevent spoge. Normally, this drying includes the addition of salt to prevent bacteria growth before the meat has finished the dehydrating process. It''s a good source of protein.


    It would most definitely save considerable amounts of points. The efficiency of homemade jerky as a portable food item is great. More importantly, the number of points needed for foods like beef jerky that are already seasoned and can be kept for a long time would be so huge that it simply wouldn''t be cost-effective. The same amount of jerky prepared from raw meat consumes a great deal of time and energy, but it can save a lot of points. Even if they''re full for a few meals and hungry for the next few meals, second-year ss B can ignore the highlypetitive food events.


    "It doesn''t matter, it''s none of your business." Ibuki replies with a cold tone.


    This is what I assume Ry��en''s strategy is since Ibuki wouldn''t ever tell me anything about it.


    Having said that, although Ibuki had decided to tackle this exam on her own, she didn''t ever fall into the bottom ten as far as I can remember. She should be barely scraping by and umting a decent amount of points thus far. For Ibuki, it''s basically impossible to get the top three in any event that requires academic ability. Her only option to continuously score points is to go after the cement points or to go after the events that require athletic ability.


    Of course, by doing this, she should have definitely umted more fatigue than the other students. As a result, it''s clear that she''s taken a lot of psychological damage as well.


    It wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say she has exceeded her own limits.


    "How many people have you spoken with since the exam started?"


    "What?"


    I would assume she also hasn''t been sleeping at night, given the dark circles under her eyes.


    "...Horikita. I won''t lose to her, didn''t you hear? I mean, we haven''t had a conversation since the start of the exam."


    At best, she''s probably only opened her mouth to answer yes or no at the assignment table.


    "It would be nice to talk with someone for a bit."


    "I don''t have any reason to talk with my enemies."


    "Then what about your ssmates? You should meet people just by walking around the ind."


    "I don''t consider the guys in my ss as friends."


    She''s practically locked herself in this shell and has be what she is today. I''m surprised Ibuki has continued in this state for nine days. But there were still five days left in the exam. If you cut off the threads of tension that hold her, even for just a moment, she''ll copse in one breath.


    Of course, if Ibuki, who is alone, withdraws, then it''s a guarantee she''ll be expelled from school. However, in this special exam, it ismon to understand that whenever possible, we do not want to have a group of students expelled from the same grade as us. The best strategy is to take a day off, not counting the seventh day, which was affected by bad weather. Doing nothing for a full day should restore most of your strength. Then you can use the remaining four days to get through the exam in one go. It would be incredibly beneficial if Ibuki imnted this strategy.


    However, reality isn''t that easy. Resting through a whole day is easier said than done. Even if you force yourself to take a break, your mental state might continue to degrade. You''ll have to rest with the knowledge that while you''re recuperating, others are umting points. The pressure of being overtaken and squeezed into the bottom ten will slowly eat away at your psyche. Spending time alone like that is something that no ordinary person can do.


    Furthermore, skipping all the designated areas will only result in stacking up penalties. If the penalties stack up, they''ll cause you to suffer the next day and beyond.


    "Get out of here." Ibuki spits out at me.


    "...Sure."


    Even if the other party is Ibuki, a girl is a girl. At this time of day, when it''s just getting dark, peeking into the tent of the opposite sex is definitely not something I want to be caught doing.


    Even if Ry��en was here right now, I doubt he could have solved Ibuki''s problem.


    I left Ibuki''s tent and started to organize my clothes again. The wind is rtively strong today, so I should be able to spend a cool night.


    "Hey you." Ibuki called out to me from outside the tent.


    After I tidied up, I looked outside to see Ibuki''s figure appear outside the tent. She staggered and almost tripped for a second, but she quickly straightened up and walked towards me.


    "How many points do you have right now." Ibuki asked with her hands in her pockets.


    I was happy she hade out to talk, but the question was a rather bold one.


    "We''re enemies."


    "So, you won''t tell me?"


    She muttered "cheapskate" under her breath, but I still won''t tell her. At this point, no one on the ind would benefit by knowing that I''m in thirteenth ce. She probably won''t believe me anyway.


    "That''s what I mean."


    "At least tell me if you''re above or below me. My score is-"


    I put up my hand to stop Ibuki, who wanted to tell me her points without asking for my permission.


    "Sorry, but I won''t answer your question no matter what form it takes."


    Even answering "above" or "below" gives her a hint. It would be the same if I lied. I may get out of trouble by answering lower than her. Still, once others learn that I am fighting to secure a score, groups wille to force me into a desperate situation. I must be careful not to let information like that spread around.


    Ibuki clicks her tongue and puts her hands back in her pockets.


    "Whatever. You''re a waste of time."


    "Exactly. Besides, your real rival is Horikita, right?"


    As soon as I mentioned Horikita''s name, the bored Ibuki developed a fierce expression. She proceeded to take her hand out of her pocket and raise her middle finger at me.


    "If you see her, tell her I''m not going to let her beat me." Ibuki says while scowling at me.


    "That''s fine, but why are you giving me the finger? I''m not your rival."


    "You''re the same. Aren''t you on good terms with Horikita?"


    Not really. But even if I told Ibuki that, her opinion of me probably wouldn''t change. I assume at this point, Ibuki had onlye here to ask about my point situation.


    "Wait a minute." I call out to her.


    I reach out to grab Ibuki''s arm, who clearly doesn''t trust me, and doges it with full alertness.


    "Ha. You want to fight?"


    She assumed I wasing to provoke her, and she balled her fists.


    "No, I don''t want to fight you."


    Once again, I quickly reach out for her wrist and grab it without leaving any room for error.


    "What the hell are you doing?!" Ibuki yells at me.


    I defended my side against Ibuki, who kicked me in a panic. I thought she would resist for a while longer, but she let out a sigh as if her anger had run out.


    "I admit I can''t beat you but one day I''ll kick your ass."


    I really wish she wouldn''t set such a ridiculous goal.


    "So, what? Did Horikita send you to sabotage me?"


    On top of misunderstanding my intentions, she even made up some up non-existent facts. Even if I had argued, I was in the same ss as Horikita.


    For Ibuki, that''s more than enough to disregard reason.


    Rtively speaking, Ibuki will not ept my rmendation of rest.


    "Your pulse is fast."


    "What?"


    "And your mouth is also pretty dry. I can tell by the cracking on your lips it''s pretty serious. You''re obviously dehydrated."


    If this goes on, her wristwatch rm is bound to ring soon.


    It may already have sounded out once.


    The reason she sat quietly in the tent was probably because she was exhausted. Still, she also wanted to suppress the alerts caused by an abnormal pulse.


    "I''m... I''m not that thirsty." She said as I let go of her wrist.


    "Mind your own business, I don''t have any problems that I can''t take care of." Ibuki said while looking at me with a withering look.


    After Ibuki said that, she turned around and headed back to her tent. I immediately ran by her and straight into her tent.


    "H-Hey! What are you doing?!"


    She clearly would never listen to my words, so I need to employ more forceful tactics. I rummaged around until I found her backpack.


    "Let me see what''s inside."


    "Ehhh? That''s not something I can show to boys! I don''t even show it to girls."


    "Thought so."


    Since it was impossible to get her permission, I opened it anyway and started to check the contents.


    "Who do you think you are?".


    The only things in the bag were clothing items and disposable toiletries and what little jerky she had left. Plus, a 500ml mineral water bottle that was already empty. Since there was a garbage collection device where the event was done, the useless stuff had already been discarded. There was not even a drop of water left inside the bottle, which means it should have dried out a long time ago. There was also no walkie-talkie that could be used for long range contact.


    "How long have you gone without water?"


    "I don''t need to answer you."


    "How long have you gone without water?" This time, I asked her with a stern look and a more assertive tone.


    "...A whole day. And little more."


    "Were you running around in that state?"


    "I haven''t been running anywhere, I was here resting all day."


    "That''s a cheap lie. There wasn''t any GPS responses at this location in the morning."


    "So, you ran a scan?"


    Of course, I didn''t, but this bluff seems to be working. Ibuki wouldn''t simply choose to rest when she needed to defeat Horikita.


    "Has the emergency alert been triggered yet?"


    "...An hour ago. So, I had no choice but to take an early break."


    The watch''s warning bell will stop chirping when physical abnormalities stop urring continuously. After a while, it''ll stop ringing the emergency alert and go back to the warning alert.


    "If you don''t rehydrate, it''ll keep ringing even if you''re resting."


    If you can''t stop your fast-beating pulse, it will be transferred back to the emergency bell. By that time, the dehydration symptoms will also have worsened. Once you undergo the medical examination, you won''t be allowed to partake in the exam anymore.


    "I''ll do something about it tomorrow. I''ll go to the starting point in case of emergency, so leave me alone."


    "That''s more than two kilometers from here. If you try and cover that, you''ll definitely copse."


    "Then I''llplete an event or whatever."


    "It''s because you can''t do an event that you''re in this situation right?"


    The only way to calm down Ibuki is to counter her wed reasoning with a good argument. I grab my backpack from my tent and pull out two 500ml stic bottles that I got frompleting today''s challenge.


    "Let''s negotiate."


    "What?"


    "I have trouble finding food. On the other hand, I have an excess of water. That''s why I want to negotiate with you, because I can make an equal exchange."


    Ibuki clears her throat when she sees the stic bottle of water, even though it isn''t cold anymore.


    "What are you going to do? Again, this is a fair deal. You''re going to have to give me a certain amount of food for this water."


    "Who do you even think you-"


    "You can say no, but that will be the end of our negotiations."


    Ibuki''s rebellious words won''t stop if I don''t maintain a strong attitude.


    "If you withdraw from this exam due to dehydration, you will surely lose to Horikita. I met her a while ago, she looked great, and didn''t seem to need food or water."


    Mentioning herpetition, or even Horikita''s name for that matter is the keyword for Ibuki. Threatening her wouldn''t get me anywhere, but bringing up the only thing she cares about right now, Horikita, will get her to listen to me.


    "In that case, I''ll ept your deal. How much food do you want?"


    Ibuki''s food supply will run out in less than two days at this rate. If I took only a short amount of supplies, it can''t be called a fair trade.


    "Give me half."


    "Is that all?"


    "It''s better than being stuck with nothing to eat but weeds."


    That was the deal Ibuki, and I made for water and food. The second I handed her the bottle, Ibuki drank half of the mineral water in one gulp.


    Usually, I would have reminded her that she should drink slowly. However, considering that she already has symptoms of dehydration, she needed to rehydrate as soon as possible.


    I think she was dissatisfied with how I was looking at her, and she resumed with her murderous look. Although the dehydration symptoms have more or less improved, Ibuki''s spirit is obviously not in a normal state. She''s been maintaining a tense state of mind without having much energy to spare.


    How much longer could she hold on, I wonder. Will it be a few hours or few days? I wish she can hold on until the end of the exam. After this, I probably won''t see her again since we don''t share the same path. I had to try onest time to convince her.


    "I won''t thank you. It was a fair deal, right?"


    "I never asked you to thank me."


    I''m sure she''s been in a sensitive state with people because she''s been so tense all day. It would be fine if it was a short-term battle, but in a long-term exam like this, it''s just asking for trouble.


    "If you haven''t sunk to a lower level yet, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to spend a day or so until tomorrow to regain strength, right? Or you could switch to a strategy of just going after food and water."


    "Throw away my score? Ha, you must be kidding me." Ibuki said as she stormed out.


    "I don''t make an effort because I don''t want to be expelled. I only care about beating that Horikita chick."


    I know that.


    That''s why I''m giving her advice that will help her win.


    Ibuki has hated me ever since she found out I''m X. Due to that unnecessary filter, my true intention can''t even be conveyed.


    "Why am I still here? I don''t have to talk to you anymore." Ibuki said, clearly annoyed. She left me and went back into her tent.


    I knew persuading her like this would be futile, but I wanted to warn her anyways. At the very least, her health should be fine today and tomorrow.


    After that, she''ll have to rely on her determination. Since she''s acting alone, I''m a little worried about her score. But seeing as she wants topete with Horikita, her ranking shouldn''t be that low.


    Although the day isn''t quite over yet, I used too much energy today, so I''ll rest. It''ll be nice to calm down and spend the night quietly.

 Chapter 125: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 125: 3.1</h4>


    When I returned from the bathroom in the morning, I came back to see Ibuki looking through my tent.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Ah!" Ibuki jumped at my words.


    Looks like she was rummaging through my backpack and was surprised to see me return so quickly.


    "Do you want to see my tablet? Or is there something in particr you want?"


    Unfortunately for Ibuki, I had set the screen lock, so no one else could see the data inside.


    "Of course not! I just wanted... to make sure our deal was really fair.


    That''s all." Ibuki said as she stepped away from my backpack.


    "There''s only one bottle of water left in your backpack. How the hell do you have an "excess," huh?"


    I left for only a minute, but it looks like I was too careless. It was enough time for Ibuki to go through the contents of my backpack. However, I have no right to me her. Yesterday I went through Ibuki''s backpack without permission. Even if I falsely imed it''s because I drank all the waterst night, she''ll only ask me where the empty stic bottles are. And it''s against the rules to dump trash on an uninhabited ind.


    "I see. You wanted me to owe you right? Is that why you helped me?"


    Ibuki scowled at me.


    "If you hadn''t checked my bag, would you have known I was selling you a favour?"


    "Well..."


    Ibuki seemed to understand what I was implying.


    "In other words, it was a fair exchange no matter what the truth is."


    "It''s hard to ept but I suppose I don''t owe you anything, then right?"


    "Would you give me something even if you did?"


    "No way."


    "Thought so."


    I stopped the conversation there and went back to my tent.


    The time was now 6:30 A.M. and I could hear the sound of Ibuki moving about. I opened the entrance to see what was going on and saw that her tent was all packed up. If this had been the second or third day of the special exam, I might have thought that she was really motivated. But since there''s an atmosphere that gives me the impression she doesn''t want to talk, I once again retracted my head inside the tent.


    Finally, at seven o''clock, the first designated area had been announced, and it was the E4. I didn''t hesitate to use a point for a GPS search, and I got the location of all the students at seven o''clock. In reality, spending a point here only brought me benefits. Since my points were very close to the 10th ce Kuronaga group, I could use this method to widen the gap. Also, if I use one point, my point gap with the Kuronaga group will increase to twelve points, and if I get first ce in cement points which will earn me 11 points, I won''t surpass the Kuronaga group.


    As of now, there are three groups on the map that will most likelypete for the reward of cement points. Unfortunately, there''s a person among these groups that is a "strong enemy," and they''re in a perfect position to hinder my sess. Depending on the situation, I was nning on dropping the events and give resupplying my resources top priority. Based on this scan, I can also get a clear picture of how many students were gathering around the event I was targeting. That means I can predict thepetition rate of the event at a much earlier stage.


    When I left the tent afterpleting my preparations, Ibuki was nowhere to be seen.


    There isn''t much advantage in moving before the exam started, so perhaps she just wanted to escape my presence.

 Chapter 126: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 126: 3.2</h4>


    Although the designated area was close to the location of my campsite, it still took me an hour and a half to reach it. From the watch came a message that I had reached the designated area, but of course, there was no more cement point payout, only 1 point for arrival points. Since I went about doing some events halfway, I wasn''t upset about the result. From this higher point in the ind, you can see the general view of the uninhabited ind.


    "My my, you''re really quitete Ayanok��ji." I heard a voice call out to me.


    Standing to my right side was F��ka Kiry��in of third-year ss B. She appeared to be looking down the cliff and observing the ind.


    "Seems so."


    Kiry��in was the most troublesome person who was the closest to me at the moment. I was able to find her location beforehand through the GPS scan.


    "I thought I had a toughpetitor for the cement point reward, but it was only you?"


    "I don''t think there''s anything wrong with that. It isn''t umon for there to be different groups in the same area. Besides that, I thought that Kiry��in-senpai wasn''t interested in the top ten groups."


    Kiry��in has risen from whatever ce she was all the way to 9th.


    "This uninhabited ind test was more fun than I thought it would be, and I''m thrilled beyond my age" She replies even though she''s just a year older than me.


    "I''m going to continue with my current rhythm for a while longer."


    "Shouldn''t you aim for number one?"


    "Everyone ispeting with each other for the podium. I can''t keep up with that game. However, if Miyabi Nagumo copses, the story could be a little different."


    "I don''t think the President is anywhere close to copsing."


    "Do you really think Nagumo is going to leave K��enji as he is?"


    Apparently, Kiry��in also has some idea of what is going to happen next.


    "In terms of purebat power, you can''t say that Nagumo will definitely win. You''ve been watching the developments, haven''t you?


    Nagumo is almost ready to make his move. In other words, there is a good chance that Nagumo will make a move to dethrone K��enji. Depending on how the situation unfolds, it''s possible that both sides will cease to score points for a while."


    It''s also possible that one of them will sink and fall down the rankings.


    "Hitting your opponent is an important part of battle." She adds.


    I don''t know when they''re going to do it, but they''ll definitely face each other at this rate.


    "Don''t you want to be in the top ten?"


    "Unfortunately, I don''t have any desire to be in the top ten."


    "Is that so? I thought you were supposed to have umted nearly the same number of points as me."


    How interested was she in me? No, I''m not exactly sure I''m the only one. I''m sure that the Kiry��in has analyzed the strategies of everyone in the school.


    "Several groups will soon lose their performance. We just have to keep trying and not give up."


    I hadn''t heard of this student until recently, but I can see now that she''s pretty talented. She''s a third-year student with excellent insight and intuition that even the OAA system can''t fully express her excellence.


    "That said, from what I see in the table so far, what do you think of the fact that no group has withdrawn?"


    "All I can say is that you can''t let your guard down, not even for a moment." I reply.


    "Yesterday I went through the starting point to obtain information. It seems that groups that have started to suffer from food and water shortages are trying to get ahead by separating some of their members to avoid joint copse."


    "That''s a smart decision."


    No matter how many points you umte, you will be disqualified and expelled from school if the whole group withdraws. It is safer to send one or two people to the starting point, even if that reduces efficiency. Water is abundant, and hygiene is protected, making it easier to avoid diseases.


    "I''m sure the bottom ten groups still carry some hope, that at least some groups will be forced to withdraw."


    "People who have nothing left to lose are capable of anything, so you can''t be careless."


    "Isn''t that something that a girl should worry about, Kiry��in-senpai?"


    "Hmmm, that is true. As a pretty and merciful maiden, I should feel a sense of danger."


    Although it was just a joke, she unexpectedly took it very seriously.


    "Well, if ites to that, I''ll just have to beat them up." Kiry��in said with a grin and mmed her fists.


    That answer was not something a maiden would say.


    "Are you being serious?"


    "Fufu~, sorry for taking up your time. After all, every second of my time with you is a precious second that I should be using elsewhere." Kiry��in said as she raised her hand and started to walk away towards the event.


    "Aren''t you going to go? Maybe now you still have a chance."


    "I don''t think I canpete with Kiry��in-senpai and win. At this time, I believe that there are at most only two spots left for the event. If there are more than three rival groups headed there, not to mention Kiry��in-senpai. At this point, there''s little chance I''ll be able to participate."


    Kiry��in abruptly stopped back and looked my way when she should be hurrying.


    "So that''s... no, I dare you to go there and see for yourself." She said with a smirk.


    As if she had realized my strategy, Kiry��in left with that chal enge.

 Chapter 127: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 127: 3.3</h4>


    The sun has now set on the tenth day, and it''s just after 9 P.M. It was when I was checking the group rankings and the GPS screenshots I had saved, when I saw a bright light flicker outside the tent.


    "Someone''s moving at this time?" I mutter to myself.


    Although it was dangerous, there were definitely people who would choose to reach the final designated area at night with the moonlight.


    Without thinking, I looked out from the tent to the light source area. It wasn''t intentionally shining towards me; it was sweeping the perimeter as the person walked. The movement of the shlight beam was very erratic, and they seemed to be looking for something. A little concerned, I decided to go out of the tent to find out what was going on.


    Sure enough, I saw someone trying to find something.


    Was Amasawa looking for me so she could set a trap for me? No, it would be very unwise to use a shlight so carelessly. She would use the GPS to determine my location then secretly approach.


    "Yume... Yume-chan!" I heard the person faintly cry out.


    Although I don''t know who the person was, I know there''s only one person in this school named "Yume."


    There is no doubt that they''re referring to Yume Kobashi of second-year of ss C. It would be logical to assume that the owner of the voice is a member of that ss. I''m sure there was a girl in Kobashi''s group; it must be Chihiro Shiranami of second-year ss C.


    Anyways, the owner of this voice is about to break down in tears at any moment. Although I could have just ignored her, the second-year ss C


    students are now in partnership with the second-year ss A, Arisu Sakayanagi.


    I use my tablet, which has a built-in shlight. It''s not bright enough to use as a navigation light, but it''s bright enough for the other party to notice. I point the light towards the voice, and not long after, I hear them call out to me.


    "Yume-chan?!" I hear them say in a panicked voice.


    Slowly, I heard theming closer, then soon after, I saw their dazzling shlight.


    "Yume-chan!"


    "No, sorry, I''m not Yume."


    The person who had been calling out was indeed Shiranami.


    "Oh... Ayanok��ji-kun, good evening." Shiranami said with a relieved sigh.


    Even though we aren''t close at all, she already seems to be at ease. I wonder how dangerous her situation is.


    "It''s quite dangerous to go out alone in the middle of the night. What happened to Kobashi and Takemoto?"


    "Oh, I lost track of where I was... I was in a hurry and didn''t know where I was going."


    I wasn''t about to ask a girl why she was alone in the woods during the middle of the night.


    In this forest, it looks the same wherever you look. Sometimes you''ll think you''re headed the right way, only to find out you were going the wrong way. Then you''ll try and backtrack, only to go the wrong way once more.


    There''s a high probability anyone would get lost like that.


    That''s most likely how Shiranami found herself lost in the woods.


    "How long have you been separated?"


    "I''m not really sure... fifteen minutes... or maybe twenty minutes?"


    That means they aren''t that far off; she should easily be able to return.


    Voices, however, can''t be heard this far away.


    "Wandering aimlessly and simply calling out their names will only make things worse."


    "I guess..."


    I take the lead and tell her to stay close to me as I light the way back to my campsite. It would be troublesome if she got lost again and if I got lost looking for her. Also, I really don''t like the idea of leaving my stuff alone and going to search for her group.


    I assume there''s been many people who''ve found themselves in simr situations as Shiranami.


    At this point, it''s just a matter of knowing if you can get back on the path you were previously on. If you can''t go back, you''ll most likely be forced to spend the night in the woods, which isn''t an easy thing to do.


    Even if your body can stand it, you''re bound to be mentally exhausted.


    Shortly after returning to my camp, I call out to the restless Shiranami.


    "There are a lot of bugs. You may want to go into the tent first."


    "Ehhhh?!" Shiranami said with a somewhat fearful and surprised tone.


    "I won''t go in, so please don''t worry."


    Although my exnation was slightly problematic, I herded the puzzled-looking Shiranami into my tent.


    "I''m sorry... you were resting and..." She said from inside the tent.


    "No worries. Are Kobashi and Takemoto in good health?"


    "Yes."


    If that''s the case, they''re probably panicking right now since Shiranami hasn''t returned yet. I need to decide if we should go look for them or stay where we are.


    "Did you guys make a n in case someone gets lost?"


    I asked, but Shiranami just shook her head from side to side.


    "Then there''s a possibility that Takemoto will go out to look for you, but there''s also the possibility that''ll be an additional disaster. On the other hand, it would be quite risky for both of them to leave their tents and luggage and go out looking for you. They should also realize if they carry their luggage with them, it''ll cause problems if you were to return and find no one there."


    If they valued safety over everything, they wouldn''t leave the campsite but simply wait for Shiranami to hear them calling out her name and rely on the strong light to find her way. However, if their group didn''t even think of a countermeasure to prevent these things from happening, it''s hard to imagine they''re in a good mental state right now. That makes it very likely they''re going to run out recklessly and look for Shiranami soon.


    "What should I do..." I whisper to myself Although they may think they''re doing the right thing, they''re making a major mistake from anyone else''s perspective. People tend to be irrational when attacked by impatience.


    The question right now is what are the other two going to do.


    Depending on the situation, there''s a high probability that something serious will happen that cannot be anticipated.


    "Is your group still three people? Or has it increased to more than four?"


    I ask Shiranami.


    "That..."


    Shiranami, who had exined the situation in detail so far, was left speechless. She clearly knows her group very well, so the hesitation stems from elsewhere.


    Ichinose''s ss now cooperates with Sakayanagi''s ss. Of course, some friendship groups transcend these borders, but most of them are created by the agreements of the central nucleus. Telling me the details of what happens in the group can be ssified as leaking information. In this sense, it can be said that Shiranami made the right decision by not talking about whether her group has been changed or not.


    "That''s fine, you don''t need to tell me the details of your group. Just listen to what I have to say,"


    I continue on.


    "If I were a member of Shiranami''s group, I would be aware of the current situation. I would have concluded that mypanion was wandering alone through the dark forest without being able to return."


    Shiranami nodded in response to my words.


    "Of course, I wouldn''t leave you be. I would first call out to see if you can hear me ande back. However, as I said before, if there isn''t any reaction from this, we would have to make the next move. Suppose Kobashi got lost alone, what would you and Takemoto do?"


    "I don''t know... I think we would go look for Yume-chan..."


    "Even if it could lead to additional disaster, the risk of bing injured, and ultimately retiring?"


    "I couldn''t just leave her behind... she''s my friend."


    The typical response from Ichinose''s ss. The first thing they consider is the well-being of theirrades. Even if Takemoto of ss A stays behind in the tent, he''ll definitely join the search sooner orter.


    The most reliable option would be to wait in my tent for them to find us. Maybe they''ll even use a GPS scan to locate Shiranami. However, in this darkness, I don''t know how well that method would work even if they used two searches.


    "Can you afford to give out points? If you use it twice, would you be hesitant to use it for a third time?"


    "I... No, I don''t think that would be a good idea." Shiranami replies solemnly.


    Not that high in the ranks, I assume. It makes sense to be wary of losing points right now, as they might y a bigger role after the exam is over.


    For someone like Shiranami, it would break her heart if they spent points on looking for her.


    At this rate, it would be better to wait and let things unfold naturally.


    There''s also the possibility, however, where they don''te to look. That would mean I need to spend the night outside. In that case, it''ll deeply disturb my rhythm I''ve carried thus far.


    If I want to act, it needs to be now.


    "Do you still have strength?"


    "Huh?"


    "I''m asking if you still have the strength to walk."


    "Well yeah. I can still walk but..."


    I urged Shiranami to leave the tent.


    "I''ll take you to your group now."


    "But how?"


    "Searching haphazardly isn''t an option, we''re going to use this." I showed her the tablet in my hand.


    "We can use the GPS scan to determine which direction they''re in, and to grasp their approximate distance."


    It still won''t be easy. It''s going to be very difficult moving in the forest when it''s this dark. For average students like Shiranami, it would be impossible without using repeated GPS searches.


    "Why... Why are you helping me?"


    "Why do you think? This exam is considered a battle between the years. That''s the main reason I''m helping you."


    "But you''re going as far as spending points..." Shiranami pointed out.


    That''s true, but sparing one or two points wouldn''t significantly impact me. I can maintain my position rtively easily. Of course, I can''t talk about this with her, so I''ll try using another reason.


    "If I had to say... maybe because you''re in Ichinose''s ss."


    The moment I answered that I turned around and saw Shiranami''s face seemed to be a little stiff.


    "Do you..."


    Did I say something to make her feel ufortable?


    "Hmm?"


    "Is it because... Ayanok��ji-kun and Honami-chan are..." Shiranami said with a flustered look.


    Right after she said that Shiranami shut her mouth. Although I was slow, I slowly understood what she was trying to express. After all, there was that incident the other day where I met up with Ichinose''s ssmates.


    "There isn''t anything going on between me and her."


    Although I tried to remedy the situation, Shiranami''s expression remained rigid. It would be best if I ended the topic and started scanning. The fact that Kobashi and Takemoto''s GPS signals were still ovepping indicated that they were still together. We continued to walk, looking for Shiranami''s group.


    I must have walked in the direction of their GPS signals for about ten minutes.


    "Chihiro-chan!!" I heard a voice call out.


    As we made our way through a gap in the dark forest, Kobashi, carrying a backpack, spotted us. From the fact that she was also holding her backpack in her hand, it seems that they have brought all their bags out to look for Shiranami.


    Considering the fact, they wereing directly towards us, they most likely used a GPS search too. As a result, we all moved to where I had previously set up my tent.


    Thank you very much, Ayanok��ji-kun, for helping Chihiro-chan." Said Takemoto.


    "No, you would have found her eventually even if I did nothing. It wasn''t that big of a deal."


    "Yes it was. If she had wandered farther, she might have gotten hurt and it would have been even harder to find her."


    Even Takemoto, who was in a different ss, was relieved to find Shiranami. If it became a one-sided search, it might have been more than just a point or two spent.


    "I would like to ask, do you have a radio transceiver with you?" I asked Takemoto.


    "What? A walkie-talkie? I have one, but..."


    Since they owe me a favour, he should be willing to lend it to me.


    "If you don''t mind, can I talk to Sakayanagi? I''m a little concerned about the students from ss D who went to the starting point."


    "I''ll help you with that. Give me a minute." Takemoto says as he pulls the walkie-talkie out of the backpack.


    Thankfully, he didn''t say no. I think he wanted to express his gratitude to me.


    The walkie-talkies that are avable for purchase are digital and have the feature of carrying confidential calls. This means that there isn''t any need to worry about someone tuning into your call. The group that prepared the walkie-talkie for this exam should have also prepared a personal ess code to prevent information from leaking.


    Takemoto calls Sakayanagi and waits for her to answer.


    Not long after, there was a reply from Sakayanagi, and he hands me the walkie-talkie.


    "Please let me talk to her in private."


    The three of them nodded, so I pulled away from their group. I purposely stood where they could see me in order to let them know I wasn''t doing anything wrong.


    After talking with Sakayanagi for a while, I returned the radio transceiver to Takemoto.


    "That''s all, Sakayanagi. Sorry to bother you at this time of night."


    Takemoto speaks into the walkie-talkie.


    I could hear Sakayanagi respond from the other side, which eased Takemoto''s tense face. I think he might have thought he''d be in trouble for disturbing her. The call ended with an exchange that showed everything was fine, and the conversation was over.


    "You saved me, I''ve really been wanting to speak with Sakayanagi for a couple days now."


    "That''s good, and Sakayanagi asked me to give you this", Takemoto says as he hands me the walkie-talkie.


    "Ah, thank you very much."


    "We''re the ones who should be thanking you." I hear Kobashi say from the background.


    "Thank you for helping me Ayanok��ji-kun." Says Shiranami.


    I was once again thanked by the three of them, and the four of us decided to spend the night together.


    I fell asleep listening to the stories of ss A and ss C, which I don''t usually listen to.

 Chapter 128 - 4: Kōenji vs. Free Groups

    <h4>Chapter 128: Chapter 4: K��enji vs. Free Groups</h4>


    K��ENJI HAD NO change in his pace even when he entered the second half of the exam. As of today, the tenth day, he was racking up points to stay above the Nagumo group. After 5:00 P.M., when today''s portion of the exam ended, Kiriyama, who had finished speaking into a walkie-talkie, quietly closed his eyes. In the four days since the top ten were made public, although Nagumo and Kiriyama were more or less surprised that he had remained on the list, they didn''t put much thought into it.


    Everyone knew that taking this exam alone would definitely set a low cap to which you''ll be able to score points.


    "Kiriyama. Don''t you think Nagumo''s actions so far are messed up?


    Wasn''t he supposed to take control at the beginning of the second half of the exam? It''s because he hasn''t implemented the n yet, that his score with K��enji ispletely tied up." Said Mikitani, a student from third-year ss B tells me while showing his tablet.


    The overall score of the tablet shows that Nagumo''s group has 236


    points, while K��enji has 230. The difference between the two is 6 points.


    Nagumo could quickly reverse their positions if he got first ce in cement points. Nagumo''s group, which is now much more extensive than when he initially started, can secure 7 points in cement points as long as they arrive on time because of the booster cards. The K��enji group can only score 1 point, but that makes him the only group which can easily get a reward for finishing first.


    "Even if Nagumo manages to overtake him, you''ll finish third if you aren''t careful. If you lose to a loner sophomore, our reputation as your supporters will take a nosedive."


    Kiriyama and his team now have a total score of 188 points. The difference between them and K��enji begins to widen slowly.


    "Speaking of which, I heard a rumour when he entered schoolst year.


    Something about asking the second-year and third-year students if he could purchase their points. What do you make of that?"


    "All I can say is don''t get carried away just because you''re wealthy."


    His academic ability was moderate. His physical ability appeared to be high, but he had no outstanding grades, and his family was wealthy. That was undoubtedly the image that all the students of this school had.


    Mikitani nodded once at Kiriyama''s reply.


    The main reason why K��enji hasn''t been noticed is that he never takes a sincere attitude towards things. He never takes things seriously and goes against his duties as a student. He''s also had a strong attitude of dropping out of exams at the very beginning.


    Not only the second-year students knew this, but also the third-years. If K��enji had been a serious and sincere person, he would have been recognized as an enemy to be watched by Nagumo long before.


    "I don''t know what happened, but K��enji has literally gone al out in this special exam on the uninhabited ind. And the result is that he''s be the strongest opponent out of all the students. His stamina, especially his tirelessness, is terrifying. I think he could go all the way like this."


    He''s taking advantage of his ability to move alone, and he seems to have an endless supply of energy. If this continues, our third year will have to consider countermeasures. If we don''t, K��enji wil undoubtedly finish in the top three.


    He may even beat Nagumo if everything works in his favour.


    Losing to the juniors is one problem, but losing to a single person is a disgrace. He must be treated as a strong enemy that has to be defeated and needs to be dealt with as soon as possible.


    Of course, violence should be avoided as much as possible.


    If a third-year student had attacked K��enji by surprise, injuring him and forcing him to drop out, it would naturally cause issues. If someone used forceful methods to make K��enji drop in ranking, they would inevitably face expulsion. It''s essential to sink K��enji as quietly as possible.


    "Kiriyama, have you decided what you''re going to do?"


    "I''m going to utilize the Free Groups."


    Free Groups. It''s a group of three people selected from among five groups in each ss, ss B to ss D. This was prepared by Nagumo to act as his hands and feet. There are a total of 15 groups, and two of them are assigned to follow Nagumo''s instructions, while the remaining group is assigned to follow the designated area in order not to receive any penalties.


    That means two students per group can move freely.


    "I see. How many groups are you going to use then?"


    "All of them. I''m going to mobilize all six groups I have."


    "Six?! Are you serious? You''re dealing with just one person; even four groups would be more than enough-"


    Interrupting Mikitani, Kiriyama continued.


    "The only threat here is K��enji. It should be easy to crush him, thene back to support me. You can check the top ten scores until the twelfth day. Within two days from tomorrow, we need to fully contain K��enji. Once he loses his momentum, he won''t surface again."


    Even if he joined some other group, the result would be the same.


    "Didn''t Nagumo say that there were other groups which interested him? If we attack K��enji with all the avable Free Groups, we won''t have enough personnel to dedicate towards other groups..."


    Although Mikitani didn''t mention which group, one would assume he meant Ry��en''s second-year group, Sakayanagi''s group second-year group, or the first-year Utomiya''s group.


    "Don''t worry about that. Nagumo''s fears are illogical."


    Of course, Kiriyama knew which group Nagumo was truly looking out for. But "that" group hasn''t appeared in the top ten days even once.


    Even if we speed up and umte points now, we still can''t stand on the podium in the end.


    "This mistake is on Nagumo."


    "It''s really rare that Nagumo would have misjudged things."


    "Nagumo is currently bounded by invisible shackles, I''m not surprised."


    The only person Nagumo cared for. The only thing left of Manabu Horikita.


    It''s no wonder that the eyes of Nagumo, who can see the battlefield with an eagle''s eye, arepletely clouded.


    "So, we''ll let the six groups take care of K��enji, and we''ll continue to score points as usual?"


    "No, I will directlymand the n to contain K��enji."


    "You? Wouldn''t that be inefficient? Let me do it."


    If Kiriyama''s team, which was now in third ce, joined the strategy of blocking K��enji, it will most definitely affect their ranking.


    "You''re asking me to leave allmand of this operation to you?"


    "I''m at a critical moment right now. Unlike you, I need to earn high praise from Nagumo, so please, let me do it."


    Mikitani said this, but Kiriyama didn''t seem to hear it.


    "That''s no good. There are six Free Groups in y here; if you fail, it''ll be extremely devastating."


    "But if you don''t get second ce, it''ll be devastating for you too.


    Don''t waste your time on unnecessary things."


    Mikitani, who was eager to get the credit, insisted.


    "There isn''t anyone who can stop K��enji besides me and Nagumo.


    That''s the end of this discussion."


    When Mikitani heard these words, he slightly frowned and made a disgusted face. Kiriyama didn''t notice because he wasn''t even looking at Mikitani anymore.


    In order to stop a single student, Kiriyama led out six Free Groups at evening. If the opponent was an ordinary student, it would be fine, but even Kiriyama had no idea what to expect when facing K��enji.


    The question now was, where would the designated zone be at 7:00


    A.M. tomorrow on the eleventh? Depending on K��enji''s movements, the scope of the siege will change. That''s why the operation started in the evening, in order to encircle K��enji by 7:00 A.M. tomorrow morning.


    Fortunately, K��enji was in B3, which wasn''t too far from the E3 area where Kiriyama and the others are.


    Since the top ten group rankings could only be monitored until the end of the twelfth day, there were only two days left in which they would be able to see if they made any progress in surpassing K��enji.


    "How far do you n on going today?"


    At the beginning of the long journey, Mikitani asked Kiriyama to ease his boredom.


    "As far as we can. I know it''s risky to move at night, but I want to get to an area where we can surround him. We have to reach him before seven in the morning."


    Once he starts moving, the difficulty of this operation will raise two or three levels.


    "I think it''ll be easy to dethrone him if we have two days. There are seven groups here, including the six from Kiriyama, making a total of 18


    people." Mikitani says as he turns around to survey the sixteen third-year students.


    "Don''t be careless. In a forest this big, there are many possibilities for him to evade us."


    "I know he''s not normal, but he''s still a year younger than you."


    But neither Kiriyama nor Mikitani had seen K��enji directly, so there wasn''t any way to properly evaluate his skills. Even so, from the information provided by the third-year students who had participated in events with K��enji, they all said how his physical capabilities were beyond that of an average student.


    "That''s irrelevant. Recognize your opponent as your greatest enemy."


    "The greatest?"


    Kiriyama said in his mind, "I knew I couldn''t trust someone like Mikitani to handle this."


    Completely crushing this enemy has be the top priority, as it determines whether we will seed in this exam or not. If we do it in a half-assed way, the chances of failure will be very high.

 Chapter 129: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 129: 4.1</h4>


    It was the eleventh day, a little after 6:30 A.M. The Kiriyama group followed by the six Free Groups, had seeded in sessfully surrounding K��enji.


    "What''s the situation?"


    "There doesn''t seem to be any movement in the tent yet. He''s sleeping soundly. It would be so much easier for us if he got sick and stayed in bed all day."


    Mikitani turned around and faced the members of the Free Groups.


    "Hey, why don''t we circle him and block him before he leaves the tent?


    If we make it impossible for him to leave this area, K��enji won''t be able to go anywhere."


    The members of the Free Groups agreed with Mikitani''s suggestion.


    "It''s true that if we prevent him from packing up and leaving, it will slow down his pace to the designated area. But how will we exin if a third party sees us? We can''t adopt a strategy that can be seen by others at a nce."


    Even if you''re breaking the rules, you should eliminate the risks as much as possible.


    "Just use a GPS scan to see if anyone''sing. We have points to spare."


    "Our tablets don''t tell us where the teachers are. Don''t forget that the search isn''t absolute either. As originally nned, we''ll be moving in when K��enji clears the tent and starts moving. If youe across a freshman or sophomore, or an adult on your way to set a task, immediately open a distance of at least two meters from K��enji."


    "Do not under any circumstance, get to the point where you''re in reaching distance." Kiriyama adds with a stern tone.


    It was close to seven o''clock when the situation began to change.


    "K��enji''s moving!"


    He had no idea that we were watching him. He hummed as he began to take down his tent. At the pace he was moving, he would depart well before seven o''clock.


    "Go." Kiriyama instructed.


    Kiriyama, who judged this was the time to move out, began to walk towards K��enji. Mikitani and the other members of the Free Group followed close behind.


    Even if he realized that Kiriyama and the others were approaching him, K��enji didn''t look up from his tablet. After being surrounded by eighteen people, K��enji continued to act as if he was oblivious to their presence.


    "Do you have a moment, K��enji?"


    Although they called K��enji''s name, his gaze remained on his tablet.


    "Do you want something from me?" K��enji replied absentmindedly.


    Although this was no way to address a senior, Kiriyama didn''t care and continued on.


    "We didn''t expect that you could be active to this extent in a special exam. If you had such strength, why didn''t you ever use it before?"


    "Is this something we should talk about right now? It''s almost seven in the morning. Shouldn''t you hurry up and get ready to go to the designated area." K��enji replied.


    "I''m sure you understand what I mean K��enji. You''ve gained too many points."


    Although he looked like he didn''t know anything, Kiriyama assumed he was just ying dumb.


    "I want you to stay here all day."


    "Does that mean you don''t want me to gather any points...?"


    "That''s right."


    Of course, K��enji would never nod and say yes to Kiriyama''s proposal.


    "Although I don''t know who you are, I only need to think a little to understand that this request you''ve made ispletely unreasonable. But even so, the fact you brought so many friends means you intend to interfere with my ns if I ignore your wishes, correct?"


    "Even if you continue with the special examination at this pace, it''s impossible to get the first ce. Nagumo''s group in second, has seven people, and we had six people in third ce, while you''re only one person. I acknowledge that you have made great progress so far, but your results will most likely drop in the second half of the exam as you get tired."


    "If that''s the case, why worry about me?"


    "It''s a matter of precaution. Furthermore, if we continue topete with one person, we''ll lose face as third-years. Of course, if you''re ready to listen to us sincerely, we won''t treat you badly. If you be friends with President Nagumo, your school life will also be more pleasant, right?"


    There''s two options here for K��enji; he can be held back by force, or he can obey and side with Nagumo.


    The time is now exactly 7:00 A.M., and the first designated zone of the eleventh day appears on the tablet.


    K��enji confirms the location and puts the tablet back into his backpack.


    The tension in the atmosphere rises as Kiriyama and the others silently wait to see what K��enji will do.


    "If you''ll excuse me, I must hurry."


    As soon as K��enji''s words of rejection were spoken, he took off with immense speed and rushed towards the edge of the encirclement.


    "He-Hey!"


    Although they had surrounded him, there were still gaps big enough for K��enji to run through. It would be a lie to say that everyone, including Kiriyama, hadn''t been caught off guard; they had underestimated the likelihood that he would ignore the orders of the third-year students and flee.


    "I''m going after him!" Mikitani yel ed as K��enji found an opening and disappeared into the depths of the forest.


    "Don''t panic, you''ll only hurt yourself if you try and match K��enji''s rhythm."


    "We can''t take it easy right now, he got away!"


    "He may be able to achieve the cement reward, but that''s about it. If K��enji chooses to flee, he won''t be able to take his time to participate in the tasks. On the other hand, if he chooses to take part in the tasks, we can chase after him then."


    Kiriyama knew that it would be dangerous to determine which area K��enji was heading to based solely on the direction in which he fled, but he also knew that it would be impossible to hide from a GPS search.


    Even so, Mikitani started to run after K��enji.

 Chapter 130: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 130: 4.2</h4>


    Kiriyama and the rest of the Free Group, led by Mikitani, were following K��enji.


    "What''s K��enji''s position right now?" Kiriyama asks.


    "It still hasn''t moved. I''ve scanned it three times now." Mikitani says while looking at his tablet.


    It isn''t a break right now, so it''s not natural for him to be still for so long.


    Kiriyama decided that K��enji, whose movements were unpredictable, must have encountered something on his path.


    "There doesn''t seem to be a task nearby."


    "In any case, we''ll reach K��enji in about 200 meters. Don''t be careless this time. Make sure youpletely surround him."


    "I don''t need you to tell me that."


    K��enji had managed to elude them thus far, but after six hours of chasing him, they were reunited once more.


    It turns out the reason why he wasn''t moving was because he was fast asleep in broad daylight.


    The third-years looked at each other in disbelief as Mikitani approaches K��enji as the representative of the group.


    "Get up, K��enji! Even though we''ve been chasing you all day, you still decide to take a nap? You''ve been running for ten days straight, you must be really tired if you''re falling asleep during the middle of the exam."


    Mikitani falsely believed that the reason for K��enji being asleep in the open was that he was tired of running and had given up. That he had chosen to rest because he couldn''t bear it any longer.


    With a smile on his face, K��enji slowly opened his eyes.


    "I''m sure you can understand. After all, I am a human being like you."


    "If that''s the case, then go ahead and take the rest of the day off. You must be exhausted from all this. You must listen to the kind advice of your elders."


    "Take the whole day off? You really know how to say strange things."


    K��enji said as he stood up, unfazed by the situation around him.


    Mikitani, who had been looking down at the resting K��enji, instinctively backed up when K��enji, who was more than six feet tal , stood up in front of him.


    K��enji''s eyes seem to be full of energy.


    "Don''t... push yourself. You just have to sit and rest a little, then no one would have a problem."


    Although Mikitani was feeling intimidated, he approached K��enji.


    "Please don''t worry. My body has been restored to its perfect state.


    Please don''tpare me with ordinary people."


    Kiriyama considers that was just a bluff. It would be impossible to restore energy so quickly.


    "You do look in good shape. But as Mikitani said, you have been working harder than anyone in the past ten days or so. After all, you''ve been repeatedly acquiring first ce in cement points. But no matter how much of a monster you are, you should have reached your limit by now."


    "I haven''t reached my limit because I''m beyond the realm of normal people. So please, once again, do not think of me as normal."


    "You mean you still have stamina left?"


    Kiriyama''s suspicion intensifies, but K��enji responds immediately.


    "I possess an ultra-short sleep system, a system with very little REM


    sleep."


    "Huh? What''s an ultra-short sleep system?" Mikitani asked who was confused at K��enji''s words.


    For the first time, Kiriyama''s expression hardened.


    "Short REM phases?... If that''s true, then we have a serious problem."


    "What''s going on Kiriyama?"


    "Normal people need seven to eight hours of sleep a day. In order to maintain health, it is generally not advised to exceed this time, nor should it be lower than it. However, people with short REM phases can drastically reduce the time it takes to recharge the body."


    Sleep is an alternate cycle of REM and non-REM phases. The REM


    phase is the stage in which the brain is active and awake, so to speak. On the other hand, the non-REM phase is when the brain is "asleep." Because of very low REM cycles, a person with an ultra-short sleep system only needs to rest for a while to recuperate from the exhaustion of the brain and body.


    "Now I understand why you were sleeping during the middle of the exam..."


    TL Note: REM stands for rapid eye movement. During REM sleep, your eyes move around rapidly in a range of directions, but don''t send any visual information to your brain. Your breathing bes faster and irregr, and your heart rate and blood pressure increase to near waking levels.


    K��enji has extraordinary physical strength, but even so, fatigue often appears after a long period of intense travel and repeated challenges. He uses any time he has left after reaching the designated area or when there aren''t any events nearby to sleep. This way, he can steadily maintain his stamina.


    Suppose his im that he has a super REM phase is true. In that case, it means that K��enji is not only physically stronger than an average person, but his resilience is also beyond normal.


    It was now, for the first time, that Kiriyama had started to feel a hint of anxiety.


    Considering the pace of this exam, everyone was more or less exhausted at this point. Even by just walking, your feet start to hurt, and your heart will cry out for a break. This is amon feeling that all students share right now.


    Therefore, it shouldn''t have been hard to contain K��enji.


    If this premise wasn''t true in K��enji''s case...


    "By the way, is my presence required here any longer?" K��enji spoke up.


    "I don''t care if you''re physically strong or not, shut up or-"


    "No, we don''t need anything from you so please don''t mind us."


    Kiriyama said, interrupting the annoyed Mikitani.


    One should avoid direct conflict and advance the n through other methods.


    Mikitani was even more dissatisfied with Kiriyama, who had such a soft attitude but still obeyed him.


    "Fufu~, although you say so, it still seems you''re quite belligerent."


    It didn''t seem like he would take heed of the third-year advice or threats.


    Halfway through the conversation, the third designated zone for the day was released. K��enji took one look at his tablet and immediately started walking in that direction.


    "I don''t think he''ll ever listen to us, Kiriyama."


    "I suppose you''re right."


    "And he''s probably bluffing when he says he has a super short sleep."


    But it''s a fact that K��enji is stil taking the exam at a pace that isn''t much different from his initial pace at the beginning when most students are starting to lose their efficiency.


    What is certain is that he''s been exercising his strength constantly throughout our entire time chasing him, and it''s entirely possible that he''s using this whole exam as an exercise for himself.


    "It''s useless, I''m going to change the strategy."


    At this point, Kiriyama finally made up his mind and instructed them to hunt down K��enji.


    However, Mikitani''s lips pursed in dissatisfaction.


    "Remember who''s in charge, Mikitani. Do not overstep your authority."


    "Tch..."


    While they were puzzled by K��enji''s steady pace, the third-year students began to expand widely. The 18 formed a circle with K��enji in the centre, and Kiriyama kept in contact with them through walkie-talkies.


    K��enji didn''t seem to care about what the third-years were up to as he kept on walking.


    There were three ns Kiriyama had set in ce. The first n was to convince K��enji to give up thepetition for first ce. Of course, the circle was a key part in trying to pressure him to do so. The second n is the n to restrict K��enji''s movements by encircling him. Then the third n was to finish all the subjects he had his eye on before he could.


    With seven teams, including Kiriyama''s group and Free Groups, working together to hinder K��enji, the difficulty to reach the events will rise significantly. And if the whole team is there to crush K��enji, his chance of winning the event will also plummet.


    Although there are various conditions for participating in the event, the format is the same.


    There are two types of events: "individual events" and "group events,"


    In thetter case, a Free Group that doesn''t have all its members together doesn''t meet the participation requirements to enter. But most tasks that require group participation basically require two or more members.


    In other words, K��enji, who is working alone, can only participate in assignments that require the participation of one person, so the third-year students here can participate along with him.


    For a time, the third-year students followed him without any issues, but gradually they grew impatient. K��enji''s pace was so fast that it could be mistaken for a race, and just keeping up with him consumed a lot of stamina.


    By just following him, the third-years were already showing fatigue.


    Because they had to keep up with his unustomed walking speed, they started to feel waves of exhaustion.


    It would have been easier if he just ran at his full speed.


    "K��enji! Are you trying to act tough or something?" Yelled the impatient Mikitani, assuming that K��enji was desperately trying to prove he isn''t exhausted.


    "Well, well, they''re getting noisy again. It seems I need to pick up the pace a bit." K��enji said as he started running again.


    "Don''t let him get away this time, surround him!"


    The third-students who had been chasing him while maintaining a reasonable distance simultaneously started to close the gap to K��enji.


    However, the moment they were about to surround him, K��enji rushed by them.


    "You''re joking right?"


    The third year''s words drifted away with the wind. K��enji''s was moving as he was running on a well-kept field. He was as fast as a sprinter as he glided through the trees.


    Most of the twelve people who formed the free group were students who were confident in their physical strength. They were all students with B


    or higher physical ability OAA rating.


    These are the soldiers, so to speak; Nagumo and Kiriyama have brought together to monopolize many of the tasks.


    "Chase him! Don''t let him escape no matter what!"


    "Wait, Mikitani, don''t take action without my permission!"


    "Shut up! There''s no way I''m letting him get away twice, I''m going to catch him and drag him back here!" Mikitani yelled back as he chased after K��enji with the others.


    "Idiot..."


    For a moment, Kiriyama wondered if he should pursue him. He calmly looked down at his tablet and rethought his strategy. It was hard to believe that K��enji had started running for no reason. He was aiming for either the designated area or an event.


    "The closest area to the subject that K��enji can participate in is only E3, but the first ce will get only give eight points...? It wouldn''t be surprising if he''s also aiming for the cement reward. I wonder where his designated area is?"


    By the direction he ran off in, K��enji may be going to the D4 area, but it could be any other random zone.


    "This is harder to analyze than I thought..."


    Kiriyama painfully understood that this is an opponent who cannot be seen usingmon sense. It''s nearly impossible to know what K��enji is going to do next.

 Chapter 131: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 131: 4.3</h4>


    It turns out, K��enji''s goal was to participate in an event at E3. He reached the location of the subject in the blink of an eye, stopped, and entered the event.


    After a few minutes, Mikitani and his team were able to catch up with K��enji. But the event was already full, so they had to wait for K��enji to finish. The event was an English test. There were first-year students to third-year students taking it, but the difficulty was the same for all.


    Dodo Michimichi, one of the most gifted third-year students, took first ce, but K��enji came in a close second and was awarded four points.


    With the teachers'' eyes on him, Mikitani and his team nned to approach him as soon as he left the event area, but K��enji while stil in sight of the instructor, ran off. Since K��enji''s speed was hard to match, they panicked and ran right behind him.


    They didn''t meet K��enji until just before 3:00 P.M., where they circled him for the third time.


    "You lot seem to be working quite hard." K��enji said.


    "We can''t afford to lose here."


    On the eleventh day, they had tried to anticipate his tasks in advance but had failed to stop him even once.


    It''s no exaggeration to say that the pride of these third-year students had been shattered. When Nagumo finds out about what happened, he''s going to be extremely disappointed.


    Calm is no longer a word that has any meaning in this situation.


    "This is yourst warning, K��enji." Kiriyama said.


    "Just tomorrow will be fine. Tomorrow you will obey us and do nothing. That''s all we ask."


    As long as he''s inactive for even one day, Nagumo will definitely take first ce. The important thing is not to let K��enji take back first ce again.


    "Hey, hey, didn''t Nagumo say we need to supress him for two days?"


    "The day after tomorrow, we won''t be able to see the top ten groups. I don''t think there''s any group that''s going toe after us strongly, but we should concentrate on improving our own score instead of retaining the others."


    This is the judgment of Kiriyama, who has observed K��enji from close up.


    "It''s not a good idea to dedicate a total of three days to K��enji."


    Kiriyama adds.


    "Why don''t you just use the minimum number of guards to monitor K��enji''s movements for the next two days?"


    "Do you think K��enji will ept that?"


    If we stop him for just one day, there''s a chance that K��enji will stille in second or third. But if we stop for two days, there''s a chance we won''t be able to get on the podium.


    "It depends on how you go about doing it."


    Mikitani, who had been holding a grudge against Kiriyama, finally turned on him.


    "... can you do it?"


    "I can. And then I''ll get a ticket to ss A," Mikitani said as he pushed away Kiriyama and walked towards K��enji.


    "You heard us, right? Please stay here tomorrow and the day after."


    "Are you asking me for a favour?"


    "No, I''m giving you an order."


    "What an arrogant request. What will happen if I refuse?"


    "In the worst-case scenario, you''ll drop out of school." Mikitani said as he beckoned his partners toe closer.


    Their intention was clear: if they couldn''t talk it out, they would have to resort to violence.


    Even though he was threatened, K��enji continued to wear a fearless smile and waited to see what the third-years would do next.


    "If you aren''t answering, does that mean you''re going to listen to me?"


    "I don''t listen to anyone."


    "Then I''m going to make you listen. You understand? Kiriyama?"


    Mikitani said as he turned around to face Kiriyama.


    "As long as you can get K��enji to obey, I''ll leave it up to you."


    Mikitani maintained a tough stance, but as soon as thest designated area of the eleventh day was released, K��enji stood up.


    Before K��enji could escape once again, Mikitani gave instructions to surround him.


    "I told you to stay here."


    At this point, the third-years were so close that they were practically touching each other. The only way for K��enji to move would be to forcefully shove the third-years.


    "I don''t know if you know, but I don''t like male sexuality."


    "What are you going to do K��enji? If you push any of us, we''ll consider you to have started this fight."


    "Fufu~ Is that so?" K��enji said as he took a big step forward.


    Of course, it was a step big enough to touch Mikitani, who was in front of him. Because it was just an ordinary walk, at most, it was just a shoulder bump. In other words, he was going to try to break through forcibly with his body instead of using his hands.


    Mikitani had considerable confidence in his physique. Now was the time to prove that being fast and being strong was not equal.


    But it was as if a boulder was pushing him over, and before he knew it, he was forced to move to the side.


    K��enji acted like nothing had happened and kept on walking silently.


    "Hey, wait!" Mikitani said as he rushed and grabbed K��enji''s shoulders.


    But, as Mikitani should have realized by now, it''s impossible to stop K��enji with half-assed force.


    If K��enji is al owed to escape now, it would be a repeat of the stupidity they had experienced twice today.


    Mikitani wanted desperately to avoid this, but he simply could not stop K��enji from walking.


    Mikitani yelled to the group for assistance.


    One of them got in front of K��enji, and of course, they were pushed backwards.


    Morooka, who had been pushed over, exaggeratedly fell to the ground and pretended to look like he was seriously injured.


    "Shit! I think I broke my arm!" Morooka yelled like he was a ser yer.


    "You have done something terrible K��enji."


    "How disgraceful." K��enji said as he turned around.


    "No matter what you say, the fact that you knocked down Morooka doesn''t change."


    The soft strategy the third years had decided to implement had disappeared. The third-years were slowly getting more and more desperate every minute.


    "Now it has be an unfolding of events that I can''t ignore either, so where do we go from here?" K��enji asked in a slightly annoyed tone.


    "It seems that you''re willing to hit us, your senpai''s. But if you did, you''d be in big trouble, right?"


    Mikitani and the others emphasise that they didn''t do anything, implying K��enji is the wrong one in this situation.


    But K��enji''s attitude didn''t change one bit.


    "I don''t intend to spare those who stand in my way, let alone those of you who deliberately showed your fangs to me."


    Mikitani''s expression froze for a moment after hearing the statement that K��enji was willing to resort to violence.


    "What happens if we report it to the school?"


    "Why do you ask such silly questions? The school will only punish you, the third-year students, who tried to sink a lone kouhai, right?"


    There was no need to check if Mikitani''s watch was working properly; otherwise, they wouldn''t have been able to adopt the strategy of filling up the events before K��enji.


    "Are we finished here? It''s evident that you and your group have put a damper on my chances of earning cement points."


    More than ten minutes had already passed since the announcement of the designated area. It''s clear that K��enji''s rivals have gotten a head start. It''s not entirely impossible for him to regain pace, but what will happen now is unclear.


    "I''m sorry, but we won''t let you go."


    In other words, Mikitani would not hesitate to retaliate if K��enji used violent means.


    "We can only be gentle with you for so long."


    "Is that a deration of war?"


    The third-year students had been confused by K��enji''s attitude up to that point, but they remembered their role. They knew it was an embarrassing situation for so many older students to surround a single kouhai. Still, if this was the only way to survive, they didn''t have any other choice.


    Normally the opponent would realize this desperate atmosphere, but K��enji was different. This man, who has no interest in anything other than himself, will only consider how to settle things here that will fit his aesthetic.


    K��enji stroked his stunning blonde hair, which he had not forgotten to groom even on the uninhabited ind, with a smile on his face.


    Mikitani, who felt fear for a moment, pulled away from him.


    "Well... if you insist. Time is money,e quickly." K��enji said as he slowly spread his arms and gestured toe at him.


    "Do you think it''s possible to beat him?" Whispered one of the third-years to Mikitani.


    "Even if we can''t beat him, I''m going to go down with K��enji in my arms. Fuck him."


    At the same time, three third-year students rushed at K��enji at once.


    One tried to grab K��enji''s arm from behind, while the other two would get him from both sides.


    At first nce, this was a difficult situation to deal with. Still, even if all three were particrly good fighters, it could not be said that they had good coordination.


    It was just a matter of rushing towards K��enji at the same time. No one had any intention of actually doing anything, and they were each thinking of leaving it to someone else.


    K��enji dodged them all with one spectacr stride, causing the surprised third-year students to collide head-on.


    "Shit! What are you doing? Watch out!"


    "You too!"


    The third years continued to shift the me on each other. This wasn''t a pretty sight to behold.


    "You idiots, stop arguing! The target is K��enji!" Mikitani yelled.


    With that, they got up and rushed at K��enji once more.

 Chapter 132: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 132: 4.4</h4>


    Not long after, the exhausted third-year students were around K��enji, on their knees, breathing heavily.


    He had broken their spirits by continuing to nullify their attacks without sending out a single fist.


    "Ha, ha... damn, what kind of monster are you? Wouldn''t it...


    wouldn''t it have been easier for you to fight back?" The exhausted Mikitani asked.


    "You bunch have been pestering me for quite some time. And I don''t particrly enjoy a bunch of dead leaves trying to attack my beautiful face."


    Hearing this, Kiriyama calmly analyzed the situation despite being in a difficult one himself.


    "I see. It''s true that Mikitani was prepared to go after you until the end. If you had shown overwhelming skill difference, but still put up a fight, his spirit might not have broken. You are the only one who can devise and perform the trick of breaking your opponent''s heart without counterattacking."


    "Even if I have to drop the reward for reaching the designated area, here I will nip the counterattack of third year students in the bud."


    Kiriyama and the others were surprised by K��enji, who made that statement.


    "Are you okay, Mikitani?"


    "Yeah, yeah. I''m not hurt."


    Although there were students who fell and punched the ground in a fury of ipetence, most of them were fine. At most, there were just some bruises.


    In the face of such overwhelming power, it didn''t even take a fist to show the difference.


    "Can I go now?"


    "Do what you want, K��enji."


    "Adieu."


    There was nothing anyone could do to stop K��enji from leaving.


    TL Note: Adieu is French for "Good bye."


    "What kind of person is that guy? Is he really a high school student?"


    Mikitani muttered sadly."


    "It''s not out of the ordinary to meet an out-of-spec opponent, just like Nagumo. In the end, to him, we''re like ants, crawling on the ground.


    Mikitani hit the ground out of frustration.


    "That monster! He made me look like an idiot!" Mikitani said in a trembling voice.


    "Shit... shit", Mikitani whispered under his breath.


    Mikitani''s anger was not unfounded. After all, K��enji had utterly crushed his spirit.


    But the fight wasn''t over yet.


    Kiriyama looked towards the direction where K��enji had disappeared and took out his radio transceiver.


    "Are... are you going to report my failure to Nagumo?"


    "What good would that do me? I''ve already decided to win. Don''t worry, Miki, I had already anticipated that K��enji was a monster from the very beginning. But no matter who the opponent is, there will definitely be weaknesses that exist within them. You know what they say, "The bigger they are, the harder they fall."


    Mikitani nodded quietly while feeling grateful for Kiriyama''s words.


    Kiriyama, for his part, was not the least bit upset because he had expected this to happen from the beginning.


    This purpose of this strategy was to fool K��enji.


    Despite therge number of people who interfered, almost no real damage urred. As a result, K��enji must have gotten a strong impression that third-year students were no big deal.


    That was precisely what Kiriyama wanted.

 Chapter 133: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 133: 4.5</h4>


    It was just before 5:00 P.M. on the eleventh day. I had barely made it in time for thest designated zone, J10, when my eyes caught the amazing sight in front of me.


    Although it was also important to collect points and items from the events, I also had to keep my score under control. It was unexpectedly hard to stay near the eleventh ce for an extended period. I had to pay extra attention to two things: avoid being penalized for missing the designated area and match the tenth-ce score to gain points. Yesterday on the tenth day, the third designated zone was a random move from F4 to B9, so I opted out early. Then I wasn''t able to reach the fourth designated zone either, so I had missed the designated area twice in a row. Just as I managed to catch this morning''s zone in C8 to avoid another score penalty, there was another random move to area H9, which of course, I missed again. Then I spent the rest of the day working towards reaching I9.


    Once you receive an area that is long-distance, the areas after it will be equal if not more distance from where you currently stand. I realized once again the main reason why my overall score was not increasing.


    As I reached the end of the steep and rocky road in the J10 area, I heard the faint sounds of people talking. Maybe it''s just the wind blowing, but because the voices sound vaguely familiar, I decided to take a look. The voices wereing from the west side, which is the direction of the sea.


    There, I met three girls from ss B from the second year, consisting of Isoyama Nagisa, Morofuji Rika, and Shiina Hiyori.


    There were also three more from another group of second-years. I haven''t seen them since the first day of the special exam.


    It was Ishizaki Daichi, Takeko Nishino, and Hitomi Tsutsube.


    I''m sure our tables are different, but perhaps the designated areas are now ovepping?


    "My, my if it isn''t Ayanok��ji-kun." Hiyori said with a cheerful smile.


    The other five were still talking when Hiyori noticed my arrival. As soon as she saw me, she waved her hand at me.


    "You seem to be more energetic than I thought you would be." I tell her as I approach.


    "Because we''re all working hard, we''ve expanded to a group of six people."


    So that''s why Ishizaki and the others were here.


    To be perfectly honest, many of the studentsck ability, but Hiyori can bring a lot in terms of brains. She most likely acts as the pir of support.


    However, her physical capability isn''t all that high. Considering the other group members, I would say that they more or less function in a bnced way.


    "Did you decide to rendezvous with Ishizaki and the others from the very beginning?"


    "That''s about right. I had several candidate groups, and they were one of them."


    She affirmed my words, and as far as I could see, they seemed to be getting along quite well. They talked andughed while watching the sun quietly set, which must have been curing their fatigue.


    They most likely get along well with each other since they''re basically a group made up of second-year ss B. The only one from a different ss, Tsutsube, seems to be fitting in with them as well.


    "What about you, are you feeling well Ayanok��ji-kun?" Hiyori asked with a concerned tone.


    Even though we''re supposed to be enemies, both in this exam and because of different sses, Hiyori has always treated me as a friend.


    That''s just who she is.


    "Yes, so far, so good."


    "Although I don''t think I need to worry about you, please be careful.


    After all, one injury and you might be out."


    "I know."


    She motioned for me to sit next to her.


    "Only three days left." She told me.


    "Indeed."


    I don''t think she had any deep meaning when she said that. We sat in silence and quietly looked at the ocean to refresh ourselves.


    In most cases, when I meet a friend or someone close to a friend, they ask me how I am doing. As it''s a battle for survival, curiosity cannot be avoided.


    That said, Hiyori showed no intention of asking me what my score was.


    It''s not so much that she isn''t interested, but that she thinks it''s impossible for me to get expelled.


    "Yo! Ayanok��ji!" Ishizaki yelled out to me.


    I''m not sure if he finally noticed my presence or not, but for some reason, Ishizaki smiled at me in a thrilled way. The rest of the group seemed to notice immediately and grabbed Ishizaki by the shoulders as he tried to approach us.


    "What the hell? What are you doing?"


    "Don''t disturb them, idiot!"


    "Huh? Ayanok��ji doesn''t dislike me though..." Ishizaki replies, confused.


    "That''s not it..."


    "I guess that''s one of the better things about Ishizaki."


    "It''s his inability to see the atmosphere."


    "That''s undeniably true."


    Nishino and Tsutsube have be good friends with each other. This would be amon sight for many groups in a prolonged battle on an uninhabited ind. If they work together as much as they can to avoid being kicked out, they can easily ovee the hardest challenges.


    That''s also why it''s so cruel.


    After this special exam is over, the ss war will resume again, and we''ll return to trying to getting each other expelled.


    At that time, students who are unable to make correct judgments anymore will definitely appear.


    "Sorry to disturb you." I said while standing up.


    I didn''t think they would appreciate someone from ss D hanging out with their group.


    I was about to leave when Ishizaki came running up and grabbed my shoulder.


    "I''m sorry I embarrassed you Ayanok��ji, stay here for a bit!"


    "Stay here?"


    "Today''s exam is over, and you were nning on camping near I9


    right?"


    My designated area, J10, wasn''t suitable for pitching a tent due to the strong wind and rocky ground. In that sense, I would try and set up camp by the seashore, as Ishizaki said, and I would go by I9.


    "What a wonderful idea!" Hiyori said as she pped her hands.


    These two, however, were rtively close to me, so they wouldn''t have many problems to begin with. I''m not too sure what the others think.


    "It''s all good, Ayanok��ji-kun looks harmless."


    "Yeah I think it''s a great idea."


    No one seems to have any objections.


    It seemed like they had forgotten about the special exam that was going on, and we were hanging out like friends on an average day.


    Most of the groups with this kind of atmosphere are in Ichinose''s ss, but it seems that Ry��en''s ss is slowly changing.

 Chapter 134: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 134: 4.6</h4>


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai, Ayanok��ji-senpai!"


    It was the middle of the night, and everyone had gone to sleep when I heard someone call out my voice. I opened my eyes. The voice was extremely quiet, so it definitely couldn''t be heard by the others. It wasing from outside my tent.


    I looked at my watch and saw it was 2:30 A.M.


    "It''s me, Nanase!"


    I immediately got out of the tent, and by the faint light of the tablet, I saw the somewhat panicked figure of Nanase.


    "What''s wrong? Why are you here at this hour? You''re not hurt, are you?"


    "I''m fine, after all, I was in the I9 area just like you senpai. I actually saw senpai from afar in the evening, but I didn''te to say hello because H��sen-kun was next to me at the time."


    "So why are you here?"


    "There is something I need to tell you as soon as possible... Today...


    well, the date has already changed, so it was yesterday to be exact, but H��sen-kun told me that on the twelfth day, the first years will make a great move to take down Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "A great move? Did they invite you to join them?"


    "Ah well you see... no, how should I put it... let me tell you in order."


    Nanase said as she started to control her breath and calm down.


    "Although I don''t know which day it was, H��sen-kun ignored the invitation to a meeting set up by Takahashi, Yagami, Tsubaki, and Utomiya.


    However, on the ninth day, a student who appeared to be an errand boy for one of the group members showed up with a walkie-talkie and again asked for H��sen''s help."


    Nanase continued on.


    "The n was to make you drop out on the final stage of the uninhabited ind exam. And they''re also nning to target the seniors who are acting alone, trying to get them to drop out as well. They are going to contact him on the day of the n, since now H��sen-kun has the walkie-talkie with him. But, H��sen-kun told me that he didn''t care about their n at all, he''s just pretending to assist them so he can use them."


    I was sure that they were nning to target me in the final stages of the exam. Luckily, I had been preparing in advance.


    "I suppose they did the right thing by not informing me too early about the implementation date and the specific contents of the n."


    It''s true if I had known the date and specifics, myeback would have been much easier.


    "It''s not just me though, H��sen hasn''t even received the details of the n yet."


    "Who''s in charge?"


    "I don''t know. But it was mostly Tsubaki-san who spoke on the radio transceiver."


    "She doesn''t seem like the type to show her face."


    "I agree with you, because I had the impression that ss C was mostly centred around Utomiya. But Utomiya and H��sen don''t get along, and when ites to arguing, they quickly get into quarrels, so Tsubaki may have been deliberately chosen to act as an intermediary."


    There is also the possibility that someone like Yagami or Takahashi is pulling strings behind the scenes.


    It''s valuable knowing they had a meeting. It''s good to know what''s going on.


    "Even if you don''t know the details, just telling me that they had a meeting is of great value. I appreciate it, but you shouldn''t stay here too long.


    If they know you leaked information to me, it''ll get very troublesome for you."


    Leaving aside my business for the moment, if things were to fall through, it would greatly impact Nanase''s future school life. For better or worse, she was in the same ss as H��sen, and that couldn''t be changed.


    "Alright, I''lle back to you if there''s any more developments."


    "No, I''m grateful, but you''ve done enough for me on the uninhabited ind exam. Even if you notice any suspicious movements in the first year, you don''t have to inform me, and you don''t have to think about helping me all the time."


    "But..."


    "Nanase, you have given me enough information. Now you need to act like a part of H��sen and Amasawa''s group."


    If they start to suspect Nanase because of this, I won''t have a source of information for future first-year issues that may arise.


    If that happens, Nanase''s value will be reduced.


    "If Ayanok��ji-senpai says so, I''ll obey...."


    After bowing deeply to me, Nanase disappeared into the moonlight.


    After I couldn''t see Nanase''s figure, I took out my tablet to start thinking.


    My sleepiness was long gone at this point.


    The information that Nanase told me I assume is urate, but would it actually go ording to n? Although I wasn''t sure about the status of the first-year ss D, H��sen was a man simr to Ry��en, and their method of suppressing the ss is nearly identical. However, the difference is that H��sen tends to take the initiative to try to ovee obstacles. In the midst of the first-year special exam to get me expel ed, H��sen has kept Nanase by his side.


    It''s true that Nanase has a strong and tough mindset that most high school freshmen do not have. With her academic ability and physical prowess, there is no question that she''s a valuable asset.


    However, the extent to which H��sen trusts her ispletely unknown.


    If he didn''t trust her, would he let her know about the surprise attack that the first-years are nning? I don''t think H��sen alone can sustain the idea that Nanase is on my side, but I wouldn''t be surprised if he felt some kind of difort.


    If Amasawa is advising him, there is a chance that he may see the truth...


    In any case, the first-year student''s n of attack was not something that shoulde as a shock. I had thought from the very beginning that someone would attack me since I still had a bounty on my head.


    Although I was grateful for Nanase''s report, my n was still going perfectly.

 Chapter 135: 4.7

    <h4>Chapter 135: 4.7</h4>


    After a brief sleep, Iunched a GPS scan just as it turned 6:00


    A.M. If they were nning to make a move, I should see some unusual activity among the freshman, including H��sen.


    "Seems like their location hasn''t changed."


    Only H��sen, who shared the same table as me, was in my vicinity, but everyone else was more than three frames away. There''s not much movement yet. I guess they wouldn''t want to attack me in a ce where they''re witnesses, so at least I''m safe when Ishizaki and the others are around.


    Hiyori and Ishizaki have most likely woken up by now and are starting to prepare for the exam.


    When all of us were ready, we started walking together.


    "It''s so annoying we need to start hiking here first thing in the morning." Ishizakiins still groggy after waking up,


    "There''s no way around it, we need to start moving early in the morning." Nishino says to theining Ishizaki.


    Since this type of conversation must have taken ce for the previous ten days, the others acted like it wasn''t even happening.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, do you ever feel lonely in this exam?" Hiyori asked as she started walking next to me.


    "Not particrly. I feel rather rxed to be perfectly honest with you."


    "I''m... I feel a bit lonely and scared."


    "Scared, huh? I can''t imagine Hiyori being scared."


    Since she''s always so rxed, it gives me the impression that she''s insensitive to these issues. Even if she experienced something traumatic, she would probably p her hands and say, "This is wonderful~."


    "But I''m still pretty scared. So, I think that Ayanok��ji-kun is pretty powerful."


    "Aren''t Horikita and Ibuki more powerful than me?"


    If a person fights with solitude for a long time, their mental state will gradually be weak, and they''ll start to think about things they didn''t need to think about.


    That person would start to care about the sound of the wind, the swaying of the trees, and things that simply do not exist.


    "Indeed... living alone as a girl on an uninhabited ind would... not work for me." Hiyori said as a scared expression appeared on her face.


    Thanks to this uninhabited ind exam, I was able to see this rare sight and learn Hiyori better.


    "You guys are really close, aren''t you?" At some point, Ishizaki, who was walking in front of us, turned his head towards us and said so.


    "Please don''t get involved in unnecessary things." Nishino told him.


    "Why don''t they go out? They can be boyfriend and girlfriend, and that''s how you''lle to our ss, right Ayanok��ji? Come on, I know you want to- hey!


    "Shut up bum!"


    Ishizaki received a solid punch to the head from Nishino, and then he immediately screamed, holding his head.


    "Ishizaki-kun is really funny." Hiyori replied with a giggle.


    Well, it would be unbearable if people always epted Ishizaki''s words in their entirety.


    I''ll pretend like I didn''t hear that."


    "Ouch, that hurts. Don''t you think it''s necessary to get Ayanok��ji in our ss?"


    "I don''t think so at all. You''re the only one who''s obsessed with Ayanok��ji-kun."


    To Nishino and the girls, who don''t know the details, Ishizaki is the one who seems strange for thinking such a thing.


    "Wel what can I say... Ayanok��ji and I... we basically see eye to eye."


    "Eye to eye? I don''t think there''s anyone who''s ever going to see eye to eye with you."


    Ishizaki looked at us to help him against Nishino''s words.


    "Oh, that''s not true. Don''t look at Ishizaki like he''s "that" type of guy."


    TL Note: When Hiyori said "that" type of guy she meant gay.


    Hiyori said so, but it seems like no one understood what she meant.


    "What do you mean by "that" type of guy?"


    "That" means "that" is all I can say."


    "... sure. In any case, it''s good you got praised by Shiina-san."


    "Yeah, that''s right! Although I don''t know what "that" is, at least I know Shiina-san is on my side!"


    I remained quiet because there was no way I could respond to something so cruel.


    After that, my first designated area of the day at seven o''clock was the H10 area. Hiyori and her friends seemed to be in a different designated zone than J9, so it seemed like we weren''t going topete with each other.


    I like that since it''s not good topete with other students in the same year.


    "I suppose this is where we part ways, good by Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Well, this exam is almost over, so keep up the good work and don''t be careless." Ishizaki said as he came up to me.


    At Ishizaki''s request, we bumped our fists and then went on our own paths.


    After walking a few steps, I heard a loud noise from behind. I turned my head and saw that it was Ishizaki and Hiyori waving at me.


    I waved back and headed for H10.


    Although I had conducted GPS scans every hour today at the expense of points, I hadn''t noticed any strange movements of the first years, and it was nearly 5:00 pm.


    All I know for sure is that the news that Nanase risked so much to inform me about was probably false. Did Amasawa leak information about Nanase''s betrayal, or were they originally nning to act today, only to encounter someplication and ended up terminating the n?


    In any case, I can''t let my guard down tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Today''s designated areas were random, and I missed the third and fourth designated areas in a row. Because of the GPS scans, my ranking dropped to 16th, but that wasn''t too bad.


    Tomorrow, I have to step into the designated areas at all costs.

 Chapter 136 - 5: To Each Their Own

    <h4>Chapter 136: Chapter 5: To Each Their Own</h4>


    THE TIME GOES back to the ninth day of the uninhabited ind exam, the day after Nanase left Ayanok��ji.


    Although he was in a group of three, H��sen, had been alone since day one. He was lying in his tent when the designated zone was announced at 7:00 A.M.


    Shortly after 8:00 A.M., a shadow approached H��sen and cal ed out to him.


    "Good morning, H��sen-kun."


    "Huh?"


    "It''s me, Nanase."


    "I know from your voice. I''m asking you what''cha doin'' here?"


    "Why are you asking me? We''re a team, so it should be natural Ie see you, right?"


    It was a serious answer, but H��senughed when he heard it.


    "I don''t know if you can say that. Ain''t you been having fun with Ayanok��ji? Where are the results?" H��sen asked suspiciously.


    "I... I''m no match for him."


    "Ha, I bet you didn''t even use your women''s weapon against him."


    "A women''s weapon?" Nanase asked with a look of confusion.


    H��sen felt a little dumbfounded that Nanase didn''t know what he meant.


    "You have big breasts but you don''t got any brain. Pretty sad ain''t it?"


    "I don''t know what the size of my breasts has to do with my brain."


    "Shut up. So? Is that all you came to tell me?" H��sen said as he pulled out his tablet and ran a GPS search without hesitation.


    Because he didn''t know if anyone would follow Nanase, H��sen judged it necessary to scan the surrounding area. But there wasn''t a single person scanned around them.


    "It was a mistake for me to try to expel Ayanok��ji-kun by myself. So, I havee to ask for H��sen-kun''s help. If you have a n, let me hear it."


    Instead of saying that H��sen didn''t trust Nanase, who acted without permission and now was asking to be his partner, it would be better to say that H��sen had never trusted anyone from the beginning.


    "Get out of here. I''mma do it myself."


    "I''ll wait until you change your mind."


    "Alright bitch, if you want to be useful get your ass to the designated area to help me avoid penalty points."


    H��sen tried to get rid of her, but Nanase showed no signs of leaving.


    H��sen ignored her and closed his eyes.


    About ten minutester, Nanase spoke up again.


    "H��sen-kun."


    "Why are you still here? I said I don''t need you."


    "It seems we have a visitor."


    When H��sen opened his eyes, he saw that there was another silhouette besides Nanase.


    "I-It''s me H��sen-kun..."


    "Who the fuck are you?" H��sen uttered an intimidating statement to the person who didn''t introduce himself.


    "I-I from ss C... Katagiri."


    "Never heard of ya before."


    "Let me talk to him for you," Nanase suggests. "What can I do for you?"


    "I''ve brought something for H��sen-kun."


    "You need to give him something? What is it?"


    "Well... they told me "don''t tell anyone but H��sen."


    H��sen, who was listening in without interest, left the tent to see what was happening.


    When he stood in front of Katagiri, it seemed like a giant staring down at him.


    "I''ll beat the shit outta you if it''s boring."


    "Eek!" whimpered Katagiri as he handed H��sen the walkie-talkie.


    "A walkie-talkie? What for?" H��sen questioned.


    "Y-Y-You can use it to talk to Utomiya-kun."


    Although the trembling Katagiri was very much afraid of H��sen, he carried out his mission.


    "Haha, they contacted me usin'' a little boy!" H��sen roared as he picked up the walkie-talkie.


    "What the hell are ya tryna talk to me for Utomiya? You want to fight or something?" H��sen spoke into the walkie-talkie, although there was no response.


    In the meantime, H��sen quickly took out his tablet and confirmed Utomiya''s location on the map.


    "Listen here retard, I don''t care if you''re ignoring me or if you ain''t even there but this is yourst chance, ya hear me?"


    A voice appears on the other side.


    "I didn''t want to contact you, but for the smooth implementation of the n, we can''t get around you."


    "n? What the hell are you talkin'' about?"


    "Have you already forgotten about the sixth day?"


    "If it was about a secret meeting then I think I forgot. What about it?"


    H��sen said with a smirk on his face.


    Nanase, who was not aware of this, hardened her expression. She had been traveling with Ayanok��ji at this time.


    Since H��sen didn''t bother to move to a private location, she is standing next to him, listening in to his conversation.


    "We took into calctions that you would ignore us."


    "Is that so? And what?"


    "We''ll be conducting a relief operation for the first years so-"


    "Save the first years? The fuck you mean?" H��sen interrupted Utomiya.


    Nanase hurriedly took out the tablet from her backpack and pulled up the list of the bottom ten groups in the special exam.


    There were now four groups of first years that were in danger of being expelled from school.


    "We have two groups from ss D as well."


    "Don''t make meugh, I don''t care if that shit disappears. Don''t tell me ya thought I woulda made a move to save my teammates?"


    "Don''t be careless. I''m afraid they''re up to something."


    "Shut up."


    H��sen turned the radio off but considered for a moment Utomiya''s words.


    At this point, "they" probably should have been making a move.


    Considering this, he turned the radio back on.


    "I don''t know what you''re nning, but what does it have to do with me?"


    Nanase feels that some kind of negotiation has already started.


    She listens quietly, but they must have already known she was there from a GPS search.


    They have certainly must have done some research on H��sen''s area before speaking. The other side also deliberately did not mention this.


    "We... we need you to save us."


    Although Nanase could not see Utomiya''s expression through the walkie-talkie, she got the feeling that he was hiding their true purpose.


    H��sen senses the same thing. This is a trick H��sen can see through.


    "Who told ya that? Ain''t that interesting?"


    "If you want to refuse, just do it. I''m only talking to you to show that I''m reasonable, and I originally wanted to do this without you."


    "Then I guess that''s the end of it. I refuse." H��sen said as he cut offmunication.


    H��sen patiently waited for an answer, clutching the walkie-talkie in a position where he would drop it if the response wasn''t to his liking.


    "H��sen..." Utomiya calls out in frustration.


    H��sen''s only answer to that is silence.


    "I''m not going to get any help from you, am I?"


    Given Utomiya''s character, he shouldn''t have pestered H��sen after he refused. The reason he pushed on was because someone was beside him and was influencing his words.


    "Wait a minute. I didn''t say I wouldn''t help anyone."


    "What the hell do you mean...?"


    On the other end of the walkie-talkie, Utomiya was a bit flustered. He was expecting the call to already be dropped at this point.


    "Listen, I''m reasonable, juste over here and beg on your knees. I''ll give ya a hand, okay?"


    "Don''t be ridiculous. Who wants to bow down to someone like you?"


    "Then let''s pretend I didn''t say that, is that okay? Tsubaki?" H��sen tells Tsubaki, who is probably listening to the conversation on the other side of Utomiya.


    "Did you realize? Or did you do a GPS search?" Comes Tsubaki''s voice from the other side.


    "I wouldn''t spend a point on something so obvious. I''ve always known you were a stinky bitch."


    That was a lie. He had realized that Utomiya and Tsubaki were in the same ce thanks to the GPS search he had just used, but he told her as if it were his own intuition.


    "I guess, after all, I can''t leave it to Utomiya-kun."


    H��senughs a lit le when hearing the exchange between Utomiya and Tsubaki.


    "Are ya saying you don''t trust Utomiya?"


    "No, that would just be H��sen-kun. It''s a known fact that the two of you are on bad terms, and I am not willing to let the negotiations break down due to unnecessary emotion."


    "Whatever. What''s this n ''bout rescuing the first years?"


    "You should already know, right? It''s the four groups of first-year students in the bottom ten. And there are two more groups that are members of your ss. If we end this special exam like this, our first graders, especially your ss D, will definitely be miserable."


    As the first-year D ss leader, H��sen should have been the most active in this matter.


    It would be strange if the leader of ss D weren''t in a rush to do something about this since it would greatly impact their ss situation.


    However, H��sen didn''t react to Tsubaki''s words.


    Simply because he didn''t care.


    "So? You want me to rescue all the first years who fell into the bottom ten, do you?"


    "Before I answer, let me confirm one thing. Can I consider Nanase-san to be our partner?"


    Tsubaki mentioned Nanase for the first time here. She intended to gather information from the series of reactions from H��sen and the others.


    "Let''s just say, at least in ss D, which is full of shit, she''s someone who can be useful."


    "Is that so? Then I can say whatever I want. You''re right, we do n to rescue all the first-year students who fall into or are about to fall into the bottom ten."


    "You talk a lot but can ya back it up? Obviously, nothing outta the ordinary has been done so far. I won''t spare you if you take away my precious time for no reason." H��sen threatens.


    "Taking up your precious time? Then your precious time is really cheap."


    Tsubaki''s words indicate that she had been monitoring H��sen with the GPS from the beginning.


    "Hey, just for fun, should I send your errand boy back half-dead?"


    Seeing that H��sen was serious, Katagiri in front of him began to shrink.


    H��sen has the type of power to make most students cower just through his aura.


    "I swear if you put one hand on Katagiri, I''ll personallye see you H��sen..."


    "Shut the fuck up Utomiya, you had your chance to fight, don''t talk to me anymore."


    "But-"


    The other side started a quarrel, and themunication was temporarily stopped.


    "What the fuck are they doing?" H��sen said, annoyed. "Hey little boy, what''cha think about what I said?"


    "..."


    Katagiri was speechless, and quite frankly, wanted to run away.


    "Tch, you''re boring. Get outta here."


    "B-b-but the w-walkie-talkie..." Katagiri stammered.


    "I''ll take care of it for ya."


    "But..."


    ""Katagiri-kun, don''t worry about it. I think you should leave this ce and leave the walkie-talkie to H��sen-kun." Nanase intervenes and tries to convince him to do so.


    With a warning look, she indicated that Katagiri should not be ungrateful.


    Katagiri took one look at H��sen, who was standing behind her. H��sen red at Katagiri, which was enough to make him run away in fear.


    As he was running away, he tripped and fell.


    "What an idiot."


    "You didn''t need to act so tough."


    "That''s how I do things. You should already know that."


    After the exchange from those two, Tsubaki''s voice appeared in the walkie-talkie.


    "I''m sorry I made you wait. Can we resume our discussion?"


    "Sure, but your little errand boy gave me the walkie-talkie and ran away."


    "You threatened him, right?"


    Tsubaki didn''t even need to consider it to know it was true.


    "People who ain''t good at fighting really have a hard time determining the oue before the winner is decided. You''re the same as that little bastard, aren''t ya Tsubaki?"


    "That''s true, I''m really not good at fighting. But, it''s different here."


    "Here?"


    "Here, it''s about using your brain, not your muscles."


    Although Tsubaki was serious, H��senughed it off.


    "Ha... if you''re more pissed off than me, then I guess you really are serious."


    "We have the method to forcefully rescue the group in trouble. For that we need as many people as possible to assist. It seems that there are already seniors who are using this strategy, so we want to use the power of the first year ss D."


    That''s why Tsubaki hase to ask H��sen for help. However, H��sen is a person who does whatever he wants. This is clear in how he has taken the special exam thus far. Tsubaki was well aware of this.


    "Listen, I would love to help ya, but I got things to do. I''m very busy."


    H��sen, who doesn''t even want to go to the designated area, should have a lot of free time, but here, he was deliberately saying he doesn''t have time as a way to test Tsubaki''s reaction.


    "Busy...? Are you trying to expel Ayanok��ji-senpai out of school?"


    "That''s what I mean. I don''t care if the trash from my ss disappears."


    "But how are you going to get him to drop out of school? Up to the morning of the eighth day, Ayanok��ji-senpai was also acting alone. But he didn''t fall into the bottom ten. There are only two conditions in the rules that will lead to withdrawal; one is that the whole group is out, and the other is to fall into the bottom five."


    This is a situation where you can''t expect him to fall into the bottom five.


    "There have been some students who have withdrawn this week, but so far there has been no group eliminations. It''ll be a difficult scenario for the rest of the week, and we could see few groups get eliminated."


    "It''s true. Some groups are already facing a food shortage."


    Utomiya, who was next to Tsubaki, joined in the conversation.


    Utomiya and the others had already reached out to the first years who had run out of food many times.


    "If thest five groups are defeated, it will be practically impossible to get Ayanok��ji-senpai to drop out of the school. You can think that rescuing the first years will also help Ayanok��ji-senpai get expelled."


    Only here does H��sen''s smile fade, and he begins to develop a serious attitude.


    "Saving the first years. Doesn''t sound that bad. Let''s hear your n."


    "As I said before, we are going to stay together as one in our grade, like all the other students in the upper grades. We will absorb the sinking groups from the bottom and pick up where we left off with the groups we can afford.


    If necessary, we can also take away the events from the students who have fallen to the bottom in the second or third year."


    "If it were that easy, ya wouldn''t have to work so hard, right? And there are still sses A and B. I don''t think they''lle to help us in sses C and D."


    "You don''t need to concern yourself with that. We''ve been talking about working together for a long time. We''re just waiting for H��sen-kun''s agreement. If we unite with ss D, we''ll be in a position to implement our n."


    "Whatever. It sounds good, but there''s no guarantee it''ll work. Usin''


    the same strategy as the seniors will only get us to the height of the seniors.


    With our inexperience as first years, there''s a chance we''ll lose in the end."


    While he seemed to listen to the conversation on the sidelines, his mind was already simting the battle. He came to the conclusion that even if the first year''s rescue rate increased, their handicap could not be eliminated.


    "Yes, even if this n is implemented, the sacrifice of the first year may not drop to zero."


    "Ain''t that a strange thing to say? Ain''t ya trying to save all the first-years?"


    "If the same strategy is used for the whole year, it''s the first years that will be disadvantaged. It''s just like what H��sen-kun says. So why don''t we just let the groups at the bottom withdraw before thest day?"


    This is where Tsubaki''s true nature and her goalse to light. She was nning to make the other years drop out using the first-years.


    "After all, there are still several people in the upper grades who are acting alone, so it''s just a matter of getting rid of them."


    "So, if we get rid of the five people who''re taking the exam alone, the first years will be saved."


    "I thought the right time to move was when everyone started to get tired. We originally nned to do it between the eighth and the tenth day of the second half of the exam, but... unfortunate events caused a dy."


    The fact that H��sen didn''t show up on the sixth day.


    The fact that the seventh day waspletely destroyed by bad weather and students were given a day off to rest.


    These thoughts immediately crossed H��sen''s mind.


    "So, what? What do you need me to do for you?"


    "The organizers of the special exam have made a proposal. They said they wouldn''t mind you bringing him down with an act of violence. H��sen-kun, you''re nning to forcibly defeat Ayanok��ji-senpai, right?"


    "Well it''s the only way."


    That''s what H��sen replied, but his true intentions were different. Even if they had other strategies, when ites to crushing Ayanok��ji, using his hands is the only eptable option.


    "The issue is that Ayanok��ji-senpai is always moving alone. That''s why H��sen-kun has no chance to properly corner him. But, if we form an encirclingwork, things will be different."


    Tsubaki implied she would take on the responsibility of arranging the encirclingwork.


    "I have been investigating how many of the first-year students, including Utomiya and H��sen, trust their ability to fight or use violence. If you surround him well, you can block his escape routes."


    "So, you''re the one who sets the stage and then lets others take care of the dirty work?"


    "That''s one way to put it, yes."


    "Are they willing to take that risk? I really don''t think Utomiya is working with you for free." H��sen questioned Utomiya''s loyalty to Tsubaki.


    "Of course, I promised them 500,000 points each if they seed, so your reduced share will be a necessary expense."


    A proposal to share the private points obtained by expelling Ayanok��ji from the school.


    "Wait a minute, Tsubaki. Violence is generally forbidden, do you think they''re going to listen to you for just 500, 000 points?" Said Utomiya from the background.


    It seems that this is the first time that Utomiya has learned the details of the mission. H��sen understood that Tsubaki had deliberately not informed Utomiya. Normally, the radio transceiver must be pressed for the other party to hear you. If there is any issue, Tsubaki can release the button and discuss it with Utomiya without letting H��sen hear.


    She took the initiative to reveal that it was her dictatorship.


    "Of course, this kind of thing is impossible to do in the beginning of the special exam. The second half of the test has been tough, both physically and mentally. Student stress is considerable. We are all in a state of conflict between our desire to befortable and our desire to be radical. Of course, any initial attack will be met with strong resistance. That''s why I want to ask H��sen-kun to take the lead."


    Tsubaki analyzed the specific n for H��sen and said it wasn''t difficult to achieve.


    "When there''s very little traffic, there must be many people who want to ignore the red light and run through the intersection. People by nature, are concerned on what others will think of them, and they don''t take that initiative. However, if there''s a leader who''s willing to take that step, the situation drastically changes."


    Tsubaki wanted H��sen to be that leader.


    "I don''t hate the n but the school isn''t retarded."


    "When the timees, it''s going to be a matter of both sides losing.


    Both the striking party and the struck party will drop out of school. I''ll be the one in charge, so I''ll take the responsibility for the fallout."


    "Huh?"


    "Because I''m not obsessed with this school. So, it doesn''t matter when I get expelled. I''ve already prepared half reduction cards for those in my group."


    Tsubaki said that she was not only nning this n, but she had also prepared for the consequences so that even if she was expelled, it would not affect the original group too much.


    "People who''re willing to self-destruct are pretty scary. Maybe I got the wrong impression about you." Hosen says as he''s impressed with Tsubaki''s words.


    "I haven''t asked you yet, Utomiya-kun. Do you object to this n?"


    "... no. I thought that making bad ys was pointless. However, from what I''ve seen, it''s no coincidence that Ayanok��ji-senpai was given a bounty of 20 million points. He''s obviously an abnormal existence, that''s why he was targeted. Even if the rules don''t allow it, there must be a loophole to exploit. Since you''ve already made your up mind, there''s no reason why I should stop you."


    Utomiya was not against violent behavior; he was just afraid of the consequences that would follow it.


    If Tsubaki took full responsibility, in the end, H��sen and Utomiya were nothing more than herckeys in the school''s eyes. Although there is a possibility of some kind of punishment, neither of them believes the school will expel more than ten people in one breath.


    "It''s hard to take down Ayanok��ji-senpai from a frontal attack, so I think that the uninhabited ind exam was prepared precisely for our n."


    "I see how it is. You mean that this uninhabited ind is a setup."


    Hosen said as he switched his tablet from the map application to the recording one.


    "The n to use violence to get Ayanok��ji to drop out of school was your idea alone, right, Tsubaki?"


    "That''s correct."


    "As long as we obey your words, there will be no dropouts in our first year, can you guarantee that?"


    "I promise. If anything happens, I''ll take the me."


    With this, H��sen was satisfied and turned off the recording.


    "Have you collected the evidence? Now that you have my testimony, you should be satisfied, right?"


    H��sen smirks at Tsubaki''s words which had seen right through him


    "Whatever. When are we doing it?"


    "I cannot easily divulge that information. I''ll tell you on a need-to-know basis."


    "So, you don''t trust me eh? If you don''t tell me, how am I supposed to tell you?"


    "Well that''s why you now have a walkie-talkie, right?"


    The walkie-talkie that was taken from Katagiri was prepared for H��sen from the beginning. Even if he didn''t steal it, the result would have been the same.


    "I see how it is."


    "I''ll get in touch with you when the timees." Tsubaki said and promptly ended themunication after that.


    "That''s one crazy bitch." H��sen said,ughing, as he put the walkie-talkie in his pocket.


    "What will we do now?"


    "I ain''t too sure on Tsubaki''s strategy but there''s nothing to lose if we just follow it for now. I don''t give a shit what they''re nning to do, I''m going to crush Ayanok��ji by myself."


    Normally, this would have required repeated GPS searches. If Tsubaki was going to provide him with this, it would be in H��sen''s best interest to follow her.


    "We can do whatever we want and Tsubaki gets all the crap for it, it''s too good to be true."


    "To me, it seems like she''s using us..."


    "I don''t give a shit, let her use us."


    "I''m willing to help..."


    "Huh?"


    "Well... it''s because I want to protect our ssmates. Please let me apany you until I get more information from Tsubaki-san."


    H��sen simply shrugged as to say, "Do whatever you want."

 Chapter 137: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 137: 5.1</h4>


    The time shifts to the thirteenth day of the special exam, at 6:51 A.M.


    Utomiya finds Tsubaki looking up at the sky near her tent.


    "What are you thinking about Tsubaki?"


    "I was doing a final review in my head. Is something wrong?"


    "No, I just wanted to talk to you before the operation started. Maybe this is thest time I''ll talk to you."


    "I see."


    Perhaps because this might be theirst conversation, both sides spoke freely.


    "Why didn''t you use a walkie-talkie tomunicate with me?"


    Utomiya asks.


    "Because I can tell what the other person is really thinking just by seeing their face. Shouldn''t you have understood that after listening to my conversation with H��sen-kun?"


    "I guess so. I couldn''t tell what he was thinking, and I still don''t trust him at all."


    "Or is it because you just don''t trust him because he''s H��sen-kun?"


    Utomiya turned away a little angrily since Tsubaki had hit the bull''s eye.


    "In the first year, the only person I can trust is you, Utomiya-kun. I wanted to meet you directly in person and have you tell me what you think about the battle n."


    Tsubaki showed a somewhat self-deprecating expression and then immediately returned to her expressionless face.


    Utomiya, who was trusted by Tsubaki, suddenly remembered that there was something else that he had to confirm with her.


    "How are the preparations going?"


    "Do you want to see the screenshot of the GPS scan just now?"


    With that said, Tsubaki opened her tablet and showed Utsunomiya a picture. Ayanok��ji''s campsite was E5. The first-year students were on standby in areas D4 and E6.


    "It''s perfect, just like you nned."


    "Well, after all, we have been seriously preparing up to this point. Even the terrain is in our favour."


    Utsunomiya looked down at the tablet as Tsubaki slowly looked up.


    Someone was approaching the two of them.


    "Tsubaki-san, can we talk?"


    It was Takuya Yagami from freshman ss B. Yagami was in the same group as Utomiya.


    "Everything is ready, so we have some time to talk."


    Tsubaki, who was slightly surprised, showed a look of dissatisfaction towards Yagami.


    Yagami, who had a suspicious look, addressed Tsubaki.


    "Actually, I have something I need to tell you."


    "I''m sorry, please wait for a moment, before that I also have something I want to say to Yagami." Utomiya interrupts Yagami with a firm tone.


    "What?" Yagami turns towards Utomiya.


    "Where did you go yesterday?"


    "Sorry, my watch suddenly broke down yesterday, so I immediately rushed to the start location." Yagami said as he lifted his left hand to show his watch.


    "It broke down? For the second time?"


    Utsunomiya didn''t feel something was quite right and increased his vignce against Yagami.


    "What are you doing Yagami?"


    "It''s outrageous to be suspected of conspiring something just because your watch malfunctions. Utomiya-kun also had a watch failure a few days ago, right? Doesn''t that mean that you''re also suspicious?"


    "I just got unlucky."


    "Then so did I."


    Utsunomiya red angrily at Yagami, who was always smiling.


    "Hey hey, you two, don''t jump at each other''s throats at a time like this, aren''t you boys friends?"


    "I''m... sorry. Maybe I''m getting nervous before the n starts."


    "I also stepped out of line, I apologize."


    "Did you spend a day changing your watch? Or do you have something else you wanted to tell me?"


    "It''s something rted to today''s battle. I''ve prepared a gift for Tsubaki-san"


    "A gift?"


    "Your strategy to hunt down Ayanok��ji-senpai isn''t guaranteed right?"


    Just before the start of the operation, Yagami started to say disturbing things.


    It wasn''t Tsubaki who overreacted to this, but Utomiya who was next to her.


    "What are you talking about, Yagami? I don''t think this battle will-"


    "I am not going to run an operation with the intention of failing."


    Tsubaki interrupted Utomiya and interjected with a strong tone.


    "Of course, Tsubaki''s strategy is perfect. It''s an alignment that leaves no room for ants to crawl out of bounds. We''re chal enging Ayanok��ji-senpai with the greatest strength that we can prepare as freshmen. I''m not doubting you guys, but do you think it''s really necessary to y all your cards?"


    After listening to Yagami''s long speech, Tsubaki asked quietly.


    "I want to be as ident-free as possible, so tell us your proposal."


    Whether or not Tsubaki would listen to Yagami would depend on what Yagami said.


    "Now, Tsubaki-san''s method of hunting Ayanok��ji-senpai is going to cost a lot of score points, right?"


    "That''s why we have a group of reserve tablets." Utomiya added.


    Yagami, however, was already well aware of this fact.


    "But it''s not very efficient at all, do you know why?"


    "Because we don''t know Ayanok��ji-senpai''s designated area, so there''s no way to predict his actions."


    Yagami nodded once as if satisfied with Tsubaki''s answer.


    "That''s how it is. Is Ayanok��ji-senpai going towards the designated area, or is he going towards an event, or is he simply just running away? We don''t know what his priority order is... If we could know the purpose of his actions, then the efficiency of the n would increase by leaps and bounds."


    "If it were that easy to know, then we wouldn''t have to work so hard.


    That''s why so many tablets were prepared to scan his whereabouts countless times." Utomiya interjected.


    "Through my own methods, I spent a lot of time researching to see if there was anything I could do to help. So, among the twelve tables, which table does Ayanok��ji-senpai belong to?"


    Tsubaki fiddled with her hair in a bored manner.


    At the same time, Utomiya realized what Yagami meant.


    "Are you saying you know his table?"


    "Yes. Well, to be precise, it''s not that I know, but the "tablet" knows."


    Yagami said as he pulled out a tablet.


    "What is this?"


    "I borrowed this from my ssmate. The owner of this tablet has the same route as Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "That means with this we can follow Ayanok��ji-senpai''s movements today..."


    Yagami nodded gently.


    "If we can know Ayanok��ji''s designated area simultaneously, we may be able to get a head start."


    "How can you be sure that this tablet really is from the same table as Ayanok��ji?"


    The excited Utomiya even forgot to add the word senpai, Yagami and Tsubaki continued the conversation.


    "Do you want to know how I found out-"


    "Repeatedly using GPS scans to confirm it." Tsubaki said without even thinking about it.


    "... Indeed. Was it an unnecessary action?"


    Yagami, who originally wanted to surprise Tsubaki, was surprised by Tsubaki in turn.


    "I would appreciate it if you could lend me that tablet. Considering the points that I am going to consume, I would like to refrain from wasting as much as possible. Is that okay with you?"


    "We are all in this together. Tsubaki''s sess will lead to my sess as well. And since the first-year group that includes me and Utomiya can''t seem to make it to the top three no matter how hard we try, we might as well focus on more constructive things."


    Yagami realized that earning points had lost meaning, so he came here today. It was futile trying to get to the top.


    Yagami continued,


    "And if you don''t ept my proposal, I can''t provide insurance for you either."


    "Insurance? What exactly are you referring to?" Tsubaki idly said.


    "The highest priority right now is to force Ayanok��ji-senpai to drop out of school. But there are still several possibilities of failure, such as not being able tounch a sneak attack because someone is traveling with Ayanok��ji-senpai. We need to avoid interference from a third party."


    "There''s no need worry about that right? He''s basically been alone after the eighth day." Utomiya argues that he hasn''t done his research, but Yagami shakes his head.


    "That doesn''t mean it''s the same case for the thirteenth day."


    "Okay, so what?"


    "If something unexpected happens that leads to failure, we''ll adopt the strategy of making him miss all of the designated areas to take away his points, and then tomorrow''s day also has three zone moves, all of which we''ll make him miss as well."


    "Do you mean making him gain 5 penalty points?"


    "No, we''ll make him gain seven. Ayanok��ji-senpai missed two designated zones yesterday. The D4 area was too far for him, which is why he also missed D2. We already confirmed that he switched to the strategy of going for the events."


    "Seven penalties will result in him being down 28 points. Even a stupid person wouldn''t umte that much penalties."


    There are two days left in the exam. The loss of twenty-eight points during this period is quite severe. Utomiya realizes the magnitude of the insurance strategy Yagami had in mind.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai is still alone right now. We don''t know how many points he has, but since he''s alone, it won''t be many. And he definitely needs to use GPS scanning during our attack phase. If we get ahead of him and seal his events as well, there''s more than enough chance that he''ll sink into the bottom five groups."


    "It certainly is."


    "If we seed in getting Ayanok��ji-senpai expelled with this insurance, how about I split five million points and Tsubaki-san splits ten million points? If the remaining five million is given to the losing team, they''ll ept it, right?


    In contrast to Utomiya, who was surprised by Yagami''s proposal, Tsubaki only gave a silent reply.


    "That''s a good idea, what do you think, Tsubaki?" Yagami adds.


    "In all honesty, having a tablet with the same table as Ayanok��ji-senpai would be really valuable. So, there''s no reason not do it but..."


    "That''s correct, so I really think Tsubaki-san should ept my-"


    Yagami choked on his words once again when Tsubaki pulled out a tablet.


    Another tablet, and another tablet on top of that. Three tablets in total.


    "What are those?" Yagami asks in disbelief.


    "Tablets that follow the same table as Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "What... When did you..."


    Yagami didn''t need to confirm it, but he knew Tsubaki already had everything she needed to carry out Yagami''s strategy beforehand.


    "Tsubaki-san is really several times more powerful than I thought. So, you''ve thought of this insurance strategy too..." Yagami was at a loss for words.


    "Why didn''t you say so earlier?" Yagami questions.


    "I was angry. I didn''t think that Yagami-kun would also think of a strategy to make Ayanok��ji-senpai miss the designated area. I was going to keep ying dumb, but our two ns are just too simr."


    At Tsubaki''s childish statement, both Yagami and Utsunomiya looked at each other speechlessly.


    "If that''s the case, then I can''t ask for payment. I won''t be asking for five million points. I''ll be watching this unfold from a distance."


    "Thank you, honestly I can''t really do anything with someone I can''t trust around me."


    Yagami didn''t look displeased with Tsubaki''s bluntness.


    After Yagami moved away a little, Utomiya talked to Tsubaki.


    "Tsubaki. If we use violent methods, will they really expel us?"


    "It is a method of force, so it cannot be without problems. Assuming the worst, we, the first-year students who are implementing the n, will get expelled from school."


    "If the group that''s currently implement the n was expelled, then the number of expelled students is already quite horrible..." Utomiya''s expression stiffened, just imagining a scenario where only first years were kicked out.


    "But the probability that it will turn out this way is just infinitely close to zero. The person who will be punished most severely should be me, the nner. The school wouldn''t expel a dozen first-year students at once."


    "But that''s also the problem. Are you really going to take the me alone?"


    "Originally, when the special test was disclosed. I was the one who suggested that Ayanok��ji-senpai be kicked out. You just went along with me, didn''t you, Utomiya-kun?"


    "That''s true but..."


    Utomiya remembers the special exam for which he was paired with a sophomore earlier in the school year. That special exam was designed to earn 20 million points if Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka was expelled from school. At that time, Utomiya, who was extremely disgusted with this exam, proposed that ss C shouldn''t participate in it. But Tsubaki finally brought Utomiya into the fold after numerous attempts to convince him. If ss C aims for ss A one year, the 20 million points is an asset that cannot be underestimated.


    When Utomiya had asked her what kind of trick she would use to get him expelled, Tsubaki responded immediately.


    Tsubaki said she would try to team up with Ayanok��ji in that exam and then take the self-destructive method of deliberately giving up on the exam.


    This would result in Tsubaki being expelled from school.


    Then the 20 million points would be transferred to Utomiya, the helper.


    She cautioned Utomiya to make sure to use those points for the future development of the ss.


    "When I first heard about this n of yours, I don''t think I asked you the reason for wanting to drop out of school, right?"


    "Why should you care? Even if I drop out of school, it shouldn''t matter to you."


    "I would be lying if I said I don''t care. It''s not natural that you want to drop out of school as soon as you enter."


    "Well, I admit that ss C is a morefortable ss than I thought it would be. So, I decided that if I am going to drop out anyway, I''ll do my best for the ss and then quit."


    That was all Tsubaki said, but she still never told him the reason for wanting to drop out.


    Utomiya decided it was best not to ask her too much and looked towards the forest in front of him.


    "Are you sure you don''t want me to get him? I should be able to defeat Ayanok��ji in a one-on-one."


    "That''s not going to work. Utomiya-kun is an indispensable talent for the first-year ss C. And if I take the me, the probability of you being implicated after me will increase greatly. Leave Ayanok��ji-senpai to the other students."


    "If it were an ordinary opponent the other students might be enough, but Ayanok��ji-senpai has a 20-million-point bounty on his head, he''s definitely not a simple man. If H��sen as the first resort fails, it will be necessary to y all the cards right."


    "I suppose your right. It is H��sen-kun after all."


    Even though Tsubaki said this, she rejected Utomiya''s proposal and instructed him to stay clear of the action.


    "I... I see. I''ll stay close and simply observe the fight."


    "Hey, Utomiya-kun." Tsubaki said to Utomiya, who was ready to walk away so as not to disturb her.


    "You seem quite strong, where did you learn to fight? You aren''t a criminal, are you?"


    "It''s not a big deal. I don''t meddle in your affairs, you shouldn''t meddle in mine."


    "That''s true. But let me ask you this. Are you sure you aren''t hiding anything from me? Do you n on doing something behind my back?"


    "Am I hiding something? Nothing. I''m a guy who''s only job is to fight."


    At 7:00 in the morning, the test began. Tsubaki, who had a walkie-talkie in one hand and a tablet in the other, began to give out orders. The tablet indicated the designated area for Ayanok��ji, which was the C3 area.


    "Attention all teams, the target is moving in the direction of the designated area C3. D4 area teams standby for the time being, E6 area teams go north and start encircling the target. Even if you see the target, you are not allowed to make contact until I instruct you to."


    After giving out the instructions, Tsubaki closes the walkie-talkie.


    "After eliminating Ayanok��ji-senpai, we''ll take down a few groups of seniors who are acting alone before the school finds out. I wonder who we should target..."

 Chapter 138: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 138: 5.2</h4>


    I noticed something unusual when the designated area C3 was announced at 7:00 in the morning. I''ve been doing the usual GPS scans for the past few days, and I started by looking for opponents who wouldpete with me for the cement point reward.


    But instead, I found Utomiya, Yagami, and Tsubaki, the main members of the first year, together. Utomiya and Yagami are in the same group, so it isn''t that surprising that they''re together. However, the fact that Tsubaki is also present makes me think about it more. Moreover, no other members of the same group were found.


    I remembered what Nanase hade to report to me the day before.


    Today is the day where the first-years will implement their n to take me down.


    The group of first graders is naturally scattered across the ind. Still, the position has changed significantly since I confirmed itst night. There are quite a few groups in D4 and E6 that surround me.


    "Should I make my move?" I mutter to myself Although it was on this vast uninhabited ind, since they could use GPS scanning, I won''t be able to hide from them. I had been moving with Nanase for so many days; I should have tacitly assumed that they already knew my route.


    In this case, I must avoid going directly to the C3 area, but I also need to avoid penalties for missing the designated area. Yesterday I missed two designated areas in a row. If I miss the designated area seven times in a row, how far will my ranking drop?


    I don''t know if they realize that I missed the designated area twice yesterday or if they''re just blind, but it would really be the best time for them to attack right now.


    It seems they know basic methods of fighting. It was the right choice not to attack me at night or in the morning.


    If they attacked me at night when their vision was blocked, and I happened to escape, it would be impossible to catch me no matter how they used their scans. If they choose to do it in the morning, it would have been difficult to formte a course without knowing my designated areas.


    But there were so many of them.


    Although I thought that it would be a group of powerful people like H��sen that woulde, this scale is beyond my imagination.


    H��sen hasn''t moved from D4 since yesterday. If I went to the designated area, I would probably meet him.


    If I was attacked byrge amounts of first-years, the school would most likely be on my side. But then the whole school would know that I''m an unstable and strange character. That would be the end of my desire to live a normal school life. Even the teachers who didn''t know the details would think that I wasn''t an ordinary student.


    There is definitely a teacher at the event area, so safety would be guaranteed, but it''s not a wise choice to be followed there by many. There would be a way to seek refuge with other students, but I must consider that not only the first-year students but also the third-year students, who are under Nagumo''s control, are my enemy.


    Running away until the first years are exhausted is my only option right now.


    After I spent ten minutes putting away the tent and packing up my things, I ran another scan and saw the GPS responses of the first yearsing towards me one by one.


    Nanase''s words that I would turn into a "victim of violence" once I was caught might be about toe true. The person who was directing this strategy wasn''t afraid of dropping out of school. Maybe this person is mentally prepared to take full responsibility if things go wrong.


    If that''s the case, I''ll have to avoid engaging them to the maximum extent possible. It doesn''t matter if I will miss the designated area six times.


    Surrounded by the river and the mountains, it is tempting to escape across the mountains, but it is not a wise option due to the terrain. It would be better to go on the south side even if it''s a little dangerous.


    If I decide to move away from the designated area, they might not catch me.


    I took something out of my backpack and started to move.

 Chapter 139: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 139: 5.3</h4>


    "What''s the situation, Tsubaki?"


    It''s 8:00 A.M., and if all goes well, it''s about time that a first-year group will get in contact with Ayanok��ji.


    Yagami asked who was concerned that a good report hadn''te from the walkie-talkie yet.


    "Don''t panic, my n is still unfolding. It''s going so well that it scares me."


    "That''s good."


    Ayanok��ji was continuously changing his direction so as not to get caught by the first-year group that is closing the distance. Although Tsubaki didn''t know how often, it was clear that he was using GPS scans periodically.


    Well, the more points he loses, the better. Tsubaki doesn''t hate using violence to solve problems, but she thought it would be ideal if she could crush him without doing so.


    If you let him fall into the cycle of missing designated areas, that''s a way to beat him without ever touching him.


    If, however, they can''t force that to happen, then they would have no choice but to deliver a final blow and crush him for good.


    Tsubaki did not regret using her well-saved points every ten minutes to perform a GPS scan. In the past twelve days, Tsubaki didn''t save up her points to win the special exam. It was to prepare for this operation.


    The time had just passed nine in the morning, and it was confirmed that Ayanok��ji had missed the designated area for the third time.


    The tablet then indicated that Ayanok��ji''s designated area was D2; Ayanok��ji, who was fleeing towards C6 at the time, would have had a hard time stepping on the designated area, even if he wasn''t being chased.


    Currently, there are two teams in pursuit of Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.


    Since Tsubaki scans every ten minutes, she has a very clear image of Ayanok��ji''s movements.


    If this continues, Ayanok��ji wil most likely go straight north through the B4 and C5 areas.


    For this reason, she instructed the remaining three teams to assemble in the C4 area and stand by. Tsubaki stopped scanning for an hour after that and took a break. After ten o''clock, she started scanning again to confirm the location of all members.


    Ayanok��ji was on the path to cross the B4 and C5 areas as Tsubaki had thought. The two groups of pursuers had also entered the B5 area.


    "Don''t let him get away."


    Tsubaki gave instructions to the group that had entered the C4 area to block Ayanok��ji, where he was supposed to go down the mountain. This was to cut off his first path and then push him towards the B4, B3 area.


    From here, Tsubaki resumed the operation of scanning every ten minutes, and as she expected, Ayanok��ji was sessfully lured by her to the direction of B4, and he continued to head north. Tsubaki saw this and instructed the three teams standing by in C4 to chase Ayanok��ji up north and asked not to lose him.


    "Can I bother you for a moment, Tsubaki-san?"


    "... what?" Tsubaki asked with clear annoyance.


    Yagami, who was also operating the tablet a little further away, looked over to Tsubaki.


    "Wouldn''t you be able to block Ayanok��ji-senpai if you conveyed some more detailed orders? I think this progression is a bit tedious."


    "You''re so annoying." Tsubaki muttered in a low voice and chose to ignore Yagami.


    After thirty minutes, there was finally an unexpected situation. The three groups that Tsubaki ordered to move north from the C4 area had now suddenly stopped moving.


    This was unnatural. Even if one group ran into trouble, why did all three stop at the same time?


    This time, Tsubaki waited only five minutes to scan.


    "They... aren''t moving at all."


    Ayanok��ji is obviously almost through the B3 area, but they haven''t even left the C4 area yet. If this continues, he will most definitely escape through C3.


    "What''s wrong? What''s happening?" Tsubaki mutters to herself.


    She tries to use the walkie-talkie, but there''s not a single response.


    "How strange..."


    Tsubaki began to realize that this wasn''t a simple problem, someone was interfering.


    "What''s wrong Tsubaki-san?"


    Although Yagami saw Tsubaki''s gloomy expression, he still didn''t realize something was going wrong.


    "Three of the five groups that were listening to mymand are now stationary. The three groups that stopped moving only have one thing inmon; they all crossed paths with the second-years."


    If you''re taking an exam on an uninhabited ind with more than 400


    people, it''s not surprising that you''ll asionally pass by some people.


    For this reason, Tsubaki didn''t care about their presence until just now.


    "Please answer."


    Tsubaki once more spoke into her walkie-talkie but got no answer no matter how long she waited.


    "Could it be that there was simply an ident? On this uninhabited ind, there are often many groups moving towards the designated area or an event, so wouldn''t it be dangerous to directly characterize them as Ayanok��ji-senpai''s helpers?"


    "Something must be wrong... there''s three groups being blocked by the second-years."


    "That''s right, you''re right..."


    For another 5 minutes, Tsubaki, who held on while suppressing her anger,unched another scan.


    "They''re starting to move but it''s so slow..."


    "They must be under pressure from the second-years."


    In the meantime, Ayanok��ji crossed the B4 area in the B3 area and had made his way down the hill. He seems to be ready to go to the C3 area.


    The only option now is to tell the two groups behind Ayanok��ji to pick up the pace. However, Tsubaki had now realized that those two groups chasing Ayanok��ji had also stopped at one point.


    Likewise, a group of second-years is present.


    "It certainly seems like they''re intentionally being pestered by the second-years... but who the hell..."


    As Tsubaki was saying this, Yagami took the liberty of touching Tsubaki''s tablet without permission for the details.


    "Get out of my way." Tsubaki said to Yagami as if she were getting rid of a bug.


    "What?"


    "We''re considered partners for the moment, that''s why I let you stay here, but I don''t think I remember giving you permission to interfere, right?"


    Shocked by Tsubaki''s eyes full of anger, Yagami takes a step back.


    "... I know, but please let me voice my opinion. Shouldn''t we confirm who the second-years pestering the groups are?"


    "I already know that."


    Even without Yagami''s reminder, Tsubaki originally intended to do so, and immediately after she opened her tablet, she ran a scan.


    There listed the second-year students who appeared to be interfering.


    However, there wasn''t a single noteworthy student in those groups.


    "The leader of this obstruction isn''t present."


    "There''s a variety of students from ss A to D, but no one is conspicuous."


    "So you''re saying that it''s not one ss, but the whole second-year who''s behind this?"


    It was as Yagami said, but there was one thing that caught Tsubaki''s attention.


    She didn''t think the entire second year would unite to protect Ayanok��ji. Surely that would be absurd...


    "In a way yes."


    Tsubaki drew a conclusion from the current situation.


    "These five groups don''t know the real reason why they were assigned to block the first year''s group."


    "You''re saying they''re assisting Ayanok��ji-senpai without knowing anything?"


    "It could be for any reason, I suppose. Perhaps this is a light assignment in which they were asked to interfere with the movements and tasks of the freshmen to protect a sophomore." Tsubaki said as she went to check the records of Today''s GPS scan.


    She went through the screenshots to confirm the movement of the second-year students.


    "He''s too good at what he does. We can only assume that he knew all along that we were going to attack him today."


    "There are only two days left for the special exam. It''s possible that they''ve be more vignt. As you know, Ayanok��ji-senpai is on a bounty, so he must have made the connections beforehand."


    Yagami judged that because the exam is close to ending, Ayanok��ji was naturally more on guard.


    "We just need the right time to attack Ayanok��ji-senpai. But the second-year students can''t protect him all day long, right? After all, they have a special exam to do."


    With only two days left, that means they''ll definitely be thinking about racking up as many points as possible.


    "That''s true..."


    "There''s one more thing I''m concerned about, and that''s why our group was blocked so easily. Even if the other side spreads out, it should still be pretty hard to block all five groups." Yagami said as he put his hand to his mouth in contemtion.


    Yagami didn''t understand what was really going on.


    "Why can''t you figure it out? That''s proof the other side has a seceretmander."


    "Are you saying that the other side also has a character like Tsubaki-san who ismanding them...?"


    Tsubaki nodded and then opened the map of the entire ind.


    Somewhere on this ind, there must be hiding a character like Tsubaki, who is now looking at the whole situation unfold.


    This is the same person who ordered the second-years to block her first-year group.


    "In my opinion, Tsubaki-san should consider suspending the operation."


    "Why?"


    "Do you want to get past them by force? That''s too dangerous."


    "I won''t do that. And the students who are blocked now can''t do that either."


    "Then... why don''t you stop the n?"


    "No matter what I do the result will be the same."


    "The same...?"


    This situation was something Tsubaki had foreseen from the beginning.


    In fact, she was thankful for the appearance of these obstruction teams.


    "Although I don''t know who''smanding the other side, I''ll show you that what you see in front of you is not necessarily the whole truth."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''m afraid that themander of the other team had already noticed these five groups of first year studentsst night."


    "So they were doing repeated scans as well?"


    "As I said before, there is most likely a second-year exam for second-year students. As we have five groups, they will try to have five groups as well to counter us. If they try to take advantage by sending six or seven groups, they would be neglecting the uninhabited ind exam."


    "But it''s not surprising that the other team would send six or seven teams just in case."


    "Yes. But as of now, it seems that the only second-year teams with unusual movements are these five. Maybe they''re confident enough to decide that they can deal with the same number of groups? But that''s where they make a critical mistake." Tsubaki took out the radio transceiver and sent a newmand.


    "Now there is no one who can interfere. Go do whatever you want."


    "Who did you contact? There are no more teams that can be deployed in that area..."


    "I told you, didn''t I? Not everything you see is the truth."


    After giving instructions, Tsubaki began to think again, and she was now wondering who was actuallymanding the battle.


    "Did Ayanok��ji do it while escaping? No, that''s really unlikely. It''s not like he has a leadership that canmand the other sses, and he doesn''t have that kind of time..."


    The words Tsubaki said were inaudible even to Yagami, who was standing right next to her, so she was really just mumbling to herself.


    When Tsubaki thinks, she tends to speak her thoughts in a sound that''s inaudible to people around her. No matter how small the sound is, speaking out loud clears the mind and affirms thoughts.


    It would be like taking out clothes from a messy closet one at a time and putting them back in order.


    "Presumably, Ayanok��ji contacted the people involved in this situation and asked for their help. So, he could have prepared for this moment from the very beginning..."


    "Hey? Did you say something?" Yagami asks, a little confused.


    "Nothing, please don''t mind me."


    Tsubaki, who had been muttering, finally alerted Yagami, who was nearby.


    Tsubaki replied, a little annoyed, and looked back at her tablet.

 Chapter 140: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 140: 5.4</h4>


    Gazing at the dazzling diamond-shining sea, Sakayanagi took a sip of water. Rather than hydrating, she drank the water to return her dry and cracked lips to a moist state.


    It was 7:05 in the morning. It was just the right time for the first-years to start carrying out their operation.


    "It''s time to start moving."


    Sakayanagi, whose eyes fell on her tablet, took the walkie-talkie and sent out a series of instructions.


    Sakayanagi conducted GPS scans on the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth nights. If they were going to surround Ayanok��ji, it would be best to act outside of exam time.


    "It seems that the waiting time is over, so let''s get started."


    "Yes, but even if we enter the same area, we won''t necessarily meet, right?" A somewhat tired voice came from the other end of the walkie-talkie.


    Sakayanagi was talking to Tsukasaki, who was in the same ss. Right now, Sakayanagi was ordering them to rush over and intercept those first years on the grounds that they were going to block the second-years''


    subjects.


    "During the past twelve days, the topography of the uninhabited ind has slowly changed. Do you know why that is?"


    "A change in terrain...? Do you mean that the terrain changed because of all the people walking on the ind?"


    "That''s right. Because there are many people walking around every day on this uninhabited ind. In fact, right now, in order to get to the destination safely and quickly, isn''t Tsukasaki-kun subconsciously looking for the path that the other students took?"


    Although this change is very weak, many roads clearly showed traces of people passing through.


    "In other words, it wouldn''t be hard to intercept their path if you know where they were headed."


    "You obviously haven''t seen these scenes directly, but it''s like you''re actually looking at the ind with your own eyes."


    Although it was only on a t panel, Sakayanagi watched the entire uninhabited ind in three dimensions.


    All that was left now was to determine the person who is painting the picture. She already had a realistic simtion of who they are and what they''re like.


    After that exchange, Sakayanagi, who had spent half an hour looking at the sea, picked up her tablet again.


    "Well well, during the time when everyone was supposed to be going to designated areas andpleting the events, there were a few people who didn''t do anything at all."


    And if the only people in question were the first-years, she could instantly find out who the culprit was.


    She found three people who hadn''t moved since 7:00 A.M.


    "Takuya Yagami-kun, Riku Utomiya-kun, and Sakurako Tsubaki-san. I wonder who my opponent is? Or is it all three of them?" Arisu happily said.


    Sakayanagi remembered the man who brought her into this interesting fight.


    It was three days ago, back in time to the night of the tenth day of the special examination.


    Sakayanagi received contact from Takemoto, who was carrying a walkie-talkie.


    "What''s wrong with you contacting me at such a time? Is there something bothering you?"


    Sakayanagi thought that something unexpected had happened, but it wasn''t quite the case.


    "No, we''re fine right now. Actually, it''s Ayanok��ji who wants to talk to you."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    An unexpected name appeared on the call, making Sakayanagi, who had been drowsy, sweep away her sleepiness at once.


    "Because I owe him a little, if you can talk to him, it would be a big help."


    "Of course, there is no problem. Give him the walkie-talkie."


    "Just wait a moment."


    After a minute of silence, a familiar voice came from the other side.


    "Is this Sakayanagi?"


    "Good evening, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Sakayanagi begins with an elegant greeting that makes it hard to believe they''re in the middle of an exam on an uninhabited ind.


    "It seems that the ss cooperation seems to be going well."


    "Well, I''ve been in touch with Ry��en-kun and Horikita-kun, it''s going well so far. I didn''t ask for details, but you seem to be helping Takemoto and the others."


    "Sakayanagi''s group is also advancing well, and is now in fifth ce, right? That''s a pretty high ranking."


    "Much appreciated. There is something, however, that concerns me quite a bit."


    "Is that so?"


    "Have you seen Ichinose?"


    "I haven''t seen her once during this exam. Did something happen?"


    "I got a call saying she was acting a little strange. She''s been lost for several days and I''m a little worried."


    This is a long special exam; physical breakdown or mental breakdown is possible.


    "In any case, what do you want to talk to me about?"


    "There''s something I want to ask you Sakayanagi."


    "Please say it. Consider it a gift in return for helping my ssmates."


    "It''s about the White Room."


    "My my, how interesting." Sakayanagi says, fully intrigued.


    Ayanok��ji exins that Nanase was one of the assassins sent by Tsukishiro since Sakayanagi knows the story of the Acting Director.


    However, other than that, there are White Room students lurking in the school. The chance that Ichika Amasawa is one of them is very high.


    "If only you had told me earlier..." Sakayanagi says with regret since she had missed an opportunity to have fun.


    "This isn''t a matter that should be taken lightly."


    "So you want me to destroy the person known as Ichika Amasawa?"


    "No, that''s not it."


    Ayanok��ji felt surprised at Sakayanagi for saying absurd things.


    "Actually there is one more thing. I have another big problem."


    Ayanok��ji reveals to Sakayanagi the bounty that Nagumo and Tsukishiro had ced on him.


    Sakayanagi is the only one of the second-year students who has known Ayanok��ji since childhood, and she is the only one who knows him thoroughly.


    But the problem that Ayanok��ji faced was extremelyplicated, and he didn''t know whether Sakayanagi was an enemy or a friend. That''s why he didn''t talk to Sakayanagi about it until now.


    Ayanok��ji has always been wary that Sakayanagi would use the fact he was a White Room student to win.


    This time, however, the situation was a little different.


    Compared to the new problem Ayanok��ji was facing, that risk was outweighed. Now there''s a chance in which he can benefit by informing Sakayanagi.


    "Do you mean in the near future, the first-year students are nning to take action against Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "That''s right. That''s why I want to ask you to help me, Sakayanagi."


    "But I don''t think those ordinary students will be able to do anything to you, or the White Room students for that matter."


    "I''m afraid the first-year students will have some kind of forceful tactics. In order to get me to drop out of school they should target my shoring of acting alone during this exam. If this is the truth, they might attempt to monopolize the subject I''m aiming at, and furthermore, they might even hinder me from going to the designated area."


    Sakayanagi felt that no matter how many people came, it would not be difficult at all to solve if Ayanok��ji adopted a forceful method of his own.


    But that''s definitely not the way he likes to handle things.


    "If the first year''s find out that you''re a man they can''t beat even if they give their best, Ayanok��ji-kun''s name will definitely spread throughout the school. For me, I suppose it''s both something to be happy about and something that will make me feel sad. It makes me feel veryplicated."


    "I hope you''ll feel sad if you can. And it''s possible that Tsukishiro is nning something. I''d like to concentrate on him."


    "I understand what you''re going to say."


    "Sakayanagi''s burden will inevitably increase. If you keep monitoring their movements, you need to use GPS scans regrly, and there is a risk of losing your ranking."


    After this, Ayanok��ji will undoubtedly have to owe Sakayanagi a favor.


    "Don''t worry. I''ve got the scores of the groups to which all the members of ss A belong."


    "So... you''ve really been making thorough contact."


    "After all, after the twelfth day, I couldn''t check the list of the bottom ten groups, so I had to get a grasp on which groups were in danger and which ones had room to spare. There are a few groups that have margin in scores, but not enough for the top ten. If I let these groups take turns to scan, it will reduce the strain on my points."


    This is a strategy that can only be aplished by joining forces with Sakayanagi, who has achievedplete unification of ss A, and ss C, led by Ichinose, who will never betray anyone. In the case of ss D, it seems to be a strategy that can''t be aplished. After all, the cost of the walkie-talkie alone was already unaffordable.


    "I just need to stop the first-year students who are aiming at Ayanok��ji-kun, right?"


    "Does that mean you''re agreeing to help me?"


    "The exam has been boring so far so I would like to enjoy myself a little bit. Also, this seems like something that will inevitably benefit me."


    "What do you mean?"


    "If it''s just a gift for helping Takemoto and the others, it''s too big a gift.


    That means you owe me a "favor," right?"


    "It''s not a nice thing to say, but I''ll say it anyway, I won''t owe you a favor until you''ve done something."


    "Then I''ll start preparing."


    "One more thing, if you don''t mind, let me keep this walkie-talkie."


    "I was going to do that. It would be more convenient if we couldmunicate with each other. Then could you please return the radio transceiver to Takemoto first? I''ll let him give it to you after I tell him the reason."


    -- Sakayanagi remembered the fond memories of the tenth night and couldn''t help but smile.


    Sakayanagi saw on the tablet that the five teams she had dispatched had held back the first years.


    "Now that we stopped these groups in their tracks, let''s see who''s nning this attack."


    Sakayanagi took the radio transceiver in her hand and made contact with the students in ss A.

 Chapter 141: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 141: 5.5</h4>


    "Hey, Tsubaki-san." Yagami approached Tsubaki.


    "What do you want?"


    "Although I don''t know what else you have up your sleeve, I think it''s time to give some detailed orders to the five groups that are blocked. Before the second-year students surround them, they should still be able to escape as long as they have yourmand."


    Five groups of first-years were sent to the battlefield, and even if the other side had marked anyone individually, it would not be that easy to catch them on this vast uninhabited ind. Yagami believes that the reason why these five groups were caught so easily was because of themander''s strategic mistake.


    "Even if they panicked and fled out, their behavior could be exined afterwards by simply making the excuse that they got scared after being pressured by the seniors. If you had consulted me before..."


    "Are you saying that it turned out like this because I made a mistake?"


    "If I wanted to be honest, that''s exactly what I think."


    Seeing a disgruntled Yagami, Tsubaki replied with a serious tone.


    "Well, you would have known after it was over... but I guess I''ll just tell you now. It''s the opposite of what you think."


    "The... the opposite?"


    "It''s not my group that''s being pestered, it''s the opposite group that''s being pestered by me."


    "I... I''m sorry, it seems I can''t keep up with your thinking." Yagami replies once again, amazed by Tsubaki''s statement.


    "The five groups sent to expel Ayanok��ji-senpai. Even if you can hunt him down to a position where you can see him, if there is a big difference in his physical abilities, he will be able to escape, right? Rumor has it that his strength is simr to H��sen-kun''s. It means that he didn''t want to face the current group from the beginning.


    As Tsubaki spoke, Yagami nodded his head.


    "If you put it like this, it''s like saying that the five groups that we sent from the beginning were never meant to beat Ayanok��ji. This strategy doesn''t make sense."


    "There are two purposes of this strategy. One is to find out how Ayanok��ji-senpai thinks and what he likes and dislikes." Tsubaki said as she tapped the tablet with her index finger.


    "He disliked contact with the early years more than going to his assigned area. And there was a deliberate avoidance of ces with second and third years and the teachers. The message I got from this is that he hates attention, even if he has to carry penalty points."


    "If you want to simply learn about behaviour patterns, it doesn''t mean you need to catch the person in question. That''s why the groups had a more important responsibility. They were sent to harass the groups which were designated to protect Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    Tsubaki hadpletely turned the tables on the second-years.


    After hearing those words, Yagami froze in shock.


    "What we should avoid is someone who interferes in the process of hunting down Ayanok��ji-senpai. And the only person who can do such a thing is H��sen-kun if not Utomiya-kun."


    Finally, understanding Tsubaki''s true goals, Yagami frantically turns on his tablet and performs a GPS search to see where H��sen was right now.


    However, there was no trace of him anywhere.


    "When you said that there''s more than meets the eye... is this what you meant?"


    After finishing her exnation, Tsubaki ignored Yagami to discard any unnecessary distractions.


    "Let me ask you onest question. If H��sen-kun had not entered this battle, do you think this operation would have been impossible?"


    "Hmm, not exactly. It''s correct to say that we decided to carry out this operation because we were absolutely sure that H��sen-kun woulde on board. It seems that he was always willing to fight alone. Still, if he didn''t ept the mission, I would just let Utomiya-kun go. Either way, I made sure the atmosphere was perfect for one-on-one. Now it only remains for the two to face each other, it doesn''t matter who wins or loses, everything will be fine."


    Ayanok��ji, acting alone, has no choice but to withdraw.

 Chapter 142: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 142: 5.6</h4>


    A man with a great body, especially among the students, ran vigorously through the forest, with only one goal: defeat Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, of second-year ss D.


    He was nning tomit an act of violence that would not be respected in this uninhabited ind exam, no, not in any scenario.


    However, unlike schools with security cameras everywhere, there are no eyes watching people on this uninhabited ind. With just a single watch that emits a signal, it''s unlikely that one would know exactly what is happening.


    Sakurako Tsubaki conceived the siege on Ayanok��ji.


    Originally, this man would not have been interested in such a n, but he found a reason to join the battle.


    It isn''t easy to precisely locate a single person on a vast uninhabited ind.


    It would take repeated GPS searches to achieve this, and the n would be ruined if unrted people got involved. The presence of a person to help direct the operation is very helpful to avoid these troubles.


    It was because of this thought that H��sen pretended to obey Tsubaki''smand. Find Ayanok��ji without any effort, and finish him off in a one-on-one without anyone getting in the way.


    When the distance to Ayanok��ji was within reach, H��sen dropped the walkie-talkie he had been carrying in his hand.


    This was a sign to show he will not follow Tsubaki from now on.


    He takes out his tablet and performs a GPS search to do the final fill. A GPS signal emitting from Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka came from 300 meters away.


    H��sen was closer than any of the other first-year students.


    Just a few more minutes.


    H��sen was already trembling from the joy of get ing to participate in a serious fight. However...


    As if to get in H��sen''s way, a single GPS signal blocked his path.


    Thinking it was a mere coincidence, H��sen didn''t even try to see who it belonged to.


    In front of his eyes appeared the figure of Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.


    "Yo! Ayanok��ji-senpai! I finally found ya!"


    Ayanok��ji heard the cry of H��sen, who couldn''t contain his excitement.


    "H��sen." Ayanok��ji said as he calmly looked at H��sen, who had stopped walking.


    "I''ve been waiting so fucking long for this moment!"


    "I thought you''de to me earlier. You''re calmer than I thought."


    "Ah I had to wait for the right time. It would be shitty if someone interrupted our fight yeah?"


    "What are you referring to?"


    "Stop pretending. I know Nanase tipped ya off, that was my warning for you."


    "I see. You had Nanasee to me a day early to tell me so I would have time to prepare."


    "Damn right. I don''t like doing things like that, but it was to my liking so I made an exception."


    H��sen shed his two tightly clenched fists together and grinned in anticipation. He believed that there were less than ten seconds left before he could fight with his real skills.


    "He really believes that he has the upper hand here, doesn''t he?"


    "Oh?"


    In this ce, which was supposed to be a one-on-one fight, a man appeared from the shadows.


    "Get out here, you''re in my way."


    The man had been waiting here for a while for this very moment.


    Ayanok��ji made light eye contact with the man and disappeared into the depths of the forest.


    Although H��sen wanted to catch up with him immediately, he could not leave the man in front of him alone.


    "What''cha doin'' here Ry��en?"


    "That''s my line H��sen. You shouldn''t have any business in a ce like this, yeah?"


    From that statement, H��sen immediately understood what was going on.


    "Hahaha, it seems my team''s n of action has been leaked." H��sen said as he smiled in amusement.


    "That means it''s no coincidence that the other first year students were blocked by the second-year students." Ry��en responded with his own grin.


    The students that Tsubaki sent out to chase down Ayanok��ji are now in position, and the GPS signals are ovepping with a group of second-year students.


    Everything showed that, just as Tsubaki controlled the first year, there was someone in the second year who also controlled the grade.


    "Is it you? Are you the leader? Nah..."


    If Ry��en was inmand, both the tablet and walkie-talkie were essential. But he wasn''t even carrying a backpack right now.


    And it would be too difficult for a person fighting on the front line to also be in charge ofmanding the team.


    "So you finally understand what''s going on?"


    "Nah but why do you care? It ain''t got anything to do with ya."


    Although H��sen understood the situation, he didn''t understand why Ry��en was part of the effort to stop Ayanok��ji from leaving school.


    "Unfortunately, it has a lot to do with me." Ry��en said as he took a step towards H��sen with a grin stil on his face.


    "I have a lot I need to aplish but my pockets are a little bit empty.


    I''m just answering a call, call me a mercenary."


    "So you mean money. What makes ya think you can stop me though?"


    "Kukuku, you don''t think I can?"


    The distance was very short between them. They creepily smiled at each other.


    It was Ry��en who made the first move. Without taking his gaze off H��sen, he threw his left fist at H��sen. The difference in strength and stamina between the two could be seen from their physiques, so Ry��en aimed at his jaw.


    "Ha, that''s a pretty daring left hand you got there."


    Although Ry��en had taken the initiative to attack first, H��sen had been inbat position from the start. He lightly caught Ry��en''s left fist in front of his chest and opened his mouth tough.


    "Your breath really stinks, gori."


    "You talk a whole bunch don''t ya? How ''bout you show me your strength and skill as a sophomore?"


    H��sen released Ry��en''s wrist for a moment but immediately tightened his grip again and drove Ry��en''s body into him.


    H��sen and Ry��en''s foreheads bashed together.


    "Shit!" Ry��en said as he staggered violently at the unexpected blow that shook his brain.


    It would be false to say Ry��en was inexperienced.


    In fact, it would be correct to say he has more experience being upfront in fights and fighting more than the average criminal.


    H��sen, however, was several times higher in that regard.


    "Guh-"


    Ry��en, who was already unbnced, received a solid kick from H��sen, which hit him square on the abdomen. He flew back andnded on the ground, making a wide gap. H��sen, however, was unfazed and didn''t move from his spot."


    "You''ve been barkin'' and howling for less than ten seconds. Acting like ya had some real skills, don''t make meugh.''


    "Fuuu... your head is harder than a stone. Let me guess, it''s filled with rocks, right? Damn gori."


    Ry��en stood up and immediately tried to provoke H��sen again.


    After hearing this, H��sen felt a little speechless as he scratched the back of his neck.


    "I guess I was expectin'' too much. You ain''t all that after all."


    "I don''t think you''ll ever find anyone whom you''re happy with."


    "Don''t lie. Isn''t Ayanok��ji walking up ahead? Let me catch up to him."


    "Huh?" Ry��en said as his smile disappeared.


    "What, do you also know something, H��sen?"


    "Know what? That he ain''t normal?"


    "Not many people know the true nature of that guy, but I didn''t think we would have that inmon." Ry��en said as if he was speaking to himself.


    "For the first time, I''m interested in you, H��sen. When did you fight him, and how did it go?"


    "So you''re also obsessed with Ayanok��ji?"


    The main reason Ry��en was still even in this school was to get revenge on Ayanok��ji. As long as he had that goal, he would not al ow Ayanok��ji to lose to anyone but himself.


    No matter who it was.


    Even if the person standing in front of him was a master fighter with a body beyond the frame of a high school student.


    Feeling Ry��en''s murderous aura, H��sen replied as if in mockery.


    "Don''t worry. I haven''t finished with that guy yet, or I should say, I ain''t even started." H��sen said as he cracked his neck and started walking towards Ry��en.


    "I''ve never seen someone who could catch my fist with a calm face before. And I''m sure that I''ll never see someone calm after being stabbed with a knife."


    From the words "knife" and "stabbed," Ry��en understood what H��sen was talking about.


    He remembered the time when Ayanok��ji had a bandage on his hand, and now that there was a deep scar.


    "Tch, you guys were having fun without me?"


    Even though Ry��en had been hit twice by H��sen, his attitude towards him didn''t change at all.


    Not wanting to drop his guard in this strange situation, H��sen kept advancing. He had always been in a fighting stance, without any thought other than maintaining proper guard.


    The enemy in front of him was Ry��en Kakeru, who had been notorious at school for getting into fights.


    He was the only man H��sen ever thought he could respect.


    That''s why he had to crush him.


    H��sen kicked off the ground, and with speed unimaginable for his huge body, approached Ry��en, who was in a defensive stance.


    H��sen sent his fist towards Ry��en''s face, followed by Ry��en raising his hand to block the flying hand. If Ry��en hadn''t raised his arm in time, he would have surely broken his nose from the attack.


    Without getting a chance to regain posture, H��sen once again knocked him back to the ground.


    H��sen understood through his punches the difference in strength between Ry��en and himself.


    Although Ry��en immediately straightened his upper body, in an instant, his face was the victim of a kick by H��sen, and Ry��en''s entire body flew backwards.


    "You''re sleepin'' and getting'' up at the same time? You''re quite busy aren''t ya?"


    The fight had only been going on for less than a minute, but it was already very clear who was winning and who was losing.


    "Shit, that hurt..."


    "Haha! Just like I thought, Ry��en! That''s the extent of your capability!"


    H��sen screamed with joy, but at the same time, it was a scream of unrest. He had a strength that was impossible for Ry��en to ovee.


    And, despite this, Ry��en''s will to fight showed no sign of breaking.


    Ny percent of the people H��sen fought had broken spirits after a single hit. The remaining ten percent would make a show of bravery. And that remaining ten percent would hit despair as soon as the second or third hitnded.


    The Ry��en in front of him was extremely damaged, but there was no change in the color of his eyes. In terms of mentality, Ry��en was one step ahead of H��sen.


    "You seem to be very happy, do you think you have won?"


    Although Ry��en felt no part of his body that didn''t hurt, he smiled again and prepared to get up.


    "Don''t make meugh. Do you really think you''re at my level?" H��sen walked up to Ry��en''s body, grabbed his cor, and lifted him up.


    "At the end of the day, you''re a man who can only get ahead with the help of the little fish."


    "In this era being able to win one-on-one is no longer a big deal. In fact, in high school, the public''s opinion of you and me was the same."


    Ry��en tried to unhinge H��sen with such a fact.


    "So that''s why you never wanted to go head-to-head with me eh? You probably tried really hard."


    Although he wasn''tpletely unbreakable, simple words like these had no impact on H��sen.


    H��sen had already won an overwhelming victory in a one-on-one battle.


    The restrained Ry��en swung his left hand and shot a handful of dirt into H��sen''s eyes."


    It was an unexpected attack, but H��sen blocked it with his empty hand.


    "You''re so pathetic."


    "Is that so?"


    "This time, Ry��en swung his right hand, and the sand held inside his hand flew towards H��sen''s eyes.


    "So pathetic!" H��sen roared as he stopped this at ack once again with his wrist. He had already noticed Ry��en picking up the sand and dirt when he had lifted him into the air.


    "The weak always fall first in a fight." H��sen said as he dropped Ry��en to the ground.


    H��sen raised his fist and brought it down on Ry��en''s face. A jab that focused on speed rather than power.


    H��sen brought down another fist and another fist after that, alternating between the left side then the right.


    It was as if a boxer was practicing against a punching bag.


    While receiving the powerful impacts which were about to send his consciousness flying, Ry��en''s eyes crossed H��sen''s for just an instant. The killing re Ry��en shot out was enough to disorient H��sen for an instant.


    "Shit!"


    Ry��en was curling his body while being hit and unleashed a spinning kick at H��sen. Although it was only a blow that lightly grazed H��sen''s jaw, H��sen, who had no intention of taking a single hit, became angry and grabbed Ry��en''s bangs with his left hand.


    "Who said you could touch me? Give up already! I''m going to kill ya!"


    Before Ry��en could raise his guard, H��sen raised his right fist and sent it towards Ry��en''s abdomen.


    "There''s no one who can beat me in a fight!"


    After the seventh fist connected, Ry��en''s alert from his watch started to ring.


    "Hahaha! Although you pretend to look fine, your body can''t take it anymore, right? Your watch seems to be more honest than you!"


    The watch that detected an abnormal heart rate rang a warning bell.


    "You really are a gori... I''ll admit that you''re strong in a fight..."


    H��sen, who saw thepliment as a surrender, loosened his grip on Ry��en''s bangs with a triumphant smile. Unable to stand upright, Ry��en copsed to the ground.


    Warning bells ring through the forest.


    "That''s the warning sound. You should be hittin'' your limit about now right? Why hide it, just admit ya can''t beat me."


    "Don''t try and make jokes, they aren''t funny. It''s just a simple broken watch." Although Ry��en was smiling and looking at his watch, anyone could see the terrible state he was in.


    Looking at Ry��en''s miserable appearance, H��sen spit on the ground as if he was bored.


    "Goodbye, Ry��en. You''re no fun to y with."


    "Wait a minute. Who gave you the permission to think you''d won?"


    "Huh?"


    "Did I admit my loss?"


    H��sen was a bit dumbfounded by such a statement, but it made him regain his spirit. Although it was one-sided abuse, as Ry��en said, his eyes hadn''t given up yet.


    "Alright so you got will power. I''ll give ya that. But you can''t keep it forever!"


    Humans are creatures who are very afraid of pain. No matter how brave the opponent is, H��sen''s powerful punch after punch must have made Ry��en feel considerable pain.


    Now it''s a matter of just how many hits he can take.


    Since he was already beaten into this state, it waspletely impossible for Ry��en to cross this overwhelming strength gap and turn the tide. Even though a second warning bell had rung out, Ry��en hadn''t lost hisposure, but it showed how much pain he was enduring right now.


    After being mercilessly beaten by H��sen again and again, Ry��en''s wristwatch finally turned into an emergency alert. If left like this for five minutes or more, staff and medical equipment wille to the scene.


    "Your body is tellin'' you something. It wants you to give up and ept your defeat."


    "Really? But your attacks just feel like you''re scratching me..."


    Ry��en didn''t care about the ringing on his watch and stood up with a creepy smile.


    For the first time, H��sen realized Ry��en''s true strength. Not from his body but from his unyielding spirit power.


    "What the hell is wrong with you? You can''t even stand up, why are ya actin'' like this? It won''t do you any good to be bent on your ideals."


    As if to use the emergency bel to snap back into consciousness, Ry��en put his watch close to his ear.


    "You''re saying I''m bent on having my own way? Ha, your idea itself is wrong."


    H��sen thought that Ry��en would immediately turn off the emergency alert. However, without turning off the emergency alert, Ry��en lowered his arm and put his hands in both pockets.


    "We haven''t decided on a winner yet."


    "Are you sane? You''ll be outta the exam if the teacherse here."


    "So then what would be of you?"


    Ry��en was asking what would happen to H��sen if the school saw this scene.


    H��sen was only lightly kicked in the jaw, so it can be said that he was unharmed. The school could not ignore the fact that Ry��en had been vited unterally.


    "You''re going to y the victim just ''cause you can''tpete with your enemy? You''re pret yme Ry��en."


    With this, Ry��en may be able to turn the tide, but there''s no possibility that a simple threat like this would scare H��sen. Originally, H��sen came here to defeat Ayanok��ji by force. The point of being scared of the consequences has long passed.


    "If you''re afraid I''ll y victim why don''t you hurry up and leave?"


    "I''mma have to pass. I ain''t done here yet."


    H��sen decided that Ry��en was deliberately trying to convince him to leave by not turning off the emergency bell, but unfazed, H��sen chose to move forward again.


    "My GPS was already turned off before I got here. There ain''t no problem killin'' you before the teachers get here."


    Even if the schooles this way as fast as they could, it will take at least 30 minutes.


    "Kukuku, that''ll be the only way I''ll lose."


    Unfazed by H��sen''s threats, Ry��en kept his hands in his pocket as if inviting H��sen to crush himpletely.


    "If you don''t feel like protecting yourself, I''ll put your body to sleep for ya!"


    Not wanting to waste any more time here, H��sen clenched his right fist tightly.


    Ry��en also removed both his hands from his pocket, which were also clenched shut.


    "Whatever trick you have, it won''t work on me!"


    H��sen''s intuition sensed that Ry��en must be squeezing something inside his palms, but that didn''t stop him. In order topletely break Ry��en''s steel wil , H��senunched his full body towards Ry��en.


    Seeing that, Ry��en caught him from the front without opening the two fists he was holding. H��sen tries to break the guard, but immediately after, two figures rushed out from the bushes and grabbed H��sen''s back.


    "Woah!"


    H��sen didn''t quite understand what was going on. He had done a GPS


    scan a few minutes ago, and no one besides Ayanok��ji and Ry��en showed up. Even if they run straight to this ce right after the battle started, it is simply toote to catch up. No matter what the truth is, the two men who mped down on H��sen''s arms appeared beside him like ghosts.


    If it was only Ishizaki holding H��sen down, it would have been fine.


    However, since Albert, who has a simr physique to H��sen, was also holding him down, H��sen was renderedpletely immobile.


    His right hand was held back by Albert, and his left hand was held back by Ishizaki.


    "The fuck is going on here?"


    Although H��sen tried his best to break free, he couldn''t simply get rid of two men who were both physically strong.


    H��sen looked up to see Ry��en,ughing devilishly, standing on top of him with fireing out of his eyes.


    "You surely realize right? If you break your watch, the GPS won''t recognize it."


    At a very early stage, Ishizaki and Albert had already destroyed their watches and hade to support Ry��en.


    Since H��sen thought it was a one-on-one duel, he had fallen into Ry��en''s trap.


    "You guys are really going to do a three against one? How-"


    "Don''t bark so loud, gori. Your execution is about to begin."


    Ry��en said as he mmed his fists into H��sen''s face without mercy.


    The fists pounded left and right at H��sen''s face until he dropped to both knees. Roaring, H��sen endured the beating while trembling on his knees. There was simply no way for H��sen to fight back.


    Finally, the damage exceeded H��sen''s tolerance level, and he fell to the ground.


    H��sen lowered his head into a position where Ry��en grabbed it with both hands and sent a knee into his face.


    "Ack!"


    An expression of pain came from H��sen''s mouth, and he fell onto his back for the first time. Ry��en signaled Ishizaki and Albert to continue holding him down just as they had done when he was standing.


    "Goris need to be handcuffed from time to time. You treated me quite nicely, didn''t you H��sen? I was only returning the favour." Ry��en said as he brushed his hair.


    "You fucking bitch! Don''t take me lightly you weak piece of shit!"


    "Weak? What do you mean?"


    "I mean you''re just a shitty little fish who needs his shitty little fish friends just to stand a chance in a fight! There''s no chance you''ll ever beat me in a one-on-one!"


    "Kukuku, don''t make meugh. I''m not stupid enough to fight a gori on my own." Ry��en said as he raised his fist.


    Without hesitation, he attacked H��sen''s face violently.


    "Don''t worry H��sen, you don''t need to cry. Even if you apologize and start crying like a baby, nothing will change here."


    Even though H��sen was being beaten up in such a defenseless manner, he didn''t ept it. Rather, he was even more furious now. Albert and Ishizaki had to press even tighter to hold him down.


    "Shit! Get out of my way you little bastards!"


    "Shhh, please quiet down. This is just the beginning, right? I''m looking forward to beating you into a pulp."


    Ry��en swung several times, but H��sen refused to beg for mercy. If anything, he only got more aggressive.


    "I''m sure ya ain''t going to be bragging about this fight."


    H��sen had proven that he could stand at the top of the fight, both physically and mentally. If they had started in a three-to-one situation, Ry��en knew that it would be the three of them at a disadvantage.


    This was proof that H��sen Kazuomi''s strength is beyond that of a normal human.


    But on the battlefield, often, a split second of judgment can affect the entire battle. A punch or a fall can make the difference between light and dark. A moment of carelessness or pride can be the key to reversing a position.


    After that, Ry��en''s one-sided attacks were repeated, and even the mighty H��sen lost the strength of his body.


    "Ugh, my hand is starting to hurt now." Ry��enughed as he blew on his bruised fist.


    "Ha, ha... damn..." H��sen tried to pull his right hand out of Albert''s grip, but it was futile.


    "I didn''t think someone like him would ever bow down to you. That took me by surprise."


    In terms of pure strength, Albert is equal to H��sen. Although power alone cannot defeat every opponent, Albert should be able to crush Ry��en in a one-on-one.


    "Yo, fat pig... Why they hell do you bow to Ry��en?"


    "Well it''s true that Albert is an opponent that I can''t win against no matter what."


    "So why?"


    "You don''t understand do you H��sen? To stand on the top, you don''t just need strength."


    Even with that exnation, H��sen, who had always fought alone, was far from understanding.


    "Kuku, well, in Albert''s case, I''d say it''s just camaraderie."


    Albert doesn''t like to get into unnecessary fights and has decided that the best way to keep the ss together is to follow Ry��en. Because of this, he would not hesitate to help Ry��en with some dirty work. Even if he had instructions to hurt his ssmates for a while, he would believe that it was ultimately for the sake of the ss as a whole in the long run and wouldpletely follow Ry��en. By nature, he is a kind-hearted man who does not like violence.


    "Don''t think you''ve won Ry��en!"


    "I''m sure you''re not happy with how things turned out. You never thought you''d lose like this. But for me, the process doesn''t matter. Thest man standing is the winner."


    To Ry��en, who didn''t have the aesthetic of necessarily going one-on-one in the first ce, H��sen''s provocation was simply something meaningless. Rather, he took it as the cry of pain from a defeated man, which brought him great pleasure.


    "Ah shit..."


    H��sen, who had been hit countless times, was finally reaching his limits. Even if Ishizaki and Albert let go, it would be difficult for him to defeat Ry��en now.


    "Remember this... even if you win against me here, the next time I see you, I will immediately kill you."


    "Revenge of the gori eh? Well, if you want to try, go ahead. Winning isn''t as simple as it seems. If you were expelled because of violence I would win in the end."


    "You skipped the sh-" H��sen never got to finish his sentence.


    Ry��ennded hisst punch and ripped H��sen''s consciousness out.


    Making sure H��sen was out, Ry��en stood up and dusted off his clothes.


    "Man... what a bruising battle."


    Wiping away the bloodstains on his fist, Ry��en looked up at the sky and exhaled wearily with a sigh.


    "This guy... he really is a monster. Facing him alone would be suicide."


    Ry��en said as he turned towards his ssmates.


    "I suppose I need to thank you guys."


    "No, no! We were just helping Ry��en-san, you did all the hard work!"


    Neither Ishizaki nor Albert was seriously injured. When Ry��en decided to involve them in this battle, he had to make sure they wouldn''t get hurt. If the amount of people with injuries increases, the situation wouldn''t end as a simple one-on-one incident.


    "It''s almost time for you guys to go. I expect the teachers to show up any minute now."


    A considerable amount of time has passed since Ry��en''s emergency bell had rung.


    "Then... what about Ry��en-san?"


    "Well, I''m in no state to continue the exam, right? That''s what the school will certainly think."


    Along with H��sen, who was lying on the ground, their injuries were quite serious.


    "Me and gori here are probably out of the running now."


    "Are you fine with that?"


    "I''ve asked Katsuragi to prepare everything. Even so, I don''t think I''ll make it to the top three."


    If they left H��sen here, it was highly likely he would resume his chase towards Ayanok��ji. And that''ll be a problem if Ry��en, the one who hurt him, was no longer in sight.


    It is essential that the school sees this simply as a one-on-one fight between Ry��en and H��sen.


    "... I''m sorry to hear that."


    Yesterday, Ry��en''s group had climbed up to fifth ce, and it was quite possible to sprint to the top three. Ishizaki felt great pity about it.


    "Nah, don''t worry about it." Ry��enughed softly as if remembering something.


    Ishizaki and Albert, who couldn''t understand what Ry��en wasughing at, looked at each other.


    "I''ll tell you the reason when the timees. Now get out of here."


    Ishizaki and Albert should indeed run away now if they want to stay within the group until the end. It''s crucial that they run to the start and change their watches so they can reunite with their groups.


    After they both ran towards the starting point, Ry��en sat down to use H��sen''s unconscious body as a bench.

 Chapter 143: 5.7

    <h4>Chapter 143: 5.7</h4>


    "Thanks for the report, you can go back and continue the exam,"


    Tsubaki said as she closed the walkie-talkie after hearing the report.


    "It didn''t go very well, did it?"


    Yagami decided so after looking at Tsubaki''s expression.


    "When they went to check the ce where H��sen-kun was going to fight Ayanok��ji-senpai, they happened to see the teachers taking H��sen-kun back to the starting ce. I heard that he fought with Ry��en of second year ss B and both of them were seriously injured. But I don''t understand why Ayanok��ji-senpai never stopped moving."


    If H��sen had drawn him one-on-one, the GPS would have had to stop moving on the spot.


    "Even though I don''t know much about that person, how could he stop H��sen-kun?"


    Tsubaki, who couldn''t ept it, pouted as she pondered the reason why this battle had failed.


    This was because Ayanok��ji''s designated areas were C3 and D2, and these were the perfect ces to surround him. However, this factor also gives the opponents an advantage.


    "We won''t give up on the n to expel Ayanok��ji-senpai right? If we want to help the other first-year students, we also need to attack a group that acts alone other than him. If you have any other ns, please tell me right now."


    Tsubaki kept muttering to herself without even looking at Yagami.


    "I don''t think we should increase our risks. If we force ourselves to help a group of people who are falling here, sooner orter they are destined to disappear."


    "... So you''re backing out now?"


    "I have a bad feeling. Maybe my n was never going to work in the first ce."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai is going to act alone even with a bounty on his head, which probably means his vignce is very strong. Not to mention that our first-year students don''t trust each other at all, so it''s no wonder the n failed."


    Instead of Tsubaki being depressed over the failure of the battle n, rather, she hated the unsettling sense of chaos.


    "I regret not doing this on my own."


    She strongly believed that everything would have gone well that way.


    After that, she looked down towards the tablet and noticed something.


    "Huh?


    Tsubaki noticed that Utomiya-kun was no longer in the area.


    "What''s wrong?" Yagami asked.


    "Where is Utomiya-kun?"


    Hearing Tsubaki say that, Yagami also noticed that Utomiya was no longer present.


    "He was here about thirty minutes ago..."


    Utomiya had disappeared while Tsubaki was fighting an unseen enemy.


    Tsubaki felt unrest, and she pulled up the map from ten minutes ago to look for Utsunomiya''s GPS signal. She found Utomiya about four hundred meters away from her in the southwest direction.


    "What the hell is he doing..."


    There was only one other GPS signal in the same vicinity as Utomiya, Hayato Kit�� of second-year ss A.


    The moment she saw this, Tsubaki pulled out her walkie-talkie.

 Chapter 144: 5.8

    <h4>Chapter 144: 5.8</h4>


    A man with arge build weaved through the poorly lit forest. His goal was to reach the campsite where Tsubaki Sakurako, Yagami Takuya, and Utomiya Riku were situated. Sakayanagi had instructed him with the task of unmasking the person who was in charge of the first-years n.


    As Kit�� approached the camp, he saw another student''s silhouette not too far away from him. The student was standing stil as if to block Kit��''s way. Kit�� did not recognize the face of whoever it was but immediately realized that they were not an ally. He tried to change course while there was distance, but when the other student saw it, they began to move as well.


    Kit�� recognized the person as an enemy, and he stopped running away and turned towards the student.


    "What are you doing here?" Utomiya said in a hostile tone.


    Although he was facing a senior, he didn''t use honorifics.


    "Aren''t you Kit�� Hayato-senpai from second-year ss A?" Utomiya said, calming down and remembering to add honorifics this time.


    Utomiya remembered that Kit�� was acting alone but had decided to join a groupter on. However, acting as if he knew from the beginning would be suspicious, so he pretended like he didn''t know.


    "I''m busy right now."


    Kit�� uttered these words of rejection and tried to move past Utomiya.


    However, Utomiya grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back.


    "What are you doing?" Kit�� said as he shot Utomiya an annoyed look.


    "I''m sorry, but you aren''t going to go any further." Utomiya said, returning the look with a sharp stare.


    "What did you say?"


    Utomiya clenched his fists as Kit�� moved back, away from Utomiya''s grasp. He shot his hand out and grabbed Kit�� by the cor of his jacket.


    "What the hell are you doing?" Kit�� asked, even more irritated now.


    "I said, you aren''t going any further."


    "What''s your name?" Kit�� calmly asks.


    "Utomiya, first year ss C."


    Utomiya. One of the students, Sakayanagi, had told him to investigate.


    If he was here, it was very unlikely he was themander.


    Utomiya guessed that Kit�� had received instructions to find out who was leading their operation.


    "Who told you toe here?"


    Utomiya asked, but Kit�� showed no signs of answering.


    "I''m not going to show anypassion, even if you are a senpai."


    After hearing these words, Kit��''s eyes became sharp, and his fists flew towards Utomiya''s neck. Utomiya didn''t panic; he simply pulled away, easily avoiding the attack. In the process, however, Utomiya''s walkie-talkie fell out of his pockets?


    "Not good..."


    Utomiya wanted to rush in, but he couldn''t have gotten past Kit��, who was maintaining a defensive stance.


    They stared at each other, waiting for someone to make a move until a voice broke the silence.


    "Utomiya-kun? What are you doing?"


    "Tch..." Utomiya looked down at the walkie-talkie.


    "Weren''t you supposed to listen to my orders?"


    Tsubaki realized there would be no reply and gave up trying to get through. Just as Utomiya was about to rush towards Kit��, Kit�� held out his hand to show a sign of peace. He picked up the walkie-talkie and tossed it towards Utomiya.


    "Why are you...?" Utomiya says in a discouraged voice.


    "I got what I came here for."


    Kit�� saw no need to fight any longer, so he turned around and left. He had already heard Tsubaki''s voice from the walkie-talkie, which was all the proof he needed.


    Utomiya saw that Kit��''s back waspletely defenseless.


    "Utomiya-kun please calm down. There''s no reason to fight Kit��-senpai here."


    Utomiya did not reply as he watched Kit�� disappear into the forest.


    When he was alone, Utomiya raised the walkie-talkie.


    "He just left..."


    "Why would you do something like that? You want to be expelled too?


    Or are you trying to keep the second-year students away from me?"


    "That''s not true... Sorry. I acted without permission. Even if the strategy didn''t work, I didn''t want them to learn everything about us. I wanted to prevent them from reaching you."


    "I don''t want to talk about things that already happened, but is this really what you thought, Utomiya?"


    After a short silence, Utomiya raised the walkie-talkie.


    "No... yes, yes. It was just something I decided to do over an impulse."


    Tsubaki could tell Utomiya was shaken, and Tsubaki fell silent.


    "I see. Anyway, if you can still move, please hurry back."


    "Alright."


    Closing the walkie-talkie, Utomiya looked at his tablet. He picked up the walkie-talkie and changed themunication code.


    "I got rid of the second-year nuisances. They should be satisfied now that they know Tsubaki ismander."


    "You''re really something, Utomiya-kun." Came a voice from the other side.


    "So, how did Tsubaki''s n go?"


    "It failed, just as expected. Even if I hadn''t tipped off Ayanok��ji-senpai in advance, I think it was a rotten strategy that couldn''t have worked."


    "Alright. I''m hanging up,"


    Utomiya was careful not to let the call stretch on and turned off the walkie-talkie.


    He turned around and started to walk back to camp.

 Chapter 145 - 6: The man known as Tsukishiro

    <h4>Chapter 145: Chapter 6: The man known as Tsukishiro</h4>


    In the morning, I woke up on the right side of E3 and tried to check the map on my tablet. As a result of evading the first year''s siege on me all day yesterday, I ended up not stepping on a single designated area yesterday.


    Sakayanagi informed me that they had retreated immediately in the afternoon, but I didn''t dare go to the designated area. I just participated in the challenges while I was on the run and scored the minimum amount of points.


    The randomly designated area that was announced at 1:00 p.m.


    yesterday was F3, followed by G3 at 3:00 p.m.


    I opened the map and loaded the image from yesterday''s GPS search at 1pm. There were a total of five groups of first-year students who had been following me and only H��sen wasing towards me with his GPS turned off. There was no doubt about it. And after H��sen was sidetracked with his confrontation with Ry��en, it was clear from the subsequent searchs that all the groups withdrew and returned to the special exam.


    However... While Sakayanagi and I were focused on those enemies, several other groups of first-year students who had been scattered had gathered and were moving ahead of me to the designated area. The reason I thought these groups were suspicious was because as soon as 3:00 p.m. came around and my fourth designated area, G3, was announced, they started moving west towards F4. The road here is narrow, and it''s difficult to escape if the road is blocked, but if you avoid it, you''ll be forced to take a troublesome detour.


    I avoided the risk just in case, but that cost me a lot on the previous day. As a result of avoiding risks, I''ve missed six designated areas in a row and have four consecutive penalties have umted. I need to get out of this situation as soon as possible. If you take three more penalties in a row, you will lose another 18 points from here.


    The total score disyed is 119, but it''s far from the safe zone for avoiding expulsion. The safety line I had set for myself was around 105


    points. If I dropped below this point, it would not be surprising if I was expelled. That''s why I forced myself to move in the middle of the night, and I seeded in getting within range of G3, the area designated for the fourth time yesterday.


    Since I couldn''t see the rankings anymore, I had to imagine how I would do on thisst day. There are 157 groups in total, which may seem like a good number, but in reality, many of the groups have already merged. In other words, the number of groups has already been reduced by quite a few.


    Of course, on thisst day, it is clear that some groups will move to rescue lower groups. If a group with almost 200 points picks up a lower group, they will surpass me at that moment.


    Furthermore, on this final day, the impact of doubled scores cannot be ignored. The strategy of the first-year students is slowly driving me to the path of expulsion. There is still a possibility that the first-year students are still waiting for me, but the GPS search is no longer a possibility for me. I need to save every point I have.


    At 7:00 a.m., the designated area was H3, which wasn''t a great location because of the mountains, but there was nothing I could do about it. Even if I took the shortest route from here, it would take me almost two hours. There was no time to dawdle. On a day when many students would be taking on a task that had doubled in reward, I was going to have to fight to make it to the designated area. By noon, I might have dropped even further down the rankings.


    As I was packing my bags and leaving, I received a call on my walkie-talkie from Sakayanagi.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun. I''m sorry you had to go through so much yesterday."


    "Thankfully it wasn''t as bad as it could have been because you were there to help out."


    "Will you be okay with the penalty? It looks like you moved around quite a bit during the night."


    Seems like Sakayangi kept a watchful eye over me with the GPS.


    "The first designated area is H3. There''s not much room, but I think I can make it."


    "H3... "


    Since I didn''t want to waste time, I started to move while talking to Sakayanagi.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, I don''t mean to burden you, but I have a slight issue.


    It seems today at dawn, Ichinose-san disappeared."


    I don''t think you can ssify that as a "slight" issue. This is a major problem, especially on thest day.


    "What do you mean she disappeared? Was this idental?"


    "No, it seems to be a spontaneous action. She has been acting strangely for the past few days."


    That''s what Sakayanagi said, but there was still another problem at hand here.


    "Why did you contact me? I don''t think there''s anything I can do to help you."


    "I did a GPS search to find Ichinose-san''s location and found out that she was in E3, the same location as Ayanok��ji. However, she was near the border of D3."


    Even though we are in the same area, there certainly is a distance between the two ends. And now, I''ve already stepped into F3.


    "What was thest designated area for you and the others yesterday?"


    "D5. I''m not sure what to do."


    "Why would Ichinose leave the group early in the morning without telling anyone and end up in E3? When did you find out?"


    "In the morning, I noticed that I had lost a point. I checked with the people in our group, but there was no sign that anyone had used the GPS


    search. It seems that Ichinose-san used it, and although we currently don''t know if she was heading for E3 or an area further away, it''s normal to assume that she went to meet someone."


    "I suppose so. If she had stepped on the fourth designated area yesterday, that''s the only reason she would have moved early in the morning."


    "I thought it might have been to meet Ayanokoji-kun, which is why I thought I should bring it up..."


    "I''m sorry, but I have no idea. I haven''t once seen Ichinose in this exam, and I don''t have a clue what she might want. What are you going to do?"


    "The first designated area for us to head to is E6. I''m not sure what to do, but I''m going to have to ignore Ichinose-san for now. If she retires in the worst-case scenario, it won''t have a significantly negative impact since it''s thest day."


    Having said that, the Sakayanagi group is a precious seven-member team. By the end of the 12th day, they were in fourth ce, a perfect position for a podium finish. It would be a blow to lose Ichinose here.


    On the flip side, she was acting arbitrarily on such an important final day. It''s an inexplicable action that Ichinose, who acts more for his friends than anyone else, can''t imagine.


    "You''re in trouble it seems."


    "idents happen, you know. Well, even if I leave her alone, the special exam will be over in half a day, so I don''t think there will be any problem. If you do see her, please ask what happened.


    Sakayanagi ended themunication, saying that anything further would be a hindrance.


    "Where is Ichinose headed...?"


    I put the walkie-talkie away in my backpack as I walk, and take out my tablet this time. It''s thest day, and I don''t need to think about charging anymore. With thirty-one percent left, I should be fine. The map on the screen shows the designated areas I need to go to and the challenges scattered around.


    For the past two weeks, challenges had been popping up all over the deserted ind. However, on thisst day, I can see that there are no challenges at all in the northern areas of the ind, from 1 to 3. On the contrary, the central and southern areas, from 5 to 10, and even more so from A to E, are where most of the challenges are concentrated. This makes sense when you consider that this is simply thest day of the exam and they are trying to get you to return to the starting point. It is wise to quickly step on the designated area and take on a task. I was tempted to use the GPS search to find out Ichinose''s location, but I was now in danger of being expelled from school.


    I need to save my points to increase my survival rate as much as possible.

 Chapter 146: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 146: 6.1</h4>


    My second destination of the day was I2, the northeast end of the deserted ind. Now that I''ve managed to stop the penalty, I can head there with some peace of mind. After the exam ends at 3:00 p.m., we''ll basically walk back to the starting point, but in some cases, they have a n to collect the students on a patrol boat. If you''re in the area, the patrol boat wille to J6 at 5pm.


    "The ending of the exam is nearing, and yet they''ve given me such a troublesome zone..."


    How could the designated area be the most northeastern, when the testing environment remains the same, with the challenges concentrated on the south side of the ind? I was tempted to bemoan the fact that it was a mistake on the school''s part, but I had no choice. It would have been easier if I could just let it go, but I was beginning to feel something disturbing here.


    Since this morning, I had not seen or passed any of the other students.


    Even though the ind isrge, there are still many opportunities to see or hear from them as long as you are on the move. Of course, since I didn''t make it to thest designated area yesterday, I don''t know why I didn''t bump into any of the students following the same table as me.


    This indicates that many students have already gone down to the south side where the assignments are gathered. After stepping on I2, it might be a good idea to ignore the final designated area and head for the task.


    H3 has a narrow river dividing the area. This river cannot be used as a shortcut, so it is a troublesome ce that you are forced to go around. The saving grace is that you can just walk along the river and don''t have to worry about getting lost. No need to panic, just walk down the river to the southwest, reach the point where you can cross, and head northeast. You can walk alongside the water until you hit the mountains. That''s how I got to the other side of the river, near the center of H3.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun����!"


    As I was walking along, listening to the sound of the water flowing by, I heard a voice calling my name from afar. The north side of the river that I had just bypassed.


    There, covered in mud, Ichinose was staring at me, out of breath.


    "Ichinose... what are you doing here all the way in H3?"


    As I recall, ording to Sakayanagi, Ichinose was in E3.


    It was just after ten o''clock now, so if we take the time when the sun started to rise to be around 5:30, then Ichinose had walked for about four and a half hours to get here. That''s a pretty quick pace.


    "I.... I-I came to see Ayanok��ji-kun!" Ichinose shouted from across the river, her words cut off by visible exhaustion.


    "I''ming over there now!" With that, Ichinose starts running along the river even though she''s clearly not in a good state. She throws away her heavy backpack as if it was in the way. Her steps were unsteady. Ichinose''s physical strength was probably at its limit, and it would take a lot of effort to get here. I turned back the way I hade and hurried to meet up with her.


    We ran along the river for about five minutes and arrived at a point where we could meet up. Since I couldn''t let Ichinose push herself too hard, I crossed the river to the north side first.


    "Hey, I''m finally... finally catching up with you... Wait for me, I''ming!"


    I wondered if she felt responsible for chasing me this far and calling me off. Out of breath, Ichinose reached in front of me, but she couldn''t stand and fell forward.


    "Ah!"


    I hold Ichinose, who is about to fall.


    "Gosh, I''m sorry! Oh, that? Why? My legs aren''t... doing what they''re supposed to..." She hurriedly tries to pull away, but her knees are shaking and she can''t seem to stand properly.


    "What''s wrong with you, Ichinose?"


    Ichinose looks up at me and opens her mouth, desperately trying to sort out the situation.


    "I really need to tell Ayanokoji-kun something!"


    "To tell me?"


    "I''ve been worrying, worrying, worrying about... my friends, a-and I have to protect my ssmates..."


    What is she talking about? I don''t know what it''s about, but I''m pretty sure she''s trying really hard to get the right words out.


    "But even so, I was worried about Ayanok��ji-kun, so... I thought why not?"


    During this special exam, I didn''t have any particr contact with Ichinose. It seems that something unexpected happened. In order to tell me whatever it was that happened, she''s been walking for over four hours, desperately trying to get here.


    "My watch broke, so I was going to go back to the starting point to get it reced... That''s when I saw two people, Acting Director Tsukishiro and Sensei Shiba. T-they were there...!"


    Ichinose speaks in a faltering voice, she''s exhausted to the point where she still hasn''t calmed down her breathing. Depending on what the severity of the situation is, she probably spent a few days worrying about it. This only adds onto her weak physical condition by giving her mental strain.


    "They said if Ayanok��ji-kun is safe until thest day, they''ll call you to I2 and bury him."


    The words "I2" and "bury him." It''s true that if you only hear those words, you''ll think it''s quite a disturbing turn of events that will take ce.


    The reason why Tsukishiro and the others were so carelessly overheard by Ichinose was because her watch were broken and they could not trace the GPS response.


    "Does protecting your ssmates... mean that Tsukishiro threatened you?"


    Ichinose nodded repeatedly, though she seemed momentarily surprised by my guess.


    "If I told Ayanok��ji-kun about this, he... said he was going to expel my ssmates, but I just couldn''t leave you alone...!"


    "Don''t worry about it, you turn your head the other way. I''m your enemy, you know."


    When Ichinose heard those words, she shook her head strongly and violently, saying no.


    "You can''t! Ayanok��ji-kun, Ayanok��ji-kun is... not my enemy!"


    Ichinose clutches the shirt near my chest.


    "I think I''m an enemy, though."


    "No! Because... for me, Ayanokoji-kun is..."


    The hand that gripped the shirt tightly is squeezed even tighter once more.


    "I''m... I''m in love with you, Ayanok��ji-kun. ...!"


    The words must have been something Ichinose herself had not expected to say.


    After the words came out, she averted his gaze as if to cover her own mouth.


    "W-what?! I-I didn''t... I mean I did... but what?" She repeatedly shook her head from side to side in panic, as if she hadn''t been able to catch up with her own understanding.


    "What did I just say?"


    As if her memory of what she had said had flown, she started to panic when she couldn''t understand.


    "Are you sure you want me to repeat it? What you just said to me?"


    "Uh, yeah... Oh, no, no! I''m not sure what I said exactly but I remember more or less! Yes! But you see I-"


    "Thank you, Ichinose."


    "What, what, what?


    I had to thank her, for looking out for me. She put me ahead of her ssmates, ahead of the group and the exam she was trying to win.


    I don''t take that feeling with contempt.


    "If Ichinose hadn''t warned me, I don''t know what would have happened to me."


    This is probably a big turning point for me. If I hadn''t met Ichinose here, I wouldn''t have gone to I2, assuming Tsukishiro was there waiting for me. It''s most definitely true that Tsukishiro threatened Ichinose. But here she is, right in front of me.


    And she told me everything, without regard for the danger.


    "Is it true what you said earlier?"


    "Well that would mean... so, uh, no, it''s not, you know?"


    "If it''s not, deny it now. I''ll get the wrong idea."


    "Ah.... misunderstood.... well maybe not...."


    Ichinose was about to deny it, but she decided that she could no longer hold it in any longer.


    "I like... you."


    She admitted in a small, snatchy voice that seemed to fade away.


    "I think I just realized that you probably won''t feel that same way about me. I''m sorry."


    There was nothing to apologize for.


    "To be honest, I was surprised that you felt that way about me."


    "Gosh, I''m sorry. You don''t like me, do you?"


    "That''s not true. It''s just that I can''t respond to Ichinose''s feelings right now."


    "O-oh yeah, because I''m not good enough for Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    "That''s not it. There are still several things that need to be resolved, and I couldn''t answer yes or no in this situation."


    Besides, I had to avoid telling her about Kei''s existence here. Even if it would cause more harm and resentment if she found outter, she was in the middle of a deserted ind test. There is still time left, so I shouldn''t do anything that will take away her will to fight.


    "It may not make sense to you, but that''s the best I can do for you right now."


    "Yes... I understand." Ichinose nodded her head in response, neither displeased nor dissatisfied.


    "I''m going to head to I2 now. I have some things I need to do there."


    "No, you can''t! It''s dangerous!"


    "If I don''t, you won''t be able to protect your precious ssmates, will you?"


    I''m sure she knows that because she''s been through so much. It''s not hard to imagine that if she contacts me and tells me, Tsukishiro will find out about it. But I think I need to tell her that this isn''t ast-ditch effort, it''s aeback.


    "You need to take a long break and then try to meet up with the group.


    Understood?"


    Patting the head of the obeying Ichinose once, I decided to head to I2.

 Chapter 147: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 147: 6.2</h4>


    There was a rocky area near the border between I2 and I3, with some bushes higher than my knees near it.


    "Let''s just stick to this area." I lowered the backpack I was carrying and hid it in those bushes.


    Not knowing what awaited me from here on out, the pack on my back would only be a hindrance. I decide to leave everything behind, including my tablet. If I can make it back from I2, I won''t have any trouble finding my way back to this rocky area. Perhaps the group with the same table as me was given apletely different designated area. I''d rather not lose a point by searching now just to find out for sure. In addition, now that I know Ichinose is involved, the option of not going is gone. If I chose to ignore this situation, it''s hard to tell how much punishment he''ll give her for revenge.


    As I finished my preparations, I started to walk towards I2.


    "Yo, Ayanok��ji. What a coincidence."


    Miyabi Nagumo, who was holding a tablet, was looking at me with an interesting look in his eyes. Given the situation I was in, it was unnatural for whoever it was to be in this nearby area. Is this man involved in Tsukishiro''s case, other than the bounty?


    No, the title of student council president probably doesn''t mean that much to Tsukishiro. The fact that he showed up here doesn''t seem like it needs to be connected to that case, but I''ll be on the lookout.


    "Why is Student Council President Nagumo in this ce?"


    A quick look around didn''t reveal a single student in the vicinity that could be considered a member of Nagumo''s group.


    "Don''t worry. You and I are the only ones here."


    Perhaps using a GPS search, Nagumo said and tried to push my guard down.


    "There are no challenges near here, where have you been?"


    The direction in which Nagumo appeared was southeast.


    "I was ying on the beach in I4. This is an ind after all."


    How could he be ying on the beach on thest day, when almost all the students were collecting scores with bloodshot eyes?


    "Is that what you call the margin of champions?"


    Nagumoughs, not answering that question.


    "But I''m going to return your line from earlier, Ayanok��ji. What are you doing here in a ce like this with no designated area or assignment.


    Have you been meeting with Honami?"


    It wasn''t surprising that her name woulde up here. Even if she didn''t see Ichinose directly, it would be obvious that she was in a close position if he was doing a GPS search.


    "If so, is that a problem?"


    "No? If you were still with her, then there''s a lot to say, but you''re here alone now. That means you have another purpose. What''s in store for I2?"


    When I decided to ignore the question, Nagumo continued as if to change the subject.


    "You''re done with the exam, right? I just thought I''d have a word with you. There aren''t many situations in school where you and I, the student council president, can stand around and talk alone."


    "I suppose that''s true."


    I''m just a shady student. The other person is the head of the student council, so there''s a clear imbnce. But I don''t think he came here just to make small talk.


    "You knew that the first-years were going to attack me, didn''t you?"


    "You''re not so bad at guessing, are you?"


    There was talk of a bounty of 20 million points if I was expelled. Even though it was led by Tsukishiro, it was an undeniable fact that Nagumo was in the middle of it. If Nagumo is as good as I think, it would not be surprising if he was observing the situation with a GPS search regardless of the date. If he had seen the movements of me and the first-year students yesterday, it would have been obvious that I was going to be attacked. I''m sure that Nagumo is as aware of the whole picture of this special exam as I am, if not more so.


    "Don''t feel bad about the bounty, okay? It wasn''t originally my idea."


    "You''re working with Acting Director Tsukishiro, right?"


    "If you know that much, then it''s a quick story. The money all came from the acting director. I''m just lending my name as the student council president."


    Regardless of whether he wanted to or not, if it was an order from the acting director, Nagumo wouldn''t be able to resist it.


    "If it''s an order from the acting director, I''ll agree you had to ept it.


    But I thought that the student council president I know would kick such an offer to the curb."


    "When the bounty was mentioned, if it had been any other student but you, I wouldn''t have epted it. But the one who was nominated was none other than you. You''re the only man who was recognized by the senior student, Horikita."


    As I thought, Nagumo was only looking past my shoulders, towards Manabu Horikita who is standing behind me.


    "Answer me, Ayanok��ji. What do you intend to do in the future?"


    It would be easy to say, "Don''t worry about me, I''m insignificant."


    However, Nagumo would not be deterred by that. As long as I don''t know what awaits me in the future, I want to make the most of my time.


    "This is none of your business, Student Council President Nagumo.


    Shouldn''t you be concentrating on thest special exam without worrying about me? The difference in scores between you and K��enji should be close.


    If you don''t go back, you won''t get any rewards. You''ll continue to be unable to participate in some of the tasks as well."


    "Don''t worry. On thisst day, I''ve got K��enjipletely under control."


    Saying that, Miyabi Nagumo took out a walkie-talkie from his back pocket. So even though they were far away, he could still give instructions, and that would be enough?


    "I''m also wondering what you''re going to do, but if you can''t answer, I''ll change the question. Let me see if you''re as good as the senior Horikita made you out to be. Let me see what you''re really made of."


    That''s the main reason why he''se all the way here?


    "Don''t tell me you want me to fight with the student council president here?"


    "I don''t mind a fistfight, but I prefer a more straightforward fight. Even after this exam is over, there will still be an opportunity to fight across grade levels, so I''ll take you on there."


    So, it was the student council president''s direct request.


    "Didn''t you learn that from this exam? You can''tpete with me, the student council president."


    In fact, Nagumo had consistently maintained his first and second ce finishes in this exam. K��enji, who was in a close race, would have a chance to turn the tables, but it would still be a tough fight.


    "You''ve got one, and we''ve got seven. It''s weird that it''s a match."


    "K��enji is good enough to win, he''s a freak, but he''s undeniably talented. In contrast, I''ve never been able to get into the top ten groups."


    I urge him to go to K��enji if he''s looking for a strong opponent.


    "Well, that thing is certainly more than I imagined. He''s the only one that made me make an offensive move in this test."


    I shrug my shoulders, though I somewhat approve of K��enji. I guess the offensive move refers to the fact that Nagumo is using the walkie-talkie right now.


    "Using the entire third grade to get ahead in the order of arrival and monopolize the assignments is probably a trick that only the student council president can do, right?"


    Unlike the freshmen and sophomores, almost the entire third year group is under Nagumo''s control. If he wanted to reliably contain K��enji, he could certainly do so by mobilizing all the third-year students. It doesn''t matter how strong, fast, or skilled they are atpleting their tasks. A group of them will reap what they sow. As a result, K��enji could only get the arrival bonus from the basic movement. In the meantime, Nagumo and the others were just piling up arrival bonuses and the point gap was widening.


    "Quicksilver, as expected, you''ve seen through that much. When did you notice it?"


    "I knew it was suspicious from the Beach gs stage. I didn''t dare to fill the empty slots left by Kiriyama. That seat was reserved for the student body president."


    But since I arrived first, I had no choice but to enter with the vacant members. This meant that Nagumo was leisurely ying around and waiting for Kiriyama and the others to finish their assignments.


    "I had always thought that you and Vice President Kiriyama were enemies, but it seems that you''re not as distant as I thought."


    "He''d join forces with me, even though he hates me, if it meant he could graduate as an A student."


    "So, aside from the out-of-this-world K��enji, ordinary students are helpless."


    When I replied with that, Miyabi Nagumoughed, as if something was wrong.


    "You don''t really mean that, do you? You don''t think I''m a great person at all."


    "That''s not..." I tried to deny it, but Nagumo stopped me with his hand.


    "I know you think that I just mobilized all three years and won by force alone, but that''s not true. Now I''m going to show you my psychic powers."


    "Psychic powers, huh?"


    "I''m going to guess your group ranking at the end of the twelfth day."


    The only groups that had been released were the top ten groups and the bottom ten groups. Excluding those 20 groups from the total of 157 groups, there were 137 groups without the merge. Of course, I was the only one who knew my exact ranking. At thest minute, before the date changed, I was in 16th ce.


    "Your rank is... 11, right?" Nagumo replied confidently, but he missed the rank slightly.


    On the twelfth day, I repeated the GPS search in preparation for the attack from the first years. If I hadn''t spent those extra points, I could have finished 11th. The rules made it impossible to keep track of the rankings of all the groups. In other words, there was a good reason for what Nagumo had said.


    "Ah, but not anymore. Now, you''re in about fifteenth or sixteenth ce, right?"


    "Yes, I am. I''m honestly impressed."


    I admitted honestly, and presumed Nagumo would calmly ept the fact.


    "I know I said something about psychic powers, I was only joking. But I just stepped on the fact that if you really had hidden abilities, you would be ranked around there."


    Apparently, this Nagumo guy is much more talented than I thought.


    "You were inconspicuously ranked a little lower than tenth, and you were always in a position to outperform the top, right? If I or K��enji were to sh with you and drop down the rankings, you could turn the tables."


    I avoided standing out, and worked to stay hidden until the end of the 12th day. At the end of the day, when the pace of scoring points at the top slowed down due to fatigue, I had left a line to aim for the podium with a quick score, depending on the situation. No, I thought I had.


    "Did you notice? That it was impossible from the start."


    It meant that the strategy I had nned had been nullified by Nagumo from the very beginning.


    "The tenth ce has always been the third-year Kuronaga, right?


    That''s because I was the one who kept him in tenth ce. I was keeping him in tenth ce so that I could shut down the guys who were trying to turn the tables by gaining points unseen."


    The score between tenth and ninth was widening, and it was getting harder and harder for me to get to the top. All of this was going ording to Nagumo''s n. He forcibly eliminated the invisible enemies and narrowed it down to only the visible ones.


    "I''ve always doubted whether you were capable, but now it''s clear.


    You''ve earned the right to be beaten to a pulp by me, and you should be happy about it."


    "Is it part of your strategy that the student council president went out of his way to takemand and target K��enji on thest day?"


    " I could have earned 400 or 500 points if I wanted to, but that would have been somewhat problematic. However, it''s not very interesting, is it? I gave him hope he could beat the first and second years. Besides, if we lose in a close game, I might be able to see K��enji''s disappointed face."


    Nagumo had been fighting as the strongest group for the past two weeks. And now, on thisst day, he wants to show off his presence by sinking K��enji and taking the top spot himself. If Nagumo is serious, he can find out all the scores that a particr group gets, whether they got the seating rewards or not, and how they did in the challenges, using GPS search and the eyes of his friends. Even now, on thest day of the tournament, when the scores are unknown, Nagumo knows exactly how many points K��enji has. In other words, it''s possible for him to pull off a dramatic victory like winning by one point.


    "Well, I don''t care about K��enji anymore. Thest thing I''m going to do in this school, is defeat you, Ayanok��ji."


    Nagumo, who has always been chasing the shadow of Horikita Manabu, is trying to see that figure in me. I guess he wants to defeat himpletely and make it ck and white, even if it''s in a different way.


    "The leader of the second year D ss is Horikita. Even if there was a special exam where I had topete with the third-year students, I wouldn''t be fighting against the student council president Nagumo."


    "Then I''ll have to force you toe to the front? Including the bounty."


    So, he''s threatening to reveal everything about me?


    "I''m sorry, but I''m going to hurry ahead. Please leave the rest of this story for another time."


    "You think I''m going to let you off easy? I''m not leaving until you say you''ll fight me, okay?"


    Nagumo walks behind me, as if he intends to follow me.


    If there''s something waiting for me down the road, I''ll be forced to involve Nagumo. We''re dealing with Tsukishiro. In the worst-case scenario, Nagumo will lose everything he has built up and may even be expelled in the name of power. Even if I tried to persuade him with words here, he would not respond. Of course, I couldn''t just lie and take the easy way out. I stopped and looked back at him.


    "So have you decided?"


    I pressed hard without warning on the chest of the misunderstood and delighted Nagumo. I''m sure he didn''t expect to be touched by a younger kohai, and without any resistance, he fell to the ground on his buttocks. The tablet he was holding and the walkie-talkie in his pocket spilled out and fell to the ground.


    "What...?"


    He doesn''t understand what happened to him, or so it seems. Before his understanding catches up, let me finish what needs to be done.


    "Miyabi Nagumo, the Student Council President. Even with this, I still think I''m underselling you. You have different abilities than that of the student council president Horikita, and you have sessfully reached the top of this school. In fact, it''s not an exaggeration to say that you''ve not only maintained afortable top position in this special exam, but you''ve alsopletely dominated it."


    I continue my words before he can recall his calmness, or his anger.


    "There are just some areas that you shouldn''t step into. Please pull back here."


    "Ha... don''t be sil y Ayanok��ji. Are you trying to order me around?"


    "It''s because I have great respect for you as my senior, that I''m not going to show mercy here."


    "Ah? Who the hell do you think you...?"


    I look into Nagumo''s eyes with all the killing intent I can muster.


    "Don''t you understand that I told you to back off?"


    Nagumo stood up forcefully, refusing to admit that fear had been instilled in him.


    "Enough of this, okay? You''re the first person who''s ever treated me this hard, Ayanok��ji..."


    At that moment, a call came over the walkie-talkie that had fallen beside Nagumo.


    "We''ve made our way up, Nagumo. This is the third time in a row that I''ve prevented a challenge from K��enji. Give me your next instructions."


    I hear the voice of one of the delighted third-year students. The strategy to seal off the K��enji seems to be going well. Nagumo makes no attempt to react to the voice and res at me.


    "Hey, Nagumo, the senpai''s won''t move unless you tell them to. Didn''t you have to keep attacking K��enji until the end of the exam if you wanted to make sure he''d drop to second ce?"


    "Pres, are you there?"


    Even though the conversation was only audible, I could tell that it was important to Nagumo. Nagumo takes the walkie-talkie in silence and turns the power knob to off.


    "It''s not K��enji that''s important to me."


    Without even trying to wipe the dirt, Nagumoes closer to me.


    "I''m going to fuck you up. That''s thest thing I''m going to do as student council president."


    Willfulness, I wondered. He inspired himself as the student council president and shook off my intimidation.


    "Me...?" Without hesitation, I mmed my fist into Nagumo''s chest.


    "Shit...!"


    He instantly lost his ability to breathe, and Nagumo temporarily copsed on the spot as if he was losing consciousness. I catch Nagumo and lean him against arge tree where the sun doesn''t shine. Since he wouldn''t listen to my advice, I had no choice but to do what I had to do here.


    Nagumo''s watch detected an abnormality and sent out a warning alert, which sounded for five seconds. It shouldn''t be long before he wakes up. Maybe twenty minutes, maybe thirty. At any rate, I wouldn''t have to involve Nagumo in what was toe. Of course, there would inevitably be other issues that woulde up after the exam was over. But for now, it''s just a small matter.


    If I don''t solve the problem of Tsukishiro, there''s no point in thinking about the future anyways.

 Chapter 148: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 148: 6.3</h4>


    A little after 10 a.m. on thest day of the exam, I, Suzune Horikita, was heading north along the border between I4 and I3, aiming for I2. It was thest day of the special exam, and I was trying to muster up myst bit of energy. Fortunately, until just before midnightst night, the second year ss D had not been listed in the bottom 10 groups. The bottom five groups, the range of expulsion, were all third-year students.


    However, we cannot be absolutely sure. At the end of the day, if these five groups were to join forces with another group, their scores would inevitably increase, and there was a possibility that they would switch ces with the group just outside the sixth and seventh positions. In extreme cases, if all ten of the bottom groups are paired with the top group, then all ten of them could be out of the bottom.


    My tablet shows that my designated area is I7, which is the exact opposite of I2, where I am headed. It was an outrage to ignore the designated area that I was heading to. The answer to why I am doing this lies in a piece of paper in my right hand. This was folded and tucked away in my tent when I woke up this morning. I unfolded it and saw that it had four words written on it in an irregr pattern: "Noon," "K.A.," "Expelled," and "I2." The first time I saw it, I knew I was in trouble.


    As I inquired further, I thought of two things. The first was that the person who wrote it had such beautiful handwriting that I wanted to use it as a model. The other is that paper and pen are not part of the free supply.


    "I wonder how many points the notebook and pen were..."


    I vaguely remember it being mentioned in the manual for the deserted ind, but I don''t remember the detailed point prices because I decided it was worthless. I may need the note if my tablet runs out of battery or breaks down in a hurry, though. Anyway, some drunk guy bought a notebook and some notes, and then sent me this little cryptic thing.


    "No, it''s too easy to call it a cipher."


    I2 is the area of the deserted ind, and noon is the time. This indicates that there is something going on here today, the fourteenth day, since it was thest day when he sent the note. If I say it was just a prank, that''s all. But the two words that remain are not.


    Aside from the former expulsion, it is the K.A. that is the problem.


    If other students had seen this note, they probably wouldn''t have understood what it meant. The moment I saw it, I knew the meaning. It was the initials of Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.


    "If you consider the meaning as it is, Ayanok��ji-kun will be expelled from the school today at noon, I2...."


    You''ve got to be kidding me, I thought.


    So, when the 7 a.m. designated area was announced, I was going to ignore it. But I was a little concerned about the fact that Ayanok��ji-kun''s GPS was on E3. But if time goes by and he gets closer to I2, it might not be just a joke. If it was someone''s trap to waste points, then I had fallen for it.


    The result - Ayanok��ji-kun had made his way from F3 to G3. If he continues to head to I2, he will be able to get there quite soon...


    I had such a premonition that I decided to head north to find out for sure. There is a bounty on his head. The probability that it is a suggestion cannot be dismissed. There was still some time before noon, but I wondered how far Ayanokoji-kun had gotten. Of course, it''s possible that it''s just a coincidence and he''s already on his way to another area. I feel the urge to do a GPS search, but I hold it back. My score is good enough to be in the top 50%. However, if I abandoned the designated areas and tasks from here on, and even used the search, I wouldn''t know that. If I''m wasting my time in any way, I might as well head to I2.


    "Ah! I''m finally catching up! You better wait for me Horikita!"


    Such a voice came from behind me as the end of my vision opened up and I could almost see the river.


    "How... did you end up here?"


    Mio Ibuki-san, who is out of breath and ring at me, shows up. From the fact that it doesn''t feel like she just appeared by ident, it looks like she went to the trouble of GPS searching to follow me.


    "Score, show me your score."


    "Hold on. What the hell are you talking about?"


    Showing up out of nowhere and asking me, the enemy, to show you my scores is a behavior I don''t understand.


    "I told you. I''m not going to let you beat me in this special exam."


    She sticks her forefinger in front of my eyes.


    "You don''t need to confirm that now. Couldn''t you have waited until it was over?"


    "I mean, there''s no guarantee that all the groups'' scores will be announced after the special exam."


    "Sure, that might be true. It''s the top and bottom groups that matter."


    There was no guarantee that all students would have immediate ess to the rankings of the many groups that existed. Of course, there''s always the possibility that they''ll be made public as a matter of course.


    "So why don''t you let me check here and now?"


    She wants it to be ck and white as to which of us collected more points on thest day.


    "That''s a silly and unbelievable statement, but... you''re serious if you''vee all this way. How many times did you use the GPS search?"


    "Three times. Since you were so close, I figured it was now or never."


    The greater the distance, the more difficult it bes to meet the person you want. That meant Ibuki-san had used the GPS search three times to get here.


    "Well, that''s a lot of work, isn''t it?"


    "I don''t need that kind of pity, just tell me your score. I got a 131!" She dered forcefully, as if to say, "What do you think?"


    "Thanks for telling me, even though I didn''t ask. But I do have two things to say. First of all, there''s no guarantee that you''re telling me your real score."


    "Huh? Then why don''t you just look at it?"


    I stop Ibuki-san as she tries to take her tablet out of her backpack.


    "Secondly, even if you disclosed your real score, I won''t tell you."


    "What? What''s that? Are you going to say the same thing as that guy?"


    That guy...? I was a little curious, but I kept talking.


    "Even though we''re both second-year students, we''re enemies. I don''t want to take the risk of disclosing any information."


    I don''t think I''m in the bottom ten groups at this point. But the scores will fluctuate until the very end. Even if it''s thest day, there''s a non-zero chance that I''ll be caught t-footed by the information I give to Ibuki-san.


    "All right. So, you freaked out when you heard my score, huh? You''re losing, right?"


    "I''m not even going to answer that question. It''ll give you an implication to whether you''re winning or losing."


    Even though I repeated that I wasn''t going to give any information, Ibuki-san kept pushing on.


    "Why don''t you just admit it honestly? That you couldn''t beat me in points."


    "I''ll leave it at that, and you can go back to your exam."


    I try to match Ibuki-san, if that makes her happy.


    "Holy shit you piss me off. Show me your real score."


    "I basically admitted defeat, but you''re not satisfied?"


    "I want to know what your real score is. And I want to know how much I beat you by."


    "This is silly..."


    "It''s important to me."|


    "I''m sorry, but we have to move on."


    "Are you trying to escape?"


    "I''m on my way to the designated area. It''s funny that you would describe it as running away." I turn my feet to hurry to I2. Ibuki-san must have taken that as running away, because she followed me.


    "Do you have a designated area to the north of you? Or are you simply following me?"


    "What I want to know now is your score. If I knew that, I''d go back to my assigned area too."


    So she''s obsessively concerned about me. I honestly don''t want to be stranded here. I don''t want to waste my time when I''m being swamped by a single piece of paper.


    "I''ve lost."


    "Oh, you admit it? So, you''re finally admitting defeat, huh?"


    "No, I don''t. I''m saying that I lost to that kind of obsession of yours.


    I''ve collected 145 points. You came close, but I won the game."


    I disclosed information that should have been hidden. That''s why I dered my defeat.


    "You''re beating me? If you''re going to say you''re winning, then show me the proof, the proof."


    Of course you will. But I''m not going to stop walking. I want to get to I2 as quickly as possible now to make sure he''s safe.


    "Okay."


    This is efficient, though I don''t think it''s the right answer.


    In any case, even if Ibuki-san knows the score I have on thest day of this exam, it won''t have a big impact. Right now, every minute or second counts. I take down my backpack and reach for my tablet, which I keep inside. Ibuki kept her stern face and waited for me to tell her how many points I had. I took out the tablet and was about to press the power button.


    Almost at the same time, Ibuki-san and I felt a strong presence from ahead that we didn''t even try to hide, and we looked up.


    "My my, what do we have here~!"


    An innocent voice, like that of a child meeting a ymate.


    "Hi, Horikita-senpai!"


    Looking at the female student who had appeared before she knew it, Ibuki-san expressed her dissatisfaction without even trying to hide it.


    "Who...?"


    "It''s Amasawa Ichika-san from 1st year ss A."


    It''s possible that we just happened to show up at the same ce, but she''s acting kind of strange.


    Still wary, I turn to face Amasawa-san, tablet still in my hand.


    The first year''s bounty and what was written on this morning''s paper sh through my mind.


    "Don''t worry about me, you can do whatever you were doing, okay?"


    "Not so fast. We were just talking about various private matters."


    Ibuki-san is well aware that I don''t want to tell her my scores as much as possible. She''ll also understand that I don''t want to show her the scores on my tablet here to see if I won or lost. I tried to gently urge her to leave, but she didn''t move.


    Ibuki-san, who seemed to have lost her numbness at the sight of her, said irritably,


    "You''re in my way..."


    "So Horikita-senpai, how is Sud��-senpai doing~?"


    "Huh? Did you just ignore me?"


    It''s impossible that she didn''t hear Ibuki-san''s question, but Amasawa-san ignored her. She turns her shoulders, setting down the backpack she was carrying, as if she wasn''t nning to leave right away.


    "Yeah. I''m sure he''s grateful that you saved him." She smiles, and there is no hint of an apology to me.


    The longer she stays here, the longer I''ll be dyed in getting to Ayanok��ji-kun. Unless these incidents are somehow rted...


    "Amasawa-san, you''re in my way. I have a prior engagement over here, so please go away."


    "Prior engagement? Didn''t Ibuki-senpai just barge in on her own too?"


    It was as if she had heard our conversation from an early stage.


    Something isn''t right.


    "Even if that''s the case, it doesn''t matter, now please go."


    With a stronger tone than previously, Ibuki from my side tells Amasawa-san,


    "Go away. Now."


    If I go any further, Ibuki-san might actually do something about it.


    Even with such a threat, Amasawa-san just smiles in amusement.


    "I wonder what your goal is, Amasawa-san."


    Putting aside Ibuki-san for the moment, I turn my attention to Amasawa-san. I don''t want to spend any more unnecessary time on her, but I have no choice.


    "Tsk." Ibuki-san is irritated by this, but she waits for me as if she has no choice.


    "I want to ask you one thing, where is Horikita-senpai going to go from here?"


    "I''m standing here talking to Ibuki-san right now, but as soon as I''m done, I''m heading for the F3 area."


    A lie, of course. I''m in a situation where I''m about to abandon my own designated area. But there''s no advantage in telling Amasawa-san that. She''s colluding with the other first-year students to try and get the bounty of expelling Ayanok��ji-kun. It''s safer not to talk about unnecessary things rted to Ayanok��ji-kun. I thought that was my decision, but I soon realized that it was a mistake.


    "You''re a liar Horikita-senpai. Your designated area isn''t over here, is it?"


    "What do you mean? Are you trying to trap me with some strange trick?"


    "There''s no point in trying to deceive me. The designated area that you should be heading to is I7, right?"


    Amasawa-san''s immediate response was the designated area where I should be heading next. There was no way she could have guessed this by mere coincidence.


    From the look on her face, I could only assume that she was trying to hook me from the start.


    "We second-year students have our own way of fighting. We can''t tell the truth about everything."


    After saying that, I quickly continue.


    "Isn''t it inevitable that we should be wary of the person who tried to bring down Ayanok��ji-kun?" I smoothly switch the conversation here.


    The first year is the enemy, theres no harm in showing some ill will.


    "Hmm. Well, I guess that''s true too." She said this, but it didn''t seem as if she was listening to my words.


    I couldn''t help but feel that she was already here with a conclusion in mind.


    "Where are you going, Horikita-senpai? You don''t think it''s... I2, do you?"


    Apparently, that thought of mine had hit me in the wrong direction.


    "You know a lot of things, don''t you? But it was only this morning that I decided to go to I2. You''re very perceptive, aren''t you?"


    Even if she had used the GPS search to pinpoint my location, it wouldn''t have been easy for her to get ahead of me like this. If that''s the case, then I should assume that Amasawa-san is also involved in this piece of paper today. As I was wondering if I should ask her about it, Ibuki-san stepped forward.


    "Hey, how long are we talking about this?"


    I felt the same irritation. I''m going to be forced to deal with Amasawa-san more than I''ll be able to deal with Ibuki-san.


    "Ibuki-san."


    I turned on my tablet and showed the screen of my score to Ibuki-san, knowing that the information would leak out. She would inevitably see the three group expansion slots I had obtained, but since I didn''t have to use them until the end of the game, there was almost no harm done.


    I''m sure she doesn''t care about the maximum group quota part, though.


    The moment she saw the score, I heard Ibuki-san''s faint click of her tongue.


    Then she scratched her head and said loudly in frustration.


    "Huh? Seriously? That sucks."


    It''s a somewhat cruel answer to her hard work for the past two weeks so far.


    Nevertheless, I think Ibuki-san did well. The fact that she''s scored enough points topete with me, even with her low academic ability, is enough to make me look back at her.


    "If you''re done, you can head to the designated area. You''ve got double the points thisst day, so you still have a chance to turn things around."


    "That''s true, but... what do you mean you''re trying to abandon the designated area?"


    She asks, as if Amasawa-san''s words from earlier are bothering her.


    "This is your chance to leave, Ibuki-san. I''m in a situation where I can''t score any points right now for some reason."


    I don''t have to exin everything from scratch, you understand, right?


    I appeal with my eyes.


    "Yeah well, the game is on until this exam is over. If you say you''re going to stop, I''ll just turn the tables on you without reservation." In disgust, Ibuki-san turned her back and walked away, as if she was satisfied with the situation.


    With this, I seeded in parting ways with Ibuki-san. As I put away my tablet in my backpack, I focused on dealing with Amasawa-san.


    "I''m heading to I2 now, but what about you?"


    "Why are you ditching the designated area to go to I2 where it doesn''t matter? I don''t care about that assignment. It''s not like we''re doing it during a special exam, is it?"


    "Don''t you think you know that better than anyone?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "Don''t be silly, you threw this paper into the tent while I was asleep.


    What''s the point of that?" I show her the small folded paper, holding it between the thumb and forefinger of my left hand.


    "Paper? Can I see that please?"


    You do your best monkey business imitation. Well, I have no use for this piece of paper anymore anyway. I give the paper back to Amasawa-san, who I think is the original owner.


    After receiving it, she opens it and checks the contents. "Irregrly lined up letters: "Noon," "K.A.," "Expelled," "I2." She reads it aloud, then closes his eyes once more.


    "Damn it..., I didn''t realize how much you liked to y games..."


    "Games? What are you nning to do by involving me and Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "I don''t know about that. It seems that I''m just one of the participants, just like my senpai."


    "Don''t try to fool me. The fact that you appeared in front of me proves that you are the owner of that paper."


    Laughing somewhat annoyed, Amasawa-san tore up the paper. She tore it seven or eight times, and when it was unreadable, she threw it away.


    "Did you see something disturbing in those four words?"


    "Ayanok��ji-kun might be expelled from school. It''s not unconventional to read it that way."


    "Hmm." She continues to talk as if she has a better grasp of the situation than I do.


    Anyway, it''s a waste of time to keep up with her word games any longer. I put my backpack back on and start walking towards her.


    "I''m not happy. I don''t know anything about Ayanok��ji-senpai, but I don''t think it''s right for you to pretend to be his friend just because you''re ssmates."


    As we stood side by side, Amasawa-san said those words.


    "You don''t know anything about Ayanok��ji-senpai, right, Horikita-senpai?"


    I didn''t like that for some reason, and I stopped in my tracks.


    "Then are you saying that you know more about him than I do?" I just looked at her and she forced me to meet her eyes and smiled widely and triumphantly.


    "Fufu~ I know a lot about Ayanok��ji-senpai. I know why he''s so good-looking, smart..., and stronger than anyone else."


    It was hard to believe that a freshman who had just entered the school would know so much about Ayanok��ji-kun. Does that mean they''ve known each other since before middle school? Just like me and Kushida-san, who were in the same junior high school?


    Amasawa-san continued her words unconcernedly.


    "So, what do you know, Horikita-senpai?"


    What do I know? I''m... the... first friend Ayanok��ji-kun has made since he entered this school. Yes, I guess you could say we''re friends in a way. Our seats happened to be next to each other, and we started to talk... a lot.


    I thought he was just a normal student at first, but he was actually much smarter than I imagined. My brother was one of the first to approve of him, and he''s also an expert in martial arts. However, he usually hides this side of himself and prefers to lead a quiet school life. There are still very few people who know about his abilities, but other than that, the information he has is probably not much different from others.


    "Yes, it''s true, I may not know everything about him, I can''t deny that."


    Thinking about Ayanok��ji-kun again, I couldn''t help bute to that conclusion. Maybe Amasawa-san knew exactly what she was talking about. I don''t know.


    At my words that could be considered a deration of defeat, Amasawa-san smiled happily.


    "However..."


    "However?"


    Surely that''s not what''s important. I think it''s not how much I know about him now.


    "I want to continue to know him for the rest of my life, until I graduate.


    As a ssmate, as a... friend, far more than you are now."


    That''s what I wish for right now, and that''s how I feel. He is an important friend and an indispensable member of the ss that we cannot afford to lose. If he was in danger right now, I couldn''t help but run to him.


    That''s the reason why I''m leaving the designated area and heading there.


    Now, I was able to reaffirm what I was trying to do. This choice is not a wrong one. If it turns out to be just an unfounded fear, so much the better.


    "Do you think you can help him? You''re not good enough yet."


    "I may not be good enough as you are right now. But I''m going to be the one who can help him when he''s in trouble."


    This school life had only just begun to turn around. This conversation, which could have been considered a waste of time, might have had a great meaning. I suppose I should thank her for making me realize that. As I was about to walk away, Amasawa-san''s outstretched right hand stood in front of me. When I look at her face again, I see that she has already lost her smile and is looking at me with intense murderous intent.


    "I''ve learned something from talking to you. Something is actually about to happen on I2. If not, you don''t need to try so hard to keep me here."


    I can''t afford to waste any more time here.


    "Where are you going?"


    "Can''t you see how this is going? I''m going to I2 to help Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Exactly what I said earlier, a step towards bing someone who can help him in times of trouble.


    "Don''t make meugh. There''s no way Ayanok��ji-senpai would ask Horikita-senpai for help." She says that just to correct me.


    "At least for now, yes."


    "Only, it''s different in the future?"


    Nodding, I look back once.


    "And there''s another thing I''ve figured out. I really think you don''t want me to go to I2. In other words, you were not the sender of this paper."


    As I tried to avoid the outstretched hand, Amasawa-san stood in front of me once again.


    "I won''t let you go, Horikita-senpai."


    "The more you stop me, the more I''m definitely going to have to go to I2. The way you''re talking about it, it means he''s in trouble now, doesn''t it?"


    It didn''t matter how much I knew about the situation. All I could be sure of was that something was clearly going on with Ayanok��ji-kun right now.


    "Do you think you can go?"


    "Yes, I think I can go."


    Even if I have to forcefully remove the obstacles that stands in front of me.


    "Hmm, I can just feel your determination. I''ll just wait for you to put your bags down."


    That meant that she would restrain me even by force. It would be better not to think of it as a mere verbal threat. I took her words in stride and slowly set my backpack down at my feet.


    "Just so you know, I''m an experienced martial artist."


    "I know."


    "You''re pretty well-informed, aren''t you?"


    I wondered if she knew more about me than just Ayanok��ji-kun.


    "I''ll go ahead and say it too, but I''m super strong, so you''d better be prepared for that."


    From the moment she showed her anger. I knew firsthand that she was no ordinary girl. I''m sure this isn''t some kind of stunt. The fatigue from the desert ind exam has naturally built up. The same is true for Amasawa-san in front of me. However, I''m not as tired as one may think, so we''re evenly matched as far as condition goes. If that''s the case, I won''t be defeated so easily.


    I took a slow stance and observed the behavior of Amasawa-san in front of me. She doesn''t seem to be taking any particr form, and only has an eerie expression on her face.


    "If you say you''re going to see Ayanok��ji-senpai, let''s y for a bit to stop that."


    The Amasawa-san in front of me stepped to the left and...


    "Ack!"


    I was on full alert, but immediately after I saw it start to move, I sensed danger and ran away, jumping backwards. The outstretched arm was not strong enough to grab me, or was it? In any case, I thought I had avoided the initial blow, but the next thing I knew, I was grabbed by the chest and the clothes on my right arm.


    "Damn..." In the time it takes me to mutter such words, my vision is spinning around. Realizing the pain in my back, the fact that I was thrown on my back followed.


    "Oh no... what a surprise."


    Unable to breathe, I let out abored gasp.


    "No, you can''t let your guard down. Yes, I''ll give you a fresh start, so stand up, stand up." Looking down at me, Amasawa-san gives me an evil smile.


    I don''t think I need to put into words again how humiliating that is. Just one contact is enough to know. Amasawa-san''s ability is considerable. As we were both women, I thought that even if there was a difference in our abilities, it would be slight. Ingenuity, resourcefulness, inspiration, and luck were all factors that could turn the tables. But I may have been naive in my thinking. Anyway, the damage to my back was not something to beughed off. It was fortunate that the ground was dirt, but it would take some time to recover from the damage.


    If the other side is proud of their overwhelming advantage, I''ll take full advantage of it. I decided to spend tens of seconds on one process of getting up.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll wait for you; you can rest for five or ten minutes."


    "If your goal is to keep me from going to Ayanok��ji-kun, then so be it."


    "If you don''t want to fight, that''s the best way, right? Even from Horikita-senpai''s point of view."


    That''s for sure. We''ve been going through the deserted ind test without a hitch up to this point, and now we''re starting to fight and quarrel at the end of it. If I''m not good enough, I''ll be retired and I''ll even be expelled as the sole student.


    "Not yet..." Once the pain in my back is gone, I take another stance.


    The same stance as before.


    Just because I have a background in martial arts doesn''t mean I''m any good at street fights. I can only demonstrate my abilities as I have learned them. I was surprised at how fast Amasawa-san was moving, but I had an idea of how to fight her with my judo skills. One time, a karate master taught me carefully what to do when a man grabs a woman and tries to push her down. I remembered this in my mind and practiced it again. I was wary of going easy on my instructor, but if it is Amasawa-san, I wouldn''t have to worry. I throw away the idea that she''s younger than me and switch to the feeling of fighting a superior opponent.


    "Fufufu~!" Sheughs aloud, perhaps amused that I''m focusing on the slight changes in Amasawa-san''s legs and shoulders instead of her face.


    "Yeah, yeah, I know what you mean, Horikita-senpai. I know exactly how you feel. But you know what?"


    I don''t go along with her y on words. Right now, I''m focusing all of my attention on seeing through her first move...


    After another shock and pain, I realized that the left foot that wasing at me at high speed had hit a little above my armpit as I tried to match the right foot that she had stepped on.


    "Ack!" I was kicked to the ground in agonizing pain, almost to the point of tears. I was kicked to the ground, and all I could do with my arms, which couldn''t even defend themselves, was catch myself. I rolled around on the ground two or three times, confused even though I knew how it happened.


    "You thought it was mainly judo, didn''t you? You''re not thinking straight."


    "Ugh, ugh....!" I hold my right side where I was kicked and close my eyes.


    The pain is so intense that it almost breaks my heart in an instant. This is the second time I''ve felt such deadly strength since the time I faced off against H��sen-kun... It was only recently that I started to lose confidence in a number of ways.


    "This year''s first-year students are not all that cute..."


    "Does that mean thatst year''s Horikita-senpai was a cute girl, unlike me?"


    I know it''s a mean question, but it''s a painful reply. I may be a different type of girl, but I''m sure I''m no less cute than you. I tried to stand up, but as I put pressure on my legs, I felt them slipping away. With a back throw and one kick, my strength has been drained more than I thought possible.


    "What are you? You seem to know the old Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    One thing was for sure, this Amasawa-san possessed a strange strength just like him. A glimpse of the strength that Ayanok��ji-kun showed when he faced my brother, when he faced Hosen-kun.


    "There''s no way I''m going to tell a senior something like that."


    "Well, you don''t seem like the kind of person who would give me an easy answer."


    Anyway, it''s one of the few good things that the other side is ying with me. It''s just a matter of keeping me from going to Ayanok��ji-kun, so I guess it doesn''t matter how much time we spend here. I need to let some of the damage I''ve done go in order to move forward.


    "What can I say, I''m disappointed about a lot of things. Senpai isn''t as good as you think you are, you know? That''s why Ayanok��ji-senpai doesn''t ask you for any advice."


    As if peeking into my heart, Amasawa-san''s eyes look into my inner thoughts.


    "You say you want to help, but really you want to know what he thinks of you, and you''re scared to find out that he doesn''t trust you."


    "Yeah, I guess that could be it."


    "As I said before, Ayanok��ji-senpai won''t be able to rely on Horikita-senpai."


    "Even if that''s the case, I want to hear it from him, not from you."


    "Can''t you see that''s not cool?" Without even trying to hide her annoyance, Amasawa-san approached my side.


    "Kushida-senpai still has better eyesight than you."


    "Kushida-san? Howe Kushida-san''s name came up here...?


    "Stand up, Horikita-senpai. Talking to you is only irritating me, so I''ll end it."


    As a mercy at least, she gives me a reprieve to regain my stance. Then, as for me, I can''t just give up the fight until the end. I stand up and focus all my attention on seeing through Amasawa-san''s attack. I know I''m repeating myself, but as long as I can only do this, I have no choice.


    "Bye~!"


    Amasawa-san runs out with light steps andes at me. Do I catch her? Avoid her? I''m sure neither of them will seed.


    If that''s the case, at least give me a shot...!


    Pan! The sound of a dry fist rang beside my ear.


    But the pain doesn''te, and a shadow forms in front of my eyes, hiding my vision.


    "You, why ...?"


    A student catches her fist in front of me and spits it out without even looking at me. The small back was Ibuki, who was supposed to have left.


    "I guess that wasn''t a bad punch."


    "Nice catch~. I was a little surprised by your unexpected appearance."


    When I couldn''t swallow the situation and couldn''t move, Ibuki-san turned around and stared at me.


    "I''m the one who''s going to beat you. I don''t want to see you get defeated by a freshman from who knows where." She said and shook off the fist she had grabbed. Amasawa-san distanced herself again.


    "I''m Ichika Amasawa~. Please remember my name, Ibuki-senpai."


    "I''m not good at remembering personal things. If you want me to remember, can you leave that much of an impression on me?"


    "Fufu, that''s kind of funny."


    "I''ll y with her, and you can go wherever you want."


    "What are you talking about? You''ve worked so hard on this special exam to beat me, haven''t you?"


    "You''re throwing away the designated area too, aren''t you? There''s no point in turning the tables like that."


    That''s why you came back? I swallowed the words.


    "She''s incredibly strong, you know. You might end up regretting it.


    Would you still be okay with that?"


    "What''s that? Are you saying I''m going to lose?"


    "That''s how strong your opponent is."


    "I don''t think I can lose to Ibuki-senpai."


    "You guys really think I''m not good enough eh?"


    A bad threat seems to have the opposite effect, igniting Ibuki-san''s feelings.


    "Even if you were to win against Amasawa-san, if you were to overdo it or sound an emergency alert in the process, you may well be retired. As the lone you, there''s also a chance you''ll be expelled."


    "So it''s the same for you, right?"


    "What? Yes, I suppose so."


    "I''m sure I''m stronger than you." She gestured with her hand for me to leave.


    "Which one of you is going to fight? You''ll have to decide quickly!"


    "I''ll take her."


    "What kind of line is thating from the chick who almost lost earlier? You''re in my way, so back off."


    "This is my fight, it''s none of your business."


    "What the hell are you talking about? You must have hit your head and gone crazy."


    "That''s..."


    It''s not possible to stop Ibuki-san with a half-hearted attempt. But I can''t do something here that I would leave to her. I grabbed Ibuki-san by the shoulders and forced her to step back.


    "What are you doing!"


    "I''ve been trying to be obtuse, but I have to tell you. You can''t beat her."


    "Don''t be silly. Don''t make assumptions before you even try."


    "It''s true. You can''t beat her because I couldn''t even get my hands on her."


    If the fire has been lit, I will stoke Ibuki-san''s fire to the utmost.


    "Then I guess I''ll just have to prove you wrong..."


    I hold out my left arm toward Ibuki-san.


    "What?"


    "I don''t want to fight a losing battle, and if you''re going to break into this fight, you''re going to have to show a certain amount of resolve as well.


    You''ll be in the same group as me. And if one of us is incapacitated, you can leave and prevent the group from retiring."


    "You''re kidding. Why would I want to be with you?"


    "I told you. I asked you to be prepared. You don''t get into this fight without being ready."


    "I don''t like it..."


    "You don''t have to like it. But if you''re going to join, I want to be able to count on you."


    "Seriously, that sucks to death. But it wouldn''t be any fun if you got kicked out of school by a freshman."


    We both know that our intentions are repulsive. But the watches stop where they meet. The link requires ten seconds. If she wanted to stop us, Amasawa-san could do so easily, but there is no sign of movement.


    Amasawa-san is only enjoying observing what we do from above.


    "That''s not a bad strategy. If single people work together to form a group, you can certainly escape expulsion even if the other person is a big monster."


    Turning her back to us, Amasawa-san quietly distanced herself from us.


    I don''t think she felt the danger of being in a two-on-one situation and pulled away. After some distance, she stops and looks back at us.


    "But there''s one miscalction, Horikita-senpai."


    "Miscalction? What exactly are you talking about?"


    "The fact that it''s okay if one of you retires means, on the other hand, that there''s no problem if one of you breaks."


    She smiles a wide smile of pure evil that she has never shown before.


    "So you''re saying I already pissed you off? You''re not good enough."


    Even though she must have felt her opponent''s strength firsthand, Ibuki-san seems to be enjoying herself.


    And at this point, the signal for thepletion of the link rings out.


    "I wonder, which one should I break first!"


    After taking the first step, the expression of Amasawa-san, who ran out at once, was full of passion. There is no stance or anything, just the desire of grabbing as she extends her hand towards us.


    "Kuku! Kukukuku!!!" She was smiling so much that she looked distorted and inhuman.


    Is it me or Ibuki-san? I''m probably more hateful to her, but that doesn''t mean I shouldn''t think that I have a higher chance of being targeted.


    "Let''s go, Ibuki-san! You, to the left!"


    "Don''t order me around!"


    However, the moment I said to move, Ibuki-san starts moving to the left. I also move to the right side at the same time and check the aim of Amasawa-san who ising towards me. She seemed to be running straight towards us with no intention of ying tricks. It was clear she was trying to stop me from making the correct judgment with her unrelenting advance.


    However, even then, I could see it clearly. As both sides took action, the distance was instantly closed and we collided. Because my fists and Ibuki-san''s could not possibly work in tandem, the timing of our attacks would naturally diverge. But even so, it would be impossible to respond to it easily.


    Nheless, Amasawa dodged as easily as if she were training.


    We continued to attack without resting our hands, as we were being hit repeatedly.


    "Yes, let''s stop for a while."


    Amasawa-san interrupts our attack without any hesitation.


    "What''s with this chick...!"


    "Totally..."


    We lined up and stared breathlessly at Amasawa-san in front of us. As an impromptu duo, we''re choppy, but it''s still two against one. If it were a normal situation, we should have been able to overpower her. Instead, it was the other way around.


    It''s more than I imagined... No, it''s beyond my imagination.


    Furthermore, we also had to be wary of our movements. If we did as we pleased here, the risk of expulsion wouldn''t be minimal.


    "Ibuki-san, don''t you dare touch her."


    "Let go of me!" As if she couldn''t stand the restraining condition, Ibuki-san stretched her flexible body to the limit and unleashed a kick. It was the first time I had ever seen a woman in such a position.


    "Ah!"


    "I said stop, didn''t I?"


    At this moment, I felt an inexplicable sense of difort in the midst of a war that was being pushed. A clear difference in power. Does this mean that Amasawa-san is ying?


    She seemed to be fighting with minimal movement since a while ago.


    What if she wasn''t waiting for me to recover when she was fighting me one on one? But it''s not an answer that fits. It should be easy to subdue me with her strength. I can think of one strategy I''d like to try. I need to get out of this once and for all anyway.


    "Ha!" I thrust my left fist into her body, but like Ibuki-san, it was lightly swatted away.


    "Yes, let''s start over."


    Looking down at us and smiling, Amasawa-san distances herself once more.


    "You''re going through the same thing I did."


    "Unlike you, I set myself up for this to happen... to start over."


    "Excuses are dumb."


    That would probably refer to both of us to anyone looking at the current situation.


    "If you think I''m licking my chops, I''m going to remind you..."


    I get up and grab Ibuki-san''s arm to stop her from setting one of us up.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Now that we''re on the same side, you''re going to follow my instructions. Can you do that?"


    "Huh? I can''t do that."


    "There''s no point if you don''t do it. You know full well how strong Amasawa-san is in front of you, I can''t win by myself nor can you."


    "Even if I can''t, I''m not going to follow your orders."


    I think about it. I wondered what the best way to treat Ibuki-san would be. What would Ayanok��ji-kun do if he were here and in the same situation as me? How can two people who don''t really get along work together, even if it''s just for this asion?


    "Ibuki-san."


    "I told you I don''t want to."


    "I''m well aware that you and I are water and oil, and even though we got into a bit of a tussle during the ind exam a year ago that led to our current rtionship, there''s one thing I do approve of about you."


    Yes, I''ll do what I need to do now, without hesitation.


    "Your fighting sense is second to none to mine. No, I''d say it slightly surpasses mines."


    "Ha, what a rush. Are you trying to lift me up with that?"


    "But your fighting style is specialized for one-on-onebat, and I know better than you how to move against a strong opponent in a two-on-one fight. Cooperation may have been the wrong word for you. Lend me that strength of yours."


    Ibuki turned her attention to me for a moment as I said this.


    "You are stronger in terms of physical strength. But that''s all. Other than that, you''re on a whole different level. You can''t study, you can''t organize a ss, you can''t join hands with anyone. I''m sorry, but calling yourself my rival is a bit conceited."


    If I offended her, that was it. But I''m not going to stop mid-sentence.


    "I think it''s time for you toe out of your shell. Ibuki Mio-san."


    "What''s...?"


    "If you continue to push forward in solitude as you are now, you will surely face the danger of being expelled from school somewhere down the line."


    "No, I don''t care if that''s what happens."


    "That would mean aplete and utter defeat for you, but that''s okay, right?"


    "Huh?"


    "Dropping out at the halfway point isn''t even close to being a rival.


    You''ll have to hang on until the very end, and grow into a rival who I''ll be able to fear."


    "Oh, I get it, I get it, shut up. I''ll obey you for this moment. That''s it, right?"


    "Very well."


    "So, what do I do?"


    "Just like before, attack Amasawa at the same time. But don''t worry about hitting her. I want you to stand around so that you will never be caught.


    And I want you to keep attacking endlessly."


    "Hitting is secondary? What''s the point in doing that?"


    "If my readings are right..., I''m sure there''s a winning strategy here.


    When I give the signal, attack with everything you''ve got."


    Ibuki-san moved away from me, though she didn''t seem convinced.


    "Conference meeting is over? Well then, let''s start round two, shall we~?"


    We started running at the same time, splitting left and right as we headed towards Amasawa-san. In order to avoid being caught, it is strictly forbidden to get too close. I timed my fist thrusts from a distance where they might not connect. Of course, if Amasawa-san does not take any action, the attack will hit her. So, as for her, she needs to keep responding to every attack with some degree of nervousness.


    Don''t rush, stay calm, and if you sense danger, quickly get away.


    If I were alone, she wouldn''t be able to escape, but now that she''s dispersing her consciousness in two directions, it''s a fighting style that works.


    There is no time to lose.


    Quickly, quickly, before I tire out...!


    By continuing to attack dangerously, the sharpness of Amasawa-san movements begins to slow down. Although her expression was smiling, she was clearly starting to lose her breath.


    "Now!!!" I swing my right fist with all my might at Amasawa-san so as not to miss this once in a thousand chance.


    If it had been just a moment ago, I would have been able to stop her with one hand with room to spare, but she took a defensive posture. My fist didn''t hit her directly and was blocked, but Ibuki, who was behind me, kicked the ground and shot a clenched fist into Amasawa-san''s face as she turned and tried to respond.


    The first time the attack hit, Amasawa-san''s body shook.


    "Haaaaah!"


    As Amasawa-san drops her hips deeply, Ibuki unleashes a powerful thrust at her abdomen. Exhaling, Amasawa-san copses. I straddle her at that moment, blocking her body from getting up.


    "My... my. It seems that one worked quite well senpai."


    "It seems so... This is it, Amasawa-san... I admire your strength, but you have a fatalck of stamina."


    I was able to exploit her too unexpected weakness and managed to turn the tables on her.


    "Fufu, did I give it away? I''m so frail."


    Despite being defeated, she was in no hurry tough, sticking out her tongue a little. I couldn''t believe my eyes when I saw her skin peeking out from under her gym clothes. Without thinking, I grabbed her gym clothes and forcefully pulled them up to her navel.


    "Ah, senpai. I didn''t know you felt like that~"


    A strong bruise-like mark. In fact, the marks of several blows can be outlined. A wound that looks like a punishment, quite different from the regr fist punch I had given her only one blow.


    It was a wound that she had received before the fight began.


    "I''ve just had a little fight before the seniors, you know."


    Normally, her face would be contorted in pain, and she would have trouble walking. And yet, she was in such a ragged state, but she had the upper hand against the two of us.


    It wasn''t that she didn''t have stamina. She had been fighting on the verge of severe copse from the start. She was fighting in a situation where she needed to recover even more than I did... The truth of the matter almost makes me dizzy.


    A person who can inflict such injuries against Amasawa-san, who is in perfect condition. Even if we were to include boys, the only person that came to mind was H��sen-kun.


    "Do you want to know who did this to me? It might have been H��sen-kun."


    There was no doubt that H��sen-kun''s ability was extraordinary. He could probably get the upper hand against Amasawa-san, who had unrealistic strength. But there are things about her character that can be seen even after just a little rtive contact. I don''t think she will answer honestly. It''s just that she presented me with one answer that made sense to me. If that''s the case, does that mean there is someone else who can overpower Amasawa-san? Even if I apply myself to all the students in the school, I can''t think of anyone thates to mind.


    Maybe Yamada-kun, no, but there''s no advantage for him to do that.


    "I''m sorry, but I don''t believe you. Who is it really?"


    "I''m afraid I can''t answer that senpai~"


    Seeing that I was careless because I was deep in thought, Amasawa-san seized the moment and jumped out of my grasp.


    "Hey, what are you doing! You let her get away"


    "You''re right, I was careless."


    She let Amasawa-san escape from what could have been a one-time opportunity.


    "Well, now we''re back to square one, both of you."


    The other side was in a full-body wound. But the situation was reversed again. I''m not sure if I''ll be able to hold her off again... to be honest.


    But I have to try.


    At least, I thought as much until she went to her backpack and pulled out her tablet.


    "Looks like I''m done. It''s getting a little interesting, but I think my time is up."


    "What do you mean?"


    "It means we''re done here. If you want to go through, be my guest~"


    She said, opening the path that had led her to show strong resistance and refused to let me pass through earlier.


    Is this some kind of trap? While we were unable to grasp the situation, Amasawa-san started walking somewhere.


    "Where are you going?"


    "Where? Hmm... I guess the designated area for now. I''ll have to do the special exam, just in case."


    Well... if she''s called it off, then I best go check on Ayanok��ji-kun''s condition.


    "Ah, that''s right. I don''t think you need to chase after Ayanok��ji-senpai anymore."


    "Why?"


    "Well, it''s highly likely everything is already over. If you think it''s a lie, why don''t you go?"


    "What about Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    At that question, Amasawa-san slightly lowered her eyes.


    "Why don''t you see for yourself? There''s always the chance you might just end up regretting that you didn''t make it in time."


    Amasawa-san seemed to really be nning on turning back and slipped past us.


    "What are you going to do? Are you going to go after Ayanok��ji?


    That''s why you''re fighting Amasawa, isn''t it?"


    "Yes, I''m going after him."


    He''s already in front of me, I can''t turn back without checking now.


    "Then I''ll go with you."


    "Why?"


    "If Ayanok��ji says he''s in trouble, I thought I''d stand by andugh at him."


    "You''re a bottom-feeder, aren''t you?"


    We hurriedly reloaded our backpacks on each other and ran off to I2.

 Chapter 149: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 149: 6.4</h4>


    I made it across the border to I2, but my watch didn''t signal my arrival.


    Normally, I would have suspected a GPS error, but that was unlikely this time. So, I would have to move as close to the center of the area as possible to make up for the error in the watch. Of course, I hadn''t experienced anything like this in the past two weeks, and I guess it was one of the inevitable factors, including the fact that the tip of the I2 ind was near the center. Even if Ichinose hadn''te to me and I stepped in without knowing anything about it, it was designed to be reached.


    I walked slowly along the path that I was not allowed to escape. In less than ten minutes, the deep forest began to release the light, and I could see the blue ocean and blue sky stretching out beyond my vision. Even though I hade this far, my watch did not show any response. Instead, I saw two adults sitting on the small beach in front of me, looking at me.


    One of them was a man I knew well: Tsukishiro, the acting director. He was dressed in a jersey, which made him look somewhat out of ce.


    The other was Shiba-sensei, the homeroom teacher of the first year ss D.


    It''s a strangebination, but that''s what it seems to be.


    "You''ve decided to take a very forceful approach, Acting Director Tsukishiro."


    I call out to him as I walk along the beach.


    "I just can''t seem to get things right. This is the best choice I can make."


    I looked back at the 14 days of this special exam. It became clear that Tsukishiro''s final "trap" was to lure me to I2. But there''s still something I can''t figure out. There are no designated areas or tasks around this northeast area, so it''s unlikely that other students wille here. But at the same time, there must have been a future where I would abandon the designated area and go for the task. Or a future where he was working with someone else, such as Nanase.


    There''s no way that Tsukishiro would have set up this final event just by sheer luck. It means my arrival here was already predetermined.


    After Nanase lost to me in our fight, she wanted to go off on her own so she could hide out around 11th ce and n to get to the top. Then there was also the first-years. The timing of the attack of the first-year students and the nature of their attack, all of which could have been nned by Tsukishiro''s side from the beginning.


    "So, what''s going to happen to me after this?"


    The small ship in the corner of my vision was at anchor, rocked by the waves with its engine running. This means that it is ready to go at any time.


    "If possible, I would like you to follow the instructions honestly ande aboard with us."


    "If it''s in the form of a voluntary deration of retirement, it will be a roundabout solution." Shiba-sensei added.


    "Do you think I''ll choose the option of going straight to the ship?"


    "Certainly. There''s no need for you to walk across the uninhabited ind once again."


    "By the way, I didn''t have any particr connection with Shiba-sensei at school, but he was on the side of Acting Director Tsukishiro, wasn''t he?"


    From the fact that he didn''t have any contact with me, maybe he was Amasawa''s supervisor. Now that the need to do so has disappeared, he doesn''t seem to be trying to hide it anymore. I was in the northeast, where there was nothing to see, which was probably a little suspicious, but I also saw Ichinose and Nagumo. I''m not sure what to make of it.


    No matter which way you look at it, it''s safe to assume that the people monitoring the situation are on Tsukishiro''s side. But they don''t seem to be carrying anything visibly dangerous.


    "It would be easy to subdue you here if we used weapons and such, but unfortunately, you are amodity. It''s my duty to get you back safely, so I''ve decided that what I need is my fists."


    Standing on the sandy beach, Tsukishiro smiled fearlessly and spread his hands lightly. In this situation, to resist at thest minute, it is necessary to fight with Tsukishiro? I''m not sure if I should continue to avoid attacks.


    However, Tsukishiro is most likely several levels higher than Nanase, so it''s unlikely to work.


    "So, I guess I have no choice but to take it in order to avoid expulsion."


    "That''s what it looks like."


    "If possible, can you give me a break with this? I''m not saying that violence is a bad solution, but I''m a student at this school, and based on the normal rules, this is a foul."


    "That may be true. However, Ayanokoji-kun, you are an example of sess and you have achieved extraordinary things even inside the White Room. Even if you were to fight within the limited rules, you would have no enemies. Don''t you think it''s silly topete with others in this school? Or have youe to find pleasure in being the lord of the mountain?"


    "If so, is it an evolution... or a degeneration that would disappoint that man?"


    "No, no, no, not really. The White Room''s long-held desire is to take control of Japan, and by extension, the world. If you, the pinnacle of the White Room, feel that way, then eventually your desire will be shared and motivate other students to take over the world and enjoy the pleasure."


    From a small Japanese high school, the goal quickly spread to the seizure of the world. Even if someone were to hear such a dream-like story, they would probably justugh through their nose.


    The man in front of me, Tsukishiro, is probably skeptical about how realistic it is. He''s just trying to do his duty in an unobtrusive manner, faithful to his orders.


    "Well, if I''m being honest, I didn''t think this school would be much of a challenge."


    "Of course. Because for you, the level of this school is a path that you passed through in your childhood.


    "I''m only talking about the curriculum. I''m finally starting to see the direction of what I should and want to do in this school. I think I''ll be able to enjoy myself until I graduate, and there are plenty of talented people outside the White Room."


    Rather, it''s a treasure trove of talent that the White Room could never produce.


    "I don''t mean to denigrate the students of the Advanced Nurturing High School in any way, but as you said, there are always talented people all over the world. Sometimes they outperform you in sports, sometimes in academics. But it''s not that part that''s important, it''s the people who can excel in all situations and lead others."


    Acting Director Tsukishiro nced lightly at Shiba.


    "Where are Nagumo-kun and Ichinose-san?"


    "Nagumo has stopped moving, and Ichinose has already moved away, so I don''t think there''s anything to worry about."


    Me stopping Nagumo and Ichinose must have been part of his calctions, of course.


    "And as for the unscheduled reaction, it seems that Amasawa is blocking their movements."


    Unscheduled reaction? There were no designated areas or issues in this vicinity. Was someone other than Ichinose and Nagumo approaching me? If an unrted student appeared here, it would be a nuisance for Tsukishiro. It seemed that Amasawa was the one who was stalling that irregr presence.


    "So, she''s done her due diligence, is that it?"


    "It didn''t seem like Amasawa was in step with Acting Director Tsukishiro, though."


    "She is, simply put, a traitor. She was the one who was chosen to bring you back, but it seems that she had no intention of bringing you back from the start."


    Tsukishiro took a step forward, as if to say that the idle talk was over.


    It''s not a good idea to waste time by talking it seems. He closes the distance between us little by little. But we were still at least five or six meters apart from each other. Shiba-sensei slowly walks up behind me to make sure I don''t escape.


    "You wouldn''t call two against one unfair, would you? You are, if anything, the White Room''s finest. Even with this, I''m even a little worried here."


    That being said, Tsukishiro had an overwhelming amount of leeway.


    I can feel in my gut that he was convinced that he could hold his own even one on one, and that''s why he chose to fight with the two of them. No pride whatsoever, just a rock-solid stance. I move my gaze to the ship waiting on the shore. As far as I could see, there was only one person on board, the pilot. This means that even if they rush in, I only need to eliminate a maximum of three enemies.


    "Don''t worry. It''s just me and him that will be fighting you."


    He wasn''t a simple enough opponent for me to simply take his word for it. The way he said it earlier, he was empty-handed, but the possibility that he was carrying a concealed weapon could not be dismissed.


    I am fighting against two adults with unknown abilities, both of whom are agents of the White Room, so I have to be on the lookout for weapons, reinforcements, and other uncertain factors.


    Normally, my brain would be fried from multitasking, but I am not mentally disturbed. Fighting in absurd and disadvantageous situations has been drilled into me repeatedly since I was a child. It is the same as the unconscious process of breathing that is essential for human survival.


    "You don''t have the slightest idea that you''re going to lose, you have a face like that."


    "Do I look like I have that look on my face?"


    There''s no visible opportunity for me to leave anywhere. The only way to open the future is for me to grab it here. With my front and back taken, my opponent is still advancing upon me. Normally, I would want to make the first move, but it''s not a good idea to do it from here. The people in front and behind me were not students, but people from the school. If I were to raise my hand alone, I would be at a disadvantage in situations other than fighting.


    "Even though you know it will be advantageous, you still can''t initiate it yourself? That''s just like you."


    Tsukishiro, who would have detailed knowledge of the education policy regarding the White Room, analyzes.


    "Then.... let''s start from here without hesitation, shall we, Acting Director Tsukishiro and Shiba-sensei?"


    As soon as I call out their names, the two adults start walking towards me at the same time. They calmly closed the distance on me as if they were advancing Sh��gi pieces.


    The distance between me and Tsukishiro, who was walking in front of me, was 7 steps, 6 steps, 5 steps, 4 steps....


    Shiba''s two hands came to grab my face from behind, and I ducked a little to avoid them. The first move was from behind. In the middle of my evading action, Tsukishiro stretches out his arms in front of me and attempts to grabs me as well as Shiba. I avoided him as if I were rolling along the beach, and then I got up and ran at the same time to escape the chase.


    TL Note: Sh��gi is a Japanese version of chess.


    Dust danced in the sea breeze. The two adults didn''t rush after me, but looked at me quietly. Now I understand what their strategy is. They''re trying to figure out my skills from my practical movements, which they can''t get from data. My feet sink into the sand. I wonder if I should have taken off my shoes earlier. Under the hot sun, the two of them start to walk again, closing the distance that had opened up. With my face and body facing them, I step back the same distance. With my back to the ocean, I try to get away from the soft sand and secure a foothold while at the same time avoiding being spun around.


    "It''s a good theory, but I''m not sure it''s the right one, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    They will no longer be able to get behind me, but that will narrow my escape route. If I go lower, the waves will hit my legs, and that''s where Tsukishiro and Shiba wille in. The outstretched arm keeps trying to grab my body. However, it seems that they do not intend to damage me with blows yet.


    "You''re very good at running away."


    Both of them moved faster, and the space for me to avoid them was quickly taken away. After dropping so low that one of my feet stepped on the seawater, I couldn''t take it anymore and ran away from the scene.


    "Oh? Have you already given up on having the ocean protect your back?"


    If the opponent is in a hurry, it''s easy to invite a mistake. While I was thinking about this, Shiba and Tsukishiro kicked the sand and came towards me. Now it''s two against one, and if either of them catches me, it''s game over. All four arms extended one after the other, and the situation would continue to end if I showed the slightest opening. I tried to run and get some distance, but the two of them didn''t move away and started to chase me.


    Running around like this would only continue to drain my energy.


    It was obvious that they were trying to take away my stamina with the zing sun and bad foothold. I canceled my escape move midway, and using the spring in my body to the fullest, I stepped forward with my left foot, stomped on the sand, and flipped over to attack Shiba, who was directly behind me.


    "Mmm!"


    Shiba''s movement stiffened slightly due to my movement, which showed an unexpected trajectory. I feinted with the left fist aiming for the chest on the right, but sensing the danger, Shiba didn''t panic and kept his distance. This is evidence that he is prioritizing evading rather than grabbing.


    "Oh no... that''s a brilliant move against the two of us, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    I tried to counterattack while avoiding the attacks from both sides, but I couldn''t get a clean hit.


    "However, human strength is finite. Isn''t it about time for you to start resting?"


    "You''re a difficult opponent to fight, Acting Director Tsukishiro."


    "It''s my job to take the initiative in doing things that people don''t like."


    There''s nothing clean or dirty about it, it''s just a fighting style aimed at catching me and bringing me back. But I wasn''t just throwing up my stamina for nothing either. What I''ve gained so far. It seems that there is a slight difference inbat ability between Tsukishiro and Shiba. If I had to rank them... 4 for Tsukishiro and 6 for Shiba. My hunch is that Tsukishiro is a cut below Shiba...


    The bnce of caution should be changed slightly from 5:5. I thought that the inferior Shiba had taken over the back, but it was the other way around. It''s a way to outnk me. This makes me want to go for the inferior Tsukishiro, but even so, his ability is off by an order of magnitude. It''s not something that can be easily finished off. In fact, if Tsukishiro realizes that I''ve done the analysis, he may be more conscious of his defense. I''m not going to let him know that I''ve noticed the difference in our abilities and finish him off with a single blow. In simple terms, the idea is to take one shot at each other with the intention of switching sides. The other side hasn''t thought of hitting me yet, so now is my chance. If I''m lucky, I''ll be able to damage him unterally.


    Then, after neutralizing Shiba, I''ll quickly deal with Tsukishiro on a one-on-one basis. A second or so of thinking time. Both of them attacked me with the same speed. But the fist that seemed to be grabbing me was clenched tightly and transformed into a blow.


    I''ve been read... If that''s the case, then it''s time to attack in a way that outperforms...


    I tried to turn my consciousness to trade damage with Shiba behind me, but something unexpected happened. I felt a cold mark on my neck and was forced to interrupt the counterattack. For the umpteenth time, I took evasive action to get away from Tsukishiro. The sound of Shiba''s fist, swung slightlyter, reaches my ears dryly. If I hadn''t agreed to the damage exchange, I might have been stopped in my tracks. Shiba''s strike definitely had the same power as mine if not more...


    I looked at Tsukishiro''s movements, which should be inferior to Shiba''s, but they were both faster than I had expected.


    "You''re still a tricky person, Acting Director Tsukishiro." I evaded him just in time, and for the first time in years, I broke out in a cold sweat in a fight. If I hadn''t trusted my instincts, what would have happened? Not only would I have been hit by Shiba''s blow, but I might have been left unprotected by Tsukishiro''s attack. The reading of Tsukishiro 4, Shiba 6 was itself a false information created by the other side. They intentionally saved their abilities and attacked beyond their vignce.


    "I was going to finish you off now, but your reaction time is not that of a normal person."


    It''s a good thing that I didn''t discard the possibility that I might have been wrong. This was the only thing that helped me raise my guard at thest minute. They are both cautious and don''t take risks as much as possible, but they will not hesitate to take a risk if they think it will benefit them.


    The odds are slightly in their favor.


    Even if I took down one of them, the other would be waiting for a counter-strike. It''s hard to believe they got together overnight.


    "Is your analysis going well? Ayanok��ji-kun."


    It had only been a little over two minutes since the fight began.


    They''ve already tried various patterns, but none of them have been decisive.


    "It would have been easy to do if it was purely a brawl like a child''s, a fight where only strength and power are shed. But we adults don''t hesitate to take the best measures to avoid losing. Even if it''s muddy and not the shiest thing to do."


    Tsukishiro has read 99% of my thoughts as well. The way he fights is precise without hesitation, yet he doesn''t let you read his thoughts. I''m not sure what to say, but I''m not going to show him the truth. Anyway, in the current situation, Ick a decisive factor. If I''m going to continue to lose ground, I''m going to have to take a reasonable amount of risk.


    "Acting Director Tsukishiro." The one who broke the stalemate was Shiba, who had so far responded with few words.


    Immediately after his name was called, Tsukishiro seemed to have noticed the change. It was something that no one here had expected.


    "I wonder what the acting director and homeroom teacher are doing with a student in such a deserted ce. Would you be willing to tell me?"


    It was an uninvited visitor.


    "I believe you are..."


    "She''s F��ka Kiry��in from ss 3B."


    Why is she here? I''m sure I''m the only one who has this I2 as a designated area.


    "It doesn''t look like you''re a lost kitten. What can I do for you, child?"


    Once he broke his battle stance, Tsukishiro asked in his usual tone.


    "Actually, I''ve been observing the situation behind the big tree for a little while now, but I just couldn''t watch the two-on-one situation. That''s how I ended up popping out."


    Of course, there was no way that Tsukishiro and Shiba hadn''t seen the GPS reaction.


    "Could this be the reason? It looks like an ident caused the watch to malfunction. Oops." Kiry��inughed as she dangled her watch that was shattered on the surface.


    "Since there are people from the school in front of me, let me ask you this: there is nothing wrong with it, is there? Even if the watch is broken, it will only turn off the scoring function. I''m free to go wherever I want."


    "Of course, there is no problem. But still, this is a test where there is no end to the number of watch malfunctions."


    Tsukishiro didn''t seem to panic at the irregrity of this situation.


    Normally, the situation should be to withdraw now that another student saw this incident. However, understanding that this is hisst chance, Tsukishiro is still not going to back down.


    It''s probably just a matter of Kiry��in being written into the list of people to be eliminated.


    "Ayanok��ji, was my action unnecessary?"


    There was no point in trying to mend things if she had seen the warped and snarled battle between teacher and student. Instead, she should make the


    most of this ident that happened.


    "That depends on what happens after this. Can I assume that you''ll be willing to lend me hand?"


    Tsukishiro''s strength is quite impressive. With his fighting style based on experience and skill, I can say that he is one of the strongest opponents I have ever fought.


    "Of course. I don''t know what''s going on, but as a senior, it''s natural for me to protect my junior, isn''t it?" Kiry��inughs as she stands next to me saying that.


    "But why did youe here?"


    "Yesterday, you were running away from the first years. I was curious and wanted to talk to you, but I thought it would be better if I followed you around for a while."


    So, she went through the trouble of breaking her watch and approaching me so that I wouldn''t notice her.


    "I''m d my curiosity got the better of me, because I was invited to a very interesting turn of events."


    Well, it''s just that it''s not a development that would normally be possible.


    "Shiba-sensei, I''ll leave it to you to deal with her."


    "From what I can see, it seems that the Acting Director and Shiba-sensei are at a ridiculous level ofpetence. I don''t know how much help I can be, but I probably won''t be able tost that long."


    With that, Kiry��in stood right beside me and held up her fist happily.


    "If you can draw him away for a second or two, I''ll be wee."


    "No need to worry Ayanok��ji. I''ll hold out for a minute or two at least.


    But Ayanok��ji, can you please try and match the asion?"


    "Match the asion?"


    "That sloppy expression on your face. Hold up your fists and try to create an air of urgency."


    I hadn''t expected to be told such a thing here. But under the strange pressure of Kiry��in, I had no choice but to strike a pose that looked like it.


    It''s like something you''d see in a fight scene in a drama.


    "How about it...?"


    "Huh, kind of clumsy. Oh well, let''s just say you met the minimum standard." With a grin, Kiry��in also struck a fighting pose once again.


    "Have you ever punched anyone before?"


    "I''m ady, you know. How could I have?"


    "Are you serious?"


    "Don''t worry. I''ve always wanted to hit someone."


    We both move away from each other, moving into a clear one-on-one.


    "Let''s settle this, Acting Director Tsukishiro."


    "If it''s just me, I can win... you''ve decided that, haven''t you?"


    Tsukishiro readies himself with his usual smile that shows no margin or urgency.


    "Then let''s see what you''re really capable of in a one-on-one match."


    I greet the opponent standing in front of me as an equal foe. If I don''t, I''ll be the one who gets caught t-footed. But it will still be decided in less than a minute. I''m going to get him before Kiry��in is held back by Shiba.


    Tsukishiro came charging towards me. I dodged Tsukishiro''s attack without warning and hit Tsukishiro''s cheek with my left fist.


    "Ah!"


    I jabbed lightly and with speed, hitting hard. The power of each shot is slight because I concentrated only on hitting. As I repeatedly hit him, Tsukishiro''s smile faded.


    My target was the bridge of his nose. Even light damage can trigger a certain effect in the human body.


    That is "tears".


    Every human being induces tears when they are knocked on the nose.


    The tears overflow before the pain and take away visibility, which is crucial.


    It doesn''t matter if you are an adult or a child, young or old. It''s just how the human body works.


    I let Tsukishiro''s eyes water up, and then I swing my fist out in an uppercut towards his chin. Looking up at the sky, Tsukishiro must have bitten the inside of his mouth, and blood gushed out, though only slightly.


    "When was thest time you felt something like that?"


    Wiping the blood dripping from his lips, Tsukishiro smiles wryly.


    "I''ll admit it, considering that you''re a high school sophomore kid in front of me. You are an undeniable masterpiece."


    Of all the opponents I had fought with, Tsukishiro was without a doubt one of the best. It was enough of an acknowledgement that Tsukishiro had judged that he had a chance with me in a one-on-one fight.


    "I''m not a fan of rough stuff to begin with, but I''m having fun."


    Laughing amusedly, Tsukishiro set up again, but he didn''te at me right away. It could be seen as a way of buying time until Shiba defeats Kiry��in. I calmly try to follow the path of victory, which is to not rush in prematurely.


    Tsukishiro looks at the sand at his feet for just a moment. I didn''t care, I stepped forward and put all my strength into my right fist.


    "You''re absolutely brilliant...!"


    I twisted myself andunched a body blow into Tsukishiro. It almost hit with full force. But even so, Tsukishiro''s smile did not disappear. He grabbed a handful of sand from the ground with his left hand and threw it up at me.


    Then, with his free hand, he plunges deeper into the hole in the sand and pulls something up. Even if his right fist, raised like an uppercut, hit me directly, it wouldn''t do much damage if I was in a slumped position. I didn''t receive counter from his fist, instead I pulled Tsukishiro''s arm away and I immediately grabbed his other arm so he wouldn''t move.


    "Ah...!"


    For the first time, Tsukishiro''s smile disappears for a moment. My gaze ends at Tsukishiro''s right hand, which is clenching a stun gun.


    "How, how did you know?"


    "I didn''t know until just before. But in a situation where you couldn''t show even a moment''s gap, you dropped your gaze once as if you were checking your feet for some reason. I felt ufortable with that. If your goal is to take away my vision with sand, you don''t need to bother checking your feet."


    Even as his left hand grabbed a handful of sand andunched it to me, my awareness was still high.


    "And I also felt that it was unnatural that you were ready to deliberately take my blow."


    As long as our strengths were matched, to gain an advantage one of us would have to change the flow of the fight.


    "I didn''t want to take such a risk if I could help it... It was meant to be an insurance policy, but your ability to hold me off for this long was enough to make me impatient." He rxed his right hand, and the stun gun fell from his head onto the beach, impaling him.


    "Well, what do we do now? I''ve taken some deep damage..."


    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Shiba restraining Kiry��in from behind and tightening her up.


    At this point, Acting Director Tsukishiro raises his hand and sends a signal somewhere. Then the pilot of a small ship at anchor began to hold something in his hand and attempts tond. It was obvious that this was ast trump card in case they were defeated. But it was the same for us as well.


    "I''m sorry, but your time is up, Acting Director Tsukishiro."


    Suddenly, the small ship stopped itsnding preparations and blew its engines, leaving the Acting Director and the others behind as it rapidly departed. The reason for this was probably because they saw another small shiping from the sea.


    "I''m surprised. How did you call the ship? I''ve beenying the groundwork, of course. To stop you in case you resorted to getting help from the school''s side. Besides, I knew you''d avoid letting the school know about it, too."


    "It''s simple. If you look closely at the small ship, you can see it, can''t you?"


    If you look closely at the end of the small boat, you can see Mashima-sensei and Chabashira-sensei. That gives Tsukishiro a hint.


    "What if someone reports that a student from second-year ss A and second-year ss D has copsed on I2 and is in danger? It''s not something that can be covered up very easily. We''ve already confirmed in an incident a while ago that homeroom teachers are included in the selection of people to rush to the rescue. I knew that Mashima-sensei and Chabashira-sensei would rush to the scene."


    This was simply a rule that the school had decided that the best homeroom teachers were those who could be identified at a nce. When I heard that it was second year sses A and D, I had no choice but to bring my homeroom teacher along even if I didn''t want to. If it was an emergency, there was no time to check the GPS one by one. If the information includes that the watch seems to be broken, they will definitely go to check thest known location even if there is no GPS response there.


    "If you had had all the students'' GPS checked, would the rescue havee and changed the situation?"


    "No. Right now, one student from ss A and one student from ss D in second-year are missing from the map, and the GPS response is missing from their watches. I think it was more of an increase in credibility."


    "You had nned from the beginning to buy time and bring this development about. That''s why you focused on escaping at first, knowing the disadvantage."


    "You made the mistake of threatening Ichinose halfway through. If you''re going to do this, you need to handle it thoroughly."


    As a result, Tsukishiro had given me a chance to ask for help from Sakayanagi before I came here.


    "Well, I''m still Acting Director for the time being you know? I can''t do anything rash like that." True or false, Tsukishiroughed when he said that.


    As if following the resigned Tsukishiro, Shiba immediately took his hand away from Kiry��in.


    "Fuu... Thanks for the help, Ayanok��ji. You fought as if you were fearless, interestingly enough." Then she got down on one knee to rest her body.


    I watched the fight between her and Shiba, albeit from the side, and she held her ground well, even when defending herself. It''s great that she recognized that he was clearly superior and tried to just hold him back.


    If Shiba had joined in the battle against the well-prepared Tsukishiro, I don''t know how things would have turned out for me. Eventually, the shipnded, and the teachers came down.


    The walkie-talkie I borrowed from Sakayanagi came in handy until the very end.


    "Can you ept that I won?"


    "I suppose it seems that way."


    Currently, Tsukishiro shouldn''t have enough cards to turn the game over here. Even the fact that he changed the designated area only for me, if some pursued it, multiple things might start to unravel.


    "Your score is quite a fine line, but I think it''s just barely okay. As for me, now that it''s out in the open, I can''t avoid protesting if you''re in the bottom five groups."


    "Don''t worry. I''m sure I can cross the safety line in my own way."


    "That was an unnecessary concern. Then, I''ll leave it at that for the time being."


    "For the time being, huh? I don''t want you to do any more of your brute force tactics. I think it''s against the philosophy of this school. If the rules allow us to test our strength through strategic attacks, then we should wee it in such a way."


    Without erasing his smile, Tsukishiro looks at Mashima-sensei and Chabashira-sesei who are disembarking.


    "Let me ask you onest thing, Acting Director Tsukishiro. Were you seriously trying to get me expelled? I''m sure there were strong restrictions, but if I were in your position, I would have prepared a more reliable method and carried it out."


    I don''t think the man in front of me is foolish enough to not think of that.


    "You''re buying too much into this. I followed my superiors''


    instructions and tried my best to get you expelled. But as it turns out, that didn''t happen, and I had to fall before you like this."


    One thing I''ve learned is that this Tsukishiro guy has yet to show his true colors. I don''t know if there was any lie or deceit in what he just said, but I should assume that he had other intentions.


    "Can I ask you to convey something to Amasawa-san for me?"


    "Let''s hear it."


    "Ichika Amasawa, now that you have disregarded direct orders from your superiors, you are branded as disqualified from the White Room. There will be no ce for you to return to. Whether you stay or leave this school, you are to do as you please."


    Truth? Falsehood? I can''t see it in his expression. Even though he admitted defeat, it didn''t feel as if the ground was wavering at all. If Amasawa really did abandon the White Room, I don''t think that''s the end of the story.


    What I think, is that more troubles lie ahead for me.


    "Please, let me see you fight to the end." Slowly standing up, Shiro Tsukishiro raised his hands as if he had given up and approached Mashima-sensei and the others.


    "Nothing much happened here. Me and Ayanok��ji-kun were merely chatting."


    "Do you think that will be enough to cover for what you''ve done?"


    "Whatever assumption you may have, it''s been decided. There''s nothing you teachers can do about it. In fact, you should be grateful that I don''t resist."


    I looked at Mashima-sensei and responded with a nod of approval.


    "Then let''s leave, shall we? The students haven''t finished their special exams yet."


    After confirming that the adults were heading back to the ship, I looked at Kiry��in. She was sitting on the beach, on one knee, looking at the ocean, probably exhausted from dealing with Shiba.


    "That was brilliant, Ayanok��ji."


    "No, Kiry��in-senpai was also very impressive against Shiba-sensei."


    "I can''t even take that as ttery after seeing you fight. Oh, don''t worry, I''m not going to tell anyone about you. But I''d like to hear what you have to say."


    It was unexpected that I had been seen, but thankfully it was Kiry��in.


    "I have a bit of aplicated family situation. That''s all."


    "Complicated family situation, huh? That doesn''t sound like an easy thing to go into." Standing up and lightly brushing the sand from her butt, Kiry��in starts walking towards the forest.


    When I left I2 with Kiry��in and came back to I3, Nagumo was no longer there.


    As I walked down the ind, I ran into some unexpected students. As soon as they saw me, they looked at each other and were surprised.


    "That''s an unusualbination, Horikita. Walking around with Ibuki.


    What''s next, is it going to snow today?"


    "Are you... okay?"


    "What do you mean okay?"


    "Well you see... I was just wondering if you were having a little trouble with someone."


    This time, Kiry��in and I looked at each other and denied it almost simultaneously.


    "No? There''s no one behind us."


    "Then what have you been doing here?"


    "It''s been a very tiring two weeks. I was resting on a secluded beach, watching the ocean."


    "You''ve got a lot of time on your hands. Since it''s you, I''m sure you''ve scored at least some points."


    Horikita looks over at Kiry��in questioningly.


    "I found a student who was skipping and I brought him back. I told him to be serious until the end." Saying that, Kiry��in lightly pats me on the back and walks off.


    "Then I''ll meet you on the ship after the exam," Horikita stands next to me and confirms again in a whisper. "Are you sure you were okay...?


    "What?"


    "I just... kind of heard something otherwise. And the little paper."


    "Paper?"


    "No, it''s nothing, don''t worry about it. I don''t know what it is yet, so I''m going to do some research on my own and then I''ll tell you."


    I''m curious because I don''t know what she''s talking about, but I don''t want to prolong the conversation about I2. I can''t tell her about what happened with Tsukishiro.


    "Well... why are you and Ibuki here? There aren''t any assignments in in the vicinity, are there?"


    Ibuki was about to say something, but Horikita stopped her.


    "Ibuki had challenged me to a match, and we were checking each other''s scores because of that. Your GPS was in a strange ce, so I just thought I''d check on you."


    "I''m going to call it a draw."


    "How can that be, I''m the clear winner, aren''t I?"


    "You were too reckless, and you could have been expelled. I win"


    "Whatever the risks were, if I''m ahead by even one point, I win."


    I''m not sure, but through this exam Horikita and Ibuki became friends.


    And not long after, the uninhabited ind exam draws to a close.

 Chapter 150: Epilogue : The Results

    <h4>Chapter 150: Epilogue : The Results</h4>


    The long, long two-week deserted ind test was over. On thest day, some of the students in the groups who tried to force themselves were injured, but eventually the exam was closed. At the starting point of the test, teachers weed the students as if to say thank you for their hard work.


    A little after six in the evening, when the sky was beginning to turn red, we received a call that all the participating students had returned and were ready to be brought back on board. As we had been informed beforehand that the results would be announced on the ship, but perhaps because of the possibility of many students dropping out, it was decided that the lower groups would be notified in advance. The reality was that we would find out not long after we returned to the ship, probably before we went to bed. It doesn''t seem like it will turn out to be a public execution in front of the whole school.


    The bottom five groups will be called in beforehand, and the first thing they will be asked to do is to see if can take remedial action. Students who can be prevented from being expelled will be saved by paying the price here.


    Students who do not have enough private points, or who have them but do not use them for some reason, will be expelled at this point and will have to pack their bags and board the small boat.


    After taking my first shower in a few days, I decided to take a walk around the ship. Normally, I would have used my cell phone tomunicate with my friends and loved ones, but since the school was still holding onto my phone, I wasn''t allowed to do that.


    I passed a few ss D students and exchanged a few words of appreciation with them, but I made my way to the deck. There, I saw an interestingbination of two people.


    They were facing each other, talking. I didn''t do anything to hide, so one of them noticed me right away.


    His face was covered with scars, indicating that he had had a fierce battle with H��sen during the exam.


    "I''m sorry to interrupt, but don''t forget your promise to me, okay? That and the money."


    Bringing up the word "promise," Ry��en only gave me a passing nce before heading back inside the ship.


    "Of course, Ry��en-kun. Whenever the timees, you cane and tell me." Sakayanagi smiled happily at Ry��en''s back.


    "Promise?"


    "Yes, since the strength of the first-years was unknown. I prepared Ry��en-kun as a skilled mercenary soldier, but he''s not the kind of person who would cooperate for free. I told him that if he would listen to my request, I would grant him a wish."


    I see. So that''s why Ry��n appeared to fight H��sen.


    "By the way, do you know the result of the quarrel?"


    "I can''t say I do. I know that both Ry��en-kun and H��sen-kun returned to the starting point covered in wounds and were sentenced to retire after receiving medical treatment."


    So the fight ended in a painful split, with both sides retiring, though the winner of the fight was unknown. But it must not have been easy to convince Ry��en who was only focused on winning the deserted ind test.


    "Yes. It''s a promise that I don''t even know when it wille true, and besides... that wish is like strangling his own neck in the near future." She smiled at me, and her eyes were as innocent as a child''s.


    I could tell the promise wasn''t something as nice as a sweet date.


    "I''m d you''re okay. Did you have any problems with the timing of the GPS disappearance you instructed me to do?"


    "It was perfect timing. I''ll be sure to pay you back."


    "I have only one hope for the future. It''s to have a serious match with Ayanok��ji-kun without anyone getting in the way."


    "That''s a rather difficult proposal."


    "I know. Right now, Ayanok��ji-kun wants to lead a peaceful life as much as possible. I''m well aware that I can''t do anything that would inadvertently make you stand out. There''s no need to be hasty. We still have almost a year and a half of school life left."


    Sakayanagi said that if there was an opportunity topete somewhere before graduation, that would be fine.


    "It''s almost six o''clock, time to announce the results, isn''t it?"


    "Yes, it is."


    Which groups had won and which had failed? I think I''ll go check that out.


    At the 7 o''clock dinner time, the members of ss D naturally started to gather together and started eating at the same ce. Yesterday and today, the list of subordinate groups was unavable for viewing, so the only way to find out which group had performed poorly was to ask them directly.


    "First of all... I think it''s a great thing that none of us, the second year ss D students, were able to finish the special exam without missing any group. The fact that all ss D students are here means we all avoided expulsion. I''m really happy about that." Looking around at his ssmates, Yosuke just said that with all his heart.


    I was a little concerned because I hadn''t seen Yosuke once on the deserted ind, but he seemed to be more preupied with his friends than with his own fatigue. If they were all here, it meant that the group with Akito was also safe.


    I decided to take a quick look at the rest of the second-year sses.


    There didn''t seem to be any students missing. The students were eating their first hearty meal in two weeks, but they couldn''t stop enjoying themselves.


    As the teachers begin to gather, the 8:00 p.m. signal is given and the microphones are turned on.


    "Please stop eating and talking for a moment."


    Such an announcement is prompted by Sasaki, the homeroom teacher of third-year ss A.


    "First of all, I would like to thank you for your hard work on the special deserted ind exam. We, the teachers and staff, are amazed that you made it through the two weeks without missing any group, even though a total of thirteen students retired."


    He began with a word of appreciation for thebor.


    "As some sses may have already noticed that some students are missing, we have penalized and withdrawn the bottom five groups as we had exined to them beforehand. If there is more than one person in a group, one name will be read out as the representative: the five groups will be: third-year ss D, Mutou; third-year ss D, Kawakami, third-year ss C, Katsumata; third-year ss C, Shinonome; third-year ss B, Mikitani, for a total of fifteen students."


    The first and second year students collectively breathed a sigh of relief at Sasaki-sensei''s exnation.


    I had confirmed that there were indeed those names in the lower ranks at the end of the 12th day, but it was so unexpected that the group of all the dropouts was from the third-year. I had thought that Nagumo would be the one to bail them out and pick them up. I had also expected that some freshmen and sophomores would also fall through the cracks. But as it turned out, five groups of three third-year students were gone.


    "Of these, there are no students who could have used remedial measures, so a total of 15 students have been confirmed to leave the school without any change."


    Given this result, had it been unofficially decided that the five groups of third-year students would be expelled? I thought so and looked at the faces of the third-year students, but apparently not. There was no room for doubt on the faces of many of the students, and they looked upset, as if they couldn''t believe it. They looked as if they were terrified of the oue, as if they were being turned into an example.


    I looked for Nagumo, but the profile I saw for a moment did not look any different from usual. Perhaps, hisst-minute altercation with me might have affected the oue.


    The giant screen was turned on and a white image was projected, then another person came out.


    "Now we are going to announce the top three groups in the results of the special desert ind exam."


    It was Acting Director Tsukishiro. He doesn''t give the slightest hint about the fight with me, and proceeds with the same calmness as when he announced the start.


    "Third ce, second-year, ss A, Sakayanagi Arisu Group, 261


    points."


    It seems that they took full advantage of the only group of seven sophomores allowed to participate, and slowly built up a solid score to slip into third ce. On thest day, Ichinose left the team halfway through the day, but I guess that didn''t have much of an impact. In terms of scoring, the Ry��en and Katsuragi group also fought hard, but the retirement of Ry��en on the 13th day must have had an impact. With Katsuragi alone, there was a loss of order of arrival rewards and fewer challenges to participate in. It must have been a tough two days for him as he had to y it safe to avoid the risk of retiring.


    The doubling of the score on thest day must have been a headwind.


    The students who were sent to stop the first-year students were all from outside Sakayanagi''s group. The tablets she used were from another group, so she didn''t take any big risks. She responded to the danger by sending out Ry��en. Sakayanagi should have been able to foresee that it would have been dangerous for him to have a fight with H��sen. Did Ry��en go because his junior school connection with H��sen or was it because of the "promise?" If it was thetter, then it would be more attractive than the increased rewards from the third ce and the ordeal card. However, I was surprised to see that the Kiriyama group stalled at the end of the game.


    And the second ce.


    It''s no exaggeration to say that this is where it alles down to.


    At the end of the 12th, it was clear that Nagumo and K��enji were the two leaders. Even if they lost some points, as far as the third-ce score was concerned, no disturbance would ur. It would be Nagumo who would bring the three years together, or K��enji who continued to show breakneck momentum on his own.


    "Second ce, third-year, ss A, Nagumo Miyabi group, 325


    points."


    When Acting Director Tsukishiro read that out, there was not a cheer but a scream. Without a pause, the announcement of the first ce was made.


    "First ce, second-year, ss D, K��enji Rokusuke, 327 points."


    The moment his name was called, K��enji was instantly the center of attention and gaze of all the students. The result was a mere two-goal difference, something that could have been overturned by a single trivial incident. Still, K��enji was able to achieve first ce under the most difficult of conditions. He received the 300 ss points that would have been distributed for first ce, one million private points for each individual, and one protection point.


    "You''ve really done it, K��enji-kun."


    K��enji turned his gaze once to Horikita and asked, "You understand, don''t you?"


    Horikita would have no choice but to answer with a nod of her head. As she had promised, K��enji was now exempt from all charges until graduation.


    From now on, he will be able to live his school life as he pleases.


    "I''m not at all honestly pleased, or maybe I''m just dumbfounded..."


    "You can be happy now, can''t you? Getting 300 ss points alone is extremely significant for moving up to ss A. It''s the second time you''ve confirmed your escape from ss D."


    Besides, if it''s K��enji who originally did whatever he wanted, there wasn''t much to control in the first ce.


    "Yeah, you''re right. This means the scores will be quite close, from ss B to ss D, trivial matters might just make sses switch."


    "As long as we don''t drop too low this month due to poor behavior in our daily lives we should be fine."


    Because ss points are subtly deducted for daily conduct and problematic behavior.


    "Don''t say silly things."


    But once again, I think about the huge significance of this two point difference. It reminds me of Nagumo, who took the trouble to visit me today.


    I remember the voice of his friend that I heard from the walkie-talkie at that time. If Nagumo had answered that voice at that time, the results of the first and second ce would have been reversed. And I wonder if there would have been a difference in the group that was expelled.


    It''s not something that can be answered by thinking about it here. For now, this long special exam hase to a sessful end. Miraculously, none of the second-year students were absent, and we were able to get through the summer.


    I also found out that Amasawa is a White Room student. I don''t know why, but at least now she''s siding with me instead of the Tsukishiro. Whether this is a coordinated strategy or Amasawa acting alone after betraying the White Room is not clear at this point, but the information I have gained is not insignificant.


    Still, there are some mysteries left to be solved. Perhaps this summer vacation will not end smoothly.


    Trantor Note


    Hey, everyone it''s Prince. So that''s the end of the three novel long ind exam arc. The novel was alright, and I thought I''d put this trantion out after neglecting it for months.


    My favourite scene was the H��sen vs Ry��en scene, I was waiting for H��sen to throw down with Ry��en from y2v1. I can''t wait to see what he does in the uing novels.


    Props to my editor Cast for putting in great effort with editing and proofreading, he helped me a lot. Thanks man.


    As always, a shout out to Kinusaga (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    See you in the next novel!


    Bookmark/Favourite our website to keep updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions!


    Socials:


    Prince - @ryn.yg �C Instagram @PrinceFrm6ix - Twitter Cast �C Cast#5942 �C Discord Tag


    Discord - Horikita Fan Club


    Trantion : RoyalMTLs

 Chapter 151: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori SS – Beneath A Scarlet Sky

    <h4>Chapter 151: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori SS �C Beneath A Scarlet?Sky</h4>


    it went much better than I expected, and the points we got increased even further afterwards.


    ?You look in good health as always, Ayanokouji-kun.?


    He wasn''t a person who would strain himself, but this is an exam where nothing is certain.


    ?Yeah, for now at least.?


    ?I don''t think I need to worry about you, but please be careful. Just one injury can get you expelled after all.?


    ?I know.?


    Going in solo means you can''t guard yourself from the unexpected.


    Even if I wanted to help him, my group is already at its maximum capacity.


    ?There''s just 3 days left, right??


    I just hope he will be okay until then.


    ?Yeah.?


    I looked at his face as it was bathed in the light of the sunset and started thinking.


    Him retiring would be better for my own ss.


    I know it''s that simple, but I can''t continue these thoughts.


    No, I believe I just want to avoid thinking about it.


    To me, Ayanokouji-kun is a good reading partner. A good friend.


    And... how do I say this?


    He has a mysterious charm. He is someone I can''t take my eyes off from.


    He makes me want to spend more time with him. As much as possible.


    If only we didn''t have to fight, if only we were in the same ss,


    then this school life would be painted in even more lovely colours.


    If only these gentle moments could havested forever����


    Trantion : cinnamontrantions

 Chapter 152: Short Story 2 : Kiryuuin Fuuka SS – Poker Face

    <h4>Chapter 152: Short Story 2 : Kiryuuin Fuuka SS �C Poker?Face</h4>


    Thanks Lats.


    After arriving at my designated area, I get 1 point from the Arrival Bonus.


    Without realising it, my name had appeared on the top 10 due to the points I slowly managed to collect.


    ?To think Kuronaga''s group has kept the their 10th ce all this time. He''s way too devoted to Nagumo.?


    Seeing the points of Nagumo''s group which alwayspeted for the top spot, makes me disconcerted.


    ?What a boring man he is, that Nagumo.?


    As someone who likes being alone, I can nevere to like his way of fighting although I can acknowledge he has some slivers of strength.


    It may seem like he''s doing a full confrontation, but behind that facade you can see his desire to toy with his opponents.


    It seems I can''t be interested in a finished product after all.


    In that sense, the person worth paying attention to is Kouenji Rokusuke perhaps.


    ?It would be a lie to say I wasn''t interested in him but����?


    As I was gazing at the scenery of this uninhabited ind, I happened to see a certain student.


    Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. His abilities are unknown, but it''s true he looked like an interesting one.


    ?You''re prettyte Ayanokouji.?


    I already knew he had ces in the same group as I based on the GPS search function.


    ?That seems to be the case.?


    Despite our sudden meeting, he wasn''t surprised in the least.


    Maybe he did a search previously and was made aware we shared the same table already?


    ?I believe I had another strong rivalpeting for the Arrival Bonus. So that was you??


    I tried to pry a bit.


    ?I wonder about that. Even groups from another table may end up at the same ce after all. More importantly, didn''t you say you weren''t interested in the top 10??


    He avoided my light prod and moved the conversation topic towards me.


    ?This uninhabited ind exam has been surprisingly fun so far so I have to say my tension has been running high despite my age.?


    Let''s not press him too far now.


    Chasing them too far doesn''t always be more fun.


    ?I n on continuing at this pace.?


    ?You won''t aim for the top spot??


    ?Everyone else is fighting for the podium so I can''t just be taking it easy if I join them as well, you know. But if Nagumo and Kouenji takes each other out, then I may reconsider.?


    ?I see, Taking each other out. Doesn''t seem like that will happen as of now.?


    How much does he know, I wonder?


    How admirable, being able to make a poker face up until now must be a talent in itself that is.


    ?You think Nagumo will leave Kouenji alone at this rate??


    I prodded hoping his poker face would crumble for just a bit.


    ?In terms of resisting with force, I can''t say it''s certain it will result in Nagumo''s victory. He has probably only observed until now, but it won''t be long before he will make his move. What I want to say is, it''s highly possible we may see Nagumo vs Kouenji before soon. Depending on how it goes, we may witness a situation where one or both of them will struggle with points.?


    I neatly exined and he nodded as he understood it all.


    ?Pulling the rug out from under someone is also important after all.?


    I can generally see whether someone is capable or not by speaking to someone once or twice.


    ?And you won''t aim for the top as well??


    I''ll just ask this once before we leave since I wanted to look at his reactions.


    ?Unfortunately for me I can''t imagine myself in the top 10 at all.?


    I can generally see whether someone is capable or not by speaking to someone once or twice.


    ?And you won''t aim for the top as well??


    I''ll just ask this once before we leave since I wanted to look at his reactions.


    ?Unfortunately for me I can''t imagine myself in the top 10 at all.?


    ?I see, I thought you''d have about the same points as me at least.?


    He won''t show me anything here I concluded.


    I''ll leave my rating of him forter.


    The time until my graduation may have be something I''m looking forward to due to him and Kouenji.


    Trantion : cinnamontrantions

 Chapter 153: Short Story 3 : Ichinose Honami SS – Something I Have to Tell You

    <h4>Chapter 153: Short Story 3 : Ichinose Honami SS �C Something I Have to Tell You</h4>


    Thanks ���.


    I should have known thest day of this special exam would be important.


    As soon as it morning came I left my group and began running inside the forest.


    I wonder how long I have been running?


    I couldn''t endure it anymore and ended up using the GPS search this morning.


    If Ayanokouji-kun is somewhere near I2 today...


    Please let him be somewhere in the south, I wished and looked at the results.


    But he was in the northern part of the ind.


    My intuition told me he was heading for I2 today, on thest day.


    The conversation I overheard before still lingered in my ears and I couldn''t stop myself anymore.


    ?Haa, haa....! Haa, Haa....!?


    My breath had be ragged and I soon fell down on my knees.


    I''ve been running single-mindedly and desperately so far and I''m now at my limit...


    No, I''m already way past that stage I believe.


    I want to meet him. I have to meet him and tell him.


    It was the only thing supporting my two legs as I ran.


    I just want to lie down on the ground and fall asleep.


    I can''t keep these sensation from slowly taking over me.


    I can feel my exhaustion slowly disappear as I closed my eyes and throw myself into the darkness.


    ?No.... I can''t....?


    My fingertips moved and I grasp the earth.


    I get sand stuck under my fingernails and I awaken from the diforting sensation.


    I can''t stand anymore.


    But I can''t allow myself to fall asleep here.


    I''d left my precious ssmates behind.


    You can even say I''ve betrayed them toe this far.


    For what? I ask myself.


    But even then I can''t find a clear answer.


    Do I want to save Ayanokouji-kun?


    What does it mean to save someone?


    Can someone like me even do that?


    Even though I don''t know what''s happening. Even though I don''t know anything?


    ''Please be careful'', is it even that important to say?


    I now realise my actions have no substance to them.


    So why am I covered in sweat, so tired as I run for my life?


    It''s a never-ending Q&A.


    And then�� on the other side of the river,


    I find Ayanokouji-kun heading towards I2.


    No matter how much I try to raise my voice, nothinges out.


    Exhaustion, surprise or impatience. My voice is blocked by a torrent of feelings.


    And despite that, even though I didn''t manage to calm down, I yell out.


    ?Ayanokouji-kun����!?


    The words I manage to squeeze out reached the other side.


    ?I....I came to meet you!?


    Yes. I ran this far for that purpose.


    ?I''ll be right there!?


    Even though I shouldn''t be able to run, no...


    Even though I shouldn''t be able to walk anymore.


    My feet somehow managed to take a step forward.


    I just want to meet you.


    It is the only thing supporting me now.


    ��There''s something I have to tell you.


    Trantion : cinnamontrantions

 Chapter 154: Short Story 4 : Ibuki Mio SS – No Reason to It

    <h4>Chapter 154: Short Story 4 : Ibuki Mio SS �C No Reason to It</h4>


    It was on the 10th day of the uninhabited ind exam


    This morning, I went to the other tent nearby.


    I confirmed that the owner was away before reaching for the backpack inside.


    I''m not trying to steal anything. I just want to confirm something.


    And I have to look at what''s inside to do so.


    But I don''t really want to look. It was a contradiction.


    I grabbed the backpack with some hesitation.


    ?It''s lighter than I expected...?


    Seeing how light it was made me even more confident and I checked the content without any lingering feelings.


    Clothing, stuff for personal hygiene, food����and a single 500ml bottle of water.


    ?I knew it.?


    As my doubt grew into conviction, the owner of the backpack came back, Ayanokouji.


    ?What are you doing??


    ?!!?


    His sudden call startled me so much I think I jumped from the ground.


    ?Did you look at my tablet? Or is there something else you wanted??


    ?''Course not! I just wanted to... to check if it really was fair, just that.?


    I don''t want to be mistaken for a thief so I left the backpack.


    Anyway, now that I''ve confirmed it, I need to ask him this directly.


    ?There''s just a single bottle of drinking water left in your backpack. How the hell is that you having plenty of it, huh??


    This guy wanted to make a fair trade with me yesterday.


    He wanted to hand over 2 bottles of water for just some rations.


    I lost my cool and couldn''t think then since I wanted water so badly, and he led me into it....


    He lied to me.


    He never had plenty of water and helped me since I was dehydrated.


    ?You wanted me to owe you, right? That''s why you helped me??


    If so, that''s way too naive of him. I need to make him realise that.


    Or so I thought...


    ?If you haven''t checked my backpack, you would never have known though.?


    ?Uh.?


    Obviously. If I never went to confirm it, I wouldn''t have known that he wascking water too.


    ?In other words, it was supposed to be a fair trade no matter what the truth may be.?


    So that''s why I should just spit out a honest ''Thank you''? I''ll never do that even if someone forced my mouth open.


    Like hell I want to.


    ?I don''t think I can ept that... alright. You get nothing in return then.?


    Fine with you? I asked just in case.


    ?Would you even give me anything even if you owed me something??


    ?No way.?


    I answered in a blink, no thoughts needed.


    There is no reason to it.


    Why, I just hate this guy.


    Trantion : cinnamontrantions

 Chapter 155: Short Story 5 : KADOKAWA EXPO: Karuizawa Kei – Trial Date

    <h4>Chapter 155: Short Story 5 : KADOKAWA EXPO: Karuizawa Kei �C Trial Date</h4>


    TL: de. ED: Cinnamon


    This is a story from just before the second year ind survival exam. I, Karuizawa Kei am walking towards Keyaki Mall after school. Keyaki mall is extremely popr with students after school. There are many things to do in Keyaki mall, peoplee to hang with friends, or to buy things, or get their hair done. Or perhaps, a date with their lover.


    Anyway, since no one is allowed to leave the school premises, Keyaki mall is something that we students cannot do without. By the way, I oftene here with my friends to hang out.


    But�� today I am here alone.


    It''s not that I have anything in particr that I want to buy.


    But there is something that I want to do though.


    ?Fuuu, I''m a bit nervous.?


    I mumble those words as I head towards the mall by the north entrance.


    Almost 1 hour has passed since sses have ended and there are already a fairlyrge amount of students in the mall.


    ?Right right, it should be all right with this many people here.?


    As I look around, I continue walking slightly relieved.


    First things first, I head to the general store as nned. The store itself is fairly small but there appears to be about 4 girls inside enjoying themselves while looking around.


    Now then.


    I wander around the store as I hold my phone. In no time at all I receive a message. It is the signal that all the preparations wereplete.


    I continue walking around looking at the items for sale as I try to contain the grin forming on my face.


    Since new items are released every week, it''s rare to get bored. I especially love the cute essories. However, I''ve been buying so many recently that all the straps on my phone are now heavier than my phone itself. I have to resist today.


    Resist.... Resist... I don''t think I''ll be able to!


    ?Cute~?


    One of the newly arrived straps is so cute.


    A strap with an image of cat on a little ribbon.


    I send an image of the strap using my phone. As I mumble to myself I slowly move around the store.


    Oh so you like these kind of things?


    I smile as I receive the reply.


    Unexpected?


    I reply.


    A little.


    Is the reply I receive.


    My heart will probably skip a beat if I got this from my boyfriend?


    I was thinking about sending such a reply but it''s too embarrassing so I ended up deleting it.


    As expected of today''s trial. But I don''t have the courage for that just yet.


    I get excited as I receive a picture sent from the other person but when I see it....


    I thought you would like something like this instead.


    It is a picture of a strap illustrated with skulls and crosses.


    No way no way, your sense is really horrible. Only middle school boys would use something like that.


    This time my reply is a little mean spirited. Oh well, it''s important that not everything said is just sweet words.


    Perhaps now is a good time to tell you what the point of today was.


    The truth is, as I wander around the store by myself, there is someone else following a different route but walking with me. I don''t think an exnation is needed at this point but.... That person is my boyfriend Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. He is super cool, smart, and athletic.


    "Maybe I''m praising him too much..." I correct myself.


    I mean it would be a stretch to say his skills regarding human rtionships are good.


    Ahem, anyway this is a way to for us to have a trial date. We both set different ces to meet up , and decided to browse the shop using different routes.


    If other people heard this, they would probably think what''s with that? Most definitely.


    However, since the fact that we are dating is a secret, this is a trial to see how enjoyable a date is.


    Mahh.... The fact that I am dating Kiyotaka will probably be revealed some time , but for now it''s okay.


    What are you going to do now?


    Can I look around a little more?


    After exchanging these few messages, I continue wandering around the store.


    Yup looks like no one has noticed


    I mean that''s obvious since at the most we look like two people who came to the store separately and are looking at different things. Of course, being near each other makes me happy, but at the same time, I ended up thinking about how I want to talk to him directly as expected.


    I think that being able to speak to each other, to see each other''s eyes and have our hands touch, that''s the real joy of being on a date.


    After leaving the general store, I head to the super market then the bookstore, going from ce to ce, item to item as I pass the time.


    The date was enjoyable but also ended up feeling a little lonely.


    I don''t think the trial was a failure but, these mixed emotions....


    I guess after all, I really want to go on a proper date with Kiyotaka as soon as possible.


    Yup, that''s what I am thinking of once more.


    Then ��-


    On that day around 7 in the evening.


    As I am watching the TV, a knock on my door causes me to get up.


    "Hmm?"


    Not the door bell but a light knock.


    I wonder who it is, but I can''t even hear a voice.


    I open the front door as I think that it is a little strange...


    On the floor in the corridor is a small paper bag with pink patterns on it. I don''t see anyone as I look and right.


    As I continue thinking how strange it is, I pick up the bag and enter my room.


    This is for me right?


    Before opening it, I feel it''s contents from the outside.


    ?Hmm could this be....?


    With something in mind, I open the bag...


    Inside is a strap with an image of cat on a little ribbon.


    Looking at it, I let out augh without thinking.


    "He really is a simple when ites to these kinds of things."


    If he thinks doing these kinds of things will make him popr, well he is mistaken.


    I remove all the straps from my phone and attach the little cat, with a smile.


    "Something like this isn''t nearly enough for me to be satisfied okay."


    For the rest of the day I pass the time gazing at the strap.


    Trantion : Royal MTLs Team


    /


    Short Story Trantion : cinnamontrantions


    /

 Chapter 156: Prologue: Raising the Curtain on a Fun Summer Vacation

    <h4>Chapter 156: Prologue: Raising the Curtain on a Fun Summer Vacation</h4>


    After finally seeing their phones returned after two weeks, many students'' faces rxed into smiles.


    The mobile phone has be an indispensable tool for people living in the modern world. The poprity of smartphones among those aged between 10 and 20 exceeded 99% by 2020. When considering such a world, there was no doubt about this fact.


    Since I''d only started using a mobile phone in high school, it still wasn''t a high priority for me as a necessity, but it was probably only a matter of time until it became so.


    The luxury cruise ship sailed gracefully across the vast ocean, providing the students a pleasant summer vacation for a while.


    Looking back, I couldn''t really say that I enjoyed my summer vacationst year.


    A group I could call friends, a lover. Even if it was just a passing acquaintance, the number of students I could call by their name.


    All of it was iparable tost year, showing a great leap forward.


    This time spent on such a cruise ship would be a page in the lives of us students that we would never forget. You could enjoy the pool, a delicious meal, or talk with the person you love on a deck overlooking the ocean.


    However, this didn''t mean that you could do whatever you wanted. You could only have fun within the confines of the rules.


    For example, students weren''t allowed to leave their rooms after 10pm unless there were special circumstances. The rules seem to have gotten much stricter than the ones we had on boardst year. These ''special circumstances'' included sudden illness during the night, in which case you''d have to go to the infirmary, which was open 24 hours a day. It was unlikely that any students would break the rules that have been established, but the penalties were quite severe, so there shouldn''t be any problems.


    In addition to that, there were certain levels of the ship that were prohibited to students, so you couldn''t just walk around wherever you wanted. Even within the permitted levels, there were areas that were off limits.


    Now, with moderation and morals in mind, let''s enjoy this cruise.


    <Cover>


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 Chapter 157 - 1: With Ike and Komiya

    <h4>Chapter 157: Chapter 1: With Ike and Komiya</h4>


    It was the morning of August 4th, the day after thepletion of the uninhabited ind special exam. For the next seven days, from today until the end of August 10th, the students would spend their vacation on a luxury cruise ship. We were promised that there wouldn''t be any special exams like the zodiac exam heldst year.


    The ship had a swimming pool, a fitness gym, a movie theater, a concert hall, a bathhouse with a view, a shopping area with restaurants such as the caf�� terrace, and various other entertainment facilities.


    In other words, we''d earned the right to enjoy all of this.


    So where was I on this long-awaited first day...?


    I was rxing in the four-person cabin assigned to each student with my mobile phone in my hand. There was no need to rush off to y just because you had a few days off.


    In fact, it wasn''t a bad idea to give up all entertainment for a while to get some rest and rxation. In contrast to the hard bed from our dormitories, the bed of a first-ss brand gently embraces the body. That feeling was further amplified after spending thest two weeks living in a tent on the harsh uninhabited ind.


    I''ll leave it at that as far as the situation for the first day goes.


    The ss points for August were determined and announced based on the results of the uninhabited ind exam. Normally, they were announced on the first day of the month, but this time the beginning of the month coincided with the middle of the uninhabited ind exam. Because of this, the point totals were announcedte so that they could ount for the results of the special exam.


    For students enrolled in this school, the beginning of the month started with the confirmation of ss points. The same was true for our individual rankings, but ss points were directly rted to our private points, which in turn were directly rted to our monthly allowance. If you didn''t have any money at your disposal, your holiday on this luxury cruise ship would be wasted.


    Second-Year ss Points for August:


    ? ss A led by Sakayanagi: 1206 points


    ? ss B led by Ichinose: 578 points


    ? ss C led by Horikita: 571 points


    ? ss D led by Ry��en: 551 points


    As a result, our ss ended up rising to ss C by a narrow margin. There was a chance we could''ve even risen to ss B, but we were just one step short.


    However, there was nothing to be pessimistic about. In fact, the results were rather good, with K��enji managing to get us 300 ss points with his solo win.


    I was once again reminded of the destructive power of this overwhelming points bonus. K��enji had always been perceived as a nuisance by many in the ss, but those people would have no choice but to change their view now.


    However, I was skeptical of whether this change in view wouldst forever. In exchange for the huge amount of ss points he had earned, he was given a card that meant he would be ''exempted from all cooperation'' until graduation. If this fact were made public, the number of people who felt honestly happy about the situation would likely decrease. Nevertheless, I think this was a good thing.


    If we hadn''t gotten K��enji''s 300 points, we would''ve had to keep fighting for a long time while being uncertain of whether we could really keep up with the upper sses. Having all three sses side by side like this would be a great help mentally.


    Now we were just a step away from being able to rise up and be the sole ss B. From there, we would have to try and close the gap through direct confrontation with Sakayanagi''s ss.


    This upward path also applied to Ry��en''s ss, which had dropped to ss D.


    He was unable to finish in the top three in the uninhabited ind exam, so didn''t win any points for his ss. The points gap had shortened as a result of this, but there was nothing toin about regarding their ability. The addition of Katsuragi would raise the overall academic performance of the ss and provide them with a sense of stability.


    In addition, Ry��en made some kind of deal with Sakayanagi. It was hard to say if it was a contract to do with private points or ss points, or even somethingpletely different, but it may well have an impact in future battles.


    Although there were some concerns, their momentum wasn''t slowing, but increasing, making them probably the scariest ss right now. They dropped to ss D in name only; in fact, I am sure they don''t care one bit.


    In contrast, Ichinose''s ss, which had risen back up to ss B, was not in bad shape if you only looked at the results.


    With Sakayanagi leading, Ichinose was able to gain ss points through cooperation. However, they couldn''t rest on theirurels, as the gap between ss B and ss D was only 27 points. We''d entered a situation where the rankings could be switchede September 1st through minor behavioural issues alone. Depending on the results of the uninhabited ind exam, they could''ve fallen to ss D. The anxiety Ichinose was feeling must be quite strong. The moment of truth wille soon, Ichinose.


    I sent her a message, though only in my heart.


    I didn''t think that there would be more exams like the uninhabited ind exam where all sses in all years participate from here on, so the next special exam should be a battle among our year. If they fall behind ss C and ss D, the future will look bleak for Ichinose''s ss. In other words, the next battle may decide their future...


    The situation of the three sses side by side could be briefly summarized as such.


    In the end, it was ss A led by Sakayanagi on top. It wouldn''t be easy to close that gap. Their sense of stability was outstanding, and as such, they were able to slip into third ce in the uninhabited ind exam and umte ss points.


    They have many excellent students, and Sakayanagi''s ability to control them was perfect. Furthermore, the strategies Sakayanagi was capable of using weren''t limited to just the traditional or unorthodox, she was able to use both with great dexterity. ss A was truly unshakable, and she was certainly worthy of being their leader.


    There was barely a chance, but if ''Horikita''s ss'' gained momentum, it wouldn''t be impossible to catch up. Yes, it wasn''t like there was no room to manoeuvre.


    Of course, in order to do that, the dominant ss A needed to be broken down in some way. The shortest route would be to get rid of Sakayanagi, but it would be extremely difficult to do so when considering her protection point. Even if she didn''t have a protection point, it would be no simple task. Rather than destroying the head, the smart thing to do would be to crush the pieces that are the limbs.


    We would need to eliminate more than just 1 or 2 people, but if Kamuro, Hashimoto, and Kit�� were absent or otherwise made dysfunctional, there was only so much Sakayanagi would be able to do. There were unknowns about Kit��, but the other two seemed to be people with a lot of problems that could be exploited.


    Well, I''ll leave it at that for now.


    With the official start of the summer vacation, all sses had temporarily stopped fighting and were in a state of truce.


    From here on for a while, it was my turn to have as much fun as I could as a normal student. Until the other day, my pockets were empty, but when the ss points were announced and the private points for August were given out, my wallet was suddenly full. Our ss had 571 ss points, or in other words, 57,100 yen worth of private points were given to each person. I didn''t receive any bonuses since I wasn''t able to get into the top rankings for additional rewards, but it was more than enough. Private points were essential for spending a fulfilling time on this luxury cruise ship, as the system required a minimum number of private points to enjoy a movie or meal of your choice. Last year, all the facilities on board were free of charge, so the rules have been tightened up regarding money as well. Of course, it didn''t cost anything to spend the week holed up in your guest cabin, but then it would be no different to living in your dormitory on a day off.


    Ping! There was a pleasant little sound and then an email arrived.


    I received a message on my recently returned phone that the detailed results of the uninhabited ind exam would be released at the resting area by the fitness gym on the ship for two days starting today. Since only the top and bottom few groups had been announced, many students would be interested. As for me, it would be best to check it out so that I could keep an eye on the future.


    However, it would be more convenient to send the list to everyone''s phones, but they didn''t do that. Did they not want students to take the results home and analyse them for a long time? It could be considered a measure to avoid leaving unnecessary evidence due to Tsukishiro''s involvement this time.


    There was a part of me that wanted to go check it out right away, but it was likely that students would being in droves, so it would probably be better to give it some time.


    Forgetting about the test results for the moment, I decided to take care of something else. Using my phone, I sent a simple message to Ichinose with a request to meet briefly in the evening in three days'' time. Of course, it was easy for her to imagine that it was in response to the spur of the moment confession I received on the uninhabited ind.


    I thought about seeing her and giving my reply right away, but the gruelling uninhabited ind exam had only just ended. It was okay to let her spend some time regaining her strength and having some fun with her friends. Since the message hadn''t been read yet, I turned off my phone for now.


    I decided to see what my roommates, Miyamoto Soshi, Hond�� Ry��tar��, and Miyake Akito, would do.


    "Hey Ry��tar��, the exam results are out. Wanna go take a look?"


    "Hmm...pass... I can''t walk, I''m a wreck. Right now I just want to lie in my bed..."


    Not only was he tired, but it was understandable that this bed would take away his energy to move. The temptation of the bed was too much for all of us, including me. Hond��, who was particrly exhausted, turned weakly to his left and showed his back.


    "You''ve been like that since yesterday."


    "I felt like dying when I moved and I really wanted to eat, but I couldn''t get it down my throat."


    With his back to me, he covered his head with the duvet and curled up. For now, it seemed he just wanted to lie down and sleep. The trip on this luxury liner wouldst for a week, so it was a wise decision to not panic and wait to recover his strength.


    "What about you guys, Miyake and Ayanok��ji? Aren''t you a little curious about your rankings?"


    Akito turned his gaze towards Miyamoto as he fiddled with his phone. "I''m good. I have a good idea of what rank we ced. Honestly, I think it''s enough that we didn''t get expelled. I just want to rx for today, like Hond��."


    It wasn''t hard to imagine that Akito, who was working with both Haruka and Airi, would''ve had a lot of trouble as the only guy in his group. It must have taken more of a toll on his spirit than his physical strength.


    "You were in the same group as Sakura and Hasebe right?" Miyamoto asked Akito whilst sitting on his bed.


    "What''s this all of a sudden?"


    "I was in a group with three guys, so it was a hell of a sweaty time, but you must''ve been in heaven surrounded by girls, right?"


    "What kind of heaven is that? If you ask me, it was hell ''cause there were so many things to take care of. A bunch of guys would definitely be easier."


    Because both were part of different groups, each was iming the other had it better.


    To be honest, I was d I didn''t join either group. For this exam, unless you were really good friends, it was better to go alone.


    Anyway, when the two of them refused, Miyamoto''s gaze turned towards me as well. Unlike Hond�� and Akito, I was able to regain most of the strength I had lost on the ind by sleeping well in my bed. I wasn''t quite in perfect condition, but I''d have no trouble moving around the ship.


    However, instead of rushing, I could go take a lookter. Besides, even if Akito didn''t go, it was possible that other members of the Ayanok��ji group might go to check it out.


    "I''m going to take it easy today. I don''t like crowds and I''m sure everyone is curious about their rankings."


    Bang bang bang!


    When I tried to say no like the first two did, there were several knocks on the door of the guest cabin. The momentum of the knocks was unbelievably strong, as if something unusual had urred. Akito jumped up and rushed to open the door, revealing Ishizaki. There was a tense atmosphere as if something was wrong...


    "Ayanok��ji, let''s go check out the test results together!"


    Everyone was taken aback by his smile and what he had said. Akito turned around and looked at me, having lost his voice.


    "No, I''m..."


    "What, you''re not busy are ya? Come on, let''s go!"


    He barged into the room and grabbed me by the arm while I was sitting on the bed.


    "When did you guys be such good friends?"


    The person who was most surprised by the situation was Akito, with whom I spent the most time. Ishizaki, who was from a rival ss, was also a bit of a problem child, so it wasn''t surprising that Akito was concerned. In fact, the other two had also been taken aback by Ishizaki''s appearance and were still stiff.


    "Well, it just kind of happened..."


    I had nothing more to say, but I didn''t think Akito would find my exnation satisfactory. Despite the strong pressure of Ishizaki''s smile, I decided to pull back and turn him down.


    "I''m a little tired today."


    "Whatcha mean you''re tired? If it''s you it''ll be fine. Come on, let''s go!"


    With no regard for my feelings, he didn''t seem to want to give up on dragging me out the room.


    "...Okay, I get it. Let me get changed for now."


    "Right, I''ll be waitin'' for you in the hallway then!"


    Perhaps because he was satisfied with my answer that I would join him, Ishizaki walked out of the room.


    "Looks like you''ve caught the eye of a nasty one. Let me know if there''s any trouble."


    "Thank you, Akito. Well, Ishizaki''s not a bad guy, so I''ll be okay."


    "Not a bad guy, huh? I ain''t got a good impression of him. It''s possible Ry��en''s pulling his strings from behind. You''d best be on your guard."


    We''d repeatedly had shes with the delinquents led by Ry��en, so it was natural for those who didn''t know the inner workings of the ss to think that way. Ishizaki wasn''t good at hiding things or ying games, but if he was being controlled without knowing it, then he could be troublesome to deal with. Saying that, now that weren''t in the middle of a special exam, I could assume that wasn''t the case.


    After changing out of my uniform, I raised my hand lightly to Akito and left the room. Ishizaki seemed to be the only one waiting in the hallway, and I couldn''t see any other students.


    "Right, let''s go~!"


    "There''s no need to be in such a hurry, is there?"


    "Eh? Why not?"


    "Even if we don''t rush, the results will be up for two days, so we can see themter, right?"


    "I want to see it quickly. I''m the kinda guy who, when a new moviees out, can''t wait and goes to see it straight away."


    Even if he exined to me that he was that type of person, there was no way I could understand. It was a little hard to imagine Ishizaki going to the movie theatre in high spirits on the day of its release.


    "I went to see ''World Domination 16'' the day it came out."


    I''d never heard that title before, but it sounded like it would have guns and fists flying all over the ce. And 16 films made it quite the long series. However, that title didn''t appeal to me at all.


    "I''m curious where Ry��en-san''s group ended up cin''."


    At any rate, Ishizaki didn''t seem like the kind of guy to not have many friends in his own ss. He shouldn''t have needed to invite me, a student from another ss.


    "Are you sure you don''t want to invite Ry��en and the others who are worried about their ranking?"


    I''ll ask him indirectly to find out his true intentions.


    "That guy will say somethin'' if he needs to. If he hasn''t said anythin'' yet, then it ain''t needed."


    "That''s easy to understand."


    "Right. A lot of the other guys are too tired after being on an uninhabited ind and passed on my offer."


    Like Akito and the others, most people just wanted to rest right now.


    "You''re in good spirits. Aren''t you tired?"


    "Me? I recovered after I slept."


    "I see"


    It was a surprisingly simple answer, but it was easy to understand. He might not have particrly good motor skills, but he seemed to be more resilient than most. However, the fact that he chose me after the process of elimination didn''t really make sense.


    "You''re easy to talk to, Ayanok��ji."


    "...Is that so?"


    That was a little surprising, since I wasn''t very good at socializing.


    "You''re way easier to talk to than that weirdo Kaneda."


    I didn''t know much about Kaneda, but theparison resulted in someplex feelings.


    On the way, we passed by a store.


    "Oh, they''re sellin'' national gs!"


    Ishizaki''s eyes sparkled with excitement as he picked up national gs from all over the world in the store. As I watched him with a confused expression, wondering what was going on, Ishizaki rubbed the bottom of his nose with his index finger and answered.


    "Ah, you know, when we went to Albert''s room before, he had a collection of gs. I dunno, maybe I''ve been inspired by him, but I''ve been collectin'' them too."


    So, one person''s hobby influenced another person, and that spread? They''d apparently found amon hobby in collecting gs, which seemed to be a rarity nowadays.


    "I don''t know much about Albert, but he''s a good guy, isn''t he?"


    "Yeah, that''s right. When we first came to school we had a bunch of problems, but now he''s my best friend."


    It was true that I often saw Ishizaki and Albert together.


    "So, as far as friendships go, it''s smooth sailing, I guess."


    I was honestly impressed and said so, but Ishizaki''s face hardened slightly as he walked beside me.


    "It''s not really like that. It''s not like I''m the most popr kid in ss."


    "Is it because you''re working under Ry��en?"


    "I don''t think that''s necessarily the reason, it happened right after I came to this school after all. But after our run-in with you on the rooftop, I was supposed to have defeated Ry��en-san and taken back the ss. I''d been hangin'' out with a lot of people I''d never really gotten to know before."


    He spoke so much that he seemed to be at a loss for words. It was true that Ishizaki''s position may beplicated. There were more than a few students who were hoping Ry��en would be defeated and were grateful to Ishizaki. However, if he were to fall straight back into line under Ry��en, he would inevitably face opposition.


    "So, I''m also part of the cause."


    "Ah sorry, I phrased it weirdly. It''s not your fault, Ayanok��ji. That was a fight we started in the first ce. It''s true that some of my friends left me, but now I''m friends with you instead, so don''t worry ''bout it."


    Ishizaki turned his head my way andughed powerfully. But there was something fragile about thatugh, almost dangerous.


    "Don''t go trying to solve the ss problems all by yourself."


    "I know. ss problems are solved with ssmates together. Ry��en-san returned with that determination."


    Ishizaki believed so and would do everything he could to follow.

 Chapter 158: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 158: 1.1</h4>


    "Whoa, there are loads of people."


    Sure enough, the rest area near the fitness gym where the test results were disclosed was crowded with students. Arge sign beside the monitor read, ''Photography is strictly prohibited'' and there were two adults, probably associated with Tsukishiro, watching the students.


    The rankings and scores were disyed as a list on the monitor, which seemed to be scrolling automatically. Right now we could see the group members and scores for the groups ranked 50th through to 60th.


    "...Huh?"


    Suddenly, I felt an incredible sense of difort flowing through my body. What was it? I couldn''t immediately figure out what it was, but I felt an indescribable sick kind of feeling.


    "I wanted to get a closer look at the results, but I don''t think I can concentrate with all this."


    Ishizaki, who wasn''t feeling the same difort as me, looked at the monitor and muttered in displeasure.


    "There''s no helping it. I''m sure a lot of people wanted to know the detailed results of the exam."


    Ishizaki clicked his tongue in frustration and had no choice but to squint at the results from the spot. Although he had a bold personality, he wouldn''t push the upperssmen to get to the front.


    The trouble was, even though it was an auto-scrolling monitor, you could touch it with your hand to hold it in ce or scroll to look at any order. Currently a third-year student was operating it, so it was unlikely we would see the top results that Ishizaki wanted to see anytime soon.


    "What shall we do?"


    Even if we waited for a long time, it would be a while before our turn woulde.


    "I''m curious, but let''s not overdo it. We can look at itter after all."


    That was what I said a few minutes ago but...If he understood, then it was fine.


    "By the way, do you notice anything?"


    "Hm? Notice what?"


    Ishizaki, who was about to turn around, didn''t seem to have noticed anything.


    This bizarre atmosphere. The number of gazes directed at me.


    This couldn''t be dismissed as just my imagination. It wasn''t that Ishizaki next to me was too slow and unaware of it. It wasn''t Ishizaki, or any other students; the gaze was focused entirely on me.


    They were watching my every move, with no apparent intention to hide. All of the students looking at me had one thing inmon; they were all third-years. I didn''t know all the details yet, but I was certain that Nagumo was involved in this. I guess this was one of his ns that he had decided set in motion after putting it off in anticipation for the exam.


    "What''s up?"


    Apparently, I was so lost in thought that Ishizaki was worried about me.


    "No, it''s nothing. It looks like a lot of other students areing to check it out, so let''s head back."


    "Oh, yeah you''re right."


    I''d imagined he''d try something sooner orter, but this was a bit troublesome. It would''ve been much easier to deal with if Nagumo had decided to confront me directly. He got me with something I hated to deal with right from the start.


    "Hey, you haven''t eaten yet, right? Let''s eat together."


    "What? Ah, yeah I haven''t eaten yet, but..."


    I started to walk away, and there was no sign of the third-year students following after us. In the end, all they did was watch me, but it didn''t feel great to be stared at relentlessly.


    "What''s the matter with you? You don''t want to eat with me? You''re a rude guy."


    "It''s not that. I was just thinking about something unrted."


    I couldn''t involve Ishizaki in this, but if they didn''te after us, we''d be fine.


    "It''s rude to think about other things like that."


    He had a point. Let''s forget about the third-years for now.


    "Are you fine with it? Eating with me?"


    "Who cares? We''re just eatin'' a meal together."


    I couldn''t deny that I was feeling some pressure, but it didn''t feel bad at all. I just couldn''t get over the fact that Ishizaki was treating me like a friend.


    "I don''t know if I''ve said this before, but I''m not invitin'' you out like this just to get you to join our ss. It''s ''cause I like you as a friend, okay?"


    Without hesitation, Ishizaki uttered a line that, in a way, set my teeth on edge. But then, as if realizing something, he turned around.


    "...Am I botherin'' you?"


    "That''s not the case."


    "Right!?"


    For a moment, Ishizaki seemed to wonder if he''d been acting selfishly, but then he immediatelyughed with a cheerful face. Well, I already knew that he had this kind of personality. I didn''t feel bad at all, so I decided to just go along with Ishizaki.


    As the two of us left the area and started to move, we heard footsteps running towards us from behind.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai!"


    The owner of the footsteps was Nanase, who I had worked with for the first half of the uninhabited ind exam.


    "You came to see the results of the exam too, senpai?"


    "Yeah. Saying that, I couldn''t go over them slowly, so I gave up."


    "Is that so? Right now the third years are operating the monitor, so we underssmen will have to wait a while before we can view it freely."


    Apparently Nanase also wanted to know more about the results, but decided against it. Ishizaki was watching our conversation with curiosity. Thinking about it, Ishizaki probably hadn''t had any direct interaction with Nanase.


    "Oi, oi Ayanok��ji. When did you get to know this cute girl?"


    "A lot happened."


    It was tedious to exin from scratch, so I gave him that summary.


    "Oi, don''t tell me you''re...datin'' an underssman, are ya?"


    "That''s a big leap. It''s just a normal senior and junior rtionship."


    It was unusual for me to be brought into this sort of thing. I''d thought that Ishizaki wasn''t particrly interested in rtionships with the opposite sex, but not so much, apparently.


    "Did you want something from me?"


    "No, after I saw you, senpai, I just wanted toe talk to you."


    She spoke without hesitation as she looked at me with bright eyes, despite the contents of her reply being somewhat embarrassing.


    "Sorry for bothering you. Excuse me!"


    One minute she was running up to me, and the next, she was running away. The ship''s interior was the same as the school corridors in that she shouldn''t be running here, but I guess she was just about safe.


    "She was a cutie. And her...you know...was pretty...you know."


    I''m sorry, but I guess I''ll just skip over the ''you know'' part.


    "You''re really not dating her, right?"


    "No, we''re not dating."


    It would be annoying to have people misunderstand and spread the story. That was why, once again, I firmly pushed Ishizaki so that he wouldn''t talk.

 Chapter 159: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 159: 1.2</h4>


    When I returned from my meal with Ishizaki, I found Ike standing in front of the door. He had a restless look on his face as he worked his phone. After raising his head and checking his surroundings, our eyes met.


    "Oh, Ayanok��ji! I''m d you''re here, I''ve been waiting for you."


    Ike was waiting for me? Another unexpected urrence.


    "Actually, I''m thinking of going to visit Komiya right now, and I was wondering if you''d join me."


    "Me too?"


    Ike approached me, asking me to lend an ear, so I did.


    "How to put it?...I feel a little awkward going to see him by myself."


    "Why?"


    "You say why...Well, you know, I...I''m going out with Shinohara. When we were heading back to the ship after the exam, there was a moment when we were alone, and..."


    It seemed he confessed his feelings and Shinohara gave him the okay. I thought their rtionship might develop, but this exceeded my expectations.


    "Is that so? Well, congrattions."


    After I bluntly offered congrattions, he averted his gaze in embarrassment.


    "Ah, thanks. But...from Komiya''s point of view, I think I might have done something unfair."


    "I don''t think so though."


    "No, I mean, rather than unfair...It''s like I was stealing a march on Komiya."


    Certainly, Komiya had to retire from the ind exam early due to injury, so you could express what Ike did as stealing a march, but that was also true for everyone involved. It seemed like Komiya was nning to confess to Shinohara during the uninhabited ind exam.


    "I was actually gonna wait until Komiya recovered, you know? But then I was so relieved that the ind exam was over, Shinohara was right by my side...and then...it just hit me that I didn''t want to give her to Komiya..."


    It seemed like he couldn''t help confessing his feelings to her. Of course, there was also the risk of being rejected. If that had happened, it would''ve been even more awkward if Komiya and Shinohara had gotten together.


    "That''s why I thought I have to report it to Komiya properly. If that guy''s still nning to confess to Shinohara, it''ll getplicated, right?"


    "If you don''t get ahead of this, you could be in trouble if Shinohara decides to go with Komiya."


    "Uh...! W-why would you...!?"


    My exaggerated reply left Ike flustered. So half of the reason was to report the truth to him, and the other half was to stop him from confessing.


    "You''re prepared to take at least one hit, right?"


    "Ehh!? I''m going to get hit!?"


    "Wouldn''t you do at least that much if the person you love was snatched from your side?"


    "...Gulp."


    Ike looked terrified; it seemed imagining what wasing left him a bit scared. Komiya wasn''t necessarily a big guy, but he wasn''t ying basketball just for show. On the other hand, Ike was on the smaller side for a guy, so there was a more than sufficient size difference.


    "Well, he''s got an injured leg right now, so he shouldn''t be able to get a good footing. It shouldn''t hurt that much"


    "T-that''s not really the point, but...I-I''m prepared."


    Since he seemed to be somewhat determined, I didn''t have any reason to object. I''d been wondering about Komiya''s condition, so this was a good opportunity.


    "I hear that Komiya''s still sleeping in the infirmary."


    "I''m sure it would be hard for him if he was in his own room."


    It wouldn''t be surprising if he spent most of his holidays in the infirmary.


    Ike and I arrived in front of our destination. Ike took a deep breath to calm himself down before entering. There was no point in rushing him, so I was just waiting quietly when we heard a loudugh from inside.


    "W-what''s that? Let''s go in and have a look."


    After hearing unexpectedughter from inside, Ike opened the door and entered the infirmary before he could finish preparing himself. There we found Ry��en and several ssmates around Komiya, who was sitting upright. There was a group of four people; Albert, Kaneda, Kondo and Yamawaki.


    Because people from outside his ss appeared, Ry��en stood up, not giving us a second nce.


    "Excuse us, Komiya."


    He left the infirmary with his friends; apparently he was done talking. I stole a quick nce in Ry��en''s direction, but he didn''t look my way.


    "Ry��en''s just as scary as ever... Anyway, what did he want?"


    On the other hand, Ike couldn''t even look directly at Ry��en, and was muttering to himself dejectedly. Komiya, who overheard what he said, nodded in understanding before answering,


    "Well, he certainly has that power. Despite appearances, he just came to visit me."


    On a small table near the head of the bed, there were snacks and juice that he seemed to have been gifted.


    "J-just visiting...Somehow, he doesn''te across as the kind of guy to do that." Ike replied with his honest feelings and Komiya agreed with him.


    "If it was this timest year, well, that would''ve been unthinkable." Komiya smiled with nostalgia as he recalled the past year. "But somethin'' about Ry��en-san''s changed a little bit. He''s be a bit more mellow...or maybe not..." Komiya added, with a somewhat confused, yet happy face.


    As soon as they entered school, Ry��en took control of the ss and treated everyone as tools to be used without mercy. It wasn''t surprising that most of his ssmates felt a strong sense of rejection in their hearts.


    "If it''s that guy from now, I feel like I can honestly follow him, you know?"


    "You can willingly follow Ry��en?...I don''t get it..."


    Ike''s body trembled slightly, as if he couldn''t understand what he was hearing.


    "Anyway, Ike, Ayanok��ji, don''t just stand there, sit down."


    Komiya gently weed us students from another ss and urged us to sit down without hesitation. The two of us took advantage of his kind offer and sat in a couple empty chairs.


    "You seem healthy."


    Looking at his leg that was secured in a fixed position, I checked Komiya''s condition.


    "As you can see, I''m fine except for my leg. But I get frustrated when I think about everyone having fun on the other side of the door. I hope it heals quickly..."


    "When will you be able to walk?"


    "I''m in the process of asking for permission to walk on crutches."


    They were rivals in love, but surprisingly, they were able to talk to each other without any problems. It looked like my presence here waspletely unnecessary.


    "I''m just... a little worried."


    "Worried? About what?" Ike, who was straddling the backside of the chair, put his arm on the backrest and asked Komiya.


    "It''s just...Ry��en-san''s trying to figure out who pushed me during the exam. He asked me a bunch of questions to see if I remembered anything, but just like I told Ayanok��ji, I don''t even remember being attacked at all..."


    It seemed there has been no difference in his memories since that time. Right now, Ry��en''s ss was gaining momentum day by day. It was time to focus entirely on the second year battle and reach ss A. Of course, that goes for our ss as well, so we shouldn''t delve too deep into this one.


    If Amasawa or another White Room student, or someone else rted to Tsukishiro was involved, there was no guarantee that even Ry��en would be safe.


    "It would be good if Ry��en-san doesn''t overdo it."


    "It seems he wants to beat the culprit half to death."


    The two of them were unable to envision Ry��en getting beaten. Rather, it was natural to be worried about the culprit instead.


    "So? You didn''t juste to visit me, right?" Komiya asked Ike softly, as if he had sensed something.


    At that moment, Ike stiffened up in surprise.


    "Ahh, no...That..."


    He was unable to speak. Had he not prepared himself enough yet? Perhaps seeing this, Komiya waited for him to speak without prompting, wearing a serious expression.


    The atmosphere changed in the blink of an eye. There was no trace of the rxed situation we had just experienced.


    "...I...How to put it?...so..."


    Ike''s talkative demeanour faded and he became unable to string the words together.


    "Ike. I don''t know what you''re gonna say, but if it''s important, then look me in the eye and say it."


    He must''ve guessed what he was about to say. Even so, Komiya pretended not to know, and urged Ike to tell it to him straight. I didn''t think Ike had noticed that Komiya had already guessed what he wanted to say, but he must''ve felt something from him as a fellow man. He felt that this wasn''t something to be reported in azy manner. He pped himself on both cheeks, forcing himself to wake up out of his daze.


    "I confessed to Shinohara!"


    Ike, who had steeled his resolve, spoke in a simple but loud voice.


    All that came after was silence. I could see Ike gulping down arge mouthful of saliva beside me.


    "And? What was Satsuki''s reply?"


    "I got the okay. We''re going out now."


    "I see..."


    After hearing his curt response, Ike continued to stare at Komiya''s face without averting his gaze. Like we had spoken about earlier, because Ike had jumped the gun, he couldn''t me him if he hadints. He seemed to think he would jump out with a surprise shot.


    "Did you think I was gonna hit you?"


    "Eh?"


    "It''s written all over your face; that you might get punched."


    "T-that''s...Well, maybe a little."


    "Well, then you''ve resolved yourself, right? I can''t move right now, so youe over to me."


    As he asked him toe over, Komiya''s face hid any hints of his intentions. But, from his intensity, it seemed Ike had made up his mind. Even though he was terrified, he went to stand right next to Komiya. Immediately after, Komiya''s right arm reached out and grabbed Ike''s shoulder.


    "Tss!" Pushing his aching body to the limit, Komiya looked into Ike''s eyes. "If you make Satsuki cry, I''ll show you no mercy." Komiya said, as he lightly pressed his left fist against Ike''s chest.


    "K-Komiya...?"


    Komiya''s serious expression turned into a smile. "What''s up with you, don''t act so glum. Satsuki chose you, that''s all there is to it, right?"


    "But...If you hadn''t been injured, it might''ve been the other way around..."


    "It sucks, but I don''t think that''s true. Satsuki''s had her eye on you for a while, that''s why she epted your confession. It''s not a case of firste-first-served. But..."


    "But?"


    "If you hadn''t faced Satsuki properly and kept runnin'' away, I might''ve had a chance."


    It was as Komiya said. I didn''t think it mattered so much whether he confessed first or after. There was an ident that resulted in a serious injury, and Ike just happened to be in the vicinity. That then created an opportunity which gave him a huge boost, allowing him to face Shinohara. Without a doubt, that was the single most important factor that resulted in the two of them being together now.


    If Komiya hadn''t been injured, if Ike hadn''t been nearby at that time. If either of them had suffered a different fate, the one next to Shinohara right now may well have been Komiya.


    "In that sense, this injury was really unlucky."


    Even though his feelings of love were left unfulfilled, Komiya seemed to be in a good mood.


    "Thank you, Komiya."


    "Make sure you study properly, will you? Satsuki...No, Shinohara was worried about that too."


    "...That''s right. I can''t afford to get expelled."


    This love affair might just be a pivotal turning point for Ike. Like Sud��, he now had an opportunity to struggle for both himself and the one he loves.


    Anyway, Ike''s report and the ensuing discussion with Komiya had concluded.


    "Sorry Ike, but can I talk to Ayanok��ji alone for a bit? There''s something I''d like to confirm about my injury."


    "Alright, see youter Komiya. You too, Ayanok��ji."


    Ike said goodbye to us and left the room. When we were alone, Komiya cut me off.


    "I''m sorry. Ike brought you here asking for your help right?"


    "No, I was concerned about your condition too. Rather, I caused you trouble."


    "That''s not true. I mean...I don''t really understand what''s going on."


    "Hmm?"


    "Even though we''re in different sses and fighting against each other, we''ve started talking normally. It''s like that kind of hostility has faded away. Last year, it was so bleak."


    Since we were in different sses, we were supposed to fight and kick each other down. Other than for a strategy, there wasn''t much merit in getting along with each other.


    "The uninhabited ind exam was apetition between school years, plus we''ll be at the same school together for a long time. Maybe that''s the reason?"


    "Yeah, maybe."


    "So? You wanted to talk about your injury?"


    It was obvious that this conversation was just a preliminary chat before we got to the main topic.


    "It''s as I was saying earlier, it''s about Ry��en-san."


    "You said he was searching for the culprit."


    "I''m against it. To be honest, I''d rather chalk this one up as an ident caused by my own mistake."


    "But Shinohara actually saw the person that attacked you."


    "I know that. But I have this bad feeling that this won''t end well."


    Maybe it was because he was the one attacked that he could feel the danger.


    "Even if it''s just for a little while, would you mind keeping an eye out on this matter for me, Ayanok��ji?"


    "I don''t really think there''s anything I can do about it though..."


    "I don''t expect you to do anything directly. If you feel uneasy, let me know."


    Komiya made his request with a strong look in his eyes. We formally exchanged contact information so that we could get in touch at any time.


    "Okay, for now, you should just focus on healing your injury as soon as possible, Komiya."


    Resting was the only shortcut to a full recovery after all.


    "Thank you. I''d like to thank you properly next time, if you don''t mind. I wanted to talk to the other guys that helped me too."


    "I''m sure they''ll be d to hear it. Ike might even bring Shinohara along."


    "No way. If I had to watch those two flirting, I think I might just cry."


    Komiya smiled bitterly. It seemed he was more heartbroken than he looked. I think it was a mistake to include that teasingment.


    Anyway, I wasn''t saying the injury was a good thing, but I felt like the distance between Komiya and I had shortened a little.


    "See youter, Ayanok��ji."


    "Yeah."


    After saying goodbye and leaving the infirmary, I was struck by a strange feeling.


    My ssmates Sud�� and Ike, and from another ss, Ishizaki and Komiya. The number of people around me that I could call my friends was gradually increasing. I wasn''t even particrly trying to make friends, but that was what ended up happening.


    "The way to make friends isn''t something you can find in a textbook."


    Like an idiot, I thought that seriously.

 Chapter 160 - 2: The Beginning of the Short-Lived Vacation

    <h4>Chapter 160: Chapter 2: The Beginning of the Short-Lived Vacation</h4>


    For many students, each day of the uninhabited ind exam seemed to drag on for a long time. In contrast, a day spent on a luxury cruise ship was just like a sh of light; gone in an instant. Why was it that the flow was so different for the same period of time?


    The main reason was probably because we didn''t spend most of the day thinking about time. During daily school life and special exams, students were often thinking about time. On the other hand, when you were on holiday, you weren''t thinking about it, so the difference was noticeable.


    Today was the second day of such a festive holiday.


    The exhaustion many students had been feeling had finally worn off, so they were starting to enjoy their holiday in earnest. As a result, the number of students passing each other in the ship''s corridors had increased dramatically. Even I, who''d spent most of my time quietly on my own, received an email from a rather unexpected person inviting me to meet up.


    It was from third-year ss B student, Vice President Kiriyama. He had invited me to the pool, perhaps to have an elegant chat while riding a float or y water volleyball to deepen our friendship.


    I''ll throw out the possibility of any of those ridiculous predictions.


    Although he called me over to the pool, it should be a far from yful time.


    Of course, I could refuse his invitation. Or I could choose to ignore it. But I was going to end up hearing it at some point anyway. Depending on the situation, it wasn''t impossible that I could be called out in more unpleasant ce and time than right now.


    I sent a curt yes in reply, promising to be there at the specified time. I decided that it would be less damaging for me to be called out now, when I was by myself. Besides, there was a good chance that I could solve the mystery of the persistent stares I''d been receiving from the third-year students since yesterday.


    "Kiriyama, huh..."


    Right now, I was at the resting area by the fitness gym. The monitor where the results of the special exam were posted was in front of me. I was the only one here; probably because most of the students had already checked their exam results. The number of teachers keeping an eye on the test results had also been reduced to just one.


    I memorized the results of the test, and slid the results back to the top groups again, focusing on Kiriyama''s group. The top three had already been announced in front of the entire student body, with K��enji Rokusuke''s solo group in first ce, Nagumo''s group in second ce and Sakayanagi''s group in third ce. In fourth ce was Kiriyama''s group with 255 points, leaving a difference of only 6 points. In other words, Sakayanagi stole thest spot on the podium from his group. The difference between third and fourth ce was more than just the difference in their ranking.


    "Naturally, for a third-year student, these results would be seen as a disappointment."


    Nagumo missed the top spot and Kiriyama didn''t even make it into the top three. In addition, all the expulsions were from the third-year, which was a highly unusual situation.


    Since I still had about 20 minutes until the appointed time, I decided to head over to the pool first. It was also to confirm that the stares being directed at me wasn''t just me being self-conscious, but a n that had been put in motion.


    The answer was immediately apparent without the need for close examination.


    No more than a dozen seconds after showing myself at the pool, I noticed I was being subjected to stares from arge number of third-year students spread all over the ce. Students engrossed in conversation, students who were swimming in the pool; all the third-year students began to observe me closely upon noticing my presence.


    The stares I felt yesterday weren''t just a coincidence.


    "I came to find proof of my suspicions, but this is too fast."


    It was such a strange feeling that I wanted toin to the contrary. I was supposed to be a background character in the shadows, but here I was standing out more than anyone. Even though I tried not to think about it, internally, I was naturally looking for the reason.


    There was probably an 80 or 90% chance that they were acting under the instructions of Nagumo, but exactly what the contents of his orders were waspletely unknown at this point in time. Although many students were sending obvious stares my way, I continued to pretend not to notice anything.


    It was easy to y the role of a fool; however, I could easily imagine that Nagumo assumed I was aware of the stares. It wouldn''t be surprising if he was enjoying seeing me as the target of this attention.


    At any rate, the best thing to do for now was pretend I didn''t know what they are all looking at.


    I looked around the pool, wondering who else was here besides the third-year students, and saw Ichinose with some of her ssmates. It just so happened that Ichinose was the first one to notice my presence, and our eyes met.


    Her shoulders jerked once and she quickly hid behind her ssmates, looking for an escape. Seeing the sudden strange movement, her ssmates were asking what was wrong with her. It was just after Ichinose confessed to me on the uninhabited ind, so it was no wonder that just looking at each other, even from this distance, might make things awkward.


    It''d be one thing if it was just Ichinose, but her ssmates were also there, so I decided to keep my distance for now. Even if I left it alone, I had already made an appointment to see her the evening after tomorrow. I saw a few ssmates here and there, but unfortunately I couldn''t find anybody that I was particrly close with.


    "Looks like you might be in trouble, Ayanok��ji."


    When I turned diagonally in front of me in the direction of the voice that had called out, I found Kiry��in resting on a beach chair on the deck.


    "What are you referring to?"


    "The third-year students. It''s not like you haven''t noticed, right?"


    "I don''t really understand."


    I tried to y it off, but Kiry��in didn''t even snicker, and just kept going nonchntly.


    "Even though I''m not involved, I''m still a third-year student. The information has already reached my ears."


    "By any chance are you referring to the stares that are currently being focused on me?"


    "So you do know what I''m talking about."


    "It''s not a big problem. I''m being watched, that''s all."


    "That''s all, huh."


    Even though I mentioned that I didn''t care, Kiry��in didn''t seem to think that was the case.


    "It looks like quite the frightening strategy to me. I''m sure it''s especially troublesome for someone with your personality."


    While she was just teasing, Kiry��in''s point was not wrong.


    "As expected of the Student Council President. He''s yed a bizarre, yet effective card against this wless person in front of me."


    "wless? I think you''re overestimating me."


    "Don''t be modest. We''rerades that have been through the line of fire together, so I know that your abilities are limitless, right?"


    The gaze lurking beneath the sunsses pierced me sharply. Even if I were to deny it, there were many students around, so I would have to be careful so as not to be overheard. Of course, Kiry��in would''ve taken the surrounding environment into consideration.


    "I understand, I''ll admit it for now."


    "Fufu, that''s fine. Now back to the topic at hand, did something happen with Nagumo during the final stages of the exam? At the very least, no orders were issued to the third-years until the end of the uninhabited ind exam."


    "There may have been something that would cause him to resent me...It''s frustrating that I can''t say that it''s not the case."


    Kiry��in, who''d been lying backfortably, sat up slightly.


    "In terms of individual strength, Nagumo Miyabi''s ability is top ss among the school. Academic Ability A, Physical Ability A, Adaptability A+ and Social Contribution A+. He cannot be faulted."


    "I know. As far as the OAA is concerned, his overall ability is overwhelming at the top of the school."


    There were a few students, like Sud�� and Kiry��in, who held an A+ rating in one ability. However, Nagumo was the only student with all A''s or higher, and the number of students with two A+ grades was extremely limited.


    "With his high academic and physical abilities, his charisma and ability to organize the school year, as well as the achievement of climbing to the top as the president of the student council, Nagumo has never faced a worthy opponent in his year group. The only person in the school who he recognised as his equal, Horikita Manabu, has graduated, and is thus no longer here."


    Kiry��in sighed and picked up the ss on the table next to her.


    "To Nagumo, you should''ve been nothing more than a toy. However, something happened during the uninhabited ind exam that has caused him to take you seriously."


    "It would be best to leave someone like me alone."


    "If that''s the case, then you''ve made a seriously bad choice somewhere along the line." Kiry��in spoke harshly, showing no mercy. "There are probably only a handful of people that can defeat you one-on-one. I''m pretty confident in my ability, but if there''s one type I''m not good with, it would be someone like you, Ayanok��ji. But Nagumo''s case ispletely different. I can tell that he''s the type of person you''re no good at dealing with. Am I right?"


    "I can''t deny that possibility anymore. I misjudged his true character."


    They were only looking at me, but I didn''t realise how stressful and disgusting it would make me feel. There were always eyes watching in the White Room, but this waspletely different.


    In other words, I was forced to live in an environment I had never experienced before in my life. Moreover, the only way to escape was to hide indoors, which wasn''t a practical solution at all.


    "That''s about right. Nagumo tends to prefer shy moves and one-on-ones, but when ites to ensuring his victory, he''ll use any strategy to win. Even if it means mobilizing the entire third year. He''ll prioritise winning, no matter what it takes."


    His gathering of the crowd was just the beginning.


    "I''m sorry, but I can''t help you with this one," she said, covering her eyes with the sunsses that had been resting on her forehead.


    "I never once said that I wanted to rely on you."


    As if trying to get ahead of me, Kiry��in refused to cooperate.


    "For three years I''ve been free to do as I please, but...I do have one small regret regarding my school life. If there were a retention system at this school, I might''ve considered it."


    Retention, in other words repeating a grade without advancing. To put it bluntly, she wanted to stay.


    "So you were here, Ayanok��ji."


    As I was talking to Kiry��in, Vice President Kiriyama showed up. It seemed Kiriyama, who was wearing a serious expression, had arrived much earlier than promised. After taking a nce at the lounging Kiry��in beside me, he turned to look back in my direction.


    "We''ve still got a few minutes until the scheduled time, but you don''t mind if we get started, do you? This isn''t the best ce for it, let''s move."


    "''This isn''t for you to hear'', is what you''re trying to say, right Kiriyama?"


    Even though she said couldn''t help me, it seemed she was interested in what he wanted to talk about. She lifted the sunsses she had just put on back to her forehead.


    "It''s just that we would attract too much attention here. If we can, I''d like to speak in a quiet ce."


    Because the poolside was so popr, arge number of students were hanging around here. Well, for some reason, only the seat next to Kiry��in was empty, but I didn''t think I needed to look too deeply into that.


    "That''s funny, saying that you don''t want to attract too much attention. That''s a contradiction, Kiriyama."


    "What?"


    "If you wanted to talk in a quiet ce, to choose the pool where so many people are gathered is nonsense. Am I wrong?"


    "So you would''ve preferred if I told you from the start that I don''t want to be around you, so I want to move?" Kiriyama spat out after Kiry��in interrupted him.


    The expression on his face waspletely dead, devoid of any emotion. The fact that Kiry��in had been a pain for him to deal with so far was obvious.


    "I see, you''re saying I make you feel ufortable."


    Whenever a conversation starts, it revolves around Kiry��in. Kiriyama didn''t want to deal with that, so he made a move to escape, but on the contrary, it provided the opportunity for Kiry��in to bulldoze in.


    "Anyway, how about you let me listen in on what you were going to talk about?"


    "I refuse. It''s got nothing to do with you."


    "Nothing to do with me? I don''t see how you can just assume it''s of no concern to me."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Ayanok��ji and I are in a romantic rtionship. If that''s the case, how can it have nothing to do with me?"


    Eh?


    Before his reaction leaked out, Kiriyama looked between me and Kiry��in alternately with a stunned expression on his face.


    "Fufu, it''s a joke Kiriyama. You''re a real boring guy, but if I consider just your reactions, you can be amusing at times."


    When Kiriyama saw Kiry��inughing merrily, he seemed to explode with anger. He started walking without saying another word.


    ''Leave that woman ande with me quickly'' seemed to be what he was getting at.


    "I can''t ignore this, so I''ll take my leave, Kiry��in-senpai."


    "Give my regards to Kiriyama."


    I''d rather not. Even if she wasn''t there in person, he probably wouldn''t want to hear Kiry��in''s name being uttered.


    Following Kiriyama, who walked ahead of me, we arrived on the deck one floor above which overlooked the pool. Many students were napping or sunbathing, but it was aparatively quieter ce. Even so, because of the kind of students that were here, it could conversely make our conversation stand out even more.


    However, there was not a single third-year student present. Kiriyama must''ve paid them off. That meant that first and second-years shouldn''t care about the conversation between me and Kiriyama. Another saving grace was that there was nobody waiting for us, allowing me to have a one-on-one conversation with Kiriyama.


    "So, why did you want to bring me all the way out here?"


    "I won''t beat around the bush. What did you do to Nagumo on thest day of the uninhabited ind exam, Ayanok��ji?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "Quit messing around. It''s obvious you had something to do with the results of the exam."


    On thest day of the exam, when Nagumo and I met, I overheard from the transceiver that they were enacting a strategy to suppress K��enji. It wouldn''t be strange if Kiriyama had already grasped what happened.


    "I have no problem answering, but before that, could you answer my question first?"


    "Your question?"


    Yes. There was one thing I wanted to check out when he called me out like this.


    As Kiriyama looked at me suspiciously, I continued. "It''s a question I''ve had since I first met you, Vice President Kiriyama. Initially, it looked like you were working to take down Nagumo. At what point did you stop fighting...? Did you give up?"


    If Kiriyama was still hoping for Nagumo''s downfall, it should''ve been a wee development.


    "Give up? I don''t know what you mean. My personal fight is still going on."


    "Is that so? It doesn''t look like that to me."


    After denying it, Kiriyama seemed to immediately understand what I was getting at.


    "You seem to think that I''m on Nagumo''s side, but that''s incorrect. Now that Nagumo''s n has changed, the others and I have started to see the adverse effects. I believe I told you before the uninhabited ind exam, don''t get in my way."


    That one remark was a rather ordinary denial from Kiriyama. However, human beings were prone to little gaffes like that.


    "That''s a broad interpretation. I was simply talking about whether or not you''ve given up the fight, but Kiriyama-senpai, you seem to be very conscious of whether youe across as being on the Student Council President''s side."


    "...Aren''t those the same thing?"


    "Admitting defeat and changing sides are not even close to being the same thing. They arepletely different. If it''s that much, even you should understand, right?"


    Proud people who categorize themselves as superior think they will never make a mistake. That''s why, if they pre-emptively say to themselves ''I''m so great, there''s no way I could be wrong, right?'', it makes it even more difficult to admit they made a mistake.


    "What are you trying to say?"


    Neither admitting nor denying it, Kiriyama tried to continue the conversation. Right now, out of the choices avable to him, the easiest option was to ignore it.


    "I simply wanted to ask you where you stand. You''ve given up fighting, but the fact you oppose Nagumo hasn''t changed? Or are you under Nagumo''s thumb? After all, this was a case that Horikita Manabu entrusted to me."


    Hearing Manabu''s name for the first time in a while, Kiriyama''s face hardened.


    "...That was the case, wasn''t it...?" Maybe he was remembering the first time he and I met. "Thinking back, this rtionship between you, me, Nagumo and Horikita-senpai...in short, the student council, you never had any interest in it whatsoever. In that sense, it wasn''t right to involve you in all this."


    He ced his left hand on the railing and gripped it tightly.


    "It''s true that I wanted to take down Nagumo. If we couldn''t beat him, it would be impossible for our ss to rise back up to ss A. However, that spirit gradually faded away by the time we reached the middle of our second year."


    The current third-years had allowed ss A to run unchallenged far more than us second-years. At the moment, the difference between third-year ss A and third-year ss B was more than 900 ss points. Even at the midpoint ofst year, they should''ve been over 700 points ahead. They allowed Nagumo to run off with the lead early on and it had now reached a point where they couldn''t catch up.


    "We third-years shifted to an individualpetition early on. ss points and school rules were of secondary importance, and we started ying ording to the original rules proposed by Nagumo."


    This was a big reason behind his running away with thepetition. Once that happened, it would''ve been too high of a hurdle for Kiriyama to face alone.


    "I struggled to break out of it, but as soon as I became a third-year, I was swept up in that wave."


    Regret? Resignation? Kiriyama showed an indescribable profile.


    "What happened after you were swallowed up by that wave?"


    "Hmph...It seems you won''t be satisfied unless you hear it clearly from my own mouth."


    "It''s very important to me after all."


    "Nagumo handed me a ticket to graduate from ss A, so I decided to follow the rules that he made up...That''s what you wanted to hear, right?"


    In other words, the position he was in meant that not only was he no longer hostile towards him, but he''d be one of Nagumo''s allies. That was how important it was for ordinary students to graduate from ss A. It was proof of just how much value and appeal 20 million points has.


    "Whether or not you take advantage of this school''s greatest privilege will have an enormous effect on the rest of your life. Regardless of how my ssmates may end up feeling about me, graduating from ss A is most important. These three years of high school are a blink of an eyepared to the decades of your life thate after."


    It was only natural that Kiriyama was feeling indignant and wanted to know all of the details, even calling me out here to exin.


    "It was our mission to make sure that Nagumo took first ce. But your involvement disrupted the chain ofmand, leaving K��enji to take first ce while Nagumo fell to second. The result was a significant loss in both ss and private points. Do you have any idea how much?"


    It was confirmed on the OAA that Nagumo had a Trial card as well as a 7 Bonus cards in hisrge group. The amount of money lost by not taking first ce amounted to 7 million points alone. Furthermore, if all of the third-year''s 28 Free Ride cards had been designated to Nagumo''s group, they would have received an additional reward of nearly 15 million private points. However, they received less than half that due to Nagumo''s group falling to second ce. Of course, it was a massive amount of money. If you included the bonus for the ss points from the trial card, the loss was even greater.


    "With graduation imminent, it''s a huge loss for us third-year students to miss out on first ce. We need to gather private points without wasting a single one."


    Considering that Kiriyama''s group had also used ''Bonus'' cards with the intention of getting second ce, the third year had lost even more private points than I had just calcted.


    "The fact that your group couldn''t win any additional points from cing in the top three is not irrelevant, Kiriyama-senpai."


    When I pointed that out to him, his shoulders twitched slightly.


    "...Yeah. I was dispatched as backup for Nagumo''s group on short notice and the slight dy in response had repercussions on all sides in the end. We didn''t just lose to K��enji, another group of second-years took third ce from us too."


    If everything went to n, the third-year would''ve gained a massive amount of private points. Although this was just a rough estimate, it was exactly the kind of money that could save a few of Nagumo''s allies.


    "It costs 20 million points for a ticket to ss A, so we''re always looking for the best way to procure points. After this, you could say we''re one ticket down."


    For the uninhabited ind exam, the rewards at the top end were very attractive, but when it came to private points, the Bonus and Free Ride cards could have a great effect.


    "Until now, Nagumo has been producing results and has therefore earned the trust of the entire year. But bying here and clinging to you, he''s suffered a wound; losing both trust and money. Even so, if he switched his focus off of you, the problem would be minimal...But after the special exam...Nagumo took an unbelievable step."


    "The unexpected expulsion of third-years, yes?"


    "That''s right. The original n was for the top groups to pick up the groups that had deliberately been ced at the bottom and save them from dropping out at the end of the test."


    However, because this wasn''t done, the third-year students in the lower groups were expelled en masse.


    "Unable to do anything, those fifteen people were expelled. They didn''t even have time to cry out."


    "It''s terrifying isn''t it? From the point of view of a third-year student that is."


    "Of course it is. A single whim and thesest three years would amount to nothing. If it''s because of their own actions, they would just give up, but if it''s because of Nagumo''s unreasonable behaviour, it''s a different story."


    If all of this were really true, it should be a wake-up call for the students that had been following him blindly. Rather, it was unusual that the third-year students hadn''t shown any signs of disobeying Nagumo even after this incident.


    "You think it''s strange? That Nagumo isn''t being used of anything?"


    "It''s a huge blunder after all. It seems the students that don''t have tickets in ss B and below are still keeping quiet."


    "Even if they want to defy him, they can''t. Nagumo and the students with a ticket to third-year ss A are protected by an imprable fortress."


    An imprable fortress. So a system has been set up so that the other sses cannot go against him. In that case...This mystery can be solved by asking a single question.


    "Vice President Kiriyama, you have the ticket to ss A in your possession right now, right?"


    Normally, this question would be answered with a simple ''yes''. Even so, Kiriyama replied in a blink of an eye without changing his expression.


    "If I had the ticket in my possession right now, I wouldn''t have any problems."


    "I see. If Nagumo was holding onto that ticket, it would certainly be a different story."


    I mean, it wasn''t surprising, but Nagumo had a cunning strategy. If Nagumo controlled all the private points, then nobody could go against him. Put simply, he made a verbal promise to spend 20 million points to rescue them and bring them up to ss A. No, it may be a bit na?ve to call it a promise.


    If you continue to be loyal to me, I will provide you with a ticket.


    It was safe to assume that he was avoiding explicit statements by using vague expressions. If they were to go against him in this situation, Nagumo would vite that promise without a second thought.


    "It''s also forbidden to umte your own private points. Individuals are free to hold up to 500,000 points. Anything beyond that is syphoned off to Nagumo."


    "Sounds tough."


    Unlike hiding cash under your mattress, private points were an electronic currency that couldn''t be hidden. They would probably have rules in ce to supervise each other.


    Even if they were able to kick Nagumo out of the school by some means, he would then be expelled with his tens or even hundreds of millions of private points, and they would be left with nothing. This also meant that even if they wanted to rebel, they could never seed.


    "Now you know why the third-years put Nagumo on a pedestal and protect him, right?"


    "I understand."


    You could say it was the perfect dictatorship. It was impossible for anyone within their year to oppose Nagumo.


    "That guy has been ying around with the entire third year. The students without tickets are made topete against each other, and then he''ll make a show of giving the winning guy a ticket and make him pledge his allegiance."


    He was just ying around of course, but from the point of view of students in ss C and D who had no chance of winning in the conventional way, Nagumo must be seen as nothing but a God. If you can be useful, you can graduate from ss A. Since that was what he says, his support was not surprising. However, they wouldn''t know for sure until they actually moved sses just before graduation.


    "With what little school life we have left, we want to fight andpete, even if it''s for just one more ticket. That''s why your existence is just a hindrance, Ayanok��ji."


    Because he was focusing his attention on me, Nagumo was losing out on precious private points. The resulting loss would mean that students who could''ve been saved, would no longer be saveable.


    So this was the situation that the third-years were in now.


    "But do you really think I chose to be in this situation?"


    "I know."


    "So, what do you want from me?"


    "Let''s go back to where we started. Tell me about what happened on the uninhabited ind, and then we''ll find a solution."


    "I thought Nagumo didn''t want that? He didn''t tell even you, the Vice President, what happened, right?"


    "...That may be true, but letting it go won''t solve anything."


    So he wanted to stop Nagumo''s reckless actions, even if it meant risking losing his ticket. No, he was concerned that if he didn''t stop it, something mighte up that affects his own ticket.


    "If you''re not going to talk to me, I want you to go meet Nagumo right now and talk to him instead. I''ll even set up the meeting if you need me to. Nobody will benefit from you and Nagumo getting into a fight in the future, right?"


    "You''re absolutely right."


    "I''ll make sure to advise Nagumo to stop the current operation he''s carrying out. I want you to trust me."


    The operation he''s carrying out. There was no need to ask him what that could be referring to.


    "You mean the stares everyone is sending my way, yes?"


    Kiriyama looked down towards the pool and nodded.


    "What is its purpose, and how long will itst? There was no exnation for any of it. There''s a growing sense of distrust among the third-year students at this bizarre behaviour."


    Despite theirck of trust, they had no choice but to obey Nagumo, who held all the cards.


    "The Nagumo administration is rock solid, but... If we continue with this nonsense, the worst could happen."


    Kiriyama and the others who had been given tickets would surely continue to follow him faithfully, but the same couldn''t be said for the many students who didn''t have one. Kiriyama couldn''t let something like an uprising happen. If they knew they wouldn''t get a ticket from him, it wouldn''t be surprising if they were nning to expel Nagumo. For Kiriyama and the others, that would be the worst case scenario.


    "I don''t think the story would just end there if I said I''d agree to meet with him though."


    "Then what would you have me do? You won''t tell me the details, but you won''t see Nagumo either. As it is, this is only going to get worse."


    "Could you give me some time? I will definitely have an answer for you soon."


    It was likely that Kiriyama would receive further information not from me, but from Nagumo.


    "...That''s fine. But you have to make a decision before Nagumo makes his next move."


    Kiriyama, who had been looking around the pool area, quickly noticed someone''s entrance. Of course, it was the person who had been the focus of our conversation, Nagumo.


    "I''m going. If he knew we were meeting, things would be even more troublesome."


    I think that would be wise. Kiriyama must have taken a considerable risk by making contact today. It was worthing here just to understand the situation of the third-year students.

 Chapter 161: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 161: 2.1</h4>


    As Nagumo and his allies started arriving at the pool, I quickly withdrew.


    Even if I didn''t initiate contact, I knew that he would send a messenger from his side if he wanted to talk to me directly. The fact that that hadn''t happened could be interpreted as him having no intention of talking to me.


    In any case, it wasn''t pleasant to be the centre of attention.


    After I escaped, just as I had finished getting dressed in the changing room����


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai!"


    I encountered Nanase, who saw me walking along the corridor and ran up to me with a cheerful look on her face.


    Since there were so few ces you could go on the ship, you would repeatedly pass by students you recognise, and so seeing each other two days in a row wasn''t that unusual.


    That being said, because the way she appeared waspletely identical, I was reminded of the encounter we had yesterday.


    "Could I have a moment of your time, please?"


    She was checking my surroundings to make sure that I wasn''t with anyone else. I was with Ishizaki yesterday, so she might not have been able to talk about it back then.


    Somewhat disconcerted by her intense pressure, or rather, her close proximity, I nodded.


    "Actually, I''m not sure if I should report this, but um, there''s something that''s been bothering me."


    "Something bothering you?"


    Nanase nodded and her cheerful expression was reced by a more serious one. She then spoke in a whisper, paying close attention to our surroundings.


    "There''s something I kept quiet about, senpai. If I tell you, you might get angry..."


    I might get angry? What on earth could it be?


    "The thing is..."


    Whispering even more quietly, Nanase was about to speak up about what she was keeping quiet, but...


    "Oh? Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    A voice she didn''t recognise called out, and Nanase hurriedly distanced herself from me.


    It was Ichinose''s ssmate, Kobashi Yume. In the past, we wouldn''t have even greeted each other if we passed each other at school. However, we spent some time together during the uninhabited ind exam, albeit briefly, and it seemed to have brought a change in our rtionship.


    "Oh, was I a bother...? Maybe I should have waited..." she said apologetically, perhaps noticing Nanase hiding behind my body.


    "No, it''s okay. I was just asking Ayanok��ji-senpai about something I didn''t understand."


    "Are you sure it''s okay?"


    Nanase nodded vigorously twice, as if to say it wasn''t as serious as I was thinking.


    "I''ll call on you again when you have more time."


    The only thing I knew for sure was that it wasn''t something for other students to hear.


    Nanase bowed deeply not only to me, but also to Kobashi, and ran off.


    "Ah, sorry, I didn''t realise you were in the middle of a conversation. That girl''s a first-year right? Did I upset her?"


    "I don''t think you need to worry about that. More importantly, you wanted something from me?"


    "Actually, the girls in my ss are going to have a party tonight to celebrate the end of the exam. We were wondering if you''d like to join us, Ayanok��ji-kun. We also wanted to thank you for helping Chihiro-chan."


    So it was an invitation. However, the key phrase "girls in the ss" stuck with me.


    "What kind of people are going to be there?"


    I was worried so I went to check, but Kobashi just tilted her head with a "hmm".


    "Right now, I guess we''re still fine-tuning who ising and whatnot. There are no weirdos so you don''t need to worry so much."


    It wasn''t that I was afraid of a strange person participating, but she didn''t seem to understand.


    "It''s only students from your ss, right Kobashi? Would it be okay for an outsider like me to join?


    "Really? It''s nothing like that. Hey, hey, so how about it?"


    It was an invitation to a fluffy, abstract celebration party. To be honest, I wasn''t really interested in going as there weren''t very many people in Ichinose''s ss that I was close with. It was doubtful I''d be able to have a good conversation with Ichinose, especially right now. I felt a little regretful, but I decided to decline.


    "Nah, I''ll pa����"


    Seeing that I was about to refuse, Kobashi sped her hands together and cut me off.


    "Please! This was like, a fateful meeting, right?"


    It was hard to say no when she put it like that, but I couldn''t give in so easily. I could see that if I just went with the flow here, it wouldn''t be good for meter.


    "You mean it''s my fault...right?"


    "Huh?"


    "Yeah, I guess it''s no use. I''ll properly report what happened here to everyone in the ss. I invited Ayanok��ji-kun to the party, but I was turned down because my invitation wasn''t good enough."


    "Wait. Why would it end up like that?"


    "So you''re going toe?"


    "...That''s..."


    "Oh you do hate it, don''t you? Ahh, if only I could have asked you out a little better... I''m sorry everyone."


    "It would be a problem if you get so depressed..."


    "You only need to show your face...! Please, even just that! And Honami-chan ising too!"


    She sped her hands together once again, this time with more force than before. After she hade this far, it was as if there was no way out of this situation.


    "Fine, I get it. I really just need to show my face, right?"


    "Yes, thank you! Ah, but don''t tell Honami-chan you''reing to the partyter, okay?"


    She showed a smile so bright that it was hard to believe that she had been sad and depressed just moments ago. It was often said that women were born actresses. But don''t tell Ichinose? That part stuck out to me a little.


    "Why keep it a secret? I''d like to ask permission from everyone to see if it''s okay for me to join."


    If even one student didn''t want me to participate, I''d prefer it if they told me without reservation. If that were to happen, I could say no again unequivocally, this time in the name of the greater good.


    "You know...that''s just...well...Don''t you think it would be better as a surprise, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    I couldn''t help but think it would be a surprise of the unpleasant sort. I didn''t really want to get into it, but it seemed that her ssmates had a lot on their minds regarding me and Ichinose.


    "Well then, we''ll be waiting for you in room 5034 at 8pm, okay?"


    "Room 5034...You''re doing it in someone''s room?"


    I thought we would be using a rest area or a deck somewhere. Moreover, I could tell from the room number that this was a room where girls, not boys, were staying.


    "Is that a problem?"


    "It''s not that it''s a problem...I just feel like I''ll have a harder time getting there."


    "That''s not the case. Right?"


    Somehow, Kobashi''s ''right?'' left me overwhelmed and on the defensive. One after the other, my possible escape routes were being taken away.


    "I''ll be waiting for you then! You definitely have toe!"


    Perhaps satisfied with my promise, Kobashi walked away a little too fast.


    "Ah, I give up."


    It wasn''t really the right time to talk to Ichinose face to face. Well, I guess if it was going to be in a crowd it would be fine. If it was a party to celebrate the end of the exam, there should be more than a few boys in attendance.

 Chapter 162: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 162: 2.2</h4>


    After all that, I didn''t feel like ying around and spent my time feeling gloomy in my room. I finished my 6pm dinner, and in no time at all, it was just before 8pm.


    "I guess I should go..."


    If I could choose again right now whether to go or not, I would choose ''I''m not going'' right away. It wasn''t a particrly wee invitation, but if I really didn''t want to go, I should''ve refused without hesitation. This was all because I gave such a half-hearted response, so I guess I had no choice but to live with my mistake. I was determined, but...when I arrived in front of room 5034, I just stood there.


    A minute had already passed since I first arrived. I was going to knock, but I could hear the asional sounds of girls talking andughing from inside the room. The presence of any boys...couldn''t be felt at all right now.


    I could only have a bad feeling about this. I wasn''t sure why, but I felt like I was starting to sweat. What I was sure of, was that I was more nervous now than when I had to face Tsukishiro during the uninhabited ind exam.


    "No, wouldn''t it be wiser to just turn around right now?"


    The whisper of a devil leaked out of my throat. Wouldn''t I take less damage if I just said I forgot and apologizedter? That could work, but I''d like to avoid being branded as a person who breaks his promises.


    What on earth should I do...?


    I was in a bind and felt like I couldn''t move when the spell was suddenly broken by an unexpected interruption.


    "Oh, you came!"


    It was Kobashi who appeared from down the hall. I didn''t know if it was just bad timing or what...


    In Kobashi''s hand was arge stic bag filled with snacks and small bottles of juice. Once I was spotted, running away was no longer an option.


    "I think everyone''s already here, so don''t hesitate ande in."


    "Y-yeah... I was just about to."


    Escape was no longer allowed. The door that I had felt was too heavy to open was opened easily, without hesitation by Kobashi. Was it really okay to open it so trivially? I wanted to prepare myself a little more...


    As I was thinking that, the only barrier that separated me from the guest cabin was removed. Rather than sight, the first of my senses to be stimted was smell. There was a sweet aroma in the air, like flowers or honey. And right after that, a girl''s, or more urately, several girls'' eyeballs caught sight of me.


    "Ta-da! I brought Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    It was a four person room, so it wasn''t exactly spacious, with girls spread out sitting all over the ce. What is this world in front of me? 1, 2, 3...with Kobashi included, there were 10 of them in total. In other words, half of the girls in Ichinose''s ss were here.


    Moreover, there wasn''t the slightest hint of any boys, which almost made me feel like I had been betrayed.


    "Hey, saying you brought him is a bit rude, Yume-chan~!"


    "Really? Oh, I bought what you asked for~"


    She ced the stic bag on a small table near the bed of this small room.


    What was up with this fluffy, light-hearted gathering? It was definitely a little different to Kei and her group of girls. Most of the members participating were girls that I had never spoken to before, but I remembered their names and faces from the OAA app.


    I was so taken aback by the sight that I couldn''t move, and I felt Kobashi tap my back lightly. "Then, I wonder where we should put Ayanok��ji-kun~? Ah, how about next to Honami-chan?"


    While it was true that Ichinose was the person I was closest to out of everyone here, Kobashi didn''t even think before assigning my ce. I didn''t think there was any choice to be made in the first ce due to how small the room is...but it seemed like she never intended to give me the right to decide anyway.


    Another curious thing was that despite the fact that there were 10 people in the room, there was enough space for a boy to sit next to Ichinose right from the beginning.


    In other words, it wasn''t a coincidence that there was a space there, but most likely a predetermined move. I thought back to when Kobashi invited me in the afternoon andpared it...I wasn''t sure that doing something like this was going to help in the current situation.


    In any case, standing here like this with 10 people staring at me would only make me ufortable, so I hurriedly made my way through the girls, apologizing for the disruption, and arrived at Ichinose''s side.


    "...May I sit here?"


    "O-of course you can."


    After hearing her brief reply, I sat down next to Ichinose, but everyone''s attention was still on me. Or perhaps it would be better to say that everyone besides Ichinose, Kobashi and a student named Himeno, were watching me carefully, as if evaluating me. No, I needed to stay calm and keep a low profile. Then, when the timing was right, I should be able to slip out quietly.


    Kobashi poured some tea into a clear cup and handed it to me. As soon as everyone had their drinks, Amikura, who seemed to be the one hosting this get-together, spoke up.


    "So, without further ado...We''re having a party to celebrate the end of the uninhabited ind exam and also to thank Ayanok��ji-kun for helping Chihiro-chan when she was lost. Cheers!"


    Hearing these words, everyone raised their cups.


    "Well, first of all, thank you Ayanok��ji-kun. I really appreciate your help from that time."


    It was Shiranami, who was sitting to Ichinose''s left, that spoke up to thank me. I really hadn''t done anything to deserve these repeated thanks... For now, I just nodded my head slightly, as I couldn''t further the conversation.


    "Um, Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    Personally, I''d like to say that the party was in full swing, but unfortunately only about ten minutes had passed when Shiranami suddenly faced my direction with a serious expression.


    "What is it...?"


    She clenched her hand around her can of orange juice, as if to motivate herself to say something.


    "I''m grateful to you for your help...but I just can''t ept it yet."


    "...Huh?"


    Without borating, Shiranami left it at that and squeezed the orange juice down her throat.


    "Phuaa! I can''t say any more!"


    No, no, what are you talking about...?


    I was left behind, and the people around Shiranami showered her with words of encouragement and praise, saying she had done well and worked hard. Shiranami was acting shy and embarrassed, as if this wasn''t all that bad, but seriously, what are you talking about...?


    However, when you''re an outsider, you can''t ask a question like that in return.


    Shiranami talked to me at the beginning of the celebration, but after that, the girls started talking about their own problems. I just sat there watching their conversation unfold, meek as amb. Of course, if you were to ask me if I wasfortable, the answer would be a resounding no.


    At any rate...It was amazing how the girls'' conversation progressed, with new topicsing up one after the other. The topic of conversation, regardless of genre, was as busy as an airne flying around Japan. However, no matter the topic, there was one thing inmon.


    That was because most of these girls centred their lives around Ichinose, having great trust and a blind faith in her. I wouldn''t necessarily say that was a bad thing.


    Ichinose Honami was unquestionably the most trustworthy student among the second-years. This was true regardless of whether you were a friend or foe.


    The criterion for what constitutes trustworthiness depends on the individual, but I''d like to think that trust was something that was built up on a daily basis. No one would trust a person who had never spoken before if they suddenly said ''trust me''.


    However, there was a difference between being trusting and having blind faith. Because even if Ichinose is a trustworthy person, there are times when she''ll make the wrong decision. If you continued to trust a person that kept making wrong decisions, you wouldn''t see any results. There was always a need for people who could point out when something was wrong in order to correct it.


    "Can I have a moment?"


    As their excitement peaked, one of the girls, who had so far only shown the asional gesture, raised her hand.


    "What''s the matter, Yuki-chan?"


    "The usual headache. Sorry, but I''m feeling tired, so can I go back to my room? I feel really heavy."


    Normally, I wouldn''t have paid any attention to such an ordinary, throwaway statement, but I was surprised by the tone of her voice. This was because Ichinose''s ss was filled with fundamentally polite, decent students.


    Himeno revealed that she wasn''t feeling well and wished to go back to her room.


    "Of course, should I go with you?"


    Ichinose and the other girls, hearing about their friend''s condition, hurriedly called out to Himeno.


    "Ah, it''s fine, it''s fine. I''m not a child..."


    Himeno stood up, looking fed up with their overprotective behaviour. So there was a student like this in Ichinose''s ss, huh? As I recall, all of the people in Himeno Yuki''s group during the uninhabited ind exam were from the same ss.


    Anyway, the atmosphere preventing me from leaving seemed to have changed slightly. If I let this opportunity pass, I had no idea when I would be able to leave this ce. I had to be bold and follow Himeno''s lead.


    "Well then, I guess I''d better get going."


    "Eh, you''re leaving already? You could''ve stayed way longer."


    "No, I was only nning to show my face briefly, and I have ns to meet up with someer."


    If I told them I had ns, Ichinose and the others wouldn''t try to hold me back.


    "Well, then I''ll see youter, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    With Ichinose and the other girls sitting pretty, I got up and left the room.

 Chapter 163: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 163: 2.3</h4>


    "Phew...I was about to break into a strange sweat."


    No, it was safe to say I was already sweating.


    Less than 30 seconds after Himeno left the room, I also slipped out of the demonic room 5034. It may be heaven for some people, but for me, I''m sorry, but it was a painful ce to be. I couldn''t say I was very good at interpersonal rtionships after all. If I hadmitted to that kind of thing from the start, it might''ve been a different story, but I decided to y the role of an inconspicuous high school student. Suddenly changing that was no simple task.


    However, since I hadn''t had much contact with Ichinose''s ss before now, I think I was able to close the distance to a certain extent. With Ichinose at the centre, I was able to get a vague idea of the students surrounding her. What do they have and what are they missing? At this point, I knew the strengths and weaknesses of Ichinose''s ss.


    The presence of students who could speak up was essential, no matter who was in charge in future. The only person I could think of who could do that right now was Kanzaki from the boys in the ss. However, in a ss that revolved around Ichinose, the girls seemed to have just as much influence as the boys.


    Kanzaki was the type of person who could speak up against Ichinose, but whether he could appeal to the whole ss and control the girls was an entirely different matter.


    "Hmm?"


    Himenoined about having a headache and said she was going back to her room, but she walked in apletely different direction from the guest cabins. I only caught a glimpse of her as she turned the corner, but I was sure I didn''t mistake her for someone else, as she had a very distinctive hair colour.


    Himeno, the one who seemed to be a bit out of ce during the girls'' party earlier. She was acting a little suspicious, so I decided to follow her.


    It was alreadyte at night when we arrived at our destination, the stern of the ship, so there was no sign of life. I watched her profile from a distance and recalled Himeno Yuki''s OAA scores.


    Second-Year ss B Himeno Yuki:


    Academic Ability: B- (63)


    Physical Ability: C (51)


    Adaptability: C+ (58)


    Social Contribution: C+ (58)


    Overall Ability: C+ (57)


    Except for a high level of academic ability, they were neither good nor bad, and as far as I could tell, she didn''t possess any outstanding abilities. However, that was just from what the school had decided. It was possible for students to have hidden strengths and weaknesses that couldn''t be seen from the school''s perspective. I''d like to keep digging a little more. The fastest route would be to speak with her directly.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Huh...? What?"


    She averted her eyes with a slightly displeased look on her face. It was unnatural for her to be here since she left the room iming she had a headache.


    "Is your headache gone?"


    She muttered a few words which were mostly drowned out by the wind, but I thought I made out the word ''annoying''. There certainly were a few boys and girls who used abusivenguage, but in Himeno''s case, rather than to be offensive, it seemed she spoke like that so that others would keep their distance.


    However, perhaps concerned about how others would view her, she cleared her throat once and turned her gaze in my direction.


    "I thought that the breeze might help it ease up a little, so I was just stopping by."


    "Do you get headaches often? You said something along those lines earlier."


    I nned to ask her for more details, but she kept quiet, as if she didn''t want to continue this conversation any further. She hadn''t said a single word during the party, except for when she was leaving. In addition to that, the other girls basically never approached Himeno.


    It wasn''t like she was being bullied as Ichinose would never tolerate such a thing. Also, if their rtionship was so bad, they wouldn''t want to show it to someone from another ss like me. In that case...


    They must''ve half forced Himeno toe to the party. If I thought about it as them desperately trying to get a ssmate to have fun, even if just a little, I could see the connection.


    "It''s because I get migraines."


    She gave a short reply, in a cluttered manner.


    "If it''s a migraine, cooling it down is the correct response."


    Migraines are caused by the dtion of cerebral blood vessels due to changes in hormones, fatigue andck of sleep. Blood vessels dte less when cooled, so exposure to a cold breeze wasn''t a bad idea.


    However, that was only if it really was a migraine.


    She was about to start speaking, but I cut her off.


    "Isn''t your headache just an excuse to get out of an unpleasant situation?"


    "Huh? Are you saying I''m a liar?"


    Himeno had been rtively calm up to this point, but when I suggested she might be lying, her face changed. She was a rare type of person for Ichinose''s ss, where there were so many mild-mannered students.


    My intuition wasn''t wrong after all.


    "I can see you''re pissed off, did I hit the nail on the head?"


    "You''re wrong. Oh, what''s this? Ah, my head is starting to hurt again...I''m going back to my room."


    "I''m sorry if I upset you. It''s just, could you listen to me for a moment?"


    Holding her forehead, Himeno looked back in displeasure. "My headache is getting worse though?"


    "I''m sorry."


    "''I''m sorry'' you say...you think it''s a given that I''ll listen to you?"


    "You don''t seem to like this."


    "I don''t."


    The conversation flowed like a game of catch, and I could see it. This one seemed to be her true self.


    "Ah well, guess I have no choice." Do you understand now? I shrugged my shoulders in exasperation. "I guess I have to go back to the party now and let them know that Himeno might be faking her condition."


    "H-huh? Don''t go treating me like this is a fake illness. You liar."


    "Liar? I''m just saying you ''might'' be faking your condition. At least that''s the impression I got, so I''ve got the right to throw an usation. You can just prove whether or not it''s true or false in front of everyer."


    "There''s no way to prove a headache, is there?"


    "Maybe."


    "What the hell''s up with this? Everyone kept on praising you but you''ve got a nasty personality."


    "At the very least, I don''t believe they ever praised me for having a good personality, did they?"


    I didn''t really want to say it myself, but all they did was thank me for helping Shiranami.


    "Is that right...?"


    "In any case, you''re a strange one, Himeno. How to put it? It''s kind of unlike a member of Ichinose''s ss."


    "Strange? If you ask me, the people in my ss are too good-natured. Our ss tends to get together inrge groups to do everything. Well, I don''t mind that in and of itself, but the problem is that these meetings take too long, and nobody ever wants to leave."


    If I had to repeatedly go to meetings I didn''t like, I''d get fed up with it. However, Ichinose''s ssmates enjoy these gatherings. That was why nobody wanted to leave, which of course resulted in the meetings taking too long.


    "If you don''t like it, you don''t have to participate, right?"


    "Do you really think I can do that? Even if I think it''s irritating, it''s important to stay in line."


    "Well, I guess so."


    Their ss as a whole was a cohesive unit, and there was an especially strong sense of unity among the girls. Even if you were secretly unhappy, it would take a lot of courage to throw a stone and cause a ripple.


    Himeno. Perhaps my encountering her would be the one factor that would change the path her ss was headed on. Normally, I wouldn''t get deeply involved with Himeno, a person of the opposite sex, unless there was a special situation.


    However, it wouldn''t be such a bad idea to take a step forward here. Of course, if it ended up troubling Himeno, then so be it.


    "If you want to relieve stress, isn''t screaming the best thing to do?"


    "Screaming...? Even if I wanted to, I''d get in trouble if I screamed here."


    "Not many studentse to the back of the ship, and when you consider the sound of the engine and the wind, even if you screamed, it wouldn''t be heard. It would immediately be drowned out and disappear."


    "But..." She looked puzzled, as if she had never screamed with all her effort before. "Well, why don''t you go ahead and scream first?"


    "...Me?"


    I couldn''t help but feel flustered by her unexpected response.


    "I don''t really know much about you, but you seem rather quiet...You don''t seem like the type to scream out. If you show me how it''s done, I''ll try it myself."


    I was in trouble. I don''t remember ever feeling a strong sense of stress in my life, so if you were to ask if I had ever screamed out loud like I was suggesting, I''d say no.


    "If you can''t do it, hurry up and leave."


    If I were to back out now, this would probably be thest time I''d speak with Himeno.


    "I understand����"


    Having made up my mind, I screamed out into the ocean while Himeno watched.


    "Ah���������� Okay, now it''s your turn, Himeno."


    "...Are you kidding me?"


    "Not at all?"


    "Your voice didn''t have a shred of volume. Seriously, you''re messing with me."


    "Then show me how it''s done."


    "I won''t give you an example or any other shit after that."


    I spoke at Himeno''s back as she tried to leave in disgust. "I thought you said that if I did it, you would do it too, Himeno?"


    "No, no, I don''t care if you think you''ve done it, you''re just annoying."


    "Whatever the volume, I did respond to your request. But if your voice is just as low as mine, you have no right to make fun of me."


    To make sure she didn''t just scream in the same low voice, I pre-emptively shut her down.


    "Ah, shut up...I know, I know. I just have to do it once, right? Then you''ll leave me alone?"


    After taking a breath, Himeno put both her hands up in front of her mouth as if she had no choice.


    "WA������������������������!!!"


    The sound of the ship''s engine and the wind drowned out the rest of the world, so no one aside from me could hear it. However, a voice, twice as loud as I had imagined, echoed inside my ears. I felt like the ship was rocking...but it was only a feeling, it shouldn''t actually be shaking.


    Her usual speech and demeanour were that of a downer, her tone was low and her voice was subdued. However, in actuality, she had a tremendously powerful voice.


    "Hah...That felt refreshing."


    Himeno nodded in satisfaction, seemingly unconcerned by my surprised reaction.


    "Right? I also felt better after screaming."


    "No, no, you didn''t scream at all."


    She poked and prodded me while sending me a cold re, like she was looking down on me.


    "Well...I think I could''ve done better if I was under more stress."


    "Yeah? It really didn''t look that way to me though."


    "You were much better than I thought you''d be. You must''ve been under a lot of stress."


    "Ha? I''ll kill you, you know?"


    She gave me a very sharp look. Even when she was angry, she would always use her mouth before her hands and feet.


    "I went a little too far."


    I honestly apologized for my behaviour, but she didn''t seem to be offended. Maybe this Himeno had a fearless side to her too.


    "I''m going back to my room."


    "Ah yeah, I''m sorry I held you up with all this."


    "If you know that you were in the wrong, that''s better yet."


    After saying this, Himeno returned to the ship.


    "I think I''ll head back to my room too."


    The party was supposed to be a celebration, but I felt unusually tired. It seemed I was going to have a deep sleep today.

 Chapter 164 - 3: Everyone’s Days Off

    <h4>Chapter 164: Chapter 3: Everyone��s Days Off</h4>


    Living on a cruise ship like this came with the problem of deciding where and what to eat for lunch every day.


    Breakfast and dinner were provided by the school in the form of a buffet and were free of charge. We were free to decide whether to use it or not, but not only was there no charge, it was also delicious and thus very popr with the students. It was so popr that admission was divided into three intervals between 7am and 9am to avoid congestion. The service was limited to 60 minutes or less, and you could make a reservation for your preferred time slot from your phone.


    I usually ate breakfast at 8am, but due to ate reservation, the 8-9am time slot was already fully booked for August 6th, so I had to eat a little earlier at 7am. Because of that, I was feeling strangely hungry despite it only being noon. Perhaps it was because my calorie intake was minimal during the uninhabited ind exam, but my body was craving energy.


    The caf�� terrace was a popr ce to dine, but the food prices were especially expensive. If you wanted to buy a lunch set that came with a drink, you''d need to spend at least 2000 points. If you wanted to eat while having fun with your friends, that might be fine, but I was alone today. In this situation, it was natural to want to save as much money as possible.


    That was why I was grateful for the existence of the store. It was a ce where one could easily purchase rice balls, sandwiches and other snacks, just like a convenience store.


    I promptly went to the store and bought a rice ball and a small bottle of tea for 250 points, and, carrying the stic bag in my hand, went to find a ce to eat.


    Any adequate rest area would do, but most of them were already upied, and I was firmly against the idea of sharing a small space with someone else. When I think of ces where I wouldn''t mind it even if there were a certain number of strangers in the vicinity, most of them would be outside.


    After much searching, I found myself on the deck nearest the bow on the sixth floor, overlooking the ocean. Naturally, it didn''t cost anything to use this area, so it was the perfect ce to eat snacks bought from the store.


    I thought I''d have a quick snack whilst taking in the magnificent view of the ocean, but I seemed to have chosen a bad time. There were a lot of students who hade here to enjoy the view, so it didn''t look like I''d be able to rx.


    It was a spacious deck, but there were a lot of people using it, so it would be difficult to find a good spot. I looked around for a vacant space to sit and found one empty bench and Nanase''s back sitting alone on the bench next to it. A sandwich, probably bought from the store, as well as a small carton of milky beside her. It was funny; it was the opposite of yesterday, where she was the one that found me.


    In addition to Nanase, I also saw my ssmates Ij��in and Okitani, Sakayanagi from ss A, and Nakaizumi and Suzuki from Ry��en''s ss. It seemed that many second-year students wanted to have lunch whilst looking out to the ocean, just like Nanase.


    Ultimately, people tend to think in the same way.


    I didn''t move from the spot and looked towards the ocean. Certainly, a meal eaten with this kind of view in front of you must be delicious.


    But...just as the number of students from the second-year was very high, this was also the case for the third-years.


    Although it was still only a few, the third-years that noticed my arrival immediately began keeping an eye on me. However, if I instantly walked away, it would prove that I didn''t like the stares and would be seen as running away. Doing so would risk encouraging the third-years as they would judge the strategy effective.


    Now that I think about it, Nanase seemed like she had something she wanted to talk to me about yesterday. I remembered that we were interrupted by Kobashi at the time, so I decided to call out to her. It would give me a good excuse to stop by this ce if I were to talk to her.


    "Nanase."


    When I called her name, she turned around in surprise.


    "Ah, senfai."


    It seemed she had just taken a bite out of her sandwich, and, taking great care not to let the contents spill out, she looked at me.


    I felt a little bad when I saw her hurriedly start gulping down her food. I was just using her as a means to counter the third-years, but I seem to have made her panic unnecessarily.


    "Oh, sorry. Should Ie backter?" I said, but Nanase''s personality would never let that happen.


    "Howd om, pwease waihd a bihd" She couldn''t spit it out after putting it in her mouth, so she started to chew. "Gulp...Um, I''m sorry, but actually...I was eating lunch."


    She spoke like she was confessing a secret, but I could tell she was eating lunch just by looking at her. If anything, I knew it from the moment I saw her back.


    "Um, is there something I can help you with?"


    Nanase was still looking somewhat flustered, which left me feeling a little strange. Her gaze was restless and she looked as if she couldn''t concentrate on her conversation with me.


    "Ah no, you seemed like you wanted to talk to me yesterday. I was just wondering what it was about. Back then, I was approached by Kobashi and you kind of drifted away."


    "Ah..."


    Her thoughts were a little slow and the words didn''te out right away. After pondering for a moment, Nanase shook her head from side to side.


    "I''m sorry, but I''ve already solved the problem myself, so could you just forget about it?"


    "I see. If that''s the case then it''s fine."


    If Nanase had a problem, I was going to offer advice since she had helped me in many ways, but if she''d already solved it, then I didn''t need to worry about it. Rather, the main reason was that I got a sense that this was something that just didn''t matter right now.


    "I''m sorry for calling out to you so suddenly. Then I''m going to head back. There are more people than I thought there''d be, so I can''t rx."


    "Is that so? Then I''ll see youter, senpai."


    I left as soon as I had finished my business.


    When I turned to look back at the deck onest time, Nanase was facing forwards and had resumed eating her lunch.

 Chapter 165: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 165: 3.1</h4>


    In the end, I made my way to the stern on the fifth floor, where there were fewer people, to have lunch. This was where I spoke with Himenost night, and I''d already confirmed that it was a ce that people rarely went to.


    For the next few minutes, forgetting my original goal ining here, I just stared at the rough waves created by the ship''s movement.


    At that moment, an unexpected person approached.


    "Are you going to eat lunch all on your own in a ce like this?"


    "Sakayanagi huh? You just here by coincidence?"


    She should''ve been on the same floor as Nanase until just a moment ago.


    "It was a coincidence. Or so I would like to say, but I''ve been chasing after you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She chased after me? But Sakayanagi''s legs were so bad that she shouldn''t have been able to keep up with my walking speed. That being said, there was no indication that she had someone follow me ahead of time.


    "It''s a simple deduction. You showed up on the deck by the bow earlier to have lunch, but gave up when you saw how crowded it was, right? With the snacks in your hands and the fact that you were looking for a view of the ocean, it wasn''t too difficult to predict where you would go to eat next."


    So she was saying that shepletely read my behaviour patterns and therefore arrived here.


    "So even you want to eat with a nice view, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Unlike the one by the bow, I can''t exactly say the view here is first ss, but it''s not every day you get to see the ocean like this."


    There was no guarantee that there''d be another uninhabited ind exam this time next year. There were other events nned for our second year, including a school trip, but I didn''t know the details yet. This may well be thest time I''d ever be able to see the ocean.


    "I''m sure you will experience many more sights that you have never seen before, just like this ocean. In that sense, I think you made the correct decision in choosing toe to this school, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Yes, that''s right, I think so too. However, I did actually see the ocean once before entering this school."


    Sakayanagi unexpectedly looked a little surprised. No, it wasn''t unreasonable that she was surprised. In truth, I didn''t leave the facility even once until I was 14 years old, when I should''ve been a third-year middle school student. If she had a rough outline of what the White Room was like, it should bemon knowledge.


    I''d only seen that view once. When I was transferred out of the facility, I had a chance to go outside for a little while. I''ve never been in direct contact with seawater, but I have walked along a path with a view of the ocean.


    However, the first time I saw the ocean, I didn''t think anything of it. I was just walking around in the outside world,pletely emotionless.


    "Have you heard of ''Beneath the Wheel''?"


    "It''s a novel by Hermann Hesse, right?"


    Of all the novels he wrote, it was the one that was most well known in Japan.


    "The protagonist of that story, Hans, was a genius blessed with incredible talent. He goes to an elite school and is expected to have a bright future in higher education. However, after living only in the academic world, he begins to have doubts, and then, in trying to live up to expectations, he fell short and declined."


    The protagonist Hans Giebenrath''s end was tragic, and he ended up falling into a river and dying.


    "What does that matter?"


    "I don''t think he was a genius. Because a true genius would never fail. Not to mention, to choose death at the end of it all would be the height of stupidity."


    Sakayanagi seemed to have interpreted the death as a suicide, rather than an ident.


    "I once said ''People learn of warmth when they touch each other, and that''s a very precious thing. The warmth of another human is by no means a bad thing''. Do you remember?"


    "You did say something like that."


    It was at the end of the third semester of our first year, just after the special exam.


    "Hesse, the one who wrote Beneath the Wheel, was troubled and frustrated, just like Hans, the protagonist. However, he said that it was his family''s presence that allowed him to look forward and not take his own life."


    The author, Hesse, and the book''s protagonist, Hans, seemed to share very simr backgrounds. It could be seen that the story was a projection of his own struggles.


    As Sakayanagi gazed out to the sea, a strong gust of wind blew for a moment.


    "Ah..."


    Her hat floated up in the blink of an eye. Seeing that, I immediately thrust out my hand and caught it.


    "Oof...that was close."


    If my reaction in reaching out had been even slightly dyed, the hat would have flown off into the ocean.


    "Thank you very much."


    "It''s dangerous to wear it on the deck, you know."


    "Fufu, that''s true isn''t it. However, this is my trademark."


    Sakayanagi held her hat in her hands and hugged it close to her chest as if it were something precious to her.


    "Just now, I suddenly remembered something a little nostalgic."


    "Something nostalgic?"


    "No, it''s not a big deal. It''s just that I also have a few memories of the sea."


    Even though it looks the same to everyone, each of us have different memories of the sea.


    "By the way, you never told me why you chased after me."


    "Would it bother you if I chased after you without a reason?"


    I was wondering how she would respond, but she said something I hadn''t thought of.


    "You don''t have a reason?"


    "I just wanted to talk to you, Ayanok��ji-kun. I could have tried to talk to you back there, but you wouldn''t want others to see you talking to me, right?"


    I was grateful for her consideration. However, I wasn''t a very good talker, so I didn''t have anything in particr to say to Sakayanagi.


    "Do you mind if I just chat idly about one thing?"


    "Sure. Can I eat while I listen?"


    "Please do, don''t mind me. Just listen to what I have to say and that will be enough."


    I took the rice ball out of the bag and peeled off the wrapping by hand.


    "Yesterday, Ichinose came to see me."


    "Ichinose did?"


    "Yes."


    Recalling the events of yesterday, Sakayanagi spoke up as she looked back.

 Chapter 166: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 166: 3.2</h4>


    "Um...Sakayanagi-san. Could you give me a moment of your time?"


    After lunch, I was resting in the caf�� on the ship''s deck when Ichinose-san approached and called out to me. I was just having tea by myself, so I had no reason to refuse.


    "What can I do for you?"


    I knew what she was going to say before she started speaking, but I dared to tilt my head curiously all the same.


    "It''s about the special exam...I just felt like I had to apologise. On thest day, I did something really selfish...so, I''m really very sorry!"


    Probably having prepared herself to some extent after knowing that I was not someone you could make excuses to, Ichinose-san bowed her head as hard as she could.


    No, I don''t think she would have given a poor excuse, no matter who it was.


    It would be no surprise if her actions had angered me, as ss A''s leader, and caused the dissolution of our partnership. I was sure she felt that that was the least she had done.


    "Please raise your head, Ichinose-san. I''m not angry about anything."


    "...Eh?"


    "Rather, I recognise that you contributed more than enough to our group. You scored highly in all of the tasks you took part in and organized groups of allies who were all over the ce. Despite the harsh conditions on the uninhabited ind, you yed a central role brilliantly. And as a result, did we not finish in an admirable 3rd ce?"


    "B-but..."


    "Certainly, it''s true that you acted a bit selfishly on thest day of the exam, Ichinose-san. However, that cost the group a few points at most. If Ipared it to your contribution, it''s not something deserving of reproach. Now if we had fallen into a close 4th ce, then you might have taken some of the me, but that did not happen, right?"


    "But that''s only when looking back on it with hindsight..."


    "Sometimes it''s good to look at the results with hindsight, isn''t it? Things don''t always work out the way they''re supposed to. In fact, if you fought as hard as you could and came in a close 4th, you would have suffered a great deal of psychological damage."


    It was possible that the fact that I didn''t try to me her at all had caused Ichinose-san to be doubly sorry. The remorse would not go away.


    "You have a look on your face that says you feel you need to take responsibility somehow."


    "Uh, it''s not like that...or maybe it is."


    "If that is the case, I can punish you for it if you like?"


    Ichinose-san was pressured by the fearless look on my face, but gave a small nod.


    "Yes. I think that would make me feel better."


    "Fufu, you''re a strange person aren''t you? Well then...yes, please sit here."


    I urged Ichinose-san toe in front of me and sat her down. She became as meek as amb, and I had the staff prepare a menu.


    "Go ahead; please order whatever you would like."


    "Um...the punishment?"


    "You have to keep mepany right now and spend 30 minutes with me for afternoon tea."


    "Eh, t-that''s my punishment?"


    "That''s right. I''m going to take up your precious 30 minutes, Ichinose-san. This is nothing but a punishment."


    "I wonder if that''s true...but if you say so, Sakayanagi-san, I''ll agree to it."


    Ichinose-san didn''t quite get it, but she followed my instructions and ordered a drink.


    "You really are very honest, aren''t you Ichinose-san? You were humiliated by me once, but you don''t show the slightest trace of it, even being willing to apany me like this."


    "I don''t feel you humiliated me. In the first ce...it''s because it''s true that I made that mistake in the past."


    "At the very least, it''s natural that you''d want to hide your guilty past, the past you don''t want people to know about. Even if you say it''s the truth, Ichinose-san."


    Up until now, I''d seen many excellent people, both children and adults, up close and personal. Of course, there were many that knew they were the best and recognized their own talent. On the other hand, I''d probably seen dozens of times as many ipetent people who werepletely useless.


    And then, regardless of whether they were excellent or ipetent, I''d never know anyone who could be called purely good. It was the same for my own mother, father, and also Ayanok��ji-kun.


    "You''re a hard person to describe. That''s why you seem so scary to me at times."


    "I''m...scary?"


    I am sure she has never been told anything like that before in her entire life. However, I am certain that there are more than just one or two people who have been afraid of the person named Ichinose Honami-san.


    "Every person in this world has a more or less evil part to them. But I don''t sense that from you in the slightest. You''re like a mass of goodness."


    "You''re overestimating me. Just like in middle school, I''ve done bad things in my life..."


    Her shameful past, which she could never boast of, remained an inescapable reality that could never be erased.


    "The goodness I''m speaking of right now has nothing to do with those kinds of things. In the first ce, even if you were involved in some wrongdoing that one time, your motive was the precious love for your family."


    In the eyes of thew, it was undoubtedly bad, but it could also be seen as an act of good depending on how you look at it.


    "Your goodness is both your strength and your weakness. Please be careful not to let others take advantage of it."


    "Are you referring to Ry��en-kun?"


    "It''s not just him. I too, as well as Horikita-san, will take advantage of your goodness to win."


    After taking a deep breath, I continued in order to tell her the most important thing.


    "And that goes for Ayanok��ji-kun too."


    All of this applied to the leaders of each ss, including the one she just mentioned, Ry��en-kun. The sudden mention of Ayanok��ji-kun''s name made Ichinose visibly agitated.


    "On thest day of the uninhabited ind exam, it was probably thanks to you that Ayanok��ji-kun was saved."


    "W-wait a minute? Um, what do you mean by that?"


    "This is just a guess on my part. To be honest, there were a lot of parts that I was not involved in, so you may take it as a soliloquy and ignore it."


    I could easily imagine Ichinose-san would shed some light on some of the more unclear parts if I pursued her here, but I avoided it. It would be so boring to hear it that way after all.


    "Looking at you, I can already somewhat guess that your feelings for Ayanok��ji-kun are different from those you have for other students."


    "E-e-ehh!? N-no, um, I mean...that''s...!"


    "That''s good isn''t it? It''s a human instinct to have special feelings for a particr member of the opposite sex. But...if you get too attached, it maye back to bite you. If the other person is Ayanok��ji-kun, then even more so."


    "I don''t really understand the meaning of what you''re saying, Sakayangi-san."


    What I told her today was a warning. I would not say anything more here.


    "Let''s end the conversation here. It''s time for afternoon tea."


    When Ichinose-san took a sip of the tea that had been brought to her, she probably couldn''t taste it very well. I''m sure she couldn''t forget what I said, and it was currently stuck in her head.


    It was a little bit of my meanness, my mercy and also my strategy.

 Chapter 167: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 167: 3.3</h4>


    Sakayanagi finished narrating her interaction with Ichinose.


    I''d just finished eating and drank what remained of my 200ml bottle of tea.


    "To win the heart of Ichinose-san, one of the most popr girls in the school, you are a sinful person."


    It may seem like a frivolous statement, but it couldn''t be taken as being even one millimetre in a positive direction.


    "That''s harsh, Sakayanagi."


    "Fufufu, it''s in my nature after all."


    As if to get ahead, she was trying to protect Ichinose whilst also making preparations so that she could use her.


    "If I do something to hurt Ichinose here, she''ll put her trust in you."


    "If I can gain her trust, I''ll have a much easier time getting around in the future."


    Sakayanagi had a side to her that was my ally, but naturally, she also had a side that was my enemy at the same time. They were two sides of the same coin, and she was making good use of it.


    "But why are you telling me all this?"


    "What I just told you was about Ichinose-san, but that''s not important right now. In this school, the number of people who know about you is gradually increasing, Ayanok��ji-kun. And they hold a very strong interest in you."


    It was true that if my rtionship with Ichinose hadn''t been so close during the uninhabited ind exam, she wouldn''t havee running to me, causing trouble for her friends.


    "And to go along with that, you''ve been getting a lot of strange looks from the third-year students, right?"


    I see. I''m sure she chased after me because she wanted to chat, but this was the main topic she was after. It meant Sakayanagi was able to realise I was being watched by the third-year students from just that short period of time. As expected from her.


    So the earlier conversation was just a preparatory step to bring up this topic.


    "Are you in trouble with the third-years?"


    "Well, trouble would be one way to put it. I seem to have made an enemy of a nasty opponent.


    "A nasty opponent...the Student Council President?"


    Nagumo was the only one who came to mind when considering a potential strong opponent among the upperssmen.


    "I had a dispute with the Student Council President on the final day of the uninhabited ind exam. It seems he missed out on first ce because of it, so now they''re looking at me like I''m the enemy."


    "So he was tripped up by trying to stage a dramaticte victory."


    "You were aware of that much?"


    "I think the majority of people in the uninhabited ind exam hold the opinion that K��enji-kun was an unmatched lone warrior. But I knew from early on that the Student Council President was deliberately holding back on scoring points. If they made the difference too big, it would be tantly obvious that the entire third year was trying to make a particr group win. I saw the stream of cards in his possession, and therefore also saw his strategy."


    Although I thought I was already fully aware of Sakayangi''s ability, she still exceeded my expectations. It was proof that she had a perfect grasp of everything that went on during the uninhabited ind exam.


    "Is there anything I can do to help?"


    "No, I''m fine. Nagumo can''t make any fancy moves lightly either. Besides, you were already a great help during the uninhabited ind exam, Sakayanagi. I can''t rely on you even more than I already have."


    "You really don''t have to mind it. I was d that you relied on me, and I also took full advantage of your proposition."


    "Took full advantage? Meaning?"


    Sakayanagi giggled and stared out to the ocean with narrowed eyes.


    "As we neared the end of the uninhabited ind exam, we knew it would be difficult to take first or second ce. The pace at which K��enji-kun and the Student Council President were gaining points exceeded the maximum score that our group would be able to obtain."


    Well, those two groups were fighting on a whole other level.


    "I was aiming for third ce, but one of my rivals in the final stages was Ry��en-kun''s group. He was only in a small group of two with Katsuragi-kun, but he showed exceptional tenacity. So I asked him for his help and decided to let him and H��sen-kun sh."


    "I see. So that''s what you meant."


    "Whatever form it took, if Ry��en-kun were to stray from the main focus of the exam, his scoring would slow down. As it turned out, he was forced to retire, which was the best possible oue for us."


    So she was able to help me while crushing her rival, Ry��en, at the same time.


    However, there were still some parts that I didn''t understand, even after hearing all this. Ry��en had been working hard for two weeks to get on the podium, but he readily cooperated with Sakayanagi. It wasn''t hard to imagine that he wouldn''te out unscathed if he were to confront H��sen.


    The only thing that was clear was that some kind of promise was made. If he had to give up the possibility of third ce, it would have to be more than just a small transaction.


    "Considerablepensation...For example, he didn''t make you pay a massive sum of private points did he?"


    If Sakayanagi made good use of the ''Bonus'' cards belonging to her ssmates, she should''ve brought in a good bit of ie. It wouldn''t be a surprise if she''d made an offer to Ry��en, who was trying to collect a huge amount of private points.


    "I haven''t paid a single point, and I don''t n to in the future either."


    "So you''re saying it''s not money."


    In this school, the exchange of private points was the standard method used for transactions.


    "It sounds like a riddle, but I can''t tell even you the details right now, Ayanok��ji-kun. This is an agreement made between him and myself. Until he tells me to fulfil my end of the deal in the near future, that is."


    "That wish will end up strangling him soon enough," added Sakayanagi.


    With that in mind, it was no wonder she didn''t pay him back with money such as private points.


    "Anyway, please be careful, Ayanok��ji-kun. You''ve solved one problem, but the White Room students are still around, and now you''ve also got to deal with the third-years."


    "It''s a long list of problems, but I''ll be careful."


    I heard a ringtonee from Sakayanagi''s person. Sakayanagi gave me a light warning and answered the iing call.


    "����Is that so? I''ll be right there."


    Without speaking for even five seconds, Sakayanagi ended the phone call and let go of the railing.


    "I have an appointment with someone after this, so I''ll take my leave now."


    "Okay. I''ll see youter."


    "It was a pleasure speaking with you. Then, see you."


    After watching Sakayanagi slowly depart, I decided to look out to the ocean for a little while longer.

 Chapter 168: 3.4

    <h4>Chapter 168: 3.4</h4>


    On that same day, Amasawa was wandering around the ship alone with no particr destination in mind.


    Sometimes her ssmates would talk to her, but she''d just show them a friendly smile and leave it at that. She''d not once done anything like go out in a group and hang out.


    "I want to go see Ayanok��ji-senpai~"


    Stepping out onto the deck, Amasawa muttered in a voice that was lightly drowned out by the sound of the wind. For Amasawa, who had no interest in other students, the only time she felt delight was when she was meeting Ayanok��ji, the one person that could move her. However, because of his current position, he was deliberately refraining from contacting her right now.


    "Ahh~, I''m sooo bored I feel like I''m gonna die..."


    "Good day, Amasawa Ichika-san."


    The one who approached Amasawa, who was alone on the deck looking out to the ocean, was second-year ss A student, Sakayanagi Arisu. Not especially surprised, Amasawa only turned her gaze towards her.


    "And who might you be?" Amasawa tilted her head curiously as if she''d never seen her before.


    "I am Sakayanagi Arisu from second-year ss A. Pleased to make your acquaintance."


    "Sakayanagi...senpai? Do you have business with me?"


    "Fufu, no need for any monkey business. I hear you are a White Room student, right Amasawa-san? Of course you know who I am as well, don''t you?


    White Room student. When those words were heard, there was no choice but to understand.


    "Fuu, I see. So it was the chairman''s daughter that Ayanok��ji-senpai relied on. You seem to know a little bit about the White Room, so I suppose you could say it was inevitable. And so?"


    Not surprised, Amasawa asked Sakayangi what she was after.


    "It''s only natural that I''d want to see how good the White Room student he was so worried about is."


    "It''s okay that you''re so motivated to do this, but does that mean you have permission from Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "Permission? I have no need for such a thing. My being here is my own personal decision."


    "You''ve got an awful lot of self-confidence, haven''t you, Arisu-senpai?"


    "I''m proud to say that I have at least that much ability."


    "So cool!"


    Amasawa, while praising and apuding, seemed somewhat preupied.


    "But I''m sorry. I''m feeling a little sentimental right now. Could we do this some other time?"


    "I don''t mind. Today was only supposed to be a mere face-to-face meeting after all."


    Satisfied with just saying a quick hello, Sakayanagi bowed softly and turned to leave.


    "Oh, and by the way, Arisu-senpai, could the surveince you''ve had me undere to an end here?"


    Sakayanagi found Amasawa after using several students from ss A to keep track of her location and waited until she was alone.


    "I had instructed them not to let themselves be seen, but it seems you noticed."


    "Ahahaha, that was supposed to be hiding? That''s cute."


    "I apologize if my actions made you feel ufortable. But as you can see, I''m crippled, so it wouldn''t be easy for me to locate and go to see you otherwise. Please forgive me."


    "Ah, I have one question~ I''m the kind of girl who can hit a cripple without hesitation, is that okay?"


    "Violence is one of the stronger cards avable in the deck, but it is not always the strongest."


    Saying this, Sakayanagi lightly tapped her cane against the deck two and then three times. As if it were a signal, her ssmate Kamuro appeared in the distance.


    "She''s the upperssman that''s been following me around, right? Is it possible that she canpete with me?"


    "That is not the case. I just mean that uncivilized conduct can be easily detected."


    "So you want to have a battle of wits with me? You make meugh."


    "You''re very short-sighted, aren''t you? Please don''t go drawing your own conclusions. After all, even if you are a White Room student, other than Ayanok��ji-kun, you are all failures. I don''t have excessively high expectations."


    At this point, Amasawa''s gaze sharpened for the first time and she looked at Sakayanagi.


    "I''ll give you a win or a loss in any setting, is what I mean."


    "Oh, really? Even if we were using violence like you were just talking about?"


    For the first time, Amasawa became interested in Sakayanagi and licked her thumb.


    "Yes, of course. You can use any means you like."


    "I''ll make sure to remember you, senpai."


    "If it''s etched into your hippocampus, I would be d to hear it. Then, have a good day."


    Sakayanagi slowly walked away, and Amasawa took a deep breath on the now empty deck.


    "Even without Ayanok��ji-senpai, I might be able to enjoy myself a little. y around a bit with Kushida-senpai or enjoy watching Arisu-senpai''s crying face...? Under normal circumstances, I''d be in an excited mood..."


    She softly ced her hand on her aching abdomen and thought about what was toe.


    "...I''ll wait and see for now, I guess."


    It would take some more time before she was back in perfect condition. Besides, Amasawa couldn''t make a move until she saw how that side fared.


    Sakayanagi, on the other hand, left with Kamuro and returned to the corridor.


    "That first-year looks dangerous."


    "Oh, you could tell?"


    "It''s just a feeling. I guess after being around you for so long, I''ve developed some kind of strange sense. Honestly, I don''t want to get involved any further."


    "Please cherish that feeling. That said, it would be better to continue surveilling her to some extent."


    She was warned not to monitor her, but Sakayanagi had no intention of listening to her. Amasawa wouldn''t be able to ignore her if she knew that she was still marking her relentlessly. If that happened, it wouldn''t be a surprise if she tried to provoke her.


    "She noticed that I was following her, didn''t she? Will you use Hashimoto?"


    "If it''s him, even if he were seen, he might be able to get through it, but..."


    If they weren''t careful and came into contact with the White Room students, it was possible it could be disadvantageouster on.


    "For the time being, thank you for your hard work Masumi-san."


    With her role already over, Kamuro left the scene immediately. After that, Sakayanagi took out her mobile phone and made a single call.


    "Could you continue for me please?" She asked the person on the other side to continue monitoring Amasawa, and then added onest thing. "As I thought, it seems that you are the only one I can rely on from the ss, Yamamura-san."

 Chapter 169 - 4: The Growth in Each of Us

    <h4>Chapter 169: Chapter 4: The Growth in Each of Us</h4>


    This summer vacation aboard a luxury cruise ship continued to be a valuable experience, and had already reached its halfway point.


    The wallets of the students enjoying their remaining time to the fullest must be loosening up like never before. It may sound crazy to the students who were systematically working their way up, but there was nothing wrong with spending money on a short break. It would help refresh any umted fatigue, and at the same time, you would achieve a sense of euphoria and happiness. But that might sound like an excuse, since I was also using my meagre amount of private points.


    I changed into my swimsuit and opened the door to see arge, empty pool. This luxury cruise ship had arge swimming pool facility that was open to everyone free of charge, but it was also equipped with another pool. You could call it a private pool, a pool that we could rent out and enjoy all to ourselves. It wasn''t cheap at 20,000 points per 60 minute interval, but the time you could spend alone with your closest friends was more than worth the money. Moreover, the number of people who could use it was up to 40 people at a time, so if an entire ss rented it out, you could use it for only 500 points per head.


    Because of this, the private pool was surprisingly popr with students and was almost always fully booked from 8am to 8pm when it was open. While it was difficult to swim freely in arge swimming pool packed with people, the private pool was spacious enough to do whatever you wanted and enjoy it with no trouble.


    "Wow, it''s huge..."


    Akito spoke with a hint of excitement after showing up at the poolside a littleter than me. It was the same size as the pool that was open to the public for free, but it looked so big that I wondered if the scale could somehow change by reserving it.


    "Where''s Keisei?"


    "He said he''d go to the bathroom first. The girls aren''t ready yet, are they?"


    There was no need to confirm that they wouldn''t be able to change as quickly as us boys. For some reason, Akito picked up a menu that was sitting next to a beach chair.


    "Oh...It''s more expensive than the other one."


    For the private pool, drinks were far more expensive than for the free pool; in fact, they were almost double the price. It shouldn''t be that surprising when considering the number of orders that would be ced for this many people, but it was harsh. It meant that we would be relentlessly exploited here as well. The fact that bringing your own food and drink was prohibited was also well thought out.


    Just then, the door to the changing room was opened slightly. We both looked back at the same time, but there was no sign of anyoneing out. Instead, the sound of voices reached my ears.


    "Come on Airi, what are you doing? Hurry up and go."


    "B-b-b-b-b-but, but! It''s embarrassing Haruka-chan!"


    "What''s so embarrassing about it? You''ve been posting all kinds of embarrassing pictures onto the inte so you should be fine, right?"


    "W-well it''s not like they were looking at me directly!"


    "For me, that''s even more embarrassing. Come on,e on."


    "Aah! Wait, wait!"


    Such an indescribable conversation was going on between Haruka and Airi.


    "How to say it? There''s a certain invisible quality, right?" Akito said somethingpletely unexpected. "What?"


    "I was just thinking, you think about stuff like that too, huh Akito."


    "You know...It''s natural for guys right? I mean, it''s not like I talk about it lightly on a daily basis like Ike and the others. You''re the same, aren''t you?"


    He faced me with a somewhat dumbfounded look in his eyes, and at the same time, there was an air that didn''t allow for any denial. I wasn''t trying to read the atmosphere, but I could tell that Akito was trying to be brave in his own way. It wasn''t a good idea to ignore him, so I decided to admit to it honestly.


    "Well, I guess that''s true."


    Hearing my answer, Akitoughed a little as if he were relieved.


    "If a girl hears, I know she''ll just say I''m an idiot or something though."


    Akito usually wore a calm poker face, but judging by how much he was talking, it was obvious that he was getting nervous. However, those two still seemed to be arguing and wouldn''te out easily.


    "I''m so embarrassed!"


    "You know what?! I feel the same way!"


    "H-h...Haruka-chan, that''s a very daring outfit isn''t it?"


    "That''s because you promised to wear this in front of everyone!"


    "Hyah!"


    We were in something of a life or death situation, waiting for them to appear.


    "Daring, she says."


    "Sounds like it."


    A sense of anticipation, apanied by a feeling of embarrassment. Where should I look and what should I say when the girlse out?


    "Impossible, it''s impossible! I-I''m going to borrow something to cover myself with."


    "No, you can''t! Come on, don''t run away!"


    "Ugh, I''m still embarrassed in this kind of swimsuit after all, Haruka-chan!"


    "You know that it''s the same for me too, right? I had no choice but to go along with you!"


    "I never asked you to do that!"


    We were waiting for them toe out, but it looked like the struggle would continue a little while longer.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji. What do you think of Airi?"


    Akito had been looking towards the girls until now, but I realised he was now looking at me. I was sure he wasn''t just speaking randomly.


    "As in?"


    I immediately understood what he was talking about, but I dared to feign ignorance.


    "Mixed-gender groups can be a littleplicated, right? It''s not unusual for someone to end up liking someone else."


    The question wasn''t difficult to answer, but...


    "How about you?"


    When I asked back, Akito showed a somewhat troubled expression.


    "Well, I guess so." After a few moments of silence, Akito spoke. "I''d be lying if I said I felt nothing like that whatsoever."


    He answered in a way that acknowledged, not denied, the existence of such a possibility.


    "But if it might destroy this group, I''m not gonna push it."


    He meant to leave those feelings smouldering in his heart. I couldn''t tell for sure if it was Haruka or Airi at this point, but... I wonder what the right answer would be here. Unlike math, it wasn''t always possible to get a definitive answer after trying to figure it out.


    "Kiyotaka, you..."


    "Kyaah!"


    Just as Akito was about to say something, the half-opened door swung open and Airi came flying out in front of me. I made eye contact with Akito again after looking at where the shouting came from.


    "P-pushing me like that...you''re awful Haruka-chan!"


    "It''s because you wouldn''t hurry up and get out here."


    Saying that, Haruka showed herself immediately after Airi''s arrival.


    "O-oh,e on..."


    Akito looked shocked, but needless to say, I felt the same way. How could I put it? The two of them were wearing incredibly bold swimsuits. If this wasn''t a private pool, they would have attracted a lot of attention from both men and women.


    Haruka immediately looked up and saw us. I somehow felt like it was a crime to stare at them, so, at the same time as Akito, I turned to look in the appropriate direction. However, as if something immediately caught his curiosity, Akito spoke up, keeping his gaze elsewhere.


    "Airi gives off a very different impression, doesn''t she?"


    I''d rather he didn''t bring me into this, but I guess Akito must also be in a tight situation.


    "I guess. She gives off a much more innocent feeling."


    "That''s it...that."


    While we were describing our impressions of Airi, Haruka looked tantly disappointed.


    "Conventional. Mundane."


    "Don''t say that. No, I''m too surprised to get the words out."


    I really hoped that Haruka would catch the part where my vocabry was rapidly declining.


    "...I''m gonna go for a little swim."


    Perhaps the two of them were too stimting for him, as, after saying that, Akito turned his back on them and jumped into the pool without doing any preparation. With a ssh, he swam through the empty pool alone. I knew what it was like to be hit with the feeling of wanting to run away. Because the private pool was an environment that we would rarely be able to experience, when faced with the destructive power of the two people in front of us, escape was no longer possible.


    To get rid of all kinds of worries, swimming away like that was the correct decision. Having said that, if two guys were to suddenly put their all into swimming, the atmosphere would obviously turn strange. I guess I''d just have to be the shield here and continue this confrontation.


    What should I do...? Taking a look at the two of them, I could see that Airi was blushing ufortably. Seeing Airi like this, Haruka happily walked around to her back and grabbed her shoulders.


    "Hyaa!"


    "Hey, hey, Kiyopon, how''s the reborn Airi?"


    Saying that, she pushed Airi forward. The distance between us was so close that if we weren''t careful, we''d end up touching each other skin-to-skin. Rather than that, it was like she actually was touching me. I retreated just enough for it to be unnoticeable and maintained a close distance.


    "Whoa..."


    Both of them were wearing swimsuits that exposed a lot of skin, so touching them easily was problematic behaviour. Unable to bear the situation, Airi opened her mouth to escape.


    "I-I think I''ll go swim in the pool too!"


    "Wait, Airi..."


    Haruka reached out her hand to try and catch her, but she failed to grab her arm in time. She then went to jump into the pool...or so I thought, but the way she held the stainless steel railing and gently entered the water was very Airi-esque.


    "Damn it. Even though I''m so embarrassed too..."


    That certainly would be the case. Aside from the emphasis on the breasts, the area of the swimsuit''s lower half was clearly small. Even though they were tied together tightly with string, I was anxious that something might happen to them.


    "Just so you know, it was Airi who chose this ridiculous swimsuit, okay?"


    "I wasn''t going to get into it, but how did that happen?"


    Originally, Haruka wasn''t the kind of student who liked to show her skin in public. However, the amount of emphasis she was putting on her breasts and lower body wasn''t normal.


    "How did it happen? How did it happen, hmm...?" For a moment, she showed a troubled face, but then she began to exin, choosing her words carefully. "I''m not sure how to say it? It''s a form of going along with Airi?"


    "What does that mean?"


    There were so many choices, I couldn''t even begin to understand.


    "It means that she''s desperately trying to change. And that''s the same for me. I can''t believe I''m saying this, but...there''s a part of me that stands out a little more than others, right?" She said it in a muddled way, but it was without a doubt referring to that which I couldn''t look at. "I know I shouldn''t care, but the way people look at me makes me ufortable."


    I could understand her distress, but from a male psychological perspective, ignoring it was extremely difficult. It was inevitable that our eyes would find themselves being drawn to them.


    "I chose a slightly daring bathing suit for her to encourage her, and she replied that she would wear it if I wore one too."


    That was a good reply. I could easily imagine Haruka refusing to wear a shy swimsuit. If Haruka refused to wear it, she could say back to her that she wouldn''t either.


    "I can''t let her stumble during the first step of the Airi remodelling project. It''s called willpower." Now that she''d epted the conditions that Airi herself set, Airi couldn''t escape either. "Besides, even if Airi and I can''t wear something like this in the open pool over there, if it''s here..."


    It seemed that because it was with three boys that they were close with, they managed to make it happen. Even so, it was easy even for a guy to imagine that there was quite a bit of shame involved.


    "...You wanna see?" Haruka asked, looking embarrassed, or rather, hiding her disgust.


    "Well, even if I''ve been told not to look, I have to admit there are some difficulties."


    In the first ce, they were in my line of sight when I was talking to her so there was no way around it. The only way to avoid seeing them was by looking directly above or below, or by turning my back.


    "I see. I think I know the difference between a man and a woman, but I don''t know anything about psychology."


    The difference in curiosity about breasts, hips and lower abdomen wasn''t something that men and women could understand. No, there was no way to know because each individual person had their own preferences; it wasn''t just separated by men and women.


    "Huh? By the way, where''s Yukimuu?"


    "Looks like he''s going to be a little while longer."


    I don''t know if the stomach-ache was lingering, but he didn''t seem to being out at all.


    "Hmm?"


    Perhaps not that interested in checking, Haruka''s mind seemed to be elsewhere. The conversation stopped for a moment, and a brief silence fell.


    "...Ah, no, I can''t stop thinking about it."


    "I''m sorry. I''m trying to be careful not to look."


    If you couldn''t help but look at the other person''s face while talking to them, they would inevitablye into view.


    "That''s not what I mean. You really haven''t done anything wrong, Kiyopon. I know I''m too self-conscious to begin with. I know that you''re not looking because you like it."


    Eh, no...it''s not like I don''t like what I see. I''ll keep that part to myself.


    "When something stands out it attracts attention. It''s the same with anything, right? It''s just, when I think it''s me, I can''t help but feel bad."


    In Haruka''s case, it wasn''t just the boys'' gaze. Even if it was a same-sex gathering, she wouldn''t wee attention being drawn to her breasts.


    "I''m sorry, I think it''s going to take me a little more time to calm down," she continued.


    "It doesn''t really matter. If you think it''s impossible, you can just go back and get changed."


    "I can''t do that. As long as Airi is giving it her best, I don''t want to break."


    She called it the Airi remodelling project, didn''t she? I could tell she was thinking about it.


    "Let''s change the subject. It may be a littlete, but it seems you were just about safe in the uninhabited ind exam."


    I hadn''t been able to get together with the Ayanok��ji group for the past few days, so Haruka mentioned the topic to me ratherte. It was apletely unrted topic, which was probably a good thing right now.


    "Well, we were just the same, so it''s not something tough about."


    "To be honest, it was pretty tough. I fought as hard as I could and that was the result. My bad."


    "It''s not bad at all. I mean, I''m a little relieved."


    Exhaling slightly, Haruka watched Airi, who was clumsily trying to swim.


    "Relieved? After those terrible results?"


    "I mean, there were rumours that you were a jerk because of that math problem, Kiyopon. Won''t this help everything calm down a little? You didn''t like the weird pressure you were under, right?"


    Apparently, she was thinking about my future.


    "As I thought, you''re more like a saint than the other boys, Kiyopon."


    "What did you see that made you think that?"


    I was doubtful because I thought she was overestimating me. I had just as much sexual desire and interest in the opposite sex as anyone else.


    "Things like your facial expressions, your gaze...I feel like it''s less of an issue with you than other boys."


    I didn''t know what to say about that. I was afraid I''d get a lot of ck for showing anything like that here. I was also grateful that another guy was ying the role of a panicked person. It must have a synergistic effect.


    "Oh..."


    As soon as Keisei, who had finished changingte, showed up, he let out a surprised voice. It was clear to the eye that this wasn''t his reaction to seeing the rented private pool. He must''ve seen the daring figure of Haruka beside me.


    "Whassup."


    Perhaps to maintain a sense of normalcy, Haruka greeted Keisei with a silly face and voice.


    "S-sup..."


    He fixed his sses, which had almost fallen off, and looked over towards her. I guess this meant that Keisei, who usually spent most of his time studying, was a fine boy. The fact that all the guys uniformly reacted and tried to escape in the same way showed the nature of this group. If it were a type like Ry��en or K��enji, the reaction would probably be very different.


    "Well then...I think I''ll go swim a bit too."


    He jumped into the pool to escape, joining Akito, who was swimming vigorously. Airi, who couldn''t swim well and thus let her feet touch the bottom of the pool, waved at Haruka.


    "Come over too, Haruka-chan~ It feels good~!"


    "Okay, okay, I''ll go. Give me a second."


    Saying that she couldn''t help it, she started to do her exercises next to me.


    "I get the feeling you''ve be closer since fighting through the uninhabited ind exam together."


    "Well, that''s true, isn''t it? We''ve shared a lot of things from top to bottom."


    "Waah! That''s a bit embarrassing so don''t say it!"


    Airi, who was waiting at the edge of the pool watching us, hurriedly made a sshing sound. Top? Bottom? They weremon keywords, but also very meaningful.


    "I don''t know, Airi is essentially helpless, but I can''t leave her alone. Kind of like a best friend or little sister?"


    A statement that was unthinkable when we first met. And that wasn''t something limited to just Haruka. It was the same for Keisei, and, even if there were no major changes, it was also the same for Akito.

 Chapter 170: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 170: 4.1</h4>


    After that, I took turns ying in the pool with my group of friends, enjoying myself to the fullest.


    After ying two-on-two water volleyball, we were now in the middle of first to five, one-on-one matches. First up was a battle between Keisiei and Airi, which Keisei won 5-2. Then Akito and I fought, and Akito won by 5 points to 3. Airi, whocked physical strength, was sat down by the side of the pool to rest, probably tired after just one match. Seeing this, I called out to her.


    "You looked like you were having a great time."


    "Ah, Kiyotaka-kun. Yeah, it''s really fun. Though I wasn''t much of an opponent at all..."


    For some reason she tried to stand up, so I stopped her and sat down beside her instead.


    "To be honest I''m still surprised. That you had the courage to do something like this, Airi."


    "That''s...yeah. I thought I''d take the plunge...Though I''m still terribly embarrassed about it."


    "Why did you decide to be brave?"


    She couldn''t have decided to do something like this on a whim.


    "During the uninhabited ind exam, we were always with our group for 24 hours every day, right? So Haruka-chan and I spoke about all sorts of things. About when we were little, about middle school. And then aftering to this school, about how we started getting along."


    If you were together for long periods of time, small talk just wasn''t going to cut it. With that being the case, it was no wonder that they delved into the deeper stuff. Probably because of the intense time they spent together, the two of them must''vee to understand each other like they''d been best friends from way back.


    "I thought maybe I can change now...It might be the only time..."


    "Change? You''re not just talking about looks, right?"


    "Yeah. I can''t say it clearly yet, but... I''ve started to think that I should change, that I have to change. It''s not good enough for me to be bad at both studying and sports."


    Even though her cheeks were flushed and she felt embarrassed, Airi expressed her determination.


    "So the start is your appearance."


    "Haruka-chan scolded me, saying that it''s not good to be deliberately inconspicuous."


    Airi didn''t like to stand out because of her personality. That was why she lived her life keeping her hairstyle modest and wearing unnecessary fake sses. As for posture, she often rounded her back and kept her head low. She couldn''t improve her studies or sports abilities overnight, but she could fix her appearance.


    As Airi gazed at the pool, she saw that in the new match, the ball had been smashed into the water and Akito had scored a point against Haruka. This gave Akito a lead of 3 points to 1.


    "It''s toote...I guess."


    After telling me everything, Airi looked up at me anxiously.


    "No, it''s not toote." I wanted to praise her honestly for making that decision. "I''m rooting for you."


    "T-thank you, Kiyotaka-kun. I''ll try my best."


    "Ah, yeah, yeah, I forgot to tell you earlier but Airi''s image change is still a secret, okay? We''ll be unveiling it to everyone when the second semester starts."


    It would probably be better to do it in a ssroom with all the students present. At any rate, if it was going to make her nervous, the fewer times, the better.


    "So what did you think, Yukimuu? When you saw Airi."


    Haruka, who was serving, stopped what she was doing and spoke to Keisei, who was watching the match.


    "D-don''t ask me."


    "We won''t know unless we ask, will we? Let us hear your unreserved opinion."


    After being told that, Keisei looked directly at Airi and observed every inch of her body. Naturally embarrassed, Airi tried to run away.


    "You can''t run away, Airi."


    Haruka did her best to hold Airi down as she growled and pped her legs. And afterpleting his observation, Keisei''s evaluation was...


    "...It''s...not bad, is it? I mean, no, it''s totally attractive..."


    Keisei, who didn''t usually show much interest in girls, replied, his body tense.


    "Oh, if Yukimuu reacts like that, then I''m sure it''s perfect!"


    Haruka, as pleased as if it were her, jumped high into the air at that moment. She then mmed her serve towards Akito, who had been watching Airi after having his attention caught.


    "Whoa!"


    "One point! With that it''s two points to three!"


    "That''s not fair, Haruka."


    "It''s your fault for gawking at girls, Miyhi. Don''t let your guard down, carelessness is one''s greatest enemy."


    "Don''t be ridiculous. But...how can a girl change so much just by taking off her sses and changing her hairstyle a little?"


    "It means the original material was already top-notch. Didn''t you know that much?"


    "Even if you say that..."


    Akito and Keisei looked at each other and nodded at the same time.


    "Oh dear. Well, it''s because you guys are like this that I''mfortable hanging out with you."


    Akito shook off his worries and concentrated on his own serve. With the game resumed, Airi let out a sigh of relief.


    "When ites to studying, how do I improve? Or rather, how do I get smarter I wonder..."


    Although Airi and the others prepare when testse around, they don''t study from the ground up like Horikita and Sud�� do. That part was essential when it came to raising your academic level.


    Keisei overheard something rted to studying, so began to exin in front of us.


    "The first step is to find out what you can and can''t do, isn''t it? Beginning with the 1st year of elementary school, we all start running side by side. But gradually our strengths and weaknesses when studying start to emerge. Do you know why?"


    "Um..."


    "Individuals have different abilities regarding learning and absorbing content, as well as different levels of concentration. There are those who can''t stand it for even one minute, and there are those that can get through an hour of ss by resourcefully controlling their concentration. That alone will start to make a difference in your ability to learn, but how much you study outside of ss is also a big factor."


    "That''s...yeah. It''s true that the kids who went to cram school were smart."


    Although it was obvious, Airi nodded her head as if she were convinced.


    "Rah!"


    The ball bounced off Haruka''s attempt to catch it and he won the 5th point. The result was a 5 points to 2 win in favour of Akito.


    "Alright. With that I guess it''s my win."


    "Bummer. But I was a little curious about what those two were talking about and couldn''t concentrate, so that''s why I lost."


    So with that analysis and excuse, Haruka came up to the pool side.


    "Why don''t you teach her how to study, Kiyopon?"


    Hearing the flow of the conversation, Haruka came up with an idea.


    "Sorry, but I''m not very good at teaching. Besides, there''s a teaching specialist nearby, right?"


    To shift the gaze away from me, I turned to Keisei as if to urge him on.


    "Well...if Airi says it''s okay, then I don''t mind."


    "No, but Yukimuu, you know, I was thinking you could take care of me and Akito from now on. Wouldn''t it be hard to teach all of us if we added Airi, who''s at a different level?"


    "Uh, that means I''m an idiot, right?...Ugh."


    "Ah, that''s not it! That''s not what I meant!"


    "No, you know, that''s the only way to take what you just said, Haruka."


    Unable to defend her, Akito muttered under his breath.


    "I''m just, you know...Ah jeez, I''m very sorry, I was out of line!"


    She bowed deeply to Airi, and at the same time, the two lumps became bigger...And don''t look...If I do, my concentration will be uprooted and taken away.


    After that, there was a lot ofughter and the atmosphere became more rxed.


    "Then it''s time for the Airi and Keisei revenge match."


    "Ehh? I won''t win no matter how many times I try~!"


    "You don''t need to worry, I''ll join you as a helper."


    "W-wait, Akito. I''m at an overwhelming disadvantage then!"


    Even whileining, Keisei went into the pool without hesitation. He was very serious about it.


    "I-I''ll try my best."


    Airi, who had gained a reliablepanion in Akito, clenched her fists slightly.


    Haruka and I decided to watch the novel two-on-one battle from the poolside.


    "Hey, can I ask you something?"


    "Hmm?"


    Shortly after the match started, Haruka spoke to me with her gaze fixed on thepetition.


    "I hope it''s not my imagination, but aren''t you a little cold towards Airi, Kiyopon?"


    "I don''t mean to be."


    "But you could''ve taught her one-on-one. You can do that much, can''t you?"


    If I had to choose between being able and not being able, then I would say I could do it without any problems.


    "That''s kinda unfair, don''t you think? For Airi."


    "I''m just trying to be fair to everybody."


    "Really?"


    "I''ve never really favoured anyone except for pretence."


    "...Does that mean you''d be as fair to your best friend as your girlfriend?"


    "That''s right."


    "Isn''t that a little strange? It''s like the distance between us is too far. I''ll take this opportunity to say, right from the start you''ve been watching us while keeping your distance, right Kiyopon?"


    Apparently, that idea had gotten through to Haruka.


    "I''ve never seen you smile or anything."


    Saying that, she reached out with her right arm and pinched my left cheek. She yed with it, pulling it with some intensity.


    "I wish we could at least make you smile, Kiyopon."


    "It''s not like I''m not smiling on purpose though."


    She removed her fingertips from the cheek she had been pinching and crossed her arms in displeasure.


    "There are more reasons that I can''t tell you directly. The distance between Airi and I was too close from the beginning."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?"


    "I think it''s not me, but the environment surrounding her that is making her grow."


    "The environment surrounding her?"


    "There''s you, there''s Akito, and there''s Keisei. Growing surrounded by her best friends is the most important factor for Airi. In fact, Airi is about to undergo a major change thanks to you, Haruka."


    "I think the one most important to Airi is you though, Kiyopon."


    "If she were the type who thrives on romantic entanglements, that might''ve been a good idea."


    "You told me that you were aware of Airi''s feelings once before Kiyopon, but, how can I put this? What you''re saying is a little harsh, don''t you think?"


    She looked at me withplicated eyes, as if she didn''t know how to express herself.


    "Since our first year, Airi has been thinking about me in no small way. That makes me happy. It''s just..."


    She looked at me with anxiously, as if she were a girl waiting for a reply to her confession. Airi''s love. It was an undeniable fact that she was her best friend and was praying for her to seed.


    "What Airi needs right now are friends that she can trust."


    "But, but you know what? It might be good if there were also a romantic element. She might be able to work harder."


    "Indeed, there could be some synergy."


    But the trouble was, love wasn''t something that you could have for more than one person at a time.


    Basically, if the seat was upied by one person, if you wanted to bring in a second person, you''d have to take action to cut off the first. Of course, it wasn''t impossible to do it with two or three people at the same time if you were good at it, but I''d say it wasn''t suitable in the closed environment of this school and the demerits should you get exposed were far greater. I stood up from the poolside.


    "In the near future, Airi will undergo a bit of a psychological shock. At that time, Haruka, I need you more than anyone to be there by her side to encourage and cheer her up."


    "What''s that? What do you mean?"


    "Sorry, but I can''t answer that right now."


    Airi is the least valuable person in the ss. Academic ability, physical ability and other factors. Looking at herprehensively, that was the only way to judge it. This was not only true for the OAA, but it was also my own personal opinion.


    However, depending on Airi''s willingness to change from here on out, she will surely grow, albeit slowly. Maybe in six months, maybe in a year, at that time, she might be able to climb out from the bottom of the ss.

 Chapter 171: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 171: 4.2</h4>


    Our time in the pool came to an end in a sh and we started to get changed.


    The system didn''t allow for extensions because there was a fixed amount of time for employees to clean the area before the next reservation. The three of us quickly showered, changed our clothes and left the private pool. The girls couldn''t be seen, probably because it took a fair bit of effort for them to get changed, unlike for us boys.


    "Looks like the girls aren''t done yet."


    Since we hadn''t discussed what to do afterwards, we decided to wait for them toe out.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai!"


    "Hmm?"


    I suddenly felt a pair of eyes watching me, and it was revealed to be Nanase. I set a new record today, having met Nanase every day aboard this ship.


    "Nanase helped me find a partner for the special partner exam. She also helped me several times during the uninhabited ind exam."


    "Really? So you''re a pretty amazing girl then, huh?"


    Akito nodded with admiration and raised his hand lightly to greet Nanase. Keisei followed suit.


    Could it be that Nanase was the next reservation for the private pool? That''s what I''d thought, but...


    "I just happened to be passing by."


    As if to deny it, Nanase said it was just a coincidence.


    "I see."


    "I don''t want to bother you, so with that, I''ll take my leave."


    In this area, the only ce where students could y was the private pool. In fact, Nanase walked away, but I still couldn''t figure out why she showed up here in the first ce. No... At this point, it would be too optimistic to dismiss this as a mere coincidence. Nanase seemed to have some grasp of my actions and was checking on me every step of the way. However, I didn''t feel any kind of malice in it. If that was the case, then what was her objective?


    Nakaizumi and Suzuki passed by in front of the three of us. Seeing this, the other two didn''t seem to have noticed anything unusual.


    "What''s wrong, Ayanok��ji? Did those two do something wrong?"


    "No...I was just wondering where they were going."


    "Ah, you''ve got a point. There''s not really anything up ahead, is there? Maybe they''re lost?"


    There were no special facilities beyond this point. It wasn''t impossible that they were lost, though. To begin with, people didn''t visit this level for any purpose other than the private pool. Just like Nanase, they were walking around in ces I wouldn''t consider normal. Speaking of which, I saw Nanase, Nakaizumi and Suzuki on the deck near the bow yesterday.


    "But Airi''s in trouble. She seems to have a lot of formidable enemies."


    "What''s that?"


    When Akito muttered from behind me, Keisei butted in.


    "No, it''s nothing."


    Shortly after Nanase left, the two girls finished getting dressed and came out.


    "That was fun, wasn''t it Haruka-chan?"


    "I guess so. ying in the pool isn''t so bad if it''s with close friends."


    The two girls seemed to bepletely satisfied and were smiling the whole time, even after they''d finished changing. I was sure Haruka was still anxious about what I said earlier, but she wasn''t showing it.


    "Ah..."


    When we had all gathered and were about to leave the private pool, the person who seemed to be the next reservation showed up.


    "Oh, next is Ike huh?


    "Y-yeah. That''s right. This was the only time I could make a reservation."


    "You''re not alone, right? You with Sud�� and the others?"


    Akito looked behind Ike curiously, but couldn''t see anyone.


    "Ah~ no, um..."


    Ike choked on his words and became restless, but he caught something out of the corner of his eye.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting!"


    "What a rarebination, Shinohara and Ike hanging out together. Where are the others?"


    Neither Akito nor Keisei thought anything was out of the ordinary and asked the question indifferently. Of course, Haruka and Airi, though they were surprised, seemed to sense it immediately and pushed the boys'' backs.


    "Come on,e on, we don''t need to worry about that, we''ll be on our way."


    "Huh? What''s this all of a sudden?"


    "S-Satsuki, let''s go."


    "Yeah."


    He took Shinohara''s hand as if running away, and the two of them went to the reception desk of the private pool. I guess they didn''t have time to loaf around in this ce because the time was fixed.


    "Satsuki?"


    He called her by her first name and they walked hand in hand as they disappeared into their respective changing rooms. Seeing that, Akito finally noticed something strange about the two of them.


    "They...eh, since when?"


    "What is it? What are you talking about?"


    Keisei still didn''t understand, but he was immediately given a straightforward exnation by Haruka.


    "It means they started dating"


    "What are you talking about? Ike and Shinohara are like oil and water, why would those two date each other?"


    He denied with a serious expression that people who didn''t like each other would ever date each other.


    "You''re smart, Yukimuu, but...you''re an idiot."


    "They might''ve disliked each other at first, but I think they''ve probably been closing the distance, little by little. I get the feeling they''ve be more conscious of each othertely."


    Airi nodded her head in understanding, perhaps because girls were better at this kind of romance stuff.


    "Yeah, I guess. But I''m surprised. I can''t believe that they actually started going out."


    "S-so that''s how it is. Ike and Shinohara are? ...No, as I thought, I can''t understand it."


    Keisei, having grasped the situation, looked shocked and searched for the backs of the two people who were no longer visible.

 Chapter 172: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 172: 4.3</h4>


    "Nope~ scary~"


    Not long after we''d finished hanging out and returned to our guest cabin, Miyamoto came back whilst mumbling to himself.


    "Did something happen?"


    "It''s nothing like that. That Tokit�� guy had a hold of Katsuragi''s cor by the nearby restroom. Ah, of course it''s that Tokit�� who''s always so quick to start fighting. Well, it was quite a mess."


    "You didn''t try to stop them? Hiroya can be pretty scary when he gets mad, you know?"


    Miyamoto looked a little annoyed at Akito, who''d made it sound like he''d abandoned Katsuragi.


    "I''m not gonna stop them. It''s none of my business and I''d get in trouble if I got involved."


    Katsuragi and Tokit�� Hiroya. Both were students from Ry��en''s ss.


    "Katsuragi has only just moved from ss A. Considering that they were enemies until not too long ago, it''s no wonder that trouble is brewing. Right, Kiyotaka?"


    "That may be so."


    "I''m a little worried, why don''t we go check on them?"


    "Leave it be, Miyake. An enemy ss has a dispute, so rtively speaking, it''s a win-win for us, isn''t it? It''s not surprising that they don''t get along since Katsuragi was originally a ss A student."


    "But...aren''t we all second-years?"


    "If we carelessly get involved, we might end up as coteral damage. And what will we do if we get noticed by Ry��en?"


    Akito seemed to haveints regarding Miyamoto''s arguments, but he listened to him all the same. It wasn''t inconceivable that the situation could take a turn for the worse if Akito joined them.


    Listening to the conversation between the two of them, I stood up silently.


    "Just leave it alone."


    "No, I think remaining calm is the right thing to do regarding the Katsuragi situation. I''m just going to the store because I''m thirsty."


    With that, I left the guest cabin. I was pretty sure he said their dispute was at the nearby restroom. If it was a minor dispute, the best thing to do would be to leave it alone, just as Miyamoto said, but...


    When I heard the name ''Tokit��'', the first person that came to mind was Ichinose''s ssmate Tokit�� Katsumi, who was in the same group as me duringst year''s mixed training camp. The one who was making trouble right now was someone else, Tokit�� Hiroya. I remember being surprised when I heard that their both having the same rtively rare surname, Tokit��, wasn''t just a coincidence, but because they were distant rtives. We haven''t built up any deep friendship since then, but I have shared food, clothing and shelter with Tokit�� Katsumi.


    It seemed that they weren''t acquainted, but if it was okay for an outsider like me to step in, I''d like to reach out to him at least. That was what I nned on doing, but...


    Even after getting close to the restroom, there was still no sign of Katsuragi and the others. There was a bit of a disagreement, but I guess it was already resolved.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    As I was about to take a look around the area, Hiyori called out to me.


    "Have you seen Katsuragi?"


    "As I thought, other people saw them too. I also heard that Katsuragi-kun and Tokit��-kun were having a dispute, so I came here. That''s why I asked them to change location just now."


    I see. If it was around the restroom, they''d stand out even if they didn''t want to. As I followed Hiyori''s lead, I could faintly make out a voice from an unpopr area.


    I was instructed to peer in from the shadows, and silently listened for the source of the voice. Just as Miyamoto reported, it was Katsuragi and Tokit��. However, besides them, it seemed that a girl, Okabe, was also participating.


    "Katsuragi, are you really followin'' Ry��en?"


    "You''re still going on with this? This is the third time you''ve asked me that question, albeit with slightly different wording."


    "That''s because you won''t answer."


    "There''s no way to answer. I keep asking you to rify what you mean by ''following''."


    While Katsuragi was calmly handling the situation, Tokit�� was letting his emotions get the better of him.


    "I''m talkin'' about you being his dog and doin'' whatever he tells you to do."


    "I don''t remember bing a dog, and I have no intention of being ordered around."


    "Sorry, but I don''t think so. If that''s the case, why did you team up with him for the uninhabited ind exam?"


    "That''s a difficult question to understand. Obviously it was for the ss to win. What else is there to say," answered Katsuragi, as if it were a matter of course.


    "Even though you couldn''t even get third ce?"


    "It certainly didn''t go as nned. But, the results were not bad."


    "What the hell is that? It''s all the same for fourth ce and below. Also, the Trial card up being meaningless."


    "It means that Ry��en has more on his mind than you think."


    "I don''t wanna hear that from a stranger like you. Go on then, what''s he thinkin'' about?"


    "This isn''t the right stage to talk about it. I''m sorry, but I can''t tell you anything."


    "What''s that supposed to mean? There''s nothin'' at all, is there? Anyway, I don''t like Ry��en."


    The push and pull exchange went on and on. One thing was for sure; Tokit�� really hated Ry��en from the bottom of his heart.


    "It''s true that if you were to ask me if he''s a likable person, I couldn''t honestly answer with a yes."


    Katsuragi nodded his head in agreement, not arguing that point. However, it seemed that Tokit�� didn''t care for this attitude either.


    "And yet, you teamed up with Ry��en on the uninhabited ind and were acting all buddy buddy while eatin'' together today."


    "We''re going around in circles. There seems to be a misunderstanding..."


    When Katsuragi was about to deny it, Tokit�� intervened with a biting attitude.


    "After all that hostility, you were won over so easily. I thought you''d have more backbone than that."


    "I''ve had more than one or two run-ins with Ry��en, regardless of being a friend or foe. But now I''m fulfilling my role as a member of the ss, and as Ry��en''s ssmate. If this ss is moving around Ry��en, then it makes sense to follow suit."


    "I can''t believe these words arein'' from the guy who was goin'' at it with Sakayanagi."


    "The process is different. When we started as 1st years, we hadn''t decided who was going to be the leader yet. And since Sakayanagi, who had put herself forward as a candidate, and I had opposing views, I put myself forward as leader and we had a confrontation. The current ss has already set its course with Ry��en as its leader. In the first ce, do you really think I''ll be recognized as the leader after having just changed sses?"


    "That''s..."


    "Besides, Sakayanagi and Ry��en are different types. The ss also has a very different feel."


    Katsuragi replied with a good argument as if admonishing him, but Tokit�� didn''t seem to be convinced at all.


    "That''s why I told you, Tokit��. Katsuragi-kun isn''t worth talking to."


    Okabe, who had been quietly watching up to this point, tapped Tokit�� on the shoulder and told him there was no point in going any further.


    "In the end, you, who had no ce in ss A, were happy to be picked up by Ry��en, right Katsuragi-kun? In other words, you''re his dog."


    "I don''t think you people are going to understand me if I deny it here."


    I see, it was only a rough idea, but I was starting to see the root of all this trouble. After being tapped on the shoulder with a fingertip, I pulled my head back and faced Hiyori.


    "It''s not just today that some of my ssmates have beenining."


    "I guess. The resentment they''ve been feeling until now must''ve been building up."


    Ry��en''s dictatorship obviously generates strong opposition. They must''ve been forcibly suppressing it until now, but it was finally started to boil over.


    "What about Ry��en? In the past, he never would''ve shown mercy in response to rebels."


    "In the past, yes."


    "Is the absence of that ruthlessness the cause of what''s happening here?"


    Hiyori gave a small nod.


    "Everyone is changing. In the beginning, I didn''t have any strong feelings regarding the ss either. I hardly ever asserted my opinion, as long as I could spend the next three years surrounded by books."


    Certainly, if you were to ask me if Hiyori''s presence was strong from the beginning, I would''ve said no. In fact, I didn''t even take notice of her existence.


    "Tokit��-kun has always hated Ry��en-kun''s way of doing things. No, it''s not just Tokit��-kun. The one nearby, Okabe-san, is another one of them."


    "Are you saying that they want to embrace Katsuragi and rebel against Ry��en?"


    "That may be so."


    Ability-wise, Katsuragi was more than capable of being a substitute leader. And because he''s student from a different ss, he could cut through Ry��en without hesitation.


    "But Tokit�� Hiroya. Ry��en has made another troublesome enemy."


    Akito said something simr about Tokit�� Hiroya, but he has a selfish personality and was rough with his words, and he was also known to be vindictive.


    "Do you think so too, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    As Hiyori feared, this situation was a scourge that wouldn''t benefit anyone.


    "Indeed, our ss is going strong right now. I think one of the main reasons for this is the growth of Ry��en-kun, who came back after being out of the war for a while."


    Compared to the beginning of the first year Ry��en, Ishizaki, and others have shown a lot of growth.


    "But whether or not this steady progress will continue forever is another story. It might be something you could say for every ss, but if Ry��en-kun were to be expelled from school in the near future, our ss would fall apart immediately."


    "The way Ry��en fights is always fraught with danger after all."


    In the future, it was likely that there would be developments in which he would take on a lot of risk in order to win big. I was also very curious about the ''agreement'' he brought up to Sakayanagi.


    "Should that happen, it''s essential to have someone who can contain the damage."


    She meant a potential leader in case of unforeseen circumstances. Hiyori smiled at me.


    "At that time, Ayanok��ji-kun...would you join our ss?"


    Hiyori, despite her appearance, wasn''t optimistic and spoke of a strategy to help the ss win.


    "Again? What a daring thing to say."


    "I invited you the other day, but that was half-jokingly just to go along with Ishizaki-kun. This invitation is different."


    In other words, this time she''s serious.


    "I don''t consider my ss to be weak at all. But it''s also true that weck someone who can guide us in case of an emergency. What do you think?"


    A battle with Hiyori, Katsuragi and Kaneda backing me up as general counsel, huh?


    "This development doesn''t necessarily mean that Ry��en is going to be expelled. Isn''t that right?"


    "Of course, the best thing would be if that didn''t happen."


    But for Hiyori, I had a feeling that this was a bit of a spur of the moment invitation. Even if she''d been thinking about it in her gut, I questioned whether it was something she should''ve said right now.


    "Did you hear something worrying?" I asked boldly, but Hiyori just smiled a little and didn''t answer.


    While I was talking to Hiyori, Katsuragi and Tokit�� continued to argue. Katsuragi''s rigidity was finally broken by the fact that Tokit�� wouldn''t be pleased no matter how he responded.


    "...This is a waste of time. I told you this because I thought if it was you, you''d understand, but I was wrong."


    "You seem to have understood."


    "I''m not askin'' you to keep quiet about this. If you wanna report it to Ry��en, do it."


    "I have no intention of reporting it."


    "You sure about this? I''m tellin'' you, I''m serious. You never know what''ll happen if you let it go."


    "Don''t get me wrong, Tokit��. There are lots of things wrong with the way Ry��en does things. I don''t think it''s wrong to haveints like you do. But I''m not impressed by your overzealous behaviour."


    It was obvious that Tokit�� had something in mind. And there was no doubt that his intention was to eliminate Ry��en.


    "Shut up."


    After saying this, Tokit�� left Katsuragi. We hid ourselves and watched Tokit�� and Okabe leave so that we could stay unnoticed. I was going to leave quietly after that, but...Hiyori pulled my arm, revealing our presence in front of Katsuragi.


    "Do you need something, Ayanok��ji?"


    It would be strange to run away now, so I went with the flow and walked up to Katsuragi.


    "No, it just seems there''s a lot of difficulties in your ss too, Katsuragi."


    "It''s the same in every ss. Although I would''ve preferred not to be overheard." Katsuragi looked once at Hiyori, who was standing next to me. "I''m not impressed, Shiina. You seem to trust Ayanok��ji, but I can''t say it''s the right decision to bring your personal feelings into a ss matter."


    As harsh as it may sound, what Katsuragi said was correct. Sending information to the enemy that you didn''t need to give could be a fatal woundter on.


    "That may be so. But who among our ssmates can you talk to about this? If Ry��en-kun, one of the parties involved, heard about it, he wouldn''t leave Tokit��-kun and the others alone, and neither would the other students. Some might even try to score some points by selling out their friends who betrayed him."


    "It''s not something that can be solved by letting Ayanok��ji hear it."


    "Isn''t this a good opportunity to sort out your thoughts on what to do, Katsuragi-kun?"


    "What?"


    "Why don''t you let out what''s on your mind so that you can find your bearings?"


    A schemer, huh? Hiyori was trying to use me to influence Katsuragi in a positive way. It wasn''t easy for Katsuragi, who had a tendency to think alone, to get along with others. Her actions must''ve gotten through to Katsuragi, as he agreed in spite of himself.


    "You seem to be thinking about the ss more than I thought, Shiina."


    "Of course. I intend to graduate with all my ssmates in ss A after all."


    As if encouraged by her remark, Katsuragi put his thoughts into words.


    "As the only second-year student who has experienced both sses so far, I feel there is a crucial difference between Sakayanagi''s ss and Ry��en''s ss. In both cases, the leaders often faceints from their ssmates, but even so, Sakayanagi''s ss has a certain cohesiveness. On the other hand, in Ry��en''s ss, there are still many students who are not convinced and dissatisfied."


    These were exactly the kind of students Tokit�� and Okabe, who had just confronted Katsuragi, were.


    "This dissatisfaction will continue to build up and persist as the ss ascends..."


    "You mean you''re afraid of the next time it starts to go downhill?


    "Yes. Depending on the situation, a single mistake could half destroy the ss. I don''t think that man hasn''t already have foreseen that, but...I don''t think he''s going to change the current system."


    "Isn''t that just what you''ve read into it, Katsuragi? I''m sure Ry��en knows that too."


    "But if he knows that, then he should step up to the te and do something about Tokit�� and the others."


    "Well, there will inevitably be bacsh against Ry��en''s methods."


    Apparently, Katsuragi thought that Ry��en should solve this problem.


    "Didn''t Ry��en pull you out of ss A in anticipation of that, Katsuragi?"


    "...Me?"


    "If something happened to Ry��en himself, you would be able to fill in for him, Katsuragi. I think that''s why he pulled you out."


    He was exactly what Hiyori was looking for, somebody who could potentially be the new leader.


    "I find that hard to believe."


    Of course, as I told Katsuragi, it was just my own personal interpretation.


    "In the case of Ry��en, a high-risk, high-return type student, it''s possible he could graduate from ss A, or he could also drop out of school in a sh during some exam. That''s why he needed some insurance."


    It was very possible that a single betrayal could lead to the downfall of Ry��en''s administration.


    "If that''s the case...I don''t like it."


    I felt it was because he thought highly of Katsuragi, but he didn''t hide his dissatisfaction.


    "Ry��en and I are enemies because of our different values. That hasn''t changed now that we''re ssmates. But now that we''re allies, I think the minimum goal should be to graduate from ss A without missing anyone."


    Since he knew that this was the kind of person he was, Ry��en probably wouldn''t tell Katsuragi directly. When I look at his personal growth, I could see that Ry��en has made remarkable progress, but his ssmates haven''t been able to keep up with his momentum.


    "About earlier, you made the right decision to keep Ry��en from hearing about Tokit��."


    "It would be nice if we could just leave the rebels alone, but if we have to get rid of themter, it could be a bigger problem."


    I was sure it was a source of annoyance and a headache, but at the same time, it would be a rewarding experience for Katsuragi. At the very least, the situation wasrgely different to the time when he was in ss A, where he was tamed and defeated without a fight.


    The expression on Katsuragi''s face softened slightly, as if some new idea hade to mind.


    "What do you think, Katsuragi-kun?"


    "...I understand." After clearing his throat once, Katsuragi turned his attention to me once again. "After having you listen to what I had to say, I have some perspective on what I need to do. I''m grateful."


    "No, I''m just saying what''s on my mind is all."


    "If it was all bullshit it wouldn''t be worth talking about, but what you said was right on the money. Shiina asked you because she was sure you''d give the right answer."


    Hiyori smiled happily. I''d been taken advantage of, but it would be nice if this could bring the slightest sign of life into Ry��en''s ss.


    "And by the way, Ayanok��ji. I''m sure some other students were thinking the same thing, but I was a little surprised."


    "Surprised?"


    "The results of this special exam were very close."


    Starting with Matsushita, many students had be skeptical of my abilities. In that sense, Tsukishiro''s presence turned out to be a good thing.


    "Was that your true ability? Or did something unnned happen?"


    "Hmm, I wonder."


    I tried to y it off, but Katsuragi wouldn''t look the other way.


    "Shiina, I''m sorry, but I want to speak with Ayanok��ji alone for a moment."


    "I understand. I''ll go back to my room. Then I''ll see youter, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    I exchanged a quick goodbye with Hiyori and the two of us remained in ce.


    "During the uninhabited ind exam, Ry��en told me everything he knew about you."


    "Ry��en told you frankly?"


    "He was a little evasive at first, but I told him that if he wanted me to be part of the ss, he was going to have to tell me."


    That was some kind of honeyed phrase.


    If that was the case, then my standing as X, who was working from the shadows in Horikita''s ss, was revealed. That meant that Katsuragi knew everything, even the incident on the rooftop.


    Just like Sakayanagi said, I can''t prevent the number of people who know about me from gradually increasing.


    "Until now, you''ve handled everything well."


    "As long as I could have a quiet school life, I figured it wouldn''t make much difference to me whether I was in ss A or ss D."


    "Is that why you''re hiding your abilities? I''m not going to tell anyone, but it probably won''t take much time for word to get out."


    It seemed that way. It was safe to say that there was no way to stop the information from spreading.


    "I''ll just continue being myself and do what I have to do at this school."


    "I don''t know when it''ll happen, but I''m looking forward to the day I get to fight you for real."


    With that, Katsuragi nodded once and left the area.

 Chapter 173: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 173: 4.4</h4>


    It waste afternoon, and I was on my way to the caf�� terrace with one of my friends.


    "It''s been a while since we''ve met up just the two of us like this, hasn''t it, Sat��-san?"


    "Yeah. Probably not since that time."


    Since that time. She was talking about the time I told her I was going out with Kiyotaka.


    Since then, Sat��-san and I have be good friends... No, we were much closer than before, to the point where I could now call her my best friend.


    However, our group was usually made up of four or five people. Taking turns, I was always hanging out with a group around that number.


    That was why it wasn''t often that I had the opportunity to be alone with Sat��-san. It was the same on the cruise ship during this summer vacation. In fact, I had even less private time because I was always hanging out with seven or eight other people. We even went to the pool, which I was somewhat resistant towards... Well, I was able to cover my skin with a rash guard, so there weren''t any problems. Anyway, there was a reason why I forcibly created some time to spend alone with Sat��-san today.


    First things first...find an empty seat. Sat��-san and I looked around, trying to find a seat before ordering. Unlike the school, the caf�� terrace was spacious so there was no need to worry about finding a space.


    However, because of the subject of today''s conversation, I didn''t want people around me if I could help it. If you want to keep some distance from other students, the best ce would be a spot with poor sunlight.


    What should I do...?


    "I''m okay with the back of the room if you want."


    "Eh? Is that okay?"


    "I mean, you have something important to talk about, right?"


    Sat��-san, who had already figured it out, replied so and gave me a cute smile.


    "Thank you."


    I thanked her and we decided to take the unpopr seats with no view of the outside. After turning over the ''in use'' tag, we headed over to ce our orders.


    "Let me pay for your drink. I''m the one who called you out here after all, Sat��-san."


    I pushed through Sat��-san, who seemed to be hesitant, and ordered two cups of coffee before taking my seat.


    "So...what did you want to talk about?"


    As soon as we sat down, Sat��-san began to speak. I also wasn''t intending to drag this out at all, but...


    "Hmm...wait a moment."


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Don''t you think there''s something strange about this atmosphere?"


    I felt something was wrong regarding the atmosphere in this ce so I went to check with her, but she just tilted her head curiously.


    "Strange? I don''t think there''s anything though..."


    "Yeah, I guess so. I''m sorry for saying something weird."


    At first, I also didn''t know why I felt this way. But maybe it was something I''d learnt from spending so much time with him...Kiyotaka. That guy never overlooked even the slightest detail. No matter if it was someone''s facial expressions, emotions or the atmosphere of a ce like this. Whatever it might be, he would see through it and detect any anomalies. Perhaps I''d also be able to discern things like that...?


    I didn''t know what was really going on, but that was what I decided to think for the time being. But what could it be? Why did I feel such a bad vibe? I tried to keep myposure and began quietly observing my surroundings.


    "If only we could keep living on this cruise ship forever..."


    As I said that, I put the cup to my mouth, and looked around casually.


    "Ahaha, I feel the same. But if we keep going like this every day, we''ll run out of money."


    "That''s true. With the pool, movies, and good food, I''m sure I''ll run out of money soon.


    I noticed that the strange atmosphere had disappeared. Or rather, it had faded away. Was I simply mistaken? Or maybe I was too preupied with probing, and it became toote to notice that things were starting to change.


    A group of three third-year girls sat at the table next to us, chatting andughing.


    "You know, you know~... Kisarazu-kun from ss B, yeah~?"


    "No way, are you serious? I didn''t know that~"


    They were chatting amicably,ughing out loud and having a great time.


    Ahh, jeez...I should''ve spoken sooner. Even though the ocean side was more popr, it wasn''t surprising that some people might choose this ce to avoid the crowds or keep out of the sun. I didn''t think our conversation would be very interesting to them, but they were still close enough to overhear us. We could just move and run away, but I didn''t want to leave a bad impression.


    It would be one thing if they were first-years, but these were third-year upperssmen. I couldn''t ignore the possibility that they could be upset if I were to move just because I didn''t want them to sit next to us. I knew very well that bullying could start from trivial things like that.


    "Actually, I was thinking I should tell you first, Sat��-san."


    Let''s not worry about the irrelevant third-year students and focus on Sat��-san here. It would be rude to worry about unnecessary things.


    "I think it''s about time I told everyone. About Kiyotaka that is."


    "...Yeah."


    As I thought, Sat��-san had almost expected the contents of what I was going to say. She might''ve also considered the possibility that I was perhaps going to tell her we broke up...No, I don''t think so. If that had been the case, I wouldn''t have been able to keep a level head. I couldn''t imagine myself being able tough about it and say, ''we broke up~'' without a care in the world.


    "That''s why...I thought I should tell you, Sat��-san."


    "Everyone''ll be really surprised when they find out, won''t they? That the two of you are dating."


    I simted it over and over in my head. There was no doubt that no matter when I reveal it, it was going to cause a bit of a stir. I don''t intend to speak ill of myself, but I don''t have a very cute personality.


    I was always so pompous and trying to push everyone else down. Before I met Kiyotaka, I acted much bossier than I was now because I didn''t want to get bullied. I''d even sent amorous nces to boys I wasn''t interested in.


    "So when do you n to tell everyone?"


    When Sat��-san asked me about the timing, I replied immediately.


    "Since it''s summer vacation now, I was thinking I''ll wait until the second semester starts."


    "What did Ayanok��ji-kun say when you told him?"


    "He said he''d adjust to whatever timing I liked."


    Sat��-san sucked on the straw and sipped her drink.


    "I see. You guys are all lovey-dovey?"


    "Eh?! Ehhh?"


    "It''s fine to tell me isn''t it?"


    "Y-yeah. Well, I mean, it''d be weird if we weren''t lovey-dovey given that we''re a couple."


    "Have you kissed and stuff?"


    "Ehhhhh?!"


    "It''s been a while since you started dating, right? So how''s the progress?" She clenched her right hand and held it out to my mouth, mimicking a microphone.


    "...J-just once, by surprise."


    Hearing my honest reply, Sat��-san smiled widely.


    "That''s nice, I like the idea of a surprise kiss."


    "R-really? I wasn''t able to prepare or anything...Even though it was my first time..."


    Hearing such a murmur, Sat��-san''s eyes widened slightly and she let out a little, "huh".


    "Did you never do anything with Hirata-kun, Karuizawa-san? You were together for quite a while, weren''t you?"


    "Eh?"


    "And if it''s you, Karuizawa-san, it wouldn''t be surprising if you had a boyfriend during middle school."


    As I listened to Sat��-san''sments, I felt the blood drain from my veins. Karuizawa Kei was a very popr girl of high status who was constantly moving from one boy to another. Reporting that such a person had only just had her first kiss certainly was a problem.


    "Well...you see, it''s because I''m a modest girl." I replied, trying my best to lookposed. "Don''t you think that it has to be a special person, not just any boyfriend, to allow that kind of thing?"


    Suddenly feeling thirsty, I poured a third of the cup of coffee down my throat in one gulp.


    "But Hirata-kun was a super cool boyfriend, wasn''t he?"


    "Well, yeah. But maybe it just wasn''t stimting enough for me."


    This is fine; you can do it, me.


    Now that I''d slipped up, I had no choice but to go along with the flow and deceive her.


    "Hirata-kun''s a passive guy, so he didn''t make a move even if I wanted him to. It was a bit unsatisfying for me~"


    Sorry, Hirata-kun! I apologized in my heart whilst I sacrificed him for my own sake.


    "Is that so? Well, it''s true that you might want your boyfriend to take the lead in some areas."


    "Right, right?"


    "But Ayanok��ji-kun looks like a more passive guy, but he''s actually quite aggressive, huh?"


    Sat��-san seemed a little regretful after saying that.


    "Sat��-san...I..."


    "Ah, sorry Karuizawa-san. That''s not what I meant...!"


    Today''s meeting was just supposed to be for me tell her that I was going to reveal our rtionship. And yet, this was nothing more than a disagreeable jerk bragging about herself.


    When I first came to this school, I thought that was fine. I was a gaudy woman who went around talking about all kinds of things regarding Hirata-kun.


    But now, I think that kind of thing is no good. I consider her a precious friend, so I should''ve avoided saying something so thoughtless...I could say it was a defence mechanism to protect myself, but that sounded like an excuse and was just my selfish ego talking.


    "It''s fine, it''s fine. I mean, it''s normal to fall in love with the same boy if you think they are nice, or rather, it''s something that''s been happening to me for a long time. Well...in my case, I was always on the losing side though."


    Sat��-san pouted her lips as she let out herint. But after that, she immediately returned to her lively self.


    "Just to be sure, if you dump Ayanok��ji-kun...It''s fine right?"


    When she says ''it''s fine'' she means that right?


    She continued without letting me clear my mind. "You know, now that Hirata-kun''s free, he can go get a new girlfriend, right? So it''s the same for Ayanok��ji-kun, yeah?"


    "That''s...well I guess that''s true, but..."


    That definitely can''t happen! I mean we''re not breaking up! I was screaming in my heart, but I couldn''t show it on the surface so it was difficult.


    "You know, I think you could aim for better guys, Karuizawa-san."


    "Better guys? Like who?"


    "Answering who straight after being asked is a little difficult, but...like Tsukasaki-kun, or Nagumo-senpai."


    "Ehh~?"


    For me, both of them were out of the question. It was true that if we were only talking about visuals, Tsukasaki-kun was top ss, and the Student Council President might be too. And if we were talking about status and stuff, they were unmistakable at the top.


    But...yeah, I didn''t think they could rival Kiyotaka. That guy...he could be disagreeable at times, but...he''s strong, handsome and mysterious. And most of all...He understands me.


    "Okay! I said something unnecessary, thank you for the meal!"


    "E-eh?"


    "I mean it''s written all over your face, Karuizawa-san. That for you, Ayanok��ji-kun is number one."


    Jeez... My poker face can''t get past Sat��-san, who knew the details of my love life.


    "Thank you, for telling me about it first. It made me happy."


    "I wonder... If that''s the case then that''s good."


    After that, our conversation turned to other people''s love stories. Reflecting on the uninhabited ind and things that werepletely unrted. It was the first time in a long time that the two of us were able to spend an enjoyable time together.

 Chapter 174: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 174: 4.5</h4>


    That same day, a little after 2:10pm. It was a time of day when most students had finished their lunch and were having fun.


    I was quietly looking out to the ocean while waiting for the person I had called out. Taking out my phone, I clicked on my own name, Horikita Suzune, and opened the OAA app. I was expecting to see some changes after the results of the uninhabited ind exam, but it seemed my scores were exactly the same. It was possible that it wasn''t reflected because there were a limited number of situations where the teachers could observe each student.


    There also weren''t any changes when I checked the OAA scores of the person I was meetingter.


    I quickly closed my phone and stared out to the ocean in silence.


    It had been a few days since the extremely harsh and somewhat unrealistic uninhabited ind exam. Although my body no longer felt tired, my sense of routine remained thin because I was on a luxury cruise ship.


    "Geh, you''re still here?"


    The voice came from some distance away. Before I could turn around, the words continued.


    "Could you not use other people to call me out? They''ll misunderstand and think you and I are close."


    I approached Yamaga-san, who was from her ss and shared a guest cabin with her.


    "Unfortunately there was no other way to contact you. Or did you want me to approach you during a meal with many people present?"


    "I''d definitely hate that. But I also hate gettin'' approached in a way like today just as much."


    "If that''s the case, could you tell me in advance what I should do if I want to talk to you?"


    "The best thing would be if you didn''t think about talking to me at all."


    Ibuki-san arrived at the meeting ce about ten minuteste with a disagreeable look on her face. Without a single word of apology, she''d beenining ever since.


    "You don''t seem to have been dyed by some special circumstance. By any chance, are you trying to be Miyamoto Musashi?"


    "What? I don''t even know what that means."


    Trying to make me angry...that couldn''t be the case, right? Well, if that was her goal, she should''ve made me wait for two hours instead of ten minutes.


    "If it wasn''t just to harass me, I''d like to know why you''rete."


    "Huh? As I see it, you''re the one harassing me by calling me out."


    "Yes. You''re absolutely right."


    When I answered back in all seriousness, she sighed in exasperation. "What do you mean by, if I ignore your call, you''ll consider me to have run away? You piss me off."


    "If I reached out to you normally, you would just ignore me, right?"


    "''Course I would. Who''d meet up with you because they want to?"


    I was prepared for her to disregard mepletely, but she came, albeitte. She disliked the idea of losing to me more than anything, so calling her out with a challenge was the correct decision.


    "Ah jeez, I get it already."


    ''If you have something to say, say it quickly'', was what her hurried attitude seemed to show. I''d like to be sympathetic to her feelings, but the circumstances meant that wasn''t possible.


    "Shall we talk while we walk? As for talking while standing around, it will take some time and this ce is conspicuous."


    It was a suitable spot to meet up at, but not a good ce to have a private conversation.


    "Huh?...Fuckin'' hell."


    Even though she was irritated, she followed me rtively obediently. For her part, she was feeling frustrated because she finished with fewer points than me in the uninhabited ind exam. I wouldn''t be surprised if she came at me looking for a chance at revenge.


    We started to move and when we were able to blend in with the surrounding crowd, I started talking.


    "It has to do with Amasawa-san, the one we fought during the uninhabited ind exam."


    "...Ah, that shitty arrogant first-year."


    I couldn''t see Ibuki-san''s expression because she was walking slightly behind me.


    "It''s a little hard to talk, so could you walk a bit faster?"


    "Oh, shut it. What pace I walk at is entirely up to me."


    "When you''re alone, yes." I stopped walking and looked back. "You want to get this over and done with, that''s why I''m trying to keep this as brief as possible for you. But in order to do that, I''m going to need your cooperation."


    "Yeah, yeah, I get it, I get it. I just need to walk faster, right?"


    Saying that, she started walking past me with a speed like she was participating in a walking race.


    How could I put it? She was like a child in a bad sense. Of course, since she wasn''t childish in a good way, it couldn''t be used to her advantage. I was watching Ibuki-san''s back in disbelief while thinking that to myself when she turned and looked back at me with a scary face.


    "Aren''t youing?!"


    "Too fast a pace is also a problem. Could you walk moderately fast?"


    "Ahh, for fuck''s sake!" Ibuki-san ruffled her hair, and then came back. "I''ll listen to what you have to say properly, but you have to agree to a revenge match! Do you understand?!"


    "Right. We''re expecting to have a sports festival during the second semester...Depending on the circumstances, I might be able to make it happen."


    "You mean I can take my revenge, right?"


    "I just said it, didn''t I? I''ll make it happen depending on the circumstances."


    After taking a few moments to sort out the meaning of my words, she bit her lip in displeasure.


    "In other words, you also might not agree to it depending on the circumstances, right?"


    "Oh my, even someone with your brain can decipher things like that. Well done, you have my admiration."


    When I pped my hands, it seemed she felt she was being mocked, as my hand was pped away.


    "You''re violent."


    "Shut up! If you don''t promise you''ll ept, we''re done here!"


    "I don''t really mind, but then you''ll never get the revenge match you want so badly."


    "Hey..."


    "I can''t promise anything here, but depending on your actions, the possibility remains open. That''s a very important thing, don''t you think? I don''t think I''ve lost to you. In other words, until you graduate...no, even after you graduate, you''re going to have regrets about not winning."


    "Aah...!"


    "So? Are you going to listen to me or not? The choice is yours, Ibuki-san."


    "I get it, I get it already! I just have to listen, right?!"


    "It would''ve been better to be obedient from the start. This conversation with me, who you hate so much, would finish quicker, so it would be easier for you."


    I decided to give her some advice for next time. Ibuki-san was hoping for a revenge match, but that really did depend on the future. Of course, if it would conflict with our ss'' objective, I won''t be her opponent. Talking about that here would only bring about negative repercussions though, so I''ll keep quiet. The fact that I gave her room to potentially ept a revenge match may have helped lessen her sour mood somewhat.


    Ibuki-san stopped in her tracks and started walking at my pace.


    "And? What about that cocky first-year?"


    "How did it make you feel when you traded hands with her?"


    "How did I feel...?"


    "Stronger than anyone you''ve ever fought until now, isn''t that how you felt?"


    "Well...she wasn''t in perfect condition, so I might have to admit it."


    Whether it was myself or Ibuki-san, there was such a difference in skill that we wouldn''t be able to match Amasawa-san even if she was standing on her hands.


    "Yeah, there''s no doubt that Amasawa''s strength ain''t normal for a first-year. Ah, I don''t wanna think about it ''cause it makes me feel sick, okay?"


    "Don''t say that. You''re the only one I can and need to have this conversation with right now."


    Now that she''d confronted her face to face, Ibuki-san could also understand that. If I were to exin Amasawa-san''s strength to someone who didn''t know anything, they wouldn''t be able toprehend it at all.


    "I know it''s a strange turn of events, but you could also be in for some kind of damage. I thought I should apologize for that first."


    "Damage?" Ibuki-san raised an eyebrow, as if she didn''t understand what I meant.


    "I''ve been thinking I should investigate Amasawa-san''s background for a bit."


    "You''re gonna stick your nose into her business? Wouldn''t it be better to just leave her alone? She seems to have a few screws loose and is apletely unpredictable type."


    For Ibuki-san to say something to that extent, she must have a powerful impression of Amasawa-san.


    "Certainly, she''s a dangerous opponent. But I have a feeling that bad things will happen in the future if we leave her alone."


    "Doesn''t sound like she was interested in you though?"


    "It''s not for me. It''s for Ayanok��ji-kun."


    At the mention of that name, Ibuki-san''s gaze turned towards the ocean, as if she understood.


    "Ayanok��ji, right. I don''t really know much, but she sure seemed to know a lot about Ayanok��ji."


    Yes, Amasawa-san knew about Ayanok��ji-kun. It didn''t seem like she only knew him starting this year as a mere underssman.


    "He''s my ssmate. If there''s anything I can do to help, of course I''ll do it."


    Even my teeth were on edge after saying that. If you''d asked me when I first entered this school, I would''ve had goosebumps and denied it with all I had.


    "But if she figures out you''re looking into her, she''ll probably pick a fight with you. At that time, you wouldn''t stand a chance, would you?"


    "Her strength is...how do I put it?...I feel like she''s in apletely different dimension to the world we live in."


    "I''d like to say don''t call it ''we'', but that is definitely something else."


    "So there was no one else as good as her in your memory either then."


    "I''m the strongest of the second-years. It was the same when I was in middle school. There weren''t many girls who practised martial arts, and I was never gonna be beaten by someone who only had a passing interest in it. In other words, I''ve been at the top for as long as I can remember."


    "Yes, that''s right. I think your strength is second only to mine in the second-year, I won''t deny that."


    "You''re denying it so much. You don''t recognise my strength?"


    "Nobody said that. I just don''t think I''m weaker than you."


    "No, no, I''m definitely stronger than you."


    "I wonder where you get so much confidence from. What''s your basis?"


    "Intuition?"


    "I wouldn''t count on that at all. You''re just being self-centred in your analysis aren''t you? We''ve not once fought each other at full strength. We don''t have all the information to make a clear decision on who is stronger, do we?"


    "Then it''s fine to put me as number one provisionally, right? Why do I have to be second?"


    "It''s the result of an objective evaluation."


    "I don''t even know what that means."


    We reached one of our destinations, the caf�� terrace.


    "It''s going to take a while, so let me buy you a drink. What would you like?"


    "I''m fine with anything, but...I''ll have an ice lemon tea."


    Ibuki-san and I finished ordering and I paid with my mobile phone. 1400 points for two drinks, that was pretty expensive.


    We received two drinks from the barista who was ready to serve us.


    "Here you go. It''s on me."


    "It feels strange that you''re buyin'' me a drink."


    "You should just ept gratitude when ites."


    "Well, that''s fine I guess."


    Ibuki-san received the cup with her left hand and took a sip while staring off into the distance.


    We then moved a little further away and stopped in a less crowded area.


    "Because I fought her, I know we share the same sense of strength. On top of that, did you sense any weaknesses, or quirks in her fighting style?"


    "She''s not someone you can analyse that easily."


    "...That''s true."


    It would be best if it didn''t turn into a rematch, but... I didn''t know what would happen if I pushed her too far.


    "If you''re on your own, she''ll just turn the tables on you and finish it. I don''t think that oue can be reversed."


    Ibuki-san wasn''t trying to put me down or anything, she was just stating facts. Even if I were to retrain myself from this point on, it would y out just as she indicated.


    "You''re free to think about it all you want, but I think it would be best to just let it go."


    "Did you hear what I just said? For Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    "Yeah, that." She interrupted my words, pointing the hand that held her cup towards me. "No matter what Amasawa does, if it''s him he can handle it on his own, no?"


    "...What do you mean?"


    Certainly, Ayanok��ji-kun is an excellent person. It was because I''d been watching him for a year and had a chance to learn a bit about him that I knew this.


    But there were still many mysteries, and not everything had been revealed regarding his academic and physical abilities. Even I, who was in the same ss as him, didn''t know everything, so Ibuki-san, who was from another ss, shouldn''t know more. From the outside, all that should be known was that he was good at math and his motor skills weren''t too bad.


    "I felt like I was being assertive, but you must be buying into Ayanok��ji-kun quite a bit."


    "I''m not buying into anythin'', anybody would think that considering his strength."


    Ibuki-san clearly said ''anybody would think that considering his strength''.


    "Did you by any chance hear about what happened with H��sen-kun from somewhere?"


    "Huh? H��sen? Who''s that again? Ah, that gori looking guy?"


    We weren''t on the same page and I was wrapped up in a queasy feeling.


    "Where did you get the information that Ayanok��ji-kun is strong?"


    "You say where..."


    As she was choosing her words, her face looked as if she was lost.


    "Did he keep you in the dark about all that? Did he not? I''ve forgotten..."


    She closed her eyes and crossed her arms, as if she was trying to remember something.


    "Something happened without my knowledge, didn''t it?"


    I''ll give a little push here.


    "So you''re the one who doesn''t know anything?"


    "Hmm...There''s nothing I don''t know, but it''s not like I know what you''re talking about either."


    Since we were both keeping each other in check, I decided to take the plunge and continue the conversation.


    "I think we need topare the information we have."


    "I don''t really want to though."


    "That won''t do. Now that you''ve mentioned it, tell me everything you know. What do you know about Ayanok��ji-kun that I don''t?"


    This was some kind of once in a lifetime chance to gather information. Anything, I didn''t care what it was, even if it was a little thing, if Ibuki-san knew about it...


    "Well, that''s fine I guess. So, what don''t you know?"


    It seemed Ibuki-san couldn''t decide on what to say so she asked me, sounding as if she considered this a hassle.


    "I''m curious about what you were about to say earlier."


    "The thing I was going to talk about was the rooftop thing with Ry��en and Ayanok��ji. You know, the time when he called out Karuizawa and tortured her with water."


    "What? Wait, what are you talking about...? I have absolutely no idea."


    Ry��en-kun? Rooftop? And Karuizawa-san? Water torture?


    Question marks kept popping up in my head.


    "Ah~, so it''s like that? That means he hasn''t told anyone in the ss then, has he?"


    Ibuki-san nodded her head as if she were satisfied that she hade to understand it first. Then, Ibuki-san started talking about something I didn''t know about Ayanok��ji-kun.


    As I listened to her, I stared out to the shining sea so as not to let my emotions get the better of me, whilst also trying to sort out my head at the same time. The fact that Ry��en-kun turned his attention to Karuizawa-san in order to fish out Ayanok��ji-kun, who had been hiding in our ss. And how, in order to save her, Ayanok��ji-kun went to the rooftop alone.


    Once there, he showed his overwhelming strength and overpowered Ry��en-kun and the others. Even though I knew about him to a certain extent, I was still surprised many times over.


    "...So the reason why Ry��en-kun stopped messing with our ss was because something like that happened...I really had no idea."


    "Anyway, now you know, right? That guy''s strength ain''t normal."


    "Yes, that''s right. He''s a man with immeasurable ability... Having fought both, who do you think would win in a fight between the two of them?"


    "Who knows? I haven''t seen either of them take a fight seriously. I''m not trying to say it''s because he''s a guy and she''s a girl, but isn''t Ayanok��ji better overall? So there''s no need for you to get involved."


    Even if Amasawa-san tried to do anything to him, he might just have the strength to deal with her.


    "But having physical strength doesn''t necessarily mean he''ll be safe. Especially in school, he might not be able to avoid expulsion. In fact, that strength could be his downfall."


    On the uninhabited ind, Amasawa-san was able to do whatever she wanted, but that wasn''t the case while inside the school.


    "Thank you Ibuki-san. Your information was more useful than I thought it would be."


    "You''re not gonna talk to Ayanok��ji about all this?"


    "Not yet anyway. This whole thing is about him to begin with, so I wouldn''t be surprised if he had already guessed what was going on."


    He should especially have some idea regarding Amasawa-san, given that they had been in contact several times even before the uninhabited ind exam.


    "And then there''s the question of the paper..."


    "Paper?"


    "Besides Amasawa-san, there was one other thing on my mind concerning the uninhabited ind exam."


    I exined to her how someone put a piece of paper in my tent. Ibuki-san now seemed to understand why I was on the northeast side of the ind on thest day of the exam.


    "I see. Someone other than Amasawa sent you a note implying Ayanok��ji was in danger."


    "So you know the word ''implying'', huh?"


    "Could you stop making out that I''m stupid?"


    Ibuki-san''s academic ability score was low in the OAA, but she was surprisingly easy to talk to. I didn''t feel as ufortable as I would when talking to someone who was clearly not at the same level as me.


    "That time, Amasawa-san looked at the paper she received from me and tore it into little pieces. That behaviour had been bothering me for a while, but I think it might be because she didn''t want to leave any handwriting evidence. Anyway, all I could remember clearly was that whoever wrote it had beautiful handwriting."


    "Beautiful handwriting?"


    "Yes. I don''t think there are many people who can write with that level of penmanship."


    "I see. So there''s a possibility that the guy who can write that well is up to something. But won''t it be hard to find them if that''s all you have to go off? Plus the evidence was destroyed."


    "It''s not going to be easy. I can''t just go around from person to person asking to look at their handwriting. The other thing is, and this is still an unsubstantiated theory, there''s a possibility that the person who wrote those letters is physically capable. Whether it''s Ayanok��ji-kun or Amasawa-san, if they have such exceptional strength, it''s also possible for this other person. Furthermore, it''s highly likely that they''re a first-year."


    "Given that it concerns Ayanok��ji and Amasawa, then sure, they could be a strong one. But what''s the basis for them being a first-year?"


    "Someone who was acquainted with Amasawa, who could be recognized by their handwriting. It''s unlikely to be a second or third-year."


    "I see."


    Ayanok��ji-kun, Amasawa-san, and a third party. Right now, I didn''t have aplete picture of what linked each of them at all. But I couldn''t just leave it alone.


    "I intend to move in a way that keeps you out of harm''s way, but I can''t guarantee what will happen if I''m brought down. If Amasawa-san shows any strange behaviour, don''t hesitate to get the school involved ����"


    A light click echoed across the deck. Ibuki-san pushed the cup of tea against the railing strongly and the contents of the cup, which had still been more than half full, overflowed and covered her hands.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "If you''re brought down? I told you, I''m the one who''s gonna take you down."


    "It''s not like I intend to be helplessly beaten. But we don''t know what the unseen enemies, including Amasawa-san, might do, so..."


    "The other side has two, so we should have two as well."


    "Is that..."


    "If you add me, the strongest out of the second-years, it''s a different story, right? If you absolutely insist, then I guess I''ve got no choice but to lend a hand."


    With that, she put the cup in her other hand and licked the lemon tea off the back of her hand.


    "What''s going on? I can''t believe you''ve agreed to cooperate with me twice."


    "I don''t like how that first-year got the better of us, and I can''t stomach the idea of you losin'' to anyone but me. Besides...the truth is you came to me with the intention of relying on me for help, didn''t you?"


    Ibuki-san looked me straight in the eye.


    "No, not at all?"


    "Huh? Why don''t you just be honest with me? Go on, say it, ''I need your help Ibuki-san''."


    "I hadn''t thought that for even one second though?"


    "...Alright then! Don''te asking for my help a second time! Bye-bye!"


    As the angry Ibuki-san was about to walk away, I grabbed her left wrist.


    "What is it!"


    "I''m going to have you work for free to pay for the drink I bought you earlier."


    "Huh? You said it was on you and now you want to take my money?"


    "Nothing is more expensive than something that was given for free."


    "Then I''ll pay you back right now."


    Ibuki-san took out her mobile phone, but I continued.


    "In that case, I''ll take three million points." I raised my eyebrow and tilted my head, as if I couldn''t understand why Ibuki-san didn''t already know this. "It was my treat. Don''t you think it adds that much value?"


    "I don''t think that at all! It was 700 points wasn''t it?!"


    "If you don''t have the ability to pay me, then I''ll write it off if you lend me a hand."


    "You know...I''m gonna say it again, but are you incapable of being honest?"


    "If I need to be honest, then I will be."


    For some reason, I felt it was embarrassing to honestly ask Ibuki-san for help, so I ended up doing it this way. But I maintained my usual demeanour and continued with my high-handedness.


    "You really have a nasty personality."


    "I think we are both equal in this regard, Ibuki-san."


    Our gazes crossed each other and Ibuki-san drank the rest of the cup even though she was disgusted.


    "That''s one expensive lemon tea."


    Iughed a little because I felt such aint to be somewhat amusing.

 Chapter 175: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 175: 4.6</h4>


    It was dusk, and the sun was setting just beyond the horizon.


    Ichinose was waiting for me at the ce we agreed upon while staring out at the sea. When I saw her somewhat fragile profile, I felt a little hesitant to call her name.


    "Ichinose."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun. Hello."


    After exchanging a brief greeting, I stood in front of her. It wasn''t the kind of atmosphere where I could get straight to the point, so I decided to start with a bit of small talk.


    "Are you still continuing with your strategy to act as a bank for your ss'' private points?"


    It had nothing to do with the topic at hand, but Ichinose didn''t look displeased at all.


    "Yeah. We decided there was no harm in keeping it up. We''ll save up as much as we can and then, should we not need it, I can just return all the points that were deposited at the time back to everyone. It''s easy."


    She said it was easy, but it was a strategy that could only keep working because Ichinose was so trustworthy.


    Like she just said, there was nothing wrong with keeping at it if they could. If their bnces were automatically diminishing, some inconveniences may arise, but if you were guaranteed to get back what was filtered off, you could say it was a good move to have arge sum of money avable just in case. The fact that it was the one and only advantage given to Ichinose was also a major factor.


    "But the strategy of pooling points is just a provision for emergencies. That alone isn''t enough, right?"


    "If it was something you just started, it would be a different story, but this time it''s a continuation."


    In other words, they haven''t prepared a new strategy, but were just maintaining the status quo.


    "What do you think we''recking, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What your ss iscking?"


    "Yeah. I mean, we can''t really see that part properly ourselves...I was wondering how you see our ss, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "During the uninhabited ind exam, I was able to speak with some of your ssmates. Also, after the celebration party, the first thing that struck me was that there are many good-natured students in your ss."


    This was something that she should''ve already known without me saying it, but it was also an integral factor. Because they fundamentally didn''t like to fight, they couldn''t proactively go for ss points.


    "It might be important to be a little more assertive. I''m not saying you should use foul y or subterfuge, but I think it''s essential to be strong against rough y."


    "Rough y...huh. Yeah, you''re right. We have to be more firm or we won''t be able to fight."


    I didn''t have any concrete solutions in mind just yet. It was painfully obvious that she was trying her best to push forward towards her uncertain future.


    "The uninhabited ind exam the other day. About my reply..."


    "Y-yeah...that''s right, that''s what we''re here to talk about, isn''t it?"


    I gently pulled my face close to Ichinose''s ear and, while knowing that there was nobody else around, tried to speak in a voice that would be difficult to hear without focusing on it����That was when it happened.


    "What are you and Honami talking about alone in a ce like this?"


    Ichinose, surprised by the owner of the voice, the Student Council President Nagumo, hurriedly moved away, but he definitely would''ve seen the scene where there was almost zero distance between us.


    Was I followed? No, I wouldn''t be stupid enough to be followed without knowing.


    So Ichinose was marked right from the start?


    No, it was probably due to the surveince from the countless eyes that Nagumo had under his control. No matter how much you try to avoid being seen, it was impossible to perfectly escape the eyes of every third-year on this cruise ship. It wouldn''t be surprising if several people had seen me on my way here.


    However, there was no sign that Nagumo would make contact during these past few days. As if he had nned it, he made contact at a time when I wanted to avoid it the most.


    "Good day, Student Council President Nagumo."


    The flow was cut off at once, and Ichinose rushed back into normal mode. It wasn''t like she''d managed topletely sweep away her agitation and bewilderment. However, even if she had been perfectly mended, I didn''t think it would''ve mattered to the current Nagumo.


    "It seemed like you met on thest day of the uninhabited ind exam, but are the two of you having another sneaky ndestine meeting?"


    "U-umm..." Suddenly having recalled the incident on the uninhabited ind, Ichinose was at a loss for words. For her, it was an incident where she identally confessed to me, and was not a simple thing to cover up.


    I was about to interject, but Nagumo stopped me with his hand. I was now under strong pressure not to interrupt. "Well, it doesn''t really matter what it is. It''s just����if Honami, a fellow student council member, might be brought to tears, as the Student Council President, I can''t just leave her alone, can I?"


    As I thought, it was like that. I had already guessed this since the moment I fully understood that Kiriyama had joined Nagumo''s side. As Nagumo approached us, he stood next to Ichinose.


    "Brought to tears...is it?"


    "It''s fine if this is just my mistake, but it''s about Karuizawa."


    Not daring to invite any misunderstandings, he spoke slowly and in small doses to make sure she understood deeply.


    "Karuizawa-san?"


    Of course, Ichinose couldn''t understand why Kei''s name would be mentioned at a time like this.


    "It seems you''ve only told your closest friends, but I''ve heard that you''ve been going out with Karuizawa for quite some time. Isn''t that right, Ayanok��ji?"


    You''ve been going out with Karuizawa.


    Even after hearing those words, Ichinose probably didn''t understand their meaning straight away.


    "What, you didn''t know? You and Ayanok��ji seemed to be good friends, Honami, so I thought he''d already told you." After saying that, there was a slight pause and then he continued. "Don''t tell me you were thinking of two timing, were you?"


    I didn''t return any of Nagumo''s one-sided attacks. There would be no point in saying that I was trying to tell her about my dating Kei at this very moment. Rather, it was obvious that it would just be an act of rubbing salt into the wound.


    "Is that...true?"


    "Hey Ayanok��ji, since Honami is asking, why don''t you give her an answer? Or am I mistaken and you have nothing to do with Karuizawa? If that''s the case, deny it and I''ll give you my sincerest apologies, yeah?"


    Kiriyama had seen me and Kei together. However, I didn''t give any definite indication that we were dating. In other words, there wasn''t a zero percent chance that he made an assumption regarding my rtionship with Kei and was trying to y a trick.


    But there was no option for me to say ''that''s not true'' here.


    If I were to say that here and thenter say that we really were going out, the lie would be exposed. No, in the first ce, it was better to assume that Nagumo would''ve found proof of his ims before stepping in.


    "Actually, I hadn''t told anyone about it, so where in the world did you get this information?"


    "Ah...!"


    I could see Ichinose''s obvious shock at my admission. Without a doubt, Nagumo must''ve realised that Ichinose had feelings for me.


    "I guess you knew I wasn''t just jumping onto mere gossip and spection, eh?"


    He showed his teeth happily, but didn''t reveal what he knew or how he knew it. I vividly remembered Kiry��in''s words when she said Nagumo might be the type of person I would be no good at dealing with.


    "I don''t intend to say anything about your love life. But, as I said before, Honami is a member of the student council and has a good chance of bing the Student Council President in the future. I have to protect her."


    "I can understand why the rtionship between Ichinose and I seemed unnatural from your point of view, Student Council President Nagumo. But don''t you think it was a bit premature for you to step in at this stage?"


    "You''re right. It would be one thing if it was an instance of Honami dating you and being deceived, but from the looks of it, that doesn''t seem to be the case. It might''ve been apletely unrted bit of gossip. But you know, when two people meet up in a deserted ce like this just before dinner, it''s understandable that someone might think that way, right? I''m sure your girlfriend would be very sad to see you in this situation."


    "You''re right, it might cause needless misunderstandings."


    "As Student Council President...No, as a member of the student council, I just did what was natural."


    Nagumo gave Ichinose onest look and then approached me.


    "You should introduce me to your girlfriend next time. I''d like to see her face at least once."


    Then, Nagumo tapped my shoulder and whispered in my ear. "You''re free to think what you like about my methods. But I haven''t even gotten started yet, you know?"


    "It hasn''t even started yet?"


    "You can mix a hundred truths with one lie and nobody would notice. You need to make a decision before it''s toote. If you ever want to fight me, at that time,e and see me. If you get down on your knees, I''ll be your opponent."


    In other words, if I didn''t agree to fight Nagumo, the relentless surveince and harassment would continue indefinitely. He meant to drag me out onto the ying field even if he had to use force.


    "See youter."


    Leaving it at that, he vacated the area.


    It hasn''t even started yet, huh? An overwhelming surveince and intelligencework that only Nagumo possesses. All of the third-year student body would be his formidable limbs, eyes and ears.


    That was, for the students of this school who live on the premises, synonymous with the fact that their entire lives would be exposed. And then there was that phrase, ''a hundred truths with one lie''. He was only telling the truth right now, but it meant he was going to start mixing in some lies.


    To the casual observer, it was a mere extension of harassment. I couldn''t help but say that Nagumo''s behaviour was childish. However, he had done more mental damage to me than anyone I had ever fought until now.


    Nagumo didn''t care that he was antagonizing his peers by sticking to me. Either he didn''t think he''d lose their trust over something like this, or he had no intention of gaining their trust in the first ce, as long as they were bound by his rules.


    In any case, it was certain that Nagumo had an appropriate level of determination.


    With Nagumo gone, all that was left in the area was a heavy silence. The lighthearted atmosphere that had been present when we first met up with each other had disappeared.


    "A-ahaha...Somehow, our conversation got a little sidetracked..."


    "That''s right."


    "Uh, well, that...why was I called here again?"


    "That''s...well the uninhabited ind����"


    "Ah...! That, you mean that thing? That''s...about that...you know..."


    After shouting loudly, her voice gradually became quieter.


    "Could you...forget about it?" Ichinose''s smile never faltered as she forced that out. "I''m sorry...for not knowing anything. I got carried away in my excitement and said something strange..."


    "Like Nagumo said, I didn''t tell anyone. It was only natural that you didn''t know."


    "T-that''s right isn''t it? That may be so, but...as I thought, I was just being an idiot! I-I mean Ayanok��ji-kun, you''re so kind...really, so great...there was no way you wouldn''t already have a girlfriend, right...?"


    Despite Ichinose''s strong will to never lose her smile, her eyes were clearly moist, and they were beginning to fill with tears. Attempting to stay calm and pretending that everything was fine, she tried her best to keep the tears from overflowing.


    What kind of emotions did people feel when they fell in love with a person who already had someone in their heart?


    This was something you couldn''t reallye to understand from television, books or through hearing about it. It was a little different from what I''d nned, but I was able to experience it right before my eyes.


    "����Goodbye."


    Ichinose squeezed out a single word and then ran off. I didn''t say anything or try and reach out a hand to her retreating back. I just saw her off in silence.


    "Nagumo, huh. I think I''ve made a much more troublesome enemy than I thought."


    It didn''t exactly go as nned, but the path I was on remained the same. Even though the unfavourable situations piling up against me were a nuisance, I couldn''t help but feel a sense of curiosity welling up from deep within my heart.

 Chapter 176 - 5: A Treasure Hunt Game Filled With Women Troubles

    <h4>Chapter 176: Chapter 5: A Treasure Hunt Game Filled With Women Troubles</h4>


    There were only three days of vacation remaining on board the cruise ship.


    The days were too intense and passed by extremely quickly.


    Early in the morning, just as everyone was beginning to regret that their time on this cruise ship wasing to an end, the school sent out an email to all the students at once.


    "Today at 10am, we will hold a treasure hunt game? What''s this?"


    We all saw the unfamiliar word ''game'' in the email and reread it carefully at the same time.


    "Treasure Hunt Game"


    ? A bonus game free for anyone to participate


    ? Conditions for participation: Minimum of one person of any gender and 10,000 private points are required.


    ? Commencement date: Today, August 8th


    ? A more detailed exnation will be provided at the venue (must arrive at the 5th floor by 10am)


    ? You may choose not to participate after receiving the exnation.


    "For a second I thought it was gonna be a special exam, but that couldn''t be, right? Doesn''t ''free for anyone to participate'' sound interesting?"


    We were all at liberty to take part and on top of that, the only risk to each individual was the 10,000 point participation fee.


    The details were unknown at this time, but since it was called a treasure hunt, it was probably safe to assume that there would be a big payoff beyond the participation fee. If you could find the treasure you could get private points; I was expecting the details to be that simple.


    For someone who was always short of money like me, if there was a chance to earn a temporary bonus, it was a good idea to be proactive and participate. The fact that only 10,000 points were required to take part also seemed reasonable.


    Miyamoto and Hond�� naturally seemed to be participating and started talking about going together after they finished their meal. I was thinking of inviting Akito to join me too...


    "Don''t worry about me, go have fun..."


    Lying on the bed, Akito was breathing a little sluggishly. He had a fever, so he was going to sleep instead. Perhaps it was because he was too enthusiastic at the private pool yesterday.


    "If it weren''t for the fact that we couldn''t bring our personal belongings, I would''ve lent you a game console."


    "There''s no way I''d feel like ying a game in this state..."


    While somewhat exasperated, Akito nuzzled his face into the pillow.


    We finished a meal with Akito still lying in bed, and after spending a leisurely time in the room until about 9:50am, the three of us decided to head for the venue, leaving Akito behind while feeling somewhat sorry for him.

 Chapter 177: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 177: 5.1</h4>


    There was arge crowd of students packed into the hall at the designated venue.


    I was wondering how many people would participate, but it was roughly half the student body. I imagined there would be a few more, but students who weren''t interested in treasure hunting might''ve seen this as a chance to enjoy themselves to the fullest at a less crowded pool. Since the event was free for anyone to participate in, the students were at liberty to decide how they wanted to spend the day.


    Not long after the deadline, the stage in front us started to get noisy. The details of the game were to be exined by Takat��-sensei, the homeroom teacher for third-year ss A.


    Almost all of the teachers seemed to be present, but I couldn''t see Acting Director Tsukishiro or Shiba, the homeroom teacher for first-year ss D. If Shiba had also been hired by that man, it wouldn''t be surprising if he stepped aside after what happened on the ind. In fact, Mashima-sensei and Chabashira had seen him, so his role had be known.


    "Good morning everybody. As it''s now 10am, we will close the application process for all students who are not already here at the present time."


    The other teacher standing at the entrance slowly closed the door. Despite the fact that participation in the game was voluntary, rules were rules. Even if it was only one second over, they wouldn''t allow anyteers to participate.


    "Before I start exining the details, I will describe how we came up with this treasure hunt game. This treasure hunt game was inspired by a suggestion from Nagumo-kun, the Student Council President, that we should have an interesting and fun recreational activity to deepen our friendships after each year grouppeted against each other while living on the harsh uninhabited ind. Nagumo-kun, please say hello."


    Nagumo stood in front of the participants after Takat��-sensei called out his name.


    "With the full cooperation of the school, the bonus game is now open. The idea for this project came from the student council''s dailymitment to enriching and improving school life. During the uninhabited ind exam, all years oftenpeted against each other, but in this treasure hunt, it''s possible to make partners across year groups. We hope you take advantage of the merits and participate."


    He concluded his brief speech with a statement that was typical of a serious Student Council President.


    I was reminded of the Nagumo who showed up in front of us the day before.


    As Ichinose was a member of the student council, she was sat beside members of the faculty and listened to his speech. From what I could see, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary...


    I remembered the tears that Ichinose had unexpectedly shed yesterday. The wound she suffered in her heart surely wasn''t light. She was acting naturally now, but it should take a certain amount of time for her to heal. At that time, any love she might''ve had for me would disappear, or may even turn into hostility. I wondered what kind of changes she would undergo, and I was certain that this would be a major turning point for her in the future.


    After Nagumo''s speech, the microphone was handed back over to Takat��-sensei.


    "Student council members will not be able to participate in this treasure hunt as they will be in charge of administration. They will be working on paperwork during their holiday, so please treat them kindly."


    Horikita, Ichinose and some other student council members were gathered to Nagumo''s side.


    "Well then, let me give you an outline of the treasure hunt game. There are noplicated rules, so it''s very simple."


    Takot��-sensei raised his right hand, holding a square piece of paper between his thumb and forefinger. Its dimensions were roughly five centimetres square, with a QR code printed on it.


    "A total of 100 stickers with these QR codes printed on them have been ced all over the ship. The participants will be tasked with finding these stickers during the treasure hunt game. The game works by scanning the data with a special app, which then rewards the user with private points. However, the number of times you can scan the data with your phone is limited to just once. The results will be reflected and you will be paid immediately upon essing the site, so please be careful. Of course, if you try to scan a QR code that has already been used by another phone, it will be invalid and you will not receive the reward. Also, should anyone remove the sticker without permission or use a pen to make it unreadable, the culprit will be punished severely, even if it is a game, so please avoid this at all costs."


    I see, it was a very simple game where luck was essential.


    "The lowest number of private points you can earn is 5,000 points. There are 50, exactly half of the total, of these stickers avable. And then, the second mostmon is 30 stickers with 10,000 points as a reward."


    Unfortunately, that meant that half of the 100 stickers would result in losing money. Even if you could find one of the 30% with 10,000 points as a reward, you would only break even, gaining nothing.


    "The remaining 20 stickers consist of 10 for 50,000 points, 5 for 100,000 points, and 3 for 300,000 points, with thest two stickers giving 500,000 and 1,000,000 points. It''s safe to assume that the more difficult it is to find the hidden QR code, the more private points you will receive."


    There were about 200 participants, which meant that half the participants would receive nothing. However, if you could find the sticker with the most difficult to detect QR code, you would get a million points. This wasn''t an amount that would be easy toe by even from a special exam. If it was like that, it wasn''t a surprise that people felt it was worth taking the risk, even if half of us would lose money...


    "In contrast to the over 200 students participating, there are only 100 QR codes. It is inevitable that there will be some students who won''t receive any rewards. However, we do have a way to avoid that risk. Participants of any year can pair up, and if one member of the pair uses their mobile phone to scan the QR code, the reward for that QR code, if it is 30,000 points, will be 30,000 points for both members of the pair."


    This meant that should everyone pair up and scan the 100 QR codes, then 200 people would receive rewards. This would greatly reduce the possibility of losing money without getting a single point. The only disadvantage was that if you found multiple QR codes, you might have trouble deciding which code to scan. This disadvantage would require some adjustment, but the advantages of pairing up seemed to be high.


    "Also, the area where the QR codes are posted is within a predetermined range."


    Even if he said they were ced all over the ship, there were of course many ces throughout the ship that were considered off-limits. Using a screen to assist, Takat��-sensei exined.


    To summarize briefly, toilets and guest cabins naturally weren''t covered with QR code stickers, and employee-only floors and rooms were also excluded. There also weren''t any stickers hidden in the levels that students were forbidden to enter. It was emphasized that it was limited to only public ces and areas where students were allowed to move.


    "In addition...we will provide this."


    As soon as he said that, all the teachers started handing out papers at once. Not long after, I received a folded piece of paper. The map of the ship had been slightly modified, and the areas with stickers had been filled in with colours. Also, there was some unfamiliar text and shapes listed on it.


    "Basically, this game is mostly about luck. However, there is a small element of ability mixed in."


    Perhaps he was referring to the text and shapes on the maps that were handed out.


    "There are three riddles written here. If you can solve these riddles, you will be able to find a total of three hidden QR codes. You should assume that you won''t be able to find these three unless you solve the riddles."


    So, out of a total of 100 stickers, there were three specially prepared QR codes. I skimmed through the three riddles and then put the paper in my pocket.


    "Registration will open for 30 minutes starting now. Please indicate whether you will participate or not from your mobile phone. If anyone is unable to turn on the power due to their battery running out, please contact the nearest teacher immediately."


    One after another, students pulled out their phones and started to check in. A few students left the room, but it was safe to assume that almost everyone in the room would be participating. The treasure hunt game would end at 5pm, and we would have to scan the QR code by that time.


    I, like many others, took out my phone and decided to participate.


    However, with so many people here, the number of stares focused on me was the highest it''d been in days, and when it was on such arge scale, the fact that they were looking at me would be noticed by other year groups. I wondered if they were working together, or if they had been instructed to do so beforehand, but as soon as the other years started to follow their gazes, the stares at me temporarily diminished and scattered.


    It seemed like they didn''t intend to make it known that they were watching me at this point in time, and were instead saving it for a more effective or damaging situation. As long as I didn''t know what their ultimate goal was, I needed to conduct myself properly.


    I spotted Kei, my girlfriend, among the participants, but we didn''t even look at each other. This was because we refrained from making tant eye contact as long as our rtionship remained unannounced. Of course, even though we were told we could pair up, we wouldn''t. It was unthinkable for Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka and Karuizawa Kei to pair up in a ce like this.


    At this point, Horikita appeared in front of the students with a microphone.


    "I am Horikita from the student council. I have a request for all students who will be participating. In order to prevent fraud, participants will be asked to pay 10,000 points when they leave the room, and at the same time, they will be asked to fill their names on the register by year group. Asking others to write it for you is not permitted. This is a measure to prevent unauthorized participation using a third party''s phone, so please fill it in. After you receive your reward, please return here to report it by the time the test ends. If you disregard this, there is a possibility the reward may be invalid."


    There was no way to connect the phone to the student for a simple mobile payment, which meant that it would be possible to use another phone to participate. Regardless of how much of a problem that was in and of itself, it was certainly a departure from the original intent of the game, which was to participate by following the rules. However, by forcing the user to fill out a list that included identification at the time of payment, the phone could be tied to the user. Even if I got paid with someone else''s phone, they''d be able to spot the rule vition at thest check, and if I sent the owner of the phone, they wouldn''t be recognized because their name wouldn''t be on the list. It was also possible that people who didn''t pay for the event might secretly download the app.


    The student council and the teachers worked together to set up a special long desk at the entrance. There, we would pay the fee with our phones and write our name by year group before leaving the room. Those who finished installing the app would leave this ce first.


    In the midst of the chaos, I got in line and eventually found my way in front of Horikita at the reception desk.


    "Put your name here. Once you are done, I will collect the 10,000 points."


    She spoke to me in a clerical manner, and I entered my name on the list. I then put my phone on the payment terminal and paid 10,000 points. With that I had officially joined the treasure hunt game.


    "Next person."


    I didn''t have anything special to talk about with Horikita, so I just went with the flow and left the room.

 Chapter 178: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 178: 5.2</h4>


    Now then, the sudden treasure hunt game had begun and wouldst until the evening.


    There were a few rules that we needed to follow, but they were basically only about vitions. All that was left was to hope for good luck and participate...


    The area around the starting point was crowded because it was within the range of where the QR codes were posted.


    Like locusts devouring a crop, the search was progressing at an rming rate. If I were to try and join now, there''d be no space for me to throw myself into. Simrly, some students saw the swarm of locusts and started to change the location for their search.


    What''s more, there were many students using their phones to keep in touch. They were probably looking for a QR code while simultaneously recruiting a partner to pair up with. They could also just split into two groups since you could form a pair on the app without meeting in person.


    "Hey, Mori-san, why don''t we take a look from up top?"


    Kei walked out of the hallte apanied by a ssmate, Mori Nene, looking friendly. It seemed Kei grabbed a ssmate early and made a pair.


    I was on my own, of course, so I decided to go down to the lowest level for now. If I went upstairs like Kei did, we would be sharing the same space after all.


    Even so...I didn''t receive any chat messages on my phone.


    At a time like this, wouldn''t it be nice if someone would invite me to join them? No, don''t think about it too much. I felt like I would lose if I thought about it. In the first ce, there weren''t many people with whom I''d exchanged contact information to either email or chat with.


    Out of the members of the Ayanok��ji group, Keisei was free, but he''d quickly announced that he wouldn''t be participating, as he wasn''t interested in this kind of game. Akito was in bad shape, and Haruka and Airi were like a pair from the start.


    "Ah..."


    As I started to move with that in mind, I suddenly bumped into Sat�� head-on. I raised my hind lightly in greeting before trying to leave, but...


    "Ah, w-wait a moment!" She grabbed me by the arm and stopped me as if in a panic. "You know...Ayanok��ji-kun, have you partnered up with anyone yet?"


    "No, I''m alone."


    I didn''t add ''for now'' because I didn''t n to be part of a pair in the future. It was one thing to have made more friends, but it was another thing entirely to have people I could work with for events like this. I felt a little empty saying it myself, but I held it in.


    "Then...then, um, you know? Would you...pair up with me?"


    She made an unexpected suggestion, and I was at a loss as to how to respond.


    Last year, Sat�� was the first person to ever confess to me. I couldn''t reciprocate her feelings so I turned her down, and then I started dating Kei afterwards. As someone who expected to be hated; I never thought I''d be asked to partner up.


    I had no reason to refuse, but to be honest; I also had no reason to ept.


    I''d just seen that Kei had already partnered up with Mori for appearances sake, as she was keeping her rtionship with me a secret. That being said, partnering with Sat�� was another matter.


    "Are you worried about Kei-chan...?"


    It was hard for me to say yes, but Sat�� seemed to immediately understand my attitude.


    "I heard you were going to tell everyone about the fact the two of you are dating."


    "Is that so?"


    It looked like Kei had gotten ahead of me and told her that we would be open about our rtionship in the second semester. I knew from past conversations with Matsushita that Sat�� was aware of the rtionship between me and Kei.


    "We''ve been together for a while now. It''s not something we can keep a secret forever."


    "Well, there are some couples who go out in secret, but I think only a very small number people would notice thebination of Ayanok��ji-kun and Kei-chan."


    Sat�� told some of the girls she was close with that she suspected that Kei and I were involved. Of course, I didn''t hear her say it directly, but judging from Matsushita''s behaviour, there was no doubt about the fact that Sat�� told her. Of course, Sat�� didn''t do anything wrong. She didn''t know anything for certain, and was just letting them know what she''d guessed.


    "Ahh, but you know? I suggested that we partner up because, how to put it...well, I thought I could rely on you if you were my partner. So there''s no different meaning there...so...is that not okay?" She spoke firmly, stating that there wasn''t any strange reasoning behind it.


    "How many private points do you have on hand?"


    "Well um, it''s a little embarrassing to tell you, but...about 180,000 points."


    I wasn''t in a financial position to speak for others, but considering the fact that it was right after the transfer of private points, it didn''t seem like a lot. Even though the risk was low, she must''ve had a certain amount of determination to spend her precious 10,000 private points to participate.


    If that was the case, she''d want to pair up and find some of the more well hidden QR codes.


    "Okay, I got it. If you''re okay with me, Sat��, we can pair up. I can''t promise the results though."


    "Really?!...Yay!"


    Sat��''s disposition of honestly showing her delight when she was happy made me feel good as her partner.


    We took out our phones and applied for and epted our pair through the app. We were now officially paired up and would both be rewarded for any QR code that was scanned with either of our phones. All that was left was to grab a reward of at least 30,000 points.


    "By the way, the teachers gave us some strange paper, right?" Sat�� took a crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket. "Ah?!"


    When she saw the state of it, as if she had forgotten that she''d crumpled it up, she quickly put it away back into her pocket, looking embarrassed.


    "Ah, it''s j-just that...I didn''t understand anything when I looked at it...ahaha. You have one too, right Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    It seemed she didn''t think she could solve the riddle, so she just rolled up the paper at random. I took out a piece of paper folded into quarters and spread it out front of Sat��.


    "This means we can find the three ces where there are QR codes, right?"


    "That''s right."


    "So if we can solve this, is there a chance we can get a million points?"


    "No, I doubt that." I was sorry to dash her hopes, but I decided to answer immediately.


    "Ehh? Really?"


    Only three of the hundred QR codes had answers provided from questions. Therefore, it was tempting to look for the QR codes given by solving the problems on the paper, but...


    "The three hints are all of a simr level. With that being the case, I don''t think there is any difference in the reward for solving any of them. There are a reasonable number of codes that give 100,000 points...Or there''s also a possibility they could be worth 50,000 points."


    "Ehh? But if there are three, then what are the chances that they''re the three 300,000 point codes?"


    "Certainly, having the three 300,000 point codes be the three specially prepared codes would be a nice fit, but the odds are slim."


    The hints were unlikely to include arge sum of private point rewards.


    "Ehhh? Is that all we''d get for solving such a hard problem?"


    "This treasure hunt ispletely based on luck, and is ced as a bonus game. If the quick witted students who solved the problems get the extremely rare 1,000,000 points, 500,000 points, or as you said, 300,000 points rewards, it''s likely that many students wouldn''t be able to ept it. Wouldn''t you agree, Sat��?"


    If all of them were worth 300,000 points, then there would be no codes left in a game that was supposed to be about luck. In that case, as a game, it was tantamount to failure. This paper was only part of a bailout to be used at the very end and should be seen as a modest reward.


    "I-I see. It''s true that if they were all expensive QR codes I might''ve been annoyed..."


    She thought about how she would feel as someone who couldn''t solve it and was immediately convinced.


    "It''s not a bad idea to use these hints to find a QR code, but we won''t know the result until we scan the code and get our private points. If we make a poor move, there''s a chance we''ll miss out."


    This treasure hunt game wouldst for hours, but the big prize would be decided within the first hour or two.


    "So it''s okay for us to just ignore this, right?"


    "If I ever use this hint paper, I guess it will be if I can''t find any good QR codes even at the end of the game. At that time, I''ll know where to point."


    Well, I was sure that by the time I rely on it, other students would''ve already collected the rewards.


    "...By any chance, have you already solved the paper''s hints, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Pretty much."


    "Wow..."


    The hints weren''t designed to be difficult. Because the game allowed first-years and third-years alike to participate, it was more like a riddle than a straightforward problem.


    While we were talking, students participating in the treasure hunt were searching for QR codes around us at random. Even if the area where the QR codes were posted was limited to some extent, most of them would be found quickly if 200 people searched for them all at once. It was also possible that the high reward QR codes were hidden further away from the starting point.


    "I think I''ll search the lower levels for the time being."


    "Got it, I''ll leave it up to you to decide where we start looking, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Sat�� and I walked side by side to the lowest level of the designated search area.


    The two of us spent the next five minutes looking for a good QR code, but we only found two tant stickers. Was it a bad location, or were they hidden in a more difficult to find ce?


    Without a clue, the number of students around me was starting to increase.


    "Um, Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    "What''s up? Did you find something?"


    "T-that''s not it... C-can I go to the restroom for a second? I''ve had too much to drink...I was actually gonna go earlier, but..." Sat�� asked, looking extremely embarrassed.


    "I see, so that was when you found me?"


    She nodded her head, blushing. "I''m sorry...even though we were supposed to be in a hurry..."


    I had no intention of telling her not to go to the restroom, so dly sent Sat�� off.


    "I-I''ll be right back!"


    "There''s no need to hurry."


    For the time being, I sent Sat�� off to the bathroom and resumed my search of the nearby area.


    "Are you participating in the treasure hunt game as well, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    As I was peaking under the sofa, someone called out to me from behind. I thought someone was looking to stop me in my tracks, but it was my ssmate, Matsushita. Today was one of those days where I kept getting approached by ssmates I didn''t usually associate with. At the same time, a third-year student, Tatara, who seemed to be talking to Matsushita, showed a suspicious looking expression.


    "...Ayanok��ji, huh"


    "You know about Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    When Matsushita looked at Tatara''s face curiously, he turned his gaze away, looking embarrassed. Matsushita had no way of knowing, but it was certain that some sort of order regarding me had been given to the entire third-year by Nagumo.


    "We''re in the middle of a treasure hunt right now, so talkter. We''re wasting time so let''s go."


    "If you''re going to say that, then it''s the same for you Tatara-senpai. Don''t worry about me and find someone else to pair up with."


    The presence of the third-year student Tatara that showed up here might be a good opportunity to explore Nagumo''s strategy.


    "I see that you''re also participating in the treasure hunt, senpai."


    When I called out to him in order to jump in, he gave me tantly disgusted look and turned his gaze away. When Matsushita heard the slight click of his tongue, she also sensed that Tatara''s demeanour had changed.


    "What''s the matter? Tatara-senpai?"


    When I called out to him once more, it was obvious that Tatara was trying to escape. I could tell from first impressions that he had some kind of fondness for Matsushita. The fact that he was more reluctant to make contact with me than he was eager to form a pair meant it was safe to assume that he was instructed not to engage in careless conversation.


    "Another time, Matsushita."


    "Ah, sure."


    Laughing lightly without understanding what happened exactly, Matsushita waved goodbye to Tatara. He looked at Matsushita as if he had some regrets, but he then red at me and walked away.


    "Phew. I don''t really know what happened, but I''ve been saved. Ayanok��ji-kun, did something happen with Tatara-senpai?"


    Even though she didn''t know about Nagumo''s orders, she would''ve been suspicious after seeing his attitude.


    "There was nothing. I''ve never even talked to him before."


    "Hmm?"


    I wouldn''t say she was convinced, but she patted her chest in relief, as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders.


    "Hey, are you perhaps alone too, Ayanok��ji-kun? If you''re alone, do you want to pair up?"


    "Ahh, no����"


    Just as Matsushita was about to invite me to join her in the treasure hunt, I heard footsteps running from behind me.


    "Wait a second, Matsushita-san, I''m working with Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    When Sat�� returned from the restroom, she made a mad dash to close the distance between herself and Matsushita and grabbed her by the shoulders.


    "Eh? Oh, really?"


    Matsushita looked back, surprised by the sheer speed and pressure.


    "I mean, I saw Tatara-senpai earlier, wasn''t he together with you, Matsushita-san?"


    "Rather than saying we were together, it was more like I was just being followed..."


    Apparently not only Matsushita, but also Sat�� knew about the third-year student named Tatara. He was a third-year ss A student whose grades were slightly above average, with scores ranging from a B to C on the OAA. He also had a long, unusual haircut for a boy.


    I wondered what that kind of hairstyle was called...I didn''t really know much about those kinds of things.


    "He wasing on too strong so I wanted to pull back a little. I was trying to turn him down in a roundabout way."


    "Ah~ I get it~"


    I don''t understand.


    For the time being, I decided to check the bottom of the sofa I had just been in the middle of investigating.


    "I mean, Ayanok��ji-kun, it''s probably not there, right? Even if there is one, I think it''s probably a cheap one."


    Indeed, underneath the sofa would be easily chosen as a typical hiding ce for a QR code. In fact, on the floor of this sofa, if you crouched down at a slight angle, you could see a QR code peeking out at you. Of course, I didn''t want to scan this QR code.


    "What''s important is the school''s pattern."


    "Pattern?"


    "When they decided to implement this treasure hunting game, how the values of the QR codes were determined was important."


    "U-um...?"


    Sat�� tilted her head, not really understanding. In contrast, Matsushita responded without especially thinking about it.


    "Naturally, there will be valuable QR codes in hard to find locations, right?"


    "Yeah. Then the next question is, who decides what''s ''hard to find''?"


    "The teachers!" Deciding that she would answer this time, Sat�� spoke before Matsushita could.


    But as a supplement, Matsushita added, "It''s a lot of work to put up a hundred QR codes, right? I don''t doubt that the teachers are the ones putting them up, but it''s hard to imagine that it''s only one or two of them. Even if they split it up and put them up at midnightst night, several people were sent out..."


    "Did they take their time deciding where to put the codes while the students were doing the uninhabited ind exam, or did they just suddenly leave it to the teachers in charge? If we can find that out, it''ll be easier to guess where the stickers are put up."


    "Sorry, I don''t understand a word you''re saying..."


    "The way the aisles are made and the decorations are ced is basically all the same, right?"


    "Did you understand what all that meant, Matushita-san?"


    "Pretty much."


    "That''s amazing, Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    "I think it''s an interesting point of view, but given that it''s just a treasure hunt game, it''s okay to be a little more easy-going, you know?"


    "...I guess so."


    If you say that to me, there''s nothing I can say back any more.


    I just thought I should try to reason a little so that we wouldn''t have any regrets.


    "But yeah, that''s too bad. To think someone beat me to it."


    "T-too bad?"


    "I think I''m going to go look for a slightly more dependable partner. See youter."


    Standing around talking like this was just a missed opportunity for everyone in this ce.

 Chapter 179: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 179: 5.3</h4>


    Less than an hour had passed since the beginning of the treasure hunt. Many participants had dispersed, and although I no longer saw dozens of people gathered together, I still saw them passing by again and again, searching hard in the same ces.


    Psychologically, it was hard to scan the first QR code you found, because even if it was the QR code that was considered to be the most difficult to find, there was nothing topare it to. There were probably a certain percentage of students, including us, who had already seen the 500,000 and 1 million point QR codes but held themselves back or ignored them.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "Hmm? Oh, good morning, Nanase."


    I felt I was being approached by a presence from behind, but it was only Nanase. Well, I guess today was another day where I''d broken the record for consecutive encounters since the holidays started.


    "...Who?" asked Sat��, who for some reason showed tant vignce and red at Nanase.


    Nanase, on the other hand, didn''t take the gaze as unpleasant and bowed her head. "I am Nanase Tsubasa from first-year ss D."


    "Hmm...It''s hard to believe you''re a first-year," Sat�� said as if spitting out at her after spotting a certain body part, but Nanase just tilted her head curiously.


    "Do you think so? I don''t think I''ve matured enough to be seen as that much older than I actually am."


    "H-huh? What are saying you''ve not matured? You''ve matured no matter how you look at it!"


    "Is that...so? Hearing yourpliments makes me happy. I''m going to devote myself every day to be even more mature."


    "It''s no use trying to get more mature than that. I mean, how exactly are you going to get more mature?" Sat�� asked somewhat forwardly, as if she too wanted to be more mature.


    "It''s hard to exin exactly, but...yeah, I think mental growth is essential."


    "M-mental? So not like drinking milk or getting a massage every day?"


    "Of course, I believe such actions that promote physical growth are also important to be a more mature person, but in my case, it was from the mind."


    "Hmm...That''s the first I''ve heard of it. It''s kinda convincing."


    It''s okay to admire her, Sat��, but I''m pretty sure you and Nanase aren''t on the same page...


    "Are you treasure hunting too, Nanase?"


    "Eh? Ah no, I''m not. For some reason I was just in the mood to take things slow today."


    It seemed she wasn''t participating in the treasure hunt. But if that was the case, why did she show up in this ce?


    "I''m d to see that you''re doing well today, Ayanok��ji-senpai. Well then, it''s about time I take my leave."


    Shortly after Nanase left, I crossed paths with Nakaizumi.


    "Nakaizumi, huh."


    "Hmm? Did Nakaizumi-kun do something?"


    I''d been trying not to pay attention to it for the past few days, but as I thought, it wasn''t a coincidence. It also wasn''t a coincidence that I ran into Nanase every day.


    First of all, Nanase had been trying to make contact with me to check on my condition. On the third day, I spotted Nanase having lunch on the deck, but even if I hadn''t gone there, I was sure she would''vee to me instead.


    And then there was Nakaizumi following Nanase''s every step. He might not be following Nanase all the time, but he was certainly up to something. And behind Nakaizumi, Ry��en''s shadow was hiding in in sight.


    I wondered if he was investigating my rtionship with Nanase, but Nakaizumi never once showed any sign of paying attention to me. If that was the case, then it was better to assume that they were marking purely Nanase.


    I''ll give a little guess as to why they''d mark Nanase. Ry��en was looking for the culprit who injured Komiya and the others. If it had anything to do with that, then Nanase waspletely innocent. The testimonies of Sud�� and Ike would make that clear. In that case, why were they spying on Nanase? She shared with me that she saw Amasawa that day, but if Nanase was withholding more information than that, it was a different story. Anyway, even if I continued to think about it, I wouldn''t learn anything more, so I''ll put it in the corner of my mind for now.


    "Ah, I found one Ayanok��ji-kun! It''s in a ce that''s a little hard to find!" Sat�� shouted happily and pointed.


    It was on the backside of the cover of an almost out of sight stand light. There was a sticker with a QR code printed on it attached in a way that made it difficult to find. Fortunately, there was no one else in sight but us right now.


    "But we won''t know how many points this gives until we scan it, right?"


    "It''s a tough call."


    I had a feeling it wasn''t one of the mostmon QR codes, but while it seemed difficult to find, it wasn''t that difficult, so it was hard to judge.


    "What should we do?"


    "Yeah..."


    Having said that, there was no doubt that it was a QR code that was too good to throw away. I took out my phone, switched it to the camera mode, and pointed it at the QR code.


    "Eh? I-is that really okay? To scan it, I mean?"


    "No, I''m not going to scan it."


    "Huh?"


    I pressed the shutter button and took a picture of the zoomed in QR code.


    "What are you doing?"


    "I''ll take a picture of any QR code that looks like it could be worth a lot of private points like this and then leave it. If, hypothetically, we can''t find any other good QR codes in the future, we can use your phone to scan the QR code from my stored photos."


    "Eh? R-really? Will it respond even if it''s a picture?"


    "As long as it''s a clear shot, it should work without any problems."


    It would be inefficient toe back here to look for a QR code that we''d already found in the past. There may be times when other rivals might beat us to the punch, but if we could find multiple codes and save them, then when the time came, we could scan them in order of how difficult they were to find. If even one of those hit, then we''d make a fortune.


    Even with just one camera, it was possible to point the camera at a QR code and disy the URL. However, it wasn''t functionally possible for our phones to copy the URL if we didn''t want to ess it immediately. In other words, if you wanted to keep the URL, you would be required to input it manually forter. Moreover, in the unlikely event that you mistakenly touched the URL, it would load and the points would be transferred straight away.


    "The school said that there were only advantages to forming a pair, but that wasn''t just about being able to share points. Using two phones allows for time saving techniques, and also prevents idents."


    Although I said so, students who were in a hurry to get started might''ve overlooked this. However, I was sure that a lot of them would be using this level of technique.


    Now we just had to hope that nobody else would find this QR code. This ce would be exposed immediately if we were seen looking at the stand light.


    "Let''s move."


    "Yeah."


    After that, we put everything back as they were and started searching for QR codes again.


    I was groping underneath one of the sofas when I noticed a snag.


    "There''s one here too."


    "The pattern''s easy to understand, isn''t it? To think it''s under the sofa in the same way."


    "Sat��. Could you keep an eye on the perimeter for a moment?"


    "That''s fine but...what''s up?"


    I sat down in front of the sofa and lowered my face as if looking into it.


    "I thought we couldn''t count on these kinds of QR codes?"


    "Sure, for the QR code here."


    Rather than underneath, I touched the base of the sofa with my hand. Normally, even if someone looked around at the floor beneath the sofa, they wouldn''t look at the underside. Rather than say they wouldn''t look, it would be better to say that they couldn''t.


    However, when touched with a hand, you could tell that it felt different. Normally, the underside of the sofa would be made of fabric and be t. Despite that, there was a slight snag from a five centimetres square when I touched it. In other words, a sticker had been attached to it.


    I put the phone in my hand under the sofa and took a picture. Using the light from the sh, the QR code that had been hidden in darkness was captured as a photograph.


    "Wow, it''s really there! It''s a QR code...! You wouldn''t find this normally, right?"


    If I''d participated in this treasure hunt game alone, it wouldn''t have been easy to scan this QR code. With the sh turned on, I could save a picture of the QR code, but I wouldn''t be able to scan it with my own phone.


    Even if I were to turn the sofa over, it would be quite arge and conspicuous task. I would have to be prepared to scan the QR code immediately when considering the fact that other students would see me.


    However, as I was in a pair, I could have Sat�� scan the code from the photo, so it would all work smoothly.


    "You''re thinking about so much, huh. The school too."


    After finding a new potential code to scan, we decided to move on.

 Chapter 180: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 180: 5.4</h4>


    Even though the ship was vast, students couldn''t just freely go wherever they liked. People would inevitably focus on ces where they could hang out and rx, so unexpected encounters weremon.


    One man was going to the caf�� terrace, while the other was heading back to his guest cabin. The two people who were going topletely unrted ces met in a hallway.


    Both were walking in the middle of the hallway, and neither side showed any sign of giving way. The men noticed each other''s presence at almost the same time and stopped with a metre separating them.


    "Yo Ry��en, you did so much for me the other day."


    The first to speak up was first-year ss D student, H��sen Kazuomi.


    "You sure it''s okay not to be sleepin''? Might as well go rest in your bed for another week or so." Ry��en Kakeru, who received those words, responded as if to ept them.


    "Don''t worry ''bout it. If I half kill you...nah even if I fully kill you in this ce, it won''t make me feel any better. The number of targets I gotta kill''s gone from one to two, so it''s gonna get busy."


    "You''ll look realme if you lose to the same guy twice. Don''t force it."


    They repeatedly provoked each other, but never brought out their fists.


    "Ha? Anyway fucker, I heard you been secretly buyin'' up the effects of ''Free Ride'' cards from first-years. Sounds like ya bet it all on that third-year Nagumo so you must ''ave made a good bit of money, eh?"


    "Kuku. Who pissed their pants? We had a contract to keep their mouths shut."


    Before the uninhabited ind exam, Ry��en approached first-year students with the ''Free Ride'' card and signed contracts with them. If the group they designated won a prize, they would give up all the points they gained to Ry��en.


    If the group they designated only got into the top 50%, they would only get 30,000 points. In other words, if you were to pay more than that, some people would give up their rights. In the end, Ry��en guessed Nagumo and got a reward of 280,000 points for the number of students who signed up.


    Most of Ry��en''s ssmates were kept in the dark about this fact; only the ones who were used to execute the n knew.


    "If you lick my shoes, I''m okay with givin'' you a little somethin'' for your trouble you know? Gori."


    Laughing, he walked away without once taking his hands out his pockets. H��sen could''ve stood his ground, but he took a step to the side and made way for him. Ishizaki was wary of H��sen, but hurriedly followed after Ry��en. H��sen also didn''t look back and walked proudly down the middle of the hallway.


    "That guy''s just as scary as always, eh? But he was so scared that he had to clear the way."


    "He''s got balls, that guy."


    "But..."


    "He''s sayin'' if I do it to him, then next time he''s gonna give it to me. It''s a show of his resolve."


    The moment they passed each other, Ry��en sensed the outpouring of killing intent and his desire for violence.


    "It''s a pain in the ass, right?"


    "Leave it. I know he''s a troublesome opponent, but we gotta find the culprit first."


    "Got it. I''m having Nishino hold it down."


    Ishizaki took out his phone to check, and then led the way for Ry��en.


    Not long after that, they arrived at the target location. Before Ishizaki could utter a word, Ry��en approached a lone female student.


    "Nanase Tsubasa, right?"


    "Yes. What can I do for you?"


    Nanase, who''d been stopped in her tracks, stared at Ry��en without any sign of panic. She didn''t understand why she''d caught the attention of an upperssman from the second-year.


    "Sorry, but I''m gonna need some of your time."


    Normally, Ry��en alone or with Ishizaki would''ve been sufficient, but he also had Nishino, the girl he was using to hold her back, apany them. He knew that a situation with only boys surrounding a younger girl could be detrimental to them and would never be an advantage.


    "I''ve got a question for you about the uninhabited ind exam."


    "The exam, is it?"


    Nanase still didn''t understand the situation, but the following words cleared everything up for her.


    "Komiya was injured. I''m lookin'' for the one who did it."


    "Why me?"


    "The first ones to arrive at the crime scene were Sud��, Ayanok��ji, Ike, Hond�� and also you. With Sud��, Ike, and Hond��, there''s no way we''d get any leads."


    "Then I think it would be better to ask Ayanok��ji-senpai, who is also a second-year student, no?"


    "''Course, I''ll speak to him when the situation calls for it. But I''m gonna start with you. You were stickin'' to Ayanok��ji during the uninhabited ind exam. Why?"


    "I don''t think that has anything to be with the incident."


    "I won''t be able to judge if it has anythin'' to do with the incident or not ''til you tell me."


    Most people would readily confess when confronted by Ry��en''s overbearing demeanour.


    "I''m sorry, but I have nothing to tell you."


    But instead of getting flustered, Nanase calmly refused.


    As Nanase tried to leave with her head down, Ry��en kicked his leg out and mmed the wall with the sole of his foot.


    "You don''t get to decide whether to talk or not, bitch."


    "You''re very violent aren''t you? I think you''re going to have a problem if anyone sees you in this situation."


    "Don''t worry. I got a few guys on watch to make sure that don''t happen."


    "I understand that Komiya-senpai is one of your ssmates, Ry��en-senpai. However, I don''t think I can help you in any way. I don''t have any leads."


    "Really? You''ve been movin'' around an awful lot thesest few days, haven''t you?"


    "Whatever could you be talking about?" Nanase replied that she didn''t know what he was talking about without looking at him, but for Ry��en, that was an opportunity to take advantage of.


    "In the middle of all these people yin'' around, you''ve been keepin'' an eye on Kurachi from first-year ss C all day, right?"


    "Tch..." Here Nanase''s eyes widened for the first time and she showed signs of agitation.


    "Once I heard from Komiya, I set up lookouts on you Sud��, Ike and Hond�� just in case. The other three were yin'' around like idiots, but that''s normal behaviour on this ship. But you don''t y at all; you just stalk a certain first-year. I can''t call that normal."


    "It''s just a coincidence."


    "A coincidence, huh. A lot of people are yin'' around today, like treasure hunting. That Kurachi guy is participating but you''re not. And yet, until Nishino caught you, you were followin'' Kurachi the whole time. Is all that also just a coincidence?"


    Once you''d joined the game, you had to go searching for QR codes, but if you weren''t participating, you could save yourself the trouble. Nanase was so focused on keeping an eye on Kurachi that she didn''t notice the presence that was keeping an eye on her.


    "I''m so inexperienced, aren''t I? To think I didn''t even realise I was being followed day after day. I''m surprised."


    "You should be thankin'' me for reaching out to you first."


    "Very impressive, Ry��en-senpai. But the Komiya situation has nothing to do with Kurachi."


    "Is that so? Guess I''ll go talk to Kurachi directly then."


    "That would be a problem."


    "Then tell me what you know. Or are you not allowed to talk unless ''someone'' gives you instructions?"


    "That''s not the case. But what''s irrelevant is irrelevant."


    "Don''t make me repeat it. You''re not the judge of that, I am."


    Ry��en never stopped smiling, and that continued to be the case even now. However, the air he radiated changed.


    Ishizaki, who''d been watching from the side, had felt Ry��en''s intimidation many times, but he still hadn''t gotten used to it. He felt like giving in even though he wasn''t the one being interrogated.


    "That''s incorrect. You don''t have the authority to make that kind of judgement on your own, Ry��en-senpai."


    In spite of this, Nanase looked straight back into Ry��en''s eyes without showing any sign of fear.


    "What you waitin'' for? Why don''t you just get on with it?"


    Certainly, Nanase Tsubasa was bewildered and troubled. The seeds of her troubles were born during the middle of the uninhabited ind exam. The story goes back to the day when she vented her uncontroble anger on Ayanok��ji; after Amasawa appeared in front of them with a deadly weapon in hand and Ayanok��ji concluded that there''d been someone else before Amasawa.


    At that time, Ayanok��ji decided against doing any GPS searches, but Nanase secretly did one anyway in the tent she''d assembled. However, she slipped into Ayanok��ji''s tent without looking at the details. It was because she knew that if she wasn''t careful and found something, he would be able to see through her surprise and agitation. As a result of her secret GPS search, she noticed that there were two people, excluding Amasawa, who were nearby. Kushida Kiky��, a second-year, and Kurachi Naohiro, a first-year. Normally, she would look into both of them, but the second-year, Kushida, was Ayanok��ji''s ssmate, so she was putting it off.


    Apart from that, Nanase had been in regr contact with Ayanok��ji to check if anything was wrong and to protect him if necessary, but it seemed to go unnoticed.


    "What a waste of time, let''s go talk to him."


    Nanase looked down as if she had given up, but she quickly lifted her head. "It''s a shame, but I don''t know where on the ship he went to find the QR codes."


    Ry��en let out a smallugh and pulled out his phone. "Where''s Kurachi at? Fourth floor...the guest cabin floor, huh? I''ll be right there."


    Ry��en, who had anticipated all of this, ended the call quickly and returned the phone to his pocket.


    "So after you pulled me away from him, you had someone watch Kurachi-kun?"


    "Unlike you, I have a lot of people who can be my hands, feet, eyes and ears."


    "Kurachi-kun could really be irrelevant, you know?"


    "I don''t need you to tell me what to do. I''ll just cross ''em off one by one."


    For both Nanase and Ry��en, the only lead they could follow right now was Kurachi.


    "Hurry up and decide; youin'' or not?"


    If Nanase refused at this point, there was no need to imagine that Ry��en would approach Kurachi alone.


    Nanase nodded once and decided to head towards Kurachi''s location with Ry��en.


    Soon after, they spotted Kurachi looking for a QR code with Taguri, whom he seemed to be in a pair with.


    "First, let me and Kurachi-kun speak alone please."


    "What?"


    "I will get the information out of him."


    "What guarantee do I have that you''ll give me the information I asked for?"


    "You will just have to trust me."


    "Sorry, but I don''t trust you."


    "You have no choice but to trust me, even if you don''t. I will definitely report everything."


    "Ah, whatever. But I''m not gonna show you any mercy if you screw up, even if you are a girl."


    "I am aware of that."


    Gesturing with his chin, Ry��en instructed Nishino and Ishizaki to pull Taguri away from Kurachi. Being approached by a second-year like Ishizaki, he had no choice but to obey quietly.


    "Could I have a moment of your time, Kurachi-kun?"


    "Huh? If I remember correctly, you''re Nanase from ss D...right?"


    Kurachi, who was upset that Taguri had been summoned by some upperssmen, couldn''t keep hisposure.


    "I''d like to ask you a few questions."


    "I''m sorry, but I''m on a treasure hunt right now, so I don''t have����"


    "Tell me why you were targeting Ayanok��ji-senpai during the uninhabited ind exam."


    "Ha? W-what are you talking about?"


    Nanase didn''t know if Ry��en would butt in if she took her time. She needed to ask the questions while they were alone.


    "There''s no point trying to hide it. On the seventh day of the exam, when it was raining heavily, I used a GPS search to find out who was in the vicinity. There was Amasawa-san and one other person, you. And then, not far from the scene, there was a tool for beating people. You can''t make any excuses."


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about!" Kurachi denied it out loud and tried to run, but Nanase grabbed him by the arm.


    "You see the second-year behind us, right? He is urgently trying to find the culprit who almost attacked Ayanok��ji-senpai. In some cases, he may even resort to violence."


    "H-huh? Don''t screw with me, what the hell is that?!"


    "Shh. It''s better for you if you don''t antagonize me by shouting too loudly."


    "Huh! B-but, I...I just..."


    "Just?"


    "...I was told I''d be given money if I attacked Ayanok��ji-senpai...That''s what I was told..."


    "Money for attacking him, is it?"


    "Normally I wouldn''t take it. But I spent all my private points, and..."


    "And?"


    "I was told I could just ''pretend'' to attack him and that it wouldn''t be a big deal. I didn''t exactly do anything wrong, you know that right?"


    It was true that pretending to attack someone could be treated as a joke.


    "Who was it that said they would pay you money if you pretended to attack him? First of all, when?"


    "That''s...It was before the start of the uninhabited ind exam..."


    "B-before the exam, is it?" Nanase was also surprised by the unexpected timing. "In other words, it was nned from the beginning...right?"


    "And I don''t know who it was that gave the order. The private points were all transferred to my ount without me doing anything."


    "����That''s a lie, isn''t it?"


    "Huh?! I''m not lying."


    "You obviously know something and are hiding it, that''s how I see it."


    "I don''t have anything..."


    "I don''t think you were well-informed about this, Kurachi-kun, but because of your actions at that time, H��sen-kun''s ns were changed in addition to Ry��en-senpai''s."


    Kurachi''s eyebrows furrowed as the conversation suddenly switched.


    "Right now, he''s gotten desperate and is searching for the culprit. I wonder what would happen if I reported this? I''m sure that H��sen-kun will mercilessly raise his fists against you, Kurachi-kun."


    Ry��en, a second-year, and H��sen, a first-year. Two experienced fighters were threatening toe after him.


    "W-w-wait! I said wait! Okay, I''ll talk to you, I''ll talk, so please don''t do that!"


    He had been whispering, but frantically raised his voice. H��sen was the most hated and feared among the first-year students. The power of that name was far more effective than Nanase had imagined.


    "...It was my ssmate, Utomiya."


    "Utomiya-kun, is it?"


    "Yeah. He said he wanted me to attack Ayanok��ji-senpai and would give me the money after the special exam ended."


    "Is that the truth?"


    "Seriously, really, it''s the truth!"


    Looking into Kurachi''s eyes, Nanase nodded once.


    "I believe you, Kurachi-kun. I just have onest question; do you know anything about the injuries to Komiya-senpai and the others?"


    "Komiya? What are you talking about? I got no idea. No, I really don''t know. Anyway, don''t tell H��sen that I had anything to do with it, yeah?"


    "I understand, I promise."


    When she told Kurachi to go, Taguri was released at the same time.


    Ry��en immediately approached and demanded to speak with Nanase. Kurachi didn''t seem to know anything about Komiya''s case, but even after she told him that, Ry��en didn''t believe her. Even if he''d only been watching from a distance, he would''ve known that Kurachi had told Nanase something.


    "ording to him...Utomiya-kun might know something."


    "Utomiya?"


    "It''s Utomiya Riku from first-year ss C, just like Kurachi-kun."


    Ry��en immediately took out his phone and checked Utomiya''s face and abilities with the OAA.


    "I don''t remember seein'' him around. But an A in physical ability, huh."


    "If it''s him, he might have the ability to push Komiya-senpai without him realising, but we don''t have any proof yet."


    "You''ve started to see things, eh."


    "...What do you intend to do?"


    "It''s obvious ain''t it? I''m gonna hunt down this Utomiya brat and get him to talk."


    "Please wait. I don''t agree with that."


    If Utomiya was a student from the White Room, he would be tough to deal with, no matter how many people Ry��en brought with him. Above all else, the fact that she had gone this far without Ayanok��ji''s permission was not something to be praised.


    "This is a case without conclusive evidence...it''s problematic. Even if Utomiya-kun is the culprit, if it was decided he was innocent, that would be the end of it, wouldn''t it?"


    "Just like how Kurachi spat it all out just now, it''s all about how you threaten them."


    "That was because I''d been following him for the past few days and was able to do some preliminary research. Given his personality, I knew I could push him around. However, Utomiya-kun is an unknown quantity."


    "What do you want from me?"


    "Give me time. Of course, I don''t mean for free."


    "Oh? Go on."


    "I''ve been keeping quiet about it, but there is a witness to Komiya-senpai''s case that you don''t know about, Ry��en-senpai. I don''t mind telling you who that person is."


    "Who?"


    "I can''t tell you right now. I will tell you if you refrain from contacting Utomiya-kun."


    "That''s a tough deal for me, you know? Ah well, whatever, I''ll ept those terms."


    "Thank you very much. I''ll get back to you with the details."


    "But if you''re lyin'', you better be prepared to pay the price, yeah?"


    "I''m not lying."


    "Kuku, I bet. Go ahead, and call me before I lose my patience."


    Nanase gave a short reply, nodded and then left.

 Chapter 181: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 181: 5.5</h4>


    I found a few QR codes, but there was still only one that seemed to be worth arge sum of points. There were several students looking for codes in the nearby area, so thepetition was definitely too fierce.


    Since using waves of non-participants for help was prohibited, it was unlikely that any students were trying to cheat openly, but with over 200 participants, it was inevitable.


    I suddenly noticed that Sat�� had stopped and turned around.


    "I wonder what I should do. What do I need to work on so that I don''t cause trouble for the ss?"


    "What''s up all of a sudden?"


    "I''m sorry for asking such a weird question. But it''s not just some random thought, okay? I''ve been thinking about it since before the uninhabited ind exam. I was wondering if I was any help to the ss."


    After saying that, Sat�� stared at the palms of her hands.


    "I wish I could tell my overexcited self from before I started school, back when I thought I could just have a random and interesting high school life and get a job anywhere, this isn''t just any high school; it''s a hell of a ce."


    Forck of a better way to put it, Sat�� was generally less capable than the average high school student.


    However, she was still at the top of the caste and her voice possessed a certain amount of influence. Although academic ability, physical ability, andmunication skills all had varying levels of difficulty, most people could improve them with some effort. Sud��''s name probably came first as a clear example.


    Sud��, who''d been at the bottom of the ss in terms of academic performance, showed remarkable sess and rapidly improved his test scores. As could be seen from this, the important thing was to have room to grow.


    "If you want to work hard for your ssmates, I suppose studying is essential."


    "Yeah...that''s right, isn''t it?" Sat�� said, scratching her cheek and hanging her head as if to say she already knew that. "A-Ayanok��ji-kun, I don''t suppose you could teach me how to study...you can''t, right?"


    "Me?"


    As soon as I asked, Sat�� hurriedly put her hands out and waved frantically.


    "Sorry, sorry! Forget what I just said! Karuizawa-san will get mad at me...!"


    "Wouldn''t it be fine to ask Horikita to teach you?"


    "Horikita-san? But we don''t really get along very well, you know?"


    The phrase ''don''t really get along'' was probably a rather mild way of putting it. For almost a year and a half, Sat�� hadn''t taken any action you could call friendly when it came to Horikita.


    "Aside from the fact that you two will need to get along, I think she has a well-established reputation when ites to teaching. She trained up that Sud�� after all."


    There was no need to go into detail regarding Horikita''s interpersonal problems and teaching methods. She was able to develop Sud��, the most problematic student in the school.


    "Sud��-kun overtook me before I knew it...that''s true."


    "You don''t want the shameful title of worst in the ss that''s bottom of the year do you?"


    "A-absolutely not."


    Sat�� was one of the candidates for lowest in the ss, so she felt a strong sense of crisis when it came to that point.


    "Then, could I ask you to be the bridge, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "If that''s all you want, it''s not a problem."


    If it would improve the academic performance of the ss, Horikita wouldn''t refuse. Sud�� may find itplicated to have more people around Horikita, whether of the same or the opposite sex, but he wouldn''t reject her.

 Chapter 182: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 182: 5.6</h4>


    "Horikita-senpai, it''s time for your shift change. Please take a break."


    As noon approached, two hours after the treasure hunt game began, Yagami-kun, who was next in line to confirm the rewards after me, approached me and said so. I closed the first-year register and slowly raised my gaze.


    "I''m not particrly tired, so I don''t mind continuing to handle the reward confirmations."


    Right now, I''d like to cherish this time where I could freely look at the list of names while in this small group.


    "That won''t do. I have my own job that I''ve been given. I can''t call myself a member of the student council if I leave it to you, Horikita-senpai."


    "...Yes, you''re right."


    If I can take it easy, then I will. It was unlikely that anyone with that kind of thought process would join the student council. I decided not to persist strongly on this point and pulled my chair back.


    "Thank you. I''ll take a break without reservation."


    "Of course."


    In that case, I''d help confirm the rewards again at 2pm and then my role would be done. It wasn''t much of burden in terms of time spent working, but...


    "Horikita-senpai, how many people have received rewards so far?" Yagami-kun asked, looking down at the list of names.


    "If we include both members of a pair, about 40 people, I think. There were some students iming to have gotten 500,000 points, but I get the impression that a surprisinglyrge number of students misread it and actually ended up with 5,000 points."


    "They probably didn''t want other people to take the QR code that they thought they were the only one to find, so wanted to scan it quickly. I can somewhat understand it."


    If you overlooked a QR code, there was no guarantee that you''d find it again.


    What I was more concerned about was the presence of the other person who came here with Yagami-kun. Yagami-kun turned to that person and shed a smile at her.


    "Well then, I''ll see youter, Kushida-senpai."


    I''d heard that the two of them were close during middle school, but it seemed their rtionship had continued at this school, too.


    "Yeah, see youter, Yagami-kun."


    The way she affectionately sent him off seemed to go beyond the boundaries of mere friendship. The phrase ''more than friends, less than lovers'', seemed to be a fitting way to describe their rtionship.


    "If anythinges up, call me and I''ll be right there."


    "Okay, thank you very much."


    He''d only been involved with the student council work for a short time, but in addition to being able to manage the obvious work, Yagami-kun possessed greatmunication skills.


    He was a reliable underssman in the sense that I could trust him to do the next job, and there was no doubt that he was much more capable than the other two first-year students who''d joined the student council at the same time. It was still a long way off, but you could say that he was the best candidate for Student Council President for the next generation after ours.


    When I vacated my post, rather than staying by Yagami-kun''s side, Kushida-san also left. It was only natural to do so in order not to jeopardize the work toe.


    I could only assume that the fact she was walking alongside me meant something.


    "So you were with Yagami-kun. Why didn''t you participate in the treasure hunt, Kushida-san?"


    "Yeah. I just didn''t really feel like joining the game for some reason. There are a lot of people like that, you know?"


    "It''s true that the participation rate for second and third-years wasn''t as high as expected."


    It meant that they prioritized their vacation over the chance to earn arge sum of private points. The time we could spend on this ship was precious, even if it was just a vacation.


    "You''re going to take a break now, right Horikita-san? Would you have lunch together with me?"


    "With me?"


    I couldn''t hide my suspicion at Kushida-san''s unusual proposal.


    "Is it weird that I''m asking you out? I mean yeah, it is weird, isn''t it?"


    Even whileughing in amusement, the fake smile she showed to everyone else never cracked. This wasn''t a situation where she needed to think about it.


    "Well that''s fine; I have a lot of student council work to do after this, so I might as well put something in my stomach. But I might be called away on short notice, so is it okay if we just buy something from the store?"


    "Of course."


    I was sure there weren''t that many opportunities for Kushida-san to talk to me like this. It might also be a good opportunity for me to ask the questions that have smouldering inside of me.


    "May I ask you a simple question?"


    As if to spare time, I spoke to her as soon as we started moving.


    "The reason why I invited you out?"


    "Well that too, but..."


    "The reason why I''m close to Yagami-kun?" It seemed that Kushida-san knew what I was going to ask, as if it were obvious. "I''d be lying if I said it didn''t bother me."


    She herself had been bothered this whole time by the fact that she was behaving in ways that would be iprehensible under normal circumstances.


    "You''re trying to hide your past from middle school. That''s why I, who went to the same middle school as you, and Ayanok��ji-kun, who knows about your past, have been made your enemies... This much makes sense."


    Kushida-san faced forwards and listened without looking in my direction.


    "Even if we suppose Yagami-kun doesn''t know anything about it, I get the distinct impression that you''ve always avoided getting close to any one specific boy. I always thought that you were, if I were to put it a little harshly, a people pleaser, or in nicer terms, someone who treats everyone equally."


    "...You know, you didn''t need to say the harsh bit, did you?"


    "Right. I''m sorry if I offended you."


    "Ahaha, I''m not mad, so don''t worry."


    I didn''t intend to speak harshly, but I expressed my personal impressions. While I thought that what I said was careless, words once spoken cannot be taken back.


    "Why do you think I''m so close to Yagami-kun?"


    She turned the question around and returned it to me.


    "By any chance����do you have that kind of rtionship with Yagami-kun?"


    I was hesitant to express it directly, so I tried to ask her in a slightly muddled way.


    "By ''that kind of rtionship'' do you mean to ask if we''re dating?"


    "...Yes."


    "It''s unfortunate, but there''s nothing like that. I''m not nning on dating anyone in particr while I''m in school you see."


    That''s exactly what it means to be a people pleaser, isn''t it?


    Even I, who had no interest in that kind of thing, knew that Kushida-san was very popr among the boys. It was inevitable that her poprity would start to decline if she were to have a boyfriend, underssman or otherwise. I didn''t think that would suit Kushida-san, who wanted to be stand out more than anyone.


    "Then for what reason do you get along with Yagami-kun so well?"


    "It''s obvious isn''t it?" Kushida-san covered her mouth whileughing. "You say the funniest things."


    "It''s because the best way to get rid of someone who''s in your way is to get into their pocket," she continued.


    "...I see."


    I''d already guessed that was the case, but I was pressured by how the straightforward response and smile was exactly as I imagined. In other words, Yagami-kun was a target to eliminated, just like me and Ayanok��ji-kun.


    But that didn''t mean that all of my questions were answered.


    "What are the chances that he knows about your past? You can''t be absolutely sure, right?"


    "Yes, that''s right. There''s no guarantee that he knows."


    "If that''s the case..."


    "But there''s no guarantee that he definitely doesn''t know, right?" Kushida continued, her smile never faltering. "Yagami-kun seems to have feelings for me that are beyond that of a normal senior and junior rtionship, so sticking close to him is a lot easier than you think. I''m just waiting by his side for an opening."


    Even if there was only a one or two percent chance, if it wasn''t zero then she must eliminate him. That was Kushida-san''s basic stance. So not even Yagami-kun, who was her underssman, was an exception...


    "The number of bumps on the road that you have to deal with just keeps increasing. You haven''t even gotten me and Ayanok��ji-kun expelled, yet you intend to make more enemies?"


    "You must think I''m an idiot, right Horikita-san?"


    At the very least, I didn''t think it was a smart move.


    "Essentially, I don''t think that we need to be enemies. If it were someone who talks too much it would be one thing, but Ayanok��ji-kun and I would never let it slip."


    I wondered why she couldn''t understand this part, and took a step into an area that I''d not quite ventured into before.


    "What''s your guarantee? Can you be 100% sure?"


    "I''d say it''s as close to 100% as you can get, but...you can''t ept that, can you?"


    "Knowing that I have a past to protect. That alone is already like exposing my heart defencelessly, you know? Eventually, you''re bound toe and grab that heart, Horikita-san."


    "I don''t understand. I don''t see the need to do that."


    "''I won''t do it because I don''t need to''. Then what if the need arises?"


    "...What do you mean?"


    "What if I took a ss secret and tried to leak it to another ss? What if I betrayed you and tried to move to a different ss? Can you say that you and the others definitely wouldn''t give me a warning like ''If you don''t want your past to be exposed, don''t betray us'' at that time, Horikita-san?


    "That''s����"


    Certainly, I couldn''t guarantee that Kushida-san''s past would remain untouched if a situation where she needed to be controlled came up. If it needed to be done to protect my ssmates, I couldn''t rule out the possibility that I might y that trump card.


    Of course, Kushida-san would try to write most things off as ''fabrications''. However, there was a slight breakdown in Kushida-san''s credibility. She made a strategic error during the ss Poll exam, which resulted in her standing out for nothing.


    "Up to me, right? I''m feeling very frustrated with the situation where I have to talk about this. Even now, I''m feeling nauseous, and in truth, I''m in a lot of pain."


    Contrary to what she said, her smile and the tone of her voice remained truly calm. She kept a great deal of anger under control, covering it up on the surface.


    "I somewhat understand what you''re saying, but...I still believe you are overthinking it. I''m worried about you."


    "Oh, is that so? You''re worried about me?"


    "I would like to ease your emotional burden, if at all possible."


    "Ahahaha, you don''t need to worry, Horikita-san. I''m fine."


    "You''re fine?"


    "I''ve also had enough, and I''ve been thinking I need to get this nasty little problem over with."


    "In other words..."


    "I''m trying to figure out a way to get rid of that burden in my own way."


    So she means she approached me havinge up with a solution?


    "I''ve been thinking a lot. If this precarious situation continues as it is, the number of people who know more than they should will only increase. Therefore...let''s start with this; Horikita-san, could you drop out of school?"


    Naturally, the most rational method to lighten her emotional burden was for me to drop out of school. Of course, I couldn''t agree to that. Most importantly, it wasn''t like that would solve everything.


    "I don''t see how that connects to our conversation. What about Ayanok��ji-kun''s existence? What about Yagami-kun? Even if I drop out, there will still be people that know about you."


    I didn''t think that alone would take away the emotional burden.


    "I''m well aware that Ayanok��ji-kun is an unpredictable opponent. But did you know? Ayanok��ji-kun is supporting me with private points."


    "Supporting you...?"


    It was a story I had heard from Ayanok��ji-kun before. I''ll pretend I didn''t know what was going on here and ask her back.


    "I think he called it a defence n against expulsion. In other words, it''s proof that he knows that I''m an enemy, and at the same time, that he''s afraid of me. If I show him that I can eliminate you, Horikita-san, Ayanok��ji-kun will have no choice but to keep quiet, right? And if he does do anything wrong, he''ll get expelled himself."


    She shed an eerie smile and brought her face closer to mine.


    "In any case, even if I can''t expel anyone except you right away, Horikita-san, I can still obtain a certain amount of peace. In the meantime, I''ll just have to think up another way to get rid of Ayanok��ji-kun, and then it''s all over. And as for Yagami-kun, I think he''ll be okay even if I don''t do anything. He''s a serious guy who just likes me."


    Her big eyes seemed to have colour, but actually didn''t. It was possible to read a person''s emotions from their eyes, but Kushida-san was definitely an exception. Her strong will to expel me had never wavered.


    "The reason why I absolutely want you to be the first to disappear is because you went to the same middle school as me, Horikita-san. If they looked into it, other people might be able to uncover that fact. But because I first met Ayanok��ji-kun in high school, even if he were to expose me, I could always just say he was lying."


    Certainly, what Kushida-san said was correct. If you were ask who would be more troublesome out of me and Ayanok��ji-kun should we try to reveal her past, it would definitely be me, who went to the same middle school as her. And that too by an overwhelming margin.


    "Do you think it''s difficult to expel someone when you want to get rid of them? You do, don''t you? After all, for the past year and a half, I haven''t been able to do anything to you, Horikita-san. That''s the truth, right? Therefore, I won''t be able to have you expelled in the future... But is that really the case?"


    "If we were enemies in different sses, that might''ve been a possibility. But we''re not. It is not easy to expel a student from the same ss."


    "I''m definitely going to prove it to you."


    "Can''t we just understand each other? I''m trying to graduate with all of my ssmates, including you, Kushida-san. And, in order to do that, your help is essential."


    "I��di��ot."


    She cursed me so quietly that the end of the word almost disappeared.


    "I''m not going to cooperate with you. Stop saying things that make me want to puke."


    "Kushida-san..."


    "I''m looking forward to the second semester. I''m sure we''ll have a fun time together."


    As her face that had been right up against me slowly separated, the wickedness faded from her expression.


    Even so, it was clear that there was a mixture of anger and hatred behind that smile.


    "No matter what I try, it''s impossible, isn''t it..."


    She moved away from me, as if she''d had enough of our conversation.


    "But I believe...one day you wille to understand."


    The words certainly should''ve reached her ears, but she didn''t stop walking.

 Chapter 183: 5.7

    <h4>Chapter 183: 5.7</h4>


    It was a little after 2pm. There was still plenty of time before the treasure hunt game would end, but I felt it was safe assume that we''d already searched most of the area. I took pictures of a total of six QR codes. We ranked them objectively, with three of them judged to be a 4 out of 5 in terms of how difficult they were to find. It would be a good idea to choose one of those to scan first.


    "Could you open up the camera?"


    "Which one should we scan first?"


    "You can pick whichever one you intuitively think is good, Sat��."


    "E-ehh? Is it really okay for me to choose? W-what if I pick a bad one?"


    "There should only be carefully selected QR codes left. Besides, it''s possible that they''ve all been scanned already, so we might end up having to try them all in the end."


    We would have a better chance if we made a quick decision rather than taking our time.


    "O-okay."


    Sat�� took my phone and scrolled through the photos. She seemed to ponder it for a few seconds, but then atst decided to point her own phone camera at one of the photos. It was the QR code I found when I stuck my phone underneath the sofa.


    However����


    "Ahh, this one''s no good. It says it''s already been epted so it''s gone."


    It was quite well hidden, but it seemed some other students had managed to find it.


    "Don''t worry about it, try the next QR code."


    She nodded, and this time she didn''t hesitate to scan the QR code that she scrolled to.


    However, it seemed the second one had also already been epted, and Sat�� stomped her foot in frustration.


    "Even though it was so hard to find! This is so frustrating!"


    She hurried to scan the third QR code.


    After that, Sat�� stared at the screen for a while, but then suddenly jumped into the air.


    "It loaded! Look, something like a treasure chest came out!"


    It was a simple illustration of a treasure chest with the word TAP.


    "I wonder how many points we''ll get..."


    Sat�� went to tap the treasure chest with her index finger, but stopped just before her finger touched it.


    "Y-you press it, Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    It appeared that she was afraid of seeing the results, so she handed me her phone. From Sat��''s point of view, she had to use her precious 10,000 points to participate, so she was scared our efforts wouldn''t bear fruit.


    I received the phone from Sat�� and touched the treasure chest on the screen.


    "Wah, Ayanok��ji-kun, you''re so bold!"


    I didn''t exactly do anything that could be called bold.


    The treasure chest glowed simply, and a blue light came from inside the box.


    And then����


    "Ah!!...oh~"


    For a moment, Sat�� was intensely surprised, but she soon realised the truth and her joy began to fade.


    The reason for this was because what came out of the treasure chest was not one million points, but 100,000 points. She was dreaming of the 300,000, 500,000, or even one million points rewards, so she was a little disappointed.


    "It appears that the QR code wasn''t as difficult to find as we thought."


    "I see~...that''s too bad. But, but, even after taking away the participation fee, we still get 90,000 points, so it''s more than enough!"


    Even without confirming it, I could brazenly say that I was d I participated.


    "Thank you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I''m the one who should be saying thank you. After all, the one who found the QR code that hadn''t been scanned yet was you, Sat��."


    "...Hehe."


    Showing an expression that was both pleased and embarrassed, Sat�� smirked.

 Chapter 184: 5.8

    <h4>Chapter 184: 5.8</h4>


    Students who scanned a QR code in the treasure hunt had an obligation to report it to the school.


    Sat�� and I returned to the starting point and headed towards Horikita, who was waiting at the reception desk.


    "Good work. With this, the procedure is nowplete."


    Sat�� expressed her happiness honestly upon hearing such a report.


    "Well then, thank you for today, Ayanok��ji-kun. Let''s hang out together some other time."


    Saying that, Sat�� waved and walked away happily. Now that she had some extra ie, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to spend a little time indulging in luxury.


    "If we exclude the participation fee, it''s a total of 180,000 points between the two of you. Good job."


    "Yeah."


    By this time, most of the participants seemed to have reached their goals, and only a few people wereing.


    "Looks like you''ve had a lot to do too. Have you taken any breaks?"


    "Yes, for about an hour. But I can''tin. It was my own idea to appeal directly to the school from the perspective of fraud prevention."


    "A direct appeal, huh. It''s a small thing, but it''s a step towards bing the Student Council President."


    Making a good impression with things like that would be appreciated by both the school and the student council.


    "It''s not like that. Even if I didn''t suggest it, there wouldn''t be a great deal of cheating. It''s just...well, I thought it might be helpful, even if only a little. That''s all."


    I didn''t really understand, but Horikita''s mind seemed to be elsewhere.


    "So, who got the highest number of private points from our ss?"


    "Who do you think?"


    When I asked her, she turned the question around and asked me back.


    "I''m hoping it''s not us."


    "Well good for you, you''re correct. There was a pair that won 500,000 private points. It was Wang-san and K��enji-kun."


    "K��enji? Participating in the game itself is one thing, but I''m surprised he paired up with someone."


    I didn''t notice the presence of K��enji at the briefing because there were so many people.


    "I''m of the same opinion. I don''t know the circumstances of how he ended up participating and pairing up, but he''s made a considerable amount money in thest couple of weeks."


    "No matter what he does, he''s out of this world, that K��enji."


    To think he had good luck in addition to having incredible physical abilities. Or maybe it was a QR code that his partner found.


    "Not being able to use K��enji-kun in the future is a big minus for the ss."


    "He was never the kind of guy to work hard to begin with; can''t you just be satisfied with him taking first ce this time?"


    "There''s no way I could be satisfied. It would be too much of a waste not to use his abilities to move up to ss A. Don''t you have any ideas?"


    A way to make good use of K��enji? It was a waste of resources to even think about it.


    "It''s impossible."


    "That was a quick reply."


    I was confident that I could control others to some extent. However, the only exception to this was K��enji.


    I''d run countless simtions on how to control all of my ssmates and K��enji was the only one who, no matter how many simtions I tried, I could not get under control.


    "Even if you give up, I won''t. His strength is vital."


    Trying to control the uncontroble. That was simply a contradiction.


    "Even if it''s a waste of time?"


    "You don''t think we need K��enji-kun?"


    "I think that as long as he doesn''t do any harm, the best course of action is to leave him alone. And now that K��enji''s been handed a protection point, it''s possible to neglect him more."


    "That sure is a rational thought."


    "If the ss couldn''t win without K��enji, I''d understand why you''d be so eager. However, our ss has already grown into a force to be reckoned with that canpete with the other sses. And it will continue to grow in the future."


    "Yes, you''re right, everyone''s much more reliable than they were a year ago."


    "However..." Horikita continued, "While getting to ss A is my top priority and ultimate goal, I want the ss to be one. I want to lead them in a way so that we can allbine our strength."


    So she didn''t want anyone to be cut off, even K��enji.


    Horikita''s eyes that stared at me were so straight that I unconsciously choked on my words.


    If Horikita could get K��enji to join her, he would be an irreceable and dependable ally.


    However, clearing that hurdle was probably more difficult than trying to get to ss A.


    In the past, I wouldn''t have taken her statement seriously. I would just put it away as ramblings and beyond her capabilities. Horikita''s growth has been slow, but it was progressing step by step.


    Well...I still couldn''t say that Horikita might be able to move K��enji someday though.


    K��enji really was the only man that my calctions couldn''tprehend.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "You looked like you were thinking."


    "No, I was just trying to figure out how I would spend all these private points that I''ve been given."


    "...Right. You''re giving half of your money to Kushida-san, so you should take care of the private points you earned today and not waste them."


    "Yeah, that''s right. I''ll do that."


    I decided to leave quietly, since staying any longer would only get in the way of the operation.

 Chapter 185: 5.9

    <h4>Chapter 185: 5.9</h4>


    It was a little after 5:30pm. I had a meeting scheduled with someone before dinner at 6pm.


    As I was leaving my guest cabin to go to the deck on the 5th floor, I came across Sud��, who was staying in the cabin two doors over.


    "It''s almost time to eat, where you goin''?"


    Sud�� asked if I was on my way back to the guest cabin.


    "Just going for a little walk before dinner."


    "You sound kinda like an old man. Then I''ll see ya at the restaurant."


    We exchanged a few words and were about to part when Sud�� remembered something and spoke up.


    "No wait, sorry, sorry. Right, actually something a bit surprising happened!"


    "Are you talking about how Ike and Shinohara started dating?"


    "W-what, you already knew?"


    "Yeah, although it was just a coincidence that I ended up overhearing it."


    "Nah, ''course that was a surprise too, he beat me to it... More importantly, he said he wants to study with me. He wants to join Suzune''s study group."


    That was unexpected, or rather, faster than I expected.


    "Poor academic performance is fatal at this school after all."


    Students were often in danger of being expelled from school due to academics, which was natural considering it was a student''s duty to study.


    "It''s a precious time for me to be alone with Suzune, but if he''s motivated, I''ve got no choice but to support him, right? So Kanji''s gonna study hard, starting with summer training."


    Summer training. Apparently, he intended to start studying right after this trip was over. Whether or not he''d show any immediate results depended on Ike''s efforts, but some growth may be visible early in the second semester. Both Sud�� and Ike may transform as a result of their love lives.


    "There might be other members joining you, you know?"


    "Huh? Seriously?"


    "Ike isn''t the only student who started thinking they want to be taught by Horikita."


    "It''s not a guy, right?"


    He came at me and grabbed my shoulders with a serious look on his face.


    "No...it''s not. It''s Sat��, only Sat��."


    I didn''t intend to give her name, but I confessed after being on the receiving end of his unyielding pressure.


    "So it''s a girl. Well, if it''s like that... but Sat��, huh? If it''s not only me, but Ike as well, she''s probably not gonna join the study group, is she?"


    "Don''t you think you''re making certain assumptions? She seemed to have a strong resolve."


    "Hmm. Well, it''s okay. I''m not gonna lose no matter who''sin''."


    He blew air out of his nose, and I could sense the continuation of his strong desire to study.


    "Isn''t it a bit tight? What with your club activities going on at the same time and all."


    "Yeah, it''s tough. But I''ve always had enough stamina to brag about. The first time I tried to really use my head, I felt like sleepin'' within a minute, but now I can go forev...nah, I can go for like an hour."


    If you could concentrate and study for that long, you wouldn''t have any problems. Study for an hour, take a break, study for an hour, and then repeating was more than enough.


    "But, you know...shit, I just can''t ept the fact that Kanji got a girlfriend before me."


    Even whileughing, Sud��mented with regret in all sincerity.


    "I''m gonna hold a grudge ''bout that while givin'' him proper training. Gonna give him the basketball club''s spartan training."


    It was a love-hate rtionship with a bad friend, but he would take care of him.


    "In moderation, right? After all, it''s not easy to fall in love with something that you used to hate, like studying."


    "I know. I know just how much I hated studying myself."


    Saying that, he stuck out his tongue as if he''d taken a bite of something bitter.


    After parting ways with Sud��, I approached my destination. I saw the figure of Kushida ahead of me on the deck and hid myself. It was already five minutes past the time we were supposed to meet, so of course she was in a situation where she had to wait.


    I took out my phone and called Kushida, and she picked up after two rings.


    "Hello?"


    After confirming the voice, I walked out to the deck where Kushida was. Mobile phones, because of their nature, prioritized ''calling'', so even if the recording mode was activated, it would automatically turn off when a call started. In other words, the conversation that was about to take ce would be between me and Kushida alone.


    "Sorry Kushida, I''mte. I''m on my way right now, are you still waiting?"


    "Yeah, umm����ah, over here!" Kushida checked left and right and waved after immediately spotting me.


    I didn''t end the call from my phone and, while continuing to run, arrived in front of Kushida. At about the same time, we both hung up on our phones.


    "I''m sorry for keeping you waiting. I took a wrong turn somewhere."


    "So even you screw up sometimes, Ayankouji-kun. But what''s wrong? You said you wanted to talk to me."


    "I''ve been debating what to do for the past few hours, but I figured I should be honest and confess."


    "Hmm? Confess? About what?"


    "You know that I participated in the treasure hunt game, yes?"


    "Yeah. You paired up with Sat��-san, right?"


    She looked at me curiously, as if to say ''and what about it?'', like she didn''t understand what I was getting at.


    "The reward for the QR code I scanned during the treasure hunt was 100,000 points. In short, that''s 90,000 points after deducting the participation fee. Divide that by two and you get 45,000 points. I thought the right thing to do was to give you half of it, Kushida."


    After saying that, I took out my phone and showed her the records of my deposits and withdrawals. It clearly stated that exactly 100,000 points had just been transferred to my ount.


    "Ehh? It was just a game, you don''t have to worry about it so much~"


    Kushida, surprised by the unexpected topic of our conversation, put her hands out and refused to ept it.


    "To be honest, I thought so too at first. That''s exactly what I tried to think, but I couldn''t help but feel that it was a devious way of thinking. There was a possibility you''d say you didn''t want it, and I thought that if I just kept my mouth shut, you wouldn''t find out. It''s because I''m ashamed of own way of thinking that I decided that I have to give it to you."


    "But����"


    No matter how I tried to reason with her, it would be difficult for Kushida to ept the points.


    "To be honest with you...I want you to take them, as a sign of good faith."


    "Good faith...?"


    "I''m giving you half of the private points I receive to buy safety from you, Kushida. As long as I show good faith regarding this, I''m thinking you''ll to do the same with me." Am I wrong? I asked with my eyes. "It never hurts to have more private points, even if only a little. Isn''t that right?"


    "That''s true, but wouldn''t that put you in a considerably painful situation, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "I don''t mind. It''s nothingpared to getting in trouble with you, Kushida."


    "Somehow...the opposite is a little scary."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You know, Ayanok��ji-kun, I keep hearing that you''re some amazing student. Are you really giving me half of your private points just because you want to have a truce with me?"


    "The way I see it, it''s more dangerous to make an enemy of you, whose personal lifees into y, than a student like Sakayanagi or Ry��en, who we have to fight in special exams."


    Although she was somewhat wary, Kushida nodded her head as if satisfied.


    "All right. Then you''re really okay with this?"


    "Of course."


    Using my phone, I transferred the private points to Kushida''s ount just like I''d done many times before.


    "I hate to say it just after giving you my points, but if I ever get into some money-rted troubles, I might ask for your help."


    "Ehh~? That''s a little uncool Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Kushidaughed a little, perhaps amused by my shamelessness.


    "But I think it''s a much, much smarter approach than Horikita-san. I don''t hate that kind of thing."


    "Is that so?"


    "For me as well, the only person I don''t want to make an enemy out of is you, Ayanok��ji-kun, so I hope we continue to get along."


    "Yeah. I''d like to keep our mutually beneficial rtionship going."


    With that, Kushida and I parted ways as if nothing had happened.

 Chapter 186 - 6: An Inevitable Past

    <h4>Chapter 186: Chapter 6: An Inevitable Past</h4>


    It was evening, and my roommates were having a great time chatting about trivial things.


    I was worried about Akito''s health, but his fever had gone down within a day and he was on the mend, so he had no issues lying down and talking for the time being. I was basically just spending my evening watching from the side-lines whilst operating my phone, asionally interjecting with some small talk.


    I was surfing the inte, waiting for drowsiness to hit me, when I received a message.


    I want to talk to you on the phone for a bit, is that okay?


    It was a message from Kei.


    It had been a while since the ban on messaging was lifted, but we''d exchanged messages roughly once per day. No emoticons or stamps were used today, which suggested that it was a serious matter.


    I''m in my room right now, so wait three minutes.


    It wasn''t curfew yet, so it wasn''t difficult to get out of the cabin. After sending my reply, I decided to make a quick exit from the bed.


    "I''m going to go buy a drink."


    With those convenient words that could be used at any time, I left the cabin and went out into to the hallway.


    Since it was around 9pm, I didn''t see any students passing by. I then went out onto the deck and checked my surroundings. After making sure that no one was around, I called Kei.


    "Hello?"


    "Sorry for bothering you all of a sudden, but I just really wanted to talk to you today."


    She said cute things just like a girlfriend would. I wondered if this was one of those ''I just wanted to hear your voice for some reason'' type requests from a lover.


    "So you know����"


    After a slight pause, Kei spoke up.


    "I heard some unpleasant rumours about you, you know? You''ll give me a detailed exnation, right?"


    "Unpleasant rumours?"


    Huh? The words I was expecting didn''t jump out; rather, Kei seemed to be in a bad mood.


    There was a long silence and I didn''t get a response right away.


    "Unpleasant rumours?"


    I couldn''t take it anymore so I asked her for a second time, but she didn''t answer, just giving off a hint of frustration. Rather, after I repeated the question word for word, she instead became suspicious.


    "Does nothinge to mind?"


    "I can''t think of anything."


    I answered without hesitation, but there were a number of things that came to mind.


    The first thing would have to be the Ichinose situation. When Nagumo saw the exchange between me and Ichinose, he would''ve figured out that we were in a serious situation. And now that he knew that Kei and I were in a rtionship, it wouldn''t be strange if he went around spreading what he''d seen.


    In addition to that, the fact that I paired up with Sat��, who''d once confessed to me, and had a chat with Matsushita also crossed my mind.


    "There''s really nothing thates to mind?"


    There was a long pause, as if she were making a final check before passing judgement.


    "Nope, nothing."


    Despite that, I persisted and pretended not to know. If I knew what Kei''s ''something thates to mind'' was referring to, I would''ve readily confessed, whether it was the thing with Ichinose or the thing with Sat��. However, since I hadn''t identified which it was yet, if I were to say something inappropriate, the problem may worsen. It was a case of letting my own flesh be cut in order to sever the other''s bone, I guess.


    ...Anyway, why was something like this happening instead of it just being a sweet phone call?


    "Kei?"


    When I prompted her by calling her name, she spoke up, her lips seemingly trembling.


    "You''ve been, like, messing around with an underssman! That rumour!"


    "...Huh?"


    She told me what the rumours were saying, but I titled my head, unable toprehend it. Were all the thoughts that came to mind off the mark? As I thought, it was a good thing that I didn''t say anything carelessly.


    "Where and how did you even hear a rumour like that?"


    "I don''t know! But I heard that you were seen repeatedly meeting with some first-year girl."


    A first-year girl. The person that immediately came to mind was Nanase...


    It was true that I had talked to Nanase many times over this vacation. It wasn''t like we were meeting in secret, so there must''ve been witnesses everywhere. Now that I understood the situation, I could end this quickly.


    "She''s just an underssman, nothing more."


    "I know that! I mean if she wasn''t just an underssman you''d be out!"


    That was for sure.


    "And also! You didn''t tell me anything about pairing up with Sat��-san for the treasure hunt."


    So it appeared that Kei was aware of one of the things that came to mind.


    "Sure, I didn''t report it, but because it was you, Kei, you''d find out straight away, right?"


    Since Sat�� and I had been walking around together on a treasure hunt, numerous people would''ve seen us. Even Matsushita knew about it.


    "Y-yeah, well I did find out straight away...I knew about it, but..."


    She seemed to have a lot ofints and was mumbling something inaudibly.


    "Even though I actually wanted to pair up with you, Kiyotaka."


    "I understand how you feel, but the order would be reversed then wouldn''t it?"


    "Bu����"


    "By the way, how were the results after working with Mori?"


    "...You''re asking that?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    The mood was plummeting so it would be better not to go too deep into this. I didn''t mind continuing to listen to herin, but since the topic of Sat�� hade up, I decided to ask her about it.


    "You told Sat�� already about what we''re nning to do, right?"


    "Eh? A-ahh yeah. I wanted to tell just Sat��-san first."


    "Well, that''s probably all right. By the way, did you talk about it over a phone call or through messages?"


    "No way. You have to talk about these things face to face. It was at the caf��."


    "The caf��, huh. Do you remember if anyone might''ve overheard you?"


    "I can be careful about stuff like that too you know? At the very least, there weren''t any second-years who could''ve overheard us, so don''t worry."


    Certainly, Kei would be most worried about the second-years. Normally, neither first nor third-years would have any strong interest in the love stories of other year groups. Especially if the person in question was me.


    However, it was the quite the opposite for the current third-year students, who only seemed to bite on topics rted to me.


    "Ah~ but there were some third-year girls sat nearby, so it was a little difficult to talk."


    As if she were checking her answers to an exam question, Kei thought back on the meeting she had with Sat��. For Kei, who didn''t know the circumstances, she would''ve had no reason to assume she should be wary of third-year students.


    "If she knows, then it''s good."


    "Yeah. But is it really okay? To be open about the fact that we''re dating?"


    "Of course, it''s no problem."


    Rather, it was obvious that it would be a necessary action sooner orter. The more we pushed it back, the more troublesome it might be.


    "Well, I say we''re going to be open about it, but it''s not like we''re going to go announce it in front of all our ssmates. It''ll spread naturally from our friends, and people will find out at different times."


    I was sure everyone would react to their heart''s content for a few days, but it wouldn''t be a big problem.


    "But you know...you''re very popr, Kiyotaka."


    "Is that so?"


    "Ugh, that whole not knowing anything part of you is super irritating you know."


    "In that case, we can just not talk about it."


    "Yeah that''s true, but even though I know that, I''m worried, so I end up asking!"


    It wasn''t like I didn''t know what she was trying to say, but there were some contradictions.


    "Isn''t the purpose of the deration to keep the unnecessary bugs away?"


    As long as they thought the person they liked didn''t have a boyfriend or girlfriend, they might try and go on an all-out offensive. To avoid this, you had to make a big deal of the fact that you were dating someone. If you did that, most people would give up and stop trying to attack.


    Of course, I was aware that there were a few exceptions, but...


    "I''m still gonna be worried..."


    Those few exceptions, the enemies yet to be revealed, were what Kei was frightened of.


    "You might not know this yet, but there are girls who fall for guys who already have a girlfriend, and there are girls who''ll enthusiastically try and steal them."


    "I see."


    "Get it? I''ll never forgive you if you cheat on me."


    As a dependant type, Kei would never forgive her boyfriend if he were to cheat on her. I knew that even before we started dating.


    "Don''t worry; I wouldn''t do something like that."


    "Really?"


    "Yes, really."


    "Really really?"


    "Yes, really."


    We repeatedly went back and forth in what was a seemingly pointless exchange.


    However, this seemingly pointless back and forth was just one of the ways of expressing affection in the process of falling in love.


    "Do you...love me?"


    I checked my surroundings once more to make sure I hadn''t missed anything. Of course, I didn''t think any students would willingly show their face on this dark deck at this hour.


    "Yeah, I love you."


    After confirming that nobody was around, I could answer without hesitation.


    "...Fufufu."


    "What''s with the creepyugh?"


    I thought she would definitely be happy or respond in the same way, but I didn''t expect to beughed at.


    "It''s kinda funny to think of you saying that while being careful of your surroundings, Kiyotaka."


    Apparently, Kei had seen through my actions.


    "I''m hanging up."


    "Ahh wait, wait! Say it again."


    "Mmm."


    The words got caught in my throat after she asked for me to say it again.


    "I said I was getting a drink when I left, so it''s about time I head back."


    "Wait! Tell me you love me!"


    "I said it earlier, didn''t I?"


    "I want to hear it again!"


    How selfish. No, even though they were the same words, the weight of them seemed to have changed.


    "...I love you."


    "...Pfft."


    "Hey."


    Kei tried to hold back herughter, but eventually she couldn''t endure it any longer and let her voice slip out.


    "Yep, I knew it, you''re the best... I''m absolutely never giving you to anyone else."


    I just said that she didn''t have to worry about that, but her anxiety only seemed to be growing.


    "Are you okay not asking me too?"


    "If I asked you, would you even say it?"


    "Hmm, I wonder?"


    "Then we''ll talk again tomorrow."


    "Wait! That''s obviously the part where you ask me!"


    How to put it? It seemed like I was given a choice, but I actually wasn''t.


    "Then say it."


    "You just threw it out there! Like you don''t care either way! I can''t stomach it~!"


    "...Please say it."


    "Eh~? I wonder what I should do~?"


    I held back what I wanted to say and waited for Kei''s response.


    "...I love you."


    Kei gave a short reply whileughing a little, no, while feeling awkward.


    "Good night, Kiyotaka."


    "Yeah, good night."


    As I hung up the phone, the sound of Kei saying ''I love you'' reverberated in my ears.


    "This isn''t bad, huh?"


    The thing called love really was interesting. That was what I thought at that moment of the night.

 Chapter 187: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 187: 6.1</h4>


    The date had just changed to August 9th, and the time aboard the cruise ship wasing to an end.


    It was past 1am, and most students were likely already asleep. In thete night bar lounge, which was only avable to adults, three people had met up.


    "Ahh, I''m so tired. Why do we teachers have to work sote, day in and day out? My skin will get all rough. We want a summer vacation too~" grumbled Hoshinomiya, who was slumped face down on the bar counter.


    "You''ve had more than enough rest. You should''ve been able to rest on the fifth and sixth days."


    "That''s only two days you know~? I was so busy today and yesterday~ And what''s with the treasure hunt bonus game? I want my bonus~"


    "I understand how you feel, but we''re working people, Chie. We don''t get long summer vacation like kids do." Chabashira, who was sat to the right of Hoshinomiya, admonished her.


    "If you consider the effort the students just put in for two weeks on an uninhabited ind, it''s not a big deal." This time, Mashima, who was sat in between the two of them, urged her to hold her ground.


    "Don''t force reality on me... I don''t wanna hear it, I don''t wanna hear it." Hoshinomiya covered both ears with her hands and shook her head in refusal. "Well, at least let me have a vacation on the ship. It''s not fair that the students have ess to the pool, the movies, and everything else while we get nothing, is it~?"


    Hoshinomiya couldn''t ept the situation where she was just watching every day with her fingers in her mouth.


    "That''s what it means to have a job."


    "That''s normal when you''re a working adult, Chie."


    "Ahh nooo, I don''t wanna hear it, damn working people!" She covered her ears with her hands even more strongly.


    However, not long after, she released her hands, put up her right hand and raised her voice. "Please give me a drink strong enough for me to escape from reality. Master''s choice." Then, with her left hand, she banged on the counter table and demanded alcohol.


    "Seriously...you never change." Chabashira let out an exasperated sigh after seeing Hoshinomiya like that.


    "Because your goal is to stay beautiful and young forever?"


    "That''s not what I meant."


    "Then what~?"


    "...No, don''t worry about it. There''s no point trying to exin."


    Mashima and Chabashira also ordered beers a stepter, and when they all had their drinks, they tipped their sses and toasted.


    "But this time''s special exam had a lot of strangely rough developments. There were too many unnned incidents."


    "A student was seriously injured, and the watch malfunctions were obviously the result of the students doing whatever they liked. Moreover, to think that only third-year students were expelled... There were a lot of things that we didn''t expect."


    Hoshinomiya took a sip of the cocktail she was served and sighed. "As I thought, giving the students too much freedom was a problem. There haven''t been any reports, but I''m sure there were some boys and girls doing that in ces where they wouldn''t be seen."


    "I''d like to think that, at the very least, that line wasn''t crossed."


    "You''re na?ve, Mashima-kun. Just looking won''t be enough to stop a young girl''s passion."


    "You''re the only one who thinks that."


    When she was told off, Hoshinomiya immediately asked for a refill.


    "We''ll be busy again after the summer vacation ends."


    "Ugh, I can''t take it anymore. I don''t want to be a low sry teacher who''s worked to death. I want money."


    "You''ve been bitching the whole time we''ve been here."


    "Well of course. I set all this up because I wanted to bitch didn''t I?" Hoshinomiya said without a trace of remorse and sipped from her second ss.


    "You never change, Chie. Although that''s one of the good things about you."


    Chabashira asked for some nuts as a light snack.


    "Anyway, I''m relieved about this uninhabited ind exam. That the second-years didn''t lose, that is."


    "Though it was ominous that only third-year students had to drop out."


    While sandwiched between Hoshinomiya and Chabashira, Mashima quietly listened to their conversation. However, just as they were about to move onto another topic, he put the half-empty ss of beer on the table somewhat forcefully.


    "The second-years are doing well. However, on the flip side, that can invite trouble."


    "What''s that? Are you saying it''s not good to try so hard?"


    "It''s not like the school wants anyone to drop out, but still, in reality, not even one of our second-year students has dropped out of school during any special exams so far."


    "In reality, yeah. Even though the school ended up having to choose students to be semi-forcibly expelled from school, a drop-out''s a drop-out, right?"


    All three of them remembered the ss Poll very clearly.


    "I''d like to believe there won''t be any more special exams with no way out like that."


    Even Chabashira, who usually treated her ss with a cold-hearted attitude, wasn''t without heartache. She didn''t agree that students who didn''t make any mistakes should be forced into a corner. Both she and Hoshinomiya were in agreement on that point.


    However, Mashima''s face remained grim. Seeing that, Chabashira looked into his eyes as if peering into his soul.


    "Don''t tell me another special exam to force people out of school has been prepared?"


    "An exam likest year''s ss poll isn''t something the school can do just like that."


    "Then there''s no problem. As long as there are no mandatory expulsions, my ss will get through it."


    "Oh my? You''ve started talking big all of a sudden, Sae-chan."


    Over Mashima''s back, Hoshinomiya poked Chabashira''s side.


    "Stop it."


    When Chabashira grabbed her hand a little angrily, Hoshinomiya turned her sharp eyes back to her.


    "You''re not thinking you''ll make it to ss A are you?"


    "Nobody said that. However, I''m just saying that this ss is superior to the sses from previous years."


    "Hmm?"


    In the midst of the tense atmosphere, Mashima guzzled the remaining half of his beer.


    "Indeed, there are no mandatory expulsions. But..."


    Chabashira, together with Hoshinomiya, turned to look at Mashima, who choked on his words.


    "The outline for the next special exam was announced recently. It will be implemented for the first time in 11 years."


    "11 years...We''ll be 29 this year, so...you mean since our third-year of high school? It''s unusual isn''t it? For such an old special exam to be adopted."


    Many of her memories from high school were buried deep in the back of her brain and had already melted away. What conversations she''d had, what special exams she''d done. If she were asked to recall all of them immediately, she wouldn''t be able to answer.


    "The school makes special exams ording to a year-long schedule. If we take it a step further, it''s based on a four-year rotation. You know this much, yes?"


    "It''s to make sure the contents of the special exams don''t get leaked to other students while they''re at school, right?"


    Throughout its history, the Advanced Nurturing High School had conducted a number of special exams. Some had only been done once, and some had been included in the quadrennial framework due to their versatility.


    "Of course, there are times when we intentionally repeat the same special exam within a short period of time, and there are also some special exams for the purpose of sharing information, but it''s basically a predetermined rotation. However, depending on how the year goes, there are times when special exams from further back than four years are brought in."


    "So you''re saying it''s not that unusual for old special exams to be adopted?"


    "That''s right. As long as it''s not a ''problematic'' special exam, that is."


    Mashima said it in a suggestive way, but the two didn''t think about it too much. Rather, they showed great enthusiasm in response to the new special exam.


    "Maybe Sae-chan and I will end up fighting each other~"


    "You seem to be expecting that to happen. You think you can beat my ss in a fight?"


    "Nothing like that. But is it better than fighting than fighting Ry��en-kun''s or Sakayanagi-san''s?


    Hoshinomiya grinned and the smell of alcohol streamed out of her mouth.


    "My ss has grown a lot. Don''t think it will be easy."


    "Heh~ To think you''d say something like that, Sae-chan. Are you acting all tough because you''ve got that special kid, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Certainly, Ayanok��ji is a gem as well. But there are a lot of students in my ss who show a lot of potential."


    "As well? Aren''t you relying on Ayanok��ji-kun too much, Sae-chan?"


    "What in the world are you talking about? When did I rely on Ayanok��ji?"


    They seemed to be having their usual back and forth, but Mashima, who was sitting between them, felt their conversation could chill his insides. If he just kept his mouth shut and listened to their conversation, it would only take a few moments for an argument to break out.


    "Let''s leave it at that. There''s no point arguing about it here and now."


    "That''s right; I might''ve got a little heated."


    While expressing her remorse, Hoshinomiya gulped down her drink until it was empty.


    "You''re going too fast."


    "I''m fine, I''m fine. I''m not so weak that I could be crushed that easily."


    "No, that''s not it. I''m saying it''ll affect your work tomorrow...no, today."


    "I''m saying I''m fine, it won''t affect it, it won''t."


    Hoshinomiya showed absolutely no signs of stopping and asked for a third ss.


    "Then, let''s talk before you get too drunk. You can have a look at the outline for the next special exam."


    Mashima operated his phone and ced it on the table.


    "The important thing is the name of the special exam. You''ll understand straight away once you see it."


    "The name of the exam?"


    "Go ahead, read it."


    The two looked at each other and then, at almost the same time, they peeked at the phone. After seeing the name, Chabashira gasped, as did Hoshinomiya.


    It was a special exam that Chabashira and Hoshinomiya experienced when they were students. The news was that it had been decided that it would be held at the beginning of the second semester.


    "11 years ago... Even though it was a long time ago, you should remember this particr exam very well."


    Chabashira looked at the name of the special exam over and over again and was left speechless. Hoshinomiya turned away from the phone and held the third ss she had been brought in her hand. She looked at the reflection of her face and smiled.


    "To think we''d see this special exam again, huh..."


    Chabashira, unable to say anything, just silently cast her eyes downwards.


    "I thoughtst year''s ss poll...wasn''t that supposed to be a substitute for this?"


    As if to confirm, Hoshinomiya looked at Mashima.


    "In the end, they''re both used for a simr purpose. It means the school had no choice but to include it. If any of the second-year students had dropped out during the uninhabited ind exam, the next special exam was going to be a different one."


    "Well, I guess it can''t be helped. We can''t make the written exams too hard just to get people to drop out. So a special exam that''s a big problem hase up because Sae-chan''s ss is just too good~?" Hoshinomiya emphasized, as if she were trying to make a point.


    "It''s too early to decide it''s a big problem. Depending on how you look at it, it''s just a trivial test."


    "But if you make one wrong choice, it can turn into a difficult problem. Isn''t that right? Sae-chan?"


    Chabashira, who had her eyes closed, wouldn''t answer with a yes or no.


    "That''s right...you two suffered a great deal with this particr exam."


    "For us, it was the third semester of our third-year. I''ve never forgotten what happened on that day."


    The words were directed to herself and also Chabashira, as if she were nostalgic for the past.


    "So, how long are you going to keep your mouth shut? Don''t you have anything you want to say?"


    Even after being asked like that, Chabashira couldn''t utter a word, as if she couldn''t get hear head around it.


    "Pathetic."


    Afterining briefly, she ignored the unresponsive Chabashira and looked at Mashima.


    "What do you think, Mashima-kun? The next special exam...will there be any dropouts?"


    "Even though ss A is a head above of the rest, there''s still a chance for those in ss B and below to turn things around. If you put up a strong challenge with the intention to win, there''s a good chance we''ll end up on the same path that you were on."


    "A premonition of quagmire����I guess," Hoshinomiya muttered, and asked for a fourth ss. The pace of her drinking was going up and up.


    "Well, my ss is probably okay in a bad sense, but what about Sae-chan''s? Right now, they''re flying high anding up from the bottom. If they can increase their ss points here, they could be ss B straight away. If it were me..."


    "I''m going back to my room."


    Chabashira, who had been silent the whole time, stood up and said so before she even finished her first ss.


    "Just when I thought you were finally going to talk, you say you''re leaving...The lively atmosphere''s been ruined..."


    "I''m sorry, but you two will have to continue without me."


    Chabashira turned her back, and Hoshinomiya''s sluggish expression changedpletely.


    "Hey!"


    Hoshinomiya mmed the now empty ss down onto the table and stood up with great vigour.


    Perhaps because it wasn''t just Chabashira, but also Mashima, who were surprised by her actions, she was unable to speak and showed signs of agitation. It was probably fortunate that they were the only three customers at the bar.


    "How long are you going to chase after your boring love?!"


    "...What are you saying?"


    "Do you know how old we are now? We''re 29 you know? I''m saying that romance was years ago!"


    "Hey, you drank too much at once����"


    "You stay quiet, Mashima-kun!"


    "..."


    The bartender, who''d been wiping sses nearby, sensed it was a serious matter and excused himself to use the restroom.


    "If you consider just your age, you''re getting older and older, and yet you''ve been stuck in your third-year of high school all this time. And now you''ve taken it upon yourself to weigh down the kids...hah? Are you an idiot?"


    Chabashira left in silence, not even bothering to say anything back in response to the barrage of abuse.


    There was silence between Hoshinomiya and Mashima, who were left at the counter.


    "Oh my, she''s gone."


    Feeling disappointed, Hoshinomiya retrieved the drink left by Chabashira and sat back down.


    "You''re a malicious one too, Hoshinomiya."


    "I had no choice, you know. It''s bad that this special exam of all things ising up."


    "It was this special exam that proved decisive for you two after all."


    "If Sae-chan had chosen the right answer, we would''ve graduated from ss A you know?"


    "...You''re still holding a grudge, aren''t you?"


    "Of course I''m still holding a grudge. I failed, and now I''m a teacher at this school. In reality, I should''ve gone on to a more sparkling world."


    "Dorm life must''ve been tough after that exam, since you and Chabashira were in the same room."


    "There was no way we could live together after what happened. We probably would''ve killed each other."


    "The fact that I can''t even say that you''re exaggerating is what''s so scary about you two."


    Hoshinomiya grabbed a strand of hair and pulled it out.


    "Didn''t you fix that habit?"


    "Ah, I shouldn''t have done that. I did it unconsciously...my precious hair...you want it?"


    "I don''t."


    He ignored the hair he was offered and asked the bartender, who had now returned, for a second drink. Seeing this, Hoshinomiya also prompted him for a fifth drink.


    "Sharing a room isn''t a good idea. It''s fine when things are going well, but when there''s trouble, rtionships change drastically. At least when love and the futuree into y that is."


    Before anyone noticed, Hoshinomiya had returned to her usual cheerful expression.


    "Even though all the second-years worked so hard to stay afloat during the uninhabited ind exam...the school does some terrible things."


    "Originally, a few students would drop out every year, that''s the policy this school was built on. There are too many second-years still here. However, the school fully acknowledges the hard work of the second-year students. That''s why we have this special exam. We still don''t know what the oue will be after all."


    "That''s true, but...that exam brings out the ugliness and the weakness in people''s hearts. At least it helps that the first semester of the second-year has only just ended. Oh, so the fact that the school approved it has something to do with that."


    "The less time remaining in the school year, the more valuable ss points are and the more difficult special exams be. There''s some salvationpared to what we had to do in the third semester of our third year."


    "I definitely wasn''t at fault...It was all Sae-chan''s fault..."


    "That depends on how you think. You and Chabashira both made the right decision."


    "I''m not so sure..."


    When she went to reach for her newly arrived drink, Hoshinomiya''s hand stopped.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "My ss...at the very least, won''t reach ss A."


    "What are you saying?"


    "I already know it. I don''t think we can reach Sakayanagi''s ss. But...but even if that''s the case, I absolutely won''t let Sae-chan''s ss graduate from ss A. For us, graduating from ss A was a long-held dream. The one who destroyed that dream has no right to have her students graduate from ss A. Isn''t that right, Mashima-kun?"


    "Aren''t this and that separate issues?"


    "They aren''t separate. Absolutely, you hear?"


    "Besides, Ichinose''s ss is excellent. There''s still a long way to go until we graduate from ss A. Ichinose''s ss will probably get through the next special exam with ease."


    "I''m saying they''re not good enough. No matter how unjust a future awaits, you need to be a demon to win ss A. Just like I tried to do."


    "Even if it means students are expelled?"


    "Even if it means students are expelled."


    "At any rate," she paused for a moment. "Hirata, Kushida, Horikita, K��enji, Ayanok��ji...No matter how much I think about it, it''s too unfair."


    "As usual, it''s a ss with many students considered to be troublemakers, but there''s a strange sense of solidarity. It''s as if every w is being eliminated one by one."


    "I''m hoping the next special exam will smash that to pieces."


    With that, Hoshinomiya rested her head on Mashima''s shoulder.


    "I might''ve gotten a little drunk...I think I''d like to take a little break...in your room, Mashima-kun."


    "If you''re going to sleep, sleep in your own room."


    "So harsh. Surely there''s a kinder way to put it?"


    "If you''re going to sleep, it would be better to go back to your own room."


    "It hardly changed!"


    She pulled herself closer, as if hugging his muscr left arm. However, Mashima used his strength to forcefully pull it out of her grip.


    "Are you bothered?"


    "I''m not bothered."


    "Ehh, then at least take me back to my room~ And then maybe we should have another drink in there? Until morning."


    "I''m sorry, but I''m also going back to my room. You too, don''t drink too much, okay?"


    "Don''t you think this is a once in a lifetime opportunity?"


    "I''m sorry, but I have no intention of getting involved with you or Chabashira. It''ll only cause trouble."


    "Sooo strict~"


    Hoshinomiya quietly sipped her drink at the now empty bar counter.

 Chapter 188: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 188: 6.2</h4>


    It was the same day as the get-together where the teachersined to one-another. The students, who didn''t know anything about their teachers'' troubles, joined their friends to make memories during their remaining time on the luxury cruise ship.


    But I, Horikita Suzune, was going to use what little time remained of these holidays for something else entirely.


    There was a counter for employees and receptionists in front of the entrance to private pool. If it was avable, you could register and pay here to use the pool. However, I heard that the private pool was very popr among the students, so it was likely that it was almost fully booked. Of course, that was convenient for me.


    "Excuse me, I''m thinking of making a reservation for the private pool."


    I spoke to an employee stationed at the reception desk. The employee started to give a simple exnation in a familiar manner, as if he had already had the same conversation with many students over and over again.


    "Please fill out this form with your preferred time slot. If it''s full, there is also a waiting list."


    With that, the employee handed me a clipboard. I didn''te to this ce to enjoy the private pool. I went through all this trouble to get my hands on the clipboard that I just received.


    "I''m borrowing this."


    The reception areas for caf��s and such all had a reservation system using tablets and machines. However, in the case of the private pool, where the time was fixed to an hour for each group and reservations could be made several days in advance, all reservations were made on paper.


    I pretended to look for a day and time to make a reservation, and took note of every person''s handwriting.


    The private pool was used by multiple people, but only one representative had to fill in the form.


    In truth, I intended to settle this with the treasure hunt game the other day. About half of the school''s students participated, and for first-year students, the participation rate was more than 66%. Before the game ended, I checked the names and handwriting of all the first-year students who had participated, but there wasn''t a single candidate whose handwriting matched what I remembered.


    Did it just so happen that the one who left me that note was among the 34% remaining? No, maybe they didn''t participate because they didn''t want me to match their name to their handwriting?


    In any case, because of this, I''ll continue searching from the remaining 34% of first-year students.


    But still, what struck me was the reservation rate for the private pool. Almost all the time slots were filled, including thest day. Cancelling a reservation didn''t cost anything up until the day before the appointment, so some students may just be holding onto it for now, but it really was popr.


    There was a space where you could write the name of the representative and the number of students, but there was no need to write your year group.


    The words I saw written on that paper were truly beautiful. I flipped through the pages and checked everyone''s handwriting, but I couldn''t find anything on the same level. I had a feeling it wouldn''t be easy to find, and unfortunately it seemed to be just as I imagined.


    It wasn''t every day that you got a chance to see a student''s name and handwriting, and since I couldn''t find it, the tedious work would have to begin. It would be necessary to look at each individual name once again and match it to the OAA.


    Although it wasn''t like there were hundreds of reservations on the list, the confirmation process alone would take a long time. It would be easy to skip students with tantly messy handwriting or different habits, but I wanted to make sure and be clear about who I could exclude here.


    I could exclude Kibayashi-kun of first-year ss B and Mochizuki-san of first-year ss D... Etou-san...I''d already checked her handwriting after she participated in the treasure hunt game yesterday, so I could also exclude her. The receptionist must''ve had a lot of duties to see to, and I was grateful that he wasn''t paying attention to me as I looked at the list with my phone in hand.


    Even so, it really wasn''t easy to find. Just to be sure, I checked the registers for the second and third-year treasure hunt participants, but there was no one who seemed to match.


    Where on Earth was the person who wrote that note...?


    I didn''t even know how many minutes had passed by the time I finished eliminating the ninth person. Just as it seemed the receptionist was starting to be suspicious of me, I was unexpectedly approached from behind.


    "Um, are you going to take much longer?"


    "Eh?! Ah, yes. I''m sorry. I''m having a little trouble finding a time for me and my friends."


    I was so focused on looking at the register that I didn''t notice the student standing behind me. I''d assumed that almost no students woulde to make a reservation, but I wasn''t followed was I...?


    Making him wait now to make a list of students to exclude from my investigation would be difficult. In that case, I decided that it would be better to let the boy make the reservation first. He didn''t look like an upperssman; he was likely a first-year.


    "It seems like it will take me a while to decide, so you can go first."


    "Is that so? Then I''ll go ahead."


    With that, the male student received the clipboard from me. He was tall, about the same height as Sud��-kun, or maybe a little shorter. I waited for the visitor to finish filling out the reservation form, pretending to message a friend while working my phone.


    Perhaps because there were only a limited number of openings to make a reservation, he decided sooner than I expected. He finished writing his reservation in no time, and the boy looked back at me.


    "Thank you very much. Excuse me."


    I received the register as we switched ces, and immediately checked the name the first-year had filled in.


    "...Got it."


    Representative name, Ishigami Kyo. The number of users was five.


    He didn''t participate in the treasure hunt game, so I was seeing his name for the first time.


    Looking up his name in the already open OAA app, I also found out that he was a first-year ss A student. His handwriting was very refined, and it wouldn''t be inappropriate to say he''d been practicing penmanship for many years.


    However, handwriting was very prone to habits, and it didn''t have the same exemry feel as the machine-like handwriting I had seen on the uninhabited ind. Even so, it was also a fact that it was the closest handwriting I had seen so far. If I had the paper in hand, I could''ve cross-checked it, but since Amasawa-san tore it up and threw it away, that also wasn''t possible. I couldn''t be sure that the letters in my memory and those written by Ishigami-kun really were different.


    As I stared at the words, I felt like they lost all meaning. I''d been looking at people''s handwriting for a few days now, and it seemed to have taken a toll on my brain.


    "I''m very sorry; could you wait for a moment?"


    I called out somewhat loudly to Ishigami-kun as he was quickly leaving.


    He looked back at me curiously, and I continued, "Actually, I just finished discussing with my friends, but it seems to coincide with the time you wrote. Do you mind if we discuss it a little?"


    Whatever the topic, I''d like a hint as to whether he was the one who implied Ayanok��ji-kun''s expulsion.


    "It''s not like we can''t discuss it, but I just told my friends that I reserved that time."


    I lifted the phone to my face with the back side facing me. For now, because I seeded in calling out to him, I managed to keep his attention. If the man in front of me was the one who wrote that note on the uninhabited ind, there was a good chance that he knew me, even if I didn''t know if he personally delivered it to my tent.


    "May I see the list again, please?"


    "Of course. I''m sorry."


    "No, it''s fine, Horikita-senpai."


    Hearing him call me by name, my heart started to beat a little faster.


    "...So you know my name. I don''t remember talking to you before though."


    "I learnt most of the names and faces of the more academically gifted second-year students for the first special exam just after I entered the school."


    The handy OAA also helps you remember the names of your upperssmen and underssmen.


    "You must have a good memory. I also intended to remember some of the more academic students, but I didn''t know about you, Ishigami-kun."


    "That''s because I''m not someone who stands out."


    The discussion went smoothly, without any conflicts and without me being suspected. I didn''t get anything definitive, but I still felt that there was something different about his handwriting. Thinking that I shouldn''t keep him any longer, I decided to let him go.


    "Can I ask you one thing, Horikita-senpai?"


    This time, however, I was the one who was being spoken to by Ishigami-kun.


    "When you stopped me, you said you also intended to remember some of the more academic students, but didn''t know about me, right?"


    "Yes, what about it?"


    I didn''t remember saying anything strange, but...


    "You really have no memory of me?" He confirmed, as if as a reminder.


    "Of course, I really don''t."


    It was a fact that I had no memory of Ishigami-kun.


    "Then, when did you find out that I had high academic ability? If you were discussing the time of your reservation with friends, I think it would take a fair amount of time before you could start up the OAA and check it."


    It was an astute point that I hadn''t thought of, and I couldn''t respond right away. There wasn''t anything strange about finding his name on the list. But certainly, just as Ishigami-kun said, there was something strange about the fact that I knew about his high academic ability.


    He should''ve been able to point that out at an earlier stage, but he threw it in slowly. Just when I was feeling relieved that it was going without a hitch, as if he''d been watching and waiting for it, hepleted his response.


    "I just happened to have the OAA open and it was running in the background. Your name was in the time slot I wanted to reserve, Ishigami-kun, so I hurriedly checked the photo to make sure it was you."


    After checking with his friends on his phone, Ishigami-kun nonchntly changed the reservation time.


    "I see. I apologise for suspecting you."


    "It''s all right. You must''ve been a little surprised, so it''s understandable that you''d be suspicious."


    "Well then, I''ll take my leave."


    "Ah...that''s right, Ishigami-kun, thank you for the reservation."


    "I don''t mind, but����"


    He was about to speak up about something, but he seemed to be a little hesitant about what to say next.


    "What is it?"


    "No, it''s nothing. I''ll see you again, Horikita-senpai."


    "Yes, that''s right. See you."


    It didn''t turn out the way I thought it would, and Ishigami-kun turned his back and walked away. I didn''t get the sense that he was guilty from his handwriting, but I was strangely curious about the student.


    For now, it was best to position him as possibly being the culprit, but leaning more on the side of being innocent.


    After seeing him off until his back disappeared, I stood there clutching the register. Now that I''d made a reservation, it would be unnatural for me to sit here poring over the list.


    I had to make sure to remember to call and cancel the reservation after giving it some time. Moreover, since I didn''t find any leads, I had to think about my next move.


    "You''ve got a very serious expression on your face there~ Horikita-san."


    Rather unusually, Hoshinomiya-sensei appeared and called out to me. She seemed to be with Kanzaki-kun from her ss, and our eyes met.


    "Is that so? I don''t think it''s any different than normal."


    "Really? That might be so..."


    What I was more concerned about was that Hoshinomiya-sensei had her hand on the wall.


    "Um, are you feeling unwell?"


    "Ohh~ this? Don''t worry about it; it''s a disease specific to adults."


    A disease specific to adults? I wonder what disease it was...


    "Anyway, that cool kid from before...um, who was it again~? I feel like I''ve been him before somewhere."


    The person Hoshinomiya passed by just before could only be Ishigami-kun.


    "It was Ishigami from first-year ss A."


    Before I could answer, Kanzaki-kun, who was stood next to her, responded.


    "Eh? First-year? That''s...well for a second or third-year, it''s only natural that you''d know, but..."


    For some reason, Hoshinomiya-sensei tilted her head curiously.


    "Is something wrong? Do you have thoughts regarding him?" I asked, hoping to get any clues, no matter what they could be.


    "Yeah, I think I saw him at school once a while ago, but...maybe I saw wrong. Sorry, Horikita-san, but I don''t think I can do this!"


    With her feet wobbling, Hoshinomiya-sensei ran out and headed for the deck. I followed her, wondering what was going on.


    "Agh, ugghh, eek!"


    I didn''t really understand, but she went outside with a pained voice. Then, with an especially loud gurgle, she grabbed the deck railing, trying to keep her mouth from opening.


    "Bluurrgghhhh!!"


    The glittery (but in reality not that pretty) vomit was blown away by the strong sea breeze. I just watched her together with Kanzaki-kun, who arrived a littleter. What on Earth were we being shown here?


    "Sensei...I think there are a lot of problems with what you just did."


    I pointed out the hygiene and moral aspects.


    "Ugh, it''s a mix of hangover and seasickness, sowwy, Horikita-sa����Bluurrgghh!"


    At least there was some salvation in that there was an ocean beneath us...


    "Sorry, I''m gonna go back to my room and sleep after all... I''m sorry, Kanzaki-kun...even though we were in the middle of a conversation."


    "Please don''t worry about it. I will call on you again at another time."


    "And also, I''m sorry for showing something strange, Horikita-san...ugh!"


    She waved her hand with a flutter, but quickly mped her mouth shut and rushed back into the ship.


    "...She''s seems to be a busy person."


    "It must be confusing if you''re not used to seeing it."


    "You''ve seen it more than once?"


    "We''ve been shown things like that around three times in morning homeroom."


    That''s...what can I say? They have my condolences.


    With Hoshinomiya-sensei out of sight, I bowed lightly to Kanzaki-kun and turned to leave.


    "Horikita, what''s your connection to Ishigami?"


    At the moment he called out to me, he started speaking about something I hadn''t expected to hear.


    "What do you mean by that?"


    I had no choice but to reply, as I didn''t know the true meaning behind his words.


    "You were talking to him, right?"


    "The way you''re talking, you must know him in no small way. You knew his name too."


    "I had a lot of opportunities to make contact with the first-years because of the special exam we had just after we became second-years."


    Many of the best students in the first-year were taken by Sakayanagi-san and Ry��en-kun sses. It wasn''t surprising that Kanzaki-kun came to know Ishigami-kun in the process, but... I was a little surprised that Kanzaki-kun, who didn''t usually talk to me, took an interest.


    "We just had a little sh over a reservation for the private pool."


    I exined the situation simply, but Kanzaki-kun seemed a little unconvinced.


    "By the way, do you see him as a trustworthy underssman?"


    I still didn''t know how much of a clue I was following. That was why I wanted to get as much information as possible, even if it was from just one more person.


    "His academics leave no room for criticism. You can tell that much from the OAA."


    "That''s true, it was an A grade with noints."


    In contrast, his physical abilities weren''t so good, with a D-.


    "But being able to study and being trustworthy are not the same."


    "Why do you want to know if you can trust Ishigami? It seems irrelevant to the reservation."


    Right now, we were in the middle of a summer vacation with no special exams taking ce. Certainly, it wasn''t surprising that he was concerned about that. I asked Kanzaki-kun about it because he seemed interested, but I''ll just leave it at that.


    "You don''t have to worry about it. I just thought I''d ask."


    In order to not give up any information about the handwriting, I''ll try and divert the conversation. However, he didn''t turn away from me and kept talking.


    "It''s not like I don''t have information on whether or not you can trust that man."


    It was a strange way of putting it, but it meant that Kanzaki-kun knew something about Ishigami-kun.


    "If you answer my questions, I don''t mind telling you about Ishigami."


    I decided that he was leaning more to the side of being innocent, so there was no need to force myself to go along with the conversation. However, the fact that the expression on Kanzaki-kun''s face was different from the calm one he usually showed stuck out to me.


    "Questions? About what I wonder?"


    "I''ve been pondering about your ss for a while, Horikita."


    "...My ss?"


    "Among your ss, in particr...I want to know Ayanok��ji''s true ability."


    "Even if you ask me something like that, I can''t answer. Can you ask him directly?"


    While I was inwardly surprised to hear Ayanok��ji-kun''s name mentioned here, I deflected the conversation.


    "I don''t think he''s the kind of person who would give a straight answer when asked."


    "That might be true. But it''s not like you can trust the words thate out of my mouth, can you?"


    "If you could tell me just one thing that might be helpful, that would be fine."


    "We''ve know each other for a while now, but I don''t know anything about him."


    "Saying you don''t know anything is too much of an exaggeration. If you call yourself a leader uniting your ss, you should have some knowledge of the internal affairs of your ssmates."


    "I haven''t gained the trust of all my ssmates just yet. That includes Ayanok��ji-kun too."


    I didn''t have the qualifications to proudly call myself a leader yet. At the very least, I wasn''t at the level of Sakayanagi-san, Ichinose-san or Ry��en-kun.


    "So you can''t answer me straightforwardly. He''s a valuable asset to your ss after all."


    "Just the fact that that I''m alerting you like that should give you a feel of his value to some extent."


    Regardless of whether Ayanok��ji-kun was using all of his ability, if he was splitting his effort to think about it, I would be d to hear it.


    "Is there anything else you would like to ask me?"


    "No, that''s all I''m concerned about right now."


    If that was the case, then there was no choice but to ept that he wouldn''t tell me anything about Ishigami-kun. I was thinking that I couldn''t make any strong demands, but...


    "The student known as Ishigami is excellent,passionate and can get things done. Already recognised as the leader of first-year ss A, hisrades no doubt haveplete confidence in him. The best way to describe him might be to say he is abination of the best parts of Ichinose and Sakayanagi."


    "I''m sure that makes him dependable for his ssmates."


    "However, that is only to his allies, and does not apply to those who threaten hisrades. He''s likely the type to bare his fangs without mercy."


    It was difficult to imagine with the information I had so far, as he seemed like a mild-mannered student to me.


    "So how does he behave towards someone who is neither friend nor foe?"


    "If it''s someone who''s neither friend nor foe, then he''s indifferent."


    "Indifferent?"


    Kanzaki-kun, who had been speaking right in front of me, stopped moving.


    "...Yes. For those who are meaningless existences to him, I''m sure he wouldn''t care."


    "He said ''I''ll see you again'' to me. Would he leave a word suggesting a reunion to someone he was indifferent towards I wonder?"


    "Ishigami did? No, he''s not the kind of man who says things like that easily. Did he really say that?"


    "As long as I didn''t mishear him that is. Even so, you seem to know a great deal about him."


    I wondered if there was something going on between Kanzaki-kun and Ishigami-kun that had nothing to do with the case I was following.


    "I don''t have any details. He''s never taken me on."


    After muttering to himself, he continued. "It''s a fact that that man is only interested in those who are either friend or foe. In other words, it means that Ishigami has already ssified you as one of them, Horikita."


    "Even if you say that, I don''t really understand."


    I made contact with Ishigami-kun for the very first time today. Before that, we had never met face to face or even exchanged greetings. A normal analysis would be that I was neither a clear friend, nor a clear foe.


    "Unknowingly having a rtionship happens all the time."


    "So my actions are indirectly affecting him?"


    "We can''t rule out that possibility."


    There was something about what Kanzaki-kun was saying that I just couldn''t understand.


    Kanzaki-kun was thinking about it for a while, but eventually he murmured quietly. "I''ll give you one piece of advice. Don''t get involved with Ishigami any further."


    "I didn''t want to get involved in the first ce. Seeing as you''re giving me advice, are there any other first-years I should be aware of?"


    "Other first-years?"


    So far, there was not one person who could be clearly identified as a suspect. I wanted clues. If Amasawa-san or other names were mentioned, it would also give his statements more depth. That''s what I thought, but...


    "The only person you need to worry about among the first-years is Ishigami," Kanzaki-kun answered, before turning and walking away.


    Along the way, Kanzaki-kun passed by Ibuki-san, who was looking in our direction, but she didn''t even make eye contact with him.


    "Are you close with Kanzaki?"


    "No, not at all? We just happened to have something inmon to talk about today. What''s wrong?"


    "I don''t like the fact that he''s got that clever face just like you."


    It was a waste of time to listen to her seriously.


    "What do you have inmon with him?"


    "A first-year called Ishigami-kun. He''s a student whose handwriting looked a little bit like the one we''re looking for." I said, and then brought up Ishigami-kun''s profile on the OAA.


    First-year ss A Ishigami Kyo:


    ? Academic Ability: A (95)


    ? Physical Ability: D- (25)


    ? Adaptability: B+ (77)


    ? Social Contribution: D (31)


    ? Overall: B- (61)


    "Moreover, the way he spoke and behaved, like there was no bottom in sight, was a little unsettling."


    "Hmm? Does that mean he''s suspicious to you?"


    "I''m not sure. I think he''s leaning more on the side of being innocent, but...if this physical assessment isn''t his true ability, then I might just be suspicious in a heartbeat." I said, but there was no way to be sure at the present time.


    "This Ishigami is innocent." Ibuki-san interjected with a few words, as if to reject my deductions.


    "How can you be so sure?"


    "The day before yesterday, I was just kinda watchin'' people ying around from the floor overlooking the pool."


    "Alone? How sad."


    "Ha? Do you want me to stop talking?"


    "I''m just kidding, go on."


    "Fuckin'' hell... He was tall, so he stood out a little and came into view. He had no upper or lower body training, just a normal body. He definitely doesn''t work out. You''re expectin'' the guy you''re lookin'' for to have strength like Amasawa or Ayanok��ji, right?"


    "Could it be that the reason you went to the pool...was to find people who work out?"


    She shrugged her shoulders, as if to say ''you finally noticed?'' and continued. "Strength and the body are always proportional. If you can move well, you''ll definitely have a toned body, and if you''re strong, it''d be strange if you didn''t have well-developed muscles."


    If it was an amateur''s judgement it would be one thing, but, though misguided, Ibuki-san was a martial artist. If she saw Ishigami-kun''s bare upper body, then this data was highly credible.


    "Considering it''s you, that''s a good observation."


    If Ibuki-san''s information was correct, it meant his physical ability was undoubtedly around a D-. Of course, the culprit might not necessarily be a potentially strong person like I had initially guessed, but...I think it was safe to assume he waspletely innocent.


    "Either way, the holidays are almost over, so we''ll have to wait until the second semester starts before we can continue."


    "How long will this take?"


    It wasn''t like I didn''t understand why she was feeling dismayed, but there was no conclusive evidence right now. We would just have to keep at it for a while.

 Chapter 189: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 189: 6.3</h4>


    It was a time when many students were turning their attention towards the facilities on board the ship.


    First-year ss A student Amasawa Ichika walked into a guest cabin where a lone student was waiting for her.


    "What are you going to say if one of your roommateses back at this time? Is what I''d usually say, but since it''s you, you''ve calcted everything so that they absolutely won''te back, right?"


    When Amasawa asked him such a question, he just smiled and didn''t say anything.


    "Do you understand the situation? It seems Nanase-chan, Horikita-senpai, and Ry��en-senpai are all frantically searching for you. Is it really okay to just leave it like that?"


    "It''s fine as is. An interesting n is underway."


    "Then let me in on the details of this n of yours...Takuya."


    Yagami Takuya, the First-year ss B student who she had just called by name, quietly stood up from his bed.


    "You never learn, do you, Ichika?"


    Amasawa, wary of the approaching Yagami, stared unblinking at that action. This was because there was a chance that she would receive some powerful attack the moment she blinked.


    "I wouldn''t raise my hand in a ce like this."


    "I''d like to believe that too, you know?"


    "Certainly, you''re no longer a person on the side the White Room. That''s why, to me, you are an enemy."


    With his right arm outstretched, he gently touched Amasawa''s bangs.


    "I know that''s what you think, but...I don''t even recognize you as an enemy."


    "Oh my, you''re really saying it."


    "It''s a joke. It''s just that now that you''re a civilian, I can''t afford to behave carelessly."


    "I could even be recording our conversation, right?"


    "If it''s only that much, you can do as you like."


    Yagami knew that there would be no detriment whatsoever in recording their current conversation. If Amasawa waspletely on Ayanok��ji''s side, she could just to speak to him directly about Yagami. It might not be enough to convince him that the story was true, but it would be enough to put him on his guard.


    "I called you out here because I wanted to find out your real intentions. Did you repeatedly interfere with my ns because you want to protect Ayanok��ji-senpai with all your heart?"


    "I have no idea what you''re talking about, nya~"


    Seeing Amasawa''s yful response, Yagamiughed and removed his fingers from the tips of her hair.


    "There are too many to point out, so I''ll ask you about the one that forced me to change my ns. Why did you interfere with Kushida and Kurachi, who I sent after Ayanok��ji during the uninhabited ind exam?"


    "You know even without me exining, don''t you? It''s because it''s a painful strategy for Ayanok��ji-senpai. I didn''t want her to film a scene where he was fighting Nanase-chan and Kurachi-kun, two unconnected people. I''m sure senpai would''ve got through it fine, but even so, it would inevitably be disturbing footage."


    "That''s right. Certainly, if it''s him, whether it was Nanase or Kurachi, he''d cope without difficulty. However, a recording of how he dealt with the situation would''ve been a good bargaining chip. Even If Ayanok��ji forcibly took the tablet from Kushida, he wouldn''t be able to unlock it, and destroying it would create other problems."


    The n was thwarted by Amasawa, who anticipated his actions.


    "Are you angry?"


    "No way. I think it resulted in a more interesting production. It also gave me some insight into his character and the certainty of his ability to read a situation. Even though he had a feeling that he was going to be attacked, he chose not to do a GPS search. He was able to do that because he read what I was doing correctly and knew that it would only be a distraction. Normally, doing a GPS search like Nanase did and tracking down Kurachi and Kushida would be the standard move."


    Even after returning to the ship, there was no visible change of behaviour on that front.


    "As a result, it seems Nanase-chan and Ry��en-senpai stepped into the lost woods. I don''t think he''s been contacted yet, but questioning Utomiya, who has been irrelevant until now, won''t be of any help. But what about Horikita-senpai? It seems she''s trying to identify you using that paper you wrote on as a hint, Takuya. It was quite an idea to have everyone write their name into the register by hand for the treasure hunt game."


    "I''m sure if I give her a few more hints, she''ll get to me eventually."


    There was no sense of impatience in Yagami; rather, he was waiting for the right moment.


    "So you nted that paper on purpose?"


    "Of course, that was also part of my production. I want her to try her best and reach me."


    Yagami would continue to sprinkle hints for that purpose. Even without asking him about it directly, Amasawa could understand that very well.


    "And whates after? If she can match it to your handwriting, Takuya, that information will reach Ayanok��ji-senpai''s ears too."


    If that happened, he would be suspected as a potential White Room student.


    "He doesn''t trust me to begin with, and I''m sure he''s aware of some of the lies I''ve spread. This roundabout way of doing things was originally because Tsukishiro was in the way. Now that he''s withdrawn, that need has also faded. It wouldn''t mean anything if I beat Ayanok��ji to a pulp in a prepared and advantageous situation after all."


    "So you''re saying it''s okay if he finds out?"


    "That''s what I''m saying. I think it would be fine even if I reveal myself to him directly."


    From the very beginning, Yagami intended to go head to head with Ayanok��ji. However, if he acted carelessly during the preliminary stages, it was possible that Tsukishiro would interfere. He made all sorts of ns and obeyed Tsukishiro, but that was all just to buy time.


    "But now that the uninhabited ind exam is over, we won''t have a chance topete with the second-years for a while, will we? I think returning to the White Room quickly would be better for you~"


    For Amasawa, who had no intention of returning, her expulsion from the White Room meant everything worked out as she desired. But for Yagami, it was the only ce he could go back to.


    "I need to smash himpletely in a perfect way. I can always catch up on my studies."


    His smile, a grin with his teeth showing awkwardly, was nothing like his usual refreshing one.


    "Your personality really is twisted in different way to mine, isn''t it, Takuya?" Although she was appalled, Amasawa continued. "I feel sorry for Utomiya-kun too. He''s only thinking of his friends, but to think he''d team up with you to protect Tsubaki-chan. If he knew that you were the one that expelled his friend from ss C, he''d get angry, wouldn''t he?"


    "We knew from the start that he was clumsy and always putting his friends first. After one of his ssmates was expelled, he was thinking that he would definitely stop it the next time. To team up with another ss who originally wouldn''t join hands with you, the quickest and easiest method was to create amon enemy, H��sen. I got into the pockets of Tsubaki and Utomiya, developed a strategy that was never going to seed, and checked Ayanok��ji''s cards. Thanks to that, I was also able to see that he has a connection to the leader of second-year ss A, Sakayanagi."


    "Ah~ the one who came to see me. Arisu-senpai."


    "There''s a chance she''lle in and interfere in a fight between me and Ayanok��ji in the future, so I''ll have to think about how to deal with her."


    "Yeah, yeah, do what you want."


    Amasawa, who was tired of watching Yagami talk on and on, sighed in boredom. When he was in a good mood, Yagami would keep talking forever, even when he was left alone just like now.


    He was enjoying this situation more than anyone else, even though he was putting himself in danger of being exposed for who he really was.


    "Are you satisfied now that you''ve made your speech? Can I leave now?"


    "Before that, the thing I wanted to confirm to the point of calling you out was your intentions, Ichika."


    "Hmm~ intentions?"


    With a childish smile, Yagami grabbed both of Amasawa''s forearms in an instant.


    "Tsk!?"


    Amasawa, who was being vignt with the intention of avoiding it at all costs, didn''t let her guard down, but she still couldn''t react.


    "Utomiya or me? It''ll all be revealed at a time when everyone''s not so far behind. That''s when it starts."


    "So then he''s going to give you the serious contest that you''re hoping for?"


    "It''ll be a contest of true strength, with both sides recognising the other as the enemy."


    "Instead of going about it in such a roundabout way, why don''t you settle it with your fists like men? With your fighting ability, you canpete even if your opponent is Ayanok��ji, right?"


    "I don''t use violence except for the minimum necessary."


    "You''re really saying that?"


    The force of the hand restraining her was so great that even Amasawa was unable to break free. Having said that, even if he chose some other means, it wouldn''t even be a match considering her current condition.


    "Can''t you understand that what I''m doing right now is the minimum requirement of violence?"


    Amasawa smiled back at him, but she was already imagining what would happen next over and over in her mind. However, no matter how many times she repeated it, she couldn''t find a pattern to break out of her current situation.


    "The reason I called you here today is because I was actually thinking of injuring beyond recovery. Seeing as you know who I am, Ichika, no matter what I do in the future, you will only be a hindrance. Did you notice?"


    "Ahaha~, that''s not funny."


    Amasawa took the face of the approaching Yagami head on and started preparing herself����


    The pressure was removed from her forearms that had been clenched in his grip and she was released.


    "Just kidding."


    Smiling kindly as always, he put his hand on the door behind Amasawa''s back.


    "What an intense joke, nya."


    "Sorry, sorry. I really was thinking I was going to crush you today. But I stopped."


    "Ooh, really?"


    At such a response, Amasawa leaned back and pulled away.


    "It''s because I heard that you''ve already been sanctioned by Shiba. You were right not to fight back."


    "If you turn him away once, he''ll juste back twice as hard. I learned that as a child. But is it really okay to leave me alone?"


    "I know that you''ll remain quiet, Ichika. If you had made the decision topletely side with Ayanok��ji, I would''ve finished it already."


    "It''s a little difficult to bnce the scales between the senpai I admire and the friendship of one of my peers."


    "You don''t need to worry. Thepetition that I will have to beat Ayanok��ji in will be a battle of wits. There''s no need for me to be violent with him. It will be one of two things; either I get expelled or he does."


    With that, Yagami opened the door to the guest cabin and sent Amasawa off like a gentleman.

 Chapter 190: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 190: 6.4</h4>


    It was just past 2am at the concert hall. I opened the heavy door quietly. In the spacious room, there was one person seated with their back towards me. I approached the figure, the silence so absolute that it was almost like my footsteps echoed on the carpet.


    "Students aren''t allowed to leave their cabins at this time, you know?"


    "Don''t say that. This was the only time when we could be sure that it was just the two of us."


    "If anyone sees us, you''ll be taking responsibility, right? Chabashira-sensei."


    Chabashira didn''t even look at me.


    "Don''t worry. The teachers'' night watch onlysts until midnight."


    "If that''s the case then it''s fine. So what''s on your mind for you to go to the trouble of calling me?"


    "When the summer vacation is over, the second semester will begin. And then, the next exam will take ce."


    "Yes, I suppose so. Last year we went straight into the sports festival."


    "Yes. But this year is different; there will be one special exam held before that."


    "Is this okay? For you to give me this information?"


    A teacher shouldn''t be allowed to give advantageous information to a particr student or ss.


    "Or are you saying that the next special exam has already begun?"


    "No����It''s nothing like that."


    In that case, it meant my being brought here and told this was all Chabashira''s own decision. It was surprising only because I had thought that she was a homeroom teacher who wasn''t especially supportive of her ss.


    I didn''t know what she was thinking, but she suddenly fell silent. There was no point in just standing nearby, so I made my way to the tform.


    Normally, this concert hall was a ce where you could enjoy live music. Therge, high-end grand piano was just left in ce. Perhaps because a performance was held in this hall today, there naturally wasn''t any dust or the like visible.


    "Acting director Tsukishiro was willing to risk his career to get rid of you on the uninhabited ind. Even if your father was famous, his persistence is extraordinary."


    "It seems so. However, if I may correct one thing, Tsukishiro was never interested in the Chancellor''s position to begin with. He was only using the position to get rid of me."


    "So you''re saying that''s just how powerful a force is at work?"


    Saying she didn''t understand it at all, Chabashira crossed her arms.


    "Are you ready to talk now?"


    "...Yes."


    After a pause, Chabashira spoke quietly. "How do you analyse your ss?"


    "What do you mean by ''how''?"


    "Do you think they have the strength to move up to ss A?"


    "You''re really asking that to a student in your ss?"


    "I want to hear what you think."


    Unusual...or maybe it wasn''t. That was just how much Chabashira had on her mind.


    "Yes that''s right; without a doubt, I think that it has the highest potential among all the second-year sses. However, it''s not like we can just say that, do nothing and then move up to ss A. It will be a considerable challenge to catch up with Sakayanagi''s ss, which is currently in the lead as ss A."


    The teachers should know this school very well.


    "I think the minimum requirement is for the ss to be united as one. And that includes you too, Chabashira-sensei."


    After saying that, Chabashira looked at me with a surprised expression. It was a face that said she already knew that.


    "I''m...What kind of teacher do I look like to you?"


    If I had to say it, Chabashira had always been cold-hearted towards my ssmates up until now. Rather, she spent her days shunning and abandoning them.


    "A teacher who, while thinking she can''t win, can''t give up hope. In a nutshell, is it something like that?"


    "That''s harsh."


    "My impression of you and the fact that you tried to take advantage of me hasn''t changed at all, even now."


    "That''s true, you''re right."


    Unless she sincerely corrected that mistake, Chabashira would never change.


    "You shouldn''t make your students work hard because you yourself want to reach ss A. You should work hard for your students who want to reach ss A."


    "Ayanok��ji..."


    "If you do that, the answer will definitelye to you. That''s what I think."


    "...You said the ss needs to be united as one, right?"


    "Yes."


    "That naturally includes you too."


    "Of course."


    Our gazes crossed each other''s and Chabashira gulped heavily.


    "What if I told you I''m throwing my past self behind?"


    Her eyes questioned my resolve. It would be better to believe that any lies told here would be seen through.


    "If you say you''re going to throw it away, then I''ll throw away my way of thinking up until now too. If you seriously aim for ss A, then I won''t hold back any longer."


    "...Is that so?"


    With these words, what about Chabashira would and wouldn''t change? That remained to be seen at the moment...


    "When you''re ready to look forward, the ss will start to change for real."


    "...That''s right."


    Looking up at the high ceiling, Chabashira closed both of her eyes. It seemed certain that a deep shadow was cast in her heart.


    I should just walk away, but for some reason I felt a little different than usual at this moment.


    My assessment of Chabashira as a homeroom teacher remained low. However, when looking at her as a person, my assessment was starting to change, although only slightly. She was much more fragile than I thought, a woman who seemed to have grown up only in appearance.


    I sat down on the chair and opened the keyboard lid.


    "...What are you doing? Don''t tell me you can y the piano?"


    Without answering any of her questions, I ran my fingertips over the keys and started to y a tune.


    As the performance came to an end, Chabashira apuded uncharacteristically.


    "I''m not well versed in music, but that was magnificent. Even if I practiced, I surely wouldn''t be able to y at that level in this lifetime. If I''m not mistaken, the piece was����"


    And then, in the silent the concert hall, there was a sound slightly behind me.


    Chabashira stood up and turned around in a hurry.


    The one who revealed himself from within the darkness was a smiling Tsukishiro.


    "Beethoven, F��r Elise, right? Even though the piece itself is not very difficult, to y it so perfectly shows magnificent skill. It''s a shame that it was only me and Chabashira-sensei watching. However, it''s forbidden for students to go out carelessly at this hour. You know there are penalties for easily breaking the rules, don''t you?"


    "Acting Director Tsukishiro, this is..."


    Chabashira hurriedly tried to make excuses, but Tsukishiro stopped her softly.


    "Don''t worry. As of today, I have been dismissed from my position as Acting Director. Now that it has been decided that Chancellor Sakayanagi will be reinstated, I am just an irrelevant civilian. I will not report this to the school."


    "...Can I trust you?"


    "You don''t have to trust me. However, from the moment I showed up here, Ayanok��ji-kun was aware of my presence. If there is a disturbance in emotions, it''smunicated through the performance, but I didn''t see even the slightest hint unrest in your performance... Why was that?"


    "It''s simple. Suppose I was punished, I can''t be expelled for something like this. The fight between you and me is only about whether I''ll be expelled or not, so there''d be no point in going to the trouble of penalising me for going out without permission."


    "Even if you know that, you would normally panic when someone sees something that you don''t want them to see. I wonder if you got that courage from your father."


    "Unfortunately, I don''t remember being brought up that way."


    I closed the lid and moved away from the piano.


    "Once the morninges, I won''t be able to speak to you again. With that in mind, I thought I''d give it onest go."


    There were surveince cameras installed on board the ship. Had he been keeping an eye on the footage of the hallway outside my cabin all this time? He needs a hobby.


    "If you''d prefer I leave my seat, I will."


    "No, you''re fine as you are. It would be more inconvenient for Ayanok��ji-kun to be left alone with me. It would be better for you to stay here to protect your student."


    Tsukishiro walked up to us and sat down two seats away from Chabashira.


    "Is the concert over already?"


    "If you have something you need to say, please do as soon as possible."


    I knew it was a joke, so I urged Tsukishiro to speak quickly.


    "I''ve got nothing to lose, so I''vee to negotiate for thest time. Would you notify the school that you will be dropping out and return home?"


    "Tsukishiro����san. What on Earth are you trying to do?"


    Hearing him say ''dropping out'', Chabashira interrupted him with some anger.


    "What do you mean?"


    "You interfered in a special exam without authorization and tried to get Ayanok��ji expelled. That alone is an unforgivable act."


    "It''s the same for you, Chabashira-sensei. Didn''t you bring in your own feelings and try to tell him about the next special exam?"


    The details were unclear, but it seemed Tsukishiro had figured out Chabashira''s objective in one way or another.


    "Certainly, it''s not something to be praised. But I wasn''t talking about the details of the exam to give him an advantage."


    "You might think that inside, but you can''t prove it. I just happened to be here to prevent it from happening in the first ce."


    "That''s..."


    "And your sins are not limited to just one. You know what I mean, don''t you?"


    At this moment, Chabashira''s sins included calling a student out at a time when they weren''t allowed to go out. Even if it was between a teacher and a student, the fact that we were a man and a woman was a point that shouldn''t be overlooked.


    Tsukishiro was able to relentlessly exploit that slight gap.


    "The one who''ll be in trouble if you make a fuss isn''t me, Chabashira-sensei, it''s you. And also Ayanok��ji-kun."


    If it became a case of sexual misconduct with a teacher, it would go beyond a warning.


    It was a threat from Tsukishiro, ''If you understand, then keep your mouth shut''.


    "Tsk..."


    Chabashira, having lost track of that part, understood the situation she was in and took a step back.


    "That''s all right."


    Without breaking his smile, Tsukishiro approached me, reducing the distance between us to about two metres.


    "There are no tricks set up here so don''t worry."


    "You will act in any situation if it''s in your best interest to do so. That''s my analysis of the kind of person you are."


    "I guess that means you''ve been buying into it to a certain extent."


    Up until now, I''d somehow managed to evade Tsukishiro''s tricks. However, that was only because Tsukishiro went through what could hardly be called an outrageous strategy until the very end.


    Maniption of exams, violence, taking captives and so on, and that was about it. It was likely that if this man was so inclined, it wouldn''t have been as easy as it had been until now.


    "I won''t drop out."


    "It''s a pity, but I guess it''s no use. So you mean to stay at school as you are until you graduate."


    "That''s the n. As long as I follow the rules of the school and don''t get expelled that is."


    "No matter how much you want to stay in this world, you certainly can''t fight against it."


    We didn''t talk about it here, but the shadows of the White Room students still flickered around me.


    "You are intelligent. And strong. It''s excellent that anyone who knows what you''re capable of would think so too."


    Before long, Tsukishiro was standing right in front of me.


    "But no matter how exceptional you are, you are still only a child. You should understand that that man sent me here with your strength in mind."


    In other words, did that man foresee the future wherein I would remove Tsukishiro...?


    "If you want to stay in school for even one day longer, you would do well to think about it."


    "I''ll keep that in mind."


    Tsukishiro smiled thinly andughed once by himself.


    "However, this school is surprisingly fascinating. It''s probably the only school in the world that can hold special exams on an uninhabited ind. It reminded me of a period when I was a little boy and I was enthusiastic about the Boy Scouts."


    With that, he put his left hand out in front of me.


    "With this, it''s farewell, Ayanok��ji-kun. Could you shake my hand?"


    I didn''t think that this outstretched left hand was just a simple farewell.


    I held out my left hand in the same way and grasped it back. As if satisfied, Tsukishiro nodded.


    "Well then����let''s meet again soon."


    Lastly, he tapped me on the left shoulder with the palm of his right hand and turned on his heel.


    "Oh and also, make sure to disperse within five minutes. If you don''t, I will report you."


    Chabashira and I saw Tsukishiro off until he was no longer visible.


    "It''s no use worrying about the finer things, but to think he''d dare ask for a handshake with his left hand. So he had hostile intentions right to the very end."


    Generally, a handshake was done with the right hand. Well, people nowadays didn''t care about that, and they may not even know what it meant.


    "I didn''t see it that way though."


    "What do you mean?"


    Without any lead up, Tsukishiro told me that he was enthusiastic about the Boy Scouts. It was usually considered impolite to shake hands with the left hand, but the exception to this was the Boy Scouts.


    What it meant was����


    "Forget it. It''s no use thinking about that man''s thoughts."


    While giving it meaning, it was also conceivable that it was meaningless.


    "I''ll go back first."


    "Yes that''s right, that would be best."


    Now that Tsukishiro had spotted us, ignoring the warnings here would only be a risk.


    "I''m sorry. On ount of me calling you out so easily, I gave Acting Director Tsukishiro an opportunity to take advantage you."


    "I don''t really mind. It''s only somewhat, but there are some things I can see now."


    As I neared the exit, I decided to leave a few words for Chabashira without looking back.


    "I said it just before, but whether the ss will stay afloat or sink going forward isn''t somethingpletely irrelevant you, sensei. It would be better if you understood that."


    No matter what special exams were waiting, the students could only look ahead and keep moving forward. And the only people that could lead the way were the teachers of each ss.

 Chapter 191: Epilogue: When Hearts Touch One Another

    <h4>Chapter 191: Epilogue: When Hearts Touch One Another</h4>


    After our holiday on the luxury cruise ship ended, we boarded a bus and returned to the Advanced Nurturing High School.


    Since then, I spent my days going back and forth between the dormitory and Keyaki mall. You could almost call itzy and self-indulgent, and I think I''ve spent the time rather insipidly.


    During that time, the number of people I hung out with increased iparably tost year.


    There were the members of the Ayanok��ji group, Sud�� and Ike, who I''d been friends with from the beginning, Ishizaki and Hiyori from another ss, and in the end, I even had a little chat with some members of Ichinose''s ss. Even if I told myself fromst year, I wouldn''t have believed all the things that had gone on.


    And then����


    "Ahh, today''s thest day of summer vacation..."


    Sitting down on the bed with a poof, Kei looked up at the ceiling and muttered gloomily.


    My girlfriend, Karuizawa Kei, and I had been regrly going on secret dates so that we could reveal our rtionship once the second semester started. Today would be thest one.


    While we shared a somewhat uninvigorating time; it was by no means an ufortable one.


    If we hadn''t been friends who''d known each other for a long time, I might''ve been impatient to say a few words and felt a bit muddled.


    "From tomorrow, it''s okay for me to tell others about my rtionship with you... I feel kinda nervous."


    "There''s no need for you to force yourself to tell people. I won''t be held responsible if your status drops."


    "I''ll absolutely tell them. Even if something happens, you''ll protect me so I''ll be fine. Right, Kiyotaka?"


    Kei said it jokingly, but they were unmistakably her true feelings. By clinging to a strong host, parasites were able to protect themselves.


    I finished thest sip of my coffee and sat down next to Kei.


    I squeezed her slender hand and she gently squeezed mine back. Kei turned towards me, looking embarrassed.


    "Kei."


    At that moment, I pressed my lips onto her soft lips.


    "K-Kiyotaka..."


    "Were you surprised?"


    "Y-yeah, I was surprised. C-couldn''t you give me a little more...advanced notice?"


    Rather than with words, I answered her question with actions.


    I grasped her shoulders gently and pulled her close.


    "Mmm...!"


    A second kiss. The moment out lips touched, Kei''s shoulders jerked upwards slightly, and I could feel her surprise.


    I quickly separated from her lips, and while she was relieved, she looked at me with eyes that also seemed to regret it.


    "...You caught me off guard again."


    "Really? I thought it was rather normal."


    The only way to learn the timing was to repeat it over and over again.


    "At least, my heart wasn''t ready for it..."


    "Then, are you ready for it this time?"


    "Eh?...Yeah..."


    She nodded her head and closed her eyes, showing a gesture of eptance, and I kissed her again.


    The previous two kisses onlysted for a second or so, but this time was different.


    Five seconds, ten seconds and longer.


    And then, moving our lips gradually, we repeated the kiss like little birds pecking at one another.


    In that passage of time that felt like only Kei and I were frozen in ce...


    It was thest day of the summer vacation of our second-year in high school. Kei and I learned about kissing and took another step forward together.


    The first half of the curriculum of love had finished and we moved into the second half.


    From now on, we would go about our school lives with pride as lovers.


    As a result, we may get into a bit of trouble.


    Even so, we would face up to the challenge hand in hand.


    Slowly but surely, one step at a time, as the seasons change from summer to autumn, from autumn to winter.


    Our rtionship would be imbued deeper and deeper and be indispensable to us.


    While tasting her lips repeatedly, my thoughts involuntarily drifted off towards the future.


    Before long, when the season of farewells approached, this romance would enter its final phase����


    Because it''s a given that it will face an arduous trial.


    When Karuizawa Kei is separated from her host, she will have to stand up and look forward on her own.


    That was the most important thing in this curriculum of love.

 Chapter 192: Short Story 1 : Karuizawa Kei – A Dream I’ve seen before

    <h4>Chapter 192: Short Story 1 : Karuizawa Kei �C A Dream I''ve seen before</h4>


    It was thest day of summer vacation.


    It was probably the day where every student across the country would get nostalgic.


    I was, just as everyone else, reminiscing about how enjoyable the cruise had been.


    "Oww, so today is thest day of summer vacation"


    Saying it out loud makes it feel that more real, that summer vacation really has ended.


    While it makes me feel mncholic, it doesn''t mean there were no pros at all.


    I could meet Kiyotaka face to face everyday and not just by phone or chat.


    We could be together the whole time from morning to evening.


    If we''d been in different sses, met and begun dating, it would surely have been vexing.


    Or maybe not, maybe we wouldn''t even have started dating in the first ce, I wonder.


    I would have been the same as always, hiding my darkness inside my heart while continuing to don a fake mask.


    I really��- realise how happy I am right now.


    "So I can tell the others about our rtionship tomorrow was it?... I think I''m getting nervous now."


    While our rtionship itself wouldn''t change, our surroundings may do.


    "There''s no need to tell them if you don''t want to. I won''t take responsibility if you do drop down the social rank after all." He said, but I don''t want to keep this a secret forever.


    I had an awesome boyfriend I wanted to brag about... and what''s more...


    My feelings for him had grown so much I couldn''t keep quiet about it anymore.


    "I''m definitely going to tell them! If something happens, you will protect me so I''m going to be fine! Right?"


    That being said, I was only going to tell my closest friends for starters.


    But it''s certain that it would spread throughout the whole school like wildfire.


    With a shade of exasperation on his face, he nodded back at me.


    Then he sat down next to me and held my hand.


    His hand wasrger than mine but still pretty and sturdy-looking. No signs of ruggedness whatsoever.


    Being held by this hand made me feel sofortable and safe.


    I wished we could stay this way forever.


    "Kei."


    I suddenly heard my name being called right by my ear. My heart skipped a beat while getting embarrassed.


    Having someone call my name that close is��


    I faced Kiyotaka straight on and looked at his face. The face of my beloved was inching ever closer to me.


    I was caught off guard. Our second kiss.


    Or may not?... I''d already forgotten it but if we include that dream I''d seen before, this was our 3rd... kiss.

 Chapter 193: Short Story 2 : Satou Maya – A Bad Girl, But Just a Little Bit

    <h4>Chapter 193: Short Story 2 : Satou Maya �C A Bad Girl, But Just a Little Bit</h4>


    The treasure hunt game with Ayanokouji was about to end.


    What was it called again? The climax? Well, anyway, it means the end was near.


    "Could you open the camera app?"


    I followed his directions and turned on his smartphone.


    Looking at the photo gallery, I saw pictures of the QR codes we''d found today along with some other ones as small icons, 15 in total.


    My heart started beating faster thinking of how I could take a sneak peek at his everyday life.


    But, he only had pictures of food andndscapes.


    He didn''t have a single photo of Kei-chan in there, which made me happy.


    I''m such a bad girl...


    "Which should we scan first?" I asked.


    I put a lid on my feelings and just showed him some random QR code.


    "Just follow your instincts and choose one you think is good."


    "E-eh? You mean I can choose? W-what should I do? What if I choose a bad one?"


    The thought of receiving a hefty reward was blown away this very instant.


    What if it became my fault we only ended up getting 5000 points?...


    Not even covering the participation fee is bad, isn''t it?


    What shall I do? What shall I do? This pressure is way too heavy!


    "The bad ones should have been removed already. And there is a chance every code has been scanned already as well so there is a chance we just have to try them all."


    Hearing that made me so relieved.


    "O-okay!"


    I prepared myself, took out my own smartphone and opened the app.


    Next is to choose which code to scan.


    I slided across them all in order to find one as quickly as possible.


    Hmm, this one should be the most difficult to find, perhaps?...


    The one Ayanokouji-kun found behind that sofa?


    I was perhaps exaggerating a bit, but my hands started shivering as I pointed the phone camera towards the code.


    After scanning it, the screen suddenly turns ck and��.


    "Ah, this one is no good. It says it has been imed already."


    Which means someone had found this code and scanned it already.


    And I thought nobody would find it!


    "Don''t worry, just scan the next."


    Holding back the frustration, I hurriedly chose another one.


    But this one had been imed as well.


    "And after all we did to find it too! This is irritating!"


    Now I just want one of them to work.


    My thought patterns did a 180-degree turn, forfeiting the jackpot.


    This is the 3rd try. And once again, the screen turned ck. As I started to get worried again, smoke started to appear on the screen unlike previous attempts.


    "It worked! Look! It looks like a treasure chest!"


    A screen that begged you to tap on it.


    I thought it felt a bit like a game, but this treasure hunt was certainly a game.


    "I wonder how many points it contains?..."


    I was so excited and was about to tap on it.


    But... What if this one only had 5000 points?


    My fingers started bing heavier as my imagination constructed the worst ending result.


    "Y-you do it, A-Ayanokouji-kun!"


    I gave him both the smartphones at the same time.


    I received them without showing any kind of displeasure on his face while he put his own in his pocket and looked at the screen of mine.


    Then he tapped on the treasure chest without hesitation.


    "Wah, You''re so daring, Ayanokouji-kun!"


    The screen started to sh blue and change.


    What appeared on the screen was letters saying 100000 points.


    "Ah!! ...Ah~"


    I thought maybe we''d won 1 million points, but that was wrong.


    There were 5 zeros so 100 000 points. They looked alike, but that was it.


    "It seems we didn''t find that rare of a code after all."


    Hmm, but this is no time to get depressed, right?


    Since we went into the positives for sure.


    "I see~... That''s too bad. But you know, even with the participation fee, we did win 90 000 so that''s more than enough!"


    I was so happy that when I looked at his face, I noticed how close we were to one another.


    I somehow wanted to avert my eyes, but still thought of it as a little bonus.


    "Thanks a lot, Ayanokouji-kun."


    And I''m so sorry Kei-chan. But this is a game so it can''t be helped, right?


    "I''m the one who needs to thank you. The one who found this QR code was none other than you, Satou."


    "...Hehe."


    I had such a good time that I ended up thinking I maybe was a bad girl after all, only slightly though.

 Chapter 194: Short Story 3 : Nanase Tsubasa – A Double-sided Favour Repayment

    <h4>Chapter 194: Short Story 3 : Nanase Tsubasa �C A Double-sided Favour Repayment</h4>


    With a sandwich and milk carton in hand, I waited by the cashier trying to calm down my impatience.


    That was not due to a slow queue since there weren''t that many students checking out the store today even though it was noon.


    No, the reason for that is because I was tailing a 1st year student named Kurachi-kun.


    He had gone to the store and bought something that looked like lunch and went to pay, and therefore I did the same.


    I don''t know where he was heading for after, but he hadn''t realised he was being tailed, nor was he aware of the person tailing him. Thus I could be more proactive and follow him closely without being noticed.


    The reason I was tailing him was because when I used the GPS Search feature to find out who the person trying to attack Ayanokouji-senpai was, his name had appeared.


    But ording to Ayanokouji-senpai''s hypothesis, there was a good chance Kurachi-kun hadn''t really nned to attack him for real.


    But if we look more closely into it, we may discover the person behind it all.


    That''s the reason I''ve kept it a secret from Senpai.


    If the one I''m tailing was a formidable opponent however, then maybe I wouldn''t be a match for them.


    But still��


    Even if I had to flee with my tail between my feet, I wouldn''t have minded it at all.


    Because if I could leave behind at least something for Ayanokouji-senpai, it would have been worth it.


    A small advantage would surely help him tip the scales and help him ovee his trials.


    Yes, this is my own decision.


    I took out my sandwich and began blending in with the students having lunch here.


    Just before biting it, I suddenly remembered that moment during the uninhabited ind exam.


    When Ayanokouji-senpai told me there was no need to leave the school.


    Letting him pamper me would have been an easy decision and I would surely have been able to lead a fun school life.


    But that doesn''t sit well with me.


    Tailing Kurachi-kun had led me to the upper deck which seemed to be a perfect spot for a light lunch as a huge amount of students were gathered here.


    It looked like they were waiting for someone as they were looking around unrestly.


    I wonder who they are waiting for? Naturally, it could be some of their friends who I have no connections with whatsoever...


    I took a bite and just as I was about to start chewing��


    "Nanase."


    A voice from behind startled me as I was so focused on Kurachi-kun in front of me.


    Recognising it as Ayanokouji''s voice, I turned around to face him while hiding my surprise.


    "Ah, senfai-."


    I started chewing in a hurry in order to calm myself down.


    Strange, I couldn''t taste anything.


    "Ah, my bad. Shall Ie backter?"


    He said apologetically, but there''s no way I would have him do that.


    "Phease huht waid a bid."


    I continued to chew faster and swallowed the food in my mouth.


    "Ehem...err, I''m sorry, you see, the truth is... I was eating."


    I couldn''t tell him the fact I wsa tailing Kurachi-kun, nor that I was currently observing him right now.


    "Eh well, is there something you wanted from me?"


    I lost Kurachi-kun from view for a bit, but I endured it for now.


    Anyway, I just had to finish this conversation as quickly as possible in a natural way.


    "Ah no, it looked like you wanted to say something to me the other day. I kinda wondered about it. It kinda fizzled out when Ninomiya interrupted, you see."


    So that''s how it is... that would certainly have made him curious.


    "Ah-"


    I''m indeed tailing Kurachi-kun right now.


    And I was hesitating whether to consult him about it now or not.


    I could have just told it as it was, that I had used the GPS Search, notified him about Kurachi-kun, and asked him what to do about it.


    That would definitely have been the right answer I think.


    "Sorry, That''s something I''ve already taken care of so can I ask you to forget about it?"


    But I''d decided to abandon that route.


    The words screaming inside me had perhaps been conveyed to him.


    "Sorry for calling out to you so suddenly. I''ll return back inside then. There are so many people here that I can''t rx." He said, not pursuing the topic.


    "Is that so? See youter, Senpai."


    I couldn''t detain him here any longer so I just saw him off.


    As I looked at his retreating figure, I apologised to him in my mind.


    I''m sorry, Ayanokouji-senpai... I already knew I should have just told you all this upfront.


    But since you just would have been that kind Senpai, you would have stopped me saying it was dangerous.


    Please give me some time.


    I will work hard to leave behind some aplishments to my name, no matter how small they may be.

 Chapter 195: Short Story 4 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS – Sakayanagi’s Unexpected Assessment

    <h4>Chapter 195: Short Story 4 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS �C Sakayanagi��s Unexpected Assessment</h4>


    I stood up after seeing Ayanokouji-kun returning back inside the ship, escaping the eyes of the 3rd year students.


    Showing himself here has to be a coincidence I think, but that''s also why it was the perfect opportunity to meet each other as well.


    But before leaving the scene, I moved my attention to Nanase Tsubasa.


    There was a chance there were students from the White Room among the 1st year students, but it seems I can remove her from the list. Ayanokouji-kun seems to trust her as well.


    Or, fufu. Though the word trust is overselling it.


    Taking the White Room''s environment into ount, there is no way Ayanokouji-kun has anything close to those feelings.


    Whether she was a White Room student or not, just leaving her close by wouldn''t be a hindrance, he probably thinks. That''s all there is to it.


    And in order to get information about the 1st year students, it was a fact you had to get intimate with one.


    In that sense, Nanase-san was a crucial piece for him.


    Right before passing by her, I checked her figure again.


    I could see that she didn''t put her high stats in athleticism in the OAA app to shame with her toned arms and legs.


    Those parts representing her femininity were well developed and based on her sitting posture, she must have had a good upbringing.


    "Maybe that is why boys would want to keep her close by, rather than due to her abilities."


    Then I took a peek at her lunch.


    A sandwich and a carton of milk.


    It was a bnced, light and quick meal. A good choice.


    You wouldn''t think she was a first year student from looking at her body and how little she ate.


    As I figured, she wasn''t just talented in school, but was also blessed with a body from birth.


    "You''d better treasure those talents of yours."


    Even though so many want to be talented, that they had Nanase''s body proportions, to many girls, that would be a wish that would never be fulfilled.


    ... My thoughts ended up drifting off in a strange direction. How unlike me.


    "Well, let''s chase after Ayanokouji-kun now then."


    Based on this situation, I could more or less guess where he had to be now.


    Even if I, for some unlikely reason read it wrongly, finding him on this ship itself wouldn''t be so hard if I just made some calls.


    I had my own kind of weapons.


    In order to get Ayanokouji-kun to be my opponent, this was nothing but a minor inconvenience in the end.

 Chapter 196: Short Story 5 : Kiryuuin Fuuka – When You are the Older One

    <h4>Chapter 196: Short Story 5 : Kiryuuin Fuuka �C When You are the Older One</h4>


    I watched the sun rays through my sunsses and became one with nature.


    I''ve gone cruising with my parents when I was younger, but never since.


    "Spending a holiday like this just rxing ain''t bad from time to time."


    If I had to raise aint, it would be how many students there were at this pool.


    That being said, it was just a minor problem.


    Let''s just rx for the whole day, shall we?


    After I had received the drink I''d ordered, I noticed a change in my surroundings.


    The 3rd year students, my ssmates in other words, suddenly changed their facial expressions.


    They looked in the same direction in unison while conversing with their nces.


    That piqued my interest and I followed their cue...and Ayanokouji was standing there.


    It seems like he''d just arrived at the pool as he surveyed his surroundings.


    But it didn''t seem like he had noticed the stares from the 3rd year students, his facial expression unchanged.


    Nah, there''s no way he wouldn''t have noticed stares this obvious.


    It''s better to say he''s pretending to not notice.


    The 1st years and the 2nd years didn''t seem to have taken any actions whatsoever.


    "I see... so that''s what''s going on."


    I had nned to be in my OFF-mode today, but my switch had oddly enough turned ON.


    "Looks like you''re in for some trouble, Ayanokouji."


    I couldn''t suppress my curiosity anymore and called out to him from behind.


    He noticed me, but he looked the same as always.


    "What are you talking about?"


    It looked like he was ying the fool, but there''s no way he was.


    "I''m talking about the 3rd year students. There''s no way you haven''t noticed them, am I right?"


    "I''m not quite sure what you are talking about though."


    "While I''m not taking part in it, I''m still a 3rd year student. I''ve at least heard a bit about it."


    "Are you perhaps talking about the stares in my direction?"


    "So you did notice after all."


    "I don''t find it particrly troublesome though. I''m just being watched, that''s it." He said as if it wasn''t worth paying any attention to, but that''s taking it too lightly.


    Since the Student Council President is involved, that means trouble is brewing.


    It seems Nagumo has started taking Ayanokouji seriously somehow.


    Good grief, Ayanokouji is seriously an interesting man.


    Indeed, If we were the same age, I could have observed him for yet another year.


    Those feelings had unexpectedly begun to form within me.


    That''s just how interesting this man is.


    Trantion : Trantions by Okayishtrantions (Main Volume) and Alice (Cinnamon) (Short Stories)

 Chapter 197: Prologue : Sae Chabashira’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 197: Prologue : Sae Chabashira��s Monologue</h4>


    EVER SINCE I became a teacher, or even before I became a teacher, I harboured trauma that I didn''t dare tell anyone.


    I keep having a recurring nightmare.


    The nightmare has the events of... that day. I''ll never forget them.


    Each time I have that nightmare, it takes on a different form, changing my point of view, someone else''s point of view; sometimes the chronological order of events is different. But there is one thing inmon. No matter how many times I have that nightmare it ends the same way.


    At that time, there was nothing to be afraid of. We were ss B and our momentum overwhelmed the other sses. We were well within reach of ss A. Of course, it wasn''t a smooth road.


    By the time I reached my third-year, the number of ssmates who had left me had swelled to six. Even so, in my final year, I umted ss points without letting a single student get expelled. I believed that I could graduate from ss A without having to leave anyone behind.


    Until that day.


    Until that exam.


    At the end of the final semester, we were about to take the graduation exam, ourst chance to turn things around. Our homeroom teacher stepped up to the podium with a stiff expression on her face and told us about a new special exam.


    Of course, we didn''t realize the danger of this special exam at first. The rules were simple and straightforward, and we had no doubt that we could seed. But that optimistic moodsted only until the exam started.


    The scene changes and I am screaming in ss.


    My best friend, Chie, approaches me with an angry expression and grabs my chest.


    I scream in agony.


    The ss, which had been united as one, copsed in an instant .


    "It''s... over." He muttered, his face full of resignation and realization.


    He had been mypanion for the past three years, and he wasn''t a trivial existence. He was my irreceable ssmate, my irreceable friend.


    As the opposite sex, he was an... irreceable person. He may have been a bit of a jerk, but he was serious, kind, and more reliable than anyone else.


    I saw a face he''s never shown before.


    That moment when he reached out his hand to me under the evening sky, somewhat shyly. As I held back the tears that were about to spill, I said a few words.


    I said, "I look forward to working with you..."


    The rtionship between the two of us ended just as it had begun.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


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    *Illustration 3


    *Illustration 4


    *Illustration 5


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    *Illustration 13

 Chapter 198 - 1 : Footsteps of Turmoil

    <h4>Chapter 198: Chapter 1 : Footsteps of Turmoil</h4>


    THE SUMMER VACATION is finally over and the second semester of the second year starts today; which means that we will soon be turning the corner into our three-year school life.


    I tied my tie and put my arms through my sleeves. Looking in the mirror, I do my hair, make sure my appearance is in order, and head for the door. On my way to school, I was joined by Sud��, who was yawning loudly, and we exchanged greetings while walking, and headed out of the dormitory.


    "Suzune warned me about the possibility of a written exam early in the second semester, so I''m staying up all night."


    "You were studying even up until thest day of summer vacation?"


    "I''ve got a full curriculum to go through. I want to get higher scores so I can bring my OAA''s academic performance up to B or something."


    B or better is a big deal. I''ll honestly be impressed if he manages to achieve it. If he''s been studying hard during the summer break, it''s no question he''ll have improved his academic performance. Sud��''s be a man for whom the phrase "both literary and military arts" fits quite well. His tardiness, absenteeism, falling asleep, and other minor life problems have decreased dramatically. He still has a part of him that gets heated when the situation calls for it, but I guess that''s just Sud��''s personality.


    "I''m going to ask you something weird, but do you think that Kanji guy has already kissed Shinohara or something?"


    "Excuse me?"


    "It''s great that he''s got a girlfriend, but it''s frustrating that he''s getting ahead of me. It''s been bothering me a lottely, you know?"


    "Why don''t you ask him directly? I think Ike would give it to you straight."


    "I can''t ask him that... if he says that he hasn''t even held hands yet or if he says he''s gone way further than that then my fists might start doing the talking."


    "Given Ike''s personality, he''s going to want to brag about it. If he doesn''t say it, then logically he hasn''t gone that far, right?"


    "I guess you have a point. But maybe it''s different when ites to love. I don''t know, I don''t have any experience. I''ve never asked, but have you ever had a girlfriend, Ayanok��ji?


    I can''t help but feel Sud��''s passionate gaze on me as he asks, "What do you think?"


    "There''s no use in lying to you, so I''ll confess to you that I got my first girlfriend a little while ago."


    "S-seriously? You''re serious?"


    Faking it wasn''t a good idea, considering that it would soon spread from Kei herself.


    When I answered honestly, Sud�� sighed as he held his head. Right after that, he hurriedly grabbed me by both shoulders.


    "No, no, no, no, no, no, no!"


    "Don''t worry. It''s not who you think it is."


    "Really? You''re sure it''s not Suzune, aren''t you?"


    "Yes. It''s not."


    "Oh, I see. Well, that''s okay then... I thought my heart was going to stop for a second..." He put his left palm to his forehead and wiped it messily, as if sweat had broken out. Then he showed me the sweat on his palm, showing off his impatience.


    "Then who is it?"


    "It''s..."


    "Ah! I found you!"


    Just as Sud�� regained hisposure, we could hear the sound of rushing footsteps from behind us. When those footsteps caught up with our walking speed, she looked up at me with a somewhat angry face.


    "We were supposed to go to school together, but you didn''t tell me you weren''t in your room!" Keiined, puffing out her cheeks and pouting.


    "You never told me you wanted to go to school with me..."


    "That''s because... I was nervous until thest minute."


    Sud�� looked at us suspiciously as we suddenly started a mysterious exchange from his perspective.


    "We were just talking about something important between men, so don''t interrupt us."


    Apparently, he hadn''t noticed the nature of our conversation. He didn''t seem to be happy with the fact that she had shown up here. When you think about it, the two of them hardly ever get along. They''re neither close nor bad.


    If anything, they''re just bad.


    "Kei, are you going to tell them about us today?"


    "Huh? Umm, hmm. I was considering the timing but... It''s not like I''m going to announce it as soon as I get to school. It''s surprisingly difficult to make an announcement like this. It''s not the same as saying, "Listen to me, I have to tell you something."


    "It seems like you were quick to dere when you were with Y��suke."


    "Well, that''s the thing, isn''t it? This is apletely different situation."


    "Hey, hey, what are you talking about...?" Sud��, who had been showing signs of dullness, stopped and looked dumbfounded, as if he had caught on to the fact that I was calling Kei by her first name and what I was saying.


    "Yo, what? Why are you talking to her like that, Ayanok��ji?"


    He still couldn''t seem to make a connection, but he started getting an idea. In a sense, he was a good icebreaker in terms of who to tell first.


    "We''re dating."


    Kei grinned and then bumped me on my shoulder with her own. I think she was just happy to hear me say it.


    "Ha... hahaha! Oh my god!"


    I guess he was taken aback, so he shouted out loud, more exaggeratedly than I imagined. There were no ssmates around by chance, but other students turned their heads to see what was going on.


    "Can you please quiet down?"


    "Wow, my bad. But, no, eh! Hey, why is it Karuizawa?"


    "What''s that, does that mean there''s something wrong with me?"


    "It''s not that there''s nothing wrong with you but..."


    He looked between the two of us as if he was a little taken back, and twisted his head in an unconvincing manner.


    "What, did you want me to go out with Horikita?"


    "Nah, screw that! No, that''s not what I meant but... hey."


    He grabbed my shoulder and put his lips close to my ear and whispered in a quiet voice,


    "I''m sorry to say this, but... Karuizawa was dating Hirata, and before that, I don''t know what kind of shy rtionships she had in junior high school, you know? You''re not dissatisfied or ufortable by that? Isn''t she too much of a hurdle for your first girlfriend?"


    I guess that''s the image that my ssmates have of Karuizawa Kei. In fact, that''s how I perceived her too, until I learned about her past.


    "What are you whispering about?


    "Nah, it''s nothing."


    I''m not going to push the matter further. I''m sure he felt bad for saying something so close to rumours in the first ce.


    "Ayanok��ji and Karuizawa are dating...? I''m trying to make sense of it but I just can''t wrap my head around it. My sleepiness is getting to me, this is too much for me in the morning."


    I''m sure I''ll hear more from Sud�� about itter on.

 Chapter 199: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 199: 1.1</h4>


    As we arrived at school, we asionally passed third-year students, and they looked at me the same way they did when I was on the boat, but there is no sign of Sud�� noticing.


    During the summer vacation, I kept seeing this same scene whenever I went outside, but I don''t think I''ll ever really get used to it. The act of being watched gives a strong sense of oppression and blockage. This is something that will continue unless I erase the existence of the gaze itself.


    Kei quickly gathered a group of girls to talk about the summer vacation, and Sud�� started chatting with his good friends Ike and Hondo. I waited for the bell to ring while chatting briefly with the Ayanok��ji Group.


    Eventually, Chabashira-sensei arrived, looking the same as she did in the first semester.


    "In this second semester, there are a few big eventsing up for you guys. First of all, there will be a sports festival, simr to the one heldst year. Obviously, it will be a test of the students'' physical abilities. This will be held in October. Some rules will differ this time around, but the base concept is still the same. Testing of each individual students'' physical ability."


    Right now, Chabashira-sensei was talking about a battle that would soon begin that would strongly require physical ability; a battle that could be troublesome for students who only excelled in their studies. The rules are different from those of the first year, which is also a concern.


    "And in November, we will be holding a cultural festival, which will be our first cultural festival in the history of Advanced Nurturing High School.


    The details will be announced, just like the sports festival, but we''ll take the time to do this in parallel starting in September."


    September will mainly be spent preparing for the festival, with an extra few hours of physical education sses per week. After the P.E. festival in October, the students should start practising for the cultural festival in November.


    There''s also a school triping up, although I''m not sure if it''s rted to a special exam.


    "Furthermore, in between these events, there will of course be midterm and final exams."


    There was no doubt that it would be a busy second semester.


    "I''ll exin more about the sports festivalter, but first let''s talk about the cultural festival."


    In terms of order, the sports festival came first, but Chabashira-sensei began to talk about the details regarding the cultural festival.


    "The cultural festival will be held with arge number of guests. You will have topete with the sses of all years in the festival for the total amount of sales. You can apply for as many items as you like, but the budget is limited. Please look over your tablets for details."


    [Outline of the Cultural Festival]


    ? Each second-year student will be given 5,000 private points that can be used only in preparation for the festival.


    ? First-year students will receive 5,500 points and third-year students receive 4,500 points.


    ? Additional funds will be given for social contributions such as student council service, and for contributions made through club activities.


    ? Details will be announced for each ss once they are finalized.


    ? The initial cost and additional funds will not be reflected in the final sales, and will be confiscated if unused.


    ? 100 ss points will be awarded to the 1st through 4th ce sses.


    ? 50 ss points will be awarded to the 5th through 8th ce sses.


    ? ss points for 9th to 12th ce will remain unchanged.


    As for the rewards, a rtivelyrge number of ss points were avable, and there are no penalties for finishing lower than 8th ce. The rules are straightforward and easy to understand. It was clear why they announced the details of the cultural festival before the sports festival. I guessed it was because they couldn''t start preparations until the rules were exined. As for the sports festival, there''s not much to it besides training physically every day.


    "Hey, it''s kind of like a middle school cultural festival."


    It may not be exactly the same, but I could understand why Shinohara would say that.


    I can''t see any risk of losing ss points or getting expelled. The fact that I''m tempted to wonder if there''s more to it than what we see is probably evidence that I''ve be deeply ingrained in the structure of this school.


    "It will also be important to determine which areas of the grounds are reserved. For example, if you want to set up your stall near the main gate, where visitors will definitely pass by, you will have to pay the school for the space."


    The students, including me, looked over the new information that had been sent to the tablet. It was a map of the grounds with the title ''List of Possible Stalls on the Grounds'' and the names of possible stall locationsbined with locations and numbers. The location closest to the main gate mentioned by Chabashira-sensei isbeled "Main Gate 1" and the cost of the location is 10,000 points. If the location is far away from the main gate and difficult for guests to get to, it''s low cost or even free. The budget without considering additional funds was about 200,000. If you think about it, 10,000


    points isn''t anywhere near cheap.


    However, there is no doubt that it is a prime location that is expected to attract many customers.


    "It is possible that there will be conflicts with other sses and grades regarding the location of the stall, but only one ss per location can use that location. If there is a conflict of interest, a bidding war will be held, and the ss that offers the school the highest bid will get the right to use that space."


    In other words, if you are forced to spend a high amount of points in order to secure a prime location, this in turn will drastically cut the budget that can be allocated to the show. The ss will be spending the next two months figuring out how to fight efficiently with a limited budget.


    "The school will not disclose which ss will be doing what kind of performance or where the stalls will be until the day of the festival. However, be aware that you can''t plug the ears of other students. If the information is leaked, you should expect to be faced with consequences."


    Even if youe up with an ideal exhibit, there''s always the risk that other sses will copy it and take countermeasures.


    "There will be things that you may need from time to time. If there''s something you can''t get on the premises, you can apply for and get it from outside if you gain permission. As long as it''s within the terms of the agreement, you''re free to use the budget however you want."


    I guess I''ll have to look into that and other details sometimeter.


    "These are the descriptions of the cultural festival and its rules. The specific preparation and set-up period will start after the end of the sports


    festival, but please start discussing today and use your own time to decide what the events will be and how the budget will be allocated."


    It seems that the more time we have to devote to the festival, the more chance of sess we''ll have.

 Chapter 200: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 200: 1.2</h4>


    After school, most of my ssmates were still in the ssroom, except for those who were going to club activities. It was, of course, the first discussion for the cultural festival to be held in November. There must be a certain number of students who had experienced a festival in middle school. I don''t have any particr information to share, so I''ll be the listener as usual.


    "First of all, I''ll give you a list of the events that can be held."


    Y��suke, who had gotten permission to use the ssroom monitor, typed on his tablet.


    "When ites to cultural festivals, food, haunted houses, and the like are the orthodox ones, aren''t they?"


    Food-rted, haunted houses, mazes, cafes, live music, ys, etc. The obvious ones are added and listed one by one.


    "The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. If we serve food and drinks, we can expect the adults of the guest house toe and take advantage of it. However, this may increase thepetition..."


    "It''s just a matter of budget. Compared to things like haunted houses and mazes, which can be built once and cost less thereafter, it will inevitably be more expensive."


    Some of the music equipment can be rented for a fee, but the number is limited, so the sooner we register the better. There is also the question of how many students are skilled enough to make a profit.


    "We have 39 students in our ss. That means that the budget we are looking at right now is 195,000 points. Honestly, it''s not a lot to work with.


    It''s not an easy decision to make when ites to food."


    "I have a suggestion, if you don''t mind."


    "I wee your input, Horikita-san."


    "As Hirata-kun said, the budget we can allocate for the festival is limited. But no matter how much we discuss it on the table, there are still many things we don''t know. Even if we were to cook takoyaki at a food stall, we would need to know what ingredients to use, our skills, and many other things. If that''s the case, maybe we should bring our ideas to the ss and test them repeatedly, even if we have to use private points."


    Many of the students nodded their heads in agreement at this suggestion.


    It''s true that it''s important to actually try out cooking, serving, or whatever you do. Of course, there is a risk of paying for it out of one''s own pocket, but it''s easy to dismiss it as a necessary upfront investment if it will pay back in ss pointster on.


    "But... Oh, I don''t mean to say anything bad about the current idea, but I think some people will be reluctant to do anything if they have to pay for it themselves." Matsushita said, fearing that some of the students would be left to their own devices and not put any effort into the cultural festival.


    "That''s fine. I don''t want to waste my time with a random idea.


    However, I can''t ignore the people who are trying their best to contribute. If youe up with an idea for an event that you think is a good idea, you should actively present it. If the idea is adopted, how about paying a reward to the nner?"


    "Yes, that''s a good idea. It''s not a bad idea to reward people for their hard work and contributions."


    "We''ll work out the specificster, but for example, if we get 100 ss points for the festival, the entire ss will get 390,000 private points per month. I''ll divide this by the number of people who nned it and give it to them as a reward. This way, there should be noints."


    If we were to have five events, that would be 78,000 points per person.


    If the number of people who came up with the idea or helped out is toorge to divide, you can divide the total amount by the total amount for two or three months. This way, the students who are actively involved in the festival will benefit, and the students who cut corners will benefitter on. Most importantly, if it would increase ss points, I wouldn''t be opposed to it.


    "The other thing we need to do is to keep all the information private so that no one can steal our ideas. Whether you''re at school, in the dorms, or at the Keyaki Mall, be careful what you say."


    Thorough confidentiality. This was very important for the next two months of preparation.

 Chapter 201: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 201: 1.3</h4>


    For the next two weeks, our school life went on as usual. We were preparing for the school festival and the sports festival at the same time, and working hard on our schoolwork. It was a precious time when we could say that we were repeating the same routine as in a normal school. Surprisingly, the rtionship between Kei and I did not spread from Sud��, and there was no sign of anyone new knowing about us.


    It was the third Wednesday after school in the middle of September. I was seated at the back of the ss, and I caught the sight of an unsual encounter. Someone was approaching Horikita who was sitting in the center of the front row.


    "Hey, Horikita-san I wanted to ask you something."


    It was Sat��, who was a bit reserved. She was one of the girls that Horikita never got involved with.


    "I have an errand to run to the student council in an hour, so as long as it doesn''t take that long, I don''t mind. What is it?"


    She didn''t show any suspicious expression, but I guess she didn''t have much experience being approached by Sat��. When she asked her back curiously, she continued in a slightly whispered voice.


    "We''ve been thinking a lot about what we''re going to do for the festival right? You asked us to let you know if we had any ideas."


    "Yes. I''d love to hear your pitch, but-"


    "That''s it, let me make a pitch, I''vee up with an idea that will really win this festival."


    Sat��''s confidence peeked through, but Horikita didn''t look easily impressed. That''s because in the past ten days or so, many students have beening to Horikita with their ideas. Both boys and girls have repeatedly proposed ideas to Horikita, as there is a reward if they are epted.


    The proposals range from the traditional to the bizarre, but one thing they all have inmon is that Horikita won''t even take them seriously if all they have is a name for the exhibit. On the same day that the reward for the proposal was announced, Hond�� immediately proposed that we sell fried chicken because it was delicious. However, Horikita shut him down, telling him toe up with an actual pitch. She didn''t even show any interest in epting the idea.


    The next day, undaunted, Hond�� submitted a proposal for making fried chicken, but all it contained was a recipe for fried chicken that he must have picked up from the Inte and an impassioned speech about how much he would sell it for and how tasty it would be.


    Looking at the low-level proposal, Horikita reiterated the importance of a proposal. If you were to open a fried food shop, how much would the cost be, where would the store be located, how many human resources would be needed, how much would the fixed price be, how many customers would be expected, and what would be the basis for that? After that, Horikita announced that she would only listen to the ideas of those who had put them together properly.


    After that, it seemed that the number of people who simply approached Horikita with proposals would decrease, but surprisingly, the number of students who brought in well-developed proposals increased every day. Some of the proposals were actually put on Horikita''s list for consideration.


    However, none of the proposals had been adopted yet because theycked a definitive message.


    "Well then, let''s see what you have."


    "Oh, yes. Of course, I''ve prepared something but... this isn''t the best ce for it. Can you give me some time to show you what I mean?"


    "If you say so. Where do you want me to go?"


    "Let''s see, an empty ssroom in half an hour. I''ve got permission from the teacher."


    "An empty ssroom?"


    Horikita asked back curiously, and after saying goodbye to her, Sat��


    turned away and looked towards me. My eyes met hers and she started to approach me.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji-kun. Do you have some timeter...?"


    "Me? I don''t have any particr ns today."


    "You heard what I said earlier, right? I''d like you toe with me and Horikita-san in half an hour."


    "Why me too?"


    "That''s a secret for now. You''ll know when you get here."


    Just like his attitude towards Horikita earlier, Sat��''s face was full of confidence. Since I had no reason to deny her request, I agreed.


    "I''ll be waiting for you then!"


    After checking the time on her phone, Sat�� hurried out of the ssroom.


    "What''s with her? She seemed so confident."


    "Doesn''t that mean she''s thought of a good idea?"


    "Even if she did, why did she bother to call me?"


    I don''t know what the big deal was, but I''ll find out in half an hour.


    Horikita and I decided to kill some time in the ssroom before heading to the special building.

 Chapter 202: 1.4

    <h4>Chapter 202: 1.4</h4>


    Since we were headed to the same ce anyway, I walked with Horikita to the special building. When we arrived in front of the ssroom designated by Sat��, for some reason, we found Maezono there.


    "Oh, I''m on guard duty. I don''t think there''s anyoneing to the special wing after school, but I had to make sure."


    "You were on guard...? This is a lot more borate than I thought."


    She seemed surprised that they had even set up a security system, although it was important to keep your exhibit a secret until the day of the event. Not only did they ask the teacher to rent a room in the special building, but they also set up a guard to prevent third parties from interfering. In addition, there was a simple but effective barrier to prevent people from seeing the inside of the ssroom through shaded windows.


    "Well then, I''ll take a look inside right away."


    "Oh, wait a minute. From here on, it''s going to be a practical format, so both Horikita-san and Ayanok��ji-kun should experience it as customers."


    "Oh? I understand that you''ve nned this out quite thoroughly. This is easier to understand than looking at a poorly written n."


    Seeing how borate the process was, Horikita would undoubtedly be raising her expectations. Whether or not she actually decides to adopt their idea is another matter, but it''s clear even at this point that they''re making a real effort to win the cultural festival. I''m sure Horikita will be happy to see the effort.


    Horikita and I checked again to make sure there were no other people around, and then slowly opened the door. The first thing that jumped out at us was an unexpectedly colorful d��cor. The room was so brightly decorated that it was hard to believe that it was an inorganic and nondescript ssroom.


    "This is..."


    "Wee~. We''re Maimai, the maid caf��!"


    All at once, three girls, each in a distinctive costume, greeted us.


    The two girls who greeted us here, Sat�� and Matsushita, were dressed as maids. Mii-chan, who was looking at us shyly, was dressed in a Chinese style maid suit.


    The ssrooms are usually equipped with monitors, but the special wing, which is rarely used, still seems to have a whiteboard. The name of the restaurant was written on the whiteboard in a cute way with a marker.


    We were shown to our seats and given a handmade menu list.


    "What would you like to order, master?"


    "Hold on. Can I ask you something before I order?"


    "Go on."


    "Didn''t it take a lot of time and money just to prepare this?"


    It certainly looks like it would be difficult to prepare on the same day.


    Even if they could do their best to decorate, what did they do about the costumes?


    "Ayanok��ji-kun has a point. How long did it take, Matsushita-san?"


    "About four days of preparation. I think the cost I incurred is surprisingly reasonable. All in all, 13,200 private points. The three of us here and Maezono nned it and split the cost, so it''s 3,300 points per person.


    The breakdown is that we bought three rental outfits and some decorations such as origami and pens at the general store. The tableware was our own, so there was no cost."


    I see, that''s the reason why the tablewarecks a sense of unity. Of course, since we are still in the nning stage, this is not a negative factor. In fact, I''m impressed with how well they prepared the event while keeping the cost to a minimum.


    "The impact was perfect, better than anything I''ve ever seen. But..."


    Horikita praised the presentation, saying that it was perfect for grabbing the audience, but she wasn''t so naive as to make a decision based on that.


    "I wonder if you''ve created a budget for the whole thing. I''d like to see a concrete process."


    Sat�� motioned towards Mii-chan sharply.


    "Well, I''ve summarized as much as I can..."


    Taking out a clear file from her bag satchel, Mii-chan presents it to Horikita. There were three pages of details written in beautiful, clean letters, probably written by Mii-chan. She said that she had rented the costumes, but that she had gotten quotes from three differentpanies and rented one costume each. The price, quality, and selection of items werepared. The difference in cost between the cheapest and most expensive tableware to be used on the day. The number of people to be expected, and the difference in guest capacity due to this.


    "This is head and shoulders above any proposal I''ve seen so far. That''s quintessential."


    When I praised her honestly, Sat�� and Matsushita poked Mii-chan in the side and told her that she was being praised. She still looked embarrassed, but bowed her head to meet her lightly.


    So far, the project proposal from Sat�� and the others could be said to be perfect. However....


    "That''s certainly an interesting proposal. It may not be an umon genre, but I feel that it has potential if it''s put together properly. However, there are some disadvantages. The costume rental fee is 4000 points per outfit. If that''s the case as per the proposal, 40,000 points for 10 outfits. After that, the estimated cost of preparing snacks and drinks is 50,000 points. This alone is 90,000 in total. ssroom decorations cost 5,000 points, and if you add in the cost of the location, you''re looking at... that''s not a cheap price to pay."


    Even if the manpower doesn''t require a wage and can be secured without difficulty, it would mean spending almost half of the current budget on one event.


    "Yes, that''s true, but I think we can raise the sales price to counter that."


    The menu list that Sat�� and the others made, for example, cost 800


    points for a cup of tea. The price is higher than what you would pay for a cup of tea at a caf�� in the Keyaki Mall. Of course, the price could be revised downward significantly depending on future adjustments, but they still think it has a good chance of selling.


    Horikita''s face was serious as she read over the three separate proposals. However, the outfits of Sat�� and the others around her seemed strange and unrealistic, like a fairy tale. Eventually, perhaps havinge to a conclusion, Horikita looks up.


    "I''m going to check again, but no one saw this performance, right?"


    "Of course not." She nodded her head, looking confident. Sat�� and Mii-chan followed suit.


    "Very well. I''ll do my best to make sure this maid caf�� goes through.


    Can you guys further scrutinize this proposal, including thorough cost reduction?"


    "Really? Yes!"


    The three of them exchanged a touch each for joy.


    "It''s too early to rejoice. Don''t forget that we''re still in the process of reviewing the proposal."


    Although she said this, it was still a big leap forward that Horikita was even seriously considering this idea.


    As the two of us walked out into the hallway, Maezono, who had been watching us, waved happily at us. Themotion in the ssroom must have reached Maezono''s ears as well.


    "I''m kind of surprised how well that went."


    "I wouldn''t readily admit it was a good idea if I didn''t feel that way. In fact, most of the ideas that were brought to me were rejected on the spot, or at best, put on hold. That''s how powerful their presentation was."


    The idea of a maid cafe is not that unusual. However, it seemed that Horikita was willing to help because she saw the potential for our ss to show off its strengths and impress the guests.


    "So, even if some other ss adopts the same maid cafe, we can win?"


    "I''m fairly certain we have a good chance."


    Even if you open a store with bad food, you''ll be fighting against several rivals. On the other hand, even if one or two maid cafes are covered, you might be able to screw them over with your strength. Aside from the three people who wore the same costumes, there are still other students who could be useful.


    "I''m going to ask for your help Ayanok��ji-kun to ensure that the girls''


    project is a sess."


    "My help? Don''t tell me you want me to cosy as well?"


    "Why are you so stupid? I''m going to give it my all, but I''ll also need some help from the boys, right? I think that kind of thing should be handled by you."


    "No well... I know what you mean, but... I''m sure there are other suitable people."


    "Right. Ike-kun, Hond��-kun and the others may have better eyes for this kind of thing. But if you tell them about this, it could lead to a leak. They seem to be light on their feet."


    "Can''t deny that."


    "I don''t want to unnecessarily increase the number of people who know what''s going on inside. You understand, don''t you?"


    "I see."


    Maybe it was just my bad luck that Sat�� had called me here, and I was destined for this.


    "So, I''ll leave the selection of people to you first. Of course, you can tell whoever takes the job about the case, but remember to keep it a secret. If anything happens to you, the project will be shut down." That''s how important it was to keep the information safe. "In that sense, I want to keep the number of people sharing information to a minimum. Can I leave everything to you? I''ll set up a formal budgetter, and I''ll need you to arrange people, pay for everything, and manage it."


    "Wait, wait. You''re taking a big leap at once. You''re just going to leave it to me?"


    "There''s no single program for this festival. In terms of the bnce of men, women and human resources, multiple stalls are a must. It''s also going to be quite a challenge to figure out how to increase sales on a low budget, and I''d rather focus on that."


    I was tempted to let her handle the entire thing at this point but she strongly felt I should share some of the burden.


    "So, you''re epting my offer, right?"


    I don''t remember showing any pretense of wanting to ept, but I didn''t have much of a choice.


    "I suppose so."


    I wonder if it is possible for me to run an ideal maid cafe. I can''t say I''m very confident. I''m not sure how many more waitresses I''m going to be able to recruit. Still, for now that I''ve got Sat�� and Matsushita down. Even though it is still a long way off, the list will need to bepiled in the near future.


    "I''m going to head to the student council room. I''ll see youter." Said Horikita interrupting my thoughts.


    "I''ll head back too then."


    I was about to leave the special building when I spotted Chabashira-sensei; who didn''t seem to be passing by chance, given the location.


    "You''ve seen Sat�� and the others? I heard about the performance. And what they''re nning to do. Not a bad idea."


    "It was great. For Sat�� and the others, they had to make sure that pitch was good enough first before they can even start actual preparations"


    It''s noughing matter to have prepared so much in earnest without knowing if they''ll get permission.


    "I was wondering how you were doing personally, so I thought I''de check on you. How have things been going?"


    "Horikita was positive, so I suppose things are going fine. I guess they figured the odds were in their favor. We''re working out the details now."


    "I see. Then it looks like it''s an easier road from here on out.


    "They got me involved, though, so things got a little tricky."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Under Horikita''s direction, I''ve been assigned to direct the performance.


    "Ayanok��ji leading a maid caf��...?" Chabashira-senseiughed somewhat mirthlessly as she gave me a pitiful look. "Horikita makes some pretty interesting suggestions."


    "I think people like Ike and Hond�� are many times more suited to this kind of thing to be perfectly honest."


    "As for understanding otaku culture, that may be true. But what''s important at a cultural festival is sales. They may be able to improve the quality of their performance, but they aren''t good at calcting and making a profit. That''s why it''s important for you to supervise them. It''s a problem that can be solved by asking them for their opinions if necessary."


    Easy for you to say. In order to absorb opinions, we must also acquire a minimum level of knowledge. If we only listen to advice in ignorance, there''s no guarantee that we''ll arrive at the right answer, and conversely, it''s difficult to point out what''s wrong.


    "You''ve got to be hungry for the opportunity to learn something other than studying. The manager of the maid caf�� sounds like a hefty role."


    "I guess so."


    I was about to leave, but Chabashira-sensei stopped me in my tracks.


    "Ayanok��ji. Next time you''re free... can you give me a few minutes of your time?"


    "Next time? When?"


    "I''ll send you a message soon. Would that be okay?"


    "Well, I don''t mind. If I have ns, I''ll make myself avable."


    I could have refused, but after receiving a serious look from Chabashira-sensei, I decided to ept.

 Chapter 203 - 2 : Two Teachers; A Special Exam of Destiny

    <h4>Chapter 203: Chapter 2 : Two Teachers; A Special Exam of Destiny</h4>


    THE NEXT MORNING, I was assigned to be the manager of a maid caf��.


    As Chabashira-sensei entered the room, the students immediately noticed something was off when they saw her face.


    This time, however, the word "special exam" probably didn''te to mind first. The main reason for this is that they probably thought that the next exam would be the sports festival. And then, after that, the culture festival.


    "Before the sports festival in October, you will have to undergo a new special exam."


    The students were a little upset. This timest year, everybody was already preparing for the sports festival, and there were no other special exams, but this year is different.


    "I''ve just got through the gruelling deserted ind exam and now I''ve got to take another special exam..."


    As is bing the norm, Ike''s frustration leaking out was the first thing that could be heard. For Ike, who had ovee the fear of being expelled from the school to go out with Shinohara Satsuki, it must be a daunting prospect. No matter how well you get to know each other or how close you be, as a result of special examinations, sudden expulsions could happen. Students with low overall OAA performances are undoubtedly at particr risk of this.


    "What the hell guys. We''ll just have to get through a few extra exams before we get to the sports festival." Sud��, who has absolute confidence in his athleticism, pumps his fist.


    "Please don''t get carried away Sud��-kun."


    "Oh." Immediately, Horikita''s warning made Sud�� a little sullen, and he fell silent.


    What a good master-servant rtionship development- I mean, friendship.


    "If we''re being honest, there are few cases of special exams at this time of year. In fact, there is no special exam for the first-year or third-year students."


    "Does that mean that only us second years will have to face a special exam before the sports festival?" Sat�� asked, leaning back in her chair.


    Chabashira-sensei nodded with no objection.


    "The school is giving you the recognition you deserve; you second years have performed very well."


    "Isn''t that strange? You''re giving us a special exam because you''ve evaluated us positively?"


    "It''s true that special examse with risks that you need to be wary of. Some students may lose ss points, private points, or even be expelled.


    However, on the other hand, they also provide you many opportunities to live a more fulfilling school life. The more special exams you undergo, the more chances you have of being promoted to ss A, which we believe is the most important thing."


    It''s true that it''s extremely difficult to earn ss points in your everyday life. If anything, the period when special exams are not being held is a time where ss points can only be lowered. Whether it be the deserted ind exam or something else, it is only when special exams are held that we get the chance to move up to a higher ss.


    "Happiness and sadness are two sides of the same coin. So the risk is the benefit, right?"


    Horikita, who listened from beside Chabashira-sensei, calmly epted the situation.


    "That''s how it is."


    "There''s nothing to be afraid of. We''re definitely closing in on ss A now. We''ve got a chance to escape from the three-way battle for ss B, which is currently underway."


    The more opportunities you have, the better. That''s a sentiment we all share when ites to moving up.


    "That''s true... Andining isn''t going to stop the special exams."


    Horikita''s words were met with approval by Sat�� and the rest of the ss.


    Although still iplete, Horikita''s growth as a pir of support has certainly had a positive influence on her ssmates. Inwardly, I think Chabashira-sensei is also happy, but she doesn''t show it on her face. She''s never been one to show her sweet side, but this time I feel like she is showing it more than ever.


    "You''ll be taking part in what''s known as the ''Unanimous Voting Exam''."


    The monitors light up and the exnation begins with customary visuals.


    "This special exam is very simple. As such, I will be taking questions from you if you have any concerns at any time. The special exam will be held tomorrow, and as you can probably guess from the name, it will consist of a series of multiple-choice votes which you will have to repeat as a ss until you reach a unanimous decision."


    "Tomorrow? That''s quite sudden."


    There was no time to prepare. Of course, there is no advantage or disadvantage, as every ss shares equal conditions, but ss C, which had just started to settle down, began to buzz again.


    "As I said before, this test is simple. There is no need to spend a lot of time discussing it beforehand, so the school sees no problem in doing it tomorrow."


    Repeat the vote in ss until it is unanimous.


    With that alone, there certainly didn''t appear to be anyplexity in it.


    "So you''re saying that we aren''tpeting against another ss this time?"


    More importantly, Y��suke immediately asked for rification on this point.


    "Yes. You will not bepeting against students from other sses, as this is a special exam that will only be conducted within each ss. On the day of the exam, the school will give you five questions toplete. The questions are the same for all sses, so there is no imbnce."


    This is not surprising, as the difficulty level would vary from ss to ss if the questions varied.


    "I''ll get right to it and provide you with an example to help you understand."


    [Example:]


    You lose 5 ss points, but all your ssmates gain 10,000 private points.


    You can vote for or against.


    The question was disyed on the monitor. The content was simple and straightforward, as advertised.


    "Hmm? What''s this? Well... we''ll lose 5 ss points, but gain 10,000


    private points instead... What kind of question is this? Is it a gain? Is it a loss?"


    Shinohara said aloud, folding her fingers and trying to calcte the gain and loss in her head.


    It wasn''t surprising that a number of unexpected questions came up.


    Even if it was just an example, I was expecting more of a choice. Each ss point equates to 100 private points. That means that the value of 5 ss points is 500 private points. At first nce, the 10,000 private points are by far more valuable.


    However, the ss points themselves will continue to have value. In one month, 5 ss points are only worth 500 private points, but over the course of a year, just 5 ss points be 6,000 private points. If we consider the time remaining until graduation, there will be 18 months where we receive private points between October of the second year and March of the third year. This means that 5 ss points can be thought of as 9000


    private points.


    You can either gain 10,000 private points immediately, or you can gradually earn them until graduation and gain a total of 9,000 private points.


    The former is slightly more profitable in terms of private points alone.


    But it''s not that simple.


    If we chose to lose five ss points here, and missed out on ss A at the end of the race by that margin, we would have made the worst possible choice here, and would look back on it that way.


    Of course, the odds of five points being the difference between ss A and ss B are slim-to-none, so it may well be that it is better to take the 10,000 private points.


    In the end, there are advantages and disadvantages no matter which perspective you take.


    "In response to this question, thirty-nine people will vote from the options presented to them in full anonymity. A hundred questions are as good as one answer, so let''s give it a go. I know many of you have questions, but I want you to try it out without any discussion. You can vote for or against from your tablets."


    The tablet screens of the students in the ss, including mine, are switched by Chabashira-sensei.


    The tablet presented the contents of the question, and I could select either for or against. It was the most unusual special exam we''ve had. I decided to give it some serious thought.


    Private points have no direct effect on ss points. If you vote for, all your ssmates will get 10,000 points, which is a straightforward bonus.


    However, by doing so, you lose 5 ss points, and while it''s only 5, points are points.


    In this case, we need to consider how we think in terms of human nature.


    It''s not a question of whether it is better to gain 10,000 private points or to preserve 5 ss points, but the other way around. It is a question of which choice will save you from regret.


    I decided to vote ''for'' and see what the result would be, because I didn''t think it was a good idea to have the vote be unanimous the first time.


    Soon after, the vote wasplete, and Chabashira-sensei looked up from her tablet.


    "Okay, now that everyone has voted, I''d like to disy the results as soon as possible."


    With that said, the result was disyed on the monitor.


    ? [Results of the first round of voting:]


    3 in favour, 36 opposed.


    I knew that there would be more opposition, but it was by a greater margin than I had imagined.


    "Oh, what? You''ll get more for 10,000 private points than you''ll get for 5 ss points, right? Did I do the math wrong? Why is it so much the other way around?"


    Ike, who seemed to have voted in favour of the proposal, looked around at his ssmates and asked curiously.


    "It''s true that the 10,000 private points are more valuable than the 5


    ss points. However, ss points are essential to achieve ss A. If the difference is only 1,000 points, why bother to reduce your precious ss points?"


    Here is a theoretical exnation of why Horikita, who seems to have voted against it.


    "In the unlikely event that a difference of five ss points makes the difference between winning and losing, you wouldn''t be able to stop regretting it."


    Like me, many students are worried about the "just in case" risk. It is also important to remember that three other sses will be taking on the same challenge. If the three sses are unanimous in their choice of ss points, this ss will be the only one to take a step backwards. Of course, it would be a different story if we could make use of the 10,000 private points we would have gained.


    "Each of you has your own opinion, but let''s hear it. There are 36 votes against, which is a huge margin, but it''s not unanimous, so we''ll have to do this again. In the actual exam, there will be a fixed 10-minute interval before the next vote. During this interval, you will be allowed to talk freely, as you are now, and sometimes leave your seats and exchange views, but for now we will skip this. Let the voting begin again."


    The aim of this test is to make the vote unanimous.


    If the vote is not unanimous, it is invalid, and a 10-minute interval is enforced.


    Even if we could reach a consensus quickly, we would lose a lot of time.


    Due to the way this special exam was structured, it was safe to assume that there will probably be a time limit.


    If the disagreement continues, there would be a possibility that the time runs out...


    So, for the second round, the only thing to do is to vote against it, without even thinking about it.


    If you pitch against it, you can bring it to unanimity.


    That''s why I decided to vote "yes" for the second time.


    I thought that this would give my ssmates a better understanding of this special exam.


    ? [Result of the second round of voting:]


    2 in favour, 37 opposed.


    "Oh, hey, hey, hey, who''s still voting yes after what you just said?"


    "I''m sorry, it''s me, Sud��-kun. I tried to avoid being unanimous. It seems that there is someone else who had the same idea as me, but..."


    She didn''t look at me, but I think she was referring to me.


    "This is the result of the second vote. The vote was almostpletely against, but there were still two votes in favour. In this case, there will be a further interval of 10 minutes before voting resumes. The test is to reach a final unanimous vote of 39 in favour or 39 against. Of course, whatever is chosen in this way will actually be adopted. In this case, if the vote is 39 in favour, you will all receive 10,000 private points, but you will lose 5 ss points. On the other hand, if 39 votes are cast against the proposal, the proposal bes invalid and has no effect whatsoever."


    This means that the challenge will end without anyone gaining or losing any points.


    "It''s not unanimous, but to save time we''ll move on to the next example."


    [Example:]


    1 million private points to one person in the ss. (In the event of a unanimous vote in favour, the pupil who will be awarded points will be voted on.)


    You can vote for or against.


    "You may think it''s an example, but in the real exam, we forbid private conversations before the first vote. In other words, you have to genuinely face the question and vote first."


    So it''s not until before the second vote that we discuss what we thought about the question.


    ? [Results of the first round of voting:]


    39 in favour, 0 opposed.


    The obvious result is disyed: even if only one of the 39 students gets private points, there is almost no reason to choose thetter. Even if you are disappointed that you don''t get them, it will be difficult to achieve unanimity in opposition.


    "If the question is to select a particr individual, the first step is the same as in the first example: to get a unanimous vote in favour or against. If the vote is unanimously against, the question ends, but if the vote is unanimous in favour, the question does not end, but goes one step further.


    After an interval, you will be asked to discuss who you would nominate. The tablet will show the names of all your ssmates except yourself."


    The screen on the tablet was forced to switch and, sure enough, all names other than my own wereid out.


    However, it is not in alphabetical order, but in an irregr order, with a mixture of boys and girls.


    "To ensure anonymity, the position of each student''s name will be changed each time a vote is taken. This is also the case for options such as


    yes or no, which are also randomly changed. This is to prevent people from spying on the students next to them and guessing which one they voted for from the position of where their finger tapped the screen."


    She continued to exin the rules further, telling us that it will be impossible to know what other people have voted for.


    "Once the discussion is underway, each student can vote at their own pace, simply by tapping on the student they wish to nominate. At the end of the 10 minutes, the student who has received the majority of the votes will be considered as the ''specific student''. Suppose Ike is chosen by a majority of votes."


    "Oh, it''s me? Yes!"


    "The right to vote is temporarily removed from Ike, the person in question, and the vote is cast by the other 38 people."


    A majority of students is naturally close to unanimous. I suppose that''s how rmendations work.


    A new round of voting on questions that go one step further began, and we cast our votes.


    [Example:]


    Ike Kanji is awarded 1 million private points.


    You can vote for or against.


    ? [Results of the 2nd round of voting:]


    0 in favour, 38 opposed.


    "What? Wait, why hasn''t anyone voted in favour of this!"


    "No ones gonna give you a million private points." Sud�� spoke for all of us in the ss when he said what we must all be thinking.


    "In the event of a unanimous vote against awarding the points to Ike, it will be passed that "no points will be awarded to Ike", but that only removes Ike from the list of options and leaves the one million points up in the air. So, from the remaining 38 students, we will select another student to continue the question. However, if they are unable to reach a unanimous decision on who


    to award the points to before time runs out, the test will fail. Furthermore, please note that the one million points will not be awarded to anyone."


    "What? Does that mean my chances of getting them are now zero?"


    "That''s the way it is. You wouldn''t have been removed from the list if there had been even one vote in favour, though. We also invite candidates to stand. If they do so during the interval, they will be epted as the ''specific student'' on a firste, first served basis. However, only one candidate will be allowed per question."


    "So what happens if we don''t get a majority of nomination votes for a particr student in 10 minutes, or if there are no candidates? I''m sure those cases could be considered."


    "In that case, they will be randomly selected from within the ss."


    They don''t wait for time or an question , they seem to force someone to start the voting.


    "When ites to choosing an individual, I think you might be wasting your time."


    That''s right. It''s like having more options for the number of people in your ss. However, I don''t think it will be easy to decide on a randomly selected student.


    "Let''s all keep our heads up. This special exam may turn out to be harder than we thought..."


    Not all issues can be solved by talking about them.


    There is a good chance that we will be forced to make choices that will never be able to bepromised on.


    No, otherwise it would have no meaning as a special examination.


    "I''ll give you one more example at the end. This time, we''ll have you do it in a real-life format to itspletion."


    [Example:]


    It has been decided to build an additional facility in the Keyaki Mall. Which of the following would you prefer?


    - Restaurants


    - General shops


    - Recreational facilities


    - Medical facilities


    In contrast to the previous examples, this time the poll consists of four options rather than for or against.


    I thought it was just a yes or no vote, but apparently that''s not the case.


    It seems that the choices made here will actually be implemented, but if this were not an example, would it really mean that the facility will be built?


    "When a question is passed in favour, etc., its content is actually approved. However, there is a special way of doing this for questions that affect the whole school. In such a case, the unanimous choice is simply the one chosen by the ss. If this ss is unanimous on the restaurant option, but the other three sses are unanimous on the entertainment option, then the additional entertainment option with three votes will be chosen."


    The meaning of what Chabashira-sensei was saying was probably clear to all. There are two types of questions: those that take immediate effect and those that are presented as a ss vote. Either way, it will have to be carefully discussed and unanimously agreed upon.


    Private conversations are not allowed before the first vote, so choose your options intuitively


    ? [Results of the first round of voting:]


    ? 20 for restaurants.


    ? 4 for general shops.


    ? 15 for recreational facilities.


    ? 0 for medical facilities.


    "As it was not unanimous, we will have a 10-minute interval."


    This is where the intervales in for the first time.


    A ten-minute countdown began on the monitor behind the podium.


    This will continue until the time runs out and the next voting time is enforced.


    Students are free to leave their seats and formte their arguments as they wish, whether they speak out loud or whisper to someone in particr. I observed and waited to see what happens. Ten minutes passed without anyone giving any particr instructions, just chatting away as they pleased.


    "Just before the end of the interval, you will be asked to return to your seat and prepare to vote. You will be given a maximum of 60 seconds to vote.


    If everyone votes quickly, we will move on to announcing the results without waiting for the time limit."


    Unlike thepulsory 10-minute interval, it seems that the voting time can be shortened with some ingenuity.


    "Students who do notplete their vote within 60 seconds will be penalised with an overtime penalty. Any student who allows 90 seconds overtime in total to pse beforepleting the five questions will be expelled."


    This is the school''s way of making sure that students vote. If there is a student who refuses to vote, they will be forced to leave the school.


    Even if you dyed every time you voted, you would lose valuable time if you didn''t finish your vote within 58 or 59 seconds, so it is unlikely that any student would bother to do so.


    The second round of voting took ce, and the results were disyed.


    ? [Results of the second round of voting:]


    ? 23 for restaurants


    ? 2 for grocery shops


    ? 14 votes for entertainment facilities


    ? 0 votes for medical facilities


    As there was no talk of a consensus of opinion, the result was the same as the first one.


    Unless it''s an obvious decision, it''s not easy to bring it to unanimity on the first vote.


    And it is not so difficult to get 39 votes for a particr option once we have reached a consensus.


    But that''s only if the questions are all as we expect.


    Depending on the content, there will be some things that will require considerable discussion.


    "This concludes the example, but you get the gist. In order to pass this special test, you must unanimouslyplete five questions within five hours.


    If you fail toplete all of the questions in the five hours, you will be penalised very heavily. The penalty loss is 300 ss points."


    "Three hundred?!"


    So it''s a special exam that is an absolute necessity to clear.


    "But if you can finish it in time, you get 50 ss points."


    The rewards and penalties seem unbnced, but they are reasonable when you consider the difficulty of the test.


    "There''s no need to panic. We don''t have to fight with anyone this time, we just have to be united in our views. We can re-run the vote as many times as time permits, with an interval in between."


    "You can now see roughly the outline of this special exam. You will see a summary of the rules. Those of you who feel the need to save it may take a screenshot to use as reference."


    [Overview of the Unanimous Voting exam]


    [Rules exnation]


    ? All ssmates have to vote on a set of options in response to a question posed by the school.


    (There are a total of five questions with a maximum of four options.)


    ? Unless one of the choices is unanimous, the same question will be repeated.


    ? If you run out of time in the middle of a question, it will not be approved at all, regardless of the progress of the question.


    ? Unanimously approved proposals are actually adopted, regardless of whether the ss passes or fails the special examination.


    ? Earn 50 ss points forpleting all questions.


    ? If you do notplete all questions within 5 hours you will lose 300


    ss points.


    [Special examination process]


    ? You will be presented with a challenge and you will cast your first vote (within 60 seconds).


    ? If there is unanimous agreement, move on to the next question (1). If it is not unanimous, go to (3).


    ? 10-minute interval, during which time students are free to move about and discuss within the ssroom.


    ? 60 seconds voting time (you can''t discuss, only vote.) (Students who do notplete their vote within 60 seconds will receive an overtime penalty.)


    (If the umted penalty exceeds 90 seconds, the student will be expelled.)


    ? If the results are unanimous, proceed to the next question and go to (1).


    If unanimous agreement is not reached, return to (3).


    Repeat the process, and when you havepleted the five questions, the special test will bepleted. If you fail, you will be penalised. Losing 300 ss points here could mean losing your ticket to ss A. This is not an exaggeration.


    If the other three sses all clear the exam and we don''t, that would open up a 350-point gap to the others.


    We can talk about it as much as we like, but the main obstacle is that it is apletely anonymous vote in which it is impossible to know who voted for what.


    You can vote in favour and still im to have voted against.


    "We teachers do not know what kind of questions will be asked of you.


    Some of you may be optimistic, but I would advise you not to becent.


    In addition, it is strictly forbidden to make any agreements with other students that bind them to vote for a particr option in this exam. It is also forbidden to exchange money with other students to bind them to a particr choice. This applies equally to your own ss as it does to other sses."


    So you''re not allowed to force people to bind their choices?


    They may be able to unite and consolidate their votes to a certain extent, but they can''t create guarantees.


    If there is a contract that says you can only vote for option 1, then there could be one person who has signed such a contract, and that could make the test dysfunctional.


    That alone would make it possible to carry out vicious attacks against other sses.


    "Thorough monitoring of the rules will be carried out by the school. If it is found that a third party outside the ss has been involved and is able to continue to make unteral choices, there will be no mercy and expulsion for anyone involved. Please be prepared for this. I also assure you that if anyone is approached about any wrongdoing, they should report it immediately to the school and we will do our best to resolve it."


    If time runs out on the special exam, which is a prerequisite for clearing the exam, the school will undoubtedly carry out an investigation.


    The mere mention of it would probably incur a heavy penalty, so even people like Ry��en would be unlikely to make any overt moves.


    Until the start of the special examinations, it is advisable to refrain from getting involved with students from other sses.


    "In addition, during this special examination, the effectiveness of protection points will be temporarily disabled. The reason for this is that it is impossible to have a fair exam if only one student is protected. If the holder of a protection point is expelled in any way, the protection point cannot be used to reverse the expulsion. However, the expulsion can be avoided if the individual or the ss as a whole pays 20 million private points."


    There is currently no sum of private points within this ss that can do that. This means that students who are expelled are certain to be expelled.


    Does this mean that protection points, which can nullify expulsion once, are sometimes restricted? If it were a special test against another ss, the temporary invalidation of the protection points could lead toints.


    In this case, however, it is an in-ss issue. In that sense, it is not surprising that this special rule applies. It would be no wonder if heined, but K��enji didn''t seem bothered by this.


    "During the special examination, allmunication devices such as mobile phones will be collected. This is because of the possibility of interference from external sources. In the unlikely event that you are found to be carrying a concealed device... well you can already assume what would happen."


    Now that we knew that expulsion, among other various rules were involved, we started to form an idea of how this exam might go.

 Chapter 204: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 204: 2.1</h4>


    When it was time for lunch, Y��suke immediately left his seat and headed for the podium.


    "Can we do this before lunch? I think I''d like to hear everyone''s opinion. What do you think?"


    Kushida raised her hand to answer.


    "Um, this special exam means that there are going to be separate options and there''s going to be trouble, right?"


    "Of course it will. Because there''s no need to go to the trouble of having a special form of examination if it can be settled without any trouble."


    "Then I think it''s better to have a clear leader in case there''s a contingency where the choices don''t add up. I think if we follow the options that that leader eventually decides on, we can pass the special exam without any problems."


    "Yes, I agree. I agree with you, Kushida. But it''s going to be a big responsibility for the leader."


    The more options there are and the more divided opinions there are, the more criticism there will be from students who support the option that was not chosen. It will take a leader who is capable of organising the entire ss.


    "If you don''t mind, could you ask... Horikita-san?"


    "Me?"


    "Yes. You''ve been a leader many times before, and most importantly, I thought you could bring everyone together so that there would be no unfairness. Of course, it''s a big responsibility, as Hirata-kun said, and if Horikita-san says it''s okay, then it''s..."


    "Yes. It''s possible that other sses will have simr strategies, and you''ll be able to use them if you have a difference of opinion. If you don''t feelfortable following my instructions when the timees, you can let me know now."


    Not many students were willing to stand up for themselves or say anything negative about the leader''s responsibility. Kushida''s proposal was easily passed, and it was agreed that Horikita will be the leader of the group in case of emergency.


    For the rest of the day there was a lot of discussion, but no major decisions were made. Sometimeter, lunchtime arrived.


    "Let''s go to lunch. Yukim�� and Miyhi you guys areing, right?"


    The two guys stood up in agreement with Haruka as she turned around and asked for confirmation.


    Members of Ayanok��ji Group. A small group of five, including myself.


    Just as the five of us were beginning to gather, a different ssmate came running up to us.


    As soon as I made eye contact, the student shouted.


    "Kiyotaka! Lunch, let''s go."


    Without a pause, but with a nervous look in her eyes, she called out to me. No one was paying attention to the fact that Kei wasing towards me, nor was anyone intending to listen to the conversation. But all 37 of the other students, with the exception of K��enji, looked at us at once.


    "Sorry guys, I''m going to eat with Kei today."


    I pulled out my chair and stood up before the others couldprehend what was going on.


    "I''d like to go to a caf��. Can we?"


    "Hey... Eh...? Wait, wait, wait. Why are you interrupting us for all of a sudden, Karuizawa-san?"


    "It''s not really a rule to not interrupt, is it? Didn''t you hear Kiyotaka''s refusal just now? Plus, he promised me."


    "I heard what he said but... What do you mean? You were promised something? Wait... Kei?"


    After a short dy, Haruka began to understand that we called each other by our first names. Even then, she might not have understood most of it.


    "Sorry, but I''m his girlfriend and I''m his priority, you know?"


    "Ha?"


    "G-girl...friend?"


    Haruka and Airi muttered at the same time, although their reactions were quite different.


    "So from now on, Kiyotaka may not be able to attend your group''s gatherings as much."


    "Come on, let''s go," Kei said, tugging on my arm as we left the ssroom.


    The fact that her face was beginning to turn red showed that she was feeling quite embarrassed. I didn''t think she would reveal it to everyone in this way either...


    Haruka, Airi, and the rest of the students were too stunned to follow us.

 Chapter 205: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 205: 2.2</h4>


    With Kei''s bold action, our rtionship, which few people had known about until now, became known to the whole ss. It will probably spread across the whole school by the end of the day.


    I''m not sure how many students would be interested in the rtionship between me and Kei, but I doubted it would be many.


    The pairing of Ike and Shinohara, who had became a couple during the summer holiday, didn''t cause as much of a stir in terms of publicity as I''d expected. Rather, it was a pairing that had been expected.


    Some of the boys were pretentious and some of their friends were frankly jealous, but in the end, it made no difference to the many people who congratted them, and they developed a slow but steady rtionship as a couple.


    The sight of them going home together, as well as going on dates together, was bing increasingly frequent.


    What at first seemed like a new sight will soon bemonce.


    I''m sure it will be the same for me and Kei, but we''ll probably cause more of a stir for a longer time than the Ike-Shinohara pair. I''m not sure how many of the students could have predicted our rtionship.


    Anyway, the first day after school arrived and the whole ss knew about the rtionship.


    I''d been aware of this all afternoon, but a certain girl hadn''t looked at me once since lunch.


    "Hey Kiyopon, would you like to walk home with me?"


    One such girl, Airi''s good friend and confidant, Haruka, came up to me and called out.


    I was expecting Kei to suggest that we go home together after school, but when I''d looked at her, I saw that she was still surrounded by girls asking her questions.


    "Are you sure?"


    I''d thought that Haruka would do something to help and care for Airi.


    Airi was silently preparing to leave.


    "I know, but there''s nothing I can say to that girl now. Well? Unless you''re saying that there are reasons why Kiyopon can''t go home alone with me." When she said this, Haruka''s expression hardened for a moment.


    "Okay."


    Now that our rtionship has be public knowledge, there are inevitably fewer opportunities to get together with the Ayanok��ji Group.


    Therefore I''d better listen to them as much as I can. Then the two of us took our bags and headed for the front door via the rear exit. On the way, Haruka walked along without saying a word. I asionally stole nces at her face, which looked both angry and sad.


    When I''d put on my shoes and left the school, she finally turned to look at me.


    "I''m going to ask you straight out because there''s no point asking in a roundabout way, but... is it true that you started going out with Karuizawa-san? I still can''t believe it, even now."


    "Just as you saw, it''s true."


    When I told her this, her lips pursed and she nodded quickly.


    "Right? But it was such a shock. It''s not that I care who you go out with, it''s just that I didn''t think it was going to be Karuizawa-san."


    The reputation of Karuizawa Kei was not very high in the eyes of the rest of the student body. Most of them think that she is a selfish girl who went out with the popr Y��suke early and dumped him for her own convenience.


    "So this is what you were talking about in the pool before. It''s a bit of a psychological shock. You know, it''s not just a bit, okay? She was trying to hold it together in the ssroom, but she was crying all throughout lunchtime."


    "I see."


    "Well, no. And are you serious about the fact that you started dating over spring break?"


    "I''m sorry for not telling you, I really am. It''s just that there are a lot of circumstances."


    "Circumstances, huh? Well, there are a lot of rumours about Karuizawa-san, so I can understand that..."


    Considering the fact that she had started dating Y��suke immediately after enrolling at the school, and that she herself had probably been fabricating her past, this kind of perception arising was unavoidable.


    "This is real, isn''t it? I mean, it''s not like, a prank, or anything."


    "Don''t do that."


    "Ha. ...I see. That''s right. I''m so confused too ...No, no, no, no, no, I never would''ve guessed Karuizawa-san, but I had an idea that Kiyopon was dating someone, or that you liked someone who wasn''t Airi..."


    She held her head in her hands,menting that all her predictions had been wrong.


    "I talked to Yukim�� and Miyhi for a bit and they felt the same as me. I haven''t heard directly from them, but I think Airi''s shock was bigger than ours."


    I was sure it was. I could easily imagine that.


    "I mean, how did it happen? It didn''t seem like you had many personal connections at all."


    It''s no wonder she doesn''t know when I started to like Kei, or when she started to like me.


    "I was in the same group as Kei in the Cruise Ship special examst year. From there we started to talk a bit more, and when Y��suke and Kei decided to split up, our rtionship started to take off."


    In February of this year, the fact that the rtionship between Kei and Y��suke had ended reached the ears of some students.


    "So you''re saying you''ve had contact with her for a rather long time?


    You didn''t seem to talk to her on a regr basis."


    "We were mostly talking on our phones."


    "I''m going to have to dig deeper; who confessed first?"


    As Airi''s guardian and spokesperson, she would like to learn more about it.


    "I did."


    "So, if it was at least from Karuizawa, I thought there would still be a chance, but I didn''t expect it to be from Kiyopon... I''m beat."


    She pped her forehead and held up her hands in surrender.


    "There''s so much information, it''s hard to sort through it all. I''m sorry, but can we stop by the convenience store?"


    Just as we were approaching the convenience store, Haruka suggested this to me.


    "Yeah, I''ll wait outside."


    Apologizing lightly, Haruka disappeared into the convenience store in a hurry. I took out my phone, which had vibrated in my pocket several times during this journey.


    [ "I''ll be waiting for you at Keyaki Mall afterwards. It was hard for me to dig up all the answers!" ]


    Such a message of invitation from my girlfriend was left for me.


    [ "Alright. I''ll call you when I leave." ]


    After a brief minute or so, Haruka returned with a croquette in her hand.


    "This afternoon, Airi and I were talking so much that we couldn''t eat lunch at all."


    "Sorry to trouble you."


    "I don''t mean to be a nuisance or anything, but..."


    "I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to ask you out at a time like this, but there''s actually something I''d like to ask Haruka and, if possible, Airi to help me with."


    "Cooperation?"


    "It''s not public information yet, but we''ve decided on one of the events for the cultural festival."


    "Oh, really?"


    "This is a secret that only I, Horikita, and the organisers know about, so as not to let any information leak out. We''re going to have a maid caf�� as part of the festival."


    "Ma-... maid caf��? What the heck ...I''m not shocked, but a little surprised. I never imagined Horikita-san would approve of a maid caf��.


    "In her case, she''s pretty t about everything she does. I think she allowed it because she thought she couldpete purely with a maid caf�� without any prejudice."


    "I see. And what made you ask me for help?"


    "Actually, the way I found out about this project, I had to take care of a number of things."


    When I said that, Haruka nodded her head as if she understood.


    "Even if the situation was like that, Horikita-san, who wants to leave it to Kiyopon, is also quintessential."


    "So, I''m wondering if I could ask you and then Airi to be waitresses for the caf��."


    Not surprised, Haruka listens with an indescribable look on her face.


    Well, I suppose you could have guessed from the way I was talking.


    "If it hadn''t been for the incident with Karuizawa, I might have agreed to do it here, despite my reservations. I don''t like to dress up like a cosyer in front of a lot of people, but I don''t think I would have been able to say no if an important member of my group of friends had asked me to. But... it is bad timing."


    On the day that I found out that my best friend had lost her heart, it would have been a bit of a surprise for me to ask her to do this.


    "It''s just that I can''t me Kiyopon, that''s also a problem. I said something simr, but you''re entitled to go out with whoever you want, and I''m sure there are circumstances I don''t know about. Airi is free to fall in love with Kiyopon, just like you are free to reject her..."


    It''s like you''re convinced in a logical sense, but your emotions won''t ept it.


    "I can''t make any promises. But when I''m a bit more rxed, I''ll talk to Airi."


    "Are you sure?"


    "Sooner orter, she has to ept reality. And, I don''t know what Kiyopon, thinks, but if it''s against Karuizawa-san, she might not give up.


    Even if it''s just a one-percent chance, there''s a possibility she might hold hope, right?"


    "Well, yes. I think there''s a great deal of potential for her to be affectionate."


    "When that timees, it means that Airi will get another chance.


    She''s a gem who hasn''t stood out at all at the moment, and... Kiyopon''s feelings might change too."


    It''s true that if Airi were to put on a costume like that and give it her all, she could be as good as Matsushita, Sat��, and Mii-chan. No, if you include her physical characteristics, she might even be able to beat them.


    Furthermore, although not rted to the guests of honour, the school staff will be surprised by Airi''s appearance. If this happens, rumours will quickly circte around the school and may even reach the ears of guests.


    "No, that''s not true. I''m sure Airi will change her mind after this incident."


    When the person you love has a girlfriend, it''s natural to begin looking for your next love interest. I thought I''d said the obvious, but she now looked the angriest she''d looked all day.


    "Listen, don''t you think you''re taking Airi''s feelings too lightly? I''ve been watching her for a long time, and I know exactly how she feels. Her feelings towards Kiyopon aren''t so light that they''ll be shaken because of something like this.


    She strongly denied that it is unthinkable.


    "I''m sure you''ll be going on lots of dates with Karuizawa-san, but make sure you show up to our group gatherings. I don''t want us to drift apart because of this."


    "Right. I get it. For me too, this group is part of my life at this school."


    I think it''s a big downside to be missing out in a situation like this.


    "Ugh, I feel a bit better. I''m going back to school."


    She said this as she finished her croquettes and put her trash away in her bag.


    Although she didn''t specify, it was clear that she was going to see Airi.


    "I''ll see you tomorrow."


    "Yeah, see you tomorrow."


    The girl ran back to the school, and I followed Haruka''s back to the halfway point. I then changed my direction, not towards the dormitory, but towards Keyaki Mall.

 Chapter 206: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 206: 2.3</h4>


    After school, I was still in a state of turmoil. I walked with Kei back to the dormitory from Keyaki Mall, chatting with her. Then, in the lobby of the dormitory, Horikita was sitting on a sofa, waiting for someone.


    It''s easy to see who that person is. I pushed the call button of the elevator, that had stopped on the first floor, and when Kei and I got on board, Horikita also got in.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, can I have a word with you?"


    The elevator stops on the fourth floor, where my room is.


    "Well, I''ll see youter, Kiyotaka."


    Although Kei is prone to jealousy and envy, she has a good understanding of the situation.


    She knew that Horikita was not such a target of the opposite sex in the first ce, and when she heard about the special exam, she could judge before, and she thought it better not to interfere.


    "Ah. I''ll be in touchter."


    A year ago, I would never have believed that we would be spending time together like this.


    I got off and Horikita followed me down. I looked back to see Kei smiling and waving at me from the lift as it began to close. Shortly afterwards, it closed and went up to the next floor.


    "How long have you been seeing her?"


    "I wonder."


    "Rumour has it that it''s spring break, but I think the rtionship started developing even earlier than that."


    She looked at me with a hint of anger in her eyes and said something like that.


    "I wonder." Whether there is a rationale behind Horikita''s words or not, I''m not interested in or willing to touch on that point. "That''s not the point, you said you wanted to talk to me?"


    "Yes. There''s something I need you to tell me about the special exam.


    Okay?"


    "Yeah, no problem."


    "Huh?"


    "What''s with that reaction?"


    "I was prepared for you to refuse. You were in charge of the maid caf�� the other day and you didn''t like it, did you?"


    Apparently, she''s surprised at how readily I''ve epted her consultation.


    "Not here. We should go to your room."


    Standing in the corridor, you never know who might overhear. Room 401. I unlocked my room and enter inside.


    "It''s not like you''re asking me to help you, right?"


    "I don''t know about that... In the meantime, if you''ll listen to me, I''ll let you proceed."


    Perhaps thinking that she would be rejected if she provoked me too much, Horikita let it slide and started talking.


    "If you want to make sure that you clear this special exam, I was thinking about making it semipulsory before the exam. But even if we prepare for it, it is impossible to unite our ss unless we know what the question is, isn''t it?"


    "I''m sure we''ll inevitably have to use different options depending on the situation."


    Even if there were only two options, it would be nothing short of reckless to decide to vote only for or only against a proposal before it is put to a vote.


    "You''ve thought of the means in your own way, haven''t you, Horikita?


    How can we get through this special exam?"


    "I think that the easiest way to solidly pass the special exam is for someone to have the final say. No matter how many options there are, no matter how the vote splits, you have to promise that you will follow the pre-determined leader''s judgment and will."


    This was suggested to us by Kushida during the day.


    The strategy is to not take into ount whether an individual is unhappy with the option or not.


    Surely it would be so much easier if that arrangement could be reached.


    "I hope that really brings everyone together."


    "Yes. There will always be students who don''t agree with some of the questions... If this had been a dictatorial ss like the one led by Ry��en-kun, it might have been easier for us."


    In terms of coercive power, unlike us who request it, Ry��en will be able to exert it with impunity. But the real question is whether it will work.


    "The fact that all voting is anonymous means that students who are unhappy with Ry��en can vote against it. There is no guarantee that a meremand will be enough to clear it."


    "If a student is unhappy with his methods, he may rebel. But there''s nothing to be gained by doing so. After all, if the vote is split and time runs out, the whole ss will be damaged. In the end they''ll just leave it alone ande together."


    "I know what you mean, but if you''re going to say that, you''re contradicting yourself in the first ce. No one wants to fail the special exam. That''s why the votes will alwayse together. If that basic premise always holds, then there''s no need for a strategy in the first ce, is there?"


    "That''s..."


    "No student wants to run out of time and be the detriment of the ss.


    But don''t expect them toplete the five questions if they are left to their own devices. If that were possible, it would defeat the purpose of the school calling it a special exam."


    "You''re right."


    "What you can do now is to prepare your mind to be flexible. For example, what would you do if you were faced with an issue where 38 people were in favour and one was against?"


    "Of course we will try to bring the one person who is against it to the side in favour."


    "Right. Then what if that one person opposing you never gave in?"


    "That''s..."


    "It''s not always the 38 people who agree with you who win. In the process of persuading the opposition, some of the 38 students who were in favour may even change their opinions."


    "Even if just one person''s ideas are detrimental to the ss atrge?"


    "It all depends on the content, I guess."


    I wouldn''t be surprised if there is a question in store for us that we could never ovee.


    "I feel a bit uneasy, don''t you?"


    "What is it?"


    "Because without hesitation you gave me advice. I don''t think it has anything to do with... the fact that you started dating Karuizawa-san, but what do you intend to do?"


    "It''s not much advice. I''m sure in some small corner of your mind you''ve already started to think about that possibility."


    "Yes... Then I''ll tell you the main reason why I approached you. I have a proposal for a special exam tomorrow. I could ask someone else, but I want to ask someone who understands me."


    "Do you want people to always vote separately on the first round of voting, or what?"


    "Can you please not pre-empt my thoughts?"


    When I saw the hint of irritation in her eyes, I took some distance from Horikita.


    "It was something I was going to suggest, if no one else had proposed it. I didn''t think we were on the same page."


    "...Really?"


    I could see Horikita''s anger dissipating, apparently convinced a bit by my now adequate excuse.


    It is true that the proposal should have at least done that. It is better to avoid the risk of making an unexpected choice as a result of bias caused by the momentum of the situation.


    "Even if it''s a question that you agree or disagree with 99% of the time, or if you''re confused about an option that has advantages and disadvantages for both sides, coincidence can be a bit scary."


    "Ah. If a vote is passed due to a lopsided vote as a result of a proper vote, it can''t be undone. But the strategy of always using the interval at least once is not always a good one. You have to bear that in mind. There is always the risk that what would have been unanimous in the spur of the moment may be inconclusive when the votes are split. You have to take that into ount."


    "Right. Of course."


    To argue is to plunge one''s hand into the deepest darkness. This can consume a huge amount of time if it results in an unexpected darkness being dragged out.


    "Due to the rules of this special test, there is no way to determine with certainty who voted which way, no matter how much we discuss it. Even if you get a statement, it may not be 100% true."


    "Does that mean you can lie and lie and lie?"


    "In some cases, yes. Because right now, it''s hard to say that the ss is still united as one."


    Having said that, I''m sure a few people will have popped into Horikita''s head.


    "You mean the existence of Kushida-san and K��enji-kun."


    "As for the former, I''m sure she''ll lie about everything, and as for thetter, he might even dare to vote for someone different from his ssmates if his vicious nature shows through. That''s about it."


    "Hey, why did you tell me all the details? It''s weird. It''s not every day that you give me a warning like this."


    Horikita, of course, senses the changes in me.


    "I decided that the current Horikita would be flexible enough to listen to me and understand what I was saying."


    "Am I right in saying that that''s apliment...?"


    "Yes."


    "Yes... I''m feeling a bit restless..."


    In the background, I heard a phone vibrate briefly in front of me.


    "I''m sorry about that."


    When she stopped talking, Horikita took out her mobile phone and stared at the screen.


    "Please give me one minute. I need to message them back otherwise they may get a wrong idea."


    I have no intention of stopping her, of course, but who is she talking about?


    I was a little curious, but I decided to wait quietly as Horikita took about two minutes topose a long message. Eventually she finished her message and put her phone away in her pocket.


    "Anyway, I''ve got my message across. Good luck with the special exam tomorrow."


    Not intending to stay long, Horikita quickly left the room.

 Chapter 207: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 207: 2.4</h4>


    It was just before 6:00pm in the evening. The sun will soon set and night will fall. Today was supposed to be an ordinary day, although the next special exam was revealed.


    It''s been a difficult day with a lot of information to sort through. It would be easier if we could just move on towards the end of the day, but that''s not going to happen. The reason is that the special ''unanimous voting exam'' will begin tomorrow.


    "Hey."


    I went back to my room and waited, and the first person to show up was Y��suke.


    "Come on in."


    When I thought about it, this was the first time I had invited Y��suke into my room like this.


    "Yoo-hoo!"


    Not long after, Kei came to join us in my room.


    "It''s kind of new or unusual to get together like this, isn''t it?"


    "Maybe so."


    I haven''t told them why I asked them to gather together. Y��suke might have guessed, though.


    "Tomorrow''s special exam, I thought I''d prepare some measures."


    "Measures? You''re simply trying to make the test unanimous, aren''t you?"


    "It certainly doesn''t sound like a very difficult exam from the outline, does it? The special exams that have been held in the past have had much more difficult rules."


    "I''m not sure what to make of it," he said.


    "But maybe this special exam, like the difficult ones in the past, will not be straightforward. If you think about it ording to the rules, it''s an exam where you can get more ss points simply by being unanimous.


    Unifying the will of the ss itself is not that difficult."


    "I think so too."


    "I mean, I guess the fact that it''s easy means that there''s a good chance that we''ll be presented with a question that will divide opinions."


    It''s just as Y��suke thinks. Although the individual students in the ss have different ideas, they are willing to be flexible to a certain extent to align their votes if it will benefit the ss.


    If you''re a first-year student, it might be a different story, but for us second-year students, the bonds of friendship have already deepened considerably. In addition, there is no penalty for not being able to reach unanimous agreement on the first try, and there is plenty of time for discussion.


    It is because it''s a test that individual opinions can be so covered up, though, that it can appear to be such a blessing.


    "But, you know, what kind of questions are difficult to get unanimous agreement on?"


    "I can''t read through itpletely, but... I think..."


    What kind of question would trouble his ssmates? It wasn''t something that Y��suke could immediately think of. I suggested a simple question.


    "From now until you graduate, you will only be able to eat either rice or bread. Make your choice."


    "Oh, what''s that option~"


    "If you ask me about rice and bread, it sounds a bitughable, but this is a difficult choice to make."


    "I would definitely eat bread. I wouldn''t be able to eat no bread until I graduated."


    "I''d probably go for rice. I only need bread once a week or so."


    "I''m more of a rice man myself. And, well, even the three of us have different opinions, don''t we? It''s not so easy when the whole ss has to vote. If there were 30 of us in the Rice camp, would you follow us?"


    "No, I wouldn''t. Because it''s a ban until you graduate. I''ll keep voting for bread."


    Some students will resist, as Kei did, because if they do not follow the majority and bend, they will sufferter.


    "On a more realisticparison, all future special examinations will be based on ''academic'' or ''physical'' ability alone. What would be the oue of such a question?"


    Hearing this, Y��suke and Kei looked at each other.


    "If you''re an athletic student like Sud��, you''re definitely going to choose physical ability, and if you''re like Keisei who''s not very good at sports, you''re going to have to bring your academic ability to a unanimous decision no matter what."


    Of course, Sud��, who is currently putting a lot of effort into his studies, couldpromise, but it would be better for his own reputation if he were evaluated on his physical abilities, and if it were a student who could not study at all, he would not be able topromise like Sud��.


    "If a question is passed unanimously, it''s enforced, right? So does that mean that in some cases you have to be prepared to lose 300 ss points in penalty for not choosing an option?"


    "I don''t know... There will obviously be some difficult choices, but losing 300 ss points could mean giving up your ticket to ss A. I think the first priority would be to clear it."


    "I''m starting to think it might be some kind of difficult special exam..."


    "Is that why you invited us here?"


    "Ah. The very next special examination will require a great deal of unity among ssmates. It''s okay to have one or two full disagreements, but if it''s a long time, I''m sure it''s going to be a mess. In the event that this happens, the two main figures in the ss, Y��suke and Kei, will need to be on top of things to get the vote to go one way or the other.


    "Yes, you''re right. But then, shouldn''t Horikita-san also be included in this conversation? Because Horikita-san is also ying the role of a leader of the ss in this exam."


    Y��suke''s point is a natural one. The best way to control the ss is for Horikita to lead the two of them, not me. Even if he wanted to, at this stage, he couldn''t remove his support.


    "This time, you will support Horikita from the shadows. Just keep what goes on here confidential."


    "Why? Well, as for me, I don''t like following Horikita-san''s instructions."


    "Both you and Y��suke have the ability to read the atmosphere better than the average student. But I want them to be more flexible than they are now. If they can sense what Horikita is thinking and what she wants to do and match it, the ss will be much stronger."


    "Why don''t you just do it, Kiyotaka? That''s a better solution."


    "It''s not always possible for me to make a move. You have to be prepared for the unexpected."


    "What''s the contingency?"


    "It could be a sudden illness or an unexpected withdrawal from school, right?"


    "It''s... Well... Expulsion is one thing, but surely it couldn''t be a sudden illness?"


    I can''t be there for them all the time.


    If they can''t prepare for such a situation, the ss won''t make any progression.


    "Anyway, I understand. All we have to do is follow Horikita-san well and make sure the special exam goes smoothly, right?"


    "Also, I''m going to set some instructions and cues that only Kei and Y��suke will know."


    The interval allows for free discussion and movement, so there is no problem in giving an earful. However, it can be necessary in certain situations to give instructions without being seenmunicating. Even in situations where private conversation is not allowed, it is possible to exchange signs by coughing or tapping on the desk.


    After they''d learned a few patterns, I looked at Y��suke.


    "I''ll give you onest piece of advice, Y��suke. It''s not necessary if the five questions are going to bepleted smoothly, but if the time remaining is less than two hours and you still don''t see the special exam clearing in time, you might have to resort to forceful measures."


    I decided to tell Y��suke to prepare himself now so that he wouldn''t go out of control when that time came.

 Chapter 208: 2.5

    <h4>Chapter 208: 2.5</h4>


    It was just after 10pm when the hectic day before the special examinations seemed to being to an end.


    I was in bed looking at my phone when I got a call. Although I don''t have the contact saved, I recognized the 11-digit phone number.


    "Hello?"


    "I''m sorry it''s sote at night, can I have a moment now?"


    "It''s all right. It''s been a long time since I''ve heard from you, Chairman Sakayanagi."


    Yes, the owner of this phone number is the director of the Advanced Nurturing High School.


    "I''m sure I''ve caused you a lot of anxiety too, but everything''s okay now."


    "I''m d to hear you''re doing well."


    "It must have been tough for you too. But I''m amazed that you''ve been able to stay in this school without any problems in that very unfavourable battle."


    "It just so happens. If he had been serious, I wouldn''t still be here right now."


    It is not necessary to mention his name to know that he is Tsukishiro, who had been filling in as Acting Director for Chairman Sakayanagi.


    "When it was all said and done, I had a few questions about his behaviour too... But let''s not talk about that today. I just wanted to let you know that I''m going to be following up with you in the future."


    That''s how Chairman Sakayanagi continues his story.


    "You have heard about the unusual festival, to which government officials and their families have been invited, haven''t you? Once I had approached them, there was nothing I could do to stop it."


    If you''ve already notified the people involved, it''s understandably difficult to withdraw.


    "It''s nothing for the chairman of the board to apologise for. I''m sure the students are looking forward to it."


    It''s a bit like a special exam, but it''s in the realm of student fun.


    Whether it will end up being just a cultural festival for me is another story.


    "About that... Actually, there is something that hasn''t been announced yet, but I''m going to tell you about it first."


    "What is it?"


    "As well as the cultural festival, the sports festival in October is a precursor to it. First of all, it was decided on short notice to wee certain guests here."


    "Guests of honour at a sports festival?"


    It''s something I never thought I''d hear.


    "If you go back to the beginning, sports festivals are for the parents of the students toe and watch. In that sense, the stance of weing the guests of honour itself is not dissimr..."


    "I see."


    It is true that when we watch TV, we often see families with cameras and lunchboxes prepared for sports events.


    "This is an unprecedented event, and we are concerned about the security implications of allowing guests toe and go as they please at our school''s festivals."


    It was a test, a preparation for the arrival of arge number of guests in earnest.


    "The selection of people is entirely up to the higher-ups, and the teachers in charge can''t rule out the possibility that... your father may be involved. So, in view of the danger to you, I would like to have a few observers by your side."


    "That''s very kind of you, but I''m just one of the students at this school.


    I don''t want any special treatment."


    "Then how are you going to cope when you encounter the people that Sensei sent?"


    "I know it''s a difficult issue."


    You can''t use violence to get through this, of course. It''s easy for me to do so if I''m in a secluded area, but if I''m in the presence of friends and acquaintances and I''m instructed to show up with a school official following me, there''s no way to refuse.


    You are imposters, you are his assassins, aren''t you? I can''t ask that question.


    "I already understand that you are such a person. But if you are expelled from this school in any way... I am sure I will regret it. I want to avoid the regret of not doing what I could to prevent it."


    "Even if I were to follow Chairman Sakayanagi''s instructions, it would be unnatural for a student to have a monitoring officer."


    "So I''m going to have to ask you to sit out the sports festival."


    "Be absent..?"


    That''s not what I had expected in my head.


    "We understand that when ites to exams that can only be held on a certain day, such as sports and cultural festivals, there will of course be inevitable sick leaves."


    "Yes. Although the ss will be disadvantaged, there are nopulsory measures such as expulsion, right?"


    We are all responsible for our own health, but there are still inevitable problems.


    If it was a smaller special exam, we could wait until all the students were in each year group and take emergency measures, but if it was an all-school sports festival, we couldn''t do that.


    "I''m going to ask you to stay in your dormitory on sick leave on the assumption that you''ve had a medical check. Then I can ce my trusted observer outside the dormitory with confidence."


    If you are sick and have been ordered to stay in the dormitory, your ssmates will agree that you have no choice.


    Even if there is a watchman wandering around the dormitory, the other students will only see one guard.


    "Surely, then, you might be able to escape the hands of that man."


    "Of course there is another risk. As you said, the students in the sses you''re enrolled with are at a disadvantage because they''re going to be challenged with ack of students."


    The fact that he''s prepared to lie about taking a sick day shows the generous support of Chairman Sakayanagi. It''s also nice to know that he''s not trying to be a favoritist and wants to keep the special treatment to a minimum. I''m grateful for the offer, but the moment I heard about it I knew I had to say no.


    But at the same time, I had a new idea.


    "Can you give me some time to think about it?"


    "Of course, I can''t force you to do anything, so I''ll leave the final decision to you. But..."


    "I know, I know. I''m seriously considering the option of epting sick leave now, too, so..."


    "Yes. I''ll ask you to answer a week before the sports festival. We have some preparations to make too."


    It would take at least that long to arrange the personnel.


    After the call, I thought about the possibility of the ss having a sports festival without me.


    Of course, it is quite possible that other sses or grades will have students absent on the day of the event. In fact, it is not easy to get all the students to sit every exam.


    "No, I should concentrate on the special exam in front of me first, right?"


    This special exam - I think it might be more difficult than any other special exam I''ve ever had. All the exams I''ve taken so far have been ones that I could have taken any form of preparation for. However, there is no such thing as a "sure-fire" strategy in this particr test.


    We are expected to believe in our ssmates and to work together as one.


    P.E. and cultural festivals. There are new things to worry about that weren''t therest year, but it all starts with getting through the special exam tomorrow.

 Chapter 209: 2.6

    <h4>Chapter 209: 2.6</h4>


    "Come in, Kushida-senpai."


    A few hours ago. After school, Kushida visited the first-year dormitory, and Takuya Yagami''s room.


    The sun was shining faintly through the gaps in the closed curtains. The tea was freshly brewed on the table, but Kushida didn''t reach for it.


    "There''s nothing like poison or drugs in it, you know?"


    "I don''t care about that, can you just get on with it?"


    With a scowl on her face and no attempt to hide her frustration, Kushida pulled out her mobile phone.


    "Excuse me, senpai. Then let me ask you without hesitation."


    Yagami pressed the y button and heard Chabashira''s voice in the middle of the exnation, giving an overview of the special unanimous voting exam announced for the second-year students.


    After listening in silence to the entire lecture, including the examples, Yagami returned the phone to Kushida.


    "Kushida-senpai wants to crush Horikita Suzune and Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka. That''s what it was about, wasn''t it?"


    Kushida kept silent, as if she didn''t need to answer now.


    "I was briefed by our senpai beforehand, but it is still a very simple special exam. From a number of options, you have to repeatedly vote and adjust your votes to reach unanimity. There are five questions in total, and you have five hours toplete them. What did you think when you heard this?"


    "Easy, right?"


    "Yes, it is. It is considered to be very easy for an exam that is billed as a special exam. But only the punishment for running out of time is severe.


    This must be because the school assumes every ss will clear. The closer the time is to expiry, the closer to unanimity everyone will inevitably be.


    Because whether you like the choice or not, everyone wants to avoid heavy penalties."


    Yagami reached for the cup of tea that continues to steam in front of Kushida and took it in his hands.


    "Well, here''s the main thing. We are already in the middle of our second year. But while I''d like to expel those two, I haven''t had the best opportunity to do it so far."


    "As far as I''m concerned, you''re a little bit responsible for that, but that doesn''t matter right now." Yagami responded with a smirk.


    She knew that there was nothing to be gained byshing out at Yagami here, so she held back.


    "Have you been able to tell your senpais about Horikita?"


    "Oh, you mean the one about her being a... leader? In a manner of speaking. Well, I''m sure she''d have done it on her own without me telling her."


    "It is not good to leave things vague and ambiguous. It''s important for you to know that Horikita-senpai has been entrusted with this role."


    "So what? You think you can get Horikita expelled at the next special exam?"


    When she asked him about it, heughed and sipped from his cup.


    "That''s right. I''ve listened to the recording just to make sure I didn''t miss anything or misinterpret anything, but this is clear. There is a good chance that the next special exam... there is a good possibility."


    "How could you possibly know that? The only condition for expulsion is to let the umted penalty time umte in the individual''s voting time. Do you think Horikita would make such a mistake? It''s not just Horikita, no one else would make that mistake."


    "Of course, it is unlikely that any fool would be expelled for a cumtive penalty. But my interpretation is that there are other ways to get expelled."


    "Huh?"


    "Expel Horikita-senpai or, depending on the situation, Ayanok��ji-senpai. It is possible that you can crush the one you want to crush. In that case, you should not hesitate to guide the conversation so that you can target both."


    Yagami mentioned an example of a question that he expected to be given in this special examination.


    "Are you sure?"


    "Of course, I don''t think it will be the same word for word. But. I think there is a good chance that there will be a question with the same content as what I have just mentioned."


    Yagami hadn''t been told about this special exam by Tsukishiro, but after listening to the teacher''s exnation, he had an idea of what the questions would be.


    "There is only one path Kushida-senpai would take when presented with a question like the one I just mentioned."


    He then exins how she can corner Horikita and Ayanok��ji in that question.


    "What do you think? Doesn''t this make you see the letter of expulsion?


    Of course, the whole ss will have to cry, but that''s a trifle to you, isn''t it?"


    "You think I can do it...?"


    "I see that Kushida-senpai has the ability to do that, am I wrong?"


    "You''re doing a lot of shopping already."


    "I had to test my senpais when I first met them to see if they were people I could use, you know?"


    "What does that mean?"


    "Don''t you understand? Do you remember what I said when we first met?"


    "I was in a hurry at the time. So what?"


    "So what? Normally, you would wonder. We''re strangers, we''ve never even met each other before. And yet you were able to get through the situation by improvising. That''s how I knew you were capable enough."


    "But what if I''d said who you were right there? Maybe I simply forgot."


    "I don''t think so. As long as we don''t know where we met, maybe we were in the same secondary school. If that''s the case, there''s a possibility that you know about my past. If I were to say, "I knew you because of that incident," it would be a disaster."


    In order to rule out such a possibility, Kushida immediately went to work on the story.


    "If it''s not the same secondary school, for example, but a cram school.


    Or if you found outter that it was a younger student who lived in your neighbourhood, then the risk of being someone who knows your past is greatly reduced. You can justugh it off as a misunderstanding. The first priority is to make sure that we are from the same secondary school, isn''t it?


    And it''s easier to divert the conversation if the subject of the past is brought up at all."


    After drinking about a quarter of the tea, he put the cup on the table.


    "Who the hell are you? How do you know about my past when we didn''t even go to the same secondary school...?"


    "I know you''re wary, but think of me as a guest in a special position.


    However, my goal is to y with Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    "What? To y with him?"


    "Yeah, well, I don''t think he knows anything about me. Right now, it''s my hobby to try different things without Ayanok��ji-senpai noticing."


    "What if I got upset when we first met and didn''t give you the answer you thought I should''ve?"


    At that time, Kushida was wondering how Yagami would answer.


    "That''s what I thought was so interesting. I''m sure Ayanok��ji-senpai noticed the difort and looked at me with suspicion. I probably would have been able to greet him at an earlier stage."


    "Are you telling me you went to the same secondary school as Ayanok��ji, by any chance?"


    "Well, what do you think? It''s a trivial matter for Kushida-senpai. Shall we turn our attention to the special examination for now?"


    "I know. If we get the question you''re after... then I''ll try and set it up."


    "You''re going try to set up...? That''s pathetic."


    "Pathetic? What do you mean weak?"


    Yagami stood up, stepped closer and grabbed Kushida by the shoulders, who reflexively tried to flee.


    "Hey, what are you doing?!"


    She tried to get away from him, but the power of Yagami was stronger than she had imagined, and she could not move.


    "Please, listen carefully. You are in a much tighter spot than you think.


    Not only do you have Ayanok��ji-senpai and Horikita-senpai surrounding you, but you also have people who you consider to be a cause for concern, such as myself and Amasawa-san, who continue to threaten your daily safety and livelihood. Isn''t that right?"


    "That''s ...yes, but..."


    As Yagami stared her straight in the eye, Kushida red back at him without fear.


    "As a matter of course, it is not easy to kick out your fellow ssmates in this school. It takes a lot of effort to expel a student in his or her personal life. If there is an opportunity to expel a ssmate through a special exam like this, it is unmistakably the chance of a lifetime."


    "I know that. But if you go too far, you''ll put me in danger."


    "So you have to be prepared for that. Expel or be expelled."


    Kushida felt as if she was under a strong pressure, even though she was the one who wanted the expulsions done.


    "Of course, it''s up to you to decide. If I were to say here, "If you don''t want your past of ss disruptions to be exposed, you must expel either Horikita-senpai or Ayanok��ji-senpai," that wouldn''t be very charming would it?"


    "That''s what I call a threat."


    "I''m sorry, senpai. I really don''t mean to scare you. It''s just that I think it''s true that Kushida-senpai isn''t prepared enough. No matter what sacrifices you have to make, you have to get rid of them. If you don''t do something like that, you won''t be able to drive them out of school. Forever."


    Removing his hands from her shoulders, Yagami returns to his seat and sat down.


    "Let me ask you again. Senpai wants those two to be expelled. Isn''t that right?"


    When Yagami looked her in the eye again, Kushida felt a mixture of anger and frustration.


    That is something that does not need to be reaffirmed.


    It''s what she''d been wishing for every day for thest year and a half.


    "I want to expel Horikita, I want to expel Ayanok��ji. I''m definitely going to get them expelled...!"


    "I can feel it, and finally I can confirm that your conviction is genuine."


    Kushida is determined. She must expel Horikita and Ayanok��ji as soon as possible. Then there''s also Yagami who talks about whatever he pleases.


    Sometime in the future, he''ll have to be expelled too.

 Chapter 210 - 3 : Dark Clouds

    <h4>Chapter 210: Chapter 3 : Dark Clouds</h4>


    THE ALARM CLOCK which I''ve kept for ten years, rang in my ear. I silently and quickly reached for it, and without a second thought, I roughly pressed the snooze button. It tumbled off the mini-table with onest squeal. This clock has taken way more damage than this so I don''t care.


    "It''s already six o''clock..."


    In the end, I only slept for about two hours and it was already morning.


    I took off my pajamas, which I didn''t know when I had changed into, and headed to the sink in my underwear with heavy steps. As I did so, I picked up the rm clock and found that the battery cover attached with cellophane tape hade off and a battery had fallen to the floor.


    "I guess I was a little too rough. I''ll be more careful tomorrow, so forgive me." I then stepped in front of the mirror. "Oh my..."


    I couldn''t possibly show my face in front of the students in my current state. I''ve been rtively sleep deprived for the past few days, and the dark circles under my eyes look even more visible today.


    After washing my face carefully, I put together a list of cosmetics that I rarely use. I don''t want my students to know that I''m in a bad or... unstable state. As I picked up a bottle of lotion, my eyes suddenly met with my own in the mirror. Without thinking, I touch my cheek.


    The sticity and tactile sensationing from my fingertips will never be the same as when I was in school.


    "I''ve grown old, haven''t I?"


    It''s only been a little more than ten years, but it''s still ten years. That''s how long it''s been since I''ve seen him, and I can''t help but be reminded of...


    "Is such a thing trivial...?"


    It''s not that I''ve started to understand reality just now. I''ve known it all along. I resume my halted movements, open the lid, and silently begin applying makeup.


    One day it wille.


    I knew this from the moment I decided to be a teacher.


    I should have known, but I wasn''t really ready for it.


    "Calm down. This isn''t my fight. The situation is different from that time. I''m sure my current ss will be able to get through this without a hitch. Yes, they should. It''s useless to be nervous."


    I felt my heart beating faster and tried to convince myself that this was just like the other exams.


    Such shallow thinking did not work, and my heart beat faster and faster. At this rate, I won''t be able to hold myself together until the end of the special exam. I can''t imagine what the future holds.


    "Prepare yourself..."


    I muttered to myself as I pressed both palms against the mirror and red at my reflection.

 Chapter 211: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 211: 3.1</h4>


    A teacher''s morning is surprisingly busy. At this school, I live in a dormitory, and I work on the premises, which means I''m always close to the school.


    However, there is a lot to do. I have to prepare for ss, check my emails, and sometimes check the pool''s water quality. However, the start time of the workday is the same as the start of homeroom, so it''s practically like service overtime. After the morning preparations are over, there is a morning meeting with the other teachers.


    Especially on days when special exams are held, the rush is doubled or tripled. There is absolutely no room for error on the part of the school, as it will affect the lives of the students, and then some.


    "In this special exam, our teachers'' utmost concern should be to not intervene in the exam. We want to protect the students in our own ss, but we can''t help them unintentionally, please avoid such a situation."


    Ikari-sensei, who had gathered the homeroom teachers of the four sses and was auditing this special exam, warned us with a stern face.


    "Um, I know it''s a littlete, but do you have a minute?"


    "What is it, Hoshinomiya-sensei?"


    "As I recall, thest time this exam was held... 11 years ago, a measure was taken to shuffle the teachers so that they would not be assigned to the same ss, right? So why is it that this time the homeroom teacher is still looking after their own ss? If you are concerned about fairness, I think you should change it."


    As far as issuing a warning, I could sense the school''s intention to stop the homeroom teacher''s intervention. But surely it would be better to leave the other sses in charge. Not many teachers would go to the trouble of risking their lives to help a rival ss.


    "Isn''t it because you believe that fairness will be maintained?"


    Sakayanagi-sensei, who was listening to the conversation, analyzed it calmly.


    "Is that so?"


    "I can''t tell you for any other reason than because that''s the decision."


    "So the top brass decided it..."


    In all the special exams, there is nothing that we, a single teacher, can decide. It''s decided by Chairman Sakayanagi and those who are involved in the management and operation of this school.


    All we can do is follow the rules and try to make it work. However, it didn''t seem to make any sense, and Chie didn''t even try to hide her dissatisfaction. Ikari-sensei, who could not bear to see this, opened his mouth in a low voice.


    "This is my own personal imagination, but this special exam has the potential to look inside the minds of students. To see existences they''ve kept hidden. It is a massive chunk of information. I think they thought that by leaking it to the teachers of other sses, it would in turn affect the next special exam."


    "Doesn''t that mean that they don''t believe in us teachers after all?"


    "It can''t be helped, can it? This special exam, the three homeroom teachers seem to have experienced the same thing in the past and... Isn''t that also the reason why they each took the ss they were in charge of in the in-ss voting heldst year?"


    "That''s what I thought."


    Chie seemed to be convinced once again, as if to say that she had known it from the beginning.


    "Hoshinomiya-sensei, can we proceed...?"


    "Sure, whatever. I''m somewhat convinced, so please proceed."


    Ikari-sensei resumed his exnation as if he had given up, though Chie was clearly in a bad mood.


    "If the supervisor deems it to be advice, you will be warned. If it is repeated, there will be a pay cut. Also, I am not worried about you all, but I would like to make sure that the students make the choice on their own.


    Remember that if you are judged to have intervened in a malicious manner, such as intentionally leading, you may be demoted at worst."


    The unanimous special exam is all about choices. If a teacher acts in a way that shoulders and leads to a particr choice, it''s only natural that the nature of the special exam itself will be questioned. Of course, neither the teachers of the other sses nor I have any such intentions. We just proceeded as usual, solemnly and quietly, without getting too emotionally involved with the students. That is something that will not change even if this is a special exam filled with bitter memories.


    "That''s all. Now, please take care of the special exam."


    After that, I tried to keep things as usual and got through the morning ss.


    No, I was the only one who thought it was business as usual, but in reality, it most definitely wasn''t. I had no sense of time, and before I knew it, it was lunch.


    On the desk in the staff room was a half-eaten meal. About a third of the way down my throat, my chopsticks stopped moving. Not wanting to be seen like this, I put the rest of my lunch in a bag and put it away.


    As I left the staff room, staring at the floor, I heard the sound of footstepsing from behind me.


    "It''s finally here, Sae-chan."


    "Words of wisdom or something?"


    "You''ve been like that since this morning, I noticed. You couldn''t sleepst night because you were thinking about the special exam, right?"


    I tune out the obvious and cheap provocation.


    No, it would be more correct to say that I couldn''t answer back.


    "This ss has nothing to do with me. It doesn''t matter if the students clear it easily or not."


    "Hmm? You don''t seem to truly feel that way. Whatever, just know that Sae-chan doesn''t have the qualifications to aim for ss A. Never forget that."


    As I walked away, Chie''s voice was filled with resentment and she didn''t bother to hide it.


    I was unable to raise my head until I turned the corner.

 Chapter 212: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 212: 3.2</h4>


    September 17th.


    After lunch break. Less than three weeks after the summer break, the next special exam arrived.


    When I came back to the ssroom about five minutes before the exam started, there was already one adult waiting in the ssroom. He was quietly watching the students from the back of the ssroom. What surprised me a little was that I was instructed to sit not in my seat, but in a seat that was designated only for this exam. I wondered if they were trying to be more strict with the rules. Interestingly enough, I was seated at the very back of the ss, near the window, where I had sat in my first year. The rest of the students were randomly assigned to seats regardless of their cementst year or this year. I just happened to be in simr seats it seems.


    Sat�� sat down to my right. The students began to arrive one after another.


    The test we are going to take is the "Unanimous Voting Special Test".


    It''s a simple test, nothing more, nothing less, in which you have to choose from multiple options, five questions given by the school and repeat them until you reach unanimous agreement. There are not many things worth mentioning about this special exam, but there are also few countermeasures that can be taken in advance. Regardless of the content of the question , there is nomunication during the first round of voting, so there is a promise to spread out the votes to avoid unexpected unanimity. Be aware of the time limit for voting. Decide in advance who you will follow in the event of a dispute over which option to choose. This is the only thing that any ss can do.


    This is why there is almost no heavy atmosphere in the ss.


    The fact that this exam is easily achievable for all participants, ultimately "all you have to do is choose an option and press the vote button,"


    is another reason why it is so loosely regarded.


    There is some tension, of course, because it is a special exam. The tablet had a film firmly attached to it to prevent prying eyes. Even if you peeked in from the seat next to you, you wouldn''t be able to steal a look at the screen. Since you can''t leave your seat while voting, it''s impossible to narrow down where others are voting by sight.


    Even if they could see the results of a third party''s vote by some means or ident, whether they would believe it is another story. In the first ce, it is impossible to make a fuss about who voted for whom, since snooping is forbidden.


    We had to face this special test head on.


    Also, the tablets on the desk seemed to be turned off, and it was forbidden to even turn on the main power without permission.


    "Hey, hey, hey... if we clear it in an hour or two, let''s go to the Keyaki Mall."


    "Yeah, I''d love to, but I''m pretty sure I have to study in the dorm. So can we go in the evening?"


    Ike and Shinohara, who have be a close couple, discuss what to do after school.


    Is it a special exam that can be easily cleared? It''s questionable how many students understand that it can turn into a difficult question depending on the conditions. The problem is that the voting is anonymous. It is impossible to know who voted for which option, not only during the exam, but forever.


    Total anonymity. It''s all about how big of an impact this factor will have on this special exam.


    Anyway, the time limit for the special exam is five hours, from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., a very long time. If you think about it simply, you are allowed to spend one hour per question. It would not be surprising if the special exam waspleted in one or two hours as Ike said. And if youplete it within the time limit, you can easily get 50 ss points. On the other hand, if you fail toplete the exam within five hours, you will lose 300 ss points, so making all five questions unanimous is an absolute must.


    Looking back on the content of the exam, I can say that the small rewards and heavy penalties are understandable. I sat down at my seat in the corner of the ssroom, where half of the students were seated. On the side of the podium, the facilitator of this special exam, Chabashira-sensei, and the teacher in charge of monitoring, are stationed at the back of the ssroom.


    "As I told you beforehand, allmunication devices will be collected."


    Restrictions on what luggage can be brought in, monitoring from the front and back to prevent peeking at the tablets. They''re being more thorough than they need to be. That''s how much they want to prevent people from knowing who voted for which side.


    It may sound harsh, but it''s the right thing to do. In order to reflect the genuine feelings of the students in the multiple choices, the anonymity must be 100%. If there is a chance to spy on them, the probability that they will sumb to peer pressure increases. There will naturally be betas and alphas.


    This could work to the advantage of students who are looking to get ahead.


    However, this is not a good thing for the school, because they want everyone to be unanimous, regardless of whether it is peer pressure or not.


    Anyway, there is no room for cheating. No matter what the question is, it must be unanimous.


    "Look, Airi. You need to go say it properly, okay?"


    Hmm? When I returned my gaze from looking out the window to the inside of the ssroom, I saw Airi being pushed around by Haruka.


    "Ah, Kiyotaka-kun! If you''re interested ining with us, you have some time after school, right?" She appealed with her eyes. "I wanted to talk to you about the cultural festival."


    "I see. I thought we should talk in person, too, and I don''t mind."


    "Oh, thank you! I''ll see youter, then."


    After running away, Airi took a seat in the far seat and turned her back.


    "I managed to calm that girl down. It doesn''t mean her heart is healed, but she''s trying to move forward." She didn''t even try to mention it in front of me, trying her best to make eye contact. "But it remains to be seen whether or not she''ll really take it on. It''s up to Kiyopon, do your best."


    "I''ll try to negotiate as hard as I can."


    "Yeah. I''ll see you after school."


    They''re really good at taking care of each other, or rather, they''ve been together a lottely, those two.


    Two minutes before the start, the homeroom teacher, Chabashira-sensei, begins to exin.


    "Well... It''s about time. We will now move on to the special exam, but since today is a long day, we will have up to four-bathroom breaks. Basically, we can only take a break before we get unanimous consent to take on the next question. This means that we can''t take a break in the middle of the day when we haven''t reached unanimous agreement. Also, each break is a maximum of 10 minutes, but the test time continues to be counted. It will be important to skip breaks if you deem them unnecessary."


    All of us had already gone to the bathroom as announced, so there would be no problems for a while.


    There didn''t seem to be any students in the ss who had stomach-aches or other unexpected health problems.


    Now it was time for the special exam to begin.


    I thought so, but Chabashira-sensei just stood there and stared at the students absentmindedly.


    The students didn''t care at first but then started to look at each other noticing something was off. The teacher standing at the back of the ssroom also seemed to have noticed something strange.


    "Chabashira-sensei. It''s time for you to go."


    "Oh, yes. I''m sorry. We will now begin the unanimous special examination. From here on out, we will proceed ording to the rules, so if you leave your seats outside of the interval, or if you chat during forbidden times, you will be warned without mercy. Be mindful of this."


    The countdown starts at twenty-six seconds, probably due to a slight dy in the start signal, but I''m sure it won''t affect the students.


    When the count reaches zero, the text switches to show the first question.


    [QUESTION ONE:]


    Choose which ss you want to face in the final exam in the third semester.


    Even if there is a change in ss rank, this choice will take precedence. The numbers in parentheses indicate the additional ss points you can earn by winning the match.


    [Choices:]


    ss A (100)


    ss B (50)


    ss D (0)


    "This is thest trimester of the second year, and the choices are used to determine the opponents for the special exam at the end of that school year. As mentioned above, if you unanimously choose ss A, your opponent will be the ss A and additional ss points at the time of this choice, even if the current ss A falls to ss B by the end of the school year. Also, if thebination of the desired options was a disagreement between all sses, the school will decide randomly."


    In simple terms, the choice of who would you rather fight; Sakayanagi, Ry��en, or Ichinose. The opponent chosen here will not be changed.


    "It''s important to figure out which ss we can fight and win. Of course, we won''t necessarily be able to fight the ss we want, but..."


    If Horikita and the others nominate Sakayanagi''s ss, and Ichinose also nominates Sakayanagi''s ss at the same time, does that mean that Sakayanagi''s ss is left to choose between Horikita''s ss and Ichinose''s ss? And if Sakayanagi''s ss chose Ry��en''s ss and not either of them, then it would be left to Ry��en''s ss to confirm their choice. If Ry��en''s ss avoided Sakayanagi''s ss, then the result would be a randombination.


    Normally, you would want to choose a lower ss with lower strength.


    However, as you can see from the choices, the treatment of the higher sses seems to be a little different. If you are able to defeat a higher ss, you will be rewarded with extra ss points. If you fight a lower ss, you will not get any additional rewards.


    Normally, we would want to avoid fighting ss A, but if these advantages exist, there will be enough room for consideration.


    "Then we''ll move on to the first round of voting. The time limit is sixty seconds."


    If these sixty seconds are exceeded, it will go into penalty time. Of course, Horikita had informed us beforehand so that we wouldn''t have to deal with that kind of trouble the first time around, the ssmates voted for their favorite options as they saw fit.


    I had agreed with Horikita that I would always vote for the first choice, so without hesitation, I chose ss A, the first choice. Horikita probably chose ss B, the second choice.


    At this point, it''s never going to be unanimous, but the other 37 votes are purely to see which ss they want to face.


    "Now that everyone has voted, I will now announce the results of the voting."


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    ss A: 5 votes


    ss B: 21 votes


    ss D: 13 votes


    The votes were concentrated on ss B, to which Ichinose belongs, instead of ss D, the lowest ss.


    "Since the vote was not unanimous, we will now set an interval."


    From this point on, the students were allowed to leave their seats freely for ten minutes to contact the students or have a conversation. It doesn''t matter if you raise your voice a little, or if you only give an earful to certain students.


    "So that we don''t waste time from the first question, let me make a suggestion first."


    Raising her hand, Horikita, who was sitting in front of the Chabashira-sensei, stood up and then turned around. Since she was to be the leader of this special exam as well, she would take the initiative to show her actions.


    "As the votes are scattered, each of us must have something to think about. You can ask as many questions as you want, and don''t hesitate to express your opinions to the whole ss." With that, Horikita took a breath and began to state her preferred option. "My ideal opponent to fight at the end of the school year would be ss B. In other words, I figured it would be Ichinose-san. There are three reasons for this: one, unlike Sakayanagi-san, and Ry��en-kun, Ichinose-san is likely to be a fair fight, a sh of pure potential. Even if it''s an irregr special exam, there''s little worry that we''ll be outsmarted. Secondly, they are currently in ss B. We''ll get ss points in addition to our rewards, which will give us an edge over the other sses.


    The third and final point is that the ss B title is a sham. We are already side by side with Ry��en-kun''s ss D. At one time, she was far ahead in ss points, but her ss is now on a downward slope. I think that makes her an ideal opponent."


    She spoke rather quickly, perhaps because she was concerned about time, but her reasoning was clear, and it seemed to have resonated with many of the students.


    "If any students have any objections, I would like them to voice their opinions here and now. If, on the other hand, you think that ss B is okay, then you can vote for ss B as soon as possible and we can talk about it."


    I would like to get a unanimous vote on this issue for the second time.


    I can feel Horikita''s intention. As if in response, Y��suke stands up as well.


    "I also agree with what you just said, Horikita-san. The additional reward for defeating Sakayanagi-san and the rest of ss A is huge, but there''s no doubt that they are stronger enemies than anyone else. Of course, the strong bonds and solid fighting style of Ichinose-san and the others won''t be easy to ovee, but I think they are the best opponents."


    With the two of them pushing for B ss, the direction of the ssmates began to take shape. Then, as if to bring the flow of events to a head, one more person, still seated, offers an opinion to match.


    "I think I''ll go with Ichinose-san too. I don''t think it''s fair that we don''t get any additional rewards for fighting Ry��en-kun''s ss, and it wouldn''t be funny if we lost to Sakayanagi-san''s ss."


    Before any opposition could be raised, Y��suke and Kei quickly solidified their opinions by voting for ss B. It could be said that they went with the follow-up as nned, but it was probably safe to assume that the two of them also wanted to fight with ss B. The fact that ss B received the most votes in the first round of voting was a clear indication of this.


    The interval, whichsted nearly six extra minutes, eventually passed without any dissenting opinions. While checking the time, Chabashira-sensei resumed the proceedings that had been halted.


    "Then we will move on to the second vote as the time has expired. As soon as the tablet screen changes, you have 60 seconds to cast your vote. I exined to you beforehand, if you go past 60 seconds, the penalty time will umte. Be careful."


    That caution was unnecessary, and in less than ten seconds, everyone had voted the second time. The results were immediately reflected and disyed on the monitor.


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    ss A: 0 votes


    ss B: 39 votes


    ss D: 0 votes


    Without K��enji jokingly putting in a vote for another ss, we seeded in getting the first unanimous vote with a smooth start.


    "By unanimous consent, the first question shall be finalized with the choice of ss B. I will inform you of the ss you will face in the final exam as soon as it is officially decided, but that will be after tomorrow."


    In just ten minutes or so, we hadpleted one of the five questions.


    We were also able to vote for the ss B that Horikita and the others wanted to face.


    For me personally, if I had to choose a partner to fight, I would have definitely chosen Ichinose''s ss.


    Horikita had already said all the reasons for this, so there was nothing to add. All that was left was to hope that Sakayanagi and Ry��en''s sses would match up, but since Ichinose''s ss was sometimes easy to target, there might be three ssespeting for her. Let''s hope it won''t be too much trouble and Ichinose''s ss will choose our ss in return.


    "I don''t think we need to take a break, but just to make sure, I''ll ask.


    You don''t mind if we move on to the next question, do you?"


    Of course, no one from the student body objected, so the second question began immediately.


    "Now then, let''s move on to the second question."


    [QUESTION TWO:]


    Choose a destination you would like to see for the school trip scheduled forte November.


    [Choices:]


    Hokkaido


    Kyoto


    Okinawa


    "What is this?" I heard a voice leak out from one of the students.


    Since private conversations were not allowed in the school, the voices were quickly drowned out by the sharp stares of Chabashira-sensei.


    However, it is undeniable that many students were thinking, "What the hell is this? Even so, we can''t even talk about it until we have voted first.


    The only way to vote is to genuinely think about which option to choose for yourself.


    "This vote is the same as the previous one, and this one is not final. The results may change depending on the situation of the remaining three sses, so be sure to understand that."


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    17 votes for Hokkaido


    3 votes for Kyoto


    19 votes for Okinawa


    With the exception of Kyoto, the voting results were shown to be much closer than before.


    "Since the vote was not unanimous, we will now have an interval."


    "Hey, hey, can we call this a special test? I mean, it''s a piece of cake."


    When the interval came, Hond�� said with augh as if he was out of sync. It''s true that the first and second questions don''t need to be asked in such an ostentatious manner. They could be summarized in the course of homeroom.


    It''s only been two questions. After this, two-fifths of the special exam would be over. The content is too easy. Many of the students were probably starting to rx more than they were nervous.


    However, it is interesting to note that there are some students who be more anxious as the situation increases. Typical of these are the cautious and thoughtful students like Horikita and Y��suke. While everyone isughing and discussing which way to go, they are looking at the question seriously.


    I guess maybe they have a valid reason not to be worried. It was hard to believe that such a question that was going to be taken seriously. However, the easier the first part is, the more pressure there will be on the second half.


    With this premonition in mind, I quietly watched the flow of the interval.


    "I''m sure we all have our own thoughts. But let''s focus on this question first." Wary of getting distracted, Y��suke pulls the entire ss back together.


    "The first time, it was more or less a split between Hokkaido and Okinawa, so what are we going to do now?"


    It is definitely an important vote to decide the school trip destination.


    "Horikita-san, it looks like we''re divided in our opinions, do you have any advice for us?"


    Kushida was worried about Horikita, who didn''t speak up right away unlike before. However, Horikita didn''t reply immediately, and for a moment, the room went silent.


    "Horikita-san?" Kushida called out her name again with a bit of concern, and Horikita hurriedly answered.


    "I''m sorry. I''ve been thinking about it for a bit. It''s not aplicated choice, but I thought it might be surprisingly hard to make it unanimous. The school trip is an important event for us students, and of course I can''t summarize its destination in a single word."


    I promised to follow the leader if things went wrong, but that still didn''t mean that Horikita alone could decide the destination of the school trip. It''s a tough choice, considering it''s a matter of preference, not merit or demerit.


    "Anyway, I guess we''ll just have to start by asking you to give us your opinion on your preferred travel destination."


    As if he had been waiting for that, Sud�� raised his hand.


    "Okay, I''ll start. I want to go to Okinawa. Okinawa is the most popr school trip because of the ocean, right? It''s got the most votes, so I guess it''s settled, right?"


    "Wait a minute. I''ll admit that Okinawa is one of the standard ces, but if you say that, then so is the North Coast Highway. It''s not even a close call in terms of votes. Don''t you want to go skiing or something?" Maezono, who seemed to have voted for Hokkaido, said in opposition to Sud��.


    "I''d like to go to Okinawa. I want to go snorkeling!"


    "I''ve been to Okinawa a few times, so Hokkaido is my choice..."


    The two travel destinations with close vote counts start to disagree head on. Since they both chose the destination they thought was best for them, it''s not surprising that they are critical of the other options.


    "In the first ce, there''s only snow in Hokkaido, right? It''s definitely boring."


    "Well, if you put it that way, Okinawa is nothing but ocean, isn''t it?"


    They argued for a few minutes, with no end in sight, until Y��suke intervened.


    "Hokkaido and Okinawa are both equally popr destinations for school trips, so I guess it''s not unreasonable to get into trouble, but you might want to be a little more considerate of the others."


    Y��suke appealed to her to stop speaking out of turn. The first part of the conversation had been about how wonderful their chosen destination was, but now it was turning into a discussion of how to humiliate the other person''s choice.


    "Hirata-kun picked Hokkaido, right?"


    "Hey Hirata, you chose Okinawa, didn''t you?"


    "W-Well, I mean..." Sandwiched between both groups, Y��suke gives a troubled look. "That''s a bit... secret... isn''t it?"


    In this situation, it''s hard to answer which one he put in. In a way, this is the moment when the anonymous namees alive.


    "The only ce you can swim in November is Okinawa, right? Don''t you want to go to the beach?"


    "I don''t want to go to the ocean anymore. I''ve had enough after the ind. Hokkaido for sure!"


    The discussion was interrupted once, but it soon became heated again.


    The exchange between Sud�� and Maezono could probably be seen as a microcosm of the entire ss'' opinions.


    "Oh my... what should we do, Horikita-san?" With a troubled look on her face, Kushida asks Horikita for help.


    "We''re in a tough spot I suppose."


    The difficulty of unanimity. Maybe they''ve been given a problem that will bring it to the surface sooner rather thanter. There was no easy way to wrap up the conversation, and the ten-minute interval wasing to an end.


    Incidentally, I''m thinking of voting for Kyoto this second time. Kyoto has a deep history. I had a strong desire to see that scene.


    "So, now that all the voting for the second round isplete, the results will be disyed."


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    18 votes for Hokkaido


    4 votes for Kyoto


    17 votes for Okinawa


    "Ah, Hokkaido did a reversal! We did it!"


    "Damn, who switched from Okinawa to Hokkaido?"


    It was almost a 50-50 split, although Hokkaido was slightly ahead with more votes than before. However, both the Hokkaido and Okinawa groups start arguing over the votes that were moved.


    No matter how many times the voting is repeated, it will never be settled. The only sad thing is that it''s not being talked about at all. It''s just about the votes now...


    Perhaps the votes of Horikita, who first chose option 2, Kyoto, did not move. Of course, it''s possible that Horikita voted for Hokkaido or Okinawa and someone else voted for Kyoto, so we can''t be sure, but there is a way to force the vote to go to the one with the most votes, but that is likely to leave asting grudge. If Hokkaido had won twice in a row, Okinawa would have won the first round of voting.


    "It can''t be helped. I guess we''ll have to settle for a winner. There are three people who want Hokkaido, and three people who want Okinawa. We''ll choose a representative for each and have them y rock-paper-scissors.


    We''ll choose the spearhead, the middleman, and the general, and y a winner-take-all game. However, Kyoto, with its low number of votes, will be left with only one representative. It''s a tough fight, but we''ll try to keep it as fair as possible."


    It would certainly be unfair for the minority group of Kyoto to be able to fight on equal terms with the other two.


    If we want to put it together without coercion and time, we should do it this way. It''s inevitable that there will be some dissatisfaction, but if the rules are set at the beginning, there''s no choice but to follow them. While there was some wrangling over who would be the representative of the rock-paper-scissors team, the contestants were soon chosen.


    The Hokkaido team, spearheaded by Maezono, middleweight Ishikura, and general Shinohara. This is a women''s team.


    Okinawa team, spearhead, Onodera, middle, Hond��, general, Sud��, mixed gender team.


    "Also, whoever voted for Kyoto, can you join us for rock-paper-scissors?"


    Horikita hopes to have one representative. Then one man raises his hand in full.


    "If no one else is willing to participate, I''ll be the captain. I''ll definitely bring everyone to Kyoto."


    It was Keisei who expressed his strong will and threw himself into the fierce battle. He was the first student from the Kyoto selection to speak out.


    Kyoto is also my preferred school trip destination. I''m counting on you to take care of me, Keisei. It''s going to be a tough fight, but I hope you can pull it off...


    In order to make it to the third round of voting, the rock-paper-scissors game was quickly started. The Okinawa team easily won the match. The Kyoto team''s dream was shattered in an instant, and they left the battlefield with a broken heart.


    It was a fleeting moment, less than ten seconds after Keisei hade forward.


    I witnessed Horikita put her hand on her forehead and sigh, and I was convinced that she was one of those who wanted to go to Kyoto.


    The game continued as if the Kyoto hopefuls had never existed in the first ce. Onodera, who had defeated both of them in the first game, won two games in a row, defeating Ishikura in the middle game to take the lead.


    However, there was an unexpected turn of events when Shinohara, who appeared as the general, defeated Onodera, who in turn faced Hond��.


    The two sides red at each other as they were locked in a battle between the two generals.


    "Definitely Okinawa! Beaches and snorkelling"


    "Definitely Hokkaido! Hot springs and Skiing!"


    Each of them clenched their fists while chanting out random words that rte with each destination. When both of their raised fists were brought down, their hands were each at par It''s a match. I''d like to say they''reugh it off, but they stop moving and take a break.


    They''re just deciding where to go on a school trip, but the tension is unbelievable.


    "First, par! Then, rock, paper, scissors.


    The second sh. Sud�� made a powerful par.


    Shinohara, on the other hand, threw a brilliant parfor the second time in a row.


    "I got it! It''s Hokkaido!"


    The Hokkaido group shouted in unison.


    "What are you doing, Sud��!"


    "Damn you...!"


    I don''t want to get in the way, but the only vote in this ss should be Hokkaido. Now if some votes were gathered for Okinawa or Kyoto, there would be trouble. Horikita understood that this was not the kind of atmosphere in which to say such a thing, and she looked somewhat dismayed.


    The third round of voting was held, and everyone operated their tablets at once.


    [Results of the third round of voting:]


    39 votes for Hokkaido


    0 votes for Kyoto


    0 votes for Okinawa


    "The third vote was unanimous, so the second question is clear."


    While about half of the voters remain dissatisfied with the results, the third round of voting was sessful in achieving unanimity through a fair fight ording to the established rules. Although I couldn''t get my heart''s desire of Kyoto, I''m very much looking forward to Hokkaido, and depending on what happens in the other sses, Kyoto and Okinawa are still possible.


    Anyway, no matter where we end up, it''s a subject that makes me look forward to the school trip.


    "Now, let me move on to the third question." Chabashira-sensei''s demeanor hadn''t changed since the beginning, but there was a slight change in the tone of her voice when she uttered the next question.


    [QUESTION THREE:]


    ? Instead of the private points that are paid out ording to ss points each month being reduced to zero, three random students in the ss will be given protection points.


    ? Alternatively, the number of private points awarded could be halved, and a specific student could be awarded a protection point.


    ? If neither of these options is desired, the bottom five students in the next written exam will receive zero private points.


    No matter which option is chosen, the period of private point forfeiture will continue for six months.


    Unlike the previous two questions, this one epassed major advantages and disadvantages within the ss. In option one, the payback is greater because of therger number of private points you lose, but you also cannot overlook the fact that they are given to random students.


    Protection points are a very powerful boon, but depending on your point of view, there are some students who will end up not needing them for three years. If they are given to such students, they may end up being a waste of private points.


    Option two is also not cheap, as the amount of private points transferred is halved. Moreover, only one student will be granted protection.


    However, being able to choose any student is an important factor.


    Option three is to minimize the loss of private points as much as possible. This would be the option you would choose if you find the protection points too expensive or if you don''t need them in the first ce.


    However, you should not forget that even though you have five yers you still have to bear the disadvantages.


    In addition to calcting the profit and loss, it is also necessary to consider the ss situation. Some students may have a lot to say, but there is no other way but to vote first.


    "Before we vote, let''s talk about the case where there is unanimity on option two, the option to grant to a particr student. If the vote is unanimous on this choice, we will move on to the next option where we will continue to determine one person without clearing question three. You remember the example, don''t you?"


    The interval will be used to select one student and collect votes for or against granting it to that student. If the vote is unanimous in favour, the student will receive a protection point; if the vote is unanimous against, the student will no longer have a chance in that question. Then, the remaining 38 students will discuss and select one candidate. We will have to repeat the question in such a subdivision, taking the approval and disapproval again.


    "Based on those results, we will announce the results of the first round of voting."


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    12 votes to grant three random people


    5 votes to select and grant one person


    22 votes to not grant anyone


    The results of the first round of voting seemed to indicate that the majority of people were willing to meditate on some of the inconveniences and give up their protection points. That may be so, since the five students who will lose their private points are already determined to be the bottom five in the written exam. For those students who don''t fall into that category, it''s risk-free. On the other hand, some of them might think that it''s more beneficial to gain protection points if they know that they won''t get private points for six months anyway.


    "Hey, wait a minute! I don''t understand something about this!"


    "Me neither! If we don''t get protection points, we''ll only lose five people!"


    Ike and Sat�� were the first to speak up, as they were students who seemed to fall into the bracket for lowest grades.


    "Well, it can''t be helped, can it? It''s a bit like... not getting your private points transferred for six months. In addition, random is a low probability, and specific is unlikely to be given to me so please sacrifice yourself, Kanji."


    Sud�� can only confidently suggest that since he''s already out of the bottom five in the ss for academics.


    "That''s not fair! Even I need a lot of private points right now!"


    "You''re not going to tell me you need money to go on dates with Shinohara, are you?"


    "I mean... well, what does it matter to you?!" He didn''t seem to be bothered by the fact that his use of the money was exposed, and it seemed to be a matter of life and death.


    "It''s settled, it''s settled. It''s unanimous that there will be no grant."


    "I can''t have that!"


    "Then you should study. That''ll solve it, right?"


    "H-hey... I just can''t agree with what Ken says! He''s asking too much."


    Of course it''s important to study and break out of the lower ranks, but no matter how many points you get, you can''t change the fact that five people will be sacrificed.


    "I understand what you''re saying, but it''s too early to be pessimistic.


    We just need to minimize the number of private points we lose and we can all make up for the burden. The remaining 34 students should be able to make up for the bottom five''s private points that will be lost each month. This way, only certain students won''t feel dissatisfied, right?"


    In simple terms, if one student earns 50,000 points per month, then 250,000 points for five students will be lost. The remaining 34 students get 1.7 million points, which, if divided by 39 and rounded down to the nearest whole number,es to 43589 points. The loss of points is unavoidable, but each person would only lose about 6500 points. Even if thatsted for six months, the stress on each student would be minimal.


    "Well, that''s fine then..."


    "I don''t really want to share... but I suppose I could help Kanji if he really needs it." Sud�� seemed to be dissatisfied, but he was willing to help Ike in any way he could.


    As many of the students wished to not be granted, they naturally began to agree on the direction to stick with option three. However, in the midst of all this, Y��suke raised his voice.


    "Horikita-san, do you think it''s best to choose no grant?"


    "That''s a tough one. It''s a pretty troubling option, to be honest.


    Protection points can be a very powerful tool to prevent expulsion. But the same can be said for private points. I wonder if Hirata-kun thinks differently?"


    "It''s only one opinion, but I think I should get protection points for this question . For all three of us, of course."


    "If you don''t get any private points for six months, it''s going to hurt a lot. Not only will it put a lot of stress on your daily life, but it could also affect your special exam if the situation warrants it."


    The possibility that private points could make the difference between winning and losing cannot be denied.


    "If something unforeseen happens, we can protect three people. The timing of when you can get protection points is quite limited, plus this is a valuablemodity that can''t be taken lightly."


    I couldn''t help but understand why Y��suke is somewhat passionate about this. The value of the protection points that can prevent expulsion is actually up to 20 million private points. It''s not often that you get the chance to get them for three people. Especially for Y��suke, who cares about his friends, it''s a value that can''t be reced by money.


    The destination of the school trip was a different story, one that was not easily agreed upon. It''s hard to influence the oue of the ss in any destination, but this protection point choice is a problem for the whole ss.


    If we get it, it may save someone else''s life.


    "Sorry, but let me have my say." Keisei stood up and expressed his opinion. "For the next six months, we''re going to increase our ss points, right?"


    "Of course. There''s never a good time to stagnate in your quest for a higher ss."


    "Fifty for this special exam, and a hundred points if we ce high in the cultural festival. Assuming the sports festival increases simr points, by the end of the semester, you might have more than 200 points, or even 300 points depending on the situation. Can I assume that?"


    "I suppose we will."


    If we increased the ss points by 300 points by the end of the year, our ss points would recover to the point where he could peek at 1000. If that happens, the total amount of private points given out in six months will be about fifty percent more than now, about twenty million points.


    If you think about it, the maximum value of one protection point is equivalent to six months of ss ie. It''s a beautiful figure that seems to have been calcted. However, if you choose 3 protection points here, you can get about 7 million private points per protection point.


    It''s a very fine line, isn''t it?


    And the most unlikely one, giving one instead of three looks like a goodbination of advantages and disadvantages, but it is actually the least costly and hardest to choose. However, it is the only one that has the advantage of being able to be given to a specific student, which is probably an important factor. However, if you decide to give it to any one student, you will naturally have to follow up with a unanimous vote.


    If this choice is bypassed and passed carelessly, there will be a possibility of a dispute over who to grant it to.


    "So the idea of prioritizing private points is an offensive strategy, while the idea of prioritizing protection points is a defensive strategy, right?"


    Kushida asks as she tries to sort out the situation, and the three people who are currently sitting in their seats nod almost simultaneously.


    "But if we end up not using the protection points, then we risk that it was an expensive purchase, right? Of course, I''m fine with that..."


    It would be inevitable to talk about it, too, to keep that fact known.


    "Yeah. After all, if you never use it, it''s equal to nothing. Of course, there will be a sense of security and peace of mind thates with owning a protection point, but..."


    "It may or may not be worthless. Even if it ends up being unnecessary in its original use, it can be used as a strategy to intentionally consume protection points tounch a surprise attack or to use it as a self-destruct mechanism. You might even be able to use them for offensive purposes, not simply for protection."


    I can understand why Keisei pushes that there are many ways to use protection points. It''s a great advantage to be able to avoid expulsion from the school. However, we won''t know what the special exams will be until we have the full picture.


    There is no guarantee that we will have the opportunity to use it effectively in the future. But this question, or rather the special exam, is deeper than I thought. Even though the content of the question is the same for all the sses, the depth of the question changes depending on the rank of the ss and the situation. If the ss points are equal to zero, then it is unanimous to choose to get three protection points without any trouble. It was a good opportunity for the other sses to follow suit. On the other hand, for ss A, which is in sole possession of first ce, it would be a more expensive purchase than the other sses.


    On the flip side, the first and third options can be seen as somewhat inconvenient choices for ss A.


    "Then Yukimura-kun, you are saying that we should grant protection points to three students? Isn''t there a risk with it being random?"


    In order to make a final confirmation and narrow down the options, Horikita tries to get a word in edgewise.


    "You misunderstand. The option I''m rmending is the second. The one that grants a protection point to one student."


    Horikita shows surprise at the development of wanting option two, which was thought to be the least likely.


    "Does that mean, forck of a better word, that I should grant it to you?"


    "I''d honestly be happy if you did. But that''s not realistic. I think you''d want me to grant choose someone worthy of it, because that''s basically what all of us would do."


    If we asked for a show of hands, even a simple one, it wouldn''t be surprising if the entire ss raised their hands.


    "It''s hard to pick out a specific person. But no matter how much of a bargain it is, I don''t know how well giving protection points to three random people will work."


    "You seem to have a clear idea of who you should give them to. Who do you want to give them to?"


    "If you want to make a strategic decision, Horikita-san, I''m thinking of no one but you."


    "Me?"


    "Correct. Right now, you''re the leader of this ss, and I have noints about your abilities in OAA. Obviously, you''d be targeted by Sakayanagi and Ry��en at the very least. It''s not surprising to think that those two would try to expel you without mercy. It''s best if we protect our leader first, then worry about the rest of uster."


    Normally, there would be some animosity, but naturally the ssmates listened.


    Because he had a solid reason, not a random one.


    "That''s not the only reason. Normally, when you hold a protection point, there is a risk of loosening up. There is also the risk that you will not take it seriously, thinking that you are safe. I''m sure you''re not that kind of person. I feel quite strongly about that."


    It''s not just a matter of giving it to someone who has the ability to do it, but someone who can do more for the ss after being given it. That''s what Horikita is, ording to Keisei.


    "I understand what you''re saying, but... it''s an expensive purchase."


    This option will result in losing half of our private points for six months.


    "They feel like they''re losing money because they think they''re just losing private points. This is an upfront investment. Horikita will turn it into more ss points than you pay for with this option. It''s easier to think that way, isn''t it?"


    "Even so... it could crash, you know?"


    "I don''t believe we can beat ss A without taking a risk. I''ve been fighting at this school for a year and a half myself."


    "Hmph. That''s valid, isn''t it? I agree with your current proposal, sses-kun."


    K��enji, who we had thought would never be involved in this special exam, verbally showed his approval.


    "For the amount of protection points we give up, we can have the Horikita girl work harder than anyone else."


    "You have a protection point, but you don''t seem to be working hard."


    "Hard work is something ordinary people do, you know. I''d rather sit back and let you people handle it."


    It''s great that K��enji took a passive approach to this exam. I assumed he was going to be the biggest hurdle. Personally, I was thinking of option one or three, but I agree with Keisei''s presentation.


    More importantly, if I''m going to voice my disagreement, I need to have a good reason. It''s hard to say that it''s for the good of the ss if it''s simply because it has to do with private points.


    In the atmosphere created by Keisei, the next voting period arrives.


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    0 votes to grant three random people


    39 votes to select and grant one person


    0 votes to not grant anyone


    It turns out that Keisei''s idea was adopted after sessfully sewing through the gap. However, it''s a little troublesome to choose a candidate right away, since there''s a rule that there should be an interval between the choices.


    This time, there were no students who objected to giving Horikita a protection point, so the students were free to speak and kill time during the interval. It was decided that Horikita would run as a candidate and be a specific person, without the need to hold a vote on who to rmend.


    The vote was unanimous with 39 votes in favour of Horikita without any disturbance.


    It was a challenge that I thought would be difficult, but the fact that it was passed more smoothly than I expected was significant.


    "This concludes question three. From now on, for the next six months, all private point transfers will be half price equally for everyone, but a protection point for Horikita will be granted at this time."


    Of course, she couldn''t make use of it in this special test, but this seeded in giving Horikita, the leader of the group, valuable protection.


    It was not a cheap purchase, but it was not too expensive either.


    [QUESTION FOUR:]


    One of the following rules will be applied to the ss in the written exam at the end of the second semester.


    [Choices:]


    Increased Difficulty


    Increased Penalty


    Decreased Reward


    These are nasty choices. None of them are a advantage to the ss. If it had been a time when private conversation was allowed, there would have been a lot of grumbling.


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    6 votes for increased difficulty


    18 votes for increased penalty


    15 votes for decreased rewards


    All of these are basically options you don''t want to choose, and the votes are split. After that, there was a heated debate between the students who were confident and those who were not, and it seemed that the question would be prolonged, but in the second round of voting, the choice of


    "Increase Penalty" led to a unanimous result.


    Horikita''s strong persuasion that it would not be difficult to avoid penalties if we worked diligently also seemed to have worked.

 Chapter 213: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 213: 3.3</h4>


    With a time limit of five hours, we reached the final question in about an hour without a hitch. I''m sure many of the students thought that they would be able toplete thest question with ease. Once thest question waspleted, the special exam would be cleared and 50 ss points would be awarded.


    However, if there was one concern, it would be the homeroom teacher''s condition.


    "Now... then, this... is yourst question."


    As each question progressed, it was obvious that Chabashira-sensei''splexion was changing for the worse. It was clear to the students that she had finally reached its peak and they were looking pale.


    "Sensei, are you okay?"


    Even though it was before the question was announced, private conversation was not allowed. However, Y��suke couldn''t overlook it and raised his voice.


    "Excuse me?"


    "No, it''s just that you''re obviously not feeling well."


    "Is that so? I''m not sure what you mean Hirata."


    She didn''t seem to be faking it. In other words, she''s not even aware that she''s not looking right herself. Or maybe I should say that I''m not conscious of it. Anyway, once he was told that this was not the case, Y��suke had no choice but to back off.


    The teacher in the back of the room didn''t move either, so the final question would probably begin.


    But one thing is for sure, the next question should have a lot to do with Chabashira-sensei''s current physical condition.


    "I''m about to disy the final question. Prepare to vote." Chabashira-sensei held her breath as she touched her tablet.


    And so, the final question was disyed in front of us.


    [QUESTION FIVE:]


    Gain 100 ss points in exchange for one ssmate being expelled.


    (If the vote is unanimous in favour, identify the student who will be expelled and vote for him/her.


    [Choices:]


    For


    Against


    Thest question has only two options, the fewest so far. At first nce, one might think that the fewer the number of options, the easier it would be toe to a consensus. In reality, however, the number of choices does not have much influence. If there are a lot of strangers in the room, or if it''s not possible to have a discussion, having arge number of choices can be a disadvantage, but in our ss, we can have a lot of discussions. The important thing is always the content of the question.


    Expulsion or ss Points.


    Here we had one of the worst questions I could have imagined.


    The students, who are not allowed to speak, must have been upset when they read the question in their minds.


    If they voted in favour of the question, one of their ssmates would be expelled. Under normal circumstances, the entire ss should have voted


    "no" without hesitation. Although 100 ss points is not a small number, most of us would prefer not to have one of our ssmates expelled in return.


    If this were a majority vote, it would probably end with a majority against in one vote.


    However, the past four questions have proven that it does not work that way. That''s the simple but difficult part of unanimity.


    "The... 60-second count will now begin. Students are asked to... begin voting." Chabashira-sensei called out in a shaky voice.


    No extra time is given, and the 60-second voting period begins. If the vote is unanimous in favour of the proposal, it''ll inevitably lead us down a dangerous path. Again, of course, almost none of the students would want that to happen. 100 ss points, because it''s not so much a need that must be earned.


    If this had been in the third semester of my senior year, with only one or two more special exams to go, I would not be in the same state of mind as I am now. In a close race for one point, the value of those 100 points would skyrocket. At that time, it could have been a battle between two ultimate choices.


    However, the situation is different now. This is not a time when almost everyone would hesitate to vote "against".


    Still, it is true that there are a number of concerns, including K��enji.


    That''s why I took my hands off my tablet and took my time to think.


    ording to the agreement with Horikita, my role in the first round of voting is to vote for option one, no matter what the issue may be. But if 38 people, including Horikita, are voting against it now, it is better to vote against it without an interval andbine them into 39 votes.


    This is an issue that should be finished quickly, without giving any unnecessary space. There is no guarantee that students will not be swayed by the 100 points if you interrupt the discussion even once. I decided that this was the only question where I didn''t need an interval.


    After close to sixty seconds, I see a notification that all the votes have been cast.


    "All... have voted and will be informed of the results."


    Despite the obvious anomaly, Chabashira-sensei kept her posture and continued to proceed.


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    37 against


    Not unanimous, huh? I took my finger off the button and quietly looked at the results.


    Chabashira-sensei, who should be reading out the results, remained motionless, staring at the monitor as the students did. The results are surprising, and the votes can''t be described as "split."


    "Chabashira-sensei. Please proceed."


    The teacher cautions Chabashira-sensei from behind, who is dribbling out time, albeit for a few seconds.


    "Ah... I apologize. T-the results are... 2 votes in favour, 37 against.


    Since the vote was not unanimous, we''ll go into an interval."


    Two votes in favour?


    "Hey, who the hell voted in favour of that? Are you kidding me?"


    Sud��''s strong gaze was unterally directed at K��enji.


    Although K��enji had made somements about protection points, he hadn''t really stood out much, but the content of this question was probably the only thing that made him stand out.


    Of course, that was Sud��''s idea, but I''m sure many of the students agreed with him.


    "Which way did you vote, K��enji?"


    "Do I have to answer that?"


    "If you can''t answer, it means you voted in favour, right?"


    "Don''t be so judgmental, Red Hair-kun. In the first ce, ording to Horikita girl, you should be allowed to make any choice in the first round of voting. I don''t think you have any right toin about which one you put in, do you?"


    Sud�� bes tantly unhappy after receiving a good argument.


    "Even if one vote was K��enji, that means there''s another guy who voted in favour, right?"


    Ike focused on the part of the vote that remained even if K��enji was excluded.


    "That''s definitely a problem, too. Who the hell is that?" Sud�� barked in annoyance, as if he had no idea who the other person was.


    "Don''t panic. One of the people who voted in favour is Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "What? Oh, Ayanok��ji voted in favour? How can you say that, Suzune...?"


    "I''ve been keeping it a secret up to this point, but before this special exam started, me and him had made a pact regarding voting. Whatever the content of the question , I''ve arranged it so that the first vote will not be unanimous."


    As we reached thest question, Horikita mentioned the contents of our prior meeting. Surely there is no advantage to keeping it hidden when we get to this stage. It''s obviously more wasteful to spend time and effort trying to figure out who the one vote is.


    "To avoid unanimity on an unexpected choice, yes?"


    Y��suke added a few words to make it easier to understand for the students who didn''t fully understand.


    "I guess so..."


    "What''s that about? But if that''s the case, you should have told me about it earlier."


    "Not so fast. The first round of voting, when you''re not allowed to talk, is an important opportunity to get a proper idea of what your ssmates want to choose. If they knew that I was nning to prevent the vote from being unanimous from the start, some students might just vote randomly. I wanted to avoid that. It was his role to vote for the first option. I would vote for the second option. That''s why only one person actually voted in favour."


    Looking around the ssroom, Horikita speaks to that someone. "It''s a bit of a radical question, but it''s up to the individual to decide which way to vote. I don''t think it''s wrong in itself to vote in favour in order to grab ss points.


    But I think we should all vote against it as a ss. If you have any objections, I would appreciate it if you could raise them here."


    Normally, the student who had voted in favour of the proposal would havee forward at this point.


    But no matter how long we waited, no one answered Horikita''s question.


    "How long are you going to keep your mouth shut, K��enji?"


    "Fufu. As I said before, I don''t want you to assume that I''m in favour of this.


    "What the hell. I know you''re just messing around anyway."


    Since it''s K��enji we''re dealing with, he might have been amused by Sud��''s anger, only provoking him for entertainment. If the vote is unanimous in favour, the vote to expel one person from the ss will begin.


    In other words, someone wants to get 100 ss points for expelling one of their ssmates. That would attract attention and criticism in a bad way. I really don''t want anyone to think that someone is thinking that way.


    "I''ve had enough-"


    "Calm down, Sud��-kun. It''s only the first round of voting, there''s no need to be particrly upset."


    "Okay, but still! I don''t like that someone actually voted in favour for this option."


    "It''s your choice to interpret it that way. But we have no proof that it was K��enji-kun. I also interpreted it to mean that whoever voted in favour of it was sorry for noting forward. If they vote no on the second ballot, it will be unanimous. That should be enough."


    The issue was cleared. Horikita seemed to have decided that there was no need to take extra time. As I was thinking to myself, not pursuing it would be one of the best choices we could make right now.


    "There''s no need for further discussion on this issue. Come on, let''s finish it in the next vote."


    Looking at the calm Horikita, Sud�� tapped both cheeks once as if to discipline himself. And with a bit of unrted chit-chat, it was time for us to vote for the second time.


    "We will now begin the 60-second voting period."


    The 4K UHD screen switches to show the in favour and against buttons. It seemed that the voting waspleted in approximately twenty seconds.


    "Voting is nowplete and the results of the second vote will be disyed."


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    37 against


    Up until now, the special exam didn''t create any strong tension.


    However, the moment the results of this second round were announced, the room went silent. Once again, the result was two votes in favour.


    This meant that the vote had not shifted even after the exnation given earlier.


    This fact was conveyed from an inorganic monitor.


    "Wait a minute, what does this mean?"


    The person Horikita looked at as she said this was, of all people, me.


    Why did you vote in favour for the second time? That was the question.


    The students, including Sud��, who understood the exnation, also looked at me.


    "I voted against both the first vote and just now, in the second vote."


    "What? Ayanok��ji was supposed to vote for option one, right?"


    "Yeah. But because of the content of the question, I took the liberty of deciding that it would be better to vote for the against option. I didn''t tell you that because I didn''t want to cause any unnecessary conflict."


    If there were two people in favour of the first vote, the upset would increase. Now they can no longer y it off as a joke. Even Horikita, who had carried herself calmly throughout this entire process, was a little distraught.


    "So... there are at least two people who think it''s in favour of the current question, is that it?" Horikita puts a hand to her lips and thinks. She would probably like to stop and think about it, but the interval is precious. "If you''re going to continue to vote in favour of this, could you please tell me exactly why you''re in favour of it? As you can see, all but two of the results show that thirty-seven people are against the idea. If you want everyone to vote in favour, I''d like to see a reasonable presentation."


    The basis for swaying the vote is discussion. If more people decide that there are greater advantages to voting in favour, the vote will naturally shift.


    On the other hand, if there is no discussion, it is not easy to sway votes.


    However, the answer to this question was silence from everyone.


    "Hey, hey, Horikita-san. It''s okay... right? No one is going to drop out of the ss, right?" Kushida was worried, but she couldn''t stand the silence and asked Horikita that question.


    "As I said before, my policy is to not let anyone drop out of school."


    Horikita reiterates her determination, but after that, the silence continues. It''s easy to utter the first andstpulsion, but...


    "I don''t know who''s against this. But I want you to listen carefully."


    Y��suke stands up and speaks gently but forcefully. "You shouldn''t choose to cut off your ssmates in order to gain ss points. I don''t think the points gained from such a choice are worth anything, even if they were 500 or 1000 ss points. The most important thing is that there are other ways to achieve ss points."


    A well-deserved appeal from the man who would suffer the most from such a sacrifice. Thirty-seven out of the thirty-nine of us understood that to some extent, as Y��suke had said.


    They should be willing to let go of 100 ss points if the price to pay is a valued ssmate. But whether or not that is their true intention is another matter. Even before the first vote, the oue of the vote was heavily influenced by silent peer pressure.


    There must be some students in the ss who think that they will never be expelled. In such a situation, it would not be surprising if some of them really thought that they would not mind sacrificing their ssmates.


    "Very well, it''s getting interesting in this special exam. This is quite enjoyable." K��enji startedughing with amusement and continued. "I thought you were going to vote against me in the second round." K��enji stated without seeming to take offense.


    "So it was you, K��enji!"


    "K��enji-kun, is that true? I''d like to stop you from bing the boy who cried wolf here because that would cause a nasty mess." Horikita reaffirmed, prioritizing rifying whether he was really against it or not first.


    "Don''t worry, I made sure to vote in favour the first time and the second time."


    "Can you tell me why?"


    "The answer is simple. You''ll get 100 more ss points, right? That means you''ll inevitably get more private points every month, so there''s no reason to vote against."


    "You''ve got to be kidding me. You think ss points are more important than your friends?"


    "You have a funny way of saying things. You didn''t seem like that kind of person when you first came here."


    "Shut up!"


    "I''m voting in favour, so of course I''ll take that into consideration."


    "What the hell do you think your friends are...?"


    "Friends? I''ve never thought of any of you as my friends."


    "So you''re saying you''re not going to change your vote to the other side at the next vote?"


    "Of course not. I''ll probably continue to vote in favour if things ''stay the same''. I''m sure Horikita girl doesn''t want to just run out of time, right?"


    "Ha. Don''t think things will go as you wish, K��enji. If that''s what you''re nning to do, we''re not going to let you get away with it either, Suzune. Let''s all vote in favour and get K��enji expelled!"


    It may have been a spur-of-the-moment answer, but it''s also true that this question has a nasty aspect in terms of the "for" choice. We can unite to get rid of the bad guys who say that their ssmates should be expelled.


    People subconsciously choose what they want to believe and then justify the reasons they chose. "I don''t want to expel anyone, but I have to because they''re holding back the ss." The brain starts to work to justify that the person should be expelled. It also swallows convenient logic, conspiracies, and misinformation.


    "I wish everyone would vote in favour. But don''t think you can get me expelled for it. Isn''t that right? Horikita girl."


    If K��enji came forward as one of the people who voted in favour of the question, it would be natural for people around him to make a fuss about being expelled. There was no way this man didn''t understand that.


    However, K��enji was in a different situation than the rest of the students.


    "He''s right. We can''t expel K��enji-kun."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I made a promise to K��enji-kun before the ind exam started, remember? I promised K��enji-kun that if he took first ce in the Uninhabited Ind exam, I would protect him until he graduated."


    I''m sure the students remember that exchange.


    "I didn''t expect him to get first ce either. But thanks to you getting first ce in that exam, our ss is now all the way in contention for ss B. That achievement is immeasurable."


    "Yeah, that''s true... but not if you''re trying to bring the ss down!"


    "I''m not sure I''d call it "bringing the ss down." I''m just freely choosing the choices that are entrusted to me. You can''t assume that voting in favour is bad, can you?"


    If the question was, "You may remove one student if you wish," you could argue that voting "for" is just evil. However, in this case, instead of expelling students, they would receive ss points. Although it is difficult to put a concrete figure on the value of one student, no one has the right to deny K��enji''s calction of the benefits of voting yes.


    As long as there is a good argument and a promise, there is no way Horikita can cast a single vote for K��enji''s expulsion.


    "Fine then. Let''s go back on our word! If K��enji doesn''t think of his ssmates as friends, no one will be bothered if he gets expelled!"


    "I can''t. I''m not going to break my promise to him."


    "I guess you''re right. No one will trust a ss leader who doesn''t keep his promises. I trust you more than anyone else right now in that sense, Horikita girl."


    This is yet another example of K��enji''s troublesome side. Now that this has happened, Horikita must first persuade K��enji at all costs. But there is still plenty of opportunity to do so. Even if K��enji believes that Horikita will not betray him, that does not mean that K��enji is 100% protected. The possibility that Horikita will cut K��enji loose must be in the back of his mind.


    In other words, K��enji will change his attitude if the seeds of such a move appear. If that happens, Horikita, who is beginning to be aware of her role as a leader, immediately cuts K��enji, who has responded with results, will affect her statuster on.


    That choice will be a major hindrance in the future.


    "If you''re not going to cut K��enji, then what are you going to do, Suzune?"


    "Give me some time to think about it."


    That would have been fine if the only one in favour was K��enji. We can''t overlook the part that there is one more person in favour who hasn''te forward.


    "I wonder the person who voted in favour, excluding K��enji-kun, cane forward and tell us."


    If we don''t know that, we can''t move forward. But the only response we got was a long, deep silence.


    If youe forward here, there is a fear that you will be threatened and even argued unnecessary as well as K��enji. Rather, they may receive more frowning upon than K��enji.


    The answer other than silence does note.


    Eventually, time ran out, and the third round of voting woulde, whether we wanted it or not. Fortunately, there was no limit to the number of times we could vote. As long as time permits, there will be a chance to make the vote unanimous every ten minutes.


    [Results of the third round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    37 against


    As in the past two rounds, two people voted in favour, K��enji and someone we can''t see. For now, many of the students still put more weight on K��enji''s side, but I wonder if they will eventually look in other directions.


    It won''t be long before we are faced with the reality that there are students who have note forward and continue to vote in favour of the project with their eagerness and vignce. We are about to face the danger of anonymity, a danger that we had hoped to avoid the most. But the first priority is to deal with K��enji.


    Unless the votes in favour of the project are reversed, there will be no solution.


    "We can''t ignore the other person who is voting in favour. I think there are certain beliefs that only the person who is so adamantly in favour of the project has. If that''s the case, then I''ll speak to K��enji-kun and anyone else I can''t see at the same time." Not wasting any time in passing, Horikita began to gather her thoughts. "Thirty-seven of us will continue to vote against this.


    And two of us will continue to vote in favour of it. The worst thing that will happen is that we will run out of time. Even then, we may lose ss points, but we won''t lose our friends. We can get through this special exam without anyone dropping out. The people voting in favour feel that the ss points are a major advantage though, right? Even so, it isn''t the end of the world.


    We can find other ways to achieve those ss points."


    Horikita exins the risk of ending the exam in disagreement, citing specific gains and losses. Of course, the unseen one doesn''t answer anything, but what about K��enji?


    "Well, if we''re going to run out of time, go ahead and vote in favor." K��enji tells Horikita to vote in favour, as if it were a matter of course.


    "It''s true that if the vote is in favour unanimously, we can move forward. But what awaits next is an even bigger hurdle: which of your ssmates will be expelled. You don''t think it''ll be easy to get a unanimous vote either, do you?"


    "It''s your job to put it all together, Horikita girl. Besides, having students drop out isn''t such a bad thing, is it?"


    "That''s not true. We shouldn''t have expelled anyone."


    Before Horikita could argue with him, Y��suke told K��enji.


    "I don''t get it. You guys seem to be afraid of expelling students, but wouldn''t it be easier mentally to see this as a positive? You can discard unwanted students at will. You can even get ss points on top of that. If you change your mind a little, you''ll see that in favour is really a great choice for the ss. The other person besides myself who''s voting in favour also knows that."


    It''s a pointy way of thinking, but it''s a good enough reason to cast your vote in favour.


    "I don''t think that''s true, K��enji-kun. Losing someone from this ss is not a positive thing at all." As if in response to Y��suke, Kushida also said that ssmates should be prioritized. Other students, who had not spoken much until now, began to voice their objections at once.


    However, K��enji did not soften his attitude, but only smiled and chuckled. K��enji, who wanted to get the most out of the vote, did not respond to the discussion, and the fourth voting time arrived.


    [Results of the fourth round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    37 against


    After tens of minutes of appeals with no effect, the third interval begins with a signal from Chabashira-sensei.


    "What am I supposed to do? Damn, is there any way we could just punch him, knock him out and vote on our own?"


    "No, of course not. Let''s think about this objectively for once. If we do that, K��enji-kun''s thoughts might change."


    As Horikita wanted to avoid just following a parallel path, she was forced to try a different approach.


    "What do you mean by objective?"


    "I mean, which of the three sses, excluding us, will choose in favour."


    "Definitely Ry��en''s ss, they''re going to cut out the right guy, aren''t they?" Sud�� says without hesitation, crossing his arms at the back of her head.


    Many of his ssmates seemed to agree with him, letting out mouthfuls of "sure." From the way he thinks and acts, there is certainly a good chance that he will.


    "Yes, it''s certainly the most probable ss, isn''t it?"


    "On the contrary, Ichinose-san''s ss will definitely not. I wonder if Sakayanagi-san''s ss will..."


    Ry��en''s ss probably has the highest chance to vote in favour.


    Ichinose''s ss will surely turn in the opposite direction. And Sakayanagi''s ss, which has the potential to be either. Coincidentally, the three sses all have different colors, an interesting result shared by the ssmates.


    In this case, there is almost no discussion about Ichinose''s ss, which is known to be good natured. The focus of the conversation will be on Ry��en''s ss.


    "I don''t like the idea of being outssed by Ry��en''s ss. We have a lot of momentum right now, and we''re going to be one step ahead of them here, which means ss B, right?"


    "That said, the difference won''t be huge. Even without the current lead, the difference is 100 ss points, and one special exam is enough to regain the lead."


    "I know what you mean. But I still have one thing to say." Akito had been quietly participating in the special exam but decided it was time to break his silence. "It''s unlikely. But it''s also possible that missing these 100 ss points might make us regret our choice, right?"


    "Miyhi, does that mean we have to get someone to drop out?"


    Spoke up Haruka from her seat.


    "Don''t get me wrong. I''m clearly against it."


    She stared at Akito looking more annoyed than angry.


    "I''m of the opinion that the best way to get to ss A is without missing anyone from this ss. That''s why I think we need to understand the weight of a hundred points, and not take it lightly."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "It means that we all need to express our opposition after imagining a future in which this special exam is the turning point when graduation approaches."


    It was wrong to vote against it without preparation, that was Akito''s opinion.


    "Well when you put it that way..."


    You have to vote against it without a second thought. The students find themselves in the shadow of such peer pressure and fail to look at the bigger picture.


    "K��enji. I''m well aware of your sess in the ind exam. Even without your promise to Horikita, I think it''s strange that you''re choosing the vote to expel someone." In addition to Horikita and Sud��, Akito turns his thoughts to K��enji as well. "But still, it''s not something you can just annoy the ss with as long as you want. ss points aren''t the only thing that make up a rtionship. Do you understand what I''m saying?"


    "Hmm..." Closing his eyes, K��enji nodded deeply. Then, whether he was thinking about something or not, he opened his eyes and gave Akito a single nce.


    "Of course... I have no idea what you''re talking about. Think about how this school works. Everything is based on points earned. It has nothing to do with friendship or affinity. It''s ss points that determine the higher sses, and private points that are your personal assets. It''s an inextricably linked evaluation system. I don''t see anything wrong with agreeing to make that a top priority."


    "You''re a bit of an idiot, aren''t you? You''re the one who hasn''t contributed to the ss in almost two years! Just because you won first ce on an uninhabited ind doesn''t mean you can act like that all the time!"


    "I think you should look in the mirror, Red Hair-kun. I think it''s clearer than ever which of us is the better tribute to the ss."


    In reality, both of them were slow to contribute at the start. No, Sud��''s portion is worse if you factor in the fluctuations to ss points due to his behaviour.


    "Well, it''s not the ss points that are important to me."


    K��enji''s attitude in favour of the project had seemed untenable up to this point. However, Horikita did not miss this statement by K��enji.


    "ss points are not important. Then for you, these 100 ss points are not for moving up to ss A, but for private points. That''s why you keep throwing your support behind it, isn''t it?"


    "Exactly. I want to be in favour of it for private point''s sake, because in the two previous questions, I chose to halve the amount of private point''s transfer for six months. I drank in the tears that it was necessary for you to protect me, but it''s not going to happen this time."


    "I want ss points topensate for the private points that will be lost." That turns out to be K��enji''s reason for being in favour of it. For some students, they might resent the fact that he is trying to get them expelled for private points. However, Horikita saw this as an opportunity.


    "Okay, K��enji-kun, let''s make a deal. It''s not a bad deal for you."


    "Huh? That sounds interesting, I''d like to hear that presentation."


    K��enji weed the proposal without surprise, rather as if he had been waiting for it.


    "If you vote against from now on, and then unanimous consent by opposition is granted, I will pay 10,000 private points on behalf of the school every month from now until you graduate. This would be the equivalent of 100 more ss points for you, right? That would certainly make it meaningless for K��enji-kun to vote in favour of it."


    "As expected of a Horikita girl, it didn''t take you long toe to that conclusion.


    "You were in favour of this proposal from the start, weren''t you?"


    "That''s what my vote is worth, you know. It''s not impossible to raise the price, but I need the Horikita girl to be a reliable ally. Let''s make a deal on those terms, shall we?"


    "We don''t need to put this in writing, do we? We have Chabashira-sensei here."


    "Of course, I don''t expect you to go back on your word. The deal is done."


    K��enji''s vote of approval seemed to be unmovable. He finally made a move and promised to vote against it. The fact that he dared to continue to vote in favour of the proposal and let Horikita bring it to him was a masterstroke.


    This is how the fifth vote went. The fact that K��enji made it clear that he was going to vote against the proposal must have had an effect on the one person who was invisible. It would not be easy for just one person to continue to express opposition, even if he or she is an anonymous person. In other words, even without persuasion, the vote has the potential to turn against it.


    However...


    [Results of the fifth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    K��enji switched his vote from ''for'' to ''against,'' but there was still one vote to expel a student.


    The real battle seems to start here.


    An anonymous, absolute in favour vote.


    In order to ovee this, we still need to find out who is voting in favour. But that is more difficult than anything else. The tablets are basically impossible to spy on, but if you want to see where you touch with your fingertips, you can. However, the school has anticipated this and the order of the choices is randomized from the beginning. It is impossible to check each other''s finger movements because the choices are switched each time the vote is taken. There is no other way but to make do with the repeated intervals.


    "Well, well, it looks like things aren''t going to be easy."


    "As I said, unless you are unanimous in your opposition, the deal you just made is null and void."


    "I know, I know. If the vote is unanimous in favour, or if the time runs out, I''ll just give up.


    As long as it''s anonymous, there''s no way to prove that K��enji isn''t voting yes except by unanimous consent. He doesn''t seem to think that he can get private points for any other option. If they vote for whatever they want here, the good news will disappear.


    It would be inconvenient for K��enji to make an enemy of Horikita. We had about three hours left. Despite her struggles, Horikita is making progress toward a breakthrough with a solid strategy. However, it is also true that we can''t continue to be sidelined forever.


    We need to get this to a unanimous vote before the remaining time runs out. Until then, I''m just going to sit back and watch this war unfold, but can I give her some support? In between intervals, I coughed a couple of times.


    In the midst of all the chatter, no one pays any attention to an unconscious coughing fit.


    On the contrary, it is a cough that can be heard if you are aware of it.


    "You know what, Horikita-san?"


    "Did you say something, Karuizawa-san?"


    "This is just a hunch of mine, but maybe you have an idea of who''s voting in favour?"


    "Huh? Why do you think that?"


    Horikita''s face showed surprise at the unexpected point made by Kei.


    "I just kind of thought so."


    The Horikita of the past would have taken it as a mere thoughtful remark. But now that the fact that Kei and I were dating was out in the open, that would begin to change.


    "Yes... you''re right. You''re right Karuizawa-san. I think I might know someone who keeps voting in favour..."


    "What the hell, then, get on with it. Who is this guy?" said Sud�� as he jumped out of his seat.


    "I can''t tell you that. This special test is a poll of anonymous names. If you say a name just because you think of it, you''ll never be able to take it back if you''re wrong."


    "But-"


    "I know. That''s why I think I need to be prepared. We''ll have time to vote a few more times. If the number of votes in favour still doesn''t reach zero... then I''ll have no choice but to speak the name."


    "I want you to wait, Horikita-san. I don''t agree with you. As Horikita-san just said, there is no way to know for sure who is voting for whom this time. I don''t think it''s eptable to name names just because you have an idea. Of course, I''m not talking nonsense just because I don''t want anyone to drop out of school, you understand that, right?"


    "I agree with Hirata-kun. I don''t think it''s right to say something without absolute certainty."


    Kushida also leaked out anxiously, saying that she agreed with Y��suke.


    The students were filled with anxiety after the two''s opinions.


    If Horikita misunderstands me in some way and says my name, I will be criticized. If they were told to vote in favour when they were voting against, it would be an untenable situation. If thirty-eight people vote in favour in a hurry to run out the clock, it will be inevitable that the named person will be discussed as a target for expulsion.


    "I know, I know, that''s why I haven''t mentioned the name so far. But we can never just run out the clock. Isn''t that right?"


    "I know how you feel. I''m not the same person I used to be, and I''m willing to make a choice if I have to. But it has to be one hundred percent."


    "Correct."


    I try to make a slight change to the situation, which is starting to get heavy.


    "Horikita, besides the one you have in mind, is there any student you can think of who keeps voting in favour of this?"


    "No, I don''t. I don''t know, I just can''t wrap my head around the fact that there are people who are so adamantly in favour of this other than K��enji-kun."


    Of course, it would be hard for anyone who agrees to openlye out.


    As Sud�� stated before, if you voted in favour, you yourself would be put at risk of expulsion.


    "Even if I can''t say the name, I may know who it is. I''d like the person to raise their hand now, so we can avoid conflict." She asked again, as if to remind them. However, there was no response.


    "Y��suke. I know you don''t want to suspect anyone, but you have a wide range of friendships with both men and women, is there someone who might vote in favour or something?"


    "There isn''t. I''m not lying, I really can''t think of anyone."


    "I see. What about you, Kushida?"


    Even though I was talking to her out of the blue, she didn''t show any strange reaction.


    In fact, Horikita turned her head slightly and showed a somewhat disturbed expression due to the fact I had asked her.


    "Umm... I''m sorry Ayanok��ji-kun. I''m with Hirata-kun, there''s no girl thates to mind."


    "Kushida is the one who understands the ss the best. I thought she might know a bit about the students who are unhappy with the ss.


    Everyone knows that you care about the ss more than anyone else, and that you''re very amodating. So if you get any idea, let us know, okay?"


    Sure enough, expectant eyes from the ss turned to Kushida.


    "Umm, hmm... I don''t know if there''s anything thates to mind.


    But I''ll let you know if I realize something."


    "Sure thing. I have a feeling that the presence of people like Y��suke and Kushida is essential for thisst special exam."


    Without thebined efforts of all of them, it would be difficult to break through this challenge by opposition.


    But such cooperation was futile, and the results of the sixth vote were also posted shortly after...


    [Results of the sixth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    There was no change. We continued the same discussion.


    [Results of the seventh round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    [Results of the eighth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    The results continue to be the same, and the conversation bes more and more silent. The eighth interval begins next. A little more than an hour had passed since the start of this question.


    With a loud bang, Chabashira-sensei stumbled and almost fell over.


    She pressed her arms against the podium as if she was going to fall down, and managed to prevent herself from copsing.


    "Ah...!"


    The discussion was cut and Chabashira-sensei, who had been standing on the podium the whole time, was breathing hard.


    "S-sensei!"


    "It''s alright..." She said, and adjusted her posture as if she was trying to demonstrate she was alright. Chabashira-sensei stared at the students with vacant eyes, wondering what they were thinking. Eventually, she exhales heavily with some kind of determination.


    "Teachers are not allowed to guide the students to a particr choice.


    Naturally, as for me, I would not do such an act. However, may I tell you an old story? Of course, it would take up a lot of your precious time. If you still don''t mind, that is."


    "Chabashira-sensei. The teacher''s statement itself is not forbidden, but you won''t get off scot-free either if you vite the rules. If I decide that you are guiding the ss to protect them, you will face consequences...


    "Yes. If you see any intentions towards choice induction, I am prepared to be punished."


    By answering that she understood, the monitor could only be silenced.


    As a matter of course, an unexpected suggestion from Chabashira-sensei who had never intervened in the special exam. It could be taken as a ray of light in this environment that had been at a standstill.


    "Right now, we are suffering from this situation. To the extent that it doesn''t affect our options, please let us hear what you have to say, sensei."


    If there was some way to break the ice, Horikita said, that would be wee. Of course, if Chabashira-sensei really wanted to talk about it, it wouldn''t have mattered what Horikita said.


    But under the watchful eye of the monitor, direct interference must be avoided.


    "I also attended the Advanced Nurturing High School. And I''ve taken this special exam when I was a student."


    Horikita and the rest of her ssmates were surprised at the story being told for the first time.


    "Sensei, did you say you also take this unanimous special exam...?"


    "Yes, there were five questions, some with slightly different contents, but thest one you''re facing right now is the same word for word. You can either drop out a ssmate and gain ss points, or you can protect your friends and not gain ss points."


    The students turn to look at Chabashira-sensei''s statement that she has experienced the exact same special exam.


    "One thing is for sure. That is to give it your all with no regrets. To choose yes, no, or to run out of time. Whichever choice you decide to find a path that will not leave you regretting the oue. There is still time."


    For the first time, everyone listened as Chabashira-sensei spoke to the students with real emotion. She was not guiding them to choose any of the options, nor was she offering any solutions. It was the kind of advice a teacher can give when they are on the edge. The teacher who was listening in the background didn''t tell her that she was breaking the rules, and he listened until the end.


    I don''t know if this will change the oue.


    However, I made sure that I provided the students with the words to face this special exam again.


    It''s not a good idea to waste the remaining time in the interval, even with unexpected back-up from Chabashira-sensei, in order to increase the odds by even one percent, Horikita needs to stay on track.


    "It''s getting close to the time when you''ll have to make up your mind, but before you do, let me talk to you one more time. I''m not your enemy. I''m on your side."


    The name of the advocate must have crossed her mind many times.


    Their face, their voice, their eyes, their breath.


    Horikita continues to try her best to persuade them, never letting the ss know who the specific person is.


    She must be asking herself over and over again. "Shouldn''t I just tell them the name?" But she still doesn''t say anything because she sincerely wants to bring that person over to her side.


    It was like a cry of grief.


    In response to this, the ninth vote was cast. The result...


    [Results of the ninth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    As expected, the vote in favour remained in deadlock. Only one person.


    There is one student who is hanging on to the 100 ss points.


    No... there is someone who is clinging to the right to expel someone.


    This is the real truth that only I, or perhaps only two people including Horikita, are aware of. It''s safe to say that a certain person''s thorough vote of approval continues to linger. However, there is no way to objectively confirm that person''s opposition in this situation.


    Horikita said that if time ran out, she would be forced to speak the name.


    But in reality, no matter how many times the vote is repeated, Horikita will never say the name. Horikita will never ask, "Why are you opposed to this?" Because she knows that such a question is not really meaningful.


    Rather, Horikita will lose everything in the future once she mentions the name. Even though there was still some time left, the time limit set for the next two hours was approaching.


    That was the deadline for her to make a big decision.

 Chapter 214 - 4: Ichinose’s Choice

    <h4>Chapter 214: Chapter 4: Ichinose��s Choice</h4>


    BEFORE THE START of this special exam, there was one ss that every teacher thought would pass through with ease. On the other hand, it was also foreseen that if the ss cleared the exam without a struggle, there was a concern that they would lose the battle for ss A. That ss was Ichinose''s ss B.


    [QUESTION FIVE:]


    Gain 100 ss points in exchange for one ssmate being expelled.


    (If the vote is unanimously in favour, identify the student who will be expelled and vote for him/her.


    [Choices:]


    For


    Against


    Ichinose and her friends, who had reached thest question early, finished the first vote and were waiting for the result. There was no sign of anxiety or agitation. Except for one person.


    Kanzaki prayed as he looked at the 39 people who had already voted, excluding himself. He strongly hoped that the results of the vote would turn out to be a bit of a split vote.


    "Well then, I''ll announce the results."


    Hoshinomiya operated her tablet while showing a somewhat disappointed look. The results that were disyed while everyone was watching were...


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    39 against


    After realizing the worst possible result, he could have imagined, Kanzaki closed his eyes. Of course, the ss B students are not surprised by the overwhelming majority of votes against. They had no doubt that the vote would be unanimous. This was symbolized by the fact that they did not feel anything unusual about the in favour vote.


    "Who''s the guy who voted in favour? You pressed the wrong button."


    Without any sense of crisis, it was Shibata sitting in the front who turned around and said so.


    That''s right, he didn''t consider the possibility that this one vote was a in favour vote with clear intention.


    Not only Shibata, but everyone in the ss had the same perception.


    Knowing this, an uncontroble feeling of anger welled up inside Kanzaki.


    Up until now, Kanzaki had done his best to quietly support his ssmates'' intentions. However, under no circumstances can he continue to fight just to protect his friends. It was precisely because Kanzaki was in the position of a general advisor that he felt this concern more strongly than anyone else.


    "I don''t think there''s anything to discuss for the time being, and we''ll just wait until the next vote-"


    "Wait a minute. Sure, we could always pass a unanimous vote by dissent, I guess. But can we really say with certainty that it''s the right thing to do, to keep choosing to protect our ssmates?" Kanzaki interrupted Shibata''s words and stood up, tapping the desk calmly but powerfully.


    Ack of crisis awareness. A mindset that assumes that there is no such thing as a student who prioritizes ss points over ssmates.


    This was shown to him, and Kanzaki could not continue to endure quietly.


    "I can only believe that everyone is suffering from normality bias if they don''t think it''s abnormal that 39 opposing votes were gathered without any hesitation or doubt."


    Normality bias refers to the characteristic of not paying attention to unfavourable events, information, etc., and not recognizing a crisis.


    "If our ss is going to win this thing, we''re going to have to choose a new decision. We''re already on the edge of a cliff. And yet, I think you''re hawking the idea that we can''t ever fall off that cliff. If you don''t chase sspoints more greedily, moving up to ss A will be a pipe dream."


    Kanzaki simply wants his ssmates to understand. He''s trying to make an argument, even though he''s far from suited for persuading others.


    The eyes of his ssmates watching him are colder than ever.


    "What the hell, Kanzaki. Does that mean this vote was cast by you?"


    It''s not just Shibata who''s unconvinced that the vote in favour wasn''t a mistake. The whole ss is looking at him in such a way.


    "That''s right. It''s certainly important to protect your ssmates. But our ss has been slowly dropping scores from the time we entered until now. If the lower sses prioritize ss points over a ssmate, then we''ll fall down to ss D in this special exam."


    The only person who listened to Kanzaki''s plea head-on was his homeroom teacher, Hoshinomiya.


    However, from her position as a teacher, she couldn''t say anything sympathetic towards it.


    "That''s true, but there''s no one in this ss who can be expelled."


    There is no room for debate, and Shirinami instantly shows her rebuttal to Kanzaki.


    "I know that... I know that."


    "You say we''re dropping to ss D, but man, I don''t think others are going to expel anyone for just a hundred ss points. Maybe Ry��en is an exception, but this exam requires unanimous approval from the entire ss anonymously. I don''t think the rest of the sses are going to choose to drop a student out of school."


    If you foresee that all sses will be unanimous in their opposition, the gap will not widen.


    "It certainly won''t be easy for any ss to choose the option of cutting out their friends. But it''s the process that I''m focusing on. Isn''t it natural for some students, if not half, to think that they should prioritize their ss over their friends, even just a little?"


    "You mean you want to have a discussion? Even though it''s pretty much a given that we''re going to be unanimous in our opposition?"


    "It''s not set in stone. It''s a discussion with a view to unanimity by approval."


    "No, no, that''s not right. You''re trying to work your way up because you have friends and no one is missing. There is absolutely no way that any one person can be missing."


    ss points and ssmates.


    If it were a simple choice of which of the two was more important, Kanzaki would have no room for doubt. However, the situation has changed drastically since he entered the school. Starting in ss B, the ss points were in line with each other.


    In the first semester of his first year, they took arge lead over the bottom two sses. If they had maintained that status, he would not haveined about preaching the preciousness of fellow students.


    "By all means, is there no one... who has an opinion other than the opposite?"


    On the verge of giving up, Kanzaki looked around at his ssmates, believing in onest possibility. However, none of them showed any sign of agreeing with him. Even if some of them agreed with him in their hearts, there were no students who could say it out loud. Everyone believes, or rather hopes, that the second vote will be unanimous in its opposition.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m... not going to let you be unanimous in your opposition to this choice."


    Feeling the pressure, Kanzaki muttered against it.


    "Does that mean you''re going to vote in favour on... the next vote?"


    Ichinose, who had been silent up to this point, asked Kanzaki what he really meant.


    "Yes."


    "But Kanzaki-kun, we''re not going to change our minds, okay? We definitely don''t want to be in a ss where we me our friends for sacrificing themselves to gain ss points."


    "That''s right, Kanzaki. I''m not sure what to think about this question, but you''re probably wondering if it''s a challenge or a trap. If you start thinking like that, you''ll suffer the same kind of pain in future battles, right?"


    "But if you gain ss points even if you abandon your friends, you can get closer to ss A. Even more so if such a chancees around twice or thrice. On the other hand, if only our ss chooses to protect our friends, we''ll be overtaken by other sses."


    "I don''t think it''s easy to sacrifice several of your friends, man.


    Besides, I don''t see how a ss like that can keep winning. The ss that protects their friends and believes in their friends will win in the end. Don''t you think?"


    Almost in unison, all his ssmates nodded.


    "Let''s face it, Shibata. The situation is very different fromst year.


    We''re in a tight spot right now. As a result of choosing not to expel anyone, we lost a lot of private points. On the other hand, the three sses that are missing their ssmates are doing well."


    "It won''tst forever."


    "What makes you say that it won''tst forever?"


    "Then I''ll ask you the opposite, what''s your evidence that it willst forever?"


    "We were in second ce, and now we''re on the verge of falling to fourth ce."


    "You''re the one who should look at the current situation, Kanzaki.


    Right now, we''re in ss B. Whether the lead is 1 point or 100 points, it''s a fact that we''re in ss B, right? And even if we drop a little, we''lle back eventually."


    Up until now, Kanzaki had been pushed by the expectations of those around him from start to finish, but he had tried his best to hold on. He was desperately trying to resist, to make them question this unusual idea.


    "Kanzaki-kun. I understand that you want to have a lot of choices in order to win. But there are some choices that you should never make. I believe that''s what I''m choosing for this question. It''s not because you don''t have enough ss points to get people to drop out. It is wrong to put ss points and friends on a bnce sheet."


    Ichinose''s statement solidified the resolve of her ssmates. No, they originally put their friends first with a firm will, but now they were even more convinced.


    Kanzaki was deeply disappointed. This ss is often envied by the rest of the school grade.


    They are kind, cheerful, and equal. They are the ideal group of friends who can bnce both studies and sports. This is the advantage that Ichinose, the leader of the group, has created, but she also has a major disadvantage.


    Her presence has mass-produced followers and created an environment where people don''t pay attention to the dirty things.


    Even if she is told that if she drops out of school, the rest of the ss will be confirmed for ss A, they will rather choose Ichinose. An obsession that makes you say, "I''d rather be in drop sses than cut off my friends."


    It was the sole biggest drawback, Kanzaki reminded himself again.


    "Well... I guess you''re right. Maybe I''m wrong."


    In order to ovee this shoring, he knew the risks involved and tried the rough treatment. He knew he was not the right person for the job, but since there was no one else avable, he had to do it.


    "But what if I continue to vote in favour until the end? Even one vote has a lot of power in this special exam. I can even ignore the will of the 39 of you and keep voting in favour."


    "There''s no way you can do that! If we fail because we run out of time, we''ll be minus three hundred, and that means we won''t be able to beat the other sses."


    No one would choose to run out of time. It''smon sense.


    "It''s the same thing. If we don''t cut ourselves loose here and grab 100 ss points, I don''t think this ss will ever graduate from ss A. In other words, whether it''s 100 or 300 ss points, the size of the points you lose is a small and insignificant matter..."


    It wasn''t about the points. It''s about sending a message.


    "Okay, that''s enough. Now it''s time to vote, so let''s stop the discussion."


    Hoshinomiya interrupted Kanzaki and started the timer to 60 seconds.


    The tablet showed a switched voting screen, with buttons for approval and disapproval.


    Quietly, Kanzaki looked at the buttons. The ss stopped moving, and silence fell.


    It was as if the 39 students had finished voting in less than five seconds.


    No, in fact, they have finished voting.


    Kanzaki made up his mind and pressed the button, and Hoshinomiya moved at the same time.


    "Yes. Well then, since everyone has finished voting, I''ll announce the results."


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    39 against


    Despite desperate attempts at persuasion, the results were the same as the first vote. Of course, the vote in favour of the question was cast by Kanzaki.


    "You''ve got to be kidding me..."


    "Kanzaki-kun, you mean you''re seriously going to continue to vote in favour of this?"


    The ssmates, including Ichinose, were more dumbfounded than angry and blurted out their thoughts. However, that easygoing atmosphere begins to change little by little due to Kanzaki''s firm will.


    "I''ve... made up my mind. I won''t let this be unanimous."


    At that statement, the ss goes silent even though the interval has just begun.


    "If I keep voting in favour, after a few hours, you''ll have no choice but to unpack your stopped thoughts and think. We''ll have no choice but to debate whether or not it''s really the right thing to vote against."


    Kanzaki tells them that he is prepared to use the remaining three and a half hours of exam time to the fullest.


    "There are only a few ways we can defuse this situation. We would have to change our opinion and make it unanimous in favour."


    "What are you talking about, Kanzaki-kun? That''s not-"


    "That would be unrealistic. It''s not like you guys have any idea of sacrificing any of your ssmates in this ss, except me. But that doesn''t mean I''m going to sway the vote in favour of it." Interrupting Ichinose''s words, Kanzaki didn''t stop resisting and continued speaking. "Then there''s only one real way. You can choose to agree with me and then expel me."


    Kanzaki wanted to change this ss even at the cost of self-sacrifice.


    That''s how he has chosen to express his feelings.


    "If you don''t have the courage to take a step forward in this special exam, then you won''t be able to move up to ss A. If that''s the case, I''ll spend the remaining half of my school life in vain. At that point, I''m willing to drop out and find another path to follow."


    It seemed like a strange idea, but it was also the only way Kanzaki could do it. There was no way this ss, which leaned towards the weak, could act to select someone to drop out. On the other hand, there was no way he was going to use any luck against the heavy penalty of expulsion.


    The vote was repeated three times, with a new interval between each time.


    A total of five rounds of voting resulted in 1 vote in favour and 39 votes against. Not a single vote moved, and the same screen and the same results were repeated.


    "Ugh, okay, we''ll have another interval."


    Perhaps bored with the stalemate, Hoshinomiya didn''t hide her annoyance, but showed it in her attitude.


    The observer at the back of the ssroom did not take issue with the teacher''s attitude.


    Their role is to maintain fairness.


    Whether the students are fooling around or the teacher is not motivated, it is a free action that is allowed within the rules. But furthermore, from there, it went on for another 30 minutes or more. In other words, even after three additional rounds of voting, the results were still the same.


    Only the results of the fixed and unchanging voting are reflected back to the ss.


    "It''s been over an hour now, right? There''s just one question left..."


    "It can''t be helped. We''ll just have to wait until Kanzaki-kun votes against it."


    The hope of the 39 who are voting against is that Kanzaki will lose his patience and vote against as well. At first, they tried to be friendly to him, or scolded him with a stern tone, but Kanzaki just kept repeating the vote in silence.


    "Hey, guys, I''m bored with the silence, so can I talk to you? Oh, if you''re not interested, just ignore me."


    Hoshinomiya, who has been keeping an eye on thest question so far, opens her mouth.


    "Actually, when I was a student, I had the same experience as everyone else. You know why? Because I''ve also taken this unanimous special exam.


    And the content of the fifth question was exactly the same as now."


    "That''s unusual for sensei to talk about her school days. This is the first time."


    Ichinose''s ss and Hoshinomiya had a good rtionship, and it was known early on that she was from this school. Not many students had tried to ask her about her school days in the process, but it was safe to say that there had never been a serious opportunity to talk about it.


    "The ss situation was totally different, but I remember we were stuck on this question for a long time as well." She gives a somewhat coldugh as he reminisces about that time. "It''s the ultimate choice, whether to take ss points or your friends. So, we struggled and struggled. The boys would even grab each other by the chest."


    "Well, that''s a little aggressive, isn''t it?" Shiranami chuckled as she looked at the girls.


    They couldn''t imagine such a situation in their own ss, being so angry with one another and grabbing each other by the chest.


    "Well, it was in a different time too. In my case, it was the third semester of my senior year; it was the time to go all out for one point. If you talk even a little bit about expelling a certain person, your friends will defend that person as a matter of course. But sometimes you have to cut someone loose to win, don''t you? If you were in a situation where you only needed 100 more ss points to get to ss A, would you have been able to make the same decision?"


    Hoshinomiya understood very well what Kanzaki wanted to ask, and she put it directly into words.


    "We can''t expel someone. We''ll do our best to recover in the next special exam. That''s what they said anyways. But, what if there''s no next time? What if this special exam is thest exam for graduation? At this moment in time, we all made it to ss A, the ss we''ve always wanted to reach. But the gap with ss B was only a few dozen points. If we prioritize protecting our friends here, we''ll end up in ss B. So, what were we to do?


    Of course, the ss B that''s chasing after us doesn''t have a choice, do they?


    They''ll cut someone and get 100 ss points, right?"


    No matter how many good-natured people there are in the ss, they have to consider it. Protecting their friends would almost guarantee a drop to ss B.


    "Do you want to make it unanimous in opposition as well? Bet on the dream story that ss B will give up on ss A and choose the option of no dropouts?"


    Kanzaki''s ssmates, who have been saying nothing but rebuttals, finally have nothing to say.


    "Well, that''s a nasty question, isn''t it? It''s not like you''re actually in that situation right now. But one thing is for sure. That is, if you have the desire to move up to ss A, there wille a time when you have to choose in favour of it by ying rock-paper-scissors or whatever. Running out of time is not an option."


    "What choice did you make at that time, sensei?"


    "Me? I made the choice to... cut out the unnecessary people, of course.


    Because even if you say you are a friend or a confidant, in the end it is you who is important. In essence, I think it''s fine as long as I can save myself."


    We all want to graduate together from ss A. That''s what everyone is thinking. However, many of us also understand in our hearts that this is idealism. Friends or self-preservation? When asked to answer this question, the students were unable to speak.


    "I can''t say much more because I''m being watched closely behind me.


    I will respect you all, whichever choice you make. But definitely don''t just make vague and ambiguous decisions. If you''re only friends on the surface, don''t worry about it, just prioritize your ss points. You''ve only known each other for a year and a half, right? I''m sure you''ll heal from the loss of your friends in time. But if you don''t make it to ss A, it''s going to haunt you for the rest of your lives. If that''s not the case, and your friends are really more important than anything else, you need to put them first."


    Hoshinomiya finished her conversation, avoiding the res of the observer. As a teacher, she merely told her students that there are advantages and disadvantages to both choices. The next vote wille at the same time as we finished listening to this story. Everyone had a strange feeling about the button, both for and against.


    The results of the vote, which took some time, were 1 vote in favour and 39 against. As in the past, there was no shift of even one vote.


    Hoshinomiya in particr was not surprised, but rather seemed to have been shown the shape of this ss'' will.


    "Hey, Kanzaki-kun. Can''t we, like, just stop this now?" In the interval right after the voting, Himeno called out in a dumbfounded manner. "I understand what you want to say, Kanzaki-kun, after listening to what Hoshinomiya-sensei said as well. But I don''t think that will lead us to vote in favour of it here and now. I''m sure that won''t change even if the time runs out."


    He would choose to run out of time to protect his friends. That''s the perception that Himeno and most of the ss must have.


    On the other hand, Ichinose expresses her own thoughts.


    "Yes, I understand what Kanzaki-kun and Hoshinomiya-sensei are saying. I can understand them. But what you two were talking about is what to do when you are put in such a situation. I understand why people are upset, and I don''t think that''s a bad thing. But... even if I were in that situation, I don''t see the point of reaching ss A if your friends aren''t there. So, what should I do for that? In order to avoid such a situation, I think it''s important to make sure that we achieve ss A in a situation where we don''t have to make such an absurd choice."


    "That''s idealistic... An overwhelming ss A where no one has to drop out. How many ss points do we have to rake in to make that happen...?"


    "It may not be good enough right now. But I want to achieve such a ss."


    Ichinose''s ssmates listened intently to her dreamy narrative and repeatedly nodded their heads in agreement.


    Kanzaki''s resistance would be meaningless now.


    Even if he continued to vote in favour here, he would only run out of time, as Himeno said.


    "Let''s do our best together, Kanzaki-kun."


    "I... I see how it is."


    The one opposing force is preyed upon and taken in by those who know no fear.


    "In my own way, I tried to change this ss for the better, even if it was through aggressive means. But apparently, I don''t have the qualifications or the ability to do so. I don''t know if I''ll end up in ss B or D, but I''m pretty sure I''ll never make it to ss A. This was enough for me to be convinced of that."


    The look on his face as he epted to pitch against us was devoid of any vitality, but he doubts many of the students noticed that. After that, it was time to vote, as if there had never been any trouble in the first ce.


    The answer given by 40 people was...


    [Results of the tenth round of voting:]


    0 in favour


    40 against


    Kanzaki gave up on ss points and chose to protect his ssmates.


    "With that, we are now unanimous on thest question, so the special exam is over."


    "I''m fine with this, Kanzaki-kun. We''ll also get fifty points for finishing."


    "The time required was about three hours. You''re not allowed to leave the but you''re free to go."


    "By the way, it looks like ss A has already finished their special exam."


    "Really? That''s expected of Sakayangi''s ss."


    "That means Ry��en-kun and Horikita-san''s sses are still in deliberation, right?"


    "Yes, everyone~. The other sses are in the middle of their special exams, so please don''t disturb them. The teacher will guide you now, so please get out of your seats quietly."


    As the students around him jumped in joy after finishing the special exam, Kanzaki quietly got up from his seat and walked out of the room.

 Chapter 215 - 5 : Ryūen’s Choice

    <h4>Chapter 215: Chapter 5 : Ry��en��s Choice</h4>


    CLASS D, ANOTHER ss of 40 students, was beginning to feel the heavy atmosphere. Of course, this was only because of the intense content of thest question that we had arrived at.


    [QUESTION FIVE:]


    Gain 100 ss points in exchange for one ssmate being expelled.


    (If the vote is unanimously in favour, identify the student who will be expelled and vote for him/her.


    [Choices:]


    For


    Against


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    14 in favour


    26 against


    This is the moment when the voting results were disclosed. Like Horikita''s and Ichinose''s ss, there were against votes. However,pared to those sses, the number of ssmates who were in favour of expelling a ssmate were considerablyrger.


    In other words, more than a third of the students felt on first impression that ss points should be prioritized even if it means expelling a student.


    "So, what are you going to do, Ry��en-san?"


    Ishizaki, the first person who asked for instructions after receiving the results asked the ss leader, Ry��en...


    The flow of events leading up to this question all started with this procedure. Since it is unlikely that the issue will be unanimous after the first vote, they listen to the leader''s policy in the first interval and aim for unanimity in the second and subsequent votes.


    The sequence of events is simr to that of other sses, but the uracy is extremely high. The confrontation ss in question 1, the protection point rtionship in question 3, and the test imposed on my own ss in question 4 all resulted in unanimous votes on the choices that Ry��en instructed in just one interval.


    The only question he let them do as they pleased was question 2, the decision on the school trip. He let his ssmates debate as they wished for about half an hour, and in the end, they were unanimous in choosing the destination with the highest number of votes.


    It is obvious to everyone that thisst question is different in content, but the method is essentially the same.


    All issues that seem to require instructions are decided by a single word from Ry��en.


    The students are keenly aware of just which side Ry��en voted for. If he votes in favour, it means that someone will be expelled. An irresistible decision. This is the characteristic of a ss that is governed by a dictatorship. Looking at the results and smiling, Ry��en stood up from his chair.


    "It''s been a boring time up to this point, but I guess the school didn''t intend for it to be just a game. Otherwise it wouldn''t be so interesting, would it?" He mumbled to himself for all my ssmates to hear, and made my way to the podium.


    Sakagami, the teacher of ss D, sensed Ry��en approaching and distanced himself.


    He knew well that this was where Ry��en would start his stand-up act, as usual. He sat down on the podium as if it was his reserved seat. He took a posture that allowed him to look out over all his ssmates and spoke his first words.


    "All those who voted in favour, raise your hands."


    There was no consideration whatsoever in Ry��en''s order, and an intense tension ran through everyone, regardless of whether they agreed or not. In the past, he had never even asked which option we had voted for.


    After a few seconds of hesitation, hands started to be raised. Some of them were Nishino and Kaneda, who raised their hands while staring out the window, looking unmotivated.


    "So, five people. Well, I guess that''s about right. That''s pretty good for a first time."


    The fact that there were nine students who didn''t follow orders and didn''t state that they voted in favour.


    It was students like Ishizaki, Komiya, and the others who were first surprised to see this.


    "Hey, there''s nothing to be gained by hiding opinions, is there? It''s not like we''re going to get mad at you for voting in favour once." Komiya appealed to his silent ssmates, hoping that things wouldn''t get too messy now. "It''s not like you were being told what to do. It was your personal choice to vote for or against, right?" Komiya exins that they can''t be med for that, and just to be sure, he checks with Ry��en to make sure he''s right.


    However, when Ry��en didn''t respond immediately, it caused a moment of tension in Komiya. If there was a misinterpretation, it could lead to a scolding censure.


    "Hurry up and raise your hands before I start getting annoyed!"


    Hurrying to change the atmosphere of the ce, Ishizaki hurriedly followed up.


    Then one student raised his hand apologetically after a dy. This brought the total number of students to six, but the remaining eight students still did not raise their hands.


    "It''s okay, Ishizaki. Anyone who doesn''t want to raise their hand doesn''t have to. For now."


    "Eh, is it okay?"


    "Komiya said it right, that it''s up to each individual to agree or disagree. So first of all, each of you should think about what you''re going to do on your own. We have a little over eight minutes left, and that''s plenty of time to do so."


    Checking the time without panicking, Ry��en didn''t even try to change his posture or break out of his grin. He only told them vaguely to think about it, and then did nothing.


    And for more than two minutes, he remained silent without doing anything.


    "Look, don''t waste this time. Think about which way you''re going to vote."


    From here, silence again.


    Ten seconds, thirty seconds, a minute passed, but he made no attempt to utter anything. All the questions up to this point had forced him to make a choice in the first interval.


    That''s why all the students were wondering why Ry��en didn''t give them any instructions. However, few students were able to express their opinions, but the more time passed, the more their mouths closed.


    "Please, give us some instructions..."


    At first, Ishizaki and the others seemed to be able to say so, but then they became downcast. Their upper and lower lips were stuck together and would not open as if they were glued together. The more time that passed, the more they almost lost the will to speak. Eventually, those who wanted to speak up would fade away, and they would shift to hoping that someone else would speak up. When even that passes, people start to hope that the voting time wille soon, even though the remaining time is longer.


    The first interval, which seemed long and drawn out, came to an end with the majority of the time spent in silence. This was something Sakagami hadn''t expected, and he had lost track of the fact that he had to proceed a few seconds past the scheduled time.


    "Sakagami-sensei. Isn''t it time?"


    He huffed at Ry��en''s words once he got off the podium and tried to return to his own seat.


    "Yes, it is. We will now have a second round of voting, and you have 60 seconds to cast your votes."


    And as soon as everyone had voted for the second time, the results were immediately shown on the monitor.


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    10 in favour


    30 against


    Of the 14 in favour votes, 4 moved to against votes. For the majority of those who did not want to be expelled, this result was generally not a bad thing. With one or two more stern words from the school, the number of in favour votes will decrease further. The result of the second round of voting was such that a unanimous vote against the project could be seen in the near future.


    However, Ry��en does not seem to be satisfied with the result.


    "Is this the best answer you guys cane up with?


    "Is it because the number of affirmative votes is decreasing?" Kaneda asks as he adjusts the position of his sses. But Ry��en immediately denied it. "Does that mean that... Ry��en-san is voting in favour?" He also denied the point, andughed once with his nose as if he was dumbfounded. "I''m not sure what''s bothering you, Ry��en-san. I don''t know."


    "Did you guys really reflect your intentions in your votes the first and second time? Only thisst issue is clearly different and unusual. That''s why I want to know your "true intentions". Don''t worry about which side I voted for, just make your choice based on your emotions."


    With that, Ry��en left his seat and began to walk slowly through the ssroom.


    "For the next ten minutes, discuss this thoroughly. Do you want to vote in favour or against?"


    With such instructions, the students were forced to debate frantically.


    Surrounded by the hectic hustle and bustle, they started talking about whatever they wanted. Ry��en listened to them, asionally whispering into the ears of his ssmates.


    He didn''t seem to have a particr student in mind.


    And the next time he approached Suzuki, he spoke in a whisper in a simr fashion.


    "You''re free to agree or disagree. Vote for the one you think is right."


    Having said that, he also gives an earful to Tokit��, who now sits two seats back from Suzuki.


    They continued the discussion as long as time allowed. The time for the third round of voting arrived.


    [Results of the third round of voting:]


    9 in favour


    31 against


    The result was almost the same as the second time, and was disyed on the monitor. Sitting down at his desk on the podium, Ry��en decides to express his thoughts during the third interval.


    "All those who voted in favour, raise your hands."


    After receiving the results, Ry��en again takes a show of hands. Only two people raised their hands, Nishino and Kaneda. The remaining seven people kept their presence a secret and refused toe forward.


    Ishizaki was annoyed by the invisible in favour votes, but Ry��en paid no attention to them.


    "It looks like you guys voted in favour all three times. Kaneda, what''s the reason?"


    "To win, I guess. It''s never good to have a student drop out, but I think it''s more important to get 100 ss points."


    "Didn''t you think that raising your hand would make you a target for expulsion?"


    "That''s a foolish question, Ry��en-san. If you''re useless, you can cut out people you don''t need, but you won''t kick out people you do need. At least in this ss, my value is not 100 ss points."


    He had weighed his value on a bnce sheet and decided that there was no danger of being voted out.


    "Well, you''re right. Even though he''scking in looks, Kaneda has a variety of other uses."


    "Thank you very much."


    Kaneda nodded in satisfaction, not paying any attention to the backhandedpliment.


    "Nishino, are you the same as Kaneda?"


    "Huh? No way. I just agreed to the quickest way to get more ss points. The only reason I raised my hand is because I don''t like sneaking around. There''s nothing wrong with agreeing with them."


    Ishizaki was on edge at the way she spoke, as if she was about to get a re from Ry��en if she wasn''t careful.


    "It''s time I tell you what you guys care about. Which one I voted for."


    "Oh, please tell us!"


    They can''t start moving on hearing who Ry��en voted for, or in other words, the policy of this ss.


    Ishizaki hoped aloud as he leaned forward.


    "I voted ''in favour'' on this question, all three times."


    In other words, the current vote, three of the nine votes in favour, turn out to be Ry��en, Nishino and Kaneda.


    "So, that means you''re going to expel someone from the ss... right?"


    At Ishizaki''s question, Ry��en just smiles and chuckles wryly.


    "Don''t be so quick to point fingers. I''m just telling you guys how my vote went. I''ve decided that it''s up to you to figure out what you want to do about this issue."


    "Oh, we'' re going to decide...?"


    "Sure, I voted in favour all three times without a second thought."


    If the vote was in favour all three times, it was safe to assume that the policy was to expel students from ssmates. But since he didn''t admit it, Ishizaki is at a loss for words, not understanding the meaning.


    "The reason why I agree is simple: if you expel one person, you get 100 ss points. In other words, this is an unbeatable option for getting rid of unwanted hindrances and getting ss points. In other words, it''s a great option that gives you ss points in addition to disposing of someone unnecessary. It''s a great option that may save you, but it won''t hurt you.


    However, even after three iterations, the vote was still more against than in favour. In other words, more than half of the ss voted "against" to this question. If that''s the case, I''m going to respect their wishes and consolidate my vote in opposition."


    Ry��en said he decided to give up the ss points and to avoid leaving a ssmate behind.


    "It''s settled! You guys don''t vote for, you vote against! Ry��en-san''s orders!"


    Ishizaki looked relieved at the easy-to-understand policy and appealed to his ssmates.


    "Wait a minute. This isn''t like you, is it?" Ibuki, who had been looking bored throughout the special exam so far, voiced her dissatisfaction.


    "What do you mean?"


    "You''re in favour of it, aren''t you? If that''s the case, why don''t you just push through with your approval like you always do? Are you going to y the good guy now and say you''re protecting your friends?"


    She implied that Ry��en should want to pick up the ss points.


    "What, you were in favour of it too?"


    "I voted against. But it''s none of your business what I thought."


    "If this hadn''t been an anonymous name, I might have let you vote unanimously in favour without reservation. It would have been quicker to just expel anyone who disagreed with my opinion. But unfortunately, this time, it was an anonymous vote test. It''s easier to unify the majority of the votes in opposition, since you can''t determine who voted for which side."


    "So, you''re saying you''re not confident that you can get the vote to be unanimous in favour?"


    "Kuku, it''s up to you what you think."


    "Yo, don''t say unnecessary things, Ibuki. Ry��en-san said to vote the other way around, so that''s fine, right? I don''t care if it reduces ss points, it''s still clearing the way."


    "Whatever. I was just curious because it''s a little out of character for him. Do what you want."


    Now that the policy was set, this interval would also have a high percentage of silence.


    [Results of the fourth round of voting:]


    7 in favour


    33 against


    Even if the vote was not unanimous, the vote was expected to be almost unanimous against the proposal, but surprisingly, many votes in favour remained. There were only two fewer votes.


    "Kaneda, Nishino. Which one did you guys vote for?"


    "Against, as instructed by Ry��en-san."


    "I''m for it, but I don''t want to upset the harmony, so I voted against it."


    The two who had raised their hands in favour of the question went to the other side.


    And considering the fact that Ry��en had voted against it in the current vote, it would be impossible to pass without at least three less votes in favour.


    Moreover, this time, the vote was not a free one, but a forced one with instructions from Ry��en to vote against. In spite of this, seven votes remained in favour. We can''t rule out the possibility that there are new supporters, or that one of Kaneda or Nishino are lying.


    Ry��en himself voted against, but those around him had no way of confirming that this was even true, and a new sense of anxiety began to spread little by little. In response to the results, Ry��en calmly thinks it over.


    Instead of just looking at the number of votes, he tried to detect the flow of votes and anonymity.


    "Who''s still voting in favour?!"


    Ry��en''s orders are to cast the "against" vote. Despite the clear instructions, Ishizaki couldn''t calm down at the fact that there were seven students who didn''t follow them. If Ry��en changed his mind in favour, there would be an expulsion.


    "Kuku, don''t be so rude, Ishizaki. It''s getting more interesting, you know. This is apletely anonymous vote, and no one can know who you voted for. I''m sure there are a lot of people out there who are sincerely voting


    "in favour".


    "But it''s a problem if they don''t follow Ry��en-san''s instructions!"


    "I''m not so sure about that. It''s not a bad thing to try to gain ss points by cutting ssmates. It''s just that there are seven students who are greedy to get to ss A, right?" As if weing the situation, Ry��en pped his hands in delight. "But as long as we tolerate expulsions, the question of ''who'' to expeles with it. The seven people who voted in favour of this have a clear idea of who they should cut."


    "I-is it me..?!" Ishizaki began to panic, wondering if he was the one to be cut.


    "It''s not impossible to exclude the possibility that there are people who think you''re unnecessary, but isn''t there anyone who has the courage toe forward? Not anyone else, but someone who wants ''me'' to leave the school."


    Ry��en challenged him toe forward. But the air was once again filled with silence, and of course, no student spoke up.


    "Ha, well, there''s no way you''re going to puke easily. Kuku, I''ll take my time with you."


    Thuses the fifth voting time. This means that we havepleted four intervals. Since the beginning of this challenge, they have already spent about 40 minutes on it.


    And the results are...


    [Results of the fifth round of voting:]


    8 in favour


    32 against


    The result is one more vote in favour, contrary to Ry��en''s aim to reduce it.


    "What are you going to do, Ry��en? It''s been almost an hour, right?"


    Nishino sounded depressed and annoyed.


    "Don''t be so hasty. There''s still plenty of time, right?"


    "Yes, but there are a lot of people who are voting against you. Isn''t this a bad thing?"


    The number of affirmative votes clearly symbolized that Ry��en''s control was spiralling.


    "Yeah, it is. And it''s not like we can dismiss the possibility that you''re in favour of it."


    "What do you...?"


    Returning as a counter, Nishino was somewhat surprised, but looked at him and said back forcefully.


    "Well, unless I interrogate you, I won''t get any evidence, so don''t worry."


    A difficult test to punish the unsuspecting.


    "I have a suggestion, okay?" Yabu Mimi, who had been watching the situation up to this point, made a suggestion.


    "Say it."


    "How about we make it a unanimous vote in favour of it, and ask the kids who can be expelled to leave the school?"


    "Are you sure you''re in favour of that?"


    "No, I''m not. I''ve voted against every time so far. But if the for doesn''t work, I''m starting to think I can change my policy that way. For example, how about expelling Ibuki?"


    Saying this, Yabu gives Ibuki a cold look.


    "If you mean, Ibuki-san, then I agree with you, I guess.... Oh, of course, I''ve always been against it."


    As if following Yabu''s lead, Fujirika Morofuji also raises her hand in agreement.


    "Hey you guys. Since Ry��en-san said he''s solidly against it, we''ll go with it."


    "Wait a minute. I wee the opinions of these two."


    "Oh, is that so?"


    "I''m sure it''s true from the looks of it that they''re so far against it. If we don''t get at least two more votes in favour of it on the next ballot, there will be a contradiction. You wouldn''t be that stupid, would you?"


    Both Yabu and Morofujii answered the question with a strong nod. It is possible that the eight anonymous voters who voted in favour of the proposal will vote against it in the next round, but Ry��en understands that this is a different matter.


    "And I even named them as being prepared to vote in favour of it.


    Unlike the anonymous eight, you know. And from the looks of it, other than Yabu and Morofu, none of the others look like they want to go along with the idea."


    The group of girls who are close to Yabu and the others are at the top of the caste in this ss. Ostensibly, it''s the opinion of two of them, but in reality, it could be taken as the opinion of the entire group.


    "Can you tell us what you think of what we said, Ry��en-kun?"


    "In order to expel someone in particr, the basic premise is that there are no votes to support that person. Is there anyone in this ss who wants to protect Ibuki even if it means risking their own expulsion?"


    He asks the ss. But no hands immediately go up.


    "Looks like you''re in a tough spot Ibuki. Do you honestly ept to be expelled?"


    If she epts, or says she can do as he pleases, Ry��en will move to expel Ibuki without hesitation. That kind of atmosphere stretched throughout the ssroom.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m not going to let you expel me." Ibuki replies without even looking at Yabu or Morofuji, who had pointed out her name.


    "Huh? Wasn''t Ibuki-san taking the stance that she doesn''t mind if I drop out of school?"


    "I don''t really care about school, but there are people I want to get revenge on in my own way. Besides, do you really think I''m going to ept this form of expulsion? I''m not going to be conveniently used to line the pockets of people I don''t like."


    "You just don''t care about anything. You''re trying to be clear, but you''re still scared?" Yabuughs provocatively.


    "Ha. You''ve grown up, haven''t you? You used to be the waist of Manabe. Were you so happy to be the leader of the girls once she was gone?"


    As for Ibuki''s retort, Ry��en''s smile disappeared and he intimidated her with his eyes.


    "Hey, Ibuki. You should know your ce now. Yabu has a few friends who oppose her expulsion. But you don''t have any. And you don''t have any kind of attachment to the school, did you?"


    "What are you trying to say?"


    "It''s not that I don''t like you, but if you want to quit gracefully and contribute to the ss, that''s a different story. Regardless of your intentions, we''ll eat your blood and flesh if ites down to it."


    "My my, Ibuki-san. You''re the only one who thought Ry��en-kun was taking care of you."


    "Do you hate me? Ibuki."


    "Not really. I never intended to be friends with you in the first ce.


    You''d do anything to win. I''m not surprised. But I''m not going to drop out."


    She repeated her refusal, but Ry��en''s tone also became a little harsher.


    "It doesn''t matter if you intend to or not. I''m going to ask you to bet on whether you''re going to make it unanimous in favour or not. Raise your hand if you''re willing to put your body on the line for Ibuki. But you have one minute to decide."


    In the chilly air, Ishizaki''s body trembled slightly. It wasn''t fear of Ry��en, but it was time to make up his mind.


    "Stop, Ishizaki."


    It was Nishino, who had been standing next to Ishizaki for some time, who stopped him.


    "Nishino...?"


    "We''re fighting to win. Your half-hearted camaraderie will only create confusion."


    "But, but... Even Ibuki is our..."


    "Time is up..."


    A minute passed, and not a single student showed up to defend Ibuki in the end.


    There were cynical nces from the bushes, pitying nces, and students who were relieved that they were not the target. All sorts of thoughts intersected in the silence.


    "Ah, yes. If that''s the case..."


    Ibuki paused before she uttered her next words. She understood that she, who didn''t have a single decent friend, was at a disadvantage in this question. That''s why she told people early on that she was voting against. But now that it hade to this, she had no choice but to protect herself.


    "Then what?"


    Ry��en maintained his silence as he waited for the next words.


    "I still have unfinished business with this school."


    "Oh?"


    "Sorry, but I''m not going to live up to your expectations. Even if the whole ss votes in favour, I''ll continue to vote against. If you don''t get unanimous approval for any length of time, you''ll fail this special exam."


    "Huh, what? You''re going to take the ss down with you?"


    "That''s what I mean."


    Ibuki, who had made up her mind, dered herself against and stayed.


    "Well, of course you will. Yabu, your change of opinion to agree with me wasn''t bad, but you''re too quick to name names. If you really want to get rid of Ibuki, you should bring it to unanimous approval first, and then say that name."


    "Damn it!"


    If she knew she was going to be expelled, there was no way she would vote in favour of it.


    "You guys should be quiet and vote against."


    Nishino felt a strange sense of difort as Ry��en instructed them to do so.


    "Why did you have to go through this farce like you just did? Isn''t it aplete waste of time?"


    Nishino pointed out that Yabu and Ibuki could have stopped arguing earlier, there was no need for a meaningless show of hands, as it was obvious that unanimity by approval would be difficult once the names of individuals were mentioned.


    "It''s just a way to pass the time. We''ve got plenty of time to kill anyway."


    There was no deeper meaning, Ry��en said, but some students in the ss realized that the true meaningy elsewhere. They understood that the reason why he went along with Yabu''s proposal, which would never pass, was to get Ibuki to say that she would never vote for it.


    This seemed to be a clever move by Ry��en, and also a painstaking measure born of his impatience that he could not do anything about the situation. The next vote was seven in favour and thirty-three against, and the seventh vote was six in favour and thirty-four against. The seventh vote was six for and thirty-four against. It seemed that the number of in favour votes would gradually decrease, but the eighth vote was seven for and thirty-three against. It was time for the ninth round of voting.


    [Results of the ninth round of voting:]


    7 in favour


    33 against


    The remaining votes are still in favour. This was a figure that seemed to show the leadership of Ry��en at the moment. For the sixth through ninth rounds of voting, Ry��en simply sat at the podium for ten minutes without uttering a single word. He just continued to observe with a creepy smile on his face.


    However, that situation changed in the interval before the tenth vote began.


    "Yo!" Ry��en, who had beenughing silently until now, suddenly turned to the ss and called out sharply. The students, who had been carrying on a conversation that was more like a chat than a discussion, hurriedly straightened their postures.


    "You guys can''t even vote against me without me telling you what to do?"


    The students shut their mouths in unison at the obvious change.


    "I know you think you won''t be scared if you have a certain amount of solid votes in favour, but if it looks like you''re just watching the vote for nothing, you''re wrong."


    He kicked the back of the podium hard with his heel.


    "It looks like you''re sitting on your knees in anonymity, but it''s all on your face, you guys. I''ve already got a pretty good idea of what''s going on. If you do anything more foolish, be prepared okay?"


    [Results of the tenth round of voting:]


    6 in favour


    34 against


    With Ry��en''s strong words, the vote moved to one for and one against.


    However, because the vote in favour has already be six votes once in the seventh vote, it bes the result that it can be said that there was no effect of fright ckmail practically.


    The students noticed that the smile had long since disappeared from Ry��en''s face, reced by a grim expression.


    "They''re tenacious guys, aren''t they? I''m starting to get tired of dealing with them."


    We had about four hours left in the time limit, but more than an hour and a half had already passed by thest question.


    [Results of the eleventh round of voting:]


    7 in favour


    33 against


    The number of votes in favour of the proposal, which had been reduced at great cost, came back to seven again.


    "At this rate, how are you going to get the vote to go against?"


    Nishino, no longer trying to hide her frustration, asks Ry��en about his policy.


    "I suppose so. Let''s get this over with."


    "So then..."


    "Do you think I''ve been sitting here watching you guys for nothing?


    You do realize that for the sixth through the tenth time, there''s a strange vote, right? I''m talking about the asshole who wanders in and out of the vote for and against. Now I''m going to tell you who it is."


    Tension runs through the ssroom.


    Normally, it is impossible to see throughplete anonymity.


    However...


    "It''s you, right? Yajima."


    "W-what? No, no!"


    The one who was named was Mariko Yajima. She hurriedly stood up to deny it, but she was clearly upset and her demeanor was restless.


    "Don''t think I''ll believe you if you deny it just because you''re an anonymous name, okay? If that''s what I think, then you''re definitely in the ck. Do you understand what I''m saying?"


    "No, no... I''m...!"


    "If I say it''s ck, it''s ck. And if I say it''s white, it''s white. I''ll give you one chance to be the first one. From now on, you have no right to enter


    "in favour" without permission. Do you understand? If I find that you don''t abide by that, you''re out of school for good."


    The threats were upromising. Even if she continued to vote against this question and failed the special exam, she would be expelled by some heinous means in the not too distant future. She didn''t need much time to imagine that.


    "I''m not saying all of them, but I have an idea of who''s in favour of it.


    I''ll let you decide in the next vote if you''re an idiot like Yajima who needs to be told directly."


    And so the 12th vote came.


    [Results of the twelfth round of voting:]


    5 in favour


    35 against


    Since Yajima had decided to votepletely against the question, there was no increase in the number of votes in favour. However, even after the final warning, only two people voted in favour of the proposal, leaving five votes. It became clear to Ry��en''s ssmates that five votes was no longer enough for any kind of threat.


    "Five..." After muttering this, Ry��en checked the remaining time and left his seat again.


    "I have to admit, he''s a bonehead. But even so, I''m not satisfied with it.


    If you''re not going to give up, thene forward. The five anonymous people here want me to drop out of school. If that''s the case, we''ll have to make it a unanimous vote in favour. It would be boring to end this with time running out, right? Then make a move. That''s how we can fight as equals."


    If one of us doesn''t achieve unanimity, we won''t be able to pass this special exam. Unless we can identify the students, who want to vote in favour, we''ll just be wasting time.


    It was thought that there would be no one in favour who would show up in this situation, but...


    "Oh good, Ry��en. Then I''lle forward. I''m the one who''s voting in favour."


    At this point, finally, one of the anonymous people who had voted in favour of the question, stood up, determined.


    "Tokit��, you bastard! Do you even know what you''re saying?!"


    Ishizaki jammed as if he was going to jump at him, but Katsuragi grabbed his arm and stopped him.


    "Stop it, Ishizaki. We''re in the middle of a special exam. Are you nning onmitting violence here? If you make a bad move, Sakagami-sensei will not tolerate it, and will sentence you to stop the exam, isn''t that right?"


    "Of course. If that happens, of course, this special exam will end with your disqualification."


    "Damn it...!"


    "Besides, even though Tokit�� confessed, there''s still no guarantee that it''s true."


    Even if you''re 99% sure of something, there''s no way to make it 100% certain as long as it''s anonymous, Katsuragi was saying. It''s hard to erase the line that he''s pretending to be in favour of it while pitching against.


    "It''s true, though. I''ve always wondered if I''d ever get a special exam like this. I can''t do anything about a regr special exam, but the moment this question came up, I was freaked out. This is the only time I can get rid of Ry��en."


    "Why did youe forward now, Tokit��?"


    "Because I''ve seen eye to eye with Ry��en a few times. You could have guessed that I was in favour of it. I could havee forward sooner, but it was painful to see that the number of people in favour of the project wasn''t decreasing left and right."


    "That''s good, Tokit��. It''s not the first time you''ve been defiant. In fact, I''m honestly d that you were in favour of it."


    "How long can you keep getting carried away? You can''t afford to be."


    "Yeah. No matter how many times the vote is repeated, the in favour vote will never be lost. I mean, if time runs out, our ss will lose 300 points, and I guess it''s not a stretch to say that we''ll drop out of the ss A race."


    "That''s right. You are the leader of this ss, even if you are not worthy of it. If you fail the special exam, it''s not my fault. It''s on you. In the first ce, you''ve freely controlled the choices for this special exam. You didn''t even listen to the people who said we should fight Ichinose''s ss, and you forced us to pick Sakayanagi''s ss as our opponents. Of course, you can take responsibility for losing, can''t you?"


    "I see. So that''s why you, who are rebelling here, have been obediently following the questions up until then."


    "It''s to show the ss that they''re wrong. I''m not trying to embarrass the ss, I''m just frustrated that you''re in charge."


    "But herees a chance to expel someone in particr. So, you decided to bet on it. And? What''s your best hope for a good show of defiance?"


    "If you want me, or even us, to vote against you, you have to step down as ss leader here. If you swear to it in front of everyone, I''m sure you''ll get more votes against."


    No matter how much he disliked Ry��en, Tokit�� knew how difficult it would be to get a unanimous vote in favour of him. That''s why he offers apromise n.


    "Don''t be lukewarm about it, Tokit��. Don''t you have the confidence to expel me?"


    "Don''t make meugh. If the vote is unanimous in favour of the proposal, you''re the one who will be expelled, Ry��en."


    "May I ask you one question, Tokit��-kun?" While adjusting the position of his sses, Kaneda raised his hand. "It is true that if the special exams fail, it is logical to nod that part of the responsibility lies with the leader. However, if the vote to expel the student by unanimous approval begins, it will definitely be you who will be expelled, right? In fact, many students continue to vote against as instructed."


    Despite Kaneda''s calm and collected exnation, Tokit�� was unmoved.


    "There''s no point in voting against it now. Don''t tell me you think all the dissenting votes are giving in to Ry��en? It''s true that there aren''t many people who can openly rebel. But right now, besides my vote, there are four other votes in favour. Even though he repeatedly told me to vote against, there are still four votes left. That''s how many strong core people want you to drop out of school!"


    "Compared to Yabu and Morofuji, you seem to have a lot of logic, Tokit��." After admiring and apuding, Ry��en continued. "Then don''t be shy. Why don''t you and I have a little one-on-one fight? Tokit��."


    "What?"


    "I''ll have all thirty-five votes, including the thirty-five I''ve been voting against, cast in favour of it. Then, just like Kaneda said, they''ll start voting on who to expel. Then the rest is easy, you and I will beat each other with our votes."


    If the rest of the students weren''t up for voting, there was no need to fear a unanimous vote in favour.


    "Are you sure? If we eliminate the opposing option here, it''s inevitable that there will be expulsions. There''s no way for you to survive, Ry��en."


    The possibility of unanimity through opposition was left open by Tokit�� and Ry��en.


    "Everyone wants to avoid running out of time. If that''s the case, then it''s either you or I. We''ll make it a unanimous decision. That would be more interesting for the ss, right?"


    There was no way he was going to ept Tokit��''s suggestion, so Ry��en urged a unanimous vote in favour.


    "Humans are selfish, you know. They won''t be happy toe forward if there''s a risk of being expelled, but if either you or I are going to be expelled, they''re going to change their minds, and I''m sure they''ll be happy to vote for us if we promise them an extra 100 ss points."


    "You think the people who are voting in favour now will agree to expel me?"


    "Well, I doubt it. If it smells bad, you can vote against, right?"


    "Fuck you. It''s not me who''s getting expelled, it''s you, Ry��en!"


    "I see. If that''s the case, then why don''t we just decide to have a face-off?"


    The four remaining votes were cast in the name of hiding, and the students who disliked Ry��en but had no choice but to vote against him.


    Tokit�� was confident that if they repeated the vote to expel Ry��en several times, the number of votes in favour of him would increase as the time remaining decreased.


    "Fine, if you''re going to go that far..."


    Just as Tokit�� was about to ept the challenge and agree to the offer, the sound of tapping on the desk echoed through the air.


    "Wait, Ry��en. Let me give Tokit�� a moment of my time?"


    The owner of the sound was Katsuragi. He hurriedly stood up and called out to Ry��en.


    "Ah? What do you think you''re doing, Katsuragi? I don''t remember giving you the right to speak, do I?"


    "Nor do I intend to have my say taken away."


    Katsuragi replied unperturbed to the instruction to shut up and turned to Tokit��.


    "As you say, it''s not wrong to think that as long as the number of people who don''t follow Ry��en doesn''t reach zero, we''re safe. However, what Ry��en says is also true. If a decisive vote is held with the restriction that it must be held until either Ry��en or Tokit�� leaves the school, the emotions of the students will fluctuate greatly with the time remaining. If that happens, the one who can control the majority of votes, that is, Ry��en, will have an overwhelming advantage."


    "I told you. Don''t assume an advantage just because of that, Katsuragi.


    The truth is that many in the ss don''t wee Ry��en. They''re just frustrated because they''re being held back by force. As time runs out, more and more people will surely stop protecting and defending him. Even if it''s the stone dog Ishizaki."


    "What?!"


    "You once stood up to Ry��en, remember? Remember that rebellious spirit."


    "Ah, that was..."


    Last year, during the incident on the rooftop, when Ayanok��ji had a dispute with Ry��en. The story was that Ishizaki had defeated Ry��en and temporarily took control of the ss. Tokit�� cited that incident.


    "I don''t know what happened back then, but you think you''ll win in the end?"


    "Yes, I do."


    "Then let me ask you a question. If Ry��en is expelled, who will organize this ss after that?"


    "You can discuss it or whatever you want. However, you''re the only one who''s a stranger, Katsuragi."


    "It''s true that as an outsider, I may not be an option. But it''s also true that if we can''t show a clear next leader, we won''t be able to make a decision. I can''t catch up with or overtake Sakayanagi."


    Katsuragi looked at the big picture of the situation and continued to try to persuade him, but Tokit�� would not stop.


    "So what? If I wasn''t prepared to stab this guy in the back from the beginning, I wouldn''t havee forward in the first ce."


    "Kukuku, from the beginning? Yet you waited this long because you knew what exactly you could achieve. That it amounted to nothing."


    "Shut up!"


    "You''re not going to be able to do anything about it unless there are a few like-minded people with you."


    Having confirmed that there were several votes that didn''t follow Ry��en, Tokit�� started to move as well.


    "Please, Ry��en. Please give Tokit�� a chance."


    In response to Katsuragi''s words, which he saw as solely in Ry��en favour, Ry��en snapped his fingers once.


    "Fine. Tokit��, I''ll give you a chance. The next vote depends entirely on your one vote. If you vote in favour, then I will expel you."


    "What the hell did you just say to me? Do you really think you can expel me?"


    "Yes. In the next vote, all but your vote will go to the against vote. So, it''ll be 1 for and 39 against. In other words, if you vote no, the issue will be unanimously resolved."


    "Hey, when did the four in favour votes disappear except for me?"


    "Kuku. I turned in those four votes during this interval."


    "Get your head out of your ass, there''s no way you can do that."


    In addition to remaining stubbornly in favour of the idea up to this point, Ry��en has spent most of this interval talking with Tokit��. There was no pretense of turning anyone else over.


    "Then give it a try. Vote the same way you''ve always done, and you''ll get your answer."


    There was less than a minute left in the ticking interval. The air-conditioned room was kept at afortable temperature, but Tokit��''s back was starting to sweat. A mere threat, a bluff. It was hard to believe that anything had changed in this interval. But what if the votes in favour of the proposal were really changed into votes against? That would indicate that students other than Tokit�� were in favour of Ry��en. He could take the same defensive measure as Ibuki by running away to vote against the question before it was unanimously approved, but he could not choose that option because it would expose his disgrace. In any case, a runoff with Ry��en would be inevitable.


    If that happened, it would be certain that Tokit�� himself would be defeated.


    "You''re ready to drop out of school, aren''t you? Don''t hesitate to vote in favour."


    "I don''t need to be told by you."


    Eventually, the time for voting arrived. Tokit�� boldly cast a vote in favour.


    "Then we''ll show the results of the vote."


    The results are disyed on the monitor at the same time as Sakagami''s announcement.


    [Results of the thirteenth round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    38 against


    "Ah!"


    Tokit��''s heart must have raced more than anyone else''s when he saw the results. This was because, as Ry��en had said, all but one of the four remaining votes had gone against.


    "Ha, sure, I was freaked out. But hey, it just means there''s another student out there who''s just as strong-willed as I am! The one who didn''t give in even after being threatened to this extent!"


    He shouted and let out a roar that was equivalent to dering himself the winner.


    But instead of looking at Tokit��, Ry��en turned his gaze to another student.


    "What do you think you''re doing? You voted for, didn''t you? Katusuragi."


    "What?" Tokit�� was surprised when the name of a person he hadn''t expected was mentioned.


    "That''s right. If I had voted against, it would have taken the form of one vote in favour and thirty-nine against, as you dered, and it would have been brought to a decisive vote. If that had happened, it would have been impossible to pass this test except by expelling one of us."


    "That''s the way it was supposed to go. Depending on your answer, you won''t get off scot-free either."


    "There''s one reason. I think that Tokit�� is a necessary student for the ss. No, it''s not just Tokit��. I''m an outsider who came here from ss A.


    That''s why I''ve been looking at this ss from an objective point of view. As a result, I''vee to understand that there is not a single unwanted student."


    "You''re saying that a timekeeper who doesn''t follow instructions is a necessary student?"


    "Yes. In fact, I consider him to be a valuable asset. He is someone who can disagree with you without hesitation, just like me, or even more so than me. Of course, the way you did it in this special test is wrong, though. I just don''t like the way you put the ss in danger, just to drag Ry��en down."


    Katsuragi threw a look and a word not only at Ry��en, but at Tokit�� as well.


    "If you don''t like the fact that Ry��en is the leader, then make your case fair and square in a way that doesn''t involve anyone else. If that argument is correct, I will side with you without hesitation."


    "But... but until just before, four of my friends voted..."


    The existence of invisible reinforcements that have pushed Tokit�� this far. It was also a source offort.


    "Such a thing doesn''t exist from the beginning. It''s just an illusion."


    "Illusion, you mean...?"


    "To be precise, I should say that it was eliminated in the repeated voting. There were five votes in favour that remained after the excessive filtering. The ones who cast those votes were you and..." Katsuragi circles around, slowly moving his gaze and pointing. "Shiina, Yamada, Ry��en and myself."


    With that answer, Tokit��, and none of his ssmates couldprehend.


    "What the hell are you saying... that Ry��en also voted in favour...?"


    "When the number of in favour votes reaches five, there is only one anonymous name vote left. However, that was all blown out of the water when you came forward."


    "So during this interval, Ry��en was mocking andughing at me in his mind..."


    "That''s not it. I was merely trying to give you a chance. You could have just voted in favour without bothering to challenge me. That way, eventually, the vote would be unanimous in your favour, but the next vote would have just force you out of school."


    "So you were just ying mind games to insult and humiliate me!"


    "No, I wasn''t. I was giving you a chance to not get expelled."


    "What the-"


    "But you didn''t realize the possibility and tried to push forward. I''m sure you didn''t think that Ry��en was giving you a chance, even if it was a roundabout way."


    "I''m going to-"


    "But no matter how much I lecture you, if you won''t listen, that''s it. I know it''s going to take some time, but can you please give Tokit�� onest chance? I''d like you to give him one more chance to vote against before we all vote in favour."


    "You want me to give him one more chance? I''m not so naive, am I?"


    "You''re at fault, too. You were too provocative, and you overlooked the thread of salvation. Now that everything hase to light, you''ve finally given Tokit�� a choice."


    "And if he doesn''t listen, you won''t object to his expulsion, will you?"


    "Yeah, I have no objection. You can do whatever you want." Katsuragi closed his eyes and crossed his arms. Katsuragi wanted to leave it up to him to decide what to do with himself.


    If Tokiy�� voted in favour, he knew he would be expelled.


    On the other hand, if he voted against, the vote would be unanimous and he could avoid expulsion.


    But to vote no meant to give in to Ry��en''s way. It would be a serious blow to Tokit��''s pride.


    "Then we will start the 60 second voting period."


    With Sakagami''s words, the countdown begins.


    Thirty-nine people, except for Tokit��, finished voting within the time limit, but the count still does not stop.


    Sakagami looked up once and nced at Tokit��.


    "It''s been exined to you in advance, but after sixty seconds, penalty time will umte."


    Tokit�� looks down and stares alternately at the for and against text on his tablet.


    "Damn... damn it."


    It was supposed to be a full blown counterattack. But halfway through, he found himself alone. Everything was just being made to dance on the palm of Ry��en''s hand.


    He felt frustrated, embarrassed, and shameful.


    All sorts of negative emotions surrounded Tokit��''s mind and would not let go. Pride peeked out of his face, saying, "I''m not going to give in to Ry��en at this point." He dispersed gracefully. No, he could deliberately vote in favour of the proposal and buy himself some time; if he continued to vote against the other 38 students, he might be able to make Ry��en''s n a failure...


    No, it would only cause a lot of trouble for his ssmates and make him even more annoying than Ry��en.


    That''s not what Tokit�� wants.


    "Damn you, Ry��en." Said Tokit�� under his breath as he cast his vote.


    "Everyone has finished voting. Now I will announce the results."


    Taking a breath, Sakagami operated the tablet and showed the results on the monitor.


    [Results of the fourteenth round of voting:]


    0 in favour


    40 against


    "Since the vote was unanimous, the question has been rejected. This concludes the special exam."


    Ry��en''s ss, which seemed to have a strong possibility of having students drop out, was confirmed with all students remaining.


    "Tokit��, you..."


    Ishizaki turned around and spoke to Tokit��, who had his eyes downcast and was getting up to leave. However, before exiting, he stopped and looked back onest time.


    "Don''t get me wrong, Ry��en, I''m not approving of your methods. If I decide that you''ve done something that prevents our ss from moving up to ss A, I''ll eliminate you as soon as I can."


    "You cane at me anytime. And when you do, I''ll take you on without mercy."


    "Mmm..." It wasplicated for Tokit�� to stay here, so he left the ssroom quickly.


    After witnessing this, Katsuragi walked up to Ry��en''s side.


    "That was unnecessary, Katsuragi. They thought I was weing an expelled student, remember?"


    "I suppose half of them were. But the other half of you were exploring the possibility that you weren''t, weren''t you?"


    "Watch yourself, do I look that naive to you?"


    "I don''t know if you''re naive or not, but if your goal was to control the votepletely, then it''s important to have students in your ranks who are loyal to you without going the extra mile. However, after the second vote, you gave instructions to Shiina, the main target, while giving an earful to the appropriate students. If you only talk to certain students, they will think you are nning some kind of strategy. Then, through Shiina, you gathered friends who would vote in favour of the n through repeated discussions.


    And I was one of them. The reason for this was because you knew that I would protect Tokit��, right?"


    "You''re protecting Tokit��? Where did you get that information from?"


    "Shiina overheard me and Tokit�� talking about you. I wouldn''t be surprised if you knew about it from her report."


    "I was just misled by the fake in favour votes and carefully selected the ones who would vote in favour. Of course, I had to expel the guy to get the ss points. It was a shame."


    After Ry��en left the ssroomte, Katsuragi turned to the eyes that had been watching them.


    He was honestly impressed to see Shiina smiling and chuckling gently.


    "So it''s possible that it was Shiina''s own decision to draw me in..."


    But either way, it doesn''t change the fact that Ry��en prepared the strings to help Tokit��, and then gave him a chance. When Katsuragi looked at the students who were relieved that no one had been expelled, he was convinced.


    Katsuragi was convinced that this ss had the potential to defeat Sakayanagi and be ss A. And he knows that he wants to pursue that path together with this ss.

 Chapter 216 - 6 : Sakayanagi Arisu’s Choice

    <h4>Chapter 216: Chapter 6 : Sakayanagi Arisu��s Choice</h4>


    A LITTLE OVER an hour had passed since the start of the special exam.


    ss A, led by Sakayanagi, was making good progress on the questions,pleting the polls with breaks in between. And then they arrived at the final question.


    [QUESTION FIVE:]


    Gain 100 ss Points in return for the expulsion of one ssmate.


    (In the event of a unanimous vote in favour, a vote will be taken on the student to be expelled)


    [Choices:]


    For


    Against


    Surprised by the keyword "expulsion", the students cast their first votes silently, as per the rules.


    To avoid any unforeseen circumstances, Sakayanagi, like Horikita, had instructed the four ssmates closest to her in advance to make sure that their votes would be split.


    As there are two options, the result of the vote, which took ce with two confirmed votes in favour and two against, was...


    [Results of the first round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    36 against


    That was the oue.


    With the exception of the two controlled votes in favour, the results reflect the opposition expressed by all students.


    "Well, that''s to be expected. So what are you going to do, princess?


    Are we all going to vote against next time?"


    Hashimoto, who was in charge of always voting option 1 first, and therefore would have voted in favour here, asked for confirmation immediately after the interval.


    "What do you think? Hashimoto-kun."


    Not expecting to be asked that question, Hashimoto was a little surprised, and went over the question again in his mind.


    "When drawing a quick conclusion, I disagree. However, when I think about it calmly, I feel that 100 ss points is surprisingly not ridiculous."


    "So you''re saying I should go for the 100 ss points even if it gets one of my ssmates expelled?"


    "No... I wouldn''t go that far. I just think it''s a question of whether we should take it lightly."


    "If this had been the end of thepetition and the end of school life, I would have been forced to adopt a policy of cutting ssmates. However, this ss is alone at the top. It would be rather nonsensical to choose to drop one superior student in order to pick up 100 ss points here."


    "Of course. I just don''t want to have to cry about that 100 ss points in the future, okay?"


    "The reduction in the number of students is at the same time a disadvantage. Simply put, the total amount of private points gained each month will be reduced, as well as the morale and trust within the ss. An interesting way to solve this would be to take expel a student and save them using 20 million private points. It is also possible to gain ss points by not sacrificing someone, but this would affect the forting sports and cultural festivals, and even though there would be a 100-point gain, if you take into ount the future unseen factors, I don''t think there would be much of a gain or loss no matter how you look at it. Or is there anyone in this ss who will volunteer to leave the school?"


    After saying that, Sakayanagi took a look around the ss. There is no way that any of the students in ss A, who are alone in the lead as Sakayanagi says, would voluntarily offer to drop out of school.


    "The other sses in the three-way battle will be troubled. And even if you make the difficult choice of selecting a student to leave the school, the ss wouldn''t necessarily rise. It''s not that simple to lose a fellow student."


    With that one statement, ss A''s policy was set.


    If ss A had chosen to expel someone, they would have done so unanimously, without any sense of dismay.


    And nine times out of ten, the student chosen by Sakayanagi would be expelled.


    "I do not see you and your ssmates the same as Katsuragi-kun and Yahiko-kun, who have left us. I''m not going to cut off my friends, who are helping me."


    Sakayanagi told such a lie to the ss.


    In the unlikely event that ss A were to be driven to the brink of ruin, Sakayanagi would have no hesitation in choosing to expel a student.


    However, if she chooses to expel the students when the ss is not in a crisis, it will create a sense of distrust. She simply decided that she had more to lose by going into that situation now.


    That marked the end of the first interval, which left more than half a minute to ensure that all students submitted their votes.


    [Results of the second round of voting:]


    0 in favour


    38 against


    The sses lead by Ry��en and Ichinose were also unanimous in their opposition to the proposal.


    "With the above, all questions of the unanimous voting special examination arepleted. This ss has the fastest time toplete the special examination. All other sses are still in the middle of the special exam, and therefore you are asked to quietly leave the room as instructed by your teacher. You will spend the rest of the day in the dormitory for self-study, as scheduled."


    Although students we''re not allowed to go out of the campus, the time they had was practically free.

 Chapter 217 - 7 : Horikita Suzune’s Choice

    <h4>Chapter 217: Chapter 7 : Horikita Suzune��s Choice</h4>


    "I WILL NOW announce the results of the vote."


    [Results of the tenth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    It was a scene we''d all seen before, repeated once again. Appeals for people toe forward will change nothing. No amount of discussion will change anything. The number of votes in favour will neither increase nor decrease. The results make one wonder if there is really no real fair voting going on, just the same screen being shown over and over again.


    "As it was not unanimous, we will now start the interval."


    Even Chabashira-sensei, who announced the standard phrases, showed signs of fatigue.


    Now that she had told us about her past, all she could do is watch this issue y out as a teacher.


    "Why is that? Is there really anyone who''s voting in favour?"


    It was not hard to see why Keisei would want to ask the question. At this point, the debate had already been exhausted in all its forms. How many times had Horikita and Y��suke try to persuade them?


    "If you ced your vote against... please raise your hand."


    If calling on those in favour of the motion was futile, Y��suke requested that students who are against the motion raise their hands. He was determined to find a way through, even if it meant proposing meaningless reverse patterns.


    One hand on either side of me stretched out in a line upwards. Of course, I raised my hand too. It is clear from this that 38 people, including Y��suke, voted ''against'' without hesitation.


    The only one who didn''t raise his hand was K��enji.


    "I won''t raise my hand, but don''t worry, I''m voting against."


    K��enji replied to Y��suke, who looked at him anxiously.


    "Can I trust you, K��enji? In fact, I think you''re still voting in favour of it."


    "How many times have we had this discussion? You never get tired of it."


    Sud��, there is no further reason to poke at K��enji. It is not unreasonable to believe that there are people in this ss who continue to lie and lie.


    There was a student who proudly raised their hand to say they are voting against, and yet they are voting in favour.


    "I don''t want to think that any of the people who have just raised their hands are telling lies. But I''m going to go through it again, and this time I''m going to look each one of you in the eye and ask you directly. If any of you are voting in favour, please tell me honestly. No, I want you to vote against in the next vote."


    Ten minutes of scratching feet. Horikita took the time and effort to work with each person. I was sure they''re as tired as the rest of the students, but I couldn''t say the same for me.


    Haruka, Airi, Keisei and Akito too. Ike, Sud��, Mii-chan, Matsushita, all of them. Whether it was Kushida, Onodera, Okitani, or Mori, everyone answered by looking straight into Horikita''s eyes.


    "I am voting against," They said.


    Eventually, Horikita reached the end of the ss, thest one beside the door.


    Her eyes were a mixture of impatience and anxiety, but they were still filled with fire.


    "What about you, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Of course I''m voting against."


    "Right..."


    This means that we have once againpleted a round of interrogation with each individual. There is no change in the deration that all the ssmates are casting their votes against.


    The only thing left to do is to try to appeal to their remaining pangs of conscience and get them to vote against...


    "It''s almost ten minutes. Go back to your seat, Horikita, and start voting."


    You''ve tried everything, and now it''s time to vote again. The answer;


    [Results of the eleventh round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    The result is the same. There are no more words to add. Only the same, same, same results will be shown.


    "Oh my God! I''m going out of my mind! I don''t know what''s going on!" Scratching his head wildly, Sud�� mmed his elbow down hard on the desk.


    "Hey, but what are we really going to do? We''re running out of time, aren''t we?"


    Until now, the students had been convinced that the one in favour who persisted would eventually break. Horikita and the rest of the group knew that there was no way they could allow time to run out.


    Absolutely, almost, surely, probably, maybe, the in favuor voter will vote against for fear of running out of time.


    And just in time, unanimously against, we pass the special exam. She must have been painting such a picture, as she started to work towards the next sports and cultural festivals.


    However...


    The vote in favour persists.


    Waiting another ten minutes, half an hour or an hour will not change that fact. The only thing that lies ahead of us is the worst possible route: running out of time.


    Nine minutes to go until the next vote. These nine minutes are no longer just nine minutes. Once past this point, we would be under the two-hour threshold. For the past three hours, Horikita had been fighting to meet this final challenge.


    It''s not that Horikita''s strategy was naive. Even if I had done everything in my power to get a unanimous vote in opposition, it would have been impossible.


    What is it all about? What is the underlying reason?


    This is because all forms of persuasion, all forms of negotiation, all forms of action are meaningless.


    The protester is fighting to avoid a unanimous vote.


    What is most frightening is that the person who voted in favour of the task does not see running out of time as the biggest negative. Normally, this would not be possible in this particr test. When we look at this task objectively, the priorities of the three choices are fixed and determined.


    Oppose �� agree > time out.


    This is an absolute inequality that is shared by all four sses and all students. It is this solidification of priorities that makes the special examination possible, the basic premise, so to speak. But... what happens when there is even one student with a different inequality order?


    Agree > time out > oppose.


    If such a distorting and irreconcble preference is established, the task is no longer possible. That''s why the school has strict monitoring and rules to prevent any intervention from other sses. In order to prevent them from signing contracts with people like Sakayanagi and Ry��en, who will invite them into their sses if they let the time run out, or give themrge amounts of private points.


    The special examinations became chaotic and confusing when students who did not get it right were thrown into the mix. If you continue to be stubborn, you will only run out of time.


    So what should we do? With two hours to go, I had only one thing to do.


    Unanimity in favour.


    That is the best solution. There is no other way to pave the way for this task. The same idea is probably already in Horikita''s head.


    However, I have not been able to take the plunge. When ites to cutting out ssmates, it''s not an easy thing to do. It is more difficult than unanimous opposition to select one person for expulsion. Once you''ve taken the first step, there''s no turning back.


    This is because it is not eptable to say, "Well, we can''t send any students out, so we''ll go back to the other side."


    I was still hesitant to go ahead with the n when it came time to vote.


    What a disaster. The ideal route has be impossible, and we are already running out of time to do the things we need to do in order to get to our destination.


    The extra time will hinder the chance of unanimity in favour of the task and the subsequent selection of the one who will be expelled from the school.


    But still, I would like to try one more time for unanimity by opposition, even if it means losing precious time.


    A feeling of irrationality that I had never felt before washed over my mind.


    What decision would you have made in this situation? I asked Horikita Manabu in my mind.


    There was no answer in sight, but I decided to modify my n. I decided to give it onest chance without changing my strategy.


    "Then we will announce the..." After tallying up the results, Chabashira-sensei was momentarily at a loss for words. "Results of the vote."


    [Results of the twelfth round of voting:]


    2 in favour


    37 against


    "No, no, no! Why? There''s more votes for it!"


    After a long period of time, one person turned in favour, from the 38 who had been consistently opposed to this task. It would have had enough of an impact to crack the united opposition.


    "It''s like I''m having a bad dream..."


    This vote was cast by me.


    It''s not just one vote. It was a strong vote in favour of the motion by one of the 37 people who were united, with the exception of K��enji.


    Horikita, who no longer thinks such thoughts out of the blue, goes into thinking mode again. What should be done if it is not possible to bring the number of votes in favour to zero?


    Horikita immediately understands that this is a vote that has to be passed to avoid running out of time. Whichever way thisst task is unanimous, there is always an option worse than that.


    Time running out. Even without the expulsions, our ss would lose 300 ss points, which means that assuming that all the other sses had cleared the exam, the difference would be 350, and if any ss had approved thest task unanimously, the difference would be up to 450 ss points.


    With such a huge gap between us, there is no guarantee that we will be able to catch up even if we have more than a year of school left. No, it''s hopeless. It''s noughing matter that we avoided expulsions but had to give up ss A too.


    And once this notion bes widespread, it is inevitable that people begin to question the point of continuing to vote against it. It would be easier to mobilise a united opposition than an immovable supporter.


    We can move forward half a step from the rigid status quo, even if the biggest hurdle awaits us: who will be expelled?


    "Hey, hey. I guess we''ll just have to vote in favour, won''t we?"


    "What are you talking about? If we do that, someone will have to be expelled, won''t they?"


    "But, you know, if time runs out, we''re all finished, right?"


    The gradual erosion of the opposition. The first candidates for the move are students who are confident that they will not be expelled.


    On the other hand, students who continue to vote against tend to be those who think they might be expelled.


    An ever-increasing number of internal votes in favour.


    However, it is unlikely that a single student wille forward to say they voted in favour. Of course. If it is known that you are in favour of the task, you may be targeted for expulsion.


    Only when the vote is unanimous in favour can we move on to the selection of a dropout on equal footing.


    [Results of the thirteenth round of voting:]


    5 in favour


    34 against


    Three votes turn in favour.


    Who voted in favour of it? Their voices are still strong, but that''s as far as it goes.


    [Results of the fourteenth round of voting:]


    12 in favour


    27 against


    The steadily increasing flow of approval does not stop, and the numbers keep growing.


    Finally, for the first time, the vote in favour swelled to double figures, nearly a third of the ss.


    In the next round of voting there will be even more votes in favour.


    With only an hour and a half to go, the deadline was looming over us.


    "Well, I want you to wait. If you think it''s really a good idea to lean in favour of it here, you''re wrong!"


    Undeterred by the crisis, Y��suke waited for the students to speak up in agreement with him.


    "I understand that we have to avoid running out of time. But that doesn''t mean that making it unanimous in favour is the solution the problem, you know?"


    "Yes... Going forward, we have to get 39 individuals to be unanimous.


    It''s even harder to get unanimity for than it is to get unanimity against it. We only have an hour and a half left. Do you realise that?"


    In order to end this task, we have to decide who will leave the school.


    "It''s not toote. We should pitch against it, in my opinion."


    "I agree. We can''t get carried away."


    A group of ssmates who keep getting emotional.


    It''s about the time we were no longer able to make rational judgements about whether we were right to agree or not.


    "Above all, you know you shouldn''t vote in favour of it; twelve people have voted in favour of it, and not one of them hase forward. Isn''t that right?"


    Even if we repeat the vote and the number of votes in favour increases, we will not be able to achieve the ideal unanimity without a major intervention to force it. Originally, I would have moved for unanimity in the next vote, but I decided that now was the time, ahead of schedule.


    "Can I give you my opinion?"


    "Eh?"


    Horikita was surprised to hear me speak up, as if she hadn''t expected me to say anything.


    "Horikita, I voted in favour on the 14th round just now."


    This is a lie. I had already voted in favour of it on the 12th round of voting.


    But nobody can prove that.


    "Howe Ayanok��ji-kun is..."


    "There is nothing to be done, and time is running out if we continue to stick to our opposition. There is no other way but to vote for it. I think we all know that by now."


    In order to increase the number of people in favour of the task, someone has to take on this role.


    From the seat beside me, Sat�� looked anxiously toward me.


    No, it''s not just Sat��. It''s everyone who is concerned about this situation.


    "It''s not going to solve the root of the problem. In the end, you''re going to get into trouble over who to expel."


    "Yes. But we can break out of the rigidity of the situation. Even if we find out who has been voting in favour of the task all along, I don''t think they will vote against it. In other words, we can''t hope for unanimity in the end.


    But now it is possible to achieve unanimity in favour. And we can bring the only defector to justice, the 38 of us. It''s a forceful way to bring about unanimity."


    There''s one person inmon between me and Horikita.


    Of course, there is no guarantee that it is that person, but you know what I mean.


    "It is-"


    "Justice? Do you think we have the right to judge a student who is just voting in favour?"


    Y��suke caught me at the end of my sentence and countered.


    "I do. If we can''t make this unanimous, we won''t move up to ss A.


    I don''t think anyone thinks that the students who know that and continue to vote in favour arepletely meless."


    "But, but, but that''s... closer to the end of the time limit, I''m sure it will be the other way around..."


    "More? There are only a few more opportunities to vote. Are we going to involve all our ssmates in that slim possibility? The less time you have, the more you close off even the way to escape in favour of it. That would mean nipping unanimity in the bud altogether."


    It didn''t have to be said, but Y��suke and his ssmates knew it. But the biggest hurdle for many students is the fact that they don''t want to take the first step.


    "It is true that there are many students who are hesitant to vote in favour. That is why we would like to identify the one who continued to vote in favour of the task from the beginning and arrange for them to be expelled from the school. In other words, we will guarantee the safety of the students who are currently voting against it."


    Sat��, who had been listening to me more than anyone else, raised her small hand.


    "I''m d to hear that, but it doesn''t matter if we don''t know who''s voting... in favour of it. In the end, when the time is up, we''ll just have toe up with a random candidate for expulsion. I''m scared."


    "If we can''t narrow down the expulsions, once again we have the possibility of a time-out. What we need to avoid now is staying here and not taking any steps forward when there is a chance that we can clear the exam."


    To encourage students who are unsure, I dropped more information on them to help them make a decision.


    "As Horikita said a little bit ago, I know who''s been voting in favour."


    "Then why don''t you just say it here and now? But Horikita refused to tell us their name for a long time. Doesn''t that mean she doesn''t really have any idea? I mean, she''s bluffing, or she thought that if she threatened you, you''d vote against her, right?"


    Miyamoto''s reasoning is not correct, but it is certainly not unreasonable to think so.


    "If you''ve really got your eye on them, you know, let''s all try to convince them."


    "I can''t do that, which is why I''m doing this now. The mention of this person''s name will never move a vote in favour of it. They''d rather be stubborn and carry it through to the end. We want to avoid that."


    This was both an invitation to agree and ast-minute plea from me.


    Because if you''ve been told this much, you certainly know that the only person who can decide is you. If they are afraid of being exposed, only one person may vote against them in the next vote.


    "Be prepared, Horikita. Your opponent is trying to defeat you. There is no other way but to fight a battle of hunt or be hunted."


    Aside from the silent Horikita, I also looked at another person.


    "And Y��suke. I understand that you don''t want anyone to drop out of the ss. But if you don''t want them to drop out, then you''ve got to do something about it before the time runs out. Do you understand?"


    The day before the exam started, I had warned Y��suke about this. I could see from the sidelines that he was struggling to get to his feet. I don''t understand why you want to keep resisting.


    "But I-"


    "The next vote will be the difference between us and our destiny."


    "I''m..."


    It''s a hard decision, but Y��suke has changedpared to before. He has grown since the uninhabited ind exams andst year''s ss poll when he was stuck at a standstill.


    "Yes, you''re right. It''s... no good troubling the whole ss with just my thoughts..."


    With his head hanging down, he decided to act on his own initiative.


    "I''m going to vote in favour. And as Ayanok��ji has said, I think we should adjust to expel the one who has been voting in favour all along."


    The decision of Y��suke, the heart of the ss, would have changed the situation even further.


    "All that''s left is you, Horikita. It''s time for you to be ready to avoid running out of time."


    Time is running out before the next round of voting begins.


    "Please. Please, just one more time, one more chance to make it unanimous against. If we don''t achieve unanimity in opposition at the next vote... I''ll be ready."


    There is no next time. We''ve seeded in creating that situation.


    The final vote for unanimity by opposition began.


    However, things can sometimes diverge greatly between the ideal and the reality.


    [Results of the fifteenth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    38 against


    "Damn it! I knew it was a bad idea!"


    This is a dangerous way of pushing the vote that had begun to flow in favour of the vote back into opposition. With the time limit looming, even thatst strategy to make it unanimous was unsessful.


    But now everyone has understood.


    The student who continued to vote in favour of this is prepared to run out of time.


    "Horikita, Y��suke. Okay?"


    I have seeded in confirming my decision to both of them and clearly obtaining their approval.


    At any rate, the necessary preparations have been made for the struggle to expel the student.


    Now that the two main yers, Horikita and Y��suke, have made their intentions clear, the majority of votes will be in favour. However, it is easy to imagine that students who are worried that they might be expelled will be hesitant to vote in favour.


    That is why those who are prepared to throw in their lot with the opposition must also be prepared to do the opposite.


    "If the vote remains against in the next round of voting, we need them to say exactly why, and you already know how painful it is to consume 10


    minutes of your time with one vote."


    With time to spare, it was no wonder some students were stillining.


    However, with barely an hour left on the clock, the road out waspletely cut off. It''s a challenge to force students who don''t have the ability to make decisions to do so.


    "Now that it''se to this... we have no choice but to pick and choose who gets expelled."


    "Are you seriously going to do this?"


    "I don''t want to lose any of my ssmates either. I don''t want to lose anyone, but if I don''t expel someone here, the damage to the ss will be enormous. I have to avoid that."


    If you look at the ss points tally so far, the pain of losing nearly 300 ss points here is well known.


    Intervals arepulsory for 10 minutes.


    We must be willing to resist the urge to run away and vote against it.


    [Results of the sixteenth round of voting:]


    39 in favour


    0 against


    It was unanimous. With this result came a sense of fear and anxiety among all.


    "Unanimous in favour, or..."


    Chabashira-sensei muttered to herself as if she were prepared for everything and continued on her way.


    When you make this decision, the only choice left is to either expel a student from the school or run out of time. Thetter, of course, could mean a losing battle for this ss to graduation.


    This means that within these 39 students, there was someone who will be expelled within an hour or so.


    Of course, I knew who should be expelled.


    "Individuals will be identified either by candidacy, which will be allowed only once, or by selecting the name of the student disyed on the tablet and casting a vote of nomination. However, in the absence of a candidate, and if at the end of the interval there is not a majority of nominations, the vote will be taken by random selection as previously exined."


    Naturally, there are many students who look at Horikita and I as we decide who will be expelled from the school.


    I can''t wait to hear your name, the pressure is on.


    An important and precious interval, iparable to anything we have seen so far. For the same amount of 10 minutes, you will be additionally asked to choose who you would like to nominate.


    "Unanimity by approval has been decided... I would like to at least let them adopt a policy of waiting for this one interval to confess themselves.


    Depending on the circumstances and the case, I could choose to run out the clock and help that student."


    Of course, such a suggestion would not stifle criticism. I would never ept such a choice, losing ss points. But Horikita kept silent from there and began to listen and bear theints.


    I need to know when the time is right, so I''ll be silent on the idea. It was a dark and difficult time, withints directed at us, and each of us observing each other. Of course, it was not possible to select a specific dropout, and the time for the interval approached us.


    When you see your name on the monitor, you feel your heart being grabbed. Especially when it''s your first vote, you can''t deny that the momentum is strong and the vote could be unanimous.


    "Sensei, you don''t mind if I nominate myself, do you?"


    "Of course."


    "Then please vote for me."


    With that said, Y��suke came forward as the specific student just before the time was up.


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Hirata Y��suke from the school.


    [Choices:]


    For


    Against


    This vote had a different weight to the previous ones.


    If there are students who vote in favour, they are directly telling Y��suke that they don''t care if he disappears, and that they want him to disappear.


    [Results of the seventeenth round of voting:]


    6 in favour


    32 against


    The silence was such that you could hear students gasp and exhale.


    "What are we going to do? Are we really going to be able to expel one of us from here?"


    "Time is running out, let me ask you both. Who was the student who voted in favour all along?"


    Keisei can''t wait to hear the answer.


    "Of course I will give you the name of the student I have in mind. But I know it''s not as simple as that."


    "Isn''t it simple? We don''t have a choice anymore. Because once we''ve decided to expel someone, we have to find out who they are as soon as possible, even if it''s just one second."


    There are still many students who regret and are anxious about having chosen to vote in favour. I''m sure they''re also feeling the mental strain of having wasted 10 minutes earlier. That''s why I wanted something to make me think that I''m not making a mistake by choosing to vote in favour.


    "The next vote, if time goes on like this, someone will be chosen at random, right..?"


    It''s no wonder Sud�� is unsettled. Even Y��suke got six votes in favour.


    "Don''t worry, Ken. I''ll vote against for you... so you can definitely protect me too, okay?"


    "Naturally, Kanji. That''s right. If we protect each other, we''ll be absolutely fine, won''t we...?"


    "Aah~"


    The students were losing their cool. A faint cry escaped from one of them.


    She held her mouth and hid her eyes, but it is clear what the voice was saying.


    "Kiky��-chan... are you okay?"


    Mii-chan rushed over and put her hand on Kushida''s back.


    "Hmm, I''m sorry... I don''t know how I got into this mess. I started thinking about that and I couldn''t stop feeling regret..."


    "That''s true for me, too. But if someone doesn''t drop out... we''re not going to..."


    Most of the students do not have such a feeling. We were made to do something somewhat unrealistic.


    "I regret my choice so much now, I should have kept voting against until the end, no matter what..."


    "That''s what we wanted to do. But we don''t have a choice. If we run out of time, it''s minus 300 ss points."


    To justify his vote in favour, Keisei said that this was inevitable.


    "But that doesn''t erase the regret I feel for voting in favour of when I was told to do so..!"


    Unanimous in favour, she confessed that he regretted having yed a part in it. The same feeling, but not in words, began to show itself more strongly in the students.


    "Don''t be so hard on yourself, Kushida-chan. Because they''re all the same... aren''t they?"


    Sud�� and Ike alsoforted her.


    "I''m so frustrated... I''m so frustrated..."


    Tears rolled down her cheeks. Wiping them away, she looked up, her body trembling.


    "I think we actually had a chance to make it unanimous in opposition. If we had persisted and kept trying to persuade them, I think those who were voting in favour would have understood in the end..."


    "Maybe, but time was-"


    "I certainly understand what Horikita and Ayanok��ji were saying. We just have to avoid running out of time, don''t we? Yeah, I know that. But even if we were to be penalized, we should have been a ss where no one was left out, shouldn''t we?"


    Kushida let out feelings that''d been building up for a long time.


    "No, but he said it was still the guy''s fault for voting in favour. Absolutely."


    "No one should be expelled. No one should be expelled from school because of their academic or athletic ability, it''s a small thing. You can''t decide who should be expelled just because of that."


    Kushida is even willing to cover up for those who are in favour of the situation that led to it.


    "But, if that''s the case, how do you decide who to expel?"


    "Then why don''t we just... have a raffle?"


    "No, you can''t. If you expel anyone because of that... I''m sure everyone won''t all be happy."


    Wiping away another flood of tears with her fingertips, she continued.


    "I, for one, am prepared to take criticism."


    Putting her hand to her chest, Kushida appealed to her ssmates.


    "I think... and I think Ayanok��ji, who was the leader of this special exam, Horikita-san... who urged people to vote in favour, should take responsibility for that."


    I knew it would happen. The first move was from Kushida.


    These words are those of the intense desire of an anonymous person who has unmistakably voted in favour of the proposal.


    "I feel so bad about mentioning their names that I almost hate myself. But I can''t let time run out. Someone has to carry the weight of this... So, I''ll take the role of the hated one..."


    We don''t want anyone to be expelled.


    Nevertheless, as long as someone has to be expelled, selection is inevitable. Those who sentence us to restructuring suffer just as much as those who are restructured.


    This is a role that Kushida has taken upon herself. It takes a lot of determination and a lot of reason to name names. With the right wording, she was able to make her ssmates aware of our names, which was the purpose of the initiative, without making them feel she was the anonymous supporter.


    Kushida is much smarter than I thought. Normally, in Kushida''s position, you could stay silent until the end and not be expelled. She has a lot of friends who trust her, and there are plenty of students who will vote against her expulsion. However, Horikita and I already know that Kushida is the anonymous supporter. If one of us were to raise a fist and blow the whistle on her, it could lead to unforeseen consequences. In the event that you''ve got a lot more than one person in your corner, you''ll be able to use them as a defense.


    By mentioning my own and Horikita''s names ahead of time, if anyone says anything to discredit her, she can make it sound like it''s because of resentment over the decision to expel someone.


    "You''ve got to be kidding me!"


    It was Kei, not Horikita or me, who was the first to object to Kushida''s idea.


    "Why should Kiyotaka have to be expelled? You were about to run out of time, so you just said let''s put it in the same disgusting way and agree.


    Where''s the responsibility in that?"


    "Yeah. Yes, I agree. I know exactly what you mean, Karuizawa. I honestly think it''s wrong to even name names now... but you can''t move forward if you don''t."


    "I''m not going to vote for Kiyotaka''s expulsion. At that point, you know he''s never going to be expelled, right?"


    "Wait, Karuizawa. That''s a bit selfish."


    "Huh? Didn''t Hond��-kun just promise to vote against you and Onizuka-kun? It''s the same thing."


    "Erm, but I never said let''s make it unanimous in favour of it..."


    "You''re so selfish. If I don''t dere my intentions, how am I going to avoid being expelled? You won''t be able to go to ss A because your time is up? So what? Kiyotaka is everything to me, I don''t care if I''m in ss B or ss D."


    Kei has been venting her anger relentlessly, but it was time to stop.


    "Stop it, Kei. What Kushida is saying is correct."


    "But... but!"


    This is where Kei stopped, ring at Kushida with a frustrated and annoyed look on her face.


    "If you let your emotions get the better of you here and continue to argue, the person who should be most responsible for what Kushida said will blur, and the subject will shift from me and Horikita. You know that much."


    "Yeah..."


    If I hadn''t lost my cool, I would have gone for it, but I didn''t. If I give a strong enough order, she has enough reason to restrain herself.


    As a result, it''s not bad to be forced to speak for what your ssmates have in their hearts.


    "I''ll tell you, I won''t support Suzune''s expulsion. It may not be ideal with the whole unanimous thing, but it''s not Suzune''s fault. I me the bastard who sat on his hands and knees and didn''te forward. Do you think that we can go up to ss A without Suzune in the future? Never."


    "Certainly... decided that Horikita should be given protection. But in the end, if we fail this special test, the action itself will be meaningless; wouldn''t it be the same if we lost 350 ss points?"


    Keisei answers, holding his sses.


    "I''m sure you can reel them in with Suzune!"


    "This school is not that sweet. The 300 ss points that K��enji got in the desert ind exam was a miracle. If you exclude that, how long did it take us to finally reach the ss points we have now? It''s not very realistic, is it? Horikita is a big hole to fill, but it''s not worth losing 350 ss points to keep her."


    Will he be able to cover the 350-point handicap with Horikita, or will he be able to fight as an equal without her?


    It''s hard to put a simple value on this, but what Keisei said is generally true.


    "I can''t agree with Kiyopon or Horikita''s expulsion from the school right now. Because I think they should be listened to first, not because of my personal rtionship. Because the worst person is the person who kept voting in favour of it, as Sud��-kun said, right?"


    At the intervention of Haruka, Kushida looked up as if she had been caught off guard.


    The exnation was not to protect me because I was one of them, but in a way that said it was too early to decide.


    "Yes, you''re right. I think I may have lost my cool a little... But if Ayanok��ji got the name of the person who voted for it wrong... well, even if he didn''t get it wrong, if he said the name, it would probably destroy the whole rtionship."


    Don''t say the wrong name by mistake. I couldn''t help but feel that kind of pressure. Anyway, the baton is now passed to me again.


    "You''re in the middle of a conversation, but I''ll stop you there. You have ten minutes to decide who you want to vote out of the school. If you can''t do that, we''ll have to have a random vote."


    "Right. We''re running out of time to vote. You have to do it. Please nominate me for expulsion."


    "Oi, hey Suzune! What do you think you''re doing?"


    "If I''m going to put one vote between us anyway, I want to make sure it''s the right one. Because I want to see how many of my ssmates want me to leave the school."


    If the vote is unanimous in favour, the student is expelled. On the other hand, if the vote is unanimous in the opposite direction, the student will be exempted from expulsion. And if the vote is not unanimous in either direction, we will have to start all over again, including Horikita.


    "In the following event, we will start a 60-second poll for Horikita Suzune."


    A vote for or against expulsion began for Horikita.


    How many students will vote in favour of Horikita''s expulsion? It seemed that all the votes had been cast in about 30 seconds, and Chabashira-sensei disyed the results on a monitor.


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Horikita Suzune from the school.


    [Results of the eighteenth round of voting:]


    16 in favour


    22 against


    Am I the only one who thinks this is an interesting result?


    The only person who is likely to vote clearly against Horikita is, objectively speaking, Sud��. And then there''s K��enji, who doesn''t want to let go of his only ally, Horikita.


    On the flip side, the rest of the students were asked to vote purely on whether they agreed or disagreed with Horikita''s disappearance. For the 16 anonymous students, Horikita''s presence is not that important.


    Or is there a segment of the ss who would be happy with anyone leaving as long as they themselves didn''t have to leave school?


    "You''re all idiots! All those who voted in favour, raise your hands or I''ll kill you!"


    Sud�� stood up irritated, as if he thought that only a few votes at most would be in favour.


    "Stop it, Sud��-kun."


    "I can''t stop!"


    "You''re only wasting our time with your fussing. Let''s talk more constructively."


    "Horikita-san is right, Sud��-kun. Unanimity is the irond rule for this special exam. Even if there are thirty-seven votes in favour, as long as you keep opposing it, Horikita-san won''t be expelled."


    Y��suke convinced him that there was no need to vent his anger anywhere. Exactly as he just said, it only takes one person to stay on your side if you are unhappy.


    It is also the only way to absolutely prevent expulsion from the exam.


    Only one vote. With an unshakeable defensive vote against, you can avoid the fate of expulsion.


    On the flip side, if you lose thatst vote, there is nothing you can do to prevent being expelled.


    "We really don''t have much time left. It''s time for you to give me the name of the students you think was voting in favour."


    "I know. But before I answer, I just want to make a suggestion."


    "A suggestion?"


    "Ah. I''m going to give you a name now, because I don''t think this is going to be just a statement. Because if I say the wrong person, reputational damage won''t be the end of the story."


    "That''s... for sure."


    "That''s why it''s not a proper statement, and on the flip side, if it turns out that I said the wrong person, then I''ll take the me and I''ll be expelled."


    "Hey, Kiyotaka!


    I''ll take responsibility. Hearing these words, the ss is in an uproar.


    "Oh, are you sure you''re okay? Ayanok��ji-kun... I don''t want any of my ssmates to be expelled and Ayanok��ji is one of them..."


    "Thanks for your concern, Kushida. But I''m fine."


    "You say you''re going to leave school, but Karuizawa-san is against Ayanok��ji-kun''s vote, right? That would mean..."


    "I won''t let that happen. Taking responsibility also means stopping those opposing votes. If the timees, I will make Kei vote yes. Do you understand?"


    "Wow, I get it, but I believe it''s never going to happen."


    "I understand and ept to a certain extent what Kushida said. I was the one who led the vote to the choice of expelling someone, so of course, I should take some of the me. However, someone has been stubbornly voting in favour since the very start and I feel that person should take the me in it''s entirety."


    "Let''s face it, there''s a student in this ss who tried to sneak in a good deal of anonymity by having someone drop out, isn''t there?"


    This is where Kei joined in to protect me.


    "Yeah, I agree with you...! That''s the person who should take responsibility for..."


    "Yes, that''s what I mean. It''s the student who voted in favour who''s at fault."


    Airi and Haruka, and even Akito followed this trend to provide support.


    "You''ve prepared yourselves... haven''t you?"


    Ast word of advice: Kushida''s anxious eyes stare at me.


    "As long as you are naming names, you have to be prepared to pay for it. Above all, I can speak out and risk my own expulsion because I believe I am as close to 100 percent certain as I can be."


    "Wow, okay. Then I''ll believe Ayanok��ji-kun."


    With the word "believe", the intense eyes from Kushida kept on looking at me.


    The timing of the reveal has been pulled back, which has further increased the interest of the students. Apart from the one who actually voted in favour, the rest of the students are inherently less anxious. That is why we are waiting for the name of the person who has been secretly voting in favour to force an expulsion all along.


    They want a good reason to p you, and they are waiting for the right moment to shout abuse down your throat.


    "The person''s name is..."


    Who I am going to expel and who I have decided to expel.


    I''m going to reveal it all here.


    "Kushida. It''s you."


    Silence. Not even the ringing in your ears can reach you, a world where sound haspletely disappeared.


    I know, Horikita. While you conclude that you have to go in favour of this, I understand why you can''t take the plunge.


    But Kushida did not back down. She was determined to get Horikita or I kicked out of the school for this task, and she kept voting for it. Whether or not she realizes that this is a bad move is no longer a small matter.


    I''ve decided that Kushida can''t be rehabilitated, but you wanted to see her through to the end.


    The sacrifice of the ss, and the possibility of that sacrifice, how could I not have mentioned the name so far? You may not have been able to save Kushida, but you don''t have to sacrifice her yourself. I didn''t know what Horikita was thinking at this moment, but I could clearly see that she was looking at me more calmly than I expected.


    If Kushida has chosen to stand in the way of our efforts, then we have to fight.


    I''m the one who has to beat this person.


    "What...?"


    A voice leaked out, iprehensible.


    This was probably a sentiment shared by almost all the students, not just Kushida.


    "W-What?"


    She still didn''t feel her name had been called and pointed to herself. Or maybe they''ll tell you their name, you''ve already guessed that. That''s why I also came prepared for it, setting it up ahead of time. But even so, I think I couldn''t really decide to sell Kushida. It''s even more so because I think I have some weaknesses against me.


    "Yes, you did. It was you who, when urged to vote against it, stubbornly continued to vote for it."


    Even my ssmates, who were ready to p me, didn''t say a word.


    "Or, could it be because... I said that Horikita-san and Ayanok��ji-kun should take responsibility?"


    Seeing Kushida''s tears welling up with grief, Hond�� hurried to follow up.


    "No, I don''t care how many times you say it, Ayanok��ji, it can''t be Kushida-chan..! You''re just saying it because of a grudge."


    "It has nothing to do with that. I''ve been thinking about it since before you named me, or even since the first vote on the fifth task."


    "An usation, eh? Well, of course it would seem so in the circumstances."


    It''s just a random excuse to make up for almost being expelled. It''s obvious to everyone that it looks that way.


    "There''s no evidence anywhere that they kept voting against it. Of course not, because this is an anonymous vote. But I''m going to show you that you''re the one who kept voting in favour. Do you have any objections?"


    "I can''t tell you how awful it is. I was the first one to name you two...


    but I was prepared for it. I''ve decided to sacrifice myself to protect my ss, even if I have to face lies and nder."


    Whatever they are going to say, they are all lies. By putting up that line of defence, you ensure that your supporters do not leave you.


    "First of all, I would like to tell you why I thought that Kushida was the one who kept voting in favour. It is because there is a student in this ss that she really wants to expel. Of course, you won''t believe me, but hear me out. The person she wants to expel is Horikita and myself, who she herself mentioned by name."


    Many people are confused as to what the hell I am talking about. This is a debate in which not a single mistake can be made.


    "I gave you those two names, so that''s how it''s going to be, huh..."


    "No, you don''t. From the very first day she entered this school, Kushida has always recognized Horikita as a hindrance more than anyone else."


    Kushida will understand, even if she doesn''t like it. I''m going to disclose all the information I know about Kushida here and now.


    There is no way to stop her as she continues to y the role of a pretty, pitiful girl.


    "Kushida. You have something inmon with Horikita that your other ssmates don''t, don''t you?"


    "What? You mean,mon ground...?"


    Even though you know it, you have to adopt an attitude of not knowing anything.


    I could interrupt the performance, but I dare not to.


    The defensive instinct to protect yourself will make you suffer even more in the future.


    "Um... Oh! Are you saying that we''re from the same middle school?"


    No one would have ever heard of such a story before. My ssmates were surprised to hear the information at first hand. The only way is to reveal the cards that Kushida has been hiding.


    "Yes. I don''t think a single one of these students knew about that, did they?"


    The person in question, Horikita, is now staring straight at the podium, her face expressionless.


    But on the other hand, it is easy to see the eyes of her ssmates.


    "Well, wait? It''s true that I never told anyone about it, but I just never had the chance to talk about it. It was a reasonably big school, and we never even had the same ss. It took me a long time to confirm with Horikita-san that we went to the same school..."


    Kushida imed there was no way she would have wanted to expel her from the start.


    At this point, some of the students, unable to see the situation with Kushida, took action.


    "Come on, Ayanok��ji. You said you could tell who voted in favour, so I just shut up and listened. That''s impossible."


    It was Ike who denied it. And his voice soon spread.


    "That''s right. What Ayanok��ji-kun is saying is ruinous and bitterly unfair."


    "What''s with the habit of leading people to agree with you, and then only mentioning Kushida-san''s name when you''re pissed off?"


    "In the first ce, why are we talking about wanting to expel her just because they were in the same middle school? I mean, if that''s the case, did Ayanok��ji also go to the same junior high school as the two of you?"


    The usual questions popped up from ssmates. The grievances that erupt multiply from one to two, two to three. One friend after another appears without asking.


    There can be no doubt that this is a powerful weapon in the hands of Kushida.


    "Kushida, are you really that kind of a character? There''s something wrong with you, Ayanok��ji."


    "Yeah, I know, I know. I''d say it''s kind of scary. I''ve always had a quiet image..."


    Not only do they protect her, but some of them begin to distrust me for my unusual behaviour.


    "Don''t me him, guys. I''m sure Ayanok��ji-kun doesn''t want to talk about it either. I know what it''s like to be in a situation like this and want to me someone else..."


    She picked up the words of her ssmates exquisitely and pretended to protect me while setting me up.


    "You''re too kind, Kiky��. You can''t let him say whatever he wants."


    Automatically, when the spokespersons of Kushida go berserk, I felt that my right to speak was being revoked.


    But I also have weapons to fight back.


    "It''s Ayanok��ji-kun who is having an important conversation right now. We shouldn''t interfere halfway."


    So said Y��suke, giving a warning to any student who tries to interfere with my words.


    "Yo yo, Hirata. It''s no use listening to Ayanok��ji''s lies anymore."


    "We should onlyment on truth or falsehood when we have all the information. Of course, if it turns out to be false, I won''t condone it either."


    "Is it really worth listening to?"


    "Yes, it''s something you have to listen to. It''s not just Kushida-san who''s been named, it''s Ayanok��ji-kun''s own future that''s at stake. Isn''t that right?"


    I had told Y��suke that I may control the vote when there is no time left.


    But there was no way of knowing in advance what the task would be, and of course he hadn''t heard about Kushida.


    As a purely neutral person, he must judge without error.


    "I have nothing to do with where theye from. I don''t have anything to do with where they''re from, and it doesn''t mean much that they went to the same secondary school. But it''s true that Kushida had a big secret in secondary school."


    "Stop it, Ayanok��ji-kun... Don''t pile on any more lies..."


    Tears stream down her cheeks and she begins to cry on the spot.


    "Hey Kiyopon, I''m on your side... but even Kiky��-chan is with you. What can I say, is this really a story that needs to continue?"


    As I said, the Ayanok��ji Group is a group of people who have been involved in activities in the past. Although she doesn''t have a lot of friends, she gets on well with Kushida outside of the group.


    If you care about both sides, it is only natural that you should also try to stop this conflict.


    "Haruka. You''ve been waiting for the existence of the anonymous student toe to light, haven''t you? Then you need to hear this story out."


    "But, because Kiky��-chan is..."


    "No. I know you think so, but Kushida is not who you think she is. I''m sorry, but I have to go on. Kushida''s secret lies in the true nature she keeps hidden."


    "Kiky��-chan''s... true nature..?"


    "Yes. On surface, Kushida appears to everyone to be a good person.


    She is kind, caring, good at her studies, good at sports, a perfect student. But what if the truth is that she is more jealous than anyone else, and is only satisfied if she is first? What if, as a result, she has a history of destroying her ss when her true nature was revealed in junior high school?"


    "I honestly can''t believe this story. But even if it were true, it doesn''t add up. It is true that the same junior high school student, Horikita, may know about her past. But how does Ayanok��ji-kun know about it? I don''t think Horikita-san would tell anyone."


    "It wasn''t long after I started school that I had the idental opportunity to see Kushida''s true nature. She was not the mild-mannered person she usually was, but she was a person who let her negative emotions out."


    Even after all this, Kushida doesn''t make any attempt to re at me.


    She continued to y the role of the sweet girl who looked at the poor student who was telling lies. It is because of the strong pride that she believes she''ll be absolutely fine if she does so.


    Of course, having bad things said about you, whether true or false, was a bad factor that would cast a shadow over the rest of your school life.


    However, it was also a sign that she was determined to get Horikita expelled from the school.


    "I want to be seen as a kind person, but I don''t want my true nature to be known. On the other hand, she can''t stand the situation in which Horikita and I are holding her weakness. Why, because she always wants to be on top of the caste."


    "One... more minute or so and the interval will be over."


    We were in the middle of a conversation, but just to make sure, Chabashira-sensei informed us of the time.


    "So, what are we going to do, next vote?"


    "That''s the only way to get a vote on... for now, Ayanok��ji."


    In the current situation, I would of course be the next in line.


    "Don''t..."


    But it was not Kei, nor Haruka, but Kushida who stopped him.


    "Enough is enough... I can''t take it anymore, my heart can''t take it any more..."


    "K-Kushida-san?"


    "If I only said what I really meant, it would be the same all the time, I don''t want Horikita-san or Ayanok��ji-kun to be expelled. I even made Ayanok��ji-kun lie about me by mentioning two names... I don''t want to have to go through this bitter, painful argument anymore! So... I''ll drop out... and then we''ll all be back to normal again, right?"


    A student who volunteers to be a candidate for expulsion.


    This special test, one of the criteria for selecting individual names, will be epted if only one persones forward voluntarily, without taking a vote, as Horikita and Y��suke have just shown.


    "Are you sure, Kushida? Once you say it, you can''t take it back."


    "Yes, it''s fine... Do you all agree that I should be expelled? Please..."


    When Kushida''s name was selected with the word, the task is disyed on the tablet.


    The ss was upset by her unexpected candidacy.


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Kushida Kiky�� from the school.


    [Results of the neenth round of voting:]


    5 in favour


    33 against


    In due time, the vote was cast on Kushida, and while the result wasn''t unanimous, it held overwhelming opposition.


    "Huh... why?"


    "There''s no way they''re going to expel you for this. See?"


    The 33 pupils who voted against responded with a nod of the heads to show their solidarity.


    "Ayanok��ji. I honestly think it''s disgusting that you''re attacking Kushida-chan just so you don''t get expelled yourself."


    Apart from my vote in favour, only four people voted in favour of Kushida''s expulsion.


    I''m tempted to say "only", but I''m rather surprised that there were five votes.


    "Next is Ayanok��ji-kun''s turn, right?"


    If things go on as they are, there will be a vote to expel me.


    That would be the best chance of unanimity in favour in the current situation.


    But only if I allow them to make that decision 10 minutester.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, you say that Kushida-san''s true nature is something else, but I won''t just suddenly believe it."


    "That''s right. In the first ce, has there ever been any attempt by Kushida-san to expel Horikita-san? If she really wanted to expel her, she would have taken action long ago, wouldn''t she?"


    If you wait for the right opportunity, you will naturally find a voice that demands what you have to say.


    "It''s not easy to get a ssmate expelled from school. However, I have been a target of Kushida at least once before, in a special exam simr to this unanimous special exam."


    By avoiding direct expression, I allowed my ssmates to dig up their memories.


    "Ah, the ss Poll exam... I''m pretty sure that''s when Yamauchi-kun and Kushida-san..."


    Yes. Last year, for the first time, we had a vote in our ss that resulted in a student being expelled from our ss. In the end, Yamauchi was expelled from the school, but one of the people who used Yamauchi to try and push the ss to expel me was Kushida. I''m sure it was still fresh in everyone''s mind.


    "Coincidence? We''ve had two simr exams and both times I''ve been a target of expulsion, and both times it''s Kushida who''s involved. It''s too good to be true."


    If you remember those days, you will understand that it was strange for Kushida.


    "It''s true that sometimes I think it''s just a coincidence. But Ayanok��ji, if Kiky��-chan is deliberately trying to get Ayanok��ji expelled, would she try it at such a coincidental time?"


    It''s not as simple as that.


    "Kushida thought I was on her side. You didn''t think I would expose your whole school life like this, did you?"


    "An ally?"


    "Oh. Am I saying that wrong? Kushida."


    "I''m the one, what should I do, Ayanok��ji-kun...? What is the right way to answer?"


    Basically, Kushida can only deny or ask back.


    As long as I can''t affirm it, the initiative is always with me.


    "Give me proof, Ayanok��ji. If you''re going to me Kushida-chan any more, you''re going to need it."


    It was Hond�� who came out in force. It seemed that he had extraordinarily strong feelings for Kushida.


    "That''s true. It may be pointless to continue this story without evidence. I''ll tell you why Kushida was trusting me from now on."


    Don''t panic, just make sure the water soaks in.


    "It was a long time ago. Kushida threatened to expel me from school, and I made a deal with her which involved me giving her half of my monthly private points in exchange for her not expelling me."


    No one had ever imagined that such a story would be told, and it came as a slight surprise to Kushida''s defenders.


    "Isn''t that right?"


    "What...?"


    Maybe she hadn''t expected this toe up, or maybe it had been in the back of her mind but she hadn''t decided how to respond. Either way, Kushida was at a loss for words.


    She can''t honestly admit that she''s been given private points.


    On the other hand, it is difficult to deny that you have received them.


    Even if she can falsely im that she hasn''t received any in this moment, the truth wille out when it''s confirmedter when we get our phones back.


    This is because the fact of who transferred how much and to whom will remain in the transaction history.


    "How is it? Can you tell me that you haven''t received a single point?"


    "That''s..."


    I''m not going to let you take your time.


    Just as I was about to turn my gaze to Chabashira-sensei, Kushida''s lips quivered as she replied.


    "S-sure... I receive private points every month from Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    Kushida, who has denied most of what I have said, had to admit it.


    If I were to get a confirmation from Chabashira-sensei, I can say that I know the flow of points at this moment, and you can''t avoid that the situation will be bad at once.


    There is some skepticism as to whether the teacher, Chabashira, is aware of the transfer of points between individuals at any time, and whether she would leak personal information, but Kushida is not willing to take that risk.


    "But, but the... reason is totally different! Ayanok��ji-kun asked me to keep them for him, so I didn''t even use... one point, of course?"


    There are only one or two ways to justify the fact that you receive half of your ssmates'' private points every month: either because they asked you to keep them, as Kushida said, or because they gave them to you for free.


    If you say that it was given to you unterally, as in the case of thetter, you will have to make up for it, so they almost asked you to keep it.


    That''s how it goes.


    "I didn''t give them to her to hold for me. I was paying the price, the condition that I wouldn''t be expelled."


    "That''s a lie."


    I offered her half of my private points for the deal. I''m sure Kushida remembers it well. I even took the time to record the day. But such a thing can be sealed off without being used, depending on the circumstances.


    No, rather the opposite. It is a double-edged sword.


    "Lies, huh? But, Kushida, when you signed this contract with me, you said you recorded it for your own insurance, didn''t you? If that recordinges out of your phone or something, you won''t be able to get away with it."


    "R-recording? I don''t know anything about that..."


    She denied it once, despite being overwhelmed. The recording is probably saved somewhere, but apparently not on her phone. You don''t carry around a risky recording directly with you, do you? That would have made this quicker, but no matter.


    "It''s the same thing if you''re hiding the recordings somewhere unknown. We signed this contract in February this year, and I was also recording the conversations we had. I recorded it so I can use it as a weapon if something goes wrong."


    She looked at me with her eyes opened wide. I don''t think she could have imagined that.


    "I''ve listened to the recording several times and I remember every word. "I''m going to give you half of my private points moving forward." I think that''s how I started."


    "That''s a lie. I''ve never heard of such a thing."


    "That''s certainly not a bad offer. But I''m sorry, I''m not in need of private points. I guess more money is better than less, but I have enough." So replied Kushida."


    "I don''t know..."


    "If you want, I can ask Chabashira-sensei to bring my phone now."


    "I don''t mind. But you can''t do it, we''re in the middle of a special exam, remember?"


    "If you use your mobile phone, it can lead to cheating, so it must be confiscated. However, you can leave all the operation of the phone to Chabashira-sensei and just ask her to y back the recorded data. Because this way there is no room for cheating."


    Of course, I do not believe that such exceptions are granted unconditionally during special examinations.


    However, Kushida''s anxiety was so great that she could not help but look at Chabashira-sensei in front of her.


    "You wouldn''t like it if I had Chabashira-sensei bring in mobile phones. All the hard work you''ve done to cover it up will be for naught. But you already know, don''t you? I''m not going to stop."


    What is Kushida thinking now, with fewer and fewer voices in the room?


    She turned her back to me and stopped moving, as if she had gone rigid, and kept her eyes focused on the front.


    Kushida, of course, remembers that day and, being a cautious person, she would have made sure that the recording was in working order. In other words, she heard it repeatedly. By saying the whole exchange, some words must have matched the audio data in her memory.


    "You may have enough to spend as pocket money, but you can never have too much in the case of an emergency."


    There has definitely been a big change in Kushida, who used to be all about being a victim.


    She has reached the point where it is impossible for her to continue pretending to be an angel in this ss.


    "Oh, shut up already..."


    A ssmate gulped. They''d heard a voice that they couldn''t understand, wondering who had just said that.


    The only way to stop her from saying any more is to show her true colours. But if she reveals her true nature, everything will be destroyed.


    "You know what Chabashira-sensei said. Private points are for your own protection-"


    "Shut up, shut up, shut up!"


    The words of rejection and obstruction reach me, but I do not care, I will continue to the end.


    "That proposal. No matter how you look at it, Ayanok��ji-kun is at a disadvantage. If you''re saying that this is a crisis where Ayanok��ji-kun is going to drop out of school, I can still understand that, can''t you?" I don''t know. This was the conversation between me and Kushida before the deal. If you can listen to the same audio that I just said here in front of everyone, it should solve everything."


    It doesn''t matter if I really have the recording or not, it''s not important. The only thing that is necessary and important is the fact that the lines match the actual exchange.


    "That''s enough!!!"


    Kushida shouted to silence me.


    The whole thing started in the first-year, when Ichinose Honami had be vulnerable, and I knew Kushida would have plenty of dirt on her ssmates. When I''d asked her for help, I''d offered to give up my private points. No doubt the conversation that preceded the offer, wherein Horikita and I were demanded to drop out of the school, will remain intact.


    You''d thought you''d have a convenient hand, but you were wrong.


    You''ve left yourself a trail of evidence that will lead to your own downfall.


    "Please tell me exactly where in the conversation you want me to leave it. So that myself and the whole ss can understand."


    The others, hoping that there was a mistake, just watched Kushida anxiously.


    "Sorry..." Briefly, Kushida muttered an apology.


    "To what?"


    "Indeed, I promised not to fight with Ayanok��ji-kun in exchange for half of his private points. That''s true, so..."


    Not an apology to me, but an apology to my ssmates for lying to them.


    "And now I don''t think about it anymore! I really want to be friends with Horikita-san and Ayanok��ji-kun. I''ve never voted in favour of expelling someone...!"


    Kushida stopped and raised her voice in an attempt to hang onto theplete anonymity of the name.


    The way her ssmates looked at her was very different from the warmth they had shown her in the past.


    Even if I didn''t have all the studentspletely in my favour, it was no longer possible for her to go about her daily life as before. She seems to understand thatpletely.


    "I wonder if the truth is that Ayanok��ji-kun kept voting in favour?"


    "What does that mean?"


    "Ayanok��ji-kun wanted to expel me from school. So he took action to force the vote to be unanimous in favour of it. Because it''s strange... that he''s always quiet and unassertive, but spontaneously moves to expel people from school now."


    Kushida, who is as close to ck as it gets, tries to shift the ckness from herself to me.


    I''m sorry, but I''ve already predicted that you were going to use that strategy.


    "Hey, Karuizawa-san."


    Brushing her hair, she turns her gaze towards Kei.


    "What?"


    "It seems like you''re dating Ayanok��ji, but did you know that when we first started school, Ayanok��ji was desperately trying to get me to go out with him?"


    "What is that, what are you talking about?"


    Kei is more calm and objective than most people, but even she has her weaknesses.


    It''s when love is involved that uncontroble emotions explode.


    When it was mentioned that I was a candidate for expulsion earlier, she aggressively defended me at her own risk. This is why Kushida must have been able to see the ws in Kei''s heart.


    "You even touched my breasts in the dark when I didn''t want you to, didn''t you?"


    "Ha... breasts! What do you mean, "breasts"?


    "I knew you didn''t know. He did such a terrible thing to me as soon as we started school."


    A feeling of disgust begins to spread among the girls, including the boys who have taken a liking to Kushida.


    "I tried to gently tell him to stop right then and there, but I was... too scared to do anything about it..."


    "I know it sounds self-serving, but there is no such thing as a fact that I touched her breasts."


    "Well, that''s what Kiyotaka says!"


    "That''s true, you have to say that. But really, Ayanok��ji-kun touched my breasts."


    "Kushida. I hate to say this, but isn''t that unsightly?"


    "It''s not the same as the recording you made, but I have proof too. I have a uniform with Ayanok��ji-kun''s fingerprints all over it, and I''ve kept it as it was at the time. You know what will happen if I submit it to...?"


    Just as I said I had a recording on my phone, she pulled the same stunt on me.


    If this proves to be trueter, it will be me who will be in the deep end.


    "Exin to me what you mean by that."


    From the point of view of a woman who is being told the story objectively, it is understandable that she would want to ask for an exnation.


    "There is no such fact at all. It''s more a matter of whether it''s true or false. You speak of clothes with fingerprints on them, but how well preserved are they? If it was just after she entered the school, it has been a year and a half. It''s not easy to get a print from a piece of clothing, and if it''s not preserved well, it''s not in good condition. I don''t think it would be possible to get fingerprints."


    Even the surface of clothing is bumpy due to knitting, making it difficult to see fingerprint lines. Considering factors such as UV rays, moisture and dryness, we can say that it is 100% impossible.


    "..."


    Just like the recording data, none of the cards you have are usable.


    It doesn''t matter how many other cards you have in your hand. There is no excuse that anyone can think of. I won''t allow it.


    "If there had really been such damage in the first ce, I should have been pursued immediately."


    "Why... why... why... why..! "


    Kushida stormed over to me, grabbed me by the cor and red at me intensely.


    In the face of a furious Kushida, I proceeded to talk to her in an amicable manner.


    "At one time, you were working with Ry��en to get me and Horikita expelled. Isn''t that right?"


    One after the other, Kushida''s secrets were exposed for everybody to witness. At this point, it won''t have much of an effect on me if I provide new information that is partly wrong.


    "Why, why, why!!!"


    The hand that grasped my uniform became stronger.


    "Why are you betraying me?! You promised not to be hostile, remember?"


    "Of course, I didn''t want to antagonise you. I wasn''t interested in the fact that you have two sides to your face. That''s why I wanted to make it a unanimous decision without naming myself or Horikita until the end. But when someone''s expulsion is at stake, there''s no choice. I have to protect my ssmates."


    For the past year and a half, Kushida has been steadily building up bonds with her friends.


    And now it all came crashing down.


    With no wordsing from anyone, Kushida began to slow down.


    "Ah... ah... no, hey. Not anymore."


    Kushida''s face contorted in disgust at her own disgrace, and she looked resigned, as if she had realised everything.


    But she soon regained herposure and, with a smile on her face, released her hand from my chest.


    "Fufu... I''ve been a fool, haven''t I? That deal was a mistake..."


    The angry demeanour disappeared at once, and words of indifference came out of Kushida.


    "I thought I knew that Ayanok��ji-kun was a tough opponent, but I still didn''t think he would betray me here. It''s unexpected, it''s unexpected."


    "Wait it''s, lies Kiky��-chan... what Ayanok��ji-kun just told us... he''s lying, right?"


    "Lies? I''m sorry, but it''s all true."


    "Such a... Why...?"


    "Some things have to be protected at all costs. Don''t you understand? How could you possibly know? Oh, my God, I''m done with everything."


    She shrugged her shoulders, unconcerned with her own predicament.


    "Yes. I couldn''t stand Horikita-san and Ayanok��ji-kun. I just couldn''t forgive the two of them for knowing my secret that I kept hidden. I''ve been trying to get the chance to expel them for a long time."


    "I''m certainly surprised at thest task, but still, you knew you couldn''t push it too much, didn''t you? You knew what would happen if you tried to force it."


    Even if she hated us, there were plenty of times when she could have stepped aside. Nevertheless, Kushida continued to vote in favour of the proposal and repeatedly acted in a manner that could be described as half-crazy. This is something I always felt was out of character with Kushida during the exam. For a moment her eyes wavered, and she looked perturbed, but this soon faded away. Before the special exam, she had asked Horikita to be our leader. It seems that she was expecting this kind of task...


    "Apart from that I couldn''t stand the situation where people kept knowing about my past. I knew it would be extremely difficult to get Horikita to drop out of school, but I couldn''t resist the urge."


    The students who had been protecting her would have been at a loss for words. The fact that she was nning to expel Horikita does not mean that her friends are to me.


    Of course, she was guilty of forcing the ss to choose the route of expulsion by continuously voting in favour of it, but it is still difficult to say that we could win a unanimous vote in favour of Kushida''s expulsion. We need more damage to be done to this ss in order to make sure she is expelled.


    "You can''t make Horikita or I leave school. That''s too bad."


    "In the next vote I will be expelled. This ss will get ss points because of my sacrifice, huh? Good for you guys. I think you can move up to ss B now."


    It''s hard to believe that those words were spoken to a group of people who had been friends up until this afternoon.


    "There''s nothing left for you to turn around."


    "Fufu, you''re probably right. But..."


    Bringing her face close to my neck, she whispered coldly, "I''m sorry."


    "You can at least show a little resistance, can''t you?"


    It was a whisper, but more than enough for the ss to pick up on. It''s safe to say that Kushida had been preparing for this in private, without the need for us to rile her up.


    "You can''t. You don''t have any more friends who will vote against your expulsion."


    "No, I don''t. If I''m going to be expelled anyway, I''m going to have to destroy the whole..."


    The true nature that led to the copse of her ss in middle school begins to show its face.


    "What the hell are you talking about?"


    "Don''t you know? The secret of this ss that only I have. I still have time until the end of the interval, so I''ll tell you everything."


    "There''s nothing in it for you is there?"


    "And there''s no loss. Ayanok��ji-kun is going to get in trouble, so it''s time to get started."


    Yes, that''s it. Let out the truth and the stress you''ve been umting for so long. That way, everyone will be amazed and awed by your twistedness.


    Only then does any room for sympathy disappear and unanimity is achieved.


    "Other than Karuizawa-san just now - yes, Shinohara Satsuki consulted me about various things, right?"


    Shinohara Satsuki was the first target of the myriad of spears aimed at therge number of girls.


    "What, what, what!"


    "Shinohara-san is not particrly cute or pretty, or rather a bit ugly, isn''t she? Maybe that''s why it''s so amusing that only ugly boys like Ike-kun and Komiya-kune on to her. Did you know that Karuizawa, Matsushita, Mori and othersughed at such a thing?"


    A single pike instantly fractured into countless pieces, and one by one the names were called, and the targets were distributed.


    "No, don''t do that! I didn''t say that! Don''t you lie to her!"


    Mori immediately denied this, but Kushida had no intention of letting the matter rest.


    "Huh? Youughed at them, saying they were the most perfect match for each other. Don''t worry, Iughed and said, "Don''t do that!" but I felt the same way. Is that right... Nene...?"


    "No, no... I was just, you know..."


    "Shinohara, it seems that Ike-kun confessed to you on the boat and you went out with him, but it was a pretty easy choice, even though you were wavering between him and Komiya-kun until just before that. Or are you nning to go out with Ike-kun on a trial basis and then go with Komiya-kun, who was closer to your true love?"


    "Oh, hey, Satsuki!"


    For Kushida, there was mmable material lying around all over the ss. As soon as a fire started in one ce starts to spread, the words fly to new material.


    "Speaking of romantic connections, Wang-san has been asking me for advice."


    "No, please don''t!"


    "Don''t? By don''t, do you mean stop talking about Wang-san''s love for Hirata-kun?"


    "Huh!"


    Mii-chan was forced to suddenly look at the person she has a crush on in the middle of the ssroom.


    In an instant, her face turned red and she started to cry when she saw Y��suke looking at her.


    "Stop for a second. It''s only the beginning. That''s not the only secret I''ve heard from everyone. Do you want to try something a bit more serious for the next time? Let''s see, for a start, we could try Hasebe-san."


    "Kiky��-chan..."


    "Oh, stop calling me by that familiar name. You can''t even make friends, and you call people by their nicknames just so you can feel closer to them. I''m sure it''s annoying to people who hear you call them that."


    In the meantime, Shinohara and Mori and Ike and others continued to force each other to lie about what they had said or didn''t say, while Kushida shifted her focus to Haruka.


    The interval will soon be over, but the unanimous decision to expel Kushida will be imminent. If we drag our feet here, Kushida will continue to reveal more and more secrets.

 Chapter 218: 7.1

    <h4>Chapter 218: 7.1</h4>


    After only a few minutes of listening to Ayanok��ji-kun''s story, the people around her have made a 180 degree change in their opinion of Kushida-san.


    Her friends used to be as strong and united as Ayanok��ji-kun''s group. But now, for some reason, they seem to have a very fragile rtionship.


    Even I, who knew Kushida-san''s background before anyone else, would have rmended Kushida-san if I had been asked to nominate someone in favour of expulsion.


    I may have seen the power of Ayanok��ji-kun before anyone else in the school, and I''m not sure I''ll ever forget it.


    The ss was like a picture of hell. At the end of the interval, the voting begins for Kushida-san, who will have the votes of the majority.


    That''s probably the end of this special exam. Our ss will get 100 ss points while making sacrifices. This will be a valuable asset for us in our quest for ss A.


    But... Yes, I need to sort out my situation first.


    I am sure that I am in the same flow of time as everyone else, but for me, every second ticks by slowly but surely. The second hand of the analogue clock, which doesn''t look like a ssroom clock, is slowing down, as if it is about to stop.


    On the contrary, my senses were getting sharper and sharper.


    What is my purpose? I asked myself.


    The answer, of course, is to graduate as ss A. So ss points are very important. It''s obvious. So how much is Kushida-san worth?


    It is difficult to assign a clear value to each student.


    But if you ask me whether it would be worth at least 100 ss points to expel her, I would say no.


    Then I''ll change my thinking. If you fail the special test, you will lose 350 ss points. If I were to save Kushida-san instead, could I be sure that she would be powerful enough to be worth it? I don''t think it''s absolutely impossible, but it''s difficult.


    It''s not just about her, it''s about me too.


    We expel Kushida-san because she is not worth 350 points. This is a normal thought.


    Then what will happen to me, Horikita Suzune? What will happen to the student known as Kushida Kiky��? Do you just want to help? Or do you just want to cut them down?


    By concentrating my attention, I transcended time and erased any notion of extraneous sound.


    Can I just leave it all to Ayanok��ji-kun? No. Then think about it. What is right, what is wrong, and is there anything that only I can do?


    I recognise, respect and think again about Ayanok��ji-kun''s abilities.


    A ray of light shone through the darkness behind my eyelids.


    Oh, yes, I see.


    Eventually, I arrived at one definite answer. That Kushida-san will be expelled from school here and now...


    It is not the right answer.


    And that I am the only person who could save her now.


    The frozen clock thawed, and the second hand started to move once more.

 Chapter 219: 7.2

    <h4>Chapter 219: 7.2</h4>


    One by one, students began to support Kushida''s expulsion from the school, but one student stood up for her.


    "Don''t go any further, Kushida-san. You won''t be able to turn back."


    "Huh? It''s just starting to get interesting, isn''t it? Don''t interrupt me, Horikita-san."


    "Not so fast. I can''t listen to any more ugly stories."


    "Is the truth about me so ugly?"


    I think she took it as apliment and looked at Horikita with the most cheerful face of the day.


    "Yes. At least I don''t think these revtions are beautiful. But it''s not only you that I find ugly, but also the people who are now calling for you to be expelled from the school for leaking their secrets."


    The unexpected scolding and reprimanding of the ssmates was unbearable.


    "Why us? We''ve done nothing wrong!"


    "You guys told Kushida-san a secret you didn''t want anyone to know. Why is that?"


    "Well, that''s because I thought I could trust Kushida-san! And yet..."


    "Yes. Kushida-san was trusted more than anyone else in the ss.


    Usually, it''s not easy to gain the trust of people. And there are probably only a few people in your life with whom you can share a secret that you can''t even tell anyone. Of course, I don''t admire Kushida-san for leaking your secrets. It''s understandable that you''re surprised that there''s more to her than meets the eye. But we all have two sides to our story, don''t we?"


    It would be a rare person who lives a life of honesty and truth.


    "Hey, but it doesn''t matter; she kept voting in favour. That''s uneptable, isn''t it?"


    "Right. As for what you did to get myself and Ayanok��ji-kun expelled, you made a choice that was too selfish. You must bear a heavy weight of responsibility. But instead of making her pay for it with expulsion, you can use her skills to pay us back many times over in the future."


    Here, Horikita''s point would have been understood by her ssmates.


    "Are you saying that you won''t expel Kushida-san?"


    "Yes, you''re right. I think... I think I want to keep Kushida-san in this ss."


    "Huh? What selfish thing are you saying when you thought I dropped the conversation?"


    The choice was not to expel Kushida. It was Kushida herself who was the first to object to this.


    "Why are you defending me? You''re not going to vote for another girl from here, are you? Or are you just going to have fun beating me to death?


    You''ve got good taste, you know that?"


    "I don''t like to make jokes, unfortunately. I''m serious."


    "If you''re serious, I''ll make you change your mind. Let''s resume the continuation of hell."


    "I didn''t think it looked much like ''hell'' when I saw it."


    "Heh. Then what would you say it looked like? Tell me."


    "It wasn''t dumb, it wasn''t funny, it was just in ugly. I saw nothing but a mere foolish idiot."


    "What?"


    "Sure, you can study better than most people. But you are fundamentally stupid to the point of being fatal. In the first ce, when you were in junior high school, your ssmates found out who you really are, and you broke the ss by revealing all their secrets. You came to this school to make amends for that, but unfortunately you met me again, who attended the same junior high school as you. And as soon as you started school, Ayanok��ji-kun saw your true face? That makes meugh. Not only that, he wasn''t even interested in your past, but you couldn''t stand his existence on your own and kept insisting on expelling him from school by telling us every detail. After all, you thought you were being clever by making a deal with Ayanok��ji-kun, but you just ended up being taken advantage of. And this is the end result? You were so focused on the fact that we were in favour of expelling a student that you lost your footing."


    Horikita sighed unsparingly and insultingly.


    Kushida, who had been smiling andughing with a sly smile on her face, was now transformed into an angry young girl.


    "You don''t know how I feel, and you don''t know how I like it! I want to be the best! I want to be happy, even when I''m stressed as shit! What''s wrong with trying to get rid of you when you''re in the way?"


    Kushida sps her hands together. Her hands are so tightly clenched that the blood vessels seem to bulge out of them.


    "You have some personality problems, but that''s the same for me. But you''re a much harder worker than I am."


    "Don''t lie, you''re making meugh. You always have to say things that make me mad, don''t you?"


    "I''m not lying, I''m just telling you the truth, which you love. I am honestly amazed and envious of your effort and talent to get to know so many people, both boys and girls."


    When told this, the pupils, enraged by Kushida, retort.


    "What''s so great about us being harassed by Kushida-san now?"


    "Be kind with lies. Faking kindness. That''s terrible? That''s just frivolous. Think again how difficult it is to be kind. Do you have the talent to smile at everyone, to reach out to everyone, to help everyone?"


    How stressful it must have been for her to deal with all her friends on a daily basis.


    Many of us would like to be like Kushida, but we know we can''t be.


    Listening to other people''s unimportant stories, cutting through all this, cannot be continued by an ordinary person. She has done this with a gentle smile and has supported many people from the shadows.


    "Stop. I don''t want to hear any more of this bullshit from you."


    "Why? You''re good at looking into people''s minds, don''t you know? I don''t mean to make fun of you, I don''t mean to insult you, but I really appreciate you."


    Horikita blocked the students who tried to refute this story as if she were ahead of them.


    "She has a talent that no one else has, and to expel her is a huge loss to the ss."


    "Shut the fuck up!"


    "Therefore I cannot agree with Kushida-san''s withdrawal from the school. I''m going to put my own money on it and do everything I can to make sure we make the best of her. No, I will definitely make the most of her."


    "I told you to stop!!!"


    "You never know. It''s only when I knew everything about you that I developed a great liking for you."


    For some reason, Kushida did not hide the details of her past, which she wanted to keep to herself. Maybe it wasn''t an act to get me expelled, but because deep down she wanted me to know everything and really wanted to share it.


    Kushida''s face was covered withrge tears. And then, like a child, she cried, unable to connect her words and unable to hide her frustration.


    I''m sorry, I''m sorry, I''m sorry.


    These words were repeated sparingly.


    It''s no wonder. Anyone who knows Kushida''s true nature will stay away. I have.


    Yet, for some reason, Horikita, who had been keeping her distance, closed that distance to Kushida.


    Kushida had no such idea.


    Horikita, whom she hated so much, was the first person who could understand her. It is still too early to tell whether this will be epted, but it has certainly brought about a change in Kushida. I had decided that it would be impossible to win Kushida over and had devised a strategy to get rid of her.


    Horikita, on the other hand, decided not to exclude but to protect. But then it is inevitable that the next problem will erupt.


    "We''re in the middle of a conversation, but it''s almost the end of the interval. What do we do?"


    What to do, of course, is to volunteer as the specific student, or to nominate a candidate, for who gets the vote.


    "We''re running out of time. The people who are voting for Kushida-san, please vote for me. I''ll exinter."


    She appealed to her ssmates to nominate her, as she could not use her already used one-time candidacy.


    "Jeez, don''t be silly! I''m the one who''s going to get expelled! Just nominate me and vote me out!"


    "I''m not joking. I''m telling you, you''re the one who created this situation and you''re going to be held ountable until the very end. And I''m not going to expel you as a penalty. If you do, I will make fun of you for the rest of your life. I will make you aughing stock forever."


    I know that some students were not sure who to nominate in the end, but that is not the point.


    "It''s time. Voting will now begin for Horikita, who had the majority of the votes for the nomination."


    Even if Kushida were to be chosen by rmendation, it would be meaningless as long as Horikita votes against her expulsion. There was a vote for and against Horikita''s expulsion, but of course it was not unanimous. The cheap provocation must have worked well enough for Kushida. Everyone has less than 60 seconds toplete their votes.


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Horikita Suzune from the school.


    [Results of the twentieth round of voting:]


    1 in favour


    37 against


    "Now that we are in the interval, I will say it again. I''m going to express my opposition to Kushida-san''s expulsion."


    Kushida was ranting and raving in inartictenguage, but Horikita was no longer paying attention. This hurt Kushida''s pride again, but also seeded in silencing her. If she were to be expelled from the school here, she would have no way to fight Horikita.


    But it was unexpected. I was nning to screw them over, whoever they were. The inside of my head gets hot. It''s not just a joke that she wanted to protect Kushida. She said she was confident that she could use her strengths to ovee her major weaknesses.


    So, Horikita has taken her foot off the gas a stage earlier than I''d expected.


    Of course, this is not to say that there is no material to refute from here.


    Many students are still determined to expel Kushida, who has now been reduced to absolute evil.


    It''s not that they can''t force their way through, but now that Horikita has raised her voice, it''s hard to assume that she will simply quit. There is no denying the possibility that, if time runs out, the school may choose to keep the number of students who drop out to zero. I''m sorry, but that is uneptable.


    "But, Horikita-san. I wonder if protecting Kushida-san means choosing to run out of time."


    Y��suke asked about the points that need to be checked right now.


    "I know that protecting Kushida-san is not the end of the story. I''ve got my own answers."


    I don''t think so - no, that''s not what you mean, Horikita.


    "We must avoid failing this special exam. It''s an absolute must that someone is expelled."


    It meant that she was not only prepared to rescue Kushida, but also to cut someone else at the same time. Even though I could feel Horikita''s growth, I took action before she could speak.


    There is no need for Horikita to take on the cruel role of announcing the expulsion of a student.


    "Wait a minute."


    I forcefully interrupted Horikita''s attempt to continue. The judges here are mentally overloaded, no matter how much justification they may have for their actions.


    It is easy to say that it is also an important experience, but it is too much for Horikita at the moment. Above all, if you make even a single mistake, you are bound to run out of time.


    I am the only person who can create a unanimous decision to expel somebody from the school.


    Wait, no. You''re looking at me like that. And I understand. It''s obvious that the person that Horikita and I have in mind is the same person.


    "Kushida, the only student who kept voting in favour of expelling a student, deserves to be expelled. But she''s also a capable student, as Horikita says. Then we''ll have to think of a different approach."


    "Well, wait a minute, Ayanok��ji. The people in the ss voted in favour of you because you''re not a traitor. Now you''re telling me you''re going to do away with that and choose someone else to expel? I''m not convinced!"


    "It''s not just Ike who is unhappy, I''m sure it''s all of us. But we still have to make a decision. We have to lead in a way that is as fair as possible."


    "Fairness is... There''s no way to do that."


    "The option of gaining ss points by expelling someone. The expulsion part is often seen as a negative, but if certain conditions are met, it can be a positive, as in the case of the traitor who voted in favour of the expulsion and was supported by many. If the ss points gained are worth more than the student being expelled, then it is a decision well worth choosing. In other words, the only people who should be expelled are those who are currently unwanted in the ss. So what is the criteria for this? It is the sum of all their parts. Someone who has academic ability, physical ability, or any ability that doesn''t fall into those two categories. To put it simply, students who have the ability to lead, such as Horikita, or the ability to organize a group, such as Y��suke and Kei. Those are the ones you can exclude. Of course, if you think I''m being patronizing, you''re free to argue."


    As the time is about to expire, the ssmates were silent, not wanting to interfere.


    "And this story should not include the future, or their prospects. It is difficult and spective to objectively assess who will actually grow and by how much. In the final analysis, the OAA is the impartial arbiter."


    It is the school''s quantification of the student''s ability, without the student''s emotions. As of September 1st, the lowest score in this ss was 36 points overall.


    Many students check their rank and score, but not many know who is at the bottom each time.


    "The student in this ss who currently has the lowest OAA is...


    Sakura Airi."


    I replied, not looking at Airi in particr, but looking around at the whole scene.


    "What about... What are you talking about? Don''t joke around at a time like this." Haruka stood up and red at me with a furious re.


    "I''m just giving an objective opinion. It''s up to the ss to decide if they agree."


    I''m not going to listen to personal opinions and continue talking.


    "Objective"? What''s objective? The OAA rankings are what? Does that make it OKAY to expel Airi? And why would... Kiyopon say that!"


    "Then who do you think should be expelled?"


    "Well, that''s...!"


    "People who are not prepared to name names directly have no right or entitlement to choose who to expel."


    "Oh, Ike-kun! He''s not that different from Airi in terms of academic and physical ability!"


    It is true that on the OAA, he was once tied forst ce with Airi.


    But now he has added one point to his tally to 37. He''s one step ahead.


    "Then let''s simply ask here. All those opposed to Airi leaving the school, please raise your hands."


    Haruka immediately raised her hand. Almost at the same time. Akito and Keisei also raise their hands.


    Of course, this would be natural for the Ayanok��ji Group.


    "Three, huh? Next, which students are opposed to Ike leaving school?"


    A number of boys, including Sud��, and girls, including Shinohara and Mori, who owed a debt of gratitude to Shinohara, put their hands up, and there were 11 clear objections.


    "Why are you..."


    "Building friendships is also a fine skill. I must say that Airi is inferior to Ike in that respect."


    "Can you look Airi in the eye and say that?"


    "Is that what you want?"


    "Huh? Stop it!"


    When I was about to look into Airi''s frightened eyes, Haruka stopped me.


    "We can have hand-raise votes for Hond��, Okitani, or another student, but it will not be less than three votes for Airi."


    "What is that... you''re seriously kidding. We don''t have many friends, that''s for sure. But that doesn''t mean you can expel Airi in this way!"


    If I had any other choice, I would do it. But we''re past that stage now.


    "If we''re being... honest... losing 300 ss points is critical."


    One of the Ayanok��ji Group, Airi''s friend Keisei, quietly lets that slip.


    "Yukim��, you can''t be serious! Don''t tell me you agree with Airi''s expulsion too!?"


    "No, no! I''m not in favour of it yet!"


    "Not yet? You mean you''re going to agree to it? Huh? You''ve got to be kidding me!"


    "Well, no but...!"


    As if realising everything, Haruka bit her lip and made a decision.


    "It''s disgusting. It can''t be. What is this... I thought we were friends?"


    The cold voice is directed at me, and also at Keisei, whose true feelings have leaked out.


    "And so are the others. No one wants to protect her. That''s right, you guys don''t care what happens to Airi, or who you don''t get along with, as long as you save yourselves. You put Kushida-chan first just because you have a little use for her? You''re going to abandon a girl who''s trying her best to keep up with the ss and not cause trouble? Oh yeah, oh yeah, this is the best ss ever."


    Keisei''s unintentionalment proved to be an offence to Haruka.


    No one wanted to make eye contact and they delegitimised themselves so as not to get involved.


    "Enough. I''m not going to expel Airi. If you want, you can vote for me.


    I''ll happily be expelled from the school."


    Haruka tries to protect Airi by bringing up her voluntary withdrawal from school.


    It''s all part of the n. In fact, that statement only strangles itself.


    "Wait, wait, Haruka-chan! I can''t expel Haruka-chan either!"


    "It''s okay, Airi. You have to stay in this school. I didn''t like this ss in the first ce. But after I got to know you, and Kiyopon, Yukim�� and Miyhi, every day was fun. Even though Yamauchi-kun left the school, I thought that it wouldn''t happen again, and I thought that I can do well with everyone here..."


    Staring at Chabashira-sensei, Haruka makes a formal statement.


    "I''m the candidate for expulsion. It''s almost time, isn''t it?"


    As I predicted, the deration would take precedence, and Haruka would step up to the guillotine.


    "OK? Airi, you must definitely vote in favour. The others don''t have any problem with it, right? You can protect yourselves, so there''s no reason to vote against it."


    "That''s not... I can''t vote in favour of that..!"


    Airi shouts that she can''t vote in favour of Haruka''s expulsion.


    "It''s okay, I have nothing to regret if I have to leave school to protect you."


    "But...!"


    "That''s enough discussion. We will now start the voting."


    On the basis of Haruka''s strong will, a vote is taken in favour and against.


    The results are shown on the monitor...


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Hasebe Haruka from the school.


    [Results of the twenty-first round of voting:]


    35 in favour


    3 against


    Almost all the students voted in favour of the proposal, but three voted against it.


    The three of them must have been an easy guess for Haruka.


    "Airi!"


    Of course, it is clear from the vote that Airi definitely voted against.


    "I can''t do it, I can''t! I can''t let Haruka be expelled!"


    "He said he was trying to protect you! And don''t even get me started on Miyhi and Yukim��!"


    Haruka was ready to be expelled from the school, but it turns out that some students don''t want her to be expelled.


    "I don''t want you to be expelled from school... I can''t vote yes."


    While showing a bitter and agonizing expression, Akito and I look each other in the eye and answer clearly.


    "Then why Airi?"


    "I wouldn''t say that... but if you''re asking me to take one or the other I''m..."


    "I''m so sorry!"


    Suddenly, Keisei shouted and interrupted the two boys. He stood up and bowed his head.


    "I voted in favour of... and if we don''t, the ss won''t be able to reach ss A..."


    He answered, confessing the whereabouts of a vote that would not be revealed if he''d kept quiet.


    "What? Then who is the other one? The one who put the other against in this situation!"


    "That vote was mine."


    "Ah! Kiyopon, what''s wrong with you?! You don''t have to defend me!"


    "I told you. I have a new policy that I will cut the least able students in this ss. Whether it''s you who wants to drop out, or Kushida who tried to drop out, I''m not going to change this policy, no matter what new studentse forward. I can''t change it."


    If we take a step back here, there will be no unanimity in favour.


    "It is a fact that Sakura is the lowest ranked in OAA, and cutting the students who have not contributed much to the ss is not so bad. It''s not that bad, is it..?"


    I am prepared to take the risk of speaking out in this situation and I will give my opinion.


    "Don''t be silly. Think about it in your own surroundings. If one of your dearest friends were to drop out of school, would you be able tough about it afterwards? I wouldn''t. I would never!"


    "It is Airi who should be expelled. There is no other choice anymore."


    "No no, Kiyopon! No matter who agrees with you, only Kiyopon has to be on Airi''s side!"


    I know. And because I know that, I''m going to speak.


    "I''m not going to change my mind. If Haruka continues to disagree with Airi''s expulsion, then this ss will have to end here."


    "Then why don''t you do what you want? I will continue to oppose Airi''s expulsion from school until the very end!"


    Only one. If you continue to oppose us until the end, she will not be expelled.


    Thatw is absolute. The most efficient way to break thatw is to...


    "Thank you, Haruka... It''s all right now."


    In a trembling voice, Airiughs as if she has realised everything.


    "Ai...ri...?"


    "If there is one student in the ss who deserve it... maybe it''s me.


    There''s nothing wrong with what Kiyotaka-kun is saying, Haruka."


    "Airi!"


    "You''re right about everything. If someone has to drop out, then I, the biggest drag on the ss, should disappear."


    Directly stop the person who is voting against it using the person who''s going to be expelled from the school.


    "I can''t! I would never let Airi be expelled from school! Never!!! I don''t care if this ss doesn''t move up to ss A, I''m going to make sure that we all graduate together with Airi!"


    "No, you can''t. Even if I do, I''m sure I''ll regret it a lot. I''m sure I''ll regret it for a long, long time, that it was my fault we didn''t make it to ss A."


    "It''s all right! There''s nothing wrong with you! I''m just protecting you because I''m selfish!"


    "Thank you... But there''s no way I can put that kind of responsibility on Haruka-chan."


    "What, what''s that... There''s no such thing as..!"


    Preventing students from dropping out is not always in their best interests.


    If this happens, a vote against will only make Airi suffer.


    "Self-sacrifice sounds good. It sounds good to the ears. I''m sure the people in our ss are deeply relieved to have someone like Haruka in their lives. If the ss is really running smoothly, it might be a good choice to make. So, Sud��, are you willing to sacrifice yourself for the sake of the ss?"


    "No, no... I''m that-"


    "Sat��, what about you?"


    "Wow, me? I''m not really like that-"


    "How about you, Onodera?"


    "Probably can''t-"


    "If you ask anyone else any more, the answer would be the same.


    Basically, no one wants to sacrifice themselves."


    "I''d really like to be expelled. Then you wouldn''t have any problems."


    "We rely on students who are willing to sacrifice themselves. Once they learn that easy way, when they are put in a simr situation in the future, they will repeatedly ask for volunteers voluntarily. It''s toote to try to make a fair decision."


    "I don''t know... I don''t understand that logic! I want to protect Airi! That''s all I want!"


    "Even if Haruka defended her by expelling herself from school, Airi could get expelled the very next day."


    "Don''t talk to me in terms of an indeterminate future."


    "There is no definite future anywhere. So, you have to make the best of it."


    No matter how many words I put in front of her, she doesn''t seem to be able to hear me.


    But Airi''s ears have definitely heard. That''s the important thing.


    "It''s okay, it''s okay, Airi. I''ll keep voting against. No matter who else votes in favour...!"


    "Everyone... me... please vote for me..." In a muffled voice, but one that everyone could hear, Airi said.


    Haruka grabbed both of Airi''s arms and resisted desperately.


    "I hate it. Absolutely not... I had such, such a good time yesterday...


    This morning was just like any other morning. I met up with Airi beforeing to school. We chatted and chatted and chatted about the cultural festival and talked about... Even today, you were going to call Kiyopon after school and surprise him! You can''t just take that away from me!"


    There are less than ten minutes left. This means that this is practically thest vote. Whoever is going to leave the school, there is no one who can easily vote against it. That is the weight of the final vote.


    Shaking her head from side to side, Airi does not ept the helping hand extended by Haruka.


    "I don''t like it, I don''t like it, I don''t like it!"


    Like a child, she refused, denied and screamed.


    Each time, Airi expresses her gratitude to Haruka, but still persuades her to ept it.


    It can no longer be changed.


    Realising everything, Haruka sat there as if copsing.


    "A person with no ability has epted it and stepped forward. We owe it to them to respond. It''s easy for you to vote against on the next ballot. But even if you vote against, Airi will not be able to stay in this school. She will leave the school with a strong sense of responsibility for what she has done to her ssmates and will not be able to look forward. The only way to save your best friend Airi is for you to vote in favour of her expulsion."


    "I-I... agree..."


    Airi embraced Haruka from the front as she was copsing.


    "Thank you, Haruka... Thank you for all the help you''ve given me. I couldn''t give anything back to you, but... listen to myst selfish request."


    "I don''t like it, Airi... this kind of..."


    "Vote in favour of me."


    She thanked her, gently stroked the hair of a weeping Haruka, and raised her voice towards Chabashira-sensei.


    "I''m volunteering as candidate. Please vote for me. "


    She asked Haruka to stand up and take a seat, and Airi returned to her seat to take it all in.


    But even after the vote has been dered, voting time is not over.


    Voting continued past 60 seconds and past 70 seconds.


    The students have 90 seconds. In the next 70 seconds or so, Haruka will be expelled from the school.


    If my best friend Airi disappears, I will disappear too. It''s not hard to see why this thought crossed her mind.


    If you choose to make that weak choice here, so be it.


    As the 100 second mark ticked by, the clock was ticking down to 40


    seconds. She just kept crying and showed no sign of reaching for her tablet.


    "HARUKA-CHAN!"


    It was anger from Airi like I had never heard before. The loudest voice I had ever heard.


    As if pped in the face, she looked up in surprise, and at Haruka''s crying face, Airi smiled and nodded.


    If we don''t make a decision and vote here, it will be a denial of everything Airi is.


    "The voting is now closed. I will announce the results."


    [Student Selection:]


    Expel Sakura Airi from the school.


    [Results of the twenty-second round of voting:]


    38 in favour


    0 against


    Chabashira-sensei, who had been watching the fierce exchange, forgot to report the end of the exam and just looked at Airi and Haruka.


    After being expelled from school, Airi stared straight ahead, as if she had epted everything. On the other hand, Haruka, who couldn''t protect her, tried her best to hold back her sobs, but she couldn''t hide them from the speechless ss.


    "Ah, ah, Chabashira-sensei. Please proceed."


    The invigtor, who had so far been silent and calm, except for the minimum of cautions and warnings, seemed to have forgotten to remind us about the signal for the end of the special examination.


    "With regard to the expulsion of Sakura Airi from the school by a unanimous vote in favour, thest task ispleted. The choice is epted and 100 ss points will be awarded. Just to be clear, there is only one way to undo this expulsion. Only if you have 20 million private points at this moment and use them..."


    It was Chabashira-sensei who tried to continue the exnation, as obligated, but stopped halfway.


    "I don''t think I need to exin any further."


    Even if we collected all the private points of all the students in our ss, we would never reach 20 million points.


    "The other three sses have already finished their special exams, but I''m going to ask you to go home right away today. As for Sakura, you will have toe with me to the staff room afterwards, so stay in the ssroom."


    "Yes."


    Airi replies to Chabashira-sensei in a quiet voice, but without hesitation.


    "That''s all. Everyone please leave your seats. Follow the instructions and leave the room."


    We were informed and we all left our seats, although at different times.


    Airi was told to stay where she was. And Haruka, who can''t even stand up, tried her best to stand on her trembling knees, but she couldn''t seem to get her legs up.


    Her breathing had be ragged and she was beginning to experience symptoms simr to hyperventtion.


    Akito and I, unable to see this, rushed over to her and forced her to stand up so that Haruka could hug her.


    Because nothing good wille from leaving it here.


    As soon as we stepped into the corridor, our phones were returned to us.


    And Keisei followed soon after.


    "You''re something else, aren''t you? I''m not going to tell you that you did anything wrong. It''s just that I''m still not sure if I can say you did the right thing. No, there''s no point in talking about this. Just... forget it."


    While having a desire to spit it out, Keisei turned his back on me and started walking down the corridor.


    It would be pointless to wait here for Haruka or Akito.


    Legitimacy is irrelevant. It''s not like I don''t think about the fact that I''ve taken the initiative to cut off an important member of my group. Kei approached me. I noticed that she was upset, but I stopped her with my eyes.


    For today, it is better to let Kei be quiet, as if she is also in mourning.


    There is no need to buy hate with unnecessary things. As I recall, Chabashira-sensei wanted to meet me after the special examination was over.


    When I looked at my phone I saw that I had received a message and the meeting was at 6pm. I''ve got some time.


    Deciding that it was best not to stay, I decided to leave.


    If I headed straight for the front door, I would bump into Keisei and the other students.


    I''ve got an appointment with Chabashira-sensei, so I think I''ll just wander around the school, where there''s not a lot of people around.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    I knew she was following me, and when I couldn''t see anyone anymore, she called out to me.


    "What''s the matter? Didn''t you say something to Kushida?"


    "No. She''s not going to answer any questions now. I just warned her not to get desperate."


    She had many friends around her, but at the end of the exam no one said anything to her.


    Immediately after showing her true nature, it is understandable that she is difficult to get close to.


    "Sorry."


    As her hair, which was a little longer than before, swayed, Horikita bowed deeply.


    "This special exam... I was not good enough... I was not good enough."


    "Not enough? You did the best you could, didn''t you? This was a much tougherpetition thanst year''s ss Poll exam."


    "No matter how tough the fight was, I put a big shackle on you... and you had to take all the responsibility that should have been spread out."


    It was inevitable that a student would be expelled. That''s why Horikita wanted to show her intentions.


    "I''m the one who told you to keep quiet. That''s fine."


    "It''s not good. It''s left a big scar on your precious group. It doesn''t seem very... like it can be repaired in the future."


    "It''s okay. In fact, there maye a day when this is more convenient."


    If she had been involved, the me could certainly have been divided equally between the two of us.


    But that''s not what I wanted.


    "Convenient..? What do you mean?"


    "No, don''t worry about it, it''s a small thing."


    Of course, I don''t think I''ll be able to change my mind and convince myself of that any time soon, but I don''t want this special exam to be the way I carry on next time.


    "Look on the bright side. We''ve gained 100 valuable ss points to move closer to ss A. These points are not to be scoffed at."


    "But we''ve lost... Sakura-san."


    "As a result, the ss average was raised to a higher level, which is a positive thing. It''s a perfect end point."


    "Don''t. You don''t have to force yourself to act so ruthless."


    "Ruthless?"


    I was going to deny it, but I decided to go along with it.


    "Yes, you''re right. Maybe you''re trying to push away the painful feelings."


    "Kiyotaka-kun!"


    From the end of the corridor came a familiar, gentle voice.


    At the sound of her voice, Horikita turns around and is surprised to see her.


    "You... Sakura-san...?"


    The physically weak Airi walked towards us, out of breath.


    "I''m going..."


    "Yeah."


    Horikita hesitated to speak to Airi when they passed each other, but was unable to do so.


    She couldn''t think of any words to say to those who were leaving.


    "I really wanted to show you, Kiyotaka-kun, at the end. How about...?"


    On the verge of voting, Haruka was saying Airi was going to surprise me, was this what she meant?


    "You look different. No wonder Horikita didn''t recognize you for a moment."


    "It''s a bit...te to be brave, though... hehe."


    Airi, who had taken off her sses and dressed up her hair, smiles wryly.


    "It''s not for me to say, but please take care of... Haruka-chan."


    "I understand."


    "Bye-bye, Kiyotaka-kun."


    She smiled the biggest smile I''ve ever seen on her face and turned away.


    She started to walk, but then her steps slowed down and she almost stopped.


    Still, she put her best foot forward and never looked back.


    I can hear her voice in the empty corridor. Sniffling noises and stifled crying. Such a scene reminds me of one I used to see myself.


    The losers always look back on their inability, and regret it when it is far toote.


    Whether it''s in the White Room or this school, that fact remains the same.

 Chapter 220: Epilogue : A Farewell to the Past

    <h4>Chapter 220: Epilogue : A Farewell to the Past</h4>


    THE FIVE HOURS of the unanimous special exam hade to an end. Not long after, we heard that we were the only ones out of the four sses to have an expulsion. More than a few of the students must have regretted it.


    However, the fact that we gained 150 ss points in this special exam, where three sses gained only 50 ss points, will definitely help us in our future battles.


    If we finished September like this, we would finally be able to move up to ss B. After school, I was waiting for someone on the stairs leading to the rooftop as promised. About 10 minutester than I had nned, a person showed up.


    "I''m sorry to keep you waiting. It took me a while to finish up."


    "No problem. By the way, did it end the way you wanted it to? Or was it the other way around?"


    "Don''t ask me a hard question, there is no real right answer in that test.


    I believe that. There''s a chance that someone will see us here. Shall we change ces?"


    "That would be wise."


    With a faint raise of the corners of her mouth, Chabashira-sensei began to climb the stairs to the roof. She took out a key with a simple blue name holder.


    "Every year, the school''s attitude toward rooftop use is getting tougher.


    Maybe in the near future it will be more difficult to get on the roof here as well."


    Even with the fence in ce, there was still a risk of falling off.


    In addition, the rooftop is also a disadvantage because it can be used for minor abuses, as Ry��en once did. Chabashira-sensei quietly walked out onto the roof, leaned against the railing and exhaled.


    "It''s been a long day... really," Chabashira-sensei said to herself, genuinely stressed by the special exam. "As I mentioned during the exam... I took the same exam in my senior year of high school."


    "It seems so."


    I don''t know where she''s staring, but Chabashira-sensei just stares straight ahead at the sunset.


    "If you forgive me, you can listen to my confession..."


    "It''s called the Sacrament of Forgiveness. I''m not much of a religious person, but it''s fine."


    The unanimous special exam she is said to have attempted when she was a student. She said that she had the same question, but the situation of the ss would change the expression she would show.


    "I remember that day as if it was yesterday. We, the 3rd year ss B, were on the verge of catching up with ss A before the graduation exam.


    The difference in ss points was only 73 points. Even if we couldn''t upset them with the little time we had left in our daily lives, we were in a position to turn the tables with just one special exam.


    That was a close call, and I''m sure ss A didn''t think they had the advantage by that margin.


    "In the meantime, the unanimous special exam began. There were five questions. Like you, we were able to make it through the fourth question, despite our differences of opinion.


    "You said thest question was the same."


    "Well... it was. It seems that my memory is a little fuzzy on today''s exam."


    I''m not sure if it''s because she''s confused about the timeline or her mind is distracted.


    "Of course, the first time we voted, there were only a few in favour and a majority against. But as the debate continued, the situation began to change dramatically. If ss A voted unanimously in favour, the margin would have grown to 173 points.


    "You didn''t know what the graduation exam would be at that point, did you?


    "No. In the event that ss B takes first ce, ss A''s second ce may not make a big difference in ss points. The difference in rewards between first and second ce is 100 or 150 points. Of course, it could be more than 200 points, but there was no guarantee of that, you know. The debate heated up as time went on; there was no way that ss A would choose to drop out, so they all voted against it as well, and unanimously survived the special exam. There were those who argued that we should win the graduation exam and be ss A students, and those who argued that if ss A would not choose to drop out, then that would be our chance to turn the tables. We talked about all kinds of scenarios."


    Even though it was the same question , the topics that came up were stillpletely different depending on the situation of the ss. Only two options. But the only way to get there is to go through many, many twists and turns.


    "After a great deal of time and discussion, the right answer never came.


    Whether to take ss A even at the cost of sacrifice, or to choose your friends and throw yourself into a tough battle..."


    Chabashira-sensei''s moist eyes didn''t move from the sunset.


    "Eventually, my ssmates slowly began to lean towards the idea that ss A would make the sacrifice to get the 100 ss points. As the conversation started to progress on that assumption, the opposition slowly began to shift in favour of the idea."


    "It''s not easy toe to a consensus when someone is missing, is it?


    As usual, there are students with low abilities and poormunication skills.


    It is inevitable that students with one or two habits will be the first to be expelled."


    "I agree. Once the vote is unanimous in favour, it is impossible to withdraw it. It''s not easy to get everyone to vote in favour of it, you''re right.


    Something happened to change that situation. In the case of this special exam, I promised that only traitors would be expelled, and I was able to convince them to vote in favour."


    "There was a boy in my ss. The student was... well, I guess the best way to describe him would be to say that he was abination of Hirata and Ike."


    "Y��suke and Ike?"


    "I''m not sure how to put it together, but it''s hard to imagine. He was both a leader and a mood maker for the ss."


    I see, he was a student who somehow included the merits of Y��suke and the merits (and demerits) of Ike.


    "We had been struggling on thest question until he finally decided to speak up. He decided that he would have himself expelled as it fell under his job as leader."


    I guess he decided that he couldn''t abandon his friends who had fought with him for three years.


    "The only special exam left is the final graduation exam. It must be painful to be without a leader, and that''s one option... but not the only one."


    Of course, it is difficult to say that it is a wise choice. But if all the ssmates were on equal footing, it would be extremely difficult to choose one. There is also the option of letting luck take its course, but I''m sure there are many students who are not convinced.


    "But then again, it was never unanimous."


    "Why? It was agreed that the leader would leave the school, wasn''t it?"


    "No. One person voted against the student''s expulsion until the very end. The one vote against never turned into a vote in favour, and the remaining time was whittled away. I, of all people, was the one who kept voting against it."


    From the flow of the story, I thought it might be so, but that means...


    "So, to Chabashira-sensei, the student who was the leader was not just any leader?"


    Closing her eyes, Chabashira-sensei lightly chuckled and slowly opened her eyes again.


    Then she looked up at the sunset sky and affirmed deeply.


    "I''m not sure what to say. For me, that student was a leader, a friend, and a... and a lover more important than anyone else."


    The two of them overcame many hardships and came to understand each other. The future was supposed to be about grabbing the most happiness out of the remaining school life and aiming for ss A. So Chabashira-sensei couldn''t let go of that.


    "If I continued to vote against it, my ssmates will naturally be confused and angry. Some of them turned their opposition to me. Well, it''s a natural process."


    "But if Chabashira-sensei didn''t drop out of school, that means..."


    "That''s right. I protect him, he protects me. Such a stalemate went on and on. We couldn''t finish the special exam on time, so our ss was down 300 ss points, and ss A had chosen to expel a student, so the difference was 450 points. In total, the difference was 523 points. In an instant, the distance between us and ss A, which was within striking distance, opened up to a desperate extent."


    It''s a gap that no amount of big-opportunity graduation exams will be able to turn around.


    "If it''s any constion, your boyfriend didn''t drop out of school, did he?"


    "I don''t know what I was protecting him for, but when the unanimous special exams ended, our rtionship naturally ended as well. It was only for a day... or even less than 24 hours. After that, we lost the final exam, and our three years amounted to nothing.


    "What happened to him after that?


    "I never saw him again. I don''t even know where he is now. He was everything to me when I was in high school. Now that I think about it, it''s so dumb. If you think about it over the course of a long life, three years of high school is only a small part of it. Even if we didn''t make it to ss A, we should have fought to the end with no regrets.


    Does this mean that the Chabashira-sensei has been regretting her choice for 11 years? In this case, rather than a mistake, it would be better to say that she continues to worry about whether her choice was the right one or not.


    "I was not qualified to graduate from ss A. But what was I supposed to do? Should I have strongly convinced him to drop out? Or should I have cut myself off when he told me he was leaving?"


    "There''s no real right answer to this particr test. It''s probably impossible to get a perfect unanimity from the heart. That is, unless you have a student who is thoroughly unskilled and no one needs him or her..."


    "The failure to see this is the cause of defeat...?


    "The first time he convinced everyone to give up unanimously, the student decided to drop out of school in order to keep his chances of going to ss A. What he took was to first get a unanimous vote in favour and then think about it."


    Chabashira-sensei nodded.


    "If I had cut him out..."


    "Were the graduation exams so easy that you could win without a good leader? Your ss lost the unanimous exam even though you didn''t have any dropouts, right?"


    "Yes. If we had been able to fight as a united team and in perfect condition, we might have been evenly matched."


    "I mean, you can''t choose to be leaderless. But even if someone else was missing, we still couldn''t win the ss A. If that was the case, the only way was to stay with the options of for and against. You had to refuse all temptations and inducements to agree and stay the course."


    "Even if I had stayed, I would not have been in a position to be persuaded to vote against, which is what you''re saying."


    "There is no need for persuasion. The sensei''s ss was divided on the opinion of winning. If the votes don''t coalesce, eventual defeat by running out of time is inevitable. When that happens, the proponents will absolutely move to consolidate the votes against. Even if they resist with their mouths, what if it is the final vote with less than a minute left? If you vote in favour, there is no time to expel the next particr student. The interval time is a fixed 10 minutes, but the voting time is a maximum of 60 seconds. If you adjust the time by deliberately dying the vote, you can bring it to a final vote without a minute''s gap."


    If you choose in favour, you lose 300 ss points for failing to clear, and if you choose against, you gain 50 ss points for clearing.


    "There is no way you can choose the former with only one choice. You can either run out of time and lose 300 ss points, or you can make sure to clear the exam and get 50 ss points, even if you don''t get the extra 100 ss points, to take the graduation exam with ss A. There was only one conclusion. Of course, I''m not sure if I could have made up the 173 ss points."


    The students were not ready to give up the idea of winning, and were caught up in the immediate 100 ss points. The leader was able to take advantage of this psychology and seeded in getting them to agree.


    However, the strategy itself was a mistake.


    He failed to see the heart of Chabashira-sensei, and the stubbornness of the opposite sex who became his lover.


    "I''m... If I had a student like you back then, I would have..." She was about to say something, then perhaps thought better of it. "No, it doesn''t make sense now. You can''t go back in time. But let me ask you this, Ayanok��ji. Sakura must have been a member of your close group. And moreover, that girl had special feelings for you."


    "You know very well."


    "I''m a homeroom teacher and I can often tell by the way my students look at me."


    I wasn''t particrly fond of her special skill.


    "Wasn''t there a way to save Sakura and me the sacrifice on others?"


    "I don''t know. Horikita had the power to make change. It wouldn''t have been enough time for a serious challenge."


    "Didn''t it hurt your... heart?"


    "Of course, it would have been best if we could have avoided expelling Airi. As for me, I tried to bring the matter to a unanimous vote by any means possible, but Kushida couldn''t stop me. I decided that there would be no solution unless we chose to expel the students and then cut off their path and hunt them down. However, if we were willing to be consequential, there might have been a possibility of unanimity through opposition. At that time, Kushida was so disturbed by Horikita''s presence that she epted the choice to stay at this school. That was not in my assumptions at all. I''m not the only one who wants to help students who are close to me. Now that it''s happened, the only thing left to do is elimination. At this point, there is no choice but to give superiority to ssmates. Whether they can study or not, whether they can y sports or not. Communication skills. Insight and observation skills.


    We can only look at objective data, the OAA rankings."


    If we look at the system the school has created, we can see who should be expelled even if we don''t want to.


    "Of course, there are a few students who are not so different from Airi.


    But if a quarrel starts between students who are on the same side, their friends will naturally take the side of protection. However, with Airi, the only major obstacle was Haruka. In the end, there wasn''t much of a loss."


    "So you''re saying that you intentionally sacrificed your own happiness for the ss...?"


    "Personality is also one of the deciding factors. Because of Airi''s personality, she''s not good at imitating people who don''t want to quit or appeal to them not to vote for her. A good friend of hers, in this case Haruka, will not vote in favour of it. However, the only exception to this is the self-report from Airi. There''s no way Airi could choose to stay in school after annoying the ss by making them sacrifice 300 ss points."


    "You even knew Sakura''s state of mind."


    "Overall strength, familiarity, personality. And as a final push, I need to be informed by someone important that Airi is the one who should be expelled. If I told her, she will have no choice but to understand her fate."


    "Ayanok��ji... you''re..."


    "People may call me a monster. No one wants to be the one who made the "evil" choice. In the end, someone needs to make these decisions. It''s the only way to seed in this world."


    "In this school, expulsion is a constantpanion in every possible situation. As a teacher of this school, I''m prepared to ept it and do my best. Still, I will never be able to make a decision like yours without hesitation."


    Admitting the weakness of his own heart, Chabashira-sensei said so.


    "I don''t know you very well, but how many people have you cut down?


    I''m sure it''s something I''ll never understand."


    How many people have I "cut down?" I hadn''t thought about it. Just as we don''t remember the colour and shape of each stone that falls by the roadside, those who learn with us and those who teach us will disappear if they are ipetent. That''s just artificial selection.


    "Thank you for taking the time to speak with me today, Ayanok��ji. I regretted the choices I made in the past and stood still for a very long time.


    But it turns out that I didn''t have time for that. I will fulfill my role as a teacher to guide the students in my ss to continue fighting without regret."


    "It seems that through this special exam, you were able to make a deal with the past."


    The profile of Chabashira-sensei who spoke was somewhat radiant, unlike before.


    "It''s not that I haven''t dreamed of ss A before. Even when I try not to think about it, I end up hoping for it. That I might be able to fulfill the dream that I never could. And every time I do, I ridicule myself for being so stupid and erase it from my memory. That''s how it went on and on."


    Chabashira-sensei turned to me and gave me a smile I''d never seen before.


    "I''ve decided, Ayanok��ji. I''m going to make sure our ss graduates from ss A, anyway I can."


    "It''s fine to be enthusiastic, but make sure you don''t deviate from your position as a teacher.


    "No, of course I know my position. I''m not sure how much I can do, but I''m ready to do it. Actually Ayanok��ji... You say things that are uncharacteristic of a normal student."


    "What type of things would a "normal" student say? "


    "Well... I can''t answer that question, because I''m not a student."


    "If you''re done talking, I''m leaving."


    "Right. I''m sorry to take up so much of your time."


    "No problem. Then, I''ll leave now. Chabashira-sensei. ".


    I''ve been calling her thattely, but I said it with emphasis. She will be fine now. Through this special exam, she has grown as much as the students.


    Her mind, which had been stuck in the third year of high school, had quickly begun to catch up to her current age.


    RoyalMTL Afterword


    PrinceYG#6558 (u/TheLaw4465): Trantor


    - Yo, Prince here, hope you guys enjoyed reading thistest volume. Well well, this is the third trantion we''ve put out, so do give us a round of apuse. Personally, I thought this volume was alright but Y2V4.5 still reigns supreme. My favourite chapter was "Ichinose''s Choice" even though it was more so Kanzaki''s choice. I''m super excited to see how he progresses with this challenge. I was quite disappointed when I found out there were no appearances from the first years and third years (besides Yagami) but Kinusaga has made a vague statement that perhaps the next volumes will shift the focus back on them. That''s when I''ll see you all next. See you in February!


    Rhymar#7433 (u/Rhymar) (Rhymar84 �C Wattpadd): Trantor


    - Hey. Although this is my first time tranting a COTE volume, I''d say most people reading this will know me as the Kushida simp who''s cropped up on the subreddit over thest month or so. Some may even recognise me from Wattpad! Regardless, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this vol as much as I enjoyed co-tranting it with Prince. Imo, this volume was probably the best y2 COTE volume so far; more specifically, I liked how both Horikita and Ichinose''s sses were handled here, and it was enjoyable to see Kiyotaka openly take the wheel for once. Oh, and just F for Kanzaki. It seems like Yagami and Nagumo will be involved in the uing volume''s more, as a result of their absence in this one, which I''m rather excited to see how Kiyotaka handles. Anyway, you can probably expect me to return to help trante y2v6 when ites out, too, so I''ll try my best to bring everyone faster and higher quality MTLs alongside Prince when that timees.


    Thanks for the read!


    Amadeus#6844: Editor/Proof Reader


    - Greetings. I''m Amadeus. Which option would you have chosen for the second task? I would have gone with Kyoto! Or Hokkaido. HOT SPRINGS


    Tranted by: PrinceYG#6558


    DICK COMPETITION!! This is also my first time participating with tranting a light novel volume, it was fun! I started reading the series at the beginning of October, and finished in mid October. Surreal experience. It is a joy to be able to help out the process of new volumes going forward. I am looking forward to it! As for this volume, I thought it was tremendous, one of the stronger volumes of Year 2. We finally got bitch Kushida exposed; as well Ayanokouji! The ss now knows he is ruthless. How is he going to deal with the attention going forward? Other highlights were of course every Kei scene, Shiina showing off her own brilliance without getting even a word of dialogue, and... the impending implusion of the Ayanok��ji Group. No more boring conversations! People will be disappointed by Kinu''s desire to prevent Kushida from being expelled - but I want to see her suffer from humiliation before she gets booted out. Sakura getting yeeted was certainly surprising, but a wee one in my mind. I can''t wait for the next volume, which should be the sports festival. Nagumo vs Ayan��koji??? (Please do more than make your third year sheep stare at him, Nagumo.) As a side note, Kanzaki''s ssmates are a bunch of retards. I have a soft spot for Ichinose though.


    Cast#5942: Editor/Proof Reader


    - Hi there, It''s Cast. I really enjoyed reading and editing this novel and believe that Kinusaga did an amazing job. I agree with Prince however, and think that 4.5 was still a little more entertaining. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading this TL and please let us know about any mistakes throughout the novel, either through personal DM''s or in our Discord.


    Thanks.


    Thanks Sh��go Kinusaga (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    See you in four months!


    - RoyalMTL Team


    Bookmark/Favourite our website to keep updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions!


    Tranted by: PrinceYG#6558

 Chapter 221: Short Story 1 : Hasebe Haruka SS – Facing Tomorrow

    <h4>Chapter 221: Short Story 1 : Hasebe Haruka SS �C Facing Tomorrow</h4>


    School had ended and the shocking revtion was revealed to us all.


    While heading home with Kiyopon, I hurriedly entered the convenience store and went for the fried food disyed by the cashier. I usually didn''t anything this fatty, but the convenience and the calories made me give in. There were no other students here so paying went smoothly.


    I returned outside where Kiyopon had been standing and waited.


    He looked a bit surprised by croquette in my hand, I think. Feeling embarrassed by it, I tried to cover it up with an excuse.


    "You know, I got so into talking with Airi during lunch today, so I never got the chance to eat."


    This was, well, an excuse, but also the truth.


    I really did receive a shock today.


    To think Kiyopon was dating that Karuizawa-san of all people.


    It felt like someone had pulled the carpet from under my feet as he''d never shown any hints of dating anyone ever.


    Of course, my reaction can''t hold up a candle to Airi''s.


    "Sorry for troubling you."


    I knew what my best friend, Airi, felt about him, and so did he obviously.


    "No, that''s not it..."


    People are free to love whoever they liked, and I already know that cases of mutual love were in the minority.


    But still, I''d hoped Airi and Kiyopon one day woulde to love one another.


    ... Or so I think. But there was one part of me that felt something was off, but that''s all tightly sealed up.


    Eventually, I''d finished the list of things I wanted to ask him about.


    Are you really dating for real? Who confessed first? When did you start dating? Confirming each and everyone of those points was my goal today.


    "Trying to ask something of you now feels like bad timing on my part, but there is something I''d like you, and if possible Airi, to help me with."


    "Help you?"


    I''d still only eaten half of my croquette, before he switched to a topic that surprised even me.


    "It''s currently being kept under wraps for the time being, but one of the attractions we''re going to do during the school festival has been decided on already."


    "Oh, is that so?"


    I''d heard nothing had been decided just yesterday so this was a bit surprising.


    "Since we want to avoid any leaks, only Horikita, I and the ones nning it are in the know. So, we''re going to make a maid caf��."


    "M-maid caf��? Well, heh...? Why am I not surprised? It''s a bit unexpected though. I never thought a person like Horikita-san would ever acknowledge such an event, you know?"


    "She''s probably indifferent towards all proposals, I think. From her unbiased point of view, we simply may have a chance if we go for a maid caf�� and so she epted it, I guess."


    Well, there are a lot of cute girls in our ss, I must admit. We could probably earn a lot form those adultsing to visit the school during the festival but still, something feels a bit... but I can see why it could work.


    "I see, I see. So, what''s the reason you are telling me about this?"


    "Truth is, after I came to know about this, I was asked to take care of various stuff."


    Kiyopon is going to manage a maid caf��?


    While his very image doesn''t suit at all, I could see the reasoning behind letting him take care of it.


    I bet Horikita managed to string him up and pushed the task to him by force.


    "She''s quite the girl since she''s able to put you into this situation."


    But since he''s telling me this, it can only mean only thing...


    "And so, I was hoping you and Airi could help out in the caf��?"


    Of course, it would boil down to this, I guess.


    As for me, the first thing that popped up inside my head when I heard about the maid caf�� was Airi.


    She was shy and had no confidence to speak of, but this was a perfect chance for her.


    "If you had asked me this before this thing with Karuizawa-san happened, I would have said yes even though I have some qualms about it. I don''t like to wear something like cosy in front of many people, but I wouldn''t have refused if a friend asked me. Your timing is pretty bad, you know?"


    There were no guarantees that Airi would have been able to smile while participating in this festival while being heartbroken.


    "It''s a bit troubling that I can''t me you for it, Kiyopon. I said it before but, I think people are free to love whoever they want and that I can understand there are things you can''t speak about. Airi was also free to fall for you, and you were also free to reject her..."


    To tell the truth, I need courage in order to talk to her about thister.


    But... yes, this may be something necessary. This was perhaps a steppingstone, arge step towards making her able to smile and move forward.


    "I can''t promise you anything. But once she''s calmed down, I will talk to her."


    In fact, if this could be a chance to make her stand up again, I would try talking to her at once.


    "You''re okay with it?"


    He seemed a bit surprised by my answer, perhaps since he never thought I would ept.


    "That girl needs to ept reality sooner orter anyway. And although I don''t know about you, having Karuizawa-san as her opponent doesn''t mean she has to give up, you know? Even though you may be gung-ho about her, there is a chance she can reject you. Right?"


    Yes, that''s right. Airi still has a chance.


    There is still a year and a half left.


    If she can hit a home run with loaded bases at the very end, it would be Airi''s victory.

 Chapter 222: Short Story 2 : Karuizawa Kei SS – Reading the Mood

    <h4>Chapter 222: Short Story 2 : Karuizawa Kei SS �C Reading the Mood</h4>


    It was noon and another special exam had begun.


    I was, as usual, focused on acting out my character while scanning my surroundings.


    I was especially looking at Horikita-san, everything she said and did.


    It was something Kiyotaka had instructed me to do, my one important task.


    "This is what I think. Our most ideal opponent for thest exam of the year is ss B. In other words, Ichinose''s ss. There are 3 reasons why that is. First, unlike Sakayanagi-san or Ryuuen-kun, there is a good chance our fight with them will be fair, a battle between our potentials. Even if the special exam itself turns out to be an irregr one, there is no need for us to worry about getting outwitted by some hidden schemes. Next, they are currently ss B. We would get additional bonus ss points due to that and mean we can take the lead and take the initiative. Andstly, their strong stance is just for pretense. Our ss C and Ryuuen''s ss D are already right behind them. They had a lead over us for some time, but their trajectory has been going downhill. Which is why I think they are the ideal opponent for us, don''t you think?"


    Had I been the same as before, I''d never have listened to her seriously, I guess.


    I''d never been confident, and it was also a pain to listen to her babbling on and on.


    But I was different now.


    Kiyotaka believed in me and he expected something from me.


    Just by knowing this, my ability to concentrate flew through the roofs.


    "If anyone is opposed to this, let me hear what you think. If not, if you all don''t mind selecting ss B, vote for them so we can get this done quickly."


    Horikita-san finished her speech swiftly without any dead time.


    I knew this was the time to interject, but I had to be patient.


    At a time like this, it was standard procedure for Hirata-kun to back her up.


    "I agree to this as well, Horikita-san. The bonus points we could get from defeating Sakayanagi''s ss A are huge, but it''s hard to think of a more difficult opponent. While we shouldn''t underestimate the bonds and the solid fighting style from Ichinose''s ss, her ss is in my opinion, the best opponent we can hope for."


    He supported her proposal as if he could read the future one step in advance.


    I Immediately, and with a clear purpose in mind, raised my voice without any hesitation.


    "Me too, me too. We don''t get any bonus points from Ryuuen-kun''s ss so he''s not that tasty, and we can''t justugh it off if we lost to Sakayanagi-san, I guess."


    I said sounding like an idiot while trying to instill the idea that any ss other than ss B wouldn''t be tempting enough.


    This was something even I could understand, so everyone must have realised what I''d tried to convey.


    I saw several students nodding and was relieved.


    I got shivers as I felt the whole ss getting united.


    Horikita-san must have understood this as well as it looked like she had nothing more to say.


    There were still a lot of time, so we were free to talk for the rest of it.


    Truth is, while I''d have wanted to talk to Kiyotaka, I can''t be a bother to him now.


    Reading the mood is a rather important skill. Yes, an important skill.


    I stood up from my seat and went to talk to the girls sitting nearby to waste time.


    Yes, I only need to repeat this as necessary.


    I want to finish this special exam quickly so I can return to the dorms.


    And then I can go on a date with Kiyotaka.

 Chapter 223: Short Story 3 : Chabashira Sae SS – A Restless Mind

    <h4>Chapter 223: Short Story 3 : Chabashira Sae SS �C A Restless Mind</h4>


    I was preparing for the special exam tomorrow.


    I went to the staff room do the final checks on the equipment I''d use tomorrow.


    But no matter what I did, I couldn''t stop thinking and this worry wouldn''t quite disappear.


    I stood up from my desk in order to calm myself down.


    I remembered Satou who visited me yesterday asking for permission to rent a ssroom in the special section of the school for the sake of the cultural festival.


    A maid caf��, was it?


    Since this was the very first cultural festival of this school, there were many things we still didn''t know.


    The teachers were still investigating the most correct attractions to employ.


    While heading for the special section, I happened to meet a student heading away from the direction I had nned to visit.


    He had this unmotivated expression, but it could be said this was his usual look anyway.


    "Did you check up on Satou and the others?"


    I asked and Ayanokouji nodded lightly.


    "I listened to the program and what they were nning on doing. It''s not a bad idea."


    "That''s for sure. They can''t start to prepare for it unless their proposal has been epted in the first ce."


    "I was going to check up on them since I''m personally a bit curious how it''s going. How are they?"


    That was a lie, but also the truth.


    If this could serve to distract my thoughts, anything goes.


    "Horikita looks like she''s optimistic on their behalf. Seems she thinks they have a winning chance. They are finalizing thest details now."


    No problems on their side. That was relieving to hear, and I had no more reason to visit them.


    "I see. Then there''s no reason for me to check up on them anymore."


    "I got caught by them, so it seems trouble is heading my way."


    "In other words?"


    "I''ve be their manager as per Horikita''s instructions."


    "You? Oh, that sounds..."


    I tried to imagine it in my head, but no matter who many times I tried to picture it, he and maid caf��s had nopatibility whatsoever.


    By the look he had, I could see that even he agreed with me.


    "It will be good for you. Horikita sure do have some interesting ideas."


    I surprisingly began to look forward to how this cultural festival would go.


    He looked like he was going to vocalize even moreints to me.


    I tried to guide him a bit as I really hope this festival will be a good memory to him.


    "This is a chance to learn about things other than studying so ept your fate, Mr. Maid Caf�� Manager."


    I somehow got more rxed and did something I usually would never do.


    "Ayanokouji... could I have some of your timeter?"


    Am I ready to confront this special exam?


    Or was I confronting it already?


    I began imagining it.

 Chapter 224: Short Story 4 : Satou Maya & Matsushita Chiaki SS – During Standby

    <h4>Chapter 224: Short Story 4 : Satou Maya & Matsushita Chiaki SS �C During Standby</h4>


    "Eh? Did you really invite Ayanokouji-kun too?"


    School had ended and Satou had walked to a ssroom in the special section of the school building in order to meet up with Matsushita, Mii-chan and Maezono.


    There she reported to the others about how she had called out to Horikita and Ayanokouji.


    "Yes, I remained in the ssroom for a bit and since he was there with Horikita-san, I thought, why not just invite him as well, so I just did."


    "You still haven''t given up on him yet? After what you said about just being friends? Lend me some of that courage~"


    "N-no, that''s not it. I just thought it would be nice to hear a boy''s opinion, that''s all. I mean..."


    "But the truth is?"


    Her true feelings were seen right through by Matsushita who made a hand gesture mimicking that of a reporter holding a microphone during an interview.


    "S-since... we''re going to show the boyster anyway, I wanted to... show him first, I think."


    Satou embarrassedly blushed while Matsushita grinned like a cat.


    "Uuuuu, this is so embarrassing... I can''t do cosy in front of the boys..."


    "Hey, Mii-chan! If you''re going to take this attitude, you won''t be able to hold up during the real deal, you know? If you don''t do your best, Horikita-san may cut you down without hesitation."


    "Uuuu... But you said only Satou needed to talk..."


    She hugged her own chest along with the Chinese maid uniform as she trembled like a jelly.


    "Your cuteness is to me, Mii-chan! Oh, it''s almost time so you should go change now. I''ll stand guard in the hallway so rest assured!", Maezono said before she before she exited the ssroom.


    While the three remaining girls had lots of thoughts about this, they began to change into these unfamiliar costumes.


    "But oh well, this is good practice for Mii-chan as well since showing yourself to the boys will be important, you know. We could get advice on like, how they see us which is going to be important for sure."


    "Right, right? Ayanokouji-kun won''t look at us in a weird way. And he is dependable too."


    "I guess. If we had to choose a boy from our ss, it would have to be Ayanokouji-kun or Hirata-kun anyway."


    Mii-chan''s hands stopped for a second when she heard Hirata''s name.


    "Oh my, oh my, who is''t didst thee bethink of? Hold not back and just bid us, shall thee?"


    "I-m n-not s-saying!"


    "Lots of girls are vying for his attention, you know~? Ah, but you''ve been hanging out with Kouenji-kuntely, haven''t you? I saw you guys during summer vacation from time to time. I was so sure you''ve switched targets."


    Maybe she was trying to steer the conversation away from Hirata, but she grabbed onto this topic as she looked a bit too restless talking about Hirata.


    "Ehh!? There is nothing between me and Kouenji-kun at all... it''s just that it''s surprisingly easy to talk to him."


    "That''s��- surprising, yeah. So there really is someone on the same wavelength as him."


    "How should I say it, he''s very knowledgeable, and he''s seeing things I can''t see..."


    Wang began to talk about the treasure hunt game they participated in on the boat during summer vacation and how Kouenji''s unique way of looking at things had won them a huge reward.


    But despite hearing all of this, Matsushita and Satou''s evaluation of Kouenji did not change whatsoever.


    "Hey you three! Stop talking and change will you!"


    Maezono warned through the door and the three girls made some flustered voices as they resumed changing clothes.


    Short Story Trantion : cinnamontrantions


    /

 Chapter 225: Prologue : Akito Miyake’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 225: Prologue : Akito Miyake��s Monologue</h4>


    I HAVE NEVER thought of myself as a special person. I guess I''m just an average person that has no special strengths or ws. I''ve just lived my life as I liked, somewhat by inertia. I''ve done some bad things, and I''ve done some kind things.


    I''m not a good person, and I''m not a bad person. If I were to evaluate myself, I''m just another guy. Ever since I was born, I''ve been walking around as someone who is neither of those things, just someone in the middle.


    It was only when I got to high school that I grew fond of Archery. I was just watching it on TV and thought I''d give it a try in my spare time. Besides that, I just went about my life in a normal way, as if I were surrendering to the flow of the river. I don''t pay attention to the big things, and I just go about my personal routine.


    It may be a boring routine, but I''ve done it because I thought it would be easier. However... I didn''t make any friends in high school because of the negative effects of this way of life. I wasn''t lonely, but even still, I ended up making some friends through unexpected chances. Keisei, Kiyotaka, Haruka, and Airi. There were only five of us, including me, but I felt strangelyfortable in that small group. I had a feeling that the rest of my school life would be spent in a rxed atmosphere with these five people. The environment around me may have changed, but I was still me. That was the only thing I knew would never change. And then... one big change urred in spite of my expectations.


    I fell in love with someone.


    I''ve always thought the opposite sex was cute and pretty, but I''ve never fallen in love with them.


    I wonder when it started.


    What was it that had made me look different towards Haruka?


    What made me sure was when Haruka announced that she would drop out of the school in a unanimous special exam. There was a part of me that could not ept that we would be separated. Emotions, not logic, were my top priority.


    I wanted to protect Haruka, even if it meant abandoning Airi, a member of the group I cared about as much as her.


    I don''t know if this feeling was justified. I gave priority to what I wanted to protect, not to what was right or wrong.


    But I have no regrets.


    "Will you go along with my ambition for revenge?"


    The murmur brought me back to reality. Her eyes looking at me were the same as always. They were strong, straightforward, and dangerously colored. But they were unclouded, with a determination that showed no sign of hesitation.


    I did not answer aloud. No, I couldn''t.


    The revenge would surely embarrass many of my friends and ssmates. She must have seen through my emotions, because sheughed and turned her back to me and walked away. In the past, I would have just sent her off without a second thought.


    Seeing her off was the right thing to do.


    Yes, how much easier it would be if I could see her off.


    I didn''t know that falling in love with someone could be so troublesome, difficult, and stressful...


    I...


    No matter how many people are going to hate me in the future...


    I''m not going to let my feelings allow me to let her go alone.


    On this day after the sports festival, I had to make an impossible decision.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


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    *Illustration 3


    *Illustration 4


    *Illustration 5


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    *Illustration 9


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    *Illustration 13

 Chapter 226 - 1 : The Price of Victory

    <h4>Chapter 226: Chapter 1 : The Price of Victory</h4>


    AFTER THE UNANIMOUS special exam, the week ended on September 20th. I woke up around 6:30 a.m., turned on the TV, and started preparing breakfast.


    It''s a new day, and it''s going to be very different from the previous week. I don''t have to get too presumptuous to guess why that is the case.


    There are two main factors that cast a dark shadow.


    Kushida''s revtions have caused a rift in the rtionship between ssmates. The fact that Horikita overturned the premise of limiting the expulsions to only those who betray the ss, namely Kushida, has shaken peoples trust in Horikita. The choice was to expel or not to expel, and I got everyone to vote in favor of expulsion with the promise that only traitors would be expelled. Then, using all the resources I had built up so far, I put my n into action to push Kushida into a corner, make her confess to being a traitor, and then expel her.


    Even though she was protected by ssmates who wanted to believe in her and those who liked her; when she finally revealed her true nature and started revealing secrets, she lost their trust. She was one step closer to being expelled from school, but then an unexpected event urred.


    Even after knowing everything, Suzune Horikita pushed the idea that Kushida is an essential member of the ss. To top it all off, she even stated that she would never agree to expel Kushida. Originally, it was me who promised to expel only traitors, and Horikita only agreed to it, but I was shocked that she insisted on keeping Kushida. With so little time left, the only choices left were to keep Kushida and ept the penalty of the exam, or let someone else leave the school and pass the exam.


    As I said, Horikita''s change in policy and my ssmates trust in me for epting it and expelling another student was greatly shaken. Some of them were genuinely hurt by the revtion of my true ideals. Others have be suspicious of me due to rumours spread around.


    Then there are those who lost their friend and resent me.


    The list goes on and on of the severity of the situation in the ss and the reasons for it. However, the effects rted to the exposure are not a problem to be panic over, but something that was nned from the beginning. It was an unavoidable and necessary expense to bring down the trustworthy Kushida.


    Some may see this as a mere disadvantage, but I don''t see it that way. If you look at it that way, you won''t be able to gain any experience. It''s a missed opportunity to grow. We were the only one out of the four second year sses to have a student drop out of school. Even though the students were deeply hurt, in return, we gained ss points.


    That''s still not the full picture. In order to grasp the entire picture, it is important to change the perspective of the situation. Don''t just end with the pain, but look beyond it. We must assume that because we were hurt, we have the opportunity to strengthen our bond. In this way, Horikita''s ss can be even stronger. It is unclear how many students are aware of this, but we must face the problem and not run away from it.


    The special exams for Horikita''s ss are still going on. The weight and preciousness of 100 ss points. It''s a good idea to look back and reflect on what we''ve aplished to gain a sense of achievement.


    Of course, we need to be careful because if we let it go on like this, we could get swamped. If left unattended, the wound could spread further.


    I finished my breakfast and checked my phone with my toothbrush in hand. There seemed to be no new contact since I had seen her in the middle of the night.


    "And yet..."


    It was an ending that was not in the original n, and I am still surprised that the special exam took an unexpected turn. From the standpoint of rationality, consistency, and objectivity, there was no other choice but to expel Kushida, who had persisted in taking down everyone and had thrown the ss into chaos. I had decided that expelling her would do the least amount of damage to the ss and allow us to shift our focus immediately to the sports festival.


    In other words, from my point of view, Horikita''s decision not to expel the traitor Kushida was irrational, unfounded, and a mistake. Even though I felt that it was a clear mistake, I supported Horikita''s decision and steered her in the direction of expelling Airi. In other words, I chose to resign myself to an irrational failure.


    At least, it''s a choice I would never have made beforeing to this school. So why did I ept it now?


    It has be clear that Suzune Horikita had stronger feelings about Kushida. Something along the lines of a close friend, which might be an overstatement, but she was definitely a special person to Horikita. It was natural for her to want to protect someone who was special to her, but it would be unfair if she made judgments based on that criteria, especially when she had already established her position as a leader. It would be easier to understand if we take the point of view of Haruka, who was Airi''s best friend.


    From Haruka''s point of view, Kusihda''s insistence on the option of expelling students was evil and should be eliminated. Horikita and I were also proceeding on the premise of eliminating that evil.


    That''s why I voted to expel Airi. Nevertheless, Horikita''s favoritism cost me one of my closest friends. It''s hard to convince me that I should start working hard again next week. But let''s not forget that Horikita''s choice was not an easy one either. In that special exam where she had to make a difficult choice, Horikita came up with a clear answer for herself. She took the risk of being put in the line of fire herself, and dered that she would not leave Kushida behind.


    This alone is an impossible decision for an ordinary student. Even though she was prepared to be pointed at as unfair, Horikita believed that keeping Kushida was in the best interest of the ss.


    "Of course, even so, it is difficult to say that the current valuation is the correct answer," was along the lines of something she had said. Before the unanimous special exam, Kushida was clearly more valuable to the ss than Airi. Even after the revtion, Kushida still had the upper hand, but the gap that had been sorge had definitely narrowed.


    In addition to that, Kushida herself has not changed her mind and is expected to continue to be uncooperative with the ss. In other words, there was no guarantee that keeping her would benefit the ss. Horikita''s idea might not ever evolve into what she had envisioned.


    That conclusion alone remains unchanged. Still, I supported Horikita''s idea for one reason only. In a blunt way, it''s because I want to see Horikita''s growth, direction, and results. What will happen at the end of her actions that Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka could not have chosen?


    I wanted to see the chemical reaction that would ur in the ss as a result of not leaving Kushida behind.


    Will we be able to grab ss A by the narrowest of margins and prove that her choice was right? Will the ss disintegrate and learn of the oversight of their choices? Or will it bring about some other unexpected change?


    I think it''s more likely to create a negative chain of events... When I activated OAA from my phone, I found that Airi''s name had already been deleted from the ss list. It was as if such a student had never existed in the first ce. I put my cell phone in the right pocket of my uniform, then grabbed my bag and headed for the door.


    Apart from what was going on in the ss, there were also some interesting developments in the other sses.


    Ry��en and Sakayanagi wanted to fight each other in the final special exam. Ry��en wanted to strip points from ss A to minimize the gap, so his decision makes sense. But what about Sakayanagi? There is no advantage to nominating the lowest ranked ss at that time. I''m not sure if it''s because she''s in a cooperative rtionship with Ichinose or because she thinks it''s better to crush Ry��en now.


    I wonder if the "promise" made between Sakayanagi and Ry��en all the way back during the ind exam is also involved.


    I guess I had better pay attention to these events closely. Either way, we have the best situation for our ss.


    I left my room at the same time as usual and headed out of the dorm. When I got off the elevator, I saw a familiar Horikita sitting on the sofa in the lobby, waiting for someone. She took one look at me, but didn''t show any signs of getting up. But perhaps because there was no one else around, she stood up a littleter and approached me.


    "Are you waiting for Kushida?"


    I cut her off before she could speak, and she replies while stumbling over her words for a moment.


    "You seem to know already... Yes, I am. I went to her room a few times over the weekend."


    It seems like she tried to provide some mental support, but couldn''t even make contact with her. For Kushida, it must have been the most humiliating thing ever experienced in her life. She wouldn''t be able to bring herself to face Horikita right away. Either way, it was evident that Horikita had been waiting for Kushida toe down from a very early hour. What bothered me more was that I could easily see theck of sleep under Horikita''s eyes.


    "You seem to be pretty troubled about Kushida."


    "Huh? Oh, no. Lack of sleep isck of sleep, but this is for a different reason. She didn''t leave her room once. No matter how many times I visited her, she never answered. I practically hadunched a siege. I''m still staking out every now and then to meet her."


    "You mean you waited by her front door...?"


    Even if it was only on Saturday and Sunday, it would be a big deal if she was staking it out from morning till night.


    "Repeatedly pressing the chime and kept waiting. Still, she didn''t make a single noise."


    No wonder, there was probably enough food in her room for a two-or-three-day hideout.


    "Anyways, we need to be aware of our surroundings, don''t we? There''s nothing to be gained if the rest of the ss knows that Kushida is holed up."


    Nervous, she waited in the hallway for her toe out. It was truly an exceptional dedication. An ordinary student would have been touched by Horikita''s passion, but as expected, Kushida was one to show no sympathy.


    "After what happened the other day, she can''t be the same as before."


    "Since you made the choice to save Kushida, it''s only natural that you would certainly follow through."


    Horikita nodded with a peek of determination, but she wouldn''t be entirely without doubts.


    "Ayanok��ji, how was your... weekend?"


    She was, of course, referring to the Ayanok��ji group. Since we had expelled Airi, Horikita would have seen more problems erupting than just the issue of Kushida.


    "I''ve had some casual contact with Keisei and Akito, but that''s it."


    That, too, did not include anything specifically about Airi in the conversation. Rather than saying that we didn''t talk about her, it would be more urate to say that we didn''t know how to talk about her. I''m not an expert on how to use apps. I wouldn''t be surprised if she had blocked us, even if Airi hadn''t left the group.


    "Have you spoken to Haruka at all?"


    "I couldn''t muster up the courage to get in touch with Hasebe-san." After showing an apologetic look, Horikita bowed her head.


    For Horikita and Haruka, it would be incredibly difficult to open up to each other and meet face to face. Rather than trying to repair the rtionship, it would be more practical to maintain the group rtionship instead of letting it break down further.


    In other words, the best choice would be to watch.


    Even if Haruka still holds a grudge against me in the process, that wille in handy eventually. It would be easy for the ss if that happened, but we have to be prepared for it if it doesn''t. If she continued to hold a grudge against me, Horikita, and the ss, there was a possibility that Haruka could potentially have a desire to harm the ss for personal reasons. Her specs are not essential to the ss, but it is of course a disadvantage to reduce the maximum value of the ss by missing one piece that can be used in a reasonable way.


    A coitant chain of events, such as the loss of strength of Akito and Keisei, is also possible.


    "No matter what I tell you right now, you won''t be able to convey anything to her anyways. We''ll just have to wait and see." I told her.


    First of all, I''m sure that this is not the ce to discuss this. Confirming the situation with me, Horikita gulped quietly.


    "I''ve changed your rtionship by forcing you to make the choice to keep Kushida-san."


    I was the one who threw down the gauntlet on Airi, but that was a role I took upon myself. At least that part of it was my responsibility.


    "There''s no need to apologize twice for the same thing. If you thought it was the right thing to do, that''s fine."


    "But you covered for me. No, that''s not all..." She spun the words carefully, as if trying to clear her head. "Even if I had induced Sakura-san to leave the school in that situation, I''m sure that Haruka-san would not have folded until the very end. In other words, the penalty for running out of time was unavoidable."


    Thanks to this weekend giving us a time to rx, she''s seen the situation clearly. How burdensome the role of pronouncing an expulsion is, and how difficult it is to carry out. The battle against a ticking clock is tougher than you can imagine. She was relieved to have avoided the worst-case scenario, but her eyes still looked somewhat anxious. More than a few were seeking salvation in the path where time ran out and no one left the school.


    A world where 39 people were not missing. Horikita knows that this is themon coping method to avoid epting reality. That''s why she holds back the thought that threatens to eat her out from the inside.


    "That test, it was as if you could see everything from the beginning."


    "I didn''t foresee the future. I just went into it with all kinds of assumptions."


    "That''s what''s so amazing. You can make some images, but you can''t read through them perfectly. What the question is, what kind of statement will make the other person do what you want. It was all based on calctions."


    I''ve begun to notice more and more, albeit slowly, that there is a difference in the world I observe and the world I think about.


    "It''s fine to reflect and analyze, but right now, we need to solve the ss problem first, right?"


    "Yeah, yeah. Right..."


    "You can''t expect the same environment to be waiting for you as it was the other day."


    "Of course, I''m prepared for that. Hasebe-san definitely holds a grudge against me, and I''m sure Yukimura-kun and Miyake-kun feel the same way. Besides, there are students who aren''t convinced that I made the right move to keep Kushida-san."


    She said she was prepared for this, but it was still hard to say that she truly understood the severity of the situation. How long can you remain calm about the changes that the decisions you make lead to?


    It would be fine if the changes were merely positive, but this time they are theplete opposite This is a negative change.


    She won''t be seen as a contributor to the increase in ss points.


    "You should go to school now."


    Horikita is too busy dealing with Kushida right now, so there''s no point in having a long conversation here. This isn''t only a dormitory where Horikita''s ssmate''s live. There are also students from other sses that are considered enemies, such as Sakayanagi and Ry��en. I don''t believe that we can cover up what is really going on with Kushida, but that doesn''t mean that we need to willingly expose ourselves.


    The ss certainly gained a lot of points. Whether or not they can face up to the cost will be decided by how our ssmates handle things going forward.


    But before that... I''m not sure what to do about the problems that the ss is quickly discovering we need to solve.

 Chapter 227: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 227: 1.1</h4>


    When I arrived at the ssroom, I immediately noticed that the atmosphere was different from the one before the special exam.


    First of all, there were a few students looking at me. These are a high percentage of students that I don''t get to know very well on a daily basis, but I guess it''s not surprising. Considering the fact that I''ve been on the sidelines, or on the side of the silent spectators, I''m not surprised that they''ve taken this new approach to me. There are a lot of things they don''t understand about my rtionship with Kushida, given how I used to act in public. There aren''t many students who cane and talk to me directly, even though they care about what happened.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun!" In the midst of all this, Matsushita happily approached me.


    "Good morning."


    The stares from the students turned to surprise at my unexpected behavior. I''ve only had Matsushita wave at me from a distance before, but this may be the first time she''s approached me during school.


    Is she concerned about what happened the other day, or does she have another goal in mind? Matsushita has a high opinion of my abilities. The fact that I tried to get Kushida expelled and the way I handled it may have raised her expectation rather than lowered it. Even in the process of expelling Airi, Matsushita was one of the students who vocally agreed that it was inevitable.


    "So, it''s like we''re finally moving towards the ascension into ss A?"


    "I can''t say for sure."


    I dodged her light jab and backed off, she looked away as if she didn''t need to take it any further.


    "There may be a lot going on for now, but I don''t think you need to worry about it." After saying that, she added, "It''s Ayanok��ji, so I''m sure you don''t even care about it." She lets her true thoughts of mee out. "The way the ss feels is outside of Ayanok��ji-kun and Horikita-san''s hands right?"


    I''m not sure how I feel about that result, but it seems that Matsushita understands my feelings better than Horikita, or at least interprets them more urately.


    The problem is that Shinohara, Haruka, Mii-chan and Kushida can''t rte to my line of thinking. The students I just named are the ones who were particrly damaged by the unanimous special exam.


    Shinohara asionally stared daggers at us, but it wasn''t directed at me, more so at Matsushita. She seems to be unconcerned, though.


    "Over the weekend, I tried to make something work out, but she canceled on me." She mumbles in a whisper, perhaps noticing Shinohara''s gaze on her. "Girls tend to take a long time in these situations."


    "That''s tough."


    "Well, it''s us who are at fault."


    It originally started when Kei, Matsushita and the others made fun of Shinohara and Ike as a couple. They had been badmouthing them behind their backs about their looks, so it was only natural for Shinohara to be angry.


    "This is just an everyday thing. There have been times when it''s been more difficult."


    The rtionship between the girls is something that the boys, who only have a superficial rtionship with them, cannot know. I wanted to know, but it''s probably better if I don''t.


    After that, no other student made an effort toe talk to me, and time passed by. Horikita also came to schoolte, but there was no sign of Kushida. Sud�� and some of the other students tried to talk to Horikita, but since they arrived at school at thest minute, the chime rang and they had to take their seats.


    Kushida, who hadn''t appeared in front of Horikita over the weekend, continued to stay hidden. The morning homeroom starts with many other empty seats. Chabashira-sensei came to the ssroom and immediately noticed the empty seats.


    "Kushida, Hasebe, and Wang are absent. That''s unusual." We didn''t know the details of their absences, but Chabashira-sensei did. "Hasebe and Wang have notified me that they''re sick, so that''s eptable. As for Kushida, I haven''t heard from her, so I''ll call herter to confirm. We''ll soon be able to determine if she simply overslept or if she''s too sick to get up."


    Although she used a somewhat exaggerated expression, it was probably based on the assumption that they were faking illness. It''s not unusual for someone to be absent for long periods of time, but this was the first time in the past year and a half that three students were absent at the same time. Up until now, Chabashira-sensei hadn''t made anyments when someone was absent.


    This was different from the past, where teachers just went about their business. If this were a normal school, consequences for missing sses woulde back to you. If you were to skip a week, it would affect your internal evaluation score, and might even result in you being left behind in ss. However, in this school, one person''s responsibility is also everyone''s responsibility. They may not all say it, but I''m sure Chabashira-sensei understands what they''re worried about.


    "Don''t look so anxious, a day or two of absence won''t affect your ss points. It''s even possible for all three of them to be sick at the same time by pure coincidence."


    At this moment, she assures us that there will be no impact on the ss. Her students must have felt a sense of relief at her clear words.


    "That said, if this breaksts longer, it won''t be limited to that. And if it turns out to be a temporary illness, problems will graduallye to the surface." She replied, staring at Kushida''s seat since she hadn''t heard from her. "Well, perhaps ''temporary illness'' was a bit of an exaggeration, but there''s a limit to how much you can do when you''re sick without knowing the specific name of the illness. I''m hoping for a quick recovery if possible."


    The students eyes were drawn to Horikita. In the unanimous special exam, she dered that she would put her own ideas first and leave Kushida behind. Naturally, most of the me was directed at Horikita. Even though she was receiving the brunt of the gaze, Horikita did not move an inch.


    We can''t tell what she''s thinking, but there''s no point for her to expose herself without purpose and risk showing weakness. After looking at the situation, Chabashira-sensei coughed once, forcibly pulling the students'' attention away from Horikita.


    "I''m concerned about the absentees, but we can''t afford to dwell on that. The unanimous special exam is over, and you must now turn your attention to the next battle." She lightly ced her palm on the monitor behind her and brought up the screen. "I would like to exin the details of the gymnasticspetition and the special rules that will apply this year. Please listen carefully."


    All the students assumed that the sports festival would be the same asst year


    "Special rules... does that mean we''re going to have a different sports festival thanst year, sensei?"


    Chabashira-sensei nodded once in response to the question from Sud��, who was more enthusiastic about the sports festival than anyone else.


    "It means that the new way this school should be, as proposed by the student council president, is being epted, such as the ind exam. It will be an attempt that strongly incorporates the idea of emphasizing individual ability, and the sports festival will be the embodiment of that."


    In the deserted ind exam, K��enji, with his high academic ability and above all his outstanding physical ability, performed very well, and in addition to receiving ss points, he also received a huge amount of private points. It was a true representation of a meritocratic school. On the other hand, students who were not good enough were in danger of being expelled. This was a sports festival where the same emphasis was ced on individual abilities as at that time. If we were to ept only those words, it could be a tough test for students like Keisei, whose academic strength is their strong point, but who are worried about their physical abilities.


    "I''m sure many students will be worried, but this sports festival has been adjusted so that no individual will be expelled forck of individual ability, nor will any individual be the only one to suffer damage. Because not everyone is able to perfectly embody both academic ability and athleticism."


    Chabashira-sensei exined gently, perhaps to avoid a mild panic. Some of the students looked at each other in surprise at her softer tone that was different from how she wasst week. Cutting the chatter, the outline and rules of the sports festival were disyed on the monitor.


    [Outline and Rules of the Sports Festival:]


    OUTLINE:


    ? A sports festival for all grades, consisting of a variety of events.


    ? Time: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (with a break between noon and 1:00 p.m.)


    ? Students are free to participate in any event of their choice to earn points,pete against other students, and work for the ss to get the highest score.


    RULES:


    ? Each student will be given 5 points at the start.


    ? Each must participate in 5 different events.


    ? Additional points will be given to the winners ording to their events.


    ? Each time a student pays 1 point, he or she can participate in the 6th and subsequent events.


    ? The maximum number of events that can be entered is 10 per person.


    ? If a student does not participate or abstains from an entered event except for unavoidable reasons, he/she will lose 2 points.


    ? Students who have finished the events they are participating in should cheer at designated areas.


    Just by reading this outline and rules, one can see that it ispletely different fromst year.


    "This will be this year''s Sports Festival, and these are the outlines and general rules. Unlike the usual one where the whole school watches onepetition, we will have parallelpetitions at various locations at the same time."


    "Nah, it sounds like we''re going to be pretty busy." Sud�� was baffled by the rough image of the day in his mind.


    "Participating in thepetitions and aiming for high rankings is your top priority, for which you''ll need to make a meticulous schedule. It will be a busy gym day if you n to participate in numerouspetitions to win.


    There are two main types ofpetitions; The first one is called the basicpetition, which is apetition that can be participated in by one person, and all the basicpetitions have a fixed reward of five points for first ce, three points for second ce, one point for third ce, and one point for participation. The other type ofpetition is called the specialpetition, where two or more people can participate. The rewards are higher in the teampetition, and all participating teams receive equal points. While the rewards are attractive, they also have drawbacks such as the need for cooperation and longer time constraints."


    There is a clear distinction between individual and teampetitions, in rtivity of points. It''s a nice consideration for students who aren''t good at sports to not be at risk when they drop to the bottom of the standings.


    "The rewards for teampetitions vary depending on thepetition, so be sure to check them out separately."


    The rules are simple enough once you understand them, but there''s a surprisinglyrge number of things you have to do. The initial five points and the five points for participation, a total of ten points, can be obtained by participating in the sports festival andpleting thepetition regardless of the grade. If any student fails to meet the minimum requirement due to some ident, the number of points will be reduced by 10 for each student.


    If we assume that all the students will participate, Ichinose, a ss of 40 students, currently has 400 points, and our ss, with two students missing, has 38 students and 380 points. This means that we will be fighting with a handicap of 20 points. The reward for the individualpetition is 5 points for taking first ce, which means you need to take 4 more first ces. It may not seem like much, but each person can participate in up to ten events.


    In other words, it''s impossible to get Sud�� to work at full capacity and participate in 15 or 20 events to make a lot of points due to the risk of burnout. This may be a heavier burden than we think.


    "It''s up to the individual and the ss to decide whether to pay the points and participate in the sixth and subsequent events. And the overall score at the end of thepetition will determine the ranking by grade."


    The monitor switches to show the rewards by grade level.


    [Point Distribution:]


    ? 1st: +150 ss points


    ? 2nd: +50 ss points


    ? 3rd: 0 ss points


    ? 4th: -150 ss points


    From the perspective of a normal exam, I feel that the fluctuations in ss points are somewhatrge. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that it is a big overall event, and the fact that the currently announced Cultural Festival has rtively slow fluctuations in ss points.


    "These are the rewards for each ss. From here, we will announce the rewards for individuals."


    The rewards by ss alone are motivating enough, but it doesn''t stop there. As this was an athletic festival that was meant to test individual abilities, it was inevitable that individual rewards would also be prepared. This is the event of the year where you can shine, and you know your abilities better than anyone.


    [Individualpetition rewards - by grade and gender]


    ? 1st: 2 million private points or ss transfer ticket (limited)


    ? 2nd: 1,000,000 Private Points


    ? 3rd: 500,000 private points


    Sud�� shows his surprise at the reward of high private points. In addition to that, there was a new reward which I had never seen before.


    "ss transfer ticket, no way..."


    The ss buzzed with surprise at something that waspletely new to us.


    "The school was quite cautious about introducing this new system. The introduction of protection points was also unprecedented, and this system is being introduced not too long after that. However, it is the natural right of the students who have shown their individual abilities to move up."


    The only winners in this school are those students who were able to graduate from ss A.


    It''s no wonder that if you''re the number one student in your grade in a physical education exam that requires a great deal of physical ability, you''re considered worthy of having the right to change sses. It seems that the sports festival does not fall under the category of a special exam. Originally, the number of private points needed to move sses was 20 million. In other words, there is one digit missing. Nevertheless, the right to move sses is given. The answer to this disproportionality may lie in the limited text of the ss transfer ticket.


    "Does limited mean I have to move ande back sometimeter?" Sud�� seems to be confused by the word "limited"


    "No, it doesn''t, does it? That doesn''t make any sense." Ike yelled out from his seat.


    "We''ll give you the right to change sses. But that said, it''s also true that you can''t finalize that ability forever. Therefore, the term "limited" refers to the period of use. The right can only be exercised during the second semester. So if you don''t exercise it before the start of the third semester, it will be invalid."


    Limited means a ss transfer ticket with a period of use, so to speak. This makes a certain amount of sense when it is said to be equal to 2 million points.


    If you can hold on to it until after graduation, it''s practically a ss A ticket, but since it has an expiration date, you need to have an eye to determine which ss you will eventually win or stay in. If you move from your current ss to another ss but your previous ss ends up graduating from ss A, you would realize the ticket has gone to waste. Even if you didn''t suffer such a worst-case scenario, it takes a certain amount of courage to use it. It''s not easy to abandon your own ss that you''ve been used to for over a year and a half. Even if Sud�� won the right to do so, when he objectively thought about whether he would leave Horikita and his friends and transfer to ss A, he couldn''t imagine moving sses.


    Even though it''s a high-profile sports festival, it doesn''t mean that you''re guaranteed to go to ss A with just one sess.


    We need to keep that in mind.


    However, this is only for second-year students. If you''re a freshman, you''re still not that close with your ssmates.


    Some freshmen may abandon their current ss, which they are not so close to yet, and move to a ss where they feel they have a better chance of winning, or simply to ss A.


    On the other hand, for the third-year students, it''s the strongest idea to move to Nagumo''s ss. This is because it''s the same as graduating with ss A. It''s a big deal to be given the right to move sses in any grade, and to have that very limited choice.


    It will be interesting to see how this will affect the students in the future. I''m sure the school will see the reaction and decide whether or not to offer simr tickets again. Overall, I think it''s an interesting reward with an interesting bnce.


    "The students whoe in first ce for each gender will be asked to choose one of the two. Sud��, if you n on making it to the top of the individualpetition, you''d better think twice." I could see Sud��''s back stiffen. Rather than being paranoid about putting his friends first and jumping to two million private points, he should look beyond that.


    Does he want to stay in Horikita''s ss, or does he want to move to Sakayanagi''s ss, which has never given up the lead since we started school? He''ll need to face the future and consider it carefully.


    "Now, let''s move on to a more detailed exnation. There are two types ofpetitions: those that are open to the public in advance and those that are not open to the public until the day of thepetition. In other words, there will be a certain number of events that you will have to take on the spot."


    pot." In addition to the basic events such as the 100-meter run and steeplechase, several interesting and unusual events are disyed: penalty kicks, basketball shootout, tennis singles, and mixed doubles or mixed gender doubles. It''s a lot of stuff you don''t normally see in a sports festival.


    "You may not always be able to participate in all the events you want due to the limited number of participants or the time of the event. If you force yourself to make a schedule that doesn''t fit the time schedule, you may not be able to participate in time and may be treated as an abstention. Don''t forget that you also run the risk of losing your points."


    For those students whose physical abilities are superior to the rest of the school, it is necessary to have them participate in many events where they can gain points efficiently. In this sense, there is an aspect of using one''s head, and luck or the ability to read who can participate in which events are required. However, if the sports festival were to be held in its current state, the students would probably panic. If all the students were to rush to a particr event on the day of the event, they would not be able topete. Of course, there is no way the school wouldn''t prepare for that dilemma.


    "Reservations for participation in the open events will be released today at 10 p.m. on a special app. The earlier the better for all grades. Cancetions will be epted up to one week before the actual event, but cancetions can only be used three times. Thest reservation deadline is two days before the actual event, and if you haven''t registered for the maximum of five events by then, you will automatically be assigned to an open spot." With that, a timetable that appeared to be an app screen was disyed. "Let''s say you want to participate in the 100 meter run for a test."


    The screen changes. This is an event for up to seven participants of the same grade and gender. Four races in total. You can register for any race, or join on the day if there are seats avable. Participants must arrive 5 minutes before the start of their race toplete their entry. No need to wait until after the race. Scheduled start time of the first race: 10:15 a.m.


    This means that the maximum number of men and women who can participate in the 100-meter run is 56. No matter how many races you participate in, you need to arrive at least five minutes before thepetition starts at 10:15.


    From the exnation that there is no need to wait after thepetition, if you participate in the first race, you can start moving on to the next one in a short time. On the other hand, if you participate in the fourth race, you will be detained for a long time. Samepetition, same reward, but you lose some time.


    "Also, it is important to note that any student who is currently enrolled or has been enrolled as a club member at least once in the past while in school will not be allowed to participate in the relevant event.


    Take Hirata for example, he isn''t allowed to participate in ser, and Sud��, he isn''t allowed to participate in basketball-rted events."


    To make sure students who are involved in club activities don''t have an advantage, they''ve added constraints. Surely, they don''t want to have a showdown between students who have experience in club activities, since it''s unlikely that any student can beat an experienced athlete like Y��suke or Sud��.


    If Sud�� ys ser and Y��suke ys basketball, the other students will have a good chance to win. There may be a few students who devoted themselves to club activities in junior high school but did not choose to participate in them in high school.


    "Anyway, it''s like reserving seats in a movie." The words leaked out from Sud��, who was taking the exnation seriously, were right on target.


    "I guess you could say the system is simr. It''s also made to reflect in real time who held which event and time slot."


    "So that means there will be people who don''t want to fight me and cancel, right?" Sud�� muttered, sniffling and crossing his arms proudly.


    "Yes, but those students will hit the cancetion wall sooner orter." Because of the number of people who can participate in each event and


    the time limit, we want to hold our strongest events and specific races as soon as possible in order to n our schedule. However, if you do so quickly, the risk of being targeted by strong opponents also increases. But if the number of times you can escape is fixed, you will hesitate to even make a reservation.


    There is also a battle of checks and bnces and probing.


    It''s as if thepetition is held online before the festival even starts.


    "In addition, if there are students who are ranked the same in the results of the individualpetition, their private points will be divided equally and they will not get ss transfer tickets."


    In the event that students collude to create arge number of ties for first ce and win arge number of ss transfer tickets, the system will fail. I think it''s a measure to avoid that. In any case, if you y well and get all the rewards by yourself, you will get a lot of private points or a ss transfer ticket.


    It''s a reward worthy of the name of your individual ability.


    Even if you don''t n on moving sses, you can use the 2 million points for a variety of purposes, such as umting a dream of 20 million points to set the stage for ss A.


    On the other hand, students who are not confident in their athletic ability should try to stay in thepulsory five events. If they use their precious points to participate in the sixth andter events and do not win, they will lose a point. This is a big disadvantage in the sspetition. However, it also depends on how you fight.


    When Chabashira-sensei finished her exnations and left the room, the ssroom started buzzing all over again with chatter about the uing festival.


    "Okay, Suzune, let''s get started with the meeting!"


    The first person to shout out loud was Sud��. After hearing the rules, he suddenly became more motivated.


    Y��suke, and I naturally sat up and started walking towards Horikita. Up to this point, it was the same as usual. However, some of the students were beginning to look at her coldly. Doubts swirled around them, wondering if they could really trust Horikita to take charge, or if they would be okay with Horikita taking the lead.


    "First of all, before we discuss this sports festival, there''s one thing I should tell you."


    She moved before the students could make the first move. She stood up from her seat and turned around so that everyone could see her face.


    "During the special exam heldst weekend, I forced Kushida-san to choose not to withdraw from the school, in a way that vited my promise to everyone. First of all, I want you to let me apologize for that." With that, Horikita bowed her head. But there was also a strong will in her eyes as she looked up. "But as it turns out, I think I made the right choice. She''s someone who can help the ss."


    "I don''t think so." Shinohara was the first to deny Horikita''s words. She was one of those affected by Kushida''s revtion. "Now that I know that Kushida-san is a questionable person, no one will trust her. Right now, I don''t get the feeling that anyone is talking to the rest of the sses about Kushida-san but I''m sure that''s just a matter of time."


    Shinohara cut to an important factor that should be put on the shelf, whether you like her or not. The fact that Kushida will continue to exist as a ssmate cannot be changed, and if things are to proceed on that basis, it is better to keep the inconvenient "truth" to oneself as much as possible.


    In other words, going around telling the enemy ss that Kushida is guilty in nature and has a dangerous ideology can lead to strangling yourself. It''s a simple story of the benefits of keeping quiet, but it''s surprisingly difficult to carry out.


    In particr, Shinohara, who is protesting now, has been directly hurt by Kushida. It would not be surprising if her anger had already exploded, but for the moment she seems to be suppressing her feelings. It doesn''t look like Shinohara understands the benefits of keeping Kushida. So it would not be surprising if someone smart enough to understand this, someone like Y��suke, would have urged her not to talk about it beforehand.


    However, it is doubtful that this willst forever.


    When the doubts and insecurities about Kushida reached their limit, they would break down at once.


    "Hey, Horikita-san. Can you really say that you were right to stop us from leaving Kushida-san behind? Answer me."


    Shinohara''s words made Horikita, who had only been looking at her, snap out of her thoughts and give an answer.


    "It''s not something that can be answered at this moment. It''s the same for me, Shinohara-san, and the rest of my ssmates. We need to make our presence felt for the rest of our school life."


    "What the hell? I want an answer now. No matter how you look at it, Kushida-san is a distraction to the ss."


    "Indeed, the unanimous special exam may have hurt you. It may have hurt Wang-san, who is currently absent, and Hasebe-san. But that doesn''t erase the fact that Kushida-san has been contributing to this ss for a year and a half. Or do you think you''ve contributed more than she has?"


    Causing major problems doesn''t make past achievements go away. She had brought the ss together, taken care of their concerns, and helped raise their academic and physical averages. At least Shinohara personally hasn''t done as much as Kushida.


    "I can''t me you if you don''t take kindly to my deception and Kushida-san''s continued insistence on expelling certain students. But if I had expelled Kushida-san just like that, can you say that it would have been the right decision immediately? Can you be okay with the ss average dropping and losing the special exam?"


    "That''s... you don''t know until you try something like that."


    "Right. Then when I''m about to do something, no matter what it is, we won''t know until we try it."


    Either way, it''s still an uncertain future. It wouldn''t be easy to argue against Horikita with Shinohara''s ability.


    "Can I have a word?" As Horikita and Shinohara stared at each other, Y��suke stood up, raising his hand. "I''m a little stuck on something. If we''re going to get the most out of Kushida-san''s skills, we need to keep her secret within the ss. That''s why I''ve been asking everyone in ss to keep quiet about it."


    "I''m sure you have. If someone hadn''t given the instructions behind the scenes, the truth would have been leaked by now."


    Horikita was wondering the same thing, given that there were no rumors circting about Kushida on Monday.


    "But you never asked me to keep quiet, Horikita-san. Why is that?"


    "Because it doesn''t matter how many gag orders you put in ce against people who want to bring her down. It won''t makes a difference if the school finds out about it sooner orter."


    Regardless of the process, the students would now have a decision to make. Do they let their emotions get the better of them, make her true nature known, and get back at Kushida, or do they keep it a secret for the good of the ss?


    "I wouldn''t leak anything even if Hirata-kun didn''t ask me to. There was a chance for us to get together on our day off. We kind of had a discussion about how it wouldn''t do any good to leak this out. Of course, it would be a lie to say that I don''t have any feelings for the current Kushida-san."


    As expected, Matsushita was a smart girl. She was one of those who were affected by Kushida''s revtion, but she understands the disadvantages of spreading the word. They were exposed, so they expose her back. There is only a temporary sense of aplishment to be gained by doing so.


    "We will bring her back. And if I can''t, I''m going to take whatever responsibility I can."


    Take responsibility.


    Even the students who had bared their fangs at his strong determination cleared their throats and gasped. It was no exception for Shinohara.


    "Are you really going to take responsibility?"


    "I chose to leave Kushida-san with that resolve. If something happens, you people will judge me."


    Akito and Keisei look on in silence at this. It''s not hard to imagine how they must be feeling as they listen to this story. Anyway, with a few strong words from Horikita, the conversation came to an end, and free time arrived. Horikita''s eyes were not on me, but on someone else.


    That person also looked back at Horikita, and eventually Horikita left the ssroom. At the same time, K��enji, who was sitting across from Horikita, stood up and walked out of the ssroom as well.


    I was curious to see what was going on, so I decided to open the door a little bit and check.


    "You acted like you wanted to talk to me about something, please dispense with the pleasantries."


    "There''s something I''d like to confirm regarding the uing sports festival."


    "I don''t suppose you''re going to ask me to participate with whatever n you have in mind?"


    "Of course not. I just want to confirm your intentions. You can at least let me hear those, right?"


    To include or not to include K��enji''s activities in the calctions. Depending on that, the strategy could change. When asked, K��enji grinned and put his hand on Horikita''s shoulder. She tried to brush off his hand, but K��enji''s arm didn''t budge.


    "You seem like a very lucky girl, don''t you?"


    I questioned back the truth of his words, somewhat grimly, as he kept his hand on her shoulder.


    "Does that mean you''re motivated to finally help?"


    "I''ve made some money from the deserted ind test and the treasure hunt, but why would I ever omit a chance to make some more? As far as I''m concerned, there''s no reason not to participate."


    K��enji, who had shown overwhelming power in the desert ind test, was not expected to help in the future, but if it was a special test that would bring in a huge amount of money for an individual, he would be enthusiastic. For Horikita, it was icing on the cake. As long as she can get as many points as possible, she has nothing toin about. And with K��enji, there is a good chance that she could easily earn 10 or 20 points.


    However, there would be some things to worry about in this reward. Horikita seemed to hesitate for a moment at that, but then stepped forward.


    "If you get the right to change sses, what will you do?"


    K��enji is without a doubt the most troubled student in the school year, or rather a free spirit. He would never hesitate to abandon his current ss if he decided he wanted to do so. Whether K��enji would be good for the ss in the future was another matter, but at least Horikita wouldn''t consider the loss of students from the ss as a positive thing. Besides, he may take future special exams seriously, such as the deserted ind exam and the sports festival, where a lot of money is at stake.


    If that happens, he stands as a strong opponent.


    "There is no problem on that matter. I don''t think the other sses are attractive enough at the moment for me to abandon my personal contract with Horikita Girl, so have no fear."


    "For now..."


    In other words, depending on the conditions, a ss transfer is always a possibility.


    "As of today, you''re safe, so don''t fret."


    I''m not sure I would consider K��enji''s words a conformation of safety, but I''m skeptical as to how many sses would want to bring in K��enji. I''m sure it has its advantages, but it also has its disadvantages.


    "Okay, I''ll agree with you on that. I just don''t trust you either if you''re swayed by whims. You''ll get enough points to take the top spot, is that correct in your calctions?"


    "You can take it that way. I don''t have to team up with anyone, though."


    He was only going to earn points in thepetitions that he could participate in individually. I wouldn''t be surprised if K��enji got first ce in all thepetitions. It means he''s likely to get a maximum of 55 points.


    "Are you sure you''re not interested in moving up to ss A?" K��enji answered the question with augh and walked back to the ssroom.


    "I guess eavesdropping is your hobby?" K��enji, who had stopped behind me, asked.


    Perhaps he had guessed from the slightly open door, or perhaps he had known all along.


    "I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t worried about what''s going on for the sports festival."


    "Let''s leave it at that, shall we?"


    "Can I ask you a question, K��enji?"


    "I''m in a good mood right now, I''m simply exhrated thinking about the points from the sports festival. You may have an answer."


    "You and Horikita have made a promise. But it''s not an absolute guarantee. There was a possibility that you might be cut off, just as you let Kushida stay to face the opposition of the ss. Do you have any thoughts on that?"


    I enquired into whether he was anxious about his promise, about if it would''ve been kept or not. K��enji was in a position to be bullheaded and agree to expel fellow students, even though he had the purpose of extracting private points behind his back.


    "It''s all a matter of calction, you know. If there was a situation waiting for me to be narrowed down to a final candidate for expulsion, I would vote against it before it happened. The talk about trusting Horikita Girl is also based on that basic premise."


    "I see. So, you didn''t fully trust Horikita."


    "I would never entrust myself to another person. You wouldn''t either, would you?"


    "Maybe."


    K��enji seems to be free and careless, but behind that there is also calcted thinking. And even though it''s calcted, he still maintains his freedom. No matter how many times I deconstruct each student and understand what I need to know about them, this man is the only one I can''t read.

 Chapter 228: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 228: 1.2</h4>


    "Ayanok��ji-kun. Do you have any time to spare at the moment?" Just after the lunch break, Horikita approached me while saying that.


    "Well, Kei and I..."


    "We''re going to eat, sorry. I can''t lend you Kiyotaka." Kei came running and forced her way in between us to stop Horikita''s advances. She spread her hands and put her palms up at her. "Also, I don''t think it''s a good idea to ask out a boy who has a girlfriend..."


    "Yes, whatever, but it''s not me who wants to borrow him, it''s someone else. And it''s not a girl either. So would you still allow me to do so?" She pointed her phone at me, and Kei peeked at the screen before I could.


    "Yagami... Takuya? Who?"


    "It doesn''t matter who''s sending the message. What''s important is the text."


    The text sent from Yagami to Horikita seemed to have been sent about an hour ago;


    [Can you call Ayanok��ji-senpai to the student council room during lunch break? The student council president has requested it. If it''s too difficult for you, please let me know and I''lle to you.]


    "As a member of the student council, I have a role to perform. If a member says they have something for me to do, I can''t refuse the request."


    Horikita basically had no choice and had to tell me that my presence was required.


    "Miyabi Nagumo-senpai, it seems that the student council president wants to see you. Did you do something to him again?"


    "I haven''t done anything."


    These days. I add in my mind.


    "If you refuse, Yagami-kun wille here. If you still refuse, maybe the student council president Nagumo-senpai wille here. So, how should I respond?"


    Horikita is just a liaison. Regardless of how I responded, she would just proceed with the process without hesitation.


    "Sorry, Kei. If I ignore the student council president''s orders, the rest will be troublesome."


    "Crap. Well, if it''s the student council president, I guess it can''t be helped. Sat��, let''s have lunch together?"


    Understanding that she had no choice but to agree to this situation, Kei quickly ran over to Sat�� and the others.


    "You switch up so quickly, girlfriend." Horikita mumbled something that might have been admiration or disgust.


    "I''m on my way."


    "Then I''ll report that to Yagami-kun."


    "If you''re exchanging contact information at the student council, wouldn''t it be faster if the student council president Nagumo contacted you directly without going through Yagami?"


    "The only people who exchange contact information on the chat app in the student council is Yagami-kun because Yagami-kun requested it directly."


    I was convinced and left the ssroom, and Horikita came out to the hallway along with me.


    "I don''t know what kind of reason you have, but I rmend that you try not to make him angry as much as possible."


    I parted ways with Horikita, who had given me some advice, and I had no choice but to head for the student council room.


    I arrived in front room and knocked softly on the door. Soon after, I heard the voice of Nagumo in the room, and the door swung open. As expected, there was no other figure inside the student council room except for Nagumo.


    "Yo, Ayanok��ji. Have you noticed any changes in your lifetely?" Nagumo asks me before anything with a slight smirk.


    The only thing that is disrupting my life is this man standing in front of me right now. The pressure of the stares I receive from the third-year students every day has not weakened at all. In fact, even the third-year students who didn''t recognize me in detail remembered me as a matter of course. Without a doubt, I am the most famous junior in the upperssmen. Even if they didn''t know the details, I was engraved as the junior who challenged and poked Nagumo.


    "Nothing in particr has changed... or I''d like to say so, but well, I do have some issues here and there."


    It''s easy to pretend that I don''t notice anything, but if I don''t show that I''m overwhelmed, I risk escting the situation even more.


    "As the student council president, I can help you with those problems, you know?"


    "It may just be a passing issue. I''ll ask for your help when I''m really in trouble."


    If I make him feel good to some extent, there''s a possibility that Nagumo will back off. No, that''s a bit too optimistic. The only thing Nagumo wants is for me to be directly defeated. There was no way he could be satisfied with this level of achievement. Even though Nagumo had a certain goal, he was not going to let this be the end of the conversation, so he changed the subject.


    "I bet you''ve already heard about the rules of the sports festival, right? It''s time for our direct confrontation, Ayanok��ji. Some of the events in the sports festival are open to all grades. You should fight me in those."


    "Is that strict discipline for juniors? I''ve seen Student Council President Nagumo''s OAA. Unless it''s apetition with a big luck factor involved, there''s no way I can win even if I stand on my head. The result is clear as day."


    Even though there was no other choice but to y the hand he had been dealt, Nagumo would not be satisfied with that.


    "You''re a funny guy Ayanok��ji... You think that if you y yourself down, I''ll give up on you or something. Well, I can''t me you for that. You have no choice but to take the low road given the circumstances." It seems Nagumo is a man who is able to see through shallow thinking. "I know you''re not keen on this. I don''t want to waste my time on you either. So, if you win one match against me in this sports festival, I''ll let bygones be bygones."


    "One win, huh?" That was much looser than I had imagined. "You seem to think that one win is simple enough. Is it that easy for you?"


    "You could say something like that but I wouldn''t state it that way."


    "What about winning all the games, isn''t that a better conditional...? No, it''d be a disgrace to the student body president if I confronted you with the condition of winning all the games."


    It wouldn''t be that mere pride was getting in the way. In fact, he''s using his pride as a shield to somehow drag me out into the fray.


    "Who said I''m not adding a restraint? Regardless of whether you win or lose, you''ll have to participate in all five of my events, and if you miss even one of them, you''ll lose."


    "What will happen if I lose? Would the winning student council president be satisfied with that?"


    "You better hope so. Otherwise you won''t see your troubles going away anytime soon, and you''ll probably get more calls from me like this. Or maybe you''ll have to worry about... other things."


    "We have a ss policy regarding the festival. Can you give me some time?"


    "Well, I guess that''s the only thing you could say for nowI''ll give you a week to get back to me by next Monday."


    "Okay. If we''re done talking, may I be excused here?"


    "Don''t be so hasty. Or do you have ns after this? Since I called you, you didn''t make any promises to be anywhere, did you?"


    "Yes, well, I don''t have any ns."


    "Aha, that''s a relief to hear."


    Nagumo was talking while asionally checking something on his phone. He had no intention of releasing me yet.


    "Excuse me." From the other side of the door, I heard a voice I hadn''t heard in a long time. Ichinose with a stic bag in her hand. "Sorry for the wait, Nagumo-senpai."


    "Ah, don''t even worry about it. Yo, I''m sorry I couldn''te with you to buy lunch today."


    "Don''t worry..."


    Ichinose trailed off as she suddenly saw me standing next to Nagumo.


    "Oh, this? I''ve been having lunch with Honami every day in the student council room. I''ve been keeping my right-hand man busy." Nagumo said while looking towards Ichinose and adding a wink.


    I had thought that the chances of us passing each other or running into each other during lunch break had been decreasing, but I guess that''s it. If she was in the student council room, which was off-limits to normal students, I wouldn''t have seen her.


    "When we eat and talk together, we hear about a lot of gossip and stuff. Isn''t that right, Honami?"


    "Fufu, yes."


    "I told her that I have a visitor today. So what. Ayanok��ji, how about joining us for lunch today?"


    There were three lunch boxes peeking out from the bag. It seems that he was nning to have us eat here from the beginning while he finished his conversation with me. I''m sure it''s emotionally painful for Ichinose to sit with me right now. However, there was no way to escape, as the environment wasn''t one I could just walk out from.


    "You said you don''t have any ns after this, right? That''s why you can chill with us."


    I was surrounded, and if it was an order from the student council president, it was as if I had no right to refuse.


    I sat down in a seat far away from Nagumo. Ichinose, who always eats next to Nagumo, handed him a stic bag and sat down next to Nagumo. She didn''t look at me, but started preparing his lunch with a slightly downcast look. It was impossible for Nagumo not to notice this unnatural appearance, and he must have thought back to the exchange on the boat.


    "The rules of the gym festival are very different fromst year, aren''t they, senpai?" I decided to break the tension.


    "I''m rather grateful for that, man. If we had held the gymnastics festival with the exact same rules asst year, my win would have been too easy."


    The rules of the previous year''s sports festival were that the students were divided into two groups, the red group and the white group. Nagumo was in control of the entire third grade. This meant that he was able to intentionally make the students in the groups he didn''t belong to lose. No matter how much the remaining freshmen and sophomores struggled, their chances of winning would be zero. In the end, the conversation that used to take ce between the three of us became a rally between Nagumo and Ichinose, and I silently carried my food to my mouth.


    I finished eating with the two of them not even halfway through their meal, and I closed the lid cover and held it in my hand.


    "What, you''re done eating already? You can leave the empty stuff there."


    "Thank you." I replied, but Nagumo''s eyes were already on Ichinose, not me. Ichinose, too, had turned to face Nagumo, perhaps to avoid focusing on me.


    "Excuse me."


    There was no point in staying here, so I left the student council room.


    "A strategy to show superiority, huh?"


    It may look like humiliation to the casual observer, but it''s meaningless if he can''t inflict psychological damage on me. If he wanted to achieve that effect, he should have prepared a few more members of the student council to be on the sidelines.


    Then he could have at leastbeled me as a poor, pitiful man.


    Nevertheless, from the looks of it, Nagumo will probably continue to contact Ichinose in the future. It would not be surprising if something happened that would change the rtionship between them. As I start to walk away, I thought about the effects of that.


    Will bing a part of Nagumo lead to the growth of Ichinose Honami? If all goes well, she may be able to gain enough favor and love to take over the position of student council president. This is the reason why he''s so confident... No, that idea is a little too naive. If Nagumo''s obsession with Ichinose stems from me, he may well cut Ichinose off at thest minute. If she couldn''t be the student council president after devoting her body and soul to the school, and the title was rmended to Horikita who made lesser contributions, her spirit would be crushed within a year.


    In that sense, I wouldn''t underestimate Nagumo''s stand. I need to keep Nagumo in mind, but there are other things I need to do now.


    I need to prepare for the uing sports festival, but I also need to prepare for the cultural festival that''s just around the corner. I''ve asked the people who came up with the idea, Sat�� and Matsushita, to take a break from the ss, but I need to make preparations to secure staff for the maid caf��.


    I was hoping to include Airi in my calctions, but she''s clearly not going to participate, and I don''t foresee Haruka participating at this point either. The powerful card of Kushida has also disappeared.


    And even if I wanted to learn the ins and outs of this field, I couldn''t simply rely on my ssmates.


    In the midst of the cracks in the ss rtionship, bringing up the subject of maid cafes risks getting people wondering what you''re talking about, as well as causing information to leak out.


    "Maid caf��...?"


    It''s a show that you don''t know what to do with, but the budget you have to work with demands big sales. You need a strategy to win, and you also need to research what yourpetitors are doing.

 Chapter 229: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 229: 1.3</h4>


    The next day after the exnation of the specific rules of the sports festival, we had our morning homeroom. Just like yesterday, the atmosphere in the ss was not very cheerful. The reason for this was the absence of three of my ssmates. Just like the other day, they were absent again today. It''s not umon for anyone to miss school due to illness or health problems. However, in the case of these three students, I think everyone is thinking that they are all absent for other reasons.


    In the case of consecutive absences, it is usually necessary to go to the hospital in the Keyaki Mall to have a medical certificate written. On the other hand, as long as you have a medical certificate, it''s not a big problem. In other words, even if you don''t have a fever, the hospital will take care of you for a couple of days if youin of any kind of ailment.


    However, ording to what Chabashira-sensei said in homeroom, none of the three students had been examined at the hospital.


    Two of them, except for Kushida, have been in touch with the hospital, but it is unclear how long they will be allowed to stay there. The problem is if the three of them continue to be absent after tomorrow. Haruka''s absence was rted to Airi''s withdrawal from school. Mii-chan''s love for Y��suke was exposed. Kushida was absent due to the fact that her true nature had been revealed. None of them are rted to illness.


    I wondered what would happen if this continued for three days, five days, or a week. It''s no wonder that the school would start investigating and not think that these absences were just a coincidence. As Chabashira-sensei said, it will eventually start to have a big impact on the ss points.


    Furthermore, some cracks are beginning to appear in ces that are not visible to the eye. Mii-chan is not the only casualty of Kushida''s exposure. Ike and Shinohara, the two new couples in a rtionship, have also been caught in the crossfire, which is a source of concern. In fact, they don''t seem to be talking to Kei, Matsuhita, or Mori, who are said to have been bad-mouthing Shinohara.


    It''s hard to exclude the possibility that this is the same reason why Shinohara hasn''t spoken to students such as Sat��, although they weren''t called by name.


    Even though the groups they usually interact with are different, the ss has always had strong horizontal connections among the girls. It would be obvious that this is now creating aplete gap. It''s time to start deciding the members of the ss to y team games to score points, but we haven''t reached that stage yet in this ss. If we try to divide the ss into teams at this point, the internal division will be even worse. Knowing this, Horikita was unable to step forward. On the other hand, it is also impossible to bring about a rapprochement on this asion. Not only Horikita, but also Y��suke is well aware of this.


    Time flies, and morning homeroomes to an end. Shortly after, a message arrived on my tablet.


    [I need to talk to you. Please follow me.]


    It was a short message from Chabashira-sensei.


    Not long after the teacher left the ssroom, I left my seat as if I were going to the bathroom. The advantage of sitting at the end of the hallway was fully demonstrated, and no one saw me. As I rounded the corner of the corridor to the staff room, I spotted Chabashira-sensei standing with her back to the wall.


    "It''s unusual for you to call on me in this way. Is it an urgent requirement?"


    For a moment, I thought it was about the three being absent, but it didn''t seem that way.


    "Yes, it is. There''s something I need to tell you. It''s about Sakura."


    "About Airi?"


    Already a week had gone by since Airi had left this school. Is there something that I need to know now?


    "When she left the school, the school naturally followed the procedures. Packing up her belongings, collecting her private points. Well, that''s what they call the necessary post-processing."


    She was straightforward in her expression, but slurred her words a bit. It was probably due to her emotions about the fact that one of the students in his ss was missing.


    "Items pre-purchased in the school are basically the property of the students, and it is up to them to decide what to do with them. There will be no problem in leaving them behind or taking them with you. The official eptance of the expulsion will take ce in the staff room. In any case, an unexpected thing happened during that process."


    "Unexpected thing, sensei?"


    "Yes. After the unanimous special exam, we found evidence that Sakura used about five thousand of her private points, and we''re still trying to decide what to do with them."


    "The private points of the expelled students will be stripped away, right?"


    "Yes. But, as I said before, this can only be done after an official eptance. However, the school believes that this is also an extremely gray area. For example, the school doesn''t allow the transfer of private points to a specific student."


    "Yes, I suppose so. If I were to transfer all my private points after my expulsion was decided, it could be a problem. But you''re saying Airi transferred five thousand points to someone else?"


    "No, that''s not it. Sakura had..."


    I was told about the unexpected use of her private points. In the midst of the exnation, I realize that I''m more involved than I thought.


    "That''s why I thought I''d talk to you, the person involved. Of course, you are under no obligation to take on this case. If you refuse, I''ll handle it myself."


    Airi''s action in the very short time after her expulsion was confirmed. With a certain premonition in my answer, I decided what I should do.


    "It''s not that big of a sum, please leave to me."


    "You mean you''ll pay it?"


    "That won''t be a problem, will it?"


    "It will be private points that you used for convenience, so the school won''t see it as a vition."


    "I understand."


    I got a statement from the teacher confirming that it won''t be a problem.


    "I''d like to ask you one thing, is this also something you''re involved in?" Chabashira-sensei asks, giving me a slightly probing look.


    "No, sensei, it''s not. I''m sure it''s a conclusion you came to after thinking about it yourself in that limited time."


    Of course, even I don''t know the details of that right now, but I''m sure that as time goes by, the answer will naturallye to light.


    "Anyway, even though it''s a small problem, it''s good news for me that one of them has been cleared up. I''m not all that happy about the situation in the ss." As a homeroom teacher, she couldn''t help but look worried about the ss. "What''s with those eyes?"


    "Nothing, sensei. It''s true that the ss is unstable right now, as you said. I was going to forcefully correct some of it, but I guess that may not be necessary."


    "What do you mean?"


    "For now, please watch over them. Watch each student grow and develop."


    Chabashira-sensei looked a little unhappy, but nodded quietly.

 Chapter 230 - 2 : The Inevitable Path

    <h4>Chapter 230: Chapter 2 : The Inevitable Path</h4>


    AGAIN, THIS CLASS stands in front of several difficulties at the same time.


    It is not eptable for a leader to simply stand by and watch as the situation deteriorates everywhere.


    There''s nothing wrong with wanting to do everything yourself, but if you''re not good enough, then you''re just idealistic. No, even if you have the skills to solve problems, you may not be able to do it alone. What we need now is to rely on our colleagues, to work together and to choose the right path. From the weekend until today, I haven''t made any concrete moves to help. After watching the day''s news on my phone, I decided to leave the school a littleter than the other students who were out ying after school.


    A man who had been waiting for the opportune moment came hurrying after me. I knew that if we were too impatient to find a solution, he would eventuallye to me.


    "Kiyotaka-kun. I was wondering if we could meet somewhere this evening...? I need to talk to you about something." He was a little concerned about his surroundings, so he whispered to me that he wanted to talk.


    "I''m going to meet Kei in the evening. Can''t we do it now?"


    I didn''t really have any such ns, but I lied to see what his reaction would be.


    "That''s..."


    Of course, he won''t say yes. As a club member, Y��suke does not have free time immediately after school. Students will want to participate as much as possible now, as club activities will be temporarily suspended once the sports festival approaches.


    "It''s alright, I can talk to Kei about it, we can meet upter."


    "Ah, thank you, Kiyotaka-kun."


    "Just to be clear, you need to talk to me, right?"


    I knew it, but I dared to ask back. Y��suke nodded his head without hesitation.


    "Yes. I think we should act quickly."


    "Right. Anyway, if you''d like toe to my room, I''ll make arrangements for the evening."


    Y��suke''s cheeks rxed and he smiled like a child at the pleasant reply.


    "If it''s possible, it would be nice if Karuizawa-san could be there too, but I''m not sure if she would be okay with that..."


    "Kei too? I''m sure she''ll be happy to be there, but won''t she get in the way?"


    "I have a few things I need to work out and I need her help as well."


    There is a big difference between the presence of Kei, who has awork of information about girls, and the absence of Kei. What Y��suke is trying to do, without me needing to ask, is all about Kushida, Shinohara, and Haruka.


    "Can we then go to... about half past 7?"


    "No problem. I''ll be there without dy."


    With a happy look in his eyes, Y��suke walked off briskly to his club activities.


    If someone has a major problem, the chain of asking for help eventually moves up to me.


    "That''s problem number two in my ss."


    Of course, this is an unavoidable aspect. It is inevitable that Y��suke will have to face this kind of situation, as I have been the one to give him a hand when he has been in trouble.


    It''s not easy to destroy what you''ve built, but it''s the inevitable path.


    Either way, I''ll call Kei and tell her toe to my room around 7.30pm.

 Chapter 231: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 231: 2.1</h4>


    It was 5:30 pm when I got home and I was patiently waiting for Y��suke toe. I got a notification on my mobile phone.


    [Can Ie and hang out with you now?]


    A message from Kei, my girlfriend, with a cute little cat stamp.


    My meeting with Y��suke is at 7.30pm, which is very soon.


    [Why don''t we have some food while we''re at it?]


    Before I can reply, a postscriptes. It seems that she wants to have dinner with me. In response to Kei''s text, I sent a short message saying that I was ready.


    "If that''s the case, I''ll have to make something."


    I could serve yesterday''s leftovers, but if I want to make something quick that Kei likes, I''ll go with...


    I open the fridge, stare at the contents and think about it, when the doorbell rings.


    When I opened the front door, I saw Kei smiling at me.


    I was a little surprised, but I didn''t panic and invited her in. Now that our rtionship is public knowledge, it''s great that I don''t have to worry about when to let her in.


    "You''re early."


    As she takes off her shoes, Kei goes into the room with a familiar movement.


    "I texted you before I got in the elevator."


    She said that she was going toe and visit me anyway, but that her ns were secondary to my own.


    Once the cooking is finished, Kei sits down on the floor by the table.


    "Because I''ve been in Kiyotaka''s room so muchtely, I''ve be so used to it, it''s like my own room."


    "I''m d to hear it. On the other hand, I haven''t been invited to your room."


    "Oh, yeah? That''s a bit embarrassing and... well, maybe one day when I feel like it!"


    She didn''t give me a straightforward yes, but when you''re in a girl''s room, there''s bound to be circumstances. Let''s not pursue the matter too deeply.


    "So, what do people say about our rtionship, Kei?"


    "The girls? I think they''ve been surprisingly easy to ept. I mean... nevermind."


    She tried to say something, but it was unclear. I was a bit curious, so I pressed the matter.


    "What is it?"


    "Well, you know. There is a so-called status attached to Hirata Y��suke. A lot of girls question why I would let go of such a thing."


    I see. It means they don''t understand why she went to the trouble of switching to a guy with no status.


    It''s certainly not surprising that they would be so open about theparison between Y��suke and I.


    In a way, Kei''s been affected by it. She was supposed to be the one who broke up with Y��suke, but it may be thought that she was the one who was dumped.


    If the man you switch to is more or less irrelevant, you can''t me them for their suspicions.


    "But that''s only part of the story. Kiyotaka''s reputation has been an anagonobori recently."


    "The expression you''re looking for is ''unaginobori''. ''Anago'' is wrong."


    (TL Note: ''Unaginobori'' is a Japanese idiom referring to something rising rapidly, like eels do. ''Anagonobori'' is wrong because ''Anago'' refers to conger eels.)


    I wondered if she did it on purpose, but then Kei smiled at me.


    "I know that much, as expected."


    "You must have an excellent tutor."


    "Thank you for everything, sensei. And thanks to my secret private lessons, my grades are going up."


    Gradually, Kei''s academic performance improved and at the beginning of September, her OAA showed that her academic performance had risen to a 48; a C.


    It means that she has finally reached the average level of knowledge as a student.


    After a few minutes of idle chatter, I sat up and headed back to the fridge.


    "I''m going to make an omelette, would you like one?"


    When I asked her without looking back, Kei immediately made a happy noise.


    "Eat, eat! Please make the ketchup a bit thicker, chef." It''s not the first time I''ve served Kei a home-cooked meal like this.


    After we started going out, we had regr opportunities to have meals in my room. So far, Kei has shown little inclination to cook on her own, but that''s alright. If she wants to cook, she can do so, and it doesn''t matter if she''s a man or a woman. I don''t mind cooking, and Kei is happy to eat.


    Kei likes to talk and talk and talk, but I''m not the best at making conversation, so she tries to liven things up a bit. I think we have a good bnce.


    I get the eggs, ketchup, chicken, and butter out of the fridge, get some sd oil from the shelf, and I''m ready to go. I took out the frozen rice and started to defrost it in the microwave. In the meantime, I prepared the onions. I wanted to add some carrots, but unfortunately, I didn''t have any in stock. As I put the onions on the cutting board and picked up the knife, I felt a presence behind me. Kei came up to me, snuggling against my back.


    "What are you doing?"


    As it is somewhat dangerous, I stopped moving and asked only with words.


    "I''m just watching~"


    Kei answered, but since her profile is stuck on my back, it shouldn''t be possible to see what''s going on.


    "You can ignore me. I''ll stay put."


    "Right, got it."


    I did as I was told and continued with my work. On the cutting board, I cut the onions into 5 mm cubes. While I was cutting the onions, Kei stayed close to my back, never leaving me. This time, I put down the knife and reached for the bowl to crack the eggs, but at that moment, Kei wrapped her arms around my waist and hugged me.


    "What are you doing this time?"


    "Hmm? I''m just watching."


    "It doesn''t look to me like you''re just watching very closely, does it? It''s more like sabotage."


    She didn''t seem to mind, although I did prod her that I was losing some efficiency.


    "Oh, I''m so happy. Is there anything else that makes you happy?" She murmured briefly, and her arms tightened even more in a hug. She looked rather satisfied.


    "That''s cheap happiness. Isn''t there any other kind of happiness that''s more amazing? Buying what you want, watching the TV you''ve always wanted."


    "It''s not enough to make me happy."


    "That was a random remark, but you actually have that."


    "No, I don''t. Even if I did, I wouldn''t want it. The happiness I have now is enough for me."


    If you''re happy with this, I can''t say anything more.


    "May I resume cooking?"


    It is very inconvenient to continue in this position.


    "Huh? What should I do?"


    She looked at me and smiled, ncing at me and looking into my eyes.


    "I''d like some kind of reward for being so quiet?"


    "There''s chocte in the fridge."


    "Buh. That''s not what I meant. There''s something off about that. It''s not that I don''t like it. I''ll be waiting quietly."


    Satisfied, Kei pulled away and sat down on the bed.


    "Well, now I can concentrate on making omelettes for a while."


    Kei waits for the food to be ready, alternating between her mobile phone and the TV, and then the two of us sit around the table for a slightly earlier dinner than usual.


    "By the way, about Shinohara-san..."


    I didn''t ask her to talk about it, but she did and started talking about the matter with no prompt.


    "I''m sorry about that, but that revtion really got to her and she wouldn''t talk to me."


    "That''s fine, I didn''t think she would..."


    People have different tastes and preferences when ites to good and bad looks, but generally speaking, those who are considered to be better than others make condescending remarks about those who are considered to be inferior. It''s not an umon urrence, it happens all over the world.


    More often than not, there''s no malice in it, they''re just saying what they think.


    "Do you and the others hate Shinohara?"


    "I don''t dislike her at all. Shinohara-san is a funny girl, she''s popr for making people happy."


    "I see. So that''s why she was unconsciously attracted to Ike."


    "I think so... we wereughing and talking about things that would hurt if anyone heard." She murmurs regretfully, as if she is sorry. "Are you going to hate me for being so mean to her?"


    "I won''t deny that others say bad things about others. It''s harder to find someone who doesn''t speak ill of others at all, to varying degrees."


    I don''t like the senior members of the club because they are too heavy-handed. I hate bossy teachers. It is good to have a ce toin about one or two such things. If you want to talk about appearance or your academic performance, you can do that too.


    "That being said, we have to avoid bad gossip getting into the ears of the person concerned."


    "I know..."


    "It must have been a shock to find out that the exception, Kushida, was the one who leaked it. Telling someone is always a risk."


    The leaked story from Kushida that they had been joking about her looks naturally hurt Shinohara deeply.


    And that''s not all. Shinohara''s friends who didn''t have a good impression of her, her boyfriend Ike, and Ike''s friends, naturally don''t think well of Kei and her friends.


    This time, Shinohara may go around prominently speaking ill of Kei, Matsushita and Mori.


    Once the negative cycle has started, it takes a lot of effort to stop it.


    "So, you didn''t just feel bad, did you? What''s going on?"


    I''ve had some light exnations from Matsushita, but I have to hear it from Kei too.


    "I misunderstood several times... but I tried to solve it through discussions about what I hurt. I''ve tried to talk it out, but there''s nothing I can do about it at the moment."


    "Unapproachable."


    "That''s it... but I guess it''s my fault in the end?"


    It seems that Kei and her friends have tried to repair their broken rtionship with Shinohara in their own way.


    "So, how do you think we can make up for this?"


    "You''re asking me?"


    "It''s not a surprise. You''re sure toe up with a good n."


    Kei also has the same problem as Y��suke, although so far no breakthrough has been found.


    "I''m thinking about it. Give me some more time."


    I''ll tell her that for now and postpone my answer.


    "Listen, I know this is going to sound a little crazy, but can I ask you something?"


    As I listened, she looked up at me with a curious look on her face and asked.


    "Didn''t Kiyotaka expel Sakura-san based on OAA in the special exam? If..." When our eyes met, Kei choked on her words. "It''s alright. It''s nothing."


    "If you''d finishedst in the OAA. You''re wondering what I''d have done?"


    Kei''s eyes widened in an obvious way.


    "As with Ike, there are simr grades but the difference in friends is overwhelming. I wouldn''t have expelled you."


    "What if I didn''t have any friends? What if I was in the lowest caste of girls?"


    I started to feel uneasy and the words came out in rapid session.


    "That argument is pointless. If we use that assumption, then the person called Karuizawa Kei is apletely different person. If that were the case, then you and I would not have developed into the rtionship we have now."


    "That''s... I see. Maybe... If I wasn''t dating you, would I have been expelled?"


    Although she understood that it was a meaningless discussion, she couldn''t help but ask.


    "I suppose you would if you''d had the ability you ced yourself in."


    "Oh..."


    "I can understand how it might hurt your feelings, but it''s not you. That''s not who you are. You were bullied and hurt, and in order to turn things around in high school, you established yourself as an independent girl. You used Y��suke to meet and date me. That''s what you are, Karuizawa Kei."


    When I answered that much, Kei''s lips pursed in obvious frustration. "I''ll protect you, no matter what happens. That''s the right thing to do."


    "I see."


    I want it to be me who deres that I will protect Karuizawa Kei no matter what the situation is.


    I learnt that there is no need for logic.


    Iid her head down on myp and shifted to patting her head to put her in a good mood. After a few minutes of watching her curl up on myp like a cat, Kei opened her mouth, still in the same position.


    "Hey, Kiyotaka. I don''t think it''s wrong that you cut Sakura-san. There is nothing wrong with that. But was it really right for Horikita-san to leave Kushida-san in the ss? She''s definitely an obstacle, isn''t she?"


    She is the one who has caused the rift in the ss. Kei feels that the disadvantages of her not dropping out of school are significant. It''s nothing unusual, it''s a natural reaction.


    We all have questions. But it''s not easy to speak up when time is running out. And in the end, you think it''s better to save yourself. It was around the two days off after the exams that the enthusiasm began to wane. Some of us wonder if we''ve done the right thing, some of us are d we weren''t expelled. Others are terrified that they might be next.


    "What does Kushida have that Airicks? Do you know what it is?"


    "What? Study and sport? Kushida-san''s pretty good at everything."


    "For superficial reasons, yes. But that''s not the point."


    "What do you mean?"


    "It''s a possibility that she will be an important piece in Horikita''s awakening as a leader. She could be a partner to Horikita, not Y��suke or Kei."


    "Kushida-san will...?"


    "I don''t think Horikita herself fully understands. She just trusted her instincts in a tight situation with no time to spare."


    "That''s what she has and Sakura-san doesn''t."


    "The perspective that only Kushida has, the thought that only Kushida has, the remarks that only Kushida has. These are elements that can be used with or without poprity. And that''s what drives Horikita."


    Although she is convinced of a certain point, Kei herself is not convinced.


    Is that a natural reaction? This is an indeterminate future.


    It''s just a theory that assumes Horikita was right in making that choice.


    "She knows that she will be resented by Haruka and those close to her. But the results won''te in a day or two. We''ll just have to wait and see."


    "But aren''t you more hated by Hasebe-san than she is?"


    "Yeah."


    It was difficult to get unanimity in that situation when time was running out. No matter how many times Horikita mentioned others, it was almost impossible to make them unanimous. And the negative ss points were an uneptable reality. If that happened, there would be no way for me to help.


    "It would be easy if we could say what the result is, what the conclusion is, what the answer is. But the reality is that you can''t."


    "You mean Horikita-san?"


    "Suppose there is a hurdle in front of you that is so high that you may or may not be able to jump over it. If you try and fail, you might not jump over it, you might fall over it, you might scrape your leg, or if you''re unlucky, you might break a bone."


    You can imagine the hurdles that stand in the way of your ability.


    "What do you think you need to do to make sure you get over that hurdle?"


    "Ummm... lots of practice before you jump?"


    "What if I don''t practice?"


    "The only way to do that is to do it on the spot, right? That seems to be the only way anyways..."


    "It''s the same thing. Horikita couldn''t stop running and tried to jump over the hurdle in front of her."


    "So Horikita-san failed the challenge and fell down?"


    "No, you''ve just leapt and hit a hurdle. How bad is my injury, will I fall? Will I be okay or will I be seriously injured? That is yet to be determined."


    It was easy to avoid the hurdle. All you had to do was not fly and take short diversions. This is where I''m tempted to watch Horikita, though.


    Once again I found myself wondering how I could have imagined this when I first started at the school.


    "That''s how it is. But I''m still not convinced by Horikita-san''s decision. She broke her promise. And she even said she would protect Kushida-san."


    It is true that there is an aspect of intimidation, but it is also true that until now, discipline in Horikita''s ss has been toox.


    By throwing a stone here, we know that our personal safety is not guaranteed. Of course, their trust in Horikita will have been strongly shaken, but this can be made up for in the special exams ahead, provided they continue to pursue their goal of getting closer to ss A.


    By the time we were finished talking, it was around 7pm.


    I cleaned up the tes and went to the kitchen to wash them while I was at it.


    "Hey, hey. Come and have a chat with me over here."


    "I''m going to do the washing up now, then I''ll see."


    "What? Then it''ll be half past seven."


    Sheined because that would be the time when Y��suke arrived. I listened to her and started to wash the dishes. She was quiet for a while, but gradually lost patience and started demanding again.


    "Hey hey,e here. Come on..e here? Can youe here?"


    As she said this, she patted the bed with the palm of her hand three or four times.


    "It''s no use..."


    I would have liked to have washed the dishes before Y��suke came to my room, but I gave up on that.


    As I sat down on the designated spot, Kei happily poked me on my right cheek with her index finger.


    "You''re so soft and smooth for a boy. What do you do?"


    "It''s just lotion."


    Considering the strain on teenage skin, I believe that further care is necessary than the bare minimum.


    "Hmmm..."


    Although she was convinced, she didn''t really care, she just wanted to touch me and wouldn''t stop poking me on the cheek.


    I grabbed Kei''s hand and pulled her to me and took her lips. I thought she would be surprised, but she seemed to have been waiting for it andughed nervously.


    "I''ve been waiting for you to make a move since I came to your room today."


    "So that''s it."


    I have to say I''m still a bit naive in that area. Our lips met again and again in near silence. The repeated kisses tasted like an omelette, a rather unusual experience.


    "Love..."


    I gently held Kei in my arms and was met with a quiet silence. It was a pleasant moment, not an awkward one.


    For how many minutes did we just hug each other?


    As if to break the silence, the chime of the door rang. Suddenly jolted back to reality, Kei hurriedly distanced herself in a moment of sudden embarrassment. There is no hurry, the door is locked, but well... I know the feeling. After allowing Kei some time to settle down, we both greeted Y��suke. Y��suke, who was still in uniform, came to visit me in my room.


    "I went to Keyaki Mall with my senpais after school."


    That''s what Y��suke reports when he realizes I''ve been focusing on the uniform.


    "Come in,e in,e in." Y��suke smiled happily at Kei, who acted as if it were her own room.


    I knew that he was happy to see Kei''s cheerfulness and purity now because he had watched over her more than anyone else since she started school.


    "Pardon the intrusion."


    After carefully arranging his shoes, he came into the room and sat down as I served him tea.


    "Thank you."


    "So what do you want to talk about?"


    I encouraged him to talk to me, as it is no use holding them back for too long. Of course, the content is all very predictable.


    "Yes. It''s about our ss. I''m sure you''re well aware of this, but I thought it might be dangerous to go into the sports festival like this. The girls, in particr, may find it difficult to work together."


    "I''m sure Kei-san knows more about this than I do," Y��suke said, looking at her. "I was talking to Kiyotaka-kun earlier about what happened with Shinohara-san. To be honest, no one''s really focused on the sports festival at the moment."


    Because they''re just starting to reform their rtionship as friends.


    "So I was wondering if you had any good ideas. I need your help, Kiyotaka."


    The same Kei who came to me for help earlier also gives me that look.


    If so, don''t hesitate to talk to me.


    "Y��suke, did you ask anyone else for this advice before me?"


    "What? No, this is the first time I''ve asked anyone. I didn''t want to talk about it inadvertently, because I didn''t want people to know that I was trying to fix it."


    It would be nice if they were willing to help him, but if they knew that he was trying to befriend them, they might be wary of him. There is a danger that people will think that there is an ulterior motive behind the kind words.


    "And why did you ask me?"


    "I thought I''d like some direction."


    "So, from now on, the first person to talk to is me, but not the leader of the ss, Horikita?"


    "But I think Horikita-san has her hands full with Kushida-san''s case right now. To bring up the issue of other ssmates here and now is..."


    "If I had been dealing with Kushida, would you have approached Horikita?"


    "I don''t know about that... I might have ended up speaking to Kiyotaka-kun about it anyways."


    He imagined what it would be like, and then he admitted it honestly.


    "Horikita-san is doing a great job. But I knew that Kiyotaka-kun would be able to see the big picture and make the right decisions. I just think you can give me the right answer, that''s all."


    "I told you that at thest special exam. You can''t always rely on me. Even if you''re unsure, you have to go through this process of talking to Horikita first."


    "But..."


    "It''s a burden. You don''t always get a solution. That''s why we don''t rely on any one person. Do you really think that makes Horikita a leader in the true sense of the word? How about a leader like Ry��en, Sakayanagi or Ichinose? Don''t you think they would be the first to raise concerns, even in the midst of dealing with other issues?"


    The important thing is to rely on each other and to be relied on. Horikita and the ss are about to grow through sess and failure.


    "Failure is an experience. Everyone has started out with a problem. Of course Horikita isn''t at a high stage yet, but it''s only due to a hugeck of experience."


    "I get that, but..."


    The process of discussing and searching for different solutions should not be omitted before deciding on a solution.


    "I''d like you to bring it up with me only after she answers first, even though she has her hands full with Kushida."


    "I see what you mean, Kiyotaka-kun."


    Taking it seriously and nodding a few times, Y��suke processed the meaning of the words in his mind.


    "It''s important to gain experience in failure, but this isn''t the same as a test score. I don''t think it''s just because you got a bad score that you should try harder next time. It''s an important thing that deals with the student''s mind. If a cracked rtionship is broken by an immature decision, that''s a problem that can''t be undone."


    This area is quintessential to Y��suke. He didn''t bring up the subject just for the sake of getting an easy answer.


    "It''s the right decision. But I think you''re reading into it a little too much. It''s probably true that there are cracks in the friendship between ssmates. And it''s certainly true that frictions and quarrels between friends, or badnguage, can lead to irreversible problems."


    If it esctes from badnguage to harassment, ignoring, and bullying, it can create the worst case scenario.


    But that''s really the worst case.


    "Kei-san, is your feud with Shinohara in a truly dangerous state?"


    "Hmmm... when you put it that way, well, it''s an extension of the fight, isn''t it? It''s hard for me to say anything bad about it because I''m in the position of the assant. I''m not harassing her or anything, and I don''t think too many girls even hold negative feelings about Shinohara-san."


    By taking it too seriously, she was stirring up unnecessary anxiety. That was my view.


    "Besides, you''re not going to let Horikita solve this alone, are you?"


    "Of course not. If there''s anything I can do, I''ll do it."


    "Good then. I''ve calcted that if the two of us work together with Horikita at the center, we can get through most things."


    However, these words alone wouldn''t be enough topletely remove his anxiety, so I''ll add something important. "Of course, there will be things that can''t be solved even if you cooperate with Horikita. In that case, I''ll lend a hand."


    If the backup was perfect, both Y��suke and Kei would be able to act without hesitation, and they looked convinced, but Y��suke still had something on his mind, and his expression wasn''tpletely clear. We exchanged information for a while, and when 8:00 p.m. approached, I urged them to leave.


    "If you don''t mind, I''d like to talk to you alone for a bit." On his way out, Y��suke, who felt he couldn''t leave it like that, cut me off.


    "Okay. I''ll go home first then." Said Kei as she put her shoes on and waved goodbye.


    After the door closes, Y��suke looks back again.


    "Kiyotaka-kun. Tomorrow, I''ll bring your story to Horikita-san. However, do you have a clear path in mind for us at this point?"


    "Honestly, Y��suke, I don''t have any ideas for an immediate solution to the Haruka and Kushida matters. I''m hoping that you guys can discuss it and lead us to the upper hand."


    "So you''re saying that''s not the case regarding... Mii-chan?"


    "In a manner of speaking. It will take time, but we have a chance. If you''re in a hurry, there''s always the possibility of forcing rough treatment."


    "Rough treatment? If there''s anything we can do, I think we should do it."


    Y��suke reacts to the mention of the girl who likes him with the same attitude as the others.


    "I told you it''s a rough treatment. I don''t rmend it."


    "What kind of method is that?"


    "That would be for Y��suke to go see Mii-chan and respond to her feelings."


    Y��suke reacts in a way that I never thought he would.


    "Actually, I like you too, Mii-chan. I want you to go out with me. If we can get that kind of conversation going, she''lle to school tomorrow, right?"


    I was a little reluctant to suggest it, but it was the only solution I coulde up with right now.


    "If this wasn''t Y��suke, I wouldn''t be talking about this kind of n either. But I thought it might be possible for you, since you''ve been asked by Kei to lie about your rtionship with her."


    "Indeed." Y��suke muttered, but his expression did not brighten. "The reason why Kei-san and I ostensibly agreed to go out is because neither of us had any romantic feelings in between. It''s not the same as pretending to respond to Mii-chan''s feelings and going out with her. I''ll only hurt her deeplyter."


    "I don''t mean to endorse this idea, but, you''re right, it''s not the same. We don''t know at what stage Mii-chan fell in love with you, but we can''t deny the existence of other students, including anyone else, who had romantic feelings for you right from the start of school. In other words, at the cost of protecting you from bullying by going out with Kei, there might have been girls who were hurt because they were indirectly rejected because of that lie."


    "That''s..."


    If Kei and Y��suke were seriously dating, it would be a legitimate reason. But since they weren''t, there wasn''t much difference in what they were doing, even though the circumstances were different.


    "What if Mii-chan came crying and clinging to you right now and told you that she can''t go to school anymore unless you go out with her? Would you be able to say no to her?"


    Y��suke choked at my words. He probably wouldn''t be able to make such a choice.


    "If you can''t say no, there are two choices you can make. You can either tell her that you don''t like her and go out with her, or you can lie and say that you liked her too and go out with her."


    If true love can grow in the midst of all this, it can be brought to the best possible end.


    "I still don''t think that''s what I should do."


    I can understand what he''s saying here, but it''s the emotional side still getting in the way.


    "It''s just a rough, forced solution. It''ll take time, but we''re at the stage where we''re nting the seeds."


    "I understand. I''ll see what I can do. Then again, Kiyotaka-kun is really strong. You don''t seem to be dragging up the fact that Sakura-san dropped out of school in the slightest."


    There was no sign of sadness or anger from the quietly speaking Y��suke.


    "I still have the feeling of that time in my... hands." He looks down at his outstretched hands and stares at the palms of them. "It''s the sensation of my fingertips touching the tablet and pressing my approval. I can''t forget it."


    Y��suke, who works day and night for his ssmates, doesn''t show much weakness. But he''s struggling to put the me for Airi''s expulsion on the same level as me.


    "I know what you were thinking at that time. There was no way you would have agreed to expel Airi, who had done no harm in the exam. But still, you persevered. You could have said at thest minute that you didn''t agree with it, but you restrained yourself from saying it."


    If heined about the situation and made them face it, our ssmates would regain theirposure. A broader perspective, narrowed by the pressure of time running out, would have made unanimity impossible.


    "Our ss must move up to ss A. That''s the most important thing, I told myself."


    You know it in your head, but you can''t convince yourself of it. I guess that''s about it.


    "We have three students that are absent. I wonder how long this will continue. Seeing the reality that students with lower grades are being cut, it really did induce some fear within the students. The cheerful ss we hadst week is still like a lie, isn''t it?"


    Even though they''re working towards a solution, they''re probably still suffering and answering to themselves about the same thing over and over again.


    "I''m well aware that you''re not happy with the choices Horikita and I have made. But we have to ept that. We just have to understand how good our ss is right now and bite the bullet. That''s why Horikita needs a lot of support. Sometimes you choose the right path, and sometimes you choose the wrong path. And there will be times when you choose an uncertain path."


    Even if he told them, not everything could be digested in Y��suke''s mind.


    "I-I-I should have chosen to r-run out of time... and..." Y��suke''s shoulders shake slightly as he can no longer hold it in.


    It''s not like Y��suke wants to think about sacrificing someone else. But the fact that he was able to make a decision in that situation is a definite sign of growth.


    "Am I getting stronger, or have I broken down? If it happens again, I''m afraid I won''t know what decisions I''ll make."


    I couldn''t see his face because he was looking down, but he rubbed his eyes once with his sleeve before raising his head.


    "I''m sorry for being so weak, even though I''m sure you''re in more pain, Kiyotaka-kun."


    "It''s okay. Both Horikita and I were saved by Y��suke many times in the special exam. It''s going to be a much tougher battle from now on. I hope you will continue to lend your strength to the ss." Y��suke nodded. He would still be heartbroken, but he still smiled slightly.


    Y��suke reached for the front door, but stopped himself.


    "Thank you for everything today." "Do you hold a grudge against me for expelling Airi?"


    Unlike the other students, Y��suke didn''t show it outwardly, but it wouldn''t be surprising if he did.


    "If you only look at that point, yes, I do. But I believe in you." He thought to himself as he put it into words, but then added more as if he wasn''t convinced.


    "No. I want to believe in you."


    If it was a kind of delusional belief, Y��suke''s thoughts would be dangerous. However, there is definitely a will behind his eyes. A firm demand that I''m worthy to be believed in, and I wouldn''t ever betray him.


    "Well then, good night."


    I suppose I could have removed some of Y��suke''s burden, but on the contrary, I might have given him a new one. It would be convenient if I could take this opportunity to thoroughly drain the negative emotions out of him.


    I''m not sure how much of an effect this will have, but I''m sure we''ll have to follow through step by step.

 Chapter 232: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 232: 2.2</h4>


    The next day, the three empty seats were still there.


    Of course, the chaos in the ssroom still hadn''t calmed down. The first prerequisite for a fundamental solution was for the three of them toe to school.


    "Hey. Wanna go to the bathroom with me?"


    Sud�� called out to me while I was sitting at my desk touching my phone, waiting for my next ss. An unusual invitation. He said he was going to the restroom, but his face was serious. The fact that he wanted to use the restroom was just an excuse, and he had a purpose beyond that.


    It''s the same as Y��suke and Kei, he wants my opinion on something.


    "Ah. I guess so."


    There was no reason to refuse, so I left my seat and discreetly left the ssroom in the flow of the two of us going to the bathroom. Thanks to my convenient seating ce, it wasn''t much of an issue. However, one student soon followed us.


    "Sud��-kun. I''d like to talk to you for a minute, if that''s okay."


    She seemed to have some business with Sud�� and was trying to time his appearance in the hallway.


    "What is it, Onodera?"


    Onodera stopped talking when she saw me standing next to Sud��.


    "Ah, you''re with Ayanok��ji-kun. Well I needed to tell you about something so..."


    It seems like my presence was an unwee one. However, since it was Sud�� who asked me out during the break, I had no choice but to stay.


    "We''re both going to the bathroom. Can''t this wait?"


    "Well, I don''t know." She looks a little lost, as if she doesn''t want me to hear what he has to say.


    "Can I wait here? I want to talk to you as soon as possible, if that''s okay with you..."


    Onodera decided that if we were going to the bathroom, she would just wait for us, but this time Sud�� looks embarrassed. If he had something to discuss with me, it wouldn''t take more than a minute or two.


    "Well, I''ll ask you now. Ayanok��ji can keep waiting."


    Just when I was ready to talkter, I was confused by Sud��''s unexpected response.


    Onodera looked somewhat resistant, but she scratched the back of her head lightly and cut to the chase.


    "The individual rewards for this sports festival are evaluated by gender, right? I''m thinking that Sud��-kun will naturally go for the first ce among men, is that correct?"


    "Of course. This sports festival is the biggest chance for me to shine." He answers confidently, which makes sense.


    Onodera nodded in satisfaction at his powerful reply.


    "Actually, I have a lot riding on this sports festival. Being first among the girls is a step towards ss A. It''s not often that I get a chance topete in something I''m good at."


    She is an aplished swimmer, but she also showed her sprinter side atst year''s sports festival. Her OAA physical ability is also near perfect, and she is a student with an extraordinary talent for sports in general.


    Onodera is expected to be good enough to adapt and win in a variety ofpetitions.


    "I think you might be able to get first ce. I''m seriously rooting for you."


    "Thanks. But even if you can win some individualpetitions, there''s no guarantee that you''ll get first ce in everything, right?"


    "Why not, if I keep winning first ce..."


    Sud��''s idea of thinking that only taking first ce would be enough wasn''t wrong, but in reality, they might end up losing in unexpected ways.


    "It''s because of the high score of the teampetition, right?"


    I supplemented, and Onodera gave me another hard look, but nodded in agreement. Onodera seemed to be harboring a kind of distrust towards me.


    The other day at the unanimous special exam, I cut off my own group of friends. No wonder some of the students reacted this way.


    "Well, that''s for sure. If there''s a guy who takes first ce in every teampetition, he might be bad. But even so, it''s not so easy to form a team, is it? If the teams are unbnced, we could end up slipping and losing. I don''t like the idea of having five or six people in a team fight.


    If everyone was on the same level as him, Sud�� would be satisfied. However, in reality, there are students who are dragging their feet. As a result, it is quite possible that they will lose thepetition because of it.


    That''s what the struggle in a grouppetition is all about.


    "Yeah. I''m not thinking about arge number of people either. But... What if we can participate in apetition with two people who are sure to win? Moreover, there are somepetitions that can be participated in only by pairs of men and women, right?"


    At this point, Sud�� also starts to guess the purpose of why Onodera was talking to him about.


    "Sud��-kun and I will have no trouble cooperating with each other. If we''re going to team up, I''d like to choose the best partner possible, don''t you think?"


    It''s a ss take-away, and it won''t be a detriment to trying to get first ce in the gender division.


    "So you''re saying I''m the best partner for you... I guess I am."


    "That''s what I mean. Unless, of course, you have an objection to it, Sud��-kun. The ss is in a bit of a bad mood right now, isn''t it? Sakura-san has been expelled, Hasebe-san and Wang-san are also absent." She turned her gaze to me for a moment, but then quickly turned it back to Sud��. "That''s why we have to lead the ss."


    Sud�� didn''t feel bad about the invitation based on the recognition of his abilities, but he wasn''t very crisp.


    "Am I not strong enough?"


    "No, that''s not it. I''m not gonna deny that you have game."


    Even though he had absolute faith in her physical abilities, there seemed to be something else that bothered him.


    "You don''t want to be paired with anyone other than Horikita-san?"


    "W-what? No no, that''s not true..." He looked ufortable at Onodera''s point.


    Pairing up with a partner you like. It''s true that this may be very important to Sud�� in addition to his ability. As long as he can''t participate in swimmingpetitions, there won''t be much difference between Horikita and Onodera.


    "You know, there''s K��enji. I hate to admit it, but he''s better than me."


    "That may be true about your ability. But I don''t trust K��enji-kun. I hate him more than anything."


    Onodera clearly rejects K��enji. Her appeal to Sud�� is genuine, but how will Sud�� respond?


    "What are you going to do... if I say no?"


    "If there''s anyone else in the ss who has the ability and seems trustworthy, it''s... well, only Hirata-kun, but I''m not going to ask him to be a pair, you know? I don''t want to be misunderstood in any way.


    Being paired with Y��suke, who was immensely popr with the girls, would be more than just one or two teases.


    "So, if Sud��-kun says no, then it''s like you''re going to go as far as you can on your own?" She doesn''t threaten him in the slightest, but simply states the facts.


    The first ce of the school year is in jeopardy, but I can imagine her earning a solid amount of points.


    The decision between Onodera and Horikita upset Sud��, but when he saw Onodera''s determination, he immediately regained hisposure. It was because he realized that he had been trying to refuse Onodera''s invitation for some silly reason.


    "I''m down for it. Let''s pair up, and win this thing, yeah?"


    "Really?"


    "For sure. Let''s use our power to carry this ss."


    With that, Sud�� immediately extended his arm and asked Onodera to shake his hand. After staring at it, Onodera also responded to the handshake strongly.


    "I like your style, Sud��-kun. Let''s definitely take first ce in the male and female categories together."


    Satisfied with the conclusion of the contract, Onodera heads back to the ssroom.


    "It turned out kind of unexpectedly, but it''s okay, right?"


    "I think so. I''m sure you wanted to team up with Horikita, but it''s better to work with Onodera and show 100% of your strength than to have a bad distraction."


    "That''s..."


    There were only about five minutes left, but I headed to the bathroom as originally nned.


    "Hey, by the way. I wanted to talk about Kanji, Shinohara, and the rted stuff..."


    "Is it rted to the revtions of Kushida?"


    "Honestly, I don''t think it''s a good idea, their rtionship is so awkward now."


    "Wouldn''t it be more interesting if the two of them broke up?"


    "I hope that''s a joke. I''m really hoping that the two of them can work it out."


    I asked him as a test, but he seemed to be genuinely worried.


    "But unfortunately, I don''t have much of a rtionship with them. There''s nothing I can do for you."


    "Can you at least give me some advice?"


    "We can''t solve the problem without talking about it. Whether what Kushida said is true or false is a separate issue at this point, and you may need to expose each other''s feelings."


    "Isn''t that a bad idea? It could make things even worse than they already are."


    "That''s right. That''s why we need someone who can control the situation. You have to be able to listen to both sides of the conversation and calm the flow of the conversation that''s about to get disrupted."


    "Oh, I can''t do that, can I?"


    "Then you''ll have to ask someone who can do that."


    I won''t give an answer here, but let Sud�� think about it.


    "If that''s true, this kind of role would be done by Kushida, right..?"


    "Correct, but that''s not avable now. If we can''t rely on Kushida, then we''ll have to use another student."


    The answer is so simple that it doesn''t even take him a second to guess it"


    "So, Hirata?" Sud�� has an immediate idea.


    Although Sud�� doesn''t get along with Y��suke, this isn''t the situation to be talking about that.


    "Alright then, I''ll go ask for his help."


    Sud�� and Y��suke have a distant rtionship, but that may change after this incident.


    "Thanks, Ayanok��ji."


    "I didn''t do anything. You just thought about it and came up with the answer on your own."


    That''s how it seems to be these days.

 Chapter 233: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 233: 2.3</h4>


    Same day


    Each ss, or rather all the grades, are in full swing for the sports festival. As was the casest year, some of the events were already known, so the students made time to start practicing as if they were the real thing, using the ground and the gym during lunch break. They would want to spend as much time as possible practicing, especially for teampetitions where more than two peoplepete.


    The gymnasium I came to scout was filled with the sound of many energetic voices. It seemed that the gym was carefully equipped so that all the students, from the first year to the third year, had a certain amount of free space and could practice fairly. Today''s second-year students seemed to be ying volleyball and table tennis.


    The first thing that jumped out at me was therge number of participants in one of the sses, as well as the unusually high level of enthusiasm. They were raising their voices and actively discussing the tips and tricks of the game.


    "You can see how serious ss A is."


    "Yeah."


    I was here with Y��suke, and we calmly analyzed the students and said so.


    "Purely ss-based sportspetitions aren''t ss A''s strong suit, you know."


    "Yeah. For better or worse, there are a lot of students with average physical abilities, and only a few of them can get top prizes."


    Because they know that they are at a disadvantage in terms of overall strength, they are working together to raise their abilities as quickly as possible. He''s nning to practice and aim forpetitions where he can earn points for his experience.


    I can''t confirm her appearance, but I''m pretty sure it''s first and foremost Sakayanagi''s instructions.


    There are also students from Ichinose''s ss and Ry��en''s ss, but they still seem to be in limbo. I was hoping that one or two of them would show up, but even if they did, they would just be standing in a corner, unable to do anything under the circumstances.


    "We''re not out of the unanimous special exam yet. It''s not going to be easy to try to practice under those circumstances, is it?"


    "You''re right, there''s still a lot of uncertainty. But it''s not necessarily all doom and gloom."


    I tell Y��suke that Sud�� and Onodera have teamed up to be the number one male and female sophomores. The few pieces of good news made his cheeks rx, if only a little.


    "If we keep getting first ce in both the single and pairpetitions, we should be able to get enough top ces."


    "Those two have a good chance of winning, don''t they?"


    There was a great deal of hope, but it still took more than just the two of them to win the ss. A system that can temporarily cooperate with them is urgently needed, even if it''s full of joints.


    "Speaking of which, Sud��-kun asked me to meet him after school today, before club activities. Could it be that Kiyotaka-kun is involved behind the scenes?"


    "I didn''t do anything. I''m sure Sud�� thought about it himself and decided to ask for help."


    "It''s probably something rted to Shinohara-san, right?"


    "Sud�� probably thought that she couldn''t leave it like that."


    "But what about Mii-chan?"


    "I think I''ll take care of that one."


    "Kiyotaka-kun?"


    If I tell him that I''m going to leave it alone or leave it to the right people, Y��suke will have a hard time epting the situation. The reason why he''s still sticking to Mii-chan in this mess is probably because the element that he feels is ''his fault'' is stronger than the other students. Of course, it''s not Y��suke''s fault at all.


    While I remained quiet, I decided that Mii-chan was the one who could use a little push. The inability to use Y��suke as a key is one of the reasons for this.

 Chapter 234 - 3 : We Have To Try...

    <h4>Chapter 234: Chapter 3 : We Have To Try...</h4>


    LAST WEEKEND, AT the time of the special exam, was thest time, I Suzune Horikita, saw Kushida-san. A week after that, I didn''t see her even once until after school on Friday.


    That wasn''t all. Wang-san and Hasebe-san didn''te to school either. Five days, from Monday to Friday. In the meantime, school went on without them. Careful meetings and preparatory research for the sports festival. Student council work. Studying regrly.


    My knees shake and I feel like I''m about to fall over as I keep facing the waves as theye head on. But I can''t let myself fall here and now. I have dered that I will definitely bring her back, and I have no right toment when I have not achieved anything.


    I wanted to contact Ayanok��ji-kun several times, but I stopped myself each one of those times. There is a possibility that he will give me the answer that I am looking for. But at least in this case, it''s something I would have to solve on my own.


    "This concludes homeroom."


    As soon as Chabashira-sensei finished homeroom for the day and left the room, I quickly followed her.


    "Sensei, may I have a word with you?"


    "I don''t mind, let''s walk and talk."


    The hallway is conspicuous at this time of day as many students leave their seats to use the restroom. Perhaps sensing my intentions, Chabashira-sensei decided to take a walk and hear what I had to say.


    "It''s been five days since Kushida-san, Wang-san, and Hasebe-san have been absent from school."


    "Ah, yes. Hasebe and Wang called in sick, but they haven''t been seen at the hospital as a sick individual should be. As for Kushida, she''s just saying she''ll be absent and hasn''t given us any details."


    They weren''t gone for lighthearted reasons by any means. Even so, that doesn''t negate penalties our ss might start umting due to them not being present.


    "Are we in a state where we''ll start receiving severe penalties?"


    I''m not sure I''ll get a specific answer, but I''ll ask once. "Don''t worry about that. The rules are made so that honor students, especially Wang and Kushida, are given a longer grace period. As for Hasebe, as long as she isn''t a problem child, it''s not a big deal right now. These benefits only apply to students with no malicious track record or bad behavior in general."


    "In ordance with daily conduct, is that what you mean?"


    "That''s what I mean. There are energetic students who like to exploit the rules, and there are students who clumsily hurt their hearts and clock out a week. It''s hard to tell the difference. If that''s the case, the only way to judge is to look at their attitude and performance in school so far."


    I feel my heart lighten from her consolidation.


    "Besides, the school isn''t evil either. They don''t want to force you students into ss while something is already eating away at your consciousness. Anyway, the three students who are currently absent have never beente and have been diligent in their sses. They are fully qualified to be given a reprieve." Chabashira-sensei tells me this in a soft tone.


    She looked so different from her usual self that I wonder if there''s something behind it. It could be that she had changed after the special exam, which is something the ss often spectes about.


    "Most importantly, we understand that the school is also conducting a rigorous uing special exam."


    So, the fact that rest is needed and they are already mentally strained means they''ve been given more leeway to skip school.


    Checking that there is no one around, Chabashira-sensei pauses before continuing.


    "But the grace word is almost up. If they continue to be absent next week, the 100 ss points you''ve earned in desperation will be mercilessly diminished."


    Do something during this weekend, was the hidden message from sensei. But would I really be able to respond to that message? I wanted to ask sensei how I would go about doing such a thing, but my weakness was already starting to show little by little. That was something I wanted to avoid.


    "Thank you very much. You''ve been very helpful."


    "Hold on, Horikita. Do you still have something to say to me?"


    "No, I don''t wish to trouble you anymore, sensei."


    "You won''t know if it''s troublesome until you ask me. We still have a little time left, wouldn''t it be a little easier if you tried talking to someone?"


    I guess Chabashira-sensei can see through my shallow mental state. It would be a lie to say that I wasn''t hesitant, but I decided to be brave and confess my thoughts.


    "We got ss points by expelling Sakura-san. Was that the right thing to do?"


    "Do you regret your decision?"


    "I thought it was the right decision at the time. Even so... I can honestly say that I''m shaken now."


    "I wish I could show you the answer, but I can''t help you with this one."


    "I understand. As a teacher, you can''t give me an answer, can you?"


    "You''re mistaken. It''s just that at this point, I can''t tell myself whether you were right or not. It''s true that your decision was a bit dictatorial and self-serving, and some students may have seen it that way. You''re suffering from their judgment and you''re beginning to feel that you gave the wrong answer."


    That was painful to hear and I can''t say anything back.


    "But does it really matter that much? No human being is perfect from the start. We make simple additions and multiplications wrong, we learn, and then we move on. I''m walking through life full of mistakes too."


    "Mistakes, sensei...?"


    "That''s correct, back when I took the same special exam. I couldn''t answer the question before time ran out. In that respect, you gave an answer. I think you''re doing well. There is no one who can get 100 points without experience. At the time of the special exam, you were recognized as a leader and given authority. And you were ready to cut someone down to protect Kushida. Now it''s time to make them admit that it was the right decision."


    Sensei had just said something typical of a sensei. I was a little confused, as such things have rarely happened before.


    "You don''t have to try to get a hundred points at this stage; you can either cut the OAA bottom line reasonably, or you can prioritize yourmitments. There are two choices, and you need to ept the inconvenience."


    "You''re right..." I know she''s right. I know, and yet I''m still confused.


    "But... I also think that I may have been blind to my surroundings. I think that if I had listened more, I might have grasped a better, more correct answer."


    "It''s possible to lose sight of your surroundings. Andter, when the fever subsides, you may wonder if you made the right decision."


    I''ve never had that experience. I was so frustrated that I unconsciously clenched my fists.


    "You''ve always made decisions that were prestigious at best, or simple at worst, haven''t you? Of course, that''s normal. It''s just that we each have idiosyncrasies and this is the first time you''ve asked for a new option."


    "I suppose so..."


    I was given strong advice, yet I still couldn''t find the right response. I must have looked pathetic, but Chabashira-sensei treated me softly without being dismayed.


    "You fought within the rules presented to you by the school, didn''t you?"


    "Yes, but I broke my promise not to expel anyone except traitors."


    "You decided to protect Kushida from the start, and you lied and made that promise in order to consolidate the vote in favor?"


    "No! I was really ready to do that at that time. That much is true."


    "In that case, there''s nothing wrong with it. It''s important to keep your promises. However, even adults sometimes make mistakes in their promises. I know you changed your mind because you realized that leaving Kushida wasn''t the right thing to do. You are free to despise or ignore those who think poorly of you now. Some will follow you, some won''t, and uniting a ss of nearly forty students is no easy task, even for Ry��en, Ichinose, or Sakayanagi. The other students may be loyal and devoted on the surface, but you never know what they''re thinking on the inside." Chabashira-sensei said, cing a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Don''t be afraid to fail. I''m not an adult who can''t admit or forgive a child''s mistakes."


    "I haven''t failed yet."


    "That''s right. I''m willing to see the choices you make through to the end."


    After giving me a slightly troubled look, sensei looked me in the eye again. Her polite, stern but warm words almost make me choke up a little.


    "You''ve changed, Chabashira-sensei."


    I didn''t mean to say that, but it just came out. I suppose it''s what I honestly felt.


    "Is it that strange for me to act like a teacher now? Have I been treating you that coldly?"


    "I''m a little surprised, but it''s not strange."


    "Well, that''s good."


    Chabashira-sensei probably thought she had talked too much, and she coughed and cleared her throat while changing the subject.


    "What did Ayanok��ji say in regards to Kushida?"


    "Ayanok��ji-kun...? Nothing specific about her. If I had to say, I think he''s observing what I do."


    "I see. So he thinks it''s something you should solve on your own, huh?"


    "It may be that he just can''t deal with my mere selfishness."


    "I don''t know. Ayanok��ji was the one who took a drastic step with Kushida''s case. Even if you don''t trust him, I don''t think he''s one to leave you alone."


    "You''re selling Ayanok��ji-kun quite a bit, aren''t you? I remember you saying that Ayanok��ji-kun was the most defective product in our ss."


    "Why do you remember such an old statement?"


    "I know for sure that he''s better than his OAA."


    "I see that your evaluation of him has increased considerably."


    "There are some difficulties with his personality, but those aren''t limited to just Ayanok��ji-kun. I still don''t understand what you meant by him being defective."


    He is undoubtedly a brilliant man, more calm and collected than I am. I don''t see any reason for him to be ridiculed as a defective student.


    "You don''t have to take every single thing I say seriously. You''ve spent more time with him than I have, right?"


    "Still, I''d like to hear your reason."


    "In that case, my assessment hasn''t changed since before. No, I believe that the credibility of that assessment has increased."


    Chabashira-sensei still believes that Ayanok��ji-kun is defective, even after everything he''s done and shown us.


    "But you''re not ready to dwell on that now. You have other problems that you need to solve as soon as possible."


    "You aren''t wrong..."


    It was true that I was curious about him, but it could certainly be der. I have to make sure that Kushida-san, Wang-san, and Hasebe-sane back to school.


    "Do you think Kushida will be able to take your hand if you offer it to her?"


    "It''s hard to envision such a thing. No matter how much I visit or wait, she won''t open the door."


    "That''s harsh."


    She has countless opportunities to leave her dorm to get supplies when I''m in school, and hide out during the weekend.


    It''s pointless to try to attack her in such a way where I attempt to ambush her. I tried to contact her on her cell phone, but it never picked up.


    "She most likely understands that I''m on the other side of the door, pacing left and right, and it surely resonates with her somehow."


    "I suppose you have a point. That said, if you don''t make a move, things won''t progress and they''ll slowly get worse."


    "That''s right..."


    "When you can''t do anything on your own, it''s a good idea to ask for help from another person."


    "The only ssmate who would be willing to lend his strength to Kushida-san''s persuasion is Hirata-kun. He probably doesn''t have time for that right now either."


    Hirata-kun is currently upied with Wang-san and Shinohara-san.


    "Sure, Hirata would be a able to makerge impact. Although I''m not sure if he''ll have much effect on Kushida. I don''t think it would be easy to open the doors if you took someone like that with you. A righteous, sensible, good person."


    Somehow, I think I understand what sensei is trying to say. Hirata-kun would lie to make Kushida-san feel better, and she knows that.


    "I''m afraid I can''t think of anyone suitable at the moment, but it might not be a bad idea to look at someone other than your ssmates."


    "When I try to confront Kushida-san, I''m confronting her true feelings which rte to what happened in ss. It''s quite a disadvantage to tell that to an outsider."


    "I suppose you''ll have to work on bncing the advantages and disadvantages. Even so, that doesn''t necessarily mean you''re not allowed to tell them. Some of us teachers, for example, know about Kushida''s past, and some of us would probably let others know if we chose to. I believe that there are no such things as secrets."


    There is no such thing as a secret...? Maybe... there is someone who can move Kushida-san''s heart. No, even if they can''t move her heart, if there''s someone who can make a breakthrough, I think I need to visit...


    "It''s time to go. Let me say onest thing, and it may be meddlesome, but let me say it. The most important thing is what you want to change Kushida into. You need to think about that carefully."


    What do I want to change within Kushida-san?


    "Thank you very much, Sensei. Thanks to you, I feel more prepared."


    I still didn''t have an answer, but I had the energy to make an effort.


    "Don''t worry about it. As a teacher... this is my job." With that, Chabashira-sensei returned to the staff room.


    I continued to watch her from the stairs until I could no longer see her back.

 Chapter 235: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 235: 3.1</h4>


    When I returned to my dorm after shopping at Keyaki Mall, I found Ibuki ring at the entrance next to the elevator. I ignored her and pressed the elevator button, and she became angry as if she had been weaned.


    "Don''t ignore me!" She yelled at me with such force that spit flew out onto my face.


    I was ready to enter a long battle with Ibuki-san, but what the hell was going on? It seems like she''s going to follow me into the elevator. I had no choice but to stop and watch as the elevator doors opened to wee her.


    "Ignore you? What do you want from me?"


    "This! What did you mean by this sentence? Tell me the answer." She thrusts the screen of her cell phone in front of me, ring at me. A blinding light illuminates my eyeballs, but all I can see is white light.


    "Are you stupid? It''s too close to me, can you move back a little?"


    "Damn it! Come on!"


    She moved back a little bit , but I could read what it said right away, just by skimming through some of it.


    "That''s a well-written and impressive piece of writing. I''m sure it must have been written by an intelligent person."


    "Don''t pat yourself on the back! I mean, what''s so intelligent about this?"


    "Maybe if you read it out loud, you''d understand."


    "Huh? If you drop out of school when I have nothing to do with it, then of course you''ve lost to me."


    "Don''t be such a dumbass. Where''s the intelligence in that? No, that''s enough, just tell me what it means!"


    "You read it and didn''t get it?"


    "Not at all. I''ve been thinking about it all week and I didn''t get it. So what?" She huffs, sniffs and crosses her arms.


    I wasn''t expecting her not to understand my simple advice. No, I''d rather think it could be potentially effective.


    "It''s not something that makes sense to ask about now. You didn''t seem to have a problem with what I said, seeing as I got no response."


    "What? Exin it to me in a clearer way."


    She really doesn''t understand things. I wonder if all she has are her athleticism and fighting sense.


    "I wanted to give you some motivation to not be expelled. You aren''t well liked by your ssmates and could have been in jeopardy if the question during the exam had anything to do with your expulsion. To get back at me, you''d try to stay in school even if you didn''t want to, wouldn''t you?"


    "Don''t tell me you''re worried about... me?" She pulled away, looking not surprised, but truly sickened.


    "Don''t take this the wrong way. It''s just that there''s a lot left for you to help with. Even if you were dismissed from thest special exam, Ry��en-kun would gain 100 points, alongside abandoning you. If you''re going to leave anyway, it''s more profitable to have you disappear in the exam with a penalty attached to Ry��en-kun."


    She didn''t look a millimeter convinced when I tried to exin.


    "I think it''s time for me to leave, if you don''t mind."


    With her silently and angrily making way toward me, I pressed the elevator button again. Then as I get inside, I notice that Ibuki is not following me.


    "You''re not joining?"


    "I don''t want to get in the elevator with you."


    "Don''t be silly, we''ve been inside together a few times by ident."


    "I don''t feel like riding it right now."


    "Right. Then do what you want."


    Pressing the close button, I head for the floor where Kushida-san lives. From here, I must continue to persist until she opens the door for me. As the elevator ascends, I wonder if I will really be able to make a breakthrough. If I don''t try something else, it won''t change. If that''s the case, then what I''m about to do is nothing but a waste of time. I arrived at my destination floor and the door opened.


    Suddenly... I can''t move and I''m frozen in ce. What''s changed up until now that had let me talk with Kushida-san?


    Time passed and the elevator closed. Before I could press the open button, the elevator started moving and began to move downstairs.


    "Ugh..."


    I don''t think you can persuade Kushida-san toe face to face with you in her current state. I think back to the warm words from Chabashira-sensei.


    The elevator came straight back to the first floor. When the doors opened, Ibuki-san, who was looking down at her cell phone, took a step forward without noticing me. She looked up when she felt the presence of someone in the elevator, saw me, and let out a slight groan.


    "Why are you here? I can''t say I expected any other reaction.


    "You''re not getting in?"


    "I told you I''m not getting in! Are you harassing me?"


    Shaking my head, I reached out to press the close button again. Then I saw Ibuki-san averting her gaze and felt something tugging in my mind. Just before I touched the close button, I pressed the open button and stared at her. She looks at me, suspicious that the elevator isn''t closing.


    A breakthrough may be lying in an unexpected ce.


    Maybe it''s time to put Chabashira-sensei''s advice to use...


    "What the hell?"


    "I thought I''d ask you to help me with something."


    "Huh?"


    It''s a pretty big gamble, but it could be the ingredient to break the stalemate. An unseen breakthrough, and it might be a surprise ambush that takes us out of the stalemate we''re in right now. I know this is reckless, but for now, I''ll just have to try whatever it takes.


    "Get in."


    "How many times do I have to tell you I''m not getting in?"


    "Just get in."


    "What the hell?"


    I pushed the close button, checking on Ibuki, who got in, despite her irritation.


    "There''s something I need your advice on."


    "Excuse me? No no no, I am definitely not helping you with anything."


    "At least hear me out... Maybe it''ll benefit you."


    "Don''t get ahead of yourself. Just because you''re asking me about it, I know it''s bad news."


    While we were talking, the elevator reached the floor where Kushida-san''s room was located. I stepped out first and looked back at Ibuki-san, who was still in the elevator.


    "Get off. We don''t know who''s listening, so stay close."


    "I''m going home. I don''t know what that means."


    She presses the close button and tries to leave, but the elevator doors don''t close.


    "It looks like the elevator wants you to get off too."


    "That''s because you''re blocking it from the outside by pushing the button!"


    "Do you have any special desires? Like, things that are important to you?"


    "What does that have to do with anything?"


    "Just answer the question."


    "No."


    "Are you sure?"


    "No, uh, I don''t know... I can''t think of anything at all, but maybe strawberries?"


    "That''s surprisingly cute and cuddly for you, Ibuki-san. Enough, forget about what I just said."


    "Then why the hell did you ask?"


    As Ibuki-san grew unsurprisingly unhappy, I decided to cut to the chase. I realized that it would be better for her if I quickly shared my story and moved on to the next part of the n.


    "I''m going to go see Kushida-san now."


    "So? Why don''t you go see her on your own?"


    She hit the close button repeatedly, but of course it didn''t work.


    "It doesn''t work that way. She hasn''t shown up once in this entire week. I''ve been to her dormitory and she hasn''t shown any sign ofing out. I need you to get her out of her room. Do you understand?"


    "What? Wait, why do I have to do that?"


    "It''s another way of helping people."


    "If I don''t even help my ss, why would I help your ss?" I''ve already calcted that there''s no way Ibuki-san will ept my offer. But if there''s a benefit, it''s a different story. As the elevator is left open the whole time, the warning beeping starts.


    "Fine. Then I''ll give youpensation."


    "I don''t want it. If you think I''m money driven, you''re wrong."


    "I''m sure you aren''t. But I''m sure my sess fee will be something you strongly desire."


    "I don''t think there''s anything like that."


    Ibuki''s mind is not easy to move. But if you confront her with certain things, her thoughts will change one hundred and eighty degrees.


    "You can pre-register for up to five events of your choice for the sports festival. You are free to choose which events and which groups you want to participate in. The main purpose of this system is to be used to clear the required events, or to avoid strong opponents. On the other hand, it is also a system that allows you to fight against targeted opponents.


    When I had exined that much, Ibuki-san''s eyes, which had been unmotivated, lit up with color.


    "Since it''s you, you''re waiting without reservation to fight me, aren''t you? But unfortunately, I''m not going to decide until thest minute. Depending on the situation, there''s a good chance that you''ll make a move for thest slot. In other words, even if you aim and wait, your chance to fight won''te for a long time."


    "So you''re saying that if I cooperate, you''ll fight me?"


    "Yes. I''ll fight you in one of thepetitions of your choice. Of course, I won''t go easy on you because of your ss, so you won''t be able to pick up any points. That is, if you''re okay with it."


    "Ha. That''s interesting. But I''m not satisfied with just one. I''ll help you if you give me at least threepetitions, so we will have a best-of-three."


    "Three? That''s greedy..."


    I make a pretense of thinking as the warning beep goes off again.


    "It''s non-negotiable."


    She has a point, I agree that it''s not clear who would be better out of onepetition. On the other hand, if we y two or four rounds, there is always the possibility of a draw. It was expected from the beginning that the game would be decided by three rounds, but if you present the match at the beginning, you may be asking for five rounds.


    If she''s willing to ept three rounds, then we''re right on schedule.


    "Fine, I''ll face you for three rounds and join thepetition. Is that okay with you?"


    "Deal. No changing your mindter." With that, she stepped off the elevator. I took my hand off the button and the elevator began to slowly close its doors.


    "Of course. However... you''re going to have to help me out this time until we get this matter resolved."


    "Just tell me clearly what the goal is."


    "Kushida-sanes to school on Monday. That''s it."


    "How hard can that be? I mean, what''s the point if Kushida is absent? Everyone gets sick at least once in a while."


    Chabashira-sensei said that secrets shouldn''t matter when ites to resolving Kushida-san''s issue. The important thing is who I''m telling the secrets to.


    I decided to follow that advice and tell the whole story. If Ibuki is the kind of student who would blow up and tell everyone around her, it would be my fault for not yet realizing that. I need to find a way to break the ice now, even if it means pushing myself further.


    I told Ibuki-san everything about Kushida-san, I left no secrets. Ibuki-san only knows what kind of life she''s been leading through shallow encounters. But I exined to her Kushida-sans true nature, her way of thinking, and every detail of her current situation. While I was talking to her, Ibuki-san was listening to me with a disinterested look on her face, looking in some random direction.


    Normally, I would have been dissatisfied with such an attitude, but strangely enough, I felt saved by her method of listening. When I finished telling her the truth about why she was currently absent from school, Ibuki-san let out a sigh of exasperation.


    "Whatever." Without showing any strong interest in her true nature, she nonchntlymented on the fact.


    "You don''t seem surprised. Did you know anything about it?"


    "Nah, I just don''t believe in straight-up good guys. The same goes for Hirata and Ichinose. It''s a rule that people who pretend to be good people are always dark behind the scenes."


    "That''s an interesting way of thinking."


    She might have a surprisingly good point.


    "So, in your mind, is Ry��en-kun quite highly regarded? He''s not a good person on the surface but he''s not a good person behind the scenes either."


    "That''s why I hate him more. I also dislike guys who seem harmless like Ayanok��ji these days. People like that fucking piss me off."


    When you go that far, on the other hand, I wonder if there exists anyone that Ibuki-san finds likable...


    "Well, I don''t hate the idea of exposing a person like that. I''d enjoy asking them how it feels to be exposed as a bad person."


    If she goes too far, I''ll have to stop her, but that kind of forcefulness is something I need to learn from.


    "You want me to drag Kushida out of her hiding ce, right?"


    "Yes."


    Seeming quite confident, Ibuki-san walked lightly to the front of Kushida-san''s room.


    "Are you going to do this all by yourself?"


    "Just shut up and watch."


    Very well Ibuki-san, let''s see what you do.


    When she walked to the front of Kushida-san''s room, Ibuki-san suddenly held her stomach and kneeled down onto the floor.


    "Oh shit! Ouch ouch ouch!" She then let out a scream that echoed down the hallway.


    I couldn''t understand what she was doing for a moment, and stared at the scene in amazement.


    "This stomach-ache... I can''t! No way I can make it back in time..."


    A stomach-ache? Don''t tell me this is the best you''vee up with... Aside from that clich��d idea, it''s devastatingly poorly acted.


    To begin with, this is not the floor of Ibuki''s room. Even if the floors were the same, it would definitely be faster to run to your own room.


    "Uh, excuse me?! Can I use your toilet real quick?" She rapidly hit the chime on Kushida-san''s door and continued to do so for about ten seconds, but there was no sign of Kushida-san opening up from inside.


    It seems that asking Ibuki-san for help was an obvious mistake, I was ready to lose my head from all the pointless noise she was making. She continued to keep acting for a few dozen seconds until she got up and turned to face me with a straight face.


    "I thought she was home?"


    "First of all, I''m pretty sure she''s in her room."


    "Really? If she doesn''t get caught by that act, she''s quite a tough one, isn''t she?"


    "Yeah, I guess so." I said, motioning Ibuki-san to follow me. I instruct her to follow me quietly and open the box with the built-in electric meter attached to Kushida-san''s room. "You see a disk here, right? If the speed of this disk is slow, she''s probably not home. But if she''s at home and using the TV orputer, the rotation speed will increase." The disk was spinning slightly faster than normal. "Now you know it''s more likely that she''s at home, right?"


    "I didn''t know you knew about being a thief?"


    "I learned a lot about itst weekend while I was waiting for her. Don''t abuse it."


    "Of course I won''t" She answers while giving me a cold look.


    "Can you think of any other way? If you don''t, then I suppose we should give up now..."


    "We''re doing it wrong."


    "What?"


    "It''s a toss-up, but it''s okay, right? I''ll forcefully pull Kushida out." I feel like I should inquire further, but I see her spirit and decide to leave it to her once more. I keep my distance, and then she steps to the door again.


    "Hey, Kushida. I''ve heard a lot about you. I heard that you''ve been wearing a catsuit until now, and it was exposed in the exam?"


    When I wondered what she was going to do, she started bbering nonsense. For a moment, my brain thought I should stop her, but there was no point in doing so. Even if I stopped here, it would have already reached her ears.


    "That''s gotta hurt... How does it feel to go from being the most popr person in the world to falling down so low? How does it feel to fall from the podium?"


    The technique of stirring up agitation is much better than the deplorable acting she did earlier. Furthermore, Kushida-san might turn exquisitely angry because she''s being told by an outsider, Ibuki-san. But no sound came back. I guess rough treatment wasn''t enough...


    Ibuki-san didn''t change her expression, nor did she try to stop her words.


    "I heard the catsuit went hard... Can I see it?" She ms her right toe against the door extremely hard. "I''m so stressed out because of Horikita right now, I just want to see the suit."


    Honestly, that was Ibuki-san''s true intention, she didn''t want to save Kushida-san in the slightest. I''m sure she''s on the other side of the door listening...


    "Maybe kicking in the door of someone''s room isn''t such a bad idea. I can kind of understand how Ry��en feels."


    After a few such kicks, I heard a sound from inside the room. Despite this, as she was about to unleash more kicks, the door to the room suddenly unlocked.


    "It''s annoying, so can you please stop, Ibuki-san?" Kushida-san, in her pajamas, finally showed herself.


    I honestly didn''t expect Ibuki-san''s violent strategy to work... I''m a little shocked, wondering what all my efforts were for during the past week.


    "There she is. See? I knew she was that type of person."


    Maybe there were parts of Kushida-san''s personality that Ibuki-san could rte to...


    "Whatever you''re trying to do is pissing me off, can you stop?"


    "Are you more likable when you put on the catsuit or something?"


    "I''ve never actually liked you, you know. I can see Horikita-san over there, that was probably the reason you''re even here." Her mental state seems to be calm, judging by the fact that she used "san".


    Since there was no point in hiding, I walked without hesitation to the front of Kushida-san''s room.


    "If you don''t mind, I''d like toe inside your room. I''m getting a little tired of waiting around all the time."


    "Well, it''s no use trying to close it."


    She can''t close the door because Ibuki-san has one foot firmly inserted in the gap between the doors. Kushida-san looked down at the foot for a few seconds before suddenly, without warning, stomping on it.


    "Shit!" She continues to stomp forcefully, but Ibuki-san doesn''t pull her foot back either.


    "Yeah... it''s not closing." Kushida-san sighs.


    "That''s enough...!"


    I try to force the door open and step in, but she only retreats and greets us with a straight face.


    "Come on in, then. This may be thest time you''ll see me, so take your time." She says it with an implied tone, but I guess she''s been prepared to do something like that for a while. It was no small feat for Kushida-san to annoy the ss by maintaining the status quo indefinitely. She must have invited us in because she''s made up her mind about something. This is ourst chance, I guess. I could tell at a nce that Kushida-san''s room was being used in a clean and neat manner. I get the impression that she''s even more solid than I am in terms of her love of cleanliness.


    "Well, well, it''s pretty tidy." Ibuki-san says, looking around the room with a hint of admiration and surprise.


    Kushida-san saw this attitude and made a strange face.


    "Ibuki-san''s room looks like it''s in disarray, with her undressed clothes scattered all over the ce."


    "Wh-what? How do you know if you haven''t even seen it?"


    It''s clear from Ibuki-san''s reaction that it''s true.


    "Sit down. I''m not going to offer you anything to drink or snack on, but that''s okay, right?"


    "Yeah, no thanks."


    We looked at each other for a moment and then sat down. Kushida-san sat across from us, making it a two-on-one situation across the table.


    "You''ve been making noise in front of my room for so long, what do you want?"


    "You know what I want, don''t you? You''ve been out of school for the past week."


    "Oh..." With an absent-minded reply, Kusida-san continued. "Do you really think I''m going to go to school after what happened? I''m not really surprised, but you told this girl about me, didn''t you? Is that another way to get back at me?"


    "No, it isn''t. She wouldn''t carelessly tell anyone else."


    "Do you trust her?"


    "No, I don''t. It''s just that she doesn''t have anyone to talk to."


    "Hey!" Ibuki-san mmed her fist on the table and red at me, but I ignored her. It is true after all...


    "Even if that''s the case, you''re not thinking about my feelings, are you? I''m hurt."


    "Do you really have the right to say that?"


    "Even if I don''t, there''s no reason why you shouldn''t think about how I feel, Horikita-san."


    The sharp exchange of words quickly brought up new tension.


    "Let''s move the conversation forward. I know I have been inadequate in some respects. But you were the one who initiated the hostility in the first ce. Isn''t that right?"


    We were just ssmates, but she had always seen me as someone who should be expelled.


    "I won''t deny that point. But I can''t help it, I couldn''t stand you..."


    "I don''t know what I should have done. I look back on it now and I can''t get a clear answer."


    "I know, I know. I''ve thought about the same thing a few times. And I''vee to one conclusion. Maybe you should have voluntarily withdrawn from school for me, because I couldn''t stand your presence."


    "Don''t be absurd. That''s not a solution, it''s just your angry feelings."


    "It''splicated. But it''s the only argument I have."


    Although she answered my questions, it was hardly a friendly dialogue. I suppose they were just her true feelings.


    At first, I was trying to listen to her, but then she started to slowly stop talking and the lifeless look in her eyes returned.


    "I wonder if you''d be willing to help me and put all of this behind you."


    "I knew that''s what you were getting at, bute on, don''t make meugh."


    "You''re good enough and worth it."


    "I know."


    She answers immediately, not even showing any pretense of modesty.


    "I''d have thought you were super self-conscious..."


    To Ibuki-san''s muttered response, Kushida-san simply turns and stares at her.


    "Did you think so? Well it''s not very true. However, I wouldn''t expect someone with yourpetence to realize that."


    "Do you think you''re all that? Why don''t we go at it here or something?" Ibuki-san said and clenched her fists.


    "You''re even more of an idiot than I thought, Ibuki-san. That''s not whatpetence means, okay? Why don''t you take a look at OAA? My ability in this school is my good grades, right? I think the difference between me and Ibuki-san is more than physical aspects, don''t you?" Miffed, Ibuki-san took out her phone and checked the OAA. She thenpared it to her own overall strength, paled, and silently closed her phone.


    "I want you to use your high ability for the good of the ss. If you continue to be absent from school without permission, you will eventually lose your seat."


    "It''s already gone. As for you, you were prepared for the bacsh and opposed my leaving the school, right? So the one who would be troubled if I''m useless is you. I can understand why you would want to desperately try to persuade me toe back."


    The situation in the ss must have been palpable to Kushida.


    "I''ve lost. There''s no reason to stay anymore. But the reason why I stayed quiet at the end of that unanimous special exam was to damage you as much as possible.


    If I continue to be absent from school, the school will punish the ss that caused the truancy, right? And the me for that punishment will go to you."


    Indeed, if Kushida-san continues to be absent, the ss will be continuously damaged like a continuing poisoning. It was possible that the truancy strategy would eventually get clogged up with special exams, but Kushida-san would be able to aplish her revenge with flying colors.


    "There''s no gain in it for you, why keep this up?"


    "It''s toote, I have nothing to lose at this point. Isn''t it normal I give you a little roadblock?"


    "How is it normal? Don''t get carried away just because your OAA numbers are above average."


    Muttered Ibuki-san from next to me.


    "I invited you in just for the fun of it, but I guess I was right. You''re funny, Ibuki-san. If it was just me and Horikita-san, it would have been a boring conversation. I guess I was wrong when I said it was normal. What is normal to me must be abnormal to you."


    "So you admit that you have loose screws?"


    "Not in my eyes. To me, I do everything right and you do everything wrong. I can''t tolerate anything that doesn''t suit me."


    "That''s disgusting."


    "Whether it''s disgusting or not is irrelevant, I can''t just change my way of thinking... I was born that way."


    Kushida-san was acting more strange than usual, trying to keep a calm image as she let her dark thoughts spill. No... maybe she found it amusing.


    She was much more charming at the moment rather than when she was screaming and crying.


    "I''ll continue to be an issue until the school does something to force me to change my ways."


    Kushida-san deres that she will continue to hinder our ss with determination. I can tell she isn''t lying, as she preaches to me in a matter-of-fact voice.


    "What are you going to do?"


    "What am I going to do? Nothing, I have no choice but to have a talk with you like this."


    "You''re inconsiderate, aren''t you? You''re very different from Ayanok��ji-kun."


    At the mention of Ayanok��ji-kun''s name, Ibuki-san lifts her head up.


    "I thought I was taking advantage of him, but it seemed I was very wrong. On the contrary, he was nning to use it against me the entire time. I think he was someone I shouldn''t have made enemies with."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun is very different. It''s clear that he can see things deep into the future. It''s only recently that I''ve been made aware of this."


    "Then I suppose we''re in the same boat."


    "I suppose so."


    A bit of silence.


    "You''re mostly an idiot too, Horikita-san. It would have been so much easier if you had just cut me out."


    "Maybe I am an idiot. Unfounded intuition, unfounded confidence. That''s what you might take me for. However, there is no doubt that you are undeniably an excellent student. Although I can understand how my knowledge about past events the past and your desire to remove Ayanok��ji-kun have caused troubles, at least the reputation you have continued to contribute to the ss for a year and a half remains unchanged."


    Kushida-san has done well and she shouldn''t be ashamed of it.


    "If annoying the ss is really your top priority, you might be able to seed in your revenge if you just keep taking time off. But, is that what you want?"


    "What''s your point?"


    "I''m asking if that''s enough to satisfy you."


    "I can be satisfied. I don''t want anything more than that right now. No matter how many words you try to convince me, it''s useless, I won''t ever agree with you."


    I could never persuade her. Hearing such words, I felt as if I couldn''t say anything anymore. Surely I want Kushida-san toe to school as it would be beneficial for everyone, but I also want to prove that my choice was not a mistake.


    Kushida-san, who is right in front of me, knows that better than anything else. In the end, it''s still for my sake. It''s hard to say that it''s the best choice for Kushida-san toe back.


    "Maybe I was wrong about you."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I thought I was here to ''persuade'' you, but I was wrong. It was for myself and the ss. I wasn''t able to take your feelings into ount."


    "What? Now you''re going to pity me?"


    "I just realized that taking you out of a school that you don''t want to go to is over-ambitious."


    "Then I guess we''re done talking. If I drag my feet, Horikita-san will automatically fall too. I''ll be happy if you suffer through school without me for a long time."


    "That''s fine with me. But at the same time, it means you''ll suffer too."


    "I''ll suffer? Why''s that?"


    "Because you still have a ce to go back to and you''re going to lose it."


    "You''ve be so selfish. There is no ce to go back to."


    The more I think about her, the more one emotiones to mind.


    "You keep driving me crazy, don''t you Kushida-san..."


    "What are you on about...?"


    "I try to lean on you, but you can never support me because you''re a child. The point is, you''ve just made the wrong choice at every turn. This wouldn''t have happened if you hadn''t tried to get rid of me, especially since I don''t tell secrets and don''t actually know anything of the past. The same goes for Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Even then, I just can''t stand you."


    "That''s what kids are. You can''t stand it, so yoush out. That''s the same as a child."


    Ibuki-san, who was hit first by my words, bursts outughing. This irritated Kushida-san as she looked at Ibuki-san with annoyance.


    "We have to put up with such an act. You''re in high school, remember? All you have to do is walk to ss and you''re not even doing that. Don''t just lie on the ground and waste your time forever, just get up and walk by yourself."


    "Ha...you''re right, Horikita-san. But I''m a poor, poor girl who''s hurting. If I go to school now, my ssmates will smoke me out, and things won''t be the same as before. Isn''t it cruel to try to take me out of such a painful ce when you''re not even close to me?"


    "I''m not in a position to speak for others, but you''re not looking very good right now either."


    Kushida-san was at a loss for words.


    "The ss already knows who I am. I can''t mend my ways any more. I can''t fix it anymore. That''s what you think right now, right? When you cried and screamed in ss, you looked like a child. No, a toddler. I still feel like I''m dealing with that toddler right now."


    "Don''t be stupid!"


    She raises her hand and tries to p my cheek before I calmly grab her hand and stop it in motion.


    "You want to make fun of me, don''t you? You''re nothing more than a toddler, annoying me, annoying your ssmates, and making it your top priority just for your own pleasure."


    "So I''m supposed to be the only one who has to suffer, put up with, and help you and the rest of the ss?"


    "Don''t take this the wrong way. You''ve got solid power. Then use it for ''your own good''. It doesn''t matter what''s around you. If you act for yourself, and you''ve risen to ss A for yourself, that''s unquestionably your "achievement". And you can use the privilege of ss A to do whatever you want. If you want to do the same thing, this time go somece where no one knows about your past." Kushida-san red at me but she didn''t say anything.


    "You only have a year and a half of school left. It shouldn''t be that hard, should it? For the past year and a half, you''ve only been putting on a good front for your ssmates. It''s easier than that. Or is that not even possible with your abilities?"


    I could feel Kushida-san''s hands trembling with anger as I clenched them.


    But I''vee to another conclusion.


    "This is the only time I will be visiting here. The rest is for you to think about. If you''re still going to be my enemy after all I''ve told you, then I have no more treatment for you. You''ll remain a child for the rest of your life."


    "That means that while I''m standing still, Horikita-san will continue to move forward..."


    Even if I didn''t exin everything to her, Kushida-san could see where things stood now.


    "You''re going to be expelled. I''ll be graduating from ss A and fulfilling my own dreams. It''s a big difference."


    Kushida-san contemtes a future in which I''ve won, and it''s something I know she despises. School life is only a small percentage of a long life.


    "Do you really think that from here, I have a chance to go back to school?"


    "That''s up to you. You can decide whether you want to fight with your chin up high or wallow around in sadness and anger."


    Although I could still feel the strength in her arm, it was slowly fading away.


    "I''ll at least listen to you. Tell me what strategy you have in mind, Horikita-san."


    After many twists and turns, we arrived at a situation where Kushida-san was willing to listen.


    But I can''t try to fix things to make her feel better. I have to convince her with a n for her survival. I have several tentative answers, and I''ll reconstruct them here to arrive at the ideal answer.


    "I''m not going to spend my school life carrying you, Kushida-san."


    "No, I wouldn''t want that. But then, it''s impossible, right? My ssmates saw my true nature, and that fact can''t be changed no matter what, right?"


    "That''s true. But in other words, there is a possibility that you can recover yourself for those who haven''t seen your true nature, right?"


    Kushida-san showed a slight gesture of consideration, but muttered, "I don''t know."


    "Up until now, there were only a few people who knew the real me, like Horikita-san and Ayanok��ji-kun. That''s why I didn''t hesitate to mend my ways yet, but now we''ve got more people in our ss, right? Not only are there smart people, but there are also a lot of stupid and shitty students mixed in among them."


    Kushida-san had a point. But before I could react, Ibuki-san reacted.


    "You''re one to talk!" Ibuki-san overreacted when Kushida-san brought in other students.


    "I''m not talking about you, so what does it matter?" Replied Kushida-san.


    "If you can''t keep your mouth shut, Ibuki-san, you can leave, okay?"


    "Oh, yeah. Then I''ll leave. It''s okay if you keep your promise, right?"


    As she tries to stand up, I tell her what I need to tell her.


    "No, you can''t. If you leave now, it''ll be considered abandonment and I''ll have the contract voided."


    "Huh? What the fuck... Oh my god, then I''ll shut up and you can get on with it."


    "Contract? What does that mean?"


    "I''m only promising to fight her during the sports festival if she''ll help me get you to school."


    I quickly exined the reason for Ibuki-san being willing to help.


    "So that''s what it was about, huh? I was wondering why it was Ibuki-san, but that exins it..."


    "At least thanks to her, I was able to visit your room, so I need to thank her."


    Ibuki-san had a great deal of things to say, I could see it on her face. Even so, she stayed quiet as instructed.


    I admire her spirit, she''s willing to be patient in order to fight with me.


    "Back to the topic at hand, can I take that to mean that it''s painful to continue to y the role while your true nature is known?"


    "Yes, it is. You can do your best when you''re acting in a meaningful way, but you can''t do your best when you''re acting in a meaningless way, can you?"


    Up until now, if she expelled me or Ayanok��ji-kun, the meaning of continuing to act would live on. However, it was nearly impossible to expel the entire ss. In junior high school, when Kushida-san was in a simr situation, she brought the ss down and ended it all.


    She tried to do the same here, but it didn''t work out.


    "If you don''t want that, then you don''t have to hang out with your ssmates like you used to."


    "Huh?"


    That seemed to be a surprising response not only to the Kushida-san in front of me, but also to Ibuki-san, and both of them reacted simrly.


    "Even if you keep your mouth shut to some extent, there is no absolute guarantee. If that''s the case, it''s inevitable that the rest of the ss will stand around with the assumption that Kushida-san is a two-faced and troubled student."


    Kushida-san would then lose half of her effectiveness.


    She can study well and y sports, but she''s not top notch at either of them. Just another honor student. Even if she is superior to Sakura-san in her natural abilities, shecks charm in other areas.


    "I''m not trusted by anyone. I don''t think everyone would be satisfied with me anymore. Don''t you?"


    "It certainly wouldn''t be the same as it has been. But can I really say that I''vepletely lost faith in you? What do you think? Ibuki-san." I looked over to Ibuki-san, who was staring at the wall not even letting me know that she acknowledged my statement.


    "Ibuki-san, answer me."


    "You told me to shut up, didn''t you?"


    "I''ll allow you to speak."


    "What the hell, first shut up, then speak, I''m not your student or anything."


    "You don''t want topete? Then just tell me so..."


    "Oh, my God!" While scratching her head, Ibuki-san replied. "You''ve just been ying the good girl too long, that''s all. I don''t believe in the perfect good person, and I think you acted worse before. If I had to choose who to believe, the old you or the new you, I''d say the new you is more honest."


    She said what she thought quickly. I guess it sounded straightforward to Kushida-san because she didn''t have any tricks or wisdom.


    "Hahaha, that''s an interesting answer. I mean, you have an unusual way of thinking, don''t you? But not everyone is as unusual as Ibuki-san. If anything, normal people would hate her hair."


    "Well, she''s certainly not normal, that''s for sure."


    "Hey!"


    "But everyone has two sides to them, big or small. Ibuki-san appreciated the part of your true heart that acts for yourself above all else. That''s why you''ll never change your true intentions."


    This talk of making her change her true intentions was wrong to begin with.


    "And if you don''t change the way you speak and your tone of voice to the outside world like you have been doing, it will be difficult for those who haven''t seen your true nature to imagine what you really are. No matter how many words are used to exin it, a person cannot understand it until they experience it firsthand."


    "What do you mean?"


    "For example, Ichinose-san. She''s someone you could say is certainly more of a good person than Kushida-san. But the truth is that she''s really a violent, foul-mouthed person who likes other people''s failures more than anything else. Would you believe her right away if she told you that?"


    "That might be difficult. That girl seems like a really good person."


    "You''d have your doubts, though."


    "It''s not about Ichinose-san, it''s about the existence of good people, right?"


    "Well, you''d certainly have to see it in person to know for sure. I couldn''t know for sure just by hearing about it from Horikita-san."


    "Isn''t that right? At least for the past year and a half, Ichinose-san has been a good person. Even if someone were to make such a revtion, they wouldn''t believe it. Nevertheless, if all of her ssmates were to say out loud that Ichinose-san is that kind of person, we would naturally be suspicious. But I guess the image is still notpletely clear, is it?"


    No matter who says that Ichinose-san is ruthless and violent, I couldn''t believe it. Even if I was told repeatedly, I couldn''t believe it unless I saw it for myself.


    "It''s true that you can''t understand something until you experience it. In martial arts, there are times when you are warned that a technique is dangerous, but you don''t feel like it is at all. Then when you''re actually hit, you understand how amazing it is."


    "That''s exactly it, Ibuki-san."


    But as long as there are still doubts, they won''t trust youpletely.


    "That''s where your skillse in. You have to do the best you can with the way you''re going. It''s a fact that your fallout control andmunication skills are better than others."


    Whether or not she would be able to gain their trust beyond that was unknown at this point.


    "Even if that''s fine for the other sses, what about our other ssmates? Shinohara-san, Wang-san, Hasebe-san, would probably all resent me. I don''t know if I can unite with them.."


    "Maybe not with all of them. But it can produce results if you use your abilities to the best."


    Even if they just kept getting higher than average results, students who only got grades below Kushida wouldn''t be able toin easily.


    "If the untrustworthy side of youes out, I''ll help you."


    "Do you think I would honestly believe such sweet words? I''m afraid you''ll betray me."


    "Being doubtful is fine. I''ll ept your bitterness, but I''ve epted you even after you betrayed me."


    For Kushida-san, there is nothing to be afraid of, as she has already done it once before.


    It was all up to her to decide whether to stand up again or not. After staying quiet for a while, Kushida-san opened her eyes. Then she started mumbling something, but I couldn''t catch it. Eventually, she opened her eyes, as if she hade to a conclusion.


    "All right. I''ll fight for a year and a half just for me, and contribute to the ss. I won''t fight for Horikita-san or for my ssmates. That''s fine with you, right?"


    "I''m notining at all. I just want you to respond with results."


    Standing up, Kushida-san holds out her left hand instead of her fist.


    "Wasn''t it the other way aroundst time?"


    Kushida-san didn''t respond to the hand I offered all that time ago.


    "A left-handed handshake means hostility."


    "Is that so? Which hand did I offer you before?"


    "Left hand."


    It seems that she remembered clearly, as Kushida-san answered immediately. This time, it was her own left hand that was extended. I stood up and offered my left hand in response and we shook hands.


    "It''s like a hostilememoration, isn''t it?"


    "Don''t you think that''s more like us?"


    "I suppose it might be."


    She squeezed my hand back forcefully, and I squeezed it back. "Yes. There''s one thing I''ve been wanting to do to you, Horikita-san, if you don''t mind..."


    "Please go on. What is it?"


    "It''s..." She smiled and slowly extended her arms towards me.


    Her hands came close to my face. And as soon as she gently touched both cheeks, I felt a sharp pain surge through me.


    It was immediately after that that I realized that the pain was caused by being pinched on the cheek as hard as I could.


    "W-what are you doing...?"


    "I really hate you, Horikita-san." She said and pinched my cheek even harder. "I''ve been on edge since we met today, and I''m still on edge now that we''re cooperating. I just thought it would be bad stress to think that this would go on all the way from Monday. I need to let it dissipate like this for a bit." The force she put into it gained even more momentum and showed no signs of stopping.


    "Is that enough?"


    "No, no, no. It''s not enough."


    I was willing to ept a little bit of this, but Kushida-san was getting carried away and wouldn''t stop pulling on my cheeks.


    If she''s not going to loosen up at all, I have no choice but to retaliate.


    I reached out with both arms and pinched her cheeks in the same way.


    "Excuse me?"


    "I wonder if you''ll let me go now?"


    I assumed that she would stop once she felt the pain.


    "Come on Kushida-san, time to wipe that frown off your face."


    Without hesitating, I put all the strength I could into my fingertips and gripped back with the determination to tear her cheeks off.


    It''s a battle of wills and stubbornness when ites to such a thing.


    "You guys can keep going until you''re both shreds, I''m leaving." Ibuki-san, who was the only one that was still calm, said that and walked out of the room first.


    The battle of wills continued for two or three minutes, when the pain started to paralyze us.


    We both realized that we were making each other look incredibly stupid, and we both let go of each other''s face without a second thought.


    When I saw Kushida-san''s face turn bright red, I realized that I must be the same.


    "Come to school on Monday."


    "You''re so persistent. Can you please just leave?"


    Half-heartedly pushed out of the way, I walked out of her room and into the hallway.


    "Ouch..." Stroking my aching cheek, I looked towards the elevator and saw Ibuki-san getting in.


    "Were you waiting for me by any chance?"


    I said and walked to her, Ibuki-san stuck out her tongue and pressed the button for the elevator.


    "Maybe you have a talent for making people angry."


    Even so, it was thanks to her that I got to meet Kushida-san today. I''ll have to give her my all at the sports festival, just as she wanted.

 Chapter 236: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 236: 3.2</h4>


    I raised my heavy head then rolled myself out of bed. It wasn''t like I had a fever, but I had a mild headache that had been going on for a long time.


    The reason was obvious. I had skipped five days of school with a feeling of guilt. I''ve never missed a day of school before, except when I was sick. Tormented by the guilt, I try to think of something else to wipe out the feeling, but I fail to get it out of my head. If I could just get rid of it by trying to forget about it, I wouldn''t have taken five days off.


    I''ll have to do something for a change. I grabbed my cell phone and tapped on the photo folder, leaving several messages unread, and I essed the earliest records I had taken. Scrolling through the photos, I looked at them nostalgically.


    The first photo that made me stop was one taken just after I entered school, when I didn''t have anyone I could call friends yet.


    It was the first and only two-shot I took with Hirata-kun, who was smiling gently beside me while I was still unable to smile. I''m still not very good at smiling, but I think I''ve improved a lot since then.


    "I miss this..."


    School life in Japan, where I didn''t know my right from my left. Hirata-kun was the first person who helped me unwind when I was surrounded by tension. At that time, I was still unaware of my feelings of love. All I could think of was that he was good-looking, kind, and a wonderful person.


    I didn''t realize it because I didn''t have the time to fall in love in China, wherepetition was so strong and the level of study so high. I don''t know when I realized that I was in love, but from the day I became aware of it, I knew I would never put it into words.


    Hirata-kun is very popr and not someone I can reach.


    If I conveyed my feelings to him by mistake, it would only embarrass him. So I kept it to myself and was content to just be by his side.


    "And yet..."


    I was so embarrassed and scared just thinking about it again, tears welled up in my eyes.


    "How can I..."


    Everyone in my ss knew that I liked Hirata-kun. When I changed my seat, I''m sure they noticed that I was trying to be near him, right? I don''t know what I should act like when I go to school... After I came to this conclusion, I was struck by another guilty feeling. Sakura-san, who had shown both kindness and strictness to Hasebe-san, left the school. Her feelings must have been immeasurably painful. And yet, I was so full of myself that I pushed the button in favor of expulsion, just wishing that those exams would end.


    "It''s the worst..."


    I hated myself for being such a jerk, and I was in so much pain. I''m such a burden... I was about to turn off the screen of my cell phone because I didn''t want to look at myself smiling awkwardly when I remembered the email I had received from Ayanok��ji-kun on Monday night. I wonder how he is feeling right now. Is he still able to go to school after having his precious friend expelled by his own hands?


    If he is.. how is he doing it?


    I''d like to meet him and talk to him in person, so I read through the email that he sent me.


    [I want to talk to you in person.]


    "Oh..."


    Ayanok��ji-kun''s message was linked to mine, as if my feelings had be text. A phone number and room number are attached, just in case.


    Is he going to give me advice?


    There are a few people besides Ayanok��ji-kun who are worried about me. Are you okay? Do you want me to listen to you? Don''t force yourself, okay? While I was grateful for such kind words, I didn''t feel confident that any of them would lead to a solution.


    However, Ayanok��ji-kun can be different...


    I want you to listen to me. I want to hear what you have to say.


    "He wants me toe to...?"


    It was still 5:30 p.m.. It''s early for dinner but... I think it''s rude to visit him out of the blue. I paced back and forth in my room for a while, pondering, and time just flew by.


    I made up my mind and resolved to visit Ayanok��ji-kun. I pick up the phone nervously. Five times, six times... I hear the tenth ring, and I''m wondering if I should hang up.


    Ayanok��ji-kun answered the call, and I panicked and shouted.


    "Oh, um... this is Wang, Wang! Is this Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "You called me, didn''t you?"


    Ayanok��ji-kun''s slightly echoed voice and the sound of the shower running faintly reached my ears.


    "Yes. I''ve been having trouble leaving my room for a long time. I feel like I can get out now, so I was wondering if I could talk to Ayanok��ji-kun for a minute..."


    "Now?"


    "Is this a bad time...? I''m sorry for calling so suddenly. I''m not good at these things..."


    Maybe it''s just a bad time and I can''t do anything about it.


    "I don''t think so, but can you give me a moment of your time? I''ll be ready in half an hour, no, twenty minutes."


    Knowing how depressed I was, Ayanok��ji-kun said that to me.


    "Oh, thank you very much! I''ll be there in 20 minutes! Excuse me!"


    I was strangely nervous and hung up the phone immediately, unable to stand it.


    "Fuuu... I''m so thrilled."


    Maybe the fact that I hadn''t talked to someone in a week had an effect on me. While I waited, I made myself presentable and after almost 20 minutes, I got ready and left the room. When I opened the front door, which now felt heavier than usual...


    "Oh, it''s there again."


    There was a stic bag ced by my door.


    "They''vee again today."


    Inside are jellies, tea, and sandwiches.


    I first noticed it on Monday night when I quietly left my room to go to the convenience store.


    At first I thought that someone had just put it there by mistake, but the stic bag contained a small piece of paper with my room number written on it. It didn''t have the sender''s name on it though, so I didn''t know who it was.


    "Oh, there''s also a sd in there today but not quite my kind of sd..."


    Lots of protein, and a chicken caesar sd.


    Still, it''s kind of nice to see that the selection changes a bit every day.


    "I wonder who is doing this."


    There''s nothing else in the stic bag that could be a clue, and no receipt. Thanking them, I leave it at the door for now and take the stairs to the fourth floor where Ayanok��ji''s room is located. I feel strangely nervous on the floors where the boys'' room is located. With this in mind, I opened the door and entered the hallway, just as the door to a room opened. It looks exactly like Ayanok��ji-kun''s room. But the person who came out from inside...


    For a moment I wondered who it was, but it was Karuizawa-san. She didn''t have her usual nice ponytail, but her hair was smooth and straight.


    And the two of them were dressed roughly.


    Could it be that they were on a date in their room?


    If that''s the case, I must have made a ridiculously annoying phone call... I almost felt depressed again, but I couldn''t run back home. My eyes met with Karuizawa-san''s, who immediately took action to look around, as if other people were watching.


    "Speak of the devil, there she is." Said Karuizawa-san as she saw me walking up to Ayanok��ji-kuns door. "See youter, Kiyotaka!"


    Nervously, I took a deep breath, and Karuizawa-san also took two deep breaths. She might say something about Hirata-kun.


    "Ba, bye!"


    ?


    "Eh, what?"


    I brace myself, but she just says goodbye and walks past me without making eye contact.


    I stop her as she leaves in a hurry.


    "Um, Karuizawa-san!"


    "What?"


    "I''m sorry... for suddenly calling Ayanok��ji-kun, I''m sorry for disturbing you..."


    "That''s not true, not at all. Really."


    "But..."


    "You wanted to ask him for advice, didn''t you? You''re not going to call him now, right? It''s best to use your newfound courage."


    It seemed that my feelings had been conveyed over the phone after all. Karuizawa-san stopped and came back a bit and smiled gently at me.


    "Don''t hesitate to ask him for advice, I guess. That guy seems to have a lot to say, but he''s not very good at talking. Even then, I think he can give you an answer."


    "Yes."


    I''vee this far, I''vee this far. I have to put everything I''m thinking into it. I feel that Karuizawa-san has helped me to create that kind of feeling.


    "Well then, I''ll be waiting for you next Monday."


    She gave me an encouraging pep talk and she went straight to tapping the elevator''s up/down button in session. But when she realized that the elevator wouldn''t being soon, she left by the emergency exit stairs.


    "Thank you, Karuizawa-san."


    At least it didn''t look like she was unhappy with me.


    I always had a strong impression that she was scary when she got angry, but today Karuizawa-san seemed soft and kind... And now I don''t have time to think about anything else, so I hurried to Ayanok��ji-kun''s room.


    I pressed the chime and the door opened in about 30 seconds.


    Ayanok��ji-kun was silent as he weed me in, so I immediately started to get impatient.


    "Oh, um, I was contacted by... and... well, I just wanted to talk to you!"

 Chapter 237: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 237: 3.3</h4>


    Mii-chan came to my room at almost the exact time I had nned. I really wanted to send Kei back to her room a little earlier, but we were in the middle of something. I wanted to have a few more minutes to get ready, but I had to be careful not to change Mii-chan''s mind.


    "Don''t hesitate toe in."


    "Sorry to bother you...!"


    Mii-chan couldn''t hide her nervousness, but there was no pretense of turning back. From the little I saw of her, I could tell that she was trying very hard to get up on her own. Unlike Haruka and Kushida, she didn''t want to stay where she was.


    "Do you want something to drink?"


    "No, I''m fine. Thank you for your concern." She politely declined, and sat down on the carpet in a reserved manner.


    I also sat down across from her and prepared to talk.


    "The reason you''re here has something to do with the leaking of Kushida''s secrets regarding Y��suke, right?"


    Mii-chan''s shoulders jerked at the mention of his name, then she nodded quietly.


    "Also, I''d like to know what''s going on in ss. Shinohara-san, Matsushita-san, Hasebe-san... At least the ones who are hurting much more than I am. And also about Ayanok��ji-kun."


    I didn''t expect my name to be mentioned here, I suppose it isn''t surprising. From her perspective, it looks like I''ve cut off one of my friend groups with my bitter decision.


    "Aren''t you getting a lot of calls?"


    "Thankfully, there are a lot of people who are worried about me. But I just can''t see them. If I do, I''ll have to reply to them."


    She sees the messages and calls, but never checks them. Otherwise she''d be tempted to look at them.


    "Well then, I guess you''re right. It doesn''t have to be in order, but if you have any questions for me, feel free to ask."


    It''s not often that two people talk to each other alone like this. We don''t need to talk smoothly, but we can''t solve things if we are reserved. It''s better to find a way to get to know each other a little better.


    "Well, you know, I''d like to talk about the matter with Kushida-san... Ah, but before that... just to confirm, was it Ayanok��ji-kun who bought and ced various things in front of my room?"


    Mii-chan exins to me, as if to supplement myck of understanding. There was a person who delivered food to her once a day after she started taking a break from school. There was a piece of paper with only Mii-chan''s room number written on it, but nothing to identify the sender.


    For a moment, Y��suke came to mind, but there was no mention of him in the vicinity of Kushida and Haruka. Y��suke treats his ssmates equally, but if he were to offer it to Mii-chan, he would have done the same for the other students, and he would have told me about it in the several times we had met.


    "I''m sorry, but that''s not me, and I don''t think I have any idea what you''re talking about."


    "I see. That person also helped me a lot and... I wish I could thank them."


    "Well, whoever it is, it means that there are students who care that Mii-chan is absent."


    Some of them message her, some of them call her, some of them bring her gifts. Or even if they don''t contact her, there will be plenty of students around her who are worried about her.


    After nodding a bit happily, Mii-chan popped a question.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun is still going to school, right?"


    If she''s not in contact with the outside world, it''s not surprising that she doesn''t even know for sure that I''m attending. Of course, you wouldn''t expect someone who ims to consult with you to be sleeping away themselves.


    "I went to school, this week was no different."


    "Wasn''t it hard? No, it was hard, of course it was hard, but you didn''t think you''d hate going to school?"


    "That''s a difficult question to answer isn''t it? I''ve never been one to lead my ssmates on before, and I''m sure everyone was surprised by my actions in pushing my friend out of school."


    "Yes. It was different from the Ayanok��ji-kun I knew. It was a bit... scary."


    She is straightforward and honest, and frankly states what she feels.


    There is no point in talking about the superiority or inferiority of friends and ssmates here, or their priorities. Such things were exined in the special exam, and it''s not something to dig up now.


    "It''s just that I was never good at letting my emotions out, and no one noticed that. I think the only reason I can go to school now without missing a day is because I think it''s uncool."


    "I''ve thought about that a bit too. I don''t like the idea that by taking a day off I''m illustrating what Kushida-san said, that I''m hurting, and that people will know that. On Monday morning, I changed into my uniform and went to the door. But I couldn''t take the next step, and after taking a day off, the door became more and more distant and heavy. It''s all my fault, though..." Then, as if remembering, Mii-chan bowed her head. "I''m sorry I missed a week because of this."


    "You don''t need to say these things to me. It must have taken a reasonable amount of courage for you toe here. Besides, you haven''tpletely given up on going to school, have you?"


    "Of course I haven''t! I really want to go to school right away. But still... I''m so embarrassed and ashamed..."


    Secret thoughts. I''m not sure how many students were aware of it, but if it was exposed in a more public way, it''s understandable that she would be deeply hurt.


    "I can''t say that I can understand the position you''re in, or that I can rece you. But at least our ssmates are worried about you."


    "Yes..."


    "And it''s also true that you''re causing trouble for the ss right now."


    She gasped, stiffening as if I had pointed a gun to her head.


    It''s easy to put up words that are pleasing to the ear, but they only have the effect of postponing the conclusion. The side may seem like a rough treatment from the outside, but it works to touch the heart.


    "But fortunately, right now, Kushida and Haruka haven''t surfaced. But next week, we won''t know. What will happen if those twoe to school and only you remains absent? Do you understand?"


    Imagining your own situation is something even elementary school students can do.


    She nodded her head, her arms trembling slightly, as if fear was rising in her. If the stimtion was too strong, she wouldn''t take it easy, but surprisingly, there was no sign of danger. She was small and timid, but I judged that her core was rtively strong and would not be easily broken.


    "You can juste to school with an unsuspecting face. You don''t even have to tell Y��suke anything special."


    "But... I''m in the seat in front of Hirata-kun, and I''m... close to him."


    "Oh, by the way, when we were changing seats, you were the first one to grab the unpopr middle seat. Was that because you thought that Y��suke would take the seat behind you?"


    "Fuu..!"


    Because of her tant attitude, I knew the answer without her having it directly put into words.


    "That''s important. You''ve observed and understand Y��suke very well."


    "Ugh, this is embarrassing..." She hugged her knees and shook her face sideways. Apparently, shame is a stronger issue. "Well, did Hirata-kun say anything about me... Do you think he cares?"


    She steps into the part that must have been bothering her all along. But her face was hidden behind her knees so that I couldn''t peek at her.


    "Of course, he cares about you. A lot more than he cares about Kushida and Haruka."


    "That''s because he still feels annoyed... right?"


    As the party in question, it was natural that Y��suke would be more concerned than about the other issues.


    "It''s different from annoyance. That guy feels sorry for the opposite reason, that he caused you to stop going to school."


    "Oh no... Hirata-kun didn''t do anything wrong!"


    "I know. It''s just that you should know very well that he''s that kind of guy."


    Y��suke can be happy for someone else''s happiness as if it were his own. On the other hand, when someone is unhappy, he feels unhappy as if it were his own. That''s the kind of personality he has. Y��suke is also suffering because of Mii-chan''s own seclusion.


    Understanding this is the most effective and important thing to do in order to ovee the current situation.


    She looked up slowly and her eyes were a little red, but she didn''t show any tears as she lowered her knees.


    "It''s not that I didn''t think about it. It''s just that I didn''t think that Hirata-kun might be suffering because of me. But I put myself first and tried not to see it..."


    Apparently, I didn''t have to teach her from scratch, but just giving her a chance to reflect was enough. When looking at her as a sophomore in high school, it was safe to say that the student named Mii-chan was almostplete.


    "Your expression is different from earlier."


    "Thank you. I feel so much better after talking about everything. It''s thanks to you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I didn''t do much. It''s just that I happened to be there when you were recovering."


    "That''s not true. I thought that if it was Ayanok��ji-kun, he might be able to solve the problem if I met him, that''s what I thought."


    She told me firmly and bowed deeply.


    "I-I''ll definitely go to school on Monday, without fail."


    "I know. But when you really have a cold, you should honestly take a day off."


    "No, I''ll go to school on Monday, even if I have to crawl."


    I feel like she''s trying a little too much, but if she''s enthusiastic, that''s good enough for me.


    "Also, I''m worried about the person who''s been supplying me with food, because I''ve made them do a lot of shopping over the past five days, and I think the total amount is close to 10,000 points."


    If it''s just one person''s action, that could be a pretty hefty sum indeed.


    As she was leaving, she kept thanking me repeatedly, so I ushered her to leave quickly.


    "I guess it''s the result of my parents'' teachings. I understand if it''s a little too much."


    She''s too polite even to her ssmates. Although, that can be considered one of Mii-chan''s strengths. Now that I''ve solved one problem, I''d better finish what I left in my room. The number of students visiting my room has been increasingtely, so I can''t afford to becent.


    I can''t afford to be distracted, as I''m sure that Horikita, Y��suke or any other student coulde and visit me at any time. Just as I had resumed my quick cleanup, the doorbell rang again.


    I quickly looked at my cell phone, but there was no notification of any contact from Kei or any of her friends.


    An unannounced visitor. That''s extremely bothersome timing.


    I''ll try to stay silent for a while. In some cases, I could have used the answering machine. But about 30 secondster, the doorbell rang once again.


    It was dusk, and after turning off the lights in the room, I decided to slide the lid of the peephole and look through the hole into the hallway, killing any sign of my presence.


    The person I least wanted to see was standing there, a freshman named Amasawa Ichika.


    Thinking back, this had happened to me sometime ago. I remember that day, too, the timing of her was bad, and I didn''t want her toe inside. Seeing that she was wearing her school uniform even though it was Saturday, I wondered if she was visiting school. Should I view her visit as a mere appearance or as a deliberate act?


    Considering what happenedst time, I couldn''t help but wonder if it was intentional this time as well. She obviously knew I was in the room and came to visit me.


    In the meantime, the doorbell rang for the third time.


    "Hi, Senpai~ I''vee to visit you!"


    As I was still looking for a response, Amasawa called out to me in a sweet voice.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m in the middle of something. Could youe by tomorrow?"


    "That''s not going to happen. I''ve heard that my senpai is doing something bad with the girls, so I''vee to investigate. If you don''t open the door, we''ll have a problem!"


    A voice echoed through the hallway, trying to force the door open.


    If I let her speeches go unchecked, the neighbors would eventually hear themotion. I had no choice but to open the door and face Amasawa.


    "Where did you hear that I was bringing girls in?"


    "I''m the source of that information."


    "That''s a totally unreliable source."


    "That''s not true. You brought in Karuizawa-senpai and Wang-senpai today."


    It wasn''t just a hunch. She didn''t hesitate to mention the names of both of them. Even if she could have guessed Kei at random, that would not be the case with Mii-chan. She clearly knows my movements.


    "Oh, I''d like to reassure you that I didn''t nt any listening devices in your room, okay? The school seems to be doing a thorough inspection."


    It''s true that you can''t buy those kinds of nosy things through mail order. However, there is a way to obtain them, but only for Amasawa.


    "I wouldn''t be surprised if you had one or two in your possession from when you were connected to Tsukishiro."


    She simply continued to smile at me, even after I pointed that fact out.


    "Can Ie in for now? I''m sorry to disturb you."


    Before I could give her permission, Amasawa walked into the room with the momentum of taking off her shoes. She then began scurrying around the room without reservation.


    "What are you doing here?"


    "Huh? Ohhh, I''m just checking the room."


    I would like an answer as to why she needs to check the room.


    Amasawa, who continues to rummage without hesitation, approaches the bed with her gaze.


    "You''re probably wondering how I was able to guess about Wang-senpai, right? Did I happen to see here and go, or do I know her in some way?"


    "Do you always go into people''s rooms to brag about your own informationwork?"


    Quickly affirming without denying, Amasawa touched the bed with her hand. While fixing the wrinkles in the sheet, she was searching for something with her fingertips in every corner.


    I sat down on the carpet and observed Amasawa, who would investigate until she was satisfied.


    "Senpai''s girlfriend has long hair, doesn''t she? That means you like girls with long hair, right? That''s why I''m growing mine out little by little."


    She continued to move her hands and eyes while talking about her hair, which I hadn''t even asked her about. I couldn''t force her to stop, so I had no choice but to watch her, when she suddenly stopped moving.


    Then she picks up something from near the pillow of the bed with her index finger and thumb and lifts it up.


    "What''s this?"


    She holds up a strand of long, golden hair as if it were the head of a demon.


    "It must be Kei''s. Shees to visit often these days."


    "I''m sure she does, but why is it near the pillow?"


    "I''m sure there are many possible cases, but do I have to list them one by one?"


    "No, no. There''s no need for that~"


    Then she got down on all fours on her knees on the floor and started looking at the floor like a detective, searching for something.


    I don''t know what she''s looking for, but I doubt she''ll be satisfied.


    "Did they teach your generation how to ransack people''s rooms in the White Room?"


    When I posed a question about the White Room, Amasawa stopped dead in her tracks.


    "Don''t you have any doubts, senpai? Those, who were sent to this school in order to get you expelled, could still be blending into everyday life without being noticed by my senpai?"


    "At least you seem to have been branded as disqualified and unwanted by the White Room."


    "I won''t deny that, but then what do you think about other potential candidates?"


    "I''m not interested."


    "Well, you''re right. If you''re still wary, you won''t act carelessly.


    "I''d rmend that you leave me and yourself out of it and just enjoy your school life."


    "I agree with that. I think you should do the same..."


    After a short pause, Amasawa continued her search. With her back to me and her butt sticking out, her underwear was slightly visible through the short length of her uniform skirt.


    It''s not like she didn''t notice, but she continued to crawl while pretending to act as if she didn''t care.


    As she crawled under the bed, her underwear became even more exposed.


    "You''re glued to my underwear, you''re so naughty, senpai."


    "I''m sorry, but I''m more wary of what you''ll do to me if I take my eyes off you than if I''m looking at your underwear."


    As I keep my eyes on Amasawa, she pulls her face out of the bed and looks back at me, looking far too mature to be my kouhai, and crawls straight up to me.


    "I think you''re getting out of control, don''t you? I think you''re confusing the means with the end. That person is more concerned with getting his senior expelled than he is with getting himself back into the White Room."


    A murmur at close range, only a few centimeters between our lips.


    A sweet smell reaches my nostrils.


    "They seem like quite the nuisance, don''t they?"


    "For a senpai, yes it is. So I''ve been thinking about ittely. I''ve been thinking that it would be better if I told my senpai, who I really adore, and ask him to lead me away~"


    "Or maybe I''ll be the one to be led away."


    "Fufufu~ that''s hrious."


    I didn''t seem to find the topic of my kidnapping back to the White Room all that amusing.


    "What shall we do? Do you want to hear the name perhaps...?"


    As she got even closer, about an inch, Amasawa waited for my response.


    "I appreciate the suggestion. But I''ll refrain from asking."


    "Is it because you''re not confident that you can win when you hear their name?"


    "If their identity leaks out from an unexpected source, you''ll be the first one to be suspected. What will be the result of that?"


    "They, of course, might point the finger at me."


    "There''s no need to make your school life ufortable just to find out what I am."


    I wouldn''t show any mercy if she stood in my way as an enemy, but Amasawa doesn''t seem to be doing that at the moment.


    "You''re very kind, senpai."


    Besides, trusting her too much in a bad way is also a problem. If she was acting with some strategy, I couldn''t deny the possibility that this statement of Amasawa''s was also a trap.


    "Now that you''ve rejected me, I''m going home."


    "Did youe all the way to my room just to tell me that? Or did you mainlye to look for trash?"


    "Hmmm I wonder..." Laughing devilishly, Amasawa quickly turned her attention to the burnable garbage bag that didn''t contain much in the kitchen as she tried to head for the door.


    "I''ve visited your room a few times, but today you take out very little garbage, don''t you? I thought you were the type to fill the bag to the brim with garbage like this and then throw it away."


    "It''s just that there''s so much food waste from vegetables and fish that I''m notfortable leaving it until next week."


    "In that case, would you like me to take out the trash on my way home?"


    "I''m sorry, but it''s forbidden to take out the trash after eight o''clock at night."


    "I see you''re following thew."


    I hadn''t expected Amasawa''s visit, but I had finally been tipped off as to her true motive foring here.


    "I see a little of the purpose for which you came here today. You''vee to visit me to make your current proposal. The reason you were searching every inch of the room was because you were wary that someone else might be listening in."


    The fact that she pretended to ransack and find something private about me personally was all because she was on the lookout. Amasawa was wary that the White Room students had already done what she feared.


    "Senpai, oh senpai. I''m sure senpai will be fine, but still, if I''m expelled from school, please consider that something unexpected is going to happen to you as well." On her way out, Amasawa left the room with those words.


    I checked my phone to see if there was anything unusual, and found that I had received a chat from Akito.


    That was good news for a start. As a member of the group, he might have seeded in convincing Haruka toe to school. The problem is that the message was not sent in the group chat of the Ayanok��ji Group. After staring at the screen for a while, a new text was sent to me.


    The text itself was in and simple:


    [Please keep a quiet eye on Haruka for a while.]


    The text itself is in, but the "quiet" part is emphasized.


    She''ll go to school, but she doesn''t want to talk to me. If I talk to her carelessly, she might not go to school again. I guess that''s the reason. I have no objection at all if shees back to school.


    [All right. I''ll be very careful.]


    [Thank you. I hope you can be friends again.]


    After a little while and after a few encouraging texts from Akito, I ended the chat.


    "Another problem solved..."


    However, this fix is not a true solution. It''s better to think of it as just a temporary revival of Haruka.


    The dizzying few hours were over, and I was feeling a greater fatigue than usual.


    "I think I''ll go to bed early today."


    I''ll just have to make sure I remember to take out the trash.

 Chapter 238: 3.4

    <h4>Chapter 238: 3.4</h4>


    Monday came around again. Saturday was a big day, with Mii-chan directly consulting me, and Akito indirectly informing me of Haruka''s intention to go to school.


    Still, there was no guarantee that she woulde to school, and it was up to her to decide whether she wanted to or not. As for Kushida, I haven''t received a single call from Horikita until this morning. Even if she dide to school, there was no telling how she and her ssmates would react.


    I arrived at school at the same time as usual, and sat down to wait for the three of them to arrive. After about a quarter of the ss had arrived at school, I saw the surprised smiles of some of the girls.


    Mii-chan walked into the ssroom in a reserved manner.


    "Oh, good morning..."


    Mii-chan, who hade to school prepared to be tormented, looked up fearfully. But her worries vanished into thin air, as the girls immediately weed her without mentioning the subject in any way.


    "Good morning, Mii-chan."


    "Oh, good morning, Hirata-kun."


    And he also wees Mii-chan back with a smile that hasn''t changed one bit. At this point, I don''t know if there is a way forward for Mii-chan''s love life. However, even if it hasn''t started, it certainly hasn''t ended. It is conceivable that there will be a major turning point in their school life in the future.


    After that, the girls never left Mii-chan, who was still somewhat tense, and they startedughing about what had happened at schoolst week.


    After most of the ssmates had arrived at school, Haruka showed up at the door. Akito apanied her to her seat, following her to prevent her from running away, as if she might do so at any moment.


    Keisei was a little hesitant, but he made up his mind and walked over to Haruka and called out to her. I never thought I''d see the day when I''d be d I wasn''t around those three people when we switched seats.


    Haruka looked at me for a moment, but then quickly looked away and down at her cell phone.


    Mii-chan and Haruka both came to school. They have friends who support them when they are in pain. For Mii-chan, it was many of the girls. For Haruka, it was Akito and Keisei. Even though they aren''t that many, they can be called best friends.


    For the moment, it seems that the ss has avoided the negative impact we were all fearing.


    But what about Kushida?


    With less than three minutes to go before morning homeroom, a stiff-faced Horikita came to school alone. After a quick nce at Kushida''s seat, she took her own seat and stared straight at the ckboard.


    She was not in the lobby this morning, so I was hoping that she would be there, but I guess she was not. Shinohara and some of the other students must have thought the same thing when they saw Horikita. Eventually, the bell rang and it was time for homeroom.


    Chabashira-sensei appeared in the ssroom, with all the seats filled except Kushida''s.


    "I see you two are feeling better. It looks like it was a long cold, but you''ll have to take better care of yourselves in the future."


    She scolded them lightly, but confirmed their attendance without strong censure.


    "So today''s absence is Kushida? I don''t think I''ve heard from her, so..."


    At that moment, I heard the sound of the ssroom door being opened.


    And although she was slightly out of breath, she quickly adjusted herself.


    "I''m sorry, I''mte."


    With a calm voice, Kushida made her way into the ssroom.


    "This is your first time beingte, Kushida. You''ve been absent for a long time, but is your body okay now?"


    "Yes. I''ll be more careful next time."


    She replied matter-of-factly, without any panic. Kushida sat down in her seat. She didn''t exchange a word with anyone, but kept her gaze fixed forward.


    The ssroom became tense at once, but since there was no room for private conversation, silence followed.


    "I know a lot has happened, but it''s been a week since we''ve all been together."


    Chabashira-sensei nodded in satisfaction, though she could still sense the unstable situation of the ss.


    "It''s almost time for the sports festival. I expect you to make great strides and perform well."


    After that, homeroom was over and the ssroom was suddenly in an uproar. Needless to say, it was due to Kushida''s arrival at school.


    The students stared at her as if she were a ghost or something. Will she remain silent, or will she put on her usual smile? Or will she bare her fangs again? I quietly pulled out my chair and walked out of the ssroom to head down the hallway.


    Then I opened the door to the hallway. I didn''t want to identally expose my inner thoughts to the rest of the ss.


    I thought so, but...


    "I''m watching you, don''t worry."


    I received such a message on my cell phone. In the corridor, where I only showed my face, Chabashira-sensei spotted me and answered with a single nod. After confirming this, I decided to close the door without being noticed. As a teacher, she will do everything she can. I''m sure that''s what Chabashira-sensei is following up on.


    No one was able to make a move in a situation where anything could have happened.


    When Horikita was about to pull out her chair, Kushida stood up to overtake her. With that one action, she seemed to be threatening to do something unnecessary.


    The first thing she did was to go in front of Mii-chan, who was also sitting near her. When Mii-chan finally came back to ss, she stiffened like a frog being stared at by a snake.


    "I heard from Horikita-san that you were absent because of me."


    "Oh, yeah, um..."


    "Do you hate me now?"


    "No, no, it''s not like that..."


    "There''s no need for you to like me, Wang-san. I can''t change the fact that I revealed your secret in front of everyone, and I don''t intend to get along with you either. I guess I don''t have to tell you this."


    I don''t intend to get along with you. The tone of voice was soft, but the strong words made Mii-chan stiffen even more. The eyes of many of the students looking at them showed dissatisfaction, anxiety, and doubt.


    Normally that would be painful enough, but it didn''t affect Kushida in the slightest.


    "I''m not going to ask you to understand how I felt at that time, but I had to do that. I''ll apologize for making you one of the targets."


    She said and bowed deeply. It seems more clerical than a sincere apology, but at least I don''t sense any malice.


    "I''m sorry for causing trouble to Shinohara-san, Matsushita-san, and the others. It looks like you''ve made up for it."


    If you ask me, Shinohara, Matsushita and the rest of the group are very close. Maybe Y��suke, Sud�� and the others had been working during this weekend to make things right.


    "Do you think you can just apologize?"


    Shinohara''s words were a little harsh, but she was trying to restrain herself.


    "I''m sorry, but if I don''t apologize, we can''t move on, can we?"


    "What kind of apology is that?"


    "I don''t know. But this is the real me."


    This isn''t the false mask that she''s been wearing. That fact alone must have made the whole ss nervous.


    "In the days toe, I intend to maintain some semnce of appearance as I have in the past, so I can gather information from other sses as the asion demands. But if anyone in the ss wants to interfere with that, that''s fine with me."


    No matter how much Kushida tries to arrange things on the outside, if someone on the inside gets in the way of that, the rtionship can''t be built.


    "I''ll leave it up to you all to decide if you want to use the weapons I''ve built or not."


    If Kushida was someone who valued her friends and feared being alone, isting her would be a way to get back at her. But Kushida was not passive, she was on the offensive.


    "And I have no mercy for anyone who turns against me. It''s really only a small part of what I exposed in the special exam. I''m sure there are plenty of others who have facts they want to hide, right?" She muttered nonchntly, as if threatening the entire ss rather than someone in particr.


    "But I''ll promise you one thing. I won''t reveal any secrets you have unless you''re trying to trick me. This isn''t for the good of the ss, this is for my own good, to graduate from ss A. It''s myst line of defense so that I don''t lose my value as a person."


    As long as my ssmates resent her,in about her, and distrust her, depending on the situation, she could be the one to be cut down. So, in order to not let that happen, she will not reveal any more secrets. However, if you stab her in the back, you will not be tolerated. She promised to contribute to the ss as soon as she learned how to protect herself.


    Kikyou Kushida''s abilities are among the top in our ss. At least in academic and physical challenges, she would not be a drag.


    "Hey, Hasebe-san, are you okay too?"


    She directed her words at Haruka, who hadn''t moved from her seat or even looked at her. Haruka didn''t respond and let her gaze drift out the window.

 Chapter 239: 3.5

    <h4>Chapter 239: 3.5</h4>


    My daily life has begun to change drastically in thest week or so. Not once did the Ayanok��ji Group get together, and that didn''t change, or even return, when Haruka came to school. With the disappearance of the gathering that had been the norm, the way she spent her time at school was different.


    During the ten-minute break, I was usually alone or talking with Kei. asionally, I''d have a quick chat with ssmates like Sud�� or Matsushita, but the chances of talking with Akito or Keisei were noticeably reduced.


    My life was strange at first, but little by little my body began to ept and adapt to it. Lunch break is a simr cycle, but when Kei goes out to eat with her friends, I go to the library. It''s the same as before, my own personal repose time.


    It''s just a shame that Hiyori hasn''t beening to the librarytely and we haven''t been able to talk about books.


    And the sequence of events remains the same even after school. Today, Kei had told me in advance that she was going home to hang out with her friends, so I didn''t have any special ns.


    I decided to go back to the dormitory as soon as possible, as staying behind would be a mental burden for Haruka. However, something unexpected urred.


    "Kiyopon, do you have some time now?"


    Haruka, who I thought would nevere into contact with me, approached me as I went out into the hallway to leave.


    Her voice was filled with a sense of urgency.


    Perhaps the purpose of hering to school after a week was to make contact in public.


    Without looking back to check her expression, I answered that I did.


    "I''ll make time if I have to."


    I tried to give off the vibe that I had ns, so I could find her true reason for asking.


    "Then make time. Okay?"


    She didn''t seem to shy away from asking me forcibly.


    "I''ve already talked to Horikita-san. I''ll wait for you at the cafe in the Keyaki Mall first." That''s all she said, and Haruka left the ssroom.


    Shortly after, Akito followed Haruka and came towards me.


    "So she came to school to talk to me?"


    "I don''t know... I''ve never heard of it either. So I don''t know what we''re going to talk about. But I don''t think I can take your side in this situation."


    Akito apologized, but he would rather not take mine or Haruka''s side.


    "That''s fine."


    After a brief conversation that didn''t raise any suspicions, Akito and then Keisei also left the ssroom.


    It seems that she''s gathered all the members of Ayanok��ji Group, and even called Horikita there as well.


    Of course, it had to be about Airi''s expulsion.


    Horikita came up to me as the three of them left.


    "I tried to make sure it was just me she called out, but she wouldn''t listen to me saying that you definitely need to be there."


    She seemed concerned and tried to solve the problem alone, but this time, circumstances were what they were.


    The two of us left the ssroom together and headed to the caf��.


    I decided to confirm what I had been wondering about before we got into the heavy stuff.


    "It looks like you seeded in bringing Kushida back to school. I''m honestly impressed."


    "Well, she''s officially back. But there are still many uncertainties. It''s not going to be the same as before."


    "Still, you can''t ask for much more than that right now."


    Although Kushida''s tone of voice had changed drastically, she came back with an answer that was close to the best for the ss. I''m sure that Horikita''s advice helped her toe to that conclusion.


    Fortunately, the leaks to the other sses have been minimal. Even if it does eventually be known, it is likely that by then some time will have passed and the severity will have faded away.


    "How did you convince her? I don''t think you''ve been straightforward with just a good suggestion."


    Even if the finalnding point is today''s statement, there must have been many twists and turns to get there. I was more interested in that than the current situation, but Horikita''s expression wasplicated.


    "I''m too mature to do something so childish as to bribe her or something. But I''ve done more than I''d like to say."


    From the way she avoided talking about specifics, she must have done something she really didn''t want to talk about. She didn''t seem likely to answer if I pursued it too deeply, so I had no choice but to give up.


    "But considering the person I''m talking to, I might have made the right choice." She replied, lightly stroking her cheek with her left hand, as if remembering the details. "Anyway, it took a week, but we managed to get the whole ss together."


    "Come to think of it, the girls'' troubles have calmed down as well."


    I had told Y��suke to rely on Horikita, so she was definitely involved.


    "Shinohara and the others'' case was initiated by Hirata-kun, and we gathered at Keyaki Mall on Sunday."


    "You were also present?"


    "I was. On top of that, we agreed to let bygones be bygones regarding the exposed secrets. Shinohara-san was protesting strongly for a while, but Ike-kun appeased her, and that was a big thing." She replied with a bare face, like it didn''t mean much.


    The way Horikita was talking, it was clear that Ike had yed the role of boyfriend.


    "So many different students are growing up without even knowing it."


    "You don''t seem happy about that."


    "I''m happy for them, you know. It''s just that it makes me look rtively pathetic. I get... anxious about whether I''m growing or not."


    It is easy to evaluate others, but difficult to grade oneself. If you want to be lenient, you can be as lenient as you want, and if you want to be strict, you can be strict.


    "I''m sure a third party will eventually give you an answer."


    "Sure."


    She needs to focus on getting the ss back on track first. Her own reputation will follow on its own after that.


    "I heard that you were the one who helped Wang-san, she was one I couldn''t reach. Thank you."


    "I was just giving her some advice. Even if I hadn''t done anything, someone would have rescued her eventually."


    "You helped me get back on my feet as soon as possible. I feel like I''ve been confronted with the fact that I can''t do anything on my own."


    She speaks in a rather light tone, even though she would normally be depressed.


    "Oh, that''s right. I''d like to give you a message from the student council president, Nagumo."


    "A message? You seem to be acting like a messenger these days. What is it?"


    "He said that he''s open to suggestions, otherwise to ept the offer.."


    "Take the offer?"


    "I don''t know, Ayanok��ji-kun. I was just instructed to tell you."


    "Fine. I''ll go to the student council roomter, and I''ll figure things out."


    This sports festival. I still haven''t decided if I want to participate or not. But now that the deadline is a week away, I guess I''ll just have to say yes.


    I''m sure Nagumo would mind if I don''tpete with him in some way sooner orter.


    "Now it''s just a matter of Hasebe-san. I honestly can''t read too much into what she''s going to say."


    "Judging from the way she''s been acting all day, I wouldn''t be surprised if some rude words came out of her mouth."


    "Just don''t be caught off guard."


    Mii-chan and Kushida came to school after oveing their assignments. But the waves would be different for Haruka.


    It is highly likely that she will now stand in the way as an obstacle.


    "While I was waiting to meet Kushida-san, I also lightly felt Miyake-kun and Yukimura-kun a few times."


    I didn''t realize that she was paying attention not only to Shinohara and the others, but to the Ayanok��ji Group as well.


    "Hasebe-san was the one who had the hardest time with the special exam. Following you is inevitable."


    Still, the expression on Horikita''s face as she walked beside me didn''t clear up, probably because she hadn''t achieved much at all.


    "The only time I''ve talked to her was when she showed up at my door, but she didn''t tell me anything. Miyake-kun told me to leave her alone, so I decided to give her a week."


    So that''s what happened today. I guess Horikita didn''t expect Haruka toe to school.


    "Either way, Akito-kun was able to bring her to school today so I suppose something should work out."


    "I hope that''s the case, but... that might not be true."


    Since the two of us were summoned in this way, it is normal to think that something is going on.


    It''s not like she''s going to be working hard again from now on.


    "I''m the one who nominated Airi for expulsion at that moment, and I''m the one who pushed her into it. All you have to do is listen to what I have to say."


    "That''s not how it works. I was of the same opinion, so I''m equally responsible. No, it''s all because I made a promise that I failed to keep. I have to take it all in."


    She seems to have more room in her heart now than she did then, but I''d be worried about her getting too worked up.


    "It''s important to take care of Haruka, but you also need to shift your mind towards the sports festival."


    We''ve already spent a week trying to resolve our ss issues. In the meantime, as long as we''re starting to focus on ss A and our efforts to win, we can''t afford to miss the boat on this one either.


    "Right. Of course, we''re thinking hard about how we''re going topete in the sports festival. I think we''ve got some ideas of what we''re going to do."


    While backing up Kushida, Shinohara, and the others, she seems to be on top of that as well.


    "Then let''s hear it. What''s the goal for the sports festival?"


    I asked Horikita about her goals in order to seed.


    "I''ll go for first ces, naturally. No, I will definitely take first ce, I have to."


    Confidence peeked out from Horikita''s profile as she stared ahead.


    "There''s nothing wrong with setting high goals. We''ve got some strong students in our ss, and we''re not going to lose to anyone else. So, do you have a strategy in mind? It includes a battle of all the grades, but the focus will basically be on fighting for overall points in the same grade. Sakayanagi and Ry��en cane up with strategies that you wouldn''t expect."


    "The rule is that if you finish with less than five events, you forfeit all your points. If it''s Ry��en-kun, he could feign an ident during thepetition and try to injure you and get you to leave thepetition."


    It''s not surprising that Ry��en would try to use such a method, as he didst year when Horikita was targeted. If it was Sakayanagi, she would look at the participants of thepetition and guide her ssmates to the best possible oue.


    "Against all odds, what moves are you going to use?"


    "Basically a straightforward one. Have Sud��-kun and Onodera-san ramp up the scoring, and then use students like Kushida-san and myself to score points. We''ll just do what we need to do to win."


    "If we can win with that, though, we won''t have any trouble. There''s also the handicap of having thirty-eight people in the ss."


    Horikita nodded immediately. She had expected that response from the start.


    "That''s why I''ve decided to take one risk. I''m preparing for it now."


    "Risk?"


    "I was wondering if you could join me tomorrow after school to talk about the specifics."


    "You mean you need my help?"


    "No, I don''t. Just stay with me and listen to what I have to say. And finally, I just want you to give me an objective answer as to whether or not it''s worth the risk."


    "Are you sure that''s all you want?"


    "I don''t need you to keep spoiling me with solutions, it''s fine."


    She doesn''t need advice or suggestions because she already has some idea of what she wants. If that''s the case, I''ll just wait and see what Horikita thinks of her strategy for the sports festival.


    "Alright. I''ll let you know tomorrow after school."


    When we eventually arrived at the caf��, the three members of Ayanok��ji Group were seated and waiting for us.


    There was no sign of chit-chat, and three drinks were ced on the table.


    As long as you''re using a restaurant, it''smon courtesy to at least order one drink. As soon as we arrived, Haruka said and urged us to sit on the two empty seats. We individually chose our drinks at random and then started to take our seats.


    "It seems like you wanted to talk to me a few times while I was resting, so I thought I''d ask you about it."


    Haruka cut to the chase nonchntly without looking at either Horikita or myself


    It seems like both of them wanted to ask questions, but right now Horikita was on the stand.


    "Well, the problem has sort of been solved. You were out of the school, now you''re back."


    "You mean you were worried because you might lose your reputation in ss."


    "Of course, that''s not the only reason, there''s a good reason why you missed a week. Don''t you think?"


    "I''m not feeling well. That''s what I told the school, so there shouldn''t be a problem, right? Miyake told me that there might be a penalty if I miss another week, so that''s why I came to school today."


    What''s wrong with that? Without showing any joy, anger, or sorrow, Haruka answers calmly.


    "Indeed. But the reason you were absent wasn''t because you were just sick, right?"


    "How can you be so sure it was? It could have just been purely physical." Without denying it, Haruka took a sip from her cup.


    Whether the absence was due to health problems or not, that was just the preliminary stage of the problem.


    No matter how Horikita answered, Haruka would never be satisfied.


    "I know you''re doubting me, but it''s true that I''ve been sick. It wasn''t sickness. I just had a hard time mentally, I couldn''t sleep, and because I was so stressed and tired I just couldn''t find the strength toe to school."


    Akito and Keisei seemed to be listening calmly, but that was not the case. They understand that although they are suffering as well, their suffering is far from Haruka''s.


    So they can only listen in silence.


    "Why don''t you stop ying withme words and say what you want to say?"


    Rather than resorting to subterfuge, Horikita takes a strong stance.


    That attitude usually has the opposite effect, but Haruka is unfazed.


    It''s as if she has kept her emotions bottled up deep inside. That''s the impression I get from her.


    By her side, Horikita felt the same thing, which is probably why she used excessive expressions.


    "Are you satisfied with the fact that you got more ss points from the special exam?" Haruka coldly asked Horikita.


    "I''m not satisfied, no. There''s still over five hundred points separating us from ss A. Besides, if possible, it would have been ideal to aim for ss A without missing anyone, which was the goal. But there''s no point in talking about it now, is there?"


    No one wants to drop out of school. Only appointed Airi for apelling reason. I''ve already had that validation.


    "My best friend was a victim of Horikita-san''s selfish decision. Are you aware of that?"


    For the first time today, the words that Haruka wanted to saye spilling out.


    "Yes."


    It''s been more than a week since the special exam ended, and Horikita has been fighting against her own judgment.


    You don''t have to ask her that directly, but you can tell by watching her every day.


    But such things have nothing to do with Haruka.


    She wont forgive her because she is working hard or if she gets results.


    "You''re a great leader. You don''t care what it takes to get your ss to win."


    "I''m not there yet."


    "You know I hate you and detest you, right?"


    "Of course, I know."


    "Where''s your promise to cut off the students who were the traitors?"


    "I''m afraid I didn''t look far enough ahead on that one. But since we can''t pretend that the special exam the other day didn''t happen, we''ll just have to make use of it next time."


    "There are some mistakes that can''t be forgiven."


    "I won''t deny that either. You''re right."


    "Kiyopon... do you think it was the right decision to leave Kushida-san in the school?"


    "I decided it was the right thing to do, so I left her, ready to face the bacsh. I guess I''ll have to repeat myself."


    "Ah, yes."


    Horikita didn''t show any change in herposure, and her speech intensified slightly.


    "I''m not going to make ame apology. No matter how much you argue with me, the fact is that I changed my mind and decided that Kushida-san should stay. It''s natural for you to hold a grudge, and you may suffer a painful reprisal someday. But I decided that the person who could be a more valuable asset to the ss was Kushida-san. I''m slowly bing more and more convinced of that."


    "Even if Kushida-san was brilliant, there were others who were ipetent. It didn''t have to be... her."


    There were other people to cut.


    With Horikita in front of her, who couldn''te to such a conclusion, Haruka continued.


    "I don''t approve. No matter how many people recognize Horikita-san in the future, I will never recognize her."


    Saving her emotions as much as she can, Haruka shows no signs of trying to forgive.


    "I guess I''ll just have to try harder to get you to admit it."


    "I told you I won''t approve."


    "I''m responsible for Sakura-san''s expulsion. I won''t deny it. I can''t deny it. But that doesn''t mean I should go about reprimanding it to everyone who''s affected. Are you now asking me to expel you from school or something to make you feel better?"


    It''s not like that would bring Airi back. The 100 ss points she had sacrificed for the ss would be wiped out by that act.


    "Or do you want me to get down on my knees? Would that make you feel better?"


    Bullheadedness. Apetitive spirit. That''s what it looks like, but it''s not. Horikita is suffering. She''s suffering, but she''s facing Haruka with an air of defiance.


    As I sat next to her, I was able to peek into the true meaning of her wavering eyes.


    "Give me back Airi."


    "I can''t meet your demands if you ask me to do something I can''t... do."


    "That''s all I want. I don''t care about ss, I really don''t care."


    She grabbed a few strands of her own hair and tore them out as hard as she could.


    "I made the wrong decision back then."


    "If you were frustrated, maybe you should have fought." Immediately after those almost provocative words were released, Horikita followed up with more. "But it''s useless. Even if you had fought, there would have been nothing you could have done to resist."


    "That''s true. You''re right, there''s nothing I could have done. Kiyopon used Airi''s feelings to push her into a corner without mercy. No normal person could have done something like that."


    This was the first time she looked at me with contempt.


    But she didn''t seem to want to talk to me, so she turned her attention back to Horikita.


    "Is Kushida-san really going to act for the ss''s sake? She could betray us."


    "I''m sure I''ll regret it if Kushida-san drags the ss down in the future."


    Indeed, Kushida wasn''t necessarily guaranteed to be useful to the ss.


    If Horikita made a mistake in steering the ship in the future, there mighte a day when she would regret her choice to cut Airi.


    "But even if I were to go back in time with my current memories, I''m sure what I would do would not change much. I''d repeat my decision to bail out Kushida-san and choose Sakura-san as my victim. The only difference is that I won''t make anymore wild promises."


    She reiterates that she will not change her conclusion.


    "Why not. Kiyopon... what did Airi ever do to you...?"


    Horikita would have answered even if I hadn''t said anything, but here I decided to speak my mind.


    "It''s a matter of perspective. This incident has been a strong stimulus for the students whose names are in the lower ranks of the OAA. If we continue to stay low, I might be the next one to be expelled. I think it''s a plus just because I now have a strong sense of such danger."


    Because that was also my role in naming Airi.


    "You sound like Ry��en, cutting off people who aren''t good enough?"


    "I suppose so. I don''t know what kind of policy Ry��en''s following right now, but it''s true that it''s almost autocratic system. Up until now, the ss policy has been too vague andx."


    "It kind of reminds me of when I first started school. It''s just like when we were selfish and had no cohesion whatsoever."


    She may believe it''s simialr but it''s not the same thing.


    "The situation is different from that time. Preventing damage that doesn''t need to be released is a necessity, but minimizing the damage that needs to be released is what we did this time."


    "But...!"


    Here, for the first time, Haruka raised her voice.


    "It''s Kushida, but Horikita came to that conclusion because she felt that the effect she would get when she became an ally had the potential to be far, far greater than Airi. And because I could see that future as well, I respected Horikita''s opinion and decided to give her a helping hand."


    Basically, there is no such thing as a definite future. We can only imagine and act to grasp the future we see. People are not all-powerful.


    "Airi is gone, but I''ve noticed the ss is back to its usual routine."


    "I understand your frustration, but did you feel the same way about Yamauchi-kun?"


    "That guy got what he deserved. This is a different case."


    "It''s the same. You''re just angry at your friends sacrifice."


    "What''s wrong with that?"


    There was no clear goal to this discussion.


    Strictly speaking, there is no solution other than for Haruka to snap.


    "I can''t ept such a reality. I can''t ept it."


    And if Haruka doesn''t break, then there''s a big problem waiting for her.


    "Kushida-san may indeed have been a threat. Maybe she''s ostensibly reformed now and is going to act for the good of the ss from now on. But do you think I''m going to take that seriously and cooperate?"


    "Yeah... when you took a week off, I felt it was going to be a longersting problem than anyone else."


    Horikita said that while Kushida needed to be dealt with quickly, Haruka was prepared for the long haul.


    Having lost Airi in the exam, Haruka was not afraid now.


    "But you came to school. If you just wanted to talk to us, you can do it even if you''re still not going to school. Isn''t that right?"


    I was grateful for the faint hope that Haruka had submitted herself toe to school.


    However, the world is not so naive.


    "I just came here because I don''t have an answer yet."


    "Answer?"


    "I came to school to look for the answer that I couldn''t see when I was locked in my room."


    Akito and Keisei heard those words, and their eyes fell down.


    "I''m looking for the answer to how I can get back at Horikita and Kiyopon."


    Haruka said coldly, the coldest she had ever said.


    The words that escaped from her slightly dry lips were different in nature from any kind of threat or bluff.


    "You''re serious, aren''t you?"


    Horikita was also reminded of the weight of those words.


    "Because that''s what I wanted to tell you today. I''m going to make sure you regret expelling Airi."


    Without even touching her own drink, Haruka left her seat.


    Akito followed behind her.


    It was not only Horikita who looked away in dismay, but also Keisei.


    "I don''t think Horikita or Haruka are wrong. It''s a sly way to put it, but that''s what I really feel. At the end of the day, I''m fundamentally of the mindset that as long as I can save myself, that''s all that matters."


    As if Keisei is ashamed of himself, he stilles to tell the truth without hiding it.


    "It''s the same for everyone. It''s not strange that you want to save yourself."


    "That''s why I can''t understand what Haruka is feeling right now. But that doesn''t mean I think I have the right to tell her to stop. Even if it''s to prevent trouble for the ss."


    He tapped the table with his fist forcefully, and Keisei also left his seat.


    "The group is already half destroyed. Still, I''ll be useful to the ss as I am. As long as I can''t y an active role in the sports festival, I''ll study harder and contribute to the ss. If I don''t do that, there''s a... virtually no chance that I''ll be cut."


    Even though he is good at studying, Keisei isgging behind in terms of athleticism and social contribution.


    When ites to the number of friends he has, it''s clear that he''s at a particr disadvantage.

 Chapter 240 - 4 : Agreement

    <h4>Chapter 240: Chapter 4 : Agreement</h4>


    I CAME TO HEAR the rest of yesterday''s story at a karaoke bar in the Keyaki Mall. Indeed, this is one of the best ces to have a private conversation except for the dormitory. When I stepped into the room, there was no one in sight except for me and Horikita.


    "If we''re just going to talk, we don''t have toe all the way to the karaoke bar, do we?"


    Since we have a history of going into each other''s rooms, we have no problem talking to each other in one of our rooms.


    In other words, the fact that she chose this location means that there are going to be other people joining us. I don''t go too deep and just leave it to Horikita''s initiative.


    "We have a little time before our scheduled time, so... do you want to sing something?" She takes the microphone that was on the table and holds it out to me.


    "No, I''ll pass. Why don''t you sing, Horikita? I''ll at least give you a hand to go with it."


    "No."


    Immediate denial. You encourage people to do things you don''t want to do...


    "I''m studying." Saying so, she silently took out her notebook and took out her own reference book and began to study.


    At school, tablets and other equipment are now used in many of the sses, but I guess independent study is still easier to learn by directly opening a book and notebook.


    The room is quite quiet when no songs are ying. The strange atmosphere was caused by the odd and bizarre exchange, but I decided to sit quietly on the sofa and wait for the time toe.


    It was after 5:10 p.m.


    Horikita, who had been checking the time on her cell phone every few minutes since before 5:00, looked up with a sigh.


    "I''m sorry. This may turn out to be a longer game than I thought."


    I didn''t ask who she was meeting with, but I can assume that they were confirmed toete, although the meeting time was 5:00. Theck ofmunication suggests that there arepelling reasons for the dy, that the person is a bit loose, or that the person iste on purpose.


    I thought of various students and repeatedly checked them off, then waited for about 15 minutes.


    The door to the room, which had not moved an inch for a while, was slowly opened by an outsider. The person who appeared there was... someone I had not expected. The second year ss D student, Katsuragi K��hei.


    At first nce, he seemed to be a stickler for punctuality, but I was surprised.


    "Sorry I''mte."


    "No, I don''t mind. You must have gone through a lot of trouble yourself, Katsuragi."


    "Somewhat..."


    Muttering this, Katsuragi urged the figure lurking behind him to enter the room. Another person appears.


    "Yo, Suzune, I appreciate that you want to have a date with me, but it looks like you have a lot of extra people."


    It was Ry��en Kakeru, the man who pulled Katsuragi, once the leader of ss A, out of his own ss.


    "Even if I met with you alone, it would be difficult to have a constructive conversation."


    Despite his wry smile, Ry��en shows no sign of rxing his keen observation of Horikita.


    With the Kushida incident settled and the distractions removed, Horikita has regained her conventionalposure, and since there has been little direct interaction since moving up to second grade, it is not surprising that he senses a change in Horikita even at this stage.


    "I wonder if you were intentionallyte and trying to take mental advantage?"


    "I wonder, I wonder."


    Even before they came together, they have already begun to explore each other, to check each other, to fight each other.


    I can only assume that Ry��en''s side has not yet been told the reason why they were summoned here.


    "You have something to tell us... let''s hear the details."


    "Can you have a seat? I wouldn''t bother to call you out if it was something that would take a minute or two."


    Ry��en gave me a quick nce, but sat down proudly on the sofa, grabbed the charging tablet and began to operate it,pleting his order in a familiar manner, and then tossing it messily onto the table. Horikita, seeing this, reaches for the tablet and picks it up.


    "Katsuragi-kun, what will you be having?"


    "Can I have some oolong tea, please?"


    After listening to his wishes andpleting the order on the tablet, she carefully returned it to the charging position.


    "I''ll tell you why I called you here..."


    She was about to start, but Ry��en stopped her with a hand, as if to discourage her from starting.


    "Before that, I wanted to ask you something. How does it feel to get ss points for cutting off someone who is slowing you down? Does it feel good?"


    He asks in a matter-of-fact way what might be damaging to us. It would also be a way of trying to gain the upper hand in a situation where he doesn''t even know what we are going to say yet. I have no doubt that Ry��en is using his underlings to get to the bottom of the situation.


    It was a trick based on the assumption that the internal affairs problem had not been cleared up, but Horikita beside him was unmoved.


    "It''s certainly true that the issue didn''t erupt. But too bad, it won''t turn out the way you want it to. Most of the big problems have already been resolved."


    That''s a lie. At least the wave regarding the Kushida issue has subsided, but it is uncertain when the bomb will explode.


    "You''re pretty brazen for a liar, aren''t you?"


    In the sense of ying coy, Ry��en also asserts that it is a lie, but Horikita does not care.


    "If you think I''m lying, do what you want. You''re not the kind of person who easily believes anything I say in the first ce, isn''t that right?"


    "Well, I don''t know. Maybe I trust you more than you think, huh?"


    "It''s not funny, whether you mean it or whether you''re joking."


    Horikita dodges provocation.


    Katsuragi slowly crosses his arms, looking at Horikita as if analyzing her.


    "What was the matter with you? I thought you were going to expel someone."


    "Aren''t you worried about not having your friends around? Because you''re probably the only one who made the wrong choice."


    Three out of four sses protected their ssmates.


    He tries to create the impression that it was only Horikita whomitted the atrocious, negligent mistake.


    "It''s too bad we were the only ones who chose the right answer, because we did get a step ahead in the ss Apetition."


    "That''s enough for the moment."


    As Katsuragi restrained Ry��en, there was a light knock at the door of the room. The waiter showed up and brought out the oolong tea and orange juice that Katsuragi had ordered. The drinks were ced in front of Ry��en. Horikita and Katsuragi''s gazes were caught by the difort of thebination. Incidentally, so did I. Ry��en and orange juice... don''t match each other.


    What is the meaning of this call? While everyone was poking around in their minds, Katsuragi encouraged Horikita to start the conversation.


    Horikita nodded, then began to speak, looking at Ry��en and Katsuragi respectively.


    "In order to defeat Sakayanagi''s ss, I propose a cooperative rtionship at the next sports festival."


    Katsuragi reacts with a slight shoulder reaction, indicating surprise.


    Immediately after, he returned to his usual demeanor and asked a question.


    "What do you mean by... cooperative rtionship?"


    Cooperation, however, can vary greatly depending on how it is perceived.


    It is only natural that he would want to hear the details, but he had no intention of denying the proposal carelessly. Ry��en, on the other hand, was not surprised, nor did he seem impressed. He was just observing with a smirk on his face.


    "This special test has aspects of bothpetition among all students and by grade. I''m trying to make the most of a system that allows you to score equally if you win a grouppetition yed by multiple people."


    "Why our ss? Do you mind if I ask why?"


    The ss leader, Ry��en, is all ears, and isn''t making a move to interrupt at all.


    "First of all, it goes without saying that ss A is out of the question. It''s not worth it if we''re giving points to the target ss that we should be catching up with. The two choices that remain are Ichinose''s ss or Ry��en-kun and Katsuragi-kun''s ss. I would say that Ichinose-san is the most trustworthy, but it''s hard to say that many of her students have excellent physical abilities.


    "So you''re saying you chose us by process of elimination."


    "If it were a simple process of elimination, I wouldn''t have teamed up with any ss in the first ce. The one person I don''t trust more than Sakayanagi is you, Ry��en-kun."


    It would certainly not be an easy partner to team up with.


    As if sympathizing, Katsuragi also nodded deeply.


    "Indeed. Even I, who has be a member of the ss, think so. There is no one I am more afraid to entrust my back to. Then why did you take such a big risk to propose a cooperative rtionship?"


    "Of course it''s about winning; we can''t win without stopping ss A''s solo run."


    "But what''s the point if those expectations are subverted? This man will go to any lengths because that is the type of person he is. I know this because I''ve been there myself. I wouldn''t rmend it."


    He expresses harsh opinions about his ssmates to the extent that he does not seem to be the chief strategist of Ry��en''s ss. If we join forces improperly, we will be swallowed up by Ry��en''s ss, rather than beating ss A.


    He warns us of the dangers.


    "In today''s discussion, I wasn''t going to cut to the chase straight away. The most important thing to remember is that you can''t trust someone who iste nonchntly. However, I changed my mind when I saw Katsuragi-kun apologizing for beingte. At least I can trust you."


    "You are very naive. Don''t you think this attitude of mine is also a ploy by Ry��en?"


    "If I can''t seem to see past the trustworthiness, then sooner orter I''m just going to get swallowed up."


    This is probably the best bet for Horikita here.


    If you put Ry��en and Katsuragi side by side, Katsuragi would appear to be a rtively sensible and good person.


    But if Ry��en has alreadye here with a n in mind, Katsuragi has no choice but to ept it.


    "You look a little different from before, Horikita. You''re growing up."


    Katsuragi senses a change in Horikita, a growth, and is once again ready to resume the conversation.


    "I understand your side of the story. Let me give you my personal view from here."


    Daring to add ''personal,'' he states that Ry��en''s intentions and thoughts are not taken into ount at all.


    "I had also envisioned a n to join forces with your ss this time and take down ss A."


    "You want this too?"


    "Yes. Your ss has talented yers beyond our grade level, such as Sud�� and K��enji, who are at the top of the physical ability and athletic depth in the four sses of the second year. There is no need to worry about them being dragged down by their peers. You''re not someone we can trust unconditionally, but we''re also not a ss you can easily betray, which isn''t a bad factor either."


    Next to Katsuragi, Ry��en''s eyes turn to me, but his mouth remains closed.


    Until now, Ry��en has always taken the lead in dialogue, as no one else was avable to conduct negotiations. However, with the addition of Katsuragi, the need for this has diminished and the option to wait and see has been created. This is a very big positive factor.


    It is eerie not knowing what Ry��en will think and what he will propose and when.


    While it is easy to talk to Katsuragi, Horikita is probably bing more aware of such concerns.


    But it is a path that cannot be avoided if discussions are to be brought up regrly over the next 18 months.


    "But in practice, it was 50/50 whether Ry��en would approach with a proposal for cooperation."


    It has been more than a week since the details of the sports festival were announced. If they were to move on the basis of cooperation, it would not be surprising if such talk had already reached the ears of Horikita. In other words, the other half of Katsuragi''s priority was not to join hands.


    "When ites to cooperation, we will naturally have to secure first and second ce in our ss. When that happens, inevitably the overall strength of the ss is what decides the winner. If we just look at simple probabilities, we are willing to ept the possibility that Horikita''s ss wille first and ours wille second."


    Outsmarting Sakayanagi and Ichinose sses by cooperating with each other is in effect creating a Horikita ss versus Ry��en ss scenario.


    That is why Katsuragi answered that it was 50-50; because he could foresee it.


    Even with the talkative Katsuragi, it doesn''t mean he''ll give his approval to a co-operative rtionship in two words. Negotiations with Ry��en can only begin if the hurdles in front of us are ovee.


    What will Horikita do?


    "So our ss is seen as a threat to you."


    "Of course, things are very different from a year ago. Unlike a year ago, when you were being ridiculed as a bunch of defectives, you are now in ss B. And that''s after once dropping to zero ss points. Most recently, in addition to K��enji''s solo victory in the deserted ind test, you made the harsh choice to cut off one of your ssmates in the unanimous special test and earned 100 points. There is no doubt that you are undeniably strong opponents."


    "It''s not my achievement, but I don''t feel bad that you rate me that way. But if we don''t co-operate and we go to the sports festival separately, the worst case scenario is that Sakayanagi-san''s ss will win first ce. The important thing is to defeat Sakayanagi-san''s ss. Am I wrong?"


    "Indeed. That is also true. Ry��en, what do you think?"


    Here, for the first time, Katsuragi asked Ry��en for his opinion.


    "If you want my help, you''ll give me something in return, yeah?"


    "I wonder if you''ve misunderstood something. It is true that I was the one who suggested the idea, but that doesn''t mean I have to pay for it. Rather, you should understand that you are in a position where you can enter into a cooperative rtionship with the ss of first-ce candidates."


    "Don''t make meugh. I''m in a position where I could win without your help, but if you ask me to help you, I have no choice but to lend you a hand? If you don''t like it, you can leave."


    "Do you know how to get home? Go out that door, turn left and you''ll be heading the right way."


    Without needing to consider any kind of concession, Horikita urges Ry��en and Katsuragi to leave.


    This attitude is the essence of bargaining, but at the same time, there is an atmosphere from Horikita that she is not betting everything on this strategy. In other words, negotiations will break down when Ry��en leaves the table. The proposal to defeat Sakayanagi together will stand.


    The position is then reversed if Ry��en again says it is willing to join forces.


    "You''ve got some balls for a bluff."


    "What are you saying? As Katsuragi-kun said, our ss is a reasonablypetent ss in the sports festival. Do you think you can beat Sud��-kun and K��enji-kun in a head-to-headpetition?"


    "Maybe if we faced it head-on and honestly you''d pull ahead. But there are so many ways to go about it, you know? You haven''t forgotten what happenedst year, have you?"


    The very trick of staging an ident, which we fear is exactly what will happen.


    It is clear that the statement reeks of this.


    "This year there will be a guest of honor, and the rules of the sports festival, by their very nature, will be closely monitored. Let''s see how sneaky you can be this time."


    "There are plenty of blind spots. And it isn''t only limited to duringpetitions."


    This means ces that are unsupervised, such as changing rooms and toilets.


    Undiscouraged, Horikita mmed the notebook shut.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun. Thank you for apanying me today. It seems that this case is too risky for me to question your judgment. I think I''ll call it a night here."


    "If you''re okay with that, then there''s no problem."


    That''s where Horikita left it and started to put the notebook away.


    Ry��en saw this and made no response, but Katsuragi made a move.


    "Ry��en. Apparently, Horikita is even more different than we imagined so far. If we don''t get to the negotiating table properly, it''s us who will be cut off."


    Having calmly analyzed the situation, Katsuragi turns his gaze once again to Horikita.


    "You didn''t approach me because you prioritized the disadvantages of joining forces, did you?"


    "We never suggested it. But if Horikita had talked to us, the situation would have changed. Besides, I had a feeling that it would exceed my expectations."


    The updated data they attained has resulted in a slight increase in Horikita''s ss'' evaluation.


    In other words, the ss was re-evaluated to one that was suitable for cooperation.


    "I''m bluffing, but that''s all fake from my point of view. It''s natural to try to spin things to your advantage. I''ve be a bit more articte, but the only reason it seems to be working is because Ayanok��ji is by my side."


    After she said so, Ry��en picked up a ss filled to the brim with orange juice in front of him, and without hesitation, aimed it at me and sshed all of its contents. I immediately evaded the attack by sidestepping from my seated position and avoided being hit. Arge yellow stain spreads and fragrances the ce where I had been sitting until just before.


    "You''ve noticed how crazy this guy is, haven''t you? I wonder if you could have dodged that one?"


    "I don''t think... I could have."


    "Yeah. A normal person would be soaking wet before they could even react. Most people can''t avoid it, but this one just looks at you like he''s a normal person."


    "It''s a hell of a reflex, sure, but... what does that have to do with this discussion?"


    "Don''t you get it? Ayanok��ji is your potential spearhead. It''s no wonder you''ve got a big mouth when you''re showing off her gun to an unarmed opponent.


    "Did you go out of your way to ask for orange juice to try that? Give me a break."


    I also thought it was odd, but he''s the guy who does the most outrageous things.


    It was right to remain conscious of the untouched drink.


    "Why did you dodge? If you had taken it all from the front, we could have silenced his retort."


    "Don''t say anything nonsensical. I don''t want to be covered in juice."


    It smells awful, it''s sticky and it doesn''te off. It is a hassle to deal with.


    If this had been oolong tea, I could have perhaps been tolerant.


    Orange juice is probably one of the best drinks to spray on someone for harassment.


    "If you want to negotiate straight, first remove Ayanok��ji from the room. Then we can talk."


    Offer to continue negotiations on condition that I am removed from the scene.


    "That sounds like something you''d say. But I''m going to have to decline. He''s my ssmate. He has the right to be present and I asked him to be present. I don''t see what''s wrong with using the weapons you have to negotiate."


    "You''ve really got some nerve. Above all, you''re alsoing up with ideas that you haven''t had before."


    Another thought was that Horikita has obtained information about Ry��en and I without our knowledge. Ry��en also sensed this.


    The extent is unknown, but it would not be surprising if she heard about the rooftop incident involving Kei.


    Horikita had told me that she doesn''t need my help, only for me to be present. I can''tin because she is just using me while keeping her promise.


    "My ss, which is in an advantageous position, is offering to enter into a cooperation. If that doesn''t convince you, then you can pretend that this whole thing never really happened."


    Ry��en will never cooperate with Sakayanagi. Even if they approached Ichinose, it is unclear how much helpful power they would be able to obtain.


    A wrong decision here will inevitably have an impact on the future for Ry��en. It is even possible, although unlikely, that a Horikita-Sakayanagi coalition could be formed.


    This is because it is not a bad oue if Horikita''s sses first and Sakayanagi''s sses second in the results.


    But allowing this to happen would make it more difficult to pursue Sakayanagi.


    "Depending on the discussion, I would be willing to join forces with your ss. Now, may I hear your response, take it or leave it?"


    The next response was left to the leader, Ry��en, rather than Katsuragi.


    After a few seconds of silence, Ry��en makes a decision.


    "Fine, I''ll take you up on that offer." He replied, but Ry��en''s words did not stop there. "But I will put a condition. Because the rtionship between us should be stronger and more equal. If either my ss or yours, in no particr order, achieves the goal of first or second ce, there will be a 100-point difference in ss points earned. To make up the difference, the one who takes first ce willpensate the other with private points, which will be awarded by March 1, before graduation. Add thatmitment."


    He is trying to do the same thing asst year''s uninhabited ind test when Ry��en signed a contract with Kasturagi for private points.


    If one side gets more ss points, the difference should be made up with private points.


    Ry��en must be aware that he is at a disadvantage. He knows this and is trying to emphasize it to get an added advantage, but Horikita also notices this.


    "Surely those terms themselves are equal. But I refuse. It is a seriouspetition as to who will take first or second ce. We will only settle it after a fair fight."


    If they were equal, with or without conditions, there would be no conditions as long as they were judged to have a good chance of winning.


    "Kuku. I''m not going to let you suck me dry so easily, am I? But that doesn''t make it any better for us."


    "It is difficult to extract consensus from Horikita. I think we''re about to tie our hands on a firm deal."


    Katsuragi shows a flexible attitude toward Ry��en, who is not yet ready to formally sign a contract.


    "That''s not enough. If you''re going to ask me to help you, you''re going to have to show me more sincerity."


    "Sincerity? Isn''t it the same for me? If the strategy brings us to the top of the table and brings Sakayanagi''s ss A to the bottom, it will be minus 150 points. There is plenty of room to consider this strategy of tying hands. But, we''re taking a risk here, too."


    As if to rebut, Horikita continues.


    "The doubt that has been swirling around me all along. It''s whether or not I can trust you guys. If you focus your main forces on teampetitions in order to form strong team, it is inevitable that the individualpetitions will be neglected."


    It is quite possible that Ry��en will instruct his ss to betray and cut corners in thepetition, or even not show up for the promisedpetition in the first ce.


    It is doubtful that all thepetitions will be monitored, as Horikita and other leaders will be at the mercy of thepetitions on the day of the event.


    They cannot bring in cell phones or other devices, so they cannot coordinate from afar.


    "Trusting you, who is untrustworthy. Taking that risk is the maximum concession and cooperation we can offer. We will not concede a single millimeter more."


    This is all a bit of an earful for Ry��en.


    Even if there is an attractivepetitive force in the ss, Ry��en cannot be trusted, and that is the basic premise of the project.


    Horikita epts that, so she tells them to shut up and cooperate.


    "It''s a good argument. I didn''t trust you the way you did. I guess we''ll just have to ept it here."


    "I never wanted you to trust me."


    Whileughing it off, Ry��en still rxed his shoulders, as if he was convinced by Horikita''s words.


    "Can you really trust me?"


    "The enemy of my enemy is my friend. I''ll take your word for it, a handy phrase invented by our forefathers."


    It is difficult to be in your element if you form a coalition with doubt. In some cases, they will turn their attention more to their backs than to fighting their enemies.


    "I don''t approve of everything you say, but one thing is for sure, it''s not a good idea to keep letting the Sakayanagi ss take the lead."


    To Ry��en''s remark, both Katsuragi and Horikita agreed, nodding their heads without hesitation.


    To let ss A win. That is an act that cannot be tolerated any longer, no matter what.


    "Even though we have a direct confrontation with theming up at the end of the school year, we won''t be able to overturn the ss points with just one of those."


    In the meantime, they want to capture it within range. The idea seems believable.


    "I''ve had you listen to me in silence, but it''s time for me to hear your opinion, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Horikita''s idea, it''s risky.


    "Objectively, do you ept this strategy or not?"


    "Cooperation in interest is not a bad story. There will be some objections, but everyone understands that the target to defeat is Sakayanagi. I''m sure Y��suke and Kei will follow up on this."


    Horikita is once again confident in her idea. But Ry��en waits for her.


    "I''d like to make a contract, but it''s not ready yet."


    "Still? Do you think you can extract any more concessions?"


    "Let me check onest thing. Was it you, Suzune, who brought up this proposal? Or was it Ayanok��ji who was observing the situation with a clear face? Which is it?"


    Cooperation with the Ry��en ss. He strongly inquires which one is the initiator of this idea.


    "If it was not initiated by Ayanok��ji-kun, would you ept this talk? There seems to be a rtionship between you and Ayanok��ji-kun that you can''t let anyone else hear about."


    So Horikita says with implication.


    "I know firsthand that we recognize each other''s abilities as enemies. And that I''m out of ce."


    "Did I say one word about that? I''m just asking you to answer which is which."


    Ry��en, somewhat irritated, hurried his words to Horikita in the form of a re.


    "It''s me. I only asked Ayanok��ji-kun to be present this time, and I didn''t even let him hear about it until we talked about it here."


    If he knew I was leading the charge, Ry��en might refuse.


    When Horikita, embracing this resolve, speaks honestly, Ry��enughs.


    "I see. I''m relieved to hear that. If that''s the case, I''ll ept your proposal."


    That was the deciding factor, and Ry��en formally epted to join forces.


    "Why?"


    "Why? I don''t know. You''ll have to figure out why yourself." Then he brushed off the answer. "It would be better for both of us to have a proper contract in ce, just in case. No, especially for you."


    "Of course I will. I''m going to have Chabashira-sensei, and Sakagami-sensei in between."


    The contract is based on the involvement of the faculty. It would naturally include consequences of breach of contract in it. Even if it is Ry��en, there is nothing that can be done if it is bound by rules that cannot be broken.


    "Then, I will leave the preparation of the documents to Horikita. Is that alright with you?"


    "Yes. Can I have you and I look it over together a few times, Katsuragi-kun?"


    When Katsuragi checks Ry��en with a nce, he gets such a response as, "Do as you please."


    Katsuragi''s presence is really significant in Ry��en''s ss, where trust is important. He is smart, trustworthy, and able to express his opinions to Ry��en without any hesitation.


    The degree to which Ry��en entrusted Katsuragi with his job and the way he selected him, was nothing short of brilliant.


    It was truly worth therge sum of money that was spent to bring him in.


    "Okay. Let''s formally exchange a written agreement and then work together in the gymnasium."


    Thus, it was decided that Horikita''s ss and Ry��en''s ss would fight together in the gymnasium.


    The top priority is the victory of the sses, and the aim is to work together within that context.


    However, this was not the end of the story, and Katsuragi changed the subject.


    "It is good that we have reached an agreement to cooperate with each other, but then there are some things we should think about. It is quite conceivable that Sakayanagi and Ichinose could join forces, but what do you intend to do about that?"


    A coalition against a coalition. That development would be quite possible.


    "No problem. Even if Ichinose cooperates with Sakayanagi in the sports festival, our unity is better. Besides, Sakayanagi would have to give up even the third ce. Just as you feared second ce when you teamed up with Suzune, Ichinose would have the advantage if they teamed up as well. Sakayanagi''s ss has 38 members due to the withdrawal of Yahiko and the transfer of Katsuragi. With Sakayanagi''s non-participation also confirmed, there are 37 members in the ss. Ichinose''s ss has 40 students, a surprisinglyrge difference of 3 students."


    The athletic ability values as a ss are almost even. If this is the case, the difference in the number of three ssmates may determine the winner.


    "But it''s Sakayanagi, she''lle up with a strategy to just cover the number of people."


    "Didn''t you see the rules this time? When you don''t participate in the festival, you''re on standby at your dormitory. And since you can''t even use your cell phone, that means your A-ss head ispletely nonfunctional."


    "Of course I read the rules. Yeah, it''s true Sakayanagi can''t exercise satisfactorily because physical condition. However, she can participate in the event and earn a total of 10 points, including five points for the five points she has and five points for the participation prize. As long as she meets the minimum requirements, she will be able to stay outside and continue to send instructions."


    "I don''t want to see Sakayanagi acting like she''s hopeless."


    As long as she wishes to seed, it is inevitable that Sakayanagi will stand out.


    "It''s not that convenient. The right to abstain frompetition is a given right. If you participate formally and abstain, you won''t be shamed."


    "Does this fall under apelling reason? If you''re participating with an understanding of your own physical condition, you''re required to justify it. I have to finish the 100-meter race with a cane in my hand when everyone else has finished running. I don''t think she''d make such a spectacle of it."


    "Certainly, normally she would not participate because of her personality. However, if she knew that we had teamed up with each other, Sakayanagi would consider the risk of losing. I''m saying that it''s a problem to assume her absence will be a sure thing. I am saying this lightly, but I see a percentage chance that she will not participate. Give me a serious answer."


    "Ny percent."


    "90% based on your unfounded and unfettered assessment. If that''s the case, the appropriate value is even lower. 70% to 80% at best."


    You should be happy with that number."


    I can''t do it. If I want to be sure, it needs to be 95%.


    Forgetting about us, Ry��en and Katsuragi engaged in a debate.


    "That''s nonsense. But if you want to be more sure, there is a way. I''ll thoroughly hang up Sakayanagi before the sports festival. If she participates, the whole ss will expose her during thepetition. That way we can reach the 95% you''re talking about."


    They should sumb to the threat of trampling on personal dignity, Ry��en says.


    "That''s not an eptable story from an ethical standpoint."


    "I agree. I don''t think the school will stand idly by and watch."


    But both Horikita and Katsuragi denied that they would ept the practice.


    "If by any chance Sakayanagi joins in, I''m going to smash her to pieces, man."


    "Remember, we are sinking in the lower sses because it''s not easy to overthrow Sakayanagi-san."


    If Sakayanagi functions as amand center, it is certainly impossible to read what kind of moves they wille up with. Whether she participates or not will have a great deal to do with the victory or defeat of this athletic festival.


    If we can ensure the absence of Sakayanagi, on the contrary, it means that victory is at hand.


    "Horikita. Are you including my contribution to the ss victory?"


    "Basically, I try not to think about it. You''re the only one who remains in a special position." She tells me.


    "That''s convenient to hear. If the presence or absence of Sakayanagi''s participation is casting a shadow over this cooperation, I may be able to help."


    "What do you mean?"


    Interested, Katsuragi stopped talking to Ry��en and turned around.


    "If you leave it to me, I''ll make sure Sakayanagi doesn''t participate in the sports festival."


    "What...?"


    "Huh?"


    Horikita shows surprise, and Ry��en is impressed. And Katsuragi listens in silence.


    "However, for making sure Sakayanagi does not participate, I don''t want you to rely on a single point from me at the sports festival. Not just Horikita, but Ry��en too."


    "I didn''t include you in my calctions from the beginning. If you want to seal up Sakayanagi, it will save us a lot of trouble."


    "I can''t even imagine what kind of a move he will use, but if Ry��en and Horikita believe in what Ayanok��ji has said and leave it to him, I have no intention of saying anything more about this matter. If Sakayanagi is not participating, it won''t be hard to sink ss A to the bottom of the list."


    "But can you really do that?"


    "Oh. There''s a good chance you''ll get some rest without me doing anything, but you can leave it to me. And I''ve been thinking, it''s not every day that Horikita and Ry��en get together and cooperate with each other like this, is it? There''s something else I need to talk to you about, okay?"


    I was thinking a little differently than the three of them during this discussion.


    "I wonder."


    As I begin to utter my suggestions, Horikita and Katsuragi look at each other and Ry��en listens in silence.


    As soon as I finished my exnation, the ice in Katsuragi''s ss melted and clinked.


    "That''s an interesting idea, though..." Horikita looks at Ry��en, perplexed, unsure whether to ept that.


    "It''s certainly not impossible ording to the rules. But..."


    "You don''t like my proposal?"


    Even for the agreement rted to the sports festival, if it had been a proposal from me, there is a possibility that they would have refused.


    "Yeah, I don''t like it. I reject it."


    Ry��en had denied it, but Katsuragi interrupted.


    "Your personal feelings can wait. It''s honestly not a bad idea. We may have to go over the details and the rules again, but no, it''s Ayanok��ji''s n. I''m sure he''s made sure of that."


    "There is no problem with the rules. We can make a more powerful development if we have students from Ry��en''s ss cooperate with us rather than just our ss. Don''t you agree?"


    "Yeah, sure."


    Horikita herself is well aware of the problems we have at the moment.


    If we can procure assistance from elsewhere, we can alleviate some of the anxiety.


    "Take it on, Ry��en. We should now proceed with preparations for a direct confrontation with Sakayanagi."


    "Listen, Ayanok��ji. After crushing Sakayanagi, you''re next."


    "If you reach that point, it''s inevitable."


    Perhaps those words were decisive, as Ry��en also epted my proposal.


    "Katsuragi, you should organize that as well."


    "That''s exactly what the ss A siege is all about."


    "First, however, the top priority is to keep Sakayanagi out of the gymnasium. Because neither the cooperation at the gymnasium nor the proposal from Ayanok��ji can begin without clearing this preliminary step."


    "I know. Just leave it to me on that score."


    I have a strategy for containing Sakayanagi that neither Ry��en, Katsuragi, nor Horikita can do.

 Chapter 241: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 241: 4.1</h4>


    Just before 7 p.m Sakayanagi, Kamuro, and Hashimoto of the second-year ss A were gathered at a caf�� in Keyaki Mall.


    "I''m not surprised to be called out of the blue, but what can I do for you today, Princess?"


    "I want to discuss the matters regarding the sports festival. What we should be doing."


    "I thought we had a policy?"


    "The situation changes from moment to moment. And today, it means that another change is in the making." Saying so, Sakayanagi continues. "Ry��en''s ss and Horikita''s ss made contact."


    Hearing this, Hashimoto''s eyes change.


    "Which one approached which one?"


    "That is unknown. But either way, it is safe to assume that the two are connected."


    "Wait a minute. I don''t think it''s going to work out that easily. I don''t think Horikita will readily trust Ry��en. He''s not someone you can collude with."


    "You know what they say, ''The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'' We are in a solid position to run alone. They don''t have to trust each other, but as long as they have the same goals, they work well together."


    The trickiness of the two sses joining forces is easily deduced by both of them.


    The report was not a happy one, and the expressions on their faces hardened.


    "We are in danger as it is."


    "We can''t beat them on our own?"


    "If you assume that the three sses were going topete separately, there was still a chance for any of them to take any of the ces, but the connection came from an unexpected source."


    Sakayanagi makes it clear and looks at Hashimoto.


    "I wouldn''t join forces with Ry��en. You never know when you might be stabbed in the back."


    "In fact, it would be more convenient if he did... Ry��en-kun''s ss is in first ce and Horikita-san''s ss is in second ce. If the result is that obvious, I wee it, but if it''s the other way around, it''s a bit tricky.""


    Sakayanagi is more wary of Horikita''s ss than Ry��en''s.


    Sakayanagi''sment, which could be taken as such, causes Hashimoto''s faint smile to disappear.


    "And I''m pretty sure they''re on a roll right now. I thought it would be impossible for anyone other than Ry��en''s ss toe in and grab 100 points, expelling the small fry. Has Horikita grown up ... or is Ayanok��ji also working from the shadows?"


    Emphasizing the name Ayanok��ji, he turned to Sakayanagi. As if to confirm something.


    Sakayanagi continues in a nonchnt manner.


    "He''s really stepped up his gametely," she said. "What''s going on?"


    "I think he''s hiding more than just OAA. Well, Ayanok��ji isn''t the only student like that."


    Hashimoto quickly backed down, as a battle of wits would have been bad for his position.


    He decided that it was not a good idea to provoke her and draw attention.


    "But what are you going to do? They say we''ll lose without you, but you''re not going to be there, are you?"


    In other words, you''re throwing away the game? Kamuro asks.


    Hashimoto, who had been smiling, seemed concerned about this point, and his expression hardened again. With only 150 points, even if ss A sinks to the bottom of the standings, it will not cause much damage.


    However, the defeat is not something to be weed, as the situation has been built on the foundation of a continuous battle.


    "There''s only one answer."


    Sakayanagiughs and continues.


    "I will also participate in the sports festival. Even if they really join hands, they are calcting that they can barely winbined with my non-participation. Let them know that is their false hope."


    "Seriously? Will you be okay?"


    "It''s nice that you''re willing to do this, but... are you sure?"


    The two are concerned by Sakayanagi''s announcement of participation.


    "Being made a spectacle of? It means nothing to me."


    "Well, I''m sure you''ll do fine. If you say you''ll go out, then it''s a quick turnaround."


    "However, that still doesn''t improve overall athletic performance. It can only pick up thepetition that you might miss out on. In other words, it will be a tough fight for me to take first ce."


    "I think it''s enough that I wouldn''t call it the bottom of the barrel."


    "It''s not so difficult to crack the ss rtionship between Horikita-san and Ry��en-kun. Let''s sidetrack them on the day when they are desperately trying to work together."


    Hashimoto and Kamuro have confidence in Sakayanagi, who has absolute confidence in them.


    They have produced high results time and again.


    "I''m relieved, huh? Well, I''m surprised that you could pick up the information so quickly, Princess. You didn''t do it on your own feet, did you?"


    For everyday information gathering, she often used Hashimoto and Kamuro.


    But this time the two had never heard of it before, and Hashimoto asked curiously.


    "I''m still the ss A representative, and I''m getting to know some of the first-year students."


    Without panicking, Sakayanagi smiled softly as if enjoying the unexpected question.

 Chapter 242: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 242: 4.2</h4>


    It was finally October, and the gymnastic festival was approaching. I was at Keyaki Mall after school.


    I was there with Kei, as we were on a date. The oppressive stares from the third-year students were as usual, but Kei didn''t seem bothered by them despite being involved.


    "I''m used to it by now," she said.


    Today, Kei had a few stores she wanted to visit, and we hade to an electronics store first.


    "What are you nning to buy?"


    "Huh? I don''t really want anything. Well, it''s not that I don''t want something, but I''m not here for myself today."


    Not for herself? It means that she came for someone else.


    "Isn''t it Kiyotaka''s birthday soon? I thought about a surprise, but I thought it would be nice to give you something you want."


    Come to think of it, it is almost my birthday.


    "I thought we could look around together and see what Kiyotaka wants."


    "I see."


    I recall that Kei had been repeatedly asking me about various things I liked and nned to buy recently. Since she had been saying random things without thinking too much about it, she decided to find out what I wanted directly and give it to me as a gift.


    "That''s going to be an expenditure of private points, isn''t it?"


    Especially for Kei, who doesn''t have a lot of money saved up.


    "I know what you mean, but it''s at least your birthday. Don''t hesitate to tell me what you want."


    She seems to be ready to buy anything, but it''s not going to happen. That said, in this situation, I know it would be incorrect to answer that I don''t want anything, and it is obvious that she would not be convinced if I wanted something extremely inexpensive.


    Choose something that is kind to Kei''s wallet. That''s the kind of answer that is required.


    "I know what you''re thinking about right now~" She turns her cheeky, sticky eyes on me and forcefully crosses her arms in mine.


    "I''ll buy whatever Kiyotaka wants! Okay?"


    "If you say so..."


    At least it means I won''t get something I don''t need. As we walk around with our arms crossed, Kei pulls her cheeks into my arm.


    "Fufufu~ I''m on cloud nine." Then she tightened her arms around me. "I have nothing more to hide from you. Kiyotaka knows everything about me. I never thought I would have someone more important than my own parents!" She blushes and squints her eyes, looking truly happy. "You can''t hide anything from me either, right, Kiyotaka?"


    "Ah."


    Hiding things. What does that mean?


    My family.


    About the white room.


    What I''m trying to do at school.


    Friendships, romantic feelings.


    If any of these apply to her, then it''s probably nothing more than hiding something. In other words, I''m not telling Kei the truth about anything.


    "Oh!"


    As I was looking around the store, talking about the products, I bumped into Sat��, who hade to the store alone.


    As soon as we met, Sat��''s eyes fell on mine and Kei''s crossed arms.


    "Oh my god you two are so in love! I''m so sorry to bother you."


    "Hold on!


    Kei tries to stop her, but Sat�� runs away from the scene at once.


    "Well, shit." Kei says, putting her hand on her own forehead.


    "Are you still worried about Sat��?"


    "It''s not like that, but... I still don''t feel good about it."


    "Then I guess we''ll just have to refrain from crossing our arms outside from now on."


    "I don''t want to do that." She feels bad for her friend, but is not going to give up that part of her life.


    "Huh? Yo, Ayanok��ji!"


    While walking around the rice cooker and hot water pot section, I ran into Ishizaki and Albert.


    I could feel a squeeze in my arm when they showed up.


    "You''re on a date with Karuizawa? And you''re arm-in-arm... isn''t that cute?"


    Ishizakies over to look at me enviously, but I am more conscious of Albert standing beside me. He is holding arge branded pot in his hand.


    It''s strange that it doesn''t look that big because Albert is so big.


    "Oh, this? Ryuen-san''s birthday is on the 20th of this month. We were just choosing a present."


    "What? Is the 20th is the same birthday as..." Surprised, Keies looking up at me, somewhat rmed.


    "I''ve never heard of this before either."


    "Is it the same as someone''s birthday?"


    When Ishizaki pointed his gaze toward Karuizawa, Kei red at him and hid a little behind me.


    "What the hell, you brought it up..."


    At that moment, Albert lightly ces his hand on Ishizaki''s shoulder.


    It was there that he finally seemed to have an idea as to why Karuizawa was so wary.


    "Oh... I get it."


    Even though it was Ry��en''s order, Ishizaki called Kei to the rooftop and took part in what can be called abuse.


    It is only natural that Kei would not be pleased with such a man.


    Ishizaki was angry at himself for being obtuse. He clicked his tongue and then lightly pped himself on the head with his clenched fist.


    "I should have said I''m sorry... I was on the rooftop when you...."


    "Don''t talk about it here."


    Ishizaki tried to apologize, but he stillcked delicacy.


    This is the Keyaki Mall. It would not be surprising if someone he knew showed up at any moment. Kei would not be happy to have the incident on the rooftop brought up at such a time. I''m sure there will be more than a few opportunities to get involved with Ishizaki as long as the rtionship between Kei and I continues.


    "Shall we move somewhere else?"


    There are a few blind spots even in the wayward of Keyaki Mall.


    Kei, looking disgruntled, does not interrupt me and follows me with her arms still entwined around me.


    Albert also returned the merchandise to the shelves and followed with Ishizaki. By the emergency exit, we can keep away from the store and at the same time keep the students out of sight but not out of earshot.


    Even if someone you know shows up, you can stop the conversation there and it won''t be a problem.


    "I''m so sorry! All the time, even before I was apologizing, really!"


    "I don''t need an apology. In fact, it makes me even more angry."


    "What..?"


    "You people were beaten to a pulp by Kiyotaka. You lost, so you''re just apologizing because you had no choice."


    "No, no, that''s not..."


    "If Kiyotaka hadn''t saved me on the rooftop..... or if I had lost to you and Ry��en, you wouldn''t be apologizing to me like this. No? That''s why it''s annoying."


    Kei has a point when she says that it was annoying.


    Now I have be friends with Ishizaki and Albert, but that was all after the rooftop incident. It is no wonder that there are "if''s" like Kei said.


    "I know I''m to me, but still, ..."


    "I don''t me you. It''s natural for the strongest to be the best. I''ve always hated being the underling, so I''ve always managed to stand on top and be overbearing to the underlings. Isn''t that right?"


    Despite differences in degree, the essence of Kei and Ishizaki is the same. They have the same values, to understand their ce.


    "I understand what you mean. But now that I''vee into contact with Ishizaki, I''ve learned a few things. He has definitely grown for the better since then."


    "What do you mean, ''for the better''? It seems to me that nothing has changed."


    "This is just how I feel, but I don''t think Ishizaki would easily go along with what Ry��en did to Kei if he tried to do it to someone else now."


    "Yeah? It doesn''t look like you can rebel against Ry��en, though."


    The point must have been made right on the mark. Ishizaki chokes on his words. Unable to say anything back, his frustration overflows, and he hits his knee hard with the palm of his hand.


    Kei, seeing this, sighed.


    "That''s enough. You''re friends with Kiyotaka now, aren''t you? I don''t forgive you, but I''m done ming you."


    "Are you sure?"


    "That''s why I said so. It''s over, okay?"


    "Ah, ah!" Ishizaki looked up happily.


    "Let''s see.... So, that''s it. Whose birthday was it that you were talking about earlier?"


    Ishizaki asked Kei again . Still in disbelief, Kei pointed her index finger at me.


    "What? Seriously? Ayanok��ji''s is also October 20?" Ishizaki was surprised, as if in disbelief.


    "Maybe it''s fate!"


    There are more than 400 students in the school, so it''s no wonder there are people with the same birthday."


    "But isn''t it amazing that it''s Ayanok��ji and Ry��en-san?"


    Rejoice in mere coincidence. As Kei said, it was nothing strange, but for some reason, Albert seemed a little bit happy too.


    "Can we go back to the store?"


    "Ah! Yes! Just a minute!"


    Perhaps the loud voice was too loud, or maybe Kei was just annoyed, but she started plugging her ears with her fingers.


    "I have a suggestion. How about we celebrate our birthdays together on the 20th? Ry��en-san and Ayanok��ji''s birthday party, wouldn''t that be great?"


    No, I didn''t think it would be great the moment I heard the idea. I try to imagine it, but I can''t visualize it well.


    "If you say he''s going to apologize, that''s fine."


    "What?"


    "I said I could ept it if Ry��en would bow down to me and apologize."


    That''s a good return for an excuse to refuse. Ishizaki opens his mouth wide, then realizes how difficult it is to do something like that, and his mouth turns into a pout.


    "Ry��en won''t apologize to me, right?"


    "Yeah, that''s never going to happen..."


    It would be impossible for Ishizaki to even advise Ryuen to apologize. Ishizaki froze, but then, as if he had made up his mind, he opened his mouth once more.


    "If the two of you say yes, I''ll make the proposal to him myself!"


    "Will you ever give up?"


    If he did so, Ishizaki might be met with an iron fist sanction. I know Ry��en very well at this point.


    "I''ll do something about it! If I ever get an apology, it''ll be your birthday party!"


    "Well, if... that really happens, I''ll think about it..."


    Ishizaki is overflowing with enthusiasm, but his cheap shots may lead to his own downfall.


    I should clearly reject this idea.


    Certainly, Ishizaki has recently shown a stronger sense of self-will. It is also certain that some change in his thinking is beginning to appear in Ry��en, as he did not expel anyone from the school after the unanimous special examination. However, this should not be interpreted as instinct or true feelings.


    People do not change easily even if they want to. Ry��en is not trying to change, but to evolve. A man who until now has fought only with evil as a weapon has only begun to use good.


    He is beginning to freely control the two sides of the coin. If Ishizaki is misreading that...


    "You shouldn''t do that."


    Kei stopped him, but Ishizaki''s resolve was unwavering.


    "If Ry��en-san says he''s sorry, it''s okay, right?"


    "But, you know..."


    "Okay! Plus, let me apologize again. I''ll get you something more thoughtful than Ry��en''s gift, I promise!"


    Kei reluctantly admits that she was defeated by Ishizaki''s high level of enthusiasm.


    "Fine, whatever."


    "Ha, it''s decided! For now, let''s go pick out a birthday present for Ry��en-san!"


    Albert nodded his head and Ishizaki went back to the mass merchandiser a step ahead of him. As expected, they seem to understand that they can''t go with the two of us.


    "Why did you ept Ishizaki''s proposal? I thought you were going to say no."


    Although she heard his honest feelings and epted his apology, I have to admit that I didn''t think she would choose to face Ishizaki regarding my birthday.


    "Well, I''d prefer a birthday alone with Kiyotaka, too, but..."


    "You bet on the possibility that Ry��en will apologize?"


    "No, I doubt that''s possible. It''s just that that..."


    Kei turns and looks behind her at Ishizaki, who is happily talking with Albert.


    "I could feel that Ishizaki-kun likes you as a friend. I''m sure Kiyotaka needs friends too, you know."


    I knew immediately that she was referring to the disintegration of the Ayanokoji group. Kei, realizing what I had guessed, blushed and looked away.


    "Besides, Ishizaki-kun wants to apologize to me again. I just thought it would be okay to ept it."


    The fact that she is not being honest is very Kei-like.


    However, I still don''t think it will happen. It would be better to keep Ishizaki''s proposal as a half-baked idea.


    And so the days leading up to the sports festival pass by.

 Chapter 243: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 243: 4.3</h4>


    Sat��, who ran out of the electronics, catches her breath in front of the women''s restroom.


    "Why... why did I run away?"


    A dear friend of hers went out with someone she loves. There is nothing wrong with that.


    Although she knew that, when Sat�� saw her arms around him she felt an unspeakable urge.


    I don''t know how I would have behaved if I had stayed there.


    So she abruptly ran away, but felt a strong sense of guilt about it.


    Sat�� sat down on the spot and hugged her knees.


    "I''ll have to try not to panic next time..."


    "Kei-chan seems to hold back in the ssroom but... I''m sure she would have liked to get even closer to him."


    Just as she stood up with this thought, a shadow fell on her.


    "Excuse me for interrupting. You must be Maya Sat��, a senpai, right?"


    Sato was approached by an unfamiliar student and is momentarily puzzled.


    "Yeah... but who are you? You''re a first year right?"


    "Who I am isn''t important right now. Actually, I have something I need to tell Sat��-senpai as soon as possible. Could you please give me a moment of your time?"


    "What do you mean?"


    She is confused when a junior she doesn''t know tells her that there is an urgent matter to be discussed.


    Still unable to get the image of Ayanok��ji and Karuizawa in close contact out of her mind, she was restless.


    "It''s information about Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    However, Sato''s movements stopped after those words.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Yes. It''s about him and his girlfriend, Kei Karuizawa, another senpai."


    Sato couldn''t help but think about the two names that were just now dominating 99% of her mind. A bit of nervousness ran through Sato as the distance between the two drew closer.


    "Can we talk somewhere where we can be alone after this?"


    "Huh...?"


    The first year used Sat��''s light physical strength to get close enough to touch their lips to Sato''s ear.


    "If Karuizawa-senpai withdraws from school - don''t you think that would give Sat��-senpai a chance?"


    Karuizawa is my closest friend, and Ayanok��ji is my love.


    The first year says that this is a chance to change the rtionship between the two of them and her own position.


    Various emotions start to overflow.


    "What are you talking about?"


    "I leave it to Sat��-senpai''s judgment whether to listen or not. But if you don''t listen, you will surely regret it for a long time toe. If you''re interested, you cane to my dorm room."


    Satisfied after stating the room number, the first-year student turned away and left Sat��.


    Sato, who was left there, remained confused, unable to understand what was going on.


    However, there was only one thing that stuck in her memory.


    I will have a chance.


    Those words suggest the possibility of dating Ayanok��ji.


    Sat��''s chest tightens, and at the same time, feelings she doesn''t want to know about start crawling out from the darkest parts.


    "I..."

 Chapter 244: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 244: 4.4</h4>


    While some issues remained, the ss proceeded with careful preparations for the athletic festival.


    Although some students objected to the idea of a joint fight with the Ry��en, once the lid was lifted and practice began, there were no major disputes, and practice for the teampetitions went smoothly. Even the ssmates who had been negative at first began to cooperate with each other in order to win, and they practiced and trained day and night.


    Finally, the night before the athletic festival arrived. It was around 9:30 at night when I made a phone call to Horikita.


    "It''s veryte, isn''t it? I was about to go to bed."


    I could hear the sound of a hair dryer in the background.


    "I have something important to tell you, something to do with the sports festival."


    "Important from you? I guess I better take this a little more seriously."


    As soon as she said that, she turned off the switch and my ears went quiet.


    "Oh, I wanted to say something first too. Sakayanagi has been nning participating in the sports-festival right? I thought you said you could stop her."


    "It has to do with that matter as well. Tomorrow, I''m going to be absent."


    "Absent? Wait a minute, what do you mean?"


    I could tell that Horikita was flustered by my sudden statement. I heard a loud bang and a light scream.


    "Are you okay?"


    "Excuse me, I dropped my hairdryer..."


    I hear the sound of a cell phone being put down somewhere. She seems to be in a hurry to pick up the hair dryer.


    "So, why the absence? It''s not like you''re sick, right?"


    It is understandable that she is puzzled, as I sound seemingly healthy.


    "Oh, I have no health problems. In fact, I''m even more pleasant than usual."


    "Then why? If you''re absent, you lose the 10 points you have. Even if we don''t count your wins, losing these 10 points hurts."


    With a ss size of 38 students, I can understand the temptation toin.


    "I''m not saying 10 points is light. But this is the strategy I need."


    "Your strategy?"


    It''s not everyday that your father''s assassinse mixed in with guests of honor.


    I''m going to mention something here that I''ve kept quiet until now.


    "It will lead to a clue regarding Sakayanagi''s strategy and aiming for ss A."


    "Sakayanagi-san strategy...?"


    "I told you, there''s a way to keep Sakayanagi from participating in the gym festival."


    "I don''t know why your absence would lead to Sakayanagi-san''s attack." Horikita was about to ask why, but quickly thought better of it. "There''s no way I can understand what you''re thinking right now. Besides, even if I try to persuade you, you won''t change your mind about missing the sports festival, will you?"


    "Ah. I''ll call the school first thing tomorrow morning to tell them I''m not feeling well."


    "Then it looks like I have no choice but to trust you here."


    Despite her dismay, Horikita admitted approvingly.


    "In case you''re wondering, I was nning on getting at least three first ces as a personal goal, but now I''m going to have to add another ten points to my total."


    "Take care of it."


    I ended the call and connected my phone to the charging cord. Horikita, who hadn''t gone to bed yet, was probably too lucid to recalcte her score and wouldn''t be able to sleep for a while.


    It was a bit harsh, but I''ll let it slide as a necessary expense.


    And there''s one more person I need to call.


    Just to tell them what I''ll need and I''m all set.

 Chapter 245 - 5 : Second Sports Festival

    <h4>Chapter 245: Chapter 5 : Second Sports Festival</h4>


    IT WAS A sunny morning as I, Suzune Horikita, watched from the faculty side as all the students were gathered on the field. On the stage set up for the event, Miyabi Nagumo-senpai was giving the opening address. The guests invited from outside the school gazed at the students. There weren''t that many, just a few dozen.


    Even so, the students seemed ufortable at the sight of these unfamiliar outsiders. Everyone is about to give their best in this sports festival, and they''re all ready to go.


    The student council had told us in advance that guests had been invited, but the number of guests was more than I had imagined. They are from the political and other circles that are involved in the establishment of this school. There were no politicians that I had seen on TV, but I was sure that these people were closely rted.


    Everyone is dressed in suits and watching with hardened expressions on their faces. It was as if they were monitoring prisoners. Even in the midst of all this, Student Council President Nagumo continued to speak his words with dignity, unperturbed. He was elegantly fulfilling his role as well as the image of the student body, as well as my brother once had.


    After Nagumo-senpai''s speech was over and the students apuded, the baton passed over the teachers, who were once again informed of the precautions that would be taken at the sports festival.


    Finally, the opening time arrived.


    From this point on, the students were free to do as they pleased. As long as they abide by the rules, they may participate in the events they are currently entered in, or, although they need to earn points, if they see their opponents and judge them to be at a disadvantage, they are allowed to abstain andpete in another event on short notice.


    Also, it''s important to remember that students who havepleted all thepetitions or if they are not nning to participate are obligated to cheer in the designated area. If you are caught chatting, resting, or skipping around in unrted areas, you will be disqualified from participation and stripped of your points.


    In the teampetition, students who are able to win are selected from each other''s sses, and the number of students in the teampetition is equalized.


    The maximum number of students who could participate in a grouppetition was predetermined, no matter how good the students were. This was done in order not to prevent an advantage to outstanding talents such as Sud��-kun and Yamada-kun, who were contracted to lend a hand in up to three events per person in the teampetitions. The above arrangement is limited to "events that can be entered in advance" and is also included in the contract.


    It would be nonsense to have a dispute on the day of the sports festival, asking for cooperation in this or that. We don''t have a rule that prevents us from working with other students, such as Ichinose-san or Sakayanagi-san''s ss. If there is apetition that needs teamwork to gain each party points, we are able to team up ording to the situation.


    Fortunately, I had already worked out a n with Katsuragi-kun beforehand, and went over it many times to make sure it would not be a problem.


    Although I am less worried about the opening of thepetition because of therge number of participants in thepetitions I have reserved, I need to remember to have a meeting with my ssmates every hour to check for any problems that may arise, and make minor adjustments ordingly.


    The first event I''ll participate in is the 100-meter run. The start time is 15 minutes after the opening of the race, so there is no need to rush, but I wanted to arrive early to check on the participants.


    "Hey hey, Horikita! It''s game time!"


    Immediately after the assembly was disbanded and were free to go, it was Ibuki-san who came running up to me at full speed.


    She was breathless and ring at me, as usual.


    "Are you an idiot?"


    "Huh! What is this all of a sudden? Are you afraid you''re gonna lose? Is that what you mean?"


    "No..." I immediately denied it so she would stop freaking out unnecessarily. "What is thepetition you are going to do now? Catch your breath and then answer."


    "The 100-meter run, of course. I made a deal with you, and I won''t forget it."


    "Yes, the 100 meter run. We both entered in the first race. That was the deal. That means I''ll be running right after this. If you know we''re going to race, why would you use up your energy now? Shouldn''t you wait in the line for me toe?"


    "Oh shit..." I guess she understood the stupidity in her actions. "Whatever, it''s game time, let''s go!"


    "Rest assured. You don''t need to tell me to go."


    Ibuki-san is not an easy opponent. Last year, she won the 100-meter run by a narrow margin. If it were possible, I would avoidpeting with her, but I am greatly indebted to her. If not for Ibuki-san''s help, Kushida-san might not havee to school yet. Even then, I can''t lose to her. I know she doesn''t want that either, so I''m going topete with her and win fair and square.


    Ibuki-san didn''t seem to like walking side by side with me, so we put some distance between us and headed for the first entry together. A pleasant sense of tension is building up.


    First up was the battle for the second-year girls only. Not much had changed from the prior reservations, and the only potential rival was Ibuki-san. But it would be shallow to consider that lucky. If I have an easy fight, it means that there are ssmates who will have to fight stronger opponents in differentpetitions.

 Chapter 246: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 246: 5.1</h4>


    The 100-meter sprint was the firstpetition I took in the sports festival, and the firstpetition regarding the deal with Ibuki-san. The result was a difficult win for me.


    Oddly enough, it was as close asst year. After we crossed the finish line, Ibuki-san kicked up the dirt in frustration and made a lot of excuses that she had run as fast as she could before the race.


    My next battle with her was in the fourth event, the long jump. The two events in between we went into separate battles.


    The second event was the steeplechase, in which I ced first, and the third was the team tug-of-war, in which I ced third.


    So far, I personally umted 5 points at the start, 10 points for the two first ces in the individualpetition, 3 points for the tug-of-war for the third ce in the teampetition, and 3 points for the participation prize, for a total of 21 points. It was a good start.


    Then, around 10:00 a.m., the second round of the long jump with Ibuki-san began. I had just finished thepetition and the record I set was 5 meters, 79 centimeters.


    Not bad. I think I almost set a personal best record in a situation where no mistakes were allowed.


    Ibuki-san, who was three ces behind me in the lineup, was looking at the record and regting her breathing. There were three jumpers left. By jumping into provisional first ce, she was much closer to scoring points in this event.


    "Yo, Suzune! I found you!"


    As I was watching the next long jumper, I heard a voice calling me from behind. I turned around to see Sud��-kun running up to me and Onodera walking behind him.


    They are the pair that I have high hopes for as the point getters in this sports festival.


    "From the looks of it, you seem to be in good shape."


    "Sud��-kun has won three in a row in the opening round. And he was totallyfortable.


    "Well, yeah. But you alsopeted in two events and won first ce in both. Right, Onodera?"


    "I was a little lucky on my end though."


    Onodera, who has no equal when it came to swimming, also showed off her talent in track and field.


    "When I first entered the school, I didn''t have the impression that you were that fast. Where did ite from?"


    I was curious about this because I always see her in gym ss.


    "I don''t really like running, and I''m not interested in anything but swimming, so I''m just doing it at random, I guess."


    "You said you never do long distances."


    "It''s super tiring, and I can''t run that fast, and that''s not a good thing."


    They have been practicing together every day since they decided to pair up, and it seems to be a much more natural pairing than I had imagined.


    "It''s true. Anyways I really wanted to fight with K��enji if possible. He participated in three events and took first ce in all of them, and it looks like he''s still going to extend his winning streak."


    "That''s no good. It''s not a good idea to crush each other as ssmates. You know that, right?"


    Both Sud�� and K��enji have the potential to take first ce.


    I understand their desire topete in the same race, but they have to give priority to their ss.


    "I know, I know, I''m kidding."


    "Don''t worry. I''ll keep an eye on him."


    "Right. The more I can leave Onodera-san in charge, the less I have to worry unnecessarily."


    "I guess I''m not trustworthy..." He seemed dissatisfied, but when I looked directly at him, he averted his gaze ufortably.


    That''s a sign that he''s reflecting on how he''s behaved in the past.


    "Sud��-kun and the others are going to participate in a series of pairpetitions after this, aren''t they? Good luck."


    "Oh. I''m going to extend my winning streak all over the ce."


    Those are encouraging words. And here thest runner stood at the starting line.


    I stopped talking with them and turned my gaze toward Ibuki-san.


    "Well, sorry to interrupt you. Let''s go scout the nextpetition."


    "You got it. See youter, Horikita-san."


    "Of course."


    I gave them a light sideways nce as my attention was on Ibuki-san, who had started to get ready for her turn.


    I fully understand that her ability is close to mine. In other words, it is conceivable that she could surpass the record I set.


    Two emotions were wavering: one is that I want her to fail, and the other is that I want topete fairly with her at full strength. She should be under a lot of pressure, but her movements were agile and graceful.


    She leapt,nded on the dirt and fell forward.


    With dirt on her face, her eyes immediately turned to the record keeper: 5 meters, 81 centimeters. A mere two centimeters, but still two centimeters short, and my loss was confirmed.


    "I did it!


    Ibuki-san struck a gut-punching pose and was as excited as a child. She made a brilliant leap which barely passed my own mark.


    "See! I won! You lose!"


    I know she was happy to the point of persistence, but it''s a little irritating, as one might expect.


    "I wonder if you had the advantage because of less air resistance..."


    If there was no difference in our abilities, that is the only possible difference between us...


    "Huh? Air resistance?"


    "Oh, no, it''s nothing."


    "Don''t be a weirdo and admit defeat honestly."


    "Don''t get carried away. Now we both have one win and one loss. We''re even again."


    Even though I warned her not to get carried away, Ibuki-san had a scowl on her face the whole time.


    I guess I should regret missing first ce on my part, but when she is so pleased with herself, I can''t help but feel that I have no choice besides beating her in the next round.


    "I win! I win! I won and you lost!"


    Sigh.


    I think my mental stress has gone through the roof. Now I have one win and one loss. I''d like to go for the third match right now, but there are several high scoring teampetitionsing up after this, so I''ll have to wait until thepetition this afternoon to settle the score with her.

 Chapter 247: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 247: 5.2</h4>


    The sports festival began without Ayanok��ji-kun. An electric bulletin board was set up on the ground so that one could always see which sses were doing well and how they were doing.


    Ry��en-san''s ss started off at the top of the second-years, but soon after, our ss B took first ce and has been holding onto that position. Ichinose-san''s ss C is in third ce, and Sakaynagi-san''s ss A is in fourth ce, an ideal ranking.


    I hope things will continue to go on like this without any upheaval until the end of the event. I had a lot of time to kill before the nextpetition, so I moved to the cheering section.


    "My my, I just wanted to congratte you, Horikita-senpai!"


    Yagami-kun, a first-year ss B student, approached me.


    "It seems that Yagami-kun''s ss is also fighting quite well. You are now in second ce by a narrow margin, aren''t you?"


    "It''s more astonishing that my senpai is in first ce. I can''t believe you started in ss Dst year."


    "Is that apliment? Or is there sarcasm mixed in?"


    "Not in the slightest. I genuinely respect you. But not as much as the student council president, if I''m going to be painfully honest."


    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the very moment when Student Council President Nagumo broke through the finishing line tape.


    "The third-year senpais were talking earlier, and they said this is his fifth consecutive first ce finish."


    As the girls cheered, the guests of honor turned their attention to the student council president. However, Student Council President Nagumo left the scene with a nk expression on his face and, without so much as responding to the girls who called out to him, told them that he would like to be alone and solemnly walked away.


    "I''d want to gopliment him, but he doesn''t look the least bit happy."


    "Even if he wins or loses, it''s not as if thispetition matters to him in the slightest. His graduation from ss A was secured long ago. Perhaps he''s just getting bored."


    Certainly, for the student council president, who is in a solid position in terms of rankings, the results of the sports festival are meaningless; he is aiming for first ce because he doesn''t wish to look bad in front of the current students and guests, I suppose.


    "I''m going to have a little talk with the president."


    "I see. I have anotherpetition, so I''ll leave you now, senpai."


    After exchanging a few words with Yagami-kun, I decided to approach the student council president. Beside Nagumo-senpai, another third-year girl called out to him.


    Kiry��in-senpai, a third year ss B student. She is someone I have heard rumors about from time to time in my interactions with third-year students. I know that she is an exceptional student on the OAA.


    Since I couldn''t interrupt the conversation, I decided to stand by and wait.


    "Congrattions on your fifth straight win, Nagumo."


    "What do you want?"


    "You don''t have to be so rude. I''m just concerned that you don''t look happy with your sess. It seems there were more than one or two people giving you a cheer."


    "I''m not really in the mood for jokes. How can you call me sessful just because I won a simplepetition?"


    "You could have messed around with the rankings andpeted against weaker students, but it doesn''t seem like you cared too much with who you went up against." Kiry��in-senpai pointed out that he wasn''t trying to cut corners. "I heard that Ayanok��ji is absent, is that the reason for the unttering look on your face?"


    Ayanok��ji-kun. Once again, his name popped up.


    The student council president exhaled a quiet sigh without looking back at Kiry��in-senpai.


    "I thought that guy would finally be able to give me a challenge. I guess I was wrong."


    "You poor, poor thing. I''ll be your opponent, then, shall I?"


    At such provocative words, student council president Nagumo gave a sideways nce at Kiry��in-senpai, the first time he looked over. However, seeing the fearless smile on her face, he turned away again.


    "That''s a cheap lie. Even if I wanted to, I can''t imagine you''d everpete with me."


    "Hmph. I guess I''ve been found out." Kiry��in-senpai says so as she stands next to Nagumo-senpai''s shoulders. "One more event and I have fulfilled my minimum obligation. After that, I n to rx and watch the games."


    "I''m sure you will."


    "You should no longer be concerned with juniors. At least you''ve dominated your grade level and secured ss A. You''re the student council president. That''s enough. I suggest you graduate quietly."


    Kiry��in-senpai admonished as if she was giving advice.


    "Are you trying to be helpful? What''s gotten into you? I''ve talked to you more in the past six months than I did before Ayanok��ji was involved."


    "I suppose you''re right."


    "Well, you don''t need to worry. I don''t need you to tell me that I should give up on ying with Ayanok��ji. The kid bailed on me. There''s no point in going after him if I''ll just be set up like this again."


    "If he loses in a direct confrontation with the student council president, how would he be able to maintain the same status as before? Try to understand why he''s running away. He''s got a cute and cuddly side to him."


    Fighting the student council president? Perhaps that''s why he went to the student council room the other day, to talk about such matters? It also aligns with the message Nagumo-senpai entrusted me with.


    Kiry��in-senpai lightly nced at me, but walked away without leaving any particr words.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting, Suzune. What do you want?"


    "Ah, well, I was going to ask you the same thing as Kiry��in-senpai. I saw student council president Nagumo-senpai take first ce, but you didn''t look happy at all. Also... you seem to have promised Ayanok��ji-kun that you wouldpete with him in the sports festival?"


    "Clearly, it didn''t work out in the end. He seems to be absent. It is what it is."


    Ayanok��ji-kun told me his absence was not due to illness, but rather a strategy involving Sakayanagi-san. It seems that Student Council President Nagumo doesn''t know that fact, and it would be better not to let him know.


    "Hey, lunch is soon isn''t it? Come hang out with me."


    I couldn''t refuse the request, as it wasing from the student council president and agreed to do so.


    A short timeter, during the lunch break, I was looking at the lunches provided on the grounds. I could choose what I wanted from this array of meals. Sandwiches and other light meals. The lineup was diverse, ranging from a variety of dishes such as pork cutlet served on top of a bowl of rice to more stamina-and strength-enhancing dishes.


    I was both impressed and appalled by the school''s thoroughness and attention to detail. Moreover, the prerequisite is that the food must be consumed, and you can take more than one. Most of the students just picked one, but I observed that there were some boys who took more than one. I saw arge student who happily carried three or four of them on his chest. If so, you''re either still underestimating this school or you''re a very big boy.


    I''ve seen this student before in the first grade, but...if he ate all of that and was ready topete this afternoon, he either still underestimated this school or he''s confident in himself.


    "Yo, thanks for waiting."


    I was just reaching for a light meal when I was approached by student council president, Nagumo-senpai.


    "No problem, senpai. However, I have a meeting, so if you could make this quick, that would be great."


    "Ah. Well then, I want to know something about Ayanok��ji. I heard he''s out sick, but how did he suddenly get sick?"


    Although he didn''t point it out earlier, apparently student council president Nagumo-senpai is suspicious of him.


    "I only received a notice in the morning apologizing for his absence, because an absent student loses 10 points. If he is sick, I can''t force him to show up."


    I am the only one who knows he was absent for another reason. Naturally, I need to cover that.


    "I deeply hope he''s not feeling well."


    "Pardon me, senpai?"


    I don''t think I gave it away from my attitude. I wonder if the student council president has another reason to think otherwise.


    "You heard what Kiry��in said. Maybe he didn''t want to be humiliated and decided to shut himself in."


    "I suppose it''s always a possibility."


    I gave a safe response so as not to provoke him.


    "Alright well... I guess that''ll end up costing your year."


    "What... Do you mean by that?"


    "Well, the only way to make up for his absence, is to take it out on someone else, right?" He didn''t directly answer my question, but mumbled to himself.


    The student council president then raised his hand lightly to let me know he''s leaving and walked away without picking up his lunch.


    "Take it out on our year? What does he mean by cost...?"


    It seems like Ayanok��ji''s reputation is really all over the ce. I, too, was impressed with him again today at the sports festival. When he announced that he would be absent, I was nervous about what would happen, but when events progressed, it turned out that Sakayanagi-san was also absent today.


    Without a doubt, Ayanok��ji did something to contain Sakayanagi-san.


    And the results are evident in the current ss A scores and rankings. If suddenly yourmander is unable toe out to the field, it is not surprising that the coordination is not up to snuff.


    I feel a little sorry for them, but this is a serious game.


    I''ll make sure to umte wins wherever I can.

 Chapter 248: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 248: 5.3</h4>


    After a midday break, the sports festival proceeded into the second half of the day. More than half of the students had alreadypleted the minimum number of five events, and those who showed confidence in their athletic abilities were moving on to the sixth and seventh events. The ss A students Matoba and Shimizu were struggling without their leader, as they were up against Horikita and Ichinose, who were assessing the participation and members of thepetitions on a minute-by-minute basis.


    "Next is doubles table tennis in the gym. Satonaka reported earlier that there were no strong rivals. There are two more seats avable. There is a good chance we can win it."


    "We''ve got to keep winning and try not to getst ce."


    Sakayanagi''s non-participation cast a dark shadow over the second year ss A, and many students were discouraged, but on the other hand, there were many who were motivated by it.


    Hearing that the ping-pong doubles tournament, which was to close in 10 minutes, was running low, the students abandoned the penalty shootout match they had nned to participate in and hurriedly began to move.


    Ishizaki, who was walking from the direction in which the two students were proceeding, was looking slightly downcast and not looking ahead. Shimizu moved to the right to avoid the approaching Ishizaki, but Ishizaki also moved to the left at about the same time.


    Shimizu tried to avoid him as quickly as he could, but he could not avoid him and their shoulders collided. The impact was twice asrge as expected and could not have been an idental collision.


    Shimizu, judging that he had been forced to hit his shoulder, tried to raise his voice, but...


    "What the hell are you doing man?!"


    Ishizaki yelled and stepped up towards Shimizu.


    "Huh? Why are you acting like the victim when you bumped into me!" Shimizu from ss A and Ishizaki from ss D red at each other.


    "You''re the one who wasn''t looking ahead!"


    "Huh? You hit me on purpose!"


    "What, no? You bumped into me on purpose, no matter how you look at it. Right?" Shimizu calls for help and asks Matoba to cover him.


    "Ah. You weren''t looking straight ahead."


    "So I wasn''t looking at you and you took advantage of that? That''s nasty."


    "Nasty? It''s your fault."


    "Huh? Me? When you guys were too busy talking to watch?"


    The shoving of me continued, and time passed without any indication that Ishizaki was going to apologize. Convinced that they were right, the hasty Matoba urged Shimizu to calm down.


    "Leave him alone."


    "I''m not convinced we should let him go like this."


    "I understand how you feel. I do, but we have priorities right now."


    "I guess so."


    While taking in Shimizu''s emotions, he nailed him to remember to participate in thepetition and win. Reluctantly, Shimizu nodded his head, red at Ishizaki, and walked away.


    "You better be careful next time."


    "Ouch..."


    "What?"


    As he was about to walk past, Ishizaki suddenly held his left shoulder and mumbled, "I was caught up in the moment, I didn''t notice... I think I might have hurt myself just now."


    For a moment, the two could not understand what he was saying, but immediately after this, they realized everything.


    They realized that this was a cheap trap set by Ishizaki.


    The two looked at each other andughed. However, the situation takes a sudden turn immediately after that.


    "You''re making a lot of noise, aren''t you? What''s the matter, Ishizaki?"


    "Ry��en-san! Please listen to me! They started messing with me!"


    Just when things were starting to get tense, Ry��en appeared.


    "So Ry��en is involved? What a troublesome guy. I didn''t expect him to use such obvious tricks."


    "What are you even talking about? I only came here because I heard the stupidmotion, okay?"


    "You''ve got to be kidding me. You two have a record, you know that."


    "I guess we do have a reputation. What about it?"


    "You know what I mean."


    "Although, you know what? Even if we do have a track record, that''spletely irrelevant right now. If an exemry student was bullied and hurt by a ss A student, I''m going to report it, okay?"


    "What''s with the act? You''re the one who talked him into it, aren''t you? I''m calling the sensei''s for God''s sake!"


    "Kuku. Of course, you call the teachers when you''re in trouble. That''s pretty funny considering we''re the victims here. I''ll exin it thoroughly, don''t worry. Isn''t that right, Ishizaki?"


    "Yeah. I''m the victim."


    "What are you a victim of? You clearly aren''t even taking the sports festival seriously, so does it even matter to you? Go call sensei."


    Matoba decides that it is unavoidable and gives an earful to Shimizu, and sends him running somewhere.


    Soon after, Shimizu, who had gone to call the teacher, came back with an unttering expression on his face.


    "What''s wrong? Where''s the teacher?"


    "I didn''t..."


    Shimizu didn''t bring back a teacher but Hashimoto Masayoshi, who was in the same ss.


    "I saw Shimizu running all panicked so I asked him about it. If he called the teacher, themotion would get bigger. If you decide to turn it into a situation, you might not be able to participate in thepetition."


    "But-"


    "I know. Don''t forget that''s what Ry��en wants, to make a bigmotion. Don''t y into his hands."


    Instructing him to rx, Hashimoto ced his hand on Shimizu''s shoulder.


    "I''ll talk to him for now."


    "I understand. Deal with him swiftly please."


    Matoba, who had no choice but to leave the situation to Hashimoto, watches from a short distance away.


    "Please take it down a notch, Ry��en."


    Hashimoto, who heard the story, approaches with calm steps amid themotion.


    "The hell do you mean? It was you guys who set us up. We''re just buying a fight that was sold to us."


    "Sure. But if you don''t back off, we''ll both be in trouble. We''re the breadwinners of the sports festival, and we''re still holding back the main force. I''m sorry to say this, but Ishizaki can only go so far, right?"


    Hashimoto exploits this point and tries to hold Ry��en back so that he cannote on too strong.


    "Don''t be arrogant. Ishizaki has been working hard for this day. To show that he has the potential topete on equal terms with the breadwinners you speak of. Isn''t that right?"


    "Geez." Hashimoto, who had seen Ishizaki ying around on a regr basis many times, could not help but be stunned. "Damn. You always push things to the edge." Hashimoto knew that he could notpete in a proper debate, but he couldn''t resist scratching his head. "But this makes it clear. You''re really going to try to crush us in this sports festival, and that''s why the elite first-years are sticking around like freaks, right?"


    It was noticed early on that the physically gifted first-year students were being followed around to match thepetitions in which the talented students of the second-year ss A werepeting. However, there was no way to stop the entries once they were noticed, and so far they have only achieved less than expected.


    "Because of the princess'' absence on the day of thepetition, we''re pretty desperate to avoid the bottom of the standings. If we make an enemy of you too, we won''t stand a chance. Let''s just call this a painful split."


    "Painful split?" Ry��en''s attitude, which had been rtively friendly until now, changed drastically, and his smile disappeared. "I don''t know what''s going on in ss A. I''m in ss D. I''m doing everything I can to crawl up from the bottom. You''re making a big mistake if you think you can just interfere with that and get rid of me easily."


    Hashimoto''s expression, which had been smiling thinly, froze for a moment at the spirit that seemed to be attacking him


    "Then what should I do? Am I supposed to apologize unterally to you?"


    "You know that''s what I''m talking about. I''m not trying to get money from you. I just want a sincere apology. Right, Ishizaki?"


    "Sure. The pain in my arm has subsided a bit, so that''s good enough for me."


    What hurts more than anything is the loss of more time. After confirming that no special money or other demands would be made, Hashimoto decided to swallow the idea.


    "Give me some time to persuade Shimizu."


    "Hurry up. We have anotherpetitioning up."


    More than five minutes have already passed since the altercation began.


    It''s almost toote to apologize now and run to the gym in time.


    "You heard me. I know you''re not convinced, but you should apologize honestly here."


    "Don''t be silly. You said you would take care of it, so I kept my mouth shut and listened. I''m not going to go along with it."


    "So it''s okay if we don''t win? You might be able to protect your pride by being stubborn and sticking up for yourself here. But will this convince you when you lose by five or ten points?"


    "Well, that''s..."


    "What matters now is that the ss wins. Right? You stepped into some shit, so apologize and get over it."


    One word of apology and you can head right back to thepetition. Hashimoto urged him to do so.


    "Damn! Why do I..."


    Shimizu, who showed great irritation, finally cooled down and reluctantly agreed and stepped forward to apologize to Ishizaki.


    "Wait, Shimizu. Matoba is just as guilty as you. iming I was looking away and all that."


    "Matoba..."


    "Okay..."


    The two students have no choice but to stand side by side and bow to Ishizaki, albeit only slightly.


    "We''re sorry... Is this okay?"


    They quickly raised their lowered heads and were about to leave, but Ishizaki quickly stopped them.


    "Ry��en-san, are you seeing this? What the hell is this?"


    "It''s like they''re spitting on you. I don''t feel like he''s received a full apology. You don''t have enough sincerity."


    "Are you insane, Ry��en? I won''t back down any further."


    Previously, Hashimoto had tried to negotiate for Shimizu''s sake, but at this moment he had also decided that this was as far as he could go. Deciding that there was no other way but for the teacher to intervene, Hashimoto jogged over to the teacher.


    Within a minute or so, he returns to the scene with a teacher.


    "What in the world is the matter here?"


    "Actually..."


    "I ept your apology."


    Hashimoto was about to tell the teacher what happened, but just before he did, Ishizaki dered that the apology was epted.


    "I''m sorry, Ry��en-san. You stood up for me, but I wasn''t mature enough to say that it''s just a tiny bump on my shoulder. So, I think I''ll make it up to youter since these two apologized to me just now. Is that okay?"


    "If you''re okay with that, it''s none of my business."


    As soon as the teacher had arrived, Ry��en and Ishizaki cut the conversations short. Hashimoto, who had brought the teacher along because he knew Ry��en could not turn his back on the teacher, was also confused.


    The teacher, seeing only this situation, came to a conclusion.


    "You two bumped into Ishizaki and apologized. And he epted it. Is that correct?"


    "That''s not it-" Shimizu tries to speak up as the problem seems to have been solved, but Hashimoto stops him.


    "Apparently so. It has been resolved."


    "Good then. Avoid further trouble during the festival, okay?"


    Hashimoto pushes the two, who seem to be about to explode in anger, away from the scene.


    "Go quickly while the teacher is watching."


    They turned around several times to re at Ishizaki and Ry��en, but eventually they blended in with the crowd walking towards the gymnasium.


    Ry��en and the others also dispersed at the same time.


    When no one was left around Hashimoto, hemented deeply.


    "Man... you''d do something like that in a huge crowd? You''re not someone... I''d want to make enemies with, at all."


    Hashimoto was chilled to the bone, but even as he said this, heughed alone with joy.

 Chapter 249: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 249: 5.4</h4>


    3:00 p.m. With less than an hour left, the sports festival is finallying to a close.


    We enter the final phase of thepetition still in first ce, with only 17 points separating us from the second year ss D, who are closing in while in second ce. The team''s perseverance was beyond our imagination, and we had to assume that Ry��en-kun''s strategy was working. Still, there was no trouble among us second-year students, and we were functioning well as an alliance.


    However, if we don''t score more points in thest hour, there''s a good chance of an upset. Standing in a corner of the gymnasium, I stared at the remainingpetitions, their rules and schedules. Then Ibuki-san, not even bothering to hide her annoyance, approached me.


    "It''s a stupid game!"


    "That''s a very funny thing to say; I won by two wins and one loss, isn''t that how it turned out?"


    "I didn''t participate!"


    "I don''t care. It''s your fault for not showing up at the prescribed time, isn''t it?"


    "I just got the time wrong..."


    It was the third round of ourpetition, and it closed for entries at 1:20 p.m.


    Ibuki-san could not participate in thepetition because she did not make it to the entry in time. Of course, I was not left out, and although I missed first ce, I was able to finish second and earn three points.


    "I know you''re not happy about it, but in the real world, that''s called a no-show."


    "One win, one loss! It''s not settled yet!" She continues to fuss in my ear, and she has no intention of backing down.


    "I participated in a total of ninepetitions. One more event is avable..."


    "That''s it! Tell me what you''re participating in."


    "If you want to ask me to y, you''ll have to show me the right attitude."


    "Ugh!"


    "Do you want me to y or not?"


    "Oh, please... can... you... fight... me!?" Ibuki-san asks, trembling with anger as if she is about to spit out mes from her mouth. "Are you satisfied?"


    "Yes, I am. I guess you made me feel a little better."


    The situation is changing by the minute and thepetition slots are filling up. Should I go with the original n or aim for an even higher score?


    "Now, answer me, what are you going to participate in?"


    "Could you please be quiet for a minute?"


    "I can''t take this!" Ibuki-san yells as she provocatively lifts up a certain finger in my face. I didn''t want to deal with it, but ignoring it would only make it louder.


    "I was nning on joining the shuttle run after this."


    "Is the shuttle run the one where you go back and forth endlessly until you drop out?"


    "Yes, that''s right. It''s also called a round-trip endurance run."


    "I remember doing this in middle school. It''s good for the final battle." She nodded her head in satisfaction and tried to run out to the entry.


    "Why aren''t youing?"


    "If you want to join, go ahead."


    "No, you''re in it too, right? It doesn''t make sense if we''re not in the same group."


    "We''re just considering it. I haven''t finalized it yet."


    "What?"


    "To be honest, right now thestpetition I want topete in is volleyball."


    "Volleyball? Volleyball has six participants, right? From the looks of it there''s no way you''re going to get six people together now."


    One of thepetitions announced on the day of the event, a separatepetition for men and women with participation from all grades. We decided to forgo the event in our ss, judging that the need for sixpetent members would be a bottleneck, but the teams participating in the current volleyball tournament seemed unexpectedly weak, as if the other sses were thinking the same thing.


    "With 10 minutes left to enter, we have a spot left to enter. The teams participating don''t seem to have many strong opponents from what I''ve seen.


    If we can win thispetition, it will be worth it to throw away the shuttle run. In a teampetition, where teams have to improvise, a lot depends on the abilities of the outstanding students. If we can get one or two more students who are confident in their skills, we''ll have a better chance of winning."


    "So what about that one I asked for so desperately earlier?"


    "I''m afraid you''ll have to give up."


    Ibuki-san was astonished. I thought she was going to get angry again, but it turned into disappointment and resignation. It all started from the fact that she had misunderstood the receptionist''s hours.


    "All right. Then I guess the game is over here..."


    "You''re not joining me in volleyball?"


    "We need four people. There''s no way I can gather them. I''ll pass."


    "So, you don''t have friends."


    "Neither do you."


    "I think I at least have ssmates who would be willing to help if I called on them."


    "Whatever, I wanted to settle it, but we''ll have to save it for another time."


    For the record, I had won, but whatever.


    "Are you going to join us for the shuttle run?"


    "All I''m interested in is settling this with you. I''m not going to go out of my way to contribute to Ry��en."


    "That''s convenient. The less points you score, the closer your ss is to winning."


    I think it would be better to let this go on without provoking her. That''s what I thought, but for some reason, Ibuki-san didn''t want to leave.


    "Is there anything else?"


    "If you don''t have enough people for volleyball, aren''t you going to join the shuttle run?"


    The deadline for the volleyball is 2:20. The shuttle run deadline is 2:25.


    Ibuki-san noticed the part I didn''t dare mention.


    "Looks like I said something unnecessary. I didn''t realize you had a brain to use."


    "Shut up. So, I''m going to stick with you for a while longer."


    The worst-case scenario is that if volleyball does not have enough people, Ibuki-san and I will have to settle for a shuttle run.


    Well, that might not be so bad. I look to the girls in my ss in the cheering section for avable talent. However, there was no way I could find such convenient students right away, and time passed by without much thought.


    I noticed that Ibuki-san, who was sitting beside me, was yawning.


    "You should just give up and y the shuttle run," she said.


    "My my~ Isn''t that Horikita-senpai and Ibuki-senpai? I want to congratte you both for your hard work, senpais!"


    As we waited for a possible member to invite, first-year student Ichika Amasawa-san called out to us.


    At that moment, Ibuki-san, who was sitting down, stood up and red at her.


    "Oh dear, you look a bit frightening today, senpai. Maybe having a bad hair day?" Amasawa-san teases. But half the words didn''t seem to reach Ibuki-san.


    "If there are still slots avable for you to participate, I''ll give you a shot." Spat out Ibuki-san.


    "I haven''t won much today. We don''t have a lot of opportunities to y when we''re in different grades, so it''s no use. I think it''s better not to y. You''ll lose anyways, senpai."


    "You should be thankful you didn''t get paired with me."


    "You''re still so bullish, aren''t you? By the way, what are you two doing here? If you''re not going to participate in thepetition, you might as well be cheering them on."


    "How about you shut up and join the shuttle run? Then we canpete."


    "Oh, were you senpais nning to do the shuttle run? I''m-"


    "I finally found you."


    As we were talking, Kushida-san showed up. I wondered if she wanted something from me, but she didn''t even look at me, just at Amasawa-san.


    "I thought someone was following me, but it was Kushida-senpai, wasn''t it? What do you need? If it''s okay with you and Horikita-senpai, I''ll listen to what you have to say."


    "Horikita-san? What are you..."


    It seemed that she was so focused on Amasawa-san that she was unaware of our presence.


    "Oh, I''m sorry, Kushida-senpai. It looks like my friends are all here, so I should get going."


    In the direction she was pointing, I could see Nanase-san, another first-year student, and four unfamiliar girls.


    "I came to the gym to join the volleyball thingy. It''s my first experience with volleyball~"


    Apparently, Amasawa-san ns to participate in the volleyball tournament.


    I guess the first-year students have moved on after all, seeing the situation of the participating teams, which are short-handed.


    "See youter. Good luck with the shuttle run~"


    Aftering over on her own ord and talking as much as she wanted, Amasawsa-san joined up with the group.


    "So she''s joining the volleyballpetition." Ibuki-san said, ring at her back.


    "Seems so."


    "Then I''ll join too. You wouldn''t be able to get five members without me anyways."


    "What?"


    "I said I''m going to be there. I know it''s aggravating to work with you, but it''s a chance for me to beat that cocky little freshman."


    If Ibuki-san is willing to help us, she''s a perfect asset to the force.


    "Don''t decide on your own. I haven''t said I''ll take you on the team yet."


    "Huh? You haven''t even gotten a single student so far. What choice do you have?"


    "Teampetitions are equally assigned points. It is natural to want to fill in the gaps with students from your own ss, rather than with students from other sses, isn''t it?"


    Even if I had scored more points, Ibuki-san was in the second ce ss.


    In other words, the point difference would not open up at all.


    "I don''t care about that. I''m fine as long as I can see that brat''s sad face."


    "Anyway, it depends on the other members. Our ss must make up a high percentage of the total."


    "Then why don''t you let me join you?"


    Kushida-san, who had been watching Amasawa-san''s back as well, utters this without changing her gaze.


    "What do you think you''re doing, Kushida-san? I don''t think you''ve changed your mind and are now willing to cooperate with us."


    I spoke my mind frankly, and Kushida-san didn''t deny it. However, it bothered me that her eyes were strongly directed toward Amasawa-san, not me.


    "I have something against Amasawa-san."


    "You too?"


    "I''m not going to tell you why, but I''d be happy to lend you a hand to settle the score."


    "If that''s what you''re after, I''m fine with it. You''re a perfect asset."


    It is often said that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Allies roll in unexpectedly.


    "But she will definitely be a formidable opponent."


    "I''m sure she will."


    Ibuki-san had already started warming up and getting into the swing of things.


    Amasawa-san watched her from afar and giggled. Ibuki-san and I experienced firsthand how amazing Amasawa-san was, but I don''t know the details of the other students. I don''t remember the names of the students who got an A on the OAA, though I''m sure I can remember the names of the students who got close to an A, so I''m sure they were just below a B at the highest estimate.


    More problematic is that we are still three students short. It''s a bit of a catch to analyze our opponents when we haven''t even met the requirements for participation.


    "What are the requirements for the remaining three? You want to avoid Ry��en''s ss, right?"


    Kushida asked about the selection of people.


    "Yes, that''s right. Of course, I''m inclined to stick to my ssmates as much as possible. But the priority is the match and the strength of the opposing team."


    "Okay. Then wait a minute."


    With that, Kushida-san left our side and started to walk away.


    "Okay, but what is she going to do? We can''t find help easily."


    Ibuki-san and I followed her as she went to Rokaku-san, who is in ss A. After talking with her for a while, the four of us went on to meet Fukuyama-san, who was also in the same ss. Finally, we went to the gymnasium to see the students who were cheering for the otherpetitors.


    "That girl over there is Himeno-san from Ichinose-san''s ss right?"


    The four of us talked for a few dozen seconds until Kushida-san returned with Himeno-san in tow.


    "She''s going to join us in volleyball. Himeno-san isn''t a good volleyball yer, but she agreed to join the five of us. Just leave thepetition to us, and we''ll take care of it, okay?"


    Kushida-san speaks in a kind tone to Himeno-san. She''s seemingly turned on her charm mode once again.


    I can''t hide my surprise that the two ss A students in particr lent a hand so honestly.


    "We''re also in a hurry because we''re about to lose, and even if we don''t win at worst, we want to leave a record that we contributed."


    The two look at each other and nod. They want credit because they are in ss A, which isrgely inst ce.


    While seeing through that psychology, Kushida-san instantly recognized them as capable students. Even though I could not remember their specific grades at OAA, as a friend of Fukuyama-san and Rokaku-san, she had a firm grasp of how physically capable they were.


    "This is a trick you will never be able to do, Ibuki-san."


    "Shut up. You couldn''t find anyone either."


    There were five or six students in the gym that I could still talk to. "Anyways, I think this is probably the best group we can make right now."


    At any rate, the six members of the volleyball team, who had been in doubt about their ability to participate, were all here.


    The difference in the number of members from Ry��en''s ss is only one person. However, winning the championship and gaining 10 points would be far more rewarding thanpeting in the shuttle run and only gaining 2 or 3 points. The fact that even if we lose, the gap between us and them will never close is also an advantage for us.


    The top two teams consisted of me and Ibuki-san, and the other students who were avable, such as Himeno-san, Rokkaku-san, and Fukuyama-san.


    Although there is a slight loss due to Himeno-san''sck of skill, we have enough strength to make up for it.

 Chapter 250: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 250: 5.5</h4>


    We won the first round without any problems and I noticed a few things watching Amasawa-san''s team. Nanase-san took the lead in the match, dominating both offensively and defensively.


    "Nanase was on point, but the brat isn''t as big of a deal as I thought?"


    "I certainly don''t feel like she''s as good as I had thought. I assumed theck of volleyball experience was a joke, but..."


    It''s possible that she''s cutting corners on purpose, but from what I''ve seen, she doesn''t seem to be. She''s better than the students who can''t move at all offensively or defensively, but they don''t seem to be a threat. However, as the game passed the halfway point, the situation began to change little by little.


    Ibuki-san''s eyes, which had been somewhatnguid, began to turn serious. In less than ten minutes of game time, Amasawa-san was visibly improving. Just as Amasawa-san was beginning to show glimpses of her ability, Nanase-san spiked the ball to end the match.


    "The next time we y, she might be even better."


    "Yeah but they can''t get so much experience in just a few shitty games. We... we can still win."


    Too much optimism was dangerous, but with Nanase-san in tow, Amasawa-san was able to have an upper hand on us without touching the ball too much.


    We went on to win, and at around 3:40, the final arrived.


    At a sports festival, there are many differences from the normal rules ofpetition. Volleyball was no exception. There is no rotation in the serve, but any yer can serve, and the team with the first 10 points or the most points within 10 minutes wins. If time runs out and the score is tied, the team that is ahead will have the right to serve and the game will go into overtime.


    "So I guess it''s time to see your losing side." Ibuki-san yelled out to Amasawa-san from the our side of the court.


    "Can you be satisfied with just winning and losing in volleyball? Ibuki-senpai."


    "First, I''ll beat you in volleyball. Then, I''ll win the fight as well."


    "Fufufu~ I don''t mind that kind of thinking."


    Amasawa-san''s presence was eerie, but Nanase-san was the one to watch out for.


    "Just like thest game, I''ll be the attacker. I''m going to pound everything into their court."


    Ibuki-san deres, even more fired up than before.


    Although her control is a little difficult, I can''t argue with the destructive power of her spikes. At the start of the final, Ibuki-san took the lead with her serve.


    We thought we had the momentum, but Nanase-san spiked a point right back. I thought it would be a close game, but it turned out to be a little more in our favor as we finished the first half with a 4-2 lead. As expected, Nanase-san was able topete with me and Ibuki-san, but other than that, we seemed to have a slight advantage.


    The situation changed midway through the game. The time remaining was less than five minutes. After three steps, Ibuki-san jumped up and fired a spike. Amasawa-san, who had scored many points in the past, came out from the other side of the and prevented the blow. No, she kept his momentum and mmed the ball right down.


    The ball mmed into our court, giving the first-year team one point.


    "A... that''s too bad~ Ibuki-senpai! Nanase-chan, what do you call this kind of y?"


    "Doshut or something. I don''t know much about it, though."


    "Whatever. Anyways, I''ve already seen through your attack pattern, so you can''t take one over me from here on out."


    "No! I''ll definitely block it next time!"


    "Calm down. You just happened to get stopped once."


    "Damn it. You''ll have to pass the ball to me next time."


    Then, when the score was 5-3, I started to serve. It would have been easier if it had been decided, but... Because of the rule that if the ball goes out, the opponent is awarded a point immediately, I couldn''t aim at an absurd course. If you hit the ball to a solid spot, of course it will be returned. But I''m going to defend well and pass the ball to Ibuki-san.


    "This time... sink it!"


    She changed her rhythm, took two steps, soared high, andunched the best spike of the day. The two first-year students who jumped to block it couldn''t touch it, and the ball fell in a straight line to the court floor.


    Amasawa-san blocked it, and as if she knew it wasing, she killed the momentum with a clean receive and sent the ball flying through the air. As her golden hair flowed, Nanase-san jumped up high and shot a spike towards Himeno-san. Kushida-san forced her way in front of Himeno-san, who was stiff and unable to move, and tried to receive the ball, but she could not control the momentum of the ball.


    The first-year team began to catch up, and in the final minutes of the game, our two teams were finally level.


    With only about two minutes left in the game, we could very well run out the clock at this pace.


    "I''ll do it again next time!"


    Ibuki-san, who was twice prevented from scoring by Amasawa-san, was determined to do it next time. I instructed my teammates to pass the ball around, and the game resumed. As they exchanged receivess, Amasawa-san was ready to spike the ball for the first time.


    "No way you''re getting past this time!"


    Ibuki-san jumps up on the block, but then Nanase-sanes into view from behind Amasawa-san.


    "Whoopsies..."


    The smiling Amasawa-san was a decoy. It was Nanase-san''s n to spike the ball from the beginning.


    Caught off guard, Ibuki-san reached out, but was unable to touch the ball. The ball was aimed at the court floor at an acute angle - and Kushida-san slid in to make a great receive.


    "Ibuki-san!"


    Everyone''s attention turned to Ibuki-san, and the freshmen rushed into a defensive stance.


    Amasawa-san was waiting for an attack from Ibuki-san with a rxed expression.


    "Shit!"


    Even though the situation was tough, she tried to force a spike, but couldn''t find a way. Although Ibuki-san wanted to spike it, she gritted her teeth and switched to a toss.


    I understood Ibuki-san''s determination and released the energy I had been saving. I ducked under Amasawa-san''s block and unleashed a spike that went straight to Nanase-san who was waiting for me.


    Nanase-san, who was tired, was unable to scoop up the ball and went off course. If she had been in better shape, she might have been able to volley it in.


    It was 7-6, and we had a one-point lead as time was running out. At the end of the game, which would end in about a minute whether I cried orughed, we had the right to serve.


    "Well, I guess it''s time to get serious, huh?" Amasawa-san said, as if she hadn''t been serious until now.


    Nanase-san was wise enough to catch up and prevent Ibuki-san''s serve. The ball, having lost its momentum, flew high into the air, and we all stared at it in awe.


    "The target is...!"


    The released volleyball came at me at a furious speed as it swelled up. Even though I was concentrating on my nerves, my reaction was dyed, and the moment I tried to reach for it, the distance between me and the ball was too wide to reach. The sound of the ball being hit violently echoed.


    "Out!"


    The unfortunate thing was that I was toote in reacting and could not touch the ball. The ball was half a ball out of the white line that marked the inside of the court.


    "Aw shoot. Sorry, Nanase-chan, it seems like you missed. It''s pretty hard to have perfect control, isn''t it?"


    "Thanks for the help anyways, Amasawa-san."


    The whistle blew, and Nanase-san, who had lifted the toss, looked up with a startled expression. Amasawa-san, who was about to hit the ball towards us,nded on the floor without swinging her hand down.


    "Oh, time''s up. It was just starting to get interesting..."


    Amasawa-san, who had not the slightest regret and was enjoying ying volleyball, praised the good match.


    After a quick chat with Nanase-san, we left the court.


    Although they lost, the girls also got points for taking second ce in volleyball. And we, of course, managed to get arge number of points as first ce.


    "I''m not convinced... I don''t feel like I won."


    "We were pushed pretty hard at the end. I''d be horrified if it wasn''t timed."


    We were supposed to win and feel better, but we were left with a half-hearted feeling of bewilderment. Still, the win was huge, and it was a fierce battle worthy of ending the sports festival. I noticed that there were quite a few people in the gallery, and they were apuding, albeit sparsely.

 Chapter 251: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 251: 5.6</h4>


    The sports festival is now in its final stages. The gymnasium is filled with an odd excitement as the final teampetitions havemenced.


    "It''s almost time for the games, isn''t it, Sud��-kun? Are you ready?"


    Sud�� and Onodera, who had participated in many pairpetitions as a duo during this sports festival, had advanced to the finals of the tennis mixed gender doubles as their tenth event.


    "Yeah, sure."


    Onodera continues, feeling somewhat ufortable with the somewhat absentminded reply.


    "But still, don''t you think we make a great duo? So far, we''ve won four out of four matches in the pairspetition. I''m sure everyone in the ss will be surprised."


    In the two matches up to this point, there was one matchup between students in the same grade and one matchup between third-year students, but the Sud��/Onodera pair won without being pinned down, and they have now won five straight group matches. Moreover, Sud�� has won nine straight matches, including individualpetitions, and is on the verge of a 10-match winning streak.


    Onodera, on the other hand, did not finish first in all nine rounds, but she also kept her high ranking.


    While Onodera''s words continued with friendly chatter, Sud��''s gaze was on something else.


    "Are you worried about that first-year student? You''ve been watching him for a long time, haven''t you?"


    "Huh?"


    "H��...sen right? I can''t believe that guy is a freshman, he''s massive and has a terrifying vibe. Yeah, but, it feels like that''s not all Sud��-kun is paying attention to. What''s up?"


    "It''s nothing. Don''t worry."


    The H��sen pair that was ying the game in front of them won with ease, and their opponents for the final were decided. Sud�� was staring at H��sen while talking with Onodera, who was in a happy mood.


    Onodera looked up as she was talking and started staring at Sud��''s profile.


    Up until now, she had faced thepetition without thinking about it, but her heart was clearly in turmoil. They had been working together most of the time, not only today, but also during the preparation for this sports festival. From practice to lunch to the morningmute to school, they had many meetings and practices.


    That is why she had acquired the ability to recognize changes in Sud��''s facial expressions. Even his athleticism has a few shorings. He has a very rough and tumble personality, and is quick to get carried away. He also has a tendency to lose his temper.


    This has sometimes led to him dragging both of them down when they work together.


    "You will now y the final game. Please get ready."


    As they were sitting down to rest their tired bodies, one of the staff members approached them


    "Well then, let''s quickly decide on a winner and get some momentum going."


    Pretending to be calm, Onodera emptied her mind as Sud�� called out to her.


    Even if there is something going on regarding that first-year, it shouldn''t be a problem. As long as it doesn''t turn into something troublesome, that''s all that matters.


    "Let''s do this." Sud�� grabbed his racket and threw one over to Onodera.


    One by one, their ssmates begin to show up at the gymnasium to cheer on Sud�� and Onodera. Perhaps because adults also have a strong interest in the finals, people would stop in their tracks to observe thepetition.


    "It''s kind of a tournament atmosphere, isn''t it?"


    "For real. It''s afortable tension though I''d say."


    There is no need to worry about atrophy for the two, who are strong on the big stage, including in clubpetitions.


    At that moment, a roar ofughter erupted from the other side of the court.


    "Aha! I ain''t ever thought I''d be ying you in the finals, Sud��-paisen!"


    "H��sen!" The air changes as Sud�� speaks to H��sen across the. "You don''t think you can beat me at tennis, do ya? I''m going to destroy you, so look forward to it!"


    Doubles begins, with limited match time: a four-point, one-game, two-games-at-a-time, three-game match. The right to serve will not be rotated from one game to the next, but will go to the side that loses the point. There is no need for a change of serve within a team, and any team member can repeat a game.


    The match started with an onught by H��sen. His strong serve easily hit into the court. Meanwhile, Sud��''s serve was veryckluster and was returned one after the other, and when he hit the ball in, they were driven back to 3 (40) to 0 (love) in less than a minute.


    "What the... ugh! That guy is too fast! I didn''t think he had experience?"


    It was no wonder that Onodera panicked, as H��sen''s ball struck the court at a speed that made her feel fear.


    "What''s the matter, Sud��? You ain''t no match for me, don''t hurt yourself."


    "Shit!" His fist clenching his racket forcefully, he swung up and tried to m it into the ground.


    "Sud��-kun, no."


    "Ah!"


    "Don''t you know that you always fail when you get upset?"


    "Yeah, but still!"


    With no one left to vent his frustration on, Sud�� was suddenly stressed out.


    H��sen, who was watching the scene from across the, snickered.


    "I can''t believe you''re so damn easy. What was all this high talk about ya? Your movements are way shittierpared to thest matches."


    It was a fact that Sud�� had been thrown off due to being too preupied with H��sen.


    "I can''t trust Sud��u-kun to serve now." With the ball in hand, Onodera instructs Sud�� to defend and releases her serve.


    She hits the ball with a sharpness that makes it hard to believe that she is a girl and has no experience in tennis, but H��sen quickly closes the distance and shows beautiful technique, handling the racket like a hand finger.


    Sud�� stretched out his arm, but he could only hit the edge of the racket, and the first-year team took the first game without surrendering a single point.


    "You don''t really look like a yer, man. You look like a loser."


    Compared to H��sen, who was really enjoying the game, the girl who was paired with him couldn''t hide her frightened expressions. H��sen handled almost all of the game by himself, and it was practically a two-on-one battle.


    In the second game, H��sen''s one-sided onught was expected to continue, but it took a surprising turn.


    H��sen''s swings were not as strong as before, and Onodera adapted and came forward to hit back.


    Just when they thought he might be getting tired. H��sen''s arm swung wide. The smash that came out was as fast and powerful as a bullet. The ball rushed straight at Onodera, who was guarding the front, as if she were a target. Onodera looked in pain as the ball grazed her cheek.


    Surprised and terrified, Onodera unintentionally dropped her racket to the floor.


    "You''re not doing that on purpose, are you?!"


    "What''chu on about? Ain''t it natural to aim close to the opponent''s body in tennis? If you drop it too far, they''ll hit you back with the same point. Don''tcha know anythin'' about that? You''re arguing with me over just one ball... stop pissing ya panties."


    "Damn it!"


    H��sen proudly asserted his legitimacy while Onodera hurriedly picked up her racket.


    "Don''t worry about it. It was just a little graze... Besides, like he said, isn''t tennis supposed to be about aiming close to your opponent and returning?"


    "That''s something you can say to a guy who ys pro-tennis. This is a sports festival event, remember?" Sud��ins irritably.


    The serve goes to Sud�� again, but the first time it goes off course.


    The second time, he saved and tried to go in, and was easily returned by H��sen. The momentum wasn''t as strong, and Onodera, who had caught up, hit back cleanly with her racket.


    Two or three rallies followed, and that was when Onodera came to the fore again and hit back.


    H��sen, who had closed the distance, swung his arm down and the ball bounced back.


    "Kya!" Onodera stiffened, unable to swing her racket at the hard fastball that had scared her just beforehand. The ball zoomed past her but Sud�� was able to bite back and hit the ball back into the opponent''s court, but then H��sen''s relentless volleys targeted only the area around Onodera. H��sen seemed to be yingpetitively.


    The game came down to 3 (40) points for Sud�� and 2 (30) points for H��sen.


    Onodera was struggling to get out of the way, but she was so upset that the ball came near her face again that she twisted her left leg and fell down on the spot.


    "Onodera!"


    As if to cover for Onodera, who could not stand up, Sud�� bit down and returned the ball to H��sen. Sud��''s ballnded just short of the court, and Sud��''s team took the second set. But that didn''t make him happy, as Sud�� became more agitated.


    "That''s enough! You can''t even y fair!"


    "How many times do I have to tell ya, you damn monkey brain? It''s your lousy girl''s fault, isn''t it? Don''t give me bullshit."


    "Please, Sud��u-kun, you''re repeating yourself." Onodera couldn''t get up and shushed Sud��u as he slumped down on the spot.


    "I know that, bute on! You can''t allow this to happen!"


    "Sure, the judges are suspicious. But Sud��u-kun''s aggressiveness is also interfering with that, you know?"


    It was clear that H��sen had already won the tennis match and had changed his policy to torment Sud��u rather than win.


    The aim was to instill fear in Onodera and even induce injury with a single mistake.


    "Anyway, keep calm, Sud��u-kun." Onodera admonished him gently but forcefully, even though she was in pain.


    Sud��, his head still burning, red at H��sen unbearably, but when he saw Onodera frowning in pain, he remembered what his priority should be. Hastily, medical attention was provided for Onodera''s injured ankle.


    "Hey, why don''t you guys take it easy, don''t go through hell anymore, aite? That sucks man. They up and lost the damn game, this shit is so boring." H��sen yawned and looked at them briefly before addressing his partner, a first year.


    "That bastard yed with us on purpose with the intention of tormenting us to the veryst minute..."


    Sud�� calls out in concern as he looks at Onodera''s left leg.


    "Are you okay?"


    "Well, sort of. But I''m so pathetic. I''m so afraid of the ball that I avoid it, and as a result, I fell and injured my foot." Sheughed to herself and lightly tapped her taped foot.


    "No wonder, man. He''s annoying to death, but he''s got great athleticism."


    Sud�� was also terrified of the high-powered volleys that he could deliver with his superior body. Unless you''re an experienced tennis yer or a club member, you''ll be ovee with fear.


    "You know, I''ve always held a pretty good opinion of Sud��-kun ever since you entered the school."


    "Oh? What the hell are you on about suddenly? Why don''t you just rest and get some medical attention?"


    "That''s fine. It''s a good thing I got hurt. It means you''ve been given a little bit of time to cool down."


    "You have a strong heart, I mean, I didn''t know you used to think highly of me."


    "Yeah, but you were the number one person I didn''t want to deal with, given your brazen attitude."


    "Oh..."


    "People around me scold me for my bad behaviour and inability to study, but I always make sure to support people who work hard in club activities.


    "What are you on about?"


    "I understand you, Sud��-kun. When I''m going home after ate night of club activities, I sometimes pass by the gym. Whenever I peek in to see if there''s anyone left, Sud��-kun is always the only one left practicing until the end. He cleans up properly, and he''s taking it seriously."


    "What the heck, you were watching that?"


    "But... as I thought, Sud��-kun will never be truly appreciated if things continue as they are now."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You were angry for me. It''s not that I don''t like that fact, but it still doesn''t change the fact that you have a tendency to lose your temper. If you keep that up, one day you''ll be in more trouble than ever before."


    "Yeah, but-"


    "You''d better get over your habit of losing your temper."


    "I know, I know."


    "Even in sports, don''t you make more mistakes when you''re frustrated?"


    "Well, yeah. Your shooting sess rate, for example, might drop drastically..."


    "Me too. When I''m frustrated, I desperately try to improve my time, but I end up going slower than usual, and that doesn''t do me much good."


    "Yeah that''s exactly what I mean."


    "I''ll tell you a story. One time, when I lost an important game once, I was so frustrated and disappointed that I went to change in the lockers and went wild. I injured my hand and it was very hard to recover." She stuck her tongue out a little as if she was nostalgic and ashamed of her old self. "I realized then that nothing goodes from being angry, it justes back to haunt you."


    "How did you manage to ovee not getting angry?"


    "It''s because my senpai taught me magic."


    "Magic?"


    "Yes. I''ll teach it to Sud��-kun. A magic trick that can suppress anger."


    "Well, how do you do that?"


    "The peak of anger is actually surprisingly short, a few seconds at most. So when I feel like yelling, I yell once in my mind, then take a deep breath and count to ten."


    "So you''re saying to get angry after ten seconds? That''s it?"


    "Yes. I think that''s enough to change things, you should try it."


    "I see."


    Despite his scepticism, Sud�� memorized what she had just said so that he could engrave it in his mind.


    "I wanted to team up with you because I appreciate your passion for sports. Don''t betray that expectation."


    "Onodera..."


    With her wounds tended to, Onodera stood up to check on her condition.


    "I''m fine. Whether we cry orugh, this one game will decide the oue. If we lose, we lose. But if we try our best, we can still win. I know it."


    "For sure."


    The third game begins. H��sen continues to relentlessly target Onodera, whose movements have slowed down due to her injured left leg. Even when he went too far and lost a point himself, he made no move to stop.


    The Sud�� team leads by 3 (40) to 1 (15).


    H��sen, who would have ended the match if he dropped the ball, fired another hard fastball at Onodera.


    This time, she couldn''t avoid it and the ball hit her right arm. Onodera crouched there in pain.


    "This isn''t how the game works, you fucking freak!"


    Sud�� then remembers the magic words Onodera taught him earlier, even though he is extremely angry to the point where his blood boils. He res at H��sen, who repeatedly continues to provoke him, but raises his voice of anger in his own mind.


    Ten seconds of anger. Just hold it in for only ten seconds.


    He counts the numbers one, two, three, and takes a deep breath to calm his emotions. Eight, nine, ten. The abusive words that he had intended to use against H��sen receded into the back of his throat.


    Of course, not all the frustration has disappeared, but he seed in looking at the situation calmly and objectively. The suspicious eyes of the judges. Onodera''s gaze. A game that must be won. Time remaining. If he lunged at H��sen again here, he would naturally be stopped.


    "Onodera, do you believe in my power?"


    "Of course. I believe in you, that''s why we''re ying a match together."


    After catching his breath, Sud�� threw the ball into the air and made the best serve of the day. H��sen, who had no time to lose, returned the ball as if to catch up, and from that point on, Sud�� and H��sen began to battle it out in a rally. Both of them did not back down and continued to return strong blows, but Sud��, who did not miss the sweet return of H��sen, was losing his patience, and smashed the ball into the opponent''s court.


    "Haaaaaaaaa!" Gripping his racket, Sud�� lets out a yell that echoes throughout the gym.


    "Shit, shit!"


    Despite his overwhelming advantage, H��sen, who had been licking Sud��''s chops until the end of the game, became annoyed that he had lost the game and mmed his racket into the court, snapping it in half.


    "We won, Onodera! Thanks to you!" Sud�� ran over to Onodera in excitement and hugged her vigorously, sharing his excitement.


    "Ah-ah-ah!" Onodera panics, unsure of what just happened for a moment. "Wait, it hurts, it hurts, Sud��u-kun!"


    Sud�� regains hisposure as his thick arms tighten around her and she lets out a painful sound.


    "Woah, calm down there!"


    Happy that he was able to control his anger in addition to his victory, Sud��u smiled his best smile of the day.


    "Congrattions on all your wins, Sud��u-kun."


    "Thanks Onodera, if it wasn''t for your magic trick, I would have definitely lost this game."


    "That''s not true. In fact, I dragged you down-"


    "Shut up. It''s not a good thing to get hurt, but I think I lost when I got hurt and lost my temper. And you brought it back up."


    "I see. Then we''re.... good partners, I guess."


    "Yeah. It was very easy to work with you, and I could rely on you. It''s really great, Onodera. Oh, I hope Suzune saw what we''re doing somewhere."


    There were so many guests and students that it was hard to find Horikita right away.


    "Suzune, is that you?"


    "Um? Who are you?"


    "Oh no, uh, sorry, wrong person."


    "Well maybe she''s outside."


    "Let''s go out for dinner sometime after club activities, Sud��-kun."


    "What? Yeah, that''s fine. But I need your help to find Suzune. Where''s Suzune?"


    "Aha. Absolutely not."


    "Yo, bitch. Don''t you get carried away just ''cause ya won this one game. You know you woulda lost if I had taken ya seriously, right?" Despite the fact that the match was over, H��sen approached him with a nasty look on his face. "I wanna take you ''round back for a ydate. Come so I can re-arrange your face."


    "Listen here..."


    Sud�� quietly restrained Onodera, who was about to confront the entangled H��sen.


    "There was a mess with this guy a while ago. I can''t me him for trying to get me involved like that."


    "Yes, but..."


    Sud��ughed, understanding Onodera''s feelings as he tried to protect her from getting into trouble. Then he turned to H��sen.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m not going to fold to your cheap disses."


    "Fuck are you talking ''bout? You''re my bitch boy from now on."


    "That''s why I ain''t gonna do it.


    As soon as Sud�� refused, H��sen pressed his shoulder into Sud��, pretending to walk past and let out a powerful clenched fist into his abdomen. The force was so powerful that Sud�� fell to his knees, even though H��sen hadn''t swung.


    "Sud��u-kun!"


    Sud�� stopped Onodera with his hand and slowly stood up.


    The teacheres running up to him, but Sud�� replies that nothing has been done to him and the teacher walks away with nothing more than a suspicious look in his eye.


    "You know what? I''ve already figured out that you''re a strong fighter, and I ain''t gonnain becausest time was my fault too. But if you want to go further, I''ll have the teachere in."


    "You''re fuckingme. I''m not even as strong as I was then, I swear I''ve gotten weaker. Come and I''ll show you."


    "Maybe. Onodera, let''s go."


    "Uh-huh."


    "You boring son of a bitch, don''t ever bother tryna mess around with me again."


    Sud�� felt rather relieved when he was told not to get involved. As long as he didn''t go at it himself, he wouldn''t spread any more trouble. He knew that if he just didn''t let his anger get the better of him, things would turn out much better.


    "I guess I should also thank H��sen for that. Seeing him like that, I realized howme I really was. It''s hard to put it into words, but when I tried the method you taught me, something just fell into ce. I thought, why was I so angry before? I guess it''s like a curse was lifted off of me."


    Sud�� was grateful for the 10 consecutive victories that he had been able to pick up, but he was equally grateful for this sports festival, and to have Onodera as his partner.

 Chapter 252 - 6 : The Visitor

    <h4>Chapter 252: Chapter 6 : The Visitor</h4>


    IT WAS AROUND 11:00 a.m., and I could faintly hear the cheersing from outside the closed window. The sports festival seems to have been quite a sess. Not everything went smoothly, but the ss still put in a lot of effort to win.


    We canpete well with other sses and grades. It was because of this that I was able to choose not to attend the sports festival without hesitation.


    I''ve already made all the arrangements, so I''ll leave the rest to Chairman Sakayanagi.


    Although I don''t necessarily have full trust in him, I don''t have a choice since it''s practically impossible for me to stay in this school if he betrays me. The only thing that remains to be seen is what kind of battle the second year students will have at the sports festival, and what results they will leave behind. I wondered how Sakayanagi''s participation or non-participation would affect the oue of the event.


    I looked at the entrance to my dorm once.


    "I''ve tried to contain her, but I''ll see the effect now..."


    There are a lot of things that are bothering me, but I guess I''ll just have to wait and see what happens at the festival.


    It''s time to start preparing for lunch. Just as I was beginning to think that, the doorbell finally rang.


    I wondered if I should wee this visitor or not.


    I couldn''t tell until I answered the door.


    "Hello, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    As I kept my distance from the doorway, I heard a voice calling my name.


    I lowered my guard slightly and put my hand on the door. I tried to think of various situations, but once I saw who it was, I rxed.


    On the other side of the door, there was only Arisu Sakayanagi in in clothes, smiling up at me.


    "If you don''t mind, may I interrupt you for a moment? Even though I''m only forbidden to leave the dormitory, visiting a man''s room during a sports festival is a bit of a problem."


    "Going inside is even more of a problem, though."


    Despite saying that, I decided to wee Sakayanagi in without turning her away.


    "I''m sorry to disturb you." Sakayanagi, who is physically disabled, slowly takes off her shoes and walks into the room.


    "Come to think of it, this is the first time you''ve been in my room."


    "I don''t usually get to visit you, you know. Have you eaten lunch?"


    "I was just about to get ready."


    "I see. I''m d to hear that. Here, it''s a souvenir." She said, handing me a small stic bag.


    "I bought it at a convenience store early this morning. It seems to be a new product, and since it''s a good opportunity, I wanted to share it with you."


    I looked into the stic bag from above and saw two small Mont ncs in it.


    If it''s Mont nc, I''d better make some coffee.


    "A bed would be better than sitting on the floor. You can sit on it if you like."


    "Thank you for your consideration."


    After getting Sakayanagi to sit on the bed, I stood in the kitchen and twisted the faucet to start pouring water into the pot.


    "You don''t seem to havee to visit me on a moment''s notice, do you?"


    She had an innocent look on her face, but Sakayanagi gave a small chuckle of amusement.


    "Normally, I don''t really visit dormitories, and as the leader of ss A, I can''t really be seen visiting Ayanok��ji-kun''s room alone."


    No matter who you are, if you see Sakayanagi like that, you will be surprised and have a hunch.


    That''s why Sakayanagi never usually came in contact with me in the dorm.


    Until this moment.


    "You''re a really bad person, Ayanok��ji-kun...this is Ayanok��ji-kun''s strategy, isn''t it?"


    "Strategy? What do you mean?"


    "Huh, no need for small talk. Let it be known that I knew Ayanok��ji-kun knew that I would be here today, and that I''d skip the festival. You were sure of it, weren''t you?"


    As far as Sakayanagi was concerned, she could see that it was a trap without having to think about it.


    "In this sports festival, we, ss A, with our small number of students, are at a disadvantage at the starting line. Furthermore, there are students like Kit��-kun and Hashimoto-kun who show promise, but their average is not enough to reach Horikita-san''s ss. If that''s the case, what you need to do in order to win is to determine who will be participating in whichpetitions, as well as the participation of your rivals in the show, and manage your schedule periodically."


    I turned on the pot and quietly began to boil the water. I grabbed a jar of coffee powder from the cupboard and prepared a cup and filter.


    "Then again, you never know how things will turn out if I join in, you know."


    "You still have a high self-esteem, don''t you?"


    "The best way to ensure that the other sses beat ss A is to not have me participate in the sports festival."


    The sports festival must proceed under a precise schedule, because Sakayanagi is capable of cing and directing the assembly personnel in the right ces in her mind. Besides, she would be able to coordinate the participants of thepetition using students from other grades.


    "Last night, my father told me that he asked Ayanok��ji-kun to be absent. He said he was assigning security to the dormitory to prevent any contact with the people being sent from the White Room as guests."


    "It''s true that I was asked by Chairman Sakayanagi not to participate in the sports festival, but I didn''t expect him to tell his daughter about it as well."


    "I dearly hope you don''t take me as a fool, Ayanok��ji-kun. It was you who instructed my father to tell me what I just said, wasn''t it?"


    Have you read through our moves as a matter of course? No matter how much he loves her, Chairman Sakayanagi would never do something like mixing public and private affairs. That''s why I asked Chairman Sakayanagi to let her know what was really going on, instead of telling her myself.


    I asked him to exin the situation beforehand in case Sakayanagi, who might be absent from the sports festival due to physical reasons, gets an idea to get into trouble with me and the White Room.


    Sakayanagi was willing to participate as the leader of ss A, but I don''t think the chairman knew about it. Even if he did know, it would be safer to tell her that she could take a sudden leave of absence on the day of the sports festival. If it was his own daughter, he would have known that there was a risk of her getting involved.


    However, there was something that Chairman Sakayanagi could not fully understand. Sakayanagi''s instincts and curiosity are not something that can be easily suppressed. And if I''m not going to be there, it''s not surprising that she thinks it''s a good opportunity to talk to me without being disturbed.


    In fact, this is how she showed up at my room, one of the most dangerous ces in the school at the moment, without any fear.


    "Did you choose toe before noon just to make me feel uneasy?"


    "I was trying to be a little mean. I wanted to make you think that maybe I was ignoring Ayanok��ji-kun''s strategy and participating in the sports festival."


    "So that''s how it is."


    "By the way, everyone is present today except for myself and Ayanok��ji-kun."


    With the informationwork that Sakayanagi possessed, it seemed that someone had confirmed the participants of each ss and reported the details via cell phone before the sports festival. They''re not cking on that front either.


    "I was a little mean, but I was actually nning to visit you a little earlier."


    Sakayanagi said, just as the water in the pot started to boil and make a gurgling sound.


    "I just went down to the lobby to check on the situation outside."


    As I was ostensibly on sick leave, it was strictly forbidden for me to go outside my room. Sakayanagi, on the other hand, is also not allowed to leave the dormitory, but she is not absent in the form of sick leave. Even if she is warned for going out, it does not vite the reason for her absence.


    "So, how did things go downstairs?"


    "There were three people who seemed to be security guards with me. They seem to be stationed throughout the school, not just in this dormitory, so it shouldn''t look particrly unnatural."


    While including the purpose of protecting me, the people in the guard are only there to protect government officials.


    "The Distinguished Service Award for this sports festival wasn''t Horikita-san, who offered cooperation to Ry��en-kun, nor Ry��en-kun, who epted it. It was Ayanok��ji-kun''s single word that made me be an absentee. That was the only thing that decided the winner, so it is as expected."


    "You still don''t know how it will be settled, do you?"


    "It''s true that there are always upsets, but they are unlikely. By now, ss A is probably at the mercy of Horikita-san''s ss, who is fighting head-on, and Ry��en-kun''s ss, who is doing everything they can think of. Even if you have excellent arms and legs, you can''t do anything without a brain. That''s the ss I''m building, you know."


    Something simr could be said about Ry��en, but that''s the problem with too much power at the top. The fact that the leader solves all of the problems means, on the flip side, that nothing can be solved without the leader.


    "Well, that''s okay. Because this time, I will enjoy my time with Ayanok��ji-kun instead of iming 150 points." She didn''t seem as if she cared about the damage that ss A would suffer.


    "You''re not afraid of losing ss points, are you?"


    "This school system is an extension of y for me. As long as I can maintain my ss A status to some extent, I don''t have any problems."


    I took the Mont nc out of the pack and transferred it to a te, and ced two of them on the table. Then I poured hot water from the pot into the filter with the coffee grounds.


    "You''re pretty good at this, aren''t you?"


    "It''s no big deal. At least this much."


    "Is each of these preparations fresh and fun for Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    Sakayanagi could tell that this was something I would never do in the White Room.


    "It''s like everything else in school. I just wanted to do something normal, that''s all."


    Still, Sakayanagi''s words from earlier bothered me.


    "You have a sense of purpose to keep ss A. Is that Sakayanagi''s pride?" I ask her about that as I ce the milk and sugar stick on the table.


    "At first, I didn''t have anymitment to ss A. But when I found out that Ayanok��ji-kun was in this school, it turned into a goal. When Ayanok��ji-kun eventually leads the ss up to ss B, we might be able to fight for real."


    To put it simply, she''ll wait on the throne.


    "In the first semester of the first year, ss D gave up all of their ss points. However, after a certain point, they began to increase their ss points and eventually rose to ss B. The reason for this was, of course, the dark presence of Ayanok��ji-kun." She speaks eloquently and happily as if she were bragging about herself. Picking up a te from the table, Sakayanagi ced the Mont nc on herp. "Let''s eat together, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She asked me to sit next to her, so I sat down on the bed withoutint. She stabbed the Mont nc with her fork and scooped it up, then held it out to me.


    "Here you go, say aaaah."


    "What are you doing?"


    "Can''t you see it? Please eat it."


    "No, I can see it, but..."


    "It''s just me and Ayanok��ji-kun now, and no one will bother us."


    I wondered if there was something behind this, but that didn''t seem to be the case. I bite down on the fork into my mouth and the sweet aroma spreads. Surprisingly, it was the first time I had ever eaten Mont nc.


    "Is it good?"


    To be honest, I don''t really like the taste that much. Personally, I thought a simple shortcake had a more agreeable taste. But I don''t want to be stingy with my souvenirs.


    "Of course."


    Sakayanagi smiles lightly as I simply tell her it''s delicious.


    "Then I''ll have some, too."


    Without caring about the fork that I used to eat, she scooped up her own portion and put it in her mouth.


    "It''s not as good as the ones at the caf��, but as a convenience store sweet, it''s passable." She nodded in satisfaction and held out her fork to me again.


    We easily finished the first Mont nc, as we both ate one cake at a time.


    "I''ll bring you another cake next time."


    "Huh?"


    "Since Ayanok��ji-kun''s reaction was that it didn''t seem to suit his pte very well."


    "I thought I responded with a normal, delicious response."


    "I''m proud to say that I still have excellent insight into this. Especially when ites to Ayanok��ji-kun."


    I didn''t expect her to be able to see through what I was feeling iffy about.


    "You never show any gaps when you''re really ying with your thoughts, but in this kind of private life, you''re surprisingly hard to see past."


    "Maybe it''s because I''m not used to it after all."


    "Huh. I like that part of you, too." I can''t tell if she''s serious or joking, so Sakayanagi continues. "Please let me have my revenge next time. If I find a good cake, I''ll bring it to you."


    "I wish there was a time when I could reliably avoid the public eye like this."


    Regardless of weekdays and holidays, it''s nearly impossible unless it''s when people are out of the dorm. Or there''s also the line of early mornings andte nights, but that also brings up its own issues.


    "But what''s strange is Ayanok��ji-kun''s change of heart. How is it that you not only asionally help others in their school life when you were supposed to be quiet, but also started to aim for ss A in earnest?"


    "I guess there are some things you don''t understand."


    "I''m not a goddess. And because I know Ayanok��ji-kun''s situation, there are parts of it that I don''t understand and my thinking hasn''t been able to keep up. Could you please tell me about it?"


    The genius, driven by the quest for the unknown, wants an answer. The main reason why Sakayanagi is not interested in the ss A or Dranks is probably because she won''t benefit from them after graduation. As the daughter of the school''s chairman and a talented student herself, most things are within reach for Sakayanagi.


    She doesn''t care because she doesn''t have to use her ss A privileges to do anything. I''m sure I''ll be back in the White Room after graduation, but I know that ss A privileges don''t mean anything to me.


    "It may seem strange."


    "It''s not so that you can y around with a lot of private points like K��enji-kun, is it?"


    "Surely he''s in a simr position to the rest of us, right?"


    He is the type of person who grabs and holds on to his parents'' power and his own talent alone. K��enji, such as he is, asionally contributes to the ss on a whim for ss points.


    "I suppose you at least have the right to ask why I decided to contribute to the ss. You took advantage of an obvious trap and gave up half of your winnings in the festival."


    If she risked losing 150 points and gained nothing, there was no way she would help going forward. However, if I give her a sprinkling of bait here, I can leave a chance for her to get on board if we follow the same strategy again.


    "If I get an answer to my question, I''lle back here the next time it happens."


    "Don''t say what I was just thinking."


    "Fufufu."


    "Basically, Sakayanagi, it''s exactly what you''re trying to do. You''re trying to answer the question of what it means to be a genius by defeating me. I''m trying to prove in my own way that White Room education is not perfect."


    I can''t sense surprise from Sakayanagi. It was evident that she had been expecting that line of thinking, even if it wasn''t confirmed.


    "Are you saying that Ayanok��ji-kun is trying to create the strongest ss with his own hands?"


    Nodding in the affirmative, Sakayanagi puts her index finger to her lips.


    "It''s not that I haven''t thought about it, but... there are a few questions that remain."


    "Go on."


    "This sports festival. Despite the circumstances, Ayanok��ji-kun could have forced himself to participate. Wouldn''t it have been better to fly instructions directly to the scene to make the victory rate higher and more solid? And I''m sure he wasn''t afraid of my participation."


    "I spent this sports festival based on one theme."


    "Interesting story. What is the theme?"


    "Stillness. I decided it would be a good opportunity to see how well they couldpete on their own, without interfering directly in the festival. Your absence was a byproduct of that, I suppose."


    "It''s just that I came to see Ayanok��ji-kun for being quiet, and he didn''t do anything directly regarding the content of the sports festival. I see."


    As we were talking, Sakayanagi arrived at the conclusion one step ahead of what someone else in her position woulds.


    "In other words-"


    I lightly pushed Sakayanagi, who was about to give her answer. No, it''s not as if I''m exaggerating when I say I pushed her. I just lightly grabbed both of her shoulders and pushed her backwards, causing the weak Sakayanagi to fall backwards onto the bed unbearably.


    The sound from the mattress and the faint creaking of metal. Even Sakayanagi, who prides herself on being a genius, would not have thought of this action at all.


    I looked down at Sakayanagi as if she was covering me before I could catch up with her understanding.


    "Oh, my...?"


    Sakayanagi, who was always so strong and rxed, wasn''t keeping up with the changes in the situation.


    "I''m living my school life under my n. The fact that you came here today, that you were interested in the n, that there was a possibility, a route, to get to the answer..."


    Sakayanagi, who has never been handled by a man before, clears her throat from impatience and nervousness.


    "If you tell anyone else about this now, it will interfere with my ns."


    "You think I''m going to tell anyone about...?"


    "The chances of that are probably not zero at the moment. If you threaten me with a match with the conditional I don''t want to be exposed, I can''t choose any other option but to ept."


    "I see, that''s certainly true. But if you''re willing to force a match with that kind of talk, can''t you talk about the White Room stuff?"


    "No, that won''t work. Even if I make the existence of such a facility known, it''s not something that other people can understand. It''s also not a risk I''m willing to take personally."


    Kiyotaka Ayanok��ji was raised in a White Room institution.


    Most people would probably just nod their heads and shrug if they heard such a story. It''s not something you can search up on the Inte.


    It would create some confusion in Sakayanagi''s case, but of course it would do nothing for me.


    "I''m not at the stage where I want people to know what I''m nning to do. I can''t let you use that as an excuse to extort me."


    I closed the distance to Sakayanagi a little, and the light from the ceilingbined to create a deep shadow.


    "Well, now I havee to know. What do you want me to do about...?"


    "A secret for a secret. A threat for a threat. The only people left in this dormitory right now are you and me. That means that no matter what happens here, no one wille to our aid. Even if you shout out loud, at best it will only be audible in the hallway."


    "Are you going tomit a crime to protect your n?"


    "Crime? You and I have an agreement to share our secrets."


    I pulls out my phone and activate the camera.


    "Do you think you can escape?"


    Sakayanagi is a cripple. No, even if both of her legs were fine, there was no way for Sakayanagi to get out.


    How could she answer in this hopeless situation?


    "Do you think you can beat me?"


    "Can I win?"


    "I mean, if things were to go as Ayanok��ji-kun envisioned here, would you really have the upper hand...?"


    "I''m sorry, but you don''t stand a chance."


    "A slight difference in experience, for example, can be caught up with and overtaken by one way of learning. In fact, you might even learn that you''ve been studying the wrong way, right?"


    Even though she was in a tight spot, Sakayanagi continued to think as calmly as possible. She must be in a hurry, but it''s impressive that she''s been able to keep it under control so far.


    I throw the phone down the bed and slowly move my hand closer to Sakayanagi. I grab her by the shoulders and bring her to the cor of my neck.


    Even so, Sakayanagi only averted her gaze.


    "Shall we begin our special lesson?"


    Smiling wryly, Sakayanagi closed her eyes quietly without resisting.

 Chapter 253: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 253: 6.1</h4>


    "You really are a mean person, aren''t you?"


    "Maybe so."


    It had been about an hour since Sakayanagi hade to my room.


    "So now there''s a secret between me and Ayanok��ji-kun that I can''t tell anyone~"


    "That''s a wordy way of putting it."


    "The one who first caused the misuse of the word is none other than Ayanok��ji-kun, isn''t it?"


    "Indeed."


    "Then again, this is the first time I''ve ever been in a man''s bed."


    "You were out of it in ten seconds, it doesn''t even matter."


    "That''s taking the girl''s memorial lightly, isn''t it?"


    I show Sakayanagi the screen of my phone as I select and dispose of the necessary items. Perhaps because I slid it too far forward in the process, a picture of me and Kei was shown.


    It was a picture of the two of us at the Keyaki Mall.


    "It seems that your rtionship with Kei Karuizawa-san is going well."


    "Well, I guess so."


    Sakayanagi continued, looking at the picture of Kei smiling happily.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun was attracted to her either by her appearance, voice, or personality. That''s what I would normally think, but there are some things that don''t quite add up."


    After that, Sakayanagi looked up at me and her eyes were sharp, as if she was fighting me.


    "I''ve looked into her as much as I can. From how she spends her time after school to how she spends her days off. And now Ayanok��ji-kun is in a situation where he can easily be followed."


    As long as the entire third year was monitoring me, I couldn''t pay attention to every single thing. If Sakayanagi''s secret agent was mixed in, it would be difficult to distinguish them.


    Even if it was Hashimoto, who had noticed the tail before, or someone else, there was no way to identify them.


    "I have not been able to find out the truth about why Ayanok��ji-kun chose to go out with her, but I have been able to see some things. The strong trust and love she has for him can be described as delusional. Is he going to use her to conduct some kind of experiment, or is he trying to save her? I guessed it was something like that."


    I don''t remember giving them any unnecessary information. I don''t think she knows the details, such as Kei or Ry��en. I don''t know how she could have guessed so close to the truth in that situation.


    "That''s what your special lesson for me is about, isn''t it?"


    "I''m getting tired of using the word special, but you''re right."


    Sakayanagi was able to understand me without the needs for words, but in a different way from Kei.


    Ding dong.


    A dumb, tension-free chime sounded suddenly in the room.


    It was around half past twelve, and the students would be finishing their meals by now.


    There was no one left in the dormitory, but suddenly a visitor appeared. Sakayanagi and I looked at each other and then at the front door at the same time. There were supposed to be three bodyguards waiting in the lobby, but did they force their way in? No, even if they had used their great skills to subdue him by force, the problem didn''t stop there. They would not take their time to ring the doorbell, they would at least try to break in.


    The doorbell rang once more.


    Since I was supposed to be resting in my room, it would be strange to ignore it any longer. It is possible, though unlikely, that it is someone from the school.


    "Who is it?" I call out to the visitor, not moving from my position on the bed.


    "Stay where you are and listen."


    The man replied, as if he could tell from his voice that I was sitting far away from the entrance.


    A young voice. Not an adult, but the same age.


    "That voice sounds familiar."


    But a figure did note to mind. It sounded like a student, and even though I didn''t recognize him, the voice was distinctly familiar. Of course, when you live in a school, you hear many unspecified voices.


    However, I immediately recognize the owner of this voice.


    "You called me once, didn''t you?"


    I ask back, and the figure on the other side of the doorway remains silent for a bit.


    "That''s great, you remember my voice after hearing it only once."


    The fact that it was after my father had visited this school was also impressive.


    "You didn''t say what you wanted then."


    "It was a good thing I didn''t, but something inconvenient happened soon after. I haven''t been in touch with you since then, but if you''re wondering, it doesn''t matter who I am. Because I''m neither your friend nor your enemy."


    "Then what are you doing here?"


    "You just need to get rid of Tsukishiro and then the White Room students, and peace will return. I came here to advise you because I thought you might have made that mistake."


    "Oh my. That sounds like a very fun adventure. Would you be willing to let me join you?"


    "Arisu Sakayanagi, huh?"


    The man on the other side of the door showed no sign of being upset by Sakayanagi''s unexpected response. Rather, he immediately guessed who it was just by hearing her voice. Perhaps he had narrowed down the list of absentees for the day, or perhaps he knew Sakayanagi and recognized her voice.


    "Anyway, be on the lookout if you want to stay in school until graduation."


    "For a neutral, you''ve got a lot on your shoulders, don''t you?"


    "Your presence is having a negative impact. I''m just trying to prevent more of it..." He replied as his voice trailed off. Apparently, he didn''t intend to stay long, and it could be assumed that he had left.


    "That voice, I''ve heard it somewhere..."


    "Do you have any idea who the voice is?"


    "I can''t answer that as clearly as Ayanok��ji-kun. But I think I vaguely remembered the presence that came through the door."


    So it''s something different from what I remembered from the voice.


    "It''s not a recent memory, it''s a reasonably old memory, five, ten years anyway."


    "If you''re sure about that, then the possibility of a White Room student seems infinitesimally small."


    "Yes. If I''ve evere face-to-face with one when I was little, then yes."


    His reaction to learning of Sakayanagi''s existence was somewhat affirming. In addition to the fact that he wasn''t surprised, he reacted like he would to someone he was acquainted with. But whether it''s Amasawa or the other one, it''s not something I care about.


    As long as there was no harm done to me at the moment, I couldn''t do anything about it.

 Chapter 254: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 254: 6.2</h4>


    The sports festival, in which I was not present, ended in an almost ideal way. The ss was excited by the final result, which was unthinkable in the past year and a half.


    The gap between Horikita''s ss and ss A had narrowed, and Horikita''s ss had been able to increase their ss points through the desert ind exam, the unanimous special exam, and the sports festival, which was undoubtedly a great asset.


    A few dayster, it was the middle of October.


    The ranking of the sports festival was Horikita''s ss in first ce, Ry��en''s ss in second ce, Ichinose''s ss in third ce, and Sakayanagi''s ss in fourth ce. Of course, this was not due to any one person, but to the will and power of the entire ss. In the individualpetition, the pair of Sud�� and Onodera took first ce respectively.


    K��enji also achieved first ce in all ten events, but because they were all individualpetitions, he ended up in second ce.


    That seemed to be good enough for him, and he never had any problems.


    Sud�� and Onodera were then given the right to move to a different ss, but he chose private points without hesitation. Although Sud�� was unsteady, he was making his way up thedder to ss A.


    Kei, who seemed to have an appointment with a friend, decided to drop by the Keyaki Mall on her way home.


    As she was about to head home alone, I was approached by Horikita.


    "I''d like to talk to you for a minute, if that''s okay."


    "If you don''t mind, we can talk on the way back."


    "That''s fine."


    I guess it''s not something that can be overheard by a lot of people since she approached me when I was leaving.


    "I''ve learned a great deal from thest unanimous special exam."


    "Let''s hear it, shall we?"


    The sports festival was over, but not all of the problems had been solved, and the ss was starting to move forward, although it still left a precarious situation, one that Horikita was still struggling with and learning from.


    "I wasn''t wrong. I made the choice to keep Kushida-san, and I was able to recognize once again that the decision was the right one."


    In the face of the demand for results, Kushida also contributed to the sports festival by increasing her points.


    In her daily school life, she has once again returned to being a serious honor student, and although her social contribution in OAA was lowered at the beginning of October, it is probably only a matter of time before she regains it from here.


    If you want to make an unrelentingparison, she has contributed far more as a ssmate than Airi. Of course, it''s not all merit.


    "I know, I know. I''m leaving a few uncertainties behind. Especially with Hasebe-san, I honestly don''t know what to do yet. But if there''s another special exam like that, I think I''ll be able to get around it better next time."


    "What''s your rationale for that?"


    "In that exam, I made an ill-advised promise to get unanimous approval. I said I would expel the traitor, and then I reneged on that. It was an easy shortcut to get unanimity, but I didn''t understand the magnitude of the risk. I knew that Kushida-san was a traitor. And that I had made that decision while I hadn''t even had the courage to let her leave the school. That was a mistake."


    "If there was a possibility of leaving, then surely an ill-advised promise would only hurt youter on."


    It was a painful decision to make as time was running out, but if we had been able to make it unanimous at that stage, leaving open the possibility that there would be a footnote from Airi or someone who didn''t have simr abilities, it would be true that the aftereffects would not have been as bad as they are now.


    What will we give up and what will we take?


    "We gained ss points. But I also lost many things. That special exam has taught me a lot. You''ve shown me both sides of sess and failure."


    "It''s better not to fail, though."


    Horikita closes her eyes, exhales in a huff, then opens them again.


    "I''m only a sophomore in high school. I''m a kid. It''s okay to make mistakes."


    "You''ve reopened your mind."


    "It''s not like me to dwell on it. I''m going to - I''m going to be me. I may not be able to do as well as the other leaders. But I have Hirata-kun, Karuizawa-san, Sud��u-kun, Onodera-san, Kushida-san and K��enji-kun. With the support of these people, I am moving forward. ss A is waiting for me after that, that''s what I''ve decided to think."


    "I see."


    "Of course, you''re one of them. I don''t know what you''re thinking, and you''re uncooperative in many ways, but... you''re indispensable to the ss and to me."


    I''m like training wheels on a bicycle.


    At first, it''s indispensable, but then ites off, falls down, and shakes repeatedly, but eventually you learn to ride it without difficulty. There is no single person who can support your back as you pedal your bike.


    Even so, your ssmates will support you.


    And after watching you grow for a little while longer...


    I''m leaving your ss.


    I''m not going to say why yet, but I''m sure Horikita will find out why sooner orter.


    And then...


    That there wille a time when the ss you thought invincible will meet a reality in which you cannot win.


    I will teach you that.


    For myself, and no one else.


    I''m fine as long as I''m winning.


    If I decide to be the enemy and defeat Horikita, that''s a done deal.


    But I''m leaving because I want to be defeated.


    There is a future that I hope is uncertain.


    The answer is already there, but there is a contradiction within me that I deeply want the answer to be different.

 Chapter 255: Epilogue : Autumn Is Coming

    <h4>Chapter 255: Epilogue : Autumn Is Coming</h4>


    HASEBE CALLED OUT to Miyake, who was waiting for him at the door, and lightly tapped his shoulder, "What are you waiting for?"


    "No, I''m not really waiting for much. I''m bored."


    Hasebe missed a week of school, but has been showing up every day since then.


    "Are you d you quit the archery club?"


    "It''s not like I was coasting to begin with."


    "It''s my fault, right?"


    "It wasn''t. I only quit because I wanted to. That''s not the point, I''m d you starteding to school."


    At the sports festival, he only participated in the minimum five events.


    She didn''t get any results, but at least she contributed to the ss. However, she rarely speaks to anyone other than Miyake, and is a bit distant from Yukimura, who agreed to expel Sakura from school. Assuming that this was unavoidable for now, Miyake continued to stand by her side without saying a word.


    "At first, I was going to destroy everything. I thought I should get back at all my ssmates for abandoning Airi, not just Kiyopon. I''m a bad guy, I know."


    "No, I know how you feel."


    "Someone had to drop out of school in that exam. But it had to be Kushida-san. That was the first promise we made, and it''s the right one. Isn''t that right?"


    "I guess."


    "I will not forgive Kiyopon. I won''t forgive my ssmates. But I thought it''s not like I''m going to keep dragging you down and make you suffer forever." She confesses all her thoughts to Miyake with a prating and silent goal. "Hey Miyachi. Will you help me... with my revenge?"


    Her eyes are not smiling, and Miyake doesn''t have the courage to ask her back if she''s serious.


    "Haruka..."


    "What a joke." Laughing and fooling around, Haruka walks away. "I''ll take my revenge alone."


    "I''m not..."


    Hasebe''s hand is held out, then withdrawn. She turns her back and walks away. While showing his hesitation, Miyake silently began to walk after her.


    Trantion : RoyalMTL


    RoyalMTL Afterword


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 Chapter 256: Short Story 1 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS – Complicated Feelings

    Chapter 256: Short Story 1 : Sakayanagi Arisu SS �C Complicated Feelings


    I was having a good time chatting with Ayanokouji-kun who excused himself from joining the sports festival and was absent.


    I always had to be careful about what others until now, and today was the only chance I had where nobody could interfere.


    "You were just observing, but even made mee here and visit you. You are not nning on doing anything during the festival either, right? �� I see."


    I pieced together all the scattered hints he had been giving me during our conversation.


    "In other words��Eh"


    Suddenly, he gently grabbed my shoulders and pushed me back.


    Usually, this amount of strength was nothing to most people, but since my body was rather weak and I hadn''t expected it, I fell backwards in a daze.


    It didn''t hurt of course. I just fell back from where I sat on the bed.


    I should have been seeing his face right now, but my eyes were spinning while looking at the ceiling.


    Before I managed to sort out the situation, Ayanokouji-kun began mounting me.


    He had his hands on both sides of my head leaving me without any way to escape.


    "E-excuse me?"


    I didn''t look like he had sumbed to his primal desires.


    It should have been impossible, but somehow the possibility was within my calctions.


    My thoughts were all scrambled and that hindered me froming to an answer.


    "My school life is founded on this n I have. The fact you woulde here today, would show interest in and eventually reach the answer as within possibility."


    As if he were making fun of me, he reached his conclusion against this situation.


    "You will be hindrance if you told anyone else about this."


    "You think I�� would leak this?"


    I wasn''t so na?ve that I didn''t understand how much of a bother that could be to him.


    I thought we both understood that��


    "The chances aren''t zero. You may try to ckmail me by saying you''d expose it unless I agreed to have a match with you. I''d have no other options in that case."


    "I see, that''s certainly true�� But, couldn''t I just reveal the truth about the White Room instead?"


    His true goal was hidden. That was definitely true, but I still haven''t managed to calm myself enough right now to think about it.


    While my mind was working, trying to calm down my thoughts, I continued to talk to him.


    "Shall we start the special lesson?"


    I saw his eyes as he muttered this and finally understood his goal.


    I couldn''t help butugh, close my eyes and wait for the lesson.


    If this was his goal, I won''t mind.


    With theseplicated feelings, I acknowledged that I would be used by him.


    But, do remember this, Ayanokouji-kun.


    If you are going to use me��I''m going to use you until the very end.

 Chapter 257: Short Story 2 : Amasawa Ichika SS – The Truth is, I’ve Always

    Chapter 257: Short Story 2 : Amasawa Ichika SS �C The Truth is, I��ve Always


    As I entered Senpai''s room, I began searching with conviction.


    But as expected of him. He had cleaned it all in that short amount of time.


    But I that wasn''t my true goal. My true goal was to check if this room was being wiretapped or not. It did look too clean for it to not be wiretapped. Had he already made a move, I thought but��


    "They should just ignore me and enjoy their school life. I highly rmend it."


    To him who was fully enjoying his freedom, I, who was White Room student was just a nuisance.


    I know that.


    "Yes, I agree as well. I think I should do that too but��"


    That''s why I want do expose Takuya and let them fight it out ASAP.


    If he could observe Ayanokouji-senpai from at close, touch him, feel him, he would understand.


    But Senpai wouldn''t bite. No emotions at all as he was just waiting for me to leave.


    I wanted to upset him so I face my butt in his direction.


    From this angle, that and that could be seen and I wondered if that would work.


    "Drawn in by my underwear? How pervy."


    I am the one showing him so what the heck am I saying, right?


    "Sorry, I''m more worried about what else you may be doing if I take my eyes off you."


    Clever, but uninteresting.


    Our conversation would naturally return to just discussing daily topics, so I moved the topic back.


    I turned around and got closer to him, but he didn''t even raise an eyebrow.


    "I think they may have gone on a rampage by now? I feel like they have gotten their methods and goals all wrong. Instead of returning to the White Room, they are more focused on expelling you."


    "What a bothersome topic."


    It didn''t show on his face, but it was probably true that he thought it was a nuisance.


    "That may be true for you, yeah. I have been thinking this for a while, but how about I just reveal them to you and just let you do your thing?"


    But didn''t even bother getting to know. His premise was that I was untrustworthy and he didn''t want to listen to unnecessary information from me.


    He didn''t answer my proposal as he read his opponents one, two steps ahead.


    The truth is, I want to be by his side.


    Even if I''m a nuisance, just being close to the person you look up to. But��


    There is no guarantee that my school life could go on forever.

 Chapter 258: Short Story 3 : Onodera Kayano – That’s What I Believe In

    Chapter 258: Short Story 3 : Onodera Kayano �C That��s What I Believe In


    A hit with unbelievable power brushed against Housen-kun''s racket.


    His rage was being transformed and brought into the game itself, my ideal form of sportsmanship.


    The scattering sweat sparkled like gemstones.


    "HELL YEEEAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!"


    Seeing Sudou yelling from his very core, I couldn''t help but frolicking in this victory.


    "We did it! We did it!"


    Housen-kun, who we had been ying with, looked frustrated and smashed his racket to the ground.


    "We won Onodera! All thanks to you!"


    Sudou ran towards me, and I raised my hand for a high-five but was met with air instead.


    I was embraced with both of his hands around me in a hug.


    "W-w-wha,, wha-wha!?"


    A happiness followed by a surge of panic.


    But I was the only one flustered as Sudou just looked all happy and excited.


    He was starting to squeeze harder, so I tried to pull out.


    "Wai-, ouch, it hurts Sudou-kun!"


    He finally noticed my distress and now he was the only flustered.


    "M-my bad!"


    We were trailing due to my injury, but turned that into victory, never giving up until the very end.


    Our beliefs and tenacity beat Housen-kun''s by a mile.


    "Congrattions! You won all your events, Sudou-kun."


    "Yeah, thanks a lot Onodera. If not for you, we''d have lost this match for sure."


    "That''s not true. I was probably a hindrance��"


    "Could have been a fluke, but when you got hurt and I just snapped, I thought we''d lose this. But you were the one to call me back."


    His eyes looking straight at me felt like they were sucking my in.


    "I see, then we�� are a pretty goodbo, right?"


    "Of course! Easy to work with and rely on. Yeah, you are the best Onodera. Ah, maybe Suzune was watching me from somewhere too?"


    His eyes that I felt I could watch for eternity withdrew from me and scanned the area around the gymnasium.


    "Suzune��right?"


    I muttered. He reacted like a dog at that name and suddenly looked questionably at me.


    "Eh? Where? Where is she!?"


    "Ah, eh well, sorry, looks like it was another person."


    "Shit. I see, maybe she''s on the field then.."


    I hate losing and that lit the fighting spirit within me aze.


    Yes, I have to admit it.


    I''m, interested in Sudou-kun.


    I can catch up and show some results, no matter how far ahead he is.


    That''s the sportsmanship that I believe in.


    "Let''s eat on our way next time after clubs, okay?"


    "Eh? Ah, sure I guess. More importantly, help me look for Suzune. Where are you, Suzune."


    "Hahaha, absolutely not."

 Chapter 259: Short Story 4 : Chabashira Sae SS – Something That Can’t be Forgiven

    Chapter 259: Short Story 4 : Chabashira Sae SS �C Something That Can��t be Forgiven


    It was after homeroom had ended and my conversation with Horikita was soon about to end.


    "We''re soon out of time. Just let me tell you onest thing, although it may look like I''m meddling too much. The most important thing is what you, Horikita, wants to do with Kushida. Think carefully about this."


    The focus was to make Kushida return to ss, but this wasn''t as important now.


    I''m not sure how useful my advice would be to her, but at least I hope it may have cleared her thoughts a bit.


    "Thank you, teacher. I''ve decided what to do now."


    "Don''t mind it. As your teacher, this is nothing�� it''s surely something to be expected after all."


    After sending her off, I walked back to the staff room.


    After going down the steps and into the hallway where the staff room was, I heard someone running from behind.


    "Don''t run in the hallway��"


    "Sa~~~~e-chan. Yah-ho!"


    I nned on warning the student, but I knew it was a teacher by instinct.


    "Is that you, Chie? How are you going to set an example if even you are running full ahead?"


    "Bu~ut, I saw you right ahead!"


    "Stop with that Bu~ut! Just call for me like normal."


    There was no need to run up to me this way,


    "By the way, you were taking quite a long time talking with Horikita-san."


    "�� so you even heard that?"


    When in the world did she start?


    There was a huge risk of this leaking If Chie heard about Kushida."


    "From when I heard her say thanks to you."


    When it was almost over, in other words.


    I can''t exclude the fact it may have been a lie, but it was true I didn''t notice her before either.


    "Looks like even the model student Horikita has lots of worries."


    "She''s just a child, right? But that''s not what I wanted to say."


    She smiled as she walked right beside me. Her eyes weren''tughing.


    "Why have you gotten closer to your students now?"


    "There''s nothing weird for a homeroom teacher, is it?"


    "It is. You are not that kind of a teacher. You have never been until now, have you?"


    "That may be true."


    "I won''t acknowledge it. There is no way Sae-chan would ever act like a teacher."


    "�� I know."


    I replied, but my reply never reached her.

 Chapter 260: Prologue : Hasebe Haruka’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 260: Prologue : Hasebe Haruka��s Monologue</h4>


    WHEN I EVALUATE myself, I consider myself a bad person. Everyone has done something once or twice that they were told ''not to do''.


    For example, ignoring a red traffic light. Even if you didn''t have any malicious intentions, you probably have some experience with that sort of thing. Another example is epting the wrong amount of change at the checkout and not giving it back. When a clerk mistakenly gives you more than what is owed, whether it''s one yen or ten, people often walk away with it.


    Spitting on the side of the road or littering on the street. It may seem like a small thing, but it also falls under the category of a crime.


    I wouldn''t consider myself a "bad person" just because of things like these.


    I''m...


    It could seem trivial from someone else''s point of view. But I dragged my past with me all the way to high school and decided I wouldn''t make any new friends. I believed I would be perfectly content if I distanced myself from everyone and entered a world where I wasn''t connected with anyone. That''s why, when I learned about Advanced Nurturing High School, I thought this school would be able to give me what I wanted.


    Before I even realized it, I had made friends again. Kiyopon, Yukim��, Miyachi and... Airi.


    I was able to get back the feeling of being youthful. At least, that''s what I had believed. Out of nowhere, that feeling was once again stolen from me within a single day.


    Who stole it? That''s obvious.


    Horikita Suzune and Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.


    I became a victim of the selfish actions of those two people. I can''t forgive them. There''s no way I can.


    And so...


    I decided to get revenge.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


    *Illustration 2


    *Illustration 3


    *Illustration 4


    *Illustration 5


    *Illustration 6


    *Illustration 7


    *Illustration 8


    *Illustration 9


    *Illustration 10


    *Illustration 11


    *Illustration 12


    *Illustration 13

 Chapter 261 - 1 : Preparing For The Cultural Festival

    <h4>Chapter 261: Chapter 1 : Preparing For The Cultural Festival</h4>


    IT WAS MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1st, the beginning of autumn - and we were faced with chilly weather.


    The months seemed to go by quickly, and in two months it would be winter break. The scenery from my new seat, will it end in the near future? The fact that I felt a sense of regret was proof that the seating change was a good system for me. I didn''t know if there would be a seating change next semester, but either way, I was sure the scenery will be very different from before.


    "Good morning. Everyone''s here, right?" A few seconds after the bell, Chabashira-sensei appeared in the ssroom.


    The students, who had been busy chatting with each other, quieted down and looked at the teacher with a familiar gaze. The school''s unique system, in which all behaviour outside of ss affected the evaluation of the ss as a whole, had produced a serious and disciplined attitude amongst the students. It was not that anything had changed significantly in thest week, but I could certainly sense that they had grown a whole lot.


    Seeing such an attitude among the students who continued to grow day by day, Chabashira-sensei nodded deeply and began to speak.


    "I believe preparations are steadily progressing for the cultural festival, but I have some additional exnatory notes. First of all, I will once again disy an overview of the festival as a review, so those who need to should check it." The monitor behind Chabashira-sensei lit up and the exnation of the rules reappeared.


    [Outline of the Cultural Festival]


    �� Each second-year ss is given 5,000 private points per student to be used solely for preparation of the festival. (First-year students receive 5,500


    points and third-year students receive 4,500 points)


    �� Additional funds will be given for social contributions such as student council service and contributions through club activities.


    �� (Details will be announced to each ss after they are finalized.)


    �� The initial allocation of private points and additional funds are not reflected in the final sales and will be forfeited if unused.


    �� sses ranked 1st through 4th ce will receive 100 ss points.


    �� sses ranked 5th through 8th will receive 50 ss points.


    �� No change in ss points for sses ced 9th through 12th


    "That''s all I''ve exined so far. You should have no problem understanding what''s been said." Without a single question from the students, Chabashira-sensei continued with her exnation. "I would like to announce that the details of the ''additional funds'' mentioned in this overview exnation have been decided."


    Additional funds. The points that can be used for the festival would be increased based on student council service, social contributions, club activities, etc.


    The time hade to announce the details.


    Theck of a confirmed budget meant that the number, content, and scale of the performances could not be finalized. Despite the inconvenience, this was not a problem as long as all sses in all grades were under the same conditions.


    "First of all, the total amount of additional funds to be given to this ss, and the breakdown of the funds..."


    As soon as she said that, Chabashira-sensei operated her tablet and a spreadsheet-based list was disyed. It turned out that a total of 12 people were eligible for these additional funds.


    �� Horikita Suzune, Student Council Member Bonus: 10,000 points


    �� Sud�� Ken, Club Activity Bonus: 10,000 points


    �� Onodera Kayano, Club Activity Bonus:10,000 points Although 10,000 points was the maximum, only three students were able to earn that amount of additional funding. There were 9 other students who received hundreds to thousands of points in recognition of their contributions.


    For example, Y��suke received 3,000 points for his club activity bonus, and Akito received 100 points. Many students who seemed to be active, mainly in club activities, were mentioned.


    In total, this ss obtained 39,400 additional funds. In terms of number of people, these funds correspond to the initial points for almost 8 people. These funds would be essential for running the festival.


    "I can''t give you the breakdown, but Sakayanagi''s ss A has 18,800. 17,000 points for Ry��en''s ss C, and Ichinose''s ss D has 26,600 in additional funds. In other words, this ss has the most additional funds among the second-year students."


    So, Ichinose''s ss was in second ce and Sakayanagi''s ss was in third ce - narrowly ahead of Ry��en''s ss. That was an unexpected result, but one factor could be the student council member bonus. The fact that both Horikita and Ichinose earned 10,000 points for their presence alone was pretty significant.


    Other students, such as Sud�� and Onodera, were considered to be head and shoulders above the rest in their contributions to club activities throughout the entire school year. Since individuals were not allowed to use any of their private points at the festival, in the case of Horikita''s ss, the total number of ss members plus additional funds must be kept within 229,400. Every single point counts. However, we should not be too proud of this result.


    Although advantageous in the preparatory stage before the start of the festival, additional funds would be a liability if they are notpletely utilized by the end.


    The above seems to be the exnation of additional funds, but it should not end there. Several pieces of information needed for the festival have not been made public.


    "Now then, I''ll exin some details about the guests who will be in attendance as this is an extremely important point for making sales."


    How many and what kind of guests would being to the festival? And how much money they had has not been disclosed in detail so far.


    "Guests of honor will be people who are involved in the operation of this school and their families, but of course there will be a wide range of ages, from the elderly to toddlers and elementary school students," she said. "It has also been decided that those who work at Keyaki Mall and convenience stores will also be invited as guests."


    The tablet screen switched to a graph, revealing the number of guests by age.


    Those in their 30s and 40s followed by those under 20 and those in their 50s.


    "The adults are guests of honor and they receive 10,000 points. Minors receive 5,000 points. There are 283 adults and 202 minors. The total number of participants will be 485 in all, for a total sum of 3,840,000 points."


    The ranking of all 12 sses for the entire school year would depend on whether or not we could make sales from the total amount.


    "I should also mention that the number of participants includes us teachers.


    Homeroom teachers are restricted to use points in the grade for which they are responsible, but they are treated no differently than other guests."


    The rule that they couldn''t use points on their own grade levels would be essential. As homeroom teachers, they would normally want to drop money on their own ss if they could.


    "Is it possible to use more than 10,000 points in pocket money?"


    In response to Ike''s question, Chabashira-sensei immediately shook her head. It was a preemptive question, as usual, and she answered without paying much attention. Although, she seemed to be enjoying such an unchanging Ike.


    "No. The guests can''t spend more than the given points. The maximum amount is immovable."


    This means that the guests weren''t provided with unlimited funds. It wasn''t a matter of restricting certain rich guests, but it was inevitable that there would be apetition for them.


    "The primary method of payment is through a special cell phone app which the school will use to monitor sales in real time. Keep in mind that the app will be disabled the moment the festival ends at 4 pm. You are free to set your own timing for the checkout, but we rmend that you receive payment before the products are served."


    If you pay after eating for example, there would be cases where it would be around 4 p.m., so there would be a risk of not being able to collect the points.


    "Now that we''re done here, anyone with any questions, raise your hands."


    A period of time was allowed for questions and remarks, and soon after, Horikita raised her hand.


    "If the sales are the same amount, what would the ranking be? I know this is very extreme, but what happens if all sses receive the same amount of 320,000 and are side by side? "


    If we based it solely on chance, the odds that all sales in all sses came out to be the same would be microscopic, but collusion among sses wouldn''t be impossible. If all of them were treated as number one, they could equally raise their ss points. However, I assumed that some countermeasures had been thought of....


    "If the sales are equal, they are treated as the same rank. If all 12 sses make equal sales, as Horikita says, then all sses get 100 ss points as first ce."


    Was this a somewhatx rule, given that you don''t lose ss points even if you lose? No. Maybe they''ve determined from the start that arge number of sses won''t be in line for the same percentage.


    "However, the total amount of sales can only be confirmed after the exam, and any maniption of sales by third parties is not allowed. It is impossible for the sses to discuss and make a n tobine sales before the festival, or to


    make an arrangement to divide the sales equally after the festival is over. You know what this means, right?"


    If the amount of sales cannot be manipted afterwards, it is unlikely that all sses would be in first ce. More importantly, it is unlikely that they would join hands in a friendly manner, losing a valuablepetitive opportunity.


    "I don''t think an equal number of sales among the sses would be normal. I don''t think you need to worry about it." Not understanding the meaning of Horikita''s question, Maezono voiced her doubts.


    "As Maezono-san said, if it is a normal fight, there is no need to be concerned about it. But it''s not a bad thing to know if it''s epted as a rule or not."


    Horikita had a point. It''s not a bad thing to know. It was unclear whether collusion ispletely impossible within the current situation. For whatever reason, it was possible for certain grades or sses to collude with each other to create equal sales. There are several possible ways to do this, but if the final sales of the products were made to align among the sses in advance, it wouldn''t be difficult to create a scenario in which all sold out products equated to the same sum of points. However, it was necessary to be prepared for betrayal, unforeseen circumstances, and trouble. It would be noughing matter if you prioritized selling out above all else and as a result, ended up in the bottom of the ss in terms of sales. The hurdles to ovee in order to intentionally create a tie are far, far higher than we can imagine.


    "Does anyone have any other questions?"


    No one raised a hand.


    "That''s all I have to say about the festival. Next, I would like to announce the results of the second semester midterm exam that we recently conducted. This time, there are students who achieved results that surprised even me."


    The conversation moved on to the written exam and the announcement of its results. There were a few squeals from the students who weren''t good at studying.


    Depending on how you looked at it, "surprise" could be considered a bad thing.


    However, given that Chabashira-sensei''s expression wasn''t dark or stiff, that seemed unlikely.


    All at once, the names of the 38 students in the ss were disyed, and they were lined up in order from the student with the highest overall score. Keisei took first ce. He had a perfect score in all subjects. In second ce was Horikita, only slightly behind. The difference in overall score was only 3 points.


    The names of the usual honor roll students followed, but the student who surprised Chabashira-sensei was the one who ced 11th, no doubt.


    Eleventh ce, Sud�� Ken. He scored 73 points in Modern Japanese, 76


    points in Chemistry, 70 points in Social Studies, 78 points in Mathematics, and 70


    points in English.


    He scored a well-bnced total of 367 points in all subjects.


    The top rankers from this group were honor students such as Y��suke, Kushida, Matsushita, and Wang. That''s why Sud��''s ranking was a surprise to everyone.


    It was a well-known fact that Sud�� was working hard on his studies, but it was unexpected that Sud��, who was also involved in club activities that rante into the day, woulde in at the top of the list.


    "Seriously, Ken is ranked 11th... Amazing..."


    Ike, who was almost on the same side of the rankings, gave an honest, or rather, stunned response. A crazy turnaround, a leap beyond imagination. The difficulty level of this test was moderate, and the difference in overall score between Sud�� and the bottom 20 was only about 15 points, but even so, this result must have surprised many people. Sud�� himself should have been running around with joy, but he only made a small gut-punch and didn''t seem to be bragging or making fun of others for passing them.


    He checked his cell phone to look over the updated OAA.


    [Ken Sud��: Academic ability C+, physical ability A+, adaptability C, social contribution D.]


    Overall, his physical abilities were outstanding while maintaining a near-average level of academic ability. If he maintained his test scores, he should be able to achieve a B in academic ability in the near future. It seemed that his efforts over the past year had paid off in more ways than he could''ve imagined. He was also able to improve his social contribution skills from the lowest level to a D. He increased his OAA score as well.


    My ranking was 14th. I got a perfect score in mathematics, but I cked off in the other subjects. It would be fair to say that I cut corners, but in reality, I had a different goal in mind. Showing them a perfect score on the second semester midterm exam would only cause unnecessary confusion. Instead of reassuring them that there were students who could get high scores, it was many times more important to make them feel that they had to grow up and help the ss, as Sud�� did.


    In fact, Sud��''s 11th ce result generated a wide range of emotions among his ssmates.


    Almost everyone was positive. While some students were in the top ranks, others were inevitably in the lower ranks. They were, forck of a better word, the regrs, but whenpared to the average scores of the other sses, it was clear that they were changing little by little. More and more students were trying to improve; and even though their scores were low, they seemed to be steadily and


    gradually starting to show results. Of course, not all of them were as good as Sud��.


    Even when ites to studying, there are differences in the amount of information that can be absorbed, and there are alsorge differences in perseverance and physical strength.


    Above all, in the case of Sud��, we must not forget that his motivation came from his love for Horikita, who taught him how to study.


    Anyways, one could even say, due to the expulsion of Airi from the school, the lower ranked students started working even harder.

 Chapter 262: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 262: 1.1</h4>


    The ssroom after school on the same day.


    The main members of the group gathered. They were Sat��, Matsushita, Mii-chan, and Maezono. The only thing they had inmon was that they were the nners of the maid caf��.


    And then there was me and Horikita, for a total of six. After the initial presentation, meetings rted to the maid caf�� were mainly held via cell phone in order to prevent information leaks. Given the concept and scale of the maid caf��, the outdoor idea was crossed out first. In other words, the location of the caf�� - the ssroom - was fixed from the beginning, but we were still unsure about the location of the stall.


    Students from other grades and sses came to scout out potential stand locations on a daily basis. We were trying to find the best ce to open our booth. It would be more effective to include boys such as Y��suke in the meeting, but unfortunately, they were busy with club activities at the moment.


    As soon as we started moving, Matsushita looked at Horikita and I and asked...


    "Hasebe-san and Miyake-kun, what will you do about them?"


    "What do you mean, ''what will I do?''"


    "Theye to school every day, but they don''t want to talk to anyone. It means they keep antagonizing us, the whole ss."


    "I''m sure it does. Well, I guess they''re mainly against me."


    Having her best friend Airi expelled from school, Haruka put up a big wall.


    Although she was nowing to school, she hadn''t broken down that barrier.


    "I think Hasebe-san is going to try to do something to the ss in the future."


    I don''t think Haruka told Matsushita directly, nor was she told through a third party. But looking at Haruka now and sensing that atmosphere, a person like Matsushita would''ve guessed. "That may be so. But it''s also true that, so far, I haven''t seen any problematic behavior. She''s even participated in the meetings for the festival."


    Haruka knew about the maid caf�� opening because she initially proposed the idea of a maid caf��. There was no reason not to include her in the group.


    "Are you saying you condone revenge?"


    "Of course not. I understand why she''s angry, but that doesn''t mean I don''t mind trouble brewing in ss without good reason."


    Disturbance without extenuating circumstances, such as unavoidable special exams, is treated as aplete evil.


    Horikita and I both strongly hoped Haruka would not go on a rampage.


    "Yeah. But we''re not in a situation where that kind of logic would work. It shouldn''t take this long for her to recover."


    Matsushita repeatedly directed her gaze at me. She seemed to be trying to get a word out of me while keeping the leader, Horikita, on her toes. However, I wouldn''t give my own opinion and remained silent at the time. It''s clear that Haruka was nning to take revenge for the expulsion of her best friend, but right now she was attending school, taking tests normally, and not doing a single thing to cause trouble for the ss.


    Even if we didn''t know what would happen next, we couldn''t question her at this stage.


    "There''s very little we can do in advance," Horikita said, looking off into the distance. "Preaching to them to stop taking revenge will only get on their nerves.


    Just..."


    "Just what?"


    "If she''s really looking for an opportunity for revenge, she certainly won''t put it off for months."


    I agreed with that opinion. It was hard to imagine that she would continue to live her school life maturely for the next six months or even a year. In other words, the most critical time to be on the lookout was...


    "I can''t deny the possibility that she will do something at the festival."


    Matsushita nodded quietly, probably wanting to hear those words.


    "I''ve heard from Ayanok��ji-kun that Hasebe-san has no intention of working as a maid. So, I gave her and Miyake-kun a general role while letting them know what was going on. If we withhold information or exclude her from the group, it would be a tant statement that we are suspicious of her."


    If by any chance Horikita and the others did something that showed contempt for Haruka, even if she had no intention of taking revenge, it was possible that the extinguished spark would start smoldering again.


    "So you''re saying you''ll consider certain people on your side, but you''ll avoid giving them important roles."


    "Yes. I figured I should do that just in case."


    Of course, she probably didn''t have a strong concern about things getting out of control during the cultural festival. Still, as a leader, it was important to be ahead of the curve.


    At the festival, many guests would being. If Horikita''s ss got a bad reputation among the guests, it wouldn''t be surprising if we were penalized in some way.


    "I know you''re probably wondering about Haruka and the others, but we''re about to arrive."


    Matsushita was so engrossed in the conversation that she didn''t seem to notice that we were getting close to our destination. Many of the sses were still wondering where to set up their stalls for the event. You never knew where an important piece of information might be picked up unintentionally.


    There were a total of eight ssrooms that could be opened in the special building, which has three floors. We were currently on the third floor of the building, and the closer you were to the stairs by the entrance, the higher the cost to set up a stall. The third floor was the farthest away from the main gate and had the advantage of being the most cost-effective. The third floor could be rented for between 1,000 and 13,000 points, while the first floor could be rented for a t rate of 50,000 points. The nearly 40,000 point difference could be used to purchase food and other necessities. The ss was given a finite number of points, and it was inevitable that they''d have to worry about how much to allocate the cost of the stall location and how toe up with the money.


    "It''s a lot farther than I thought it would be."


    Mii-chan''s first impression was still about the distance. I think we could all agree on that.


    "What do you think, Sat��-san?" Mii-chan asked Sat��, who had not spoken up so far today, but she didn''t immediately respond. "Sat��-san?"


    Once again, this time looking up at us, Sat�� hurriedly replied.


    "Oh, um. I was thinking... yeah, I guess I think it''s a little far away too."


    "I don''t think all of us will be able to make the trip here unless we have a pretty good show."


    We didn''t stay on the third floor for long, which was a lower priority, probably because our opinions were generally the same. Then we all came down one floor lower, to the second floor.


    "I guess the second floor is better than the third floor! More to the point, the first floor would be ideal," Maezono muttered as she looked at the view outside the window.


    "Yes, that''s true. But I guess the first floor is still pretty tough in terms of price." Mii-chan stared at her cell phone and made a sour face. "But we should make a decision soon. It''s getting pretty full."


    Matsushita took a peek at Mii-chan''s cell phone and said, "That''s right. Two of the five ces we picked up are now upied... However, there are still candidates from the first to the third floor, which I''d say is a bit of a problem."


    Would you take convenience and pay arge amount of points, or would you abandon convenience and settle for a low payment of points?


    "I still think it should be on the first floor. If we can''t get people toe up to the second floor because they are distracted by other exhibits, it''s that much more of a disadvantage."


    "I think it doesn''t really matter if it''s on the second or third floor, as long as it makes people want toe."


    Maezono, Mii-chan, and Matsushita discussed which floor they should purchase. Sat��, who was always high-spirited and often speaks even when she''s not heard, had been rather quiet since this morning. Her friends asionally looked at her as if they were concerned, but she looked as if her mind was somewhere else.


    "Sato-san has been like thattely." Matsushita, noticing my concern, whispered over to me.


    "Come to think of it, Sat�� hasn''t been particrly energetic thest few days."


    "I was curious if Ayanok��ji-kun would know anything about that, but I guess not."


    I wondered if Matsushita thought I was some kind of Sat�� whisperer or something. Or maybe she was anticipating Kei''s closeness with Sat��, but either way, I didn''t know much.


    "She doesn''t seem to be in bad shape, and I asked her if she had any problems, but she didn''t say anything definite."


    "Sometimes people just want to be left alone, don''t they?"


    "Yes, I guess. But what can I say, I don''t think that''s the case this time."


    "What do you mean?"


    Matsushita, who was biting down on her lip, continued without cutting off the conversation, as if she had an idea of what she was talking about.


    "It''s like she wants to talk but can''t. She''s the type of person who keeps things inside."


    After a year and a half of friendship, I wondered how she could even tell that.


    "You don''t just keep it bottled up inside and that''s the end of it, right?"


    "That''s, well... She can usually talk to me about it."


    "Then I guess we''ll have to wait and see for a while longer. If your understanding is correct, I''m sure she''lle to you for advice at some point."


    "Maybe when...."


    Matsushita was a little unclear, but since this kind of long conversation was not possible in Sat��''s vicinity, Matsushita stopped talking. The fact that the sky''s the limit was a bit of a concern, but for now, the priority was to decide where to open the stall.


    It was time to finalize and move on to the next stage. Just as we were about to finish our inspection of the second floor and move on to thest floor, we were met by another group.


    "Yo, Ayanok��ji. Are you also looking for a ce to open a stand for the festival?"


    It was Hashimoto, a member of the 2nd-year ss A, who called out to us.


    Shortly thereafter, the leader of the group, Sakayanagi, along with Kamuro, also showed up. With all three of them moving at the same time, surely they weren''t just out for a light stroll.


    "Well, I''m not sure. They may have already decided, or they may not have even decided whether to go indoors or outdoors."


    "No decision? That''s an obvious lie. Are you telling me that you''re taking Horikita all the way out to the special building to roam around for no reason?


    Please tell me what kind of show you''re going to put on."


    Sakayanagi didn''t join in the conversation, but watched on with a wry smile on her face.


    "It''s no use asking him. He''s not in a position to know everything about the ss." Unable to listen in silence, Horikita intervened.


    "Then you mean he''s simply enjoying his harem?"


    He pointed out that I''m the only male of the six and asked Kamuro to agree.


    "You must be simr, Hashimoto-kun. Sakayanagi-san and Kamuro-san.


    You are the only boy, even if the number of people is different. I wonder if it''s because you''re aware of that that you''re making strangements?"


    Horikita showed a rxed response by daring to reply on the same level.


    It was a form of getting one over on him, but that didn''t help against Hashimoto.


    Rather, he would change the subject as if the current conversation never took ce.


    "Sat��, you''ve been spending a lot of time with people like Matsushita, Wang and Maezono." Hashimoto turned his attention to the four maid caf�� inventors.


    The three of them were bracing themselves, but Matsushita stepped forward, looking the same as usual.


    "Don''t try to get anything out of us."


    "I hope you''ve understood by now."


    The two girls bit down hard on Hashimoto as Matsushita joined Horikita''s re.


    "I didn''t mean it like that. It''s just..."


    The others began to feel uneasy at the implied tone of his words.


    "Oops, any more than that would be superfluous?" Grinning, Hashimoto looked at Sakayanagi for the first time since they had arrived.


    You don''t mind if I talk, do you? he seemed to be asking.


    "You appear to want to say something, Hashimoto-kun." Matsushita, who was standing there protecting the three girls, asked in a slightly irritated tone.


    As if he''d been waiting for the question, his eloquent and verbose tone became more animated.


    "I''m worried about your ss, my friend. It seems that you have teamed up with... Ry��en for the sports festival, but do you think you can trust him forever?


    "What do you mean?"


    "I just thought you were going to team up with Ry��en again. If you are going to team up with him, be careful," he said, as if he had the heart of an old woman.


    Matsushita must have sensed the implications behind his words. She was tempted to ask him if he knew anything about it, but she held her ground.


    "We''re in a hurry, and I don''t think we can y word games forever, you know? Everyone? " She turned around and asked the girls and I.


    "Right. Let''s get going, we''re wasting time talking to him here."


    "She doesn''t like you, does she?" Kamuro said, ying with the bad atmosphere in the room. Hashimoto let out a deliberate sigh.


    "Maybe. I''m just asking for some reasoning... Anyways, good luck with that." In the end, Sakayanagi didn''t say anything and went into the ss we watched earlier.


    "That was a little scary..."


    Mii-chan, relieved and patting her chest, murmured to Sat��, who was standing to her left.


    "Huh? Oh, um, yeah. A little bit."


    Whether she heard her or not, Sat��''s attitude was unnatural here as well.


    "Anyway, let''s move."


    "Nothing''s out of the ordinary. He pretended to be on our side, but he''s not afraid to stab us in the back."


    "A sports festival is a sports festival, a cultural festival is a cultural festival.


    In the end, there arepetitions in which ourpetitors are from other sses.


    Sakayanagi''s ss is an enemy to be defeated, as well as Ry��en''s ss. You wouldn''t trust them, would you?"


    If we stood around here, we would soon run into ss A again. We all wanted to avoid that, so we decided to look for another potential location.


    "Hashimoto-kun said something earlier, did you guys catch it?" Maezono says crisply.


    In the process of preparing for the maid caf��, Horikita and I informed only one member about the deal with Ry��en ahead of time. They must''ve felt uneasy after being shaken up.


    "It''s a certainty that we''ll cooperate with Ry��en-kun''s ss in the uing cultural festival, right?"


    "Yes. When we cooperated with each other at the sports festival, we also talked about working together during the cultural festival."


    The content of the two sses'' presentations shouldn''t be simr to each other. Avoid simr orpeting stalls in terms of location. The two parties should be able to efficiently exchange staff, temporarily loan out staff, and follow up on each other''s work. Agreements to prepare for unforeseen circumstances, even if they''re only minor arrangements.


    "I didn''t care so much about it during the sports festival because it went well, but when they said something like that, I couldn''t help but feel uneasy... Are you sure you''re okay with trusting them?"


    "It''s true that it''s difficult to trust Ry��en-kun personally. That''s why I put Katsuragi-kun in between the two of us. I''m sure It''ll be fine."


    "I want to believe you too. But didn''t Hashimoto-kun seem to know something?"


    "Yes, I felt it too. Even if he doesn''t betray you, isn''t it conceivable that the cooperation was leaked?"


    "The ones who know are myself and Ayanok��ji-kun. Then there are the four of you who started the maid caf��. In Ry��en''s ss, there''s Katsuragi. He may have told other important ssmates, but I don''t see the benefit of leaking it."


    Horikita exined to them that it was improbable for the information to be leaked.


    "I agree with Horikita. I don''t think they expected Horikita and Ry��en to team up to beat ss A after the sports festival incident. I''m just wary that the next one will be like that. There may be simr contacts and probes in the future, but you shouldn''t worry about it," I casually followed up.


    "Yeah, right. I understand."


    Maezono and Mii-chan nodded their heads, and Matsushita and Sat��


    reassured me again.


    Afterwards, we returned to the ssroom and gathered to make a final decision.


    "I think we''re going to take a majority vote among the members here on where we''re going to open the caf��. Is that okay?"


    "What if the opinions are evenly split?"


    "We''ll figure that out then. Let''s try it once first. Rock for first floor, paper for second floor, and scissors for third floor. Okay?"


    Mii-chan recited it in a whisper, perhaps to avoid confusion, and then looked at her palm.


    "Here we go."


    The six of us, including me, simultaneously expressed our desired floor with our hands. At first nce, it''s a clear decision. The result was four "rocks", two "papers", and zero "scissors".


    The third floor was eliminated because of the time and effort required to move to the third floor. I chose paper in order to reduce the initial cost, but it would not be a bad choice to choose the first floor for its convenience. The other paper was Matsushita.


    Anyway, this was a step forward as the application for the first floor had been decided.


    "I''ll apply right away. There are still a lot of sses that are waiting to see what happens, and it would be troublesome if they were taken."


    Using her cell phone, Horikita immediately began working on an application to hold the ground floor.


    "So, are we done for the day?"


    "No, I have something to tell you first."


    I had been gathering information about maid caf��s until recently. I should probably mention that the main target of maid caf��s is men. There were many families among the festival''s guests, but basically, male customers were the main target.


    "I don''t think there won''t be any female customers, but in terms of ratio, there''ll be a considerable difference."


    This was what anyone would imagine, without having to do any research.


    "I heard that there are butler caf��s in the world, the opposite of maid caf��s.


    The butler isn''t a girl, but a dressed up man."


    Matsushita and the others, perhaps not having heard this information before, were surprised and impressed.


    "Maids and butlers are both a type of concept caf��."


    "You know a lot too, Horikita."


    "I''ll at least gather information. You can decide if it''s useful or not after you learn it."


    I should say that was as good as it gets.


    "Then let''s move on. The most important and indispensable thing is cleanliness. I think we should take that into consideration as well as the floors in holding the sses in the special building."


    Each ssroom was used very differentlypared to other rooms.


    "Floors, walls, ceilings, and other chairs also vary a bit in damage due to age. I''d like you to check that as well so that you don''t miss anything."


    "That''s important. Even if we do some cleaning ourselves, there are some things we can''t cover up. The cleaner it is, the better it will be for the store."


    Everyone here agreed and began looking around the ssroom again. The consciousness that had previously been directed solely toward convenience and the outsidendscape would begin to change.


    "And also about the uniforms, we shouldn''t push the eroticism too tantly." "Eh?! What did you say?" Horikita looked shocked.


    "Eroticism. Eros and eroticism have been seen as important elements in art since ancient times. Showing underwear and the like is out of the question, but it''s important, however, not to refuse the hope that it might be visible."


    Horikita probably wasn''t able to get her head around that point.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun... Aren''t you awfully knowledgeable?"


    "Since I''m in charge of running the maid caf��, of course I can''t cut corners. I studied to be as helpful as possible."


    It was also reassuring to know that there were several students in the ss who were very knowledgeable about this kind of topic. Of course, I avoided mentioning that Horikita''s ss was going to have a maid caf��, and approached them on the assumption that I was personally interested. It was a little distressing, though, that some of the students who mistakenly thought I awakened as an otaku offered me an unusual degree of hospitality and instruction, saying that they wouldn''t mind receiving nothing in return if it would increase the number of like-minded people in the ss.


    "May I continue?"


    "Umm, yes, go ahead..."


    No one seemed to stop me, so I was allowed to talk about what it was like to be a maid for a while after that. It was important for those of us who actually wear maid''s uniforms to understand this. It would also be possible to respond to customers in a conscious way.


    "I also thought about a sales strategy. In addition to providing food and drinks, we''ll sell the right to take pictures, called Cheki. Using a specialized camera, the price would be 800 points for a photo of one maid. For a photo session with a customer, the price would be 1,200 points. In order to reduce costs, I suggested using a printer to print out the photos after taking them with a cell phone, but the Professor, who taught me this, rejected the idea. He said, ''If you neglect quality for the sake of profit, no one will pay attention to you.''"


    If we made the most of it, the photo sales could be as good as the food sales.


    "But you have to worry about holding film inventory, don''t you?"


    "No, I''m bullish on the film. We have a n to sell out. The condition, of course, is that we don''t release the photos. Also, under Horikita''s leadership, the boys have begun setting up a food stall, but the food here should also be linked to the maid caf��."


    When I finished speaking, Horikita coughed after a moment of silence.


    "Thepetition for restaurants will inevitably be high as there are signs of multiple booths, including the other grades. So we''ll specialize in snacks while keeping our prices low."


    "That won''t make us that much money, will it?"


    "It''s essential we use it as a stepping stone to our main goal, the maid caf��.


    We can reduce the price of the tickets for one drink, which can then be used at the maid caf�� for those who purchased said ticket."


    We needed to make people aware of the maid caf�� and then get them toe to the special building when the timees.


    In short, it was an effective advertisement strategy.

 Chapter 263: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 263: 1.2</h4>


    After the meeting for the maid caf��, I went to Keyaki Mall.


    Today, I was going to do a price survey on foodstuffs. This includes items sold in the mall and those avable on the Inte. It''s important to be able to prepare high quality food at the lowest possible price. If I invited Kei, it would turn into a date instead of a reconnaissance, so I would do it alone today. On the way to


    the supermarket, I found a man staring at a map of the building. I was a little bothered by his rather grim face, so I decided to talk to him.


    "You were the center of attention today, Sud��."


    He looked back, a little startled, as if he hadn''t noticed me until I got closer.


    "Eh? Oh Ayanok��ji? What do you mean, the center of attention?"


    "I''m talking about the midterms."


    "Oh, you mean that? I''m d to hear that, I guess I got what I expected given the amount of studying I did."


    Apparently, after the midterm, he even graded himself in detail.


    "I bet you''d be surprised to see what you looked like when you first entered the school."


    "Haha, no doubt. I think my past self would be yelling like, "What the hell?


    What''s the use of studying and memorizing words and forms? You should practice basketball more instead of wasting your time like that!"


    Sud�� replied, imagining himself in the past. I feltpelled to ask Sud�� one question, so I decided to act on it.


    "If your past self did actually tell you, ''Don''t waste your time.'' What would you say back?"


    "Huh? Well..." After thinking for a moment, Sud�� formed his own answer.


    "You can''t even remember simple forms, what are you?"


    It was a brilliant and uncharacteristic response, but it''s also true that the old Sud�� was not a one-trick pony.


    "I''m going to be a professional basketball yer, so it doesn''t matter,"


    he would reply.


    "Ugh, fine! What''s the right response in that case? Isn''t a professional with brains one step ahead of you? It''s a little tricky when you can''t reason with." Sud��


    ughs bitterly as he racks his brains. "To be honest, I''m getting impatient since it''s getting a little more difficult to understand. Up until now, once I got the hang of it, it went pretty smoothly..."


    Sud��, who''s been making up for his educational setbacks by trying his hardest now, seemed anxious and impatient. It was as if someone restarted from the junior high school level, or in Sud��''s case, elementary school level. Now that he''s caught up to the average second-year high school student, did he realize that he''s in a stagnant period?


    Although the 11th ce result he acquired this time, which is higher than half of the ss, is something to be proud of, I fear that the momentum wille to a halt here. From here on out, it will no longer be a matter of simply increasing study time. Factors other than effort, understanding, efficiency, and talent are probably required in a moreplex way.


    "Anyways, what''s up? What did you want from me?"


    "Nothing in particr, I was just a little curious. Aren''t you supposed to be at club activities today?"


    I was curious as to why exactly Sud�� was at Keyaki Mall at this time of the day. Even though the cultural festival was approaching, club activities were still taking ce.


    "I had to take some time off today."


    "That''s unusual."


    At a quick nce, he doesn''t seem to be in bad shape.


    "I just had another problem..."


    "Another problem?"


    "Lately, my eyesight''s been deteriorating to the point where I''m aware of it."


    He said and stared off into the distance.


    "I''ve always had a clear vision since I was a little kid, buttely it''s been strange."


    So the adverse effects of his dedication to his studies were changing Sud��''s physical and mental condition.


    For an athlete, eyesight is important. If his eyesight were to deteriorate in the future, it would probably affect his game. Of course, sses or contact lenses can greatlypensate for this, but even so, good eyesight is better than nothing.


    "I''m looking for an optician to measure my eyesight. I''ve never been to one before, and I was wondering where it was."


    "So you''ve been staring at a guide map. If you''re feeling a strong sense that your eyesight is declining, there''s a good chance that your eyesight is actually deteriorating."


    "Even if my eyesight is going to be failing in the future, I''m going to keep studying, man. I mean, I''m dying for basketball and I''m not going to stop. But, while I dream of bing a pro, I''m starting to think that I might have other options."


    "Other options?"


    "Don''tugh, okay?"


    "I won''t."


    "I thought I could go to a normal university and continue my studies, and even if I could force my way into the pros because of my academics, there''s no way they''d use me in the sports world if I''m not good enough. If that''s the case, then I can get into the university I want to go to and do my best."


    Studying, which he began reluctantly, brought about a major change in Sud��''s thinking.


    "You can go to university and be a professional after graduation, right?"


    "Yeah, that''s right."


    It''s not that one has to branch off the path to a profession from high school.


    Until now, Sud�� only thought about the path from high school graduate to professional, but now he''s thought of the option to go on to university. His own path will be further subdivided as well.


    "Ah." Sud�� noticed something out of the corner of his eye..


    I also turned my gaze to the sight of Akito and Haruka''s backs.


    "It''s not a date, is it?"


    "I guess not."


    If one were to look at the rear view from a distance, it would appear as if a couple was walking. But we ssmates know exactly what kind of state the two are in now.


    "Can we really just leave them alone?"


    "It wouldn''t matter if we told them anything now anyways."


    "That may be true, but..." Sud�� clenched his fists, his teeth grinding. "I wasn''t particrly close to Sakura, but I''ve had simr experiences."


    Sud�� used to hang out with Yamauchi so much that he was once called one of the three idiots alongside Ike.


    That must be why Yamauchi''s withdrawal was particrly painful for him.


    "But I guess it''s nothingpared to what I was like back then. I couldn''t even go so far as to say that I would expel myself in his ce."


    For Haruka, it seemed like her school life was equal in value, or even more so, to Airi''s.


    "If you have any trouble, you can always tell me. Well, I''m sure you don''t need my help, Ayanok��ji."


    "That''s not true. If there''s anything I want to discuss with you, I won''t hesitate to do so."


    "Sounds good, man. I better head out, see youter, Ayanok��ji."


    I said goodbye to Sud�� and headed for the supermarket.

 Chapter 264: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 264: 1.3</h4>


    The next morning, I met up with Kei downstairs in the dormitory.


    "Sorry Kiyotaka, have you been waiting?"


    "Not really. Shall we go then?"


    Kei, who was standing beside me, took my hand without hesitation and we started walking. The act of holding hands and walking side by side like this was not umon anymore.


    "Yesterday... Thanks for staying up with me untilte. I''m very happy." Kei squeezed my hand while blushing a little.


    "But it''d be a problem if we get caught."


    Despite already being past the curfew, Kei remained in my roomst night.


    Fortunately, there seemed to be no witnesses when she left, so we won''t be penalized.


    "Ahaha, indeed."


    For some reason, Kei''s profile looked reliable. Is it possible for her to change this much in half a day?


    "Did it hurt?"


    "Do you even have to ask?"


    "Is it that bad?"


    "No, but... how do I put this, I thought I was used to it." Although a little embarrassed, Kei was delighted.


    "In a way, it was my first time so I probably hadn''t sorted my thoughts yet.


    However, I feel reassured that you ignored the curfew and stayed with me the whole time."


    That''s true, who knows what would''ve happened if I hadn''t been there.


    "I see."


    Kei ascended another step up on the staircase of adulthood after yesterday''s experience. Although she had support behind her, she seeded in standing her ground. It was a big improvement from the time she thought she could never stand anymore.


    Learning to get up on your own when you fall was important for Kei, a special case that didn''t happen overnight like other students.


    "G-Good morning, Kei-chan."


    As soon as we arrived at the ssroom, Sat��, who arrived early, spotted Kei and got up to run to her.


    "Good morning, Maya ~"


    Kei, giving me a gaze, excused herself and immediately started closely chatting with Sat��.


    Although initially somewhat awkward, they soon began their usual chit-chat, or maybe it was even friendlier than usual. The circle of happiness that started with the two of them began to spread to the other girls, even to students that aren''t typically involved, such as Shinohara and Mii-chan, who''ve been struggling for a while.


    As a leader, Horikita is gradually starting to show her power and awakening her skills to unite the ss, but she''scking something. The ability to create, attract, and unify a small group. Without a doubt, Kei possesses these qualities.


    The road to the festival seemed to be going well regarding these matters, which are indispensable for strengthening the ss, but suddenly news of an incident with the potential to create a major problem arised.


    "Hey, is it true that our ss is going to have a maid caf��?"


    Ike bursted into the ssroom, and shouted out to the rest of the ss.


    Maezono stood up in surprise since this was a matter that was kept secret from all but a few students.


    The people who came up with the idea, such as Sat��, Matsushita, and Mii-chan, all looked at each other.


    Only some of the girls who were confirmed as staff and those who were asked to participate were aware of the maid caf��. Then came Horikita, who was in charge of organizing the festival.


    Horikita calmly listened to Ike''s story without showing any impatience. If she overreacted, it would reveal to the whole ss that they were really going to have a maid caf��. And it would also be exposed to the other sses.


    However, that element was lost when Maezono and the others strongly reacted to Ike''s initial exmation. Since he imed it was a maid caf��, it was highly unlikely that he was just making it up as he went along.


    "Where did you hear this, Ike-san?"


    "Where did I hear? Well uh..." Ike, frightened by Maezono''s stiff, angry look, chokes on his words. "Just now, in the lobby, Ishizaki, Suzuki... and Nomura, the three of them were talking about it as loud as they could."


    "Hey Horikita-san, what does he mean? It was still supposed to be a secret, right?"


    Matsushita, who remembered the contact from Hashimoto, approached us.


    "Yes. I thought it was unthinkable, but I guess I was naive."


    The answer was clear when Ishizaki and the others were making a fuss.


    "Does this mean that Ry��en-kun betrayed us after all? You said it was okay, didn''t you, Horikita-san?"


    As Maezono angrily confronted Horikita, the ssroom door opened and Sud�� came in, looking a little flustered.


    "Hey! Ry��en and the others areing this way."


    "I guess I''ll just have to go greet them. You guys stay inside the ssroom and act like adults."


    Deciding that the conversation would getplicated if an outsider joined in, Horikita got up from her seat and decided to greet Ry��en in the hallway.


    "Yo, it''s Suzune. You wouldn''t believe how badly I missed you."


    Ry��en led the way, with Ishizaki, Albert, and Kaneda following behind.


    "I was wondering what you''re doing here with such boisterous students."


    "I have something to tell you guys today. Hey, Ishizaki?"


    "Y-yes."


    Ishizaki looked around the room with a slightly nervous look on his face.


    The students who were told not to leave the ss were also observing, perhaps because they were curious about what was going on and couldn''t resist.


    Maezono, in particr, was ring at Ryuen without hiding her annoyance.


    "It seems these guys have caught onto all the fuss that''s been going about."


    Ry��en, sensing the mood, replied with augh.


    "I''m honestly surprised. You really don''t mind doing the unpredictable."


    "Kuku, predictable behavior is boring, isn''t it?"


    Ry��en began to exin carefully so that Ike and the others, who hadn''t grasped the situation, could understand.


    "At Suzune''s proposal, your ss and I formed a cooperative rtionship at the sports festival. And we were nning to join forces early on for this year''s cultural festival as well."


    To be precise, I was the one who initiated the request for cooperation in the sports festival, but that''s a trivial detail here.


    Horikita and Ry��en agreed to continue working together for the cultural festival going forward.


    "We were supposed to make sure that the contents of our exhibits do not conflict with each other. Discuss stall locations. Be able to lend and borrow students and follow up with them as needed. Was that correct?"


    "That''s correct. We were nning to follow up with everyone a little further down the road. We were told early on about the content of the stalls and yesterday about the location." Kaneda smirked as he added details.


    "You intended to betray us from the very beginning, but you hid it until today because you were waiting for us to find out where we were going to open our stall. I''m sorry, but we''re going to have to renegotiate to cooperate."


    "That''s a pretty big demand for a fresh start, isn''t it? You unterally found out the location of our stall and even revealed our exhibit."


    "Revealed? Ishizaki and his friends were just chatting with each other. It just so happened that your ss and the other sses overheard them. It''s pretty rude of them to listen in, isn''t it?"


    My ss slowly began to understand the situation.


    "Is what you just said true, Horikita-san?"


    Y��suke asked, since Horikita had not yet gotten around to informing the rest of the ss of the ongoing cooperative rtionship with Ry��en''s ss.


    "I was going to tell you when everything was finalized..."


    The n was nearly in the final stage, but it was turned upside down at thest moment. Our ssmates, including Yosuke, were informed by such a scene.


    "May I ask you why, just in case? What''s the benefit in betraying us? Did you team up with Sakayanagi-san, or Ichinose-san and the others?"


    "I helped you in the sports festival to destroy ss A. You guys won the game and got a taste of the good stuff, didn''t you?"


    We both picked up wins in the sports festival, but we were 100 points ahead in ss points as a result.


    "We were on equal terms. The same goes for the cultural festival proposal."


    "But at the end of the day, it doesn''t matter if we crush ss A, if you B''s rise to the same position. It won''t win us many ss points, but we''ll win the next festival. We''ll have the same concept as you guys."


    "Does that mean a maid caf��?"


    It was Maezono who immediately responded to the keyword "same".


    "Well, I''ll change the concept a little but it is something simr."


    It''s not so important if the event is leaked. However, the fact that they dare to use the same idea on the same stage would be a fatal blow to Horikita''s ss, and that must''ve been clear to our nners and ssmates, including Maezono.


    First through fourth; they deredpeting for one of the four cements that would earn them 100 ss points.


    "You mean you''re going to go out of your way topete in the same genre? It doesn''t sound like it would be beneficial to you."


    "Sure, it''s probably riskier than the other ideas when ites topeting for customers. But so what? We have a n to outsell you and get to the top."


    I don''t get Ry��en''s logic behinding all the way here to tell us so.


    "So, let''s have a more intensepetition, Suzune."


    "Intensepetition?"


    Themotion began to grow a little louder, and even Kanzaki and other unrted students from other sses overheard Ry��en''s deration of war.


    Hashimoto was watching this somewhat amusedly, probably because he learned of this fact before Horikita''s ss learned of it.


    "The one who earns as many points as possible will receive 5 million points from the other ss. Wouldn''t that be an interesting match?"


    "Are you serious? That doesn''t sound like a very sane wager."


    "If you ask me, it''s only 5 million points."


    You can''t mobilize ss points without permission. However, private points


    owned by individuals can be freely handled. He proposed a ''wager'' using this logic.


    This was a one-on-one proposal, separate from the 12-sspetition.


    Even if we don''t take the top rank in the cultural festival and lose, if we win the direct confrontation and get 5 million private points, it would certainly be a hotly contested game.


    "Well, I would''ve preferred a more shy battle with a different opponent, but Student Council President Nagumo ran away, saying that he wouldn''t participate in the festival this time. Well, it wasn''t as if he was running away, but as long as we can''t find someone to fight, we have no choice but to confront you guys."


    "Don''t decide this on your own. I''m not going to ept such a reckless proposal."


    "Are you going to run away too?"


    "You broke the contract, leaked it, and then tried to weasel your way out of it. That''s an impossible proposition. I can finally see the true meaning of Katsuragi-kun''s words in regards to the avoidance of a penalty agreement."


    "That doesn''t matter anymore. Don''t you have confidence in your ability to win a fight with me?"


    "I didn''t say that."


    "Oh yeah?"


    "You''ve done whatever you want so far, and even I can''t keep quiet about it.


    I will certainly consider the bet you proposed."


    "Kukuku, so you say. I''ll be waiting for your answer, Suzune."


    Perhaps having finished his business with us, Ry��en pulled away as if satisfied. As he turned around, his group followed and the others made way for them.


    As Ry��en and the others left, students from other sses, who had been spectators, began to approach.


    Hashimoto, whose eyes met mine, smiled thinly and shrugged his shoulders.


    It was as if to say, "Did you catch that we''re teaming up with Ry��en?" He looked as if he wanted to say so.


    Although this was already known to the entire second-year students and to the entire grade, the maid caf��''s performance, including Ry��en''s surprise participation in the event, will be in a difficult environment.


    I wouldn''t be surprised if other sses considering the same idea were now changing ns. But we''ve already started a lot of preparations.


    "What are you going to do, Horikita-san? We''re pretty well prepared, aren''t we..?"


    "Is Ry��en really going to turn his ss into a maid caf��?"


    Maezono and the others approached Horikita, letting some of the bottled up anxiety and frustration spill out.


    "I believe it''s very likely. I don''t think it''s just a threat."


    "How about we shift to a different concept now?"


    Y��suke suggested, considering that option in order to turn things around, but...


    "We can''t do that. Part of the budget''s already invested."


    We''ve already ordered as much as we could for the maid''s uniforms and so on. We can''t throw away the costs we''ve spent so far. If we stop, we''d be throwing away precious funds. We need to re-evaluate how we can get around in the future with our dwindling time.


    We have truly fallen into a dangerous situation.


    "We have no choice but to take advantage of this situation and turn it into an opportunity to get as many private points as we can by taking the gamble!"


    That is, of course, if the ssmates agree to this proposal. Because in order to have arge sum of money avable, the whole ss would have to work together to raise it.

 Chapter 265: 1.4

    <h4>Chapter 265: 1.4</h4>


    Excluding some cases, such as Horikita''s ss being exposed through an act of betrayal, it''s ostensibly unknown until the day of the event which stall locations each ss has and what kind of stand they decided on. However, the bigger the scale of the event, the more preparations must be made in advance for the day of the event.


    In fact, each of the sses began steadily working on the ces where they were expected to set up their stalls. In the midst of all this, surprising information came to light from the 3rd year ss A, led by Miyabi Nagumo.


    Rumors flew that they were going to rent out arge space in the gymnasium and put on an exhibitbining a "haunted house" and a "maze," as if they had no intention of hiding it from the start.


    Perhaps it wasn''t Nagumo''s n, but the consensus of the ss was to let them do what they want. They were handling the festival in a way that made others think that winning was secondary.


    Just looking at the props being brought in from afar, one can see that a reasonable amount of money was invested. As if to prove this, the 3rd year ss A finally announced their own pre-opening yesterday. They allowed students who


    wanted to experience the maze haunted house and began to solicit opinions. I can''t help but feel their determination to present a high-quality exhibition to the guests on the day of the festival.


    As someone who''s new to the cultural festival, I wanted to experience firsthand what the other sses were going to put on, no matter what form it took.


    After school, I went to the gymnasium to participate in the pre-open event. Perhaps because the pre-opening was held over several days, there weren''t many first-year and second-year students in the gym, even on the first day of the event.


    The gymnasium, with its dimmed lights, had a slightly frightening atmosphere. Not long after I got to the end of the line, I heard a familiar voice.


    "That''s great of the president. I can''t believe he''s going to show it off to the public so openly."


    "If it''s this big, it''s not easy to keep it hidden. It was a wise decision to release the information early if it was also for practice."


    I briefly nced back and saw that the two approaching me were Ichinose and Kanzaki. Apparently, like me, they came to see how things were going and to scout the area.


    "Ah..."


    As they were about to line up, my presence naturally came into their line of sight. Ichinose was the first to react, bowing her head and averting her eyes.


    Kanzaki silently took one look at Ichinose and I and got in line. An awkward silence was setting, and the line didn''t move as fast as I would''ve liked. The third-year students also weren''t able to proceed smoothly, perhaps because it was the first day.


    "Yes, that''s right. I''m sorry, Kanzaki-kun, but can I leave it to you...?"


    It was obviously a random request, but Kanzaki nodded his head in eptance without question.


    "Well, see youter."


    Ichinose, who''s never capable of rudeness, passed on a few words to me as well and left the line. Only Kanzaki and I were left behind, the atmosphere was heavy. Even a student who knew nothing about the situation was likely to realize a bit of the reason. Especially for Kanzaki, the situation would be clearer than daylight.


    "How are you doing?"


    I tried asking him something but Kanzaki''s face turned grim.


    "Do you think I''m doing good?"


    There was no way that Ichinose''s ss, which was slowly dropping ss points, could be in good shape.


    It would''ve sounded like a partial provocation.


    I filled in my name and received an exnation of the rules. The rules were basically bare minimum manners.


    Cell phone use is forbidden in the exhibition, always put your phone on silent mode. No loud chit-chat. Do not stay inside for no reason. Basically, don''t touch the production with your hands.


    By the time I finished reading the rules, Kanzaki left the line and turned his back to me. He was probably waiting for Ichinose toe back. I wasn''t sure when she''d be back but I have a feeling it''ll be after I''m long gone.


    After signing the agreement and stepping away from Kanzaki, I stepped inside. The walls of the haunted house are naturally narrow and visibility is quite poor. The light, which seemed to have been bought at a uniform store, was wrapped with tape, perhaps to narrow down the light source, so it doesn''t serve much purpose as a light.


    Recently, I''ve often used the Inte to research cultural festivals, but I wonder if it''s possible to produce such high quality disys. I was honestly surprised at the third-year''s advanced technical skills, or rather, the third-year ss A''s.


    I ignored the ghosts and began observing more carefully. It''s not surprising, but the atmosphere was basically created with decorated ornaments, and most of the important and frightening parts were handmade.


    The monster''s long necks were timed to the iing guests as the students lurked behind them.


    The fallen warrior that jumped out and drew his sword, of course, was done by someone else.


    There were several tricks that were clearly still in production, but in the festival, they''ll bepleted with improved quality.


    Although it may not be as popr with adults, it may be very well-liked by their families, especially the children. If the price is high, people tend to shy away, but if it is desired by children, their purse strings will be loosened. This will be an important factor in further solidifying the policy of the maid caf��.


    We were about halfway down the exhibition when we came to a sign that said, "Take a left."


    Just as I was about to follow the sign, a shadow moved in my field of vision.


    It seemed to be trying to scare me again with a new trick.


    "Whoa! Ah ah ah!?"


    I was supposed to be the one screaming, but the ghost jumped out, stumbled on a step in front of me, and fell over. I didn''t help them because I thought it might be staged, but when I saw them screaming in agony, I was convinced that it was an unexpected ident.


    In this darkness, it was no wonder such an ident happened...


    "Ouch, ouch!!!"


    It turned out to be Asahina Nazuna, a third-year ss A student.


    "Are you okay, senpai?"


    It''s a scary image in a way, reaching out to a ghost that shouldn''t be alive.


    "Oh, thank you for that."


    Apparently unable to stand on her own, she sat down on the ground. I couldn''t just leave her there, so I decided to lend a hand.


    "Which way''s the exit?"


    "What? The exit? Maybe this way... or... that way..?"


    "If you''re worried, let''s turn around."


    I remember the way to the entrance, so I should be able to get back soon with a little help.


    "Don''t worry, trust your senpai..!"


    She raised her voice in pain. It was because she tried faking a decisive disy in vain. It was a very unreliable deception, but it would be better to listen to a senior.


    It would be faster than me feeling my way to the exit from scratch. After a bit of hesitation and a few screams of terror from my ssmates, I reach the exit with my scared senpai in tow.


    I intended to immediately walk away, leaving Asahina in the care of the third-year booth, but due to the pre-opening, there didn''t seem to be any students avable.


    "Don''t worry about me. Thank you, Ayanok��ji-kun. I''m sure I''ll be fine after a little rest."


    I crouched down to check her ankle.


    "Woah what are you doing?"


    "Let me see."


    "Oh, um, sure..."


    It''s too early to say it was just a slight twist, but it''s starting to swell. If she doesn''t get proper treatment, it could have repercussionster.


    "I think you should go to the infirmary. Wouldn''t it be hard to be out of the lineup at the festival?"


    "Yeah, I guess. Yeah, I think I''ll do that."


    She tried to stand up and walk alone, but when she realized the pain wouldn''t allow her to do so, she shifted her n to standing on only her left leg.


    However, every time she took a small jump, the impact circted to her right leg, resulting in a bitter and agonized expression.


    "I''ll lend you a hand after all."


    "Ugh... but..."


    I''m sure her hesitance is partly due to embarrassment, but it seems there are other reasons why she isn''t willing to lend me her hand.


    "Are you worried Nagumo might see us?"


    "How did you know...?"


    "Well, I just had a suspicion."


    "If he saw Ayanok��ji-kun getting involved with a ss A student, it would probably stir some trouble for you. I can''t let myself trouble you, can I?"


    It seems she''s more worried about me than herself.


    "There''s no need to worry. I''m sure Nagumo, the student council president, doesn''t take me seriously anymore."


    "Is that so?"


    "I think he realized that he was being overbearing."


    I decided to lend Asahina a hand and take her to the infirmary.


    "Thanks, you know."


    She was a bit conspicuously dressed, which was a problem, but I guess that couldn''t be helped. I lent her a shoulder and we made it to the infirmary with a few curious stares. The doctor immediately sat her down on the bed to give her some treatment.


    Asahina was instructed to wait a little before leaving. As I was about to leave, she called out to me.


    "Speaking of which, Ayanok��ji''s ss was met with a disaster weren''t you?"


    Missing my chance to leave, I turned around and was left with no choice but to speak.


    "Are you talking about leaked information regarding the maid caf��?"


    "Yes."


    This morning, that very scheme was carried out by the hands of Ry��en.


    The whole school got to know about the maid caf�� event we were secretly working on. Of course, there are more disadvantages to having your idea known at an early stage.


    "Ry��en''s ss also decided to participate in a maid caf��."


    Due to the fact we have apetitor, we''ll have topete for the same customers.


    "We can only hope that, by having two ssespeting with simr concepts, there will be no others following the trend."


    "If you have three or four sses with the same exhibit, it''s only going to make thepetition for customers much worse."


    Chasing after them will only increase the risk. It''s not impossible for us to craft a strategy to attain a one-sided victory, but it won''t be easy to beat those of us who are devoting a lot of resources to the event. Soon after, the doctor brought bandages and other treatment tools. I ended up observing the treatment process.


    The treatment was over quickly, and the doctor said that if she waited a few days in a rested state, she should be able to walk without any problems. When it became clear that there would be no issue with the festival, Asahina simultaneously let out the pain and relief she was enduring.


    "Oh, thank God. I didn''t want to bother the ss with something like this."


    "The results won''t change the cement of the sses, so it''s not something you need to worry about, is it?"


    If they gotst ce at the festival, they wouldn''t lose any ss points.


    "That''s not going to happen. But there''s nothing better than having lots of ss points, you know. There are even quite a few of my ssmates that are against Miyabi being hands-off this time."


    Asahina continued with her eyes downcast.


    "Students who decide not to win need as many ss points as possible, right? Even at the cultural festival, if you ced first, that''s more private points you can get before graduation."


    Due to thews set in ce by Nagumo, it''s only natural that they would want as many private points as possible in order to graduate from ss A.


    Meanwhile, ss A can''tpletely abandon the rest of the sses.


    They''ll need to continue to participate just like other students.


    "In case you''re wondering, Nagumo is saying that he''s going to let the non-A''spete and pick one student from the ss that takes first ce," she said.


    As a result, theints from the three other sses won''t be as strong.


    But even then, they can''t bepletely suppressed without showing willingness to get as many ss points as possible.


    The pressure on ss A, which has no interest in winning,es through with different circumstances.


    "You know what we were talking about earlier, right? How Miyabi wasn''t keeping an eye on you anymore?"


    "What about it?"


    "At first I thought that was true. But I think that might be false."


    "Why is that?"


    "There was never really a clear winner between you and Miyabi, was there?"


    "That''s true."


    Nagumo and I never went head to head to settle our dispute for good.


    "If that''s the case, then I don''t think it''s over."


    "I don''t have the intention to fight him."


    It''s simply a waste of time regarding this entire ordeal.


    "I don''t think that even matters. It''s not entirely about you anymore, Ayanok��ji-kun. Miyabi could start targeting people close to you."


    Having watched Nagumo by her side for the past three years, Asahina could clearly envision it.


    "Like former student council president Horikita, Nagumo likes topete, doesn''t he?"


    "Uh, yeah, that''s for sure."


    "Has Nagumo ever been clearly beaten by someone or something? Has he ever had a slight setback?"


    Although, I''m sure you can guess that by looking at Nagumo''s attitude up to now.


    "Miyabi''s never stumbled, at least not to my knowledge."


    Nagumo''s ssmates have an unshakable trust in him.


    "It would be an unquestionable fact that Student Council President Nagumo is an excellent person. If he wasn''tpetent, it would be impossible for him to achieve his OAA or be student council president."


    There are more than a few areas where political maneuvering alone cannot help.


    "That guy likes being number one. That''s why he fought to be the top of this school. In the end, he even became the student council president, so he''s really a man of his word."


    "However, if you asked me whether or not Nagumo is the strongest student, I would immediately deny it."


    "How can that be...? He''s never lost to anyone in particr." Asahina was surprised by my words.


    "I think it''s because he''s never had good opponents." It''s not that Nagumo''s weak but there''s no doubt that his opponents were weak. "I think his greatest misfortune was that he didn''t have anyone equally as capable, or even more so, willing topete with him in his year."


    "You mean he didn''t have a good... Rival?"


    "That''s right."


    Unfortunately, bypeting only with lower-ranked students, Nagumo was able to attain number one without much effort. Of course, he may have originally started as second or third best, but he soon overtook the others and became the sole runner.


    When he nced back after finishing the race, he saw that no one was chasing him.


    All of them either gave up and walked or stopped altogether because they were incapable of beating Nagumo.


    At times, there may have been people around him who were as talented as him, such as Kiry��in, but if they didn''t try to catch up and overtake Nagumo, they


    were no different than weeds and pebbles on the side of the road. The fact that he didn''t experience the extremity and difficulty ofpetition alongside the frustration of losing from the outset can be seen as the cause of Nagumo''s warped thinking.


    The fact that he''s nning and executing strange revenge tactics against me isn''t out of any sense of defeat or inferiority, but only to bring me to the forefront of the stage.


    When he asked for a one-on-one match at the sports festival, he never thought he would lose. Of course, he didn''t know everything about me, but even if he had seen my full strength up close, Nagumo wouldn''t have doubted his victory.


    Nagumo had never experienced losing, rather, only winning streak after winning streak.


    In the true sense of the word, Nagumo Miyabi is a man who has never known defeat.


    "I wish we could just stop fighting in this school."


    "Is that so?"


    "I just hope nothing will happen to me..."


    This cultural festival has tantly shown the change in Nagumo''s behaviour, which was indirectly conveyed to the public. To the masses, it would appear that Nagumo''s belligerence and curiosity have simply been suppressed. In reality, this is not true. This is merely the calm before the storm. Nagumo will take action against me or others after this. It may not be enough to expel one or two people.


    The price for neglecting Nagumo... it wouldn''t be unexpected if numerous people get expelled. If we leave a bomb to balloon up to a dangerous level, there''s no doubt it''ll have catastrophic consequences.


    I recalled Horikita Manabu''s words, "Nagumo''s methods make a lot of people unhappy." That is half true. Of course, I don''t deny that I yed a part in the seniors'' misery, but the original n was to just mess with Nagumo''s emotions and thought process. I wasn''t able to achieve thetter. Students who wouldn''t have originally graduated in ss A due to Nagumo''s methods are indeed getting that chance. Not only third-year students, but also first-year and second-year students have received ss transfer tickets, albeit on a limited basis. Although there are restrictions on how to use them, they are products that previously didn''t exist. If it had concerned me up untilst year, I would''ve watched Nagumo''s behavior with more interest.


    "I''m starting to get a little interested in Student Council President Nagumo."


    "Did I hear you right?"


    "Mhm."


    An interest that I''ve never felt before, not even once, welled up from the depths of my heart.


    "I knew you were strange."


    After casting her gaze down at her bandaged leg, Asahina gave a smallugh.


    "It may have been a coincidence that we met, but maybe that''s why Nagumo wants to fight."


    Looking back at this "coincidence," it was also a major factor in my making contact with Asahina.


    Coincidence.


    I was able to formte a conclusion in my conversation with her.


    The coincidences I just mentioned are uncontroble. However, it does not mean that they arepletely uncontroble.


    Coincidences can change the form of the conversation, depending on your point of view and the way you look at it.


    Asahina Nazuna, the amulet, the existence of coincidences, and Nagumo Miyabi. This is not bad for a single test case.


    Just as sess awaits us after a series of failed experiments.

 Chapter 266: 1.5

    <h4>Chapter 266: 1.5</h4>


    Leaving Asahina in the infirmary, I returned to the gymnasium to check on Kanzaki, who I was curious about, and Ichinose, who I expected to have returned.


    If I stood out too much, it would result in the same situation again, so I walked farther away from the entrance.


    The fact that I couldn''t see Kanzaki in the line made me wonder if he was inside or if he''d already left. However, by the looks of things, it was clear that he would be waiting for Ichinose''s return.


    There was a bit of a panic when I exited with Asahina, who was acting oddly, so I don''t think Kanzaki, who was waiting for Ichinose''s return and my departure, would''ve missed it. Then I went to the infirmary and took about 15


    minutes toe back. I wouldn''t have been surprised if Ichinose was still inside if he had been in the vicinity, unless he returned immediately after that.


    While making overall observations, I decided to pay attention to the faces of the students leaving.


    A few minutester, Kanzaki slowly appeared from the exit. I wondered if he was still in the gymnasium, but what surprised me was what came after that.


    I thought for sure Ichinose was next to him, but Kanzaki was alone. She was notgging behind, nor did he seem to be concerned about what was behind him.


    I thought he was just going to walk away, but then he turned around and saw me.


    He then approached me after staring for a few seconds.


    "You''re back after all. It seems her injuries were not too serious."


    If it had been a big deal, it would''ve been hard to believe that I was just standing there like this, taking it easy.


    I guess that''s what Kanzaki deduced.


    "Are you wondering why Ichinose isn''t here?"


    "To be honest, a little."


    "I didn''t call her because I was worried about the possibility of bumping into youing back from the infirmary. Besides, there are still a few days left for the pre-opening."


    So Ichinose will be given time to observe the event, even if she doesn''t rush.


    To some extent, the direction of Ichinose''s ss booth seemed to be set in stone. If it''s only a trial run, then she may want to be present for it just to ensure everything runs well, but as I said before, there''s still time.


    "I want to continue where we left off earlier. Your ss seems to be doing quite well."


    It was clear that he was referring to the series of events from the uninhabited ind exam to the unanimous special exam, and if we went back a little further, to the start of the second-year.


    "We''re not unscathed. Unlike Kanzaki''s ss, we have vacancies. We''re also carrying a negative that you can''t see just from ss points."


    "You''re not the only ones with invisible risks, but you''ve made a big difference in terms of the positive points you can see." Rather than envy, this was Kanzaki''s honest opinion. "sses like yours will eventually have to fight against Sakayanagi''s ss."


    One thing that stuck out to me was Kanzaki''s somewhat optimistic, one-step-back assessment of his own ss.


    "Have you given up already? Moving up to ss A?"


    "I guess so."


    Kanzaki responded in the affirmative rather than the negative. It isn''t difficult to guess what he was thinking. Ichinose''s ss isn''t a disastrous one. It isn''t at risk of losing a lot of points for tardiness, absences, behavior issues, and the like, because they''re a serious crowd that almost never lose ss points and rarely make major mistakes in special exams. But in other words, they don''t have the opportunity to make big jumps on special exams.


    "No one has yet to notice how the ss is slowly sinking. It would still be endearing if they were just pretending not to notice, but they''re all genuinely oblivious."


    "Only you seem to be different."


    "That was until a little while ago; there''s no point in rebelling alone."


    "You mean you''ve given up on trying to change their minds?"


    "Our ss will never make it to ss A." Here, Kanzaki said it clearly.


    "If the possibility has been reduced to zero, the only thing left to do is to find another way. If we are going to sink anyway, we should give as many people as possible a chance to escape."


    "So you''re going to move to a different ss after umting 20 million points?"


    "Because Student Council President Nagumo Miyabi has actually implemented this and it''s shown to be effective. Concentrating private points on Ichinose is what we''ve been doing. If we execute this n to the limit, we can move at least two or three people to ss A. In addition, the existence of ss transfer tickets was shown for the first time at the sports festival. Of course, it won''t be easy to acquire them, but the increase in options is a genuinely pleasing factor."


    "Why are you telling me all this?"


    "I don''t know what I''m doing either."


    It was an uncharacteristic response. Kanzaki paused for a moment and began to search for a better answer.


    "I didn''t have a ce to vent. Maybe that''s why."


    If there''s a problem in daily life, it''ll be shared among those close to the student, regardless of whether or not they''re within the same ss, and a solution is found. However, when ites to ss problems, the only way out is to give up on achieving ss A and transfer to another ss. If someone were to say such a thing in ss, it would inevitably be met with discord.


    It would be impossible to get a consensus in Ichinose''s ss.


    "You''re the only person I thought was capable of understanding my thoughts without talking out of turn."


    I see. He believed I was the best outlet to express his negative emotions. Of course, that isn''t the only reason. It seems that he also holds resentment toward me, who has a strong influence on Ichinose.


    "I don''t care what happened between you and Ichinose or what kind of rtionship you two have. The fact that you''re having such a bad influence that she can''t even do a satisfactory observation of the third-year ss A''s exhibit is a


    major issue."


    "It''s a little harsh when you put it that way."


    "You''ll have to forgive me. I''m sure you understand how frustrating it is."


    Kanzaki then raised his hand and told me he''s leaving.


    The back of the ss strategist who had given up on winning looked one size smaller than usual. It''s a little wild to call him back here, but I can''t just let Kanzaki go home now.


    "Can we take some time soon? I''d like to have a little talk about the future."


    "Why not now? We can take some time to talk about what''s toe."


    "I''m sorry, but right now I need to do some research on the third-years.


    Besides, we can''t make any progress if we start talking about it now."


    In order to discuss the future, we need another piece of the puzzle that''ll allow us to step into it.


    "If that''s the case, well, okay. Call me anytime."

 Chapter 267: 1.6

    <h4>Chapter 267: 1.6</h4>


    It was Friday. I came to a ce I don''t usually visit in order to meet a certain student.


    After knocking, I opened the door to the student council room, and for a moment, Nagumo Miyabi looked surprised.


    There were no students or teachers in sight other than Nagumo, and it seemed that he was all alone today, just as I had been informed by Asahina.


    Even for him, my arrival must have been unexpected. I wondered if he''d been watching me just a few minutes ago as I could see his cell phone in his left hand.


    I''m sure I was an unwee visitor, but he didn''t turn me away and, instead, urged me toe in.


    "Excuse me."


    The door leading into the room closed with a m, and a moment of silence passed between the two of us.


    "I waited for you because Nazuna insisted on giving you some time, but I''m not going to assume anything. So, are you here for the student council or for me?"


    "I have no business with the student council. I''m here to talk to President Nagumo personally."


    After saying that, he sat back deeper in his chair and ced the cell phone he held in his hand on the desk.


    "Well, in that case, I can onlymend you for showing your face in front of me. Don''t you think so, Ayanok��uji?"


    "I think you''re referring to the sports festival, but isn''t being sick a legitimate right that''s epted as a reason for absence?"


    "Don''t give me that shit, man. I saw you at Keyaki Mall the next day and you looked fine."


    "I got better in a day."


    "That''s a tant lie."


    "It might be true."


    It was a bit of a y on words, but Nagumo seemed to realize that further pursuit was pointless.


    "Truth or lie, I don''t really care anymore. Anyway, let me hear your reason foring here."


    His troublesome attitude must''vee from the bottom of his heart. He doesn''t even try to hide the fact that he wants to quickly end the discussion.


    However, such a transparent attitude is also evidence that he is hiding his true feelings.


    "May I sit down? I think it''s going to be a bit long."


    "You told me before you had no business with me, the student council president. If I wanted to, I could choose to have no business with you too, right?"


    As the head of the student council, Nagumo was prepared to listen, even to someone he didn''t like. If he doesn''t want to, he won''t listen to anything. Well, it''s only natural.


    "If you won''t listen to me, I''ll leave."


    If Nagumo, as an individual, was toozy to even converse with me, I had no choice.


    However, I don''t believe that''s the case. If his interest in mepletely vanished, that would be a different story, but deep down, I believe the spark is still there.


    In other words, he''ll never refuse. It''s precisely because I''m certain of this that I also took time out of my precious day to visit this ce.


    After a few moments of silence, Nagumo instructed me to sit down.


    I moved my chair and sat down so that we could face each other head-on.


    "Sorry, I don''t have anything to drink."


    "No problem."


    I could tell by the way he was looking at me that he won''t be apologizing for anything else. I guess the only thought he had was, "Why did youe here after all this time?"


    "I had no idea that the 3rd year ss A would do a pre-opening. It''s normal to think of it as a disadvantage to expose the ss''s exhibit to the public."


    "I''m also getting stories up here that some stupid ss had their event exposed."


    "That''s an earful, isn''t it? I heard Ry��en visited the student council president Nagumo as well."


    "He was pressing me to bet tens of millions of points with him."


    "I heard you refused."


    "Yeah, well, the game with you is over and so is my school life. As a result, I don''t give a shit about the cultural festival. So, there''s no need for me to give out any instructions. They can go and make memories during their final moments in high school."


    So he switched to such a stance, where all the information regarding his ss''s booth is open as he enjoys a normal cultural festival like any other school.


    Whether they win first ce or twelfth, the third-year ss A remains on top. Nagumo probably doesn''t care whether those in ss B and below areining.


    "But tens of millions? There won''t be enough, even if he''ll gather it together from his ss."


    Ry��en''s ss, which has high ie but heavily spends, doesn''t have lined pockets.


    "That guy told me he would give me the right to expel any student I wanted, even himself."


    Ry��en was going to use the students themselves as coteral for the funds he couldn''t provide.


    "Last year I would''ve taken him up on that offer. I''d be dealing with a separate year, but it would''ve been interesting if we were ying for expulsion."


    Nagumo remarked he already lost his enthusiasm and interest in the school.


    "If you want topete with me, you can do whatever you want."


    "I understand your personal thoughts. But aren''t there many students who won''t agree?"


    "No one canin to me, ''cause if they do, their ss A status will no longer be guaranteed. When the festival gets closer, I, or rather the student council, will make a not-so-bad proposal. A little help for a ss that''s struggling to win."


    "I see. You''ve thought about it a lot, haven''t you?


    "Well, I''m the student council president, after all." After giving a model answer, Nagumo exhaled a sigh and urged, "Come on, tell me what you came here for."


    "All I want is to have a conversation with the student council president.


    That''s all."


    "I don''t exactly believe that."


    "You don''t believe me? I''m actually a little surprised with my own actions.


    Until now, I''ve been trying to keep my distance from Student Council President Nagumo."


    "I know that very well."


    However, he probably didn''t understand the root of why.


    "Do you know why?"


    "I don''t know. I''m sure it''s not because you''re scared of my ability."


    "Unlike the previous student council president, Horikita Manabu, Student Council President Nagumo attracts the eyes of those around him. It''s also because you''re a little too dazzling for a shady person like me to face."


    "Sure. But that''s just a front, isn''t it?"


    Nagumo lightly dismissed the pretense of respect and urged me to reveal my true intentions.


    "I wasn''t interested."


    It''s a bit of a stretch, but that''s what I said. I''m going to speak my mind.


    While recognizing a certain level of ability, it''s all I could say.


    That''s why I didn''t think I needed to get involved in whatever Nagumo was doing.


    "If someone else said what I just heard from your mouth, I might''ve gotten angry."


    "I didn''t realize it was rude."


    "Nah, you don''t need to apologize. If you feel that way, that''s your business.


    I''m the one who made you speak your mind," Nagumo stated, but he quickly added, "But still, if it wasn''t you who said that, I''m sure I would''ve changed their mind right away."


    He wouldn''t hesitate to entrap the speaker into taking interest, regardless of what they wished for. With Nagumo''s power, that wouldn''t be hard to do.


    "Soon your term as student council president will be over, and Student Council President Nagumo will remain in ss A and graduate. I thought that would be fine. Until just the other day."


    "You think otherwise now?"


    "I had a change of heart. I felt that I could face you directly, and that''s why I''m here."


    There''s no need for checks and bnces, feigned ttery, false joy or anger.


    It''s better for the future to say what''s on my mind. I told Nagumo, who was waiting for me to continue exining the main reason I came here today.


    "I have a proposal for President Nagumo. Can I make a challenge to the student council president this time?"


    Making such a statement probably never crossed Nagumo''s mind.


    "I''m not sold, this isn''t like you."


    A change of heart, such an answer was not enough to convince Nagumo.


    "I don''t know when exactly this change of heart came, but it''s toote. You ran away from thest chance I gave you at the sports festival. If I may borrow words from your true feelings, you weren''t interested. Isn''t that right?"


    "That''s correct. I know it''s a convenient story."


    "Yeah, you''re right. After having given up three opportunities, and now being asked to y a game on the grounds of a change of heart, there''s no way I can honestly say yes."


    Nagumo didn''t change his position and continued to show no restraint.


    "And, get this, it''s the same as what you said earlier about the sports festival.


    You said you were sick the whole time. I''ve decided that''s an obvious lie. Besides, don''t tell me you''ve forgotten about what happened on the ind."


    "Then, would you like to replicate what happened on the ind? This time, in the opposite position?"


    If Nagumo could smack me in the gut here, I could apologize for my behavior. However, I didn''t think that would be enough to convince the opposing party.


    Not when the other party is Nagumo Miyabi.


    "You aren''t funny Ayanok��ji. It wouldn''t ever be the same knockout.


    There''s a huge difference in value between you and me."


    Naturally, there was no room for a discussion of the proposal. It was obvious that there was at least that much of a difference between Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka and Nagumo Miyabi, at least in this school. One was an ordinary student in the 2nd year ss B, while the other was the leader of the 3rd year ss A and the student council president.


    The difference between what we''re capable of was so great that even aparison was uneptable.


    "Well, I''m going to shelve it because there''s no point in getting into it now.


    Understand this, Ayanok��ji. I''m allowed to challenge you to a fight, but you''re not allowed to challenge me to a fight."


    "I understand, but that''s exactly what you''re shelving. I''m right here in front of you right now, and I''m saying that I''m willing to fight Student Council President Nagumo. Can''t you agree with that?"


    I intentionally cut my fingertips and dripped blood on the bloodthirsty wolf.


    But the wolf in front of me didn''t bite easily. He wasn''t defenselessly provocative


    as it had been in the past, rather, the wolf was very wary. If he had not thought of me as an enemy before, he already would''ve had his fangs at my fingertips. He may not have realized it, but that was the proof that he recognized me as an enemy.


    "You really are strange. You don''t show any sign of timidity when dealing with me. No, it''s not only against me, but also against Horikita-senpai."


    Nagumo looked out the window as if remembering the days of Horikita Manabu.


    His original desire was to fight the elder Horikita, not me. That goal was unattainable, but it was also true that there were no other alternatives.


    "Oh, man. If I were to y a game with you, what would you do? It''s almost the third semester of the school year, and we already passed the second semester''s halfway point. As you probably know by now, I gave all the power to my ssmates topete for sales at the school festival. I can''t ask them to give it back now. On the other hand, even if I wait for the next special exam, there''s no guarantee that there will be apetition between all the grades."


    We could leave it to luck and wait, hoping that there would still be a battle between all grades. Not that such a thing couldn''t be done, but it wouldn''t be very realistic.


    "Above all, you''re well aware of the difficulty ofpeting in earnest between different grades, as you and the former student council president know, don''t you?"


    Last year''s sports festival, training camps, etc., Nagumo Miyabi was adamant aboutpeting with Horikita Manabu. No matter what form it took, no matter how small the match was, he forced himself to do so, hoping to make it ck and white. However, Manabu dodged Nagumo''s provocations and didn''t involve everyone in the match.


    "More than anyone else. How hard do you have to work to adjust? Because of you, not just this year,st year too, the match with Horikita-senpai didn''t happen."


    In that sense, too, Nagumo was not pleased with me.


    "Listen to what I''m about to tell you and think about whether a confrontation can be achieved."


    With that, Nagumo sat back deeper in his chair to correct his posture a bit.


    Though many of the special exams the school gave were unknown, we had several patterns to prepare for them. Because no matter what form the confrontation was introduced, there was always a method to execute. When I finished rying everything, Nagumo remained silent and seemed to be deep in thought.


    "I don''t know if we can achieve a 100% perfect match, but I think this can be a reality."


    "That''s true. But do you really think we can implement the n you''re talking about?"


    "I''m sure Student Council President Nagumo can already envision the situation. I''m sure you''ve been observing them day in and day out, right? If that''s the case, there''s no way you don''t know the details."


    "I see. I was nning to shake you up at that time, but instead of getting upset, you decided to take advantage of it."


    "Will you ept my proposal or not?"


    We spoke for quite a long time, even for me. But this conversational work is necessary in negotiations with Nagumo.


    "I''d be happy to ept your proposal, but..." The reply was positive, but the words had other meanings. "But what''s your real purpose?"


    "Can''t you believe it? I just want topete with President Nagumo."


    "I don''t believe it for a second."


    As if convinced, he replied without hesitance. I was somewhat pleased, but decided to wait for Nagumo''s next words.


    "Alright, tell me the main issue. I''ll think about whether or not I''ll ept the proposal after that."


    He let me cut to the other main topic without hesitation.


    "I have a favor to ask of the Student Council President Nagumo."


    I gave an exnation based on the content of the request and its specific development. After listening, he sat back deeply in his chair, where he''d been sitting for a year.


    "I understand what you''re telling me. But that''s not a proposal based on your desire topete with me. You brought up the idea of a match because you had no choice but to control what you wanted to happen. Am I right?"


    "Half right, half wrong. It''s also true that I myself changed my view of the Student Council President, and that''s why I want topete. However, I also feel that half of it is a hassle."


    "You''re an honest guy."


    "That''s why I want you to ept my proposal."


    "You''re a joke. You asked for a match, and now you''re being so brazen."


    "I won''t deny that."


    "Do you think I''m going to y along with you and give you what you want?"


    "If you refuse, that''s the end of it. I will never fight the Student Council President again. Even if you use a ssmate or someone in the same grade as me.


    Not even if you take someone hostage, I will thoroughly ignore them, and you."


    "I doubt it. If it''s a random guy, you''d probably leave him for dead, but if it''s Karuizawa Kei?"


    Here Nagumo tried to sway me by mentioning Kei.


    "It doesn''t matter who it is."


    Nagumo''s smile disappeared as I answered immediately without hesitation.


    "It doesn''t sound like you''re bluffing. It seems like... you really mean it."


    "I''m not an omniscient and omnipotent god. I can''t protect everyone 24/7, 365 days a year, whether it''s Kei or my ssmates. If the student council president, who has the most power in this school and the control of arge student body, wanted to do so, he could have someone expelled from school without my supervision."


    Of course, there was a risk of paying a significant price for the trouble, but I didn''t care.


    "Whoever you expel, I won''t make a move again."


    This was not a tactic.


    It was pure sincerity, which was why Nagumo''s smile naturally disappeared.


    "If I want to fuck you over, which I deeply do, I have no choice but to ept your current proposal."


    "Of course, you can ignore it and graduate without hesitation."


    "But won''t you be in trouble if I don''t help you?"


    "I''ve already made other ns."


    Yes, there was no need to go through the trouble of disclosing my story to Nagumo any more. But I mentioned half the reason earlier. The urge to fight him was the reason I wanted to have this discussion. Everything would be decided by his next response. It''s the moment of final judgment, whether or not the match between us will take ce.


    "Okay, I''ll take your word for it, Ayanok��ji. My graduation from ss A is unassable anyway. It''s not a bad idea to end up ying with you."


    Nagumo didn''t think for a second that he was going to lose, he couldn''t even imagine it. This was the overwhelming confidence of a man who was always proud of winning.


    "Thank you very much."


    "But are you sure you want to do this? If I do what you suggest, then... no matter how it turns out, people will be hurt."


    "Of course. Either way, the Student Council President Nagumo would''ve been involved."


    Nagumo reacted strongly to those words.


    "You..."


    As I was about to leave, Nagumo stood up and approached me.


    "You knew?"


    "Even though we were distanced, I observed the student council president. I had an idea of what you''d do after this."


    Even though he already dered he had no intention of fighting, this man always had his sights set on me. It was expected that he''d take action at the right time, before it was toote.


    "So you''re saying that it''s not only Karuizawa, but also Honami..."


    "Like I said, it''s the same no matter who it is. Whether it''s Kei''s expulsion, toying with Ichinose, Horikita, or anyone else. It would be wise not to think you can sway me like that."


    Nagumo, whoughed snidely, quickly switched to a serious expression.


    "I take back myment about ying around. You are the only one that Horikita-senpai recognized. I''ve been able to make sure of that."


    "That''s good to hear. Well then, I''ll leave you here."


    "Yo."


    "What''s up?"


    "Man, I''ll admit that you''ve got a real poker face. I also understand that you negotiated diligently to get me into your deal. So, let me hear your true feelings for once. Even if I was serious about getting Karuizawa to drop out of school, would you have stood by and watched?"


    "For Kei, no, I don''t think it''s desirable to have a vacancy among my ssmates, no matter who it was. I was going to resist as much as possible."


    "That''s not an answer. The answer you''re giving is to the likeness of ssmates. What I''m saying is that I didn''t feel any anxiety about the disappearance of Karuizawa, who''s very special to you."


    I looked back. Normally, the answer would be obvious. I''m just bluffing and trying to hide how I really feel from others. I was just going to say something along those lines. But I had a feeling that wasn''t the best answer for Nagumo.


    "If she disappears, she''s gone, and that''s all there is to it. It is neither more nor less than that. In fact, it would''ve been a great help to me because you would''ve made the cleanup easier.


    "You have loose screws, Ayanok��ji."


    This was the first time I saw Nagumo upset, or rather, muttering his opinion on something he didn''t quite understand.


    "I''ll call youter."


    I quietly closed the door and left the student council room.


    Nagumo described me as crazy, but that''s not true. I believe people who make wrong decisions based on their emotions are the ones with the bolts screwed on the


    wrong way.


    It''s the same whether the other person is a stranger, a lover, or a family member.


    When the timees for you to fail and drop out, it''ll be the end of you.


    The first priority is always to protect yourself.


    That is the unshakable "solution."

 Chapter 268 - 2 : The Smoke of Rebellion

    <h4>Chapter 268: Chapter 2 : The Smoke of Rebellion</h4>


    ON MONDAY 8 NOVEMBER, we were surprised by Ry��en and his friends'' entry into the concept caf��. We had to deal with various issues, but the tasks to be done alongside our friends, who are determined to fight, remains the same.


    In response to the bet proposed by Ry��en, Horikita countered with a one-million-private-point match with the agreement of the sses. The agreement was that the ss with more sales from the festival would receive that number of points from the other ss.


    Don''t mess around, fight head-on and win.


    The fact that many of my ssmates had such a positive attitude would be a big advantage.


    After school, when Chabashira-sensei left the ssroom, I took out my mobile phone.


    "I have some time. Head to the designated ce."


    Apparently, they are open to meeting now.


    Did the preface I gave the other day about the future help?


    "Hey, Kiyotaka. Come home with me."


    "Sorry, I''ve got nster today."


    "Oh, really? I see.... Well then, Maya-chan, go home with me!"


    After a quick switchover, Kei turned to Sat��, who was still in the ssroom.


    "You''re not going with Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Come on,e on, don''t say that. See?"


    Sat�� rushed in, but didn''t show any disapproval at all, but rather epted Kei''s proposal with a smile. She then invited a few other girls to join her and happily left the ssroom.


    Among them is Shinohara, who not so long ago had a rough rtionship with Kei.


    After getting closer to Sat��, Kei seemed to have grown even more mature than before.


    Anyway, I was grateful she was there to apany Kei.


    I decided to leave the ssroom and head to the special wing to meet Kanzaki, who had called me over.


    Because this time it couldn''t be by phone, chat, or in public.


    On the way there, I saw the teacher in charge of 2nd year ss A, Mashima-sensei, and teachers for the other grades, standing around in the corridor talking.


    The unusual sight attracted my gaze, but I didn''t stop walking.


    "Chabashira-sensei has changed recently."


    As I passed by, such talk could be heard from teachers'' conversations.


    "She''s be more chirpy, or rather, she seems to beughing more often."


    "Mashima-sensei, you and Chabashira-sensei were schoolmates, weren''t you? Well, I''d like to ask you a few questions..."


    Apparently the topic of conversation was Chabashira-sensei.


    I thought they could stand around and talk in the staff room as much as they wanted, but if the topic is about a particr teacher, much less a teacher of the opposite sex, it might be a no-brainer to go somewhere quiet. It goes without saying that the change in Chabashira-sensei the teachers were talking about had been triggered by the unanimous voting special exam.


    No doubt they had the impression that she hade out of her shell, not only as a homeroom teacher but also as a school teacher.


    Mashima-sensei then noticed my presence and interrupted the conversation.


    I believe this is because they decided that it would be unwise to allow pupils to hear needless remarks.


    "Ayanok��ji, what are you doing here in the special building?"


    This is a natural question, as students rarely pass through this corridor after school for no reason.


    "I have a short meeting. There are some things I want to talk about that I don''t want to be identally overheard."


    When I replied, the teachers, with the exception of Mashima-sensei, looked somewhat dismayed and walked away, perhaps deciding to disperse.


    I could have walked away immediately, but I also had a bit of time before the rendezvous.


    "Mashima-sensei, perfect timing. I would like to ask you a few questions."


    The presence of Mashima-sensei, who stayed until the end, must have meant something.


    "Me? What do you want to ask me?"


    "This is in respect of rules that are not explicitly stated in the festival"


    Although he looked slightly skeptical, Mashima-sensei immediately faced me head-on as a teacher.


    The school is built on a special set of rules that are very different from those of ordinary high schools.


    You''re well aware that each student may have a different point of view.


    However, this will inevitably lead to some concerns.


    "I don''t know what you want to ask, but shouldn''t you first check with your homeroom teacher, Chabashira-sensei?"


    He didn''t hesitate to ask me this to ensure that the underlying assumption is


    correct. Indeed, it would normally make sense to ask your homeroom teacher to exin the rules.


    "Sometimes, depending on the asion, it is more expedient not to approach Chabashira-sensei."


    "Teachers are supposed to be fair to all pupils. But still, when ites to other sses in the same grade, it doesn''t mean that there won''t be any problems at all. I hope you realise that."


    He reminded me that some things are betterte than never once you''ve heard them.


    "I judge that Mashima-sensei isn''t the kind of person who would fail a student."


    "If that''s what you think, then let''s not go any further."


    His tone portrayed more of an "ask what you want if you''re going to trust me", rather than a "you can trust me" response.


    "So what is it that you want to know regarding unstated rules?"


    I asked Mashima-sensei, who gave his permission here, for advice on a particr case.


    He didn''t seem surprised to hear this at all, but rightly so.


    Schools also have unstated backroom rules to amodate various wishes from students.


    That''s why I don''t wonder about the existence of students who think like me.


    "Surely you''re right. It isn''t impossible to exercise it, if necessary."


    "I knew it."


    This is in no way oundish.


    Cases will emerge where the ss is in such a situation, or where it is sought in the event of a major inconvenience.


    "However, it begs the question if it is efficient. As you know, if it were between pupils, no problems would arise. No, it would be precisely to have their own discussions so that they don''t arise. You know what I mean, don''t you?"


    "Yes. I thought it was something that didn''t need to be specified in the rules and could be done independently."


    "Yes. Of course the risks will be different for each, but for whatever reason we will look at that option."


    "I suppose it''s only natural to be prepared for contingencies."


    When I replied, Mashima-sensei nodded his head thoughtfully.


    "Whether you exercise it or not - or...? Well, it certainly wouldn''t hurt to understand."


    Although Mashima-sensei didn''t mention it, he may have had a vague idea of the sales strategy based on what I said.


    "It was good to get confirmation. Thank you."


    "It''s no problem."


    This''s one less thing to check for the festival. It would be an unexpected benefit.


    After exiting the conversation, I tried to leave, but was stopped by Mashima-sensei.


    "Ayanok��ji, you heard a little of what Chabashira-sensei said... What happened at the unanimous special exam?"


    "You haven''t heard? Not from Chabashira-sensei?"


    The results were naturally known to Mashima-sensei, but there seemed to be ack of understanding about Chabashira-sensei''s change of heart.


    "With or without the expulsions, she started to look forward and smile. In other words, there was an influential event in that special exam that changed her mind, right?"


    As I recall, Mashima-sensei and Chabashira-sensei were originally from the same year when they attended Advanced Nurturing High School.


    He was knowledgeable about various aspects of the past and was understandably surprised.


    "That wasn''t the right thing to ask a pupil. Please forget I asked such a thing."


    "I understand. Excuse me."


    After briefly nodding to Mashima-sensei, I decided to go to the special building where we were to meet.

 Chapter 269: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 269: 2.1</h4>


    The festival was gradually approaching, but there was another issue that needed to be dealt with in parallel. That is to change Ichinose''s ss.


    The countdown to their copse was progressing faster than I expected.


    Necessary measures had to be taken to avoid this.


    This time, the leader, Ichinose, wasn''t contacted.


    What was needed now, I thought, was to create a difference to the ssmates who were unified under her.


    However, this procedure should be done with caution.


    Who else would naturally bepetent enough to take on that role but that man?


    "I''m sorry to call you out here like this."


    After school, I went to the designated ce as I had been informed, and Kanzaki was already there waiting for me.


    His face was grim, and he certainly wasn''t in the mood for a light-hearted conversation.


    "What do you want from me?"


    I had known Kanzaki, from another ss, shortly after I entered the school, but we weren''t particrly close. Recently, he had been distrustful of my presence, and if anything, I thought he hated me. Well, no, it doesn''t necessarily mean that he wouldn''t answer the call because he disliked me.


    It was because he was wary of me that he wanted to talk to me.


    This is more likely to be the case if the rendezvous is located where people do not want to be seen.


    "It''s time to talk about the future."


    "About the future?'' What on earth... Well, that''s fine. I''ll let you talk first."


    Kanzaki corrected his posture before we spoke about our business.


    While a little surprised at the unexpected first move, I first listened to what Kanzaki had to say.


    "I''ve been struggling for a while now. I haven''t spoken with anyone about it.


    I was just struggling on my own."


    After putting it into words, he corrected himself and reiterated that that was not the case.


    "No, to say I was struggling would be an exaggeration, but I was thinking every day about what I was going to do with myself."


    The words were filled with emotions not typical of the calm and collected Kanzaki.


    I decided to be a listener until the other side asked for an answer.


    "I don''t know what I''m going to do with the rest of my school life..."


    He may not have stumbled over friendships or dating issues and had his head in the sand.


    There''s only one goal that students at this school should be most concerned about: promotion to ss A.


    "I probably don''t need to tell you now, but our ss can''t win."


    What can you not win against?


    Is it the cultural festival or a special end-of-year exam a little further down the line?


    No, it doesn''t end with such a small story.


    The reality is that it isn''t possible for Ichinose''s ss to move up to ss A.


    That was a cry from Kanzaki, who came to that realization.


    "We''re not far behind other sses in academic, athletic and leadership


    skills. In fact, I feel that we have some aspects in which we excel. But I have learned that this doesn''t always lead to victory."


    He started thinking for himself, understanding for himself and worrying for himself. As one can imagine, it all started with Kanzaki.


    "I see your point. So what do you want from me, Kanzaki?"


    Anyone could simply listen and convey understanding.


    "I need your advice on... Ichinose."


    Why must it be me?


    The names of the few people who might''ve been able to findmon ground immediately came to mind.


    "No, that''s not all. I want your opinion on what our ss should do in the future too."


    "That''s a big deal, isn''t it? And you want that from me, who''s not even a ssmate?"


    "...Indeed."


    It was easy to read the psychology in Kanzaki''s pained expression.


    This man wasn''t the type of person who would seek help from others with an easy heart.


    It was precisely because he was driven to this point that Kanzaki had no choice but to do so.


    No, even that help initially wasn''t a consideration.


    If you were left on your own, you could have had such a future.


    "She never really listens to me. No, it''s the same for everyone."


    "I recognised Ichinose as a student who would listen to anyone."


    "That''s only when you''re on the same side as Ichinose. I don''t need to exin it to you now."


    I dared to test him, but I guess that''s no longer necessary.


    To put it inly, if you ask for help to save someone, Ichinose will not take any risks, won''t betray you, and will stay with you to the end and lend a hand.


    However, if you ask for help to trap someone in a senseless way, Ichinose will never lend a hand.


    Righting wrongs and doing right can also describe her.


    It would remain unchanged even if money or other rewards were offered in return in an attempt to convince her.


    "I''m not saying she''s heading in the wrong direction. But idealism is idealism."


    "There are many asions when that idealism is necessary."


    "Yes, I know. I''m prepared to go through the trouble when things are going well."


    In fact, Kanzaki and his ssmates have followed Ichinose''s lead up to this point and shared her struggles.


    "How about now? We kept following Ichinose''s policy and lost ss points.


    We''re at the bottom of a pit and haven''t a clue how to get out."


    "You''re sharing a lot. Are you sure I''m not going to let you disclose too much about the inner workings of your ss?"


    "It''s a fool''s errand."


    He mumbled to himself, as if tough himself blind, as if to spit it out.


    "But a n is a n, even if it''s a fool''s errand. Right now, I have no choice but to rely on you."


    He took his somewhat resigned gaze away from me and stared at the empty corridor floor.


    "In the unanimous special exam, I argued that we should get ss points even if we had to expel our ssmates. I voted yes and tried to get my foot in the door, but that didn''t work either."


    I didn''t know anything about the inner workings of their ss, but even so, I could easily imagine how that would y out.


    Kanzaki voted in favour of expelling the students in order to improve the ss and make them understand the reality of the situation. He continued to vote in favour and tried to change the mindset of the ss, but none of his ssmates, including Ichinose, agreed with his opinion. However, they didn''t me Kanzaki, who started the rebellion, but admonished him to work hard together with them.


    Even if he had been removed, something simr would have happened.


    "...That''s funny, isn''t it?"


    When I didn''t answer, Kanzaki muttered to break the silence.


    "What''s the point of telling this kind of thing to anyone, friend or foe?"


    He understood on his own that there was no way I could give any advice.


    It was truly a bloodless act, and now he looked like he wanted to humiliate himself.


    "Ichinose is devoted to you. The only thing that could change Ichinose''s policy is unique existence, such as you. She could only see it clearlying from you."


    "I see."


    The only way to salvage the ss is to change the thoughts and values of Ichinose, the leader.


    The ss as a whole is perfectly capable, and that will certainly help them see the light.


    "It seems that your desire to change the flow and break out of this stagnant situation is true."


    Kanzaki nodded deeply, as there was no need to mend things now.


    However, he had to think carefully about whether that would really be for the good of the ss.


    Something that Kanzaki, feeling frustrated, did not see.


    The foresight that the ss would be saved if Ichinose changes is only a trick.


    Even if Ichinose were to change with one word from me, could it really be called growth?


    Could an Ichinose, who sometimes makes ruthless decisions, really chase after the other sses?


    In order to erase the disadvantages, I would be erasing the advantages that are unique to Ichinose.


    Once you turn the wheel in that direction, there is no guarantee that you will be able to turn back.


    "I agree that we need to turn the tide. But I disagree with you on the method."


    "We have no other choice; Ayanok��ji is the only one who can move Ichinose."


    "I don''t know. I don''t know, but I think there is someone more qualified.


    "I can''t think of anyone."


    Kanzaki, who had no idea what I was talking about, raised an eyebrow.


    "Actually, there''s another student I called here today after I approached you."


    "Who?"


    "It''s one of your ssmates who Kanzaki knows very well."


    "Don''t tell me you called Ichinose?"


    In a sense, she''s thest person I''d want to see here.


    "Unfortunately, it''s not Ichinose. She''s a student who has the potential to turn the tide."


    "I hate to interrupt, but there''s no one in our ss who can argue with Ichinose except for me. I''ve seen it firsthand, and I understand it."


    "Isn''t that exactly the kind of narrow-mindedness you''re talking about, Kanzaki?"


    "What?"


    "Ichinose''s ss seems monolithic, but it isn''t truly. There are many students who have no choice but to go along with their surroundings since they''re all seemingly joined together."


    That was my answer, but it didn''t seem to ring a bell with Kanzaki.


    Is that understandable?


    He would never show his ssmates the appearance of being easily made to feel insecure.


    "Why is it that Ichinose''s ss dropped in the rankings and is now facing a major crisis?"


    If we follow the error chain, where does it ultimately lead us?


    That is what we need to make Kanzaki and his ss understand.


    "Huh? Why is Kanzaki-kun here too?"


    Himeno looked somewhat amused, as if she assumed I would be the only one here.


    She was a little earlier than promised, but on the contrary, it was good timing. "Himeno, did you have a connection with Ayanok��ji?"


    "Sort of, yeah."


    It''s safe to say she''s someone I''ve never been involved with.


    Not only Kanzaki, but most of the students must have had the same impression.


    "I find it hard to believe that Himeno is the right person for the job you''re talking about."


    I can almost imagine the image that Kanzaki must''ve had of Himeno in his school life so far. She would be no different than any other ssmate, just one of the girls.


    "I''m going to prove that from now on."


    "Wait a minute. It seems like you''re talking about me, what is it?"


    It was understandable for Himeno to be perplexed when she was summoned.


    "That''s... No, wait."


    Just as he was about to exin, Kanzaki noticed a discrepancy.


    "What do you mean, Ayanok��uji?"


    "What?"


    "You called me out, but what on earth were you going to talk about? It seems that Himeno called you beforehand, but this is just like..."


    Kanzaki almost opened his mouth, but then closed it and stared back and forth between Himeno and me.


    "What, what is it?"


    "I anticipated talking with you about your ss today ... Did you think you yourself should bring change to your ss?"


    "No, I don''t understand what it means to think or carry out such a thing."


    I called Kanzaki here and then he gave me the inside scoop on the ss before I could start talking.


    It became unnatural for Himeno to show up at this time, and then to pass on the story.


    "How far do you see...?"


    By starting the conversation with Kanzaki, I learned about my calctions in a surprising way.


    As a result, it seemed to have had enough of an effect to surprise Kanzaki.


    "Let''s cut to the chase. Let me tell you why I called you here today. There is no need for Ichinose to change by my hand. What needs to change is the ss consciousness. By changing the consciousness of the ss, you can bring about change in Ichinose."


    "...It''s futile. I''ve seen it firsthand."


    "If it was just one person, yes. But if two or three people �� all but Ichinose


    �� changed their minds, the results of the unanimous special exam would''ve been different."


    "It''s a pipe dream that everyone''s consciousness would change. And even if they had, would it have changed the results of the special exam?"


    "I certainly don''t think that Ichinose, who cares about the ss, would''ve agreed to expel the students, but whether that would have caused the special exam to fail and penalize you is another matter."


    "Wait a minute; Ichinose-san will protect her ssmates even if it costs a heavy penalty."


    At this point, Himeno, who was closer to the sidelines, interjected.


    "I wonder if Ichinose really could remain stubborn to the end with 39 people opposing her."


    "She''ll go through with it, Ichinose-san. I think so, right, Kanzaki-kun?"


    "I think so too, but... I''m also sure she''ll be met with inner turmoil."


    Ichinose leads the fight for her ssmates.


    However, if she received bacsh from all of those ssmates, I wonder if she''d be able to keep doing so.


    Whether she could continue to pitch in against them to the end, even after being made aware that she was doing something wrong, is another matter.


    Even if she did go through with it, what awaits her afterwards is Ichinose''s own self-loathing.


    The only thing remaining would be the fact that she was responsible for the substantial loss of their ss points.


    "Whether Ichinose, driven by remorse, would''ve been able to fulfill her duties as a leader is another matter."


    "That wouldn''t have resulted in a worse oue than the present."


    "Oh, would it not? It would''ve ended worse than what we have now. What do you think actually would''ve happened then, Kanzaki?"


    "What if all my ssmates had the same idea as I did, to ept that there


    would be expulsion?"


    I understood that this wasn''t realistic, but I simted it.


    "If 39 people continue to cast their votes in favour of the proposal, even though time is running out, eventually Ichinose would break herself ande around to the side of the proposal. And she would have volunteered herself to expel herself..."


    The answer that came out of the jam.


    The ss seeded in expelling Ichinose and in gaining ss points.


    However, they also would''ve lost Ichinose''s unifying abilities.


    "It''s impossible," he said. "The disadvantages would be too great in the unlikely event of such a development."


    Ichinose leaving the Ichinose ss.


    It would be a development he had never considered, but for Kanzaki, it was a departure.


    "Of course, I''m not trying to say that Ichinose should be expelled. But if there''s a change in the ssmates, the ss will change. I don''t want to change Ichinose, I want to change the mindset of the ss. And the first ones to do that will be Kanzaki and Himeno."


    "Me?"


    "You don''t agree with everything Ichinose is doing. Unlike your deluded ssmates, you question her just as much as Kanzaki. Isn''t that right? What did you think when Kanzaki showed resistance in the unanimous special examination?"


    "..."


    Himeno was silent and turned over.


    "Let me ask you. I want to know what you were thinking too."


    "I thought it was impossible. sses don''t change easily. I''d rather not see others besides myself get hurt, and they''re all just saying pretty things."


    She began to talk about what she was feeling.


    "I felt that Kanzaki-kun''s resistance was simply a waste of time. So I said so


    ...That I wanted that painful time to end quickly and that I wanted it to be over for good."


    Kanzaki closed his eyes and gave a small nod, as if recalling the moment.


    "I''m sure you heard Himeno say that and took it as the consensus for the rest of your ssmates, that it was not eptable to go against Ichinose and abandon your friends."


    Without denying it, Kanzaki nodded deeply.


    "But in fact, it was different. Himeno herself is questioning the state of the ss."


    "Then why didn''t you say it? You could''ve said it as many times as you wanted, even if it wasn''t during the unanimous special exam."


    The conversation which I, not knowing the reality of the ss, can''t interfere with began.


    It isn''t my ce to discuss it.


    I''m an outsider. There''s usually no benefit to me listening to it.


    But now the situation had reversed.


    Because I''m present, I can get a statement out of Himeno.


    In other words, if I miss my chance now, I''ll be back to the same old Ichinose ss routine.


    "Huh..."


    Himeno''s eyes don''t show the color of diverse emotions, unlike Kanzaki''s.


    "Don''t make it sound so easy."


    In the same manner as an exhaled sigh, she also let her gaze escape, as if to flee.


    "You don''t have to answer, but you know what I mean. There''s only strong peer pressure in our ss. Even if I think it''s white, if many say it''s ck, it''s ck. It doesn''t matter if I''m right or wrong. In such a ss, there''s no point in a minority speaking up. It''s just painful to be surrounded by people who go out of their way to say what they think is ck until they''re persuaded to say it''s white.


    That''s why I''ve never said anything and I never will."


    "But if you don''t speak, white will forever remain ck."


    "That''s fine. I ept the ck ims that others concluded on their own.


    But still, the color I think of in my mind will remain white because it is."


    Himeno''s attitude was without any high spirits, as if to express that this is the reality of the ss now.


    "Even Kanzaki-kun would have cracked from your forced insistence, wouldn''t he? That''s because you believed something was white, but was forcibly dyed ck and overwritten. That''s a hard thing to bear, isn''t it?"


    Unnecessary hardship. To avoid this, Himeno chose to be swept away.


    No, this isn''t only true for Himeno.


    It''s a story that seems to be shared among the rest of Ichinose''s ss.


    "I wish you would stop expecting me to be like your friend here. I''m sorry, but I can''t be as passionate as Kanzaki-kun."


    Himeno took a step back, as if to keep away from Kanzaki, who was approaching Himeno as if he were trying to speak up.


    "Are you okay with the ss as it is?"


    At first, Kanzaki had assumed that Himeno was a ssmate, just like any other.


    But then I noticed that he was desperately trying to draw out a conversation with her without my involvement.


    "Whether good or bad, it''s more important for me to protect myself. I can''t be best friends with anyone, but I can''t be nasty with anyone either. Sometimes they ask me out, sometimes they don''t. I don''t want to destroy that level of distance and atmosphere."


    Himeno''s insistence that it would be best if things could be kept quiet wasn''t a bad thing.


    But that would never move the ss forward.


    "If Kanzaki-kun''s argument gains momentum and exceeds the majority of the ss, I will join your side, too. That''s fine, right?"


    Himeno asserted that she has no intention of standing in the minority under any circumstances.


    "Damn it!"


    The words conveyed her true intentions and unwillingness. If she and Kanzaki rebel, what awaits her is an attack from the majority in the name of pocket change.


    It will be repeated endlessly until she abandons her own ideas.


    "Can I go now? I won''t tell anyone about this. It will only get me into trouble if I do."


    What will Kanzaki do to Himeno as she tries to leave?


    If she continues to walk away, she will not bring about a change in the ss after all.


    "...Wait."


    "I don''t want to stay."


    "I wasn''t going to tell anyone, but I''m about to make a big decision."


    "What''s that?"


    "I''m not going to sink with the current ss and Ichinose forever."


    Kanzaki put into words the thoughts he had never spoken of before and let Himeno hear them.


    "Does that mean you''re betraying the... ss?"


    "I won''t deny it. There is no point in staying in a ss that can''t win."


    If Kanzaki is absent, they won''t be able to mount a counterattack.


    This is because Kanzaki was probably the only student who can lead Ichinose''s ss in the current environment.


    "I''m not trying to threaten you. But I will tell you that much."


    Even if Kanzaki were to leave the ss by some means, it would not affect Himeno personally.


    But she would at least know that the ss would lose a chance to improve.


    Himeno became upset. Obviously, her reaction is different from her previous scoffing attitude.


    "So you''re okay with that, Himeno?"


    "That''s not fair. That''s a threat."


    "That''s one way to look at it."


    A sign of betrayal that may be overheard by Ichinose and his ssmates from Himeno.


    Aside from Ichinose, his ssmates may try to block Kanzaki''s movements so as not to give him the right to move to another ss, a risky exposure.


    This was Kanzaki''s gamble. Whether he was serious or bluffing is irrelevant.


    "������Do you really intend to change sses?"


    "It may not be pleasant, but Ayanok��ji is right. I want to believe that changing Ichinose with our own hands is the only way to save the ss."


    "But I am..."


    Biting her lower lip, Himeno closes her eyes tightly.


    If she sides with the isted Kanzaki, it is inevitable that Himeno will be looked at with white eyes.


    Kanzaki knew that this wasn''t what she wanted.


    Still, someone had to do it.


    "Even... I''d like to... win if I could."


    She had not given up the possibility of changing sses and winning in no small measure.


    However, the key is still removed.


    "Then we have to act now. Am I wrong?"


    If Himeno didn''t move even here, there would really be no more moves for Kanzaki to make.


    Even if he didn''t want to choose, he would have no choice but to change his policy to win by transferring to another ss.


    On the other hand, Himeno, who cannot say ck is ck without a majority, will be decidedly defeated.


    "I understand what you''re saying... But still..."


    "You''re not going to say that there is still a possibility of winning with Ichinose''s policy, are you?"


    The words from Kanzaki, who had gone ahead of her, stung Himeno strongly.


    His lips closed heavily as he didn''t continue with the words he was in the middle of saying.


    "Don''t you want to graduate from ss A, Himeno?"


    The words pierced Himeno''s heart like a spear. Painful and bleeding.


    "If I could graduate from ss A, I would want to!"


    A loud, taut voice echoed through the hallway.


    Kanzaki was taken aback and rendered speechless by the volume of Himeno''s voice, which must have been several times louder than expected.


    "But if we don''t do it now, there''s no way we will be able to, no matter how we think about it! It can''t be done!"


    Himeno shouted, exploding with emotion.


    "Even Kanzaki-kun knows that!"


    "I know that! I know that, and that''s why we have to do it now! I don''t want to lose to the other sses!"


    Although his voice wasn''t as loud as Himeno''s, Himeno was also rmed by Kanzaki''s loud voice. Seeing Himeno''s flinch and frightened appearance made me even more convinced.


    For the first time, Himeno showed her true self. I knew that there were probably more than a few students in Ichinose''s ss who were only socializing with her on the surface.


    After a year and a half, many of the students in Horikita''s ss have had their weaknesses exposed.


    Those who put themselves first as honor students and are unconcerned with others being expelled.


    Those who are unable to study or discuss issues and immediately resort to violence.


    Those who parasitize off of powerful individuals in order to get to the top of the hierarchy.


    Those who plot to expel their peers in order to erase their past.


    Those weak-minded students have fallen to the ground, and then climbed up.


    Some of them are now showing incredible growth.


    "...So Kanzaki-kun is like that. I was surprised because you''re always so calm."


    "...I''m with you. I didn''t know you had those kinds of feelings."


    Ichinose''s ss wouldn''t have had the obvious hardships of Horikita''s ss.


    The students would find grazes from a fall, and they would be cared for and protected from both sides so that they would not fall again. They would repeatedly take the ce of the student who had hurt their hand.


    Eventually, the students understood. They must be careful because they worry about them.


    Why did they fall? Why did they hurt their hand?


    The truth is, there is more pain, but they hold on to it in silence so as not to cause worry.


    The result is Ichinose''s ss, which is made up of only superficial rtionships.


    It''s time for them to truly be friends.


    After a period of silence, I said to the two of them, "But what should you do?"


    "But what do we do? How can we move forward? Even if Himeno changes her mentality, it would be meaningless if it does not lead to the next step."


    "There is no need to rush for an answer. The two of you are going to search for it now."


    "Search... for what?"


    "A student who, like you, keeps their true feelings inside."


    Even if you can''t find it alone, your perspective will expand many times over if you both talk about it together.


    The addition of one''s point of view will lead to any number of new discoveries.


    "If you found...another person, what would you do?"


    "It''s simple. Then you''ll find three. And then make it four. Just keep on going."


    Before long, a small spark will turn into a big me.


    And Ichinose was aware of it.


    The ss was about to change.


    "It''s not toote. Be strong. And defeat the ss led by Horikita in the final exam."


    If they do that, they will still have a sliver of hope to ascend to ss A when they move on to third year.


    "...What are you going to do, Kanzaki-kun?"


    "You have to be prepared to work harder than you can imagine. But...it''s not a story that can''t be done."


    Having seen the real-life example, Himeno, he could never again im that he is alone in the ss.


    On the other hand, Himeno would have been able to confirm Kanzaki''s strong will up close.


    "We have the same desire to graduate from ss A. Until now, I couldn''t tell anyone, but..."


    Whatever the circumstances, Himeno''s thoughts were conveyed to Kanzaki.


    "Yes, yes. I guess our goals haven''t changed at all since the beginning."


    From this point on, the two of them took a childlike step forward.


    "You know... After listening to Ayanok��ji-kun''s story, there''s a girl I''m a little curious about. Would you like to go see her after this?"


    Kanzaki nodded vigorously at Himeno''s suggestion.


    I''m a third party, so this isn''t my area of expertise.


    "Ayanok��ji, I''ll pay you back for this debt in the final exam."


    Winning and earning the right to challenge for ss A is how you repay the favor you owe today.


    "Horikita''s ss is tough, Kanzaki."


    "Yeah, I guess so. Sorry... but I''m leaving, I don''t want to waste a single minute. No, not even a second."


    Himeno nodded, then took out her cell phone, turned away from Kanzaki and started walking away.


    There was a side of me that was worried about whether or not those two could change, but it looks like they may be more sessful than expected.


    They may really beat Horikita''s ss in the end-of-year exam.


    Either way, it doesn''t hurt my ns, but it''s one more thing to look forward to.

 Chapter 270 - 3 : A Love Letter

    <h4>Chapter 270: Chapter 3 : A Love Letter</h4>


    TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9.


    This morning, I ran into Horikita at the elevator on my way to school.


    After exchanging a quick hello, we left the lobby and walked together out of the dormitory.


    "Have you heard? The day before the cultural festival, the third year students are going to do a rehearsal just like the real thing."


    "Yeah, I heard they''re inviting first years and second years to participate as well."


    This is the information that was posted on the school''s bulletin boardst night, as if to inform all grades. The source of the information was the student council president, Miyabi Nagumo. This was probably what Nagumo meantst week, when he said that the student council would make a not-so-bad proposal.


    The form of participation was for us to choose. It could be an actual food service or just a mock-up. It''s just a proposal to make adjustments for the following day''s festival altogether.


    "The student council has already received participation letters from many sses. I''m sure the sses that have been keeping this under wraps will want to get a third-party evaluation before the festival."


    "So you''re saying more sses are taking it in a positive light."


    "I think the fact that the 3rd year ss A rented the gymnasium and opened their presentation to the public was a big factor."


    They announced their performance without concealment, and actually demonstrated it. Additionally, the way they incorporated the improvements that came to light from that process became a well-known fact among the students enrolled in the school. There must have been a certain number of students who wanted to make this festival a sess and enjoy it as students, not just as apetition.


    "I''m sure the student council''s decision to pay for consumable materials and other expenses was also an additional incentive."


    Even if you are only going to hold a preliminary festival, it will cost money.


    A separate budget from the one provided for the festival would need to be set up, and the source of funds would naturally be in the form of collecting private points from individuals.


    It would not be surprising if some sses forgo the event if they had to pay out of their own pocket for the rehearsal, but that was exactly what the student council was for. If the student council covered the expenses, they''d have no reason to refuse. It had already informed them that if they bring in receipts, they would be reimbursed from the student council''s budget. Of course, there was no limit, but there was a quota of several tens of thousands of points for each ss.


    "We''re going to join in, aren''t we?"


    "Of course. The whole school knows it''s going to be a maid caf��. It won''t hurt to do it."


    "That''s true. And with what happened to Ry��en-kun and the others, too."


    Horikita gave me a meaningful look, to which I nodded lightly and replied.


    "Let''s see what they have in store for us."


    It was a great opportunity to see how Ry��en would develop the concept.


    "You don''t think we''ll lose?"


    "I don''t know."


    "You look pretty confident."


    "I''m not confident. I''m just doing everything I can."


    "That''s true. Even so, don''t you usually feel insecure?"


    Apparently, Horikita is concerned that she might lose, even though she is fully prepared.


    "Maybe I''m scared about losing."


    Defeat doesn''t only mean losing ss points. But it''s just as bad to fail to earn ss points. Wanting to avoid stagnating is natural when you''re on the momentum of reaching ss A.


    "Maybest year you wouldn''t have been so anxious."


    "That was just foolhardy. I didn''t see anything around me back then."


    Now, Horikita was starting to broaden her horizons a little. That''s why she couldn''t help but think about losing.


    "As a ss leader, it''s not a bad thing to be prepared for both winning and losing patterns. I''m just one of the pawns. I''m just making irresponsible statements."


    Well, it''s Horikita''s shoring and strength that she cannot easily dismiss that statement. If it was Sakayanagi or Ry��en, they would''ve listened and dismissed it; if it was Ichinose, she would''ve taken it as if it was the only thing that mattered.


    Horikita has both of these aspects.


    "I know, but... Sometimes."


    I patted Horikita on the back with the palm of my hand.


    "What are you doing?"


    "It''s too early to get used to winning."


    "I''m not going to..."


    She looked a little angry, but she also realized that I hit the nail on the head.


    "It was a conceited notion, not the result of anything I''ve done well myself."


    The uninhabited ind, unanimous exam, those weren''t victories supported solely by straight-uppetence.


    "You mean...?"


    "What?"


    "I''m trying not to take everything you say seriously, but you''ve been very cooperativetely, which is even more annoying. I don''t know how to process this in my head."


    "Then please don''t cooperate with me at all in the future."


    I tried to walk quickly away, but she grabbed me by the shoulders.


    "That''s a no-go."


    I tried to break away, but was immediately grabbed and brought back.


    "I''d like to stop by the convenience store before going to school, would you like to join me?"


    "Convenience store?"


    "I''m preparing for the day before the school festival, and I want to make the most of my lunch break today."


    "I don''t mind joining."


    A few minutes in a convenience store wouldn''t be a problem. I followed Horikita to the convenience store and stepped inside.


    There I ran into K��enji, who was just about to pay for his items. He had only two things: a bottle of soy milk and a white meat sd. It was a very light meal for lunch, but I wondered if he was going to have it during his morning break. Since K��enji is rarely seen eating, his private life remains a mystery to us.


    "Good morning, K��enji-kun."


    Horikita called out to him, but after paying for his things, K��enji only smiled lightly and didn''t exchange any words.


    "I heard that K��enji is the only one not assigned work for the cultural festival."


    "He told me he wouldn''t do anything. I''m sure I won''t change his mind."


    Horikita didn''t seem particrly concerned either, and went to the cash register to select a quick meal. She refused the stic bag offer and tucked it away in her own bag.


    "You didn''t have anything to buy?"


    "They don''t have anything I need, and I don''t have an abundance of private points."


    November warmed my wallet to some extent, but I had ns to cash out soon.


    "You''re no longer paying contributions to Kushida-san, right?"


    "Not really, since I haven''t been charged for it."


    "Would you really pay if she charged you?"


    "Do you think she will charge me?"


    Horikita replied to me with distaste, muttering, "No, I don''t think so. I don''t want her toe back to haunt me."


    However distorted, Kushida underwent a profound change. And it''s heading in the direction of growth, I have to believe.

 Chapter 271: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 271: 3.1</h4>


    After school that day. Ichihashi approached Horikita with some hesitation, who was sitting in front of her.


    "Um, Horikita-san... Can I have a minute?"


    She rarely speaks to Horikita since she doesn''t have strong connections with her. Normally, one would think that it would be about the uing festival...


    However, the item in her hand implied something different.


    "What is it?"


    "Actually, I have a favor to ask you. You have student council workter today, don''t you?"


    "Yes. As I told the ss a while ago, I have student council work to do. I can''t help you with the festival."


    "Yes, well, that''s not what I meant. Can you please send this...?"


    With these words, she presented a letter. A glimpse of a heart sticker sped the envelope''s mouth.


    "What''s this?"


    "It''s a love letter..."


    "Eh?"


    No wonder she looked puzzled, unable toprehend the meaning for a moment. Even though we live in an age where diversity is epted, it''s understandable that a love letter from a girl to another girl would be upsetting in other ways besides matters of the opposite sex.


    "Oh, It''s not like it''s from me to Horikita-san or something. Actually, one of my friends asked me to give it to Nagumo Miyabi, the student council president."


    "To the student council president? But isn''t that something you should give in person?"


    If you''re going to confess your feelings to someone you have a crush on, face to face is naturally the expectation.


    "She asked me to deliver it to him because she was too nervous to give it herself. But I don''t have the courage to hand it to the student council president in person either..."


    Nagumo''s a more social person than, say, former Student Council President Horikita Manabu, but he was still a senior student and representative of this school.


    It would be quite a hurdle for someone who has no contact with him to approach him. Horikita, on the other hand, was different. It was easy to imagine them conversing about student council business on a daily basis.


    "I understand the situation, but..."


    "Please. She''s been struggling with it for a long time now, and... she''s finally found the courage to do so."


    If it had been the Horikita of a year ago, she might''ve refused this request.


    But building rtionships with ssmates is important to her now. In order to make up for the lost trust in the unanimous special exam, there was no way around it.


    "Okay. I''ll see if I can somehow find an opening and give it to him for you.


    Is that okay?"


    "Uh, yes."


    Ichihashi answered, but she looked a bit brusque.


    "Is there still a problem?"


    "Um, well, there''s a little problem with this love letter."


    Upon receiving the letter, Horikita noticed that there was no name written on the front or back. This meant that the sender was unknown until he looked through the contents.


    "Can I assume that it is written inside who this letter is from?"


    "I don''t know... If it were normal, I''d imagine it would be written. That girl, if she was just happy to tell him how she feels, she might not have written it."


    In other words, neither the deliverer nor the receiver would know the sender of the love letter.


    "That''s a little hard to ept. Of course, I''ll exin when I give it to him, but if I''m not careful, he might mistake it for a letter from me."


    Saying she received it from someone else despite it actually being a letter from herself �� the possibility of Nagumo taking it like that cannot be said to be zero.


    "Well then, can''t you ask someone else? Like a boy you know in the student council or... No? I''d like for you to give it today somehow."


    "That''s easy for you to say..." Despite her concern, Horikita thought for a moment and nodded.


    "I''ll do my best, but there''s no guarantee that I''ll be able to give it to him, okay?"


    "I''m d you epted. I''m sure she''ll be very happy."


    Although reluctantly, Horikita agreed to deliver the love letter to Nagumo.


    Normally, she would''ve asked her who the letter was from, but Horikita wasn''t interested and didn''t try to dig deeply.

 Chapter 272: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 272: 3.2</h4>


    Because of the unexpected request, my steps were a little... Heavier, if not quite heavy.


    "Why won''t she just give it to him?"


    It was a mistake to ept. How could I, an irrelevant person in this affair, have such a task? I should turn back and tell Ichihashi-san to give it to him in person.


    "That would be the right thing to do."


    When the thought of escape crossed my mind. I suddenly remembered the time when I tried to give a letter to my brother who had decided to go to high school. I was a fool in the past, not realizing that he''d been cold toward me and desperately wishing to return to the old days when we were close. I thought that if I couldn''t talk to him face to face, I could just put my feelings in a letter. But the pen in my hand didn''t move as smoothly as it did in my head.


    For days and days, I thought and wondered, writing and erasing over and over again.


    How could I convey my feelings?


    How could I make my brother happy?


    I struggled with the act of writing the letter itself. And in the end... I couldn''t give it to him. My brother left this school and I can no longer see or contact him.


    "I wonder what happened to that letter..."


    As I dredged up my memory, I recalled putting it in my brother''s desk drawer.


    "What if my brother goes home and sees it?"


    I stopped in the hallway and felt my heart rate suddenly hasten. If my brother saw a letter like that now, he wouldugh at me.


    "I should forget about that."


    Even if I get jittery here and now, I can''t get rid of the letter and pretend it never happened. Now all I can do is hope that my brother doesn''t find it.


    Remembering my brother''s back from outside the window, I decided to put my hands together.


    "That''s right."


    It''s not easy to write a letter to someone you love. And if you have to hand it to them directly, the hurdle is even higher. Even now, if I were asked if I could write a letter to my brother, it would be difficult for me to give an immediate answer. I don''t know who she is or where she is from, but her target is the Student Council President Nagumo Miyabi. I understand her feelings of timidity.


    Somehow, I found an excuse to give it to him and arrived at the student council room. When I opened the door, all the members of the student council were already there except for Student Council President Nagumo. There were three boys present, Yagami-kun, a first-year student, Aga-kun, also a first-year student, and Kiriyama-senpai, the third-year vice president.


    However, it would not be possible for just any boy to do what I need. I couldn''t simply entrust them with the task of handing out love letters, which isn''t even a responsibility for the student council.


    However... I was rtively close to Yagami-kun. I talk to him quite regrly. I knew I was taking advantage of my position as a senpai, but I couldn''t turn my back on this letter. Yagami-kun was sitting down and chatting with Ichinose-san.


    I reached for the love letter in my briefcase, hoping to get the troublesome matter out of the way quickly. But just then, Student Council President Nagumo appeared in the room.


    "The meeting will begin immediately. Take your seats."


    The voice of Student Council President Nagumo was as dark and heavy as he appeared. I felt the air instantly be tense and tight and put my hand back on my bag.


    There was no way I could say that I was asked to hand over a love letter under these circumstances.


    "Ichinose, if you have anything to report, let''s hear it."


    "Yes. It seems that it has been decided that all sses will participate in the rehearsal the day before the festival."


    "It was decided in almost half a day? It seems that the student council president''s decision was correct. However, if the decision was made by the student


    council, I wish you would have informed us a little earlier." Kiriyama-senpai, the vice president, made a thorny remark.


    "It''s just an idea. I thought starting a little earlier would make the juniors happy." Student Council President Nagumo replied without any particr apology.


    Such a scene from the student council meeting was bing a regr urrence.


    Basically, the student council-led things started with an idea from Student Council President Nagumo. Sometimes they were born from ament made during the meeting, and other times they were created without our knowledge.


    Then there was a sudden silence, and Student Council President Nagumo had his arms crossed and his eyes closed. It was obvious that he was holding back his anger.


    "Um, what''s wrong, Nagumo-senpai...?"


    "Listen, I heard a strange rumor."


    "Rumor...?"


    "It''s not proven, but there was a guy, Kishi, who said that I was betting a lot of money to get certain students expelled from school."


    "What? What do you mean?"


    It''s no wonder Ichinose-san asked back. I, too, could not immediately understand the meaning of what Student Council President Nagumo said.


    "Who told you that nonsense?"


    "Someone from your ss, Kiriyama."


    Student Council President Nagumo threw such words to Vice President Kiriyama with his eyes closed.


    "From my ss?"


    "It''s just a rumor from my friends, though it wouldn''t be strange if you were aware of it."


    "Sorry, that''s news to me. I don''t understand why you would bet a lot of money to get someone expelled in the first ce."


    Usually, students userge sums of money to move someone in particr to an "A" ss. If that''s what he was talking about, it''s certainly not hard to understand, even for me. Especially for third-year students, the odds were stacked against them, and if they were invited to join President Nagumo''s ss, they were practically guaranteed an "A" ss. It''s possible, forck of a better word, for the Student Council President Nagumo to have secretly offered private points to those he has close rtionships with, giving them the right to move to his ss.


    "It''s just a rumor. But I''m not willing to sit idly by and let the usations against me go unchallenged."


    Indeed, as student council president, such rumors could damage him one way or the other. It''s understandable that he was visibly in a bad mood.


    "The student council will be suspended for a while."


    "Suspended...?"


    Ichinose-san was surprised by this unexpected proposal from Student Council President Nagumo.


    The student council used to meet like this once a week and repeatedly discuss various topics. The only exceptions were during test periods and some special exams. It was unusual to suspend them during the regr school year.


    "We''re done discussing the cultural festival, too. There shouldn''t be any problems."


    "Are you going to look for the culprits?"


    "Of course, we''ll look for them thoroughly. The next meeting will be held after the festival."


    We then continued discussing the day before the festival, and we departed shortly afterward. I got up from my seat and headed toward Yagami-kun.


    Perhaps sensing my approach, he raised his gaze away from his notebook, stopped his hand, and closed it. He''s the secretary of the student council, so he was keeping the logs. The other students left the student council room ahead of me, which I was grateful for.


    When we were alone, I decided to call out to him.


    "May I have a word?"


    Yagami-kun turned to me after looking a little surprised.


    "I''m sorry, were you still in the middle of writing it down?"


    "No, I just finished. Don''t worry about it." He ced his hand lightly on top of the closed notebook and smiled at me.


    "Is something wrong, Horikita-senpai?"


    "Yagami-kun. May I ask you a slightly unreasonable favor?"


    "What is it?"


    "I want you to give this to the student council president. It''s a love letter."


    I took out the love letter and presented it to Yagami.


    "That''s very rare these days. Most of the time it seems to be done through chatting or phone calls..." When he received it with a surprised look on his face, I hastened to add.


    "Just to let you know, it''s not from me."


    "I see. I thought it was a love letter from Horikita-senpai... Or should I just give it to him as such?"


    "No, that''s not it. A girl in my ss asked me to give it to him."


    "There is no sender name. Whose love letter is it? I''ll let him know."


    "I can''t tell you that. She wants to remain anonymous."


    "It''s an anonymous love letter...?"


    "She asked for me to pass it on as a member of the student council, but there''s the issue of anonymity, and if I give it to him, he might think it''s from me, right?"


    "That''s quite possible. To be honest, I still have a little bit of doubt that Horikita-senpai didn''t write it."


    Yagami-kun smiled a little funnily, but to me it wasn''t funny at all.


    "I''m just kidding. Given the look of disgust on senpai''s face, I know it''s not true."


    I sure hope so.


    "Actually, it would''ve been smoother if I had given it to you before Student Council President Nagumo arrived..."


    "Even if you gave it to me, I don''t think I would''ve been able to hand it over. It didn''t seem like the kind of atmosphere to give a letter."


    "Yes, that was inevitable."


    Under the circumstances, no one could talk to Student Council President Nagumo.


    "I''m sorry to ask you to do this, but could you please deliver it as soon as possible? I''m sure they think I''ll deliver it today."


    "In that case, I''ll visit the dormitoryter." Yagami-kun stared at the love letter intently while looking a little perplexed. "Is this really a love letter?"


    "Probably. I think she said she put her feelings into it, but I can''t be sure."


    I couldn''t peel off the seal to see what was inside.


    "If I gave it to him as a love letter and it turned out to be different, I think it would be disrespectful to the student council president."


    "That might be possible."


    "I''ll put it somewhat vaguely, saying that I received the letter from someone."


    "Yes, I think that''s a good idea. Thank you."


    I thanked him for his honest eptance.


    "By the way, even in this day and age, it''s hard for a secretary to work with handwritten notes, isn''t it?"


    There is nothing wrong with using aputer to work nowadays.


    "Tradition is also important. It seems that the notes have been kept on file ever since this school was founded. If we suddenly switch to digital, it''ll create a sense of difort."


    Yagami-kun turned around and stared at the bookshelf. Certainly, there are many records revealing the story of the Student Council''s history. It wouldn''t


    necessarily be bad if the student council files were reced by a disc, but Yagami-kun made a good point. Perhaps this is exactly what we should continue if we value tradition.


    "I also hear that it is better to have hardships while you are a student. If you get used to easy life early on, you may sufferter on."


    Yagami-kun showed a slightly mature response, not like a first-year high school student.


    "In that sense, this love letter is simr."


    It is true that nowadays it is not umon to confess one''s feelings using one''s cell phone. But I can understand that there is a certain meaning to conveying your feelings through your letters.


    "Even so, today''s Student Council President Nagumo really didn''t seem to have a lot of time to spare, did he?"


    "Yeah. He''s betting a lot of money to expel the students, isn''t he? As I recall... What was his name..."


    As if remembering something, Yagami-kun opened his notebook and showed it to me. The first page that was flipped through was from the middle ofst year, and looked like something a current third year student would have written in his sophomore year. Then the font changed and switched to the most recent notes.


    I instantly recognized this because the notes, which seemed to have been written by Yagami-kun, were written in a perfect, orderly manner that showed his meticulousness. And the writing was so polished that it was hard to believe it was handwritten.


    "There it is. He said that this Kishi-senpai might have spread a rumor. Do you know what ss Kishi-senpai is in?"


    Yagami-kun asked me with the same expression as usual, showing me the meeting records. But my brain was pulled into another realm all at once.


    These characters.... They look very simr to that letter which had almost slipped from my memory.


    Was he the person who presented me with the letter during the uninhabited ind exam? I held my gaze, which was about to blur with agitation, and reached the notes of today''s meeting. I looked at Yagami-kun from a broader perspective and saw that he was still looking at me with the same smile.


    It couldn''t be... But... No, it can''t be.


    Amidst a whirlwind of emotions, I think as I continue to feign looking down at the notes.


    "Horikita-senpai?"


    "Sorry, I don''t know, but you should be able to figure it out pretty quickly if you look at the OAA."


    "Sure. I''ll look it up right away."


    "I''m sorry, but I just remembered something I have to do. I''ll leave you to it."


    "Oh, really? I understand."


    I looked away from him and quickly turned as if to run away.


    "Well then, I''m sorry, but I need you to take care of my letter to the student council president."


    "Yes, senpai. Thank you for your hard work, Horikita-senpai."


    If he stared at me then, I probably would have asked him. I knew in my gut that I had to avoid that. I exited the door connecting the student council chambers and slowly closed it.


    Just before it was about to close, I saw Yagami-kun smiling at me through the door''s slightest gap. He looked at me with a smile, as if he was testing me.


    It was as if he was challenging me with a question, "Did you notice?" It was as if he was trying to provoke me. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have taken the trouble to open the notebook and show me the handwriting.


    The door mmed shut.


    I couldn''t deny the possibility that the handwriting was coincidentally the same. Since a certain amount of time had passed since I saw those letters, my memory is blurred.


    Even so, the handwriting was simr enough to make me certain of the reason for the resemnce. If I assume that he was the person who wrote me that letter... Then that person had been standing by my side for a long time while behaving in a nonchnt manner.


    At the same time, it seemed to me that this assumption was very realistic.

 Chapter 273 - 4 : Meeting Before The Festival

    <h4>Chapter 273: Chapter 4 : Meeting Before The Festival</h4>


    THE DAYS GO by quickly, and Friday came, November 12. The day before the festival after school arrived.


    All sses have been preparing for the festival. Today after school is the rehearsal led by the student council. It will be an important test for tomorrow''s performance.


    All ssmates, except for a few, started moving at once to begin preparations. There are a total of four booths in Horikita''s ss. The first is the well-known maid cafe, where the main sales are tea, coffee, and other drinks in addition to photo shoots with the maids. Thetter sales method is particrly time-efficient, and the unit price is set high, so if there are arge number of applicants, it will be a great source of ie. The second and third are outdoor stalls selling powdered food (takoyaki, okonomiyaki, etc.) and Western-style pasta and bread stalls. The stalls generate sales on their own, and the maid caf�� also takes orders. When an order is ced, a student in charge of delivery goes to the stall and brings it to the customer. In order to take advantage of the maid caf��''s originality, a limited food menu is also prepared, which is a slight modification of the existing menu offered at the food stall. And finally, the fourth and final event is an outdoor quizpetition for children, which was added on short notice with the extra budget.


    "You guys didn''t make Hasebe-san and Miyake-kune?" Maezono asked as her eyes followed Haruka and Akito, who had just left the ssroom.


    "There''s no point in forcing them to do anything. Let''s consider this a good opportunity to test whether 35 people, excluding K��enji-kun, Hasebe and Miyake, can be left alone without any problems."


    But those three are not the only ones who are not willing to cooperate.


    Kushida hardly interfered with any of the festival''s activities in the weeks leading up to the event, and she''s been going home immediately after school without helping out. She knows that she will be in charge of serving the customers as a maid at the festival, and she has gone to Horikita several times toe up with ideas. Some of them have even been adopted, although they are minor elements.


    However, she did not participate in any practice sessions with other maids to make sure they were all on the same page.


    "I''d like to do some final checks for tomorrow''s event and also practice my activities for the day. Do you think you''ll have time today?"


    Sat�� called out, somewhat bravely, trying as much as possible not to let her guard down. Kushida, who had just gotten up from her seat, stopped and turned around on the spot.


    "I''m sorry, Sat��-san. I have something I really can''t miss after school."


    This was not the first time Kushida has said that.


    "Listen, you keep refusing me like that. When are you seriously going to cooperate?"


    The atmosphere was turning sour, and Horikita was about to get up from her seat, but Y��suke, who was standing beside her, stopped her as if he had anticipated this.


    I don''t know who was right. However, it''s impossible to create a smooth ss if we interfere in everything. Sometimes things have to be resolved by the people involved. It can be said that this is an uncharacteristic behavior of Y��suke, who usually pays more attention to his words than anyone else... Probably because he felt that unnecessarily showing Horikita''s special treatment towards Kushida to the ss was a bad move.


    Of course, Horikita understood this, but she also had a dilemma that she couldn''t leave alone.


    "Don''t worry, I''ve got the festival in mind, and I''m not going to drag the ss down."


    "But, Kushida-san, you haven''t practised, not even a little. I can''t trust you with the important role of a maid."


    Today''s rehearsal will be the perfect practice. Sat��, who had been reluctant to participate, seems unable to back down today. Likewise, Kushida had been even more reluctant and it doesn''t seem like she will budge today as well.


    "Then why don''t you remove me? I don''t think there are any other decent candidates."


    A merciless remark, but a fair one. Even taking Kushida''s appearance into consideration, a student who isn''t currently ying the role of a maid wouldn''t be able to serve as a substitute.


    "I''ll see you tomorrow at the festival. Bye."


    Although her tone of voice was the same as the gentle Kushida, her actions could be taken as cold. She refused Sat��''s proposal until the end and left the ssroom.


    Did she simply not want to spend time with ssmates who know her true nature? Or was it really that she had something she can''t miss? Obviously, the atmosphere in the ssroom deteriorated, but that can''t be helped.


    "Hey, Horikita-san. Tomorrow''s the festival, but I still think we should remove Kushida-san after all..."


    Matsushita, unable to bear the sight of Sat��''s downcast and frustrated face, went directly to Horikita "I know what you mean. But I don''t intend to remove her at the moment."


    "But it''s a lie that she has to do things every day, isn''t it?"


    Indeed, Kushida''s behavior as ofte has been quite puzzling. It can''t be helped that she''s been keeping her distance from the others since the unanimous special exam, but even so, her uncooperative attitude has been conspicuous.


    "That may be so. I don''t know why she doesn''t participate in practice either."


    "Then..."


    "Don''t worry. She''s thinking about the festival and the maid cafe in her own way. Just believe in Kushida-san."


    "Well, I guess you could say that we won''t get anywhere if I don''t believe in her..." Matsushita looked unconvinced, but nodded and turned to follow Sat��.


    Matsushita, perhaps because she was one of the founding members this time, was also making a lot of efforts. Although it''s true that Kushida''s non-participation in practice is a cause for concern, Horikita''s expression showed no signs of impatience. Rather, it seemed as if it was peeking out with justified confidence.


    That was probably why Matsushita backed down.


    Since she didn''t seem to be asking for help, let''s watch and wait.

 Chapter 274: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 274: 4.1</h4>


    On the first floor of the special building, stall number "Special 02".


    Students decorated this space, which was usually used as an empty ssroom.


    The girls mainly did the work, with the boys assisting them. Interestingly, the girls were by far the best at this type of decoration. It''s probably safe to leave the setup to them with Horikita in the lead. Preparations for the concept caf�� were steadily underway in the back of the special ssroom on the second floor.


    Unlike our maid caf��, the concept of Ry��en''s ss was "Traditional Japanese style." The food and beverages were alsopletely different from ours, including Japanese sweets and tea.


    While preparations were underway, we found a unique presence. There was a girl sitting alone in a chair reading a book dressed in the kimono.


    "Hello." When she noticed me, Hiyori lifted her book and, for some reason, hid everything but her gaze.


    "It''s been a while. I heard you haven''t been showing up at the librarytely."


    "It''s not that I haven''t been. I''ve just, you know, changed my hours a bit."


    I thought it was odd for a bookworm to disappear from the library, but I guess she just changed her visiting hours.


    "It seems you''ll be working as well."


    "I specialize in checkout. I''m not very good at interacting with people. I''m also not very good at moving around, and I practiced carrying food on a tray, but it didn''t work out."


    In short, she''s not very good at anything in general. However, working as a cashier isn''t hard and if she can handle it smoothly, it''ll be fine.


    "By the way, Ibuki-san will be joining us."


    "Ibuki? I had an image that she would never wear this kind of costume."


    "I heard that she had a match with Ry��en-kun forplete exemption from helping at the festival."


    "And she lost."


    Hiyori smiled a little funny as if she was remembering that time.


    "So, where is this Ibuki who lost?"


    "She''s not participating today. She said she absolutely hates wearing it outside of the festival."


    I can understand that feeling, but I hope she can serve her customers well when she goes out on the spot. Well, Ry��en would deal with such matters in a flexible manner.


    I wanted to check on Ry��en, who owns the restaurant, but I couldn''t see him.


    I wondered if he left the rehearsal preparations to other students.


    "It seems that Ry��en-kun went to check ss A."


    "ss A?"


    "Because they haven''t disclosed what kind of presentation they were going to put on."


    Indeed, the details of Sakayanagi''s ss had been unknown until the day before the festival. It''s not strange to want to find out what they will be doing. As long as all the sses were participating in this pre-opening the day before, there was no doubt that they would be preparing to open a stall somewhere.


    "I''m going to go over there for a bit too."


    After talking with Hiyori, I decided to look for Sakayanagi''s ss.


    "Um, Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    "Hmm?"


    "Ry��en and the others went up to the third floor, so I think that''s where Sakayanagi-san probably went."


    "I see, that saves me the trouble."


    She seemed to want to say something else, but Hiyori immediately shook her head from side to side. Three second-year sses concentrated in a special wing, and yet they are on different floors?


    "I''ll be showing up at the library again next time, so please do so as well, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Yes, I will."


    I raised my hand to say goodbye, and then walked up to the third floor. The third floor of the special wing is the farthest from the school gate and the hardest to reach. There were three ssrooms avable here, but until the previous day, they were not popr and had not been rented.


    "I didn''t think that Sakayanagi''s ss would rent everything there, though."


    As it''s currently an exclusive floor, the 2nd year ss A students roamed the third floor corridors as they pleased. At first nce, it''s hard to imagine what kind of disy they are trying to put on. There were only several cardboard boxes scattered about, their contents not visible, and the students were still in their school uniforms. Since it''s impossible to cook indoors due to fire regtions, that field disappears.


    "Surprised by the unexpected?" Hashimoto, who was supposedly keeping an eye on the studentsing, approached and called out.


    "What''s this all about?"


    "You can''t even understand what you''re seeing?" Hashimotoughed quietly, perhaps amused that I didn''t grasp it. "Well, that''s understandable. But I can''t answer you easily."


    I guess they intend to finish the preparations the day before, but have no intention of making them public. As if to symbolize this, a sign was posted on the stairs leading to this floor.


    It read, "Due to an issue, the second-year ss A will not be presenting their activities today."


    "That''s what it means. I''m sorry you had toe all the way up here, but I''m going to have to ask you to leave."


    Even if I persisted, we would still not be able to find out the details of the exhibit.


    "It looks like Ry��en will be leaving soon, too."


    Ry��en came out of a ssroom in the back and walked toward us with his hands in his pockets. After a quick nce at me and Hashimoto, he walked straight through and headed downstairs.


    "Or are you going to do the same as him and take a closer look, even if you know it''s useless?"


    "I''m going back."


    "Good luck. You''ll have to wait until we open to see what happens."


    I was on my way back to the second floor when I noticed that Ry��en had turned his back to face me and stopped. I turned my gaze and stared directly into his eyes. Ry��en raised the corner of his mouth slightly before opening it.


    "Tell Suzune that it will be our ss that wins tomorrow."


    "I bet the Japanese attire cost more than the maid uniforms, didn''t they? If you''re going to challenge her to a match, at that point, you could have just worked together."


    "It''s simply my taste."


    After replying with words that could be taken either seriously or jokingly, Ry��en started walking away. Without paying attention to Hashimoto''s presence from the upper floor, I also turned back to the maid cafe.

 Chapter 275: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 275: 4.2</h4>


    Surprisingly, many boys from other sses rushed to the restaurant as soon as it opened. There seemed to be more onlookers who wanted to catch a glimpse of the girls in cosy rather than eating, which was fine with us. It would be good experience for the maids, who are not used to being the center of attention.


    Even Matsushita, who was usually very calm, moved a little stiffly and looked nervous. Sato and Mii-chan''s movements seemed to be much more sluggish than during practice.


    Immediately afterward, the sound of stic bouncing on the floor spread throughout the ssroom. It was caused by Mii-chan slipping a ss of water on the tray. The person in question froze at the heavy event that seemed to split the air. In the midst of all this, it was Matsushita who immediately moved.


    "I am terribly sorry."


    After gently patting Mii-chan on the shoulder with a calm tone, she instructed her to bring fresh water. Then she brought a rag to clean the floor.


    "You''re doing very well, Matsushita-san, I can''t believe it''s your very first time as a maid."


    "Thank you."


    Horikita, who was standing by and watching, was also impressed by Matsushita''s outstanding actions.


    "You''re also participating tomorrow as a maid, right?"


    "Basically, as a manager. I''ll also serve customers depending on the


    situation, but I''m honestly not sure." Unlike usual, Horikita answered somewhat timidly.


    "Well, no one thinks you''re good at putting on a smile, so good luck." I said turning to Horikita.


    I''m sure she''s not worried about the service itself, but offering a smile can be a challenge.


    "You look prettyfortable."


    "It''s almost like the work over here will be done by today."


    It''s like 90% prep and 10% production, and all we have to do tomorrow is the paperwork.


    "Maybe I should reassign you to the stalls too."


    "Don''t reassign me just because of a personal gripe."


    Horikita started to say something nasty, but quickly backed down because she wasn''t serious.


    "For now, it looks like Matsushita-san will be fine, and I''ll be leaving for a bit."


    "You''re going to observe?"


    "I want to see with my own eyes what kind of entertainment there will be."


    "Take your time." Meanwhile, I would work on making room for tomorrow''s waiting room.


    About an hourter, Horikita returned to the maid cafe.


    "I''m back. How are things going?"


    "There were a few minor mistakes, but now we''re all settled in and getting used to everything."


    "Thanks for the advance preparation."


    Without this rehearsal, we might have been in danger if we had just gone out and winged it. I knew that practicing without attendees waspletely different from actually doing it with a third-party audience. Matsushita, who had been working at full capacity since the opening, rounded up and came up to me.


    "Good job Matsushita-san. I''m honestly surprised how well you performed."


    "Thanks. Everyone''s getting better. We should be able to start tomorrow in good shape." Matsushita said, though her expression was a little stiff.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "I think there might be more sabotage, that''s what I''m a little worried about."


    "Sabotage?"


    "When Ryuen-kun''s ss came over to the maid cafe, I was afraid they''d bring Ishizaki-kun and the others over and say there were bugs in the cups or something..."


    Horikita and I exchanged nces for a moment, then quickly turned our attention back to Matsushita.


    "Don''t worry about that. It''s not in their best interest to interfere in the practice stage. Besides, since there is a rule that students can''t be guests in the activities, they can''t do such a thing."


    "Ry��en can''t use his usual tactics in the presence of so many eyes at the exhibit. There is no need to worry." I added to Horikita''s exnation.


    The smile returned to Matsushita''s face as she was almost simultaneously told by both of us that there isn''t anything to worry about.


    "Somehow, when the two of you say it, I feel a different sense of relief." She patted her chest in relief, as if she had been somewhat preupied.


    "You should take a break too."


    "I guess I''ll do that."


    Matsushita started to walk away and left the ssroom, wobbling slightly.


    "Did you notice that?"


    "Huh?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    Perhaps because it was a minor difort, Horikita, who was nearby, did not seem to notice anything in particr.


    I hope I''m just imagining things.


    "So how did it go? What did the other sses put on?"


    "I don''t know if there will be another festival next year, but I learned a lot."


    Horikita examined thepleted room before leaving to check its condition.


    "It looks fine. In another hour, we''ll start cleaning up, and you should take another look too."


    "I''ll let you do that."


    With permission, I decided to parade around the entire school. Kei appeared as if she had been waiting for that moment and took me in arms.


    "Let''s go together."


    "I''d rather not but I don''t think you''re going to leave me."


    "I won''t leave you."


    "You''re free to go together, but remember that you are only scouting."


    "Yes, yes~"


    While Horikita responded seriously every time, Kei seemed to be at ease from start to finish. Well, it''s not every day you get a chance like this. In fact, even taking a look at the maid caf��, it seemed as if most of the others were enjoying the cultural festival in a normal way.

 Chapter 276: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 276: 4.3</h4>


    First-year students and some of the third-year students were putting on a number of performances that resembled festival stalls. Some of them involved technological intervention, such as target practice, ring toss, or dropping marbles on a handmade tform to win prizes at multiple goals. The collection of prizes made the scene look a bit like a festival hall.


    "Oh, it''s Yukimura-kun and the others!"


    Kei was the first to point and found Keisei, Sotomura, and the other boys busily preparing for the event. Perhaps because they had practiced baking food in their dormitories, they seemed to be doing it with a certain degree of dexterity.


    Let''s not interrupt them by talking to them carelessly.


    "Shall we try our hand at ring toss?"


    "I''ll try! Oh, that stuffed animal is kind of cute. I might want one." Kei shouted and pointed from behind a student who was experiencing it first. It was a cute prize, a colorful bear.


    Unfortunately, however, the ring toss was a demonstration. Even if they seeded in the ring toss, they wouldn''t receive any prizes. Even though the student council had a budget for the event, the number of prizes were limited.


    If students took the prizes home today, it will be difficult to replenish them.


    On the other hand, the shooting game that the 1st year ss B was putting on across the street seemed to be offering sweets as prizes, and they were giving them away if guests were sessful. The prizes were cheap, starting at 10 points, and even the most expensive ones were worth about 200 points. I guess tommorow there will be prizes other than sweets, but this way, the test would be as good as the real thing.


    "Try it, Kiyotaka!" She urged me to try it and lightly pushed me in front of a table where five shooting guns were ced in a row.


    I was interested in the target shooting game, so I was willing to give it a try.


    You''re given five bullets per game. The gun seemed to be a type of toy called a cork gun, which was filled with cork and fires. Each of the guns lined up on the table seemed to be more heavily built than I had expected. The bullets, however, were distorted in shape, and it was doubtful that they can be shot with precision. I had never held a gun in my hands since I was born. I have a vague image of it from movies and TV dramas, but I am not sure if it''s really true to the actual thing.


    I can''t even look at an example because there were no other students


    participating in the event. So, from my imagination, I grabbed the gun in the middle of the room and held it up.


    "Aim for the most expensive one."


    In order to drop the highest priced assortment of candy, I need to shoot down arge weight. I wonder how powerful it really is. Let''s give it a try first.


    The first shot was fired while receiving enthusiastic cheers from Kei. With a light "pop" sound, the cork bullet was fired and approached the weight I had set as my target.


    However, the bullet passed through a few centimeters to the left of the weight without dy. My percieved aim was that it should have hit the target with pinpoint uracy, but the trajectory waspletely different. Then, I shifted the muzzle a few centimeters to the right and fired a second shot. I thought I had corrected the trajectory perfectly, but this time it passed diagonally to the right and missed.


    "This is pretty hard..."


    As I was loading the third shot, the other students began to join in one by one. I decided to watch the other students and try to further correct the trajectory.


    However, the students firing their guns were struggling to aim as well as I was.


    One of the students fired a bullet that hit a weight from the first shot. It did not fall down, but he seeded in pushing it back.


    Continuing to observe to see if there was some trick to it, I discovered that it was not due to my skill, but due to each gun, which looked the same, having a different performance. The millimeter-by-millimeter discrepancies in the manufacturing process and the quality of the bullet cork itself. Various thingsbined to create an unexpected trajectory with each shot. It was a very interesting system, but at the same time, I understood how difficult it was to shoot and drop the target.


    As a result, only thest shot was able to hit the weight that I had originally aimed at, but it was not an easy target to hit, and my first target shooting ended in a disastrous failure. However, I now understood the tendency of the gun itself.


    Now, if I could only predict the trajectory of the bullet when fired based on the shape of the cork, I could try again... That''s what I thought, but then I noticed a sign that said "Only one challenge per person today" and gave up.


    "Ain''t no way. The big bad Ayanokouji himself is a shitty shooter?"


    Just as I put my gun back, H��sen came out from behind the stall,ughing with a funny smile on his face. H��sen''s first year ss D stalls specialized in "games."


    "This is surprising. I didn''t expect you to put on such a show."


    The idea was that these trivial prizes from target shooting and ring tossing


    were means to return adults to their inner-child.


    "When I was a kid, I used to make a killin'' with the adults at these kinda stalls."


    What kind of childhood was that...


    "I really wanted to do more serious gambling, but the shitty school turned me down ''cause of the rules or whatever. Really though, target shooting? It''s the same thing as gambling. This kinda gambling is designed so that the house can win about all the time. It''s a one-time cultural festival, so ain''t no way they''ll know they''re getting ripped off."


    He took out his lighter and put it on the shelf, then came over to this side of the table and picked up the second gun from the far left. The bullet fired from the projectile gun he held up flew straighter than I had imagined and hit the lighter. It shook, but showed no sign of falling over.


    "If they ain''t able to take the limited prizes, it won''t be a problem."


    "Wouldn''t that keep the customers froming back?"


    "Nah, not if we add value to the shitty prizes and hand them out regrly."


    H��sen had a n. If the participation prizes were not attractive, adults might shy away. What appeared to be a participation prize peeked out of the basket. They had prepared arge number of student photos, both male and female, using a printing press andminated them in various patterns for handmade prizes.


    "It''s a good way to show off as an adult that you gotta memory of participatin'' in a cultural festival."


    The fact that many politician-rted people will be attending means that some willmunicate their participation in the festival as a kind of charity ormunity activity.


    Announcing that the students were given pictures of the festival would also help to create a positive impression. After parting ways with H��sen, who was surprisingly thinking things through, I returned to Kei, who was waiting for me.


    "I couldn''t win it."


    Kei grined happily and poked me in the stomach area with her elbow.


    "You look pretty happy even though you didn''t get any prizes."


    "Because I got to see Kiyotaka''s cuteness. I''m super satisfied as far as I''m concerned."


    "What do you mean, ''cuteness''?"


    I had no good points at all during that time.


    "I was happy that it wasn''t like an anime, where you hit it on the first shot. I realized again that you can''t do everything."


    That''s true. My approach was based on experience. Unless I had some


    material from my past experience to draw on, there was no way I was going to do well on my first shot, toy or otherwise.


    "That''s cute, huh? I feel like you usually want your boyfriends to be cool."


    "I''ve been shown enough of that."


    She didn''t me me, but rather, Kei''s emotions seemed to take pleasure in the fact that I didn''t take the prize.


    As I strolled around looking for other interesting offerings, I spotted Ishizaki.


    "Yo, Ayanok��ji!"


    "Looks like something kind of unusual is being put on."


    "Yes, it is, isn''t it? It''s an idea of mine and Albert''s, you know.


    "Wow, how did an enforcer like you get permission from Ry��en to do this?


    You couldn''t even set up a birthday party." Kei stared at Ishizaki suspiciously.


    "I wanted to make it happen! I made a proposal just like you told me to do, and I got kicked out of it..."


    He held his abdomen as if he was remembering that moment. It was coincidentally on October 20, the day of my and Ry��en''s birthdays. Ishizaki nned a birthday party for both of us. However, in order to make it happen, he needed to persuade Kei, and her condition was that Ry��en must apologize directly to her for what he did on the rooftop and bow down to her.


    Naturally, Ry��en did not ept Kei''s harsh conditions.


    "But I''ll get my revenge next year! You''ll just have to wait for me!"


    "No one''s going to wait for you. So, what kind of booth are you putting up?"


    "Who cares? Do you care? Okay, you guys go ahead and give it a try."


    All that was provided was a desk and cardboard. The disposable chopsticks and cups on the table gave the impression of dining, but is it really?


    "What is this?"


    "You''ll just have to wait and see."


    Ishizaki then instructed Albert to take out tools from a cardboard box.


    They were a bag of protein and a bag of citric acid. Both are familiar to those who take them during muscle training and other activities.


    "This is chocte vored protein. Well, just take a light lick."


    Two small bite-sized paper cups were prepared with Ishizaki''s chocte-vored protein.


    "I don''t want it."


    Kei refused to drink it as soon as it was served.


    "Oh, don''t be like that. It''s just protein."


    "I''ve never had protein before, and I don''t want to. I''m not trying to get


    muscr.


    "You can''t build muscle just by drinking protein shakes." Albert steped forward and mumbled English.


    "Huh? What?"


    "Don''t worry about that. You can''t build muscle by just drinking protein shakes. That''s right. Since we''re here, why don''t you two give it a try?"


    To be honest, I was a little curious to see what Ishizaki would do.


    I took the initiative, picked up a paper cup, and drank the protein. It may have been made by a different manufacturer than the one I used to drink, but it tasted a little like the old days.


    "Well, I''ll drink it for you then, just in case... it''s bad."


    Kei, on the other hand, who drank protein for the first time, frowned as if it didn''t taste good.


    "Tastes bad? Well, it''s not undrinkable, right?"


    "It''s not undrinkable, but I don''t really want to drink it."


    "Well, you need a pte cleanser."


    Water was handed to me, perhaps to rinse out my mouth. By the time I finished drinking it, Ishizaki was ready to move on.


    "Next, this way."


    With that, he prepared a citric acid drink, this time in another paper cup.


    "Well, it''s citric acid, I guess."


    "I think I like this one better."


    We muttered our impressions of the citric acid drink to each other.


    "Well, that''s thest one. The two you just drank aren''t bad, are they?"


    "I didn''t like the protein."


    "You''re good, Karuizawa, how about Ayanok��ji?"


    "Yes, it wasn''t bad at all."


    Hearing this, Ishizakiughed happily.


    "By the way. If you add citric acid to this chocte-vored protein, you get a very strange taste."


    He handed me the mixed protein and held it close to my mouth. It seemed like killing two birds with one stone, since both the protein intake and the citric acid intake are not bad.


    "Now drink both of them at the same time."


    "I''m kind of scared."


    "Well, let''s drink it."


    We tipped our paper cups and started drinking.


    But the moment I put it


    in my mouth, I involuntarily stiffened at the taste spreading from the surface of my tongue.


    "Shit!" Kei screamed next to me and spat it out on the spot. She then made a vomiting gesture while thrashing about, strongly appealing the others.


    "This, that, that tastes like vomit! Eeeeee!"


    I remembered that taste too. When I was taught martial arts, I was hit with a powerful fist to the abdomen, and the stomach acid that rose from my body alongside the food I was digesting came up. The smell and taste that spread in my mouth, it was something close to that.


    "Hahaha! Yes! That''s funny!"


    "Not funny! Water!!!"


    Pushing away Ishizaki, who wasughing exasperatingly, Kei drank from the water bottle


    "This is, how can I say this, certainly a mystery drink."


    "Even the quintessential Ayanok��ji is a bit taken back."


    Not only was it not tasty, but it honestly didn''t taste edible. The tension plummeted.


    "I''m going to surprise my customers tomorrow. For 500 points a cup, I''m going to offer them a magical experience."


    "I''m amazed that Ry��en allowed you to do this."


    I''m more surprised about that as well.


    "He said, ''Do whatever you want with your points. We''re doing something else tomorrow.''"


    I see. So Ishizaki is just going to rent the extra space for himself. Then the expenses would be minimal, and, well, it''s no wonder that about 10 guests would at least be curious about the experience.


    "Ugh, a fun date turned into the worst..."


    After that, Kei just kept giving Ishizaki resentful nces until she left the ce. Their rtionship, which seemed to have improved a bit, may be back to square one.


    After finishing our reconnaissance while genuinely enjoying a few of the activities, I returned with Kei to the maid caf��. The ssroom was filled with students, who seemed to be enjoying talking to the maids as they pleased. When one of the students asionally deviated from the moral line and persistently called out to them, Sud�� intervened, forcibly interrupted them, and asked them to leave the room. He suited the role of a bodyguard and was in charge of dealing with trouble.


    The two-hour festival simtion would soon be over. I discussed with Horikita whether or not we needed to make any changes to the final staffing for tomorrow.


    As I, Sud��, and the other boys started cleaning up, Onodera showed up.


    "We''re done here, too," Onodera said. "I wish I could have seen everyone''s maid outfits." Onodera, who had been sent out to the outdoor stalls, made a disappointed sound as soon as she returned.


    "You wanted to see the maids?"


    "I like cute things too. Besides, I''m not the kind of person who looks good in a maid''s uniform, my legs are too thick."


    "You don''t know if it looks good on you or not until you try it on."


    "With the limited clothes we have, I''m sure they won''t even fit my size."


    Onodera then replied with a wry smile, saying that it was impossible for her.


    Because of hermitment to swimming, Onodera has a well-trained body, including broad shoulders and legs that are more developed than most girls. If we were to provide her with a size-fit maid uniform, it would inevitably be made exclusively for Onodera. Sud�� crouched down and moved his gaze closer to Onodera''s thighs.


    "Wait, hey Sud��-kun!"


    "They''re the legs of a well-trained athlete. Well, it''s certainly a little different from what you''d call a maid." He ced his finger to his chin and said exactly what he thought.


    "I''m so embarrassed!" Onodera blushed and ran out of the ssroom like a rabbit.


    "What''s with her?"


    As I watched the two of them interact, I could feel the obvious change in Onodera up close. The two of them were not only the same, but they were also very close to each other. However, Sud�� didn''t seem to have noticed this, perhaps because he had never shown any affection to Onodera before, or perhaps he had never even sensed the presence of affection before.


    It would be nice if both arrows were facing each other, but as it was, both arrows were going the opposite way. I haven''t learned much about love, but I do know that the basic rule in these situations was to keep a warm eye on the people involved. However, that was why my curiosity and urge to see the result of a different pattern came over me. If I go against the "rules," will they no longer make it as a couple?


    "Don''t you understand? Why Onodera behaved like that? The same feelings you have for Horikita, Onodera has for you."


    "What?"


    I said it in a slightly roundabout way, so Sud�� didn''t immediately understand. However, Sudo wasn''t so rock-headed that he couldn''t understand what


    I was saying at all.


    "Huh? Onodera... me?"


    "Yeah."


    "No, no, that ain''t it." He seemed to have thought about it seriously, but denied that it could be true.


    This was also a natural reaction.


    "Onodera might not have been interested in you at first, but you''ve been showing remarkable growth these days. It wouldn''t be surprising if she became aware of you as a member of the opposite sex, right?"


    Little by little, Sud��''s face turned grim as he began to reorganize his thoughts.


    "What the hell... why me?"


    "Of course, there''s no guarantee. If you want to know the truth, it might be important to observe Onodera carefully and try to understand her."


    "But, hey... I..."


    Nothing else needed to be said to understand the situation. Right now, Sud��''s feelings were strongly directed toward Horikita. That was why I wanted him to show me how he''ll change from this unnecessaryment of mine.


    Will he move closer to Horikita or sway toward Onodera? Or will he change into an unexpected third party?


    "No. I''m getting a little confused, I''m going to go cool off while I go see the food stalls."


    You''ll have to think long and hard toe up with an answer.


    "Kiyotaka-kun, was that... okay?"


    Y��suke, who was standing by, seemed to have heard my conversation.


    "I don''t think you should have interfered."


    "Is that so? Well, I''m sorry if that was careless of me. I''m still learning how this works." I apologized to Y��suke with a nk expression on my face.


    A little whileter, it was time for the preliminaries to end.


    "Good work, everyone. That''s all for today. If there are any reassignments for tomorrow''s show, I''ll call you from my cell phone by 9 pm."


    After all the cleanup was done, all preparations for tomorrow wereplete.


    The students were already on their way home for tomorrow''s performance.


    Only two people remained in the ssroom, me and Horikita.


    "I''ve been thinking about it a lot, but it just doesn''t feel right for you to be a maid," I said.


    "I don''t want to do it, but it would be nice to have more hands, wouldn''t it? It would have been a little easier if your girlfriend had cooperated."


    "I''m sorry, but it''s out of my jurisdiction. I''ve left it to Kei''s will."


    It seemed that Sat�� and the others, including me, had approached Kei, but she refused to wear the maid''s uniform.


    I haven''t heard what the reason was, but I guess it was because she didn''t want to change clothes rather than because it was too much trouble or because she wasn''t suited for customer service.


    Not everyone understood Kei''s body and her past.


    "I''m just kidding. It''s not something you force anyone to wear. If you''re unwilling to wear it, it won''t make you look good to tomorrow''s guests."


    "Here, look through this. I''ve made some adjustments based on today''s simtion."


    I handed the notebook to Horikita for a final check.


    "Thank you. It looks like the schedule you''ve put together is going to be fine."


    Horikita looked up from her notebook, "All festival participants are required to take a one-hour break before the end of the festival after notifying their homeroom teacher."


    During this break, they are forbidden from assisting with any of the stalls and must coordinate their workers, whether they are busy or not.

 Chapter 277: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 277: 4.4</h4>


    In the middle of the street leading to Keyaki Mall, a man and a woman were facing each other. The preliminary preparations for the festival had already begun and there were no students to be seen in this vicinity at all.


    "We can finally talk, Yagami-kun."


    "I didn''t think you would barge in on us while we were preparing for the festival."


    "I wouldn''t have caught you otherwise. It seemed as if you were avoiding me."


    Even after making contact, Yagami forced Kushida to move to this location, refusing to discuss the situation on the spot.


    "It''s just a coincidence that we didn''t meet. By the way, it seems you visited my room several times. Sorry, I was away."


    Both continued their dialogue without losing their smiles. If someone were to witness the two of them from the sidelines, the scene would appear to be one of friendly banter.


    "Were you really away? Or were you using the answering machine to harass


    me?"


    "Staying away? Why would I do that? There seems to be some kind of misunderstanding."


    "There''s no misunderstanding."


    Irritated by Yagami''s refusal to let her grasp the reality of the situation, Kushida stepped forward on her own.


    "You cut me off because I was useless. That''s all, isn''t it?"


    In a unanimous special examin, Yagami expected Kushida to expel Horikita and Ayanok��ji. Since she failed to live up to that expectation, and since there was no contact between them, it wasn''t surprising for Kushida to judge as such.


    "Do you remember that I contacted you on the night of the unanimous special exam?"


    "Yes. Of course, I remember."


    On the night the exam ended, Yagami called and learned from Kushida''s mouth that Horikita and Ayanok��ji had not dropped out. Shortly after that, the phone was disconnected, and Kushida had not been able to talk to Yagami since then.


    "I will be honest with you. I thought Kushida-senpai hated me. That''s why I haven''t had the courage to face youtely, and maybe I''ve been unconsciously avoiding you."


    "Stop it. It''s no use lying to me like that now. Pretending to be a junior who has a liking for me only gives me the chills after I learned part of your true nature."


    "Excuse me. Now, could you tell me again how that day happened?"


    Kushida was beginning to understand. The freshman in front of her was just having fun ying with her. He knew all about the unanimous special exam, and he was about to open his yful hands again.


    "I won''t answer."


    "Why not? At least we know that Kushida-senpai acted to expel one of those two students. But as a result, Sakura-senpai was expelled instead of Kushida-senpai. What I want to know are the details of it."


    "I did nothing in that special exam. So, Sakura-san, who was the lowest in OAA, was inevitably cut. That''s it."


    The ss details in the unanimous special exam were not leaked to outsiders. So, Yagami wanted to know the details. She tried to push the story forward with the idea that Sakura Airi was only selected due to ack of ability.


    But Yagami kept smiling and gently ces his hand on Kushida''s shoulder.


    "You shouldn''t lie."


    "Lie?"


    "Since after the unanimous special exam, Kushida-senpai''s behavior routine had changed significantly. I have already investigated and understood that you have distanced yourself from your ssmates, although you seemed to be getting along with students in other sses as usual. In other words, that unanimous special exam exposed a certain degree of your own true nature."


    Externally, Kushida had been smiling at her ssmates. But there were limits since her ssmates were more distant than ever. A small group of girls used to hang out a couple of times a week, but now it''s down to zero.


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about. I''m still getting along with my ssmates as usual."


    Kushida implied that Yagami just so happened to miss the times she was hanging out with her ssmates. Kushida tried to push it that way, but Yagami kept smiling.


    "It''s no use trying to hide it; Kushida-senpai allowed her ss to discover all about her past. And it was definitely Ayanok��ji-senpai who pushed her into that corner."


    Yagami spoke eloquently, as if he had been watching Kushida and the others fight in ss. The fact that he mentioned Ayanokouji instead of Horikita''s name was clearly unusual.


    "You''re imagining things on your own. It doesn''t fit at all."


    "You''re free to misrepresent it, but... What on earth do you want from me if you have nothing to say? I have to help with the festival, so I''d like to get back as soon as possible."


    "I''m tired of hanging out with you, Yagami-kun."


    "You''re tired of...?"


    "I''m tired of being your friend, Yagami-kun. That''s all I wanted to say today."


    Kushida abruptly offered to end her rtionship with Yagami.


    "You want to end your rtionship with me. I understand that feeling. Since Kushida-senpai''s past and character are now known in the ss, there is no point in pressing Horikita-senpai or Ayanok��ji-senpai to be expelled now."


    "I''m not going to correct every single thing anymore. If you want to interpret it as you see fit, go ahead."


    "You''re an interesting person, Kushida-senpai. What you just said was the truth. Besides, Kushida-senpai herself is beginning to think that it''s okay to throw herself into this environment. So, she wants to end her backwards rtionship with me and look forward."


    She wanted to look forward. Those words stuck in her mind.


    "Aside from Ayanok��ji-senpai, have you made peace with Horikita-senpai?"


    "I won''t answer that either."


    "By the looks of it, you''ve been heartbroken. I''m a little disappointed, Kushida-senpai."


    Kushida resisted the urge to retort, but anger welled up within her, and she continued hating Horikita as much as ever.


    "I am...!"


    "Oh, that''s okay. You don''t have to say anything else. I can tell by looking at you."


    His dismissive attitudecked some of his former politeness. Kushida couldn''t help but feel a little creeped out by this, but she couldn''t afford to show any weakness here. Rather, she was clearly more tolerant than the average student, perhaps due to her repeated contact with unusual people like Ayanok��ji, Ry��en, or Amasawa.


    She was surprised and felt a sense of realization when acting tough.


    "This is the end of us, Yagami-kun. We have nothing to do with each other, right?"


    "Rest assured. You''re worried that I might go around exposing Kushida-senpai''s past, right? That''s why you came to check on me while giving me a warning, right?"


    "That''s right, if Yagami-kun exposes me, rumors about me will go around the school."


    "Then will you listen to what I have to say?"


    "I''ll tell them everything about Yagami-kun, about how you used me to get Ayanok��ji and Horikita expelled from school, about how you''re a devil with a kind face."


    Yagami didn''t know if this was a threat. Still, using the weapons she has now is the only way Kushida can defend herself.


    "You have threatened back. Then I will keep that in mind. Are we done?"


    Whether it works or not, Yagami broke off the conversation and walked away.


    "I''m the leader of the 1st year ss B. I''m busy with various cultural festival stalls, so I''ll see you then."


    "Don''t forget, Yagami-kun, that as long as you keep your promise, I will keep mine."


    Yagami smiled atst and disappeared out of sight with light steps.


    "I hope this is the end of it."


    While she held such wistful thinking, she also realized that it wasn''t the end.


    So what should she do?


    Should I just wait with my fingers in my mouth, or should I set up and strike?


    "No. I can''t stop Yagami..."


    Up until now, Kushida had challenged and lost to various opponents, including Horikita.


    She now realized that she was painfully alone.


    I realize that I am alone. But even so, the situation has changed drastically.


    The other side is definitely licking Kushida''s chops. Not just on the surface, but from the bottom of their hearts.


    Even so, she prided herself on being able to read such things.


    "Before I fight that guy, I have something to do."


    She knew that the problem that needed to be solved goes above just Yagami.


    She had no desire to go back to being a gentle honor student, but she must show a solid contribution to maintain a firm position in the ss.


    Kushida Kikyo knew how to survive by herself.

 Chapter 278: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 278: 4.5</h4>


    In the middle of the night, I received a phone call.


    "It''s very unusual for you to call me, Sakayanagi."


    On the other end of the line, Sakayanagi let out a little chuckle.


    "Indeed you may be right. May I have a few minutes of your time now?"


    "I wouldn''t be answering if it wasn''t convenient."


    "I see. Then let me cut right to the chase. Ayanok��ji-kun, you will attend the cultural festival as a matter of course, won''t you? My father seems to be concerned that there may be people from the outside who wille to bring you back."


    "The chairman of the board called me a little while ago. He told me that I should consider taking this time off from the main event again, but I politely declined."


    I probably would have attended thest sports festival, though, if not for the fact that I had to give Sakayanagi a break.


    "Aren''t you afraid? No, that''s a foolish question, I''ll change the question a bit. Are you perhaps assuming that the people involved will not move to recapture you?"


    Otherwise, Sakayanagi said, she doesn''t see the point of me purposefully putting myself in harm''s way.


    "It''s simply a question between actual harm and potential harm. There''s other opportunitiesing up, such as the school trip. If the harm would go away after these two festivals, I would act differently. However, there''s no guarantee


    that there won''t be spectators at next year''s festival too. It''s easy to stay in your shell, but the opportunities I will lose by doing so are far more troublesome."


    "So you want to experience your remaining school life and what is normal for a student as much as possible." She replied in agreement with my way of thinking.


    "Besides, I have other objectives. I don''t want to waste them."


    "If that''s the case, I have nothing further to say; I think it''s best that Ayanok��ji-kun does what he wants."


    I was curious about the festival, but I knew it was not polite to ask about it.


    Was she simply trying to win that showcase, or was she trying to crush thepetition? Or does she have some other goal in mind? If I asked her, she might answer, but that would lead to a different story.


    It was up to ss A to make whatever choice they make, and no third party had the right to decide what was right or wrong.


    "But unforeseen circumstances are things that can happen at any time. Even if the festival is safe, you never know what may happen next. If you have any trouble, please feel free to contact me anytime."


    "That''s very kind of you."


    "We can''t have Ayanok��ji-kun disappear before we have a rematch."


    "I''ll take care of myself."


    "I''ll see you soon then. Good night."


    Avoiding any idle chatter, Sakayanagi ended the call with a mutter.

 Chapter 279 - 5 : The Festival

    <h4>Chapter 279: Chapter 5 : The Festival</h4>


    AFTER A LONG period of preparation, the festival finally arrived.


    The festival began at 9:00 a.m., and students were required to arrive at school by 8:30 a.m.


    Furthermore, the gates to the school opened at 6:00 a.m., so if necessary, preparations can be made early in the morning. Horikata and I met at the lobby of our dormitory at 6:00 a.m. to go to school. This was because we have to make a final confirmation in advance, in order to avoid any inconvenience during the actual event.


    As soon as I joined her, she turned her attention to the box I was holding in my hands.


    "Good morning. Is that cardboard by any chance the one you were talking about?"


    "I''m sorry for making youe up with an unnned budget."


    "It wasn''t a big amount, so the impact is minimal. We second years should''ve been given 5,000 points each to spend as we see fit."


    We also rubbed elbows with students from first to third grade who came in early with the same idea, although not as many. I stopped by the ssroom once to drop off a box of hand-me-downs and then came over to the maid cafe.


    "Did you receive the call from Matsushita-san?"


    "I checked. It must be hard for her since she''s one of the leading figures who led the maid caf�� to this point."


    Matsushita contacted me early in the morning and reported that she had to take the day off due to illness.


    "But it''s a wise decision."


    If she had only a slight fever, she might have been able to go, but she had developed a cough and other symptoms, so she could not perform a job that required customer service. Additionally, even if she were reassigned, Matsushita, who was not feeling well, could not be entrusted with a heavy workload, and if the cold spread, it would affect the ss during the festival.


    "Besides, this is the kind of preparation we need to make in advance."


    It''s not enough to just reassign personnel; it is necessary to know where to fill in the missing personnel.


    "Speaking of which, did you hear? It''s rumored that Hasebe-san and Miyake-kun may have been the ones who leaked the information about the maid cafe."


    "Sounds like it. But we could''ve foreseen that at an early stage, couldn''t we?"


    This information came down from Kei, who was in close contact with the girls and had already heard about it.


    "I guess so. But I wonder if it was really a good idea to leave it alone."


    "Rumors are rumors. Haruka and Akito didn''t actually leak the information."


    Horikita''s self-loathing at not being able to help Haruka and the others peeked out.


    "You shouldn''t show your weakness so easily. It will only give them an opening to take advantage of you."


    "You''re always so calm as if you''re a stranger to the situation."


    I noticed that Horikita was looking at me as if to check my expression. The observation continued for five or ten seconds, and then I noticed that her face had changed to a difficult expression with a wrinkle between her eyebrows.


    "I have a few questions...do you usually interact with the first-year students?"


    "First-year students? No, I don''t. I talk to Nanase or Amasawa once in a while, but that''s about it."


    I feel like I shouldn''t say that I interact with them, since I rarely ever go see them myself.


    "Is that what you wanted to ask?"


    "It''s not a big deal."


    "Speaking of interaction, what about you? You talk to first years in the student council, don''t you?"


    "Well, I do. I''m getting a little bit more involved with the juniors."


    The student council had gained three people from this year''s first years; the second years only had Ichinose for a long time. There was a distinctck of quality, if not quantity, of talent. The most recent addition was Horikita, but it was likely that the number of members was adjusted to fill the gap.


    There was no limit to the number of members in the student council, but it was said that there were generally eight to twelve members. At this school, there are currently three third-year students, two second-year students, and three first-year students. It would seem that they were following past conventions.


    "At first, I thought it was useless. I would rather be in my room studying than doing student council work because it would better benefit me. To be honest, that feeling hasn''t gone away."


    Student council work wasn''t the only thing that seemed like such a waste of time. Whether it was club activities or friendships, it was basically a series of futility.


    Some may go from club activities to bing professionals, or from friendships to future jobs, but for many, these will be nothing more than memories of the past.


    On the other hand, if you work hard at your studies, it is likely to lead you to a great future. It would be the most solid and safe option a student could take.


    "There''s a lot to be learned in futility. You''re beginning to see that."


    "Your brother was student council president, too."


    "My brother''s case is different from mine. He was able to carry out his student council duties wlessly while also achieving impable results in his schoolwork. I don''t think he ever felt that the student council was a burden, nor did he suffer from ack of studying."


    Even if we''ll never know the actual truth, there was always plenty of room for Horikita to study. I don''t think there was any way she didn''t put in a lot of bloody effort, but she didn''t let it show in vain.


    "I''m grateful to you, if only for the results. Joining the student council has helped me see things I couldn''t see."


    She was honestly thankful, or so I thought, but she still went on with her words.


    "It made me realize how great my brother is again, and I have to do a lot of extra work."


    "I wish you had just been honest and thanked me."


    "You have to ept someints."


    "I agree and sympathize with you that academics are a difficult goal for you."


    I know that I am not inferior to Manabu in terms of pure academics and physical ability. But if he was in the same grade as me, under the rules of this school. It''s a long shot, but you never know what kind of fight it would have been.


    At the very least, he held enough power for me to consider him a dangerous enemy.

 Chapter 280: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 280: 5.1</h4>


    As 9:00 a.m arrived at the maid cafe in the special wing of the school, an announcement was made to all students at once.


    Guests stepped through the main gate and the opening of the festival was announced.


    "What do I do, I''m getting nervous..."


    "I haven''t had any contact with outsiders since I entered this school."


    I heard a conversation with Ike, who was standing shoulder to shoulder with Shinohara. I guess being in a closed environment for so long certainly created extra tension.


    Meanwhile, Sat�� and the other maids continued to discuss the shift change due to Matsushita''s absence.


    Although the burden on each of them would inevitably increase, the time adjustment was nearingpletion. Sat��, dressed in her maid costume, sped her hands together in anxiety, but quickly pped her own cheeks between her palms to regain confidence.


    "We can do it, we can do it!"


    "Maya-chan will be fine. I''ll back you up too."


    Kei, who was helping behind the scenes, cheerfully encouraged her.


    "Yeah, I''ll do my best!"


    Since oveing a big hurdle, the two of them have really grown closer.


    Their rtionship as best friends won''t be broken in the slightest from now on.


    The only other member I had to worry about was...


    I looked around and observed the other students. Sud�� and some of the male team members were not listening to the announcements and were having their final meeting with Y��suke.


    We had to keep our feet on the ground about what to do when it gets crowded or in case of trouble. After giving out all the instructions, we realized that we were short two students. Immediately after, Horikata and I looked at each other.


    We must''ve been thinking the same thing. She approached and spoke to me in a whisper.


    "Hasebe-san and Miyake-kun seem to be missing."


    "I guess it''s not like they''re in the restroom."


    The other students seemed to be too busy minding their own business to have noticed yet.


    "I knew there was something going on at this festival, but ..."


    "If it''s just simply cking off, I guess I''m rather grateful."


    For Horikita, who had not calcted them as a force to be reckoned with from the start, there was no need to get worked up if they just didn''t help out.


    However, if they were to sabotage the project, that would be a different story.


    "But it also adds fuel to the fire because of the rumors."


    "If you leak information and then skip the festival, well, that''s enough me, isn''t it?"


    "I''ve been keeping an eye on it so far, thinking only time will tell, but ... I still think we should do something about it early on. We should at least dispel the rumors."


    "I understand what you''re saying, but we should focus on the festival today."


    "Is that what you want?"


    "Even if we can erase the rumors, we can''t erase the fact that those two have slipped out. Besides, there is still a possibility that they could embarrass the ss in some other way at the festival."


    With multiple sources of anxiety, a poor response could lead to unnecessary animosity. Taking sides is certainly only for when Haruka and Miyake are determined to not be the enemy.


    "I agree."


    Horikita was a bit nervous, but she cleared her throat to get rid of her thoughts.


    "I''m sure you''ll be able to handle Hasebe-san and Miyake-kun just fine."


    I replied with a nce, and decided to start greeting the guests.

 Chapter 281: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 281: 5.2</h4>


    "Wee!"


    Sat��''s cheerful voice echoed in the ssroom, or rather the maid cafe. At the same time, the first guest to enter the store was a man who appeared to be in his 40s.


    A total of six maids waiting in the store responded all at once as they had been trained to do.


    "Let me show you to your seat."


    Sat��''s voice was cheerful, but her movements were stiff, since she wasn''t entirelyfortable yet. Still, thanks to the rehearsal the day before, there were no major mistakes, and after showing the guest to their seat, she took the menu list and cold drinks to his table.


    The only way to get back to the practiced routine was to repeat the process and let them get used to the guests. Then, slowly but surely, the number of guests began to increase. The age range was simr, but sometimes teenage boys and girls who appeared to be the guests'' family members began to shyly walk in.


    "A good start, huh?"


    It wasn''t suddenly full, but it was nice to see that the seats weren''t all empty.


    My cell phone was constantly receiving calls and reports from my ssmates


    scattered around the school. Which exhibits were attracting the most people and which were deserted.


    Since the sales of each ss were unknown until the end of the festival, we had no choice but to gather information personally. Fortunately, all students were required to take a one-hour break, so there were always a certain number of students who were not busy.


    That is why, of course, our ss was always being scouted as well.


    After watching the room for a while, I decided to take a look at the hallway.


    It seemed that many guests had already made their way to the special wing, and as far as I could see, the guests outnumbered the students.


    If that man was behind this, it''s possible that he''s already in view.


    I don''t think he would be looking for me on the day of the event without having done his homework, leaving no stone unturned. But so far, I haven''t seen anyone suspicious. Besides, with so many adults, students, and children in the area, it would not be easy to make contact with me.


    For now, the focus should be on the current students rather than on them.


    Yoshida from Sakayanagi''s ss was peeking into the maid cafe without trying to hide.


    There was no sign of student''s from ss C at the moment, but they would likelye to check the situation at some point soon. The ssroom door opened vigorously, and Ike and Hondo came out in a hurry.


    "We took the order as fast as possible! I''m going to the food stall to get it now!"


    "That''s fine, but please be a little more calm."


    Some of the guests were surprised by what happened.


    "Oh, right. Sorry!"


    It was not an ideal situation for customers or potential customers to watch a flurry of restaurant personnel run to get their food. With a warning, the two looked at each other, nodded, and began to move, albeit at a rather fast pace.


    With this being the first delivery, we couldn''t afford to bete.


    Today, this kind of back-and-forth repeated itself every time an order was ced.


    "Ayanok��ji."


    I turned around when my name was called and saw Kanzaki approaching me.


    "Looks like you''re already thriving."


    We had gone through the preliminary phases, but Ichinose''s ss''s offering was, as I recall, sweets-based. They dealt things like crepes and chocte bananas.


    "What about you?"


    "The kids love them. But the adults are not as receptive as we thought they would be, so we''re not sure if we can aim for the top spot in terms of sales."


    "You may have a hard time, then."


    "Probably, but my priorities have shifted so I''m not entirely concerned about this festival at the moment."


    Apparently, the first step towards change with Himeno may have worked.


    "I''m going to the gym now. I want to learn what I can from the third years for the future."


    "I see. See youter."


    After seeing Kanzaki''s walk off, I decided to return to the maid cafe and start working. I didn''t have much to do until "noon" arrived, though.


    In a small partitioned off corner of the ssroom, I stood by to deal with any problems that could arise. I''m also in charge of taking pictures of guests who want to have their picture taken. Within a few minutes, after the first photo shoot, the guests who had been watching began asking to be photographed in rapid session.


    I''m not saying that there weren''t adults out there who would like to make some fun memories with high school students, but it was better to assume that the guests were taking advantage of the festival''s purpose and dropping money on us.


    In a sense, it seemed that quite a few of them decided that this was also their job.


    Nevertheless, conversation andughter gradually spread throughout the maid caf��, and it began to show aspects of a lively, ubiquitous caf��.


    "New customers, please show them around." Horikita''s inorganic voice reached the ssroom filled withughter. Sat�� immediately approached to serve the customer and began to lead him to an empty seat.


    "Sato-san will show you around. "


    "Well then, if you''ll follow me...."


    Being one to shy away from showing affection, Horikita was in charge of outdoor advertising. Although she was dressed as a maid to attract customers''


    attention, she did not smile in person.


    If this were a real maid cafe, Horikita would have been fired during her training period after passing her interview.


    Then again... the idea that Horikita would interview for a maid cafe was unlikely to happen.

 Chapter 282: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 282: 5.3</h4>


    Less than two hours into the festival, the maid caf�� was maintaining its customer base as nned.


    The important thing was how well they could handle the goods we stocked.


    Especially since the film we stocked cost about 70 points per roll.


    So far our stock seemed to be holding out well, and I, the instant camera and photographer, had been busy flying around the ssroom. The instant camera, which cost nearly 9,000 points, was not a cheap photographic equipment to have invested in, and I had to buy another one in case my current one broke down.


    "I got one shot~!"


    The maids'' voices echo through the store, and I move out of the waiting room, camera in hand.


    It seems that this time they wanted a photo shoot with Mii-chan, and Ichihashi, who was in charge of the bill, promptly received the points on her cell phone andpleted the payment.


    "Yes, cheese!"


    After taking a two-shot of theughing Mi-chan and the customer, I checked the film that popped out of the instant camera.


    "Of course..."


    I knew it was suspicious at the moment I took the shot, but I had released the shutter just as Mii-chan''s eyes closed.


    "Ugh, sorry Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    "Never mind. I''ll take another picture."


    It was a souvenir shot, and while I didn''t mind if the guest''s expression was a little problematic, I couldn''t give him one with a mistake in the maid''s expression.


    This was not only a consideration for the guests, but also for the maids, such as Mii-chan. As a girl, there was no way she would ept a badly taken photo.


    That was why, even though each picture could be taken for 800 points, two, or in some cases three, sheets of film were needed.


    The second shoot went well, so I handed over the photos that were ready to be developed. After the shooting was over, I quickly went back to the waiting room. Well, I have been repeating this kind of thing endlessly since this morning.


    But still... this festival, with so many people connected to politics, was the perfect opportunity for that man.


    I knew that he would try some kind of trick to set me up, no matter how many people were around. This must have been the same for Chairman


    Sakayanagi. However, as noon approached, there was no sign of any change.


    I''m reminded of the conversation between Tsukishiro and the mysterious student who had visited me during the athletic festival.


    "But no matter how good you are, you are still just a child. You should understand that that person has already factored in that strength of yours and sent me to you."


    "After eliminating Tsukishiro, all we have to do is eliminate the white room students and peace will return. I came here to advise you because I think you are making such a mistake."


    If we were to tie these matters together somewhat forcefully, it would be natural to think of capturing me by force with adults who are not students through the cultural festival.


    In fact, they decided to use Tsukishiro to forcefully hold the festival, so it should be so. Would they miss this great opportunity by letting me evade them?


    "Missing an opportunity..."


    Of course, the festival was not over yet. But what if they had not made any moves at this point?


    That would not be mere negligence, but....


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, what should I do, I seem to have run out of Darjeeling!"


    Seeing Mii-chan rushing in with a panicked look on her face, I interrupted my thoughts.


    Let''s focus on the problem at hand for now.


    We had prepared several kinds of tea, but the Darjeeling, which used high-end tea leaves, sold out immediately. We had discussed and narrowed down our stock to the minimum number, but the sales were unexpectedly high. On the other hand, inexpensive tea bags sold poorly. Since it was impossible to buy more on the day of the show, we could not restore our inventory now.


    "Put a sellout sticker on all the menu boards right away. I''ll write corrections on the signs that are posted outside."


    "Uh-huh."


    I grabbed a pen and immediately corrected the sign with the menu at the entrance of the restaurant. Both were cheap props from the bargain bin, but they would work.


    "There we go."


    I wrote the words "Sold Out due to popr demand" next to the Darjeeling.


    Although this is an unexpected sellout, it was a way to showcase the poprity of the maid cafe.


    Immediately after, an arm reached out from the left side behind me. What came into view was not a school uniform, but the fabric of a suit.


    "Take this without turning around."


    A white paper, folded in half, swayed in the slight breezeing in through the window. There may not be any contact, or so I thought, and just when I thought so, this happened. It would be easy to ignore the order not to turn around, but I silently epted it.


    The person who approached me at such short distance without giving me any sign of him was not an ordinary person.


    "May I ask your name?"


    "That''s needless prying."


    As soon as I grab the paper, his left arm disappears from my sight. I held that position for a while, and then I sense another presence approaching.


    "What''s wrong, Kiyotaka-kun?"


    Yousuke seems to havee out of the ssroom, concerned that I didn''te back right away.


    "Sorry, I was approached by a guest who got a little lost and had to be dealt with. Any trouble?"


    "Orders are starting to not turn out well. The stalls seem to be doing better than expected."


    "I see, the turnover is getting out of control. I''ll be right there."


    After confirming that Y��suke had left, I unfolded the paper I had been holding in my right hand.


    [I''m here to pick you up. Decide for yourself what to do. I''ll wait for you at the front gate.]


    He even politely included his phone number.


    I decide what to do? If they are really giving me a choice, did they really think I would choose to leave?


    It was unclear how much significance the note had. All I could say for sure was that the person who handed this to me was connected to the White Room.


    Have they decided that they can''t use direct force and will leave it to my judgement?


    But the fact that no steps had been taken so far may have something to do with that sentence. Either way, there was no point in worrying about it. I rolled up the small piece of paper, put it in my mouth, and swallowed it.


    Paper originallyes from a nt, and its main ingredient is cellulose. It has no enzymes to break it down, so it cannot be digested and gets ejected as it is.


    It is not a problem if a third party picks up this note, but it can be a disadvantage to have it in my possession. If it was a festival where you were stuck in a bad situation, it was better to do this quickly and easily because there was no further issues.

 Chapter 283: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 283: 5.4</h4>


    Three hours had passed since the festival began.


    It was noon, and new guests were arriving to rece the families who had gone to the school first thing in the morning. After receiving a report from Ike and the others, who had gone out to scout the area, I was walking near the entrance when I heard a voice saying, "There it is!"


    Ike pointed to where several girls from Ry��en''s ss were shouting.


    "We, the 2nd year C ss, are currentlypeting with the 2nd year B ss for sales at the concept caf��! If we lose, someone might be held responsible and expelled from school!"


    The air was clearly alien to the many students who basically continued to serve their customers with smiles and cheerfulness.


    Arge number of guests stopped in their tracks at the sight of the saddened faces and raised voices.


    "Please, can we ask for your cooperation! Please help us!"


    One after another, they handed out the flyers they seemed to have been producing. I approached a boy of junior high school age who seemed to have received one of them and asked him if I could take a quick look at it.


    On it, offerings for a kimono concept caf�� on the second floor of the special wing were detailed, but it didn''t mention the menu or any other price. Instead, it put the confrontation front and center, strongly emphasizing that this was a battle they absolutely could not lose.


    "Nah what? This is bad, right?"


    The girls'' earnest appeals couldn''t have been left unspoken. In all likelihood, Ry��en was probably threatening his ssmates with expulsion.


    "Is he seriously trying to get someone expelled, that Ry��en guy?"


    "I doubt it. If a forced expulsion is a penalty, that means he threatened to expel them without their consent. It would be a problem. In fact, if the student who was threatened told the school, Ry��en''s position would be jeopardized, and a sharp drop in ss points would be inevitable."


    "Then that means he''s lying! Let''s go there now and make them stop!"


    "Impossible. His ssmates strongly fear the chance he''s telling the truth.


    Besides, if you listen to the words out loud, all they''ve said is that they might be expelled from school."


    So there was no material to determine that he was lying to the guests as well.


    The fact that they don''t just settle for a fair confrontation is typical of Ry��en, whoes up with one bold strategy after another.


    It was safe to assume that they were working more towards beating us than to be among the top four.


    "If we lose, they''ll take away 1 million private points, right? Oh no!"


    I would love to tell the head-holding Ike not to worry, but it was important to show the public that he was seriously frightened. The importance of the confrontation became more clear.


    "What do you want to do?"


    "If they want to do this, we''ll just fight back with a simr strategy."


    "You mean threaten to expel someone too!?"


    "No, not that way. We''re going to show them that we''re also putting all of our effort into the concept caf��petition as a second year B ss. We are ready for that."


    "What? And what do you mean ready?"


    "Open the cardboard box I brought for you."


    I had Hondo and Tonomura take the box down to the ground and remove the duct tape. Out of it came a bunch of flyers.


    "This is...! It''s a flyer just like theirs!"


    "I was nning to put up flyers to drive the guests to the event if necessary.


    They beat me to it, but I''m sure it''ll be effective nheless."


    The flyers prepared by Horikita''s and Ry��en''s ss were quickly circted throughout the school, and word spread that the two sses werepeting against each other.


    This way, it was also self-evident that they were making big bets on the one-on-one match-up. Knowing about this confrontation will give the illusion that both sses were taking simr risks. It doesn''t create the need for me to go out of my way to threaten my ssmates.


    "I''m going to call the girls who have free hands now and ask them to spread the flyers all at once."


    "Okay, okay! I''ll let them know right away!"


    The process was to have them use their feet directly and have Hondo and the othersmunicate the information to their ssmates. Then, in addition to the predetermined points for distributing flyers, we notified the boys who were running the stalls to let them know that we were confronting Ry��en''s ss as well.


    "Did you hear Horikita''s ss and Ry��en''s ss are ying for a lot of money?"


    "I heard that the leader of the losing ss is getting expelled?"


    It seemed that word of the one-on-one match was beginning to reach the ears of ordinary students who had nothing to do with it.


    Spection led to rumors, and rumors led to spection.


    "I''m going back. Let me know if you need anything else."


    Ike and the others who delivered meals were always on the lookout for changes in the situation. They nodded their heads in assurance, and I left them to it as I headed back to the special wing. On the way there, I spotted a Japanese-style girl holding a leaflet in a corner of argely empty corridor.


    "Shisase!"


    The way she handed the leaflets to the asional adult passing by reminded me of the lethargic adults I sometimes see at the Keyaki Mall handing out tissues without much enthusiasm. They were just handing out a predetermined number of leaflets in an unobtrusive manner.


    "Can I have one?"


    "Shassu."


    They may not even be aware of our presence, or perhaps they were just thanking us in a small way. She offered me a small thank-you and a leaflet. But as I took it, her eyes locked onto me.


    "Geez."


    "You''ve been handing out flyers in a ce like this, Ibuki?"


    "Go away."


    I was looked at by someone who didn''t want to be looked at, and she looked away with a disgusted expression on her face.


    "I''d heard about you, but I guess that means you''re keeping your word."


    I had heard that she would dress in a kimono after losing the match with Ry��en, but it suited her better than I expected.


    "I guess clothes make the man, huh?"


    She stared at me intensely, but I was relieved that she didn''t seem to understand much of what I meant.


    "It''s nothing."


    It wasn''t easy to get rid of all the flyers when you''re handing them out in an unpopr ce.


    "Maybe you should move to more ces. I saw Yamashita and the others handing them out over there."


    "You''re kidding. Why would I team up with those guys?"


    Although I already knew her answer, she immediately rejected me.


    "Why don''t you take all of this?"


    "That''s a tall order."


    "Fuck, I think I''ll just stuff them in a garbage bag and throw them away."


    She looked down at the stack of flyers she didn''t like and swore. The reason she didn''t do so, though, was probably to make sure she avoided punishment in case they lose.


    When you win, you force your opponents to do so, but when you lose, you run away. If you continue to do that, you won''t be able topete with Ry��en or any other opponent in the future.


    "By the way, what did you confront Ry��en with?"


    "I would have preferred a tie-up, but he suggested we y a card game."


    "Card game? You mean like poker or something like that?


    "Well, it''s simr."


    The content of the game itself was not important, but the fact that it was a suggestion from Ry��en was what caught my attention. Maybe Ibuki was sessfully entrapped. Regardless, at least Ibuki wasn''t getting in my way any more.


    "I''ll spread the wordter about what you''ve been working so hard to promote here."


    "Don''t spread it. I''ll kick your ass."


    I quickly dodged a sharp kick as her costume shook.


    "Damn it."


    "Oh, by the way, the greeting at the caf�� is ''Wee home, master." Try it out."


    "I''ll say it if you''ll take my kick to your face."


    "I think I''ll have to pass."


    She raised her leg slightly to threaten me, so I shrugged and left.


    By the time I returned to the maid cafe, the somewhat rxed atmosphere that had prevailed earlier in the day was gone, and thergest crowd of the day had begun to form a line.


    Horikita joined the lineup, guiding the visitors.


    "It looks like you''ve started handing out the flyers without any problems,"


    she said.


    "Yes. From this point on, yours and Ry��en''s ss should start to outpace the others."


    "Everything is going ording to your n, isn''t it?"


    I''m not the one who added the unique color to it, though. Horikata and I nodded to each other and returned to our respective positions.

 Chapter 284: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 284: 5.5</h4>


    The maid caf�� was on the road to sess. However, the fact that Ry��en made his movements known at an early stage may have backfired on him, and there were no other sses other than Ry��en''s ss that followed suit, effectively attracting customers. This in itself was a wee development, but a problem that had not urred during the rehearsal arose.


    The problem was that there were too many customers due to the confrontational attitude that had been adopted between ss B and C.


    The ssroom seats were filled to the limit, and cramming in more would only make it more suffocating. The only solution was to make the visitors wait in line, but maid cafes don''t have a fast turnover to begin with.


    It was essential that students dressed as maids also enjoyed conversing with the adults. Usually, in such a situation, we would consider handing out numbered tickets and asking people toe backter. However, in a cultural festival, this was not a good idea. What would a customer with 3,000 points left in his/her pocket do if he/she received a numbered ticket and was asked toe back in an hour? Some customers would do so dutifully, but most would drop their money at another ce during the waiting time.


    The next thing you know, you''ve spit out almost 3,000 points, and you have no more money to drop at the maid cafe, so you leave without stopping by. This is a development that happens in the real world. That was why we wanted customers who had lined up once to keep lining up until they entered the store and spent their money. And if possible, we even wanted to absorb the points they n to drop elsewhere.


    "That''s not good. Customers are starting to leave the line."


    The prospect of taking a risk and getting a big payoff was now a warning sign.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, can I get out of customer service for a while? I have an idea."


    Kushida called out to me as I was about to walk to the end of the line.


    She must have been curious to see what was going on and came to check on the situation.


    "What are you going to do?"


    "The waiting customers are just bored, and they''re showing a strong interest in the maid caf��. But they''re probably hungry, too, and it''s too much to ask them to leave."


    "I guess so."


    Since it was also right around lunchtime, it was obvious from the adults now in the ssroom that many of them were there for food and drinks. Kushida picked up one of the bags filled with homemade cookies that she has been selling , prepared for souvenirs and started walking down the hallway with it.


    Then, with a smile, she called out to the now bored customers.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting"


    She then pulled a cookie out of the bag and started handing them out to the waiting crowd. She may be aiming to fill their bellies just a little, but there was more to it than that.


    Once they receive something in return, they may feel guilty about leaving the ce.


    If Kushida were to leave her current post, it would not be difficult for someone to run away from the line with some guilt on their back, but she stayed and continued to talk to them with a smile on her face.


    After receiving the cookies, it was no longer easy to leave the line, even though they were impatient.


    There were some disadvantages to Kushida leaving the hall, but the customers who had already taken their seats were certain to spend some money.


    For now, it was more important to bring the money-generating presence beyond that point.


    She could see what was going on in the restaurant better than anyone else, and she also knew how to make the most of herself. What could she do to get as many people on her side as possible?


    She knew how to get close to adults of the opposite sex, engaged them in conversation that made them feel good, and sometimes even held their hand or did other skinship with them. They showed not the slightest resistance or aversion to this behavior. The other girls had been working hard all day, but Kushida was the only one who had managed to do all of these things perfectly.


    Even when she was ounting at times, she made as few mistakes as possible, even when she stumbled over a calction. This was truly a gift, as she had never participated in any real-life practice sessions.


    "Kushida-san''s abilities are quite something. This is her element, I guess."


    Y��suke nodded his head in respect as he looked at her workmanship. "It seems that Kushida-san and Horikita-san, who have been facing strong headwinds, will also have some tailwinds."


    They''ve done such a good job, I had to admit that to some extent.


    "People are creatures that resent easily, but on the other hand, they are also creatures that admit easily. Especially when you are young, evaluations are like the two sides of a coin. From the front to the back, and now back to the front again.


    But the more you''re pushed around, the more you''ll feel like a tired presence."


    "Still, I''m fine with it, as long as Kushida-san is able to fight alongside everyone in the ss."


    "I''m really impressed by what I''m seeing."


    "I think it''s a cumtive process. During the preparations for the festival, Kushida-san visited Horikita-san''s roomte at night several times. I think they were practicing."


    So, in addition to her own talent, she was practicing well behind the scenes.


    If Y��suke''s reading of Kushida''s life was correct, it was a reminder of Kushida''s greatness. It would also confirm Horikita''s confidence that Kushida was in good hands. We then went back to the waiting room and spent about 30 minutes


    pulling the camera around.


    "Um, Ayanok��ji-kun, where is Kushida-san?"


    Mii-chan came out of the room, looking busy.


    "Kushida?"


    "There''s a customer who wants to take a picture with Kushida-san, but I can''t find her."


    Kushida-san, who was supposed to be organizing the line, had disappeared?


    Y��suke and I immediately looked down the hallway, and sure enough, Kushida was out of sight.


    "Excuse me, have you seen a girl standing in line here?" Y��suke called out to the guests in line.


    "Oh, you mean the girl who was handing out cookies? It looks like she was approached by a girl from the same school and followed her about five minutes ago."


    "What was she like?"


    I asked about the person who approached her, as if interrupting a conversation.


    "Um, a girl with her hair tied up in two knots."


    Y��suke didn''t seem to have a clue, but I had a strong idea.


    "I''m sorry, but I need you to take care of the store for a bit and direct me to another maid the way Kushida did."


    This was the kind of trouble no one expected. That''s why I knew immediately that it was a problem I had to deal with.

 Chapter 285: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 285: 5.6</h4>


    It was difficult to locate a particr person at a festival where many people, young and old, were present. And if you can''t predict where someone was going, it was even more difficult to find them.


    While operating my cell phone, I sighed in admiration at the overwhelmingwork of information. I was amazed at how fast and urate it was. Within a few minutes of making the call, I was able to get their location information.


    Not in the direction of the Keyaki Mall or the dormitories, but behind the indoor pool facility. When I arrived there, I found Kushida''s back facing me, dressed in an out-of-ce maid''s outfit.


    "So don''t make me say it again..."


    Kushida, who was probably having a heated conversation with her friend,


    was shouting at her.


    "Wow..."


    Meanwhile, the other person immediately noticed me and told Kushida to stop talking.


    "What? Why is... Ayanok��ji-kun here..?"


    " Of course he''s going to look for the ace when you''ve disappeared."


    That''s true. Although I let the substitute maid take over the queueing example set by Kushida, I''m not sure how much longer she can maintain the same pace as Kushida.


    "I thought I had taken her to a secretive location, but I''m surprised you found this ce, senpai."


    I was actually keeping an eye on her the moment she stepped out into the line.


    "Unfortunately for you, I''ve created an alliance with someone I can rely on now. No matter where anyone goes, I''ll be sure to know where they are."


    Even Amasawa doesn''t seem to have any idea who it was, but she didn''t inquire any further


    "She was going to go right back after this, right senpai~?"


    "Yeah. She''s right. I''m sorry I slipped out without telling you, but I also wanted to talk to Amasawa-san for a minute."


    "Then you could have just stood there and talked, that''s no reason to leave for 10 or 20 minutes."


    "That''s..."


    Kushida knew that the first priority was to keep the line moving and the customers happy. That''s why Kushida was working on abandoning her customer service duties. She wouldn''t have left her seat unless it was something serious.


    "Whatever there is between the two of you, we''re busy with the festival. Can you talk about it some other time?"


    There was no need to go to the trouble of choosing today as the day for the exchange.


    "You are not the least bit surprised to see me and Kushida-senpai together, are you? Did you know about our history?"


    "No." I really didn''t know that they had ever had any deep connection before. "But today, with this timely contact, I understand everything." Even information that seemed unnecessary was derived in my head on its own.


    Why was Kushida so adamant about expelling me from the school in a unanimous special exam, and why did she take a reckless gamble?


    If a student from the white room was behind it and forced her to do it, it was not unreasonable.


    I also began to see why she was acting as she was at the festival, where she would be easily traced. Kushida''s behavior also matched up with her behaviour after school, when she headed somewhere after declining invitations from her ssmates to join them.


    "Kushida-senpai will pay you backter, so can you give me a little time?"


    Amasawa in front of me still didn''t realize that I was vague about my answer.


    "Sorry Ayanok��ji-kun, could you please excuse me. I''ll be back as soon as I can. I also really need to talk to Amasawa-san."


    "I see what you mean, but it''s not going to happen. This is enough, Amasawa."


    "Senpai''s eyes are so naughty, aren''t they? You''re looking at me like I''m naked or something~"


    Amasawa pressed the tip of her finger against her lips in a seductive manner, but the tone wasn''t sexual. It was an action to hide her wariness that I can see right through her.


    "Kushida, you have a weakness regarding your past with Amasawa and one other person. That''s why you forced the ss to get into an uproar so that Horikita and I would be expelled from the unanimous special exam. Or maybe they were working on something before that."


    "Eh?"


    I must have been right on target; unable to confirm or deny, Kushida simply looked surprised.


    "Let''s stop now, senpai. This is a time for me and Kushida-senpai."


    "I''m sorry, but it doesn''t work that way. Kushida is a necessary part of the ss, even before her work as a maid."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "You may be right, but I''m not so sure about the other one." As she replied, Amasawa''s demeanour changed for the first time. Without warning, Amasawa, with an eerie smile on her face, grabbed Kushida''s wrist tightly.


    "What?!"


    She then pulled her close and stood behind Kushida with her right hand locked in ce and forcefully closed Kushida''s mouth with her left hand.


    "Perhaps you have an idea who the other student is, senpai?"


    Kushida''s words were silenced before she could ask the question since Kushida knew that person firsthand.


    In other words, she knew who the other white room student was. So, Amasawa anticipated Kushida''s reaction and took measures to ensure she didn''t unexpectedly utter that person''s name.


    "You know, Kushida-senpai, if you say anything bad, I''ll have you expelled, okay?"


    Kushida''s face contorted in pain, probably due to the tight grip on her right arm.


    "This isn''t like you, Amasawa. You seem like you''ve been cornered pretty hard."


    "Wait, senpai, I didn''t say anything, did I?"


    "Every single action speaks for itself."


    Kushida, enduring the pain, would not understand the nature of this conversation. And Amasawa herself didn''t know how much I understood.


    "Let''s talk about it againter, just the two of us next time. Please pretend you didn''t see this and leave, Ayanok��ji-senpai. If you do that, I''ll let her go in about ten minutes.


    "What if I don''t say yes?"


    "If you don''t say yes, I might cripple Kushida-senpai here." She said and squeezed her right arm even tighter.


    "Nngh!"


    "I''m a pretty girl, but I can easily break an arm or two."


    "Then let''s give it a try. Let''s see if you break Kushida''s arm first, or if I can stop you.


    The distance between me and Amasawa was about 5 meters.


    "Are you serious?"


    "Are you serious about breaking her arm? Or are you saying that you don''t think I can stop you?"


    "Both."


    "Then you''re wrong about both. You really shouldn''t forget who I am."


    Laughing, Amasawa loosened her grip on Kushida''s right hand, even if only slightly. At that moment I kicked the ground and dove in just as Amasawa switched to a motion to break her arm.


    My right hand slid down Kushida''s arm and reached her wrist as my left hand went around her mouth to her back, I grabbed Amasawa''s right hand.


    "No way..."


    It must be a defensive instinct. In an instant, she abandoned the action of breaking Kushida''s arm and shifted her attention to me, and tried to make a left fist with a tight grip.


    However, I didn''t give Amasawa any chance to make any further movements, and caught her, blocking her from moving towards Kushida.


    Just as Amasawa had done to Kushida earlier, I went behind her and twisted her body to the ground with her arm behind her back.


    "Fuu~!"


    The forceful hold on the ground caused Amasawa to lose her breath for a moment and gasp for air. Her breath caused a slight dust cloud to rise.


    "Oh my, that was... a little unexpected."


    "Did you think there wasn''t much difference between you and me?"


    I could tell by the look in her eyes. Amasawa''s pride, which was always high, was deeply wounded.


    "You mean I was wrong about your abilities?"


    "Probably."


    Amasawa''s fighting skills, which she had learned in the white room, are real.


    The fact that she and the other student had been in the white room for a long time and had learned to fight in the white room was a real advantage. However, whether they canpete with me on equal terms was apletely different matter.


    Even if the opponent''s skill had increased from 5 to 20, or even 30, it meant nothing because my score was still 100.


    "Since when did you think you could beat me?"


    "From the moment we met."


    "If that wasn''t a line from Ayanok��ji-senpai, you''d be rubbing salt in my wounds."


    "I''ll tell you this, you seem to think that the other student might push me out of school, but did you ever wonder why I never asked for the other student''s name?"


    The smile slowly faded from Amasawa.


    Up until now, I had never willingly sought out a white room student on my own.


    "That''s because I didn''t think they would be a match for me from the start."


    "You''re serious, aren''t you, senpai?"


    "It''s not you who doesn''t understand that, right, Amasawa?"


    If you had only half-heartedly practiced martial arts, you would not have had any real feeling for it yet. But Amasawa was different. Even so, in less than 10


    seconds of total movement, the match had already been decided by a wide margin.


    "You and the other student should have challenged me at an early stage. You shouldn''t have gone around and involved the people around you in the fun."


    "So, you understood why I contacted Kushida-senpai..."


    "It all connected just now. And now the unexpected is about to happen."


    "The unexpected?"


    "After 3 p.m., keep an eye on the student council chambers. You are not to be seen in front of anyone. Then you''ll have all the answers."


    Seeing Amasawa''s strength slowly slipping away, I released the restraints.


    There was no need for any more forceful techniques.


    "We''ve wasted a lot of time. Let''s go back to the maid cafe."


    "Is it okay leaving her?"


    Amasawa stood up, but there was no emotion in her face.


    "It''s okay. You don''t have to worry about your past being exposed."


    I started to walk away and Kushida rushed after me.


    "How could Ayanok��ji-kun know that?"


    "Don''t worry about it, but you can trust me."


    "Who is Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    That question would be inevitable if you had witnessed the conversation and fight with Amasawa earlier.


    "I don''t know anything about fighting, but I can tell you you''re not normal."


    "It''s not umon for ssmates to learn martial arts. Horikita and Ibuki, even Ry��en and Akito should be strong in fights, even if they are self-taught. It''s not like boys and girls canpete with each other from the start."


    I would exin that it was only overwhelming due to the gender difference.


    Whether Kushida would be convinced by that is another matter.


    "I''ll have to get back soon and help them get in line. Please go back yourself."


    "Yeah, sure." Kushida replied, bowing her head as if she had made up her mind to do something. "Thank you for helping me."


    An unexpected thank you from Kushida. Of course, Kushida was easily more down-to-earth than most people on the external front. She was the type of person for whom expressing gratitude itself was easy enough to do.


    "You don''t think I''m sincerely grateful, but that''s fine. I just felt like saying so, even if it''s a lie."


    "It''s not a big deal. It''s more of a natural behaviour for a ssmate."


    "Then you don''t have to consider this as a debt, right?"


    She emphasised that part, and I thought about it for a moment, but I didn''t feel like indebting her.


    "Of course."


    If I did consider her to be in my debt because of what happened, she wouldn''t really be able to repay me.

 Chapter 286 - 6 : What Airi Left Behind

    <h4>Chapter 286: Chapter 6 : What Airi Left Behind</h4>


    KUSHIDA, WHO HAD left for a period of time but recovered brilliantly, seeded in keeping the long line of customers together.


    However, the overcrowding caused a shortage of staff. The maids, who had taken a one-hour break, were still tired, and their movements had slowed considerably. The men had extra hands, but it was still a struggle because they could do the backstage work but couldn''t stand in the hall.


    There were a total of eight maid outfits prepared for the event. Two of them were basically considered as spares, so no more than six maids could work at any one time.


    Except for breaks, Sato and Mii-chan were the aces of the team, working hard all the time. Horikita, who was not initially supposed to be in charge of the hall, started serving customers in the middle of the day and was now moving around. The remaining three were Ishikura, who had substituted for Matsushita, Kushida, as well as Inokashira, who specialized in handing out flyers.


    Kushida was working in the hallway to keep people from leaving, so in effect there were only four people running the hall. Normally, additional staff should be brought in, but there was no one to fill the position.


    It wasn''t enough to say that any girl would do.


    This wasn''t a matter of looks or charm; it was alsorgely a matter of consent. Sonoda and others approached some of the girls, but the embarrassment of wearing a maid''s uniform and the rigors of the work led them not to volunteer for the job.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, the waiting customers may have grown bored. I don''t think we can keep them tied up like this forever."


    In between, Kushida peeked into the room from the hallway and called out to me. Horikita, who was serving customers (though mainly carrying food) in this emergency situation, also saw Kushida and approached her.


    "What''s going on at the end of the line?"


    "We told them that they would have to wait for a long time, and while some of them will wait, most of them will leave."


    And if they saw a long line, they weren''t going to wait, even if they didn''t want to. The guests who were staying now were not just customers, they were just guests who came to the festival. I didn''t expect them to stay because they felt that the time they had to wait was a waste.


    That was why Kushida was acting as a wall, but it seemed to be on the verge of copse.


    "You had two extra maid outfits, didn''t you?"


    It may be time to pull out the spare outfits for the day''s emergencies.


    "Yes, but what''s the point if there are no girls willing to do it?"


    "Yeah, why not Karuizawa-san?"


    Kushida suggested. I guess she thought that Kei, my girlfriend, would listen to my instructions. Certainly, it would not be impossible if I forced her to do so.


    But....


    "As I recall, she has a break at 2 p.m., right?"


    "Yes. She''s on break right now, and even if we had her change her clothes after returning at 3:00, it''s doubtful to what extent she''d be able to be of any use."


    What they didn''t know was that you can''t have her change in a simple locker room. Worst case scenario, it would be another 20 or 30 minutes to get back to the dorm and then back.


    "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"


    Ike, who had brought the food back and forth for I don''t know how many times today, called out to me.


    "What''s wrong? Any trouble?"


    "Oh no, I heard you say you''re short on staff right now. .... I was wondering if you could leave it to Satsuki."


    "Shinohara-san? But I wonder if she''s up to the task."


    "I think she''ll be fine. Besides, she was practising to be a maid, even if only lightly."


    The three of us looked at each other as we heard this for the first time.


    Shinohara was working on the cooking side of the stall.


    "Can you call her right now?"


    "Sure! I''m on it!"


    Now I''m just grateful to have a student who was willing to wear a maid''s outfit. Later, with a rmendation from Shinohara, he strongly persuaded Azuma. It was decided that she would join us.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, as you know, I have to take a break at 3:00. I''m going to need some manpower after I leave."


    "I''ve thought it through, don''t worry."


    Fifteen minutester, Shinohara was asked to go to the hall, and Azuma was asked to join Kushida in the hallway to hold up the customers waiting there. But Kushida''s expression in the hallway was grim, and it was not a development she seemed to relish.


    "It''s hard to say if she''s the right person for the job, because Shinohara-san


    doesn''t make much of an impact visually, and she''s not very good as customer service."


    "There''s an emergency."


    "Hasebe-san is still unavable?"


    "Before I say ''not avable,'' she''s been gone since this morning. She''s formally participating in the festival, but she might be back at her dormitory."


    "You mean payback for Sakura-san''s expulsion? You participated in the preliminary discussion, right?"


    "I was just observing."


    "Still, that means you know more than Shinohara-san, Azuma-san and the others, right?"


    "That''s why it was an effective way to get back at Haruka and Akito who seemed to be along for the ride, since we were making our ns based on the calctions of our strength."


    "I see. If you knew that much, I would have thought that you would have considered the possibility that those two would not participate and thought of another way."


    "Even if you knew that, you can''t increase the ss size. Besides, if we moved with another strategy from the beginning, Haruka and Akito would''ve got the hint. We decided that it would be more of a disadvantage to have them go on an unexpected sabotage by doing so."


    "It would bother us, but that''s it. It''s not an action that can be called revenge."


    "If only this were the case."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Haruka and Airi were looking forward to the cultural festival. That''s why they were going to see it through until the end. Since that''s over, there will be no reason to continue staying at this school."


    "You mean they''re going to drop out of school?"


    "Probably, if two students voluntarily withdraw from the school, in addition to the simple disadvantage in numbers, a significant drop in ss points will be inevitable. The ss would be severely damaged."


    "How much damage?"


    "I estimate 600 ss points for the two of thembined."


    "Six hundred?


    "Nothing surprising. Expulsion under the normal rules of this school has traditionally been penalized by that much."


    Excluding limited circumstances where the risk of expulsion was high due to


    strict special exams, this was a natural step.


    "If two people really drop out, it means that my path to ss A is doomed."


    The fact that she said "mine" was typical of Kushida, but she was right.


    "It''s going to be almost impossible to get back in."


    "I wonder if they''re just going to sit back and watch."


    "I was going toe up with a way out of this."


    I look down at my phone. Unfortunately, I haven''t received the notification I was hoping for.


    "I guess there was some unforeseen trouble, or maybe the trump card never arrived."


    Haruka''s strategy of sabotaging the festival, or rather voluntarily leaving school, was basically like an unstoppable ultimatum. No matter how many countermeasures were devised, there was no way to prevent itpletely.


    If Haruka herself had intended to stay at the school and repeatedly sabotaged the festival in desperation, as Kushida had done before, she could have used the special exam rules to force the students to leave. It was not difficult to derive a strategy that would go above and beyond the smallest of tricks. But Haruka did not take an unreasonable strategy. She knew that her skills were not as good as mine, so she chose the most efficient strategy.


    "Are you sure you want to continue like this?"


    "That''s not for me to decide; that''s for Haruka and Akito to decide. If they want to continue with their non-participation in the festival, then that''s also what they''re going to have to do."


    "I don''t think Ayanok��ji-kun really thinks that way, though."


    "Do you understand?"


    "Do I understand? You''re not going to abandon Hasebe-san and the others, are you?"


    Apparently, Kushida could see what I was about to do.


    "The reason you didn''t try to persuade her until this time was to test the two of them?"


    "I didn''t know what they were aiming for. Were they going to ruin the festival or not? But from the fact that they''ve done nothing so far, I had a pretty good guess. I''m going to make contact now."


    "Do you have any idea where they are?"


    "That''s why I''m having my contact figure things out"


    I showed her my cell phone screen and showed her someone''s message with Haruka''s current location.


    "You have a reliable ally. I guess it''s thanks to this person that you found out


    where I was."


    "Ah. They''re the perfect person to look or keep an eye on someone."


    They always knew where Haruka and the others were.


    "But at the end of the day, there''s only so much I can do. Whether or not I can make those two people''s hearts beat is another matter altogether. I''m leaving."


    I left the situation to Kushida and the others and headed for Haruka.

 Chapter 287: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 287: 6.1</h4>


    After stopping by the ssroom and grabbing the cardboard boxes I had brought with me that morning, I walked through the school building to the road leading to the Keyaki Mall. I eventually came to a ce with benches for students to take a rest. There were no stalls on this side, and of course no students or guests were to be seen.


    As I approached, I naturally came into their line of sight.


    "How did you find this ce, Kiyopon?


    Haruka was sitting on a bench, and Akito was standing nearby, staring at me.


    "I know you and Airi used to chat around here after school."


    Reports wereing in that Haruka and Akito have been walking all over the school all day today. And after all that, they must have chosen this ce as their stopping point "Quite the former Ayanok��ji group. Correct."


    Haruka greeted me without a smile and immediately continued.


    "What are you doing here? I thought I wasn''t interrupting the festival?"


    "Maybe you''re right, you''re not interfering. But you haven''t been cooperating with us either."


    "That''s true."


    "I feel bad for you. No, I feel bad for the ss." Akito, who hadn''t shown up since this morning, apologized.


    "No matter. I know what you''re thinking when you''re standing by Haruka''s side."


    "Let''s not worry about that, let''s get you to answer my question."


    "What are you doing here? The maid caf�� is more sessful than you can imagine, and we are short of maids."


    "Hmmm... well, maybe things would have been a little different if Airi had


    been there. I would have been there too, so you wouldn''t have been short two people."


    "In that case, Kushida wouldn''t be here, and it would''ve been a much more dire situation."


    "You responded to sarcasm with sarcasm."


    "I''m just stating the facts."


    In Haruka''s contentious style, words tended to be exchanged. It was obvious that this was a way to irritate me.


    "Can you lend me your hand for thest hour?"


    "You know the answer to that. Persuasion is pointless."


    "Yes, it is. If there was a condition, it would be that I bring back Airi."


    Of course, that was impossible.


    "Well, let''s just hear what I have to say. I''m sure you''re wondering what this is all about."


    I put the cardboard box in my hands on the ground.


    "I want you to open this box."


    Haruka only raised her eyebrows in suspicion.


    "What are you trying to do now? I''m sorry, but I don''t want to get involved in anything strange."


    With that, Haruka pulled out an envelope from her pocket. The white envelope was handwritten with the words, "Withdrawal Letter."


    "You''re not surprised, are you?"


    "I knew there was a good chance you would quit after the festival. And you''re nning to go out with her, aren''t you, Akito?"


    "Ah."


    Akito also pulled out an envelope marked with the same withdrawal form.


    "That''s great, Kiyopon. I guess that''s why you were able to expel Airi with apathy."


    As she spoke, her gaze did not turn to me. She was simply staring into the void. It was as if she was talking from some other dimension, separating herself from the world.


    "This is the festival that Airi was looking forward to. The cultural festival was supposed to be a big stage for her to change herself and take a big step forward."


    She closed her eyes in frustration and mmed her fist on the spot she sat.


    "I decided to see it through to the end. I decided to watch the whole thing on her behalf."


    "I did indeed expel Airi. I also used my heterosexual feelings to handle the situation. I''m not going to say I wasn''t at fault for that."


    "She needed me. And Kiyopon needed the Ayanok��ji group. How do you think she feels like now that the person she loved expelled her from school? Have you ever thought about it?"


    "What would that type of person look like? What would she be thinking about? Tell me exactly what she''d be thinking. I don''t understand."


    Haruka''s emotions were pushed forward, perhaps annoyed at myck of understanding.


    "Of course she''d cry all the time! All the time! She''d be so frustrated, sad, and bitter that she sits in the corner of her room and thinks back to her happy school days. Can''t you see that?"


    "Is that the Airi you see?"


    "Not just what I see. That''s the kind of girl she is! Why can''t you understand that?!" She spewed out her anger, not loud, but obvious.


    "Kiyopon is really the same! You just don''t want to face reality. You just don''t want to think about Airi, who is miserable because you''re the one who drove her out of school!"


    Haruka decided that I was just running away.


    "I''m sorry, but I don''t even think that way. It''s none of my business what happens to the students who dropout. It''s just a waste of my time to think about it."


    Knowing that she would be upset, I just stated the facts. Naturally, this greatly irritated Haruka.


    "You''re filthy and disgusting." Haruka spat out those words and slowly got up from the bench. "I asked myself, how could Airi ever fall in love with such a ruthless man?" Haruka slowly walked up to me. She came close enough to reach out her hand. "I can''t stand talking to you any longer, why don''t you just die with me?" Saying this, she thrusted the expulsion letter at me.


    Will you die with me? The devil''s invitation.


    Her words, which seemed to cause d��j�� vu, brought back memories of the past.


    "Kiyopon is attracting attention in a bad way because he got Airi expelled from school. And it''s not like you have a strong desire to graduate in ss A, is it?


    If that''s the case, why not just quit?"


    Rtionships can easily fall apart over a single thing. Until recently, no one could have imagined that this conversation would take ce between me and Haruka.


    "It''s fine that you want me to withdraw from school, but it doesn''t make sense to me. I can''t help but be bothered by the fact that Airi is being forced to go along with your self-serving fantasies."


    "What? What are you trying to say?"


    "I''m just saying that you don''t seem to understand how Airi feels. It''s really conceited."


    "I understand her better than anyone else, and you don''t want to admit that!"


    "Don''t get cocky, Haruka."


    "What did you just say?"


    Akito, who had mistakenly thought she was going to be attacked, stepped in front of Haruka and extended his left hand as if to defend her.


    "I was just a little surprised. I''m fine, so move aside, Akito."


    Haruka could not sense the danger that Akito instinctively sensed. Still wary of me, Akito lowered his left hand and stepped back a little.


    "What do you mean, ''conceited''? What are you talking about, Kiyopon?"


    "I''m just saying that you shouldn''t specte on Airi''s feelings and give convenient answers on her behalf; only Airi knows what she''s thinking and what she really feels."


    "It''s Kiyopon who doesn''t understand. Do you think she didn''t mind being expelled?"


    "Surely she must have despaired at that moment. But how do you know how she feels now?"


    "You can understand if you just imagine it for a moment."


    "No, you can''t. In your mind, Airi must be having a hard time right now."


    "What about it?"


    "The hard part isn''t that Airi was expelled. It''s the disappearance of an existence that was convenient for you. You wanted to be there for Airi, who is inferior to you, and y the role of a protector. You loved the sense of superiority and satisfaction you got from that."


    "Of course not! You don''t even remember how we used to be!" She strongly denied it, but I could see a slight wavering in his eyes.


    "I''m thinking about how she feels right now... I-!"


    "Are you really thinking about her?"


    "I''m thinking about her a lot!"


    In an exchange that could be described as a parallel line, only Haruka''s heart wavers violently.


    "I don''t know what the truth is."


    "There''s no way to confirm such a thing directly with the person in question in this situation!"


    "There''s certainly no way to find out for sure in person. But here''s a hint.


    Here''s a cardboard box. This is most likely what you need right now."


    "What? I don''t get it. That''s not what I need."


    "Even if this is thest message that Airi left you?"


    "What?"


    Haruka, who had been all bullish up until now, opened her eyes in shock with Akito standing behind her.


    "No way. Kiyopon prepared this box, didn''t he?"


    "On the day that Airi''s expulsion was decided, she went through the steps to ship a package to me. I think it was because she realized what she had to do in that limited time."


    Haruka''s gaze fell to the cardboard box at her feet.


    "If you look at the sender, you can tell that I didn''t prepare this for you, can''t you?"


    Haruka crouched down and looked at the slip attached to the cardboard.


    There was my name on it as the recipient and the name of the online store as the sender. I myself did not know about this until I received and searched it.


    I noticed that Haruka was reaching out and trying hard to roll up the edges of the duct tape with her fingertips. After several attempts, she finally seeded in peeling it off. Then the cardboard box was opened.


    Inside was a maid''s uniform.


    "This is..."


    Haruka must have known what it meant.


    "I was supposed to wear it... Airi and I were supposed to wear it together...


    Why...?"


    "She realized that there was a possibility that you would stop and not participate in the festival. That''s why this was supposed to be delivered to you, to prevent that from happening, wasn''t it?"


    "A-ai..." Haruka muttered looking down at the uniform.


    "At least I can sense Airi''s strong feelings from this message. It doesn''t seem like she''s just sad. How about you, Haruka?"


    "Airi... Airi!"


    Haruka took out the maid''s uniform from the cardboard box and hugged it to her chest. She sobbed with tears welling up in her eyes.


    "I wanted to do the festival with her. I wanted to push her shyness back and see her unveil it to Kiyopon!"


    It''s not extravagant at all, but Imented over the scenery I was supposed to be able to see in the near future.


    I hope Haruka will now understand and look forward to the future.


    But....


    "This is... different..."


    Wiping her tears with the sleeve of her uniform, Haruka stood up and denied it.


    "No?"


    "It''s not something she prepared for me because she wants me to participate in the festival."


    I''m not sure how much I can change things so easily.


    "She was just frustrated. She sent it to Kiyopon with resentment, saying that I really could have worn it to the festival. I''m sure that''s how it must have been."


    How one interpreted this maid''s outfit was left to one''s own interpretation, and since Airi did not leave a specific message, not everything that was convenient for us was true.


    "It is, isn''t it? If it was really meant for me to wear, it should have been sent to me. But the reason why it was addressed to Kiyopon was because it has another meaning, no?"


    It was interesting to see the difference in viewpoints, and I certainly couldn''t rule out that possibility. Was it possible that she was harassing the person who expelled her from school? Interesting.


    "Wait Haruka, I think that''s a little different."


    Akito interjected for the first time here.


    "No, it''s not. Yes, yes! Even this package may have been a staged act prepared by Kiyopon!"


    "The reason she sent thest memento to Kiyotaka and not you is because she wanted you to have a chance to get to know each other again, right?"


    If it had been delivered directly to Haruka, and if she had received the gift honestly, then, I would never have had the chance to make contact with her.


    "No, absolutely not!"


    "I was a member of the Ayanok��ji group too, and I know that Airi would have thought so."


    "No, no!" Haruka turned, grabbing Akito by the chest.


    "Don''t take things as you will! Don''t try to make things convenient and forgive Kiyopon!"


    "That''s not what I meant..."


    "Even if that were the case, she was deprived of her precious ce in the world! That''s not going to change that fact! I won''t ept a friendship based on


    sacrifice!"


    "But whatever anyone''s fantasy is, it has no effect on the person in question.


    What matters is where and what Airi is actually doing right now, isn''t that the point?"


    "I know. So, I''m leaving school to find out. I''m going to be there for that girl!"


    As soon as shepleted her revenge against the ss, she would go to see Airi herself. Voluntarily withdrawing from school is also convenient for Haruka.


    "You''re being too loud. Even here, if you''re not subtle, you''ll receive a lot of attention, won''t you?"


    Those calm and cold words pierced through her anger Kushida was a character I never thought I''d see here. Dressed as a maid, which was out of ce in this tense atmosphere, she slowly approached.


    "Is everything alright at the store?"


    "We just had a change of customers, so we have a little time."


    I don''t know if that''s true or not, but I''m guessing she didn''t just slip out unannounced. Kushida''s "It''s okay" look told me that everything''s fine.


    "What are you doing here?"


    Haruka and I were wondering the same thing.


    "What am I doing here? Ayanok��ji-kun told me that Hasebe-san and Miyake-kun might be nning to leave the school."


    Haruka''s gaze turned toward me for a moment, but then quickly turned back to Kushida.


    "Kushida-san was the cause. If you had been against the expulsion from the beginning, you would have-"


    "Sorry, but I don''t regret my choice at the time now. That incident was a stain on me, but at the same time, it was an opportunity for me to open a new path."


    "I''m going to tell the ss that not leaving behind Kushida-san was a mistake."


    "If you want to leave the school, do whatever you want."


    "Kushida-san you said yourself that the only way left for you was to graduate in ss A. That''s the only reason why you keep putting up with an ufortable ss that you don''t get along with. So, I''m going to take that away from you."


    "Maybe your revenge against me will work. But is that what''s important? I don''t think Sakura-san would want that."


    "Don''t say the same thing as Kiyopon. What do any of you know about


    Airi?"


    "I don''t know, but I do know that she''s a lot less shy than you think."


    "What?"


    It seemed to me that this was just a figure of speech - but I wondered if there was any basis for it. The fact that she showed up here also raised a question.


    "Sakura-san was weak. That''s why she was expelled."


    "How can you say that? It''s the same with you, you were greatly embarrassed and lost."


    "It''s true that I lost too. I admit that I was weak. But it is also true that Sakura-san was the same. No, she was weaker than me, and that''s why she was expelled."


    In fact, Horikita decided that Kushida would be a better and more useful ally than Airi. And at the festival, she lived up to those expectations and yed an active role. Of course, there was no question that Airi would have been more popr if she had been able to attend the festival. However, excellent customer service skills and the ability to talk with adults you don''t know don''te overnight. This was an area that Airi could not fill. Prior to that, Kushida performed well on the second semester midterm exam, cing in the top half of the ss. So far, this is a matter that can be said to have definitely contributed.


    "That girl was definitely weak... that''s why I wanted to protect her..."


    "Wanted to protect her? You''re being very high and mighty, aren''t you? So, I''m not the only one who thinks she''ll always be weak."


    "You''ve got to be kidding me."


    "I''m not kidding."


    Kushida was not bothered by Haruka''s verbal abuse. Perhaps it was because of her experience, but she clearly had a toughness that set her apart from the average student.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, can you take a look at this?" Kushida took her eyes off Haruka and turned them to me. "Every day I sought the secrets of others. I was hungry for secrets. I have always believed that it would make me more valuable.


    And Sakura-san is no exception to that."


    Whoever the subject was, if there was an opportunity avable to Kushida, it was covered. People can pay attention to what they were interested in, but it was difficult to pay attention to what they were not interested in. It took an extraordinary amount of mental strength to keep it up for a long period of time. "I thought maybe there was a use for the secret she had after she left school. Then I found it." Kushida took out her cell phone and showed me a screen.


    I took the phone and scrolled through the details.


    "This is..."


    "I was wondering if Ayanokouji-kun might be aware of this fact."


    "I''m impressed. How did you find it?"


    "Ayanokouji-kun used to do a lot of work on this, didn''t you? So maybe that''s how."


    It had been more than a year, and that was before the Ayanok��ji group was formed. Haruka looked at me with concern, partly because of the talk about Airi.


    "You''re wondering, aren''t you? And it''s a story about your precious Sakura-san." Kushida saw through Haruka and flicked her phone off as if to provoke her.


    "What?"


    Kushida turned off her phone screen and approached Haruka with it in her hand.


    "I''m a bad person most of the time, but Hasebe-san is simr. She just finds pleasure in finding someone weaker than herself and helping them. Essentially, you''re not worried about Sakura-san, you just miss having someone to take care of, don''t you?"


    Oddly enough, she said the same things I did. Haruka''s eyes squirmed ufortably at this unexpected turn of events.


    "So you''re just like your family?"


    Family? I felt caught off guard by this unexpectedment, but Haruka stopped her.


    "Stop it. Don''t mention it."


    "Why not? If you''re leaving school already, who cares who I tell what you told me? It means you won''t have to keep secrets anymore."


    Come to think of it, Kushida knew more about Haruka than I do.


    "You''re not wrong, I wanted to protect Airi, I wanted to be there for her.


    Even if it was for my own purposes."


    "I understand how you feel, but I can''t ept that Hasebe-san is right. That''s why you couldn''t even make one decent friend before high school. Am I wrong?"


    "I..."


    "Well, that''s okay. If I keep wasting my time talking about it, it''s going to interfere with the operation of the maid caf��. Why don''t you just leave school like this without knowing anything? There''s no point in knowing the truth now, is there?"


    Stopping in her tracks, Kushida turned her back to Haruka.


    "Wait a minute, what''s this about Airi?"


    "You want to know?"


    Frustrated that she had been taken advantage of, she forcefully closed the distance and grabbed Kushida''s shoulder.


    "That girl can''t do anything without me. She needed help."


    "You don''t understand, she''s much more mature than you think, Hasebe-san."


    Haruka, holding the phone half-heartedly in her hand, tapped the screen with her finger and essed the Inte. There was someone''s socialworking ount.


    It was a convenient application that allowed you to send your thoughts to the whole world by tweeting. Since this school does not allow students to reveal their identities, they were basically restricted, and there were probably almost no students who use this app. However, those who do not belong to this school can use it as much as they want.


    The name of the ount was "Shizuku," another name Sakura Airi went by when she used to secretly be active as a gravure idol. After an incident, Airi deleted her ount, but Kushida found that it had recently been restored. The ount had only been created a few days ago but already had over 1,000


    followers.


    "No way... this is Airi''s?"


    Credit to Kushida, who was no stranger to gathering information about her ssmates.


    "There''s no guarantee that... that girl made this kind of thing. It''s bound to be an imposter fabricated by Ayanok��ji-kun or Kushida-san anyway."


    "Do you still think it''s us after you read the actual text?"


    [I''ve decided to resume my idol activities after a long hiatus.]


    New ount, first tweet.


    She had given up on her idol activities. But now, she repeatedly posted what only she herself could write.


    [I decided to do what I could do. To be the person I want to be. To show my best friend that I am not ashamed of myself after she graduates.]


    "It''s true what I said about you being protective; Airi may indeed have been a handful, but she started growing at an incredible rate after she was expelled from school."


    [I finally auditioned yesterday! I was so nervous, but I''m so happy!]


    "This is..."


    Haruka gasped; the socialworking site carried herments upon passing the third round of auditions.


    [The reason I decided to go into show business is because I wanted to make my voice heard.]


    [I''m bitter and sad, but I want to look forward... I am looking forward. So don''t you lose too.]


    Of course, it is possible to create a false ount using Shizuku''s name.


    However, it was difficult to disguise the fact that she was followed by an entertainment productionpany and her social media content. That was why Haruka should be able to tell that the owner of this ount is Airi.


    "From reading that, I don''t see the abysmal scene you described for Airi."


    "You were overprotective and assumed you were above it all, weren''t you?


    But she opened up a new path by dropping out of school. She didn''t stand still."


    Kushida forcefully snatched the phone from Haruka''s trembling hands and turned back to me.


    "I''m sorry I slipped out again." She then shed her usual smile, which didn''t seem to fit the asion.


    "I thought I saved you, but you saved me right away."


    "You owe me this one, right?"


    "I thought you didn''t lend or borrow?"


    "I don''t like to borrow, but I don''t mind lending."


    She says this and starts to walk back to the special wing.


    "You''re a shrewd guy."


    After exposing her various weaknesses, Haruka stood, shocked and broken.


    It reminded me strongly of the scene with Kushida in the unanimous special exam.


    "Haruka, I don''t think this is an imposter."


    Akito must have been looking at Shizuku''s social media profile on his own phone, too, because he offered his phone to her instead. Haruka then continued to devour and read through Airi''s various messages.


    "Ugh, ugh..."


    Tears welled up in Haruka''s eyes as her vision blurred. She had thought that Airi couldn''t do anything without following her, but then she realized that Airi had begun to walk in front of her. Even now, she was trying her best to walk, even though she must have been heartbroken. It was because she was afraid that Haruka might stop.


    "What a fool I was," she thought. I knew Haruka had just assumed that it was unfortunate that Airi was expelled from school and felt sorry for her.


    "This is new knowledge for me. I thought that those who were expelled, those who were defeated, had ended everything there."


    She assumed that the package she was sent was thest remnant of her life.


    But it wasn''t. The loser returned. Some people start anew from where they lost.


    This was the great divide between the white room and this world. No, perhaps those who dropped out of the white room were also able to reinvent themselves like Airi.


    "That girl could be a big shot in the future. And yet you''re going to


    voluntarily leave school going after Airi? Not only will Airiugh at you, she might not even take you seriously."


    It wasn''t hard to imagine what would happen if Haruka were to quit school to seek revenge and meet with Airi. Instead of being greeted with a smile, she would be seriously offended.


    "I-I-I don''t know what to do...!"


    "There''s only one answer: be yourself enough to meet Airi with dignity. If you graduated from ss A, that''s a different story. You need to get through those three years and be someone who isn''t ashamed to stand in front of Airi."


    It''s no longer time for Airi to go after Haruka; it''s time for Haruka to go after Airi.


    "Just in case, the cost of this luggage has been included in the budget as something that can be used at the cultural festival."


    There was no guarantee that the item would be usable at the festival, but it was a good thing to have a contingency n. In other words, there would be no obstacles in wearing this maid uniform and standing in the maid caf��.


    "I''m not asking you to be as agile as the other maids. But you have to see the view that your beloved Airi would have wanted you to see. You were her best friend, and you owe it to her."


    Haruka made a small apology to Akito, handed him the letter of withdrawal, clutched her maid''s uniform to her chest, and ran out. She had only a few hours left, but she still had a chance to be on the stage.


    "Kiyotaka, will your ssmates ept Haruka?"


    "Kushida is there, Horikita is there, Y��suke is there. Whatever the situation, we''ll get along fine."


    "I see."


    Akito put his phone away and stacked the two withdrawal papers on top of each other, tearing them down the middle.


    "The reason for my withdrawal is gone. I want to stay with Haruka until the end as well."


    "Even having learned the truth, Haruka''s heart will remain cold. You should support her."


    Even if she can''tugh with everyone now, she still has more than a year of school left. The day when she can truly smile again will not be far off.


    "I''m sure my ssmates will me me for a while, too." He scratched his head and smiled a little.


    "I wonder what would have happened if Kushida hadn''t shown up, and what would have happened to Kiyotaka?"


    "I don''t know, I''m afraid I was out of ideas."


    I took up my smartphone and opened the web browser. Then I wiped the history which contained the link to Shizuku''s profile (SNS) that I had prepared in advance. Since Kushida was the one who managed to discover the path out of this ordeal, this should be her achievement.


    "Let''s go back, Akito. There''s still a few more hours left of the festival."


    "Ah."


    The time was around 2:20 PM. Horikita''s ss had seeded in getting back its missing members.

 Chapter 288: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 288: 6.2</h4>


    When we took Akito to the food stall, the boys epted him without hesitation, even though they were teasing him. Akito''s eyes turned a little red as he thanked them for such a warm wee.


    It was probably due inrge to the fact that he was not the central figure in a particrly contentious situation. Unfortunately, Keisei, formerly of the Ayanok��ji group, was not in sight as he had just gone on a break. Returning to the maid cafe in the special wing, the line was as long as ever.


    Kushida was walking around handing out new cookies while serving customers with a smile. Both the old and young were all gazing at Kushida. They seemed to be enjoying herpany. I feel bad for Azuma, who was working hard together with Kushida, and her contribution was more than what any of us expected.


    "Wee back!"


    Sat�� shouted and led us to the entrance. Two female customers left the ssroom, waving to the maids. Then the next customer busily entered and was ushered to an empty seat. The seats and chairs originally provided in this ssroom were thinned out for the sake of the scenery, but now they have been brought in and reshaped in between to increase the number of customers. The seats were originally intended to be more spacious and rxing, but now they have no choice because they had to make it to the end of the remaining hours of the day.


    "It looks like they''re here." Kushida''s words were heard from the corridor, and I waited for her toe to work.


    "Ha, ha, ha! It''s difficult to run!"


    Haruka had arrived, out of breath, shoulders shifting up and down violently.


    The maids were momentarily distracted by Haruka''s presence, but that wasn''t the


    point now. They immediately shifted their minds to what they had to do. No one asked why she was here.


    "Hasebe-san, where did you change your clothes?"


    "The women''s restroom... It was hard."


    "Of course."


    Kushida, in angel mode because she was in front of so many people, greeted Haruka with a wry smile.


    "What''s the... situation?"


    "Ask Horikita-san about that. I''ve got my hands full with the lineup."


    Horikita, dressed in a maid''s outfit, called out to Haruka and entered the waiting room.


    "Wee."


    First of all, she said a few words of wee and then gently patted Haruka''s stiff-looking back.


    "I thought you wouldn''t show your face today, but you''ve made up your mind, haven''t you?"


    Haruka nodded and replied as she calmed her breathing, though not fully recovered.


    "You aren''t ying the role of a maid right. You haven''t even practiced; I don''t expect you to be as agile as Sat��-san and the others, but... right now I''m in a tough situation."


    It was inevitable that they would suddenly be thrown into the toughest of battles, a real war.


    "You''re here to contribute to the festival. Can I trust in that?"


    "Don''t worry. I won''t do anything to ruin everyone''s hard work. I know you won''t believe-"


    "No, I believe you."


    Without hesitation, Horikita expressed her trust in Haruka''s words.


    "Why?"


    "I can tell by the look in your eyes, Ayanok��ji-kun must have talked you into it, didn''t he?"


    "Hey."


    "And Kushida-san. I didn''t expect her toe to me dressed as a maid."


    "Kushida-san? I wonder when she left her post."


    Horikita seemed to be unaware of her absence, perhaps because she was busy in the hall.


    "Anyway, I''m going to make you forget your grudge against me until after the festival, even if you don''t want to."


    "I know."


    "Then fine. You''ll be in charge of pouring for the customers who have run out of cold water, and if requested, you''ll be in charge of taking pictures. Is that okay?"


    "I''ll see what I can do."


    Now that she hade this far, Haruka was a carp on the chopping block.


    She was not allowed to make such naive statements as, "I want to do it," or, "I don''t want to do it.


    "I have to take a mandatory break at 3:00, so I''ll leave everything after that to Ayanok��ji-kun. Take care of her."


    "The best I can do is to take good pictures."


    I''ve already taken dozens of pictures today. I''m getting the hang of it.


    Haruka nodded, looked at me once, and took a deep breath. Then, with a pitcher of water and a slice of lemon, she left the waiting room and began to walk around the store. She politely bowed her head as she introduced herself to each of us.


    Of course, it wasn''t smooth, and she was clearly out of practicepared to the other maids. But on the contrary, she was warmly looked at by the adults.


    Furthermore, Haruka had an attractive side as a woman, and even if they couldn''t see her inner self, they subconsciously developed a liking for her.


    "Before we think about winning or losing, I guess we, as a ss, can finally breathe a sigh of relief."


    "Yes."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, Hasebe-san, take three pictures of us! Thank you very much!"


    Sat��''s voice reached the waiting room, and I quickly got my camera ready.


    Horikita must be ready to make onest spurt with the remaining time before the break.


    "See youter."


    After Horikita left the waiting room, I looked at the board in the room.


    The board was designed to show at a nce who had been nominated for the most photos, and Kushida was the one who had taken the most photos during our absence, with 56. Sat��, in second ce, is amanding leader by a whopping 24


    pictures. As for Horikita, she took only 11 pictures, perhaps because she was not very sociable.


    If we were only talking about appearance, Horikita would not lose to Kushida, but in thispetition, there are more important factors. First is being cute and flirty... second is also being cute and flirty.


    It''s firstly charm, and secondly looks.


    "Even if Haruka tries to catch up from here, I don''t think she''ll be able to surpass this record."


    While standing in front of Haruka with my camera, I heard from the hallway that another order hade for a photo with Kushida.


    "Okay Haruka, let''s get a shot."


    "Yeah."


    Haruka''s expression was stiff, perhaps because she was still reluctant to face me. I looked through the lens for a chance to take a picture, but she wouldn''t give me one.


    "Shall I switch with Y��suke?"


    "Wait. It''s okay." Haruka raised her hand.


    It wasn''t a full smile, but it was a good enough expression for a picture, so I released the shutter. One was taken alone. The other two were two-shot photos with the guests.

 Chapter 289: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 289: 6.3</h4>


    It was getting close to 3:00 pm. I left the maid cafe to prepare for my final move. No one knew exactly how much we needed to sell in order to win first ce.


    Of course, it would be possible to win first ce for sure if one could sell more than half of the private points in cirction, but that was almost impossible due to the way the system worked. In other words, it was important to earn as much money as possible until the moment the festival was over.


    The students'' concept cafes were well received by both Horikita''s and Ry��en''s sses.


    The one-on-onepetition stunned many of the guests, and they were able to visit one or both sses to take part in the battle.


    What seemed to be a deadlocked andpetitive situation took a new turn when the guests came to the Japanese concept caf�� to see how the other side was doing. A long line of customers were waiting to enter the cafe.


    "This one is just as busy as the other one."


    The ce was even busier than I had imagined, and I didn''t have time to talk to the students in Ry��en''s ss.


    I couldn''t judge everything just from observing the scene, but I suspected there was little difference in the amount of points they were earning. It was formidable enough to aim for the top, but still, there was no absolute guarantee.


    "Sorry for calling you all the way here, Chabashira-sensei."


    I called Chabashira-sensei, who would have been using her points for a non-second year ss on campus.


    "Have you finished using your private points?"


    "Hmm? Ah, there are 80 points left. I''d say I''ve used them up. What about it?"


    There wasn''t much time left, and she seemed to have firmly finished her contribution to the festival as a teacher.


    "In other words, you''re free for the rest of the day?"


    "Yes, that''s right. Now all we have to do is wait for the end of the cultural festival... What the hell is this?"


    She showed her confusion, not understanding why she was summoned here.


    The kimono caf�� was just a backdrop. I will not say that it was thriving or that Horikita''s ss could lose.


    I left it up to Chabashira-sensei to see the momentum and interpret it as she saw fit.


    "Actually, I''d like to ask Chabashira-sensei for her cooperation for the next hour or so."


    "No no no, wait, Ayanok��ji, cooperation? I don''t understand what you''re talking about."


    Teachers were to contribute to the festival by spending points in the school.


    That was the only role they had been given today.


    "We want Chabashira-sensei to be our maid in order to make sales at the maid cafe."


    I told her the strategy to make it to the victory board, but...


    "What...?"


    This may have been the dumbest strategy I had evere up with in my life.


    "You want me to turn into a maid? I want you to listen very carefully to what you''re saying right now."


    "Did I not just tell you? I''m just going to do what I can to win."


    "Why should I be the maid!? I''m the homeroom teacher. I can''t be obligated to one particr ss."


    "That''s not true. The rule this time is that school teachers are to be treated as if they were guests of honor. Homeroom teachers are not allowed to use points in their grade level. Those are the only two rules that have been imposed. There is also no rule that only students may participate in the presentation. In extreme cases, they should be free to have guests of honor serve them. It would be unusual, but that problem could be resolved if the guest consents."


    This was not a prohibited activity under the rules. It would be a clear vition if the person were to purchase goods from a convenience store, Keyaki Mall, or any other ce other than the points of sale avable at the festival, using personal expenses.


    However, in terms of "human resources," there was no need to apply for such a permit, and it was free. Chabashira-sensei seemed to be at a loss for words, as if her mind was not fullyprehensive of what she needed to do.


    "Shall I exin it more clearly? Assuming there was a student carrying a heavy load, they are dizzy. A guest passing by offered to help and carried the luggage on his shoulders to the desired location. Is this a vition?"


    "It''s not a vition..."


    "Exactly. Other people can be substituted for the students: 2nd year ss A asks 2nd year ss D for help, and ss D readily agrees. Would there be a problem if we loaned the students out?"


    The reasons for loaning them out were varied. To provide support out of genuine concern, to plot a n to cause problems within, or to exchangebour andpensation for something in return.


    Whatever the reason, as long as it was within the rules, the school won''t me you for it. In fact, just walking around the school, I saw a few students supporting other sses.


    "I don''t see the problem."


    "It''s the same thing. A teacher''s willingness to cooperate isn''t, in itself, a vition of the rules."


    "No, it doesn''t. It''s still considered lending a hand for the ss you''re in."


    "That''s right. Even if it is broadly allowed, you can''t be sure that such an opinion won''t be expressed."


    That''s why clear rules need to be utilized and legitimate.


    "We will pay for any private points that would be incurred when renting teachers. I''m sure the school is looking at that possibility in anticipation of this festival."


    "No way, no, but... I don''t know if I''m... enough to be considered..."


    I''ve hit the bull''s-eye. She showed such an expression. Chabashira-sensei was also a teacher at this school, and in the past had been in charge of other sses. It was only natural that the school made various assumptions for a cultural festival that had never been held in the past.


    In principle, private points at this school were a powerful weapon. No wonder it could be used not only for routine shopping, but also to secure personnel if necessary.


    "There is nothing in this school that cannot be bought with private points. Is there a difference?"


    To deny this was to deny the school.


    And it was like admitting that you were a disqualified teacher.


    Chabashira-sensei had no right to refuse, even if it was far from her intention. In a panic, Chabashira-sensei began reading the rules about the festival on her cell phone.


    "Pay 100,000 private points for every hour students ask for a teacher''s help."


    "It seems that you are well prepared for the behind-the-scenes rules that only this schools has. That''s the option."


    This was the same thing that happened when private points were used to buy test scores.


    "That''s 100,000 points per hour. It''s not a cheap deal. Are you sure you want to do this?"


    "Of course I''m sure."


    Asking teachers to cooperate inherently doesn''t help much. Whether you have them cook or serve, if they didn''t practiced beforehand, it would be a waste of private points to have them on your side for an hour or so.


    It was difficult for them to perform the job on the spot if they had to go out to the restaurant to serve the customers. But if you used them in a different way than usual, you could get the effect you paid for.


    "Are you really, really sure?"


    "I''m sorry, Chabashira-sensei, but now I''m going to ask you to cooperate even if you don''t want to. I don''t have a lot of time to spare right now."


    After 3:00 p.m., we wouldn''t be able to get a full hour''s help, which would make us less efficient.


    "Well, wait. Yes, why don''t you ask Chie? She does this kind of thing better.


    She''d be ready to do it even for a rival ss."


    "I''m sure she would. But what I''m looking for now is not someone who can do this dexterously, but rather someone who is clumsy. Because I believe that the more clumsy you are, or the more effective you are at the margins, the more


    effective you will be."


    "I have no idea what your logic is."


    It must have been true that deep down she didn''t like it and that she didn''t understand. It was because she didn''t understand that Chabashira-sensei functioned a certain "way" that could be appeble to a certain audience.


    "There''s no more time. Please take care of it."


    I forced her to ept my private points as I took my phone and paid Chabashira-sensei.


    "We have a deal."


    "That''s not fair, Ayanok��ji, using the school rules."


    That''s not cowardly, it''s a really straightforward way to fight.


    "I have no idea how to act in a maid cafe. I don''t know what''s going to happen to me."


    "That''s fine. I don''t expect anything from the teacher."


    Chabashira-sensei staying inside the ssroom in a maid outfit; that fact alone was enough to win.

 Chapter 290: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 290: 6.4</h4>


    After pushing the reluctant Chabashira-sensei into the locker room, I pasted the text I had prepared on my cell phone and sent it to all my ssmates at once as a bulk message.


    The purpose was to inform the students that Chabashira-sensei will be working as a maid for thest hour only, and to inform the students who were avable that they were to go around the school advertising the event.


    As intended, the buzz spreaded swiftly through word of mouth. Using teachers, this was a limited, oversized event that students would never be able to pull off. The air in the hallway was buzzing so much that it instantly turned into an uproar.


    Chabashira-sensei, dressed as a maid, rushed into the hallway with a red face. "Okay, here I am Ayanok��ji, hurry up and let me inside the ssroom!"


    "We''ve been waiting for you."


    I can''t keep showing her off for free, so I led her inside the ssroom.


    "So, what am I supposed to do here?"


    "You don''t have to do anything. Just stand still."


    "What?"


    "I told you, I don''t want you to be dexterous. I''m looking forward to working


    with you."


    Thus, I threw Chabashira-sensei into the ssroom and left her to do nothing but stand.


    She didn''t talk to anyone, but simply stood shyly in the corner of the ssroom. Being clumsy, she wasn''t able to do anything in particr and needed to stand without talking to anyone.


    This was the ultimate eroticism.


    We were going to have to make a major shift in our maid cafe policy from here on out. The biggest concern was therge number of visitors who couldn''t fit in the ssrooms. In order to forcefully solve this physical problem, we had to make the customers pay a reasonable price. The idea was to have a "standing room only" fee to amodate over-capacity customers. We added a rule that allowed immediate entry upon payment of 1,000 points to enter the ssroom.


    The first guests waiting in line would be offered entry, and only those who responded that they would be willing to stand in line would be allowed to enter the room first. Some of the visitors waiting in line at this point mayin, but we were willing to take that risk.


    "Standing room only, I''ve never heard of that idea in a maid cafe."


    A standing room should be set up on the side of the room where desks couldn''t be set up and in the space at the rear of the ssroom. This would allow people to enter the room without desks and chairs.


    And 2,000 points for a photo shoot with Chabashira-sensei.


    This will be sold for more than double the price of a photo of one student.


    We hurriedly filled in the guests with the board at the entrance.


    "Amazing. Would a customer pay that price?"


    "Look behind you."


    Kushida, who had been staring at the board, looked back and saw the customers who had paid their bill and epted the standing room disappear one by one into the ssroom.


    The current faculty and staff were intrigued by the sight, which they would not see again.


    Although homeroom teachers of the same grade were restricted from spending their private points, the number of teachers who were still at the school and in charge of sses other than the second year was, of course, overwhelminglyrge.


    The adults who worked at Keyaki Mall had a strong image of the Chabashira-sensei as a hard-nosed teacher, as they witnessed repeatedly in their daily lives.


    Adults came in like a wave.


    Some of the adults from the outside may not understand the significance of this phenomenon. But when ites to the amount that thought, "it''s worth a look," that would be different.


    They were tempted by the limited number of people who were willing to take a look, even if they didn''t understand what the others were talking about.


    The maid caf�� queue was overflowing with more than 10 or 20 people in line. The long line was not decreasing, but rather gaining momentum.


    "Wow, that''s a lot of people, Ayanok��ji-kun." A stunned Kushida pulled back at the hordes of adults pouring in.


    "Yeah, I guess so. To be honest, I didn''t think it would be this big either."


    "How long have you been thinking about this crazy thing?"


    "About two weeks ago. I had it in mind as a hidden gem for the festival."


    "What would have happened if we had started earlier...?"


    "Certainly thesting effect could have been two or three hours. But another problem arises. Because if you have more time to spare, other sses can do simr imitations."


    "Oh, I see. They have less than an hour left, so even if they wanted to imitate us, they couldn''t."


    If you put on a show using faculty members from both this ss and anothert ss, the effect would be diminished.


    "If we''re going to put on a show, we only have thisst hour where we can also put on a premiere."


    The fact that Kushida and the others had spread the word about the maid cafe in a positive light also helped.


    "I see. No wonder I couldn''t win."


    "Hmm?"


    "I realized once again how great Ayanok��ji-kun is. He''s a nuisance to have as an enemy."


    "Your eyes aren''t smiling, Kushida."


    "I guess it''s because I was half d we were ssmates and half pissed off."


    She said half and half, but I thought thetter was a higher percentage.


    "Don''t push me! Get in line here! Please don''t push!"


    Sud�� and his team rushed to create a wall of people and tried to get them to form a line, but it was bing a crowd as some adults sought to somehow look into the ssroom.


    But this was business too. The inside was thoroughly concealed and the windows were locked, so the only way to forcefully see inside was to break a windowpane.


    Of course, no adult would do such a thing, so we forced them to form a line.


    While this was going on, there was no end to the number of people who wanted to take pictures of Chabashira-sensei. Both the ''standing-room-only''


    customers, who had entered the store, and those who had already been in the store raised their hands one after the other and asked to be photographed.


    "She might be the top individual sales person in the final hour. She hasn''t even done anything."


    "I can''t let any more people in! The second slot is filled up!"


    Mii-chan''s voice echoed like a scream, and we were informed that the spaces had been filled.


    "That''s it, huh? It''s a shame that the number of customers hasn''t decreased at all yet, and there''s no sign of them leaving."


    Kushida said, wondering if she should be satisfied with the ''standing-room-only'' crowd they were able to bring in.


    "Not yet. The customers who are left now are in line because they have money. I''m not going to let them leave."


    "Maybe we need to carry the tables out or something? But I can''t bring the tables with all the dishes and stuff. It would take a lot of work to carry them out."


    It was obvious that there was no longer any space in the ssroom for guests.


    "We can use this location to make the most out of the third slot."


    "A third space?"


    I turned to all the customers in line and said.


    "I''m sorry, but the restaurant is full and no more rooms are avable."


    After announcing this to them, I got a series of looks from disgruntled adults.


    "However, those of you who have at least one point on hand at this time may view the room from this location by paying the full amount of your point bnce."


    This location was the hallway where the lines were formed for the maid cafe. By opening the door, the obstruction was removed, and by opening the window, the ssroom was pseudo-extended.


    "Woah, you''re using the hallway?!"


    "Yes."


    "But the full amount could be small, sure, but it might still be hundreds of points... you mean whoever has money and will pay it?"


    It seemed that she couldn''t believe that there were many guests who would pay the full amount for her, despite how much Chabashira-sensei was in demand.


    "No problem. I don''t know if it''s worth paying a lot of money, but there isn''t


    much time left. Even if there were nearly 1,000 points left over, there would be a big question as to where and how they could be used."


    "Oh, I see... I thought you were going to return the remaining points after the festival is over."


    "They''ve been notified to use them up as much as possible. They''d rather spend all their points than to lose them here. It''s not an exaggeration to say that 1


    point or 10,000 points are worth the same to the adults who are given them."


    In fact, the more points they had, the more they''d think that they had to spend them here. Furthermore, many of the adults who have had to wait this long still remain.


    "Please wait there while we go to the checkout in order."


    I gave the order and sent a few people to collect the sales. Then I lined up the adults in the hallway and directed them to a position where they could all see into the ssroom.


    "Now all we need to do is open the curtains that we have been using to hide the ssroom."


    Doing sopleted the third space. The curtains opened all at once and Chabashira-sensei was surprised to see them.


    For Chabashira-sensei, it was a kind of public execution, but since we paid the school for it, there was no need to feel bad.


    "Oh, oh, I see..."


    A teacher who had just previously gossiped about Chabashira-sensei''s transformation sounded impressed.


    The sight of a familiar, single, and never-before-seen dress on a colleague must have been a powerful stimnt. Thus, the public presentation of Chabashira-sensei continued until 4:00 p.m., using this corridor.


    In the end, Chabashira-sensei took first ce, surpassing Kushida, with 63 desired pictures.

 Chapter 291 - 7 : Unseen Characters

    <h4>Chapter 291: Chapter 7 : Unseen Characters</h4>


    AT 3:00 P.M, my job at the festival hade to an end.


    I left the ssroom, leaving Ayanok��ji-kun in charge, just as our hidden gem made an exciting appearance.


    "I never thought that you would really make Chabashira-sensei into a maid."


    Ayanok��ji-kun and I had discussed all the preparations in advance for this festival. I had heard that Chabashira-sensei would be used for thest hour of the show, but I was skeptical that it would be possible. However, not only did he make it happen, but she was creating a tremendous effect. Every time I walked down the corridor, I heard the rumors of Chabashira-sensei''s maid costume circting.


    Anyway, Chabashira-sensei''s participation was an opportune event for me personally. Therge amount of attention drawn to the special wing would inevitably draw people away from other ces.


    After sending them a message on my cell phone and making sure it was read, I decided to head to the student council room. The reason for this was that I wanted to go over the notes again.


    Of course, I could have asked Yagami-kun on the day of the student council meeting, but that would have made it impossible for me to calmly observe the notes. He was a person who may end up being a reason for Ayanok��ji-kun to leave school. He seemed to have a connection with Amasawa-san and was extremely physically dangerous.


    Besides, if it was Yagami-kun, asking him to show me the notes again would let him know I''m suspicious of him.


    No. If you assume that he was the culprit, it was better to assume that he had already thought so. Anyway, in order to be sure without being found, it was necessary to aim for a time when no one was around.


    The student council was closed for a while due to the circumstances of Student Council President Nagumo. This meant that the opportunity to spy on the proceedings had been restricted, but conversely, the unnecessary dispersing of the members had been done naturally.


    I thought the timing of the festival would be the best time to take advantage of this opportunity. I reported to Chabashira-sensei in the morning that I had most likely left my notebook in the Student Council Room, and she gave me permission to go to the staff room during break time to get the key and pick it up.


    Even if I stepped into the student council room now and was seen, I would


    still have a good reason. I quickly changed out of my maid''s uniform into my school uniform and headed for the staff room.


    "Fifty minutes to go, huh?"


    I exhaled as I walked by the student council office and looked at the clock in the hallway. Today has been a busy day. It wasn''t over yet, but my shift of the day was done. Due to the requirement that I must take a break for an hour, the festival will end as soon as my break is over.


    I was really busy from the morning, putting on my maid''s uniform and working without a break. I changed back into my uniform and walked to the student council office and quietly inserted the key into the door.


    The student council room was empty today, as the members of the Student Council were busy with the festival. This meant that it would not be difficult to go over the notes again and take a picture of the writing on my phone.


    That''s what I thought, but then I turned and...


    My phone trembled in my pocket from an iing call. I was startled to see the name of the caller.


    Yagami Takuya. Why would he be calling me at this time? Feeling that this was a scary coincidence, I answered the call.


    "Hello?"


    "Horikita-senpai." Yagami-kun''s voice, which should be over the phone, directly reached my ears from a small distance away.


    The person I least wanted to see right now turned to me and waved with a smile. I felt chills all over my body, as if my heart had been directly doused with cold water.


    "Did I startle you?"


    With that he stepped closer to my side as he hung up his cell phone.


    "Yagami-kun, why are you here?"


    "What do you mean, senpai? Didn''t you notice that I called from nearby?"


    I was so focused on other things that maybe I wasn''t able to see him. It was as if Yagami-kun was trying to figure out how upset or flustered I was.


    "By the way, why are you in such an deserted ce, senpai? Isn''t it time to make the final push as the festival enters its climax?"


    "I''m on break, so my role in the festival is over. I just wanted to be alone for a little while."


    "A break at 3 p.m.? You chose an unusual time, didn''t you?"


    Unusual, perhaps. I had never experienced a festival of this type before, so I had no criteria to judge. However, since the rule was that all participants must take a one-hour break, there must be a certain percentage of students like me who chose to take a break at 3:00 PM.


    My train of thought failed toe up with an immediate answer, and I fell silent for a few seconds.


    Then I realized. Yagami-kun''s words, "unusual time," were neither true nor false. It was merely an attempt to find out whether I had chosen 3:00 p.m. as my break time without any intention, or whether I had chosen it purposely.


    In fact, I was too upset to respond immediately. No matter how I responded afterwards. I may have already fallen into the trap.


    No, not yet. There was an option here to go through with it since I have dyed my response. The ufortable phrase "unusual time" could only be heard once.


    "Why is Yagami-kun here?"


    "I found Horikita-senpai with a grim face, so I was curious and followed you."


    "Excuse me? Whatever the reason, I''m not impressed with you following a girl."


    "I thought I called out to you properly, but I guess you didn''t hear me in the bustle."


    On my way here, I was definitely thinking. But that wouldn''t stop me from noticing if he called out to me. I couldn''t help but feel that I was being swayed in the same way as before, but there may be no real meaning to this whole sequence of events. Besides, he could have called out to me any number of times beforeing here. Or maybe he did not follow me, but was in the vicinity around me...


    from the beginning?


    All of this assumed that Yagami-kun was the person I have been following who wrote well. If it''s irrelevant, I guess I''ll have to apologizeter for being so skeptical.


    "Are you allowed to leave the festival?"


    "I''ve done what I had to do. It''s not a break, but I have free time because there is no rule that says you can''t take a break for more than an hour."


    Was it still just a coincidence? No, don''t get that idea. If it turns out to be a coincidenceter, then there is no problem. But if it wasn''t a coincidence, then I''m in trouble now.


    "What do you want in the student council room? It''s locked and I don''t think anyone is in there." Yagami-kun asked looking at the door of the student council room as if he anticipated my arrival.


    "I''m looking for something. I borrowed the key from the staff room, so it''s no problem."


    "You''re looking for something? If that''s the case, I can help you find it."


    Calmness and impatience began topete in my mind. I can''t clearly


    determine if his statement was only well-meaning or if he had malicious intent.


    "It''s not like I need your help."


    "It''s so important that you went to the trouble of looking for it in the middle of a cultural festival, isn''t it?"


    It sounded like a statement that striped me naked and saw through my thoughts.


    "It''s a notebook. I bought it some time ago and I''m having trouble finding it.


    It''s not good for my mental health to think that someone else might pick it up and read it. I almost gave up on it, but it still bothers me. The only ce I haven''t looked through is the student council office."


    There was no point in spending any more time here. I told Yagami-kun the lie that I had told the teachers.


    "Then I''ll help with the search. It will be twice as efficient to search with two people rather than one, won''t it?"


    "Yes, that''s right."


    I slowly unlocked the door and opened it. I stoped moving to step into the student council room one step ahead of Yagami-kun, who was standing right beside me.


    "Horikita-senpai? Do we need two people to search the student council room for a forgotten item? Is there something else you''re after?"


    "Eh?" Under the circumstances, I dared to fight back. "I tried to refuse your help because I honestly felt a little scared."


    "You''re scared... why?"


    "Don''t you understand?"


    "I have no idea."


    "We''re in an empty student council room. Before, you said you called out to me, but I didn''t notice. It was as if I was being followed while we were alone. Do you know what that means for a girl?"


    This was where I set him up, not in terms of Horikita Suzune as an individual, but in terms of social gender differences. I could get rid of him in an absolute way, regardless of whether he was persistent or not.


    "Oh dear, I see. I''m sorry, I hadn''t thought of that at all. I see..."


    This made it impossible to bypass the student council room and also made it impossible to wait in the hallway. It would be too creepy to do that.


    "I''m sorry. I certainly think my behavior was wrong." Yagami-kun bowed deeply. "But, at the risk of sounding rude, may I just say one thing?"


    "I''m sorry?"


    He kept his head bowed and did not raise it, so what was he going to say at this point?


    "The true purpose of Horikita-senpai''s visit to the student council room..."


    Yagami-kun looked up, and right after that...


    Yagami-kun''s posture suddenly copsed in front of me, and his upper body was bent.


    No, he was attacked.


    "I got him!"


    With a voice like that, Ibuki-san appeared, dressed in a kimono.


    "Wait, Ibuki-san!"


    "Don''t just stand there, let me in, Horikita!"


    It would be a big problem if they found me, as it certainly looked like an obvious act of violence. I opened the door to the student council room and Ibuki-san forcefully pushed Yagami-kun to enter.


    "Hey, what are you doing?" The first one to speak out was, of course, Yagami-kun, the victim.


    Ibuki-san appeared from behind, confused by the situation, having detained Yagami-kun.


    "You''ve been saved again by my exploits, Horikita."


    "Saved? I didn''t ask anything of you..."


    "You told me to be very careful with this guy. And you were being pressed by this guy. It''s normal to think there''s something going on." She blurted out things she didn''t have to say all at once.


    Her single-minded behavior had rendered all my previous conversations useless. To say that I had warned her in front of the person in question was nothing short of nonsense.


    "Um, who do you want me to pay attention to?"


    Yagami-kun, unable to move, asked the question in a natural way. Now that it''se to this, I had no choice but to throw it all at him.


    "I apologize for the violent formality. But I have something on my mind about you. Do you remember the other day when you showed me the notes from the meeting?"


    "It was in regards to thements made by Student Council President Nagumo, wasn''t it?"


    "Yes. I wanted to check again what you wrote in the notebook. Specifically, your handwriting of the letters."


    "Letters? I''m not sure, but what you''re really looking for is the notebook full of the meeting records, right?" Yagami-kun continued, looking puzzled. "You said you wanted to check my handwriting, but what is your true intention?"


    I continued my exnation, although I was curious about what he was about to say before Ibuki-san appeared. I exined how a piece of paper was inserted into my tent during the special uninhabited ind exam. Yagami-kun listened silently while being restrained, wanting to know who the sender of that paper was.


    "You mean because the handwriting in my records and the handwriting on that paper were simr?"


    "Yes, that is correct."


    "If that story is true, I can certainly understand your wariness of me. And in order to confirm it secretly, it would have been best to aim for such a timing."


    Because of the preparation period for the festival, people wereing and going on Saturdays and Sundays, and students were walking all over the school to scout for potential stall locations, so I couldn''t take the option of collecting them then.


    "But I am not the sender of the letter."


    Yagami-kun denied it once and for all, and although I was inclined to believe him, I wasn''t sure if I should...


    When I was unable to honestly ept it, he became a little more emphatic.


    "Do you have any reason for your doubt?"


    "Unfortunately, I don''t have any grounds. I just can''t expect you to honestly admit it."


    "If you don''t mind, could you show me that paper once? Then I think I can ask you topare the letters with my handwriting, and I should be able to prove my innocence."


    "I''m afraid that''s impossible. I had a little trouble and lost that paper."


    Amasawa-san confronted me on the ind and tore it up into little pieces.


    "That''s a problem. Doesn''t that mean I can''t prove my innocence?"


    "That''s why I want to recheck the notes first."


    "Even if you reconfirm them, you can''t be certain of their consistency with your memory, can you? Rather, Horikita-senpai now strongly suspects me. If that is the case, the possibility of being made the culprit because of a blurry memory is not small at all. The odds are clearly stacked against me."


    "You may be right."


    I didn''t want it to be Yagami-kun, but I strongly felt that I found the culprit. I could understand his concern about the developments that would take ce.


    "It''s not right for me to be suspected, but anyway can you let go of my hand?


    Either way, I think it would be a wee thing for both of you to back off before it''s toote. How are you going to excuse yourself if Student Council President Nagumo sees a scene like thister?"


    We were restraining a first-year boy for no reason. Surely this situation was nothing but a mass of inconvenience for us. It would be a different story if we had been assaulted, etc., but he had done nothing.


    "Ibuki-san, let him go." I instructed Ibuki-san to follow his words.


    But Ibuki-san''s expression was grim and unruffled as she held Yagami-kun down.


    "I''m sorry, but that''s not how it works."


    "Why not?"


    "Because my intuition tells me that harmless-looking people like you are the most dangerous."


    That''s what she had learned before with Ayanok��ji-kun. But it was clear from her demeanor that it wasn''t just a matter of looks.


    "Do you have any other grounds?"


    "You have a habit of looking weak at a quick nce, but you have a bad sense of humor flying around. You''re not just a scrawny kid, are you?"


    I thought it was because Ibuki-san was in direct contact with him that I knew what she was thinking. The part about the possibility that the person we were


    looking for was quite skilled. If that was indeed the case with Yagami-kun, then it was no wonder that he was a strong suspect.


    "The message sent to me is very simr to Yagami-kun''s handwriting. Add to that, the hidden physical ability, and the fact that he appeared here."


    "It''s true that I don''t mind working out, so I have some confidence in my body." Sighing in irritation, Yagami-kun raised his gaze slightly and looked at me.


    "I''m a little angry with you too. This situation is too one-sided."


    It would not be surprising if Yagami-kun had some high physical ability as Ibuki-san had read. Originally, his OAA grade was C, which was average. It was possible that Yagami-kun''s running speed and sports ability were low, with him only being proficient in martial arts.


    Was he a white or ck belt? As the judgment was pressed for time, the silence was broken in an unexpected way.


    The door to the student council room, where no one was supposed toe, opened without warning.


    "Oh shit, this is quite an unusual situation, isn''t it?"


    The one who showed up was Student Council President Nagumo, only Yagami-kun didn''t change his attitude, but Ibuki-san and I were terribly surprised because of our guilty behavior.


    "Student council president, why are you here ...?"


    "What is this about?"


    By "this" he meant mainly that Ibuki-san was restraining Yagami-kun.


    "If it took two girls to bully a junior student, that''s a big problem, man."


    Ibuki-san couldn''t continue restraining him, so she released Yagami-kun with both hands.


    "Thank you for saving me, Student Council President Nagumo." Yagami-kun looked calm and fixed his ruffled uniform.


    What was with Yagami-kun''s calm demeanor, as if he had known that the student council president wasing?


    "Then, let''s ask you to exin why you''re here without permission."


    If I said I lost my notebook, Yagami-kun might''ve pointed out that I was lying. On the other hand, if I brought up the subject of the notes, the story would spread to Student Council President Nagumo.


    "Horikita-senpai seemed to have lost her notebook, and I was going to help her find it... Ibuki-senpai seemed to have mistakenly thought that I was attacking Horikita-senpai and acted like she did for no apparent reason." He replied, not trying to corner me, but to defend my lie.


    "I see, so that''s the reason for the restraint."


    "I think the misunderstanding has been cleared up, and I don''t particrly


    intend to make an issue of it."


    "Then there''s no need for further mention. So, did you find the notebook?"


    If he was willing to talk back, I was grateful to go along with the process.


    "No, I did not find it. This was thest ce I ced it. Maybe I mistook it for trash and threw it away. I''ll just give up."


    Although he could check himself, he probably didn''t care about the whereabouts of the notebook. The student body president looked away from me, as if he wasn''t interested, and then sat down in his usual seat.


    "Whatever the reason, this isn''t something you should be doing in the middle of a cultural festival. Break it up now."


    Even if I persisted here, I could no longer see the meeting notes. I just had to back off quietly for now. With that thought in mind, I was about to leave the room with Ibuki-san, but then...


    "By the way, Student Council President Nagumo, how did you know we were here?"


    Yagami-kun asked such a question beside me and Ibuki-san.


    "Are you curious?"


    "The door to the student council room was supposed to be locked. But the student council president didn''t hesitate to enter the room, so I was a little concerned."


    It was certainly unnatural. I didn''t know if the student body president had a spare key or not, but he should have tried to open the door by inserting the key at least once. It was understandable to be suspicious that he entered the room so naturally without question. It was as if he knew from the beginning that something was going on...


    Were Student Council President Nagumo and Yagami-kun nning to meet up here? If so, then Yagami-kun''s prediction that the student body president woulde would make sense. But, the exchange between the two was far from indicative.


    "I''d be happy to answer you, but before I do, I wanted to ask Yagami-kun something too."


    "Me?"


    "You remember the matter we talked about in the student council room the other day, don''t you? I told you that there''s a rumor that I''m trying to expel some students with a lot of money."


    "Of course. I''ve been doing some digging on my end, but I haven''t been able to find out where the rumors areing from."


    I couldn''t keep up with the sudden rehash of the story.


    "But you know, don''t you? Where the rumors areing from."


    "Pardon me?"


    "I mean, you''re the one who started them, aren''t you?"


    Student Council President Nagumo kicked the underside of the desk lightly in frustration.


    "Wait, please. What in the world is going on all of a sudden? Why would I do such a thing?"


    Just as he was suspected by us, now he was suspected by Student Council President Nagumo. And it waspletely unrted.


    "The reason for you doing it is quite clear. It was a special exam among first-year students where certain students were expelled for a prize money. You were one of the few who participated."


    Yagami-kun''s expression clouded slightly here. It contained irritation, just like Student Council President Nagumo''s.


    "What do you mean, Student Council President Nagumo, what on earth are you talking about?"


    "You denied it at the student council meeting, but it was a fact."


    "Well, you were involved too, weren''t you?"


    "But I didn''t break any rules, you know? It''s just school policy. I was standing in as student council president with Director Tsukishiro to maintain fairness. Am I right? Yagami."


    There had been relentless special exams at this school, but I didn''t think that was even possible.


    "Wasn''t it a rule not to talk about that special exam and its participants?"


    "You broke that rule first, didn''t you?"


    "It wasn''t me. There is no merit in embarrassing Student Council President Nagumo. Besides, there were several other first-year students who received the same exnation."


    "Well, yeah. But you showed up here. It''s tempting to specte."


    "That''s just a coincidence."


    Student Council President Nagumo was facing Yagami-kun, but changed his gaze to us.


    "You guys go back now. I''ll talk to Yagami from here."


    "I did not know about that matter, but please allow me to speak."


    "Horikita-senpai, what are you going to say?"


    Yagami-kun attempted to restrain me with his eyes. ''I covered for you earlier, return the favor'' he seemed to be saying. I had to ignore such a gaze.


    "Tell me."


    "I don''t know if he was the one who spread the rumor about that special exam. But I don''t think it''s a coincidence that he showed up here; Yagami-kun was


    following me. Or I now strongly feel that he has been watching around this student council room from the beginning."


    "You think so, Suzune? Is this true, Yagami?"


    Yagami-kun''s expression hardened as he was caught between the two sides, but then he exhaled in irritation.


    "I understand. You two were working together from the beginning, weren''t you? From the moment you handed me that letter disguised as a love letter, you decided to force me into a corner here, didn''t you?"


    "The letter disguised as a love letter?"


    "You mean this one?"


    Student Council President Nagumo took out from his pocket the love letter I had received from Ichihashi-san.


    What did he mean by a letter disguised as a love letter?


    "I don''t understand. It''s just a love letter from an unknown sender, with true feelings for me written on it."


    "No, it''s not. The letter is indeed a love letter at first nce, but it says,


    "Cultural Festival, 3:00 p.m., Student Council Room." Other words like


    "important," "expulsion," and "secret" are everywhere. No?"


    Opening the already sealed letter, Student Council President Nagumo looked it over.


    "Where is that written? I have no idea."


    With that, Student Council President Nagumo moved to hand me the love letter.


    "Excuse me."


    I borrowed the letter and look through the contents. But I couldn''t find the letter Yagami-kun mentioned anywhere.


    Ibuki-san was also curious and took a peek at the note, but her reaction was the same as ours. Such was the content:


    [I want you to forgive me for confessing without telling you my name. I have always loved you.]


    "Please stop ying games . If you analyze the anagrams, you will find the truth."


    "What''s an anagram?"


    Unlike Ibuki-san, who didn''t understand the meaning of the word itself, I wondered if he meant to say that this letter was written with an anagram? An anagram is a rearrangement of letters to change their meanings. A y on words.


    Even if you try to find the answer repeatedly, you won''t find it right away.


    Maybe you could find it with time, but it''s not possible to instantly recognize it.


    "You are very clever, Yagami. Apparently neither Suzune nor I can analyze


    anagrams right away, right?"


    Yagami-kun was just as highly wary of us as we were of his growing skepticism.


    "Could it have been written by one of you two? Or was it someone you know inmon?"


    "Common acquaintance? Who the hell are you talking about?"


    "I don''t know that. But you can trust that I followed the anagram to this ce."


    If that was so... no, he said somethingpletely strange.


    "I don''t care at this point if it''s an anagram or not. How do you know in advance what''s in this love letter? You read it before you handed it to me, right?"


    Yes. There was no other way to know.


    "It''s from coincidence. When I dropped the letter, the seal came off and the contents came out. I wasn''t supposed to look at it, but I couldn''t resist looking through it."


    "That''s not very good behavior for a member of the student council."


    I understood the temptation to steal a nce, but I would usually restrain myself. And even more so if it was a letter exchanged by a third party who had nothing to do with me. Would I take the risk of checking the contents of a letter exchanged between third parties with whom I have nothing to do? It was true that not knowing the sender''s name tickled my curiosity, but whether I''d even check the contents of the letter was another matter.


    "You checked inside because you usually have bad morals, right? I had a hunch that I was being set up in some kind of trap."


    "It doesn''t sound like we can quite believe your words at the moment."


    I was feeling strangely ufortable about this whole discussion. The world as I saw it, the world as Yagami-kun saw it, and the world as President Nagumo saw it. I couldn''t help but feel that they were all slightly different from each other.


    They seemed to be meshing, but they were not. I felt ufortable as if something was stuck in my back teeth.


    It was bad enough that Yagami-kun read the letter without permission.


    However, the fact that he spread a bad rumor about Student Council President Nagumo, not to mention the ambiguous meeting notes, made it worse. We couldn''t determine with certainty whether his appearance in front of this student council room was intentional or coincidental either. There was no way to go on ming Yagami-kun any further here...


    Yagami-kun looked at me and Student Council President Nagumo alternately and gave a smallugh.


    "Isn''t it about time for you to answer the question? The truth is, you all already know, don''t you?" After a moment of silence, perhaps having sorted out the situation in his mind, Yagami-kun spoke up. "Horikita-senpai, you were shown the meeting notes, associated the paper with the one you received during the uninhabited ind, and thought I was the culprit. Then you gave a letter to Student Council President Nagumo, disguised as a love letter, and secretly sent him a message."


    For some reason, he started mentioning the notes and paper himself, which he had not mentioned up to this point.


    "Why do you have to go through all that trouble? You could have just called or chatted. Isn''t it so you don''t leave evidence that you suspect me? You can make any number of requests with this letter disguised as a love letter. And Student Council President Nagumo would be willing to go over the meeting records with you to determine if I am the person Horikita-senpai is looking for."


    "The ind? The Notes? The person Suzune is looking for? What are you talking about?"


    "Are you still going to continue your act, Student Council President Nagumo? I already know that you and Horikita-senpai are acting under the direction of a certain person. Everything is under the direction of Ayanok��ji-senpai, who created the anagram of this letter, isn''t it? I feel bad for him. I''m sure he had already arrived at this conclusion far before I even had to show you the notes, Horikita-senpai."


    "Why is Ayanok��ji-kun''s name mentioned here?"


    "He''s going around a lot, isn''t he? I thought he didn''t like to be publicized, but I didn''t expect him to contact me in this way." Heughed amusedly. Yagami-kun''s attitude had clearly changed from before.


    "So what happens after this? Are we finally going to meet Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    Yagami-kun looked at the doorway like a child with a toy gift box in front of him.


    "I''m impatient. Can you tell me what you have heard about me before he arrives? I would especially like to hear it from your mouth, Horikita-senpai."


    "Wait. I really don''t know what you are talking about. I suspected that you came to my tent and put the letter in there, but I only talked to Ibuki-san about it."


    Even when I told him the truth, Yagami-kun did not seem to believe me.


    "Exin it to me so I can understand, Yagami."


    "Fuu~ I''m getting tired of your quicksand, Student Council President Nagumo. You were going to meet up with Ayanok��ji-senpai here along with Horikita-senpai through the letter. And he was going to talk to me. He must have


    thought it was dangerous to meet with me alone. Yeah, it was a wise decision."


    "Sorry to interrupt your heated mood, Yagami, but I''ll tell you why I came to the student council room."


    Student Council President Nagumo pulled out his cell phone and turned the screen toward us. A phone number was disyed, as if there was an iing call from someone.


    "Looks like you''ve arrived. Come in."


    The other end of the phone hung up.


    "Ha-ha-ha! I knew Ayanok��ji-senpai was here! I''m so happy!"


    Yagami-kunughed loudly and opened his arms to wee the slowly opening door.


    "It seems I''m a little unexpected."


    With these words, a person who went beyond my expectations entered the room. The first to react was not me, Student Council President Nagumo, or Yagami-kun, but Ibuki-san.


    "What? Ry��en? What are you doing here?"


    Ry��en-kun was not the only one who showed up. Two of his ssmates also showed up.


    "Oh, you look pretty good in that outfit, Ibuki. What do you think, Kinoshita?"


    "Honestly. I think you look cute with your little bow."


    "What? Wait, Komiya? And even Kinoshita is...?


    And to top it off, Sakagami-sensei and Mashima-sensei also showed upter in the student council room.


    "What is... This...?"


    The most stunned person was Yagami-kun, who was mouthing something iprehensible.


    "I came to the student council room to talk to Ry��en and the others. Isn''t that right?"


    "Yeah, that was the n, but were you in the middle of taking them in?"


    Yagami-kun looking at them also had a grim look on his face, as if he did not understand the current situation.


    Student Council President Nagumo stood up and forced the letter onto Yagami-kun''s chest.


    "Anagrams masquerading as love letters, secret notes, this doesn''t make any sense to me, Yagami."


    "This can''t be true... what''s going on?"


    Ry��en-kun approached Yagami-kun, who could not hide his confusion.


    Then he pointed his finger and said.


    "This is the one you guys were talking about, right?"


    Ry��en-kun asked Komiya-kun and the others standing discreetly behind him, confirming something. Both of them nodded strongly with nervous looks on their faces.


    "Yes, sir. I''m sure of it."


    "Yes. I''m sure."


    Ry��en-kun heard this and, with a wan smile on his face as usual, moved even closer to Yagami-kun. He was so close that he could reach Yagami-kun if he stretched out his arm.


    "I''m going to have to have a long talk with you, aren''t I?"


    "About what?"


    Ry��en-kunughed, extended his right arm, and suddenly grabbed Yagami-kun by the bangs.


    "Ry��en!" Mashima-sensei scolded him for his violent behavior, but he showed no sign of paying attention.


    "Yo, what''s your name again?"


    "Yagami, Yagami Takuya, Ry��en-senpai."


    Ry��en-san pulled up his hair and his face changed to one of anguish.


    "So you''re Yagami. I heard you''re the one who took care of Komiya and Kinoshita."


    "What do you mean? I don''t understand."


    "Don''t y dumb. Komiya and Kinoshita reminded me just the other day.


    The reason they got seriously injured during the desert ind test was because you violently attacked them."


    Severe injuries on a deserted ind. I knew that they were seriously injured with broken bones, but that was an ident caused by carelessness, as I recalled.


    "Me? What in the world is going on?!"


    "These guys had lost their memories due to the shock of their injuries, but once it was put away as an ident, they remembered. They remember now that you were the culprit."


    As if in response to this statement, Student Council President Nagumo alsomented.


    "It was just yesterday. We were going to have a discussion today, just me, Ry��en, and Komiya and Kinoshita. Why are the teachers here?"


    "I called them here to save you the trouble. I heard that Sakagami rushed over when the two of you were injured."


    "Speaking of Yagami-kun, I''m sure Mashima-sensei recalls as well."


    Sakagami-sensei confirmed Mashima-sensei, as if remembering something.


    "Yes, I don''t want to do anything to suspect the students, but I can''t deny the


    possibility."


    "Hey, what are you saying? I didn''t do anything!"


    No wonder he was so flustered. I was not able to clear my head either.


    "Yagami. I know that the GPS on your watch was not functioning when the two alerts went off that day. There were several students whose watches were broken during the special exam, but only two, including you, were able to contact Komiya and the others from the point where youst disappeared. Of course, at the time, Komiya, Kinoshita, and Shinohara could only say that someone had injured them, but they could not give their names. Therefore, we had no choice but to treat it as an ident..."


    "He couldn''t remember, butter he remembered and gave my name? That''s impossible! It''s obvious that the two of them must have talked past each other toe up with my name!"


    "Mutual back-channeling? The fact that your watch was broken is a fact that the average student does not know."


    Over 400 people were taking the test on a deserted ind. Two of them were wearing watches with broken GPS at the time they were injured. Surely the odds are too low to call it a coincidence.


    "They recall seeing the culprit. What''s your basis for your doubts about their ims? Tell me."


    With more strength in his fingertips, Ry��en-kun pulled on Yagami-kun''s hair.


    "Gghh! That''s..."


    "''No one could have seen me, I must have done it perfectly well.'' That''s what you think, right?"


    "Well, wait a minute. I didn''t do anything. Do you think I''m capable of such a terrible thing?"


    Yagami-kun was not a big man. To the casual observer, it would seem strange. But Ry��en-kun didn''t trust Yagami-kun''s words at all.


    "I''ve learned from the past that the ones who look harmless are the most troublesome. Isn''t that right, Ibuki?"


    "No doubt, this guy is strong. He can at least seriously injure Komiya and the others without them noticing."


    "Normally, I''d have you suffer an equal or greater injury to avenge our enemy, but unfortunately, we''re in front of Sensei. I''ll give you a break. What awaits you is nothing but expulsion."


    If the facts were confirmed and it was proven that Yagami-kun caused serious injury to Komiya-kun and the others, that it would be more than a suspension. Expulsion was inevitable, even with no extenuating circumstances.


    Yagami-kun tilted his face down as Ry��en-kun removed his hand from his hair.


    "So? What are you doing here, Suzune?"


    "I had some research to do on Yagami-kun too."


    "Oh? What''s that?"


    I came this far, I had no choice but to tell them all about it. I told them what had happened on the deserted ind, that I had been looking for a student with beautiful handwriting, that I hade here to check the notes because they were simr to Yagami-kun''s. I pulled out the notebook and opened it to Yagami-kun''s page.


    "The handwriting and Yagami-kun''s handwriting are almost identical. It also matches my memory."


    "Let me ask you to exin what this means, Yagami."


    Student Council President Nagumo asked, even though he didn''t have a full grasp of what''s going on. The only thing that was certain was that something mysterious was going on in this ce. While all of us were rted to Yagami-kun, there wasn''t a definitive key.


    There was no one who could be the most important key. How was such a thing possible? What if it had all started with that one love letter... And I entrusted it to Yagami-kun, and Yagami-kun saw what was inside, too?


    They knew for sure that Yagami-kun would analyse the anagram inside of it... But they didn''t know that I had seen Yagami-kun''s notes.


    No, I wonder if that had anything to do with it. I was an outsider, and Ibuki-san was an outsider with me.


    Even if Ibuki-san and I were not here, this sequence of events would''ve continued. Yagami-kun, who was lured by the letter and came to the student council room, would have been questioned by President Nagumo.


    But was such a thing possible? Even if it were possible, who would do it?


    When and where?


    No, this kind of question itself may be wrong. It would not be at all surprising... if Ayanok��ji-kun was behind this event.


    Ry��en-kun, Komiya-kun and others who unexpectedly appeared as well as the teachers. It was a ce to surround Yagami-kun, who was evasive, from all sides.


    "Kuku, I''m surprised too, but I can''t help it. He was ying with fire too much."


    Ry��en-kun startedughing, perhaps feeling the same way I did.


    "Why is this happening, this is beyond stupid."


    "I don''t know what kind of background you have, but you''re trapped."


    "I-I''m still in a state where I can''t even fight him!? This is where it ends? It can''t be over, that''s ridiculous!" Yagami-kun, his whole body trembling, shouted in a voice never heard before. "You mean you don''t... even have to deal with me directly? Heh... ha... hahaha! Don''t fuck with me... don''t fuck with me!"


    "Shut up. Don''t yell so close to me, you little bitch." Ry��en-kun sticked his pinky in his right ear and muttered in exasperation.


    Yagami-kun''s excitement did not subside.


    "Okay~" Yagami-kun said, "I''m going to do it now. I''m going to kill him with my own hands! Then I''ll go back to where I belong, and get my rightful ce! I''ll take his dead body back with me!"


    There were two teachers here, as if that didn''t matter at all. In a clear sign of change, Ibuki-san jumped toward Yagami-kun from behind just as he was about to take a bold step toward Ry��en-kun. Without looking back, Yagami-kun quickly dealt with it and mmed his elbow into her abdomen.


    "Guh!"


    Just one shot and Ibuki-san crumpled to the ground, unable to stand up.


    "Stop it, Yagami!"


    When the teachers started to run to stop Yagami-san, Ry��en-kun stopped them.


    "Pull back. He''s not fucking around. Guess it''s time for me to step up, isn''t it?" Ry��en-kun, without regard to the fact that this was the student council chambers, clenched his fist.


    "Oh my god, you can''t stop me. I''m not going to tolerate anyone who stands in front of me from now on. I don''t care if it''s a woman or a teacher. If you don''t want to see yourself get hurt like Komiya and the others, then shut up and back off."


    "Kuku. So that''s your true nature. That''s funny, isn''t it?"


    Without hesitation, Ry��en-kun took a step forward and lightly spread his arms out as if to provoke.


    "I''ll dly stand in your way, soe at me. You''re only a punk."


    Ry��en-kun was determined, but I didn''t think Yagami-kun could be stopped.


    However, We must do something to hold him here. He was driven by the urge to destroy everything, regardless of the teachers'' presence. If we let him go, there is no guarantee that we will be able to stop his rampage.


    And where he was headed... was to Ayanok��ji-kun. If something like this happened in the middle of a cultural festival, a warning won''t do.


    "Stop it, Yagami. And Ry��en, too. If you cause amotion here, it will be a serious penalty."


    "My expulsion is 100% inevitable. If that''s the case, there''s no reason to stop it, right Mashima?"


    Yagami-kun called him out without even addressing him as sensei, and discarded him.


    Still, Mashima-sensei, as a teacher, stepped in between Yagami-kun and Ry��en-kun.


    "Get lost." He kicked Mashima-sensei in the knee, and when he staggered over, he mmed his fist into his face.


    Sakagami-sensei witnessed it up close and took a frightened step away.


    Ry��en-kun, excited at the start of a perfect fight, was just about to jump on Yagami-kun.


    "Let''s stop now, Takuya."


    The door to the student council room opened, revealing Amasawa-san with red, swollen eyes.


    "Ah? Why are you here?"


    Yagami-kun stopped moving in a situation where no one''s words were likely to reach him.


    "What''s it going to take for you to get any more out of control? Do you think that will make them ept you? They''re already done with-"


    "No, it''s not! The instructors are waiting for me! I''m going to be the best!"


    Who are the instructors, I wondered? At least I could guess that they were not the teachers of this school.


    "I was just going to close out the cultural festival today in an interesting way by exposing that guy''s past, but he''s done something absurd."


    "Takuya, I knew you were going to do that. ..."


    "Get out of my way; I''m going to make Ayanok��ji regret it. I''ll make it so funny you won''t stopughing."


    "If you insist on going to Ayanok��ji-senpai, I''ll stop you before you do."


    "You? You''ve never beaten me once. Don''t make meugh."


    "Maybe I can''t beat you with force. But I''ll give it a try.


    "I knew you were devoted to Ayanok��ji, but I didn''t know you were that stupid."


    "I just learned that a frog in a well doesn''t know the ocean. It''s just like that story we learned about before... Don''t you remember?"


    Amasawa had a sad look in her eyes. Yagami-kun seemed to falter for a moment, before returning to his murderous gaze.


    "Then it''s time for you to die. There is no reason for you to be alive."


    Just as Amasawa-san was about to make up her mind, we heard multiple footstepsing from the other side of the hallway.


    Five adults steped into the student council room with nk expressions on their faces. Not all of them were recognizable, but two of the five were guests of honor who had also shown up at the maid cafe.


    Yagami-kun, who had been untouchable until a moment ago, suddenly began to tremble.


    "W-why are you guys here? Hey, why...?"


    "We even got a call toe pick you up at the student council office. It wasn''t exactly what we had in mind."


    Yagami-kun, who had been on a killing spree just a short time ago, found himself squeezed like a child. It was almost as if a child had been caught by his parents and was scared of the punishment.


    Surrounded by adults, Yagami-kun was taken away without resistance.


    Amasawa-san walked with him.


    "You people are..."


    Mashima-sensei confirmed as he stood up in pain.


    "We are rted to Yagami and Amasawa. We will settle this situation, so please go ahead and get treated. Please do not tell anyone about what happened here, not even the teachers and students. Rest assured that we will pass everything on to Chairman Sakayanagi."


    "I understand."


    With Sakagami-sensei''s help, Mashima-sensei left the student council room.


    The room, which had been so noisy, was suddenly enveloped in silence.


    "Get up Ibuki, let''s pull out."


    "Come on, at least give me a hand!"


    Ry��en-kun gave instructions to Komiya-kun with his chin to Ibuki-san, who still could not stand up, and then lent her a hand and left the room.


    Only me and Student Council President Nagumo were left in the Student Council Room.


    "So much for this. A lot of things have gone wrong, but I guess we''ve settled the matter once and for all."


    "How much did you know about today''s incident involving Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What are you talking about? As I said before, I just came here with the intention of talking to Ry��en."


    "Then you didn''t need to bring that letter."


    The love letter remained crumpled and fallen on the floor in emptiness.


    "To borrow Yagami''s words, it was a coincidence. It just happened to be still in my pocket." A simple lie. There was nothing more to say, such was the notice from the student body president.


    "The noisy festival is over. You too, go back."


    "I understand."


    I turned to leave the room, and saw Nagumo settling into his chair, eyes closed, with a slight grin on his face.

 Chapter 292: Epilogue : The People Behind The Scenes

    <h4>Chapter 292: Epilogue : The People Behind The Scenes</h4>


    FINALLY, 4:00 P.M arrived, and the hectic cultural festival finally came to an end.


    As exined in advance, the ounting application was forcibly shut down, and sales cannot be recorded thereafter.


    The results could be checked via cell phone starting 6 pm, two hourster.


    Even though the event was over, we were still expected to not take it for granted until the end of the day.


    The guests who had stayed until the end began to leave their seats as the caf�� was closing, and gave their impressions of the maid caf�� to the students.


    All of them had positivements such as, "it was interesting," and, "it was fun." The students who had worked so hard at the event were deeply touched by those warm words, and their fatigue seemed to fade away.


    Incidentally, Chabashira-sensei ran out of the ssroom like a rabbit as soon as 4 o''clock came. Running around in that outfit would''ve been conspicuous, but let''s leave it at that. It was around 5:30 when all the customers left and all the ssmates (except K��enji) gathered at the maid cafe.


    "Good work, everyone. A lot happened, but at least we were able to end the festival in an ideal way. I don''t think the sales could have been any better."


    Ike and the others gathered in the ssroom having just finished taking down the outdoor stalls. In the maid caf��, some guests stayed eating untilte, so there were still some areas to clean up, but Horikita stepped up to sum up the cultural festival.


    "The results will be announcedter, but there is something I want to talk to you about before that."


    Yes, there were 37 students in the ssroom. Akito and Haruka also remained behind.


    Although not prompted by Horikita, Haruka, who was the star of the show, stepped forward.


    "I would like to be the first to tell you. I have not forgiven everyone here."


    Haruka mumbled in the silence of the ssroom as she opened her speech.


    Some of the students, expecting her to start with an apology, looked at each other, feeling more bewilderment than anger.


    They didn''t seem to me her. Everyone understood. They had grown up to be able to feel the pain of losing a friend, a best friend.


    "But the person I can''t forgive the most is myself. I assumed that everyone


    who left the school would be unhappy. Yamauchi-kun, who disappearedst year, and Airi."


    At the mention of Yamauchi''s name, Sud��, Ike, and the others seemed to be thinking back.


    "I had assumed that it was best for Airi to stay at this school. I assumed that was the happiest thing to do. That''s why I hated all of them ... and wanted to take revenge."


    Haruka clutched the skirt of her school uniform tightly as she expressed her frustration.


    "After this festival ended, I was going to leave school."


    It was a fact that she didn''t have to tell, but she didn''t want to hide it, so she confessed. I think some of the students had foreseen this, but the majority of them were tight-lipped.


    "I was going to go along with Haruka too."


    At this point, Akito, too, could not remain silent and told the truth with Haruka.


    "If we had dropped out, our ss would not have reached ss A. It''s the easiest and most powerful way to get revenge."


    No tricks would be needed. Just leaving school was enough to make us lose arge number of ss points.


    "But if you give me a chance, please let me stay in this ss."


    "You''ve had a change of heart, haven''t you?"


    "That girl is trying to spread her wings in the outside world. Kushida-san told me about it."


    At this point, Kushida''s name was mentioned, and everyone''s eyes were drawn to her. The majority of them didn''t understand what was going on, so Kushida opened her mouth as if to add something.


    "Sakura-san, she seems to be working hard to be an idol; you can find her on SNS, so maybe you can ask Hasebe-san to show youter."


    Some students were surprised, others thought it was a good idea. But themon perception that emerged was the fact that Airi had taken a new step forward.


    "Airi will grow a lot. Probably more than I thought she would. So I want to be able to graduate in ss A and go see her. I want to be able to show myself without embarrassment."


    The ss learned that this was why she chose to stay at this school.


    "You made a good decision, Hasebe-san."


    "I''m going to ept punishment for the trouble I caused."


    "I''m just as guilty. I didn''t help with most of the festival and caused trouble


    for the ss."


    Horikita steped forward before the other students could say anything else.


    "Skipping the festival is a problematic behavior, but fortunately it doesn''t vite any rules. Kouenji-kun hasn''t shown up once since this morning, so it''s the same thing."


    Horikita approached Haruka with a look of dismay and relief on her face.


    "If you are going to be punished, it will only be by remaining ssmates with me. Can you face that reality?"


    I wonder what Haruka thought of the reflection in Horikita''s eyes.


    "I''m going to try my best. Yes. From now on, you can think of me as your regr Hasebe-san, okay?"


    "Don''t worry. I won''t bother you." That was enough, Horikita nodded and dered. "Miyake-kun is the same as before as well. Is that okay?"


    "Of course."


    "That''s all for today then. Let''s all finish the rest of the cleanup quickly."


    Keisei walked up to Haruka and Akito, somewhat hesitantly. Starting with Akito''s apology, Keisei''s eyes reddened a bit and he spoke with relief. Haruka''s apology brought the three of them together for the first time while, and they smiled slightly at each other. Akito and Keisei turned their attention to Haruka as if they had made up their minds. The two of them signaled to Haruka as well, and the eyes of those three turned to me in confusion.


    If I were to approach them here and now, the group might be resumed. That was no longer necessary. I turned my back and went to send words of thanks to Sato and the others.


    The group of five was now three, but I hoped that the bond between them would be stronger than before. That ce doesn''t need me.


    The three of them could sense my actions as a sign of farewell. They didn''t approach me or call out to me.


    It was quick after that. The cleanup that was left to be done would soon be back on track with 37 people.


    All the cleanup was done before 6:00 PM. Then the results of the festival were announced.


    ? 1st ce, 2nd year B ss (+ 100 ss points)


    ? 2nd ce, 2nd year C ss (+ 100 ss points)


    ? 3rd ce, 3rd year B ss (+ 100 ss points)


    ? 4th ce, 2nd year A ss (+ 100 ss points)


    ? 5th ce, 1st year A ss (+ 50 ss points)


    ? 6th ce, 3rd year C ss (+ 50 ss points)


    ? 7th ce, 2nd year D ss (+ 50 ss points)


    ? 8th ce, 1st year C ss (+ 50 ss points)


    ? 9th ce, 3rd year D ss


    ? 10th ce, 1st year B ss


    ? 11th ce, 3rd year A ss


    ? 12th ce, 1st year D ss


    "We''re in first ce! We did it!"


    "I guess Chabashira-sensei''s cosy really struck!"


    Each was pleased and praised each other for a good fight.


    "But Ry��en''s ce is also in second ce, and Sakayanagi''s ss is in fourth ce, which is quintessential."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Yeah, everything is going ording to n."


    It was a certainty that Horikita''s ss would take the top ce, and it was assumed from the beginning that Ry��en''s ss would also be in the top position.


    "I wondered how the one-liners would fare, but you''ve managed to outsmart them."


    "But there was also something unexpected: Sakayanagi came in fourth."


    "Yes. Did you see their performance?


    "No, I didn''t go to the third floor of the special wing today. Did you see them?"


    "ss A was selling brochures and stuff about the school for a low price.


    They didn''t have any other food, drink, or other offerings. I wonder what kind of tricks they used ...."


    "The clue is probably at the bottom of the list."


    "First year ss D, Housen-kun''s ss, right? What about it?"


    "If they were the bottom of the ss as a result of a struggle, fine. But that''s unthinkable. The ss''s entertainment, which was mainly a reenactment of the festival, was quite sessful. I thought it was one of the top sses. Did you think that was lower than the third-year A ss?"


    "The 11th-ranked ss is third-year ss A. They were priced out of thepetition from the start. It was only about entertaining to please the guests, right?"


    It was confirmed that the haunted house and other activities could be yed for 100 points. On the other hand, the shooting and other stalls that Hosen had set


    up were priced appropriately.


    "The top ss got 100 points for this festival. It means that behind the scenes, Hosen might have gotten something else."


    "Conceivably, you mean private points?"


    "Doesn''t this remind you ofst year''s desert ind test?"


    There was an agreement between Ry��en and Katsuragi to receive private points in exchange for letting them earn ss points. It would not surprise me if something simr happened between Sakayanagi and H��sen.


    "It''s not impossible. Or maybe they signed a simr contract to rece it."


    The ounting was done through a cell phone. It would be a viable enough strategy if H��sen and his friends had received cell phones from the second-year A ss for ounting purposes and donated all sales. If they were also providing funds to H��sen''s ss for the festival, it would make sense for the size of the festival to grow.


    "But she did," he said.


    "Because if you notice, she''s taking the choice to win."


    Either way, it meant that Sakayanagi won''t be easily satisfied. It was clear that they were steadily producing results, even though they appeared to have abandoned the game.


    1


    The meeting was then dismissed, but Horikita called some members of the group to the ss B ssroom. They were the three maid cafe nners, with the exception of Matsushita, who was absent due to illness.


    "Actually, I have something I have to apologize to you guys for."


    "What? Apologize for what? What is it?"


    It had been a tough day, but there had been no particr asion in which Horikita had shown any fault.


    Since Sat�� and the others had absolutely nothing in mind, they tilted their heads curiously.


    "You remember how Ry��en-kun leaked the maid cafe and how it spread throughout the school, don''t you?"


    "Yeah. That was a bit of a panic, wasn''t it?"


    "Actually, it was already decided from the beginning that he would leak the


    maid caf��."


    The story stemmed from my suggestion to somehow join hands in order to cooperate with each other and win the top positions at the festival.


    "What do you mean, the leak was set in stone? What do you mean?"


    "It was all nned. Ry��en-kun and I would work together, he would betray us and make the maid cafe''s performance known."


    "What? No way!"


    Of course they would be surprised. Horikita and I were the only ones in the ss who knew about this.


    "So you also had a bet where the winner gets private points?"


    "That was Ry��en-kun''s idea. I was a little nervous when he suddenly said it.


    Hashimoto and the others, who had been looking forward to the result of the bet, must have been decisive in the betting."


    "Yes, Sakayanagi-san heard a lot of information from third parties. I''m sure that Hashimoto-kun and other spies must''ve told her about this as well. The two sses were supposed to cooperate with each other, but they got into a dispute, and Ry��en-kun unterally betrayed them."


    "Then what about the one million points you''d get if you won first ce?"


    "I''m sorry, but we''ve also confirmed that in fact, no matter who won, no points will be handed over to either of them. He was willing to do it himself, but I think he''s a bit chilled by now. I kept this fact a secret from our ssmates, including Kei, with the exception of Horikita. And no one in Ry��en''s ss, except Ry��en and Katsuragi, had heard about it."


    Even close associates such as Ishizaki and Albert were no exception.


    That was why I could only take it as a sign that Ry��en was serious about keeping the agreement.


    "One of their strategies was to put up a Japanese-style concept caf�� as a rival. Besides appealing to the public that we were enemies, it was also to keep other rivals out."


    Rivalry. The higher the excitement, the more responsibility and money down the drain for the adults.


    If they knew that there was a battle they couldn''t lose, it would be natural to want to let the ones who have the better shoulder win. On the other hand, other sses and grades were not in a fight to the death. Of course, many sses wanted ss points, but the heat was a notch or two lower than the Horikita vs. Ry��en battle.


    "I''m really sorry. I even kept quiet to you guys, even though I was trying to win."


    Horikita was always feeling guilty because she wanted to reveal the n as soon as possible.


    I''m sure the three of them could tell that she was sincerely sorry.


    "It''s okay. We were first in the results, hey?"


    Not particrly ming us, Sat�� happily confirmed to Mii-chan and Maezono.


    "Well, you know. If you do well, I guess I don''t mind so much."


    "Yes. If I had been told beforehand, it might have shown on my face."


    Mii-chan replied honestly, "I''m not even sure I''m confident enough to act."


    "Good for you, Horikita."


    "Yes, it''s a weight off my shoulders. You guys can tell Matsushita-san about this. And as soon as the private points are transferred to us, we''ll pay you all."


    "We did it!"


    The three of them high-fived each other.


    "Was Chabashira-sensei bing a maid also discussed from the beginning? That was probably the biggest surprise."


    "That was amazing... we were on top of the scores within an hour."


    "I know you have a lot to talk about, but we''re going to end today off. Thank you so much."


    The ss found a strategy in the suggestion of a maid cafe and was able to win first ce. I was grateful that other uncalcted factors also worked positively.


    After seeing the three of them off, only Horikita and I were left in the ssroom. A slightly stronger wind came through the open window and shook the curtains.


    "Are you sure you''re okay with it? Most of the n was your own idea. You could''ve imed more credit, you know? Staging the confrontation and making Chabashira-sensei the maid, it was undeniably your ability that contributed to the first ce."


    "It was only possible because of Horikita''s stand as leader."


    "If it had been you in the past, you wouldn''t have included me in this scheme, would you?"


    In the empty ssroom, Horikita muttered without looking at me.


    "I guess so."


    "You don''t deny it, do you?"


    "It''s a fact, so it can''t be helped. You knew it too, that''s why you asked me, right?"


    "Well, yeah, that''s probably true."


    It''s not that I, Ry��en, and Katsuragi couldn''t have forced the issue by


    ourselves. But when I made this proposal, I told Horikita at the same time without hesitation.


    I wasn''t sure if she could y the role or not, but it was not something that could be done without the leader.


    If the proposal had beenpletely rejected, I would''ve been fine with it.


    "I wouldn''t hesitate to consider deceiving my colleagues if it''s an effective means to win. When it''s time to proceed, I will proceed, even if it''s at a risk. Do you understand?"


    The idea of creating strategies herself became more ingrained in Horikita''s body.


    "Maybe now I can understand. I think I''m starting to see it, little by little."


    It may not be a very strong feeling yet, but she was definitely getting a feel for it.


    "That''s enough for today. The sun will be setting soon."


    "Wait. Ayanok��ji-kun, I really need to ask you something right now."


    I had a hunch that Horikita would refuse to leave when I tried to encourage her to do so.


    I had a feeling that Horikita and Ibuki''s presence in the student council room was not a mere coincidence. It must be because they had arrived at that ce by following some sort of thread.


    "What is it?"


    "Today''s cultural festival. The serious incident that was happening behind the scenes. Are you..."


    Just in time or not, my cell phone rang.


    "Sorry, hold on a second."


    "Yeah, yeah."


    I looked at the screen and saw that it was an iing call from an unknown number.


    "Hello?"


    "Are you still in school? I''d like to talk to you for a minute if you''d like."


    The voice sounded familiar: It was Tsubaki Sakurako, a student in first year ss C.


    I didn''t care how she got my number, as there were so many different ways to get it, but she was an unexpected person.


    I''m not surprised as to why she made contact today.


    "Are you alone now?"


    "Unfortunately not."


    "Then why don''t we meet up?"


    "Where are you?"


    "I just left the front door. You''re still on campus, right?


    "Give me five minutes."


    "Okay."


    After a short call, I told Horikita, "I''m sorry, but I''m going to have to step out for a bit...I''ll be back in about 10 or 20 minutes. Then we''ll continue our conversation."


    "Okay, I''ll wait here."


    I promised toe back here and left the ssroom. Once I was alone, I decided to call the person who had helped me the most today.


    "The third-year''s informationwork is top-notch; whether it was Kushida Kikyo or Hasebe Haruka, you''re able to find them immediately. I''ve once again realized the power of Student Council President Nagumo."


    "Did you call me to say that?"


    "I just wanted to thank you in advance. You were very helpful in today''s search."


    The number of eyes and the leadership among the third-year students who quickly located Haruka and Kushida were magnificent.


    "I never thought you''d use the strategy I used on you for your own benefit."


    "It was helpful that you were able to tell me what was going on in the student council room. Thanks to you, I was able to respond quickly."


    "At first, I thought it was Yagami''s crazy delusion, but was there actually a trick to that letter?"


    "It seems to be a love letter to Student Council President Nagumo, but as Yagamiined, it had a somewhatplicated anagram in it. If someone deciphers it, they arrive at the sentence, ''I have an important meeting in the student council room after 3:00 p.m.'' I also mixed in a few other words that I thought would be interesting. If he had a strong interest, he would naturally take me up on the offer."


    In addition to the anagram, the love letter had a few other little touches.


    The envelope used for the letter and the stickers that held it together were made avable to anyone at any time at the Keyaki Mall. If they had been custom-made and bought on the Inte, Yagami might''ve hesitated, fearing that the contents might be seen and evidence would be left behind. However, if you inspect the Keyaki Mall, you''d notice that all but the handwritten letterhead could be substituted.


    That''s why he could check the contents without hesitation.


    Furthermore, by writing directly, I could give Yagami information about the handwriting. White room students were thoroughly trained in calligraphy, so their handwriting were sure to be professional. The love letter prepared in this way was


    passed to Horikita through another girl using Kei. Then, she was led to hand it to Yagami, giving him time to examine it. Since there was a possibility that Horikita would hand it directly to Nagumo, I had him act like he was in a bad mood that day so that she couldn''t hand it over immediately.


    "I didn''t think he was the guy who went rogue on the ind. How much did you know about him?"


    "I don''t know anything. Yagami just confessed on his own."


    "What kind of a trick was used for Komiya and the others to name Yagami?


    Was it a coincidence that the teacher showed up?"


    "I just told them that the person at the center of the trouble might be lured out. They couldn''t identify the culprit, and Ryuen''s side wanted a hint. I asked them to take the suggestion knowing the risk that no one woulde to the student council. Or even if they did, nothing would happen."


    "I see? Well, I wonder how much you''re telling the truth."


    I left it to his imagination. What I did was really nothing but trivial. Nothing of note.


    "Oh well. Now you''re ready to make good on your promise, aren''t you?"


    "Of course. I''m looking forward to it, President Nagumo."


    As I approached the front door, I ended my call and reached for my shoe box.


    2


    "Is Tsubaki alone at the meeting ce?"


    I thought so for a moment, but it seemed that Utomiya was talking to someone a little farther away. He was only looking at us.


    "Is there something you''re having troublemunicating over the phone?"


    "Well, the first-year students are in a bit of a mess right now. There was an unexpected expulsion at the school festival."


    "Expelled? That''s a very disturbing story."


    Someone else was involved in this school expulsion fiasco. That was Tsubaki Sakurako, who was in front of me then.


    "I''m satisfied with the result, which is more than I imagined...Ayanok��ji-senpai."


    Tsubaki made a circle with her finger as if to say, "you passed."


    "It seems you''ve sessfully extracted information from Sat��-senpai and drove Yagami-kun out of school. I am very grateful."


    "I didn''t extract the information. You contacted Sat�� repeatedly and gradually drove her into a corner. And then, when she couldn''t take it anymore, you coordinated and threatened her, pushing her to spit everything out and confide in someone."


    Tsubaki, right here in front of me, was the person who approached Sat��


    without my knowledge.


    "I don''t know what that means. What a surprise."


    Sat�� was apparently approached by Tsubaki near the women''s restroom at Keyaki Mall. There, she shed some bait that would turn things around for her, including a turnaround between my rtionship with Kei, which tickled her curiosity.


    "It seems you called Sat�� to your room and made cheap threats, but it wasn''t a serious attempt to manipte her into ruining our rtionship. It was because you wanted to push her to act, or deal with the threat of Kei''s rtionship, by indirectly letting her know that we were getting close."


    Tsubaki listened silently, staring at me without denial.


    "When I asked her about the details, the abnormality of the situation was immediately brought to light. As soon as you saw that Sat�� wouldn''t ept your invitation, you contacted her again as if to follow up and made simrments and provoked her. When you saw that Sat�� didn''t seem to have consulted anyone, you gradually intensified your threats and hounded her. This was due to the fact that she would eventuallye to consult someone, and that would be me."


    The goal was not to cage Sat��, but to wait for her to ask me for help.


    "Then, you most likely told Sat�� that it was Yagami who was behind the threats, not you."


    The mentally exhausted Sat�� probably didn''t have time to think about whether that was true or not. I came up with the idea of using this one incident for personal use and decided to call up Kei during my discussion with Sat�� and had her confide in her about the abuse and almost everything that had led up to this point in her past. The fact that Sat�� didn''t choose Tsubaki''s side afterwards convinced me that she would be on my side. As a result, the two of them elevated their rtionship from friends to best friends in the truest sense of the word. That was on November 1.


    "Yagami-kun is a bad guy, isn''t he?"


    "You don''t need cheap theatrics. Yagami had nothing to do with this. He''s not involved."


    "You don''t think it was actually Yagami-kun''s order?"


    "If Yagami was using Tsubaki to contact Sat��, there''s no need to bother naming names."


    The only people who know about Karuizawa''s past are those who are connected with the White Room. Others can''t easily imitate him in a way that wouldn''t have made it difficult for me to see through their disguise.


    "Then isn''t it the other way around, you found out that I was trying to frame Yagami-kun, didn''t you? And yet you did nothing against me and even expelled Yagami-kun, who might be innocent. Isn''t that contradictory? There was no indication that Ayanok��ji-senpai was looking into it in detail."


    "Ah. I didn''t investigate Tsubaki or Yagami. No need for that."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''m sorry, but I don''t feel like talking any more."


    I was convinced that I had said enough. It wasn''t even Tsubaki who was manipting everything. Furthermore, the person lurking in the background was the one who painted this picture.


    "Utomiya-kun, can youe here for a minute?"


    Tsubaki beckoned to Utomiya, who was on the phone, and instructed him to hand his cell phone to me.


    "Go ahead..." Wary, Utomiya handed me the phone while it was still connected.


    "Yagami had some of Tsubaki''s and Utomiya''s ssmates expelled. That''s why those two worked together with me."


    I''m pretty sure that was the voice of the man I spoke tost year on the phone and in front of my room.


    "You left him alone because you knew you could take him down at any time if you moved directly on him. But as a result, there were expulsions from the first year. It wouldn''t have happened if it hadn''t been for his nuisance."


    "I don''t deny it."


    "The only way to avoid further unnecessary sacrifices was to have him expelled. But even if you knew that, it isn''t easy to defeat Yagami. I know he is no ordinary high school student."


    "That''s why you wanted to use me."


    He made this decision because he understood the white room student''s purpose and obsession.


    "I guess you got my message," he said.


    "Eventually, you''ll get in touch with someone close to me. And when that happens, there will be expulsions, right?"


    "That''s right. But to drive Yagami into a corner and expel him all at once?


    That was a little out of the calctions. Did you not take into ount the possibility that Yagami was unrted?"


    "It was up to Yagami''s choice whether or not he wanted to be expelled. It wasn''t me who decided whether it was ck or white. He was ying with fire here and there, just like he expelled a student from 1st year C. He contacted Kushida Kikyo, pretending to be her former junior, and he used the information he was given to control and manipte her. He provoked unrted students on a deserted ind by inflicting serious injuries to them. He also checked the contents of a love letter for another person, thinking it was a trap. I don''t know why Horikita and Ibuki were there, but I think it was also because he was ying with fire."


    Normally, people don''t steal other people''s love letters. And even if they did, they wouldn''t notice the anagrams that were sprinkled throughout.


    "So it was all connected."


    "Even if there was no clear evidence left behind, the more tricks you y, the more traces you will always leave behind. That guy didn''t realize he was strangling himself with cotton wool."


    "Surely if Yagami hadn''t done anything, he wouldn''t have been expelled at this stage."


    "I agree."


    The umted fire and games had led to this oue.


    If Yagami hadn''t offended the man on the phone, I wouldn''t have messed with him, and if he hadn''t contacted Kushida or seriously injured those guys on the deserted ind, he wouldn''t have faced the penalty of expulsion.


    If he hadn''t seen the contents of the love letter, he would not have been put in a situation where he could be questioned.


    "The only reason he was expelled was because Yagami admitted to himself that he was ck."


    I merely set up the stage for a test. If he waspletely white, there would''ve been no fuss in the first ce. He only went to the student council room because he knew me and because he was smart.


    "You seem to be as good as the rumors say you are."


    "By the way, just to confirm, remember what you told me before? You told me that if I didn''t get rid of the people who were in my way, I wouldn''t expect peace and quiet to return. That was a bluff, wasn''t it? You wanted to create a sense of urgency that if I didn''t take care of the problem soon, it would be even more difficult."


    In order to make me move, he had made a move to get Yagami expelled from the school from that stage.


    "Ayanok��ji-sensei was right, you were right to choose this school."


    "What do you mean?"


    "It''s just as you believe, I''m going to enjoy my school life, and as long as we don''t bump into each other during the first and second years squabbles, I''ll let our rtionship end here."


    He said what I wanted to say and the call was unterally hung up. A sneak peek at the cell phone screen revealed that the call was deliberately blocked.


    This was done because they didn''t want Utomiya to realize from their address or phone number that they were registered to an address.


    "Have you figured it out?"


    "Yeah."


    "When my ssmate was expelled from school, at first I thought H��sen-kun was involved, but recently I was told that it was Yagami-kun."


    Yagami''s potential may be impably high, but he''d been caught t-footed by his own conceit. He was only concerned about me and didn''t see his rivals standing on the same stage. It seemed that Yagami was not a wee presence in the first-year students'' battle.


    "Don''t quit just because you''ve defeated your enemy, Tsubaki."


    "I know. To be honest, I wasn''t attached to this school at first, but that''s changed a bit. This school is surprisingly fun."


    Looking at the exchange just now, it was clear that there were a lot of mixed feelings other than simply taking revenge on an enemy.


    "So, we''re leaving."


    "Senpai." Utomiya, who was forcing himself to pull out the honorific, returned to the dormitory with Tsubaki.


    "I should get back to ss too."


    3


    After finishing my conversation with Tsubaki and Utomiya, I ran into an exhausted Chabashira-sensei on her way back to ss.


    "Thanks for your hard work today. You were very active."


    "What''s with thepliment?"


    Chabashira-sensei was clearly angry as she turned her childlike re on me without hiding it.


    "Did you really hate it so much that we made you wear a maid''s uniform?"


    I asked knowingly, and she shook her head and looked down.


    "When I went back to the staff room, my pictures were on the desks of


    teachers everywhere. That''s not all. I wonder how many teachers I''ve been osted by in the short time I''ve been there, how many stories about my maid''s uniform, how many embarrassments I''ve suffered. For the time being, I sincerely wish to be a shellfish."


    It must have been a really hard time for her, because she felt the pressure so intensely.


    "That''s not for me to know. It must be symbolic of the teacher''s poprity."


    "I am definitely not popr. You''ve gone the extra mile."


    If you really believe there was such a thing as no poprity, you were going to have a hard time in the future. There must''ve been many adults who appreciated Chabashira-sensei as a member of the opposite sex, even if they hadn''t surfaced until now.


    "That''s it. The ss won first ce, so that''s good."


    "Not good at all. If anything, the top sales amount was a sure thing even if I didn''t do anything."


    "I see. Well, first ce looks better than second and third ce, doesn''t it?


    "That''s not like you to say."


    She swallowed hard and held back, as if she thought there was no point in ming me any more.


    "Even so, I didn''t think you were cooperating with Ry��en''s ss under the guise of being hostile to them."


    "If one ss fights alone, the maximum strength is about 40 people. But if two sses join hands, nearly twice that number of people will join hands though, not foolproof."


    Propaganda doesn''t necessarily have to go hand in hand on the surface. If you get a lot of people together, albeit in different forms, you can make a big show without spending a lot of money.


    "Even the staff room was surprised. Everyone thought it was a real showdown."


    Chabashira-sensei only mentioned the festival''s sess, but not Yagami''s withdrawal.


    Even first-year students who were not directly involved in the event should know about it as well as teachers, but none have spoken about it with me, who they think was uninvolved. As a teacher at this school, she was making the right decision.


    "By the way, aren''t you going home?"


    "I have Horikita waiting in the ssroom. Are you still working overtime?"


    "I''m making the rounds of the school. There have been several reports of


    forgotten items filed by guests."


    So even when the festival was over, the teachers were still busy cleaning up afterwards.


    4


    When I returned to the ssroom with Chabashira-sensei, Horikita was lying on her desk with her upper body on top.


    Chabashira-sensei and I looked at each other and decided not to talk to her. I went closer to check and found that she seemed to be asleep. A strong breeze wasing in through the opened window.


    For a moment, I wondered if I should cover her with her uniform jacket, but decided against it. I decided not to because I knew Horikita wouldn''t be pleased if she knew I had approached herter.


    "Nn..."


    Hmm? For a moment I thought she was awake, but apparently not.


    "No..."


    She was talking in her sleep. I was a little surprised because it was a bit of a startling statement. Horikita must''ve been tired today. I closed the window quietly so she wouldn''t catch a cold before heading back to the corridor.


    "I''m going to let her sleep a little longer."


    "Are you waiting for her to wake up?"


    "Well, we did manage to get first ce at the school festival. She deserves this much."


    She''ll be up soon anyway.


    "You can leave. I''ll take over here."


    "Are you sure?"


    "As the man behind the scenes, you deserve that much."


    "Then I''ll take you up on your offer."


    "But Ayanok��ji, don''t ever think of a n to humiliate me again, okay?"


    "You still care?"


    "This is a day I will never forget in my life."


    "Well, Chabashira-sensei, thank you for your efforts. Someday that will be a good memory too."


    "Don''t get cocky, student."


    ring at me, Chabashira-sensei sighed and leaned against the ssroom door.


    Well then, I''m going home now.


    [ss points at the end of the November festival]


    ? ss A led by Sakayanagi: 1201


    ? ss B led by Horikita: 966


    ? ss C led by Ry��en: 740


    ? ss D led by Ichinose: 675

 Chapter 293: Afterword

    <h4>Chapter 293: Afterword</h4>


    The year 2023 is approaching. It''s too soon, Kinugasa here.


    Eating ginger has recently be my boom, and I regrly buy a few kilos of ginger, grate it, buy a few kilos of ginger, grate it, and repeat the process, eating it with meat and vegetables.


    I especially like thebination of eringi mushrooms, ginger, and lemon sauce the best.


    Hehehe, I''ve revealed a bit of my private life that no one is interested in.


    Yes, I did. I was disturbed because I had nothing in particr to write about, but let''s move on to the main topic.


    This story is mainly about the cultural festival in November.


    I know some of you may have wanted to see the costumes of the other students, but please understand that this is a story for another time.


    The story is progressing smoothly without stopping.


    Soon the second semester will end, and we will enter the winter break and the turbulent third semester.


    Although the number of volumes is a littlerger than originally expected, the second grade version has finally passed the turn of the year. I feel that we are getting closer and closer to the conclusion of the story.


    Will Ayanok��ji be able to graduate from school safely?


    How will each ss end up in the end?


    I think we will be able to see the whole picture little by little, so please wait with baited breath.


    And then! Finally, the second season of the anime will start in July! We have been waiting for it for a long time.


    I waited so long that I was wondering how long I had to wait.


    I can''t wait to see Ayanok��ji and his friends in action for the first time in several years.


    And since a third season is also nned, well, how can I say ... that I am filled with emotion. Whether you like YouZitsu or not, whether you are interested or not, I hope everyone will watch it.


    I will watch it as one of those who have been waiting for the second season more than anyone else. Yay!


    Finally, I would like to make an unusually serious announcement. Please understand this in advance.


    The second season of the TV anime "ssroom of The Elite" will start soon. I have written a special volume, a volume "0" so to say, which wille with the DVD bonus. It was really hard work, and since it is volume 0, it goes into Ayanok��ji''s past. The illustrator, Tomose-sensei, has cooperated fully with me, and the volume and number of illustrations are the same as those in the main volume of the book.


    That is all for now, and I will leave you with this afterword.


    I hope to see you all again somewhere within this year.


    Royal MTL Afterword


    Yo, it''s Prince. No matter how many times I write these, (questioning whether anyone even scrolls this far down), I never fail to get a sense of aplishment and pride. It all started with one book, a few readers, and suddenly now providing trantions for the entire ssroom of The Elitemunity. Not only that, I have a wonderful team behind me, and it''s not fair to say I, or any one individual is responsible for RoyalMTL''s. All the editors, trantors, illustrators, and you, the readers, go into creating such a wonderful space regarding something we all hold a deep passion for.


    From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for supporting us, reading from us, helping us, with these trantions. It simply would not be possible without everyoneing together to enjoy ssroom of The Elite.


    Once again, thank you, and see you in four months.


    As always, a shout out to Kinusaga (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    Bookmark/Favourite our website to keep updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions!


    Credits


    aejk#1968 �C Editor


    "it''s morbin time."


    Akuma#5279 �C Editor


    "Kanzaki hot."


    Alya#7028 �C Illustrator


    "I love rhy."


    Amadeus#5012 �C Senior Editor


    "Ichinose ss will beat Horikita''s ss in the year end special exam. Ayanokouji will be ''stolen'' from Horikita ss, and join Ichinose. Best girl Honami will be relevant again. You heard it here first."


    AntXL#6555 - Editor


    "Bet Ayanokouji has never edited a LN before. Looks like I win."


    BGS003#2745 �C Illustrator


    "Nagumo > Yagamid."


    Cast#5942 �C Senior Editor


    "Hey there, I really enjoyed editing and reading this novel. Definitely one of the best in the second year so far. Really looking forward to the next ones as well and the soon to be released Season 2 anime."


    DoSomething#5700 �C Editor


    "I love Haruka."


    Ebb and Flow#6122 �C Editor


    "It''s so hard being a single mother when you have no kids and are a male bachelor."


    gaynesis#6795 �C Editor


    "Nagumo is the strongest ANHS student."


    Genesis#0172 �C Editor


    "I hope these 5 years of waiting fucking delivers"


    Grimmfx24#0843 �C Editor


    "What If One Day You Woke Up And You Were A Chicken Nugget?"


    goose#0823 �C Editor


    "Watch redo of healer."


    inoriy#2022 �C Editor


    "I believe people who make wrong decisions based on his or her emotions are the ones with the bolts screwed on the wrong way."


    JogoGugu#1893 �C Editor


    "I''m d to have been part of this project (in fact, the experience of editing the untranted book has already helped me write better in school), and I hope to participate in future volumes. Hope you all enjoy reading!"


    noah.#4097 �C Editor


    "Thanks for reading!"


    roninga#0892 �C Editor


    "I like men."


    Rhymar#7433 �C Trantor


    "Kushida is the best girl in ANHS."


    Schnitzel#2121 �C Editor


    "It all lies within the current of causality."


    [unknown]#9495 �C Editor


    "Imagine wasting time editing a LN."

 Chapter 294: Short Story 1 : Horikita Suzune SS – The Dream I Will Forget After Awakening

    <h4>Chapter 294: Short Story 1 : Horikita Suzune SS �C The Dream I Will Forget After Awakening</h4>


    I am dreaming. A strange little dream. Nii-san, I and Ayanokouji-kun were in the same ss and werepeting for ss A. We allughed together, ate together, yed and faced each special exam. It was a dream so far from reality that I am sure I will forget it after waking up.


    But it wasforting above anything. I wish I could dream on forever.


    In my dream, Nii-san was especially talented and was leading our ss. And I was beside him, supporting him. Ayanokouji-kun looked like he did nothing, but he was supporting us both from the shadows.


    Before I knew it, several ssmates started appearing.


    Sudou-kun, Hirata-kun, Kushida-san.


    Before long, each of my ssmates had be important to me.


    I am ashamed over remembering I once thought of them as hindrances.


    And Yamada-kun, Ishizaki-kun, Ichinose-san were somehow also in our ss...


    But it can''t be helped since it''s only a dream.


    "Nnn..."


    I wanted to continue dreaming, but a cold wind from somewhere far away was trying to stop me.


    "No, don''t..."


    Just a bit more, I want to see the rest of this dream.


    Then as if my wish was granted, the prickling cold against my skin retreated.


    I shall graduate as ss A.


    Even in my dream, this was still true.


    I, together with Ayanokouji-kun, Nii-san, my ssmates...


    To prevent another tragedy like Sakura-san from ever happening again...


    I have to move forward.


    When I wake up, I will take another decisive step forward.


    That''s the only thing I can do after all.


    "... Oh no, it seems I have fallen asleep."


    I forgot about the dream and pulled the chair back, standing up.


    "I thought I left the window open... perhaps just my imagination?"


    The sun would soon set.


    Let''s go to sleep a bit earlier than usual, I thought and left the ssroom.

 Chapter 295: Short Story 2 : Shiina Hiyori SS– Sprouting Feelings

    <h4>Chapter 295: Short Story 2 : Shiina Hiyori SS�C Sprouting Feelings</h4>


    Everyone in our ss was doing their very best working on the Kimono Caf�� for the school festival.


    Ryuuen-kun had warned that those who tried skipping would get punished and that seems to have worked, I guess.


    I was the cashier so I didn''t have a lot of things to actually do.


    And that is why, as per usual, I read another book I had borrowed.


    Then a student entered the ssroom with a casual and light stride.


    It was Ayanokouji-kun.


    He, was the one Karuizawa Kei-san was dating.


    I wanted to hide myself somehow and hid behind my own book.


    I should have known. My curiosity won out in the end and I took a quick peek.


    Ayanokouji-kun looked as if he had witnessed something unusual and walked towards me.


    "... Good day."


    I couldn''t ignore him, so I said that.


    I''m not sure I managed to act like usual.


    "Long time no see. I hear you haven''t turned up at the librarytely?"


    "That''s not true. It''s a bit, I mean, I''m there at a different time now."


    It was my sense of thoughtfulness to avoid meeting with Ayanokouji-kun, who also loved reading.


    Seeing someone like me talking with her boyfriend may make any girl worried, I think.


    "So, you are going to work at the store as well?"


    "I am just working at the cashier. I''m not especially good at talking with people... nor with walking around. I have practiced carrying the trays with food, but that didn''t go well."


    I thought I was going to do better to be honest...


    "By the way, Ibuki-san is also participating."


    "Ibuki? But she''s not the kind of person who would ever wear that outfit, right?"


    "It seems she made a bet with Ryuuen-kun to bepletely exempted from the student festival."


    "And she lost."


    Ibuki was kinda cute when she stamped her feet in frustration.


    It was really fun to talk with Ayanokouji-kun like this after all.


    I... wanted to meet him at the library again.


    That feeling grew within me like a sprout.


    ...It should be fine... right?


    "I will be at the library againter, so please doe."


    She shouldn''t be angry with me if I meet him as just a friend, right? Surely...

 Chapter 296: Short Story 3 : Kushida Kikyou SS– Way to Survival

    <h4>Chapter 296: Short Story 3 : Kushida Kikyou SS�C Way to Survival</h4>


    It had been 10 minutes since all the girls working as maids started worrying about what was happening right outside the ssroom.


    That was naturally due to the the insane amount of customers waiting in the hallway.


    I had a little bit of extra time on my hand and went out to check.


    Having a queue was something worth celebrating, but Ayanokouji-kun didn''t look happy at all as he looked at the same scenery as me.


    "This is bad. We''re starting to see customers tired of waiting and they are leaving."


    That''s right. Even though we had so many customers, we couldn''t service all of them.


    The people waiting in front must have waited close to 30 minutes already.


    Think.


    Ayanokouji-kun and I were not the only ones worried about when this queue would copse.


    The girls working inside the maid caf�� must be worried sick as well.


    In that case I had to do something.


    I know very well how difficult it is to overwrite bad impressions or your own image, but I also have no other options but to take the challenge.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, can I leave for a bit? I have a n."


    "What are you nning on doing?"


    "The guests waiting are bored, but they all show strong interest in the maid caf��. But they are getting hungry and it''s not surprising they are starting to leave."


    "You''re right."


    The quickest method to keep them here is...


    Is the department store food sampling n!


    Baiting them with small pieces of food and pressuring them to make a purchase with smiles and coercion.


    I was going to reproduce phenomena by force.


    I grabbed a small bag with cookies from the souvenir corner and walked towards the people waiting in front.


    "I''m sorry for the wait!"


    I politely took a cookie and presented them to each customer while keeping a low profile.


    And I repeated this until I reached the end of the queue, scattering feed all over.


    All I had to do now was to stick close to them and watch.


    If someone was about to leave I would use nces and gestures to appeal to them and convey how bad it would be for me if they left.


    I can contribute to the ss as well as make my ssmates feel indebted to me, an important technique.


    It was like killing two birds with one stone.


    That''s my weapon. A strategy to avoid expulsion and to emphasize my own presence at the same time.

 Chapter 297: Short Story 4 : Karuizawa Kei SS – Behind The Scenes

    <h4>Chapter 297: Short Story 4 : Karuizawa Kei SS �C Behind The Scenes</h4>


    This is yet another short tale that happened behind the scenes during the school festival.


    This happened after school ended on the day our ss agreed to make the maid caf�� our main event.


    "You know this event thing? I really wanted to try doing this other thing, you know?"


    "Oh? Why didn''t you suggest it then?"


    ording to Horikita''s proposal, the person suggesting an approved event would be receiving a reward.


    Kei wanted more Private Points so trying to suggest something didn''t sound like a bad idea after all.


    "I know, but��"


    Even though she wanted to do something, she clearly didn''t show any signs of it.


    Why isn''t she answering? Should I wait a bit?...


    "It''s so embarrassing!"


    "It is?"


    "Ah, uhm, not that."


    It probably reminded her of something as she waved with both her hands, trying to deny it.


    "I just thought it would be childish of me."


    "Don''t you think school festivals are a fit for that as well?"


    It was still unknown what most of the other sses were going to do, but 3rd Year ss A was going to do a spooky house and abyrinth after all.


    In that kind of sense, it being a bit childish posed no problem at all.


    "It may be possible depending on the budget. you know?"


    An ideal event where you could earn a lot of ie while spending as little as possible is something all sses are keeping their eyes open for.


    "Y-yeah..."


    "Anyway, try saying it?"


    Since we have been alone for quite some time, there was no problem no matter how long it takes.


    "Kiyotaka, you like books, right?"


    That''s sudden, and it didn''t sound like it had any relevance to the topic.


    "Hmm? Ah, that''s right."


    Since I was little, I have never hated reading.


    While there were times we weren''t permitted to talk, they allowed us to read.


    "Do you like fairy tales?"


    "Fairy tales?"


    I like books, but this was unexpected.


    "I have read some."


    "Ah, of course you can be mainstream sometimes, Kiyotaka"


    Kei looked surprised.


    "What do you think I am?"


    "Look here, you usually never smile at all, and you reading fairy tales don''t fit your image, right?


    "That''s rude."


    "Which have you read?"


    "Is it rted to the thing you wanted to do for the festival?"


    "Come on, just answer."


    She does seem more interested in which ones I''ve read though.


    "Let''s see..."


    This happened when I was quite young though, I reminiscenced.


    "For starters, The Flying ssroom."


    "... What?"


    "Then the Secret Garden. The Happy Prince as well."


    "......"


    Kei went silent.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Uhm.... you know, eh?


    Yet another strange silence.


    "Eh?"


    Did I say something weird?


    Each and every one of them are definitely ssified as fairy tales.


    "We were talking about fairy tales, no?"


    "Indeed, fairy tales, but they are also ssified as childrens'' literature as well." I rephrased.


    I have no idea why she is so puzzled.


    "Your answer is so far from anything I''ve ever expected..."


    "What did you expect then?"


    "Usually, it''s The Three Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood or something simr."


    I see. I certainly have heard of those before.


    "Never read them."


    "Ehhhh!?"


    "Is that something to be surprised about?"


    It feels as though she is making fun of me somehow.


    "How to say it, yup, that''s the Kiyotaka I know."


    "Well, back to the topic, is the thing you wanted to do connected with these fairy tales?"


    "So... I wanted to do a y."


    "A theatre y? That doesn''t sound too bad."


    "Really?"


    "Of course, a lot of preparation time has passed already, and it might not be realistic anymore, but the suggestion itself is not a bad idea."


    In fact, if Kei associated school festivals with ys, then it was worth looking it up again.


    "What fairy tale did you want to do?"


    I was a bit interested in that as well.


    "You know, I''m a girl after all so maybe Cindere, Beauty and the Beast?"


    Those sound like fairy tales that girls would love.


    "But��"


    She said, then she went silent.


    "The y I wanted to do the most is, Sleeping Beauty, I think."


    "Sleeping Beauty...?"


    I do seem to remember the title, but unfortunately I haven''t read it.


    "How''s the story?"


    "Eh? You don''t know this one too? I''m surprised you even consider yourself a book lover."


    "Sorry for that."


    I think perhaps my feelings got hurt there.


    I listened to her awkward retelling of the story and I think I got it.


    A daughter born among royalty was cursed by a witch and fell asleep for a long time. In the end, a prince arrived and kissed her.


    And then she woke up and they lived happily ever after...


    Well, that seems to be the usual for fairy tales.


    "When I was little, I didn''t really like the story that much. But, it somehow resembles me. My heart was always sleeping. But then you came and woke me up..." She said, like she was spellbound in some fantasy of hers.


    "I will y the princess and you will y the prince. Don''t you think that would be fantastic?"


    "... I see."


    I now understood from hearing her.


    "Not suggesting it was the right choice. With that casting, our ssmates will make fun of us, no, they will be throwing rocks instead."


    "I-I know that already. That''s why I didn''t say anything, you know?"


    I''m so terribly relieved she could control herself.


    The way she was looking at the school festival is good and all, but the part where she is doing as she pleases is a bit too much.


    "Seems like my prince is a bit of a teaser."


    Being told that is troubling.


    "If I fall asleep again, make sure to wake me up with a kiss?"


    "Will you wake up with just one?"


    "Hmm? I don''t know. It may take ten, maybe even a hundred." She said pleadingly.


    After I answered to her wishes, she smiled faintly.


    "Never mind, I''m done with fairy tales."


    "Why so sudden?"


    "I''m more than fine with reality."


    She happily leaned onto me and closed her eyes as if falling asleep.


    Trantion : Cinnamon Trantion


    /

 Chapter 298: Short Story 5 : Chabashira Sae SS – An Experience I Want to Forget

    <h4>Chapter 298: Short Story 5 : Chabashira Sae SS �C An Experience I Want to Forget</h4>


    I was looking into the mirror inside the changing room while letting slip a sigh I can only believe was the longest of my entire life.


    "I-I''m going to look like this in front of people? Really...?"


    I was looking in the mirror in aghast at my appearance that didn''t fit me at all.


    As a teacher, I have only worn suits, or jerseys thus far. And now, suddenly a maid uniform?


    "This is bad... I''m getting dizzy."


    I feel like I''m about to faint just by imagining the fate that is waiting for me. I should pretend to be sick... no, my opponent is that Ayanokouji. It won''t be that simple. I can''t help them as their homeroom teacher, but just like how clergymen have to follow the rules, I have a duty to respond to my students'' requests.


    Ayanokouji has already paid the private points.


    "�DI just have to do it."


    I steeled myself as their teacher and vigorously exited the changing room.


    I sprinted all the way to the first floor of the special section of the scho��of course I couldn''t.


    I wanted to run so bad, but a teacher should be a model for others to follow so I walked.


    I walked... but my steps quickened somehow. It was obvious to me how the students and the visitors were staring at me as I went.


    "What is she doing at that age?"


    "That person, eh? Wait a bit..."


    ''I don''t hear anything'' I continued to pretend while the words repeatedly reverberated inside my head.


    Please, anyone! Just kill me already!


    I frantically arrived in front of the maid caf��. The way felt like it was over 5 times longer than I remember.


    "I-I''m here Ayanokouji. H-hurry up and let me in!"


    The queue outside the caf�� was pretty long which should have been a good thing.


    But to me, this was hell.


    "Thank you for waiting."


    Ayanokouji weed me by the entrance and let me inside.


    "So, what should I do now...eh?"


    "You don''t have to do anything. Please just stand there."


    "W-what?"


    "Haven''t I said this before? You don''t have to do anything. Alright, We''ll be in your care." He said and went to the hallway leaving me behind.


    Am I... just going to...stand here in silence?


    I nced around the ssroom in fear while observing how all the students and visitors were looking back at me without reservations.


    ...Aaahh... don''t think, me...


    Please, let me crawl inside a hole somewhere...


    Thanks TC.J#2069 (discord) for the password


    Trantion : Cinnamon Trantion


    /

 Chapter 299: Prologue : Kanzaki Ryuuji’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 299: Prologue : Kanzaki Ryuuji��s Monologue</h4>


    A wise man keeps away from danger.


    Ever since I was little, I''ve always kept my distance from people.


    Why did I make such a choice?


    It was easier that way, and, most importantly, it stopped me from getting wrapped up in trouble.


    No making friends, no making enemies.


    It was simpler to maintain neutral rtionships.


    However, one day, I was wrapped up in a non-sensical fight between some children.


    The only reason being that I was close by.


    Three out of the four people there excluding me were relentlessly attacking one person.


    The three''s attitude in particr was arrogant, but they weren''t that unreasonable, and it had all started with a lie.


    The child that was being attacked was clearly upset towards the three, and had lied to them.


    It should really have been a trivial thing.


    I think it was about whether he received a sign from a famous person or not.


    It was the three''s wish that he admit his lie and apologize to everyone.


    On one side, a lone person insisting that he isn''t lying and refusing to apologize.


    I coincidentally encountered them on the spot and analysed the situation as an observer,


    and encouraged the lying kid to admit that he was lying, but in the end, he wanted to keep the lie up.


    A flimsy lie. He was pointlessly stubborn.


    I thought that things might escte and he might be harmed, but I didn''t do anything.


    It''s his fault for telling a useless lie in the first ce.


    I don''t know if he wanted to show off or what, but it really was foolish.


    There''s no need to save him or anything.


    It has nothing to do with me.


    I sincerely thought so.


    No, I actually even thought that he should get hit once and learn his lesson.


    However... Things ended without getting too serious for the kid.


    A third party suddenly appeared in this predicament and used his quick wits to save the kid.


    Just because they were friends, he protected him without ming him for the lie.


    I didn''t get it. That''s not justice.


    The three who had not lied should have been in the right.


    My uncertain heart wasn''t clear.


    Who''s in the right?


    The three who had not lied but had used violence, or the one who stuck to his lie?


    Was it the third party who protected his friend while knowing that it was a lie?


    There was one adult who watched the trouble unfold from the start until the end.


    That person put his hand on my head, and said :


    "If you don''t have the strength to save him, you can just ignore him running away. Having the strength and not using it, now that''s something a fool would do." I didn''t understand it back then.


    I thought that he was telling me to save that liar.


    However, as I started growing into an adult, I understood.


    The word "save", there was no reason that it had to be about the kid who had lied.


    I think he meant that if you have the strength to dominate the scene, I could have brought the situation to a finish, no matter what point of view I stood on.


    It was the moment that something in me came alive, something I didn''t know I had;


    something passionate, intense.


    I still can''t forget the words of that person whom I had met for the first time.


    After I enrolled in the Advanced Nurturing High School, I reluctantly chose to socialize with people.


    If there was someone in trouble, I remembered to help them, even if only a little.


    I wanted to keep being supported by Ichinose''s side, who had been confirmed as the ss leader.


    However, in the end, things didn''t go well and I lost my motivation.


    [ TL Note 3 : The above line is paraphrased ording to context. Here is the Literal Trantion of the Japanese Line - "However, in the end, things didn''t go well and I lost heart." ]


    It was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka''s words that saved me then.


    Ayanokoji... Really, destiny is a strange thing.


    Cover


    *Illustration 1


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    English Trantion by Anime Anyway


    https://youtu.be/2lmk-AKiROw

 Chapter 300 - : 1 Know your Enemy, Know Thyself, And You Shall Not Fear A Hundred Battles

    <h4>Chapter 300: Chapter : 1 Know your Enemy, Know Thyself, And You Shall Not Fear A Hundred Battles</h4>


    As November wasing to a close, the awaited day of the school trip finally approached.


    On the road to school on a sunny but chilly morning, I see three a small group of three walking ahead of me with Haruka in the middle.


    There is no specific loudughter uring, but it seemed like they were making up some topics to fill in the gaps.


    "You don''t want to call out to them?" Kei said so while walking by my side.


    "It''s fine. This is what I decided back when Airi was expelled." For that group, I am now an unnecessary presence. Rather, I have to be so.


    "Then I won''t say anything again. Because I know that it''s the correct answer if you''re fine with it, Kiyotaka." For Kei, who thinks this is all other people''s business, I''m sure that the former Ayanokoji group''s affairs aren''t something to deeply care about.


    "And? That means I can have you all to myself, right?" She faced me with a sincere smile from the heart.


    There''s no suspicion about the fact that I have be a pir of psychological support for Kei after all this time.


    "I''m super looking forward to the next school trip, you know! Where do you think it''ll be?"


    "I''m not giving up on my dream of Kyoto." "Oh, right, you said something about that. If it''s not Kyoto, I''m fine with any ce." For some reason, my aspiration Kyoto is the only thing immediately excluded.


    "Do you hate Kyoto that much?" "Huh? Come on, it''s all about the temples and the cultural properties. It doesn''t seem fun at all, does it?" I think that precisely is one of the true charms of it, but...


    It is true that for Kei, visiting temples and shrines may not be so fun.


    "What''s on my mind right now is exactly that, you know. Yep, yep." "The location of the trip is important too, but don''t you care about the results of the end of term test?" "My grade won''t increase if I start caring about it now, will it? Well, I do feel like I did quite well for myself, so. That''s also thanks to you, right?" There is a small problem with that overconfidence, but it is also the reality.


    Although she can''t expect high scores, it is true that the bottom level for Kei is getting higher.


    It is only a vague deration but doing some self-grading I can truly feel her growth.


    "Maybe I should increase my study time with you more too, like Sudou-kun." She muttered so with the tip of her index finger on her lips.


    Perhaps she doesn''t understand that her academic ability won''t improve like Sudou''s simply by studying for the same amount of time.


    The motivation of the person in question is very important, but, in the same way, the skill of the teaching side is also important.


    Sudo''s remarkable growth is certainly the result of Horikita''s educational talent.


    That''s the part about her that gives her the edge over Keisei.


    My education does not stand on such a foundation.


    It''s simple to forcibly raise Kei''s academic ability by giving her a thorough education, but that''s not my duty.


    That part has to be left to someone else from among the ss.


    I should only do the bare minimum.


    I simply have to get them to start studying on their own.


    So that one day, the fitting student can take over.


    English Trantion by Anime Anyway


    https://youtu.be/r9BTdSPClfc

 Chapter 301: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 301: 1.1</h4>


    Today, two hours in the morning were set aside for a school trip.


    Normal schools probably learn of things like this earlier, but for the students in this school,


    the end of term test before that is more important, so. First, they have to know its results.


    It would be like a bad joke to learn you''re getting expelled after being told about the ns for


    the school trip.


    "Very well then, I shall announce the results of the second term''s end of term tests."


    A stinging atmosphere. Anxiety and unease. However, there are currently no students in


    despair.


    Last year, around this time, a special test of this school called ''paper shuffle'' was put into


    practice.


    Kushida''s scheme, Ryuuen''s Influence. Horikita''s characteristic strategy was strong, but this


    year is different.


    The rules and the standards say that if you challenge the test created by the school and get


    a definitive failing mark, you get expelled.


    It also bes a fight on the ss side, with first ce getting 50 ss points and second


    ce getting 25 points. Third ce gets minus 25 ss points, and fourth ce gets minus


    50 ss points. It may be said that it is a pure scramble for ss points.


    The failing mark is 39 points average from all of the subjects. After close examination, it


    wasn''t hard to avoid expulsion if you earnestly received your sses.


    "The end of term test. First, I will start announcing from the lower ranking students."


    Without any appearance of leeway, Chabashira-sensei had a stiff expression.


    That may appear to be inciting the students, but I think a certain amount of tension is


    necessary.


    "First, it''s the student who got the lowest ranking..."


    The lowest grade, which is seen as more important than the highest.


    "With 53 points as your average mark, it''s you, Hondou."


    "Whoah!? Me!? Ah, but 53 points isn''t that bad, right!? Wait, should I be happy!?"


    He yelled out with the mixed feelings of the joy of not getting a failing mark and the reality of


    having the lowest ranking.


    He was always at the bottom group, so I''m sure it isn''t the first time that Hondou has gotten


    the lowest ranking.


    After that, the grades were gradually announced from bottom to top, and after a while they


    started calling the names of the higher ranking students.


    I can clearly say that the bottom group''s rise is bing reality.


    My girlfriend Kei also got better results than expected with 56 points.


    The main cause of this is certainly the expulsion of Airi with the unanimous special exam.


    After that exam, all the students below in OAA faced the danger of being thrown away, so


    they had to challenge the test with all of their might.


    Even Kei who doesn''t want to study except when it''s with me is clearly starting to grow and


    improve.


    But, I have to quickly solve this problem. I''ve really only taught her the minimum, so there is


    a risk that she will be separated from the other students because of the difference in


    potential.


    I should ask someone to teach her, like Horikita who teaches after forming a proper n, or


    Keisei, maybe even Yousuke.


    The grades for all of the subjects, the total grades and the average grades are being shown


    on the monitor in turns as the names of the students are being called.


    I''m 12th ce. I''m gradually and steadily moving up in the rankings.


    Then, we finally got to the announcements of the ss'' top 10.


    10th ce is Sudou. I was a bit worried, but the results were simr tost time with him


    firmly breaking into the top rankings.


    His ranking moved up by one and he broke a new record for himself.


    Then, finally, the first ce was unexpectedly Horikita and Keisei with the same average


    mark of 93.5.


    "About our rank among the other sses in this academic year... We passed Ichinose''s


    ss average mark and got second ce. Good Job."


    First ce is the Sakayanagi A ss, second ce is the Horikita B ss, third ce is the


    Ichinose D ss, and fourth ce is the Ryuuen C ss.


    With this, our ss points are 25+ in the total. However, Sakayanagi''s ss A had good


    grades even among the lower ranked students, so we couldn''t get first ce this time either.


    It is small, but there ended up being a gap.


    "Well then, I know also from how hard you''ve worked for the end of term test that you are all


    looking forward to the school trip. But, first, there is one thing I will do before the talks."


    After saying so, an image was reflected on the monitor.


    Following Chabashira-sensei''s instruction, each student''s tablet disyed a chart with


    familiar ssmates'' names written on it.


    The front is the same as the monitor.


    There are three items: Name, gender, and number, of which the name and gender are


    already filled.


    As Chabashira-sensei said, all of the students in the ss are written on it.


    Only the numbers are nk, which must mean that they will be filled in here and now.


    Most of it is easy to understand the moment you look at it, but it''s unclear what the standard


    for the numbers are.


    It''s limited to the range we can see from our seats, but there is not a single student who


    understands it either.


    "On the screen are the students from the second year''s B ss, in other words, this ss.


    You can see the empty space between the name and gender with small numbers written


    there, right? Starting from the first number, please fill in all 37 numbers from the ss


    excluding yourself. You can''t use the same number twice. First, type "myself" in an easy to


    read way on the space for your own number."


    The 38 members of second year B ss, excluding Yamauchi and Airi who have been


    expelled.


    It seems that we''re putting in numbers for all the students until number 37, excluding


    ourselves.


    The problem is, what is the meaning of this number?


    I can''t randomly put in the numbers without thinking about it.


    Everyone used their tablets and put in the letters of their own name as instructed.


    After confirming that, Chabashira-sensei started exining the numbers.


    "About the meaning of the numbers that you''re about to write down... You can see it as your


    assessment of the other party. You can simply put in number 1 because they''re talented,


    because you''re good friends with them, or because they''re funny. The important thing is to


    use your own standards and give them a proper rating."


    Basically, we''re giving our ssmates rankings, right?


    No... When I swiped the screen, I saw that it was not just our ssmates, but the other three


    sses as well.


    "Some of you must have noticed already, but we''re doing this ranking for all of the sses in


    year two. When ites to the students from the other sses, there may be those with


    whom you haven''t even spoken to, but you can just use your own standart again. I want you


    to put in numbers in an understandable scope."


    Students rating students. We did something simr in the past, but you could say that this is


    still quite different from that.


    However, just what are they making the students do something like this for?


    "Of course, the number you''ve put in will not be revealed to the students. Even us ss


    teachers will not know what kind of ratings you''ve given, so please don''t worry."


    So that means this is under the management of the school''s upper management.


    "Further, it is prohibited to talk amongst yourselves or to look at the OAA while filling in the


    screen. Ignoring the parts you remember, it would be against the objective to put in numbers


    without your personal thoughts or conjecture."


    It seems that it is also prohibited to mechanically put in numbers by relying on something


    else.


    "There''s a lot of girls here that I''ve never talked to and I don''t understand anything from the


    OAA either, so is this really okay..?"


    Being different from the students who have a lot of personal connections, Hondou muttered


    so without confidence.


    "Yeah. In the end, you can just write a random number for the people with whom you have


    no rtion to. However, in order for the school to use this list for its objective, you will have


    responsibility no matter what the results will be."


    Basically, it should be done ording to a certain criteria, but, in the end, it will be left to the


    discretion of the individual filling it in. In exchange, she''s saying that we shouldn''tin


    about the effect that this will have in the future.


    You may be able to grade each student properly in ordance to the rtion you''ve had


    with them up until now.


    You may regret it if you do it randomly, so do it earnestly. That''s what she''s saying.


    "You will finish this within the time limit of one hour from now. In the rare case that you don''t


    finish it within the time limit, you will continue instead of receiving the exnation about the


    school trip, so do it carefully."


    I''m sure no one thought that they would have to do something like this right before the


    school trip.


    While we were still confused, Chabashira-sensei instructed us to start right away.


    Everyone started without being able to make the preparations in their heads.


    But... Generalments, huh?


    As it will take the most amount of time, I left my own ss forst, and decided to deal with


    the A ss.


    If it''s about pure talent, I would support Sakayanagi, but this is about an overall assessment.


    I can simply decide everything by if I like them as a person or not.


    It''s up to the individual to put the person easiest to hang out with or the person they like most


    in first ce.


    In any case, I should hold a clear standart and start filling in the numbers.


    I had intended on starting on the entries right away, but it''s unexpectedly difficult.


    The easy thing after all is to assess the talent that I can currently see myself.


    I can just write by thinking about what I remember from the OAA if it''s a student that I''ve


    never crossed paths with.


    After determining each tropism, I''ll start from number 1.


    It may be the same for a lot of students, but you could say that it''s already decided to put


    Sakayanagi in number 1.


    With that, I took 20 minutes to finish writing down all of my assessments for each of the three


    sses.


    What''s left is the ss I''m a part of, the B ss.


    I''ll include hidden potential,munication power and development.


    There are some simrities to what was on the OAA, but my current number 1 is probably


    Yousuke.


    It''s easy if you consider not only their general value but the contributions they''ve made until


    today.


    If it wasn''t for Yousuke, there would be nopetition in this ss.


    For number 2, I chose Kouenji.


    His hidden potential, his achievements in the second year''s Uninhabited Ind exam, his


    unintended contributions in the sports festival, etc... He has brought in a lot of concrete


    benefits for the ss. Even considering the quirky and uncooperative parts of his personality


    as a minus, this should be an appropriate rating.


    The fact that we have established our current position as ss B is undoubtedly Kouenji''s


    achievement.


    I''ll also give a good rating to Horikita, Keisei, Mii-chan and the others like them who study


    well and achieve good grades.


    Then, with his physical and academic prowess that can''t be underestimated, I put Sudou in


    number 9. If it''s just the second years and above, I could say that he is valuable enough to


    be around number 3 or number 4 right after Kouenji.


    I finished rating all of the students like this and raised my head up.


    It took around 40 minutes in total, but the students other than me still haven''t��-..


    Just as I was thinking so, my eyes met with Chabashira-sensei who was observing the


    students and I noticed that Kouenji sitting next to me had finished before me.


    I can''t be certain, but he probably filled it in randomly without thinking about all of the


    possibilities.


    Without even looking at his tablet again, he was lightly blowing into his nails.


    In the case of these numbers being used for some kind of special exam other than to form


    groups, I can''t imagine what kind of pattern it will be.


    For example, when the school takes a look at the results, there may be a special exam being


    conducted only with the students who were chosen to be in first and second ce. In


    reverse, the students with lowbined ability will be gathered and made to challenge a


    bnced task as a result.


    However, in that case, we would be told before to put in the numbers while thinking about


    the students'' talent and sess, and they wouldn''t have the students make the valuations in


    the first ce. As a result of assigning numbers based on likes and dislikes, the risk of it


    being an unbnced confrontation would be quite high.

 Chapter 302: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 302: 1.2</h4>


    With a few minutes left until the nned time limit was over, Chabashira-sensei raised her voice.


    "Alright. Looks like everyone is finished, so I will consider the list''s creationplete." It seems like everyone finished the students'' evaluations without any issues within the time limit.


    "It''s a bit faster than what I had imagined too, but let''s start talking about the uing school trip." "I''ve been waiting for this!" Being released from the boring list creation, Ike and the others pped.


    Chabashira-sensei, who, unlike before, did not pay attention to Ike, started using her tablet.


    We''ve been told that there is a school trip, but we still don''t know the destination.


    There were three choices in the unanimous special test.


    Hokkaidou, Kyoto, Okinawa.


    [ TL Note 4 : Meanings of the mentioned japanese regions: Hokkaidou, Northern Sea Road. Kyoto, Capital City (Kyoto is Japan''s former capital). Okinawa, Sea Rope. ] The location from among these three that gets the most votes from the students is to be chosen as the school trip''s destination.


    Incidentally, I''m part of the minority faction that wants Kyoto, like Horikita, Keisei and the others.


    The votes in this ss ended up flowing towards Hokkaidou, but there should still be some hope.


    If two sses from among the three sses vote for Kyoto, my wish will be granted.


    In the end, the result is...


    "First, it''s the results of the unanimous special exam earlier." Chabashira-sensei, holding for a few seconds as if trying to make a dramatic pause.


    "The result of every ss'' choice, having a total of three votes, the school trip''s destination has been decided to be Hokkaidou." As we heard the results, it was delight and disappointment, mixing together at the same time.


    However, the Horikita ss had voted for Hokkaidou, so it''s safe to say that most of them are happy.


    I see, so it''s decided on Hokkaidou.


    From what I can see behind Horikita, she doesn''t seem to be disappointed.


    As for Keisei, he doesn''t really seem dissatisfied in the slightest.


    In reverse, Sudou and the others who were in the Okinawa faction... Maybe they''ve epted this from the start, but they don''t look like they care about this at all.


    Sharing information between sses shouldn''t have been allowed, but it''s possible that they have at least heard rumours.


    [ TL Note 5 : Kaze no Uwasa: Hearsay;rumour. Literally "rumours of the wind"] I feel that it is a bit unfortunate, but Kyoto is Kyoto and Hokkaidou is Hokkaidou.


    From my point of view, either location is an unknown world, and there is no changing the fact that I''m looking forward to it.


    "I think you understand, but don''t forget that the school trip, as you can tell by its name, is for the sake of academic learning and knowledge. Unlike normal high schools, there are a lot of rules that must be followed." Chabashira-sensei lightly warned the excited students to not confuse this with y.


    [ TL Note 6 : Asobi; ying; used for contexts such as meeting up with friends,


    hanging out etc.]


    "There''s no way it''s gonna be a special exam or something... Right?" There is no way to be sure, so it''s no wonder that he wanted to confirm it on behalf of the students.


    Seeing Hondou''s fearful question and the appearance of the students, Chabashira-senseiughed just a little.


    "Don''t worry, there is no special exam to fight over ss points." After the clearly told promise, A sigh of relief was heard from among the ss.


    "Before entering the detailed exnations, let''s touch on the four night five day stay''s schedule." School Trip Schedule:


    Day 1: Departing from school > Haneda Airport > Arrival at the ski spot > Lessons > Skiing > Inn Day 2: Free activity day Day 3: Sightseeing and visiting the important spots inside Sapporo City > Inn Day 4: Free activity day (With some limitations) Day 5: Way back It seems that we can move freely on the second day, and on the fourth day, with some conditions.


    "I was so worried, but it''s all totally normal! No, better than normal! Freedom is the best!" Since this didn''t seem to be inferior to the model casespared to other schools, most of the students were happy and strangely cheerful because of such a normal school trip schedule.


    It is true that it would be expected of this school to have a stranger schedule.


    "I''m d you''re cheerful, but have you all already forgotten what I said? In exchange for the promise of free conduct, there is work that you, the students of this advanced learning high school, have to do." There is no special exam, so just what is going to be demanded from us?


    "If you know yourself, and know your enemies, you will not fear a hundred battles. That''s the theme of this school trip." "Huh? Wha-.. Huh? What did she say?"


    Hondou, not understanding "Sun Tzu"''s quote about the art of war, tilted his neck.


    "You must know the circumstances of the foe you''re fighting, and your own real strength. The meaning is that if you do this, you will never lose your battles." It was Sudou who understood the proverb and exined it to the ss before anyone else.


    "Oh, wow... Do you really understand even things like that?" "It''s nothing impressive, really. The meaning is clear from the words in the first ce, so." He''s not showing any arrogance about his knowledge and leaves a favourable impression.


    "Normally, it is the standart to form a few groups in the school trip and conduct ourselves ording to that. It will be no different for you, but there is a point of clear differencepared to other schools." "Huh? Huuh? Huuuuh? Then, isn''t it very likely that we might be together with people we don''t get along with?" The students who have been made merry by the yet unseen Hokkaidou were quickly pulled back to reality.


    As if pointing that out, Chabashira-sensei started a brief exnation.


    "That''s right. Depending on your rtionships and groups, almost everyone with you may be people you''ll meet for the first time." I can''t really say that I know a lot of people from the other sses.


    Depending on the number of people in the group, I can easily see things developing as Chabashira-sensei says.


    "With a normal school, in the case of there being at most 160 students in a school year,


    there is a high possibility that one''s circle of friends would be quite wide. However, the structure of this school bes a hindrance and interferes with that." Of course, when you keep learning in the same environment for over a year, the number of friends you have increases.


    It is not hard to see this school''s structure interfering with that, especially now.


    "For you all, the most important thing is whether you can graduate in ss A or not.


    Basically, that''s a battle of sses. That will not change in the future either. Because,


    naturally, you will see the other students as rivals more than you see them as friends." She''s saying that such an environment is not fit to make friends in.


    "So, in your school lives during the day, the chances to learn of the real daily lives and actual circumstances of the students from other sses is naturally limited."


    It is true that after spending more than a year together, I''ve learned a lot about my ssmates.


    However, there are many who don''t know anything about the circumstances of other sses except on a superficial level.


    Because there is also the fear that if one makes the mistake of showing their weaknesses,


    they will be taken advantage of.


    On an entirely different facet, there might even ur a hesitation to defeat them.


    I want my friends from the other sses to graduate in ss A too.


    If such a feelinges up, one would be greatly confused while fighting.


    There must be a lot of students who don''t want to know anything on purpose.


    "This school trip''s objective is to clear away that hindrance. This is the best chance to know the other person, not as someone from a different ss, but as a student of the same school, and as a fellow human." A four nights five days stay feels short, but it''s long.


    The more group activities there will be in that time period, the higher the possibility of the distance between students shrinking.


    However, in reverse, there may be cases where the distance does not shrink at all.


    Even if the school removes the hindrance, there is nothing to do if the students themselves build up walls.


    "Hmm... This school trip is starting to seem really annoying, and I don''t feel like I''ll enjoy it at all!" They know that the rules decided by the school can''t be changed, but there are a number of students opposing this like Ike.


    Passing time with trusted allies. That''s one of the things that no one wants to give up.


    Especially for Ike, it''s no strange thing for him to panic, as depending on the evaluations he might not get a chance to group with his new girlfriend.


    As themotion kept spreading, one man stood up in order to put a halt to it. It''s Yousuke.


    "I agree with the school''s thinking." Among all the dissenting opinions flying around, he expressed his support, as if cutting off the vanguard.


    "That''s nice for you, Hirata. I''m sure there are a lot of people whom you get along well with in the other sses, so if you''re boasting, we don''t need it."


    It is true that for Yousuke who has a wide range of friendships, it doesn''t matter who he groups with. But, there''s no way that Yousuke would speak out in order to brag about that.


    "That''s not it. There is not even one student from the other sses that I know better than my ssmates. Because I think it''s no good to step into things unprepared, you know." [ TL Note 7 : Rephrased in a more natural way. I''m trying to be urate to the original text as well. What the character means here is that he doesn''t know anyone from the other sses that well since he wouldn''t want to get into any trouble by entangling with them. ] First, Yousuke insisted that his future is on the same side as Ike and the others.


    "Then why are you in support of this?"


    "Because I felt a sure significance about it. Leaving aside the club activities, this school is quite unconnected, and I had been feeling that there are very few chances to connect with students from the other sses."


    You could easily say that is necessary.


    There are cases of bing temporary allies with other students because of some special test or such, but, as sses are usually in a struggle with each other, as Yosuke also said,


    there is a tendency to avoid being deeply involving with the other students.


    From the point of view of a person with a gentle heart, it would make things unnecessarily difficult.


    "Then isn''t it strange you agree with this after all? It''s easier to fight against rivals or people you aren''t close with."


    "Hmm... But I think that friends are friends and that it has nothing to do with the sses,


    so..."


    The opinions are divided between the girls too. This is an issue of viewpoints.


    "Does the chickene first or the egg? I think that''s where this is going. A friend before a rival, or a rival before a friend? I''m sure that both of those answers are correct. Isn''t the trip a good chance to learn that, like the teacher said? We have more than one choice. The more we have, the wider the possibilities will be. That''s what I think."


    "I think I get what you''re saying, Hirata. But, you know, it ain''t like the school will change the rules if we struggle here anyway, right?"


    If they are willing to be flexible because of ourining, there is a point in resisting.


    However, the students must already know that this isn''t the case.


    "It''s not a bad thing to get excited with an argument, but may I continue speaking first? After you hear the concrete details, it will be easier for you all as well to talk things through."


    After saying so, she changed the screen from the schedule.


    "It is decided that during the four night five day stay, the students will be grouped as evenly as possible. Fundamentally, one group will be made of 8 people. However, there are 156 people in the Second Year. As we cannot divide it with 8 people groups, there will be 2 - 6 people groups made. We will also adjust them to make the ratio of genders as equal as possible."


    The 4 who have been expelled are evenly divided into 2 girls and boys, but the fact that they belong to different sses raises a problem; the eight people groups can be divided cleanly,


    but the 6 people groups will have some unevenness.


    However, this is an unavoidable point, so there''s nothing to do about it.


    Of course, this is all only if there are no new expulsions or students dropping out because of poor health until the day of the trip.


    "As for how much you''ll be moving together with the group, that depends on after we reach Hokkaidou."


    The group rules are being shown not just by words, but also on the monitor.


    Situations where group conduct is necessary:


    *When the school instructs it so on the location *Free conduct Situations where group conduct is unnecessary:


    *Inside the amodation facility We will depart from the school with buses divided among the sses, and go to Haneda airport. From there, we''ll take a ne to Shinchitose Airport and disembark. After, it seems that we''ll be divided into our groups inside the airport.


    From then on, until we go back to the school with a bus, group conduct will be the general rule.


    Including going to the airport from the school and our movements after reaching Hokkaidou,


    we will move together as a group with a bus most of the time. Including sleeping time, it seems that we''ll spend most of our time with our group members.


    "Free conduct doesn''t mean that each individual can do whatever they want either.


    Discussion within the group will always be necessary, so group conduct is absolute. In case your destination can''t be decided with a discussion, you will not be allowed to exit the ryokan." [TL/N 4: Ryokan, a traditional japanese inn] It''s easy topromise with someone you have a close rtionship with, but there may also be some trouble.


    If stubborn students gather together, there will be no resolution of opinions.


    As a result, there may be cases where the students won''t be able to go anywhere.


    "Inside the premises of our lodging, you will mostly be released from group conduct. You can go to the bathroom whenever you''d like, you can hang out in the lobby, and as for food, you may do as you like as long as it is inside the set time."


    The one exception is the ryokan we will be staying at.


    We will still share rooms divided among the boys and the girls, but we can have breakfast or dinner, take a bath or walk around the facility freely as individuals.


    "About the ryokan we will be staying at for 4 nights, it is a fine lodging and famed even inside Hokkaidou. I think you will have a pleasant time without getting bored."


    [ TL Note 8 : Dounai, Inside Hokkaidou; Literally "inside the road", the word "road" is in reference to Hokkaidou''s full name: Hokkaidou; lit. Northern Sea Road.] "Ugh, I guess the ryokan will be our only time to rx..."


    "I''ll say this again, but this trip is a good chance to get to know the other students on a deeper level."


    After receiving the exnation from Chabashira-sensei, it seems that Yousuke felt doubt on another subject.


    "If we''re meant toe in contact with a lot of people, it feels a bit strange that we will be with the same group the entire trip."


    "You''re right to point this out, Hirata. We''ve also considered changing the groups around each day. However, if you randomlye in contact with a lot of people, you will not get to know the other party. It''s also easy to pass the time together on a superficial level even if you don''t rush it in one day. However, with four nights, the situation changes. If you can''t pass these days showing your true self to your partners, you can''t enjoy the trip either."


    If it''s for just one day, it''s easy to just bare with somebody.


    Even if you end up with a group you don''t like, you can just pass the time patiently until your group changes the following day.


    On the other hand, if it is decided that your group will stay the same, you have to handle it somehow.


    "Those of you who have a lot of friends from other sses like Hirata and Kushida may have an easy time getting along with any group. In reverse, for people with little friends, there may be a development where they struggle no matter what group they''re with. However, think of it as a chance to progress."


    Of course, human rtionships aren''t as simple as these words.


    If you''re a type that can''t make friends even though you want to, it may be a chance to move forward as Chabashira-sensei says, but for those who think friends are unnecessary it will be a slightly burdensome school trip.


    Well, that kind of person would already feel troubled by a school trip right from the moment they learn of it.


    "If there is a case of someone being found out to not have followed the rule of staying with one group, their free conduct privileges may be taken away."


    Free conduct being taken away. If something like that happens, half of the school trip would lose its meaning.


    In other words, following the conduct of the group that has formed is an absolute rule that must be protected.


    Most students follow the rules, but there are some among them who will not, so...


    All of the students'' gazes turned towards Kouenji in the farthest back seat.


    "What''s up, guys? You all look so envious of me. I don''t mind, you know, so just keep looking."


    Kouenji, who had not been listening to Chabashira-sensei''s exnation, said so and showed a cool smile.


    He''s a man you can''t read, in a variety of meanings, but he ising to school and it''s true that he is obedient. Maybe he won''t cause trouble with the school trip''s groups, either...


    Maybe.


    In any case, I''m sure that most students don''t want to be together with Kouenji as it''s not clear at all what would happen after.


    "About the method by which groups will be divided, it will not be by random, but it will be based on the list created earlier."


    The task we took the trouble to spend our time on before the school trip''s exnation started.


    It seems like that was rted to the divisions of the school trip''s groups.


    "Also, about your cellphones that you use, you can keep using them without an issue during the school trip as well. However, the restrictions about the people you can call will not change. Calls to the Second Year students who are still enrolled in the school, and emergencies such as the police or ambnce are allowed. However,munication with family or those outside the school is still forbidden. Your call history is managed by the school, so be careful."


    The so-called theme of this school trip.


    It''s difficult to believe that this is purely for the sake of making the students get along better with each other.


    It can be seen as one of the strategic steps for the school life that lies ahead of us.


    Chabashira-sensei continued talking about the school trip after that too, but the most important and unusual point was the creation of the groups formed from among all of the second year students.


    Other than that, I guess the management of money will also be of some importance.


    As we don''t have anything except private points, we do not possess a method to do shopping outside the facilities.


    Because of that, it seems there is a system where you can exchange your private points for money beforehand in the school and supply yourself with money.


    Further, in case you run out of money on location, they will apparently exchange for you 10,000 Yen at most.


    After the school trip is over and we return, it seems that you can convert your money back to private points, so I think the best way to do this is to exchange for arge amount of money at the start.

 Chapter 303: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 303: 1.3</h4>


    When lunch break came, I headed to have lunch with Kei, as was usual.


    But, unlike usual, there are numerous guests.


    "This is like some double date, huh, Ayanokouji-kun?"


    With a hint of embarrassment, Satou muttered so while standing by me.


    "Hey, hey, Maya-chan! That''s not something to say to Kyotaka, is it?"


    We walked as the girls were in a conversation that could be considered both a fight and a friendly chat.


    "It''s my first time in Hokkaidou, you know. Kiyotaka, have you been there before?"


    "No, I haven''t."


    For someone like me who''s been in the White Room, it''s not a territory I have experience on.


    I have been to a variety of locations and had some experiences, but Hokkaidou is not among them.


    The only things I know about that world is the fact that it''s extremely cold and the stuff I''ve seen on television or in textbooks.


    The conversation ended up being focused on the school trip, after all.


    "Anyway, are high school school trips really this free? Don''t we have too much freedom?"


    "I was surprised too. I thought that we would be granted maybe an hour or two of free conduct at most."


    "Isn''t it good to have a lot of free time? I think it''s definitely better than wasting time in museums or sitting around listening to people talk."


    Yousukeughed at that reaction, and Satou also nodded strongly to show her agreement.


    As for me... Spending my days in an orthodox way like that wouldn''t be so bad either, but...


    If we have too much freedom, things will deviate away from the form of a school trip.


    "I am a bit worried about the groups, I think. I wee the direction to get along well with other sses, but I can''t help but feel like there''s gonna be something else ahead of that."


    "After you start getting along well?"


    Yousuke nodded, and looked at me as if expecting an answer.


    "As long as we are fighting over the one and only ss A, feelings like pity will only hold us back."


    "I''m sure a lot of people think like that after all."


    For Yousuke who feels this direction strongly already, this might feelplicated.


    The danger of bing too close is always entangled with the desire to be friends with someone.


    "I''m a bit scared. I''m scared of meeting people from other sses who absolutely have to graduate in ss A for some reason, getting to know their circumstances, and bing close with them."


    "Hmm... I see. I think I kind of understand what you''re saying too, Hirata-kun. It''s empathetic."


    I think Satou also used her imagination, and she was a little convinced.


    "I don''t really think that way though, you know? I mean, it''s more important that I rise up to ss A myself... Am I a cold person?"


    Kei denied such feelings straight up.


    This wasn''t being cold, it was the majority''s real opinion.


    "No one can see a person''s true feelings. This is just the way I think, but, people can easily get along with others on a superficial level, if it''s limited to a certain ce and time. Furthermore, people hate letting others see their unpleasant feelings."


    Feelings of love and hate are such a burden.


    "Let''s say that there are students who have to graduate in ss A. If they don''t get into ss A, they may even lose their lives."


    "Huh? That''s a bit too grand..."


    "It is an exaggeration, of course. However, the reality is that it could be true."


    No one knows where the limits of someone''s feelings lie other than that person themselves.


    "Let''s say that you know the situation, and possess more than 20,000,000 private points as a ss. However, you also have to use the points to protect your own ssmates. You can fight without it, but it''s an important insurance. What if someone in that situation, like you, says that they want to do anything they can to save the students whose life might be on the line ?"


    "Eh... That''s..."


    "What if the ss ended up in a ce where the students are willing to say that they are willing to help the ss, while inwardly thinking "no way" and being secretly against it? Wouldn''t it create a possibility of students just pretending to help on a surface level?"


    If they opposed, they would be looked down upon for taking people''s lives lightly.


    The reality is, I don''t know what even the people I scorn are thinking on the inside.


    "I continued exaggerating a bit, but knowing your enemy is also a disadvantage."


    "Then why is the school trying to make us friendly with each other?"


    As if she said all of her points, Kei''s words came to a halt.


    "Somehow, in the future... It may be rted to some special exam or something, maybe..?"


    "I guess I can''t deny that."


    As we are now, at least, among most of the students from the other sses, we wouldn''t pay attention to who gets expelled.


    If the people we aren''t close with disappear, then we get closer to ss A.


    "That list, and the school trip, these may just be the stage setting with the end term test being the main thing."


    "In that case, it may be troublesome... That''s genuinely scary for me."


    "I feel the same. This feels bad, somehow."


    Both Yousuke and Satou moved through the conversation and started understanding the fear for the future.


    At this stage, we can''t know if expulsion will be involved or not, but it will certainly be harder thanst year.

 Chapter 304: 1.4

    <h4>Chapter 304: 1.4</h4>


    After school, the students who have been yearning for a school trip did not lose their enthusiasm.


    I received a message from a certain person, someone, who has always been one step below me.


    It seems that this person wants to meet me by a bench near Keyaki Mall.


    My girlfriend Kei should have ns today to hang out in the dorm with Satou and a few other girls.


    I can ignore the message, or even change the day, but this timing works well for me too.


    I''m curious about what''s going on, so I think it''s best we meet up.


    I replied that we would meet right away, and I headed towards the ce we agreed upon.


    As I arrived about 10 minutes earlier than nned, I decided to sit down on the bench and wait.


    With the timing being right after school ended for the day, students were walking past the bench headed for Keyaki Mall.


    However, what I''m curious about is the choice of such a conspicuous ce for our meeting.


    I''m sure that there was also the fear that I would take precaution and choose not toe to the meeting, but that does not fit this person''s character.


    The fact that I was contacted in advance is also an inconsistency.


    Is it simply because of a mental issue, or is there some other power moving?


    From then on, I kept watching the crowd of students heading for Keyaki Mall, but then...


    Even as the promised time came, the person in question did not arrive.


    It''s normal to arrive slightly earlier orter, so I didn''t worry and kept surfing the inte.


    "Yoo-hoo~"


    As I was essing the inte on my phone and killing time, the voice of a girling from the distance reached me. When I looked up, I confirmed that it was the person who sent the message, Amasawa Ichika.


    Nanase, who should be from another ss, is also there by Amasawa''s side.


    In contrast to the smiling Amasawa, Nanase looks a bit surprised.


    After they waved at me and approached, they stopped a few centimeters before my eyes.


    "Kept you waiting."


    "Nanase is with you too, huh?"


    As there is no way I can ignore her right in front of my eyes, so I''ll greet her formally.


    "Yes. Please excuse me for joining in without giving you a notice."


    "No, there is no need to apologize, really. It was slightly unexpected, though."


    Because after I was summoned here, I had guessed that I would be talking one on one with Amasawa.


    Such doubts were about to be resolved by Amasawa''s words right away.


    "The reason I ended up beingte is because I was stopped by Nanase-chan."


    She said so, and pointed to Nanase, putting the responsibility on her.


    "Further, she insisted on following along. I guess she wanted to meet you that badly?"


    "Huh, is that so?"


    "Ah, no..."


    Nanase panicked a little, but denied Amasawa''s words right away.


    "I came because I was curious about Amasawa-san''s conduct, but I did not know that she was meeting with you here."


    "Huh~? Did I not say? I think I did, but..."


    "You only said it when we met eyes with Ayanokoji Senpai, though..."


    "A-ha-ha-ha, I guess I did."


    So that''s why she looked flustered when we met eyes.


    I listened on as the two first years exined the situation to each other.


    But, as it doesn''t look like she''s about to leave, Nanase must have her own reason for joining in.


    For now, I''ll leave Nanase aside and focus my attention on Amasawa.


    "I heard you took a break from school for a while?"


    "You know a lot, huh? So you were curious about me and did a little investigation? Well, I''m okay with having a stalker as long as it''s you."


    Amasawa hasn''t showed up in the school since the vacation days after the culture festival ended.


    I''m sure it''s not like she had fallen ill or something.


    "I was giving a report to Ayanokoji Senpai."


    "Wait, Nanase-chan, you were the stalker!?"


    With a purposeful overreaction, Amasawa raised both her hands up.


    "A girl, huh... Well, we are in the age of diversity, right? And Nanase is cute, right? Maybe it''s not so weird."


    "Please don''t have random misunderstandings like that."


    In contrast to the highly excited Amasawa, Nanase calmly said so.


    "That''s actually why I called out to Amasawa-san today. You''ve been taking a break from school ever since Yagami-kun was expelled. It was clear that this wasn''t because of a physical ailment, but a mental one, so it''s only natural that I felt some suspicion when you suddenly came back."


    It''s only natural to feel distrust and be watchful when a White Room student suddenly returns.


    Yagami Takuya. I''ve made some guesses, but there''s no doubt that the student was from the same White Room as Amasawa, even after the expulsion affair.


    It isn''t hard to imagine that he held strong feelings towards his ally Amasawa.


    "I learned that you would be meeting Ayanokoji Senpai. After that, there was no way I could leave."


    "You''re like a knight protecting Senpai, huh?"


    "It''s nothing that grand, but I judged that with your current mental state, there is no knowing what you will do."


    It also seems like a series of coincidences, but I''m sure Nanase was making some spections in her own way.


    It''s hard to believe that Amasawa ising to the school just to take sses after finishing her vacation.


    "...It''s like that."


    Amasawa has been acting cheerfully until now, but I can''t feel her usual bright energy anymore.


    "I thought that it''s a bit bothersome but that it would be alright."


    "The fact that you''re still in the school means that you''ve found the answer by yourself, right?"


    As I asked so, the smile from Amasawa''s face quietly disappeared right away.


    From the way her eyes swayed, I could see that this was not the case.


    "Senpai, why did you not give an instruction to take me along? I think you could have easily gotten me expelled along with Takuya, but..."


    "You gave more importance to enjoying your time in this school rather than getting me expelled. That''s how it looked like to me, at least. So I had no intention of trying to force you to be expelled."


    No, in the first ce, it''s the same for Yagami too.


    We never had a frank discussion, but if he had given priority to remaining in the school, then there wouldn''t have been a necessity to get him expelled.


    "Despite what you think, Senpai, I haven''te up with an answer yet. As I was thinking that there would be a ce for me here even if I return... Time just passed me by."


    After saying so, sheughed in a self-deprecating manner.


    She does also have the choice of baring fangs against me.


    "Still, I found some direction. That''s why I called you here, right?"


    "Well, that''s right. If it''s possible to remain here, of course you''d start thinking that you should. You can''t return to White Room either, and you have no idea where your parents are even if you get expelled. Since you''d have nowhere to go, it would be unpleasant to have to get some part-time job or something in order to live, right?"


    If you''re lost on the roadside, then you have to do anything you can in order to keep living.


    However, as long as you remain in this school, your livelihood is guaranteed until you graduate.


    Further, there is a system where your private points are purchased by the school in the end.


    ording to what I heard before, it wouldn''t be an equal exchange, but even if it''s only half it would still be a considerable ie.


    After receiving some money, it would be possible to spend some time trying to find a proper job.


    Or, the third path.


    I suppose Amasawa doesn''t consider this as she does not know where they are, but there is also the choice of searching for her parents and returning home.


    However, if she formally bes a drop-out from White Room, there is fundamentally no guarantee in how she will be treated.


    In other words, whether or not she can pick that choice depends on Amasawa''s parents.


    First and foremost, Amasawa''s parents should be wealthy celebrities with a lot of power.


    If White Room also learns that Amasawa is a child of fame, the possibility of them treating her gently increases.


    Further, her parents must give importance to their daughter Ichika.


    If these two conditions are fulfilled, there is a way for Amasawa to start a life as a normal girl.


    Perhaps puzzled by my silence, Amasawa spoke up in a modest voice.


    "I''ll remain in this school. If that''s not a problem for you, Ayanokoji Senpai..."


    "What if I told you to drop out?"


    "I''ll drop out."


    Insistence, anger, or perhaps sorrow.


    As I was wondering how her reaction would be, Amasawa instantly said so.


    "You seem certain, huh. Don''t you want to get revenge for Yagami?"


    "I have no intention of causing any more trouble."


    This means that she came here possessing a resolve fitting of her.


    "Those words aren''t fitting for a belligerent person like you, Amasawa-san."


    "That''s correct. This is only a special treatment for Ayanokoji Senpai. I have no intention of holding back with anybody else from now on either."


    These must be her true feelings.


    It seems that Amasawa values Yagami more than I thought, as a fellow student of White Room.


    There is a high possibility that the people rted to Yagami''s expulsion will be her targets from now on.


    "There''s no reason for me to be against it. If you want to remain here, then you can do as you like."


    I don''t know how rxing it will be, but I rxed my cheeks with a little joy.


    "So my strength is so insignificant before yours that you feel no threat from me?"


    "It''s not like that. I''m also one of the people remaining in this school, so it''s only natural that I''d want to support you if you were to make the same choice."


    Whether she''s a friend or ally is a different problem.


    Of course, I can''t just ignore her if she ends up being a hindrance to my ns.


    I''d like to think that after the affair with Yagami, she understands this well.


    "...I see."


    "If you''re really speaking from the heart, Amasawa-san, then I shall support you too."


    Nanase''s expression was still watchful, but she replied so.


    "Oh, some water from my eyes is... This, what is this, I wonder... I never felt this before."


    "Come on, there are no tearsing out at all, though."


    "A-ha, that''s weird. Even though I''m so moved..."


    It''s always been like this, but she''s forcing herself to put on an act in order to try and move us.


    "I may not want to hear this, but what kind of guy was Yagami?"


    "I''m curious too. I don''t understand why he continued his roundabout ways before getting you expelled."


    Why did he hurt Shinohara and the others'' group even while knowing the risk is high?


    Why did he push unrted students from Year 1 ss C into expulsion?


    The school also announced Yagami''s scandal, so a lot of people learned of it.


    As for Nanase, I''m sure there''s a lot she''s curious about.


    "That''s right..."


    She pretended to think about it a little, but started speaking right away.


    "I think Takuya was scared. Scared of fighting against you, Ayanokoji Senpai. Yet, I''m sure that such feelings of dread were so deep in his heart that even he was not aware of them."


    Amasawa, who should know Yagami better than anyone, made such an analysis.


    I''m sure that I don''t need to interrupt her and ask the details, this should be the correct answer.


    "In order to escape from the fear, without noticing it himself, he made detours, and detours, and..."


    As the final result, he had ended up digging his own grave.


    "I think it might take a little bit more time until I go back to my usual self. But, I think... I think I''ll get better very soon."


    There''s no need to force herself and hurry.


    It hasn''t even been one year since Amasawa''s school life started.


    She can just slowly think about her path from now on.


    "I just wanted to tell you that. So, I''ll go back for today. What about you, Nanase-chan?"


    It looked like she asked her "wanna leave together?", but Nanase shook her head.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m going to have a chat with Senpai. It''s okay, right?"


    "I see. I''ll lend him to you, a special asion for today, then."


    I''m not yours, but I suppose she''s trying her best to put on a brave face.


    Without staying in this ce for too long, Amasawa headed towards her dorm.


    Nanase and I looked on together in silence until she disappeared.


    Nanase''s expression from the side looked fierce.


    "What do you think about her words, demeanour, and mannerisms?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''m still a bit worried about her causing problems in the future."


    It seems that she was looking at her with such fierce eyes because she was worried about this.


    "You can''t trust her?"


    "It''s not like I don''t want to trust Amasawa-san. But, I''m saying that we can''t be careless, after all."


    She expressed it in a mild way, but it''s certain that she doesn''t trust her.


    "I won''t be careless. Rather, I should just say that nothing has changed."


    I''m in this school in order to live my school life.


    Whether they''re close by or far away, I won''t be influenced by my opponents.


    "I''m just needlessly worrying... Right?"


    "I''m grateful for the sentiment. I''m d to have even one ally, you see."


    It seems that she understood my thoughts in her own way, but Nanase continued.


    "I''m prepared to be thought of as being insistent, so I''ll say this one more time. Your abilities, and the possibility of Amasawa-san''s reform. Please keep them in mind and be careful. It is a certain truth that Amasawa-san is a student of White Room. We can''t know what kind of methods she will use."


    It''s Nanase''s strong wish that I be prepared for every possible situation.


    "I want you to remain in this school, and graduate, Ayanokoji Senpai."


    I won''t say we''re unrted, but Nanase looks like she''s worried more about me than herself.


    "If you''re ever in trouble, no matter how insignificant it is, please do ask me for advice."


    "I understand well what you want to say. I''ll keep it in mind."


    After our exchange up until now, Nanase finally looks like she''s satisfied.


    "I will take my leave, then."


    Nanase, perhaps thinking that she''s starting to get annoying, turned around and headed for the dorm.


    Despite repeatedly being vignt against Amasawa, there are times when she is strangely entangled.


    In order to confirm that, I decided to dig a little deeper.


    "I forgot to say it, but the school trip is this week."


    "Ah, I see. It was, wasn''t it? Senpai, please enjoy it as much as you can. School trips are the true charm of a school life, you know."


    "That''s my intention."


    It feels strange, after all.


    Whether she knew about the school trip or not, she should have something to say to me.


    Yet, Nanase isn''t showing any signs of such a thing.


    It''s almost as if she''spletely forgotten about it already.


    "Is there something you''d like as a present?"


    I stopped Nanase, and tried to dig into the matter of the school trip.


    "By the way, where is the destination?"


    "It''s Hokkaidou."


    "Wow, Hokkaidou, huh? That''s nice. If it''s Hokkaidou, then... Maybe butter?"


    "It''s a bit strange to give butter itself as a present..."


    If that is really her first choice then I won''t decline, but it doesn''t seem like it.


    "Ah, then some chocte coated potatoes would be good. They''re famous, right?"


    "...I don''t know, actually."


    It ended up being a mutually confusing conversation.


    "Chocte potatoes, I''ll look into itter. If I find some over there, then I''ll buy some for you."


    "Thank you very much."


    As Nanase said so and tried to leave again, I strongly urged her to stop.


    "Nanase. Can I ask one thing?"


    "Yes? What is it?"


    The matter of Amasawa and the matter of the school trip.


    Even if normal students can''t see the rtion, Nanase can.


    No, it would even be strange if she couldn''t.


    "Despite worrying about me, you haven''t spoken of your worries about the school trip at all."


    "Huh..?"


    "You don''t get it?"


    Right after I said this to try and get her to think it over, the soft smile on Nanase''s face stiffened in an instant.


    "This school is a facility with strict security that is protected from the outside 24 hours a day. In fact, even Tsukishiro himself sneaked inside and tried to expel me. However, with the school trip, things will change a lot. There will be a lot of times with no teachers looking, times when we''ll have to be even more careful than when we were on the uninhabited ind."


    That''s right, the risks there should be greater than an Amasawa with her fangs pulled out.


    "If you know these people, then you can even imagine that they would even use methods such as forcing me into their car. If you''re worried so much about Amasawa, then you should be saying a few more things. Such as "please be careful". Am I wrong?"


    She didn''t understand how Amasawa would conduct herself, so she kept checking up on her until her arrival at school.


    Then, she figured that Amasawa would contact me, and even followed her until this ce.


    After all that, there''s no way Nanase is not aware of the dangers of the school trip.


    "You''ve defeated Yagami-kun and Amasawa-san; there''s no need for someone like me to worry about you..."


    "That''s strange. If that was the case, there would be no need for you to be here today by Amasawa''s side, watching over us. The fact that you''ve insistently been warning me creates a contradiction. Unlike the outside world where the majority holds the power, even if she is a White Room student, Amasawa is one person. The danger she poses is insignificant."


    Nanase was confused, but she was about to open her mouth right away, then... No words came out.


    "Can''t think of an excuse?"


    "What are you saying? You seem to be having a misunderstanding, Ayanokoji Senpai."


    She was clearly in turmoil until just a moment ago, but Nanase was now calm.


    "It may be a misunderstanding. If so, despite worrying about Amasawa and looking out for me, why haven''t you spoken of your unease about the school trip?"


    "It''s embarrassing, but I think my confirmation was insufficient. Even though the outside world is full of dangers, when you think about it..."


    Nanase, replying that she was simply being insufficient.


    Truly, if that is the case, then I can understand why the conversation went that way.


    However,ing to a conclusion with that, is something I unfortunately cannot do.


    "I have always had a suspicion ever since I''ve met you. It''s about the rtion between Tsukishiro, the White Room students, and you. You should have received various instructions from Tsukishiro, but why didn''t you let me know about anything concrete?"


    Nanase Tsubasa had her feelings used by Tsukishiro in order to take revenge on Matsuo Eiichirou''s enemy, and she followed Tsukishiro''s orders.


    On one hand, nothing about the White Room students'' identities was made clear to Nanase.


    "Maybe it''s because... I''m just an ordinary person? It''s only natural that I wouldn''t be trusted as long as I don''t possess the power that the White Room students do."


    "At first, I did not appraise the man called Tsukishiro to be of a high value. That''s because I thought that there must be a more efficient way of causing me to get expelled. However, as I kepting in contact with him, I changed my mind. That man could actually push me into expulsion, I thought."


    It''s so much that I could even think he was holding back on purpose.


    "In the end, you were not expelled. Isn''t that because your real abilities exceeded Former Stand-In Chairman Tsukishiro''s assumptions?"


    "If it''s going to end so simply, then that may be so."


    In other words, there is a possibility that this chain of events is not of such a simple structure.


    "We''re going back to this again, but, I think that there is a different reason for you being cautious against Amasawa, but not the dangers of the outside world."


    "Myck of judgement is the true reason. What else do you think it could be?"


    "Isn''t it because you couldn''t estimate what Amasawa''s conducts will be like at this time today? And, the reason that you didn''t warn me about the dangers of the school trip, isn''t it because you know that the White Room has no ill ns or intentions towards me?"


    If there is no probability of them making war on me, then it''s only natural that Nanase wouldn''t be worried.


    "I don''t really understand. How can you say that there is no such possibility?"


    "That''s what I want to ask about."


    "After hearing this conversation, I fully understand the school trip''s dangers. Now, I think I''d like you to be more cautious for the school trip than against Amasawa-san."


    No matter how many times I repeated the question, Nanase insisted that it was ack of judgement.


    "This is nothing but a hypothesis, but may I ask you something?"


    "Of course."


    "From the start, Tsukishiro never had any intention of expelling me... That''s my hypothesis."


    Although the premise up until now will be overturned, this hypothesis connects many things together.


    "Isn''t that strange? How will you exin the presence of Amasawa-san or Yagami-kun? We can understand from the conversation with Amasawa-san that Yagami-kun in particr was moving to expel you."


    "If we say that Amasawa and Yagami were earnest because they were not told about the true objective by the people above them, then it all fits together."


    "But what about Stand-In Chairman Tsukishiro? He utilized his significant position to use various forceful methods."


    "If he was earnest, then I probably would have been expelled already."


    Before talking about my real abilities or such, I should have been expelled by one of the countless options.


    "I understand your thinking. It could indeed be true that the intention was hidden as you say. But, you including me in all that... It''s a bit upsetting. I don''t want to be thought of as an enemy just because I missed the school trip''s danger."


    "Then, I''ll ask for a follow-up, what about the culture festival? Without a doubt, I was approached by someone rted to White Room, but you didn''t appear before me even once. Is that also ack of judgement?"


    "...That''s..."


    "Were you simply too busy with your own ss'' program? With your worries being of secondary importance."


    "No, that''s wrong. Umm, of course I was worried. I even checked up on you now and then, and..."


    "Are you sure? So inly telling me that you were watching me. If you say that, then I''ll end up asking where and when you were watching me."


    No matter what kind of person Nanase is, she should know me well enough.


    It is inevitable that I will see right through her if she clumsily makes a false statement like that.


    I still remember the events of the culture festival in detail.


    "Even at the Cultural Festival, they didn''t try to force me out of the school. There was a voluntary push, but they should know very well that I would not be expelled so easily. That''s why you didn''t show up."


    While trying to keep her emotions under control, Nanase breathed quietly.


    "White Room never intended to expel me, not at the Culture Festival, and not at the school trip. No, they had no such n from the start. If this hypothesis is correct, then your presence looks extremely strange, Nanase."


    "....."


    "Did Matsuo really kill himself? Then, did his son, Eiichirou really die? With your words from the point of view of a third party, Matsuo''s death looked to be true, but if you have been here as a calcted n from the beginning, all of your credibility is lost."


    Both, what we talked about on the uninhabited ind and that she has been standing in my way first like an enemy and then as an ally, it all loses its assurance.


    "It is all true, Ayanokoji Senpai. Even if I say that, if you''re suspicious of me like that, even if it''s hypothetical, then your doubts won''t be cleared."


    In order to find out if this is the truth or not, I have to investigate the official copy of the family register.


    Of course, if the White Room side is involved, even that would be unreliable.


    "ording to that hypothesis, what''s the reason that I''vee to this school? It doesn''t make sense."


    "No, there is an exnation. If you were an aid to me, then it all makes sense. You were supposed to support me in the unlikely event where I''m about to be expelled by the White Room students Yagami and Amasawa. I can simply think of how you disputed with me over the Matsuo affair as a way for you to make me let my guard down."


    Fought as enemies and turned into allies. Depending on the time and circumstances, trust can be built up in a short amount of time.


    "That''s exactly what Amasawa said about being given the role of a knight.... That''s what I''m talking about."


    Tsukishiro gave the group of Nanase, Yagami and Amasawa the duty of expelling me.


    He gave Nanase the role of pretending to be an enemy, to see my capabilities and then bing an ally.


    In this role, it is also possible for her to make truthful deductions by my side by deliberately not giving me information about the White Room students.


    "It''s only a hypothesis. In truth, there is still a high enough possibility that they really are aiming to expel me. In either case, there is no loss for me. If this hypothesis is correct, then you''re a simple ally, and if it isn''t, then there is no changing the fact that you have been an ally."


    There is no concept of two sides of a coin, just the same pattern on both sides.


    However, I shall keep this in the corner of my mind.


    The possibility that that man is not moving to expel me.


    Then, what does he want?


    From which stage?


    Matsuo''s life and death, his son''s life and death.


    Whether it is the truth or a lie, its impact on the situation is insignificant.


    If everything that has happened so far has been turned upside down...


    Everything may have been decided from the start, even my enrollment into this school.


    "No matter what I say now, Ayanokoji Senpai is not going to just ept it, right? My only choice is to clear your doubts with time. That''s what I think."


    "It isn''t clear whether there is a way to clear my doubts or not, but I suppose you''re right. In fact, I would rather have them treat me the same way that they always have."


    "That can''t happen. In that case, I... I can''t ept that."


    Nanase quickly bowed her head, and began walking towards the road home.


    Of course, there is no way Nanase would be as physically fit as a White Room student.


    There is no telling the depths of her academic abilities, but even when ites to the way she thinks, she is a step behind Amasawa and the others.


    There''s still something I don''t know about Nanase.


    That hunch, at least, was surely true.

 Chapter 305: 1.5

    <h4>Chapter 305: 1.5</h4>


    After 7 pm, when the sun hadpletely set, Sudou visited the room.


    "Sorry to barge in without telling you. ...Hmph, hmph... Is it curry today?"


    Sudou muttered so while sniffing the smell of supper, which had gone all the way to the front door.


    He suddenly looked at the two shoes lined up in the entrance hallway.


    "Is someone here?"


    "Yeah, I was just making some curry to eat with Kei."


    "Karuizawa, huh..?"


    As soon as I replied, the door leading to the living room opened and Kei in her personal clothes showed her face.


    "Is it a problem if I''m here?"


    "No, of course not. What is this, are you guys always together..?"


    From his reaction, I can predict that he visited because he thought no one was here.


    "Of course we''re always together. Because we''re a couple."


    "I guess it''s not hard to imagine a couple being together 24 hours a day..."


    Sudou was about to object, but he dejectedly replied so, as if having imagined several couples already. Ike and Shinohara have been doing many conspicuous things in public recently too, like holding hands or shinohara sitting on her boyfriend''sp without caring about the people looking.


    I think they even said they''re going to a karaoke together after sses again today.


    "It looks like you''re back from club activities, Sudou."


    I have the impression that he usually returns at around this time.


    "I don''t have a girlfriend, you know, so basketball is all I have."


    That''s... I don''t know how to respond to those words.


    "Anyway, I''m sorry to dy your meal, but do you have a second? Don''t worry; it won''t take that much time."


    It is probably something confidential, seeing as he checked the shoes earlier.


    "You can start eating."


    "Eh~? I''ll wait. It won''t take long, right? He said it won''t take a lot of time, so."


    When asked again, Sudou thought for a moment, but when he replied that it would take less than 5 minutes, Kei was satisfied and closed the door.


    I put on my shoes, and went out onto the corridor with Sudou.


    No matter what this is about, it is unthinkable that Kei would leak anything to a third party, but this should be more reassuring.


    "Ayanokoji, you... Well, how should I put this? Umm... Did you already... With Karuizawa?"


    He asked me so in a muddy, vague manner.


    "I''ll leave that to your imagination."


    "Wow... Isn''t that like an answer already..?"


    How he takes this reply depends on him.


    "So? What on earth do you want?"


    "Oh, oh, right. It''s only natural that you''re so popr, and I don''t have the time to worry about that anyway."


    Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Sudou checks his surroundings.


    "Actually, recently, the pressure from Onodera has been... Well, it''s pretty heavy. So I''ve been confused, you know."


    He spoke so not in a joyful manner... He looked quite troubled.


    I can see that the words I uttered at the festival are weighing heavily on Sudou day after day.


    That''s why, as a person with responsibility, I have to earnestly listen to this kind of talk. Still, what needs to be corrected should be corrected.


    "About Onodera''s push, looking from the sidelines, not much has changed since after the Sports Festival. Perhaps you see it that way because it is your viewpoint that has changed."


    As for Onodera, she is not even aware of her own fondness for Sudou. On the surface, it should only feel like inviting a friend out to dinner or to hang out.


    "...That may be true too."


    He is scratching his head and does not look to be calming down.


    "Ever since you told me about Onodera, I can''t calm down, or perhaps I should say that I feel ufortable. Even if we talk, I end up wondering what she really thinks on the inside."


    As for Sudou, he should only see her as a good friend, on the same wavelength as his impression of her as a sportsman.


    If Onodera knew that Sudou was fond of her, then it would be understandable for things to change. Then, the conversation with Sudou came to a halt. Around 10 seconds passed in silence.


    "So? What are you saying is the thing you wanted to talk to me about? I think that there''s more to it, so."


    When I pushed him so, Sudou came up with the resolve to start speaking again.


    "When I''m with Onodera like that, you know... Some kind of bad feelingse up inside me. If we start dating someday, I might get my first girlfriend, and that it would be okay since Suzune isn''t going to turn around to me anyway. Now, I don''t know if I''m being objective, but, Onodera is pretty cute too."


    She and Sudou are very simr and are both stoic sportsmen.


    If we only consider thepatibility, it''s the bestbination of those around us.


    "It''s not a bad thing to think like that. In the first ce, it isn''t a sure thing that your fondness for someone from the other gender will be given back to you. In a lot of cases, it''s only one sided."


    That being said, not all of us can take it in stride.


    Sudou is also here, struggling with that.


    "Maybe... Also, there''s something else I think about. Maybe your judgement was wrong, and she simply thinks of me as a friend? In that case, my hubris would be embarrassing and I would be very confused."


    It is almost certain that Onodera has a fondness for Sudou.


    However, it is true that there is no proof of things being the way I think they are.


    The arrow that is pointed at tomorrow could be pointed somewhere at someone else.


    "You have a lot on your mind too after all, don''t you? I mean, Karuizawa was dating Hirata, so..."


    "Well, you''re right."


    The reality ispletely different, but I will keep the conversation moving in that direction for now.


    "If, if Onodera confesses, I''d be very scared, you know."


    "What would you do if you were confessed to now?"


    "No idea... No, wrong... That confession, I probably wouldn''t ept it."


    He will quickly destroy his chance of finding happiness. That was Sudou''s reply.


    "I do like her, after all. Suzune, I mean."


    That is one of the certain answers that Sudou possesses now.


    "Just imagining how hurt she will be when I refuse her makes me feel bitter."


    "So you''vee here because you don''t know the path you should take?"


    "No... It''s not like I''m asking you for advice. This is about my feelings, it would be wrong if


    I asked someone else to answer."


    It seems that he did note here seeking help.


    "I''vee up with an answer for myself. I wanted you to hear it."


    "Let''s hear it, then. What kind of answer did youe up with?"


    "I''ll confess to Suzune properly during the school trip. I''ll earnestly ask her to date me."


    "I see."


    It seems that this isn''t about whether there is a chance of victory or not.


    In order to break up this situation, he judged that he has to move on his own.


    "It''s because I like Suzune, and I can''t imagine dating anyone else right now. No matter what kind of results it will bring, I want to make things clear."


    Sudou has shown rapid growth so far.


    There is no doubt that Horikita values this highly too.


    "The probability may be low. I might get embarrassed. But, still..."


    Sudou thinks that if he does not convey his feelings, he cannot move forwards.


    That is why he is determined to do this.


    "Also, it''s not like I''m thinking I can just go for Onodera if I get refused, okay? Actually, I would probably get even more insistent..."


    After saying so, Sudou squeezed his fists tight.


    "I came to you today because I want you to witness my resolve."


    "Witness? Wait, do you mean when you confess?"


    "I know confessions aren''t usually something you show to the outside world, but I think I need this."


    It may be the push he needs toe up with the courage to do this.


    By cutting out his way of retreat, he will be able to speak out loud his feelings towards Horikita.


    "I''m going to put my hand out and ask her to date me. If she''ll date me, then she''ll grab my hand, and..."


    After saying so, he held out his own right hand, as if performing a rehearsal.


    It''s not at that stage yet, but I can tell that things have already heated up quite a bit.


    So he will put all of his feelings into words right in front of Horikita.


    As things are right now, I certainly cannot say that his chances of sess are high.


    But... Perhaps the force of his thoughts and his determination will be conveyed.


    It''s Horikita, so she may not answer an immediate romantic rtionship.


    Nevertheless, starting as friends as a first step is still a good idea.


    "I get it. I think it''ll depend on the time and location, but I''ll witness as much as I can. Are you okay with that?"


    After I said so, Sudou patted his chest down as if he was relieved.


    "Right, sorry. Asking you to do something like this... Well, that''s pretty much it, so...


    I''ll let you know, so thank you. I''m sorry for having disturbed your time together with Karuizawa."


    Sudou, saying that he can''t take up more of my time, headed for his room.


    After seeing him off and returning to my own room, Kei was sitting on a cushion before the table.


    Looks like the curry was also still waiting for me.


    "Wee back~. What did you talk about?"


    "All kinds of stuff."


    "All kinds? Come on, that''s so mysterious. Tell me~. I''ll keep it a secret, okay?"


    "I can tell you, but can you stand up before that?"


    "Hm?"


    I stood Kei up as she tilted her head curiously, and touched the surface of the cushion with my hand.


    As I did so, I felt a cold sensation.


    "You were listening, after all."


    "...Did you notice?"


    If she was waiting sitting down, then the cushion should have been warm.


    "Was my acting that bad?"


    "Your performance was perfect. I just figured that you would be listening."


    "Uh... I see."


    "And if you''re going to try and trick me, you should have an excuse about the cushion. Like you went to the fridge to get drinks, or something. Other than water, there''s milk and even tea."


    "Huh~? But, I haven''t even eaten the curry yet, so wouldn''t it be strange? There''s water in my cup too. I know that you would have gone to the fridge to check how much of the drinks there were left."


    "If you''re going to eavesdrop without being detected, then you need to do that much, at least. You can just drink the water, and if you will not put it in your body, you can just spill it out somewhere in the kitchen. There''s a lot of water in the kitchen because of the cooking, so."


    It would be impossible to tell the spilled water apart.


    If the kitchen is not wet, then she could also use the toilet.


    "Well, that''s not important. Come on, let''s talk about the school trip."


    Trying to escape the topic, Kei said so as she leaned forward.


    It''s meaningless if we continue talking about this further, so I''ll end it here.


    "What did you think about the school trip schedule? The fact that there''s a lot of free conduct is quite the topic in the ss."


    "Looks that way. But, for me, it feels like a demerit. I mean, you can only pass that time with people from the same group, right? The chances of me ending up with you seem low too. Right?"


    The possibility is around 5%. However, this is only if it will be determined purely by chance.


    "Ugh, God, please let us be together!"


    Kei crossed fingers on both hands, and prayed so to the heavens.


    "Even if we can''t be together during free conduct, there are no restrictions when we are in the ryokan. In fact, I think this is a perfect opportunity for me to learn more about the students from other sses."


    If I end up in the same group with Kei, we will naturally end up spending 24 hours a day together.


    I won''t say that it would be a bad time, but I feel like it would be a bit of a waste.


    We will have a number of chances to spend time together, just as we do here.


    "Hmm, it feels like you don''t want to be in the same group as me."


    "That''s not the case. But, you should be ready to enjoy your time even if we don''t end up in the same group."


    Kei may already understand this, but she does not seem to be epting it.


    "But..."


    She puffed her cheeks sulkily and hugged my shoulders.


    "If you''re not there, I might die of loneliness."


    "You''re exaggerating."


    "But..."


    I may need to do something to motivate Kei somewhat.


    "There is a reason that I''m fine with being in a different group than you. We''re at a stage where in order to rise up to ss A, we must have information on the other sses. I''m sure that most of the students on the school trip will be defenceless."


    In response to a dissatisfied Kei, I continued further.


    "After hearing about the school trip''s schedule and the groups, I did some research on the inte about other schools. I found out that it is a rare thing for there to be two full days of free conduct. Thinking from here, I think that it is the school''s objective to transform the sses'' rtionships with each other."


    "For what?"


    "I don''t know that yet, but, either at the end of 2nd or 3rd semester... Well, in a nearby time, information from the school trip maye alive."


    "So you want me to gather information that can be used as a weapon?"


    "Your abilities are remarkable, you know. If there is an opportunity, then I''d like you to use them effectively."


    As I said so while patting her head, her dissatisfaction seemed to diminish a little.


    "Ah, well? I understand that you want my help, but..."


    "Of course, I intend to have fun together if we are in the same group. But, in case that doesn''t happen, don''t lose your motivation and try to be useful for the ss."


    "...Mhm. It''s you saying that, so I''ll work hard."


    Repeatedly patting her head, I decided to change the subject.


    "About Sudou earlier..."


    "Ah, about Sudou-kun confessing to Horikita-san, right? Yep, that''s kind of interesting."


    I didn''t think she''d take the bait, but she was more interested than I thought.


    "Girls seem to like other people''s confession stories, so..."


    "Of course. Well, I definitely think he''ll get rejected, though."


    "Really?"


    "Eh? Do you think it''ll go well?"


    "I felt that there is a possibility. If we''ll count it as a sess if they start out with a rtionship above a friendship, then I''ll bet that it''ll be a sess."


    "No way, really? Let''s have a match, then. Let''s bet on if he''ll seed or not."


    "What do you intend to bet?"


    "Hmm~. Then, if I win, maybe I''ll ask for something a bit expensive as a Christmas gift~"


    After saying so, she started imagining all sorts of things right away.


    "That''s easy to understand. Then, what if I win?"


    "Then I''ll do whatever you say."


    "Are you sure? You''re willing to make such a big bet."


    "Come on, there''s no way, right? It''s not about whether Sudou-kun is good or bad, it''s about Horikita-san. She has no interest in romance."


    "Maybe."


    It is true that at a first nce, Horikita does not seem like the type to fall in love.


    Not to mention that if she is asked if she likes anyone in particr at this time, she would be very suspicious.


    Horikita is still at a stage where she is learning a lot.


    I cannot deny the possibility that she may step up to that stage like me.


    If her partner is to be Sudou, then Horikita wouldn''t have a bad impression.


    "Ah~ I''m looking forward to Christmas~. I wonder what I should get..."


    "Then I''ll take my time and think about what I''ll have you do."


    "Wow, that feels a bit lewd!"


    That''s just Kei''s own imagination.


    English Trantion by Anime Anyway

 Chapter 306 - 2 : A Literal School Trip

    <h4>Chapter 306: Chapter 2 : A Literal School Trip</h4>


    The morning of the day of the school trip. Four buses in total gathered, and all the Second Year students in their personal clothes lined up.


    The temperature was below 5 degrees this morning, and the cold wind was almost prickling my skin from time to time.


    However, in Hokkaido, where we''re headed now, the temperature will drop further.


    Because of that, the school made sure that the students did not forget things such as gloves or coats.


    The final checks of the luggage including clothing, and necessary items such as cell phones are finished.


    "First of all, I''m relieved that everyone made it to the school trip in good health."


    Mashima-sensei, the teacher in charge of Second Year ss A spoke out thusly before we got onto the buses.


    The homeroom ss teachers in charge of the Second Year students boarded each of the four buses, with Mashima-sensei in number 1 and Chabashira-sensei in number 2.


    Sakagami-sensei with number 3, and Hoshinomiya-sensei with number 4.


    Basically, it was in order from A ss to D ss.


    In the meantime, I checked the schedule on my phone.


    The bus will head for Haneda Airport, and we''ll disembark from a ne in Shinchitose Airport.


    From then on, we''ll get on the buses on location, and head for the ski ce for the first day.


    I quietly browsed the listing page of the groups.


    I can see the names of the eight people in my group, with group no. six written there.


    Kitou Hayato and Yamamura Miki from ss A.


    Me and Kushida Kikyou from ss B.


    Ryuen Kakeru and Nishino Takeko from ss C.


    Then, Watanabe Norihito and Amikura Mako from ss D.


    I don''t have anyints about the groups divided by the school, but to think that I would be grouped with Ryuen, a presence of great trouble for many students.


    I don''t know a lot of details about Kito, Yamamura, Watanabe, Nishino, and Amikura because I almost have no interactions with them, but I''m sure I''ll learn more about them soon.


    The members who will be with me for 4 nights and 5 days during the school trip are decided.


    It''s a peculiar group that is difficult to judge if the rtionships are strong or not.


    By the way, the numbers I''ve given to each student is 6 for Kushida, 18 for Watanabe, 14 for Amikura, 6 for Ryuen, and 18 for Nishino, 9 for Kitou, and 14 for Yamamura.


    I gave them their rankings by only taking the OAA shown by the school as a basis, without considering my closeness to them.


    Of these, I gave Kushida and Ryuen the highest rankings.


    However, this doesn''t have to mean that the other 7 have given each other the same ratings too.


    When ites to Ryuen in particr, many students hate him and it wouldn''t surprise me if extremely low numbers were written for him. Kitou in particr, who stands by Sakayanagi might have given Ryuen a good number.


    No, that may just be my imagination after all.


    Since Ryuen has the qualities and the characteristics of a leader, there is no contradiction for him to be given a high enough ranking to be fitting of that.


    I know from the other day''s numbering that it isn''tpletely random, but I may not be able to find the answers with my delusions from now on.


    "I don''t even know 5 out of these 7 people..."


    Further, is it really okay to consider the one person I know, Ryuen, in that category?


    I think I''ve been able to extend my circle of friends in my own way for the past year and a half, but it''s a different matter when ites to the other sses.


    Well then, it seems that the time for the bus ride is approaching.


    The students started gathering with the other students they''re close with.


    On the bus we are about to ride, there is no fixture for who will sit where. If it was me from a long time ago, then I personally would have been d if the seatings were decided.


    Now that I have Kei as my girlfriend, it is easy to know who will inevitably sit next to me.


    As if this was her cue, Kei waved her hand and stood next to me.


    However, at around the same time as Kei, Yousuke showed up.


    "Kiyotaka-kun, got a moment?"


    "Hm?"


    "It''s about the bus seats, but can I sit next to you if it''s okay?"


    "Next to me? But Why?"


    Next to Yousuke, a special seat.


    Me taking that away would provoke antipathy.


    I wouldn''t think Mii-chan has the courage to invite Yousuke openly after it became known that she likes him because of Kushida''s revtion, but she''s not the only one waiting for an opportunity.


    Backing this up, I can see the enthusiastic gazes of several girls.


    Yousuke looked into my eyes and pleaded.


    After worrying about the sparksing from the struggle for the seat, I suppose this is his best course of action.


    "It''s a lot of work to be popr, huh?"


    "I don''t wanna be popr, you know."


    Without pride, he simply answered so calmly.


    His ability to infer the unwritten rules of the ss is outstanding.


    He worries about his own affairs as much as he does other people''s, and most people think he tries to avoid conflict.


    "So, is it okay if I have Yousuke sit next to me, Kei?"


    "I wanna say "Ehh~?", but I guess it can''t be helped. Okay."


    Kei seems broad-minded towards Yousuke who she is indebted to, so she agreed.


    "In exchange, Kiyotaka has to sit on the aisle seat, okay? Because I''ll sit on the other side of the aisle, so."


    Well, I suppose that''s a simple response. As a result, with the four seats in one row a little behind the center of the bus, it was Yousuke, me, then Kei and Satou sat on the other side of the aisle from left to right.


    A few minutester, we finished boarding the buses and left for the airport.


    We are not allowed to leave our seats while the bus is moving, but we are free to chat, and we are allowed to consume the food and the drinks we brought in.


    As a result, some students immediately started taking out snacks.


    "Now it feels like a trip, huh?"


    Yousuke happily muttered so after looking around him.


    For this man, whose happiness is the happiness of others, I am sure he isfortable with the feelings he is sensing from the other students.


    "Ah, ah~. It would have been great if I was grouped with Kiyotaka."


    The boy that Kei was together with in ss was Akito, someone with whom I can say she has no contact with at all.


    "That''s why it''s a good opportunity, isn''t it? We don''t have many opportunities to interact with the other sses."


    "I''m not really asking for something like that, but... Tsch."


    Perhaps thinking she is going to be lonely here, she pouted her lips with some dissatisfaction.


    But I''m sure she still remembers what I said the other day.


    Kei''s eyes are also very important for learning the situation in the other sses.


    By the way, Yousuke is in the same group as Matsushita, and Satou is together with Okiya.


    "Hey, hey, Ayanokoji-kun, how is it going with Kei-chan recently? Is it going well?"


    "Of course it is, right~? There''s no need to even ask that."


    "Maybe he just feels bad for you, or..."


    "Don''t be silly. We''re super lovey-dovey, so. Right~"


    Until we reached the airport, this innocent exchange continued.

 Chapter 307: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 307: 2.1</h4>


    When wended at Shinchitose Airport, we began lining up in the airport''s lobby.


    The buses to Haneda were boarded as a ss, but from now on the group conduct finally begins.


    Mashima-sensei is in charge of group number 1 to 5, Chabashira-sensei is in charge of groups 6 to 10, Sakagami-sensei is in charge of groups 10 to 15, and Hoshinomiya-sensei is in charge of numbers 16 to 20.


    "Once the group is all gathered, you can decide on the seating. Please discuss and decide which seats will be whose."


    My group, group 6, has 8 fixed seats granted to us.


    The 8 of us will decide where to sit in these 8 seats.


    By the way, the seats are in two rows of two seats on each side from the beginning of the car.


    As I am in group 6, I walked over to the area led by Chabashira-sensei.


    "It looks like we''re in a group together, Ayanokoji-kun."


    The one to call out to me like that was Kushida from the same ss.


    "Looks like it. So are you really fine with whoever you get grouped with?"


    "Basically, yes. Well... I''m not so weing of Ryuen-kun, however."


    I don''t know to what extent they showed their true nature, but Ryuen and Kushida should have joined hands for a time. With that reason, he may be a difficult partner to deal with.


    "I''m sure he''s not a scary opponent for you any more. You''ve never been the type to be afraid of anyone, anyway. Even if he were to make a careless remark about you, it would have no influence on your ssmates, so."


    "I know. It''s Ryuen-kun, who''s aiming for ss A. He could threaten me at some point.


    I was worried if I can handle it, but I think it might be easier now."


    Even if his true nature is exposed, it won''t affect many people. It seems that Kushida also has created such a resolve.


    "Kikyou-chan~!"


    As they emerged from the crowd of students, a boy and a girl from the Ichinose ss raised their hands.


    It''s Watanabe Norihito and Amikura Mako.


    Kushida, of course, seems to be good friends with Amikura too and they joyfully took each others'' hands. On the surface, they''re acting like best friends, but when I think that Kushida is probably unmoved on the inside, this scene makes quite the spectacle


    .


    "Let''s have some fun for the next 5 days."


    After Watanabe called out to me, I lightly raised my hand and replied so. We haven''t interacted with each other before, so this should be a good opportunity to get to know his personality.


    Half of us are here now. The next one to show herself was Nishino, followed a littleter by Ryuen.


    "Good morning, Nishino-san. And you too, Ryuen-kun."


    Taking the lead, Kushida spoke up with a smile. Watanabe and Amikura followed up too.


    "...Hi there."


    The girl called Nishino seems a bit awkward, not having interacted with Kushida and Amikura that much.


    On the other hand, Ryuen did not reply to anyone in particr, and stopped a distance away.


    "Now it''s just Kitou-kun and Yamamura-san left, huh?"


    "If it''s those two, they''ve alreadye."


    "Huh?"


    When I pointed behind Kushida, they noticed that the two had quietly lined up together.


    As soon as he showed himself, Kitou red at Ryuen with a silent pressure mixed in.


    Yamamura, on the other hand, approached with her gaze downcast, looking at no one in particr.


    "It looks like we''re all gathered, so let''s quickly decide on our seats."


    At a time like this, having a presence in the group that can take the lead like this is a big factor.


    If there is a problem, I am a little concerned about what Ryuen, who serves as the leader of ss C, would say, but...


    Surprisingly, however, he did not particrly seem to be interrupting. Either he has no intention ofmanding other sses, or perhaps he thinks that there is no need to go out on matters as small as where we will sit.


    "Isn''t it the best for the boys to be with the boys and the girls to be with the girls?"


    Taking advantage of the fact that Kushida took the lead, Amikura proposed so.


    "What do you think, everyone? No disagreements?"


    No one spoke out in objecting about the boys and the girls sitting separately.


    Neither Nishino nor Yamamura seemed to care about it.


    On one side, the boys would not be able toin in the slightest about Amikura''s statement.


    If they clumsily disagreed, aposition where the boys want to sit with the girls would be formed.


    "Then we can have the girls discuss with the girls, and the boys with the boys, right?"


    After saying so, Kushida began skillfully separating the boy''s side. It would have been easier to let Kushida make the decision on how to divide us, but... I suppose it cannot be helped.


    Watanabe and I naturally gathered together, but Ryuen and Kitou did not move a step.


    "What should we do, Ayanokoji? This feels like there''s going to be a big problem."


    "Yeah."


    "I''m fine with anyone, you know, but I can''t see myself talking with Ryuen and Kitou."


    "Can you see me talking with them?"


    "Huh..? Umm... Well... It''s better than putting those two together, right?"


    I could not be happy about thepared subject matter being what it is. Personally, I feel like I can get through this without being wrapped up in trouble if I sit with Watanabe, but... As I was starting to think that I should just go ahead and make a decision, Kitou approached me without making a sound.


    "As long as I''m not next to Ryuen, I have noints."


    He blurted out the most troubling statement, then returned to his original position.


    "...What should we do?"


    "If you force those two to be side by side, it''s going to be a disaster..."


    Having easily imagined this situation too, Watanabe nodded his head in dismay.


    "Then... We have no choice but to separate ourselves. Where do you want to be?"


    "I''m fine with any seat. Sit wherever you''d like, Watanabe."


    "Wherever I''d like, huh..?"


    Faced with two choices that made him want to hold his head, Watanabe pondered for a moment before giving an answer.


    "I''ll just go with Kitou, then. I mean, that guy seems calm in general, so. If I don''t turn hostile intent towards him, I don''t think that he''ll do anything to me."


    Indeed, Kitou is not as ominous as he looks. I have a clear image of him being harmless to all except those hostile to him.


    [TL Note 10 : Jinchiku Mugai, lit. harmless to humans and animals.]


    Well then, I should make sure I greet them too. The school trip is long, with 4 nights and 5 days.


    "You may be unwilling, but as long as there aren''t any problems, I''ll be next to you during the school trip. I want to be considerate and give you the window seat, so are you alright with that?"


    "Whatever."


    For now, he seems as quiet and meek as a borrowed cat.


    [TL Note 11 : Karitekita Neko, lit. "borrowed cat". Expression used to mean someone who is acting quiet and meekly like a cat not in its own house.]


    If he thought it through, it would be no strange thing for him to be absent from the school trip without permission, but he''s earnestly participating, which is impressive of Ryuen.


    "You ain''t misunderstanding things, eh, Ayanokoji?"


    "Misunderstanding?"


    "The preliminary battle between me and Sakayanagi has already begun, you know."


    After saying so, Ryuen gave a re to Kitou. Kitou, on the other hand, is also ring back as if he was expecting such a gaze toe towards him.


    "I see. This school trip will inevitably lead to exchanges with the other sses. So you''re saying that this is a great opportunity to look for gaps in each other?"


    "It''s a good opportunity to see what kind of guy Kitou is. Depending on the situation, I''ll crush him right away."


    It''s a disturbing statement that makes it hard to believe the trip to Hokkaidou will be joyful and enjoyable.


    I suppose this won''t end as just a simple trip. That being said, was Sakayanagi''s group number 4? I recalled in my mind the members who were allocated to number 4.


    It''s Tokitou Hiroya and Morofuji Rika from the Ryuen ss.


    The second term is not over yet, but, heading towards the end of the school year, there''s nothing wrong with starting to look into each other already. If we end up shing with the two sses that have prepared for battle, it will be quite the challenge.


    When the school decided that the group''s discussion was over, they began to lead the way. I gave Ryuen the window seat in the bus, and I sat next to him.


    There was a lively atmosphere inside the buses travelling on a ss-by-ss basis, but it was now silent like a lie.


    A group designated by the school mixing with different sses. Not all students are close friends, so I suppose it will take some time for them to open up and be able to talk casually.


    As if proving this, half the students riding on the bus were separated by ss and not by gender.


    This is an inevitable example of what happens when you can''t take the initiative like Kushida and decide who you''ll sit next to.


    Still, all of the students wanted to enjoy the trip. About 30 minutes after the bus'' departure, most of the introductions were over, and the group''s conversation started widening outside just one''s own ssmates.


    Then, when it was exined that we can use karaoke, one of the boys started singing with a microphone in his hand.


    "I felt the same thing from that first year as I do from you. Do you know him?"


    I did not think Ryuen would ever speak to me during the trip, but such words flew from the side with no warning.


    With the posture of his elbows, he''s speaking as if talking to himself without even looking at me.


    "What if I say I have nothing to do with him?"


    "That can''t be true. He was beating the damn teachers away just to get to you."


    It''s true that with that, it doesn''t look like we''re unrted.


    "I just know him a bit. Nothing more, nothing less."


    "So I shouldn''t care about him? I can smell something fishy from over here."


    "There''s no point in turning your eyes towards a first year. Isn''t the important thing getting up to ss A?"


    "I''ll do whatever I want. This may be useful for beating you to death one day."


    I see. So rather than having an interest in Yagami, he''s keeping an eye on him because he thinks that this may be a weak point for me, who is standing behind him.


    Well, it will not be a weakness, but I won''t deny that it''s a troubling factor.


    "It''s enough to make some crazy guys drag a first year along. Further, the damn school even took a stance of tolerating it. I feel like for a moment, I saw the true identity of a suspicious bastard like you."


    "That''s a shame, though. Yagami isn''t here anymore."


    "It''s true that he''s out, but isn''t there still a girl from first year called Amasawa left? I can just y with her."


    It seems that Yagami somehow left behind a little information.


    If I remain silent, there is a high enough chance that Ryuen will start to mess with Amasawa. In a one on one fight, I''m sure Amasawa would not fall behind. But, in the case of Ryuen, it won''t end with that.


    It''s easy to imagine him to persistently keep clinging for an opening, and repeatedly trying to make contact.


    Of course, in normal times, Amasawa would have the ability to react to this to some extent, but now that Yagami has been expelled, the situation is unstable.


    "Whatever. Anyway, there''s still some time before I''ll fight with you."


    Ryuen, seeing my thoughts and replying as such. There''s a lot I want to say, but it is true that he would focus on the Sakayanagi ss which is certain to get to the end of the school term, rather than the Horikita ss with which there is no knowing when a battle will materialize.


    "By the way, Ryuen, there''s one thing I want to ask. I''ve been thinking about it since this morning, actually."


    "Huh?"


    I put my hand out and reached into theted pocket in the back of the seat in front of me.


    Then, I took the ck stic bag set there.


    "I''ve been wondering what this bag is for."


    "Huh?"


    He suspiciously came close to me, andughed with his nose.


    "It''s a bag to use when you puke, right? Are you fucking with me?"


    "I see. Indeed, I suppose there is a possibility of puking if you get nauseous in cars."


    So this is what ismonly known as an etiquette bag.


    "It wasn''t set up in the bus to the Uninhabited Ind Special Test. I guess it isn''t usedmonly."


    We''ve gotten on buses many times until now, but it''s the first time something like this was in the pocket. I suppose this is for us as much as it is out of consideration for the buspany.


    I''m sure it would be very hard to clean up if someone clumsily spread their vomit all over the seats or the floor. I''vee here after looking into a variety of things, but there are still numerous things I don''t know about. I suppose it is expected that I will encounter the unknown if I leave the school.


    "You''re a weirdo as always. Are you telling me you''re some rich kid that''s never rode on a bus?"


    [TL Note 12 : Bonbon, a child from a rich family in Kansai dialect]


    "It is true that I don''t have that much experience."


    I''ve seen a lot of children vomit because of semicircr canal disturbances, but they weren''t in an environment where they would be allowed to throw up into bags like these.


    [TL Note 13 : Inner ear canal]


    I''m not thinking with the premise that it''s okay even if you puke, so I''m not being unreasonable.


    I have experienced the sensation of motion sickness a few times myself, but I should keep in mind that there are such useful things in this world.

 Chapter 308: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 308: 2.2</h4>


    After having lunch in therge cafeteria attached to the ski ce, the Second year students finally got their ski lessons.


    The risk of losing something or having an ident is still high, so a directive was put out that prohibits taking mobile phones onto the slopes.


    There were someints from the experienced students who were dependent on their phones and insisted that they were used to handling them, but there is no breaking the school''s rules, so it can''t be helped.


    Fortunately, from the following day onwards, we were informed that we would be allowed to take our mobile phones if we wanted to go to the ski ce ourselves. However, in the case of a lost item or an ident, there will be a fitting amount of private points required.


    Then, we put on our rented skiwear and received our ski boots. The outer face seems to be made of stic. I followed the instructions to unbuckle, spread the innerwear and put my feet through. I fit my heels through them, straightened up the innerwear and tied the buckle from down below to the top. Finally, I tied my power belt and powder guarded it. With this, it seems that my required preparations areplete.


    I tried to walk as normal, but I can''t seem to make the correct movements. When I followed the instructor and walked bynding on my heels, I was able to move smoothly.


    My preparations are finished, so I headed outside. The lessons are divided into three categories of advanced, intermediate and beginner. As I do not have any experience with skiing, I didn''t hesitate to join the mass of people who wanted beginners'' training.


    I could have investigated in books or the inte beforehand, but this is a good opportunity to learn on the spot, so I didn''t take in any unnecessary information.


    About 60% of the entire school year wanted this beginners'' training. It isn''t clear whether this is a lot or few, but it was a little surprising that 40% of the students were intermediate and above.


    I don''t think you would get many chances to ski in the Kanto region, but these people somehow experienced it.


    Ryuen, Kitou, Nishino and Kushida from Group 6 were absent, probably because they were intermediate or above, with the remaining members being beginners.


    The crowded beginners'' course is further divided into groups of about 10, and the instructors are teaching us how to ski from scratch.


    As I held great interest in the ski equipment I''m touching for the first time, I listened to the exnation.


    On the other hand, the advanced skiers who were the fewest in number seemed to be free to ski immediately after receiving only a simple exnation, and were quickly getting ready to get onto the slopes and ski.


    Ryuen''s figure was also among them. I cleared the snow from the back of my boots, then aligned the binding with the front and the back, and stepped in with my heel. I see. I''m walking around with both my feet enveloped.


    While thinking that it was unexpected to not fall down as I tried to walk, I was perplexed by this new sensation.


    Right... At any rate, while using the pole, I tried to slide somewhat forcefully, intentionally tilting my center of weight to the left.


    When I did so and moved the board forward, my body copsed the other way in response.


    "...Are you okay?"


    Yamamura, who was watching from closeby called out to me.


    "Yeah, I''m fine. I just wanted to take a little tumble."


    "Right..."


    A bit ofughter ured around me, but it''s nothing to worry about. It''s important to try and fail at first.


    Ryuen, who I thought was already headed for the lift, raised the corners of his mouth slightly when he saw me fall down and walked away in satisfaction.


    Perhaps he wanted to see me fail.


    "Be careful over there!"


    After being warned, I lightly bowed and apologized, and followed the instructor''s directions.


    After that we had to do some actual light skiing, but an unexpectedlyrge number of people fell.


    There were a couple of unintentional falls, but, alright, I''m getting the hang of it now. The course took about 30 minutes.


    With all the stepspleted, I have a lot of free time.


    "Alright, let''s do this."

 Chapter 309: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 309: 2.3</h4>


    After the training was over, it seems that Watanabe and the others gathered together and were heading for the beginners'' course, which has a gentle slope.


    "Ayanokoji? You''re not going?"


    Watanabe, who had started walking away with his board turned around, spoke so with wonder.


    "I think I want to ski in a different ce a bit."


    "I see. See youter, then."


    While seeing them off from their backs, I decided to start moving myself.


    "Hey, Ayanokoji. You should piss off to the beginners'' course over there, this is for advanced skiers."


    Ryuen, who was headed for that advanced course, pointed at me in a depressing manner.


    "No, it''s fine. I just want to challenge it."


    "Huh? Can a guy who was walking like a penguin just now really say that line?"


    "I think you should stop there, Ayanokoji-kun. It''s about 70% hard humps and steep slopes, so even I was scared.", said Kushida.


    It seems that the two already skied once, so they warned me so.


    "That''s right..."


    There was a warning, so I wanted to follow it, but...


    In the corner of my eye, Yamamura restlessly got onto the advanced lift and went up. I don''t think that she chose the advanced course on purpose.


    Perhaps she saw Kitou''s back on the lift ahead of her, and got onto it by mistake without being stopped by the others around her.


    "Looks like it wasn''t just for show when Yamamura said in the bus that she has a faint presence."


    "Huh?"


    "It''s Yamamura. I don''t think she got onto it knowing that it''s the advanced course."


    I told them about Yamamura who was sitting on the lift going up.


    "Whoa... We should probably go after her."


    With that, I took a ski lift for the first time in my life and headed for the advanced course together.


    Two can enter the lift at the same time, so I got onto it with Kushida.


    The lift started to climb up without stopping, and my feet separated from the ground.


    "Interesting ride, huh?"


    "You''re riding one for the first time, right? Aren''t you scared?"


    "I''m not scared. Because a fall still won''t do much damage at this height."


    "Wait, that''s the problem..?"


    "Hm? Isn''t this something to fear because of the danger of the shock of the fall?"


    "That''s, yep, I think it''s like that, but..."


    She seems a bit confused about some of my words, but I don''t understand the reason.


    "Well, whatever. I''ve been thinkingtely that it''s a waste of time to think about you, so."


    She huffed, and I could see the true Kushida for a moment.


    There is a rtively long distance between lifts and the wind is still blowing somewhat strongly, so she must have judged that there is no need to worry about our chatter being heard by Ryuen ahead of us and those behind us.


    "I''m not so happy about that expression."


    There''s no human that would be d about being told that it''s pointless to think about them.


    "It can''t be helped, right? I really feel that way, so."


    After saying so, Kushida sent her gaze towards the mountains in the distance.


    "I''m confident that I can read the atmosphere around me and the thoughts of other people. This is the same even for Horikita-san or Ryuen-kun. Of course, I can still lose if this is outweighed by other factors, though."


    Because victory isn''t certain just because you can guess the thoughts of other people.


    "I used to think that I could read you too, Ayanokoji-kun. But I waspletely wrong. For the first time, I can''t even guess what a person is thinking."


    "For reference, how does that feel?"


    "Huh? You wanna ask that?"


    Without looking back, she asked back with the back of her head towards me.


    "I guess I shouldn''t ask, after all."


    The atmosphere strongly suggests that she is reluctant.


    "By the way..."


    Kushida''s expression as she quickly turned back was not fierce... It was the same as usual.


    "It''s a very important subject so I''d like to confirm it here and now... You''re not nning to expel me, are you?"


    "Hmm... You asked that quite clearly."


    "As long as I can''t read your thoughts, Ayanokoji-kun, I have to think on my own. If I was Ayanokoji-kun, what would I think? How would I move?"


    "You mean the conclusion of that is that I''m trying to expel you?"


    Kushida nodded without hesitation, and then stared into my eyes.


    I think she''s trying to unsettle me and find out my true intentions.


    I''ll avert my gaze on purpose and try to create an atmosphere where it looks like I am aiming to expel her.


    From a normal person''s point of view, it would look like she was right on the mark, and I looked away with difort.


    I was curious how Kushida would think about this.


    "Are you messing with me?"


    "I am sorry..."


    As my hidden secret was obvious from my face, I understood that I was being red at even though she was smiling, and instantly apologized.


    "Come on, you''re definitely making fun of me, right? Is this funny for you?"


    "No, it isn''t funny at all. Sorry."


    I''m sure she is reluctant, but with what happened just now Kushida was able topletely read my mind.


    "I have no intention of expelling you."


    "...Really?"


    "When Horikita decided to let you stay, I lost my means of expelling you. If I wanted to leave that possibility open even now, I would have taken the choice to talk Horikita out of it. I don''t think Kushida''s suspicions will be cleared, but this is an undeniable truth.


    "The Unanimous Special Exam, you know..."


    I know that for her, the time of the Unanimous Special Exam must be an unforgettable humiliation.


    The main premise now is that Kushida won''t repeat the same mistake again, but there is no point in going to the trouble of mentioning that here.


    In the first ce, now that all of her ssmates know about it, it is no longer realistic.


    "Even if I can''t eliminate everyone, there is a possibility that I can abandon this ss. A ss transfer ticket, or I could save my private points. I can leave with such methods. Can you ignore such a risk factor?"


    The fact that she calls herself a risk factor on her own, is the interesting part about Kushida.


    "That would not be treachery or any such thing, it would simply be a personal strategy. As the school actually has this system in ce, there''s nothing wrong about transferring to a ss that can win. Rather, if I don''t think my own ss has a chance to win, I will find an opportunity and move forward with the transfer when I can."


    She''s saying that no one has a right to tell her to continue staying on a sinking ship.


    "I can''t read you after all, Ayanokoji-kun. I can''t tell in the least if you''re talking truthfully or not."


    "It might be because I don''t show it on my face."


    "It''s not just that, but..."


    Looking Dismayed, Kushida turned her sight to our destination.


    "I wonder why. My secret that I absolutely wanted to keep hidden was exposed, so I should have been so frustrated and bitter that nothing would matter any more, but... I''ming to the school trip and having fun skiing. Further, I even feel that there is nothing wrong about that."


    "The school trip is a fun event for many students, right?"


    "For many students, yes. But for me, every event has been a struggle, so."


    The effort to keep pretending something you''re not.


    I suppose that is precisely what these events require.


    "Umm... Can I ask a little something about Yagami-kun and Amasawa-san?"


    "Those two from first year, huh? I had a bit of an entanglement with Amasawa, but I don''t know much about Yagami."


    For now, I tried to emphasize this, but Kushida may have simply spoken out the doubts hidden inside her.


    "If you don''t know, Ayanokoji-kun, then it can''t be helped."


    "That''s fine. So? What about those two?"


    "You know Yagami-kun was expelled, right?"


    "I heard that the fact he used violence in the Uninhabited Ind Exam came to light. Further, there are even rumours he hit teachers, so I think it''s only natural he was expelled, but... He''s your Kouhai, right? You two looked close, so it was a shock, wasn''t it?"


    [TL Note 14 : Kouhai, someone from a lower year/rank. Opposite of Senpai]


    Yagami was a White Room student. In other words, he had no connection with Kushida in the past.


    The information given by Tsukishiro''s side was used as a guise, and Kushida was probably made to think of him as her Kouhai, considering the risk of him learning about the past.


    However, there is no way for me, an outsider, to deduce this, so I have no choice but to give this answer.


    "Wrong. Yagami-ku-.. He knew of my past. Only the Horikita siblings went to the same middle school as me."


    "So you''re asking how he knew of your past?"


    "He told me directly. So I, naturally, was suspicious of Horikita-san and you, Ayanokoji-kun. Ryuen-kun also knew of my true nature, but he doesn''t know my past, so I can leave him out."


    It is true that her true nature and her past arepletely different things.


    "But it doesn''t add up with Horikita-san, right? There is no merit for her to speak of my past. In which case, by a process of elimination, you''re the only one left, Ayanokoji-kun. That has been bugging me for all this time."


    "I see."


    Indeed, I am one of the few students who know of Kushida''s past.


    It was inevitable that she would act hostile towards me in the Unanimous Special Exam, but her suspicions towards me may have also been among the reasons for her hostility.


    Further, with it being clear that Amasawa was also involved with Kushida, I end up being a suspicious person with my own connection to Amasawa.


    If I simply deny it here, then the question of who revealed her past would cling to Kushida''s mind. It''s a different matter to clear away her suspicions.


    "I don''t care either way. I just want to know the truth."


    "Even if I am connected to Yagami and Amasawa, you''ll forgive me?"


    "Huh? Of course I won''t. But... All I''m saying is that I won''t try to do something to you because of it. Rather, I think I will recognize again that you are a foe far beyond my level."


    Right now, her fangs are meekly pulled back. She''s saying that she will only pull them back even further.


    "Hmm, no... There''s no one other than youing up in my mind, Ayanokoji-kun, but I think it might not be you. That guy wanted to expel you. He wasn''t pretending, it was from the bottom of his heart. There''s a contradiction, isn''t there?"


    The reason for me being connected to the Yagami side and leaking information bes doubtful.


    It is only a hassle to go out of my way to hunt down Kushida like that.


    With such suspicions in her mind, it must have been quite difficult to continue her school life.


    Still, I can''t talk concretely about White Room.


    "I met Yagami in my old school, so I knew who he was. We lived close by, so."


    "Huh..?"


    "It''s also the same for Amasawa. I think I''ve caused those two to have a misunderstanding, so they always resented me. I was able to solve the misunderstanding with Amasawa, but, I couldn''t do so with Yagami. I responded by ignoring him, but I suppose he came in contact with you before I knew it. "


    "Wait, in that case, isn''t it strange? He shouldn''t have known about me, right?"


    "I don''t know how he found out, but maybe he looked into you because you''re my ssmate? He must have been looking for a chance to take revenge on me. In other words, you were simply dragged into this."


    I lightly bowed, and apologised to Kushida.


    "Even though I didn''t know about it, I''m sorry that you got involved because of me."


    "...Ayanokoji-kun."


    I won''t say she ispletely relieved, but I''m sure she wille up with a lot of answers now that she knows I was connected with those two in the past.


    "Could Yagami-kun''s expulsion... Could it be your doing, Ayanokoji-kun?"


    "If I ignored him, there is a high possibility that it would bring you, who chose to help the ss out, into harm''s way. The fact that Amasawa came into contact with you must have also been because she knew Yagami would do something to you."


    For this point, I''ll answer honestly.


    Nagumo, Ryuen, and Horikita. Several people either know or suspect my involvement.


    If the truthes out after I deny it, it will be too much trouble.


    "Amasawa remained in the school, but, like I said earlier, I solved her misunderstanding. She shouldn''t hinder you in the future. She may still have some issues with the things you say and do, though."


    The creation of an environment where Kushida can utilize her true abilities to their full extent in her school life. It may be created from this unexpected discussion.


    "I..."


    As a strong wind blew, Kushida''s white knit hat, which she was wearing shallowly, was about to be blown off.


    In order to stop that, I reached out with my hand and pushed the hat with my palm.


    At the same time, Kushida''s hand also came on top of mine.


    "Oops, thanks."


    It was highly likely that it wouldn''t have blown away even without me lending a hand, but Kushida turned towards me while thanking me.


    She immediately went rigid, staring into my eyes, and wasn''t moving away.


    "What is it?""


    "...Oh, it''s nothing."


    I didn''t understand what she was thinking, but she quickly turned her gaze away.


    Then the lift reached its destination and we got ready to disembark.


    "Can you go?"


    "I think I can handle it."


    I replied so, but Kushida got off first, as if to set an example, and I followed after her. After the long lift ride, we arrived at the advanced course.


    There seemed to be fewer people here than down below, but it should be enough.


    "This is pretty amazing, huh."


    "The slopes are steeper than you thought, right?"


    Just as Kushida said, the slope looks steeper than what I had seen looking up from below.


    "Are you really sure?"


    "Well, I''ll manage somehow."


    "If something goes wrong, it might be better to walk down to the side of the slope after taking your boards off. I guess it wouldn''t be cool, but..."


    "I got it. But, Yamamura is more important right now."


    The ski ce is crowded with a mix of students and regr tourists, so it will be hard to find her.


    "I thought she would notice that she can''t ski here and be waiting by the lift, but..."


    Kushida and I looked around our surroundings together.


    Yet, we can''t find Yamamura''s figure right away.


    "Maybe she has already started skiing..? That can''t be, right?"


    There are many sliding down the slopes, but no one appears to be a clear beginner. On the other hand, there were many boys and girls gathered around Ryuen.


    "Those students are in Ryuen-kun''s ss, right? I guess he''s more popr than I thought."


    "They don''t look like they''re having a lot of fun talking to each other, though."


    "Indeed."


    The gathered students are saying something to Ryuen with a very serious expression on their faces.


    Ryuen, who is in the middle, seems to be simply listening without looking at anyone in particr.


    Why are they gathering in an uncrowded ce like the advanced course on purpose?


    If they wanted to keep in touch with the ss, they could just use their cellphonester.


    In which case... I can only assume that they intentionally formed such a gathering.


    "Maybe he was reporting something?"


    "It looks like it."


    The members who had gathered were Kaneda, Ishizaki, Kondou and others who often received instructions from Ryuen.


    "There she is, Ayanokoji-kun. Yamamura-san."


    As Kushida said so, Yamamura really was in the direction she was looking at.


    Without skiing, she was looking at Ryuen''s ss which was dispersing.


    "Yamamura-sa-.."


    Kushida was about to call out in a loud voice, but I signalled for her to be quiet with my finger and eyes.


    "Huh? What is it?"


    "Please wait a bit."


    Yamamura''s movements are a bit puzzling.


    She went up to the advanced course while knowing it was a mistake, and stayed there silently, as if trying to hide her presence.


    "What kind of student is Yamamura?"


    "What kind of student? I guess I don''t really know much about her either."


    "You have the widest range of acquaintances in the school, but there are students even you don''t know, huh..."


    "That''s right. I could get a grasp if she was someone that talked to me on her own, but Yamamura-san is different. She hasn''t talked to me even once, and if I talk to her myself, she gives a short reply of nodding silently and ends it. I can''t get to know her like that, can I?"


    If she is closing herself off, then it is true that even Kushida can''t do anything about it.


    "Who are the students in ss A that she gets along with?"


    "I don''t know that either... I can''t even imagine her talking with anyone. She has a very faint presence, doesn''t she?"


    The group was just formed, but I still have a faint impression of her.


    Yamamura''s personal OAA revealed that she has low physical ability but high academic ability.


    Soon enough, the students who had gathered around Ryuen scattered and returned to their own groups.


    At the same time, Yamamura cut her gaze off from Ryuen''s side and began to slowly move.


    The two of us followed her with our eyes so as to not lose her, and...


    "Ah, she fell."


    Perhaps caught in the snow, Yamamura fell on the spot.


    There were some people around, but no one noticed or even looked like they wanted to help her.


    "It''s hard to have a faint presence, huh?"


    "So why are you looking at me?"


    "You''re the representative of a faint presence, aren''t you? Well, you used to be, I should say."


    It''s a sad thing that I can''t deny it.


    No matter how hard I try, I can''t do anything about that.


    "By the way, how does Yamamura''s movements look like to you, Kushida?"


    "Running away from the subject, huh?"


    "I''m not running away."


    I denied it, but Kushida stillughed.


    "Yamamura-san''s movements... Maybe she''s watching over Ryuen-kun''s movements under someone''s instruction?"


    "That''s very likely. I think there''s only one person who could do that."


    "Sakayanagi-san, right? But I don''t see a connection between her and Yamamura-san."


    "That would precisely be the reason, wouldn''t it? No one is aware of that connection. Even I might not have noticed if I wasn''t put in the same group as Yamamura. We are both beginners, so I was curious what she would do. If I had been an intermediate or higher, I would have already started skiing without worrying about it."


    "If you can confirm whether there is a connection or not, then it''s best you do so, if you can."


    "It may be important for fighting with Sakayanagi in the future. I can''t avoid the task of figuring out who is an important person at hand for Sakayanagi.


    "I see."


    "Yamamura''s moving."


    We kept watching over Yamamura''s movements.


    Taking off her boards, she was walking down the steep slope from the edge with fear.


    "I''ll go support her a bit. Maybe I can get closer to her."


    Kushida, deciding what she had to do, started sliding.


    "She''s moving fast, huh."


    She is quick-witted, and she can smoothly read my intent.


    Further, Kushida has strong conversational skills that lets her get close with most people.


    As long as that is the way for her to stay in her own ss, then she has to keep it up.


    Well then, maybe I should try experiencing this advanced course by myself.

 Chapter 310: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 310: 2.4</h4>


    After our time at the ski ce, we arrived at the ryokan before 5 pm.


    In order to head towards the room given to us, we went to the lobby in turns starting from group 1.


    It was group 6''s turn right away, so we followed on.


    Though the exterior felt historic, the interior of the lobby and such were well maintained and clean.


    I changed into my inside slippers, put my luggage down, and waited to receive my keys.


    "I knew it already, but we''re supposed to sleep with these people, huh..."


    Watanabe sighed with a little mncholy after receiving his key in the lobby.


    We''ll be sharing a room with the same group of people we''ll be with from now on, so there''s no changing this.


    That means it''s up to us whether we can make it afortable space or not.


    "Hey, Watanabe."


    Watanabe turned around when he heard his name called, and saw a Boston baging at him.


    "Whoah!"


    Watanabe, who caught it with both arms, couldn''tprehend the situation and was surprised.


    "Carry it to the room. I''m going to the bathroom."


    It was Ryuen who threw the bag, who apparently intended on making Watanabe carry it.


    As Watanabe did not have the bravery to say no and smiled bitterly, Ryuen disappeared towards the back of the building, probably where therge bathhouse is.


    "Uuh... I don''t think I can do this."


    "I''ll take it."


    "No, it''s fine. I''m the one he asked, after all."


    Rather than asked, I would say he was the easiest one to push this onto.


    "Leave it. I''ll send it back to him, no, I''ll send it back to hell."


    Kitou, after seeing Ryuen''s arrogant behaviour, tried to snatch the Boston bag from Watanabe''s arms.


    I put my arms in front of Kitou, and stopped him.


    "You better not do anything untactful. Watanabe would be the one getting in the most trouble after."


    "So do you intend on letting that man do whatever he wants? If he takes this, then Ryuen will do the same thing again next time. He can use his own ssmates as ves, but Watanabe is a student of the Ichinose ss."


    Kitou is right.


    However, there is no need to do anything with this luggage because of that.


    "You should separate from this Boston bag, and tell him directly."


    "And what if he doesn''t listen? Do you want Watanabe to suffer during the trip?"


    "Oh, no, it''s not like I''m suffering or anything..."


    "If Ryuen does something selfish to Watanabe again, I''ll be the one stopping him."


    "Hah, you?"


    "If he still doesn''t listen, I will take all of the responsibility."


    "I can''t say it''s a fundamental solution."


    "That''s not entirely true. If the person left with the work is displeased about it, then it is force and coercion. On the other hand, if I don''t feel any frustration and I think that I want to do it for the sake of the group, then it''s fine. With that, the problem disappears, right?"


    Kitou thinks that everything should be done by oneself.


    He may not agree with what I''m saying, but he should understand it.


    "...Do whatever you want."


    After staring at me for a while, Kitou finally broke down and backed off.


    "I''m sorry, Ayanokoji, this is all my fault."


    "It isn''t your fault, Watanabe. It is only natural that we shoulde together to solve the problems of this group."


    Just as I saw the look of relief on Watanabe''s face, two room keys were supplied to us by the ryokan staff.


    At about the same time, Kushida and the other four girls also received their keys and came over here.


    "Hey. I think we should talk about our conduct tomorrow. This is a special trip to Hokkaido, so I''m sure everyone has a lot of ces they''d like to go to."


    It is important to make ns in advance, but considering the members of our group, we have not been able to discuss our free conduct until this point.


    "So, tonight, I was thinking that all the girls should go to the boys'' room, but... What do you think?"


    "Oh, that''s fine, isn''t it?"


    Watanabe lowered his eyes in joy after receiving the words that the girls would being to hang out.


    Kitou, who was listening from the side, kept silent without saying much.


    "...Umm... Ah, Ayanokoji, you''re fine with this too, right?"


    "I think it''s alright."


    Not being able to ignore Watanabe''s worried face, Kushida smiled and sped her hands together.


    "Then it''s decided, right? See youter, then. I''ll go talk with Amikura-san and the others too. I''ll get in touch with you and Watanabe when I know more details about the timing."


    I''m sure the girls will be enjoying the ryokan by soaking in the bath, eating lunch and such.


    "Should we go to our own room too?"


    "That''s right."


    The boys will be using each of the rooms in an area called the east wing of the ryokan.


    The girls on the other hand will be in the main building. They''re connected with the lobby, soing and going isn''t particrly far or difficult, but I''m sure the boys and girls are properly separated.


    "Wow, Kushida-chan is way too nice of a girl, huh? She''s cute too."


    I have already experienced the appeal that Kushida has which attracts the boys to her.


    It is no wonder that he is attracted to her after only knowing her on a surface level.


    If a student like Watanabe was to learn of Kushida''s true nature, then there is no knowing what would happen.


    "I knew it already, but I shudder to think what would have happened if Kushida-chan wasn''t here."


    Indeed, Kushida has been very good at taking the lead of the group. Even the meeting to decide our free conduct would have taken a back-seat if there was no one to take initiative to lead the meeting.


    I can do nothing but be grateful to Kushida for working to avoid that.


    But, I don''t know if all of the problems are solved with this.


    After all, the big problems will still be Ryuen and Kitou.


    Ever since they started moving together in group 6, they''ve always been turning killer intent towards each other.


    They have been checking and probing at each other, so the critical situation has been continuing.


    Tapping our slippers on the ground, we arrived at room 203.


    I inserted the key, and opened the door leading into the room.


    It was reasonably spacious, a Japanese styled room with about 12 tatami mats in size, with a table and 4 tatami chairs.


    Further, there was a mini-table and two single-person sofas.


    I have seen the same scene many times on television, this is quite the traditional ryokan.


    After putting my luggage down in the Japanese-styled room, I checked the fridge right away.


    [TL Note 15 - ���� Wa Shitsu, Japanese Style Room. The word �� is used for things that are traditional japanese style as opposed to western style.]


    Other than the free water, there was a small amount of soft drinks inside.


    However, the price per bottle is higher than the market price, so I don''t see a reason to touch them.


    There seems to be a vending machine in the lobby, so if I needed something I could just buy it there.


    After entering the room, Kitou silently sat in the corner and closed his eyes.


    Further, he was sitting in a meditative stance.


    Leaving Kitou alone, I opened a thick file with a guide written on it.


    It contained a map of the ryokan, the name and the password for its inte connection, a description of the day-trip bathing service, and a list of each of the sightseeing spots in the area were also written on it.


    There might be a chance to use it in the discussion with Kushida and the girls.


    After taking a quick look, I decided finally to take a look at the toilet facilities and such as well.


    I also learned that the rooms did not have baths, so we would have to bathe in therge bathhouse. I guess there is no particr problem with this point.


    For me, rather than soaking in a small bathtub, I''d like to enjoy therge bath if I have the chance to.


    "Let''s see..."


    Dinner is served at 7 pm, so there is still some spare time.


    I should probably go to therge bathhouse. There must be a lot of people going there already.


    "I''ll go to the bath."


    "Ah, hey, hey! Wait a bit. I''lle along too!"


    Watanabe, who was sitting on a chair, stood up while almost falling down.


    "What about you, Kitou?"


    "Not yet."


    "I see. I''ll leave one key here, then. When I meet Ryuen, I''ll let him know, so."


    If there is no one present when hees back to the room, Ryuen will not be able to enter the room.


    That would be trouble in itself, so we have to avoid that happening.


    Watanabe started whispering as we closed the door and left out onto the corridor.


    "This is worrying. We''re going to sleep together with Kitou and Ryuen now, right? Will we still have a life in the morning?"


    "That''s an exaggeration."


    "No, it''s 4 nights, you know, 4 nights. It''s not unreasonable to think that some mistake could happen in that time."


    In which case, there would certainly be a lot of trouble.


    However, leaving Ryuen and Kitou aside, I''m not used to sleeping together with other people.


    With the training campst year, and my life with Kei, I have been increasingly sharing my bedtime with others, so maybe I will be able to easily ept it.


    Since I have always slept alone from when I was a child, I am still confused with the change in my environment.


    "How do I say this... You''re pretty easy to talk to, Ayanokoji."


    "Is that so..? I don''t really know about that myself, though."


    I''m happy to hear him say that, but I feel like he''s onlyparing me with those two.


    "Well, I guess I can say that I get why Ichinose ended up falling in love with you."


    "Huh?"


    "Oh, no!.. Please forget what I said just now!"


    He noticed his obvious slip of the tongue and corrected himself, but I already heard it.


    Well, nothing will change because I heard it, but...


    "From that expression, you already knew?"


    When I didn''t reply, Watanabe looked a little relieved.


    "...I heard about it. Girls talk about that kind of stuff. I think most of the boys still like Ichinose without knowing it, but... Aren''t you dating Karuizawa from the same ss?"


    There was no point in denying this truth, so I nodded and replied.


    "I think it must beplicated for the boys who like Ichinose... No, I think most of them would actually be happy about it."


    "What about you, Watanabe?"


    "Me? I... Well, it''s a secret."


    From how calm he looks, it doesn''t seem like he holds any special feelings towards Ichinose.


    I don''t know who, but it looks like he has feelings for another girl.


    "This school trip can be said to be a big event, right? I think there will be more than one or two people who confess to the people they like."


    "Is that so?"


    Indeed, Sudou also had decided on confessing to Horikita during the school trip.


    It is not unusual, but a rather important event for students.


    "Me too ~... if I had a little more courage, I''d think about it, y''know, but..."


    He seemed to imagine a variety of things, Shaking his head from side to side in frustration.


    "Anyway, at the moment I don''t know anything about the creature called a girl. For the time being, I want to start practicing by raising my likability so that the girls in our group can like me. If I can be someone that leaves an impression, I can gain a lot of experience for the real thing. "


    It''s been less than half a day since I met Watanabe, but I haven''t had any bad impressions.


    There''s no doubt that he''s basically a good guy.


    He seems to get lost in the flow somewhat, and although he is the type that can''t refuse anything, he canmunicate well with both men and women.


    Both his academic and physical ability in the OAA is slightly higher than the average with C+.


    Other items were C or higher in the same way.


    In other words, he has no shorings.


    It depends on the opponent, but I would say there is a good enough possibility...


    Love has many intertwined elements, and mere appearance and ability do not determine the sess or failure of a confession.


    Since it depends on the rtionship that has been established between the two, you can''t identify it in a rtionship of about half a day.

 Chapter 311: 2.5

    <h4>Chapter 311: 2.5</h4>


    08:37 pm. Many of the students who finished their dinner went to therge bathhouse of the ryokan.


    That was one of the things that all the students, including Horikita Suzune, were looking forward to.


    Horikita had finished the meal rtively sooner than the surrounding students, but she was surprised to notice that three students had already started to take off their clothes in the dressing room.


    Some of them are girls who don''t like being seen naked, and want to finish their meals quickly.


    On the other hand, for Horikita, there is no such thing as disgust or shame at being seen naked by the same sex.


    One of the reasons for this was that originally, she had a very faint presence in elementary and junior high school, and she didn''t have any friends, so there was no one around who would pay any attention to the way she looked.


    Nevertheless, she spread out her face towel in a certain manner and opened the sliding doors to the public baths while concealing her body.


    A muddy heat rushed through, and arge bathing area came into view,rger than she had imagined.


    There are tworge indoor baths in the room.


    Then there is one outdoor hot tub, but therge rock bath can be seen through the window.


    After lightly rinsing off the dirt with hot water, Horikita decided to head for the rock bath immediately.


    Then she was able to recognize two unexpected visitors in the rock bath.


    One of them is a ssmate, Kushida Kikyou.


    "Ah, Horikita-san."


    As soon as she noticed the visitor, Kushida replied, waving lightly to wee her. Of course, Horikita understands that this is not from the heart.


    This was because Rokkaku Momoe, a ss A student, was also present. Kushida won''t show her true feelings in front of students from other sses.


    Horikita answered with a gentle gaze, and went to the end of the bathtub without approaching Kushida.


    She wanted to get to a ce where no one could talk to her or bother her.


    After ignoring Kushida and Rokkaku, without speaking with anyone, she continued enjoying the hot springs for 5, 10 minutes. At some point, Rokkaku disappeared, and only Kushida remained.


    There wasn''t even a trace of the smile on her face left.


    "Why didn''t you leave with Rokkaku-san? Not Exciting Enough?"


    "Huh? I don''t need a specific reason, do I? I just love the hot springs. Wait, did you think I wanted to talk to you?"


    "I''m not thinking anything like that."


    "Really? Didn''t you ask that because you were aware of it?"


    "Those are some stabbing words."


    Facing Kushida, who suddenly showed an aggressive approach , Horikita sighed with some regret.


    "You really have a wide range of friendships. I''ve never even spoken to Rotsukaku-san before."


    In an attempt to change the direction of the conversation, Horikita talks about Rotsukaku who left the open-air bath.


    "She cried for me toe with her. She was embarrassed, or something. It''s not surprising, since she has such a poor body. "


    Even though she knew no one could hear, she was speaking quite harshly.


    " As for you, Horikita-san... you look pretty good. Not that I''m impressed, though. "


    After observing Horikita as if evaluating her, Kushida came a little closer to Horikita.


    "What? Do you want me to do something?"


    "Nothing. But, isn''t it a bit weird to be so far apart? You and I are ssmates. It would be weird if I hadn''t approached you and talked with you."


    If Rokkaku was there, it would not look strange for the two to be seperated.


    However, if they were far apart in thisrge open-air bath, new visitors may have questions.


    "All I know is that your struggle is incalcble."


    "The best thing to do, would be to leave this ce and go to the indoor bath."


    "I''ll have to refuse that."


    "You won''t listen even if I ask you to quit the school... you''re pretty stern, huh, Horikita-san?"


    Horikita sighs again as she puts out the word of expulsion. Seeing this, Kushida smiles.


    "What an elegant smile."


    "Of course. We can be seen from the indoor bath, so I can''t do anything clumsy here."


    Besides her voice, she''s also considering the surrounding eyes. Students who don''t know anything can only see from indoors that their ssmates are friendly andughing with each other.


    In addition to a sense of distance, she always pays attention to the surroundings and does not leave gaps.


    "If you can act that well, maybe you should have lived your school life without being revealed to Ayanokoji-kun."


    "When I first enrolled in school, I wasn''t stressed at all. I didn''t think you would be there."


    "I''m sure that was unexpected, but..."


    The disappointment after she thought that she waspletely cut off from the people in middle school is immeasurable.


    "Living on the premises alone to build new rtionships. We have to diverge somehow, right?"


    As a result of that divergence, the tragedy began when she was found out by Ayanokoji.


    "You''re free to keep hating me. If you''re going to contribute to the ss, I don''t have anyints. Your contributions at the culture festival were impressive, Kushida-san."


    "Well, I can do that much without difficulty."


    It''s a weapon to protect herself.


    Then, Kushida sends a gaze to the sliding door that leads to the open-air bath and stops talking.


    Immediately afterwards, Ibuki opened it with a face towel on her shoulder. Kushida, who was watching out for visitors, loosened her awareness... because Ibuki already has a good understanding of Kushida and Horikita''s true natures.


    "Horikita!"


    Perhaps looking for Horikita, Ibuki raised her voice as she came into view.


    "... Now you''re here?"


    Approaching boldly and naked, she jumped into the open-air bath. Sshes of water swell up, and hot water sshes onto Horikita and Kushida.


    "That''s a massive vition of manners."


    "Don''t care. More importantly, it''s time for a match!"


    "A match in a ce like this? Are you saying we should y rock-paper-scissors or something?"


    "Huh? In such arge bath like this, there''s only one thing to do, right? A match to see who swims fastest from one end to the other!"


    "I could say swimming is more a vition of manners than jumping in."


    "Who cares? It''s not like there are any regr customers, and no one''s watching."


    "A match sounds good to me. I''ll be an impartial observer, so why don''t you do it?"


    "You''re talking now? In the first ce, it''s your role to stop things like this, right?"


    "I''ll consider this as something you and Ibuki-san started without listening to me, so it''s okay. I can just make a concerned face and look worried to put on a show."


    "Kushida says it''s fine too. So, it''s a match!"


    "I won''t do it."


    "Huh? But I came here because I thought I would have a chance topete. How disappointing."


    She said so and quickly left the bathtub.


    "Did you really show your face here just for that? Do you like open-air baths?"


    "I don''t feel like getting along with you. Outside or inside, it''s all the same hot spring, isn''t it?"


    Saying she has no intention of staying if there will not be a match, she quickly pulls out.


    "That Ibuki-san... what an idiot."


    After the sliding doors were strongly shut, Kushidaughed.


    "She''s weirdly obsessed about having matches with me. You''re also simr, though."


    Again and again, Kushida tried to engage in a fight.


    Kushidaughed after Horikita replied that she was simr to Ibuki.


    "Don''t put me together with her."


    Kushida''s words and expressions said different things, but Horikita ignored it.


    They expected new visitors so that further conversation would be unnecessary, but it is still meal time, so no other students showed up.


    "Still, you were pretty lucky, huh, Horikita-san?"


    "And what would you be talking about?"


    "I''m talking about Ayanokoji-kun being in the seat next to you right after you enrolled in the school. Thanks to that, you were able to get close with him, and you were able to secretly get a lot of help, right? "


    Kushida shouldn''t know the details of how things have been up until now. However, she knows that Ayanokoji, in some capacity, was involved.


    "If it wasn''t for Ayanokoji-kun, you might have been expelled by me now, Horikita-san."


    It wasn''t your own strength that let you make it this far. At that time, if she was told such a thing,


    Horikita would have immediately objected.


    But now, she can calmly see things and look back on them.


    "I suppose I can''tpletely deny it. But, I''m sure it wasn''t good luck just for me, but for you


    also. Without Ayanokoji-kun, the you who has exposed everything wouldn''t be here now. You would have kept ying the good guy, and kept repeating the same mistakes."


    Of course, she doesn''t know the result. There is a good enough chance that Kushida would have gotten through her three years of school life under false pretences.


    But it is a different matter whether she could keep doing that forever or not. Because, in truth, Kushida continued to feel constant pain each and every day. Now, she can disperse her stress by having two different sides to her.


    "...Perhaps."


    The truth that she can be thrusted at by someone she doesn''t like.


    Kushida nods, saying that although admission is usually nothing but humiliation, there are some things that must be admitted. And that, was only possible because she was pushed to the abyss of death in the unanimous special exam, and was able toe back to life.


    For the first time in her life, a change came to her mindset and values.


    "If you think about it, maybe you were even luckier than me."


    "That''s annoying, to be honest. When you make a goode-back like that, Horikita-san."


    With this, the two''s words stop.


    There is no particr reason for long baths between people who would not otherwise mesh with each other. As such, there was no clear answer as to why they were staying, but leaving first would mean losing. Such an atmosphere was the cause of this.


    "...Excuse me~"


    It was only a few minutes after Ibuki''s departure that the two''s time came to an end.


    Ichinose Honami reservedly showed up at the open-air bath.


    "Ichinose-san alone? That''s kind of rare."


    "A-ha-ha... I guess so, huh."


    Kushida knew well that arge crowd of people were talking to her at dinner. From that too, it was clear that she showed up here because she wanted to be alone.


    "I guess there are times when everyone wants to be alone. I''ll go if it''s a bother."


    For Horikita, for whom the mes were starting to get a little hotter, it was decided that this was time for the conclusion.


    This was her chance to touch batons with Ichinose and switch. Because after this, she estimated that Kushida would only chat about trifling things.


    "Ah, no! It''s not like that at all! Don''t worry about it!"


    Ichinose hurriedly stopped Horikita trying to get up.


    Then, adding onto this, Kushida turned a smile towards Horikita.


    "You''re already up, Horikita-san. Ichinose-san is also saying this, so why don''t we chat together?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "I thought we haven''t talked enough yet. No good?"


    Even though she didn''t, Kushida spoke so, as if she meant it from the bottom of her heart.


    Ichinose also gave a slightly uneasy expression, wondering if she had interrupted something bying here.


    "I''ve decided we''ve talked enough, but... fine. I''ll hang out just a bit longer, then."


    Then, she stood up and sat down on a boulder to cool her body that was burning in the night wind.


    With the snow, it was cold outside the bath, but it was actually pleasant.


    "Hey, I had something to ask you, Ichinose-san. Is that okay?"


    "Hm? Whatever, ask me anything."


    "Is there anyone you''re dating?"


    "Hmm? Ah, huh!?"


    Ichinose was in a great panic because a question that she hadn''t even thought of came up.


    "Recently, boys in various sses have asked if you''re avable, you know."


    Kushida asked so, appearing to not know anything, but the truth was different.


    In fact, Ichinose is currently avable, and has a favourable attitude towards Ayanokoji.


    The gathering of such information has beenpleted early on.


    She was more familiar with the situation than anyone in the Ichinose ss, but she wouldn''t say that out loud.


    "No, there''s not, there''s not!"


    "I see. Then, is there anyone you like?"


    The reason that she was talking as if she didn''t know anything was that Kushida wanted to learn more about Ayanokoji.


    To find out the reasons why Ichinose has feelings of affection towards Ayanokoji.


    She took into ount the possibility that it would eventually be her new weapon.


    "No, there''s not. Really, there''s nothing like that for me."


    However, Ichinose refused to ept it, and sank her face in the bath.


    It''s an action to hide her red embarrassed, awkward face.


    If she admits it here, she could talk about the matter of Karuizawa, or even deeper subjects, but that can''t be done so simply.


    Then, she purposefully decided to transfer the conversation onto Horikita.


    "What about you, Horikita-san? Don''t you have anything to say about romance?"


    "I don''t."


    Less than even a secondter, Horikita responds.


    She has little interest in romance.


    "I see. You seem like you''d be very popr, though. Horikita-san. You seem to get along with Sudou-kun too."


    "I don''t know anything about that. What about you, actually? You seem close to the boys from other sses too. I wonder if Ichinose-san is also curious about that."


    Facing the dreary question, Horikita returned it as it is.


    With the aim of quickly removing herself from the conversation and letting the two talk.


    "Oh, right. I get a lot of questions from boys about Kushida-san too, you know."


    While clicking her tongue at Horikita in her mind, Kushida shows a shy smile to Ichinose.


    "Huh..? Really? I don''t really know anything about romance either, so... However, I think it would be a waste to fall in love as a student."


    Considering that this was an idle chat, Kushida made sure to spread the seeds here.


    "A waste?"


    "Mhm. I mean, I hear that student romances hardly evere to fruition. About 10%-30%, I think? When I think that it''s not even half, I don''t really feel like stepping into anything... That''s why now I''m conscious as to not fall in love."


    She thought that by telling this to Ichinose, who has a wider circle of friends than even Kushida, she would be able to kick out the boys in advance who would confess to her with the resolve to get rejected.


    Since enrolling in this school, the number of confessions to Kushida made in the shadows has exceeded 10 from all sses.


    "I''m d people like me, but... at the same time, I''m afraid of being hurt."


    "That''s right... I think, I get it somehow..."


    Nothing was more futile than a love affair as a student, that''s what Kushida thinks. While listening to these two talk about romance, Horikita was about to get up.


    "I think I should go now."


    "Huh? You''re leaving already?"


    "I don''t know anything about love."


    "I see. There''s no helping it, then. But, isn''t there another reason that you want to end this?"


    "I don''t know what you''re talking about."


    "Forget it. I guess this is too hot for you. I did want to chat a bit more with you though, Horikita-san."


    "Are... are you serious?"


    "Of course. You think so too, right, Ichinose-san?"


    "Mhm. I still want to talk to Horikita-san too."


    In response to Kushida''s provocative remarks and leading, Horikita sits back down.


    "Let''s do that, then."


    As the ss leader, her option of escaping Kushida''s invitation disappeared.


    "Are you sure you''re okay? It would be really bad if you got dizzy and copsed."


    "Thank you for your concern. But, I''m worried about you too, Kushida-san. Your face is all red too."


    "Maybe because I was talking about love."


    "That''s all? I hope you''re not forcing yourself."


    Horikita''s sharp gaze, and Kushida''s smile collide into each other.


    "What''s wrong with you two?"


    Ichinose felt the difort and slightly tilted her neck.


    Seeing that, Kushidapletely eliminated the dislike she had left for Horikita.


    "Oh, no, that''s not true, is it? Right, Horikita-san?"


    "...That''s right."


    There is no need to give Ichinose additional information, even though she is seen as trustworthy.


    Horikita also judged so, and followed along.


    After that, for a while, the romance talk between Kushida and Ichinose continued, and it eventually turned into idle chatter.


    *Illustration


    Horikita listened on, enjoying the hot springs and the gentle snowfall.


    After that, Ichinose was called back to the room by her friends who had finished their meals.


    As yet another group of women came to the open-air bath, both Horikita and Kushida continued to endure and challenge each other''s patience. And then, after about 10 minutes of this...


    "Maybe it''s time for both of you to get up? You''repletely red, you know?"


    Seeing the two at their limits, Ichinose peeked out from inside.


    "Right, Horikita-san?"


    "No... you should listen to Ichinose-san''s words too."


    They were both trying to cling on in this situation, but the other students who finished their meals began to appear in the open-air bath. After this, it became difficult to continue the match, so they both read the room and stood up at the same time.


    "It was a nice bath, wasn''t it?"


    "It really was. Too much already, actually..."


    "Did something happen between you two after all?"


    Ichinose once again felt a strange atmosphere, but the two left the bath as if nothing had happened.

 Chapter 312: 2.6

    <h4>Chapter 312: 2.6</h4>


    Before 10pm.


    The guest room''s door was gently knocked twice.


    Seeing that, Watanabe quickly stood up from the tatami mat, saying that he would respond. Did he take the initiative for us, or himself?


    "Kept you waiting."


    Together with such a voice, four women entered from the opened door, with Kushida at the lead.


    "W-Wee. You''rete, huh?"


    Must be nervousness and embarrassment.


    Watanabe suddenly slowed down, and made way for them.


    "Sorry. We spent a little too long in the bath, that''s why we''rete."


    Kushida, who replied so, definitely had a slightly red face.


    Further, her hair was all smooth. You don''t get many chances to see girls right before bedtime.


    That''s precisely why this is such a valuable experience for Watanabe.


    With the four womening in, the indescribable fragrance spread to the room instantly.


    It''s not like the gathering of boys stinks, but this is apletely different atmosphere.


    "I wonder why it smells so good now..?"


    "Well, that is a mystery, indeed."


    Therge bathing area was stocked with arge bottle of soy milk shampoo and rinse formercial use.


    There was no dissatisfaction, but the foaming was not particrly good, and it felt like it was rtively inexpensive.


    Normally, I think the same thing is ced in the women''s public baths too, but... The scent that drifts from them is obviously different from the same soy milk shampoo.


    Perhaps they brought it in themselves.


    "Hey, please ask them. How can they smell so good?"


    "Sorry, but I can''t really ask that."


    Even if Ickmon sense, I knew better than to ask.


    I think that if I make such a statement, they''ll definitely be creeped out.


    "When you think that this is the boys'' room, it''s a bit exciting, huh?"


    Amikura ufortably whispered so, to the other girls, looking around the room.


    The floor n of the room is the same, but it may look strangely different.


    "When the discussion is over, why don''t we go to Honami and the others'' roomter? I heard the girls are gathered all the way up until sleep time."


    "Really? Yeah, I''m totally fine. "


    Unlike Kushida, who pleasantly agreed, Nishino refused without showing interest.


    "I''ll pass. It''s not like I''m good friends with them."


    Following along, Yamamura also lowered her head and whispered.


    "...Me too, I''ll pass..."


    "Is that so? I think everyone would be wee, but... Well, that''s fine."


    Knowing that the girls would disperse soon, Watanabe looked sad.


    The lights out time seems to be a littlete at 11pm, so there is still time to spare.


    It''s a special school trip, so everyone wants to avoid awkward situations.


    "So this is how it feels to have girls in your room..."


    In a daze because of the girls, Watanabe quietly whispered so.


    "Anyway, Watanabe. You''d better start following up with the girls. Isn''t this your chance to increase your likability?"


    Me, Ryuen, or even Kitou could invite them into the room.


    After that, he has to take a step forward to make an impression


    "Huh? Follow? Follow what?"


    Still in shock because of the girls'' appearance, it seems that Watanabe couldn''t see the situation.


    The girls,ing to an away match in the boys'' room, were lost as to where they should gather.


    [TL Note 16 - The word "match" isn''t included but "away" is as it is in the original. It''s a sports reference, when a team is having a match in another team''s stadium it''s an away match.]


    "Um... where should we sit?"


    The Japanese-style room already has four futonsid out by the staff with a little space between them, so you have to move to the edge of the tatami mats to sit on the floor. It''s a show of skill whether to force them into a tight corner or to take other steps.


    "Huh? Anywhere is fine, right? I''m fine with sitting on a futon too, you know?"


    Waranabe didn''t seem to understand things, so he took two futon nkets, and prepared a space.


    The girls looked a little surprised, but there was no other suitable ce, and Kushida showed agreement.


    On two futons close to the entrance, each of the four sits down.


    "Well then, the lights are almost out, so let''s start right away. Wait, where''s Ryuen-kun?"


    "Beyond the shoji."


    [TL Note 17 : Shoji, traditional paper sliding door]


    The closed shoji opens up to a small table, two single person sofas, and a small refrigerator.


    As Amikura was scared of going to the shoji, her ssmate Nishino vigorously opened the shoji on her behalf.


    Ryuen seemed to be rxed, sitting on the one person sofa while ying with his phone.


    "You heard, right? Come on."


    "It''s fine here, isn''t it? I can hear just fine."


    "That may be so, but I hope you cane over to everyone because this is also to increase the sense of unity of the group."


    Without fear, Kushida called out to Ryuen to tell him toe over. Perhaps annoyed by Kushida, Ryuen turned off his phone screen whileughing.


    "You seem to be getting ahead of yourself, but you know your position, right?"


    "What do you mean, I wonder?"


    "Just as I said. If you''re saying you don''t understand, then I can make you understand, you know?"


    The other students can''t understand why Ryuen was saying this to her. Ryuen is the one person outside the ss who knows Kushida best, so his words were heavy.


    "What are you talking about?"


    As if taking this as a simple quarrel, Nishino approached Ryuen.


    "Stop saying annoying things, and juste over here."


    Nishino was not frightened or timid, and she was already grabbing his arm and pulling him up.


    "Nishino. You''ve been saying a lot tootely, haven''t you?"


    "I''ve always been like this, though? I just didn''t get involved more than I needed to."


    She must mean that she''s in a group now, so it can''t be helped.


    I thought that things would get even more tense from here, but Ryuen annoyedly got up and stepped towards the Japanese-style room.


    As Kitou turned his gaze, the atmosphere instantly became tense.


    Still, for the time being, it is true that eight people were now gathered in one room for the discussion.


    "Do you all really need to be here? We could do this on the phone."


    Kitou, who hadn''t uttered a word since the girls arrived, asked so.


    Indeed, if we made a group on an app, it would be simple to talk with everyone.


    "It looks like the other groups are meeting face-to-face and making up their minds as well."


    "Wow, you know everything, Kushida-chan."


    Watanabe sat between me and Yamamura with an exaggerated nod, impressed by the flow of information.


    Perhaps rmed by the unexpected sudden approach of a boy, Yamamura took a half step back to get away from Watanabe.


    "Ah, sorry, Yamamura. Didn''t see you there."


    "No... please don''t worry about it."


    Apart from such a trivial exchange, there was still a strong sense of tension because of the interaction with Ryuen.


    "I don''t care about other people. We can do things our way."


    It must be Ryuen that Kitou is worried about.


    I can clearly see that he is afraid it will not be a proper discussion.


    "It''s important to meet face to face, isn''t it? I wanna hear everyone''s true opinions, you know."


    Kushida replies that there are things you can''t understand with an app, and doesn''t seem to be pulling back.


    Kushida probably didn''t want to step on thendmine that is Ryuen either, but she has to protect her own position.


    If Kushida decides not to back down here, I''m sure he will just push forward.


    "Well then, let''s talk about the free time tomorrow."


    [TL Note 18 - There is a word used that is like "after" or "from after" but it doesn''t work in english with this context so I left it out now.]


    "More importantly, you forgot about something we gotta decide first."


    Looking over the Japanese-style room lined up with futons, Ryuen opened his mouth.


    "I don''t want to sleep side by side with you bastards, but the space is limited, so... I''ll be sleeping here."


    At the end of his gaze, was the futon at the far end of the room. It is ideally positioned so that if someone wakes up in the middle of the night to go to the toilet or such, there would be no disturbance.


    Indeed, we haven''t decided who will sleep where yet. No, but, do we have to decide that now?


    I think it''s better to make a decision after the girls go back, but... Is he simply unable to read the room, or has he spoken out now deliberately?


    Considering how Ryuen has been so far, I can''t help but feel that it is thetter.


    However, on the other hand, what about the people around?


    Clearly, after that remark, everyone thought that he was being selfish and speaking out of ce.


    "No objections, yeah?"


    He nced at me and Watanabe for a moment and slightly strengthened his tone of voice.


    "I... Well, I''m okay anywhere."


    Like a frog against a snake, Watanabe epted. Now, what would I say?


    While I was thinking about it, Ryuen had already cut his gaze off from me.


    "Yo, Kitou. If you have something to say, you can say it, you know?"


    It seems that he thinks Kitou is the only one who would disagree.


    "I won''t ept it."


    A rebuttal to symbolize it.


    "Huh?"


    He told Kitou he should speak, but Ryuen leaned his head, not liking the refusal.


    "I won''t agree with something unfair like that. Besides, we shouldn''t discuss it now. Don''t you even get that?"


    "I don''t give a damn. I don''t remember giving you a right to refuse, you bastard."


    "I''m free to speak how I want, where I want."


    Kitou did not step back, rather, he entered a state of confrontation.


    "Come on now, Kitou, calm down. It''s just a sleeping ce, why don''t you let him have it?"


    "I refuse."


    "Ugh..."


    Watanabe, who stood up and tried to stop this, sat back down after an intense re.


    In terms of the rage on his face, Kitou surpasses Ryuen.


    "I''m not gonna let this man get away with being irrational."


    "Hey,e on, boys. We''re not talking about that now, so you can..."


    Amikura timidly tried to warn them, but Nishino pulled the sleeve of her yukata and stopped her.


    [TL Note 19 : Yukata, a type of kimono worn in the summer or used as a bathrobe.]


    She shook her head left to right, silently warning her not to get between them.


    "I''ll say this as many times as I have to, but I''m not gonna surrender it to some bastard like you."


    "Are you saying you wanna fight over it, fucker?Huh?"


    "You want violence? I can give it to you, but you''re gonna beying here the whole trip."


    Kushida looks troubled, but I can tell from her eyes...


    I can tell that she feels depressed to death by how annoying this is getting.


    "In that case, let''s do this. Are you all gonna fight over it too?"


    "I''ll refrain from that... I said it before, but I''m fine anywhere."


    I personally prefer to be on the edge rather than being pinched between, I hate to be caught up in trouble.


    Whether the winner is Ryuen or Kitou, when one of them takes the edge, the two will no longer sleep next to each other.


    Rather, the possibility that I or Watanabe would be caught between them as cushioning is higher.


    "I''ll pass too. Fight as you want and decide. However, if you two want that edge spot, Watanabe and I can take whichever one we want from the remaining three, alright?"


    If you do not im your natural rights, you will struggle againter.


    They both want the same futon, so Watanabe and I should be free to choose from the free spots.


    "Also, Please don''t decide this with violence."


    If I don''t say this strongly, group 6 will stand out in a bad way.


    I heard that the groups causing trouble will be relentlessly restricted.


    It''s a special school trip, so it would be a shame to not be able to leave the ryokan because things got a little out of hand.


    "I like fighting better since that''s easy to understand for me, but I guess we can''t do that, huh?"


    For now, I''m d that they will refrain from using violence.


    "Thanks, Ayanokoji, for saying what I wanted to say."


    "No, it''s not like I said anything significant."


    "That''s not true, though. Actually, yeah. You can sleep on the edge."


    Are the only fundamentally good people here from the Ichinose ss? Even though I didn''t ask for any help,


    He said so and gave me the edge spot.


    With this, from the back, it''s Ryuen or Kitou, and Watanabe by their side.


    The loser of the match will get the third one. We agreed that I will sleep on the end closest to the entrance.


    "I gotta show a little endurance too."


    Apparently, one of the reasons for giving up was for personal reasons.


    I''m sure being caught between Ryuen and Kitou would be too much of a thrill too.


    "When you say school trip, I guess this is all thates to mind, huh?"


    Before long, a pillow was clutched in Ryuen''s hands.


    "It''s a face to face match. I don''t have to exin the rules, right? Kitou."


    "Of course."


    "What is it? What are you going to do with that pillow?"


    Not knowing what was waiting after this change, I tilted my neck.


    "When youbine a school trip and pillows, there''s only one thing, right?"


    Only one thing?


    I don''t get it at all...


    However, the students other than me seem to understand and, and Kushida quickly gets up.


    "Well, then, I''ll be the referee, okay? I think that it would be best for someone to watch over this in an impartial way."


    Kushida, who seems to regret being in such a ridiculous ce, spoke out as such.


    "Even at a time like this, you''re so disciplined, huh, Kushida-chan?"


    I want to know the truth, but other than Watanabe, there are other girls around.


    More importantly, I''m deeply interested in what they will use the pillow for.


    "I''ll give you the first attack."


    "Nah, you don''t wanna be defeated without firing a single shot, do you? Come at me with no regrets, Ryuen."


    Ryuenughed as he bounced the pillow over his hands.


    "In that case, I''ll kill you without hesitation, Kitou!"


    After saying so, he swung his pillow and threw it like a ball.


    The pillow stuffed with buckwheat chaff attacks Kitou at high speed.


    Though there is plenty of distance between the two, the throw is so strong that he could suddenly lose the match.


    Kitou calmly and surely caught the pillow.


    "I''ll... I''ll kill you!"


    This time, Kitou himself swung and threw the pillow back with the same force.


    Ryuen on the other side, again, elegantly caught the pillow, and instantly shifted to a pitching stance.


    *Illustration


    "Not bad, Kitou! Looks like we can have a little fun, huh!"


    Again, the pillow is returned.


    "This is..."


    "It''s pillow throwing. Haven''t you done it before, Ayanokoji-kun? I thought that all the boys were doing it in school trips in elementary school and junior high school, and outdoor schools. "


    First time I''m hearing of it.


    [TL Note 20 : Expression, Hatsumimi, lit. "First Ear"]


    Last year''s training camp didn''t have anyone throwing pillows either.


    "Darkness Ball!"


    "My mad, raging serpent... devour him!"


    Darkness, serpent... that pillow is being turned into a lot of different things, huh.


    "Ah, this is pillow throwing... right?"


    A one-on-one match where outsiders aren''t allowed to be tagged in... no, a pillow throwing match.


    Amikura muttered as pillows were being thrown left and right.


    From then on, the deadly battlested for a few minutes with no signs of a conclusion.


    Both of them had no problem with draining their energy, and seemed like they would be able to continue fighting for longer.


    Here, however, all of us except those two find ourselves in a tight spot.


    "That pillow, is it okay to keep throwing it strongly like that? It''s already in tatters."


    After Kushida''s silently muttered remark, everyone''s gazes were taken by the pillow.


    There is no need to exin this to anyone, but pillows aren''t tools to be used for throwing.


    Leaving aside some light throwing, with a series of zing fastballs and further being caught with no insignificant power, there is no way damage wouldn''t umte.


    "By the way, whose pillow is that?"


    After Watanabe''s remark, we quickly checked the futonid on the ground. From the four futons, the pillow from the one on the edge that was given to me by Watanabe had disappeared.


    "...Is that mine?"


    The pillow that should have been on my futon wasn''t there.


    And now, Kitou seemed to be further putting the power of darkness into the pillow held in his hand.


    I could tell the pillow was screaming.


    "If you sleep on that pillow, you''ll probably have nightmares."


    No, in the first ce, I''m afraid that there is no guarantee the pillow will stay in shape.


    No matter who wins, I want it to be returned safely.


    "Hmph!"


    A pillow, with an unprecedented, intense killer intent put into it.


    Because of Kitou''s thick fingers strongly digging into it, it burst the moment it left his hand.


    The buckwheat that was clogged in the broken cloth was scattered in the room.


    Along with the sound of it scattering around, everyone fell into silence.


    The pillow that was supposed to gently support my head, turned into an atrocious shape.


    My pillow, I wished for it strongly, but it couldn''t return to me safely...


    I would like to express my condolences to the victims that were cruelly scattered on the battlefield.


    "Boys are... they''re such pure children, huh?"


    As Kushida muttered so in a way only I could hear, the scattered buckwheat chaff also became silent.


    The two did not seem to care, and an index finger reached out to a nearby untouched pillow, but Nishino then sternly raised her voice.


    "Listen... We have things to do, so can''t you finish thister? This is annoying."


    Ignoring that warning, Ryuen wanted to continue, but Kitou seemed to be different.


    He silently sat on the spot, and decided to pause for a while. His hot thoughts cooled down, and I felt the discontent around me.


    "Can we say it''s your loss, then? Kitou."


    "If she says this is a bother, then I have no intention of continuing."


    From the atmosphere he usually lets out, I could not imagine it, but he quickly pulled out.


    Well, if this was going to happen, I wish they hadn''t done this from the start. At least the victims from the pillow which have been cruelly scattered around would have remained safe.


    "Well then... let''s start talking when we''re done cleaning up."


    With the help of all the boys and girls except Ryuen, we sessfully collected the remains of the pillow without spending too much time.


    I''ll have to get a new pillow from someone from the ryokanter.


    Should I be honest, or should I lie?


    The scattered buckwheat chaff, we put them in a clear stic bag set in the trash can, and started our discussion.


    "About the free conduct, we just have to return to the ryokan by the final dinner reception, 18:00, right?"


    As expected, Kushida first started speaking for the group.


    "Mhm. That''s why it really feels like a day of freedom."


    Amikura also immediately began talking.


    "I think we can gather on a train or a bus and depart that way, but what should we do? Is there some ce you want to go to, Nishino-san?"


    "I guess I wanna ski. All I''ve done so far is practice, and I am in Hokkaidou, so."


    "I agree with Nishino''s opinion."


    Despite going to the trouble of learning how to ski, it would be a waste to end it after half a day. Silently, Kitou also lightly raised his hand and showed agreement.


    "There are quite a few people who want to ski, huh? Watanabe-kun, Yamamura-san, what about you?"


    "I don''t think I have any objections either. We''re going downtown on the third day, so why not?"


    "I''m fine anywhere."


    Yamamura, who still can''t ski well, doesn''t seem to particrly dislike the idea either.


    Maybe she is just trying to match her surroundings, or perhaps she wants to get better at skiing.


    I don''t really see much emotion in that area, though.


    "Mako-chan?"


    "Hmm... I''m not so good at skiing, so I wouldn''t say I''m happy about it, but... If everyone wants to ski, then that''s fine with me. It''s a group, so."


    Saying so, she shows her concession.


    Kushida did not answer her own question, but looked at Ryuen sitting on the one man sofa.


    "What about you, Ryuen-kun?"


    "Whatever."


    Without insisting on anything particr, he lightly relinquished his right to speak.


    After Ryuen, the most troublesome member, made such a decision, an air of relief flowed through the group.


    It would be better to think that Ryuen is also aiming to enjoy skiing, rather than having no interest in going anywhere.


    Tranted by Anime Anyway

 Chapter 313 - 3: School Trip: Second Day

    Chapter 313: Chapter 3: School Trip: Second Day


    IT WAS THE MORNING OF THE SECOND DAY OF OUR SCHOOL TRIP. After breakfast and getting dressed, we were rxing in our room until the bus left for the ski resort.


    Watanabe and I casually turned on the TV. On the screen, people were reading out a summary of this morning''s news, and making casualments. After a bit of this, the atmosphere changed when the program moved on to a special, on kittens. Ry��en, who was in the same room, had already taken his ce on the one-seat sofa, and Kit�� was browsing through a stack of magazines that the ryokan were avable for free. They all seemed to have fashion inmon.


    "It''s so disturbing to see that he''s just reading a book and it looks so menacing�� It''s like he''s reading a murder manual."


    Watanabe whispered this in my ear. He probably thought no one would hear, but Kit��''s sharp eyes instantly red at Watanabe. Perhaps intimidated by this, he averted his gaze as he hid in my shadow.


    "He''s definitely a scary guy, right? Right?" He shook me by the shoulders, but, if possible, I wanted to concentrate on the cat special on TV. "Hey, Kit��. You got a little indigestion from yesterday''s pillow fight, didn''t you? Let''s have another game today."


    As if to bring a storm into this peaceful morning, Ry��en made a proposal to Kit��. Needless to say, this wasn''t a wee proposal for Watanabe and I.


    "You fool. Do you wish to embarrass yourself? If you want to regret it, I won''t stop you."


    "Well, then, let me suggest something."


    "What kind of game do you want?"


    "The skiing we''re going to do sounds good, doesn''t it?"


    It seemed that he wanted a simplepetition to see who would finish first. Although Kit�� may not be a beginner, yesterday at least made it clear that Ry��en''s skills were superior.


    There was no need for Kit�� to go out of his way to y along with Ryuen''s strategy of trying to drag him into his own ring. However, Kit�� firmly closed the magazine with the same energy.


    "You think you can win with skis? I''ll crush your confidence."


    He seemed to ept the challenge and refused to show any signs of backing down.


    "I''m not going to let you win"


    "Um guys�� can we not make it apetition?"


    Watanabe''s voice was so low that a child might have said, "Ants are talking!"


    While we were whispering back and forth, the two sides were heating up. Then Kit�� stood up, curled up a borrowed magazine in his hand, approached Ry��en and thrust the tip of the magazine at him as if it were the tip of a sword.


    "If you lose, you''ll be as quiet as a cat during this trip."


    He demanded, perhaps unknowingly inspired by the TV special on cats.


    "Oh? I''m already more mature than you, if you ask me."


    With a snap, he brushed the tip of the magazine away with his arm.


    I''d just like to see this feature on cats in peace. I urged them to keep their distance and avoid struggling.


    "You''ve got some nerve, Ayanok��ji, even though the brunt of the trouble mighte your way."


    I don''t think so. I''m not going to let them take advantage of me.


    "Anyway, now that things have quieted down, I''m going to continue on..."


    Those were my intentions, but before I knew it, the cat had disappeared from the TV screen. It seemed that I hadn''t had much time to watch, as it was over in a few minutes.


    "I''m sorry to see that, Ayanok��ji. You like cats, don''t you?"


    "No, not really."


    "You didn''t like the feature? "I just wanted to see it for some reason, but I don''t have any special attachment to cats as an animal."


    I would''ve felt the same way had this been a dog feature or a hippopotamus feature. The program was a cheerful topic of conversation for a while, but then breaking news was presented instead. The news showed that after a long period of recuperation, former Secretary-General Naona Ee had passed away at a Tokyo hospital. From the Prime Minister''s Office, Prime Minister Kijima Onikijima had something to say... With numerous shes, a man with a stern expression began to speak.


    "''Let the man be with you, and the horse with you.'' These words were given to me by Dr. Naoe shortly after I met him."


    Just as the Prime Minister began talking about the deceased, the screen darkened. It was time for the bus.


    Kit��, holding the remote control with his index finger on the power button, called out.


    "Come on, let''s go, Ayanok��ji."


    I''m going to enjoy skiing, but I''m a little concerned about thepetition between the two of them.

 Chapter 314: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 314: 3.1</h4>


    We came outside, but there was a little trouble waiting for us. We heard that the bus was stuck in a traffic jam and would be dyed about 10 minutes. There were many students waiting for the bus, and when I turned around, the front porch was overflowing with people.


    "It''s cold, but I guess we have no choice but to wait outside."


    Watanabe exhaled a white breath and gloomily looked up at the sky. It was unfortunate that we went outside a little earlier than the other students, but it couldn''t be helped. Even if we went all the way back to our rooms, we wouldn''t be able to rx for more than five minutes. We, the sixth group, waited under the shelter of the roof for the bus toe.


    "Hey, hey, since it''s a special asion, why don''t we all build a snowman?"


    Amikura suggested to the group, perhaps to make the most of the wait.


    "That sounds fun. Why don''t we make one with Nishino-san and Yamamura-san?"


    "...Well, okay."


    Nishino was expected to refuse this kind of thing, but surprisingly, she easily gave in.


    "What about Yamamura-san?"


    "No, I''m... Not interested."


    As expected, she declined, albeit somewhat modestly.


    The girls moved to a spot out of the way and began to gather up the fallen snow.


    Apparently, they had intended not to make a small snowman, but a reasonablyrge one.


    "Hey, Ry��en-kun, why don''t youe over here and make a snowman with us? I think it would be fun."


    Knowing that he would never take her up on her suggestion, Kushida ostensibly appealed to his good heart and invited Ry��en to join them.


    The students around her were also watching the development with concern, perhaps because they couldn''t imagine Ry��en building a snowman with enthusiasm.


    This remark was definitely payback for yesterday.


    If he made any careless remarks, she was determined to take advantage of the situation.


    "I thought that some checks and bnces would make her quieter, but I guess I misread her."


    Ry��en muttered to himself.


    It was true that Kushida, before her identity became known to her ssmates, might''ve tolerated the situation. He may have felt a strange sense of suspicion, but there was no way he could solve the mystery. I can''t pass on information that the rest of the sses don''t know, such as what transpired during the Unanimous Vote Special Exam. Needless to say, there was no way that Ry��en would take up Kushida''s offer. He didn''t react to the invitation and turned his head.


    On the other hand, there were those who continued to quietly gaze at the snowman as it was being built.


    It was Yamamura, who had been gradually distancing herself from us without being noticed.


    "Hah..."


    While observing the snowman being made by Kushida, she exhaled coldly into her hands.


    "Hah!"


    Kushida and the others building the snowman were naturally wearing warm gloves.


    Looking around, none of the students outside except for Yamamura had bare hands.


    It was only natural. In this cold weather, they wouldn''t go bare-handed for an extensive period of time unless they had a special reason to. I remember Yamamura was wearing gloves before yesterday''s skiing lesson.


    Even if she could rent ski gloves, why wouldn''t she bring gloves with her on the way to the ski resort anyway?


    If she forgot them, she could just go back to get them, so maybe there was a reason for their absence. She looked dazed and stared out, repeatedly exhaling. I was curious about the mountain vige, but more and more students were beginning toe out while we waited for the bus.


    "It''s snowing all over, isn''t it?"


    The owner of the familiar voice was Sakayanagi Arisu, a member of the fourth group. She should be with Hond�� and Onodera from Horikita''s ss. As I recalled this, students continued to show up, the snow continuing to shock them. Since Sakayanagi couldn''t ski, she was probably going to a sightseeing spot.


    We didn''t get particrly involved with the members of the sixth group, and all of Sakayanagi''s group members seemed to be together.


    Soon, the bus heading to the city center arrived, before the others heading to the ski resort.


    The teacher leading the way gave the order to get on, and the students began boarding one by one. Sakayanagi walked with her cane on the unfamiliar snow-covered road.


    As I watched, I wondered if she was in danger.


    Perhaps my prediction came true because Sakayanagi slipped and fell on her buttocks.


    Fortunately, she wasn''t in pain as the snow seemed to cushion the impact.


    "Are you okay...?"


    Tokit��, a ss C student assigned to the same Group 4, who was walking slightly behind me, rushed up to her. He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then extended his hand.


    "Thank you, Tokit��-kun."


    She grabbed the hand that was being held out to her as she thanked him a little shyly. It would be easy to forcefully pull the petite Sakayanagi up, but Tokit�� did so carefully and slowly.


    Despite his stern face, he was surprisingly sensitive and considerate in his help.


    "Don''t push yourself. You have a bad leg..."


    "I''m sorry. Fortunately the snow was soft and it didn''t hurt."


    "So there''s no problem...?"


    Sakayanagi usually employed relentless strategy as the ss leader, but the other sses'' group members must''ve felt a vastly different impression.


    Grabbing her cane, Sakayanagi got up and thanked him once more. "Thank you for your help."


    "Nothing, it''s... It''s..., I mean, I''m d it didn''t turn out to be a big deal."


    Embarrassed, he shifted his gaze, unable to look directly at Sakayanagi.


    "I thought Tokit��-kun was a much scarier person."


    "Eh? Me? ...No, I don''t know."


    Sakayanagi stopped to talk. It was an exchange that seemed to show the change in their rtionship.


    "Because you usually seem to walk with a scary look stered on your face when we pass each other in the hallway."


    "Hey, how do you even know me?"


    When asked this, Sakayanagi replied without pause and with a smile on her face. "Because we are both second-year students. I know Tokit��-kun very well."


    If they were an ordinary boy and girl in an ordinary high school, this would be a scene that would likely cause misunderstandings. However, behind that smile, there was always the possibility that Sakayanagi''s wits and tricks were at y.


    In some cases, even falling down may have been part of the calction.


    Sakayanagi and Tokit�� walked side by side to the bus doorway, where he let Sakayanagi board first. The only other person who might be interested in this exchange was Ry��en, who was staring at them with great curiosity. Whether or not there was an underlying reason behind this, it was clear that those who normally had no contact with each other were gradually beginning to close the distance between them.


    *Illustration


    The dyed buses to the ski resort also arrived, recing the buses to the city center.

 Chapter 315: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 315: 3.2</h4>


    After getting off the ski resort bus, the eight of us decided to walk around the area instead of immediately entering the resort.


    This wasn''t nned; it was Amikura''s idea, who noticed several souvenir shops around the area from the bus.


    A 20 or 30-minute detour wouldn''t make much of a difference.


    "Ummm... it''s cold in Hokkaido this morning, isn''t it? It was warmer in the bus, so I can feel the temperature difference even more."


    Saying so, Kushida rubbed her gloves together, her body shivering.


    "Yes, this weather is surprising at the end of November. It''s weird that there''s snow on the ground."


    "If you''re going to look around, get on with it. But I''m sure most of them aren''t open yet." Ry��en called out to the group that was standing still.


    The time was still just past 9:15. The ski resort opens at 9:30, so most of the stores in the area were still closed.


    It seems that Ry��en intended to just enjoy skiing for the day, so he wanted to head there and wait.


    Among the few stores that were already open, there was an unusual apparel store, and for some reason, Kit�� walked in and began to stare at the clothes.


    There were some very fancy and unusual clothes on disy. Did he find anything he liked? Just as I thought, he reced the clothes he had picked up and began rummaging through another set of clothes.


    "By the way, Kit��''s feet are so big. They look like a snowman''s footprint, man."


    Watanabe looked at the snowy footprints leading up to the apparel store andpared them to his own, as if impressed.


    Kit�� was certainly tall, but even without taking that into ount, it seemed certain that his feet are quiterge.


    "Let''s all go browse more shops."


    Amikura, the one who proposed the idea, called out to everyone and started walking away, as if time was of the essence.


    Kushida immediately epted Amikura''s invitation, but Yamamura refused, apparently intending on staying behind.


    Watanabe and Nishino also seemed to have decided to walk around by themselves.


    "Yamamura-san? Aren''t you going?"


    "...Ah, I''ll stay... Please don''t mind me."


    Only Ry��en, Yamamura and I remained at this spot. I really wanted to browse with Amikura and the others, but since they didn''t invite me to go with them, I missed out on that chance.


    What should I do now? I could look around by myself like Watanabe and the others...


    Since Yamamura declined the invitation, she must be nning to stay here and wait for everyone to return.


    If I left, I would be leaving her alone with Ry��en. It would''ve been fine if the two of them were on good terms, but they had never interacted with each other before.


    There was no prospect of them getting along with each other; it would be a terrible idea to leave them alone.


    Therefore, unless Yamamura or Ry��en started to act alone, it would be necessary to stay behind until then, despite it being frustrating.


    "...."


    Yamamura shuddered as she watched Amikura and the others, whose backs were getting smaller and smaller.


    The cause for her shivers was clearly herck of gloves which she normally kept hidden in her coat. It was certain that she came here without gloves. So, should I lend her mine?


    But if she refused, it might make things a little awkward.


    The sixth group, including Kit�� and the others, had already left, leaving just the three of us in a quiet situation.


    Yamamura seemed to be holding back her trembling as much as she could, but she still couldn''t hide it.


    "Hey, Yamamura, give me your hand."


    "What...!?"


    As I continued to wonder whether I should call out to her or not, Ry��en instructed Yamamura, who was standing there with her hand in the inside pocket of her coat, in a harsh tone.


    Apparently, Ry��en also noticed Yamamura''s shivering and the unnaturalness of her hands remaining in her coat. He thought her cold hands woulde out, but Yamamura averted her gaze and...


    "I don''t want to."


    She said no firmly, albeit in a small voice.


    "Oh?"


    "I don''t want to pull them out. It''s too cold."


    Without mentioning whether or not she had gloves, she stated her reason. I could feel the cold, Hokkaido wind even through my gloves. It was definitely warmer to have your hands inside your coat if you didn''t have gloves.


    I thought the conversation would end here, but Ry��en stepped onto the snow-covered road and invaded Yamamura''s personal space.


    Then he grabbed her right arm and forcibly pulled it out of her pocket.


    "Ah����" After confirming that she was not wearing gloves directly, Ry��en let go of her arm and Yamamura hurriedly moved to hide her hands inside her coat. "Well, that must be cold. Where are your gloves?" Ry��en forcefully proved that she was bare-handed, but Yamamura didn''t answer.


    She turned her back as if asking to be left alone.


    "You''re probably not even good at skiing to begin with but you''re not gonna wear gloves on top of that?"


    Ry��en''s point was valid. As a beginner, Yamamura wasn''t even halfway decent at skiing yet.


    If her hands were so cold that they were useless, she wouldn''t make any progress. On the contrary, it would only increase the risk of falling.


    "If you get into a lot of trouble and cause amotion, my skiing time will be cancelled. Can you take responsibility?"


    The emphasis on his own skiing sounded like a mixture of selfishness and clumsy kindness, typical of Ry��en.


    "No, that''s..."


    Yamamura seemed unable to retort to an issue that wasn''t merely about feelings.


    "So. Where are your gloves?"


    "I forgot..."


    "Ha, I guess there are dumbasses like that."


    Not many people would forget their gloves in this cold weather.


    Laughing through his nose, Ry��en looked down at his own gloves.


    I didn''t think he was going to lend his own gloves for Yamamura''s sake����.


    "Oi, Ayanok��ji, lend her your gloves."


    "...Mine?"


    He didn''t even show any kindness yet he imposed demands on me.


    "I''m a skiing novice too, you know?"


    "You''d have no problem if you got hurt, right?"


    I''m not quite sure I understood the logic behind it, but...


    Unfortunately, there were no stores open around here that sold gloves. I guess I''ll have to lend them out for the sake of the trip. There may be special gloves in the ski resort, but even 10 or 15 minutes of warmth would make a difference.


    "No, that''s okay. I''m fine."


    Yamamura said that and exhaled as she moved away.


    "You shouldn''t do that. The cold causes vasoconstriction. Your body''s shivering because your muscles are trying to raise your body temperature. It might be dangerous to start skiing in that condition. Isn''t it extremely frustrating that Ry��en is right?"


    "That''s..."


    I half forcefully pushed the gloves I took off to Yamamura.


    "But... Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "I''m fine, don''t worry about it."


    I don''t have a special tolerance for the cold, but as Ry��en said, if I try to endure it, it won''t be a problem.


    "I''m sorry..."


    While dreading it, Yamamura wore therge pair of gloves with her hands shaking slightly.


    Then she slipped her hands back into her coat.


    They will remain cold for a while, but after a few minutes, it''ll improve.


    "You''ll have to buy a new pair of gloves in your sizeter."


    "Yes, you''re right. Um, when we get to the ski resort, please let me reimburse you for the gloves."


    "Reimburse?"


    "I''d feel bad giving them back to you... after I wore them. They''re dirty."


    "They''re not dirty. No, even if you fell and stained them, I don''t really mind, as long as you return them as they are, that''s fine."


    "That''s not what I mean. I''ll get them dirty by wearing them ..."


    Is this a germaphobe''s way of thinking? No, but Yamamura wore the gloves without resistance, albeit reservedly.


    That''s a way of thinking I don''t quite understand.


    "I would still like to reimburse you."


    When ites to reimbursement for the gloves, I don''t think she would tantly choose the cheapest ones and return them.


    I''d be forcing a pricey expense on her for an action that didn''t require reimbursement.


    "It''s just spending some extra private points. You don''t have to worry about that."


    "It''s weird, isn''t it?"


    I still say something as if I don''t understand it.


    Why would Yamamura wear them and why would it make her feel ufortable? Even if it hadn''t been Yamamura, I would''ve felt the same way.


    "It''s okay. It would be worse to bepensated due to being overly concerned about it."


    I used a slightly stronger statement to let her know that I was confused.


    "So, at least allow me to thank you in some other way."


    I didn''t think a thank-you was necessary, but maybe Yamamura would feel better if she did something.


    If she''s this insistent, I should provide a way for her to be satisfied.


    "Then may I ask you one question in lieu of a thank you?"


    "...Yes?"


    "Was there a reason you didn''t have your gloves since the wait for the bus in the morning?"


    "I forgot, that''s all."


    I knew she hadn''t left them unintentionally.


    "You had plenty of time to go back and get them. Or are you saying you weren''t cold?"


    I asked, pushing further towards what had been bothering me.


    "...That kind of thing, because it wasn''t the right mood..."


    "Mood?"


    "The kind of mood that is hard to get through, sort of."


    It''s true that the lobby was crowded with students, but I''m not sure if it was the atmosphere that made it difficult to return.


    No, that''s just how I felt, but Yamamura might not have necessarily felt the same way. Although the exchange onlysted a few minutes, I was able to understand the student Yamamura a bit more. And that could be intriguing.


    "Who do you usually hang out with, Yamamura?"


    What kind of friends do these types of students make? Are they the same quiet kids, or are they in a circle of popr kids like Kushida who wee everyone? Or is she a strong puller?


    Yamamura, however, didn''t immediately answer these questions. Her expression showed no significant change, but she looked slightly ufortable as she narrowed her eyes and turned away.


    "No one really. I usually spend most of my time alone."


    "Alone? I don''t think a ss A student would leave one person alone."


    "I have such a weak presence that... you probably wouldn''t even notice that I''m alone. It''s an everyday urrence, so I''m not particrly concerned about it."


    She did indeedck presence.


    I myself would be ssified as someone simr.


    However, in the case of Yamamura and I, it was highly likely that our personalities werepletely different.


    If Yamamura was cold, there was no way Amikura would ignore it if she noticed.


    Even Kushida, who was always concerned about other people''s reactions, seems to have be desensitized to Yamamura''s weak presence.


    Well, if Yamamura was actually almost invisible, like a shadow, I don''t think anyone would have paid attention when she went back to get her gloves.


    The thinness of the shadow. If we analyze it objectively, we can grasp its true nature to some extent.


    "Do you like yourself, Yamamura?"


    "I don''t like myself at all. It''s impossible."


    Yamamura answered honestly, perhaps out of obligation for having been lent gloves.


    The thing she wanted to hide was herself, and that was one of the first factors that left her overshadowed.


    If you didn''t want to reveal yourself, if you didn''t want to appeal to others, you would inevitably act inconspicuously.


    Even in a discussion, they would hide behind someone and try to avoid being recognized.


    It was simr to wearing ck clothes in the middle of the night.


    Also, because they don''t move unnecessarily, they are rarely noticed when in view.


    It''s as if they have less presence than they should.


    Furthermore, from what I have seen, Yamamura seems to be more wary of people than others.


    In other words, she was afraid of other people and avoided asserting herself as much as possible.


    Thebination of these factors resulted in the birth of Yamamura, a shadowy and unrecognizable student.


    The problem was that even if the cause was known, there was no immediate solution.


    I, who didn''t usually interact with Yamamura, would only make her more wary of me. It would be easier to reach her if there was someone close enough for her to trust.


    Eventually, our conversation ended here and we went silent.


    About 10 minutester, just before the doors opened, everyone returned.


    "So how should we divide ourselves up? We don''t all have to ski together, right?"


    Even though acting as a group was mandatory, it didn''t mean we had to match every detail. There was a mix of beginners and advanced skiers, and it would be difficult or even bothersome if everyone had to fit in with one or the other.


    The key was bnce. Whether or not the people around you would judge it as reasonable when they see it.


    The team division would have to be considered starting with the least technically skilled of the eight. "Yamamura and I are confirmed for the beginner course. I don''t mind if the two of us ski together." There was a gentle beginner course at the bottom of the ski area, so it was definite that both of them would ski there. Yamamura quickly agreed to Watanabe''s offer.


    "I think it would be better if someone who can ski to follow Yamamura-san and the others. If you want, I can..."


    "Oh, that''s okay, Kushida-san. I''ll do it in the beginner''s area."


    "What? Is that okay?"


    "Don''t worry about it, you can go ahead and ski. Even if you can ski, the advanced course is a bit scary."


    Amikura offered to follow Yamamura and the others, even though she was at the level where she could ski normally.


    "I''m not sure about the advanced course either... so I''ll do that."


    Nishino answered and told the others at the same time, as if she had also nned to do so from the beginning.


    Unexpectedly, we agreed to split into groups of four people each and ski different courses.


    "If you want to ski on the intermediate or higher courses, let me know anytime."


    In case Nishino and Amikura weren''t willing to put up with it, Kushida added, "I''ll be there to support you."


    "Well, lunch is at noon. Let''s all meet up at the restaurant."


    As the group began to move toward the entrance of the ski resort, an unfamiliar sound, the beating of horses'' hooves, began to fill the air.


    K��enji happened to be the rider.


    The students in the other sses were truly astonished, and even the devil himself seemed to be a little taken aback.


    It was an understandable reaction for students who hadn''t known K��enji for very long.


    "Sir,��������! You aren''t on the course...!" Immediately after, we saw several panicked staff members in the distance, shouting as they chased after him.


    "What was that...?"


    "That''s amazing, isn''t it...?"


    Stunned, Nishino stared at K��enji, and her figure seemed to shrink.


    "What is this? I''ve never seen anything like this before, but I''m not surprised."


    Kushida said this so that only I could hear.


    "As ssmates, we''re used to seeing K��enji''s oundish behavior..."


    Strangely, I felt it wasn''t surprising that something like what just happened would happen with Koenji.


    Familiarity, to put it bluntly.

 Chapter 316: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 316: 3.3</h4>


    We split up to change our clothes, got ready, and met at the rendezvous point. We moved to the front of the lift in a car with myself, Kushida, Ry��en, and Kit��.


    We decided to board the two-person lift in thebination of me and Ry��en, and Kushida, and Kit��.


    We decided that thisbination would be the least likely to cause trouble.


    To be on the safe side, we let Kushida and Kit�� go first and put a couple of pairs between us before getting on the lift.


    By doing this, we also aimed to avoid a standoff on the lift.


    "Can''t you and Kit�� get along a little better?"


    "That''s impossible. If Kit�� insists on it though, that''s a different story."


    Staring at the snowy mountains, Ry��en replied as if to throw up.


    "So you''re saying there''s not much hope. If that''s the case, so be it, but it''s a rare chance. Kit�� seems to have gained some trust from Sakayanagi. I thought you might be thinking of using this as an opportunity to get into their pocket. In some cases, you might be able to make an ally of him."


    Ry��en, sitting beside me, thought that this school trip was mainly about gathering information, and he wasn''t wrong. In fact, it was likely that Sakayanagi thought something simr.


    "Kit��''s appearance ain''tpletely human, but he seems to be full of loyalty. Besides, Sakayanagi was naturally wary of me when he formed a group with me. A bad negotiation would be counterproductive."


    "You''re rather pragmatic, aren''t you?"


    So far, I had little interaction with Kit��, and I still didn''t know anything about him in detail.


    However, we could strongly sense from his attitude that he thoroughly disliked Ry��en and that he was trying to protect ss A together with Sakayanagi. I hadn''t heard of any problematic behavior from Kit�� himself. If he carelessly negotiated to bring him into his side, it would be like asking for information to be passed down the tubes.


    "Besides, the only personnel we needed from ss A was Katsuragi. Kit�� and Hashimoto are good enough as small fries, but not good enough to be our pawns. It''s not worth the risk."


    That seemed to be the reason why they treated Kit�� and Hashimoto with continued hostility instead of a friendly manner.


    While he acknowledged Kit�� and the others, he seems to give special recognition to Katsuragi by far.


    The lift arrived and we got off at the advanced course. Kit��, who was waiting ahead of us, called Ry��en to the starting point with a nce.


    He said he wouldn''t waste any time and got straight into the race down the hill.


    "Hey, give the signal."


    Ry��en instructed Kushida and ordered her to count for the start.


    "Both of you, be careful."


    Kushida raised her hand and began the countdown for the start. They were a few meters away from each other and poised to start skiing. Who would be the winner?


    "Start!"


    The moment Kushida lowered her hand, they both got off to a good start at nearly the same time.


    "Let''s go after them, shall we?"


    "Oh, are you sure? I''m not sure I can keep up with you....


    "Well then, you can slowly catch up to us."


    After a few seconds, Kushida and I started to slide down the slope.


    Ry��en and Kit�� were battling back and forth, going with the flow.


    They skied down the slope at high speeds, arcing beautifully to the right and left.


    My technique, which was still iplete yesterday, began to improve with their example.


    A longer, more advanced course would allow me to learn more in-depth and deliberately.


    Apart from that, the battle between Ry��en and Kit�� was almost even.


    I thought one of them would pull ahead sooner than the other, but it was pretty much a dead heat. As far as I could tell, there wasn''t much difference in technique, and they were equallypetitive.


    Even after the halfway point of the course, there was still no sign of a decisive advantage.


    The two skiers were still tangled up, and just as the race wasing to a close, the horizontal distance they had maintained between each other began to close. It resulted in a dangerous situation.


    The two skiers were now at risk of colliding with each other due to the ovep in course positioning.


    No, this wasn''t a mere coincidence.


    It should be considered a warning, as though they were suggesting that it''ll still be a victory even if you tackle your opponent and make them fall.


    I copied both of their moves and elerated, absorbing almost all of their techniques.


    "Die, Kit��!"


    "Get lost, Ry��en!"


    I sensed the dyed sound of such voices, and just before they were about to collide, I forcefully inserted myself in the small gap between the two. The intrusion of a third party caused the two to scatter to the left and right in a panic.


    Both sides red at me, but I seeded in forcing them to keep their distance.


    After skiing down the advanced course in one go, Ry��en and the others stopped slightly ahead of me.


    Ry��en and Kit�� immediately turned around and approached on foot.


    "Why did you interrupt us?"


    The two men were about to grab me with an angry tone.


    "Because I thought it was dangerous," I said.


    "You got overzealous and tried to win in something other than skiing."


    "A match is a match in any form. Ry��en knew that."


    "It doesn''t matter if the opponent understands it or not, that''s not a skiing match."


    After a round ofints, Kit�� red at Ry��en and then skied away.


    He seemed to feel that the atmosphere had dissipated, that they wouldpeteter.


    At that time, Kushida also came down the slope and arrived at our ce.


    "The three of you are too fast, or rather, Ayanok��ji-kun was quite abnormal...!"


    Ry��en also approached with a disgruntled look on his face as he stomped through the snow.


    "Are you really a beginner? Did you lie?"


    "Lie? No, yesterday was my first time skiing."


    Ry��en didn''t believe it, spat, and headed for the lift alone.


    I guess that''s a relief for now. Maybe.


    "It''s no wonder he''s so angry, I mean, you were skiing spectacrly. It was like the hero of aic book who does everything perfectly with his talent, even if he doesn''t work hard. Like Ry��en said, was it really only your second time?"


    I hate to say it, but I''m not that kind ofic book hero.


    Over the years I had lived, my body and soul umted countless experiences.


    Even if skiing itself was new to me, sports in general were basically connected by broad and shallow lines.


    I just tried to connect them with the verbal and visual information I received.


    "You don''t believe me?"


    "No, I do. But I might not have believed you if I hadn''t seen your skills when dealing with Amasawa."


    At that time, I had shown Kushida a fight between White Room students, even if it was only for a moment.


    Did that doubt and skepticism from then add credibility to my improvement in skiing?


    "That''s great."


    I was praised once again, but I couldn''t bring myself to ept the praise.


    "No, it''s not."


    "This again."


    It couldn''t be helped that they only saw it as a show of modesty.


    But in fact, Ry��en and Kit��''s skiing was that of experts, true role models.


    They may not have umted as much experience as I have.


    In that sense, they have much more sense than I do.


    "Let''s head for a lift, too. Now that the trouble''s finished, we can enjoy skiing."


    "Yeah, right. It might be difficult for those who can''t ski though."


    That''s true for fun in general.


    It would be nice if people could enjoy skiing even if they were terrible at it, but that''s not the case.


    Whether it was video games or sports, those who weren''t good at them often didn''t enjoy them.

 Chapter 317: 3.4

    <h4>Chapter 317: 3.4</h4>


    At noon, all of us in the sixth group gathered at a restaurant attached to the ski resort. It was set up like a food court, so we each ordered what we wanted and returned to our seats.


    I was handed a one-touch call bellbeled "32" and told to get the food I had ordered as soon as it rang.


    "How did it go with Watanabe-kun and the others? Were you able to improve your skiing?"


    Kushida, being on the advanced course until now, asked about the results of the four who went to the beginner course.


    "I''ve learned to ski pretty well. I''m still not as good as Amikura and Nishino, though."


    Watanabe was humble but also revealed a bit of confidence in his growth.


    On the other hand, Yamamura, whose name wasn''t mentioned, had a darker expression and wasn''t in high spirits.


    "Yamamura is... Well, she''s not ready yet."


    They reported that there was no sign of improvement.


    The air of not calling out to the person in question was also very strong, so I decided to keep quiet.


    Then the one-touch bell rang and I went to get my meal.


    I took the hot soup curry to the table on a tray.


    Then, when all eight of us were present, we started our lunch.


    Ry��en, who had chosen a hamburger as a light meal, was the first to finish eating and pushed the wrapping paper and tray to Watanabe.


    Watanabe smiled bitterly and stacked the empty tray on top of his own.


    "Give me your time, Ayanok��ji."


    "Eh... I''m still in the middle of eating, aren''t I?"


    About a third of the soup curry remained.


    Waiting too long would ruin the hot soup.


    "Get on with it."


    Watanabe sent me off silently, feeling sorry for me. Ry��en wasn''t looking at me in the first ce.


    "I''m going to take a break."


    "Yeah, I''ll wait while everyone else eats."


    I let Kushida take charge of the situation and walked with Ry��en through the food court.


    I finally stopped at the end of the food court and took out my cell phone.


    I unlocked it with my fingertips and stared at the screen for a while.


    "I knew it. Sure enough, that person, Sakayanagi, is using her minions to gather information."


    It seems that she was confirming the report from her ssmates.


    "I guess it''s the same with you too."


    I wasn''t asking him directly, but I assumed that Ry��en gave them the same instructions.


    "Well. This school trip isn''t for cultivating friendship. In order to crush your enemies, it''s important to first rip off their limbs. Sakayanagi seems to know that very well."


    Neither Sakayanagi nor Ry��en could fight a ss battle as individuals.


    It was important to win the sspetition as a group.


    While it was necessary to improve their fellow students'' abilities, it was also important to reduce their opponents'' strength.


    Sakayanagi had particrly bad legs, and her range of movement was usually very limited.


    This was mostlypensated for by Kamuro and Hashimoto.


    If a weakness of theirs was discovered that would make them sumb to Ry��en, Sakayanagi would lose a valuable limb. Her ability to gather information would be diminished in a single stroke.


    "Let me ask you why you took the trouble to call me here. It''s not to report on the reconnaissance battle, is it?"


    "I''m going to instruct the rest of my ss to start preparing for an all-out war against Sakayanagi.


    Whether the assignment for the end-of-year exam is a written exam or not, I''ll crush her by any means necessary."


    "I heard something simr on the bus. You said the battle has already begun."


    "Yes. But before we make any moves, there''s something I need to remind you of."


    As Ry��en said this, my cell phone vibrated once.


    I told him to wait a moment and checked the screen to see a short message from Kushida.


    [Yamamura-san is on her way to you.]


    I was wondering if she was worried about me being summoned by Ry��en and moved to check on me.


    In all likelihood, Yamamura was moving under Sakayanagi''s instructions.


    The possibility that Yamamura was eavesdropping nearby had emerged, but I didn''t tell Ry��en.


    This was also a scene from the battle between Sakayanagi and Ry��en. My help was to Sakayanagi''s detriment.


    On the other hand, Ry��en also seemed to have received a message from someone else and was staring at the screen again.


    Without changing his expression, Ry��en put his cell phone in his pocket and began to talk.


    "I hope you remember what I said a year ago about my 800 million points n."


    "I still don''t think it''s feasible."


    "I''m sure you don''t. I''m also sure the rest of the ss will react the same way when they find out after this."


    "Are you going to tell them?"


    The only person in Ry��en''s ss who knew about the strategy to umte 800 million points must be Ibuki. Even Ibuki probably only learned about it by ident and didn''t know the specifics.


    "It''s a fucking expensive n. It''s not an amount of money I could afford if I proceeded in secret. I''ve got a little over a year left, and it''s a little toote to make a move."


    Certainly, the cooperation of his ssmates was essential if he was serious about


    increasing his strategy''s chances of sess. Just as Ichinose had gradually pooled everyone''s private points in trust, Ry��en also needed to work with his ssmates to reach the target amount.


    "What you want to confirm is whether I''m willing to cooperate with the 800 million points n?"


    "I''ve been very cordial with your ss up to this point, you know? I also pushed our focus for the end-of-year exams in Sakayanagi''s direction. I''m sure you have noints."


    I''m sure that since that timest year, when he and I discussed it, Horikita''s ss had been able to move so freely that they''d partially forgotten about Ry��en''s presence. If Ry��en had remained as belligerent as he was in the first year, things wouldn''t have gone so smoothly.


    "It looks like you''re doing pretty well with Kushida, too. I was excited by the idea that you were going to expel her from school."


    "Sorry. Sometimes we have to change our policy."


    Ry��enughed and pped his hands several times, as if he took a liking to my words or had a problem with them.


    "If I wanted to, it would be no problem to crush Kushida. You know that, don''t you?"


    Ry��en was one of the few students outside of the ss who knew Kushida''s true nature.


    He could''ve exposed it at any time, but he didn''t, which would be the very result of what he just implied.


    "So you want me to fulfill my promise? That''s very forceful of you, even including a threat."


    "I don''t care if it''s forceful or not. Are you going to do it or not?"


    At that time, it was a verbal promise, but Ry��en had said that he wouldn''t relent if I vited it.


    "Before I reply, let me ask you this: even if you were able to defeat Sakayanagi, what would you do after that?"


    "After defeating ss A at the end of the school year, it will be a one-on-one battle between my ss and your ss, that''s a given. In my mind, it''s all part of the story until we defeat you."


    So that''s what he was thinking. I don''t doubt it, though, considering what I had seen so far.


    "That''s a little too convenient. At that time, you got off the stage once. And you were only supposed to be in charge of getting the word out to Kaneda and Hiyori. But now you''re back on the stage. If you want to make good on your promise, it makes sense to back out. If we''re in ss A and you''re in ss B, isn''t it inevitable that they will give up the win?"


    Only then can we set the scene for the 800 million point cooperation talk.


    "You don''t like it?"


    "Of course not. If Horikita and you, along with both sses really sh, and you win and move up to ss A, our side will be the only one to have made fools of ourselves. Or are you going to promise to promote the students from Horikita''s ss to ss A if the 800 million n seeds?"


    The smile faded from Ry��en''s face, and he turned his sharp, sideways eyes towards me.


    "That''s an impossible proposition. The extra private points are ours, of course. It''s money that will carry on after we graduate, and we''re not going to use it to save students who have nothing to do with it."


    "If they lose, we''ll bail you out, and if you win, you''ll abandon us? It''s a proposal we don''t need to think about any longer. We can''t cooperate with the n to umte 800 million points. However, you''re free to attack any ss from now on, and we have no right to stop you."


    "I guess you''re not so naive after all, Ayanok��ji." This wasn''t just about me. I wasn''t the only one who had a problem with this. So that''s where we left off at that time. He backed down more easily than I had expected. He seemed to have known that he would be rejected.


    "Even if negotiations break down, do you still n to save up 800 million points?"


    "I''m not going to change my strategy now. My main goal is to save the 800 million. After that, I''m going to beat Sakayanagi, and then you. If I don''t spend any money and get to ss A, I''ll graduate with a lot of money. Right?"


    The n, which had been a dream, was reced by another ideal. But from here on, Ry��en boldly imed that he would save 800 million.


    "Up till this point, we''ve spent money on pulling out Katsuragi and using the first-year brats, but now it''s the time to recoup it. I''m going to switch to a thoroughgoing private point system."


    The more eager you were to collect private points, the greater the risk you take.


    Ry��en''s thoughts and attitude here cast a strange shadow over my thinking.


    "You look as if you''re wondering why I pressed you to fulfill your promise without making any concessions."


    "That''s true. I don''t see the purpose of this conversation."


    "It''s simple. I can''t destroy you if I''m still halfway connected to you. But if you break it like this, it''s different. We can go toe-to-toe."


    In other words, he chose his obsession with a renewed vigor over a conflict of interest. He said something simr on the bus, but he dered war once again.


    Still, I wasn''tpletely convinced. There was an agenda behind this conversation.


    I wouldn''t find an answer if I pursued it here. "It''s fine to look ahead, but you should think about a rematch only after you beat Sakayanagi."


    "Ha. I know she''s smart. But that''s all there is to it."


    He showed absolute confidence in the battle during the end-of-year exam.


    Ry��en was defeated and then resurrected. I''ll admit that his talent exceeded my expectations. It''s also true that his sess story is steadily on track.


    However... At the end of the day, whether or not he''ll be able to ovee the obstacles in the path is another matter. I wonder if his inuracy in recognizing the obstacles will eventually resonate on the battlefield. Of course, the signs and indications will change again depending on how Sakayanagi perceives Ry��en as well.


    "Go back first, Ayanok��ji."


    Saying this, Ry��en walked toward the restroom.


    Hiyori, who had been watching us from a somewhat distant seat, noticed us and waved. Apparently, Hiyori''s group had alsoe to ski.


    I slightly raised my hand in reply and returned to the group''s table.


    Yamamura had already returned and was silently using her cellphone with a nonchnt look on her face.


    "Where''s Ry��en?"


    "He''s going to stop by the restroom and thene back." "


    ... Are you okay? Did you get hit or anything?"


    Watanabe looked worried and checked every part of my body.


    "No worries. We were just chatting a little."


    "I hope so..."


    Yamamura, who had been eating slowly here, finished her meal and took her tray to the west to match Nishino.


    "I... am going to put my tray away."


    Since the two ordered from the same restaurant, they seemed to go back together.


    "Ayanok��ji, if you have a weakness, feel free to tell me."


    Kit�� muttered with a deep gaze, as if he thought Watanabe had been asking too persistently.


    I would have liked for him to say those words before I was summoned.


    When Ry��en returned shortly after, Kit�� shifted his gaze from me.


    "You ran away from me and switched to frightening people of other sses?"


    "Oh? Kuku, don''t worry, Kit��. I''m going to take care of you and the rest of ss A. I''m going to teach you that Sakayanagi is only a steppingstone for me after all."


    "You can''t beat ss A."


    "You never know."


    He shrunk the margin, or should I say Ry��en acted to make it look that way.


    He may be saying that he can win, but there''s no actual proof behind it.


    Of course, he may have information that I was unaware of, but in a simpleparison of ability, Sakayanagi was a cut above the rest.


    "Don''t wait for the end-of-year exam, you can always try to set me up."


    "Hey, hey, you don''t have the authority to do that, Kit��. You, whose only merit is your role as a loyal dog, are the one who gets in trouble when you make careless remarks, right?"


    Kit��, having been called a dog, ced hisrge palm on the table and stood up.


    "Naturally, I alone am enough to defeat you."


    "Oh? Then is this ''the third time''s the charm?''"


    The pillow fight was stopped by a broken pillow. The skiing match wasn''t settled due to my intervention.


    "Let''s be friends, you two. There''s already a rumor going around that our group is pretty dangerous."


    Some of the surrounding customers were beginning to look at the standoff between Ry��en and Kit�� in wonder.


    It was only a matter of time before the teachers would hear about it if they continued to be too mboyant.


    "By the way, aren''t Nishino-san and the otherste?"


    "You could say that."


    It shouldn''t have taken more than a minute to take the trays back, but there was no sign of them returning.


    Noticing that Nishino and Yamamura hadn''t returned, Kushida went looking for them.


    "Oh, there they are. But I think they''re tangled up with some boys I don''t know."


    In the crowded food court, Kushida pointed in the direction of Nishino and Yamamura, who were surrounded by five male students. Both had a grim expression.


    "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Let''s go help them."


    "It''s better not to move inrge numbers. If you get caught, you''ll be in trouble."


    I had just issued such advice, but there were already people leaving their seats.


    The two guys, who wouldn''t listen to my advice, went to Nishino and the others withoutmunicating with each other.


    "Kushida and the rest, wait here."


    I instructed Kushida, Amikura, and Watanabe not to move.


    As I caught up with Ry��en and Kit��, who were heading toward the scene with heavy footsteps, a conversation reached my ears.


    "You bumped me on the shoulder and made no apology? My clothes are stained with ramen broth."


    Apparently, it wasn''t Nishino who started the trouble, but Yamamura, who seemed to have bumped into the man.


    "Isn''t it your fault for not noticing Yamamura-san walking by?"


    The boysughed teasingly and touched their own shoulders.


    "No, no, I couldn''t see you because you looked like a female ghost over here. See?"


    "...I''m really... Sorry."


    Yamamura apologized in a small voice. Perhaps she already apologized more than once or twice. But the boys continued to act as if they hadn''t heard her.


    "We''re here on a school trip from Gifu, let''s y. I''ll let you off the hook for that."


    The man forcibly grabbed Nishino''s arm as he stood there.


    "Huh? I''m not interested. Who would y with you guys?"


    Nishino''s palm lightly brushed against the boy''s cheek as she forcibly pulled her arm out of his grasp.


    "I know."


    The boys, who had been smiling in a vulgar manner throughout, immediately changed their expressions.


    One of the five boys was blown away.


    "What the hell are you doing?"


    "That''s my line. What do you want with my friend?"


    It was Ry��en who delivered a powerful kick to the back of the boy''s head.


    He grabbed the other boy by the chest immediately afterwards and raised him up.


    "Don''t squeal like a peeping bird in front of a woman!"


    "I''m going to kill you, you...!"


    "Go ahead, try it. I''ll let you hit me once if you want. You want a souvenir from the school trip, don''t you?"


    He held up his index finger as if he was offering his left cheek to him.


    "Oh, then thanks for feeling free to let me hit you once!"


    He did as he was told and forcefully swung his arm.


    "Ah, that''s..."


    "Don''t think I''m really going to let you hit me. You can''t even get such advice this time."


    Seeing his opponent''s uselesslyrge movements, Ry��en grabbed both of the boy''s shoulders and mmed him with a powerful knee kick to the stomach.


    The student from the other school rolled around in agony.


    *Illustration


    "Even a boring school trip can have a slightly interesting event, can''t it?"


    Ry��en began to find enjoyment in the situation that was bound to result.


    The first event in his high school life that brought him into contact with another school turned out to be a disturbingly violent affair.


    One of the boys hit him with his left and right fists, clenched with all his might.


    There was no pretense of a one-on-one fight, and the other side seemed intent on winning through numbers.


    Then, Kit�� appeared, slithering toward them.


    The other boys were flustered by his face and intimidating appearance, which was clearly not that of a high school student.


    "It looks like he''s trying to... Fight on our side."


    Nishino grabbed Yamamura by the shoulders to protect her as she walked over to me and muttered.


    "Yamamura is a ssmate of Kit��''s. It''s only natural that he wouldn''t back down if he found her in a pinch."


    Fortunately, they seemed to understand that further fighting in the food court wasn''t a good idea, and Ry��en and the others walked gingerly toward the exit door.


    "Shouldn''t someone call an adult?"


    "I can''t stop them now that they''re like that. I''d rather have them avoid the public eye and fight with each other."


    I saw that the opponents outnumbered us, but none of them looked used to cooperating.


    If Ry��en and Kit�� teamed up to fight, it wouldn''t take them long.


    About 10 minutester, Ry��en and the others returned. They came back with the people they beat down.


    They made them get down on their knees in front of Yamamura and Nishino and beg for forgiveness.


    It looked like they thoroughly beat the defiance out of them and shattered their spirits...


    This would a problem if anyone saw it, but maybe it was necessary for Yamamura and Nishino''s sake.


    They made them swear never to show themselves in front of the girls again, and then they were released.


    "Never a dull moment, huh?" Kushida whispered and I could only agree.

 Chapter 318: 3.5

    <h4>Chapter 318: 3.5</h4>


    After skiing as much as we could, we returned to the ryokan before 19:00.


    We hadn''t skied enough yet, but it was probably just as well, as we didn''t want to leave anything behind.


    The end of the second day was approaching, and the night was steadily inching closer. At dinner, Sud�� invited me to join him in therge public bath, where I washed my body before rxing in the hot spring water.


    "Ka! It works!"


    I''m sure Sud��, who sweats it out during basketball practice on a daily basis, would find it exceptionally effective.


    He repeatedly scooped the hot water with both hands and washed his face, seemingly blowing away his exhaustion.


    "Yo."


    After soaking in the bathtub for a while in a daze, Hashimoto, a ss A student, came up next to me.


    I lightly raised my hand in reply, and Sudo raised his hand in unison.


    "Well... I''ve been really tired today."


    The ss was a great way to get to know each other and learn more about each other.


    "Did something happen?"


    "Nothing happened, I''ve just been worrying about a problem child in my group."


    Inwardly, Hashimoto''s group had been bothering him since the beginning.


    "Well, there''s K��enji."


    "Correct. Free activities are supposed to be all hands on deck, right? Normally, if you have a sane nerve, you should be discussing it, but we''re all going along with wherever that guy wants to go."


    It was obvious that K��enji wasn''t the type to maturely obey, and that still doesn''t seem to change even in a group environment that included all sses.


    "It looks like you were at the ranch that offered horseback riding today. Was that something K��enji wanted to do?"


    "Why would you ask that? Is it any wonder if you saw themotion he caused?"


    Hashimoto, with his head in his hands, immersed the lower half of his face into the bathtub.


    "I only saw him ride through, but did K��enjie back properly after that?"


    Hashimoto remained submerged for about ten seconds, but then he shrugged his shoulders and surfaced.


    "After about an hour. We didn''t have the mental capacity to continue horseback riding, so we just waited it out."


    He then went on to tell us how his free day went.


    Sud�� murmured his condolences and sped his hands together.


    "We were nning on having lunch at a famous TV restaurant before noon, but that guy K��enji said he was going skiing. Without even a moment''s hesitation, he went straight to the ski resort on his own. I was so exhausted that I didn''t have time to have fun. That was the end of our second day."


    If they had ignored him and gone to the famous restaurant, they would''ve vited the group guidelines.


    What a pitiful story.


    "I was wondering if you guys, his ssmates, had any suggestions on how to deal with him."


    The school trip was just past the halfway point and there were only two days left.


    At least for the fourth day, where there was free time again, the group wanted to follow the choice they decided on.


    "He''s out of control. I guess there''s nothing you can do about it."


    Sud�� said what he thought.


    It sounded cold, but I knew him long enough to know that everyone had already given up on him.


    "How about you, Ayanok��ji?"


    "It''s not realistic to try to convince K��enji. I honestly don''t think there''s anything you can do about it."


    "...It''s a ruthless reality."


    "But there''s one way to do it if ites down to it."


    "What is it? Let me hear it."


    Hashimoto, who wanted to know how to de-escte the situation no matter how small the possibility, bit the bullet.


    There was only one move that would guarantee free movement as long as the disadvantages were eptable.


    When I finished telling him the method, Hashimoto nodded his head in agreement.


    "Well, that''s about all that''s left, isn''t it?"


    "I think you should discuss what to do as a group."


    "I''ll do that, and we''ll consider it seriously."


    Hashimoto disappeared back into the bathtub as he thought about it.

 Chapter 319: 3.6

    <h4>Chapter 319: 3.6</h4>


    After spending an hour in therge bath and putting on our yukatas, both Sud�� and I took a bottle of free mineral water from the refrigerated case in the changing room and poured it down our throats with our hands on our hips. The cool water soaked into our burning bodies.


    "I''m... Ready for this, Ayanok��ji."


    "I guess this means it''s time to go."


    His face was slightly red, perhaps because he was still a little flushed from the long bath. Or perhaps it was because he was nervous about what was toe. It was time to tell Horikita how he felt. Sud�� gulped down the half-full water in one go.


    "Phew! Let''s go!"


    He pped both cheeks simultaneously to fire himself up, as if he were about to enter a basketball game.


    "So? What exactly are you going to do?"


    It was just past 9:30 p.m. Most of the students were probably in their rooms, rxing with their friends. I doubt anyone was already sleeping.


    I can''t imagine them having fun or making noise together, but I wouldn''t be surprised if Horikita was watching them with a warm gaze.


    "Anyway, yes... I''ll try calling her on her cell phone."


    Clutching his phone, he walked through the warm room and exited the men''s bath... and immediately started calling.


    "...Oh, hey, it''s me. Where are you?"


    He asked in a hurry, as she answered the phone without wasting time.


    "In the lobby? Okay, just wait there for a minute. I''ll be right there."


    Sud�� hung up and looked at me as he walked away, breathing heavily.


    "There''s a small corner in the lobby of the ryokan that sells souvenirs, right? I heard she''s there."


    "Don''t confess right away, okay? It''s easy to be seen in the lobby. Horikita will be in trouble too."


    "I know, I know."


    A confession is a big event that requires consideration of not only the one confessing, but also the recipient.


    "But where should I confess...?"


    "If it''s in the hallway leading to the backyard, no one will being at this time, right?"


    There was a little wooden deck with a nice view if you headed up the stairs leading from the backyard to the higher ground.


    However, after 9 p.m., you couldn''t go out to that backyard, so there should be no one there.


    "As one would expect from you, Ayanok��ji, you''re a good friend to have."


    He said with a thumbs up and a smile. It was a stiff, nervous smile though.


    When a restless Sud�� arrived at the lobby at a brisk pace, Horikita stopped browsing souvenirs, waiting nearby. I, on the other hand, kept my distance and stood in a blind spot.


    In the lobby, there was one employee and several students looking at souvenirs or sitting on chairs chatting, allowing me to realize once again that this wasn''t the right ce for a confession.


    Somehow, while gesturing with his hands, Sud�� seemed to have seeded in calling Horikita to the hallway leading to the backyard, and the two of them started walking in that direction side by side.


    If that was the case, I should probably stop chasing them at this point, but it would also be troublesome to have Sud�� chastise me.


    I followed them to watch his heroic figure while trying to minimize the sound of my footsteps.


    Soon after, as I had expected, signs of people disappeared, and I stopped in the middle of an empty corridor.


    "What''s wrong?"


    Horikita turned around and wondered. Her hair was glossy, so much so that even in the dim light I could tell she had also been bathing not long beforehand.


    "I''m fine."


    Sud��, whose imposing demeanor was his main selling point, was perhaps too nervous in front of the member of the opposite sex he liked�Csomething that was made clear by his low voice.


    At night, the ryokan was a quiet ce with subdued background music and quiet chatter, so unexpected loud noises were to be avoided, even in an unpopr area. That being the case, his voice was suitable.


    "I''m... That..." Horikita tilted her head curiously at Sud��''s stuttering.


    The two weren''t particrly irritated or rushed at this point.


    This may have been another indication of the trust Horikita and Sud�� had built between them.


    When they first met, Horikita would''ve rushed him to state his business, no questions asked.


    At this point, my cell phone started vibrating. Even though I had it on silent mode, there was a possibility that they could hear me in the quiet environment.


    Therefore, I immediately powered my cell phone off without checking the screen.


    It seemed that she didn''t notice me. That''s a relief for now.


    "Hey, Suzune. Am I... Changing?"


    I thought he was going to make his confession, but Sud�� asked something else, as if he was squeezing the question out of himself.


    "I was wondering... How much difference there is between me now and when I met you."


    "Are you still worried about what people think of you?"


    "Yes, that too."


    It was a topic that would keep the two upied while Sud��''s courage to confess built up.


    At the same time, it seemed that Sud�� himself continued to be conscious of this.


    "That''s right. Objectively speaking, you''ve changed more than anyone else. Not for the worse, but for the better. I''ve been standing by your side for a long time, and I can assure you of that."


    Those were Horikita''s true feelings.


    No, it would be an opinion that many other students would agree with as well, not just Horikita.


    "Oh, I see."


    "But don''t be prideful. You originally started out, if I may say so without reservation, in a more negative state than those around you.


    Don''t think that just because you have umted positives since then, that easily makes you a more aplished person than others."


    The great rebound from the misleading initial negative impression was highly valued by others.


    However, as Horikita said, the umted negatives hadn''t gone away.


    "Yes, that''s right. No, I seriously think that''s true."


    Sud�� nodded his head in eptance, depressed due to the harsh words, but resolutely epting them.


    "That''s not good. I''ve been a fool myself."


    The tardiness and absences, the lowest ranking on the written exam, the abusivenguage, and the immediate violence.


    No matter how many times he looked back, the past never changed, and he was ashamed of the path he had taken.


    "You seem to have a firm and humble heart."


    He nodded, and then Horikita gently squinted her eyes at him and smiled.


    He probably didn''t realize it, but Horikita changed a lot.


    The magnitude of that change was probably not much different from Sud��''s.


    "You don''t needlessly hurt or annoy others anymore. It''s okay."


    Apparently, Horikita interpreted this as Sud�� asking her for advice due to being unsure about his own growth and past. This must have been conveyed to Sud��, who shook his head hurriedly.


    "No, no, no, Suzune."


    "No?"


    "I... I''m..."


    Perhaps remembering what he had dered to me, Sud�� quickly held out his right hand.


    But the words didn''t follow the actions, only the outstretched and spread hand remained in front of her.


    "What? What is this?"


    Horikita was about to inquire about the meaning of his right hand since she didn''t understand.


    "I love you! Please go out with me!"


    He was able to free himself from the shame of trying to hold back and said the words clearly.


    His voice was loud, but... I''ll ignore that for now.


    If someone was in range to hear it, I could detect it and prevent it.


    "E-eh...?"


    Horikita, who had never expected a confession, froze as if she was shocked.


    "If you''ll go out with me, I want you to hold my right hand in return!"


    "Hey... Is that seriously...?"


    Horikita was about to ask back, but quickly retracted her words.


    It must be some kind of joke, right? Since she could tell that Sud��''s passion, enthusiasm, and thoughts were so genuine, she understood that it would be impolite to say such a thing.


    Horikita stared at his right hand and closed her lips.


    I thought she would respond immediately, but Horikita remained silent, staring at his right hand.


    The longer the silence continued, the higher Sud��''s heart rate must have soared.


    It was likely a painful wait, not at allfortable.


    However, Horikita should''ve been given time to consider it.


    A confession cannot be made while only considering one party''s feelings.


    Horikita''s mind must have eventuallye to a decision, as she began to speak slowly, as if choosing her words.


    "I have never once thought that I would be the one to receive a confession from someone."


    How will Horikita answer Sud��''s passionate feelings?


    Will she ept or decline?


    Or will she put the matter on hold?


    As the silence dragged on, Sud��''s right arm seemed to gradually begin to tremble.


    It wasn''t due to numbness in his arm, but nervousness and fear.


    It was a feeling of frustration at not receiving a response, wondering if he would be epted or not.


    Still believing that the hand he held out would be grasped, Sud�� continued to bow his head. "Sud��-kun. Thank you for liking someone like me."


    She expressed her gratitude.


    However, Horikita didn''t make a move to take his right hand.


    "But I''m sorry. I am... Unable to answer your feelings."


    That was the conclusion Horikita drew after considering it.


    "Yes, well, if you... Like, can you at least tell me... Why?"


    Unable to lift his gaze, Sud�� said that with his right hand going rigid.


    "Reason... I guess. It''s not that I''m dissatisfied with you..."


    She started to speak, but then stopped.


    "I''ll be honest, I''ve never been in love with another person before. I don''t have those feelings right now, and I have no idea what it''s like. I thought that if I went out with Sudo-kun, who told me he liked me, there might be a chance that I could fall in love with you over time. But... I decided I don''t want that kind of inducement. Maybe I''m waiting for the moment when I naturally fall in love with someone."


    As if to confirm her feelings, Horikita told Sud�� so.


    That was why she refused.


    A desire to keep waiting for her first love.


    It was surely a hidden feeling that she would never let an unrted stranger hear.


    "Well, thanks for...For telling me."


    Perhaps because he had been told so resolutely, Sud�� didn''t try to bite back.


    "Your courage and your feelings�CI got the message very clearly."


    Horikita said this, and as he was about to lower his now lifeless right hand, she hurriedly grabbed it.


    "I certainly received your feelings. Thank you for liking me."


    Sud��''s trembling right hand said it all.


    *Illustration


    I decided it was time to turn around and go back to the souvenir shop to wait for their return.

 Chapter 320: 3.7

    <h4>Chapter 320: 3.7</h4>


    In the souvenir section, which had yet to close, various Hokkaido souvenirs were on disy.


    "On that note, Nanase said something about chocte-coated fries."


    I tried to find out what exactly they were, but I couldn''t find any, as the ryokan didn''t carry them.


    It seems I''ll have to look for them while visiting tomorrow''s designated locations or during my free time on thest day of the trip.


    I''ll check my cell phone to see if there are any stores that carry them.


    "Oops...."


    I powered my cell phone on and checked it, and immediately saw arge number of messages and iing call logs.


    Of course, they were from Kei.


    [Where are you?]


    [I haven''t seen you at all yesterday or today.]


    [Are you in the middle of something?]


    [I miss you.]


    [I miss you so much!]


    I opened the app and read all the messages sent to me every few seconds.


    Immediately after, the phone rang.


    [Touwa!]


    It sounded like a cat''s growl, which was an apt description.


    [Are you mad at me?]


    "No, I''m not mad."


    I see, it seemed that she was very, very angry with me.


    [Why don''t you at least give me a little attention?]


    "Sorry. We''re on a school trip, but I have a lot of things to do."


    [I don''t know if that''s a good thing!]


    "I''ve already confirmed that you''re doing a good job of getting information about the eleventh group from Kushida, so I was relieved on my own."


    [Hmmm? You seem to be having a lot of fun with her?! You''re so rude! Cheater!]


    "We''re in the same group. Besides, you know what kind of person she is."


    [It doesn''t matter. And she''s got big boobs! I''m not a... Ah mou!]


    "Okay, okay. I''ll make some time now, so let''s meet up somewhere."


    [Really? Then let''s go have fun!]


    Being very attention-hungry, she soon came back to sounding cheerful.


    "I don''t think we should do that. I have Ry��en in my room."


    [Oh... I see.]


    "Where are you now?"


    [I''m in my room, but I think the three girls are still in the bathtub. I was with them a while ago, but I came back first to call you.]


    Kei was extremely self-conscious about the scars on her body, but it seemed like she hadpletely gotten over it.


    "I''m going to get the key to my room, so I''m going back to my room immediately. I''ll call you after that, so wait for me."


    [Yes!]


    I waited for less than five minutes for Sud�� in the souvenir corner. When there was no sign of his return, I became curious and decided to check the corridor leading to the backyard.


    I found Sud�� standing alone in the same position as when he confessed his feelings. Since I couldn''t see Horikita, she must''ve already left.


    "Sud��?"


    Since Kei was also waiting for me, I felt bad but approached him from here and called out to him.


    "Oh, shit!"


    It was possible that he had an irritated look on his face judging from his voice, but...


    "I knew I couldn''t do it...!"


    Sud��''s face, when he turned around, had a look of frustration on it, but he also looked radiant.


    "No, my bad. I was in a daze because I couldn''t forget the feeling of Suzune''s hand."


    "So that''s what you meant."


    "Did you see that? It was a stunningly disastrous defeat."


    "Well, if so, you should be proud of yourself."


    I was shown an amazing confession, done in a very masculine, full-throated way.


    "Even if she rejected my confession, I wasn''t going to give up. I even thought about showing a better version of myself next year and confessing again. But that''s no good. I realized that at the very least, I can''t reach her."


    Sud�� seemed to sense something that I, who was watching from a distance, couldn''t.


    "It''s not a matter of giving up or not giving up. I still like her, but I feel like she''s like a flower that I long for, one I can''t reach."


    He couldn''t seem to put it all together, but heughed a little when he said that.


    "What are you going to do about Onodera?"


    "How should I know? You didn''t ask her what she really thinks, did you?"


    "Yes, I have."


    "Well, whatever will be, will be. Onodera is a nice girl, and we share the same interests. I''m not full of bitterness regarding Suzune, and I feel like I can hang out with her in a fair way."


    Whether it developed into love or not was secondary, I guess.


    "I''m telling you; I''m going to study hard in the future. Up until now, it''s been for someone else, but from today on, I''m going to give it my all for myself. My immediate goal is to get to Hirata''s level."


    "That''s a pretty big goal again."


    If he could get over that wall, he would finally be facing the upper echelon of the school year, Horikita and Keisei.


    It seems that he was able to focus on greater goals instead of continuing to be discouraged by the rejection.

 Chapter 321: 3.8

    <h4>Chapter 321: 3.8</h4>


    I walked back to the guest room at a brisk pace and found Horikita standing outside.


    "What are you doing?"


    "I was waiting for you."


    "Me?" I


    had a bad feeling about this, so I tried to feign confusion, but Horikita''s expression was hard.


    "You''re mean as well, Ayanok��ji-kun. You saw it, didn''t you?"


    "What are you talking about?"


    "You were in the souvenir section earlier, weren''t you? Normally, I would think it was just a coincidence that someone was nearby, but in your case, I tried not to think of it as such."


    What an unnatural way of thinking. However, it was correct. If I ever took simr steps against Horikita in the future, I''ll have to make sure she can''t find me.


    "You''re thinking of trying to avoid being seen next time, aren''t you?"


    "...Well done."


    I apuded her honestly and praised her for her astute reading.


    "That''s what Sud�� asked me to do. He asked me to watch over him as he confessed."


    "Even if that''s the case, don''t you think that''s ack of consideration for the woman''s side - for me?"


    "I don''t think so."


    "You''re not being fair, Sud��-kun. I have to deduct points for you asking him to observe."


    I was stunned, but she didn''t seem that angry.


    "So? Did youe all the way here toin to me, a mere spectator?"


    "Yes."


    Again, she said it clearly and without reservation.


    "I''m only half joking. The truth is, I really need to talk to you. But you seem to need to get into the room."


    "It''s not like that, but... If you don''t mind, can we do it tomorrow?"


    "Why?"


    "I''m getting a lot of pressure from a different person. They''re upset because I haven''t dealt with them at all for the past two days."


    "I see, so it''s Karuizawa-san, is it?"


    She was probably going to figure it out anyways.


    "Tomorrow night then. I''ll forgive you if you can promise to lend me your ear at that time."


    "Okay, I promise."


    I replied, as there was no other option at this point.


    I left the key with Kit��, who was in the room, and headed to meet Kei. Although we were already recognized by many as an official couple, we couldn''t go everywhere like Ike and Shinohara.


    We decided to meet up in an area housing several private baths.


    I was scolded severely as soon as we met up, but I hugged her soon after and got her back in a good mood. We then spent some rxing time together for a while.

 Chapter 322 - 4: School Trip: Third Day

    <h4>Chapter 322: Chapter 4: School Trip: Third Day</h4>


    THE BUS DEPARTED from the ryokan at 9:00 a.m., arriving at our destination less than 50 minutester.


    The bus stopped near the Sapporo Station, the ce where we would start our day.


    The Sapporo Clock Tower was located here, and there were many points of interest for tourists. As usual, we were divided into groups, but there was one difference from the previous days.


    The school gave us a little test. Within a time limit (until 5:00 p.m.), the group must visit a total of six spots from a predetermined list of 15 destinations, in anybination. The group must take amemorative photo when they arrive at the designated photo location. This process was to be repeated. Groups that intentionally split up their members to collect points or groups with students who act selfishly and fail to act in solidarity wouldn''t be able toplete the tour.


    The only condition for disqualification was if a group visited fewer than six spots within the time limit. In that case, the students would be deprived of free activities on the fourth day of the excursion, and a study session would be held in the ryokan until 4:00 p.m.


    Each spot was assigned a score, and the group that umted a total of 20 points or more in the six spots will be rewarded with 30,000 private points. However, the group was allowed to decide whether or not to pursue the reward, as the score will not affect the disqualification.


    Also, if the photo wasn''t clear enough to identify the person, it wouldn''t be valid. Whether or not the students were aiming for a reward was another matter, but if they wanted to enjoy tomorrow''s free time to the fullest, they needed to work hard and cooperate with each other to visit the designations.


    There were no restrictions on the number of times students could use public transportation, but cab rides were prohibited. Students were also required to keep a record of how they visited the sites. I''m sure many of them would be happier if they had free time to do whatever they wanted on this third day, but I don''t think it''s a bad idea to walk along Hokkaido under the conditions given to us by the school.


    If the students were only given free time to do whatever they wanted, the school trip would end with a limited number of sightseeing spots and skiing. I''m genuinely looking forward to touring Hokkaido.


    When we got off the bus, we were handed a pamphlet. It was the school''s own pamphlet, and it seemed to contain some of the ces we should visit.


    Locations worth 1 point consisted of the Sapporo Clock Tower, the Sapporo TV Tower, and the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art. Nakanaka Ind Park and the Hokkaido Shrine were worth 2. Sapporo Enmaruyama Zoo, Hokkaido Museum, and the Sapporo Central Wholesale Market were 3 points. Moerenuma Park and Shiroi Koibito Park received 4 points. Moerenuma Iwaizan Mountain was 5 points. Sunpiaza Aquarium scored 6 points. Sadajiyouzanzankei Onsen (hot spring) was 7 points. And Lake Utonai, also known as Shikotsukotsu-ko, was 8 points.


    Note that it didn''t end when you arrived at the spot.


    For the Sapporo Maruyama Zoo, you must enter the zoo and take a photo with a pr bear or the pr bear pavilion in the background toplete the spot tour.


    "I''m not surprised. It''s very typical of this school to do this..."


    Kushida got off the bus and said this to no one in particr.


    "What do you mean?"


    "Oh, hey, I''m sorry, I didn''t notice you at all."


    I don''t see how that''s possible seeing as I was right here, but she wasn''t looking at me while speaking. She turned his head around and smiled.


    "It hurts to know that if I don''t do it right, I''ll lose a whole day to study sessions. I wonder if the reason they let us have a whole day of free time yesterday without any restrictions had something to do with this tour."


    "That may be so."


    Now the question was what choice we, the sixth group, would make. The tour had been exined to us before the trip, but we had just been told on the bus that it would be like a test with free time at stake, and that we would be rewarded with private points. In other words, the group''s policy was not set at this time. It was inevitable that there would be cases where groups moving for the private point reward wouldn''t be able to meet the time limit, and this was a risk that must be taken.


    Some groups seemed to stay where they were and discuss the matter, but most of them started walking in the same direction.


    "After all, it looks like many of the groups are heading for the Sapporo Clock Tower, which was just a stone''s throw away."


    One strategy was to go for the high-scoring Utonai Lake, but it was risky.


    "It would be more efficient to discuss it while walking."


    As for the high road, as Kushida said, the first safe route would be to go from Sapporo Station to the clock tower, take photos at the designated spot, and then head down Oodori Street Park to the TV tower. It was time-efficient, cost-effective, and allowed you to visit two spots. However, at this point, I wasn''t sure if it was ideal for the process of aiming for more than 20 points.


    Later, all eight members of our sixth group also finished disembarking.


    "I just did a quick search on the map app, and it looks like even if we could use a cab, it would take us several hours to visit the six high-scoring spots."


    Even with full use of public transportation, it would be impossible to visit all the high-value spots in the time avable.


    "Does anyone here know anything about Hokkaido?"


    Watanabe asked the members of the sixth group, but there was no good answer.


    I, like the other students, had no knowledge of how to travel in Hokkaido or the most efficient means of getting around, so I couldn''t derive where it was efficient to go without doing some research.


    "Hmm. Even if I tried to give a route on a map app, I wouldn''t even know where things are, so the order would be messed up." Amikura seemed to be typing in destinations at random as she struggled with the map app.


    Since the spots were scattered to the east, west, north, and south of the station, she would have to start by figuring out their location.


    There was no guarantee that the spots would be essible by public transportation, and there was no guarantee that the school hadn''t listed a nasty, difficult spot on the brochure.


    "Even if we get private points, it''s still only 30,000. Since we''re going to tour the area, why not forget about the reward and just have fun?"


    Watanabe''s suggestion was one of the better options.


    If we only went to visit ces to earn 20 points in time, our enjoyment would be reduced by half. There would be no time to rx and enjoy the local scenery.


    "So I''m thinking that we don''t have to go overboard."


    "I think I''d rather not go where we have to, either, personally. I''d rather go to the zoo or something."


    Students who normally stayed inside the school didn''t have the opportunity to go to the zoo or aquarium. It was natural for them to think that they shouldn''t waste the opportunity.


    "Let''s ask everyone where they want to go and gather ideas first."


    Amikura proposed that we start by asking for ces to go, ignoring the scores. Six of us, including me, easily agreed to abandon the scoring and leisurely tour a minimum number of spots. However, this was something that needed to be discussed and decided by the entire group.


    The opinion of Kit�� and Ry��en, both of whom had neither agreed nor disagreed so far, remained.


    "What do you think, Kit��?"


    Watanabe asked Kit��, who remained silent up to this point.


    "I have no objection."


    Watanabe and the others were relieved when they received a favorable response to their question.


    Now there were seven in agreement. Thest one, Ry��en, didn''t reply.


    "Uh, well..."


    Watanabe hesitated to ask, so I decided to ask and confirm the answer.


    "We all agreed. Can we take your silence as agreement?"


    But Ry��en had dered that he would umte 800 million points. The answer was obvious.


    "I''m going to score."


    A simple reply, in other words, a direction at odds with the seven of us. Of course, it was up to each individual to decide what he or she thought of this spot tour.


    I''m sure some groups would prioritize the tour for the sake of private points. However, when opinions diverged like this, additional discussions were inevitable. Watanabe became further frightened, so I decided to continue listening to him.


    "Let''s just ask him why, shall we?"


    "Of course, it''s a matter of private points. I don''t think it''s just 30,000."


    The points each ss gets would be 60,000 for the two of thembined. It''s only a speck in the 800 million ratio, but it''s also a steady step forward.


    "There''s no reason not to pick up the money that''s falling in front of you. You guys need to just shut up and follow."


    While there was a risk of running out of time or not scoring enough points due to mismanagement, there were basically no disadvantages to this tour. If you followed the guidelines andpleted the objectives, the school would give you private points. In other words, there were only benefits. It''s certainly true that not taking what you can get is a loss.


    Of course, there was no way that Kit�� would remain silent about his aggressive attitude that ignored the will of the other seven students.


    "You want all of us to obey you for your satisfaction?"


    "For sure. Is there something wrong with that?"


    "That''s a tant disregard of democracy. In this case, I think the issue should be decided by majority vote."


    "Don''t make meugh. Since when did this group be a democracy?"


    "I don''t understand your obsession with pennies in the first ce. You seem stupid to me."


    "Then what would that make you?"


    I no longer counted how many times they''ve bickered. No one was able to interrupt the sh between Ry��en and Kit��.


    "I think you rejected the group''s agreement and spoke up just to stir things up."


    "Actually, you might be right. It''s funny to see you get pissed off."


    If I let the two of them continue talking, we would soon be heading in a dangerous direction.


    "You also need some private points to use public facilities. If we deduct that, we won''t end up with 30,000 private points per person, so even then?"


    I didn''t know the exact amount at this point, but some expense would be necessary.


    "Even so. Even if the reward drops to nearly 20,000, I''m not going to give up on it."


    I noticed that we were the only group left around the bus.


    "We''re wasting valuable time while we do this. You know that, don''t you, Kit��?"


    He was trying to make him concede. Such was the strong pressure from Ry��en. Of course, there was no way that Kit�� would remain silent with thisment, which only seemed to add fuel to the fire.


    "I refuse. If you insist on getting private points and ignoring the opinions of everybody else, I won''t cooperate with your tour of this spot. In other words, not only will you not get your private points, but you''ll be deprived of your free time tomorrow."


    Apparently, Kit�� was determined to resistpletely and dered that he wouldn''t ept Ry��en''s wishes. So he strongly protested once again.


    "Kukuku, you''re the one who will be in the minority, Kit��. They''ll have no choice but to follow me after a while anyway."


    Are we going to start a contest of patience from now that would do us no good? The best way to move Ry��en, who wasn''t going to budge, was to steer Kit�� in the direction of collecting private points. 30,000 wasn''t a bad deal for the six of them, and it wasn''tpletely disadvantageous.


    Besides, if they were guaranteed free time tomorrow, they could make up for the sightseeing they couldn''t do today.


    If the six people, excluding Kit��, leaned toward Ry��en, that would be the majority opinion.


    "Even if all of us are forced to follow you, I will not follow you."


    If that happens, it would make Kit�� the viin by 7 to 1.


    "If you''re going to destroy the group by yourself, maybe it''s worth giving up on the money?"


    "I hope so."


    Kit�� showed no sign of flinching, as if he was used to being the viin.


    "Oh, calm down, Kit��!"


    Watanabe, who had been timid up to this point, had no choice but to interject.


    "Then you''re going to have to talk Ry��en out of it, aren''t you?"


    "Uh..." Watanabe wondered what to do.


    "Yes, that''s right. Hey, Nishino, as a ssmate, knock some sense into Ry��en, will you?"


    "It''s easy to give him a hard time, but there''s no way he''ll change his mind. I won''t do anything unnecessary."


    I guess Nishino, who had known him for a long time, could already predict the oue.


    She was in a mood to concede early on, saying there was nothing she could do now that it hade to this.


    "Hey, can I have a word? What do you think we should do about this situation?" Kushida tugged on my arm, and after pulling some distance, she asked me a question.


    "I thought it would be safer to follow Ry��en-kun, but Kit��-kun has ended up like that as well. That said, Ry��en-kun won''t budge if I go along with Kit��-kun. They''re really selfish people."


    They were both called out, as if their negative aspects were on disy.


    "It''s not like there isn''t a solution."


    "Oh, yeah?"


    "It''s just that I''d rather not rmend it if I could."


    "Can you tell me in a nutshell?"


    "What Ry��en wants are private points, no sightseeing required. What the seven of us want, on the other hand, is to go where we want to go and enjoy the sights. Kit��''s opinion is also on this side."


    "Yes. They''re at odds with each other, aren''t they?"


    "Then the seven of us should just cut our losses. If we, excluding Kito, raise 5,000 private points per person and donate them to Ry��en, there will be noints, right?"


    "Oh, I see, that''s one way to solve this problem..."


    But Ry��en might not be satisfied with only him receiving 30,000 private points. I continued to talk to Kushida about the risks. When this group receives their reward, each ss would receive 60,000 private points. That means that, at the very least, he would collect 30,000 from Nishino, who was also in the same ss. Even if Nishino declined, Ry��en would demand the money in order to line his own pockets after all.


    In that case, the five of us would have to pay 60,000 private points, or 12,000 private points per person. There would be some resistance to paying that much for the sake of sightseeing.


    "It''s not cheap... Right?"


    What was supposed to be a tour that could only result in a gain in the first ce would turn out to be a loss. It was doubtful whether we''d be able to honestly enjoy the sightseeing afterwards.


    It would also set a bad precedent for the majority of the group to give in to the aggressive stance of the minority.


    "And worst of all, we have to consider the risk of them asking us to give them more."


    "Huh? That kind of bullshit... This is so bothersome."


    "That''s what I''m talking about."


    "I understand what you mean, Ayanok��ji-kun. That''s why I don''t rmend it."


    "I think it''s best toe to a decision without anything of the sort."


    "It''s not easy to have a peaceful discussion, or rather, it''s impossible."


    Certainly, it was unlikely that Ry��en or Kit�� would easily give in, and it was inevitable that they would be stymied.


    "That''s right. It''s basically a contest of endurance already? We''d have to push ourselves pretty hard to collect more than 20 points, right? It''s going to be tough if we waste 30 minutes or an hour here."


    So the strategy was to let them use up this time arguing. But that choice also epassed a number of problems.


    "If Ry��en decides that we don''t have enough time, there''s no guarantee that he''ll maturely enjoy visiting the locations and sightseeing after that. It''ll be a failure in the end. I''m pretty sure that tomorrow''s free time will be gone."


    "Oh, I see."


    There weren''t many steps we could take here. We had no choice but to take some risks and try to put it all together.


    "I don''t want to waste this precious day either. We''re going to have to endure the pain to get things going."


    "What are you going to do about it?"


    I came to one conclusion, but before I did, I realized something important. The proximity between Kushida and I was maintained for too long, even if it was to avoid being overheard by those around us.


    The fact that only Kushida and I were having a private conversation was clearly highlighted. "You''re dating Karuizawa, aren''t you?"


    Watanabe said with a bit of a re. Amikura also gave me a funny look as we walked back.


    "It was a strategy meeting. Right, Kushida?"


    "Of course. I just talked with Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Saying that, Kushida quickly moved away from me. It was an over-acting gesture, as if she was tantly walking away from someone she didn''t like, and it wasn''t very pleasant.


    But it seemed to satisfy Watanabe and the others, so I guess it was the right move. I regained myposure and approached Kit��, who was still ring at Ryuen, and Ry��en, who was looking at his cell phone without a care.


    I then turned my back to them and faced the other five.


    "I have something I want to confirm with you all again, except for Ry��en and Kit��. I want to recount the opinions at this point. Do we prioritize sightseeing or private points? If anyone has changed their mind on thetter, please raise your hand. You don''t have to worry about the mood at the moment, just indicate your intentions."


    Watanabe and the others all looked around to see what the others were doing, but none of them wanted to raise their hands. I could tell by their demeanor that none of them seemed to be lying.


    In other words, no one agreed with the policy of prioritizing tourism aimed at obtaining the required score.


    "So what? I ain''t gonna change my opinion no matter what you say, Ayanok��ji."


    I knew he didn''t care whether he had any allies to support him.


    "Sorry, but I need to talk to the five of you right now."


    I quickly shifted my gaze from Ry��en and turned around to continue talking to the other five.


    "Since we''re in this situation, I''ve concluded that all eight of us will never be able toe together, and that it''s a waste of time to talk about it."


    "Then what are you going to do?"


    Nishino, as someone who wanted to do some sightseeing, made no attempt to hide her dissatisfaction.


    "It doesn''t have to be like this. Individual opinions should be respected as much as possible, but as a group, only one-eighth of the right to decide is in effect. Kit��''s opposition to Ry��en is only one-eighth of the total. Even without my opinion, the five of us here have five-eighths of the right to decide, which is more than half."


    "I know that, but that''s why we''re in trouble, isn''t it? Whether it''s one-eighth or five-eighths, we can''t move forward unless we all make the same choice."


    "Yes, that''s right. However, it''s undeniably the five of us who have the right to decide what to do about this situation. If you don''t agree with Ry��en''s methods and ideas, you don''t have to follow them. In other words, we can make him give up the choice to get private points. We can drop the idea of visiting the spots now, and each of us can do our own free sightseeing."


    "You mean we''re going to abandon the free time tomorrow?"


    "Correct. Even if we follow Ry��en''s n here, there''s no guarantee that we''ll be able to go to the ces the group wants to go during tomorrow''s free time after all. If we insist on not leaving the inn, at that point, this group won''t even be allowed to go out. On the other hand, we''re promised freedom today."


    "But only until 5:00 p.m., right?"


    "That''s not true. 5 p.m. is for the group that''s going to be touring the spots and nning their free time for tomorrow. We have the right to do as we please until curfew, when we have to return to the inn. And we can do whatever we want as individuals. We can even join a group that has our good friends. The school can''t fault us for that."


    To abandon the fourth day and turn the third day into a day ofpletely free activity that no one could restrict.


    "This is the absolute authority that only the five of us have. It isn''t up to Ry��en or Kit�� to decide what to do, so I want you all to consider this proposal."


    "I agree." Kushida looked into the others'' eyes without unnecessary conversation and was convinced that their opinions were united as one.


    "Ry��en-kun, we''re still not going to try to win private points. We all want to discuss where we want to go together today and have a fun day. If you don''t want to go with us, we''ll probably have to go our separate ways from here on out. What happens after that is just as Ayanok��ji-kun said. Maybe tomorrow we''ll all get along and have a one-day study session."


    Nishinoughed at these words, and Amikura, Watanabe, and Yamamura nodded their heads, as if they were ready for the day ahead.


    In response, Kit��''s lips turned up at the corners, but only slightly.


    "That''s a good proposal. I''ll take you up on it."


    Kit��, who had been opposed to Ry��en up to this point only out of rebellious spirit, now sided with the five of us. With everyone havinge to a conclusion, the ball would effectively be passed to Ry��en for the first time.


    He could either follow Kushida''s opinion and give up the private points, or rebel and ignore the n. Either way, he wouldn''t get the private points he wanted. On the contrary, he''ll even get a study session tomorrow as an added bonus.


    "You''ve gone the extra mile, Ayanok��ji." He expressed his dissatisfaction in words, but he didn''t seem to be truly dissatisfied.


    To those around him, though, it must''ve seemed like he was putting up a front.


    "I''m not going toe all the way to a tourist destination to study. I''ll listen to you."


    I wondered how far the line would be pushed, but Ry��en backed down. If he could''ve gained private points by breaking up the group, he would''ve done so without hesitation. As it turned out though, there was no gain, so he avoided trouble.


    After that, we, the sixth group, followed the school''s instructions and went on a tour, visiting spots around the city center and the zoo that we wanted to visit.


    As a result, we got less than 20 points, but it was a meaningful and satisfying experience.

 Chapter 323: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 323: 4.1</h4>


    It was dinner time on the third day. The previous two days had been Japanese-style set meals and kaiseki cuisine. However, from this evening until breakfast the day after tomorrow, when we would return to the school, the ryokan would set up an all-you-can-eat buffet. This was the first all-you-can-eat experience of my life.


    As with yesterday, there was no group activity involved in the meal, and students were free to eat at any avable table. Many students were already walking around with their trays. Kei was also with many girls today, and I could hear themughing from time to time even from afar.


    Finally having time to myself to eat alone without interruptions, I watched the students around me and learned the procedure.


    The process seemed to include picking up a tray from a stack, freelybining the dishes in the tray ording to their purpose, and taking the dishes one by one along a predetermined route. A sd bowl was ced first, with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, and other such things were served.


    There seemed to be a choice of five different dressings, so I chose the onion dressing.


    "Interesting."


    Unlike a meal where you were served something predetermined, you had a strong sense of individuality when you made your own detailed choices.


    I found myself gravitating toward dishes that emphasized nutritional bnce. On the other hand, the students around the restaurant were very varied, with some taking dishes that matched the students they were eating with, and others preparing small quantities of different types of food at once.


    After that, for the delicate dishes, students began to gather in a line behind me, one after another. I thought there would''ve only been a few students since it was a little early for dinner, but it was quite the opposite.


    It seemed that more students were waiting for the restaurant to open.


    Although the food was mainly Japanese, there were also steaks, shumai, corn soup, and other dishes.


    "Yo, Ayanok��ji. Are you nning to eat alone?"


    As I was trying to find a seat after filling my tray, I was approached by an empty-handed Ishizaki.


    "That''s the n."


    "Well,e eat with me. I asked Nishino earlier too, because she was alone. And you must be lonely eating by yourself, right?"


    "Well... I guess." Since there was no particr reason to refuse, it was better to ept Ishizaki''s goodwill here.


    I followed Ishizaki as he led me to my seat, Nishino slightly raised her hand in greeting.


    Albert also seemed to be there, and I assumed our eyes met through his sunsses. I ced my tray down next to one tray with arge quantity of food on it, which I assumed belonged to Ishizaki.


    "Well, I still have some more food to get. Go ahead and eat first."


    He was empty-handed when he called out to me, likely because there was more food he wanted.


    Ishizaki hummed as he walked back to the buffet.


    "I heard you were also invited by Ishizaki''s meddling."


    "I wanted to turn him down, but he was insistent."


    "He''s the type of guy who can''t leave his friends alone, right?"


    "I don''t know. He''s changed a lot since the start of school."


    It was true that he emitted a much brighter aura these days, a definite change from when I first entered the school. To be honest, though, since we had very little contact with each other, I didn''t have asting impression of him.


    "In the beginning, he seemed to dislike Ry��en, and he was a bit rebellious."


    He didn''t seem to understand it then because he was repressed, but perhaps this was the original Ishizaki. The one whose impression remained somewhat the same might be Albert, who ate silently. He dexterously used chopsticks with hisrge hands.


    "Hey! I brought a ton of crab! I''m on a crab binge!"


    Ishizaki came back and put a tter holding arge pile of crabs on the tray. The crab legs fell off the tray as he ced it on the table.


    "That''s a hell of a lot of food."


    "If there''s one thing I know about Hokkaido, it''s crabs. I was after all of them, so I hurriedly gathered them up."


    "You''re so vulgar."


    Indeed, among the colorful menu, many students gathered around the crabs. I didn''t want to be part of the crowd, so I gave up on the first round.


    "What''s vulgar? This is a Viking! You can take all you want!" Ishizaki said, arguing that we''d miss out if we didn''t take any.


    "First of all, that ''Viking'' is asme as it gets, so why don''t you stop saying it?"


    "What? What else is there to call a buffet?"


    "Buffet... Maybe you could call it... A buffet?"


    "Buffet? No, that''s justme, isn''t it?"


    *Illustration


    Nishino looked particrly concerned about the te full of crabs.


    "The details don''t matter. I was looking forward to the buffet, you know."


    "Why don''t you take the other students into consideration? Crab is one of the signature dishes."


    "What? If you do that, other people will take it. Besides, it''s all-you-can-eat, so I''m sure they have plenty of it."


    Well, that was a fair point.


    Ishizaki turned around and pointed to where the chef was busily refilling the boiled crabs. Worst of all, if he could eat it all, she has no right to stop him.


    "Agh, whatever."


    Nishino averted her gaze from Ishizaki and scooped from her bowl of steamed rice and brought it to her mouth with a spoon.


    Albert, who was quietly eating next to her, ate a variety of food. The lineup included soaked eggnt, spinach with sesame paste, various sashimi, miso soup and rice. No matter how you looked at it, it was all Japanese food.


    "So, you like Japanese food."


    Albert carefully lined up his chopsticks, set them down, and silently gave a thumbs up.


    Then he quickly returned to his meal. He ate very carefully, more so than Ishizaki, who ate in gulps.


    "Oh right, Ayanok��ji, aren''t you in the same group as Ry��en-san?"


    "Yes. I''m not doing anything special. Thanks to the good support of the other group members, we''re reasonably well organized."


    "You sound like you don''t know about the ruckus at the ski resort."


    As one of the parties involved, Nishino recalled with a fed-up look.


    "I heard you got into some kind of trouble with guys from another school. Damn, I wish I was there!"


    "If you had been there, it would''ve been even worse. I don''t know why men are so quick to fight."


    That being said, Nishino was looking pretty heroic as well.


    She spoke back without fear to interject between Yamamura and the guys, as if she was a shield for her.


    "You''re also a woman with some hot blood, aren''t you?" Ishizakiughed while chewing on a crab.


    "You''re so annoying. Don''t let scraps of food fly. They''re so dirty."


    "You''re not bothering Ry��en-san, are you?"


    "You can be as paranoid as you want, but why should I obey him too?"


    She and Ishizaki seemed to get along well with each other despite their bickering tone. She was indeed a ssmate who knew her stuff.


    She was also kind-hearted, considering how she showed a certain amount of concern for Yamamura.


    "I''ve always wondered, isn''t Nishino afraid of Ry��en-san?"


    "Well, when he''s serious, he does seem menacing. My idiot brother was also a delinquent, so maybe I have built a tolerance."


    So she had a simr type of person in her family? That would exin why she was so forceful in her retorts during the fight.


    "It''s so obvious that if you don''t get it right while you''re a student, you''re going to have a hard time. My brother was a stupid flirt, dropped out of high school, couldn''t find a good job, and had quite a hard time."


    She kept on sighing heavily, as if she didn''t want to be reminded of it.


    "What happened to him?"


    "A local constructionpany picked him up, and he''s working hard every day at their site. He''s getting paid a low sry, though."


    Because she witnessed a simr reality up close and personal, she could only sigh when she thought of Ry��en and Ishizaki''s future.


    They would have a hard timeter on due to doing what they wanted now. Common sense applied regardless of whether someone was a delinquent or not. Except in the entertainment and creative industries, where talent is important, and in the sports industry, where physical ability is vital, it''s definitely better to have a good academic background.


    The more effort you put in your studies, the more likely it is that you''ll be able to start from an easier positionter.


    "You''re pretty smart for someone who looks like that."


    "I don''t need to look like this. Besides, I only seem smart from your point of view."


    "Ha-ha! You''re probably right!"


    From Ishizaki''s point of view, it seems that almost every student would be an honor student.


    As I was leaving the venue after finishing my meal, I noticed Katsuragi.


    He was eating alone at a table in the corner, silently bringing food to his mouth. I was curious about his situation, so I observed him for a bit, which led me to see a strange scene. Oda, a student from Ry��en''s ss, spotted Katsuragi and was about to go and talk to him, when Matoba and Baba, ss A students, intervened to stop him. After they spoke to him, Oda went to another student while still paying attention to Katsuragi. It was as if they were trying to prevent Oda from contacting Katsuragi. It happened not just once, but two or three times.


    Matoba was a member of the second group, the same as Katsuragi. It wouldn''t be surprising if he was sitting at the table with Katsuragi, but he was doing the exact opposite.


    It seems that some of the ss A students do some pretty insidious things.


    I could''ve left it alone, but I decided to try contacting Katsuragi. Matoba, sensing my approach, quickly came up to me.


    "I''m in the middle of a little group activity with Katsuragi. Can you leave him alone?"


    I see. If he told others it was the second group''s problem, even Katsuragi''s ssmates would have to back off.


    That was probably why Oda immediately understood and left.


    Was this the consensus of ss A, or was this just Matoba''s selfish behavior? And behind the scenes, were there intentions to defeat Ry��en''s ss? Either way, to a third party, this behavior could only be seen as insidious bullying.


    A new visitor appeared in front of Matoba, as he was giving me a warning. Matoba turned his body around to stop him in the same way, but he quickly dismissed that idea.


    "Oh!" He gulped and turned away, as if he had never interfered from the start.


    "Hey, Katsuragi. You''re eating with a very shabby look on your face, aren''t you?"


    No wonder Matoba couldn''t speak to him. The visitor was Ry��en. He clicked his tongue a little at the unexpected appearance of the ss C''s leader and immediately ran away.


    Without even sparing Matoba a nce, he took a seat in front of Katsuragi.


    "I''m eating. What do you want?"


    "I wanted to take a closer look at your miserable face."


    "I don''t understand."


    "''I don''t understand''. That''s what it means to betray your ss. It''s toote to regret it now, Katsuragi.


    "I have no regrets. I''m ready to die with the current ss."


    Perhaps he was hiding his true thoughts, but I could tell that he was firmly aware of his status as a member of the Ry��en ss, even though his words were a bit distant.


    "I see."


    Ry��en pulled out a chair with a thud and sat down in front of me, sliding an empty ss to me.


    "Bring me some water, Ayanok��ji."


    "Me?"


    "You don''t have to be afraid of me in the slightest when I''m dealing with you in public. It''s so much easier."


    "I know you''ve been domineering towards people since we started the group... But you''ve never been like that towards me."


    "Don''t worry about it, I''ll start now."


    I''m not sure how much I would be able to find out about their situation.


    I was thirsty as well, so it was convenient.


    I also caught a glimpse of Ry��en''s concern for Katsuragi, who was eating alone.


    So for now, I''ll settle with that.

 Chapter 324: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 324: 4.2</h4>


    Ry��en, Katsuragi, and I were leaving the dining hall. I saw Kushida sitting quietly on a waiting chair near the entrance.


    Kushida stood up as soon as she spotted the three of us and approached us without hesitation.


    "Ry��en-kun, may I have a word with you?"


    It seems she had been waiting here for Ry��en toe out. It was hard to believe that the girls left after finishing their food before Kushida, who would have typically gone with her friends.


    I''m sure she had something she wanted to talk to Ry��en about and was preparing for it. Katsuragi, perhaps reading the mood, quickly returned to his room by himself.


    "Huh? What do you want?"


    "It''s... Here, I''d like to go somewhere else, is that okay?"


    Kushida was in her usual public mode because of the setting, but her behavior was a little strange.


    "I''m sorry, but you''re not my cup of tea."


    "Haha, that''s not what I meant. I mean, don''t worry. I don''t want you to die, yet."


    Kushida, while being cautious of her surroundings, turned her murderous intent toward Ry��en.


    "Well, okay, I''ll at least listen to you. I''d better get rid of the troublemaker, right?"


    The troublemaker was, of course, me. The two of them walked side by side toward a deserted area.


    If I left them alone, things were going to take a turn for the worse.


    I decided to follow them, ensuring they werepletely oblivious to my presence. However, I paid close attention. It was the right decision to be cautious, judging from Ry��en''s appearance along the way, with him showing signs of being concerned about what was behind him.


    "So? What do you want to talk about after going through all the trouble of being alone with me?"


    "It''s about my rtionship with Ry��en-kun. Even when we were working as a group, you sometimes said unnecessary things. Can you please stop that kind of thing?"


    As far as I could tell, Ry��en had, on two asions, threatened to light a fuse under Kushida. It was no wonder she didn''t take kindly to that.


    "What do you want with me?"


    "What do I want? I ain''t got no ns to do anything about you at the moment."


    "So you mean you''re going to do something about me someday?"


    From the sound of her voice, Kushida didn''t seem fullyposed.


    "You sold your soul to the devil because you wanted to expel Suzune, didn''t you? Of course, thates with risks. You can''t just pretend the past didn''t happen now, can you?"


    "Yes, you''re right. I believe that''s true."


    "I''m sure the old you wouldn''t have thought to call me out here even if I had provoked you, right?"


    Ry��en sensed something was wrong. He was likely oblivious to what happened during the Unanimous Vote Special Exam, but he must''ve sensed something from his keen perception.


    "By any chance, did someone who knows your true nature appear?"


    "You can specte all you want, but you''re wrong."


    "Kukuku. Either way, you''re one of the keys to my ss strategy. Whenever I have to deal with Suzune''s ss, I''ll use this weapon without mercy."


    He intentionally avoided mentioning Kushida so far. He intended to leave it as one of the measures to effectively inflict damage during more important situations in the future. This was an obstacle for Kushida, who decided to get back on her feet and help the ss for her own sake.


    The connection couldn''t be easily removed and would continue to torment her.


    "What are you going to do? Do you n to get down on your knees and ask me to keep my mouth shut? Or are you going to try and expel me? Both of those are going to be difficult."


    "I''m..."


    Neither of those options were things I was going to let Kushida choose.


    Even if a third choice were to appear, it would result in the same thing.


    "I''m sorry, Ry��en, but I''m going to have to ask you to back off on this one."


    I decided to stop hiding and expose myself.


    "Damn. I knew you were following me." "Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "I already knew you would be wary of me."


    "Well, that''s okay. So? What did you mean when you asked me to back off of Kushida?"


    "I meant exactly what I said. I know you''re going to tell everyone about Kushida, but I''d appreciate it if you wouldn''t."


    Ry��enughed and pped his hands in amusement at the warning.


    "Kukuku! What, Ayanok��ji, you''re also in on it, aren''t you? And if you say so, that means she''s no longer cancerous to your ss like before."


    Ry��en pleasantly smiled, having gotten an answer to his question up to this point.


    "That''s right. Kushida is now taking a new step forward as Horikita''s ssmate. I''m not going to let you destroy that with your provocations."


    "Sorry, but this is getting even more interesting. I''m not going to let you ruin it with your interference."


    "No one will believe a word you say, Ry��en-kun."


    Kushida unbearably confronted him, but Ry��en didn''t back down.


    "That''s not true. You won''t know until you try."


    What was needed now wasn''t a half-hearted verbal deterrent, butplete restriction of movement.


    "If I decide to expose you, there is nothing anyone can do to stop me."


    He tapped Kushida on the shoulder. She couldn''t hide her anxiety and humiliation.


    "But if you do that, you won''t be able to achieve your goal of fighting Sakayanagi in the final exams."


    "Oh? I don''t see why that would be the case."


    "I''ll have to deal with it in a way you don''t want me to," I said.


    As if in response to my words, Ry��en''s smile instantly faded.


    Just like when he once fearlessly abducted Kei, or even more so.


    "Ha. What the hell, it''s been a long time since you''ve shown me that face."


    I intervened between Ry��en and Kushida and pushed Ry��en even more.


    "Even if you choose to remain silent here and now, there''s no guarantee that you won''t expose meter, you know?"


    Kushida looked strong, but then lightly raised her hands.


    "Let''s not talk about this. I''m not going to use Kiky��''s story to attack your ss in the first ce. If Ayanok��ji wasn''t involved, it could have been a weapon."


    "What do you mean...?"


    "You don''t know this, but he told me yesterday that he was no longer going to expel you. That''s why I won''t be able to attack you using that."


    "That''s right, I''ve already thought of a countermeasure for that situation."


    "It''s meaningless if I hit you with a strategy that doesn''t work and lose out because of it, right? It''s been my experience that a half-baked approach won''t work if I want to defeat you."


    I''m sure that he''ll challenge Horikita''s ss to a fight with a strategy that I can''t even think of.


    "I''m going back to my room now. Bye Kushida, enjoy the rest of your school life as much as you can."


    The way he called her was changed from Kiky�� to Kushida. I was interested to see what he would do in the future.


    Kushida and I were the only ones left in the area, and silence reigned.


    "Why did youe to help me? There''s no merit for you, is there?"


    "There are advantages. You''re an indispensable person for the ss. I don''t think Ry��en would have had any intention of exposing you even if I hadn''te here, but I didn''t know how you would react. I''m sure you were wondering if there was any way you could prevent him from talking."


    "That''s... Well..."


    "Ry��en is not your match. You''re going to get yourself in trouble if you get into a fight that you aren''t prepared for and getpletely defeated. That''s why I decided to show up."


    "You mean you could handle that guy?"


    "At least at this stage, I don''t consider Ry��en as a strong opponent."


    "How...?"


    "Anyway, you don''t have to cross any more dangerous bridges. You should take good care of yourself now."


    "That''s hard to believe. Do you really need me in your ss that badly?"


    "There''s that too."


    "That too?"


    "I feel that I can be closer with Kushida, who can now speak more freely."


    Being aware of both sides of Kushida''s personality also made it easier to guess what she was thinking.


    "Stop it. How can someone who knows my true nature really think that way?"


    I''m sure she''s acutely aware that she has a personality that people wouldn''t like.


    "Not really. You''re honestly likable."


    "I don''t know how serious you are. You can''t be trusted."


    Normally Kushida would''veughed and answered, but her expression was firm.


    "It''s true. There are people in this world who feel morefortable with your true nature."


    "There isn''t..."


    Kushida looked at me, opened her mouth wide, and stopped moving.


    Then she suddenly started walking towards the wall.


    "What are you doing?"


    Immediately after that, she spread her arms out, palms open, and then mmed her hands on the wall as hard as she could.


    "It''s okay, it''s okay..."


    She mumbled something and stopped moving. As I watched her, Kushida turned back to me, having regained herposure.


    "I got a little dizzy, but I''m fine! I''m fine!"


    Kushida raised her voice in a strange manner. I was slightly disturbed by what I just saw.


    "Are you sure you''re okay?"


    Even though she didn''t seem to be in a normal state, Kushida showed her usual front.


    "Yeah. I''m fine!"


    "Oh, I see."


    Reading Kushida''s emotions was really difficult.


    "I''ve kind of been saved by Ayanok��ji-kun, haven''t I? Thanks for..."


    "I feel like I''ve been getting more and more thank-you''s from youtely."


    "Maybe so. I''ll try not to get involved with Ry��en-kun from now on."


    "That''s good."


    "Well, I''m going back to my room. I''ll see you tomorrow."


    "See you then."


    Kushida walked down the hallway with an expression that seemed to havepletely returned to normal.


    On the way, however, she stumbled and fell down again, and one of her slippers flew off.


    "Are you okay?"


    "I''m fine! I''m fine! Don''t worry!"


    She shooed me away with her hand, telling me not to approach her. She then staggered back to her feet and put her slipper back on.

 Chapter 325: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 325: 4.3</h4>


    I was waiting with my back against the wall in the hallway outside the guest room, ready for my appointment with Horikita.


    "Sorry, I''m a littlete."


    Horikita appeared while voicing an apology, but it wasn''t a problem since she wasn''t toote.


    "I''ll get right to it..."


    "Are we going to have a long talk here?"


    Students were constantly entering and leaving various rooms nearby.


    It was one of the least suitable ces to talk about things you don''t want to be overheard.


    "It''s certainly not a good ce to talk. It can''t be helped, I guess. Let''s go to the vending machine for a drink. It would be nice to talk while we walk around, wouldn''t it?"


    That was probably the safer thing to do. I agreed since I had no objection.


    Standing around talking attracted a lot of attention, but I didn''t have to worry about that if we were chatting while walking.


    "There is a vending machine in front of the baths that sells fruit milk. It''s delicious."


    It was something to drink after bathing, and I thought that it tasted very nice.


    "Thanks for the childishment. But I don''t think it''s something to drink in the middle of the night."


    Was it something specific to a time of day?


    Maybe that was only the case from a girl''s point of view.


    "But it''s farther to the vending machines in the big bathroom, so let''s go that way."


    Horikita''s steps were slow, but she wanted to prioritize talking anyway.


    "About the cultural festival the other day. I''m sure I didn''t get a chance to talk to you about it. It''s been nagging at me for a long time, but I couldn''t find a good time until today."


    "I guess I was just too tired at the time, and it looked like you were exposing your defenseless sleeping face to the world."


    "Do you want to be kicked?"


    Her spirited upper body posture immediately pushed me to raise the white g.


    "Give me a break."


    " I can''t believe a boy saw me sleeping. You''ve just tarnished my reputation."


    "Why do you care so much?"


    "It''s something to worry about... But that''s not important right now. What I want to hear is regarding that day."


    Shrugging off her own shame with a hand gesture, Horikita adopted a stern expression.


    "The events that happened that day in the student council room�Cweren''t you involved in those series of events?"


    ''The festival'', ''that day'', ''the student council room'', there was only one event that she could be referring to.


    "Did you arrange it so that Yagami-kun was expelled?"


    "Why do you think that?"


    I was interested in the reason why she came to that conclusion.


    "I''m not sure if you knew, but there was a possibility that Yagami-kun was trying to get you expelled. In fact, his words and actions in the student council room were enough to support that."


    Horikita, in her own way, seemed to have a few pieces that I didn''t know about. I wouldn''t be surprised if she had discovered some things in the process of putting them together.


    "I didn''t know about Yagami, but I guess I shouldn''t be surprised. You knew firsthand that H��sen was trying to get me expelled, didn''t you?"


    "Twenty million private points, that was the prize."


    "And Yagami was in on it, and was vigntly watching and hoping for an opportunity to win it?"


    "I thought about that too. But there were too many peculiar points. Above all, he didn''t seem to be approaching you because of a reward."


    It seemed that Horikita, who was present at the scene, knew more about this.


    "I''m curious about the answers to each of my questions. But that''s not what I want to know most."


    "Then what do you want to know?"


    "Who you are. I can''t possibly think of you as a normal student like the rest."


    "That''s a very troubling question. What kind of student would I be if I wasn''t normal?"


    "I don''t understand. I''m not talking about whether you''re brilliant or not. I just can''t imagine what kind of person you are at all. I just don''t understand."


    What kind of person is Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka? Is that what you want to know?


    "There''s nothing special to talk about. I don''t have anything that''s worth mentioning."


    "Well, if I ask you, will you answer my questions, one at a time? Where are you from? Which elementary and middle schools did you graduate from? Have you participated in anypetitions or other events in the past? Have you studied on your own, or have you received tutoring or private tutoring?"


    I''m sure people wouldn''t even ask for this much detail on a blind date.


    "I see what you mean, but I don''t think I''m ready to tackle that many troublesome questions."


    Horikita looked away, her lips pursed tantly showing her frustration.


    "I''ll disclose some information."


    "What kind of information?"


    "For example, I was involved in the Yagami case that you''re so interested in."


    "You''re not kidding, are you? Because Yagami-kun was trying to get you expelled from school?"


    "I didn''t know it was Yagami, to be precise. It would be more correct to say that I set a trap for a student who was nning to expel me, and Yagami fell for it. I was the one who set the whole thing up. I had it all set up so they wouldn''t be able to make any half-hearted excuses."


    Until now, I wouldn''t have found any meaning in telling this to Horikita. But by indirectly showing her what kind of person I am, I could give her information.


    When we meet again, I will have the opportunity to make use of it.


    "By the way, there''s no connection between the student council president and Ry��en. I approached them individually."


    "I think I know what it is... That made me feel so ufortable at the time."


    We took the stairs up to the second floor where therge baths were located, arriving at a rest area with vending machines thereafter. There were two female teachers monopolizing the two massage chairs.


    They were giving themselves over to the massage with rxed expressions and didn''t seem to notice us.


    *Illustration


    They made eye contact with us. I could''ve ignored them, but Horikita chose to call out to them.


    "You two seem quite at home."


    "Huh? Ah, it''s Horikita-san, isn''t it~"


    Hoshinomiya-sensei replied, raising only her wrist in a flutter.


    "Isn''t it still before the students'' bedtime? Aren''t the teachers on duty?"


    "Too bad~ Tonight we''re kind of on a half day off~ Right, Sae-chan?"


    "It''s as she says."


    Chabashira-sensei surrendered herself to the rattling massage chair and closed her eyes infort.


    "Does it feel that good?"


    I had always been interested in using it, but since it was adjacent to the main bathroom, I couldn''t due to the stares from students who frequently came and went.


    "As you get older and more mature, massages be indispensable. There are a lot of hardships that you young people wouldn''t understand."


    It''s said that along with physical declinees the need for equipment topensate for it.


    "Especially in Sae-chan''s case, her shoulders are very stiff."


    "There''s no need for you to say anything unnecessary like that."


    For a moment, the teachers exchanged sharp nces.


    "By the way, Horikita-san, you''ve totally be a leader. Are you stillfortable in ss B? Ah, how could a former homeroom teacher of ss B ask you such a question?"


    "It isn''t good. What I''m aiming for is ss A. This is merely a checkpoint."


    "I see."


    I put the conversation aside and picked up the remote control connected to Chabashira-sensei''s massage machine.


    There seemed to be five levels of intensity. Naturally, the stronger the intensity, the better the effect. Somehow, I was curious about how the fifth level of intensity would feel, so I tried adjusting it.


    "Nn, hya, nn, nn!"


    The machine began to make a strong sound.


    I thought it was actually about a 40% increase in functionality, but it might be more than that.


    "Ah, Ayanok��ji, what are you doing, nnnn! No... Put it back down!"


    She reached for the remote control, clearly panicked.


    The remote fell out of my hand as she forcibly yanked on the cord.


    "Ugh! Hya, ha... Make it stop, quick!"


    I picked up the remote control and decreased the strength from level 5 back to level 3.


    "Haa, haa... Haa, haa... What the hell were you doing?!"


    "I was kind of curious. I thought the stronger the better it would be."


    "Of course not! There''s a strength that suits each person!"


    She scolded me angrily, her face bright red, with a devilish expression I had never seen before. Apparently, the stimtion was much more than she had expected.


    "What are you ying at?"


    I was also warned by Horikita for the noisy exchange.


    "Sorry to interrupt you during your break. Let''s go, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Are you two going to take a bath now? You can''t go in together."


    Horikita tried to turn away, ignoring Hoshinomiya-sensei''sment about something stupid.


    "Wait, Horikita-san."


    Hoshinomiya-sensei, who had been joking until just now, found herself switching to a serious expression.


    "Indeed, I think Horikita-san''s ss is making remarkable progress; ss B is just a stopping point, and you need to aim for ss A. It''s obvious, but I think that''s wonderful and very admirable too."


    Her words sounded like praise, but there were other implications.


    "Chie, don''t say anything unnecessary."


    "It doesn''t matter. I''m just trying to say what I think."


    "I don''t know what you want to say, but you''re not free to say whatever you''re thinking."


    "Please say it."


    Horikita urged, as if she was curious about Hoshinomiya-sensei''s earlier words.


    "Then I''ll speak freely. As a homeroom teacher with a ss, I have always thought that teachers from ss A to ss D are alsopeting with each other. If I were to use an analogy, you could think of it as if the teachers were ying Daifug�� with each other."


    "Daifug��...?"


    "You know the rules, right?"


    "Yes, well..."


    "You y a hand of cards that you''ve been dealt, and you fight for three years to determine whoes in first through fourth. The cards are numbered from 1 to 13, and the yers y them against each other. Leaving aside the local rules and special rules, basically, the cards withrger numbers are stronger and the cards with smaller numbers are weaker, right?


    If a student with only 3s shes with a student with 6s, of course the student with 6s wins. In Mashima''s ss A, the cards in his hand are all in order, and he is dealt more 10s and 11s.


    On the other hand, the further you go down to ss D, the more 3s and 4s there are. Well, it''s just like the usual school tradition."


    Saying this, Hoshinomiya-sensei picked up the message machine''s remote control and increased the strength of the vibration by one level.


    It was only at level three.


    "Of course the students change from day to day; I''m sure some who were worth 3 or 4 will grow up and be 12 or 13, or in rare cases, the strongest number, 2. So ss fluctuations do happen, and sometimes ss D can move up to ss B. Well, it''s extremely rare though. But the important thing is to fight equally. Every ss is always fighting within the numbers 1 through 13. You don''t want there to be any unfairness or cheating in any particr ss, do you?"


    "Yes."


    "But you know what? Don''t you think there''s one card in your ss that shouldn''t be mixed in?"


    "The card that shouldn''t be mixed...?"


    Hoshinomiya-senseiughed and turned her gaze to me.


    "Yes, it''s cheating. Sae-chan''s ss is the only one with a joker."


    [TL Note: The joker is the strongest card if included, otherwise, 2 is the strongest card]


    Horikita also noticed her pointed stare.


    "Chie. Stop it already."


    "You must be tempted to argue. Even if I''m trying my best to use my head and fight, a single joker will turn the situation upside down.


    No, it''s much worse than ying Daifug��. Because you can y the joker over and over and over again, unlike the other games where you use it once and it''s gone from your hand. There''s no way we can win."


    As a homeroom teacher, this could be seen as a deration of defeat for her ss.


    "Regardless of whether your statement is right or wrong, what are you going to do if the ss D students hear it?"


    This was an admission of defeat. If the students in Ichinose''s ss were to hear this, they''d be shocked.


    "I see. Sorry, sorry. Maybe I got a little drunk from the massage."


    With that, she powered it off.


    "You got the joker because you and Sae were lucky. It''s not cheating if you use it to reach ss A, right?"


    It was obvious to everyone here that she was bitter.


    "Mhhh~."


    It was a voice like no other I''d ever heard before, almost seeming frightened. Perhaps her drunkenness cooled off for a moment after that, as she jumped up in a hurry.


    "I''m going back to my room! Sayonara!"


    Slightly peeved, Hoshinomiya-sensei waved her hand and walked down the corridor with long strides.


    "I''m sorry for everything. As she said herself, she must''ve had a little bit of alcohol in her system."


    Chabashira-sensei said as she got up from the massager, as if defending Hoshinomiya-sensei.


    "That''s fine. I''ll consider it as the ramblings of a drunk."


    Horikita replied in a casual, harsh tone, and Chabashira-sensei coughed, a little flustered.


    "That''s pretty harsh."


    "Sensei, you seem to be a little concerned about what she said earlier."


    "It''s not that I don''t think about it, to be honest. The situation is too different from that of the ss I taught three years ago."


    It''s true that Horikita''s ss had a strong hand.


    "I don''t know whether or not Ayanok��ji-kun''s a joker, but there''s no denying that he''s a powerful ssmate. However, I''m not going to hold back on that."


    Without even looking at us, Horikita conveyed her thoughts to Chabashira-sensei.


    "As long as it''s a card that was dealt to the ss, I will use it to fight with all my might. The ce we''re aiming for is ss A, you know."


    "That''s right. I would expect nothing less..."


    However, I''m sure Chabashira-sensei herself was thinking that she still may not have the upper hand.


    ss A, led by Sakayanagi, also has an abundance of solid cards avable. Even if we could win just one match, there''s no telling what will happen if we y 10 or 20 rounds.


    "Well, I''m going after Chie. If I let her go like that, she might drink heavily until the sun rises."


    She couldn''t seem to give up on her former ssmate, so she followed after her.


    "That''s all for today, Horikita."


    "I still have a lot more to ask you, though, don''t I? Mr. Joker."


    "I''vee this far, and I want to take another bath. Besides, more people areing."


    A few students were beginning to show up to enjoy the hot tub before going to bed.


    "You''ll answer my questionster. Am I correct in assuming that?"


    I nodded my head, and then passed through the curtains that led to the men''s bath.

 Chapter 326: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 326: 4.4</h4>


    It was nearly 11:00 p.m., almost lights out. Kit�� stood up silently and headed down the hallway, grabbing several magazines he had borrowed.


    "That guy reads almost the whole time he''s in his room, doesn''t he?"


    I guess a book lover enjoys reading. Unlike Hiyori and I, he didn''t seem to be the type to read books from the library. A few minutester, Kit�� returned with a new magazine in his hand. I wondered if it was so he could read it right away when he woke up in the morning. The magazines Kit�� read strongly depicted his personal taste, and most of them were what one would call fashion magazines.


    "Can I read some of them too?"


    I thought he would tell me to get it myself, but Kit�� silently put the magazine on the table. Did this mean I could read whatever I wanted?


    I decided to read the magazine for a little while, as I had about 10 minutes left before lights out. The magazine featured things such as trendy clothing and essories. To be honest, the pictures and the articles in the magazine were quite interesting, even though I didn''t really understand the meaning behind them.


    However, I could tell that Kit�� had a strong attachment to the magazine. Kit��''s outfits, which may seem entric in fashion, were arranged with his own sense of style and feelings in mind.


    Soon it was time for lights out, and we darkened the room and went to bed.


    After quietly staring up at the ceiling for a while, my vision gradually became ustomed to the darkness.


    It seemed that no one was asleep yet, and I wondered what they were thinking.


    "We''re going to be senior high school students in half a year, and even though we''repeting for ss A, we still have to think about the future�Clike going on to college or getting a job. I still can''t imagine myself after graduating from high school. There''s nothing in particr that I want to do. What about you, Ayanok��ji?"


    Watanabe asked.


    "I''m going on to higher education... But I haven''t decided on a specific university yet."


    I talked about a goal that would be safest.


    "What about you, Kit��?"


    I guess I wasn''t sure I could get an answer, but Watanabe asked without hesitation.


    "I''m going to be a fashion designer."


    "What?!"


    Watanabe was doubly surprised, both by the fact that he received an answer and by the contents of it.


    "I know you must think it''s surprising. You can''t imagine that from my appearance."


    "No, no, well, it''s hard to say..."


    But considering Kit��''s taste in personal clothing and the contents of the magazines he read, it''s easy to see.


    "Kukuku, it would''ve been easier for Watanabe to ept if I had said that he would be an assassin."


    I was worried that Kit�� might get angry again at Ry��en''s sidewaysshing, but I didn''t hear any response.


    "Don''t worry about it, Kit��. Ry��en always says harsh things."


    Watanabe followed up, but Kit�� didn''t seem to really care.


    "I''m used to it. Most people are surprised and unconvinced when I talk about my dreams. I don''t expect them to readily ept me if I pursue that path honestly."


    Prejudice was something that shouldn''t exist, but it certainly did in this world. For the strong and stern-faced Kit��, aiming for some professions may be a natural hurdle to ovee.


    "But it doesn''t matter if you graduate with ss A. You can jump into that world with no questions asked. Once you jump in, all you have to do is silence those around you with your skills."


    For Kit��, breaking through the initial barrier was what he considered to be the most difficult obstacle.


    "You''re seriously thinking about the future, aren''t you? No, it''s great, you have a proper dream."


    Watanabe was surprised, but he also felt admiration and was inspired by Kit��, whose thoughts were more determined than his own. Children will grow older and have to go out into the world. The same was true for Watanabe, who had no goals at the moment, and for Ry��en, who didn''t speak.


    "It''s kind of hard to do when you think of that... You know what I mean?"


    Watanabe muttered to the ceiling in a voice that sounded like a bitterugh.


    "Everyone here''s from a different ss, right? That means, normally, only one of the four of us could graduate in ss A. I''m assuming you have a dream that you want to fulfill, but, you know, if I take that seat, someone else can''t aplish their dream."


    ssmates can share a dream with each other. But you can''t share your dreams with your rivals. That''s how this school works. Someugh, some cry.


    I wonder if this was the kind of talk that happened when students of the same age spent the night together.


    It was a night that reminded me of the time I spent talking with Keisei and my friends atst year''s camp.

 Chapter 327 - 5: School Trip: Fourth Day

    <h4>Chapter 327: Chapter 5: School Trip: Fourth Day</h4>


    THE MORNING OF THE fourth day of the school trip. We were going to return to school tomorrow.


    As this was our secondpletely free day, we wanted to make sure it was a day we made the most of. The results of yesterday''s spot tour were that 10 groups, or half of the total 20 groups, scored more than 20 points, and all of them earned 30,000 private points.


    On the other hand, the members of Group 15, to which both Mii-chan and Miyamoto belonged, were disqualified because they failed to meet the time limit, so they had to sit for a study session at the inn. I felt a little sorry for them, but it couldn''t be helped. As soon as the study session ends, I hope they get the opportunity to soak in the hot springs and enjoy theirst day as much as possible.


    It was cleaning time in the main baths, so I quickly changed my clothes. I thought I would watch TV as I did yesterday, but it seemed that Kit�� was the first to return today, and he was staring at the screen as if he were devouring it. I didn''t know the details, but it seemed to be a feature on fashion that Kit�� was interested in.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji. They''re going to have a snowball fight outside."


    "Snowball fight?"


    Watanabe, who had also finished getting dressed, showed me his cell phone. It seemed that there were a lot of people who wanted to have an unrestricted snowball fight.


    "Sounds fun, let''s go check it out."


    "What about Ry��en and Kit��?"


    Kit�� was too engrossed in the TV to answer, and Ry��en didn''t hesitate in going to the reserved seat in the room to make his pass explicit.


    "Then let''s go, just us two."


    "Right."


    We left Kit�� and Ry��en, who mixed like oil and water, in the room, but I''ll trust their maturity here. When I went outside the ryokan with Watanabe, arge group of students had already gathered.


    "Good morning, Kiyotaka-kun, Watanabe-kun."


    Y��suke, standing near the entrance and clutching his cell phone, called out to us.


    "There''s quite a lot of people here. Was everyone that interested in a snowball fight?"


    "I don''t think it''s simply that. It''s like a snowball fight for private points. The only qualification to participate is to pay 1,000 points. The winning team gets the points from the losing team."


    I see. So if you lose, you sacrifice little, and if you win, you get money to buy an extra souvenir or two. No wonder it was a very casual but reasonably exciting event.


    "Is this okay? Even though we have arge space, it''s on the inn''s property."


    "Yes. I asked them about it and they said it''s fine since it''s early in the day. I think the fact that it''s a private ce with no one staying here except us school students is also a big factor."


    The rules remained the same, simple and clear: no catching, only dodging. Students who are hit by a snowball must leave the field. However, the snowball must be of a certain size, and if, for example, it''s in powder form and is thrown like a shotgun bullet, or if the ball scatters in the air, it would be invalid even if it hits. As for being hit by a snowball, it seems that both self-reporting and the referee''s official judgment will be taken into ount.


    Well, not many people would intentionally cheat for the sake of a few private points.


    "How many are nning topete?"


    "About 30 people so far. Will you join in, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "No, I''m..."


    I was about to decline, but then I thought that if I pass on participating this time, I may never get another chance to have a snowball fight again in my life.


    "I''d like to try, but I don''t have a team."


    "That''s okay. I''ll assign people to the teams that don''t have enough people.


    It seemed that Y��suke would take care of all the troublesome details, for which I was very grateful.


    Or perhaps that was why he stayed near the entrance. It was a lot of trouble to take care of things on your own, but Y��suke was probably morefortable with having everything under control.


    As I waited for the deadline, which was only about 10 minutes away, I saw Horikita, who must''ve heard about the snowball fight in the ryokan.


    "I''ve heard about it, but there''s quite a gathering here."


    "Are you going to join us too?"


    "Well, it''s a very special school excursion. I''d like to join if there''s space."


    She originally had no intention of doing so, but she seemed to have changed her mind when she saw that the event was more sessful than she had imagined.


    "Then let''s y, Horikita!"


    Ibuki came out of the crowd and challenged Horikita to a game, as if she had been waiting for her.


    "You''re here too, Ibuki. You reallye out of nowhere, don''t you? But that''s okay. It''s just a game after all, and I can y with you if you want."


    As soon as she replied, Ibuki clenched her fists.


    "Losing is losing, no matter if it''s just a game or not. Don''te up with excusester on like a little kid, okay?"


    "I''m going to say that line right back at you."


    Y��suke seemed to be watching the two of them closely, and when they stole a nce at their cell phones, they saw that they had been assigned to different teams. It wouldn''t be very exciting if they were on the same team.


    While I was checking the teams, I whispered into Y��suke''s ear and asked him for a little favor.


    "Good morning, everyone!"


    Kushida appeared with Yamamura, Nishino, and Amikura.


    "That''s great, Kushida. You invited Yamamura and the others."


    "Eh? Well, yeah."


    I thought she was going to give me her usual smile, but she averted her eyes and gave me a muddled reply. However, she smiled immediately thereafter.


    "I said I wouldn''t leave my room until Nishino-san and Yamamura-san went out, so it''s a good opportunity."


    "That''s the right response."


    We had spent time as a group so far, and our rtionship was improving, albeit gradually. Whether you participated or watched, it was more meaningful to spend the same time together.


    "Do you want to join us?"


    Ibuki asked Kushida.


    "Hmm? A snowball fight?"


    "Yes. It''s been decided that Horikita and I will fight."


    "I see. But I don''t think I will. I don''t want to hit someone with a snowball. I can''t throw that kind of thing because I''d feel sorry for them."


    "Huh?"


    Ibuki made a disgusted gesture, as if she was deeply offended by Kushida''s attitude.


    Seeing this, Horikita immediately struck Ibuki''s side with a chop.


    "What the hell! What''re you doing!?"


    "I''m your opponent, right? If you keep thinking about anything unnecessary, you''re going to lose easily."


    "Of course I''m not going to lose. I''ll make you cry for sure!"


    I see. I had thought that the distance between Horikita and Kushida had decreased recently, but it seems that Ibuki was also involved. The three of them had a distorted rtionship, but strangely enough, it may be having a good cleansing effect on them.


    The number of participating students continued to slowly increase until finally there were 42 students split into six teams. Each team had seven students, and four teams were created by themselves.


    Two teams were made up of stragglers like me. We didn''t y in a tournament format; instead, we just yed one match each.


    Y��suke may have been thinking about the excitement of the event, so he assigned Ibuki and Horikita to the third and final match of the day.


    First up was a seven-member boys'' team led by Ishizaki. On the other side was a team of seven boys led by Sud��. It was truly a sh of men.


    As soon as they started, snowballs powerfully flew from side to side. With 14 snowballs being thrown at once, it was difficult for everyone to avoid them. Within 10 or so seconds, a total of six boys from both teams were eliminated.


    Incidentally, Ishizaki, who had been so excited the whole time, was also hit within 10 seconds.


    On the other hand, Sud�� seemed to have put his frustration at being rejected by Horikita into the snowballs,unching them one after another. However, Ishizaki''s team had Albert, who was agile enough to avoid the snowballs, and he had been working hard to defeat the other team.


    Yamamura was quietly watching the exhrating battle, so I drew a little closer.


    "They''re getting excited, aren''t they?"


    Her expression was the same as usual, with very little change, but she seemed to be enjoying herself.


    "Ah, it seems so." Yamamura said so as she exhaled into her palms.


    Her hands weren''t wearing the gloves she had supposedly bought back at the ski resort.


    "Perhaps you forgot your gloves again?"


    "Yes, I did."


    I tried to take off my gloves, but Yamamura stopped me.


    "I''m sorry, I''m just kidding. I brought my own gloves."


    With that, she pulled her gloves out of her pocket. She was smiling, but only slightly.


    "I didn''t realize you were aedian."


    "I suppose it doesn''t really suit our rtionship, does it?"


    *Illustration


    Instantly her smile faded and she concluded that it was an unnecessaryment.


    "No, it''s fine. I feel like we''ve formed a bit of a bond as a group."


    It was a change that would''ve been unthinkable, at least from the first day.


    "I also felt that. I''ve always been in the shadows, so it was less likely that people would pay attention to anything I did...


    Kushida-san, Nishino-san, Amikura-san. They all took a good look at me and included me in their group. I''m thankful for them."


    Without the school trip, their impression of Yamamura would''ve remained tenuous until she graduated.


    It was a good, memorable school trip, both for Yamamura and for the other girls. There must''ve been a lot of students in other groups who were closing the distance in a simr way.


    When Yamamura finished putting her gloves on both hands, she turned and held them out in my direction.


    "It''s not just the girls, it''s the boys too. It was a little different from the image I had expected."


    Unlike the first day we were in the group, Yamamura''s demeanor had a softness to it. Of course, this change was slightly less than that of the other students, but it was a clear change.


    "So the school trip, which I thought was long at first, is over today?"


    "Yes."


    During a school trip spent with people you dislike, time would definitely have felt terribly long and slow. However, just by recognizing them as members who aren''t ufortable to be around, a changees over you that makes it hard to believe that time was passing normally.


    "Surely you''re not the only one that''s changed. Kit��, Watanabe, Amikura and Nishino must''ve also changed to some extent after this experience."


    The group had its share of trouble, but that had spiced things up in some ways.


    "Little by little, I think Kit��-kun''s curses for Ry��en-kun are decreasing."


    "Hmm."


    "Ever since we formed the group, he''s been saying things like ''I''m going to kill you'' and ''I''m going to send you to hell.''"


    Those were very disturbing things to say. Well, it wasn''t so much that the two of them had be friends, but rather that they had bumped into each other so much that their senses have numbed.


    However, the image I had of Kito changed a lot.


    I originally thought that he wasn''t the type to talk at all, but when I got closer to him, I found that he spoke a lot more than I expected.


    There may have been a lot of problems with what he said, but it was understandable why. The students in Sakayanagi and Ry��en''s sses were especially wary of each other.


    There were almost no opportunities to see the other in a positive light.


    "Kit�� is also very close to Sakayanagi."


    "Speaking of which, you seemed to talk to him often while you two were together in the group."


    Suddenly, I looked at Yamamura''s profile and saw that the joyful look she had earlier had faded away.


    The most urate word I could use to describe her expression was "uninterested."


    Either she was fond of Kit��, or she had something on her mind regarding Sakayanagi. Either one could be applied to her.


    "What do you think about Sakayanagi?"


    I asked this question not because I wanted to probe, but because I was genuinely curious about their rtionship.


    "Huh?"


    Yamamura, whose attention was elsewhere when I asked, asked back in surprise.


    "I was wondering how someone feels seeing apetent ss A leader from the perspective of their peers."


    "Well, I don''t really know. I''m not close to anyone in particr to begin with, and moreover, I''ve hardly ever talked to Sakayanagi-san."


    Sheughed to herself as she said this. She meant that she had no friends because of her own shadowy nature.


    In other words, was it simply a feeling caused by admiration, like envying Kit��, whom Sakayanagi spoke too casually?


    "Then why don''t you take this opportunity to ask Kit�� out? He might take you up on the offer."


    "As expected, I don''t have that much courage."


    "What if he asked you?"


    "Isn''t this a conversation for boys?"


    It was meant to be a light joke, but Yamamura pulled back more than I expected.


    "My bad. Maybe I took it too lightly."


    Even if they didn''t think anything of each other, it was natural to be sensitive when it came to matters of men and women.


    "I don''t mind. You said it for my sake. Thank you."


    I looked at Yamamura and then around at the students present.


    New people, new friends. Truth and lies, those who saw through and those who were seen through. The students were exploring each other''s guts through the exchange of checks and bnces.


    Which ss would be the winner in the future?


    "I can''t right now, but... I''ll think about it for a bit."


    Yamamura replied as she added at the end.


    "That''s good."


    We stopped exchanging words at this point and turned our attention to the match. Albert was exhibiting his powerful arms, but his uracy wasn''t as good, so the winner was ultimately decided by Sud��''s agility and precise attacks.


    Sud�� was a quintessential top-ss athlete in any situation. Horikita also gave him a generous round of apuse. At a distance, Onodera also seemed to be cheering him on in an innocent manner.


    The second match followed. The second match was a mixed-gender battle, but there were no students with outstanding athleticism like Sud�� and Albert, so the game was more like a friendly game than a seriouspetition.


    The round ended with the two sides praising each other for a good fight and saying that they had a good time.


    "It''s time for you to go on, isn''t it? Good luck."


    Finally, the third match. The battle between me, Ibuki, and the Horikita team began.


    "Let''s do our best together, Yamamura."


    "What?"


    I called out to her, and she looked at me with a vacant look on her face.


    "I asked Y��suke to enter your name as well."


    "Eh, eh! Wow, I can''t do that. I''m not an asset, I''m just a liability."


    "If you lose, I''ll make up the points, so don''t worry."


    "That''s not the point. We won''t win."


    "I''m not worried about that; I''ll make up the points if we lose. Let''s go."


    "Oh no..."


    As I started to walk away, Yamamura followed me, although she showed some hesitation.


    "Oh, I don''t really know how to y..."


    "Don''t worry. You saw the game earlier; this is just a simple game."


    "But... It looks hard."


    "I''m going to win!"


    Ibuki, bursting with fighting spirit, picked up a snowball, grasped it, and began the sequence of actions to throw it.


    I instructed Yamamura to move back to the very rear. The students in front of us would target us, so we would avoid them.


    I wanted her to focus on enjoying herself for as long as possible rather than trying to hit someone with a snowball and eliminate them.


    When the game began, simr to the previous two rounds, many snowballs gathered on the students fighting on the front lines.


    On the other hand, snowballs that missed or aimed at the rear also flew in, but if you were careful, you wouldn''t be hit.


    "Wah, wah!"


    Yamamura had no time to gather and throw snowballs and was desperately dodging them. However, one of the several snowballs flew at an angle closing in on Yamamura''s left hip.


    "W-Wait...!"


    In order to save Yamamura, I pulled on her right arm to avoid being hit, although I didn''t have permission to do so.


    "I''m sorry, thank you for saving me."


    "The number of people is decreasing and the battle between the front lines is intensifying. Let''s make snowballs while we can."


    "Yes, yes, yes..."


    The snowballs that she hurriedly gathered up turned out to be bigger than I had expected.


    It didn''t look like they were going to fly very far, but I didn''t say anything because I thought it would be interesting.


    "Eeeeee..."


    With a noise that sounded far from spirited, arge snowball flew through the air.


    It thennded with a thud in our allied zone.


    "Ah..."


    "Don''t worry about it. You should throw a smaller one this time."


    "Yes, okay."


    Yamamura hurriedly started collecting snow again. Meanwhile, the game kept going on, and the students were getting knocked down and eliminated.


    I wish I could let her beat at least one of them, but... When Yamamurapleted her second snowball, she was so focused on throwing it that she threw it almost directly downwards.


    "Ah, ugh!"


    Three of our team''s vanguard yers were killed, and the opponents began to focus on Yamamura. I moved away from her to attract their attention and stepped forward.


    I quickly gathered snow and hit ss D''s Nakashini, who was trying to aim a snowball at me. But this backfired. Yamamura, who had forgotten how to dodge and was looking desperately at the snow at her feet, was hit in the head by a snowball shot by ss A''s Yano.


    "Oh...!"


    The snowball she clutched so tightly fell out of her grasp, and Yamamura hurried out of the area with her hands in the air. She was depressed and frustrated, and it showed on her face.


    I wonder if she was able to experience at least a little of the snowball fight''s tension and fun.


    After that, as we repeatedly hit each other, we were eliminated one after another, and the only one left on the other team was Horikita.


    On the other hand, there were two remaining on our side. The situation was naturally in our favor.


    Ibuki stood behind me and crossed her arms.


    "You''re in my way.


    "I know."


    Horikita shot a snowball, and I caught it with my hand rather than dodging.


    The catch, of course, was illegal.


    "What are you trying to do?"


    "Ibuki wants a one-on-one. Our leader says we''re going to win, so I think we should go with it."


    It was only for a little while, but I actually enjoyed the snowball fight and I wanted nothing more.


    Helping her to beat Horikita wouldn''t be fun. On the other hand, I was genuinely interested in a showdown between these two, who weren''t very different in ability.


    "I don''t like this one bit, but oh well. I can concentrate on Ibuki-san alone."


    "You''ve got it, Ibuki. You''re responsible for getting the souvenir money."


    "Shut up and get out of here. There''s no way I''m going to lose to Horikita."


    With many people watching, the battle between Horikita and Ibuki was about to begin. In this battle, there was no rule for a draw. If the referee decided that the two were hit at the same time, it would mean a continuation of the fight into overtime. It was just a snowball fight, but for both sides, it was a fight they couldn''t lose.


    "There''s nothing like a fight that''s definitely ck and white."


    Ibuki, who had been wearing gloves for the snowball fight, took them off and clutched the snowball in her right hand.


    It was probably a strategy to abandon the cold resistance and improve the uracy of her throws.


    Horikita seemed to fight without removing her gloves, fearing that she would lose control of her fingers due to the cold.


    For a short-term battle, Ibuki had the advantage, and for a long-term battle, Horikita did.


    "I''m sorry, I couldn''t help you at all."


    Yamamura muttered, her shoulders still moving up and down, perhaps still a little out of breath.


    "That''s okay. Did you enjoy it, even just a little?"


    "Yes. I wish I could''ve tried harder."


    Saying this, Yamamura''s mouth turned up into a smile, though only slightly. Even if it was impossible to have a snowball fight with the same participants, there will be an opportunity topete in some type ofpetition in the future.


    I hope she''ll hold onto her regrets until then and take revenge. Returning to the gallery, we focused our attention on the two girls facing each other one-on-one.


    "This is a seriouspetition, isn''t it?"


    "Yes."


    Ibuki wanted to settle the match quickly, but Horikita saw through that and prioritized evasion over attack.


    "You''re moving so much!"


    Ibuki''s irritation and the cold her fingertips felt were bing increasingly unbearable. She began to show signs of impatience. As the battle began to drag on, Ibuki aimed her eighth snowball at Horikita, and it grazed her cheek.


    *Illustration


    "You''re gonna have to give me the win!"


    "That''s not going to happen." Despite showing fatigue, Ibuki''s gripped fastball headed for Horikita again.


    While simultaneously avoiding it, she released a snowball that she had been holding for a while, as if it were a counter.


    But as one would expect from Ibuki, she was very careful and didn''t let her guard down even though she was tired. Despite her exhaustion, she remained on guard and dodged the snowball, even though it knocked her out of her stance.


    "Your fatigue seems to be at its peak, so let''s end this here."


    Horikita, on the other hand, didn''t seem to want to fight any longer, and seemed to shift her focus to attacking.


    In other words, both sides were prepared to give it their all. The battle dragged on. Horikita''s snowball,ing toward Ibuki, dispersed mid-air.


    Perhaps because her grip wasn''t firm enough, it seemed to lose momentum. As a result, only the flying fragments of the snowball hit Ibuki.


    Horikita, on the other hand, tried to just barely dodge the snowball flying from Ibuki, but she couldn''t avoid itpletely and it passed through her left arm, covering her clothes. It was a solid hit.


    Such a delicate maneuver. However, Y��suke, not wanting to prolong the situation any further, made his judgment.


    "Horikita-san hit! Ibuki-san wins!"


    "Hell yeah!"


    Ibuki struck a strong victory pose and gave a big smile.


    Horikita tried to act calm, as if it was simply a snowball fight, but her frustration seemed to ooze out.


    "Look, loser! Give me 1,000 points, now!" Ibuki, not caring about her hands, trembling from the cold, took out her cell phone and stormed over to Horikita.


    "That''s very annoying. You don''t have to gloat so much; I''ll give it to you."


    "You lost! You lost, lost, lost! Loser!"


    Were they good friends or not? For a while, Ibuki continued to frolic around Horikita.

 Chapter 328: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 328: 5.1</h4>


    We enjoyed skiing onest time that day. This time, all eight of us skied the gentle beginners'' course together, rather than separately. Ry��en seemed bored from start to finish, but it was a good thing he didn''t act selfishly on his own.


    I also bought souvenirs for the first-year students during the remaining down time. Only the evening was left of the fourth day of the school trip.


    After I finished bathing in the public bath, I received a message from Sakayanagi. In response to her request to meet, I went to the designated lobby.


    It was just after 8:00 p.m., but there were very few students here today. It was thest night, and there would be a lot of talk happening in the buffet hall and in the rooms.


    Perhaps she had anticipated such a situation early on, but there were almost no students in the lobby. With a favorable situation in ce, Sakayanagi was sitting on a chair, quietly waiting.


    "Did I make you wait?"


    "No, not at all. Thank you foring all the way here."


    Even though there were few people around, thebination of Sakayanagi and I was a bit conspicuous.


    In that sense, I''d prefer to get the meeting over with quickly.


    "It was short, but did you enjoy the school trip?"


    "Yes, I did. I experienced many things that I had never done before. Above all, being able to interact with students from other sses was honestly a good experience. I think I learned a little bit more about Yamamura and Kit��."


    I mentioned both names here, but Sakayanagi looked the same as usual.


    "I see. I''m not particrly surprised, since you''re Ayanok��ji-kun. You have a voracious appetite for absorbing knowledge."


    "Are you close with those two?"


    I asked a little more in-depth.


    "I don''t see any of my ssmates as special. I see them all as equals. If I say we get along well, we get along well; if I say we don''t, we don''t."


    Whether she was lying or telling the truth, Sakayanagi answered vaguely.


    If you singled someone out, it would be easy for that particr student to feel jealousy or other feelings.


    As a leader, Sakayanagi may truly see them as equals.


    "Let me ask you why you called me here."


    "Are you done with small talk? Are you in a hurry by any chance? If Karuizawa-san sees you like this, she''ll suspect our rtionship."


    She chuckled like a little devil.


    "I wouldn''t want to be seen meeting one-on-one with the leader of ss A."


    "Fufu, I''m kidding. I understand."


    After suppressing her mouth in amusement, Sakayanagi began to speak.


    "I learned many things during this school trip. Before we return to school, I thought I would talk to you about the person who contacted you at the sports festival."


    When Sakayanagi and I missed the sports festival and were talking in my room, a man contacted me from outside the door.


    "I see. That''s a story I''m interested in."


    "Good. It seems that you were also interested in the identity of that voice."


    "I have more than a few ideas."


    Including what I felt from Nanase, it remained very unclear whether or not the caller was an enemy.


    "Now, on the contrary, let me ask you, what kind of person do you consider him to be, Ayanok��ji-kun? Is it possible that he could have the same origins as you, like Amasawa-san or Yagami-kun?"


    "No, I don''t think so. If the other party only recognized you, that idea couldn''t be ruled out, but he called my father ''Ayanok��ji-sensei''. That makes a big difference."


    "What do you mean?"


    "If you were raised in the white room, you wouldn''t call him ''Ayanok��ji-sensei.''"


    This was obvious among those who grew up in the White Room.


    "But is that really an absolute guarantee? If he''s from a different generation than Ayanok��ji-kun, the rules may be a little different, right?"


    "I can''t say I''m 100% certain. It''s just my subjective impression. One of the major factors is that he called mest year when my father visited this school, so I can guess that he''s someone who stands beside him. And the fact that you yourself said he sounded familiar could mean that he''s closely intertwined with politics and business, right?"


    It would also make sense why he went out of his way to call him a teacher. A little surprised, but still pleased, Sakayanagi closed her eyes and nodded her head.


    "That''s right. It may have been unnecessary for me to give you advice. I already have an idea of whose voice it was, but I have yet to confirm it.


    I wanted to rify it here today. That''s why I called you here."


    I looked at the cell phone that Sakayanagi had ced on herp.


    "But before we rify everything, I''m calling someone here who might know him. I think he''ll be here in a few minutes."


    "You mean there''s a student in the second year who has a connection to that person?"


    "I don''t think there are any candidates in your mind, correct?"


    Correct. I had no idea who she was referring to.


    Of course, the owner of the voice was in his first year of school, and it wouldn''t be surprising if some of the second-year students got to know him, but I don''t think that''s what she meant. At least someone who would have to know more about the situation than us for her to have a reason to call them to this ce. Was there anyone other than Sakayanagi, who knew of either the White Room or the identity of my father, or both?


    "Let''s continue with our idle chit-chat until they arrive."


    "That sounds like a good idea."


    Letting time drift by in silence wasn''t a wise way to spend a school trip.


    "How did you feel about this grouping?"


    "I''m sure the table that the individual students input definitely had a major impact. As far as I can see, it seems adjustments were made to incorporate not only my group, but also students with extreme evaluations."


    "I agree. The students who ranked the highest and the students who ranked the lowest. And the middle group who were not in either of those groups. It may not be applicable to all groups, but I think that bias was definitely at y. I think they arranged for abination that was likely to have an impact on the future of this project"


    "In that vein, I''d like to ask you something as well."


    "I''m d to hear that. If you have any questions you want to ask me, go ahead."


    "What do you think about the final exams?"


    Theposition of each group for this school trip will surely have an impactter on.


    Sakayanagi closed her eyes happily and nodded her head two or three times in satisfaction.


    "I really enjoy talking with you. We always harbor the same thoughts. I''m sure the end-of-year exams will be even tougher thanst year."


    One or two dropouts wouldn''t be surprising. That''s how much Sakayanagi seemed to be anticipating.


    "You''ll be safe with your protection point, but the ss points lost through battles may berge. Aren''t you worried that your previous solo reign will be disrupted?"


    "Do you think I would lose in a direct confrontation with Ry��en-kun? It''s a foregone conclusion that I will beat him."


    Sakayanagi, like Ry��en, couldn''t even imagine herself losing after all.


    "He certainly has some interesting ideas. There''s a term called giant-killing, and he seems to have the power to hunt big game at times. However, that will not happen in a confrontation with me. At least, next year, I''ll be the onepeting with your ss."


    Unshakable confidence. In some cases, the final result is a draw, but that can be seen as an exception.


    It was hard to believe that the school would make a rule that would allow for an easy draw in the end-of-year exam. That was what we understood fromst year''s battle against ss A.


    "Or do you think I''m going to lose?"


    "I wonder."


    It was hard to say at this stage when we didn''t even know the contents of the exam. But if I told her that, she would probably feel even more resistant. It was nothing more than an indication that Sakayanagi may lose, depending on the content of the special exam.


    No matter who wins or loses...


    "For you, no matter how things unfold between Ry��en-kun and I, there won''t be any obstruction to your n will there?"


    Because our thoughts were concordant, Sakayanagi also understood my thoughts well.


    "But Ayanok��ji-kun, the future doesn''t always turn out the way you want it to."


    "What do you mean?"


    Just as I asked back, Sakayanagi put her index finger to her mouth. It seemed that her expected visitor had arrived.


    "Thanks for waiting."


    I wondered if he hadn''t been told of my presence. Kanzaki stood by my side, his expression conveying he was slightly surprised.


    But why Kanzaki? I had never gotten the impression that he was connected to my past in any way.


    "The first thing to do is to gather the people we need to get started. I''m going to start right away, so can you pleasee this way, Kanzaki-kun?"


    "What in the world, Sakayanagi?"


    Sakayanagi, smiling and beckoning, made Kanzaki, who didn''t understand, stand beside her. Kanzaki, who had his arms crossed in doubt, still didn''t seem to understand the situation. I wondered if there was any point to this arrangement.


    "First of all, Ayanok��ji-kun. What do you make of thebination of Kanzaki-kun and I?"


    "What do I think?"


    "Please tell me your frank impression."


    "I feel nothing but difort. I''ve never seen you and Kanzaki-kun together before."


    When they were actually lined up like this, it really showed.


    *Illustration


    "I''m sure you''re right. For the students of this school, there''s no contact between myself and Kanzaki-kun. We''re not in the position of being fellow leaders, and I don''t think anyone has seen anything suggesting friendship between us. In fact, I have hardly ever spoken to Kanzaki-kun since I entered this school."


    In other words, she seemed to be trying to say that she had conversed with him to a certain extent before she entered the school.


    "How many years has it been since I have spoken with you like this?"


    "I don''t know. If speaking through someone else doesn''t count, it must''ve been at least three or four years."


    Neither of them could remember the exact date and time.


    "May I ask how you know each other?"


    "It''s a parental connection, but there''s no direct connection between the Sakayanagi and Kanzaki families. When you have parents who are well-known in their own right, you are often invited to parties and so on."


    Sakayanagi''s father is the chairman of this school and that he''s from a reasonably well-established family, given his knowledge of the White Room.


    "Kanzaki-kun''s father is the head of apany called Kanzaki Engineers."


    Does this mean that these two had the same thing inmon, the same foundation of being involved in business? If that were the case, it made sense that I didn''t have any suspicions about Kanzaki.


    "What on earth are you talking about? What''s the point of having Ayanok��ji listen to this? No, before that, let''s hear the reason why you called me here."


    "This story is exactly what''s relevant to the reason I called you."


    "I don''t understand what you mean."


    "I was hoping you could tell me more about Ishigami-kun, who''s enrolled in our school."


    Kanzaki''s expression stiffened even more at this point.


    "You said... About Ishigami?" Ishigami? There was no name that came to mind among the second-year students, and the only student whosest name corresponded was a first-year student.


    "That''s what you mean. You''re saying you''re interested in Ishigami too?"


    "You may take it that way."


    "But what''s Ayanok��ji''s reason? He has nothing to do with Ishigami. I don''t think he''d get involved with other years for no reason. If he did, it would only be in case of trouble. It''s hard to believe that even Ry��en would do such a random thing, let alone Ayanok��ji."


    He tried to exin the situation in his own way.


    "It''s regarding an event in the past, not the present."


    "What...?"


    "You still don''t understand? You must have deep feelings for the name Ayanok��ji."


    "What... No... No way...?"


    As if noticing something, Kanzaki repeatedly looked at Sakayanagi and me.


    "You''ve been very slow to notice. Of course, that''s understandable."


    "So that''s how it is."


    Kanzaki seemed toe to an understanding with Sakayanagi''s words. Then, after looking up at the ceiling and holding his head up, he looked at me again.


    "Ayanok��ji...? I can''t believe you''re his child." There was only one thing that could be understood from those words. Kanzaki must also know or have known someone named Ayanok��ji. And it was no longer necessary to guess that it was my father. That man had strong ties to the business world. It was inevitable.


    "Have you been able to shake off the difort of me sharing a seat with Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Ah. I thought you were simply interested in Ayanok��ji''s ability, but I guess you weren''t. Since when did you realize he was Ayanok��ji-sensei''s child?"


    "Of course, from the moment I saw him at this school. And unlike you, I''ve seen Ayanok��ji-kun when he was little. Right?"


    She replied, not speaking of the White Room, but as if she was pretending to be a familiar figure from childhood.


    "So he''s not just a random guy. If he''s his son, there''s no way he''s not... Excellent."


    Kanzaki looked me straight in the eye, as if he had reached a point of understanding.


    "My father adores Ayanok��ji-sensei, and I''ve met him in person several times at parties and such. However, we''ve only spoken properly once."


    This was a good example of the kind of case that cane about even when indirectly connected by Chairman Sakayanagi.


    Nevertheless, he seemed to have a lot of respect for the man. Since I didn''t know his private life at all, I couldn''t imagine what kind of behavior he disyed in front of Kanzaki, but I couldn''t deny the gap in perception.


    "My evaluation of you has changed two or three times up until this point, but it has finally settled. If there was a child of Ayanok��ji-sensei in Horikita''s ss, he must have been a powerful card."


    He seemed to have a high opinion of my father to all intents and purposes and was convinced by himself.


    "Well, now that we''ve corrected the discrepancy in our perceptions, let''s move on. You don''t know about Ishigami-kun, do you, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "No."


    The very student Ishigami was the one who approached us, it seemed.


    "He''s one of the young men who admire your father. You know him well enough, don''t you, Kanzaki-kun?"


    "...Oh. He seems to be fascinated with Ayanok��ji-sensei. I didn''t have the courage to go talk to him, but Ishigami''s different. Since then, he was really proactive in speaking to him."


    "Ishigami-kun''s age is one year younger than us, and he''s now a first-year student."


    A student who adored that man was enrolled in this school, and somehow, he had contacted me several times, and even indirectly helped with Yagami''s expulsion at the cultural festival. The agenda of this man, Ishigami, is still unknown to me.


    "I''m sure you''ve had opportunities toe in contact with first-year students, but how long have you been aware of Ishigami?"


    "I noticed him as soon as I saw the OAA. But since he''s not the type toe out in the open, I never had a chance to talk to him; my interactions with first year ss A were through Takahashi Osamu-kun, and it seemed that he was intentionally avoiding contact with me."


    It seems that Sakayanagi herself didn''t want to force contact with him.


    "Is he excellent?"


    "I think that Kanzaki, who''s close to him, knows more about that aspect than I do."


    Kanzaki was entrusted with the exnation, but he didn''t seem happy at all. Rather, it seemed the opposite was true.


    "It''s not that I''m close to him. I just went to the same cram school as Ishigami. But if I were to honestly answer your question, then he''s undeniably a genius. He''se up with several ideas that I can''t even think of, and the only thing I''m sure of is that I''ve seen it up close."


    He didn''t seem to like Ishigami, but he responded as if acknowledging the fact.


    "It''s Kanzaki-kun''s point of view, his personal opinion, but I thought it would be a good reference."


    "But so what? All you have to do is just leave the current Ishigami alone."


    "Can''t you at least imagine? He respects Ayanok��ji-kun''s father. If that''s the case, it wouldn''t be surprising if he enrolled in this school to check his son''s ability," Sakayanagi reasoned.


    While withholding information about the White Room, Sakayanagi led the conversation.


    "Ishigami is testing Ayanok��ji''s ability...? You can''t deny it?"


    It seemed that her words seemed to make sense to Kanzaki, corresponding to the image of Ishigami he knew.


    "We''repeting against each other in the second year. Kanzaki-kun, even if your ss is one step behind, it''s still unclear who the winner will be. Under such circumstances, don''t you think it''s unfair that Ishigami-kun will y unnecessary tricks to find out Ayanok��ji-kun''s ability in the future?"


    "I don''t understand what you mean. But why are you so devoted to Ayanok��ji? It should be none of your business what happens to the students in your rival ss."


    If left alone, Ishigami would automatically sabotage a strong student in a rival ss. It was obvious to everyone that this was essentially a benefit for Sakayanagi.


    "I just genuinely want to have fun," she said.


    "It''s my role to bury Horikita''s ss, including Ayanok��ji. It''s frustrating when someone suddenly appears and has taken your purpose away from you, isn''t it?"


    After a fit ofughter, Sakayanagi thanked Kanzaki.


    "Thank you very much, Kanzaki-kun. From here on out, I think Ayanok��ji-kun and I will work out a n to deal with Ishigami-kun together."


    Although it was a thank you... It also strongly implied that anyone who got in the way should leave.


    "I have no intention of getting involved with Ishigami-kun, so I''d appreciate it if it stayed that way."


    Kanzaki replied without hesitation and walked away.


    "We''ll talk again soon, Ayanok��ji. I''d like to hear a lot about that man, you know."


    He was eager to talk about my father, but unfortunately, I knew nothing about him.


    "Well, Ayanok��ji-kun. Let''s see who Ishigami-kun really is."


    "What are you going to do?"


    "Of course, I''ll ask him directly. That would be the fastest way, right?"


    Taking out her cell phone, Sakayanagi punched in the 11-digit number with a smooth hand.


    It seemed that she had done her homework and had already obtained Ishigami''s phone number.


    Putting it on speaker, Sakayanagi dialed the number, and within a few rings, the call started.


    "I figured it was about time you called, Sakayanagi."


    Ishigami''s tone of voice suggested he had foreseen it as soon as he picked up the phone. This voice was unmistakably the one who called mest year and the one who visited me during the sports festival.


    "You''re very perceptive, aren''t you?"


    "I told him ahead of time that if anyone other than a first-year student asked for my number, he should report it to me."


    "Let''s just say it''s as good as it gets. I''ve heard rumors about you from inside and outside."


    She always had her antennae up.


    "You could''ve approached me earlier, couldn''t you?"


    "I hoped to avoid contact. You don''t need to get involved with me either, do you?"


    "I don''t think so. I thought I had to confirm whether or not you would stand in Ayanok��ji-kun''s way in the future."


    "If so, what are you going to do about it?"


    "I don''t think Ayanok��ji-kun will be defeated by someone who isn''t me, but I don''t like the idea of him being yanked aside by someone else. If you''re going to intervene, I may have no choice but to stop you."


    "You''re going to stop me? You should ignore me rather than do such a useless thing. I chose this school on Ayanok��ji-sensei''s rmendation so that I could spend my time as a normal student."


    He had entered this school with a simr idea, that was what he implied.


    "You can assume that I won''t try eliminating Ayanok��ji from this school for now."


    "For now, huh? That''s a worrisome implication, isn''t it?"


    "In the unlikely event that Ayanok��ji-sensei instructs me to eliminate him, I will do so. That''s all."


    His tone was consistently calm, and it didn''t seem as if he was lying.


    "You''ve increased your loyalty a lot without realizing it, haven''t you?"


    "Don''t go any further, Sakayanagi. If you wish to stand by Ayanok��ji''s side, you may do so."


    I''m sure he was just strongly warning me that it wasn''t going to be a problem.


    "I''m not going to tell you to avoid going against me. Sooner orter, Ayanok��ji will find out about me, so you''ll warn him. Isn''t that the best way to protect his school life? No, if you''re calling, there''s no need for that."


    He couldn''t be sure. But he was considering the possibility that I was eavesdropping.


    "I''ll let you know if I feel like it. I''ll greet you at school next time."


    At this point, Sakayanagi decided that enough was enough and ended the call unterally.


    "It was him, after all. It seems he didn''t have much of an intention to hide it in the first ce."


    "It seems like it. If he came to this school to enjoy student life to the fullest, I have no intention of getting involved in the future."


    At least in all my interactions with Ishigami, I had never sensed any danger, and the same went for the current phone call. There was no need to panic now that the possibility had emerged that Ishigami wasn''t trying to expel me from the beginning.


    "I see. If you make that choice, I will respect it." Sakayanagi said.


    "I''m grateful. Thanks to you, I was able to recognize Ishigami''s existence."


    "Now that we have some sense of direction, I am sorry to make your stay here so long. However, may I continue what I was just about to say at the end?"


    "The future doesn''t always turn out the way I want it to, right?"


    The way Sakayanagi said that was certainly something that had been on my mind.


    "Ah, Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    But someone was in the wrong ce at the wrong time. I was about to inquire into what she meant when someone else called out to me.


    "Um, have you seen Honami?"


    I was called by Amikura, who was hurriedly walking down the corridor, looking a little flustered.


    "No, I haven''t seen her. What''s wrong with Ichinose?"


    "Look, the school trip is over already, right? So we decided to get together with everyone in the ss and chat until lights out, but we couldn''t find Honami, so we were worried."


    A good number of people were searching for her, and even as we spoke, the girls from ss D were hurriedly walking beside Amikura.


    "From the looks of it, it seems like you''ve already checked the bathrooms and other rooms."


    "I heard that she looked distressed in the evening... so I was a little worried."


    A concerned Amikura was approached by a girl from the same ss.


    "Mako-chan. I just had it checked. It looks like Honami''s yukata is still here, and I think she went outside."


    "What, outside? But it''s almost nine o''clock, remember? And the group is at the inn, right?"


    Going outside wasn''t allowed after 9 p.m., and if she was out alone, that could be a problem.


    "I''ll check the big bathhouse one more time!"


    Not wanting to waste any more time standing around talking, Amikura walked away.


    It was certainly a bit troublesome that Ichinose was absent at this time of night.


    "Let''s continue our conversation another time. Please go ahead and search for Ichinose-san. Her presence is probably still indispensable to you for now."


    "Sorry."


    I bid Sakayanagi farewell and left the lobby. As long as she wasn''t allowed to act alone outside of a group, Ichinose wasn''t a student who would break the school''s designated rules without reason.


    Even if she had a problem, she wouldn''t change her basic principle.


    I looked out from the hallway of the ryokan and saw that it was snowing.


    If she really was outside the ryokan, there were only so many ces she could go.


    After returning to my room and putting on my clothes, I headed out through the ryokan''s backyard.


    There was a hill up ahead where you could see the scenery lit up.


    This was exactly the kind of ce that was restricted at 9 p.m., the curfew. The backyard, which waspletely within the inn''s limits, didn''t meet the standard for group activities.


    Even though the area was illuminated with lights, it was still dangerous because of the snow.


    Many students climbed to higher ground on their first or second day at the inn.


    Therefore, few students would go back to see it again under the cold and snowy weather.


    And moreover, it was thest day. They would want to spend a rxing time at the ryokan.

 Chapter 329: Epilogue : The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

    <h4>Chapter 329: Epilogue : The Light At The End Of The Tunnel</h4>


    IT WAS NEARLY 9:00 p.m. and a frigid wind was blowing outside.


    The lights at each end of the staircase faintly illuminated my footing, but due to the snow, it was hard to say that I was safe. I climbed up dozens of steps, stepping on the snow to avoid falling. There probably weren''t many people who enjoyeding here at this time of day.


    In the darkness, I arrived at a slightly spacious hill where people couldn''t see their own breath.


    On the wooden deck, I found someone.


    They were perhaps gazing out at the scenery, but the darkness made it look rather sorrowful. Naturally, there were no other people around.


    I heard that they were present at mealtime. I began to wonder, how long had they been here. The sound of the wind was so strong that they didn''t seem to notice my approach.


    I stomped my foot on the ground as hard as I could to announce my presence so as not to startle them. I wondered if the sound reached their ears at all. When their body showed a reaction, I decided to call out to them.


    "Can I sit next to you?"


    "Oh! Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What a coincidence."


    "Y-yes, coincidence."


    Ichinose awkwardly let her gaze wander off into the nightscape.


    "My bad, it''s not really a coincidence. Amikura and the others were making a fuss that they couldn''t find you. I just wanted to call out to you to chat until lights out."


    "Oh, yeah? What''s going on? Am I making a scene?"


    "A little. I''ll just send her a message for now. That should put Amikura at ease."


    "Have you exchanged contact information... With Mako-chan?"


    "We''re in the same group for the school trip. I needed a way to get in touch with her."


    I sent a message saying that I had found Ichinose and that I would be back by 9:00 p.m., so they didn''t need to worry. As soon as I sent the message, it was read. When Amikura learned that everything was okay, she sent two stamps of relief.


    "She got the message. At least now the ruckus should be over."


    "I''m sorry."


    "No problem. This is the inn''s property and we''re not breaking curfew. As long as you''re back by 9:00, it''s your business."


    "Yeah, thanks..."


    I guess it was understandable that she wasn''t attempting to go back inside just because people were worried about her. School trips are fun, but you inevitably have to share a lot of your time with students.


    "Everyone has times when they want to be alone. In that sense, I''m probably intruding on your privacy."


    To these words, Ichinose was silent.


    She just continued to gaze upon the nightscape.


    "It''s cold."


    "...Yes. It''s cold."


    Even through my gloves, I felt a piercing shiver as the wind blew.


    "How long have you been here?"


    "I don''t know... Maybe five minutes."


    She answered, but she seemed to think that I would immediately recognize her lie, so she corrected herself in a frustrated manner.


    "Sorry, I might''ve been here for 30 or 40 minutes."


    "I''m sure you''re right. At first nce, there aren''t any footprints to be found."


    I had no proof that Ichinose was here at all until I came up the stairs. If it had been a few minutes earlier, I would''ve clearly recognized the footprints, even in the dark.


    The wind was still strong, though the snow that had been falling was slowlying to a stop.


    "What I''m saying is probably obvious, but you''re going to catch a cold if you stay too long."


    "Right..."


    She muttered to herself in agreement, but there was no indication that she was going to heed my advice.


    Soon after, the snow seemed to being to a stop. But this would only be temporary. The forecast was calling for a strong snowstorm soon.


    "Talk about a wild goose chase, what are you thinking about while taking in the night view all by yourself?"


    I had a rough idea of what to expect, but I wouldn''t know for certain unless I heard it from her own mouth.


    I asked her, but Ichinose didn''t immediately answer. She just admired the scenery without ncing back.


    "I think I want to be... By myself for right now."


    A mild rejection. She urged me to walk away, saying she doesn''t want to talk to anyone.


    Or maybe she was just saying that she didn''t want me near her.


    "I don''t think I''m going to leave you alone right now. It''s especially dangerous on the way down."


    "Thank you for your concern, but Karuizawa-san would be upset if she knew that you and I were alone in a ce like this. I definitely don''t want that."


    At first nce, nobody would go this far unless they had another reason; I guess it was that sort of issue. It seems to be in her nature to care about others even at a time like this.


    "Certainly, if Kei sees me, she''ll misunderstand."


    "Yes."


    "Are you sure about wanting me to leave?"


    "Yes."


    Ichinose answered with the same terse answer, still not averting her gaze from the peaceful view.


    I quickly pulled away and turned my back.


    "I''m going back then. Just make sure you''re back by 9:00."


    "Thanks, I''ll be careful."


    As I took my first steps, the snow that had momentarily stopped began to fall again. The snow came down even stronger than before.


    I spun back around and looked at the back of Ichinose''s figure, which had remained frozen in ce since I found her here.


    She had be much smaller and weaker. When was thest time I saw the Ichinose Honami that was so full of life when she first entered the school?


    It wasn''t that something happened on the school trip, but rather an umtion. The water that had been collecting in the cracked cup was beginning to overflow. It would be easy to walk away here, but this was a turning point.


    Ichinose''s emotions, which have been eroding and constricting her, reached a critical point, as far as I could see.


    It wasn''t simply that the water was overflowing. If the crack widened and the cup shattered, restoration may not be possible.


    In other words, Ichinose''s ss will be finished, and her path to ss A will close.


    This wasn''t the time for her ss''s downfall.


    That would be a problem for my n.


    "I''ll wait here." I said and sat down on the stairs leading to the inn.


    "Why?"


    "I wonder why."


    "My affairs are none of your business, are they?


    Why are you waiting...?"


    "I don''t know."


    I had nothing to say to her then. I knew she wanted to push me away, but since she had no coercive power, Ichinose had no choice but to give up.


    If she really didn''t want to be with me, the best choice was to walk away.


    A few minutes passed in silence. Nothing really happened.


    "All we''re doing is chatting... Right?"


    Either she couldn''t stand the silence between the two of us, or she decided that she had no choice. In a voice so low that it could''ve been missed, as if she had been thinking to herself, Ichinose muttered something.


    "Actually, I''ve been wanting to ask you something for a long time."


    It was much better than being left in silence until curfew. It would also help to drown out the chill of the snow that was freezing my butt.


    "Have you ever heard of the White Room...?"


    I wondered what kind of conversation would result from this situation, but the words that came out were far too unexpected andpletely diverged from some of the assumptions I had floating around.


    Why, out of everyone, would Ichinose ever utter the words "White Room"?


    For a moment, Sakayanagi''s image shed through my mind. There were some situations where the ss leaders were getting to know each other, such as cooperation between sses these days. But I don''t think she would easily talk about such things.


    If that was the case, then...


    I recalled that she was threatened by Tsukishiro during the Uninhabited Ind Special Exam. I wouldn''t be surprised if she had memorized ''the White Room'' from that incident.


    "I''m not sure what you''re talking about."


    "I see. If you don''t understand, Ayanok��ji-kun, don''t worry about it. I may have misheard."


    Ichinose''s words suddenly stopped under the cold sky. She then let out a breath. I wasn''t sure whether or not shepletely believed my answer.


    Just to be sure, it would be better if I nted some ideas myself.


    "Where did you hear those words?"


    I cut in to divulge that it was something I had no recollection of. If she didn''t answer honestly, that was enough to stop me from pursuing the matter.


    "I heard the former acting chairman and Shiba-sensei talking during the Uninhabited Ind Exam. There were few parts I could hear clearly, but I heard that he wanted to expel you and the words ''White Room.'' I was curious, so I did some searching, but I couldn''t find anything that sounded like it, so I guess I heard wrong?"


    "I doubt you heard it right. At least I can''t think of any simr words."


    If she even did the research herself, she was likely half-convinced that it was inconsistent with her memory.


    "But why were the teachers trying to expel you? Are you out of trouble now?"


    She''s probably been meaning to ask that for a long time too. But because of what happened with Kei, Ichinose seemed to have pushed the question to the back of her mind.


    "That matter is taken care of. I can''t go into details, but there''s no problem."


    I could sense that there was another secret, separate from the White Room. It would be more troublesometer on if the former situation was leaked to the outside world.


    "I see...."


    I could see her shock when she thought she might''ve been considered as someone with whom I couldn''t confide a secret with.


    Continuing with these topics wouldn''t benefit Ichinose, so this time I asked her a question.


    "I have a question for you, too. The Ichinose I know isn''t the kind of person who shivers in loneliness in a ce like this. She''s the kind of student who''s surrounded by friends,ughing and encouraging each other. How long do you n on staying here?"


    "I''m having fun."


    "That''s not what it looked like when I saw your demeanor earlier. I don''t think it was the kind of face you should show on a school trip that''s all about enjoying yourself."


    Even this kind of exchange was likely necessary for Ichinose right now. To expose the parts of herself that she normally wanted to keep to herself and couldn''t talk about with anyone.


    This was something that Ichinose, who continued to be under pressure as a ss leader, continued to hold onto.


    "Are you really going to continue waiting there?"


    "Yes. I''ll be with you when I get off."


    "I see. Well, at leaste over here. Your butt is probably getting cold."


    "That''s a nice offer. I was indeed freezing my butt off."


    I hurriedly stood up, brushed the snow off my butt, and stood next to Ichinose.


    Ichinose''s side profile hadn''t changed from earlier.


    When I checked my cell phone earlier, the time was about 8:40. Calcting the time it would take to return, it looked like we could stay here for another 10 minutes or so.


    If we were to stand in silence until the time limit, that would be fine, too. With the intention of staying with Ichinose until the end, I decided to wait for her reaction.


    Every time the wind blew, snow danced in the air. After a few dozen seconds, Ichinose opened her mouth. A puff of white breath scattered in the air.


    "With my way of doing things, I can''t beat any ss anymore. That''s what I was thinking."


    An unintentional tear trickled down Ichinose''s cheek.


    "You can''t win, huh? I thought you were going to continue forward as you were without hesitation."


    "But because of that..."


    Ichinose spun her words, though they were faltering.


    "Yes, that''s right. But results don''t follow. Our ss is definitely moving farther away from ss A. This is obvious to everyone."


    "And that the cause of this is your own approach."


    "If only I couldmand my ssmates like Sakayanagi-san. If only I could lead as strongly as Ry��en-kun. If only I could coordinate like Horikita-san. I can''t help but think like that."


    "That''s asking for something you don''t have. You can only be yourself; you can''t be anyone else."


    She knew this without having to say it. But there are times when you have to hear it, even if you know it.


    "It''s what I don''t have. Yeah, right. I want to be what I''m not."


    "Even if you have to change yourself?"


    "If I can win, I''ll... Still be fine."


    Ichinose wanted to change. Whether it was right or wrong was secondary, she was just desperate to break through. Normally, this wouldn''t have been a situation where I would''ve reached out to her.


    However, the confession I received from Ichinose on the Uninhabited Ind led to several unexpected events, which was the main reason she had be so weak. There were still more than three months to go until the promise I made with Ichinose.


    *Illustration


    Will she be able to get through this without any help until then?


    No, this wasn''t a situation in which we should be hopeful.


    Right now, Ichinose''s heart was on the verge of breaking. The effects of the poison had begun to spread throughout her body faster than I anticipated.


    Her love for me and the presence of Karuizawa Kei.


    The ss was on a downward spiral, with no chance of rising to the top. Although Kanzaki and Himeno were starting to make a move, there won''t be enough time for the growth of their fellow students.


    As a student council member, I can''t see what''ll happen to her in the future. The road ahead will be very difficult. She seems to be trapped from all sides. Her future is shrouded in fog.


    "I''m so frustrated..."


    Her helplessness struck Ichinose with an intense sense of guilt.


    If this was a problem that only she had to deal with, she would just be depressed. But Ichinose, who was leading the ss, cannot allow that. She was responsible for the whole ss''s failures. It was because she thought that way that this phenomenon urred.


    "I''m sorry, Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    Her trembling voice strongly conveyed her regret.


    "What are you apologizing for?"


    "Many, many things. Crying like this only troubles you."


    Ichinose was supposed to be stronger and more intelligent. Her hidden potential hadpletely disappeared because of a heart being too fragile. A fatal weakness.


    Neither Horikita, Ry��en, nor Sakayanagi, who walk in front of the pack, will stand still and allow her to catch up. It would be excruciatingly painful to struggle, suffer, and copse in ce behind them. A gentle reminder that working hard will no longer relieve her of this heavy responsibility. If Ichinose was to lose both her legs, she''d be finished for good.


    It was too early to tell, however... This wasn''t the right time.


    You aren''t allowed to copse right now, Ichinose. I won''t let you stop until the final exam, the time that will decide the fate of the second-year students. I won''t allow you to break down before then.


    You are the one who decides the time and ce of your life or death as a student, but not "you".


    I closed the distance between us and extended my arm to her back as she endured her misery.


    Then, I put my hand on her right shoulder and pulled her into a hug.


    "W-what? Ayanok��ji-kun!?"


    "When you''re in pain, cry. You can ask for help. Everyone has a weakness."


    "It''s... But..."


    Ichinose bit her lip, which was beginning to turn a pale blue, and swallowed her words. Her body tried to flee in the opposite direction, but her strength was feeble.


    "Isn''t there something you want?"


    "I... No. What I wanted is no longer..."


    "You can''t get it anymore?"


    She desperately tried to suppress the words overflowing from the back of her throat, or rather the depths of her heart. Still, Ichinose nodded her head only slightly, probably not intending to answer.


    "That doesn''t matter anymore. That''s what I think."


    "But..."


    "If you don''t have the courage to take the first step, I can give you a hand."


    I wiped the tears that were running down her cheeks with my fingertips. They were so cold that they felt like they were going to freeze.


    She no longer had the strength to run away. Rather, she rxed and surrendered herself to me, leaving everything in my hands.


    Gazing at the snowy nightscape in a distantnd.


    On this day, we learned of each other''s warmth by huddling together under the cold night sky.

 Chapter 330: Postscript and Credits

    <h4>Chapter 330: Postscript and Credits</h4>


    Hello. I''m Kinugasa, and I''m a friend of yours! How have you been? It''s been four months. I have something important to say to you all, so I''d be happy if you could listen to it. I have one apology. The character "Ishigami Ky��" from 1st year ss A has appeared several times in the 2nd year version, but his correct surname is "Ishigami." "Ishiishigami" is a big mistake. We apologize for the dy in reporting this. The detailed reason is... - probably because I was tired! Then it can''t be helped! We all make mistakes, so please forgive me with a warm look in your eyes. I hope that everyone who reads this will smile kindly and forgive me, so this story is over. I hope you will take care of Ishigami-kun and myself again from now on. Now, this time, we are going on a school excursion, so you will not feel the winter vacation of Volumes 7.5. It may be a story of a vacation, but it is an important part of the story that will lead to the future. The next volume will be thest volume of the second semester, which will be the ninth volume of the December story. After that, we will continue with the winter break story. I have told you somewhere in the past that the second-year version and after will be shorter than the first-grade version, but it may be about the same or a little more. I hope you will forgive me with a warm heart, as we all make mistakes. And let me tell you a little bit about the animation. How was the second anime season in the summer? I hope that as many people as possible enjoyed the first animation in five years. I am already looking forward to the third season, and with that as encouragement, I am continuing to work hard on my writing. I hope you will continue to support Yosami from many angles. I know it is a little early, but I hope to see you all again next year with postcards.


    Royal MTLs Afterword


    Hey there everyone, It''s Cast. It feels kinda weird writing one of these for the first time since Prince is usually the one to do it, but due to some personal issues, he was a little busy this time around. Anyways, I''d like to express my gratitude to the entire RoyalMTLs team for the sweat and tears they poured into this volume. This was definitely not an easy volume to trante, and it couldn''t have been done without them. I appreciate every single one of you for your hard work. Further thanks also go to all of you readers out there that have been supporting us throughout this long journey. Thanks to you we were able to reach 10K members in our discord server! It is a surreal feeling to be a part of such an aplishment and know that we are thergest COTEmunity in the world. I once again thank all of you for reading from us and the continuous support you have provided. This could not have been done without you all sharing the same passion as us for the ssroom of the Elite series. Thanks again and see you all when Volume 0 is released. As always, a big shout out to Kinusaga (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line. Keep checking in on our website to be updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions and consider joining our discord if you haven''t already!  https://discord.gg/5KACXAqjwR


    Anime Anyway


    /c/ANIMEANYWAY


    Credit


    PrinceYG#5766 - Trantor


    "Nagumo is literally the strongest student in ANHS"


    Rhymar#7433 - Trantor


    "Kushida is the strongest girl in ANHS"


    Amadeus#0001 - Senior Editor


    "Honami''s development is going just as expected. Dear Kei fanatics... please overlook the NTRing you had to endure. It''s clearly just bait, after all. Or is it? Can''t wait for the Karuizawa/Ichinose cat fight next volume! Fufu."


    Alya#7028 - Illustrator


    "My twitter is: @Alya_l16"


    BGS003#2745 - Illustration Cleaner


    "Nagumo > Ishigami"


    Akuma#5279 - Editor


    "Ry��en hot"


    DoSomething#5700


    "Damn Kushida end game girl"


    Grimmfx24#0843 - Editor


    "Everything I Could Ever Want Can Be Found Right in The Depths Of My Own Heart... Except For Money"


    Nocturnal#8140 - Editor


    "Koji''s the best Pok��mon trainer, he''s just naturally catching them all."


    contact me on Discord


    Ryuu#1482

 Chapter 331: Short Story 1 : Kushida Kikyo’s SS - A Certain Lapse of Judgment

    <h4>Chapter 331: Short Story 1 : Kushida Kikyo��s SS - A Certain Lapse of Judgment</h4>


    RYUUEN TOOK THE initiative to take a shot at me, only to have it backfire. Right after finishing the conversation however...


    "Why ..... toe to my rescue? It''s not good for Ayanokoji-kun, right?"


    Ayanokoji-kun obviously would not want to be targeted on purpose by Ryuuen-kun.


    "There are benefits. You are an indispensable talent in the ss. Even if I didn''te here, I don''t think Ryuuen would be nning to expose you, but I don''t know how he''ll act afterwards. You should figure out a way to seal his mouth for good."


    "Well, well..."


    I certainly reflect on how superficial and rash I am. But why can''t I restrain my emotions at this moment? My past failures have led me to this situation, which has done nothing but put a huge burden on me.


    If I were exposed, only I would be in trouble. However, the ss will also lose a hand that can contribute to the ss.


    "I must guard my ce. I obviously acted for this reason, but..."


    "You are no match for Ryuuen. If you voluntarily got into a battle you couldn''t handle and blew yourself up, then I''d be troubled. That''s why I just stepped in"


    What a humiliating word to make me feel doubly humiliated. But... it''s true. It''s been a long time since I had that first impression of "just an insignificant student" for Ayanokouji-kun.


    "At least at this stage, I don''t think Ryuuen is a strong enemy."


    The person standing side by side with me said what I couldn''t possibly say, as naturally as the weather today.


    It''s not surprising that such a statement would beughed at, since it''s clearly something that can''t be done.


    "Huh? What is this..."


    My brain can''t keep up with my understanding, so I''m doing my best just to reply like this. But it''s shameful and annoying to see myself in such a confused state.


    "Anyway, you don''t have to take any risks now. Cherish yourself as you are."


    "What an unpleasant thing to say. Does the ss need my strength so much?"


    My heart felt like it was grabbed by a chirp, and I felt like I was blushing badly. Cold sweat? My heart rate also seemed to have increased strangely. "That''s also another reason."


    "Another?"


    "I feel like I can get along well with Kushida who speaks her mind."


    Ah...? Is he, stupid?


    "Don''t be like that. Someone who knows my nature can''t really think like that, right?"


    I don''t want to hear words that will confuse me even more mentally. It''s clear that I don''t want to hear those words, but I want him to say more. This contradiction was destroying my brain.


    "There''s no such thing. I really quite like it."


    "What is this... Where exactly is the seriousness? Ayanokouji-kun, I can''t believe it."


    I wanted to reply with a smile, but I couldn''t. Why? Why? Why? I couldn''t y the usual me.


    "It''s true. There are people in this world who would feel morefortable with your nature"


    "This kind of thing-"


    My brain,pletely froze. I couldn''t look directly at the man in front of me and fled to the wall. That way I can''t see him.


    No, no, no! What am I doing?! I need to calm down, there is definitely something wrong with this! This is not... I couldn''t be... falling for him?


    Impossible. Impossible. Impossible, impossible... Impossible!


    By the way, if I think about it, didn''t Ayanokoji-kun touch my breasts? No, instead of saying he touched my breasts I should say I forced him to touch them. At that time, I could not think of any other method other than this one, and there was nothing I could do about it.


    Hmm? Wait a minute. Strange. Calmly think about it, if he wanted to, couldn''t Ayanokoji-kun easily break free of my grip?


    Whether it''s the fingerprints on the uniform or whatever, I can''t remember what I said at that time, but he should know that this poses no threat, right?


    "What''s going on?"


    He wore a harmless expression. Is he actually just thinking "lucky, I can touch her boobs" or something like that?


    Ha! Isn''t that shameless? Wait a minute. Wait... Wait a minute. Calm down, calm down. Hoo~ha~, hoo~ha~.


    Put the boob thing aside for now. It''s the other feelings that are the big problem. I''m in love with someone else ...? Ha-? This kind of thing is not possible, right.


    Falling in love as a student or something like that won''t do any good for the future. So I''m not going to like anyone here.


    The only thing that matters is myself. For the sake of my own happiness, there may be times when I have to get married in the future, but at most, that''s all. If I judge that it is best for me to live by myself, then of course I will do so. So, there is absolutely no way I could have such feelings for him.


    Recently, I have be weaker because my weaknesses have been exposed to the people around me. It just happened that at this time, I was slightly touched by Ayanokoji-kun''s attitude.


    "It''s okay, it''s okay..."


    Calm down. Think about it calmly first. So far, I have resolutely yed the role of my gentle self to anyone.


    In the end, who is Ayanokouji-kun? Wait a second... Ayanokoji-kun is waiting behind me, he should have noticed my abnormality.


    So I''m going to turn around and answer him with a smile, saying that I''m fine although I''m feeling a little sick. That''s the usual me all the time. I turn around with my mind made up.


    "I''m just a little dizzy, but I''m fine! It''s oka-!"


    The moment I turned around and saw


    Ayanokoji-kun''s face, I paused.


    "Are you really okay?"


    Because objectively speaking, I made a rather strange sound, so Ayanokoji-kun naturally asked.


    Don''t look over here! No, no, I''m still shaking...! Confused, haunted. This- this is impossible.


    I''m absolutely haunted!!!

 Chapter 332: Short Story 2 : Miki Yamamura’s SS - A Subtle Change

    <h4>Chapter 332: Short Story 2 : Miki Yamamura��s SS - A Subtle Change</h4>


    EARLY IN THE morning, the second-years were enjoying themselves with a snowball fight.


    I couldn''t hide the confusion in my heart as I blended into the light. I was supposed to live a low key, quiet, solitary life. But he, as a matter of course, found the inconspicuous me and approached me.


    "It''s so lively."


    He took the initiative to say hello...


    This is also a change in itself.


    "Well, it does look fun for sure."


    Ayanokoji-kun replied while ncing at my bare hands.


    "Hoo..."


    My heart started beating faster and I purposely exhaled hot air into my hands.


    "Did you forget your gloves again?"


    "Yes."


    After answering, I couldn''t bear the nervousness of lying and confessed immediately.


    "I''m sorry, I''m just kidding. I''m carrying them with me."


    Without thinking about it, I had already blurted it out.


    "I didn''t realise you were aedian."


    Ayanokouji-kun spoke with his unchanging attitude, without a smile on his face.


    "Sure enough... does it not suit my style?"


    After asking back uneasily, he shook his head in denial.


    "No, it''s fine, isn''t it? It''s good to form a group and then slowly develop a bond."


    That''s great... The confusion in my mind wasn''t an illusion.


    "I... feel the same way. My presence is weak and I am rarely noticed no matter what I do. But Kushida-san, Nishino-san, Amikura-san and everyone in the group watched me and saw me as apanion. Thanks to this group, not only the girls, but the boys as well. It was apletely different experience from what I thought it would be like before."


    I said that much at once. It was as if I had said all the things that had been in my heart until now.


    "What I thought would be a long school trip ising to an end today."


    It''s been a long school trip.


    A school trip to investigate the enemy.


    But now... I''m questioning whether I still feel that way,,,

 Chapter 333: Short Story 3 : Sae Chiyabashira’s SS - Confused but Resolute

    <h4>Chapter 333: Short Story 3 : Sae Chiyabashira''s SS - Confused but Resolute</h4>


    "I''M GOING BACK to my room! Bye!"


    After shouting loudly to the extent of causing a nuisance to the hotel, Chie left unhappily. As a teacher, I was shocked to see her acting like this.


    "I''m sorry for what happened earlier." she said, as if she wasining, probably because she was a little drunk.


    If she hadn''t been drunk, she wouldn''t have let anyone see her like this, right?


    "It''s okay, it''s just a joke after drinking, I''ll put a deaf ear to it." Horikita said something unlike a student.


    "You''re really strict, Horikita"


    "You''re a little concerned, aren''t you, sensei?"


    "To be honest, it''s impossible not to think about it. Your ss is so different from the one I took three years ago."


    Of course, the students are not the only ones to me for what happened in thest ss. It is also the responsibility of the ss teacher who was not motivated to move up to ss A. In other words, it means that it is inseparable from my inaction. At that time, if I had harboured the same enthusiasm as I do now, there might have been some possibilities.


    No... That''s a bit of an exaggeration. Even excluding my own reasons, the ss is growing beyond belief now. Even excluding my own reasons, the ss is now growing beyond imagination. The main reason for this... is undoubtedly the presence of Kiyotaka Ayanokoji.


    "I don''t know if Ayanokoji-kun is a Joker, however I can''t deny that he is strong as a fellow ssmate. But I don''t n to have any scruples about it."


    [Note: Joker refers to the trump card in poker, the big monster.]


    As if reading my heart, my heart beat a little faster.


    "Since this card is assigned to your ss, you should use it to fight, shouldn''t you? After all, we''re aiming for ss A."


    "Yes. That''s my intention, too."


    The sense of unfairness caused by overuse of powerful cards. I can''t let that make me waver and hold back. It would be too rude to the students of other sses who are serious about the sspetition.


    "Okay... I''m going to go find Chie, if I leave her alone she might drink until dawn."


    Even so, I can''t treat the matter of Chie casually.If you ignore her easily, she may act beyond the teacher''s limits.


    Then again, I have to re-examine myself at the same time.

 Chapter 334: Short Story 4 : Horikita Suzune’s SS - Inside The Changing Room

    <h4>Chapter 334: Short Story 4 : Horikita Suzune''s SS - Inside The Changing Room</h4>


    KUSHIDA-SAN AND I went back to the locker room to cool off.


    "You''re really tough, Horikita-san. Well, if I had persisted in that situation, I would have won."


    "That''s an illusion. If we had kept going, you''d be the first one to fall, right?"


    It doesn''t matter if you win or lose, it''s when you get provoked by Kushida-san that you lose.


    Just now, when both of us were finally on the verge of "dying", Ichinose-san stopped us. Otherwise, I don''t know what would have happened.


    Of course, It was me who won in the end. Ichinose-san, who had resolved the fight, was called by Ando-san, from her ss, as she was leaving.


    "Here, Horikita-san. This is cold water."


    Kushida-san, who had wrapped her body in a towel, said so and handed me the cold mineral water bottle.


    "It''s rare for you to be so understanding."


    "No, that''s not true. I always care about others, don''t I?" She added with a cheerful smile.


    "The walls have ears too, so I hope you''ll be careful about what you say."


    That''s true. I have to think about that, because I''ve been treating Kushida-san the way she really is.


    "And then again, Horikita-san must be very thirsty right now, right? After all that time in the bath."


    "Eh? Well, of course-"


    "Uh-huh. If our match hadn''t been interrupted, you would have forfeited by now. I still have a lot of room to spare, so please hydrate yourself as soon as possible~"


    It''s a trap. Kushida-san didn''t have her own mineral water in her hands. That is to say, the match is not over yet.


    "What a bore. Hydration is another matter, but the bathing endurance race is a draw, right?"


    "That''s fine. Please, I''ll drink after Horikita-san finishes her drink."


    She acted like she was possessed by Ibuki-san. I was a little dissatisfied. But then again, drinking now always feels like I''m being led by the nose.


    "You''re the one who should drink it before you get dehydrated. I''ll get my own share."


    I excused myself from the mineral water bottle, and Kushida-san didn''t take it either. As a result, neither of us drank water where we could see each other. Finally, both of us left therge bath and I went to a deserted ce to have a wonderful drink.

 Chapter 335: Short Story 5 : Satou Maya – At the corner of the Front Stage

    <h4>Chapter 335: Short Story 5 : Satou Maya �C At the corner of the Front Stage</h4>


    The second night of the school trip. After dinner, I had to fulfill my promise to take a public bath with Sudou.


    "There is still a bit of time left."


    But there wasn''t enough time for me to go back to my room and rest.


    So, I took a walk around the hotel to pass the time.


    I was walking from the cafeteria to the lobby. Nomura, a boy from Ryuuen''s ss, brushed past me with a grim look on his face.


    What kind of trouble was he in? Thinking this, I walked in the direction Nomura came from.


    I didn''t have to walk long before I saw Satou, who had the same grim expression, leaning against the wall.


    "What are you doing here?"


    "Eh? A-Ayanok��ji-kun... What a coincidence."


    She gave off a feeling that she didn''t want to meet me here. But then she immediately pretended to smile calmly and approached me.


    "Could it be that Ayanok��ji-kun ran into Nomura-kun?"


    "Yeah. I''m a little concerned by his appearance."


    "I see..."


    "Did something happen?"


    Then, Satou didn''t answer with a puzzled look on her face.


    The main culprit for this dignified atmosphere is probably in the question I raised.


    A guess shed through my head that she had done something to arouse resentment...


    "He said, if I don''t have a boyfriend, I should go out with him."


    I had already gotten the information that the ''topic of love would increase during the school trip''. It seems that not only Sudou, but simr incidents have happened in many ces.


    "I see."


    What should I say?


    At least, I couldn''t say anything unkind in this situation.


    During the course of my school life, my understanding of love became more and more sophisticated.


    "I often hung out with guys on my days off. One of them was Nomura-kun....It started about six months ago."


    Perhaps feelingpelled to say something in the face of my silence, Satou continued.


    "Then------he began to care about me."


    "Is that so."


    Since Satou once said she liked me, it''s understandable that it''s inevitably a little awkward to talk about this now. But for her, this is a good opportunity to start a new rtionship.


    At least it would be possible to determine what had happened between Nomura and Satou.


    If the other party does not want to start the conversation in depth. I should also respect that and not ask too much.


    "I might be in the way."


    After answering this, I decided to leave.


    "W-wait a minute. If it''s convenient...Can I take a moment of your time? If you are okay with it, Ayanok��ji-kun..."


    I have less than 10 minutes before my appointment with Sudou. But he won''tin too much if I''m littlete, right?


    I''ll just send him a message to go into the bath first.


    "Is it okay for me to stay here?"


    "Yeah. It''s not a serious topic."


    After that, Satou looked like she was hesitant to say anything again.


    Is there something she can''t talk about?


    I watched her silently from the sidelines, not urging her on.


    "Actually....."


    After about a minute of silence.


    Satou, who had collected her thoughts, spoke up.


    "Just now Nomura-kun called me out. The one who... was here and said something to me."


    Flow-wise, what happened next I can surmise without exnation.


    I don''t know much about Nomura, but at least his behavior is not bad.


    Judging from the values on OAA, he is slightly less capable. But his appearance should get an average rating.


    Assuming Satou is not dissatisfied with his ability, the only thing left is whether he is to her liking or not.


    "Seeing your gloomy face, did you reserve your answer? Or is it a rejection?"


    At this point in the conversation, I couldn''t help but speak up.


    Even if it is a bit in-depth, it is more natural to ask about the situation at this time.


    "...But eh."


    Satou pouted and whispered. She just looked up and met my eyes, and then immediately looked away.


    "I still... I like you...Ayanok��ji-kun."


    It''s not like I didn''t notice, but I didn''t expect her to speak up again.


    No, it can be interpreted as the situation of the moment, and go along with it.


    "Of course, I didn''t mean to get in the way of Kei-chan. Although there is no..... But it''s like...My feelings will not easily change....Something like that...."


    The one you like is already with someone else.


    The arrows of love that are scattered around are crossing each other''s minds every day, and it''s not just now.


    This is not an umon sight, as you can see by living a school life.


    "So ------I said sorry to him and rejected him."


    "Is that so?"


    "Some of the girls in our ss have been confessed to many times. But, the feeling of regret for him was even stronger. This is the so-called guilt, right..."


    The one who speaks up and refuses also has to spend energy as well as bear the mental burden.


    I know it well.


    "Nomura-kun said we should y together next time, but I didn''t show my usual confidence."


    For the confessor, failure does not mean the end.


    Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, we will continue to live in school. There are countless opportunities to meet.


    "Ugh...! No, no, no, this is not okay."


    Satou held her head and shook it vigorously from side to side.


    "Let''s put it this way! Let''s say it''s Ayanok��ji-kun''s fault!"


    "Huh?"


    "Because that''s how it is? I fell in love with Ayanok��ji-kun, which caused the current situation. Otherwise, I might have dated Nomura-kun."


    Is that really a possibility? Maybe.


    In this way, if Sato can move forward bravely, I will ept this statement for the time being.


    "Speaking of which, I didn''t expect to be seen by Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "That''s--- I''m sorry"


    "It''s okay, it was just a coincidence."


    As soon as she finished speaking, Sato showed an embarrassed and shy expression, and patted my arm lightly.


    "You''re not talking to Kei-chan, so she''s very upset right now. I suggest you contact her before you get scolded. Then...bye! Ah! So embarrassing!"


    Saying that, Satou left the scene as if if she was running away, as fast as she could.


    After that, I had an appointment to meet with Sudou, so I will wait untilter to contact Kei.


    After parting ways with Satou, I decided to go to the public bath.

 Chapter 336: Prologue : Ayanokoji Atsuomi’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 336: Prologue : Ayanokoji Atsuomi��s Monologue</h4>


    Wealth, poverty.


    The difference between the rich and the poor.


    High academic achievements, inferior education.


    The gap between education.


    The city, the countryside.


    The gap between regions.


    The young who were not blessed, the old who were.


    The gap between generations.


    This Japan is a society of gaps.


    I have only shown one part, but it truly represents both heaven and hell.


    The important thing is, that for the most part, circumstance is by no means something that cannot be changed. If a man of poverty can grow to be wealthy, a man of wealth can also fall into poverty.


    If one is displeased with the disparity between regions, they may head into the big city.


    While understanding the logic, I still had nothing.


    Born in the countryside, extremely poor, and a pathetically poor academic history.


    With my physical strength also only average, even if I was endowed with perseverance, it is not as if I was a hard worker.


    If I ever looked strong enough to have the characteristics of a fighter, that was simply my youth.


    However, without realizing this potential, I spent my life wasting most of my time away.


    I was, indeed, a man crawling on the dirt.


    Without the expectation of anything resembling a bright future, there was only the simple possibility of living a pathetic life.


    However, with my own hands, I cut open my future.


    Because I had one thing, just one, that I possessed more than anyone else.


    That was, my " ambition ", to keep consistently fighting without halt.


    [TL Note 1 : There are two meanings for the word tranted into "ambition":


    1: Ambition, aspiration


    2: Sinister ns, treachery.


    There isn''t really anything indicating it was used with the second meaning but I wanted to let you know. The author might have also used this word on purpose to indicate both meanings.]


    No matter what, I will rise up to the top of this country.


    I have lived up until now with that one idea in my heart.


    That ambition alone was what supported my life.


    As I faced my 25th years of age, for the first time, I gained eligibility to be elected in politics.


    I had saved up a sum of 3,000,000 with my part-time job.


    With this, I was to be a politician, a member of the assembly, and make a name for myself as a man of great fortune.


    A faint, hard to achieve dream. Taking the election lightly, I failed in a way that was painful to even watch.


    It would have been fine if it had ended there, but as I could not even reach the minimum amount of votes, the 3,000,000 that I spent all my life saving up was confiscated.


    Poverty resolution, clean politics, countermeasures against the declining birthrate, wage increases, NO WAR.


    I thought that if I simply lined up some lip service, the election would be easy.


    A shallow and foolish idea. Anyone can think of and realize shallow ideas like that.


    What mattered for winning the election was which organisation you belonged to, and who you were under.


    Whether you can differentiate friend from foe and endure being wrapped up for the long haul.


    What happened after that?


    Did I think that I was ruined?


    I wanted to join the ruling party, the "Citizen''s Party", and started my first step as a politician.


    That''s correct, after two years, I entered the election again, and was elected.


    From when I was 27 years old, I seeded in reaching a position where I could put all of my life, my heart and blood, into politics.


    Perhaps I was able to be the winning side, then, but... for me, being elected was not the goal.


    Most of all, the world of politics isn''t so easy.


    No, it would not be an exaggeration to say that, in a certain meaning, it is a deeply dark world.


    Because, even if I had the spirit, I was nothing but a young and alone parliament member with no shield or power behind me.


    Half of the people who are able to rise up, are second or third-generationers granted the privilege at the time of birth.


    The sons of big politicians, ignorant, foolish and unaware of the impending crisis, are just repeating their dull delusions on TV day and night, like carbonic acid losing its air.


    There are those who make a name for themselves in the entertainment world, and move over to the world of politics.


    Most of them are nothing more than crowd attractors, but they still have a bigger chance than nameless politicians like me. It''s an ironic story.


    As such, the methods for me to make a name for myself as a politician... The choices I had were limited.


    To take on the dirty work in the shadows that no one wants to do.


    A role in which if I failed, my life as a politician would have been over... or, depending on the case, I might even have received a criminalint against me.


    By taking this on by my own volition, I was able to slightly increase my presence inside the party.


    Before long, as the hidden sword of "Naoe Sensei", who bound together many factions in the Citizen''s Party, I had my hands in all kinds of evil deeds. Mediation of underage girls, bribery, espionage to hostile organizations.


    Once I was assigned to this project, the boundaries between right and wrong were removed for the sake of sess.


    There were times when I woulde in contact with Yakuza or other criminal gangs and resort to violent means.


    I had no time to rest, and, as I continued to challenge, before long, I was gaining influence inside the party; when I was 36 years old, I was able to gain some political power.


    However... from this point on.


    In order to jump into the center of the political world, more achievements, and transgressions, would be necessary.


    *Illustration


    A newborn, one month old baby.


    The first time I saw my child through the ss, he was staring nkly at the ceiling.


    No special feelings came up in my mind.


    If I was forced to say, the only feeling I had was the relief that my key to move the people upstairs had arrived.


    For almost around a year, this is what I had been waiting for.


    "We''vepleted the health check."


    "Any problems?"


    "Currently, there aren''t any problems. No problems were found in the EEG and all the other tests. The results of the DNA analysis were also all good."


    Tabuchi,pleting all of the tests, looked at the results and gave me his report.


    "I see."


    We can''t allow anything to stop us at this pre-start stage.


    With this being cleared up, I could say that I was able to go through the first stage.


    "You maye in direct contact with him now."


    "No need. Just like all the children up until now, start the tests right away."


    The White Room project is already on the fourth stage. There is no need to waste time.


    I stopped to look at my child, who was being carried out with my instructions.


    If I enter him into the White Room, I suppose I will not be seeing him for a long time. Right?


    "Wait a bit."


    I headed down to my son, who was behind the ss that separated us.


    Being directly in front of him, I could once again feel this small life close to me.


    He could not hold his head up, so I slipped my hand behind his neck, and gently picked him up.


    "You are Sensei''s son, after all. A rigorous education is awaiting you from now on, but I hope you can achieve the results that��"


    "What are you saying? Get ready for the photographs right away."


    "Huh..?"


    Tabuchi was stunned, as if he did not understand my intent.


    "I''m sending my child, who is even more important than my own life, into the White Room. You should capture this determination and tension with a camera. It will be important promotional material for the next fund-raiser."


    A parent giving away a child he has no interest in, or a parent wanting to hold on to his child but giving him away for the sake of the future.


    I don''t even have to think about which one would pull more eyes at the galleria.


    "Huh...? Ah, o-okay."


    Tabuchi, hurriedly taking out his phone, took a photograph and video of me holding my child.


    After about a minute of this performance, I put the baby down.


    "Take him away."


    "U-understood."


    I put my sight away from the baby, and started preparing for theing event.


    "Anyhow, all the necessary preparations have beenpleted. Please connect me to Sakayanagi."


    It had been about 10 years since I stepped into the world of politics.


    Outwardly, I''ve been slurping muddy water with a smile on my face, but that ends today.


    I''m starting a new life for myself here.


    I will use and sacrifice anything I can, including my own child.


    Even Naoe Sensei, who reigns as the absolute authority, is nothing more than a stepping stone.


    He is an enemy; one that I will eventually have to surpass and crush.


    "If you don''t want to die, you have to struggle for yourself. Kiyotaka."


    Whether you are a baby or an adult, in the end, you have to do everything yourself.


    Your circumstances may be awful, but, unfortunately, it is the same way for me.


    If you had been raised as a family member under me, you would have been even more neglected. In that sense, I could say that you are still off to a good start.


    I quietly closed my eyes by myself, in the room where my child had disappeared from.


    However, you never know what life will bring.


    I never thought that I would have a child of my own blood in any shape or form.


    The turning point came around 4 years after I started working under Naoe Sensei.


    That''s right. It was then, when I learned of the White Room project''s existence.

 Chapter 337 - 1 : The Project’s Launch

    <h4>Chapter 337: Chapter 1 : The Project��s Launch</h4>


    A traditional Japanese restaurant. Sasagawa. It''s thetter half of January, there is no snow but it is a day of below freezing temperature.


    Already, for an hour under the cold sky, I have continued waiting for the arrival of the owner.


    "It''s cold, isn''t it, Ayanokoji-san... I wonder when Naoe-sensei will being..?"


    Kamogawa, whining again for a third time, is breathing into his hands to warm them up.


    "It''s always the same. For Naoe-sensei, a set time is nothing but a simple suggestion."


    "Wait, does that mean that he could bete an hour, or even two hours?"


    It is likely, that this is the worst feature of this man.


    "How naive. We''re lucky if hees here today. A lot of times, he never shows up at all."


    "Wow... No way... Then, how long will you wait for someone who might not evene?"


    "Indefinitely. As long as there is not a message from him, I will wait even if the restaurant closes."


    "You''ll end up dead in that case, you know."


    "If I can consider myself a part of the Naoe faction, then I would dly die for him. Though, Naoe-sensei would never be concerned about someone dying."


    We''re nothing but attendants of the intermediary role.


    Rather, it''s the person simmering inside waiting for Naoe-sensei who must be ufortable.


    "But... it''s amazing to be forgiven for being careless with time like this. Normally, that would make people angry."


    "Careless with time, is that really what you think?"


    "I mean, isn''t it true?"


    "Even arrivingte bes a weapon in Naoe-sensei''s hands. It''s even in an anecdote of Miyamoto Musashi, Ganryuujima."


    Of course, normally one would not use such old, useless battle strategies.


    This disy of power can be forgiven precisely because it is Naoe-sensei.


    "Obviously, 80% of the people who get stood up can do nothing but cry and go home."


    These numeral figures, they''re the proof that there is no one who can defy Naoe-sensei.


    Even the current prime minister has to ask Naoe-sensei for instructions.


    No matter how much I am made to wait, I will wee Naoe-sensei with a smile.


    "The remaining 20%... who are those?"


    "What use is there in asking about the remaining 20%, the idiots?"


    "A-as a reference..."


    "The idiots get annoyed after being stood up, and roughen their voice.


    Then, they approach me, as if about to strike at me, and demand so:


    "How long are you going to make me wait? Quickly, call Naoe-sensei", and such."


    Rumbling his throat, Kamogawa next to me swallowed his saliva.


    Even this man, for whom it had not been many days since joining the world of politics, understands how terrifying it would be to give an order to Naoe-sensei.


    However, each time, I hold a resolute attitude and deal with every member the same way.


    "I don''t want Naoe-sensei to be taken lightly. I''ll just kick you out."


    Will you lower your head or ask for another appointment, or will you not show your face a second time?


    With this, 80% of people again lower their heads.


    While cursing in their hearts, they put priority on getting an audience. Well, at the point where they make this choice, the chance for them having a smooth rtionship with Naoe-sensei mostly disappears.


    "It must be a lot of trouble when you are in the middle like that, Ayanokoji-san."


    "I know I must spare no effort, but it isn''t just once or twice that I''ve been hit. I''ve even almost been killed by an ash-tray or a golf-club."


    As long as they can''t put their hands on Naoe-sensei, that frustration has nowhere to go but me. However, it isn''t like hitting me will get them rewarded by Naoe-sensei.


    "That''s very rough. Has it been the same all these four years, Ayanokoji-san?"


    "It''s simple, but not everyone can do this work. You really have to give it your all."


    That''s precisely why this chance came to me, someone with no-one behind him, no academic achievements, no intelligence, and no social standing.


    Still, this guy is way too clueless.


    "Didn''t parliament member Kamogawa teach you the irond rules?"


    This man standing next to me, he is one of the kinds of politicians that I despise the most.


    "Father didn''t say anything about that..."


    Typical second-generation. Leeches, being raised spoiled and eternally continuing to live in the world of politics.


    He is a loathsome leech, but, he can be a chosen one, being born into a rich, privileged social standing.


    His father, Parliament Member Kamogawa Toshizou who has been supporting Naoe-sensei for quite a few years, is a great veteran with more than 30 years in politics.


    Of course, his son would not be allowed to experience severeness in the low ranks.


    He is not a pawn to use up and throw away like me, as such, he will continue to be valued as one of the parts holding up the Naoe faction''s framework.


    "What I did learn, was that as a politician, it was best to shut up and follow along with Naoe-sensei. That I can be a parliament member for a long time and have a stable ie, and that I could get a pretty good position one day."


    He became a politician not because there are things he wants to aplish, but simply to make a living.


    A lot of people like this exist, whether second-generation or not.


    It is a foolish and rotten thought, but, for the guys above, a presence from whom they can gain a vote from without any discontent andining is one to be thankful for.


    "I want to get up from the bottom of thedder and get afortable job already."


    Kamogawa, looking up at the night sky while mumbling and muttering.


    "I''m hungry, too... All they have on a cold day like this is hot sake."


    "Enough, Kamogawa. Shut up for a bit."


    "Come on, it''s good to chat, at least. It''s not like Sensei is here. More importantly, please, tell me more about yourself and Naoe-sensei."


    "About myself?"


    "I''m hearing rumours. That despite the fact most people under Naoe-sensei be useless right away, you''re being valued and being expected to do well. I want to know the details of your secret methods."


    Kamogawa, swallowing the rumours and speaking as if talking about other people''s affairs.


    I am being pressed by the impulse to punch him away right now, but, the only thing that would earn me is a momentary sense of relief.


    I''m considered a neer, even after four years. I have to make this fact the main issue.


    "The time for chatting is over. Put it off your mind."


    "Eh?"


    After faintly hearing the taxi from afar, I corrected my posture.


    Kamogawa also understood what this meant, cleared his throat and straightened his back.


    The taxi slowly parked in front of the restaurant.


    Immediately after, a ck painted Sedan also parked a little behind the taxi.


    Without even needing to nce at it, it is clear that they are Naoe-sensei''s bodyguards.


    I returned my gaze to the taxi right away, yet, the door did not open, and Kamogawa tilted his neck with curiosity.


    He was able to see Naoe-sensei''s figure through a window so he was about to start running, but I stopped him.


    "Don''t do anything selfish."


    "Huh? B-but..."


    In the taxi''s backseat, from what can be seen by peeking in through the window, I can see a man and a woman intimately touching each other.


    If we do something to bother them now, I am afraid of unnecessarily being reprimanded.


    However, it is rare for Naoe-sensei to take a woman along.


    Further, even if it is a taxi in the middle of the night, as a politician, I can''t think of this as anything but a careless move.


    After around a minute of silence in the taxi, the door to the backseat of the taxi finally opened.


    "See ya, Sensei~"


    As we could hear the wheedling voice of the young girl who was in the back, Kamogawa also finally understood.


    After that, Naoe-sensei spent some time chatting with the woman, but then he slowly exited the taxi.


    From the driver''s seat of the Sedan behind, a slender man quickly came out.


    Without saying anything, he silently stood next to Naoe-sensei.


    This body-guard is a new face that I haven''t seen before. However, I don''t have the leeway to worry about that.


    "Thank you for your hard work, Naoe-sensei."


    "T-thank you!"


    Was he shaken because of the scene with that woman, or is it simply because he''s in front of Naoe-sensei?


    Even if it was thetter, this is very stupid at a time where it shouldn''t even look like it is the former.


    Stepping one foot ahead of the eyesore that is Kamogawa, I blocked his face with my shoulder.


    However, it may have been an unnecessary worry.


    Naoe-sensei, not even taking a look at Kamogawa, had his sharp eyes just on the restaurant.


    "Where''s Asama?"


    The suit he wore and his posture made it hard to think of him as an old man, and at the same time made the others around feel a sense of youth from him.


    "I have had the pleasure of waiting for you. I will humbly guide you to him."


    [ TL Note 2 : This sentence isn''t a direct trantion but he speaks in an extremely respectful way in the original text and this is the best way to reflect that with some paraphrasing. ]


    I gestured with my eyes to the nervous Kamogawa behind me that he should pay the taxi fare, and guided Naoe-sensei into the restaurant.


    As we went under the curtain, everyone from the proprietress to the head chef quickly presented themselves and bowed their heads.


    Naoe-sensei, putting on a big aura and not changing his expression, took off his shoes.


    While stepping on the wooden floor, he headed for the private room at the back of the restaurant.


    Naoe Jinnosuke. Based in the ruling party, the Citizens Party, he has experience in many positions such as Minister of Transport, Minister of Economy, and currently works as Secretary General.


    Without mentioning the Prime Minister, his position is only half a step behind the Vice President, but, speaking of it in terms of importance, I can say that the Secretary General is certainly higher. He is the general manager holding the party''s real power. The man is 68 years old now, but, there is still not even a hint of him retiring from his current role. In the world of politics where there is no age limit, as long as there is not a bodily problem, I think this man can continue to hold his position for 10, or even 20 more years.


    "Asama-sensei, I have brought Naoe-sensei here."


    Beyond the sliding door, Asama-sensei was waiting, seated, to wee Naoe-sensei.


    Upon seeing Naoe-sensei, he stood up, and deeply bowed down.


    Asama Hisashi. He is 71 years old, 3 years older than Naoe-sensei.


    Currently, he works as the vice minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and is a leading figure in the Naoe faction.


    To me, even Asama-sensei is a resident of the clouds above.


    However, when Naoe-sensei showed up here, he instantly switched from master to ve. It is a regrly urring scene that shows at a nce how much power difference there is between the two.


    "I have been waiting for you, Naoe-sensei."


    "I''m sorry to have kept you waiting, Asama. I was busy with work."


    "I know how busy you are."


    I bowed down so deep that I almost rubbed my forehead against the tatami mat, and quietly closed the sliding door so as to not disturb the two''s conversation.


    From this point of view, listening to the two big-name politicians talk would not be allowed.


    "This is quick, Naoe-sensei, but about that thing..."


    We are only separated by a sliding door. The devil has been whispering to me to eavesdrop and pick up useful information. I could even install a bug.


    However, this world is not so easy.


    If I was nning any conspiracies, this evil deed would quickly be exposed and my political life would be cut short.


    I got up, left the ce, and moved to a room far away.


    ������


    In the private room that was provided, Kamogawa was sitting down as if prostrating, and focusing solely on the sake in front of his eyes.


    "Kept you waiting, huh?"


    "No. Let''s start right away too."


    "Don''t drink alcohol."


    "W-what? But there''s this delicious sake put here right in front of my eyes. What is this brand? I''ve never seen it in an izakaya before."


    "Do you want them to smell alcohol when we''re seeing them off? This thing is just for decoration. There''s nothing to gain by carelessly putting our hands on it."


    "But..."


    A high-ss traditional Japanese restaurant that dazzles the eye. I have no intention of condemning him for his desire to drink before the meal. In truth, in the old days, I''ve almost lost to temptation many times too.


    Fortunately, I witnessed the moment of the man who was taking care of me back then being reprimanded and then eliminated for putting his hands on alcohol, which is connected to my abstinence now. The ones who hold power are drinking by making a side-dish of the humans below them, that''s what I decided to think.


    Not just the parliament members below them. They look down on the citizenry itself.


    They are always intoxicated by the fulfilment of their desire for conquest, which they rule by the rules of their own making.


    "Ayanokoji-sensei, there is one thing on my mind."


    This guy really likes talking.


    "Why do you always sit on your knees? You can sit as you want in this seat, right?"


    "I''m used to it. I have tofortably sit on my knees for hours in front of Naoe-sensei and the others. If I don''t get used to it in regr times, I''ll be in trouble when the timees."


    I am not even allowed to say something like "Is it okay even if I break my legs?". There is no option but to continue sitting on my knees until my legs go necrotic.


    "T-that''s terrible..."


    Kamogawa, who probably has no confidence sitting on his knees, hurriedly sat back down into his seat.


    Even an egg-tofu dish served on a small te can cost four figures if ordered as a single item.


    However, I am not grateful. I roughly grabbed the small te with my hand, and pushed it into my stomach without even chewing.


    "Whoah, what a waste..!"


    I continued eating, ignoring most of the drivel Kamogawa was chatting to me about.


    I am not interested in how expensive it is, how fresh it looks, or where the te came from.


    As long as I can intake enough energy to be able to move afterwards, that''s what matters.


    "I''m going to the bathroom."


    I lightly told Kamogawa, got up on my slightly numb feet, and left the room.


    After using the toilet, I was about to return to the private room where Kamogawa was waiting for me, when I saw a group of men in suits.


    Among them, was a single man who stood out of the crowd.


    However, it was only for a moment that I saw him, and he turned a corner ahead in the corridor and disappeared.


    "That was..."


    I was pressed by the urge to chase after him and find out his identity, but I have to restrain myself here.


    However, the back of that figure definitely looked like Parliament Member Kijima.


    Unaffiliated with Naoe-sensei, Isomaru-sensei, or Prime Minister Miyako, he is the fourth force in the Citizens Party.


    He is so promising that he is even praised as the man closest to the Prime Minister among the younger generation.


    It cannot be that they just happened to be at the same restaurant at the same time.


    Because it is customary for the restaurant to privately arrange things so as not to create a sh in schedules.


    Could it be that Naoe-sensei has already begun to make moves towards the next term''s election?


    ������


    It was about two hours after Naoe-sensei entered the private room when the meeting ended.


    After seeing Parliament Member Asama off, Kamogawa and I were called to the private room.


    Parliament Member Kijima must have been in this room after all, as the number of bowls were the same, but there were three sake cups.


    However, seeing that there was no trace of the chopsticks being used, it wasn''t as if he was enjoying the meal and the conversation seemed to be over. It seems that he just drank one or two cups of sake and listened.


    "Is there something on your mind?"


    Thinking he''s read my faint gaze, a sense of nervousness runs through me as if grasping my heart.


    "No, it''s nothing."


    "Who was here?" It is not as if I can speak of such a thing.


    It is only natural that he sensed what was in my mind, but, Naoe-sensei did not particrly press further.


    "Ayanokoji, how long have you been working under me?"


    "I have been humbly studying under you for 4 years now."


    "That''s right. There are only a handful of people who can be a politician in their 20s. There''s no mistaking it, I can say that among the have-nots, you''ve climbed up the stages of sess in life faster than any-one else."


    The have-nots. A word created by Naoe-sensei, indicating the people other than the second or third generations that I hate, i.e. other than the people who are born in a blessed environment or whose parents are from the business world and have strong backing. So ''Have-nots'' basically being the people who did not have a blessed environment with rich parents and strong backing.


    It is a word that is mainly used with factions, but it would not be too much to say that in truth, whether you seed as a politician or not depends on these two categories of "the haves" and "the have-nots".


    In simpler terms, it is like apany that is owned and operated by a family member.


    No matter how excellent they are, an outsider is an outsider. Unless you have a surplus of true ability and fortune, the peaks which you can aim for are limited.


    There is no bright future awaiting the have-nots.


    In other words, for people like me, the highest point we can reach stops at the world of politics.


    To aim higher than that, I would have to connect to a second generation and leave it to my child. After choosing the best option in this way, I will be allowed to encroach onto a high position somewhere in the world.


    However, since there are already many second and third generation politicians vying for the few seats avable, even if I send my descendant into the world of politics in the future, it will not be easy for him to rise up.


    The ones who had been sitting in the seats before will then be connected to the even stronger fourth and fifth generations.


    "I am really grateful to you, Naoe-sensei. For picking up someone like me."


    "You owe everything to yourpetency. In truth, I''m being helped by you in various ways as well."


    There is no meaning in ttery.


    However, it is a path you cannot avoid as a politician.


    Rather, when Naoe-sensei praises someone, there is something you cannot wee so easily awaiting afterwards.


    "However, among the party, your true ability is not yet acknowledged."


    "Of course. I am very aware of that."


    No matter big or small, all of my achievements are being taken by Naoe-sensei.


    It is only Naoe-sensei in front of my eyes who understands that they are my achievements.


    I''m sure that I am nameless for the opposing party too.


    "I''m sure you''ve guessed what it was about, but, today, we were talking about Isomaru."


    Isomaru Youkou has been in the world of politics for a long time as the number 3 of the Citizens Party.


    "He''s grown older too, just like me. There aren''t that many chances to attach yourself to the prime minister''s seat, so..."


    It must have been a discussion to oppose Isomaru, who is a rival presence for Naoe-sensei.


    "The guys in the faction are very wary of Isomaru. He really is a foe that cannot be underestimated, but, if I was asked, I would say he is an easy man to understand. He''s a guy who uses nothing but stale methods."


    After decades of friendly rivalry, I''m sure that they know each other like the palms of their hands.


    "I think that the foe we really have to be wary of is not Isomaru."


    "In other words..."


    "Ayanokouj, have you ever met Kijima?"


    Maybe because I saw a back that looked like Parliament Member Kijima''s, my body reacted without my noticing it.


    I''m hearing nothing but the names of the big-shots today, including Asama-sensei who had a meeting with Naoe-sense in the first ce.


    Naoe-sensei''s usual, sharp eyes are gazing at me.


    "I have seen him many times, but I have not had the pleasure of a direct conversation with him."


    "I think that he''s actually our greatest enemy, the one that we must be wary of."


    Despite being in the same political party, he calls him "enemy" without hesitation.


    It is proof that Naoe-sensei, who wants authority, is strongly wary of Kijima-sensei.


    If Naoe-sensei and Isomaru-sensei are the Citizens Party''s shadows, then he is the opposite. Kijima-sensei is a young influential man sold as the signboard of the Citizens Party, a person who stands under the light and pushes clean policies into the front.


    Naturally, as the number of party members supporting him have been increasing, I have thought that it would be a bit further ahead when he would threaten Naoe-sensei and his allies.


    However, it seemed that he was evaluating Kijima-sensei higher than I expected.


    This means that before I could notice, he''s grown to the point of threatening Naoe-sensei.


    Naoe-sensei, number 2, Isomaru-sensei, number 3, and Kijima-sensei, number 4 are gathered under Prime Minister Miyako.


    These are the people who will struggle over the seat of the next Prime Minister.


    "Do you know what is the biggest factor that has brought Kijima up to his present post?"


    "I think he has many achievements, but the eye-catcher has to be the " High ", right?"


    Advanced Nurturing High School. A facility established to nurture young people for the immediate future of the government. Not much has been achieved yet, but a lot is being expected. No, it''s better to say that the government is pressing them.


    "There is an inseparable rtionship between the education of children and the development of the country. It is also well received by our supporters. While he is an enemy, I am impressed that he came up with such an interesting idea."


    Without being able to break into the conversation, Kamogawa listened while sweating from his forehead. The air conditioner in the room is not too hot, but from the contents of the conversation, it is understandable.


    "Somehow, young party members have a blind dedication to him."


    There is a lot of media exposure, and there are many people who have the image of the Citizens Party = Kijima.


    "I thought I''d make sure if you''re one of them or not."


    "You must be joking. You will always be the only one I will study under, Naoe-sensei."


    This is at least not a lie.


    In the first ce, once you start the path to the Naoe faction, you are not allowed to get off the ship.


    Even if Isomaru-sensei and Kijima-sensei''s factions make great strides in the next election and Naoe-sensei loses his position, they will have to share the fate of the sinking ship.


    But what was the purpose of having dinner with Kijima-sensei, who is such a wary opponent?


    I''m curious, but I don''t have time to pay attention to that right now.


    "Actually, today we decided to officiallyunch a project that we were considering behind the scenes."


    Naoe-sensei threw a brown A4 size envelope on the table.


    "This project is a serious one that could change my political life. Now that not only Isomaru but also Kijima, and the opposition parties are slowly rising, it''s finally time to move with it."


    As the sake cup became empty, I quickly poured in hot sake. Naoe, who was living a life where things would be filled up when emptied, drank it down in one gulp.


    "The existence of the project will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the election."


    That''s why the contents of the envelope in front of me are an important matter.


    "Most of my aides leave in less than six months. I don''t know if it is a pureck ofpetence, or an inability to keep up with unimaginable hard work. But even though it has been four years, you are gaining momentum day by day, rather than faltering. It reminds me of my old self."


    "Thank you very much."


    "I''ll ask you. What kind of politician is an extremely good politician? Kamogawa, answer me."


    Naoe-sensei asked such a question, perhaps as a side-dish for his sake.


    "What!?"


    It''s a situation where you can''t be silent, but you can''t just give a random answer either.


    A very good politician will vary greatly from the point of view of the viewer.


    "He who can answer the wishes of the people... or such, right?"


    It''s a straightforward answer, but it is an answer, I suppose.


    Only from the public''s point of view, though. It''s an answer that even a child could think of, but Naoe-sensei nodded once and then looked at me this time.


    "What do you think?" Ayanokoji."


    Excellent or not, the answer.


    "I am inexperienced, but I think people like you are the best politicians, Naoe-sensei."


    Naoe-sensei turned his mouth into a smirk, but I quickly continued.


    "Bad politicians offer tempura to customers who want to eat sushi."


    "C-customers? What do you mean..?"


    "Customers are customers. Sometimes it''s the people, sometimes it''s politicians, sometimes it''s something else."


    Politicians do not deal with one particr kind of person. Politicians who cannot respond to requests from an unspecified number of customers are a nonsensical existence.


    "Now that''s interesting. So, continue."


    "A good politician makes sure that customers who want to eat sushi eat good sushi. Most likely, 30% of politicians can do this...no, I should say 20%."


    Politicians who are supported by many people naturally fall into this category.


    "Isn''t that an extremely good politician? Because you serve the sushi that customers want, and you serve delicious ones, right?"


    Certainly, this is the limit of what a good politician an ordinary person can reach. However, I don''t think this is an excellent politician in the true meaning.


    "If you im to be an extremely good politician, you need more than that. I think he is the one who can induce customers who want to eat sushi to be as satisfied as possible by serving curry or beef bowls."


    Politicians are not people who just respond honestly to requests.


    Sometimes, even if you can''t answer a request, there are many situations where you have to avoid causing the other person toin. Even with a single bill, there are only two choices, of passing it, or not.


    The ones who couldn''t get their bill passed will be dissatisfied. That is why you prepare a third option that is neither, and suppress both support and opposition. Naoe-sensei in front of me has shown such skills many times.


    "I see. That''s a pretty good expression."


    "Thank you very much."


    At this point, Naoe-sensei''s eyes change to an even more intense and sharp one.


    "I hope, that one day, you can put that idea into practice with your own hands."


    One day. One day, huh? It''s been four years now, but it''s a very short time for the world of politics. I wonder how many more years I have to continue to build up this foundation before that one day wille.


    "Don''t look so dejected. You are capable. After watching you for four years, I can understand that. That''s why I''m looking for a tangible achievement from a young man like you."


    He took a bite of his side-dish with his chopsticks, and when he had it in his mouth, he pointed the tip of the chopsticks toward the envelope.


    "I don''t think it''s been "only 4 years". It''s been 4 years already. Isn''t it about time you got some credit for growing so much?"


    "...does this mean that you are giving me that opportunity?"


    Many times, I have repeatedly set things up for Naoe-sensei.


    The credit goes only to Naoe-sensei, and the misconduct goes only to me. It''s not because of simple charity that I repeated this irrational absurdity.


    The fist resting on myp naturally clenched strongly.


    "You can see it that way. But, I must have you seed. Are you ready?"


    Can I wait to see what''s inside? Of course, I can''t say anything like that.


    "Shortly after I started studying under you, you said something to me. All human behaviour is determined by their goals..."


    I didn''t know it at the time, but they were the words left by a great man. If I fail, myst four years will probably be erased in an instant.


    "I will serve with all my heart."


    Bowing deeply, I readily agreed to ept.


    "If you seed in this project, fame will naturally follow."


    I don''t trust him at all, but he has never even made such insinuations before. It is reality that at least it is a different project than the ones before, and an important one.


    This is a chance I''ve gained, precisely because I''ve gained his trust. I won''t miss it.


    "Look it over."


    "Excuse me."


    I picked up the brown envelope on the table and pulled out a stack of papers about 5 mm thick.


    The title of the first page is "Human Resource Development n (temporary)".


    "Japan''s education levels are declining. In today''s Japan, it is necessary to provide education with an eye on the next 5 or 10 years, not the next 20 or 30 years."


    "It is my first time hearing that you were so passionate about education, Sensei."


    "Politicians put a lot of effort into education. Even if you are not interested in the slightest, it will lead to votes at home and abroad."


    This man doesn''t really want to change Japan''s education. He''s justing up with a strategy to strengthen his power and gain more support.


    The idiot next to me is fidgeting and worrying about the details of the project.


    "You can participate too, Kamogawa. Do it together with Ayanokoji."


    "T-thank you very much!"


    A happy smile broke out on his face, and Kamogawa peeked in somewhat forcefully.


    There''s no need for someone like this to help me, but if Naoe-sensei decided so, then it can''t be helped.


    The human resource development n, briefly summarized, was to provide education for gifted children as soon as they were born. After reading everything, I had Kamogawa read the text over again.


    "How about it? Do you understand, Kamogawa?"


    "An educational institution under the direct control of the government... and it''s from infancy, right? I''ve never heard of it."


    The questions that spring up from the head of Kamogawa are meaningless.


    "We can''t call it a special program if you had heard of it, right?"


    Without needing me to correct him, Naoe-sensei readily dismissed him. That''s not the problem with this project.


    "You need to have a little more flexible mind, Kamogawa."


    "I-I''m sorry..."


    "However, there is something I would like to ask you, because you are such a rookie. How did this project look to you?"


    "How... how did it look?"


    red at by the snake, no, without even having his eyes turned towards him, Kamogawa stiffened. He looked like he was about to cry and asked me for help.


    "Sensei wants to know what you thought when you saw this project. He is not looking for a superficial approval, just answer whatever you want."


    If he were to make ament that would make Naoe-sensei look bad, it would only spoil his good mood.


    "Well, then... I was just wondering... are there really any parents who want to leave their children in institutions to educate them? Unless it''s a kidnapping... it doesn''t seem like a feasible story, does it?"


    Hearing this, Naoe-sensei looked at me, as if testing me.


    "It''s a valid question. Can you answer that question? Ayanokoji."


    Dumb answers that might be eptable from a neer are not eptable from me. Once I adjusted my breathing, I turned to Kamogawa.


    "That will be handled somehow. Every year, there are hundreds of children who are abandoned by their parents immediately after birth."


    Procuring a baby is no trouble.


    "Abandoned children are not at risk for their lives, receive generous support from the government, and receive appropriate education. It''s a project that makes it easy to go to high school or college."


    "No doubt about that. Yes, the answer may be the same, but if the steps leading to it are not, they will look very different. You have to study hard under Ayanokoji."


    "Y-yes!"


    "Depending on how things unfold, this could lead to an approach to mothers. In this Japan, where fertility is decreasing, more than 100,000 abortions are performed annually. It could be a satire for a society that doesn''t readily allow childbearing, and also a receptacle for it."


    Naoe-sensei nodded with a smile and carried the sake into his mouth again.


    "And if this n works, of course, the politicalmunity will be very interested."


    "Apart from the lives that we throw away, there are many other lives that cannot be treated justly. Especially for the wealthy."


    "Hidden children, unrecognized children, right?"


    "Yes. There are many celebrities who make children in secret. However, they can''t provide proper education because they can''t support them publicly. If the government was to support them secretly, I''m sure their eyes would light up."


    Little by little, I was able to see the full extent of this project.


    "And, eventually, there will be people who want to give their loved ones the best education."


    So this is the human resource development n project that Naoe-sensei is thinking about.


    Receive funds from the wealthy and educate the children whose identities are to be hidden.


    Eventually, when the children reach adulthood, they will be thoroughly trained to be a member of the Naoe faction, and sent to the political world.


    Obedient servants with special education. Moreover, the children will have the blood of the wealthy. Is this the beginning of a forward-looking n? It may seem like a rather dangerous n, but if it seeds, the payoff is immeasurable.


    If I refuse to ept the offer, I will be immediately removed from thedder by Naoe-sensei.


    "The people on this list are..."


    "They are geniuses banished from their paths. They''re hard to handle, but..."


    There were about 10 documents, each one with a biography like a resume.


    "They were the best in economics, psychology, and other fields in Japan and the world, but they left the stage because of some problems."


    I see. This human resource development project incorporates various risks.


    When ites to providing semi-mandatory education to children, there will naturally be some budding objections.


    In that sense, it is unlikely that an authoritative celebrity will move forward and cooperate.


    On the other hand, those who have problems but are proven to bepetent are more likely to agree to the project if they are given money.


    They seem to have many problems with their personalities, but they certainly seem to have the right skills. Without knowledge and experience, education can only be done vaguely.


    However, it would not be realistic to take a group of people like private tutors and turn them into representatives of Japan.


    This is by no means an easy job.


    "Do you remember? Soon after you came under me, you said something about education."


    "Of course. My philosophy of education is to get kids interested in politics, to get them to learn about it, and to develop a strong political mindset. That will lead to the future of Japan, so I asked to study under you, Naoe-sensei."


    "I thought it was just a clever little nonsense from a rookie parliament member right after I heard it, but it eventually gave me an idea of my own. In other words, you deserve to participate. Will you do it? Ayanokoji."


    This is not a word of confirmation.


    It is no different from any kind of coercion or order.


    Then the minimum requirement is still the same this time, which is to ept the offer with two words of encouragement.


    Above all, it is the best project that sublimates and embodies my philosophy of education.


    "Of course, I will take this on."


    "This is a top-secret project. Not only the opposition parties, but we are also not at the stage of informing the ruling party. Further, there are ethical issues involved. If you expose yourself to criticism at the halfway point, your political life will be over."


    It will only end my political life, not that of Naoe-sensei, who conceived this project.


    No, to be precise, it will result in several people hanging themselves, including Kamogawa II beside him.


    "We will do our best. However, I have a favour to ask, Naoe-sensei."


    "What is it?"


    I know this might sound stupid, but I want to speak up now.


    "This project seems difficult for me and Kamogawa alone. Could you bring in someone we can trust?"


    "That is my intent, of course. There is a man named Sakayanagi who has a good face in the political and financial world. He is a young man, not much older than you, but he has a tight mouth and is trustworthy. We can try him."


    I''ve heard that name before, but I''m sure it was an old man who was entrusted with high school education...


    But either way, I suspect he is a man with the support of Kijima-sensei.


    "I was a little short of words. The Sakayanagi you''re thinking of has a son. It''s him."


    I see. Is he not a person directly connected to Kijima-sensei?


    "Understood."


    "Then I''ll tell you what''s important, but don''t expect any financial help from me."


    "Huuh? Such a project would cost a lot of money-"


    I grabbed the shoulder of Kamogawa, who spoke superfluously, and stopped him.


    "I know it requires a certain amount of recklessness, but... may I borrow your name, Naoe-sensei?"


    "That''s not possible right now either. It''s not a good idea to divulge what I''m involved with."


    Realizing we will not get any support, Kamogawa''splexion turned pale.


    "Well, good luck, Ayanokoji."


    He speaks very selfishly. But if we do not swallow this absurdity, we will not be able to move forwards.


    "We are sincerelymitted to this project."


    "Right."


    Even if this was just an idea, and a n to throw away tomorrow... If this is what Naoe-sensei wants now, I will have to respond to it.


    Then, after a few moments of equally gratifying words to no avail, the meeting was closed. In order to see Naoe-sensei off, I took the initiative to open the door of the room. At the end of the hallway, the new bodyguard was waiting for Naoe-sensei to return.


    "Oh, right. Was it your first time meeting this man, Ayanokoji?"


    "It''s exhausting work to be your bodyguard, so I thought that it is not unusual that they are being reced."


    The man in front of him is constantly looking at us with a smile on his face.


    "May I introduce myself?"


    When I showed no particr interest, the bodyguard said so.


    Normally bodyguards are not allowed to make suchments, but Naoe-sensei did not seem offended.


    He sounded thin-lined, but Naoe-sensei, seemed to value him. It''s not just anybody.


    "He''s called Ayanokoji, he''s a promising parliament member. There''s no harm in greeting each other."


    A man with a straight, beautiful posture stepped up to me and held out his hand.


    "My name is Tsukishiro Tokinari. I''m afraid I''m not a bodyguard, but I''m happy to make your acquaintance."


    I grasped back the offered hand.


    "So you are not a body guard... Then who are you?"


    "Well, this guy is... He''s a jack-of-all-trades, to put it simply. If you have any trouble, you can rely on Tsukishiro. He''s not much older than you, but he''s a pretty useful man."


    "Jack-of-all-trades?"


    As if he had been waiting for me, the man who introduced himself as Tsukishiro offered me his business card.


    "I will do whatever is necessary, from personal protection to information gathering."


    So that''s what he means by jack-of-all-trades. He''s a shady man.


    However, if Naoe-sensei is walking with him like this, there is no mistaking the fact that he has the talent.


    "I am Ayanokoji, I have the honour of being trained by Naoe-sensei. If there are any problems, I will definitely ask you to lend me your strength."


    "He has a certain amount of clout not only in the Citizens'' Party, but also in the Peace Party."


    Peace Party, the first opposition party.


    It is an organization that is always hostile to the Citizens'' Party.


    Just before I became a politician, they even almost won an upset election against the Citizens'' Party. If it hadn''t been for Naoe-sensei''s conciliation with the Peace Party, the regime might have been turned upside down.


    If you belong to one side, you are hostile to the other side.


    Whether politician or not, it is universal.


    But, he''s saying he has influence on both sides?


    Tsukishiro walked out with Naoe-sensei, with an eerie smile on his face the whole time. I put Naoe-sensei in the taxi that he had been waiting for, and kept my head down until I couldn''t see the car.


    "Wow, it''s cold. I don''t think anyone''s looking anymore, but..?"


    "Still, I keep my head down for at least a minute after I can''t see the car. And don''t let up and look tired after the bowing is over. You can''t know where there are eyes."


    Even the people in the restaurant spy on us. After Naoe-sensei leaves, if it was spread around that one was using abusivenguage and such, that would be the end.


    "But why was Naoe-sensei in a taxi today? And he was in the taxi, so openly getting close with a girl, right? Before even the age difference, it''s an affair, isn''t it?"


    "I guess that''s why he''s called a jack-of-all-trades."


    "Eh?"


    Of course, I don''t know the specifics either. However, if one dares to think of a reason, it is because Naoe-sensei himself is acting as a decoy to lure something out. I can think of something like that.


    "That''s not what we should care about. Let''s Face the human resource development project."


    It is always the case that things are unfolding horribly behind the scenes that we know nothing about.


    "It''s a great project, but... it''s all getting a bit crazy, isn''t it?"


    It is true that it is an outrageous project. However, it seems like a blunder for Naoe-sensei to let Kamogawa talk to him as well.


    This man is light-mouthed and has no convictions whatsoever. He thinks I should see this guy by my side?


    I''m sure it''ll be fine while the n works, but, when it doesn''t...


    No, Naoe-sensei isn''t a man who can''t see that kind of thing.


    Should I see this man as being by my side in case I fail?


    Details are scarce, but it appears I have no choice but to start off in troublesome shackles.


    Tranted by Anime Anyway

 Chapter 338 - 2 : Making Every Effort

    <h4>Chapter 338: Chapter 2 : Making Every Effort</h4>


    Even with the voice of authority from a big-name politician, things won''t move smoothly.


    [ TL Note 3 : Tsuru no Hitokoe, final word; voice of authority; authoritative pronouncement, ?Idiomatic expression. Lit. "Cry of a crane". ]


    The Human Resource Development n is still in the nning stage, with everything including the funding starting from this point forwards; it''s a start from a nk page, so to speak.


    Other than the unchangeable framework that is "nurturing from infancy", many things will be changed.


    We need to be flexible and adapt to changes.


    "...It looks like it''ll be a troublesome project."


    I put both feet on the table full of messy documents, and continued staring at them.


    If we make one mistake in the cut, let alone earning praise, this project will earn scorn.


    A facility not to take advantage of children, but to help them.


    We must give the people that impression.


    However, these are subjects that should be handled after the project actually starts.


    Currently, taking this starting stage, we are to collect children to be test subjects, and a great budget.


    Further, some means to protect the children is also necessary.


    I manually entered the 11-number digit from my memory and made a call.


    "It''s me. Please give the phone to Ooba, I have a new job to ask of him."


    First, I have to think of a way to approach the pawn that I can use who won''t worry about right or wrong.


    After Ooba picked up the phone, I conveyed that I was looking for a way to acquire newborn infants, and asked what I should do.


    However, at the point I contacted Ooba, I suppose that it will be inevitable that evil methods will be used.


    During the phone call, a buzzer-like sound was ringing.


    "Sorry, I''ll contact you again."


    I cut the conversation with Ooba, and responded to my visitor.


    "Good morning. It''s Kamogawa. Is Ayanokoji-san there?"


    "Juste in. It''s not locked."


    "Excuse me..."


    Kamogawa showed his face at the corner of my run-down office of 10,000 Yen in rent, though it is close to the centre of town.


    "Whoah."


    As he opened the door, Kamogawa clearly showed his rude manners.


    However, without saying anything about it, I reacted to my visitor.


    "Ayanokoji-san, are you perhaps living in this office? That''s what it seems like..."


    The beer cans rolling around under his feet, or the unwashed sheet over the rotten sofa.


    Seeing the clothes randomly thrown around all over the ce, even a child can easily imagine that I live here.


    "What about it?"


    "No, I didn''t mean anything by it, but... Well, it is a bit unlike you, or..."


    "Not fitting for my years of service, is it?"


    The sry for a national parliament member is just over 1,000,000 Yen. Adding on the bonus and other things, it''s over 20,000,000 Yen. Further, I am also granted various allowances under different names.


    "Kisarazu-san who is three steps above me was boasting that he got a ce at the top floor of a tower mansion at the centre of the city the week after he became a parliament member. Apparently, a loan examination that would normally be impassable is also a one-shot for him."


    "It''s not as if the loans are passed because he is a parliament member."


    "Huh?"


    "From any point of view, the annual ie of a parliament member is indeed quite high. However, whether you are in the House of Representatives or the House of Councillors, you are restricted to be elected one time every few years. A bank would not loan money based only on such an unstable job."


    "But, Kisarazu-san said that..."


    "The loan amount, which bank it is, and your connections. There are many other conditions to arrange the passing of a loan."


    "I see, that''s how it works... I guess I can''t pass for one, huh..."


    It''s probably the other way around. It is true that the evaluation for Kamogawa in front of my eyes is lower than Kisarazu, but, the bank will see through to his father, Kamogawa Toshizou.


    If they hear that he was looking for a loan, staff from various banks woulde meet Kamogawa.


    Bringing one or two boxes of cake with them.


    "How boring."


    "Boring, is it? Wouldn''t anyone long for living in a high ss tower mansion?"


    "Kamogawa. I will say this for your sake, don''t imitate someone like Kisarazu."


    For a parliament member who''s only in it for the money, it is no strange thing to spend your money in such a useless way.


    "I''m not saying you shouldn''t buy any real estate. However, I am saying that you should not do so with the wrong timing. Money is limited, but its possibilities are limitless."


    "I see..."


    Kamogawa did not understand, but he nodded, as if he did.


    "Let''s say that 100,000,000 million appears in your hands from today on. What would you do?"


    [ TL Note 4 : Doesn''t say "Yen". ]


    "Huh? 100,000,000? I will save around 90,000,000, and use up 10,000,000 as I want. I''d go to hostess bars, buy a car and such. Maybe I''d put some into stocks. I would buy a mansion too if I had around 200,000,000, though."


    It''s a model answer, in a certain sense, but still a useless way of spending the money, just like Kisarazura.


    "You would use it in a different way, right, Ayanokoji-san? What would you do?"


    "Think about it yourself."


    "Huh~? Please tell me~"


    100,000,000. If I had around that much money, I would probably use it all up in a few days.


    Various bribes and investments to connect with the financial world, I would invest for my future in many ways.


    I have no time to spend money on an office or a house when even small change is too valuable to spend.


    All I need is the money I investing back to me many times over in many years.


    If the title of the greatest power holder in this country, my final station,es in such a way, then that''s perfect.


    "So, what are you here for?"


    "Aren''t you being cruel? As Naoe-sensei said, I am here to help you, Ayanokoji-san."


    "No need."


    "That won''t work. I am one of the people who heard about that project too. I don''t have anyints about you getting most of the merits, but even I-"


    Kamogawa is a talentless man living a shitty life, but I can understand his feelings that he wants to be recognized. Because it is indeed rare that you can seldom acquire it.


    However, at its core, being a parliament member is a job that you cannot take a vacation from. We are special servants for the nation with no set working times.


    Further, we are currently in a parliamentary session. We must participate in strategy and research meetings for the Citizens Party.


    Most of my schedule is filled with support groups, visitor correspondence, government affairs, and public business.


    "Can you be of use?"


    "I will show you that I can. Even if I am rotten, I am Kamogawa Toshizou''s son, you know?"


    Your father doesn''t have such a name in the world of politics that you can speak of him so greatly, though.


    However, I suppose I cannot so easily ignore a directive from Naoe-sensei.


    "Then, you can be as useful as you want to be."


    Since he had never been given a role in anything worthwhile before, Kamogawa''s eyes lit up.


    "What kind of work is it?"


    "We have to secure an experimental facility for the project. You will be in charge of selecting the site. The size, the budget, and an ability to avoid publicity. If it all goes well, I will give you your next assignment. You want to be a great parliament member who can be recognized by Naoe-sensei, right?"


    "I, I see. That is certainly something I have to do."


    "It may not be on the scale of a high school, but the number of children will be increased on a yearly basis. As such, it will naturally be required to have a suitable amount of space. It will also be important to maintain anonymity."


    This project cannot be advertised openly.


    We can''t afford to have the press write about some dangerous education of infants and toddlers.


    "Looking at it from a budgetary standpoint, it is inevitably going to be a rural ce, right?"


    Kamogawa''s face, which had been looking so stupid for a while, changed.


    He is a man who has been in warm water for a while, but he is certainly not happy to be called a second-generation.


    If he is given the right work and the right words of praise, he might be useful, to some extent.


    No, he has to be.


    "I understand. I will give it my best."


    "That''s all I ask. This is the best you''ve looked since I''ve met you."


    "Is, is that so?"


    After praising him only a little, his silly face returned.


    "What are you going to do now, Ayanokoji-san?"


    "In order to prepare the facilities, money is the most important thing. I''m going to start making arrangements for that."


    Applying the conditions I''ve talked about, we will need a considerable amount of money just for the initial start-up.


    If we also take into ount the necessity of securing human resources, we would need to prepare 500,000,000.


    To buy safety, we will need more than 600,000,000, or 700,000,000, but...


    "You mean talking about this project and asking for funding, right?"


    "Of course, that is my goal."


    "Wouldn''t they be happy to give their kids a special education?"


    This guy really can''t see what''s ahead of us.


    Who is going to fund a project that is only a few sheets of paper?


    In the first ce, it isn''t an amount of money that the wealthy will give over after just saying a few words.


    Of course, as a politician, I cannot ept donations on the surface; as such, it is necessary to go through a process of making donations to groups such as supporting associations.


    There are upper limits and such on donations, but it is difficult to find a politician who adheres to them. There are many ways to circumvent donations and many loopholes.


    However, even on a piece of paper like this, if Naoe-sensei simply says the words "I''ll do it",rge amounts of money wille out of nowhere.


    Without that, it is imperative that we find one big investor first.


    Even if I don''t have the same unifying force that Naoe-sensei has, if that person is to invest in us, then I have to make him believe that I do.


    If that were to happen, I''m sure it would not be impossible to raise an amount of money close to 500,000,000.


    As I halfway chased Kamogawa out of the office and sent him to work, I took out three bankbooks from my desk. Three bank ounts, including a regional bank.


    "In total... Just a little less than 10,000,000, huh?"


    It is an unreliable campaign fund, but I have no choice but to start out with this.


    ������


    An upscale residential area, located in Shirokane in Minato Ward.


    In the corner, a singlerge, soaring historical estate stands out.


    Probably being remodelled many times with a lot of money, the exterior did not feel old. It was not a ce for a mere politician to be living in.


    With numerous monitoring cameras before the entrance, it has a strict atmosphere.


    After ncing at the fine namete with Sakayanagi written on it and pressing the chime, the first one toe out was a middle-aged man who looked to be the servant of this estate.


    Since I had already made an appointment, I was allowed to pass through the gate without any trouble.


    The spacious tatami mats with the scent of soft rush grass showed no signs of spoge.


    Probably being re-papered in set periods, I could tell at my first look that there was a lot of money spent on this area.


    As I proceeded further into the building, a Western-style room came into view, and I was told to sit on a sofa and wait.


    I''m thinking about how I should behave towards the person I am about to meet soon.


    Without hesitation, I chose to deeply sit on the sofa and wait.


    As someone who works alongside Naoe-sensei and someone who has a project for the future, I have no intention of making myself look small.


    As I stared at the steam from the tea that was eventually brought to me, the person I was waiting for appeared.


    "Thank you for waiting."


    My first impression at this time was that he was a thin, delicate man.


    His voice was quiet and he did not have the arrogant attitude that many rich people had.


    "Pleased to meet you. My name is Ayanokoji. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule."


    While keeping a confident attitude, I still showed the minimum amount of courtesy.


    "I am Sakayanagi. I have heard many times about you from Naoe-sensei."


    "Nothing bad, I hope."


    "Of course not. I was told that you were a very brilliant person. Further, when I heard that you are the same age as me, I felt a sense of embarrassment."


    There is no way a man who has been walking on the winning path since birth would care about someone below him. If it is simple modesty, I shall praise him for being a good liar.


    "Thank you very much. However, I hear that you are also quite famed, Sakayanagi-san."


    First, I will begin by confirming Sakayanagi''s character and authenticity.


    "No, I still have a ways to go. It''s just that my father was amazing. That is really all there is."


    He did not go with mypliment, but smiled bitterly as if he was troubled.


    From then on, we continued to probe into each other with words in turns for a while, but my impression of him did not change.


    He showed no signs of wanting to end the conversation, so I thought it would be best that I took the first step.


    "The reason I am here bothering you like this is that I remembered that Naoe-sensei has told me I should ask you for help if I am ever worried about something. I have humblye here to do so."


    Most of the time, the wealthy do not wee a conversation starting in this way.


    As for the reason, it''s because money is at the root of most worries.


    Wanting to invest butcking capital, or wanting to start a business. It''s all rted to money.


    "What did you need of me?"


    He doesn''t look to be on guard, but his face changed slightly.


    "Currently, I am thinking of starting a project. However, I will need arge amount of money to proceed with this project."


    "I see. So, what kind of trouble... No, what kind of request did youe to me for?"


    "I am not telling you to put out money after meeting you for the first time, Sakayanagi-san. However, I am here to ask for something close to that. I want you to be a pipe between me and the financial world."


    I took out a new document from a clear file that I had prepared on my own, and pointed towards it.


    Without reaching for it, Sakayanagi continued looking over at me.


    I could not tell it from his expression, but he was wary, after all.


    No, he has to be.


    Even though he has heard of me by name, I am still a stranger to him.


    It is not as if the titles of politicians are recognized by the public either.


    If that were the case, he would not simply look over the documents.


    If he knew, he would realize that it would be troublesome to get involved.


    "I see. So, are you saying that you are not asking me to invest money?"


    "Yes. I can''t suddenly barge in and ask you to give me money. If you agree with the project, then that''s fine, but the important thing is not to bow my head and ask for money, but to convince you and have many people give me money."


    However, if I don''t even get a chance to present the project, it will end up being nothing more than an unimplemented empty theory.


    "We want tounch this project to save the lives of as many children as possible, and ensure that they receive the correct education. I am hoping to provide such a facility. I am one of the people who were strongly impressed by the advanced nurturing high school that your father has implemented ."


    Children, Education, Life.


    It is certain that these words will connect with Sakayanagi.


    This man''s father is in charge of high school education, and he is the very leader who guides children.


    He cannot allow himself to go through the wrong path of not even taking a look at this.


    "In that case, wouldn''t you also have the choice of seeking counsel from my father instead of me?"


    "That may indeed be the right course of action. However, the world of politics is not that simple. It is Kijima-sensei who informed the world of the advanced nurturing high school. I believe that your father has a deep connection with Kijima-sensei. In which case, how could I, a member of his rival''s, Naoe-sensei''s faction, seek his advice?"


    "Did you not consider the possibility that I might have a close rtionship with Kijima-sensei?"


    "Of course, there is a possibility. However, I''ve never heard of such a thing. I thought that, in this case, I would take a chance."


    There are lies mixed into my words, but the truth is the majority. Even if this man''s father is a sensible power-holder, if he is in the Kijima faction, I cannot tell him about our ns.


    "Let me ask you frankly, you definitely want to avoid this information being leaked to Kijima-sensei. Isn''t that so?"


    "I will not deny that."


    "In that case, I find it a little hard to be convinced. Am I on Kijima-sensei''s side, Naoe-sensei''s side, or in the middle? This is not clear to you. Despite that, are you not worried about telling me about this? If I take a look at those documents, I will gather information. You can''t know to whom I will tell about it."


    "That is indeed true. Still, if I lied and told you that I trusted you after only talking for a few minutes... Things will just get cold."


    Sakayanagi nodded without hiding.


    "However, as a politician myself, there are things that I also humbly hold faith in. Which is to say, Ipletely trust Naoe-sensei. Naoe-sensei knows the weight of words very well. If you were the kind of person who would leak our talk to Kijima-sensei or your father, then Naoe-sensei would never tell me to rely on you if I had a problem."


    "You trust Naoe-sensei, huh?"


    "Most politicians join a faction sooner orter. No matter what faction you are in, once you have decided to support someone, you just have to believe them until the end. I think there should not even be a shred of hesitation in that."


    "I see. So Naoe-sensei keeps you close by his side."


    "As you know, Ayanokoji-sensei, my father is a close friend of Kijima-sensei. Did you ever think it strange that I would have a connection with Naoe-sensei?"


    "Of course, I can''t say that I have never questioned it."


    "I respect my father, but, at the same time, I see him as my objective. I don''t know if we will follow the same path or different ones, but I at least want to explore different possibilities. That is why I have been closely studying with Naoe-sensei, who is considered a worthy rival of my father. My father does not object to this, and, in fact, he quietly supports it."


    "It is quite broad-minded to broaden your horizons even if it is with an enemy. Further, at the same time, he seems to trust that you will definitely keep your mouth closed."


    In a position like this man''s, it is basically a case of following his father''s footsteps.


    If you have a rtionship with a hostile organisation, you have an opportunity to gain information about them, but there is also the risk of passing it onto them.


    However, I can see that Naoe-sensei likes him, and it is probably true that Sakayanagi has his trust.


    "In that case, I have even more confidence. I would definitely like you to take a look."


    "Depending on your conditions, I was going to immediately ask you to take it back, but I suppose I cannot do so now.


    I have certainly seen your spirit and conviction. I will take a look."


    Finally, Sakayanagi picked up the documents and looked through them.


    After reading through them, he muttered to himself without thinking too deeply.


    "It is true that several hundred children are abandoned in Japan every year. We are not epting this reality, and it is no bad thing for a politician to try and do something about it. In fact, it should be weed."


    "You mean you sympathise with me?"


    "Of course I do. However, this is exactly the sort of issue that should be on the government''s agenda, and I don''t mean to sound rude, but, as a private citizen... isn''t this none of my business? I definitely hope that you will take this issue on and work on the countermeasures."


    "If I could do that, I would. However, the national system is not that simple. There are still children being abandoned. There are still children who cannot receive the education they want because of a fatherless, motherless, or a poor household. This cycle of poverty shows no signs of stopping, and the inequality in society is continuously widening. Am I wrong?"


    "...That''s right."


    "If you watch TV, I am sure you already know. Mothers in despair secretly giving birth in train stations. It is certainly not a rare story. I think it is very regrettable for a mother to end the life of her child because of the currentck of legal provisions, or because of the public''s attention. Of course, there are those who can be ruthless towards unwanted births, but that doesn''t mean everyone wants to be a criminal. If there is a generous ce where people can be helped with open arms, the number of grieving people will be kept to a minimum."


    If this projectes to fruition, it will save the lives of 10, 20, and one day, over 100 children.


    No, I am sure it will increase beyond that.


    "I am sure that you, Sakayanagi-san, also understand that one cannot do anything they want just by bing a politician. Whether you are a member of the parliament or a local council, your title says that you enactws, decide budgets, and enact ordinances, but while those who hold the real power act for their own personal gain, no one listens to young politicians. Or... Do you expect me to continue to forsake the lives of children for 20 or 30 years until I be a leading politician and earn the right to speak?"


    [ TL Note 5 : Ayanokoji uses "Ore" in this sentence instead of "Watashi" like usual, indicating that he is suddenly acting more confident and overpowering in this scene. ]


    Sakayanagi, who is listening to me here, is just as guilty if he does not make a move.


    That''s what I will strongly imply.


    "But... You are still a parliament member, Ayanokoji-sensei. You are someone who should face the nation and fight against it. How do you intend to proceed without putting this on the agenda as a nation?"


    "We are politicians and public servants, but it is a special job. People with special jobs are allowed to work on the side. I do not intend to profit, but I am saying that there is still a way for me to move forward with this."


    "Are you saying that you will personally work to save the children?"


    "I think, now that I am being heard by you, and now that I have started taking steps as a politician, the people around me may start listening to me. That is precisely why I think that you creating a pipe between me and the financial world is one of the steps to implement this."


    "It is true that unlike ordinary people, people look at you differently when you simply state that you are a politician. If the project written here is realised, then there may indeed be people who will throw their hat in the ring, but..."


    This man, who is a second generationer of his great father, is at least far more capable than Kamogawa and the others.


    While showing a good-natured face, he does not give cheap answers.


    "There are ways to raise funds. As you said, Ayanokoji-sensei, you are allowed to work on the side, are you not? If we send our message on the inte, we can not only appeal to the domestic market, but also to the world."


    "You want me to raise the fact that our country''sws are not up to par? Sending a message like that out into the world... It would not be my face that will be disgraced, but Naoe-sensei''s. At this stage, this is a matter that must be progressed in the strictest confidence. That is why we need the help of the financial world. Please lend me your strength."


    "...I have no problems with introducing you. However, it is another matter to really make it work. People will not be pleased by mere lip service. Rather, I think they will be wary."


    "Then, what do you think I should do?"


    "Do not lie. Lay bare all of your thoughts and goals."


    If I can do that, I will not face hardship.


    "I understand that it is difficult. However, I am not in the least thinking about profiting. I only want to save the children''s lives. I do not want any credit. Would you believe someone saying such things, sensei?"


    Indeed, if such a person were to appear in front of me, I would probablyugh him off.


    "You want status and prestige. You want to earn money. That is why you save children. I think people would be more likely to believe you if you told them that. Not to mention that you are a parliament member. If they know that this is the foundation of a higher aim for you, I think some of them may think that they will gain a great reward when you eventually be a big name."


    "...Indeed."


    "Of course, it would be better for the children if you had no self-interests at all, and I have no doubt that this is your ideal. What is it you are looking to achieve by setting up this project?"


    "Status, prestige, and money. These are indeed indispensable things, things that I will want one day."


    As this man says, this is all absolutely necessary.


    However, there is a big reason that I am interested in this project.


    "As things are now, Japan cannotpete against the world. However, it cannot catch up to the global world by only watching the education of human resources who canpete naturally. That is precisely why I want to encourage the thorough education of our children, and develop capable people, geniuses, who canpete against the world. That is what I think. This isn''t just about saving lives. I want to transform those lives into ones of high value to the world, that is my true objective."


    Compulsory life aid and education. This will be hard to ept for the world.


    "The education of children is left entirely up to their parents. So you thought that children whose parents are absent can be raised and educated for the sake of your ideals, right?"


    "It isn''t for my sake. It is for the sake of Japan''s future."


    After the war, Japan had grown with the bubble economy, but now that it has disappeared, it is only falling down.


    We have to put an end to the current situation in which Japan is already being ridiculed as joining the group of developing nations.


    "What do you think when you see that all the politicians are old people? Do you think that elders of 70, or 80 years of age truly think about Japan? They don''t care what happens in the little time that they will live. They don''t think about what will happen in 50 or 100 years at all, either. Even I, one day, may change to such a mistaken way of thinking. But, not now. Now, as a representative of the young people, I am thinking about the future, and I want to save it. That is why I must move to action as soon as possible."


    Before I noticed, I was passionately talking to myself.


    Was I seduced by this man''s shrewd thinking, or did my instincts as a politician get riled up?


    "Naoe-sensei knows about all this, yes?"


    "No. These are all my personal thoughts."


    I can''t answer with a "yes" here.


    However, as if he knew, Sakayanagi nodded once after looking at my eyes.


    "Mine and my father''s philosophy of education, and that of yours seem to be very different. However, that does not mean that it is a bad thing. Rather, I believe it is one of the important approaches. It is also a case to judge which side is right. The situation is very simr to what I find myself in, near Naoe-sensei, right now."


    This man''s father is in charge of the advanced nurturing high school.


    It is certainly one of the new ventures.


    However, as Sakayanagi says, that isrgely different from my policy.


    "I will introduce you, as you wish. However, I will give you one condition."


    "What would that be?"


    "When this project actuallyes to fruition, please let me stand by you and watch over how you do it."


    "Is that really all you want?"


    "For me, this is very important. I will be learning a lot."


    "I promise. Once the facility is actually built, you will be free to enter and leave as you wish."


    It is a cheap price to pay if I can build a pipeline to the financial world.


    Besides, even I am curious about many things about the advanced nurturing high school.


    I may also be able to find out some information about Naoe-sensei''s rival Kijima-sensei.


    Whether friend or foe, information is power.


    But, will things really go so easily?


    The man in front of me has been smiling from the start, and even as we exchange opposing opinions, he is showing me a friendly attitude.


    Is there not a possibility that there is something behind this?


    Just because Naoe-sensei rmended me to do this, there is no proof that he is not under the patronage of a different person.


    If what we are trying to do leaks out from this man...


    I was rushing to raise money, but perhaps I stepped too far in?


    Even though I have done research on this man beforehand, I did not have enough time to do as much as I wanted. It would be dangerous to ept him without questioning, but...


    I must have the resolve to repeatedly deal with risks like this.


    "If it is alright, I would like to have dinner with you soon. I would love to further inquire about your high school education."


    "I was also hoping to hear about politics from you, in addition to this project. I would be happy to join you."


    Things like dinner invitations are merely a ritual to make a simple shallow rtionship seem more proper.


    Well then, let''s go for round two, shall we?


    ������


    When I woke up, I could see the dirty stains on the ceiling wiggling and shaking.


    "I think I drank too much after all..."


    As I was in a daze, unable to put up the energy to get up, the bell rang three times at short intervals.


    Perhaps noticing that the door was not locked, the visitor came in without hesitation.


    Kamogawa, with whom I have had no contact for two weeks, came to the office, out of breath.


    "Ayanokoji-san! Wake up! I found it, I found the perfect ce!"


    "...Don''t yell out loud."


    Coupled with myck of sleep, I felt as if I was being yelled at through loudspeakers.


    With my ears ringing, I had no choice but to sit up, and received Kamogawa''s report.


    "You very much smell like alcohol. I''m jealous, where did you eat something delicious?"


    "Drinking alcohol is also my job, it is a series of hardships; I do not have the nerve to think of it as being fun."


    If he thinks that I''ve been drinking cheap alcohol with somedies, he is talking naively.


    Even if you be a politician, you can''t hold a self-important attitude, and have to repeatedly pour alcohol for those above you. It is no different from the daily lives of srymen.


    The documents Kamogawa reported with great joy were the documents of the property that was to be the stage for our project.


    "Saitama, huh? It was your hometown, right?"


    It is not really a surprise, as I thought Tokyo would be unrealistic with the highnd prices.


    "Yes. There was a pharmaceuticalpany factory deep in the mountains, but sales dropped after problems with pollution were reported a few decades ago, and thepany went bankrupt some years back. The factory was not demolished, and it remains there to this day. The site was neither toorge nor too small, so I thought it seemed like the perfect location for the project."


    He put the documents on the desk and disyed the map on theputer to confirm its precise location.


    I am grateful that in this day and age, you are able to get the information you want in real time wherever you are.


    It is an ideal location more than an hour away from the nearest train with no buses in the area.


    The site also includes the prices for both renting and buying. They are a little expensive, but we can also make the choice of purchasing it after a long-term contract.


    Well, depending on the negotiations,the period and price can vary.


    "However, 2,4 million is a bit high, don''t you think? There is a simr ce 30 minutes from the station for 2.5 million. I think there may be more room for negotiation."


    "I think that they are also just testing us at first."


    This ce is in a situation where it can''t get a tenant so easily, so it won''t be hard to convince the other party to be the ones asking us to rent it instead of us asking them.


    If it bes a long-term contract, there is a possibility that the other side may agree to a suitable price reduction.


    "It''s a nice ce, right?"


    "You seem quite enthusiastic, but do you have a budget estimation for the remodelling?"


    "Here it is!"


    He pulled out another document from under his arm and offered it to me.


    It seems that he at least has the ability to think things over.


    He seems to have already ounted for all the items that would be considered necessary for the construction.


    Further, he''s even made a 3D model.


    "Is this yours too?"


    "Yes. I asked a friend of mine who works in the construction industry for help. Of course, I did not tell him anything about this project, so do not worry. How is it?"


    "Not bad. However, we definitely don''t need any extra paint. I''m not going to spend money on looks."


    "Thorough budget cuts it is, then, yes?"


    "We can worry about appearances after securing some money."


    "I will re-adjust things in that direction."


    The first step is to put the project on track.


    However, results will also be demanded of us.


    "You did well, for the time being. I''d like to contact the owner of this ce as quickly as possible."


    "What about an intermediary? Will you send one there?"


    "No, since we already have an intermediary, ying clumsy tricks would have the opposite effect. Rather, it would be better to move them to our side."


    "I understand."


    I do need to keep searching for a second, or third candidate, but I''d like to resolve things in one try, if possible. The date of my party with the financial world through Sakayanagi is approaching.


    "Assuming all goes well, what about the children? Even if we have the money, the facility, and the educators, we cannot do anything without the children, can we?"


    Of course, things are moving forwards on that point, too.


    "Don''t worry. I have my target set."


    "Target? Please tell me in concrete terms. I am your ally too."


    As Kamogawa looked at me with expectations in his eyes, I red at him.


    "There are things in this world that you would be better off not knowing about. If you carelessly learn something you should not, I won''t be able to help you if something happens to you. Let alone not being able to be a parliament member, are you prepared to spend years, or decades in a prison?"


    "N-no..! I don''t, not at all..!"


    It''s not a threat.


    In truth, I''ve started moving with a n that would be over at the drop of a hat if it were to get out. I can''t let Kamogawa get involved in this matter.


    This isn''t to protect Kamogawa, but me. If this guy were to be taken in by the police,


    It would be impossible to evade a vigorous inspection. Besides, I''m sure he won''t keep silent to them.


    "Anyway, there are many ways to secure children, so don''t worry."


    Normally, when a newborn baby is born to unidentified parents, it is sent to a nursery or an orphanage through the children''s welfare center. From then on, foster parents are found for the baby and it is adopted.


    There is no knowing if their life will be happy or not after that, but the same is true for those who are raised by their own parents.


    The important thing is to provide a favourable environment. As long as a method to secure the baby is established, here is nothing wrong with a nurturing agency stepping in.


    "I wish there was a simpler way to obtain children, one that I could tell you about, but it''s difficult for now. If we moved with a frontal attack... Even if I am a politician, no one would hand over a child to someone they don''t know."


    "Is that how it is?"


    Of course, with a few words of warm protection, government favouritism, and some jarring nice words, a mother may be willing to give up her newborn.


    However, I have to assume that such will not be the case.


    "Is there not a way to take babies from an orphanage?"


    "There are no orphanages in Japan. To be precise, they are foster homes. Further, in the case of newborn babies, which we are looking for, it will not be an orphanage, but a nursery. However, we cannot evade their suspicions either. Because it is a matter of life or death."


    "...I see."


    If you live an average life, it''s not unreasonable to be indifferent to this sort of thing.


    I''m sure Kamogawa had his hands fulling up with a list of potential sites for the facility.


    "Of course, we are going to check into nurseries. But that will only happen once the operation of the facility gets off the ground and it is decided that it''s a government-led policy."


    However, the real mission will be to eventually set up and provide the children ourselves. We will either buy out the director of a gynaecology department, or, if that does note to fruition, we will open a gynaecology clinic.


    It''s not that hard to find a doctor who will sell his soul to the devil, so.


    I showed the concrete documents to Kamogawa on theputer and exined this to him.


    That we will inevitably create a ce to act as a receptacle for mothers who are unable to raise their children.


    There is no reason for anyone to interfere with this.


    The day a child is born from the mother''s womb counts as day 0, and babies under 28 days old are called "newborns", but, behind the doors, we will take in the newborns up to three month old babies.


    The mothers will not be held responsible for their children, and, in exchange, sign an agreement to have nothing to do with their babies.


    Further, the babies will be raised under strict physical supervision until they reach six months of age, at which point they will be ced in the educational program.


    "So you''re prepared to abandon a perfect education for the first few years?"


    "Don''t be foolish. We will give them a thorough education from the first year, whether there is money or not. You are naive if you think that half-baked results will move the political and financial worlds, Kamogawa."


    They, too, are educating the children of their own flesh and blood to be gifted from an early age. If we are not able to show an overwhelming difference in abilitypared to that, the credibility of this facility will be shaken.


    We have to make them the best in both intelligence and physical ability.


    "The bigger the sample, the better it is. Whether it''s 10 or 20 people, we''ll take them in."


    No matter how many of them break, we can simply suppress the facts.


    If there are 10 survivors, we''ll simply pretend there were 10 from the beginning.


    This will show howpetent it is as an educational institution.


    "But how can you educate infants? They can''t even understand words."


    "Do you know what baby signing is?"


    "Baby signing? What''s that?"


    "As you say, infants can''t speak. So, there are signs that were thought up to attemptmunication with babies. Brain development and muscle growth are vital for learning and handling words, but, the development of hands or fingers are a lot quicker."


    Of course, acquisition of these baby signs will be difficult until they are around six months old.


    "Oh..."


    "I''m saying that babies have a lot more intelligence than adults think they do. If you don''t teach them, they can do nothing but cry , but if you teach them baby signing then they can convey the reason why they are crying to adults. This project will go beyond that."


    The ultimate form of early learning. From the moment of birth, a thorough education will be imparted onto the child.


    That is the goal of this project.


    ������


    I''ve secured my chance to gain connections with the financial world.


    However, I won''t be able to conveniently get funded money if I suddenly take this challenge on without a n.


    A room, inside a building at the center of Kabukichou.


    This evening, I was visiting this ce by myself.


    I visit this hostess bar 2, or 3 three times a month at most when I want to think about some things.


    It is a business that is bing old-fashioned, but it is still high in demand by the elderly.


    This is inseparable from the world of politics.


    "Wee, Ayanokoji-sama."


    A familiar boy in a ck apron weed me, and guided me into the establishment with a quick reception.


    "Where''s Mika?"


    "Yes, she''s at work. She was right when she said that you would being soon.


    Well then, over here, please."


    I was shown to my usual VIP room at the back of the establishment.


    There were already several bottle keep bottles in the rool, and some snacks were prepared.


    [ TL Note 6 : bottle of spirits that a bar customer buys, writes his name on, keeps on a shelf at the bar, and drinks little by little on sessive visits?. ]


    This means that preparations have already progressed before I even arrived


    "Please wait a bit."


    The boy bowed his head and left the room.


    As I silently sat down on the luxurious sofa, a wave of exhaustion washed over me.


    I leaned back against the backrest, not even bothering to reach for the drink.


    "Phew..."


    A deep sigh, even surprising myself a little.


    I haven''t been sleeping well recently.


    The pressure of the human resource development project which I was hurriedly put in charge of and the heavy responsibilities that lie behind it.


    A job of life or death that I cannot fail by even the slightest chance.


    The location of the education facility is in sight, but there is not enough money to secure it, and no suitable educators have been found. Further, a lot of manpower is also necessary to operate the facility.


    It is also necessary to gather people who won''t talk too much and think of a mechanism to prevent them from leaking information to the outside.


    Naturally, for this, even more money will be needed.


    "Money, money, money, huh..?"


    I have been given an opportunity to get the money through Sakayanagi, but I don''t know what will actually happen yet.


    "We''ll see what happens..."


    Unable to endure the sleepiness assaulting me, I closed my eyes.


    Iid down to rest, reflecting on the difference between this ce and the hard fabric of my office.


    I wonder how much time has passed since then.


    Was it one minute, or one hour?


    As I unexpectedly opened my eyes and woke up, there was a face ncing at me from the side.


    Familiarrge eyes and lips.


    The same gaze that always looks at me.


    "Did you wake up?"


    "...How long did I sleep?"


    As I got my body up from the sofa, I washed down a ss of whisky to wake myself up.


    "About 10 minutes, probably? You look really tired."


    Only 10 minutes. However, it feels like my body became just a little lighter in these 10 minutes.


    "Do you want some tea or water instead?"


    "No, drinking is much better for my body in times like this."


    Mika nodded in dismay, then skillfully added more alcohol and wiped the water droplets from the ss.


    "I have something to ask of you."


    "Is that your first conversation topic after waking up? How about forgetting about work for a little?"


    "I can''t do that."


    I spontaneously put strength into the hand I was holding the ss with.


    "It''s very important work, huh?"


    "There is no line between important or not important work. I can''t miss even a single thing."


    For me, even finding a chestnut in a fire is an important order.


    "Being a politician is hard, huh? I watch them on TV and see them dozing off in parliament, being used of corruption, or being used of phndering. It doesn''t seem like there''s many who do their jobs properly, but..."


    From an ordinary person''s point of view, the world of politics is exactly like that.


    The ruling party and the opposition parties are seen as doing their job while shouting abuse at each other like children.


    "It''s good for me. If the people above me worked properly, then there wouldn''t be any gaps for me to enter through, so."


    Thanks to the many old politicians acting as they please, I can aim for the few empty seats.


    "I think that you can be a great politician, Atsuomi."


    After saying so, she gently put her hand on my thigh.


    "You say that with a lot of confidence for a woman who knows nothing about politics."


    Mika next to me came to Tokyo after graduating from middle school, and threw herself into the world of cabaret after going through a few jobs.


    With her good looks and confident attitude, she quickly went up to being the number 2 girl


    in this bar.


    I met her while looking for a ce to entertain a member of parliament, and we deepened our rtionship.


    We even dated as lovers for a time, but that was a long time ago.


    The reason that we did not break off our rtionship then was not just because of the physical aspect, but because she is also talented with her work.


    Mika knows how to use her weapons, and she has had close rtionships with several men who are at the core of the ruling and opposition parties.


    A young, beautiful woman who can only socialise as an adult without negatively affecting her family.


    Politicians have a lot of secrets. The more secrets people keep, the more they want to tell.


    Politicians are wary of smart women.


    On the other hand, they are less cautious about women who are not so smart.


    If a woman responds with a knowing but not understanding "huh" when any secret is divulged, it will be easier to have pillow talks. Because you won''t have to worry if you say too much, since the other party will not remember.


    But this Mika is different. She has no knowledge, but she has at least a minimum amount of wisdom.


    She knew how to sniff out the money in politicians'' statements and record it in any way she could.


    And it all started when she demanded the number one position and money in exchange for cooperating with me.


    Further, it was with the hope of not only dragging down the number 1, but thoroughly crushing her.


    In response to the easy to understand price, I drugged the woman who was number 1 at the time and eliminated her.


    Now she is probably somewhere earning a pittance by keepingpany to dirty customers.


    Since then, we have be more involved and have been maintaining a give and take with each other.


    "I want to grasp some people''s weaknesses."


    I put the photos of the seven people I''ve picked out from the financial world onto the table.


    "Do any of these faces look familiar to you, or do you think they are people you can pull in?"


    "Let''s see. I don''t think any of them have shown up over here, but... Ah, I think I saw this guy at one of our affiliate establishments... Wait a minute, let me check. What''s his name?"


    "It''s Sonezaki."


    As if to jog her memory, Mika called somewhere on her cell phone.


    "Ah, hey, Sofia? There''s something I''d like to ask, but do you know a customer called Sonezaki-san?"


    After a few moments of friendly chatter, Mika ended the call and nodded.


    "Bingo. There''s a big customer who''s really into Sofia, it was him."


    "That''s very convenient, then. Can you use him well?"


    "What should I do?"


    "This Sonezaki is a married man with two daughters in middle school. It''s only natural for him to y around with women after bing wealthy, but he still wouldn''t want his circumstances to be made known to his family."


    "This ended up being quite simple, huh?"


    "Try toe up with something for the remaining people, too."


    "Okay."


    "And one more thing. I want you to get close with Sasada too. It seems like his position has been going uptely. I want to learn one or two of his weaknesses in advance."


    "...Sasada, right? Why?"


    Hearing Sasada''s name, Mika did not hide her disgust.


    "I hate scummy bastards who touch my body without permission in in sight though, you know?"


    "Is he obsessed with you?"


    "He even says that he''ll give me any amount of money I want if I spend a night with him."


    "That''s perfect. Respond to his desire. He will give you more money than you think."


    A weapon that men cannot possess. It''s a simple and effective strategy.


    "How much will I get?"


    "It''ll live up to your expectations if you show results."


    "I got it. I''m not enthusiastic, but I''ll do it well."


    "And don''t forget to be with Naoe-sensei too. That person values you too."


    "...We''ll see."


    For the first time, Mika''s expression shadowed a little.


    "That, how should I put it... no matter how many times I get in close contact with him, I can''t ever see his true heart."


    She took a hand towel, and folded it suitably.


    This is a habit Mika does a lot to distract herself from topics she doesn''t like.


    "From my point of view, he''s an old man but he has an energy that makes you feel otherwise."


    "I never thought I could get you to say so much. As expected of Naoe-sensei..."


    He is a person who shouldn''t fool you by his aged appearance.


    "Be careful. I don''t want you to get swallowed up."


    "I wonder how many men you''ve presented these words to."


    I pulled a handful of bills from my wallet and messily put them on the table.


    "Take it."


    "Are you leaving already? I have some time, you know?"


    "Sorry, but I don''t have the time to be so leisurely."


    Alcohol and women are luxuries to indulge in, nothing more, and nothing less.


    All that stuff wille eventually.


    What''s important now is to perfectly execute the project, and to make a name for myself in the Naoe Faction.


    ������


    A few monthster, in my office, I was looking at the finished photos of the building that had just finished construction.


    The floors, ceilings, walls, and everything else are painted with a white base.


    The reason for this monochromatic colour scheme is to give the impression that the facility is clean.


    Pure, innocent, clean, and holy; white has a number of strong positive connotations.


    Many government officials will eventually visit to inspect the education that will take ce here.


    It is a little bit of an image strategy, but it is an element that should not be underestimated.


    "Good morning, Ayanokoji-san."


    Kamogawa had arrived early at the Saitama site with the engineer for the final checks and reviewed the facility with a board in hand.


    The work seemed to havee to an end, and he came back to the office with a look of relief on his face.


    "All construction isplete."


    "Well done. It looks like the facility was made exactly in the way I imagined."


    "But, with that budget, how did you renovate it so beautifully? Normally, it would be no strange thing for it to cost almost twice as much."


    "There are a lot of construction contractors where dustes out when you knock on the door."


    If you whisper too good to be true stories along with threats in their ears, they will cooperate without regard to profit.


    "It is finally bing a reality, huh? The human resource development project."


    "That''s right."


    "All of it, it''s all because you were able to move the people in the financial world, Ayanokoji-san. You collected around 400 million in one night, that''s a pretty big thing."


    The 400 million was invested in the educators, thend, the buildings, and the construction of the facility itself.


    Most of it is gone now, though.


    I had my life on the line to collect the money, but I won''t have any trouble using it.


    "These people are fed up with money, but they are always hungry for honor and prestige. If this project seeds, they will get that in return. From the look of the party, they must have a lot of deals like this going on behind the scenes."


    They are probably investing in a number of projects at the same time, including mine, and only think of it as a profit if one of them seeds.


    Some of them may have even forgotten about my existence.


    "Are you saying we''re not special?"


    "It''s fine to say so for now. Rather, it''s more risky to get too much attention."


    However, what''s ahead of us will also be crucial.


    In addition to the teachers who will provide the education, the children who will receive it must also be secured.


    "But first, I havee up with a name for the facility that will be responsible for the human resource development project."


    "Huh, really? What did you name it?"


    "White Room. To emphasize white, which gives an image or purity, and to push it forward."


    "White Room... I see, it is simple but also easy to understand."


    Anyone will be able to see, that as its name suggests, this ce is the White Room.


    "I hope we can get the teachers and many others to visit us soon."


    Kamogawa is bing merry, but things will not go so easily.


    "Kamogawa. I have something important to tell you. The world of politics is not a simple binary of friend or foe. If you go into it with an easy way of thinking, you''ll end up in a mess you can''t get back from."


    "Huh..?"


    He tilted his head back with a dumb look on his face, as if he didn''t understand what I meant.


    "It''s fine. I guess you weren''t ready for that talk yet."


    No matter how favourable it looks, I am still walking on a bridge that could copse at any moment.


    Kamogawa doesn''t know the fear of walking on that bridge yet.


    "What will you do after this?"


    "I''m supposed to meet and interview a few people here today. It''s not possible to run White Room just by myself, so. It''s scheduled for 4 o''clock."


    It''s impossible for amateurs to educate children out of the blue.


    Kamogawa looked at his watch and bowed his head, looking a little offended.


    He must have thought he was in the way, since the interview time was about 10 minutes away at 4:00 p.m.


    "Come with me too."


    "Oh, really?"


    "You''re also in charge of White Room, and you have a right to see who you''re dealing with."


    With a gleeful gleam in his eye, Kamogawa hurriedly began to clean up.


    Exactly when it was about a minute from 4 o''clock, a visitor knocked at the office door.


    "Come in."


    Souya, a man appearing in a white coat, lightly bowed and approached.


    "Hello there, Ayanokoji-san. I never thought that a stray researcher like me would be approached by a great politician like you."


    "I haven''t said I''m hiring you yet."


    The man who showed up, Souya, was originally a doctor, but as a result of a number of problems he had caused, his medical licence was revoked.


    After that, he began research on human growth. He was highly praised by some, but he has not been able to return to the limelight because of his past history.


    "Kamogawa. If you have any first impressions about him, tell me."


    "Is it... Alright?"


    Kamogawa looked like he was not trying to interrupt, but I could easily tell he had things he wanted to say.


    "I want to hear your opinion."


    "Umm, I''m sorry, but why are you here in a white coat?"


    "I can''te here naked, can I?"


    "That''s not what I... Normally, it''smon sense to wear a suit for an interview, but..."


    Souya looked at his clothes, and nodded somewhat unconvincingly.


    "Isn''t that a minor detail? My formal attire is a white coat, so I don''t think there is any problem. I''d rather you take me more seriously with this than with a suit and tie."


    Souya replied so, without a trace of apology.


    "Ah, Ayanokoji-san... what will we do?"


    Are you going to hire a man like him? That''s what his eyes were telling him.


    It is true that he had a lot of problems with his attitude and the way he dressed, which could not be said to be appropriate for an interview.


    However, neither of these things were a necessity for the personnel that White Room needed.


    "I don''t have a medical license, but I''m proud to say that my background is impressive."


    "I don''t care about your personal history."


    It seems that we need to cut away this misconception first.


    Then, for the first time, Souya''s nonchnt attitude hardened slightly.


    "Enough... You''re here to judge me for what I did too, aren''t you? I came here because you said you would interview me regardless of my past problems, but it turned out to be a mistake."


    "Don''t jump to conclusions by yourself. I told you that I don''t care about the past. I''m talking about your entire career path. What university you graduated from, what hospital you worked at, what kind of crime you''vemitted.


    I have no interest in any of it."


    Souya, about to get up from his seat, stopped moving.


    "All I''m looking for is your current thoughts and abilities. You have a good perspective as a person and insight into human beings. Are you confident that you can use your skills?"


    "I know most things when I see someone. That hasn''t changed."


    For the first time, Souya showed his face as a researcher.


    "It takes a lot of guts and determination to enter the illegal world. That''s all I wanted to see here. I can''t really judge whether or not you''re actually useful until I see you in the field."


    I don''t have the luxury of picking and choosing someone with a personality I like.


    "...My apologies."


    Souya bowed deeply, even though I didn''t ask him to.


    "The few years after I was discharged... I was always frustrated as I ate up my savings. I shut myself in and continued cutting myself off from the world."


    "You regretted it, didn''t you? The past mistakes you''vemitted."


    "Regret? I do not regret anything. I just can''t help but get mad thinking about why they sold me out."


    He doesn''t in the least think that he did anything wrong.


    So he was exactly of a nature that was bound to fail, and he did.


    Kamogawa, who had led a serious and mild-mannered life, must be a bad match for him.


    "I will give you a chance toe back to life. From now on, you will work for me as a former doctor and researcher, managing the subjects and helping them grow. Understand?"


    This man with nowhere to go has nothing toin about when I employ him with the same treatment as before.


    "Thank you very much. I''ll make sure I''ll live up to your expectations."


    I told him right there and then that I would be employing Souya, and left.


    "I''m really worried about whether it''s okay... to hire someone like that."


    "I understand what you want to say. However, this is actually more convenient for us."


    "Is, is that so?"


    "There is no one around him who he is close with. Further, he is obsessed with money, and does not seek honour in the outside world. If we give him money and a ce to work, I am sure he won''t betray us. It is impossible to contact outsiders and generate a third party ie here."


    Of course, there is a possibility that he will threaten us and demand higher wages, but if that is the extent of his behaviour, there is no need for us to hesitate.


    "I''m sure he also understood while dealing with me, that it would not be profitable to make an enemy of me."


    "I, I see..."


    "If that man is the only oneing in, we won''tst much longer. Leaving aside this Souya, I gathered a lot of people who are talented but were fired after causing a lot of problems, so."


    I can''t be negligent in terms of leadership, but as far as theirpetency goes, they are dependable.


    In addition, we have other professionals from the field of training, including one who ran an obstetrics and gynaecology practice, an expert in ecology, and a mentor who has built up olympic athletes.


    Of course, this is just the start. From here out, we will expand our reach and bring in geniuses in all kinds of fields to work on the children''s development.


    "But, was it okay not to ask for more details? We don''t really know how well he can work."


    "Detailed exnations are unnecessary. I don''t know anything about medicine or education, anyhow. So, I''m going to emphasize that they will have to work hard, and employ them based on the fighting power they can bring in."


    "So you''re saying that... almost everyone whoes in for an interview has already been epted?"


    "That''s what I''m saying. So it doesn''t make any difference whether you are sitting next to me or not."


    In the sense of putting pressure on them, I can see that it helps a little.


    I''m not sure how much knowledge I can gain by studying now.


    It''s best to put the experts against the experts, rather than have aplete novice stick his neck out.


    "The answer to the question of whether the guy can really do it or not, or whether the guying in for an interview is capable of it or not, can be found by letting the people you hirepete with each other."


    A separate team of experts will analyze whether the education has produced results. If they don''t see certain results, they will simply cut the head off without mercy.


    ������


    "It''s, it''s over, huh... I''m more tired than I expected."


    The interviews began at 4:00 p.m. and ended at 8:00 p.m. after meeting with a total of six people.


    I understand Kamogawa''s feeling of weakness.


    I have no doubt that all of them are professionals in their field.


    However, as human beings, they were all so immature and nauseating.


    I knew that I should not think that I could have a decent conversation with them.


    It would be easy to hire all of the people gathered here today, but...


    "What will you do?"


    "There is a big problem in regards to their characters, but, I will hire Ishida, Souya, and then Tabuchi, who seem to have the most proper personality. As for the rest, their inner problems were stronger than their ability, so I intend to let them go for now."


    "Leaving aside his statements, his history, and way of thinking were great, huh? I don''t really understand that well, but..."


    However, it remains unknown whether this will help the project get off the ground.


    I thought that I might see things a bit better with the interviews, but...


    In no way can I shake off this feeling of uneasiness.


    Even if they arepetent, I didn''t feel anything breaking through.


    Is it really possible to provide the best education like this?


    "Let''s go eat something."


    I won''t make any progress even if I think about it, so I should probably reset my head for now.


    "Right!? Let''s go, it''s just the time for it right now!"


    I invited Kamogawa out to dinner for a change of pace, and right after I got up from my seat while taking my cell phone out of my pocket...


    "Ayanokoji-san, did you drop something?"


    After saying so, he held out a piece of paper he picked up from the ground to me. It was a business card.


    "Ah, he did give this to us, didn''t he? It''s all crumpled, but..."


    "It might be a good idea to see how useful he would be."


    "Wait, are you going to contact him? His smile, it was kind of scary, but..."


    It is a dubious title, but that Naoe-sensei would not put someone of no use besides him.


    It might be a good idea to just get in contact with him.


    I tried calling the number written on the business card on my cell phone.


    If I couldn''t get a connection, I am willing to dismiss it as a lost opportunity.


    That''s about how I felt.


    After I put in the numbers and the call rang a few times...


    "I thought you might be contacting me, Ayanokoji-san."


    I could tell from the voice also that it was Tsukishiro, and he answered without hesitation.


    "How did you know it was me?"


    I never gave him my number, and this was the first time I had ever called Tsukishiro.


    "Because it is only natural to investigate beforehand."


    "I don''t like it."


    The act of looking into my number itself did not surprise me.


    It''s just a matter of asking around Naoe-sensei, or his secretaries.What I don''t like is the way he seemed to know that I was calling.


    "What is Naoe-sensei making you do?"


    I don''t think it''s just a mere introduction.


    I sensed intuitively that there was a set-up behind the scenes


    "I understand what you mean, but I can''t give an answer here."


    "You''re watching to see if I mess up, that''s about it, right?"


    I can''t sense the other party''s agitation or true nature just by his voice.


    However, at the same time, that would also be a risky decision.


    At the very least, it is hard to believe that this Tsukishiro man would shop an opening so easily.


    "I''d like to meet you soon if it''s alright. I may be able to meet your expectations as well."


    As I was thinking about what to do, the invite came from Tsuikishiro''s side.


    "Expectations?"


    "You called me because you are in trouble, didn''t you?"


    "You are very confident, huh? I haven''t said a word about it yet. You may regret it if you set your expectations too high."


    "I''m ready even now, if I am needed."


    Now? He has quite some confidence, huh?


    Or, he may have a different objective.


    Do I stay on guard, or do I purposefully go along with him?


    "In that case, it''s now.. I won''t let you say it''s unreasonable, then."


    "Of course. What shall we do, then? I can visit you myself. You are in the office right now, right?"


    "...Fuck you."


    Is he saying he even knows I live in my office?


    "It looks like things will go smoother if I am the one who goes out. Can I have around an hour, then?"


    "Do whatever you want."


    Leaving aside if Tsukishiro had confidence that I would visit him or not, there is no mistaking the fact that he has been searching for my vicinity and that he has grasped it.


    It seems like information about this project is already flying around with Naoe-sensei at the center.


    "Umm, what happened?"


    "I''m meeting Tsukishiro now."


    "What, now!? What about food..?"


    "Go alone. I''ll meet the guy by myself."


    As long as he has one foot in this project, Kamogawa is a trove of information.


    As long as there is the possibility of this man being an enemy, Kamogawa''s existence will be a nuisance.


    ������


    One hour from then. I had been waiting outside the office to see how he would show up.


    Then, at pretty much the agreed upon time, a ck BMW''s figure came into view.


    "I''ll go to the parking lot, so please wait a bit."


    Tsukishiro, opening the driver''s side window and saying so, put his car into a parking lot and came back.


    "I didn''t expect you to drive yourself."


    "I work alone most of the time, so. Besides, I don''t like leaving the driving to someone else. It is the same thing as having your life in their hands."


    I thought the man was being exaggerated, but on the flip side, he may just be exposed to that much danger.


    Moving on to the office, I sat Tsukishiro down at a suitable spot.


    "You said you may meet my expectations, but do you know what needs to be done?"


    He never broke his smile, which gave rise to an unpleasant atmosphere.


    "Yes. It is rted to the human resource development project, right?"


    "Looks like Naoe-sensei sees through anything and everything. huh? I guess this means that he had no intention of leaving it all to me from the start."


    That day, I thought that Naoe-sensei left the project to only me and Kamogawa.


    No, maybe it''s my fault for interpreting it in that way.


    My first big job. I guess it is only natural that because he must seed, Naoe-sensei would want to have things guaranteed.


    "If I go down, you''ll take over the project and be left with its management, right?"


    "Maybe I will, or maybe I won''t."


    Of course, there''s no way he would answer honestly.


    This man''s age shouldn''t be that different from mine. It seems like he''s stepped into a lot of ces.


    In that case, it would be normal to depend on him.


    "No, I''m wrong, I think. He must simply be looking out in advance for the politician who will be my recement."


    If Kamogawa and I fail, a different politician will take over the project.


    "Impressive. That''s a half-correct answer, Ayanokoji-san."


    "Half, is it?"


    "Yes. There are two duties left to me; one is exactly what you spoke of. The other one is to aid the politician who is in charge of the human development project."


    "Aid?"


    "A strong support. However, you don''t seem to be pleased, huh?"


    It sounds good when you say "aid", but a process for the case of me failing must also be included.


    "I can''t make sense of it. I don''t think Naoe-sensei would rely on you, who is around the same age as me."


    "It is true that, just like you, I am young if you look at it from the world of politics. However, if you are good at supporting the big name politicians, you will be valued even if you are young. Well, in my case, I work with any partner, regardless of if they are a politician or not."


    Tsukishiro, not even trying to hide the fact that he is sessful.


    I don''t think it is overconfidence. He''s showing me confidence based on his achievements.


    "Before asking you to work, there''s something I''d like to confirm beforehand."


    "What would that be?"


    I pulled out the newspaper from this morning, and put my finger on an article in the corner.


    "Ooarai City in Ibaraki Prefecture. It looks like there was a body at the port there."


    "It isn''t that rare of a story, is it? Many people are dying all over Japan, so."


    "He was a local journalist, I know this man. He was a lone wolf who hated the world of politics... mainly the ruling party, Citizens Party."


    "What about it? Does it have anything to do with now and this ce?"


    "Did you do it, Tsukishiro?"


    "You ask very direct questions, huh, Ayanokoji-san? Do you think I will answer with a yes?"


    "That doesn''t matter. What I want to know is whether or not this reporter was keeping a watch on Naoe-sensei when he met you at the restaurant the other day or not."


    Without even moving a brow, Tsukishiro lightly dropped his eyes onto the newspaper article."


    "He seemed like he was about to write a gossip article about Naoe-sensei, you see. That he''s ying around with young women even though he has a wife and children. The Citizens Party couldn''t have avoided its image being damaged."


    As I expected.


    This is the reason that this man was moving together with Naoe-sensei in the restaurant the other day.


    He put a woman on Naoe-sensei on purpose, determined the reporter who would be aiming for this, and took care of him.


    Of course, I''m sure he will not admit it in daylight, but...


    I made a fist, and strongly hit the table.


    "That does not seem to be fear, huh? Goodness gracious... Could it actually be, anger?"


    Tsukishiro continued while curiously analyzing my movements.


    It is true that with this talk, shaking in fear or fright would be the normal thing.


    Because it is possible that the man before my eyes has killed a man as a job.


    "You''re wondering why you weren''t left with the work yourself... Is that the source of this anger?"


    "Dirty work is my role. It''s been like that up until now too."


    If I get even one order, I am confident that I can deal with it just as well as this man.


    "At the least, I won''t be so stupid that the body will end up found."


    "I know your circle of friends very well. You are very close with the Ooba Group, aren''t you, Ayanokoji-san?"


    Does he naturally have a grasp on everything about me?


    "Then you should have already understood very quickly that I would not be afraid of you."


    "The Ooba Group is not arge organization, but they are quite notorious. I am aware that you worked very hard to build up a friendly rtionship. However, if the corpse is not found, then it is not a corpse. A missing person could not have put fear into the hearts of the numberless enemy rats watching Naoe-sensei, could it?"


    In other words, he did not fail to hide it, but purposefully let the body be found, huh..?


    Whether or not Tsukishiro is involved in the death of a local reporter is no longer relevant.


    I don''t think this is a guy I can threaten by reaching out with my arms and grabbing him by the chest here.


    If I am being made to think so, then his strategy is working well.


    "I understand how you feel, but that is proof that Naoe-sensei is putting his heart and soul into his human resource development n. Since he decided to select you, he couldn''t let you cross a dangerous bridge just to sink a reporter. Even if this incident bes a problem, the person who would be med for it would be someone else, someone you don''t know anything about."


    This man is dangerous. However, his talent is high, and he is a quick talker if he knows what''s going on.


    If he could not manoeuvre over the people he faces, he could not have reached these heights.


    "There are a lot of things about it I don''t like, but you can''t make an omelet without breaking eggs."


    "That is correct. We should keep our personal circumstances separate and think things through, right?"


    Any more idle chatter is just a waste of time.


    I should try to get into the main subject.


    "I''ve been interviewing staff for a new research facility. I''ve managed to secure some personnel, but I''m stillcking a deciding factor. I will need time to search again."


    "So you''re asking if I can help you with arranging human resources? That was fast."


    "If you have any ideas. I''m not looking for a half-hearted asset, though."


    "Do not worry. I know of a person of talent who would convince you, Ayanokoji-san."


    "Oh?"


    "However, it is a different story if I will introduce them to you. You understand, right?"


    This world is mostly about business.


    It doesn''t matter if you like your partner or hate them, or if you have a deep or thin rtionship with them..


    "I understand. How much?"


    If I can get a reward of equal value, I have no dissatisfaction about paying money.


    "In theory it is best to handle things with cash, but I have some policies of my own. I would like to sit down and talk with potential clients. First of all, would you be willing to allow me to interview you?"


    "That''s funny. I was the one interviewing just a few minutes ago and now I''m on the receiving end."


    What a joke. However, it would be foolish to throw away an opportunity for the sake of a little time and pride.


    "Alright. You can do whatever you want."


    I''m going to y along with Tsukishiro''s game here and see if I can use him or not.


    "Thank you very much."


    Tsukishiro took out a light blue clear file and pulled out several sheets of paper from it.


    So, was it all calcted to get us to this point?


    "Ayanokoji Atsuomi, 31 years old. Male. Born in Kumamoto Prefecture, Aso City. Education history is high school-"


    "Wait a minute. Is it necessary to confirm that stuff with an interview?"


    "It is important."


    He may not be joking, but his thin smile makes me want to vomit.


    "You and I are equals. No, maybe not even equal. What determines our hierarchy is up to you now, and you can decide. If you feel like swearing, please do not refrain from putting it into words."


    He is smiling, but I wonder how serious he is.


    However,I have already made my decision.


    Because I''vee to understand that he seems so different, yet so simr in character.


    "I have not been refraining from anything, but I still had to restrain myself with Naoe-sensei behind me. From now on, I will deal with you without reservation in the true sense of the word."


    "That would be best."


    After grinning, Tsukishiro began to speak again.


    "I''ve followed your career as far as I can. Your life has not been easy, and it seems that you had a poor childhood."


    I''m not sure how much research he''s done, but it seems he''s done his fair share.


    It seems likely that he is in contact with someone who knew me as a child and as a student.


    "I''ve also investigated your family structure. It seems your parents abandoned you when you were little, and you were raised by your grandparents from your father''s side."


    From the way he speaks, it would seem that a bad lie would have the opposite effect.


    "No parents, no money, no proper house. That''s how my life was."


    "No proper house? What kind of ce did you live in?"


    "A shack for farm equipment maintained by the adults in the neighborhood. It had a crude tin roof and no electricity or gas. I could only take a bath once or twice a week with hot water boiled in a cassette stove."


    It''s not a past to be proud of; in fact, to others it would sound like self-torture.


    However, I''m not pessimistic about the past.


    I think it has allowed me to lead a life that has given me the determination to rise to the top.


    "My grandfather died when I was in junior high school. But, it was a turning point. I was able to buy an old house nearby with my grandmother with the money from an insurance policy he had put out before he died and moved."


    It wasn''t the kind of house you''d want to live in.


    However, I remember that I was happy because I felt like I had a big castle.


    "Is your grandmother alive?"


    "No. I remember that she died when I was over 18 years old. Probably."


    "You don''t seem to care that much."


    "I didn''t see her die, and I have no interest in it. I was too busy living my life for myself, so."


    I did not attend the funeral, although I received one phone call from someone who seemed to be a distant rtive. I paid only the minimum expenses and let them handle everything.


    Including my grandfather, I don''t even know where their graves are and where their remains are buried.


    "I see that after all the hard work she put into raising you, her life ended in vain."


    "I don''t know if it was hard work or not."


    Of course, I know that raising a child is hard work, and I think so.


    "But it is true that it was an empty end. The son she had raised with all her heart and soul abandoned his child and disappeared, and the grandchildren who were left behind did not even try to help the parent who raised them. She had to live in poverty for decades and never had the luxury of living a good life."


    If I had lived as my grandmother, I would have described it as a living hell.


    "How do you feel about that situation, looking at it objectively now? Does it hurt?"


    "No? Nothing has changed from that time. No, it''s more than that. My grandmother lived a life of a loser and died as a loser. If she had at least abandoned me, her grandson, and made good use of my grandfather''s insurance money, she would have had a somewhat better life."


    I have no intention of living such a miserable life.


    I can say that she was useful to me as a close antagonist.


    "When was it that you decided to be a politician?"


    "It all started when I was a host and a woman who came as a client told me a story. She told me that being a politician is not only about money, but also about power."


    In fact, there were many parliament members in the area who yed around in cabarets.


    I was jealous of these people who yed around with the public''s blood money.


    "You ran for the first time at the age of 25, but your vote count was hopeless and you lost badly, also forfeiting your deposit money."


    Tsukishiro read out the profile he had investigated of me.


    "At the age of 27, you announced your intention to run again when the House of Representatives was dissolved, and was first elected after being favoured and encouraged by Naoe-sensei. It seems you learned a lot about politics during those two years."


    "I admit that I was the most desperate man in my life. As a former host, I used women to get close to Naoe-sensei. Of course, that alone would not have won me his approval, but I am proud to say that he bought my persistent touch, my enthusiasm, and my ambition."


    Tsukishiro nodded his head in satisfaction.


    "Thank you for the details."


    Closing the file, Tsukishiro turned to face me.


    "It should be fine. I will ept you as a client."


    Saying this, Tsukishiro pulled out a new file.


    "Wait a minute. You''re epting me as a client with this kind of talk?"


    "You mayck some knowledge, but that is not important. You can make up for it plenty with your rich intellect and body.


    What''s important is your "thinking". Your ambition painted with unhidable evil, I''ve judged that you excel in the qualities of a politician."


    I looked down at the file in front of me.


    "They are excellent personnel that will live up to your expectations."


    Did he even foresee that I would contact him looking for personnel?


    No, there is a possibility that Naoe-sensei is backing him up from behind the scenes.


    "How much?"


    "Not this time. It is best if I can be repaid in a big way one day in the future, so. You may be a big-name one day. That is the biggest reason that I decided to ept this."


    "Don''t make meugh. How many politicians have you whispered the same things to? Do you think that I will ept such ttery?"


    Even this man who is babbling that he has epted my talents only decided to cooperate with me after seeing my background.


    "Of course, I''m sure it''s not just one or two people, right?"


    He admitted easily and stood up.


    "If you surpass others in talent, you will increase your enemies in the political world. Your stakes will be driven down, and your political life will be snatched away. Your evil and ambition may be held down by a stronger force."


    "I won''t be so easily crushed, though."


    "That may be so. If you find yourself in a ce where you are about to be killed, you have to have the resolve to take the person next to you along with you.


    That kind of person tenaciously survives."


    Being a neer to the world of politics, I can''t do anything without Naoe-sensei shielding my back.


    As I left the office with Tsukishiro, a young man in white clothes came up to me.


    "He is the one you are looking for. I had instructed him in advance toe at this time."


    "Was this your intent from the start?"


    "Of course, I had no intention of letting you meet with him if you were unsessful in my interview."


    Interview time for another newly added person.


    On his resume, a slightly rare name was written: "Suzukake Tanji".


    "Hi."


    "Please sit.


    Even though the personnel were arranged by Tsukishiro and Naoe-sensei''s side, I still can''t let my guard down.


    The person to be hired must be questioned in detail and checked for any problems.


    The man called Suzukake who entered the room looked like a middle-aged man with a stubble beard, but he was even younger than me: 29 years old.


    He had graduated from the University of Tokyo at the head of his ss and went over to the U.S., but he never made any significant achievements.


    He was a man without any titles except his intelligence, so to speak, but I still don''t know why the Tsukishiro Side rmended such a man.


    "Your r��sum�� seems pretty nk, but what did you do abroad?"


    " I was doing what I wanted to do."


    "...What did you want to do?"


    "Well, all kinds of things."


    "I can''t really understand that. Please speak concretely."


    "Human observation."


    I''m d I''ve been seeing so many people today who can''t even use proper honorifics.


    I''ve learned that it''s somewhat better to be spoken to normally than half-heartedly in honorifics.


    "Then, please tell me why you decided to take this interview."


    "I heard it pays well. I need money to stay abroad."


    "The cost of living can''t even bepared to Japan, so I can understand."


    If one has the ability they should work on location, but judging from this man''s attitude, I don''t need to question him about the difficulty of doing so.


    "I have a question for you too, but..."


    "What is it?"


    "Before that, please stop with that disgusting formal speech. You can look at me like I am insect all you want, but if you really want to work, then I want to know your true character."


    "...I see. That''s fine, but won''t that just mean you''ll have to leave?"


    If this is what he wants, I don''t have to wear human skin either.


    I broke my slightly upright posture, and crossed my legs.


    "You aren''t hired at the moment, Suzukake. You graduated from a prestigious school at the top of your ss, and you deserve credit for your brains, but you haven''t left anything behind."


    "Because I just wasn''t even provided the stage to do so."


    Replying so, he continued his words right after.


    "I''m not looking for fame or a title. But, I do want to understand the mechanisms of a human. This project''s policy of human resource development seemed like the perfect opportunity to solve my questions."


    "You''re not looking for a title, huh? If you perform to my expectations, you will be provided rewards you haven''t been able to gain at the front stage."


    When I handed him the materials regarding the White Room, Suzukake immediately began to look through them.


    I have to dangle arge amount of carrots in front of these guys and make them show their talent without regret.


    That''s what I thought, but researchers are hard to understand.


    With a childlike gleam in his eyes, he checked out the facilities and environment, and began to randomly murmur about his hopes and ideals.


    ������


    Later, I visited the White Room in Saitama, which had undergone renovation work, and was exploring the image of the room and worrying about the selection of further educators.


    Then, Kamogawa came to me.


    ""Thank you for your hard work, Ayanokoji-san. Have you made arrangements for the children?"


    "The n couldn''t start if I hadn''t. The scheme is almostplete."


    "Wow, of course... Of course, you don''t have to give me the details. I don''t want to, umm, get caught or anything yet."


    A means to gather children, which I am not speaking of to this Kamogawa.


    That is, to get newborns illegally from ck market brokers using the Ooba Group.


    However, this entails many dangers.


    As such, we must eventually switch to a more legitimate way of collecting children.


    Although it is still in the nning stage, we will soonunch a website and announce that we will be a ce for parents who cannot raise their unborn children due to unavoidable circumstances to be able to take their children to.


    Ideally, we would cooperate with the parents even before the birth of the child. Some women can''t even pay for a birth without relying on the government''s system.


    There are many cases of women giving birth in secret and their children dying. Of course, this is theoretically possible. However, at the same time, there are great risks involved.


    A woman is not a parent in the true sense of the word yet just by carrying a child in her belly.


    She may not be able to give birth,


    or she may have no choice but to be a mother when shees face to face with her child one day.


    And what if there is a fatal ident?


    If they sue for the return of their child, it will be traced back to the White Room in the backscene.


    That must be avoided.


    If it bes public, it would be more than just a matter of tarnishing Naoe-sensei''s name.


    It is imperative that we only ept children from those who have given birth elsewhere, are not responsible, and cannot be mothers.


    It would be good to have a myriad of beautiful and hypocritical words on the homepage.


    "Don''t take a life," "anonymous baby adoption," "counseling for the needy," "foster care system," and so on, all of which seem to guarantee a future for you and your child.


    Whenever a mother visits a hospital, the first step is always to set up a meeting.


    We don''t ask her name or where she lives, we just ask her to give a reason why she can''t raise her child freely.


    If the child is simply uneptable, some will readily allow the child to go to foster care. If they are strapped for cash, we can just give them some money.


    If they have no choice but to give the child to the hospital, we will be sure to provide an extension of one week.


    Some parents may regret giving up their children the following day.


    In this way, unrecognized children will be gathered and sent to the White Room.


    In order to be prepared for the possibility of being asked to return their children two or three yearster, a connection will be made only with each mother in the form of a name.


    Of course, you can''t just return a child from foster care, that kind of reasoning doesn''t work.


    As long as we are doing something illegal, we need to avoid being publicized.


    Further, themodity called children must be treated very delicately.


    "The problem is, if anything, beyond that. It is the medical care of the children brought to White Room."


    "Medical care..?"


    "Children are weak. They get sick at the slightest thing. However, as it would be difficult to take them to a hospital, it is essential to have doctors who can treat them in White Room."


    Not just any doctor, however.


    There are many conditions... They must have had their physician''s license taken away. Their thinking must be flexible. The doctor must be as old as possible, but not too old. Further, they must be able to re-acquire their physician''s license if the situation demands it. They must also need money and be unwilling to work in the real world.


    "That''s... Quite a lot of difficult conditions, huh? Should I say it''s not beautiful, or..."


    "You''re right in thinking that. However, all over Japan, in every nook and cranny of thend, you will find those with unexpected histories if you search for them. In my search, I came across a former doctor who lives deep in the mountains of Tottori. He had a history of a traffic ident that killed two university students who were riding a bike in the past."


    idents are not rare.


    While returning home after ate night at the office, the doctor was assaulted by a feeling of sleepiness and started to make a right turn without realizing the distance between himself and the bikeing straight ahead, and they collided.


    They could not be saved even after the police and an ambnce were immediately dispatched.


    Unfortunately, the person he hit was a child of a well-known localndowner,


    and after that, he fled to an unrted region to run away from the people''s eyes.


    "10 years since that ident. It was possible to get his physician''s license back, but, he''s been living his days drowning in alcohol."


    "That, that kind of person is... But, while it is good news that you found him, aren''t you worried?"


    "He was always a mboyant and extravagant person. That''s what I''m aiming for."


    One person, at the very least.


    Another one if possible.


    I have to secure doctors to be in charge of the children''s health.


    ������


    3 months after that.


    The arrangement of the children is progressing, and the operation is finally about to begin.


    However, the final phase of the project, the educational part, has to be finalized with the educators.


    I brought what little luggage I had into the white room and was about to gather the live-in researchers into theb for a discussion.


    Ishida, Souya, Suzukake, Tabuchi.


    The four of them are sitting down wearing their white robes.


    "From now on, you four will be in charge of training the first batch of White Room students. This is the first time we meet in person, but we''ve had many discussions in online meetings. I don''t think there will be any obstacles to working together."


    "Please wait a bit. We did have many discussions, but we have not yet reached a consensus in the direction we are heading or our policies.


    How do you intend to align us together?"


    Souya, the elder, strongly expressed his mind.


    Ishida and Suzukake were not even nodding, but instead were confident that they were not mistaken in their own principles.


    This was the same in the repeated online meetings too, so it''s no surprise.


    I could endlessly let them continue discussing the direction they want to take, but they would never get along.


    "What if I tell you to twist your opinions and obey me?"


    "I can''t do that. In that case, I''ll get out."


    "Me too. I''m here to provide my ideal education. If I can''t do that, I don''t feel like being here."


    The same goes for Suzukake.


    The idea ofpromising was never even in the corner of his mind.


    "What is with the rude attitude towards Ayanokoji-san? I know you''ve been paid a fitting amount of money at the preparation stage."


    Kamogawa, an amateur in the field of educational theory, could not overlook the fact that they were being disrespectful. However, I rebuked Kamogawa.


    "They''re saying troubling things, but there''s no need to jump to conclusions."


    The children we''ve prepared and can use right now are 15 in total.


    I lined up 15 sheets of business-card sized paper with the babies'' names, genders, and dates of birth written on the backs.


    Then, I shuffled them as if randomly mixing cards, and put them on top of the table.


    "Ishida, Suzukake, Souya. Pick 5 random cards each and take them. They are the kids you will educate and be in charge of. Educate them for a certain period of time. The first term White Room students will be trained in three groups at the same time. Tabuchi has agreed to supervise you all equally."


    Tabuchi nodded, and sent a nce towards the three.


    "I see. Good idea. As long as our views don''t align, this is the only choice."


    The conclusion I came up with was to let these threepete freely.


    It would be an impossible task to ask these geniuses, who have different philosophies and beliefs, to align themselves from the start.


    "However, it''s not going tost forever. The training period is three years. When all the children reach the age of three, they will be given aprehensive test, and the one who led the group with the best performance will be the official leader."


    There was no cause for concern, as no one thought they would lose.


    Ishida nodded, satisfied with the content, and reached for the paper, so I red at him and grabbed his arm.


    "W-what!?"


    "Listen. If you lose and then say something stupid like that your children have different qualities or that you are not going to abide by the decision, you will lose the three years'' worth of money you have inscribed in your bank book as a penalty. And you willpletely lose your position in the underworld, and not just in the public eye. Make sure you don''t forget that, alright?"


    Ishida in front of me took in my words and strongly, slowly, took a gulp.


    "You two are fine with it too, right?"


    "No objections."


    It seemed that Souya was convinced too, but I''m sure he is more certain now.


    However, Suzukake was the only one with a stern expression.


    "If you have anyints, talk now."


    "I understand. I''m just stuck on the follow the leader part. I don''t think I''ll lose, but I want to know how the people by my side will move. Am I supposed to follow a leader of different principles with blind eptance? If so, I have no intention of taking this on."


    "If all I want is a yes, I don''t need a genius. There is no merit in uniting three people, much less three different people like you. The leader has the final say, and if there are any objections to the policy, I''ll ask for a thorough discussion. That''s also why Tabuchi is here, so."


    "It''s like the ruling party and the opposition party, huh?"


    As if impressed, Kamogawa spoke like a politician.


    "... I understand."


    Ishida has also calmed down, but still has not lost color in his confident eyes.


    It will dy the n, but for now this is probably the best option.


    The first term students will be trained in three groups over a period of three years, and after that, a leader will be chosen.


    It will cost money and reduce efficiency, but it is a necessary step to bring these educators together.


    I will create a new educational policy and start training new term students on a yearly basis.


    I''m sure I will be forced to modify various ns along the way, but this is the best option I can take now.


    Tranted by Anime Anyway

 Chapter 339 - 3 : Start-up Phase

    <h4>Chapter 339: Chapter 3 : Start-up Phase</h4>


    Dreams. People dream almost every day, and whether or not they remember them is rted to the depth of their sleep.


    Considering the fact that this dream is etched in my brain in a very vivid way, it seems that I have been sleeping quite poorly.


    The dream I''m seeing right now is, yes, a long time ago, when I was still a teenager.


    I was remembering in my dream how I felt when I saved up the money to buy one of those used light cars.


    The car had over 100,000 kilometers on the odometer, and the interior was a shabby piece of junk that could not be fixed in any way.


    I can''t say it was afortable ride, but I still drove it around feeling like a pir of the family.


    I had no friends or lovers, and the time I spent with just myself and the car was irreceable.


    A long time has passed since then, and I am now asleep in the back seat without driving myself.


    The deep, softfort of the genuine leather seat.


    The warm feeling covering my back.


    All of these things have changed to something far more luxurious than the car I used to drive.


    But why?


    Why is it that I can''t quite reach the excitement and joy of those days?


    "Ayanokoji-san, we will be arriving soon."


    I quietly opened my eyes to hear such a voice from the driver''s seat.


    The scenery had changed from the city to a rough road surrounded by mountains.


    "It''s going to be a little bumpy from here on out."


    "I know."


    Three years have already passed since I was put in charge of the human resource development project by Naoe-sensei.


    At first, I wondered what would happen, but the project, officially named the White Room Project, wasunched in secret.


    The number of people from the business world who wanted to invest in the project increased day by day, and the project seeded in creating a surplus of funds.


    Of course, all the money raised is designated as being for the White Room.


    An important talk of investment.


    Even going back to the past, I can''t think of any subject that has gathered so much anticipation without even showing results yet.


    Like certain stocks, by the time that ordinary people learn they can make money, it''ll already be toote.


    Only those who heavily invested while the project was still hidden will be able to make money.


    Even without mentioning Naoe-sensei''s name, profits will be predicted when I start working.


    All of this is on my side.


    The presence of the high education that the government has already seeded with ahead of time will be quite important too.


    The government will eventually get involved in the white room, even if they don''t talk about it.


    Those who have invested ahead of the curve can expect enormous publicity and payback.


    Even if things have been going well up to this point, if when the lid opens the results are disappointing, the investors will not hesitate to return fire, and those who call us "sensei, sensei" will hurl abuse at us all at the same time.


    The important thing will be to achieve clear and constant results.


    We cannot let our guard down at all.


    While I was on the move, I received a new call on my cell phone from someone in the business world who wanted to invest in the project.


    Although the true value of the children of the first term had not yet been publicly announced, as soon as the second one began their intake period, applicants began to arrive one after another.


    This was despite the fact that we had not yet ostensibly told them about the education and growth of the first term.


    Of course, this is my strategic move.


    The fact that the education in the white room was going well, that it was more sessful than we had imagined, and that there were so many applicants that we might not be able to ept all of them.


    By secretly disseminating such information about the White Room, I was increasing the value of its existence.


    In addition, there were people who wanted to use the White Room for purposes other than what it was intended for.


    Which was, the existence of illegitimate children, an issue inseparable from wealthy families.


    The mistress insists on giving birth to a child, and as a condition for that, she is allowed to leave her child with the White Room.


    In this way, it is possible topletely eliminate the child''s existence in public eyes.


    The achievement of giving birth to a child and the connection with her partner can still remain.


    Of course, this may be difficult for most people to understand, and irredeemable.


    We have no reason to hold back, since it will lead to the securing of human and financial resources for the White Room.


    I epted the offer and immediately added it to my list.


    "They never learn, do they?"


    Do people go crazy because they have money? They easily repeat unwanted pregnancies because of their selfish acts.


    I don''t mind utilizing them for secret births, but the looseness of theirher regions is appalling.


    Now more than 30% of the entire second trimester has epted illegitimate or other children that cannot be revealed.


    In other words, the white room is still worth about that much.


    We don''t have enough credibility and track record to have beloved children entrusted to us.


    The financiers offer money and children, but there is still much they don''t know about the real n, and of course many of the staff members don''t know the true meaning of the experiment.


    They will not doubt that the purpose of the experiment is to provide an education for children born under an unfortunate star, to raise them well, and to return them to society.


    "It''s not unreasonable, though."


    I, myself, am still far more inclined to see children as experimental subjects.


    To take care of the precious children of wealthy families now is to take a big risk.


    How to bridge this discrepancy is also an issue that cannot be avoided in the future


    Regardless, any child will be thoroughly educated.


    White Room will eventually turn into a government-approved facility, and not just a pipe dream.


    Eventually, educational facilities around the world will model themselves after the White Room.


    Naoe-sensei and I will take the lead in building that bridge, and we will have a greater voice within the party.


    When the aging Naoe-sensei retires, I will have a huge boost waiting for me.


    Little by little, I am steadily moving forward one step at a time.


    I''m starting to really feel it.


    It was not a mistake that I started working on the human resource development project with all my might from the day Naoe-sensei entrusted it to me.


    This project is an essential part of my life.


    There is no doubt that bright hope lies far ahead.


    However - I am notpletely free of any uncertainties.


    While I was working on the White Room Project, I''ve been inevitably bing more and more distant from the political world.


    They have a very keen sense of smell.


    Some of them must have figured out that I was working on a project like this behind the scenes.


    I am the right hand of Naoe-sensei who has a lot of allies but also a lot of enemies, so there are many people trying to pull out my weaknesses.


    I had to get some distance in order to differentiate the ones who are on my side, and the ones who are against me.


    White Room is now half my body.


    But that''s why I made sure that my connections to the financial world were strong.


    If you can''t expand your connections in the political world, you should strengthen your position in the business world.


    This is a meaningful conduct precisely because the political and the financial worlds are connected as one in front and back.


    My ties to the financial world are bing stronger day by day, so I have chosen to wear the mask of both a politician and a wealthy man.


    I channel money from right to left, left to right, and strengthen myself with the money I collected.


    "I heard that Sakayanagi-san arrived at the White Room just now."


    "I see. I don''t mind the shaking, just hurry up a little."


    "Understood."


    ������


    Even though I still had some time before my appointment, he was a guest, and it was not a good idea to keep him waiting.


    After passing through the gate and letting the car pull up to the front entrance, I strode to the guest room.


    Sakayanagi, who had not sat down on the sofa but was standing and staring out the window, looked back at me.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting."


    "I don''t mind, Ayanokoji-sensei. You arrived earlier than nned, so."


    Bowing politely, Sakayanagi approached me, smiling as usual.


    "I was looking forward to today''s unveiling of the White Room"


    "It looks like it."


    Over the past three years or so, I have continued to interact with Sakayanagi frequently.


    I had thought that I would not get along with Sakayanagi, who was born into a privileged environment, but even so, you never know what people will do when they have somemon goal in mind.


    The fact that I had been dealing with people who were always trying to find out what was in each other''s minds made it less painful for me to meet with Sakayanagi, who had no secretive side.


    "Still, I was surprised at the security that didn''t suit this kind of ce."


    "I have no choice. Right now, we can''t make this ce public. There are a lot of people out there desperately trying to find a scandal about me or Naoe-sensei."


    Perhaps troubled by this response, Sakayanagi only smiled bitterly.


    "You helped me first with the White Room Project, so I wanted to show it to you first."


    "I just want to support a n that will increase the number of children that will be saved."


    Sakayanagi in front of me, without any doubts, thinks that the children will lead Japan.


    This is only a card to let us move up in the world for me and Naoe-sensei, but that''s already been factored in.


    Whatever the aim, if there are children who will be saved, this man will ept it.


    He is a good man beyond help, but that''s why there''s no telling when he''ll be an enemy.


    If he notices the reality that the children''s future is not being guaranteed, I''m sure this man will distance himself from me.


    "Let me show you around."


    "Please."


    Taking Sakayanagi with me, we headed for the firstboratory.


    "Today is a big day for setting new policies for the White Room, and I definitely want you to see how the children have grown up."


    "The children you''ve taken in, they''re already over three years old now, yes? That was very quick."


    Sakayanagi, my coborator, had also seen how many children there were.


    I''m sure there are many scenes he can recall.


    "Will you not have children?"


    When I met Sakayanagi, he had already been married for several years.


    I still haven''t heard anything about her being pregnant or giving birth.


    "It''s not that I don''t want to, it''s just that I haven''t had the chance. We have talked about letting nature take its course."


    In other words, if either the husband, wife, or both of them have a problem, they won''t mention it.


    If they have mutually agreed, it''s not a bad choice either.


    "I see. I said something unnecessary, please forget about it."


    "I''ve always wondered if you were going to get married too, Ayanokoji-sensei."


    "If I had a partner, I would consider it, but unfortunately, I have been single for some time now, and I have no ns to get married."


    "A partner is indispensable for a politician to continue working for a long time. I hope you will find a partner soon."


    Love, marriage, childbirth. I don''t have time for that.


    They say that having someone to protect you makes you stronger, but unfortunately I don''t think so.


    To have someone to protect you is to be weak at the same time.


    Because I''ve seen many politicians die for their protectors in the past.


    ������


    When I arrived at theboratory, I was met with a bit of a hustle and bustle.


    Aprehensive test of the children raised by Suzukake and the other three researchers was to take ce.


    "Sorry you had to wait. Please start immediately."


    "Understood."


    Tabuchi, the only one in the room on a level ying field, moderated the session without any personal feelings.


    "We divided them all into three groups, and worked for three years on educating them as thoroughly as possible."


    "We will decide who will represent us by seeing which one of these three teachers shows the most results."


    Being given a brief exnation, Sakayanagi could see the situation.


    "That''s right."


    "I''m sure you already have a prediction of the oue, Ayanokoji-sensei?"


    "No. For the past three years, I''ve mostly not touched anything. I''ve been providing only the necessary support without anyyman''s interference. I don''t even know who is going to show the best results."


    For the past three years, I''ve let everything move without even looking at the progress.


    When I answered honestly, Sakayanagi apuded in surprise, as if amused.


    "It must have taken a lot of courage to leave everythingpletely to the field, right? Most managers cannot trust their subordinates to do their work, and they tend to talk over them."


    Because the ones who spend money usually hold needless, wicked thoughts.


    "After all, I''m working with other people''s money. If it had been money made from my blood and sweat, I might have been more critical. The only ones who will suffer if the money goes down the drain are the investors."


    That''s why I was able to stand firm and wait three years.


    "But, still. If you fail, there is a high possibility of you losing everything, Ayanokoji-sensei. It''s the same for ordinary businessmen. They receiverge loans from the bank and fight a battle for thepany''s fortune. It is the bank''s money, but you can also say that it is thepany president''s personal money."


    In the sense of assuming responsibility, it may be no different from being a manager.


    "You have never changed your habit of immediately lifting up other people."


    "It''s my nature. There is always good in others, and it''s my job to recognize it."


    He answered without hesitation that what I said was a truepliment.


    This is what I like about this man, and what I don''t like about him.


    Children areing into the room through the ss that is also a one-way-mirror.


    The children, who were clearlybelled with the name tes of each researcher, took their seats in an orderly fashion.


    "If they are 3 years old, they are just about ready for a little conversation, right?"


    It is understandable that Sakayanagi, who does not have any children of his own, does not intuitively understand this.


    "The children are beginning to show signs of understanding, intelligence, and self-esteem, as well as a bit of manual dexterity. The most obvious development at first sight may be motor development. Standing on one leg, walking on tiptoe, and climbing stairs smoothly. That''s just a generalization, though."


    "I think it''s impressive enough that they can do that, but..."


    With a tense look on his face, Sakayanagi looked at the children.


    "Begin!"


    Under the instruction, the children turned over the paper at once and picked up their pens.


    "A... test?"


    No one got out of their seats, and they were more focused on the questions with a power of concentration stronger than those of primary school kids running around the neighbourhood.


    "What''s the contents of the test they''re challenging?"


    "It''s an arithmetic problem. Here it is."


    I received the paper that Tabuchi had brought, and together with Sakayanagi, I looked it over for the first time.


    The problems range from addition and subtraction to multiplication and division.


    "These are questions that are meant for primary school kids, right? Amazing."


    Sakayanagi was impressed, but Tabuchi calmly replied:


    "The world is a big ce. There are gifted children who can solve more difficult problems. They are undoubtedly gic prodigies."


    "But, the children here are a bit different than the gifted ones, aren''t they..?"


    "Yes, they are. They are not special. They''re just children who don''t show any ability bias. They''ve all developed the ability to face problems."


    The way the children were struggling with difficult problems was no different from that of the students taking the exam.


    The first difort I felt when looking at the three groups was that Ishida''s and Souya''s groups were so simr in their attitudes and reactions to the test that I could not tell the difference even if I mixed them up, whereas Suzukake''s group did not move an inch.


    The real-time camera tracking reveals that some of the children''s answers are wrong, but they never seem rushed, upset, or distraught.


    Regardless of whether this is a good or bad thing, Ishida and the others are clearly upset.


    "What kind of education can create such inorganic children..?"


    Souya''s mutterings were those of a researcher.


    "My first task is to make sure they have a mature mindset, so that when they can''t solve a problem, they can do so calmly, objectively, and without panic. I have mercilessly punished children who fail to do so."


    Far from being the reaction of a child, they were like robots without feelings.


    "Corporal punishment? For 3 year old children?"


    "No, from when they were newborns. And I don''t want you to call it corporal punishment, Souya. This is my education."


    It would be a big problem if not apanied by results, but the overall percentage of correct answers was clearly higher than that of both Ishida and Souya and their children.


    "The concentration of those children is close to that of adults. They are so absorbed in their work that even if I called out to them nearby, they might not notice me right away."


    After saying this and having grasped the academic ability of almost everyone, Suzukake yed music in the room.


    At the loud sound, which was also out of ce, the children in the room stopped their hands and began to look around.


    However, the children Suzukake was educating were not responding to the sound, just as the man boasted, but were instead focusing on solving problems.


    "How is something like this possible?"


    Ishida, too, was surprised by Suzukake''s education.


    "Education. Children are terrified of being punished in a variety of ways. They will do whatever they deem effective against this, whether it be physical pain or mental anguish. If you push them to the edge of their fears, the fears will eventually go away. Not in the metaphorical sense, but in the real sense. We''re still in the process of doing that."


    "...With all due respect, that is unquestionably corporal punishment. There is no meaning to the abilities gained by doing this. I don''t think your educational policy is the right one."


    It would certainly be ttering to say that there are no problems at all.


    Sakayanagi has reason to be angry.


    "I have no right to interfere, but I can''t agree with Suzukake-san''s way of doing things."


    "Sorry, Sakayanagi, but I''m not looking for an outsider''s opinion. Don''t bud in."


    "But, Ishida-san and Souya-san''s education also shows suitable results."


    Ishida and Souya''s groups seem to be growing more naturally as human beings.


    However, will they grow up to be geniuses in the true sense of the word?


    Even if they grow up and be excellent human beings to some extent, it is doubtful whether they will be able topete with the naturally urring gifted and geniuses in certain fields.


    On the other hand, Suzukake''s education seems to have both big risks and big returns.


    "I only care about results. I don''t care about the process."


    "That''s precisely why. That''s the reason I chose to work under you; because I knew that you would let me be free. I knew that you would only care about the results."


    Unlike Sakayanagi showing his disgust, Ishida and Souya are acting as expected.


    I won''t say he has zero feelings towards the children, but he seems more focused on being a researcher.


    The adults are gazing at the children Suzukake has created with a twinkle in their eyes.


    After the tests on the academic side, the next step is to check their development in terms of physical exercise.


    "The three groups have very different educational orientations, so unlike the study aspect, where we have standardized the testing methods, we tell each of them to express the abilities they have acquired in their own unique way."


    The children Ishida educated are dexterously using their small hands to perform crafts.


    Souya''s children are sessfully using the iron bars and jungle gym to show their movement.


    However, it is the children educated by Suzukake who are also astonishing in this physical aspect.


    It is not only their dexterity and physical agility. They are also able to perform on the piano and have acquired a variety of other skills.


    "This is a 3 year old ying...? I can''t believe it."


    Of course, it is obvious to anyone with ears that the children''s skills are far from professional.


    But even an adult could not y this well with just a little practice.


    However, the important thing is not whether they can y the piano or not.


    "How much more have you ingrained into them in just three years, Suzukake-san..?"


    "My education is far above the average person''s ability to learn. If you don''t have the talent to learn in a short time, you will be punished endlessly. The brain naturally hates it and forces you to mature quickly. People who are small, but have the same things we have, have unlimited potential."


    This is the difference by three years. Then, when ites to 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years...


    I wonder how much of a lead we will have?


    I myself get goosebumps when I see this result.


    The group trained by Suzukake was by far the best in the overall results.


    Ishida and Souya forgot to hide their frustration and looked at Suzukake''s data.


    "You did well. You have shown me your talent."


    "Thank you. But, I don''t think there is arge difference of talent between me and these two. I''m rather impressed with how well they''ve done in their formal education."


    "So even you praise others, huh, Suzukake?"


    "The truth is the truth. Besides, as you can see, my children inevitablyck something."


    "Emotion, right?"


    "Yes. Ishida-san and Souya-san were nurturing the children with human feelings. That is normal. However, I have thoroughly eliminated them. I thought that by not allowing the ability tomunicate through dialogue to flourish, I could raise the level of human potential."


    Thepetition is only in terms of the brain and the body.


    In other words, for Suzukake, victory was already in sight from the beginning.


    "If you choose me as leader, you risk creating an impersonality that, to say it clearly, cannot bepared to the first-term students. But I believe we can create the strongest human being."


    After three years of putting this research into practice, Suzukake was clearly convinced on this point.


    "Ishida, and Souya. What do you two think about emotions?"


    "There is no denying that the inhumanity factor will be heightened. But... I also believe that this is what the White Room should be. As one of the researchers, I would like to see the strongest human being cultivated by Suzukake-shi."


    [TL Note 7 : "-shi" is an honorific like "-san". While this Japanese honorific isn''t widely used in speech, The suffix -shi is used when politely referring to strangers, and is fairly formal.]


    Souya, agreeing, also nodded.


    "Very well. With Suzukake as the leader, we will now start to create the curriculum for the second term students. You will be in charge of what kind of training policy we will adopt."


    "Thank you very much."


    Suzukake bowed deeply, and looked to shake hands with Ishida and the others.


    "I..."


    Sakayanagi turned around, and was about to leave the room.


    "I know you don''t like it. However, this is also a form of education."


    Without looking back, Sakayanagi left the room.


    I don''t care if a considerable number of children will probably be sacrificed for the research.


    If we can finally create the perfect human being, I would say it is a small sacrifice.


    The goal is to train 100 people and make 100 of them perfect.


    However, that is the ultimate final goal of White Room.


    For now, the first step is to find out how far human beings can be trained.


    In that sense, it is encouraging to have someone like Suzukake who is capable of fearless research.


    Further, with the support of people like Ishida and others who have somemon sense, it is also possible to prevent reckless behaviour.


    It seems that we are already past the stage of grumbling about trivialities.


    Now, it is my job to do my best to suppress this and to stop it from bing public knowledge.


    I must continue to provide a ce to research without hesitation.


    ������


    After about an hour or so, I faced Sakayanagi.


    How did an outsider unrted to White Room feel after seeing today''s results?


    Needless to say, this is my best opportunity to find out.


    "Let me ask for your opinion again. Of course, there is no need to hide anything."


    "Let''s see. I''ve been thinking a lot today while watching how the children have grown."


    White Room''s reason for being, and its usefulness.


    I wonder if Sakayanagi was able to feel this first hand.


    "The children I saw today were far from the ordinary 3 year olds I know. Needless to say, the children educated by Suzukake-san, and even those by Ishida-san and Souya-san, are probably better than 90% of the children in this world."


    Sakayanagi''s signature of starting his search with praise remains unchanged.


    "I''m sure that even for a gifted student from a wealthy family, it wouldn''t be easy to bring them to this level."


    "But, are you saying that they can''tpete with the remaining 10%?"


    "Didn''t you experience that yourself, Ayanokoji-sensei?"


    We have been able to demonstrate that children who have grown up to the age of three have more developed intelligence and physical abilities than the average child.


    There are certain resultsing out.


    However, the financial world was still skeptical, and I felt that we would not be able to dispel this skepticism.


    If you ask me if they are as good or better than the gifted geniuses at age 3, it would be a gray area.


    Even if I wait for the first term''s children to grow up to four or five years like this, it would still not be conclusive.


    "But, I thought that it was good enough.. If we can give these children, who may not get the education they want, this thorough education, we can give them the skills they need to be sessful after stepping into society."


    A general review from Sakayanagi, who does not know White Room''s true shape.


    "That''s why I had some misgivings about Suzukake-san as the leader of the group. For children... No, for human beings, emotions are essential. It is not possible to be happy, angry, sad, or happy without any of them. If you can rectify this thought, I will not hesitate to continue my support and assistance."


    "I see. I knew you would say that. But do you really think that will convince your current investors and those in the business world whom you have yet to meet? Not everyone thinks only of the children like you do. There are big interests involved in this White Room."


    "Do you think even more rigorous education is necessary?"


    "That''s right. Anyone with a certain amount of money can produce brilliant students. We can have lecturers who graduated from top universities and coaches who have produced Olympic athletes. If you continue to educate the gifted from an early age, you can usually improve their skills to a certain degree. There is no point in having a White Room that produces nothing more than the same level of results. It''s worthless."


    Who would invest tens or hundreds of millions into the White Room then?


    "What is needed is outstanding ability. The ability to go beyond Japan''s top universities to be the best in the world, and the physical ability to surpass that of Olympic athletes. We need people who have the mental fortitude topete with the best from around the world. That is the kind of power we need in the White Room."


    "Isn''t that a bit excessive? Not all children who have no parents or who have been abandoned by their parents are looking for that kind of power. It is enough to give them the ability to fit in and survive."


    " I understand what you are trying to say. It''s a good enough opinion for consulting."


    "...Ayanokoji-sensei. The story you''ve told me is really true, right?"


    "Of course. I am working to save underprivileged children. You know that I have my own ambition, but nothing more and nothing less."


    Sakayanagi, who had been looking at me with suspicious eyes, bowed his head lightly as if he was apologizing.


    "If that is the case, I have nothing more to say to you. Certainly, please give the children a caring and thoughtful education. If you do so, the day wille when the people will recognize the White Room."


    After saying so, Sakayanagi left the office. He did look unconvinced, though.


    "You''re naive, Sakayanagi. That''s no good."


    This world is not so naive as to ept such mere idealistic thoughts.


    What I am looking for is not a reasonable result, but the best result.


    However, it''s still not enough.


    I want another push, and another push after that.


    There is no guarantee that the current results will be enough to keep the investors nodding their heads forever.


    A factor that will strongly push their backs...


    I want a decisive blow.


    However, imposing a more rigorous education on the children now will not produce immediate results.


    It will take three years... no, five years, or at least that long.


    It is necessary, to create a persuasive force.


    What should I do..?


    In a short period of time, how can I get the financial world to move in the direction of more money?


    Think, I have to think...


    This White Room may change the world.


    I want these words of mine to have weight.


    Weight, huh..?


    "...I see."


    Here, I am reminded of the words Naoe-sensei said to me.


    There is no real sess, without cutting oneself.


    No matter how passionately I talk about the sess or failure of education, my words will never carry any real weight.


    The financial world doesn''t trust the White Room either.


    Why is that?


    It''s only natural. No matter how far I go, it''s someone else''s education.


    It doesn''t hurt me.


    With this, it''s just some extended y.


    It is necessary to show proof that one can safely leave their own valuable child in White Room.


    For that, there is one thing I can do.


    "...Hello?"


    It''ste now, but the owner of the phone who was probably still sleeping answered with a sleepy voice.


    "Mika. I have a favour to ask of you."


    ������


    A red colour is illuminated at the end of the darkness, followed immediately by rising smoke.


    I saw a silhouette emerge in my vision in the dim light, and raised my upper body.


    "Sorry. Did I wake you?"


    "Never mind, it''s time to get back."


    The n was to close things out at 11 p.m., but the date had changed.


    "Politicians are so busy, huh? Working until this kind of hour."


    "It''s easier to move around at night than in the daytime."


    Mika''s brand of cigarettes changes every time we meet.


    This is because every time Mika changes the man she sleeps with, it is an old trick of hers to show that she is tainted by him.


    "How long are you going to keep doing this kind of work?"


    "Right, I can''t keep doing this forever. I have aged a lot since I met you, Atsuomi."


    Freshness is life for a woman.


    Year by year, as time goes by, this freshness decays.


    The world tends not to acknowledge this, and in fact, hates to put it into words, but only those who understand it will seed.


    If they understand this, they will gain a weapon other than their youth.


    "My advice to you. It''s time to wash your hands of this business."


    "Hearing that from you... It''s a bit surprising."


    After smiling in a funny way, Mika got up from the bed, still stark naked.


    "Well, I too thought it was time to move on. But I don''t have a vision for the future. I don''t have a vision of marrying someone and having a happy family. It''s not like I''m going to have children, make friends, send them to primary school, and all that... heh, Iugh at myself when I think of that."


    "I think you''ll do fine."


    "I don''t know. It''s not often that people of the same sex like me. I might have a harder time than you think. But... I think I''ll step out for a bit. You''ve made me a lot of money and allowed me to dream."


    Mika''s assets would be enough to just live decently.


    However, this woman got her money at a young age.


    She must be more than a little afraid to lower that standard of living.


    "I need you to do onest big job for me."


    I took out the marriage certificate I had prepared and put it on the table.


    "Huh? What is this?"


    "I want you to marry me."


    "You''re joking, right?"


    "Of course I''m not joking."


    "Atsuomi..."


    As Mika approached, her eyes moistened slightly... and she gave a smallugh.


    "What do you want? You''re not the kind of man who would choose me, are you?"


    "Don''t I look like a man who wants a pure marriage with the woman he loves?"


    "Not at all."


    "You''re right. It''s a very different kind of marriage than the one you want, and it''s only a formality when you roll it up."


    I have a future I need to achieve.


    For that, it is essential to have someone like this woman who has future troubles.


    "What do you mean?"


    "I have a new piece of the puzzle that I need in order to proceed with my n. I need your help for that."


    "Exin it to me in a way I can understand."


    "It''s a child. A child of my flesh and blood. It will be an important pawn in my rise to power."


    Mika was taken aback, but eventually understood what I was saying.


    "So... You want me to have a child?"


    "That''s right. Of course, I will pay you as much money as it takes to convince you."


    "Wait a bit. Why me? There must be a mountain of women willing to happily give birth if you pay them money."


    "If it were only about money. However, you are convenient for me in many ways. You have some influence in the financial world, and you''re a good liar. The important thing is to deceive the people around us. There''s no meaning if I have a child from a woman I don''t know."


    "I guess I''ll have to y the good wife, huh..? Until when, though? Do you want to make me pretend to be your wife for years and years?"


    "Don''t worry. We will announce the pregnancy and hold the ceremony when the time is right. As soon as we have the baby, I''ll let you go."


    She understands, but she still can''t perfectly grasp the situation.


    "There is another reason why I chose you. Your origins are obviously inferior to the general social values. Your mother is an uneducated woman who works in the night business. Your sister is the same, divorced and living a life of no worth whatsoever."


    "Wow, that''s a bit rude, isn''t it..? It is true, though."


    If a superior mother gives birth to a superior child, that means it was already a diamond from the start.


    "It is my job to polish a nondescript stone on the side of the road so that it shines like a gemstone. Refine it so that a mere stone bes more than a diamond."


    "But that doesn''t mean that..."


    "As I said before, it is absolutely essential to deceive people. It''s easy to get an ipetent woman to be a surrogate, but it''s hard to hide the whiff of artifice. One can''t fool the financial world, which has a keen sense of smell."


    If I want my precious child to appear on stage, I need to go through the proper channels.


    With Mika, more than a few people know about our connection, and they will ept it as a natural progression.


    "You can choose the method you want, whether it''s artificial insemination or in vitro fertilization, regardless of timing or method. Ideally, you should be able to have a baby within a year to a year and a half."


    I will entrust my own child with White Room, and further signify its existence.


    Now this is truly a well-thought-out n.


    ������


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    With this the Chapter 3 of ssroom of the Elite Volume 0 has beenpletely tranted into English. Hope you Enjoyed it !


    Chapter 4 Full will be released in 2-3 days,


    Look forward to it !


    ~Anime Anyway

 Chapter 340 - 4: An Unprecedented Experimental Facility

    <h4>Chapter 340: Chapter 4: An Unprecedented Experimental Facility</h4>


    MIKA LET OUT A SIGN OF ADMIRATION as she looked at the wads of cashid out on the white table.


    "There''s 50 million. I made them get it in cash, just like you wanted. It won''t be traced back to you."


    I told Mika without making eye contact.


    The amount excludes all expenses incurred during the pregnancy, such as delivery and hospitalization.


    "Politicians really have an abundance of money and everything at their disposal, don''t they? Was it easy for you to get 50 million?"


    Mika said sarcastically, dressed in a suit she was probably not used to wearing.


    "Money is important, but I have plenty of it to live on. That''s the world on our side."


    Mikaughed at me as I spoke in a matter-of-fact manner.


    "The fact that your child''s born doesn''t affect your heart in the slightest, does it?"


    "Are you going to tell me that you''ve awakened to motherhood now?"


    "No way. If I had, I wouldn''t have given the child away. To me, the whole process of conceiving and giving birth to that child is work. Nothing more, nothing less."


    I was relieved to hear that.


    I could see in her eyes that she was speaking the truth; it wasn''t Mika''s superiority talking.


    "I guess I was right in choosing you after all."


    "Well, I don''t know if the job''s worth it. I almost regretted it when my belly started to grow and the morning sickness got worse. I came here toin or something, but when I saw all this money in front of me, I didn''t care anymore."


    Even for Mika, who''d been receiving a monthly sry of well over a million yen, a lump sum of 50 million is a different story. I don''t want to hear herints. When ites to surrogacy, etc., I paid more than twice the market rate, even if it''s estimated at a high level.


    "Normally, we''d have to pay almost half of this to the government."


    "That''s right... You have to earn about 100 million to save 50 million, right? I can''t help but think you''re crazy if you have to pay almost half of it in taxes."


    Touching the surface of the wad of cash, Mikaughed a little.


    "Have you ever paid taxes properly?"


    It''s said that many people in professions simr to Mika''s don''t pay taxes.


    "Come to think of it, I can hardly remember. Well, maybe I''ll pay them when I start a new job, who knows? Anyway, how are you these days, Atsuomi? Any change?"


    "I''m sorry, but I''m busy and don''t want to talk too long. Let''s just get on with what we have to do."


    I took out the contract and held it out in front of Mika.


    "If you''re going to take the money, write it down. You have the rights to the child until you sign here."


    "You fret too much. Don''t worry, I only had a baby for the money. I have no regrets."


    Mika had no intention from the beginning to refuse the money offered to her, and once again expressed her willingness to ept it.


    "No matter what happens, I''ll never be allowed to identify myself as the mother in my life."


    This may have sounded insistent, but it was very important.


    If Mika, who''s familiar with the underworld, tries to get the child back, the possibility that the White Room''s existence will be exposed cannot be denied.


    "I know. Don''t talk about me to him either."


    "I won''t. I don''t have to."


    "Can you just tell me what''s going to happen to him?"


    I haven''t told Mika anything about the White Room.


    It was understandable that she was concerned about what will happen to him.


    "That''s none of your business. Once the deal ispleted, we''re done."


    "Yes, yes." Mika signed the contract as if she understood that there was nothing more to be done.


    "Is this okay?"


    Judging by the handwriting''s pressure, there was no hesitation at all.


    I guess she wasn''t at all worried if she was so sure.


    Mika gave instructions to take the attach�� case containing the money into Mika''s car trunk.


    It was a bit risky to carry such arge amount of money in cash, but Mika and I agreed to avoid transferring the money through a bank.


    "Well, I''ll be on my way."


    This was thest time I saw Mika and thest time we spoke to each other. As I was about to leave without saying a word, Mika took a few steps before stopping.


    "...Don''t you want to ask me what I''m going to do now?"


    I couldn''t read her expression.


    However, I could make out that there was a hint of emotion in her voice.


    "I''m not interested. You''re free to go to that host or fly abroad with the money."


    She was slightly surprised but then smiled as if she understood.


    "You knew? You knew about me and him?"


    "Even if I don''t investigate, people around me will investigate on their own."


    "How long have you known?"


    "Before I asked you to marry me and have a baby."


    "Didn''t you suspect me of being a distrustful parasite"?


    Mika narrowed her eyes as if she was ying a trick.


    "That was before I suspected it. You could''ve predicted that I would do a postnatal exam, and if by any chance you were carrying someone else''s child, you''d lose your reward. It''s an impossible choice."


    "Hmm, yes, indeed."


    "But you did a good job of restraining yourself. I mustmend you for keeping your secret meetings with him to a minimum during our married life, and for being so careful that the host would never find out."


    I don''t know if the host really wants to make Mika happy, though.


    At the very least, Mika''s fortune, including the 50 million, should be over 200 million.


    Five or ten years��until the money runs out, she is guaranteed a happy life with her host.


    "Atsuomi... Did you ever think you''d like me?"


    "You''ll do anything for yourself and money. That''s the biggest thing I appreciate about you."


    "I think you''re missing the point... No, I''m sure that''s the whole answer."


    I''ve never had any special feelings for Mika.


    And at the same time, this woman has no feelings for me either.


    All these sympathetic words were an act to make herself look good.


    She likes young, good-looking, well-spoken men who value themselves and their money above all else.


    That is Mika.


    "Goodbye, Atsuomi."


    "Wait. This is my present to you."


    Three million on top of the fee I''d originally prepared.


    I gave the constion money, a "parting gift," over to Mika.


    "You don''t have to go that far, I''m not going to sell this to a weekly magazine. I''ve done a lot of ck-hearted things with you, too."


    Mika has a lot of things that she doesn''t want exposed.


    "Of course. That''s why this is a pure, open, and honest gift. You don''t have to take it if you don''t want it."


    I reached over and pulled the money back, but Mika stopped me with augh.


    "There''s no reason not to have the money to build your own home," she said.


    "I heard thatnd is getting more and more expensive these days."


    "You don''t know the underlying reasons whynd prices are going up, do you?"


    "I don''t know. I don''t care. I''m just interested in the money."


    "That''s just like you. You know, it''s gonna be a while before you can officially marry someone."


    "That''s because I''m supposed to be your wife back in this country."


    Until we''ve put the child in the White Room for a while, it''s necessary for us to be publicly established as husband and wife.


    "Not for long. If you can wait two more years, then you can do whatever you want."


    For this purpose, I''ve already given her the divorce papers filled out, only excluding the dates for me and Mika respectively.


    "Onest thing, if you have a name picked out, I''ll file it under that name."


    Eleven days have already passed since the birth of the child, and unless additional steps are taken, there are only three days left.


    "I don''t even have rights to the child, but you''re letting me decide?"


    "A name is just a symbol. No matter who names the child, what''s inside of a human being is the same."


    After a short pause, Mika spoke the child''s name.


    "Then Kiyotaka."


    "A very good suggestion, that''s just like you."


    I was a little surprised at this unexpected turn of events.


    "I just thought that this would be the name you''d remember," she said.


    "That''s fine. I''ll ept it."


    "You really are a very calm and level-headed person, aren''t you? It''d be normal for people to lose their temper in this situation. Naming a host that I''m crazy about... That''s insane."


    Mika started to walk away. This time she didn''t stop.


    "Goodbye Atsuomi, my time with you has been a valuable experience for me. For better or worse."


    <Illustration>


    After Mika left, I wrote "Kiyotaka" on the list.


    With that much money in her pocket, she shouldn''t have a singleint.


    I gave up my child as a representative of the White Room.


    If I can make a track record, I can say that the money was a small price to pay.


    As long as Kiyotaka is useful for at least 5 years, it doesn''t matter if he breaks down after that.


    There''s no need for one''s own child to be excellent.


    "She was quite a nicedy, Ayanokouji-san."


    Tsukishiro, who was waiting in the next room, appeared with a smile as usual.


    "You''ve had a hard time, too, haven''t you? I made you y detective."


    "I''m a jack-of-all-trades, you know. But are you sure you can trust her? You might consider getting rid of her if you have to. She may stay quiet while she has money, but from the looks of her, she''ll run out of it in a few years. Or, could he run away with therge sum of money?"


    Yes, you never know with people.


    In the future, when she loses the money, Mika may appear in front of me again.


    But I hope she''s smart enough not to do so.


    No matter how dirty and worthless your soul is, it''s not pleasant to die for nothing.


    "It''s always a good idea to make the first move, but it depends. Mika''s disappearance creates other risks. We need her to be a mother for now."


    It''s clear that I''m not attached to the child due to the circumstances. If this is revealed by the person who was my wife, my credibility in the business world will be lost all at once.


    "You''re right. It''s as you say."


    "In a few days, the child will be in my hands after the tests arepleted and he''ll begin the experiments as a fourth-generation student."


    "It seems like your son will have a tough life ahead of him, just like you."


    Those words sound like pity, but Tsukishiro has no such feelings.


    ������


    On the day Kiyotaka arrived, I gathered Suzukake and the other researchers.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei, this is the curriculum for the fourth-generation students who''ll be starting this year."


    Tabuchi operated aputer with dark circles under his eyes.


    I looked through the materials projected on the big screen as he exined them to me.


    When Suzukake was chosen to lead the second-generation students, he created a curriculum with 10 difficulty levels.


    This time, the fourth-generation students will be given a difficulty level of 4.


    "The dropout rate for those who are five, the first-generation, is 14%; the dropout rate for the second-generation students, who''re two, is 6%; and the dropout rate for the third-generation students, who''re one, is currently 6%. It''s predicted that more than 20% of second-generation children will drop out by the age of 5, and more than 25% of third-generation children will drop out in the future. We''ve been raising the difficulty level in stages, but we''re taking it a step further for the fourth generation."


    The higher the level of difficulty required of the children, the stricter the passing line will naturally be. In particr, Suzukake''s curriculum is structured in such a way that the difficulty level increases drastically after the children reach the age of six��when their foundations have been solidified.


    It wouldn''t be surprising if the first-generation''s dropout rate also increases rapidly in the future.


    "In fact, how much will change by continuing to increase the difficulty level?"


    "We only have three data references, but even if wepare the first and third generation''s abilities at the same age, the lowest performing students increased by 11% and the highest performing students increased by 37%, respectively. This proves that the educational method proposed by Suzukake-san is connected to the improvement of human abilities."


    The research so far seems to be going well.


    If we continue to educate our students in the right way, we''ll eventually be able to produce children who''ll be iparable to the first generation.


    However, it''ll take many years to achieve this.


    "There have also been some significant changes. As a typical example, we''ve analyzed the dropout''s aftermath and found that there were some problems. One is the extremely low ability to adapt to society. The reason for this is already clear��it''s due to the fact that they''ve lived 99% of the time only in the White Room. In particr, first-generation students understood the outside world only through materials'' and pictures'' fragmented depictions. It''d be impossible for them to imagine and draw cityscapes in their minds. The second and third generations showed some improvement as they began to learn through the use of images, but theycked the everyday knowledge that Japanese children should have. Vending machines, streets, shopping malls, convenience stores, and supermarkets in the city, and theirck of recognition through hands-on experience caused a great deal of difort to outsiders. They may remember them in words and letters, but without actual experience, a natural response is impossible."


    "So? What''s the solution?"


    "It''d be easier if we could take them out of the White Room, or to put it more simply, to have some kind of extracurricr activity, but of course, that''s not going to happen. The more people we have outside the White Room, the more we run the risk of the public knowing about the facility, and the impact that has on young children is immeasurable."


    Ishida continued his exnation and pulled out a pair ofrge goggles. "That''s where the virtual consolees in. Using VR, children will be able to travel, learn, and memorize anywhere, at home or abroad." Souya followed in agreement.


    "Ishida-san''s idea isn''t bad. It''s great that they''ll be able to virtually understand the minimummon sense that they should learn. Even if it''s in a virtual space, it can be imprinted as an experience by walking around in a perfectly reproduced world. The structure is the same when we go out into the outside world, so I think our adaptability will be much better than ever before."


    It''s a small price to pay for such a facility where you don''t have to go outside.


    I agreed and approved the additional budget.


    "The content of the curriculum seems to be fine."


    Tabuchi nodded in satisfaction, and Ishida and Souya stood up as well.


    "I don''t mind if we use the virtual console. You can attempt anything else you want to try. But I would like to have a different curriculum for this fourth generation."


    "''Different'', sir? What changes would you like me to make?"


    I nced at Suzukake, who had been sitting quietly.


    "We are adopting the Beta curriculum."


    I told him, and the researchers tensed up.


    "...Huh? What did you... just say?"


    Suzukake was probably the most surprised of all.


    "I said we are going to adopt the Beta curriculum. Don''t make me say it again."


    Suzukake created a curriculum with 10 levels of difficulty.


    Compared to third-generation students, it''s natural that the curriculum will be more rigorous and thorough upon birth, but the difficulty level increases significantly after age six when the foundation''s being built. Even I, who don''t know much about education, judged the Beta curriculum to be unfeasible in light of the first-generation children''s limitations and discarded the Beta curriculum.


    "I exined to you at the time that we had created a curriculum with 10 difficulty levels, but the Beta was a different dimension that would never be reached. In effect, we considered the fifth or sixth level to be the limit of human development."


    "I''m sure of that. It''s impossible to evenpare the second and third-generation curriculums to the Beta curriculum. The current curriculum up to the third generation isn''t easy to follow, and the results aren''t remarkable at all. In such a situation, bringing up the Beta curriculum would only destroy the sample material..."


    "I know that it''s necessary in research to increase the difficulty little by little. But it takes time to climb up the stairs a single step at a time. I would like to see the human limits this one time in the White Room. I don''t care if they all drop out."


    "Of all the times... with your son here?"


    "My son is the one who will receive the most rigorous education. This is a great opportunity. If we can create even one sess in the Beta curriculum, it will lead to future research."


    "...But what kind of criticism will I get from our supporters?"


    "That''s why I said I would adopt the Beta curriculum for my child''s generation. It''s for the sake of research. Feel free to tell me, and I don''t care if he dies."


    Everyone, including Ishida and the others, were stunned and speechless.


    "Really... Are you sure you want to?"


    As a researcher, Ishida may be entric, but he hadn''t strayed from the path of humanity.


    That''s why he was so aggressive with me, but he must''ve realized that this was my decision.


    "Yeah. The next fifth-generation students will be assigned the level four curriculum that was supposed to be assigned to the fourth-generation students. The fourth generation is the only exception. We can''t easily implement an inhumane curriculum when there''s no future in sight."


    It wouldn''t be toote to change the curriculum after all the fourth-generation results are in.


    "I''ve prepared a reasonable sample of children for this one session."


    I show them the list of the children who''ll be in the fourth generation, which I had kept secret up to this point.


    "This is��74 in all! That''s more than twice the number of kids in the third generation!"


    "Almost all of them were picked up from the ''have-nots'' so that they can be used and discarded."


    The Ohba group and the ck market brokers connected to them aren''t cheap, but a big sample is always better than a small one. I hope these people have understood how serious I am. In reality, however, only a few of the "have-nots" are children of businessmen. They must be dreaming of great growth in a harsh environment. They took the offer without any responsibility. However, I''m not telling the researchers which of the children belong to families of businessmen. I don''t want that to get involved in any way.


    Suzukake, who had been listening in silence, walked up to Ishida and the others who were reluctant to join the meeting.


    "I myself havee to understand many things since I started working with Ishida-san and the others. There are certain lines that one must not cross as a human being, to the point that I regret having created the Beta curriculum. I can only see the results of the copse, but still, as long as Ayanokouji-sensei insists on doing it, we are obligated to carry it out."


    "But��!"


    "As Ayanokouji-sensei said, this is a special case. It''s also a great opportunity for me to reject the reckless curriculum that I myself have created."


    Suzukake has grown up a lot over the past few years as he continues to be a leader.


    They constantly sh with each other over the content of their research, but in the end, Ishida and the others nod their heads in agreement, acknowledging Suzukake''s enthusiasm and determination.


    "It''s my responsibility to be the one heartbroken, and I''ll be thoroughly involved in the education of the fourth-generation students." As a representative of the White Room, I should be there to witness the results myself.


    "...I understand what you''re saying. Of course, I will follow your instructions. But first, may I make a suggestion on how to deal with the dropouts?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "To be clear, the dropped-out children''s abilities far exceed those of ordinary people. I''d say that''s a good aplishment. It''s too good to throw away..."


    "At what sess level are you talking? Do you think our goal is to get into a top university or to win some randompetition?"


    "No, that''s not�C"


    "That''s fine on the surface. But the real purpose ispletely different. To protect this country from the world, to make this country strong, and to create people who have the power to run this country."


    There''s no way to create mere honor students who can seed when sent over to politics.


    What''s needed is the ability to outperform others.


    A person with an unyielding, unshakable will of steel.


    Only those described by others as monsters can make a breakthrough in this current corrupt political world.


    "The well-known dropouts are carefully cared for and returned to their parents. As long as they have extraordinary abilities, they will be somewhat satisfied."


    "...And what about the nameless children?"


    "As nned, send them to the facility we''ve set up and let them run wild. Of course, they''ll be trained not to talk about the White Room."


    "However, it will be very difficult for them to be independent and integrate into society."


    "So what? We educated them. They may have problems, but they''re still better than their peers. They have every chance to rise above them. Do you have a problem with that?"


    Tabuchi is the only researcher who strongly believes in the general idea, and he is the only one who is resistant to it.


    That''s why we have to give him a firm warning.


    "Shut up and follow my orders. If someone disobeys my orders, I will cut them off without mercy, even if it''s you. Is that clear?"


    "Yes, sir. Excuse me, sir."


    A cell phone rang. It was Sakayanagi.


    "I''m going to be out of the office for a while... We''ll continue our discussion, including how to address the Beta curriculum."


    I went out into the hallway and answered the phone as the door closed behind me.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei..."


    "What''s wrong, Sakayanagi? You seem very gloomy."


    "I didn''t want to contact you like this, but I heard that your son''s been born"


    "Oh, I''m sorry I haven''t been in touch. Things have been a little hectic."


    "...Are you sure you''re okay with this? Your long-awaited son?"


    "This is what I had in mind when I decided to create the White Room. I don''t think that a man who educates abandoned babies can have a proper family."


    "But that''s a bit of a leap, isn''t it? The babies in the facilitye from unfortunate backgrounds, having been abandoned. They are rather happy to be able to grow up in the White Room without any problems. But your son''s different. He deserves the love of his father and mother."


    "I''ve already made my decision."


    On the other end of the line, Sakayanagi gasped.


    "I''m sorry to do this over the phone, but I have one thing to ask of you."


    "A proposal...?"


    "You''re going to have a baby soon. I''m ready to ept your child if you need me to."


    "I''m not as strong as you. I can''t be as strong as you. For the sake of our unborn child, my wife and I will raise it with all the love we can muster."


    "I see. I knew you would say that."


    If it''s Sakayanagi, an excellent child with a legitimate education will be raised.


    Will that be one of the achievements that I personally look forward to?


    ������


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 Chapter 341 - 5: Stories of Innocent Children

    <h4>Chapter 341: Chapter 5: Stories of Innocent Children</h4>


    THE COLOR. The color that spread across my field of vision.


    The first thing I remember was equally as white.


    As the name White Room implies, this facility is based on the color white.


    The ceiling is no exception.


    I was staring at that white ceiling in my first memory.


    Before showing any interest in staring or ying with my fingertips, I simply wondered what this white ceiling was.


    Day after day, I spent more and more time just staring at that ceiling.


    At first, I cried. I cried because I missed people, and then I learned that no one wasing to help me.


    Now that I look back on it, it was instinct, not logic.


    This is the first thing a newborn baby, who cannot even speak, learns when it epts its environment.


    After that, I realized the existence of my fingers.


    I spent all day long looking at, sucking, and licking my little fingers, and nothing else, in the emptiness.


    The nourishment necessary for life was brought to us by the cold adults.


    This is no different in the case of illness.


    The treatment was carried out without hesitation, and daily life returned as if nothing had happened.


    No one panicked, no one worried, no one rejoiced.


    Eventually, you learn. You realized that you''re being carefully cared for here.


    Human beings have feelings of joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.


    But none of them are of much use in this facility.


    The children, with their still undeveloped brains, learned that early on.


    No wonder. Whether youugh or cry, get angry or sad, the instructors weren''t there to help you.


    The only time I could move forward was when I achieved something.


    The first time I remember that I recognizedmunication as anguage was when I was two years old.


    The instructor was sitting in front of me and I was sitting in front of him.


    There was nothing in between��just the instructor holding out both of his open hands to me.


    Not long afterward, the instructor ced a small little gummy bear in his right hand in a very conspicuous way.


    For the children living in this facility, this snack was a rarity.


    The sweetness that they were usually deprived of. As a child, I was no exception; I remember having the same cravings as anyone else.


    "Guess where the gummy is, and you can eat it."


    The adult who held a gummy bear in his right hand extended it to me.


    His expression was stern and almost expressionless.


    On the other hand, the child facing him��me, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka��was also emotionless.


    Both of us had the same expressionless face, but I was in a natural state while the instructor was consciously trying to be silent.


    And the other kids were also naturally emotionless.


    I could sense that the other children were well aware of the fact that emotions can be a stumbling block.


    There were one-on-ones between adults who hid their emotions and children who had minimal emotions.


    "I''ll give you a chance until you miss three times."


    The instructor muttered to himself in front of me.


    "..."


    I still don''t understand the adultnguage��the meaning of every syble within those words.


    Missing, chance��neither of these words can truly be understood by a two-year-old child.


    However, they can instinctively sense what''s being appealed to.


    I could sense what was being asked of me.


    I touched his right hand, just as I had seen.


    Without hesitation, the instructor opened his right hand and gave me a small gummy bear.


    At the same time, other children were also trying to guess the gummy''s location.


    All of the instructors clutched the gummy in their right hands, and all of them answered correctly.


    "Next!"


    This time, he held the gummy bear in his right hand, but immediately after that, he put it back in his left hand and offered it to me.


    Of course, I touched the left hand without hesitation. Another correct answer.


    This simple process was repeated twice more, yielding a total of four gummies.


    Although they weren''t very sweet, they were a valuable snack in this white room and were well received by the children. I remember that I, without exception, enjoyed the taste of these gummies.


    "Next."


    Fifth time. This time, the instructor crossed his arms behind his back, grabbed a gummy bear, and held it out to me.


    The strength of his grip and the position of each hand were almost the same.


    The instructor''s expression didn''t change, nor did his gaze.


    In this case, there was no way to judge objectively which of the instructor''s hands clenched the gummy.


    The probability was 50/50 in either case.


    In that case, time efficiency was the priority here.


    I randomly touched the right hand; it was empty. The other children were divided into two groups, and although the ratio of children who picked the right hand was a little higher than the left, there was no clear reason for this. However, as expected, all the instructors held the gummy bear in their left hands.


    "Next."


    The instructor hid his hand behind his back again, clenched it, and then brought his arms forth.


    I wondered if he would continue to make us guess the 50/50.


    There was no point in choosing either of them, but I dared to choose the left one.


    No��.


    After a short thought, I decided not to answer immediately but to observe what was nearby.


    The children were so focused on the instructor and the gummies in front of them that they neglected to pay attention to their surroundings.


    This time, the majority of the children pointed to the left hand, but the correct answer was the right hand.


    Then, the instructor in front of me was most likely holding the gummy bear in his right hand.


    I pointed to his right hand, and after a short pause, it opened to reveal a green gummy bear.


    "Next."


    You weren''t praised for guessing it correctly, but at least you were allowed to eat the gummy.


    Rolling the gummy on the tip of my tongue, I concentrated again. The instructor clutched the gummy again behind his back.


    He held out each of his hands at the same time.


    Of course, this time, I observed my surroundings in the same way...


    When all the children had finished pointing, there was no sign of the instructors opening their hands.


    "You are thest one."


    This meant that they won''t open their hands until all the children had given their answers.


    Since there was no hint at all, I continued to point to his right hand.


    All at once, the instructors opened the palm of the indicated hand.


    However, all of them missed it. Both the children who pointed to their right hands and the children who pointed to their left hands got it incorrect.


    At this point, many children missed three times and won''t be getting another chance.


    I had only one chance left.


    "Next."


    Simrly to the previous two asions, the gummy was clenched behind the instructor''s back. There was no way to tell which hand it was in from the outside and no sign of hands opening after the few remaining children had finished ying.


    In this case, it didn''t make any difference whether the right hand or the left hand was used.


    I wondered if this was really true.


    ...Or...


    Onest chance.


    If it wasn''t held in either of these hands, then...


    The instructor didn''t say which hand had the gummy bear.


    He only asked us to point to where the gummy bear is.


    So it was possible that they were hidden somewhere other than in the left or right hand.


    I let that childish thought run through my mind and pointed behind without touching either hand.


    "..."


    He didn''t answer and just stared at my movements.


    "Why are you pointing back?"


    "Gummy, hand, no."


    I replied in such a way that showed I still didn''t have perfect control over thenguage.


    Without saying a word, the instructor opened both hands at the same time.


    Then, I found a small gummy bear in his right hand.


    "That''s too bad. The right hand is the correct one."


    The instructor then popped the small gummy in his mouth.


    One of the two remaining children had answered correctly for the right hand and was given a gummy bear.


    "I''ll give you one more chance, just for the heck of it."


    He took out a gummy bear and held it in his hands behind his back as if to repeat the process, and stuck out his arms.


    I thought his hands were empty by hiding them behind his back, but in fact, they were held in his right hand. Then, did I simply miss the 50/50, and it was never hidden from the beginning of this match?


    Or, after hiding it twice, did he hold it in his right hand, anticipating that we would read it that way? The possibility that both hands were empty is more probable than the possibility that they were holding something. The other remaining child pointed to the instructor''s left hand.


    What''s the right thing to do...?


    Was it the right hand, the left hand, or was it hidden behind?


    "Behind."


    After thinking about it, I took a gamble. I rejected the right and left hands, judging both to be empty.


    The instructor opened his hands. In his left hand was a small gummy bear.


    "Too bad. Another miss. Are you disappointed?"


    It''s true, I was disappointed.


    I nodded slightly.


    It wasn''t because I wanted gummy bears.


    It was more like frustration that I was wrong.


    "I guess this kid is different after all."


    The adults gathered around and whispered to each other.


    My two-year-old mind couldn''tprehend the meaning of theplicated words, so I only remember them as a list of words.


    "All the children, with the exception of Kiyotaka, were honestly trying to guess everything between left or right. But he observed the choices of those around them and was clearly aware of the possibility of a third option, which was the option that the gummy was hidden behind our backs. Moreover, even after proving that it wasn''t hiding behind my back, he didn''t abandon the possibility. This isn''t the thinking of a two-year-old."


    "You''re overthinking this, aren''t you?"


    "But in all the tests I''ve done, this is clearly the only child who thinks differently; he''s the only one who has a different point of view."


    In the midst of these iprehensible thoughts, the instructors'' words were etched in my memory.


    I thought, in the future, I may be able to get some hints from this conversation.


    When I grew up, I could just open the drawers to my memories.


    "...The way he''s looking at me is creepy. I wonder if he even understands what we''re talking about."


    "No way... He''s two years old. There''s no way he understands more than the bare minimum of what we''re saying."


    "That''s true, but..."


    A buzzer sounded, announcing the end of the test.


    The adults looked at each other, ordered the children to stand by, and walked out.


    Given this familiar scenery, the kids saw them off without any of them crying.


    Any fear that we''d be left alone has long since disappeared.


    There was no help for us.


    This was something we learned in our bones at the age of two.


    ������


    Another fragment of memory to be dug up.


    In the process of erasing unnecessary memories, there are things thate to mind.


    "Take your seat and state your name."


    State your name��.


    The brain received the instruction, and the brain quickly transmitted the signal to the throat.


    "Kiyotaka."


    It was a symbol. A sequence of letters.


    An important element to distinguish humans.


    All of us White Room students were taught names as one of the ways to identify individuals. However, when we were young, we weren''t told our surnames, and all the instructors called us by our first names.


    Although I had no way of knowing it at the time, there would be an inconvenience created by teaching us our surnames. It seems that it was a rule based on the fear that it might lead to the children''s identification in the future.


    By the time the children were four years old, a new curriculum was beginning to be implemented one after another.


    "Now then, let''smence the test."


    The most important of these was a written test.


    All students straightened their posture and faced the test papers.


    The test consisted of five writing systems: hiragana, katakana, the alphabet[11], numbers, and simple kanji.


    Since we''d already spent a whole year being thoroughly taught reading and writing when we were three, there was no hesitation in their fingertips'' movements as they held the pen.


    The students were penalized if they didn''t achieve a certain level of performance in a limited amount of time.


    In addition, the students were also required to have good handwriting.


    Even if your handwriting was good, you won''t receive any points if you get the answer wrong, but if you write poorly in a hurry, points will be deducted from your score, so we had to be careful. No one at this facility asked whether or not we can solve the problems we face.


    This is only true because the only children left were those that were capable of solving them..


    Those who couldn''t were dropped at the age of three.


    Our group, called the fourth generation, had a total of 74 students in the early years.


    However, as mentioned above, children who were deemed to be unable to do so at the age of three had already dropped out of the White Room.


    Therefore, all 61 of us then shared almost all of our time together, excluding bedtime.


    The written test was 30 minutes long, but there was enough time toplete it in about half to two-thirds of the time limit if we solved the questions without hesitation.


    This was true for all the previous written exams held in the White Room.


    Solve the equation and move on to the next. Determine the answer and write it down.


    At the same time, you review the previous question to see if you''ve made any mistakes.


    When I finished, I raised my right hand straight up.


    After signaling that I was done, I turned the paper over.


    Getting a perfect score on the written exam was the minimum requirement. At the same time, you were required to be a neat and speedy writer.


    This was the 7th written exam since I turned four years old, and I''ve won first ce four times in a row. The first time I took the written test, I was ranked 24th, the second time 15th, and the third time 7th. I didn''t have a good start.


    It took me a while to figure out how the written exams worked, its logic, and its efficiency.


    Once I solved that, I haven''t been overtaken, and I myself have been improving my certainty even more.


    The gap between me and the second-ce finisher was widening with each written exam, and now the time gap was about five minutes.


    Regardless if I got a perfect score or first ce, I would never be praised by anyone.


    When everyone finished, we moved on to the next part of the curriculum.


    "Now we''ll start Judo. Everyone please change and follow the instructor to another room."


    Martial arts. This was another curriculum added when we turned four, as was the written test.


    I''ve already been taught judo for four months.


    While being trained in the basics, we progressed to the stage where we had to fight in actualbat.


    "Haa!"


    My vision shook and I felt a strong pain in my back.


    In the confrontation with the instructor, the children were always made to taste this bitterness.


    I was no exception.


    "Get up!"


    The relentless mming into the floor, making it impossible to breathe, didn''t allow you a break.


    If I didn''t get up immediately, I would be reprimanded again and again. Next, arms that were many times thicker than mine flew at me.


    I was mmed to the floor again, and I tried desperately to catch myself, but I couldn''t absorb the damage.


    While I was being knocked down to the ground, simr urrences were happening all over the ce.


    All the kids were crying and sobbing while being thrashed around.


    "I can''t... I can''t stand up...!"


    As if begging for forgiveness, Mikuru clung weakly to the instructor''s leg.


    "Still, get up!"


    The girl was forced to stand up as the instructor forcibly shook off her hands, but her body seemed to be immobilized.


    The fact that''s a girl wasn''t taken into consideration here.


    "I told you to stand up!"


    The girl was kicked, spun around and around on the floor, and sprayed vomit all over the ce.


    Of course, the adults weren''t kicking seriously.


    Even so, it was obvious to everyone that the force of the kick was unbelievably strong.


    "I don''t give a damn, even if you''re a kid! You already know that!"


    The average mind would have a strong resistance to hurting a child this much.


    But the instructors who''ve been called to the White Room aren''t ordinary.


    They were the kind of people who had no qualms about sending women and children to the brink of death.


    "No one will cry if you disappear! Stand up and face them on your own!"


    Mikuru, convulsing and unfocused, put her hands on the floor and tried to get up.


    "Yes! That''s it! Show some spirit!


    "Uh, uuh... Ugh... gh...!"


    But the previous kick Mikuru took was critical, and she copsed and lost consciousness.


    "Damn! You gutless bastard! Get her out of here! Get out of my way!"


    The instructor, who had been making irritating footsteps, shouted angrily as he forcibly removed Mikuru from the room.


    Do you believe such a scene is tragic?


    If so, you should change how you think.


    This is only the beginning. Excessive reactions like Mikuru''s were decreasing day by day, and even the expression of pain was fading away.


    Even human instincts were eliminated by the brain as superfluous functions.


    It was natural to be thrown. It was natural to have difficulty breathing. It was natural to hurt yourself to the point of sobbing. And even thinking about it was a waste.


    The only way out of the situation was to keep trying to reduce the number of times you get thrown within the time limit.


    Of course, the most ideal situation was to defeat your opponent.


    But the opponent was far superior in strength, size, and skill.


    Needless to say, it wasn''t easy to bridge the gap between adults and children.


    After being forced to fight intensely and breathlessly, everyone rose to their feet, battered and bruised.


    After an intense education from our instructors, we were obliged to take part in hand-to-handbat with three others at the end of the day.


    The children never look tired.


    I''ve learned that any prey that seems weak was doomed to be hunted by the strong.


    My record was 144 fights, 127 wins and 17 losses. And I was currently on a 64-fight winning streak.


    The fights were rotated between male and female opponents, but Shiro stood in front of me, silently waiting for the signal to begin.


    Shiro had an overwhelmingly good record of 135 wins and 9 losses.


    I''ve yed against Shiro twice, winning once and losing once.


    I lost my first Randori[12] match, but I had not lost since the first rotation; however, among the other students, Shiro had the best judo skills.


    Because he was a formidable opponent, he was able to sharpen his sensitivity even more.


    Shiro had always been aggressive and took the initiative in his fights against others, but today, in his third match, he seemed to be taking a wait-and-see attitude, aiming to create counter-attacks.


    (TL Note: randori : Basically a 1v3 judo match)[12]


    This was something I weed, as I wanted to gain experience in attacking a strong opponent.


    "Begin!"


    At the instructor''s announcement, we fought each other to the bitter end with defeat on our backs.


    Win or lose, we moved on to the next lesson as if nothing had happened.


    Karate is a martial art that started somewhatter.


    Here, the students were subjected to more direct blows from the instructors than in judo.


    The variety of martial arts will probably increase again as we reach five or six years old.


    That was themon inference among all the children.


    ������


    By the time I was five years old, the number of children had dwindled even further down to about 50 at one point.


    No one cared. There was no time to care.


    Here, the only thing they want is our ability.


    There was no end.


    No, if there was an end, it was endlessly far away.


    Once you falter, you''ll never be able to catch up again.


    Do you believe this is extraordinary?


    I don''t. This was everyday life for me.


    One day, when the number of people in the group had already decreased considerably, we had dinner together.


    The meal was being served with everyone present. During the meal, the instructor left the table and the children were left alone. However, we''ve never had a direct conversation.


    The whole time, I''ve only heard their voices through the instructor.


    Why don''t we talk to each other?


    It wasn''t forbidden by the instructors.


    We just didn''t have conversations because there wasn''t a need to talk in the first ce.


    We knew each other''s names through the instructors, we knew how good each one was in their studies, and we knew how athletic each of us was. All of our inner abilities wereid bare.


    There was no food that they like or dislike.


    The rule of eating only what was served applied to all of the children.


    In other words, there was no need for dialogue regarding meals.


    There was no sense of fellowship among us students.


    The others'' presence that neither helps nor hinders is just, somehow, no different from the scenery around us.


    "I don''t like..."


    I heard a girl named Yuki, who always sat in front of me, whisper.


    It wasn''t problematic behavior, since we weren''t forbidden to speak during the meal. It was just that no one spoke because no one felt the need to.


    This was the first change in the precedent.


    I thought she would stop talking because no one responded, but Yuki didn''t.


    "Do you like it, Kiyotaka?"


    She asked me if I liked or disliked the carrots in front of me.


    To answer or not to answer.


    But to begin with, I''ve never thought of the concept of liking or disliking carrots.


    I only considered them as one of the nutrients that we should consume.


    The main nutrient in carrots is Beta-carotene.


    It has the ability to change into vitamin A when taken into the body.


    It''s effective in preventing cellr aging and maintaining healthy skin and mucous membranes. It''s also very important for immunity against viruses.


    "Do you like carrots?"


    "I don''t like them either."


    The answer wasn''t from me, but from Shiro, who was sitting on my left.


    Yuki looked at him in surprise.


    While I was distracted by the dialogue between the two, I checked the surveince camera.


    Of course, the instructors were watching our meals on a daily basis. There was no way they couldn''t have picked up on the sound. Since there was no response from the instructors, and they didn''t criticize us or anything, this kind of conversation must be allowed.


    However, we''ve never been asked to engage in dialogue with each other.


    As long as there was no merit in bothering to engage in dialogue, there was no need to follow the two and respond.


    Still... I thought about it for a moment.


    You either like carrots or you don''t.


    ...The answer was: I don''t hate them.


    After the meal, I''ve always had a little trouble. I never learned how to kill time.


    Just sitting and waiting was the easiest and only option I had.


    However, Yuki wasn''t like that, and after dinner, she walked around the room by herself.


    I thought it was a waste of energy to walk, but I kept silent and watched her.


    She walked around the small room for about threeps when she passed right in front of me.


    "Wa...!"


    Yuki almost tripped and fell in front of me.


    I instantly stretched my arm and prevented her from falling down.


    "It''s strange to fall down in the middle of nowhere, isn''t it?"


    After I analyzed the situation, Yuki widened her eyes and looked surprised.


    "Or is it just fatigue? No, it doesn''t look like that to me."


    I couldn''t understand why she fell down.


    And it seemed the same was true for Yuki.


    "Yeah. I''m not tired, but I fell down. Weird, isn''t it?."


    When she said this, a look came over her face that I had never seen before.


    It was the first expression created by her facial muscles, the orbicris oculi muscle around her eyes, and the wrinkled brow muscles near her eyebrows.


    I had never seen such a look on the other students'' or adults'' faces.


    The girl herself seemed to understand my wonder.


    <Illustration>


    "That... Now, I..."


    You can see the confusion and bewilderment on her face.


    I can see why.


    I never learned that. I was never taught that look.


    But I know it.


    It didn''t take me long to realize that it was a smile.


    It was an instinct that we''re born with, or perhaps even before we''re born.


    That may be why she could express it without having to learn it.


    ������


    The White Room children aren''t taught many of the rules required to survive in this world.


    However, there were a few strict regtions.


    This didn''t change even in thetter half of our fifth year.


    7:00 AM.


    "It''s time to get up."


    The timer rang without a second''s dy, apanied by an uncaring voice announcing the time, and the children in the small room began to wake up.


    Before we rose from our beds, a staff member woulde into the room and remove the electrodes attached to our bodies.


    Then he''d get up and immediately check our health.


    The busy, mundane daily routine unfolded in front of us.


    After checking for any changes in height, weight, etc., we would go to the bathroom to urinate.


    Urine samples were taken once a month, and a small amount of blood would be drawn at the same time.


    After the examination, the staff members leave the building without exchanging greetings.


    We were then rehydrated and warmed up with 30 minutes of basic training.


    After keeping daily physical records such as grip strength measurements, everyone would step into the training room at the same time andplete the quota assigned to each gender. There was no option as to what would happen if the quota wasn''t achieved.


    The quotas were to be met by everyone because it was a given that everyone would meet their quotas.


    Those who fail to do so won''t be allowed to set foot in this room from tomorrow onwards.


    By the time these steps were fulfilled, it would be 8:00 AM.


    At the time, breakfast was more nutritionally oriented and more efficient than it was in my earlier childhood, with supplements and blocked nutrition.


    To eat well or not to eat well.


    Whether I liked it or not.


    It was as irrelevant as ever.


    Eat the food in the order in which it was served.


    That was all there was to it.


    After the meal, the day''s curriculum would begin.


    The fields of study were diverse, ranging from Japanese and mathematics to economics and political science. The day''s curriculum was repeated until noon, with small breaks in between.


    Lunch was the same as breakfast, and the curriculum resumed in the afternoon.


    After sitting at our desks studying until 5:00 PM, the physical training began.


    It all ended at 7:00 PM.


    During this time, we don''t speak a single word of our own ord.


    After dinner, bathing, and physical examinations, it would be 9:00 PM.


    This would be the first time we held what''s called a "meeting," a time for conversing to review the day.


    The children were alone in a small space with no teachers present.


    But they weren''t free to talk about any topic.


    How did you feel and how did you cope with today''s studies?


    This was a time for the students to organize and examine their feelings and responses to the day''s studies.


    Adults didn''t get involved unless they recognized that it was an unnecessary private conversation.


    Even silence was allowed, regardless of profit or loss, as long as the rules were followed.


    The set time was only 30 minutes, but I always merely listened to what was being said and had never felt like actively talking. Even though children were allowed to talk among themselves, their conversations were overheard by the adults.


    Even this dialogue was part of the curriculum.


    However, no special quota was given.


    At the same time, it may be a measure to draw out the children''s true feelings.


    If we set a quota, it would naturally turn into a dialogue for that purpose.


    At 9:30 p.m., we would all be sent back to our rooms.


    We were required to go to the bathroom and lie down in bed by 10:00 p.m.


    Electrodes were attached and the lights would go out.


    Medical checkups were always required.


    Every day, 365 days a year, there was always time to check on the day''s progress.


    This was the end of the day.


    From waking up to going to bed, this was the educational policy.


    Our schedule was set down to the minute.


    A day in the White Room.


    A world that never changes each year.


    ������


    Every few months or years, there came a time of great change.


    That''s when some of the children began to have trouble keeping up with the curriculum.


    The level of study increased by two or three difficulty levels, and little by little they began to fall behind.


    It was clear that even after the same amount of time spent learning, there were differences among the individuals.


    When they were first taught addition.


    When they were first taught multiplication.


    They started out equally, but then others realized that they were superior to each other.


    Along the way, they can rewind and move on to the next step, but often the child who is noticeably behind stumbles at the next step.


    I''m sure that the adults didn''t wee the children dropping out.


    However, they couldn''t keep children who weren''t keeping up with the program in the same ce indefinitely.


    Leaving a child who wasn''t keeping up created dissonance, and if you try to amodate the child who wasn''t keeping up, the others'' rhythm, who were ahead, would be lost.


    The next learning opportunity would be lost.


    This was why it was necessary to gradually decrease the number of children.


    "10 minutes remaining."


    Prior to the many children dropouts, one of the many tests was a special high-difficulty written curriculum.


    During the course of repeated daily study, I noticed something��the difficulty level of this special written test was raised ording to the top score. In other words, a perfect score slid up the scale, thus a child with a previous low score would have a more difficult time on the following test.


    On the other hand, if the top score was lower than the perfect score, the ceiling was also lowered.


    No matter how tough the questions were, there was no room for minor miscalctions, careless omissions, or excuses.


    That was why children repeatedly checked their answers even after they solved all the problems on time.


    They desperately clutched at their test papers, because even a single mistake would mean the end of the test.


    While others around me were busy, I kept staring at the front of the room with a pen in my hand. I kept pretending that I was still taking the test.


    In reality, I had already finished answering all the questions and was spending the remaining time idly.


    I wasn''t worried about the possibility of making a mistake.


    Because I knew I didn''t make such a mistake.


    The questions on the test paper and the answers I wrote down were imprinted in my mind word for word.


    "5 minutes to go."


    With the announcement, the sound of brushing around me became more intense.


    You hear the sound of the erasers'' pressure getting stronger from the seat next to you as if they were in an impatient state of mind.


    The difficulty of this test had increased by several levels from the previous exam.


    During math ss, when the students were solving problems such as the equality conditions of additive and synergistic averages, something unusual happened.


    I had almost half of the 30 minutes left to answer the final problem and was staring at the front of the room for the rest of the time, waiting for the signal to finish.


    Suddenly a man, a representative of the White Room, entered the room with a grim look on his face.


    It wasn''t unheard of for an adult to show up in the middle of an exam, when a person who wasn''t able to keep up with the exam hyperventtes and copses, or has a seizure or convulsions.


    So far, I hadn''t noticed any sign of such conditions.


    Or, very rarely, a child bes so intent on solving the problems that they recklessly cheat.


    But I soon learned that it was me, of all people, who was the adult''s target.


    He stopped a little to my left, looked down at the test paper, and then looked at me.


    "Kiyotaka."


    I looked up as he called my name.


    "Remember well. A person who has power yet neglects to use it is a fool."


    Of course they knew what I was doing.


    "Leave the room."


    I followed the man out of the room.


    "What the hell are you doing, Kiyotaka?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "''What do you mean''? You don''t understand what I''m asking, do you?"


    I was shown to a small private room where I was made to sit down.


    "I see you''vepleted all the questions."


    "Yes."


    "Are you sure you''re going to get a perfect score?"


    "No."


    "Of course not."


    The questions on the test were deliberately constrained to 80 points.


    "Why did you hold back?"


    "You didn''t instruct me not to hold back."


    I knew that I wasn''t going to fall behind the wayside just because I didn''t get a perfect score.


    "You do realize that you''re already leading this term, don''t you?"


    "Yes."


    "Then there''s only one reason why you held back."


    The man pointed at me and said, "Because you noticed how this curriculum works. If you get a perfect score, the curriculum for the fourth generation will be more difficult. Naturally, the number of dropouts will increase. Is that what you wanted to prevent?"


    That was the correct assumption.


    "Surely you haven''t developed a sense of camaraderie with the kids."


    I see. So that''s the conclusion the adults have drawn.


    "Is that what it looks like?"


    "Yes, that''s what I see."


    "And how did Ayanokouji-sensei feel about it?"


    I was interested in his answer.


    "Holding yourself back to assist your fellow students isn''t helping him at all."


    Is that really true? I asked myself.


    "You''re wrong."


    I denied it.


    "Then try to convince me."


    When ordered to do so, I put my own thoughts into words.


    "In the first ce, I''ve never recognized the children around me as my friends."


    "Then why didn''t you try to get a perfect score?"


    "The instructors already knew that I would get a perfect score this time. There''s no need to write the answers down on paper every time. It''s more time-efficient to leave it nk."


    Using unnecessary energy was nothing but a waste.


    "It''s hubris. Knowledge fades with time. That''s why you always do your best to remember. Even if you have the ability to get a perfect score, making mistakes and misremembering can happen. You need to show me your best at all times."


    "I won''t make a mistake."


    "That''s a bold statement."


    "And that''s not the only reason I hold back."


    "What?"


    "I know that if I hadn''t held back, the percentage of kids who would drop out would be much higher than it is now. So, if I cut corners, we''re recing a world where kids who would normally have dropped out are still here."


    "Yes. That''s called camaraderie."


    "No, it''s not. I thought of it as a loss of experience, a loss of contact with the children who are going to drop out."


    The instructors looked at each other with questioning looks on their faces.


    The knowledge-hungry brain wants to both analyze patterns and seek answers.


    "It''s easy to dismiss them at this stage. But I''m still in the learning stage. I want to know what I can see and feel from the weak."


    "So you think it''s too early for them to drop out?"


    I nodded. Soon most of the kids around here won''t be able to keep up.


    "You think your n is above ours? It''s up to us to decide who is dropping out."


    "Of course it''s your choice. That''s how the White Room is."


    It was futile to try to crush this man with logic.


    All that matters was that there was never a rule against holding back.


    But it wouldn''t be easy to add a rule against cutting corners.


    Even if I got a score of zero, the instructor, who''s a third party, would be the one to judge me for holding back.


    They won''t fail the exam because of that. However, it doesn''t mean that the instructor can treat a person who got a score of 0 as if they had scored a 100, either.


    "Is it OK with you? If he thinks this way, let''s see what happens."


    "What do you think, Suzukake?"


    "I agree with Ishida-san. If he does something we haven''t thought of, I''ll be very happy."


    The man was silent for a while and then dropped his gaze on me.


    "Do what you want. But don''t forget what I said."


    Not utilizing one''s power is a fool''s errand.


    Whether it was true or not, I decided to remember it as a moment of interest.


    At the same time, however, another emotion peeked out.


    I was beginning to feel that I didn''t like this man.


    I began to understand how Yuki felt when she said she didn''t like carrots a little more.


    Just as I was being taken back to the rooms to sit down, the buzzer sounded.


    All at once, the children ced their pens on their desks.


    That was the rule.


    But there was one sound that didn''t vanish after the buzzer sounded: the sound of a pen crunching on a piece of paper.


    This wasn''t unusual.


    A boy continued his test, breathing hard and sobbing.


    His attitude to continue the test didn''t change even when the door opened and the adults entered the room.


    He was forcibly grabbed by his right arm.


    "No! Let go of me! No! I can still solve it! I can do it! W-waah, waah! I don''t want to drop out!"


    In addition to the excessive pressure, he realized his defeat and sprayed his gastric juice all over the test paper.


    The vomit spread from the instructors'' necks and down onto their clothes, but the adults didn''t care, they restrained the child from both sides and dragged them out without regard to the child''s resistance. The children were emotionless, with the only exception being when they drop out. In this case, the inevitable end arouses their survival instincts and they lose their rationality. Some of the children looked at each other, but most of them stared ahead without taking any action.


    "Uwaaaaah! Uwaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!"


    A scream never heard before reverberated through the room and permeated through the automatic door.


    As soon as he was taken out, the door closed and silence returned.


    They really don''t know anything, do they?


    They can get any number of points in this particr curriculum and never drop out.


    If they can''t even recognize that, it''s inevitable that they''ll drop out.


    ������


    I had no likes or dislikes.


    It not only applied to food, the curriculum was no different as well.


    Music (piano, violin, etc.), calligraphy, tea ceremony, and other traditional cultural pursuits.


    The only thing that I was unenthusiastic about was the altered curriculum, which was newly introduced after I turned six. It introduced a half-day ss held only once or twice a month. It was a ss called "travel" using a virtual console.


    All the children stood up and put onrge goggles at the same time.


    Our vision went ck, but soon the screen lit up and the program was disyed, and it began after a few moments.


    "The curriculum will now focus on Japan, whereas in the past we''ve studied American cities such as New York and Hawaii. First, we''ll start with public transportation."


    This was the basic premise of the course. It introduced a world that wasn''t just a white room.


    This was still learning time, and children were told early on that they won''t leave this ce until they be adults.


    The virtual console reproduced the same outside scenery in 360 degrees with such quality that it could be mistaken for the real thing, and the sound wasbined with the visuals to create a sense of presence. Even the people passing by were reproduced, showing a businessman in a suit, an old man with a cane, an elderly woman trying to get into a cab, and other street scenes.


    Of course, children were also present, but unlike the reality outside, they didn''t appear to be ying or having fun at all; instead, they showed inorganic, machine-like movements.


    We learned the history and structure of the world so that one day, when we go out into the outside world, we''ll be able to adapt to it without problems.


    I knew it was necessary, but I had a problem with this way of learning.


    One of the reasons why I disliked it was because it was apanied by an indescribable feeling of difort.


    It''s what wasmonly described as 3D motion sickness.


    It''s possible that the brain misperceives it as a hallucination if the bnce between visual perception and the semicircr canals are incorrect.


    There''s no way to stop the sickness by individual power alone, and the only way would be to let the brain learn over time.


    It wasn''t so hard that it was impossible to continue, but it was the reason why I didn''t like it.


    Of course, the virtual console wasn''t only used as a device to perceive the outside world visually but also as a tool to train observation and insight.


    We were asked to detect unnatural points in the views that unfolded in various locations.


    If what we pointed out was wrong or the unnatural point itself couldn''t be found, the instructors gave us unrelenting guidance.


    The methods of guidance varied, but it mainly consisted of those that caused pain to the students themselves.


    That''s why we used our eyes to thoroughly observe, not even sparing the blink of an eye.


    The more we feared for our lives, the more our senses sharpened and we began to see things that we couldn''t see before.


    "Next, let''s take a walk in Tokyo on the virtual console."


    As we virtually walked through Tokyo, the screen suddenly went dark.


    The instructors'' voices that I was listening to stopped, and I was engulfed in silence.


    "Everyone take off your goggles."


    The voice came from inside the room, not through the microphone, and we all followed the instruction at once.


    "There''s an equipment issue. That''s it for today''s virtual console lesson. We still have less than half an hour before the next curriculum, so please stay here."


    With those instructions, the goggles in everyone''s hands were retrieved.


    "Stand by..."


    Many of the kids were left standing, seemingly intent on passing the time.


    In the end, it seemed that the equipment problem couldn''t be resolved quickly enough, and the instructors decided to move on to another curriculum.


    The children were, of course, quickly lined up and turned their attention to the next part of the program.


    "We''re going to read out the names one by one. The first person whose name is called will move with the instructor."


    With these instructions, the first three names were called.


    In the end, I was thest one to be called. I obeyed, and the instructor walked slowly and invited me into the private room.


    There were no other children in the room, and it was a one-on-one with the instructor.


    In the center of the room was a small table and two pipe chairs.


    "Come on, sit down."


    The instructor said, tapping the table and ordering me to immediately sit down.


    I sat down in front of the instructor and the five cards in his hands were ced on the table.


    Each card had a different symbol on it.


    From left to right it showed a circle, square, cross, star, and wave.


    "I''m going to put into practice what I''ll ask of you to do. Watch carefully."


    The instructor faced me, and he took the lead in turning over all the cards.


    Since the backs of the five cards disyed the same pattern, it was impossible to tell which card had which mark when the cards were shuffled in this state.


    Was he asking me to guess and show him a particr card among them?


    That was what I thought, but...


    The five cards were rearranged.


    "You''ll be given only 10 seconds each time."


    "...Square."


    The instructor then flipped the leftmost card.


    A star came out.


    The instructor continued to flip the cards, stating the symbols.


    "Circle, star, cross, wave��"


    The second to the fifth cards were a wave, square, cross, and circle, respectively.


    Only the fourth one, a cross, matched and was thus correct. The percentage of correct answers was 20%.


    "This is one round, and it''ll be repeated ten times. Watch carefully."


    Five guesses, ten times. It was 50 times in total.


    The same thing was repeated without any hesitation.


    The final percentage of correct answers was about 30% with 15 correct answers out of 50.


    "So, now it''s your turn, Kiyotaka."


    "Yes."


    I took my seat in ce of the instructor, who got up from his seat.


    What was the purpose of this practice?


    I don''t think it was to develop psychic abilities.


    In other words, to train intuition?


    No, it was hard to think of that as legitimate or realistic training.


    The five cards were mixed by the instructor.


    When mixing the cards, the instructor always used an overhand shuffle.


    Was this just a habit, or was it intentional?


    It was impossible to judge, but it was easy to dismiss it as meaningless.


    I wondered, if it did have a meaning, what it was.


    The table''s material made it seem smooth and easy to do a wash shuffle while it was on the table.


    Should I dare to use an overhand shuffle?


    Another thing that bothered me was that the instructor didn''t always line up the cards from the same position.


    Sometimes he started from the left end, sometimes from the middle, then from the right end, then from the left end.


    I didn''t think there were any kind of rules as far as I saw from the 10 times.


    This couldn''t be dismissed as a habit.


    On the other side of the card, I didn''t feel any difference even if I stared at it carefully.


    In other words, I didn''t think that either the instructor or I could distinguish between the two.


    However, there was a big difference between me and the instructor.


    That is, whether we can or can''t touch the cards.


    When mixing the cards, when distributing the cards, when flipping the cards, only the instructor was doing all the motions.


    What if the instructor didn''t want it to be sensed?


    It was only because the instructor could see the card, whose answer should be invisible to him.


    But even if I could see it, I still couldn''t touch it.


    I wasn''t forbidden from reaching out and touching it, but would that be the proper move?


    It was now clear that this wasn''t just an exercise in intuition.


    Then, a possible rule of thumb was...


    Five cards wereid out and the 10-second count began.


    In order to increase the percentage of correct answers by even 1%, the first conspicuous mark must be decided upon.


    "A star..."


    I answered, and the instructor flipped over the leftmost card with an unchanging expression on his face.


    "It''s a star."


    It''s still just one-fifth correct.


    "Wave, square, cross, circle."


    The instructor flipped from the second card to the fifth.


    The marks were turned over and matched just what I said they would, thus making them correct.


    "You still have nine more to go."


    "Yes."


    After five correct answers, I was convinced of one rule.


    Then the rest was easy.


    I then went on to y the remaining 9 rounds. I guessed all 45 cards.


    "100% correct..."


    As I finish collecting the previous 50 cards, the instructor looked at me.


    In his eyes, I saw an emotion that wasn''t there before.


    "I didn''t realize you had your eye on me from the very first phase."


    The instructor showed the first practice. If all he had to do was exin the rules, he would''ve only had to show the same repetitive content once or at most twice.


    However, the instructor silently went through all of the exercises up to ten times, regardless of whether they were sessful or not.


    This meant that it wasn''t a mere exnation of the rules.


    They hid the fact that it was a memory test to see if I could reach that realization as quickly as possible.


    "And on top of that, a perfect memory. It''s hard to believe..."


    "I wonder if you''ve also had them memorized, all lined up the same way they were the first time."


    "...No way. I only remembered the five symbols based on the small scratches on the cards that I couldn''t see, and the only reason I was able to line them up the same way as the first time was that I received instructions from the inte in my ear."


    "So that''s why the cameras were installed in the ceiling."


    "...You were aware of that as well."


    "I knew it was strange because it was like that guy was talking to me."


    When I entered the room, I was approached by a man who seemed to squeeze my free gaze toward a certain part of the room.


    It was also unnatural that the instructor urged me to hurry up and sit down.


    If for some reason he wanted to proceed with the curriculum quickly, he could have done it faster by rushing me even before I entered the room, or by showing me the practices.


    "You''re the first one to pass this curriculum in one shot... You can go back."


    "Excuse me."


    Considering it was an alternative to my least favorite curriculum, the virtual console, I could say that it was many times more enjoyable.


    ������


    Inside the White Room, there were rooms dedicated to various curric.


    One of them was a heated swimming pool where one could swim all year round.


    Swimming was considered to y a very important role in developing physical skills.


    Swimming was also ideal for children''s immature bodies because of its low impact on the body itself. The time spent in contact with the water was valuable for the children to relieve stress.


    Swimming was taught for two hours at a time, with a 30-minute lesson at the beginning, a 10-minute break afterward, and 30 minutes ofpetitive swimming with races and target times.


    After that, the children were given 30 minutes of free time.


    They could swim in the water or take a break.


    I always made it a habit to spend the remaining 30 minutes by the pool, observing the children.


    "I knew I''d find you here. You set a new record again today."


    "I haven''t reached the time that the instructor set yet."


    "We''re children. They''re adults. It''s not strange that we can''t reach it. It''s just a little frustrating that I can''t beat Kiyotaka anymore."


    Until a few weeks ago, Yuki was the fastest swimmer, regardless of how she swam.


    "Once you passed me, the gap between our records has been widening. How can you swim so well? I''ve been practicing just as hard..."


    "Breath-hold."


    "What?"


    "Your form is perfect when you''re swimming, but it''s when you take a breath that your form is off. If you improve your form, you can improve your time a little more."


    "Yes, I see... My instructor didn''t point that out to me."


    "Swimming instructors don''t tell you everything. I think they make you aware that you have to find out for yourself."


    It''s not that I haven''t noticed.


    "You not only see yourself, but you''re also even able to see your surroundings. I don''t have that kind of luxury."


    "I''m the same way, I''m just biting the bullet."


    Many of them, especially those new to the curriculum, were falling behind.


    Without the fundamentals, one would be too focused on memorizing to get results.


    On the other hand, people like Yuki and Shiro often got good results the first time.


    They were able to quickly grasp the basics even though they didn''t know them.


    I guess you could call it a sense. That was the difference.


    But I didn''t envy them.


    It has been proven in many curric that you can make up the difference by learning and consolidating the basics, regardless of the initial gap.


    It was okay if you weren''t good at first. The first step was to build the basics and learn to apply them to yourself.


    Yuki stood still and didn''t walk away. She kept looking at me.


    "...Do you still need something?"


    "Is it strange for me to speak with you without purpose?"


    "Yeah, it''s weird. Normally, you''d talk to me if you needed something."


    "You''re the same as always."


    I didn''t look at her and started to think about Yuki.


    Recently, she had been talking more and more.


    And she was speaking in a different way from herself originally.


    She was talking to me more and more often even when she had nothing to say.


    Why did she do such inefficient things?


    She wasn''t a bad subject for observation.


    Besides, now I won''t be reprimanded since there weren''t any instructors watching and listening nearby.


    Of course, we couldn''t deny that we were being watched, but we weren''t to be med for it.


    "Can I ask you a question?"


    "Yes..."


    Yuki, puzzled, didn''t expect such a response back.


    "Howe you''re so good at conversing?"


    "What? Howe I''m so good at talking? I don''t know."


    "You''re at least better than me. I''m just not willing to speak."


    "I''m not really motivated either, but... I''m just... I don''t know..."


    She didn''t know what she was talking about, but she was willing to talk about it? That''s what I didn''t understand.


    "Then how can youugh? Youughed before."


    "Why? ...I don''t know that either."


    "Don''t you get it? Even though you''re changing it, you don''t know?"


    "Because I can''tugh now."


    Sure, Yukiughed before, but I don''t remember seeing herugh since then.


    Did sheugh only once by chance?


    Are emotions formed by such coincidences?


    "I don''t know, but I think I canugh again when I''m around you, Kiyotaka."


    "I don''t understand."


    Was it possible that we can''t feel the emotion that createsughter unless we were around a certain person?


    No, maybe she had a point.


    When the instructors showed their anger, most of it was directed at someone else.


    Smiles are also directed to someone else.


    It wasn''t hard to understand.


    I looked at Yuki.


    "...What?"


    I tried to smile.


    As I thought, I didn''t know how to smile.


    I hadn''t even learned the basics of anger, sorrow, and joy.


    Without the basics, you can''t do anything.


    "Nothing."


    If we haven''t learned it, then we don''t need to feel it.


    I had already stopped thinking about this.


    ������


    Children are designed to forget most of their memories from their early childhood, such as when they''re one or two years old.


    This is called infantile amnesia.


    The youngest memories that can be recalled in detail are usually those from around the age of three.


    However, it isn''t true that infants can''t remember anything at all.


    Some of them can remember details of their early childhood.


    The only proof that this was true is that the child in front of my eyes remembers it well.


    "...It''s perfect."


    For him, he was just looking back at his memories and putting them into words.


    But that''s something no ordinary human being could ever do.


    An experiment with gummy bears at the age of two and the curriculum that followed.


    Kiyotaka was selecting and storing the necessary memories.


    I myself remember vividly dismissing it as a child''s fantasy.


    After listening to the past seven years of Kiyotaka''s life, Tabuchi and the others in front of me were very excited.


    "If you publish the results of this research, you will turn the conference upside down... Your child has achieved results that are on a different level from all the other children who havee before him."


    "Tabuchi, I don''t care if it''s my child or not. Just tell me in a few words how great he is."


    "Yes, sir. It has been proven that babies are capable of learning and remembering while they are still in their mother''s womb. However, it wasmonly believed that the ability to learn during infancy is very unripe and unstable and that memories cannot be fixed. Or, memories are stored, but as they develop, they are buried in the depths and cannot be retrieved. It was thought to be one or the other. However, your son... No, Kiyotaka can retrieve them without difficulty."


    "How does that make him superior?"


    "For example... if we take only the three years between the ages of zero and three, we have a memory advantage of 1,095 days. Of course, it''s not that simple, but the secret of his overwhelming learning ability is also rted to this."


    So, even if he started side by side with the other children, there was a big gap in ability at age three.


    "He''s a genius, that''s for sure!"


    It was the nature of a researcher to talk with a look of unquenchable excitement.


    However, we cannot simply rejoice in this.


    The White Room is meaningless if it''s just referred to as a single word like "genius."


    "Unfortunately, neither I nor Kiyotaka''s mother are very bright. In that sense, it isn''t directly rted to heredity.


    "But we can''t rule out the possibility that it''s a mutation, can we?"


    "That''s... I agree. We don''t know everything about genes yet."


    "You know what? We''re not here to find geniuses from the moment they''re born. Remember, the goal is to make the best of even the poorest DNA."


    The fact that such an entity exists is a good thing in itself.


    But I wished it wasn''t my child.


    A third party would think that I had given my own child a special education.


    It''smentable that most of my peer''s children, who went through the same curriculum, have turned out to be useless pieces of junk.


    I gave the word and brought Kiyotaka back to the fourth generation.


    I have ns to show Sakayanagi, who had been invited as a guest, the current state of the experiment.


    "I have a suggestion on how to make use of his talent; how about making the non-fourth generations aware of his existence? Competition will help them to improve. It would be especially exciting for the kids who''repeting for first ce in their respective terms."


    There''s certainly nothing wrong with having high ambitions. It''s not surprising that having a limited mindset while being in the top environment makes one''s room for growth doubtful.


    Many researchers, including Ishida and his colleagues, agreed with this opinion.


    However, Suzukake voiced a negative opinion.


    "Not a bad idea. I agree that it''s important to have a goal. But it''s meaningless if the goal is unattainable. That''s how big the gap is between Kiyotaka and the rest of the kids."


    "...You have a point."


    "It''s important to make them believe that they may be able to catch up with him even though they feel it''s a high goal. We should control the information we disclose and make him appear less capable than he really is. The top kids will still doubt his very existence, but you can show them evidence of his actual existence so that they can only understand through indirect scenes."


    So the rest of them will automatically continue to fight in a world of rivalry and nonmunion.


    "You can do whatever you want, but please don''t favor Kiyotaka and continue to educate the remaining fourth-generation students as you''ve always done."


    "Even if the number of dropouts continues to increase?"


    "I don''t care even if Kiyotaka drops out. If we can see the results of our efforts, we can determine a line of defense in the event that more talented students are born in the future."


    We must not be satisfied with immediate results; we must instead aim for even greater heights.


    If my son goes down in the process, he may be able to gain some sympathy from outside.


    We''ll make our enthusiasm for this project known.


    "The fourth-generation students are being given the Beta curriculum, but there''s some cause for concern. The end result of this rigorous education is that they will mentally mature too quickly."


    When Suzukake responded, Tabuchi immediately began to offer additional exnations.


    "Perhaps by the time they reach the age of junior high and high school students, they may reach the mental age of 20... No, I''m afraid that by the time they reach the age of junior high and high school students, they may have reached the mental age of almost 30 years old. The gap between that and their ignorance of the world can, on the other hand, make them appear terribly juvenile."


    Too many extremes are also a problem.


    "A different approach is required somewhere so that they can learn and grow of their own volition. But that would be a big gamble that could be changed by strong outside influences and could significantly lower the value of the work as an art form."


    Suzukake''s face, which has been at the forefront of the project up to this point, was hard and heavy.


    That was how much he was worried about the possibilities that lie ahead.


    "Excuse me, sir, but Sakayanagi-sama has been taken to the observation room as scheduled. What shall I do now?"


    It''s about time you came in...


    "Let him stay for a while. And keep the curriculum you show him nd as nned. If you show him something too stimting, he''ll reject it."


    I got up from my seat and walked to the observation room instead of immediately going to Sakayanagi.


    I turned on the surveince camera audio capturing the observation room. Basically, Sakayanagi is in a neutral position, but he could turn to the opposing side at any moment.


    Although it''s unlikely, we cannot rule out the possibility that he''s here to scout the White Room.


    First of all, let''s see how probable the risk is.


    Through the screen, I could see Sakayanagi and a girl who seemed to be his daughter in his arms.


    Both of them seem to be watching the students in the White Room through the magic mirror.


    "Look at them, Arisu... These are the children who may one day carry the future of Japan."[13]


    It seems that it wasn''t her father''s idea to offer to give her a tour.


    They were staring at the ss with their hands as if they were devouring it.


    They never got tired of it, not even for five or ten minutes.


    "What''s the matter, Arisu? It''s unusual for you to be so interested."


    "It''s an experiment to artificially create geniuses. I cannot help but be interested."


    "...An unchildlike remark, as per usual..."


    I didn''t see any artificiality between the father and daughter.


    "I just think there are a lot of problems with this experiment."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "I mean, there are many humanitarian concerns to this experiment, and it''s likely to be criticized from all sides."


    "Hahahaha..."


    I can''t believe that she''s a young child. She''s so calm and has the same eyes and sensibility as an adult.


    "I don''t believe it''s possible to artificially create a genius. Even if someone emerges from this facility, can we really say that it is the result of experimentation?"


    (TL Note: Therge bunch of italics here represent Atsoumi listening in on Sakayanagi and Arisu''s Conversation)[13]


    <Illustration>


    I was going to go see him after I made some decisions, but I was interested in his daughter, Sakayanagi Arisu''s point of view.


    It wasn''t every day you get to hear a child''s assessment of the White Room.


    "What makes you think that?"


    "Because I think that in the end, the kids who made it to the top were just the ones with the best DNA."


    "I see. It''s true that the curriculum that these children are undergoing is very rigorous. It''s possible that the kids who survive it are the ones who were good at it in the first ce. You really are bright, just like her. And your personality is simr too."


    "I''m d. For me to bepared to my mother is the highestpliment."


    As she pointed out, it''s difficult to pinpoint where the line between genius and mediocrity lies.


    It''s precisely the genes and environment that are essential in the human development process.


    It''s true that not all children who were given the ''White Room environment'' were necessarily superior at the prenatal stage.


    "After all, some children survive the curriculum, but only because their parents are gifted."


    Sakayanagi seemed genuinely puzzled by a question that even an adult couldn''t immediately answer.


    "Well, I don''t know. Maybe it''s true, maybe it isn''t. But I can''t dismiss the possibility that the children here are destined for the future."


    He exined, but his daughter didn''t seem to be interested.


    The girl was looking at the student in the White Room more intensely than before.


    "...That boy has been handling all the assignments calmly and effortlessly since a few minutes ago"


    "Ah, he''s sensei''s son, isn''t he? If I recall correctly, his name is... Ayanokouji... Kiyotaka-kun,"


    It seems that she has already noticed Kiyotaka''s uniqueness.


    "If he''s the son of sensei, he''d have good DNA, right?"


    "I wonder. He didn''t graduate from a great university nor was he an outstanding athlete, his wife was an average person, and neither of his grandparents were gifted, but he was more ambitious than anyone else, and he had an indomitable fighting spirit. That''s why he became so great. So much so that at one point, he even tried to run a country."


    "Then��isn''t he the most suitable subject for this experiment?"


    "I guess... He would be the ideal child. But ... I can''t help but feel sorry for him."


    "Why?"


    "He''s been in this institution since the moment he was born. The first thing he saw was not his mother or father, but this institution''s white ceiling. If he''d dropped out early, he could''ve lived with sensei. Or maybe it''s the fact that he''s still here that keeps him in the sensei''s favor... If so, it''s very likely that the ultimate goal of this institution is to raise all the children they educate as geniuses. But right now, it''s still in the experimental stage. It''s a battle that will end up looking 50 to 100 years into the future. The children aren''t here to showcase their talents when they grow up, but to live for the children of the future. Survivors and dropouts are all just a sampling."


    "Father, do you dislike this facility?"


    Arisu said what I would''ve liked to in order to get to the heart of the matter.


    Depending on his response here, there were many things to consider...


    "...I wonder... I may not be able to support them honestly. What if the children raised here grow up to be better than anyone else? If this facility bes the norm, I think that would only bring the beginnings of misfortune."


    In particr, I couldn''t see any connection with Kijima.


    Only an answer typical of a good person like Sakayanagi keepsing back.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll break it down for you... I will prove that the creation of a genius isn''t determined by education but at the moment of birth."


    "I''m sure you''re right. I''m counting on you Arisu."


    Sakayanagi patted his daughter''s head happily, apparently without having any ulterior motives.


    "By the way Father, I''m going to learn to y chess."


    I turned off the camera and left the room.


    "I guess there was no need to worry."


    However, we must be cautious.


    Now that the announcement time is approaching, you never know what might happen.


    ������


    Again and again, I repeated the same day.


    Repeated the days of learning that seemed to go on forever.


    In a world where there were hardly any breaks, we fourth-generation students continued to repeat the curriculum.


    There was nothing more to say.


    No matter howplicated and difficult it got, what we had to do remained the same.


    Tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, the day after the day after that, and the day after that. Again and again, I repeated.


    The next day came as a matter of fact.


    We learned something new.


    Absorb. If you didn''t absorb, you wouldn''t survive.


    Once you were branded as a failure, there was no undoing it.


    And what was normal yesterday may not be normal today.


    The buzzer sounded.


    The children followed the rules and ced their pens on their desks.


    This was the end of the high-stakes written curriculum.


    The test papers were collected and the scoring began immediately.


    Meanwhile, the children sat silently in their seats and waited for the results.


    However, the results were usually known before they were given out.


    All the children who remained here knew how well they answered the questions.


    The little girl in the front seat was shaking slightly.


    I stared at her nkly, waiting for the right moment.


    One of the instructors came in and walked over to the shaking child.


    "��Disqualified."


    The instructor announced in front of the child... in the same calm tone as usual.


    Once again, another student had been disqualified.


    The number of remaining fourth-generation students had been reduced to only four, and now one of those seats disappeared.


    "Oh no..."


    In the White Room, failure in the training and study phases was never an issue.


    It didn''t matter how much you progressed leading up to the exam, scoring a ten or a five on the other exams was irrelevant. The instructor would just keep the learning process going without stopping.


    It was the final exam that decided everything��whether or not you failed.


    If you failed to meet the standards, you''d be judged as having no ability at that point and dropped from the curriculum.


    "Stand up."


    No extra words were included, short phrases were all that mattered.


    "I... I don''t want to..."


    Thest thing you''ll want to do would be to answer that demand.


    If what she said was correct, Yuki''s result was only five points short of the passing grade.


    To the casual observer, it may seem like only five points, but in the White Room, there was no redemption even if one point was missing.


    This was true for many students I have trained against.


    Children who failed to meet the passing grade once were generally less capable of learningter in life.


    This has been proven. In other words, even if we ignore the situation here and let it go until the next regr exam, they still won''t be able to break out of the situation where they''re the next top candidate to drop out of the White Room.


    In other words, you aren''t qualified to remain in the fourth generation once you see that you''ve hit your ceiling.


    "Rotten apples must be removed. Any hindrance will be a burden to our growth."


    I guess they didn''t intend to spend any more time on this.


    One of the instructors reached for Yuki''s arm.


    "No... I hate it!"


    Brushing away his arm, Yuki rushed towards me while still shaken.


    "Kiyotaka, save me! I don''t want to disappear!"


    Spilling tears, Yuki pleaded for help.


    I took one look at the instructor who slowly approached me, but I didn''t change my indifferent position.


    "It''s impossible."


    "...!"


    "I can''t help you. No, I''m not going to."


    "Please! Next time I''ll do my best! Next time!"


    "Next? Why didn''t you try before that? You know there''s no next time."


    "Well, that''s...!"


    If you can''t work hard now, you won''t be able to work hard next time.


    Continuing was impossible, just as there''s only one life.


    "But still... I can do it, I can do it...!"


    Look at what we''ve achieved so far. Is that what this is about?


    The instructors had me and Yuki surrounded.


    "What?"


    I signaled to the approaching instructors to stop and turned to Yuki.


    "It''s true that you''ve been following the curriculum except for the written exam. However, your grades kept dropping year after year and never seemed to improve. In other words, this is where your limits lie."


    Even if she were to be saved and remained, it would be the instructor''s decision, not the decision of the kid that wants to be saved. I could only assume that Yuki was making a mistake by hanging onto me like this.


    "Come here!"


    "No! No! Please! Please let me try again!"


    Raising her voice, Yuki showed a peculiar resistance to the instructors.


    It wasn''t an unusual behavior among the dropouts, but even so, Yuki''s behavior was a little different from what we had seen before.


    <Illustration>


    "You know very well the rules of the White Room. Why are you so upset?"


    The students in the White Room, including myself, didn''t understand the situation.


    The instructors, however, knew very well why Yuki was resisting so much.


    But they never stated the reason.


    They grabbed Yuki by the arms and forcefully pulled her off of me.


    "Help me! Kiyotaka!"


    She called out my name over and over again, screaming and begging for help.


    "Help! Help...!"


    She reached out to me as she crumbled to the ground, begging for my help.


    Help?


    The girl in front of me had already been disqualified.


    The disqualified will leave this room.


    And they nevere back.


    There were no exceptions.


    Then why did she need to ask for help?


    It was a waste of effort��a waste of time.


    "Please, I don''t want to leave!"


    Two adults, who couldn''t stand that she still hadn''t left the room, came into the room in a hurry.


    The instructors then seized the girl and dragged her out.


    "No! No! No! Help me!"


    One more person failed to reach their goal and was eliminated.


    I''m sure the remaining children were looking at Yuki with the same cold eyes I did.


    Or maybe they were scared that they might be next.


    Either way.


    All I cared about was that I was thest one standing.


    From the beginning, I''ve been living in this world relying on those feelings alone.


    I lived in that white world. A scream thates from learning together for years, like family, or perhaps something from a different dimension entirely, like affection towards the opposite sex, huh?


    To be dragged out of here is a denial of all that we are.


    Therefore, everyone repeated their studies within a limited time so that this didn''t happen.


    It''s just...


    "Please wait."


    I muttered quietly to the instructors.


    "Who said you could speak? You won''t get away with it the next time you open your mouth without permission."


    "Then it''s fine if you don''t let me get away with it, but please listen to me"


    Immediately after those words came out, the instructor fell silent, came up to me, and kicked me without hesitation.


    "I didn''t give you permission to speak."


    "Yuki wasn''t feeling well before noon. She seemed restless during the exam, and I think she was unable to show her ability in other areas..."


    As I was about to continue, he grabbed me by the chest as if to further interrupt me.


    "It is also her responsibility to keep herself in good condition. Do you think that''s an excuse now? I didn''t see anything wrong with her this morning."


    "That''s right. But it would be a different story if it was unexpected."


    "Unexpected?"


    The instructor turned around and looked at the other instructors surrounding the fallen Yuki.


    "...There''s bleeding."


    The adults seemed to realize from their observations that Yuki was in an unusual state.


    "Bleeding? Did she get hurt somewhere...No, is it that?"


    "Yes. Normally, the earliest that this could ur is around 9 years old, but this early is exceptional. It''s probably due to the stress, which is different from that of the other students in the ss, caused by the difficulty of the course. She also seems to have a fever, so it''s no wonder that she''s unexpectedly ill."


    "Go to the doctor''s office. We''ll see if she''s disqualified or not after we get a closer look at her."


    With those words, the instructor instructed Yuki and took her out of the room.


    As they were leaving, Yuki looked at me through her tears, but I didn''t meet her eyes.


    "Well spotted. That''s what I would say, but we would''ve noticed it right after this without you having to point it out. Your unauthorizedments are still a problem."


    "So you''ll punish me?"


    Punishments, such as corporal punishment, would follow after viting rules outside the curriculum.


    But that was all there was to it.


    I knew that they couldn''t take such brutal measures, such as dropping out.


    "Do you think I''m joking?"


    "If you''re going to stand by and keep an eye on me, you''d better watch me more closely."


    "...You!"


    Toote. The instructor, clenching his right fist and revealing his murderous intent, came at me, but I avoided him.


    "Stop!"


    The instructor tried to retort, but another instructor rushed back to stop him.


    "Don''t let the kid''sments get to you, neer!"


    "...!"


    There were some instructors who were inexperienced, but with this new instructor, he will make more mistakes from now on."


    That''s why there''s a need to make it wide-known at this stage.


    If they were going to use him, they needed to train him better. If they decided that he was useless, they needed to get rid of him.


    In the end, after that day, Yuki never came back.


    ������


    More fourth-generation students disappeared, and only two were left in the room. Me and Shiro.


    It had been several months since the two of us were thest ones alone.


    We never spoke to each other once during that time, and every day was just silence.


    But I didn''t mind. I even thought it was better.


    With Yuki''s chatter gone, I was able to focus more on my own learning.


    That day was the first judo lesson in a few days.


    Due to the heightened curriculum, certain events are only offered once every few days.


    Still, both Shiro and I were improving our skills. Even though thepetitions were different, our training allowed us to be familiar with our skills and we could apply them to many martial arts.


    "You two are going to continue with your usual sparring sessions. I''ll be out of the room for a bit."


    The instructor who was acting as the referee left the room in a hurry as if he''d been summoned.


    We were left behind and started our Randori as instructed. We clutched each other''s judogi.


    Shiro and I had done the same thing dozens and hundreds of times.


    "Can I have a word?"


    The past months'' silence was broken when Shiro whispered in my ear.


    I thought it was a mental attack, but he stopped movingpletely.


    "It''s been many, many years since I''vest beaten you in Judo, hasn''t it?"


    "That''s right."


    I had been winning since the second round after I lost my first fight.


    "Boxing, Karate, Jeet Kune Do��it''s the same for everything. I''ll win the first one or two fights, but once you turn the tables on me, I can''t do anything about it. You''re really great."


    Why would he say that in the middle of a brawl like this?


    "I have one thing to say to you."


    "...What?"


    I listened to the mumbling, which continued at such a close distance that the adults couldn''t pick it up.


    "I''ve decided to leave this facility."


    "Only the outcasts get out of here."


    "So I''m going to drop out and get out of here. If you look at the dropouts'' tendencies and the adults who have to deal with them, you can imagine what kind of paths they take. At least I won''t be killed."


    "What are you going to do out there? Is there a point to that?"


    "Yes. I want freedom."


    "Freedom?"


    "I want to be free. I want to have friends. Isn''t it normal to feel that way? Look around you. It''s just me and you. We''re going to be like this for over ten years."


    I didn''t understand what Shiro meant.


    Why would he want that?


    "Don''t you care about the outside world? Or are you able to withstand this pain in the first ce?"


    I had never had any such interest or doubts.


    "One-sided knowledge and this small space��are you satisfied with that?"


    "At least I''m notining."


    I''m definitely growing every day in the White Room.


    Didn''t he want to know how far he could grow and what his limits were?


    You can''t get this kind of education in the outside world. This means that you will lose efficiency in self-improvement.


    "...You''re weird. I want to see the real world, not the virtual one."


    Objectively speaking, I had seen many children who were sick and tired of their constrained lives, but the idea of dropping out because I couldn''t take it anymore never came to me.


    "I was convinced when Yuki dropped out. I even envied her."


    "I see."


    If that was the answer Shiro gave, then I had nothing to say.


    "I thought you were just like me. I thought you''d want to be out in the world someday."


    "I''m sorry, but I''ve never thought that."


    <Illustration>


    "...I see. I was going to ask you to leave with me..."


    I was sure the adults watching over him didn''t know this as well as I did.


    They didn''t know that Shiro had such an enormous amount of feelings about this ce.


    There was this established notion between the administrators that the children couldn''t know what we didn''t tell them. But the reality was that there were other people, like the one in front of me, who desired to leave the White Room as soon as possible.


    I didn''t know if this discovery meant anything as long as I was thest one standing.


    "I''m going to go ahead and see you again sometime, Kiyotaka."


    I didn''t reply to his words.


    I only felt his extraordinary determination. I also sensed a determination that I had never felt before, a determination to defeat me in this battle. The opponent in front of me wasn''t an easy opponentpared to a half-baked adult. And yet...


    "KUK!"


    Shiro''s attack was repelled, and I got a clean blow.


    I couldn''t lose to an opponent who had learned from the same mistakes I had made.


    If he exerted a power of 120, I exerted 130.


    If he exerted 140, I exerted 150.


    I don''t care about thefort of the White Room or the freedom outside.


    The important thing was that there was still much to learn here.


    As long as I could improve myself, I shouldn''t avoid it.


    In other words, my intellectual curiosity was telling me to stay in this White Room.


    "That''s it!"


    Even though there was no judge nearby, we were always being watched from another room on the second floor, behind the ss.


    Shiro mmed the ball down on the tatami mat, and we were informed that the game had been decided.


    "I lost again after all. I should''ve remembered from when I won."


    He rested his arm on his forehead, breathless, and spoke of his faded memories.


    "It was five years of losing all the time. I guess I realized that I couldn''t win if I stayed here .."


    "Are you really going to drop out?"


    "Yeah. I''ll leave the White Room when the time is right."


    He wasn''t going to change his mind.


    I didn''t understand. To leave the White Room was to die, no matter what form it took.


    I couldn''t think like that.


    But Shiro must have had his own thoughts.


    If he wanted to kill himself, I wouldn''t stop him.


    "Goodbye, Shiro."


    "Goodbye, Kiyotaka."


    This was thest conversation between Shiro and me.


    ������


    Not long after that, Shiro dropped out. The only other student was gone.


    From this point on, my memory became more monotonous.


    There was no one to really talk to. Some days, depending on the curriculum, other than to shovel food down my throat, I really didn''t open my mouth.


    But even after being alone, what I did hadn''t changed.


    If anything had changed, it was the general martial arts.


    Up until now, I had beenpeting with the same White Room students, but now that they were no longer with me, all of my opponents became adults.


    By the time I turned nine years old, I had defeated all the instructors who had taught me everything I knew about martial arts.


    That was probably why the instructors were in a hurry to gather up in the room.


    "Kiyotaka, you are now going to fight several people in a real battle. This is the culmination of everything you''ve learned so far. You are permitted to use any means necessary."


    "Yes."


    "Also, don''t hold back at all. You can do it with the intention to kill them."


    "Does that mean I can actually kill them?"


    "Unless we stop you, you can take us at our word. Be very careful."


    "Yes."


    I was in arge training room and a group of adults in suits walked in.


    I had never seen them before.


    When they saw me, they made silly faces and startedughing.


    "I thought it was a joke when they said we''re really supposed to fight this kid seriously."


    They were clearly different from the adults I had seen teaching fighting techniques.


    Their movements weren''t fluid, but rough and spirited.


    These were opponents who were capable of irregr fights in an uphill battle rather than an even ying field.


    Unlike previously, pure physical strength was no match for them. The difference in muscle mass is obvious.


    They were the kind of guys that, in a head-on fight, you''d have no chance of winning 100 out of 100 times against.


    "Yes, it''s ridiculous, but don''t cut corners. We''re talking about people paying that kind of money just to subdue one kid. You''d think they''d have unusual skills."


    It was one of the men who seemed to have some standing among the men that spoke.


    "Listen,e at us with the intention of killing us. No, try to kill us. With that much spirit and determination, if you don''te at me with a general idea of what to do, I''d be a little heartbroken beating you up."


    The man who seemed to be the leader of the group instructed me to do so.


    I was going to do it. I already had my orders.


    "We''ll give you some weapons if you need them."


    He said and ced his shoes on the ground.


    The sound of metal scraping against metal echoed off the floor.


    "I don''t need it."


    "...You want to do it with your bare hands?"


    "Yes."


    "You''re probably not joking around but... I''m serious too. Just pick one."


    "Sir, is that an order?"


    I turned to the instructor, who was looking down at me from upstairs and asked for orders.


    "That''s an order. Do as the man says. I''m sure you should''ve been taught how to use all of them already."


    Then I''ll just obey.


    I looked in the bag.


    "Baton, stun gun, knife��whatever you want."


    Sure enough, I had seen them, held them, and learned how to use them in past courses.


    For simple killing power, I''d go for the knife, but I wanted more reach.


    "I''ll take this one."


    Without hesitation, I reached for the baton and grabbed it.


    The baton was about 30 centimeters long.


    "Do you know how to use it?"


    "You swing it and it grows to about 80 centimeters. You hit with it, right?"


    "That''s right."


    In order to win, I must urately hit the weak points of the human body.


    He had probably never fought a fighter of my stature before.


    I needed to take advantage of the fact that I was small and short, making it difficult to face me.


    After a few minutes, when thest adult fell down with his leg smashed by the baton, I raised it. I struck him on the skull and knocked him unconscious with one blow.


    If that didn''t work, I would''ve just delivered a second blow that would shatter his skull.


    "Stop! Stop!"


    I heard a voice echoing through the room, and I stopped moving and threw the baton lightly into the distance.


    Adults rushed into the room and helped the fallen adults up.


    "Oh my god... We''ve got to get him to the infirmary right away!"


    The medical team, who had seen his condition and realized that he was seriously injured, carried him out on a stretcher.


    "What the hell were you doing, Kiyotaka?"


    <Illustration>


    "I was ordered to kill him."


    To be sure, I even asked again to confirm if it was really alright.


    "What''s the problem with that?"


    The instructors were stunned by the situation, but soon after, the door to the room opened.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei!"


    "You guys take care of these guys. I''d like to have a meeting with Kiyotaka. Follow me."


    Orders were absolute.


    I followed him without a second thought.


    Usually, there were several instructors by my side, but today it seemed to be just one.


    "As I''m sure you''re aware by now, I''m in charge of the White Room and I''m your father."


    "I know who you are."


    "I''ve never imed to be your father, but when did you ever learn that?"


    "I remember from when I was four years old... when I overheard you talking with the instructors."


    "I see. You''re a fourth-generation student and you continued to dominate. And the next thing you know, you''re the only one left, just silently perfecting the curriculum... No, you continue to exceed it."


    To me, the existence of a father was nothing special.


    It was just a fact. Nothing more, nothing less.


    "You are special to me."


    "..."


    "The White Room has only been in operation for a short period of time, about 14 or 15 years, but even so, I don''t see a vision of a genius like you being born in the next few years or so. Of course, with each sessive term, they are steadily reducing their shorings and oveing their problems one step at a time..."


    It seemed certain that I was being praised.


    Just like the talk about being my father, these were simply facts.


    "You can go back now."


    "Excuse me."


    What was the meaning of that conversation?


    Perhaps it had something to do with the device attached to my arm.


    As if to confirm this, the man said.


    "How did it go?"


    "During the fight and during the conversation with Ayanokouji-sensei, there was not even the slightest disturbance in Kiyotaka''s pulse."


    "His heartbeat was untouched even though I said he was special, or... No, I think it''s safe to say that his human emotions havepletely stopped functioning.


    "It''s both a strength and an indelible weakness for Kiyotaka."


    "Ishida is right. Emotions are a low priority, but they''re still essential. Even half of what''s left in an average person is enough, but in Kiyotaka''s case, there''s almost none. He''s suitable and unsuitable at the same time to be an educator, politician, or any other use."


    The two talked about various things in front of me, without hiding anything.


    I wondered if this was part of the curriculum.


    It didn''t matter what was praised and what was criticized.


    All that mattered was whether I dropped out or not.


    "It''s probably impossible for him to learn to feel emotions in the White Room environment, isn''t it?"


    "Yes, but he can use lies to his advantage when necessary. He may not have a lot of emotion, but he''s mastered the art of pretending to be something he''s not."


    "That''s the problem. It''s toote for him to learn to express his emotions now in the White Room. Then we have no choice but to drastically change the environment."


    "...I don''t understand."


    "You don''t understand?"


    "We''ve educated many children from the first generation to the thirteenth generation that''s currently in progress. The difficulty level of the curriculum has been very different, but clearly, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is different. This isn''t because he''s the son of Ayanokouji-sensei, but because he''s an anomaly.


    "Indeed, that''s true. No matter how harsh the environment is, Kiyotaka showed adaptability sooner orter. Every child has a teau, but why is Kiyotaka the only one who doesn''t have one? Why is it that the more you teach him, the more he absorbs everything as if he were swallowing it all?"


    "I don''t know... It''s easy to say that it''s a gic inheritance, but the White Room will never be trulyplete without a thorough investigation of what''s going on."


    "If I can get a steady supply of people who are as good or better than this kid, my ideal will be realized. Figure it out. Don''t give up on the idea until you understand it. That''s what you''re being paid for."


    I continued my education. What awaited me at the end of it all and whatid beyond the quest for knowledge.


    That was all I wanted to know.


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 Chapter 342 - 6: Hopelessness and a Way of Life

    <h4>Chapter 342: Chapter 6: Hopelessness and a Way of Life</h4>


    TOKYO WAS UNUSUALLY HIT by heavy snowfall.


    The garden seen from the corridor window was lit up with a scenery of a snowy night.


    Kamogawa and I were light on our feet and headed for the appointed location ahead of the others.


    On the way, Kamogawa stopped and looked at the snowyndscape. "Do you remember? More than ten years ago, when we were waiting for


    Naoe-sensei under the cold weather."


    "Yes, it seems like it was only a few days ago."


    "That day, Ayanokouji-san took charge of the White Room Project and appointed me as well. It''s been a lot of hard work, but we''ve made it this far."


    That''s true. There are more than one or two secrets that you can''t tell people and must take to your grave.


    "You have grown up a lot. I see you''ve learned the rudiments of politics." "Thank you, Naoe-sensei, Ayanokouji-san... No, working under


    Ayanokouji-sensei has been a great step forward for me. The only thing I regret is not being able to report to my father, who passed awayst year..."


    Kamogawa''s father passed away around this timest year after suffering a heart attack.


    It had been Kamogawa''s goal to tell him directly about the White Room Project''s release.


    The state should provide institutions that take in and nurture children.


    The Advanced Nurturing High School is a pioneer now, but it will go further than that.


    An institution that saves the lives of unborn children.


    An institution that educates children and produces geniuses.


    The White Room Project is what the world will absolutely need in the future.


    Lives thrown down the toilet. Lives cut off by abortion. Lives killed by abandonment.


    Under the leadership of the government, we will eliminate all of these problems.


    It''s a n that will also help to address the problem of declining birthrates. "We''re going to achieve results that will reach the heavens. Don''t be satisfied


    now, Kamogawa."


    "Yes, sir."


    Today was a special day. Things were different from the time when we were waiting for Naoe-sensei in the cold.


    The White Room experiment had been steadily producing results, despite its many twists and turns.


    Finally, it was the day I would report to Naoe-sensei in detail and go out on the stage.


    The first step toward seeing the light of day was about to begin.


    This was something that couldn''t have been done without a lot of hard work and perseverance.


    We were supposed to take our seats first and wait for Naoe-sensei to appear in the upper section.


    I knew it was polite to wait outside, but this was Naoe-sensei''s order. In other words, I interpreted it as a sign of appreciation for my hard work.


    "With this project''s announcement, Naoe-sensei finally stands at the top of the country."


    "Prime minister, huh...?"


    He was now fully prepared for the forting election.


    "He won''t just be the prime minister. Not only will he be honored on the front page, but he''ll be one or two times more powerful than the previous prime ministers."


    In the truest sense of the word, he will be the man at the top of this country.


    I''m rarely nervous, but I could feel my heartbeat speeding up slightly.


    I put my political life on the line for this project.


    I dreamed over and over again of the day when it would pay off.


    "Naoe-sensei is here."


    After a long, yet short 30 minutes, the news of Naoe-sensei''s arrival came. "You arrived earlier than I expected."


    He was only ten minuteste from the appointed time.


    I had nned to wait an hour or two without worrying about him beingte, but I was surprised.


    "Is that how interested Naoe-sensei is in you?"


    I lightly warned Kamogawa as he happily spoke.


    From that point on, we put aside our loose feelings and began a serious discussion with Naoe-sensei.


    Before the shoji was opened, we sat on our knees and bowed our heads, rubbing our foreheads against the ground.


    I heard Naoe-sensei''s dignified, quiet footsteps.


    "I''m sorry for keeping you waiting."


    Naoe-sensei appeared and apologized for his tardiness.


    I couldn''t help but feel a strange tugging at my insides when he said those words.


    "No, sir, of course not. Thank you foring all the way here today in the


    cold."


    As I said this, I shook the unnecessary thoughts out of my head.


    I shouldn''t worry about it.


    I was definitely on my way up the stairs to fulfill my ambitions.


    "Just raise your head. We''re not getting anywhere."


    "Yes��"


    Kamogawa and I raised our heads and quickly reached for our sses to pour Naoe-sensei a beer.


    But Naoe-sensei stopped us.


    "Before you do that, I need to talk to you," he said.


    "I beg your pardon?"


    Kamogawa quickly stepped aside and returned to listening to what Sensei had to say.


    "I have a few things to tell you. Well, let''s start with that."


    After a slight pause, Naoe-sensei muttered as if remembering something he forgot.


    "As for the next election, I''ve decided not to run."


    "...Huh?"


    For a moment, I didn''t understand what Naoe-sensei said, and for the first time, I gave a dumb reply.


    I guess it was the same for Kamogawa who was sat next to me.


    The ringing in my ears was intense in the silence.


    "Sensei... That''s some kind of a joke, isn''t it?"


    The words came out naturally from Kamogawa''s mouth rather than as a confirmation.


    I would''ve said the same thing even if he hadn''t taken the liberty of saying


    it.


    "It''s true. The day after tomorrow, when the candidates will be announced, I will vote for Kijima."


    Kijima? Why is Naoe-sensei choosing Kijima-sensei?


    No matter how promising he was, Naoe-sensei was in a better position than Kijima-sensei.


    "Wait a minute. You''ve made a lot of preparations for this moment��!" As I leaned forward, I couldn''t hold back my emotions.


    I knew that bing the prime minister wasn''t everything.


    In fact, the Naoe-sensei that was in front of me had his chances in the past, but he remained a fixer in the shadows for many years without sticking to his post.


    Still, it was a foregone conclusion that he would be the prime minister this time around.


    In fact, if he didn''t run for the prime minister''s office... He would be practically giving up his prime minister''s seat.


    Once Kijima-sensei takes over the position, he would surely hold on to it. Naoe-sensei''s faction would start to lose its cohesive power and he would


    never have the opportunity to be prime minister again.


    Considering the fact that he had withdrawn his position, one can''t help but think that something bad had happened.


    And that could have a huge impact on the White Room.


    I had to check because I knew instinctively.


    What surprised me the most was that it was Kijima-sensei that Naoe-sensei decided to support.


    "Oh, that Kijima-sensei... You''re a clear adversary of his... Right?" Kamogawa couldn''t help but mention the name.


    The number of candidates from the Citizen''s Party for the election had been narrowed down to three, both inside and outside the government and in the media. The main candidate was Naoe-sensei, who was right in front of me, and the runners-up were Isomaru-sensei, his rival, and Kijima-sensei, who came a littleter. These three were the only candidates who had the ticket to be the prime minister, and Naoe-sensei was definitely the first candidate.


    "I had no intention of making him prime minister, but that''s no longer the case," he said.


    "You think you won''t be able to get votes...?"


    "That''s how it is. The votes for me, Isomaru, and Kijima were nicely divided among the Citizens Party, but now it seems that some of the opposition parties have decided to destroy me. I''ve calcted that I won''t even get 20 to 30 votes."


    After trying all the strategies, Naoe-sensei had a resigned smile on his face. "Even if I do well, if I fail, I''ll lose a lot of my appeal. If that''s the case, I''ll


    have no choice but to support him instead of running for office while protecting my current position, right? He''s still young, but he has momentum and power. I thoroughly fumbled around for scandals, but not a single speck of dust has turned up..."


    A politician with no women, no money, and nothing to hide.


    He was capable of utilizing his abilities just as he had always been doing. "But in that case, wouldn''t it be better to rmend Isomaru-sensei? He may be a rival within the same party, but he must also be an old acquaintance. I


    don''t think there''s any need to rmend Kijima-sensei, who''s difficult to handle..."


    He would not be thinking so childishly that he doesn''t want to let his colleagues have credit where credit is due.


    If he decided that it was right for him to be under Isomaru-sensei, there would be no need to hesitate.


    "You already know that it''s better to be under Kijima, don''t you? If we try to force our way onto Isomaru''s ship, there''s a strong possibility that we''ll fall together. There are many voices from our faction saying that Kijima is the best choice between the two."


    Even Naoe-sensei was afraid of defection if he tried to force his way into Isomaru-sensei''s side.


    I had no idea that he had been pushed to this point.


    I thought I had been in on the political scene, but it seems that even I hadn''t been exposed to the other side of the story.


    "Oh, it''s too early to give up, Naoe-sensei. We have the White Room Project!"


    "Stop it, Kamogawa."


    Kamogawa tried to talk back, but I strongly restrained him.


    "If you''ve made that decision, then we will abide by it. But you know that the White Room Project is a different matter, don''t you?"


    Naoe-sensei''s support for Kijima-sensei was promised, of course. In other words, it should be a given that he would receive almost the same post as before. We could safely conclude that it wouldn''t have that much of an impact.


    However...


    "That''s what I came to see you about today. I''m sorry for all the work you''ve done for me over the years, but I''m going to have to ask you to stay quiet for a while."


    He spoke what I least wanted to hear, and my cold sweat began to pour out


    of me.


    "...What do you mean, Naoe-sensei?"


    Even though I was beginning to understand the situation, I couldn''t admit it. "You know what I mean. I know what you''re going to say, but all of that


    will only happen if I can maintain my position. You understand that, don''t you?"


    "...Of course."


    "Sure, I''ve been unofficially promised my next post. But that''s not a fort that''s been won. It is thest stronghold that I defended in the face of defeat in the factional war. We can''t promote the White Room Project, which has the potential to generate controversy here."


    If Naoe-sensei were to make a bad move, Kijima-sensei''s side won''t remain


    silent.


    It was obvious that we would be suspected of trying to gain more centrality by taking the credit. The logic is quite understandable.


    "Ayanokouji. you are an excellent man."


    "...Thank you very much."


    "You know very well that I don''t judge you only by your educational background since I picked you up from the ''have-nots.''"


    "In the world of politics, both now and in the past, a specific level of academic background is required, and if it weren''t for your way of thinking, you wouldn''t have used a man like me."


    Naoe-sensei nodded and took a breath.


    "For better or worse, people who have been in politics for a long time are all copycats who imitate what the people around them do; they''re ipetent people with only their academic backgrounds to them. Theye to think that it''s enough


    to maintain the politician title and a high ie. Politicians who aspire to be righteous or aim to be viins are equally engulfed."


    Naoe-sensei reached for his empty ss but quickly withdrew his hand. "But Kijima has never changed. He''s serious about politics."


    I wondered if Naoe-sensei had ever praised his opponent in such a straightforward way.


    He was no longer thinking about the battle after it was over.


    "I feel the same way about you. You are the same, just in a different way." "...Yes. My beliefs and principles will never change."


    "To be the best in the country... That''s your goal, isn''t it?" "Yes."


    "I have no doubts. But that would mean we have to beat Kijima. He''s a real piece of work, isn''t he?"


    "He is. He''s got ambition. But if Naoe-sensei supports Kijima-sensei, let me follow suit. From now on, for the sake of Naoe-sensei and Kijima-sensei��"


    "��As I said before, you''d bettery low for a while."


    Oh, Is that so?


    I had a bad feeling about this.


    I guess it turned out to be true.


    "...I don''t understand."


    "You''ve be an eyesore for Kijima. He''s heard about all the fancy things you''ve been doing with the businessmunity over the past few years. Do you understand? I can''t have a guy like that working for me."


    "That''s just what you told me to do. To build a facility beyond the high school, to change this country... Didn''t you tell us to do it thoroughly?"


    Naoe-sensei''s face changed.


    "You''ve been running the White Room enough and amassed quite a bit of money. You''ve got deep connections to the Yakuza and you''re bing more than just a politician. Ah, aren''t I right?. Did I tell you to go that far? You''ve been going around doing all that fuss to protect yourself. Do you know how many times I''ve had to put out fires behind the scenes over thest few years?"


    His tone of voice changed, and before I knew it, strong reprimands began to


    fly.


    "So... What are you going to do about the White Room Project?


    "It''s a done deal. That''s a nk piece of paper."


    "You can''t tell me that... It''s a nk piece of paper..."


    Kamogawa''s expression, which had still been half-joyful earlier, had turned to one of despair.


    I remained as firm as a Buddha statue, but there was no denying that I still had a grim look on my face.


    The White Room Project��a nk sheet of paper?


    Did he know how much effort I put into the project?


    I couldn''t let that be reduced to a single phrase: a nk paper.


    ...No, it had always been that way.


    With a single word from Naoe-sensei, any case could be moved to the right or to the left.


    There was nothing special about it.


    If we showed any kind of defiance here, we would only offend Naoe-sensei. He was disrespectful to us young people, and that was why he came up to us


    like this.


    If we didn''t act maturely and calmly, we would be caught t-footed.


    If you were kicked out for being a cocky guy, you would never get a chance to be useful again.


    I had enough money to be the envy of others.


    Even if Naoe-sensei discarded me, it was possible that I wouldn''t encounter any issues living my life.


    But as a politician... I could never make aeback.


    Then my ambition won''t be realized.


    "That''s the way it is. No hard feelings."


    So this is how it all ends.


    Naoe-sensei seemingly has no intention of taking his time eating here.


    So atst, I didn''t care to even hold my ss.


    "When Kijima acknowledges that you don''t have fangs, I''ll bring you forward again. It''s all right."


    To survive as a politician.


    Throw out the White Room and start over.


    It was my only choice.


    I know.


    I know.


    I know��.


    "Don''t be ridiculous."


    This time, I couldn''t be as calm and smart as I usually am.


    I couldn''t have done that.


    Did he know how hard I worked for this project?


    More than a decade of hard work in order to make it a reality just to end up giving up everything?


    I won''t let it all go to waste.


    "The White Room has received a lot of funding and is still operating. There''s no way we can withdraw it now."


    "Oh? Who are you talking to, Ayanokouji?"


    He was so overbearing that it was hard to believe that he was just an old


    man.


    He was neither intimidated nor offended by my bluster, but simply turned his dark eyes on me.


    For Naoe, who had been in politics for decades, this kind of thing was amon urrence.


    But it would be the same if I pulled out now.


    Now that I had drawn my bow, there was no backing out.


    "I told you to go back to the drawing board. Bow down and writhe to undo your mistakes. If you can''t do that, hang yourself."


    "You''re telling me this now?"


    "What the hell do you expect me to say?"


    "I''m not convinced."


    "I don''t care if you agree with me or not, I said I''m calling it off." "Then what about me? I''ve only ever been under your tutge, and I''ve


    given up many benefits for this project. Even if I get to keep my title as a politician, it''s useless if I can''t do anything."


    "You have to be patient for a few years. When it''s over, I''ll move you on to the next job."


    Could I believe that?


    I couldn''t believe it.


    "Under your directions, I have been working solely on this project... This...


    I can''t allow this absurdity to continue...!"


    I could only mourn.


    I couldn''t help butment.


    "I know how you feel. But you know better. That''s the way this world works. And I''ve given you my full backing. I helped you get reelected so that you could move forward with your project. That''s how you got reelected with the least amount of effort. Isn''t that right?"


    It was true that I entrusted Naoe-sensei with all of the campaigning that would normally be required.


    And I owed him a debt of gratitude for getting me elected.


    But if he overturned the tables at this point, that favor alone wouldn''t be enough.


    "I am grateful for that. But��"


    "If you get too attached to one project, you''ll lose your footing."


    Why was I hanging on so tightly?


    Perhaps Kamogawa, who was shrinking next to me, had no idea.


    It wasn''t that I hated the fact that the White Room Project was going to fail, or that I was still obsessed with it. It was because I knew what the future held.


    For Naoe-sensei, "I" turned into something to be discarded.


    He said he''d give me another chance and leave me with nothing to do until the time of the election, but when the electiones, he''ll throw me out without any support.


    How many times have I seen politicians cut in front of my eyes in the same


    way?


    In other words, my fate as a politician was sealed as soon as the White Room was presented as a nk piece of paper.


    My instinct was to resist at least until the end, and I chose to fight.


    "So I''m the only one who has to cover my tracks... You mean to say I''m the only one who can get muddled?"


    "You''re still young. Unlike me, you''ll get many more chances. But for me, it''s now or never. I can''t back down now. I''m going to die a politician."


    "Sensei..."


    "I''m not asking you to quit politics. I''m just asking you to be quiet." "You''re not going to cut me off, are you?"


    "Of course not. I won''t harm you. Kijima was very harsh with you, but he seemed to think highly of you, too. If you keep quiet for a while, your time wille. I''ll ask you to show me what you can do then."


    I guess it''s all over...


    "��I understand."


    "Okay, that''s good."


    "You''re right, the White Room Project is over with. I will start working on the cleanup tomorrow."


    I bowed deeply.


    "Thank you for your cooperation."


    The Naoe-sensei that was in front of me had already lost all interest in me. Whether I was capable or not was irrelevant. He just won''t take advantage of


    me anymore. I was cut off in conjunction with the project.


    ������


    "...Damn."


    In the room where Naoe had disappeared from, only Kamogawa was left in tears and the food was cold.


    "Don''t joke with me��!"


    I shouted out my unexined thoughts.


    "You''re going to give me a hand one of these days, huh? Don''t make meugh..."


    Once you drop out of politics, it''s all over.


    Once you try to make aeback, you''ll be crushed.


    "What''s going to happen to us now? ...Is this the end of everything? I don''t know..."


    Should I have punched him first...?


    No, it would''ve meant nothing to me if I had punched Naoe right there and then and enjoyed the momentary pleasure of it.


    I would be locked up immediately and lose not only my political identity, but everything I''ve ever done.


    In a quarrel between children, it was enough to show one''s strength by punching each other.


    But in this world, arm strength is only one of many weapons, and they''re weak at that.


    Naoe, who appeared to be nothing more than an old man, had a myriad of weapons.


    "Don''t think you can get away with using them all conveniently, Naoe..."


    I mmed my fist down on the tatami mat with all the force I could muster and let out my frustration.


    In the end, I was just used and discarded.


    In the world of politics, once you fall down, it''s hopeless to get up. The stakes are high, and that''s the end of it.


    "I''m finished?"


    Even if I put it into words, I would never feel the reality of it.


    Did he have any idea how much I''ve suffered in order to change this country��to rise to the top of this country? How much humiliation, ostracism, and contempt I had suffered?


    The man was no longer of any use to me.


    But if I tried to make a new move, I''d be crushed.


    Naoe and I were two sides of the same coin. If you destroy him on the front end, you automatically destroy me on the other side. Until he retires or even dies, I waspletely blocked froming back.


    Then... If he dies, it meant I''d have a chance to get moving again.


    Should I call Ohba and have him take care of Naoe?


    "I''m an idiot..."


    If I make such a request, Ohba would just cut me off.


    I don''t even need to think about which side would benefit him more. "Kamogawa... you''ll have to start all over again tomorrow." "That''s... That''s the only way... What are you going to do,


    Ayanokouji-sensei? You''re not going to ignore Naoe-sensei''s order, are you?"


    "...I''m finished anyway. Stopping my resistance now won''t change the way


    I''m treated. I''ll quit politics and continue to run the White Room."


    "Wait a minute! I respect you, Ayanokouji-sensei! I think you''ll surpass Naoe-sensei one day, someday! Please don''t tell me you''re quitting!"


    "This is the course of action. I can''t overturn it by my own will. But you can still survive. You still have your father''s influence. Continue to fight under Naoe as a politician."


    "Ayanokouji-sensei...!"


    "I''m not giving up the White Room or politics." That was the only way.


    "No matter how powerful Naoe is, he can''t win against his lifespan. He''ll die before we will."


    If it has to take so long, so be it.


    I''ll let him enjoy his short political life to the fullest.


    But when it''s over, I''m gonna��


    Iughed and pped Kamogawa on the shoulder.


    "It''s not just Kijima. When Ie back to politics, I''ll make his son goes up in smokes too."


    "Hahaha. When you say it, it doesn''t sound like a joke." Kamogawa''s cheeks rxed as he wiped away his tears.


    ������


    After I put Kamogawa in a cab and he was taken home, I started walking alone on the dark snowy road.


    I was alone now, and I needed to cool my hot head down.


    I had to think about the future. I needed to know everything and clear my mind before I do that. I called that man on the cell phone.


    It waste at night, but I was sure the call would go through.


    "Tsukishiro, answer me. Why did Naoe give up his position to join Kijima?" "That''s a funny thing to ask considering you called me." "You know everything, don''t you?"


    "Naoe-sensei has always prided himself on being the best politician. But now he understands that Kijima-sensei is more than that."


    "Foolish."


    "Although the two of us have very different philosophies, we have more inmon than you might think."


    "So... You think I''m gonna buy that?"


    "Your involvement in the White Room isn''t something Kijima-sensei would appreciate."


    "What are you talking about? That guy has ANHS. We could even make the White Room his second maneuver."


    "ANHS is certainly one of his main operations. But at the same time, he was working on a simr new n behind the scenes. In other words, his second maneuver was already in motion. It wouldn''t have been desirable for him to have that ne out in front of the public."


    "...That''s why Naoe cut me off, huh...?"


    "I don''t know at what stage he learned of this, but Kijima-sensei heard about the White Room... I can say that he had a discussion with Naoe-sensei and one of the quid pro quo for calling it off was that he was promised a position in the future."


    I didn''t realize that Kijima was also thinking of a n very simr to the White Room.


    "That''s not all. You were much more capable than Naoe-sensei had imagined. In the past few years, he relied on you a lot, but didn''t you think you had a lot of unreasonable demands as well?"


    "...Yes."


    "That''s probably because he was afraid of you. Along the way, they came to expect your downfall rather than taking advantage of you. But you didn''t fail. No, you never once failed. You managed to cover your tracks and kept a low profile.


    Naoe-sensei didn''t raise you to the top. He was expecting your son to be his right-hand man to support him when he bes a powerful enough man to lead the country in the future. Naoe''s eye to see through everything had made only one wrong calction. Your limitless ambition��that much he didn''t seem to understand."


    In ten years, even Naoe wouldn''t be able to crush me.


    So he took steps to prevent that from happening.


    Was shutting down the White Room a gift for my son, or a bomb for me who might destroy him?


    "Was my answer satisfactory to you?"


    "Why were you so honest with me?"


    "I wouldn''t be talking to you if you were the one to be destroyed here. But my gut tells me otherwise. You wille back to the stage with more power. That''s why I told you."


    "A wise decision. But of course, you''re going to y nice no matter what happens, aren''t you?"


    "That''s a foolish question."


    This guy wasn''t just on my side. He could be on anyone''s side at any time.


    If he found me ipetent, he''d cut me off instantaneously.


    "You can sell my information to Naoe or anyone you want. In return, I''ll receive information from you. It''s better for both of us if we can keep an eye on each other at all times."


    "I agree."


    "We''re going to be friends for a long time, Tsukishiro." "I hope so. Ayanokouji-sensei."


    Saying this, Tsukishiro hung up the phone.


    Yes, I wasn''t going to stop here.


    I''m going to thoroughly prepare myself and build up my strength to protect my own life in the future.


    And at the same time, I''ll build up my army in the White Room.[14]


    (TL Note: A time skip urs after this line)[14]


    200 meters high, 50 floors above ground.


    A banquet on the middle floor of one of the tallest and most prestigious hotels in Tokyo. I arrived a little before the scheduled time and was thinking in the elevator as it started to ascend.


    It would cost about 3,000,000 yen for a three-hour private party, just to serve food to about 60 people.


    It might sound like a small expense, but considering the bleak financial situation, it wasn''t cheap.


    The parties were held every year since the facility began operations, and the scale of the parties has gradually increased.


    We needed to raise more money than ever before.


    Since Naoe had cut me off, the majority of the wealthy supporters turned their backs on me.


    The fact that I was down to 60 supporters from the 200 I used to have was a testament to that.


    I needed money. I needed to raise hundreds of millions of dors.


    All that was needed here today was one''s own skill.


    My eyes met my reflection in the huge elevator''s full-length ss wall.


    I was getting very old.


    Looking back, I could calmly reflect on my age.


    It was a miracle that I had been able to keep the White Room running.


    But I still had a long way to go.


    It had been a while since I was ousted from politics, but the fire of my own ambitions hadn''t been extinguished but was burning brighter than ever.


    I arrived at the floor I wanted to go to, got off the elevator, and went to the waiting room.


    I lost my title as a politician, and now I was treated as an ex-politician. Under normal circumstances, my coercive power would be greatly


    diminished.


    However, my title as head of the White Room operations steadily increased my power.


    Otherwise, those so-called wealthy people wouldn''t be here.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei, it''s about time."


    "Ah."


    I had many thoughts on the matter, but the first priority was to solve the financial issue.


    Therger the size of the White Room, the more it costs to maintain it. In order to cover these costs, we needed to generate the money for the necessities, not money to be thrown away.


    "Oh, sorry to keep you waiting."


    "You''re getting restless. How many times do you have to go to the bathroom?"


    Tabuchi returned to the waiting room, sat down on a chair, and started to move his left leg up and down in small steps.


    "When are you going to get out of this habit of yours?" "I''m sorry, but If I don''t get this chance... I''m worried."


    Surely, a shortfall in funds would put the White Room project on the brink of a major impasse.


    It would be better if it was only a temporary pause, but it would be fatal to end our students'' education.


    It would be like raising baby birds and then having them die of a disease. "Listen, Tabuchi. We cannot turn our backs on the fact that there''s no way out. But that''s why we have to take a strong step forward without looking back.


    Think about what happens after you fall."


    Tabuchi looked up at me as the speed of his shaking left foot slowed. "You''re very strong, Ayanokouji-sensei."


    "Considering all I''ve been through, it doesn''t matter... Naoe used me, the White Room Project was canceled, and I lost my title as a politician..."


    And yet, I never stopped moving forward.


    I was proud of the fact that I had been walking on the road of hell all my life��something I couldn''t reveal to others.


    Aside from people like Naoe and Kijima, it had reached the point where it was no longer easy for a mere politician to gain an audience with me.


    I may have lost my title as a politician, but there was no doubt that I had surpassed my former self.


    I noticed that Tabuchi''s legs had stopped shaking and his fists were clenched. I had to show the people who believed in the White Room what I was


    capable of doing, I can''t let them regret it.


    "Do you think you have a chance in today''s battle?"


    "Of course. Do you know what the easiest and most powerful weapon that anyone can use is?"


    "...What? Is there such a thing?"


    "Yes, there is. Of course, it''s a risky double-edged sword. It''s called lying." "A lie...?"


    "Some people have risen through the political world using the strength of a lie. That''s how powerful a lie can be."


    Of course, a lie was only meaningful if you used it well.


    "We''ll make full use of this weapon. Tabuchi, this is the moment of truth in the White Room."


    "...Yes!"


    ������


    The first thing rich people did was dress up in their finest clothes andpete on their outside appearance.


    Then they moved on to thepetition to disy their houses, cars, andpanies.


    But then they ended up in unexpected ces.


    Usually, only adults attended these parties, and children were rarely seen. However, when it came to the business world''s top echelon, the opposite was true and the number of children attendees immediately increased.


    This was because the children were expected to meet each other in the future.


    Companies that cooperated with each other. Companies that were rivals. It wasn''t always bad to have their sessors face-to-face in advance, regardless of their positions.


    Above all, the more highly the parents thought of their children, the more often they brought them in.


    The parents there would y their unique cards as if they were showing off their prized toys.


    That was why the White Room had been epted by the business world. "Huh..."


    Ironic, isn''t it? I learned all of this from Naoe.


    He may be a detested enemy now, but his power was undeniably top-notch and genuine.


    The party had just begun. First of all, I greeted everyone while I showed my face to the whole floor.


    "It''s been a long time, Ayanokouji-sensei."


    A man with a shy hair color, unbefitting his middle-aged face approached me with a cheerful attitude.


    I quickly switched to my business face, turned around, and offered him my right hand.


    "It''s been a while, President Amasawa. I sent you an invitation, but I was afraid you might note."


    "I''m sorry I couldn''t make itst year. My child really wanted to spend her birthday in Hawaii. I''ve been so busy with work that I just couldn''t find the time. So we ended up buying a house in Hawaii and have been there ever since."


    "I''m d to hear that your work and personal life are going well."


    He should be a little older than me, but in an unpleasant manner, I didn''t feel that way.


    He was dressed in a brand favored by young people and wore sandals that didn''t suit the asion.


    With that kind of attire, which couldn''t even be considered within the dress code, it was no wonder that he''d be turned away at the door if he was greeted by a stranger.


    He wasn''t normal. He was trying to show that he was a unique and original person.


    I didn''t like this man''s clothes or his way of thinking at all, but I couldn''t resent him because he was one of the people who had given arge sum of money to the White Room.


    He didn''t attend the partyst year, but he was able to offer funding for the White Room.


    He was a wee person and should be treated with care.


    "It seems like you''re no longer a politician, however, it doesn''t feel that way to me. You''re an evil politician no matter which way you look at it."


    He smiled pleasantly as he pat my shoulder with the palm of his hand. "So you''ll treat me the same way you treat politicians?" "Of course I will. I think highly of you, you know."


    As we were having this silly conversation, I was thinking back to what Amasawa had said from the beginning.


    This man''s married, but it was obvious that the girlfriend he spent time with in Hawaii isn''t his spouse.


    "Excuse me."


    Amasawa, who had been smiling, led me toward the window. "Actually, I have a favor to ask of you, Ayanokouji-sensei." "You''re asking me of something? What''s going on?"


    "Well, my girlfriend in Hawaii is pregnant. She wants to have the baby in Japan and won''t listen to me."


    "Congrattions, but that''s a bit of a problem, isn''t it?"


    "Right? My wife''s also suspicious that I''m cheating on her, and if she finds out that I''ve been having an affair in secret, there''ll be a lot of trouble."


    If he was going to mess around, he shouldn''t have gotten married in the first ce, but that was another matter, wasn''t it?


    "My girlfriend can''t possibly raise a child, but she''s also afraid I''ll cut ties with her. Otherwise, she wouldn''t have insisted on having the baby in Japan, being a Hawaii fanatic."


    He shrugged his shoulders in annoyance, but he didn''t seem to be in a great


    hurry.


    "I''m thinking of giving the baby an education in the White Room... What do you think?"


    "Would you be okay with that?"


    "Yes. She wants me to have a baby with her, that''s the goal. She has no intention of bing a mother and raising a child."


    From our view, we weed the idea of having more children without taking risks.


    However, there were a number of things that needed to be confirmed. "You''ve already ced your daughter in the White Room." "Would it be a problem to add another child?"


    "Of course not, if it''s necessary. But is that okay with you?"


    "It doesn''t matter. She gets to keep the baby, I get to put the kid in the White Room. Everyone is happy."


    To this man, the White Room was just a convenient daycare center or something.


    It''s a good thing for us, as well. We couldn''t wish for anything better. "You know what this party is about, don''t you?"


    "Yes, I do. Of course we''ll finance it, I''ll make sure of it. Right?"


    He raised a finger.


    "I''ll give you 100 million this year, double what I gave youst year. That''s a


    small price to pay for security."[15]


    (TL Note: The way 100 million is written here is by using the number 1 with


    Kanj the Japanese Kanji , hence the "He raised a finger")[15]


    "Thank you. Do you know when the baby is due?"


    "Oh, just a minute. I''ll notify you with the details by text."


    I got the hospital and the delivery date from my cell phone and called someone to make the arrangements.


    "Well then, I''ll get back to you without dy."


    "Thank you."


    I nodded in satisfaction and epted two sses of champagne from a boy walking nearby.


    "Here''s to hoping for the happiness of my newborn child," he said.


    He tipped his ss, clinked it, and downed the champagne in one gulp.


    "By the way, President Amasawa, you know the rules of the White Room.


    Unless there''s a special reason, it''s basically impossible for you to see the child.


    You''ll only be able to see them on a regr basis when they''re of age or when they leave the White Room."


    "Yeah, yeah. I''ve heard that before."


    "Are you sure about that? There''s no exception, even for mothers."


    "Of course. I''m sure she''ll understand if you send her pictures regrly." I didn''t care how he got the money, but we had our own rules of


    engagement.


    There was one more thing I needed to make sure of.


    "President Amasawa... I know it''s been a long time since we took custody of your first daughter, but you haven''t visited us once to check on her yet. Have you thought about what you''ll do in the future?"


    It was rtively rare for a parent who entrusted their child to the White Room to not even visit to check on the child''s progress.


    Most of theme to check up on their children to see how they are doing. "In the first ce, she''s a baby that was made in a test tube, so I don''t even


    feel like she''s my own child."


    Amasawa said disinterestedly that this was just an extension of his free time.


    Various children were ced in the White Room.


    Some were test-tube babies like Amasawa''s child, others were siblings where one of whom was raised separately, and others were actually tested to see how well they were educated in the White Room.


    We had to be aware of their circumstances and feelings, and always try to control them in a way that wouldn''t offend the children.


    "So I''ll leave it all to you from here."


    "So far, your child has grown to be the second best among the fifth-generation students. As long as she doesn''t drop out, she''ll be of some use to us."


    "Of course. You can do whatever you want with her."


    He ced his hand on my shoulder again in a familiar manner and started humming in his good mood.


    Some people who amassed billions upon billions of dors in assets thought their children''s lives were worthless.


    Although there were very few, Amasawa was one of them.


    He didn''t believe that his child had any status and was only concerned about himself.


    There may be a chance in the future to take another child from Amasawa in this way.


    "Well, I''m going home now. I want to enjoy Japan for the first time in a while."


    "I''ll see you off."


    I left Amasawa, who was in a good mood, with my men and saw him off right there.


    I was in the mood to take a break, but there was no time to rest.


    ������


    I greeted the important figures I needed to talk to in a hurry.


    As a result, I seeded in speaking with several presidents since Amasawa and in getting new loans.


    We had not reached our unofficial goal yet, but I''d say we were off to a good


    start.


    The party had been going on for about an hour.


    Here I decided to take a short break for the first time.


    My jaw was feeling a little tired from all the talking.


    But I didn''t waste any time even when standing still.


    It was important to keep an eye on the atmosphere and always be on the lookout for signs of life.


    As I approached to get a ss of wine from a servant, I felt a slight shock at my feet.


    A child that was running in my direction bumped into me and ran off without a word of apology.


    I wondered where he was going in such a hurry and noticed him at the corner of the hall.


    It seemed that there were several children clustered around there. Most of the parents knew each other from various parties, so it was no surprise that all the children taken to the party were connected to each other. Although the children were somewhat separated from the parents, their


    high-pitched voices often echoed through the room, especially when they screamed.


    When they were in a group, there was no stopping them.


    I approached to warn them, but I realized that they weren''t ying with each


    other.


    They were all boys, including the kid who rushed to the scene. Three of the five boys were surrounding another child, yelling at him and using him of something. The remaining one watched from a distance, but there was no fear in his expression. I stopped because I was afraid that the children might''ve noticed me listening in on their situation if I got any closer.


    The children all seemed to be around the same age as Kiyotaka. I have no contact with ordinary children, so it was interesting topare them with the children in the White Room.


    When I slowly approached the children, I could see that they weren''t talking in a friendly manner.


    Most children don''t know when and where the right time to fight is and easily start conflicts.


    Usually over unimportant things.


    "Did you really ever get Kazuya''s autograph?"


    The kid who rushed to the scene seemed to be the leader of the group, and he approached the group with his friends and family in tow.


    "...Yes, I did."


    He replied while averting his gaze.


    At first nce, it didn''t seem like he was telling the truth. "That''s a lie. When I met Kazuya, he said he doesn''t usually sign


    autographs."


    "Really... I''m sure he does..."


    "Where did you get him to sign it?"


    "He came to my house."


    "He came to your house? What? That''s a lie. Kazuya told me that I was the first kid he signed an autograph for outside of the venue."


    "He really did do it. He signed a ser ball for me...!"


    The conversation seemed to be discussing whether or not they had ever gotten an autograph from a Japanese ser yer named Kazuya who ys overseas.


    The three of them, including the leader, were suspicious of one timid-looking child.


    The suspected child''s suspicious behavior must''ve been felt by the rest of the boys.


    It seems that a cheap lie told for the sake of bragging led him into a tight corner.


    "Then let''s take a majority vote on whether we think he''s lying or not." Immediately, the three children raised their hands in unison as theyughed. The boy who had been watching the conversation didn''t raise his hand, so of


    course he was asked for his stance on the matter.


    "Which side are you on, Ryuuji?"


    The leader of the group, a kid who called the others by their first names, asked for his opinion.


    "...I don''t care. I don''t need to pick a side."


    "What do you mean you don''t care? I''m asking you if you also think he''s lying?"


    "If I''m being objective, I think you''re lying. You''d better apologize as soon as possible."


    The child called Ryuuji decided that the other boy was lying and urged him to apologize. The difference in the number of people in the group made it less advantageous for one to cover for him.


    It''s true that the best thing to do would be to apologize right then and there, but that isn''t that easy for human beings.


    "I''m not lying..."


    Ryuuji sighed in exasperation at the child''s stubborn refusal to admit that it was a lie.


    "Why don''t you forgive him already? It''s obvious he''s lying, so there''s no need to go on with this any longer."


    "What? I''m going to ask my father to shut down your parents''pany if you keep acting like a big shot, okay?"


    He unted his parents'' power as if it was his own and acted like a king... "Nogi-kun, if you make fun of me, you''ll get in real trouble." Nogi? The Nogi Pharmaceuticals, huh?


    They''re one of the most powerful and aplished of all the wealthy individuals who were attending here today.


    It was a ridiculous im, but it''s true that his father has some power.


    He seems to have failed miserably in his children''s education.


    "Then how can you be satisfied? What do you want from Fuji?"


    The three of them��Ryuuji, Fuji, and Nogi��were acquainted with each


    other''s groups.[16]


    (TL Note: groups is written with the loanword but it seems to refer


    to thepanies their parents own.)[16]


    "Get on your knees, get on your knees. I''ll forgive you if you get on your knees and tell me you''re sorry for lying."


    That was really clich��. I don''t think President Nogi''s the kind of person who would normally force people to get down on their knees, but it was understandable for a child to say something like this.


    "As I said, I didn''t do such a thing as telling a lie."


    "Then show me proof. If you can''t give me proof or refuse to get down on your knees, I''ll beat you up."


    Growing increasingly frustrated, Nogi licked his lips in frustration. "You''d better get down on your knees as soon as possible."


    Ryuuji kept his attitude, encouraging him to apologize, but Fuji shook his head from side to side.


    He continued to insist that he got the autograph, even though he was in tears.


    It seems the time hade.


    I couldn''t let this go on any longer, even if it was just an elongated children''s quarrel.


    If the situation turned bloody, President Nogi''s name would be tarnished.


    But the situation seemed to have suddenly changed.


    "Fuji isn''t lying. At least, I think so."


    With the conclusion thought to have already been decided, a sixth child appeared.


    All four of them, including the passive Ryuuji, had already decided that he was lying.


    The appearance of the one who insisted that he wasn''t lying, of course, ended that mood.


    "What''s wrong with you? Whoever you are, you''re defending this guy?" "Do you think there''s any advantage for Fuji to keep lying in the face of you strong-looking guys?"


    The kid insisted that it was strange for him to be stubborn.


    "I don''t know whether or not he''s your friend, but you''re just trying to cover for him, aren''t you? You''re a liar."


    "I''m not covering for him for no reason. I just thought it was true." The child stood in front of the three of them with a nonchnt attitude. "Ishigami..."


    "I''m sorry, Fuji. I got stuck while talking to Dad." "What?"


    A child called Ishigami gently caressed the arm of the crying child and faced Nogi and the others.


    But here was where the savior was unexpectedly confronted.


    "I''m sorry, Ishigami, but I think Fuji is lying."


    "What makes you think he''s lying?"


    "There''s no evidence to prove that he''s lying, but there''s no proof that he''s telling the truth either. In that case, we can only judge him by his attitude."


    "Judging by his attitude? I don''t think it''s possible to make an impartial judgment when you''re surrounded by people like this and forced to half-heartedly admit to a lie. You''re just making decisions based on the flow of the situation."


    "But Nogi said that Kazuya doesn''t usually sign autographs. He said he was the first."


    "Is that so?"


    "Yes, that''s right. That''s what Kazuya said when he signed it for me, you


    idiot."


    "But you don''t have any proof that what you say is true, do you?" "What? Look at this! Here''s a picture of me and Kazuya!" Nogi showed the screen of his cell phone.


    "And? This was taken two months ago. Couldn''t Fuji have gotten his autograph after that? And since you have the photo, it must be true that you got him to sign it, but it''s not the same as proving that he doesn''t usually sign things, right? Weren''t you lying because you wanted to boast that you were given special treatment?"


    He confronted him with the proof, but it seems that gave him the opportunity to take advantage of Nogi.


    "I didn''t lie! I''m gonna kick your ass!"


    "Stop it, Ishigami. Why are you making such a nonsensical objection? The other day, you didn''t even argue when you got into it with a guy in your grade at cram school. Just apologize and things will go peacefully."


    "I only did that because I was the only one involved. If you get angry every time someone of a lower level says something, you''ll have a hard time. But if your friend''s in trouble, that''s a different story."


    The content of this conversation, at various times, showed that Ishigami was a very talented child.


    That''s probably why this Ryuuji kid bit back.


    "What does your father do? He''s better than us, isn''t he?"


    Of course, it was none of my business, but President Ishigami isn''t the president of a bigpany.


    "Parental power has nothing to do with it. What about your own ability?" But in terms of his children''s education and talent, he''s a cut above the rest. They either carry very good genes or were the results of their education. "I''ll beat you up!"


    Nogi breathed, swinging his right arm in a broad gesture.


    "Wait a minute."


    Ishigami, who was about to be hit by Nogi, interrupted.


    You''d think that he''d apologize in fear, but that wasn''t the case. "When you hit someone, you should grab them by the chest first so they


    can''t run away. If you miss your strike, you might fall down and end up not looking very cool, right?"


    "What...?"


    The boy froze, his fists clenched.


    "I''m not proud of it, but I''ve never been in a fight. However, I can at least run away from you, which means we''ll end up running around here screaming at each other. You know that the more significant your father is, the more shame you''re gonna bring to his name. Am I right?"


    The party room was filled withughter and elegant music was loudly ying.


    Though, when a child shouts, it''s inevitable that he would be noticed.


    "Listen, if you''re going to strike me, you''d better grab this area with your left


    hand first. That''s how they do it on TV and in dramas when they hit people."


    Nogi followed his lead and grabbed the cor of his neck with his left hand.


    The remaining children surrounded Ishigami so that he couldn''t escape. "I''ll give you what you want!"


    Nogi, at close range, threatened Ishigami.


    Then he raised his fist again.


    "Now you can''t escape!"


    "And neither can you!"


    "What...?"


    Immediately after saying this, Ishigami grabbed the arms that were grabbing him with both hands.


    He grabbed his face and didn''t let go of his hands.


    Then he turned his attention to an adult in the distance.


    He nced at me for a moment, but then he looked away and called out to another adult.


    "Please help me! Somebody help me!!"


    "Hey��!"


    The adults turned around at the earnest shout and looked at Ishigami, who was grabbed by the cor and surrounded by three kids who were about to beat him up. It was irrelevant whether they were right or wrong.


    The only thing that came to mind was a scene of a group of kids who was outnumbering another, ready tomit violence.


    Nogi''s name was powerful, but of course, it had no other ce than in the ramblings of children now.


    "What are you doing?!"


    Nogi and the others ran away as if they were rabbits. The three remaining were Fuji, Ryuuji, and Ishigami, who were all in tears.


    "Kanzaki-kun... you could''ve done something about those guys."


    "...I hate trouble. And beating them up wasn''t going to fix it."


    "I didn''t say you should hit them. I''m saying you should''ve let them talk it out. I understand that it''s easier to just let it go, but by not doing anything, there''s a possibility that it will be even more troublesome, especially with someone who tries to wield parental power."


    "But he was lying, wasn''t he?"


    Ryuuji asked for the truth.


    Ishigami didn''t need to respond to the question. Fuji''s expression revealed the answer.


    "There are times when I want to keep lying," he said.


    "I don''t understand... It''s a lie with no merit."


    "If Fuji had been a friend of yours, Kanzaki-kun, would you have helped him? Or would you still abandon him as well?"


    "...I..."


    "At least I would help my dear friend if he was in trouble. No matter what it takes."


    Compared to the childish, or rather, age-appropriate children, Ryuuji and Ishigami seemed to be able to make rtively calm judgments. However, their way of thinking was different.


    Ishigami seems to have done better on this asion, but it''s also true that he actually crossed a dangerous bridge.


    If Fuji had admitted to lying and apologized, as Ryuuji said, Nogi and the others might''ve forgiven him earlier. Of course, he must be prepared to beughed at.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei... I apologize for the dy."


    I was just about to finish observing the children when Sakayanagi came walking toward me, slightly out of breath.


    "You came, Sakayanagi?"


    "Of course I came. Even though we may have started to go in different directions, my respect for you has not changed."


    With that, I gently shook hands with Sakayanagi, whom I haven''t seen for a long time.


    The weing party began as the adults started to move about, and there was movement on the children''s side as well.


    "Good evening, Kanzaki-kun."


    "You just arrived, Sakayanagi?"


    "Hello. Sorry, I already have to get going, Kanzaki-kun. I''ll see you at cram school.


    "...Oh."


    "You have a rather grim look on your face, what''s wrong?"


    Ryuuji answered that he was fine and walked away as if to escape from the situation.


    "Your daughter has grown a lot in the little time I''ve been away from you, hasn''t she?"


    "As a parent, I''m often bewildered by her many precocious ways," he said. Although she seems to be intelligent, she seems to have a long history of


    dealing with the disease��her birth handicap.


    At one point, I invited him to enroll her into the White Room, but he was right to turn me down.


    The facility requires, at a minimum, that you be above average in all aspects. "I know it''s a problem for you in your position to be too close to me, but I really appreciate youing."


    "Thank you, Ayanokouji-sensei."


    Smiling happily, Sakayanagi took his daughter to greet the others.


    "Well��"


    I walked over to the boy, Ishigami, who was looking at me from a distance. "What do you want from me?"


    "The same goes to you. You''ve been looking at me. What did you want with


    me?"


    "You noticed?"


    I didn''t think he had the time to look around in that situation.


    "I have something I want to ask. Why didn''t you call out to me when you asked for help from an adult?"


    "I was aware that you heard Fuji''s call for help from early on, but you remained silent. I couldn''t guarantee that you''d be on my side."


    There was no denying that if I had turned away while offering a helping hand, the child could''ve been beaten up in the meantime. So, at that stage, with less than a few seconds to go before he would''ve been beaten up, Ishigami selected an adult who would surely help Fuji.


    "Hey, Kyou! I hope you''re not giving any trouble to Ayanokouji-sensei!" With a panicked voice, the chairman of the Ishigami Group appeared.


    "I thought you were an exceedingly smart child. You''re the son of Chairman Ishigami, aren''t you?"


    Gorou Ishigami, who was over 60 years old, was still the chairman of the Ishigami Group, yet his power remained strong. He had no children with his ex-wife... Was he a child conceived from another wife whom he married after his bereavement?


    "Go eat your dinner over there."


    "Okay, father."


    Bowing lightly, Chairman Ishigami''s son left.


    "I hope our Kyou didn''t give you any trouble, did he?"


    "I''ve been rather impressed with him."


    "That''s fine, but since he''s old enough to be... my grandson, I''m not too happy about it."


    It''s understandable that he''s so fond of him. But what I appreciated most was his calmness. "You seem to have given him a good upbringing." "Thank you, sir."


    He was far superior to me in terms of position, but his manner was soft and


    polite.


    If he grows up properly, the Ishigami group will be seeded by that child, and a solid generational transition will be possible.


    The only concern is his age.


    He will take over in his early twenties at the earliest. If he''s going to proceed with caution, he would have to be over 30 years old. By then, President Ishigami would be over 90 years old.


    "You''re nning to return to politics at some point, aren''t you, President Ishigami?"


    "Of course I intend to."


    "Then, will you have your son by your side someday?" "My son... by my side?"


    He thought I was joking but he couldn''t see any deception in my expression. "Yes. He seems to be interested in politics. As a parent, I try to understand


    my son''s feelings as much as I can since he doesn''t usually pay much attention to things."


    He smiled, wrinkling his cheeks as he said that he was more than happy for him to follow in his footsteps.


    "If he wants to go into politics when he grows up, then I will wee him." They were just a fewments, but I could see a glimpse of talent in the


    kid.


    Whether or not he''s suited for politics is another matter entirely, though.


    ������


    The three-hour party was now down to itsst 30 minutes.


    I was able to secure enough financing to run the party, The party also included a reunion with Sakayanagi.


    It was also good to know that there were people who were waiting for my return to politics.


    "Ayanokouji-sensei! May I have a moment of your time?" "You are...?"


    "I''m Tomohiro Kanzaki of Kanzaki Engineers. It''s a great honor to meet


    you.."


    "Are you President Kanzaki? It''s a pleasure to meet you too."


    I remember that when the White Room Project wasunched and the particrs of the project were passed on to some conglomerates, one of them was willing to invest in the project.


    However, since thepany didn''t have much history as an establishedpany and had little connection with the political world, we eventually rejected the offer for our own reasons. Two yearster, however, the samepany raised a small amount of money for the project without any interference or guidance from outside parties.


    "This is my son, Ryuuj," he said, "Say hello, Ryuuji."


    "...My name is Ryuuji Kanzaki."


    The child averted his eyes from me and greeted me quietly.


    I see... the kid from earlier.


    "He seems to be a bright boy."


    "I''m very proud of him. I want him to be both a literary and martial artist, so I teach him everything I can at cram schools, private tutoring, etc. Not to mention karate and judo."


    "I had a hunch that you were passionate about education, President Kanzaki."


    "As for karate, he was recently praised by the head instructor as having the ability to be a ck belt at this point in his training."


    "Well, he seems to have grown up well."


    But if what he said was true, there was something that didn''t add up.


    I gently focused my attention away from the president and decided to speak with Ryuuji instead.


    "I would like to ask you one question... You saw another boy getting into trouble earlier, but you didn''t try to help him in any concrete way."


    <Illustration>


    "...That was..."


    "Of course, they outnumbered you, but President Kanzaki told me that you''re very good at what you do. You could''vee up with any number of ways to deal with them, couldn''t you?"


    Pretending to be ignorant of the circumstances, I asked him this question.


    "It was none of my business."


    He looked away awkwardly.


    "It''s true that you weren''t the one who started the conflict. But if you had helped, the other party would''ve been in your debt. A debt that you could potentially make use of in the future."


    "..."


    "If you don''t have the power to help, you can run away or ignore it. But if


    you have the power and don''t use it, you are a fool."[17]


    (TL Note: This quote is taken directly from Kanzaki''s monologue in


    Y2V8)[17]


    I had no interest in this child, but I spoke passionately and put my hand on the boy''s head.


    "Think hard, worry hard, and be a good adult. Be a man who can help others. Support your father, and eventually, you''ll be able to lead thepany yourself."


    If I preached this in front of President Kanzaki, he wouldn''t be able to be rude to me and he''d have a hard time withdrawing his investment. There''s nothing better than pulling in as much money as you can.


    "...Thank you very much for your time... I''ll see what I can do." Impressed by my words, he bowed his head happily, this was very much


    unlike his stiff expression at the beginning of our conversation.


    ������


    After the party ended, I went into the waiting room and leaned back in my chair, not bothering to hide my tiredness.


    "I''m sorry to be looking like this. I was so shaken that I lost my nerve." "Don''t worry about it. I''m sure you haven''t had a good night''s sleep in the


    st few days."


    "Seems like you''ve seen through me."


    "You aren''t afraid of pushing yourself to the very limits, am I right, Ayanokouji-sensei? Besides, this is a time of great crisis for the White Room. I expected that you''d remain calm until the end, no matter what the situation. I''m truly amazed at your mental strength."


    I faintly waved Sakayanagi off and told him to stop with the pleasantries. "Tell me why you came here. I''m sure you didn''t juste here to say goodbye."


    "I''ve spoken with my father and he''s agreed to let me be the president of the Advanced Nurturing High School in the near future."


    "Oh? You''re finally taking the stage. You''ve seen it all, and your final choice is to follow in your father''s footsteps. It''s not a very interesting ending, but it''s just like you, Sakayanagi."


    "Thank you very much. I''m grateful to have been able to study under you for so many years, Ayanokouji-sensei."


    He didn''t look happy, but I guess that was because of what I was going to tell him next.


    Now that he turned out to be the sessor, it wasn''t necessary to specte on the reasons for this.


    "It would be very problematic for the president of a high school if it became known that he was cooperating with a man like me. It''s a good time to break off the rtionship."


    "Although we have different views, I hold you in the highest regard, Ayanokouji-sensei... I was really surprised when you defied Naoe-sensei, but it made me realize how genuine your passion for the White Room is. That''s why...


    It''s a shame that we have to keep our distance."


    It was a bit of a clich�� line, but it''s the kind of thing Sakayanagi would say. "I''m not obsessed with the White Room. I''m a have-not. I just know that if I didn''t resist Naoe, he would''ve taken it all away from me. Even if I survive as a politician, there would be no hope for my career. Japan is too tied to the seniority system. No matter how capable you are, if you''re young, you''ll be sifted out. Or if you try to force your way out, they''ll try to cut off your wings. But if you look around the world, you''ll see that it''s bing increasinglymon for people in their twenties to be in important positions and some in their thirties at the top of their countries."


    No matter how hard I try to restrain myself, my ambition is inexhaustible. "How can we leave the world of politics any longer in the hands of a bunch


    of old fools who have only a short time left to live? They think it''s enough if they''re able to secure themselves for the time they have left to live out the rest of their lives. They''re willing to give up the flesh and blood of their country to protect themselves for the next 10 or 20 years. Then what will happen 30 years from now? And 40 years from now?"


    Japan will be devoured by other nations, and there won''t be anything left to salvage.


    If I judge people to bepetent, I will hire and use them.


    Of course, there will be a lot of ambitious people who wille to take advantage of me in my sleep or people who will do things in the dark under someone else''s orders, but as long as they''repetent, I will use them.


    Otherwise, the corrupted blood in the political world won''t be reced and will remain stagnant forever.


    Fighting for one''s own position doesn''t do any good to the nation. "Indeed, that''s what I''m wondering, too... You''re only qualified to be the head of a country when you''re in your 60s or 70s. I can understand why you might be suspicious of that."


    "We will make the White Room firm and resolute, then send in enough people to rewrite this country''s organizational system. We''re going to overhaul the system from the ground up."


    It may be mocked as a pipe dream, but I''m going to get there in the end.


    "It''s a grand n. It may take more than 10 or 20 years toplete."


    "I know. It may take more than my generation to change everything. For this, we will need someone to take over the White Room. It''s also important to create ''educators'' who can create more perfect human beings than we have now."


    Some of the children are already performing beyond the scope of Suzukake''s curriculum.


    "But I would still rather stand in front of the next generation, if at all possible. My ambition has never waned. Once a man steps up to great power, it is impossible for him to go back to where he first started. As long as Naoe-sensei is in the Civic Party, my seat will never be taken."


    "To my understanding, the opposition has approached you several times."


    "You''re a well-informed person, aren''t you? You certainly know a lot of things. I''m sure the opposition parties would love to have me. But if I join the party, I''ll only be used. Unless things change, I have to wait. That''s where my fight starts. I have to build up the children''s strength to get the White Room students elected. By then, my obstacles��my superiors��will be dead or retired."


    "It''s really a daunting story, isn''t it?"


    I have a firm belief in my own sesses and failures through my experiences.


    That is, I don''t imitate sessful people.


    If you could seed by imitating sessful people, no one would have any trouble.


    Then what do you do? That is, don''t do what unsessful people do. Most people in this world aren''t sessful. Observe them and try not to make the same mistake.


    This is not the same thing as imitating the sessful. I think it''s a very important point of view and I''ve been putting it into practice.


    "Good luck, Sakayanagi... I''ll see you again someday."


    I shook hands with Sakayanagi and said goodbye.


    After seeing Sakayanagi off at the entrance, I gazed silently at the cityscape below.


    In this world, there''s a phrase: "merits and demerits."


    It means "achievement and transgression." It''s a useful word that encapstes both good and bad.


    The phrase "merits and demerits" is often used and appropriate for many famous politicians.


    On the surface, they seed in various reforms, but behind the scenes, they''re just fattening their pockets to an enormous extent.


    The problem is that these achievements and transgressions aren''t equal. In the eyes of others, five transgressions are more important than ten achievements.


    In other words, if you save ten people but let five people die, you''re evil.


    That''s what the masses would say.


    Save ten people and allow no one to be unhappy.


    Save a hundred people and allow no one to be unhappy.


    If you save a thousand people but make one person unhappy, you''re evil.


    This is the psychology of the masses.


    Of course, a few will say, "You saved a thousand people, so you should be willing to sacrifice a little."


    But there''s another trick here.


    It''s that those who criticize others are very loud.


    When about 10% of the poption voicesints, the media picks up the voices of criticism with joy.


    This creates the illusion that the whole country is criticizing you.


    Such a feeling of wanting to criticize someone rather than praising them attracts people''s attention.


    ������


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 Chapter 343: Epilogue: Looking Ahead

    <h4>Chapter 343: Epilogue: Looking Ahead</h4>


    "TODAY IS MARCH 11TH. Recorded by Suzukake Tanji."


    Suzukake put his cell phone camera in video mode and ced it on his desk. He turned the lens to face himself.


    "I''ve been leading the education in the White Room for a long time now." On this day, Suzukake decided to quietly leave his thoughts on his research stored in his cell phone.


    "But the White Room will be stagnant for a while after today. I don''t know anything about politics, but it seems that a politician named Naoe has been trying to prevent Ayanokouji-sensei''s return. What a hassle. But I''ve decided to look on the bright side. It''s been a long time since I''ve been on vacation; maybe the stagnancy isn''t a bad thing."


    Taking a breath, Suzukake turned off theputer monitor.


    "Humans are really interesting. As is true with all children, they learn things they are not taught. I noticed this in the first four generations'' education and introduced amunication curriculum from the fifth generation onward. Of course, this has led to some inefficiencies. As a result of developing emotions, the rate of increase in ability decreased. Still, the difficulty level of the curriculum slightly exceeds the previous generations, so the students in the fifth generation and onwards have better abilities than the students from the third generation." Punishment should be given, and emotions should simply be considered a bonus.


    Suzukake hadn''t changed his approach.


    "From the ten difficulty levels that we''ve made, the curriculum that we have prepared for the fifth generation is difficulty level four, and for the sixth generation, difficulty level five. This is probably the limit. The sixth level that we applied to the seventh generation already caused all of them to drop out of the program. Eventually, these children will be ideal adults. They will be able to integrate into the world as one of the world''s best."


    Suzukake was silent for a moment.


    "I guess we can find out about all of this by looking in the files. Though, the reason I decided to document this today is to remember the heat of the run. The White Room has already seen many kids learn and then drop out, but still that kid... Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is a great existence. That child has an uncanny ability to learn, adapt, and apply. His talent continues to amaze me every day, and his reputation never ceases to grow... The researchers in the White Room believe that they can train that child in the same way as the others, but in my opinion, he''s the exception. He''s even more unique in this distorted environment. A true mutation."


    Through the Beta curriculum of his own creation, the product of the most challenging and thorough education was created.


    "No... I don''t even know if I can call him a product. In any case, there''s no way to reproduce it. But even Kiyotaka was imperfect from the beginning. Whether it was studies, karate, or boxing, the first results he showed us were rather unremarkable and ordinary. That''s the difference. He''s extremely good at absorbing power and sublimating it into his own ability. Once he finished learning the basics, he began developing the skills to deal with what he was exposed to for the first time, using his extraordinary ability to apply what he learned." When he closed his eyes, Kiyotaka''s image remained burned into the back of his eyelids.


    "By the eighth year, the remaining children were down to five. Considering that there were 74 children at the beginning, the dropout rate was over 93%. The average dropout rate from the first to the third year was 27%, and 30% from the fifth year onward. The curriculum was reckless. At this point, I was afraid that all of them would''ve dropped out in the middle of their ninth year. No... I was rather hoping that they''d drop out. In the case where there was a child who could stay and continue to follow a curriculum that no human being should ever follow... That child would no longer be human, they''d be a monster. That cannot exist. As if to bring that reality into existence, when the new spring arrived, there was only one child left. But here''s the problem. That one remaining child hasn''t shown any sign of dropping out after 10, 11, 12 years. On the contrary, he''se to outperform us researchers and leaders. The adults with superficial knowledge left the White Room in less than a few days, holding their heads in their hands. The original purpose of the White Room was to continue education into adulthood, but the thought of six more years... I can''t do it. That kid is going to outgrow us in the near future. This isn''t a hunch, it''s a certainty. And at the same time, I don''t know why that''s possible. Is it the product of my curriculum or a gic mutation? I can''t prove why he didn''t drop out and continued to survive. It''s driving me crazy." So��how should the existence of the White Room and Kiyotaka be viewed in the future?


    The final decision will be made by Ayanokouji Atsuomi, the head of this facility, but the debate among the researchers will be sharply divided. "The question of whether or not it was possible to create artificial geniuses remained unanswered, but it had been proven that it was possible to create brilliant people through the White Room. However, there''s always a ceiling on every child''s abilities."


    Suzukake looked at the empty cup that, until a few minutes ago, contained sencha tea. He opened the cap of the brand-new mineral water and put both the cup and bottle cap in his hand.


    "This is the size of the educator''s talent," Suzukake said. "This small cap is, so to speak, the limit of an ordinary educator''s talent. The muchrger cup,pared to this cap, can be easily understood as the talent of the educators in the White Room. The children who receive education raised their own limits ording to the limits of the educators'' talents. If the average person is cap-sized, the education here allows them to develop their talent to the size of this cup." He poured fresh mineral water into the cup.


    "Once you hit the limit, there''s basically no room for further growth. The water overflows and there''s no new information to absorb... No, that isn''t the correct expression. Every time we absorb new knowledge, we lose a little of our old talent, and we don''t even realize that it''s happening."


    Suzukake sighed as he watched the water flow over the desk and disperse. "There are many problems ahead. First, there are only a limited number of people with talent the size of this cup. Secondly, even if they have the talent, they don''t necessarily have the skills to teach it. Thirdly, it''s not always possible to obtain talents of the same magnitude between educators and students. The upper limit is the size of a cup, but some individuals are often one or two times smaller than it. Of course, there are cases of children who are one or two sizesrger than the upper limit, but the probability is less than the former. And then the most important part. The most important part is that the geniuses in this world are not limited to the size of a cup. They''re more talented than this bottle of mineral water. There''s no one who has such a talent while also having a talent for educating. Even if they did, the children would probably never grow to be bigger than the cup." This was also true of the data from previous studies.


    "A generous education that takes care of children, or the exact opposite��a strict education. In either case, both show that there''s a limit to a child''s potential." The White Room''s goal is to create geniuses out of ordinary people and train them to bepetitive in the world.


    "It''s possible to intentionally create people in humanity''s top 10%. In this sense, the White Room''s an institution that can produce solid results. But it may not be able to create people who are in the top 0.01% topete with the rest of the world."


    A true sense of failure as a researcher.


    Suzukake keenly felt that when he thought about the existence of Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.


    "At the moment, I can''t see the upper limit of talent in that child. He absorbs as much as you teach him. It could be said that he was born as a genius, or that he was the result of his education in the White Room. Both of which I think are correct and incorrect. If Kiyotaka hadn''t been educated in the White Room, he probably would''ve merely been a reasonablypetent person. If eitherponent was missing, he wouldn''t have been as he is now... And... If Kiyotaka continues his education in the White Room, it''s obvious that he''ll be an asset to raise new generations'' talent ceiling. If Kiyotaka were to stand in my ce and nurture these children, they would grow up to be more like stic bottles than cups. I would love to see that happen."


    Angels and demons asked the question in his mind.


    If he were to send him out as a leader to lead Japan, instead of just an educator in the small White Room, how much would he aplish? Which is the more meaningful choice for Japan and for the future? He wasn''t the final judge, but he wondered what choice Ayanokouji-sensei would make.


    "I''m going to see it all through, and I''m going to be involved in the White Room''s education for the rest of my life, regardless of what he chooses to do." He had never had so much fun, and he was filled with a sense of fulfillment unlike when he was forced to flee Japan and go abroad.


    "However good Ayanokouji Kiyotaka may be, the question remained as to whether he was a true genius or not. Emotionally, he was far below the average person, and he didn''t know what most people did. He may learn by memorization, but it remains to be seen how much of a negative effect that will have on him. He was defective."


    As he continued, Suzukake reached for his cell phone and stopped the recording.


    "I wonder if that child I created will be... happy at the end of his life..." As a researcher, Suzukake felt a strong reluctance to record such remarks.


    ������


    It was a day when the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. I left Saitama and returned to Tokyo for the first time in several months.


    Instead of my home in Meguro-ku, where I had settled several years ago, I drove to my office, which I hadn''t visited for a long time.


    "How long has it been since Ist came here...?"


    I looked up from the window of my car at the soon-to-be-demolished building and gave my orders.


    I pulled over to the shoulder of the road, turned on the hazard lights, and got out.


    I had been out of politics for a long time, but the time for my return was near.


    Naoe, the fixer who has been lurking in the shadows of Kijima, was now over 80 years old and had been suffering from a serious illness. He was back in politics, ostensibly cured of his illness, but in reality, his life was hanging on by a thread.


    The proof was In the sabotage of the White Room and the relentless pressure from Naoe''s side on his supporters in the shadows. He decided that he had to get rid of me before his own life was extinguished.


    It was a blow to have the White Room temporarily suspended, but I changed my mind, thinking that it would give me just enough time to prepare for aeback from the situation.


    "I''m getting old, same goes for Naoe."


    Soon my battle for political office will begin again.


    The signs and premonitions... Kamogawa, whom I had not seen since that day when I talked with Naoe at the ryotei, showed up at my doorstep as if to congratte me.


    "It''s been a long time, Ayanokouji-sensei. I didn''t expect you toe all the way here to pick me up."


    "Don''t worry about it. How''s it going over there?"


    We had been talking on the phone, but in recent years, my face-to-face contact with him had be even rarer than with Sakayanagi. I had to be careful not to do anything that would get me caught in Naoe''s watchful eye.


    "Thanks to you, I''m doing well. Is everything alright with you too, Sensei?" "You''re the one who should be called ''sensei'' since you keep getting elected."


    When I jokingly mentioned this, Kamogawa replied with a very serious face.


    "It''s true that you''re not a politician now, but you''ve brought in many wealthy people and head the White Room, a well-known educational institution. The rumors never cease."


    I''ve certainly survived the hard times.


    Although I was exiled from the political world, I''ve now taken in many business people from the White Room, and have taken a path that I couldn''t have imagined as my own fortune.


    Although my title as a politician no longer existed, more people called me "Sensei" than ever before.


    "I hear in the White Room that your son is quite brilliant."


    "Is it ironic? I''ve been on the radar so much that I had to shut it down temporarily."


    Kamogawaughed bitterly, but he still had the same look in his eyes as before.


    No, he seemed to have grown up once or twice more than before. "I think you already know that. As you can already tell, Naoe-sensei is pulling the strings behind the scenes. I don''t think he''s going to reveal the White Room to the public since he''ll get himself burnt too, but he''s starting to use all kinds of methods to try to get rid of it."


    "If this wasn''t his idea, they would''ve shut it down by now. He seems to be making it very difficult for them in that respect. What''s his next move?" "I don''t know at the moment. I''ve managed to hang on to the Naoe-sensei faction, but I used to work beside you, Ayanokouji-sensei, so he doesn''t trust me." It would be difficult to get past Naoe''s defenses even if I tried to force Kamogawa to probe.


    Rather, it is more essential to keep him concealed inside the faction. "It''s just that... his health seems to have been deteriorating a lottely." Kamogawa muttered in a hushed voice beside me.


    "It''s a little bit frustrating that I can''t bury him with my own hands, but I guess it''s best to let the disease bury him."


    That''s why Naoe is an opponent in the political world who doesn''t show any openings that you could take advantage of.


    And given his age, he''ll be in the spotlight very soon.


    "Finally, your return ising soon, isn''t it?"


    "Yes. But even if he disappears, it won''t make it any easier for me to get to the top of the political world. No, in fact, it will be far more difficult than before." I thought Naoe-sensei was one of the biggest names in politics, but I believe President Kijima, who''s keeping control of politics well, will be even bigger than that.


    If he continued in this fashion, he''d soon break the record for the longest tenure in office.


    He''s still in his sixties. Kijima''s era will continue for another 10 to 20 years. As a young man, I myself am steadily getting older.


    This will be myst chance to make a move.


    "That''s why I''m going to make sure I''m in the right ce at the right time." A temporary pause in the White Room.


    Whether it''ll be six months or five years, there''s no telling how long it''llst, but thest thing I want is for it to be publicized. But it would be a relief to know that Naoe''s side is on the same page.


    He''s surely plotting and scheming to somehow bury the matter in the dark. The car arrived and Tabuchi opened the back seat door.


    Kamogawa slowly climbed into the passenger seat.


    "Tabuchi, what about the arrangements?"


    "As nned, the children will be supervised and managed by a temporary orphanage."


    "Right."


    "And your son��are you sure about this?"


    "I''m not going to give him preferential treatment just because he''s my son. But at least as long as he''s the best of the best in the White Room, he''s entitled to it, to the point it makes me hesitate, but in another sense, that''s also meaningful." We drove to our destination and waited for Kiyotaka to leave the clinic. "Even so, it''s a counseling clinic... did something happen to Kiyotaka-kun?" "No. I sent him there because there was someone who really wanted to meet Kiyotaka. It''s a request from a man who has a considerable amount of money invested in the White Room, so I had no choice."


    "They want to see him, huh?"


    "It''s shallow. They think that''s a way to close the wound, but they don''t realize that it''s counterproductive."


    Ishida, who came out of the clinic first, joined me.


    "When was thest time you saw Kiyotaka?"


    "Well, it''s been about five or six years since Ist saw your son. I''m very much looking forward to seeing how he''s grown up."


    "...Are you looking forward to it?"


    Ishida, who had just gotten on board, stared at Kamogawa with a suspicious look on his face.


    "What? Did I say something strange?


    "That thing is a monster. It''s not something you should look at with such a carefree mind."


    "A monster? That''s your son, sir. You shouldn''t have said that..."


    "Ishida is one of the ones who''s been watching over Kiyotaka since the moment he was born."


    He was allowed to put it any way he liked.


    He was more qualified than I, who was only rted to Kiyotaka by blood. He had been trained to such a degree of perfection that it was almost unimaginable for him to be a young boy about to enter the third year of junior high. However, there were many things that were missing in return.


    This was probably one of the reasons why Ishida calls him a monster. Kamogawa frowned at Ishida''sck of restraint and looked out the window.


    ������


    I''ve been living in the White Room for well over 14 years now and havepleted what wasmonly referred to as the second year of junior high. The real world outside was different from the virtual world, but I found myself epting it morefortably than I thought I would.


    It was unclear whether this was due to the curriculum or some other factor. While I was waiting in an empty room, as instructed by Dr. Ishida, I was approached by a man.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka-kun. Thank you foring today."


    "Who are you?"


    I had never seen him before.


    His calm face made it hard to believe that he was from the White Room. What caught my attention more was that he was holding a vase of flowers in his hand.


    This was also something I had never seen before. Something I had only learned and seen in images.


    "There''s a girl I really want you to meet, so I asked Ayanokouji-sensei for a favor."


    "I don''t understand what you''re talking about."


    "The girl has be so feeble-minded that she can''t even go out. She can keep herself rtively calm at home and in this clinic. That''s why I asked you toe here."


    "Are those... cherry blossoms?"


    "They used to hang in this room, but I had to change the water. It''s her favorite flower. She should be back from her checkup soon."


    He put the vase on the shelf by the window.


    "Kiyotaka...!"


    As I waited for him to return, the door to the room was opened and my name was shouted.


    A girl, about my age I guess, stared at me and her eyes were wide open. "I''ve wanted to meet you all this time... I''ve missed you so much!" "You''re..."


    "Yuki! It''s Yuki!"


    Yuki. I knew that name. It belonged to a White Room student who had dropped out a long time ago. I''ve erased the name from my memory, but it was natural to remember some things since I can''t intentionally erase them. "Why are you here?"


    Even if she didn''t really die, the instant she dropped out, everything was over for her.


    Facing the dead. It was a strange feeling, but what was the purpose of this meeting?


    "My daughter Yuki has been weak ever since she left the Whi�� No, the same facility you''re in. She''s been depressed. She can''t go outside and just keeps worrying about you."


    The man who was watching from a distance seemed to be Yuki''s father. Her smile was a little different from the one she used to show when she was a child.


    "It''s been a long time. Kiyotaka... were you at that ce the whole time?" She looked at me with fear in her eyes as she recalled the past. Judging by her father''s reaction, she was scared of the mention of the White Room.


    "For 14 years, I''ve been there. Today is the first time I''ve been outside." "I knew you were great, Kiyotaka... What about the other kids? Did they leave in the past?"


    "Well, they all left so soon. I''ve been thest one for years now. I don''t know."


    I never cared about the ones who dropped out, including the kid in front of me.


    "Alone... Always in that ce...? I-I... I, that, that ce... I...!" Yuki''s body began to tremble as if the fear she had been suppressing was swelling up.


    "Yuki, stop remembering!"


    Yuki was distraught as she dug up her memories. Was this how miserable a person who''s dropped out of the White Room could be?


    The one thing I understand was that she must be the daughter of a wellknown businessman.


    All I know is that she was treated with respect after she dropped out. But the fact that she''s going to counseling shows that she hasn''t healed from the trauma.


    And one of the healing methods was to meet with me, who was also in the fourth generation... I guess...


    Now that I know what''s going on, I have no further use for this ce. "I have to go."


    "Wa-wait! I finally got to meet you! I want to talk to you more��a lot more!"


    "I have nothing to say to you."


    If she couldn''t talk about the White Room, we couldn''t have a conversation.


    "Please, Ayanokouji-kun, can you talk with Yuki for a while? Yes, any conversation is fine. A simple, insignificant conversation..."


    "What do you mean by ''insignificant conversation''? You do understand that I''m new to the outside world, right?"


    "That''s..."


    "Of course, I can tell her a story that''s full of lies if you want. I am willing to force myself to make something up to the best of my knowledge, whether it''s about Japan or the rest of the world. But that''s not what you want, is it?" "I-I''m fine. I''m fine with talking about the Wh-White-White Room." Yuki grabbed my sleeve, hyperventting, trying not to let me go. "I don''t think you should. You can''t talk to me."


    "T-that''s not true...! I''ve always wanted to meet you again... Kiyotaka...!" "You should have stopped that feeling. Once you see me like this, you''ll only suffer from the difference between your memories and your ideals. If you want to heal your mind, you should continue your treatment here."


    That was enough. I''d rather take a look outside than waste my time here. The outside world, at least, still holds the possibility of curiosity.


    "Please. Not yet, stay a while longer..."


    Yuki''s father blocked the exit with open arms.


    "Is that an order?"


    "No... it''s..."


    "No, it''s not, isn''t it? The representative of the White Room didn''t give me any specific instructions."


    "Indeed. Ayanokouji-sensei only promised to let you and Yuki meet. This is only my personal request."


    "Then I decline."


    "What?"


    "I''m refusing because I think it''s what''s best for her."


    "You don''t care about a kid who dropped out?"


    "That''s right. I don''t care about a kid who dropped out."


    But this guy made a bad call bringing me in as a counselor.


    "Excuse me."


    "No! Don''t go, Kiyotaka!"


    "You''re no different than when you dropped out and disappeared." "...!"


    "You should be thankful for your parents and focus on your treatment here. The more you expect from me, the more you''ll regret it."


    "No! I want to talk to you! I want to talk with you more��talk about what we couldn''t talk about back then!"


    Yuki''s spirit, with its terribly childish tone and reactions, had not changed at


    All since that time a few years ago.


    "Wait! Please!"


    "Please move aside."


    "Yuki... I''m not the only one who can''t reach her. My wife''s and second


    Daughter''s words also cannot reach her. She can''t be reached. But... she talks to


    You... You don''t know how much just that could save her...!"


    <Illustration>


    "Goodbye. I hope I never see you again. I''ll leave you to it."


    "No! No! Kiyotaka! Nooo!!"


    Her voice crying out and the voice of an adult yelling at her uncontrobly. Neither of them reached the depths of my ears. I wasn''t interested. I left the hospital and returned to the waiting car.


    A figure came out of the passenger side, waving his hand in the air. "H-Hey, Kiyotaka-kun. Nice to meet you, my name is Kamogawa��" I''ve seen this face before. I thought so, but didn''t say anything back and sat down in the back seat.


    "...It''s nothing, haha. I hope you''ll forget about it."


    He smiled, scratched his head, and looked forward.


    "Start driving."


    "Understood, sir."


    I sat alone in the quiet car and looked at the view outside the window. "What''s it like to be outside for the first time?"


    "Nothing."


    It''s not that I wasn''t curious.


    It''s just that I don''t feel anything, at least nothing that I can call an emotional response to.


    "Nothing, huh?"


    My father probably had thought so.


    That I was looking out the window without emotions.


    That I probably couldn''t distinguish the difference between virtual world and reality now.


    <Illustration>


    That was a big mistake.


    It''s just easier to let people think that everything''s under control. At least for now, it''s beneficial for me to keep it that way.


    There was no need for this man to know that I was always sharpening my fangs.


    "You will continue your White Room curriculum with me for a little while. You will return to the facility when the White Room reopens."


    "Understood."


    The change of environment was no obstacle for those who''d already mastered the skills they''d acquired in the White Room.


    ������


    "It''s a shame��all of this��isn''t it?"


    After unloading the car and taking Kiyotaka out to thepound, I left with Kamogawa alone.


    "What is...?"


    "There''s only one ultimate existence. If we y the right strategy, he''ll devote his life to training people and outperform Suzukake in the White Room. If we do that, there''s a possibility that eventually more than one person will emerge that''s close to Kiyotaka."


    "That was the original n, wasn''t it? Isn''t that what you were nning to do?"


    "My return to politics is bing a reality here. That''s what makes me wonder."


    "No way..."


    "I had never thought of it that way before."


    "Are you going to make him, Kiyotaka-kun, a politician?"


    "The strategy to educate the White Room so that they could pass it onto the next generation is what the White Room is supposed to be about. It''s an important project that must be undertaken if Japan is to take leadership in the world 50 to 100 years from now. That is inflexible for me."


    But...


    "But, in order for me to take the top spot in the political world, a strong ally is necessary. The earliest Kiyotaka can be a senator is at 25 years old. I''ll be 61 by then. That''s cutting it close."


    "But for a politician, you''re in your time once you''ve matured." Of course, even if Kiyotaka bes a parliament member, he won''t be able to do anything immediately.


    In theory, however, he would have the right to be appointed prime minister at the age of 25.


    He has the potential to be of much more use than the usual assortment of mediocre legitors.


    "What are you going to do...?"


    "I don''t have an answer. If Kiyotaka or I were in control of the political world, we could make a big difference in Japan, even if we aren''t talking about the next 50 or 100 years. However, it''s inevitable that there''ll be a dy in the White Room''s education. That''s why I''m worried."


    The most frustrating thing was that he has the title of being my son.


    When hees to politics, the public will think that I just want the next generation to follow in my footsteps.


    A big disadvantage, but I think there''s a way to make the most of it. And hisck of joy, anger, sadness, and emotion is also a big concern. It''s necessary to improve it.


    "I''m sure Kiyotaka-kun will be obedient, and I''m tempted to expect a lot from him."


    How much control Kiyotaka has over himself, I can''t say.


    His mind is already far ahead of ours.


    He may not have much emotion, but his thoughts are active, and he''ll probably surpass us in two or three moves. On the other hand, he''s fortunate in his ignorance of the world and na?ve in many aspects. He hasn''t reached the level of thinking I''m at yet as I''m cautious.


    From this stage onward, I was prepared to change my ns.


    My will to take over this country was strong and unshakable.


    "Today, you''re going to have to stay with me a little longer, Kamogawa." No matter what measures we decided to take, first of all, it was necessary to work on Kiyotaka regarding his personality.


    "That''s fine, but... what are you going to do?"


    Then a hand knocked lightly on the car window and Tsukishiro climbed into the vacant driver''s seat with a natural ease.


    This man not only had contacts in the ruling and opposition parties but also in the business world. His attitude of doing whatever it takes to win made him risky and untrustworthy, but even in his old age, he was still very good at what he did.


    "Ayanokouji-san, you seem to be in good health... I see that you''re getting along very well with the Peace Party people these days."


    "I don''t care about that. What about that thing I asked you to do?" "The arrangements have been made. There will be no issues with the background checks."


    "Good. And there''s one more thing I need you to do for me in the future." I told Tsukishiro and Kamogawa about my future ns.


    While Kamogawa was surprised from start to finish, Tsukishiro listened with a smile on his face.


    "That sounds like an interesting n. I''d like to say that I wee your work, but I''m getting old."


    He was humble, but this man didn''t take on what he couldn''t do. "You''re the man for the job. I want to see how far he can go."


    "If you''ll leave it to me, that''s fine. I ept. I will cooperate in the implementation of your n. We''ll need to prepare some pieces that may be missingter."


    I motioned for the car to start and had Tsukishiro start the engine. I only told Tsukishiro, whom I didn''t trust, about Kiyotaka''s future. But that wasn''t all I was after. I also wanted to take advantage of Kijima and ANHS, the enemies I''ll eventually have to deal with.


    A yearter, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka decided to enroll in the Advanced Nurturing High School.

 Chapter 344: Afterwards

    Chapter 344: Afterwards


    Thank you for reading volume 0.


    This is Kinugasa Shougo. My favorite food is ochazuke, my favorite drink is ck tea, and my hobby is watching baseball.


    I''ve been itching to get a dog or a cat, but when my family members vote on which one they want, the vote is always split into 2 to 2, so I wasn''t able to get either one until now.


    My recent problem is that when I heat up frozen pasta in the microwave for a little longer because I want it to be hot, I often end up eating the noodles dry and crunchy. Even after adjusting repeatedly, I still got the same result. Was it my fault as the user of the microwave, or was it the microwave''s fault? It must be thetter.


    --Well, enough useless talk, let''s move on to the topic of Volume 0.


    How did you like this special volume about the past, which was regarded as forbidden in the past Youjitsu''s publications?


    The setting of the White Room existed in 2015 when the story of Youjitsu started, but I had no idea at the time that I would dig deeper into it and write it down in a single volume.


    As a writer, I am very happy to have been able to make this happen, even if in a special way.


    It was quite difficult to write this book without disturbing the pace of publication, but I hope that as many people as possible will be pleased with it. In fact, along with the White Room volume, there is another nk year volume which had not been released to the public existing in material form. This is the story of Ayanokouji Kiyotaka''s life from the end of Volume 0 to the beginning of Year 1 Volume 1.


    At this stage, I have no ns at all to publish this material in book form, but I am beginning to think that it would be interesting to do so if I ever have the opportunity to do so in the future.


    Well then,dies and gentlemen, this is a short farewell.


    I will see you again in the postscript of the next volume. See you soon!


    RoyalMTLs Afterword


    Hi again everyone, Cast here. Can''t believe we were finally able to finish this volume after all theplications of Volume 0 being a physically book this time around. Anyways, this was an extremely lengthy and difficult process for the entire team so want to give a big shout to the editors and Japanese proofreaders. They put in a crazy amount of effort to make sure that the quality and uracy of this volume was the best it could be. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the entire RoyalMTLsmunity who have remained patient throughout the trantion process and also to the people that helped in funding the project. This book took roughly around a month to trante so I''m d we finally made it here, thanks to the support of the entire ssroom of the Elite fanbase.


    The next volume (Year 2 Volume 9) will being out around the end of February, and I''m confident in saying that it will not take as much time as this one has, while also providing the best possible quality.


    As always, a big shout out to Kinugasa (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    Consider joining our ever-growing discord server for potential early releases and events, as well as our website for all of the other volumes we have /invite/5KACXAqjwR


    Hope you enjoyed Volume 0 and well see you again for Year 2 Volume 9!


    - Cast#5942 �C Trantor


    Credit


    PrinceYG#9999 �C Scanner


    "Thank you for reading from RoyalMTLs <3."


    Groumpf#0841 �C Volume Buyer


    "Thanks to all the hardworking trantors we love you all."


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    "Read Re: Zero; also, feel free to check out my Twitter: @LoremIpsumVerb"


    Alya#7028 �C Illustrator


    "Follow me on twitter @Alya_l16"


    DoSomething#5700 �C Senior Editor


    "Papayanagi is a Chad."


    Akuma#5279 �C Senior Editor


    "Hope you enjoyed the volume."


    Grimmfx24#0843 �C Senior Editor


    "Tomatoes are a fruit."


    Seinu#7854 �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "Fisher got trolled."


    Bell#9877 �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "Shout out to Kiryuuin n, Arisu n is mid."


    Bonenode#5060 �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "Thanks for having me, team. Also, Atsuomi Ayanokouji is the Top G of Japan fr fr"


    GPMS#6352 �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "Hope you enjoyed the volume."


    PuddingTC#7480 �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "Hi, this is Pudding. Hope you enjoyed reading volume 0. This is the first volume I participated in for Royal MTL. I don''t have much time, so I only helped with certain lines that others had trouble with. Be sure to thank the others for their effort!"


    Maaaaaa#8973 �C Japanese Proof-reader


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    "I can''t believe Kinugasa made something readable after writing such an awful series as cote."


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    Eru Chitanda Supremacy. Thanks!


    Factions of the Elite!!!


    Check out Factions of The Elite on the RoyalMTLs server and participate in


    special exams hosted by the Student Council. Join one of twelve factions such as


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    Download Pdf and Epub of COTE Novel


    https://bit.ly/COTELN

 Chapter 345: Prologue : Nagumo Miyabi’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 345: Prologue : Nagumo Miyabi''s Monologue</h4>


    Before long, I was the best both in academics and sports.


    Before long, I was surrounded by people trying to take advantage of me.


    It''s not like I worked that hard.


    Even though we learned the same things at the same time, I had the ability to learn much better than the others.


    Surprisingly, that''s almost a necessary condition to bing popr here.


    Poprity is a talent.


    Ever since I was a child, I had the talent to be popr.


    Of course, I do know that not everyone likes me.


    I''m sure the guys who consider me their rival especially hate me.


    I don''t care, though.


    Leaving good and evil aside, I was happy as long as people saw me as a popr person.


    Such is my life as a popr person, unchanged all through primary and middle school, a dazzling road.


    Still, I have been unable to shake off the strange sense of difort I feel from time to time.


    A sense of difort with no answer.


    In a life without even the slightest difort, that feeling alone always remained in my head.


    A sense of difort that remains even after being epted by and controlling everyone.


    I decided not to care about it, though.


    As long as I can continue being popr, this feeling of difort or whatever it is doesn''t matter.


    That''s what I thought.


    However, thingspletely changed when I enrolled in high school.


    I could no longer ignore this feeling of difort swelling up in me.


    Horikita Manabu.


    That man a year above me had the respect of all those around him.


    He was much more dazzling and intelligent than me, and had a certain conviction on top of that.


    Then, another man who had a different type of talent than Horikita Manabu showed up under me.


    Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.


    He is very different and has a cocky attitude, but his ability is undeniable.


    My aplishments aren''t inferior to theirs.


    Along with the feeling of difort, sometimes, I think about it.


    Is my ability truly the real thing?


    Or, am I a naked emperor who was simply not ever blessed with a good opponent?


    I can''t stop thinking about that.


    That is the true form of my feeling of difort.


    So, I have to bring things to a conclusion and get rid of this feeling.


    I have to defeat Ayanokoji, and prove that I am the most talented.


    If I don''t������


    ������


    Tranted by Anime Anyway


    https://youtu.be/k_Oca2TT1_I

 Chapter 346 - 1: Signs of Momentum

    <h4>Chapter 346: Chapter 1: Signs of Momentum</h4>


    THE END OF the second semester was finally in sight.


    The fun event, the school trip, passed like a fleeting dream, but winter vacation was just around the corner for the second-year students. Winter was the season that reminded us of the end of the year and the parting of ways.


    It''s quite cold today, perhaps due to the fact that the lowest temperature is one degree Celsius.


    Other students ran past me on their way to school, breathing out white clouds while talking about how cold it was. Every day, I stared at the casual scenery of daily life and carved it into my memory.


    Those who live only for the moment may wonder what the point of staring at such a scene is.


    But what if you knew that the scene was only avable to be seen for a limited period of time?


    What if you knew that you could only see this world for one more year?


    Perhaps this everyday world would seem like a dazzling jewel.


    While gazing at such an everyday scenery until the person I was waiting for arrived, I received a message.


    [Come to the student council room after school today.]


    Nagumo''s message was sopelling that I had no choice but to ept it. "The student council room, huh?"


    I''m not very keen on this invitation, but I can''t easily refuse it considering the future.


    Besides, I cooperated with him at the festival, even if there was a conflict of interest.


    I replied briefly with [I understand] and turned off the screen. As I looked at the other students and the scenery again, I saw Kushida walking alone to school.


    As I turned away without saying hello to her, she waved to me with a smile. I raised my hand in response, but just before we passed each other, she gave me a ring look.


    "What the...? Ever since this morning..."


    She said hello to me, so I said hello to her, so why should she re at me? I think she did that because she was sure that no one would see her face, but


    I don''t remember doing anything in particr to garner that.


    I guess it''s simply because Kushida doesn''t like me...


    I felt like I had been attacked with a hit-and-run.


    "Sorry, Kiyotaka!"


    At that moment, an out-of-breath Kei called out from the dormitory''s direction and came running toward me.


    "Don''t worry so much. You''re only a few minuteste."


    "Yes, but... I mean, wasn''t it cold waiting outside?"


    I gave her a curious look since we had originally met in the lobby of the dorm.


    "I''m fine. You still have a little bit of bedhead."


    She must''ve been in a hurry considering I was able to find an uncharacteristic mistake and pointed it out to her.


    "No, no!"


    Kei held her head down in embarrassment and hurriedly tried to straighten


    her bedhead with a handb.


    But no matter how many times she tried, it always bounced back a little. "Oh my God, what am I going to do...!"


    "Why are you worried about that? Hondou and Ike have worse sleeping habits."


    "Don''t put me in the same box with those boys! Ugh, I''m going to go to the


    bathroom when I get to school..."


    Kei walked away, covering the part of her bed hair with her hand in embarrassment.


    Well, it wasn''t a bad thing to pay attention to one''s fashion and appearance.

 Chapter 347: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 347: 1.1</h4>


    I arrived at the ssroom by myself and took my seat.


    "Good morning, Kiyotaka-kun."


    "Oh, good morning."


    Yousuke, who was surrounded by girls, spotted me and called out. I''m happy to be greeted, but the girls'' ''give me back my Hirata-kun'' stares are painful. "This may be none of my business, but if there''s anything I can do to help you, please let me know."


    I wondered what he was going to say, but he made the same offer again. "Haven''t you been saying the same thing to me every daytely?" Yousuke was concerned about a three-person group who was a little conscious of him in the distance.


    Since I used to be a member of this group, I guess he was worried about my departure.


    I was sure that Yousuke had been uneasy to see me both before and after the school trip.


    There was also the issue that Yousuke was the type of person to care about things even if he says he doesn''t.


    "If something happens, I''ll tell you. Thank you. If possible, I''d appreciate it if you could watch over me quietly."


    So, I told him again firmly that I understood his goodwill. Yousuke will probably continue to call out to me on a regr basis until my rtionship with the group''s back on track.


    "That''s no good. I can''t stand it when I see instability in the ss..." Yousuke seemed to be disgusted with himself for expressing his uncontroble feelings in words.


    He had a troublesome personality even though he had done nothing wrong. "Anyway, the girls are waiting for you. I''m more worried about that." Their jealous gaze grew more intense with time as they wondered how long Yousuke will be kept from them.


    Soon after, Kei came into the ssroom and Yousuke got back to the girls. The chime rang and Chabashira-sensei arrived in the ssroom, starting another new school day.


    "It shoulde as no surprise to you that you didn''t have any warning, but before winter break, you''ll have to take thest special exam of the second semester."


    The ss, who had grown to tolerate the special exams so far, was slightly more upset than usual, as they had expected winter break toe as is. "Oops. It seems you were a little surprised this time."


    It was because of the school festival, school trip, and other big events that had been going on.


    For this school, that was the way it is, and a special exam is a special exam, I guess.


    However, even if the special exam is held, there was only a little more than two weeks left in the second semester.


    I don''t think it''s something that requires long-term preparation or measures, but I wonder what kind of content it will have.


    "I understand your concerns, but there''s no need to panic so much. It isn''t the most feared kind of special exam that will cause students to drop out." The important factor, expulsion, will be kept to a minimum in this special exam.


    "However, of course, ss points will inevitably fluctuate depending on who wins or loses. However, you won''t be in a position to afford losing as you will be in hot pursuit of ss A from now on."


    Winning one or two matches isn''t enough to catch up and overtake them. You have to be willing to win all the battles ahead of you. "In this special exam, there are noplicated rules that have to be drilled


    into your heads. You''llpete with other sses in a one-on-one academicpetition."


    Academicpetition. As a general student, and particrly as a student of this school, this wasn''t surprising.


    Rather, it was as standard as it gets.


    Even regr midterms and finals arepetitive.


    But since it was called a special exam, it went without saying that there''ll be some special rules that will greatly determine the winner.


    "The winner will receive 50 ss points from the loser. If you win, you get 50 ss points, and if you lose, you lose 50 ss points."


    Not a veryrge number. Rather, it was a low fluctuation in ss points. "So, if it''s a ss-based academicpetition, then it''s simply not a good idea to fight against ss A!"


    "You can be happy about that, Ike, because it''s exactly ss A against which you ss B students will have to fight."


    The opponent had already been decided, and Chabashira-sensei confronted us with a cruel reality.


    "It''s a simple system in which the ss with the highest average scores in the recently held final exams happens to be pitted against the ss with the second highest average, and the third highest ispeting against the fourth highest scores. Even with some special rules, a significant gap in basic academic ability between the lower sses and ss A, which has high academic ability, can greatly affect the oue."


    As of the beginning of December, ss points were 1250 for Sakayanagi''s ss A and 985 for Horikita''s ss B.


    If we win the head-to-head matchup, we''d close the gap to 165 points with the 100 ss points we''d gain.


    Furthermore, we''ll be on track to surpass the 1,000 ss points mark for the first time since enrollment.


    On the other hand, Ryuuen''s ss C had 684 points and Ichinose''s ss D had 655 points. If Ichinose wins, they''ll be back in ss C, but if they lose, the gap between them and ss A will be doubled. This was a tough situation. But it wouldn''t be an easy fight, and in terms of academic ability, we had never once won. While the difference between first and second ce may seem slim, the overall academic gap wasn''t insignificant.


    "The questions are on all the regr subjects that are given in the midterms and final exams. The questions will range from rtively easy to extremely difficult, and will be as difficult as, if not more difficult than, the regr written exams."


    Although this ss had shown a remarkable rate of growth, it was unlikely that they''ll be able to turn it around, even if the ss studies hard for the uing two weeks.


    "Now I''m going to tell you all something. Even you all have a good chance of winning."


    The details of the special exam, as it was called, were revealed on the monitor.


    [Special exam at the end of the second semester. A cooperativeprehensive written test in which the whole ss will solve a total of 100 questions.]


    [Outline of Special Exam]


    RULES:


    �� Students solve the problems one by one in a predetermined order. �� A student may solve no more than five problems, but students must solve at least two, regardless of whether they are correct or incorrect. �� Each student will be given a maximum of ten minutes, including the time to enter and leave the room.


    �� All students except those challenging the exam must wait in a separate room. �� Only students who are waiting for their turn should wait in front of the entrance.


    �� If the time limit is exceeded, the student will be disqualified and will not receive any points.


    �� Leaving a written or verbal clue or answer to a question is a vition of the rules.


    �� If a student is found to be in vition, the exam will be terminated and the student will receive zero points.


    SPECIAL BONUSES ACCORDING TO TIME REMAINING:


    �� 10 points will be given for each additional hour of time remaining. �� If more than 30 minutes are left... 5 points


    �� If more than 10 minutes are left... 2 points


    �� All problems are scored ording to the solver''s ability (see below), regardless of the question''s difficulty level.


    �� (The solver''s ability is based on the OAA academic ability as of January 1.)


    Academic Ability A - 1 point


    Academic Ability B - 2 points


    Academic Ability C - 3 points


    Academic Ability D - 4 points


    Academic Ability E - 5 points


    A test in which the number of points obtained increases or decreases ording to the student''s ability to solve the problems, regardless of the question''s difficulty level.


    This is a very unique rule that isn''t usually thought of. It''s truly worthy of being called special. There are also +/�C ratings in the OAA, but since there seem to be five ssifications, students with + may have a slight advantage. "This is a special rule for the written test. ss A, which has arge number of students with high academic ability, seems to have a simple advantage, but the percentage of ss A students with academic ability B or higher in OAA is high. This means that the total number of points obtained will inevitably be less even if they solve the problems. You see what I mean?"


    While there were many students in Horikita''s ss who had made remarkable academic progress, there were still a number of students who ranked toward the lower end of their grade, such as Kei, Satou, Ike, and Shinohara. Although the percentage of correct test answers is low for these students, they would still be able to receive four or five points for each question in this special exam as long as they can derive the correct answer.


    Certainly, this wasn''t simply a test of academic ability, and we couldn''t assume that we were at a disadvantage against ss A.


    The match was rather unpredictable, and the oue was beyond our imagination.


    The time remaining in the game is a bonus, but I''m not sure if this is realistic or not.


    The timer would start when you put your hand on the door of the ssroom and open it. The number of students in Horikita''s ss is 38. It''d be impossible to make it to the end of the hour without leaving nearly two minutes for each student to clear the timer. Students with lower academic ability tend to make more careless mistakes, and the risk of losing points because of distraction caused by the timer is higher.


    The time remaining bonus might''ve been more of a consideration for the students that had higher academic ability in the OAA.


    No, it would still be dangerous to focus on reducing the time loss. "So we have a good chance of winning��it''s that kind of special exam, isn''t it?"


    Soon, Horikita seemed to have grasped the possibility of winning from the rules.


    "That''s right. Of course, the students in ss A score well in terms of academic ability from the top to the bottom of the ss. They will score well. Even


    though we have a lot of students around academic level D with the potential for high scores, if they don''t answer correctly, they will get zero points." Still, it was much better than going head-to-head.


    "I would also like to add something about cheating, which is clearly stated in the rules. It''s forbidden to talk with a student who''s finished testing while waiting for another student to take over. Students will always be present in their respective ssrooms, but they aren''t allowed to engage in unnecessary conversation." Everyone was probably aware of the area''s strong surveince. "What happens if I don''t show up on the day of the exam...? What happens if a student is absent on the day of the ss?"


    "If one student is absent, two questions will be unanswerable, and if two students are absent, four questions will be unanswerable, resulting in zero points." This would be the same as getting disqualified for running out of time. The number of unanswerable questions would be decided at random before the exam starts. Also, although it was unlikely, there won''t be a change in ss points in the event of a tie with an opponent.


    The strategy of intentionally letting someone be absent won''t work, only putting you at a disadvantage.


    sses with arge number of students, such as Ichinose''s and Ryuuen''s sses, would have an advantage because they''ll be given more time to solve problems, but it doesn''t affect the number of points earned by solving problems. The effect the ss poption has on the score would be minimal since it would be more efficient and ideal for the students with low OAA ratings, who are the central pieces of the ss and can act as an ambush, to solve the five questions. However, the coincidence of having the same number of students in the same ss against each other makes this idea itself meaningless.


    "We need to discuss and think about how we can possibly beat ss A." Like a mother watching over her children, Chabashira-sensei spoke. "We''ve set a date for the special exam, but we''ve decided to allow time for it until just before the winter break. The scope of the test is huge, so we decided that we''d need that much time. It''s a lot of work, but if we win, it will put us even closer to the A level. That''s all."


    The extent of the test will be announced tomorrow, and that was the end of the discussion here.


    Schedule


    December 22... Special exam day


    December 23... Announcement of special exam Results, End of 2nd Semester Ceremony


    It was just before the end of the second semester, just in time. Still, there were only three weeks left until the test.


    While the more academically advanced students usually had a different attitude towards their studies and require minimal preparation time, the key to victoryy with the students whose academic abilities were below average. "We looked at each of the others'' sses in the OAA to see how they''re doing. The maximum score our ss B can get is naturally higher than that of ss A''s since we have more students with D and E academic ratings. This means that if we y an ideal game, we can win 100% of the time."


    Since the sses that have more students with lower academic ability in the OAA can score more points, there was a lower limit to the number of points that ss A students could get, no matter how hard they try.


    The only way to win would be to exceed the opponent''s maximum score by even one point.


    And, well, this was just an empty theory. We were talking about a paper-thin probability.


    With nearly 40 students participating, it was next to impossible to get a perfect score. Taking into ount what Chabashira-sensei said and the rules of the special exam, we could expect that the percentage of difficult questions wasn''t very low.


    If the problems could easily be solved by students with E or D academic abilities, it''d be rather unbnced.


    It would be an unreasonable special exam that was disadvantageous to sses with high academic ability.


    A study group was a must, but it was doubtful whether or not it would be enough to lead us to victory.


    "It''s also important to consider who solves how many problems and who they''ll pass the baton to next."


    Yousuke, in a calm tone, asked Horikita as if to confirm his answer.


    "Yes. If we think of it simply, it''s easy to understand that the students with low academic ability should be brought to the front and asked to solve as many problems as they can..."


    The time limit was 10 minutes. The ability to read the questions also depends greatly on the ability of the students.


    It may be a challenge just to find easy questions out of the 100 on the test. If the more advanced students could solve the more difficult questions first, it would take less time for the less advanced students to find the right questions and they''d be able to concentrate on them more calmly.


    Who can and can''t solve which kinds of problems?


    Knowing this and takingmand of the situation is also a way to win. There may have been several other methods. In the end, it was important to decide early on which strategy to adopt and start the ss working toward it. "Chabashira-sensei said there''s a chance to win, but... a disadvantage is a disadvantage."


    "If they score well, we probably won''t win. The opponent is ss A after all."


    Some of my ssmates began to voice such opinions.


    ss A had never been below the other sses in the purely written exams'' total scores. Even with the special rules, they remained a formidable opponent. "This time, we''re up against ss A, but in reality, we''re up against ourselves. We don''t care what strategies our opponentse up with, and we don''t need to be particrly preupied with the fact that Sakayanagi-san is our opponent."


    She emphasized the reality of our difficult opponents, but it wasn''t what was on the outside but what was on the inside that we must face.


    "I''ll think about a strategy as much as I can. In the meantime, I need you guys to study as much as you can."


    Until now, or more precisely, until a few weeks ago, the ss had been studying for their final exams. Even though it was a student''s duty to study, they


    were tired of having to study again in such a short period of time.


    Still, not a single student expressed anyints.


    "We will back you all up as much as we can."


    Yousuke answered in response to Horikita, the student who taught at the study sessions, such as Keisei and Mii-chan.


    "Hey! I''m getting motivated! Personally, I''m a little bit conflicted because my OAA has gone up, but I''m going to make my contribution."


    Sudou, who had received an E rating for academic achievement, had now improved to a C+ rating.


    The points he could score were lower than before, but he made a big leap forward in his ability.


    If he hadn''t been able to do so, he would''ve had a hard time even solving the problems.

 Chapter 348: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 348: 1.2</h4>


    After school, I slipped out of the ss where we had started discussing and arrived at my destination almost exactly on time. I thought I would knock on the door immediately, but I could hear loud voices from within the room as if people were arguing a little inside. However, since we were separated by a thick door, I couldn''t hear what exactly they were saying to each other.


    If I kept my ears open for a while, I might''ve been able to hear them clearly, but the time of the appointment was approaching, so I quickly discarded the option of eavesdropping.


    "...Thanks."


    I was at the student council office at the time I was instructed to be there. It seemed that two male students were already sitting in the student council room, and one of them immediately stood up.


    "I''m sorry for calling you out, Ayanokouji."


    "It''s fine, but it makes me a little nervous when the student council president and vice president are so poised."


    I said something that a typical student might''ve said.


    "I''m sorry, but you don''t look nervous to me."


    Nagumo, still seated, crossed his legs and bent his index finger to signal the other to close the distance between them.


    Kiriyama stood slightly behind Nagumo and moved into a position where he could be easily seen.


    At that moment, he looked at the screen of the cell phone he took out of his pocket.


    However, in less than a second, he turned off the screen light and put it back in where it came from.


    The next person to open his mouth was not Nagumo, the student council president, but Kiriyama, the vice president.


    "After this, he also called up student council members Horikita and Ichinose," he said.


    "Horikita and Ichinose?"


    It''s either a coincidence, or they intentionally brought up the names of the two second-year students in the student council.


    "There''s no need to be so hasty, Kiriyama... Ayanokouji might want to have a little chat with you too..."


    "I''m sorry, but it doesn''t look that way to me."


    I felt gratitude in my heart for Vice President Kiriyama''s sound judgment.


    "Besides, I have some things I want to do to prepare for the next special exam."


    "Special exam? There will be no more special exams during the second semester for us third-year students. Besides, isn''t this none of your business since


    I''ve already decided who''ll win?"


    Nagumo looked at Kiriyama quizzically, not understanding why.


    "Still. You always want to be prepared for the unexpected. More third-year students than you think are eagerly waiting for their ticket to the top. What if one of them tries to take your head off?"


    "Those idiots have already fallen. There''s no one left to fight."


    "I hope so."


    The third-year students didn''t have much time left.


    With Nagumo holding all the power, they must somehow get the ticket to 20 million points, and they were still fighting that battle.


    It was no wonder that Nagumo was optimistic that he had no enemies. Since


    he had all the necessary tickets, it was impossible for anyone to go against him, including Kiriyama, who risked being deprived of his ticket to victory if he didn''t follow Nagumo''s orders.


    <Illustration>


    In other words, those who hadn''t been given a ticket weren''t bound by the same restrictions.


    It''d be a bit of an exaggeration to say that they can expel Nagumo from the school and umte private points from there... No. Even if that were the case, I''m not sure that''s worth it.


    If Nagumo was expelled from school, his huge sum of private points would probably go to the school''s safe. Nagumo couldn''t protect himself without such a contract.


    Except for Nagumo''s private points, the number of private points collected in just the third semester would only be enough to save one or two people at most. "Do you have any idea what you''re talking about, Kiriyama? Kiriyama... you''ve been poking me all morning, haven''t you?"


    "I''m not going to stop now, no matter what you say, because I''m not going to stand still on this matter."


    Am I wrong? Nagumo seemed to have smiled and nodded at the confirmation that had such pressure in his voice.


    "I''m sorry, Kiriyama, but this is a personal decision I have to make while I''m still in school."


    "Then I hope you can understand my desire to get this over with."


    There was a bit of arguing going on in the student council room before I entered.


    Nagumo''sment about Kiriyama being on his case since this morning certainly indicated that this wasn''t something that Kiriyama weed. No, perhaps it''s the same for me.


    "Okay, okay. I''ll keep the chit-chat to a minimum. Is that okay?" Nagumo confirmed with Kiriyama that there was no choice but to keep the chit-chat going.


    "I''ve got one more case to attend to after this, another student council case, so by all means, give me a minute."


    "You said you had something to tell me. All right, let''s make this quick."


    In the end, Kiriyama agreed, and Nagumo began what he considered necessary chit-chat.


    "You second-years seem to be in an unusually tight race, aren''t you?"


    "It seems so."


    "In our generation and Horikita-senpai''s generation, ss A stood as the sole winner by the middle of the second year. I''m a little envious that you can enjoy it until this time of the year."


    In the past, it was said that the ss battles were usually settled by the end of the freshman year to the middle of the sophomore year, with arge difference in ss points.


    The ss that started the year in ss A graduated ahead of those in ss B and below.


    There were some rare cases like Student Council President Nagumo and


    others, where ss B switched to ss A, but in any case, by the middle of the sophomore year, ss A was in amanding position.


    On the other hand, there remains a point difference that allows for aeback even for ss D.


    "It looks like there''s a chance for each of the four sses, but that''ll probably only remain until the final exam," he said.


    "That''s what I''m thinking too. Two or, at most, three sses will bepeting for ss A seats."


    Nagumo and Kiriyama both made the judgment without hesitation. "The final exam for the second-year students will be such a fierce battle." "Yeah. The exams arepletely different, of course, but the results are mostly always disastrous. Last year, I was in control of the second-years at the time of the finals and had control over the exams. I tried to keep the wounds to a minimum, but three students still dropped out."


    He said that despite his efforts to prevent it, there were unavoidable casualties.


    "There was a way to prevent any expulsions, but we had to weigh the loss of ss points and private points against the gain."


    This story may be true, but it may or may not be helpful.


    It was unlikely that the end-of-year exams we''d take would be the same as those that Nagumo and the older generations experienced. However, the scale will be roughly the same. This was something that we could naturally see through our experience with our school life so far.


    "That''s enough of this idle talk. It''s time to get down to business, Nagumo." Kiriyama urged him calmly, and Nagumo cowered his shoulders and showed his white teeth.


    "It''s time for me to finish my role as the student council president. But before that, we need to decide who''ll be the next president."


    "In terms of office length, you''ve already been in office longer than the previous presidents, haven''t you?"


    Manabu Horikita to Nagumo Miyabi. The student council president''s baton should''ve been passed a little earlier.


    I also remembered that Nagumo himself said that he would extend his office''s term.


    "We were going to have the term extended, but we were approached several


    times by the school. They said that if we put it off too long, we''d be denying the juniors the opportunity to get some experience. Well, they have a point." "All the third-year students have alreadypleted their roles in the student council, except for me and Nagumo, and all the procedures have beenpleted." So all that was left was to decide who would be the next student council president and then these two would be out of office.


    I see. So Nagumo has decided to give up his position as the student council president.


    That would exin why he was calling both of the names mentioned earlier. Suzune or Honami. They had to decide who was more suitable to be the next student council president.


    "You have the authority to appoint the student council president, Nagumo, don''t you?"


    "Yes. I have that right."


    "Then shouldn''t you be talking to Horikita and Ichinose instead of me?" I told him the obvious, but he seemed to be well aware of it since he didn''t seem surprised by my response.


    "It would be a waste of time to make a decision like that, wouldn''t it?"


    "Considering I was invited here... Well, I can guess."


    "You and I are going to decide who''s going to be the next student council president."


    "That''s more than just cheering for me, isn''t it?"


    "I''ve been thinking about various ways topete with you, but this should work. Horikita and Ichinose have been here for two years, like you. I''m sure you have as much information as we do."


    It was understandable that Nagumo, who didn''t have much time left, would like to see the fight settled as soon as possible.


    Nagumo didn''t believe that this was the ideal way to fight. Still, he must''ve decided that it was better than no showdown at all. "There''s still a way to postpone it. I wouldn''t be surprised if there''s a special exam likest year''s mixed training camp, where students are paired with andpete against other grades."


    "Well, when the timees, we can call this a preliminary encounter." Not one to put things off, Nagumo tried to keep Ichinose and Horikita in a


    tight circle so they couldn''t get away.


    "I agreed topete in the match, but I didn''t agree topete more than once."


    I had a certain interest in the Nagumo in front of me, but I couldn''t spend all my time on him.


    I had some things I wanted to do in the future.


    "You think you have veto power?"


    "I don''t want you to challenge me to a match just for the fun of it. If you want to have this battle with me to decide the student council president, you''ll have to be prepared to have a real fight here."


    "I''ll do that, but it''s a fight you''re likely to lose. You know that, right?" "Since the current students will be allowed to vote, all votes cast by thirdyear students will be at your discretion, the student council president. So one-third of the votes have already been cast, is that what you''re saying?"


    "Yes. If you assemble the entire second year together, we''d barely be even. Well, that''s not going to happen either."


    As the opponent is Ichinose from the same year, the second-year vote would inevitably split.


    "If you could do me one favor, I think it would be a good match." "Interesting. Say it."


    "The voting will be anonymous, that''s all. If only the school knows who voted for which candidate, I think we''d be evenly matched."


    "I don''t get it. So the third-years won''t vote for the candidate I''m supporting?"


    "But you can imagine how that would increase the chances of that happening, can''t you?"


    If anonymity was ensured, there was no need to follow the rules. Even if he promised some kind of reward such as private points, it was impossible to prove unless Nagumo''s side got close to zero votes. "Even if that were the case, how do you expect half of the third years to be on your side? That''s impossible."


    "You won''t know until you try."


    Kiriyama watched silently as Nagumo and I argued.


    "So, you''re willing to y as long as I add that condition, is that it?" "Yes, it''d be no problem."


    "You''re still showing a strange kind of confidence, but that''s all right. If you''re confident that you canpete with us on that basis, then I have noints. But before we finalize the matter, let me just say that I would like to see some stakes in the game."


    I guess if there was nothing to bet on, it wouldn''t hurt or itch to lose. For Nagumo, avoiding being outdone by me was an absolute must. It was inevitable that Nagumo would make a bet that there were no alternate possibilities other than his victory.


    "Can you bet on anything, Ayanokouji?"


    "Can I repeat those words back to you exactly as they are? Even if it means getting expelled."


    "Yes. I''d like to say yes, but it''s a difficult question."


    "I''m sure you''re right. No one would ept the risk of expulsion at a ce like this. I''m willing to bet on expulsion, but in that case, let me demand amensurate quid pro quo."


    "Quid pro quo?"


    "If I win, I want to get some private points from you. Preferably enough money to buy a ticket to move to the next ss. Even under the rules of special


    exams, you need that many private points to prevent expulsion. It''s not too much to ask."


    "Well, it''s worth it to risk expulsion, isn''t it?"


    Since both parties'' interests were aligned, theye to a consensus on the direction of the game.


    However, Kiriyama, who was listening to the conversation, put a stop to it.


    "I was told in advance that you were going to y with Ayanokouji, but I don''t agree with the terms of the bet, and I can''t let you bet such arge sum of money on a game you''ve never yed before."


    "Wait a minute Kiriyama... You think I''m going to lose under these rules? Ayanokouji said we''d be even just by being anonymous, but he''s wrong." "I don''t think you''ll lose, but it''s still not a zero percent chance. The probability changes depending on whether you choose Horikita or Ichinose. Above all, 20 million points is toorge. If you want to pay Ayanokouji, use the money to save one of the third-year students."


    It was no wonder Kiriyama strongly discouraged him from doing so, but Nagumo showed no signs of backing down.


    "I''m free to do whatever I want with the money I''ve obtained through my real power. It always has been and always will be."


    "...You insist?"


    "By all means. I''m going to win this war and kick Ayanokouji out of school."


    "Let''s just leave the second year alone. I don''t agree with that approach." Kiriyama retorted, but Nagumo wasn''t going to listen to him any longer. "I''ll grant your wish, Ayanokouji. If you beat me, you''ll be in ss A." "Thank you, President."


    "Are you sure about this? If the bet was small, all you''d have to do is get down on your knees, but with 20 million, I''ll have to ask you to keep your promise regarding the expulsion from school, even if you don''t want to. If you want to lower the weight of your offer, now''s the time to do so."


    "Is that what you want?"


    "Ha. I thought you''d be a little freaked out if I threatened you like that, but you didn''t seem upset."


    "I''ve already epted the risk thates from procuring a lot of money from you from the very beginning."


    "I''ll get you the contract. It''s one of two things: expulsion or 20 million." All that was left was for both parties to decide which they would support, and then the match setup wasplete.


    "I know we''re going to y, but I don''t know whether it will work or not."


    Just as Kiriyama was about to make hisst stand to stop the game, in which a huge amount of points would be at stake, a knock on the student council room''s door was heard.


    "Nagumo-senpai, this is Ichinose."


    A clear voice. It seemed that both candidates had arrived. "...Nagumo, if you can, don''t tell them about the match. And of course, don''t talk about the bet."


    Kiriyama had a good point, and it wasn''t something we should be telling Horikita and the others.


    No doubt they wouldn''t feel good if they knew that they were the target of a game or a bet.


    "You have no objections to this proposal, Ayanokouji?"


    "No, I don''t have a problem with that."


    "But... Are you sure about this? If we bring those two in here, the game''s basically begun."


    Kiriyama looked at me and stopped me, saying that this was the only point I could turn back.


    "You don''t have to risk your expulsion to y along with Nagumo''s game." "But it''s not easy to get a ss A ticket, isn''t it? Then, isn''t it natural to take a reasonable risk?"


    "It seems that you''re no longer hiding your true nature."


    Kiriyama was beyond angry and looked at the cell phone screen again. "All right. Do what you want...Come on in, both of you." Kiriyama urged as he approached the entrance and opened the door. Nagumo''s position as president was likely to cause him a lot of trouble since he always acted as he pleased as an individual.


    In that sense, it wasn''t a bad idea to bring forward the switch of student council president.


    The two students noticed my presence as soon as I entered the room. It was obvious that I was an outsider who wasn''t a member of the student council, so there was no need to make a special mention of it.


    "Come sit next to Ayanokouji."


    "Excuse me."


    Horikita sat down next to me and Ichinose next to Horikita.


    For a moment, Horikita''s sideways nce expressed, ''Are you involved in something strange again?''


    The conversation resumed again when everyone except Kiriyama, who had returned behind Nagumo, sat down in their chairs.


    "I''m asking you two to hold an election to decide who will be the next student council president."


    "Election?"


    "Isn''t that amon practice in junior highs? I''ll give a speech and let the students decide which of you is best suited to be student council president and cast


    their votes. The student who acquires the most votes is the next student council president."


    "I see. But I don''t recall any such electionst year."


    "Yes. In past years, the seated student council president, which would be me, decided who would be the next student council president. As long as the person who passed the baton directly to me agrees, they''ll be the next student council president. Of course, I won''t nominate anyone other than those who have achieved results that satisfy the people around them."


    The student council president wasn''t decided at random but based on a sound basis.


    Nagumo added that he wouldn''t forget this point.


    "However, the situation is a little different for you second-year students. Only Honami served on the student councilst year, and Suzune, who joined in during her second year, hasn''t been a member for a year."


    "I understand that there were no other students who joined the student council at the same time, but I think that Ichinose-san would be a good choice for student council president. I don''t think she has any faults."


    Although she was giving the student council president position to her opponent, Ichinose, Horikita had no hesitation in her decision.


    She didn''t originally join the student council because she wanted to be the student council president.


    "Do you not feel like bing the student council president?" "No, not at all. I feel positive about following in my brother''s footsteps. "I''m willing to run for election if that''s what the current students want, but at the same time, I''m perfectly fine with it being Ichinose-san."


    "Certainly, Honami has no shorings. It would be the expected choice. But there''s something else that makes me uneasy."


    Ichinose reacted with a slight tremor in her shoulders.


    "At this point, Honami''s chances of graduating in ss A has dropped dramatically. This is a problem. All of the student council presidents in the past have graduated within ss A. This isn''t an official tradition, but an unspokenmon sense. Of course, I will be one of them."


    Indeed, Ichinose''s position was in jeopardy depending on whether or not she will graduate in ss A was taken out of the equation. Horikita, on the other hand,


    was in the chase for ss A as a ss B student, so she was probably close to that tacit assumption.


    "There''s Honami, who has a perfect track record, and Suzune, who doesn''t have a solid track record but is close to ss A. After taking various factors into consideration, I decided that you two are almost evenly matched at this point in time. That''s why we decided to hold an election campaign."


    Since Nagumo had the authority to decide the student council president, I had no choice but to agree with the clear rationale, however different it may be in degree.


    All that remained is for the students themselves to decide whether or not to ept the position.


    "I understand. If that''s the case, I''ll run for the office."


    Then it was decided.


    This meant that Horikita and Ichinose would bepeting against each other for the position of student council president.


    All that remained was for Nagumo and me to decide which of the two we''d support.


    "Ayanokouji, I''ll let you choose which one you want to back up."


    "Are you sure?"


    "I''ll at least let you choose."


    "Horikita or Ichinose. To be honest, for me, it doesn''t make a difference which one I back... If you''re going to give me the right to make a decision, might as well choose which one will be more beneficial in the future."


    But Horikita stood up faster than I could name names.


    "Wait a minute, President. Ayanokouji-kun is here because..."


    "I''m going to have a contest to see between you and Honami who will be elected student council president."


    He wasn''t supposed to talk about that in front of them.


    Kiriyama seemed to be holding his forehead, but there was no way Nagumo would''ve listened to Kiriyama.


    "...You''re also..."


    "No, I didn''t bring this up, did I?"


    "Even so, there must''ve been a problem with the course of the conversation that led up to it."


    That was right. I couldn''t deny that.


    Nagumo had a conscience and didn''t mention the bet.


    "Come on, choose whoever you like better."


    "Then��"


    I was about to mention the name that I settled on when again I was interrupted by a voice saying, "Wait. This is an unprecedented endeavor. I should probably add a few more things."


    Kiriyama, who had been listening, interrupted at this point. "What? Are you still dissatisfied with the flow of the conversation?" "This is a student council election. I want to make sure that they really want to run and that they have the right qualifications."


    "You''ve made sure enough."


    "No, it''s not enough. I''ve heard back from Horikita, but not from Ichinose." "You don''t have to ask her that."


    "I disagree."


    Kiriyama turned to look at Ichinose, and without warning, the door to the student council room opened forcefully.


    "Let me interrupt you, Nagumo."


    As if she was visiting a friend''s room, Kiryuuin, a student in the third year ss B, entered the room without permission. It was the first time I had seen her in such close proximity since the summer, but she didn''t have her usual easygoing smile on her face and seemed to be in a rather bad mood.


    "You''re an unexpected guest. Can''t you think of knocking at least once?" The student council election was about to be discussed, and Nagumo wouldn''t have weed this guest.


    "I''m busy right now. You cane backter."


    Nagumo tried to get rid of her, but Kiryuuin wouldn''t listen. "I had asked Kiriyama to make time for me in advance, and you put me off?"


    "I''m sorry, but I didn''t hear anything about you."


    Nagumo looked annoyed at Kiryuuin''s appearance and nced at Kiriyama for confirmation.


    "I''m sorry Nagumo, but Kiryuuin is saying is technically correct. It was my fault for the time amodation."


    "It was a careless mistake on your part."


    "I can''t exin myself. She''s involved in another matter that I was hoping you could help me resolve today."


    I didn''t know the details of what he was talking about, but such an exchange took ce between Nagumo and Kiriyama.


    "That''s what I was talking about. Do you mind listening to what I have to say, Nagumo?"


    "I understand the situation, but I''m having an important discussion with these guys about the student council."


    "I can see that you''re busy, but I don''t have much free time either. I have an appointment at this time, so you''re going to have to deal with it." Certainly, Kiryuuin had no reason to back down. It was Kiriyama''s fault for making a mistake in arranging the time of the appointment.


    "For now, my priority is to talk with Suzune and Honami. If you insist oning early, just sit there and wait in silence."


    Nagumo tried to exin that Kiryuuin''s appointment was only known to Kiriyama at this point. Nagumo tried to make a pass at Kiryuuin, but Kiryuuin seemed a little different and didn''t hide her irritation.


    "I refuse."


    Kiryuuin replied with a slightly stern tone and put her foot on one of the empty seats in the student council room.


    "What are you imitating?"


    "First of all, I''m going to ask you a question right now. Depending on your answer, you will be sacrificed to this chair."


    Will she kick it away or destroy it?


    It seemed certain that the fate of the chair on which Kiryuuin had ced her foot was at stake.


    Kiriyama looked at Kiryuuin, who showed no sign of leaving and again apologized to Nagumo.


    "If it''s Kiryuuin, it may be counterproductive to turn her away. It would be safer to let the second-years wait temporarily and listen to what she has to say." Even though Horikita and Ichinose have priority, if Nagumo asked them to wait, they would.


    On the other hand, it was clear here that Kiryuuin, who seemed to be in a bad mood, wouldn''t do so.


    If you couldn''t turn someone away or make them wait, it''d be quicker to ask them first.


    "Never mind about us, let''s talk about Kiryuuin-senpai first. Is that alright with you, Horikita-san?"


    "Yes, that would be better."


    Since both parties came to this conclusion without waiting for direct confirmation, it seemed that Nagumo had no choice but to take Kiryuuin''s side. "Oh dear... All right, let me ask you. What is it that you came here for?" "You didn''t tell Nagumo that either, did you, Kiriyama? That really isn''t a good arrangement."


    "I understand your desire to me me, but I''m in the middle of a lot of things. Besides, we decided that it would be better for you to tell him about your messed up story as it is."


    He had deliberately left the reason for her visit unannounced. Kiryuuin looked at Kiriyama with cold eyes, but she had to let it go. "Now, let me cut to the chase. I don''t want to be so judgmental yet. So, I dare to ask you this. Who''s the one who''s decided to harass me in such a malicious manner?"


    "Harassment? That doesn''t tell the whole story."


    "Then let''s be more specific. Did you orchestrate a despicable and malicious act, trying to frame me as a shoplifter and forcing your friends to carry out the n?"


    A word too unexpected popped up�� shoplifting.


    It was Ichinose who reacted to it before anyone else.


    Although she tried to keep herposure, it was obvious that she must''ve been nervous inside.


    It wasn''t a surprising reaction when one had a history of criminal behavior, even if it was for the sake of one''s family.


    "Shoplifting? I''m missing the point more and more."


    "Kiryuuin was almost used of shoplifting at the Keyaki Mall after school the other day. While shopping at a cosmetics store, Yamanaka, a third-year ss D student, approached Kiryuuin from behind and tried to slip lipstick into her bag. When Kiryuuin noticed this and confronted Yamanaka, he told her that you had ordered him to do it, Nagumo."


    Kiriyama made Kiryuuin''s words of condemnation easy to understand.


    "I see. So that''s why you came to me so boldly."


    "The reason I didn''t tell you directly what I was talking about was because I knew you''d never order me to do such a thing. Am I right?"


    Kiriyama implied that he trusted Nagumo on this point.


    Nagumo responded to both Kiryuuin''s and Kiriyama''s questions with a nomittal attitude.


    "Can you say for sure you''re not involved?"


    Obviously, Kiryuuin suspected that Nagumo was involved. "I don''t know. At least you seem to think it was my order." "Yamanaka, the perpetrator, testified as much. Is that not enough? "He might''ve just used me to get away with it, right?"


    To Nagumo''s reply, Kiryuuin shook her head lightly.


    "If he mentioned your name, Yamanaka wouldn''t be able to get away with this. It would be less trouble for Yamanaka if he puts the me on someone else. Am I wrong?"


    Kiryuuin''s point of view certainly made sense.


    Nagumo has almostplete control over the entirety of the third years. It didn''t matter if you had a ticket or not.


    I couldn''t immediately think of any advantage to lying about being ordered by Nagumo under his control. If he fell out of Nagumo''s favor because of this incident, it would be a major stumbling block for the student Yamanaka. That''s why it wasn''t unreasonable to suspect that Nagumo was the real culprit since his name came up.


    Even if I went through the same thing, Nagumo would still be the first person I would suspect.


    "Even so, you seem to be very angry over a single shoplifting incident. It''s not like you."


    "You don''t understand me well enough to say ''it''s not like me.'' Unfortunately, I have a great dislike for acts like shoplifting. If people don''t get caught, it''s not a big deal, and I hate to see people hurting others just for their own sake."


    From the way Kiryuuin spoke, it seemed as if she was unaware of Ichinose''s past.


    While Kiryuuin was openly expressing her dislike, Ichinose''s expression


    darkened. Nagumo noticed this change in attitude and interrupted her, perhaps because he was aware of the situation.


    Nagumo seemed to have dared to treat the shoplifting act lightly in front of Ichinose, but it seemed to have the opposite effect.


    "Do you admit it? You tried to frame me for it."


    "That''s another matter, isn''t it?"


    When Nagumo refused to acknowledge this, Kiryuuin added, as if sensing. "You can rest assured. If I can hear an apology from you, I promise you that this matter will be put to rest."


    If Nagumo gave the order, he was an instigator.


    In a case like this, he would obviously receive a heavier punishment than the perpetrator.


    Even if Nagumo was a representative of the third years, Kiryuuin seemed to be against trying to avoid making a big deal out of this scandal.


    "On the other hand, what if I don''t apologize? Will you be satisfied with breaking the chair?"


    "I don''t think I''ll get an apology."


    "I see. Well, then..."


    Nagumo broke off from Kiryuuin and turned to us.


    "I''m done talking with you, Kiryuuin."


    Nagumo didn''t apologize, didn''t admit it, didn''t even acknowledge it, and simply let the conversation drift away.


    "This is something I never thought I''d seeing."


    Nagumo coldly told Kiryuuin, who was stunned.


    "You said you forced the truth out of Yamanaka, but how much credibility do you have in that statement when you got it out of him with threats? Even if you skip the student council and report it to the school, do you really think they''ll take it seriously?"


    "At the very least, Yamanaka''s attempt to frame me of shoplifting is likely to have been caught on camera in the store. It''s not a problem that can be ignored." "Then pull up the footage first. But that''s it. If you don''te up with something that directly links me to Yamanaka, it''s a meaningless story." Yamanaka was the only one who would be punished. There would never be any evidence of his involvement.


    Nagumo exuded such confidence.


    The school would do its utmost to investigate Kiryuuin''sint, but there would be limits.


    Yamanaka''s lie was targeting Nagumo''s downfall, the student council president and the leader of the third-year students.


    Unless definite evidence was found, such an oue was obvious. "I''m sorry for interrupting, but I want to talk about what you said earlier. Are you sure you don''t disagree with me about the election?"


    Nagumo started to get the final confirmation as if he really wanted to ignore Kiryuuin.


    "Yes, President. I''m fine."


    Horikita agreed, although she was concerned about Kiryuuin''s legs still on the chair.


    I thought she was about to kick the chair out of the way, but Kiryuuin continued to observe as if trying to see through Nagumo''s mind. Soon after, Nagumo moved on to Ichinose''s response.


    If everything went smoothly, she should give an immediate response but... However, the expression on Ichinose''s face still wasn''t clear, as if Kiryuuin''s shoplifter words were still in her mind.


    "Honami, you''re going to run for election too, right?"


    "...Well, about that... May I have a word with you, Nagumo-senpai?" "What?"


    "I''m��not going to run for the student council this time."


    At this point, Ichinose made a statement that I hadn''t expected to hear. "You don''t want to be the student council president?"


    "No, I think it''s not so much that I don''t want to be the student council president, I believe it''s a problem that goes beyond that. I have always believed that belonging to the student council and bing the student council president was for my own good and for the good of those around me. But now I realize that it was just conceit. As you''ve mentioned, Nagumo-senpai, the fact that my ss is far away from ss A is also proof of this."


    So she was declining the award in light of her undeserving ss standing. "Besides, a person like me can''t be the student council president. A criminal, that''s why..."


    Kiryuuin''s unintentional words had casted arge shadow over Ichinose. "Criminal?"


    Kiryuuin, who didn''t know what was going on, muttered curiously, but I couldn''t exin the reason at this moment.


    "That''s a different story. It has nothing to do with you right now." "I don''t believe so. No matter how much time passes, the sins of the past will not disappear."


    After answering, Ichinose continued before Nagumo as if she still had something on her mind.


    "Before the election, I would like to resign from the student council today." "Wait, Ichinose-san. I think that''s too hasty a decision. You haven''t..." "No, it''s nothing to do with today. It''s something I''ve been thinking about since a little before the trip."


    Ichinose smiled and confessed that she hadn''t made a decision yet. "You know as well as I do that service in the student council isn''t just a burden for the students. There are some tedious chores, but basically, it can only be a positive thing in this school. You''ve benefited from it, too, even if it''s not as visible as you''d like."


    Nagumo was right, being a member of the student council wasn''t a bad thing.


    If you''ve been in this school for any length of time, you''d know that being a member of the student council contributes to your ss points, even if only a little. For Ichinose''s ss, being in the tight spot it was in, it was like throwing away one of their weapons.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m not going to change my mind."


    Not only did she not want to run for student council president, she also wanted to resign from the student council.


    Kiriyama seemed surprised by such a statement.


    "You seem to be serious about this, Ichinose."


    "You''ve helped me a lot... I''m sorry I couldn''t help you until the end." "No, of course it''s the person''s decision whether or not to continue. I have no right to stop you..."


    Kiryuuin seemed to have guessed this to some extent, but it would be more unreasonable not to connect Ichinose with the shoplifting issue. I could only resent my bad luck that the subject came up coincidentally and in a timely manner. No, even without the shoplifting incident, Ichinose''s will to quit was firm. "I apologize for not being able to live up to your expectations."


    Ichinose got up and bowed deeply to Nagumo and Kiriyama. "I''m sure you''ll be a wonderful student council president, Horikita-san. I''ll be rooting for you."


    "Ichinose-san..."


    Ichinose, who was supposed to be her rival in the election, smiled and gave her a pep talk.


    "I''m feeling a little under the weather, so I''ll leave you here now. If there are any forms that need to be filled out, please give me themter. See youter, Ayanokouji-kun."


    With a small wave of her hand, Ichinose left the student council office without hesitation.


    The shoplifting incident may''ve definitely caused some emotional scars, but she showed no signs of changing her mind about quitting until the very end, nor did she seem to have any lingering regrets.


    It was probably something she was really thinking about, not something she just spouted from her mouth.


    Nagumo and I weren''t the only ones who felt that this was an unexpected turn of events.


    Horikita, who announced her candidacy for student council president, felt the same.


    "Ichinose-san has left the student council, what should I do?" Ichinose leaving the student council seemed to have automatically ended the match that I had been carrying out up until now.


    But now that this happened, there was nothing even Nagumo could do about it.


    It was impossible to rece Honami now.


    I didn''t know about other schools'' rules, but at least in this school, a student who wasn''t in the student council may not be qualified to be the student council president.


    "I don''t like the way this is going, but you''re going to be the student council president, Suzune."


    The most important thing to avoid would be the absence of the student council president.


    It would be too much of a stretch to suddenly appoint a second-year student with no experience as student council president.


    "I''m a bit distracted because I thought it was going to be an election, but... I understand."


    With her unopposed victory, Horikita would be elected student council president in no time at all.


    "Before that, I have a job for you."


    "What is it?"


    "Fill in the vacancy left by Ichinose as soon as possible. Bring in at least one new student council member from the second years."


    Indeed, Ichinose''s departure left only Horikita as a second year. If something unforeseen happened, the student council may be dysfunctional.


    "Are there any conditions for recruitment?"


    "There is only one thing��whether or not people around you think you''re worthy of being a member of the student council."


    "I see, that makes perfect sense."


    Although it may be inappropriate to bring up, it was likely that the discussion was about how someone with a reputation like Ryuuen''s couldn''t be allowed to join the student council.


    It seemed to me that there were no restrictions on the number of students from one''s own ss or another...


    "So anyone can move to join the student council as long as they meet these conditions?"


    "in and simple. You''re free to bring in anyone from your own ss. Even your predecessor, Horikita-senpai, had a member of the student council from the same ss, didn''t he?"


    "Yes, I understand."


    "And one more thing... Appoint a member of the student council from the first year as well. Yagami unexpectedly dropped out of school and we have a vacancy."


    Nagumo gave what seemed to be a very difficult order, and Horikita''s expression hardened.


    "It makes no difference whether I need to recruit one or two people. I''ll do my best."


    There was no way she could refuse, so she answered honestly. "It looks like we''vee to an agreement."


    Kiryuuin, who had been watching over the meeting, called out to Nagumo again.


    Maybe they were thinking that they couldn''t tell the truth in the presence of second-year students.


    Horikita, who had been given a new assignment, reads the room and stood up.


    "I''ll leave you to it. I will report back to you as soon as I have two new members."


    "Yes. At that time, I will officially hand over the position of student council president to you."


    Bowing to Kiryuuin, who was watching the situation, Horikita left the student council room.


    With the student council elections out of the way, the battle between Nagumo and me should''ve naturally drifted away.


    This would be the best time to leave.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m going to have to leave now."


    "Wait a minute, Ayanokouji, I''m not finished talking with you yet." Nagumo stopped me with a biting look as if he wasn''t going to let me go so easily.


    "Don''t hold me up any longer. The conversation with Ayanokouji ended with Ichinose''s refusal. I think it''s best to back off and get the Kiryuuin thing out of the way as soon as possible."


    Kiryuuin agreed with Kiriyama that the problem couldn''t be left unaddressed.


    "You are full of faults, but I appreciate what you said. I hope you''ll make a wise decision, Nagumo."


    "Damn it..."


    Nagumo clicked his tongue in frustration, but the circumstances forced him to admit it.


    However, he added this at the very end, probably because he didn''t want to let me go.


    "You''re a student in Suzune''s ss. Please help me gather members for the student council."


    "Me, huh?"


    "In the second year, there are no other student council members. Besides, the student council president will be unconditionally elected from ss 2-B. I can''t let them have it too easy."


    I think you could say that to any of our ssmates... Besides, that has nothing to do with whether or not I''ll help him.


    It seemed to me that he was just taking it out on me, but I didn''t think it was worth it to argue with you here.


    "Well, I don''t know how much help I can be, but I''ll do my best. Maybe." Nagumo didn''t let me off the hook for leaving for an escape route. "I''ll make sure to let Suzune know that you''ll help her after this. Don''t skip work, okay?"


    I was considering not going along with him, but he beated me to the punch. "Okay, I''ll help you. Are you satisfied with that?"


    At this point, Nagumo finally understood, and his resistance to letting me go disappeared.


    "That''s right. Here''s a souvenir for you at the end of the trip." I took out a few extra souvenirs I bought in Hokkaido and handed them to Nagumo, bag by bag.


    "You''re very disciplined in a strange way, aren''t you?"


    "I''m meeting the president of the student council, after all. I thought it would be a good idea to at least bring a souvenir."


    I didn''t know when to give him this kind of gift, and it was a mistake to do so at thest minute.


    "I don''t have one?"

 Chapter 349: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 349: 1.3</h4>


    Although it was a seed that I sowed myself, I got involved in something I had nothing to do with.


    I would''ve liked having a student council election or something to settle the value of my rtionship with Nagumo, but since no one could''ve predicted Ichinose''s resignation, I guess it was inevitable.


    I decided to call and report to Kei, who was waiting in the dormitory. "She''s not home yet?"


    As soon as the call started, Kei''s frustrated voice was the first thing that came out of her mouth.


    "I just left the student council room. I''ll be back in about 15 minutes." I still thought she''d be angry at me, but she seemed to be happy that I gave a clear time.


    "Okay. I waited without urging you, aren''t I great."


    She suddenly changed her tone to a softer one and asked me that. "Great, great!"


    Girls like Kei are good with cell phones. So she''s probably quite adept at sending a message every few seconds.


    "Heh heh heh."


    I didn''t know if it was apliment or not, but she seemed to be happy about seeing me.


    [I''ll be waiting for you.]


    After such a short exchange, I put my cell phone away in my pocket. The romance phase progressed, and I realized that a rtionship had been established without lengthy conversational exchanges. Only family members can detect the slightest difference in each other, and not just because they are smart or sharp. It meant that they were able to notice changes that can only be obtained by spending a long time together. It wasn''t a matter of thinking and reading each other''s thoughts, but of feeling each other''s skin.


    A momentary rancor could turn into a momentary softness. Two sides of a coin.


    This was true for many things other than just this scenario. The remaining pages of the textbook were decreasing every minute. But thest pages of the textbook became more difficult and took more time than the first.


    Now... the next task...

 Chapter 350 - 2 : New Student Council Member

    <h4>Chapter 350: Chapter 2 : New Student Council Member</h4>


    WITH THE LAST special exam of the second semestering up, Horikita


    had an immediate problem to solve.


    That is, to take over the position from Nagumo as student council president. The day after she was appointed as the new student council president, she decided to take action immediately after school.


    As expected, I was called and waited for Horikita''s arrival in the hallway outside the ssroom.


    She was currently in a small meeting with the students gathered in the ss. The student council had some business to take care of, but we couldn''t neglect our preparations for the uing special exam.


    If I left without telling her, I''d have to prepare for the double payback that she would deliverter. I didn''t want to do that.


    After about ten minutes of thinking about this unfortunate possibility, she showed up without an apology.


    "Well, let''s get straight to the point, shall we?"


    "Are you done with the strategy meeting?"


    "I had a thorough discussion with Hirata-kun and the others yesterday. I was just listening to the progress report today. Fortunately, most of our ssmates are very motivated. They''re positive about their studies even though they normally don''t like them. There are many signs pointing to the fact that everything is moving in the right direction. For example, Sudou-kun''s rise despite being the bottom of the ssst year, the mental pressure from Sakura-san''s withdrawal, the point difference between ss A and us being in range, and our direct confrontation with them as well." At the mention of Airi''s name, Horikita briefly nced at me.


    "Are you still concerned?"


    "I''m not so insensitive that I can just ignore it, but that''s the reality." "I disagree. You''re perfectly capable of holding your head up high." "As time goes on, you should be able to more fully process ande to terms with what happens, Horikita."


    As I started to walk away, Horikita followed, looking somewhat flustered. "Nagumo-senpai told me that you''re willing to cooperate with me, which is honestly reassuring."


    "It sounds like you''ve only heard the good parts. I just want you to know that, personally, I''m not enthusiastic about it at all."


    It wouldn''t be easyter on when there are misunderstandings and mimunications on the issue of motivation.


    "Well, there''s no need for me to say that explicitly. You probably already understand it well."


    "I guess. It seems that you were silent on purpose when I asked you to help me. You were going to ignore Nagumo-senpai''s order if I hadn''t spoken to you, right?"


    She said she knew and purposely spoke those inciting words. "If you really cared about me, you could''ve overlooked it." "No."


    The immediate answer crushed my ns to find a way out of the situation. Recently, the way she''s been treating me has been somewhat refined, although I couldn''t tell if it was in a good way, or bad.


    "But don''t worry. I''m not going to spend days and days trying to gather the members for the student council. I picked up some candidates yesterday, and I''d like to decide today. The student council''s important, but we have a special examing up that I need to focus more on."


    I was relieved to hear that she was willing to make a decision that benefited us in the short term.


    "There was one second-year and one first-year, right?"


    "Yes, and when I met with the student council again, they were a little more specific about what they wanted... They said the minimum requirement is that the student must have a B or higher in the OAA''s academic achievements rating." "Well, if you''re going to be in the student council, it isn''t surprising that there''s a minimum academic requirement to join."


    It seemed that social contribution wasn''t emphasized, so a wide range of candidates was possible.


    "Speaking of which, a little birdie told me that someone, somewhere had improved his academic ability to a B. I wonder who it was?"


    "Suddenly, I have a stomachache. I think I''ll go home."


    "Can''t you take a joke?"


    "Not really, because you most likely mean it."


    "I''m going to start filling in the second-year position that Ichinose-san left. I won''t choose you, though."


    "That''s obvious. So you said you''ve already decided on a candidate?" "Yes. The only requirements to being a student council member are not being in a club and having a B rating or higher in academic achievement. The rest is up to the student council president at their own discretion and judgment." As long as the criteria was met, Horikita was free to choose whoever she wanted to be in the student council.


    "The student council will run more smoothly if its members are skilled in a variety of abilities."


    If the members were randomly selected and unmotivated, the student council activities would surely be in jeopardy.


    "I''m still going to do this aggressively. I don''t want to bring in anyone from a strong rival ss, like ss A, since we get a few extra points just for being a member of the student council."


    It seemed that she wanted to secure as many advantages as possible, no matter how small.


    "So... the ideal student would be a student enrolled in our ss." "That''s right. Appointing someone from the same ss may reveal ulterior motives, but it doesn''t vite the rules."


    I think I might''ve found the answer to why we had been waiting here instead of walking out.


    "What do you want to talk to me about, Horikita-san?"


    One of my ssmates, Kushida, came out of the ssroom and approached us.


    Horikita briefly signaled me with her eyes, as if asking, ''What do you think?'' Kushida was certainly a student with a very high reputation outside of ss, including her visual appearance. Her academic ability was certainly above a B, and her specifications wereparable to that of the student council members. However, this was only the case from an outsider''s point of view. In reality, Horikita and Kushida were like oil and water.


    "Actually, I have a favor to ask of you."


    The question asked was akin to the dangerous act of pouring a lot of water into a pot of oil.


    "Off the record, it''s been decided that Ichinose-san will be leaving the student council."


    "What...? I see. Was there a problem?"


    "It was due to personal reasons."


    Kushida was still trying to figure things out, and the oil was starting to heat up.


    However, it wasn''t at a high temperature yet.


    "There''s now a vacancy, due to the decrease in the number of members in the student council, and I was wondering if you could fill it."


    That decisive phrase conveyed the message, didn''t it?


    The oil, which was getting hotter and hotter, began to make a buzzing sound as if it''s repelling water.


    "Is Nagumo still going to be the student council president?"


    "No, and as I''m the only remaining member of the student council in the second year, I''m automatically being promoted."


    "That means... Horikita-san will be the student council president." "That''s the n if there''s no trouble after this."


    Kushida seemed a little surprised at the next student council president''s sudden selection, but that wasn''t the important point. It was a given that either Ichinose or Horikita would be the student council president.


    "That''s why I decided to select the members personally. At the very least, you have the qualifications to be a member of the student council, and I''m sure you''ll do just fine."


    A lot of water and oil had already begun sttering around the pot��enough to cause burns if you stayed near it.


    "So, if I join the student council... will I be your secretary or something?" Kushida asked the question, expressing her concern about that particr point.


    "I haven''t decided on your position yet, but I will."


    "Hahaha, that''s a funny joke."


    Despite the fact that Kushida was saying these things with a natural smile, we could sense the heavy atmosphere of intimidation and the strong sense of, ''who would work for you, you idiot?''


    "Depending on your motivation, you may be elected vice president immediately."


    "Um, you know that''s not what this is about, right?"


    While subtle, it''s clear she''s trying to indicate that this conversation and our futile proposition are a waste of time.


    "I wonder if I''m the right person for the student council."


    Because we''re located in the corridors, where students passed by, the only excuse she could give for refusing was her ownck of ability.


    "You have a good reputation ording to the OAA and you''re well-liked by many of the second years and first years. You can also easily get along with the iing first years next year. We''re choosing you because of your ability." She emphasized that she wasn''t trying to manipte Kushida in any way, but that she was genuinely interested in her innate skills.


    For Kushida, however, it made no difference.


    ''Working for Horikita''��this arrangement was uneptable. "I''m d to hear that, but I''m not sure it''ll be easy. I have no experience in student council..."


    Horikita had been persistent so far, but it wasn''t going to be easy. Kushida had a hard time epting the idea of working under Horikita.


    "You joining us will give the ss an advantage, even if it''s small. The bonus of having a ssmate serving on the student council should be a weapon in our quest to reach ss A."


    "Yeah. I know what you mean, but... it''s still impossible. Sorry." Horikita''s intention of targeting her as the students were leaving was probably to let them watch in order to force Kushida to stay under her fa?ade. If this were an empty dorm room, she''d have refused her offer in a single blow.


    "I need your help."


    With a remark of great force, Horikita reached her hand towards Kushida in a dramatic appeal.


    The students who were passing by nced over, wondering what was going on.


    "..."


    Kushida continued to feign surprise and confusion.


    She was having a hard time rejecting Horikita''s request for help. At this point, I turned my gaze ahead for a moment.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Nothing."


    Horikita, who noticed my reaction, seemed to be concerned and asked me about it, but I didn''t want to interrupt her by saying anything irrelevant. There was a slight pause, but Horikita continued to speak to the now silent Kushida.


    "I''m not asking you to work for me. I just want you to help me get up to ss A."


    "But... it could be someone other than me. I don''t know about this." "You''re the one who most benefits from taking on this project." She didn''t want to join the student council, which would be run by Horikita. However, Kushida would indeed benefit the most by taking it on. "Hmm? What do you mean?"


    Kushida couldn''t quite follow the logic and asked back.


    "If you join the student council, Kushida-senpai, even if there are people who dislike you, they won''t be able to get their hands on you~"


    The answer wasn''t given by Kushida herself, nor Horikita, but by a third female student��Amasawa Ichika.


    She''d been secretly getting closer to us since a few minutes ago, but I didn''t expect her to suddenly get involved.


    "...Why''s Amasawa-san here with the second-years?"


    Kushida was being pushed further and further into a corner by her sudden enemy.


    "I can join where the senpais are, can''t I?"


    "I''m kind of busy right now. Who do you need?"


    "No one in particr... If I had to choose... I''d say Kushida-senpai." "Me...? Oh, I see. What kind of business is it?"


    With a vein nearly popping out of her temple, it was clear that she was angry.


    "Huh? What is it? What do you think I want?"


    "I have no idea what you''re thinking."


    I have no idea what she''s thinking, either. I wonder if Horikita does? "I''m having an important discussion with Horikita-san and the others right now."


    "No. I''m sure you''re just scared of being alone with me, Kushida-senpai." Obviously, Amasawa said this openly to provoke Kushida. Seeing the dynamic between the two, Horikita surely understood everything, even the undertones. Of course, it was possible she already knew about their rivalry beforehand.


    But did shee all the way here to see Kushida? I looked at Amasawa, hoping to decipher her true intentions with just my eyes.


    "I actually came here to see Ayanokouji-senpai, but I found him talking to Horikita-senpai and Kushida-senpai. That''s why I was secretly listening to you." Without any apology, she confessed that she''d been listening to the conversation.


    "How long have you been listening to our conversation?"


    "I started listening just a little while ago. Around the time when Horikitasenpai said, ''It''s not like I''m asking you to work for me or anything~.'' I swear it''s the truth!"


    Although Amasawa was being honest, she was clearly suspicious of Kushida and Horikita, perhaps because they didn''t trust her.


    "It''s true. No more, no less. I saw Amasawa approaching me." "I see. So that''s why you looked away for a moment."


    "See what I mean? I only tell the truth, don''t I?"


    "But where did the lie abouting to see Kushida-san go? And we don''t even know if it''s true that you came to see Ayanokoji-kun in the first ce." When you start doubting one thing, everything else starts to look suspicious. "Well, well, don''t worry about the details. Please continue with the recruitment efforts."


    Amasawa said this as she took a step back and appealed that she wouldn''t interfere anymore.


    "....Well. Let''s put aside the matter of Amasawa for now. Can we get an answer?"


    In order to turn the bad situation around, Horikita ignored Amasawa for the moment to continue persuading Kushida.


    "I think I already gave you an answer. I can''t ept it."


    "You can''t?"


    "I''m sorry, I can''t live up to your expectations. The student council isn''t for me..."


    "Why don''t you just join the student council instead of saying that?" As soon as she said she wouldn''t interfere, Amasawa, who had broken her promise less than ten secondster, opened her mouth.


    On the contrary, Amasawa was getting carried away with Kushida, convinced that she couldn''t directly counter her.


    She began touching Kushida and ying with her��poking her on the cheek with her index finger.


    "You''re a pretty girl with a good figure, Kushida-senpai. You''re smart too, aren''t you?"


    She kept whispering like a devil, trying to persuade her... or even agitate her. However, none of them were expressions of honest praise. "You know... If we''re going to keep talking, can we change the location, please?"


    Even if she continued to refuse, Kushida seemed to be under a lot of stress while in front of the public. She must''ve felt that it would be difficult continuing the conversation any longer. Normally, it would''ve been eptable to end the conversation and run away, but Kushida wasn''t able to do so.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, why don''t you talk with Amasawa-san for a while?" "Eh~? Are you trying to exclude me and be a cold senpai?" "That''s why I''m trying to lend you Ayanokouji-kun."


    Horikita crossed her arms and told her that she should be thankful that she didn''t try to turn her away by herself.


    "I want to be with not just Ayanokoji-senpai, but also with both of you now too."


    <Illustration>


    I''m sure she simply found our conversation interesting.


    "Plus, if you force me away, I might expose some bad secrets."


    By making threats, even if they were empty, we couldn''t forcibly remove


    her.


    "Shall we just change the location as Kushida-san requested?"


    Horikita tried surrounding us with arge number of people, but that allowed


    us to be confronted with Amasawa''s merciless words and actions and had only


    worsened the situation.


    She decided to change the location of the meeting due to Amasawa''s threat.

 Chapter 351: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 351: 2.1</h4>


    Horikita took Kushida up the stairs to the special wing, which was probably empty.


    "This area should be private for now."


    "For the time being, this area shouldn''t attract any attention," she said, seeking Kushida''s approval.


    "Well, you know."


    Kushida sighed, probably not even wanting to follow her. "It''s a safe ce. If anyonees near, you''ll know right away, right?" "You really follow me everywhere, Amasawa-san."


    "I''m curious if you''ll join the student council or not."


    She probably wouldn''t leave until she knew how it concluded. "Horikita''s annoying, but you''re three times more annoying." Kushida, who was now out of the public eye and no longer needed to remain reserved, seemed to be insufferable. Without warning, she began showing her true colors.


    It was quite a feat to be called three times more annoying than Horikita, who was the most aware of just how much Kushida hated her.


    Kushida, without hesitation, targeted her cold eyes at Amasawa. Meanwhile, Amasawa smiled the most she had all day.


    "I love seeing that look on your face~"


    Instead of being timid, Amasawa pped her hands together in joy, as if it was finally time to have some fun.


    "I''m happy for you~ Now that you have more people you can expose your true self to, like Ayanokouji-senpai and Horikita-senpai, you aren''t afraid of me anymore!"


    "I don''t know if you''re trying to mess with my state of mind or what, but why don''t you stop wasting your time?"


    "I won''t stop. If you want, I can cause trouble for you again." Amasawa made the decision to stay in school. I wonder if she was going to find pleasure in making fun of Kushida.


    Was she really looking for Kushida when she visited the second-year students?


    "Are you the type that''s convinced you''ll never drop out of school?" "What~? Who could expel me? I''d like to see if there is."


    "Stop it already! Amasawa-san, your teasing is too much," Horikita said. It''s true that Amasawa was being unusually obnoxious today, provoking Kushida to engage in hostility.


    I didn''t want to be involved in the student council member selection for too much longer.


    "If you continue, Horikita will be in trouble. Please stop doing this." "If you say so~, Ayanokouji-senpai. I''ll be a good girl," she said, holding up her hands to indicate that she really won''t make fun of Kushida anymore. "Kushida-san, let''s forget about her for a moment... Will you reconsider joining the student council?"


    "No."


    "Not even if I insist?"


    "I just don''t want to. Can I go now?"


    Seeing Kushida trying to get out of this situation, I decided to move a little. "I think we should give Kushida a more straightforward incentive, don''t you think?"


    "...A straightforward incentive?"


    "It''s true that Kushida-san would benefit from joining the student council. But at the same time, you''ll simrly benefit. It''s inevitable that the person who''s invited to join the student council may be a little dissatisfied with it." "Well, you know..."


    Kushida looked at me and red, but somewhat brusquely let her gaze wander away.


    "I think it''s naive to ask for a free favor."


    Kushida threw such words to Horikita as if taking advantage of my guidance.


    "If I make you an offer, would you consider it? Obviously, I''m not going to withdraw from school. So don''t request it likest time."


    Kushida might''ve been considering it, but of course, there were realistic limitations to the conditions. What kind of offer would make Kushida agree to join the student council?


    "If you really want my help, prostrate yourself and ask for it." "...Prostrate myself?"


    "Yes. If you show me a ''please, Kushida-san'' attitude, I will consider it... No, I will definitely join the student council!"


    Instead of giving Horikita an evasive answer, she assured her that she''d join the student council.


    Of course, this was a statement made under the assumption that there was no way Horikita would prostrate herself in the first ce.


    Horikita, however, wasn''t as prideful as Kushida.


    Kushida would never prostrate herself in this situation, even for the sake of the ss.


    "Yes, prostrating... That''s your condition. I understand."


    Horikita muttered and sat down on the cold floor of the hallway. "What? You''re bluffing, aren''t you?"


    "If I do this, you''ll join the student council. You promised me just now, didn''t you? Ayanokouji-kun and Amasawa-san are both witnesses. It''s now or never if you want to take it back..."


    It was as if she was actually going to do it to get Kushida to join. Horikita was giving off such a serious vibe that Kushida, who was supposed to have the upper hand, was at a loss for words.


    "...You''re bluffing, aren''t you? You''d never do that for me." "I don''t know why you think so, but I don''t hate you as much as you think I do. If me prostrating is beneficial for the ss, then it''s worth it." Horikita replied earnestly��her eyes sharp from a low position. Having promised that she wouldn''t interfere, Amasawa quietly watched the situation and seemed to be enjoying it.


    "No, you can''t do that! You can''t!"


    The conclusion that Kushida came to, despite her hesitation, was, ''You won''t do it.''


    "So... just prostrate myself and ask you to join the student council?" Saying this, Horikita slowly began to stretch out her hands as if she was going to put them on the floor.


    But before she could touch it, the movement stopped.


    And after a few seconds, she didn''t move beyond that point. "What''s the matter, Horikita-san?" Kushida called out happily. She thought Horikita had stopped moving because she couldn''t bear the humiliation any longer.


    "May I go one step further? Are you satisfied with me prostrating myself in such a trivial manner?"


    "Huh?"


    "You''d be working for me just for doing this. I''m the one who benefits from this, not you."


    If this happened, It would be possible to burn the momentary image of Horikita prostrating into one''s eyes.


    But at the same time, Kushida would pay the price by supporting Horikita, who would lead and manage the student council above her. It wasn''t a cheap exchange.


    "I know you don''t like me. I understand that you want me to get down on my knees. But I think the real joy and pleasure wille when you make me feel obligated to bow to you, not when you force me to do so. Am I wrong?" This was Horikita''s tactic.


    Horikita definitely didn''t want to prostrate herself for Kushida.


    In other words, Kushida''s reading was correct. However, Horikita was putting on an exquisite air and didn''t seem to be afraid to do so right here. "I don''t understand. If you''re okay with prostrating yourself, why don''t you just do it quickly? Forget about pleasure or enjoyment, just lower yourself and I''ll join."


    Evidently, Kushida wasn''t easily convinced. She wouldn''t have joined the student council in the first ce without a condition in exchange, so it was only natural for her to emphasize that point.


    "If there''s any resistance to me prostrating myself, it''s because you''re sure to regret it. If I bow down to you here and now, you''ll join the student council even if you don''t want to. I don''t want you bing a member with such low motivation."


    If she was going to join the student council, Horikita would want to make full use of Kushida Kikyou''s abilities. That meant her joining couldn''t be realized unless she genuinely wanted to join.


    "It''s hard to make me bow down to you if you keep your distance from me in your personal life. But if you join the student council, you''ll have more time to interact with me, and you''ll have more opportunities to show yourpetence. When that happens, I''ll have the opportunity to rely on you. If that happens, I may have to bow down to you more than once or twice."


    Instead of Kushida forcing Horikita to prostrate herself, she could create a situation where she herself would feel obligated to bow down to Kushida. Such a provocative remark seemed to have stung Kushida more than she expected.


    "I''m still going to work for you, right?"


    "You seem to think that you''d work under the student council president, but you''re wrong. It''s not the position that determines one''s true standing, but rather the rtionships between people. It''s just a matter of building a rtionship where the vice president has more real power and influence than the student council president."


    Horikita continued to box Kushida in from a lower position. "A new member suddenly bes vice president and has the ability to make me, the student council president, her ything��I''m sure that''s a great image to satisfy your need for approval."


    Since we had already dissected Kushida, we knew what she was looking for and what she wanted.


    From that point of view, it was clear once again that Kushida was the right person for the student council.


    "I don''t like it."


    "It''s okay if you don''t like it now. It''s a trivial matter."


    Kushida turned away from Horikita, who was ready to prostrate herself at any moment, with a grim look on her face.


    "My position will be higher if I join the student council. That wouldn''t be such a bad thing."


    "Yes, that''s right. It isn''t an amusing idea to impose conditions." "I hate being swayed by sweet talk, but you''re suggesting that I''d be able to use you the same way you''d use me?"


    "Yes..."


    Horikita smiled thinly and tried to withdraw her outstretched hands, but... "But you know, Horikita-san, I''d still like to see you prostate yourself here!" Kushida replied as she turned around with a full-bodied smile.


    "...That wouldn''t be me doing so out of obligation, would it?" "Don''t worry. I''ll aplish that some other time. Prostrate yourself now." Horikita''s n was going at a steady pace up until this point, but her calctions went awry at the veryst minute.


    Kushida, now more resolute, had turned the tables on Horikita, revealing more of her bad-natured personality.


    "What are you going to do? Refuse? Then I won''t join the student council." When Kushida saw that she had the upper hand, she proceeded to push the game forward at once.


    It was a disadvantageous situation for Horikita to try to get Kushida, who was originally in conflict with her, into the student council for free. If she avoided prostrating herself, Kushida may throw away the offer. Maybe the game was lost from the start.


    "Ayanokouji-kun and Amasawa-san..."


    "Yes?"


    "I''m sorry, but could you excuse us for a moment?"


    Horikita, who was clearly in a bad mood, asked us to leave. She didn''t want more than one person seeing this humiliating disy. I took Amasawa with me as we left the scene.


    Horikita had seeded in her goal of getting Kushida to join the student council without coercion.


    But at a cost.

 Chapter 352: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 352: 2.2</h4>


    "Oh~ How I wish I could''ve seen it��Horikita-senpai prostrating herself to Kushida-senpai."


    "Don''t mention it again. It was a fatal mistake."


    Holding her head, Horikita shook with anger as she remembered what happened a few minutes ago.


    "Kushida took advantage of you, even though you brought it on yourself." "I underestimated her need for approval."


    Amasawa and I saw how happy Kushida''s face looked when she left. "I was forced to prostrate myself."


    "...Still, in the end, Kushida-san said yes, and it was her decision. She has the self-discipline to say no if she really didn''t want to. You know that, don''t you?" "It was impressive that she saw that far ahead, though."


    On the outside, she''d smile at everyone, but on the inside, as Horikita said, Kushida''s actions were based on her own interests.


    That situation was a perfect opportunity for Kushida to show her true side, and there was no need for her to be shy. Kushida could''ve rejected the offer after seeing Horikita get down on her knees, but she ultimately decided to ept it only because it was actually beneficial for her to join the student council. "I know she''ll hate working for me with all her heart, but that''s not what''s important. Joining the student council will definitely increase her cohesive power. It''ll also be a great stepping stone for her to regain her position in the ss, considering she was previously backed into a corner and isted." "You intend to use Kushida to the fullest."


    "Of course. I made the choice to keep her. We have to show enough results to convince everyone in the ss. She even made me prostrate myself." It seemed that the act of prostrating herself still lingered in her mind. Yet, it couldn''t be helped, as it was a mistake created by her own strategy. If Horikita hadn''t prostrated herself in that situation, Kushida wouldn''t have joined her.


    "You should''ve found another way to fight rather than prostrating." "Don''t mention it again. I''ll make the most of it going forward..." The damage was done, but it was a start. Not everyone could be a student council member.


    By making Kushida serve on the student council, we could make her feel like she was needed in the ss and keep her from feeling like she was cut off. She knew this as well.


    However, she didn''t like the fact that Horikita was leading her into a situation where she would end under her administration. Her childish feelings were getting in the way.


    "Now your ss will dominate the student council for two years. That''s a definite advantage."


    "As long as Student Council President Nagumo approves." "He said it himself. ''You''re free to bring anyone from your own ss.''" "Yeah, but that definitely included the nuance of, ''If you''ve got the guts to, then go for it.''"


    "Then you''ll just have to show him you''ve got the guts."


    "You make it sound so easy."


    Horikita may have worn a wary expression, but what she said and what she did were the exact opposite.


    She didn''t hesitate to bring Kushida into her ranks in order to get as close to ss A as possible, and she even prostrated herself to do so. What else would you call this but guts?


    "I think it was probably the best way to recruit Kushida."


    "I think it was the best way to recruit her as well."


    Amasawa showed interest by overreacting and nodding behind us. "...Are you still going to follow me? The freak show''s over." "I''m interested to see who you''ll recruit from the first years, Horikitasenpai."


    "You and I aren''t the kind of people who''d chat casually with each other, are we?"


    "Why not? We''ve had a few conflicts, but only during the special exams. Aside from that, shouldn''t senpais and kouhais get along better?" Horikita raised her eyebrows slightly, but gave in, perhaps because she couldn''t force her away.


    "How about putting Amasawa on the student council? Her ratings in the OAA are also perfect."


    "Amasawa-san isn''t suitable for the student council even if she doesn''t have any problems in the OAA."


    "What? You could at least invite me, couldn''t you? I might be open to it." "I''ll pass."


    It seemed that Amasawa wasn''t part of Horikita''s n for the student council.


    Indeed, Amasawa probably isn''t suitable for the student council, which would require taking serious actions.


    "Since you''re rejecting the idea, do you have any others in mind?" "There are several candidates, but I wonder if... he''s still in school."


    The fact that the word ''he'' was mentioned suggested that the first-year student in question was a male student.


    Horikita looked around the first-year school building but didn''t seem to find the person she was looking for.


    She looked from ss A to ss D then sighed.


    "Maybe he''s already left."


    Horikitained a little, saying that she spent too much time talking with Kushida and Amasawa.


    "But I can''t give up right away," she said to us. "I''ll ask his ssmates directly. Wait here."


    With those words, she stepped into the first year''s ss A. Amasawa and I looked at each other and waited for Horikita toe back. "So, was your purpose to talk to me?"


    "Hmm? Oh, are you asking about the reason why I came to the second-year building? Are you curious?"


    "You''re sticking around, and you''re not leaving. I can''t say that I don''t care."


    "To be honest, I came to see how Kushida-senpai was doing. You know, we had a little bit of forced contact at the festival, so I was just wondering how things were going. And Takuya was also a nuisance to me, so..."


    "It seemed like you were teasing Kushida a lot, though."


    Amasawa stuck out her tongue a little and smiled.


    "I''m the only one who can tease Kushida-senpai so tantly. I wanted to check how mentally strong she is."


    "I see. I thought that you were just making strong and aggressive derations, but I guess you were just doing your homework."


    "I think it was a miscalction on Kushida''s part to have the White Room students get involved, but in the end, it helped here out of her shell. I guess it all worked out for the best."


    Amasawa had a cute little smile on her face.


    "I have to be at least a little useful."


    "Your reason for seeing Kushida makes sense, but it doesn''t answer why you''re following her around."


    "Simple curiosity. Ayanokouji-senpai is concerned about Horikita-senpai. Since she''s going to be the student council president, I thought I''d observe her charms up close. She seems to be a serious person, but she''s also interesting and a bit unique. I really thought it''d be okay to join the student council for a little bit." "Then you should''ve been more serious. Horikita knows that you''re a capable person, so she may not have rejected you."


    "It''s okay, it''s okay. There''s no point in joining the student council now."


    No point in joining now? Even though it was already nearing the end of the second term, Amasawa was still a first-year. With Yagami leaving, there was still enough time for her to serve as a recement in the student council. Suddenly, I thought back to the conversation I had with Amasawa before the school trip.


    "What are you going to do? You haven''t given up on the idea yet, have you?"


    Amasawa''s eyes became sharp when I implicated something in a roundabout way.


    "As expected of you, Ayanokouji-senpai. You noticed my subtle wording." "I was the only one who said I didn''t have any intention to cause trouble or receive special treatment."


    It wasn''t so difficult to connect the circumstances of Yagami''s expulsion to the student council.


    "You didn''t give me the hint because you wanted me to stop, did you? That''s not your style."


    "You''re right. I was wondering if you were worth worshiping." "It''s up to you what you want to do. You''re free to retract your previous statement and turn your vengeance against me."


    "This isn''t just me being generous, but also something born out of a lot of overwhelming emotions."


    Horikita, who had been talking with the first-year students for a while, cut us off with a satisfied look on her face.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let''s move."


    Horikita started to walk, but her steps were a little faster than usual. "Who were you going to meet here?"


    "I don''t think you know him. A student named Ishigami-kun." "Ishigami?"


    I was sure that it was the Ishigami I pictured in my mind. There were no other first-year students with the same surname.


    "Horikita-senpai must be impressive to have an eye for Ishigami-kun, isn''t she?"


    Amasawa, who was also a first-year student and a ssmate, was acquainted with him and naturally recognized him, so she immediately reacted. "Is he a good student? Is he a leader of the ss or something?" I decided to feign ignorance and asked Horikita and Amasawa about Ishigami.


    "He''s different from a leader. He might be more like ss A''s strategist." Unlike most of the other students, Amasawa''s attitude does not make me feel ufortable.


    She wasn''t making it clear to me whether or not she knew of Ishigami''s prior knowledge of my identity. Since she had nothing to hide now, it was possible that she didn''t know anything, but it was dangerous to assume.


    "What''s your connection to him, Horikita?"


    I didn''t expect Horikita to mention Ishigami''s name, so I asked her about it. "I''ve known him for a little while... He''s academically sound as far as the OAA is concerned, and his ssmates seem to trust him a lot. I think he''s one of the best. He was in the ssroom a few minutes ago, and I think I might be able to catch up with him now."


    That was why she was walking so fast. I wondered for a moment if it would be a good idea to follow Horikita to Ishigami, but there was no point in worrying too much.


    We don''t have any strange connection with each other, but it was possible that one of us would try to make unexpected contact or be assigned to the same group by chance, for example, in some special exam.


    Trying to avoid him by force would be an act against the natural order of things. As we reached the hallway leading to the entrance, we noticed a small group of boys chatting in a small circle.


    Horikita immediately noticed Ishigami among them and approached him. "Ishigami-kun."


    Ishigami turned around when his name was called and gave Horikita and me a silent stare.


    Although this was an unexpected first meeting, Ishigami didn''t show any signs of agitation.


    On the contrary, it was as if he was oblivious to my presence. This might not be surprising if you understand that in a small school, it''d be inevitable that we''d run into each other at some point. The other first-year students, though they knew Amasawa, seemed to be a bit nervous about my and Horikita''s presence with us both being second-year students.


    "Can I help you?"


    "I''vee to ask you a favor. I''d like to ask you to join the student council if you don''t mind."


    "..."


    Ishigami, silenced by the request, turned to his friends.


    "Sorry, go ahead. I''ll catch up with you soon."


    I wonder if they had ns to hang out together after this.


    "I''m sorry. I don''t mean to take up too much of your time." "It''s fine, Horikita-senpai. But why me?"


    Ishigami used honorifics for upperssmen. He didn''t seem to use the same kind of sass he used when he spoke with me.


    "I have very little interaction with first-year students. You''re one of the few I''ve spoken with. Additionally, you''re in ss A and excel academically in the OAA. You shouldn''t be surprised that I''ve asked you to join."


    <Illustration>


    As Horikita said, he was undoubtedly a person likely to be approached by the student council for their talents.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m not interested in joining."


    Without even thinking about the offer, Ishigami refused her without hesitation.


    "Would it be bothersome if I asked you to at least consider it?" "I have no interest in club activities nor in joining the student council. Please look elsewhere." Saying this, Ishigami turned his back on us and walked away. For a moment, Horikita seemed to consider stopping him, but she realized that she couldn''t force him to join the student council since he seemed to have no interest in the subject.


    "You''re not going to make any progress with him."


    "I thought he was a good candidate, but I guess I''ll have to give up on him." "There are a lot of other good students in ss A."


    "I''d like to think so, but I don''t know... I think that motivated students would''ve applied to join the student council at an early stage, like Ichinose-sanst year and Yagami-kun this year, right? Basically, students don''t want to be involved in the student council if they haven''t taken any action by this time of year." Certainly. He would''ve taken action during Nagumo''s presidency if it was something he was interested in.


    "So... what happens next?"


    "The only thing left to do is to pull someone from ss 1-D." "ss D? That''s an unexpected choice."


    The student council''s usual approach was to select students from sses A and B, which have a high percentage of capable and serious students. But she dared to choose from ss D?


    "For ss D, the addition of a student council member would be a morale boost. Certainly, the students of that ss would see this as a positive thing. It''s just a matter of making them aware of its advantages."


    "Why don''t you invite someone like Housen-kun? It might be interesting." Amasawa rmended making an offer to an oundish person as if she wanted to cause chaos within the student council.


    "I don''t think he''d want to do it. And even if he wanted to, I wouldn''t even consider it with his current record of behavior. He would need to create a good track record over the next six months and a year."


    She rejected the yful proposal, stating that he didn''t meet the minimum requirements.


    Returning to ss 1-D, Horikita looked around at the remaining students in the ssroom. One of the students immediately noticed us, got up from their chair, and approached us.


    "Wee, Horikita-senpai, Ayanokouji-senpai, and Amasawa-san." It was Nanase Tsubasa, who appeared out of ce in the first year''s ss D, where there were many poorly behaved students.


    "Yoo-hoo!"


    "It''s a bit unexpected to see Amasawa-san with the two of you." Nanase looked back and forth between me and Amasawa. "It seems that most of the students have already left."


    "There are fewer of my ssmates here than usual. Normally, more of them would be lingering behind."


    "Is that so?"


    "Yes. One of our ssmates has a birthday and we''re going to celebrate it at Keyaki Mall. I''ve been invited to the party afterward... Why are you here in the first-year building?"


    That was a sensible question.


    "Takuya Yagami-kun has left the school and there''s a vacancy in the student council. I''m here to find someone to fill that vacancy."


    "You''re recruiting members for the student council?"


    "I''m going to be the next student council president, and this is my first task." Nanase nodded her head in admiration and looked around ss D. "Can a ss D student even apply for a council position?" "Of course you can! I''m from ss D to begin with, so there''s no reason for me to refuse."


    "In that case... could you please let me help you?!"


    "...You''d like to join, Nanase-san?"


    "Yes. If you don''t have any issues with someone like me, I''d be happy to help the student council."


    "I don''t know what kind of decision Student Council President Nagumo will make, though."


    She replied saying that she wouldn''t have the final say.


    Horikita may not remember the details of Nanase''s OAA, so I chimed in. "It''s okay, isn''t it? Nanase has a good academic rating in the OAA and she''s serious, so I think she''s suitable for the student council."


    "Yes, she does seem like a good fit for the position."


    It was also an easy solution given that she''d been turned down by Ishigami. "Okay, Nanase. Can we count on you to help out with the student council?" "Of course!"


    I had my doubts about Nanase''s true motive, but that''s one thing, and this is another.


    If she could contribute to the student council, there was no reason to refuse her.


    "So you have no problem with Nanase-chan joining the student council, right?"


    "Yes. Unlike you."


    "Are you making fun of me?"


    "I think highly of your abilities. It''s just that your frank attitude, way of thinking, and personality aren''t suited for the student council."


    Horikita nodded her head in satisfaction at this most wee addition to the group.


    "Umm, what should I do from tomorrow onwards?"


    "I don''t think there''ll be any problems, but first, I''ll talk to Student Council President Nagumo tomorrow. I''ll contact you after that''s done and you''ve been epted into the student council."


    Horikita exchanged contact information with Nanase. Afterward, Nanase smiled happily.


    "I''m d to have more contacts as well!"


    "See you tomorrow."


    "Yes, I''m looking forward to hearing from you!"


    Nanase sent us off with a smile, and we left ss D.


    "We''ve gathered the members. All we have to do now is wait for an answer from Student Council President Nagumo."


    "Well then, I think I''ll go home too. See youter, you two!" Amasawa came and left like a storm, and we both watched her leave. "As usual, I can''t seem to figure out what''s on her mind."


    "Yeah."


    "Thanks for your hard work."


    "Well, I was with you, but I didn''t do anything after all. You made it easy on me."


    "That''s not true. At least in Kushida-san''s case, your words seemed to have influenced her. I''m happy to report that you did your job."


    I assumed she was referring to the time I convinced Kushida to ept the deal.


    "I''m sure I won''t get anypliments from Nagumo, but I''m so happy to hear this that it almost brings tears to my eyes."


    "What''s that? Oh, by the way, I''m having a study session at a cafe in Keyaki Mall after this. Do you want toe and see? Your girlfriend will be there, too." "A study group. Well, I''ll juste by for a bit."


    "Eh?"


    Horikita seemed surprised by my answer to her invitation. "What is it?"


    "No, I that you''d refuse like usual. Is Karuizawa-san''s presence that much of an influence?"


    That wasn''t the case, but there was no way of stopping her from seeing it that way.


    "I guess so. I''m concerned about whether she''s learning properly or not." I answered and decided to go to the caf�� with Horikita.

 Chapter 353: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 353: 2.3</h4>


    We arrived at the study group meeting at the caf�� after school. "Sorry to keep you waiting."


    Saying this, Horikita naturally joined her ssmates.


    I was impressed by how much she had improved her socializing skills. "Oh, Kiyotaka is here too!"


    Kei, who was looking at her notebook with a difficult expression on her face, noticed me and smiled.


    "I''m sorry, I''m just here for a quick visit."


    "Eh?"


    Kei showed a tantly dissatisfied expression, but she didn''t continueining. That wasrgely due to me telling her yesterday that she should actively attend the study sessions and that I wouldn''t help her with her studies. "Oh, sorry, I''mte!"


    Not long after we arrived, Sudou showed up at the caf�� with his voice hoarse, tired from running.


    "It must be tough to make it here while being a club member." "It''s no big deal. I do it all the time."


    Sudou''s gaze was captivated by Horikita''s appearance for a moment, but he soon sat down in an empty seat nearby.


    He then ced his bag on hisp and set down a set of study materials. Next, he took out a rectangr case and pulled out a pair of sses. "What? Sudou-kun wears sses?"


    "Ah, it''s been a while. I''ve been thinking about trying to wear it when I''m studying. Oh well, the prescription strength isn''t that high."


    In general, people with good eyesight rarely use sses. However, good eyesight doesn''t dictate whether you should or shouldn''t wear sses. Unlike basketball, where you have to look over a wide field of view, studying is a closerange battle. Adjusting your focus when looking at an object can be very eyestraining.


    Many students, including Kei, were still shaken to see Sudou in such a studious mode. He probably hadn''t attended many big study sessions. "What are you staring at me for?"


    "You look pretty different just by wearing sses. And you''ve started to study more, haven''t you?"


    Shinohara poked the side of her boyfriend Ike, who was sitting beside her, with admiration.


    "Oh, I''m trying, too!"


    "I know that. I know, but there''s still a big gap between Sudou-kun and the two of us."


    "That''s�� You know, well, yeah..."


    Ike tried to argue with her, but her stinging words made him nod silently. "Oh, sorry, sorry. I''m not really one to speak, am I? But do you have any tips on how to keep at it for a long time? I want to be at a simr level to you, and I''d like to know if you have any tips that might help. It must be hard to bnce basketball and studying at the same time, right?" Some of the students nodded their heads in agreement with Shinohara''s question.


    It was true that to the students with low academic ability, students such as Yousuke, Mii-chan, and Horikita must''ve seemed like naturally-born geniuses. They may not trust practicing the tips and tricks they''ve learned from such high-level students.


    Since they were smart from the beginning, it seemed that they were capable of oveing any obstacle.


    Inparison, Sudou started out with the lowest academic ability in his ss.


    It was natural for them to want to know what led to Sudou''s development. "Tips..."


    Sudou crossed his arms as if somewhat troubled.


    Initially, Horikita was the main factor for Sudou''s studying habits. By bing smarter, he wanted to be a man worthy of Horikita. However, Sudou would have difficulty exining that in this scenario. "Ah, I guess..."


    For a while, Sudou remained silent, but he seemed to begin forming words in his head.


    He started to speak, though he still felt awkward.


    "Strangely enough, I started to enjoy studying. Then, basketball became more interesting... something like that?"


    He began telling them why he was able to do both, and that there were other advantages to studying besides that.


    "At first, I didn''t like studying. It made me sleepy quickly, and I couldn''t solve the problems easily. But, the more you learn, the more you realize how useful studying is for school."


    "But Ken, studying is useless in the future, isn''t it? Depending on your upation, it''s not useful at all."


    Ike asked Sudou the question that everyone must''ve considered at least once.


    "I''m going to be a professional basketball yer myself, so I thought studying was just a distraction. But what if I don''t make it? What job can I do if I can''t even study? I could probably only do jobs that would hire anyone, right?" There''s no need to name any specific professions, but your options would be more limited than the average person.


    "Even if you don''t make it as a professional, you''ll have more options if you study, right? You can go to a university and study something more specialized. Well, I don''t have a concrete n yet."


    You don''t have to stick with only one dream.


    "Studying is an investment in your future. That''s what I think." Even if Sudou''s path to bing a professional basketball yer, which he had been pursuing for many years, was closed off, if Sudou finds another big dream to hold on to, he won''t fall behind in life.


    This was Sudou''s short narrative. His mental maturity had clearly advanced thanks to his continuous study.


    While those around him may haveughed at those words in the past, they were instead earnestly listening to every word without making fun of him. This was how much weight and truth had been added to his words, and it proved that a new era had begun. Sudou, sitting back down with a determined look on his face, hurriedly opened his notebook.


    "That''s enough small talk, right? Let''s get on with our studies." Sudou, who should''ve been more tired than anyone else due to participating in the hardest club activities, pushed forward without showing any signs of such fatigue. He wasn''t the type of person who was good at making speeches, but that was why his words and attitude were filled with a sense of truth that couldn''t be hidden behind meaningless lies. This struck a chord in people''s hearts. I''m sure that the students with lower grades, such as Shinohara and Ike, were also strongly moved here.

 Chapter 354: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 354: 2.4</h4>


    The next day after school, when the new members of the student council had been decided and the study session for the special exam started, Horikita was immediately called by Nagumo and was heading to the student council office. I thought I''d never hear from him again, but...


    "I was asked to bring you with me."


    She disyed a message from Nagumo and pointed the screen at me as she came to tell me.


    "I have a stomach ache like yesterday. I''ll have to pass."


    "Then it can''t be helped. But if you can''te, they''ll call you backter, right?"


    "Let''s meet and get this over with."


    It was quite possible that after a long gap of time, I''d be burdened with more tedious tasks again.


    She immediately got up, intending to go to the student council office, but she stopped.


    "Kushida-san ising with us too. Let''s wait a little."


    It seemed that she was going to introduce the new members at the same time.


    I looked around for Kushida thinking she was in the ss, but she was already gone.


    "Maybe we should go ahead and wait for her at the office." I left the ssroom with the exasperated Horikita.


    "You don''t want to go with her?"


    "I know we''ll spend more time together once the student council starts its work anyway."


    Well, that was why they''d want to spend less time together in unrted areas, even for just a second.


    "It''s troublesome when grudges are formed andst without reason, okay?" "If you were a bit more easy-going, who knows what would''ve happened." "Wouldn''t that have been worse? It''s dangerous to let someone else take control all the time."


    She was right that Kushida needed to be reined in and controlled to a certain extent.


    When I arrived at the student council room, I saw Kushida and Nanase standing side-by-side in the distance.


    Whether they knew each other or not, they seemed to be having a good time because of their natural ability to socialize.


    "They seem to be having fun."


    "They do seem to be enjoying themselves."


    Somehow, as I watched the two of them, they never seemed to stop talking. They seemed to be in a calm mood, smiling at each other constantly, and if left alone, they could probably continue chatting forever.


    "I think the student council can run well without you, Horikita, don''t you agree? I''m sure both of them will be well received by the students." "Shut up. Let''s go already."


    To prevent further idle chatter, Horikita quickly approached them. "Good evening, Horikita-senpai."


    Nanase bowed her head in a polite greeting, and Kushida showed an undeniable smile.


    "I was relieved earlier when I heard that Nanase-san was also joining the student council. I was so nervous about who else would be joining us." Kushida patted her chest in relief while saying something we didn''t expect to hear.


    The three student council members entered the room first. I felt a little ufortable following them here, but since I''d been invited, I had no choice.


    "Student Council President Nagumo, Kushida Kikyou of ss 2-B and Nanase Tsubasa of ss 1-D have been selected as new student council members. We''ve brought them with us."


    Both Nagumo and Kiriyama greeted Horikita, who exined the situation on behalf of the student council.


    "Seriously, you chose one of your own ssmates? You''re a very brazen woman, Suzune."


    Nagumo started tough.


    "I chose them from an impartial point of view. Are you dissatisfied with my selection?"


    Rather than admitting she wanted the advantage of choosing a ssmate, she lied about it.


    It was obvious why Horikita chose Kushida, but rather than address it, Nagumo disyed a smile of agreement.


    "There''s nothing wrong with your choice. I have noints." Looking at the new student council makeup, theposition looked unfamiliar with the absence of Nagumo, Kiriyama, and Ichinose, as well as Yagumi''s departure.


    "I think this is the first time that the student council gender ratio has been reversed."


    Kiriyama, the student council vice president, also noticed something when he looked at the list of members.


    "There''s no problem. In this day and age, men and women are equal. It''s just that the next generation''s best and brightest are disproportionately women. Isn''t that right, Ayanokouji?"


    "I don''t really have anything to say."


    The rise of girls wasn''t a bad thing. However, if the ideal ratio of girls to guys is 1:1, then the result of this year''s change in ratio could be said to be a reflection of the guys'' inadequacies.


    "Serve as student council president fairly."


    "Yes, President."


    "Well, I guess I''m relieved of my duties as student council president now." He patted the president''s chair as if he was reluctant to depart, and stood up from the seat.


    "It was both a long and short time. It''s an indescribable feeling." "Do you have any regrets?"


    Seeing Nagumo''s forlorn expression, Horikita asked.


    "I wanted to create an environment where talented students could graduate as ss A students, crossing the ss boundaries. But I couldn''t achieve the ideal I had envisioned."


    When Nagumo became the student body president, he strongly emphasized this aspect.


    As a result, the current third-year students created a situation simr to that, but it was more a result of the rules Nagumo created than the results he achieved as student council president.


    "The student council here has more authority than in a normal high school. But even so, it was impossible to overturn the school''s decisions in any way. I thought I could do more about it."


    "Still, there was definitely some influence from you. Previously, there were no such rules like ss transfer tickets or protection points in ANHS." "I guess."


    Whether or not those changes would produce good results would be found in theing generations.


    Horikita Manabu served as student council president, upholding Advanced Nurturing High School''s traditions.


    Nagumo Miyabi created the OAA and brought a new style of change by cing more emphasis on merit.


    What kind of student body president will Horikita Suzune, his sessor, be in her first year as president?


    The most obvious and difficult goal was...


    It must''ve been to graduate in ss A after starting from ss D. If she could do that, she''d definitely leave her name in the history books as a student council president.


    "We have some paperwork to do now. Ayanokouji, please leave. Everyone else can stay behind."


    I received Kiriyama''s notice and was simultaneously told that I was in the way.


    "Well then, I''ll excuse myself."


    "See you, Ayanokouji. Our battle isn''t over yet."


    It seemed that he called me out here just to remind me of that. "I understand."


    Bowing lightly, I left the student council office.


    Leaving Horikita and the others behind in the student council room, I took out my cell phone.


    It vibrated in my pocket a few times, but it seemed that I had just received some messages.


    I thought it was from my girlfriend, Kei, but it wasn''t.


    It was an invitation from someone unexpected to meet over the holiday. They said that they''d like to meet and talk with me on Saturday or Sunday if I have the time.


    Since I have a date with Kei on Sunday, I replied saying that Saturday would be fine.


    By the time I reached the front door, I received a message offering a specific time and ce to meet: 2:00 p.m. on Saturday in the Keyaki Mall. I replied to the message saying that the time worked for me and there''d be no problem.


    Although they didn''t mention anything about the content of the conversation, it wasn''t difficult to guess the direction of the conversation considering who it was that was asking to meet.


    As I exited the building, I passed a female student.


    "Were you called to the student council office again?"


    "Kiryuuin-senpai, I see that you have business in the student council office again today. Is this regarding what happened the other day?"


    "That''s right. After that, the conversation ended up going on a parallel track and it''s still unresolved."


    "That''s troublesome."


    From the looks of things at that time, Nagumo probably ended up neither denying nor confirming anything.


    "I''m thinking of taking a more aggressive approach today."


    "They''re in the middle of making Horikita the new student council president and registering the new student council members."


    While she may still force herself in, I ryed the information just in case. Perhaps it had an unexpected effect, Kiryuuin stopped and began to ponder. "Then, excuse me."


    My intuition was telling me that I should leave quickly anyway, but it was already toote.


    "Can I have a moment of your time, Ayanokouji?"


    "...Is this about the unsolved case?"


    "If I push Nagumo again, he won''t easily spill."


    "Why don''t you take the strong-arm approach?"


    "We can''t traumatize the new student council president or the neers, can we?"


    It was none of my business, but if she was willing to use violence, she could just wait until Horikita and the others left.


    "You simply thought that using me might be a better solution than trying to force your way through."


    "You''re really quick-witted."


    She easily praised me, but that was something that anyone would have thought of.


    "I''m assuming you''re just going to go home from here, right? Could you apany me for a bit?"


    "I n on having a date with my girlfriend at home."


    "Let her wait. It''s her duty as a girlfriend to patiently wait for her man toe back home."


    Kiryuuin, who never seemed to wait patiently, wasn''t very convincing. "Can we do it while we walk?"


    "Hmm. Well, that would be fine too."


    Kiryuuin, who turned back, started walking beside me.


    "Did you have a chance to discuss with Yamanaka-senpai again?" "Nagumo and Kiriyama firmly stopped me. Don''t think that you can expect any better results when you say that Nagumo''s the main culprit." "That''s a funny story. How can you be stopped from contacting someone suspected to be the main perpetrator?"


    Whether it was Nagumo who gave the order or not, because she imed it was Nagumo, Kiryuuin seemed to have judged that the possibility of any other namesing out was low, even if she threatened him.


    "That''s true, but I was of the same opinion. When you verbally threaten Yamanaka, you can''t expect to get a third party''s name. When you first questioned her, you already threatened her to the maximum extent possible, excluding violence and torture."


    In other words, it seemed that this was the result of forcing her to tell her as much as she could.


    "If we take it in order, shouldn''t it be Student Council President Nagumo?" "Of course I have my doubts. That''s why I''m trying to get in there. But without proof, we can''t corner him any further, can we?"


    And after thinking about it, she was nning to seriously threaten Nagumo. "There''s still a possibility that Nagumo isn''t the culprit. Do you know what that possibility is?"


    "There''s a possibility that Yamanaka could''ve held a grudge against you without your knowledge. I don''t know the details of the third-year students'' situation, but it seems that there are people who dislike you."


    "You sure know how to say things that hit close to home." She nodded her head without denying it,ughing rather than getting angry. "Nagumo or Yamanaka. Or is there apletely different third-party lurking in the background?"


    "How about leaving it alone? If the culprits learned their lesson this time around, maybe they''ll sneak off and pretend it never happened before their true identity gets revealed."


    "No. My pride won''t allow me to meditate on his attempt to incriminate me."


    From the looks of things, she wasn''t going to stop until she caught the culprit.


    "I''m going to stand out. That''s why I was hoping you could do the digging for me."


    "I don''t feel like I have any obligation to cooperate. And I myself have very little interaction with third-year students, except for you and the student council members like Nagumo-senpai".


    I wasn''t a suitable person to y the detective role and gather information. "That''s why. You can have a neutral perspective, can''t you?" "It makes sense if you''re asking for someone with somemunication skills, but..."


    "I certainly can''t expect you to be good at that part. However, your other abilities are perfect. Especially in terms of fighting sense, I can say that you''re unrivaled. There''s no one else who''s convinced me that I''d bepletely defeated in a fight without my direct confrontation with him."


    That may have been apliment, but I didn''t think it made me happy at all. "There are aggressive people in the third year. You have to be strongarmed."


    "I don''t want to get in trouble with the third years before you win or lose your case."


    "Well, don''t say that. Cooperate with me. I don''t have anyone I can call a friend. I can''t act like a detective."


    I sympathized with Kiryuuin-senpai being set up, but I thought it was best if I refused.


    "I think you owe me one for the incident on the deserted ind. Of course, you would''ve handled it well without me showing up, but I may have to bring it up to the student council to question the merits of it."


    She blocked my escape route with her aggressive tactics, saying that she wouldn''t allow me to refuse.


    "If you''re going to threaten me, it''d be easier and quicker if you had threatened me from the beginning."


    "I didn''t want to make a mistake. I avoided this method because I want to always have a friendly rtionship with you."


    Kiryuuin looked at me with her arms crossed, not seeming to take offense. "...I understand. I''ll investigate, is that okay?"


    "I knew you''d say that."


    Kiryuuin-senpai, looking satisfied, nodded happily.


    I guess you can''t just cut corners and do whatever you want. Kiryuuin was a very perceptive person, and depending on how well I did, She might get involved.

 Chapter 355 - 3 : How to Spend Time with Ichinose’s Classmates

    <h4>Chapter 355: Chapter 3 : How to Spend Time with Ichinose''s ssmates</h4>


    EARLY DECEMBER. IT was 2:00 p.m. on a Saturday afternoon, the first day


    of the weekend.


    I received a call from Kanzaki two days before and went to the mall as promised. We didn''t have a specific meeting ce in mind, but as soon as I entered the mall, I was able to find Kanzaki and his group without dy. Kanzaki, who had been watching the entrance of the mall, immediately noticed me and approached me with his hand raised slightly.


    "Sorry for calling you on your day off."


    "I tend to take it easy on my days off. I wee the invitation." I told him softly that there was no need for him to feel bad. Himeno, Watanabe, and Amikura were all with Kanzaki.


    "I was told it was just Himeno, but there are others."


    "Sorry, there are a few reasons for this."


    Kanzaki tried to exin the difference in details from the priormunication, but Watanabe and the others spoke first.


    "Hey Ayanokouji, it''s cold again today."


    "Hello, Ayanokouji-kun."


    Watanabe and Amikura approached me with smiles in the same manner as they did on the school trip.


    In response, I nodded in agreement.


    Kanzaki had already exined to me Himeno''s presence, the only person who would be apanying me today.


    I had assumed that it would be that kind of talk, but thebination of these four was a little surprising, and I couldn''t clearly see the purpose or intention of this meeting.


    Or were these two the first key yers for Kanzaki and Himeno? However, how could such a coincidence ur with these members who just so happened to be together on a school trip?


    "No wonder you look puzzled, Ayanokouji-kun. I myself didn''t expect to run into these two either."


    Himeno also looked somewhat unsettled and nodded in agreement, albeit slightly.


    "What do you mean?"


    I was getting more and more doubtful, but Kanzaki seemed to be more concerned about being seen.


    I had assumed that the store would be less crowded for a while, but students wereing in one after another.


    "Christmas sales have started."


    Amikura pointed out a store while looking at the bustling mall. The store was indeed already decorated, and the words ''Christmas Sale'' hung on the various products'' shelves.


    "For the time being, I''d like to move to a less conspicuous ce if possible. I don''t want anyone who has nothing to do with our group to know about its existence... especially those in Sakayanagi''s and Ryuuen''s sses." We had no reason to refuse since we could understand the situation without asking for details.


    If it was just the three of them, there would''ve been no problem, but with me in the group, there was no way to avoid the appearance of a mysterious gathering. Besides, I''d prefer to discuss things in a calm and quiet ce rather than in this traffic of people.


    "Then why don''t we just go for some standard karaoke?"


    Amikura suggested karaoke, which was often used for study and strategy meetings. However, that was also one of the few ces on the premises where a secret meeting could be held.


    The karaoke ce was only a three-minute walk from here. "Let''s get moving."


    Kanzaki took the initiative and started walking with me following after him. "Was this some kind of serious discussion? I''m sorry, I didn''t think it was." Amikura, who came alongside me, apologized in a whisper. From the way she spoke, it seemed that she had suddenly decided to join the meeting.


    Watanabe, who was standing next to Amikura, exined what had happened.


    "It seemed like Kanzaki was going to meet Ayanokouji, so we asked if we could join him."


    "Yeah. Originally we were nning to go shopping at Watanabe-kun''s request."


    When Amikura continued the exnation, Watanabe looked a little embarrassed and happy, but also somewhat sad and looked away. "Are you sure you don''t want to go shopping?"


    Both of them were empty-handed and didn''t appear to have bought anything.


    "It''s not that big of a deal. We can just go buy somethingter." I turned around as Kanzaki, who was walking in front of me, heard what we were talking about and exined it to me again.


    "Originally, I thought it was just me and Himeno who needed to meet


    Ayanokouji. However, I changed my mind when I was told that you treated them both well during the school trip."


    They were treated well? That''s my line.


    Watanabe and Amikura helped me a lot in various aspects during the school trip. I am grateful, but I didn''t do anything to deserve the praise.


    "So you decided that you needed to invite them too?"


    When I asked Kanzaki this, he nodded his head with a mysterious look on his face.


    "So what is it? What is it that we''re going to discuss?"


    "I''ll tell you the detailster."


    I was able to catch a glimpse of Kanzaki''s restlessness from the speed at which he was taking his first step forward.

 Chapter 356: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 356: 3.1</h4>


    After the reception at the karaoke bar, I entered our designated room with the four others. As a guest, I was taken to the back, where Watanabe, Kanzaki, and the girls all took their seats. We all ordered drinks, but nothing else. "Should we sing a song or something...?"


    Watanabe picked up a microphone on the table and jokingly pointed the tip toward Kanzaki as if he were conducting an interview. Kanzaki, who wasn''t as good as him at keeping up with such a lighthearted atmosphere, looked annoyed and then lightly brushed the microphone away with his hand.


    "Sorry, we''ll have to do thatter."


    "...Right."


    Watanabe apologized and shrugged, pulling back the microphone. "First of all... I''ve told Himeno what we''re going to talk about today, but you two haven''t been informed yet. I already asked you before Ayanokouji arrived, but can you promise me that everything we say here will be kept strictly confidential?"


    It seemed like Kanzaki told them in advance that this was a confidential conversation before he allowed them to apany us.


    "Yeah. That''s fine."


    Amikura and the others seemed to take pride in their tight-lippedness. However, Kanzaki seemed wary of them.


    "I''m sorry, but I still have my doubts."


    As if to prove my point, Kanzakiid his honest thoughts bare. "Hey, hey... What should I do then?"


    Watanabe seemed to have some thoughts about being under suspicion despite having promised not to tell anyone. However, Kanzaki was right in what he did, as we would soone to see.


    If we had only met up sooner, Kanzaki could''ve refused to tell Watanabe and Amikura, who tried to follow him out of curiosity, to leave it for another time. But that didn''t happen, and the fact that he was carefully checking the situation meant that inviting them may have been a gamble.


    I was suspicious, but I wanted to trust and rely on these two people. "Can''t I just sign a contract or something? I won''t tell anyone." "I see. A signed contract. That''s not a bad idea. It''s also possible to record it with a cell phone."


    Make them swear in front of the camera not to tell anyone, and punish them if they break the contract.


    Such an approach would be one way to keep them tight-lipped.


    Without hesitation, Kanzaki pulled out his cell phone and ced it on the table as if to show it off.


    "Are you serious? I don''t know, that might make me a little bit ufortable."


    Amikura showed some of her dislike for the proposal, not believing that the suggestion came from a ssmate.


    "I told you. We''ll have an important talk with Ayanokouji today. I believe that if anything we say here is leaked, the repercussions will be immeasurable." "It isn''t an exaggeration...?"


    Kanzaki wasn''t the only one looking at Watanabe during this questioning. HImeno was also looking at him with the same intensity.


    "Can you promise not to tell anyone?"


    Kanzaki ced his hand on the phone and asked again for confirmation, epting the bacsh he''d face because of his methods.


    If you don''t want to take responsibility, you should leave now. I think that Kanzaki''s determination and spirit deeply permeated both of them.


    "I promise. I will never tell anyone."


    "...Me too. It''s not cool to leave because I can''t keep a secret. I can have my cell phone record it if you want."


    If they break their word and speak out, they were sure to be looked down on, at least by Kanzaki and Himeno.


    Although they didn''t appear to be close friends, Watanabe and his ssmates had a sense of responsibility to protect each other as people. Convinced, Kanzaki put away his cell phone, took his eyes off the two of them, and turned to me.


    "Once again, Watanabe and Amikura will remain present." "I have no objection to this. This is a problem regarding Ichinose''s ss." If a foreign entity was mixed in, it was Kanzaki''s fault for making an error in judgment.


    "I want to ask you one thing before I get into the main topic. Most of the ss, including Watanabe and the others, have overheard a rumor that Ichinose''s leaving the student council."


    Is it true? They weren''t just casually asking. It was an intense question. Since a recement hadn''t been officially announced yet, Ichinose''s statement that she had resigned hadn''t been elicited.


    However, as the recruiting process proceeded, the rumor spread and Kanzaki and the others heard about it.


    "Why did you think I''d know?"


    "Because your name was among the rumors."


    I was a little caught up by the implied phrase, but my confusion was resolved by Watanabe''s statement immediately afterward.


    "There were rumors that you were going to join the student council." Rumors are interesting. Someone who saw me interacting with Horikita, the forting student council president, may have thought so and spread the story. "You''ll soon find out, but it''s true that Ichinose''s resigning from the student council."


    "...I guess it''s true then."


    If he asked her directly, Ichinose wouldn''t deny it, but Kanzaki and the others didn''t have the guts to confirm it.


    If they asked her why she was about to quit, then many other questions would also arise. If they heard that she had already quit, they might start to bombard her.


    If something like that happened, it would cause some discord in the ss. "Ichinose would''ve liked to tell you as soon as possible, but Nagumo ordered her to keep it quiet until a recement was found. That''s why she couldn''t tell you even if she wanted to."


    I''ll make sure that point is clear so that they don''t misunderstand me. "It''s up to Ichinose to decide whether to continue being in the student council. I know that I, as her ssmate, have no right to say anything about it. However, I can''t get rid of this ominous feeling."


    "I guess Ichinose-san has given up on moving up to ss A, after all." Unlike Kanzaki, who was using an indirect way of expressing his feelings, Himeno didn''t try to sugarcoat it.


    She left the student council at the stage where they were chasing after ss A andpeting with the other sses. It was possible for Ichinose to ry this news in a positive way. Just by telling her friends that she was leaving the student council in order to focus on inter-sspetition, she could''ve convinced them that she was serious about it.


    However, now that they were on the verge of dropping from the ss struggle, they saw her departure from the student council in a different light. This act would be perceived as surrendering their weapons and giving up on their pursuit to ss A.


    In fact, Kanzaki and Himeno seemed to think so themselves. On the other hand...


    "That''s a bit of a leap, isn''t it, Himeno? I don''t think Honami-chan will give up on ss A so easily."


    In contrast, Amikura, who continued to believe without any doubts at all, refuted the scenario.


    "Then why did Ichinose quit the student council?"


    "Maybe she was trying to concentrate on getting into ss A, so she quit the student council to relieve the burden?"


    Amikura spoke up, refusing to believe that Ichinose had given up. Watanabe, who also seemed to agree with Amikura''s view, nodded his head repeatedly.


    "Then why didn''t she exin it to us properly? If she did that, we''d be able to rest easy."


    "The student council president asked her to keep quiet about it, didn''t he? Honami-chan wouldn''t carelessly break her promise."


    In response to Himeno''s rebuttal, Amikura responded reasonably. If she was told to keep quiet, it''d be natural for Ichinose to remain silent until she''d be allowed to reveal it.


    "Ichinose hasn''t given up on ss A. That''s what our current ss thinks." "So, Kanzaki, you''re saying that Ichinose quit the student council because she gave up on reaching ss A?"


    "That isn''t what I mean. The truth will remain unknown unless we hear it directly from her. However, what I''m trying to say is that you''re believing in her too blindly. Why has no one considered the possibility that her decision to leave the student council was made because she gave up on ss A?"


    Amikura and the others here have now spoken for themselves, as well as the rest of their ss.


    "It''s obvious... because Honami-chan isn''t that kind of girl." "I agree with you. And Kanzaki, I think you''re the one who assumed that Ichinose has given up on ss A. Otherwise, you wouldn''t have said that." Hearing Amikura''s and Watanabe''sments, which seemed to be the embodiment of blind belief, Kanzaki opened his mouth without hesitation. "Admittedly, I strongly believe that possibility. However, I believe it''s only a 70/30 chance, at best."


    Kanzaki was 70% convinced she had given up, which wasn''t a small chance. Rather, it was quite high.


    "You''re always skeptical, aren''t you?"


    Unsurprisingly, Watanabe responded with an exasperated tone. "I doubt it''s as much as Kanzaki-kun said, but I think it''s at least 50-50." "Himeno-san, are you serious?"


    "Of course I''m serious. I mean, shouldn''t you be a little skeptical?" "There''s nothing to be skeptical about. It''s Honami-chan." Himeno and Kanzaki exchanged nces. They wanted to believe that there were other ssmates sharing the same doubtful thoughts they had. The reality, however, was that students like Amikura and Watanabe were probably in the majority.


    Really, they didn''t take into ount the possibility that Ichinose''s heart may have been broken.


    "I feel sorry for Honami-chan... She is being treated so poorly just for quitting the student council."


    "But we''ll definitely lose the ss benefit if she resigns from the student council."


    "I don''t even know if we shouldin given that we haven''t ever joined the student council ourselves."


    Watanabe''s objection had some merit too. No one could me Ichinose for her actions. No one had the right to do so.


    If anyone were to me Ichinose, they''d be immediately admonished. If they didn''t want to lose the student council benefits, they should run for office and do something about it.


    Due to the conflicting opinions being exchanged, the karaoke box went quiet.


    We hadn''t even gotten to the main topic yet, but the inner workings of Ichinose''s ss were beginning to emerge.


    Kanzaki was by no means ipetent, but he made a few statements that left him vulnerable, making it easy to refute him.


    Perhaps this was due to a discrepancy between Kanzaki''s thoughts and his ability to articte them.


    His inexperience with speaking out was showing on his face. "...Let''s move the conversation forward a bit. After all, Ayanokouji doesn''t really know why Ichinose quit, does he?"


    Distressed, Kanzaki broke off the conversation and asked me for confirmation.


    It''d be better to offer a light helping hand here.


    Why did Ichinose quit? They all wanted to confirm her intentions. "I''m sorry to say this, but I don''t know what Ichinose''s thinking right now. I never imagined that she''d resign from the student council."


    After saying this, I decided to resume before anyone else''s response came back.


    If I continued handing over the initiative to Kanzaki, I''d risk the conversation going back and forth.


    Although I''m an outsider, I should minimize the risk here. And it could be used as a test case I could referenceter on. "Wouldn''t her ssmates, who spend every day in the same ss as her, know more about the situation than I would?"


    "Uh, that''s certain... You hit a sore spot, Ayanokouji."


    Both Watanabe and Amikura were willing to trust Ichinose, but they weren''t able to see the essence of the situation.


    The same went for Kanzaki and Himeno.


    It was good that there were multiple skeptical viewpoints within the ss, but so far, this only resulted in changing a few perspectives. It didn''t fulfill its job��changing the ss into its ideal form.


    "It''s true that it''s a problem that we, as ssmates, don''t know anything about this..."


    Amikura had her own thoughts on the matter, which she reflected on. While waiting for the four of them to answer, the waiter came to serve us the drinks we ordered.


    It seemed that the karaoke was crowded since morning and the orders were taking longer than usual. The waiter asked me to order early if I wanted anything else before leaving.


    "Kanzaki. Before you start lecturing Watanabe and the others, I think you need to make sure you can confirm the situation with the student council yourself. Don''t you think so?"


    "But if I take action now..."


    "Take action? There''s nothing wrong with confirming Ichinose''s true intentions. There are many ways to contact her, whether it''s early in the morning orte at night, by phone, or in person."


    And it wasn''t only Kanzaki, but also Himeno, who had a straight face. "Are you satisfied with just having a few sympathetic ssmates while you''re out there not taking any action?"


    "But... I mean, I''m not particrly close with Ichinose, and I can''t possibly imagine that she would tell me the truth if I asked her."


    The problem with Ichinose''s ss wasn''t limited to their blind worship. "Then, you should try to get closer to her than anyone else. If you were close enough with Ichinose to the point you two could confide in each other without keeping any secrets, Himeno, there wouldn''t have been any doubts or suspicions here."


    All that Himeno needed to do was to extract the information and share it with Kanzaki as soon as possible.


    Her expression became rigid and she didn''t seem to know how to respond. "Wait a minute... I understand what Ayanokouji''s trying to say, but you''re going a little overboard..."


    Watanabe, who had been on the receiving end of the me from Kanzaki and the others up to this point, came to her defense.


    "It isn''t easy for Ichinose to speak her mind... If it were easy to share your feelings, no one would have a hard time."


    He answered, perhaps sensing the tension bing heavy in the room. His words showed a high level of awareness when it came to protecting his friends.


    Even in the midst of bad news, there were things that came to light through discussions like this.


    "I don''t know the details of what Ichinose acts like with her ssmates. That''s why some questionse to mind."


    "Such as?"


    "If you can''t ask her directly, you can observe her ande to understand her feelings on your own. If there''s a student who''s not feeling well, anyone would notice and ask, ''Are you okay?'' If Ichinose doesn''t always have a poker face, looking for changes in her expression can be a useful method."


    One essential aspect of understanding emotions is looking at the other person''s facial expressions.


    Regardless of whether they knew the details, I wanted to know if there were any noticeable changes in Ichinose''s behavior before and after she left the student council.


    The four of them were probably thinking hard about their most recent time spent with Ichinose.


    I would like to know if there were any gestures, facial expressions, or events before or after the school trip that hinted at something.


    Did she make any kind of SOS?


    However...


    "I don''t know, it was the same as usual... right?"


    After a period of silence, Watanabe stated that there was nothing unusual going on.


    Nervous, he looked at his ssmates as if seeking their agreement. Amikura also expressed her own feelings in response to Watanabe''sment.


    "That''s right. If it''s true that she''s resigning from the student council, there might not be any change, regardless of her resignation. Even today, we were discussing the next special exam."


    "...I agree with you."


    Kanzaki, who probably had the most insight into Ichinose''s behavior, didn''t deny it. Most of Kanzaki''s ssmates were closed-off in their thinking and didn''t share any information.


    However, when those four got together and spoke, previously closed doors were bound to open.


    "However... this isn''t really recent, but I don''t know what to say, she hasn''t been in good spirits since the end of the desert ind test. The reason is... I don''t think it''s so much about ss A."


    Amikura said hesitantly, casting a casual nce in my direction. "What? Was she? I didn''t notice that at all... Really?"


    Not only Watanabe, but also Kanzaki seemed to be unaware of it as well. "Indeed, it was odd."


    Himeno chimed in, showing a certain understanding of Amikura''s statement. I hadn''t noticed it before, but now that I think about it, that might be the case. The two boys seemed to be clueless, but the two girls seemed to have some idea of what was going on.


    "No wonder Honami-chan is so strange..."


    "You seem to have an idea about the cause. Care to share, Amikura?" "Well, um, she wasn''t feeling well, but that isn''t really rted to her resignation from the student council, I think...?"


    "Why do you assume so? Even if that''s the case, if she isn''t well, I''d like to know the cause as soon as possible. It''s also rted to the chain ofmand in our ssroom."


    "I know what you mean, but... Ayanokouji-kun, what should I do?" She asked for help in a panic, thinking that she may have said something unnecessary.


    Unlike Amikura, who was a good friend of Ichinose and knew what was going on, the rest of the group didn''t seem to understand. However, seeing the strange pause and the situation where she asked me for help, Himeno had a sudden realization.


    "Oh, you mean that''s the cause?"


    "That''s what I meant!"


    She wasn''t a girl for nothing. Despite being one of the three who were oblivious to the circumstances, she noticed it first and was one step ahead. "I didn''t know much about it, but... seems to make sense." "Tell us, Himeno. What could be the reason for Ichinose''sck of energy?" Kanzaki, who had been left out of the loop, asked with an approaching air. "I don''t mean to say this in front of you, but Ichinose-san''s low energy has something to do with Ayanokouji-kun, doesn''t it?"


    Amikura nodded hesitantly at Himeno''sment.


    "What do you mean...?"


    Kanzaki was surprised to hear that I was the reason behind Ichinose''s behavior.


    If they continued to talk vaguely, Kanzaki and Watanabe would only be more confused.


    "Although it concerns Ichinose''s private life, it''s not a good idea to withhold information under these circumstances, so I''ll tell you... During the desert ind exam, I received a confession from Ichinose."


    When I revealed the information I had been keeping to myself, Watanabe was the most shocked of all.


    "A confession? Huh? What? Huh? She likes you?"


    "That''s what it means."


    "For real? That Ichinose? With Ayanokouji?? That''s huge news!" "No way...!? I didn''t know that either..."


    Amikura was so shocked that she covered her mouth with both hands and couldn''t speak.


    "What?! Then what was Amikura talking about?!"


    Panic fell in the karaoke box as each person had different information. "I knew Honami-chan liked Ayanokouji-kun, but I was shocked to find out that Karuizawa-san had already be his girlfriend."


    I didn''t think Ichinose''s best friend, Amikura, knew that she had expressed her feelings for me.


    "It was about the same time that I found out about Kei. It''s no different." Watanabe seemed puzzled by this.


    "Shibata would cry if he found out about this... No, it wouldn''t just stop with Shibata..."


    "Love affairs... I see..."


    Kanzaki shook his head several times while holding his forehead, as if the topic was giving him a headache.


    "No, but that certainly doesn''t sound like much of a rtion, even if she wasn''t in good spirits..."


    The three of them tried to separate the student council from the matter, but... "But we don''t know, do we? I don''t know how long Ichinose-san has been in love with Ayanokouji-kun, but a broken heart is a troublesome matter. Maybe she''s dragging it on and losing her cool."


    She thinks I had something to do with her quitting the student council? I was going to deny it, but I couldn''t prove that it was 100% wrong with the current information.


    "If Ayanokouji breaks up with Karuizawa and goes out with Ichinose right now, is there a chance she''ll snap out of it...?"


    Kanzaki muttered to himself, hoping to somehow improve the ss. "That''s ridiculous, isn''t it...?"


    "That''s an outrageous suggestion, isn''t it?" While saying that, Amikura''s tone seemed to imply, "What do you think?"


    "I''m sorry, but I can''t ept such a proposal from an unrted party,"


    "...You''re absolutely right."


    Love and ss warfare must be separated, even if they affect each other indirectly.


    "I''ve shared this information with you, but now we should cut in from a different direction."


    "Why are you so calm, Ayanokouji? I mean, you''re pretty lucky to be liked by Ichinose! Have some appreciation for that!"


    I didn''t like him talking about such things so passionately. Anyway, the first thing to do now was to change the four of them, who had be flippant, in their thinking.


    We narrowed down our search to find out why Ichinose quit the student council.


    "Is there any indication that she was feeling down about fighting against Ryuuen''s ss?"


    Nobody answered as if their minds hadn''t switched over yet. After a short pause, while taking a drink, Amikura raised her hand in a small gesture.


    "So far, I guess things are really the same as usual. Like, trying to win in a good way?"


    "I agree. It''s like we''re trying to do the same thing we''ve always done." "Yeah. I''ve heard some specific ways to fight."


    Kanzaki was the only one who didn''t speak up, perhaps because he was in agreement with the three of them.


    However, it seemed like he was thinking about what woulde next. "That''s why it can be seen as the flip side of pushing yourself too hard. Even though she''s been cornered enough to quit the student council, she''s putting on a front so as not to burden us, her ssmates..."


    Once you start thinking about it, unless you break the chain, you''ll be stuck in an endless swamp of thoughts.


    But Kanzaki and the others need to think about it carefully. They must delve deeper and expand their thoughts more widely. By giving each individual the power to think, they could revitalize the ss. "I know you want to know why Ichinose quit the student council. I understand that Kanzaki and the others are also struggling with multiple choices. But what''s the real intention behind it? Do you not want Ichinose to push herself too hard, or do you want her to work even harder for the ss if she''s quitting the student council? I want to know more about the details of that."


    I told them what I wanted to know and took a sip of oolong tea. All of them seemed to be struggling with their answers as they remained motionless, exchanging only nces with each other.


    I could tell just by looking at them.


    Predictions of what Ichinose''s ssmates who weren''t here would be thinking.


    Many of them would be worried about Ichinose''s mental state. They would be genuinely worried about Ichinose as their ssmate before worrying about whether their leader falls down or not.


    However, that wasn''t all for Kanzaki and Himeno.


    "Let me speak first. Naturally, I expect Ichinose to be a leader. The student council isn''t really important, and if she feels that the student council is a burden, she should quit without hesitation. What''s important is whether or not Ichinose has the will to rebuild the current ss and reach ss A. If she''s lost that will, then we''re in trouble."


    "I think Ichinose still has that will. But if she gave up on ss A, then it''s not something the outsiders can say anything about, right? In rare circumstances, it''s a matter of personal freedom to aim for it or not."


    It is no wonder that Watanabe, who showed a side of him that cares about his friends, cannot be forced toply with him.


    "Yeah... we can''t force her, right?"


    Amikura felt the same and expressed her willingness to ept the decision to give up.


    When someone gives up, it''s definitely not a good idea to force them to aim for a goal like ss A.


    "However, as a leader, it''s not eptable behavior. She should ry these feelings to the ss as soon as possible."


    At the very least, they hoped she wouldn''t drag her feet. In that respect, they didn''t have to worry about Ichinose, someone who wouldn''t want to trouble her fellow ssmates. It was easy to imagine that she''d at least contribute to the best of her abilities for the sake of her friends.


    "If she''s going to give up, she''ll make it clear at an early stage, because she wouldn''t get good results if she continued to force herself into the leader position without intending to aim for ss A."


    "So it''s okay. In fact, Ichinose hasn''t said anything, has she?" "What I fear is Ichinose''s inherent goodwill as a person. I said something simr earlier, but what if she''s hiding the truth of giving up as a bluff and pretending to be strong? There''s nothing more difficult for the ss than that." Because of her concern for her friends, she kept her feelings of giving up to herself. But if Ichinose truly had a broken heart, it wouldn''t be surprising if she was pretending to be strong while secretly feeling defeated.


    "I kind of understand what you mean, but... is it necessary to cooperate with Himeno-san to prevent that?"


    "Not only that. We need to gather people who can offer opinions to Ichinose, to provide her with another perspective. It''s important to have a second option instead of solely relying on the leader."


    "Somehow, that seems a bit like a betrayal, doesn''t it?"


    The ss led by Ichinose must''ve always been a united one. No, it should be. From Amikura''s perspective, who held such a view, it was inevitable that Kanzaki and the others'' potential actions may seem like defection. "We need to act now before it''s toote. We need to prepare for that." "That''s what I''m saying. As Ayanokouji pointed out, there are still some things to be done..."


    Watanabe and Amikura, who had been slow at first, now understood the situation. However, the conversation was still vague and disjointed. Kanzaki seemed to be acutely aware of this, and the awkward atmosphere didn''t dissipate.


    I guess this is the end of us trying to find Ichinose''s reasons for quitting the student council.


    Even if we persisted further, we probably wouldn''t be able to get any closer to the truth with the amount of information we had. It was pointless to continue spending time on a discussion that had no answer.


    "Kanzaki... it''s about time you told me what you wanted to say." "Hmm? Ahh."


    Kanzaki looked at his cell phone to check the time as if he had just recalled something.


    "The main reason for calling you out here today was to introduce a new associate. He had other business to attend to in the morning, so he''s arrivingte, but he should be here any moment now."


    For the next 20 minutes or so, we chatted casually, without talking about anything noteworthy. We waited for a bit, talking about what happened on the school trip.


    "Sorry to bother you."


    "You''re here, Hamaguchi."


    Hamaguchi? When I turned my gaze, Tetsuya Hamaguchi from Ichinose''s ss showed up.


    "Hamaguchi-kun really...? No way, That''s surprising..."


    Watanabe and Amikura exchanged nces, and Amikura''s expression revealed that Hamaguchi was not someone they were expecting to see. "Hey, Ayanokouji-kun. I wonder if we''ve met face to face like this since the desert ind test."


    "Maybe. I was indebted to you for all you did for me then."


    It was still fresh in my memory that they politely weed me, a stranger, in the midst of the need to conserve food.


    "I didn''t do much. Where should I sit?"


    "For the time being... Hamaguchi, please sit here."


    Kanzaki got up from his seat and led Hamaguchi to the other side of the room.


    "Was it Hamaguchi who was supposed to join uster?"


    "Yeah. I guess you could say it''s just Hamaguchi for now." In other words, except for Watanabe and Amikura, who unexpectedly decided to jump in, there were three of us.


    "I''ve already talked to Hamaguchi about helping us on this matter." "That means he is officially the third member of the team." Kanzaki and Himeno hade up with someone who could change Ichinose. Of course, Watanabe and his ssmates didn''t understand the situation. However, it was Kanzaki''s will that allowed these two to be present at the meeting, even if it was by chance. If he felt they were an obstacle, he could have rescheduled the meeting and held it on another day.


    "We''vee to the point where we have to start moving forward." Himeno nodded silently at Kanzaki''s determination, which had increased by one gear.


    "Wait, Hamaguchi-kun. I heard from Kanzaki-kun, but do you know what you''re going to do?"


    "Ichinose-san''s mental state is in a precarious condition. It''s not a good idea to leave it as it is. I''ve been thinking about this since bing a second-year student, not because Kanzaki-kun pointed it out to me."


    Apparently, Hamaguchi had already detected Ichinose''s anxiety. "Really? You had never shown any such indication before." "That''s true. The ss didn''t like that kind of atmosphere. No one would follow me if I tried to take action on my own, because we''ve all seen how Kanzakikun has been suffering from it for so long."


    The details here were unknown to me, a member of another ss, but the truth and weight of it were evident in the gestures and expressions of the ssmates here.


    "I don''t want Ichinose-san to be removed as a leader. I want her to be able to support her ssmates in times of trouble. Kanzaki-kun''s invitation came at the right time."


    "Even when I was left isted during the unanimous special exam, Hamaguchi kept checking on me when no one was around. I could tell from his behavior and tone that he understood how I was feeling."


    By observing his actions and demeanor, it''s clear that Hamaguchi is both dependable and trustworthy.


    It may be simr to Yousuke''s role and potential in Horikita''s ss. "Was it really okay to tell me and Amikura such a secret?" "It''s a gamble. It''s important to proceed slowly under the radar, but with Ichinose''s departure from the student council, we''ve decided that it''s no longer a scenario we can afford to take our time with. If we can''t bring in Watanabe and Amikura, we''ll soon be at a standstill."


    From the chance contact, it seemed that Kanzaki saw the light and chose to move forward. Amikura''sments were more pro-Ichinose, but she also had her own ideas.


    "I don''t mind being trusted, but..."


    "Well, I promised not to tell anyone, didn''t I?"


    Both parties seemed to be confused, but they didn''t seem to be betraying each other.


    "I''m not asking you to take our side immediately. I just hope that you''ll change your mind, even if it takes a while. So far, you''ve been too keen on leaving the decision up to Ichinose."


    "It''d be a different story if you''re nning on doing something bad, but I understand that you''re acting for the good of the ss. I''ll think about it, though I won''t make up my mind immediately."


    Watanabe, who showed a certain understanding, replied with a slight smile stretching from his cheeks.


    "I may not be able to say anything yet. But as Watanabe said, I won''t tell Honami-chan about this. That''s all I can say now..."


    "That''s enough."


    I don''t think they''ll respond to Kanzaki''s expectations if they forcefully ask them, here and now, to do more than that.


    "By the way, what exactly do you and Kanzaki n to do from now on?" "Specifically? The first step is to save the ss..."


    As Kanzaki was about to continue with his statement, he suddenly looked at the door, which was opened with a bang.


    "Oooooh! I''ll get out of your way~!"


    Both Ishizaki and Komiya entered the karaoke box without permission. Did someone here call them? I thought, but it didn''t look like it. Clearly, the atmosphere was different from what it had been just now. "What''re you doing here on your day off? Please include me in the conversation."


    Ishizaki''s eyes turned to me for the first time, not knowing that I was there. "Why''s Ayanokouji here in this gathering?"


    "Why are you here, Ishizaki and Komiya?"


    "Why, well, there are a lot of reasons. You know?"


    Ishizaki looks somewhat annoyed and lets his gaze wander off towards Komiya.


    "Oh, oh. We were both at karaoke and I saw you guys. I thought it would be more fun to have a bunch of people singing than just two guys singing in solitude." He replied by touching the ss door of the karaoke room with a bang. "We don''t get along at all, do we?"


    Amikura cut right into Ishizaki and the others.


    "That''s... that''s... you see. That''s why? We''re trying to get to know each other through singing."


    Obviously, they were making up someme excuses.


    Not wanting to let the charade continue, Kanzaki revealed the purpose of the two.


    "Since the day the special exam was announced, we''ve been getting outrageous contact from Ryuuen''s ss day after day."


    "Again?"


    Amikura crossed her arms in disgust, though she didn''t seem to be angry. "What''s so outrageous about it?"


    "You''re barging into another group''s box without permission, no?" "We just came to check on our fellow second-years. We just wanted to see what you were singing. You seemed to be having a good time so we were wondering if we could join you."


    Ishizaki was putting up a string of painful excuses to match Komiya''s, but no one believed him.


    "I''m sorry, but this isn''t a study group meeting today."


    "It seems like..."


    Ishizaki noticed that there were no study materials on the table and scratched his head.


    Ryuuen''s ss was pitted against Ichinose''s ss. Amikura''s "again" suggested that this had been happening repeatedly since they made the decision to go up against each other.


    "So can you leave?"


    Unless they were studying, there was no merit for Ishizaki and Komiya staying since they seemed to be just a group that enjoyed karaoke. "Tsk. Let''s move on to the next one."


    Finally, Ishizaki and his ssmate left the room, clicking their tongues in blunt admission.


    "They''re a bunch of idiots. No, it''s all Ryuuen giving them orders."


    "That''s right. They should study seriously, but all they think about is dragging us down."


    "It''s just likest year''s final exam."


    At that time, Ryuuen was also involved in quite dangerous behaviors because he was trying to win. I doubted that Ryuuen would overdo it this time, but I didn''t know what kind of measures he''d take.


    "Are you under any pressure to sign an unreasonable contract?" "It''s okay, we''ve already taken a firm countermeasure. Of course, we can''t say that there won''t be any trouble in the future, so we''ll remain vignt." Kanzaki stood up and returned to his seat after making sure Ishizaki and Komiya really left.


    "I''m going to get back to the main topic now. The first step to save the ss is to quickly ascertain what state of mind Ichinose is in. If we don''t get her back to normal, we won''t be able to move forward or backward."


    Indeed. Now was the time when no one knew Ichinose''s true state of mind. "I wish there was some way to get aplete picture of what''s going on..." "I guess the only way is for us to be there for Honami-chan." "What difference does it make?"


    "What? I''m at a loss to say what''s different..."


    "It''s because we''ve continued to stand still like this that we''re where we are today."


    "Hey, Kanzaki, don''t be so quarrelsome. We''re allowed to speak freely in this conversation, aren''t we?"


    Watanabe interrupted Kanzaki''s lecture with a slightly angry tone and continued.


    "We need the courage to put forward ideas, but if they get suppressed and crushed like that, it would be harder for the next opinion toe out, won''t it?" "...But..."


    "No, I agree with Watanabe-san''s opinion. I refrained from speaking out myself so far, but Ichinose-san isn''t the only one who has a big problem." In Watanabe''s defense, Hamaguchi calmly expressed to Kanzaki hisint.


    "I appreciate what you''re doing for the ss, but what''s the point if it''s just spinning out of control?"


    Although it was still a small group, individual members had more will than I thought. While most of the members were blindly believing in Ichinose, there were some who had doubts.


    However, Hamaguchi and Watanabe weren''t necessarily able to stand out in such a serious situation.


    That was why they could speak freely under Kanzaki''s presence, who took the initiative ining forward.


    "I don''t think it''s a bad idea to be there for her. I don''t think Ichinose-san would easily answer if we ask her forcibly, and I think it''s important to observe and assess naturally."


    "You want me to take my time? In this situation where there''s no more time left? It would take too long."


    "No, I think it depends on how you approach it. We only know Ichinose-san as a leader, but Amikura-san is different. I think she has a lot of chances to hang out with her friends on her days off. That should open up more opportunities for us."


    Amikura nodded emphatically in agreement.


    "Having more opportunities is a benefit. However... there may also be downsides. Because Amikura-san and the others are regrly around Ichinose-san, they may also be more easily guarded against and unable to get close to her." Even among close friends, there was still etiquette to be observed. Amikura couldn''t just ask anything without discretion.


    Himeno, who I expected to be the least likely to speak, raised a light hand before anyone else.


    "Let me hear it."


    "How about having Ayanokouji-kun check on Ichinose-san during the break? Then, he can ask her about things. Students in other sses usually don''t trust each other, but if they''re with someone they like, they''ll loosen up, won''t they?"


    "That could work. Even Ichinose-san wouldn''t mind being asked by someone she likes, and as Himeno suggested, her guard may be lowered..." Hamaguchi seemed to know that Ichinose was in love with me. "But as I said, Ayanokouji''s from another ss. That''s probably my biggest concern."


    "But you trust him, right? You''ve invited him to such an important discussion."


    Himeno''s sharpeback made Kanzaki stop mid-sentence. "Let''s see what our ssmates don''t see."


    "I understand what you mean, but Ayanokouji has a girlfriend, doesn''t he? You know, Karuizawa... That''s a problem in many ways, isn''t it?" "Honami-chan stands out. If she''s meeting with a boy alone, rumors might start. At the very least, he needs to get permission from Karuizawa-san and prove that it''s not a date... but since Honami-chan likes Ayanokouji-kun, it''s not a matter of permission..."


    The others started getting excited and brought up my name without my permission.


    "In the first ce, is it okay to proceed like this without Honami-chan? I know it''s for the sake of the ss, but it''s kind of... I don''t like it because it''s like I''m trying to take advantage of her feelings."


    It wasn''t surprising that Amikura, who seemed to be in a particrly close rtionship with Honami-chan, wouldin about this.


    ss D had been centered around Ichinose in both good and bad times. "We''re not taking this initiative solely for the special exam. This is something we''re doing for Ichinose''s sake. It''d be absurd to tell her that we''re worried about her mental condition."


    Kanzaki tried to convince Amikura, but she didn''t seem to be easily convinced.


    "I know that you wanted to change the ss during the unanimous special exam. I don''t mean to say that this is a bad thing, but I don''t think what you''re doing behind the scenes, such as secretly consulting Ayanokouji-kun and entertaining Himeno-san, is praiseworthy."


    It was a natural thought for a student from Ichinose''s ss, who was supposed to value transparency.


    "It''s clear that if you act openly, you''ll get opposition. That''s why, instead of acting alone, Himeno and Hamaguchi have cooperated with me. This gives strength to my opposition."


    It was true that more than half of the attendees here were on Kanzaki''s side. If it were Kanzaki alone, he''d have to fight one against four, but now it was practically three against two.


    With allies on his side, he could expect help from reinforcements. "I guess setting up a date with Ayanokouji-kun is the way to go." Himeno tried to conclude so, but Amikura still had a hard expression, and she didn''t change her position.


    "You don''t seem to have any hesitations. Are you that dissatisfied with Honami-chan''s way of doing things?"


    "I am..."


    "Kanzaki understands, right? He was always giving his opinions by Honami''s side, and sometimes he strongly advocated for his own opinions. But I''ve never heard Himeno do anything like that."


    "Himeno-chan..."


    Kanzaki tried to argue on her behalf, but Hamaguchi stopped him with his hand.


    "I think it''s meaningless if you don''t speak up about important things like this."


    Hamaguchi''s ability to look at the bigger picture and judge things objectively and correctly was a great new asset.


    "I don''t like the stance where ''everyone holds hands and gets along with each other.'' It''s not a recent thing. It''s been like that since before I entered this school. I don''t really like socializing with friends, and if anything, I feel morefortable being alone."


    Until now, Amikura would''ve never known that Himeno had been thinking that.


    "But I''m not good at expressing my opinion, and I thought it was easier to just go along with whatever everyone else was doing and stay quiet. So whenever I was invited to do something with the group, I''d just go along quietly, thinking that it was easier to follow along if everyone else was going to follow Ichinose-san. That''s all it was."


    Himeno had never expressed her own opinions and was content to be influenced by those around her.


    "But I always thought that I could never make it to ss A with only Ichinose-san''s methods. Though, it can''t be helped. If everyone else is going to follow without saying a word, then I have no choice but to follow." Himeno, who probably still had a hard time making eye contact with others, continued to talk while staring at the monitor where the screen continued to y. "But I learned that Kanzaki-kun was serious about changing the ss. I learned that he didn''t want to give up on graduating in ss A. So... I decided to take a chance on it."


    "So it''s like choosing between going alongfortably and ending up in ss B or lower or striving hard and graduating from ss A, even if it''s difficult. That''s what ites down to."


    Watanabe muttered after hearing Himeno''s thoughts, which he never heard before.


    "I see. I understand how Himeno-san feels. I didn''t understand anything before."


    "It''s no wonder. We never really talked about it."


    But in other words, the same could be said of Ichinose. It was difficult to know how much of what she was saying was true unless she told so herself. While expressing some dissatisfaction with the approach, Amakura also showed a certain level of understanding.


    "I''ll ask as a representative of the ss. I want to know how Ichinose feels about resigning from the student council and her future ns. Does she still think we can seed? I want to hear her true feelings."


    Having reached a conclusion, Kanzaki said this and bowed his head to me. "I have no particr reason to refuse..."


    I said so, and Kanzaki, who usually didn''t smile much, bowed his head in gratitude with a happy expression.


    "But what are you going to do about the Karuizawa problem?"


    "I''m not going to do anything about it. I''m just going to exin the situation


    to her and make her understand."


    "The situation is about other sses, you know. I wonder if Karuizawa-san will honestly ept you admitting to helping us. I mean, won''t she get suspicious?"


    "Don''t worry about that."


    Although it was a sudden request, it was a good opportunity for them to try out what they wanted to try.

 Chapter 357: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 357: 3.2</h4>


    Amikura suggested that we enjoy a little karaoke, but I had to go to the bathroom before that. Although the meeting took an unexpected turn, Kanzaki and the others showed signs of growth during the discussion, which was a big plus. The only thing left to do was to invite Ichinose out to talk about the circumstances of her leaving the student council.


    It''d be preferable if Kanzaki and the others could handle this, but I didn''t rmend Kanzaki and the others to do so, as it may only cause chaos in the ss.


    I''d like them to stay friends with Ichinose.


    I didn''t regret taking on the task itself, but the difficult part was getting Ichinose to ept the invitation. It was unavoidable that she''d be suspicious if I invited her out during a time when two major events urred in a row��that being the reveal of a major special exam and her leaving the student council. Should I just straightforwardly ask her and confirm the reason? No, it was probably better to check on Ichinose''s mental state first before deciding what to do.


    If asking her bluntly would lead to negative consequences, it would be pointless.


    "Hey, Ayanokouji."


    Watanabe followed me in a hurry to the men''s restroom.


    I thought he urgently wanted to do something, but it seemed that wasn''t the case.


    "You know... You''re meeting with Ichinose next time, right? I have a favor to ask you on another matter..."


    "A favor? I hope it''s something simple."


    I finished using the restroom, washed my hands, and returned to the hallway. "It''s probably simple, but I''m not sure... Um..."


    Watanabe, who usually spoke clearly, became very brusque. However, he thought it wasn''t good to be absent from the group for too long, and he started to talk.


    "Well, what is it?"


    "Um... it''s about Amikura."


    "Amikura? Is something worrying you?"


    I was sure that Amikura was the most upset by our earlier discussion. She didn''t seem to be in need of care after that, but Watanabe may have sensed something.


    "No, that''s not it. Well, it''s a concern, but it''s not that."


    His words were incoherent, but I let it slide.


    "I was wondering whether or not there''s a guy she likes right now. I thought Ichinose might know. If you''re willing to, can you ask her...?"


    "I see."


    I was slowly beginning to understand the circumstances, feelings, and actions of love.


    I could understand the meaning behind Watanabe''s words as he told me this in a stilted manner.


    "You have a crush on Amikura."


    "Hey, hey, hey! Don''t be so blunt here!"


    "It''s okay. There''s no one here right now."


    The only thing leaking out into the hallway was the background music ying inside the restaurant and the singing from the karaoke rooms. Rather, Watanabe''s loud voice and panicking would be the problem. "Even if that''s true!"


    But you never know. I didn''t realize that Watanabe liked Amikura. "I was cool even when we were in the same group. Especially during the school trip."


    "You''re not an elementary school student, you shouldn''t show your feelings in such an obvious way."


    Come to think of it, didn''t he say that he was shopping with Amikura today? It was interesting to find out that fact, and a connection began to emerge. "Did you ask her out on a date today by any chance?"


    If that were the case, then Watanabe would be quite a capable person in his own right.


    "What? Ah...Well, I was aiming for something close to that. I woke up early and got ready. And then we met up in the lobby of the dorm. I was so nervous." Looking back on their encounter, Watanabe spoke with a bitter look on his face.


    "But when we started walking together, we couldn''t talk at all. Usually, when I''m with a lot of people, we can talk well together, but suddenly the words just didn''te out. It was kinda hell until we got to Keyaki Mall." It was good until he asked her out, but after that, it didn''t go well. "You didn''t like being alone with her?"


    "I don''t mind. But I got irritated with myself for not being able to talk well, and I thought bad things like, ''Amikura must not be happy to spend time with me.'' Then I heard Kanzaki and Himeno talking about meeting you as they walked by." This may have been a thread of salvation for Watanabe, who was in a difficult situation.


    "We were in the same group during the school trip, so I asked if I could go with her."


    It may have been a decision to run away from the situation without retreatingpletely.


    "I see, so that''s how it was."


    It would''ve been a shame to lose the two of them alone, but there was nothing worse than a date that didn''t turn out well. No, I don''t think Amikura even considered it a date.


    "I was a little scared. I didn''t think we were going to start talking about something important, but... I''m d I found out in the end. I think I understand what Kanzaki and Himeno are thinking."


    With what I had seen of Watanabe''s character so far, if Kanzaki and the others had moved earlier, they may have been able to get him on their side quicker, just like Hamaguchi.


    Perhaps, such students were lying idle in Ichinose''s ss.


    "So... Can you please probe about Amikura?"


    "Me?"


    "You''re meeting with Ichinose next, right? I''d like you to casually ask her about it."


    "I don''t know if I can ask Ichinose since there''s no guarantee she knows about Amikura''s love life in the first ce."


    "No, she would know. If Amikura liked someone or was dating someone, Ichinose would definitely know."


    Watanabe answered with considerable confidence, although I didn''t know where it came from.


    "Is Ichinose some kind of girl''s informationwork?"


    "I don''t think Amikura is the type of person who goes out with a guy without consulting someone about her love life. If Ichinose knows about it at all, that would give me a chance."


    "I see. So it''s been confirmed that Amikura doesn''t have a specific guy she likes?"


    Watanabe nodded with a grin.


    "Well... Actually, what I really want is for my name toe up somehow, but there''s been no sign of that at all. I guess I''ll just have to keep pushing forward since I don''t have any rivals right now."


    He analyzed the scenario and concluded that he didn''t have a lead on the situation. Watanabe couldn''t really grasp his own feelings when it came to romance, so he couldn''t be sure of anything. However, he felt indebted to Amikura for taking care of him during the school trip.


    It would be difficult to ask ssmates to help with this kind of thing.


    I was d to know that Watanabe had a positive attitude.


    "I''ll try to find out casually, but don''t get your hopes up too much. If I push too hard and make her wary, it''ll be disadvantageous for both of us."


    "Oh, that''s totally fine."


    Watanabe looked embarrassed, but at the same time, he looked happy and pleased.

 Chapter 358: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 358: 3.3</h4>


    It was past 4:00 p.m., and I was sitting alone on a bench on the second floor of Keyaki Mall when the meeting broke up after I had finished my role as a silent listener at the karaoke session.


    I had decided to stay behind regardless of whether the meeting broke up early or not.


    Since I had no particr purpose in mind, I decided to browse the Inte on my cell phone for a while, but before I knew it, Kei had sent me a message and a picture.


    I could see at a nce that she and Satou were enjoying ourselves, cuddling with each other while making a peace sign.


    It seemed that they were nning to gather in the girls'' room until this evening to chat in the dormitory.


    Kei was also with some others. Satou, Mori, Ishikura, and Maenzono seemed to be there.


    Her ability to easily get together with her friends like this, even if she couldn''t spend time with me, was one of Kei''s strengths.


    I was asked when I woulde back, so after a little pondering, I replied that it would be after 8:00 p.m.


    If I told her that I''d be back early, there was a chance that Kei would leave her friends behind and call it a day.


    It was better to let them enjoy the day without being distracted. "Well..."


    There was no one else in the vicinity at the moment, and there didn''t seem to be a risk of the phone being overheard.


    I picked up my cell phone and called Ichinose, asionally observing the students in the distance.


    I''d like to make the appointment tomorrow if I could since there was no point in putting it off.


    The call rang in my ear for a while, but Ichinose didn''t answer. Either she was spending time with someone and didn''t notice, or she was taking a nap.


    Alternatively, she may have been aware of the call and intentionally avoided answering it.


    Did my contact with Ichinose the night before the end of the school trip changed the result? As I was looking at my call history with various thoughts in my mind, I received a call back.


    "Hello? I''m sorry, I couldn''t get to the phone."


    The recipient''s first words sounded nervous.


    There was no sign of reluctance as far as I could hear from her voice. "Are you busy?"


    "Uh, no. I was just getting ready for dinner."


    I realized that it might''ve been true.


    I could hardly remember calling Ichinose during these private hours. I heard what sounded like a faint conversation on the other end of the phone. I thought it was someone else, but upon closer listening, it turned out to be the sound of the TV.


    "This is a bit of a short notice, but if you''re free tomorrow, can we meet?" As to get straight to the point, I immediately told her what I wanted to do. "What...? With me?"


    "Does it sound like I''m inviting anyone but you?"


    "Well, no, I don''t, but... But... Two people, um, just us two...?" "Just the two of us, if possible."


    There was no need for any roundabout way of saying it, so I conveyed my message directly.


    Ichinose didn''t reply, and a rather heavy silence followed for a few seconds. "I don''t have any ns... What can I do for you?"


    What could she do? Depending on what it was, Ichinose might be willing to meet with me. If it was a consultation or some kind of problem, then it would be easier for Ichinose to ept. However, I couldn''t reveal that I had been asked by Kanzaki and the others to investigate without arousing suspicion. They''ve asked me to find out without Ichinose''s knowledge. "If there''s no particr matter, would you still be willing to meet? Just the two of us?"


    "It''s not like that... But, um, being alone with you..."


    "I want to meet with you."


    "...!?"


    "But if it''s mentally straining for you, it might be better to not meet." I took a risk and tried to back off a little bit.


    I tried to get a feel for where Ichinose''s emotionsy.


    "...Wait. No... it''s okay"


    I''m not saying I wasn''t cautious, but it didn''t sound like there were any feelings that I wanted to avoid.


    "Are you sure you want to do this? I don''t want to force you." "I''m not forcing myself... I want to meet you too..."


    "Okay. Then let''s meet in front of Keyaki Mall tomorrow at 10:00 a.m." I didn''t know how much time it would take, so it was preferable to have the maximum amount of time possible


    "10:00, right?"


    "Yes, see you then. If this isn''t convenient for you, call me anytime."


    We could''ve had a longer conversation, but it was better to avoid that.


    "I''ll see you tomorrow, okay?"


    With those words, the conversation ended somewhat awkwardly.


    With this, I was able to set up a meeting with Ichinose for now.


    All that remained was to find out more about Ichinose''s mental state tomorrow.


    It would be ideal if I could learn what she was thinking while I was at it.


    I thought I''d stop by a bookstore afterward.


    I still had a lot of time left to spend alone that day.


    It was different from the time I spent alone when I didn''t have any friends.


    This was also a blissful time that I noticed now that I had a different point of view.

 Chapter 359: 3.4

    <h4>Chapter 359: 3.4</h4>


    After enjoying myself until the evening, I stopped by the supermarket to buy ate dinner, told Kei I was going home, and left Keyaki Mall. The temperature had dropped considerably, and I had been in a heated environment for a long time, so the temperature difference was quite bearable.


    The cell phone in my pocket vibrated. When I read the message, Kei told me that she was with her friend for dinner and they just separated. I sent her a message back that I was d she had a good day and walked alone down the deserted street to my dormitory.


    On the way back, I saw the back of a female student standing still. She didn''t seem to be walking, and her eyes were fixed on the sky. It was dark, so it was unclear who she was. However, as I approached her, thinking that she looked vaguely familiar, I immediately recognized her. There were no other students around, and I was alone.


    "I''m surprised. I thought you had gone home."


    Himeno turned around when she heard myment.


    "What? I thought you were the one who went home."


    "I thought I said I was going shopping and back home."


    <Illustration>


    "I see, I thought you said something like that, but... it''s toote for that, isn''t it?"


    Apparently, she had been listening to the conversation half-heartedly. However, it had been almost four hours since we separated, so I couldn''t help but wonder.


    "So you''re on your way home now?"


    Himeno asked when she saw the stic bags from the supermarket, and I nodded my head in affirmation.


    "What were you doing up until thiste?"


    "Hmm... I''ve been in a daze. I went to the grocery store and went to the movie theater for no reason?"


    She seemed to be like me.


    "Maybe you were enjoying your time alone."


    She was a little surprised by this proposal, which wasn''t like Himeno, but she couldn''t think of any reason to deny it.


    "It''s still cold at night, isn''t it?"


    She shivered as if she hadn''t noticed.


    "Actually, after we left, Kanzaki-kun and the others asked me if I wanted to hang out with them some more."


    "Oh, I see."


    "I thought it was important to have a chance to talk with ssmates alone. But I said no."


    "Why?"


    "To be honest, I kinda didn''t like the environment and wanted to avoid it. Oh, it''s not that I wanted to leave the group or anything. I just didn''t like the idea of going in a group."


    Although Himeno was learning to get along with others, she might still be struggling to get along with arge number of people.


    "I was thinking, ''I''mfortable alone,'' and then it was night." "So that''s how it is."


    "But the more time I spend alone, the more I think about it. Especially what you said to me. It really hit me. I thought you hit me right where it hurts." It seemed that she was concerned about the struggles she had shown at the karaoke meeting.


    "I realized that I hadn''t aplished anythingpared to what I had imagined. I had baseless confidence that I was doing something special by teaming up with Kanzaki-kun, and that I was kind of amazing for realizing that Ichinosesan was in trouble when no one else did. It felt like someone had broken my nose." "I''m sorry about that."


    "You don''t have to apologize for that. In fact, you''re right."


    Exhaling a white breath, Himeno turned to me and smiled bitterly. "I thought it would be easier to do good things, but it''s hard to act..." "That''s true for everyone. It must be hard for you to take action." It wasn''t my intention tofort her, but I didn''t want her worrying too much, so I just told her so.


    "I''m trying to find a way forward, but I''m not sure if I can improve by taking action with Kanzaki-kun and Hamaguchi-kun."


    "It''s not wrong to be confused. It isn''t a problem that can be solved by standing idle."


    "I know, but... I thought I was starting to save the ss, but the invisible wheels are starting to go haywire little by little. I can''t help feeling that way." The invisible gears are starting to go haywire...?


    When you tried to do something that had never been done before, anxiety would peek out.


    "I don''t doubt that. Still, when asked if the gears have been turning well so far, you can''t honestly say yes, can you?"


    "Well... that''s true."


    There had been sound ss management, but there had been no results. That meant that the gears weren''t functioning properly.


    "It''s a fact that a change is nowing to your ss."


    I still didn''t know the answer to where they''d end up, fortunately or not. It wasn''t only Kanzaki and the others'' presence, but also Ichinose''s resignation from the student council.


    I wasn''t in control of many things, and the future was uncertain and unclear. But there were two oues. Life or death. Ichinose''s ss would either be saved or they wouldn''t be saved.


    The course of that process, however, was beginning to be shrouded in a thick fog that no one could foresee.


    March, the end of the second year, would soon arrive.


    By then, Himeno''s eyes would be able to see the results.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, do you think there''s still a chance for us to reach ss A if our ss changes?"


    "Do you want an objective opinion?"


    "Yes. If possible."


    "If I could answer that question, I would say yes... conditionally." "Heh... I thought you''d say it''s impossible. But conditionally?" "The battle of the second years isn''t so easy that you can get into ss A just by changing their mindset. In fact, the gap between Ichinose''s ss and ss A is getting serious. In order to make up for the difference, it''ll take a lot of pain and determination. If the entire ss doesn''t have the resolve, you won''t be able to reach it."


    "Pain and determination...? What exactly does that mean?" "I''m sorry, I can''t answer that right now."


    "You can''t answer that, huh? I didn''t expect such a response. I thought you''d say that you didn''t think about it at all or that you just said it randomly or something like that."


    "That''s what people usually think."


    "Because it''s about another ss''s problems��their suffering. The more we suffer, the more your ss will rtively benefit. Isn''t that right?" "Right."


    "And yet, you''re so amodating and supportive. Why''s that?" "Because I''m eager to see what happens to Ichinose''s ss before they be a friend or foe."


    "What do you want to see...? You sound like you can look into the future." No one could foresee the future, but we could predict and prepare for it. "So for the time being, I''m going to lend a hand in times of trouble. If it''s okay with you."


    "I''m sure Kanzaki-kun will be pleased. I feel very reassured." Himeno, who saw it favorably, made a small victory pose with both arms. "I hope you''ll be able to openly show that kind of confidence one day." "What? Oh, I suddenly feel embarrassed..."


    Saying this, she let her hands reach into her pockets and her eyes turned away with them.

 Chapter 360: 3.5

    <h4>Chapter 360: 3.5</h4>


    When I was walking back to the dormitory with Himeno, I found Kei sitting on a bench touching her cell phone.


    "See youter."


    Himeno, reading the mood of the moment, left my side and started to walk quickly.


    She lightly bowed to Kei as she sat on the bench and walked back to the dormitory.


    "What are you doing here? I thought you went back to your room." "What am I doing? What does it look like I''m doing?"


    "Waiting for someone."


    "Correct. Then, who is that person waiting for you? One, Ike-kun; two, Minami-kun; three, Kiyotaka."


    With each option, she raised a finger and quizzed me.


    "That''s an extremely difficult question. One seems to be the most likely answer..."


    "If you get it wrong, there''ll be a punishment game."


    "Before I answer, let''s hear what the punishment game is." "I guess. I''m going to write ''Love from Kei-chan'' on your forehead with a magic marker, and then we''ll go to school."


    "Alright, let''s go with number three."


    "What? You don''t want to be punished that badly?"


    A little angry, she got up from the bench and lined up next to me. "So? The girl I just saw was Himeno-san, right? Why was she walking with you?"


    She had a smile on her face, but there was a strong pressure behind her demand for an exnation.


    "I told you that I was meeting with Kanzaki, and Himeno was one of the people in the group."


    "Himeno was one of the people in the group? But Kanzaki-kun and the others weren''t with you."


    "We separated at once. And I just happened to meet Himeno on my way back and we had a small chat."


    "Hmm? Hmm? Well, since I''m your girlfriend, I''ll believe your exnation for now, okay?"


    Although she said so, she didn''t seem to have any doubt at all. "You seemed to be getting along well."


    "I doubt you couldn''t tell that much in the dark."


    "Um... yes, that''s true, but... I just felt something! I don''t care!" She wrapped her arm around mine as if marking the seat next to her as mine. "Let''s talk about something fun."


    "I agree."


    "Let''s go to Keyaki Mall together tomorrow. Christmas ising soon." She invited me to go with her and smiled at me. ''You know what I mean, right?'' That was what the expression on her face told me.


    "Since Sudo''s confession didn''t go so well, it''s only fair that he gets a Christmas present, right?"


    "That''s right. A surprise present isn''t a bad idea, but going shopping with your boyfriend for what you want isn''t a bad idea either."


    I was sure she''d be more pleased than if I''d thought of it on my own, so that was a big help to me.


    "I''d love to fulfill your expectations, but I can''t do it tomorrow. Can we do it next week, please?"


    "What? Did you make another appointment?"


    Kei had been informed that I would meet Kanzaki and the others in advance. Since Kei wasn''t connected to Kanzaki and the others and was unfamiliar with my rtionship with them, she was curious but didn''t pay any attention to it... "That''s right."


    "Can''t you spare even a little time? What do you have going on tomorrow anyway?"


    Spending time with Ichinose. It was easy to avoid telling her and deceive her. However, the disadvantage of keeping it a secret was as great as the disadvantage of telling about Kanzaki and the others.


    Ichinose''s presence alone was conspicuous, and if I was next to her, there would be disturbing rumors.


    Besides, Kei had a lot of friends, and those students would be her eyes and ears.


    "Meeting Ichinose."


    "...Meeting Ichinose-san?"


    Kei stopped in her tracks with a distinctly different reaction than when she was told Kanzaki was meeting with me.


    "Who else is there? Kanzaki-kun or Himeno-san?"


    "There''s no one else so far, just Ichinose."


    "It''s just Ichinose. I''m a little confused. Are you alone with a girl on your day off?"


    I could see that her mood had clearly turned sour, but I suppose that was understandable.


    In the opposite situation, a normal boy would''ve reacted in the same way.


    "Well, yeah."


    I watched Kei''s reaction carefully and met her re with my own. "So?"


    "So what?"


    "Usually, you should exin the reasons and all, like, ''we''re meeting, but don''t misunderstand, it''s not that kind of situation.'' It''s no good to make your girlfriend anxious, right?"


    "There are several reasons to meet with Ichinose. One of which is that Kanzaki and the others asked me to."


    "...Kanzaki-kun and the others asked you? Is that correct?" She was a little relieved to hear Kanzaki''s name mentioned here. "It''s not public yet, but Ichinose has resigned from the student council. There''s a lot of confusion about that right now."


    "Wait a minute. Is that so? I don''t understand what''s going on." "You''re wondering, right? Kanzaki and the others want to know the truth. Belonging to the student council has a positive effect on the ss in its own way, so it''s understandable that their ssmates would be upset if she were to leave the student council instead of gaining as many points as possible now that they''ve dropped to ss D."


    Even with this exnation, Kei could understand the anxiety Kanzaki and his ssmates felt.


    "But Kanzaki and the others are afraid to ask Ichinose directly why because they can''t bear to hear from their leader that she''s given up on the idea of aiming for ss A."


    "So... You''re going to ask her why instead?"


    "That''s what I''m going to do."


    "I understand the situation, but... why are you involved in Ichinose-san''s ss? Why don''t you just leave them be? If you help them out, they might be rivals again."


    It was natural to wonder why I was involved in Ichinose-san''s ss. This wasn''t something Horikita and others could hear.


    "There are reasons to send salt to the enemy. But I can''t tell you why either." "You can''t tell me...? You think I might tell someone?"


    "No, I don''t. I know you''re very tight-lipped. I just don''t think I''m ready to tell anyone about what I''m trying to do at this point."


    Kei''s expression tightened a little at my stern and dismissive tone. But Kei was Kei, and it was only natural that she couldn''t take it in stride. For a moment, she tried to hold back, but then her thoughts came pouring in. "I know you have a lot on your mind. I know that you''re helping the ss without my knowledge and that you''re trying to find out from Ichinose-san what''s going on for Kanzaki-kun and the others. But, you know... it''s not nice to... meet with a girl alone on a break, isn''t it? At least there are other ways to do it, like at school or just during lunch break."


    Kei''s lips pouted and she turned her head in the opposite direction as if she was sulking.


    It would be easier if I told her I was sorry and that she was the only one who mattered.


    I had already learned that it was important in a rtionship to tell someone not to worry.


    Then, what if it was the other way around? Even if you had an idea of the answer, you couldn''t say that you understood it unless you actually tried figuring it out.


    "Then, do you want to interrupt me? You can just barge in on me while I''m meeting with Ichinose on my day off."


    "That''s..."


    "You wouldn''t, would you? There''s no merit in doing so. Then we''re done here. We''ll go shopping for Christmas presents together next week, and there should be no problem."


    The atmosphere could change so heavily in an instant just by not speaking kind words.


    The happy Kei who had been waiting for me under the cold weather had disappeared.


    "You have your own ideas. I have no right to say anything about it." Not only the expression on her face, but even her emotions were distant from her.


    "I''m going to stop by the convenience store. You go home first." With those words, she ran toward the convenience store without looking at me.


    However, Kei''s stride seemed both fast and slow as she left, and I could see from her back that she was expecting me toe after her.


    All I had to do was to immediately run after her and tell her that I was sorry and that I would think of another way to meet up with Ichinose.


    That would put her back in the mood she was in just before. But I decided to break my gaze from her back and go back to the dormitory. This would only deepen the rift between us. I wondered how Kei would react, what kind of attitude she would show, and how I would feel and act in response. It would be a good opportunity to experience all of that.

 Chapter 361 - 4 : How to Spend the Days Off

    <h4>Chapter 361: Chapter 4 : How to Spend the Days Off</h4>


    IT WAS SUNDAY, the day after the meeting with Kanzaki and there was still some slight friction with Kei.


    It was time to meet with Ichinose, whom I had promised to meet with the day before.


    I went down to the lobby a little early, but I didn''t see Ichinose in the area.


    I thought there was a possibility that we would''ve bumped into each other by chance, but that didn''t seem to be the case.


    I turned around and looked at the elevator, but it didn''t seem to be moving.


    It''s unlikely that Kei will follow her.


    Kei, who was worried about me meeting Ichinose, wouldn''t take such an action.


    No, it was too early to say that she won''t do anything. She could be on her way to Ichinose by now, or she could already be there ahead of Ichinose.


    Or she may boldly join us while we were meeting. If I analyzed her past behavior patterns, there was a possibility.


    If that happens, we''ll just have to wait and see...


    But I doubt that she''ll take any reckless actions, given the way she behaved yesterday. It takes courage to see something you don''t want to see.


    I left the dormitory. The sky was clear so far, but unfortunately, it was predicted to rain in the afternoon, so I brought an umbre.


    I wondered how Ichinose felt this morning.


    What she wants, what she desires. Whatever it was, it was clear that there was more than one thing. To be a great leader, to be in a sessful rtionship, to have a strong spirit. We have more desires than fingers we can count on one or even both hands.


    That night during the school trip wasn''t enough to cause any concrete change in our rtionship. I had to see Ichinose in person to know what she was thinking, as she was currently still unstable.


    I arrived a bit before the scheduled time and saw that Ichinose was already waiting for me with an umbre in her hand.


    She noticed me before I called out to her and slowly raised her hand.


    "Good morning, Ayanokouji-kun."


    I didn''t sense a tense atmosphere. If anything, it felt fresh and innocent.


    Unlike the night of surprise on the trip, Ichinose has alsoe prepared with her outward emotions.


    At first, she made eye contact with me, but when I continued to look into her eyes to find out her true intentions, she quickly turned her gaze away from me. I could tell that she had dropped her eyes to my mouth, nose, and neck to avoid being noticed.


    "I''m sorry I had to ask you to free some time for this meeting."


    "It''s no big deal. I didn''t have any ns originally."


    If I was the one who invited others, I''d appreciate it if they said so, even if it was just a formality. There was still some time left before Keyaki Mall opened, and since we weren''t allowed to go inside yet, we stood in a line by the entrance.


    We were standing next to each other, but not too close or too far apart. To an uninformed third party, it''d be difficult to determine whether we were waiting together or separately for the mall to open.


    "It''s not often that Ie here before opening, but surprisingly there''s no one here yet."


    "It''s especially cold today. I guess everyone is still rxing in their rooms."


    That''s for sure. Unless it''s a special sale day, there''s no need to wait in line for the mall to open early in the morning.


    "It''s really cold," Ichinose muttered to herself, repeating the same words over and over again.


    The conversation stopped there, as I had expected to wait until we were inside the mall to talk.


    My daily routine consisted of spending more and more time with Kei, my girlfriend, which was not always full of conversation.


    We would share the same time, but sometimes the silencested for 10 or 20


    minutes. At first, I had the same awkward feeling as now, but it disappeared and I even began to feelfortable with the silence.


    This is not a matter of getting used to it, but rather a matter of feeling that the slightest moment of silence feels strangely heavy with a person with whom you are not yet close enough with.


    It wasn''t that I couldn''t stand the silence, but rather, I wondered if I should approach the subject since I had invited her.


    Maybe Ichinose was thinking the same thing. But neither of us could speak properly, and neither of us could take the first step.


    Amon topic... Once you start amon topic, you can contribute to the discussion two or three times.


    When I thought about it, a boy came to my mind.


    "I was in the same group with Watanabe on the school trip the other day."


    "I see."


    "I didn''t know him before because we didn''t have any contact, but Watanabe was friendly and easy to talk to. He''s a good guy."


    When I honestly told her what I thought, Ichinose was pleased as if he were her own family.


    "Yes, he''s liked by his ssmates, both male and female."


    He wasn''t as bossy as Ike, nor as sociable as Yousuke, but he can read the situation reasonably well.


    I only saw a part of Watanabe, but I was sure he would be the same in his ss as well.


    "I''ve been studying at the same ce for almost two years, and with different sses. There''s still so much I don''t know."


    "It''s the same for me. I don''t know much about other sses, even though it seems like I do. It''s totally different from elementary school or junior high school... I think that''s what happens when you reallypete with each other".


    In normal friendships, people show each other their weaknesses and help each other out.


    However, this school was a ce where this concept of normality didn''t apply. This is themon belief that Ichinose and other students had.


    "Socializing is difficult. I can''t say that I''m getting along with my ssmates yet. Inparison, Ichinose, who was able to make friends with everyone at an early stage, is amazing."


    "Eh? I''m really not that great."


    Rather than being modest, she didn''t seem to realize how skilled she was.


    "So, do you have any tips on how to get along with everyone?"


    Friendship building, no matter how much we do it, there is still more to learn.


    I haven''t acquired the skills of people like Ichinose and Kushida, yet.


    I already know what I need to do.


    I know what to say, I know the words.


    Still, I can''t be like them. The slightest difference in what I have umted, in my tone and in my bodynguage can make a big difference in the oue.


    "I wonder if there''s such a thing. If there is, I don''t know."


    It isn''t possible to break it down and talk about it theoretically because it''s an innate skill. Therefore, even if you were to watch and learn, you cannot easily understand, absorb, and use it. The conversation somehow continued.


    Soon after, at the stroke of 10:00 a.m., the closed automatic door had opened.


    "Shall we go in?"


    "Right."


    Thus, we were the first to enter the Keyaki Mall and were enveloped by the warmth of the heated mall.


    "Howte are you able to stay today?"


    "Any time is fine. I don''t have any ns after this."


    This is a good opportunity as I wanted to ask Ichinose some questions today.


    If you have a time limit, then you would have to converse within that time limit.


    It''s especially important to know more about her reasons for leaving the student council, as it''s an important issue raised by Kanzaki and the others.


    It is very convenient that we have time to fulfill Kanzaki''s wishes but... on the other hand, there was something disturbing about the situation.


    Putting the love aspect aside for the moment, Ichinose is not an insensitive person.


    Even if she doesn''t always have good deduction skills, she is more perceptive than the average student.


    She wasn''t the type of person who was insensitive, because otherwise, she wouldn''t be able to be a leader. It''s highly likely that she knows how her ssmates perceived her, from their words, and from their feelings, even in her current state of mind.


    If this is the case, it''s not a good idea to assume that you have been blessed with this opportunity by chance.


    She may have at least guessed the intention of my invitation. Depending on the conditions, she may also be aware that her ssmates are lurking behind my intentions.


    I''d better go about my day with that in mind.


    "What do you want to do now?"


    The purpose of this meeting was to get information out of her, but the apparent purpose of the meeting had not yet been established. I''d been thinking about how to spend time with Ichinose today, and this was the conclusion I''de to.


    "I didn''t have anything to do in mind but.. I suppose I could ask you to tell me how you spend your days off."


    "How do I spend my days off?"


    "Yes, I''d like to find out what kind of daily life I should lead to get along with everyone."


    "What? Is that something you can just figure out?"


    "I''m just saying whates to mind..., is that okay?"


    When she didn''t respond immediately, I thought about asking a different question, but Ichinose nodded her head without any displeasure.


    "I don''t know if I can help you, but if that''s what you wanted, why don''t we try it?"


    She seemed to think positively and readily agreed.


    It seems that the first topic of conversation was sessful.


    "So..., can we really do what I do on my days off?"


    "Of course. Shopping, movies, cafes, etc., I''ll go with you."


    "I might not be able to meet your expectations. Is that okay?"


    Ichinose smiled, as if none of the above applied to her.


    She had looked somewhat awkward since joining me in the morning, but I saw a natural smile on her face.


    "Well, let''s get going."


    Ichinose said and started walking as she headed for the second floor by the esctor, without hesitation.

 Chapter 362: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 362: 4.1</h4>


    There are variousmercial facilities in the Keyaki Mall, most of which I''ve visited before. However, there are still a few facilities that I have yet to experience.


    One of them is the gym on the second floor.


    "I try toe here only on weekends and holidays. I''m a bit of an athlete, so I''m hoping to improve a little bit."


    We arrived at the front of the gym and Ichinose took out her student ID card.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, you haven''t been to the gym before, have you?"


    "Yeah. I''ve never been in one."


    "Then it''s a good thing."


    "I''m surprised that you''ve been going to the gym. How long has it been?"


    "I did a free trial in the middle of September and became a full member at the beginning of October, I think."


    "So you''ve been going to the gym for more than two months now. I had no idea. Did you start by yourself? I''m not great at being involved in these ces..."


    I guess I wouldn''t mind it if I joined and started going, but the first time or two would be a hurdle.


    "Me too. That''s why I started with my friends... because if I''m not brave enough alone, I can be pretty bold with two people. You''re going to work out with me today, right?"


    I nodded my head and let Ichinose lead me into the facility.


    Ichinose greeted a friendly female staff member who was standing at the reception desk and presented her student ID card. She exined to her what we were doing while I stood behind her.


    "Do you have your student ID card?"


    "Yeah"


    Apparently, if you present your student ID card, you can easily get a free trial without having to fill out any forms.


    "See you in a bit, Ayanokouji-kun. You''ll have to let the staff exin it to you from here."


    After that, a male trainer guided me to the locker room, and I was asked to change my clothes after a brief exnation of how to use the lockers, change rooms, and shower rooms.


    It seemed that the gym was designed so that you can go in empty-handed without bringing your belongings.


    I took off my clothes, stored them in a locker, put on the rental training wear, and headed to the training room at the back of the gym.


    Ichinose hadn''t finished changing yet, and no one was in sight. It had just opened, so I guess that was natural.


    But it was a bit awkward for me to be the first one since I was only here for a free trial.


    A male trainer seemed to be willing to teach me a few things, but I declined his offer. I thought it would be better to learn from Ichinose. Not knowing how to behave, I looked around at the equipment at random.


    However, I was familiar with the training equipment itself, so I feltfortable with it.


    When I was in the White Room, we had all thetest equipment for physical training. Even if the make and year of the equipment are a little different, they all seemed safe to use. Surprisingly, while I was having these thoughts, members of the gym started to enter one after another.


    I thought the gym would be quite empty, but it seemed to be quite popr.


    "Oh, it looks like some of the boys have already started."


    I was a little surprised at Ichinose''s outfit as she came out in her training wear, but I didn''t speak on it.


    "There were a couple of people in the women''s locker room, too."


    "I''ve seen adults in the locker rooms, so I guess non-students can use them too."


    I knew that not all the movie theaters and supermarkets were exclusively for students, and this gym seemed to be no exception.


    "I often see Mashima-sensei here as well."


    I see. Teachers were also no exception. For those of us who live on the school grounds, a ce to work out was important.


    I had long shied away from such facilities, but if there were familiar students like Ichinose, I might be willing to join them.


    As I was beginning to think about this, Ichinose began to carefully exin the equipment.


    She exined how to use it with a bit of hands-on practice. I didn''t want to ask any questions that didn''t need exnations, and I just sat quietly and listened to the exnation, pretending to know nothing.


    Ichinose had acquired a fair amount of knowledge, but she seemed to have little practical use of the equipment, probably because she had only been going to the gym for a short period of time.


    After about 10 minutes of being taught how to use the equipment, the number of peopleing to the gym gradually increased, and about seven men and women, excluding myself, began to work out.


    It''s time for us to do something, too...


    "Oh, Mako-chan, good morning!"


    Just as we were about to start working out, Ichinose saw a familiar face and called out to her.


    "Ah, Honami-chan!"


    It was Amikura, who had juste out of the locker room after changing.


    She seemed genuinely surprised to see Ichinose, as she had known that I and Ichinose were going out today.


    "W-what are you doing at the gym?"


    Her thoughts probably leaked out of her mouth as she was visibly unsettled.


    "Remember how you started going to the gym on your days off? I thought I''d introduce Ayanokoji-kun to it a little"


    Ichinose replied with a casual expression.


    "Oh, I see."


    Amakura couldn''t have imagined the two of us being at the gym together and Ichinose couldn''t have understood her feelings at all, so she simply brushed it off with a nonchnt face.


    "Well, I won''t get in your way."


    "...It''s not like you''re getting in the way or anything..."


    Amikura gave me a sharp look in the eye that seemed to say, ''Don''t say something unnecessary.''


    By ''something unnecessary'', I assumed she meant what she said to me the other day at the karaoke bar. Of course, I wouldn''t do that. I didn''t know how well she would understand, but Imunicated to her with my eyes.


    "Ayanokouji-kun and the gym are very different from each other."


    "Is that so?"


    "I can''t think of myself doing this kind of thing. I don''t like ces where people gather."


    I would like to say that this is just prejudice, but it was correct. I felt hesitant about working out in front of regr students. Moreover, I had an image that this kind of gym was not for working out in silence but with friends, so it was difficult for me toe here. I had to admit that I kept myself away from it for that reason.


    "....I mean,e here, Honami-chan."


    Amikura noticed something and pulled Ichinose''s arm away from me. She then whispered something. Both of their eyes were on me for some reason.


    "...?"


    Ichinose jumped up in surprise and ducked down behind Amikura for some reason.


    "I didn''t notice that, Honami-chan..."


    Amikura, who answered in this way, also seemed to be somewhat embarrassed.


    "What is it...?"


    "Oh, no, I mean... Well, you know, it''s a little embarrassing to dress like this in front of others. Right?"


    I received a look that felt like it was saying, ''Read the mood. Understand?''


    "I see."


    It seemed that she was embarrassed to be seen by boys in her gym clothes.


    However, the gym was a ce where one had to restrict their clothes in order to have ease of movement and absorption of sweat. It''s often best to avoid introducing the notion of embarrassment, whether by mentioning it explicitly or by avoiding it altogether Ichinose had not noticed this fact, but Amikura had made her aware of it.


    Amikura''s expression suggested that she had made a mistake by being so blunt about it.


    As a member of the opposite sex, it may be understandable to be concerned at her age, but this is a gym. It was best to just let it go and not worry about it.


    "In times like this, it''s best to work up a sweat, isn''t it? Tell me how to do it, I''d like to try it."


    I said this to get her to think about something else, because she loses her mind when she starts worrying about what the opposite sex thinks of her. Ichinose seemed to have made up her mind after hearing what I just said.


    "I think you''re right. Let''s see, what should we do, Mako-chan?"


    "Why are you asking me?"


    Apparently still in a state of panic, she asked Amikura for help.


    The two girls talked to each other as they were whispering in each other''s ears, and they nodded their heads almost simultaneously to show that they weremunicating.


    "We''re still new to this, so can we start on the treadmill, which is what we''re used to?"


    "Of course."


    The two girls got on the treadmill, which seemed to be a staple in fitness clubs, and started running in the mode that suited them best. The machines were naturally from different manufacturers, but I had used these repeatedly when I was a child, so I was not at a loss on what to do.


    It was a standard cardio machine that was indispensable for indoor training.


    Ichinose and Amikura had simr settings, so I''ll leave this one at about the same level as well.


    "This is your first time in a gym, right? Take it easy, Ayanokouji-kun."


    Amikura said so as if she was concerned about me, and I lightly answered with my hand that I was fine.


    After that, we started training silently on the treadmill for a while.


    At first, Ichinose seemed to be nervous and embarrassed, but the feeling gradually faded away, and after about 30 minutes, she seemed to have gotten used to the treadmill to some extent.


    After the set 30 minutes had passed and the treadmill stopped, Ichinose looked up.


    "Phew! I''m so tired!"


    She seemed to be more exhausted than Amikura, perhaps because she said she wasn''t good at exercising. She exhaled deeply and moved her shoulders up and down.


    <Illustration>


    "I''m going to go rehydrate."


    Ichinose said and left the area after waving goodbye to us.


    As I recalled, there was a station to fill water bottles next to the locker room.


    Since Amikura and I were the only ones left, we decided to talk for a while.


    "You''ve beening here for a while, you look good."


    "Ayanokouji-kun, you''re not tired at all even though we did the same routine."


    "I''m a boy, so I have more base physical strength than girls."


    "I see. But I was surprised. I had imagined there could be a chance that we could meet at the Keyaki Mall, but I didn''t think we would run into each other in the gym this early in the morning."


    Apparently, running into each other at this ce was not something that even Amikura had expected to happen.


    "So, how did it go? Did you get anything out of... Honami-chan?"


    "Nothing yet. We headed to the gym right after we met, joined you, and here we are."


    "I see. But Honami-chan seems to be having a lot of fun, so that''s good."


    Wiping the sweat off her face with a towel, Amikura''s eyes narrowed in delight.


    "You know that kind of thing when you''re best friends with them, huh?"


    "I do. I usually smile a lot, but today I feel like I''m bursting with happiness."


    Now that Ichinose had left the conversation and we were alone, I tried to casually elicit information from Mako-chan in order to fulfill my promise with Watanabe.


    "It''s almost Christmas, isn''t it?"


    "Indeed. You''re spending Christmas with Karuizawa-san, right?"


    Before I could get any more details, I was asked a question in return.


    "Hmm? Well, that''s the n."


    "Well... let me ask you frankly... What are you going to do about Honami-chan?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "Because you know how she feels, don''t you? So, you know, right?"


    Amikura tried to convey her feelings in a muddled manner, as if she hesitated to express them straightly.


    "What kind of person do you think she should be with?"


    "What? You''re asking me that?"


    "You have at least an idea that she has a special interest in you, don''t you?"


    She looked troubled and lightly wiped her forehead with the towel around her neck, as if she was starting to sweat.


    "I... would love nothing more than for Honami-chan to smile, as her friend.


    But Ayanokouji-kun has Karuizawa-san now. And it''s a little different considering you shouldn''t break up with her. I think the best thing would be for Honami-chan to fall in love with someone else and be happy with that person."


    Shees to her own conclusions while thinking and speaking about her own ideals.


    As Amikura said, the current situation in which Ichinose is showing affection to me is rather troublesome. So, if the affection is directed to an unrted third party, then this situation could''ve been resolved with no problem.


    "I agree. I don''t know a lot of boys either, but Watanabe is easy to get along with and would be a good fit for Ichinose."


    I threw Watanabe''s name into the conversation as if I was trying to get in on Amikura''s conversation.


    Depending on her response, I may be able to find out what Amikura''s impression of Watanabe is. Amikura appreciates Watanabe enough to apany him when he''s shopping on his days off.


    This might be enough to explore the possibility.


    "Watanabe-kun, right? He''s the one in our ss."


    "Yes. We had a lot of chances to talk to each other during the school trip."


    "Hmmm ... I guess so..."


    She appeared to be thinking for a moment.


    The vague gap between positive and negative is difficult to discern.


    "As for me... I think Honami-chan can aim a little higher."


    "I see. Watanabe is not good enough."


    "I''m not saying anything bad about Watanabe-kun, okay? I think a normal girl would be good enough."


    "I see. By the way, how about you?"


    Since I wasn''t sure, I decided to ask with a bit of force. If I took too long, Ichinose woulde back.


    "Me?"


    "You seem to know a lot about love."


    "Not at all. I already have a crush on someone."


    "Ah. Someone you like, huh?"


    "Well, of course, there''s someone I like. I''m in high school."


    Who was it? It would be best if I could find out.


    "I''ve had a crush on him for almost 5 years now. When will I go on to my next love? "


    She mumbled to herself. Five years. That means the love had been going on since before she entered this school.


    It seemed that there was no need to go any further, but I wonder if this would be good news for Watanabe. At least he doesn''t have any rivals at the same school...


    I was about to ask Amikura what type of guy he was, but Ichinose came back after she had finished rehydrating herself. Amikura hurriedly moved away from me, not wanting to let Ichinose know that I had been talking about her love life without her permission.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting."


    "No, not at all. Are you okay now?"


    If I persist more about Ichinose''s situation, it will only make her suspicious of me.


    I will ask herter if she can go into a little more depth.

 Chapter 363: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 363: 4.2</h4>


    For another hour or so, I continued my gym experience with Ichinose and Amikura.


    While we were working out, Amikura said she would stay behind for a bit, perhaps to keep up with the gym mood, so Ichinose and I went ahead and changed our clothes. We would meet up with each other at the reception desk.


    While waiting for Ichinose, I got a pamphlet for the gym so that I could consider joining officially. It''s a pain to spend a few thousand more points every month, but it''s not a bad idea to work up a sweat once in a while.


    I was reminded again that my body had declined to the point where I couldn''t evenpare it to when I first entered the school, since I''d hardly done any exercise voluntarily for the past two years. I''de to the conclusion that it would be a good idea to raise the level of my physical abilities to some extent, if not to restore them to their previous state.


    After changing, Ichinose and I left the gym and headed back to the mall.


    "Did you get a brochure?"


    "Yes, I''ve been considering going to the gym more seriously."


    "Oh, well, maybe we''ll see each other more often then..."


    "Yeah."


    "I see..."


    "What should we do now?"


    The meeting shouldn''t end at the gym alone, so I asked her what happens after that.


    "I often go to bookstores. I also tend to shop at grocery stores. But I''m a little more tired than usual today, so I might want to take a break. Can we sit down on a bench or something?"


    Even from the usual workout routine, the environment you are in may affect your physical exhaustion. It''s important to choose when to take a rest instead of forcing yourself to follow a routine.


    "Are you sure you don''t want to go to a caf��?"


    "Yeah. You know, it kind of stands out."


    It seems she made the suggestion with me in mind.


    "I appreciate the sentiment, but don''t worry about it. We could go to a caf��."


    "Yeah? If... You are fine with it, I''m fine with it."


    If you try to avoid being seen, it only makes you look more suspicious.


    Having a cup of tea with the opposite sex in a caf�� is just amon part of everyday life. It is only because you are conscious of it that it may seem special.


    We went to the caf��, trying to blend with the environment. We chose a small caf�� on the second floor instead of a caf�� on the first floor, where people tend to gather.


    We both bought a drink of our choice and took our seats at a table.


    "May I ask you a question?"


    "A question? Ask me anything."


    "...Does the reason why you invited me here today have anything to do with my resignation from the student council?"


    Ichinose asked me hesitantly, but she seemed to be sure of it.


    I guess she knew that when I suddenly asked her out on a holiday.


    "I''d be lying if I said it had nothing to do with it."


    "Right. I''m d you answered honestly."


    Ichinose''s mouth rxed as she said this, though her gaze was still averted from me.


    "I was surprised that you resigned from the student council. I thought there was a good chance you would win the student council election against Horikita."


    Ichinose''s personality and ability contributed to the student council early in the first year. Horikita, on the other hand, entered the student council one termter than Ichinose. With her older brother as the previous student council president and her current momentum in ss B, I thought the two would''ve been evenly matched.


    "If there had been a student council election, who would Ayanokouji-kun have supported? ...Sorry, that was a foolish question".


    Like it or not, Horikita was currently my ssmate. For the betterment of the ss, it would be more beneficial to have one of my ssmates as the student council president.


    "I don''t feel the need to support Horikita just because we are ssmates. If Nagumo said he would support Horikita, I still would have supported you."


    This was also an honest response, but Ichinose must have taken it as ttery.


    She seemed to be more apologetic than happy.


    "But if I had... I wouldn''t have won. I''m no match for Horikita-san."


    It seemed that Ichinose didn''t feel she could win against Horikita even before the fight. But that was because she was defeated not only in ability but also in spirit.


    "It''s probably a good thing that I quit after all, because it saved me from being humiliated."


    "You don''t know the oue until you actually try."


    "I''m d you said that. Thank you."


    "But you decided to quit the student council before that, right?"


    "Yeah."


    "Is it possible that that incident on the school trip had something to do with it? If that''s the case..."


    "That''s not true."


    Ichinose interrupted my words and denied them with a strong tone of voice.


    The paper cup in her hand was bent with so much force that it seemed to crumble.


    "I was already thinking of quitting before that. I''m not suited for the student council. I''m not good enough, I''m not talented, and above all... I have a past that I can''t erase."


    Ichinose''s profile reminded me of that night on the school trip for a moment, but she didn''t start crying like that time. She had no intention of continuing to be weak.


    "But you know..., I haven''t given up on everything. I know some people in the ss are worried that I might have given up on getting into ss A, but that''s not true."


    "So you''re going to keep trying to get to ss A?"


    "You told me, ''If you don''t have the courage to take the first step, I can lend you a hand.'' Hearing those words, I was able to make up my mind on that night of the school trip."


    Ichinose, who had made eye contact with me,ughed.


    "I can still fight. But I thought that it was not a battle I could win with the way I am now. I thought that continuing to be a member of the student council would be either a luxury or be an unnecessary burden."


    Is that the reason why you quit the student council?


    "Oh... but then the reason I quit the student council might be because of the incident on the school trip after all. I guess that''s what I''m saying."


    Ichinose chuckled with a light joke and squinted her eyes.


    "I''m going to tell everyone in my ss at the beginning of next week what I just told you, Ayanokouji-kun. Regarding what I was thinking before I quit the student council. It''s not good if it''s misunderstood."


    "That''s good."


    If her peers continue to probe her without knowing her true intentions, it will make fighting with Ryuuen''s ss more difficult. Everything Ichinose has said here can be regarded as her true feelings.


    It was a great advantage that Ichinose was able to resolve herself over time from the unstable stage leading up to the school trip. Although she lost her position in the student council, which was one of her weapons, what she gained was greater than that.


    I think it was safe to say that she had temporarily gotten out of the situation that I had feared. I will now be able to give a good report to Kanzaki.


    "Yes. This is totally unrted, but I have a question. Can I ask you something?"


    "Sure. What is it?"


    I''d like to do a little more investigating for Watanabe''s sake.


    "Do you know what type of guy Amikura likes?"


    "What?"


    Ichinose, who had brought the cup to her mouth, froze. Her eyes, which had been avoiding mine just a few minutes ago, now stared directly into them and didn''t let go. If anything, I was more struck by a feeling of wanting to run away.


    "Why''d you ask me that?"


    Her voice was the same. She didn''t seem to be angry. But I don''t know why.


    The atmosphere surrounding Ichinose, which was supposed to be the same as before, was now differentpared to a few seconds ago.


    "Well... I don''t know what to say when you ask me why, I''m just somewhat curious about it."


    "Somewhat? Why do you want to know Mako-chan''s type? It''s not like you in any way."


    If she said so, then that''s all there is to it, but the heavy air was getting heavier and heavier.


    I didn''t know what to say. However, I couldn''t easily hint at Watanabe''s existence here.


    "I thought that Amikura was cute and quite popr."


    "Yes, I know Mako-chan is cute. So? Is she your type?"


    "I don''t think so."


    "This isn''t like you, Ayanokouji-kun?"


    It seems I''m not the type to ask such a question, or so I was told. She also didn''t seem to look away at all.


    "No..., well, maybe..."


    Where had the calm atmosphere I had experienced gone? Ichinose, with the cup still in her mouth, was staring me down with the same tense expression.


    "Why do you want to know Mako-chan''s type?"


    "No particr reason..."


    "No reason?"


    "Of course not. I''m asking you this because..."


    I gave up on making eye contact with her and tried to talk about the caf�� clerk instead.


    "Oh, it looks like they just got an order or they''re making a drink with chocte."


    "Did you meet Mako-chan somewhere else before you met me?"


    Ichinose''s pursuit continued without regard to the fact that my gaze had wandered off.


    "What do you mean by...?"


    "When you ran into each other at the gym today, your gazes met in a strange way. Isn''t it called conversing with your eyes?"


    When she was this convinced, denial would only make things worse.


    "You noticed."


    "I did. Because I''m... always watching and thinking about you, all the time..."


    At this point, Ichinose finally broke her gaze. She must have realized that she had said an embarrassing line without hesitation.


    "Here''s my guess. Mako-chan and the rest of the ss must have been worried when they heard the rumor that I was quitting the student council. That''s why they asked you for advice. Did they ask you to check on me if you could?"


    As if to prove that she had recovered mentally, Ichinose showed that she had a good grasp of the situation. She was aware of her surroundings.


    "You''re right."


    I''d like to apud her, but I''ll refrain from doing so.


    "But I don''t get it... why did you want to know what Mako-chan''s type is?"


    Even if we can deduce that I had a discussion with Amikura some time ago, it''s unreasonable to assume that it led to me asking what type of the opposite sex she liked.


    "Why do you think that is?"


    I''ll ask her if she can think and guess. Rather, this was the only way left to conceal Watanabe''s existence. It would be better to work backward from Ichinose''s intuition and make up a suitable answer.


    "It''s not because you''re interested in Mako-chan, is it? Yeah, I don''t like the sound of that, so I won''t think about it."


    She had made it an option but stopped as if she was cutting herself off from both sides of the issue.


    I mean... that''s a very bold thing to say, even in a private ce.


    She still liked me, and she didn''t even try to hide her intention.


    Or is she not thinking deeply about this kind of thing and is mumbling unconsciously?


    I couldn''t see Ichinose''s true intention even though I observed her.


    "If it''s other than that, it could be that there is a boy who likes... Mako-chan, and he asked you to find out. Yeah, that would be a good fit. I guess he thought that I would know."


    When she connects the dots on so many things, it gets a little scary.


    "I mean, a man who knows the rtionship between Mako-chan and I. And a student in my ss who has contact with you..."


    "Okay. I''ll be honest with you."


    I''m sorry, Watanabe. I don''t think your little deception is going to work on someone as sharp as Ichinose. Even if I hadn''t stopped her here, she would have given me the name in a second.


    "I was asked to find out if there was someone who Amikura liked. But I can''t tell you who that boy is. I thought it was a bit one-sided".


    I wasn''t saying that indirectly finding out who the opposite sex likes is a bad thing. However, whether it''s a good thing or not from Amikura''s point of view is a different question.


    "I''m sorry. Let''s forget about this."


    "No. It''s natural that everyone wants to know about the person they like and I know how much courage it takes to ask directly. Mako-chan is a very nice girl. I honestly don''t know what her type is. I''ve never asked her. But from what I''ve heard from her, I don''t think she likes anyone at this school."


    The ''at'' part implies that her type was not at this school.


    This was rted to what Amikura said earlier.


    "Seems she had a ssmate she liked in middle school. I don''t think she was dating him, but she had been thinking about it for a long time. I don''t think she has fallen in love with anyone else yet."


    This is a situation that Watanabe probably never envisioned from Amikura''s love life. It may be a surprisingly high hurdle to earn the affection of a person who has had an unrequited love ever since middle school.


    Still, it doesn''t mean that it''s impossible. If you can establish a close rtionship now or in the next year, you may still have a good chance.


    "This is all I can tell you, but was it useful?"


    "That was plenty. Thank you, Ichinose."


    "Ayanokouji-kun, Watanabe-kun hase to depend on you a lot, hasn''t he?"


    "I never said anything about Watanabe."


    "Oh, I see. Sorry, sorry."


    The biggest reason for my defeat was that I had too few social rtions other than him, rather than the fact that I mentioned his name in the morning.

 Chapter 364: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 364: 4.3</h4>


    After that, we spent a while enjoying Keyaki Mall.


    As Ichinose said, we just browsed around aimlessly rather than shopping.


    We spent half the day together while she showed me her routine.


    Then, we left the mall when it was time for lunch.


    "Is it already raining?"


    I wouldn''t say it was raining heavily, but it looked like it had been raining for a while.


    "It looks like it."


    Since both of us had brought our umbres, we put them up and started walking.


    "I''m sorry for apanying you today while keeping my true intentions hidden"


    "It''s okay. Now I know that there are people who still care about me."


    Everything I did today was to get information from Ichinose. I couldn''t me Ichinose for being angry, given her current position.


    "Thank you Ayanokouji-kun."


    But she didn''t mind at all, rather she was being thankful


    "No need to thank me. I''m sorry I should''ve asked you more upfront instead of going around and about."


    "Don''t be like that. You made a detour so I was able to spend time with...


    you."


    Ichinose muttered with a shy blush on her cheeks.


    "Are you sure Karuizawa-san won''t be angry? We''ve talked about that today, haven''t we? Whatever the circumstances are, I''m sure she felt bad about her boyfriend spending the day alone with another girl."


    Ichinose was worried about Kei, who was in a position contrary to her own feelings. Was this her true intention, or was it just a pretext?


    "Maybe."


    On the way home, puddles began to form, and water sshed on the ground as we walked.


    The silence came unexpectedly. However, unlike this morning, the uneasy feeling of the silence had lessened.


    "Can I ask you something? Did you confess? Or was it Karuizawa-san who confessed?"


    Her eyes peered at me.


    I couldn''t give her the answer she wanted.


    "I confessed."


    "I see. You were the one that liked her, Ayanokouji-kun. I''m jealous..."


    In the past, I never thought that I would have this kind of talk with Ichinose.


    However, Ichinose, who was walking next to me, was rather reserved, or at least she was ready to ept it. Usually, this kind of situation happens when the person has already given up their feelings for the other.


    However... Ichinose''s love for me was still strong.


    Then, what is Ichinose''s current psychological state?


    Is it just stubbornness? Or was she on the verge of giving up?


    No matter which of the two I assumed, I couldn''te to a conclusion that made sense in my head. Strangely enough, Ichinose''s eyes seemed to have more sparkle in them right after she heard about Kei.


    "Did you cause any unnecessary misunderstandings with Karuizawa-san?"


    "It didn''t go so smoothly. I tried exining it to her, but I think I offended her a little."


    "I see. If you want, then I can tell her what happened today, okay?"


    "It''s not something you should worry about. It''s my fault for not exining it well enough in advance."


    "But..."


    Another moment of silence returned, and itsted until the end.


    We eventually arrived at the lobby of the dormitory, and we both got into the elevator that came down.


    "I had a great time today. Thanks, Ayanokouji-kun."


    When we reached the fourth floor and I got off, she waved goodbye to me.


    "See youter, Ichinose."


    Ichinose and I kept eye contact for a few seconds until the door closed.


    Eventually, Ichinose disappeared from sight.


    When I returned to my room, I contacted Kanzaki via a chat application and reported the incident.


    [Ichinose has not given up hope for A ss. The reason for resigning from the student council is so that she can concentrate more on fighting. A statement of her resignation will be known to the public tomorrow or Monday.]


    I received a message from Kanzaki afterward, asking if I meant those things.


    At least, as far as I could see, there was no false impression.


    Above all, I was able to catch a glimpse of an unusual aggressiveness that Ichinose had never shown before.


    Whether this would be a good thing or a bad thing remained to be seen, but I had a feeling that we would see a different side of Ichinose.


    I told Ichinose that I would watch over her and support her, and that she should have more people with whom she can express her opinions.


    Kanzaki sent me a message of deep gratitude, perhaps with a sense of relief.


    "No word from Kei?"


    I could have told her that it was over, but I would meet her at school tomorrow either way.


    If I were to put forward an exnation then, that should be more than plenty.


    So I decided to leave it as it is without any contact today.

 Chapter 365 - 5 : The Approaching Special Exam

    <h4>Chapter 365: Chapter 5 : The Approaching Special Exam</h4>


    A FEW DAYS HAD passed since Kanzaki''s and Ichinose''s student council issue came to an end.


    The second-year students had been studying and studying day after day for the uing special exam.


    This time, the students with lower academic abilities had to bear a heavier responsibility, which had certainly produced a big change from the previous written exams.


    As soon as the lunch break started, it was a daily routine for many to go to the school cafeteria, but more than half of the students left the ss and took out the lunches they brought or convenience store lunches.


    And on their desks, there was a bizarre scene of tablets, books, notebooks, etc. spread out.


    "Ugh... I need a good night''s sleep..."


    "I want to y, I want to y, I want to y, I want to y..."


    "Isn''t the hallway noisy? It''s disturbing my concentration. Can someone make it quiet?"


    Various desires filled the ssroom, and more and more people hummed what they wanted. In particr, many students seemed to becking sleep, and Sonoda was one of them.


    "I want to sleep..."


    She held her head in her hands and shook it, desperately trying to make the sleepiness go away.


    "Let''s try a little harder. After we''ve done this much, we''ll take a break!"


    Mii-chan, who was teaching Sonoda, gave her a soft pep talk.


    On the other hand, some students showed surprising progress.


    "Satsuki, you''ve finished already?"


    "I''m suddenly motivated now, and I''m riding the wave. I''m in a good mood."


    A couple, Ike and Shinohara, were studying together in chairs.


    Shinohara seemed to be having a reaction she had never felt before.


    "You''ve been attending study groups for the past few days, haven''t you?"


    "It''s been tough, I feel like I''m paying for all the time I''ve been cking off..."


    Shinohara yawned sleepily but seemed positive.


    "I feel like I''m getting better at it little by little."


    "Oh, I''m still not there at all..."


    "Well, let''s work together."


    "You''re so reliable. That''s my girlfriend!"


    When Ike cried out and tried to hug her, Shinohara''s textbook rained down on his head.


    "I''ll see youter when you''re done."


    "Ugh..."


    "We can''t keep repeating stupid things over and over again. Come on, face the problem and deal with it."


    "Shinohara-san, you seem to be very motivated."


    Yousuke, who was watching the situation nearby, called out to Shinohara.


    "The special exam this time is a chance to make use of the students in ss that have been nothing but burdens. We have to contribute to the ss at least a little. Besides, I don''t want to be expelled."


    The reality was, if you didn''t improve your abilities, you''d lose your ce in the ss. It had been proven in the previous case that when the time came, it woulde back to you for not trying hard enough.


    "You seem to be working hard too, Ike. But be careful not to push yourself too hard. It won''t mean anything if you copse before the actual exam."


    "Oh."


    Yousukeplimented Ike and advised him to be careful.


    Such was the conversation. Naturally, students who weren''t motivated to study in the first ce didn''t want to waste their time studying. However, it was important to be able to make an effort in such a situation.


    It didn''t matter if it was for their boyfriend or girlfriend. Finding a reason that suited them would make putting in the effort easier. Sudou was also motivated by Horikita.


    Until now, it had been difficult for many students to make that effort, but now that the ss as a whole wasing together, it was steadily bing a reality.


    "But still... the hallways are noisy."


    During the time when students wanted to concentrate on their studies, there were many people passing by in the hallways, or there were constant talking and running footsteps.


    At a time when they were trying to concentrate, this noise was like an uninvited guest.


    "I''m going to check on things. I know there are a lot of students who are concerned."


    Even if I couldn''t stop the disturbance, I could at least find out the cause.


    Finding out what was going on should have some stabilizing effect on the restless students.


    "I agree. Can you do that for me?"


    It''d be best if I went and checked on the students so that they didn''t disturb those that were studying.

 Chapter 366: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 366: 5.1</h4>


    When I stepped out into the hallway, students from Ichinose''s ss ran past in a panic. Some of the students from Ryuuen''s ss were heading in the same direction. It didn''t take long for me to discover the source of themotion: a crowd had gathered in front of a ssroom.


    Ishizaki and Albert were forcing their way through the crowd, shouting at Ichinose toe out because Ryuuen had arrived. But Shibata, who had already stepped into the hallway, stopped them.


    "What''s with you guys barging in like this? We''re in the middle of something right now."


    "Middle of something? I don''t know anything about that. Just hurry up and bring out Ichinose!"


    Ryuuen was standing behind them, with a smug smile on his face, giving orders to Ishizaki. However, it wouldn''t be wise to make such an obvious siege. It would be easy for the school to detect their problematic behavior in the crowded hallway during lunchtime, with so many surveince cameras around.


    Could it be that those who had sensed Ryuuen''s actions were hiding Ichinose in the ssroom?


    The situation, which seemed to be frozen for a while, quickly changed. The ssroom door opened and Ichinose appeared, apanied by several girls who seemed to be advising her to stop. Furthermore, important students like Kanzaki and Hamaguchi also appeared.


    "Well, well, well. Finally, you''vee out. The foolish leader who quit the student council."


    Ryuuen said in his usual manner.


    The announcement of the new student council structure had just been released that day. The resignation of Ichinose wasn''t a surprise in itself, as it was well known to everyone.


    The reason for her resignation was ostensibly to concentrate on her studies, but whether or not this was true or false was none of Ryuuen''s business. He came to shake her as soon as possible, thinking that he could use this situation as a weakness.


    It seemed that the timing of the meeting was deliberate. They decided that it would be more effective if they could get people''s attention. In fact, there were many students from other sses who heard themotion and came to see what was going on.


    Hashimoto from ss A, made eye contact with me in an obvious manner and quickly blended into the crowd of other students.


    "It''s getting pretty noisy, isn''t it?"


    Ishizakimented on themotion he was causing.


    "Well, of course. She infiltrated the student council early on to earn good grades. It''s only natural for the crowd to want to hear about the feeling of not being able to maintain even that. Don''t you think so?"


    "Uh-huh," answered Ishizaki, spreading his arms lightly in response to Ryuuen''s voice.


    "I told them I was going to concentrate on my studies."


    Ichinose, who looked a little troubled, once again exined the reason why she left the student council.


    However, Ryuuen didn''t care what the answer was.


    "You were actually kicked out, weren''t you? Or maybe you were told that an ipetent person can''t serve in the student council."


    "If that''s the way you see it, then maybe it is."


    Ichinose, realizing that it was pointless to respond seriously, matched Ryuuen''s words.


    "Kukuku. Or maybe your past sins are now being called into question? It wouldn''t look good if the student council president was a shoplifter. I can understand the feeling of wanting to run away."


    The verbal pressure from Ryuuen, who had no intention from the start to settle for sympathy, continued.


    While the mention of ''shoplifting'' might have stirred some thoughts in their minds, Ichinose seemed to have already developed a resistance to such discussions after the events with the student council. She didn''t show any signs of being shaken by Ryueen''s words.


    "I don''t know what to say, but it''s not good to cause trouble for other people."


    "Not really. A lot of people want to know, don''t you think? The truth about why you quit the student council."


    Not wanting to sit idly by as a fellow ssmate, Kanzaki intervened between the two.


    "Cut it out, Ryuuen. The reason for Ichinose''s withdrawal from the student council is as announced by the student council."


    "I don''t care about the ostensible reason. You must already have a lot on your mind since you quit the student council! If you lose to me in the next special exam, you''re going to fall off a cliff."


    This was a typical statement made by Ryuuen, who was confident that he wouldn''t lose to Ichinose.


    Ichinose''s ss, which was on the decline, had no chance to rise to the top.


    Furthermore, the gap between Ichinose and ss A would be doubled, which would make them more desperate than ever.


    Ichinose''s ssmates, who didn''t feel threatened now, would start to realize this fact.


    "It''s too much of a hassle to bother with every single exam, so we suggest that your ss forfeits."


    "Let''s not make any more joking remarks. We''re not going to give up on ss A. And we''re working hard to make sure we don''t lose this special exam too."


    "Working hard? It''s true that the only thing you guys have going for you is your stupid seriousness. No wonder you can''t give up hope for this special exam, which you could win if you talk with your textbooks."


    There was absolutely no way that Ichinose''s ss would abandon the test just because of this altercation.


    If we can just shake them up a little more, that should be enough.


    ording to Kanzaki and the others, a lot of sabotage against their studies had already started.


    Ichinose remained silent since Kanzaki''s appearance, who interrupted.


    It seemed as if he had nothing to say, but his expression didn''t show any sign of gloom.


    "Ryuuen-kun... have you not had enough?"


    Seeing his unchanged demeanor, Ichinose smiled at Kanzaki, quieting his tense mood.


    "You can say whatever you want to me, but I don''t want you to interfere with the hardworking students. And think about the students who are going out to eat now."


    She warned Ryuuen and the others who were standing spaciously blocking the corridor.


    Whether to regard this situation as mere bluff or not was a delicate line, but Ryuuen decided that it had been effective enough in increasing the interest and suspicion of those around her for leaving the student council, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.


    "I''m getting hungry too."


    It was only for a few minutes, but it was amazing how Ryuuen''s mere appearance could cause amotion.


    Notoriety was also reputation, and its power was undeniably demonstrated among the second-year students.


    When Ryuuen and the others left, two-thirds of the students who had gathered scattered in one fell swoop.


    Hashimoto was no longer there, and the usual calm lunch break returned.


    Horikita''s ss should now be able to eat and study in a more rxed atmosphere.


    "Oh. Ayanokouji-kun!"


    Ichinose, who noticed me after the people had scattered, approached with a smile on her face.


    "I''m sorry. It was my fault, wasn''t it?"


    "It wasn''t your fault. It''s just that Ryuuen made a scene. Are you okay?"


    "I''m fine. It''s rather convenient for us."


    "That tant provocation?"


    "Ryuuen-kun will continue to sabotage us until the special exam starts.


    That''s because the advantages outweigh the disadvantages for us."


    She didn''t mind if he interfered with their studies. In fact, they seemed to want his ss to interrupt them.


    "Ichinose, I think it''s time..."


    While keeping an eye on the situation, Kamizaki spoke up with an air of reluctance, saying that he didn''t have time for a long conversation They were probably having a lot of discussions and studying for the special exam, just like how it was in Horikita''s ss.


    "See youter, Ayanokouji-kun."


    Saying this, Ichinose returned to the ssroom normally without any sign of agitation.


    "...See youter?"


    I was a little concerned about her words, but I guess the first thing to do was to return to the ssroom and exin the situation to Horikita.

 Chapter 367: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 367: 5.2</h4>


    After witnessing themotion, Hashimoto quickly walked through the hallway to the cafeteria.


    He made contact with a group of three people who were already seated and having lunch.


    "Hey, Princess. Are you sure we don''t have to do anything this time? I don''t think it''s a good idea to go head-to-head like this."


    "You seem to be very concerned about ss B, Hashimoto-kun."


    Putting down the chopsticks in her hand, Sakayanagi looked at Hashimoto.


    "Even though they were formerly ss D, they''re up to ss B now. And the gap between us isn''t so big that we canugh at it. If we lose this time, the gap will be less than 200 points. One big special exam could turn the whole thing around."


    Sakayanagi didn''t seem to be bothered at all, but Kamuro, sitting in front of her, was a little different.


    If anything, Hashimoto''s idea was easier to understand and agree with.


    "Is there any connection between that story and what happened earlier when you left in a hurry?"


    "I was following his example, Ryuuen is making new moves one after another to corner Ichinose''s ss."


    "New moves? I don''t think so. It''s the same shape, just a different color."


    "Even so. I''m a little envious, to be honest."


    Hashimoto expressed his true feelings, including criticism of Sakayanagi.


    However, Sakayanagi didn''t seem to be bothered by Hashimoto''s true thoughts and responded with a smile.


    "In a special exam like this one, what we can do is extremely limited. There is not much you can do externally, all you can do is sit at your desk, stare at your textbook, and face yourself."


    "I know that, but it doesn''t mean that there aren''t any other options avable to you."


    "Our sses are full of students who are not afraid of studying, who work on their own initiative and who work in teams. There is no need for me to tell them what to do, don''t you think? Trying to cram more than you can handle is counterproductive."


    Hashimoto bit his lip slightly and responded with an attitude that said otherwise.


    "It seems that you''re quite dissatisfied that we aren''t doing anything. So, do you want to be like Ryuuen-kun, watching 24/7, putting pressure on your opponent, and sabotaging him? I don''t think that''s efficient."


    Hashimoto let out an imperceptible sigh and replied to Sakayanagi.


    "Indeed, it may not be efficient. And considering that it''s a copy of Ryuuen''s strategy, the probability of the princess adopting it is low... But isn''t it many times better than doing nothing? It''s a nuisance to be interrupted in our studying, which requires concentration."


    Hashimoto affirmed the action as if it was one way to imitate Ryuuen''s strategy.


    "It may make sense on the surface, but in the end, if Ichinose and the others are bothered by interruptions, won''t they stay in their dormitories? What''s the point of changing the ce to study?"


    Kamuro asked curiously, tearing a piece of bread.


    "You can see the root of the reason why we study and work outside.


    Studying in front of the public makes it easier for me to concentrate because I can''t skip ss, and I can rx a little more. Isn''t that right?"


    "Certainly, studying is not always about confining yourself. Especially for those who are not used to studying regrly, studying in a ce where people can help you can make it easier to learn."


    "So Ichinose and others continue to study even though they know they''re in a ce where they''ll be interfered with."


    Kamuro nodded her head in agreement as she spread jam and put a piece of bread in her mouth.


    "But you forgot the important thing, Hashimoto-kun."


    "The important thing?"


    "It takes a lot of manpower to sabotage. Besides, sabotaging in front of the public doesn''t give a good impression."


    "...That''s..."


    At the very least, it looked far from the behavior of ss A champions.


    "Furthermore, you''ll lose a lot of learning time if you use that strategy. You won''t be able to reduce the opponent''s score catastrophically, and you''ll lose the opportunity to score as many points. The next idea thates to mind is to hire first-year or third-year students and ask them to interfere, but there''s no guarantee that they''ll do a good job for the price, and you''ll need more people to monitor their work. In this case, it''s inefficient because there won''t be a significant change in ss points this time."


    Hashimoto, who remained in denial, continued to think about what he could do, avoiding thoughts about giving up.


    "Then there''s no problem if I operate alone, is there?"


    "I don''t rmend it. His way of doing things is a strategy that fits the phrase, ''putting the cart before the horse'' very well."


    He continued to sabotage with unknown effectiveness by reducing the number of people and time to study.


    "Moreover, it''s the same for one person or ten people. If your harassment of the other ss bes known, it''s not only your fault, but it degrades the dignity of ss A. Don''t you think so?"


    Even if Hashimoto imed that he acted alone, how many people would believe him?


    The more effective it was, the more likely it would be judged that Sakayanagi was giving orders behind the scenes.


    "When you put it that way, it''s like saying that Ryuuen''s strategy is also unnecessary, right?"


    "That''s not exactly true. Even if it''s a useless strategy for us, Ryuuen-kun''s ss adopts the strategy of obstruction, which is very significant, unlike ours. They are the least motivated and the least skilled students among the second year''s four sses. Even if they start studying seriously at their desks now, they won''te close to the Ichinose-san''s ss''s academic abilities. That''s why they''re betting on making their opponents fall instead of improving themselves."


    While Hashimoto continued to insist that something should be done, Sakayanagi offered a solid theoretical exnation.


    "So we can win as it is, right?"


    "If all goes well, we''ll win this special exam. However, ording to the rules, our opponent has the upper hand in determining the oue. It seems that the rule was set so that lower sses can also fight against higher sses, but unlike us, who are in the higher ranks, the lower sses have the right to the highest score. We cannot guarantee that we will be able topete in this format."


    Even if Sakayanagi''s ss achieved a perfect score, it couldn''t match Horikita''s ss''s perfect score due to the rules.


    "Defeat is alright as well, though unlikely. If Horikita-san''s ss''s score exceeds ours and wins, it would be an opportunity to collect information."


    " ...Information-gathering?"


    "Among the low-level students, there may emerge students who have potential. If we can determine this, we can improve the uracy of our priorities�� who has to be eliminated. In this sense, Ryuuen-kun''s strategy is still a foolish one since it blurs the picture."


    The results of the special exam were to be announced to the opposing ss in detail.


    If there was a student who performed remarkably well, it was inevitable that they''d be noticed.


    "You still don''t seem happy about it."


    Kitou, who had been silent so far, threw a firm remark against Hashimoto.


    "No, I understand what you''re saying, Princess. However... I''m wary of ss B. It''s not a bad thing to think that they might catch up to us if we''re not careful, is it?"


    Hashimoto didn''t say anything else, but the first candidate was undoubtedly Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.


    And they couldn''t ignore potential opponents such as Kouenji, whose potential was first-rate.


    "It''d be fine if we just lose this special exam. But the end-of-year exam would be against Ryuuen. The fluctuation of ss points would be bigger than ever before, so we can trust that we won''t lose that one, right?"


    "The end-of-year exam requires a certain amount of strategy. There''s no way I can lose unless there''s a special condition like this that gives the lead to a certain ss. Of course, Ryuuen-kun would respond in the same way."


    Neither of us had any doubt about our chances of defeat when it came to the real thing. But at the end of the school year, one of the leaders would surely be defeated, and that would have a great impact on the ss Apetition.


    "I''m sorry, I overstepped the mark a bit. I''ll go cool off."


    Hashimoto replied, apologized to Sakayanagi, and left.


    He then took off his jacket, put on his shoes, and walked out the front door toward the dormitory.


    A male student approached Hashimoto.


    Neither of them called out to the other, and they began to walk side by side.


    "It seems that you had been struggling a lot."


    The man who answered in an amused tone understood the situation because he had been watching the cafeteria through the ss.


    "I''m a realist, but I''m also a romantic."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "I''m a realist and a romanticist, you see."


    "Those have opposite meanings. What do you mean by that?"


    "A realist is a pragmatist. If you think about it normally, you wouldn''t think that Sakayanagi would fall behind Ryuuen. We''ll win by getting rid of Ryuuen''s tricks. Well, it''s predictable that it will show off ss A''s dignity in a straightforward way."


    "Yes, that''s probably what most people think."


    "However, in the world of manga, novels, and dramas, it wouldn''t happen that way, would it?"


    "You mean Sakayanagi will lose?"


    "It''s not realistic for ss A, who''s in the lead, to keep winning. It wouldn''t make a good story. It''d be more exciting if they were brought down to the same level during the end-of-year exams. Then in the third year, it would be a three-way battle between Ryuuen''s, Horikita''s, and Sakayanagi''s sses. And ultimately, one of the sses would lose and be dragged down from the top spot, leading to the ending..."


    For the students in ss A, such a fantasy was extremely uneptable.


    "I see, you''re indeed a romantic."


    "We have to be ready for either Horikita or Ryuuen."


    "That''s a very Hashimoto-esque idea."


    Fortunately, Hashimoto was in a position to have some information on ss A.


    "However, I need to be careful not only behind but also in front and to the side. I can''t trust you for free either, can I? Kaneda."


    Kaneda smiled wryly and put his finger on the rim of his sses when his name was called.


    "It''s perfectly natural to suspect you of being Ryuuen''s puppet. You have been and will continue to be so. I''m not sure if I''m right or wrong in my calctions."


    "I work for myself, and you work for yourself. That''s the best rtionship."


    Kaneda showed Hashimoto the words he had typed on his cell phone, and when Hashimoto nodded his head, he erased all the words. Kaneda stopped moving forward and naturally moved away from Hashimoto.


    "I wonder if I should follow Sakayanagi, Ryuuen, or Horikita''s ss? It''s time to make a decision."


    Looking ahead to the end of the school year and beyond that, to the third year.


    Hashimoto continued to think about what he could do for himself.

 Chapter 368: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 368: 5.3</h4>


    After school on the day when Ryuuen and Ichinose, opponents in the uing battle, had a small altercation, Horikita invited me to a study group as usual, but naturally, I declined.


    Horikita invited me to a study session, but I declined the invitation as a matter of course.


    Kei had been paying attention to me while avoiding talking to me since this morning, and I had no ns for the rest of the day.


    That was why I could devote my time to solving the troublesome problems that had been thrust upon me.


    The word ''shoplifting'' had been thrown around a lottely, and this was the case that started it all.


    Why was Kiryuuin Fuuka almost used of stealing?


    It was probably true that she imed not to have any friends, judging from her words and actions.


    Of course, there was the fact that she was disliked, not only by her ssmates, but also by the entire third-year students because of her personality.


    However, it wasn''t easy to think of incriminating her.


    If Kiryuuin had been recognized as an obstacle topeting in the ss Apetition during her first year, it might''ve been considered a strategy without regard to right and wrong, but now that the game was already decided, what was the point of taking such a risk?


    The most likely scenario that had emerged was that Nagumo would harass the participants by giving them indirect instructions.


    Nagumo, who was hungry for a heatedpetition, was trying to harass Kiryuuin in order to make her take it seriously.


    However, judging from the way he brushed off Kiryuuin at the student council meeting the other day, we couldn''t be absolutely sure of this. It might''ve been a good time to reveal his intentions and challenge Kiryuuin.


    That was why Kiryuuin wasn''t sure of her exact decision.


    There were several options avable to me as I proceeded with my investigation.


    One was to confront Nagumo, the leading candidate, about this case, and the other was to talk to Yamanaka, the person who tried to nt the goods in Kiryuuin''s bag. Thest was to seek information from a trusted third party to better understand the situation of the third-year students.


    The third-year students didn''t have much interaction with each other.


    The only people I had the contact information of were former student council members such as Nagumo and Kiriyama.


    So, I had no choice but to walk to the school and get information directly.


    Of course, I didn''t intend to waste my time in the dark, but I had my own reasons for doing so.


    The person who seemed to have the most useful information for me right now, and who wasn''t likely to have any connection with the people who framed Kiryuuin.


    I found some third-year students who were working alone and tried to gather information.


    From the information I gathered, I learned that the person I was looking for had gone to the gymnasium, so I headed there immediately.


    However, I didn''t spot them on the way and arrived at the gym.


    It seemed that the club activities had already started, and I could see my ssmate Sudou practicing the basics carefully while shouting louder than the others.


    "They''re not here."


    As the club members started to gather one after another in the gymnasium, I decided to leave so as not to disturb them.


    I asked the students who were going to the gym, but couldn''t get any new information.


    I couldn''t see them after all, but when I went back to the entrance and checked their shoes, I found that they were still in the school.


    They disappeared, but they might still be inside the school?


    It was almost 5:00 p.m., and there weren''t many students left in the school other than club members.


    At the risk of being conspicuous, I decided to go to the area where the third-year ssrooms were located.


    I looked around all four sses, but there was still no sign of them.


    It might''ve been wiser to stay at the entrance and ambush them.


    At that time, I overheard a report that the person I was searching for had gone to the staff room.


    I finally arrived at the staff room and seeded in finding the person I was looking for talking with the teacher from the corridor.


    Since teachers often came and went at this time after school, I decided to wait for them toe out from a little distance away so that they wouldn''t notice me.


    After about ten minutes, the student I was looking for finally emerged from the staff room.


    I always had the image of a cheerful person, but today their expression was rather dark, and they walked with a downcast look on their face. They crossed the hallway without noticing my presence as I watched over the staff room.


    After a little hesitation, I decided to follow the student from a distance. I called out to them as they were putting on their shoes at the entrance.


    However, the person didn''t head for the entrance immediately and went up to the stairs toward the rooftop.


    I wondered if the person was meeting someone since there was no way for them to go up to the roof.


    As I was thinking this, the person stopped and I heard a faint sobbing voice.


    It seemed that this wasn''t a ce to meet someone, but a ce to avoid people.


    The school building was strangely silent. The sound of crying was strangely noticeable, even if they tried to hold it in.


    If someone who didn''t know what was going on came here, they might''ve thought that I had made the person cry.


    I could''ve walked away without being noticed, but I had my own business to attend to.


    "Umm."


    I tried to speak to them briefly and as unsurprisingly as possible.


    However, they probably had no idea that there was a person nearby, and their excessive rm was visible.


    "Huh!? E-eh, Ayakouji-kun!?"


    "I''m sorry for surprising you."


    "Sorry, sorry. Wait, wait a minute!"


    "It''s not necessary to apologize..."


    The person in question was still surprised, but hid their face toote and hurriedly wiped away the tears running down their cheeks.


    "I''lle backter if the timing''s bad, but..."


    "It''s okay, it''s okay. It''s all right!"


    She tugged at my sleeve to keep me from leaving. I didn''t expect that kind of reaction.


    Maybe she instinctively sensed the risk of me leaving and then telling others that she was crying, which was why she tried to keep me here.


    <Illustration>


    Then we waited quietly for a few minutes until Asahina regained herposure.


    "...Yeah. I''m fine now."


    Asahina answered, coughing once and muttering shyly.


    "I''m sorry."


    "Again, don''t apologize. It was my fault for startling you."


    "That''s not what I meant. I showed you how bad I look."


    I didn''t pursue the reason for the tears because I didn''t want to go into something irrelevant. However, perhaps this bothered her. Asahina started to talk about the reason herself.


    "This morning it was Shii�� Rather, Moeka who quit school. Suchi Moeka from ss C." [2]


    (TL Note : Shii is spelled with Katakana ( ����` ), which implies that this is a nickname)[2]


    "Is she dropping out at this time of year? It''s not a penalty for a special exam, is it? Did she withdraw voluntarily?"


    There should''ve been no special exam among third-year students in the past two days.


    However, Asahina shook her head in denial.


    "The reason, she said, was that she hadmitted a serious offense. She said she was being punished for her disruptive behavior. I wanted to know the details, so I asked the teacher, but she insisted that she couldn''t tell me."


    So that''s why she was visiting the staff room.


    As for Asahina, who was in ss A, it didn''t matter to her if someone from ss C was expelled from school. However, it was needless to say that they were friends beyond the boundaries of their sses, judging from the way she was talking.


    "You didn''t get to speak with her?"


    "Moeka withdrew yesterday, and by the time I was notified this morning, she was no longer in the dormitory. There has been no contact from her... I''ve been asking around since then to see if any of the ss C students knew anything, but in the end, I didn''t learn anything."


    Either no one knows the reason why Suchi left, or someone knows and is hiding it.


    Horikita Manabu''s generation, Nagumo''s generation, Horikita Suzune''s generation, and first-year students like Nanase and Amasawa.


    I only knew a little about each of the years, but it was obvious that Nagumo''s generation seemed to be the most likely to have people dropping out of school.


    Still, it was a little worrisome to see students dropping out for reasons unrted to the special exam. The school was withholding details, probably because they considered it such a serious vition that it could have negative repercussions.


    "I''m just guessing here, and I have no idea what kind of rule she broke, but I have a feeling I know why she did it. All the students in ss B and below are constantly thinking of ways to sneak into ss A every day. I''m sure Moeka did something she shouldn''t have done among them."


    "In your generation, Asahina-senpai. Isn''t it Nagumo-senpai who''s in charge of everything?"


    If Nagumo recognized them, they were in ss A. If not, they''d be eliminated.


    That was the way for the third-year students to survive, as it had been shown so far.


    However, Asahina''s cloudy face suggested that there was something else.


    "So there''s another way that would allow the third years to move up to ss A?"


    "...I''d say it''s more like a loophole. How''s your rtionship with Nagumo...


    Ayanokouji-kun?"


    "What do you mean by ''how''? It''s usually not good, and it hasn''t changed."


    "This is something that the other students in the year don''t know about..."


    "Oh, I see. I won''t tell anyone or anything like that."


    When I told her this to reassure her, she was relieved and started to talk about the reality of her third year. She was probably feeling the need to vent because her friend had been expelled from the school.


    "Last year, when Nagumo became the student council president, it was said that ss A was sure to win, and there was no hope for ss B and below. That''s why everyone was happy when Nagumo made a promise that he''d bring them up to ss A if they were sessful and had the ability."


    However, it wasn''t such a sweet deal. In this school system, very few students could move to another ss even if they collected enough ss points.


    In the middle of the conversation, Asahina exhaled and shook her body slightly at the same time.


    She had hoped to graduate together with Moeka in ss A.


    That dream didn''te true and she quit school before graduation.


    "What did Nagumo-senpai say about Sachi''s withdrawal?"


    "Nothing. In fact, he might not even care. There was an announcement from the teacher, but there''s a possibility that he didn''t even notice."


    So, he doesn''t pay attention to the small fries that are leaving.


    I didn''t dislike Nagumo''s way of thinking.


    "If you don''t mind, can we change the location for a while? It''s getting kind of cold."


    It seemed that the adrenaline that had been pumping through her system during the time she was in the staff room had calmed down, and her body remembered the cold.


    Unlike the heated ssrooms and the staff room, the corridor was still chilly.


    The temperature was beginning to drop as the evening approached.


    Since I had many questions for Asahina, we decided to go to a caf�� in the Keyaki Mall, although it was a little far away.

 Chapter 369: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 369: 5.4</h4>


    Asahina, who ordered hot tea, held the cup in both hands and brought it to her mouth in a delicious manner.


    "So, to continue what we were talking about earlier, you''re saying that the dissatisfaction and opposition to Nagumo-senpai is bing increasingly active by the day, right?"


    "Yes. I don''t know exactly how many people are involved. Basically, such information isn''t revealed to ss A. You don''t know about the contract Nagumo has made with the third-year students, do you?"


    "I thought they were using some method to bind the year together, but nothing concrete."


    "Then let''s start with that."


    With that said, Asahina took a moment to look around to make sure no one was nearby before borating on the contract''s details.


    For the first time, Nagumo Miyabi''s contract with many of the third-year students was revealed.


    �� The transfer of 75% of the private points earned each month to Nagumo Miyabi personally.


    �� Toply with Nagumo Miyabi''s instructions and not to engage in hostile behavior.


    �� To earn the right to acquire tickets, one must collect a certain number of points that they''ve earned and been recognized for.


    �� The funds to transfer must be handed over the day before the ss finalization.


    �� If a person disobeys Nagumo even after winning a ticket, their right will be revoked.


    �� Students who abide by the above five conditions will be eligible topete for the tickets worth 20 million points.


    And one more thing.


    "Nagumo''s going to leave tens of millions of points and let the students who signed the contract draw lots at the end."


    This meant that, even if they failed to get a ticket through this contract, they still had a chance to go to ss A with a lottery.


    The contract that Nagumo made to the students in the sses below him was secure because ss A''s status, which Nagumo led, was good... Since it was impossible for an individual to umte 20 million points, private points would be collected from many others and converted into ss transfer tickets.


    Students in ss B and below usually had a zero percent chance of graduating within ss A, but with this redistribution of wealth, their chances would increase, if only by a few percent.


    The fact that some students, such as Kiriyama, had already earned the right to do so suggested that it was having some effect. A 75% rate was very high, but this was important for the proposition of giving as many students as possible a ticket. At the same time, it was advantageous to Nagumo. By not allowing them to handlerge sums of money, Nagumo deterred them from starting a rebellion.


    "So he forced this on ss B and below."


    "Yes. Only Nagumo knows exactly how many students signed the contract.


    But I think most of the students probably agreed to it. And we, ss A, also gave 50% of our points to him, although it''s not by contract."


    Only ss A students who were sure to win could use their full amount of private points freely every month. This was a natural right, but students in the lower sses may have felt dissatisfied.


    Nagumo understood this part of the situation, which was why he was able to adjust and control the situation.


    In the third year, ss A was the lone lead. Therefore, even if the 50% share was paid, it would be more than the full 75% amount collected from the other three sses. Nagumo, who had the power to decide the special exams'' results at will, was the king who was in control of everything.


    "I happened to be ced in the same ss B that Nagumo was originally in.


    He worked hard to move me up to ss A and created the environment that I''m in now. I know I''m not qualified to say this, but I''ve been taking advantage of it this whole time..."


    She seemed afraid to say it, but she pulled the heavy words out from the back of her throat.


    "I heard that Moeka dropped out of school because of the environment Nagumo created, even if indirectly. When I thought about that, my tears started to overflow..."


    That was probably the reason for Asahina''s crying face she showed at the school building earlier.


    I didn''t think there was a direct rtionship between Suchi and Kiryuuin, but what Asahina said about Nagumo ''indirectly'' being the cause might''ve implied so.


    "Asahina-senpai, can you lend me your help?"


    "Help? With what?"


    "What''s your rtionship with Yamanaka-senpai in ss 3-D?"


    "Yamanaka-san? I''ve spoken with her, but we don''t get along particrly well. I don''t think I can help you..."


    ''We don''t get along particrly well.'' Hearing those words was actually quite convenient for me


    "Since you''re a third-year student, it''s more important for me to have you speak objectively about Yamanaka."


    "Is that so?"


    I took out my cell phone and disyed Ikuko Yamanaka''s OAA, a third-year student from ss D.


    She was a typical ss D student��below average in all abilities. Nothing noteworthy.


    "Does she have a wide social circle?"


    "Well, I don''t know. I think she gets along well with her female ssmates, but she''s not the type to be very outgoing. She''s not popr with everyone."


    I didn''t want to rely on Asahina''s evaluation alone, but it seemed safe to say that she didn''t have more than what the OAA indicated.


    "What I''m about to tell you is off the record, please."


    "That''s kind of funny. We''re both talking in secret."


    "Yeah."


    I told Asahina about the situation with Kiryuuin being nearly used of shoplifting.


    At first, Asahina was surprised, but soon she began to understand the situation.


    "I see. So you wanted to talk to me about doing an investigation on the third-year students."


    "You''re the only person I thought I could trust."


    "I''m kind of d. When I''m around Nagumo a lot, I''m more likely to be suspected of knowing more."


    Well, if you thought about it, it wasn''t unreasonable to assume so when she had a close connection with Nagumo.


    "What do you think about this case from your viewpoint?"


    "I''ve only spoken to Kiryuuin-san a few times over the past three years, so I don''t know much about her. However, she''s probably exactly as you imagine her to be."


    "Yes, that''s true."


    "I''m not saying that there''s absolutely no chance of Kiryuuin-san and Yamanaka-san having a grudge against each other, but it''s another thing to think about framing her for shoplifting out of revenge. If it were found out, you might be expelled from school, right?"


    "Kiryuuin-senpai was actually able to notice it right away, and Yamanaka-senpai ended up failing. If it had been immediately reported to the school, as you said, the possibility of expulsion might not have been zero."


    In other words, something inexplicable had been happening from the very beginning of this incident.


    "But... I see. I think I remember something."


    "You do?"


    "Yeah. I think it was right after she almost got used of shoplifting. I saw Kiryuuin-san stomping on a boy on the way home after she made him fall down."


    "She trampled him?"


    Kiryuuin-san was usually elegant andposed. It was hard to imagine, but...


    <Illustration>


    "They were probably hindering Kiryuuin-san''s attempt to go after Yamanaka-san. She was quite angry and was pushing him as if to interrogate him.


    I don''t know why the boy was trying to protect Yamanaka-san but I couldn''t help but feel bad. He must have had a scary experience."


    "By the way, who was she pressuring?"


    "It was Anazai-kun from ss D, I think?"


    A new name. Was he manipting Yamanaka and trying to sabotage her, or was he just trying to protect her from Kiryuuin as a ssmate?


    This still needed to be figured out.


    "I want to talk to Yamanaka-senpai, can you contact her for me?"


    "What? Uh, yes. It''s not that hard..."


    "Then, please..."


    As soon as she contacted Yamanaka via chat, the message was marked as read.


    "Can I tell her that you want to see her?"


    I nodded and told her it wasn''t a problem and then she sent another text.


    "I got a read but she didn''t reply."


    Asahina-senpai stared at her phone for a while, but after a few minutes, she received a message.


    "If you don''t mind waiting, she said she would be here in about 30 minutes."


    "No problem, I''ll wait. Thank you."


    "It''s no big deal. I''m curious about the truth too."


    Since I had time, I decided to ask Asahina-senpai about her school life, special exams, etc. for a while.

 Chapter 370: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 370: 5.5</h4>


    We were just a few minutes away from the appointed time. Just as I ran out of drink in my cup, a male student approached us.


    "Asahina, is this Ayanokouji?"


    "What? Tachibana? Yes, but..."


    "I''ll be disturbing you guys for a bit."


    A student named Tachibana roughly pulled out a chair and sat down empty-handed. Then he immediately put his arms on the table and leaned forward to talk to me.


    "What do you want with Yamanaka?"


    Tachibana Kento. He was a ssmate of Yamanaka''s in ss 3-D.


    I was expecting Anazai to appear, but it turned out he was another new face.


    "Wait a sec, huh? Why did you say that...?"


    Asahina-senpai was clearly confused at this sudden appearance.


    "I guess you got a message from Yamanaka-senpai, right? She asked you to check things out?"


    "Huh? I''m the one asking the questions here, you know."


    He didn''t show any sign of weakening his aggressive posture, perhaps because he was a senior. He was probably someone who was superior to Anazai in terms of physical and mental strength.


    "This is about Kiryuuin-senpai, you know?"


    "What does that have to do with you?"


    "I''m not directly involved, but I''ve been asked by Kiryuuin-senpai to ascertain the truth."


    "Are you some kind of detective or something? If so, tell her what Yamanaka-san told her before."


    "That Nagumo-senpai sent you to frame her for stealing, right?"


    "Right."


    "Hey, is that true, Tachibana? I can''t believe Nagumo would let her do such a thing."


    "You can''t believe it? Nagumo''s always the one who makes us do such things. He''s enving us and using us like limbs."


    From the looks of it, it seemed that they were at least different from the faction that supported Nagumo. It wouldn''t be out of ce if they called themselves an anti-Nagumo faction.


    "I have no choice but to follow him, no matter how much I don''t like it. Just like Yamanaka."


    Tachibana exhaled in a bored manner and tilted his head slightly.


    "If you understand, don''t get involved with Yamanaka again. Okay?"


    "My apologies, but I can''t do that either. Nagumo-senpai didn''t approve of this matter."


    "You can doubt me all you want, but it''s the truth. We can''t go against Nagumo."


    "You have a contract with Nagumo-senpai, don''t you?"


    Tachibana stared at Asahina and gave her a look as if asking, ''You even told him that?''


    "Then you know what I''m talking about."


    "I''m sure you could''ve collected private points and redistributed them intorge sums of money that could be transferred to different sses. Why did so many people go to the trouble of following Nagumo''s instructions?"


    "You don''t understand. We, ss D and C, didn''t have any ss points left before the contract was made. Even if the whole ss worked together for a year, we never would''ve collected 20 million. But if you sign a contract, they let you win a few special exams. That means you get ss points. What choice would we have if we didn''t sign up? And if the whole ss ignored Nagumo''s contract, we''d have to fight him every step of the way. What then? The remaining ss points would''ve been stripped away and the monthly private points would''ve been at zero for a long, long time."


    Seizing the opportunity, Nagumo took full advantage of his ss''s strength and advantage.


    "She was given a stable school life and even a chance to graduate with ss A if she was epted by Nagumo. Only an idiot like Kiryuuin could refuse this."


    By being under Nagumo''s control, you could maintain your ss points to some extent.


    Even if you were exploited by the 75% payment, you could always keep your allowance every month.


    Once a contract was made, it''d be difficult to break it.


    Even if one or two people revolted, they''d be found out by someone tipping off.


    "Even if Nagumo spent a lot of money, no one couldin."


    "Well... I''m not saying there''s nothing to be dissatisfied about. But as you said, we can''tin. It''s okay for those who have the ability, but for those like me who have no hope of reaching ss A without relying on someone, thest resort is to rely on the lottery."


    Even if private points were squeezed endlessly until graduation, there was always the lottery to bet on.


    Even if you only had one ticket, there was a 1 in 100 chance of winning.


    That wasn''t bad, was it?


    "Was one of his instructions to frame Kiryuuin-senpai for shoplifting?"


    Tachibana kept his eyes down for a moment, then nodded quietly.


    "I''m one of the intermediaries. If I can get Kiryuuin to confess to shoplifting, he said he''ll give me the transfer ticket."


    "I don''t understand this ''intermediary'' thing. The more people you put in between, the more the fact that you tried to make her shoplift will be leaked.


    Besides, if arge number of people challenge a single event together, each person''s contribution will naturally be distributed."


    It''d be less time-consuming and risky for Nagumo to approach a girl like Yamanaka from the beginning.


    Where was the need to pass the baton from Nagumo to Tachibana and from Tachibana to Yamanaka?


    This point was stuck in the back of my mind and wouldn''te loose.


    And if you asked me whether all of Tachibana''s statements were worth trusting, I''d say no. Basically, he seemed to be telling the truth, but he was speaking too frankly for that.


    "You were told not to tell anyone by Nagumo-senpai, weren''t you?"


    "Of course. However, when we''re in trouble, we can''t be med if we have to use his name. I don''t think Yamanaka and I are... responsible, if I may say so myself, or..."


    When pressed, he simply confessed to the crime. The first time he appeared on the scene, he was all bullish, but he may have had a part of him that didn''t want to be poked at or a part of him which had a weak side peeking out.


    "Tachibana-senpai, you may not be the direct perpetrator, but if this bes public, the school will judge you as well."


    "Huh? There''s no way Nagumo-san will make this public."


    "Nagumo-senpai may be at fault, but Kiryuuin-senpai''s angry. You can tell from watching her for the past three years that if she wanted to, she''d bite whoever she was dealing with, can''t you?"


    "That''s... Anazai was quite frightened too..."


    "You received instructions from Student Council President Nagumo and consulted with Yamanaka-senpai��a girl who could get close to Kiryuuin-senpai.


    He told you that if you seeded, he''d give you recognition. That was the whole truth. Can you swear to me that you''repletely sure?"


    I set my cell phone to video mode and brought the camera close to Tachibana''s eyes.


    "That is why..."


    "Can you swear to that?"


    When I brought the phone close to him again as if to remind him, Tachibana strongly brushed it away.


    He then forcibly stopped the recording.


    "I''m telling you I''m sure."


    "Then there''s no need to panic. Why don''t you want it recorded?"


    "It''s... that... Give me a break!"


    "Hey, Tachibana-kun!"


    Asahina tried to stop him, but he left without looking back.


    "I think he wanted to say something. I wonder what it was..."


    "It''s okay. I was able to get a rough idea of what he was talking about from his reaction."


    "Is that so? You mean you know who ordered Tachibana-kun and the others?"


    Tachibana obediently obeyed the order and carried it out.


    When he failed and Kiryuuin questioned him, he mentioned Nagumo''s name.


    Even at the risk of destabilizing his own position, he refused to admit anything other than the fact that he had done so.


    "Thank you very much for today, Asahina-senpai."


    "Ummm... I''m d you figured it out Ayanokouji-kun... Can you tell me about it...?"


    "Let''s not do that now. I don''t want to get you involved."


    It seemed to be bothering her from start to finish, but it was best to keep it to myself for now.

 Chapter 371: 5.6

    <h4>Chapter 371: 5.6</h4>


    Although it took some time, I was able to obtain important information that led me to the truth of the shoplifting case.


    With Asahina''s help, I didn''t waste any time, but that was why I wanted to pause for a moment.


    The fact was that I was on the verge of a solution on the very day I embarked on my investigation.


    Of course, I could attribute this to my good fortune, including unintended coincidences.


    That was why I wasn''t satisfied.


    It wasn''t that the others��Asahina, Yamanaka, and Tachibana��were lying or anything like that.


    What will happen if I report the results to Kiryuuin?


    And what''s the goal of the person who orchestrated this scenario?


    Depending on the decision and oue, there was a possibility that it would affect the third semester.


    I decided to send a message to Kiryuuin about what I found, excluding the crux of the matter.


    I then suggested what to do next. The question was whether Kiryuuin would be on board with that or not, but since she wanted a solution, she probably would be.


    On the way back from the Keyaki Mall, I arrived at the dormitory.


    As I expected, there was no call from Kei on my cell phone, and she didn''t seem to be waiting for me in the lobby.


    I wonder if Kei will be able to keep her distance from me and diminish her rtionship with me.


    No, that was something I didn''t need to think about yet.


    As long as she acted as a host''s parasite, she wouldn''t be able to escape on her own and take independent action.


    The elevator arrived on the first floor, so I nned to get on and go to the fourth floor.


    I should concentrate on Kiryuuin''s case rather than Kei''s. That was the n, but then I came across a website, which I found in the middle of the night.


    That''s what I was thought...


    "Wee back, Ayanokouji-kun."


    As I got off the elevator, I saw Ichinose wearing a coat and smiling at me, looking a little cold.


    It seemed that she was waiting for me in front of my room.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Hm? Like, I just wanted to see you. Am I bothering you?"


    "No, not at all. It''s just that you''ve been waiting a long time, haven''t you?"


    Normally I would''ve been home by 5:00 p.m., but it was already around 6:00 p.m. because I had to make a detour to see Asahina and the other third-year students.


    Ichinose curiously pulled out her cell phone to check the time.


    "What? When did it get sote? I didn''t even notice."


    I thought what she said might''ve been out of concern for me, but it didn''t seem to be that way.


    "How long have you been there?"


    "Uh, a little after school. So that would be a little after... 4:30, I guess."


    So she was on her feet for at least an hour and a half.


    She said that she had wanted toe talk to me but didn''t because she didn''t want to interrupt me.


    "You should''ve let me know beforehand."


    Even if I couldn''t see her right away, I could''ve at least told her when I''d be leaving.


    "No, I didn''t want to disturb you."


    I didn''t think that was a matter of good or bad, but if she wasn''t bothered by waiting for me, there was nothing more to say.


    "Hey, there''s nothing I particrly need to talk to you about, but..."


    She asked hesitantly.


    "Have you made up with Karuizawa-san?"


    "No, I haven''t."


    When I answered, Ichinose murmured, "I see."


    Ichinose''s expression was joyful, sad, or something else.


    The expression on her face seemed to be any of these, but it was hard to see her true feelings.


    "Then... can I be selfish for a moment? I''d like to have a little chat with you.


    Only if you don''t mind..."


    I''m sure it wasn''t just to say hi since she took the time to wait for me.


    "I''m fine with it. If you don''t mind, do you want toe into my room?"


    "Are you sure?"


    There was no reason to refuse. Since Kei hadn''t contacted me, I had nowhere else to be for the rest of the day. This also wasn''t a ce I could make her stand outside and talk in.


    I couldn''t let her body get any colder than it already was, so I turned the key in the lock and opened the front door.


    "I''m a little nervous. Sorry to bother you."


    When Ichinose entered the room having said that, she must''ve immediately noticed the difference from before.


    "Thest time you came to my room was on a rainy day."


    "Thank you for that time. I was soaking wet from the rain..."


    I took off my shoes first, then Ichinose, and she came up to the room neatly.


    When the lights were turned on and the entire room was brightly lit, Ichinose made a noise.


    "Ah��It''s a very cute room, isn''t it?"


    Ichinose''s eyes were drawn to the changes in the bed and its surroundings as she replied.


    There were no major changes, such as buying furniture or redecorating.


    Just stuffed animals, hand mirrors, cushions, etc., which were a little out of ce in a man''s room.


    There were many more small things here than before.


    They were all brought in and left behind by Kei who came in and out of the room. If someone who didn''t know the situation at this school were to see them, it might''ve been unsurprising for them to mistaken us for two people living together.


    If you looked in the kitchen, you''d easily notice matching cups and chopsticks of different colors.


    She knew that Kei and I were dating, and she must''ve assumed that the situation in the room had changed. In fact, you couldn''t see any confusion on her face.


    "Please sit down at your leisure. I''ll pour you a hot drink. Cocoa?"


    "Yes. Thank you."


    Ichinose smiled happily as I offered her the same drink as that day.


    The best way to warm up a cold body was from the inside.


    However, it was getting quite cold in the room, so I turned on the heater and activated the humidifier.


    "I think it''ll warm up soon."


    Nodding, Ichinose took off her coat and ced it at her feet.


    "Girls are impressive, aren''t they? They always go to and from school in skirts like that. It must be cold."


    "It''s definitely cold, but I''m so used to wearing skirts that I haven''t really paid much attention to it."


    After answering, she looked at a photo frame with a picture of Kei and me in my room, she went up to it and stared at it for a long time.


    "Can I ask you how you fell in love with Karuizawa-san?"


    "Are you interested?"


    "Yes. I didn''t have much contact with her, but I knew that she was dating Hirata-kun during our first year. I never thought that she''d be dating you."


    Even many students in Horikita''s ss were still puzzled. If it were another ss, it would be more difficult to figure out why.


    "It''s not that I don''t want to answer, but it''s hard to answer. I''d never been in love before, and even if I wanted to talk about it in detail, I couldn''t. Maybe it was just a natural progression of learning about each other together in ss."


    I couldn''t talk about specifics, so I just usedmon words and ran with it.


    "Karuizawa-san is cute, isn''t she?"


    "I don''t deny it."


    The water in the pot had boiled, so I poured in the hot water and mixed the powder with a spoon to make cocoa.


    "Here."


    "It''s warm."


    She wrapped the cup with her hands, which had been cold, and exhaled.


    "The other day, I dragged you around to the gym and stuff because of my selfishness. Did you mind?"


    "I originally proposed the idea by asking for your day off. And..."


    I opened my desk drawer and took out a piece of paper.


    "The experience was so good that I''m thinking of pulling this out on my next day off."


    "Oh, a gym membership..."


    I already filled out the form with my name, student ID number, and monthly course selection.


    "I''m always leading a life of self-indulgence. I thought I''d get some exercise."


    "I see. I''m d to hear that."


    Until the school trip, Ichinose often showed a downcast face.


    However, since thest time we spent the break together, she had been smiling a lot more.


    "We''ll probably see each other more often at the gym from now on, so I''m counting on you."


    "Yes! I''ll count on you too... Oh, right. We''ll be able to meet at the gym too, huh?"


    Ichinose drank cocoa and squinted her eyes happily.


    "Actually, you know, I...?"


    "Hmm?"


    Ichinose looked into my eyes as if she had been thinking about something.


    "I wasn''t just waiting for you in front of the room because I wanted to see you. I had something I really needed to tell you... Can you sit next to me?"


    She lightly patted the empty bed space with her hand.


    I knew she was serious, so I sat down next to Ichinose to fulfill her wish.


    "The reason I met with you this past Sunday was to put an end to it."


    "An end?"


    "To end my feelings for you."


    Determined, Ichinose made no pretense of looking away.


    "You''ve got someone you love, Karuizawa-san, so I thought that day would be our first andst date."


    There was no trace of sadness on Ichinose''s face as she said this.


    Was that what Ichinose was thinking on the day we shared our time at the gym?


    "That''s the end of it."


    Ichinose nodded emphatically.


    "We won''t see each other in private anymore. I thought it was the right thing to do."


    "If that''s the case, it would contradict our time today here."


    Even if it wasn''t a holiday, it was undeniably a private time.


    "But I was wrong. That way of thinking wasn''t right. I realized that nothing would change if I kept doing that."


    I still don''t know what conclusion she came to.


    But I guess that change in thinking is the reason for the bright Ichinose we have now.


    "I don''t know what I should do. What should I do from now on...?"


    The smile seemed to be the same as usual, but it also seemed to be different.


    So far, I interpreted Ichinose as a rtively easy-to-understand person whose smile was easily visible on her face.


    Of course, she sometimes showed her poker face well in exams, but at least in her private life, I had thought so.


    However, nowadays, Ichinose often showed a face that couldn''t be read.


    "That day, I had made up my mind that I''d never ask you about your girlfriend, Karuizawa-san, in front of you."


    "Why''s that?"


    "Because it would hurt my heart and make my chest feel tight. I thought that if I asked, I would be in pain."


    Ichinose muttered, choosing her words carefully as if exposing herself to me.


    "But after the gym, I couldn''t resist asking you which one of you fell in love first?"


    That''s right, she did ask me that. I knew how Ichinose was feeling at that time.


    "Was it hard?"


    "Strangely enough, it wasn''t. It was at that moment that I realized I was wrong."


    "What did you figure out? What was the right thing for you?"


    "You want to know? I''ll tell you."


    Ichinose took a slow breath and looked into my eyes as I sat next to her.


    "I still love you."


    Ichinose didn''t run away. She didn''t want to catch me to then let me go. She looked at me with such eyes.


    "At that moment, I realized how much I love you."


    It was the first andst date that she epted with the idea of stepping aside.


    However, Ichinose came to the opposite conclusion.


    "At the same time, I thought that I couldn''t remain in the dark. I had to change from the ground up."


    That was the moment that changed Ichinose from being in the dark.


    "Hey... Can I touch your face?"


    "''You won''t get any prizes for touching me."


    When I jokingly said that, Ichinoseughed softly and nodded her head.


    Then she reached out her right hand and touched my cheek.


    With a slight effort, she turned my face towards her.


    "I''ve never done this to anyone. I''ve never felt this way about anyone. I''ve been nervous all the time, and somewhere inside, I''m in pain... but I''m so happy right now. Just having the person I love beside me fills my heart."


    I wanted to ask Ichinose, who told me so honestly.


    "I asked you on the school trip, didn''t I? I asked you if there was something you wanted."


    "Yeah. What I wanted... was to get to ss A. A goal that I could reach with my friends. I lost sight of that, and I almost broke down and said I couldn''t do it anymore. No, I was broken. I even thought that I had no choice but to leave this school."


    "Not anymore, huh?"


    "Not anymore. I want to stay. I want to aim for ss A. I want to achieve it."


    A hand on my cheek.


    "And I want one more thing. The one I love... Ayanokouji-kun."


    "I think you know, but I..."


    "Yeah. You''ve got Karuizawa-san. I know that, so I won''t ask for anything more than that now, but..."


    "But?"


    "Things will be different from now on. I''m going to be the kind of person you will look at."


    Even though her cheeks were blushing, her unwavering gaze remained fixed on me. She didn''t take that final step that would go against her morals despite being in love with someone who already had a partner. If she had crossed that line, I would''ve had to stop her, but she was able to restrain herself.


    This was the core of Ichinose Honami.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, watch me from now on."


    "I was going to watch over you even if you didn''t want me to."


    "It''s... at the end of the school year."


    "Yeah. Then when we''ll meet again, I''ll tell you one thing."


    "My resolve was broken once, but it''s absolutely fine now."


    I don''t need to question you about that.


    As I sat next to her, I could feel the passion and strength that Ichinose exuded.


    I didn''t know how the oue would turn out, but Ichinose had definitely undergone a great change mentally.


    It was based on an intense dependence that was different from that of Karuizawa Kei.


    This dependence, which may have been a double-edged sword, had undeniably given Ichinose great strength.


    By nature, we wanted the person we loved to respond to us.


    Even if it was the first time, we''d want them to say, ''I love you'' to us.


    We''d want to touch them and know what happens next.


    But Ichinose didn''t beg.


    It was clear that she was determined to win this statement for herself.


    Slowly, her hand left me.


    "I''m going home."


    "I''ll see you out."


    "You have to make up with Karuizawa-san as soon as possible."


    "I''ll take care of it."


    Ichinose, with her coat in her hands, put on her shoes and opened the front door with light steps.


    Then she waved her hand softly and the door closed.


    Silence and a slight scent of cocoa and citrus lingered.


    I wondered what kind of world Ichinose would create.


    How it would affect the people around her, and how it would change my own thoughts.


    I look forward to school life even more.

 Chapter 372 - 6 : The Expected and Unexpected

    <h4>Chapter 372: Chapter 6 : The Expected and Unexpected</h4>


    ONLY TWO DAYS were left in the second semester. Today was finally the day of the special exam for the coborativeprehensive writing test, which was a direct confrontation with ss A. Although there were special rules, they were the same as the usual midterm and final exam.


    In the morning, many of the students who had the academic rating C or below gathered in the ssroom and worked hard to study until the very end, as much as time allowed.


    Keisei and Horikita, who had alreadypleted all their studies in advance, were watching over these students, giving them advice while making careful final checks.


    Many students may think that the hardest part of the exam wasing, but that wasn''t true.


    As the saying went, it was two parts work for eight parts preparation, and most of the work had already been done in preparation for the exam. The attitude before studying, the concentration for studying. The exam itself was only one-fifth of the workloadpared to the preparation.


    And when it was over, you''d realize that most of the things weren''t that big of a deal.


    The test procedure was based on a sheet that Horikita had submitted to Chabashira-senseist night, which listed the order in which everyone in the ss would take the exam.


    Since everyone was allowed to solve any number of questions from a total of 100 on the exam, some may think that the order wasn''t that important.


    However, the order was very important. Each participant had 10 minutes, including entering and leaving the room.


    This was enough time to solve a problem, but definitely not enough to read and understand all 100 questions.


    If a student with low academic ability struggled to read andprehend the questions, not only would he or she not be able to find five easily solvable problems and then not be able to write down the ideal number of answers, but they would also make easy mistakes due to the panic of running out of time.


    Therefore, the order in which you solved the problems was the key to reducing the probability of making easy mistakes.


    Less than five minutes had remained until the bell rang to signal the start of the exam.


    While everyone was very tense, Kouenji was the same as usual.


    He was checking his face carefully with his hand mirror and asionally browsing the inte on his cell phone, seemingly free to do as he pleased.


    Horikita confirmed beforehand that Kouenji hadn''t said whether he was taking the test seriously or not. He only replied that he had the right to do whatever he wanted.


    Horikita, realizing that her strategy would be ruined if Kouenji alone were to disrupt it, offered a clever suggestion.


    Kouenji should be thest student in the order to solve.


    At that point, 98 out of 100 questions would already be filled in, leaving only two questions.


    Even if Koenji, with an academic rating B, failed to answer the two questions, the loss was only 4 points, and it was unlikely to be a major setback.


    Furthermore, since these were thest two questions, if they were left nk, it was possible to pass it off as not being able to solve them rather than not having solved them, without viting the rules.


    There wasn''t any risk of him solving problems on a whim, leaving them nk, or making mistakes.


    Kouenji readily agreed to this proposal. Since the ss would receive 50


    points if they won, there would be almost no refusal from him to answer the questions correctly.


    In fact, if we lost 50 points because he didn''t solve, he''d only lose the private point ie that he desires.


    Since we couldn''t predict Kouenji''s actions withmon sense, Horikita had no choice but to use such a strategy.


    This was a test that wouldn''t be easy.


    Although we couldn''t be optimistic, the conditions for victory were in our favor.


    The pressure on the students with lower academic ability in ss A would be great.


    The leader of their ss, Sakayanagi, may have her own tricks up her sleeve, but the fact that each student would take the test in a separate room,bined with the nature of the surveince would make it impossible for the students to fight in an unconventional way.


    For example, it wasn''t possible to have the weakest students get arge number of points, or to walk a tightrope by nting cheat sheets.


    What all sses could do was raise their current level ofpetence and arrange the order of their ss so that they could maximize their performance. Or, like Ryuuen, they could indirectly harass them outside of the examination.


    There were some cunning ways, such as making a secret agreement to intentionally make a mistake, but the results of this test would be disclosed to the public. There was a risk of being caught if you made a tant mistake, and above all, there was no guarantee that one or two bribes would lead to a win.


    In a school full of students who were basically doing their best, it was unexpected that there were people like me and Kouenji, who hadn''t been properly evaluated in the OAA.


    It wasn''t ridiculous to receive a few extra points for having received a low score instead of the actual score.


    So far, it''s safe to say that several conditions were in favor of Horikita''s ss.


    Chabashira-sensei appeared at the sound of the chime, and under her guidance, we all moved to the special building and waited there. Then, we went to the next ssroom one by one and solved the problems on our tablets ording to the order determined by Horikita. This process was repeated till thest student, Kouenji.


    In this room, under the supervision of a teacher, students weren''t allowed to bring in tools or use their cell phones. Chatting was also forbidden, so everyone waited for their turn in silence.


    The only thing that remained to be seen was whether or not the students would be able to show what they had achieved so far, without being overwhelmed by nervousness.

 Chapter 373: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 373: 6.1</h4>


    The students were relieved to havepleted the special examination, which included a long waiting period.


    "Thank you all for your hard work. The results will be announced tomorrow, but today is thest day of ss. The day after tomorrow is the start of the winter vacation, so don''t get too carried away. That''s all for today."


    Chabashira-sensei''s words of appreciation for the students'' hard work brought us to the end of the school day. All that remained was to wait for tomorrow''s closing ceremony.


    Many of the students would be free from the heavy examination time and would be able to fly freely. Some of the students were discussing how well or poorly they had solved the problems, but Horikita didn''t take the initiative in organizing their opinions and evaluating them. The question of how many points one could''ve gotten was also what the opponent wondered. They decided that it''d be meaningless to find out, since the results would be announced tomorrow.


    "You know..."


    Kei quietly came near me and talked to me in a small voice.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Well, I think it''s about time for me to forgive you..."


    She hesitantly brought up the topic.


    But soon after, Horikita came to my seat.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, may I have a word?"


    "I''m sorry, Horikita-san, can we do thister?"


    "I wish I could do that, but unfortunately, it''s a student council matter.


    Kiriyama wants us to gather in the student council room right now."


    As if to confirm that it was true, Horikita showed me the message on her cell phone.


    Behind Horikita stood a smiling Kushida.


    "Sorry Kei, we''ll talk after this is over. Call me anytime."


    "Umm... yes. Have a good day."


    I left Kei behind and left the ssroom with Horikita and Kushida.


    "I can''t believe that just when I thought the special exam was over, the student council is back on the case."


    "Nagumo-Senpai is there too. They don''t have toply with the rules, do they?"


    "I don''t think so. Even if they are no longer involved in the student council, they are still senior students. And this time, it''s about Kiryuuin-senpai. You mean that case, right?"


    "I see. That''s what this is about."


    I realized that this was an expected event that I had discussed with Kiryuuin several timesst night. However, it was a surprising development that Kiriyama came to tell this to Horikita.


    The original n was for it to be just Kiriyama, Nagumo and myself at Kiryuuin''s urging.


    "Hey, hey, hey. I don''t know what you''re talking about."


    "Well, Kushida-san and..."


    "Well, let me exin this time. I have something to tell Horikita too."


    "Something to tell me?"


    "I''ve got some third-party testimony in this shoplifting case."


    When I arrived in front of the student council room, I found two first-year students.


    Aga from ss A, and Nanase, who had joined the student council with Kushida, were also there.


    It seemed that the entire Student Council had increased to the lowest number of people I had anticipated, and that the incident had been mixed up with a different scenario that someone else had envisioned.


    "It''s kind of my first job for the Student Council, so I came running as the secretary."


    She was holding her notebook with a sense of importance


    "Is that for the records?"


    "Yes. I heard that the secretary''s job was to write everything down."


    "Yes, but the notebook for the meetings is kept in the student council room, isn''t it?"


    "Oh, really? I bought it myself..."


    It seems that she was so enthusiastic about serving the student council that she got ahead of herself.


    "Well, it''s not a big problem, if you have a receipt, please submit it at ater date. I''ll pay for it."


    "Okay. I''m sorry."


    Horikita told Nanase that she''d pay for the notebook from the student council''s budget.


    "Shall we go in anyway?"


    Nagumo seemed to have already arrived at the student council office and was waiting inside with Kiriyama.


    <Illustration>


    Nagumo wasn''t in the president''s seat, where he always sat, but was standing.


    "I''m sorry, Horikita. The second years must be tired after the Special Exam."


    "That''s fine. But you mentioned Kiryuuin-senpai..?"


    Horikita asked Nagumo, not mentioning what I had exined to her, since he didn''t know anything about it.


    "Yeah, Kiriyama contacted me and told me to prepare the ce, since Kiryuuin is going to file aint against the student council."


    "Kiryuuin wants to file aint against the student council...?"


    That''s new to me. File aint against the student council? I wonder why Kiryuuin took that route.


    "Even so, did you invite Ayanokouji as well, Kiriyama?"


    "He was one of the people who was there, so I decided that it was necessary.


    I made the decision because I didn''t want people to spread rumors about me without knowing what they were talking about."


    "Well, whatever. It''s a bit of a lucky break to be able to observe Suzune''s first performance."


    Saying this, Nagumo urged Horikita to sit in the student council president''s chair.


    "...Excuse me"


    Bowing politely, Horikita sat down.


    "I guess you chose Kushida as the vice president after all."


    "Yes. I had thought about asking Aga, a first-year student who was already enrolled, but I decided that Kushida-san, who had a better grasp of the school, would be more appropriate. Is there a problem?"


    "No, I have noints about the selection by the student council, president."


    Horikita took her seat as student council president, and Kushida, the newly appointed vice president, sat down with a serious look on her face.


    "But she''s got a lot of guts to bete after calling us here."


    A few minutester, Kiryuuin Fuuka entered the room as thest person to attend the deliberation.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting, new student council president."


    "Please have a seat."


    "No, thank you. I will talk to you standing up. That''s all right, isn''t it?"


    "Okay. Now then, I''d like to ask you a few questions."


    "Ask me anything."


    "I understand that you have decided to file aint against the student council."


    Horikita proceeded with the conversation, continuing to act as if she hadn''t been told anything.


    "Comint?"


    Kiryuuin tilted her head curiously, but Kiriyama immediately urged her to continue.


    "We''re already pushing the time because of your tardiness. I want you to proceed without wasting time."


    "My, you''re so impatient. Well, let me exin the background to you again."


    Kiryuuin was almost made out to be a shoplifter by Yamanaka, a third-year ss D student, while Kiryuuin was shopping at Keyaki Mall after school.


    Fortunately, Kiryuuin noticed and stopped the shoplifter as she was about to slip the bag into her pocket. The shoplifting itself ended in a failed attempt.


    "I just can''t believe Yamanaka acted out of personal resentment."


    Kiryuuin gave Nagumo a sidelong nce.


    "When I questioned Yamanaka, she confessed that she had been instructed tomit the crime by a certain person."


    "Who is this person?"


    "Nagumo Miyabi, the former student council president here."


    The first-year student council members, who had just heard about this for the first time, looked at Nagumo with astonishment.


    There had been several incidents centering around Kiryuuin Fuuka.


    Or, rather, acts that should be called ''incidents'', whether they weremitted by Yamanaka him herself or not.


    If it was the former, we need to hear what happened and punish her. If it''s thetter, we''d still need to find the real culprit.


    We ought to let them see whether or not she can affront her first tempest without a hitch as the president of the student council.


    "Kiryuuin-senpai said this, but does Nagumo-senpai have any objections?"


    "Of course I do. Unfortunately, Kiryuuin, I did not give Yamanaka such instructions. If such an incident gets out, my credibility will be damaged. There isn''t a single advantage."


    "I don''t know. I know you''ve always wanted to have a serious fight with me, but I haven''t fought with you for three years. I wonder if you resent me for that. Or you may have wanted to incite me to ept the match."


    So far, like before, we were on a parallel track.


    "It''s true that I was interested in a match with you. But my interest in you has long since disappeared."


    "He-he. Is that really the case?"


    They didn''t ept each other''s ims.


    "Kiriyama-senpai is a ssmate of Kiryuuin-senpai, and he has supported Nagumo-senpai for a long time as the vice president. What do you think of both sides of the argument?"


    Horikita asked Kiriyama, whom she had chosen as a familiar third party.


    "I understand that Kiryuuin''s upset that she was almost made to look like a shoplifter, but I don''t think Nagumo is involved in this case. If Nagumo was serious about this, he would''ve chosen a better and more effective way."


    "Don''t you think that''s just you buying into Nagumo too much?"


    Kiryuuin smiled wanly, put her hands on her hips and countered Kiriyama.


    "Considering what Nagumo has aplished at this school, it''s obvious that it''s not a matter of overconfidence."


    "So why did Yamanaka-senpai try to cause this incident? Did she grow resentful towards Kiryuuin-senpai without realizing it, and then decide to do it? If so, why did she try to pin the me on Nagumo-senpai? What do you think about that?"


    "I don''t know the truth, but it''s hard to believe that Yamanaka did it alone."


    "I don''t think she did it alone."


    "Yamanaka''s position is quite low among the third-year students. Even if it wasn''t Nagumo, it was quite possible that she could be manipted into acting in return for private points, for example."


    Kiriyama imed that neither Nagumo nor Yamanaka, but a third party was lurking in the dark.


    "If this is true, it means we need to start identifying the real culprit."


    "Yes, but it will be difficult to identify. When Kiryuuin asked her to confess, she didn''t tell the truth and mentioned Nagumo''s name. This is something you can only do if you are prepared to do so."


    "Do you know why, Kushida-san?"


    At this point, Horikita asked Kushida, who was listening to the conversation.


    "Trying to pin the me on Nagumo-senpai in the third year is only a disadvantage for Yamanaka-san. And yet, if she said it... it means that she is hell-bent on protecting the real culprit."


    "That''s right. It means that she''s more afraid of the real culprit than of Nagumo, who she should''ve feared the most."


    "I don''t understand. I can''t think of any student who is more frightening than Nagumo. They just want to force us to believe that there is a real culprit, don''t they?"


    For Kiryuuin, who continued to suspect Nagumo, Kiriyama was just another person on Nagumo''s side.


    The fact that Kiryuuin was saying that it was difficult to identify the real culprit only made us distrust her more and more.


    "You are the one who is assuming that I am the culprit, aren''t you?"


    "There aren''t any candidates, so I have no choice."


    "I''m going to ask you both to please be quiet. It''s obvious that the two of you aren''t going to solve any problem by talking to each other."


    As Horikita pointed out, Kiryuuin and Nagumo''s discussion was endlessly parallel.


    "How about you, Kiriyama-senpai, how would you handle this matter?"


    "I think we should avoid further inquiry and pursuit. However, what Yamanaka did was an unforgivable act, even if it was only an attempt. Once again, she should have to apologize to Kiryuuin and pay her as muchpensation as possible. We think that such measures are eptable."


    "So there''s no need to report this to the school?"


    "If Yamanakamitted the crime alone, we should do so. But if the real culprit isn''t found, even if you report it to the higher-ups, Yamanaka alone will bear all the me. Am I right?"


    "That''s right. Even if the school investigates, the real culprit won''t necessarilye to light."


    The conclusion was already set that Nagumo was innocent, but perhaps this was one of the appropriate ces to reach a point ofpromise.


    "All I want is an apology from the real culprit."


    "I''m just saying that I knew you wouldn''t be able to do it, or do you think you''ll get to the real culprit? I don''t recall hearing anything new in thest few weeks. Or did you get some good information from Anazai, whom you threatened with assault?"


    Kiryuuin shrugged her shoulders in response to Kiriyama''s statement. He was not believed to have sustained any injuries or anything like that, but there was no doubt that the manner of attack was rather gray. Although there was some room for sympathy, Kiryuuin wouldn''t be happy to have her feelings challenged.


    "Ayanokouji-kun, I heard that you contacted Asahina-senpai the other day."


    At this point, Horikita turned the subject to what she had just been told.


    "Through Asahina-senpai, I asked the third-year students about the whole situation. I tried to find out what kind of contract Nagumo-senpai was forcing the third-year students to sign and what kind of rtionships they have."


    "Beforeing to the student council room, I received a report from Ayanokouji-kun. And by talking with Asahina-senpai, he also investigated Yamanaka-senpai in detail."


    "Oh? That''s Ayanokouji for you, no wonder I put my confidence in him and relied on him."


    I''d already reported this to Kiryuuin, but she deliberately imed to have never heard of it before.


    "Did you influence Ayanokouji, Kiryuuin?"


    "Are you dissatisfied, Nagumo?"


    "No, but if that''s the case..."


    Nagumo tried to continue as if he had something on his mind, but he quickly closed his mouth.


    "I''m sorry, this is your first case as student council president."


    He showed his watchful eye again, saying that he would not do anything rash.


    "It seems that Ayanokouji-kun couldn''t meet Yamanaka-senpai, but someone else appeared in front of him instead. It was Tachibana-senpai, from the same third year ss D as him. Why did he appear, when he was supposed to have nothing to do with this? It seems that it was to prevent Yamanaka-senpai from telling the truth."


    "Yamanaka and Tachibana were connected?"


    Nagumo asked Horikita, acting as if he knew nothing about it.


    "Ayanokouji-kun said that when he asked Tachibana-senpai about the truth, he got the same reply: that he was instructed by Nagumo-senpai to put the goods in Kiryuuin-senpai''s bag."


    "Of course, I didn''t have such a conversation with Tachibana. In fact, I don''t even remember hearing him speak for the past month. The real culprit might be Tachibana."


    "Well, you have no choice but to say so."


    It is inevitable that Kiryuuin would respond to Nagumo in this way.


    "Does Kiryuuin-senpai have any deep connection with Tachibana-senpai?"


    "Pretty much none. I can say that he has no more rtion past Nagumo."


    "In other words, he has less motive than Yamanaka-senpai to be the real culprit."


    "Does this mean that Tachibana-senpai, like Yamanaka-senpai, was ordered by someone else?"


    Nanase, who had been taking notes of the proceedings up to this point, asked Horikita this question.


    However, Horikita didn''t answer the question and remained silent.


    Everyone must have been surprised, as they had expected an immediate answer.


    "That''s not the end of the report you received, is it? Please tell me the rest of the story, Ms. Student Council President."


    Kiryuuin urged her to continue, but Horikita didn''t answer.


    That''s understandable. Because I haven''t told her the crux of the matter.


    I only gave her the same level of information as Asahina, who was in the same room with Tachibana the other day.


    If you want to ask for help, I will give you a hand.


    But first, I want to see where Horikita''s thoughts would lead to.


    "Nagumo-senpai says he is not the culprit. On the other hand, Yamanaka-senpai and Tachibana-senpai consistently say they were ordered by Nagumo-senpai. This is a clear contradiction."


    "One of them must be lying."


    "It''s normal to think so. But first of all, I would like to believe both sides of the story."


    "I think it''s difficult to believe the contradictions in the statements."


    Nanase, who continued to take the records of the meeting, stopped her pen and muttered.


    "Usually that''s true, but what if both parties aren''t really lying? Wouldn''t there be no contradiction if a certain condition was added?"


    In the course of the conversation, Horikita seemed to havee up with a possibility.


    "The real culprit told Tachibana-senpai that he was asked to do a job by order of Nagumo-senpai. Tachibana-senpai and Yamanaka-senpai believed this mysterious person''s words, and that is why they continue to appeal to him, but the request is a criminal act. Normally, one would start by asking Nagumo-senpai to confirm whether the orders they were receiving were true or not."


    It''s normal to want assurance that you would get something in return.


    "But they didn''t. Why is that? I think it''s because Yamanaka-senpai and Tachibana-senpai thought that the real culprit was also worthy of their trust. A mouthpiece of Nagumo-senpai, and one who holds power."


    There is only one person in this school who could make such a statement.


    "The real person behind this case is not Nagumo-senpai, but Kiriyama-senpai, the vice president."


    All eyes turned to Kiriyama at once.


    "Me? How did youe to that conclusion?"


    Kiriyama calmly expressed his doubts about his name being mentioned.


    "Did you not understand what I just exined? That conclusion is the most obvious when you organize the information."


    "There''s no guarantee that the information Ayanokouji has given you is true.


    I have a guaranteed ticket to ss A from Nagumo. I''d never do anything to cause a rebellion."


    As Kiriyama exined his position, an unexpected person reached out to him.


    "I think the student council president''s theory is interesting, but Kiriyama is right. This is the main reason why I don''t doubt Kiriyama. No domesticated dog would dare to bite its master."


    "Then, may I call Yamanaka-senpai and Tachibana-senpai as witnesses now?"


    Horikita tried to confirm Nagumo''s refusal.


    "You are the student council president. You can do whatever you want."


    "I see."


    "Wait."


    Then Kiriyama interrupted her.


    "Do the witnesses already know that they are to be called here?"


    "No. I''ll contact them now and negotiate."


    Kiriyama red at Horikita, and then at me, who was now involved in the case.


    If it hadn''t been for the theory that Kiriyama was the real culprit, I probably would''ve been able to survive without attracting attention.


    However, in order to clear these suspicions that had emerged, I wouldn''t be able to avoid a barrage of questions.


    I wonder if both of them can hide Kiriyama''s involvement without any prior discussion in a meeting where all the major yers are present. It''s not easy to keep lying in this situation.


    "Is there anything wrong with calling them out?"


    Horikita asked Kiriyama.


    If they don''t want to be dragged out into the open, drag them nheless.


    That''s the quickest and simplest way.


    "Well..."


    "What''s all this panic about, Kiriyama? You''re not involved in this, so just stand by."


    Nagumo asked Kiriyama in a lighthearted manner, but I could see the will in his eyes. He didn''t seem to suspect Kiriyama until now, but he seemed to have sensed that the wind had changed direction.


    "...Got it. Let''s stop this now."


    Kiriyama, realizing that there is nothing more to be done, appeals as if he has given up.


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "It means that there''s no need to call witnesses. I admit that it was me who instructed Tachibana this time."


    "I didn''t know it was you. Let''s hear your reason. Why did you do this?"


    Kiriyama seemed to havee to his senses and didn''t show any signs of panic.


    "I''m sorry Kiryuuin, but it had to be you, in order to achieve my goal."


    "It had to be me?"


    "Nagumo sent me a message, telling me to do a job to earn points, and Tachibana epted readily. The end of the second semester was near and he was in a great hurry. He didn''t even suspect it."


    It was no wonder that he believed it from Kiriyama, the former vice president, who was also a close associate of Nagumo.


    "The plot of the lie goes like this: if it were possible to frame Kiryuuin for shoplifting without her realizing, I would give Yamanaka a ticket to ss A. If she failed, of course, it would be invalid, but she''d still get points."


    "That''s a bold lie. If Yamanaka had seeded, your lie would have been exposed immediately."


    Nagumo was right. Tachibana and Yamanaka would have immediately gone to demand their reward tickets. And Kiriyama''s false message would have been known to everyone in no time.


    "We were in the same ss for 3 years, I know Kiryuuin''s character and ability very well. It was impossible for someone of Yamanaka''s caliber to nt the item without being noticed."


    That''s why it had to be Kiryuuin. He chose someone by whom the nt would definitely fail to work on.


    "So they knew from the beginning that they would be discovered. But I don''t understand. It''s too borate for the sole purpose of making me angry, and it doesn''t benefit you."


    "The goal was to frame Kiryuuin-senpai as a shoplifter. So you were wrong about that idea."


    Nanase repeatedly nodded her head while writing in the notebook.


    "That''s right. When you questioned Yamanaka, and Nagumo''s name came up, I knew that you would first make an appointment with me, a ssmate, to go directly to Nagumo. My real goal was to arrange the time for the appointment and to hit a certain point in time."


    Since I was present at that time and given the circumstances, Kiriyama''s goal was immediately apparent.


    "It seems that Kiriyama-senpai''s objective was to destroy the student council election in advance."


    "That''s Ayanokouji for you. No wonder Horikita-senpai put her trust in him."


    Nagumo, who had been sorting out the situation, also agreed with Kiriyama''s aim and purpose.


    "He wanted to dig into Honami''s wounds, who has a history of shoplifting, so that she would withdraw."


    "Yeah, I could''ve pointed out the problems from her past personally, but I decided it was too delicate. Kiryuuin hates such sins, and I knew that she would spit out words that would pierce the heart of the uninformed Ichinose without mercy."


    Kiryuuin gave Kiriyama a light round of apuse in spite of her disgust.


    "It seems I have been dancing with you, Kiriyama. I''ve got you by the horns."


    It seemed that Kiriyama, who had studied under Horikita Manabu and served as Nagumo''s right-hand man as vice president, was sure of his aim and prediction. Kiryuuin''s ability was as strong as Horikita Manabu''s, but she was an entric and solitary person who had no friends. Therefore, she was very fragile in terms of information warfare.


    "What was most unexpected was Ichinose''s decision to abandon the student council election at that stage. If I''d known that early on, I wouldn''t have taken the risk."


    The election would have gone to Horikita, even if the shoplifting had not been brought up.


    "Why, Kiriyama? Why did you take this risk to try and sway the election?"


    "I couldn''t stand your selfishness. What would''ve happened if Ichinose didn''t want to resign from the student council and had held the election for the student council as it was? You would''ve been in a fight with Ayanokouji and bet a lot of your private points on it. Also, you wouldn''t have hesitated to buy votes with points in order to win."


    Nagumo certainly had a lot of money. It wouldn''t be surprising if they would''ve adopted a vote-buying strategy if they knew they were struggling.


    "I don''t know. You''re the one who decides who wins, so why does it matter what you do with the money you have?"


    "It doesn''t matter? I certainly got my ticket to ss A from you, but do you know how much of a mental burden that''s put on me? My ssmates envy and resent me every day. It''s unbearable."


    The look in his eyes as he red at Nagumo contained serious anger that Kiriyama had never shown before.


    "The private points you put into your own sideshow could be better spent on your peers, so that more students could be moved up to ss A. However, you put all the private points, which are soaked with the blood and sweat of the third-year students, just for your own greed and desire to fight? Give it a rest, you fool."


    Kiriyama''s goal was to prevent the unnecessary outflow of private points.


    "I didn''t know you were thinking about others. I thought all the people I''ve given tickets to were self-centered meritocrats, who think it''s alright as long as they graduate from ss A."


    Nagumo praised Kiriyama, as if he were impressed.


    Whether or not everyone would take this as apliment is another matter.


    "It''s just unpleasant to see any more unnecessary fights among third-year students."


    "I understand what you''re trying to say, but are you ready to betray me, Kiriyama?"


    Nagumo had the authority to revoke his rights. No ticket to ss A would be left in Kiriyama''s hand if he disobeys.


    "It is an action based on a contract. Do whatever you want."


    "Let Nagumo decide the punishment for Kiriyama. That''ll be enough for punishment."


    Kiryuuin concluded and quickly left the student council room.


    "Wait, Kiryuuin-senpai."


    "I thought we''re done, student council president ?"


    "No, it doesn''t work that way. I don''t think Nagumo-senpai personally has the right to judge Kiriyama-senpai. Besides, there''s still a mystery."


    "Mystery? Is there anything left?"


    "Kiriyama-senpai tried to frame you for shoplifting. And, when that was discovered, you tried to bring it to the student council''s attention. The purpose was to force a stop to the student council election, and to make Ichinose-san recall the trauma of shoplifting and withdraw from the election."


    This assumption, including his confession, wouldn''t be wrong.


    "However, there was no need to take such a risk. If they wanted to stop the election, there were many other ways. If you wanted to take advantage of her shoplifting past, you could have approached Ichinose-san and asked her to withdraw from the election; out of sight, out of mind. That way, it would''ve been safer and more secure."


    "It''s hard to believe that Kiriyama didn''t think of this, isn''t it?"


    Kiryuuin, intrigued, returned to her original position.


    "I wonder why he took such a risk. Maybe Kiriyama-senpai was prepared to be identified as the real culprit here?"


    Kiriyama didn''t answer, but just looked at Horikita, the student council president.


    "I thought that you wanted to make this matter public and raise the issue.


    The fact that you''ve gathered here today, not only me, but also all the members of the student council and Ayanokouji-kun... You said at the beginning that this was all directed by Kiriyama-senpai, didn''t you?"


    I thought it was Kiryuuin who suggested the idea of appealing to the student council, but when asked by Horikita immediately after entering the room, she tilted her head, probably because it was Kiriyama''s idea. It was Kiriyama who encouraged her to talk, in order to spread these doubts.


    "Horikita. It''s strange that, for a moment, I saw your presence ovep with that of Horikita-senpai."


    As if tomend the correctness of her guess, Kiriyama conveyed it to her.


    "I wasn''t sure how well it would work, but you''re right. The number of studentsining about Nagumo is increasing day by day. When I told him about it, he wouldn''t listen to what I had to say. Am I wrong?"


    "Maybe."


    Nagumo didn''t deny, but rather affirmed.


    "Nagumo-senpai, I think there was plenty wrong with the way he did it, but the truth is the truth."


    "What do you think, Nagumo? Are you going to put all the responsibility for your selfishness on Kiriyama?"


    "I guess so. I''d assumed that I had nothing to do with this, but I guess I can''t say that from what I''ve heard."


    Nagumo removed his gaze from Kiriyama and looked at Horikita, wondering what conclusion she''d draw.


    "So, because this is a student council matter, you are the judge and jury."


    "...Are you sure you don''t mind if I make this decision?"


    "You''re not just a decoration sitting there, are you? I''ll go with your decision."


    What kind of judgment would Horikita, who had witnessed everything, make?


    "Then, as president of the student council, I''d like to say this: first of all, Kiriyama-senpai, I would like you to extend a deep apology to Kiryuuin-senpai for this incident. Whatever the background circumstances may have been, the fact that you tried to pin the crime on Yamanaka-senpai and Tachibana-senpai, who had no rtion to this, should be taken seriously. However, since it''s inevitable that a report to the school will lead to serious consequences, we''d like you to reflect on your actions by voluntarily suspending yourself from school for a week or so."


    The student council didn''t have the right to suspend or expel a student. The approval of the school was essential to make such a decision. Voluntary suspension suited that purpose.


    It didn''t matter if he''d fake a sick day or not, he just had to stay in the dormitory and reflect on his behavior.


    "I know you are entitled to deprive Kiriyama-senpai of the right to move to another ss, but please promise not to do so."


    "That''s a bold request."


    "You can refuse, but you will abide by my decision, won''t you?"


    "I can''t me Kiriyama this time either, but is that all?"


    "No, if we end it like this, we can''t be sure that something simr won''t happen again. From now on, the private points collected from the third-year students must be used only for the third years. I''d like to add this condition as well."


    So far, Nagumo had done whatever he liked from his throne.


    He must have used many private points without our knowledge, and spent a lot of money ying with fire against Horikita Manabu and other grades. The student council decided to forbid them from doing so in the future.


    "If that''s the will of the student council, I''ll go along with it."


    "I thought you wouldn''t ept that condition."


    "Basically, what Suzune, or rather the student council president is saying, is reasonable."


    Is she a much more capable student council president than I thought?


    "Are you really convinced by that, Nagumo?"


    "You have the power to undermine me."


    Or perhaps Nagumo bought into Kiriyama''s true nature, at least the one aspect that he showed.


    "Are you really going to let what happened end like this?"


    "I''ve learned a lot from this as well. Apparently, I have no luck."


    Nagumo''s face looked bored, as if he''d given up on something. However, he didn''t want to say anything more. On the other hand, Kiriyama''s expression didn''t show any sign of resignation or sense of relief at the revtion of the truth.


    Something else was on his mind. It wasn''t hard to see that he was looking ahead to the future.


    "This is the end of the matter. Please don''t tell anyone else about this incident."


    With the deration of the student council president, this entire series of incidents has been resolved. However, I don''t know if this is really the end of everything. What was Kiriyama''s meaningful expression at the end?

 Chapter 374: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 374: 6.2</h4>


    The special examinations were over, and the next day, the closing ceremony of the second semester was held.


    After listening to the teachers'' speeches in the gymnasium, the students returned to their ssroom for a brief presentation of awards. Those who excelled in club activities and otherpetitions got their rewards, and we also received a reminder for the winter break.


    Then, Chabashira-sensei announced the results of the special examinations.


    While everyone was holding their breath, we were told that our ss had won.


    At that moment, the students were cheering a shout of joy that echoed to the neighboring sses.


    Only 50 ss points were awarded or deducted for each ss'' win or loss, respectively.


    Yet, we had gained arge number of them.


    Almost at the same time, I received two messages on my cell phone.


    One was from Ichinose, congratting me on my victory.


    The other one was from...


    "Winter vacation starts tomorrow. It''s important to take it easy on the first day, and cool down after your heads have gotten all heated up from studying so much."


    Chabashira-sensei told us that we were dismissed from the ss, while everyone''s jubtion still lingered.


    It was impressive to see Chabashira-sensei''s eyes narrowed with happiness as she left the ssroom.


    As previously announced, this special test had a system that allowed each student in each ss to know in detail who solved which problem, how many questions were answered correctly, the order they answered questions, and the amount of time taken was also disclosed.


    By looking at this data, not only did we know who had made the effort, but also the strategy of each ss.


    It was definitely going to be useful data for both allies and rivals.


    I''ll check the detailster, since I can do that on my cell phone.


    I left the ssroom ahead of the other students, who were making a fuss over the results.


    Kei was watching me the whole time.


    After missing the opportunity yesterday, I hadn''t heard from Kei until now.


    However, she seemed to be trying to make contact with me, since she was looking at me right before I left.


    If it''s hard to talk in a crowded ce like this; we should relocate.


    At the moment, Kei is still unstable andcks a decisive factor for me to take action.


    I can''t expect her to grow if we continue to be estranged, so it can''t be helped.


    With this in mind, I decided to leave the ssroom for a while, but...


    "Are you going home alone?"


    I went out into the hallway and the one who came running after me was not Kei, but Horikita.


    "Is this okay? The person who yed a key role in our victory left the ssroom so quickly."


    "I''ll go backter. I thought I''d have a little chat with you."


    With that, she caught up with me and we started to walk together. Indeed, there was no bag in Horikita''s hand, and it seemed certain that she''d return to the ssroomter.


    "You used an interesting strategy for this special exam."


    "I don''t know if my way was the most efficient or not."


    Horikita''s strategy started with making Keisei the leadoff hitter to attempt the problems. Since he''s one of the top students in our grade, she had him solve the minimum required two problems quickly. Afterwards he used the remaining time to focus on reading the other questions.


    The purpose of this n was to allow the following lower-ranked students to solve the easier problems.


    The strategy was to alternate between the highest and the lowest ranked students.


    However, this strategy couldn''t be used under normal circumstances, because it was forbidden to talk during the test. No cell phones, pens or notes were allowed.


    However, if you were wondering if there weren''t any gaps at all, the answer would be no.


    While the student in front was solving a problem alone in the ssroom, the next student was waiting in the hallway.


    In other words, when someone left the ssroom after solving a problem, there was a moment when they passed each other, albeit only briefly.


    There were two entrances to the ssrooms, so if the students had to use the front when entering, and the back when exiting, a distance would be created, but Horikita had devised a solution for that.


    All you had to do was to look at each other for a moment. The idea was that each student wouldmunicate with the next using hand signs, to indicate which problems they should solve.


    For example, if the suggestion was the 55th problem, they would show their right hand with two pairs of fingers crossed twice. If the suggestion was the 69th problem, they would show both hands with six fingers in total then extend nine fingers.


    Horikita confirmed in advance that the rules didn''t allow her to say anything about the answers to the problems, but it wasn''t against the rules to use hand signs to tell which problem should be solved.


    The instruction to simply tell the student which problem to solve didn''t constitute cheating, and the rule against talking was also maintained. By repeating this, the less advanced students were able to concentrate on solving their problems more carefully, without having to search for them.


    "Sakayanagi-san''s ss was also very close, even with our many students of low academic ability, we were only able to win in terms of total points, not in terms of percentage of correct answers."


    Horikita''s ss got 72% correct while Sakayanagi''s ss got 86%.


    If thepetition had been yed under the same conditions and distribution of scores, Horikita would''ve lost.


    "She would not be happy. She did what she had to do, and lost."


    She''d always ranked first in the midterms and written exams, and she proved it again this time.


    "A win is a win, even if the percentage of correct answers is not as good as hers. No need to be pessimistic."


    In fact, it was Horikita''s ss that gained ss points and Sakayanagi''s that lost them.


    And a 72% correct answer rate is no less than excellent.


    "Of course, I''m not pessimistic. I was just frustrated."


    I guess that was unnecessary, it seems that their rivalry is much stronger than I expected.


    "By the way, Karuizawa-san hasn''t been welltely. She''s been working hard on her studies, but is there something wrong?"


    "Nothing. If I had to say, we may be in something resembling a bit like a cold war."


    "I wouldn''t call it nothing. It''s rare to see you two fight."


    "It happens when a man and a woman have been together for a long time. I know that well from experience."


    Horikita raised her eyebrows and looked doubtful, as if she didn''t like my answer.


    "It''s a good thing that she was able to get results in the study sessions and in thepetition, even though she was in an unstable state of mind."


    "It was said that she was so mentally cornered that she devoted herself to studying which she dislikes... Karuizawa-san''s morale can easily also affect the rest of our ss. Make up with her as soon as possible."


    As a leader, you want to keep the ss stable.


    I saw Horikita off as she returned to the ssroom and then I decided to leave.

 Chapter 375: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 375: 6.3</h4>


    The fact that Horikita won this special exam, defeating Sakayanagi, would soon be the talk of the town. Although it wasn''t purely an academic contest, there was also an element of rivalry involving OAA. However, the fact remained that Horikita won this direct confrontation.


    The gap between Sakayanagi''s and Horikita''s sses had narrowed by 100


    points before the final examinations. On the other hand, Ryuuen''s ss had a tough time. They had tried to disrupt thepetition with strategies based on external pressure, but Ichinose calmly epted them and picked up a solid victory.


    She may have been considered mentally unstable due to her resignation from the student council, but Ryuuen wasn''t able to break her down.


    Still, it can''t be said that Ryuuen''s decision was a mistake.


    There may be opinions that Ryuuen should have ordered his ssmates to study as Horikita did, but unlike Horikita, who hadid the groundwork extensively, Ryuuen''s ss didn''t have much room to grow in this respect. It would have been difficult for them to catch up in a short period of time.


    By achieving a narrow victory, Ichinose still had a small chance of making it to ss A, and the battle between the four sses would be carried over to the third semester, and beyond.


    When I put on my shoes at the entrance and went out of the school building, there was someone already waiting for me.


    "I apologize for calling you all on thest day of school."


    Immediately after the results were announced, a certain person contacted me, asking to meet with me.


    "I didn''t know Ichinose wasing too."


    It was a coincidence that the two people who sent me the messages ended up at the same ce.


    "What''s going on, Sakayanagi-san?"


    It seemed that Ichinose hadn''t heard about my involvement either, and she looked at me strangely.


    "Let''s walk, we''ll be conspicuous here."


    It was inevitable that the front of the school entrance would be filled with students who were about to leave after ss.


    "First of all, Ayanokouji-kun, congrattions on your victory in this special examination."


    "This time it was a victory that I was allowed to pick up. However, if it had been a normal written exam, I would have lost."


    "Are you talking about the percentage of correct answers? It doesn''t change the fact that I lost."


    Rather than being humble, it''s more like she''s epting the result after doing everything she could. You can also sense theposure of the ss A due to their lead in ss points.


    "And Ichinose-san, who beat Ryuuen-kun, was also brilliant."


    "We just did what we should have done. We didn''t do anything special."


    "It''s also admirable that you didn''t give in to Ryuuen-kun and his team''s obstruction. To be honest, in my initial estimation, I thought the result would be 50-50. However, Ichinose-san''s ss won the exam narrowly. This was probably the result of the leader''s calm and precise instructions."


    Sakayanagi also seemed to have read that Ichinose had been fighting from the hip.


    I appreciate her victory, not only because of their difference in academic ability, but also because of the cool and calm manner in which she stood up to Ryuuen.


    "Is that so? But I don''t feel bad when Sakayanagi-san praises me."


    "I can only assume that something happened recently."


    Sakayanagi wasn''t able to gather information on her own, so she was always trying to gather information using many students as if she wereying out a spider web.


    Holidays spent at the gym. Time spent in cafes. On the way to and from.


    The day she waited outside my room. I wouldn''t be surprised if she saw some of it.


    "I told you a simr story on the boat, remember?"


    Sakayanagi said these words to Ichinose, not to me.


    "Too much idolisation may result in painful repercussions. Wasn''t it something like that?"


    "That is right. I have called you both here today to tell you that I am here to give an ultimatum to Ichinose-san, who has a faint crush on Ayanokouji-kun."


    She already seemed to understand that Ichinose has feelings for me, which in itself is not surprising.


    "You should distance yourself from Ayanokouji-kun now."


    "Is that your ultimatum?"


    Even though you have already told him again, you were told by a third party about your feelings for him right here and now.


    Normally, I''d expect Ichinose to show at least a hint of unease, but she didn''t seem to be upset at all.


    "Yes."


    "I don''t understand. Why should I distance myself from Ayanokouji-kun?


    Whatever feelings I have for Ayanokouji-kun, there is nothing wrong with treating him as a friend."


    "I see that the erosion has already advanced considerably. If you can really be friends, it would be a different story. But from what I see, I don''t think Ichinose-san would be satisfied with that. But unless Ayanokouji-kun refuses to ept it, I have no intention of changing my mind. You are being controlled by him. Do you realize that if you continue like this, you will eventually be destroyed?"


    "Ha-ha-ha. You say the funniest things."


    "I''m seriously concerned. I can''t watch you go off the deep end and be satisfied."


    "No need to worry, Sakayanagi-san. I am not controlled by Ayanokouji-kun."


    She sure has such a cold look in her eyes.


    As those thoughts crossed me, Ichinose was standing next to me, with a look on her face I had never seen before.


    "Sakayanagi-san. You want to control me and use me for your own convenience, don''t you? That''s why you''re trying to stall me like this."


    "I see. That''s one possible interpretation."


    "Actually, one more thing, Sakayanagi-san is very conscious of Ayanokouji-kun as a special person, and my presence has be an eyesore..."


    Sakayanagi''s movement stopped for a moment as Ichinose smiled at her.


    This was a rare upset shown by Sakayanagi, who''d always been standing one position above Ichinose at all times.


    "I certainly look at him in a special way, but it''s not the same as yours."


    "I don''t know. I think it is, even if you don''t realize it."


    Ichinose confronted Sakayanagi''s denial head-on.


    "That''s fine. If you insist to that extent, I have nothing more to say. I''ll only tell you that I can''t help you if you have any regrets in the future."


    Sakayanagi concluded, but her caution may have been raised in stages after hearing her intentions. Perhaps it was because she believed that being blindly devoted to love and going on a rampage after falling under that illness was something cute.


    But things have begun to change more than I imagined.


    The good that is directed inward is the same as before, and the good that is directed outward ispletely transformed into evil.


    Ichinose''s ss, which had been sinking, was now strong enough to strike back.


    Sakayanagi must have felt it firsthand.


    Why do I think so? Because that''s exactly what I''m being reminded of right now.


    "We''re having a victory party at the Keyaki Mall afterward. Can I go back to the dorms now?" Ichinose replied.


    "Yes. It would be unwise to keep you any longer, wouldn''t it?"


    Ichinose waved to me and headed toward the dormitory.


    Sakayanagi and I were the only two left behind.


    "I never thought I would be re-evaluating Ichinose-san in this way."


    Sakayanagi had not seemed to be able to read the changes so far either.


    A side effect, or rather a byproduct, of the powerful changes.


    "It''s a pity, because Ichinose-san, who has earned my trust, would have been an excellent limb for me."


    "I''m afraid you''ve missed the point."


    I have been broadening my perspective and making calctions on the big picture in moving human beings, but there are still areas that even I don''t understand.


    The concept of love has the potential to influence our reason and nature.


    This means that unexpected developments could easily ur. It is hard to believe, but it''s certainly one of the most mysterious and transcendent feelings.


    Is Ichinose Honami a good or bad leader; a good or bad strategist?


    This is a different story from those perspectives.


    Originally, Ichinose''s abilities weren''t low.


    I remember that her performance in the zodiac test was also excellent.


    With her individual ability, she had the potential to resist Horikita, Ryuuen, and Sakayanagi.


    Or, depending on the situation, unexpectedly surpass them.


    "I had no idea that she had such a hidden ability. But it''s the same thing if you let yourself get carried away by that power. The consequences will be disastrous."


    "Did you think you could stop it?"


    "No. I have no intention of stopping it. The only difference is who destroys her."


    Sakayanagi didn''t consider Ichinose as an ally.


    She would have just used her as a useful pawn and disposed of her when she was finished being a consumable.


    "I will visit your room again in the near future."


    Sakayanagi, who was also in possession of information on Ichinose, deliberately showed her hand and gave her reply.

 Chapter 376: Epilogue : A Touch of Anxiety

    <h4>Chapter 376: Epilogue : A Touch of Anxiety</h4>


    ON THIS DAY, after the second semester''s closing ceremony, the special examinations were over.


    The time that students had been waiting for was here.


    Although not as long as the summer vacation, it was still a time of joy for most of the students. The hard work of studying day and night has been rewarded with a head-to-head win against ss A. The winter break will start tomorrow, and we look forward to many happy days ahead.


    It is sure to be a fun time for all.


    That''s what everyone thought, except for one person in the ss.


    The only exception was Karuizawa Kei, who hade to the Keyaki Mall with her best friend, Satou Maya, with a sigh of mncholy. Good at putting on airs by nature, she remained calm at school and concentrated on her studies even after the fight with Ayanokouji.


    Therefore, the people around her had no way of knowing that Karuizawa had been suffering. Her best friend Satou was one of them, but Satou was a close observer of not only Karuizawa, but also Ayanokouji. She had noticed that the two of them seemed to be rather distant from each other, even though they were always close.


    However, she thought that the cause of their behavior was not because of a quarrel, but because they were keeping their distance to concentrate on their studies.


    "Haah..."


    "You''ve been sighing a lot. We''ve just finished our studies and it''s getting easier. What''s wrong?"


    "Hmm? Oh, it''s nothing..."


    Karuizawa, who had been trying to avoid being noticed up to this point, realized that she had been sighing repeatedly without knowing it, perhaps because she had be rxed after being released from her studying and examinations which were her weak areas.


    "... Really?"


    "Really, really."


    Karuizawa answered stoutly and acted so, but Satou''s suspicions remained unanswered.


    "I''m going to ask you an insensitive question, but weren''t you going to make ns with Ayanokouji-kun today?"


    "Eh..."


    "Because tomorrow is a holiday. Usually, don''t two people go out and have fun together? Shinohara and Ike were excited to go see a movie with their arms around each other, right?"


    Karuizawa knew it was strange for her to invite Satou out with no prior appointment. While she felt she had made a mistake, she was showing this attitude because somewhere in her heart she wanted to ask Satou for some advice.


    Karuizawa gave a small nod and walked through the caf��, which was getting crowded. They sat down together on a bench near the rest area on the second floor of the Keyaki Mall.


    "Hey, Maya-chan. Can I talk to you about something..."


    "Yeah, that''s totally fine."


    Satou was not reluctant, but enthusiastic, showing that she has been waiting for it.


    "I think my rtionship with Kiyotaka might be in trouble..."


    "What...? Really!?"


    Karuizawa, after making sure that no one was around, revealed her pent-up feelings. Satou, who had not expected a bomb to be dropped on her, was startled to the point of falling over.


    "Does ''rtionship trouble'' mean... that you might break up?"


    "I''d like to think that''s not true, but... I can''t help but feel that waytely."


    The fact that her expression seemed more serious than expected made Satou choke on her words, unable to hide her agitation.


    Still, Satou wisely tried to find the right words to say so as not to make the atmosphere heavy.


    "You had a fight with Ayanokouji-kun, but you two can''t make up and it''s been going on for a while... is that it?"


    If it was just a small quarrel, the rtionship would be back to normal in a few hours at most.


    Karuizawa looked serious. Satou could not hide her confusion since she thought the two had been getting along well ever since they started dating.


    "I thought it was just a little fight, but maybe not for Kiyotaka."


    Karuizawa sighed gloomily and nodded quietly.


    "Have you two had any discussions since that fight?"


    Karuizawa told her that the fight did not happen yesterday or today.


    However, she was not ready to talk about the contents of the fight, nor the cause of it.


    "Isn''t it winter break already? I focused on my studies that Kiyotaka told me to work hard on, and I answered 3 out of 4 questions correctly on the exam. I thought I could do this... so yesterday after the exam I made a bold move and approached him..."


    "And?"


    "Nagumo-senpai called him and they went away. I was going to call out to him after the closing ceremony today, but Horikita-san called out to him again..."


    Satou pressed her forehead at the repeated bad timings.


    "So, you didn''t get a chance to talk to him at all and now we''re here."


    "Yeah."


    "But I couldn''t tell if Ayanokouji-kun was angry or sulking."


    "He''s always expressionless and his attitude never changes."


    This also made Karuizawa''s judgment unclear. If he had shown an explicitly angry reaction, she would have been able to apologize earlier.


    "Don''t take offense to this, but aren''t there a lot of fights in rtionships?"


    It is a word that pops up regrly among girls who are particrly excited to talk about love, and it is not unusual in itself.


    Moreover, there are many cases that cannot be called ''fights,'' such as when a minor problem starts to make things awkward. Satou wanted to make sure that the situation did not fall under this category, but she could not ask about that right away.


    "I can''t imagine Ayanokouji-kun being angry at all, but did he get angry that time?"


    Satou asked fearfully, but Karuizawa immediately shook her head from side to side.


    "I was the one who got angry."


    "Oh, hm, I see."


    Satou thought she was about to hear an unexpected side of the story, but she quickly erased that thought.


    "So you are still angry at him?"


    If so, the way to end the fight is simple. Satou thought that if Karuizawa smiles and forgives Ayanokouji, things will be back to normal.


    "Not that... but..."


    "If you don''t mind me asking, can you... tell me what the fight was about?"


    Without knowing this, she couldn''t fully understand.


    Karuizawa trusted that Satou was listening to her seriously and decided to tell her the origin of the quarrel.


    It all started one Saturday night when she invited him to go shopping for Christmas presents. When she found out that Ayanokouji was going out with Ichinose for the holidays, she got mad.


    Karuizawa couldn''t imagine him having a good reason for going out with her.


    Satou, having finished listening to the situation, quietly closed her eyes.


    Then she strongly patted her knees with the palms of her hands.


    "I see... it''s definitely Ayanokouji-kun''s fault!"


    Satou gave her thoughts and opinions as a pure girl, without any biases. She answered with confidence.


    "R-Right!?"


    Having her friend as an ally, Karuizawa''s expression became a little more cheerful.


    "That''s right. It''s out of bounds to go out with someone other than your girlfriend on a holiday, no matter what the circumstances are! You have to say no, or at least have Kei-chan or some other boys or girls with you! You have every right to be angry. On the contrary, you should be angry."


    "I was surprised that you met with Ichinose-san without taking offense... and held yourself together this long."


    From the time she was told about Ayanokouji going out with Ichinose until today, Karuizawa had been worried and anxious. Still, she devoted herself to her studies as instructed and persevered until today.


    "Ichinose-san''s not dating anyone is she?"


    This was a source of uneasiness that Karuizawa couldn''t shoulder alone.


    ''Anyone.'' It is not a reference to Ayanokouji, but to Karuizawa''s wish of someone else being in a rtionship with Ichinose.


    "...I don''t know if you''ve heard of her. She''s quite popr and famous at school, so if she went out with someone, you''d know right away..."


    "...Right."


    Karuizawa cast her eyes down, confirming once again that she understood.


    "Uhhh...!"


    Satou couldn''t hold back any longer and hugged Karuizawa.


    "Hey, Maya-chan!"


    "It''s not Kei-chan''s fault!"


    "...Thanks. But I have my faults too. If I had listened to Kiyotaka more honestly and understood what he said, we wouldn''t have ended up in a... fight. I should have smiled and said, ''Let''s go shopping for Christmas presents next week,''


    and grabbed him by the arm. If I could go back in time, I would have fixed it; I regret that I can''t."


    From Satou''s point of view, Karuizawa is cute. She is one of the top girls in terms of pure looks.


    When I first entered the school, there was a time when I disliked her as a wanton[1] girl who nestled close to Hirata. A high-handed, overbearing, power-hungry girl with a nasty personality. But now that we fell in love with the same person, and got to know each other, I havee to realize that this girl was just being stubborn. She has a cute personality despite her outward appearance.


    I can confidently say that even if other girls try to get Ayanokouji, there is no way they can beat her.


    However, it''s a different story if it''s Ichinose Honami, of all people.


    Suppose that Ichinose has a crush on Ayanokouji.


    I couldn''t eliminate the possibility that Ayanokouji would switch from Karuizawa to Ichinose.


    "Hey... Let''s do a little digging, shall we...? On the people in Ichinose-san''s ss."


    It''s possible that they will see things that they are afraid of, but even if Karuizawa can make peace with Ayanokouji after this, the worry and anxiety will resurface if something like this were to happen again. However, if Ichinose were found to have no intention of doing so...


    (TL Note: Wanton: a lewd orscivious person)[1]:


    "No... I don''t think so."


    Still, Karuizawa''s anxiety got the better of her and she turned down Satou''s offer. Then, as if to shake off her bad feelings, she stood up enthusiastically.


    "I''ll try not to think about it anymore. I''m going to have a lot of fun with Maya-chan now and go see Kiyotaka at night. Then we''ll make up for sure!"


    "That''s the spirit! I''ll support you!"


    Right after that theyughed at each other, and the cell phone in Karuizawa''s hand vibrated.


    For a moment, Karuizawa thought it was a call from Ayanokouji, and opened her chat.


    "What?"


    "What''s wrong?"


    Karuizawa''s expression froze as she stared at the phone screen.


    Satou instantly looked at her with concern.


    "Kei-chan?"


    <Illustration>


    She called her name again, but Karuizawa kept staring at the screen as if time had stopped. Satou wondered what was going on and stole a nce at the screen from the side.


    "..."


    Satou saw the picture on the screen and stiffened up.


    "Who gave you that?"


    "From Nene-chan..."


    It was because the two people they were just talking about were in the picture attached to the text sent by Mori Nene.


    It was Ayanokouji and Ichinoseing out of the gym while talking.


    The photo showed the entrance to the gym where the two of them were walking in front of a bench.


    "When was this taken?"


    "Ask her..."


    She quickly asked Mori to confirm the date and found out that it was the evening two days ago.


    It was when Karuizawa and her group were studying with Horikita and her group for the final push.


    "Why..."


    "Maybe they just happened to be together around here or something like that."


    Satou replied in a desperate attempt to console her, but he had obviously juste out of the gym.


    "Does Ayanokouji-kun go to the gym?"


    "I don''t know..."


    "Hello Karuizawa-san."


    "!?"


    As if to push her into an unstable state of mind, she was approached by Ichinose in front of the gym.


    Ichinose was in her casual clothes.


    "Huh? Did youe to the gym by any chance?"


    "No, no, it''s just that... we just happened to be here... right?"


    "Uh-huh."


    Satou nodded repeatedly over and over to back up Karuizawa and said she was taking a rest on the bench.


    "I see. I thought you and Ayanokouji-kun had started going to the gym together."


    Ichinose replied with a nonchnt smile, as if it were a matter of course.


    "Eh...?"


    "Huh? What''s wrong?"


    "...Ichinose-san knew Kiyotaka went to the gym?"


    Turning off the screen, Karuizawa put the phone away in her pocket.


    "I told Ayanokouji-kun about it and we tried the gym together. He liked it and decided to start."


    "I see..."


    Karuizawa muttered in a muffled voice.


    "Is Ichinose-san going to the gym now?"


    "We''re going to celebrate with the whole ss since we won the special exam. We''re going to meet at the cafe, but I forgot something the other day when I came to the gym, so I thought I''d stop by and pick it up."


    Ichinose smiled.


    "Hey Ichinose-san, is it true that you and Ayanokouji-kun met the other day?"


    If Karuizawa couldn''t ask her, Satou had no choice but to make her own move.


    "What?"


    "Nothing happened with Ichinose-san... and Ayanokouji-kun, right?"


    "Oh no. There''s nothing between me and Ayanokouji-kun."


    She waved her hand lightly and denied it.


    "...Really?"


    Even so, Satou''s suspicions were not confirmed, and she showed a more aggressive attitude in her pursuit.


    She tried to stop Satou by pulling her cuffs, but Karuizawa''s resistance was not strong enough.


    "Yes. I wouldn''t lie about something like that. I was just asking Ayanokouji-kun for advice about my ss... Was I perhaps misleading you?"


    Ichinose was puzzled by Satou''s ring eyes and Karuizawa''s uneasy look.


    "I am thinking that maybe Karuizawa-san is upset.... sorry."


    Ichinose looked apologetic and bowed her head.


    Seeing this, Karuizawa also had the courage to express her unspoken thoughts.


    "... Was that Kanzaki-kun''s doing?"


    Karuizawa''s mention of Kanzaki''s name allowed Ichinose to deduce the situation, even though she had no personal knowledge of it


    "I had no idea about it, but I could guess the situation just by hearing it. Our ss was down to ss D and we couldn''t afford to lose any more time. We didn''t have the strength to rebuild ourselves and we were struggling. Ayanokouji-kun saw that and said he would try to help us. I wonder if you''ve heard of any other names, like Mako-chan."


    "Mako-chan?, do you mean Amikura-san? I''m not sure... but did Himeno-san hear about it?"


    As the suspicions around Ayanokouji and Ichinose faded slightly, Karuizawa''s tone lightened.


    "Yes, Himeno-san is going to help us rebuild the ss. We are discussing it together. There are other people who know about it, so don''t worry."


    Ichinose, who did not seem to know much about it, said this to reassure Karuizawa.


    "But I don''t understand why Kiyotaka is helping Ichinose-san''s ss."


    "I know. There must be some strange reason..."


    The two, still not fully satisfied with the information they received, looked at each other and voiced their concerns.


    Ichinose nodded and closed her eyes.


    "It''s a matter of mutual interest."


    "Mutual interest?"


    "We''ve been struggling to win recently. We were in a pinch with the special exam at the end of the second term against Ryuuen-kun, where if we lost, the gap between us and ss A would widen again. It''s more convenient for Ayamokoji-kun to have us, the bottom-ranked ss, win against Ryuuen-kun, who is aiming for second ce, rather than us losing. That''s why he helped us."


    This is the most usible answer as to why Ayanokouji helped Ichinose, his rival. She emphasized that Ayanokouji was only a temporary helper to assist in defeating a strong rival.


    "There''s really, really nothing going on with... you and Kiyotaka, right?"


    "I have nothing to do with him in that sense."


    With straight eyes, Ichinose clearly stated that she had nothing to do with Kiyotaka.


    Karuizawa and Satou could only nod their heads repeatedly at this attitude that could not be considered a lie.


    "I think Ayanokouji-kun is a bit of a jerk for not being able tomunicate with his precious girlfriend. But if I''m the one who caused the rift, then yes, I''ll take responsibility for making things right."


    "That''s okay. Now that I know what''s going on, I''m sure we can make up today! Thank you for clearing things up, Ichinose-san."


    "No problem. If you have any more problems, please let me know."


    Ichinose told them kindly and watched their backs as they left the gym.


    "I''m telling you the truth, nothing has happened with Ayanokouji-kun yet."


    <Illustration>


    As Karuizawa and Satou walk away, there is a small voice that can''t be heard behind their backs.


    Ichinose muttered something to herself.


    "Not yet, you know..."


    Leaving behind the scent of the perfume she wore, Ichinose walked away.


    E.1


    The first day of winter vacation. The sky was covered with thick clouds and had been pouring since the morning.


    About 10 minutes past the appointed time, Ryuuen approached with an umbre in hand. Ichinose, who had been waiting ahead of time for him, gazed silently into his face.


    They stopped when they were far enough away from each other so that they could hear each other through the sound of the rain


    "The weather has been like thistely, hasn''t it?"


    Ichinose spoke to Ryuuen without making any inquiry about his dy.


    "Not going toin about the dy?"


    "I was prepared to wait for 30 minutes. If you didn''t show up by then, I was going to leave without hesitation."


    Ichinose, who answered with a rxed attitude, seemed to be more concerned about the sky than Ryuuen. She tilted her umbre and looked up at the rainy sky a little.


    "It won''t stop for the rest of the day."


    "You''re such a softy for taking the trouble to answer my call."


    Ignoring Ichinose''s muttering, Ryuuen told Ichinose.


    "I don''t know if Ryuuen-kun would be satisfied if I said we were friends, but I think it''s normal for me to answer when you call. I didn''t have any ns at this time. So what do you want?"


    "My schedule got a little screwed up. I thought I''d see if I could figure out why."


    "Is it the special exam you''re talking about? I was a little confused about the harassment."


    "I know you think it''s not artistic to do that, but it suits our needs. If it''s the easiest and most effective way, why not repeat it?"


    Ryuuen instructed his ssmates to relentlessly pressure and sabotage Ichinose''s ssmates. He would force his way into ssrooms, libraries, or karaoke rooms where Ichinose''s ssmates would gather for study sessions, and would disrupt their studies by making a lot of noise.


    Unbeknownst to Ayanokouji and the others, Ryuuen was also giving dangerous instructions. He offered money to students with high academic ability and rewarded them if they got all the questions wrong. Or he threatened that answering all the questions correctly would cause trouble for some of their peers.


    The strategy was based on the idea that a weak ss would be able to open a hole in a tight-knit ss.


    "I''m sure everyone was annoyed."


    "I guess."


    However, it did not cause much damage in the end.


    In the academicpetition, Ryuuen did not have a good chance to win even if they yed a straightforward game.


    Knowing this, Ryuuen nned to fight them outside of the ring.


    "But did you really think you could win that way?"


    "Yes, I did."


    However, as it turned out, none of the strategies worked against Ichinose.


    "I thought your ss would fall apart after something like that, but it seems you''ve grown since the first year."


    Ishizaki and the others who came up to Ryuuen were all reporting that the sabotage of Ichinose''s ss had been a sess. Although some of the students did not ept the temptations and threats, they were aware of their effectiveness, as evidenced by the agitation that could be seen in the students.


    However, the students of Ichinose''s ss were only outwardly showing that they were in trouble. Behind the scenes, they were steadily making time to study and acting as if they were frightened by the threats.


    "Where''d this wisdome from? If it had been you in the past, you might have canceled the study sessions immediately and shut yourself in early instead of wasting your energy. You would''ve rejected our threats outright. Yet, you went through the trouble of pretending that you were still falling for our strategy."


    If it was Sakayanagi or Ayanokouji, Ryuuen would not have been surprised.


    Instead, he would have considered making a stronger move as a natural countermeasure.


    A cornered rat bites the cat. The cornered and weak strike back.


    To find out firsthand, Ryuuen invited Ichinose to talk.


    "There is no wisdom in there, Ryuuen-kun. We just continued to study in the midst of the noise. The threatening words simply frightened everyone. It just happened to not have much effect."


    "There''s no need for modesty here. Obviously, something must have changed in your ss."


    "Ryuuen-kun and the others should have taken it seriously like we and the other sses did. You should have studied and scored points... just like the way Horikita-san and her ss beat Sakayanagi-san."


    "You''re talking from a very high ce just because you picked up a win in a favorable exam. Well, this special exam was the ultimate in lukewarmness. No risk of anyone dropping out, just a firm grip on the pen and arm movement. I didn''t care enough to take it seriously either."


    "Why couldn''t you have done it the normal way like everyone else did?"


    "I''ve been teaching these idiots for a week or two, but I don''t think they''re going to improve much. It''s just easier and faster to kick them down the road."


    Ryuuenughed as he faced Ichinose in the pouring rain.


    "But that decision was a mistake, wasn''t it?"


    "I was beaten by you people whose only merit is earnestness, but next time I''m going to have to sabotage you even harder."


    "So you''re not going to change your ways if the same special exam is repeated?"


    "Yeah, I''m not going to change. I''m going to sink you on the spot."


    Ryuuen answered with a confident manner as if this was his own way of doing things.


    "I see. It seems that no matter what we say, we can''t agree on anything anymore."


    "You''re back in ss C by a narrow margin for a while. But don''t think that''s going to help you win again. You''re a pathetic sheep that''s long since been defeated. No matter how hard you struggle in the mud, you are doomed to sink eventually. Don''t you agree?"


    "We''ve been losing so muchtely. That hurts my ears."


    "I''ll say it again, you''re only saved this time by the content of the special exam."


    "I won''t deny that."


    Ryuuen had his own reasons for relentlessly and forcibly biting Ichinose.


    He thought that he could see through the other party by talking this way.


    However, he couldn''t see it. The openings that Ichinose would have shown in the past did not appear at all.


    "The ss you''ll face in the final exam is Ayanokouji''s ss. That''s a pain in the ass, you know? Even more so than Sakayanagi, the ss I n to crush. So defeat is inevitable for you. I''m not the only one who thinks so. Sakayanagi must be thinking the same way. You will be finished at the end of the school year. There is no way we could have won this time. I urge you not to get your hopes up."


    Ichinose did not answer immediately, but stood still and listened to Ryuuen continue on.


    "It''s easy for Ayanokouji and the others. They get ss points for fighting small fry like you without having to deal with me and Sakayanagi. Nothing could be luckier."


    He attacked Ichinose relentlessly, ignoring herck of response and trying to push her into a corner.


    "Indeed... If we lose in the final exam, we may be finished."


    If the gap widens for the new ss C in a direct confrontation, it will be almost impossible for them to make up for it in a year.


    "So I''ll tell you how to graduate in ss A."


    "Is there such a thing?"


    "The end-of-year exam will cut off your path to ss A. Then the only way to graduate in ss A is to collect private points."


    "It would take arge sum of points to save 40 people. I don''t think that''s possible."


    "We can''t save all of them. But what about one person? Just 20 million points. You have the ability to collect points out of the goodness of the hearts from your ss. They''ll deposit 1 million, 2 million, whatever you want with you as coteral for their trust. You just have to spend the money in the end."


    "Using the money entrusted to you to move to another ss is embezzlement. The school won''t allow it."


    "I don''t know. Certainly, if people like me or Sakayanagi were to do the same thing, we would be punished. We would be expelled without question. But that''s not likely to happen to you."


    "Why?"


    "Because the good guys will take your feelings into consideration. Even if you know you''ve been embezzling, you can tell the school that ''the money was given to you somehow.'' It''s not 100% true, but it''s a good enough chance to bet that you''ll get straight to ss A."


    "Interesting story. But I think I''ve had enough."


    Ichinose, who had figured out the reason for the invitation, had no reason to stay there any longer.


    "I think it''s time to end this conversation."


    "I was going to y with Suzune and Sakayanagi from now on, but if there is a battle involving expulsion from school in the future, your ss will be a target.


    I''ll erase your friends who have been trying so hard to protect you."


    From Ryuuen''s point of view, Ichinose is still not recognized as an obstacle and tried to threaten her.


    Ichinose took the threat head-on and smiled.


    "Then I''ll just stop you before you do. If necessary, I''ll just have you expelled."


    "Kuku. You think you can make me, or anyone at all, disappear?"


    Ichinose, who is a good-natured person, is extremely against other people getting hurt. This has been the uniform impression of not only Ryuuen but also everyone around her for the past two years.


    "You''ve certainly be more skilled at lying, haven''t you?"


    "What''s the need for you and Sakayanagi-san to be so cautious of me now? I don''t really care about what you say. I''m not the kind of person you need to worry about."


    Thick clouds covered the sky and the sound of rain became stronger.


    Before he knew it, Ryuuen''s smile was gone and he was thinking about Ichinose''s words.


    ''The woman in front of me is not worth the trouble.'' I thought I had been treating her as such.


    However, when I looked back on it calmly, I realized that I was being very stubborn.


    "I won''t hold back against anyone in the future. I won''t choose a means to an end."


    "That''s not like you to be bluffing."


    "I just realized I don''t have time to worry about it anymore. That''s all there is to it."


    Ryuuen''s rash thoughts quietly receded from his mind.


    "You''re not going to give any mercy to anyone, huh? You seem to be quite obsessed with Ayanokouji these days. If that''s the case, the first thing you should get rid of is Karuizawa''s existence, right?"


    A joke. This was Ryuuen''s way of harassment to upset her mentally.


    Even after saying this, Ichinose did not change her soft, smiling face.


    "What do you mean, ''obsessed''?"


    "Rumors travel fast in this small school."


    Ryuuen was already aware of the increasing contact between the two parties in the process of gathering information. Ryuuen was also convinced of Ichinose''s one-sided feelings, though he can only guess.


    "Why don''t you move more calctingly? If you want, I can help you get rid of Karuizawa."


    ''Impatience, anger, frustration or disgust.'' Whatever feelings you have, show them to me.


    This is Ryuuen''s aim in this incitement.


    "If Ryuuen-kun already knows. Then there''s no need to hide it."


    Ichinose, with a faint smile on her face, looked Ryuuen in the eyes and replied without hesitation.


    "I don''t want to expel Karuizawa-san because of my personal feelings. That''s a different story."


    Despite her bold words, she is a good person after all.


    So Ryuuen tried to interject this, but...


    "But Ryuuen-kun is mistaken. I am a calcting enough person."


    Saying this, Ichinose puts her hand on her chest and smiles.


    "If you can''t solve a problem, think about it ande up with an answer. If you still can''t find the answer, take action. That''s how most paths open up."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I wonder?"


    Ichinose thought back... to the night of the school trip.


    It was then that my destiny began to change.


    There is a slight possibility. No, it was a result derived by instinct that didn''t even consider the possibility.


    The situation at midnight when everyone was at the inn. A blizzard. A vanished self.


    How will my ssmates react and what will happen to them if it turns into amotion?


    What Ayanokouji found out for me was not a surprise at all.


    Everything at that time, at that moment, was inevitable.


    Something unpleasant clung to Ryuuen''s hand holding the umbre, and then spread to his whole body.


    "I''ve got to go to the gym now. I don''t want to waste even one second of happiness."


    All the analysis of Ichinose that he had been holding until then, all of it, was negated. Ichinose was not interested in Ryuuen at all anymore. She started walking, passing by Ryuuen and heading for the Keyaki Mall.


    "I take it back, Ichinose."


    Ryuuen turned around and spoke to Ichinose.


    "It might be lucky for us not to run into you at the end-of-year exam."


    That was a hunch.


    It was a word of respect for her presence, which made him think she was more troublesome than Sakayanagi, even if only for a moment.

 Chapter 377: Postscript

    <h4>Chapter 377: Postscript</h4>


    Happy New Year 2023 and I''m Kinugasa and I hope we can continue to have a great year together. Last year was quite eventful with the second season of an anime and various other things keeping me busy. This year, with the third season on the horizon, I''m hoping things will continue to be exciting.


    On a personal note, I''ve established a routine for weekdays where I choose one out of three cafes and walk or bike there to brainstorm ideas while sipping coffee until lunchtime. Then I work at my desk until evening and repeat this five days a week.


    On weekends, I spend half the day with my kids and the other half working.


    Although weekdays seem to fly by, weekends feel three times as long and can be challenging. However, I oftene up with interesting ideas during those times, which is a bit of a mystery to me.


    My recent concern is that once I catch a cold, it takes a long time for me to recover. Since before Christmas, I''ve been suffering from a persistent cough and runny nose, and neither over-the-counter nor prescription medication has helped much. I feel embarrassed when I cough frequently while shopping at the supermarket, even with a mask on. I hope it will get warmer soon so that I can recover and be healthy.


    Now, back to the main topic. The second semester arc ended in volume 9, and I''d like to thank those who have been following along so far. Ayanokouji and other characters are preparing for the third semester and their third year of high school.


    The third semester may be a bit more challenging than the second, so please be prepared.


    As always, the next volume will be the winter break arc. Considering that our rxing time will be limited for the time being, this may be a valuable and enjoyable volume. I''ll have to say goodbye for a while, but I''m looking forward to seeing you again before summer.


    Royal MTLs Afterword


    Hey there everyone. Cast here. So it looks like we were able to finish this volume


    ''a little'' quicker than usual, hehehe. I''d like to express my extreme gratitude to the entire RoyalMTLs Team. I can''t stress how much I appreciate the work they put in because this volume because it was definitely not an easy one to get through considering our circumstances. We had some problems along the way but did our best to make sure the uracy and quality of the volume was as good as it could be. I''d also like to give a big thank you to all of you for sticking with us for, roughly the past 2 year, and helping us grow ourmunity even more. We are very close to 20K members on our discord so please consider joining if you haven''t already.


    Once again, a big thank you for reading from us and the continuous support you have provided. This could not have been done without you and we will continue to release high quality trantions for ssroom of the Elite series.


    See you all when the next volume is released.


    As always, a big shout out to Kinugasa (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    Keep checking in on our website to be updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions and consider joining our discord events and early ess!


    -Cast - Trantor


    https://royalmtls.ca/


    https://discord.gg/5KACXAqjwR


    Credits


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    "Hope you enjoyed the illustrations this vol! Follow me on Twitter for more COTE coloring''s and fan art: @Alya_l16"


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    "I disagree with Grimm."


    gaynesis#5185 �C Senior Editor


    "Hopefully I''ll still be around to edit the next volume"


    [unknown]#9495 �C Senior Editor


    "If you''re reading this, I got a question for you. What are you doing with your life?"


    Ichisamui#9527 �C Editor


    "Honami and her faction just can''t stop taking Ws. A huge shoutout to all her fans but remember, she''s mine. (;"


    Meyobos2#0117 �C Editor


    "Ichinose stocks are going through the roof, invest in your Ichinose best girl stocks today! Also fire emblem 3 heroes a goated game, crimson flower best route."


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    "forsen forsen forsen i am your biggest fan."


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    "This is certainly one of the elite moments of the ssroom of all time."


    Rn ��\_(��)_/��#9654 �C Editor


    "I can''t believe Kinugasa made something readable after writing such an awful series as cote."


    Shawarma#2369 �C Editor


    "How did we lose that."


    Fato#4414 �C Editor


    "Kiyotaka fumbled the baddie fr fr"


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    "Reading just once is not enough."


    fahadk#6510 �C Proofreader


    "Evil Ichinose can''t hurt you she is not real.


    Reads epilogue."


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 Chapter 378: Short Story 1 : Ichinose Honami’s SS - I *Have* to Move Forward

    <h4>Chapter 378: Short Story 1 : Ichinose Honami��s SS - I *Have* to Move Forward</h4>


    Yesterday night, the time that I, who was thinking about things in bed, slept was after the clock had turned 12 at midnight. And I''d woke up a bit past 5 in the morning. Around 5 hours of sleep. Even though I usually sleep for 7, or 8 hours....It might be because I was thinking about various kinds of things.


    10 in the morning at Keyaki Mall is when I will be meeting Ayanokouji-kun.


    I''d thought about sleeping again, but for today, I didn''t feel like going back to sleep, something I love to do.


    Even if I close my eyes, the only things that pop up are what''s going to happenter.


    Yesterday, Ayanokouji-kun said that he wanted to meet me and invited me out, and my heartbeat had risen ever since.


    I know. This isn''t a date between boyfriends and girlfriends.


    Ayanokouji-kun has someone precious to him, and I''m just a student in the same year as him.


    That''s why there being a different reason for the invitation for today, is something that I don''t even need to ask about.


    It''s probably rted to the reason why I left the student council. I put up such a prediction.


    Nagumo-senpai had put a gag order about it, but rumours had already started to go around.


    Everyone in the ss should also want to know why I quit the student council as well.


    Whilst remaining sideways and turning left to right in bed, I thought of only things like that.


    After excruciating effort and reaching around half past 9 in the morning, I''d started to reach the limit of waiting in my room.


    The weather forecast said that there would be rain in the afternoon, so I grabbed an umbre.


    Then, at an early time when I won''te across anyone, I slowly made my way towards Keyaki Mall.


    It''s cold outside, but I''d be able to keep my calm self this way.


    Whilst thinking it was the correct decision to head out early, I, who''d reached our meeting spot, started thest preparation for my heart so that I''ll be fine no matter when Ayanokouji-kunes.


    First of all, don''t make or show gloomy faces to the utmost of my ability.


    Moreover, don''t ask about Karuizawa-san.


    And don''t show any strange emotions.


    I am Ayanokouji-kun''s friend, friend, friend, friend, friend.


    Un I''m fine. I''ll definitely be fine.


    Believing as such, I held my umbre tightly.


    The reason why I decided to meet Ayanokouji-kun today.


    And that is to move forward. In order to resolve myself that I have to move forward.


    Good morning, Ayanokouji-kun. Seeing Ayanokouji-kuning this way, I called out to him like this.


    By the time today ends, let''s forget about everything.


    Concealing my feelings into my heart like that.


    Tranted by u/adventurousart8711

 Chapter 379: Short Story 2 : Kushida Kikyou’s SS - Like Hell I’ll Join

    <h4>Chapter 379: Short Story 2 : Kushida Kikyou��s SS - Like Hell I��ll Join</h4>


    (TLN: the sentences are structured in a way where it''s difficult to convert in English one to one. Words and phrases as well, just write in Englijs. Impossible 100% faithful to the raw. Some just loses nuance when converted to English. Cba to spend time thinking about it. Just gonna convey the general feeling and call it a day.)


    While I thought I''d been called out to the corridor, she''s now telling me to join the student council?


    Moreover, with Horikita being the student council and me as her subordinate? Don''t fuck with me.


    No matter what kind of merit there is, there''s no way I''ll join.


    I''d nned to firmly turn her down. Behind my back. The instant I''d felt that something bad was going to happen��


    "That''s obvious. With Kushida-senpai joining the student council, even if there are people who despise Kushida-senpai, they''d be unable to carelessly put their hands on her af~~~~ter all."


    The one who''de clinging around me is the first-year Amasawa.


    She''s one of the people who I don''t want to be close to (TLN: physically) the most right now. Someone I hate so much that I learnt the feeling of murderous intent.


    Horikita also thinks that Amasawa is a nuisance here, so she''s trying to chase her way.


    "I''m not really here for anyone in particr, but if I have to say, then I guess it''s Kushida-senpai."


    "Me? I-is that so. What kind of business do you have?"


    "Eh��? I wonder what it is��. What kind of business do you think I have?"


    This woman. She definitely came here just to mess with me. I really want to fucking kill her.


    But I can''t exactly take action in this ce, so I decided to endure it with a merciful heart.


    Moreover...Ayanokouji-kun is also here.


    No no, it doesn''t matter whether he''s here or not, right.


    An iprehensible emotion came out for an instant, so I decided to ignore it and chase it away.


    Amidst the exchange that Amasawa had also joined, I continued thinking of a n to bring this to an end.


    "Sorry. I won''t be able to live up to your expectations. Someone like me in the student council��"


    "Why don''t you stop saying that and join the student council?" (TLN: not quite. This sounds blunt andmanding, which is not it but cba)


    Again, Amasawa said that and got in my way.


    Moreover, she kept on clinging to my back, getting full of herself and touching my body without permission.


    She even went and touched my cheeks, knowing there are other people''s gazes here so I have to keep up my smile.


    "Kushida-senpai is kinda a beauty, has kinda a nice figure, and kinda smart, right?"


    I can''t. I''m at my limit.


    "Hey, um. If we''re going to continue to talk, can we, you know, change the venue?"


    If we don''t change venues, I might stop her breathing right now and here.


    I made a desperate appeal, to which it seems that Horukita understood, as she epted that.


    Aa mou, why the hell do I have to have a bad time surrounded by people I hate?


    I definitely won''t join the student council.


    I''ll quickly get the conversation over with and go home. Whilst swearing that in my heart, I continued building up stress.


    ������


    Tranted by u/adventurousart8711

 Chapter 380: Short Story 3 : Ichinose Honami’s SS - Jealousy

    <h4>Chapter 380: Short Story 3 : Ichinose Honami��s SS - Jealousy</h4>


    Ahh, that was nerve-wracking.


    With the excuse of going to hydrate myself, I went away from Ayanokouji-kun and Mako-chan.


    Even though I''ve recently gotten used to 30-minute courses and got it down to just getting a good sweat out of it...


    A bizarre amount of sweat and high heart rate. This isn''t normal.


    It wasn''t a sudden outbreak of an illness or anything, it''s clear that the reason cause is those two.


    "It''s because Mako-chan said something like that..."


    Even when I tried to calm down my breathing by not recalling it as much as possible, that was just a meaningless effort. No matter what, I end up recalling what had happened earlier.


    ''By the way, wait a sec Honami-chan.'' (TLN: tte iu ka. Can''t think of an English equivalent. Not quite by the way, but that''s the best I can do)


    The words Mako-chan, who we''d met up at the gym, muttered after looking alternatively between me and Ayanokojluji-kun.


    ''It''s probably what you usually wear, but have you noticed that your appearance is quite bold?"


    "...!?"


    I was too focused on other things that I didn''t realise anything about my appearance.


    I just thought about training at the gym like usual, and about being calm....


    ''So you didn''t notice, Honami-chan...''


    ''What is it...?''


    ''Ah no, um... well you know, like, it''s a bit embarrassing when you''re not used to it and your appearance bes like this. Right?''(TLN: probably scuffed tl.)


    ''I see?''


    Mako-chan courteously conveyed my feelings in their entirety.


    She probably thought openly admitting it would make it rtively easier on me, but it had the opposite effect.


    Because of her kind meddling, I was filled with the feeling of wanting to hide forever.


    That''s why for 30 minutes, I had my focus concentrated solely on the treadmill.


    And that reaction happens now...


    "Uuu... It''s too embarrassing..."


    I want to change right now and then, but I can''t do that.


    I got a bit sweaty so I changed into a reserved-looking jersey~, my intentions would definitely get seen through.


    It''s bad even if they are simple-minded, so Ayanokouki-kun would definitely notice.


    Before I knew it, my throat had be dry.


    It was just an excuse to run away, but I decided to properly hydrate myself.


    "I think I''ve calmed down a bit."


    By drinking some cold water, I''d finally regainedposure.


    "...Yep. Let''s do my best."


    It''s gym time now. If I concentrate on my training, it''ll be solved.


    But the moment I think that and returned to the gym''s entrance, my feet became heavier.


    From far away, I saw Ayanokouji-kun...speaking to Mako-chan as if they were having fun.


    "Isn''t their talk taking off....?


    I didn''t know what they were talking about, but their conversation didn''t pause and continued on.


    Mako-chan''s attitude also didn''t seem to differ from when she talked to our ssmates.


    Is it because she was together with Ayanokouji-kun on the school trip? They''ve opened up to one another quite a bit...


    Even though a friend and a friend getting along is a good thing, I was feeling restless and my emotions were stirring about deep inside my chest.


    Like, unpleasant emotions are clinging around me.


    The steps that should''ve gotten heavier.


    The feeling of being connected to a chain had now disappeared.


    Rather, I wanted to get rid of this uneasiness in my chest quickly.


    I became unable to think of anything else other than that.


    "I am strange after all...nope, but...I''ll get through today...!" (TLN: not quite but it''s hard to trante this line to English and I cba)


    I took a deep breath as if to give myself a push on the back.


    And then, I decided to return to the two as the usual me.


    ������


    Tranted by u/adventurousart8711

 Chapter 381: Short Story 4 : Himeno Yuki’s SS - A Boy I Don’t Really Understand

    <h4>Chapter 381: Short Story 4 : Himeno Yuki��s SS - A Boy I Don��t Really Understand</h4>


    The night of the day when I talked to Kanzaki-kun and the others. Having remained in Keyaki Mall until it waste, I was called out to by Ayanokouji-kun who had passed his time the same way.


    "Nn��... I was spacing out. Like going to the general store, and making my way to the front of the cinema for no reason?"


    Answering the reason why I stayed behind until it was nighttime, I tried vocalising a bit about something that came to mind.


    "Since we''re going in the same direction, if it''s fine with you, should we walk to the dormitory together?"


    I''m not going to say that I understood my ssmates. However, I don''t know even more about Ayanokouji-kun. That''s why I thought it''ll be good to know what kind of person he is, even if it''s just a little bit.


    I''m not good at or like talking to people. There are an uncountable amount of times that I felt it was annoying.


    However, before I knew it, I was having a lively conversation with Ayanokouji-kun who was walking by my side.


    It isn''t that I''m interested in him as a member of the opposite sex. It isn''t anything like that. How do I put this, like we''re on the same wavelength?


    But I''m not sure about the exact reason. How do I put this, he''s a boy that I don''t really understand.


    "I realised that, more than I''d imagined, I couldn''t do anything. Like, I''m a bit awesome for being able to notice that Ichinose-san was on thin ice when others didn''t notice. Or I''m teaming up with Kanzaki-kun and doing something special. Having ungrounded confidence like that. I feel that I''ve been humbled."


    Even though it''s something you would be pissed about if it''s pointed out by other people, Ayanokouji-kun''s words genuinely struck me.


    "I don''t know what to say. I guess my bad."


    "It''s not something you have to apologise for. Instead, what you said is correct."


    Contrary to the feeling of wanting to be honest with myself towards people other than him, I feel scared.


    Someone like that isn''t me. It''s because I have some kind of feeling that I''d change into a different existence.


    "Even though I thought it''d be way easier to pull off something amazing... Taking action is hard."


    "It''s the same for anyone. For Ichinose, for me. Turning thoughts into actions is probably something hard."


    "We''re in the middle of looking for the path we should advance, but at this rate, I''ve lost confidence in whether taking action with Kanzaki-kun and Hamaguchi-kun would improve things or not."


    "Hesitating isn''t a bad thing. However, it''s not a problem that could be solved if you standstill."


    That''s certainly true. He''s right. But...


    I don''t know if the work we''re currently putting in to change the ss will really move in the right direction.


    "That''s true. But even though we should be taking action to save the ss, the invisible gears are beginning to go awry little by little. I can''t help but feel that."


    Something that I''m feeling. That is that the situation would be worse than it is now.


    I want to think that it''s not going to turn out like that, but I don''t have the materials at hand that could let me feel at ease.


    Please let this uneasiness just be me overthinking. That''s what I thought.


    ������


    Tranted by u/adventurousart8711

 Chapter 382: Youjitsu Year 1 Artbook Interview - Volume 11.5 related section

    <h4>Chapter 382: Youjitsu Year 1 Artbook Interview - Volume 11.5 rted section</h4>


    Editor: And.... in volume 11.5, didn''t you mention about the shocking development?


    Tomose: yeah, haha. I just want to say that I feel sorry for Karuizawa.


    Kinugasa: Not like that, we don''t know if it''s the end for them haha


    Tomose: We can tell the ending by looking at Ayanokouji''s expression ~


    Kinugasa: That''s not true. Maybe it will change over time!


    Tomose: Ayanokouji gave a monologue that sounded like it could only end tragically.


    Editor: It was unusual, right? When the monologue ended, the next part was the illustration and people was wondering "is he smiling?"


    Tomose: He''s (Kinugasa) throwing all the work on me haha


    Kinugasa: That was groundbreaking! It took a lot of arrangements to make it happen!


    Tomose: But I feel sorry for her. She was being yed.


    Kinugasa: Well, there''s somethingmon in normal works. About who is the heroine, is she the one from the start, or she only be decided at the end, or it won''t be decided at all. I''ve had enough of that! "Would the girlfriend change or not" I don''t want to end like that. It''s more interesting to write "how the couple will develop" instead of "who will the end girl be"!


    Tomose: I don''t know... I feel sorry for her, even though she''s at the peak of her happiness now haha


    Kinugasa: That''s how it is haha


    Tomose: R-Really?


    Kinugasa: In real life, even if that person has a partner, it''s normal to go on the attack for someone you genuinely love, right? Though some will move on too, isn''t that realistic? So why not in the light novel too.


    Tomose: I see.


    Kinugasa: Some won''t give up, and some will move on. It''s not strange to have them change their crush to someone else in the story.


    Editor: As someone who draw the characters, are you feeling pity? Haha


    Tomose: She''s pitiful lol, to be hugged like that.


    Kinugasa: But, there''s a huge chance that she will have a happy ending next to Ayanokouji at the end.


    Tomose: We don''t know what''s going to happen in the end.


    Kinugasa : You seem anxious.


    Tomose: Because I don''t think it''ll lead to wedding scene with Karuizawa.


    Kinugasa : If Youzitsu suddenly got axed, I''ll go with that ending haha. She''s been through a lot at school, she''s happy now...


    Editor: Something like, 2nd Year Volume 15: "Karuizawa''s Wedding Arc"?


    Kinugasa : Yes, I''m d, though there''s a lot of small things to worry about


    Editor: There is also a way to create "if-routes" right?


    Tomose: For each character!


    Kinugasa: I''ve been thinking about the ending a lot. I don''t know how many volumes are left, but I already have an idea how the story will end. I hope the readers will be happy when reading it.

 Chapter 383: Kinugasa X Tomose Newtype September 2022 Interview Full TL + Extra

    <h4>Chapter 383: Kinugasa X Tomose Newtype September 2022 Interview Full TL + Extra</h4>


    Kinugasa X Tomose Interview (Newtype September 2022)


    K: Kinugasa


    T: Tomose


    "There''s no heroine in youjitsu!?"


    The second season is finally here after five years.


    K: There had been talks about the second season for a while, but many things happened that got me to a point where I truly thought nothing would be made. So I''m happy for it.


    T: That''s right. I was also very dubious until seeing something official ughs).


    Two of the key persons of the second season are Ryuuen and Karuizawa. As the writer, is there anything in particr that you''re eager to see?


    K: I like the male characters more than the heroines, so I''m excited for Ryuuen''s spotlight the most. I''m also paying special attention to Albert and Ishizaki, the characters that are always close to him. I also like Kouenji a lot, so even though he won''t be involved in the events that follow, I will be following his every appearance closely ughs).


    T: I like heroines like a normal person ughs), so I''m eager to see how Karuizawa-chan is portrayed this season.


    Karuizawa who used to be a side character on season one was suddenly promoted to the heroine ss this season. Was this something that was nned beforehand?


    K: Her role had been set to a certain extent. She started as a side character that I had the intention to work on. However, and this is true for every other character, there are some asions where I work on the background of these characters only after they get the spotlight in the story. You could say I keep the makeshift style when writing them.


    It''s really amazing that a character can grow to be one of the most popr heroines with that style.


    K: Isn''t that thanks to Tomose-san''s drawings?


    T: No, I''m also still asking myself "Why?" when it came to Karuizawa-chan ughs). Every girl is nice so I''m still very surprised about her outstanding poprity.


    It''s very unique to see a story with shifting heroines.


    K: Based on what I feel, this story has no "heroine" in the first ce. I never wrote Horikita, Kushida or Karuizawa with the intention to make them heroines. I understand these characters are no more than people that had a chance to interact with Ayanokouji at a given point in time, and that said rtionships could change given the circumstances and the environment that revolves around him.


    T: At first I really thought Horikita and Kushida were the two main heroines, so I designed them based on that. Although their heroine presence started getting less and less relevant so I was like "huh"? ughs). The cases where Kinugasa-sensei tells me "this character is very important" are unique, so I almost always go with no hints on them, so it''s always like this character I designed as a mob turns out to be a main one or the opposite can be true too.


    So it''s a style that the relevance of a character can always shift depending on the narrative?


    K: That''s right. Which means that in regards to romantic rtionships, even though I do have a faint image of it, whom Ayanokouji will choose to stay or not stay with is something I don''t even know myself yet. It''s likely it might follow the expectative, but also likely something might change the oue.


    Following the development of season two, how were you two involved with the production staff?


    K: I did participate at the script meeting, but I didn''t say anything in particr. I believe the producers have taken the time to read my work more careful than I did, and I also believe they are capable of producing the best possible oue in the anime, so I trust on how they do it.


    T: In my case, I wasn''t even invited to that meeting ughs). They only called me a few times to ask about the character designs.


    To begin with, how was the ssroom of the elite and its peculiar protagonist conceived?


    K: Usually, all school-rted stories are based on the students themselves, but everything started when I thought about using the academy itself as the main stage on which many students would revolve around. After that, I added the backbone of the special tests and the point system characteristic of a meritocracy.


    So in a sense, we could say the protagonists are all the students of the academy?


    K: That''s right. That''s also why it would be ideal if I could introduce more students. Although I guess Tomose-san would really dislike that ughs).


    T: Kinugasa-sensei has a tendency to increase characters since the old days, so I''m kind of prepared for it by now ughs).


    K: Thank you very much. And well, about Ayanokouji, he simply turned that way after I poured every element I thought that would make him cool into his character.


    How do you think and n out all of these mind battles?


    K: I think about them after rolling many times inside my futon. I initially start writing them with the general solution in mind, but even I can''t tell how it will turn out at first until I finish writing everything, as everything is constantly changing.


    Was there anything that affected the source material after it was adapted into an anime?


    T: There''s a lot in regards to the illustrations. I''m not very good at drawing cool-looking boys, so I always thought to myself "so this is how I can make him look cooler" when looking at Ryuuen.


    K: There have been times where I check how a character''s personality gets well-established in the anime and I use it as feedback for my work. Especially Ayanokouji, who wasn''t well established as a character at first, but after seeing how well he was done in the anime, I used that "taste" from volume five onwards to refine the current persona that we all know.


    What are your points of interest from episode six onwards?


    T: Even though Ayanokouji finally gets a chance to disy a portion of his abilities, he still does something very satisfactory to watch at the end too, so that''s one of the things I want to see the most.


    K: I''m repeating myself here, but I''m more eager to see what the boys do ughs). I would be happy if you all could enjoy Albert, Ryuuen and Ishizaki''s development with me. Let''s not forget about Kouenji''s scenes though.


    Incidentally, the source material is already at the second year of the academy. Is the end in sight?


    K: I have a very clear end in mind and we can say that we''re past the middle point for sure. All that''s left is going forward towards that end, but I can''t really say anything for certain.


    I will wait eagerly to see what happens with Ayanokouji.


    K: That''s also a crucial point of the series. A normal protagonist usually changes after experiencing many things with the heroines, rivals and friends, but Ayanokouji''s essence and defect are that he is unchanging, after all.


    T: From my perspective, I do feel that he is gradually changing. That''s why as a reader, I''m also dying to see what kind of answer he arrives at. Couldn''t you just tell me here and now ughs)?


    K: Of course I can''t ughs). That''s something I hope you can check through the story while also choosing to stay with us until the end of it.


    Extra - Main cast seiyuu''s opinion on Ayanokouji -


    Kito Akari (Horikita Suzune): "A reliable and cool character"


    I think having a person as reliable as him as an ally would be awesome, and the fact that he can do some very scary things while ying dumb, the fact that he has a scary unseen side to him is something I love. I also like how he seems harmless so long as he remains as an ally. Although, the Ayanokouji from season 2 seems to be shifting more to his new tool, Karuizawa, so it makes me a little sad ughs).


    Kubo Yurika (Kushida Kikyo): "Fear incarnate"


    The scene that prevails the most inside mees from season one, episode six, where Ayanokouji catches the stalker and says "Your life is over". It truly portrayed how despite being a student, he could easily overwhelm even adults. The fact that he said that with his normal tone of voice was like the perfect incarnation of how frightful Ayanokouji could be. It''s been five years and I still can''t forget that, so I believe I was dead-scared at the time.


    Taketatsu Ayana (Karuizawa Kei): "I''m incredibly curious about him"


    Eh, I think he''s slightly scary ughs). He''s scary, but he''s also the type of character that one gets to be really curious about. Even though he''s usually always trying to not stand out, it''s still revealed to everyone that he''s very, very fast at the end of the sports festival. Just like in the "a clever hawk knows how to hide his ws" saying, I think it''s cool when a character shows the ws that they were hiding. However, I also think it is kind of unfair, because it makes me want to know what kind of character they truly are, making me more and more interested!


    Mizunaka Masaaki (Ryueen Kakeru): "Scary, but I like him"


    Scary. If someone asked me who is scarier, Ryueen or Ayanokouji, it would be Ayanokouji, hands down. We can''t really read what he''s thinking at all, he''s pure null. I believe he''s a very dark character in the good sense for a protagonist. That''s also his appeal and why I like him. Even though Ryuuen himself hasn''t realized how scary Ayanokouji can be, I''m always nervous on the inside. If possible I would even like to warn him "Ryueen! You''re in front of the most dangerous of all! ughs).

 Chapter 384 - 1: Irreplaceable Daily Life

    Chapter 384: Chapter 1: Irreceable Daily Life


    NOW BEING IN the second year, the Advanced Nurturing High School''s winter break began for the second time.


    There was no need to do anything special.


    Just being able to enjoy the holidays that many students experience was the best. A fulfilling time.


    However, the time left for me was silently, but surely, decreasing.


    Yet, there was no hurry.


    Because, just being able to live for myself until today, I was satisfied enough.


    Friends.


    Lovers.


    Upperssmen and underssmen.


    Encounters.


    I had been staying at this school for a long time, as have many others. From here on out, it will be an extended battle.


    I''ll spend every second of my remaining time as a student, as long as it''s allowed.


    And eventually, it wille��


    Parting


    Today is not a given.


    Neither is tomorrow.


    Every day, we must understand that our daily lives are irreceable.

 Chapter 385 - 2 : Song of Loneliness

    <h4>Chapter 385: Chapter 2 : Song of Loneliness</h4>


    DECEMBER 24TH. The first day of winter break.


    In the morning, I woke up with a strange feeling.


    "... I had a weird dream."


    Murmuring, I slowly stood up. It seemed that I had broken into a slight sweat while sleeping.


    Usually, I don''t pay much attention to my dreams.


    Whether it''s good or bad, in the end, dreams aren''t reality. And humans, by nature, tend to forget them.


    Even if exceptions existed in the world, I was also one of those who forget.


    It was something you could remember immediately after waking up, but the memory slips away in a blink of an eye.


    "��The homeroom teacher was a bunny girl, or something like that..."


    Despite my resistance to try to remember, it was basically a futile effort.


    To a third party, that might sound like a perplexing statement.


    No, I don''t think the main point of the dream was about the bunny girl.


    Even if I tried to dig up more about my dream, my effort would likely go to waste.


    So I quickly gave up trying to recall my dream.


    Since there were no sses, I took my time getting ready for the day as the morning hours slowly passed by.


    Matching toothbrushes and cups of different colors were ced on the bathroom counter.


    Since distancing myself from Kei, who I always did things with, I had been returning to my usual life.


    But that wasn''t to say our rtionship was over.


    It was more like a temporary break between lovers due to my purposefully caused misunderstandings.


    There has been exactly no change in my emotional state due to those events.


    Of course, it''s no other than because I''m the one who led the situation to this stalemate, but if this was an unexpected turn of events, would I have been able to feel a bit shaken?


    "...I wonder."


    In the end, emotional changes were based on the premise that the other person was indispensable to you. If that wasn''t the case, emotions wouldn''t be affected.


    Even when it came to matters of personal significance, there was no need to hesitate in tormenting or cutting off a lover if necessary. Naturally, this applies to both sides.


    However, I believed that feelings are a separate obligation to have as a lover.


    As long as you are sharing time together, it is only natural to avoid making that time feel ufortable.


    Moreover, since we gave each other precious time, it was better to bring joy rather than misery.


    Of course, this line of thinking was based on human morals and ethics. Keeping Kei involved in my experiments and constantly causing her mental stress and strain wasn''t a good idea.


    I didn''t plunge into this cold war without a n��I did have one.


    Going shopping for the Christmas present that we had promised before our rtionship worsened.


    The fact that this was still on the agenda kept us engaged in conversation.


    Originally, I was supposed to have a morning date with Kei.


    Unfortunately, it was rainy, and the bad weather had continued since winter break. While it was a little disappointing, the forecast already predicted rain all day on Christmas, so no one hoped for clear skies.


    I had no control over the weather, so there was no helping it. But there was something unexpected that happened.


    I nced at the calendar on my desk in my room. The December calendar, with a heart drawn in pink ink enclosing the dates 24th and 25th... but...


    It happenedst night, after the end of the second semester.


    I tried to contact Kei directly on the 24th, but the call didn''t go through.


    I waited for a while, sending messages, and waiting for a response, but they remained unread.


    After about an hour of hesitation, I finally got a callback.


    The first word I heard from Kei, who was coughing weakly but intensely, was "Influenza."


    Seasonal influenza was amon flu that infected people regardless of age.


    Cases usually increased significantly fromte November to December, so it wasn''t unusual for this time of year.


    Unfortunately, it seemed that Kei had fallen ill and was suddenly bedridden.


    Despite feeling weak, Kei probably wanted to fulfill the promise on the 24th, even if it meant crawling.


    However, influenza spread through droplets in the air. If Kei were to go to Keyaki Mall under these circumstances, it would be selfish and would risk infecting others.


    Kei apologized for not being able to manage her condition, which had been apparent just before being diagnosed.


    Of course, I couldn''t me Kei for contracting the flu and instead urged her to prioritize rest and recovery.


    On the other hand, I made sure to convey that our promise was still in effect and decided to reschedule our meeting.


    If Kei were to tell me to cancel the promise in the meantime, there would be a possibility of it falling through, but as of now, that seemed unlikely.


    If there were any changes to Kei''s feelings, it would be due to interference from a third party''s suggestion, but someone as dependent as Kei wouldn''t entertain such ideas.


    If there was any hope of repairing our rtionship, I couldn''t imagine abandoning the option as a way out.


    It was unclear how quickly it would take for her to recover, but for now, we decided to wrap up our conversation in the shortest time possible before the end of the year.


    Both of us had various things we wanted to confirm about our rtionship and current situation, but considering Kei''s high fever and battered state, it wasn''t possible to have a proper conversation.


    I told Kei to prioritize rest first and ended the call.


    Afterward, I confirmed that a friend had bought everything Kei needed while bedridden, so she wasn''t in any trouble. Arrangements were made to respond in case of an emergency at night, which was helpful, considering the curfew.


    This happenedst night, on the 23rd.


    This morning, I learned that there were confirmed cases of influenza among several students, regardless of their year.


    For second years, it was fortunate that they managed to get through the special exams unscathed.


    There might have been those who struggled in their exams with poor health without anyone knowing.


    Since I hadn''t been in close contact with Kei these past few days, my condition remained unchanged.


    The real question now was how to spend the day.


    The ns for today and tomorrow''s Christmas werepletely wiped clean.


    [Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun. I heard that Karuizawa-san has the flu. Are you okay?]


    Ichinose sent a message to my phone, followed by more messages.


    [It seems like a few others are feeling unwell too. Are you alright, Ayanok��ji-kun?]


    As expected, Ichinose had a wide informationwork and was quick to hear things. She also seemed to grasp the situation regarding Kei''s condition.


    [Unfortunately, I think she''ll be bedridden for some time.]


    [Is that so... I''m worried. If you need help, just let me know.]


    [Thank you.]


    After some exchanges back and forth, she asked me what my ns were for the day.


    Originally, I had saved this day for Kei, but... I still had to go to Keyaki Mall to pick something up, so I was still intending to go out.


    [I think I''ll go to the gym.]


    I replied, assuming that was the n and not feeling like joining anyone else.


    [Oh, really? What time will you be going?]


    [I have nothing to do, so maybe around noon.]


    [I see. I was nning to go to the gym around lunchtime too, but should I cancel my ns?]


    [Why?]


    [Because it may seem like we''re meeting up. Of course, it''s just a coincidence!]


    We both happened to n on going to the gym, so it was a coincidence. There was no point in worrying about that.


    It might have been a consideration for my girlfriend, Kei, but it was excessive.


    On the contrary, it might have been more perverse if she tried to adjust the schedule here.


    [Don''t worry about it. I''ll just go as nned. If we happen to meet at the gym, I''ll count on you then.]


    After sending that message, a read-receipt appeared immediately, and a mascot-like character holding an "OK" sign was sent back.


    Well then, I''ll leave preparations like changing clothes and hair setting for going out untilter.


    The time had just passed 9 a.m.


    I decided to spend my morning leisurely by doing chores likeundry and cleaning.

 Chapter 386: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 386: 2.1</h4>


    Inside the Keyaki Mall, just before noon, the atmosphere was imbued with the spirit of Christmas Eve. Even shier decorations filled the mall than the previous day.


    There seemed to be a higher ratio of couples among the crowd of people who came to enjoy themselves.


    As I had previously informed Ichinose, I decided to drop by the gym which I had recently joined.


    Although I was still a new member, I wanted to go as much as possible since I paid the monthly fees.


    Maybe there won''t be anyone there?


    With that in mind, I proceeded to check in at the reception.


    Contrary to my wishes, when I changed into my gym attire and stepped into the training room, it wasn''t empty.


    Several male and female students could be seen, as well as some adults.


    What particrly caught my eye was a person who was about to start bench pressing.


    It was Mashima-sensei, the teacher in charge of ss 2-A.


    He had arge, muscr build and wore gym attire thatplimented his appearance.


    "Good morning, Mashima-sensei."


    "Hm? Ayanok��ji? Are you a gym member too?"


    While he was about to lie down sideways, he replied, looking a little surprised.


    "I joined just a little while ago."


    "I see, I see. That''s a really good thing. Wee!" For some reason, Mashima-sensei nodded happily, as if his child had just passed an entrance exam.


    His reaction was a bit exaggerated for just a single student joining the gym.


    "Is there any specific reason you joined?"


    "I realized that my physical strength had weakenedpared to my past self, so I wanted to get it back."


    "Your reasoning isn''t very student-like."


    "I''m not sure if I''ll stick with it for a long time."


    "It''s fine. I also decided to start training with some reservations, but now I''ve be a regr. It isn''t bad to work up a sweat alongside fellow students in the same environment."


    Mashima-sensei seemed to be more energetic than usual and looked weing.


    "Furthermore, Imend your dedication to go to the gym on the first day of winter break."


    "Do you have any ns for Christmas Eve, Sensei?"


    "Hmm? No, I''m nning to sweat at the gym all day, unfortunately."


    He answered without hesitation. However, it seemed like he was thinking about something...


    "Probably."


    Probably. He murmured that to himself, but why?


    "Is something wrong?"


    "No, it''s nothing. Since it''s your first time here, it''s normal to feel a bit disoriented."


    "Well, yeah."


    I knew how to use and handle the equipment, but I kept that to myself thinking it would sound excessive to say it. I thought it would be easier to assume that I knew nothing, as a neer.


    Anyway, it was about time for me to start doing something��


    "Alright."


    "Alright?"


    "Since you''re here, why don''t you see what my training looks like?"


    "Huh? Oh, sure..."


    I was about to start something myself, but Mashima-sensei stopped me. Heid down on the bench and began to align the bar with his line of sight. Without exerting himself, he lifted the bar a few times to adjust it. Then, he raised the safety bars on both sides higher than his chest.


    "When doing bench presses, never forget these safety bars. In case of a copse, they''ll support you."


    "I''ll keep that in mind."


    I couldn''t tell him that I already knew that, so all I could do was watch him.


    However, not answering at all might create an awkward atmosphere, so I decided to ask a typical question.


    "Sensei, how much can you lift?"


    "Well... I''ll go up to 80 kg this time, but it''s possible to reach 100 kg. They say only one in a hundred people can lift 100 kg."


    He wasn''t boasting, but he seemed to brim with confidence in himself. He intentionally showed off his strength.


    I had never heard of such a statistic before, but who knows if that was true. It sounded like a cheap quote from somewhere.


    "But if you push yourself too hard, you can injure your body. It''s not like a TV show where you lift it once and it''s over. You train your pectoral muscles by doing several sets."


    Did he study and practice this method from watching TV or something? While watching him pant and sweat, I began to wonder what I was still doing there.


    I came all the way to the gym early in the morning, only to end up attending an observation course. After watching him for a while and seeing him finish three sets, Mashima-sensei got up.


    "Phew. Well, that''s about it."


    "That was really informative."


    "Good to hear. During winter break, I n toe six days a week, except for Thursdays. Even during the third semester, I''ll being at night, so if you need help with anything, feel free to reach out to me."


    That was really specific. Was there something happening on Thursdays?


    "If you need help, I don''t mind teaching you��"


    "No, that''s fine. Sorry for bothering you Mashima-sensei; for the time being, I''ll prioritize attendance and light weight training." I quickly cut him off and made it a priority to wrap this conversation up.


    "I see. If you have any problems, feel free to ask. I''ll be at the gym as much as possible during winter break."


    After receiving those generous words from Mashima-sensei, I decided to work out on my own.


    For the next 30 minutes, I continued training at the gym. At some point, the atmosphere inside the gym changed momentarily.


    Some students who were facing the equipment suddenly turned their eyes in unison.


    Wondering what they were looking at, I followed their gaze and saw a familiar figure from my ss, K��enji. He was attracting attention, but he didn''t seem to care and started his training.


    I thought people watched him because of his entric behavior, but that didn''t seem to be the case.


    I could faintly hear the voices of some male students from other years nearby.


    "K��enji really is amazing, isn''t he?"


    "Yeah, it''s not normal for a high school student to be able to do that..."


    His extraordinary physical abilities, far beyond those of a normal high school student, were evident even in his workout, and he seemed to be drawing attention as an athletically impressive student.


    Indeed, one could immediately sense his physical prowess from his refined muscles and flexibility.


    His movements were efficient, and a serious demeanor unlike his usual entricity was present.


    Upon reflection, K��enji seemed to be tirelessly devoted to training his body in various ways.


    Considering this, it wasn''t strange that he was going to the gym; rather, one could argue he was the most suitable candidate for it.


    Even Mashima-sensei seemed to respect K��enji, stopping his own workout to watch him.


    Looking at it objectively, it could be said that K��enji was far beyond the realm of a typical student.


    Blessed with natural physical abilities and unrelenting daily training for maintaining his physique, I realized once again that K��enji was dedicated to the pursuit of physical excellence, regardless of time and ce, throughout his school life.


    Compared to the beginner-level workout Mashima-sensei had demonstrated, K��enji''s training was truly captivating.


    Moreover, it goes without saying that he was the type to excel even when in the spotlight, rather than feeling nervous, anxious, or irritated.


    "K��enji-kun is always very popr."


    I heard someone say this, confirming that the attention on him was not just for today.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun," she greeted me again.


    "Hey," I replied.


    "It''s raining heavily today too, isn''t it? By the way, how long ago did you arrive?"


    "About 30 minutes ago, I guess."


    "I see. Actually, I was supposed to arrive around that time too, but I got caught up talking with a friend and arrivedte."


    Ichinose replied, standing next to me and looking at me from a close distance.


    "It''s a shame that Christmas Eve is today."


    "Well, it''s fine. There''s no need to obsess over it."


    "Girls might not feel the same way, you know?"


    "I see... I can''t deny that."


    As men, we couldn''t know how attached women are to special days.


    After having a light chat, Ichinose asked me to join her on the treadmill, and we stood side by side on two machines.


    Then we spent 30 minutes in our individually paced settings without talking to each other.


    "Phew, working out with someone really makes a difference in motivation, huh?"


    "That might be true. In that sense, starting with Amikura was the right choice."


    Ichinose smiled and wiped the sweat from her forehead with a towel. Following that, I spent another enjoyable hour or so at the gym with Ichinose.


    Later, when Amikura showed up at the gym, I told her I was leaving. Ichinose said she would chat with Amikura for a while, so we went our separate ways.


    "Are you leaving already?"


    Mashima-sensei, who noticed that I was about to leave the training room, stopped his training and called out to me.


    Although he said "already," I had been in the gym for about two hours��a substantial amount of time.


    "Yeah, well, I''m pretty tired. Do you realize it''s been two hours, Sensei?"


    "Two hours? Hmm, is that so? I didn''t realize it''s been that long."


    He was so absorbed in his training that he didn''t notice the time at all.


    "I think you should take a break, Mashima-sensei. You''ve been training for almost three hours without any breaks. umted fatigue can lead to injuries, so it''s important to get some rest every now and then."


    I braced myself for a potentially angry response as I offered this advice, but instead, Mashima-sensei seemed surprised and crossed his arms.


    "...You might be right. I''ve been trying to put my all into bing a better teacher, but maybe I''m pushing myself too hard."


    Perhaps no one around him had ever given him such advice before.


    He was clearly desperate for results and a stronger body, but his passion had blinded him to his own exhaustion.


    "Alright, I''ll call it quits for today."


    He graciously epted my advice.


    "See youter."


    I bowed my head slightly, nning to leave the scene, but Mashima-sensei came after me.


    "Can we talk for a minute?"


    "Huh? Sure."


    I thought it might be rted to the gym, but he led me to the break room instead. "Did I do something wrong that upset you, Sensei?"


    I asked, unable to grasp the reason for his invitation. "No, don''t worry about that. You''ve been doing just fine in the gym."


    He seemed to have been observing my activities closely, but...


    Seeing my doubtful eyes, Mashima-sensei lowered his gaze.


    "...The truth is, I was so engrossed in my training that I wasn''t paying any attention to my surroundings. I''ll admit that."


    He looked apologetic as he made his confession.


    His sincere response somehow made me feel guilty. It was winter break for the teachers, and they were free to enjoy themselves on the premises, with no obligation to supervise the students.


    I felt as if I had extracted an apology from him by using his responsibilities as an adult against him.


    "So, the reason you want to talk to me is��"


    Before I could finish my sentence, Mashima-sensei looked around to make sure no one else was around.


    "Actually, I have a favor to ask of you."


    "What is it?"


    Just as he was about to exin, we were interrupted by a visitor��a beautiful woman with long, wavy hair.


    She was one of the employees who worked at this gym, and upon noticing us, she smiled and walked toward us.


    "Mashima-san, you overworked yourself again today, didn''t you?"


    "No, not really."


    Mashima-sensei answered with a casual greeting.


    As expected, she seemed to remember the names of those who frequented the gym more than I did.


    "And the boy over there is..."


    "His name is Ayanok��ji. Although he''s not in my ss, he''s an excellent student from ss B."


    Mashima-sensei strongly tapped my back as if to prompt me to greet her as well.


    It was probably meant to be lighter, but the p from his well-trained body was quite powerful...


    "I''m Ayanok��ji."


    "We''ve met a few times at the reception. You were with Ichinose-chan."


    As expected of the staff. Even I, who had only recently starteding, had left an impression on them.


    "Oh, sorry. I just came to get something I needed during the break, so excuse me."


    The staff member spoke with a soft tone, bowed gently, and took out several towels from the employee shelf.


    She held them to her chest as she returned to the reception area.


    Mashima-sensei seemed to be waiting for her to leave, not even sparing a nce in my direction.


    Once the staff member left, Mashima-sensei didn''t move at all.


    "Sensei?"


    "Ah, what is it, Ayanok��ji?"


    "Well, didn''t you want to talk to me about something?"


    "Yeah, I did, but let''s do that some other time."


    "Huh? Well, if that''s the case, please excuse me."


    "Hold on."


    As I turned my back, he suddenly grabbed both of my shoulders from behind.


    "...What is it now?"


    For some reason, Mashima-sensei seemed a bit off today.


    His usual calm and collected demeanor as a teacher appeared to bepromised.


    "I think this is fate, so I will confess."


    "It seems like you''ve tried to confess quite a few times today, huh?"


    But, he was finally getting to the point, so that was a relief.


    "The staff member who was here earlier��her name is Akiyama-san."


    "I wasn''t really paying attention, but she did have a name tag. What about her?"


    "...I want you to investigate her. As carefully and discreetly as possible."


    "Huh?"


    I attempted to turn around, but he firmly gripped my shoulders, preventing me from moving.


    "I''ve never had any issues with the opposite sex at school before. However, ever since I starteding to the gym, things have changed. I believe you can grasp what I''m implying without going into too much detail."


    "Well, I can already guess what you''re trying to say. You have feelings for that woman named Akiyama-san, right?"


    "...You could say that."


    Well, then there was no other way to describe it.


    "Despite having a somewhat child-like face, she''s a beautiful, mature woman."


    "Ah..."


    Certainly, she was a beautiful, mature woman, but something about that statement struck me as odd.


    "Wouldn''t the same apply to Hoshinomiya-sensei and Chabashira-sensei? There''s no rule forbidding romantic rtionships between staff members, right?"


    "Actually, it is against the rules."


    "Oh, really? But I bet there are teachers who secretly date."


    "I won''t deny that it happens. But regarding Chabashira and Hoshinomiya, even if dating wasn''t forbidden, I wouldn''t date either of them."


    He stated this decisively and firmly.


    "May I ask the reason?"


    "I''m sorry, but I have no intention of discussing it further. We''re teacher and student, after all. It''s not a conversation we need to have."


    "Then I''ll go home. The conversation we''re having right now seems pretty pointless too."


    "Hoshinomiya is too lighthearted. Chabashira is too serious. That''s all."


    Mashima-sensei offered a concise and clear answer that was easy to grasp.


    Assuming that both were equally attractive, Hoshinomiya-sensei appeared to be the flirtatious type who might continue to engage with others even in amitted rtionship.


    On the other hand, Chabashira-sensei seemed like someone who hadn''t had a single lover, because she had been holding onto a love from her student days.


    If she were to fall in love with another man, it would likely be an intense, emotional affair.


    "But you can''t say for sure that Akiyama-san, a staff member, isn''t like them."


    It was something that couldn''t be determined from the surface, but as you got to know each other��


    "That''s absolutely impossible."


    Though there was no basis for it, he dismissed the idea with nothing but the strength of his assumptions.


    "I''ve known both of them since we were students, and I''ve never considered either as a potential romantic partner.


    Not even once.


    Besides, picking between my two closest friends and rivals would have a significant impact on my school life."


    Mashima-sensei asserted that he wouldn''t let that happen.


    "Well, that''s true."


    "That''s why I''m asking you."


    "Why me?"


    "Do you think I can ask any of the other teachers?"


    "Well, you''re right, but..."


    "You''re the only one who goes to the gym, remains discreet, and seems trustworthy."


    "Don''t tell me, Sensei, when you first found me, were you happy because..."


    "Of course, it''s because I gained a gym buddy."


    No, that was definitely a lie.


    This was clearly the expression of someone who found a student they could rely on for this task.


    Now, I could say with confidence that it was.


    "You understand what I want to know, right?"


    "I can guess��if she has a boyfriend, her type, and her hobbies and interests."


    "Right on. Chabashira is truly fortunate to have a student like you."


    Is this really the Mashima-sensei I''ve always known?


    Although I understand there is a difference between one''s professional and personal life, this side of him took me by surprise.


    Nheless, his voice remained calm and his expressionposed.


    "I don''t expect you to act right away. Akiyama-san saw us together today, so there''s no rush. Whether it''s after winter break orter, just take your time to get closer and find out what you can."


    Methodically and discreetly, exactly how Mashima-sensei wanted.


    "I''ll give it a try, but please don''t expect too much."


    "I understand."


    "Akiyama-san is working today, though��"


    "Except for Thursdays, she works six days a week, correct?"


    "...Yes. How did you know?"


    It wasn''t that I knew, but Mashima-sensei had mentioned he would go to the gym every day except Thursday.


    While his initial goal for joining the gym was likely to train his body, it seemed his primary focus had shifted to Akiyama-san... Yet, there was no room to criticize his dedication to training.


    Finally freed from Mashima-sensei''s grip, I hurriedly left the scene.

 Chapter 387: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 387: 2.2</h4>


    After leaving the gym, I contemted my ns for the rest of the day. I had decided in advance to pick up some items at a shop and then explore Keyaki Mall before returning home.


    In line with Mashima-sensei''s advice, I intended to take my time and carefully handle his request. As I pondered on the best approach, I hoped that they would resolve the matter by themselves in the meantime.


    It''s still early in the afternoon. Heading home now would leave me with an excess of idle time in my room.


    I took out my phone and scrolled through my contacts.


    It wouldn''t be a bad idea to call up a male friend and hang out.


    "...No onees to mind."


    I skimmed through the list and quietly turned off my phone screen.


    Without thinking about it too much, I realized I had almost no experience of spontaneously calling up a friend of the same gender to hang out.


    "Are you free? Why don''t we hang out for a while?"


    The thought of saying that and being rejected with a simple "I''m busy" was disheartening.


    Y��suke might''ve understood my feelings and epted my invitation, but I didn''t want him to feel obligated to do so.


    In other words, inviting someone to hang out could be quite challenging and demanding.


    Ultimately, it was better for me to remain alone rather than inconveniencing others.


    "What even is a friend, I wonder?"


    As I progressed through the second half of my second year, I once again recognized my struggle with the social aspect of life.


    I descended to the first floor on the esctor.


    It was still daytime, and the number of students there had increased considerably.


    If initiating a conversation was difficult, could there be an alternate approach? For example, a chance encounter?


    It would be great to be unexpectedly discovered and invited to hang out. I looked around, but at times like these, my ssmates were nowhere to be found.


    No students from my year were in sight either.


    If I continued searching around for someone, I mighte across as suspicious.


    For that reason, I abandoned the idea of meeting someone and chose to enjoy my solo time instead.


    I stopped in front of one of the floor maps ced throughout the mall.


    Although I had an understanding of the shops and their locations, I decided to check if anything new had opened.


    No major changes were apparent, and I didn''t find anything new. However, one store did pique my interest.


    Should I give it a try? I wondered.


    It was a rental shop �C a ce I rarely visit. This shop offered an array of DVDs and BDs featuring movies and anime, both old and new. They also had music CDs.


    But the demand for such a shop wasn''t very high, since we could watch video content anytime and anywhere through a monthly online streaming service if we got permission from the school.


    Only those seeking to watch specific titles visited the shop, resulting in a limited customer base.


    This made me decide to pay the shop a visit during the winter break.


    With ample time on my hands, it was good to have such an experience every once in a while.


    I felt like I was making excuses, but I wasn''t lonely at all.


    Just to be sure, I mentally repeated this to myself.


    After gathering a few items at the shop, I headed to the rental ce.


    It was a small, somewhat cramped space, and its walls were lined with an extensive selection of discs. While discs were typically stored in boxes or cases, this shop ced them in ck and transparent OPP protective bags with printed papers showing what seemed to be the back of each package. This made it easy to identify the kind of films at a nce.


    When using aputer or tablet, I typically judge whether a title looks interesting or not based on its thumbnail.


    However, being in an environment where I could physically pick up each item led me to consider options I might typically overlook.


    So, I found myself reading the plot summaries carefully.


    Though countless works are easily essible nowadays, it was also easy to miss some hidden gems.


    That was why I thought it wasn''t a bad idea to search for them like this asionally.


    I might even start visiting rental shops more often. Still, the problem remained��even if I found something interesting, there was no need to rent it here. I could watch it for free and without a return deadline back at the dorm.


    I figured that running such rental shops would be increasingly difficult in the future. The same went for electronics retail stores.


    I''d heard that people frequently visit stores to inspect items in person, only to purchase them at lower prices online.


    After enjoying the video section for a while, I moved on to the music corner. I don''t usually listen to music on my own.


    I may have heard thetest hits or famous songs on TV, but that''s about it. I''d never bought an album myself, and I wasn''t particrly keen on doing so now.


    That was why I decided to explore the music section, hoping to discover something new.


    I had initially thought there was no one else in the rental shop, but it turned out there was another customer.


    A petite student, with their back towards me, was wearing headphones.


    They didn''t notice my presence due to the background music ying in the shop. At first, I didn''t know who it was, but I recognized them as I got closer.


    It was Shiranami Chihiro from Ichinose''s ss. Although we hadn''t interacted much, we attended a few unusual events together in the past.


    Recently, we were close by during the uninhabited ind test and on the ship afterward.


    I wondered what she was listening to.


    My knowledge of Japanese music was limited, so I was curious. But since Shiranami was engrossed in the music, she wouldn''t have noticed me if I spoke softly. And if I abruptly entered her line of sight, it would most likely startle her.


    I could have waited for the song to end, but it wouldn''t have been easy to strike up a conversation afterward. So, I decided to go closer and eavesdrop on her music.


    To avoid looking suspicious, I casually pretended to browse the items on disy.


    "Ah...?"


    Oh, no. Did I startle her? I might have gotten too close out of curiosity about the music.


    The girl quickly took off her headphones.


    "Ah, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to startle you."


    With the headphones removed from her ears, the music was clearly audible.


    Along with a somewhat mncholic guitar tone, the female singer''s voice and lyrics reached my ears: ''A broken heart can only be healed by time. That person is now with someone else...''


    It seemed to be a heartbreak song. As the lyrics yed, she quickly pressed the stop button, and the song came to an abrupt halt.


    "W-w-what do you want?!"


    The girl, still quite surprised, asked nervously.


    "Well... I don''t need anything. I was just wondering what you were listening to. That''s all." Even though I answered honestly, it remained to be seen whether she would believe me or not.


    She was from another ss, and we didn''t have a particrly close rtionship.


    We wouldn''t talk unless there was a reason, let alone by mere coincidence. Additionally, given the differences between boys and girls, my behavior might be considered suspicious.


    <Illustration>


    "Sorry for bothering you. I''ll leave now."


    I realized that staying any longer by Shiranami''s side would only cause her difort.


    Withdrawing as quickly as possible seemed like my only course of action.


    "Um... well..."


    Shiranami seemed to want to say something.


    At the very least, she wasn''t the type to engage in conversation with someone she wasn''t close to.


    If I tried to prompt her to speak more quickly, she might''ve ended up swallowing her words.


    So, I didn''t look directly into Shiranami''s eyes and instead averted my gaze elsewhere.


    I tried to create the least intimidating atmosphere I could and waited for her to speak.


    "Um... do you have a little time... right now...?"


    Unexpectedly, Shiranami asked if we could spend more time together.


    "If you think this isn''t a good ce to chat, do you want to go somewhere else?"


    Although the rental shop wasn''t crowded, it wasn''t an ideal spot for off-topic conversations, especially if we had no intention of making a purchase.


    "Yeah... let''s go somewhere else. I don''t think it''ll take too long."


    "Well, then��"


    "Ah, but... I''d prefer it if it wasn''t a ce that stands out too much. I don''t want people to get the wrong idea."


    I was going to suggest a random caf��, but she quickly expressed her concerns.


    "What should we do, then? I''m open to whatever you feelfortable with."


    "...I''ll leave it up to you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She left the decision to me, albeit with certain restrictions.


    It seemed a bit unfair, but as the one who started this conversation, it was my responsibility to find a suitable location.


    I had to think of a ce that met all her requirements.

 Chapter 388: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 388: 2.3</h4>


    After considering a few options, I started moving with Shiranami. The school grounds were off-limits during winter break, and the rainy weather made it difficult to stay outdoors.


    On the other hand, many students were scattered throughout the indoor areas.


    The only saving grace was that Shiranami seemed determined to avoid drawing attention to us.


    In cases like this, even if we weren''t close, we''d typically walk next to each other with a group-like vibe, or maintain a one or two-step distance.


    However, there was a considerable gap between me in front and Shiranami following behind. From a side view, one would likely assume we weren''t together.


    Therefore, even though it was Christmas Eve, there was no need to worry about being mistaken for a couple or anything simr.


    "...What?"


    "Nothing."


    If I focused too much on the distance between us, Shiranami seemed more likely to fall further behind.


    It wasn''t my idea to extend the invitation, but it was still troublesome.


    Regardless, I had initiated the conversation and established a connection, so I supposed it was inevitable.


    After aimlessly wandering around for a bit, we eventually reached a rest area.


    Several vending machines were lined up, and there were a couple of wooden benches without backrests.


    Surprisingly, only a few students frequented this spot, and today was no exception as there was no one in sight.


    "Do you want something to drink��"


    "No, thanks."


    "Shall we sit on the bench��"


    "I don''t need to."


    After being declined twice, I decided not to push my luck any further.


    "Shall we talk?"


    Shiranami stood facing me, maintaining a considerable distance between us as she rubbed her hands together.


    It seemed she had some difficulty speaking her mind, but she mustered up the courage to ask me.


    "What is your rtionship with Honami-chan, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What do you mean by ''rtionship''?"


    "Are you just ssmates? Or friends? Or are you something more than that?"


    Each word was spoken meekly, but her question clearly conveyed what she wanted to know. My response seemed to be of great importance to Shiranami.


    Of course, I understood why.


    Her curiosity stemmed from the time I was forming a rtionship with Ichinose.


    During the previous year, when we were still first-year students, Shiranami gathered the courage to confess her feelings to Ichinose, who stood right before her.


    It went beyond mere friendship; instead, it was a romantic attraction to someone of the same gender.


    No, that description wasn''t quite urate.


    In this day and age, gender made no difference whatsoever. Shiranami, as an individual, simply felt a deep affection for Ichinose.


    That was all there was to it.


    And she didn''t like the notion of Ichinose having feelings for me. The situation was straightforward and easy toprehend without needing further exnation.


    "How should I put it? I''m a little hesitant��"


    "Don''t hesitate and just answer me."


    "I''m not hesitating. It''s just difficult for me to judge if I qualify to call her a friend."


    "...What do you mean by that?"


    Shiranami looked puzzled, her eyebrows furrowing as she struggled to understand what I meant.


    "I only have a few friends. I don''t even know the boundaries of what constitutes a friend. Is someone you merely talk to not a friend? Where do you draw the line between an acquaintance and a friend?"


    "That''s... Uh, I''m not sure where the line is..."


    "Like you, I''m also not certain. If I were to base it on my perspective, I would say we''re friends."


    "That''s a bit ambiguous, isn''t it...? Are you trying to dodge the question?"


    I had no intention of dodging the question; I meant to answer quite seriously.


    "So you''re just friends, right? Neither of you have any romantic feelings toward each other, correct?"


    I didn''t directly ask Shiranami, but I couldn''t imagine her being unaware of Ichinose''s feelings.


    Shiranami said it was mutual, but what she probably wanted to ascertain were my feelings toward her.


    "You''re sure that it''s like this, right? Because you''re dating Karuizawa-san."


    Unable to wait for my response, Shiranami added her assumption.


    "Whether I have a girlfriend or not shouldn''t matter, right? The question is about my feelings toward Ichinose."


    "Of course it matters. That''s because one can only be in love with a single person at a time."


    Shiranami replied with a romantic, or rather a pure-hearted girl''s perspective.


    It didn''t seem like she doubted me; instead, she genuinely believed it.


    "Isn''t it possible to view multiple people as romantic interests simultaneously?"


    It was a case that could be considered regardless of men or women.


    "No, it''s not!"


    However, Shiranami strongly rejected it.


    Judging from her tightly clenched small hands, she appeared to be angry.


    "My apologies. That topic was unrted to our discussion. Currently, there''s no rtionship between Ichinose and me like the one you''re worried about."


    "...Currently?"


    As expected, Shiranami picked up on the caveat I added just in case, bing sensitive to every word I said.


    "No one knows what the future holds."


    "Even so, if it was a normal rtionship, you wouldn''t add ''currently,'' I think..."


    Shiranami might have a point.


    If this conversation wasn''t about Ichinose, but rather about a close female friend like Amikura, I might not have added ''currently.''


    I could have clearly stated that we were just friends, nothing more and nothing less.


    "Even if Honami-chan had feelings for you, as long as you don''t feel the same way, I think you wouldn''t have said ''currently.'' And yet, you did... You wouldn''t have said that if you weren''t thinking of breaking up with Karuizawa-san and dating Honami-chan."


    Shiranami uttered those words with difficulty, as if she disliked saying them.


    While she was most likely looking at the tip of my nose as she spoke, avoiding eye contact, it took courage to say that.


    "I think Honami-chan is free to like whoever she wants... but I can''t just stand by and watch her date someone who''s insincere..."


    "Is someone considered insincere just because they''ve broken up with someone else before?"


    "Well... not exactly like that..."


    As Ichinose''s ssmate, Shiranami couldn''t discuss her condition. I thought she might''ve already noticed a change, but there was no evidence of that.


    Ichinose''s recently changed demeanor. The heart of the matter was that I didn''t want to inadvertently influence anyone until I could assess how it would affect her.


    That was why, even if it casted a shadow over Shiranami''s heart, all I could do was add ''currently'' and be vague.


    "I didn''t mean to trouble you. It''s just that, given the situation, I knew there was a chance my words would not be taken lightly, so I had no choice but to word it in a way that includes some insurance."


    Even if it might''ve been a bit harsh, it was better to express it firmly.


    Although she showed a face as if that wasn''t the case for a moment, it seemed that she realized that her intensity had risen more than she had imagined.


    "...I''m sorry. It seems like I''ve said too much..."


    She was so desperate that she temporarily lost track of the extent of her statement. It was that serious.


    "You''re worried about Ichinose, aren''t you?"


    It was natural to be concerned about a best friend��even more so for someone she had feelings for.


    "Ah, um... I''m really sorry!"


    As she calmed down, she began to take her own misstep heavily and seriously.


    "Lately, I''ve been hearing a lot of stories about you and Honami-chan..."


    "Rumors are just rumors."


    "Right... Like about how you started going to the gym together to be alone, ignoring your studies, and you calling her to your room even though you have a girlfriend... I epted such baseless rumors so easily..."


    Hmm... Huh?


    "What''s wrong? You''ve been calm all this time, but now you suddenly have a strange expression on your face."


    "I was just thinking about how such baseless rumors, or perhaps even facts that aren''t a big deal, ended up getting spread around with such detail."


    "That''s an odd way of putting it. Rumors and facts are unrted, aren''t they?"


    "Of course, there are many cases where they are unrted."


    "...Huh?"


    "Huh?"


    "You two didn''t go to the gym alone, right?"


    "No, we didn''t. I just started going to the gym. But it isn''t impossible to run into Ichinose there, right?"


    That was exactly what happened today.


    I had received a message, but it wasn''t like we promised to meet at the gym.


    "Well, that might be true. Mako-chan also goes to the gym. Oh, but the rumor about calling Ichinose to your room is definitely baseless, right?"


    "That''s true. I haven''t invited Ichinose into my room."


    There were three simr urrences with Ichinose, but the first one happened while our ss was undergoing the special vote exam as freshmen. The second time was on a rainy day at the end of the school year. The third time happened very recently, but it was just Ichinose who voluntarily waited in front of my room.


    It was likely during the third instance, when Ichinose was waiting, that someone saw her.


    "...I believe you."


    Though hesitant, Shiranami conceded, showing her most positive expression of the day.


    However, depending on how Shiranami interpreted things from now on, she might''ve ended up feeling betrayed.


    Should I add a disimer just in case?


    However, if I said something that sounded like ame excuse here, it would cast a shadow on her heart once again.


    "Can I add one more thing?"


    "U-uh, what is it?"


    "Whether Ichinose falls in love with someone, or is already in love, it doesn''t mean that your value, Shiranami, diminishes. However, if you do things that Ichinose doesn''t approve of, it might have an adverse effect. Do you understand what I''m saying?"


    "...Yeah."


    Not being able to be with the person someone loved��that was what made it so unbearable, and as a result, people tried interfering with their happiness.


    It was only natural that the person they loved wouldn''t be pleased when they saw such behavior.


    "I''m kind of an unpleasant girl, huh?"


    As Shiranami calmed down, she seemed to start reflecting on the things she had said today.


    "I''m justining and venting my frustration on you..."


    She had felt that way since she requested that we change locations to talk.


    However, even without considering the fact that she was the one who had invited me to talk, I had no intention of ming Shiranami from the get-go.


    "Even during the uninhabited ind exam in the summer, you helped me when I was lost..."


    Since her admission, she had always harbored special feelings for Ichinose. Now, as she suppressed her emotions, she continued to support Ichinose as an important friend with her presence.


    It wasn''t unreasonable for her to feel resentment toward someone like me and be subconsciously hostile.


    "Don''t worry about it. If anything, I''m the one who got in the way and made things worse by lecturing you��"


    "I''m really sorry!"


    Before I could finish, I was interrupted by an apology from Shiranami.


    "Um, um, it''s not that I don''t like you... It''s really not like that..."


    I already understood everything, but Shiranami didn''t seem to realize that, so she started to exin herself. Even if I tried stopping her, she wouldn''t be convinced, so maybe I should just listen for a while.


    After that, Shiranami continued to ask for my forgiveness, scattering the conversation in all directions with 80% apologies and 20% exnations.

 Chapter 389 - 3 : A Slight Premonition

    <h4>Chapter 389: Chapter 3 : A Slight Premonition</h4>


    I SLIPPED INTO MY casual clothes, which I hadn''t worn in a while, and began to pour hot water into a cup. As I did so, I noticed the light streaming in from the window and decided to open the curtain.


    "It''s piled up quite a bit..."


    The rain that had been falling until it got dark had turned into snow and continued to fall throughout the night.


    At the moment, the snowfall was sporadic and appeared to cease by the afternoon, but a snowstorm was forecasted to start in the evening and continue onward.


    The TV reported that the snowy days would persist for a while.


    "No wonder it''s gotten colder."


    It was the season when hot coffee tasted the best��truly the real deal.


    Standing in the kitchen, I held a cup of freshly brewed coffee in my right hand.


    In my other hand, I held my cell phone, its screen disying items and prices.


    Until recently, I was unaware that Keyaki Mall had been running web advertisements for those living in ANHS. Today marked the end of the Christmas sales rush, and they were holding a major sale tomemorate the asion.


    I discovered this informationst night, quite unexpectedly.


    The ss group chat was abuzz with excitement as everyone shared their ns and experiences, and that''s when I stumbled upon it.


    The first ones to divert the topic in the group chat were Ike and Shinohara.


    Even though they were both in the group chat, neither of them had read any messages since the chat started at around 9 p.m., and the conversation among the ssmates was incredibly lively.


    Was it a coincidence, or were they together?


    Naturally, most people assumed thetter.


    Some even tried calling them, half envious and half teasing, but since their phones were switched off, none of the calls connected.


    However, no one believed that the switched-off phones were merely a coincidence, and the chat log continued to progress.


    The chat continued to buzz with activity as the topics shifted, and I was amazed that the conversation never dwindled for hours on end.


    Among the various subjects, what caught my attention was the big sale.


    "Wow... even home appliances are this affordable?"


    Being careful not to burn myself, I slowly sipped my coffee while scrolling through the screen with my finger.


    From popr items for boys, like game consoles and games, to daily necessities like hair dryers and electric toothbrushes, as well as an extensive selection of kitchen gadgets, like mixers and slicers, were present.


    Lately, I had been cooking more frequently, and several items piqued my interest.


    For some reason, I found myself drawn to a yogurt maker, which was also listed as a limited-stock special offer in the online advertisement.


    This felt like a sign that it was time to buy it. While it was best to minimize the use of private points. I could justify the expense by using the yogurt maker in the future.


    However, I wondered how many times I would eat yogurt during the remainder of my school life and whether it would be more cost-effective to simply buy it��no, that was a pointless thought.


    I just wanted this yogurt maker.


    And I wanted to try using it.


    That was probably all there was to it.


    If I only considered the cost-performance ratio, it was obvious that I wouldn''t buy it. The more I thought about it, the less likely I was to purchase the yogurt maker.


    So I stopped thinking about it.


    They were offering it at a special discount, so I would buy it. That was all.


    The only remaining factor to consider was the "limited stock" aspect.


    Since Keyaki Mall''s primary target audience was students, it was unlikely that they would have arge inventory.


    There was a good chance that they only had a few units in stock.


    Besides, this big sale was rumored to be popr among the students.


    While I hadn''t paid much attention to it the previous year, apparently, it had gained poprity and sold out without me realizing it (ording to the ss group chat).


    "Shall I go and check it out...?"


    Honestly, I had no experience with this kind of sale, so I didn''t know how it worked.


    Should I participate or just observe?


    As I pondered this, a message popped up on my phone.


    [Good morning. Is it okay if I call youter? Will it bother you?]


    It was from Ichinose, who I''d been with at the gym yesterday. Was she being cautious, considering the possibility that Kei might be around if she was feeling better?


    No, that wasn''t it. Ichinose already knew about the flu. She wouldn''t assume it had been cured in just a day.


    It was probably just a formality.


    I decided to call her directly, implying that it was fine.


    "Good morning. Are you free right now?"


    "Yeah. What''s up?"


    "Um, do you have any ns for today, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "ns? No, I haven''t scheduled anything special."


    "As I thought, Karuizawa-san hasn''t recovered yet, right?"


    "It''s the flu, so it''ll probably take a while longer."


    "I see... I''d like to visit her, but the school issued a cautionary notice, didn''t it?"


    "It seems so. They advised against unnecessary contact."


    The school sent emails to students and school staff advising them not to visit patients, or go out unnecessarily while the flu was rampant.


    "I''m keeping an eye on the situation, just in case."


    "Oh, that''s good to know."


    She seemed relieved, not just on the surface, but genuinely from the bottom of her heart.


    "By the way, are you nning to go to Keyaki Mall today?"


    "Well... I was thinking of going outter, but if there''s something you want to talk about, we can set a time and meet at Keyaki Mall?"


    "No, that''s not necessary. It might sound like ame excuse, but I wasn''t asking if you had a date or appointment. I just wanted to know if you''re going to Keyaki Mall today."


    "Should I just answer that I''ll probably go then?"


    "Yes, that''s enough. Thank you."


    After that, Ichinose added one more thing.


    "If you ever need help, just let me know. I want to support you and Karuizawa-san."


    The phone call ended soon, and I never found out what Ichinose wanted. Anyways, I checked the time and made up my mind.


    "Alright..."


    The time was 9:45 AM.


    It was the perfect time to leave the dormitory, as it matched the time that Keyaki Mall opened.


    Considering Ichinose''s words, I decided to take a bold step and make a surprise visit.


    I''ll go straight to the mall, targeting the electronics retail store.


    Then, I''ll grab a yogurt maker, not looking at anything else. It will only make me a victim of the store''s consumer strategy if I end up buying more things than I require.


    I left the empty coffee cup on the sink and headed for the door.


    It was time for "Mission Start."

 Chapter 390: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 390: 3.1</h4>


    The same day, at 9:55 AM, I arrived at Keyaki Mall.


    At the entrance closest to the dormitory, it seemed that seven students were already waiting for the store to open. There were five girls and two boys in the group. Among the girls, there was one group of three, and one group of two, neither of which seemed to be focusing on the uing battle while engrossed in their conversations.


    On the other hand, the boys were of different years. A first-year and a third-year student; neither seemed to be expecting someone to approach as they fiddled with their mobile phones. Apparently, they were acting independently.


    While it was possible that they would head to the electronics store, it was hard to believe that they were aiming to purchase a yogurt maker.


    The first-year boy was slightly overweight and wore sses, holding his mobile phone horizontally with both hands. He was sliding and tapping his fingers restlessly, making it highly likely that he was ying a game on his phone.


    In that case, he would likely belong to the group of people looking to buy gaming consoles or games.


    However...


    I couldn''t help but feel a strange sense of difort.


    Why aren''t my ssmates here?


    I took out my mobile phone and looked at the group chat that had been so lively yesterday.


    In the chat, many students, regardless of gender, stated they would go to the electronics store and purchase their desired items. Among them, Hond��''s excited message about a long-desired item being advertised was also present.


    That item waspletely unrted to me, but thepetition for it seemed to be very tough.


    Many voices around me were anxiously wondering if they''d be able to buy it even if they rushed in at the sale''s opening, and some were even reminding themselves to be careful not to oversleep.


    The time on my cell phone progressed to 9:56 a.m.


    As the opening time was getting closer, I couldn''t find Hond��''s figure, let alone anyone from my year.


    Considering the flow of the chat, it was strange that my ssmates weren''t showing up.


    "...What''s going on?"


    A strange feeling overtook me as students who should''ve been here weren''t present.


    None of the seven people here seemed to be restless or uneasy.


    Normally, they would be glued to the entrance, ready to fight every single second.


    Can they really buy what they want while leisurely ying mobile games?


    I felt a sense of unease and decided to muster up my courage and check the situation.


    Fortunately, my k��hai was ying a game here.


    "May I have a moment?"


    "...Yes?"


    The first-year student, who looked slightly annoyed, raised his head and was indeed ying.


    The screen was paused. Perhaps he had pressed the pause button.


    I could immediately sense the vibe that he didn''t want to be talked to by his senpai, but I had to confirm something.


    "What did youe to Keyaki Mall for?"


    "Huh? What''s going on? Is this like a TV show prank or something? I don''t understand."


    "...Hmm?"


    I had intended to speak as naturally as possible so as not to make him wary of me, but it seemed that his defensiveness had been kicked up a notch three times.


    However, since I didn''t have much time to talk leisurely, I reluctantly brought up the main issue.


    "I thought you came here today to see the sale at the electronics store. They say game consoles and stuff are cheap too."


    I tried to emphasize the gaming part as much as possible so that the message would get through.


    Then, he seemed to understand and showed a reaction as if thinking, ''Ah, I see.''


    However��


    "Well, even though game consoles are called thetest hardware, they are old LCD types and the controllers are prone to breaking. They have a bad reputation. Even at a big sale, it feels more like a clearance sale, and they''re still not highly rated works, even if they''re sold at a 20-30% discount from the list price. Besides, I prefer to buy the digital versions."


    ��I see.


    I could understand, but not fully grasp, the content of my k��hai''s story.


    One certainty was that he wasn''t interested in the sale at all.


    "Today''s the release date for the manga I want, so I''m only going to the bookstore. Oh, are you curious why I buy paper books instead of e-books, even though I prefer to download games?"


    "Uh, no..."


    "Sure, e-books can be purchased as soon as the date changes, and it''s attractive to be able to view them anytime on mobile or tablet. But I like the feeling of holding a book in my hand. I suppose I could say I want to forever own manga and novels in paper form. As I mentioned, though, this is limited to manga and novels only. I surprisingly don''t have the same fondness for other e-books. For example, books thatpile a year''s worth of best-selling products, photo books, and so on. I''m tolerant of those. Well, I used to buy those in paper as well up until middle school, but since entering this school, I''ve had more chances to use phones and tablets, so I''ve transitioned. Oh, is it time to go now? I want to work hard on my game''s events."


    I thought I listened carefully, but about 20% of the information had already slipped out of my head.


    Since his pronunciation was slightly unclear, I felt like my brain was refusing to contain the information.


    After finishing talking at a tremendous speed about something I didn''t even ask about, my k��hai resumed using his phone.


    He wouldn''t even look at me anymore.


    It''s now 9:58 a.m.


    It should be the time when more familiar faces and students start showing up.


    Could it be that it isn''t attracting as much attention as I thought?


    Perhaps it was just as my k��hai said��clearance disguised as a grand sale.


    However, I heard thatst year''s event was a great sess, and judging from my ssmates'' reactions, like Hond��, they seemed to be looking forward to it.


    Could it be that I got the date wrong?


    In the chat, they had said tomorrow, but I wondered if there was a possibility that it was a mistake.


    Perhaps it was because the conversation took ce just before the date changed that I began to think it might''ve been tomorrow.


    I hurriedly took out my cell phone and essed the online advertisement again.


    "...It''s today."


    The misunderstanding disappeared in an instant.


    As the opening of the store approached, the number of students gathered didn''t grow at all.


    What was going on...?


    No, let''s stop thinking about it.


    As soon as the store opens, I''ll head straight to the store and buy a yogurt maker.


    That should be fine.


    "By the way, Yuko sent me a picture earlier, and the line at the north exit is crazy. Look at this."


    "Wow. I went therest year too. But there wasn''t much in stock, so I couldn''t buy what I wanted. Wait, why is it from the north exit?"


    "Last year, remember there was a girl in ss B who got injured during the opening rush?"


    "Ah, right. But everyone was in a hurry, so it seemed like no one paid attention to her."


    "Exactly. So this year, they''re gathering at the north exit, and the staff will guide them."


    The reality I wanted to hear, yet didn''t, reached my ears. As I learned the truth, Keyaki Mall mercilessly opened at 10 a.m.

 Chapter 391: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 391: 3.2</h4>


    The electronics store was bustling with many students and school staff.


    I had been watching the store''s situation from a step away.


    The customers who had gathered for the 30-minute pre-opening lineup entered the store in advance and bought the featured products.


    I wondered how many goods the general admission customers could buy. But strangely, I wasn''t worried.


    I was wondering whether there were any students who wanted a yogurt maker.


    No, there mustn''t be.


    That''s why I shouldn''t worry��was what I thought and entered the storete, but my hopes were shattered.


    The yogurt maker mentioned in the announcement was already sold out.


    I was confronted with the reality that someone had already bought it.


    Seeing that, I was about to reach for thetest yogurt maker out of desperation, but the price was more than double that of the sale item, so I somehow managed to refrain from buying it and left the store.


    Even now, students who sessfully purchased their target items from the store wereing out with satisfied expressions.


    "It''s frustrating..."


    Without any lies, I expressed my feelings at the moment.


    It was my terrible mistake for not investigating the sales pattern during the sale.


    Is this the end for a loser who failed to gather information?


    On the way back, I went to the supermarket inside the mall. As if being guided, I was drawn into the store without grabbing a basket and went straight to the dairy products corner.


    Numerous manufacturers sold milk and yogurt. Just moments ago, I would''ve been able to obtain the magical power that could turn this milk into yogurt.


    I wanted to try it out. My desire was growing even stronger.


    The distance between the milk carton and yogurt, which I always used to pick up casually, now seemed so far away.


    But it wasn''t just a matter of distance.


    It was as if an invisible ss barrier was blocking me.


    I couldn''t help but wonder if this was how a young boy must have felt when he desired a trumpet ced on the other side of a showcase... but that was probably different.


    As I stood there, other students continued to pick up milk and yogurt and make their purchases.


    In my dorm room, I was just running out of yogurt.


    But picking it up here would mean... admitting defeat, wouldn''t it?


    I tried to persuade myself to leave, but my feet wouldn''t budge.


    That was because��


    The milk was unusually on sale today.


    And the yogurt was also about 20 yen cheaper than usual.


    If it weren''t for the yogurt maker incident, I would''ve definitely bought some and taken it home.


    As if under a spell, I was unable to move away from the dairy section.


    "Eggs are also cheaper than they''ve beentely..."


    Intion and global affairs continued to increasingly drive up prices.


    Although this school had its own unique rules, somewhat isted from society, its essence didn''t differ from the outside world.


    Once I graduate, I''ll be faced with confronting these prices and consulting with my wallet every day.


    Even though that fate wouldn''te for me, I could still think this way since I was technically an ordinary person right now.


    I shouldn''t have even considereding to check things out.


    Regardless, I couldn''t continue standing here forever.


    I made up my mind to forcibly leave, dragging my heavy feet with great effort.


    "What happened? I''ve never seen you make such a dejected face before, Ayanok��ji."


    "...Kiry��in-senpai."


    While I was getting ready to make my retreat, Kiry��in called out to me.


    Strangely enough, the heaviness in my legs seemed to lighten, and I was able to effortlessly leave the spot.


    After all, I had onlye by to see the yogurt disy, not with any other particr purpose in mind.


    As I left the store empty-handed, Kiry��in followed behind me.


    In the flow of the conversation, I exined the situation in detail to her.


    I probably wanted someone to listen to me.


    I wanted my regret of not being able to buy the yogurt maker to be understood.


    Last night, I learned about the sale.


    I rushed to the store when it opened, but I misunderstood the waiting line location.


    As a result, others bought it before me, and I couldn''t get it.


    After hearing all these events, Kiry��inughed as if it was amusing.


    "You never cease to interest me, Ayanok��ji. You''re truly a special guy."


    "Really? I just consider myself to be an ordinary high school student."


    "That''s a unique joke. Well, actually, it''s partly true."


    After denying it, she reaffirmed it.


    "Iughed because you acted so much like a normal high school student. Insisting on a yogurt maker is unusual, but it wouldn''t be odd if you reced it with another desired product."


    "I see..."


    "But did you really want a yogurt maker that much? I think it would be much cheaper, tastier, and safer to buy yogurt from a store."


    Saying that, she looked back at the supermarket that was fading off into the distance.


    "There''s a purpose in making it yourself and eating it. I lost that chance."


    "You''re passionate, even though you''re expressionless."


    "Do you not cook?"


    When I asked, Kiry��in nodded confidently without hesitation.


    "When I was little, I tried to please my parents, but I haven''t done it since."


    "Were the results bad?"


    "No? It was an indescribable result. Not particrly delicious, nor bad. My parents seemed happy with the intention though. Usually, you would want to see their happy faces again, and improve your cooking."


    She didn''t follow that standard path and abandoned cooking altogether.


    "I usually just grab something from the convenience store or the school cafeteria. Even if I stop by the supermarket, I usually just buy ready-made dishes in the deli corner."


    Contrary to what I had thought, she didn''t cook at all.


    Surprisingly, the idea of her not cooking seemed right upon closer inspection.


    "What about you? How did youe to love cooking?"


    "Since I started high school. It was my first time living alone, and with being in ss D, there were times when the ss points were exhausted."


    "You thought about saving money on food expenses by cooking, huh?"


    "Even if free meals are avable, it''s a pain to eat them all year round. Plus, by cooking repeatedly, you can improve your skills and efficiency. I wanted to achieve the best cost-performance, and I recently started thinking about it."


    The yogurt maker held the potential for a new step up.


    Not being able to get it made me feel regretful again.


    "So? If you really wanted it, why not just buy it?"


    "The price difference from the sale item was too high. It has various functions, but I only wanted to ferment milk, so I deemed it unnecessary."


    That would be ying into the store''s hands by impulsively purchasing a high-priced product.


    "Have you tried searching online?"


    "No, not yet."


    "Before feeling down, try looking online. You might find it surprisingly cheap. I have some rmended websites."


    Taking out her cell phone, Kiry��in began typing.


    We made sure not to obstruct the flow of traffic and stood at the edge of the aisle to browse through the products. Then, we found a yogurt maker at nearly the same price as today''s special discounts.


    "That''s surprising."


    "It''s not much of a sale. It''s not just this school''s electronics store that''s struggling with inventory management of the same models. It''smon knowledge for young people these days."


    "I''m learning something new."


    "Why not buy it online?"


    "I realize that I can buy it at the same price but found something else, so I''ve decided to search for something simpler, and buy it after returning to my room."


    Upon further examination, the yogurt maker on sale had more than enough functionality.


    Moreover, an even more simplified version was avable for a lower price.


    "Anyway, do you need to buy anything, Kiry��in-senpai?"


    "I just followed you because I was intrigued by your hunched-over back. I don''t have any particr business at the supermarket."


    It seemed that she didn''t have any errands over there.


    "That''s unusual��to go out of your way to approach me just because I''m interesting."


    Maybe she was really bored during the winter break.


    "I know what you''re thinking. But it''s not because I''m bored that I''m sticking my nose into trivial matters."


    "It''s still suspicious."


    When I conveyed my honest thoughts, she smiled bitterly and exined again.


    "It''s because it''s you, Ayanok��ji."


    "I''m not someone worth evaluating."


    "You know that it''s pointless to be humble at this point. The scene of you confronting them on that uninhabited ind is permanently engraved in my mind."


    The scene of the final showdown with Tsukishirost summer on the beach. Kiry��in had been exchanging blows with Shiba, who appeared to be Tsukishiro''s subordinate, in order to help me. It wasn''t unreasonable for her to hold me in high regard due to the unusual circumstances and the physical aspect of the fight.


    "That''s why it''s so disappointing."


    "Disappointing?"


    Like a girl confessing her hidden feelings, Kiry��in let out a deep sigh.


    "I often thought about it around that summer, like, if there was a system to repeat a grade in this school."


    "Repeating a grade?"


    It was something that students who couldn''t graduate from ss A might''ve considered in desperation, but would quickly give up on. After all, this school didn''t recognize repeating a grade as an option in its rules.


    "It''s a ridiculous thought, right?"


    "Without a doubt. Most students don''t resist the established rules."


    Breaking the rules was something anyone could do. To fight and overturn them, to persuade, and change them��that''s what''s difficult.


    "Even so, I wanted to consider staying for another year. If that was possible, I could''ve observed your journey closely for another year."


    "Looks like there are some students who think about such things. It''s quite unusual."


    I thought about Kiry��in; it wouldn''t be just a daydream in her head.


    "Nothing''s unattainable with private points. Based on that logic, I even tried seeking confirmation from teachers, but the answer was no."


    "Let me ask you, what if someone prepared the total amount of 20 million points?"


    If the school didn''t acknowledge repeating years, the only thing that could overturn that would be paying an enormous price.


    I was d I asked, but it seemed like the answer could have already been seen in Kiry��in''s expression.


    "Thergest purchase in this school is the right to move to any ss. Unless you''re a real oddball, you could get your dream position in your third year as long as you move to ss A just before graduating."


    "True. There''s probably no purchase greater than that."


    Confirmation of getting to ss A was valued higher than the right to repeat a year would never change.


    Who would willingly invest 20 million points in a high-risk repeat year?


    "Why isn''t a repeat year allowed even if someone prepared a huge amount of points? Isn''t it strange? The rights to prevent expulsion, invalidate expulsion, or move sses are in the school''s rulebook, but the repeat system is excluded from the start."


    That was certainly true. The value of private points, where nothing was unattainable, wasn''t an exaggeration. However, it was true that even within that, there were still things that couldn''t be bought.


    As mentioned earlier, deliberately repeating a year wasn''t something students could judge as more valuable than moving to ss A.


    However, since it wasn''t permitted, there must be a reason.


    "Students who wish to repeat a year will have been enrolled in this school for over a year, so they''ll have a lot of knowledge about special exams and such. From an information standpoint, it might be deemed unfair to other sses."


    Information, huh?


    It was certainly a possible argument, but sharing information could happen even without repeating.


    Senpais could leave as much information for k��hais as possible in everyday life, and the advantage wouldn''t be significant.


    Special exams would generally be different for students one grade ahead.


    Even in written exams, the advantage might not prevail, and it was unlikely that it would have a significant impact overall.


    "Perhaps it''s because it could result in lowering the school''s reputation?"


    "Well? How so?"


    "This school grants great privileges to those who graduate from ss A. Companies also ept and evaluate students who have graduated from that ss, and deem them as outstanding. But wouldn''t doubts arise about the school''s value when a student who has repeated a year mixes in? For university admissions and job offers that can only be seen from the outside, they would see the fact that someone has graduated from ss A, but for some reason, repeated a year. You can even apply this to yourself. An oddball who has inefficiently failed to graduate from ss A and has repeated. While such a person has the ability, it bes blurred for the employer. Evaluations be very difficult."


    The school would no longer want to send out such a student.


    "So, not adopting the repeat system is to eliminate troublesome patterns?"


    "If you''re looking for a reason that makes sense, it would be this."


    It was a usible argument.


    "If I were to interview myself, I might hold off on hiring."


    It was self-deprecating humor that could only be said because of her confidence in her abilities.


    "If you''re thinking about repeating on a whim, transfer to Nagumo''s ss, please."


    "I''m not interested in that."


    "What if you had 20 million points saved up from your own abilities?"


    "Even then, I don''t care. I''m fine graduating in any ss."


    <Illustration>


    "For you, graduating in ss A or ss D doesn''t make a big difference, but usually someone would think to make the best out of being able to graduate in ss A."


    As long as no one was unhappy, it would be better to transfer to ss A.


    "Besides, after graduation, there''s a system that allows you to exchange private points for actual cash. That''s what''s important to me."


    That amount, no matter how much, would be valuable funding for a student who has just graduated from high school.


    Still, it couldn''t bepared to the potential future benefits of graduating from ss A.


    "Private points can grant most students'' desires, but they can''t grant everything. It could have that type of meaning as well."


    "That''s true. You can''t use them to fire the teachers you don''t like, for example."


    With a sly grin, Kiry��in spoke dangerously.


    "It''s like you''ve tried it before."


    "Heh, I''ll keep that as a noment."


    "So you really have no interest in ss A?"


    "It''s not that surprising. While it may be a curious situation, I don''t think I''m the first. Besides, I thought you felt the same way, didn''t you?"


    Indeed, I wasn''t very attached to graduating from ss A since I wouldn''t receive the school''s maximum support��their generous benefits upon graduation.


    "True, you and I might not be that different. But even if there are other students like me who have no interest in ss A, there''s still a huge difference with you, Kiry��in-senpai."


    "And that difference is?"


    "Contribution to the ss. Normally, people will move for the sake of their friends, even when it''s unnecessary for them. An able person like you could''ve helped ss B and stood up against former Student Council President Nagumo. Even with differing personalities and ideas, your ssmates must have relied on you more than once or twice."


    "Yeah..." Kiry��in affirmed as if it wasn''t her concern.


    "But for three years, up until now, you''ve only acted for yourself."


    "Maybe I''ve been contributing in my own way in secret? I just might not have been able topete with Nagumo."


    "If you view yourself in your ss��no, if you look at the entire third-year body, you''ll understand. You only move for your own sake, but you don''t hold others back. That''s why both enemies and allies perceive you as a non-existence."


    Pretty much invisible to both enemies and allies.


    It wasn''t easy to be this way, regardless of one''s abilities.


    "Even those who had voiced their resentment about myck of cooperation stopped talking to me eventually."


    However, because her grades had been excellent, their disregard for her was unavoidable and forgiven.


    She was highly rated by the school for both her academic and physical abilities, which meant she had been achieving solid results in written exams, athletic sses, and tournaments. She wasn''t cutting corners in the visible areas like some of our ssmates (me included).


    "Can I ask you a question too?"


    "Do you have something you want to ask?"


    "That''s a ridiculous question. I have countless things I want to ask. But even if I ask 10 or 20 questions, there''s no guarantee that I''ll only get the truth."


    She was aware of her limits and pointed out such a premise before voicing the question.


    "Is it safe to assume that you''ve resolved the various problems you''ve been carrying?"


    It was a vague question, but I didn''t need to think too deeply to understand what she was talking about.


    "Thanks to you, I''m living a peaceful life now."


    As I was doing now, I walked around this ce as I always had.


    "No matter how many times I look back, I can''t forget your smooth movements from that day on the beach. It surpassed my expectations, imagination, and all conceivable human potential. Even if I told my ojii-sama, he wouldn''t believe it."


    "Your ojii-sama[1]?"


    [TL/N : [1]: "Ojii-sama" is a lessmon way of referring to someone''s grandfather inparison to "(sofu)" or "(ojii-san)".]


    "Sorry, was that difficult to understand? I''m talking about my own grandfather."


    Kiry��in said, narrowing her eyes as if recalling her grandfather.


    It was rare for someone to call their grandfather "ojii-sama," from my perspective.


    "That''s an unusual way to call him."


    "Well, Ie from a fairly privileged background. At home, I''m always addressed as ojou-sama[2]."


    [TL/N : [2]"Ojou-sama" is a formal Japanese word for young, high-ssdy.


    *Both phrases are typically umon which is why Ayanok��ji was confused.*]


    "Oh, so that''s what you meant? Well, no, I guess I can''tpletely disagree then."


    I always sensed something refined about her upbringing.


    On the other hand, there was also a wildness to her, so I never had any concrete evidence.


    "I spent more time living with my grandfather when I was young than with my busy parents. To put it simply, I was a total grandpa''s girl."


    She smiled nostalgically, her eyes narrowing. It wasn''t a face she could make if there were many unpleasant memories.


    "When I found out I was going to this school, I was really down about not being able to see him for three years."


    "So your grandfather really doted on you, huh?"


    "He used to say that he''d be d to have me back if I ever dropped out like it was his catchphrase."


    That was a pretty cruel thing to say to a grandchild that was about to spread her wings.


    It seemed like he wasn''t an ordinary grandfather, just from that statement alone.


    "But wouldn''t he be shocked if you actually dropped out?"


    "No, I''m sure he''d be genuinely happy. Besides, if I had decided to choose my own path, with just one word from my grandfather, I could''ve gone to most universities orpanies."


    In other words, even without graduating from ss A, she could receive the same��or even greater��support from her grandfather. It seemed she had both power and affection at her disposal.


    There was a guy in our ss with a simr situation, though his way of thinking was different.


    "By any chance, do you know K��enji?"


    "K��enji? Why would his name suddenlye up?"


    "The reason? Well, you see, that''s..."


    I noticed K��enji walking towards us and tried to ask her about their rtionship because of the conversation we were having.


    "I don''t think I have any connection to someone as entric as him."


    He was attracting the attention of the surrounding students, staring at him as if he was some strange creature.


    He was carrying arge box with a famous brand''s logo on it by himself. Judging by the unique shape of the cardboard box, I guessed that it was arge, t-screen TV.


    "Don''t you know? Apparently, K��enji is the son of a very famous businessman. Not only that, but his name has already been mentioned as the next president."


    "Is that so? Maybe that''s the root of his entricity. But unfortunately, I don''t know much about that. If he''s that famous though, it wouldn''t be surprising if my grandfather had some connections... Well, either way, it has nothing to do with me."


    It seemed Kiry��in didn''t have much knowledge about the political or financial world. In that sense, I was grateful that she didn''t find my somewhat unusualst name, ''Ayanok��ji,'' suspicious.


    Even if she did recognize the name, it would be a stretch to link it directly to me. It wasn''t easy to think that a rare name meant the same lineage.


    "Could it be that the underlying reason you''re not interested in ss A is because of that?"


    "No way. I chose to dive into this school because I was sick of being born into such a wealthy family. I have no intention of relying on them after graduation. The third years have already finished their ss battles, so like everyone else in ss B and below, we''re focusing on studying and job hunting."


    In other words, Kiry��in had a clear direction for her future.


    And she apparently had no intention of receiving any favor from her family.


    "Can I go ahead and ask what path you''re nning to take, Kiry��in-senpai?"


    "I''m going to enroll in college for now. If I can get in as a schrship student, I can keep costs down. I''ll work part-time to make up for the money Ick in daily life. It''s not really anything worth mentioning."


    "Setting aside the schrship part, you seem like a pretty normal student."


    "I want to be carefree, study hard, and be an adult all on my own. After that, maybe I''ll work at a small or mid-sizedpany. It doesn''t even have to be that big. I just want to live a life that has nothing to do with the Kiry��in name or status."


    Living a life that didn''t stand out, wasn''t tied down, and was simply free.


    That was the strong will I sensed in Kiry��in''s words.


    "Not bad, huh?"


    "Right? I don''t need anything special. At least that''s what I think for now."


    In a way, it was simr to my thoughts when I first entered this school. Whether my ss rank went up or down didn''t matter. I would continue living for my own freedom.


    There was someone who stuck to that idea for three years right beside me.


    "But a peaceful and t life isn''t easy to get, even if it seems easy now. After graduation, the name Kiry��in will follow me whether I like it or not."


    I didn''t know anything about the Kiry��in family, but if it was a rtively famous one, then it was natural for them to have certain things set in ce.


    Even if someone like me could escape to this school out of rebelliousness, the end would stille when three years passed.


    "Wouldn''t your grandfather support your choices?"


    "My grandfather isn''t really the issue. If anything, it would be my parents. Unlike my grandfather, they don''t have a sense of humor. If they find out I''m leading a normal life, I can easily imagine their reaction."


    Listening to this, I felt like the situation was eerily simr to mine.


    "I don''t regret my actions the past three years... I''ve lived as I pleased."


    There was a slight hesitation in her voice as she dered her conviction.


    "Nevertheless, I wanted to try to see myself choosing something other than just chasing freedom. That might be why I''ve been looking for ways to repeat a grade."


    If Kiry��in-senpai had lived her life to the fullest for three years, there was no doubt that she''d have been a threat to Nagumo''s ss A.


    Living ording to one''s lineage may also be a difficult thing.


    "The battle with Nagumo isn''t over yet, right? What are you going to do about it?"


    "I would like to resolve the matter as soon as possible, but right now, I don''t have an answer."


    Everything depended on what the school decided. Whether there would be room for Nagumo and my battle was all up to luck.


    And besides��


    There were situations that wouldn''t be realized regardless of whether we wanted them or not.


    "I can''t imagine you being careless or arrogant, but be careful during the third term."


    "Is that advice from my senpai?"


    "It''s not necessarily advice. Just the other day, I heard Nagumo talking on the phone with someone. He seems to be tirelessly gathering rumors about second-year students."


    Is Nagumo trying even harder than anyone else to make our battle a reality?


    "The special exam you''ll be taking next might be more troublesome than you think."


    "The school won''t indirectly leak information, but it seems easy to guess the difficulty of the special exams based on past statistics. So, what was the special exam in the first term of the second year like?"


    If there was a high probability of the same trend continuing, Nagumo must''ve been making inferences from the special examst year.


    "Well, in our year, Nagumo took control of everything and had all the authority. I''m just a ss B student living my daily life. I don''t remember everything in detail."


    "I see."


    Indeed, it was rare for Kiry��in to participate in special exams.


    However, the fact that she didn''t even remember some aspects made me a little suspicious.


    "But during that special exam, one person did leave ss B."


    "Did they leave the school? As in dropping out?"


    "That''s how I remember it. It was probably a necessary sacrifice, though it must be rted to Nagumo''s adjustments."


    The ideal victories and rewards that Nagumo had in mind.


    If expulsion was an inevitable part of the special exam, then there would be some casualties.


    If Kiry��in''s story was true, perhaps there would be a hard start in the third term as well.


    "Usually, it seems like it would be ss D or ss C being cut, right?"


    "In any case, I don''t remember anything about the other sses."


    She was probably less interested in other sses than in the TV news that was covered this morning.


    Yet, for someone who imed to remember nothing, some essential memories seemed to linger.


    "I''m not saying it''ll be the same asst year, though. There''s no need to worry too much."


    "Your alleged ignorance isn''t really persuasive."


    In this situation, I didn''t press deep, and just let it slide.


    "Sorry to hold you up. It''s not often that I get to talk with you about such trivial matters. It was a good opportunity."


    "No problem. I''m d I got to talk to you too, Kiry��in-senpai."


    Kiry��in began to walk away, but quickly stopped and turned back.


    "This is just my intuition, but I have a feeling that we''ll meet again somewhere. Not at this school, but soon in the future."


    "Do your intuitions usually turn out to be true?"


    "Usually, they have about 50% uracy."


    That sounds like just a simple guess...


    "But this time, I have more confidence. If forced to give a reason, it''s because you''re not just an ordinary high school student. If you don''t disappear into society, you might catch my eye again."


    "Wouldn''t it be better if that didn''t happen? You''re supposed to want a normal life."


    "Hmm? Hahaha, that may be true."


    Kiry��in gently raised her hand and began walking out of the Keyaki Mall.


    To meet again somewhere, huh?


    That future would likely nevere.


    But if such a future existed��


    No, I''ll discard that thought.


    There was no significance in such far-fetched fantasies.


    Now, I was free to live my life in this moment.


    That alone was enough.

 Chapter 392: 3.3

    <h4>Chapter 392: 3.3</h4>


    After parting with Kiry��in, I recalled the interaction between Ichinose and me this morning.


    I had been wondering if she''de to Keyaki Mall, but I didn''t know her purpose foring.


    Under normal circumstances, I should''ve informed her by phone that I was inside the mall, but it seemed like she was rejecting that or avoiding it somehow.


    Judging from that unique scenario, it could be assumed that by simply going to Keyaki Mall, it wouldn''t be necessary to bother looking for Ichinose.


    For the time being, I chose to go home without trying to find her.


    If I couldn''t meet her before I went outside, I could always turn back.


    With that thought, I returned to the mall''s entrance.


    Therge Christmas tree that was just set up yesterday attracted many friends and couples. They were taking photos and admiring it, but it would be removed the following day.


    Kei, who had been bedridden, must have deeply regretted it, but there was nothing that could be done. Influenza was showing signs of spreading, and nearly 20 people in the school had already tested positive.


    As I passed by the tree, I saw a lot of students gathered around.


    No, at this moment, there might''ve been more students than yesterday.


    In the crowd, I spotted Ichinose, who seemed to be enjoying a lively conversation, surrounded by three female first-year students.


    I didn''t have the courage to call out to her here, so I decided to watch her from a distance for a while.


    By chance, Hoshinomiya-sensei and Chabashira-sensei, walking beside each other, noticed me while passing.


    During long vacations, it wasmon to see teachers in casual clothes. Still, it was impossible not to feel a sense of incongruity about Chabashira-sensei, who loved wearing suits.


    "Oh? Are you alone?"


    The first one to approach me was Hoshinomiya-sensei, followed by Chabashira-sensei.


    "Uh, yeah."


    "I thought you''d be lovey-dovey with your girlfriend today and yesterday. Did you get dumped?"


    "Don''t tease the students, Chie. Besides, Karuizawa has the flu."


    Chabashira-sensei exined that there was a reason.


    "I know that."


    "You knew and still teased?"


    "Because it''s annoying, isn''t it? It''s uneptable for students a year younger to spend Christmas with their lover, or something like that!"


    "You used to do that every year up until now. This year''s just different."


    "That''s why I can''t stand it. Maybe I can understand Sae-chan''s feelings for the first time."


    "Don''t lump me in with you. I''m a person who doesn''t mind being alone on Christmas. It''s a pity, Ayanok��ji. You haven''t met Karuizawa, right?"


    "Can''t be helped. Besides, I don''t mind being alone on Christmas either."


    As I answered, Chabashira-sensei gave a slight grin and Hoshinomiya-sensei seemed even unhappier.


    Looking at the contrasting pair, I thought about Mashima-sensei.


    If he sided with either of them, it would undoubtedly be very troublesome.


    "Where are you teachers going now?"


    "To karaoke! We teachers also have the right to have fun, you know? Right?"


    "Chie''s the only one who wants to sing. I''m just being dragged along."


    "Oh, really? Isn''t Sae-chan excited too?"


    "I''m not excited..."


    It must be hard for the teachers too��with the constant tense atmosphere of the sspetition.


    The two of them, good friends or bad, traded barbs as they headed to karaoke.


    While we were all talking, I noticed Ichinose was looking our way.


    It seemed that the girls'' conversation had finished, and she was waiting for me.


    "What a coincidence, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Yeah, quite a coincidence. You seemed to be having a great time with your k��hais from the first year."


    "They''re from ss 1-B. Yagami-kun, a former member of the student council, suddenly dropped out, didn''t he? They still seem to be affected by it, and they''re somewhat confused. But they were trying to be positive about it."


    Given the nature of why he got expelled from the school, I assumed that the ss itself wasn''t penalized, but they inevitably suffered damage from theck of students. This difficult situation would continue for some time.


    "How long have you been here?"


    "Since around 10:30, I think."


    Considering that it was almost 12 o''clock, she had been waiting for over an hour.


    No, describing it as waiting might be incorrect.


    Ultimately, Ichinose was acting based on her own principles today.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji-kun, could you take a picture with me?"


    With that, Ichinose shyly took out her phone.


    "To make some memories, I took pictures with various people here today."


    To prove it was true, Ichinose opened her photo album and showed the section with today''s date. As expected, she had taken several photos with various students in front of the Christmas tree.


    Some of the shots included boys from her ss.


    In addition, there were also photographs with the first-year students from earlier.


    Ichinose had mentioned that she was waiting here to make memories, but her real goal became apparent shortly after.


    "However... I want to take a picture with you, Ayanok��ji-kun. That''s my main wish."


    Ichinose didn''t exin further, but it wasn''t difficult to understand.


    If there was a photo of just the two of us on her phone, Kei and her close friends might not respond well if they found out.


    However, if she had photos with many others, both male and female, there would be no issue if someone happened to question her.


    In fact, there weren''t many, but I could see two shots with boys from other sses.


    Those boys either looked pleased or awkwardly showed a peace sign from Ichinose calling them out.


    Regardless of their year, there was no uniformity in the sort of boys.


    It seemed like she was responding to the photo requests of all the students who had called out to her without discriminating.


    "So... Would you mind taking a picture with me?"


    "Of course. I have no reason to refuse."


    "I''m d."


    She had put in a tremendous amount of effort just to take a picture with me.


    "I actually didn''t n on taking photos with so many, but a lot of people started calling out to me after they heard about it. It was a bit difficult."


    It seemed that the rumor that Ichinose wanted to take photos with people had started to spread.


    "How many people have you taken photos with so far?"


    "Um, let''s see... I think the people from earlier were my 43rd."


    That''s quite a lot... It was evident that she was taking these photos at a high rate.


    "I n on continuing for a while. It wouldn''t make much sense if I stopped now, right?"


    ording to Ichinose, this was so no trace was left even after the goal had been reached.


    "Well, it''s not that it doesn''t look suspicious in a different way."


    Ichinose smiled as she looked back on her actions��those that could objectively be viewed as bizarre.


    If I had done the same thing, I would''ve undoubtedly been treated as apletely suspicious person.


    However, the same actions look entirely different with Ichinose.


    Ichinose pulled my arm and guided me to adjust the angle.


    Then, she leaned in and held her cell phone with the front camera on.


    "Now''s the time��no one else is looking."


    She seemed to be constantly observing the surroundings and decided it was the perfect timing.


    Ichinose put her hand around my arm and took a picture.


    Then, she took another with a little gap between us, without her hand on my arm.


    "The first one won''t be saved on my phone, so... It''s okay, right?"


    "Is this asking for a post-fact approval?"


    "...Yeah. If you don''t want it, I''ll delete it now."


    "No, you can keep it. I don''t intend to me anyone if someone else sees it. It''s my responsibility for allowing the photo to be taken, no matter how it''s used."


    "Are you sure? If I misuse it, it could cause a rift in your rtionship with Karuizawa-san..."


    "It''s strange toin after conveniently taking a picture, right?"


    If you were going to be photographed, you wouldn''t permit it without being prepared.


    Of course, it was different if you were forced.


    We closed the distance between us in about 10 seconds, and before we knew it, we were back to our usual distance.


    During that time, no one saw us being intimate.


    "By the way, Ayanok��ji-kun, you met with Chihiro-chan yesterday, right?"


    Chihiro Shiranami. I recalled the image of her wearing headphones and listening to music.


    "You know a lot."


    "It''smon for us to gather both on weekdays and holidays, so I felt like Chihiro-chan''s behavior was a bit different yesterday. We didn''t talk about anything specific, but she reacted to your name, so I thought maybe you had met and spoken with her."


    Ichinose, who always cared about her ssmates'' mental state, may easily notice changes.


    "By the way, what do you mean by her feeling a bit different? I hope it wasn''t in a bad way."


    "It''s okay. I don''t know what you talked about, but I felt like Chihiro-chan wasughing more than usual yesterday."


    The risky bet worked, and urging her to be prepared seemed to have had a positive effect.


    "I''m d to hear that."


    "But..."


    Although I was delighted by Shiranami''s growth, Ichinose wasn''t finished.


    "Right now, she cares about me more than anyone else, but you can''t get too involved, okay? She''s easily swayed."


    A warning not to close the distance with Shiranami any further than it was.


    "When you want to hang out with Chihiro-chan, I''d like you to call me too."


    "I understand. I''ll make sure to do that."


    Whether it was for her responsibility as a protector for her ss or for her own well-being, I would have to be cautious when meeting with Shiranami in the future.


    "Ichinose-senpai! Ayanok��ji-senpai! Hello!"


    "Ah, it''s Nanase-san."


    Upon finding me and Ichinose, Nanase approached us with a slight jog.


    "I heard you two were over here taking photos with people, so I came too."


    Apparently, the rumor had spread far enough to reach Nanase.


    "Wouldn''t it get out of hand at this rate? You might be taking pictures until midnight."


    "Well, that''s how it goes. Maybe I''ll be a legendary girl who took a picture with every student in front of the Christmas tree."


    Ichinose smiled as she responded to the jest with another jest.


    "Are you joining as well, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    "No, I just heard the rumor and came to take photos with Ichinose. I won''t get in your way."


    Feeling it would be improper to join in, I decided to step back.


    "I don''t mind if you join us."


    "No, I''ll pass. Being tied up to this ce like Ichinose is tough, and there aren''t many people who''d want to take a photo with me anyway."


    Nanase, sensing the situation, didn''t force the issue and stood shoulder to shoulder with Ichinose. The two began adjusting their positions for the photo when Nanase seemed to notice something and stopped.


    "Sorry, can you wait a moment?"


    "Hm? Sure, but what''s up?"


    Apologizing to Ichinose, Nanase hurried over in a certain direction. It seemed that a student from her ss, H��sen, was there. He was walking alone with a scary expression, not even looking in our direction.


    Nanase approached him like a puppy, called out to him, and pointed in our direction while talking to him.


    "Could she be inviting H��sen-kun?"


    "It seems like it."


    While it wasn''t strange for her to invite a ssmate, the particr ssmate at hand was H��sen. He didn''t seem like the type to take photos with others.


    However, after a brief conversation with Nanase, H��sen changed direction and started walking towards us while keeping his scary expression.


    "Looks like he''sing."


    "It seems like it."


    H��sen''s gaze captured not only Ichinose but also me standing beside her.


    I had been enjoying a leisurely winter break, so I''d prefer to avoid any potential trouble.


    "Um, would it be okay for H��sen-kun to join the photo too?"


    "I don''t mind at all, but are you sure about that?"


    Ichinose''s words suggested her hesitance of H��sen''s desires. H��sen remained silent, staring at me and Ichinose with a scary face.


    "It''s totally fine. Now, please, H��sen-kun."


    Saying that, Nanase pushed H��sen''s back, somewhat forcibly.


    I thought he''d definitely resist, but surprisingly, H��sen closed the distance with light steps.


    "You''ve been staring at me. Is there something on my face?"


    As soon as he said that, he red at me and started to get in my face.


    "Well, umm, it''s just..."


    It wasn''t an expected behavior. I couldn''t help but suspect that there was an ulterior motive behind it.


    "Huh? If you have something to say, say it."


    "Nothing really."


    "Hmph."


    As I backed off, H��sen snorted and looked away.


    He had an impressive presence for a first-year student. If I''m not careful, would I get stabbed with a knife again?


    Although H��sen and Nanase were finished taking photos with Ichinose, H��sen still looked like he had something to say.


    As he started to walk away with his hands in his pockets, I couldn''t help but ask, "What was that about?"


    As Nanase approached me, she whispered in a low voice, "Actually, H��sen-kun really likes Ichinose-senpai."


    "...Seriously?"


    I couldn''t see it. Well, I did find it strange that he''d pose for a photo with Ichinose, but still, that was a surprising revtion.


    "He came to check things out because he heard she was taking photos here."


    So it wasn''t a coincidence that he happened to pass by.


    "But, maybe it really was just a coincidence?"


    "I don''t think so. I was called out to Keyaki Mall by him. He probably couldn''t approach Ichinose-san by himself, so he used me instead."


    I wondered if he just wanted to take a photo with Ichinose based on some calction.


    At least based on what I saw, that didn''t seem to be the case.


    H��sen had already disappeared, so there was no way to confirm it any further.


    "Hey, Ichinose, let''s take a picture together!"


    Two third-year girls approached Ichinose, waving their hands.


    If this continued, there might be more and more of them.


    I decided to give a quick wave to my senpais as well and backed off.


    "See you, Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    Ichinose waved her small hand and smoothly switched her attention to the senpais.


    It seemed to have turned into arge-scale event, and I was one person out of the 46, including Nanase and H��sen.

 Chapter 393 - 4 : Gauging Intentions

    <h4>Chapter 393: Chapter 4 : Gauging Intentions</h4>


    DECEMBER 26TH.


    On this day, with no club activities, Sud�� and some others from Horikita''s ss gathered at the Keyaki Mall caf��.


    There were a total of eight people: Ike, Sud��, Shinohara, Matsushita, Mori, Wang, Maezono, and Onodera.


    It was Maezono who proposed these students'' gathering. She stated that she wanted to discuss something "important" regarding the future of the ss. However, everyone initially scratched their heads at her request for several reasons.


    Firstly, the topic was too rigid and serious to be raised by a female student like Maezono.


    And secondly, key members of the ss seemed to be deliberately excluded.


    It was unclear why key figures such as Horikita and Hirata weren''t invited.


    They''d be indispensable for discussing the future of the ss.


    However, since the majority of the selected members didn''t have any strong feelings against gathering, they epted Maezono''s invitation as a part of a fun activity, although Matsushita remained skeptical about it throughout.


    Nevertheless, Matsushita didn''t confront Maezono directly about her suspicions, and like the other six invitees, she pretended to merely show up at the meeting.


    Perhaps because there was a rtivelyrge number of people (eight in total), Maezono set the meeting location at the Keyaki Mall caf��.


    By the time they reached their scheduled meeting time at 11:30, six of them, excluding Ike and Shinohara, were present.


    Seeing the assembled members, Matsushita''s doubts only deepened.


    She questioned not only the selection of students but also the point of the discussion on the future of the ss within such a public ce.


    To begin with, she didn''t expect any substantial discussion from someone of Maezono''s personality and ability.


    However, she would''ve appreciated more effort in choosing the location for a meeting considered "important." Maezono, on the other hand, showed no signs of understanding or sympathy for Matsushita''s concerns and simply bursted into loudughter while discussing a TV show she had watched the previous day.


    Matsushita was rtively close to Maezono and noticed she seemed livelier in recent days.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting~"


    Ignoring Matsushita''s thoughts, Ike and Shinohara arrivedte at the meeting location.


    As the two of them held hands and appeared to be on friendly terms, they sat down on adjoining chairs that were arranged for them by the others.


    "You guys are showing off your love in public during the day, huh? And you''rete!"


    While being dragged by the heat of their love, Sud�� reprimanded Ike.


    "Hehehe! That''s not true. Right, Satsuki?"


    "Yeah, yeah, it''s normal. Sud��-kun, you''re used to beingte, aren''t you?"


    Even when they sat down, the two didn''t let go of each other''s hands, prompting Sud�� to sigh.


    "I haven''t beente recently."


    Although he replied as such, it seemed that his response didn''t reach Shinohara and the others.


    "Hey, those two..."


    "Seems like it."


    Maezono whispered, and Matsushita nodded.


    The behavior of both parties seemed to have changed noticeably on either the 24th or the 25th.


    They undoubtedly predicted that those two passed a certain line from their previous rtionship. Rumors of a romantic rtionship between the two were circting during the school trip, but there was no definitive evidence.


    With their current attitudes, their ssmates would surely realize the truth soon.


    "That Kanji guy..."


    Sud�� had been friends with Ike for a long time, andst year, they had often excitedly discussed what they''d do if they got girlfriends.


    Sud��, frustrated at having been outdone, was so surprised that he heavily sighed as he saw them openly affectionate.


    "What''s up, Sud��-kun?"


    Onodera, sitting next to Sud��, couldn''t quite understand hisplex feelings, so she whispered a question in concern.


    "It''s nothing. Anyway, it''s good that our ss is back to normal, right?"


    "Yeah, it was tense until just a while ago."


    Following the unanimous special exam, there were concerns that some friendships might''ve been shattered due to Kushida''s ruthless expos��. Wang, whose crush on Hirata became well-known, was saved by Matsushita and her friends'' support, while Shinohara, who had been ridiculed for her looks, had recoveredpletely thanks to her boyfriend Ike''s support.


    The fact that they could gather like this was proof that the rtionships were gradually being repaired over time.


    "Maezono, let''s get on with it."


    Unable to stand watching the lovey-dovey couple any longer, Sud�� urged her to continue.


    "That''s true. Ahem, thank you everyone for gathering today."


    First, Maezono expressed her gratitude to all seven of the attendees who came.


    Initially, Maezono was aggressive and confrontational, with a bad attitude andnguage. However, over time, she had softened and became more rxed.


    At least, none of the members present seemed to dislike her at the moment. She had even be close friends with Wang and Sat��.


    Matsushita was also in a positive rtionship with Maezono, but she didn''t hold her in high regard.


    "I''ve no issues with gathering, but why is it just us discussing the ss''s future? It''s important, right?"


    Sud��, who asked the same question, also shared Matsushita''s doubt.


    Feeling that her concern was voiced, Matsushita hoped for the conversation to progress.


    "Now that you mention it, why?"


    Ike and Shinohara looked at each other as if they were realizing the situation for the first time.


    Matsushita, meanwhile, had a theory lingering in the back of her mind, but...


    "Yeah, there''s actually a good reason for that... I deliberately didn''t invite Hirata-kun and the others. There''s something I want to clear up before the third term begins."


    Maezono talked about the purpose of the discussion after making it clear that it was a well-thought-out decision.


    "What you want to clear up is regarding Ayanok��ji-kun, isn''t it?"


    The person mentioned was their ssmate. Excluding Maezono, the other seven people didn''t particrly react, or rather, they didn''t seem to understand why Ayanok��ji''s name was brought up.


    "To be honest, perhaps it''s problematic for me to say this, but I don''t like Ayanok��ji-kun. Rather��no, that''s not quite right. I find him hard to deal with."


    Having judged her expression to be harsh, she corrected herself after saying it.


    "Hard to deal with? Why?"


    Wang asked while continuing the conversation, epting Maezono''s candid evaluation.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun isn''t a troublemaker, and he doesn''t forcefully invoke interactions, right?"


    Wang honestly didn''t think Ayanok��ji had done anything to give Maezono a bad impression.


    "That''s true, but I don''t like dark and hard-to-get-along-with people... I feel like our wavelengths don''t match, and it makes me feel ufortable, so I distanced myself from him, kind of?"


    "So, you''re saying it''s a one-sided aversion?"


    Matsushita, who had been silent until now, questioned Maezono.


    "Uh... You might be right."


    "Ayanok��ji''s more of a gloomy person, right? Like an introverted type? He''s always quiet."


    Ike agreed that Maezono''s image of Ayanok��ji wasn''t entirely wrong.


    Ignoring whether they liked or hated him, no one immediately denied that Ayanok��ji''s personality gave off a quiet and dark impression. However, just as they thought that...


    "Things have changed now. At least, that''s what I think."


    The first one to object was Sud��.


    "First of all, if he was really gloomy, there''s no way he could be dating Karuizawa. Right?"


    He didn''t just deny it, but also provided the reasoning behind it.


    "Well, I admit it was surprising that he''s dating Karuizawa. But still..."


    Ike''s impression of Ayanok��ji didn''t change much, even though there were aspects that he agreed with.


    "Lately, you''ve been talking to Ayanok��ji a lot, haven''t you? When did you guys be friends?"


    Ike prodded, seemingly concluding that Sud��''s defense came more from protective feelings rather than logic.


    Sud�� picked up a filled cup, frowning in response.


    "Well, not just me, but you and everyone were ying quite a bit when we first enrolled, right?"


    "Yeah, but that was because of our ssmate-like rtionship, and even then, we weren''t particrly close friends. Were you really thinking he was your friend?"


    "At that time..."


    Sud��, who had been talking back until now, choked on his words when recalling their enrollment days.


    As Sud�� and Ike red at each other, Maezono intervened in a hurry.


    "Wait, wait, don''t start a fight! We haven''t even touched on the main topic yet. Since Sud��-kun recently started getting along with Ayanok��ji-kun, I wanted to ask him about various things today."


    The ring stopped, and Sud�� took a breath before replying.


    "...Me?"


    "Yeah. Among us, you seem to know the most about Ayanok��ji-kun''s recent situation."


    Understanding there was no point in dragging the topic any further, Maezono slightly lowered her voice and started the discussion.


    Still, to her friends who hadn''t understood yet, she added.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun isn''t just our gloomy ssmate... I think he''s hiding something."


    Now everyone, including Ike and Shinohara, understood what Maezono wanted to say.


    "Is today''s gathering to discuss who Ayanok��ji-kun really is?"


    In response to Wang''s words, Maezono nodded not once but twice.


    "I excluded his girlfriend Karuizawa-san, of course, as well as her close friends like Sat��-san and those who have more contact with Ayanok��ji-kun, such as Hirata-kun and Horikita-san, as well as Hasebe-san''s group."


    "Why is that? I think it''s better if there are more people who know the details."


    "Do you really think so? I''m worried they might cover it up. I think either all or some of the people I just mentioned might know his true nature."


    Maezono murmured her excuse, otherwise, things wouldn''t make sense.


    That was why she excluded students who, to her understanding, had a strong connection with Ayanok��ji.


    "So, why did you call me?"


    "You can''t have a smooth discussion if everyone''s clueless about Ayanok��ji-kun, right? I thought you''d tell us honestly."


    Someone with information was also indispensable to further the discussion.


    Maezono seemed proud as she said she''d chosen trustworthy people after giving it some thought.


    "I think I get it now. But is it really necessary to be so cautious while talking?"


    Shinohara was beginning to understand the situation, but she still found it a bit confusing.


    "For now, yes. It''s best if we can talk and find out there''s nothing going on... I mean, Ayanok��ji-kun''s existence is obviously odd, isn''t it?"


    The attendees exchanged nces.


    There was a moment of silence before someone unexpectedly backed up Maezono''s opinion.


    "...Honestly, there are some aspects that I find a bit mysterious too."


    Wang hesitated but admitted what she felt.


    "Right? I knew it!"


    d to find someone who agreed, Maezono couldn''t hide her joy.


    "Mysterious? What exactly do you mean?"


    Unsure of which point Wang was referring to, Shinohara leaned forward to hear her exnation.


    "Ayanok��ji''s OAA is likely higher in reality than what the school has disclosed and evaluated, whether it''s academic or physical ability."


    "Speaking of which, what''s his OAA like?"


    Not quite aware of Ayanok��ji''s OAA themselves, Ike showed it to Shinohara on his phone.


    "...It does seem odd. I can''t ept that he''s overall better than me."


    Ike looked at the disyed OAA with a serious expression.


    "No, that''s just because you''re no good, Kanji."


    "Ever since it was introduced, his OAA has significantly improved. It could be that he''s been working hard to develop his abilities like Sud��-kun, but there''s no evidence of that."


    Sud��, whose academic abilities had once been rated the lowest, being E, managed to improve his grades through daily study and an improved attitude, which was clear for the whole ss to see.


    On the other hand, no one had seen any signs of Ayanok��ji''s efforts. It seemed reasonable for Wang to find this strange as everyone suddenly became aware of his high test scores and sudden disy of speed.


    "So the conclusion is that he wasn''t giving it his all?"


    Maezono voiced something she''d been wanting to say even before gathering her friends.


    "That is a possibility."


    "So he''s holding back?"


    "Yeah, he wasn''t serious the whole time, right?"


    "What would be the point in that?"


    "Maybe he just hates working hard?"


    As each person had their own opinion, the discussion became more and more disorderly.


    "Wait a minute. I understand what you''re all saying, but it''s not necessarily true, is it? Ayanok��ji-kun doesn''t seem to enjoy standing out, so there''s a chance he was putting in effort secretly, right?"


    Matsushita interjected, trying to stop the flurry of negative spection. She pointed out the possibility that he''d been working on his abilities behind the scenes, just as Sud�� had done in front of everyone.


    If it turned out that he''d been hiding his abilities from the start, it would make a bad impression��as if he hadn''t been contributing to the ss. In that case, she wanted to steer the conversation in a more positive direction.


    "When we first entered the school, he didn''t seem amazing, but maybe he was desperately trying to improve himself. Look, I''ve been working hard recently, and making progress."


    Ike said without thinking too deeply, wanting to support Ayanok��ji.


    "Do you really get it, Ike-kun?"


    Maezono asked Ike, with a slightly angry tone.


    "Wh-what do you mean? Yeah right��as if I don''t know what I''m talking about."


    "But did you notice that, during the recent special exam, Ayanok��ji-kun managed to perfectly solve five questions?"


    "Well, I did notice that... but weren''t there others who got all of them right?"


    Students like Horikita and Hirata, with academic abilities of B or higher, had perfect scores.


    "The problems Ayanok��ji-kun solved were more difficult than the ones Horikita-san and the others solved. I checked other sses'' results, and even students with academic ability A made mistakes; it was a high difficulty level."


    Maezono strongly argued that it couldn''t be achieved with just a bit of effort.


    "But, you know, he was good at math, wasn''t he? Then it''s possible, right?"


    "Only one of the problems he solved was math. The others were two English questions, one chemistry question, and one modern literature question. It''s not just one subject."


    In gathering the seven people, Maezono had done her research beforehand and emphasized that Ayanok��ji wasn''t just strong in one specific subject.


    "Maybe that''s it��that''s what I felt was a bit strange."


    Wang, one of the better students among them, nodded in agreement.


    "Considering that, the gap between the OAA and his actual ability seems even greater than I thought."


    "Right? Right? Isn''t it strange?"


    Matsushita thought about interrupting Maezono''s conclusion, but she held back. It would clearly be a stretch to say that the exam happened to cover the areas he had studied. If she defended Ayanok��ji too much, it might''ve seemed like she was just protecting him.


    In fact, Matsushita wanted Ayanok��ji to contribute to the ss in the future and didn''t want him to unnecessarily umte disdain from the other students.


    That was why she decided not to openly support him at that point.


    "Maybe he just had a great hunch."


    Matsushita was saved by Ike''s innocent remark. While he wasn''t bent on defending Ayanok��ji, Ike naturally spoke for him, making it seem necessary to have him here.


    "No, it''s not just a hunch or a coincidence. Ayanok��ji-kun should''ve always been good at studying."


    Maezono clearly stated that it couldn''t be exined by luck or coincidence.


    "Are there any other reasons?"


    Wang seemed interested in the truth, so she asked. Maezono lowered her voice again.


    "I heard this from someone else, but... during the uninhabited ind exam this year, there were tests held all over the ind to get supplies and points, right? I heard that the academic tests Ayanok��ji-kun participated in were extremely difficult, but he answered them all correctly."


    The fact that he had high academic abilities since before the special exam in December acted as a credible truth in the discussion, although Maezono had mentioned that she heard it from someone.


    "I don''t know the truth... but yes. The image Ayanok��ji-kun gave off at the beginning of our enrollment and now hasn''t changed much... but somehow, the atmosphere around him drastically shifted. Hirata-kun seems to trust him a lot too. They call each other by their first names. I think he''s the only one Hirata-kun does that with."


    As someone who had been watching Hirata closer than anyone else and had feelings for him, Wang was most likely right. Everyone in the meeting listened to what she said with unspoken trust.


    "Horikita-san is the one leading our ss... but, behind the scenes, hasn''t Ayanok��ji-kun been involved more than once or twice?"


    In response to Maezono''s passionate plea, Onodera, Ike, and Shinohara nodded deeper in agreement.


    Matsushita listened to the conversations and realized that, once again, her ssmates were beginning to notice the potential Ayanok��ji possessed.


    Of course, this was because Ayanok��ji had been acting more openly than he had in his first year, but the problem was the possibility of him being negatively perceived.


    Considering this, Matsushita decided that it was time to move to a different position.


    "Maezono-san''s intuition might be right. Ayanok��ji-kun has maintained average grades for a long time, so even if he achieves good results now, it won''t immediately turn into an A or higher. But if he had been serious from the beginning, he might have at least had an A in terms of academics."


    Even the skeptical Matsushita admitted this, and Maezono''s face changed to a triumphant one.


    "Sud��-kun, do you know anything special about him? Preferably something that we don''t know."


    Expecting an interesting response, Maezono asked the hesitating Sud��.


    "What? Is there something? If there is, tell me."


    A woman''s intuition. Maezono caught onto his expression and pressed on. At the beginning of his second year, he witnessed the incident with H��sen and felt something: a glimpse of Ayanok��ji''s strength.


    Sud�� wondered whether he should tell them about these events. Although the series of incidents were hidden to make it seem like they never happened, there was no need for him to keep quiet about Ayanok��ji''s abilities, right?


    He questioned himself internally. If revealing the truth would cause problems, he should urge himself to keep silent.


    "...That''s right... You guys only pay attention to his studies, but I think his real strength isn''t just his academic ability."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You guys saw it too, right? Ayanok��ji''s speed in the ry race. He''s faster than me."


    Although they never directlypeted at full strength, Sud�� admitted defeat before even trying.


    However, at this stage, the surrounding people weren''t too surprised; after all, they had already seen his extraordinary ability when hepeted against the former student council president, Horikita Manabu.


    "Well, that''s true, but everyone knows that already, right?"


    But what Sud�� actually wanted to convey was different.


    "Besides, he''s not just fast. To be honest, it''s a bit frustrating, but his overall athletic ability is better than mine."


    "B-better than you!?"


    Sud�� continued, choosing his words carefully so as to urately convey Ayanok��ji''s impressiveness.


    "If I can beat him in anything, it''s probably just basketball. And even then, I''d rather not y against him. I don''t feel like I''d lose, but I have an inkling I''d be pushed to my limits as we y��like an intuition, I guess."


    The fact that Sud��, who had the top athletic abilities in their year, was conceding defeat added a strange sense of reality to that unbelievable understanding.


    "It would be amazing if it''s true, but what''s your basis for this?"


    Excited yet skeptical, Maezono urged Sud�� to provide a convincing exnation.


    Deciding that he couldn''t talk about the incident with H��sen, he made up a story.


    "I had a fight with Ayanok��ji before. I got into an argument and tried to punch him, but I couldn''tnd a single hit. It''s like... I could feel his impressiveness while fighting him."


    Sud�� lied while taking a sip of water.


    During this time, he remembered the moment when he faced H��sen. Sud�� couldn''t do anything against him, yet Ayanok��ji dealt with him without any hesitation. And he calmly handled the terrifying situation of being stabbed with a knife.


    Having witnessed a reality that made him realize he couldn''t win even if they fought, Sud��''s true feelings in his story made it more believable, and Maezono seemed convinced.


    "I wonder if Karuizawa-san started dating Ayanok��ji-kun because she realized he was more high-spec than Hirata-kun? ...If so, that''s an incredible sense of smell."


    Maezono expressed her candid impressions in a half-admiring, half-exasperated tone.


    "Well, I did wonder before why Karuizawa chose to date Ayanok��ji, you know."


    It was something that couldn''t be understood unless one experienced Ayanok��ji''s magnificence up close.


    "If Karuizawa saw through it, it makes sense why she chose Ayanok��ji."


    But now, a different emotion rose in Sud��.


    If so, there''s no reason for Ayanok��ji to make Karuizawa his girlfriend, he thought.


    Setting aside her appearance, her personality wasn''t overwhelmingly attractive.


    However, this was his ownpletely subjective opinion, so he refrained from voicing it here.


    "From your point of view, Ken, this is a pretty incredible assessment. Even after being told, I still don''t quite get it."


    Ike said, unable to feel anything even after Sud�� exined himself.


    "It''s not unreasonable. After all, this is something you can''t understand unless you experience it yourself."


    "Indeed. So, what do you think we should do to understand his brilliance?"


    Maezono asked Sud��, wanting to prove it somehow.


    "Well, how about this... you suddenly attack him from behind."


    "No, no, that''s a sneak attack."


    "Even with a sneak attack, you won''t be able to hit Ayanok��ji."


    "I can do it if it''s a sneak attack. But I won''t do it because it''s unfair."


    "Do you want to give it a try from the front? It''s got a 0% chance, man, 0%."


    "Who knows? I''m pretty confident in my fighting skills."


    Ike stood up and punched out with his right and left fists alternately.


    He said, "shush," with his mouth, but there was no sharpness in his movements.


    "You''ve never been in a proper fight, have you?"


    Shinohara said exasperatedly, urging him to sit down because it was embarrassing.


    "Ugh, shut up. I don''t bully the weak."


    "Alright, alright."


    "Well, let''s put aside the fight for now. If this is true, I''d really like Ayanok��ji to go all out. If so, our ss would be secure, and we might even be able to move up to ss A, right?"


    If a significant contribution could be made using his academic and physical abilities, the ss would benefit.


    Ike mentioned that the situation should improve beyond the current state.


    "That''s true. As ssmates, we should ask him to cooperate, don''t you think?"


    Wang expressed that if they had a strong ally in the ss, they should definitely ask for help.


    "I agree. After winter break, let''s ask him directly."


    Considering the situation, there was no reason anyone would object, and Shinohara immediately agreed with the statement.


    The growing expectations for Ayanok��ji��although this was something Matsushita had always hoped for, at the same time, she felt that they mustn''t make a big mistake.


    "Wait, let me give you a piece of advice. I understand the desire to depend on and feel reassured by Ayanok��ji-kun, but it''s best not to say or demand that in public."


    "Why not? If we don''t say something, he won''t be proactive, right?"


    Shinoharained, saying that they wouldn''t stand a chance if he went back to being the unnoticed student he was before.


    "That may be true. However, we should also consider why he''s been so quiet until now, shouldn''t we?"


    Sensing Ayanok��ji''s feelings, the passionate students softened their criticism.


    For a while, Sud��, who had been a listener, seemed to be satisfied and deliberately drew attention with a cough.


    "Yeah, if he didn''t like standing out so much, provoking him unnecessarily could backfire."


    "Yeah, wouldn''t it be a loss if he became uncooperative? Like when he got all the answers right in that special exam; he''s willing to help us."


    Having exined the risk of forcing him into the limelight, Shinohara and the others seemed to feel the apanying danger.


    "I agree. If he''s someone unpredictable when left alone like K��enji-kun, it would be different, but he''s not that type. I think it''s fine to treat him as we always have."


    As if to reinforce the point, Onodera strongly agreed with both Matsushita and Sud�� and exined her reasoning.


    In this gathering, all eight people shared amon understanding.


    Ayanok��ji was a skilled person beyond the OAA.


    And from then on, as they expected him to show his skills, they wouldn''t rush him.


    However, only Maezono, who nned the gathering, had a different idea.


    "Is it really okay like that?"


    "Huh?"


    "I understand that Ayanok��ji-kun is an amazing student, but because of that, I feel scared, and creeped out. I mean, he specifically named Sakura-san, who was in the same close-knit group as him, to be dropped out, right? He also cornered Kushida-san... If Ayanok��ji-kun puts his mind to it, he could even make someone in our ss drop out."


    The group had been absorbed in the conversation. Having gathered for over an hour, one by one, groups of students were entering and leaving the cafe.


    One student, who arrived a few minutes before the first person appeared within the group, Wang, finished their drink and left their seat with an empty cup in hand.


    "It was an unavoidable decision. Our ss had no way to seed other than to force someone to drop out due to Kushida''s choices. Choosing the dropout based on the OAA standard without personal feelings is reasonable."


    Sud�� immediately countered, and everyone, including Ike, widened their eyes.


    "What, did I say something weird?"


    Maezono was puzzled at Sud��''s panic.


    "Rather than weird... "


    Matsushita continued as if to take over.


    "I''ve been feeling that you seem more intelligent in the way you talk and speakpared to a while ago. People do grow up, huh?"


    "What? What''s that about?"


    "I mean, if it was the previous Sud��-kun, you wouldn''t have been able to say words like ''personal feelings'' or ''reasonable,'' right?"


    "Yeah, I agree," Onodera added.


    "No, that''s normal. How much do you underestimate me?"


    "Doesn''t that mean you''ve grown that much?"


    Onodera showed a happy expression as if she was being praised.


    "Stop joking around. Uh, what was it... Yeah, Ayanok��ji isn''t a bad guy."


    Feeling embarrassed about being praised, Sud�� awkwardly tried to return to the topic.


    "I know. It was a test where someone absolutely had to drop out. But do you remember the previous exchange with Kushida-san? The relentless way he cornered her... It was emotionless... like a machine, you know?"


    "Ayanok��ji didn''t want to do that either. He had no choice but to be ruthless."


    Sud�� still stood by Ayanok��ji''s side, defending him.


    "In a simr situation, would you let Ayanok��ji-kun make an emotionless decision again?"


    "It''s not that I rely solely on Ayanok��ji, but isn''t it necessary to make objective judgments?"


    "Objective, huh? Do you think that''s a good idea too?"


    Maezono asked, vaguely ncing at Ike and Shinohara.


    Students whose names were listed at the bottom of the ss due to the OAA.


    A premonition of the future that Ayanok��ji would choose the next expulsion candidate.


    "Well, it''s true that Ayanok��ji''s approach is a bit... How should I put it? Having many friends is a respectable ability, and I want that taken into consideration too. If I were to be expelled, Satsuki would cry, and that wouldn''t be efficient, right?"


    "Absolutely not."


    Shinohara clung to Ike''s arm, refusing to let go.


    "There''s also the previous case where Hasebe-san had been incredibly distressed for a long time due to that situation..."


    In light of this recent fact, even Wang''s expression became clouded.


    "In my opinion, right now, it''s still fine. But... I definitely think we should avoid a future where Ayanok��ji-kun bes the ss leader," Maezono said.


    Those words expressed the invisible fears within her.


    "There''s no way Ayanok��ji would be a leader. That''s not his style, right?"


    "Can''t say that for sure. If he has the ability, I think he''ll be recognized as the ss leader."


    "I would wee it. If Ayanok��ji-kun truly has the ability, I wouldn''t mind him being the leader."


    Matsushita, who prided herself on her excellence, believed that it would be ideal for Ayanok��ji to eventually take charge of the ss. Lower-ranking students would have to fear the risk of being expelled, but on the other hand, those in the upper ranks would have a sense of security knowing they wouldn''t be expelled as long as they didn''t disrupt the ss order.


    However, Horikita, who fought as their leader, was different. It wasn''t impossible for her to be swayed by emotions. You wouldn''t know what reason you''d be cut for, so you couldn''t be too careful.


    "I strongly oppose Ayanok��ji-kun being the leader."


    "Then what do you think would be ideal, Maezono-san?"


    Matsushita expressed her concern to Maezono and wanted to know what she thought.


    "Well, that''s��"


    She tried to answer in a hurry, but she stumbled on her words. Perhaps she didn''t have a clear answer of her own.


    "Isn''t that why we''re discussing like this? Because we don''t know?"


    She forcibly gave an evasive answer.


    "Anyway, there''s no way we can find the answer by discussing Ayanok��ji-kun''s approach any further. Also, no matter what anyone says, the current leader of the ss is Horikita-san. If we want to delve deeper into this conversation, we need to invite her, right?"


    Matsushita conveyed her stern words as softly as possible.


    It wasn''t that she wanted to argue with Maezono.


    She didn''t want to move the conversation centered around herself in that situation.


    What they should do now was gather information and prevent actions that would hinder Ayanok��ji from improving the ss.


    Although Matsushita understood the lower-ranking students'' fear of his cold judgment, it didn''t concern her.


    She silently apologized in her heart.


    "But... maybe there''s something we could discover if we keep talking?"


    Maezono still seemed hesitant to end the discussion, but after that, the conversation didn''t expand any further, and the topic eventually shifted to the events on Christmas Eve.

 Chapter 394: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 394: 4.1</h4>


    Just before 2 p.m. on the same day, a male student stuffed an empty cup into a trash can outside Keyaki Mall, and a female student appeared, ring at him.


    Since both were from the same ss, the male student raised his hand cheerfully.


    "Yo, Masumi-chan. You arrived earlier than I thought."


    "Can you stop calling me that? And don''t call me out on a holiday."


    "Don''t say that. I''ve got some interesting information today."


    "I know you like gathering info, but don''t involve me in it."


    "Harsh. This is quite useful, you know?"


    "Then report it to Sakayanagi, and earn some brownie points yourself."


    "I have other things in mind too. The only person I can talk to honestly in ss is you, Masumi-chan."


    "That''s a lie, isn''t it?"


    "It''s not. At least you can voice your opinions to the princess without fear."


    Hashimoto answered, appreciating that point.


    "So what? That has nothing to do with being honest. I dislike such a casual approach."


    Even when she clearly expressed she hated it, Hashimoto showed no signs of concern and tried to continue the conversation.


    "Well, just listen. Let me tell you what I overheard."


    Having said that, Hashimoto conveyed that he had eavesdropped on a group''s conversation at Keyaki Mall during the day. Based on the recorded facts on his cell phone, he began to exin and supplement in his own words.


    It was about a topic discussed by Sud�� and seven other students in ss B.


    By the time she finished listening, Kamuro, who had no interest whatsoever, showed a change in attitude.


    "Right? Interesting story, wasn''t it?"


    "I knew some of it to some extent."


    "Horikita isn''t the core of ss B after all. The glimpses shown on the uninhabited ind, the strange uneasiness and flow up to this point, and behind the unanimous special exam. There''s something far more radical than I imagined going on. It can''t be easy to cut off a girl from a group you were friends with, could it? It meant that he could be extremely ruthless. She was cute too, even if she was a bit in."


    "What does her appearance have to do with this?"


    "It definitely matters. If Sakura were ugly, you might think that cutting her off wouldn''t be a big deal. Her appearance matters more than you think."


    Hashimoto insisted, but Kamuro didn''t agree. However, she showed some understanding towards the first part of his statement.


    "Ayanok��ji can make ruthless decisions based solely on interests, regardless of how close he is to someone."


    "That''s right. And at least during the point of the unanimous special exam, Ayanok��ji''s cement within the ss was not high at all. It''s extremely difficult for someone like that to control and guide the ss."


    Hashimoto made sure to lock and save the recording on his cell phone so that it wouldn''t be identally deleted.


    "By the way, I''ve been wondering about something since earlier."


    "What is it?"


    "How could you eavesdrop on such an important conversation?"


    "It was just a coincidence. I was lucky."


    Hashimoto answered without hesitation, but Kamuro didn''t believe it at all.


    "Coincidence, huh?"


    Hashimoto''s recorded audio data started from the point when the members of Horikita''s ss began gathering at the caf��.


    It was unlikely that he''d predict such an important conversation, considering the higher possibility of engaging in meaningless small talk.


    Even if he was randomly collecting information, could there be such a convenient coincidence?


    "Really? You''re doubting that it was just a coincidence?"


    "Not necessarily. I won''t pry if you don''t want to talk about it. Let it be a coincidence, right?"


    Deciding that it was wisest not to dig too deeply, Kamuro chose not to probe any further.


    Moreover, Hashimoto showed no signs of answering Kamuro''s question.


    "So? It was certainly interesting information, but what''s next? What''s the significance of knowing this?"


    "Before reaching a conclusion, if it''s confirmed that Ayanok��ji isn''t a normal guy, then I''m curious about where, when, and what he''s been doing from the time he entered the school up until now. Upon admission, that troublemaker Ry��en was rampaging around, but he''s suddenly grown quiet. And recently, there''s been an increasing number of interactions between him and Ayanok��ji, right?"


    While skillfully incorporating facts he already knew, Hashimoto made assumptions and predictions for Kamuro.


    "...Is it that Ry��en lost to Ayanok��ji, who was hiding behind Horikita?"


    "Ry��en isn''t the kind of guy who gets hung up on just one victory or defeat. If this flow is correct, it wasn''t just a mere loss. I''d say he lost to Ayanok��ji, demonstrating an overwhelming difference in ability."


    "If that''s the case, what''s the reason for Ry��en''s involvement with him afterward? Aiming for revenge?"


    "That could be on his mind as well. But perhaps it''s also rted to Ayanok��ji''s character. If he believes that he can get Ayanok��ji on his side, and work in his favor, it''s better to have him as an ally rather than an enemy, right?"


    "In other words, he''s using Ayanok��ji to his advantage... That''s just like Ry��en, isn''t it?"


    He wouldn''t just ept defeat. He was always persistent, just as everyone imagined.


    "There''s that too, but in this case, there''s more to it."


    "More?"


    "Ry��en probably uses Ayanok��ji for his own benefit, but Ayanok��ji undoubtedly knows this. It''s more like, ''Try your best because I''m letting you use me.''"


    "What does Ayanok��ji gain in doing that? Supporting Horikita from the shadows makes more sense for advancing the ss."


    "Who knows? Maybe he wants Ry��en to help crush Ichinose and Sakayanagi? If Ayanok��ji isn''t the type to take the spotlight, depending on the aggressive Ry��en seems like a sensible idea, right?"


    "I suppose it could be."


    "I''ve always been suspicious of it, but the thick mist is gradually clearing. Ayanok��ji, who belongs to Horikita''s ss, is the most troublesome enemy. And..."


    For a moment, Hashimoto hesitated, but he continued.


    "Ayanok��ji''s capabilities are greater than Sakayanagi''s."


    "Can you say that for sure?"


    "Yeah, I don''t n on attaching ''possibly'' or ''probably'' anymore. I was convinced by today''s conversation."


    No matter who the target was, normally, such an overestimation was impossible.


    "If what you''re saying is correct, we''re in big trouble."


    "Big trouble indeed. Most importantly, at the end of the third term, huge amounts of points are expected to be at stake in the final exam. If we lose to Ry��en, we won''t be able to escape."


    Hashimoto calmly stated something that no one in ss A would say.


    Kamuro was slightly annoyed by this and stared at him.


    The future confrontation with Ayanok��ji''s ss was yet to be determined.


    Though they were bound to sh eventually, it was possible that it was still a ways away.


    What needed to be concerned about first was the final exam, conducted at the end of the third term.


    "So you think we''re going to lose to Ry��en there, huh? That''s why you''re concerned about ss A''s future. Or perhaps you''re even wishing for our failure?"


    "I don''t want to lose. And Masumi-chan, you get mad when I say something like that."


    Despite knowing that he didn''t have faith in Sakayanagi, Hashimoto was a little surprised.


    But that wasn''t the reason for Kamuro''s anger.


    "I just don''t like your negative thinking. You always assume the same thing."


    "I won''t deny being pessimistic. But it''s not bad to prepare for the worst."


    In this school, you never knew what kind of turnaround or loophole might be in y.


    Hashimoto was always cautious about that, but of course, he couldn''t cope with everything.


    "So you foresee, and then...? All you can do is let yourself have some room for your feelings."


    Kamuro, who concluded that it was futile, got tired of the repeated negative remarks.


    "Don''t say that. You''re the only one I can talk to about this, Masumi-chan."


    "Ugh..."


    Although Kamuro was being used by Sakayanagi, she didn''tpletely surrender her heart.


    She wouldin if she didn''t like something, and without hesitation, she would refuse depending on the situation.


    Sakayanagi liked that aspect of her, and so did Hashimoto.


    "Having some room in your heart isn''t a bad thing, is it?"


    Returning a joke, of course, was just one of the byproducts of Hashimoto mentally preparing himself for the worst-case scenario.


    "If we continue to be in the same ss, that would be true."


    By adding a single phrase, another meaning was created in the pessimistic thinking.


    "If you''re talking about the ss change ticket, it''s a risky bet. I can''t imagine it being given to the losing ss, and even if we could get it by the end of the school year, there would only be a limited time to use it."


    The ss change ticket, while seemingly versatile, actually had little merit.


    The higher ranked the ss, the less reason there was to move to a lower one.


    "Even if we lose in your worst-case scenario, we''d only be at a draw at best. Even if you were lucky enough to get a ss change ticket in that state, could you use it? Even assuming Ayanok��ji''s ability is the best in the school year, it would take a lot of resolve to jump in."


    Even if Ayanok��ji''s ss rose to ss A temporarily, the closer they were to a draw, the more likely it would be for the positions to switch in a single special exam.


    If Sakayanagi retaliated and rose again, the ss change would lead to a major failure.


    However, there might be a chance of being saved if he''d be lucky enough to get a ss change ticket from Ayanok��ji''s ss again, but that was just a series of hypotheticals.


    "It''s something you can''t use unless we''re clearly losing steam, like Ichinose''s ss."


    This kind of discussion wasn''t only conducted by Hashimoto and Kamuro.


    It was one of thosemon topics that were casually being discussed among students.


    "There''s more than one way to switch sses, right?"


    "If you''re talking about spending 20 million points, it''s utterly impossible. It''s even more unrealistic."


    Kamuro continued with an exasperated tone.


    On the other hand, Hashimoto always took into consideration the possibility of cooperation among sses, not individuals.


    "I know it''s none of my business, but what about taking advantage of the situation like that?"


    Kamuro didn''t say it explicitly, but Sakayanagi was always aware that Hashimoto was making suspicious moves. He himself had reported such activities several times. She was probably watching over them after having various students from different years investigate as well.


    If he showed signs of betraying the ss and making a move, he''d be immediately targeted.


    "All that matters is that, in the end, you''re in ss A. It''s a simple story that seems difficult."


    "I get what you''re saying, but it''s better for you not to think about strange things."


    As a ssmate, she offered him advice and a warning.


    Hashimoto responded with a small thank you, but his attitude was far from receptive.


    It''s not that I want to betray anyone.


    I just can''t rely solely on Sakayanagi if I want to graduate in ss A.


    The initial dominance of one strong ss has faded, and now three powerful sses are breathing down our necks.


    Well, I''ve always considered the possibility of three formidable sses.


    But my miscalction was thinking that Ichinose''s ss would stand out among them.


    Up until the middle of our second year, I never truly realized the impact Ayanok��ji had.


    Despite having scouted him several times, he never showed any obvious signs of being a powerhouse.


    It was probably intentional.


    But in thest few months, Ayanok��ji had been taking actions that stood out, making his previously inconspicuous behavior seem like a lie. He had originally seemed uninterested in the ss struggles. What caused this change?


    Perhaps he had intended to win from the beginning.


    Had he held back until this point just to decide when to propel the ss forward?


    Questions surfaced and disappeared one after another.


    I can see the whole picture with Sakayanagi, Ry��en, and Ichinose.


    What kind of person they are and what kind of motives they have.


    But I can''t see that from Ayanok��ji.


    He''s a troublesome existence.


    "For now, I still want more information. I n to investigate Ayanok��ji and his surroundings again."


    "You can do that on your own, can''t you?"


    Sakayanagi''s never ordered me not to scout or gather information on Ayanok��ji.


    Kamuro also thought that if I was curious, I could act as I pleased.


    In fact, today''s audio data is valuable for the uing battle.


    However, he suddenly realized something.


    From an early pointst year, Sakayanagi had instructed Kamuro alone to investigate Ayanok��ji.


    I wonder how much she had been able to gauge Ayanok��ji''s abilities at that point.


    But could she have really seen his true power at that time?


    In that moment, a possibility was born in Kamuro''s mind.


    Could it be that Sakayanagi had known of Ayanok��ji''s abilities from an unimaginable source...?


    "Hey, Masumi-chan?"


    As a hand waved in front of her, Kamuro, whose mind had been elsewhere, quickly brushed it away.


    "...What?"


    "No, you were just spacing out. This is an important conversation, you know?"


    Kamuro stopped thinking for a moment and listened to Hashimoto''s story.


    "I have a bad feeling about this."


    "Would you help me get in touch with Ayanok��ji? Together, I mean."


    "...Why me?"


    "I''m definitely being cautious. Ry��en might be pulling the strings."


    "Even if I''m there, Ayanok��ji would still be cautious. Rather, he''ll be even more so if I''m around."


    "If the number of opponents double, Ayanok��ji''s caution also increases. If we have four eyes and ears, the information we gather will double, right?"


    "I''m okay with that proposal, but I have one condition."


    "Oh, what''s that?"


    "Never call me Masumi-chan again. This is an absolute condition."


    "O-oh, okay. Kamuro-chan will do... right?"


    It seemed like they reached an agreement here, but Kamuro continued.


    "Also, there''s one more thing. I''ll be the only one who makes contact with Ayanok��ji."


    "Only you?"


    At her proposal, Hashimoto showed a puzzled face.


    "If I''m seen with you, Sakayanagi might sniff us out, and it might cause unnecessary misunderstandings."


    "I can''t deny that."


    It was a request for a solo mission, fearing that Ayanok��ji''s caution would increase.


    However, for Hashimoto, it wasn''t an attractive offer.


    "I''ll look into what you want to know. Compromise with that."


    But if he insisted on apanying her, Kamuro would decisively pretend the conversation had never happened.


    On top of that, she refused to let him call her Masumi for some reason.


    Through their nearly two-year rtionship, Hashimoto hade to understand Kamuro well.


    "Well... guess there''s no choice. Okay, let''s team up."


    Agreeing for now, Hashimoto extended his right hand.


    Without returning the handshake, Kamuro simply sent him a cold gaze.


    "You''re always so cold. I really like you, Kamuro-chan, you know?"


    "I don''t know how you can say that when you have a girlfriend."


    "Oh, if I break up with her, will you go out with me?"


    "Not a chance."


    Hashimoto pretended to be disappointed, holding his forehead. Kamuro shook her head, ying along with his farce.


    "I''m leaving already."


    "Sorry to have kept you. But make sure to tell me the date and time of the n."


    On that point alone, Hashimoto was insistent.

 Chapter 395: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 395: 4.2</h4>


    On the same day, each student was busy with their own intentions.


    Without knowing such things, even I would spend the day with an unusual group of people. December 26��the day after Christmas.


    This day was also known as the day when the least number of cakes were sold in a year.


    Well, to be more precise, there was a period when it was famous for being a day when cakes didn''t sell. There were various theories, but one of the reasons was that Christmas would have already passed.


    Japanese people would quickly switch their mood to the New Year after Christmas.


    In recent years, it seemed that the habit of eating cakes all year round without being bound only by events had been established.


    However, it was still a day when cakes didn''t sell well throughout the year.


    That was why some people intentionally bought cakes at a discount, like a 50% off, on the 26th.


    When I woke up in the morning, I didn''t particrly care and thought I''d spend the whole day in my room.


    This was because Kei was expected to recover soon. Her fever had already subsided, and she seemed to be gradually regaining her ability to move.


    If Kei wished to restore our rtionship in the future, then we''d return to how our rtionship was before.


    The room was clean enough, but there must have been dust and dirt in ces I couldn''t see.


    I decided to thoroughly clean it up today. I lined up the cleaning supplies I prepared in advance on the table and started the battle.


    As such, my lonely chores began in the morning.


    I moved the furniture, wiped down everything with a cloth, and thoroughly disinfected everything with alcohol.


    Of course, after finishing my room, I moved on to the toilet, bath, and closet. Finally, by the time the kitchen waspleted, the sun had already set. It wasn''t snowing at the time, but there was no sign of any snow melting yet either.


    "Unsold Christmas cakes, huh?"


    The 26th was almost over. Most of the cakes that couldn''t be sold on this day would be discarded based on the expiration date.


    I wondered if they were on sale.


    I don''t need a whole cake, but if there are slices being sold at a discount, I might want to buy one. With that in mind, I decided to head to Keyaki Mall while I watched the setting sun.

 Chapter 396: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 396: 4.3</h4>


    In the evening, Keyaki Mall showed a different scene. Now that Christmas had passed, the trees were already removed in various ces, and preparations for the New Year were underway.


    There wasn''t a store specifically for cakes in Keyaki Mall, so I headed to the cake section in the mall''s supermarket. However��


    "It''s not here."


    The regr cakes were on disy, but I couldn''t find any discounted ones.


    The special Christmas corner''s been removed, and I can''t even find a whole cake. Did they all sell out, or were they already discarded?


    Since the mall was located within the school grounds, the number of customers was limited, so they may not have stocked too much.


    I wasn''t particrly craving it, but I couldn''t help feeling a little disappointed now that it wasn''t avable.


    Even so, it wasn''t worth buying at the full price and bringing back.


    I didn''t want to waste money here, even though I made a pointless trip.


    For now, I went around the inside of the supermarket two or three times to see if there was anything I needed, but in the end, I left the store empty-handed.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Just as I was about to leave Keyaki Mall, I was called out from the side.


    Sakayanagi, sitting on a bench and waving her hand toward me, was the one who called.


    "Are you going home now?"


    "Yes."


    "It seems you''ve only been here for about 15 minutes."


    "Have you been watching?"


    "I just saw you leaving the dormitory."


    I see. In that case, it''s not surprising that she''d want to call out to me. I had left the dormitory just a few minutes ago and was leaving without buying anything.


    I told her about Kei being bedridden with the flu and spending Christmas without doing anything. In addition, I talked abouting to the supermarket thinking that I might''ve been able to eat a cake at a cheap price.


    "Is that so?"


    "I missed the timing, so the opportunity slipped away."


    If I didn''t eat it even on the 25th, I would be off course this year.


    "I couldn''t have it today, but I''ll eat it next year."


    "Hehe."


    Sakayanagi, still seated on the bench,ughed elegantly.


    "What''s so funny?"


    "No one can guarantee they''ll be able to eat cake at this school next year, right?"


    "...Indeed."


    "In your case, if you go back to your parents, you''ll be living a life without cake."


    "I wouldn''t be able to get a cake even on my birthday."


    Should I go back to the supermarket now?


    Sakayanagi, who couldn''t see my shallow thinking, stood up with her cane.


    "By the way, I don''t rmend the supermarket''s cake."


    "Is that so?"


    "I hate to say it, but it''s a mass-produced product that could be found anywhere. It has to be handmade by a craftsman."


    "But there are limited ces where you can buy a cake."


    "The convenience store also has surprisingly good options."


    Oh, right. The Mont nc that Sakayanagi brought before was from a convenience store, I think.


    "In order to get a truly satisfying taste, you have to order it."


    Sakayanagi started walking and stopped as she passed by.


    "Would you mind apanying me for a while?"


    "Where to? Going out alone with the leader of ss A would stand out too much."


    "Don''t worry. Our one-on-one time will end soon."


    No sooner after Sakayanagi said that, she lightly raised her hand in a direction away from me


    A male student who spotted Sakayanagi then quickly approached her.


    "I''m sorry, Sakayanagi-san. Did I keep you waiting?"


    "You''re a bitte. But, thanks to that, I was able to kill some enjoyable time, so it''s fine."


    It seemed that the time she killed was our casual chat.


    "Sanada-kun, have you ever spoken to Ayanok��ji-kun before?"


    "No. Actually, today''s the first time."


    While bowing politely to me, Sanada answered her question.


    As a student from the same year, I had seen his face several times. However, there were no opportunities to talk face-to-face until now, so it was the first time as Sanada said.


    His name was Sanada Kousei. His OAA was as follows:


    Academic Ability �C A


    Physical Ability �C C+


    Adaptability �C B+


    Social Contribution �C B+


    Overall Ability �C B


    He was an extremely talented person with an A in academic ability��something only a limited number of second-year students could obtain.


    His physical ability was average, and there were no outstanding weaknesses in other areas.


    Although Sanada was an honor student, I had never seen him with Sakayanagi before.


    As I had been interacting with more and more ss A students recently, I was reminded of how little contact I had with Sakayanagi''s ssmates.


    At least, it didn''t seem like the two of them just happened to be together by chance.


    "I''ve always wanted to talk to you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    His speech was polite, and his demeanor was gentle.


    It didn''t feel bad to have someone of the same sex take an interest in me.


    "Is that so?"


    I didn''t think I had done anything to attract Sanada''s attention.


    "Oh really? What aspects caught your eye?"


    On my behalf, Sakayanagi asked Sanada that question.


    "He''s recently stood out in ss B, and also��"


    Without breaking his smiling posture, Sanada approached me.


    Then he gently grabbed my right arm and moved me away from Sakayanagi, who was standing next to me.


    "Excuse me, but what kind of rtionship do you have with Sakayanagi-san?"


    "What kind? Well, there''s nothing special between us, really."


    "She''s the leader of ss 2-A. She isn''t someone you can approach without reason."


    I wonder if he perceives me as a strong enemy.


    From his polite words, an unknown anger��or rather, a wariness, seeped out.


    "It''s also odd that she seems so friendly in a one-on-one situation with the opposite sex."


    That was an interesting way to put it. I wanted to say that it wasn''t like that, but it was difficult.


    Sakayanagi usually didn''t take much individual action. In fact, she acted with others a good amount.


    A one-on-one with Sakayanagi, especially with the opposite sex, was rare.


    Even if it was amon sight among ssmates, people from other sses wouldn''t be able to grasp that fact.


    No, it''s better not to overthink things.


    It might''ve been a separate issue how much I picked up from Sanada''s wording and whether he was intentionally cherry-picking. If anything, it would be faster to pretend to be someone oblivious who didn''t notice anything when dealing with such an opponent.


    "Last year, during the final exam, I had a chance to talk with her. Our rtionship is neither more nor less than that."


    I better give a firm answer and keep it vague.


    Regardless of the intention behind his question, this was the better choice.


    "I see. I understand. Sorry for asking in such a scary way."


    "I don''t mind."


    "Have the two of you gentlemen finished catching up?"


    "Yes. Ayanok��ji-kun, if it''s alright with you, could you apany us for a little while after this? Of course, only if Sakayanagi-san allows it."


    "Hm?"


    "Oh, what a coincidence, Sanada-kun. I was also thinking of inviting him."


    I didn''t really understand, but Sakayanagi and Sanada seemed to have the same ideas, smiling at each other.


    I was led by the two of them, moving farther away from the exit and walking back into the mall.


    "Here it is."


    In no time, we arrived at a general store.


    It was a popr store with a variety of small items that were particrly popr among girls.


    The ss A students entered the store without hesitation and began to look for something.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, please wait for a moment. If you''d like, please feel free to look around the store."


    Even if I was told to look around, I wasn''t told any specifics, so all I could do was watch from the side.


    The quiet conversation between the two was being drowned out by the store''s background music, and I couldn''t partake in the conversation. As a result, I reluctantly distanced myself.


    Then, without any particr purpose, I wandered around the store to pass the time.


    I waited five minutes, then ten minutes, and their conversation only became more lively. There was no sign of their shoppinging to an end.


    When I had finally run out of things to see in the store and approached to check on them, Sanada hurriedly reached into his pocket.


    "Excuse me, I need to make a phone call."


    After giving a polite excuse, Sanada walked outside the store and stopped.


    "Today, I was on a date with Sanada-kun. I spent Christmas with him."


    "Is that so? That''s news to me."


    I thought there was a slight date-like atmosphere, but that was an unexpected new fact.


    <Illustration>


    However, until now, I didn''t know that Sakayanagi had such a partner. Was there an event that caused a major change in their rtionship just before Christmas? Or had they been maintaining a close rtionship without making it public?


    "But is it okay to be so open about it? If people find out how important he is, it wouldn''t be strange if someonees after him as a weakness in the future."


    Protecting oneself and protecting a third party were at entirely different difficulty levels. In Sakayanagi''s case, having limited mobility meant a higher possibility of falling behind.


    "Of course, I suppose you have that much confidence in yourself... but what''s going on?"


    Sakayanagi remained silent and stared at me in response to my analysis. Or rather, was she angry?


    "Didn''t you understand it was just a little joke?"


    "Which part?"


    "Well, it''s not that Sanada-kun and I had a date nned."


    "Huh?"


    I was confused considering that she said theplete opposite of what I understood.


    "I''m sorry, Sakayanagi-san. I kept you waiting."


    After ending the phone call, Sanada apologized and slowly returned to us.


    "How did it go?"


    "Good. I made the arrangement."


    He blushed slightly, stroked his own cheek, and happily smiled.


    "The person on the phone was Miya-san from ss 1-B. She recently started dating Sanada-kun. I was just giving him some advice on what to give her as a present."


    This story was entirely different from what I was first told. Apparently, that had been a joke.


    I didn''t quite understand the humor, but it didn''t seem like a situation to argue, so I let it pass.


    "I gave her a well-thought-out present for Christmas, but then her birthday''s just four days after. Since we just started dating, I thought about giving her one present for both asions, but I wondered if it would be better to celebrate twice."


    So that''s what it was.


    Indeed, if one''s birthday was close to a major event like Christmas, for couples, it might''ve been hard to decide how to celebrate.


    It would be easier tobine the celebrations, but there was also the possibility that the person being celebrated might not appreciate it.


    "Anyway, she''s your kouhai, huh? How did that happen?"


    "It''s because of our club activities. I belong to the band club, and she''s my kouhai there."


    I see. I overlooked the fact that those in cultural clubs might be friends.


    Spending time together in club activities allowed them to get to know each other and deepen their bond.


    "But I''m surprised, Sakayanagi. You give advice on such matters too?"


    "I don''t think I''m the best fit, but Sanada-kun seems to be keeping their rtionship a secret for now. There seem to be various things going on in club activities."


    She answered while still giving me a slightly displeased look.


    I wondered if there were restrictions on dating a senpai or kouhai, or if there was a rule prohibiting romance for a certain period after joining the club. It was unclear, but such constraints might exist.


    Of course, even if they did, it was more likely an unspoken rule agreed upon by the students rather than an official school rule.


    If it had been made explicit, it would''ve been impossible to apply only to the band club.


    "As expected of Sakayanagi-san, huh? I mean, you noticed it."


    The sharp Sakayanagi must have sensed the change in her ssmates and probably collected information.


    That was why Sanada decided to rely on her as well.


    "I understand the situation, but why did you invite me?"


    It would be understandable if I were to y some advisory role, but I didn''t give a single piece of advice. The two of them had already decided on a present.


    "Well..."


    Instead of a slightly troubled Sanada, Sakayanagi told the truth.


    "I just wanted to tease you a little."


    "Was that why you said that earlier?"


    "Yes. Unfortunately, you weren''t surprised or suspicious."


    There was some surprise, but no suspicion.


    To begin with, I didn''t have much interest in who she does or doesn''t date.


    "Please don''t take it seriously. The reason I invited you was so it wouldn''t be mistaken for a date. What would you think if you saw me and Sanada-kun together?"


    "There might be some misunderstandings."


    If I mixed in, it would be two boys and one girl.


    This way, his kouhai girlfriend wouldn''t have any doubts whether or not it was a date.


    "It would''ve been better to invite someone else earlier, but that would''ve revealed the fact that Sanada-kun had a girlfriend. I was nning to invite someone by pretending that I just so happened to be there outside of the supermarket."


    It seemed that I was the one who was chosen for that role.


    Was it right to talk to them? Was it wrong?


    In this case, I got to know Sanada, so I guess it was right.


    I didn''t see what the present was, but he was holding it carefully.


    That alone probably meant he cared about her.


    "Good luck, Sanada-kun."


    "Yes, thank you, Sakayanagi-san."


    Holding the newly purchased present close to his chest, Sanada bowed his head.


    With a happy expression and a straight back, he started walking, perhaps heading to see his girlfriend next. He might even give her the gift impulsively before her birthday.


    "By the way, Ayanok��ji-kun, have you given up on the cake today?"


    "Hm? Oh, yeah, that''s the n. I thought I''d stop by on the way home and��"


    "I don''t rmend convenience store sweets right now. This season isn''t the best for them."


    I was going to check the convenience store... but was preempted by her helpful advice.


    "If I were you, I would quietly go home and take my revenge next year. If you settle for something here, how should I put it... it''s a bit of a pity."


    It was just a cake. I had a feeling it was up to the individual to decide when and where to eat it, but that feeling went away.


    "...It seems like it might be better not to."


    If I bought one here now, Sakayanagi wouldbel me as a disappointing person.

 Chapter 397: 4.4

    <h4>Chapter 397: 4.4</h4>


    That day, I ultimately returned to the dormitory without buying a cake.


    Then, as if to shake off any evil thoughts, I studied New Year''s traditions online, which wasing up.


    I had spentst year without thinking about it too deeply, and I had some regrets.


    I might be able to do something appropriate for the holiday after the New Year.


    Not even a single rice cake was served to celebrate the New Year in the White Room.


    It was around 8 p.m. when I finished dinner while doing various research.


    As I began to wonder whether to take a bath or not, a phone call came in.


    "Good evening, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I wasn''t expecting a call from you at this time, Sakayanagi."


    "I thought I''d check in just in case."


    "I''m not a disappointing person, just so you know."


    I answered that as a joke preemptively.


    "Hehe, I suppose not. Ayanok��ji-kun isn''t a disappointing person after all."


    But looking at the reaction on the other side of the phone, was that her actual intention for calling?


    "I''ll save it for next year''s fun."


    I wasn''t saying that out of spite, but I was honestly conveying my positive feelings.


    "Is that so?"


    Sakayanagi, who seemed happy,ughed on the other side of the phone.


    "Changing the subject, has Karuizawa-san''s condition improved?"


    "The fever seems to have dropped. All that''s left is to endure two more days."


    Even if the fever fell, ording to the rules, you must stay in your room for two days after recovery.


    "Is that so? That''s convenient for us. May I make an appointment with you now?"


    "Right now? I don''t have any problems with that, but what''s the matter?"


    "Why don''t we save that for when we meet? Would you mind if I visit your room?"


    "Are you nning toe to my room?"


    "Is it inconvenient all of a sudden?"


    "No, not really."


    "Then, I won''t have any hesitation."


    As soon as I answered, the call was cut off.


    I didn''t even have time to think about the abrupt ending of the call before hearing a gentle knock.


    "I see."


    I stood and headed towards the door; opening it revealed Sakayanagi, the caller.


    "Were you out somewhere?"


    She looked very well dressed for someone who came from her room.


    Additionally, there was a slight dusting of snow on her shoulders and hat.


    "Merry Christmas. Santa has arrived."


    As soon as our eyes met, Sakayanagi held out a small box with one hand.


    She nodded in satisfaction as I epted the box.


    But to call herself Santa...


    "It''s already the night of the 26th. Santa us is quitete, isn''t he?"


    "Santa us is modeled after Saint Nichs, who is said to have existed in the southern coastal region of Turkey. Considering that he has to finish delivering presents, ride his sleigh all the way to Japan, and then to this location, it''s understandable that he''d be a littlete, isn''t it?"


    Answering like so, it was hard to tell if she was being too serious or poking fun.


    "Only you would make such a unique rebuttal."


    Anyway, it wasn''t a good idea to keep her standing at the front door, so I decided to invite her into my room.


    "I won''t hesitate to intrude."


    "So? What business does this tardy Santa have?"


    "I think you already know, but I''ve brought a Christmas cake. Since I''m calling myself Santa, it''s fine for you to openly ept the present."


    "Well, judging from the box, I had a feeling it might be something like that, but I''m experiencing a strong sense of d��j�� vu."


    Could it be that Sakayanagi had been scheming for this moment since that time all along?


    "Yes, that''s exactly why. I promised to bring a different cake, didn''t I?"


    Indeed. Back then, she had detected myck of enthusiasm for the Mont nc cake and had told me that she would allow me to take my revenge next year...


    "So this happening today was no coincidence, right?"


    "Of course. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity since you wanted to eat a cake. I also didn''t rmend the convenience store sweets in order to avoid duplicate cakes."


    "So that was why you pushed me with such an expression."


    "Exactly. It went splendidly ording to my strategy."


    If I had stopped by the convenience store and decided to eat a cake on the way, it would''ve been doubtful whether I would have enjoyed the cake that Sakayanagi brought.


    "You seem to have spent Christmas alone, so I''vee to save you."


    "Is it okay for the leader of ss A toe rolling into a boy''s roomte at night?"


    "It would be more troublesome for you if it were discovered."


    I couldn''t deny that. If Sakayanagi forced herself in, the amount of condemnation I''d receive would undoubtedly be greater.


    "Besides, it''s still 8 p.m. It''s not a surprisinglyte hour for winter break, is it?"


    "Maybe."


    "You seem to be keeping your room as neat as ever. I''m impressed. I''ve visited several girls'' rooms, but none of them are as clean as this."


    Afterplimenting me, Sakayanagi asked for permission and sat down on the bed.


    Then, she took off the coat she was wearing.


    "If I couldn''t meet you today, what would you''ve done?"


    There would''ve been several possible scenarios; I could''ve been sleeping, going out, and so on.


    "I was nning to visit at a timepletely unrted to Christmas."


    So it just happened to be today.


    It seemed that she also had Karuizawa in mind.


    "I believe you already know this, but I''ve prepared two cakes for us."


    I had a feeling there were two cakes when I received the box. It seemed heavier than just one. She supposedly intended for us to eat them together here and then leave.


    "Alright, I''ll get the drinks ready. Is the same asst time okay?"


    "I''ll graciously look forward to it."


    I headed to the kitchen to prepare the coffee I madest time.


    "Gradually, you look more natural standing in the kitchen."


    "Living in the dormitory, opportunities to cook tend to naturally increase."


    "Isn''t that up to you? With convenience stores and the school cafeteria, it isn''t difficult to find food even if you don''t have money."


    "...Maybe. I might just want to cook for myself."


    "That''s something unimaginable in the White Room. But it''s a shame, isn''t it? Even if you be a professional-grade chef, there won''t be a ce to showcase those skills after graduation."


    Like at Keyaki Mall, she seemed more interested in discussing such topics today.


    "It''s true, but are you trying to probe something? I doubt you can see everything that goes on in the White Room. I don''t think Chairman Sakayanagi would casually reveal it to his daughter."


    I couldn''t see Sakayanagi''s expression since my back was turned, but she was probably smiling.


    "Indeed. What I''m saying is only within the realm of imagination. As you said, I don''t have aplete grasp of the White Room''s details. But isn''t it close enough?"


    "Right. After I graduate, or even if I''m expelled, I''ll be returned to the White Room and take on the role of an instructor. I''ll be responsible for nurturing my sessors until I''m no longer needed."


    Until recently, I had no doubt about that oue.


    However, I do feel a slight skepticism now.


    The merits and demerits of attending this school for three years��when weighed against each other, there were inevitably some aspects that appeared irrational.


    Of course, I didn''t know the details of the situation outside. That man said that the White Room was up and running again, but without any solid information, there was no way to know whether or not that was true from here.


    As I brought the cups of coffee, I also prepared two thin tes.


    These were for serving the cake.


    "By the way, can I expect the cake to be good?"


    "I don''t know your tastes, but if it isn''t good this time, I''ll just arrange another opportunity. In fact, it might be better to fail this time and get a chance to try again."


    I didn''t expect her to say she''d be content even if it wasn''t delicious.


    Maybe I should lie and say it tastes good anyway.


    "I''m confident in discerning any acting."


    "Don''t read ahead of me."


    "Your everyday thought process is quite easy to understand. It''s very simple and clear."


    Sakayanagi seemed to understand that I was still an ordinary second-year student with little experience. It appeared she took into ount school life matters and external-factor influences in her calctions and considerations.


    When I opened the box, there were two ssic shortcakes ced side by side.


    "Where did you buy these? You didn''t have them prepared beforehand, did you?"


    The box had what looked like a logo of the cakemaker.


    It didn''t seem like something normally sold at convenience stores or supermarkets.


    "It has a somewhat unusual backstory. I was nning to buy sweets from a convenience store before visiting, but on the way, I met my ssmate Sawadaing back from Keyaki Mall. He said the famous shop''s cake he had ordered was dyed due to the snow and arrived today. However, he gave up on having it during Christmas and ended up eating another cake. He was bringing it home wondering what to do... and that''s how it happened."


    "So you snatched a delicious-looking cake from Sawada?"


    Nevertheless, such a coincidence did exist.


    Well, it was about Sakayanagi. There was a possibility that she had obtained all that information beforehand.


    It would be rude to pursue that point further.


    "Rest assured, I''ve paid the private points properly. I don''t know if Sawada-san was going to eat these two cakes by himself or with someone specific."


    There are probably more students nurturing love than you imagine.


    I decided to eat the cake I received from Sakayanagi.


    I had eaten shortcake a few times before, but as it boasted to be from a famous shop, it felt different��even starting from the cream. It tasted much better than the Mont nc I hadst time.


    "It seems to have suited your taste."


    "I haven''t said anything yet."


    Feeling that I was exposed, I couldn''t help but move my hand and take a second bite.


    "Even without saying anything, I understand. Though, I do feel a little conflicted since I didn''t choose it."


    Sakayanagi, who replied so, also carried the cake to her mouth and nodded satisfactorily.


    "But the taste seems to be exceptional."


    Showing her eptance of what needed to be acknowledged, Sakayanagi seemed happy.


    Without talking about anything, the two of us finished eating the cake and took a breather.


    As it was about time for the clock to pass nine, she broached the subject.


    "Would you like to take a walk outside for a little while?"


    "Outside?"


    I could refuse, but after this, I would only take a bath and go to bed.


    Before that, it wouldn''t be bad to take a walk on the snow-covered road; I had limited opportunities to experience it.


    "It might be nice."


    I decided to ept her proposal as there was no particr reason to reject it.


    Above all, it seemed that Sakayanagi still wanted to talk.


    "Then I''ll wait for you in the lobby first."


    Considering my need to change clothes, Sakayanagi stood up with her cane.


    I decided to get ready and follow her.

 Chapter 398: 4.5

    <h4>Chapter 398: 4.5</h4>


    I met up with Sakayanagi, who was standing and waiting in the dormitory lobby, and we went outside together.


    At this time, there were no other students that were immediately visible.


    "It''s really cold outside after all."


    The snow had just begun to fall on Christmas Eve, and with the low temperature, it had umted quite a bit.


    "Snow was said to be rarest year too, but now it''s been continuing for two years in a row."


    The depth of the snow made walking a bit difficult, but Sakayanagi seemed to be enjoying herself rather than being troubled.


    "It would be troublesome if it snowed all year round, but it''s a lovely environment to enjoy asionally."


    "But isn''t it inconvenient when there''s snow piled up?"


    "Of course, it''s significantly harder to walk efficiently, but don''t worry. I gained experience in even harder situations during the school trip."


    Sakayanagi, with an air of confidence, began a lecture on walking with a cane in the snow.


    She had a happy and excited tone as if she was unveiling a new strategy.


    However, it looked extremely precarious from the sidelines.


    Just as I thought so, Sakayanagi tried to pull the cane out of the snow, and when it didn''te out easily, she nearly lost her bnce.


    I had already considered following up and stopped her from falling as I grabbed her shoulder before it became serious.


    "Careful."


    "Hehe."


    Instead of being flustered from nearly falling, Sakayanagiughed amusingly.


    "You''re that kind of person."


    "Huh?"


    Myck of understanding seemed to please Sakayanagi even more.


    "I was confident that I could walk well. However, if I push myself too hard, my risk of falling will grow. Though, I predicted that even if I failed, you''d help me."


    She expressed that her prediction was confirmed when my hand reached out to save her.


    That was why she couldn''t help butugh.


    "Considering it wasn''t guaranteed, you did well."


    It was like attempting a bungee jump without a safety line.


    Although, if the snow was perfect, there would be a low risk of injury.


    "So, why did you invite me for a nighttime walk? Do you have something you want to talk about?"


    "Do you think so?"


    When I nodded, Sakayanagi smiled as usual and then asked.


    "How does ss A look to you, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''d like to know what you feel about our strengths and weaknesses."


    "I see. Quite an unexpected question."


    "Is that so?"


    Sakayanagi had unquestionable confidence in herself.


    It was surprising that she sought advice that could influence her ss''s direction.


    "As a basic premise, do you think I''d give advice to an enemy?"


    "If you consider ss A as an enemy, there''s no helping it."


    Sakayanagi smiled a little, seemingly pleased.


    "But I think you''ll answer."


    "May I ask your reason?"


    "If I look objectively at what you''re trying to do, I can make an educated guess."


    It seemed that Sakayanagi already had a vision of what I had in mind.


    There had been signs of it for some time, but I hadn''t realized the extent of her confidence.


    "If you''re so sure about it, isn''t it needless for me to even talk about the overall evaluation of ss A? Or can''t you trust your own judgment without myplete approval?"


    "That''s a foolish question, isn''t it?"


    Still, I decided to voice my thoughts.


    ss A, under Sakayanagi''s guidance, was efficiently conducting well-organized battles.


    They were shedding what needed to be shed and picking up what needed to be picked up.


    It was a ss that steadily umted ss points.


    They had overall high academic ability and average, but consistent, physical ability. If there were any weaknesses, so far, it would be theck of students who excelled in special skills.


    Sakayanagi, walking beside me, epted my words without arguing.


    "Up to this point, anyone could have given the same answer, to be honest."


    "Then, can I get some of your unique insights?"


    "Well..."


    It might''ve been a bit harsh, but it seemed that Sakayanagi wanted it that way.


    "You''re confident in yourself. It''s true that you have abilities that are a cut above the restpared to the leaders of other sses, however, that''s precisely why you seem to be a step behind in building rtionships with your ssmates."


    You can control them, but in the end, you''re just manipting them.


    The students of ss A should have more individual intentions. It would help improve the ss.


    For that, Sakayanagi, the ruler, must be more friendly with her ssmates.


    "I don''t think that''s necessary. I want to make judgments without involving emotions. If I get too close to others, emotions will spring up. Hesitation when trying to cut off a beloved pet is a sign of weakness."


    "That''s your choice."


    It wasn''t a mistake. If you could carry out that solitary strength, it was also a valuable weapon.


    "By the way, there''s something I''ve been curious about."


    "What is it?"


    "Why do you keep an eye on me? Lately, I''ve been feeling the ss A''s gaze quite a bit. If something interests you, you can always ask me directly like now."


    "That''s not the case. I haven''t ordered anyone to make contact with you."


    She denied that point outright.


    "There''s no point in letting a third party investigate you. You''ve recently be less resistant to standing out, so people who have noticed some of your potential have started doing it on their own. Some of them report to me so diligently even though I haven''t asked."


    The content was insignificant, and Sakayanagi didn''t seem to find any beneficial information in it.


    That was why she dismissed it as meaningless.


    "They move spontaneously because they care about the ss?"


    "It may be partly for the sake of earning points from me, but as long as they don''t realize it''s meaningless, they''re stillcking."


    No matter how useful their actions may have been, Sakayanagi couldn''t favor them.


    Sakayanagi walked together with me, poking holes in the snow with her cane. There was still no sign of anyone around.


    "Let''s end our walk here."


    "Then let''s head back."


    "Yes. But Ayanok��ji-kun, please go ahead. I''ll stay here a while longer, enjoying the night breeze."


    "Isn''t it dangerous?"


    "Even if I fall, it''s only snow, and this isn''t a snowy mountain."


    Indeed. There was no way we''d get into any trouble, like getting stranded.


    "We might not see each other again this year. Please have a pleasant end to the year."


    "You too. Have a good New Year''s."


    With the year-end greetings out of the way, I decided to part ways with Sakayanagi.


    I trudged the snowy path towards the dormitory.


    After about ten steps, I couldn''t hear the sound of Sakayanagi walking anymore.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She gently called my name, so I turned around.


    With a scarf around her mouth, Sakayanagi seemed cold, but she looked at me.


    "What''s up?"


    "There''s something I want to tell you. Can you listen from there?"


    "I knew it. There was still something left to discuss."


    With some distance between us, Sakayanagi and I faced each other and resumed our conversation.


    "Did you know I still had something to say?"


    "Sort of."


    "Sometimes, even I need courage. This distance is what gives me that courage."


    Less than ten meters apart.


    This was the courage Sakayanagi needed to express herself.


    "I havee to like you."


    Such words.


    "This is not as a human being, but as a person of the opposite sex."


    I quietly listened to those words from Sakayanagi��words that could be taken as a confession.


    "Can you just remember that?"


    "Do you not need a reply?"


    "Yes. I don''t need that right now. Please feel free to go home."


    "Is that so?"


    I wanted to turn around and walk away, but I stopped.


    "Can you let me say just one thing?"


    "What is it?"


    "I probably value you more than you think, Sakayanagi. That''s why I want to know."


    I just had to know at that moment.


    "Can you turn that emotion from a weakness into a strength?"


    Sakayanagi was smart; she would surely understand what I meant.


    So there was no need for further exnation.


    "What a foolish question."


    Sakayanagiughed as she replied. Her eyes shone brightly even in the darkness, full of a strong color.

 Chapter 399: 4.6

    <h4>Chapter 399: 4.6</h4>


    After Ayanok��ji left, Sakayanagi quietly blushed and smiled all alone.


    "I talked with Ichinose-san the other day, on thest day of the second term."


    She muttered with a soft voice that was almost swept away by the wind.


    "I always thought I was in a position to teach her, but I found out that wasn''t the case."


    It was the moment Sakayanagi became fully aware of her own love.


    In the middle of a snowy night with no one around, Sakayanagi continued her monologue.


    "I recognize you as an enemy that I must defeat."


    This was the truth.


    Without a doubt, the real truth.


    "As a natural-born genius, I can''t lose to a created genius like you."


    That was her belief.


    "But you recognized that my feelings to defeat you gave birth to another type of feeling, didn''t you?"


    Towards Ayanok��ji''s out-of-sight back.


    Delivering her unreachable voice.


    She spoke the words once more.


    "I love you."


    Ichinose, who was as insignificant as trash on the side of the road, had made Sakayanagi realize this.


    "Even if I had expressed my feelings more clearly, your expression wouldn''t have changed."


    That was the only reason she chose not to say it more firmly to his face.


    Nevertheless, she wasn''t scared of being epted or rejected.


    "Yes, that''s how you are, Ayanok��ji-kun. You''re not the kind of person who would let petty things, something to this extent, disturb your heart."


    Ordinarily, a maiden would be hurt and troubled by this.


    However, Sakayanagi was the opposite.


    If anything, it made her feel even more attracted to Ayanok��ji.


    "You treat all of us in this school, me included, like children. You think everything will go ording to your n, and you''ve made it so."


    She took a step, walking along the snowy path.


    Ayanok��ji''s n was clearly understood.


    The picture she imagined for the third year.


    It wouldn''t be interesting if I let things go just as he wanted.


    So, what should I do to disturb it?


    The answer was already clear.


    I want to obstruct him.


    I want to see his troubled face.


    I want to confront him with things he can''t foresee.


    I want to draw out his emotions and break him. I want to love him.


    "It''s a pity. Your n has been going awry since the summer uninhabited ind exam."


    I couldn''t help wanting to say that, but it''s still a secret.


    It''s precisely because we don''t know��precisely because we can''t foresee��that there is excitement in what lies ahead.


    "I assure you that this fact will be the first step in changing you in an unexpected direction."


    I can''t help looking forward to what decisions he''ll make in the future.


    "I really can''t wait for the third term..."

 Chapter 400 - 5 : A Quiet Tremor

    <h4>Chapter 400: Chapter 5 : A Quiet Tremor</h4>


    ON THE MORNING of December 28th, as the end of the year approached, I looked at my cell phone beside my pillow.


    About 30 minutes prior to 7 a.m., a message had arrived.


    The content was a modest message from Kei informing me that she had recovered.


    Having seen the message as Iid on my back, I got up and switched to lying face down.


    [Are you awake?]


    I sent the message and a read notice came in less than 3 seconds.


    It was clear that she was holding her cell phone the whole time, waiting for my response.


    [Yes, I''m awake.]


    I had reached out to her several times to check up on her condition since she caught the flu, but that was it.


    There were no signs of her usual high-spirit self, and she didn''t send any stamps.


    [What''s your n for today?]


    I tried to ask. I had intended to invite her if she told me she was free, but...


    [Sorry. I n to hang out with Maya-chan after this. She encouraged me the entire time I was bedridden and followed up a lot, so I wanted to thank her too. Is that bad?]


    Of course it wasn''t bad. That was something she should prioritize��something important.


    If she prioritized me and neglected Sat��, that would betray true friendship.


    Naturally, I wouldn''t try to rain on her parade with this matter. And I shouldn''t.


    [Understood. Can I call you tonight? Around 9 pm? I want to talk about things happening tomorrow and beyond that.]


    What happened during the Christmas we were supposed to spend together and the growing distance between ustely.


    There were many things we should discuss as boyfriend and girlfriend.


    [Yeah.]


    Shortly after, she sent another short message.


    [Then, I''ll be waiting for your call.]


    At least her physical condition had improved; that was a relief.


    It was important that we scheduled something before the end of the year.


    The only question now is how I''m going to spend today.


    Either show my face at the gym, which I hadn''t visited for some days, or spend the day in my room not going out.


    Ideally, I wouldn''t want to ovep with the time Kei and Sat�� would spend together.


    So, I crossed off the option of going to the gym from my list as well as Keyaki Mall.


    If Kei and Sat�� kept worrying about my presence, they wouldn''t be able to enjoy themselves.


    When I was about to pick up my cell phone again to let her know my intention to stay in my room all day, a sound rang out.


    Thinking it might''ve been Kei, the thought quickly vanished when an unregistered number showed on the disy.


    However, I remembered this number.


    What a dilemma.


    I continued to stare at the screen for a while.


    It seemed unlikely that the ringing would stop anytime soon, so I decided to answer it.


    "Hey, answer it faster when I call."


    Ry��en, on the other end of the line, expressed his dissatisfaction before I could respond.


    "I was in the bathroom."


    "Really? Didn''t you just try to ignore me until it stopped ringing?"


    Good job. Be it Sakayanagi or Ry��en��both seemed to be getting better at reading my everyday thoughts.


    "Lend me some time. Meet me at Keyaki Mall''s north entrance in 30 minutes."


    Without any interest in my excuses, he only conveyed his own business.


    "What about my ns? I have a tight schedule, you know."


    "Postpone it."


    He unterally cut off the call after forcefully demanding us to meet.


    "He''s still so self-centered."


    His attitude wasn''t surprising. It was just like Ry��en''s usual behavior.

 Chapter 401: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 401: 5.1</h4>


    The peak of the snowfall had passed, and the thickly piled-up snow painted pictures as it melted.


    There was still some snow left in the shadows, but it was probably just a matter of time.


    However, getting called by Ry��en around the end of the year like this...


    There was a chance for him to converse with me at the school festival, and we even coincidentally ended up in the same group for the school trip, but we shouldn''t have had any interactions after that.


    In the midst of winter break, it was hard to imagine any conversation rted to exams.


    Not knowing what the matter was, I arrived at the Keyaki Mall''s north entrance almost exactly at the promised time.


    Ry��en wasn''t there, but instead, another person was leaning against the wall with their arms crossed.


    "Katsuragi? This isn''t a coincidence, is it?"


    Keyaki Mall hadn''t opened yet. There was no reason to be there at that time unless you needed to be the first person in the store.


    "You got a call from Ry��en, didn''t you? It''s the same for me."


    If Katsuragi was also being called, it didn''t seem to be just some small talk.


    "It''s a bad habit of Ry��en to unterally call us out whenever something happens."


    Since transferring from ss A to Ry��en''s ss, Katsuragi had been active with Ry��en in many instances.


    "You''ve be quite the strategist. It seems that even Ry��en trusts your abilities."


    "That would be nice."


    While he didn''t show a happy expression, it didn''t seem like he waspletely displeased either.


    "So, what''s the reason for the call?"


    "I don''t know. You''ll have to ask Ry��en directly."


    It seemed that even Katsuragi, who was likely called out in the same way, wasn''t informed of the details of the conversation.


    "You must have guessed it would be some unpleasant scheme. I''m sure you''re aware of that as well."


    "Well, there''s a possibility of it being a troublesome matter."


    "Then you could have ignored it."


    "Wouldn''t that just make it more troublesometer?"


    "That''s limited to ordinary students. Your namees up asionally, but he mentions it with the highest praise. It''s proof that he understands that you''re an opponent he can''t beat now."


    "Praise? ...I can''t imagine."


    "Erase him, crush him, kill him. Any of them would be a greatpliment, right?"


    "That''s not apliment. It''s a disaster."


    Half of it might''ve been Katsuragi''s teasing, as he slightly raised the corners of his mouth and smiled.


    "There''s no one outside of the ss who''s equal or better than him. And there''s no one who can truly talk to him. In that sense, your existence is also important to him."


    Sakayanagi would also be fine in terms of being his equal or better, but she was the opponent right in front of him that needed to be taken down.


    We didn''t have a rtionship where we could honestly talk to each other.


    "Still, it''s amazing that you were able to defeat Sakayanagi, even though it was a special exam where you had advantageous elements. It would be nice if this broke her pride a little."


    "Sakayanagi did what she could and lost, so the impact of the defeat will be limited. We were just riding the wave that wasing along due to multiple things lining up to our advantage."


    "Riding the wave, huh? But it''s also a special exam where you can''t win without having strengths, even if you do handstands."


    Katsuragi praised that our victory was undeniably due to the strength of the ss.


    "On the other hand, your ss seemed to be far behind Ichinose''s ss."


    "That ss takes on any special exam with a positive attitude, adheres to the basics, and holds itself together."


    It wasn''t an opponent that could easily be defeated, Katsuragi analyzed.


    "Our ss''s task is clear. Our academic ability is overwhelmingly inferiorpared to other sses. We have to do something about it; otherwise, we''ll have to face several unfavorable battles in the future."


    The challenges were visible, but improving them would be incredibly difficult.


    Academic ability wasn''t something that could be acquired overnight.


    "In thest special exam, I told them to give up short-term gains and raise the academic ability of the entire ss, but Ry��en didn''t seem to want to listen."


    If they couldn''t win with a straightforward approach, they tended to rely on underhanded tactics and surprise attacks.


    "However, just leaving it alone won''t lead to a breakthrough or resolution to the current situation. People are interested in that they unconsciously choose their opponents. Ry��en uses all the members of the ss like his limbs, but even so, there will always be students that he values and those that he hardly uses."


    "It''s not just about abilities, is it?"


    If there were obedient students like Ishizaki and Albert, who tended to get involved in trouble easily, and those who were rebellious and disliked wrongdoings, it was natural for Ry��en to value the former.


    "Yes. It''s not just about abilities. You can see signs of it elsewhere. Strange, isn''t it?"


    "Yeah."


    "That''s why I think those students, who Ry��en doesn''t often use, have extra time and can actively learn to study. Of course, without him knowing."


    If Ry��en heard about this, would he berate Katsuragi for doing unnecessary things? Even if he showed anger on the surface, he might not actually stop Katsuragi''s actions. Ry��en, who had grown this far, should judge it as a necessary measure. It was also one of the reasons he paid arge sum of money to poach Katsuragi.


    "Is it okay for me to hear something so important?"


    "It''s strange, but by sharing a secret with someone, it can sometimes help with your mental well-being."


    "As a result, I might tell Ry��en."


    "If you were that kind of person, I''d only have to reflect on my mistake in judging you."


    He expressed his trust in me in such a way.


    And he artfully applied pressure to prevent a betrayal.


    At that point, Katsuragi interrupted the conversation and turned to face my back.


    "Herees the brazen man. He doesn''t seem to be reflecting on his tardiness."


    Following Katsuragi''s gaze, who backed away from the wall exasperatedly, I saw Ry��en slowly approaching us.


    On his left wrist was a stic bag, perhaps from stopping at a convenience store.


    "It seems we''re all here."


    "Shouldn''t you apologize to Ayanok��ji at least?"


    "I don''t know. Just be grateful that you weren''t called out during the New Year''s holidays."


    Despite Katsuragi urging him to apologize, he ignored it and started walking. For a brief moment, Katsuragi and I exchanged nces that seemed to express, ''We''re in for some trouble.'' Ry��en pulled out a hamburger from a stic bag and ced the empty bag into his pocket.


    He tore open the wrapping paper and started eating as if he missed out on breakfast.


    Katsuragi looked at him with a baffled expression, wondering why he couldn''t at least have finished his meal beforehand.


    "I''d like to hear why you called both me and Ayanok��ji out."


    Although he was asked with a strong tone, he had no intention to answer immediately. Instead, he continued to silently chew his food.


    After repeating this several times, he finally began to speak once his stomach was satisfied.


    "I heard interesting news from the third years. Apparently, a big obstacle awaits us in the third term where we''ll face others from our same year."


    "A big obstacle? You''re talking about the final exam, right? It''s nothing surprising."


    Preparations for the more intense final exams were confirmed several times and in various forms.


    It was hard to believe that Ry��en called us out just to tell us something we already knew.


    "Isn''t it possible that it''s not just the final exam?"


    In response to Katsuragi''s reply, I cut in after a slight dy.


    "We''ve been focusing on the end of the third term, but there might be something else."


    "Did you hear something too, Ayanok��ji?"


    "I heard that there might be a special exam at the beginning of the third term that could result in some students being expelled. I don''t know how true it is though."


    Ry��en might''ve heard the same thing, and upon hearing this, he grinned.


    <Illustration>


    "By the way, when did you hear this?"


    "On December 25th, three days ago. The source was Kiry��in of ss 3-B."


    "On the same day, my source was ss 3-D''s Ibeyama."


    "If there truly is a risky exam, howe both of you heard about it at almost the same time?"


    "Just a coincidence... or perhaps��"


    "Or perhaps the school controlled the information and released it at that time."


    As this idea began to appear more certain, Ry��en forcefully bit into his hamburger.


    Horikita''s ss B heard it from Kiry��in in ss 3-B.


    Ry��en''s ss D heard it from Ibeyama in ss 3-D.


    The fact that the information sources matched our sses intrigued us.


    If Sakayanagi heard from ss 3-A and Ichinose from ss 3-C, then our assumptions would be correct.


    "However, can we really be sure of this? Couldn''t someone just be spreading false rumors after talking to the third-year students? Besides, we''re in the middle of winter break right now."


    "Heh. That''s precisely why it''s credible."


    Students naturally lose their sense of urgency during the break. The rxed atmosphere made their days enjoyable. If this was a false rumor, making the students prepare for battle early on wouldn''t aplish much. Any mental strain causing unease couldn''t be expected either.


    "A warning to be prepared for a shock��it''s natural to think that way."


    Given the situation that both Ry��en and I knew the same thing, Katsuragi calmly analyzed it.


    It was a message aimed at a specific ss of third-year students, and the information flowed smoothly.


    "Has anyone else heard something simr?"


    Upon Katsuragi''s question, I shook my head from side to side, and Ry��en didn''t react, but he likely shared the same answer.


    If Ishizaki and the others had heard it, they would''ve immediately reported it to Ry��en.


    "Should we assume that it was announced to one representative from each ss?"


    "We can''t be sure, but it''s probably safe to assume that Sakayanagi and Ichinose have been notified as well. They wouldn''t be so stupid as to miss this kind of information, no matter how indirect."


    "But then a question arises. Why was Ayanok��ji chosen for ss 2-B? If we were to consider it in order, wouldn''t it be Horikita? Or maybe you being chosen was just a coincidence, and there''s a possibility that someone other than Sakayanagi and Ichinose was chosen... No, that''s unlikely."


    Halfway through making a new hypothesis, Katsuragi denied himself.


    "The school''s ultimately neutral. If they''re going to give a warning, they should''ve prepared the leaders in advance. It was necessary to select someone who could understand and ept the third year''s warnings, at least."


    "Suzune has been getting more powerful, but it wouldn''t be surprising if the school and third-year students interpreted Ayanok��ji as the leader and chose him. It''s not particrly shocking."


    Indeed. Recently, I''ve had many opportunities to talk to Nagumo and Kiriyama when dealing with the student council.


    Still, Kiriyama likely would''ve chosen Horikita.


    More importantly, why Kiry��in had made contact with me wasn''t resolved yet.


    If I had to interpret the situation, I''d say that the third-year leaders were instructed by the school to deliver the message to the second-year leaders.


    Kiriyama intended to inform Horikita, but Kiry��in, who had overheard the conversation, volunteered and chose to approach me and deliver the message��


    I couldn''t tell if this interpretation was correct, but since I hade to know the content of the message, it was my duty to inform Horikita.


    "If we assume that the same thing happenedst year, there might be a special exam hinted at before or after the mixed training camp."


    Katsuragi muttered and then organized his scattered thoughts once more.


    "There will be several special exams in the third term��one in early January and the other inte January��and another one in early March with the ss voting special exam. This will be followed by the final exam for a total of four."


    Adding to the three first-year exams, there might''ve been a total of four second-year exams, meaning there were more possible exam opportunities.


    However, this was all mere spection, and I mustn''t forget that.


    Apparently, the ss voting special exam was an unexpected event that wasn''t held every year.


    If it didn''t exist, there would be a total of three special exams conducted in the third term.


    In the end,st year wasst year. It was merely a reference.


    There was even a possibility that no special exams would be held, but this was highly unlikely.


    It couldn''t be said for sure that there weren''t or couldn''t be cases where there were more than four exams.


    "ss voting, huh? You had Totsuka expelled by Sakayanagi, didn''t you?"


    "...Yes."


    As Katsuragi''s expression darkened, perhaps recallingst year''s bitter incident, Ry��en, who had finished his hamburger, cheerfully added.


    "Depending on the situation, it won''t be just one or two expulsions, right?"


    As he casually said, it was better to be prepared for the risks that came with the truth.


    "Expulsions, huh? I''d prefer not to have any."


    "Don''t say such soft things. There are still too many students in our year. It won''t be interesting unless we have an exam that can thin out even five or ten students."


    Against Katsuragi, who would likely be thinking about his ssmates, Ry��en expressed the opposite idea.


    "Don''t forget that you also have the risk of being targeted, Ry��en."


    "Bring it on. Whether it''s Sakayanagi or Ichinose, if theye after me, I''ll just crush them."


    "It''s fine if it''s an obvious enemy. But there''s no guarantee that someone won''te and kick you from within."


    Within��that meant his own ss.


    Ry��en, who always took a stand against his enemies, surely had many foes.


    However, he wasn''t the kind of guy who would feel anxious about such things.


    "It''ll be easier to talk if we don''t have to choose someone to cut from here."


    "Indeed... But I must say, if you arbitrarily decide to abandon your own people, I''ll resist."


    "Do as you like."


    Even if Katsuragi, who previously intervened in the ss vote, seemed to be a hindrance, Ry��en would have no mercy. However, he still functioned as a stopper to a certain extent.


    Yet, the mystery didn''t fade away.


    Katsuragi, who walked next to him, must have harbored the same concerns since his expression remained stern.


    There was no need for the three of us to gather and converse like this if the sole purpose was to iron out our differences in the face of the impending special exam.


    "In the next special exam, if the rules allow a one-on-one battle, I''ll take on Sakayanagi."


    Those were the words that came out of Ry��en as if he''d seen through both my and Katsuragi''s thoughts.


    "What''s your intention, Ry��en? Isn''t a direct confrontation at the final exam enough for you?"


    "It''s not enough. I want to see that woman''s face covered in humiliation at least one more time."


    Naming the opponents he wanted to fight meant that he was telling us not to interfere.


    "Even without a warning, there''s a low possibility that Horikita would actively desire a confrontation with Sakayanagi''s ss. Currently, unless the special exam ces a heavy emphasis on teamwork, there''s no merit in fighting against her ss, which has a higher overall ability."


    If she had to choose between the lowest-ranked ss and the top, she would probably opt for Ichinose.


    "It''s not advisable to nominate ss A at this point. If the special exam revolves around academics like the previous one, we would be facing a formidable opponent."


    Indeed, there was no need to nominate at this stage.


    But Ry��en seemed ready to fight, even if it meant taking risks.


    "Sakayanagi probably thinks I''m the one she can defeat anytime. I''ll correct that misconceived notion."


    "...I don''t want to agree."


    "So, Katsuragi. Will you go with Ichinose? Ichinose has be quite a troublesome opponent."


    It seemed that even Ry��en had noticed that Ichinose was beginning to change. Though Katsuragi might have to revise his understanding, he would still object to naming Sakayanagi.


    "Evaluating Ichinose as troublesome isn''t bad. But overall, she still falls shortpared to Sakayanagi. Even if the assessment was overturned, they were still iparable. For now, we should wait for information to be disclosed in the third term."


    Katsuragi, who didn''t underestimate Ichinose, suggested that they should choose who to fight after learning about the special exam''s contents.


    "Does the reason even matter? Ry��en simply wants to fight Sakayanagi."


    "That''s the problem. A leader should choose the most promising method and pick the best option. Confirming a fight with a powerful enemy at this point is like throwing away victory."


    The three of us continued our stroll and discussion around Keyaki Mall without stopping.


    It seemed my release wouldn''t be granted anytime soon.

 Chapter 402: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 402: 5.2</h4>


    The big Christmas tree that should''ve been adorning the entrance had already been removed.


    As she gazed at the empty space, Karuizawa showed a mncholic expression.


    "Haah��"


    A heavy sigh slipped out unintentionally.


    Sat��, who had just arrived at the meeting ce, heard it from behind Karuizawa.


    "Kei-chan, did you wait long?"


    "Ah, Maya-chan. No, not at all. I just got here too."


    Having fully recovered on the 28th, Karuizawa had invited Sat�� to hang out.


    As she had exined to Ayanok��ji, she had relied on Sat��''s help many times during her bout with the flu.


    Sat�� had provided her with anything she needed, regardless of the time.


    She replied promptly to any messages when she was feeling lonely.


    She even listened to the painful feelings that Karuizawa wanted to express to Ayanok��ji so many times but couldn''t.


    And she happily epted Karuizawa''s sudden invitation without any dismay.


    "Sorry for inviting you out of the blue."


    "It''s totally fine. I''m just d you''re feeling better. I''m really happy for you."


    "Thank you. But isn''t this too much fuss over just the flu?"


    "It can be serious for some people, you know."


    Sat�� held Karuizawa''s hand and joyfully celebrated her recovery like a child.


    "I might be overstepping my bounds, but... did you properly tell Ayanok��ji-kun that you''re better now?"


    "Yeah, I told him this morning. We also agreed to talk about the promise we couldn''t fulfill on Christmas night."


    "Oh, that''s great, isn''t it?!"


    Although Sat�� jumped to the conclusion that everything was resolved and they had made up, she quickly withdrew her smile upon seeing Karuizawa''s uneasy expression.


    "We might be able to keep our promise to meet, but... I don''t know about anything beyond that."


    "What do you mean...? It was just a little fight, right?"


    From what Sat�� had heard, it didn''t seem like an issue as serious as the people involved imed it to be. If anyone was at fault, it was Ayanok��ji.


    However, there was another issue that had been lingering on Karuizawa''s mind for some time.


    "Kiyotaka might actually have started to like Ichinose-san."


    Falling in love with someone else.


    Karuizawa had been continuously pondering this worst-case scenario while she was feeling under the weather.


    "No, no, no, that''s absolutely not true. Don''t worry, okay?"


    "...Yeah..."


    With her answers returning to normal, Sat�� was relieved to confirm that her words were reaching Karuizawa.


    At the same time, she regretted digging her own grave and, unable to take it back, desperately tried to change the subject.


    "It-it''ll be New Year''s soon, right? Time flies, doesn''t it?"


    The Christmas tree had been removed. The decor was already set for New Year''s.


    "Yeah, I guess... I really wanted to see the Christmas tree."


    "Uh...!?"


    Karuizawa, still clinging to her lingering regrets, remained still, gazing at the spot where the tree had been.


    They were supposed to decorate the tree on the 24th and take amemorative photo together while the ornaments sparkled.


    Having dug her own grave yet again, Sat�� pulled at her own cheek.


    "Well, there''s always next year, right?"


    "Yeah... Yeah, that''s true."


    Next year. It was impossible for Karuizawa to think about something a year ahead at this time.


    Even tomorrow''s prospects were unclear, shrouded in darkness.


    While Karuizawa kept her gaze fixed, Sat�� repeatedly nced around their surroundings.


    She wanted Karuizawa to cheer up��that was her top priority. But Sat�� also had another goal in mind when she readily agreed to hang out with her: a chance encounter with Ayanok��ji.


    If they hadn''t resolved their issue yet, it''d be difficult for them to intentionally meet up. So, she decided to leave it up to fate.


    Thankfully, they had already arranged to meet up tomorrow, but it wouldn''t hurt for it to happen even sooner.


    She thought that, as long as Ayanok��ji could cheer her up, it wouldn''t matter if he was her boyfriend.


    All that remained was for the two of them to meet up spontaneously in the midst of their shared time together.


    In that scenario, Sat�� hoped to smoothly facilitate their reconciliation, creating an ideal oue.


    However, it was always tricky to meet up when they actually wanted to.


    Sat�� thought to herself, if Ayanok��ji knew that she was hanging out with Karuizawa today, he may have wanted to avoid showing his face.


    The evidence was right in front of her��Karuizawa didn''t even show a hint of trying to find her boyfriend.


    It didn''t seem like malice, but rather an act of consideration so as not to interfere with their day out.


    If a chance encounter seemed unlikely, then it''d be up to Sat�� to stay strong.


    "Come on, let''s forget about all the unpleasant stuff and have fun!"


    In a do-or-die spirit, Sat�� firmly grabbed Karuizawa''s shoulders.


    Seeing Sat��''s eyes full of determination to encourage her friend, Karuizawa reflected upon herself.


    She had called out her best friend to express her gratitude, yet she''d ended up worrying her once again.


    At this point, it would be unclear why she even invited her in the first ce.


    "That''s true."


    Karuizawa decided to put on a brave face, at least for now.


    She was a truly good friend��her best friend��whom she met after fleeing to this school.


    While treasuring the warmth of their friendship, she held out her hand.


    Sat�� didn''t initially grasp the meaning behind it, but she quickly understood her intentions upon seeing Karuizawa''s smile.


    She grabbed the offered hand back, and the two held hands.


    Their fingers were still cold, so theyughed it off as theypared their frigid hands to each other.


    It wasn''t the first time they held hands in the spur of the moment.


    It also wasn''t the first time they reluctantly went along with it, feeling somewhat embarrassed on the inside.


    Even now, there was a feeling of shyness between them.


    Yet, their feelings were connected.


    To an outsider, it may seem childish, or they might fantasize about some kind of romantic feelings between the two.


    But they were just best friends, wanting to hold hands simply because they wanted to show their connection.


    No more, no less.


    There was a certainty between the two that they wouldn''t be bothered by the noise around them just for today.


    "He, he, he. I will make you forget about everything."


    "Ah, how scary!"


    A world just for the two of them.


    Karuizawa and Sat�� decided to spend the whole day enjoying themselves at Keyaki Mall.

 Chapter 403: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 403: 5.3</h4>


    We left Keyaki Mall, strolled leisurely along the school route, and returned back to the mall''s vicinity, taking our time as we walked along a road with a view of the sea.


    It wasn''t unusual for three boys to casually walk together during winter break, and that scenario wouldn''t attract attention under normal circumstances.


    However, adding a conspicuous presence like Ry��en, a strategist Katsuragi, and the oddity of myself, we carried some risk of standing out.


    Even so, Ry��en didn''t choose to be anonymous, refusing means such as indoor facilities or phones.


    Considering the content of the special exam, it was somewhat reckless.


    Any observer''s evaluation would greatly depend on whether they deemed this group''s meeting as carelessness or an intentional act.


    "Can I assume that the discussion is over? We''re just going around in circles now."


    As we neared the spot where we had met up, Katsuragi, who had stopped walking first, checked in with us.


    We couldn''t figure out the number or content of the special exams, and he wouldn''t permit Ry��en''s request for a match against Sakayanagi.


    Continuing to waste time like this wouldn''t be meaningful.


    "Yeah, maybe you''re right. It''s fine then."


    Without looking back, Ry��en slightly raised his left hand and conveyed his agreement.


    "I owe you a lot, Ayanok��ji. If you have any problems, feel free to consult me. There are things I can help you with besides sspetitions."


    I nodded my head in gratitude at his unexpected consideration, and Katsuragi turned his back and started walking ahead.


    Well, I should get going too.


    "I''m going to stop by Keyaki Mall now. What will you do? If you want us to hold hands and go on a date, I might consider it."


    Ry��en grinned and gently held out his left hand in a weing gesture.


    Shopping together with just Ry��en would be much more eye-catching than we had expected.


    Above all, Kei and Sat�� were likely to be at the mall at this time.


    "Well then, I''ll be off."


    Apanying Ry��en on a hand-holding date to the Keyaki Mall wasn''t part of my n, so it was time to return home.


    There was no sign of him stopping me, so I started walking.


    "Our match will be in the third year. Don''t forget that."


    As I moved farther away from Keyaki Mall, those were thest words Ry��en said to me.


    I didn''t forget, but whether it woulde true was a different story.


    Even so... just a short walk had left me feeling strangely tired.


    Feeling more exhausted than after sweating for an hour in the gym wasn''t just my imagination.


    Having lost sight of both Katsuragi and Ry��en, I continued walking.


    I returned to the dormitory and, as initially nned, holed up for the day.


    But before that, I had to clear up something that had been bothering me.


    After walking for several tens of seconds, I stopped as I sensed someone approaching.


    I stood right in front of a vending machine that was installed along the exterior wall of Keyaki Mall.


    Looking at the disyed items, to a third party, it would seem like I was just considering buying a drink.


    I directed my gaze between the foliage that was likely put out by the employees as the store opened.


    "What are you doing in a ce like that?"


    "Eh!?"


    I called out to Yamamura, who was hiding in a shaded blind spot.


    "You''ve been following me for about 10 minutes, right? Earlier, you seemed to be hiding behind a tree on the other side of the road."


    It was easy to hide with the thick-trunked trees nted along the tree-lined road.


    It was quite impressive that she managed to follow Ry��en and his group without being noticed.


    "No, not at all..."


    Yamamura tried to answer deceptively but was quick to give up, perhaps due to my urate answer.


    "How... did you know?"


    "How did I?"


    At first, I thought nothing of it, but if it was the old me, I probably wouldn''t have cared about Yamamura''s presence.


    Now that we had spent time with each other on the school trip, she was already in my consciousness.


    It was like a single image. At first nce, you saw only Shape A or Composition A, but once you know that changing your perspective would reveal Shape B or Composition B, your brain will recognize the image as B.


    This might''ve been simr.


    From just being a female student in ss A, she was now Yamamura Miki. That was all. I knew I was being followed and that my conversations were being overheard, but I didn''t stop her.


    Yamamura was a student from ss A and a friend of Sakayanagi.


    If I had reported her stealthy actions to Ry��en and his group, it would''ve been seen as taking sides.


    Of course, whether or not I took sides was up to me, but I didn''t think it was the best strategy for the moment.


    "You can rx. There were no signs of Ry��en or Katsuragi noticing you."


    "Really? I felt like Ry��en-kun was trying to lure me out..."


    It seemed that Yamamura''s intuition was right. He didn''t stay in one ce and deliberately moved around conspicuous locations. Perhaps he was waiting for his prey to be trapped.


    It didn''t seem like Yamamura was just identally drawn into such a lure.


    "Then why not just tell me without making me ask if they found out or not?"


    Yamamura was probably convinced that no one had noticed her. Otherwise, she wouldn''t have looked so surprised when I found her.


    "It seems that you''ve been tailing not just today, but yesterday as well."


    She didn''t confirm, but her silence spoke volumes.


    Despite being closely watched, Yamamura skillfully tailgated them.


    On the other hand, Ry��en probably had no choice but to give up the chase, seeing no results from his schemes.


    Even after parting with me, there were no signs of Ry��en following me.


    That was probably why I feltfortable enough to call out to Yamamura.


    "I was honestly hesitant whether to call you out or not, but since we were in the same group during the school trip, I thought I might as well greet you."


    To me, who knew of her existence, not calling out to Yamamura would''ve felt like ignoring her.


    It was a strange feeling to ignore a familiar face in this unpopr ce.


    In fact, Yamamura thought that she''d go unnoticed, and I thought she would''ve wanted to be ignored.


    "You''re not going to ask why I was following you?"


    The final exam wasing up, and Ry��en wanted to fight Sakayanagi. As for Sakayanagi, she would want to know his every move and scheme, so it couldn''t hurt to gather information.


    "There''s no need to ask that."


    "Is that so?"


    "And after this, I have no intention of reporting you to Ry��en, so you can rest assured."


    I added that, thinking Yamamura probably wouldn''t be reassured by mere words that those two hadn''t noticed.


    "But you all seemed very familiar with each other. At the very least, you don''t recognize him as an enemy, do you? If you turn that around, wouldn''t that make you an ally of Ry��en-kun?"


    Yamamura''s questioning tone was mixed with doubt.


    "Unfortunately, I''m not Ry��en''s ally. That''s not to say I''m an ally of ss A either. Anyway, I have no intention of divulging that we met here to anyone. You can trust me on that."


    "Really?"


    I was about to nod to dispel her anxiety, but a faint sound of footsteps stopped my head from moving.


    Immediately after, dry apuse rang out several times, slowly repeated.


    "You''re amazing, Ayanok��ji. How did you find the rat?"


    Yamamura was no longer looking at me��her gaze was fixed on Ry��en.


    Ry��en, who was supposed to have disappeared, reappeared now of all times... I see.


    "I guess Sakayanagi asked you to gather information about me?"


    "It''s not like that..."


    Yamamura denied it, but she couldn''t hide her poor acting skills.


    "Kuku. It''s a good thing I decided to follow Ayanok��ji just in case. Even if you''re sensitive to being watched, you would let your guard down if there''s no one following, isn''t that right?"


    He was correct. I was confident that I would notice his or anybody else''s presence if they were obviously tailing me, but it seemed that Ry��en had already taken that into ount.


    From where we split up, there were only two paths for me to take: one which went straight to Keyaki Mall, or the other that led to either the school or dormitory. In practice, Ry��en disappeared into Keyaki Mall.


    If he started following me at a distance after waiting for time to pass, there was a high probability that he would naturally catch up with me. No matter how sensitive I was, if no one was tailing me, there was no way to prevent being tracked.


    The reason for his remarks that kept me from going to Keyaki Mall was to narrow down my route choices.


    Moreover��


    As I watched Katsuragie back from the front, I felt even more apologetic to Yamamura.


    "So there was a connection between Yamamura and Sakayanagi."


    Katsuragi, who seemed to have been scouting, was surprised by Yamamura''s presence.


    He pretended to go home and was looking for people lurking around.


    "I apologize, Ayanok��ji. I just got word from Ry��en a few minutes ago and came back."


    If Ry��en was going to track me anyway, involving Katsuragi would increase the probability of sess. That was Ry��en''s n.


    He had kept it a secret from his ally so as not to arouse suspicion.


    "Is it surprising that this girl has a connection with Sakayanagi?"


    "Yes, it is. At least while I was a member, I''ve never seen her have any rtionship with Sakayanagi. I think she''s just one of many reconnaissance units."


    This was something only an insider like Katsuragi could understand.


    Yamamura was clearly struggling more than she had a while ago.


    "Even though I went through all this trouble, I only caught a small fish. I thought Hashimoto might be up to something... Or maybe it''s precisely because you''re trusted by Sakayanagi that you were assigned this task?"


    Ry��en''s sharp gaze, full of suspicion, pierced through Yamamura.


    As she didn''t expect to be surrounded like this, her expression couldn''t hide her anxiety.


    Unexpectedly, this expression helped answer any question Ry��en may have had.


    "Anyway, your ability to notice things is quite impressive, Ayanok��ji. But your role today is over."


    He lost interest in me and told us that frightened Yamamura was his only target now.


    "If Sakayanagi thinks she can beat me just by snooping around, she''s easy to read."


    Even if I didn''t find Yamamura this time, and Yamamura was able to continuously collect information, whether it was able to pass as useful info to Sakayanagi was another matter.


    If there was contact that you wanted to keep hidden, it was naturally not done outdoors.


    A room belonging to a trustworthy friend, a karaoke room, or a restroom, if the individuals were of the same gender, would work. It would be easy to proceed secretively, depending on the purpose.


    However, there was also an unavoidable aspect for Sakayanagi.


    Information was needed, and Ry��en was supposed to investigate ss A in the same way.


    However, unlike Ry��en, who could gather information by himself, it was difficult for Sakayanagi.


    She couldn''t gather information without using students like Yamamura, Kamuro, and Hashimoto.


    "Being investigated doesn''t feel good, does it?"


    "Are you in a position to say that? You''re watching Sakayanagi in the same way, aren''t you?"


    It seemed that it wasn''t a one-way surveince from Sakayanagi''s side.


    Already, they seemed to be watching each other in preparation for the final exams.


    "So, do you want to try another move? I''m willing to listen if you have a brilliant idea, Katsuragi."


    Ry��en suggested an attack on Sakayanagi, but Katsuragi denied it.


    "I have no intention of making a big move. Monitoring Sakayanagi is the only hand we can y right now."


    Katsuragi seemed to think that keeping their distance and simply having a staring contest was the best strategy.


    "Don''t forget that the final showdown should take ce in the special exam, not outside."


    "Sheesh. You''re stubborn."


    Ry��en and Katsuragi''s basic policies were almost pr opposites, but Ry��en listened to Katsuragi''s words with a smile.


    "Why don''t you guys stick around with us for a bit?"


    "Drop it."


    "Huh? Drop it? It would be such a waste not to grill her now that we caught her."


    "Are you nning on threatening her? It should be enough that you''ve figured out Yamamura''s involvement. You should go."


    As he said that, Katsuragi gestured for Yamamura to leave immediately.


    "Ex-excuse me..."


    Wanting to escape the ufortable atmosphere, Yamamura hurriedly tried to leave.


    "Wait."


    "Huh!?"


    However, Ry��en called out to stop her, leaving her petrified as if she was a frog facing a snake.


    "We''ll keep the fact that we noticed you a secret."


    "Why...?"


    "Because we feel sorry for you. It goes without saying what would happen if we reported that we found you."


    "That''s..."


    "You weren''t found by us, huh? If we don''t report it, your value won''t be lost. Well, whether you believe me or not, it''s up to you."


    While she was in a tight spot, Ry��en said that, as if dropping a lifeline.


    "If you can''t keep quiet about it, then tell her this: if you want information,e visit me alone in my room anytime you want. That''s only if you and that girl have the courage to do so."


    Yamamura nodded slightly and began to quietly leave the scene.


    It seemed like she had nned to return via Keyaki Mall as she headed in that direction.


    When Yamamura was far enough away, Katsuragi approached Ry��en.


    "Ry��en��you bastard."


    "What?"


    "This hobby of yours isn''t something to be praised."


    "Huh?"


    "I won''t say you shouldn''t be interested in the opposite sex. But Sakayanagi is a child. You can''ty your hands on her."


    Thinking he was being serious, he warned him against doing anything outrageous.


    It was an interpretation of Ry��en saying to visit the room.


    That was just Ry��en''s joke, but Katsuragi probably didn''t understand it.


    "There are plenty of girls in this school. Don''t rush into anything."


    "What kind of nonsense are you saying? Do you think I''d be excited by such a cheeky brat? It''s obviously just a provocation."


    "Huh? No, but just now you said to visit your room alone. That''s what it means, right?"


    While shaking his head, Ry��en tossed a fundamental argument at Katsuragi.


    "You''re right. She''s not my taste at all, but Sakayanagi''s technically our age too."


    He contradicted himself by saying that it was fine to touch people of the same age, but not Sakayanagi.


    Katsuragi, who hadn''t noticed this, froze, lost in thought for a while.


    Finally, he picked up on the meaning of Ry��en''s words and began to speak.


    "...You''re right. No, but at her size, she doesn''t look like we''re the same age at all. She''s even smaller than my sister, so it''s really��"


    While recognizing her as a formidable enemy, Katsuragi was also a brother. He probably let his protectiveness get ahead of him, not wanting her to be seen as a sexual object because of his younger sister that he hadn''t seen in a while.


    One thing was for sure: if Sakayanagi heard these two talk, she''d be angry.


    They clearly treated her like a child (though, only in appearance).


    "For women, it''s best for them to be normal in everything. Neither shy nor in and neither big nor small��that''s my taste."


    Though I didn''t want to know, he seemed to prefer very ordinary women.


    It wasn''t just an arbitrary preference��it sounded like a conclusion that came from experiencing both the bitter and sweet.


    I don''t know about his high school life, but during middle school, he seemed to be quite into women.


    "I''m relieved that you haven''t reached the level of falling for her."


    On the other hand, Katsuragi seemed to feel reassured by somethingpletely irrelevant.


    "Well? Do you still have some business with me, Ayanok��ji?"


    "Using me for your own convenience and then saying such harsh things is quite unfair, isn''t it?"


    "It''s your fault for being used. If you want to me something, me your own wild intuition."


    Indeed, there was no point in holding a grudge about being tricked here.


    It was just difficult to use this experience as a lesson for the future.


    Tailing someone without actually following them closely.


    Even if the same method was used again, it would be difficult to prevent.


    Being cautious without feeling someone''s presence was just restricting one''s own actions.


    However, keeping in mind that I might be followed every time would be even more stressful.


    There''s no point in staying here.


    Besides, there''s still something I want to talk to Yamamura about, and I might be able to catch up with her now.


    "Weren''t you going home?"


    I was asked as soon as I started walking towards Keyaki Mall.


    "There are countless routes inside the mall. I don''t want to be chased around by you anymore today."


    Informing him that, with multiple escape routes, I could avoid him, Ry��en snorted.

 Chapter 404: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 404: 5.4</h4>


    Since I entered Keyaki Mall, what should I do about Yamamura?


    She might''ve already returned to the dormitory through another exit...


    I tried to think, putting myself in Yamamura''s position��what would I do if I were her?


    Undoubtedly, she must''ve been struggling with whether to report her failure of being noticed to Sakayanagi or not.


    During times of mental instability, people would seek a ce to rest.


    If I exclude the option of going straight back to the dormitory and assume that she''s still in Keyaki Mall, where would she be?


    Yamamura wasn''t fond of crowds and disliked contact with others.


    Busy streets and stores could be ruled out right away.


    Karaoke rooms could be used alone, but there was always a hurdle for solo singing.


    A toilet stall was a rtively high possibility, but I also didn''t think she would cause inconvenience to others by making it unusable.


    So, then��


    A while ago, she was between the outdoor vending machine and the indoor nts.


    Near the rest area, there were also several vending machines installed in a secluded spot.


    If it was around there, it was inconspicuous and not crowded.


    Perhaps due to the time, there was no one in the rest area''s vicinity.


    Naturally, there were no other people at the vending machines in the back either.


    I cautiously approached and peeked around the blind spot of the vending machine.


    <Illustration>


    "Wha��!?"


    Upon finding Yamamura sitting next to the vending machine with a mini bottled tea in each hand, she dropped one of them in surprise. Fortunately, the cap was on, so it was fine.


    "I can''t believe you''re really here."


    Although I narrowed it down, I still wasn''tpletely sure...


    I picked up the rolling bottle and handed it to Yamamura.


    "H-h-how did you know I was here..."


    She hurriedly searched her own pockets.


    "No, I don''t have a GPS or anything like that."


    "But, if not that, then how...? D-did you track my phone''s location...?"


    "I didn''t do that either."


    It was a bizarre delusion, but perhaps she was so surprised that she wanted to believe it.


    Yamamura stood up, peeked out from behind the vending machine, and surveyed the area.


    "Ry��en and Katsuragi aren''t here."


    "R-really...? Umm, is there still something you need from me?"


    "I didn''t get a chance to apologize earlier. I''m sorry, Yamamura. If I hadn''t called out to you, you wouldn''t have been found."


    If that hadn''t happened, there would be no need for her to worry about this between vending machines.


    "It was my fault that you found me... Please don''t worry about it."


    She kindly covered for me without openly ming me.


    "Did you report to Sakayanagi that they found you?"


    "Yes, I did. I think my role is over now."


    To my surprise, she casually replied.


    She seemed to be at a loss because of Ry��en''s sweet whispers...


    If she had already reported it, there would be no need to delve deeper into that matter.


    As for me, I still had things left to do for Yamamura.


    "I''ll make it up to you somehow."


    "...Huh?"


    During the school trip, it wouldn''t have been surprising if Yamamura and Kit�� were watching and following Ry��en since they were in the same group.


    It was highly likely that Sakayanagi simply ordered them to keep an eye on him.


    Even if it wasn''t directed by Sakayanagi, keeping a close eye on Ry��en would be natural for them since they were in the same group.


    Yamamura was always concerned about Ichinose''s ss''s every single move.


    However, this case waspletely different, and the surprise was shown by Katsuragi.


    The fact that Sakayanagi might''ve treasured Yamamura and used her as a spy��Ry��en''s analysis of Sakayanagi''s ss strength had advanced slightly after obtaining this information.


    From now on, Ry��en''s approach with Yamamura would undoubtedly escte.


    If I hadn''t noticed her presence and carelessly called out to her, the likelihood of Ry��en and Katsuragi capturing Yamamura would still have been high. There was no need to repeat who bore the responsibility.


    "Making amends or something like that isn''t necessary. It has nothing to do with you, who''s from a different ss."


    While I understood Yamamura''s point, I still had my own thoughts.


    At this stage, it wasn''t something that could be exined to anyone, so I thought of another reason.


    "It just makes me feel ufortable. No matter how you look at it, you only suffer from this."


    "But... it''s wrong to follow someone around, to begin with, right?"


    It seemed that Yamamura felt guilty about that.


    So maybe that was why Yamamura didn''t show any signs of dissatisfaction towards me either.


    "Really, don''t worry about it anymore."


    It looked difficult to get a positive response from Yamamura here. Rather, it might''ve only confused her more if I stayed too long.


    "Understood. I''ll be there to help if you have any troubles. I''m not sure if I can be useful, but feel free to ask me."


    By saying this, I should be able to get Yamamura to ept without any pressure.


    Regardless of whether she was in trouble or not, it would be Yamamura''s decision to keep in contact.


    "In that case, yes, I understand."


    Yamamura nodded, epting my suggestion.


    "Well, I''m going to go now."


    "...Take care."


    Yamamura probably intended to stay in that spot for a while and didn''t attempt to move away from the vending machine.


    I tried to leave the scene after saying goodbye to Yamamura, but��


    I identally found Kei and Sat�� walking towards us in the direction I turned around.


    Reflexively hiding, I crouched down in the vending machine''s shadow with Yamamura behind me.


    "Ah, Ayanok��ji-kun...!?"


    Feeling guilty about Yamamura''s puzzled look, I quietly ced my index finger on my lips to signal to be silent.


    With that, she seemed to understand my intent and quickly fell silent.


    "Hey, where should we go next!?"


    "Well~"


    The cheerful exchange between the two reached my ears, and they were getting closer.


    They probably wouldn''t detect us with just a brief nce.


    However, that would only be the case if they didn''t need to use the vending machine.


    No matter how much we were hidden behind the vending machine, we would be exposed if they came to the front.


    "Hey, how about taking a break? Want something to drink?"


    Apparently, Sat�� had suggested the worst possible oue.


    "Hm..."


    Kei hesitated.


    If we were to be found afterward, hiding would have been counterproductive.


    Being close together with someone of the opposite sex in the narrow space between vending machines.


    It would be difficult to make an excuse that nothing was going on.


    "Yeah, maybe we should just take a break for a bit."


    "That''s a good idea. You are just recovering from being sick, after all."


    I was prepared for the worst, but it seemed they had no ns to use the vending machine.


    It appeared their intention was to rest on the bench nearby rather than using the vending machine.


    However, that didn''t mean the problem was solved.


    There was only one exit, and as long as Kei and Sat�� were sitting on the bench, we couldn''t leave.


    "Thank you. I''m sorry for making you worry."


    "No, it''s not a big deal. I mean, helping each other out when we get sick is normal, right?"


    "Yeah, if you ever copse, I''ll take care of you, Maya-chan."


    "Thanks. I''d appreciate it."


    "I feel like I''m always being supported by you."


    "R-really?"


    "Do you remember when we weren''t as close as we are now, and you confronted me about Kiyotaka? You know, right after we became second-year students?"


    "I think I said something like, ''When did you start liking Ayanok��ji-kun, Karuizawa-san? Answer without dodging the question...'' or something like that."


    While blushing and feeling embarrassed about reminiscing, Sat�� covered her face with her hands.


    "Yes, that''s it. You hit the nail on the head and wouldn''t let me escape."


    The two of them talked in normal voices, but their conversation was clearly audible in the quiet area.


    Yamamura silently looked up at me.


    I slightly raised a hand to signal an apology for having her witness something she didn''t want to hear.


    There was no need to forcibly listen if she didn''t want to.


    Even though it might''ve been a little difficult, if you covered your ears with both hands, you wouldn''t be able to hear it.


    However, surprisingly, Yamamura seemed to be enjoying herself.


    In an "it doesn''t bother me" kind of way, she silently listened to the conversation.


    Yamamura should be responsible for collecting information about someone at the behest of Sakayanagi every day.


    If so, eavesdropping would be an everyday routine.


    One or two stealth missions might be fun, like ying detective for everyone, but there weren''t many people who didn''t feel guilty about eavesdropping on conversations they didn''t want to hear.


    I thought Yamamura might''ve also been fed up with her role, but apparently, that wasn''t the case.


    With her natural ability to blend in, she was veryfortable in this situation.


    The two talked for a while, but eventually, the break came to an end.


    "Shall we go soon?"


    "Are you okay now?"


    "Yeah. It''s my first time going out in a while, so it would be a waste not to have fun."


    "Right. But, make sure you make up with Ayanok��ji-kun, okay?"


    "Y-yeah. I''ll do my best...!"


    Those were thest words I heard from them as they slowly moved away.


    At times like this, there was a fear that the two might unexpectedly return or look back. I thought I should tell Yamamura to stay for a while, but before I made a move, Yamamura silently stopped me with her hand.


    It seemed like she thought that was enough, and she moved almost simultaneously with me.


    "They''re gone, I think."


    "Yeah."


    First, Yamamura stepped out from behind the vending machine and checked the surroundings, making sure there were no problems before signaling for me to do the same.


    "You''re quite efficient, aren''t you?"


    "...Is that so? It''s just what I always do..."


    After softly clearing her throat, Yamamura said something unexpected.


    "Will you properly make up with Karuizawa-san?"


    "Why are you saying something like Sat��?"


    "I was just curious. She''s your girlfriend, right? I didn''t know you two were fighting."


    "So even information collection specialists have things they don''t know."


    "Are you teasing me?"


    "Look who''s talking."


    As I said that, Yamamura looked surprised for a moment, but then she slightly rxed the corners of her mouth.


    "You''re a strange person, Ayanok��ji-kun. It feels odd."


    "I get that a lot."


    "Is that true? Or is it a joke?"


    "Who knows."


    Although she still seemed hesitant, Yamamura''s calm way of speaking was easy to understand and wasn''t unpleasant. Perhaps it was because there were parts that ovepped with me, such as her consistently low tension.


    "By the way... what about the question I asked earlier?"


    "You didn''t forget?"


    "I remember it clearly."


    Surprisingly, Yamamura had a rather pushy side to her, or perhaps one of the walls between us had been removed.


    "I''ll make up with her properly. It''s already nned."


    "I''m d to hear that."


    Despite having no involvement in the matter and no connection with Karuizawa, she seemed somehow happy.


    "You don''t have to report this to Sakayanagi."


    "I can''t promise that."


    "Harsh."


    After taking a breath, Yamamura took out her cell phone and looked at the dark screen. After hesitating a bit, she turned to face me.


    "About the incident with Ry��en-kun earlier... I actually haven''t reported it yet."


    "Is it about finding him?"


    "Yes... I apologize for lying. I just wanted you to go home as soon as possible..."


    "I see."


    "I understand that I need to report it. But... I''m probably afraid of being cut off. As someone without any other merits, that was the one thing I was good at.... If it bes clear that I can''t even do that... I''m useless to the ss."


    It wasn''t about academic ability or physical ability. Yamamura was simply unable to recognize her own self-worth.


    "I don''t mind if you me me, but that''s not the case."


    It was probably Yamamura''s fault, but the fact that she was caught was important for Sakayanagi to know to make future decisions. This would inevitably weaken her function as a spy in the future.


    "Should I not keep quiet about it...?"


    "Do you believe Ry��en''s words?"


    "For now, clinging to that is the only way for me to survive..."


    "I understand how you feel, but you should report it honestly."


    "But until it is revealed, I can maintain the current situation. He might really keep quiet. Ry��en-kun may be expelled by Sakayanagi-san, and everything may get swept under the rug... I don''t know."


    Postponing the exposure of her failure. Imagining a choice to be saved without basis.


    "That''s the worst choice. Ry��en is just taking advantage of the cracks in your heart, and if necessary, he will definitely expose this fact. Even if you manage to get him expelled, there''s a risk of him leaving a parting gift."


    For Ry��en, the results of finding Yamamura weren''t that great. However, if he didn''t report that Yamamura was found, he could use that information to devise a strategy.


    It wouldn''t just end with her removal from her role.


    "Don''t be easily used."


    "But..."


    "I don''t want you to be expelled. Please take this as advice for that reason."


    "Why? I have no rtion to you."


    "We were in the same group on the school trip. Isn''t that enough of a rtionship?"


    "...I am..."


    Yamamura clenched both hands tightly and brought them close to her eyes.


    Then, when she opened her eyes wide, she took out her cell phone and typed a message.


    [''I''ve been caught by Ry��en-kun and Katsuragi-kun. I''ll tell you the details by call.'']


    After showing the text to me, she sent it to Sakayanagi.


    "I thought I might run away again if I hesitated."


    It seemed that she chose a way to cut off the path of retreat by reporting it on the spot.


    "Ah, umm, I''m going to... excuse myself now...!"


    Having suddenly be aware of her situation, Yamamura hurriedly uttered those words.


    "She turned out to be easier to talk to than I''d imagined."


    That was my immediate impression of Yamamura after parting ways with her.


    I told her myself, but I genuinely didn''t want her to be expelled.


    Sakayanagi likely wouldn''t punish Yamamura for being exposed, but it''d be best to keep an eye on the situation, just in case.


    "Ah, right... I should at least inform Horikita."


    Making a phone call would be a hassle, so it''d be best to summarize the key issues and send a message.


    Also, Kei and Sat�� are enjoying themselves at Keyaki Mall. I should head out so I don''t run into them and cause them trouble.


    Thus, I decided to leave the mall.

 Chapter 405: 5.5

    <h4>Chapter 405: 5.5</h4>


    In the evening, I performed the ceremony of unpacking the products that arrived from my online shopping.


    I got my hands on a yogurt maker for 3000 yen.


    I skimmed through the thin instruction manual and mastered how to use the machine. It was finally in my possession.


    Then, I finished what I needed to do and bought the necessary ingredients��milk and yogurt.


    "Alright, let''s do this."


    I hadn''t thought about it much, but making yogurt was incredibly simple.


    First, I took out 100 ml from a one-liter milk carton. I could drink the milk I took out, or use it for cooking. This time, I decided to drink it.


    Then I added 100 grams of yogurt to the empty space in the carton.


    Now, the milk carton had a ratio of 9:1 milk to yogurt. All I had to do was set it in the yogurt maker.


    The timer was set to 9 hours, so once the time was up, all the milk inside the carton would turn into yogurt.


    One might argue to just buy yogurt the usual way, but the true value was in doing this for the next batch and in the long run.


    The next morning, I''d eat the 1000 grams of yogurt I made, but the important thing was to save 100 grams.


    By buying just milk and mixing it in, I could apparently continue ''nting'' more yogurt.


    The power ofctobacilli was amazing.


    I could feel it as I started to make it, even though I knew of its function in theory.


    But I had only just turned the switch on, so what could I say?


    Of course, if I could do this indefinitely, it wouldn''t be a hassle.


    The milk was fermented byctobacilli to turn into yogurt, but it was inevitable that thectobacilli would weaken over time.


    As a result, the solidification weakened, so to avoid this, more time was required for fermentation. The strength of the initial bacteria was lost.


    I nned to be cautious about hygiene when starting, but there were unavoidable factors such as airborne bacteria, which weakened the work ofctobacilli.


    In the end, for a better deal, I should probably finish with three or four batches at most.


    I''d just have to gain experience making yogurt and get a feel for it.


    That was part of the fun of making my own yogurt.


    When I set the timer, it was approaching 9 p.m.


    This meant it would be ready at 6 a.m.


    "Well then."


    I picked up my phone, which was charging on the bed.


    It was about time to contact Kei, or so I thought...


    I tried to call Kei from my call history, but my phone rang instead.


    I thought for a moment that Kei had gotten impatient and called me, but it didn''t seem like it.


    "Hello?"


    "Errr�� H-hi, good evening."


    "It''s unusual for you to call, Sat��."


    I remembered exchanging contact information with her a long time ago, afterst year''s sports festival.


    "Um, well, there''s something I really want to confirm with you."


    "What is it?"


    "...It''s about Kei-chan."


    As a best friend, I could understand why she''d be worried.


    Perhaps she wanted to figure out the emotions I held without telling Kei.


    "About Kei? What do you mean?"


    On purpose, I decided not to answer directly and instead threw a curveball.


    "You''ve been fightingtely... haven''t you?"


    "Did you hear that?"


    "Well, I guess. It''s more like, ''I figured it out from the flow of the conversation.''"


    Instead of saying that she had been explicitly asked for advice, she imed to have noticed something unnatural while talking with Kei.


    "It''s almost the end of the year... You''re going to make up, right?"


    Rather than doubting whether we would meet, she was more concerned about what would happen when we did meet.


    Feeling the unease, she must''ve been acting out of concern for Kei''s well-being.


    She might not have been considering the impact of this phone call on the other party, but for now, I wanted to appreciate the feelings she had for her best friend.


    "I was just about to contact Kei just now about the promise."


    "Is that so? That means... you''re going to make up with her, right?"


    "Of course, that''s the n. Unless Kei has other ns and can''t make it."


    <Illustration>


    Even though we had made a prior appointment, she hadn''t confirmed it at all.


    It was only natural that you couldn''t force a meeting by imposing only your convenience.


    Of course, since I hadn''t received any information stating otherwise, I believed that there should be no problem fulfilling the promise.


    On the other side of the phone, Sat�� gulped. A soundless voice faintly reached my ears.


    "I''m d! Yeah, that''s good! I''m getting in the way, so I''ll hang up now!"


    Deciding that any further conversation would just make Kei more anxious, she tried to hang up.


    "Wait a minute. There''s something I want to tell you."


    "What is it?"


    Sat�� became cheerful after knowing I would contact Keiter.


    Being able to support someone whilst putting their feelings and themselves second was a sign of a genuinely strong heart.


    That was why I could delve a little deeper into the matter.


    "Of course, as a boyfriend, I''m supposed to protect Kei. But that''s not enough."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You never know when, or where, or what kind of problems wille. It''s not just about love, is it? Troubles can arise from tangled friendships, and there''s a risk of expulsion due to the school''s unique rules. Just like how you felt uneasy about Kei and me, human rtionships can break down at any time, and any ce. Even if you feel absolutely secure, it can change to insecurity the moment a crack appears."


    "That''s��"


    For Sat�� as well, it would be an undeniable fact.


    When Sat�� acknowledged the rtionship between Kei and me, she must''ve felt relieved at the same time.


    Ayanok��ji would protect Kei and cherish her��she must have had that kind of baseless confidence.


    However, she panicked at one unexpected situation and felt anxious.


    That was why, despite the risks, she made this phone call.


    "You had to support her as a friend��no, as a best friend. Of course, this was based on the premise that you acknowledged Kei as such."


    "That''s obvious!"


    Without a moment''s dy, Sat�� dered that she would protect Kei.


    "Then that''s fine. But in return, I''ll guarantee the opposite as well."


    "...The opposite?"


    "If you can''t protect Kei, I will protect Kei."


    "Can I trust you...? Is that okay?"


    "Of course."


    Our true intentions, essence, and real feelings didn''t matter.


    It was better to make Sat�� think that way��to make an invisible contract.


    Even if I abandoned Kei, the chances of Sat�� devotedly continuing her help would increase.


    If Sat�� were to be expelled or something, there would be no way for her to know if I would continue to protect Kei afterward. There would be no grudge even if I went back on my promise.


    However, Kei currently had an important role to y in maintaining Horikita''s ss.


    "Today, I was told by Kei that she wanted to meet with you. She wanted to say thank you."


    "Ah, I see."


    "Thank you."


    "No, no need to thank me. If you two get along well, that''s all I need."


    "Alright. Then please hear tomorrow''s report from Kei."


    "I''ll prepare myself for the lovey-dovey story."


    After finishing the call, I felt a subtle change in my emotions within the empty room.


    Manipting others with my own words.


    That is, for me, ssified as ''fun'' behavior.


    It didn''t matter if the words were true or false.


    The fact that I even found the other''s attempts to manipte me ''fun.''


    I even wanted to wee being deceived unknowingly.


    To know and learn about people. To be taught.


    Many more people��or perhaps, bigger and unknown, giant opponents.


    If I could control and master such people, I couldn''t help but think it would be even more enjoyable.


    But still, Sat�� had improved her skills little by little.


    Even in just one phone call, I could see her growth.


    "Well��"


    I was a littlete for our promised time, but I decided to call Kei.

 Chapter 406 - 6 : Remaining Time

    <h4>Chapter 406: Chapter 6 : Remaining Time</h4>


    I HAD A DISAGREEMENT with Kei over something rted to Ichinose.


    I intentionally minimized contact and kept my distance for quite some time.


    Unable to meet Kei on Christmas due to an unexpected ident, the flu, I realized it was already the end of the year��December 29th.


    Our meeting time was set for a leisurely three o''clock in the afternoon.


    Until then, I spent an ordinary day off in my room with nothing to do.


    I watched TV, read books, surfed the inte, and listened to music.


    I thought it would be boring, but I found fulfillment in the ordinary.


    Finally, with 20 minutes left until the promised time, I decided to leave the dormitory.


    We were to meet at the entrance of Keyaki Mall, but I thought we could run into each other by chance.


    However, there was no sign of Kei in the dormitory lobby or outside.


    I thought about it again in my head.


    What does it mean for me to be in a rtionship?


    What is love in the first ce?


    Among the several definitions of ''rtionship'' in the dictionary, the one that applied to us right now was ''dating as a couple.''


    It was easy to understand and could be taken literally.


    Meanwhile, when I looked up ''love'' in the dictionary, it said, "the emotion of affection a man and a woman have for each other."


    Affection. Emotion. Have I been able to learn about love over time?


    That was the first point to consider.


    I had learned a lot of emotions in this school.


    sses, conversations with friends, talks with teachers, shopping, ying.


    With that, I learned what was interesting, not interesting, fun, not fun, delicious, not delicious, and many more.


    Through my rtionship with Kei, I learned a lot about what lovers experience and go through.


    Conversations, dates, and acts of intimacy that could only be done as a couple.


    I could probably say that I had taken all the actions that would be considered model answers.


    So, could I say that I''ve learned the feeling of love?


    The answer was probably different. It wasn''t the same as learning emotions.


    My heart hadn''t been swayed at all��from before I started dating Kei until now.


    That was something I''d asked myself over and over on a daily basis.


    I didn''t know the answer, but I had a hunch.


    It was that I saw Kei as a vehicle to learn about love. I prioritized experiences that could only be done as a couple. In other words, I left that emotion behind when I moved ahead to the next step before my subconscious had caught up.


    Of course, I didn''t regret it. I learned a lot from Kei.


    However, the time to decide how long to continue this rtionship approached.


    Kei was the student who carried the most darkness within Horikita''s ss.


    Even if she tried being strong, she had a dependent nature. And I took advantage of that and brought her into my control.


    But I couldn''t achieve my goal while leaving this intense dependency in ce.


    Now that my policy had changed dramatically, her breaking free from dependency was essential.


    That was why I have gained the right to learn something new.


    I wondered whether or not there was hesitation in parting with Kei.


    If I felt hesitant to let her go, then maybe it could really be called love.


    There were nearly five minutes left until the promised time, but Kei was already waiting there. She was looking down and hadn''t noticed me yet.


    Considering the time, it wouldn''t be strange for her to start looking around for me.


    Maybe she was afraid that she might not be able to see me when she lifted her head.


    Or perhaps she had some resistance to meeting me face to face.


    "You''re early."


    I approached her, but not to surprise her too much, I left some distance between us and called out to her.


    "Ah��"


    Reacting to my voice, Kei raised her head.


    We were supposed to go on a date today since we couldn''t have one on Christmas together, but she didn''t look excited. Maybe she was just so anxious she couldn''t help it.


    At the very least, I couldn''t see any feelings of disgust, disappointment, or loss of interest in me.


    "It''s been a while..."


    "Yeah. In the sense that we''re alone like this, it''s been about three weeks."


    By the time we finished exchanging small talk, we were closely facing each other.


    There seemed to be a wedge between me and Kei at that moment. Until now, we used to be so close that we would practically be touching each other. Those three weeks apart left an awkward atmosphere between us.


    "Are you feelingpletely better now?"


    "Yeah. Did you hear from someone?"


    "Last night, I got a call from Sat��, worrying for you. I heard it then."


    "I see..."


    Our feelings were still nowhere near the usual and remained somewhat distant. Even though we''re in a rtionship and have many secrets between us, this was how much a person''s appearance could change when they''re filled with anxiety.


    "Let''s go inside for now."


    "Yeah..."


    It was cold outside in winter. I decided to take Kei inside Keyaki Mall first.


    "What do you want to do?"


    "Originally, we were nning on seeing the Christmas tree here first."


    "Yeah..."


    The Christmas tree had already been removed, leaving only arge empty space.


    The next time it''d be lively and decorated again would be next year''s Halloween or Christmas.


    "It''s too bad we couldn''t see it."


    "Yeah..."


    Since we met up and started to move, Kei had been distant and only repeatedly said ''Yeah.''


    Indeed, that was to be expected.


    After all, the reason for our current separationid with me.


    It''d be normal to object to going out with someone of the opposite sex while having a lover.


    Moreover, if I objectively looked at my own situation, what I did could be taken as cheating, and there was no helping it.


    Kei probably didn''t have the courage to open such a danger-emitting door herself.


    "For now, I want to apologize for the misunderstanding that urred regarding Ichinose. I want to stand before you, bring my hands together, and bow deeply."


    "...Kiyotaka..."


    "It''s natural for you to feel angry and worried. To be clear, there''s no fault on your part at all."


    "No, that''s not true... I''ve said some harsh things too..."


    "That isn''t true. I think you endured it quite well."


    Without berating me, she only expressed her rightful dissatisfaction.


    "I really wanted to apologize much earlier, but it ended up being dyed."


    While apologizing, I took out a box that I had hidden in my pocket beforehand.


    "What''s this...?"


    "It''ste, but it''s a Christmas present. Please ept it."


    Kei slowly reached out her hand, then pulled it back. Still notpletely rid of her anxiety, she showed a frightened reaction.


    I touched her stiff hand and gently closed her fingers around the box.


    Then I took the coat she had been holding and urged her to open it.


    "Can I open it?"


    "Of course."


    She gathered her resolve, and while she pressed down on the bottom of the box with her left hand, she removed the lid.


    What came out of the box was a shiny ne. She stared at it intently and raised her face in surprise.


    "Did I tell you, Kiyotaka, that I wanted this...!?"


    "I didn''t need to hear it directly. I saw that you had searched for it many times on your phone. You looked at a lot of other things too, but this felt the most special."


    Among the jewelry I''d seen, some were more expensive than this, but considering our position as students, it''d be hard to imagine her asking for something overly extravagant.


    First of all, I thought it was definitely the right choice...


    Kei still stood frozen, holding the ne.


    "Could it be that I was wrong?"


    If that was the case, it would be a blunder caused by my selfish actions.


    However, Kei denied it, shaking her head vigorously left and right and clutching the ne.


    "No, you''re correct...!"


    "I see. That''s good."


    "This... isn''t a dream... is it!?"


    A joyful Kei, without caring about the possibility that someone might be nearby, started crying on the spot.


    With this, I could judge that Kei''s dependence on me had reached its peak at the moment.


    Even if she was forced to take unspeakable actions she would most likely carry them out.


    I didn''t end the rtionship here.


    That was because, even if I cut off Kei at this moment, it wouldn''t lead to a fundamental solution.


    "Kiyotaka?"


    As I was lost in thought, Kei looked up at me with her puzzled, moist eyes.


    "You''re staying tonight, right?"


    With a beaming smile, Kei wrapped herself around my arm.


    "Ah, I thought maybe... I wasn''t any good anymore...!"


    "Will you ept me?"


    "Of course, isn''t it obvious...?"


    With the ne still in her hand, tears welled up in Kei''s eyes and began to overflow.


    <Illustration>


    "So, it''s really okay to... go back to the way things were?"


    "Yes, back to the way things were."


    "It''s really, really okay to trust you, right?"


    "You can trust me."


    To Kei, who repeatedly sought confirmation, I embraced her and conveyed my unwavering answer.


    "I''m so d! I''m so d!"


    "We couldn''t celebrate Christmas together, but let''s definitely spend your birthday together."


    "Yes, yes!"


    Kei''s birthday was March 8th.


    If things went smoothly, it would be before the final exams.


    Nothing would change until then.


    Just like before, I''d be by her side to support and protect her if she needed it.


    That was the fate of a parasitized host.


    She put on the ne and shyly wrapped her arms around me.


    "It''s been a while... hasn''t it?"


    "It has. Where do you want to go?"


    "Anywhere is fine. As long as I''m with you, anywhere is fine."


    There was nothing more she could wish for. She answered like that and drew her body closer to mine.


    "From today on, can Ie to your room again?"


    "It''s more difficult to find a reason to refuse."


    "How about taking a bath? Can I join you?"


    "Of course."


    "Hehehehe."


    After she happily rxed her cheeks, she wiped the tears overflowing from the corner of her eyes with the tip of her fingers.


    The restoration of my rtionship with her.


    It was a joyful action.


    Yet, why did my heart not even twitch?


    Shouldn''t I be more overjoyed, trembling and rejoicing together?


    I don''t know.


    "I''m d we made up."


    Fabricated words.


    With those words, Kei felt joy and happiness.


    There was no sadness in not knowing such feelings.


    If I didn''t understand, I could repeatedly try until I did.


    If it didn''t work with Kei, I''d try with someone else.


    By having more rtionships, eventually, I''d be able to learn about love.


    I mighte across myself abandoned and crying in pain.


    Desire arose.


    An endless curiosity pushed me on.


    This was what it meant not to know.


    There was still infinite room for learning.


    "Would you like to go to karaoke after so long?"


    For now, I should continue to focus on building a rtionship with Kei.


    To avoid making her uneasy again due to the silence, I suggested that.


    "Wow, it''s rare for you to suggest karaoke."


    Looking back, I went to karaoke quite often, but I rarely thought about voluntarily singing, so as she said, it might''ve been rare.


    "Recently, I''ve been hearing more hit songs on TV."


    Kei was a good way for me to check whether or not I was good enough to go out with other students for future karaoke sessions without embarrassing myself.


    She raised her hand to show her agreement and answered with a smile, so the two of us started walking.


    On the way, I noticed a vending machine in the break area.


    Maybe even today, Yamamura was sitting between those vending machines.


    "...What''s wrong?"


    When I stopped my feet, she tilted her head and looked at the vending machines, following my gaze.


    "Are you thirsty?"


    "That''s not it."


    I wondered what Yamamura was told after reporting to Sakayanagi.


    Was she relieved of her duty, or was she watching someone else unrted to Ry��en?


    "Oh, right. Can I contact Maya-chan?"


    I consented, and to avoid sending messages while walking, I sat her down on a nearby bench.


    "You want to sit next to me?"


    "No, I''m going to take a look at the vending machine. There might be new interesting products."


    "Got it!"


    Kei happily swayed her body as she began chatting with Sat��. It seemed like she was reporting that we had made up and thanked her again. In the meantime, I decided to head toward the vending machines in the back. Even though I thought it was unlikely that she''d be there, I still wanted to make sure.


    When I peeked between the vending machines...


    "Wha!?"


    Unexpectedly... she was there. It was the same scene as before��she was sitting down and holding a stic bottle in her hand. The only difference was a partially filled eco-bag ced on the ground.


    "Here we meet again. Are you always here?"


    "Not always... just sometimes," she replied, ncing away guiltily.


    "What''s that?"


    "Uh? Ah, this? This is a hand towel I bought as a reward for myself."


    "A reward?"


    "...Please don''t worry about it. You seem to have made up with Karuizawa-san."


    "Did you overhear that?"


    "Yes. I''m good at catching such things."


    She was being vague, but she meant that she was good at eavesdropping.


    "I think you should leave soon. Even if it looks like you''re excited about a new product, it feels a little strange when you think over it calmly."


    It seemed like she had picked up on the entire conversation.


    I wanted to ask her about Sakayanagi''s reaction, but it was rted to the ss situation, so she wouldn''t easily answer me. On the contrary, even if I asked, I might cause her more trouble.


    "See youter."


    "...Yes."


    I left the area since it might''ve made it seem like I was talking to a vending machine. When I returned to the bench, just in time, Kei seemed to have wrapped up her conversation with Sat��. It turned out to be the right decision to end the conversation sooner.


    "Did something happen?"


    "Nothing really. Let''s go."


    "Alright!"


    Kei stood up energetically and approached me again, linking her arm with mine.


    Kei''s mood had returned to normal to an unbelievable extent. It felt as if her dependency had increased even more than before.


    She wanted to be together during meals, baths, and even when sleeping.


    Her strong desire not to let go of me, even for a moment, was conveyed through our intertwining fingers.


    Parasites burrowed deep, deep inside, to the point where they couldn''t escape on their own.


    Without fear of being absorbed, they ventured forth.


    Thus, within the year, my rtionship had grown even beyond what it was before, and we weed New Year as lovers.


    On a side note, the image of her happily humming while leaving the room to join the New Year''s gathering with her friends was still burned into my memory.

 Chapter 407: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 407: 6.1</h4>


    On my days off, I go to Keyaki Mall. Perhaps with friends, my lover, or alone.


    The facility was packed with the only source of entertainment in our school lives and provided endless fun without growing tiresome, but it tended to consume one''s private points.


    Keeping a membership to the gym and onlymuting between it and the dormitory would''ve been efficient, but that wasn''t possible.


    Eating out with somebody, going to karaoke, or even impulsively picking up attractive items��the battle against temptation continued.


    Therefore, sometimes I wanted to spend time without using any private points.


    Staying cooped up in my room was an option, but I wanted to reserve that for difficult situations.


    With such reasoning, there weren''t many options left.


    Putting on my uniform for the first time in ten days, I left the dormitory.


    I headed to school during my winter break; my goal was the library.


    Shortly before winter break, I was on my way towards the bookstore when a person''s back briefly caught my attention.


    That was the reason why I decided to go to the library. I didn''t know whether or not she was there now.


    While the school was closed for three days, it reopened today, January 4th.


    Despite it being earlier than 11 a.m., I wasn''t the only one headed to school; there were also students sweating during their club activities.


    Setting foot inside the campus, I heard students'' energetic voicesing out of nowhere.


    On the way to the library, I encountered Sakagami-sensei.


    "Happy New Year," I told him while nodding, as ignoring himpletely would''ve been impossible.


    "Ah, Happy New Year to you too," came a greeting from Sakagami-sensei. He greeted me even though he may have felt a slight sense of awkwardness towards me since I wasn''t taking part in any club activities.


    He tried to pass by, but then he called out from behind.


    "You seem to have improved your academic ability quite a bittely. But while you''ve made progress, Sud��-kun''s growth in particr has been truly remarkable."


    "That''s true. Sud�� has been working really hard,"


    "He''s shown an incredible growth rate since he enrolled. He was constantly causing troublesome incidents before. Among the staff, he''s now a great topic of conversation," he added.


    It was excellent news. Since Sud�� had stood out for his bad behavior, he was probably always under the teachers'' watchful eyes.


    But why did he bring it up now?


    "Now from ss D to ss B, you''re even on the verge of reaching ss A."


    Sakagami-sensei gently touched the edge of his sses.


    Since the first time I recognized him as Ry��en''s homeroom teacher, the atmosphere around him had somehow changed.


    The behavior that others found repulsive had be less pronounced than before.


    I didn''t think it was like that during the uninhabited ind exam in the summer...


    Chabashira-sensei, along with Mashima-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei, often had opportunities to talk. Perhaps because they were of the same year.


    On the other hand, I hardly had any contact with Sakagami-sensei, so maybe my impression of him had changed due to the long absence.


    "To be honest, I didn''t expect your ss to grow this much," Sakagami-sensei said��apliment that seemed genuine.


    Immediately after that, Sakagami-sensei''s gaze sharpened behind the lenses of his sses.


    "Was it you who changed the ss known as ''defective''?"


    "No way. I haven''t done anything special. Isn''t it the result of the whole ss, starting with our leader Horikita, working hard?"


    Although I entered with a greater denial rather than modesty, it was unclear how much it resonated with Sakagami-sensei.


    The three homeroom teachers that belonged to the same year knew to some extent that I was a student from a special environment.


    It wouldn''t be strange if Sakagami-sensei shared that knowledge, and even if he didn''t, it wouldn''t be surprising if he understood it from the atmosphere or his intuition.


    "Certainly, things like Sud��-kun''s attitude and achievements in studying can''t be forced... Well, that''s fine. Regardless of individual abilities, if the ss is really gaining power, you''ll have to cooperate sooner orter, whether you like it or not."


    I guess I''ll have to show my abilities when that timees.


    "Are you going to the library now?"


    "You guessed it."


    "At this time, there are limited ces that non-club students can enter. Besides, I know that you''re a student who frequently goes to the library."


    Certainly, I visited the library quite often, but I wasn''t aware that Sakagami-sensei knew about it.


    I''d never seen Sakagami-sensei at the library before. If so, I''d have to think about how he indirectly knew.


    "Can teachers view the students'' lending history?"


    "Lending history? Only the librarian can do that. It would be a vition of privacy if a teacher arbitrarily viewed it."


    "Then how did you know that I was a student who goes to the library?"


    "That... you might find out when you go to the library. I have a staff meeting for the third term now, so please excuse me."


    Sakagami-sensei, who seemed to have avoided directly answering, said that and walked away.


    The words'' implications bothered me, but I couldn''t stop the retreating teacher, so I went to the library as nned.


    When I opened the door and stepped inside, the room was engulfed in silence.


    Originally, this ce was supposed to be quiet, but it was different when people were present.


    Aplete silence spread where no one was present.


    There was no sign of the librarian, who was often seated at the reception desk.


    Is she away from her seat on some errand?


    The door wasn''t locked, so I didn''t think entering was a problem, but I was a little hesitant.


    I thought about waiting at the entrance for a while, but she''de back eventually.


    Without any particr thought, I bowed slightly in the empty space and started browsing the books.


    I didn''t know what I wanted to read or borrow yet; if I picked something up and it felt right, I''d go for it.


    "Happy New Year, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    As I was browsing for a book to borrow, I heard a voice from the other side of the bookshelf.


    I went around to see who it was, but it seemed that the other person was trying to do the same, so we ended up passing each other. However, I caught a glimpse of their side profile.


    And then, realizing that we had switched ces, they hurried back.


    "I went the wrong way, huh?"


    "Seems so."


    It was Hiyori Shiina, who I hadn''t seen in a while since chatting with her at the school festival.


    She used to be in and out of the library quite frequently��a true bookworm��but she had disappeared for some time.


    I heard that she was back to her old routine recently, and it seemed that was indeed the case.


    "Happy New Year. It''s been a while since west met in the library."


    "Yes, it has. Have you been well?"


    "I have. And you?"


    "I caught a cold at the end of the year. Fortunately, it wasn''t the flu that''s been going around, so I recovered after a couple of days."


    We briefly shared updates about our lives before moving on to talk about books.


    "Since we''re here, if it''s not a bother, I might borrow one of your rmendations."


    "Really? That makes me happy."


    Though there was no advantage in choosing someone else''s book to read, she dly epted.


    "I know that there''s a reason you choose the books you do, so I''m sure it''ll be good."


    "Then please allow me to guide your choice."


    Far from being bothered by my one-sided request, she happily sped her hands together.


    "First off, what kind of genre are you in the mood for?"


    "Well, I''ve been spacing out a lot during the holidays, so maybe a mystery to get my brain going?"


    "A mystery it is."


    Without showing any signs of distress, Hiyori began to walk, gesturing for me to follow.


    It seemed she had a firm grasp on that particr genre as well.


    "Have you read ''The ss Key''?"


    She quickly picked out a book and asked me so as we walked through the library together.


    Dashiell Hammett, huh? It''s a masterpiece that''s been selected as one of the top 100 best detective novels of all time.


    "Unfortunately, I read that about two years ago."


    "Not unfortunate at all, but rather impressive. It''ll be more challenging to find something for you."


    Saying that, she continued to rmend ssic mystery novels from the past.


    I could see Hiyori''s approach of starting with more famous works.


    "By the way... this isn''t rted to mystery novels... but have you read any of Kaminai Tsushi''s works?"


    "Kaminai Tsushi? No, I don''t recognize the author''s name, so I probably haven''t read it."


    Though I was rtively knowledgeable about books, there were still far more authors I didn''t know than those I did.


    But if I read a book, I would at least remember the author''s name.


    "It can''t be helped. It''s apletely unknown author, and they''ve never sold anything back then or now."


    Hiyoriughed somewhat amusingly as she answered.


    I wondered if she might''ve rmended them to me too, but after confirming it, the conversation went back to mystery novels without her bringing it up again.


    "Have you read ''The Secret of the Two-Wheeled Carriage''? It''s Fergus Hume''s debut work."


    "I haven''t read it."


    "Well, no one''s borrowing it right now, so it might be a good opportunity to do so."


    After picking out three more books, including the one with Hiyori''s help, we moved to the front desk where the librarian had returned.


    We exchanged New Year''s greetings, and Hiyori swiftly checked out the books.


    "If you''d like, pleasee visit again, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I think I''lle by a few more times before the third term starts. Hiyori, you''re staying in the library, right?"


    "There''s not much else to do since we have so many days off."


    "Don''t you go to Keyaki Mall with friends or something?"


    "Not really."


    As I recalled, I hadn''t seen Hiyori hanging out with friends during our regr school life. Of course, I''d seen her interacting with ssmates for various reasons, but...


    It was possible that she might''ve had fewer friends than I thought.

 Chapter 408: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 408: 6.2</h4>


    Back in the hallway, Hiyori hurriedly followed after me.


    Although it was a short distance, she was still slightly out of breath.


    "Here��"


    After catching her breath, Hiyori showed me a paper bag.


    It could be inferred that it contained a book from its shape.


    However, it probably wasn''t from the library.


    Hiyori took out the book with her slender fingers and held it out to me.


    "This is one of my favorite books. Would you mind reading it if you have the chance?"


    There was a book cover on it, but I had an idea of what it was.


    "Is this, by any chance, the author you mentioned earlier?"


    "I guess it''s easy to figure out, huh?"


    A book by an unknown author introduced out of the blue, disregarding genre.


    Considering the situation, it was rtively easy to guess.


    "In the case that you had already read it, I didn''t think I could''ve easily given it to you as a present."


    There was a difference in how much joy an unread book versus an already read one could bring as a present, after all.


    <Illustration>


    The statement must have been made with such considerations in mind.


    "If you only want to read it, you can borrow it from the library. But if it''s a work I really like or one I''m particrly fond of, I want to have it on hand."


    "So you went out of your way to buy it with your own money."


    "Also... this book isn''t avable in the library."


    That meant it wasn''t even possible to borrow it.


    I could ask the librarian to get it, but looking at Hiyori''s situation, I could tell that this book wasn''t something that would appeal to everyone.


    Perhaps she personally liked it but didn''t think it was worth promoting.


    "Are you sure I can have it?"


    Even for just one book, this kind of paperback wasn''t a cheap purchase for a student.


    "Yes. Actually, this is the third time I''ve bought this book. The first time was when I was in junior high, and I still have it in my room. The second one was when I entered this school."


    And the third one was bought to be a gift for me.


    "I think I understand your tastes pretty well, so I''m confident that you''ll be happy with it."


    "I feel bad making you go through the trouble."


    I couldn''t keep her holding it out forever, so I took it with my hands.


    But then a little question arose.


    "Did you perhaps carry this around with you until you met me?"


    I asked since I hadn''t told her that I''d be here today.


    "I would''vee right away if you had just told me."


    "Well, yes. But... it''s only been a few days, so it''s not a big deal."


    "Well then... see youter."


    I wondered if the somewhat reluctant look on her face was just my imagination.

 Chapter 409: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 409: 6.3</h4>


    I saw Hiyori returning to the library and headed to the entrance to leave the school.


    Perhaps because it was lunchtime, I could see some club members here and there.


    As I arrived at the entrance, I spotted two ssmates deeply engaged in conversation.


    "Hey, Ayanok��ji? Why are you at school?"


    The first to notice me was Sud��, still wearing his basketball gear.


    On the other hand, Y��suke was putting on the sleeves of his ser uniform.


    "Happy New Year. I just ran into Sud��-kun by chance. We were talking about eating lunch together."


    "This is an unusual pairing."


    "Really? Ourbo is quitemontely, isn''t it?"


    "Yeah."


    I didn''t think they were originally close friends, but it seemed they''ve be close enough to have lunch together. Maybe Sud��''s growth brought him more in tune with Y��suke.


    "But is it okay for us to have lunch without Onodera-san?"


    "It seems like she''s had a cold since yesterday, so she''ll be taking the day off from club activities."


    Moreover, it appeared that not only the two of them, but Onodera also participated in this routine.


    It was a rtionship only possible for students in club activities.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, are youing back from the library?"


    Looking at the few books in my hand, Y��suke asked as he seemed to have associated them with the library.


    After confirming, we naturally started walking towards the convenience store under Sud��''s lead.


    "It seems like the cafeteria is closed during winter break, huh?"


    "Yeah, we usually either bring food from home or buy it from the convenience store."


    Apparently, after purchasing food, they''d head back to school to eat it.


    While they often ate outside on a bench during spring and fall, it wasn''t preferable at this time of the year.


    However, after listening to their conversation, it seemed there were a few ces like a heated cafeteria avable so that the club members wouldn''t have trouble finding a ce to eat.


    "Speaking of which, it''s been snowing intermittently, hasn''t it?"


    "It''s annoying. The weather''s been unstable for about two weeks now, right?"


    "When it''s this cold, our bodies don''t move well either, so I hope it warms up soon."


    Conversations continued that were specific to their club activities, which I, as a non-member, couldn''t participate in.


    However, I wasn''t alienated. I simply listened to this pair converse naturally. It wasforting.


    "By the way, Kiyotaka-kun, is everything alright with the Karuizawa-san matter? It seems like you''re having a hard time."


    "Impressive. So you''ve heard about it after all, huh?"


    "I could tell something was off about her since before winter break. You''d realize it if you saw her in the ssroom."


    "What do you mean ''is everything alright''? Oh, did you guys finally break up?"


    Sud�� cut right into the conversation, making Y��suke chuckle. But Y��suke assumed it was incorrect, so he quickly rejected the notion.


    "I don''t think that''s what happened. It''s just that there might be some trouble going on?"


    It seemed that even Y��suke''s information only went up until the time around Christmas.


    "The problem has already been resolved. It has been normal since the end of the year."


    "Oh, that''s good to hear."


    "Yeah, you didn''t break up, huh?"


    Sud�� seemed disappointed while folding his hands behind his head.


    "Were you hoping they would break up?"


    "No, it''s not like that. It was just a joke. I''m still jealous because I don''t have a girlfriend. Sorry about that."


    He denied the remark��one that seemed to celebrate others'' misfortune��and apologized.


    Spring hadn''te for Sud�� yet, but there were signs that it was approaching.


    "No progress with Onodera?"


    "Hey, don''t say unnecessary things. You''ll make Hirata misunderstand."


    As soon as her name was mentioned, Sud�� panicked, but Y��suke just watched him with a warm gaze.


    "I think Y��suke probably understands."


    "...Seriously?"


    He thought Y��suke hadn''t noticed the subtle rtionship at all.


    "I know Onodera-san has been paying attention to you for a while now."


    He was more sensitive to his ssmates'' gaze and actions than most people.


    It wasn''t surprising that he was aware of it, but he probably wouldn''t say anything unnecessary.


    "So, what about it?"


    "Well... Onodera and I are just friends."


    He pursed his lips and denied it as if he hadn''t developed romantic feelings for her yet, or perhaps it had just started to bud.


    I wondered if he still had lingering feelings for Horikita, but it didn''t seem like it was a major issue.


    At any rate, he continued to behave as if he wouldn''t take advantage of Onodera''s feelings for him.


    After stopping by the convenience store, the three of us returned to the school, feeling the cold on our skin.


    When we headed to the cafeteria, it was quite crowded with upper and lower ssmen alike, and we saw many students belonging to clubs.


    Even those who didn''t participate in clubs like me could enter, so there were probably students who came just to have lunch with friends.


    As our k��hais entered the cafeteria, they asionally greeted Sud�� and Y��suke.


    "You two really feel like senpais now, huh?"


    "We''re already getting close to the end of our second year. Once the third term is over, we''ll be in our third year. It doesn''t really feel like it though."


    Sud�� bit into his rice ball. The salmon peeked out from between the seaweed and white rice.


    "Something strange happened the other day. A girl in our same year asked me a lot of weird questions."


    Muttering, Sud�� seemed to remember something.


    "Weird questions like?"


    "Stuff like when did I start studying and why I haven''t studied until now. She seemed to want to know the reason for my academic improvement in the OAA."


    "You have the highest growth rate in academics, after all. She must''ve been curious about it."


    Even for us, who were in the same ss, it was quite a sight.


    It must''ve felt like seeing some kind of magic for the other sses.


    "Wouldn''t you have been fine with a barrage of questions from a girl?"


    "Well, not really. She was cute on the outside, but she was constantly verybative and stuck-up. All I wanted was for her to let me go before my club activities started."


    It didn''t seem like there was much hope for a new romance.


    "By the way, who was that?"


    "I don''t remember... It''s not like I know every girl''s name."


    Sud��, who had stuffed the entire rice ball into his mouth in about three bites, answered while chewing.


    "Just in case, do you want to check who it was? We might meet her again."


    Waving his hand dismissively, Sud�� denied Y��suke, who was probably about to open his phone to check the OAA.


    "It''s fine. If it was a girl who liked me, it would be a different story, but there''s no way that was it."


    Sud�� didn''t even seem to want to remember the name, as the whole experience was quite painful for him.


    "You''re starting to attract attention for something other than your athletic ability."


    "If that means they''re scared of me, I don''t mind," he said.


    Without being arrogant, Sud�� clenched his fist and gathered his fighting spirit.


    "I''m just getting started."


    He seemed unsatisfied with the present situation and determined to surprise those around him even more.

 Chapter 410: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 410: 6.4</h4>


    "I need to piss."


    He finished the water in his paper cup, stood up, put his hands in both pockets, and left his seat.


    Watching Sud�� leave, Y��suke began to talk about recent events.


    "I''ve heard from the first-year basketball team members, regardless of gender, that although he''s strict, he''s admired as a very caring senpai. When he joined the teamst year, his goal was just to improve his own skills, so the third-years are quite surprised at the change."


    Y��suke, who has a wide range of acquaintances, seemed to know the unseen side of Sud�� as well.


    "With his basketball skills and academic sess, girls won''t be able to leave him alone."


    "Just between us, I''ve even been asked by a female k��hai for Sud��-kun''s contact information."


    "Wouldn''t Sud�� be crying tears of joy over that?"


    Being popr with girls was supposed to be one of Sud��''s lifelong ambitions. However, Y��suke showed a slightly bitter andplicated smile.


    "When I asked him for permission just in case, he told me to refuse because they must be making fun of him. He didn''t seem to care at all."


    It seemed that Sud�� hadn''t noticed that he was beginning to be more popr, including with Onodera. Having no such experiences before, he most likely couldn''t feel it.


    "Spring may arrive for him a littleter then."


    "It might."


    As Y��suke smiled at this situation, he looked down at the book I was holding.


    "I was a little curious, but there''s only one with a book cover, right?"


    Because the library-issued books may have had transparent protective films on them, this one book clearly stood out. That fact seemed to bother Y��suke a bit.


    "This was given to me earlier. There''s a girl named Shiina Hiyori in Ry��en''s ss, right?"


    "Yeah. Now that you mention it, I''ve seen her with you a few times... She gave it to you?"


    "She rmended it, saying it was interesting, and our shared love of books made our tastes align."


    "Is that so..."


    Y��suke, who had been calm throughout, furrowed his brow slightly, showing a hint of dissatisfaction.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    Although Y��suke answered this way, he couldn''t help but keep a somewhat troubled expression. Our conversation abruptly stopped, leaving a silence. I thought about changing the subject.


    "Speaking of clubs, how long do you typically continue them? As a third year, you''ve got to think about entrance exams, right?"


    Y��suke answered, slightly perplexed by the irrelevant question.


    "Well, there''s no specific date, but I think many people quit around June. If they need to focus on their studies, that''s what I''d expect. But if they prioritize their club activities, some continue until summer orter."


    I knew that deciding whether to go on to college and how much time to set aside for exams depended on those factors, but June seemed earlier than I had expected.


    "What about you, Y��suke? Have you thought about it?"


    "I''m not sure. There''s no guarantee that I can graduate from ss A, and I think my parents want me to go to college. So, after confirming that, I think it''ll be around June."


    In this school, it was basically impossible tomunicate with those who lived off-campus. However, there were some exceptions.


    One of these exceptions was regarding further education or employment.


    Even when it came to further education, there were many factors that students alone couldn''t decide. Such as which university to attend, whether to go to a vocational school, and how to cover the costs.


    Most students would want to consult their parents when it came to finding a job.


    In such cases, discussions about further education were held under the school''s supervision.


    As a student who didn''t wish to pursue higher education, this system and rule didn''t apply to me, but for those who wanted to, it was an inevitable part of the process.


    However, this system could only be used after the third term of the second year.


    The reason was that, by deciding on a desired school, it was possible to avoid unnecessary studying in the third year and beyond.


    By deciding the level of the university and the department for the exam, you could set a goal.


    If there was a high-level university a student aspired to attend, the announcement of eptance for the general entrance exam was from February to March, before graduating from this school.


    The question then was, would they graduate from ss A?


    This school had the power to fulfill the wishes of those who graduated from ss A. Should they decide to go to college, the school could change the result for those who failed to get into their desired university.


    However, this was only for being epted, and whether or not a student could advance to graduation was left up to that individual''s ability.


    To put it bluntly, a student with middle school level academic ability would not be able to advance properly even if they entered the University of Tokyo.


    There were problems post entering the university, but this was just an easy-to-understand example.


    There was also the possibility of graduating from ss A and being epted on your own, without the school overturning the result.


    In that case, there were some things the school could provide, but there were two main benefits.


    One was to cover the university expenses.


    This was for those who had the ability to pass the entrance exam but couldn''t afford the tuition.


    This benefit could be used if you wanted to go to university but didn''t want to, or couldn''t, take out loans.


    However, it only covered tuition, not living expenses, and only during the standard four-year period until graduation.


    It was impossible to ask for additional payments if you took a year off.


    The other option was post-graduation. It was still possible to leverage graduating from ss A.


    In other words, you could use a strategy that didn''t rely on the ss A privileges for college.


    In extreme cases, you could use the privileges after graduating from a low-level university. You could forcibly slide into a top-notchpany where graduating from college was a prerequisite.


    However, that was just getting a job. Whether you could acquire the skills to work at thatpany was another question.


    Most importantly, it was a tightrope walk.


    No matter how much ANHS provided, if you couldn''t pass with a 1% fail rate, you''d be left with regrets.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, are you going to college?"


    "I don''t know. I haven''t decided on my career path yet. It may seemte, but I might go to college, or I might find a job. It''s something only God knows."


    "You don''t need to rush. I believe you can handle most things well."


    It was nice to be appreciated like that, but unfortunately, I didn''t have any options.


    While talking about our career paths, there was something unusual about Y��suke.


    Then, after our conversation paused for a moment, Y��suke brought it up.


    "...Are you close with Shiina-san?"


    It seemed that his concerns hadn''t gone away, even though we had dropped the conversation once.


    "Hiyori? I''m not sure. We might be close as fellow book lovers at least. Anything bothering you about her?"


    When I asked directly, Y��suke finally revealed what had been bothering him.


    "I noticed you calling her by her first name, Ayanok��ji-kun, so I was curious. It''s the first time I''ve heard you do that with someone outside our ss."


    It was indeed a rare case.


    "Since when?"


    "Since when? I''m not really sure. I don''t have a clear recollection of it."


    I realized I had been calling Hiyori by her first name without even realizing it.


    Thinking back, it seemed that I had been calling her that since shortly after we first met.


    However, in everyday life, the brain couldn''t grasp a specific time.


    "There wasn''t really a big trigger, huh?"


    "That''s right. There wasn''t really any deep reason. I guess I just started calling her that without really noticing."


    "I see..."


    "Is that a problem?"


    "No, it''s not really a problem, you know. Generally, it''s a good thing that you have a lot of close friends."


    Generally. In other words, it''s different when it''s outside that general understanding.


    However, Y��suke didn''t try to continue that conversation any longer, so I didn''t push it either.


    We both quietly waited for Sud�� to return.

 Chapter 411: 6.5

    <h4>Chapter 411: 6.5</h4>


    Sud�� and Y��suke, who both worked hard during their club activities since the beginning of their first year, continued to achieve results.


    The flow of time was mysterious. Those two will have retired from their club activities by this season next year.


    I remembered a little of the conversation I had with Kiry��in at the end of the year.


    Throughout my school life, there were no major regrets. However, sometimes I wondered about an alternative future if I had been in a club.


    Regardless of whether I was serious or not, if I had worked together with those who shared my passion for basketball or ser, my school life might''ve been more morous.


    Though it was easy to imagine, the probability of actually embarking on that path must''ve been close to zero.


    Unfamiliar with socializing, the world of club activities was too high of a hurdle for me, who couldn''t make friends quickly.


    I''ll read the books I borrowed and the ones Hiyori gave me on the way home.


    As I was on my way home from school, I was interrupted.


    "Please wait."


    "Hm?"


    I was stopped by a female student, with a polite but forceful voice.


    Turning around, she was standing there, her long scarf waving slightly in the wind.


    "I have something to talk to you about."


    Normally, one would be puzzled when approached by someone they had no connection with.


    In fact, I encountered such a situation several timesst year.


    I couldn''t help but appreciate Nagumo''s invention of the OAA system in times like these.


    It was easier to match names to faces, and you could also learn their surface-level abilities.


    The person who appeared in front of me was a student from ss 2-A, which Sakayanagi belonged to.


    Her name was Morishita Ai. The OAA was as follows:


    Academic Abilities �C B+


    Physical Abilities �C C+


    Adaptability �C B+


    Social Contribution �C B


    Overall Ability �C B


    <Illustration>


    In other words, she was a so-called "honors student" with an easy-to-understand description. The data showed that she was a person who could handle everything better than average. She was simr to Sanada, whom I met the other day, but there were many students like him in ss A.


    "You''re Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, right?"


    "Yeah."


    Morishita, who approached me, seemed to be aware of me, which was understandable.


    Huh? Did she just call me by my full name without any honorifics? I don''t mind being referred to without any respect by younger or older people, but it was a bit surprising considering her polite tone of voice.


    Before I could say anything, Morishita continued.


    "It''s too conspicuous here. Let''s change the ce a bit."


    The school, the dormitory, Keyaki Mall... passing through these ces to go anywhere stands out. If there was someone looking for you, it would be an optimal ce for an ambush.


    "Let''s go somewhere else, please."


    Without waiting for my answer, Morishita turned her back to me and began walking.


    I hadn''t intended to say whether I would follow her or not, but I guess that was fine.


    It was winter break, and I had enough time to leisurely enjoy such unexpected encounters.


    "This is our first meeting, right?"


    "Yes. We haven''t spoken before."


    Morishita, who answered without looking back, was polite in her speech but somewhat overbearing.


    She turned away from the main road, towards the dormitory, and stopped at a side street. This area was deserted, probably due to the cold weather.


    "So? What do you want to talk about?"


    I wondered what kind of story would pop up early in the new year.


    "I haven''t decided."


    "You haven''t decided?"


    As concerned as I was about listening to her story, her answer made the whole situation feel somewhat anticlimactic.


    "I haven''t decided on the content of the conversation, but I''ve been wanting to talk to you for some time now, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    ...So it wasn''t just my imagination after all. She called me by my full name and dropped the honorifics.


    But the rest of her speech was polite, which made her assertiveness stand out even more.


    I didn''t know if this was just for me or if she was the same with other students, but it was hard to point that out. I''ll try to ignore it from here.


    Recently, it seemed like I had a strange connection with students from other sses.


    "Is it strange that I approached you?"


    "Well, yeah. I haven''t had any contact with you before."


    "That''s true."


    "Moreover, when it''s from the opposite sex, various strange assumptions can be made."


    I deliberately made a statement that hinted at romance to see what kind of reaction she would show.


    I thought she might be agitated, but she was calm, showing only a small sign of distress.


    She quickly determined the direction she wanted to take and began to speak.


    "This isn''t the first time I''ve approached someone I''m not close with."


    "Huh?"


    "The day before yesterday, I talked to Sud�� Ken, and yesterday, I talked to K��enji Rokusuke."


    ''Don''t get me wrong,'' she seemed to say, as she held out her hand, palm up, to me.


    "I learned that talking one-on-one with someone of the opposite sex can lead to misunderstandings, so I thought I''d let you know."


    She put it into words, which allowed me to clearly rule it out. I was grateful for that.


    I also learned that I wasn''t the only one being called by my full name without honorifics.


    However, the mention of Sud��''s name fit the conversation earlier.


    ''A girl from the same year asked me all sorts of weird questions,'' said the puzzled Sud��. She was probably Morishita of ss A.


    While her appearance was certainly cute, I could easily understand why she had denied any involvement in romance.


    Her gaze, clearly directed at me, was different.


    "During this winter break, I was driven by the desire to learn more about your ss."


    In simpler terms, perhaps she wanted to scout a rival ss.


    How should I judge her attitude, which seemingly had no intentions of hiding anything?


    It was hard to believe they were Sakayanagi''s instructions.


    Even if they were approaching students like Sud��, there would be no merit in sending an oddball like Morishita to me.


    Or was the idea to send someone with a quirky personality like her?


    I considered various possibilities, but the conclusion I reached was different.


    Morishita''s own judgment, her own thoughts.


    That seemed to be the most urate conclusion for now.


    "K��enji Rokusuke asked as well, so I''ll let you know. This is all my own decision."


    Immediately after, Morishita added that it was indeed her own judgment.


    "I see. I thought all the students in ss A worked under Sakayanagi''s instructions alone."


    For now, I decided to trust Morishita''s words and proceeded with the conversation.


    "I can''t say for certain. I haven''t shared my thoughts with anyone else."


    Using a peculiar expression, Morishita continued the conversation.


    "Though it''s true that many students in ss A are on guard against ss B, just like how your ss, led by yourself, has been aiming to take down ss A. I found that interesting."


    "ss B''s evaluation has risen quite a bit. If you really want to dig for more information, shouldn''t you contact the leader, Horikita? I can give you her contact details if you need them."


    I took out my phone and pulled up Horikita''s address.


    However, Morishita rejected it with her hand and began to speak, looking in an unclear direction.


    "At first, I thought so too. However, the evaluations of those around me have changed. Now there are people who think you are involved in the improvement of ss B."


    So, she acted alone and approached me.


    "A student who deviates from their OAA stands out."


    The special exam held at the end of the second term had a significant impact since the uracy of the test''s answered questions was made public. Sanada and this highly capable Morishita had their eyes newly opened to me.


    Comparing the results to my OAA, the contradiction was obvious and couldn''t be ignored.


    Even if I told her that I had guessed the correct answers, she probably wouldn''t believe me.


    If this contact was instructed by Sakayanagi, it felt too sloppy, too rough, and too narrowly focused.


    "So? Have you gotten any results by directly confronting? Is there something I should answer?"


    I tried to show a weing stance to her confrontation, but she refused with her hand again.


    "There''s been some results. You are indeed a considerable threat, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    "...Did you find something that made you think so?"


    "Based on my analysis, yes."


    Apparently quite satisfied at this point, Morishita nodded contentedly.


    My first impression of her was that she was somewhat of a ''weirdo.''


    "I''ll excuse myself. There are still many people to investigate."


    It seemed that there were many intriguing people in Horikita''s ss.


    "Alright, good luck."


    She must have approached Sud�� and the others simrly.


    Although I hadn''t seen the scene, I could easily imagine it.


    Morishita returned to the dormitory, but it would be troublesome if I chased after her and caused a misunderstanding.


    I decided to breathe in the cold air for a while and go home after some time had passed.

 Chapter 412: 6.6

    <h4>Chapter 412: 6.6</h4>


    After returning home, I immediately picked up the book I brought home with my chilled hands.


    Which one should I read first...?


    After thinking for a moment, I decided it would probably be best to start with the book Hiyori gifted me, as we might discuss it when I visit the library in the following days.


    The book itself wasn''t very old, having been published about 15 years ago.


    I was curious about why Hiyori liked it, so I looked up the author''s background, but it seemed to be a rtively unknown author with a devoted following for their interesting works.


    It might''ve been a hidden masterpiece that Hiyori, a book lover, noticed.


    She liked it enough to want to keep a copy for herself.


    A new book was released every three years or so.


    If it suited my taste, I''d try reading another one next time.


    "Hmm...?"


    As I was about to start reading, I noticed a bookmark had been included.


    While that in of itself wasn''t a big deal, the pattern on the bookmark piqued my interest.


    When shopping at Keyaki Mall, sometimes you could get free bookmarks during campaigns, with limited illustrations or patterns depending on the time of year.


    The bookmark I picked up featured a Christmas theme with a fir tree and snow.


    It was the same one that came with the books I bought at the bookstore before Christmas.


    Considering they changed the bookmarks right after Christmas, it was likely that the book was purchased before then.


    If I had been making her carry it every day since then, I would feel sorry for her.


    Though she said it was only a few days ago, the actual purchase date may have been a bit earlier.


    "I might have received quite a heavy favor after all."


    Of course, I couldn''t jump to conclusions.


    She may have just given it to me as a fellow book lover.


    I decided not to think too deeply about it for now, but it was only natural to feel good about a gesture like that if she saw me as a close friend.


    What can I do as thanks right now?


    What would help Hiyori the most?


    Before starting the book, I decided to ponder this, sitting on my bed.

 Chapter 413: Epilogue : Changing Relationships

    <h4>Chapter 413: Epilogue : Changing Rtionships</h4>


    ONLY TWO DAYS of winter break remained.


    My rtionship with Kei was back to the way it used to be... From Kei''s point of view, it''s been restored more than ever before.


    Sud��''s initial one-sided dislike for Y��suke, as a ssmate, had changed for the better. The break also led to unexpected encounters with Sakayanagi and her ssmates.


    Furthermore, Ry��en and Katsuragi had already started preparing for the start of the third term. I found evidence of Ichinose''s change and newfound mental stability too��a good sign for her worried ss.


    Overall, it seemed like a fulfilling winter break.


    However, there was one point of contention.


    I felt that there was something left unfinished during this break.


    The book I received as a present from Hiyori.


    I wondered what I could do in return for receiving it.


    After several days of agonizing, I arrived at one conclusion.


    However, in order to carry out that conclusion, it was necessary to make some prior arrangements.


    I had recently caused a lot of anxiety for Kei with Ichinose and that whole situation.


    Rekindling an awkward atmosphere here wouldn''t be ideal.


    I had to repay her without causing any misunderstandings.


    So, what was this repayment?


    The hintid in what I felt shortly after my entrance to the school in the past.


    "Kiyotaka! Are you good? This is only for today, okay?!"


    Hugging me from behind, Kei yelled with her pajamas still on as I was about to leave the room.


    "I know. That''s why I properly exined it, right?"


    "Yeah, but... Even though I heard the reason why... I still feel anxious!"


    I urged her to let me go and turned around; she hugged me from the front this time.


    "Make sure youe back by tonight, okay?"


    "If you''re that worried, you should have just cleared the condition I set, right?"


    "There''s no way I can do that. Just looking at printed words is hard enough for me with textbooks alone. Besides, our conversation would never be on the same wavelength."


    Well, that was probably true.


    Trying to force it wouldn''t likely lead to an enjoyable result for either of us.


    "Then give me a kiss!"


    "Where did that ''then''e from?"


    As I countered her, Kei had already closed her eyes and faced her lips towards me.


    As I met her wish honestly, she smiled mischievously and cutely waved her hand.


    "Take care."


    Her angry expression from just five seconds ago seemed like a lie as she now wore a happy smile.


    While Kei was seeing me off, I left the room.


    With no hesitation, I got on the elevator, stepped out of the dormitory, and immediately opened my cell phone.


    Hiyori would likely be contacting me soon.


    It would have been better to check before leaving the room, but I wanted to avoid causing Kei any more worry.


    As expected, since I couldn''t pick up my phone, I had a missed call and a message.


    It seemed that she went out for a walk earlier than I''d nned.


    Impressed by her typical punctuality, I decided to catch up.


    I found her wandering aimlessly, her back facing me, in a location close to the main gate, away from Keyaki Mall.


    "Did you find anything?"


    "Good morning. Unfortunately, I didn''t find anything special. But, the weather''s lovely, isn''t it?"


    Though the temperature was still quite low, it was a clear day, and most of the umted snow had melted.


    "Thank you for inviting me today."


    "You''ll waste the precious winter break if you''re cooped up in the library every day."


    I''d heard from the librarian that Hiyori, who rarely hung out with friends, spent her time in the library until curfew whenever it was open.


    She stayed there, alone, all day until the library closed.


    Believing it would be lonesome for her to enter the third term alone, I invited her out.


    Of course, I understood that this was a routine that sufficiently satisfied Hiyori. I might be scolded for my unnecessary concern.


    Inviting her out like this might make her feel pressured... in other words, it might''ve felt like I was forcing her to act as a friend.


    "Why did you call out to me?"


    That was why I had to be honest.


    "I just felt like inviting you."


    As another person, I simply wanted to invite her out, that was all.


    Hiyori, of course, had the right to refuse if she thought I wasn''t enough for her.


    "I wanted to thank you for the book, and that was where it all started. But just giving a gift or thanking you in words wasn''t enough. I wanted to spend a day together where you could enjoy yourself."


    Though my words might have sounded a bit cheesy, I hoped she understood what I was trying to convey.


    "I''m happy to hear that."


    I could feel the gratitude and apologetic reaction from her gentle words.


    The clever Hiyori might''ve interpreted that I invited her out of pity for her situation.


    No matter how much I denied it with my words, her prejudice wouldn''t be easily wiped away.


    But, she epted the invitation and came out with me. That was why she was here.


    From now on, I just need to show her using my actions.


    Normally, when the two of us were together, we didn''t take the initiative.


    Most of the time, we let the other students with us take the lead and experienced various things with them.


    But today was different.


    I decided to be the one to escort Hiyori.


    However, there was only so much we could do and ces we could go within the school grounds.


    "Um, was Karuizawa-san okay with this? I mean, is she okay with you going out alone with another girl?"


    People usually considered this when they spoke to the opposite gender, regardless of the situation.


    It wasn''t just me, but amon question that people with partners hear.


    ''Would you be okay with Kei going out alone with another boy?'' That was the question.


    Of course, it wasn''t something I always had to think about.


    Only those who feared the influence of spending time with others would bring this up.


    I had already anticipated that Hiyori was this kind of person.


    "At first, she insisted oning along. But I thought it wouldn''t be fun if she was just there to monitor me, and it would be rude to you."


    "How did you persuade her?"


    "I told her to read a book to have amon topic of conversation."


    When I told her that, Hiyori''s eyes widened and she showed a weing smile.


    "You can guess how that went from her absence."


    "Ah... I see. That makes sense."


    Yesterday, she gave up on reading the first page of the book and fell down on the spot.


    "That''s how I properly got permission. Of course, sheined until thest minute."


    Knowing that I hadn''t kept silent, Hiyori smiled with relief.


    "It seems like you''re being quite ostentatious early in the new year."


    As we were about to arrive at Keyaki Mall, a female student who found us discussing typical library experiences called out to us. It was Kamuro Masumi, who we didn''t usually interact with much.


    For some reason, she seemed to be looking at us with a disgusted expression.


    As Kamuro approached, Hiyori slightly bowed her head in greeting, but was ignored, as Kamuro unterally started talking to us.


    "I just saw you on a date with Karuizawa at the end of the year. Did you start going out with a different girl as soon as the new year began?"


    Apparently, the gaze directed at me was one of contempt.


    If you only saw this scene, it might''ve been unavoidable to be perceived that way.


    "They''re totally different types of girls. What were you thinking?"


    "Um, good morning, Kamuro-san."


    "Shiina, right? I didn''t think you and Ayanok��ji were this close."


    Unless we exined the reason properly, the misunderstanding would continue indefinitely.


    "Today, he invited me to hang out as a friend."


    "I also got permission from Kei."


    I thought this would persuade her a little, but her expression remained stern.


    "Even if that''s true, it doesn''t change the fact that it looks abnormal from the outside."


    Since the circumstances weren''t clear from an outside perspective, that statement was also valid.


    "But if that''s the case, wouldn''t it be impossible for boys and girls to hang out together?"


    "There''s an atmosphere, you know. Even if you look from afar, you can feel that it isn''t normal."


    That interpretation might''ve been Kamuro''s own thoughts, but it wasn''t necessarily wrong.


    Among the female students, Hiyori was highly evaluated by me.


    Although she didn''t show it much, she was knowledgeable, shared the same reading hobby, and wasn''t very talkative. In other words, she was one of the people with whom I could easily connect with.


    On the other hand, it was also predictable that Hiyori saw me in a simr light.


    If that was the case, it was natural to assume that our rtionship went deeper than a normal friendship.


    "I''ll do my best to be careful not to cause any misunderstandings."


    "That would be wise."


    <Illustration>


    "Did youe all the way here just to warn us about that?"


    "I''ll get to the point now. There''s something else I want to confirm with you."


    Without even offering a New Year''s greeting, Kamuro closed the distance even further.


    "It''s a bit of an intrusive conversation, is that okay?"


    Just in case, she asked if it was okay to continue in Hiyori''s presence through eye contact.


    Hiyori didn''t seem to mind, so I let her proceed with the conversation.


    "It''s fine. If you have something to say, say it."


    "Well then, I''ll ask without holding back. What was your intention with your recent actions?"


    "Actions? What are you talking about?"


    "Don''t y dumb. I''m aware that you''ve been snooping around ss A recently."


    "Me, snooping around ss A?"


    I had no recollection of that. Snooping around ss A?


    I genuinely felt puzzled, but one interaction came to mind that could be interpreted that way.


    "Could it be about Morishita?"


    "Oh, so you do remember? Someone saw you and Morishita deep in conversation."


    In that case, it might''ve been the moment when I was just called out.


    It wouldn''t be surprising if someone had witnessed that from afar.


    "Morishita-san?"


    Not recognizing the name, Hiyori muttered curiously beside me.


    She might not even realize that Morishita was in the same year.


    "You didn''t know? There''s a student named Morishita Ai in ss A."


    "I think I''ve heard the name before, but I''ve never spoken to her."


    "She doesn''t usually talk to people outside her ss. Suspicious, right?"


    "Is that so? I didn''t notice..."


    She said that she talked to Sud�� and K��enji, among others.


    Although her use of my full name without honorifics bothered me a bit, she didn''t seem shy.


    "You weren''t trying to probe ss A?"


    "I didn''t intend to. You''re free to believe me or not."


    Without trying to hide it, Kamuro stated outright that she didn''t easily believe me.


    "I never thought Kamuro would be the type to act in ss A''s interests."


    "If it weren''t for you, I probably wouldn''t care that much."


    "Really?"


    "You''re the only one who can influence Sakayanagi."


    I couldn''t have imagined such a im back when I first met Kamuro. I always thought she hated Sakayanagi.


    She had discovered her shoplifting and, using it as leverage, made Kamuro her pawn.


    Initially, she should''ve been irritated with Sakayanagi''s approach.


    There was a gap in the image I had of her.


    "Eating from the same pot for a year changes things, huh?"


    "Don''t make assumptions. I still don''t like Sakayanagi, but I have to think about the ss at least. If your existence has a positive effect, I''ll leave it be, but if it doesn''t, I''ll need to take action."


    It was fair to say that she had developed some degree of camaraderie.


    "Speaking of which, you seem to know quite a bit, Shiina."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You listened to my conversation with Ayanok��ji without a change in your expression, right?"


    "What was it? Sorry, I wasn''t listening too seriously."


    "...Huh?"


    "It''s a conversation between you and Ayanok��ji-kun, so I was just spacing out while looking at the scenery. Did you guys talk about anything special?"


    As Hiyori tilted her head curiously, Kamuro sighed in exasperation.


    "Not really. It''s nothing."


    She must''ve judged that it was an excessive reaction and that she was overthinking.


    Perhaps she had intended to purposely lead the conversation in that direction to probe Shiina''s response, but it seemed her assumption was off.


    Hiyori, who was sitting next to her, should''ve heard the conversation properly and understood the situation.


    However, she was a person who could put on a natural disy without letting the other person realize it.


    "I know you''re not normal."


    "That''s a rough way to say it."


    "It''s the truth, isn''t it? Otherwise, you wouldn''t have made that girl Sakura drop out of school without a second thought."


    It seemed she was also talking about the unanimous special exam we had taken. Kamuro seemed to possess information that only the people within the ss were supposed to know.


    "Today, I''m going to ask you��"


    As she began to say that, Kamuro''s gaze shifted for a moment.


    "Oh, look. What an unusual pair~"


    Just when her persistent interrogation was about to begin, Hashimoto appeared with a carefree attitude, alongside Kit��, who lined up next to him.


    I didn''t miss the sudden change in Kamuro''s expression.


    It was like the face you''d make when you''ve run into someone you didn''t like.


    However, if she was going to question me continuously in such a public setting, she should''ve taken into ount the possibility of running into Hashimoto.


    In that case, there might''ve been another meaning behind the momentary change of expression, but more than that, my eyes were drawn to Kit��''s shy, full-fledged outfit.


    As he dered that he aspired to be a fashion designer, his sense of style was different from that of the general public.


    I couldn''t tell whether that was a good or a bad thing since I had no confidence in my own sense of fashion.


    "When I saw Ayanok��ji surrounded by beautiful women, the mes of jealousy just ignited."


    "Are you kidding me?"


    Kamuro, clearly angry, stepped up to confront Hashimoto.


    "Both Shiina-chan and Kamuro-chan, huh? Ayanok��ji has quite the discerning eye. Right, Kit��?"


    Though he asked Kit�� for his agreement, Kit�� didn''t show any reaction.


    "Us two guys were just about to go out by ourselves, but would you mind if we join you?"


    "Who would? I''m going home."


    Kamuro, enraged, tried to leave the scene, but was stopped by Hashimoto as he grabbed her arm and whispered something in her ear.


    She immediately pushed him away to create some distance between them, but she didn''t move her feet.


    "It''s not like you two are on a date, right? Ayanok��ji has a girlfriend."


    I nodded, thinking that it couldn''t be helped. The conversation would inevitably develop in a simr way to the one with Kamuro.


    "Then there''s no problem with us joining and making a group of five, right?"


    "I don''t have a particr reason to object if Hiyori''s okay with it."


    "It sounds fun. I''ve hardly ever spoken with Kamuro-san and the others."


    Without showing any signs of reluctance, Hiyori answered.


    I wasn''t the type to actively start conversations, but I thought it wasn''t bad to have fun with arge group like this.


    I wasn''t particrly close friends with Hashimoto and the others, but it wouldn''t be bad to build a bond with such diverse students.


    "Since we didn''t have any specific ns, should we leave it up to Hashimoto?"


    "If you''ll leave it to me, I can decide."


    Hashimoto readily agreed, perhaps used to leading a group.


    Lately, I''d been interacting more and more with students from other sses, such as Ry��en, Katsuragi, Ichinose, and Shiranami.


    Today, I was even spending time with ss A students, like Kamuro.


    And they weren''t just ordinary students; they were close to Sakayanagi and held executive-like positions.


    "Good morning, Hashimoto-senpai, Kamuro-senpai, Kit��-senpai."


    "Good morning."


    "Ah, thank you!"


    As we approached Keyaki Mall, there were many first-year students greeting us.


    "You''re popr."


    "It''s not unusual for us ss A students."


    They kept close ties with their first-year k��hais, and they knew each other by their names and faces.


    "I don''t get that impression from Sakayanagi."


    "Princess is special. The k��hais can''t just casually greet her. She''s like a flower on a high peak."


    So that was why she always got envious nces from the k��hais.


    "So where are we heading?"


    "Hmm? Let''s see. Do you want to avoid conspicuous ces, Ayanok��ji? Or not?"


    "I don''t like unnecessarily standing out."


    "Right. So karaoke would be the typical choice, but��"


    As Hashimoto casually checked my expression, Kamuro shot him a piercing re.


    "Rejected."


    "Ah, figures."


    With that one word, Hashimoto gave up on karaoke and started thinking about other options.


    "Kamuro-san, do you not like karaoke?"


    "It doesn''t matter. Don''t ask me why."


    As Hiyori walked alongside Kamuro, she asked about karaoke but received no answer, only a curt dismissal. Amid the situation, Kit�� and I were walking in the back.


    "��Tone-deaf."


    "Kit��!"


    Kit�� merely muttered, but Kamuro picked up on his voice and turned towards him with a furious expression.


    "What, can''t sing, huh?"


    Indeed, it seemed that people who were aware of their tone-deafness tended to dislike karaoke.


    That would exin why Kamuro didn''t want to talk about the reason.


    "Quiet."


    "...Kamuro also has the ears of a demon, huh?"


    Whether he was reflecting on it or not, Kit�� added yet another potentially angeringment in an even quieter voice.


    "I heard that too. And don''t go saying unnecessary things to Ayanok��ji."


    "It''s within the bounds of not causing problems."


    Whether they got along well or not was difficult to determine, but it seemed they had a close rtionship.


    "Come on, let''s take it easy, Kamuro-chan. We''re not going to karaoke anyway."


    Kit�� ced his hand on my shoulder and signaled me to slow down my pace slightly. He then opened his mouth when he was at a distance where Kamuro''s sharp ears wouldn''t reach.


    "Hashimoto and Kamuro are causing trouble."


    "Ah, no, I don''t really mind. Shiina''s happilyughing, so it''s fine."


    "As long as that''s the case."


    While Kit�� typically wore a scary expression, after he showed a different side to himself during the school trip, I wasn''t surprised. Rather, he was also a student with a rational way of thinking.


    "The way you deal with things is different from when it was with Ry��en. Is it because you still don''t recognize me as an enemy?"


    "I don''t just snap at everyone. Even if they''re an enemy, as long as they have an appropriate attitude, I''ll treat them with at least basic courtesy."


    Even when dealing with an enemy, he wouldn''t always take a harsh stance.


    "Hey, Shiina-chan. There''s something I wanted to ask you, is that okay?"


    "What is it?"


    "I was just wondering what kind of rtionship you have with Ayanok��ji."


    "As I told Kamuro-san, we''re good friends."


    "So it''s okay to say that you''re currently free, right?"


    "Free?"


    "Like, you don''t have a boyfriend."


    "Are you nning on hitting on her in this situation?"


    "It''s fine, isn''t it? We''re both single. Or would you rather be my girlfriend, Kamuro-chan?"


    As he showed such a light-hearted attitude, she approached him and delivered an unreserved kick to his behind.


    "Ouch!"


    Hashimoto jumped and clutched his butt, apologizing with his hands together.


    "Sorry for showing you such a stupid farce."


    Watching their exchange from behind, Kit�� apologized despite having nothing to apologize for.


    "Honestly, I had the impression that there were more uptight students in ss A. Surprisingly, that''s not the case."


    "Hashimoto has a knack for being a mood maker, for better or worse."


    With his usual scary face and ambiguous choice of words, I couldn''t tell if he was praising him or not.


    By leaving the escorting to Hashimoto, I learned something new.


    No matter how novel the proposal, it wouldn''t be realized unless the participants agreed.


    Hashimoto made several suggestions besides karaoke, but Kamuro shot them all down.


    In the end, all Kamuro agreed on was a chat at a caf��.


    It was the only n left for a group that had ran out of things to do.


    "Is this really okay, Kamuro-chan? We''ve invited these two rare guests."


    "Then why don''t you go without me? I''ve already told you several times."


    During Hashimoto''s proposals'' ceaseless rejections, Kamuro indeed stated numerous times that they could go without her.


    "There''s no way we can exclude you."


    "I think this is nice too. It''s rather calming, and I like it."


    "Wow, Shiina-chan is such a good girl, and cute too."


    Hashimoto seemed to be fond of Shiina as he quickly took a seat next to her.


    On the other hand, I sat down next to Kit��.


    "I have to say, Ayanok��ji, you''re quite something too. Normally, people get nervous sitting next to Kit��."


    "I already know he''s a good guy."


    Is it the experience from the school trip that''s helping? It even feels somewhatforting.


    "I agree with you, Ayanok��ji-kun. Kit��-kun doesn''t seem like a bad person."


    "Where exactly are your eyes then?"


    "It''s true. These two are some rare specimens."


    "Really?"


    Hiyori looked intently at Kit�� to confirm it.


    Following her gaze, Kit�� stared back at Hiyori, but it didn''t seem to make her nervous.


    In fact, he couldn''t stand her gaze and looked away.


    "He''s a good guy after all."


    "That''s a misunderstanding. I''m not a good person."


    His eyes darted to me, almost as if he wanted to re and make sure I didn''t get the wrong idea.


    "Don''t misunderstand," he stressed with his own words.


    "Well, Ayanok��ji, it''s about time you tell us."


    So far, Hashimoto had been acting carefree, but now he rested his elbow on the table and tilted his arm, holding his cup like a microphone.


    Kamuro, who had been slouching while looking elsewhere, straightened up at those words.


    The reason they approached us was to ask me something.


    I assumed that much, but what did he want to know?


    "...So, do you n to ditch Karuizawa and switch to Shiina? Since you''re dating Shiina, it must mean something like that, right? Huh?"


    Like a reporter grilling a celebrity, Hashimoto aggressively pushed his cup closer. Kamuro stopped his reaching arm.


    "Hashimoto."


    "Huh? What''s up, Kamuro-chan? I''m going to ask him everything right now��"


    "If you''re just going to beat around the bush, I''ll get straight to the point."


    She strongly implied that she didn''t want to continue with this troublesome small talk.


    "You''re scary, Kamuro-chan, but that''s also what''s appealing about you�� Ouch!"


    Suddenly, Hashimoto groaned in pain, his face contorted in agony. Panicking, he crouched down and held his leg. It seemed he''d been kicked under the table.


    "That was merciless...!"


    "It was an ident."


    Without any concern, Kamuro looked away and responded. After enduring the pain for a while, Hashimoto brought up the topic.


    "We, or rather, ss A, is really curious about you."


    "Why?"


    "Don''t you know? You''re good at studying, seem to be athletic, and you''re quite popr with Ichinose. You can even talk to Ry��en without fear. On top of all that, you seem to be on good terms with the princess��that''s not normal."


    During winter break alone, arge number of people witnessed my rtionships with those around me.


    Considering Hashimoto''s questioning and the previous investigation, it seemed reasonable.


    "The reason for the rise to ss B and the true leader behind Horikita''s efforts��it''s you, right?"


    Kamuro and Kit�� ceased movement, and only their gazes turned toward me. Considering Kamuro''s actions and words, this situation mustn''t have been a coincidence.


    Although Hashimoto''s actions seemed spontaneous, it was probably calcted in advance.


    Drawn by the seeds I had sown, rumors circted from reconnaissance, spection, and information. Regardless if it was true or not, the rumors circted this way, revealing new details.


    I anticipated having to deal with this line of questioning, but I thought it would be brought up in the future. If so, from now on, let''s provide water to the seeds.


    "The true leader, huh? What if that were true?"


    Hashimoto whistled and said, "I thought you''d either quickly y dumb or deny it, but you''re admitting it?"


    "I''m not admitting anything. I''m just curious as to what you''d do if it were true."


    "That''s something we''ll find out after we have confirmation."


    "Confirmation, huh? Well, then maybe it''s better if I admit to being the true leader, as you''ve hoped, Hashimoto."


    As I responded, Hashimoto lowered his raised smile and gave a bitter one instead.


    "That''s a difficult answer."


    Hashimoto''s questioning likely expected one of these reactions: to be flustered at hitting the mark, to confidently admit it, or to firmly deny it.


    He must have been confident that doubt would turn into conviction with any of these reactions.


    In that case, taking an ambiguous stance would be more difficult for Hashimoto to handle.


    I neither confirmed nor denied it. Rather, I was in a position where I didn''t mind admitting it if I had to.


    By doing so, it was difficult to ascertain any certainty.


    In fact, right now, I was gradually distancing myself from Horikita''s shadow.


    If I decided on my own that I was the true leader and acted on that belief, I would trip up in future battles.


    "What do you think, Kamuro-chan?"


    "Almost certain, but not quite."


    "How about you, Kit��?"


    Unlike Kamuro, who answered immediately, Kit�� didn''t say anything. Despite that, he didn''t take his eyes off me.


    "I might need to correct myself. Saying that you''re the true leader might be an exaggeration, but I have no doubt that you''re the hidden driving force behind leading your ss to ss B."


    "It''s up to you and ss A to make a judgment, Hashimoto."


    "Shiina-chan, what do you think about Ayanok��ji?"


    "Me?"


    "Yes, I''d like to hear your opinion on this matter as well."


    "Hashimoto-kun, I wonder what you want from this conversation."


    "Eh? What do you mean?"


    "Keeping track of Ayanok��ji-kun''s existence��and what you n to do in the future."


    "...You hit the nail on the head."


    From that singlement, Hashimoto��who was originally only concerned about her appearances��seemed to have reassessed Shiina.


    "What do you mean, Hashimoto?"


    Hashimoto remained silent as Kamuro asked, not understanding the meaning behind Shiina''s inquiry.


    "A little while ago, Kamuro and I were talking about how to graduate from ss A. The most solid way is to build up 20 million for yourself, but that''s not easy. Moreover, relying on new systems like the ss transfer ticket isn''t feasible since their validity is too short."


    "That''s true."


    "It''s important to keep an eye on sses that seem to be winning. If you tter them, they might pick you up. But even if you just do one or two favors for a ss, will they pay you 20 million to back you up?"


    "Of course not, unless you have a really strict contract."


    "That''s right. So how do you think we should increase our chances of graduating from ss A? Cooperate with our ssmates? Knock down our rivals? No, that''s not it."


    "Steal strong opponents from other sses, right?"


    Before Hashimoto could answer, Hiyori muttered the conclusion.


    "Wow, you''re on point."


    Ignoring the ttering Hashimoto, Kamuro and Kit��''s gazes met. Their unconscious behavior showed that they had realized how mentally quick Shiina Hiyori was.


    There were countless students with high academic abilities in the OAA.


    However, whether they were capable in areas other than academics could only be seen through interacting with them.


    "Even if you can''t umte 20 million points yourself, the collective will of the ss can reach that goal. Like how Ry��en-kun lured Katsuragi-kun, if ss A also recruits excellent personnel from other sses, ss A would be stronger, and we could also weaken the power of our rivals."


    Hashimoto, who generously apuded, borated on how it was the right answer.


    "Show us, Ayanok��ji. If you prove your strength to us in ss A, we''ll use our ss points to recruit you. That way, you''ll be in a better position than you are now, right?"


    Hashimoto''s offer was tempting, but couldn''t bepletely dismissed as a lie.


    However, there were several reasons why I couldn''t judge it to be true.


    "Headhunting, huh? But do you really think Sakayanagi will wee Ayanok��ji?"


    With that, Kamuro confirmed that Sakayanagi probably wouldn''t be weing.


    "I understand that you have your own ideas about the princess, but I think there''s a chance."


    "On what grounds?"


    "I could share my thoughts, but first, let''s see what Ayanok��ji thinks."


    Instead of answering Kamuro''s question, Hashimoto checked my thoughts.


    "If she''s going to pull me into ss A, it''s more than a great proposal."


    "That''s what I mean. If ss A is inviting you, would you ept? Even if it''s just hypothetical, let''s hear it."


    "I''d positively consider it if I was offered an invitation to ss A."


    As I showed signs of epting the invitation, Hashimoto assumingly pulled back.


    "Okay, no problem with confirming your intentions. Then we can move on to the next stage."


    As the conversation continued, Hashimotoughed more happily than anyone else in the room. However, one of his ssmates stood up, pulling her chair out.


    "I won''t be involved in your rampage, so see youter."


    "Ah, hey, Kamuro-chan, are you leaving?"


    "You won''t listen to anything I say, right?"


    "If you''re talking about the promise the other day, I''m sorry."


    Although he hurriedly tried to stop her, Kamuro quickly left the caf��.


    "Aah... Was it a bit too much?"


    When he checked with the quietly observing Kit��, he silently nodded in agreement.


    "I''ll call her back, so just wait a moment."


    Scratching his head, Hashimoto hurriedly chased after Kamuro.


    "You all are interesting people. It''s really fun."


    Hiyori, who had been watching, narrowed her eyes and smiled.


    "...Really?"


    Kit��, who never expected her to have fun, retorted.


    After Hashimoto brought back a sullen Kamuro, the focus shifted to some small talk rather than returning to me.


    Hiyori didn''t particrly stand out, rather, she participated in the conversation. And with Hashimoto''s support, the enjoyable time continued.


    We parted ways with Hashimoto and the other two ss A students before going to the bookstore after the caf��.


    Judging from their hurried state, Sakayanagi may have called them.


    On the way back from the bookstore, we exchanged various thoughts.


    "It''s been a really fun day."


    Hiyori, walking a little ahead of me at dusk, smiled as she remembered what had happened earlier.


    "I didn''t expect Kit��-kun to be so talkative."


    "So talkative?"


    Looking back, I thought he only muttered something five or six times...


    "I also learned a lot about Kamuro-san and Hashimoto-kun."


    "It''s good that you were satisfied. After all, I couldn''t do much."


    "That''s not true. You went to the bookstore with me, didn''t you? That alone was very enjoyable."


    "Is that so? Well, if you''re happy, then I guess everything''s fine."


    I still hadn''t improved much in terms of nning things out while considering my partner''s feelings.


    This was something that would have to be done through shared experiences, regardless of gender.


    Before I knew it, our conversation had dwindled, and we had fallen into silence.


    Hiyori''s footsteps had grown slower than before, and I wondered if she was deep in thought.


    We walked along the tree-lined street and were just about halfway to the dormitory.


    "Um... Ayanok��ji-kun. Can you please listen without getting angry?"


    Hiyori, who had been smiling happily just moments ago, seemed to be slightly nervous.


    "I don''t think there''s anything to be angry about, so I''ll listen without getting upset."


    "The book I gave you as a present the other day... It was written by my father."


    "By your...? I see. So, the author''s name might be his real name?"


    "That''s amazing. You figured it out?"


    "It wouldn''t be strange if I noticed the author''s unusual name when I found out it was a rtive."


    "Shiina Katsumi. My father''s name."


    "So, the bookworm girl''s roots are from her father."


    I might''ve caught a glimpse of the background that created the literary girl.


    "Until now, I haven''t told anyone that my father''s a writer. I didn''t have any friends who shared the same hobby, but... it''s not just that. I wanted you to know about it."


    That was what Hiyori told me.


    Although it wasn''t something to hide, it wasn''t something she had to go out of her way to talk about either.


    Why did she bring up such a topic now?


    "What do you think will happen in the uing battles? Of course, I know it''s difficult to predict, but I''d like to hear your opinion if possible."


    "Ry��en''s and Sakayanagi''s battle will probably have a significant impact on their future. Assuming that the ss points will remain simr until the end of the school year, if Sakayanagi wins, ss A will be at a significant advantage. However, if Ry��en wins, that advantage may disappear. Their movements are more noteworthy than those of Horikita''s ss or Ichinose''s ss."


    This much spection could be done by anyone.


    In order to express an opinion beyond that, I had to think about what would happen in the future.


    "Most students probably think that Sakayanagi''s ss has the advantage."


    "That''s right. They''ve been maintaining ss A for nearly two years, and they''ve never lost a significant amount of ss points. There are a few people in our ss who are already frightened by the final exams."


    If they lose, Ry��en''s ss''s chance of graduating from ss A would be extremely difficult.


    "Without knowing the content of the special exam, we can only judge based on the leaders'' and ssmates'' strength andpatibility, but I think Ry��en has a good chance of winning."


    In fact, that was what I considered to be the most ideal.


    It didn''t matter which way the battle between Horikita and Ichinose goes, but if Ry��en loses, Hiyori''s ss would lose its chance of sess and fall out of the race.


    "��That''s true."


    As a member of the ss, Hiyori must''ve felt it as well.


    Sakayanagi''s ss was strong. That was why the loss would be immeasurable if they were defeated.


    "I''m sorry for asking something like this."


    "Don''t worry. I''m d to know that you also care about your ss."


    When I told her so, she was a little embarrassed.


    "Our sses may be different and we may bepeting, but let''s definitely graduate together, alright?"


    Unlike her usual self, Hiyori ran and stood in front of me.


    Then, while still looking embarrassed, she turned around and spoke those thoughts.


    It was unclear which ss would graduate as ss A.


    However, this didn''t necessarily mean that we had to always be rivals and bear resentment towards other sses.


    Whether someone graduated as ss C or ss D, they''d want to face graduation with a smile together with their friends, best friends, and lovers.


    "Yeah, that''s right."


    When I responded with my agreement, Hiyori softly smiled with joy.


    Winter break wasing to an end.


    A cold wind was blowing.


    From now on, it would only get colder as the end of the month approached.


    ...And so, the third term was about to begin.

 Chapter 414: Postscript/Afterword

    <h4>Chapter 414: Postscript/Afterword</h4>


    It''s be quite a warm season, hasn''t it? This is Shogo Kinugasa.


    I think people sometimes awaken various interests and hobbies. A little while ago, I started cooking, and to make my dishes more delicious, I''ve been expanding my repertoire and tirelessly experimenting. I even got carried away and bought my own personal knife. I didn''t have any hobbies other than watching baseball before.


    I was impressed that I could still acquire a new hobby at this age, but in the meantime, another change urred in my hobbies...


    To keep up with my child''s growth, I had to buy bigger blocks and stuffed toys, which inevitably led to more frequent visits to toy stores. Unexpectedly, I developed an interest in rail trains. I didn''t know anything about trains, but I thought, "Huh? It''s actually surprisingly fun just to move them around?" That became a reason to buy more toys, collect rails, create original courses, run trains in parallel, and buy remote-controlled trains... I also became interested in Mini 4WD, Nerf, and board games... It''s no good. There are too many things that caught my attention.


    The toys were supposed to be bought only for my child''s sake, but at some point, I started buying them for my own enjoyment.


    Mytest favorite is a toy called Bottleman, whichunches bottle caps. The memory of being totally into a toy called Beadaman (the predecessor of Bottleman?) in the past resurfaced, and I started collecting them. Although I''m more of a minimalist and didn''t have much of a collecting habit, I never thought it woulde to this... But I wonder if the reason I think Beadaman was overwhelmingly more interesting is because I''ve grown up now.


    Personally, I want to try out Lego, which I admired when I was little, but I can''t take the final step to buy it, fearing that I''ll really be hooked if I do.


    Someone stop me! (Or give me a push!)


    Okay. Let me talk a little about the current status of my work.


    Finally, the second term and winter break are ending, and from the next volume, we will be entering the third term arc.


    Unlike the somewhat lengthy second term, I expect the third term to be about the same length as the first-year third term arc, or perhaps just a little shorter.


    Well everyone, during this hot season, please be careful of heatstroke and such.


    Let us meet again when it starts to cool down.


    Royal MTLs Afterword


    Hey there, it''s Cast again. Thank you all for reading the volume from us and making it this far. The team put in a great amount of effort to make this the most high quality and urate volume RoyalMTLs has ever produced so make sure to show them your appreciation. Thanks a lot you guys.


    Moving onto the actual volume, it looks like this volume had a decent amount of setup leading into the next term which I''m really excited about. Really loved the scene with Kiry��in and Kiyo a lot too, and learning a little bit more about her. All in all, I thought this was a really good volume before starting the third term, and I had a lot of fun tranting it. Seems like this final term will also be the same, if not shorter than the first year third term. Year 3 is creeping up on us!!!


    As always, a big shout out to Shogo Kinugasa (the author) for writing this novel in the first ce, please do support him by buying one of the official copies of ssroom of The Elite somewhere down the line.


    Keep checking in on our website to be updated on ssroom of The Elite trantions and consider joining our discord for events and COTE info!


    Cast - Trantor


    /


    /invite/royalmtls


    Also follow all of our socials for updates and information.


    /royalmtls


    /royalmtls/


    /r/RoyalMTL/


    Credits


    inkpentagon �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "I wonder if Kiyotaka will be prime minister"


    seinu �C Japanese Proof-reader


    "They ruined Arisu... oh well... time to switch to other best girl. Ichika Amasawa FTW. Also check out /@Seinu-Actual"


    alya16 �C Illustrator


    "Follow me on Twitter to see my other colorings and arts: @Alya_l16"


    zf4052 �C Illustrator


    "Rest In Potatoes to Kiyo''s victims."


    snortnesquik �C EPUB Maker


    "Brug."


    dosomething �C Editor


    "Kei x Satou too real."


    budos �C Editor


    "Tomatoes are a vegetable."


    lombardia �C Editor


    "Mixed feelings... lots of Hiyori fluff!! And death gs..."


    superskillz �C Editor


    "Pray for my girl Hiyori to make it through Year 3 or it''s joever.."


    bingus.real �C Editor


    "Watch Seinu''s YouTube and help him out, my guy did heavy work for y''all."


    spoopykay �C Editor


    "a levels on the horizon... de on the horizon... mental breakdown on the horizon..."


    meyobos �C Editor


    "Get your money up not your funny up. If it don''t make dors it don''t make cents. BARS."


    .reito. �C Editor


    "Kei is still in the game! Rejoice Kei Simps."


    shawarma._ �C Editor


    "Betting my life savings that ss A loses next battle."


    ������

 Chapter 415: Short Story 1 : Hiyori Shiina’s SS - What I Want You To Know

    <h4>Chapter 415: Short Story 1 : Hiyori Shiina��s SS - What I Want You To Know</h4>


    RIGHT AFTER I SAW off Ayanok��ji-kun and returned to my seat, I remembered something I had forgotten about in the excitement of our reunion. I reached out to the bag that was ced near my feet.


    I took out the item I intended to give and, with a slight bow to the librarian, I hurried into the hallway.


    Hearing the sound of the door opening and closing, I wanted to run up to Ayanok��ji-kun and call out to him, but I was slightly out of breath and couldn''t speak immediately.


    "Here��"


    Somehow squeezing out a voice, I offered him the book I had been holding tightly.


    But immediately afterward, I thought he might not have understood what this was, so I took it out of the bag.


    "This is one of my favorite books. Would you mind reading it if you have the chance?"


    "Is this, by any chance, the author you mentioned earlier?"


    I had intended to keep the title of the book a secret as I handed it to him, but Ayanok��ji-kun guessed it right away.


    "I guess it''s easy to figure out, huh?"


    The nodding Ayanok��ji-kun might''ve been confused about me, who suddenly tried to give him the book.


    "In the case that you had already read it, I didn''t think I could''ve easily given it to you as a present."


    That was why. I went on to exin why I took such actions.


    "If you only want to read it, you can borrow it from the library. But if it''s a work I really like or one I''m particrly fond of, I want to have it on hand."


    "So you went out of your way to buy it with your own money."


    "Also... this book isn''t avable in the library."


    Apletely private book written by a family member.


    I couldn''t ask the school to put it on the shelf.


    "Are you sure I can have it?"


    "Yes. Actually, this is the third time I''ve bought this book. The first time was when I was in junior high, and I still have it in my room. The second one was when I entered this school."


    To my surprise, I answered in such a quick and almost embarrassingly fast manner.


    "I think I understand your tastes pretty well, so I''m confident that you''ll be happy with it."


    Ayanok��ji-kun finished epting the book and left the library.


    "I feel bad making you go through the trouble."


    I was anxious whether he would ept it, but when Ayanok��ji-kun took it from me, I felt relieved. However, his words that struck the core of my heart caused my pulse to race.


    "Did you perhaps carry this around with you until you met me?"


    I had carried it around with me every day until I met him. His suspicion, that had hit right on the mark, only increased my nervousness.


    "I would''vee right away if you had just told me."


    "Well, yes. But... it''s only been a few days, so it''s not a big deal."


    Trying my best to keep calm, I exined and asked him not to worry about it.


    As our conversation continued, I felt like I couldn''t bear to show him more of my pathetic side any longer.


    "Well then... see youter."


    Rather than my lingering emotions, my feelings of not wanting to show my pathetic self won, and I returned to the library as if I ran away. As I closed the door and took a deep breath, the librarian looked at me while smiling.


    "That''s youth, huh?"


    Whether they had heard my conversation with Ayanok��ji-kun or not, I couldn''t tell.


    Either way��there was no doubt that they had seen me in a very embarrassing situation.


    "It''s not like that," I gently denied before returning to my seat.


    The familiar silence of the library enveloped me once more.


    That day, however, felt strangely lonely.

 Chapter 416: Short Story 2 : Masumi Kamuro’s SS - It’s Because I Hate It

    <h4>Chapter 416: Short Story 2 : Masumi Kamuro��s SS - It��s Because I Hate It</h4>


    I WAS ASKED BY that guy Hashimoto to create contact with Ayanok��ji.


    This morning, while I stood by, ready to leave at any moment, I received a call.


    I got a report that Ayanok��ji had been spotted leaving the dorms.


    Most of the surveince targets were the ones Sakayanagi specified, but this Ayanok��ji was someone that part of the ss had been independently monitoring.


    It wasn''t anything special.


    ss A was always keeping their eyes on a lot of students.


    Who was connected to who, who got along well and who didn''t. Even useless information was gathered.


    That was why there weren''t too many students who paid attention to Ayanok��ji''s monitoring.


    From an outsider''s perspective, he was just one of the many targets of surveince.


    Hence, even if I desired this information, it shouldn''t raise any suspicions.


    Winter break would soon be over, and the limit for seeing it as a hassle and procrastinating was approaching.


    Besides, for thest few days, Karuizawa had been clinging onto Ayanok��ji, and I had been continuously unable to make contact.


    I quickly left the dorm and headed for the location indicated by thetest sighting.


    And sure enough, I easily found the back of the person I was looking for.


    "Tsk."


    I inadvertently clicked my tongue. I thought it was just Ayanok��ji, but it seemed I was wrong.


    If I turned back now and missed this opportunity, the next time might already ur in the third term.


    If Hashimoto called me by my first name again because I avoided contact, I''d get goosebumps...


    "...If it isn''t Karuizawa, I''ll manage... somehow."


    I had no other choice but to forcefully use this chance to break through.


    "It seems like you''re being quite ostentatious early in the new year."


    With tant disgust, I called out to Ayanok��ji and approached him.


    "I just saw you on a date with Karuizawa at the end of the year. Did you start going out with a different girl as soon as the new year began?"


    It was an unobtrusive reason to speak up, since we hardly ever interacted.


    Well, even if I had no business with Ayanok��ji, I despised guys who cheated on multiple women.


    "They''re totally different types of girls. What were you thinking?"


    I couldn''t help but feel irritated when I saw a man who couldn''t value someone.


    Since I truly despised him, there was no way Ayanok��ji could perceive my true intention for making contact.


    Today, I aimed to just vent my emotions by digging into this guy.


    I had to gauge whether he would be a threat to ss A or not.


    By doing so, I would fulfill my promise with Hashimoto and get rid of his unnecessary usage of my first name.


    I don''t really have to do this... What am I even doing getting so worked up...


    While harboring such cold feelings, I first directed my gaze with the intention of sending Shiina back.

 Chapter 417: Short Story 3 : Miki Yamamura’s SS - The One Who Can Find Me

    <h4>Chapter 417: Short Story 3 : Miki Yamamura��s SS - The One Who Can Find Me</h4>


    RY��EN-KUN, KATSURAGI-KUN AND Ayanok��ji-kun were circling around Keyaki Mall.


    I spotted the three of them and quietly followed behind.


    If I could gather any useful information, I''d report it to Sakayanagi-san.


    Since she would handle examining the content, all I needed to do was to remember it.


    Hidden in the shadows of a vending machine, I held my breath and closely listened in.


    "I''m going to stop by Keyaki Mall now. What will you do? If you want us to hold hands and go on a date, I might consider it."


    It was the domineering, typical Ry��en-kun.


    The conversation they''d been having up until now was far more intense and intriguing than I''d imagined.


    The contents of the three''s conversation mentioned a few things, such as noticing the groundwork for the special exam in the third term, but what surprised me the most was Ayanok��ji-kun''s presence and the high opinion the other two had for him.


    He had been an elusive figure since the school trip, and I was wondering who he really was.


    Unfortunately, I didn''t know what they had spoken about immediately after they met up, but could they have perhaps touched on that topic?


    "Well then, I''ll be off."


    "Our match will be in the third year. Don''t forget that."


    Even while parting, Ry��en-kun was wary of Ayanok��ji-kun and recognized him as a formidable opponent.


    Even though I wanted to gather more information, I assessed that this was the right time to pull back.


    Having a weak presence was my unique ability, but even that had its limits.


    However, I wasn''t worried. I slid my body into a position where I could be at ease.


    All that was left was to erase my presence to the limit.


    That was how I had always been prior toing to this school.


    No one could find me. No one would find me.


    See, just by staying quiet, I won''t be found by anyone this time either��


    "What are you doing in a ce like that?"


    Closely above my head, there was Ayanok��ji-kun, looking down at me with those always unchanging, colorless eyes.


    "Eh!?"


    Who is he talking to?


    Me? There''s no way.


    There''s no way anyone would see me.


    But, I was made to realize immediately afterwards.


    This person was... someone who could find me.

 Chapter 418: Short Story 4 : Arisu Sakayanagi’s SS - Emotional Control

    <h4>Chapter 418: Short Story 4 : Arisu Sakayanagi��s SS - Emotional Control</h4>


    I HAD A RENEWED realization in the snowyndscape that humans were indeed interesting creatures.


    "Never could I have imagined verbalizing it."


    Being swayed by uncontroble emotions. The surprise of discovering such a part of myself.


    Falling in love with the opposite sex.


    In my life experiences so far, I thought that was something that woulde much furtherter.


    The reason was simple. I understood that I couldn''t be attracted to an existence inferior to me.


    In short, I couldn''t feel attraction in 99% of the world.


    At the same time, I began to think.


    Did I then admit that Ayanok��ji-kun was superior to me?


    "No��is what I would like to say, but I must recognize his abilities."


    However, this didn''t mean that I had admitted defeat on the same grounds.


    He was different. Neither a genius nor an ordinary person. He was a third existence that couldn''t be ssified into just two categories.


    For now, I decided to reach such a conclusion.


    The reason for my conclusion was simple��because I realized that I was in love with him.


    I didn''t harbor fondness for 99% of humans.


    However, I don''t think I''d harbor fondness for even the 1% who were superior to me.


    Although I had not met anyone like that yet, towards that 1% of geniuses, I would probably hold jealousy, a sense of rivalry towards them, rather than romantic feelings.


    Because it was easy to imagine myself like this, this emotion held meaning.


    As always, he asked with his unfathomable, dark gaze.


    "Can you turn that emotion from a weakness into a strength?"


    Don''t worry. Right now, more than anything else, I passionately wish to fight against you.


    While being grateful to have met you as an adversary, I will now face the battles ahead without hesitation.


    To defeat neither a genius nor an ordinary person, but a created third existence.


    Even in my long life toe, I would rarelye across such an interesting battle like this one.


    I will defeat Ayanok��ji-kun and prove my own talent.


    And on top of that, I want to know how I will feel about Ayanok��ji-kun.


    Will I lose all my interest, or will I realize that this feeling is genuine?


    Or will I harbor a new, entirely different feeling that I cannot yet understand?


    It was fun to be at the mercy of uncontroble emotions.


    Surely Ayanok��ji-kun too was indulging in the same feelings through his current pseudo-romance.


    In the snowy dark night, as I held the heat welled up within me to my chest, I smiled all by myself.


    ������


    Tranted by Royal MTL

 Chapter 419: The First Dissonance of the New Year

    <h4>Chapter 419: The First Dissonance of the New Year</h4>


    JANUARY 3RD, a few days after New Year''s Day.


    After taking a two-day break, Keyaki Mall was ready to resume its New Year''s operation.


    Just a little past 10 in the morning, I was on my way to the supermarket alone.


    During the New Year holiday, I spent a lot of time in my room with Kei, consuming more food and drinks than we had anticipated. Therefore, an urgent restock of the refrigerator was necessary.


    As I entered the already-open mall and approached the supermarket, I bumped into a ssmate who was heading in the same direction.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun. Happy New Year."


    Kushida, who always wore a smile like an angel, greeted me.


    "Happy New Year. Are you also grocery shopping, Kushida?"


    "Yes. You too Ayanok��ji-kun? What a coincidence... Oh."


    Kushida, who was looking a little off into the distance, let out a voice as if she noticed something.


    I followed her gaze and spotted Horikita, who seemed to be headed toward the supermarket as well.


    "Happy New Year."


    As she said that, she intended to walk past us with just a light greeting.


    "Happy New Year. Are you also shopping, Horikita-san?"


    Even though she could have just ignored people she disliked, Kushida called out to her.


    "And why would that matter?"


    "It doesn''t particrly matter, but I thought it might be fun to go shopping with two ssmates who happened to be together."


    Indeed, there was a possibility that shopping with someone could be fun.


    However, the chances of having fun with both Horikita and Kushidabined seemed close to zero. Disregarding my concerns, Horikita stopped and considered her proposition when she could have simply refused.


    "Well, that might be a good idea."


    As a ssmate, she didn''t simply ept the invitation.


    If I had to choose a fitting phrase for the situation, it was as if she ''took on the challenge.''


    Carrying baskets, I entered the supermarket as a part of an unexpected group of three.


    It was a rather surreal sight, but perhaps only ssmates who knew the circumstances would feel so.


    "You have quite the sarcastic personality, don''t you, Horikita-san?"


    "Doesn''t that pertain more to you? You went out of your way to invite me."


    "Is that so? I''m just curious to see a new side of the both of you."


    "Being able to speak so nonchntly about the truth is a talent."


    "Thanks."


    Even though it didn''t sound like a lie, I knew it was.


    When I interacted with Kushida recently, I had this strange experience that was a bit funny.


    "By the way, do you cook, Kushida?"


    "I can manage to some extent. We never know when our cooking skills mighte in handy. Isn''t it unquestionable that girls who can cook are more attractive in society?"


    Even without applying modern thinking, having multiplepetent skills was a positive thing.


    As they idly chatted about various safe topics, each of them ced the ingredients and seasonings they needed orcked into their baskets.


    From the vegetable section to the meat, fish, and finally the processed food corner, it was around this time that their shopping was nearing its end.


    A familiar female student stood at the ready-made food corner.


    She waszily staring at the shelves while scowling at the phone in her right hand.


    "Is she looking up something?"


    Kushida said, referring to the student who looked as if she was researching something. However, Horikita dismissed the question after a bit of thinking.


    "She seems upset. Maybe she''s checking her private point bnce while shopping."


    "Or perhaps she''sparing prices to see if it''s cheaper to buy online?"


    I brought up the online shopping site that I recently learned about.


    Especially when buyingrge quantities of the same thing, I discovered that buying in bulk online was cheaper.


    "She''s not the type to bother with that. She knows she needs to save money, but she''s not managing it properly."


    "Wow, you know a lot. I don''t think she told us anything like that."


    "You would understand if you watched her."


    As the three of us continued to watch, the female student began to move, preparing to leave.


    And she noticed that we were watching her.


    "So you''re also at the supermarket, Ibuki-san. Happy New Year."


    "Ugh..."


    With a tantly disgusted expression, Ibuki not only averted her gaze from us but also hid the contents of the basket she was holding behind her body.


    As I approached, she retreated slightly but kept her protective stance over her basket.


    "Can''t you even say a New Year''s greeting properly?"


    "I don''t know. Besides, it''s not like I wanted to see you at New Year''s anyway."


    "That''s not the issue, but oh well..."


    She probably didn''t care about a return greeting anyway.


    More importantly, it seemed like something had caught Horikita''s attention.


    "Did you buy something you don''t want to be seen?"


    "No, it doesn''t matter."


    She tried to dodge the question, but while Ibuki was focused on Horikita, she overlooked another person.


    Kushida had naturally circled behind Ibuki and peeked into her basket.


    "Instant ramen, instant yakisoba, sweet bread, and processed foods. Lovely shopping you''ve done there."


    "H-hey, stop peeking in there!"


    Noticing Kushida, Ibuki swung her basket around forcefully.


    Perhaps anticipating the retaliation, Kushida had already kept her distance. Ibuki''s swing didn''t hit its intended target.


    "It''s dangerous to swing your basket around inside the store, you know?"


    "Well, stop snooping around, then."


    At the start of the New Year, the three girls made for a lively group.


    "I''m not surprised considering you''re not one for cooking, but your diet is shockingly unhealthy to the point of concern."


    "Huh? Don''t nitpick at my diet. Everything is fine because I''m taking supplements."


    "I think there is a problem though..."


    In exasperation, Horikita approached Ibuki and forcefully peered into her shopping basket.


    She firmly grabbed the rim of the basket so that it wouldn''t be knocked around.


    "Kuh! What are you doing!"


    "Well... let''s put this, and this, and this, and this, and this back."


    Saying that, Horikita, who luckily was in the ready-made food corner, began to return the items that were in Ibuki''s basket back to the shelves.


    "Hey, what are you doing without my permission!"


    "You''ve been living on a simr diet during this winter break, haven''t you? If you continue like this, you won''t grow anything, you know."


    "Ah, I see. That''s why Ibuki-san is��"


    Kushida said, casting a nce at Ibuki''s chest area and smiling.


    "Don''t just say whatever you want!"


    Ibuki tried tosh out.


    Her loud voice and violent behavior made it seem like she had forgotten she was in a supermarket.


    Well, it wasn''t hard to understand why she''d be upset about the ruthlessness of Horikita and Kushida''s actions.


    However, Horikita continued with a serious look on her face.


    "I do want to settle things with you in a martial arts match someday. However, if you only take in imbnced nutrition, you''ll lose the muscles needed for sports. If you think you can beat me with that kind of thinking, you''re naive."


    "Uh..."


    Apparently, those words hit a sore spot for Ibuki.


    "But, it can''t be helped. I don''t cook. Do you mean I should buy a bento box then?"


    "Supermarket bentos tend to have too many carbohydrates and fats. They wouldn''t suit your body type."


    "Then, what am I supposed to do?"


    "You''re free after this, right? Come to my room. I''ll let you have lunch. I''ll also teach you how to make some simple dishes."


    "Who would go to your room! Besides, I don''t feel like eating!"


    "But it would save you money, right?"


    "Eh..."


    Ibuki, who was about to refuse, became rigid.


    "If you want to save your private points, it''s not a bad proposition, don''t you think?"


    "...I see."


    Apparently, her budget was more strained than imagined.


    "Then maybe I should have you make lunch for me too, Horikita-san."


    "You''re nning toe too?"


    "Doesn''t thebination of you and Ibuki-san sound interesting?"


    "You have such twisted thinking. Well alright then, and how about you?"


    "Eh, me? Aren''t I unrted here?"


    "Well, yes. But it doesn''t make much difference if I make food for three or four anyways."


    I looked at the basket in my hand and thought.


    If Horikita were to cook for me, it would certainly save me some on food expenses.


    The ingredients I purchased could be used for future meals instead as well.


    "I''ll ept your proposal then."


    Watching another person cooking up close wouldn''t be bad either.


    It could even be a good experience to improve my own cooking skills.


    And so, the four of us decided to gather in Horikita''s room that day.


    Needless to say, it turned out to be an extremely difficult and tumultuous lunch party, filled with exhaustion.


    ������


    [There are a lot of character profile photos i will send them soon in this linement]

 Chapter 420: RoyalMTL’s Postscript

    <h4>Chapter 420: RoyalMTL��s Postscript</h4>


    Nice little short story for y''all, Definitely been a while since we''ve seen a .75 volume. Last one was Year 1 Volume 11 if I recall correctly. Time sure does fly. Anyways, those two panels at the end seem to be manga covers for those of you that are interested, and we also took the time to trante the character profiles for you. Hope you enjoyed it.


    I''d like to extend a big thank you to the team, as well as all of our readers. Your continuous support helps us to continue tranting this series that we all love, so thank you very much.


    Also, a big thank you to Shogo Kinugasa for creating this original work. Please consider buying the official copies of the series as they are released.


    Cast �C Trantor


    /


    /invite/royalmtls


    Also follow all of our socials for updates and information.


    /royalmtls


    /royalmtls/


    /r/RoyalMTL/


    Credit


    Inkpetagon �C Japanese Proofreader


    "Kushida (Kiky��) x Horikita (Suzune) x Ibuki (Mio)"


    DoSomething �C Editor


    "And the threesome persists"


    Budos �C Editor


    ZF �C Illustrator


    Alya �C Illustrator


    SnOrT NeSqUiK? - EPUB Maker

 Chapter 421: Y2V9.75: SS - An Adult-ish Special Lesson

    <h4>Chapter 421: Y2V9.75: SS - An Adult-ish Special Lesson</h4>


    On a certain holiday. We, students, received a certain message from the school. It''s about an amusement facility that had been constructed in the basement of Keyaki Mall. It apparently is abination of an arcade and a casino. Having been selected from the lottery, I went to participate in the opening of the facility right away.


    Whilst there were only a few, the figures of students who''d epted the invitation could be seen here and there.


    But amidst such a scene, I discovered my homeroom teacher who was being surreptitious to remain inconspicuous but couldn''t help but stand out due to the entric outfit she was wearing.


    "Did you perhaps resign as a teacher andnd a new upation or something?"


    "A-Ayanokouji!?"


    Chabashira-sensei was shocked to the point of almost falling backwards. She was dded in her usual suit������or rather, a bunny girl custom.


    "May I inquire what this is about?"


    "...This is...work..."


    "Well, I did not think you were wearing a bunny girl costume out of foppery or a bizarre interest..."


    Probably being able to regain someposure due to my being calm, Chabashira-sensei cleared her throat.


    "A casino in the middle of the school. Don''t you think it''s like water and oil?"


    "Of course, I do think so."


    Looking around, there were pokers and roulettes and such; entertainments that were too stimting to be letting students y were made avable in mass.


    "Right now, the movement of educating how to handle money is taking off in our society.


    To bring in a more familiar example, it''s simr to teaching how stocks work and having students experience buying and selling. This casino too is one of such experiments."


    "So it is something akin to having us gamble, which would in turn teach us the value of money, I suppose. It would be fine if it goes smoothly, but is there not a concern about it having the opposite effect?"


    "That''s exactly why we invited a portion of the students. Seeing that you''re also one of those selected, you could think of it as the school having only hand-picked students who could exercise moderation in their participation."


    Now that she tells me that, that certainly might be the case.


    Many of the participants have high academic ability and possess great qualities. This might be rude, but students like Ike and Honda couldn''t be found here.


    "Well then, I will go wander about and look around."


    Since I was interested, let''s try various things.


    That''s what I was thinking, but Chabashira-sensei grabbed me by the shoulder(s).


    "What is it?"


    "I was helped by your calmness. Whilst it might not be much of a gratitude, your induction shall be done by me."


    "No, I am fine, thank you."


    I tried brushing her hand(s) off and walking away.


    However, Chabashri-sensei came circling around me in a panic.


    "My bad, I''lle clean so cooperate with me."


    "That is what I thought. I can tell you are in a tight spot just by looking. Most likely, things are operating in the form of a teacher apanying a student whilst giving them a lecture, right?"


    By looking at the other students, a teacher attended to them in a man-to-man fashion, so that conjecture had stood.


    "...You tried running away whilst knowing that?"


    "It was not like I was trying to run away, but I just thought that I did not need Chabashira-sensei to teach me."


    "By all means, I''d like to teach you, Ayanokouji."


    "Is it because being seen in that outfit by other students is embarrassing? It''s just a maybe, though."


    Answering in that manner resulted in me being red at intensely.


    "Alright, we''re going, Ayanokouji."


    Apparently, she has no intentions of talking about this matter in a bunny girl costume any longer and starts walking.


    Since it couldn''t be helped, I followed her to which we ended up stopping at the poker table.


    "This seat is avable, perfect timing. Are you familiar with the rules of poker?"


    "More or less. I''m familiar with a number of variations."


    "Here, the simple game of closed poker is being yed here."


    Receiving a deck of all five cards in the beginning, exchanging an arbitrary number of cards to develop a hand. yers wouldpete against one another under those rules.


    "I''ll have youpete against me."


    "I do not mind, but does one get anything?"


    "Unfortunately, you get nothing. However, there''s also no penalties if you lose, so you don''t have to be vignt."


    In that case, I''ll simply be enjoying myself, but...


    At Chabashira-sensei''s signal, cards were dealt to us by the dealer.


    "Well then, let''s confirm our decks."


    "Before that, may I say something?"


    "What is it?"


    "With nothing to gamble with, this iscking a sense of interest."


    "I won''t deny that but������that''s the arrangement. At the current stage, the school hasn''t decided on the contents of the wagers."


    "If that is the case, would it not be fine if Chabashira-sensei and I simply decide on a wager independently between ourselves?


    "...Well, that''s true, but we''re not going to gamble over money."


    "I understand that. In the event that Ie out victorious, please allow me to take a picture of Sensei in that bunny girl outfit."


    "W-what!?"


    "If money is not involved, whilst the school shouldn''t be able to say anything, a sense of tension could also be engendered from this, right?"


    To Chabashira-sensei who desires to return to her original appearance as soon as possible, it''s unavoidable that this battle would be one that she cannot lose.


    "If that''s the case, I''ll have you dressed in an embarrassing outfit if I win. Are you fine even with that?"


    "Understood. Well then, let us begin."


    "T-that easily...? Alright!"


    I checked the five cards in my deck in a way that Chabashira-sensei couldn''t see them.


    On the other hand, the bunny in front of me...no, Chabashira-sensei also exhibited the same action as me.


    With a slightly unpleasant expression, Chabashira-sensei requested an exchange of three cards.


    On the other hand, I requested for two of my cards to be exchanged.


    "Having something on the line makes it good, doesn''t it?"


    With that said, we''re just exchanging and turning our hands around on this asion. We''re not dealing with chips in our gamble, so one could say that it simplyes down to the luck of our draw.


    "My hand is������a two pair."


    Saying that, she turned over her hand. It seems that two cards she''d kept were one pair, and she was able to get another pair with the three cards she drew.


    "It was close. My hand is a three card."


    I was actually aiming for a flush, but in the end, I was able to beat Chabashira-sensei by luckily drawing two cards with the same number.


    Whilst seeing the bunny girl hit the table in frustration in my peripheral vision, I took out my phone.


    "Well then, as promised������you understand, right?"


    "Ku...! Kill me!"


    (TLN: ����...����! It''s a trope/cliche line you see a lot in that kind of media when a female knight gets beaten in battle before they get������you get the point.)


    I don''t know what Chabashira-sensei was misunderstanding, but I had her��who shut her eyes in indignity��stand at the wall.


    Then, I mercilessly took photo(s) of her figure.


    "This is humiliating... This is humiliating!"


    For a while, Chabashira-sensei continued to mutter that.


    And then, I woke up in my bed.


    "Well, of course that was a dream... it has to be."


    However, I was horrifiedter after looking at the photos saved on my phone.


    -----


    Courtesy to .freak1234 (Discord) for providing the raws.


    Tranted by Drago (dragololo on discord)


    Thanks To COTE Merchants Discord Server to provide the Trantion.

 Chapter 422: Prologue: Hashimoto Masayoshi’s Monologue

    <h4>Chapter 422: Prologue: Hashimoto Masayoshi''s Monologue</h4>


    TO PUT IT simply, I have a deep mistrust of people.


    I have a strong aversion to truly trusting others.


    I never wholeheartedly trust others.


    People betray easily.


    Isn''t that the case?


    They beg us to trust them, assuring us it''s safe, then betray us.


    The more we trust, the greater the shock of betrayal.


    Wouldn''t you think it''s better to betray before being betrayed?


    It''s better to live slyly and benefit, than to live honestly and struggle like an idiot.


    That''s my��"Hashimoto Masayoshi''s"��policy.


    Masayoshi...


    Justice[1], right?


    Every time I question myself, disgust for my own name wells up.


    It seems like this feeling isn''t an unusual urrence nowadays.


    Compared to those who despise their own names from the bottom of their hearts, my disgust is... somewhat cute.


    I only detest the contrast between my name and my thoughts.


    "Justice" and "Masayoshi" are unrted.


    I get it logically.


    But still, anyone would associate a different personality with my name at first nce.


    They judge a person''s character on their own using their name.


    Sorry, but I''ve given up on being a defender of justice.


    I''ve made up my mind since joining this school.


    I''ll definitely graduate in ss A��I''ll get back at those who betrayed me.


    For that, I''ll do anything dirty.


    I''ll knock anyone down.


    I''ll make everyone resent me.


    Whether the opponent is Ry��en or Sakayanagi.


    Or even Ayanok��ji.


    No matter who the opponent is, I won''t change.


    I act solely for myself.


    ������


    [1]: Masayoshi''s kanji can be interpreted as "justice"


    (Illustrations)

 Chapter 423 - 1 : Opening of the Third Term of the Second Year

    <h4>Chapter 423: Chapter 1 : Opening of the Third Term of the Second Year</h4>


    THERE WERE CROWDS on the way to school. A sight not seen during winter break.


    I didn''t dislike the serene scenery, but unexpectedly, I may have preferred watching the waves of students.


    Or perhaps, I had just gotten used to the current view in front of me.


    As I felt the end drawing near, perhaps I subconsciously started to cherish it.


    "What''s the matter, Kiyotaka? You''ve stopped."


    My right arm was enveloped in warmth, and looking up at me from it was Kei, my girlfriend.


    Her moist lips caught my eye. She must have put on her favorite lipstick before leaving.


    "No, it''s nothing."


    I muttered this and started walking with her. The daily life of spending time with her was at least free from boredom.


    Even if I was silent, Kei, who loved to chat, provided topics of the day on autopilot. However, I find myself increasingly distanced from the time I used to spend alone.


    If asked if those days spent together were necessary or unnecessary, I''d say it was half-half.


    What was necessary was that, by repeatedly conversing with someone, it improved mymunication skills. This was a valuable opportunity to polish my developing skills.


    On the other hand, because of my inexperience, I often failed in my responses to the recipient.


    Especially when I dealt with Kei in a bad mood, there were still times when I chose the wrong answer and ended up worsening her mood. I still struggled with that part.


    On the contrary, the drawback was that the time to polish my individual skills was reduced. Other than the benefits ofmunication, dating, and understanding the opposite sex, I was sacrificing many other things.


    "What? You were staring at my face."


    "Do you dislike that?"


    "It''s not that I dislike it, but... Hmm, I want to kiss you again. A lot."


    On thest day before the end of winter break, Kei and I spent the whole day rxing in our room.


    What transpired between a young man and woman sharing the same space shouldn''t require much boration.


    Kei drew my arm further into her embrace.


    Except for the time we were changing our shoes after arriving at the gate, we were stuck together from start to finish until we entered the ssroom.


    "Everyone, good morning~"


    It was the start of the third term. Upon entering, Kei waved to her friends in the ss. She slowly released her hands from around me and winked at me saying, ''see youter.'' Leaving behind that deep affection, she left. Afterward, I moved inside the ssroom to my seat and ced down my lightly-filled bag.


    Ever since tablets were introduced in sses, we didn''t need to carry as many things, but the bag was still indispensable.


    "Damn, don''te to school like that. It''s embarrassing, Ayanok��ji."


    Sud��, who was already in the ssroom, looked awkward as he called out to me.


    "Going to school arm in arm, isn''t that the peak of cheerful people? Dammit, I''m envious."


    Although he found the situation embarrassing, he was somewhat envious of it.


    "I want to rify that it wasn''t my idea."


    "Obviously! Hell, it''d be seriously creepy if you''d wanted that, for real."


    He continued to murmur, objecting to the idea, while bringing his face closer to mine.


    "Being lovey-dovey is fine and all, but have you seen the school''s email about first-years being caught during winter break? I''m not worried about you guys, but just be careful."


    "Oh yeah, I did see that email."


    Near the end of winter break, an email arrived from the school stating that penalties were imposed on two first-year students.


    The names were kept anonymous, but it was said that a male and female student were spotted by a third party, engaging in an act deemed as an impure interaction.


    Any activities with the intent of sexual stimtion were strictly prohibited, so they naturally were punished.


    "They should''ve just done it indoors. How about you? What are your thoughts as a senpai?"


    "What do you mean, ''how about me''?"


    "Do you... want to do various things... outside?"


    He shouldn''t have asked if it made him so embarrassed, but I didn''t say that.


    "I can only state as the email suggests. The school premises are full of watchful eyes and surveince cameras. If you do something strange, there''s a high risk of being caught. I wouldn''t choose to give in to my instincts."


    "Oh, okay. That sounds like a unique perspective only you would have... It''s a bit off-putting."


    I ended up throwing Sud�� off, albeit in a different way than expected.


    "��Phew."


    I heard Sud��''s rather deep sigh. It seemed to have slipped unconsciously, but realizing what he had done, he hurriedly apologized.


    "That wasn''t about you. Sorry if it seemed like an unpleasant sigh."


    "I''m not bothered, but is something wrong?"


    He had raised his voice in public many times before, but he wasn''t prone to sighing a lot.


    This change was not to be underestimated.


    "Lately, I''ve been feeling a bit tired. I thought I could bnce both studies and sports, but it''s getting tougher. Eh... It''s not a big deal."


    Seeming to regret discussing the cause of his sigh, Sud�� tried to downy it.


    Expressing my concern at this point might backfire.


    So, I just gave him one piece of advice.


    "Even if you cram knowledge, if you rush it, it''s likely to spill over. Too much hurry spoils the curry."


    "Yeah... Anyway, I''m looking forward to working with you again from today forward."


    Switching gears, he smiled and headed to his seat.


    Just then, Sat��, who had just entered the ssroom, greeted her ssmates and passed by me.


    "You two seemed quite close this morning."


    Whispering so, she added, "Thanks for the meal,"[2] before joining her group of girls.


    Apparently, she had witnessed my walk to school with Kei from behind.


    ������


    [2]: Sat�� saying ���Y�ߘ� (Gochis��sama) which is mostmonly said after finishing a meal (for example ���������ޤ� (Itadakimasu) is said before the meal). In this case, she''s basically thanking Kiyotaka for the lovey-dovey KiyotakaxKei shipping material they''ve given to her...

 Chapter 424: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 424: 1.1</h4>


    Even after winter break, there weren''t any changes for both students and teachers.


    As Chabashira-sensei came into the ss, she briefly offered a New Year''s greeting and put her hand on the lectern.


    "The third term starts today. They say Januaryes and goes, February flies by, and March disappears; this period of time will pass by you in a sh. Make sure you don''t spend your days out of habit, and stay focused."


    No one pointed it out, but the hair on the back of Chabashira-sensei''s head was a little funny. There was just a little bit of bedhead there. She probably woke upte this morning and had to hurry.


    For someone who was telling their students to focus, it made her words a little unconvincing.


    Chabashira-sensei concluded morning homeroom and was about to leave the ssroom when she stopped near the entrance.


    "I forgot to mention one important notice. Next month, we n to have our first ''student-teacher discussion'' at this school. It will be centered around discussions about your career and employment, interwoven with talks about your school life up till now. Of course, we have alreadypleted a survey with your parents."


    While looking back, she passed on the message to the ss.


    Even though there might''ve been households making career choices purely based on the student''s decisions, most would consider their parents'' opinions.


    This was proof that the school was actively working even without the students.


    "I didn''t know we had such a thing at this school. I actually thought we didn''t."


    Being the first to speak out, as always, was Ike. No one was surprised.


    "Even though high school isn''tpulsory education, we can''t ignore the parents'' words and allow students to decide their own paths. Of course, there will be parent-teacher conferences when the timees."


    Parent-teacher conferences. Does that mean there''s a chance ''That man'' mighte again?


    No, he clearly told me he wouldn''te back. But what will happen next?


    While I was concerned about that problem, the immediate issue was the one-on-one discussion in February. That said, in my case, my future wasn''t something I could control at will, so one could argue it didn''t matter.


    In that sense, it was very helpful that Chabashira-sensei knew about my situation, even if it was just a little. As deep discussions weren''t necessary, it would likely only be a formality.


    On the other hand, for my ssmates, one-on-one or one-on-two discussions would undoubtedly be a major crossroads.


    Would they charge straight ahead on their chosen path, or take a detour to discover a different one?


    Parents and teachers would provide the students insight into aspects they couldn''t see on their own.


    "If you''re curious about anything, it''s okay toe and ask me directly."


    Having delivered all the necessary information, Chabashira-sensei ced her hand on the door.


    And then, with one hand closing the door, the other hand looked like it was patting the back of her head..


    Apparently, she realized her own bed hair.

 Chapter 425: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 425: 1.2</h4>


    After Chabashira-sensei left the ssroom, the ss was engrossed in topics about the student-teacher conference and their future.


    "We really need to start thinking about what we''re going to do, don''t we?"


    "First, we must consider the case where we graduate from ss A and the case where we don''t. What are you thinking, Hirata-kun?"


    The girls surrounding Y��suke, who was sitting in the center of the ss, started the conversation.


    "I''m nning to go to university, irrespective of the ss A privileges. My parents have told me from a young age that that''s what they want."


    Although I didn''t intend to eavesdrop, their conversation was audible, and I couldn''t help hearing it.


    Y��suke didn''t seem to have any intention of finding a job at this point and was nning to continue his education based on his natural aptitude.


    Considering his attitude towards his studies and his actual academic ability, this seemed a natural course of action.


    Whether he had the ss A advantages or not, if he didn''t have the determination, he wouldn''t be able to take full advantage of his privileges.


    Well, this was true for all aspects of life.


    "Really? I totally thought you were going to be a ser yer!"


    "Haha, not quite. Even if I do use the ss A privileges to forcibly be a professional, if my skills don''t match, it''s clear that I''d be let go soon. Even if I go to university, I''m nning to continue ying ser, but only as a hobby."


    Getting a job in sports was a high hurdle.


    Those who should resort to exercising their privileges to proceed include those with talent who, for one reason or another, are yet to be discovered or those who due to other issues can''t go down the regr path.


    Then how should they properly utilize the benefits of graduating from ss A?


    Keisei, a top student in our ss, opened his mouth.


    "If we''re talking about the ss A privileges, then we should definitely opt for a job at a toppany. Setting aside the exceptional case where one''s skills are obviously not up to par, as long as we can work as much as others, we won''t be fired easily. For us, jumping into a world where we win as long as we get in might be the best option."


    Our ssmates nodded, convinced by Keisei''s logical statement.


    Apany takes on a major responsibility when hiring someone.


    Unless a big mistake is made, it would be unfair to fire someone just because they didn''t like them.


    ANHS wasn''t a newly established school, and its existence was widely known because it was recognized by the government. So far, they must have epted many students who have graduated in ss A.


    In that sense, if we were to choose a toppany, we could rx and fulfill our duties for a long time.


    "Considering efficiency, Yukimura-kun''s choice might be correct. But I think it''s also important to aim for the job you want."


    That too was one of the correct answers. You only have one life, and it''s okay not to choose to dedicate it entirely to a stable job or money.


    Chase after an ideal job or go for a realistic job.


    Sooner orter, the students in this ce will be faced with these crossroads.


    Honestly, there are both right and wrong choices for any decision.


    The future after my graduation is only one at the moment, but whether it was right or wrong wouldn''t be known until far into the distance.


    Was I living the correct life?


    The true answer will reveal itself depending on how one concludes when looking back over their past.

 Chapter 426: 1.3

    <h4>Chapter 426: 1.3</h4>


    It was the first lunchtime since winter break had concluded and sses returned. Kei had already formed a group with the girls, Sat�� included, and was headed to the cafeteria. It was important not only to focus on your partner but to also cherish your friends. I watched Kei''s retreating figure from the corridor. The girls were neatly lined up in a row.


    "Why do girls always walk side by side, regardless of whether there are four or five of them?"


    "I don''t know why you''re asking me. Walking side by side is just a nuisance."


    I threw a question to Horikita, who stood behind me, but she seemed to have no idea.


    "Besides, do you have eyes on the back of your head? It''s a mystery how you notice things."


    "Isn''t it better to leave the mystery as it is?"


    "So, you don''t intend to tell me?"


    "If you tell me why girls always walk side by side, I might consider it."


    "That''s a harsh question to ask Horikita-san. She doesn''t have enough friends to form a line."


    Following Horikita, Kushida showed up.


    "There''s a hierarchy. Even if you block the corridor and be a nuisance, there are times when you need to maintain the group''s formation."


    "I see. So they naturally avoid forming a configuration where they have to follow one person in front."


    "Probably. They don''t all say it, but I think it''s something they can intuitively understand."


    So it might be a mechanism derived from the group psychology that ismon in women.


    "What a trivial reason. We should be considerate of others when we walk."


    "Yeah, yeah. It''s easy for people without friends to say that."


    "Are you picking a fight with me?"


    "Were you thinking I wasn''t? That''s amusing."


    The two red at each other, and sparks flew.


    "Please don''t fight. Do you need something from me?"


    "I do have something. Ayanok��ji-kun, can I treat you to lunch today?"


    Horikita was offering to pay for my meal? I had almost no good memories of this.


    "When you propose something like this, usually nothing goodes of it. This is based on my past experiences."


    "How rude. I won''t ask for money or anything strange, so you can rx."


    "Well... Okay."


    I was sure I wouldn''t be able to rx, but if I said that, she would probably get angry. Instead, after a long pause, I nodded quietly.


    "You sure took a while to decide."


    "I may not like that about you, but it''s okay. Kushida-san, are you ready?"


    "Yeah, I''m good to go."


    She casually switched from battle mode to angel mode.


    "I see, so Kushida ising along too. That''s quite unusual."


    Could it be that Horikita didn''t want to have lunch with Kushida alone so she invited me?


    For a moment, I thought that, but if she hated to have a meal with an unpleasantpanion, she wouldn''t set up such a situation.


    Those two must have a reason for inviting me together. I wonder what they''re thinking.


    Today, since Kei isn''t around, there wasn''t a problem hanging out with them.


    "So, are we going to the cafeteria?"


    "No, somewhere... somewhere less popr would be better."


    Horikita replied, and Kushida, walking beside me, was empty-handed.


    So, does this mean we''re going to stop by a convenience store or a stall on the way to get a bento?


    I didn''t know, but I was sure to find out soon. We got up from our seats and started walking out into the corridor. Of course, the three of us didn''t walk side by side. Horikita was leading the way, while Kushida and I followed a little behind.


    "Hey, Horikita-san. I want to confirm again, are you really nning on eating?"


    "Yes, that''s what I said, didn''t I?"


    "Ha... In that case, could you make a stop at the convenience store first? I''ll get some stomach medicine."


    "Please stop. I understand your anxiety, but that''s unnecessary."


    I see, she''s going to buy stomach medicine at a convenience store on the way. Stomach medicine was necessary.


    "Wait a minute. What''s with the stomach medicine? What on earth are you nning to eat?"


    There was something clearly amiss in wanting to procure something unnecessary for lunch.


    When I sternly asked Horikita, she answered without looking back.


    "It''s a homemade lunch by Ibuki-san."


    "...Ibuki''s homemade lunch?"


    I was forced to handle the situation calmly as my thoughts froze for a moment.


    "She''s making one lunchbox for me, Kushida-san, and you today, so we''re going to divide it into three equal parts and share it. Didn''t I tell you that?"


    "You never intended to mention it, did you...?"


    If I''d heard that exnation in the beginning, I would''ve run away like a frightened hare.


    First of all, there was no way she made it for me. It was too unexpected.


    "If my memory serves me right, Ibuki wasn''t good at cooking, was she?"


    I dared not to call it bad and tried to suppress my fear as I phrased my words.


    "She''s the type who never did any home cooking before. So she usually only had imbnced meals. That''s probably new to your vague memory, isn''t it?"


    I had been on winter break until recently, but I ran into Horikita and Ibuki just after the new year.


    And I do remember hearing about the current topic there by chance.


    "Because imbnced nutrition is unhealthy, I recently invited her to my room a few times and let her eat the food I made. She came without fail, albeit begrudgingly, because it saved her money on her food expenses."


    "It''s kinda annoyingly cute how shees even whileining, isn''t it?"


    Normally, one would describe that as ''annoyingly cute,'' right?


    "You seem to know a lot about Horikita''s situation, considering you say you hate her."


    "I''ve been dropping by often, hoping maybe a fight would break out. That''s how I''m in the know."


    That was a very nasty expectation; it was just like Kushida.


    "However, it was a bit of a hassle having to cook for three people, myself included."


    Despite herints, Horikita didn''t seem to mind much.


    Perhaps she was already used to it.


    "So how did that lead to us eating Ibuki''s homemade lunch box?"


    "It was a tit for tat. When Horikita taunted her, saying she should at least learn how to cook, she loudly boasted, ''Even I can cook if I put my mind to it!''


    ''Then show me you can.''


    ''Prepare yourself and wait, I''ll do it.''


    ''If you can''t even do that, go die.''


    ''If I pull it off, I''ll kill you.''


    "And that''s how we got here."


    I was impressed by how easy it was to understand and imagine the flow of events.


    But thest two exchanges were most likely lies. I hoped.


    "Alright, I understand the situation. Well, I''m heading to the cafeteria, see you next time."


    At the crossroads, I tried to escape by turning in a different direction, but Kushida immediately grabbed my arm.


    "You''re lucky. You get to eat homemade food by someone biologically ssified as a girl."


    "You tricked me."


    I expressed my resentment towards Horikita who was calmly walking in front of me.


    "It''s not pleasant to hear you say that I tricked you. I just wanted to share Ibuki-san''s cooking with as many people as possible. And wouldn''t it be strange to involve people who aren''t close to her? And it''s too early to assume that it won''t be delicious."


    I couldn''t get the impression that she was looking forward to it from the conversation.


    I understood that I couldn''t escape, so it seemed that I had no choice but to reluctantly follow.


    "But couldn''t you avoid being involved and escape, Kushida?"


    It made sense to push into Horikita''s room to eat her homemade food, but no matter how much she wanted to see Horikita vs Ibuki, the risk was high. She didn''t know what kind of tragedy awaited.


    "Well, yeah. Even I have something in this, you know."


    "You hate to lose too, don''t you, Kushida-san? You came here against your better judgment just because you were cheaply provoked by Ibuki-san, asking if you were going to run away like a coward, didn''t you?"


    "...I just wanted to see Ibuki fail and apologize for it."


    It seemed that I hit the nail on the head, evident by her dropping the honorifics, but would Ibuki be the type to apologize if she failed?


    Well, her troublesome personality was why she might''ve thought it was worthwhile to witness the apology, even if the probability was low.


    "It doesn''t seem like she''s here yet. We''re just in time for our appointment though..."


    This seemed to be the meeting ce, and she stopped in front of the corridor leading to the outdoors.


    She lied about wanting a ce without many people, but it looked like she was nning to involve me from the beginning.


    "Hey, our ssrooms are close by, why did we need to meet at the spot?"


    "It''s indeed a pointless gathering, but I properly invited Ibuki-san too, you know? She just rejected the idea of walking together."


    If she disliked Horikita (and probably Kushida) that much, she could''ve just turned down this challenge.


    It''s a good example of the problem with being overlypetitive.


    "I can tell she''s going to fail and bring us a nasty lunch box, isn''t she?"


    "I don''t want to assume the result, but there''s no doubt she''s probably failed."


    "I see... So now I have to eat the failed dish, huh?"


    "Stop babbling about failure!"


    Just as the air was about to be heavy, Ibuki joined us while shouting.


    She has a bomb... No, a lunch box in her hand. She had it. I wish she hadn''t.


    I wish she''d blustered something like, "I forgot, so this match is off!" I would have supported her.


    "Why is Ayanok��ji here? I didn''t invite him."


    "Isn''t it better to have more judges? That will increase the credibility of the cooking level. We''ll change the location since everyone is here. You don''t want to seem too friendly with us, do you?"


    "Of course not!"


    With that, we exited the corridor. It was still early January, so the cold was quite intense, but due to this, no one was at the dining spot.


    Ibuki waved what seemed to be a bento box wrapped in a in furoshiki (something I saw in a 100 yen shop) and pped it down onto the bench.


    "You''ll regret ever talking about me failing. Hurry up and eat."


    "You seem confident, maybe a miracle urred and you actually cooked well?"


    She''s indeed brimming with confidence. That''s obviously better than having no confidence, but are we safe to have expectations?


    "She''s clearly the overconfident type, so we can''t take her attitude seriously."


    Horikita, fully aware of this, averted her gaze from Ibuki to look down at the bento box.


    My faint hopes, as well as Kushida''s, instantly vanished.


    "Hmm. I wouldn''t be here if I didn''t think I could win."


    "Your confidence is apparent. But if that''s the case, you should handle your food more delicately. Even if your cooking turns out well, you would still fail as a chef."


    "Shut up. Just eat quickly. Then, apologize to me, Horikushi! You too, Ayanok��ji!"


    "Don''t lump me and Kushida together, what a way to abbreviate our names."


    I wasn''t particrly bothered being called out as an afterthought.


    However, it felt like...


    "You three have be quite close, haven''t you?"


    It contradicted the ringly tense atmosphere, but that was what it seemed like.


    "We''re not close, how could you misunderstand to that degree, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "That''s right, don''t interpret things strangely."


    "I''ll punch you if you say that again!"


    Clearly, one of them was on a different wavelength, but they still seemed to be getting along well. Any way you look at it, I was out of ce here.


    "Should I go home?"


    I expressed this genuine thought because I didn''t want to be a bother, but��


    "You can''t leave!"


    "You can''t run away."


    "That''s unfair, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    The three of them shouted in unison once again.


    I didn''t quite get it, but it seemed I couldn''t escape, so I sat down.


    Well, it was fine. Listening to their conversation was somewhat interesting.


    Ibuki''s cooking was clearly amateurish.


    Even so, she might have experimented and tried various methods to make Horikita and Kushida admit defeat.


    With a hint of anticipation, I evaluated the aesthetics of the food, a critical element.


    Out from the furoshiki[3] came a in bento box (again, something from a 100 yen shop).


    [3 : "Furoshiki" is a traditional Japanese wrapping cloth, often used to transport clothes, gifts, or other goods]


    "Okay, let''s open it."


    There was no sense of worry or anxiety from Ibuki as she sat back with her arms folded.


    Once the bento''s lid was slowly opened...


    What first caught our eyes was rice, not in rice but fried rice.


    Various vegetables and meats gave it a colorful appearance.


    However, the ingredients in the fried rice were unusuallyrge. Aside from that, there were mini tomatoes, tamagoyaki[4], gratin, simmered dishes, fried items, and mini hamburgers too. Although each portion was small, the seven types wereid out generously. The main feature was the addition of four slices of baran[5].


    [4 : "Tamagoyaki" is a Japanese rolled omelette.


    5 : "Baran" refers to the decorative stic or paper dividers used in bento boxes]


    One could say that it preserved the appearance of a bento.


    "Did you make everything by hand?"


    "Of course."


    She responded immediately, so it seemed that the answer was true. However, she unexpectedly included simmered dishes.


    "I''d give you a bonus 30 points for how it looks, perhaps."


    "The taste matters in cooking, not the appearance."


    "I''m giving you apliment, you know. I thought something close to 0 points would appear."


    Being generously told it was better than expected, earning a score of 30 points.


    Horikita seemed to have prepared for this in advance and had brought several pairs of disposable chopsticks. She kept a pair for herself, then she gave Kushida and me a pair each.


    "Let''s get to the tasting."


    "This is the first time I''m not looking forward to tasting something~ Such a lovely memory~"


    Kushida said in a monotone voice and split her chopsticks. She didn''t seem in the least bit eager to take the first bite, waiting for Horikita to do so.


    Horikita picked up a bit of fried rice with her chopsticks and brought it to her mouth.


    She then grabbed one of the gratins and popped that into her mouth as well.


    After finishing eating in silence, Kushida asked her.


    "How is it?"


    "I won''t say yet. I don''t want my reaction to influence yours. Your turn."


    "Tsk."


    What a tant tongue click.


    If any students who still held illusions about Kushida saw this, they probably would''ve fainted. Even if they overheard it, they would dismiss it as idental, not believing it was intentional.


    "Can I just try the mini tomatoes?"


    "Take it seriously."


    "Tsk, you''re too strict."


    Again, there was Kushida''s intense tongue clicking, and it seemed even stronger than the first time.


    In a reluctant manner, she chose the simmered dish and the mini hamburger to taste.


    "Ahh... I see. Here you go, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    From Kushida''s enlightened face, the baton of gross food was passed to me.


    Now, what to do with it?


    The lunch box had seven items, including a small tomato. Since the two had eaten four of them, I figured it would be best to eat the remaining two apart from the mini tomato.


    That meant a rolled tamagoyaki and a fried dish. It was a choice between life and death, or perhaps death and death.


    "Well then, I will start with the tamagoyaki."


    A staple for any lunch box. Though it required considerable skill to perfect, it was easy to make a decent one.


    I popped it into my mouth, instinctively on guard for pieces of eggshell.


    But it went down my throat without any crunch or difort, so I moved on to the fried dish. I didn''t realize this until I picked it up with my chopsticks, but it was a bite-sized, round croquette.


    "..."


    I cautiously ced it on my tongue. When I bit down, the filling spilled out. It was clearly a croquette and tasted like one.


    However, a mushy texture was more prominent. It wasn''t fried enough, leaving the ingredients too moist. Furthermore, it felt bad on the tongue and left a poor aftertaste.


    After finishing, I quietly set down my chopsticks and closed my eyes.


    ...Yes, I see.


    By chewing and swallowing, the answer naturallyes to mind.


    "Since we all finished eating, I''ll give you my honest opinion. It''s not delicious."


    "What!?"


    "It''s not inedible and, visually, it was better than the 0-point worst case scenario. I can tell that a beginner worked hard to make this, but more than that, it''s clear that there was too much salt; the seasoning was added haphazardly."


    Sure, it wasn''t unptable.


    The bold seasoning was probably a result of eyeballing it, as Horikita pointed out.


    "Yes, you can eat carrots without peeling them, but the texture is poor, and the size of the pieces is uneven. You gave it a serious attempt, but you couldn''t hide which parts you thought were a bother."


    It was just a single lunch box, but Horikita was able to precisely tell Ibuki''s thought process when she prepared it. And judging by Ibuki''s bitter expression, she was almost entirely correct.


    "I don''t want to eat anymore. So this is what it means to waste a meal."


    Ibuki''s frustration was evident in her vehement response to Kushida''s causticment.


    "It''s surprising that you could boast about not losing to Horikita in cooking. You should''ve given some money to a good cook and asked them to prepare it for you."


    She was harshly critiqued, and although it was a little pitiful, it couldn''t be helped given the quality of food she''d made.


    "You guys aren''t judging fairly!"


    "If you say that, then you eat it. You haven''t even tasted it properly, have you?"


    "Taste test...? I haven''t, but it looks normal and must be edible."


    "I didn''t say it''s inedible. It just doesn''t taste good. Now, go on and eat it."


    Ibuki reluctantly took a bite of the lunchbox she prepared, visibly annoyed.


    "...Ugh, it''s not delicious��it''s delicious... Amazing!?"


    "Don''t force yourself to lie."


    Being hit on the head by Horikita, Ibuki howled.


    "Why isn''t this delicious? It has such a in and disappointing taste! And it''s salty!"


    "I''ve exined everything. You can''t just eyeball everything."


    "Even if you tell me that, I just thought there wasn''t much of a difference between a tablespoon or two teaspoons, it''s just a nuisance!"


    That was the major issue. The food packed in the lunch box had significant variation in seasoning and was either too light or dramatically over-seasoned.


    "If I were to score your cooking this time, I would give it 20 points."


    "...Out of 20?"


    "Out of 100."


    "Whaaaaat!? Is the judge bribed!?"


    "I was being generous with you. I don''t even want to eat this lunch box."


    "True that. If it were me, I''d give it 2 points."


    Ibuki kicked the ground in protest to the judges'' harsh criticisms.


    "What about you Ayanok��ji-kun? You must have a simr opinion, right?"


    "No, I don''t think it''s inedible. I''d give a higher score to this lunch box."


    "See!? See!?"


    Ibuki slightly leaped up, seemingly pleased with the first sign of support.


    "Are you sane? This is a poorly made, mediocre lunch box."


    "Agreed, without any bias."


    Horikita matched the stride without hesitation. However, I wanted to throw a wrench into it.


    Various perspectives should be taken into ount when discussing this bento.


    "But it''s not inedible. You admitted that much, didn''t you?"


    "Well... yes, but I don''t want to eat it."


    "In this day and age, where food is aplenty, I would never want to eat this in my everyday life, but what if we were cast away on a deserted ind? If this was the only thing to eat there, wouldn''t you gratefully eat it? So, my rating is..."


    "Your score is fair. Thanks for the somewhat unclear analogy. At least, I clearly understood that you weren''t giving it praise."


    "...Is that so?"


    My rating was interrupted just when I was about to announce it, leaving me feeling a little indigestion and a bit sick.


    Or maybe it was the indigestion starting from the food thrown into my stomach.


    "On average, 11 points. That''s a shame, Ibuki-san."


    In the end, if my evaluation wasn''t going to be included, maybe I didn''t need to be called...


    It was in the past, but all that remained was a feeling of disappointment that I couldn''t shake off.


    "Ugugu..."


    Originally unable to cook in the first ce, Ibuki had no choice but to ept the result of her overreaching.


    "If you say you''ll remake itter, I might make time for you."


    "I won''t make it again!"


    Being criticized the entire time, Ibuki shouted her dissatisfaction, possibly having been broken by one round of cooking.


    "Giving up early isn''t a bad thing. Cooking just isn''t for you right now."


    Despite being criticized again, Ibuki, having already made up her mind, snorted and crossed her arms.


    "On the contrary, I realized it''s stupid to even bother with cooking. You are all wasting your time."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "You can simply buy a bento at a convenience store or supermarket. It saves you time and you don''t need to deal with leftover ingredients. And it even tastes delicious. Right?!"


    Well... I guess that''s one benefit of a ready-made bento...


    "You shouldn''t do that. You must consider your nutrition well when preparing meals. How long must I repeat what I have already exined? That''s why you don''t grow up."


    "Ahahaha, that''s true. Not just your mentality, your physical growth seems stagnant too."


    "Hey Kushida! What are you looking at when you say that?!"


    "What do you think?"


    "I''m going to kick you now! I''m going to force you to apologize!"


    "Alright, alright. Don''t bite at every little thing. The fact that you always get prickly proves that you''re not getting enough nutrition. Come to my room at seven o''clock tonight."


    "If you insist so much, I ept!"


    Was she going?


    I thought she would refuse, but despite her annoyance, Ibuki epted.


    While saving money on meals, you could get a nutritious and delicious meal.


    Having to listen to Horikita''s nagging was a downside, but it was too valuable of an opportunity to pass up.


    "See you then!"


    Leaving behind words of dismissal, Ibuki stormed off with fast-paced strides.


    If it had been in an apartment, her energy would have annoyed the people downstairs.


    "Leaving the lunch box she brought without cleaning up, really..."


    Showing a disgruntled attitude like a motherining about her daughter''s ipetence, Horikita tidied up the scattered lunch set.


    She wouldn''t take it home and wash it, would she?


    Kushida, who was sitting next to her, averted her gaze from all that and stood up.


    "Then I''ll bother you at seven o''clock too."


    "I didn''t invite you, though?"


    "That''s fine. I want to save as many private points as possible. And a meal paid for with your money isn''t bad. I''ll enjoy eating it."


    She seemed to find taste in things totally different from others.


    "Don''t you already have enough private points?"


    "I''m far from having enough. I was supposed to receive money from someone every month, but unexpectedly, ns have changed."


    Although she smiled nicely, her cold eyes were directed at me.


    Then, back to her usual angelic self, she disappeared toward the cafeteria.


    "Well, that wraps things up. Good job."


    "Yeah, good job��wait a minute."


    I forcefully stopped Horikita, who was about to casually pick up and leave with the bento box.


    "What is it?"


    "I don''t remember being treated to lunch just for tasting a bad bento, do I?"


    "You could have eaten the whole horrible bento without hesitation."


    She offered me the bento box, which still had a lot left in it, but I pushed it back without hesitation.


    "It was a joke. Let''s go to the cafeteria. I''ll treat you to whatever you like."


    It seemed Horikita did have some remnant of conscience as she answered.


    "But it must be expensive to feed both Ibuki and Kushida. Two people, right?"


    "Thanks to them, my food expenses have almost doubled. Kushida-san came even though I didn''t invite her."


    "Do you think your and Ibuki''s presence serves as a good stress relief for Kushida?"


    If they truly hated it, they wouldn''t choose to spend their time together, free meals or not.


    "I wonder. She seems to enjoy inflicting me damage more than anything else. Including Ibuki-san, it feels like they just can''t help wanting to see my struggles and frustrated expression."


    I see. That might be true as well.


    Spending the same time together, they could get a chance to see Horikita''s weak side.


    "It may be hard to imagine, but there must be some fun moments when the three of you gather, right?"


    "There''s nothing like that. It''s not a typical girls'' gathering. There''s noughing, and it''s always tense. Did you not see our exchange earlier?"


    Looking back, the earlier gathering was indeed not enjoyable by any stretch of the imagination.


    The only time when Kushida, perhaps out of habit, showed a smile or a smirk, was less than half the number of times she did with others.


    But, strangely, there was no heavy or tense atmosphere. It felt ratherfortable in a weird way.


    "Let''s go. It''s a waste of time to keep talking about those two forever."


    "Sounds good."


    As we started walking, I began to reflect on the mini-event that just took ce.


    Despite the burden on my tongue and stomach, today''s gathering had been incredibly meaningful.


    Horikita, Kushida, and Ibuki, who was from a different ss.


    The newly formed, albeit distorted, rtionship between the three of them was unexpectedly sturdy and not to be underestimated.


    They would all surely deny it if I called this a friendship, but my interpretation was that the sequence of surprises stemmed from the emergence of a budding friendship.


    However...


    "What?"


    Maybe Horikita didn''t like the fact that I, walking by her side, was looking at her. She narrowed her eyes defiantly.


    "I was just thinking about what expensive food I could get you to treat me to."


    "If that''s the case, you should eat what you want without worrying about the cost."


    "I just want to eat the most expensive thing there is."


    "Just... do whatever you want."


    But then, for some reason, I was forced to decide on a set meal to eat.

 Chapter 427: 1.4

    <h4>Chapter 427: 1.4</h4>


    After 9 p.m. in the evening, Kei returned home aftering over, and I was preparing for the next day.


    The television that was left on in the background was airing a variety show, which I stopped to focus on.


    A man in his 40s was serving as the host, elicitingughter by joking with theedians. The scene changed, probably to an on-site one, showing a tour around town.


    Observing for a while, the same kind of jokes andments seemed to be repeated endlessly by the host in the studio.


    Five paintings were disyed, with the audience needing to identify which was the real one, creating surprise andughter.


    "Number four."


    Having indifferently muttered the answer, I turned off the TV without waiting for the actual solution. The once noisy room instantly fell silent.


    Kei loved watching TV and often left it on when the two of us were alone.


    While I had no particr aversion to television, having experimented with using various genres for study, I realized I wasn''t especially fond of variety shows. I headed towards the drawer, taking out the sketchbook and colored pencils set stored in the second drawer.


    I had purchased them with my private points shortly after enrolling in school, but I hadn''tid a finger on them since. I recalled the puzzled look on Kei''s face when she discovered the untouched sketchbook in my drawer.


    Spreading the sketchbook on my desk, I opened the silver case containing the colored pencils.


    I reached for the brand-new colored pencils��


    And then I stopped.


    What should I draw?


    If I didn''t think about anything, my hand would inevitably stop.


    I thought I could create something on impulse, but it didn''t turn out that way.


    In the White Room, I learned numerous skills to enhance my aptitude.


    Among these was sketching, which I wasn''t bad at.


    However, the process of thinking and creating on my own was not part of the curriculum.


    I stared at the nk sketchbook.


    After a while, I closed the silver case.


    "Another day hase to an end."


    Muttering such thoughts, I returned the sketchbook and colored pencils to the second drawer. Maybe, as Chabashira-sensei said, this third term might pass by in the blink of an eye.

 Chapter 428 - 2 : Survival and Elimination Special Exam

    <h4>Chapter 428: Chapter 2 : Survival and Elimination Special Exam</h4>


    AFTER WINTER vacation, school life took a fresh start.


    The greetings with ssmates who I hadn''t seen for about two weeks until the new year were a bit awkward, but other than that, the days passed uneventfully.


    When would the next special exam be conducted?


    While everyone in the ss would have that in the back of their minds, Horikita, who had received hints from senpais, was more concerned.


    Chabashira-sensei, the homeroom teacher who symbolized the start of a new school day, appeared.


    Her expression was always stern, heading to the podium with a serious face without a hint of levity.


    However, even though everything was as usual, some of the students naturally sensed that something was different.


    Observing everything from the back of the room, I reached the same conclusion.


    Thursday, when half of the week had already passed, it seemed finally time for the prelude to begin.


    "Good morning. Today I want to talk about our first special exam of this third term."


    Just as teachers had been observing their sses for two years, students had also been observing the teachers as well.


    "Not many of you are surprised. You''ve gotten good at understanding the timing, I see."


    If so, the announcement would be quick. Chabashira-sensei straightened herself and looked over at the students.


    "I''d like to get right into the exnation. This special exam has slightlyplicated rules."


    Chabashira-sensei turned on the monitor and started the software.


    "This special exam will only be conducted among second-year students."


    Initially, it was revealed that it wasn''t going to involve other years like the first and third years.


    "This is going to be a different ruleset from the special exam where wepete side by side for first ce or decide the winner in a one-to-one match with a specific ss. I''ll exin it with the help of diagrams to make it easier to understand. Let''s take a look at the monitor."


    Data created by the school was quickly loaded and a file was opened.


    [Survival and Elimination Special Exam]


    The first line of text that appeared was believed to be the name of the next special exam.


    Despite being a mere exam name, there was a slight tension among the students.


    "Survival and elimination? That sounds very dangerous..."


    The usual candid words from Ike. However, that was an understandable impression.


    When you saw the word ''elimination,'' there was something that was inevitably associated with it.


    While students didn''t explicitly say it, everyone associated it with ''expulsion.''


    Chabashira-sensei, withoutmenting on the name of the special exam, began exining the test content.


    "In this special exam, there are diversified tasks based on categories prepared by the school. Each ss will choose a category, select a difficulty, and issue a task to the target ss in a specific order."


    A diagram of a square figure was given as an example.


    ��ss A����ss B


    �� ��


    ��ss D����ss C


    "While the arrangement of these sses is just an example, with us being clockwise from ss A, they will have us solve the task they chose and gave to ss B; meaning ss A is the attacking side in this case. On the other hand, ss B is the defending side. ss B scores points by solving the task, i.e., the attack that came from ss A. Then, once this offensive and defensive action is done, ss B will be on the offensive side and will issue tasks to ss C. We will repeat this attack and defense while moving around the sses, and the offensive and defensive war between ss D and ss A at the end of the rotation��this will be considered one turn."


    From this initial exnation, it was clear that points for your own ss didn''t increase when attacking, but rather, points would increase depending on how many of the tasks you could do correctly when defending.


    "After 10 turns, the first half will be over. The second half will invert the arrows counterclockwise, and another 10 turns will be held. We are going to repeat the offensive and defensive battles for a total of 20 turns."


    Another figure was courteously disyed for the counterclockwise rotation.


    ��ss A����ss B


    �� ��


    ��ss D����ss C


    It was still unsure how the ss arrangement would be decided, but the fact that there wouldn''t be any offensive and defensive actions against the ss located diagonally couldn''t be overlooked.


    It would be an additional mental burden to wage a defensive and offensive war against a ss that posed the greatest threat to one''s ssmates.


    "Next, I will detail the tasks for the offensive side. The categories provided by the school, as I mentioned at the beginning, cover a wide range. From fundamental academic skills such as literature, economics, English, arithmetic, kanji, and history, to subjects which are not rted to academics, such as subculture, and entertainment."


    "Do students need stuff like entertainment...? I''m not good at that..."


    Sud�� expressed his aversion openly towards the unfamiliar term mentioned.


    "Indeed, some areas might not be primarily rted to a student''s responsibilities. But those who are ignorant of the world are often eliminated when they step into society. In other words, even if you can''t study, those who can follow the conversation are often treasured. This means that this time, your general knowledge as a human being will be tested."


    With that exnation, some understood while others were still confused. The air was tense.


    Sensing this, Chabashira-sensei added to her exnation.


    "It seems there are some who find it hard to understand, so let me simplify it. Basically, it has aspects simr to a quiz. The attacking ss will present a quiz, and the defending ss will solve it. It''s as simple as that."


    This description was extremely clear, and many students began to show their understanding simultaneously.


    At the same time, there were also those who wore baffled expressions.


    Competing with a quiz��indeed, if you just proceed with that image alone, it wouldn''t be unreasonable.


    However, not all sessful people are only excellent in academics. Regardless of their final academic level, many possess something noteworthy besides that.


    In that sense, it couldn''t definitively be said that knowledge in areas like entertainment waspletely unnecessary.


    If you were to enter into the entertainment industry, there would be a significant difference between knowing nothing and having an abundant amount of knowledge.


    Non-academic knowledge would also be tested when facilitating smoothmunication with superiors and subordinates. If you could fully utilize your skills, it would be a plus in many cases, without a doubt.


    Offense


    Select the category and difficulty. Nominate a student and attack.


    Attack limit


    The same student may be nominated consecutively. It is also possible to repeatedly choose the same category.


    Nominate five students of the target defensive ss to the staff in charge within three minutes of starting.


    ��If unable to make nominations within the time limit, the remaining number of students will be selected randomly.


    List of possible categories for questions


    Literature, History, Science, Society, Sports, Entertainment, Music, Economics, General Knowledge, English, Arithmetic, News, Kanji, Lifestyle, Gourmet Food, Subculture


    Difficulty level


    Three levels, from one to three. (The higher the number, the greater the difficulty)


    Target number


    Five people


    Indeed, as the school had mentioned, the special exam covered a wide variety of topics.


    There were 16 choices for just the category.


    "The attacking ss will first select a category from among these��"


    "Won''t everyone just pick the highest difficulty level for their opponents?"


    During Chabashira-sensei''s exnation, this seemed to have unintentionally slipped out of Ike''s mouth.


    After muttering that, he hurriedly covered his mouth, but it was already toote.


    In the awkward silence that followed, he timidly looked up at Chabashira-sensei.


    While there was a strong negative impression around interrupting someone mid-exnation, Chabashira-sensei, albeit sighing, didn''t seem too harsh on him.


    "Be careful with your careless remarks, Ike."


    "Y-yes, I''m sorry!"


    "The attacking ss will select the difficulty level after choosing the category. The basic, first level is of average difficulty. The second and third levels with higher difficulties can also be chosen, but to do so, you need to spend the points that you have acquired. For every point you spend, you can increase the difficulty level by one."


    The special exam rules began to be broken down little by little.


    Apparently, the attacking side was not just about choosing a category.


    "The attacking side will nominate five people from the defending ss and assign them tasks. You can keep selecting the same student, or you can change who you select. The same applies to categories."


    There seemed to be no restrictions at all on the nomination of students and the category selection. Whether to aim at an unspecified majority or to continuously target a specific student��it was all at the discretion of the attacking side.


    "But what if the opponent''s ss is aware of the categories we''re weak in..."


    It wasn''t unreasonable to immediatelye to that conclusion.


    If we''re constantly attacked in areas we aren''t good at, the probability of getting all the questions wrong wouldn''t be low.


    "I understand feeling uneasy, but this isn''t a special exam that specifically requires you to ovee your weak subjects ahead of time. In this special exam, individual knowledge is important, but it also bes crucial how well the ss understands each other. It isn''t just about taking on the given tasks indifferently, but there''s a system where, at times, a leader can protect students and decide when to attack based on the situation."


    Defense


    By the leader''s nomination, up to five individuals can be protected for each task. If a student, who was nominated to be protected, is within the five individuals nominated by the attacking side, they will be treated as if they answered correctly.


    Within three minutes after the attacking side has finished their task, the leader shall nominate five individuals from their ss and dere it to the staff in charge.


    �� If unable to make nominations within the time limit, the remaining number of students will be chosen randomly.


    Excluding Categories


    Each student can choose to exclude up to three of the sixteen categories beforehand.


    The attacking side can''t choose the excluded categories.


    Elimination


    If a student answers incorrectly three times in total, they will be eliminated and cannot be targeted for nomination.


    Moreover, for every person eliminated, one point will be deducted.


    �� Even if the score is zero, negative points will umte.


    Scoring


    If an answer is correct (or protected sessfully), one point is given for each person.


    Incorrect answers will not deduct points.


    "At this point, some of you might be confused, but because you can exclude five people every time you defend, if someone is being specifically targeted, you can prioritize protecting that person. Of course, if the attackers think you will protect, they will change their target each time. You guys will have to make various strategies beyond just getting the answers right."


    As Chabashira-sensei said in advance, it could be called a slightlyplicated special exam.


    However, when untangled, there were surprisingly simple aspects to it, and it consisted of repeating the same process.


    "Also, during this special exam, both the attacking and defending sides are allowed to discuss and consider necessary matters among themselves. However, all final decisions will be made by the leader elected by the ss. It is a position that holds a lot of responsibility."


    It was entirely up to the leader if they chose to represent the views of their ssmates or not.


    Such a role could not be left to someone indecisive or someone who could lose their sense of judgment.


    "Also... if a ss with any eliminated students sinks to the bottom of the four sses, one of those eliminated students will be expelled."


    "Wow... E-expulsion, seriously... I thought it was possible, but...!"


    Somewhere, a small scream rose among the students.


    "And the reward for this special exam is as follows:"


    Rewards


    1st ce: 100 ss points


    2nd ce: -50 ss points


    3nd ce: -50 ss points


    5nd ce: -100 ss points


    ��If there are multiple sses with the highest score, an extension will be held to determine the oue.


    ��If all four sses finish the test with the same score, everyone''s ss points will be deducted by 100.


    "What the heck is this!? Other than first ce, all the ss point rewards are negative!?"


    It was only natural that voices of surprise and dismay rose from the students.


    Only one ss could be the actual winner among the four. However, if one deeply analyzed the rules, they would be able to predict why only one ss could be the victor.


    As noted in the reward description, if all four sses conspired and colluded prior to the special exam, they could potentially finish the exam with equal scores. This rule was in ce to prevent such scenarios.


    Given that all ranks below the first are in the negative, it bes practically impossible for sses to coborate across boundaries. Even if they joined forces, only one ss could win.


    Of course, it wouldn''t be impossible if they used unconventional methods, such as the contract Ry��en and Katsuragi made during the deserted ind examst year in summer, in which they forfeited ss points in exchange for Private Points. However, coboration was unlikely unless it could ensure a secure first ce.


    By those rules, it was easy to obtain high scores if sses coborated, but the school''s restrictions to prevent this from happening were more powerful than expected.


    This was also a rare opportunity to expel a specific student by making their ss lose.


    It was hardly usible that they would give up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity without something significant in return.


    The only viable cooperative rtionship could be an agreement not to eliminate each other.


    This method was fair to all sses and could also purchase safety.


    However, setting aside Horikita and Ichinose, the possibility of such a proposal getting through to Ry��en or Sakayanagi was low.


    Furthermore, due to the attack and defense mechanisms, they inevitably need to fight against two sses, and adhering to a no-elimination policy wouldn''t be easy.


    "In the event that there are multiple eliminations in the lowest-ranked ss, the ss leader will nominate one from among the eliminated. Of course, the nominated student cannot refuse. If there are sses tied for the lowest rank, there is a possibility that there will be expulsions from multiple sses."


    This meant that if any of the students in the lowest-ranked ss were eliminated, there would definitely be at least one expulsion. The only exceptions would be if 20 million points were paid or when a student holding Protection Points was eliminated and selected.


    It would be possible to avoid that if the lowest-ranked ss kept the number of eliminated students to zero, but that was nearly impossible under normal circumstances.


    "Excuse me, may I ask a question?"


    Horikita, who was sitting in front of Chabashira-sensei, raised her hand to ask for permission to speak.


    "Yes, what is it?"


    "What happens if the leader is eliminated midway through the special exam? Also, will those who are eliminated be required to do something like leaving the room?"


    "To answer the easier question first, even if you are eliminated, you just won''t be nominated by the attacker afterward. You''ll continue to wait in the same ce as the other students and are free to participate in the conversation."


    In other words, they would be put on the eliminated list, but there wouldn''t be any other restrictions.


    "As for a leader getting eliminated, the leader does not participate in any tasks to begin with. This means that they cannot be nominated by the attacker and therefore have no fear of being eliminated."


    "The leader only directs and doesn''t fight..."


    "Correct. Those who are chosen as leaders are effectively exempted from the risk of expulsion. Whether they consider this a perk or not is up to the individuals."


    The ss leader, who would lead the fight, won''t bear the risk of expulsion.


    However, if the ss were to lose, the leader must nominate an eliminated student to be expelled.


    The responsibility of being a leader is already a heavy burden if they lose, and yet they have to undertake the task of expelling arade without being able to take responsibility themselves.


    Although it was a position that assured safety, hardly any student would eagerly want to undertake the responsibility of determining victory or defeat and having to selectrades to abandon if they lose.


    While someone like Ry��en or Sakayanagi might easily undertake such merciless tasks, most other students would likely refuse. The role of pushing the button to eject the floorboard of a condemned prisoner was extremely harsh.


    "Also, it''s important to note that during this special exam, the use of mobile phones will be permitted at all times, except when the defensive side is solving a problem."


    "Eh, it''s allowed...?"


    "Rather, it might be said that phones are indispensable for this special exam. The other sses'' details will be disclosed after the exam starts, so you will have to organize the information in real-time and find the optimal solutions to determine who is excluding which category."


    More than 100 students were spread across the three sses. There were about 80 even with just two target sses.


    It would be almost impossible to specify the categories without the ss mustering all its resources to gather information.


    There were other advantages to being able to use phones.


    Usually, students who weren''t good at speaking up found it difficult to raise questions about minor realizations. Frequently, they''d just swallow their small doubts andter find out that they were the key questions they should have asked.


    Through an app, they could easily send messages about their realized doubts, just to their specific friends, and ask for their judgment.


    "Of course, you can also use it for the defensive side. It''s up to you whether you cram knowledge into your head for the exam until thest minute or if you contact and negotiate with the opposing sses. Feel free to do as you wish. If the patterns of the questions during the exam be apparent, it should be possible to allocate some countermeasures."


    This added conditions we had never considered until now.


    If phones could be used, the scope for offense and defense would significantly widen.


    How quickly and efficiently we could share information seemed to be a point of the test.


    "The special exam will be conducted next Friday. First of all, by the end of school next Monday, find time, decide the leader through mutual discussion, and let me know. If you can''t choose a leader, as you can probably guess, we will randomly select one."


    With that, Chabashira-sensei exhaled a heavy sigh, seemingly ending her exnation of the special exam.


    "I understand everything, but it''s going to be a tough fight. All I can say is��."


    She stared at the students, and then answered, "Do your best not to cest. That''s it."


    In the special exam where failure would put losing your friends at risk, avoidingst ce was absolutely necessary.


    There was a possibility that the third-term special exam would be brutal, and that turned out to be precisely the case.


    Even if a student was academically or physically skilled, another ss could apply a strategy that exploits the gaps in their knowledge and get them expelled.


    Nheless, I was impressed that this time, the mechanism wasn''t structured on gaining points from attacking.


    As the defense''s judgment was connected to the score, it became more important to face and consider your own ss. It was a test to earn points through discussions with the leader and ssmates.


    How well one knew the ss and the enemy would affect the oue of the battle.

 Chapter 429: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 429: 2.1</h4>


    After Chabashira-sensei left the ssroom, there was a little time before the morning lecture began.


    Since we didn''t need to move between sses today, everyone would''ve usually passed the time with casual chatter, but today, it seemed that even that was a waste of time, and the students naturally gathered around Horikita.


    To calm the noisy ssmates, Y��suke took the lead.


    "Since we have limited time, let''s recap the main points of the special exam''s contents for now."


    To avoid them from bing disorderly from idle chatter, he voiced that thought.


    It was almost certain, given nearly two years of experience, that there were almost no students who wouldn''t listen.


    Noting the surrounding silence as agreement, Y��suke nodded and continued,


    "The areas of concern for this special exam are that it''s difficult to imagine cingst without an expulsion. Inevitably, there will be an expulsion from the ss inst ce. And while the odds are low, if a tie forst ce urs, multiple sses might have expulsions."


    The number of times a ss receives an attack was 20 times. With 5 people each time, that was a total of 100.


    No matter how much the leader exerted their skills, it seemed inevitable that a few people would be eliminated.


    "Due to the nature of the exam, students who get the second question wrong will be cornered. If you try to protect a particr student from being expelled, of course, the other sses will target the other students. If you continue to insist on protecting, the number of students who get two questions wrong will keep increasing..."


    That thought would turn into one of the pieces for negotiations.


    The offensive needed to analyze the defending ss and figure out who was weak in which subjects in order to attack effectively. They also needed to predict and evade the protection targets, so they wouldn''t waste any points.


    The defending side also had to predict the offensive''s ns and deal with them ordingly.


    "Be careful that the eliminations won''t only consist of students with lower abilities. It''s natural for other sses to want to force capable students to be eliminated, looking at the future. If the ss misjudges who to protect, evenpetent students could be at risk."


    In extreme terms, this was an exam where every student besides the leader had the potential to be expelled.


    Even excellent students like Y��suke and Kushida would buckle if they were continuously bombarded with questions; it wouldn''t be impossible to make them drop out.


    Of course, this would only apply if there were no other students to prioritize, and the chances of forfeiting the sspetition would be high, so it might not be a wise strategy.


    However, if this strategy was sessful, the ss would suffer damages beyond the loss of ss points. Considering these factors, the reward for this special exam might be modest. Rather than cing the winner in a more advantageous position, this special exam emphasized putting the loser at a greater disadvantage.


    "Just hearing this, naturally, you''d want to avoid elimination at all costs. However, what I really want to say is to avoid bing overly anxious. While we are still unclear about the essence of the special exam, let''s first start by unifying our overall awareness without causing a fuss."


    Horikita conveyed the apparent fear from the special exam but also ensured that wasn''t everything.


    However, if left unattended, wild imaginations would naturally spread.


    Therefore, Horikita decided to gather the ss in the ssroom during lunchtime today to discuss it.


    It wasn''t mandatory, but participation was encouraged as much as possible.

 Chapter 430: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 430: 2.2</h4>


    Students without lunch hurriedly rushed to the cafeteria or convenience store and then returned to the ssroom.


    About 10 minutes after the lunch break started, 37 ssmates, excluding K��enji, had gathered in the ssroom.


    Of course, they were there to discuss the approaching special exam.


    The n was to eat and discuss simultaneously to effectively spend time.


    There were several important topics, but the first one was to properly understand the special exam and be able to confront it, as Horikita mentioned earlier.


    The other was probably the selection of the leader. It was expected that few would object if Horikita, who has done most of the work as a de facto leader, were to run for the position, but she did not speak up herself since the discussion had just begun.


    Although she wasn''t the type to run away from important responsibilities, she probably wanted to listen to the other ssmates'' opinions first. There might also be others who wanted to nominate themselves.


    However, even if Horikita didn''t speak up herself, others would consider nominating her as the leader.


    "Horikita-san, I have one question before we begin our official discussion. If we ask you to take on the role of the leader in this special exam, would you ept?"


    Y��suke took the initiative to ask a question that the ss likely wanted to know. Instead of an unexpected student suddenly volunteering to be the leader, it would be safer to nominate Horikita, who was likely to produce reliable results, early on��for the sake of the ss.


    However, everyone''s thoughts may not have aligned with Y��suke''s.


    In the unanimous vote special exam, as the person responsible for changing the policy and causing confusion in the ss, Horikita gave a strong negative impression.


    But as expected, Y��suke showed no signs of such feelings.


    "If I''m nominated by many, I have no intention of refusing. But in this special exam, while the leader carries great responsibility, there''s also a rule that excuses them from the risk of expulsion or leaving school. If there are other potential candidates, I would like to listen to their ideas."


    On the other hand, Horikita didn''t want to rush decisions. Because she understood the nature of the exam, she wanted to be careful in her judgment.


    This time, the leader bore the responsibility of strategizing and nominating, as well as the privilege of avoiding expulsion.


    They should assume that none of the 37 people present wished to be expelled.


    Then, it was possible that someone might show more capability than Horikita and benefit from the privilege of not dropping out, enough to wield their leadership effectively. But in most cases, this wouldn''t happen��it was an idealistic scenario.


    In the end, the reality was that only those who wanted to secure their safety by bing the leader woulde forward. Even if someone volunteered for the role of leader for self-preservation, it was natural that the ss wouldn''t recognize that individual.


    After all, responsibility, preparedness, and the confidence to win the ss over were demanded of the leader.


    "Is there anyone here who wants to be the leader? If so, please tell us."


    Horikita, who had moved to a position on the podium where she could see the whole ss, asked this question.


    The ssroom fell silent right after, and the students just looked at each other as time passed.


    After waiting for about 30 seconds for a nominee to appear, Y��suke nodded.


    "I guess that''s the correct answer. To be honest, I don''t think the leader''s exemption from elimination or expulsion is a great benefit. If there''s no other student who can take on such an important responsibility for the ss, I would really like to leave it to you, Horikita-san. What do you think?"


    Since there were no other candidates for the leader''s position, Y��suke was trying to persuade Horikita to make a decision early on.


    Although there was no rush, deciding the leader was an important matter.


    A response was expected from Horikita, but her reaction was slightly dyed as she had been looking at her phone screen.


    It seemed like she was paying attention to the conversation, as she finally responded after closing her screen.


    "Yes, of course, I intend to. I showed a reserved attitude to hear other people''s opinions, but I always intended to take on the role of the leader. If there are no objections..."


    "Hold on a second!"


    It''s decided. The leader will be Horikita. Just as when such an atmosphere was beginning to form, Maezono raised her hand despite hesitating.


    "I think there may be a little room for discussion..."


    Y��suke momentarily stiffened, but he quickly regained hisposure, keeping a smile on his face.


    Normally, he wouldn''t show any weakness, but today was different.


    This caution was likely due to the special exam possibly leading to someone''s expulsion.


    "Certainly, I think Horikita-san is reliable. It''s greatly appreciated that she''s willing to take on such a responsible role as a leader. However... we can''t afford to lose this special exam, right? If we rankst and have an elimination, that person will be expelled from ss. Therefore, shouldn''t we appoint the person who would give us the highest chance of winning as the leader?"


    If she had said that she wanted to be a leader to ensure safety, Y��suke would likely have immediately dismissed it. Yet, this seemed to be a question of Horikita''s ability as a leader.


    "Surely, as you said, it would be best if the person who would give us the highest chance of winning bes leader, but wouldn''t Horikita-san make the appropriate decisions to win?"


    Y��suke believed that Horikita was the best fit for the role. So, without any hesitation, he responded.


    "I don''t doubt Horikita-san''s abilities at all. But is she really the best option? I think there''s some room for discussion. Can''t we find someone who can make better decisions in the ss?"


    Without pointing to anyone in particr, Maezono appealed to her ssmates, including Y��suke.


    Y��suke managed to maintain his smile as he nodded several times, but he stumbled over his reply.


    Maezono''s question was reasonable but rather awkward. It had the potential to spoil the atmosphere.


    During this, Ike, who didn''t seem to be thinking deeply, reacted unexpectedly.


    "So, Maezono, do you have someone better in mind? I don''t get it."


    "Calm down. It''s just my personal opinion, but can I mention it?"


    Maezono, who agreed with Ike, seemed to have someone in mind.


    Nobody had the right to stop her from speaking, so she continued.


    "During the unanimous vote special exam, Horikita-san changed her opinion due to the flow of Kushida-san''s expulsion, right? The person who should''ve taken responsibility at that time should''ve been a student who continued to vote against it. But I just have a feeling that she didn''t stick to it where she should have. This time, the leader decides everything, right? And choosing who to expel from the eliminations is something we can''t ignore. Ah, for the record, I don''t mean to say that her decision was wrong. Although not all problems were resolved, the fact that Kushida-san is still in the ss is a big plus."


    She emphasized that she didn''t dislike Kushida for no good reason and spoke carefully.


    Naturally, even having her name mentioned probably annoyed Kushida.


    She had more chances to take off her masktely, but for now, she was still smiling.


    But whether that smile was warm or not was another matter...


    Above all, Maezono seemed to doubt whether Horikita was decisive and whether she deserved to be trusted.


    "I''m just caught up on our leader''s decisiveness. Putting aside who else might be the best fit for now, is Horikita-san really the best person to entrust with this exam?"


    She proposed that they should reconsider whether it was a good idea to leave it to Horikita.


    If asked whether Horikita''s decision-making ability was perfect at present, the answer would be no.


    I think it was a good question that should be weed. This was also important for Horikita. It was an opportunity to absorb the evaluations and thoughts of those around her.


    However, it was surprising to see Maezono so eloquently throwing doubt on Horikita''s ability.


    "I see... that''s a hard truth. Indeed, at that time, I hesitated. I refused to follow the wishes of the ss majority and made a personal decision. There''s no denying that it''s a fact."


    Hasebe, who had been maintaining a stern expression, showed a momentary clouding on her face but didn''t go so far as to re at Horikita. She would understand by now why Horikita had made such a tough decision at the time.


    "I know that I have many immature aspects. I can''t dere that I''m the best choice for the leader. Nevertheless, right now, no one else is stepping up to take the role."


    "Even if no one hase forward, there may still be rmendations. If you ask other people, including myself, they may be able to give you more suitable candidates. Isn''t it worth asking?"


    "I see��a rmendation. Of course, there might be some in the ss who think someone else would be better than me. But I have already asked the ss once. If there was a student who wanted to be a leader, they would have raised their hand. Is it okay to leave the decision to someone who doesn''t nominate themselves?"


    "But��"


    "Or should we ask K��enji-kun, who is the only one who hasn''t participated in this discussion? He has a sharp edge and can undoubtedly make decisions."


    She said as if refuting Maezono''s opinion.


    K��enji certainly possessed strong individuality that could answer any question.


    Maezono seemed a little irritated for a second, but she was unable toe up with a counterargument and stuttered.


    "Your thinking is correct too. I agree with the opinion that we should search for someone stronger and faster in good decision-making. So after listening to what you just said, I am asking the whole ss. In this special exam, students who are confident that they can lead and guide the ss to victory, please raise your hand. If someone emerges who I think is more suitable than me, I would dly give up the leadership role."


    It was clear that she was referring to me, and some people turned their gaze in my direction, but of course, I didn''t move. I have no intention of taking away the opportunity for Horikita to grow as a leader.


    And Horikita understood more than anyone that I stubbornly didn''t want to nominate myself.


    That was why she merely suggested finding someone in the ss with strong decision-making abilities.


    You couldn''t fight with just the strength you kept within yourself.


    Indeed, unless you were so confident that you raised your hand, you couldn''t be entrusted with this special exam.


    "Certainly, as Horikita-san said, we can''t make someone who doesn''t nominate themselves a leader."


    Maezono withdrew her opinion in the face of a valid argument, and the situation settled down.


    While it may seem repetitive, Maezono''s remarks weren''t unnecessary or reprehensible. It was essential to prevent the bias that ssmates should make Horikita the leader.


    Once again, it was whether Horikita was the most suitable leader for this ss or not. As long as we could arrive at that answer each time, there was no need to worry in that regard.


    And when that question disappeared entirely, that was the moment when Horikita grew into a leader recognized by everyone in the ss.


    "It seems like we can move forward atst. Let''s get back to discussing what this special exam is. We should also continue eating. Everyone stopped eating because of the tension."


    Perhaps due to the tense atmosphere, many students hadn''t made much progress with their lunch. At Y��suke''s words, some people hastened to eat again.


    Then, Horikita and Y��suke took the lead in exining the overview and rules of the special exam.


    While Horikita was speaking, Y��suke continued eating, and while Y��suke was speaking, Horikita did the same.


    Including what they couldn''t hear during Chabashira-sensei''s exnation, by the time they moved into the second half of the lunch break, all students had deepened their understanding.


    And when the flow of exchanging opinions began, Sud�� spoke somewhat forcefully, as if he had been thinking about something all along.


    "What''re we going to do about the guy who isn''t here, K��enji? Do we have to protect him? That''s what we promised, right?"


    K��enji achieved the feat of being the sole person who ced first in the deserted ind exam under the pretext of an advanced payment until graduation. In return, he gained the right toplete freedom. This meant unconditional protection for K��enji. Of course, this special exam also brought the risk of dropping out or expulsion to K��enji.


    This promise was made just before the deserted ind exam, and many ssmates heard about it. After the test, Horikita exined it, so it was a fact known to everyone.


    "A timely topic. I just received a polite email that said, ''It goes without saying, but I''d be in trouble if you don''t protect me from expulsion.''"


    As she answered, she showed her ssmates the actual text on her cell phone screen.


    "That''s the worst, right!? It means we''ll be forced to have four protected slots!"


    If the attackers were to realize that K��enji is always protected, of course, they''d avoid targeting him. But even if they avoided him, there was no guarantee he wouldn''t be attacked. If we were to keep our promise, we must keep protecting him.


    "Don''t jump to conclusions. We can''t say for certain that we need to constantly protect him. We''ll think of some countermeasures. I won''t discuss it in detail now, but don''t worry too much."


    This part involved strategy, so we couldn''t casually discuss it here.


    If the discussion became heated, it would be time-consuming, and lunch break alone wouldn''t be long enough. Considering the remaining time, Horikita only reviewed the necessary points and answered questions rted to them.


    Also, for the discussions rted to strategy, Horikita indicated that they should be carefully conducted from the standpoint of information leakage.


    While ideas were weed as they came to mind, they were not to be exchanged in public ces, such as ssrooms and corridors where people pass, or on cell phones, where records can easily be left.

 Chapter 431: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 431: 2.3</h4>


    School ended, and I headed to Keyaki Mall with Kei.


    We hadn''t originally nned to stop by today, but she had requested a detour.


    However, Kei, who had invited me, was not smiling as usual. She wore a gloomy expression.


    "You''ve been down. What happened?"


    "Ah... well..."


    She seemed to want to say something; after some brief hesitation, she turned her eyes to me.


    "Hey, hey, Kiyotaka. What will happen to me in this exam...? If I continue to be targeted, I think it''s absolutely impossible to keep answering correctly... Can you protect me?"


    Unable to hide her anxious expression, Kei asked with fear.


    "You''re not the only one tock confidence. Most of the students in the ss are likely to be bearing simr anxieties, to a greater or lesser extent. Of course, Horikita, who is serving as the leader, fully understands this."


    "It would be better if you''re the leader... then I would definitely be protected..."


    Although I deliberately avoided responding to that blind faith, at this point, it was a priority to dispel her anxieties.


    "Horikita will protect her ssmates. But even so, the chances of losing can''t be reduced to zero. However, the deciding factor, in that case, is about who to let go. When there are several eliminations beside yourself, it won''t be easy to specifically select you, who can lead the girls. Horikita also understands that you''re my girlfriend. Even without my protection, you won''t be an easy target for Horikita."


    This wasn''t a viewpoint I intentionally guided, but rather how Horikita would naturally interpret things.


    If she wanted my cooperation in the future, Kei surely would not be the easy option to cut off.


    However, if there are other eliminations besides Kei, her priority will have to be higher than the others with these conditions taken into ount.


    If it came down to a selection between Kei and Y��suke, no matter how much she holds the title of my girlfriend, changing Horikita''s judgment would be impossible unless I forcibly intervened.


    "Th-that''s right. I''m Kiyotaka''s girlfriend. Horikita-san won''t choose me easily."


    "Ah, plus, the guarantee of protection can cover only around five out of close to forty ssmates each time. Taking that into ount, it''s not unusual for someone to be eliminated. If this proceeds for 20 turns, each ss should be chock-full of quite a number of eliminations. If we assume that 10 people drop out, it is unlikely for you, the leader of the girls, to be chosen. Isn''t that right?"


    "...Exactly."


    It wasn''t an exception for ss A, full of honor students, to have many eliminations.


    Not having a single elimination and managing the ss would, rather, strangle the ss.


    To put it extremely, it would be okay even if half of the ss is eliminated, as long as we can avoid being the bottom ss.


    In order to give her a little more peace of mind, this follow-up wouldn''t go to waste.


    Even just making her understand that her worth was by no means low reduced the burden on her.


    The fact that she was my girlfriend provided a sense of security.


    However, depending on the perspective, it could also be interpreted as a risk factor.


    If there was someone who wanted to damage me, there was a good chance they would directly target Kei.


    In any case, this special exam had aspects that made each student reconfirm their value.


    Who was necessary and who was unnecessary for the ss��it forced you to look at it both from the inside and the outside.

 Chapter 432: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 432: 2.4</h4>


    On my way back from Keyaki Mall, I found Morishita lying down on a bench.


    "What the..."


    Kei, who was sitting next to me, looked at Morishita with a puzzled (and slightly taken back) expression.


    She was unable to understand how she ended up lying down on a bench with her eyes closed even though it wasn''t particrly sunny.


    Even though the snow had thawed, it was still mid-January��the middle of winter.


    "Is she dead?"


    Thinking about it, is it even slightly possible that this could be the end for Morishita...?


    "No, she''s not."


    Kei, who was beside me, interjected and denied it.


    "That''s correct. I''m not dead."


    Morishita, who sat up with a pouty face, looked at us with a somewhat sleepy face.


    It seemed like she was about to fall asleep.


    It was impressive that someone could get drowsy under this freezing sky.


    "What are you doing in such a ce?"


    "Are you curious?"


    "It would be a lie if I said I wasn''t interested but�D"


    "Then, I''ll exin. I was, believe it or not, waiting for you, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    As Kei tried to inquire further just on a curious level, she cut her off and exined.


    Although she spoke politely, the way she referred to me without honorifics slightly bothered me.


    "Eh, do you know each other?"


    Of course, Kei would be surprised as well.


    "I wouldn''t say we''re acquaintances. We''ve only talked once."


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    "Hmm? You sure know many girls from other sses, don''t you, Kiyotaka-kun?"


    Kei looked up at me like a teacher, as if cross-examining a student, her arms folded and her gaze prying.


    "I didn''t talk to her first."


    "It doesn''t matter who talks first. The fact that the conversation took ce is the problem."


    She had a rather unreasonable opinion.


    Of course, I knew she wasn''t serious even when she said it sincerely.


    "You said you were waiting for me, but if I hadn''t spoken to you, what were you nning to do?"


    I''d thought it''d be fine to ignore Morishita''s presence here and had only spoken to her by chance.


    "No need to worry. I was slightly opening my eyes, so I would have noticed if you passed by."


    I couldn''t understand why she was lying down if she wasn''t sleeping.


    I felt like I''d lose if I thought too deeply about Morishita''s behavior.


    "Why were you waiting for me?"


    "What do you think?"


    I didn''t expect you to ask me back...


    "I can''t possibly guess."


    "As it turns out, I''ve had a stroke of luck. It''s about that girl over there, specifically."


    "Eh, me?"


    Kei pointed at herself in surprise, not thinking she was involved.


    "Yes. I was curious about what kind of person you are."


    "Curious? What do you mean?"


    "I noticed something strange as I was investigating."


    As Morishita slowly stood up, she directed her sleepy eyes towards Kei, gradually moving closer.


    "What? What''s this?"


    Morishita had a unique aura, different from Hiyori.


    It wasn''t calmness or harmony, but rather simply bizarre.


    Kei also seemed to have fully sensed Morishita''s entricity quickly, so she was somewhat taken aback.


    "Karuizawa Kei. You were initially dating Hirata Y��suke, right?"


    Ah, indeed, both Kei and Y��suke used each other''s first names.


    "So what?"


    "Why did you date Hirata Y��suke? No, why would Hirata Y��suke date a woman like you in the first ce?"


    Like a detective cornering a criminal, Morishita started to walk around Kei.


    "Wait, wait, aren''t you saying something rude?"


    "I researched Hirata Y��suke in my own way too. He''s supposedly the most popr guy in school. He belongs to the ser club, which factors into his poprity, he has excellent academic performance, he''s blessed in looks, he respects gender equality, and he''s kind, considerate, and intelligent."


    There were a few things that caught my attention in the way it was phrased, but as an evaluation of Y��suke, it was valid and urate.


    In short, on the surface, it was fair to call him an exceptional student. He had a tendency to get hurt easily and drive himself into a corner, but that wasn''t something to be mentioned, so it was omitted.


    "Do you think he would pick a casual woman like you?"


    "...What do you mean by casual?"


    "I don''t know. It''s the first time I''ve heard the term."


    She lied.


    ''Casual'' means irresponsible and nonchnt. It carried the feeling of being nonspecific.


    If I told Kei here, it would lead to the start of a dispute.


    Morishita softly stroked Kei''s puzzled cheek with her index finger.


    "Don''t touch me without permission."


    "It seems you''re holding back now, but initially, despite being a first-year in high school, you were rumored to be wearing heavy makeup."


    "That''s... That''s just my choice."


    "You''re a casual woman, you have nothing unique, and you wear heavy makeup. I can''t figure out why Hirata Y��suke chose you."


    "Well, um, maybe because I was cute?"


    Without mentioning anything like asking Y��suke for help as camouge to hide her past of being bullied, she provided a convenient self-assessment.


    "If you rece heavy makeup with a mask, it would be easier to understand; you''re a timid and sensitive soul. But if so, being strong-willed and assertive, a leader among girls, seems contradictory."


    There was no doubt she was a weirdo. But Morishita seemed to be a student with enough intelligence to gather information and recognize doubts.


    "What''s up with you..."


    Exposed to such a transparent reasoning, Kei was disturbed.


    If we continued to talk together, it probably wouldn''t go in a good direction.


    "I don''t think love makes sense. I began dating Kei because of our feelings. Is there a problem with that?"


    As I moved in protectively towards Kei, she seemed pleasantly surprised by my words and narrowed her eyes in joy.


    "I see, that''s true. I''ve never been in love, so I can''t deny that reason doesn''t apply."


    If love was something that could be calcted, I wouldn''t have spent so much time on it.


    "I apologize for my earlier rude remarks, Karuizawa Kei."


    Moving right in front of Kei, Morishita bowed deeply... too deeply, and remained that way.


    "You don''t have to apologize that much, I understand."


    "Is that so? Then, since the apology is over, there''s no problem, right?"


    "Eh? Well... that''s fine, but it doesn''t sit well with me?"


    I could understand that feeling all too well, but there was nothing that could be done.


    "I don''t want to intrude any further, so I think I should take my leave."


    "You finally understand... You''re a better girl than I thought?"


    At this point, the safest move was to let Morishita go, but the opportunities to make contact with her weren''t that numerous.


    I decided to raise a question that had been bothering me.


    "For a student in Sakayanagi''s ss, you''re quite unique, aren''t you? Don''t you get told that by others?"


    Kei, who was standing next to me, wore an expression as if she was going to hold me back, but I waited for an answer without concern.


    "Certainly, I often hear that��that I''m unique."


    That made sense. She definitely seemed unique.


    "But it''s funny. I''ve always been aware that I''m a unique person, and I''ve always thought of myself as special. Even so, I don''t really like being reminded constantly, ''You''re so unique.''"


    "My apologies for that. But the fact is, I hadn''t recognized that a student like you was in Sakayanagi''s ss these past two years."


    "I see. You were surprised that a person you thought had no distinct personality turned out to be unique."


    "That''s right."


    "I don''t make any moves unless I''m interested. In the flow of Sakayanagi Arisu and Katsuragi K��hei leading the ss as leaders, they have always protected the entirety of ss A, so there was no need for me to do anything. There was no need to show off my individuality. If I live quietly, I can graduate as is. I suppose it can''t be helped if I appeared tock a distinct personality."


    Without concealing her situation, she spoke clearly about why she was perceived that way.


    Morishita''s exnation was reasonable.


    Now, I was attracting attention to the point of being watched by students like Morishita.


    Although I was supposed to be just another inconspicuous student, I stood out as much, if not more than, Horikita. Additionally, I was being warily watched.


    Of course, this was solely because I had chosen to take action.


    If I had been in ss A like Morishita when I enrolled, and if Sakayanagi and I hadn''t known each other, the situation would bepletely different.


    Even without doing anything, simply following instructions would secure ss A''s position.


    Nothing could''ve been easier.


    I would''ve spent my days as an ordinary student with no distinctive character, living quietly.


    A path to graduation without suspicion or caution from anyone.


    Morishita was merely drifting halfway along this quiet route.


    "I''m d I was able to meet the two of you today. Thank you for dealing with someone like me."


    "Uh, you''re wee."


    For some reason, Kei also began to speak politely to match Morishita.


    "Most of the students who enroll in this school aspire to graduate from ss A. I am one of them, of course. Therefore, I felt a sense of crisis and thought I should speak with various students. After all, you have attracted quite a bit of attentiontely."


    Kei ruminated once again on her reason for reaching out in this setting.


    "I may need to interact with both of you in the future. I would appreciate your kindness in that regard, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, Karuizawa Kei."


    Morishita began to walk away after bowing her head deeply but stopped shortly afterward.


    She then turned around.


    "The two of you were about to head home, weren''t you?"


    "Well, yes, but..."


    "I intended to return to the dorm as well. Would you like to join me for a chat along the way?"


    "Huh, wait... We just finished talking, and you want to talk more? Can''t you read the room...?"


    "This is a great opportunity. Don''t hesitate to ask me anything."


    "We''re not interested at all...!"


    "Don''t be like that. Shall we even exchange contact information? Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka included, of course."


    "No, no, no, we''re not exchanging anything! Right?"


    "I don''t mind exchanging contact information."


    "Wait a minute!"


    "It''s better to have more friends."


    "That''s a wonderful thought. Ipletely agree."


    "Ugh~ Kiyotaka, that side of you is kind of cute, I can''t get mad at you!"


    And so, we (reluctantly on Kei''s part) decided to exchange contact information.


    A chat app could be quite handy, and it didn''t hurt to have each other''s information.


    One thing that caught my eye was that Morishita only had a few people registered on her chat app.


    She really seemed to have been living a quiet life until now, not making any friends.


    She was a bit strange in that respect.

 Chapter 433 - 3 : The Sender’s Identity

    <h4>Chapter 433: Chapter 3 : The Sender��s Identity</h4>


    IT WAS FRIDAY after school, one day after the special exam was announced.


    Following our previous ss discussion during lunch yesterday, there hadn''t been any meetings with the ss as a whole, so no action pertaining to the exam was taken.


    Bearing the responsibility for leading the ss, I hoped that Horikita had made progress in her strategies and ideas overnight. I didn''t know the details, but she hadn''t attempted to get in touch.


    There was still a week left, so there was no need to rush. I''d like her to think it through.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun... umm, do you have a moment?"


    Mii-chan called out to me as I was getting ready to leave the ssroom alone.


    Kei had already made ns to hang out with friends untilte this weekend, so she was already gone.


    Therefore, I waspletely free at the moment and could afford to spare the time.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "I''d like to talk somewhere else if possible... not in this ssroom."


    Although no students around us seemed to be bothered, Mii-chan didn''t seemfortable here.


    From her demeanor, it seemed like it was about something serious.


    "I see. How about on our way back to the dorms?"


    "Of course!"


    With no other reason to stay in the ssroom, I grabbed my bag and we headed out.


    There was no need to find somewhere empty.


    The corridor and entrance were bustling with students after school, filled with noise.


    "So, what''s up?"


    Upon my prodding, Mii-chan nced around as if to ensure it was safe, then started speaking.


    "Do you remember when I was absent from school for a while? It''s... embarrassing to say, but it was about Hirata-kun... Well..."


    That was fromte September, after Kushida revealed in the unanimous voting exam that Mii-chan had a crush on Hirata.


    "Did something happen in rtion to that?"


    "I heard that someone was delivering food while I couldn''t go out... "


    "I remember. Someone was generously sending you meals, right?"


    I recalled when I was asked if I was the one delivering food to Mii-chan.


    "I''ve mentioned it to you before, Ayanok��ji-kun, and I wanted to ask for your help..."


    "I see..."


    A considerable amount of time had passed, but if she was bringing it up now, it meant��


    "Did you find out who it was?"


    "Uh, I haven''t yet, but I think we can find out if we try..."


    "We can find out if we try?"


    Repeating her words, Mii-chan nodded and started to speak slowly.


    Even after mustering the courage to return to school, it seemed that Mii-chan was still concerned about the person who supported her. I thought she had given up on that, but she seemed persistent and wished to express her gratitude.


    There were two clues. The first was a note in a bag of groceries, containing only the room number; this hinted that it was a gift for Mii-chan.


    If the handwriting was distinctive, it could be a crucial clue. Unfortunately, this was a curveball.


    Mii-chan had brought the paper here for me to see, however, it was intentionally written in a way that made it impossible to identify the writer.


    "The person who gave you these gifts is quite cunning."


    "Indeed."


    There was only one remaining method to pursue the piece of evidence.


    It was true that all the food was purchased from the convenience store.


    Mii-chan had noted every single item she had received.


    This meant we could describe these items to the store clerk and find out if any students had purchased the same things.


    Asking the convenience store staff was a ssic move when trying to find the gift-giver. But as time went by, their memory would inevitably fade, which meant we should move quickly.


    I had assumed that Mii-chan wouldn''t know about this, but I was surprised upon hearing her answer.


    "I tried talking to the store clerk at the convenience store about it as soon as I returned to school."


    The response I got back wasn''t good.


    The clerk Mii-chan asked had just been assigned to the convenience store and wasn''t working at the time the gifter made their purchases. The manager who would have been working during that time had been transferred to another store.


    A detective would probably look at the surveince footage, but of course, I couldn''t do that.


    "I tried asking the girls on my floor as well, but they had no idea. That''s when I decided to give up for a while."


    When there weren''t any clues, there was nothing an ordinary student could do.


    "I guess you would''ve had no choice then."


    "Yeah..."


    So time passed with the details still unknown.


    However, some unexpected information came to Mii-chan, who was facing a dead end.


    When she visited a convenience store to shop the other day, a clerk called out to her.


    The transferred shift leader and the current clerk working at the school happened to meet, and the clerk remembered what Mii-chan had been concerned about and exined it to him. He hadn''t expected it, but because the event happened just before the transfer, he remembered a student who might be relevant.


    Consequently, the clerk apparently tried to tell Mii-chan the name of the student that the manager had told them.


    However��


    "I got caught off guard, or rather, I was shaken by the unexpected news, and I said I''de backter to hear the details, and ran away."


    "You ran away?"


    "I... ran away..."


    Only Mii-chan would know why she ran away in that situation.


    "By the way, when did you hear of this?"


    "Um... that..."


    Her obvious difficulty in answering indicated that it wasn''t very recent.


    "...Today is the sixth day."


    "You''ve been running away for quite a while."


    "I''ve... been running..."


    She turned red with embarrassment, or rather, shame at her pathetic self.


    "I think I should go soon, but... I get nervous... If I don''t know who it is, I can just ignore it, but once I know, I can no longer feign ignorance. Most importantly, the person who gave the gifts hasn''te forward, so there''s a chance they don''t want it to be known, right?"


    She must have always wanted to thank the gifter, even if she didn''t know who they were.


    But since she didn''t know their identity, she was convinced that there was nothing she could do about it.


    The more time passed, the more she must have thought that way.


    "Well, that''s true."


    They supported Mii-chan from the shadows without revealing their identity.


    It wouldn''t be surprising if they had reasons to remain unknown.


    "What reasons could there be?"


    "There could be many reasons."


    It would be impossible to narrow down the reasons with the current information at hand.


    "Though, I''m sure they''re a ssmate... I don''t have that many friends, but I don''t think they''d hide it from me. I can''t figure out why..."


    Mii-chan seemed to be pondering who among her friends it could be.


    Of course, one could hardly expect a stranger to send a gift.


    "That''s just one of the possibilities�� No, never mind."


    "What is it? Please tell me."


    I hesitated, considering that it might be too much for her, but Mii-chan was eager to know.


    "Please tell me."


    She asked again, so I decided to continue.


    "Sorry to challenge your assumptions, but it doesn''t necessarily have to be a ssmate. While it wasn''t known why you were absent, it wasn''t difficult to find out about your absence."


    "But I hardly have any contact with people from other sses..."


    "That doesn''t matter much. A close rtionship isn''t a prerequisite. And it doesn''t have to be a girl."


    "Eh, what?"


    She looked bbergasted; she had even less interaction with boys.


    "To be tant, there might be, for example, a boy who secretly likes you, right? It could be a situation where he was worried when his crush was absent and sent a gift."


    "Eeh!? What!?"


    She nearly fell over in surprise. She tried to remain discreet, but she was drawing attention.


    Realizing this, she quickly slowed her breathing but was noticeably flustered.


    "It''s just one possibility, no need to get flustered."


    It might not necessarily be the case. I was just illustrating a possible, yet unexpected reason.


    "W-w-w-w-w-well yes, you''re right!?"


    But she was far from calm.


    I guess it was an unnecessary assumption to make.


    "Let''s get back on track. It would be better to hear your decision, don''t you think?"


    Even though I mostly had a grasp of her reasoning, I thought it would be better to hear it from Mii-chan herself.


    "I''m not sure what to do at this point. Should I find out who it is? Should I thank them?"


    "It would be best to make a decision now."


    Mii-chan nodded slightly, without much confidence.


    "What would you do in this situation, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "What would I do, huh...?"


    Though I pondered a bit, I might as well answer honestly.


    "I''m not sure if it''ll help, but if it were me, I''d want to know who they are. And then, I would decide whether to approach them or not."


    "So you''re saying there''s a possibility you might not thank them even if you knew who they were?"


    "That''s if it were me. As in the previous example, if the person had no connection to me, I''d hesitate. And there are cases when it''s better not to let them know you''ve been looking into it, right?"


    "I guess that makes sense."


    They had secretly helped the one they loved.


    If she came to say thank you after learning their identity at the store, it would be shocking.


    This was the case even without involving romance.


    "When the other party wants to maintain their secrecy, it''s even more troublesome."


    "...Yes."


    "Furthermore, whether you can keep quiet even after knowing the person''s identity is another matter. From what I''ve seen, I don''t think this approach is right for you, Mii-chan."


    "That... Yes..."


    If she knew the answer, she''d probably fail to hide her emotions.


    "It''s not a bad thing to give up."


    "Even so..."


    However, Mii-chan feels guilty for not being able to thank the person who had helped her.


    She was once again reminded of the feelings she had been trying to suppress.


    Even if she chose not to learn their identity, her feelings would take a long time to fade.


    "Once you open the Pandora Box, you can''t close it anymore."


    Considering Mii-chan''s emotional instability, it was no surprise that she decided to run away.


    Furthermore, deciding not to learn of their identity has its own positive aspect.


    Knowing the identity of Daddy-Long-Legs[6] will change the perception of the person, regardless of who they are.


    [6 : This expression typically means mysterious benefactor or guardian]


    "I..."


    The troubled Mii-chan took her time toe up with an answer.


    "I... I want to know..."


    "Even though it might lead to regret?"


    "...Yes."


    Having decided, there was no room for me to say otherwise.


    "Then you should go to the convenience store."


    Despite my response, Mii-chan still seemed hesitant, looking my way.


    "..."


    "..."


    The air was filled with a strange tension, but it was clear what Mii-chan was trying to convey.


    "Shall we go to the convenience store together?"


    "C-Can we?"


    Despite having prepared to learn the truth, she seemed unable to go alone.


    "I can apany you. If it gives you a bit of courage, I believe it''s worth it."


    "Th...Thank you, Ayanok��ji-kun!"


    With the strongest nod of the day, Mii-chan and I walked to the convenience store.

 Chapter 434: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 434: 3.1</h4>


    Mii-chan and I reached the convenience store almost immediately.


    I was about to enter the store first, but Mii-chan pulled on my sleeve.


    "Could you wait a bit...? It seems there are other students around as well."


    "You want to wait until no one is around?"


    "It''s unlikely, but the person who helped me might be here."


    "I see."


    Those were delicate words, typical of Mii-chan. It would only be right to consider them.


    Even though a lot of students visited the convenience store on weekends, they usually stayed for a short period of time.


    After waiting for a while, the store was empty in a sh.


    "Shall we go in?"


    "Y-Yes!"


    If we idle around, the next customer will arrive.


    We quickly walked into the store.


    "Wee��Ah."


    The employee was a woman in her 20''s, someone I had seen oftentely.


    Seeing Mii-chan, she stopped mid-sentence but continued with a smile.


    "Wee."


    "Hello. Um, I''m sorry for running away the other day!"


    As she quickly bowed, thedy staff smiled kindly.


    "It''s okay, it''s okay, I''m not bothered at all. It must have been scary, right?"


    It seemed like she understood her inner turmoil, and Mii-chan nodded several times.


    "Did your boyfriend encourage you toe here?"


    "Eh?"


    Mii-chan, looking up, was puzzled.


    "What a cool boyfriend, I''m jealous."


    "Eh, eh, eh? M-my boyfriend?"


    "That''s Ayanok��ji-kun... right?"


    "Why do you know my name?"


    "Well, we use student cards for store transactions, so I ended up remembering the names of some students."


    Indeed, we used a student card, containing a name and photo, for checkout.


    Since I shopped here several times, it wouldn''t be surprising that they remembered me.


    "Also��you were shopping arm in arm with a different student, weren''t you? The other day... Ah!?"


    "Your reaction seems to indicate that you''ve noticed something, but your assumption is wrong. She''s my friend."


    When I pointed at Mii-chan and answered, Mii-chan also nodded affirmatively.


    "Oh, so that''s it. But there might be a chan��"


    "There isn''t!!"


    For the first time, Mii-chan strongly denied it.


    I didn''t have any romantic feelings for her, but why did I feel a bit dejected?


    Mii-chan, who likes Y��suke, definitely wouldn''t want her to misunderstand.


    "So, um, the person I was looking for..."


    "Ah, yeah. Should I tell you? Is that okay?"


    The store clerk confirmed kindly out of consideration for Mii-chan''s feelings.


    "Yes. I came for that reason."


    "I see. I''ll tell you then."


    After taking a breath, the clerk revealed the person Mii-chan had been searching for.


    "The previous shift leader didn''t remember his name, but he was very distinctive, so when I heard about him, it rang a bell. Someone from your ss, K��enji... um, Rokusuke-kun, I guess. He seemed to be the one that bought the items that matched what you brought in."


    "Huh...?"


    The name of the person who gave the gift��a fact she longed to discover.


    It was K��enji, of all people?


    Why K��enji?


    Mii-chan next to me was undoubtedly surprised, or rather, bbergasted.


    An unexpected name. Too unexpected.


    ...Or maybe it wasn''t as surprising as I first thought?


    K��enji and Mii-chan had little contact together.


    But there were times when I saw K��enji taking a rtively warm attitude towards Mii-chan.


    That on its own wouldn''t seem significant, however, the person in question was K��enji.


    "He... Was it really K��enji-kun?"


    The clerk nodded without a doubt to her drained question.


    "The shift leader remembered him as a long-haired, blond boy. He was always acting high and mighty, even losing himself in the reflection of the convenience store ss, or setting his hair with a hand mirror. And... The list goes on and on, but this is K��enji-kun, right? I''ve seen him act that way too."


    That was definitely K��enji.


    No one else like him exists at our school, not at this moment.


    And probably never will.


    "There seems to be no mistake."


    "Yeah, even the contents of the gift are like K��enji. It makes sense now."


    "Yes..."


    She couldn''t fully take in the situation, but she had no choice but to ept it.


    She thanked the clerk and left the convenience store.


    Mii-chan was still in a daze after leaving. She seemed stuck in her thoughts.


    "K��enji-kun...? Why?"


    "I have no idea. In a way, it was the person whose motives would be the least clear."


    "What should I do...?"


    Is she wondering about how to thank him, or is she at a loss because it''s K��enji?


    "But maybe with K��enji, you can ignore him and not thank him?"


    "Eh, what!? No, I can''t!"


    "But why?"


    "Well... He''s our ssmate, and he also spent a considerable amount of money on the gifts."


    K��enji might''ve held a huge amount of Private Points, but money was still money.


    Mii-chan, being so dutiful, couldn''t ignore that.


    "I''m thinking of buying a thank-you gift. Should it be roughly equivalent to what was spent on the gifts?"


    "That''s too much. I think half would do."


    It was a gift of goodwill after all, as long as the sentiment of gratitude was conveyed, that should be enough.


    "O-Okay, got it. I''ll do that."


    "Then all that''s left is to do your best in thanking him properly."


    I was about to say goodbye and start walking alone when��


    "Would youe with me?"


    "Pardon?"


    "To... K��enji-kun''s ce."


    "Asking why would be a bit too much. But it would be strange for me to be there, wouldn''t it?"


    While I wanted to support the timid Mii-chan, it did feel a bit out of ce.


    Moreover, I didn''t know why K��enji decided to help in the first ce.


    "What if your assumption is correct? No matter how much you say that you''re dating Kei, he might have thoughts if he sees a guy apanying the girl he likes."


    "But the person in question is K��enji-kun, right?"


    "Even K��enji is a normal high school boy... No, he''s not exactly normal, is he..."


    If my presence would disturb him, that would be something I''d like to see.


    "Well then, let''s go together for now. Depending on the situation, I might leave after seeing K��enji. I hope you understand."


    The possibility of him being ufortable because of my presence was very real.


    "I understand. Thank you."


    Seemingly unable to ask for more, Mii-chan readily agreed.


    "When should we go?"


    After I asked her, Mii-chan pulled out her mobile phone and opened the calendar.


    Perhaps she was feeling uneasy, asionally lightly touching the hair tie in her left hand.


    "It''s sudden, but would it be alright if we go early tomorrow? If we wait too long, I might have trouble sleeping..."


    It would be cruel to let her stay up all night with her mind filled with thoughts of K��enji.


    I have a date with Kei tomorrow morning, but it should work out if we adjust our schedule.


    "Thank you for today. We''ll be meeting again tomorrow, but for now, please have my most heartfelt thanks."


    With that, she bowed her head deeply.


    She wanted to express her gratitude again once everything was resolved, but I had already refused.

 Chapter 435: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 435: 3.2</h4>


    The following day arrived. It was just before 11:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning.


    I was waiting on the dorm lobby couch for my meeting with Mii-chan.


    Kei, who had stealthily stayed over in my room Friday night and spent the early hours of the morning with me, was fast asleep. I was nning to dy our originally scheduled date for the afternoon.


    Seeing Mii-chane down the elevator from the installed monitor, I stood up from the deeply seated sofa.


    "Good morning."


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She held a thank-you gift, presumably purchased the day before, in a paper bag.


    "So? Where are you meeting up with K��enji?"


    "Eh?"


    "Eh? You''re going to see K��enji after this, right?"


    "Yes."


    "So you''re meeting up with K��enji, right?"


    "...I''m not, actually..."


    With Mii-chan''s reply, the atmosphere around us froze. There was silence, and time passed. But I couldn''t remain silent forever, so I resumed the flow of time.


    "So, K��enji knows nothing about today."


    Mii-chan, who nodded in agreement, somehow looked like she was about to cry.


    "Ah, that should''ve been the obvious course of action, isn''t it? I wasn''t thinking at all because of the nerves and tension and all that. I don''t even have K��enji-kun''s contact information. I thought you had arranged it. I interpreted it arbitrarily... I''m really sorry!"


    As she spoke, Mii-chan could no longer hold back her tears.


    Luckily, there was no one in the lobby, but it would be troublesome if someone saw her.


    "First of all, you should calm down. I''m not really close with K��enji, but I do know where to find him."


    "Really?"


    Although there was no certainty, I knew there was a pretty good chance I could find him.


    "I think if it''s this time, K��enji might be at the gym."


    "...The gym? The one on the second floor of Keyaki Mall?"


    "Yeah. I started going there recently myself. K��enji oftenes in on Saturday and Sunday mornings."


    I had seen him walking out after finishing his workout at noon several times.


    Seeing the bright outlook, Mii-chan recollected herself, and we set off for Keyaki Mall.


    On the way, I nced at Mii-chan, whose eyes were still slightly red, and thought, she''s good at studying and has a quiet personality, but she''s very weak and fragile when confronted with unexpected situations.


    She wasn''t exactly a rare type, not necessarilymon, but certainly a high school girl who could be found anywhere.


    That was why her connection to K��enji was intriguing.


    Although liking or disliking her is another matter, objectively, Mii-chan''s appearance is much better than average.


    Perhaps she happened to hit K��enji''s taste and was being secretly favored.


    However, K��enji didn''t give the impression that he''d keep quiet about his preferred woman.


    If anything, if there was someone he was interested in within the ss, he seemed more likely to actively appeal to them.


    It was a contradiction for a man with absolute confidence in himself to not approach the woman he was interested in. If this was true, it only proved that K��enji didn''t have that absolute confidence in himself.


    ��Or perhaps not.


    Different strokes for different folks. K��enji might im that he preferred keeping his distance from the women he likes, and that was his way of showing affection. I thought about it in various ways, but still, I could onlye to one conclusion.


    Trying to read K��enji''s thoughts was just a waste of time.


    In the end, the only way to understand his true intentions was to meet him in person and hear it from him.


    I entered Keyaki Mall, which was already open for business, and headed straight to the second floor without any detours.


    Then I had Mii-chan wait in front of the gym while I checked out the state of things inside.


    "As expected, he''s here."


    As I anticipated, K��enji was in the midst of training.


    It looked like he was tackling the bench press, which he would most likely finish soon.


    After all, K��enji always ended his workouts with the bench press before leaving the gym.


    Despite his exhaustion, he was managing a weight of 200 kilograms with a smile and a good amount of sweat.


    I had to wonder if there was anyone else in their second year of high school capable of doing that with such ease.


    At any rate, he was close to finishing. It was certain that he''d hit the showers next and leave soon after.


    To avoid any awkward sightings, I quickly left the training room.


    Upon exiting, I was approached by the gym staff member Akiyama-san, with whom I exchanged brief greetings and then left.


    I had also promised to meet Mashima-sensei, but I could surely skip it for today.


    "How was it?"


    "I think he''ll be out in about 20 or 30 minutes. If you don''t mind, we could wait here."


    "Y-yes."


    After that, we sat on a bench near the entrance of the gym and waited.


    "..."


    "..."


    Without much conversation between us, we just listened to the music ying inside Keyaki Mall.


    "I''m starting to get a bit nervous."


    As the time drew closer, she seemed to be sensing the anticipation.


    "I have no idea how K��enji will react after this."


    "Neither do I..."


    "By the way, what did you get him as a gift?"


    "Umm, I wasn''t sure what to get him, so I decided on a face towel and a hand towel."


    "Wow... That''s quite an off-the-wall gift."


    "You might think so, but I thought it was something he would like. I regrly see K��enji-kun using both."


    "Is that so? I knew about the hand mirror, but I wasn''t aware of this."


    "Yes. I thought if it''s a luxurious, organic cotton towel he might ept it, so... Oh..."


    "That''s quite a budget."


    It seemed that Mii-chan hadn''t been able to stick to my advice of giving a small gift.


    "Uh... y-yes. I''m sorry..."


    "How much was it?"


    "Well... about ��12,000."


    So, it was about the same price as the total amount given or a little over that. It was a situation that could have been anticipated given Mii-chan''s personality.


    "It''s fine. I hope K��enji likes it."


    "Yes. I have to properly return the favor for his help."


    Even though she was feeling tense and flustered, Mii-chan responded firmly. In the end, it might have been the right decision to choose a gift that was worth going over the budget.


    When we''d waited nearly 40 minutes, longer than expected, K��enji appeared from the gym.


    "H-he came out."


    From our view, K��enji seemed to immediately notice us, but he made no change in his expression and crossed by us without saying a word. We seemed outside of his interest. Seeing his behavior, it was hard to believe that he harbored any affection towards Mii-chan or had been secretly supporting her.


    However, from the testimony of the convenience store clerk, we were 99% certain it was K��enji.


    Therefore, the only option was to confirm the truth with him.


    Mii-chan quickly got up from the bench and started chasing after K��enji.


    "Um, K��enji-kun! Can I have a minute of your time!?!"


    Mii-chan called out from behind him, causing K��enji to stop in his tracks and elegantly turn to look back.


    "Do you need something from me, Wang girl?"


    "Eh, wang-what?"


    K��enji must have made a reference to Mii-chan''s real name, Wang ��(���)Mei-Yui, calling her Wang girl, a nickname likely only K��enji would use, leading to Mii-chan''s confusion.


    Mii-chan seemed unable to grasp the nickname, but she swallowed her confusion and steeled her resolve.


    She tightly clenched the handles of the paper bag she held in front of her.


    "I wanted to discuss something with you. Can I take a little bit of your time, please?"


    Mii-chan addressed K��enji with a polite, albeit soft, voice filled with determination.


    K��enji appeared to consider her request for a moment, then raised his arm briskly and shook his head.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m a bit in a rush right now. Let''s talk another time. Hahaha."


    With that, heughed towards us, turned his back, and started walking away again.


    "Oh, oh no..."


    Mii-chan, who seemed to be the type to carefully consider things, was clearly flustered at being rejected by K��enji in a way she hadn''t anticipated. I found myself somewhat surprised too.


    "What should we do now...?"


    "Try again?"


    "Oh... I needed a lot of courage to approach him this time... I might not get it back if I need to try again."


    Surely it would be a high hurdle for Mii-chan to approach K��enji in the same situation again. In that case, we had no choice but to push through it today.


    "Then we should just follow K��enji."


    "But wouldn''t that be a terrible bother?"


    "Normally, yes. But if you can''t try again, then no matter how much of a bother, we have to go ahead, right?"


    If the nuisance is just someone walking around, fully clothed, I feel like he''d be unconcerned with it.


    "What should we do? If we lose sight of him, we''ll have no choice but to give up."


    "What should we do..."


    She couldn''t make up her mind, hesitating between moving forward and stepping back.


    It was clear from her demeanor that following K��enji was her primary intention.


    So should I continue to take the lead as I had been?


    "I''ll take responsibility if we''re caught following him. Let''s go."


    "Ye-yes! Stealth tailing it is, then!"


    And that was how we decided to tail K��enji. Observing from a distance.


    I didn''t see the need for secrecy, but Mii-chan was eager, so I decided not to voice any unnecessary objections. I went downstairs as K��enji went down the esctor, slowly checking the direction he was heading in and positioning Mii-chan behind me. Meanwhile, with his long stride, K��enji continued deeper into the mall.


    "Shouldn''t we be in a hurry? We might lose him."


    "It''s fine if we do."


    Everyone went to the mall on a daily basis. Most students had a mental map of the ce.


    Of course, there were several shops in K��enji''s path, but none had significant depth to their floors. A quick nce would reveal all the customers. At the very end was an open caf�� area. Unless he used one of the several exit points prepared along the way, we had no worries of losing sight of him.


    In terms of those exits, it would be faster to go back the way he came if he was heading home.


    The probability of him needing to use a specific exit wasn''t very high.


    At the bottom of the stairs, I caught sight of K��enji''s retreating figure, now smaller in the distance.


    "It seems like he''s heading to the caf��. That makes it easier for us."


    "Indeed."


    After confirming from a distance that K��enji had finished ordering and was holding a cup, I moved closer and noticed K��enji and a female student sitting at a two-person table.


    "Who''s that?"


    "That''s Enoshima Midoriko from ss 3-B."


    "Do you know her?"


    "I''ve only seen her in the OAA app. Let''s get closer."


    "But wouldn''t K��enji-kun see us if we get closer?"


    "Well, we''ve been tailing him so far, but I wonder if it''s really necessary."


    It should be just right for us to wait nearby until K��enji''s meeting is over.


    Obviously, it would be worse to say that we were hiding and waiting for her to leave him alone.


    Anyway, I wasn''t interested in what they were talking about.


    "At this point, I''d like to know what kind of conversations K��enji-kun usually has."


    However, Mii-chan seemed to have flipped a switch, appearing reluctant to be discovered.


    "You mean eavesdrop?"


    "I know it''s wrong, but... He may not be honest about why he gave me the gift, and there might be clues in their conversation!"


    No, I highly doubt there''d be any clues in his conversation with Enoshima, who seemspletely unrted...


    "Let''s keep tailing him!"


    "If that will make you satisfied Mii-chan, then I have no objections. Let''s move from this side."


    While K��enji was chatting with Enoshima, he probably wasn''t paying attention to his surroundings. But if we entered his line of sight, we couldn''t be sure that he wouldn''t notice us. Mii-chan and I made a strategic exit from the mall through a side door and aimed to re-enter from the opposite side.


    Although it took several minutes to circle around, K��enji had just bought a drink, implying that he''d stay for a while.


    However��


    By the time we entered the mall and arrived at the caf��, K��enji was nowhere to be found.


    Only Enoshima was there, scrolling through her phone.


    "Might he be in the bathroom?"


    "...No. K��enji''s drink is missing. That can''t be. He must have finished his business with Enoshima and left in that short span of time."


    "So... Does that mean we can''t meet him today?"


    "That''s what I thought, but there doesn''t seem to be a need to rush."


    We spotted K��enji, who unabashedly showed himself returning the way he hade.


    "K��enji-kun!"


    "Oh? Wang girl and Ayanok��ji boy. You''vee to chase after me again? It''s tough being popr. Hahaha."


    A grand misunderstanding, but I suppose K��enji must have finished his errands.


    "Do you have a moment?"


    Without time to stutter due to the rush, Mii-chan smoothly started the conversation.


    His drink isn''t with him. Did he finish it right away?


    "Of course. My personal business finished quicker than expected."


    He just had a short meeting with Enoshima-senpai. I couldn''t even guess what they discussed.


    "Was it you, K��enji-kun... who left stuff from the convenience store in front of my door while I was absent from school...?"


    The long-sought supporter. She was determining the reason behind his actions. Would K��enji admit it honestly? Would he be surprised and bewildered? Or deny it��


    "It was me who gave you those items, but why does it matter?"


    K��enji confidently affirmed without a hint of hesitation or dishonesty.


    A very K��enji-like demeanor, truly unexpected.


    "Er, um, why... did you...?"


    "Why? If someone is in trouble, I help them. Aren''t you the same type of person?"


    "...Eh?"


    Reprising with a reasonable answer, Mii-chan was at a loss for words.


    "If that answers your question, I guess you can leave now?"


    Mii-chan seemed at a loss for how to respond to his remark.


    "Hold on. It might be none of my business, but there''s something that bothers me. It''s natural to help someone in trouble. But to be frank, from what I''ve observed of you, you don''t help everyone. Yet, you helped Mii-chan. This has happened repeatedly, which suggests there''s a special reason behind it."


    In a probing manner, and with vague expressions, I tried to nudge him.


    "You sure choose your words well, Ayanok��ji boy. You won''t let me get away with implying it was a whim. It''s not like I helped Wang girl out on a whim. I detest hypocrisy. But that doesn''t mean I disrespect goodwill. When I feel a sincere debt, I consider it natural to repay it. It''s just that."


    Even though K��enji seemed to be uttering something cool, Mii-chan was obviously clueless about the situation. She was still frozen.


    One thing was for sure, he didn''t seem to have any unexpected romantic feelings for her.


    "Are we done here?"


    When K��enji said that, time finally started moving again for Mii-chan, who had been frozen in ce.


    "...I, I don''t remember doing anything for you. I don''t think you owe me anything. ording to what you said, it seems like I''ve helped you before..."


    Apologetically but affirmatively, she questioned after understanding the situation. K��enji lightly brushed back his hair.


    "Hahaha!"


    He cheerfullyughed.


    "That''s why it''s not out of hypocrisy but goodwill. Just a trivial matter that you don''t even need to remember."


    In other words, this was his exnation. K��enji had once been helped by Mii-chan in some way. And he was helped not from hypocrisy, but from natural goodwill. That was why he had always acted in an unusually considerate manner towards Mii-chan. Even when she was absent from school this time, he was helping her in return for that goodwill��that was what it meant.


    "I don''t remember it at all... but, well, please ept this for now."


    Saying that she thrusted out a paper bag with a set of towels she had bought as a thank-you gift.


    "I don''t need this. I don''t think it''s a matter of receiving thanks."


    "W-well, if you don''t like this, I don''t mind if you don''t ept it. But in that case, would you at least let me pay you back? The money you spent for me isn''t cheap."


    "Unfortunately, I''m not in need of money at the moment. I don''t want it."


    I found his statement strange.


    Certainly, for an ordinary student, there would be nothing particrly noticeable about it.


    It was only natural to think that K��enji, who made a fortune in the deserted ind test, had a lot of money.


    However, K��enji had a strong image of being a spendthrift.


    He had previously stated that he was a believer in not keeping money overnight.


    Of course, if he said he was saving now, that would be the end of it, but considering he just recently bought a big TV, it was possible he was still squandering money.


    It might just be a lie, a convenient excuse not to take the points from Mii-chan.


    "B-but that''ll be a problem! That... I can''t get rid of the feeling of guilt... in that case, could you at least tell me what I did for you?"


    "Oh, dear. You seem to have quite a difficult personality. Didn''t I say? It''s a trivial matter that you don''t even need to remember. It''s neither more nor less than that. There''s nothing more to say."


    Mii-chan appeared to have run out of ways to initiate a conversation with K��enji.


    With a somewhat downcast look, she bowed her head to K��enji again.


    "Can you let me go now?"


    "Y-Yes."


    "I have something I''d like to ask you privately," I interjected.


    "I don''t want to be popr with men, but it seems you too like to pry."


    "It''s important. If you feel gratitude, there''s a possibility you''ll cooperate with the ss in the future, right?"


    "That''s nonsense, Ayanok��ji boy. I''m needed for the ss to win, and for that, you have to show goodwill towards me. That bes hypocrisy, you see?"


    He wouldn''t ept any act aimed at getting something in return as genuine goodwill. It could onlye naturally.


    "As long as we live under the rules of this school, there can be no goodwill. Am I wrong?"


    "Maybe."


    "You should already know this. There''s no way you can make me your ally, not by any means."


    "That''s true. So far, no matter how many times I''ve tried, I haven''te up with a guaranteed way to get your full cooperation."


    "That''s right. I won''t change until I graduate, even after that. No matter how much cleverness you guys squeeze out, it won''t reach or resonate with my heart. Of course, this includes you as well."


    "So what are you going to do with a special exam like this time? What if Horikita decides not to protect you? We can''t exactly say that the chance of her breaking her promise to you is zero. There might be a situation where you can''t avoid expulsion, even if you make a fusster."


    We could threaten and force him to help.


    "I''ve always protected myself. It''s as simple as that."


    In other words, he was confident enough to pull through even without protection.


    "Well, that makes things easy. I''ll tell Horikita that there''s no need to protect you."


    Just having one less student to protect in the ss gave us an advantage.


    Naturally, I didn''t think Horikita would betray his trust.


    "Do as you please. Regardless, there''s no point in trying to obligate me when I won''t reciprocate."


    And there was K��enji, acting like an immovable decoration, no matter how much he wriggled.


    If that was how it was, maybe I could take advantage of the situation and exclude K��enji.


    K��enji had exceptional abilities, but his presence was a double-edged sword.


    Depending on the special exam''s details, Horikita might continue being hindered by him.


    If I were the ss leader, frankly, K��enji would be superfluous.


    The rules on the uninhabited ind were only between Horikita and me, and third parties had no involvement.


    One option might be to cut him out while I had the chance, but...


    "However."


    K��enji, who had been carefree until now, had suddenly changed his tune and his gaze sharpened.


    "If ''someone'' tries to ostracize me, they''d better be prepared."


    Had he read my thoughts? No, it must be his wild intuition.


    "Prepared, huh? I wonder what you''re going to do."


    "That''s part of the surprise."


    It wouldn''t be as simple as attacking a specific person.


    One should prepare for actions that could shake the ss''s position.


    "Will you open that box? Although, it may cause you to reassess your overvaluation of yourself."


    "I, for one, don''t n on doing that. Horikita is the ss leader."


    "So be it. I have dates after this, so I''d better get going."


    I didn''t understand why he chose to use the unusual way of referring to his date[7], but I don''t think I''ll be talking with K��enji anytime soon.


    [7 : K��enji is implying that he has multiple dates to attend to, �ǩ`�� (D��to, the typical spelling) vs �ǩ`�� (D��tsu, the word K��enji uses, which isn''t how the word "Date" is spelled/pronounced). This is done as a way of sounding more "Englishy" and showing off]


    I had been observing K��enji in the same ss for a long time. He was really an oddball.


    While he was indeed a challenge, it was a fact that we must win while carrying him.


    "Ah, um... Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I''m sorry. I just wanted to ask him a few things since he told us something unusual, and I got carried away."


    I gave a light apology to Mii-chan, who I had left alone.


    "That''s fine, but... um..."


    "What is it?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    I had indeed used a somewhat threatening tone with K��enji. I guess that was what bothered Mii-chan a bit.

 Chapter 436 - 4 : Advice

    <h4>Chapter 436: Chapter 4 : Advice</h4>


    HAVING FIGURED OUT the identity of Mii-chan''s benefactor during my day off, the weekend came to a close.


    Even after Monday and Tuesday had passed, Horikita had note to me for advice.


    And on Wednesday afternoon, two days before the special exam, a certain boy proposed an unexpected n.


    "Dude... I think... I might have an incredible winning strategy...!"


    Ike stood up and mmed his hands on his desk, his seat ttering.


    Everyone was still in ss, so he naturally drew a lot of attention. However, nobody was looking at him with expectation, and in fact they were all skeptical.


    "Wh-what? You do, Kanji? No way!"


    Shinohara, his girlfriend, was the most surprised, and also the most dismissive.


    "No, seriously. But wait, let me recalcte a little..."


    Saying this, Ike began to count on his fingers. It seemed like he wouldn''t be able to finish the calction on his fingers, so he hurried to pull out his phone. He was struggling but he kept at it.


    But the cruel reality was that one by one, our ssmates started to leave, probably judging that this sudden idea wouldn''t be worth it. However, Ike, oblivious to the dispersing crowd, nodded as if he had finished rechecking.


    "No doubt! This is a winning idea!? Can I talk about it?!"


    "Ike-kun. I will respond seriously for now, but I don''t want to discuss strategy here. Understand?"


    "Ah, okay. It''d be serious if my too-perfect strategy got leaked...!"


    "Horikita-san, let''s go to the usual location."


    Y��suke responded. It seemed like he was frequently meeting with Horikita in secret. That much was evident just from the conversation. Although it might''ve been obvious, they were definitely preparing for the special exam.


    "That sounds good. Those who are interested cane with us, however, keep in mind that it''s a hassle if there are too many people. Can you raise your hand if you would like toe along?"


    Shinohara immediately raised her hand, along with Hond�� and Miyamoto, but that was it. No one else seemed to expect much from Ike''s idea. As for me, I was rather interested in what kind of strategy it was, so I casually raised my hand.


    "You too? Why the sudden change of mind? Do you have a good reason?"


    While the other three who had raised their hands were Ike''s close friends and didn''t seem to mind, she demanded a reason from me.


    "Can''t I just be curious? Ike said he''s super confident about a winning strategy. I just want to know."


    "...I see. That''s fine then. I didn''t have any other meetings scheduled for today anyway."


    Following the conversation, the six of us began to move. We left the school and headed to Keyaki Mall, ending up at the karaoke. It was the perfect ce to have a confidential discussion.


    Completed with snacks and a bar for drinks, it was an affordable ce. No reason not to use it.


    "Satsuki, would you like the usual?"


    "Yeah. You too, Kanji?"


    Ike and Shinohara nestled up together, exploring the menu and discussing in familiar conversations.


    "Hey, Horikita."


    "What?"


    "It''s kind of confusing that you can choose not to sing when youe to karaoke, but you must get a drink. After all, this is supposed to be a ce for singing."


    "Huh? That might be true... But you worry about such strange things."


    "You''re a fool, Ayanok��ji. It''s obviously because there''s a one-drink policy, right?"


    Ike, who had been eavesdropping on our conversation, kindly lectured us.


    I only mentioned it offhand, but I didn''t want to steal away Shinohara''s enamored gaze towards Ike, so I let it slide.


    I picked up the terminal to check out the music trends.


    "...I see."


    I didn''t get it at all.


    There were songs with titles I recognized, but more often than not, I didn''t know the songs.


    Asian songs from outside of Japan appear to be popr now, with several upying the rankings. The quality of the songs seemed to be of a very high standard.


    "The only thing left is your order, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    While I was looking at the rankings, it seemed like everyone else''s orders had been ced.


    "Then, I''ll have plum kelp tea."


    Horikita finished ordering for everyone and we just needed to wait for the delivery.


    It was best to avoid any interruptions while we were discussing.


    It was fine if the staff heard it, but we wanted to avoid any leaks.


    A few momentster, the drinks everyone ordered arrived at our table.


    "So, let''s hear what you..."


    I decided to let everyone else do the talking, I picked up my plum kelp tea that just arrived and brought it to my mouth.


    "Hot... Sorry, continue please."


    After experiencing everyone''s piercing gaze, I apologized and turned my face away.


    The tip of my tongue was burning so hot that it was numbing. I would have to be careful while drinking.


    "Ahem, let''s hear Ike-kun''s idea."


    Horikita, as the leader, engaged with Ike''s idea seriously, an idea which most people wouldn''t even consider.


    Her expression showed no signs of amusement, and even Ike''s face grew slightly tense.


    "Alright, let''s get to the point. Suppose we were to guarantee that we get 68 points for our ss. Can we agree that this would be a winning score?"


    After a quick wink at Shinohara, Ike proposed something quite interesting.


    "68 points? Sure, if we had 68 points, there would indeed be a good chance of victory, but that seems like a very specific score."


    Theck of transparency about the tasks in this exam made it impossible to predict how many points each ss would get. Yet, Ike imed that we could acquire 68 points. This contention instilled a strong sense of unease in Horikita. Sensing her skepticism, Ike quickly finished half of his bottled soda, moistening his throat, and began to speak about his just-conceived solution.


    "While it''s risky, we could secure exactly 68 points. We do this by feigning sickness right as the exam starts. Our ss has 38 students��if we only leave five for defense, plus the leader, and then have the remaining 32 eliminated..."


    "What? If you did that, we''d be down 32 points right from the start! Don''t you even understand the rules?"


    Exasperated, Hond�� put his hands on the sofa and looked at the ceiling, sighing heavily.


    Horikita, however, was keenly listening. It made sense; a 32-person elimination guaranteed 68 points.


    There was no way the sum would coincidentally add up to 100.


    "That''s fine. Even if we subtract 32 points for the eliminated students, we are guaranteed to get 68 points."


    Hond�� and Miyamoto were confused by this statement.


    Shinohara, perhaps having already heard the strategy, had a smile on her face.


    "But, you know, the opponent can only nominate five students, right? We can protect five students each round, but we only have five students left to nominate, right?"


    "Ah��"


    Miyamoto understood before Hond�� did, and let out a sound.


    "So, for all 20 turns, we can get 5 points each. That''s a perfect score, right?"


    It was an interesting idea for Ike, one that I never thought he''de up with.


    "Moreover! No one even needs to study for the exam! Not a bad idea, huh?"


    "But, even so, would the school really allow 32 people to feign illness? I mean, it''s too suspicious."


    Hond��, puzzled by his surprisingly logical strategy, pointed out its w.


    "It certainly looks like something underhanded, you know."


    Miyamoto also expressed his skepticism. Indeed, it seemed absurd that 32 students in the ss would fall ill on the day of the exam.


    "Feigning illness... It''s a bit of a gray area in terms of the rules, but I suspect the school wouldn''t be able to stop us, even if they found it suspicious. No one can prove we''ve faked it."


    Normally, it would be unimaginable for 32 people to fall ill at once.


    Therefore, even though the school would likely be 99% sure the illness was fake, they wouldn''t be certain.


    They would have to concede.


    It was clearly stated that even if students fell ill, they would only be treated as eliminated students.


    There were also no limits on how many students could be ill.


    "That''s a great idea for you. It''s certainly a strategy that could maintain a high average score."


    "See? See? What do you think of this approach!?"


    With Horikita''s unexpected appraisal, even Hond��, who was initially skeptical, started to acknowledge it.


    "A strategy to guarantee 68 points... Well, isn''t it pretty amazing?"


    "I was also surprised when I heard it from Kanji. It''s a good idea, isn''t it?"


    There was a strong focus on the ability to guarantee 68 points, but there were other benefits.


    The strategy didn''t require skills, luck, or prior preparation. It could be implemented immediately before the exam started, and no other ss could obstruct or prevent us from securing 68 points.


    And, in the worst case, even if the ss were to cest, we could choose one of the 32 students to expel. Therefore, this n also made it easy to discard a less capable student. Even though choosing who to expel among the 32 students would be difficult, if we somehow decided in advance who to expel and got their consent, the aftermath would also be smooth.


    The risk of expulsion could be reduced to zero if a person holding a Protection Point was made to drop out.


    At first nce, the idea didn''t seem bad, but it was unlikely to be adopted.


    "If it weren''t for ''a certain rule'' in this special exam, this might''ve remained a candidate that we could have implemented."


    Horikita replied, saying that Ike''s interesting idea was made difficult due to that rule.


    It seemed that Horikita could foresee significant obstacles as she heard the n.


    "Wh-why? Well, I''m not insisting that you adopt it..."


    His idea seemed to be the best.


    It was out of such confidence that Ike pushed to learn the reason.


    "Let''s say, hypothetically, that Ry��en-kun''s ss implements this strategy right after the exam starts."


    Horikita began her discussion on the assumption that the hypothetical enemy would adopt Ike''s strategy.


    "Even though there was one person expelled from his ss, the addition of Katsuragi-kun has kept their numbers at 40. Except the leader and five others, there would be 34 eliminations. This means they would secure 66 points. While that certainly isn''t a bad score, it also means they can''t possibly score any higher. If the remaining three sses each manage to score 67 points or more, that approach bes a ''no-win'' strategy."


    If they''ve already expelled their disposable resources, they''d have no way to boost their scores.


    As the offensive, they could only hope that the other side kept making mistakes.


    "Sure, but there''s no guarantee that the other three sses will each be able to score 67 points or more, right? While there might be a risk ofingst, isn''t there a higher probability ofing first?"


    "No. Most likely, if Ry��en-kun''s ss were to use that strategy, they would end up inst ce."


    "Why? We won''t know how difficult the questions are until the actual exam, right? So then��"


    Ike couldn''t understand why this would almost certainly result in themingst.


    "Listen. If they''re going to use the faking sickness strategy to cause mass elimination, they should naturally do that in the first turn. There''s little merit in implementing this strategy after the second turn."


    The longer it was postponed, the higher the risk that they''d lower the maximum points they could secure.


    "Moreover, this strategy is conspicuous. All three sses would quickly find out. Just imagine their ss situation when the sses see through that strategy. Will they think, ''Oh no, they''ve yed a good move?''"


    "W-Won''t they?"


    "No. On the contrary. If they y that strategy, it would actually make things easier for the other three sses."


    Saying so, Horikita picked up her cell phone, which she had ced next to her, and showed it to him.


    "A phone...? Oh, we can use it during the exam, right?"


    "Yes. So as soon as we see their aim, we would use this to cooperate with the other sses. If Ry��en-kun''s ss could only get up to 66 points, the other three sses should team up and aim for more. If they judge that a losing ss has appeared, Ichinose-san and Sakayanagi-san will also positively consider this option."


    "Wait a minute. I don''t quite get it, but if we gang up on them, they''d lose?"


    "They''d lose. Who to nominate, who to protect. Just by doing this, the two sses Ry��en-kun''s ss targets would definitely get 50 points. Hence, they would only need to earn 17 more points. Under the current rules, they can raise the difficulty by using points, but if the score is zero or less, they can only attack with the base difficulty. Therefore, it wouldn''t be difficult to score more than 17 points."


    If they could get more than 34% uracy, that would be fine. Regardless of how unclear the contents of the questions were going to be, as long as the percentage didn''t fall significantly lower, they''d be in the safe zone. Additionally, with the element of protection, the actual required uracy rate could be somewhat lower.


    The absolute score of 66.


    While it could be a merit, it also came with a significant disadvantage.


    It was a strategy that was weak against changes in the situations that followed.


    Ry��en''s ss, which would have 34 eliminations from the get-go, wouldn''t see a positive shift until after the end of the 7th defensive turn. after the end of the 7th turn of defense. If they choose a high difficulty when attacking, the final score they could get would decrease every time, to 65 points, 64 points, and so on.


    "I think you understand which is better, aiming for a win with 66 points or securing 17 or more points in 10 turns with your own abilities."


    After hearing the exnation, Ike, who was ecstatic at first, dropped his shoulders as if he had been plunged to the bottom.


    "Damn! I thought we could win! I feel bad for getting everyone together!"


    Ike was unexpectedly disappointed, and Horikita was slightly flustered.


    "You don''t have to apologize. Your strategy was well thought out. What I need to apologize for is for assuming from the start that it definitely wouldn''t be helpful."


    "Uh, oh... I feel happy, but it''s a bitplicated..."


    "Your strategy has a chance of winning. If the other three sses can''t cooperate, the chances of winning would increase. Even if they gang up on us, there''s still a chance of winning. For lower-ability sses, it''s not a bad idea to pin their hopes on this strategy. However, I believe our ss has the ability to fight without depending on that method."


    That was why we wouldn''t adopt Ike''s splendid strategy, Horikita exined.


    "You also taught me something valuable."


    "Something valuable...?"


    "It became clear that this special exam would be troublesome if the others gang up on us."


    The shift between offense and defense in the first and second halves meant both sses would be attacking and defending against each other. They''d beat each other up. Then, if the two sses were to cooperate, they could definitely get 50 points.


    If they could get the cooperation of the three sses, it wasn''t impossible to get a perfect score of 100 points.


    Of course, whether other sses would easily ept this approach was uncertain.


    Joining hands would mean reaching the goal at the same rate.


    Ideally, it could force a sudden death in the final round, but that would be difficult to orchestrate.


    Considering the current point differences among the four sses, Ry��en''s and Ichinose''s sses, the bottom two, would want as many ss points as possible. Naturally, Horikita''s ss also wanted to rise even slightly higher. It wasn''t that difficult to make ss A the only enemy, but it could hardly be called an ideal development to merely hinder those above us.


    In this exam, ultimately, only one ss could be elected as the absolute winner.


    "You were brave to speak up."


    "S-so, if that''s the case, uh, good. Hehe."


    Perhaps pleased with Horikita''s praise, Ike scratched the back of his head.


    "Shinohara-san, Hond��-kun, and Miyamoto-kun, too. Please feel free to voice any ideas you may have. Also, ry this to ssmates who aren''t present here. I promise not to look down on anyone from the get-go."


    As Horikita said, it was best to voice any ideas that came to mind.


    Whether they were perfect or not was secondary; the point was to engage in discussion.


    Indeed, Ike''s idea wasn''t perfect, but by having others point out its strengths and weaknesses, he deepened his understanding and reluctantly epted their criticisms.


    The fact that the discussion was held at all held significant value and purpose.


    After a while, the others left the karaoke room smiling and chatting.


    "What will you do after this, Horikita?"


    "I''m going home. Until yesterday, I was meeting Hirata-kun and the others here every day, but it was a day off to rest."


    It was admirable to create space for a gathering even on such a day.


    Horikita seemed tired of her karaoke drink; she hadn''t touched it much.


    Well, it could hardly be called caf��-level quality.


    The advantage of being able to drink a lot quickly and cheaply was very important.


    "I was surprised that you wanted to listen to Ike-kun''s idea. His strategy was interesting, but knowing you, wouldn''t you have already envisioned something like that before?"


    Instead of affirming or denying, I decided to present Horikita with a new proposition.


    "How about we change the location and talk about it?"


    "I don''t have any ns after this, but it''s unusual for you to want to talk. Unless it''s about trouble with Karuizawa-san, in which case I''d like to decline."


    Horikita joked as she stood up with the bill.


    "If that was the case, I''m sure you wouldn''t be the best person to handle it, Horikita."


    "Indeed."


    "I''d like to discuss the special exam with you, one-on-one."


    Upon hearing that, Horikita widened her eyes in surprise.


    "You? About the special exam?


    "Is that so surprising?"


    "I often initiate discussion, but it''s unusual for you, isn''t it?"


    "Could be."


    I couldn''t specifically recall who started how many conversations, so I couldn''t be sure. But surely, Horikita had initiated more.


    "And I can''t always rely on you, so I decided against unnecessarily asking for your help this time."


    "I''m not exactly offering a strategy. I just want to hear your thoughts."


    "I see. You want to assess if I''m prepared to fight well?"


    She showed a slightly irritated and troubled attitude, simple like a child''s.


    "Bothered?"


    "Not at all. It would be harder for me to find a reason to refuse if that''s your reasoning. Where should we move to?"


    "How about a caf��? I feel like having some good coffee."


    Plum kelp tea wasn''t bad either, but my mouth was craving a slight bitterness now.


    "Would I be self-conscious if I said I''m worried about others spying and listening in?"


    "No worries, it won''t be like what you''re worried about."


    "Well, as long as you say so, there won''t be any problem. Shall we get going right away then?"


    She trusted me without hesitation, and together, we left the karaoke box.

 Chapter 437: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 437: 4.1</h4>


    We didn''t talk much along the way and soon arrived at the determined cafe.


    Because it was a weekday, it was rtively empty, and we were able to choose our seats freely.


    After asking Horikita what she wanted to drink, I decided to point out a seat by the window and let her sit first.


    We quietly stood in line behind two people who were already waiting at the counter.


    Horikita, who had taken a seat, looked at me somewhat restlessly.


    She was probably perplexed, not knowing what I would talk about next.


    How to approach the situation, the strategy, the thought process, what to prioritize, and what to take as a secondary concern. I wasn''t interested in knowing the details. I wanted to leave it all to the leader, Horikita.


    Then, what was I going to do? Why did I arrange some alone time with Horikita?


    It was to bestow a new strength upon Horikita.


    A matter I had decided to entrust to her as the special exam was gradually approaching.


    It could be done now because her mind was growing and maturing.


    Knowing both herself, the ss, and having found a friend.


    That was why it was now possible to take the next step.


    When my turn came, I ordered two blended coffees and waited near the counter for it to be prepared. After about two minutes, when the extraction seemed to bepleted, two cups of coffee were brought over, and I grabbed the handles and headed to where Horikita was waiting.


    "Thank you. The money��"


    "That''s fine. You paid for the karaoke. Besides, you treated me to lunch the other day."


    "Well then, I''ll dly ept your offer."


    We both slowly savored the hot, vorful coffee.


    Looking at Horikita''s profile as she exhaled, I could see the fatigue.


    Besides when she was asleep, she was probably constantly using her brain, whether it was a weekday or a holiday.


    "...Is there something on my face?"


    She didn''t seem to like my tant staring and gave me a re.


    "No, I was just thinking. Your hair has gotten quite long, hasn''t it?"


    Even as a diversion, it was quite effective if the person involved was concerned about it.


    She ran her fingers through her hair and let her gaze wander.


    "It''s been almost a year since I cut it short. Time flies, doesn''t it?"


    "You were crying your eyes out."


    "What would happen if a tragic ident urred here, and I grabbed you and poured hot coffee directly into your shirt?"


    "I would definitely get burned, and it would definitely be intentional, not an ident."


    "You would dodge it if I tried to spill the contents all over you here, right?"


    When we were at karaoke with Ry��en, Horikita had witnessed the time when I was about to be sshed with orange juice by surprise.


    If you want to be sure itnds, grabbing me would be the right answer, but...


    Getting sshed with coffee would result in damage iparable to orange juice.


    "Why are you trying to move seats? I would never do such a thing. I wouldn''t cause so much trouble for the store."


    "Please prioritize not causing major burns to a ssmate instead."


    "Really... you''re such a strange one, aren''t you?"


    "Which part of this exchange makes me the strange one? You''re the one who''s strange."


    In fact, I was just pushed around by Horikita''s strange nature.


    "I''m not weird. I just... sometimes my seriousness is misced."


    Depending on your interpretation, it would be fair to call her a weirdo, but of course, I would never say it.


    "So? This isn''t what you wanted to chat about, right? We were supposed to be talking about the special exam..."


    Indeed, it seemed to be time to get to the main topic.


    "There''s no need to be wary of our surroundings at the moment, but we don''t have to casually disclose the contents of our strategy. What I want to know is a little different. I want to confirm what mindset you''re going into this special exam with."


    "...Um, I''m sorry, I''m not quite sure what you mean by ''mindset.''"


    "To win the exam. To rack your brains for it. And to struggle with decisions. That''s something that you can now do with anyone. Like you do with Y��suke and the others every day, and sometimes like you did with the group led by Ike. What I want to do here is something that can only be done between me and you, at least for now. This special exam is gued by the issue of expulsions. If you look back, you can see right away, but I want you to tell me what kind of changes are happening inside you nowpared to you during the unanimous voting exam."


    By bringing up concrete points from the past, Horikita understood what I meant by ''mindset.''


    "It seems like you''re not mistaken when you say, this is a conversation only we can have..."


    The act of exposing one''s innermost thoughts.


    Relying onpanions was important, but it wasn''t easy for the leader to show weakness.


    "Should I assume that you''ll correct me if you think my mindset is wrong?"


    "Whether I can give appropriate advice or not is another matter, but I intend to express my personal view."


    Hearing this, Horikita straightened her posture and met my gaze.


    I thought she would start talking now, but Horikita narrowed her eyes and put a hand to her mouth.


    "That''s suspicious."


    She seemed quite flustered, as if she hadn''t intended to verbalize it.


    "I''m sorry. I said something quite blunt, didn''t I?"


    "Am I really that suspicious?"


    "I mean, you being concerned about me is, well, kind of creepy, don''t you think?"


    "I can understand that, but creepy is a bit too much."


    "Yeah, you''re right. Um, let me get my thoughts together."


    Saying that, she straightened up once more.


    "I want to ask you frankly. Have you decided what to do if wee inst ce in this special exam?"


    She didn''t want to expel anyone.


    But she had to choose someone to dismiss.


    Although the situation was different, the same decision in the unanimous voting exam may have to be made.


    "It''s a hard question to immediately answer, isn''t it?"


    "That''s right."


    "Since that day, I have been questioning myself over and over again. At times, I feel guilty and regretful, even though I believe I made the right decision. It''s a depressing thought."


    She muttered, slightly lowering her gaze.


    "I can''t say for sure what will happen in the future. It''s not just me, everyone in the ss is growing little by little every day. Even if we rank them based on their abilities, it would fluctuate."


    I couldn''t deny that. There were days when Ike was at the bottom and days when Hond�� was. Because we strove to avoid being at the bottom, it was natural that we couldn''t decide who to expel in the future.


    "But the next special exam is different. At least, I n to face it with two options in mind in case we end up at the bottom. One is a less painful choice, the other is a bitter one. However, since there are various obstacles, there''s no guarantee that the less painful choice can be realized..."


    She seemed to have thought about it properly.


    "If you end up cingst, you can''t avoid selecting someone to expel. There''s no dream story about losing without anyone getting expelled. There aren''t enough Private Points to save everyone. Considering that, you have two choices?"


    Thetter, bitter choice must be to reluctantly expel someone. It''s a leader''s responsibility to choose from among those who have dropped out, even if she doesn''t want to.


    "Whichever it turns out to be, I''ve set up my own guidelines to choose without hesitation."


    There was no point in bluffing in this situation. If she was bluffing, that said a lot about her.


    Looking at Horikita, with her pure and straightforward eyes, I could see that she was prepared to make a decision, no matter what choice she faced.


    "I understand. It seems that you won''t be at a loss if youe inst."


    "Perhaps I shouldn''t think about losing in the first ce, but since there''s the risk of expulsion, I can''t help but make a decision in advance. It''s shameful, and you mightugh at it..."


    "Where''s the part tough at?"


    "True... but... you don''t normally think about losing first..."


    "If you aim to win in the end, whether it''s first orst, it isn''t a mistake. You thought about what to do when you lost first because you care about the ss. That''s all there is to it."


    "...Thank you..."


    There was no reason to thank me, but she was in a position to listen to my advice. Perhaps that was why Horikita was honest.


    "I''m d my fears were unfounded. If something goes wrong, I''m sure I can trust you."


    "You helped me in the unanimous voting exam. Ah, is that all you wanted to know?"


    Horikita, who had relieved her heart a little, asked this, but the answer was unfortunately no.


    "No, it''s safe to say that we''re just getting into the main topic."


    "Is that so... Then, what is it? If you''re not going to talk about a winning strategy, do you want to know what will happen after winning? No, it can''t be..."


    "Winning this exam means defeating other sses. And if we defeat them, a ss at the bottom will inevitably be created. There''s a high possibility that someone will get expelled."


    "I guess so."


    "But that ''someone'' is not for you to decide. I''m sure it''s obvious, but you understand what I''m saying, right?"


    "Of course, each ss leader will consider and decide."


    "You learned how to deal with a dismissal from your own ss due to your previous failure. But if I hadn''t helped you, we wouldn''t know what would''ve happened to the ss now."


    "As humiliating as it is, that''s true. It wouldn''t be surprising if the ss had fallen apart."


    "It''s important to learn from your mistakes, but you can''t fail every time. A safety isn''t guaranteed. Essentially, choosing the right answer from the start and steadily breaking through is a testament to one''s true ability."


    Holding a slightly cooled cup, Horikita quietly sipped her coffee.


    "I think you''re absolutely right."


    "Let''s get specific. There will undoubtedly be a time when we face a particr ss directly. At that time, you will have three futures. One is where our ss wins, one is where our ss loses, and the third oue is neither a victory nor a defeat, but a draw. What future would you prefer?"


    "There''s no question about it. I want my ss to win; there''s no other choice."


    "Then let''s add a new condition to the future. Your ss wins, but as a result, the defeated ss has an expulsion. How would you decide in this case?"


    "I''m sorry, but we prioritize our victory. That''s the right choice, isn''t it?"


    "So you would still choose your ss''s victory."


    With my questioning, Horikita''s lips slightly tightened.


    "Is it wrong to prioritize winning, just like in this special exam?"


    "No one said it was a mistake. Let''s add onest condition. The specific ss is Ry��en''s ss, and the one expelled is Ibuki Mio. Which of the three futures would you choose then?"


    Not expecting this condition, Horikita froze after delivering a series of natural responses.


    "...Ibuki-san...?"


    "What''s the matter? Which of the three options do you choose? Winning, losing, or drawing?"


    "Hold on a minute. Ibuki-san is close to Ry��en-kun. I can''t imagine she would be the first candidate for expulsion. Is this even a valid hypothesis?"


    "A valid hypothesis? It''s strange what you say. A hypothesis is just a hypothesis."


    "But��"


    "Ibuki''s position and safety aren''t guaranteed. With Ibuki''s OAA assessment, she is perfectly disposable. Given Ry��en''s personality, it''s a possible scenario. Moreover, there''s no guarantee that Ry��en can appoint someone to be expelled. idents that can''t be avoided could happen."


    Having been told this in a firm tone, Horikita unwillingly opened her mouth.


    "...For the sake of our ss''s victory, it''s natural to choose victory, even if it means Ibuki-san is the specific person who has to be expelled."


    "You''re unable to respond immediately. You clearly want to deny a future where you have to choose."


    "What are you trying to say?"


    "I don''t know every detail about your rtionships, but I believe that among the other sses, Ibuki is closer to you than most. And it''s not just about whether she''s ''close'' or ''not close.''"


    "If you''re also considering ''not close'' rtionships, then yes, I won''t deny it."


    She kept eye contact, trying to project an attitude that expressed it didn''t matter.


    Although she said she didn''t deny it, the truth was, she couldn''t.


    Even the person involved wasn''t aware of it; it was a defensive reflex transmitted from basic instincts.


    Not wanting to acknowledge it was proof that she knew it was inconvenient if she did. It might''ve been possible to deceive with visual information, but when it came to auditory information, higher skills were required. The more you tried controlling your behavior, the more negligent you became with your words.


    "But in this special exam, the rule is that a student is expelled by another ss. That is, for the first time, a student who we didn''t anticipate might be expelled."


    "You''re saying that even Ibuki-san isn''t an exception."


    "If Ry��en had marked Ibuki as a candidate for expulsion, and it was clear that there was a high likelihood he was nning on expelling her if she was eliminated, would you still be able to y a move that eliminates Ibuki to win?"


    Until now, Horikita, although agitated, had insisted on victory.


    Her previously unyielding attitude waspletely crushed for the first time.


    Even indirectly, causing Ibuki to drop out by her own hand...


    If this were a year ago, Horikita would have executed this without much hesitation.


    But the circumstances had changed.


    She got to know Ibuki. She deeply knew what kind of character she had and who she was.


    Even though she was an enemy, she had undoubtedly be a friend.


    "Why... do you ask such a thing?"


    She didn''t answer, but forcefully threw the ball back as if to escape.


    "This special exam, it''s a great chance to eliminate students you want to lose, but it''s also the basis of the fight to lose those who are easy to lose. When you know that you can gain a strategic advantage by attacking Ibuki, are you able to take the lead as a leader without hesitation? Confirming that is my primary goal. I thought it would be helpful to start considering it now."


    Even if I told her this on the day of the exam, it would be difficult to deal with calmly because of the limited time and tension of the battle. That was why it was a discussion to have now.


    "You mean... I should be ready to lose someone like Ibuki-san or someone in the same position?"


    "No, I''m saying it''s important to be aware. You are so focused on your own ss that you don''t have a good grasp of the other sses. You just mildly thought ''I want to get rid of that person, I don''t want this other person to drop out.'' Did you prepare for this special exam with a clear sense of what to expect?"


    "Well... no, I haven''t. All I was thinking about was how to minimize the damage if I lose, who to expel from our side in case of emergency, and what I would need to do to win for the ss."


    Realizing that further denial was pointless, Horikita admitted it as if she''d given up.


    She probably didn''t think about who she was going to crush clearly.


    Of course, it wouldn''t be easy even if she wanted to crush someone. As the leader, she would keep the capable students since there was a high probability that multiple people would be eliminated. Therefore, she didn''t think about it.


    If she stopped thinking there, she wouldn''t be able to keep up with the changes in the situation.


    "So, what should I do about that problem...?"


    "I told you. All you need is to be aware of it. Everyone has their own style of battle. Ry��en is ruthless to whoever he is up against. He''s always thinking of ways to defeat the enemy''s most capable students. Sakayanagi tends to target people she dislikes, regardless of strength or weakness. Totsuka is a good example. On the contrary, in Ichinose''s case, she doesn''t think about expelling the other party. There are tendencies, strengths, and weaknesses to each person like that."


    "But I don''t know what kind of battle suits me yet..."


    "That''s what this battle is about to show you. Whether to defeat the enemy or to protect yourself, if you are aware of both, you will see the way to fight. Don''t fight aimlessly. Be conscious. Just by doing that, the world you see will change greatly."


    Horikita closed her eyes and murmured something to herself with a slight movement of her lips.


    I continued to silently watch Horikita until she showed some understanding.


    "To be honest, I don''t think I can maintain that awareness at this moment."


    "I see."


    "But I''ll keep repeating it to myself until the special exam. If that doesn''t work, I''ll keep telling myself even after that. I don''t know how far I can go... I''m sorry. I''m not good enough..."


    She mocked herself for not being able to respond well.


    "There''s nothing wrong. You''re already beginning to be conscious. I''ve made you conscious."


    It''s just a matter of time whether it will beplete now, tomorrow, or a littleter.


    I''ve almost finished analyzing the human being called Horikita Suzune.


    A person who waspetentpared to ordinary people with the ability to be recognized in society.


    A person who had the qualifications to walk a happy life on the long road that would continue from now on.


    But she probably wouldn''t achieve remarkable feats in the future, or leave behind achievements for future generations. She had no remarkable ability to surpass others'' many talents.


    However, this was not yet a society. This was a school, a world where small and immature children gathered. In this miniature, garden-like environment, she had the potential to disy abilities beyond imagination.


    This was thanks to the new perspective that Horikita Manabu taught me.


    If I hadn''t been taught by him, I wouldn''t have noticed her shining potential.


    "That''s all I wanted to say."


    Horikita looked into my eyes intently, and continued to look straight into them without averting.


    "Hey��what are you, exactly?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "That''s exactly what I mean. I don''t understand you at all..."


    "Do you need to understand?"


    "At the very least, as long as I''m the appointed leader, it isn''t bad to get to know my ssmates. Even for the next special exam, being aware of the details puts us in an advantageous position."


    If she could grasp one''s strengths and weaknesses in individual challenges, it could certainly be true.


    "So, you understand K��enji?"


    "I can''t say I understand him, but I think I have a grasp of him. Am I wrong?"


    "...Quite right."


    I brought up K��enji''s name to divert the topic from myself, but it was easy and simple to understand what kind of person K��enji really was.


    "You were uninterested in reaching ss A, and were fundamentally reserved and unsociable. But before I knew it, you started dating Karuizawa-san, you started to help the ss knowing that it''d make you stand out. There is no consistency in what you do."


    "Can''t you just take it to mean that I''ve grown? A once unassuming middle school boy goes through a High School debut, and little by little gains courage. Soon, he aims to rise to ss A and starts getting excited, leading to how he is now�� something like that."


    "I can''t see it like that. You don''t fit into any conventionally assumed categories. I''m convinced of that. There''s always a reason beyond ordinary thinking for what you do. Because..."


    As soon as she said ''because,'' Horikita lost her words.


    "...How could such a personality be born, I wonder. What kind of child were you?"


    "Changing the subject, huh? Even if you ask me what kind of child I was, I am still a child, as you can see."


    "That''s not what I mean. I mean when you were much younger. What elementary school did you go to?"


    "You wouldn''t know even if I told you."


    "That''s not necessarily the case, right? I might unexpectedly be from the area."


    "I''ve already talked about something simr before. I don''t feel like doing it again."


    "...Is that so? Sorry, but I don''t recall, can you tell me again?"


    Even if I tried to avoid it, Horikita persistently questioned me.


    "It''s not something I can share. I want to keep certain things to myself."


    I strongly conveyed that I was ufortable with further inquiries, and Horikita seemed to understand, albeit reluctantly.


    Receiving a lot of information at once, Horikita''s brain seemed to be considerably tired.


    "You better take a break to calm down."


    I suggested to Horikita, who was unable to decide on her next move.


    "Yes, you''re right..."


    Before we could leave this ce, we had to finish our drinks.


    I also picked up my cup of coffee, which I had barely touched, and we drank almost simultaneously.


    The temperature that reached my tongue was lukewarm.


    "It''s gotten cold."


    "It''s gotten cold, hasn''t it?"


    "Don''t copy me."


    "Please don''t copy me."


    It was a trivial matter, but the feeling that we were on the same wavelength was strangely funny.


    "Eh��?"


    It might be an exaggeration to say she was startled, but Horikita opened her eyes wide and let out a sound.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "No... that... I just... saw you smile a little..."


    "Huh? So, what''s wrong with that?"


    "It''s just that I feel like I''ve never seen that expression on your face in thest two years..."


    "How rude. I''m not a baby who''s just learned to smile."


    I''ve been told something simr before, and there have been many times when I''ve made a conscious effort to smile. It shouldn''t be that rare.


    Well... But...


    "You''re right, it might''ve been a rare moment."


    At that instant, I couldn''t recall at all making a conscious effort to smile.


    The expression of an unintentional emotion.


    How many such experiences have I had so far?


    Neither an act nor a reading of the atmosphere, but just being natural.


    From understanding how difficult that was, it became interesting.


    It felt like a drop of color had been added to a nk sketchbook.


    Not in front of Kei, nor in front of a friend like Y��suke.


    I didn''t know why that expression appeared in front of Horikita.


    "I wonder why I smiled. Would you know if you were the one who smiled?"


    I had hoped that Horikita would have a clear answer.


    I asked if it was a funny scene, looking into her eyes.


    But Horikita averted her gaze and hurriedly replied.


    "I... I wouldn''t know either if you asked me with such a serious face."


    "So, it''s not that something particrly funny happened, right?"


    "...As I said, I wouldn''t know even if you asked me."


    Horikita, who had turned aside, slightly raised her voice and sighed.


    "Because of your strange thinking, I feel like a fool forughing as well..."


    Horikita gulped down the remainder of her coffee and stood up.


    "Are we done talking? I have ns, so I should be going."


    "Didn''t you say you had no ns?"


    "I just remembered I had ns."


    She then picked up the empty cup she had drunk.


    "I''ll think about it by myself. About the next special exam, and everything thereafter."


    "That''s fine."


    She was about to head back first but paused as though she had remembered something.


    "Oh, right, sorry. There''s something I need to confirm with you."


    "Is it about the category to exclude in the special exam?"


    "That''s right."


    "What about our other ssmates?"


    "I''ve heard from everyone but you. We really need to decide soon."


    Apparently, while I had been taking it easy, Horikita had already finalized the arrangements with the others.


    "Well, you probably wouldn''t need to exclude anything, but what do you think?"


    "Entertainment, music, and subculture."


    "Those categories have nothing to do with studying. Same choices as mine."


    "There were other categories that I was unsure about, but I wanted to exclude those in which I wasn''t proficient."


    News, lifestyle, and food. I probably didn''t know much about those areas.


    However, the three categories that I excluded were considered more difficult than those.


    "Alright, I''ll register those for you."


    "Thanks."


    Unexpectedly, this seemed to be an opportunity to reflect on myself.

 Chapter 438 - 5 : Game Changer

    <h4>Chapter 438: Chapter 5 : Game Changer</h4>


    ON THURSDAY morning, the day before the special exam, we were granted a special day off.


    Typically, falling asleep wasn''t an issue, but I, Hashimoto, had an unusually sleepless night.


    "Lack of sleep really is bad for you... So sleepy..."


    As I lifted my body, I saw that there was a message from Kit�� on my phone.


    [It seems that the princess has finally decided on a policy.]


    "Although it''s already the day before the exam, it seemed that they were finally going to gather the ss leaders for a discussion.


    However, even though it was a discussion, they probably wouldn''t give detailed information about the strategy.


    Sakayanagi always thought and acted independently.


    She onlymunicated necessary information to the students she used as her tools.


    "Tsk..."


    In addition to Kit��''s message, I noticed that I had received dozens of messages. These were from the girl I was currently dating.


    The night before, I remembered exchanging messages with her until fairlyte, but I had given up halfway through because the conversation went on and on with no sign of ending.


    ''Where are we going next?''


    ''I want to eat this, I want that.''


    ''What do you like, dislike?''


    ''I want to see you, I''m lonely.''


    It was all such trivial stuff.


    [Sorry, I fell asleep. I''ll make it up to you next time.]


    With a cute emote, I sent back that emotionless reply.


    I figured that it would satisfy her.


    If she was persistent, I just needed to dump her, but there was still some information I wanted to gather.


    No matter which ss or how trivial, there was never too much information.


    Let''s forget about that woman for now and talk about the issue concerning Sakayanagi.


    The issue that was directly connected to the reason why I wasn''t able to sleep yesterday.


    The issue of how we should fight in the special exam.


    And before that, what we should do.


    As the end-of-year exams were approaching, my anxiety was growing day by day.


    The future where I might lose to Ry��en in a direct showdown with a significant amount of ss points on the line.


    This was something I absolutely had to avoid.


    I have to do everything I can to prevent that, don''t I?

 Chapter 439: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 439: 5.1</h4>


    Sakayanagi was indifferent to the set time and ce.


    Whether it be a karaoke box or a dorm room to avoid being seen.


    Even in the special wing or behind the gym, there were secret meeting locations everywhere.


    Well, I suppose Sakayanagi didn''t care since she wasn''t divulging secrets.


    Today, as usual, we headed to the most vibrant cafe in Keyaki Mall.


    And she seemed to be enjoying her leisure time, selecting a popr seat with Kamuro and Kit�� following behind her.


    "My apologies, Princess. I''m a bitte," I said, sitting in an empty seat, continuing to call Sakayanagi ''Princess.''


    "You seem quite close to her, don''t you?"


    "Ah, where did you see that?"


    Up untilst year, I only had to watch out for ss A students, but since we became second years, I had to be careful of the k��hais and the others as well. Did I overlook that?


    No, if there was a first-year student in the second-year hall, I should have noticed.


    That meant��


    Had she been secretly keeping a pawn within the ss in advance?


    Most of the time, it was Kamuro, Kit��, or me, but periodically, Sakayanagi would contact someone on her phone to receive information. I asked about it once, but she never directly mentioned who they were. It was possible they were watching us.


    I decided it was unnecessary to rush to find out if it was a student within the ss, but if this wasn''t a coincidence and they were intentionally watching me, that would change things.


    "I''m quite shy when ites to love, so keep it a secret, okay?"


    "Hehe, I promise I won''t tell anyone."


    "So? What''s today''s talk about?" Kamuro asked.


    "You know it even if you don''t ask, Masumi-chan."


    "Hey. Don''t call me by my first name."


    "My bad, my bad. It''s just a habit."


    "What kind of habit is that? You''ve hardly ever called me that."


    "In my heart, it''s always Masumi-chan."


    "Gross."


    Kamuro strongly rejected the ''Masumi-chan'' nickname, apparently repulsed by it.


    I understood. If I were in her shoes, I would have found it creepy too.


    However, when ying the fool, such nicknames helped to leave an impact.


    "So, shall we start, Princess? It''s about the special exam, right?"


    "Special exam? No, you''re mistaken, Hashimoto-kun. Today is just a simple tea party."


    Sakayanagi denied my assumption with augh.


    I exaggerated my reaction ordingly, almost falling from my chair.


    "If that''s the case, you wouldn''t have needed to gather the executive members here, Princess."


    "It''s for public appeal."


    "If other sses find out that ss A is holding a strategy meeting, they''ll inevitably share information and increase their sense of tension. They''ll spare no effort to win."


    What public appeal? That wasughable.


    I put up with it until yesterday, and now she has no intention to discuss anything.


    "What''s the benefit of doing all that? I don''t get it. Can you exin?"


    "There''s a benefit. It makes the other three sses more serious, doesn''t it?"


    "...So, it''s advantageous?"


    As Kamuro said, it seemed more like a loss than a gain.


    I''d rather they becent, so why were we tensing them up?


    "I want to enjoy the battle. Lately, we''ve been doing recreational activities like cultural festivals and school trips."


    Even if it lowered the chances of victory or brought disadvantages, she prioritized her own amusement.


    That was how Sakayanagi had been reigning as ss leader this whole time.


    The ss tolerated it because the results had been obvious.


    We steadily umted ss points.


    In other words, if that is no longer the case, Sakayanagi''s value would plummet at once.


    I didn''t know if anyone else saw such an uncertain future...


    After finishing the so-called ''casual tea party,'' I entered a restroom near the east entrance.


    I wasn''t using the restroom for its intended purpose, and it wasn''t for a confidential meeting either.


    Just an unbreakable habit. I went into thest stall and locked the door. Then, once its automatic cover opened, I sat on the toilet seat without pulling my pants down.


    The stalls in Keyaki Mall were always kept clean, it never felt unpleasant. No bad smell either.


    Well, even if there was a certain level of dirtiness or odd smell, I wouldn''t mind it much.


    The music inside the mall was a bit much, but I leaned forward with my arms on my knees and closed my eyes.


    This was the ce; the ce to calm my heart.


    The ce to return to the origin[8]. In a school where escape routes were scarce, it was a valuable ce of refuge.


    [8 : Origin is metaphorical here, basically a ce to reset to one''s roots or "base"]


    "Even in ANHS, I find myself going to the toilet out of habit. Habits are really hard to break."


    For the following 30 or so minutes, I stayed there without taking out my phone even once.


    "Shall I go home?"


    When there was a sign that no one was at the sink, I stood up, flushed the toilet, washed my hands, dried them, and left the bathroom.


    "Looks like the long shit is over."


    "You surprised me. How long have you been here?"


    Ry��en, who had been leaning against the wall beside the entrance with his phone in his hand, snorted augh.


    "I was just wondering what you were up to."


    "Give me a break. Tomorrow is the special exam, right? I wonder what kind of suspicion I''d be under if I were seen with you here. Couldn''t you have visited my room or used some other way?"


    "If you''re innocent, then act with confidence."


    "You ask too much. Keep it short."


    It was fine for me to contact him, but Ry��en unexpectedly contacting me was annoying.


    Especially in Ry��en''s case, who knew where and what he was going to say?


    However, in order to understand the inner workings of the opposing sses, discussions with him were unavoidable. It was a rough sea, but as long as I could see it, I could ride the waves.

 Chapter 440: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 440: 5.2</h4>


    On the day off, I spent the morning with Kei at Keyaki Mall.


    Despite asionally expressing her anxiety about the special exam tomorrow, Kei should''ve been able to spend the day rtively peacefully. While chatting about trivial matters, we headed back to the dorm together.


    On the way back, my phone rang. When I checked the caller ID, it showed Kanzaki''s name.


    Kei peeped in to see who was calling, but as soon as she saw the caller''s name, she lost interest and took out her own phone. We both stopped walking almost simultaneously, and I answered the call.


    "What''s up?"


    "Where are you right now? I went straight to your room, but it seems you haven''t returned yet."


    "I''m just on my way back. Do you need something?"


    "Could you spare some time to talk? Watanabe and I will be there. Is that alright with you?"


    It was unusual for someone to visit my room without an appointment.


    "I''m on my way back now. Can you please tell Watanabe as well?"


    "Ok. Can I wait in front of your room?"


    I agreed and ended the call. At the same time, Kei put away her phone.


    "What''s up with Kanzaki-kun and Watanabe-kun?"


    "I don''t know. It seems they want to talk. They''re waiting in front of my room. I''m sorry, but I think we should call it a day."


    "That''s fine, but are you close to those two, Kiyotaka?"


    "I was in the same group as Watanabe during the school trip. I''ve been seeing him quite a lot recently."


    "Oh, you''re making more and more friends, I see."


    Kei seemed amazed and slightly pleased, giving a few small nods.


    We both got on the elevator and got off at the fourth floor. As the doors opened, we saw Watanabe and Kanzaki waiting. They noticed us, and Watanabe waved his hand.


    "See youter. Contact me whenever. Oh, take your time too."


    Considering him as my friend, Keimunicated her friendly intentions with a smile, showing no concerns.


    Since our reconciliation, she seemed to have regained herposure.


    "Sorry for the sudden visit. Were you nning to spend time togetherter?"


    As soon as we met up, Kanzaki cautiously broached the subject.


    "Don''t worry about it. It''s rare for you two to visit together. Come on in."


    I invited them in after unlocking the door. Their surprised nces swept over the living room, which had taken on a strong feminine, colorful appearance. Making my guestsfortable, I asked for their drink preferences and went to the kitchen. Soon after, Kanzaki got up and approached me.


    "I was told to keep it quiet since they didn''t know if they''d be able to go, but when I mentioned meeting up with you, they responded saying they coulde. Sorry for the sudden addition, but can I invite two more people?"


    "Is that so? Guess I''ll have to prepare with that in mind. Who''sing?"


    "Ichinose and Amikura."


    There was no particr issue with the increase in numbers, but I couldn''t figure out the circumstances from this four-peoplebination.


    Kanzaki had be a reformer, working on changing both Ichinose and his ss.


    On the other hand, Ichinose wanted to maintain the status quo, a conservative.


    At the same time, Ichinose seemed aware of Kanzaki''s movements but was standing idly by.


    Or was I reading too much into it? There were no signs of Himeno and Hamaguchi, who supported Kanzaki.


    "The ss strategy regarding the uing special exam is settled, and Ichinose said she wanted to confirm some final checks with you. It might not be beneficial for you though."


    He was apologetic, and I could sense that he wasn''t very enthusiastic about today''s matter.


    "I don''t mind. What''s with Watanabe and Amikuraing over?"


    "For Watanabe, it waspletely coincidental. I bumped into him on the way to your ce."


    "Yeah, it was just a coincidence."


    Could he have anticipated Amikura''s arrival somehow and tagged along? Or was I thinking too much?


    In any case, I didn''t bother to ask because it didn''t matter either way.


    I turned on the TV and engaged in mindless chatter for a while to pass the time.


    About 15 minutester, the doorbell rang. As expected, Ichinose and Amikura showed up. They brought snacks from Keyaki Mall as a gift.


    After getting everyone drinks, I prepared to listen.


    "You might''ve already heard from Kanzaki-kun, but regarding tomorrow''s special exam, I wanted to discuss something with you, Ayanok��ji-kun. I''m sorry for the sudden request."


    This meant, rather than a spontaneous thought, she had considered it in advance.


    "I don''t mind in particr, but unfortunately, I''m not the leader. If you want to know about our ss''s internal affairs or strategies, you should negotiate directly with Horikita."


    "That''s okay. Rather, I want you to listen to our side of the story."


    "Hold on. Before you talk to Ayanok��ji, there''s something I would like to ask first."


    "Huh? What is it?"


    "If you want to coborate or something like that, I''ll firmly oppose it."


    As if he wanted to have the first word, Kanzaki took the initiative and voiced his concern.


    He indicated no concern about the two of our sses cooperating which made it easy to understand what he meant by ''coborate.''


    "You''re worried about the possibility of me tying the scores for all four sses, aren''t you?"


    "To be blunt, yes, that''s exactly it."


    "Why didn''t you bring up that topic during the ss meeting?"


    "Even if I were to express my opinion against colluding, if you approved of it, Ichinose, the majority of the ss would concur. I didn''t want to let that happen. If behind-the-scenes discussions were happening without me knowing, I wouldn''t be able to do anything. However, if a discussion took ce in front of me, I''d be able to speak against it."


    That was why he avoided the subject until now, having never raised the issue before. He had his own reasons why he hadn''t brought it up in a more private setting.


    If I was helping with the ss''s reform, I would side with those in opposition if I was there.


    That surely must''ve been a part of his calction.


    "The special exam is tomorrow, right? Isn''t it toote to push for the four sses to collude now?"


    Amikura, who was sitting next to Ichinose, said, almost as if expecting such ament.


    It was far toote to make a move as far asmon sense was concerned.


    "Normally, yes. But considering it''s Ichinose, I wouldn''t be surprised if she was still contemting until the very end to avoid risking anyone''s expulsion. She might change her decisionst minute to protect her ssmates."


    "If the four sses could coordinate and ensure a clear victory, her suggestion is worth considering. Even if we lose ss points, as long as all sses face the same fate, it wouldn''t be unfair. As Kanzaki-kun said, it might still be possible to realize that n."


    "Nevertheless... If we lose the chance to rise��"


    Kanzaki, who was prematurely scared of such a development, was about to counter-argue when Ichinose gently stopped him.


    "Don''t worry. I didn''te to beg Ayanok��ji-kun to agree to this. If I intended that, it would be proper to talk to Horikita-san directly."


    Thus, Ichinose reassured him. But Kanzaki must have felt restless. Cooperating against expulsion, even without collusion, could feel quite familiar. If Ichinose remainedmitted to protecting her ssmates even to her own detriment, their chances of victory would decrease.


    To hide his anxiety, Kanzaki clumsily put on a relieved expression.


    "That''s a relief. I''m sorry for abruptly interrupting you. I''m terrible at conversations. I always cause trouble."


    I conveyed that there was no need to worry after he apologized.


    "Kanzaki-kun, you''ve be quite close to Ayanok��ji-kun, haven''t you?"


    "Really?"


    "Indeed. Even if your former self had these thoughts, you would''ve hesitated to talk so openly about the ss''s internal affairs. If it were Hirata-kun or Kaneda-kun here, your response would''ve beenpletely different."


    At Ichinose''s remarks, Kanzaki tilted his head in confusion as if he didn''t understand, but it was useless. Right around the time Kanzaki and Himeno started making moves together, Ichinose must have sensed something was amiss.


    "Nevermind me, let''s get on with the conversation."


    Prompted, Ichinose nodded with a smile and turned to face me.


    "The reason I came to Ayanok��ji-kun before Horikita-san was��"


    I braced myself for what might pour out, but in reality, it wasn''t much. She wanted to win with her ssmates and not lose��just a close-knit ambition. She didn''t need to bring along her close aide, Kanzaki, just for that.


    Even Kanzaki, who had been listening with a stern face, eased his guard.


    After that, the conversation shifted to casual chit-chat.


    Thanks to Watanabe, the atmosphere livened up, and this reunion felt like a simple gathering of friends.


    As the clock turned past six, and the view outside dimmed, Kanzaki suggested wrapping up the gathering.


    Ichinose, Amikura, and Kanzaki exited first, followed by Watanabe.


    "I wasn''t sure how today would go, but it turned out to be quite fun."


    That was probably because Watanabe was able to talk freely with Amikura. When I signaled him with my eyes, Watanabe gave me a broad smile in return.


    As the front door closed behind the departing guests, silence returned.


    The TV, which hadn''t been intrusive until now, suddenly seemed too loud, and I turned it off.


    As I was about to put away the leftover cups on the table��


    The doorbell rang with a "ping-pong" sound.


    As I had not yet contacted Kei, it was unlikely anyone would be visiting without permission. I wondered who it could be.


    Still wondering, I opened the door.


    On the other side stood Ichinose, who for some reason had returned alone.


    "Sorry, Ayanok��ji-kun. It seems I left my phone here..."


    I thought something was up, but the reason quickly became clear. It seemed she had simply forgotten her phone.


    "Your phone? Where is it? I''ll get it."


    "I think it''s under the table. Really sorry."


    Forgetting your phone wasn''t something unique to Ichinose. As a daily necessity, and because we take out our phones so often, it was easy to forget them. At the same time, it was also something we quickly remember forgetting.


    Kei often left her phone in my room and came back flustered to fetch it.


    "Wait a moment."


    Leaving Ichinose at the entrance, I checked under the table.


    I quickly noticed her phone exactly where Ichinose had been sitting.


    I returned after about ten seconds and gave the phone to Ichinose.


    "Thank you. Sorry for the trouble again."


    "See you around."


    "...Oh, can we talk for a bit?"


    We had already talked a fair bit, but girls always had more to say.


    With more understanding than surprise, I nodded in approval.


    "People might misunderstand if they see us alone together, so should I lock the door?"


    After suggesting it herself, she turned to lock the door but immediately hesitated.


    "No, not a good idea. If the door was locked and someone came... That would be even worse."


    Two people alone together was still an innocent urrence.


    In fact, until recently, Ichinose''s ssmates had been here.


    But if the door was locked with just the two of us, the situation would change drastically.


    It would suggest that we were doing something covert, something we didn''t want others to see.


    "Mako-chan and the others just left. I clearly told them that I forgot my phone in your room, so even if someone sees us now, we have a good excuse."


    It didn''t seem like she was talking to herself. She appeared to be exining her intentions to me.


    She tried to lock the door but then stopped herself. She exined the situation out loud.


    "Did you intentionally forget your phone to be alone with me?"


    Whether it was the response she had been trying to induce or not, Ichinose just smiled at my question.


    "What do you think, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    I didn''t expect her to ask me about her true intentions.


    "My suspicions are probably correct. Your ''forgetting'' was intentional."


    Upon listening to my response, Ichinose, unable to hold back, looked down and acknowledged it.


    "I wanted to see you, Ayanok��ji-kun. Just the two of us, in any way possible... Do you think I''m repulsive...?"


    "Repulsive? Why would you say that?"


    "Why...? Because I went out of my way to see a boy who has a girlfriend..."


    Indeed, if the genders were reversed, it would be easy to understand.


    It wouldn''t be surprising if someone was immediatelybeled as a stalker.


    But in the end, how such an action would be perceived depended entirely on the recipient''s mindset.


    If the target was disliked, they were a stalker, and if the target was liked, they weren''t a stalker.


    "It''s weird for you to boldly meet a guy with a girlfriend. You''re actually being considerate."


    If she had forced her way to visit, patching things up with Kei would be difficult, and it would only worsen our situation.


    If this situation was created, then even if the two of us met, it could be exined as an unavoidable circumstance.


    "...Really? You really don''t think I''m repulsive?"


    "Yeah."


    If there was anything to think about when I looked at the current Ichinose, it was just one thing.


    She''s bing an increasingly interesting subject.


    That was all.


    Immediately after, she slowly approached and leaned against my chest.


    "This was an ident... I lost my footing, and you just happened to catch me... right?"


    "Yeah. There''s no evidence to deny it."


    When I answered, I couldn''t see it, but I felt Ichinose smile.


    "I love you, Ayanok��ji-kun. I''m helplessly in love with you... I''ve never been in love before. Yet, I have a strong suspicion that this might be my first andst love��it''s strange, isn''t it?"


    She was adopting strategies that were unimaginable from the Ichinose I first met.


    There was an aspect of that which was attractive, even to the opposite sex.


    Her love was her driving force. She used it to draw from and utilize the potential she didn''t even realize she had, creating her desired situation.


    Ichinose''s unchanging generosity.


    I had prepared different actors, like Kanzaki and Himeno, to cause a stir in that, but there were now more lines of development than expected. Of course, this wasn''t a bad thing, but rather a good thing for me. It was because I could approach improving their ss from two different directions.


    Originally, only one line was drawn straight, with a high risk of failure.


    I drew a new line to increase the probability of the ss''s survival.


    However, Ichinose added variation to the line that had a high failure risk.


    It was different now. It was hard to judge if this linear line, which could be considered a new line, would seed or fail at this point.


    A wonderfully attractive scent wafted from her hair that was hard to describe.


    It wasn''t just the fragrance of shampoo or other hair products.


    "If we weren''t in different sses, we could''ve spent more time together..."


    Then, it happened.


    Without warning, the door to my room was forcefully opened.


    "Sorry, Ayanok��ji, could you give me some personal advice��"


    I saw Watanabe''s face from ss B, who was sitting with us until just a few minutes ago.


    Ichinose must''ve been on guard for this sort of situation.


    She must''ve taken into ount that someone might drop by unexpectedly.


    But at the very least, a knock would''ve been expected.


    I myself had not factored in that someone would open the front door without permission.


    My body must''ve tensed up due to this unexpected scenario.


    Unable to break away from the clingy situation, Ichinose simply looked back in surprise.


    "Wh�� what��!?"


    Watanabe himself, who thoughtlessly opened the door, gasped in surprise more than anyone else.


    A few seconds in reality felt like several tens of seconds.


    The warmth of Ichinose''s body from the close contact with her casual wear instantly left.


    It would''ve been impossible to passively dismiss the physical contact as just an ident or coincidence.


    The excuse that she almost fell down wouldn''t convince anyone.


    Although Watanabe was initially unable to grasp the situation, that most likely wouldn''tst forever.


    Naturally, not only I, but Ichinose must''ve also understood the gravity of the situation.


    What kind of response would Watanabe give? That would determine our course of action.


    There was nothing I could do at the moment, so I had to leave the oue to the two of them.


    "Oh, uh, um, sorry, I didn''t knock... so um, I''ll be going!"


    Faced with an impossible situation, Watanabe''s decision was to turn and flee.


    As Watanabe tried to close the door, Ichinose moved faster.


    She blocked the door from closingpletely with her hand.


    "Watanabe-kun."


    "Y-yes!?"


    Watanabe immediately stood straight after hearing her formally address him.


    "Can youe in?"


    "But I''m intruding, and my business isn''t anything major!"


    "Can youe in? Please."


    "...Y-yes."


    I couldn''t see Ichinose''s expression since she was facing Watanabe, but it was the usual smile that she showed everyone when she turned around.


    There was no sign of her being flustered or upset.


    Without a doubt, she was taken aback when Watanabe saw us.


    But she quickly adjusted and decided what she should do next.


    She ushered Watanabe into the entrance area and locked the door to the genkan[9] after getting my approval.


    [9 : Genkan(���v) is like an extended entryway. Essentially, the room is for removing shoes before entering the main part of the building]


    While she couldn''t lock the door before, with Watanabe inside, the problem was solved.


    Being able to calmly manage the situation even in this emergency, when you''d usually lose your cool, was indeedmendable.


    "Come in."


    With the three of us, the entrance area was a bit cramped. I decided to let Ichinose and Watanabe further into the main room.


    His tense expressions clearly conveyed his emotions. Neither of the parties involved seemed to be panic-stricken. It was only natural that he was terrified by our calm demeanors.


    The room was unusually quiet, partly because I had turned off the television.


    Watanabe, who had sat down on his own volition, probably didn''t feel alive.


    "About what happened earlier, I did that on my own. Ayanok��ji-kun isn''t at fault."


    "Y-yes, of course."


    "I don''t quite like your tant use of formal speech though."


    "S-sorry..."


    "I was just hugging him on my own. You saw the situation, so I assume you understand."


    Watanabe could only repetitively nod in agreement to Ichinose''sposed reasoning.


    "I did something bad. I know there''s no obligation for you to keep this a secret, Watanabe-kun, but I believe you aren''t someone who acts out of malice. I believe you won''t spread this story to harm others."


    Ichinose was not just silencing him, she was trying to reach his guilty feelings and contain him using his remorse.


    Threatening him into silence would not be nearly as effective.


    "I''m really sorry, Ayanok��ji-kun. I acted on my own volition."


    "It''s fine."


    "I''m d you say so, but if Karuizawa-san learns about this, she''d get angry... No, she''d be deeply distressed. I''m prepared to take any punishment."


    Ichinose knew that I wouldn''t punish her over something so trivial.


    She was filling in the final 1% after suppressing 99% of Watanabe''s urges. Her words and her psychological analysis were spot on. But how far she was nning to take it was another matter. Her genuineness was mixed in her calcted wisdom.


    The ratio was unclear, and therefore I couldn''t possibly predict everything.


    After a while, silence filled the room again.


    I couldn''t let this silence go on forever.


    "Anyway, you two should go home for today."


    I suggested they leave. Ichinose seemed to have been waiting for these words, as she immediately acknowledged.


    But surprisingly, Watanabe didn''t move, he didn''t seem to have any intention of standing up. Earlier, he seemed quite panicked, but now, he looked a lot calmer.


    I wonder what he''s thinking.


    "Watanabe?"


    As I called his name, he drew a deep sigh and looked between me and Ichinose.


    "I was in the wrong. Not knocking before entering someone''s room is a breach of manners. I don''t think that something like this would serve as a guarantee for staying silent because of this incident... I came back because I had something to discuss with Ayanok��ji. So, um, along with that, would you mind hearing a story from my junior high days...?"


    I hadn''t asked about why Watanabe came back.


    "I guess I''ll leave now then."


    "W-wait. Ichinose, if you''re okay with it... I''d like you to hear my story too."


    Despite this sudden proposal, Ichinose, who was unlikely to decline, held back her feet that were about to step out.


    A consultation. Watanabe began by talking about his past.


    "When I was in junior high, second year, I had a fateful encounter. I became friends quickly with a girl I met when the sses were shuffled. We were seated together��that was the first connection. She said she found me interesting, and we became increasingly close. We were in the same group on a school trip and I was convinced it was destiny."


    His love story. It might not have been his first love, but it was clear from his demeanor that it was a significant one for Watanabe.


    "I even thought she might''ve liked me since we were so close, but I was clueless back then... she was dating a pretty cheerful guy from the next ss. I didn''t know that and my feelings for her only intensified."


    Unrequited love. Notwithstanding the difference between men and women, the people in his situation could be reced with myself, Kei, and Ichinose.


    "Every day, I would call her and chat about gibberish evente into the night��"


    It didn''t feel like a happy memory, his face was filled with bitterness.


    "But one day, we really hit it off over the phone. I was shocked when she told me that she liked me. I was so happy... I couldn''t answer when she asked me what I thought of her. It probably took me about five minutes to say ''I like you too.''"


    There was an ironicugh apanied by a trace of embarrassment and a look of self-deprecation.


    "She was dating another guy before you, wasn''t she?"


    My first thought was that she was two-timing, but Watanabe denied it.


    "No... She was dumped by him before that. I don''t know when, but I think their rtionship was probably bad around the time she started talking to me on the phone."


    In other words, she fell for Watanabe, someone close to her once she becamepletely single.


    That seemed like a natural course of events with no issues.


    "I didn''t know about her past rtionships at that time, but she fell for me, the second in line, thanks to being dumped by the normie. I was over the moon, not knowing any of that context."


    Then, Watanabe started dating her.


    They were middle school students, so it wasn''t a public rtionship, but a secret between them. They exchanged texts and asionally visited each other''s homes. It seemed to be smooth sailing.


    "We managed to kiss twice, you know? Well, she initiated though..."


    He seemed a little embarrassed rather than shy.


    But fate took a turn for Watanabe when they became third years.


    They ended up in different sses due to a ss shuffle.


    In that ss was a male friend from elementary school who apparently ended up liking the girl. It didn''t require much to know what that meant.


    "In the end��she apologized to me on the phone while crying. ''I''m sorry, we can''t date anymore...'' she said. Telling me she liked me on the phone, then telling me she didn''t like me on the phone. It''sughable."


    After that, she started dating Watanabe''s close friend.


    "I guess it couldn''t be helped... but it was hard. What really stung was when my close friendughed while telling me he had dumped her a few monthster."


    Watanabe and the girl''s rtionship was a secret. Therefore, his close friend probably didn''t mean any harm.


    Of course, it wasn''t impossible that he knew and did it out of spite.


    "I''m shy about love... I thought I would never fall for anyone, but then I fell for another girl as soon as I entered this school... Go figure, right?"


    Watanabe was positive and cheerful. I always saw him as someone who was just shy about love, but his past was marked by memories that made you think.


    "So, there you have it. I never intended to share such an embarrassing past with anyone. So, I want you to believe me... I won''t tell anyone about today."


    An exchange of secrets. That was the best Watanabe could offer.


    He yed a card he didn''t have to and reiterated that he surrendered unconditionally.


    "Today''s talk was going to be about... well, the girl I like. Not that anything has developed, but you know, sometimes you want to talk to friends, right?"


    What did Amikura look like today? Was she watching me? Was my story interesting? He seemed like he just wanted to confirm that.


    "I was actually nning to turn back immediately, however, Ichinose forgot her phone and dyed my timing a bit... but I never thought she''d stay..."


    Of course, it must have been chaos for Watanabe.


    Watanabe had heard from Amikura and Himeno that Ichinose might have a crush on me.


    Therefore, he wouldn''t be surprised about that part, but that wasn''t the focus here.


    "My unrequited love. Nothing more, nothing less. It''s a fact that Mako-chan and Chihiro-chan also know I''m in love with Ayanok��ji-kun."


    She admitted it herself as if she could no longer hide it. However, as mentioned earlier, this fact was not well hidden. It was known by quite a few people, so it wasn''t a particrly big revtion.


    "I just went back to get something I forgot, and on a whim..."


    "I-I see... A whim..."


    Watanabe appeared to understand, but he was certainly confused. It was no wonder. Before him was none other than Ichinose. The fact that she had been aggressively pursuing someone, whether it was unrequited love or otherwise, was heavy.


    "I think I understand you better after our conversation today, Watanabe-kun. You like Mako-chan, don''t you?"


    "Wh-what!? H-how did you...!?"


    "It''s obvious if you look at it. Recently, you''ve been especially fixated on Mako-chan."


    Anyone would''ve noticed it at today''s gathering, not just Ichinose. Watanabe''s gaze and passion were intense and too obvious to hide.


    "Mako-chan still seems to like her middle school ssmate, but she also wants to embark on a new love. I don''t know who Mako-chan''s feelings will be for, but as her best friend, I feel I can trust you."


    This was a loving proposition from Ichinose. Watanabe was trying to seek forgiveness by talking about his past secrets, but Ichinose was nning on implementing an insurance strategy. She offered information about Amikura''s current state and hinted that she might act as a bridge between the two.


    Watanabe was timid when it came to love, but his feelings for Amikura were genuine.


    It was because they were genuine that he didn''t have the courage to push forward.


    If he could depend on Ichinose''s help, it was like having an invaluable asset. A strong ally.


    Their rtionship of trust went from 100% to 120%. Watanabe''s emotions werepletely controlled by Ichinose.


    "R-really? Are you sure?"


    "Of course. First off, you''ll need to slowly close the distance with Mako-chan."


    "R-right!"


    Watanabe replied in excitement. It was likely he still felt guilty for having seen something he shouldn''t have, but that would gradually be painted over.


    A love triangle. An illicit scandal.


    All these things were ultimately someone else''s business, something temporary and exciting.


    If he were to spread this topic spontaneously, Ichinose would be an enemy.


    If he were to keep this topic to himself, Ichinose would be an ally.


    If it was clearly advantageous for you, desiring it was only natural.


    In conclusion, whether Ichinose and I suffered through a tragic love triangle held no bearing as long as his own love seeded.


    Control a situation that could be perilous and steer it in a favorable direction.


    Ichinose noticed that Kanzaki and the others were acting suspiciously.


    Watanabe, who had been siding with the Kanzaki''s reformation group, hadpletely joined Ichinose''s side here.


    It was a difficult decision for me to make.


    I had nned to instigate Kanzaki to change the ss, but it could be said that Ichinose had already started changing it without my intent.


    Whether this action would lead to ss unity or chaos was uncertain.


    Given this, perhaps it wouldn''t be toote to wait and see until the end of the school year��

 Chapter 441: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 441: 5.3</h4>


    It was around 8 in the evening.


    Alone in my room, I, Hashimoto, let out a big sigh.


    "No contact as expected. She''s probably nning to just rx and wait for the exam," I thought.


    Given her past achievements, the probability of her winning without doing anything wasn''t low.


    Seventy or eighty percent. That was how likely it would be for Sakayanagi to secure first ce or at worst, second.


    But this alone wouldn''t be enough.


    There was something crucial that needed to be done to ensure we maintain ss A.


    I prepared myself and called Sakayanagi. It would be a battle to determine how I''d fight.


    "It''s unusual for you to call at this hour, Hashimoto-kun."


    Sakayanagi''s voice came through the phone, apanied by soft ssical music in the background.


    "Sorry for calling sote, princess."


    "Don''t worry. Please tell me what you have on your mind."


    You could easily tell from her calm demeanor that she had plenty of time to converse.


    "Today''s tea party was fun, but there are some things that I need to address. Based on my investigations, it seems that the potential risk isn''t present. I thought I would report that to assure you."


    It was just a jab. I created a flow to gauge her reaction. I would take it slow and steady. It was for this reason that I had simted this many times in my head after returning home.


    "What risk are you referring to?"


    This woman always yed dumb even when she knew what was going on.


    It would''ve been fine if it were towards the enemies, but it was more aimed at allies.


    She didn''t want uncontrolled information in her ears, just to enjoy everything on her own terms.


    "It''s obvious, isn''t it? The possibility that the three sses will join hands and attack ss A. If the three sses join hands, they can manipte the majority of points. There''d be no chance of winning if done fairly."


    "You seem rather worried about such a small issue."


    It was no small issue to face all three sses as enemies? I was nervously trying to figure out if that possibility existed.


    "I''m worried. You may not be, Princess, but for me, forming alliances is a threat in itself. It allows them to fire concentrated attacks at ss A."


    "These three sses are fighting their hardest to get to ss A. They want to win as many ss points as possible in the special exam. It won''t be easy for them to join hands just to bring down ss A."


    I understood what she was saying. Even if ss A cesst, we would just drop from the top. Ichinose and Ry��en''s sses wouldn''t profit substantially. Ayanok��ji and Horikita''s ss would stand to lose if they got first.


    "But if someone capable of carrying that out lurks in the shadows, then it''s a different story."


    If Ayanok��ji was the kind of person I thought he was, he''d be able to pull it off.


    "I won''tpletely deny that possibility. But is that why you called me?"


    She seemed to hint that I was wasting her time.


    "No, there''s more. In fact, this is the main part. I want to contribute to the ss."


    For the sake of the special exam, I conveyed all the information that I had gathered up until that point to Sakayanagi.


    K��enji made a promise with Horikita, and she was going to honor it. I couldn''t specify about it, but it seemed Ry��en had made contact with their ssmates and was scheming about something.


    Which student from other sses should be prioritized for expulsion, and so on.


    I even included obscure details that would seem meaningless to the average person.


    "So... this is all the information I have about Horikita''s ss."


    I wanted her to buy my enthusiasm.


    Action for the purpose of constructing an unshakeable ss A.


    "You certainly worked hard to gather information, Hashimoto-kun."


    My wishes had been gratified, and my fervor seemingly resonated over the phone.


    "Of course. With a rival earning an astonishing number of ss Points, I want to gather every small piece of information and share it with you, Princess. The best time would have been during that tea party though."


    "You''re a hard worker. Are you dating Maezono-san for information, not love?"


    So it hade to this. Sakayanagi may not have legs, but she had many eyes. I had been seen openly dating Maezono several times. I mustn''t panic. I had to deal with this calmly.


    "Well, that''s also part of the strategy. When did you find out?"


    "I''ve noticed that you''ve been in contact with her a lot recently. The audio data regarding the Ayanok��ji ''threat discussion'' that you shared with Masumi-san, was prepared by her, wasn''t it?"


    "Oh, dear. Did Masumi-chan tell you that?"


    This is bad for my heart.


    I would''ve been scared stiff if I hadn''t prepared for the worst.


    Even if I asked Kamuro, she would probably say, ''I wasn''t told not to tell Sakayanagi. Even if I was told, whether or not I would tell is up to me.''


    "Anyway, I hope you can utilize the information, Princess."


    "I will sincerely ept your kindness. I''m not sure how much use I can make out of it, but I''ll put it to good use."


    "If I heard correctly, it doesn''t sound like you want to utilize the information."


    "I already have a basic strategy. I will not rely solely on the information you''ve collected. However, now that I''ve heard it, there are parts I''ll inevitably have to incorporate."


    She seemed less than thrilled with the information now that she knew it.


    "Is it unnecessary?"


    "Yes. During the special exam, unexpected things can lead to fun. You actually stole some of my fun."


    She never failed to amuse me with her ridiculous statements.


    She treated the sses as her own property and didn''t even try to fight for the ss A privileges.


    It''s just a hobby. Don''t get me involved in such things.


    "So, can you guarantee that you can win this time?"


    "I won''t lose. You''ll understand if you watch from the sidelines."


    Based on her confidence and past results, I might have been less worried.


    I had gathered too much information.


    Ayanok��ji''s existence had forced significant changes in my ns.


    "Jeez, you''re so confident... I get it. Then don''t worry about what I said. I''ll just observe, as long as no problems arise."


    At that point, it was pointless to press further.


    For me, I had vented all I could during this phone call.


    "Please do. Then..."


    During the call, her voice remained calm, but it seemed like she was suppressing her unease.


    Sakayanagi hated help. She wanted to fight with the information she collected and her own mind only.


    That was why she was annoyed by the unexpected provision of information.


    Even if it wasn''t the best, it felt a bit refreshing.


    "Serves you right."


    I had taken a few blows, but my battle was far from over.


    This was where the real deal began.


    Compared to the resolve it took to call Sakayanagi, I don''t know how much more I''ll need, but I will execute my winning strategy.

 Chapter 442 - 6 : The Square of Offense and Defense

    <h4>Chapter 442: Chapter 6 : The Square of Offense and Defense</h4>


    IT SEEMED THAT the teachers hadpleted the preparation for the special exam the day before. When I went to school at the usual time this morning, the inside of the ssroom had slightly changed.


    The five desks in the front row where Horikita and the others sat were slightly pushed forward, with a tablet and pen ced on each of them. Furthermore, dividers were installed at each end of the desk. Looks like they implemented measures to prevent students from cheating when they look to the desks adjacent to them.


    Even if there were no dividers, there was still a peep-proof filter applied to the tablet. Therefore, the role of the dividers may have been to prevent indirectlymunicating information, such as via eye contact.


    Five new desks and chairs were ced behind thest row, probably set up for the five students who originally sat in the front row.


    A maximum of five nominated students would sit in the new front row and solve the problems.


    It was practically impossible to easily cheat with the new setup. It allowed teachers to closely monitor the students.


    "Did you sleep wellst night?"


    I asked Horikita, who had just taken her seat behind me.


    "About the usual. There was nothing more I could do, and all I had to do was manage my health appropriately."


    "You had a tough time when you got a fever during the first deserted ind exam."


    "Shut up. I''ll stab you."


    "I''m sorry."


    I didn''t know why I''d get stabbed, but I didn''t want to, so I apologized.


    "Do you feel at ease?" she asked.


    "Not at all. In fact, I might be a burden, so please be understanding."


    There was no way Sakayanagi or Ichinose would attack me with a straightforward academic question.


    "I''m sorry, but I absolutely won''t use the protection on you."


    "You absolutely won''t, huh..."


    It was disheartening to be in a position where no one would protect me from the start. I thought she was half joking, but it was better to think that I wouldn''t be getting any support.


    Shortly thereafter, with everyone in Horikita''s ss confirmed present and without any absences, Chabashira-sensei left the ssroom with words of encouragement.


    In this type of special exam, it had be customary for a homeroom teacher from another ss, not the students'' own teacher, to oversee the test. It was an inevitable measure to ascertain fairness.


    Shortly after, Sakagami-sensei, Ry��en''s homeroom teacher, appeared in the ssroom.


    "I am Sakagami, appointed as the teacher in charge of this ss for this exam. I will notify you of the order of attack and some notes for this special exam."


    Sakagami-sensei announced, calmly and concisely, and then stopped talking.


    He silently operated the tablet and disyed theyout and a notice on the monitor.


    Special Exam Layout


    ��ss B����ss C


    �� ��


    ��ss A����ss D


    NOTICE


    The toilet is to be used only during the 10-minute break every four turns.


    A 40-minute break, including lunchtime, will be given after 10 turns (first half).


    Whispering or using your phone is allowed except for when the selected students are solving the problem.


    Students who are unable to continue the exam due to ill health or other reasons deemed to be disruptive will be treated as eliminated.


    Students found cheating will be immediately treated as eliminated and all their points will be forfeited.


    Although the instructions included some new information, there was nothing particrly surprising. The selected students couldn''t escape an attack by feigning, nor could they dy it. Unlike regr written exams, the questions were different for each participant, so there wouldn''t be a situation where students hid in the bathroom to share their answers with each other. Because of that, students from other sses running into each other wouldn''t be an issue. In any case, it was irrelevant if phones could be used.


    The ss arrangements and attack order seemed more critical.


    First, the turn began with ss B, Horikita''s ss, attacking Ichinose''s ss C. Then Ichinose would attack Ry��en''s ss D, followed by Ry��en attacking Sakayanagi''s ss A. Finally, Sakayanagi''s ss A would attack Horikita''s ss toplete a single turn, which would be repeated for a total of 10 times.


    All of this will be reversed in the second half as the order goes counter-clockwise.


    Horikita started looking at her phone immediately after confirming the flow of the offense and defense on the screen.


    At this point, all strategies against Ry��en''s ss became unnecessary for Horikita.


    She must''ve switched to pulling up offensive and defensive strategies against Ichinose''s ss and Sakayanagi''s ss.


    With only a surface evaluation, it was a positive having Ichinose''s ss as an opponent, a ss that was expected to only take straightforward approaches. On the other hand, it would be a negative having to wear down our nerves during a confrontation with Sakayanagi, who had a sharp mind in addition to the overall strength of her ss.


    As a participant, I decided to watch how it would turn out.


    However, there was no time to be so leisurely.


    Reviewing the 16 categories of this special exam again, I didn''t n to invalidate the interpretation that being eliminated meant expulsion; this unusual rule even made me bear the risk of expulsion when considering special exams over thest two years. I''d be able to pull through in academic subjects, but in other categories such as ''Subculture'' and ''Entertainment,'' to put it bluntly, I was below average. Even if there were three exemptions to protect me, there were still chances I would encounter problems I didn''t know the answer to, and I couldn''t deny the possibility that I could be eliminated.


    If Sakayanagi and Ichinose conspired against me and made me the only eliminated student in this ss, and the ss dropped tost ce, expulsion was inevitable.


    I didn''t think this rule was irrational as a student. Rather, it was only such an exam that made some students shine. It was a way to make the existence of new talents known.


    "Now, let''smence the special exam. For the first turn, this ss makes the first attack. Please select the category and difficulty level as previously exined and nominate five students."


    Sakagami-sensei signaled to start the special exam.


    The time limit for the offensive and defensive selections was just three minutes. It wasn''t a very generous time limit.


    There was no ce for thinking during our turn, but for conveying our thoughts. It''d be better to have discussions during the longer time we get observing other sses'' movements.


    The only time that pattern would break would be in unexpected situations.


    "We''re starting while flying blind. Let''s just proceed as discussed with Hirata-kun and the others."


    With a firm confirmation, Horikita reached out to the main tablet.


    Since I didn''t participate in the discussion, I didn''t have any information on their strategies.


    The category, difficulty level, and nominees were to be verballymunicated to the leader.


    Following Horikita''s instructions, Sakagami-sensei immediately reflected her choices on the monitor.


    Category ''English'' Difficulty Level 1


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''Kobashi Yume,'' ''Watanabe Norihito,'' ''Sumida Makoto,'' ''Ninomiya Yui,'' ''Shibata S��''


    The category was ''English.'' The targets were students in Ichinose''s ss who weren''t academically inclined. The ss made a strategic choice for a subject that could be easily evaluated; a safe selection. We couldn''t be flexible in selecting the difficulty level since the score was still at zero.


    Given the fact that we were the first ones up, it was natural to choose an academic-rted category. All of the sses, including Horikita''s, would determine the tendencies of the questions and the standard difficulty level depending on the first problem.


    However, many of Ichinose''s students were well-rounded academically, and all their grades were currently C or higher. The students who were called upon became inevitably crucial, but who were struggling with which subjects could only be discerned from past exam results or individual interactions.


    It was easier to exploit the opponent''s weaknesses with non-academic, irregr categories.


    This was because it could easily be fatal for students who weren''t familiar with ''Subculture'' or ''Entertainment.''


    However, it took courage to attack like that in the first move. Because it was irregr, it would be more difficult to judge others'' strengths and weaknesses than in academic-rted categories, and it was also difficult to anticipate the level of difficulty.


    Now, I quietly watched to see who Ichinose was going to protect.


    The defensive''s nominations were finished, and the screen changed.


    Defensive''s Protected Students:


    ''Ninomiya Yui,'' ''Watanabe Norihito''


    "So that means these two are protected, right?"


    Looking at the monitor, Nishimura, who hasn''t fully understood the situation, confirmed with Horikita.


    "...That''s right. Ichinose-san''s ss has unconditionally earned two points. It was up to the remaining three to decide whether they get more points or not."


    In Ichinose''s ss, three students had opted out of doing the ''English'' category. While they had the option to choose from 36 students, excluding the leader, the fact that two of them were protected wasn''t a favorable oue.


    This wasn''t surprising. It seemed that they directly defended ssmates who weren''t good at English.


    It might''ve been because it was the first turn, but it was a very straightforward move.


    The question shown to the opponent''s ss was also disyed here.


    ''Add one word to the following sentence and rearrange it so that the meaning remains the same:''


    In order for everyone to grow, a certain amount of hardship is always necessary.


    [everyone/amount/necessary/always/a/grow/of/hardship/for/is/to][10]


    [10 : The text in brackets was originally English in the raw Japanese text, while the sentence above that is in Japanese. The students are supposed to use words from the brackets to solve the trantion question]


    "What is this? Isn''t this difficult!?"


    Some students simr to Ike cried out, standing up from their seats and with their heads in their arms.


    At the same time, academically capable students like Horikita and Y��suke exchangedplex nces.


    "The difficulty seems just about right."


    "Right. It''s not too difficult if you regrly study."


    Looking at the given problem, the ss''s thoughts would''ve been divided in two.


    Ichinose''s ss was academically stable.


    How much the lower performing students could achieve was going to be revealed��


    The results of the remaining three students who answered the first question were disyed on the monitor.


    Correct Students:


    ''Kobashi Yume,'' ''Shibata S��''


    With those two protected, the total points amounted to four. It was more than enough to start.


    Next, Ichinose''s ssunched an attack on Ry��en''s ss. The category was ''Economics.''


    In response, Ry��en managed to protect one person.


    However, they were unable to produce any correct answers and only managed to secure one point.


    The disadvantage of having many students who were weak at studying was already showing.


    It was a painful situation, as Ichinose had gained four points inparison, but there was no time to be disheartened.


    They had a chance to cancel out the score if they had secured four or more points when they were on the defensive. It was important to avoid having the nominees protected and to prevent the opponents from getting the correct answers, but what was more important in this special exam was to get a high percentage of questions right when on the defensive side. Only then could they earn points.


    In Ry��en ss''s attack, Sakayanagi protected one person, and three answered the question correctly and received four points.


    Then, at the end of the first turn, Sakayanagi''s ss began their attack on Horikita''s ss.


    "It''s about to start."


    "Yes. I wonder how Sakayanagi-san will attack..."


    Sakayanagi''s chosen category was announced.


    Category ''Arithmetic'' Difficulty Level 1


    In arithmetics, there were questions like simple mental math with addition and multiplication or fill-in-the-nks. How challenging would they be at difficulty level one? There were a surprising number of students who were weak in math; seven people in Horikita''s ss had chosen it as one of their excluded categories.


    However, the point of contention was certainly how K��enji was treated.


    If we were to stick to the promise, we''d need to protect him.


    He was a guy who demonstrated exceptional talent in the deserted ind exam, but he basically lived freely and didn''t have a proactive approach toward special exams. Yet, there were few reasons for other sses to specifically target the highly talented and quick-witted K��enji.


    But a promise was a promise. How would they judge based on that��


    Defensive''s Protected Students:


    ''Sonoda Chiyoda,'' ''Ichihashi Ruri,'' ''Okitani Ky��suke,'' ''Ike Kanji,'' ''Makida Susumu''


    K��enji''s name was not included in the five that Horikita had chosen to protect.


    K��enji, who didn''t care about the special exam, showed no reaction to the result.


    "H-hey, Suzune. Are you sure you don''t need to protect that guy?"


    Sud�� panicked. He seemed to have been keeping an eye on K��enji the whole time.


    "The exam only puts you at risk of expulsion if you get eliminated. I decided he was safe until he got two questions wrong. There''s no other reason to protect him from the onset."


    "Well, yeah, that makes sense..."


    Sud�� was surprised for a moment, but he was immediately convinced.


    "However, in return, of course, K��enji-kun is free to either answer the given task seriously or leave it nk. Are you fine with that?"


    K��enji didn''t seem to have been bothered by the fact that she had asked after the n was already established.


    "Do as you like."


    Even though she promised not to let him get expelled, it wasn''t like she could protect him from everything like a baby. The measures Horikita took were the minimum required strategy.


    Moreover, she assured him that he could freely answer the questions, but if he actually got selected, it was possible that even K��enji would want to avoid being pointlessly eliminated. Even if someone was said to be 99% safe, they usually still worried about the remaining 1%. They wouldn''t strangle themselves.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Okitani Ky��suke,'' ''Ike Kanji''


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''Ishikura Kayoko,'' ''Kikuchi Eita,'' ''Inogashira Kokoro''


    Horikita sessfully protected two members in her first defense.


    That was arge score of two. Although it was the first turn, she managed to rank third at this point.


    If all three nominees were to answer the question correctly, she could temporarily rise to first ce. But would they?


    The nervous participants sat in front of the tablet disying the question and confronted it.


    Until they were finished answering, they had to remain silent, so the spectators quietly watched over them.


    ''Time limit 1 minute. 15 x 24 x 16 = ?''


    They were asked a multiplication question. Of course, the three of them had no choice but to solve it mentally.


    The difficulty would greatly increase if they had to solve it in their heads, even for an answer that could easily be found calcting on paper. It appeared to be an easy question, but seeing the panic in the participants, it was clear that they were struggling.


    The minute flew by, and the result was... one correct answer.


    The other two, excluding Ishikura, missed the answer and returned to their seats apologetically.


    Upon seeing the choices and their results, I was curious about Sakayanagi''s interesting decision in the first turn.


    Ishikura is one of the strongest math students in the ss. Arithmetics and math, to some extent, call for two different skills, but numbers are involved in both. Ishikura didn''t need to feel at risk when trying to select the right answer. There were other holes that Sakayanagi could''ve targeted besides the seven that were exempted from ''Arithmetics.''


    It was possible that Sakayanagi was ignorant of Ishikura''s abilities, but she saw Ishikura tackle a math problem in our first year''s final exam. Some other random student could''ve missed it, but I can''t imagine Sakayanagi doing so.


    Alternatively, she could''ve decided that we wouldn''t protect students good at arithmetic like Ishikura, and therefore chose her to ensure that she would take on the task.


    With all the offensive and defensive tasks over, the first turn had ended.


    With three points, it wasn''t a bad start, and the ss got off to a safe first turn.


    In the second turn, Horikita announced five names as the attacker.


    Ichinose''s ss failed to protect any students, and two of them got the question right, earning them a total score of 6 points.


    Ry��en''s ss sessfully protected one student and one of them got the question right, earning a total score of 3 points.


    Sakayanagi''s ss sessfully protected 1 student and 3 of them got the question right, earning a total score of 8 points.


    It had just started, but a slight difference among the sses had begun to form in just the second turn.


    It was now the second defensive turn for Horikita''s ss.


    Sakayanagi changed her chosen category from ''Arithmetic'' to ''Gourmet Food,'' with a difficulty of 1.


    Even though I wasn''t asked, I''d wager that my ssmates have already assessed who excels or falters in this type of category. Horikita confidently told Sakagami-sensei the names of her five protected members.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    None


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''K��enji Rokusuke,'' ''Hasebe Haruka,'' ''Hirata Y��suke,'' ''Yukimura Teruhiko,'' ''Onodera Kayano''


    Unfortunately, the protected slots ended up being aplete miss.


    The problemid in the list of people who had been nominated. K��enji''s name was listed first among the five candidates.


    It was a long, 20-turn battle, and it wasn''t strange that K��enji would be nominated...


    But what mattered was how K��enji would behave when he was given a task he could solve on his own.


    ''State the meaning of a knife and fork being ced on a te in the shape of ''��'' while eating French cuisine.''


    [11 : �� is the kanji for 8, they are meant to trace this shape]


    It was a simple question that could easily be answered with the knowledge learned since entering school.


    But K��enji''s result was... incorrect due to him leaving it nk.


    He clearly hadn''t even moved to pick up the pen.


    Of the remaining four, it seemed that Keisei had unfortunately made a mistake in answering.


    Immediately after it was announced that he was incorrect, he smacked the table as if suddenly remembering the correct answer.


    Although this was a bit of a setback, an additional three points were earned, bringing the total score up to six.


    "Hey! K��enji, you''re not taking this seriously, are you?!"


    Although he wasn''t shouting, Sud�� expressed his anger.


    This wasn''t just his personal opinion. You could say this was him taking the initiative to represent the ss and warn him.


    It was only natural for the others to be upset if he showed no intent to try to solve the problem.


    "You''re wrong to me me. If you''re dissatisfied, all you have to do is guard me next time."


    "Screw you... You''re just saying whatever you like..."


    It was natural for him to feel dissatisfied, but there was no need to worry unless two mistakes were made.


    The ss must''ve felt a little relieved seeing Horikita''s unconcerned stance on the nk answer.


    It would be a problem if she didn''t keep their promise and went on a rampage to expel K��enji, but she probably didn''t want to use the valuable protection slot in vain.


    K��enji, who held his ground, gave Horikita a smirk and returned to his seat.


    On the other hand, Keisei, who had genuinely made a mistake on the problem, came down to apologize to Horikita.


    "I''m sorry, Horikita, I was so nervous that the answer didn''te to me right away... even though I was supposed to know it."


    "I''m not that worried about you. But, just to be safe, if I feel like you''re being attacked in the same category again, I''m going to protect you. Alright?"


    Sakayanagi would never leave any stone unturned. That was why Keisei obediently nodded, knowing that if Horikita sensed danger, she would firmly protect him. In return, Horikita also nodded.


    The battle began this way, alternating between offense and defense.


    Every time a question was presented, the students probably had no spare time to keep an eye on their phones as part of their strategy.


    On the other hand, the leader didn''t have to worry about being nominated, but they also didn''t have a moment''s rest.


    Were they ready to appropriately change the nominated students and how would they deal the question to the opponent?


    With almost no time to even talk, Horikita was scrambling between her phone and the opened notebook.


    Sakayanagi''s turn came around for the third time. She attacked again with a ''Gourmet Food'' question.


    And yet, the difficulty level remained at one. It would be an easy question. Given that we had answered correctly on our own three times, I didn''t think she would pick the same category again, but it seemed that her aim was different.


    Did she see a gap in how K��enji and Keisei, two capable ss members, had gotten it wrong?


    As per the strategymunicated beforehand, Horikita was to protect Keisei while selecting four others.


    However��


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    None


    Offense Side Nominated:


    ''K��enji Rokusuke,'' ''S��shi Miyamoto,'' ''Wataru Ij��in,'' ''Sat�� Maya,'' ''Sana Azuma''


    This made it the second consecutive nomination for K��enji. Moreover, the rest of the lineup was totally changed.


    On the contrary, Sakayanagi hadn''t nominated Keisei, whom Horikita had protected.


    "Did she read us? I wonder..."


    As the words suggested, attacking and defending was a game of reading each other. If they attacked in the same category, it was standard for the defense to move to prevent elimination. Naturally, there was no point in aiming for Keisei, who could potentially be protected.


    However, the same went for K��enji.


    For both K��enji and Keisei��I wondered what different criteria Sakayanagi had in mind.


    One thing was for sure, it was a precise read, as if she''d seen right through our thoughts.


    K��enji, who rose from his seat again, walked up with confidence.


    "K��enji-kun. Although we can''t force you as a ss, I think it would be prudent to get this right for your own sake."


    Once everyone was sitting at the test-taking seats, conversing was strictly prohibited, so Y��suke had to tell him as K��enji passed by.


    However, seemingly unconcerned about being protected in future turns, K��enji once again submitted a nk answer. This was too much for his ssmates to endure, but the saving grace was that the remaining four had answered correctly.


    In other words, the third question was simpler and moremon sense.


    It was hard to be content with K��enji''s performance. If he was participating properly, there was a chance he could answer everything perfectly, and he wouldn''t even need to be protected.


    At the end of the third turn, Sakayanagi''s ss was in first ce with 11 points, Horikita''s ss in second ce with 10 points, Ichinose''s ss in third ce with 9 points, and Ry��en''s ss at the bottom with 5 points. If K��enji had cooperated, we would''ve had 12 points and been in first ce.


    There was nothing that could be done with K��enji refusing to respond to Y��suke''s request.


    Sakayanagi''s ss, which had consistently held first ce since the start, should be stopped as soon as possible, but we could only wait and see what would happen in the first half of the exam, and everything depended on Ry��en''s skill. However, Ry��en''s ss clearly seemed to be behind and struggling in both offense and defense.


    Rather than being about luck or the ability to read each other, it seemed like the difference in capabilities among the ss was apparent.


    It was the fourth turn, and Horikita''s defensive turn came.


    Category ''Gourmet Food'' Difficulty Level 2


    Here, Sakayanagi surprisingly picked the same genre for the third consecutive time.


    However, this time, the difficulty level had increased to 2, meaning she had spent one point to attack.


    "Again with the ''Gourmet Food.'' What the hell is Sakayanagi thinking?"


    However, the ss was more preupied with the repeated selection of the same category than the difficulty level.


    Given that K��enji was now on the brink of elimination, were they nning to intensify their attack?


    Among all the sses, this was the first time the difficulty level had been raised, probably as an experimental attempt, considering that the first and second problems were simple.


    "No matter how you look at it, K��enji won''t try here, right?"


    "Don''t you know? They might think this is a chance to defeat K��enji-kun."


    Up to this point, K��enji had consistently left ''Gourmet Food'' questions unanswered. He no longer had any leeway. Should he defend himself because of this, or was he deliberately not trying precisely because of his vulnerable position?


    This category choice was clearly being swayed by the enemy with K��enji at the center.


    However, the circumstances of this ss were unlike those of a typical one.


    If he failed here as well, K��enji would be the first eliminated in the ss.


    Given that she had agreed to protect him beforehand, if Horikita were to uphold her honor, she would have no choice but to put it into action.


    If the enemy was targeting K��enji, he could secure them a point.


    However, while all eyes were on Horikita, K��enji''s name was not among the five mentioned.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Shinohara Satsuki,'' ''Sud�� Ken''


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''K��enji Rokusuke,'' ''Sotomura Hideo,'' ''Miyake Akito''


    The ssmates who had been quietly watching until now were visibly confused.


    "H-Horikita-san?"


    Y��suke was the most astonished. He''d believed in the promise and sprang up.


    "Suzune, are you okay? I mean, if K��enji fails again, he will be eliminated, right?"


    Sud�� also asked the same question. However, Horikita quietly stared ahead without responding. Even though he was the one who should be most rmed, K��enji was the only one in this situation who didn''t change his expression.


    "Hahaha. You did it, Horikita girl."


    To those who didn''t think deeply, it looked as if Horikita had abandoned K��enji.


    A person who broke promises. Such an act of treachery could stick with you. Losing the trust of your ss was not a wise move, considering the flow of the unanimous voting exam.


    K��enji, without uttering any more words, came forward and sat down, like the other students.


    The question was indeed harder than thest two. Students looked at each other and expressed their confusion by nodding. Normally, it was uncertain how well K��enji knew gourmet food, but there was a suspicious atmosphere about him.


    The three moved to answer.


    Then, the man who didn''t even hold his pen twice finally moved.


    From what was seen, his hand moved smoothly without any hesitation, but is he really...?


    Correct Students:


    ''K��enji Rokusuke''


    For the first time, K��enji''s name appeared in the correct students column, avoiding both a nk and incorrect answer.


    This meant that K��enji had solved the question in order to avoid elimination.


    "What''s the matter, K��enji? You were scared after all, weren''t you?!"


    Sud�� made fun of K��enji, who had seriously answered the question, and expressed his relief.


    He expressed an attitude that he wouldn''t want people to be eliminated, even if he disliked them.


    "I''ll leave that for you to decide."


    K��enji''s thoughts were unclear, but ording tomon sense, it was only natural.


    If he didn''t get the right answer, he''d be eliminated and be a candidate for expulsion.


    The current concern would be Horikita''s choice.


    The reality was that she didn''t protect K��enji, who left a nk answer twice and was on the verge of elimination.


    Even if he answered seriously when cornered, one mistake would have meant the end.


    It was a situation where she had to protect him, even if she was confident he''d get the correct answer.


    The ss was troubled by this, and even Y��suke couldn''t easily verify the truth.


    Of course, this man who was directly involved was an exception.


    K��enji, who passed me by and stood in front of Horikita, muttered.


    "What''s your intention? I''d like to hear your reasons."


    "Reasons? Was there a problem?"


    "Oh?"


    K��enji smiled at Horikita, who looked up at K��enji without any embarrassment.


    "You''re not out. You don''t have to worry about being eliminated at this point, right?"


    "But if I hadn''t gotten the right answer, I would have been eliminated. What''d you think of that?"


    "But you gave the correct answer."


    "Hmm, indeed. My apologies, it seems I acted preemptively."


    "If you understand, could you go back to your seat? From your height, you''re blocking my view of the monitor."


    Everyone except K��enji was confused by the conversation. It seemed as if she had abandoned him.


    I could''ve calmed everyone down by exining Horikita''s thoughts and the benefits of not protecting K��enji, but of course, I continued to watch silently.


    It wasn''t that I wanted to make the ss nervous for no reason, but I had another aim.


    The fact that Horikita, the leader, didn''t exin things to her ssmates was the best evidence of this.


    Horikita didn''t panic in the face of the ss''s suspicious looks. She didn''t nominate K��enji to be protected even under Sakayanagi''s attack in the fifth round, which was likely to be more serious.


    But at the same time, K��enji''s name disappeared from the list of those being attacked.


    From other students'' perspectives, without any protection on K��enji, since he had reached this point, he would be the one to target, but Sakayanagi had avoided doing this.


    There was a chance that K��enji, who had seriously answered the question and was the only one to correctly answer the difficulty level 2 ''Gourmet Food'' question, was recognized as a toughpetitor.


    Many students probably misunderstood it this way. By K��enji answering correctly instead of submitting a nk paper, it could no longer be expected that he''d make more mistakes. So, they started avoiding nominating him.


    It was a risky bet that could''ve lost the trust of her peers, but Horikita won with her intuition.


    K��enji''s name was absent from the nomination. Upon seeing the results, Horikita''s face darkened.


    "I guess the opponent won''t easily fall for it..."


    Being close to her, I was the only one able to pick up on her quiet mumbles.


    The first half of the special exam went smoothly as countless exciting offensive and defensive battles unfurled.


    It was amon urrence in all sses, but the number of students who answered wrong gradually increased. By the end of the 7th turn, Ishizaki from Ry��en''s ss was the first to be out. He was followed in the 8th turn by Sotomura and Ij��in from Horikita''s ss, along with Isoyama and Yano from Ry��en''s ss. Kamuro from Sakayanagi''s ss was eliminated as well. As thest turn of the first half came to an end, Hond�� from Horikita''s ss, Morofuji from Ry��en''s ss, and Yamamura from Sakayanagi''s ss were also eliminated.


    Results at the end of the first half:


    1st: Sakayanagi[ss A]29 points, with Kamuro and Yamamura out.


    2nd: Horikita[ss B]28 points, with Sotomura, Ij��in, and Hond�� out.


    3rd: Ichinose[ss C]24 points, with no losses.


    4th: Ry��en[ss D]19 points, with Ishizaki, Isoyama, Yano, and Morofuji out.


    A total count of nine people were out. It seemed like a lot, but I was sure the second half would only elerate things.


    Many students were already on the brink after making their second mistake, so the number could increase.


    In spite of this, only Ichinose''s ss had yet to have any eliminations.


    At first nce, this could''ve been seen as Ichinose''s fine y, but it wasn''t.


    "Your strategy worked out, Horikita-san," Y��suke praised, approaching Horikita.


    "Yes, her stance hasn''t changed even in this special exam. Thanks to that, we managed to keep things under control."


    I wonder how many of her ssmates realized that Horikita had been strategizing against Ichinose.


    The reason there were no dropouts was due to Horikita''s tactics. She intentionally targeted attacks to ensure that five members of the opposing side were perpetually on the brink of elimination.


    Ichinose was determined to protect her ssmates at all costs. Hence, to ensure that a sixth member wasn''t pushed to the brink, Horikita diversified her attacks.


    On the other hand, even though Ichinose understood that the attacks were being spread out, she seemed determined to continue protecting those on the brink.


    Ever since those five members were put at risk, not a single protection had been sessful.


    If even one person failed to be protected and was eliminated, there would be a chance of expulsion.


    "But she really is unyielding. Normally, no one would take such a reckless defense strategy. She knows that even if she manages to protect people in the first half, it will gradually be tougher."


    Exactly. As it stood, her ss had the highest number of students who answered incorrectly.


    "In the second half, Ichinose-san will have to protect her ss from Ry��en-kun. That could be tough."


    "Assuming she gives up protecting everyone in the second half, perhaps, but..."


    Knowing Ry��en, he might make a big move in thest turn or two.


    "But for now, we need to focus on ourselves. With only one point behind, we still have a chance."


    Sakayanagi''s ss was a step ahead from the beginning, but Horikita was catching up. Her ss seemed to be covering for her being slightly behind.


    "As far as I can tell, the school designs the questions so that, excluding cases where students have been sessfully protected, roughly half of the students will be able to answer them correctly. However, when the difficulty increases by one level, the sess rate drops to about 20%, and at difficulty level three, it''s only around 10%."


    Difficulty level three hardly left any possibility of a correct answer, and you couldn''t use two points often.


    Being protected could offset the losses, but the second half likely wouldn''t see an increase in the usage of it.


    It was interesting to watch the two top-ranked sses battling it out, but the bottom two sses were concerning too, especially Ry��en''s ss, which had fallen quite behind in the first half.


    Assuming the trend continued and more were eliminated, the first-ce line was set to be around 50-55 points. In the second half alone, Ry��en would need to score at least an extra 30 points topete.


    In general, students with higher academic abilities tend to be less targeted. However, at the same time, they may also be less protected, and there were instances where some students made mistakes in unexpected categories.


    It seemed that non-academic questions, such as those rted to ''Subculture'' or ''Gourmet Food,'' were often set to be easier due to their wide range, despite being of the same difficulty level.


    Incidentally, I had slipped up once in a simrly unrted category.


    ''What was the name of the animal that made headlines for being adorable when it stood on two legs in a zoo?''


    On this ''News'' question, not knowing what the animal was, I casually wrote ''dog'' and received a cold stare from Horikita.


    By the way, the correct answer was a red panda.

 Chapter 443: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 443: 6.1</h4>


    During the break for lunch, I asked Horikita for a little bit of her time and led her out into the corridor.


    "The answer was a red panda, okay?"


    "That''s not what I mean. There was something that bothered me about the test."


    I hadn''t expected her to hit me with what just happened so quickly.


    "Just kidding. But I didn''t think you would call me out. Did you have some advice for me?"


    "Not exactly advice, but have you noticed the pattern in the order of the names when the attackers designated five names this time?"


    "I wonder if there was such a pattern... I honestly didn''t pay attention to the order. It wasn''t in alphabetical order, or boys first and then girls either, was it?"


    "I can''t say for sure unless I ask the attackers from other sses, but there was no consistent pattern on the five people you named. In other words, they show in the same order as the leader voices them."


    "I see. That might be true. So?"


    "What caught my attention was Sakayanagi''s naming order from the second to the fourth turn. At that time, K��enji was targeted three times in a row, and he was first each time."


    "In other words, she had decided to target K��enji-kun by the second round, and continued to target him first until he got it right...? And during the second round, wasn''t Yukimura-kun also wrong?"


    "Yes, K��enji would be a threat if you look at his pure ability, but Keisei is definitely more of a hassle in terms of overall ability. Yet, Sakayanagi didn''t even nominate Keisei, who had made a mistake, in the third round."


    "I thought she had simply read me wrong. She might have decided that I would protect him because I deemed Yukimura-kun important, right?"


    "Indeed, she might have excluded Keisei as an attack target for that reason. But K��enji''s exnation doesn''t add up. He was wrong twice in a row in the second and third rounds, but after he got it right in the fourth round, his name didn''t show up at all in the first half of the battle from the fifth round onwards. It makes sense if he was protected, but he got the answer right in the fourth round on his own. So the other side should know that we didn''t protect him even once."


    "Sakayanagi-san had K��enji-kun on her radar early on. Even though he made two mistakes and was on edge, she stopped attacking him as soon as he got one right. That seems unnatural."


    It was better to create as many eliminations as possible. She should have continued to attack since he had a high chance of not being protected.


    "Was she wary of his knowledge?"


    "If that were the case, she wouldn''t have had to make the effort to target K��enji from the start. That doesn''t exin why she nominated him three times in a row."


    "...Does Sakayanagi-san know about the promise I made with K��enji-kun?"


    "That''s a natural assumption. Given that there''s a promise, K��enji most likely wouldn''t take it seriously, and you wouldn''t protect him until he fails twice��she must have taken that into ount."


    Of course, there was also a chance that K��enji would seriously answer the question or that Horikita would protect him from the start. But in that case, she should''ve quickly excluded K��enji as an attack target from the third round onwards.


    "But then, why did she not target him after the fifth round? I chose not to protect him with the protection slot, didn''t I?"


    "That choice is exactly why. When her aim to force you to use up one protection slot on K��enji fell through, she saw no benefit in eliminating K��enji. Rather, she decided it would be a loss."


    "Even though she can get us to lose a point with each elimination?"


    "Yes. You said before the test that you had a way to keep the damage to a minimum in case we ended up at the bottom. That choice was to eliminate K��enji, wasn''t it?"


    "...You knew, huh?"


    "The promise with K��enji was not to ''expel'' him, but to ''let him do as he pleases.'' Since you didn''t impose any restrictions on K��enji in this special exam, it goes without saying that you kept the promise to let him do as he pleases. The other promise was to not let him be expelled. Even if K��enji ended up being the only one eliminated, the expulsion could be avoided by coughing up the Protection Point."


    K��enji had won a Protection Point with his victory in the deserted ind exam, thus giving him the right to prevent his own expulsion.


    "That''s right. I never promised to protect K��enji-kun''s Protection Point. As long as he isn''t expelled, my promise holds. There is no reason to hold a grudge."


    Even if we lost one point due to elimination, all we needed to do was use up K��enji''s Protection Point when others were eliminated. This meant there was no risk of someone being expelled due to the ssing inst ce.


    "However, I suppose I made everyone in ss anxious by not protecting him."


    "If you exin, K��enji will realize your intention."


    "Exactly. Still, it seems like he realized that I wasn''t guarding him really quickly. It would''ve been easier to manage the second half of the battle if he had been eliminated early."


    So, K��enji got the answer right on his own.


    He thought it was too much of a hassle to have his Protection Point stripped from him.


    "It''s reasonable to assume that Sakayanagi, given her personality, didn''t want to relieve the pressure of ''a possible expulsion'' against our ss," I said.


    "Yes, her personality is reflected in every action she takes. But why didn''t K��enji-kun aim to answer correctly from the first question?"


    "I can''t answer that. He might have thought that it wasn''t toote to start from the third question. Anyway, what I want to say is that there may be students in the ss who are leaking information to the other sses."


    I decided to tell her, judging that this was for the sake of not only the current exam but for future ones as well.


    "Thank you. I will be careful about that from now on."


    "Let''s end the discussion here. What are you going to do for lunch?"


    "I didn''t have time to make a boxed lunch, so maybe I should go to the cafeteria. How about you?"


    "Well, I might as well. Kei is probably having a staring contest with her phone."


    As I answered her, turning towards the ssroom, Horikita nodded as if she understood.


    In the first half, Kei was not nominated by Sakayanagi and got through unscathed.


    But of course, that didn''t mean she was safe. She could be eliminated in a minimum of three questions.


    She wanted to cram knowledge into her head, even if just barely, to avoid that.

 Chapter 444: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 444: 6.2</h4>


    The Survival and Elimination Special Exam had begun, and the first turn was progressing leisurely.


    Ry��en, who received the first attack from Ichinose''s ss, had only one sessful protection out of the five he nominated. Furthermore, none of the students answered the question correctly. The start was anything but good.


    But this was not surprising. Ry��en''s ss had many students he had to protect for their academics but had obvious points of weakness. Even apart from the students who chose to exclude ''Economics,'' the category Ichinose chose, about half the ss would be anxious about that category.


    On the other hand, as a result of the attack from Horikita''s ss, Ichinose''s ss scored a total of four points.


    A gap of three points had urred from the first turn, and a heavy air had already begun to form.


    However, it wasn''t because they couldn''t score points.


    "Now, as the next attacker, please make the nomination against ss A!"


    Hoshinomiya cheerfully sent instructions to the leader, but Ry��en didn''t move.


    He quietly stared at his phone.


    "Hello~ Can you hear me?"


    She called him again from the podium just in case he hadn''t heard her, but Ry��en still didn''t move.


    As could be understood from the prior rule exnations, the nomination time was steadily decreasing by the second without stopping.


    In the first-turn attack, selecting who to target was usually decided ahead of time. Even though Hoshinomiya thought it should bemon sense, Ry��en didn''t move even after 60 seconds had passed.


    Normally, it wouldn''t be strange for ssmates to ask, ''Are you okay?'' However, no one pointed it out. No, most people in this ss couldn''t point it out even if they wanted to.


    After returning to the front lines, Ry��en exuded an even more overwhelming sense of domination than ever before.


    It was rare for Hoshinomiya to see the tense situation in Ry��en''s ss, but it wasn''t the same for the ssmates.


    This was their everyday usual scenery.


    If Kaneda, who was in the role of advisor, moved, the situation would be resolved quickly, but typically, he tended to wait for Ry��en''s instructions, so nothing could be expected.


    During such times, the gaze of the lost ssmates naturally turned to Katsuragi more often.


    He was a transfer from another ss, but he was already recognized in that ss as Ry��en''s advisor.


    Along with his exceptional overall abilities in the OAA, his most important factor was his fearless attitude towards Ry��en.


    Ibuki could be irrationally arrogant, but Katsuragi was rational. However, the well-relied-on Katsuragi... didn''t move.


    He closed his eyes, crossed his arms, and allowed the offensive''s time limit to pass.


    Maybe he resigned himself, knowing that nothing would change even if he raised his voice in this situation.


    Or maybe he was calmly waiting, having already expected something like this to happen.


    Either way, many students could only silently watch.


    "You know, it''s still the first turn, right? A difference of 3 points isn''t that big of a deal. You shouldn''t get too worked up."


    Hoshinomiya cheered them on, treating the fact that they couldn''t withstand merely the first attack as a trivial matter.


    Her actionscked impartiality as a teacher, but she couldn''t remain silent for the sake of the students, who were most likely full of anxiety.


    This was an excuse. The reality was that she couldn''t let Sakayanagi''s ss, who were up against her ss led by Ichinose, score points. If they kept getting high scores with a reckless strategy, there would be no chance of winning.


    Although it was a calcted move, in the ensuing silence, Hoshinomiya realized that her judgment was wrong.


    Even though many students felt suspicious about Ry��en''sck of action, hardly any felt uneasy.


    Normally silence could often lead to bad oues, but this ss had nurtured a unique strength.


    They epted the abnormal situation where no one was named for nearly two minutes.


    Hoshinomiya began to think that perhaps there was a secret strategy in this silence.


    Sakayanagi''s ss would have zero sessful protections and an ideal nomination that could cause many students to answer incorrectly��was he pondering such a fanciful strategy?


    As the remaining time neared thirty seconds, Ry��en announced five names.


    "W-wait, wait, wait. I''ll input it quickly." Following his voice, Hoshinomiya swiftly operated the tablet.


    Category ''Lifestyle'' Difficulty 1


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''Kit�� Hayato,'' ''Kamuro Masumi,'' ''Hashimoto Masayoshi,'' ''Machida K��ji,'' ''Yamamura Miki''


    Hoshinomiya quickly finished inputting the names, but she was taken aback upon seeing which five students were selected. To her, it seemed that students close to Sakayanagi were picked.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Machida K��ji''


    After much deliberation, a decision was made, and ss A was only able to sessfully protect one student. But a problemid ahead.


    Correct Students:


    ''Kit�� Hayato,'' ''Kamuro Masumi,'' ''Hashimoto Masayoshi''


    Out of the remaining four, three got it right.


    Giving the opposing ss four points, they were only stuck with one; a bad start. Indeed, they were not promising. Hoshinomiya thought they looked surprisingly cool, which almost made her admire them. But inside, she realized that they weren''t up to the task. It was unlikely that they''d crush Sakayanagi''s ss.


    Ry��en''s strategy, even after this, could hardly be called sharp. Most of the students designated were the same as in the first round.


    Some changes were made to disrupt, but those were mostly kept at a rate of every other turn, continuing to nominate Kit��, Kamuro, Hashimoto, Yamamura, Machida, Sanada, Satonaka, and Matoba.


    Sakayanagi too, of course, kept efficiently piling on the protections.


    But still, Ry��en didn''t significantly change his nominations.


    Stuck at the bottom, they just kept racking up the turns.


    But by the fifth turn, halfway through the first half, some students had already made two mistakes, and a sense of trepidation should start to creep in. At this time, Hoshinomiya noticed something puzzling.


    "Everyone doesn''t seem to be panicking at all..."


    The reason they couldn''t break free from being at the bottom had less to do with their attacks and more with their defense. Clearly, they had a lower percentage of correct answers than any other ss, and they weren''t earning the points they should. Normally, one would seek clues to find the correct answers every single minute and second.


    However, there were students who weren''t even tense.


    Hoshinomiya pretended to keep watch, walking around the ssroom, casually peeking at each student''s phone.


    They weren''t ying around; they were browsing various websites and videos, gearing up for their weak spots.


    Maybe they couldn''t make a sound because they were under Ry��en''s control and were too tense.


    She thought about it, but��


    "Kaneda-kun, it seems like you''re not doing anything. Are you fully prepared?"


    Among the students who were busy preparing, Hoshinomiya pointed out Kaneda, who wasn''t even touching his phone.


    "I''ve been focusing on studying, and I try not to unnecessarily cram knowledge. It''s not good to disrupt the routine."


    Lifting his sses a bit, Kaneda smirked confidently.


    "Oh, I see. Smart kids are strange, huh?"


    Looking somewhat taken aback by his response, Hoshinomiya lost interest in Kaneda.


    On the other hand, Ishizaki even dared to doze off during the waiting time.


    He had already made two mistakes and seemed to have reached the point of giving up.


    "What''s going on with this ss...?"


    Feeling a bit disgusted, she continued to go through the turns as their supervisor.

 Chapter 445: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 445: 6.3</h4>


    Right after Sakayanagi notified the teacher of the second attack''s five nominations from Horikita''s ss, Hashimoto stood up and walked towards Sakayanagi.


    His expression wasn''t the usual slight smirk, rather, it was quite stern.


    Everyone except Hashimoto was in their seats, making his behavior conspicuously unusual.


    "What''s wrong, Hashimoto-kun?"


    "I thought I''d remind you aboutst night, just in case. You have no intention of using the information I gave you?"


    Category ''Gourmet Food'' Difficulty 1


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''K��enji Rokusuke,'' ''Hasebe Haruka,'' ''Hirata Y��suke,'' ''Yukimura Teruhiko, ''Onodera Kayano''


    He pointed with his thumb to the names of the students disyed on the monitor behind him and voiced his dissatisfaction.


    "Does it look that way to you?"


    "Yes, it does look that way."


    "Indeed, your phone callst night was a little bit too meddlesome. However, the information received is still information. Of course, since it has been etched in my brain, I don''t intend to just pointlessly ignore it."


    "So... why did you target K��enji?"


    "You said that K��enji-kun is the one that I should avoid targeting the most within ss B, huh?"


    "He has a promise with Horikita. In other words, he might be one of the protected students, and if you target him, there''s a good chance that they''ll automatically receive a point. I thought among the several pieces of information I gave you, this would serve some use."


    He thought it would be useful, but his patience ran thin when it was trampled on so soon. Sensing a change from his usual cheerful demeanor, Kit�� slowly pulled back his chair.


    "Don''t worry, Kit��-kun. Hashimoto-kun has a dry tone."


    Sakayanagi quietly chuckled after and exined why she had targeted K��enji, who would most likely be protected.


    "Horikita-san and K��enji-kun might have an agreement, however, it''s only to prevent expelling him and letting him do what he pleases."


    "I see..."


    "There''s no point in continuously protecting him and wasting a valuable protection slot. We should wait and see, at least until he gets a problem wrong after being targeted. In order to win, we must do at least that much, don''t you think so?"


    "But Horikita is an upstanding person. If her ss finds out that she didn''t protect him, they''ll be in disarray."


    "Well, if they''re going to be perturbed by that, let them be. Additionally, while fulfilling the promise is important, continuously wasting a valuable protection slot on K��enji-kun would cause others to question her qualifications as a leader."


    As she exined, Horikita''s ss had apparently decided on which five people they''d protect, and the monitor''s disy switched.


    There were no sessful protections, and the five people Sakayanagi targeted would proceed to attempt the question.


    "What do you think? As expected, K��enji-kun wasn''t given a protection slot."


    Seeing the results, Hashimoto couldn''t make a strong argument on the matter.


    "...Well, I suppose. But is there a point in trying to get a point out of K��enji? He''s got a weirdly sharp head, right? The probability of him answering correctlypared to the small fish is high, isn''t it?"


    "Do you really think so? He''s an unquestionably free man. He can''t be obligated to seriously answer since he''s even managed to get Horikita-san''s approval on this. He might deliberately answer incorrectly."


    As if she could see into the future, Sakayanagi''s conviction didn''t falter.


    Hashimoto, in disbelief, waited for the monitor to switch.


    As a result, just as predicted, K��enji answered the question incorrectly and was one step closer to elimination.


    "You took a bit of a risk, but you scored a point. Well done, Princess."


    Hashimoto was relieved for the moment, but that relief would soon vanish in the next turn. The moment her turn as attacker began, Sakayanagi immediately called out K��enji''s name.


    It was also the same category, as if she was confirming that she was targeting him intentionally.


    Not only Hashimoto, but the ssmates who had been following the flow of selections also began to stir.


    "What''s going on? It''s the same category, and they''re just going to protect K��enji."


    Kamuro, also unable to understand Sakayanagi''s actions, retorted.


    "You''re not going to tell me he won''t be protected next time, are you...?"


    "I believe that will be the case. That''s why I specifically nominated K��enji-kun."


    Although he thought it was a ridiculous prediction, he didn''t leave his seat and stared at the monitor, waiting to see what would happen next.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    None.


    "Seriously... What is Horikita thinking?"


    Hashimoto grumbled at the fact that K��enji was once again unprotected.


    Moreover, K��enji did the unthinkable and made the same mistake again.


    "I don''t want to side with Hashimoto, but why''d you think he wouldn''t be protected the second time around?"


    "It''s the same logic as the first time. Since you''re allowed to make two mistakes, there was no need for her to go out of her way to protect him. If she knew that she had to protect him in the end, she''d leave it until thest minute. Though, Horikita-san probably wanted him to get the correct answer."


    "I see. So Horikita has no choice but to protect K��enji now."


    Having understood those words, Kit�� muttered so.


    As long as Horikita deemed that he had room to make mistakes, she wouldn''t allocate a protective slot to K��enji.


    In other words, Sakayanagi took a risk in order to ensure that the opponent lost one slot in theter turns.


    That was how it was interpreted.


    It couldn''t be helped that the two consecutive ''Gourmet Food'' questions were easy.


    Every ss was currently learning the difficulty level for each category.


    "I apologize for doubting you, Princess. So there was a n. However, couldn''t you have targeted K��enji from the first turn? Then you could''ve destroyed the opponent''s protection slot for the remaining eight turns. That''s one turn wasted."


    "I was 99% sure that they wouldn''t protect K��enji-kun, but I decided to do it on the second turn to ensure that they wouldn''t protect him. It''s also important toy the groundwork to invite his second mistake. What would happen if I had started from the first turn, and Horikita-san had decided to protect K��enji-kun? After that, it would be hard for me to make a move."


    There was a risk of being tossed about by the deceptive protection slots. If the defense seeded consecutively, there might be room forcency, leading to the risk of handing over the momentum to the opponent.


    "Moreover, thanks to him making a mistake on the first easy question, I was able to determine that there''s a higher possibility of him making a wrong answer the second time as well, so the results are satisfactory��all thanks to the information you provided."


    With the emphasis on the part that it was indeed useful, Hashimoto also felt relieved and nodded, taking his seat.


    "Now, let''s finish with K��enji-kun, shall we?"


    In the fourth turn, Sakayanagi selected K��enji''s third nomination first, surprising everyone again.


    "We must be diligent. This will act as a threat that we''ll target him whenever we see an opportunity. Thanks to Hashimoto-kun''s intelligence gathering, we know the inner workings of Horikita-san''s ss, however, the opponent doesn''t know that the promise with K��enji-kun has been leaked."


    "I see... Certainly, that would make them feel like they have to keep protecting K��enji."


    She chose the same ''Gourmet Food'' category, but raised the difficulty level to 2 to observe the increase in difficulty.


    Hashimoto thought that K��enji would be protected, but he didn''t bother to point it out.


    But here, a development that not many anticipated took ce.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Shinohara Satsuki,'' ''Sud�� Ken''


    Horikita made an unthinkable decision not to protect K��enji.


    "Why didn''t she protect him?"


    "Was the promise you told me about misinformation?"


    "There''s no way...! Horikita definitely promised to protect K��enji!"


    In the end, K��enji answered correctly and avoided elimination. However, Hashimoto was still confused.


    On the other hand, Sakayanagi managed to grasp the situation. Horikita didn''t use up a protection slot on K��enji, so after answering incorrectly twice, he answered correctly in order to avoid elimination.


    "So Horikita has abandoned K��enji..."


    "Then it''s our chance. We can crush him in one go."


    Rather than thinking negatively, Kit�� advised that they should target K��enji from then on.


    "That''s right, that might be a good idea. Horikita''s credibility and morale would be damaged."


    Hashimoto thought the enemy ss was in disarray because Horikita chose not to use the protection slot.


    On the other hand, Sakayanagi came to a different conclusion.


    "I was thinking they might protect him unconditionally, or better yet, we could just eliminate him... but it seems Horikita-san has a different n. If we keep targeting K��enji-kun, it would just be pleasurable for her."


    With a slightugh, Sakayanagi turned on her phone.


    "Anyway, I''m impressed that she''s carefully thought about how to fight me."


    Sakayanagi wondered whether Ayanok��ji was lurking behind Horikita or not.


    Who had been the driving force behind these tactics?


    "He''s definitely not involved."


    If Ayanok��ji had been pulling all the strings, she would have felt it beyond the ssrooms.


    The unusual and bizarre feeling would pierce Sakayanagi. She didn''t feel that.


    However, there was a faint hint of Ayanok��ji in Horikita''s way of thinking.


    "It''s only natural that she grows. She sees his back closer than anyone else."


    She could see the trend. Sakayanagi wouldn''t begging behind Horikita in this tactical battle.


    "The problem is��"


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    For Sakayanagi, who was in charge of ss A, the most rming thing wasn''t a specific ss.


    Whether two or three sses were secretly teaming up... that was more problematic.


    That was Sakayanagi''s only concern.


    Although she had conducted some investigation and surveince since the special exam was announced, there had been no signs or reports of such movements. However, it was easy to form alliances in secret.


    Therefore, although she could only judge whether there was an alliance during the exam, she thought that the probability of being teamed up against currently was near zero. There was nothing unnatural in the other sses'' offense and defense.


    "Shall we go im first ce?"


    Sakayanagi had won 29 points by the end of the first half and was in the lead.


    Being in first ce was pleasing, but right behind her was ss B, trailing by only one point. Hashimoto, who forgot to get up from his seat, was staring at the results disyed on the monitor and the remaining time they had left for the break.


    "Masumi-san, would you like to join me for lunch? Since you were eliminated, there won''t be a problem, right?"


    "I don''t mind, but you really don''t care about your opponents, do you?"


    While Sakayanagi wasn''t praised, she still smiled happily and started walking with her crane.


    When they stepped out into the corridor, Kit�� quietly moved aside upon seeing the two.


    "When did you invite her?"


    "Over the phone just now."


    "Hmm. And Hashimoto doesn''t need to be invited?"


    Whenever Kamuro and Kit�� were together, Hashimoto was almost always with them. It seemed they were concerned about this.


    "I did properly invite him, but he declined. He''s also being targeted by Ry��en-kun, and he''s made two mistakes. It''s only natural that he wouldn''t want to be eliminated."


    Imagining Hashimoto desperately scouring for information on his phone, Kamuro let out a dry chuckle.

 Chapter 446: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 446: 6.4</h4>


    Usually, the cafeteria would be filled with students from all years, but it was quite empty today. No wonder, as many second-year students were still in their ssrooms, glued to their phones just like Kei.


    They valued saving time and avoiding elimination.


    In other words, those who could afford toe to the cafeteria were either leaders with no risk of getting eliminated, students who were already eliminated and had nothing left to do, or those who, like me, didn''t think much about it.


    Deciding on the menu for two, we bought our meals and sat at the tables frequently used by second-year students, trays of food in hand, just as usual.


    "We can choose seats freely."


    "That''s right. But it''s strange, isn''t it? Even though first and third-year students can secure plenty of seats today, the ces most used by second-year students seem hardly utilized."


    There weren''t any rules in the cafeteria that determined particr areas for each year to use.


    The students just implicitly made these divisions, and most of them abided by this silent agreement.


    Of course, there were students who didn''t pay this any mind too.


    "Horikita, you don''t seem to mind the details, do you?"


    "Isn''t it the same for you?"


    "In my case, I prefer to read the atmosphere and blend into the majority."


    "You don''t seem to care, but you also do... I''ll stop thinking about it for now. I can''t afford to dedicate my cognitive resources to you."


    It was a bit sarcastic, but it was rather relieving for me.


    "Good day, you two ss B students. If you don''t mind, may I join you?"


    Just as I was about to split my chopsticks, a voice called out to us.


    "Sakayanagi-san, where you sit is up to you. I don''t have the right to refuse you."


    Though she granted permission, she must''ve been surprised.


    She must not have expected to be approached by an opponent''s leader during a special exam.


    "I don''t mind eating together either, but where''s your meal?"


    From what I could see, Sakayanagi arrived without anything. If she went to buy now, it would result in a slight dy.


    "Masumi-san and Kit��-kun are buying lunch for me now. They should arrive shortly."


    Following her gaze, I did indeed see Kamuro and Kit�� lined up tiredly at the counter.


    "You really take care of your friends, don''t you?"


    "Yes, they''re really helpful."


    Sakayanagi, who sat opposite to Horikita and propped her cane, was soon joined by Kit�� with a tray in each hand. It was a clear indication of his perpetual support of Sakayanagi.


    "Now, both of you please sit down."


    "Huh? Here? Eating with Horikita and Ayanok��ji? I''m not up for that."


    "Why not? It could be a good learning experience for you, Masumi-san."


    "nning to drag me into trouble again? I''m sick of humoring your games."


    The one who raised this question was Kamuro, who was listed as eliminated in ss A, yet she showed no signs of anxiety.


    Despite her rebelliousness, her attitude suggested that she thought that it was unthinkable for Sakayanagi to end up inst ce. The fact that she had ended the first half in first ce must''ve been a confidence booster.


    I lightly raised my hand to greet Kit��.


    Kit�� didn''t particrly react, but seeing him slightly nod back was satisfying enough.


    "I hope you''ll be gentle in the second half, Horikita-san."


    "Now you say this? I felt quite pressured during the first half, you know."


    "I was rather lenient, wasn''t I? Isn''t that evident from you being in second ce?"


    "You must be kidding��"


    Horikita showed a hint of annoyance at the tant im that Sakayanagi went easy on her.


    Just then, a male student appeared from behind the irritated Horikita.


    "Shall I join the mix too?"


    Sensing his presence, Kit�� immediately stood up, disying open hostility.


    However, unconcerned, the student sat down next to Horikita without even asking for permission.


    "What a rough way to show up, Ry��en-kun."


    "Kuku! I just came as the wolf to check on this flock of sheep."


    Despite being the only one who had fallen behind in the first half, he had an air of ease.


    That said, he wouldn''t show signs of exhaustion here of course, even if he had to fake it.


    "Get lost."


    Those quiet but heavy words came from Kit��.


    "Oh? Who gave you the right to order me around? The midget over there''s not saying a word."


    "Let me have permission. I''ll remove him now."


    Stating his intention, Kit�� stood up, ready to confront Ry��en.


    Combined with the insult Ry��en threw at Sakayanagi, he seemed fully prepared.


    "There''s no need to worry, Kit��-kun. He''s here simply because he''s hungry. After all, we have to wee our weak and pitiful wolf."


    "But he didn''t seem to bring anything. Maybe he''s got someone like Ishizaki doing the grunt work?"


    "What he''s after isn''t food, but points from this special exam. He seems to have started off a bitte in the first half."


    "I see. Well, true enough."


    While all three sses were locked in closepetition, only Ry��en''s ss was being left behind.


    If it was meant as a taunt, it hardly sent ripples.


    Confirming that there were no suspicious movements, Kit�� quietly took his seat again.


    "Even so, Kamuro, you seem quite rxed for someone that might disappear today."


    Kamuro paused, with fried horse mackerel gripped between her chopsticks halfway to her mouth, and red back.


    "You too, Kit��. One mistake and you''re eliminated."


    Sakayanagi was the one to retort to Ry��en''s remark.


    "My ss is currently first, while you''re at the bottom. Are you really in a position to have this conversation?"


    "Even if Ie inst, I only lose foot soldiers. But you, at the moment, are close to having Kamuro or Yamamura expelled. If Kit�� or Hashimoto messes up, that number could inte to four. You''re the one who gets hurt if anyone disappears. Or in the second half, will you let Horikita painfully injure you and carelessly increase the number of eliminations as if they were trash?"


    Even Sakayanagi wouldn''t say that a few more were likely to be eliminated.


    If someone was eliminated, you''d lose a point. That was something you essentially didn''t want.


    "Do you intend to eliminate people close to me?"


    "Isn''t that obvious by now?"


    "It''s hard to believe at this point. Given that your peculiar focus on the students who were within your reach during the first half clearly failed. And now, you''re still relentlessly pursuing students like Masumi-san and Kit��-kun."


    I had a strong impression that Ry��en''s strategy was focused on a maximum of about eight people, centering on the students supporting Sakayanagi, like Kit��, Kamuro, and Hashimoto.


    Yet, even under such inefficient, concentrated attacks, Sakayanagi couldn''t fully protect Kamuro or Yamamura.


    Even if you knew who was getting targeted, it wasn''t always possible to ward off the attacks.


    In fact, in all four sses, Sakayanagi had the highest rate of sessfully protected students in the first half.


    "Thanks to your immature strategy, our ss has been able to maintain first ce. So while I''m grateful, I''m also worried about you, Ry��en-kun. If you don''t change your tactics in the second half, you''ll just be repeating your defeat. Surely even Horikita-san could indirectly see that, right?"


    "It''s indeed very clear, isn''t it? If it was me, and I found out that Sakayanagi-san was likely to ward off my attempts, I''d scatter my focus among more students."


    I never thought an evaluation of the special exam would start here, but Ry��en was smiling as he listened.


    "I highly rmend you to fight more intelligently."


    But nheless, Ry��en also demonstrated a defiant attitude, refusing to run away and sitting upright.


    "I got you figured out, Sakayanagi. Forget about the point difference for a moment, think about it. Kamuro, if the exam were to end now with two eliminations, and your ssesst, do you know how she''ll judge?"


    Kamuro still didn''t respond, but surely she must''ve had some concern. How would the leader respond in that particr situation?


    Horikita must''ve been interested as well in what criteria she would use for deciding who to expel.


    But Sakayanagi continued eating without stopping.


    "Can''t you answer? No, is it that you don''t want to answer? What do you think, Horikita?"


    "What do I think? Why did you target Yamamura-san in the first ce? You seemed to have narrowed it down to a few people, but she doesn''t seem like the kind to be singled out, does she?"


    Kamuro was brought here, but Yamamura wasn''t.


    From that fact alone, it was only natural to think Kamuro was more special.


    Aside from Yamamura, the other students who were targeted all clearly had distinguished abilities.


    But in reality, there was an unseen connection between Sakayanagi and Yamamura.


    There were students who were evaluated for their invisible abilities, not just their visible OAA ratings.


    "You guys probably don''t know, so you better remember this. Yamamura is as valuable to Sakayanagi as Kamuro is. She cherishes her a lot behind the scenes, doesn''t she?"


    By forcefully bringing up Yamamura, he made sure everyone would notice this.


    For the first time, Sakayanagi paused eating.


    "If you think so, then interpret it that way."


    Rather than being vague, she responded sincerely, inviting him to do as he pleased.


    "Whether it''s true or not, I don''t intend to judge individuals as a third party who doesn''t know anything. Kamuro-san and Yamamura-san are both excellent ssmates to Sakayanagi-san."


    Horikita, it seemed, wanted to avoid being used as a factor in swaying Sakayanagi''s considerations.


    "Both are excellent? Ha, don''t make meugh. Sakayanagi doesn''t evaluate people based on their OAAs. How easy they are to use and how obedient they are, that''s the standard."


    "Behind the scenes, then?"


    Kamuro looked at Sakayanagi and quietly asked for confirmation.


    "Kamuro seemed taken aback by the mention of Yamamura''s name."


    Ry��en, who evidently wasn''t privy to all of ss A''s intricacies, expressed his observation.


    Whatever the rtionship between Kamuro and Yamamura was, it was apparent that there was some tension or antagonism between them.


    "Were you close to Yamamura?"


    "It''s just his baseless provocation."


    "I didn''t know you had any connection to Yamamura. I was just asking."


    Kamuro made a small pause, but I wondered how many people noticed it.


    "As I said, it''s just his way of provoking. It''s pointless to take him seriously."


    She wasn''t evading the topic because it was sensitive; she genuinely viewed it as irrelevant.


    Although Ry��en had stopped, he seemed to enjoy watching Kamuro react so sensitively to his words, disying the confidence of someone formidable.


    "You should decide now who to expel."


    It didn''t seem like Ry��en had appeared to provoke Sakayanagi.


    The goal was to avoid having any more eliminations from ss A, and instead, only push key yers like Kamuro or Yamamura, as well as Kit�� or Hashimoto, into expulsion.


    "I hope you won''t be swayed by his meaningless remarks."


    In order to stop him, Sakayanagi said this to Horikita.


    "I know."


    But Horikita was fighting to win.


    She didn''t go into the exam intending to expel anyone from Sakayanagi''s ss.


    If it was effective for winning, that would be another story, but sure enough...


    Deciding there was no more to be gained from his cheap provocations, Ry��en switched the topic to the other sses.


    "Speaking of which, the only one not here is Ichinose, right?"


    "It seems that her ss has made it clear that they don''t intend to have anybody eliminated. No one from her ss is in the cafeteria. It''s only natural, I suppose."


    Sure enough, nobody from Ichinose''s ss was in the cafeteria. Even beforeing here, I didn''t see them anywhere else except for doing whatever was necessary, like going to the bathroom.


    They had prepared food from the beginning and fought every single minute and second.


    "She''s prepared to lose in order to keep anyone from her ss from getting expelled. She''s a seriously stupid woman."


    If anything, Ichinose was probably concerned about the eliminations in other sses. But if you lost in a battle, your ss would inevitably be hurt. To avoid that, you needed to be ruthless and eliminate others so they couldn''t earn points.


    "That''s true. She never flinches in any special exams. That''s why I''ve been able to keep her in third ce by exploiting her weaknesses."


    Horikita, who had been eating for a long time, stopped her chopsticks and reflected on the first half of the exam.


    "Ichinose''s determination is so extreme, it''s almost pathological. If she continues this strategy in the second half, she''ll risk discarding her protection slots to their very limit. That should work to your advantage, Ry��en."


    Just like Horikita, Ry��en would be attacking Ichinose''s ss.


    Unless he increased the number of people who had incorrectly answered twice and were on the brink of elimination to six or more, there was a high chance that he''d be able to hit all the protection slots.


    Even if you wouldn''t gain more points by eliminating the opponent''s students, it was necessary to suppress the higher-ranking ss to raise your cement.


    "But next, I''ll be the one attacking your ss. Even if the protection sess rate increases as the elimination rate rises, I wonder how many points I can get."


    Like her setup against K��enji, Sakayanagi read what the opponent''s leader was likely to think of ahead of time.


    Depending on how Ry��en used the protection slots, there may be times when he can''t get the points he should get.


    It was especially difficult to protect ssmates who would probably answer incorrectly.


    "I''ll look forward to it."


    Ry��en abruptly stood up from his seat.


    "Well, now that the one who was stirring the pot has left, let''s resume our meal."


    When he turned his back away from Sakayanagi and walked away, Ry��en quietly brushed up his hair.


    Contrary to the surrounding thoughts at that moment, he had a powerful expression that hinted that he''d be making a move in the second half of the exam.


    It wasn''t a mere coincidence that he only momentarily showed me this expression.


    It was a forceful message telling me to watch silently.


    It was hard to see beyond his desperate situation, but I did wonder how he would overturn it.


    The second half of the exam was about to begin soon.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>

 Chapter 447: 6.5

    <h4>Chapter 447: 6.5</h4>


    In a few minutes, Sakagami-sensei would signal the beginning of the 11th turn, but Horikita was standing at the podium, gathering the students'' eyes.


    "ss A is truly a formidable enemy. They held the top spot for all 10 turns of the first half. But it''s important not to focus too much on that and face the special exam seriously. After all, the only way for us to umte points is for us to solve the questions correctly."


    Horikita''s target for the offensive was Sakayanagi''s ss, the most troublesome of the three sses.


    During the first half, she sessfully protected against Ry��en''s attacks, and the students achieved a high rate of correct answers.


    "How are we going to attack?"


    In response to Sud��''s innocent question, Horikita scanned her ssmates in the room.


    There might have been someone here who was connected to Sakayanagi.


    Naturally, she couldn''t recklessly announce her strategy.


    "Do you remember when I asked for your ideas during the preparation period? I''ve organized that information and I believe I''ve found a hole."


    Simplicity was best.


    She seemed to prefer a method that targeted individual weaknesses rather than trying to read the opponent.


    However,pared to Ichinose''s ss, information seemed scarce, and it would''ve been tightly controlled to prevent any leaks since the announcement of this special exam.


    In that case, it wouldn''t be easy to discover everyone''s strengths and weaknesses.


    Only Horikita truly knew how effective a strategy she had devised from all this information was.


    On the 11th turn, Horikita''s first attack on Sakayanagi''s ss came.


    She used one point off the bat and chose a ''Literature'' problem with a difficulty of two.


    Unfortunately, one person was sessfully protected, but three of the four students who faced the challenging problem got it wrong, ensuring a gain of two points.


    After deducting the points used to increase the difficulty, getting three points would break us even, and gaining more than four points would give us a surplus on that turn.


    Next up to attack was Sakayanagi''s ss, which must have felt some pressure.


    And Sakayanagi unexpectedly spent two points, choosing a ''Sports'' problem with difficulty three.


    She showed her intent to mercilessly attack against the bottom-ranked Ry��en.


    "She really is out to corner Ry��en-kun... How bold."


    The second half started off differently, unconcerned about the point difference ss B had.


    But immediately after, the result on the monitor caused a surprised outcry from the ss.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Katsuragi K��hei,'' ''Shiina Hiyori,'' ''Tokit�� Hiroya,'' ''Nomura Y��ji,'' ''Ibuki Mio''


    In this special exam, for the first time, a perfect score was achieved within the protection slots, securing a whopping five points. If everyone was protected, a difficulty level three became meaningless. It was a severe blow.


    On the other hand, Ry��en, who had beengging behind, quickly caught up with 24 points and temporarily tied with Ichinose.


    "They have four eliminations, the most so far, but this is... this is too good to be true."


    Given that many had anticipated they would steadily fall behind, the oue must havee as quite a shock.


    It seemed that the momentum would continue, but Ry��en''s attack on Ichinose''s ss didn''t go as sharply as expected, with three people being protected. However, one person made a mistake in the problem, so it stopped at four points for a total of 28.


    All that was left was this ss''s turn on the defensive, but the gap was quickly closing.


    Indeed, I wondered what Ichinose would choose as the category and who she''d choose to target.


    Category ''Sports'' Difficulty 1


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Wang Mei-Yui,'' ''Shinohara Satsuki''


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka,'' ''Miyamoto S��shi,'' ''Karuizawa Kei''


    Ichinose''s first attack nomination included my name.


    And whether intentionally or by coincidence, Kei''s name was also named at the same time.


    ''Sports'' difficulty level one was manageable, it could be called neither a strength nor a weakness.


    I was confident I could get it if it was based on history or rules, but if current events were involved, it would put me at a disadvantage.


    On the other hand, Kei might be able to solve a global question like she would have seen on TV. She used to talk about watching volleyball games regrly.


    ''What do you call a situation where there''s one out or less, with runners on first and second bases, or on first, second, and third bases, and the batter hits a fly ball that an infielder could catch with a standard defensive action?''


    Apparently, this question was rted to the rules. Fortunately, I had hammered sports rules into my head to some extent, so I could answer this without difficulty. The correct answer was an ''Infield Fly.''


    However, I doubt Kei would be able to answer this, let alone Miyamoto. I could only hope that she learned about this in thest few days of cramming...


    Only two of us, Miyamoto and I, got the answer correct.


    Unfortunately, Kei got the question wrong. However, this was her first mistake.


    The situation wasn''t dire yet, but Kei seemed filled with anxiety on her way back to her seat.


    On the other hand, Miyamoto, who had the correct answer, was high-fiving and sharing joy with his ssmates.


    From the conversation I heard, it seemed he learned about baseball''s rules from games, and they were helping him a lot today.


    Knowledge coulde in handy from unexpected ces.


    This made it four points. We temporarily surpassed Sakayanagi''s ss and ranked first.


    In the following 12th turn, Sakayanagi''s ss steadily scored four points with four correct answers, but what surprised the ss was once again Ry��en''s ss.


    As if watching a rey, five names were lined up in the list of sessful protections.


    In other words, they achieved a perfect score solely with the protection slots for the second consecutive time.


    "What kind of odds are those!? They''re too lucky!?"


    Ike, having probably assumed that Ry��en''s ss would be at the bottom, screamed out while clutching his head.


    "...I wonder if we can just dismiss this as good luck."


    I could hear Horikita''s sense of heaviness in her voice as she calmly stared at the monitor next to me.


    Understandably so. They had managed to achieve perfect selection twice in a row, which was an incredibly low-probability event.


    If they managed to get another perfect selection in the next turn...


    During the incredulous state of surprise, the next attack on Ichinose saw two people protected and two people who answered correctly.


    It was now time for Ichinose to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Ishikura Kayoko,'' ''Sud�� Ken''


    Offensive''s Nominees:


    ''Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka,'' ''Matsushita Chiaki,'' ''Karuizawa Kei''


    My name and Kei''s name were called out, nominated for the second time in a row.


    The moment she saw her name, Kei sprang to her feet, raising her voice in an obviously agitated manner.


    "I''m not being targeted, am I!?"


    "Calm down. Just because we''ve been nominated twice in a row doesn''t necessarily mean we''re being specially targeted."


    "B-but...!"


    It was understandable that Kei panicked.


    It would''ve been better if this nomination was due to Ichinose targeting weaker opponents.


    However, the opponent was Ichinose. She must''ve suspected that she was getting targeted for personal reasons.


    Given that I was included as well, it was a nomination indicative of such intent...


    Whether there was personal bias involved or not, it was best to consider this as a provocation.


    Even so, it was a solid move.


    Horikita didn''t use the valuable protection slot on me.


    Perhaps it was because she foresaw this strategy.


    If the category had been academic, Kei might have been protected. But the category was ''News.'' It was a field in which even Kei could potentially answer correctly, hence the decision to leave her unprotected. On the other hand, I had to be more cautious since I had already missed a question in the same category earlier.


    ''What does ''tapiru''[12] mean?''


    [12 : ���Ԥ� : Literally trantes to "to drink bubble tea." It''s ng, so of course Ayanokouji has no idea what it means]


    Upon seeing the question, I was instantly frozen.


    What...? Huh...? What is it? Tapiru? Tapi...?


    As I was frozen, the time limit arrived, leaving me unable to write any answer.


    The ''News'' category questions that other students received mostly revolved around politics or annual events.


    Why are curveball questions being thrown when it''s my turn?


    As a result of the challenging question, this time it was me who was mistaken and Kei who answered correctly.


    Looking relieved that we hadn''tnded on the brink of defeat, we were able to calm down for the time being.


    Matsushita naturally seemed to have gotten the correct answer, securing four points. On the other hand, due to my two mistakes, I was suddenly a candidate for elimination. By the way, the correct answer seemed to be ''sipping a drink with tapioca pearls.''


    "Do you... know even less about the world than I thought?"


    Immediately upon returning to my seat, I endured a remark from a disgusted Horikita and had no choice but to hunch my back.


    It was the 13th turn of Horikita''s ss''s attack.


    The genre was ''Kanji'' with a difficulty level of 1. However, to my surprise, Horikita''s words unexpectedly came to a halt.


    Though she was smoothly nominating till the fourth person, she seemed to be at a loss at thest one.


    Sorting out the information in her head at this point was also a challenge.


    Who was good at what, and who was weak at what.


    She might''ve prematurely exhausted the valuable information about ss A.


    There was still time left. Horikita took a deep breath, calming herself.


    Then, a helping hand was extended.


    "Why not choose Satonaka?"


    A bored student simply murmured.


    This was Kushida, the person who hadn''t been selected once during the special exam and had too much free time.


    "Thank you, Kushida-san. Then, Sensei, I would like thest person to be Satonaka-kun."


    Without asking for a reason, Horikita entirely trusted her advice.


    As a result, Satonaka wasn''t protected, and he answered incorrectly.


    "Where did you find out that Satonaka has trouble with kanji?"


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    Makida pped, admiring her.


    "That kind of informationes from everywhere."


    Kushida said as if it wasn''t a big deal, and her gaze wandered off nonchntly.


    "You''ve been very helpful. Thank you."


    "Not really."


    Even after receiving words of gratitude from Horikita, Kushida didn''t seem pleased.


    However, since her position within the ss wasn''t great, visibly contributing like this wasn''t a bad thing.


    It seemed this was one of the reasons why Horikita could challenge the second half of the battle with confidence.


    The rare informationwork that Kushida Kiky�� possessed.


    Not only did she have a wide circle of friends, but Kushida also constantly collected information about her opponents'' weaknesses. That was why she boasted exceptional memory when it came to their weaknesses.


    She hadn''t shown all her cards yet, but she probably provided Horikita with lots of information in advance. A truly reassuring presence.


    On the 13th turn, Ichinose''s attack came. It was our third defensive turn, and this time, Horikita chose to protect Karuizawa. It seemed I was left behind without protection.


    However, her guess seemed correct, and Karuizawa Kei''s name appeared as having been sessfully protected.


    Although she usually would be pleased to avoid the question, Kei''splexion was clearly off.


    "Do they intend to eliminate me...!? They''re targeting me, no matter how I look at it!?"


    "Maybe... It''s a bit too much."


    Sat�� responded in agreement. But such strange misconceptions only led to unnecessary confusion.


    "She''s not the type to specifically set someone up."


    "But that''s because...!"


    Kei was about to retort that it was because they didn''t know the circumstances, but stopped herself.


    "Anyway, we don''t know what their aim is, but now that the protection was sessful, they''re likely to shift their target next time."


    "...Yeah..."


    "But it stands out that the nominations continued three times in a row like when K��enji-kun was targeted in the first half. I wonder what Ichinose-san is thinking."


    Ichinose''s attack arrived again on the 14th turn.


    "...What should we do?"


    Horikita showed hesitation in how to allocate the protection slots. No matter what, a fourth consecutive nomination for Kei was unlikely. Should she make such a judgment? Or should she be wary of being outsmarted?


    "What about trying to protect her once more? I think she might be aiming for it."


    Kushida advised the thinking Horikita.


    "Do you think so from the flow so far?"


    "Not really. I just judged it based on what I''ve seen of Ichinose-san up until now."


    Kushida sensed the signs within Ichinose Honami''s thoughts, not from the flow of selections so far.


    "That''s true. It might be best to protect once more."


    She wasn''t one step away from elimination yet, but if they were aiming for it, they''d want to securely score points.


    Then, the sessful protections were disclosed, and Kei''s name was shown once again. She set a four-consecutive selection record in this exam, surpassing K��enji''s three consecutive nominations. There were some inexplicable aspects, but being able topete with other sses without losing seemed like a good thing.


    However, the situation was starting to turn for the worse.


    Both Horikita and Sakayanagi''s sses scored points with a bnce of both offensive and defensive measures, but in the second half, Ichinose''s ss had a high rate of sessful protections.


    However, Ry��en''s ss showed even more momentum. Even though Sakayanagi was fighting back by repeating irregr categories and nominations, the situation wasn''t improving; they had achieved four consecutive perfect protection results.


    There was no doubt that an abnormal situation was urring that could no longer be exined by luck alone.


    But in that situation, there was nothing else Horikita could do.


    Just calmly, quietly, and steadily score points.

 Chapter 448: 6.6

    <h4>Chapter 448: 6.6</h4>


    For Ry��en, losing wasn''t painful.


    Even if he lost once, it was okay if he won the second time.


    Even if he lost a hundred times, it was okay as long as he won in the end.


    That was how he had lived his life, but one day, a big obstacle stood in front of Ry��en.


    The guy looked like a fool that you could find anywhere, but inside, he was keeping a beast.


    No, Ry��en thought such an expression was far too mild.


    How best to describe it��that answer was still unclear.


    But it was certain that among all the people he''d seen up until then, he was the most powerful and brutal.


    He wasn''t a person that was in a realm obtainable by living an ordinary life.


    Over one year had passed since he was defeated by that man, Ayanok��ji, and his spirit was broken.


    The overwhelming difference in ability��that was probably why there was hardly any emotion simr to hatred welling up.


    When he interacted with Ayanok��ji, strangely enough, there was no sense of difort.


    That was probably because even if Ry��en denied it on the surface... No, that''s not it.


    Deep down, he was acknowledging Ayanok��ji''s unique abilities.


    But he repeatedly told himself not to misunderstand.


    Ry��en did not intend to remain under him.


    Before Ayanok��ji graduates from this school and disappears from his sight, he would definitely pay him back for his defeat.


    To do this, he first had to get rid of the clutter.


    He decided that it would be necessary to suppress Sakayanagi, who had been reigning as the leader of ss A.


    In effect, Sakayanagi was the only obstacle.


    And then, after achieving that, he would defeat Ayanok��ji.


    This had be Ry��en Kakeru''s goal to aplish at this school.


    He would never stop until then.


    Right after the second half of the exam started, Ry��en, who had been calmly focusing in on Sakayanagi''s main entourage during his turn, stood up from his seat.


    "Well then��it''s about time to start. Move over."


    "W-wait a minute!?"


    Ry��en pushed aside Hoshinomiya, the teacher in charge, and sat down on the tform.


    "It''s the second half. The difference in points is only ten. In other words, catching up is possible if you get a perfect score a few times. I can count on you guys, right?"


    The leader''s oppressive demand allowed for no mistakes, no matter what tasks came their way.


    Of course, hard work wouldn''t be necessary if the ratio of correct answers could rise based on that threat alone.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    "Don''t joke around. It''s not just the ss''s problem. Ry��en, you must understand that it''s hard for other sses to get perfect scores too. As a leader, you should use your wisdom to protect as many people as possible."


    Among all the students who didn''t say anything back, Tokit�� fearlessly expressed his discontent.


    "Kuku! You''ve made mistakes twice and now have no room for more. If you fail, you''ll be the first to be nominated for expulsion among the rebellious types like you."


    "...!"


    "But don''t worry. From here on out, as you wish, I''ll show you how things unfold."


    "What do you mean?"


    "The part where I said ''I can count on you guys'' was a lie."


    Ry��en turned back, confirmed that the monitor had switched, and was told that Sakayanagi''s nomination waspleted. It was his turn now to protect five candidates.


    The category that the opponent chose was ''Sports.'' Moreover, they spent two points to raise the difficulty to three.


    Ry��en wouldn''t give even a single point to their ss. The students were flustered by ss A''s unrelenting attack.


    However, Ry��en was the only one who seemed unperturbed and even a bit pleased.


    "Katsuragi, Shiina, Tokit��, Nomura, Ibuki. Get on with it," hemanded without hesitation, regardless of the category or difficulty.


    "Hey, be respectful when addressing the teacher," Hoshinomiya interjected, hurrying to input the names that Ry��en had called out, thus finalizing the defensive side''s moves.


    Meanwhile, among the students, there was spection.


    Was Ry��en''s swift decision-making designed to avoid getting caught in Sakayanagi''s tactics?


    They waited anxiously for the results.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Katsuragi K��hei,'' ''Shiina Hiyori,'' ''Tokit�� Hiroya,'' ''Nomura Yuji,'' ''Ibuki Mio''


    "W-What...?"


    Tokit��, who had been standing there ring at Ry��en, was shocked to see the result.


    His decisive, immediate answer was sessful, resulting in a perfect score.


    "Gambling can be fun. It''s like randomly tossing a dice."


    In the following 12th turn, Ry��en once again continued to announce the five names for the protection slots.


    As a result, all the students were sessfully protected again, showing a tremendous turnaround in just two turns.


    The same was true for the 13th and 14th turns.


    Even if Sakayanagi''s nominations were dispersed, they all stuck together like guided missiles, and Ry��en''s selections were all sessfully defended.


    "Heh. It seems you can''t do anything, Sakayanagi."


    Even before the start of this special exam, what Ry��en valued waspletely different from the other leaders.


    How much he could mask the smell of a beast. How much he could corner the prey without letting it sense the fangs approaching from directly behind... That was all.


    By having ovee the first half, he scored a win, hence, heunched a full-scale reversal.


    "What is happening...!?"


    There was no doubt that there was a trick.


    But even Hoshinomiya, the teacher in charge of the ss, didn''t know what it was.

 Chapter 449: 6.7

    <h4>Chapter 449: 6.7</h4>


    From the very first turn attacking and defending, Ichinose had been continually speaking to her ssmates.


    "We will absolutely avoid having anyone expelled from our ss, so don''t get nervous and stay calm."


    Of course, there were still plenty of students who felt anxious, even though they understood.


    That was why Ichinose had been voicing her reassurances��to give her ssmates some peace of mind.


    Of course, these weren''t baseless ims, but the truth. However, if they fought in the same way as before and ended up being on the defensive, other sses would mercilessly exploit the opening.


    The primary goal was to keep the number of eliminated ssmates to zero to prepare for the unlikely event of losing.


    If no students were eliminated, even the lowest-ranked ss wouldn''t have any expulsions. A defensive approach.


    However, she didn''t give up on winning.


    So, how would one fight defensively while aiming to win?


    By dragging the opponents onto your own battle field instead of theirs.


    To avoid eliminations, the opponents who saw this scenario would assume that defending themselves was their top priority.


    As the first half progressed, with the second turn and third turn, Horikita''s aim became clear.


    Among an unspecified number of people, her aim was to increase the number of people who made mistakes twice and were on the brink of bing eliminated.


    When this number swelled to five, she intended to test what Ichinose would do.


    "Thank you, Horikita-san."


    Ichinose expressed her gratitude for Horikita''s wise andpassionate actions.


    As long as they could earn points, they didn''t care if it resulted in eliminations from the enemy ss.


    It had to be that way.


    It was fortunate that the opponent was Horikita, who attacked in a solid and regr manner, unlike Ry��en. Ichinose used the protection function primarily for those on the brink of bing eliminated.


    "I won''t abandon anyone. You believe me, right?"


    She didn''t want to hurt her allies.


    She opened her arms to wee them in, ensuring them that she wouldn''t act recklessly.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    "I hope no one in the ss, year, and school... gets expelled."


    These feelings were genuine.


    However, if it meant creating victims within their ss, they were prepared for necessary sacrifices.


    Therefore, they didn''t hesitate to eliminate students in Ry��en''s ss.


    For victory, they had to sink the other sses.


    As a result, by the end of the first half, four students from Ry��en''s ss had been eliminated due to Ichinose''s attacks.


    Ultimately, if one of them disappeared, they''d have inadvertently contributed to an expulsion.


    Unavoidable sacrifices. They had no choice but to justify it, despite the pain in their hearts.


    ...However, this was only if Ry��en lost.


    "We''ll start the second half in one minute. Everyone, take your seats and prepare."


    Upon receiving Mashima-sensei''s signal, Ichinose opened her phone.


    Slowly, she looked back on the chat history on her app.


    An exchange with a certain person was made right after the start of the first half.


    [Ry��en-kun, this might be sudden, but would you team up with me? I don''t want anyone expelled from my ss. To achieve this, we need to finish the exam with zero eliminations. So, I want you to y defensively in the second half, so there are no eliminations from my ss.]


    Right after the special exam started, Ichinose sent this message to Ry��en.


    As soon as the message was read, a response came back.


    [That''s a pretty selfish wish. Do you think I''ll just listen and obediently go along with it?]


    [There''s room for negotiation. I''ll give you a present you''ll be pleased with.]


    [Before all that, can you hold off Suzune''s attacks without a scratch?]


    In order to ask Ry��en to hold off on eliminating anyone, she had to make it through the first ten turns of the first half with no eliminations.


    [I can handle it.]


    [An immediate answer, huh? You haven''t been negotiating with Suzune before me, have you? If so, it''s over.]


    A clumsy lie wouldn''t work against Ry��en, who was highly cautious.


    Even so, Ichinose wasn''t nning on negotiating with Horikita from the start. If they tried to negotiate, it would be hard to establish an agreement and Sakayanagi''s ss would start moving. That was a situation to avoid.


    [I want to protect everyone. I don''t want any eliminations. The opponent knows that''s my aim. That''s why Horikita-san must be aiming to first build up five people on the brink of elimination. She probably wants to see whether I will continue to protect those five people.]


    If a protection on one of those five people were skipped even once, it would be assumed they were ready to ept an elimination, or even an expulsion if they ended upst.


    But if she could keep protecting, nothing would be easier for the attacking Horikita. The valuable protection slots would all continuously be appointed to those five people. Hence, she would switch to targeting students who haven''t made mistakes without increasing those who would be on the brink of elimination.


    [Unlike you and Sakayanagi-san, Horikita-san doesn''t want to eliminate students from other sses. She just wants to win. She''ll attack the 34 people who aren''t protected fairly.]


    Ichinose''s strategy in the first half was to intentionally allow those students who felt unsure about their answers to be on the edge of elimination using the initial protection slots they had at their disposal. It wouldn''t be an easy battle, but it wasn''t impossible to fight on equal grounds.


    [If that strategy goes well, and I follow your instructions in the second half, then certainly, there will be no eliminations. But that''s quite the outrageous idea, huh? What kind of gift are you going to give me?]


    [A guaranteed 25 points. I''ll tell you the targeted people in five out of the ten turns that they will attack. Of course, we''ll spread them out cleverly so the other sses don''t notice.]


    If he knew who would be attacked in advance, he''d have an advantage in the exam.


    There was an immediate read receipt, but the reply took about three minutes due to thinking.


    [I''ll pass. It''s not a bad deal, but I have my own ideas.]


    [That''s a shame.]


    Ichinose thought she had made a good offer, but he had no choice but to let it go. Any furtherpromises in the score would result in them losing the chance ofing first. More than anything, she could judge that the chances were slim from the fact that Ry��en didn''t even negotiate to raise the score.


    "Then, perhaps I''ll have to go all out..."


    The negotiation failed. She could think of numerous ways in which it could''ve been worse, but she wouldn''t bother.


    Even if it was risky, she''d have to aim for a no-elimination strategy on her own.


    However��


    [You''re lucky.]


    Just when she thought all hope was lost, she received another message from the recipient.


    [What do you mean?]


    [If you manage to avoid any eliminations in the first half, I''ll partially agree to your proposal.]


    [Partially?]


    [I''ll agree to avoid eliminating any of your ssmates, but your guaranteed 25 points are unnecessary. If you act strangely in the first half, Sakayanagi will see through it.]


    [So, what are you asking for?]


    [After the offense and defense reversal in the second half, ept the points from me as necessary. And no details. Decide whether or not you trust me based on that.]


    An enigmatic offer to be the receiver rather than giving points.


    Any other student would see it as a joke, suggesting no intention to negotiate from the beginning.


    "...I see..."


    Ichinose murmured softly.


    This time, it was Ichinose who pondered whether or not to trust Ry��en.


    It would be a lie to say that she didn''t hesitate, just that it took time.


    Still, Ichinose replied in less than a minute.


    [I understand. I''ll trust you.]


    The speed of her decision-making was something other students couldn''t imitate.


    It wasn''t a decision made just out of kindness.


    Ichinose''s logic, thinking, and understanding of what Ry��en was aiming for led to this.


    The moment the first message was sent, it was instantly marked as read.


    Based on that, it could be inferred that Ry��en also wanted to contact Ichinose.


    This meant that they had something inmon, or something they both wanted, even if they weren''t exactly alike.


    This exchange urred before the start of the special exam.


    During the second half, from the 11th to the 14th turns, the situation significantly changed.


    Sakayanagi''s ss''s 15th attack on Ry��en''s ss was announced, but once again, they sessfully defended perfectly. Seeing this, Ichinose smiled without letting her surroundings notice.


    [That''s amazing. So this was your aim.]


    [Stay quiet and live.]


    [There was no need to team up with me from the start, but you did. Thank you.]


    [Do you think I agreed out of goodwill? You being thest in line wouldn''t have benefited me. I just took the power to control the score as needed.]


    Indeed, in Ry��en''s negotiations, the condition was that Ichinose had to agree to ept the points. Therefore, if their ss was losing to Sakayanagi''s, it would be simple to increase the score and forcibly make them third or higher.


    Anticipating the oue of this special exam, Ichinose was relieved that she didn''t have to lose any of her friends. During the unanimous vote exam, Ichinose chose not to distribute the Protection Points, fearing it would lead to ss conflict in that exam. However, after the announcement of this special exam, she had almost regretted that decision.


    Currently, Karuizawa Kei had made her first mistake. If she made a mistake once more, she would be on the brink of elimination. There was still a possibility of ss B falling tost ce. There were students of a lower rank than Karuizawa among the members who had already been eliminated, and there was little hope she''d be removed.


    Even then��there was a chance.


    But for that, the consecutive nominations had to be interrupted once.


    "No... That''s a bad move..."


    She urged herself to act for the ss, not for her personal feelings.


    Ayanok��ji would not reject her. He would ept her even if he continued his rtionship with Karuizawa.


    Then, there was also a way to progress and overwrite everything by yourself.


    She realized that she was the worst kind of person, but she didn''t care.


    "Even if we can''t get first ce, the way to win in reality is to make Sakayanagi-sane inst ce."


    In a small period of time, Ichinose regted her breath.


    Then, she shifted her gaze to her cell phone.


    The reason Karuizawa was targeted even after being so protected.


    It should''ve been obvious by now.


    Ichinose, who managed to hold herself back, sat down again.


    "I would like to nominate Karuizawa Kei-san."


    The 16th turn was no different, she had nominated the name Karuizawa.


    With renewed determination, Ichinose did not hesitate.


    This much was good enough for now.


    All that was left was to repeat it relentlessly.


    "I would like to nominate Karuizawa Kei-san."


    Clutching her phone, Ichinose was certain of her true victory in this special exam.

 Chapter 450: 6.8

    <h4>Chapter 450: 6.8</h4>


    It was the start of the 15th turn.


    The four sses were finally almost side-by-side. Ichinose''s ss was in first ce with 42 points. Horikita and Sakayanagi''s sses were tied for second ce with 40 points each. In third ce was Ry��en''s ss with 39 points.


    Their lead from the first half of the battle was exhausted. They had yet to be left behind, but if things continued this way, they would surely be dragged down.


    At the start, Ry��en''s ss had allowed them to suppress their fears, but ominous clouds were gathering.


    They were pushed back to a ce where there was a very real possibility they could end up inst.


    "It''s a lie, right? Spare me!"


    "I absolutely hate the idea of being expelled!"


    "I feel the same way!"


    Since the first half of the battle, the number of eliminations had increased to four, causing the students to start panicking.


    At this point, there was no way the rest could concentrate on studying.


    Horikita stood up from her pulled-out chair. It was time to start the nomination, but she calmly made her way past the panicking students.


    "Don''t panic."


    Horikita, now standing on the lectern, spoke to her ssmates.


    "Admittedly, the situation is close to dire. Our ss has four eliminations at this point. Ichinose-san has taken the lead, and Ry��en-kun''s ss, which was inst ce, is catching up at an absurd pace with continuous perfect scores. We''ve reached a point where I can''t guarantee that we''ll definitely win."


    If they could see through Ry��en''s strategy and reliably prevent perfect scores from then on, it would be different, but they couldn''t expect that. Neither could they interfere with Ichinose''s protection nominations, which seeded at a high rate.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    "All we can do is fight together until the end."


    Horikita couldn''t guarantee victory at this point.


    But, as this was apetitive exam, the leader had to offer assurance, even if there was none to be given.


    Being overly timid or overly optimistic would be pointless.


    Only the truth behind her words would resonate with her ssmates.


    Horikita believed they could prevail. That belief would reach the students.


    Even Y��suke, who was usually the one to follow up, was just listening to Horikita''s words this time.


    "Believe in me."


    They would press on, driven by this spirit. Of course, there were no other avable options.


    But looking at Horikita, there seemed to be more than that.


    15th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei,'' ''Sat�� Maya,'' and ''Miyake Akito''


    Horikita sessfully protected three of her ssmates.


    Moreover, they scored perfectly as the remaining two answered the question correctly.


    It was aeback of five points. However, the relentless nominations didn''t stop.


    "Wh-what is this?!"


    Kei, more overwhelmed with fear than joy, averted her eyes from the screen.


    Not only the ssmates who were only vaguely aware of the situation, but even ones who werepletely oblivious, began feeling uneasy about their opponent obsessively singling her out.


    Horikita, who had sessfully defended her ssmates, didn''t seem to be one of them.


    16th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei,'' ''Nishimura Ry��ko''


    This time, there were two. But again, Kei''s name was there.


    "Stop it... What is this...?"


    Ichinose continued to target and endlessly attack Karuizawa.


    It wasn''t strange to infer that if a specific student was being targeted, the intent was to intentionally eliminate and expel that student. This image-destroying behavior continued without end.


    17th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei,'' ''Hirata Y��suke''


    Still, it didn''t stop.


    It didn''t stop.


    It didn''t stop, no matter how many times it was thwarted.


    The nominations didn''t stop.


    "Why are you only targeting me... That''s not fair..."


    18th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei,'' ''Hasebe Haruka,'' ''Onodera Kayano''


    19th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei''


    20th turn��Ichinose''s ss''s turn to attack.


    Defensive''s Sessfully Protected Members:


    ''Karuizawa Kei,'' ''Sud�� Ken''


    There was a total of 10 turns in the second half.


    From start to finish, Ichinose never removed Kei as a target.

 Chapter 451 - 7 : New Expulsion

    <h4>Chapter 451: Chapter 7 : New Expulsion</h4>


    IT WAS SAKAYANAGI''S first attack in the second half.


    This time, the target shifted from Horikita''s ss to Ry��en''s.


    Before the special exam, no specific policy was set on how to fight Ry��en''s ss.


    They didn''t think it was necessary to formte a meticulous n against an opponent who did whatever he wanted.


    However, Sakayanagi now had extraneous information.


    She received a phone call the night before where she was strongly advised by her ssmate, Hashimoto.


    Among the other various things he said, there were a few things that stuck in Sakayanagi''s mind.


    One of them was the conversation about eliminating Shiina Hiyori and exploring the possibility of expulsion.


    Sakayanagi wasn''t interested in Hashimoto''s personal thoughts, but when she heard the reason, her thoughts came to a halt.


    Ayanok��ji''s gaze and treatment towards Shiina.


    Hashimoto said those were different from what he gave to ordinary students.


    This remark caught Sakayanagi''s interest.


    She wondered if Ayanok��ji would show his emotions if Shiina were expelled.


    "But that''s already an impossible development, isn''t it?"


    In the first half, Ichinose''s way of fighting was more determined than before. Before, she would''ve hesitated to eliminate people from her opponent''s ss, Ry��en''s ss C. However, Ichinose had no hesitation. She eliminated four people merely in the first half: Ishizaki, Isoyama, Yano, and Morofuji.


    She was absolutely determined to protect only her ss. To do that, she decided to be merciless with outsiders.


    Even if Sakayanagi could single out Shiina and eliminate her, the rest of the students would be sacrificed.


    Aiming for the unlikely chance of Shiina''s expulsion would be less efficient.


    Shiina had only made one mistake by this point. Even if she could get her to incorrectly answer twice by directly targeting her with problems she couldn''t solve, it would be difficult to prevent her from being protected. The strategy wasn''t easy.


    "Interesting..."


    She finished the first half of the exam in first ce and was starting to get bored. Having some fun wouldn''t be so bad.


    She changed her mind and thought it would be interesting to eliminate a challenging target.


    She would ovee the challenge, of course, keep the lead, and then finish the game.


    To do so, she needed to build a strategy.


    Within the few minutes she had until her turn came around, she finalized her n.


    And so, her 11th turn to attack began.


    However��


    In the 11th turn, all five students that Sakayanagi appointed were protected.


    Two points were wasted against the perfectly protected slots. A total failure.


    However, the students unanimously said that it wasn''t a problem��that the y was fine.


    But Sakayanagi saw it differently.


    It was just one perfect result, but she didn''t see it as just her being incredibly unlucky.


    Immediately, she had reset her self-imposed challenge regarding Shiina in her head.


    She threw away all strategies and logic, and she picked everything at random.


    In other words, abination of category and appointees that no one could predict.


    The result was the same perfect oue as the 11th turn; they showed two consecutive miracles.


    Her ssmates were clearly baffled.


    If she was someone who thought normally, it wouldn''t be strange for her to believe that she had been read, leading to her failure. However, such a thought didn''t even exist in Sakayanagi''s mind.


    After two turns, she was certain there could only be one answer. Someone was interfering.


    She believed a traitor, a Judas, was hiding in this ss.


    Clearly, internal information was leaking.


    Otherwise, inexplicable events were starting to ur.


    Until her next turn came, Sakayanagi decided to observe her ssmates without saying a word.


    Some sighed at Ry��en''s luck, others desperately clung to their phones to avoid elimination.


    And then came the attack on the 13th turn.


    The ss naturally became quiet.


    Sakayanagi remained silent. After a 30-second pause, she took a one-minute pause between each name before passing them to the teacher.


    It wasn''t because she was wracking her brain to avoid Ry��en''s wless defense again.


    This silence was Sakayanagi''s unspokenmand to her ssmates.


    It was a hidden message expressing, ''Enough with the games.''


    After holding her silence until thest minute, she passed on five names to Chabashira-sensei.


    However, the result was still the same, another perfect score.


    "How unfortunate."


    Sakayanagi muttered alone, her smile waning after three consecutive failures.


    If the information was leaking in real time, their methods would be limited.


    One method was to type Sakayanagi''s appointed students into a chat or email and send it. Since a phone is used to collect information, typing wouldn''t necessarily be seen as suspicious.


    Another method was auditory transmission through a phone call. Immediately after Sakayanagi ryed information to the teacher, it could be transmitted to the other party; this could be executed without having to touch the phone.


    As a preemptive measure, she could receive permission to pass the information on to the teacher via paper. Even if that was impossible, she could switch to whispering, preventing any voice leaks.


    However��


    Sakayanagi looked at therge monitor positioned over the teacher''s shoulder.


    If a method involving the use of a phone camera was employed, even preventing voice transmission wouldn''t guarantee a resolution.


    Perhaps the only way to defend was to physically prevent the transmission of information.


    She would have everyone stop using their phones and tablets.


    As for informing the teacher, she''d whisper, and until Ry��en named five people, everyone would keep their backs turned to shut out any information.


    If this solved the problem, it would be a blessing.


    They had only given away 15 points so far. They could still stop Ry��en''s rampage.


    As she continued to think, the silence was broken, but it wasn''t Sakayanagi who broke it.


    "Information is leaking."


    The one who shattered the ss''s silence was Morishita Ai.


    She muttered those words expressionlessly.


    "Morishita-san might be right. We should probably have everyone stop touching their phones and check them. Ry��en-kun might have a trick up his sleeve."


    Sanada, slightly dyed, agreed with Morishita''s words, asking Sakayanagi for a response.


    Kit�� and Hashimoto immediately rose.


    "There''s no need for a response."


    "But...!"


    "We should continue using our phones to find hints and leads to solve the questions."


    Under these chaotic circumstances, it would be hard to say that cramming was effective.


    Unexpectedly, the leader refused to do what needed to be done.


    "Are you okay with this, Princess? I''m also certain after seeing three consecutive perfect nominations. I definitely think information is leaking. We need to take action��"


    "There''s no change in ns. Let''s continue the exam as it is."


    If instructed to, no other students could question further.


    Nobody was given the authority to overturn the decision.


    Though everyone was obedient, they were thinking, ''Why didn''t Sakayanagi make the necessary moves?''


    Betraying the ss wasn''t something that could be easily done. If the opponent was obviously protecting the targeted students, it was only a matter of time before people realized that information was leaking during the exam.


    Since they were still executing the n despite knowing this, concerns arose that the problem might not be solved simply by confiscating phones and blocking the monitor''s view.


    What would happen if measures were taken and the leaks didn''t stop?


    Information gathering would be hindered, and the ss would be bewildered and disoriented.


    Even if some evidence came to light, if Sakayanagi was in the position of a traitor, she would never leave evidence near her. She would nt it on some random student''s desk or bag, or somewhere in the ssroom. Then, it would be a war of words. They''d argue with each other on the spot, pinning the me on each other.


    Naming a student who had a high possibility of being a traitor without providing solid evidence was simply too risky.


    Either way, it was more disadvantageous to make a fuss about it now.


    Sakayanagi decided to prioritize avoidingst ce rather than aiming for first ce.


    It didn''t affect you as long as you could defend and gain points, even if information continued to leak.


    They tried to defend against Horikita''s attacks as much as possible and aim for third ce, but it didn''t go as well as they hoped.


    From the flow of the exam transmitted from the monitor, it became evident that Ichinose was assisting Horikita. A strategy was being constructed��to use a traitor to make their ss sink to the bottom.


    The 20th turn ended while they were falling behind, and they lost their third cement by six points.


    "It seems this time I''ve lost."


    Theypeted between the four sses and suffered the disgrace ofing inst ce.


    Even if the circumstances were due to inside betrayal, no excuses could be epted.


    Sakayanagi let out a sigh.


    As the leader, she still needed to take responsibility for this defeat.


    "As we have been defeated, we must select an eliminated ssmate to expel."


    During the exam, five students��Kamuro, Yamamura, Sugio, Toba, and Machida��were eliminated.


    "Normally, it would be proper to decide based on the contribution to the ss, but we won''t do that. The reason is simple. From my perspective, the five of you are all on the same level."


    Sakayanagi asserted that there would be no change in the ss''s strength regardless of who was expelled.


    "So, how are we gonna decide then...?"


    One of the eliminated students, Machida, asked anxiously.


    "We should draw lots and decide on who to expel fairly."


    An unexpected proposal caused a scream from the eliminations.


    "Are you dissatisfied? Unfortunately, it won''t make a big difference who is expelled."


    In the silent ssroom, Sakayanagi continued the process tirelessly. The eliminated students wanted to vent their frustrations, but they wanted to avoid aggravating Sakayanagi and being singled out for expulsion.


    "It''s pointless to object. The leader has the right to decide on who to expel."


    "If we follow the results of the draw, can that be considered the leader''s decision?"


    "Of course. To make it easier to avoid a case where a student with a low OAA takes responsibility, I have decided to judge the unlucky ones as those without talent. And if someone refuses to participate in the draw, I''ll interpret that as them giving up the fight at that point, and I''ll expel them."


    In order to forcibly involve them, Sakayanagi tirelessly eliminated any means of escape.


    "I''ve prepared the lots."


    A female student spoke to Sakayanagi in a carefree voice, unaware of the heavy atmosphere.


    "You''re well-prepared, Morishita-san. Thank you for carefully coloring them. We''re short on time, so let''s get it over with quickly. The person picking the colored paper will unfortunately have to drop out of school."


    There were a total of five lots prepared, four of which were safe. That was all.


    "Who would like to draw first? Whether you''re the first orst to draw, your odds start the same."


    Would they show that they can avoid expulsion with their own hands, or wait for someone else to be expelled?


    While suppressing his urge to object, Machida was the first to draw a lot.


    "Heck yes!"


    Machida drew a in lot and showed the biggest victory pose so far.


    Encouraged by this, Sugio and Toba followed.


    One after another, they drew uncolored papers.


    Then, only two of them were left: Kamuro Masumi and Yamamura Miki.


    The former simply stayed because she couldn''t be bothered to go and draw.


    Thetter was too scared to move. They were left behind for totally different reasons. Sakayanagi, who had a friendship with both, didn''t change her expression.


    The reason she chose a lottery of equal probability was that she decided it didn''t matter who dropped out.


    "You go ahead and draw."


    Even though she was prompted by Kamuro, Yamamura couldn''t move.


    She was shaking with the realization that she had a one-in-two chance of being expelled and waspletely unprepared for it.


    She couldn''t think about what would happen after her expulsion.


    Even if she wanted to move forward, her feet were frozen.


    "I-I, I am..."


    "Geez... then I''ll draw it first. Is that okay?"


    Unable to speak, Yamamura repeatedly nodded in agreement. That was all she could do.


    Kamuro approached Morishita, who was holding the lottery box.


    "Please wait."


    Just as she was about to reach out her hand, Sakayanagi stopped her.


    "I said that those who won''t draw will be expelled. That means, Yamamura-san, who refused to draw, will leave."


    "Eh...? But... Eh...?"


    "So, there''s no objection?"


    "E-Eh...! T-That''s..."


    "What is this? Are you trying to help me?"


    "No, that''s not it. I was just stating the facts."


    "Oh, I see. Then it''s settled. Yamamura and I will draw at the same time, right?"


    Eager to dere who would be expelled, Sakayanagi found herself stopped by Kamuro.


    Kamuro easily threw away her own chance to avoid expulsion.


    "Come quickly."


    She went towards Yamamura, who couldn''t take a step forward, and forcibly grabbed her arm and dragged her.


    "This is your first andst opportunity to decide which of our luck is superior."


    "You''re really kind, aren''t you, Masumi-san? Do you really need to take risks to help someone you should just discard?"


    "No, it''s just a whim."


    "Is that so...? Then let''s see the both of you draw."


    Morishita offered two lots for them to draw.


    When Kamuro forcibly moved Yamamura''s indecisive left hand, she reflexively clutched one lot.


    Seeing this, Kamuro also wrapped her hand around a lot.


    "Don''t hold a grudge."


    In a calm voice, Kamuro awkwardlyforted the restless Yamamura.


    "Now, release your hands."


    Morishita said slowly, and at the same moment, they opened their clenched hands.


    The two pieces of paper fluttered in the slight breeze.


    The person who drew the colored paper would be expelled��that was the rule.


    The one who held that paper was Kamuro.


    Apart from the person in question, the other students were unable to ept the result and fell silent.


    "It''s decided. Good for you, Yamamura. You survived."


    "Ah, eh..."


    She gently patted Yamamura on her shoulder, whose status, whether staying in school or dropping out, had not been conclusively determined yet.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    ss A was engulfed by silence.


    It was apletely different situation from when Totsuka had previously been expelled��the ss points decreased due to the defeat and the expulsion was through a selection.


    ss A was truly experiencing defeat for the first time.


    What was surprising was that Kamuro, the sole sacrificialmb, seemed calm throughout.


    Seemingly annoyed by the gazes pouring in from her ssmates, Kamuro brushed them off and returned to her seat.


    Sakayanagi took her eyes off her and urged Chabashira, the teacher in charge, to proceed.


    "Well then, let''s consider this special exampleted."


    The survival and elimination special exam, that had taken such a long time, had ended atst.

 Chapter 452: 7.1

    <h4>Chapter 452: 7.1</h4>


    Final results:


    1st: Ry��en[ss D]69 points


    2nd: Ichinose [ss C]62 points


    3rd: Horikita [ss B]59 points


    4th: Sakayanagi [ss A]53 points


    Ry��en, having perfectly defended for all the ten turns in the second half, turned the tables and won the victory.


    With this ranking confirmed, Ry��en''s ss gained 100 ss points. The second and third-ced sses, regrettably, lost 50 ss points, whereas Sakayanagi lost 100 ss points.


    The result, which was unimaginable based on the first half, waspletely unexpected; everyone fell from the top.


    Defeat was no cause for joy. Yet, there was little discontent in the ss. Rather, they appeared strongly relieved to have barely scraped by in third ce.


    No wonder. Those who had been eliminated had spent the end of the exam in mental distress.


    Chabashira-sensei announced that more details, including ss A''s expulsion, would be reported the following week and that ss was dismissed for the day.


    Among the lingering excitement, a single student burst open the ssroom door from the hallway.


    "Sorry, Karuizawa-san!"


    "Eh, Ichinose-san...!?"


    Kei, who was pressured by ten consecutive nominations, stiffened at Ichinose''s appearance.


    Protectively, Sat�� slipped in front of Kei.


    Seeing this, seated at the very back, Horikita stood up.


    "Calm down, Karuizawa-san. Those mysterious consecutive nominations were Ichinose-san trying to throw us a lifeline."


    Ichinose apologized while agreeing with Horikita''s words.


    "Eh? What, what does that mean...?"


    "She was trying, in her own way, to give us points. Right?"


    "I had considered contacting you through text or by call, but it would be unnatural to say that we would be giving your points, so we decided to make a series of consecutive nominations in order to send a straightforward message. It was then that Horikita-san got suspicious and contacted me."


    Horikita was the one who contacted her, not the other way around. Ichinose exined that this was the important point.


    "We were also able to sessfully protect a few peopleter thanks to Ichinose-san informing us of the nominees in advance."


    "Why would they... Why would they need to do that...?"


    "To defeat ss A, probably. Essentially, every ss in second ce and below was able to fight so that no one would lose."


    "Yes, our only option was to face Sakayanagi-san head-on. That''s what we call a godsend."


    If it wasn''t for Ichinose''s support, the six-point difference might''ve been a setback.


    "But, why did that have to be me?"


    "You, Karuizawa-san, have been ying a central role among the girls, and naturally, Horikita-san would think of protecting you from being eliminated, wouldn''t she? That''s why I nned to keep nominating you from the beginning. However, I thought you must''ve been feeling anxious, so I rushed over here. I''m truly sorry!"


    Looking at the justified reasoning and Horikita''s message that substantiated it, Kei was somewhat relieved.


    Ichinose continued to apologize to Kei several times before inevitably leaving since she was keeping her ssmates waiting.


    Afterward, as she looked at the ranking, Horikita received her ssmates'' thanks as they began to leave.


    I also called out to Horikita.


    "We lost this time. In the second half, it was clear that there must have been some kind of deal between Ry��en-kun''s and Ichinose-san''s sses... Of course, without any evidence, it''s just spection, but his ss gave points to Ichinose-san''s ss, which elevated them to second ce, without a single elimination."


    "Exactly, but that''s not the main point."


    Horikita nodded in agreement and stood up.


    "If two sses colluded, they basically had to start working together from the first half. Only by assisting each other could both parties benefit and share the victory. So I was fully relieved when there were no signs of it even after the first half was over."


    "It wasn''t just you. Sakayanagi couldn''t have expected it either."


    It was uncertain when Ry��en and Ichinose joined hands, but it must''ve been after the special exam arrangements were announced. And without showing their faces publicly, they were quietly preparing.


    "But the turning point of all this was that Ry��en was able to sense all of Sakayanagi''s attack targets beforehand."


    "Someone leaked ss A''s information to him... That''s the only exnation."


    "That seems to be the case."


    "That student is insane. I can''t imagine something like clearly betraying the ss. This wasn''t ss D or ss C, but a ss that has maintained A since enrollment. What did they get in return for executing this?"


    "They could betray their ss if they were being paid 20 million points. Other than that, they probably wouldn''t do it."


    But still, it was hard to believe that anyone would betray their ss if asked straight out.


    Indeed, gaining 20 million points, which enabled you to move to another ss at any point in time, seemed like a true goal, but there was still more than a year left until graduation. If such a huge amount of points were transferred, the betrayal would soon be exposed to the light of day, and the student would be the target of ss A''s fury. They would also be envied by other sses. If they were targeted in the subsequent special exams, resulting in the risk of expulsion, they''d have no choice but to part with their private points. If that were to ur, they''d be getting their priorities backward.


    In other words, it was safe to assume that the traitor wanted something special but unusual.


    "I''m not thrilled with the oue, but I can''tin. Although it''s disappointing noting in first, ss A ended up being fourth, so there''s basically no damage done. However... I still feel frustrated."


    Stepping out into the hallway and out of other students'' sight, Horikita vented her true feelings without holding back.


    "Take that frustration to the next special exam."


    "Okay... I''ll do that."


    "I''m going to check out Ry��en''s ss. What are you going to do?"


    "I''ll go home for today. I don''t have the confidence that I can listen to his sarcasm maturely."


    Indeed, there was no denying the possibility that Ry��en could stir things up.

 Chapter 453: 7.2

    <h4>Chapter 453: 7.2</h4>


    Wanting to confirm the state of Ry��en''s ss, which should be in high spirits, I went close to ss D and found Hiyori.


    She seemed to be looking down at the floor from the window.


    Her expression was not the soft smile she usually showed, but a stern one. Noticing this incongruity, I quietly approached and copied her, looking down from the window.


    What I saw was Ry��en and a few of his entourage.


    A noticeable figure was Ishizaki, who was gesticting in joy while jumping about.


    There was also Katsuragi''s figure, walking majestically towards Keyaki Mall, even with his gaudy movements.


    His side profile which was briefly visible, as always, was stern as usual.


    "Just about time to taste the wine of victory, huh?"


    I wouldn''t be surprised if they splurged at Keyaki Mall today.


    "That seems to be the case."


    Hiyori responded to my words in her natural tone.


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    "Aren''t you going?"


    "Although I was invited, I declined today."


    "Why?"


    "Maybe because I just couldn''t feel like celebrating."


    Among the jubnt students, the only one without a smile might have been Hiyori.


    "I felt uneasy seeing Ry��en-kun''s way of thinking and offensive approach today."


    "He achieved first ce against the odds. I think it was an excellent result."


    "We can say so if we only look at the result. However..."


    After hesitating a bit, Hiyori continued speaking.


    "I have doubts if we can continue winning without incident using these methods."


    "It wasn''t a conventional approach. Rather, it was more like treading carefully when it came to the ss''s strengths."


    The ability to gamble on unique strategies was Ry��en''s forte, but that was all.


    "We somehow managed this time, but we''re not going to be able to build upon this victory next time. I''m not saying we should lose, but we''ve lost a valuable opportunity for growth."


    "You could be right."


    However, to achieve that, they might need some fresh perspectives.


    "The parts necessary for us to rise to ss A also serve as obstacles. It''s troubling."


    Hiyori could see a clear weakness in her ss.


    The strengthid in Ry��en''s existence.


    But on the flip side, the weaknesses were due to his presence too.


    "If there''s a student who realizes this, there''s still hope for the ss."


    I wanted to briefly hear what the winners would say, but I had no intention of interrupting.


    Hiyori, who looked concerned, seemed to be going to the library and invited me to join, but I decided to decline.


    I also wanted to see how Ichinose''s and Sakayanagi''s sses were doing.


    About Ichinose''s ss, for better or for worse, it was the same as usual. While avoiding the lowest position, they provided insurance by keeping the number of eliminations to zero. Fighting without abandoning anyone carried risks, but in the end, they finished in second ce.


    Horikita determined her goal and deliberately orchestrated the strategy in the first half of the battle to push five students to the brink of elimination. In the second half, she allied with Ry��en, who appeared to have initiated negotiations early on, achieving an elimination count of zero. Furthermore, she assisted Horikita, relegating Sakayanagi''s position to the very bottom.


    It could be said that they made the best possible moves for a ss caught in the middle.

 Chapter 454: 7.3

    <h4>Chapter 454: 7.3</h4>


    It was after school, and the time had already passed 5 p.m. Due to the second year''s special exam, club activities were canceled, and only a few students remained on campus.


    Sakayanagi was seated at Kamuro''s desk, which had yet to be cleared away, quietly waiting for the time to pass.


    As the promised time approached, the ssroom door opened.


    "I''ve been waiting for you, Hashimoto-kun."


    "Why did you want to meet me in such a ce and with just the two of us?"


    "It''s a reflection meeting."


    "Well, that would be a little scary."


    "This special exam turned out to be a great disappointment. It was my failure."


    "I agree. It was disappointing, but I can''t me you. No matter how I think about it, the ss''s information must have leaked to Ry��en."


    The newly entered Hashimoto gently ced his hand on Kamuro''s desk and looked around the ssroom.


    "The traitor caused Masumi-chan''s��Kamuro-chan''s��expulsion. It''s unforgivable."


    "I thought you didn''t care who got expelled as long as it wasn''t you, Hashimoto-kun."


    "We wererades for two years, weren''t we? Even I would feel angry."


    "Yes, I suppose. But how do you think the ss''s information was leaked?"


    Sakayanagi asked Hashimoto, as though to seek his opinion.


    "Normally you would think it was leaked via a phone. Simple and effective."


    "I think the same."


    "If that''s the case, why didn''t you take countermeasures when Morishita spoke up?"


    "What do you mean by countermeasures? Confiscating everyone''s phones?"


    "Yeah, exactly. Wouldn''t that have minimized the damage?"


    "The traitor isn''t stupid. I assumed they had some sort of countermeasure in ce. I thought that if we started a clumsy investigation, it would only create confusion."


    "So, you chose to wait and see as you saw ahead. A strategy only you could''ve orchestrated."


    Slowly, Hashimoto walked between the rows of desks and advanced toward the podium.


    "However, didn''t it pain your heart to cut off Kamuro-chan, even if it was the result of the lots?"


    "Pain my heart?"


    "You were good friends. If it was me, I would''ve bent over backwards to get Toba or the others expelled instead."


    "That''s impossible. She isn''t a special existence to me."


    "No matter what, you''ve been together for two years, facing highs and lows. It''s strong of you not to waver. I kind of liked Kamuro-chan, and I don''t think I''ll be able to get over it any time soon."


    <strong><i>(Illustration)</i></strong>


    From a distance, Hashimoto answered with aplicated look on his face.


    "Who do you think is the traitor that caused Masumi-san to be expelled?"


    "You keep on asking questions. Unfortunately, I have no idea. But do you have any clues?"


    Sakayanagiughed and then slowly stood up from her chair, leaning on her cane.


    She then signaled for Hashimoto to join her.


    Walking away from the podium, Hashimoto did exactly that and made his way towards Sakayanagi.


    "Hashimoto-kun, you''re the traitor who leaked our internal information, aren''t you?" she asked.


    Hashimoto scratched his head and sighed heavily in response.


    "I figured that''s why I was called here. It''s not unreasonable to suspect me, after all. As you probably know, I have always been exploring the possibility of transferring to another ss. I admit that. But think about it, would I jeopardize my position in ss A? It doesn''t make sense."


    Although acknowledging that the suspicion was inevitable, he strongly rebutted against it.


    "That would be the typical view. I myself believed no overt betrayal was probable."


    It was normally hard to imagine a ss A student resorting to an inexplicably self-risking course of action.


    Not even someone like Sakayanagi, with meticulous attention to detail, could ever foresee and counteract betrayal from arade.


    "I won''t do anything to jeopardize the ss. What''s the point if the person expected to betray actually does?"


    Fully aware he was the most likely suspect, Hashimoto asserted he wouldn''t betray the ss.


    "I will pitch in to find the traitor; then, I will prove my innocence."


    "Then, shall we have you start assisting immediately?"


    Sakayanagi took out her phone and gently ced it on Kamuro''s desk.


    The screen showed Hashimoto walking with Ry��en at Keyaki Mall.


    "You met with him before this special exam, didn''t you?"


    "That was Ry��en approaching me on his own ord. He just dragged me around," Hashimoto retorted with great reluctance. "Who on earth took these photos? Was it your personal assistant, Yamamura?"


    Before she could respond, Hashimoto asked with a sense of preemption.


    "Can we end this farce now?"


    Sakayanagi said in her typical tone to Hashimoto, who had been denying everything.


    "I assume you won''t believe me, no matter whatever I say."


    "If you insist on justifying it with excuses, would you show me your phone''s history?"


    She countered Hashimoto''s defense with a rebuttal. Her suspicion was evidently strong.


    "I suppose you would drop your suspicions if I did that?"


    "Well, it''s worth a try, don''t you think?"


    "Indeed, if you were to leak information during the exam, it would be quickest to keep your phone on and secretly texting and emailing. So, the one with traces would be the traitor. But are you okay with that? If you check my phone and find nothing, you''ll have to apologize ordingly."


    He had been suspected so far, and he wouldn''t let it slide; he was confident enough to say this.


    "If I''m mistaken, I''ll meet your expectations. But what I''m asking for isn''t a call history or chat history. You can easily erase those, after all."


    After school, Hashimoto had plenty of time to himself.


    Erasing these histories would be easy.


    "So, what history do you want to see?"


    "What I want to see is your use of private points, not the call or chat history."


    Having said this much, would he admit it?


    At Sakayanagi''s words, Hashimoto choked up in the back of his throat.


    "You seem easygoing, but you''re actually cautious. You can''t guarantee that Ry��en-kun won''t trap you, even if you join hands. If you were eliminated, you would take on the risk of being expelled. You can make a contract with Ry��en-kun in writing to protect yourself, but that leaves physical evidence that you want to avoid as much as possible. Therefore, it''s no wonder you may have taken arge amount of Private Points as a way to guarantee things. If the promise is fulfilled, the full amount would be returned. If not, you could seize the Private Points. This way, there would be no betrayal unless something very serious happens, right?"


    Hashimoto took out his phone and grimaced with a bitter smile.


    "Gosh. It won''t be as simple as I thought. I admit it. I''ve surrendered."


    Sakayanagi''s observation was right. Using his ssmates, Ry��en collected arge amount of Private Points to give to Hashimoto. It was his insurance from getting eliminated.


    "How much did he buy from you?"


    "The information fee wasn''t high. About 500,000."


    "That''s a cheap price for betrayal."


    "I kept it at that level. Private Points aren''t a problem, but that''s not why I betrayed you."


    Hashimoto emphasized that Private Points were not the main goal.


    Normally, it wouldn''t have been strange to immediately pursue his real intentions, but Sakayanagi didn''t.


    She already understood why he''d betrayed her.


    "Should I praise Ry��en-kun, who led you to betray me this time?"


    "Don''t make meugh. As the information broker, I deliberately chose him on my own. I chose him because he doesn''t hate betraying anyone, and if he benefits, he''ll ept it without hesitation. Horikita and Ichinose wouldn''t have epted it, would they?"


    "Even if you say that you were passing information to other sses as an informant, whether the other ss leaders would ept it is a different story. He''s the only one who would easily ept it."


    "Yeah. So, for today''s special exam, I initially bet on the two-thirds chance that our ss would go up against his ss."


    If ss A was ced on a diagonal line with no attack and defense with Ry��en''s ss in the special exam, Hashimoto said he was going to watch without making a move.


    With that decision, the situation would''ve dramatically changed.


    It wouldn''t have been strange if the first half''s ranking settled it.


    "Do you not think of scolding me at least once?"


    "I am not a teacher. I don''t feel like guiding you correctly."


    Hashimoto shrugged his shoulders and put away his phone in his pocket.


    "Shouldn''t you have searched me at least?"


    "It''s pointless. You didn''t do anything illegal like leaking information on your phone, right? It''s too dangerous to spy on your own phone. Instead, you borrowed a phone from a student in another ss ahead of time and hid it somewhere in the ssroom, didn''t you?"


    "Did you read through me that much?"


    "You won''t gain anything by testing me."


    Hashimoto, who tried to pull one off, was quickly counterattacked.


    If he was suspected, he would''ve pulled out his phone without hesitation.


    No evidence would have been found even if everyone''s mobile was checked during the exam.


    Sakayanagi, who knew that it was just a waste of time, decided early to continue using it to capitalize on the defensive aspects instead.


    The feeling that those around her were in a hurry was just a misinterpretation.


    "The hiding ce must be in the ssroom, but it takes time and effort to find it. There could be a spy in the hallway, someone pretending to be ignorant and making a fuss, and while there''s an opportunity, forcefully taking out the phone wouldn''t be destroying evidence. "


    Sakayanagi, who had mobility impairments, couldn''t make nimble movements to catch them red-handed.


    If she showed signs of whispering to Kamuro or Kit��, Hashimoto would have hesitated.


    "When the special exam came to an end and you were going home, you left the ssroom with Yoshida-kun, who you weren''t so close with. Did you put it in his bag?"


    "Aha, you''re watching well, Princess. So, I was the most suspicious after all."


    "There were elements in your recent remarks that made me realize."


    "But why? Instead of asking me to show my Private Points history the moment I arrived in the ssroom, why''d you take the time to coax me into confessing?"


    Sakayanagi didn''t immediately confront Hashimoto when he showed up in the ssroom.


    If she hadn''t yet made up her mind, it would be a different story, but Sakayanagi clearly held a firm belief.


    "It''s an act of mercy towards the traitor, including the fact that I didn''t do anything during the exam."


    That was why Sakayanagi created two moments for him to confess.


    She was asking him to reflect on his actions and stay put.


    "It''s unfortunate that you didn''t notice it. Colluding with other sses and plotting a transfer��I can overlook those as a harmless prank��but this act crosses a different line."


    "That''s right. It can be said for many special exams��being betrayed by yourrades is a fatal blow. A ss functions as amunity of shared destiny. Although there may be some dissatisfaction, and they may not follow instructions, they wouldn''t betray the ss. This is because it directly affects the ss''s disadvantage and their own disadvantage."


    That was why even students who hadints kept their frustrations in check and endured their daily lives.


    "You crossed a line that shouldn''t have been crossed."


    "I won''t deny it."


    Hashimoto, standing against Sakayanagi, acknowledged the truth without flinching.


    "The people around me won''t understand. They''ll say, ''What''s the gain in bringing down ss A?'' But no, that''s wrong, this ss had no chance of winning from the beginning. Even if I didn''t betray you, the ss is destined to sink below ss B in the future. So I had to create a winning chance, even by betrayal."


    "So you''re fighting your own battle."


    "It was hard for me too. But this special exam was a good opportunity to send a warning. The loss of ss points isn''t a matter of despair. Only the ones whocked ability were eliminated. I thought it was a golden opportunity. I didn''t betray this ss because I wanted to. The temporary betrayal was because I wanted to win."


    "You being discovered was part of the n. Rather, it was included in your n."


    "I didn''t think it would be today, though."


    He thought it would be revealed in a ss gathering, or something close to it.


    Hashimoto wanted to avoid being forced into a situation where it was just the two of them if possible.


    "The moment you noticed my betrayal and found out my n, you probably already knew the reason, didn''t you?"


    "That''s why I created this setting."


    To take a big gamble, even at the risk of exposing himself to danger��that was the reason.


    "Unless I did this, I couldn''t convince you that I''m serious. At the end of winter break, I again suggested my idea to you. I want to pull Ayanok��ji into our ss."


    "Yes, I''ve already heard plenty of your passionate speeches."


    The poaching of Ayanok��ji and the act of betrayal.


    Other students might tilt their heads as they couldn''t connect the two.


    However, Hashimoto understood very well the essence and nature of Sakayanagi Arisu.


    "Even if we lost ss points this time, even if I turned out to be the traitor, and even if you have to expel me, I''ve decided that it doesn''t matter. That''s the resolution I had made."


    This wasn''t the end, it was the beginning.


    The threat of repeating the betrayal until Sakayanagi adopted Ayanok��ji.


    "You seem to genuinely believe that you can''t graduate as ss A with my guidance."


    "I acknowledge that Princess is excellent. But still, I''m convinced that we won''t be able to stop Ayanok��ji''s ss''s rapid progress in the near future. ss A''s and ss B''s positions will eventually be reversed, and we won''t have a chance to outdo them afterward. In other words, our current position is just an illusion."


    He passionately continued.


    "The best strategy to graduate as ss A is for Princess and Ayanok��ji to be in the same ss. With that, we will be a solid, unbeatable ss."


    "I guess it was the right decision to not let you say this in front of others."


    "Won''t you admit it? I think my idea is right."


    "I can''t agree."


    "Sorry to break it to you, but Ayanok��ji is undoubtedly the strongest in our year��"


    "What do you im to know about Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    With a tter, the tip of her cane firmly struck the floor.


    "...!"


    Clear anger was leaking from the previously calm Sakayanagi.


    "It seems you''re pretty wrapped up in him. Have you noticed your fanatic statements?"


    Under that extraordinary pressure, Hashimoto was intimidated by the petite Sakayanagi.


    "You''re angry at being told you''re not the best?"


    Indeed, this was Sakayanagi''s anger.


    But, it wasn''t because Ayanok��ji was judged superior.


    It was unbearable to see this man, who blindly believed in Ayanok��ji, before her.


    What could a man, who isn''t even aware of Ayanok��ji''s background, say about him?


    "Drop your pride and pull Ayanok��ji to your side. It''ll be the worst if Ry��en surrounds him."


    "The possibility of Ry��en-kun pulling in Ayanok��ji-kun is zero. If he has the capabilities you''ve evaluated, he''d rather persist as an enemy to defeat him directly."


    "Maybe it''s like that now, but what about when he can''t win? If he keeps antagonizing him, and he loses his chance to reach ss A, his thoughts might change��"


    "They won''t change. Ry��en-kun and I both wish to fight a worthy adversary. The obsession with graduating as ss A is practically nonexistent."


    Upon hearing these words, Hashimoto closed his eyes and let out a sigh.


    His own remarks were proven wrong. The reason for Sakayanagi''s previously unseen attitude was that she had rated Ayanok��ji highly for much longer than Hashimoto had realized.


    Simultaneously, it was reaffirmed that Ayanok��ji''s skill was, without a doubt, genuine.


    "He might be tired of your behavior. When I enrolled in this school, I intuitively thought that you, or Ry��en, would be the leaders to graduate from ss A. However, I always felt an odd sense of difort. Now, the reason is clear. Neither of you has a true passion for graduating from ss A."


    Winning against rivals, and subsequently remaining in ss A.


    If anything more important than being ss A were discovered, it would easily be tossed aside.


    "On the other hand, Horikita and Ichinose possess passion. It''s strange. sses who can''t win, whock power, have this passion, while a ss capable of winning doesn''t. However, if Ayanok��ji and Princess team up, passion won''t matter. It would certainly lead to the birth of a winning ss."


    While looking at Hashimoto, Sakayanagi spoke indifferently, as she was satisfied with her own understanding.


    "I understand you''re saying that bringing Ayanok��ji to our ss is the absolute condition for victory. However, isn''t getting a ss exchange ticket and transferring to the ss he''s enrolled in the simplest and safest method? In addition to having Ayanok��ji, Horikita-san''s ss also has a fixation on reaching ss A.


    "Was such a position possible for me?"


    "Of course. If you had pleaded for the ss exchange ticket because you wished to transfer, I would''ve dly given it to you."


    "I guess I''ve a regrettable decision then."


    Sakayanagi immediately pointed out his deliberately regretful behavior.


    "You''re joking. You wouldn''t have epted the ticket in that situation."


    "...Why is that?"


    "Your intentions are transparent. Even though the future is unclear, you wouldn''t want to give up this ss that currently holds the A position. However, Ayanok��ji-kun scares you. You want to change sses, but there''s no guarantee after going to ss B. That''s why you won''t use a ticket. If you can''t move yourself, the only option left is to move someone else."


    Students who frivolously switched sses could hardly gain trust.


    The hurdles to get the next ticket were much higher than before.


    They lost the means to escape from the sinking ship in case of emergency.


    "We have no intention of keeping you, the traitor, in our ss from now on. You can''t escape now, you know? I''m sure you''re trying to negotiate with your surroundings, but you''re not worth 20 million points. No one will seriously pick you up. Even if you try to get the ss transfer ticket, I will never let you get it as long as I control ss A. Of course, the same applies to letting in Ayanok��ji-kun."


    In other words, Hashimoto was at a deadlock.


    But he didn''t retreat. From the moment he decided to betray his ss, Hashimoto faced it with firm determination.


    "I wanted you to understand, but it can''t be helped. I will continue to do the same thing. I will definitely convince Princess to bring in Ayanok��ji."


    This was Hashimoto''s big gamble.


    If something came along that would allow the entire ss to expel one person, he would be in a desperate situation.


    But if such a thing didn''te, it wouldn''t be easy to expel Hashimoto.


    "The special exam isn''t the only chance for expulsion. You understand that, don''t you?"


    "You insist on not epting my offer. Then, in the worst-case scenario, I have no choice but to get you expelled. After that, I will control ss A and bring in Ayanok��ji."


    At his words, which could be described as aplete parting, Sakayanagi apuded dryly.


    "Well said. That''s the most brilliant line you''ve said today, Hashimoto-kun. If you''re going to expel me, let''s wee it. Please show me."


    Theplete break within the ss.


    It was the beginning of a battle that would not end until one of them was defeated.

 Chapter 455: Epilogue : The Premonition of Awakening

    <h4>Chapter 455: Epilogue : The Premonition of Awakening</h4>


    NEAR THE STAFF room, Sakayanagi was quietly waiting alone.


    "Are you waiting for Kamuro toe out?"


    "It seems like you''ve heard about her situation somewhere."


    "Kit�� told me when I went to check on ss A."


    "He''s not very talkative, but you never know with friendships."


    "I thought it might''ve been inappropriate, but I decided to visit. It''s not like we were especially close, but this would be thest time I could see her. I thought I''d briefly say hello."


    "Oh, is that so?"


    The truth was, saying hello to Kamuro didn''t really matter.


    But if I said this, Sakayanagi wouldn''t be able to refuse me staying there.


    I stood next to Sakayanagi and looked at the staff room door.


    "You must have grasped what happened in the exam, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Yeah, I have a pretty good idea of the reason for your defeat. Have you been able to identify who was responsible?"


    "Yes, I''ve finished that task a while ago."


    "I see."


    If that was the case, Sakayanagi would be dealing with that issueter.


    As the sun was about to set, Kamuro calmly came out.


    Thinking no one was going to be there, she showed an astonished expression we''d never seen before.


    "What are you guys doing here?"


    "We were waiting for you, Masumi-san. Should we not have done so?"


    "That''s not it, but why did youe?"


    Apparently, Kamuro was more epting of reality than expected.


    "We have today to say our goodbyes. I wanted to talk to you onest time."


    "Don''t tell me you feel guilty? That couldn''t be right. What about Ayanok��ji?"


    "He''s on a social studies field trip."


    "Huh...? Huh. As usual, you''re iprehensible."


    "A surprising student had to withdraw. I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t curious."


    "You''re surprised by me? Even though I''m the type of person who shoplifts without hesitation?"


    "That''s in the past. At least, overall, you weren''t one of the bottom students in the ss. I don''t know how Sakayanagi chose who to expel, so it''s only natural that I''m surprised."


    I deliberately didn''t mention it, but she was someone close to Sakayanagi as well.


    "The expulsion was chosen by lottery."


    "That''s quite��"


    "Do you think I made an uncharacteristic decision?"


    "I wonder. I''d rather ask Kamuro how she feels since she was chosen to be expelled by lottery."


    I wasn''t sure if she would answer honestly now that she had been expelled, but I asked anyway.


    "You can ask me something like that with a perfectly serious face? How strange."


    Kamuro started to think, looking surprised. Perhaps she hadn''t expected to be asked about her feelings.


    "How do I feel? I just feel strange. Until this morning, I was leading a normal school life. I was even thinking about trivial things like how to spend my next day off. Then, all of a sudden, I''m expelled. This waspletely unexpected."


    Because she wasn''t the first student to be cut off, it was understandable that shecked a sense of crisis. Surely, even Sakayanagi didn''t think she would lose.


    "It''s my fault. I''ve done something terrible to you, haven''t I?"


    "No, that''s okay��"


    Kamuro immediately objected to Sakayanagi''s words, which were close to an apology.


    "I''m not ming you. I don''t expect you to do anything. I''ve always thought that it wouldn''t matter if I was expelled one day."


    Kamuro originally wasn''t very well-behaved. She seemed rxed throughout, perhaps because she had made up her mind from the start.


    We couldn''t just stand around chatting outside the staff room forever; Kamuro began to walk at her own pace.


    Sakayanagi, who had bad legs, chased after her a little faster than usual.


    There was no problem heading in the same direction since they were heading home anyway.


    "I was ready to ept one or twoints..."


    "You''re being unnecessarily nosy."


    "What do you n on doing after dropping out of school?"


    "Even if I''m expelled, there are several high schools that will ept me as a transfer student if I pass the exams. My parents are nagging me to graduate high school, so I''m considering that for now."


    Apparently, Kamuro had already decided her path, including those options, within a short span of time.


    Slowly, the distance between Kamuro and Sakayanagi widened.


    If Sakayanagi didn''t keep up with her, it''d be hard to even follow her. She tried to hurry in order to catch up, but she stumbled forward due to the unfamiliar movement and ended up catching herself on the floor.


    "What are you doing?"


    Kamuro, who had turned around and sighed, came back and gently lifted Sakayanagi.


    "Starting tomorrow, I won''t be here, so find a recement quickly."


    "I understand... Masumi-san��"


    "What is it?"


    Kamuro responded, sounding annoyed.


    "No, it''s nothing."


    Sakayanagi seemed to start saying something but stopped.


    Kamuro cocked her head, gave Sakayanagi her cane after picking it up, and started walking again.


    Once again, Sakayanagi began to limp, chasing after Kamuro.


    "Don''t you have anything to say?" Sakayanagi asked.


    Kamuro turned around one more time as they neared the front entrance.


    "Huh? Do you want me to me you? Ask why you made me withdraw?"


    "That''s not what I mean. I just have a responsibility to listen to you."


    "What nonsense��"


    Kamuro, about to say something, changed her mind when she saw Sakayanagi''s eyes.


    "Honestly, you... although you''re smart, you''re kind of stupid. I''m just realizing this now."


    "You can''t just leave it at that. What do you mean?"


    "If you have a responsibility to listen, then just listen quietly."


    Sakayanagi sessfully outsmarted her.


    "Then, here it is. I have no lingering affection for this school, but promise me one thing."


    "A promise? What is it?"


    "It''s not about me. Just make sure the ss traitor goes down the same path. Can you promise that?"


    "Is that your wish?"


    "Yes, just that. Can you do it?"


    "I promise. I will not forgive the traitor. I promise to get rid of them no matter what. Of course, I will not let the ss lose as a consequence."


    Kamuro nodded to Sakayanagi, who made the promise, and then turned her eyes to me as I stood behind them.


    "You''re also responsible for checking if Sakayanagi has kept her promise, Ayanok��ji."


    "It seems like a needless responsibility, but I''ll ept it."


    "Good, then it''s okay. Sorry, but this is where we part ways. I''m not a student of this school anymore, and I don''t need to take care of you, right?"


    Saying so, Kamuro started walking away,pletely ignoring Sakayanagi as she was taking her time changing shoes.


    She didn''t stop once and disappeared in the direction of the dormitory.


    By tomorrow morning, Kamuro would no longer be at this school.


    Not just Sakayanagi, but many in the ss weren''t prepared for Kamuro''s withdrawal.


    "She stayed true to herself till the end."


    "Right."


    "I will need some more time. You should go ahead."


    Following Kamuro, I too, exited the school.


    It seemed that for Sakayanagi, Kamuro was not merely a ssmate after all.

 Chapter 456: E.1

    <h4>Chapter 456: E.1</h4>


    I went on a small walk, finally arriving near the bench where I had met Morishita about a week ago.


    No one else was around and there were no signs of anyone either. I sat down on the bench alone.


    Then, about ten minutes must''ve passed.


    The person I was waiting for appeared, walking at a much slower pace than usual.


    She usually would have a much wider field of view, but Sakayanagi hadn''t noticed me.


    "It took you quite a while to get ready, didn''t it?"


    When I called out to her, she was slightly surprised, but quickly hid it.


    "Could it be... you were waiting for me?"


    "I had forgotten to ask about your current thoughts too."


    "I see. Opportunities to witness the defeat of ss A don''te by often."


    "You weren''t outmatched in the standoff. You saw the other sses'' weaknesses and urately exploited them; your defense was excellent. I would say you clearly outdid the three leaders."


    "Though, I can''tugh since I was the one who lost."


    "Indeed."


    "But it''s unfortunate. I don''t think my feelings have changed at all. If the cause of defeat was myck of skill, the story would be different."


    "That might be your conclusion, however, it''s not the same when ites to the expelled students, right?"


    "If there are eliminations in the defeated ss, someone gets expelled��we knew this from the start."


    Sakayanagi stubbornly refused to acknowledge it, but I continued.


    "Even so, for you, the defeat... No, Kamuro''s expulsion must have been unexpected."


    "Please don''t underestimate me. Sure, Masumi-san worked by my side for two years, but she wasn''t an extraordinarily excellent student, nor was she particrly obedient. Her expulsion has virtually no impact on the ss."


    She responded with augh, indicating a misunderstanding.


    "This doesn''t seem like you, Sakayanagi. You appear far from your usualposure."


    "You think this doesn''t seem like me? I don''t think so."


    "You should''ve figured that out given that I''m here questioning you."


    If Kamuro''s expulsion hadn''t affected Sakayanagi at all, I wouldn''t be waiting here.


    I wouldn''t be bothering to shake her up out of the blue.


    "Certainly, you have exceptionally high insight, but aren''t you too confident?"


    "I wonder."


    Showing that I wasn''t changing my mind, atst, Sakayanagi also seemed slightly troubled.


    "Masumi-san''s expulsion affected my feelings��is that what you want to say?"


    "To put it inly, that''s exactly what I''m saying."


    "I don''t agree."


    "I understand your reluctance to admit it. If you admit that, you''d also have to acknowledge that you made the wrong choice."


    If she believed that she should''ve chosen someone other than Kamuro from among the eliminations, regret is born.


    "You know you''re strong. That''s why you don''t have much empathy for other''s weaknesses. You tend to fail to support their weaknesses."


    "That''s a line I don''t want to hear from you, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Sure, it applies to me too, but you''re half-hearted and not fullymitted. Because you have the sensibility of a normal person, you unconsciously understand part of it."


    Although we had a lot inmon, we also had a lot of differences.


    "I don''t understand. What are you trying to say, Ayanok��ji-kun? Are you suggesting that it would be better if I were weaker? Should I have been selfish and wished to keep Masumi-san?"


    "Normally, leaders cannot be selfish. But if you want to win from here on out, that''s what you should''ve done. To be strong, you should''ve kept Kamuro. You should''vepiled reasons to expel the others, whether by referencing the OAA or otherwise."


    But her pride got in the way.


    In her unexpected failure, she made the wrong decision, pretending to be calm and deciding that anyone among the eliminated could leave.


    Once lost, the part of her that was gone couldn''t return.


    Sakayanagi had to continue fighting in this deficient state from now on.


    "Don''t worry. Her presence doesn''t affect anything. I won''t lose anymore."


    "You probably will. If you challenge the year-end exam as it is, it''ll be a repeat of this time."


    Sakayanagi just didn''t want to admit that the situation was significantly changing.


    "I see, I understand your aim now. You need me to take damage. That''s why you want me to think I''m weakened by this event. Are you trying to disturb me mentally? Am I wrong?"


    "Why would I need you to be weakened?"


    "It''s inconvenient if ss A stands out, isn''t it? In order to create the ideal development you desire, you want to enter the third year with the four sses in apetitive condition. That''s the purpose, right?"


    "You''re not wrong, but that''s not enough."


    "How is it wrong?"


    "Whether ss A is leading at this point in time isn''t a big deal. My aim is to bring out each ss''s maximum potential. To do this, I will meddle with Ry��en, Ichinose, Sakayanagi, whomever."


    "I don''t like it. I don''t like the idea of being assisted by you."


    "But that''s why I''m here. I''m standing here to help you."


    Sakayanagi, who had been annoyingly verbose, finally stopped speaking.


    Sakayanagi was shrewd from the beginning. She knew this all along. She was just pretending not to know.


    "Your miscalction was that Kamuro''s presence wasrger than you thought at face value. You made the decision to draw lots because you wanted to think that Kamuro was no different from the rest."


    Hindsight is always 20/20. She should''ve been true to herself, even if it meant garnering resentment.


    Of course, the pride and negligence when she thought she wouldn''t lose could be the cause of this poor decision.


    "I..."


    Sakayanagi couldn''t look into my eyes any longer, her gaze wandered away.


    She stared into the distance, exhaling quietly.


    "I haven''t made any friends throughout my time in primary and secondary school. I couldn''t blend in with immature people of a lower intellectual level."


    She reflected on herself from her childhood days.


    "It hasn''t changed even at this school. Masumi-san, Hashimoto-kun, and Kit��-kun were the same. They were close to me, but only to be used as tools. Nothing more, nothing less. I saw them as strangers."


    Sakayanagi had spent her school life without recognizing the people around her as friends.


    But the line between acquaintanceship and friendship often blurred. It was impossible for anyone to determine exactly where that line was.


    "So I thought it wouldn''t matter who disappeared..."


    Her words halted there.


    Surely by now, even Sakayanagi couldn''t deny the true answer she could see.


    "It seems that, somewhere along the line, Masumi-san became a friend to me."


    Even if she had been using the term ''friend'' before, the weight it carried now was vastly different.


    The meaning shifted greatly depending on whether she truly epted this fact or not.


    She had merely fooled herself into believing that being smart meant she wouldn''t be swayed by others.


    "...Either way, it''s not like me, is it?"


    "Maybe so. At least you now realize that losing Kamuro made you weaker, but it can also make you stronger."


    It would be a problem if she stumbled and couldn''t get back up with just this much.


    "So you''ve always been behind the scenes, giving advice like this to various people. No wonder everyone is growing."


    "They''re far from done yet."


    Sakayanagi had nothing more to say. She just slowly and politely bowed her head.


    I sensed that she couldn''t stay with me any longer.


    I saw her small figure off and sat back down on the bench.


    "In the end, Kamuro''s expulsion has be a boon."


    No other variables had influenced Sakayanagi''s emotions as much as this did now.


    Without needing to control the situation, their ss points had also been reduced.


    It was evidence that each ss was gaining strength and bing more capable of fighting.


    From here on out, Sakayanagi herself needed to think hard, realize things, and significantly grow.


    And thus, her journey to confront her never-experienced emotions began.


    Ry��en had shed ayer and started moving forward.


    Not changing his previous tactics, but rather, refining them even further.


    From now on, he would mercilessly expand his power into his surroundings.


    There were about two months left until the year-end exam.


    "I guess I should quietly press on with preparations."


    About Karuizawa Kei.


    About Ichinose Honami.


    And about the ss.


    With the remaining time I had left in school, I began taking action to be a memorable presence to those around me.

 Chapter 457: Afterword/Credits

    <h4>Chapter 457: Afterword/Credits</h4>


    Author''s Postscript


    Corona, influenza, broken bones, and a neck hernia. Just this year, I, Kinugasa, have been beaten to a pulp by this incredible rush of afflictions. Yes, I''m still alive. I''m Kinugasa.


    But the back pain and numbness from the hernia have been severe, and it looks like it could keep up for a while. I was able to write this manuscript before the symptoms came on, which was fortunate, but from here on out, I can''t say for sure that it won''t affect me... These days, I''m struggling, reaching my limit after just sitting in a chair for an hour.


    Well, there''s no point in talking about all this gloomy stuff, so let''s move on to a brighter topic.


    Congrattions to the Hanshin Tigers on winning the league championship for the first time in 18 years!!!!!!


    Thank you for the inspiration! Thank you for the excitement! Let''s hear it for the Tigers~!!!!!


    Yes. Please let me say this. It''s okay, right? After all, it''s been 18 years. I did quite a bit of shopping. Hats and shirts, wondering where to use them. It''s okay, right? After all, it''s been 18 years. Of course, an old dude like me is going to buy things like stickers and towels.


    This time, the afterword is only a page long... sorry, it doesn''t look like there''s any room left to discuss the contents of volume 10. I''ll do my best next time. Here''s hoping I don''t lose to the pain in my back...!


    RoyalMTL''s Afterword


    Cast here. We finallypleted the volume and this sure was a rough one. I want to give a big thanks to my amazing team for working hard through this volume and making sure the quality was the best we can put out. You guys put in a crazy amount of effort, so I really appreciate you guys.


    In regard to the volume, this was definitely an interesting one. Feels like we haven''t seen a special exam in a very long times so that was nice. Ichinose seemed like she was out for blood this volume so that was pretty cool to see. I''d probably rate this one of the better volumes of Year 2.


    From the Author''s Postscript it seems like Kinugasa has been having some health problems recently. I''m not too sure if he was alluding to a dyed release for the next volume but let''s wish him the best and hope his health recovers.


    I''d like to once again thank all of our dedicated readers as well for supporting us and getting us to this point. We appreciate all of you.


    Please make sure you guys buy the official copies of the series as they are released and help support the ssroom of the Elite series as well as Kinugasa.


    Keep checking in on our website to be updated on ssroom of the Elite trantions and consider joining our discord events and early ess!


    -Cast (Trantor)


    /


    /invite/royalmtls


    Also follow our new socials on Twitter and Instagram for updates and information.


    /royalmtls


    /royalmtls/


    Credits


    Yasaseru �C Japanese Reader


    "Sleep deprivation doesn''t even begin to cover it. PS: �����`������}ū��һ�w�������."


    D3nj4l �C Japanese Reader


    "extremely based and epic volume ngl"


    Inkpentagon7 �C Japanese Reader


    "Pray for sensei''s health"


    DoSomething �C Editor


    "Save me from ever looking at Y2V10 chapter 6 ever again."


    SuperSkillz �C Editor


    "Ichinose stocks up, I kneel to our new queen. Also hi Nathan :D"


    Unknown �C Editor


    "Write something positive - Cast"


    Gaynesis �C Editor


    "No Nagumo this volume, 0/10"


    Spoopykay �C Editor


    "bless jp readers and dosomething for ch6"


    Kall_tho �C Editor


    "Thank you all for reading hope you enjoyed it"


    Meyobos �C Editor


    "Ichinose still the goat, my queen on thee up. Let''s go Ichinose!!!!"


    Budos �C Editor


    "Please be kind to each other. RIP Hana Kimura 5/23/2020."


    SnOrT NeSqUiK? - EPUB Maker


    "Brug #2"


    ZF - Illustrator


    "Still waiting on Katagiri Yuuichi''s entry in ANHS"


    Reversi �C Illustrator


    "Ichinose... My Queen. My Wife. My Love."


    KyoIshigami - Pirate (AuthorWebNovel)


    "Definitely I''m not the Imposter here"

 Chapter 458: Short Story 1 : Ai Morishita’s SS - On the Cold Bench

    <h4>Chapter 458: Short Story 1 : Ai Morishita��s SS - On the Cold Bench</h4>


    TODAY, I WAS waiting at a certain location to meet Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka.


    It was a bench that you''d always pass by on your way back from school to the Keyaki Mall.


    I sat alone and quietly spent my time here, not doing anything in particr.


    Then, I suddenly felt that I didn''t like my current body position anymore.


    "Mm... I can''t rest well."


    Even if I rested my back on the chair, or stretched my back muscles, it did me no good.


    What should I do to be released from this difort?


    After going through trial and error, my problems were eventually resolved by lying face-down on the bench.


    "This isfortable..."


    It was particrly good that the cold wooden nk hit my cheek.


    All that I needed to do now was to sit and wait for his arrival.


    Ah, but since I''m not sitting... is it okay to ''sleep and wait'' instead?


    ...Oh never mind.


    Anyway, I spent my time in this rxing position.


    "Is she dead?"


    Finally hearing his voice, I felt at ease.


    If I had to wait any longer, I might''ve frozen to death.


    I was almost starting to doze off and was about to be lulled into sleep.


    "No, she''s not."


    "That''s correct. I''m not dead."


    I responded to Karuizawa Kei''s urate answer.


    "What are you doing in such a ce?"


    "Are you curious?"


    "It would be a lie if I said I wasn''t interested but�D"


    "Then, I''ll exin. I was, believe it or not, waiting for you, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    If you looked at the circumstances that had urred so far, you could understand that he wasn''t a normal student.


    That was why I wanted to observe him more closely and learn more about him.


    I wanted to confirm it again and again with my own eyes.


    It was always better to have morepanions with whom you could share information, treating facts as facts.


    For ss A to continue to remain as ss A.

 Chapter 459: Short Story 2 : Shiina Hiyori’s SS - A Small Spark

    <h4>Chapter 459: Short Story 2 : Shiina Hiyori��s SS - A Small Spark</h4>


    I HONESTLY CONVEYED MY anxieties to Ayanok��ji-kun. Normally, I wouldn''t discuss matters that could expose my ss''s weaknesses to someone from another ss.


    But Ayanok��ji-kun was different.


    He wouldn''t exploit those anxieties. Instead, I knew he''d speak out for my sake.


    "It wasn''t a conventional approach. Rather, it was more like treading carefully when it came to the ss''s strengths."


    In understanding this, Ayanok��ji-kun assured me.


    The anxiety I was feeling.


    A small spark.


    It was an internal problem my ss was facing.


    Perhaps only Katsuragi-kun in my ss understood this. He was much more stern than me, and he was always there, watching over things closely.


    Sharing both good and bad up close, and giving appropriate advice.


    "The parts necessary for us to rise to ss A also serve as obstacles. It''s troubling."


    Two sides of the same coin. A challenging problem that couldn''t be easily resolved.


    "If there''s a student who realizes this, there''s still hope for the ss," Ayanok��ji-kun said, seemingly understanding the situation and ready to step back.


    "I was thinking of going to the libraryter, would you like toe along?"


    "No, I''ll pass. I have other things on my mind."


    "You have a lot on your te, don''t you, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "There''s nothing really serious, though."


    "Let''s go together next time then."


    Nodding, Ayanok��ji-kun parted ways and I decided to head to the library alone.


    "I''m not doing well either, am I?"


    Instead of focusing on my ss, meeting Ayanok��ji-kun almost made me forget because I had such a good time.


    After all, Ayanok��ji-kun has a girlfriend whom he should cherish.


    It''s inexcusable to even think this way, isn''t it?

 Chapter 460: Short Story 3 : Suzune Horikita’s SS - Unconscious Awakening

    <h4>Chapter 460: Short Story 3 : Suzune Horikita��s SS - Unconscious Awakening</h4>


    "IT''S NOT SOMETHING I can share. I want to keep certain things to myself."


    Even though I was extremely interested in Ayanok��ji-kun''s past, I definitely understood that probing further would be rude.


    "You better take a break to calm down."


    That was true. My throat was incredibly dry, and fatigue was starting to set in.


    "Yes, you''re right..."


    Following his advice, I picked up the cup of coffee I hadpletely forgotten.


    The coffee I thought was still hot had cooled down much more than I had anticipated.


    "It''s gotten cold."


    "It''s gotten cold, hasn''t it?"


    When I absentmindedly responded, Ayanok��ji-kun said something simr.


    "Don''t copy me."


    "Please don''t copy me."


    It displeased me, so I replied as such. Somehow, however, the same words coincidentally ovepped again.


    At that moment, the ovepping of words, what I hadined about just a moment ago, seemed strangely funny.


    I ended upughing.


    He, before my eyes, also thought it seemed somehow funny andughed a little.


    "Eh��?"


    "What''s wrong?"


    The expression on his face was the same as usual.


    But the face he showed just before was, how do I put it, too fresh...


    It made an unforgettable impression on my eyes.


    I didn''t know how to respond to his inquisitive question.


    I just conveyed what I saw as it was.


    "No... that... I just... saw you smile a little..."


    "Huh? So, what''s wrong with that?"


    "It''s just that I feel like I''ve never seen that expression on your face in thest two years..."


    "How rude. I''m not a baby who''s just learned to smile."


    To smile, to express joy, was amon thing for someone to do. But the one in front of me wasn''t just a ''someone,'' it was Ayanok��ji-kun.


    These expressions seem out of ce for him, so...


    "You''re right, it might''ve been a rare moment."


    In response to my observation, Ayanok��ji-kun pondered deeply for some reason.


    "I wonder why I smiled. Would you know if you were the one who smiled?"


    He wore a serious expression.


    I couldn''t have imagined someone asking so seriously about such a trivial thing.


    At that moment, a sense of wonder sprouted within me.


    Unexpectedly overwhelmed by the urge to look away from his straightforward eyes and question, I felt the impulse to run away.


    "I... I wouldn''t know either if you asked me with such a serious face."


    So, I ran away. I had to follow my instincts and run away, listening to my impulse''smand.


    "So, it''s not that something particrly funny happened, right?"


    His persistent questioning continued. I had no choice but to forcefully end it.


    "...As I said, I wouldn''t know even if you asked me. Because of your strange thinking, I feel like a fool forughing as well..."


    I decided to go home after finishing my tasteless coffee. It tasted like water.


    I didn''t know the reason, but I must have been ufortable.


    There was no doubt about it.

 Chapter 461: Short Story 4 : Arisu Sakayanagi’s SS - Feelings of Concern

    <h4>Chapter 461: Short Story 4 : Arisu Sakayanagi��s SS - Feelings of Concern</h4>


    "I DON''T LIKE IT. I don''t like the idea of being assisted by you."


    "But that''s why I''m here. I''m standing here to help you."


    Yet, he didn''t even flinch and simply exined his reasons for being there. He shamelessly stated such embarrassing words that I couldn''t normally articte.


    Indeed, it was a typical Ayanok��ji-kun move.


    "Your miscalction was that Kamuro''s presence wasrger than you thought at face value. You made the decision to draw lots because you wanted to think that Kamuro was no different from the rest."


    His words seeped into my heart. Clear maniption of people''s feelings��obvious remarks that I usually find repulsive.


    Yet... they resonate deeply in my heart. Words from none other than Ayanok��ji-kun.


    "I..."


    This guy was truly evil. Regardless if someone was good or bad, he just would just ignore it and climb over their protective barriers. He found the gap in my heart that I showed to no one.


    "I haven''t made any friends throughout my time in primary and secondary school. I couldn''t blend in with immature people of a lower intellectual level."


    Things I felt. Things I knew and pretended not to notice.


    He brazenly stepped into that.


    "It hasn''t changed even at this school. Masumi-san, Hashimoto-kun, and Kit��-kun were the same. They were close to me, but only to be used as tools. Nothing more, nothing less. I saw them as strangers."


    Before I realized it, I found myself talking. I wanted him to know.


    The one who boldly understood me, whom no one else could understand.


    "So I thought it wouldn''t matter who disappeared..."


    In this special exam, I made a mistake, and he had prepared a ce for me to repent.


    "It seems that, somewhere along the line, Masumi-san became a friend to me."


    I felt relieved after confessing it.


    He is truly... a dreadful person.


    I kept looking at Ayanok��ji-kun, thinking the same thing over and over.

 Chapter 462: Y2V10.25 Short Story: From that time on...

    <h4>Chapter 462: Y2V10.25 Short Story: From that time on...</h4>


    "Since that time��"


    The special survival and elimination test ended, and it was the first day off. Without anyone calling out to me, I found myself at the gym. I continued training alone for a while, and after sweating it out, I went to the break room. As I cooled down, I sat in a chair and remembered something, so I took out my phone. I searched for a certain word. "Hmm... I see." I looked at the article that came up and had no choice but to agree. After that, while admiring the photos in the article alone�`


    "Good morning, Ayanokoji-kun."


    "Good morning."


    Both Ichinose and Amikura appeared in the break room, It seems they came to the gym.


    "Oh, cute photo. It''s a red panda, right?" Amikura squinted as if he could see the screen of my phone and asked.


    "Yeah. I was doing a little research."


    As if evading the question, I answered and closed the screen. However, it seemed that Ichinose had some suspicions.


    "Could it be rted to the exam questions? Ayanokoji-kun, you made a mistake right?"


    It was just from the special exam a few days ago. Even if it was with another ss, it was a memorable event, there''s no way they could have forgotten.


    "By the way, this reminds me, you also got the tapioca (boba tea) question wrong. are you surprisingly not well-informed about the world?"


    Hearing Ichinose''s words, Amikura also expressed understanding and said so.


    "I can''t deny it. Probably because I hardly watch TV," I offered the most popr excuse, but both of them just smiled wryly.


    "Honestly, I didn''t think not liking TV would backfire in such a way."


    "Was that the issue here? It caused quite a stir on the inte too, didn''t it? it seemed that not watching TV wascking in persuasiveness, and Amikura expressed that doubt.


    "That''s an unexpected weakness of yours" Ichinose chuckled at my puzzled attitude.


    Immediately after, the gym staff Akiyama appeared, and Ichinose called out to him. Apparently, there was some mistake in the documents she filled out, and he asked her to redo it. They both headed towards the counter together.


    She''ll probably be back soon, but at the moment, it''s just me and Amikura.


    It felt strange to leave now, so I decided to either leave voluntarily or wait until Ichinose returned. Considering they came to the gym together, she probably intends to wait for Ichinose to get back


    She sat down one chair away from where I was sitting.


    " Honami-chans changed quite a bit. It''s like I can''t even imagine her from a few months ago...".


    "Is that so?"


    It''s true that recently Ichinose has been showing a side of herself we''ve never seen before. But to say it as a few months is exaggerating. But, understandably, the change Amikura is referring to about Ichinose isn''t rted to the current situation.


    "After the 2nd year''s uninhabited ind exam, right at the beginning of the second semester it was, I think"


    Amikura starts as if reminiscing and chuckling somewhat strangely.


    "Back then, Honami-chan seemed unstable or rather absent-minded a lot."


    "The survival ind test"


    Hearing that, I caught up with Amikura''s story. That was the time when I received an unexpected confession from Ichinose and told her about Kei


    Considering Ichinose''s feelings, it''s not surprising that the surroundings felt unstable.


    "Right at that time, a little incident happened within the ss... ah, Ayanokoji-kun, this is a secret from Honamii-chan, okay?" I dont intend to gossip, but it seemed like it might lead to a slightly responsible conversation.


    "I don''t think there was any malice behind it, but there was this rumour going around the ss between the guys that Honami-chan might like Ayanokoji-kun, and unfortunately, it happened to reach her ears. Well, the whole thing started because Honami-chan identally sent a message to the wrong person..."


    Apps are convenient to use, but because of that, it''s easy to send a message to the wrong person with one button. Therefore, cases where a message is sent to the wrong person due to a misclick (mistap) are not umon. Even if there is a delete (unsend) function, it''s not umon for the message to be seen due to a time dy.


    After the uninhabited ind exam, Ichinose had been going through a mentally unstable period for a while. So, it wouldn''t be surprising even if she made a slight mistake like that.


    "I didn''t see the message directly, but it seemed like something along the lines of wanting to calm down and talk, like ''Can we meet in person to discuss this?'' It bes quite suggestive when you take it out of context, doesn''t it?"


    "Well, yeah. So, the person Ichinose identally sent the message to was a guy from another ss?"


    "Yeah, exactly. But the problem was that she sent the message to Ishizaki-kun by mistake. And during break time, between sses, Ishizaki-kun casually came to our ss and asked, ''What does this message mean?'' while showing the screen confidently."


    It seems that caused quite a stir. The fact that Ishizaki was the one who received the mistakenly sent message probably saved it from being interpreted too deeply, but there were two parts to it�� the relief that it wasn''t taken too seriously because of the mistaken recipient being Ishizaki, and the trouble that arose from Ishizaki confidently confirming the message with Ichinose, not thinking much about it.


    However, it''s really Ichinose-like to have such a casual rtionship with Ishizaki, being able to send messages freely.


    "Honami-chan was flustered but she quickly corrected it, saying it was a mistake and didn''t mean to send it to him. Ishizaki-kun quickly understood and returned to his ss, but the problem was what happened afterwards. The fact that it was a mistake in sending meant she had nned to send a meaningful message to someone else.`


    So that''s how rumours started spreading among the boys in the ss.


    "But why did it lead to me?"


    "You should be able to figure it out, right?"


    For some reason, I was given a slightly intimidating smile.


    "That''s assuming you''re someone with sharp intuition... But, I think the boys started making a fuss for a different reason. Probably, it''s because of the ''a'' in Ayanokoji-kun and the ''i'' in Ishizaki-kun. Since contact information is arranged in alphabetical order, based on the vowels ''a, i, u, e, o,'' so I think that might be the reason. There are other people with simr names, but Ayanokoji-kun and Honami-chan were together at the time."


    From the umtion of past events up until now and the mistaken message sent to Ishizaki, such spections arose.


    "It''s like, Honami-chan is always cheerful andposed, but when ites to her own matters, she can be quite flustered and uneasy. It seems like she couldn''te up with a good excuse at that time, and her face turned pale as she looked down."


    <Illustration>


    It seemed like a distressing turn of events. But somehow, I can picture the scene from that time. You can''t tell the truth. However, having imed it was a mistake in sending, you can''t me it onto someone else as well. And you can''t act like nothing happened. Even though she had stumbled into it herself, it felt like a dead end.


    "From the perspective of those who were watching, Seeing Honami-chan acting like that was really unusual."


    In general, Ichinose is a capable person. She usually manages to handle things and has the ability to bring a situation under control. However, during the period of uneasiness described by Amikura: "We were keeping an eye on her for a while, but she gradually seemed to be burdened. It got to the point where even guys who didn''t think it was Ayanokoji-kun started wondering if she actually intended to confess to someone. It seemed like she was beginning to think that way."


    It seemed that the situation worsened as it dragged on without her being unable to resolve the situation on her own, it seems things worsened through silence.


    "How did she manage to ovee such a difficult situation?"


    It''s not easy to imagine Ichinose pulling off aeback from this situation.


    "Not just me, but since we girls knew who Honami-chan was nning to send her feelings to, we secretly discussed how to help. We quietly consulted on how to assist her and got involved in providing support."


    It seems they managed to navigate through it smoothly by working together.


    There was a girl who sought romantic advice from Ichinose, and they made it so Ichinose''s response was meant to be directed towards that girl.


    It was a mistake in the exchange that urred during that interaction.


    The reason for the silence was a consideration for the potential connection to that girl. It was a result of trying to protect privacy.


    With testimony from multiple people, many guys immediately corrected their misunderstanding, realizing that was the case.


    "There''s no choice but to ept it, right?"


    "Yeah."


    Unless she was putting on a clumsy act that made it obvious the girls were covering for her, judging from her words, she probably handled it well.


    "Ayanokoji-kun, did you bring Honami-chan back to her usual self?"


    "I didn''t really do anything special. It''s just that Ichinose managed to pull through on her own."


    "I see... But still, thank you."


    "You''re thanking someone who didn''t do anything?"


    "Maybe you''re just being modest, that''s what I thought on my own. So, I''m that''s why I''m grateful."


    Whether I acknowledge it or not, whether it''s true or not, seems irrelevant to Amikura.


    "But why are you telling me this? Did you think I was the one who helped her?"


    "Nah, that''s a different story."


    Although Amikura remained calm throughout, her expression tightened slightly.


    "If you were paying attention, you''d notice that Honami-chan still sees you as someone very special. I believe you''re the only person in this school who can strongly influence Honami-chan."


    It''s not for nothing that Ichinose is by her side as a friend. Amikura understands Honami well.


    "I''m sharing this because... I don''t want you to make Honami-chan sad or hurt her intentionally."


    With a hint of difficulty in expressing it, but with clear words, Amikura said


    "I don''t mean to intentionally hurt her, but it''s quite a difficult request."


    "That''s true,"


    Amikura agreed without denying.


    "Of course, I understand your position. It''s not about dating or not dating, you know. I just don''t want her to be unnecessarily hurt."


    After answering like that, Amikura muttered with a wry smile,


    "It''s tough for Honami-chan too. Falling for a guy whos already taken"


    "You''re pretty straightforward about it."


    "I kind of understand you now as well Ayanokoji-Kun. You wouldn''t be shaken by something like this now, would you?"


    "Maybe not"


    Even if it wasn''t today, Amikura probably nned to talk to me about this soon. If we were gym buddies, there was bound to be a time when we''d be alone together sooner orter.


    "I get what you''re saying. I''ll handle it."


    Since nothing is certain, let''s leave it at that.


    "Sorry, it''s not really my ce as a third party to say something like this."


    Amikura understands this too, so she doesn''t insist too strongly.


    "You probably can''t just abandon her as a friend. That''s not a bad thing."


    After showing understanding, Ichinose returned.


    "Sorry for the wait, both of you."


    "No problem at all."


    Due to the sensitive nature of the conversation, Amikura was momentarily flustered. Although Ichinose returned without changing her expression, it wouldn''t be surprising if thoserge eyes had sensed something.


    However, she didn''t ask what we were talking about. This is just a spection, but Ichinose probably didn''t want to force Amikura into telling a clumsy lie.


    "Well then, I''ll be heading home soon. See you bothter" I said to Ichinose and Amikura and left the gym.


    Despite unexpectedly hearing about an event in Ichinose ss, as soon as I stepped outside, I received a message. "


    Was that another private conversation with Amikura-chan? About me?"


    Maybe she wanted to confirm it only with me to avoid influencing Amikura negatively.


    Moreover, it seems like she even guessed what we were talking about. While she may be curious about the details of the conversation, I can''t disclose it, especially considering the promise I made with Amikura.


    "You''ve got a good best friend" I decided to respond with that.


    There is absolutely no information given away, and it won''t negatively impact Amikura''s reputation.


    A stamp with an illustration that said "Super Happy! (The happiest)" was sent.


    "Since the uninhabited ind exam, you''ve certainly changed a lot"


    She is not just recovering but growing. And those perceptive individuals like Amikura have noticed this transformation.


    "Ichinose Honami, huh" A valuable presence that brings new discoveries to what was thought to be a concluded analysis.

 Chapter 463: Y2V11 Synopsis

    <h4>Chapter 463: Y2V11 Synopsis</h4>


    "Im interested in the betr....no, I mean, I''m at the age where im interested in Hashimoto. Love maybe?"


    The announcement was made for the training camp event called "Kouryukai" (exchange meeting) where third-year students take the lead, and groups are formed with a mix of first and second-year sses. However, this year''s event is rxed with no penalties or expulsion or changes in ss points; it focuses mainly on interacting with students from other grades.


    Ayanokoji, under the leadership of Kiryuin, was grouped with Hashimoto, Morishita, Yamamura, Shiina, and others. They participate in hands-on learning such as pressed flower crafting, cards, archery, and more.


    On the other hand, taking advantage of theid-back nature of the exchange event where victory is not required. Horikita ns a revenge match against Amasawa and also seeks advice from Ayanokoji.


    "Huh? I''m seriously asking for advice here. I''m desperately looking for a way to survive, you know."


    In addition to Hashimoto, who is rapidly approaching Ayanokoji, each ss is also starting to move towards the end of the school year! �`


    -TL Nucha_0


    Y2V11 Synopsis


    Release Date: 24 February (Japan)

 Chapter 464: KonoRano 2023 Interview

    <h4>Chapter 464: KonoRano 2023 Interview</h4>


    After Some Congrattory messages for KonoRano 2023


    Editor: You have been a game scenario writer for a long time.


    Kinugasa: I have been fond of games since I was in elementary school, and my graduation thesis was about working for a gamepany. At that time, I was ignorant, although I volunteered to write as a programmer... But what I wanted to do most in my heart was plot weaving, so I thought I might as well be a scenario writer. So from the age of 18 or 19, the resume I submitted was picked up by the game manufacturer for several years, and I have been working to umte experience.


    Editor: What is your favorite game?


    Kinugasa: I yed various games when I was young. In the past 10 years, I have yed 1 or 2 overseas game works every year. For example, Bethesda softworks games and also Cyberpunk 2077 and the like in recent years. I specialize in ying solo in the open world.


    Editor: When you were a scenario writer, you got acquainted with Tomose, and after that, you also coborated to produce many works.


    Kinugasa: He was without a doubt my turning point as a scenario writer, as a writer. At that time, the game manufacturer I belonged to decided to cooperate with Tomose and asked him to choose from several prepared proposals. He chose mine. I would not be where I am today if Tomose had chosen other proposals. I am very grateful. After that, I have been taken care of by him, until now, the achievements of COTE can be regarded as something to repay his kindness. Of course, I still owe Tomose a lot, and I will continue to work hard to repay him.


    Editor: What was your opportunity to write a novel?


    Kinugasa: I am very aware of my strengths and weaknesses. Unlike novels, game scripts are basicallypleted in one go. To say one year is to write aplete story in one year. For me, there was a problem that the content I wanted to write did not match the delivery date. In any case, it can''t end beautifully. But a novel doesn''t need to write the whole story in one go. Write one volume in one due date, and then move on to the next volume when entering the next due date. People around me who knew me said that I was suitable for novels and advised me to enter the industry, so I devoted myself to it.


    Editor: Is there anything that needs to be paid attention to when you alternate being a novelist and scenario writer?


    Kinugasa: When writing the game script, there are a lot of character dialogues. In contrast, the novel cuts this part and increases the narrative. If you do both at the same time, you need to constantly switch modes in your mind. While spending more time, there will be times when mistakes are made, which is very tiring. But no matter what kind of job it is, making it easy for readers to read is the most basic thing. I often spend my time thinking about it too.


    Editor: Do you have favorite writers and are there writers who have influenced you?


    Kinugasa: Keigo Higashino, Haruki Murakami, etc. I like works that arepletely different from my own style. I have read all those masterpieces in the past, and I really like the Galileo series. As for light novels, since I might be subtly affected, I avoid them all. I don''t want to change my style. But I know Japan LN industry has many interesting works, and I n to read them after I retire.


    Editor: Is your writing environment good?


    Kinugasa: The environment is nothing special. I usually use a text editor called MIFES to write. I''m a bit demanding on color. The background is blue and the text is white. This is my principle. There is also a split-screen disy, so you can write while watching a video. I especially enjoy watching baseball games and writing. The disadvantage is that when the team I support loses, it will hit me mentally and slow down my writing speed.


    Editor: This year, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji won the first ce for a male role, and Kei Karuizawa won the second ce for a female role. They are very popr.


    Kinugasa: Thank you everyone, especially the protagonist, Ayanokouji. If you want to ask me what are my strengths as a writer. The only thing that I am confident about is my technique of shaping the protagonist, and the voting also reflects this result. Thank you so much for your support. Karuizawa''s ranking is something that Tomose, who is in charge of her character design, is happier about than me.


    Editor: I heard that the protagonist, Ayanokouji, was originally written as a romanticedy character.


    Kinugasa: Looking back at the first volume and the second volume, there are some parts that bother me. The reason is that I was afraid that the ideas I instilled would not be epted by readers, so I desperately added some elements that everyone likes. But this is not the way I am good at describing the protagonist, so I immediately changed direction and showed all the images of the protagonist I like.


    Editor: Ayanokoji''s actions really send chills up your spine.


    Kinugasa: This is the image that was determined from the beginning of the story. What kind of past, what kind of personality and so on. But I can''t be sure that readers will ept all this. Create an unprecedented protagonist, let him confront Ryuuen, and introduce the existence of white room. Justice, evil. Not belonging to either of the two. Or maybe both. I wrote it like this on purpose.


    Editor: Karuizawa is second on the female list. At first I thought it was a Suzune-Kushida double heroine route.


    Kinugasa: At the beginning of the work, there was no concept of a heroine, but I don''t know if readers will follow me when I write it like this, which makes me fall into a dilemma. So it became a false traditional double heroines route at the start. In a sense the strategy was a sess. The fact that Karuizawa can have such poprity is really unexpected. I wanted to reduce the number of times she appeared, but the unexpectedly cute character design also affected my writing to a certain extent.


    Editor: As a Karuizawa fan, I hope she can be happy.


    Kinugasa: If you expect too much... it bothers me. But this is not only for Karuizawa, the possibilities are always equal for everyone. Just to name a few examples, Horikita, Kushida, Shiina, Ichinose, etc., all have the possibility to match up with Ayanokouji. Conversely, there is also the possibility of choosing neither. However, I know that there are many people who think that it will stay like this, and I have also considered several solutions that may make everyone happy. Look forward to it.


    Editor: Not only the shaping of the main characters but also the fact that there are so many characters on the stage is one of the most important charms of COTE.


    Kinugasa: I''m d you can say that. Sometimes it is questioned that the number is toorge to control, and I have considered this myself. But I want to write a story where countless characters are intertwined, and I will be adding new characters as I work hard.


    Editor: Do you have a favorite character, and is there any character that you enjoy writing?


    Kinugasa: Katsuragi is my favorite male character recently, and Ibuki is probably my favorite female character.


    Editor: What about character creation?


    Kinugasa: I first decide on a general character introduction temte and write it into text, and then I don''t finalize it right away. The image is drawn by Tomose, and I see his/her body before continuing the process, which has been the case for many years. Then, the character must retain his own consciousness. It cannot appear that this character will necessarily act in a particr way. There are many things that I can''t predict myself, so it''s interesting.


    Editor: All the students live in the dormitory, and they feel like rtives and brothers to each other. It is very interesting.


    Kinugasa: As you said, this has a lot to do with the theme of the story [ability]. Another important factor is that they will not be concerned by family members. The story is already very grand, and if many people other than students are involved in the story, it will be difficult to control.


    Editor: While rewarding students, Advanced Nurturing School alsoe with a huge risk of being punished. It is simply a portrayal of real society.


    Kinugasa: Reflecting a part of reality is one of the elements. Then I prize both the pleasing elements and the distasteful elements in it. For example, the initial bonus of 100,000 points and the unpredictable withdrawal rules. These scary talks are not exaggerated, and there are parts that are connected with the real society.


    Editor: Each ss has unique policies and principles, which are very interesting. Just like the current international situation.


    Kinugasa: It would be boring if the goals are simr. Each of the four sses has its own strong style. There is no problem with either approach, and there are problems with either approach. It may indeed be simr to the international form. Although the policy of the winning ss in COTE does not mean that it is absolutely correct, it is also an answer.


    Editor: All kinds of strengths can be evaluated, which really can be called the principle of the elite.


    Kinugasa: There are OAAs that can quantify the abilities of students. But as in reality, test scores don''t tell the whole story about a person. In fact, I also think that there are many, many people in the world who have hidden talents. This part is also emphasized.


    Editor: Sure enough, the change of the protagonist, Ayanokouji, will be the highlight in the future.


    Kinugasa: How he changes will be a highlight, but so is Ayanokouji''s unusual essence, which remains the same no matter what. As for what will happen in the future, please stay tuned.

 Chapter 465: Year 2 Artbook Interview

    <h4>Chapter 465: Year 2 Artbook Interview</h4>


    Editor: First off, I''d like to hear more in detail about the new characters from the second-year arc. It was revealed that among them, an assassin targeting Ayanok��ji emerged, introducing six new first-year students. Starting with the first one, who appeared on the cover of the first volume of the second-year arc alongside Ayanok��ji, is the blonde beauty with long hair, Nanase Tsubasa. How was Nanase''s design decided?


    Tomose: I went through quite a bit of rejection from Kinugasa-sensei ughs).


    Kinugasa: Did I reject it? Well, I think I did ughs).


    Tomose: I think Kinugasa-sensei was really into the second-year arc''s new characters. I drew about five designs for each character.


    Kinugasa: Really?


    Tomose: It seems like you don''t remember anything ughs).


    Editor: What was Nanase''s initial design, and how did it settle into the final version?


    Tomose: I was drawing Nanase as a typical beauty, but I kept being told her eyes looked different from the rest of the girls, and eventually, her eyes became round and big.


    Editor: The finished illustration gives off the impression of a character with puppy-like, round eyes.


    Tomose: I think her eyes turned out to be quiterge, with a bit more white showing. What was your initial image of her, Kinugasa-sensei?


    Kinugasa: I can''t remember at all! ughs)


    Editor: Story-wise, Nanase appeared with an air of "mystery" from the beginning. She seemed active and straightforward, but there was a sense of mystery in her words and actions.


    Tomose: "Mysterious" is the feeling, I guess. I wanted to create a character like that. Since she first appears in the second-year arc, her true identity is unknown. So, I drew the first six characters thinking that they all seemed to have something going on.


    Kinugasa: No good, I still can''t remember.


    Editor: That''s too bad ughs). Hopefully, as the interview goes on, your memory wille back. The second character is Ichika Amasawa, right? She''s apletely different type from Nanase, but where did the idea for here from?


    Tomose: I wanted to create a character with a slightly suspicious aura. I thought it would be nice to have a bewitching character. There are about three female characters, right? I thought it would be good to have one in a bewitching role.


    Editor: Indeed, among the k��hai, she feels a bit more cheeky than Nanase and the others.


    Tomose: That''s right. There are various ways to be mysterious, aren''t there? Like being hard to read or having a sexy atmosphere. I wanted to create a contrast with Nanase.


    Editor: Was there a reason for her hairstyle?


    Tomose: Yes, I wanted to give off a gyaru vibe. I liked the idea of a sexy gal.


    (TL Note: Gyaru (�����) refers to a Japanese fashion subculture characterized by dyed hair, tanned skin, and highly decorated nails, emphasizing a morous and rebellious look.)


    Editor: I''m starting to see the trend from back then. Moving from Amasawa to the third character, Tsubaki Sakurako, she''s also mysterious but in a cool or quirky way. What do you think, Kinugasa-san?


    Kinugasa: I was just listening from a fan''s perspective. Oh, is that so?


    Tomose: No, no ughs). I''m just following Kinugasa-san''s directions.


    Kinugasa: (Looking at Tomose-san''s old illustrations) You''re showing a design, aren''t you? But looking at it doesn''t bring back any memories ughs).


    Tomose: That''s terrible ughs). I presented about seven designs for Tsubaki, and they kept getting rejected.


    Editor: So it was like Nanase 5, Amasawa 5, Tsubaki 7? I don''t think we''ve had patterns for the girls before, so that''s a good story.


    Kinugasa: I usually say OK right away. But I must have been anxious, surely. Because we were resetting the title.


    Editor: Resetting the title is a bit scary, isn''t it? Moreover, it wasn''t like we had been doing it for a long time. To stop while still in the first-year arc, that''s a story you don''t hear often.


    Tomose: Even in a series, changing the title can sometimes lead to a drop in poprity.


    Kinugasa: There are bad patterns, aren''t there?


    Editor: Now we talk about the second-year arc as if it''s normal, but at the time it was terrifying. We were publishing art books and holding events, doing everything we could to hype it up. So I understand the feeling of presenting five designs, five designs, seven designs.


    Tomose: When the second-year characters lined up, I was concerned about whether they would look good... I was quite mindful of the visuals.


    Kinugasa: Even when I look at the rejected illustrations of Tsubaki now, I still think they''re not right. Looking at the final design, I feel that characters like Amasawa and Tsubaki are not something you''d see in Tomose-san''s previous works.


    Tomose: That''s right. In the end, the design turned out to be quite different from what I usually draw. Both Nanase and Tsubaki turned out better after being rejected. So I am thankful.


    Kinugasa: The past me was indeed amazing ughs).


    Tomose: Exactly. I often think that the first drafts wouldn''t have worked. They were too much of a habit ughs).


    Editor: The key visuals for the first-year arc and the second-year arc also feelpletely different.


    Tomose: That''s right. The way of thinking changes, too, after 7 or 8 years.


    Editor: Let''s move on to the new first-year boys. Please tell us about H��sen, who made a big impact right from volume one! It felt like a real delinquent had arrived.


    Tomose: It''s easier to draw characters who are angry; I can draw them freely. I wanted to create a dangerous guy ughs). I did consider the existing characters while drawing him. Like a tough guy ughs).


    Editor: The illustrations were also powerful from the start, with a knife stabbing scene. Kinugasa-san, what did you think of H��sen?


    Kinugasa: Well, it was just like that... ughs). There was nothing toin about, it was just as I imagined ughs).


    Editor: Next up is Utomiya. Even now, in the sophomore arc, it''s hard to tell what kind of character Utomiya is. What do you think about the design, Tomose-san?


    Tomose: I came up with about four patterns, changing the hair from long to short, but I thought this character would be really cool and active ughs). Surprisingly, they didn''t y as big a role ughs). I wanted to draw a super handsome guy, what''s going on, Kinugasa-sensei ughs)?


    Kinugasa: They will y an active role from now on ughs). The real star will appearter on.


    Tomose: I was hoping to draw lots of handsome guys, so I''m looking forward to it ughs).


    Editor: The sophomore arc will continue to progress. It will be fun to see just how much of an enigma Utomiya is, including whates after. The third one is Yagami.


    Tomose: Yagami was totally different from what Kinugasa-sensei initially imagined, right? It was supposed to be a cooler, more dashing character. As we received feedback and made progress, it became cuter.


    Kinugasa: At first, it felt different. What I vaguely remember is that when we lined up these six characters, it didn''t quite fit. Since all the guys were turning out to be cool types, I thought maybe we could bnce it out with a more youthful-looking face.


    Tomose: I see. So Kinugasa-sensei also thinks about the visual bnce when they''re lined up ughs).


    Kinugasa: I do think about it ughs). But that reminded me. While keeping the sophomore arc''s key visual in mind, I repeated the process of lining them up and adjusting the characters.


    Tomose: You''re surprisingly serious ughs). As an artist, it''s easier to draw when there''s a variety of characters. It''s hard to draw when simr-looking girls are lined up, so I''m grateful that you''re conscious of that. In the end, Yagami also became a bit of a klutz, didn''t they?


    Editor: It ended up with them saying something like, "I''m the real genius," right?


    Tomose: They left saying things that such a character would say ughs).


    Kinugasa: That''s where the illustration made fine adjustments to the personality. If the face was different, I think the development would have been different too.


    Editor: So it was already decided that Yagami was the culprit.


    Kinugasa: That''s right.


    Editor: Next, there''s one more freshman, Ishigami.


    Tomose: Kinugasa-sensei was quite particr about Ishigami-kun, right? I presented several versions, but you kept saying no, not quite. He''s like the final boss, isn''t he?


    Kinugasa: Unlike the other characters, his name was revealed early on, and there were lines over the phone, so readers had already formed a vague image of him. It''s difficult to create a character that satisfies that image. I felt like the bar was set high unintentionally.


    Tomose: Ishigami-kun''s bar was set high. It''s been like that for a while ughs).


    Kinugasa: When I saw the initial design, I thought, no, this is a bit weak... not that it was bad ughs).


    Tomose: I thought he was getting stronger and stronger.


    Kinugasa: That''s right. But he''s not physically strong like H��sen, who obviously looks like a tough character, but I wanted someone who you could tell was strong just by the drawing.


    Tomose: That''s a really high bar ughs).


    Kinugasa: It''s easy for the one making the request ughs).


    Editor: His hair is also tied back, giving him a unique atmosphere, right?


    Kinugasa: Was it like that from the beginning?


    Tomose: It was tied up at first, but the way it was tied and the look in the eyes have changed a lot. Honestly, I don''t even know what this character would look like from the front ughs). Can I draw them from various angles? ughs).


    Editor: What about the only new third-year student, Kiry��in F��ka?


    Tomose: Kiry��in is still the most challenging character to draw for me. The first time I drew Kiry��in sitting down was for the Volume 2 illustration of the second-year arc, and I personally think it''s the best and coolest depiction. There are times when it''s frustrating because I can''t quite capture the essence I achieved in that rough sketch. Kiry��in also went through quite a bit of criticism.


    Kinugasa: I think I did criticize.


    Tomose: For some reason, Kinugasa-sensei became more strict in the second-year students'' edition ughs).


    Kinugasa: Well, the important parts, right? ughs)


    Tomose: That''s right ughs). But in the end, I''m d I was criticized.


    Editor: Does Kinugasa-san have something against Kiry��in?


    Kinugasa: There are settings that only I hold internally, not shown outwardly. For example, the White Room, or timelines that haven''t been depicted, or the past. There are several important characters in the background, and Kiry��in is one of them. Although not shown in the main story, I have prepared this character and personally really like them. However, they have the sad fate of not being able to be shown in the main student edition.


    Editor: The person themselves wanted to repeat a year but couldn''t.


    Tomose: Didn''t you say we might meet Kiry��in after graduation?


    Kinugasa: Right, that setting exists in my mind.


    Tomose: It feels like there''s quite an epic story to follow.


    Kinugasa: Because that setting exists, I want to bring it out. It''s a character with a strong will for the future.


    Editor: Characters with three-character kanji names have a suspicious aura, don''t they?


    Kinugasa: Indeed ughs).


    Editor: Moving on, a lot of new characters appeared in the second-year students'' edition, but can we start with Himeno Yuki from ss B? She''s apletely different type of girl from before. It felt like a modern girl had arrived.


    Tomose: When you think by yourself, things start to be simr, so I''ve started to seek advice from others ughs).


    Kinugasa: It''s a bit hard to understand women''s fashion, isn''t it?


    Tomose: Exactly. I''m not sure what''s trendy, and my sense is starting to drift ughs). I definitely want to ask people who are up-to-date. I watch VTubers and think that style might be good too. Two-tone colors are in fashion, and so is thendmine-like look.


    Editor: The hair colors are quite varied and cute.


    Kinugasa: We haven''t had that before.


    Editor: It''s like a Korean style, adding just a bit of vivid color.


    Tomose: I''ve been trying to brighten around the eyes a little, incorporating


    Korean-style makeup. I look at actual idols while doing it. Women definitely have a superior sense of the times.


    Editor: Next is Amikura Mako. Was she designed for the anime?


    Tomose: I also designed Amikura. There are quite a few characters like that. Like the girl who bullied Karuizawa (��Editor''s note: Manabe Shiho).


    Editor: In that sense, Amikura is quite an old character design-wise. She has a ponytail, but it feels different from Karuizawa, more put-together.


    Tomose: I thought it would be bad if they ovepped, so I made her ponytail neat ughs).


    Editor: Next is Watanabe Kinji-kun. He''s been getting more screen time recently.


    Kinugasa: He''s personally one of my favorites.


    Tomose: He''s a really good guy, isn''t he? The most normal one.


    Editor: It feels like a character from a different world has entered.


    Kinugasa: Not at all ughs).


    Tomose: No, no, there aren''t many like him ughs). But Watanabe-kun was difficult. It''s really hard when you''re told to make someone "normal." Drawing a character with an average five-minute haircut feels somewhat off. Everyone''s image of Watanabe-kun in their heads is definitely different, right? What do you think? Is the original image of Watanabe-kun different from Kinugasa-sensei''s?


    Kinugasa: Even looking at the painting, it justes naturally.


    Editor: I felt the same way. Originally, the character didn''t have much personality, but this illustration made me realize he''s a guy who cares about his appearance butcks confidence ughs).


    Tomose: Right. He''s a bit shy, just enough not to overdo it with his hair.


    Editor: Next is Nishino Takeko. I never thought she would be on the cover.


    Tomose: I really like Nishino. Characters like her are easy to draw, right ughs)? You know what I mean? I don''t think anyone wouldin about her looks. I thought she wouldn''t be too picky, so I gave her sanpaku eyes and plump lips, fully indulging my tastes.


    Kinugasa: Isn''t it difficult to make a girl look "normal"? Every girl that appears in the work ends up cute. It''s hard to find or create a girl with a normal face level.


    Tomose: Actually, I prefer to draw them less perfect ughs). If they''re all cute, they all end up looking the same. As an artist, I want to draw girls who aren''t cute. That sounds a bit harsh though ughs).


    Kinugasa: A "normal" bnce... it''s difficult, isn''t it? Some people might find them cute, but I wonder.


    Tomose: I like girls with unique cuteness. I really want to draw them, but to make a girl universally cute, you have to fine-tune a lot.


    Kinugasa: If you''re aiming for universal appeal, that''s true.


    Tomose: Then I start thinking this might not work and such. In that sense, a character like Nishino allows me to do whatever I want ughs).


    Kinugasa: But her appearance level is high, isn''t it? She bes a bit of a beauty.


    Tomose: I made her a bit cuter considering her coupling with Ishizaki-kun ughs).


    Kinugasa: I would have dared to make her just normal though ughs).


    Editor: If everyone is cute, it bes an unbelievable school, right? The reality bes dubious ughs). But then again, we don''t really want to see what''s truly normal, so it''s difficult.


    Kinugasa: That''s true ughs).


    Editor: In a group of normal girls, she would be an extraordinary beauty, but among perfect beauties, she''s a girl with quirks, not quite there. That''s probably the type of girl everyone wants, so in that sense, it might be the right answer.


    Kinugasa: Ideally, yes. I understand making her a bit of a beauty, but as a creator, I''d be happiest if I could produce a truly normal girl.


    Tomose: Then the term "beauty" would carry more weight.


    Kinugasa: Exactly. The main heroine is super cute, isn''t she?


    Tomose: When watching anime, if everyone is cute but someone is treated as a beauty, I wonder if they''re really that beautiful. They''re all cute ughs).


    Kinugasa: Right! I hate it when they say she''s just normal, but she''s actually really cute.


    Tomose: I don''t want to make everyone cute; I want to draw various faces.


    Kinugasa: I strongly agree.


    Tomose: It''s fun to have round-faced girls and long-faced girls.


    Kinugasa: Exactly! I want to create more characters like that, but I guess that''s not possible ughs).


    Tomose: Still, with non-main characters, I like that I can try different things. Where Kinugasa-sensei doesn''t seem too particr, I insert my preferred types of girls ughs).


    Kinugasa: That''s a good thing.


    Editor: Next is Onodera Kayano. Onodera has probably been around since the first volume of the freshman arc...


    Kinugasa: By name, yes.


    Tomose: I really like her ughs). I think Onodera is in a simr position to Nishino.


    Editor: She''s a sporty girl who speaks her mind, but she turned out cuter than I imagined ughs).


    Tomose: That''s the thing. When you draw for the cover, they end up cute ughs). They get a bit beautified.


    Kinugasa: It''s fate, isn''t it? ughs)


    Editor: When you get to someone like Onodera, it''s a bit dubious whether they''re a sub-character or not.


    Tomose: I really wanted to give her double teeth.


    Kinugasa: I have an image of you liking that sort of thing.


    Tomose: Right? I like ''90s anime and stuff ughs). But I was really troubled whether it would resonate today, so I stopped.


    Editor: Next up is Yamamura Miki. She was on the cover of the second-year edition, Volume 10. She''s been appearing moretely...


    Tomose: At first, I thought she was a character who wouldn''t appear much, so I drew her small, but then I realized she ys a significant role.


    Editor: She appeared quite early when you think about it. Her first appearance was in the second-year edition, the frontispiece of a volume.


    Kinugasa: I don''t want to put this in the interview article, but Yamamura is also one of my personal favorite characters, so I can''t help but bring her out ughs).


    Editor: Isn''t that the same as with Ibuki? No one believes that ughs). They say something will happen because Kinugasa-san is biased.


    Kinugasa: It''s not like the characters I like are protected, so that''s fine.


    Editor: It''s a mystery that you have to hide your love for Yamamura while openly loving Ibuki ughs).


    Tomose: Well, maybe you really do like her ughs).


    Editor: But her increased appearances are recent, right?


    Tomose: Yes, since the school trip.


    Kinugasa: I think that''s when the character started to feel right to me.


    Tomose: In my mind, she''s be like a vending machine character, is that okay?


    Kinugasa: That''s right ughs). She''s even on the cover ughs).


    Tomose: I ended up drawing her with a vending machine on the cover.


    Kinugasa: She''s always around a vending machine, so it fits.


    Tomose: She''s like a fairy character that pops up out of nowhere.


    Editor: Lastly, Morishita Ai. She''s only appeared in illustrations in the art book so far.


    Kinugasa: She''s the newest character, right?


    Editor: Yes. A mysterious character who appeared during the winter break...


    Tomose: I remember ughs).


    Kinugasa: She hasn''t settled in your mind yet, has she, Tomose-san? ughs)


    Editor: She was on the cover of Comic Alive (December 2023 issue), but she''s not in this art book yet.


    Tomose: Her name isn''t equated yet ughs). She''s an oddball, isn''t she? ughs)


    (TL Note: Tomose is indicating that he hasn''t fully connected the character''s name with her personality or appearance yet)


    Kinugasa: She''s a character with a personality I''m not good at. A character that doesn''t sit well with me.


    Tomose: Won''t she move for you? ughs)


    Kinugasa: I won''t say she won''t move, but she doesn''t move ughs).


    Tomose: I did try to draw her as a mysterious girl in terms of looks.


    Kinugasa: That''s correct.


    Tomose: I also like front twin tails. Two braids hanging in the front. But this character is for the future.


    Kinugasa: Right, right. For the future, for the future. She''s a neer.


    Tomose: Will this girl fall for Ayanok��ji too...


    Kinugasa: I don''t think she will ughs).


    Tomose: Doesn''t seem like she will ughs).


    Editor: We''ve talked about the new characters, but I believe you''ve drawn many illustrations for the second-year edition. Do you have any favorite illustrations from the light novel?


    Tomose: My favorite is the illustration from volume 1, where H��sen and Ayanok��ji are fighting each other. It''s rare to get a chance to draw a fight scene. I was really d to be able to do such a cool finishing scene. Right, Kinugasa-san? I want more scenes like that ughs).


    Kinugasa: Yeah, I like them ughs).


    Editor: There was also an illustration where Ryuuen is beating up H��sen.


    Kinugasa: On the deserted ind.


    Tomose: Yes, he was on top of him.


    Kinugasa: It''s something you can''t easily do at school.


    Tomose: Because there are cameras ughs). Will there be fewer fight scenes from now on?


    Kinugasa: I''d like to do them. I love them.


    Tomose: I want to draw Ayanok��ji doing a dropkick.


    Kinugasa: Dropkick ughs). But if that''s the case, it''ll turn out simr. Not just in volume 1, but also, I love the scenes like when Amasawa is running on the deserted ind, or chasing... I love those scenes. And the one where he''s grabbing Tsubaki by the hair. Those are the moments where I''m really doing what I want to do.


    Editor: Those scenes are intense, aren''t they?


    Tomose: That''s right. I do want to draw scenes where characters have emotionally moved on. It seems like there will be a lot of scenes with Tan-chan and Amasawa-chan ughs).


    Editor: Tan is really good at facial expressions, after all.


    Tomose: Exactly. Speaking of Tan, it''s the one from volume 8 (frontispiece) of the second-year edition, where he''s at the hot spring inn feeling nervous. That one is really special to me. I think I did a great job with that angle ughs). I''m quite proud of how it turned out.


    Kinugasa: It''s great because you can understand the conflict in just one illustration.


    Tomose: I really like it as a picture. I always want to draw from unusual angles. It''s hard toe up with ideas sometimes, so I end up drawing from the side, but being able to draw from below was fun. I was very satisfied with it.


    Editor: It''s an illustration with aposition that''s not often drawn. The way you put the shadows must have been incredibly difficult.


    Tomose: It''s hard to draw, too ughs). There''s not much in the way of reference material ughs). It was tough because I had to rely on my imagination.


    Editor: Speaking ofpositions, the recent illustrations rted to Ichinose are amazing.


    Tomose: I was about to say that myself, but my favorite is the umbre picture (frontispiece of the second-year edition volume 9) ughs). I also want to draw pictures where the face isn''t shown.


    Kinugasa: Right, right. It''s nice not to show the face sometimes.


    Tomose: Like telling a story with just the mouth. I''m happy to be able to draw a full-color single illustration like this.


    Editor: Recently, there are more frontispiece illustrations that are too amazing to put any text on. Frontispieces usually have dialogue with the design, but when you first open the page, it would spoil the story... There are scenes that are too impactful and great, but we can''t write anything at all.


    Tomose: It makes you guess a lot of things.


    Editor: It''s the same with other illustrations. For example, the illustration of Sakayanagi''s confession scene (frontispiece of the second-year edition volume) can''t have any dialogue.


    Tomose: If we wrote it, it would spoil the best part, like finding out the most delicious part from the frontispiece.


    Editor: Ichinose has changed since the first-year edition, and we''ve started to see more incredible illustrations. On the other hand, there are more and more cute pictures of Sakayanagi.


    Tomose: Sakayanagi-chan is the cutest when I draw her. She''s a great character, and she really looks good in pictures. Her hair color is close to silver.


    Editor: The cover of the second-year edition volume is amazing, too.


    Tomose: I''ve been wanting to say this, but someday I want to say thank you to the background people ughs). I don''t often get the chance to say it.


    Editor: It would be good to pass that message on to Kinugasa-san ughs).


    Kinugasa: Okay.


    Editor: Are there any scenes from the second-year edition that left an impression on you?


    Tomose: Ichinose changing drastically is amazing. From the tearful scenes to gradually bing a stronger character ughs).


    Editor: The illustrations are amazing, too. Ichinose is really something.


    Tomose: It''s fun to draw her. I can draw so many different expressions.


    Editor: It''s the opposite in the first-year edition, with characters like Sakayanagi creating tension, and Ichinose being like a hotspot, always a save point where you can rx. But in the second-year edition, it''s all about Ichinose ughs).


    Tomose: It''s true. I used to think of Ichinose as a healing character during the first-year edition, but she''s not very soothingtely.


    Kinugasa: It''s the opposite for me. Ichinose in the first-year edition was tough for me.


    Tomose: Kinugasa-sensei always has that kind of perspective.


    Kinugasa: ughs).


    Tomose: They say good kids are hard to handle.


    Kinugasa: Good kids are hard to handle, yeah. I think there are plenty of people who are good at it, but I''m not one of them.


    The child felt awkward, but now that he could finally handle Ichinose, it felt the most natural.


    Tomose: That''s right ughs). It''s fun drawing such a tumultuous story.


    Editor: For me, the hotspot is Sakayanagi. Right now, Sakayanagi has taken over Ichinose''s spot ughs).


    Tomose: Sakayanagi-chan feels a bit ominous, doesn''t she? ughs).


    Kinugasa: By making it ominous, there might be an unexpected happy turn waiting ahead, you know?


    Tomose: Eh? Did you say something?


    Kinugasa: No ughs).


    Editor: Rted to the earlier appearance spot, ording to the reader survey for the second-year volume, Sakayanagi finally took first ce, with Karuizawa in second. These two are at the top now.


    Tomose: I haven''t drawn many frontispieces for Karuizawa-chan recently ughs).


    Kinugasa: Does that mean their character spotlights are over? Right now, it''s Ichinose and Sakayanagi''s spotlight turn.


    Editor: Lately, it''s been Sakayanagi and Ichinose, right?


    Kinugasa: Exactly. It will be like this until the end of the school year.


    Tomose: I''m happy I can draw a lot of Ichinose. I''m rooting for Ichinose.


    Editor: You always talk about Ichinose in the art collections. Speaking of poprity polls, Shiina is also quite popr.


    Tomose: Shiina is popr despite only appearing now and then.


    Editor: Actually, there are very few illustrations of Shiina. This is only the fourth color illustration in the paperback, for the frontispiece of the volume.


    Kinugasa: She''s difficult to handle.


    Tomose: After Kinugasa-san''s reaction earlier, it seems like Shiina is also tough to handle ughs).


    Kinugasa: I don''t dislike her. I don''t dislike her, but she''s difficult to handle.


    Tomose: Shiina seems like she''s hiding something. She has an atmosphere like she''s about to cause trouble.


    Editor: In the second-year arc, there''s also a focus on Horikita''s growth.


    Tomose: Her character is bing more and more attractive. She''s gaining more humanity.


    Kinugasa: At first, I couldn''t fully utilize her, but now I feel like I''m getting the hang of controlling her.


    Tomose: At first, she was a bit stubborn, but gradually she started to listen to others ughs). Sud�� too ughs). Sud��''s growth is incredibly amazing ughs).


    Kinugasa: There are actually people like that in real life. Those who change dramatically. Most don''t change, but some do, and some should.


    Editor: Speaking of illustrations, the hair has been gradually growing, and that''s being depicted little by little, isn''t it?


    Kinugasa: That''s what I requested.


    Tomose: How far will it go? Will it return to the original length?


    Kinugasa: It will grow until the chronological end. If there''s no event to cut the hair in the main story, it will just keep growing. It''s rare in works to show hair growing over time. I thought it would be interesting to do so.


    Tomose: It''s interesting, but by the end of the third-year arc, it won''t have grown down to the feet, right?


    Kinugasa: It won''t grow that much in a year, will it?


    Tomose: I see. That''s okay then.


    Kinugasa: If it''s long again, we''ll cut it.


    Editor: I was wondering how many centimeters hair grows in a year... It seems it won''t reach the feet by graduation.


    Tomose: That''s good. Although it might still be interesting.


    Editor: Otherwise, it would seem like they used some hair growth product ughs).


    Kinugasa: That would be ridiculous ughs).


    Editor: Next, I''d like to ask about illustrations other than the paperbacks. You''ve also drawn various covers for Comic Alive.


    Editor: At first, you were just drawing the characters normally, but then you started changing their outfits, and everyone started looking forward to the covers of Alive. It was a chance to see something you don''t normally see.


    Tomose: Some people might prefer uniforms, but ALIVE is often said to be about freedom, so it seems like we went withplete freedom this time.


    Editor: For the linked campaign, if you buy the ALIVE issue of the month and thetest volume at Toranoana, you often get a clear file as a bonus, but they sell out quickly.


    Kinugasa: Doesn''t ite with a clear stand?


    Editor: That was a bonus included before. It featured Nanase and Karuizawa in yukata illustrations. That issue sold really well.


    (Note: September 2023 issue)


    Tomose: I was curious, but did the issue with Ayanok��ji-kun and Ry��en-kun (December 2022 issue) sell well? ughs)


    Editor: It was fine.


    Tomose: It was fine? ughs) There wasn''t a sudden drop in sales?


    Editor: It was fine.


    Tomose: That''s good. I was worried about that ughs). I mean, there aren''t any covers with just boys, right? Doing something we haven''t done before is good. I thought Kinugasa-sensei would be pleased.


    Kinugasa: I am pleased.


    Tomose: Also, I secretly drew a cat as a symbol of freedom. I really want to own one.


    Kinugasa: Why don''t you get one in real life? ughs)


    Tomose: I can''t have pets, so I have no choice but to draw them in ALIVE... Also, I''ve been meaning to thank you. The person who designs the covers for ALIVE always leaves space for the cat.


    Kinugasa: ughs)


    Editor: Despite the magazine cover being filled with text ughs).


    Tomose: Right. They always make sure the cat stands out, and I''m always thankful for that. When the cat was getting cut off, they even moved it up for me. I noticed it was higher up.


    Kinugasa: A big thank you to the person in charge of the cover background and the ALIVE covers.


    Tomose: Really, I appreciate it.


    Editor: The clear stand also featured just the cat, right?


    Tomose: Yes, that''s right. I have it on disy, just the cat.


    Editor: So, we can expect various cats to appear in the future ughs). In the main story, there are illustrations where even the eyes aren''t drawn, so these costume changes and cute illustrations are like the only source of healing.


    Tomose: That''s right. Personally, I can draw them really rxed ughs). I shouldn''t get too rxed, but it''s fun to draw. It''s the only ce I can draw cats.


    Editor: On the contrary, we''re grateful. Even if people want to see Karuizawa and Nanase in yukata, it wouldn''t turn into such a wonderful story, so it''s better to get that element here.


    Tomose: That''s true. Even if they wear yukata in the main story, it''s likely to be a grim development ughs). I want to show their brighter sides on the ALIVE covers.


    Editor: This time, the character appeared on the ALIVE cover in a color illustration first. (Note: Morishita Ai''s color illustration debuted on the December 2023 cover)


    Tomose: Is that okay? That''s quite a promotion ughs).


    Tomose: I see... ughs). That''s great. Is "this Ranobe" not going toe out anymore starting this year?


    Editor: That''s right. It''s been inducted into the hall of fame.


    Kinugasa: The protagonist has won four times in a row, so I think that''s enough. I don''t have any regrets.


    Tomose: So it''s a win and run, huh?


    Editor: It feels like they stirred things up until the very end. Also, what I found interesting about this illustration is the height difference between Karuizawa and Ayanok��ji.


    Tomose: I drew that ad-lib, so is there really such a height difference...


    Kinugasa: It was ad-lib? ughs) You didn''t calcte it? ughs) I guess I''ll have to be careful from now on ughs).


    Editor: But I thought it looked really good, you know.


    Tomose: I had a simr image in mind, too, but I think Ayanok��ji-kun has grown taller as well.


    Editor: Ayanok��ji has really grown taller, hasn''t he? But when you think about it calmly, there are kids who grow a lot taller when they go from first to second year of high school.


    Tomose: That''s right. I''ve personally started to draw him with a more solid build, like broader shoulders.


    Kinugasa: It''s because we''re going for realism.


    Editor: We should probably set the heights at the end of the second year arc, right?


    Tomose: I don''t know anymore. Even with Sakayanagi-chan being small, I''m just guessing how small she is when I draw her.


    Editor: I thought Hiyori was really tiny in the anime, and when I checked the height settings, she was shorter than I imagined. There''s an image, isn''t there?


    Tomose: Really? ughs) Like the walking together part in thest art book, is that urate? ughs)


    Kinugasa: That''s just for fun, right? ughs)


    Tomose: It''s all just for fun, kind of like "this is probably how it is" ughs).


    Editor: It''s okay to say that some high school students grow taller and some don''t, right?


    Tomose: We might have to correct itter ughs).


    Editor: An unexpected fact hase to light, but the cover illustration of the art book was also a wonderful illustration centered around the leaders of each ss. Was there anything you were conscious of when drawing it?


    Tomose: Really, the patterns for group pictures are running out ughs). I''m wondering what to do... There are also BD packages, right? Those are tough ughs).


    Editor: There''s also the BD storage BOX. But the moe-moe feeling has been disappearing, and it''s finally gone to zero. In the first art book, Ayanok��ji wasn''t even there.


    Tomose: I started drawing with a bit of a gal game mindset, but it''s gradually getting darker ughs).


    (TL Note: "Gal game" refers to a genre for romance games (Dating sims))


    Kinugasa: Finally, my true nature is starting to show.


    Editor: This time, the men are drawn in full, but the women are only drawn from the upper body. That''s the kind of cover we have.


    Tomose: I have to make sure not to deviate from everyone''s requests ughs). I can''t just go with my own tastes ughs).


    Editor: No, no ughs). But the nature of the work is that way, so you''re gradually deceiving the readers and making corrections, right? As if everything before was a lie ughs).


    Kinugasa: Exactly.


    Tomose: I guess I have no choice but to drag them into the darker side ughs).


    Kinugasa: What is demanded and what one wants to do are often different.


    Editor: Rather, listening to you, I think it''s better to nt the seeds properly considering the future. If we keep the image from the first year, we''ll get in serious trouble. We have to go dark, dark, dark ughs).


    Tomose: We might receive some scary messages ughs).


    Kinugasa: ughs).


    Editor: In this art book, illustrations that Tomose-sensei drew on Twitter (now X) were included. What prompted you to draw them?


    Tomose: It''s the need for approval, the need for approval ughs). Simply put, I had some free time because of the coronavirus. So I thought, what should I do? And decided to draw. Lately, everyone''s drawing on Twitter and getting praised, and I''m jealous, so I thought it''d be nice if I became popr too ughs).


    Kinugasa: It''s the need for approval, isn''t it? ughs).


    Editor: There are three types of illustrations for Y�� Jitsu, starting with the main light novel illustrations, then the freely created Alive covers, and finally thepletely free Twitter illustrations. It feels like there are three stages.


    Kinugasa: Purely speaking, it''s gratitude to the fans. We have to thank them for their support and asionally provide a service.


    Editor: I hope everyone will have the chance to witness more of this when they have time. I never imagined it would ultimately be included in an art collection ughs).


    Tomose: Yes, it''s been used for merchandise and such.


    Editor: We just couldn''t leave such cute illustrations alone.


    Tomose: I didn''t draw them with any expectations, but I''m grateful ughs).


    Editor: The Angel Sakayanagi is also incredibly cute, isn''t it?


    Editor: Aside from the characters we''ve talked about so far, there''s a theory that Chabashira has been getting cutertely. What do you two think?


    Kinugasa: I feel it too.


    Tomose: She''s getting cuter in the story, right? She''spletely opened up her heart, hasn''t she?


    Kinugasa: Right. I even think an ending where Chabashira gets together with someone would be fine.


    Tomose: That wouldn''t be bad.


    Kinugasa: I think she''s a heroine with more potential than some of the less skilled ones.


    Tomose: I like that idea ughs). I think it would be nice to have an hi manga about it, but I don''t know if everyone would agree ughs).


    Kinugasa: No, that''s a good idea. I might even go down that route.


    Tomose: The difficult part is whether it will develop into a romance.


    Editor: Ayanok��ji is quite mature mentally, so in that sense, a somewhat childish


    Chabashira might be just the right match ughs).


    Kinugasa: It''s a good bnce.


    Tomose: Hearing that makes her seem even cuter.


    Editor: Since this illustration (��Editor''s note: Volume 7 of the second year edition) came out, she''s just be a cute girl, and we even got a bunny illustration (��Editor''s note: Drawn for MF Bunko J Summer School Festival 2023).


    Tomose: Right. Why did you choose a bunny? ughs).


    Editor: The bunny itself was the theme for this year''s Summer School Festival illustrations. When we requested a bunny illustration, we asked which character should it be.


    Tomose: It was surprising that Chabashira-sensei came up there ughs).


    Editor: Chabashira hasn''t appeared on the cover of Alive, has she? Surely not.


    Kinugasa: Then let''s do it next time. The moment it was decided is right here.


    Editor: She''s 29 years old, right?


    Kinugasa: But she''ll be 30 next year.


    Tomose: Then there''s quite an age difference. Almost double, isn''t it? ughs).


    Editor: 30 and 18, 17, so it''s just right, isn''t it?


    Tomose: What kind of standard is that? ughs).


    Kinugasa: It''s just right ughs). Let''s go! Let''s go, let''s go!


    Tomose: ughs). Do we have to do it? Make it adult ughs).


    Kinugasa: Maybe Ayanok��ji is the other one? Like this is a hidden message to the fans.


    Editor: Like hinting at a coupling ughs).


    Tomose: Like collecting on a foreshadowing.


    Kinugasa: I heard a good story!


    Tomose: Please stop ughs).


    Kinugasa: Why? It''s a good thing ughs).


    Tomose: There are others like Sakayanagi-chan ughs).


    Editor: Let''s look forward to whates next ughs).


    Editor: Finally, I''d like to ask about the two of you. Have there been any changes in your recent situation? The pandemic was a big deal, wasn''t it?


    Tomose: Because of the coronavirus, I stopped going to events, and my work suddenly disappeared ughs). I stopped receiving messages out of the blue, so I ended up with a lot of free time. With that time, I was able to rx and draw more, and I started posting my drawings on Twitter. I also paid more attention to my health, got into cleaning, and developed more hobbies than before. I started walking more and became healthier. It''s quite the opposite of what happened to Kinugasa-san ughs)... So, my mental state has actually improved. I used to draw in difficult times.


    Kinugasa: You seemed to be having a hard time while making games.


    Tomose: It was crazy. I think I was drawing two to three times more than now. As I''ve gotten older, I can''t draw as much. In a sense, the pandemic changed my way of thinking for the better, and I''ve started to save my work efforts.


    Editor: How about you, Kinugasa-san? How have you been recently?


    Kinugasa: My child has grown up, and with the pandemic, people have stopped crowding... Thanks to that, I''ve been going out more. I''ve done things I never would have done in my life, like going to amusement parks, climbing hills, and visiting farms. I feel like my lifestyle has changed drastically in thest one or two years.


    Tomose: That''s nice. Having a child takes you to various ces.


    Kinugasa: I would never have gone before, but I went to a farm justst week.


    Tomose: Are farms that nice?


    Kinugasa: Well, it''s more like a children''s park, but you can experience milking cows.


    Tomose: It''s nice to have new experiences.


    Kinugasa: Exactly. I''m doing things I''ve never done before.


    Tomose: I''ve also started visiting shops I never went to before. I walk a lot more and try out new eateries.


    Kinugasa: I''ve been doing more of that too.


    Editor: So there''s been a change, huh? Last time we talked about how much had changed since you started this work, like getting married and having children. It''s like a continuation of that.


    Kinugasa: It''s like a sequel ughs).


    Tomose: It has be a series ughs).


    Editor: We were talking about both Kinugasa-san and Tomose-san.


    Kinugasa: It''s because of the work.


    Tomose: Lately, I feel like I''ve regained my humanity with the increase in leisure time ughs). I wasn''t living a human life 10 or 5 years ago.


    Editor: Even you, Tomose-san?


    Tomose: It was terrible. I would wake up, draw until I was tired, and then sleep. I''d only go to the convenience store. But now I cook too. I''ve realized humans do all sorts of things ughs).


    Kinugasa: I was going to say, I cook a lot too.


    Tomose: It''s fun, isn''t it?


    Kinugasa: It''s fun. Today I''m excited about making hotpot, I went to the supermarket to buy ingredients for tonight.


    Tomose: That''s nice. Before the pandemic, I only cut my hair about three times a year, but now I do it monthly ughs). I also didn''t buy clothes much, but now I do.


    Kinugasa: Do you go shopping for clothes on your own initiative?


    Tomose: Yes. I research myself and look up rmended clothes on YouTube, like "rmended for men in their 40s" ughs).


    Kinugasa: Wow, that''s amazing. I leave it all to my wife. She tells me what to wear, what to buy, and I just say yes, yes.


    Tomose: When you start researching fashion, it bes easier to draw.


    Kinugasa: It can be applied to work.


    Tomose: Exactly. You understand how clothes work. And when you start cooking, it bes easier to draw cooking scenes.


    Kinugasa: It''s reflected quite a bit in the story.


    Editor: Indeed, without going into details, there are many parts that make sense ughs).


    Tomose: Indeed, that''s true. Such things really do show up in the work, don''t they?


    Kinugasa: Yes. It''s important to gain knowledge from daily experiences. And that definitely gets utilized in our work, doesn''t it?


    Tomose: It does, it does. I really should have had a lot more varied experiences.


    Editor: That''s something we both didter on. Since we were working on 14 volumes during the first-year arc, I think we had used quite a bit of what we had in terms of resources.


    Tomose: I was running on empty, you know ughs).


    Editor: We''ve moved on to a good topic from recent updates.


    Kinugasa: Except for health ughs).


    Tomose: I''ve even started exercising ughs).


    Editor: Lastly, the second-year arc''s third term is ongoing, and the third season of the TV anime is currently airing. Could you say a few words to the fans?


    Tomose: You''ve already mentioned everything ughs). I think the story is going to get really intense from thetter half of the second-year arc. As a reader, I''m looking forward to it. It''s scary, but I think it''s going to be something amazing, wondering which ss will win. Also, I think the series has gotten long for the readers. I''m grateful that they''ve continued to follow us this far. I''ve been drawing for about 10 years, so I''m thankful. And I''m happy about the third season of the TV anime; I''ve been thinkingtely that everyone involved is really working hard.


    Kinugasa: That''s very true.


    Tomose: They''re even doing events for us, right? When you look closely, they talk


    about the work in detail.


    Editor: Of course ughs).


    Tomose: It makes me happy to think that they read and understand it, and talk so much about it. I''m grateful for them setting up events and for creating this art book.


    Kinugasa: You can feel the effort. It''s like we''re not alone.


    Tomose: It''s really appreciated. Chiba-san, who ys Ayanok��ji, really loves the work ughs). I''m happy to feel the seriousness in his storytelling.


    Kinugasa: We might lose some precious characters in the future ughs), so it''s a bit strange to say I''m looking forward to it, but I''m determined to keep going without faltering so that people will say it was interesting. Let''s keep up the good work ughs). Also, I think it''s about time we had an Ayanok��ji-kun figure. I''ve been wondering why there isn''t one.


    Tomose: It''s because there are no buyers.


    Kinugasa: I want to believe that''s not the case ughs). Well, maybe for men...


    Tomose: Maybe it would sell.


    Kinugasa: ughs).


    ������


    Tranted by RoyalMTLs


    <strong>COTE YEAR 2 VOLUME 11 ANNOUNCEMENT:</strong>


    The Release of Y2V11 got extended the Digital Version of the Volume will be going to release on 4 March (THAT''S MEAN TRANSLATION PROCESS WILL BE BEGIN ON 4 MARCH).


    <strong><Y2V11 LEAK ILLUSTRATIONS *SPOILER ALERT*></strong>

 Chapter 466: Yamamura Mikis Monologue

    Chapter 466: Yamamura Miki''s Monologue


    I REALIZED THAT I was alone.


    It wasn''t that anyone particrly disliked me.


    I just didn''t catch anyone''s eye.


    I was inconspicuous,cking presence.


    Before anyone could like me, they couldn''t even hate me.


    That was why I was always alone.


    It was the same in kindergarten, elementary school, and junior high.


    I didn''t have any friends, and I spent a lot of time by myself.


    I couldn''t develop the ability to talk to people, so I remained invisible.


    Even after bing a high school student, nothing changed.


    But I thought that was okay.


    I forced myself to believe that it was my strength��


    I thought it would be okay to live quietly alone even as an adult.


    Even so, I am certainly here.


    "...After all... I don''t think losing suits Sakayanagi-san..."


    "Why don''t you try telling her? No one has the right to criticize your actions."


    What is this sensation, this emotion that is seeping into my heart?


    I didn''t know.


    I just didn''t know.


    ��Until this day.


    ������


    < ILLUSTRATIONS>

 Chapter 467 - 1 : The Elusive Two-Party Interview

    <h4>Chapter 467: Chapter 1 : The Elusive Two-Party Interview</h4>


    A LITTLE TIME HAD passed since the survival and elimination special exam ended.


    Due to her close position to Sakayanagi, Kamuro bing a new dropout surprised the second-year students. However, since Kamuro didn''t have any close friends from other sses, the shock didn''tst long.


    But that wasn''t the only reason. They were getting used to the feeling. That implication couldn''t be ignored.


    They were bing increasingly desensitized to the pain of losing arade.


    As soon as February came, the date and details of the announced two-person interview were announced.


    It was said that they''d talk for about 15 minutes per person over the span of five days. The time needed for the interview was secured by making the afternoon sses self-study and using after-school hours, and students were called to a separate room as needed.


    Due to the setting sun, the view outside the ssroom window had greatly changed.


    Today was the fifth and final day, the day of my two-person interview. I was assigned to thest slot.


    While waiting in the ssroom, I received instructions from the teacher on my phone toe to the career counseling room, so I decided to go immediately. There were hardly any students left in the school, and the only ones I passed by were students returning from club activities.


    When I arrived in front of the career counseling room, I lightly clenched my hand and used the first joint of my finger to gently knock three times. Naturally, I heard a voice from Chabashira-sensei allowing me to enter.


    "Excuse me."


    When I quietly opened the door, I saw Chabashira-sensei seated at her desk, running her fingertips over her tablet.


    "You''re finally here. Have a seat."


    After a quick nce, she looked back down at her tablet.


    "You seem busy."


    "As a homeroom teacher, I can''t help but be busy during this time. But I feel a little better knowing that the two-person interviews will be over today. It was a good decision to leave the two oddballs forst."


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    After answering, she instructed me to sit down, so I sat in the empty seat across the desk.


    "Two oddballs, you say?"


    "What, are you shocked to be treated on the same level as K��enji?"


    "I''d be lying if I said I didn''t think anything of it."


    Chabashira-senseiughed and ced her tablet on the desk.


    "Do you think K��enji is more of an oddball? Well, I can understand why you''d think that, but to me, there''s not much difference. You''re quite the oddball yourself."


    It seemed that was how I was perceived from a teacher''s perspective. I didn''tck the desire to deny it, but I decided to bear it and let it slide.


    "Well, I don''t have many opportunities to talk with each student. Before we talk about your future ns, let''s talk about your school life. If there''s anything you want the school to improve, I''d like to hear it."


    "I don''t have anything in particr. As an individual, I''m satisfied."


    "I see. Do you have any trouble in your rtionships with friends, or anything you want to consult about?"


    "I don''t."


    Without hesitation, I continued to respond, and Chabashira-sensei showed a slightly bitter smile.


    "Most students give one or two opinions, or at least show some sign of thinking, even if they don''t have any. I don''t think you''re holding back..."


    She seemed a little confused by my faster-than-expected response, but there was nothing she could do.


    "I actually don''t have anyints."


    If I had any requests, I probably would''ve conveyed them without hesitation.


    "Well, if that''s the case, it''s fine... but you really don''t have anything?"


    As a homeroom teacher, her concern came forth, and she kept checking over and over.


    "There''s nothing. I''m satisfied with my school life and there''s no particr trouble."


    She seemed unable to fully hide her concern, but for now, she seemed to have decided to take her student''s words at face value. She began typing that into her tablet.


    "Chabashira-sensei, you''ve changed quite a bit too."


    Perhaps she felt that it made sense to her, as she showed a bitter smile along with a sigh.


    "I don''t think I''ve changed. But I might''ve be more honest than before."


    The unanimous special exam she experienced as a student herself.


    And the unanimous special exam she experienced as a teacher.


    What she gained and lost from those two experiences.


    At the beginning of the school year, it was nostalgic to think that I couldn''t even imagine the teacher in front of me smiling.


    "... Anyway. If there''s anything you''re concerned about in your school life, don''t hesitate to tell me."


    "Understood."


    After I answered, the opening conversation ended shortly thereafter, and we moved on to the main topic of the two-person meeting.


    "I''d like to know whether you''re hoping to go on to higher education or get a job. If you''ve made up your mind, please tell me." For high school students, that crossroads was a major turning point in life.


    That was why teachers had to show students the right path, so they don''t get lost.


    However, I probably wouldn''t be able to meet Chabashira-sensei''s expectations.


    "I think my family will decide what to do about my future. I don''t think there''s anything to discuss here."


    "Your family will decide? In other words, you''ll follow your father''s n?"


    The school data showed that my mother wasn''t present.


    "Yes."


    "I see. It''s a rare case, but it''s not like there are no students who prioritize their parents'' wishes. But usually, they''d inform us in advance whether they wanted to go on to higher education or get a job. This school''s always open tomunication from parents, and there are many cases where parents actually convey their thoughts to their children. But so far, we haven''t received any consultation about going on to higher education or getting a job from your family."


    Indeed, it would be strange if I had no set ns, even if I followed my parents.


    But for me, who won''t go on to higher education or get a job, it would be unnecessary to inform them.


    However, it would be impossible for Chabashira-sensei to understand that scenario.


    "I think it''s fine."


    "You say it''s fine... but if you want to go on to higher education, you should''ve already started nning. The effort to take exams at a level that matches the level of the university you want to go to..."


    Chabashira-sensei started talking as if she was exasperated, but she stopped mid-sentence.


    Then, she straightened her posture and looked me in the eye.


    "I don''t know much about your past. I think it was wrong of me to pretend to know about it and try to leverage that. But now, as a homeroom teacher, I want to fully understand the abilities of the students I''m in charge of. That''s my duty."


    "I understand. I have no intention of interfering with that."


    I can''t see the screen of the tablet well because of reflections, but if she leaves answers nk, Chabashira-sensei will be med when she submits it to the school.


    And it was probably up to the school, but whether a student''s future ns came true or not, whether they could go on to a high-level university or job, that can sometimes be linked to a teacher''s grades and evaluations.


    "So tell me, if your parents want you to go on to higher education, can I assume that you have the ability to do so?"


    No matter what I answered, the future wouldn''t change.


    But it was cruel to unnecessarily lower her evaluation because of a foreign existence like me.


    If anything, it was probably best to give Chabashira-sensei a useful answer.


    "I think I can pass any university."


    "...Really? Normally, I would caution against such a ridiculous statement, but since it''s you saying it, it must be true. I can conclude that much."


    Chabashira-sensei, who relented without any objection, continued.


    "It seems you''ve received quite an elite education. If you''re smart enough to im that without hesitating, I wish you would contribute more to the ss on a regr basis... but let''s leave that aside for now."


    Having finished typing what we had just talked about on her tablet, Chabashira-sensei looked up.


    "I understand the current situation. But Ayanok��ji, what''s your opinion? I understand that you''re considering your parent''s wishes, but don''t you have a future vision you want to aim for?"


    "I don''t. Even if I did, unfortunately, I don''t have the right to decide."


    As far as that goes, it was a pointless discussion to spend time on.


    "I''m sorry. That might have been an unpleasant question."


    "I don''t mind. In fact, I just don''t have any dreams or hopes at the moment. If I find something I want to aim for in the future, I''ll ask about it."


    "I see. So for now, you''ll follow your parent''s wishes. Then the three-person meeting will take ce during the spring break after the third term. Is it okay to officially decide on the n then?"


    "That''s right."


    However, a three-person meeting involving a parent probably wouldn''t happen.


    At best, that man''s messenger wille and have a meaningless conversation. It was obvious.


    There was no way he would bring up anything rted to the White Room.


    "Your three-person meeting is currently scheduled for April 1st. You''ll see your father for the first time in a while. If necessary, we can also take more time. I want you to think of it as a good opportunity to talk freely about your future."


    She spoke as if she didn''t have a single doubt that my father woulde.


    No, is that actually the case?


    "...Can I ask you something?"


    I thought it was unlikely, but I decided to ask because I thought it was worth checking.


    "Hmm?"


    "Is my father actuallying? Not someone else? Not a proxy?"


    Unable to grasp my intention, Chabashira-sensei nodded while looking puzzled.


    "Yes, that''s what I heard."


    "I thought he would''ve immediately rejected the idea of a three-person meeting?"


    While looking puzzled, Chabashira-sensei soon showed some understanding.


    "Indeed, when I first informed him of the three-person meeting by email, he replied that he intended to send a proxy due to his busy schedule. In that sense, your statement is correct. However, when I informed him of the specific date for the three-person meeting on that premise, the situation seemed to have changed."


    While reconfirming on her tablet just in case, she continued.


    "He called me and I received a reply that your father would visit directly. I heard it straight from him; there''s no mistaking it."


    "...That''s unexpected."


    What kind of twist is this? That man wouldn''t retract his previous response that easily. At least that was the case with us White Room students. Despite dering that he wouldn''t meet me at this school, why would he bother attending a three-person meeting?


    From the fact that he initially refused, it should''ve developed the way I imagined it.


    However, he changed his mind and expressed his intention toe himself?


    It was impossible not to think there was a catch.


    "You said you got a call from my father, what exactly did you talk about?"


    "What? We didn''t have any deep conversations. He had appointed a proxy, but he said he could attend the three-person meeting because he had time. However, he said he wanted to be informed if there were any changes to the schedule he had been given, even a little. That''s not unusual for busy parents, is it?"


    "That''s right."


    Normally, he wouldn''t have had time to attend a three-person meeting, but he looked at the set schedule and decided that he could make it, so he contacted the school. It was easy to understand and there was nothing strange about it.


    "But... oh no, that isn''t something I can just tell you."


    Chabashira-sensei started to say something but then stopped.


    "But what?"


    I was looking for a hint, so I asked for the rest of her sentence.


    "It''s not a big deal. But I thought it was a bit strange. It''s natural to want to be contacted if the schedule changes, but that''s usually limited to changes in the date and time of your child''s meeting. However, your father said he wanted to be contacted if there was even a slight change in the schedule of the entire ss that I was given."


    "Even if, for example, the meeting of an unrted ssmate on a different day is switched?"


    "That''s right. I thought he was being a bit paranoid, but there''s no inconvenience in just informing him."


    So Chabashira-sensei agreed without thinking too deeply.


    However, if that man had a reason to participate in the three-person meeting, there was a motive.


    "Could you show me the schedule for the three-party meeting, if possible?"


    "The schedule? Well, I suppose there''s no harm in showing it."


    Chabashira-sensei operated her tablet and turned the screen towards me.


    "This is the schedule for the three-party meetings of the entire ss. It''s basically structured the same way as the two-party meetings. That is, you''re scheduled for thest slot."


    March 26th, 28th, 30th, and April 1st.


    That was the schedule for the three-party meetings that would take ce over the span of four days.


    As Chabashira-sensei had said, my name was listed at the end of the day on the 1st, at 5 PM.


    "There''s nothing special to see. Are you done now?"


    "Yes, thank you."


    Chabashira-sensei turned the screen of the tablet she had been showing me back to herself.


    "I won''t tell you not to be nervous about your rtionship with your parent. I don''t know the details, but there''s no parent who doesn''t love their child. He must''ve felt like he couldn''t leave you alone."


    "That might be true."


    I answered as such, as there was no point in discussing her thoughts and that man here.


    But in reality, I couldn''t imagine him showing up for the three-party meeting for such a reason.


    Did he want to expel me with his own hands, unable to leave it to others?


    Even so, he should''ve already realized from the previous time that it was pointless to confront me directly.


    I still didn''t know for what purpose he agreed to attend the three-party meeting.

 Chapter 468: 1.1

    <h4>Chapter 468: 1.1</h4>


    After finishing the two-way conference with lingering questions, I returned to the dormitory before it got dark and got on the elevator. I have a dinner n with Kei from 7 p.m. today.


    So, I had to prepare in about an hour.


    First, I had to go back to my room and wash my hands. As I was getting off the elevator while making detailed ns in my head...


    "Hey, you''reteing home, Ayanok��ji."


    A rare figure was waiting, leaning against the door of my room.


    It was Hashimoto Masayoshi, a student from Sakayanagi''s ss. He tapped his knee lightly, as if he had been waiting for a long time.


    "Seeing as you came up alone, it doesn''t seem like you were on a date."


    He asked, confirming that the closing elevator was empty.


    "Today was the day for the two-party meeting, so I waste."


    "Oh, I see... I hadn''t considered that possibility. I have something to talk to you about. Do you have time?"


    He brought up the reason he had been waiting while reflecting on his own oversight.


    "It doesn''t seem like a conversation suited for standing."


    "You''re right. It would help me if you could consider that."


    Then I had no choice but to consider his intentions.


    "If you don''t mind my room, you cane in."


    It seemed like it would cut into my dinner preparation time, but I could set aside a little bit of time.


    I couldn''t find any other reason to refuse, so I decided to invite Hashimoto in.


    "Sorry about this."


    "I can listen to what you say, but don''t expect too much hospitality."


    "That''s more than enough for me right now."


    Heughed self-deprecatingly and lightly tapped my back as I inserted the key into the keyhole.


    When I opened the door, I nced at the emergency stairs for a moment.


    I felt a presence watching me, but it was difficult to determine whether Hashimoto was aware of it or not. For now, I entered without worrying about it.


    "Excuse me... oh, a boyfriend''s room is indeed different."


    As soon as he stepped into the room, he whistled at the traces of Kei scattered around.


    "Can I sit on the bed? Or is that too much?"


    "Too much? You can do whatever you want."


    With that, Hashimoto wavered but slowly sat down on the bed.


    He seemed to hesitate to sit on someone else''s bed. He was considerate.


    "So? What''s the story?"


    "It''s a pretty heavy matter. I''m struggling with what to do with myself. I want you to listen to my concerns."


    He seemed to get straight to the point without any detours, but I felt a snag early on. However, it would be rude to interrupt him right from the start, so I decided to let him continue.


    "What do you mean by ''what to do with myself''?"


    "Haven''t you heard already? What caused Kamuro-chan to drop out?"


    "I''ve heard some rumors. Someone leaked information to Ry��en during the special exam. As a result, ss A ended up at the bottom."


    "Exactly. If the information leaks, there''s no chance of winning."


    As Hashimoto said, the decisive factor in the defeat was the betrayal caused by the information leak. If there hadn''t been a leaker, there was a high possibility that ss A could have avoided being at the bottom.


    "I was the first one to be suspected. Now, every day, I''m being looked at with suspicion by various people in the ss."


    In fact, it was not limited to the ss. The act of betraying one''s own ss was a shock and a threat.


    "To be honest, I''ve heard such rumors too. I sympathize with the current situation."


    Currently, the most circted rumor was that Hashimoto betrayed ss A. He had supposedly contacted Ry��en and made a secret agreement. Considering the suspicious movements he''d shown in the past, it was a natural conclusion. However, I hadn''t heard anything with concrete evidence. At present, by a process of elimination, it was being suggested that it might have been Hashimoto.


    "Do I have no choice but to ept this? Is it because of my everyday behavior?"


    "If you don''t want to ept it, you can take action to prove your innocence."


    "I wonder. They say ''innocent until proven guilty,'' but I think that''s possible in the real world. If you raise your voice in a situation where you are suspected, the suspicion will only deepen. Those who have decided in their heads that you are the culprit without any basis will even doubt your cries of grief."


    This was exactly what was referred to as the echo chamber phenomenon. Students with simr opinions gather and mistakenly think they''re correct. This tendency was particrly strong in this isted school. Unfortunately, unless Hashimoto himself could produce decisive evidence that he wasn''t the culprit, there was nothing he could do about that phenomenon.


    "You might be right. I chose to remain silent."


    "See?"


    Unless you have clear evidence to the contrary, opening your mouth won''t change the situation. Rather, a careless remark might only arouse more suspicion.


    "It makes me want to cry."


    Even as he pretended to press his eyes, I spoke up.


    "Isn''t that enough of an opening? Why did you betray Sakayanagi?"


    At these words, Hashimoto''s movements stopped abruptly, and his fingers slowly moved away from his eyes.


    "Hey, let me build it up a little. I feel like an idiot for putting on the poor-me act."


    "I just thought it was a waste of time. It''s alreadyte, and I''d like to prepare dinner as soon as possible."


    I told him this, keeping to myself that Kei would being to my roomter tonight.


    "What, do you have a date with your girlfriend afterward?"


    "Something like that."


    "What do you mean ''something like that''? Our friendship should be thicker than a woman''s."


    "Sorry, but it''s impossible to change my schedule around. Besides, I don''t remember us having a deep friendship either."


    When I told him the truth, Hashimoto put both hands on the bed and took a breath.


    "Well, if you understand the situation calmly, that''s fine. It''s more convenient for me now."


    After a pause, he immediately touched on the crux of the matter.


    "Why do you think I betrayed Sakayanagi?"


    Before I could hear the answer, Hashimoto asked me to think about it myself.


    "I don''t know that much. The only thing I can think of is that you received arge amount of private points in return."


    I voiced a scenario that outsiders would imagine. However, I was skeptical whether it was worth it. Certainly, Sakayanagi was hurt, but only once. And the ss only lost 100 ss points. Although Kamuro, a close aide of hers, dropped out, it was only a by-product of the ordeal, and the likelihood of it being included in the negotiations and rewards was low. The price to pay for betraying the ss is expensive; 500,000 or 1 million, or even more, would be too cheap.


    "What I want to hear isn''t an answer anyone coulde up with, but your opinion."


    Hashimoto seemed to be well aware that I wasn''t answering seriously.


    "I''m sorry, but I''m not in the mood to express my opinion."


    "Huh? Why? Because there''s no connection between you and me?"


    "That''s not it. It''s because you''re not talking seriously."


    "Huh? I''m seriously asking for advice. I''m desperately looking for a way out."


    "If you''re really saying that, it''s toote."


    "Toote..."


    "Someone who can''t decide how to conduct themselves and is lost from the start won''t betray the ss."


    Drawing a bow against Sakayanagi was tantamount to aiming for the general''s head.


    It wasn''t something you decided on the spur of the moment, but after considering all the subsequent responses.


    "I see. Indeed, asking for advice on how to conduct myself is foolish..."


    This was the snag I felt as soon as the discussion began.


    Hashimoto apologized repeatedly for his mistake and then started the conversation over.


    "The reason I betrayed Sakayanagi was because of your existence, Ayanok��ji. The trigger was my attempt to persuade Sakayanagi to pull you into ss A at all costs."


    "Persuade? It''s hardly persuasive. It''s just self-harm involving the ss."


    "Interesting expression. Well, it''s mostly correct."


    Hashimoto answered with augh, but I couldn''t tell if he was rxed or not.


    I sensed that he was deliberately hiding his feelings to hide his vulnerabilities.


    He probably didn''t want to show any weakness to me.


    Even though he was telling me something that contained the truth, I had a feeling that he was still hiding many secrets inside.


    "The questions just keep piling up. To begin with, betraying Sakayanagi by weighing me in the equation? Don''t you think it''s a story that would make other students scratch their heads in disbelief?"


    "Those who scratch their heads are ipetent. There''s no need for modesty in this situation. I''ve been working harder than anyone else to gather information and I''m convinced that you''re the best. I can exin from scratch if necessary, but it''d be a waste of your precious time."


    "Even if I deny it, you won''t be convinced, will you?"


    "I won''t. You have the ability to turn the ss ranking upside down by yourself. That''s why I threatened Sakayanagi that if she doesn''t secure you, I''ll betray her again. If she had listened to me, you would''vee to ss A and it would''ve been solid. The winning form would''ve beenplete."


    Hashimoto clenched his fist tightly, but his n was too reckless and unrealistic.


    "I hate to say it, but it''s too much of a pipe dream. Even if I had the ability you imagine, it would be meaningless if I made Sakayanagi my enemy. Besides, when I was invited before, I remembered saying that I would consider it positively, but I don''t remember saying that I would officially go."


    He acted unterally without securing amitment, clearly jumping the gun.


    "So, even if I manage to secure a transfer, you still won''te to ss A?"


    "I can only say that''s the case right now. I''m not interested in confronting Sakayanagi."


    When I conveyed what I had naturally thought, Hashimoto seemed shocked, but muttered, ''I guess that''s the way it is.''


    "The best answer would''ve been ''yes'', but I guess it''s not that easy."


    The fact that he answered calmly suggested that he had fully considered the possibility that I wouldn''t choose ss A.


    If so, what was the purpose of this betrayal?


    It was difficult to deduce clearly from the information I currently had.


    "Hey, do I look like the kind of guy who would betray the ss? Sakayanagi was the first to suspect me."


    "That''s your character."


    "Defend me a little... Just kidding. Even though I initiated it, I received a direct deration of war. Normally, there''s not a chance in a million that I could win."


    Considering that Sakayanagi must have stronger feelings towards the traitor who caused her to regretfully abandon Kamuro than Hashimoto thinks, it was understandable.


    "But, was this betrayal all my fault? I thought I was suggesting the best way to graduate from ss A. I just took a heavy-handed approach because she didn''t listen. Where''s the fault?"


    "You''re defiant. But your intuition isn''t wrong. There''s certainly no guarantee that you''ll be able to stay in ss A in the future if you just continue to follow Sakayanagi''s orders with their current power."


    The difference in ss points was gradually narrowing in reality.


    "I see."


    "But you''ve also made a big mistake."


    "Is it making Sakayanagi my enemy?"


    "Correct, but wrong. It''s not that making Sakayanagi an enemy is bad. The mistake was that you acted without any assurance of winning, even if you made Sakayanagi an enemy. If the chances of winning were slim, you should''ve taken a different approach."


    "I thought about it in my own way. But I concluded that this was the only way."


    "The answer you calcted and derived within you��I can''t say for sure that it''s the right answer."


    Hashimoto didn''t deny and imagined what woulde next.


    "If I can''t undo it, do you think I''ll be devoured by Sakayanagi as I am?"


    "That''s likely. If you don''t want that, the only remaining option is to beat her."


    "Do you think I can fight and win against Sakayanagi?"


    "Just to confirm, by defeating Sakayanagi, you mean getting her expelled, right?"


    Hashimoto nodded. In other words, there was no path to reconciliation. If so, there was only one answer.


    "No matter how much I favor myself, the odds are too bad even with my help. I can''t say anything because it depends on the special exams in the future, but in a sense, Sakayanagi should want to expel you more than Ry��en now. To put it bluntly, even if you retaliate and force Sakayanagi to drop out, you might be taken along with her in a mutual kill."


    If that happened, Ry��en could avoid epting the troublesome existence of the traitor Hashimoto, and at the same time, he could bury a strong enemy, which would be killing two birds with one stone for Ry��en.


    No, even if you were prepared for a mutual kill, it was difficult to defeat Sakayanagi.


    There was an overwhelming difference in ability between Sakayanagi and Hashimoto at this point.


    The opponent was always one or two steps ahead of Hashimoto and even had a Protection Point.


    In other words, you''d have to stab her twice to defeat her.


    And now, Hashimoto was only thinking about fighting Sakayanagi.


    But that was a naive thought.


    I understood the feeling of wanting to say that the problem would be solved all at once when the game was settled.


    But even if he defeated Sakayanagi, it''d be just the beginning.


    Rebuilding a copsing ss. Those who''de for revenge. Problems would overflow one after another.


    He betrayed the ss knowing that he''d be at a disadvantage against Sakayanagi without any assurance that I would be an ally.


    What else could I call this other than strange behavior?


    "Something that stood out in our conversation is that you don''t trust people."


    He didn''t reveal everything, and he judged and acted on his own.


    It would be fine if he were sessful, but if he were about to fail, he wouldn''t have anyone to rely on.


    "I won''t deny it. But Ry��en and Sakayanagi are the same, right? Other people are useless."


    "They have the power to fight on their own without personally acting themselves."


    "That''s where the situationes back."


    Hashimoto wasn''t one without the power to foresee the future.


    He felt that he''d eventually lose if I were the enemy.


    That wasn''t bad. But, until now and from now on, he would continue to think and make conclusions all on his own. The disadvantage of being unable to rely on others was whatnded him in the predicament.


    If Hashimoto had multiple people he could trust from the bottom of his heart, this current situation might''ve been a little better.


    "I don''t want you to think that I rebelled against Sakayanagi without any chance of winning. I''m not that foolish." Hashimoto muttered that he had his own chances of winning.


    I tried to listen to him continue, but he just looked at me and didn''t attempt to borate.


    "Before I let you hear what''s next, there''s something I really want to confirm with you."


    And so, Hashimoto threw a question at me.


    Why did he betray Sakayanagi at that time and decide to take a big gamble?


    A question to start the story.

 Chapter 469: 1.2

    <h4>Chapter 469: 1.2</h4>


    The discussion with Hashimoto seemed to have take longer than expected.


    "Sorry. Karuizawa ising after this, right? I''ve talked too long."


    "It can''t be helped. It wasn''t a topic that could be cut off in the middle."


    "Can I interpret this as a meaningful time?"


    When I nodded affirmatively, Hashimoto also nodded back in response.


    His face was different from before, which showed ups and downs, and was somewhat clear.


    It seemed like he''d vented something he''d been holding back.


    I decided to go out while seeing off Hashimoto.


    "I''ll buy dinner at the convenience store today."


    When I told Hashimoto, who was about to press the elevator call button, he stopped his finger before touching the button for the upper floor and immediately pressed the button for the lower floor.


    "Can I join you then? Of course, no more heavy talk, okay?"


    Naturally, Hashimoto also looked quite tired.


    Feeling the need for a quick meal, I decided to head to the convenience store with him.


    We got into the elevator and descended to the lobby.


    Just then, we ran into Hashimoto''s ssmate Morishita, who seemed to have just returned home.


    "What a coincidence, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    "Indeed, a coincidence."


    It was a moment when I could feel the change in my human rtionship.


    I had crossed paths with Morishita many times during my two years of school life.


    I used to not care about crossing paths with her, but now when we meet, we both naturally stop and start talking.


    "And the traitor, Hashimoto Masayoshi, is here too."


    "Hey, hey, don''t start with that. Give me a break."


    "Sorry. I haven''t found definitive evidence yet. I will correct myself."


    Even if she corrected her statement, the fact that he was thought of in that way couldn''t be changed.


    He was indeed a traitor, but Hashimoto must''ve thought it was good that I was there with him.


    "Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, you don''t seem surprised."


    "It''s been a rumor for a while now. Besides, unlike the people in ss A, I''m not that interested in the truth."


    "I see. I thought you might''ve been consulted by the traitor."


    She bluntly stated what she was thinking and specting, relentlessly pushing me.


    Hashimoto intervened as I was admiring her audacity.


    "Stop it. It''s okay to suspect me of being a traitor, but it''s better not to involve outsiders without instructions from the princess."


    He stopped Morishita with a confident tone that didn''t seem like one belonging to a traitor.


    "I see. But it''s gettingte. Where are you going now?"


    Instead of forcing Hashimoto to engage further, Morishita directed her question at me.


    "I''m going to the convenience store and buy dinner."


    "Me too."


    "I didn''t ask you, Hashimoto Masayoshi, but I see. However, I thought you were a person who usually cooks for himself, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka��did you get caught up in a conversation with someone and lose track of time?"


    I had been cooking for myself a lottely, but where''d she get this information?


    Morishita''s suspicions seemed to be growing stronger, and she very deliberately voiced her doubts.


    "I just happened to be in the elevator with Ayanok��ji. It seems he waste because of a two-person meeting."


    Perhaps thinking it would be troublesome to be asked about it, Hashimoto casually answered.


    However, Morishita seemed to be even more suspicious.


    "That''s strange. Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka''s two-person meeting should''ve ended a long time ago. It seems you two have been talking a lot today."


    Whether she had been investigating Horikita''s ss''s internal affairs, she had a good grasp of things that even Hashimoto didn''t know.


    The attempt to casually brush it off seemed to have backfired.


    "No, like I said, I have nothing to do with it. I have no idea what Ayanok��ji was doing."


    "But you''ve been together since you got on the elevator on the fourth floor, haven''t you?"


    As if to block any escape routes, she said this, while ncing at the elevator monitor.


    "Damn, were we being watched...?"


    "It might not matter to others, but it seems you were unlucky with who saw you today."


    Hashimoto showed a bitter smile at the defeated situation.


    But he didn''t seem flustered or panicked by this encounter.


    "Is this how you act as a traitor?"


    "Huh? What do you mean, traitor?"


    "It means a backstabber."


    When she exined the meaning, Hashimoto exaggeratedly dropped his shoulders as if he was disappointed.


    "Give me a break, Morishita. This is apletely different matter."


    "What do you mean by ''different matter''?"


    "I can''t tell you that. There are things that only guys can talk about, right?"


    Sensing that he wanted backup, I decided to go along with it.


    "If it''s a matter of gender, I can''t pursue it any further. That''s an easy way to escape confrontation."


    "No matter what I say, it''s no good."


    Hashimoto shrugged, giving up.


    Just as we were talking about a moment ago, the more he opened his mouth, the more suspicion he aroused.


    "Well, it''s fine. Can I apany you to the convenience store too?"


    "That''s fine, but do you have any particr reason?"


    "Yes, I''m sure there will be one if I go. I should be able to think of something."


    She was revealing that she had no specific motive, but I had no right to refuse her.


    Even if I refused, she would just follow us anyway.


    "Alright. Well, since it''se to this, let''s go together as a group of three."


    "Then I''ll follow you."


    Morishita, who had turned around, started walking ahead.


    "Why is she taking the lead... She''s as iprehensible as ever. Sorry about this, Ayanok��ji."


    "It''s fine. It''s not a big deal."


    Suddenly, I wondered how Morishita was perceived in ss A.


    Her academic excellence must be well known from the OAA.


    But honestly, I didn''t know anything else. It might be a good idea to ask.


    "What kind of student is Morishita in ss?"


    "She''s just as you see her. She''s smart but entric, and she always acts alone."


    "Does she have any close friends?"


    "Not that I can recall."


    Judging that the statement was made by someone always busy gathering information, it seemed highly credible.


    Watching Morishita''s back, Hashimoto touched his chin with his index finger and thumb, looking puzzled.


    "That''s why it''s so unusual. She''s not usually the type to start a conversation like this."


    After muttering that, he gave me a sidelong nce, so I took the initiative.


    "Isn''t she just keeping an eye on the traitor?"


    "Well... that''s not impossible... but you''re not holding back either, are you?"


    "If I need to be considerate, I''ll be considerate."


    "Damn. What I''m curious about is that, to my understanding, Morishita doesn''t seem to be an extreme follower of Sakayanagi. She''s neither close nor distant to her. But she''s not the type to take the initiative and solve problems on her own. In other words, I can''t see a reason for her to probe."


    Morishita isn''t the type to take initiative? Is that really the case?


    Although our interactions had been limited, my impression was the opposite. She seemed more like a person who actively worked alone to solve problems.


    Of course, it was possible that Morishita changed her mind after witnessing Sakayanagi''s defeat, who had been steadily defending their position until now. However, it was hard to believe that Hashimoto waspletely unaware of that detail.


    He spoke without showing any signs of deception, mixing truth and lies in simr proportions.


    Even the current situation, the three of us walking together, might not be a mere coincidence.


    Hashimoto might''ve wanted to make Sakayanagi indirectly realize that he''d contacted me.


    It might be safe to assume that he had such a n.


    If he didn''t want to be found out, he wouldn''t have waited in front of my room where he could''ve been noticed. We both knew each other''s contact information, so we could discretelymunicate as much as we wanted. Hashimoto, the traitor, had a purpose in making Sakayanagi aware of the fact that he contacted me, either directly or indirectly.


    Of course, only Hashimoto knew the truth, but there were other things that I could deduce.


    The truth and lies that Hashimoto revealed in my room.


    All his actions were tied to his own benefit.


    He wanted to be the only one to benefit.


    He wanted to be the only one to survive.


    He wanted to be the only one to win.


    If a pacifist knew of this, Hashimoto would probably be despised as an evil entity.


    The more I knew about Hashimoto, the more I sympathized and agreed with him.


    Because he lived ording to his nature.


    Normally, to carry out such evil, one needed undeniable power.


    But Hashimoto didn''t have that power.


    So, like a chameleon, he learned to change colors to match his environment.


    Trying to blend into the environment to survive.


    That was exactly what he was doing at that moment and what he had been doing up until then.


    We left the lobby and the three of us walked to the convenience store.


    Then we went inside, picked up a basket, and I contacted Kei on my phone.


    While listening to what she wanted, I decided on dinner for myself as well.


    The convenience store''s microwavable side dishes were quite delicious.


    While shopping, I ran into someone who came in after us in the beverage section.


    "Ah... H-hello..."


    The one who greeted me was Yamamura Miki, a girl from the same ss as Hashimoto.


    "I didn''t expect to see you here."


    "Yes, I suppose so."


    Yamamura agreed, looking somewhat ufortable at my response.


    It seemed that it was indeed Yamamura who had been watching Hashimoto on the emergency stairs.


    Even after leaving the dormitory, I''d hardly noticed her presence and didn''t know who she was.


    That was why I thought it might be Yamamura, and it seemed I was right.


    I didn''t know whether she was acting alone or if Sakayanagi was hiding behind her, but considering that she''d been on standby before I returned to my room by elevator, it was more likely that she''d been watching Hashimoto.


    Moreover, I couldn''t find any particr reason why Yamamura would be secretly watching me.


    "Oh, it''s Yamamura. What a coincidence."


    Hashimoto, who''d noticed us talking, approached us with a curry-vored cup noodle in his hand.


    "Good evening... Hashimoto-kun."


    "This is the first time I''ve seen you use a convenience store."


    I wondered if this way of speaking was just a habit or if he''d sensed something.


    While voicing information that he didn''t know the credibility to, he observed Yamamura''s reaction.


    "Um, I... I use the convenience store quite a bit... about once or twice a week... but I don''t stand out... I''m sorry."


    "Oh, no, I''m sorry if I did something wrong..."


    Hashimoto seemed to have tried to probe her but ended up apologizing in a hurry since he pointed out Yamamura''sck of presence.


    "It''s rare to see Yamamura Miki talking to a boy."


    "Are you really one to say that, Morishita?"


    "I''m just a little curious about Hashimoto Masayoshi. Is it love?"


    "Don''t deliberately throw me under the bus like that... Well, I guess Yamamura is suspicious of me too."


    Is that so? In response to such a probing gaze, Yamamura looked down and averted her eyes.


    The heavy silence didn''t match the convenience store''s atmosphere or the upbeat music, creating a discordant sound.


    The one who broke the silence was not Hashimoto nor Yamamura, but Morishita.


    "Let''s shop together since we''re all here. You don''t mind, do you?"


    "Eh, um, yes... if that''s okay with you... I mean..."


    Her not reading the room from the get-go seemed to have paid off here.


    Without waiting for her answer, Yamamura ended up shopping with us.


    Well, after all, a convenience store was a ce to shop. It wasn''t a strange thing for us to do.


    I didn''t often see Yamamura talking to other students, but she even seemed to struggle talking to her own ssmates.


    She was being led around by Morishita and forced to pick up items she rmended.


    And without being able to refuse any of them, she put three or four items in her basket.


    "You shouldn''t push her around too much."


    "Why not? Yamamura Miki is happily epting my rmendations."


    "I don''t think she''s happy at all. She looks troubled to me."


    "Is that so?"


    "Um, uh..."


    Not knowing how to respond to either side, Yamamura was at a loss for words.


    "Am I forcing you to buy anything?"


    "No, that''s not..."


    Yamamura backed off at the mere pressure of words, and any words of defiance were swallowed up.


    "Do you dislike this? Well, let me give you my next rmendation. It''s a secret from everyone else."


    Even though she wasn''t a convenience store employee, Morishita was trying to get her to buy the next product.


    She tried to take out a juice box from one of the reach-in coolers.


    "Sorry to interrupt your friendly chat, but could you move a bit?"


    While they were talking amongst each other, a new customer stopped by the beverage corner.


    Morishita seemed to have noticed her, but Yamamura, who was nearby, seemed to have overlooked her, and their shoulders slightly collided.


    "Oh, I''m sorry."


    The convenience store wasn''t very spacious, so if several people gathered, it could get in the way of other customers when they were choosing items.


    It wasn''t a big shock, but Yamamura apologized and made way.


    "No, I''m the one who didn''t notice. I''m sorry."


    She gently fluttered her long silver hair and took out a bottle of green tea.


    "I like this brand''s tea. You can feel the umami and aroma as if it were brewed in a teapot, right Ayanok��ji?"


    The one who turned her gaze to me, speaking like a beverage brand''s promoter, was Kiry��in F��ka from ss 3-B.


    "I''ve never had that brand before, so I can''t answer."


    "That''s a shame. You should try it if you have a chance."


    "Are you going home now, Kiry��in-senpai?"


    "Yes. It''s getting a bitte. I thought I''d just stop by the convenience store today. Is this female student... your new girlfriend?"


    "No, she''s not."


    "Ah, um... I''m Yamamura..."


    "I''m Morishita Ai."


    "Yamamura and Morishita, huh? Are you in the same ss as Ayanok��ji?"


    "No, they are in ss A."


    "Oh? It''s good to have a wide circle. You should cherish your friends."


    "Are you one to say that, Kiry��in-senpai?"


    That was unexpected advice from someone who stood out among the third-year students for being aloof.


    "Nice to meet you, Kiry��in-senpai. I''m Hashimoto, also from ss A."


    Hashimoto greeted her, interrupting Kiry��in who was looking at Yamamura, and extended his hand.


    Kiry��in nodded, lightly brushing off his hand.


    "I''ll remember all three of you."


    After a brief exchange, Kiry��in finished paying first and left the convenience store.


    It was a bit surprising that Kiry��in, who didn''t seem to be interested in others, said she would remember the three of them, even if it was just a formality.


    It might not have meant much.


    "Are you close with Kiry��in-senpai? She''s famous for not hanging out with anyone."


    "I wouldn''t say we''re close."


    Hashimoto continued to watch Kiry��in''s back as she headed towards the dormitory for a while.

 Chapter 470 - 2 : The Exchange Training Camp

    <h4>Chapter 470: Chapter 2 : The Exchange Training Camp</h4>


    IT WAS 9:30 ON a Thursday morning. A flock of buses were parked.


    While faintly smelling the exhaust gas from the engine''s idling, the students boarded with light steps.


    For many second-year students, except those who went on expeditions for club activities andpetitions, this was the third outing of the year following the deserted ind exam and the school trip; a training camp for all years.


    However, it was announced in advance that this year''s mixed training camp was very different, and its nature hadpletely changed, even though it was included in the ''camps'' category in terms of format.


    Therefore, the term ''special exam'' wasn''t used.


    Before the trip started, what was concerning was the number of buses prepared for the students.


    Usually, it was one bus per ss. In other words, if all three years participated, it would be 12 buses.


    However, there were only nine buses gathered this time.


    But the mystery was immediately solved by looking at the boarding students.


    There was only one bus prepared for the third-year students.


    Apparently, the number of students gathered was very small, only about 20.


    I couldn''t say for sure because I didn''t see everyone''s faces, but as far as I could see, it seemed that five students from each of the four sses, A to D, were called from the third-year.


    When instructed to board the bus, there was no specific seating assignment, and we were told we could sit wherever we wanted.


    Upon hearing this, Kei immediately clung to my arm.


    "I''ll sit with Kiyotaka."


    Despite receiving some cold stares from some of the boys, I agreed and boarded the bus, taking a seat by the window on the right side, three rows from the back. Kei sat next to me.


    "Wouldn''t it have been better to stick with the girls?"


    "I''ll do that on the way back. It''s fine to be together on the way there, right?"


    We spent most of our private time together, but she still wanted to be together on the bus.


    I didn''t know what was different, but she seemed happier than usual.


    Once everyone had boarded, and the other buses were ready, Chabashira-sensei boarded.


    "This reminds me ofst year''s training camp. We had a lot of exchanges with each other at that time too."


    "That''s right."


    A year had passed since then.


    At that time, neither of us thought our rtionship would deepen this much.


    Not only Kei, but the rtionships with the people around us had also changed significantly.


    "Oh, that''s right. I found out yesterday that my favorite movie''s going to be screened soon. Let''s go see it together when it starts."


    Kei showed me an image that looked like a movie poster, her eyes narrowing in delight.


    To Kei, it was just one of the casual conversations she naturally brought up.


    But there was one thing that bothered me.


    "When is the movie scheduled to be released?"


    "Um, when was it? Thest time I saw the trailer, it seemed like it was going to be released in the spring."


    "I want to know the exact date."


    "Huh? Is there something wrong? Let''s see... Oh, it''s listed here."


    The homepage that Kei showed me stated that the movie would start screening on March 26.


    Fortunately, it was before the start of the new school term, during spring break.


    "I see. Let''s go see it."


    "Yay! It''s super interesting. I think you''ll enjoy it too," Kei said with a smile, but her smile froze as she looked at my face.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    Kei, who answered and took her eyes off me, started to prepare for the movie by looking at a page that seemed to be a character rtionship chart while humming a song.


    After that, the students each enjoyed the outside scenery while chatting casually.


    About 20 minutes after the bus left the city, Chabashira-sensei held a microphone and looked at the students throughout the bus.


    "I think it''s about time to exin the details of the training camp. As I mentioned briefly at school, it has been decided to hold a three-night, four-day experiential learning exchange meeting for all years."


    Normally, this would be a tense moment, but there was no sign of tension among the students on the bus.


    While listening to Chabashira-sensei''s words, they were enjoying the outside scenery or resting their bodies, creating a different mood than usual.


    As I mentioned earlier, this is not a special exam, but a simple exchange meeting.


    "Let me remind you not to take the exchange meeting as a special exam. There will be no change in ss points this time. Unless you engage in behavior that deviates from student life, there''s probably no risk of expulsion. You can get private points for participating in some games, but it''s more of a voluntary participation than a mandatory one."


    It was only natural that Chabashira-sensei was exining this to emphasize it.


    The students had be more cautious in their long life at ANHS.


    They had a habit of suspecting that there might''ve been something behind the exchange meeting.


    That was why she was announcing that it wasn''t a special exam, that ss points wouldn''t change, and that there were no penalties like expulsion waiting for them.


    This was what gave the students peace of mind.


    "It''s unfortunate that Ichihashi had to stay home due to illness, but it was a blessing in disguise."[1]


    [TL/N: Chabashira is thankful that it is only a small illness. This also allows for less students to work with which is the "blessing" she is referring to]


    There was a surprising amount of students with poor health due to the prevalence of colds at this time of year.


    "I think some of you may have already noticed, but even though it''s for all years, this time, only five representatives from each ss of the third-years are participating. This is taking into ount various circumstances."


    Chabashira-sensei briefly touched on it, but she didn''t go into detail.


    "Your main objective will be to interact with the first-year students, but it''s not like you can get along with everyone just from our vague instructions. As soon as you arrive at the camp, all years will be divided into 20 groups. The 20 third-year students who will serve as representatives in each group have already finished organizing the members based on the full list of first and second-year students."


    This meant that the groups were already decided, and we just weren''t informed about which group we would be in.


    "I will distribute the organization chart now, so remember which group you belong to. There may be some differences in the number of people and the gender ratio, but the bnce of grades and sses has been adjusted as much as possible. The games will be conducted between groups to determine the winner."


    Chabashira-sensei handed out printouts to the students sitting in front of her on both sides.


    The students took the necessary printouts and passed them on to the students sitting behind them.


    "This printout also includes some rewards you can get from the games and the conditions for obtaining them. You should read it carefully."


    "It''s not an exam, so I feel morefortable, but I still want private points. The win rate seems to change a lot depending on whether you get into a good group or not, right?"


    "Yeah."


    It was natural to hope that you''d have as many excellent students in your group as possible.


    Of course, it was unknown what skills would be required to determine the winner.


    Hond��, who was sitting in front of us, stood up and handed us the remaining printouts. Kei took them and passed them further back.


    "I hope I''m with you, Kiyotaka."


    The printouts were clipped together in groups of five, with information about the group activities, rewards for the exchange meeting, and a list of students'' names from the third page onwards.


    I noticed that there was also a folded card in the size of a regr business card inserted.


    Fortunately, the printouts were made just for us, so there were marks on the names of the students in this ss. This made it easy to find my name.


    The names of those who were absent were also listed. There were two second-year students, Ichihashi and Ichinose, but there were four first-year students, which seemed to be quite a lot. Among them was Ishigami''s name.


    It was probably a coincidence that they were in poor health. Because of that, I wouldn''t get the opportunity to get involved with them.


    "I''m in group seven with Tanaka-senpai. You''re not there... but..."


    Kei, who quickly found her name in the middle of the first page, looked disappointed but somewhat relieved. I wonder why.


    "But what?"


    "It seems that at the training camp, I''ll be sharing a room with the girls in the same group, and there''s someone I don''t want to be with... I''m d they aren''t there," she said. At the beginning of the printout, it was written that in addition to the games, we would be living together in a room separated by gender. That must have been her reaction to noticing that.


    She didn''t specify who, but there was no doubt that she was referring to Ichinose.


    In thest special exam, she was surprised to be consecutively nominated, even if it was part of their strategy.


    "It''s not that I hate Ichinose-san or anything, but, I don''t know. I''m a little scared."


    She muttered this and then red at me.


    "You''re close with Ichinose-san, Kiyotaka. Sometimes, I have doubts about various things."


    Kei whispered this to me in a voice that no one else could hear.


    "So that''s why you were feeling conflicted."


    "There''s a chance that you could end up with Ichinose, right?"


    Surprisingly, Ichinose''s presence seemed to have grown negatively in Kei''s mind.


    "I seem to be in group 20 with Kiry��in-senpai, at the end of the fifth page."


    I quickly looked through the list of all 20 groups, and as Chabashira-sensei had previously announced, the gender ratio bnce was as fair as possible, and the distribution of students by ss was either a minimum of one or a maximum of three��basically, two each. It seemed to be as equal as possible.


    However, I felt an eerie bias and inequality in some parts of each group.


    Since the other students were still looking for their names, there were probably few who had noticed, but it was only a matter of time before questions would arise.


    Kei, who hadn''t noticed anything, was still looking at the list with a disappointed look on her face due to our separation.


    I turned my attention back to the reward section at the top of the first page.


    <strong>[Group Ranking Rewards]</strong>


    �� 1st ce: 30,000 private points for each student


    �� 2nd ce: 20,000 private points for each student


    �� 3rd ce: 10,000 private points for each student


    �� 4th to 10th ce: 5,000 private points for each student


    �� 11th to 15th ce: 3,000 private points for each student


    �� 16th to 20th ce: 1,000 private points for each student


    *The private points obtained in this exchange meeting cannot be transferred


    *Use is limited to shopping within Keyaki Mall


    *To receive the reward, you must meet the conditions of the point card


    Because this wasn''t a special exam, we couldn''t get as big of a reward. It also wasn''t a system where only certain sses benefit.


    Even for high school students, an extra 1000 or 2000 yen was not something we could ignore, so naturally, we would want to aim for the top.


    Although there were disadvantages such as the inability to transfer or the limited ces where they could use it, it also meant that it was virtually impossible to use it strategically. The ability to use it freely without hesitation was an advantage.


    The students stared at the list for a while.


    "Um... Chabashira-sensei. May I ask a question?"


    Sonoda raised her hand after getting a rough idea of the groups.


    "You have something on your mind, don''t you?"


    "Yes. If we''re going to y games in separate groups, is this... fair? I mean, even if it''s impossible to be perfectly fair, it seems a bit unbnced... I feel that way about Nagumo-senpai''s group, for example."


    "OAA standards of bnce are not taken into ount at all. It wouldn''t be strange if there was a drastic bias."


    In response to the question, Chabashira-sensei gave a curt answer.


    "Wow, it''s true. Isn''t Nagumo-senpai''s group quite dangerous?"


    While listening to the question and checking the list, Ike, who saw the group led by Nagumo, spoke.


    Nagumo was a well-known former student council president and a student who maintained all A''s or above in the OAA.


    But what was astonishing was that the group had faces with outstanding ability.


    <strong>[First-year Students]</strong>


    �� ss A Takahashi Osamu, Toudou Rin, Amasawa Ichika


    �� ss B Hagiwara Chihaya, Fukuchi Hinano


    �� ss C Namekawa Azuki, Iguchi Yuri


    �� ss D Tatewaki Aoi, Osaki Noa


    <strong>[Second-year Students]</strong>


    �� ss A Sanada Kousei, Sawada Yasumi


    �� ss B Horikita Suzune, Hirata Yosuke


    �� ss C Kaneda Satoru, Katsuragi Kouhei


    �� ss D Kanzaki Ryuji


    All of them were excellent in their studies, and they were either good at sports or able to follow instructions urately. They didn''t hesitate in selecting students who could bring the group together.


    If we talked about individual abilities, there were students with outstanding abilities such as Sakayanagi, Ryuuen, and Koenji, but it was unknown what kind of chemistry would ur when they were thrown in the mix together.


    Isn''t this a well-rounded group formed to avoid that?


    After seeing this, many other groups would inevitably fade away.


    If you were in a group that had Sakayanagi or Ryuuen, students mentioned earlier as examples, they might be able to make a breakthrough and win against the strongest group, but for most other groups, defeat is inevitable. If there was a game that specialized only in academic ability, it would be almost impossible to win in terms of overall ability.


    "Some of you may think the group assignments are a bit unfair, but there''s nothing we can do about it. It''s only natural that excellent students are attracted to stable groups."


    Chabashira-sensei, holding a printout in one hand, answered with a stern look.


    Sonoda, who asked, shrank back at her expression.


    It was a reasonable argument that couldn''t be refuted once said.


    Perhaps thinking that the warning had gone too far, the teacher softened her expression and showed a slight smile.


    "But just because they''re excellent doesn''t mean they''ll always win. Especially in this case."


    She told Sonoda that there was hope and continued her exnation.


    "This exchange meeting will be a round-robin game spanning three days. The groups willpete against each other, but it will be one group against another, and the order of the matches will not be disclosed. Also, the content of the games will be randomly selected from a list each time."


    Chabashira-sensei continued to verbally convey the detailed rules, but the rules of the exchange meeting can be summarized as follows.


    <strong>[Exchange Meeting Experiential Learning Game Overview]</strong>


    �� Period: Conducted over three days


    �� Day 1: 5 matches; Day 2: 7 matches; Day 3: 7 matches


    ��30-minute interval between each game


    �� Match method: Conducted as a round-robin match among all 20 groups.


    �� The order of the matches is not disclosed.


    �� Rules: For every game, each group selects five yers from the third-year''s group.


    �� Only first and second-year students can be selected as participants in the game.


    �� The fundamental idea is one-on-one matches, with victory awarded to the first group achieving three wins.


    �� Games will continue for all five yers even if defeat is assured.


    �� Unlimited participation, with no restrictions on the number of times one can participate.


    �� Game content: The school will randomly choose from a predetermined list, with game details announced periodically.


    �� Victory conditions: Rewards are distributed based on the highest number of victories.


    �� In the case of a tie for third ce or above, additional games will be conducted.


    As expected from somethingbeled as a game, the content seemed to be really light. It was clear at a nce from the list prepared by the school, with unique activities like ''flower pressing'' and ''pottery wheel making,''[2]


    which seemed unique to a training camp.


    [TL/N: "Pottery wheel making" is the act of shaping pottery while it spins on a wheel]


    There were also game-based activities like ''ying cards'' and ''UNO,'' as well as sports-based ones like ''table tennis.'' Of course, there were also some that required a bit of brainpower and involved academic skills, but they didn''t seem to be the main focus.


    There were also activities like flower arrangement and bonsai, and looking at them, it was a truly interesting lineup.


    And all these listed games seemed to be avable for experience at any time, not just during the matches.


    It also seemed possible that the same game could be selected two or three times.


    With the detailed exnation, it became clear. For the three nights and four days, the idea was to interact with the k��hais, make things, y games,pete for rankings, and deepen friendships.


    It might be boring for students who weren''t interested, but I was honestly looking forward to being able to experience creating things.


    "Attached to the printouts distributed on the bus is a point card. You can collect stamps when you participate in various experiential learning activities at the camp. Filling this out is a condition for receiving rewards, so be mindful."


    The point card seemed to be a method to encourage voluntary participation in experiential learning.


    There were a few rules, like a limit on the number of stamps you can collect in a day and not being able to receive multiple stamps for the same game, but it didn''t seem to be something to worry about.


    Anyway, I wanted to try various things that I couldn''t usually do at school.


    With the content understood, it seemed that even groups with low overall OAA abilities could see plenty of opportunities.


    With these rules, it seemed safe to say that there was a chance of winning against any group.


    "I hope it''s clear that there''s no need to be too concerned about winning or losing this time. Of course, it''s fine to aim for first ce and work together for the sake of rewards, but as you can see from the list of various games, the main focus is on the interactions using experiential learning. It''s perfectly fine to actively interact with other groups and focus on deepening friendships."


    So far, we''d been given various tasks and their rules from the school, much like special exams.


    For the first time, they acknowledged that we didn''t have to win, and losing was okay as well.


    "This trip really feels rxed. Even if we''re inst ce, we''ll still get 1,000 yen."


    For now, many students, starting with Kei, were relieved by the contents of the trip.


    "That''s right. The fact that there''s nothing wrong with losing this time is a big deal."


    The ssmates who received the exnation began to loosen up and spent their time rxed.


    Some even started singing in high spirits.


    "Don''t forget to follow the school''s schedule, even though you''re free to a certain extent."


    That was a bit of a downer.


    Kei and I checked the schedule written on the printout.


    Wake up Lights out Lunch break


    7 a.m. 10 p.m. 1 p.m.~2 p.m.


    Breakfast Lunch Dinner


    8 a.m.~9 a.m. 12 p.m.~1 p.m. 7 p.m.~8 p.m.


    Large bath


    6 a.m.~8 a.m. & 8 p.m.~10 p.m.


    Exchange meeting


    Morning session 9 a.m.~12 p.m. Afternoon session 2 p.m.~6 p.m.


    Other than the time spent on the games, we were basically free the whole time.


    In extreme cases, whether to take a nap without having lunch, or to immerse oneself in making things, was left to the individual''s discretion.


    If the group leader ordered participation in the game, that wouldn''t be the case, but it seemed that there were no penalties for refusing.


    On the first day, it was announced that we''d arrive around noon, and from there, we would gather by group, have lunch, and then only the afternoon exchange meeting was scheduled.


    "I hope you''ll behave in a way that is not embarrassing to a senpai at the training camp."


    With that, the exnation seemed to be over, and Chabashira-sensei turned off the microphone and sat down.

 Chapter 471: 2.1

    <h4>Chapter 471: 2.1</h4>


    After the bus had been on the highway for about two hours, the view from the window waspletely covered by the mountains.


    The bus stopped in front of a different facility thanst year, and the students began to get off.


    The area in front of the main entrance where the buses were lined up was much more open than I would''ve imagined.


    The building where we would be staying for the camp was built like an old inn��one with a long history.


    ording to the exnation from the school, it was originally a lodging facility and activity center built during the bubble era.[3]


    [TL/N: The bubble era (�Х֥���) refers to a time of excessive spection and asset price intion in Japan from 1986-1991]


    Inside, there were ssrooms for each activity.


    That was probably why there were so many experiential games listed in the previous printout.


    "Gather in your assigned groups. From now on, for the next three days, follow your leader''s instructions, have discussions, and get along with everyone."


    The 20 third-year students who were assigned as leaders for each group spread out.


    Directly in front of me stood Kiry��in, hands in her jersey jacket pockets.


    "Well, see youter, Kiyotaka."


    I watched Kei, who was reluctant to leave, for a moment, and then headed down to Kiry��in.


    "I look forward to working with you for the next three days, Kiry��in-senpai."


    "I''m counting on you."


    The first and second-year members assigned to Kiry��in''s group, Group 20, were as follows, totaling 16 people:


    <strong>[First-year Students]</strong>


    �� ss A Toyohashi Goro, Kosumi Dan


    �� ss B Yanagi Yasuhisa, Eikura Mani


    �� ss C Tsubaki Sakurako, Shintoku Taro


    �� ss D Obokata Yukiki, Jute Misora.


    <strong>[Second-year Students]</strong>


    �� ss A Hashimoto Masayoshi, Yamamura Miki, Morishita Ai


    �� ss B Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, Nishimura Ry��ko


    �� ss C Oda Takumi, Shiina Hiyori


    �� ss D Hatsukawa Maho.


    Kiry��in was the leader of the group.


    My impression was that there were students who could do sports and students who could study.


    It was a bnce that would be difficult to achieve in an evenly matchedpetition, but this was probably only possible because it was a casual exchange meeting centered around games.


    Of course, among the second-year students, there were many who I had interacted with, but among the first-year students, I hardly knew anyone other than Tsubaki. In that sense, there must''ve been a great significance in holding an exchange meeting.


    "Hey, I never thought I''d be teaming up with you in this way."


    As the group gathered, right from the get-go, Hashimoto casually approached me.


    "I agree."


    Just the other day, I had many discussions with Hashimoto and the others, but it was strange that the four of us from that day were in the same group.


    "I''m both happy and disappointed. I wish we could''ve been together in some high-stakes special exam."


    He seemed to have high expectations for me. I hadn''t said a word about whether I could meet those expectations yet, but I''d leave it at that.


    "Even if it''s just an exchange meeting, I would be grateful to receive a decent amount of money if I can get to the top. At least exchanging contact information with the first-years is a must. I''ll invite you to join the groupter."


    Even without asking, it was a great help to have someone who was willing to take on the coordinating role��a time-consuming job.


    "I might delete your name from my contact list next month, though."


    "Hey, hey, stop with the Morishita-like unfunny jokes."


    I know I was the one who said it, but it might''ve sounded a little like Morishita.


    I wonder if that strange existence is influencing me in unexpected ways. As I was thinking that, a soft voice reached my ear.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Hiyori, who had slowly walked up to the group, called my name.


    "Good morning. I''ll be counting on you starting from today. It''s reassuring to have you here."


    "I feel the same way. I was relieved to know that we''re in the same group."


    I felt like anyone would ept Hiyori right away, unlike me, but the world that she saw waspletely different from what others saw.


    I was genuinely happy to have a reliable friend join me.


    "Hashimoto-kun, I look forward to working with you as well."


    Hiyori, who was standing next to me, lightly bowed her head.


    "I always wee cute girls. But you know, you two look good together when you stand side by side."


    "What do you mean?"


    "I don''t want you to take it the wrong way, but I think you two look more natural together than when you''re with Karuizawa."


    Is it because we have things inmon, like reading, that makes it different from Kei?


    But there was no need to take everything Hashimoto said seriously.


    The person who made that im had already shifted his interest away from us and started to focus on the entire group that had gathered.


    Kiry��in was ignoring the group and was staring at the winter mountains.


    So Hashimoto must have thought he had to make a move.


    "Um, is that everyone? Ah, no, are we one short? One, two, three��"


    Hashimoto quickly counted the number of people.


    "Fifteen, and sixteen including me. Looks like we''re still one short."


    One short? I thought everyone was here, was I mistaken?


    "There are 17 of us here. Yamamura Miki is also here."


    "Oh, really, everyone was here... Sorry, Yamamura."


    Hashimoto hastily corrected himself, seeming to have genuinely overlooked her.


    "No... I''m sorry."


    For some reason, Yamamura apologized, even though she was just forgotten in the count.


    Being unnoticed by Kiry��in and overlooked by her ssmate Hashimoto, her inconspicuousness was on full disy, but recently, it seemed to be even more pronounced.


    However, once her presence was recognized, a sudden change urred where I felt her presence more because I couldn''t sense her as much as others. However, that might only apply to me.


    When I asked Hiyori about Yamamura, she said she had never had a proper conversation with her before, so I decided to speak to her, introducing Hiyori in the process.


    "We seem to be crossing paths a lottely."


    "Yes, that''s true. I look forward to... this time as well."


    "Nice to meet you, Yamamura-san."


    When Hiyori gave her a gentle, enveloping smile, Yamamura stiffened.


    "Ah, yes. You''re Shiina-san, right...?"


    Yamamura greeted Hiyori hesitantly, but she seemed restless, as if she had something on her mind.


    "Oh? Do you have something you want to ask me?"


    "Ah��that... you''repletely different from what I thought..."


    "Me?"


    When Hiyori tilted her head quizzically, Yamamura muttered in a low voice.


    "I thought you were more... indifferent..."


    Yamamura, who observed people from afar, seemed to see Hiyori in such a way.


    Indeed, I had the same impression of her before. It was only through talking and getting to know her that I realized the difference between what I imagined and reality.


    "I''m sorry. I''m not good at talking to people, so I might''ve said something rude..."


    "It''s totally fine. I''m not good at talking to people either, so we''rerades."


    "Is that... so?"


    Even as she answered, Yamamura didn''t seem to see it that way; her eyes said so.


    "You don''t see it? If so, I think it''s thanks to Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun...?"


    Mine?


    The same question that Yamamura had was probably floating in my head.


    "Yes. Even though I''m not good at it, I''vee to love talking with my friends. So I think you will surelye to love talking too."


    Hiyori took Yamamura''s hand, who was on guard, and reiterated her message.


    Hiyori''s statement that it was thanks to me was an exaggeration, but I hoped that Yamamura would feel the same way someday.


    Anyway, with that, all the members of the Kiry��in group were gathered together.


    "Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka. Nice to see you."


    There she was, Morishita, who called me by my full name without any honorifics but in a polite manner.


    "Nice to see you too."


    "You''re��um... Shiina Hiyori, right? I''m Morishita Ai. Hello, hello."


    She bowed her head slightly.


    "I''m Shiina. Nice to meet you, Morishita-san."


    Starting with Yamamura, the second-year students exchanged light greetings. Then they started to greet the first-year students, who were nervously gathered in one ce.


    Kiry��in, who had been waiting without intervening in the ongoing conversations, turned around.


    "Now that the greetings are over, let''s have lunch. Let''s disband for now."


    "Wait a minute, Kiry��in-senpai. Wouldn''t it be better for us to have lunch together to strengthen the camaraderie of the group?"


    Hashimoto quickly stepped in to counter Kiry��in''s immediate deration of disbandment.


    Indeed, in that situation, Hashimoto''s suggestion wasn''t a bad one.


    In fact, looking around, it seemed that most groups were starting to act as a unit.


    "Then I''ll leave it to you."


    Kiry��in epted Hashimoto''s proposal, but at the same time, indicated that she wouldn''t be joining them.


    Then, she left the group and disappeared into the inn alone.


    "Man, seriously? We''ve got quite a leader here."


    Hashimoto sighed in exasperation at the situation where the leader had gone absent.


    "We can ignore her. I agree with the group lunch."


    It was too much to leave all the decisions to Hashimoto alone, so I lightly backed him up.


    "That''s right. She said she''d leave it to us, so there''s little reason to disband here."


    Hashimoto decided that it was detrimental to think too long about the situation, which was confusing the first-year students, and started to act quickly. Even if there were students among the first-years who were reluctant to have a meal with their senpais, given that this was considered an exchange meeting, objections were unlikely except from people with strong personalities like H��sen.


    "Wait a minute, hey! K��enji!"


    Behind Hashimoto, who was exining to the first-year students, there was a small issue in another group nearby. It seemed that K��enji, who had been assigned to the sixth group, had left the gathering without following the leader''s instructions.


    The other second-year students in the same group, who were used to seeing this sort of behavior from K��enji, didn''t say anything to the bewildered first-year students, even though they found it somewhat nostalgic. Even Inogashira, a ssmate, seemed anxious, but in the end, she seemed to have no choice but to let it go.


    For a moment, Inogashira and I made eye contact, but she quickly turned back to her angry leader''s voice.


    "I wonder what happened to K��enji-kun."


    Hiyori, who apparently didn''t understand, muttered as she watched K��enji''s retreating back.


    "He''s always acting alone. He probably won''te back."


    "Is that so?"


    "K��enji Rokusuke is a person who can''t work in a group. It''s something we already knew. My condolences."


    It seemed that Morishita knew exactly what was going on.


    She sped her hands together as if praying for the sixth group, which was already being hit with ack of coordination.


    "If you had been in the same group, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, would you have stopped him as a fellow ssmate?"


    "Because we''re in the same ss, I would''ve been sure it was useless to stop him and overlook it."


    Whether or not we were in the same group wasn''t important. If someone had called out to him and he stopped and listened, it wouldn''t have been a problem.


    "Alright. All the first-years have agreed. Let''s go too."


    Hashimoto gave the order, and we, the 20th group, started walking without our leader.


    As we entered the inn with our shoes on, a slightly damp smell hit our noses. It might not have been a ce that was often frequented. The students walked in a line, heading to the cafeteria.


    Since our leader was absent, it seemed inevitable that Hashimoto, who took the initiative, would bear that burden.


    While having a lively lunch as a group, Hashimoto took the lead and became the center of the conversation.


    He encouraged the first-year students who were still hesitant and the less talkative ones, boosting their spirits without resorting to any foolishmotion, and skillfully broadened the conversation to include them.


    Honestly, for students like me who were typically listeners, he was a lifesaver.


    "Um... Hashimoto-senpai. It was written in the rules of this exchange meeting, but we don''t need everyone to be present for the games, right?"


    "Yeah. The number of people participating in one game is up to five, and the same person can participate as many times as they want. It seems pretty flexible."


    All we needed was the required number of people plus the leader to be present at the designated time.


    "Looking at Kiry��in-senpai, it seems like she''s not interested in the exchange meeting, so we can just do whatever we want... but I wish she had at least told us what she''d do."


    Since the leader is the one who decides the yers, the n was for Kiry��in to decide as soon as the game content was announced.


    Hashimoto seemed to be bothered by the fact that Kiry��in hadn''t asked anyone about what they were good at or anything.


    "For now, all we can do is to try our best."


    "Kiry��in-senpai is amazing, isn''t she? Maybe she already knows about us?"


    A female student from the first-year ss D, Jitsute, asked Hashimoto.


    Even without directly knowing her, it wouldn''t be surprising to know about Kiry��in''s exceptional abilities.


    "That''s not possible. There''s no way she could know who in this group is good at flower arrangement."


    Hashimoto was skeptical, and rightfully so. No one would know about each other''s individual strengths and weaknesses at this point.


    "There was a reason why I suggested we all eat together. Let''s rate our confidence in the game contents written on the printout on a scale of one to five. One means you''re not confident."


    It was a simple but inevitable decision that the leader should take the initiative to make.


    Everyone used their phones to rate their own game-rted abilities.


    However, the difficult part was that there were many unusual things.


    If it was something you had never experienced before, you could only rate it a one, and even if you felt like you could do it, you could only rate it a maximum of two.


    Moreover, they didn''t even provide a ce to practice many of those activities in advance.


    Things that required impromptu creativity were particrly difficult.


    Everyone used their phones while eating.


    There was a considerable amount of activities, so some people finished eating by the time it waspleted.


    Anyway, this way, we could gather data for everyone as a guide.


    And it was immediately shared in the group chat that Hashimoto created.


    "...This isn''t going to work."


    Hashimoto''s first words after looking through it were harsh.


    As feared, almost all of the students gave a rating of one to two to most of the games, and there were hardly any ratings of four or above. Hashimoto seemed to have given up on the chance of winning.


    "Maybe we should just give up on the exchange meeting and just y around."


    But it was too early to make that judgment.


    This phenomenon was undoubtedly happening in other groups as well.


    "I feel like there are fewer groups that are serious about it... Well, for now, I''ll show this information to Kiry��in-senpai and let her decide on the n."


    In the end, that was what it all came down to for this exchange meeting.


    If Kiry��in was motivated, the k��hais would just follow her lead.


    If she wasn''t motivated, she''d just participate casually and rx at the training camp.


    Personally, I''d like to take it easy.

 Chapter 472: 2.2

    <h4>Chapter 472: 2.2</h4>


    After finishing lunch, I got up from my seat while looking at a message from a certain person on my phone.


    It was just before one in the afternoon. There was about an hour left until the first game of the day.


    "Sorry, but let me step out for a bit. Is it okay if we meet up in the shared room?"


    "Yeah, that''s fine. I''ll take the first-years and do some experiential learning or something."


    I thanked Hashimoto, who was taking on the hassle of being a senpai, and headed to the break room marked ''Rest Area.''


    Shortly after I arrived, I saw the person who had called me sitting alone on a two-seater sofa, looking bored out the window. There seemed to be another person, standing and ncing at the view outside the window. It didn''t seem like a coincidence, considering thebination.


    "Do you need something from me, Nagumo-senpai?"


    "Need? Well, it''s not much of a need, but I do have something to talk about."


    Using his fingertips, he gestured me over.


    Iplied and sat down on the empty sofa in front of me.


    The person standing by the window, Asahina, turned around.


    "Hey there, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Then, she left her spot, pushed Nagumo to the right end of the sofa, and forcibly sat down next to him.


    "I was expecting some kind of special exam, but it turned out to be just an exchange meeting. I''m honestly upset."


    His first words, facing me directly, were of disappointment in this training camp.


    "I really have bad luck."


    Nagumomented his misfortune and shook his head lightly with a small smile.


    "You think so too, don''t you?"


    Nagumo, who was leaning on the armrest with his elbow and gently resting his cheek on it, asked with a look of disgust.


    "Indeed,pared tost year''s mixed training camp, it''s undeniable that this one is a significant step down. That''s probably why it''s positioned as an exchange meeting rather than a special exam."


    Last year, there was a risk of expulsion, but this year, there wasn''t even a penalty specified.


    I could understand Nagumo''s great disappointment.


    "But you knew this wasing, didn''t you, Asahina? Considering the timing of the training camp."


    "...Yeah, I guess."


    Now that it was February, it was hard to imagine having a difficult special exam involving all grades. That was what Asahina expressed.


    "It would''ve been virtually impossible for all the third-year students to participate, likest year."


    When I muttered that, Nagumo responded.


    "Many of us third-years are dealing with exams and job hunting at this time. Only those who have already decided their future and have spare time can participate in the training camp. No matter how many private points they can get in return, most of them would rather save every minute and second."


    The third-year students had created a rule to collect and manage private points by Nagumo. If they saved up to 20 million points, someone could be pulled into ss A.


    However, this time, the reward was non-transferable, could only be used within Keyaki Mall, and the amount was not significant.


    Even if they sought to further their studies, I wasn''t familiar with university circumstances, but private university entrance exams generally started fromte January. For national and public universities, it would bete February.


    Considering that it was early February, it seemed that many students were about to face their main exams.


    In such a situation, spending three nights and four days taking care of their k��hais was too big a price to pay.


    "Last year, the joint training camp was held a month earlier, but wasn''t it quite tough for the third-year students even then?"


    "I think so. There were quite a few third-year students who brought textbooks. I thought that might be why it was more rxed this year."


    Considering this, Horikita Manabu''s generation might have struggled a lot behind the scenes.


    Perhaps the school had prepared some relief measures, but we couldn''t know that.


    Even if it was a busy time and this trip was said to be more rxed, the third-year students participating in this exchange meeting were likely limited to those who had a clear goal for further studies or employment.


    "Can we assume that the third-year students who are participating in the exchange meeting did so voluntarily?"


    In response to my question, Asahina nodded.


    "They were recruiting five volunteers from each ss. If they didn''t reach 20, they nned to reduce the number of groups and adjust."


    It seemed that the school was also considerate of the third-year students.


    "I haven''t asked until now, but what will you and Nagumo-senpai do after graduation?"


    When I asked with the flow of conversation, Nagumo looked up, surprised by the question.


    "Do you want to know?"


    He seemed pleased to have sparked my interest.


    I felt that if I answered vaguely here, he might get upset, so I nodded honestly.


    "I''m going to university. I have no intention of using the ss A privilege."


    In other words, he was confident that he could pass on his own merit.


    "I''m also going to a university, like Miyabi. But it will be different from his. My self-scoring on themon test for the university entrance exams I took recently was just under the cut-off point, and it might be a bit impossible at my level. If I can graduate from ss A, I might be able to force my way in with the help of the school... but I probably won''t."


    The specific name of the university didn''te up, but the university Nagumo was going to seemed to be prestigious.


    Asahina''s decision not to aim too high was probably correct. Even if you forced your way into a higher-level university with ANHS''s authority, there were various risks after admission.


    The ss A privilege was best used for job-rted purposes, as Keisei mentioned before.


    "I don''t see any value in the ss A privilege itself. Do you know why?"


    "Because you have the power to achieve your goals on your own."


    "That''s one of the reasons I dominated the third-year and became an overwhelming presence. Whether I''m in ss B or ss D at graduation, I believe I can get into the university I want and get a job at thepany I desire with my own power."


    Asahina looked at Nagumo beside her with a deliberately disgusted look, but it was probably true.


    "So even if everyone unites and drops you to ss B, they know what would happen. That wouldn''t raise motivation, and it would be hard to maintain. That''s what led to the current results."


    Nagumo nodded in agreement.


    However, of course, it was better to have the ss A privilege.


    The difference was whether you relied on those privileges or considered it as just insurance.


    "By the way, Horikita-senpai is also at the university where Miyabi is going. That should show how much he admires him."


    The deciding factor for the university wasn''t where he wanted to go, but where Horikita Manabu was.


    "Leave me alone. If you want, you can take the exam next year ande to the same university. I''ll wee you."


    "If I go, I''ll have to work really hard on themon test... right?"


    "I''ll refrain. I think it would be quite difficult even with my academic ability."


    Unlike Asahina, who honestly epted my words, it didn''t seem to get through to Nagumo.


    Heughed at my not-serious answer and shrugged his shoulders.


    "Let''s get to the point. Honestly, the only thing you gain from this exchange meeting is private points, and there''s nothing to lose. So it''s a ce where there are fewer people who take it seriously. I''m not justcking in excitement, but I decided to think positively that it''s better than not having it at all."


    A game is a game, a match is a match. This will undoubtedly be thest opportunity.


    "I thought that was the case. You want topete with me in this exchange meeting, right?"


    "That''s right."


    For the third-year students, this was an exchange meeting with little return.


    Nagumo had taken the time to make a match with me happen.


    Upon hearing those words, Asahina moved her face closer to Nagumo.


    "Is that what this is about? It''s not fair to treat Ayanok��ji-kun poorly, right?"


    "So, you decided to join to protect Ayanok��ji? You''re quite kind."


    "But Ayanok��ji-kun hasn''t done anything wrong. It''s not fair that he''s being targeted by you. Why are you so persistent in targeting him?"


    With her shoulders, Asahina forcefully pushed against Nagumo.


    But that seemed to have slightly irritated Nagumo, who retorted with a half-smile.


    "Do you know why Horikita Suzune joined the student council, Nazuna?"


    "Isn''t it because she wanted to follow in her brother''s footsteps?"


    "No, that''s not it. I don''t know about now, but that wasn''t the case when she first joined."


    "Is that so? Then what was her motive?"


    "This guy right here. Ayanok��ji was using Suzune to keep an eye on me."


    "Eh?" Asahina opened her mouth in confusion.


    "I suppose he judged me to be a bad student council president, but in the end, that wasn''t the case, was it?"


    Of course, it wasn''t that there were no instances where Nagumo''s actions were excessive, but he didn''t cause any problematic behavior that warranted strong caution from Horikita Manabu.


    "That''s true. I think what you did brought about good changes to the school."


    "Maybe you were too influenced by Horikita-senpai, for better or worse?"


    Before entering the school, I had no social interactions with others, so it was certain that I was greatly influenced by Horikita Manabu.


    The school preferred stability, while Nagumo preferred reform. The two ideologies were never meant to converge.


    "Horikita-senpai did pass the baton to me, after all."


    "So you admit it."


    "It''s toote to deny it now."


    "Wait, wait a minute. Eh, what? This is a bit different from what I thought."


    Asahina, looking flustered, opened her mouth while looking back and forth between me and Nagumo.


    "Despite his deadpan expression, he''s pulling strings behind the scenes. Anyway��"


    Nagumo paused for a moment before asking again.


    "I can assume you''re willing to ept a match with me, right?"


    "Why do we need to add conditions beyond the rules and rewards prepared for the exchange meeting?"


    "I''ve thought about leaving it be, but it''s uneptable. If I, who served as the student council president, were to trap you for personal reasons within the matches created by the school, it would cause problems."


    As Nagumo said, if the two of us, who weren''t even in the same year, were to impose risky bets with each other, the school wouldn''t be pleased.


    "Actually, calling it a match is an exaggeration. It''s more like a small bet."


    "A bet, you say?"


    "Yes. If you win the bet, I''ll give you a decent reward."


    "So, even if I lose, I don''t have to give up my private points?"


    "Sounds easy, right?"


    It was more like a game than a match or a bet.


    However, it was a bit suspicious that only Nagumo was at a disadvantage.


    "I see no reason to refuse, but with the current rules, there''s not much either of us can do. You''re the leader, so you can''t participate in the game directly, can you?"


    The one directing the students was Kiry��in, in other words, the third-year students.


    And the ones ying were the first and second-year students.


    The stage we were put on was different from the start.


    "Or are you going to ignore the exchange meeting and have a match in some other way?"


    This experiential facility was well-equipped with ces and tools to make that happen.


    "It wouldn''t be bad to have a match outside the exchange meeting, but if we do that, there''s no need to stick to this training camp."


    "That''s true. At school, we could have a more legitimate match."


    "If the school says to hold an exchange meeting, I''ll follow the formal rules."


    Saying that, Nagumo continued.


    "At first, I thought about letting you be the leader and having a match by directing the first and second-year students."


    On the surface, third-year Kiry��in-senpai was the leader, but I would be the one who would actually give the appointments and instructions.


    And it seemed that he had anticipated her not participating in the game.


    "Not bad, right?"


    "Well, yeah. But to make it work, we''d have to allow him to choose his group members, otherwise, it wouldn''t be fair, right?"


    Nagumo had chosen all the group members himself. On the other hand, if Kiry��in were to entrust the group members she had picked on her own, it certainly wouldn''t be a fair starting line.


    In fact, the first and second-years weren''t told anything until we got on the bus.


    "And when you open the lid, it''s a round-robin. If you only have one direct confrontation after dragging it out for three days, it''s going tock excitement, right? That''s why I thought I''d stop insisting on the same conditions here."


    Saying that, Nagumo pointed his index finger at me.


    "You participate in all the games. And when you lose three times, that''s your defeat."


    "I don''t have to worry about the group''s win or loss, right?"


    "Yeah. Even if Kiry��in''s group loses 19 times in a row, if you don''t lose to anyone, it''s a win."


    All 19 games. So the condition is to win 17 of them individually.


    "You''re so kind to let me lose twice."


    "If I make being undefeated a condition and you lose in the first battle, it would be a real turn-off, right? It''s more fun to keep you around as long as possible."


    Nagumo said he set the line of three losses just for his own enjoyment.


    "Eh? Isn''t that too disadvantageous for Ayanok��ji-kun? Card games are all about luck."


    "He has nothing to lose even if he doesn''t win, right? The right to set the rules is naturally ours."


    "Ah, well, yeah... Well, that might be true."


    I was a little dissatisfied, but even if I was confronted with the most harsh content, it was true that there was no reason to refuse if the risk on my side was zero.


    "All I want is your defeat. It''s only natural for me to demand a high probability of victory. I''m also offering private points aspensation."


    "Is it okay to mess around with a k��hai from a distance just before your graduation?"


    "That''s the way I like to treat you."


    Either way, it wouldn''t hurt to respond to Nagumo''s wishes in some way.


    He''d be graduating in March anyway.


    "Understood. Then I''ll ept your proposal without hesitation."


    With my eptance, Nagumo responded with a slight nod.


    "Of course, I''ve told Kiry��in that you''re participating in all the games."


    It seemed that negotiations had been conducted behind the scenes on the assumption that I would ept.


    "It''s not my ce to say as an outsider, but you can clearly refuse if you don''t like it, you know? Even if you say you won''t pay anything when you lose, the fact that you lost will remain."


    That was exactly what Nagumo wanted, the matter of ''winning'' and ''losing.''


    "If Ayanok��ji says he''ll ept, you don''t need to say anything unnecessary."


    Asahina, who was treated rudely, puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction but backed down when she saw that I was fine with it.


    "But you really didn''t hold back in your selection, Senpai. The students assigned to the other groups were a bit taken aback."


    When I pointed that out, he didn''t show any discontent, but rather smiled as if it was natural.


    "Even in a trivial exchange meeting, a game is a game. As a former student council president, I have to show my dignity."


    It seemed that he intended to win even in the exchange meeting where he participated as a leader, apart from the battle with me.


    That was Nagumo''s freedom; it was none of my business.


    "Even if you start winning several in a row, it''s easier to stop you if I canmand the group directly."


    "Wow. You''re really ruthless, Miyabi."


    "No, I don''t think so. I think Nagumo-senpai''s way of thinking is correct."


    It was a question of skill to be able to drag your opponent into your own ring after creating a favorable situation for yourself.


    Given the structure of only facing each group once and the atmosphere of the exchange meeting, it was safe to say that it wouldn''t be clear how many times a particr individual had participated in a game. But that was also in my favor.


    It would be too conspicuous to take on a group as a second-year student, but if it was just an individual battle, it was possible to avoid attention.


    While setting the stage for himself to take advantage of the situation, he had also taken care of me.


    "Nazuna seems to misunderstand, but victory or defeat is not determined solely by whether one is excellent. If the person on top isn''t more capable, using a skilled person will only lead to their loss."


    What Nagumo was saying was correct.


    No matter how many pieces you were given in shogi, if your skill was insufficient, you couldn''t necessarily win.


    "I''m sorry I''mte. Has the discussion been settled?"


    Kiry��in showed up in the break room.


    "Ah, everything''s going smoothly. It''s going to be a match between me and Ayanok��ji as nned," Nagumo said before turning to me. "Kiry��in must have sniffed out that I was nning to challenge you and volunteered for this role."


    "That''s right," Kiry��in nodded. "If you want, I can even give you the authority as the leader. Of course, on the surface, I''ll make it look like I chose the participants. That way, we canpete as a group, can''t we?"


    She proposed a win-win situation, but I wondered if Kiry��in simply wanted to watch my victory or defeat from the nearest seat without doing anything.


    "I see. That was a part that had been bothering me a little. I now understand why those three from ss A ended up in the same group."


    When Hashimoto and Morishita stopped by the convenience store, they ran into Yamamura, and Kiry��in happened to be there at the same time.


    That might have been the deciding factor in choosing the same group.


    If she handed over the authority to me, it was a consideration to save as much time as possible to deepen friendships.


    "I don''t know much about your current friendships. It was a chance encounter, and I just let you choose randomly. If you''re ufortable in the group, it would be hard to show your true abilities, right?"


    Thanks to Hashimoto and Hiyori, it seemed like the conversation could go smoothly.


    "I appreciate your consideration, but I''ll decline your offer. Unfortunately, I''m not good at socializing and I''m too busy trying to get along with my k��hais."


    Kiry��in responded with disappointment, but she didn''t seem too bothered.


    "I didn''t expect Kiry��in-senpai to get involved in this matter."


    Nagumo and Kiry��in weren''t exactly friends. Rather, they stood in opposing positions.


    When I responded that way, Kiry��in smiled happily.


    "Anyway, I''m d the match seems to be happening, Nagumo. It''s a shame that third-year students can''t participate in the game directly."


    Kiry��in expressed her feelings about the exchange meeting, whether they were true or not.


    "If there was a rule that allowed participation, would you have given it your all?"


    "It''s a rare opportunity involving Ayanok��ji. Of course I want to meet his expectations."


    "Huh, you''ve really bought into Ayanok��ji. If you want, I can challenge you individually and not just in this exchange meeting. If we''re both third-years, there''s no need to hold back. I''ll even bet the ticket price for ss A."


    "Sorry, but I''ll decline. That ticket price is soaked with the blood and sweat of the entire year. It''s too heavy for me, who hasn''t been involved, to ept, isn''t it?"


    Kiry��in was also the confident type who didn''t consider her own defeat. Her words were strong.


    She firmly implied that she''d win if shepeted.


    "That''s a shame."


    Nagumo, however, was used to it and didn''t seem deeply interested in Kiry��in after having known her for three years.


    "Well then, I have some things to do as a leader, so I''ll excuse myself first. Let''s meet againter."


    After briefly taking care of her business, Kiry��in left.


    "F��ka-chan is always cool."


    "She''s just a woman, after all."


    "Wow, that''s a terrible thing to say, Miyabi. In this day and age, you can''tin even if you''re killed."


    "Don''t get me wrong. I just want to be on top among the same sex, there''s no discrimination or anything."


    He couldn''t get passionate because she''s a different gender.


    "Even so, your way of speaking can cause misunderstandings, you know."


    That was also a valid point. He wouldn''t be punished if he expressed himself a little more tactfully.


    When I got up from the sofa, Nagumo and Asahina also stood up.


    We all left the break room together.


    "You should also practice or something and prepare for the match."


    "I will."


    "Ah, finally you''re out. You''re done talking, right?"


    Just before we disbanded, Amasawa appeared from down the hallway, looking as if she had been waiting impatiently, and approached us.


    Nagumo scratched the back of his head at Amasawa''s appearance and her words.


    "Didn''t you hear my instructions? I told you to wait, didn''t I?"


    "It''s okay. I''ll work twice as hard during exams."


    "I can''t trust your words yet. If you do something on your own again, you better think you won''t be given another chance."


    "That''s harsh. I understand, I''ll follow the instructions properly."


    "Nagumo, this girl is... um..."


    "Amasawa. From first-year ss A."


    "Oh, right. You''re Amasawa-chan. You must be pretty good to be called into Miyabi''s group, huh?"


    "Well, not that much..."


    It wasn''t surprising, given that she had achieved the rare A in both academic and physical abilities on the OAA.


    However, when considering overall ability and quick thinking, Amasawa wasn''t necessarily the top candidate to be chosen.


    "She wasn''t my pick. Somehow, she heard rumors and knew about the next social gathering."


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    "That''s why I promoted myself. I promised to contribute to getting first ce."


    "Honestly, I was a little hesitant to recruit her."


    Whether it was due to Amasawa''s personality, or suspicion about her rtionship with me, Nagumo didn''t specify. He probably decided to recruit her because he deemed it a minor issue.


    "You have to organize your own group too, Nazuna. You''re a ss A student, so aim for the win. Can you always rely on us?"


    "Eh, oh my gosh, it''s already thiste!? I have to go, but feel free to consult me if you have any problems!"


    Asahina, who had checked the time on her phone, hurriedly ran off. She almost tripped on her way, but she turned the corner and disappeared.


    "I wonder if Nazuna can lead a group with that attitude...?"


    Amasawa smirked and leaned in towards Nagumo, who was sighing in disbelief.


    "Could it be that you''re dating Asahina-senpai?"


    "Huh? No, I''m not."


    "But you told me to wait because you had important things to discuss with Ayanok��ji-senpai, but you kept Asahina-senpai by your side, right? That''s special, isn''t it?"


    It might have been a leap to equate being special with being a lover, but who knows?


    "That''s none of your business."


    "Eh~ it is. Look, if I''m aiming for Nagumo-senpai, she''s my rival."


    "You''re aiming for a guy who''s about to graduate?"


    "I''m a patient woman, so I''m tolerant of long-distance rtionships."


    "Sorry, but I don''t like women who pretend to be cute or tter me."


    Amasawa overreacted as if she was hurt by Nagumo''s blunt rejection. He probably disliked that kind of behavior. He deliberately averted his gaze.


    "I''m leaving now. Do your best, Ayanok��ji."


    After Nagumo left, only Amasawa and I were left in the hallway.


    "Am I disliked?"


    "Well, if you say things to make yourself disliked, that''s what happens."


    "But look, you''re also disliked, Ayanok��ji-senpai, so I wanted to be included in the same group."


    What kind of group is that?


    "I think it''s true that they aren''t dating, but their rtionship does feel special, doesn''t it?"


    "Well, yeah. It seems like they''ve gone beyond just being friends."


    I agreed with Amasawa on that point. It made sense.


    "By the way, it seems you knew about the exchange meeting in advance."


    "We were told in advance what kind of exchange meeting would be held."


    "We" here included Yagami who that man prepared and had Tsukishiro manage.


    It seemed they were told the schedule for the year upon entering this school.


    If they were going to expel me, it would be better to give them information in advance.


    "I don''t understand why you chose to team up with Nagumo."


    "Eh? Isn''t it simply because the chances of winning seem high? After all, he was the student council president. I''m a girl of age, so I want private points."


    Amasawa answered, but it was clear that she was lying.


    However, she quickly corrected herself, as if she had no particr intention of hiding her true feelings.


    "I thought you and Nagumo-senpai would bepeting soon. I thought it might be nice to be on your side and support you, but that wouldn''t be fun, would it?"


    "That''s the reason?"


    "That''s the reason indeed. I thought if I sided with Nagumo-senpai, we might have a good match..."


    Amasawa sighed and held her cheek.


    "I can see Nagumo-senpai''s disappointment. The list the school provided is just full of games. It wouldn''t be satisfying to win a game of rock-paper-scissors or cards against him. I didn''t need to antagonize him."


    "There''s nothing we can do about that."


    "I heard from Nagumo-senpai first, but the rules are that if you lose three times, it''s your loss, right? I could feel his desire to see you lose in any way. I''m looking forward to seeing what happens."


    "I hope it''s something to look forward to, but there''s a good chance that I could lose three times in a row without showing any surprises."


    In reality, depending on the content, there''s a high chance that I could lose without being able to do anything.


    "But at least Nagumo-senpai and I don''t think so."


    "Do you understand Nagumo''s feelings too?"


    "I''m the one who made fun of it, so I wasn''t allowed toe to the discussion."


    "Did youe here to greet me even though you were refused?"


    "Was it not good?"


    It wasn''t that it wasn''t good, but there was no reason to force contact with Nagumo and risk his resentment.


    In order to get more limelight within the group, it seemed that not only ability but also whether you were well-liked would be significant.


    "Well then, I''ve been called to my group, so I''ll head back. See youter."


    With a quick turn, Amasawa cheerfully left.


    It was a casual conversation with Amasawa, but there was one thing that bothered me.


    Amasawa mentioned that she had been informed about this exchange meeting by Tsukishiro and others in advance, but if so, there was a slight contradiction in the conversation earlier.


    "I wonder what she''s up to."


    It might be a good idea to do a little research.

 Chapter 473: 2.3

    <h4>Chapter 473: 2.3</h4>


    Soon the details of the first round of the exchange meeting were announced and the game began.


    Before that, I decided to tell Hashimoto, who was fiddling with his cell phone in the same room, about this matter.


    Hashimoto would notice the unnatural situation even if I kept silent about participating in all the games. It was a waste to probe and be probed among groupmates, and it was best to avoid that.


    I''m going to have some with Nagumo.


    I told him a little about the contents of our match, but it was still a confrontation with the former student council president, and Hashimoto couldn''t hide his surprise throughout.


    And when he finished listening to the story, he sighed repeatedly, showing his understanding of the situation.


    "You always do things that are beyond my imagination. You know that, right?"


    "It''s not the development I wanted."


    "Even so, it''s incredible that you''repeting with Nagumo-senpai. And it''s not about the results of this group battle, but about your individual performance. That''s amazing. You''re being asked to win 17 out of 19 games."


    He expected this situation to be tough, but Hashimoto seemed oddly happy.


    "That just means he''s interested in you. I knew my eyes were right."


    "Even if it''s an informal exchange meeting, it''s still selfish. It''s an act that disrupts the group''s dynamic. That''s why I asked to speak with you��to keep the group''s cooperation intact."


    "So that''s where Ie in. I understand what you want to say, but I don''t think you need to worry."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Think about it. If this was a fun game, everyone mightpete for a spot to participate, but do you think all high school students would want to make oshibana[4] and embroidering topete? No."


    [TL/N: Oshibana (Ѻ����) refers to the traditional Japanese art of pressing flowers to preserve their beauty and create decorative designs]


    I was very interested, but it seemed that other students weren''t.


    "So it should be a wee thing for you to participate in everything."


    If things went as nned, I would be grateful.


    "Are you going to win the exchange meeting itself? I wonder how Kiry��in-senpai feels about it. I suppose it''s okay to assume that you know because of the circumstances?"


    "Ah, I''m not sure. I don''t think she''spletely uninterested, but I don''t think she''s as excited as Nagumo. She might even throw the whole thing to her k��hais."


    Kiry��in was only interested in the match with Nagumo because of my record.


    Just enjoying the extra entertainment before graduation, that was all.


    "Even if the private points I earned this time can only be used for pocket money, I can use the private points I have now for a more effective use. I honestly want to aim for a higher ranking and get the prize money."


    For Hashimoto, who has made enemies both inside and outside, his battle funds were indeed important.


    "Anyway, Ayanok��ji, you should get along with the first-year students."


    "Get along... huh?"


    "Do you think it''s difficult to spend friendly time with the first-year students?"


    After thinking for a moment, I nodded, and Hashimoto stood up, pping his knee.


    "All right, then, let''s make the best of it. First, I''ll loosen up the first-year students and try to get along with them by tonight."


    Hashimoto immediately dered that he had no problem getting closer to the first-year students.


    "I''ll also try to extract as much information as possible at that time, but if Kiry��in-senpai doesn''t make a move, your power is indispensable. So when it gets dark, you''ll have to cooperate to get along with the first-year students, okay?"


    I couldn''t just make demands without giving anything in return, and it was only fair to help.


    It seemed better to support Hashimoto, who was aiming for a win in the group.


    "Right... Of course, if I could do it, I would."


    But it would be better to let him know sooner rather thanter that I''m not confident.


    That''s what I thought, but Hashimoto could see right through it.


    "Leave it to me. I''m pretty good at this kind of thing. I''m grateful to be able to act as your hands and feet. It will also serve as a check on the princess, and it''s not something Ry��en can ignore."


    He was cooperating with me, while at the same time promoting his own interests as well.


    Having a calcting mindset wasn''t bad.


    Rather, if there was a clear conflict of interest, that mindset would be much better than having the situation resolved out of goodwill.


    "By the way, how much would you get for beating Nagumo-senpai?"


    "I don''t know. I didn''t ask for the exact number."


    "Considering that he''s a third-year representative, it''s not just a few thousand or tens of thousands, right?"


    What he wanted to know was not the amount, but where the reward money would go afterward.


    "I understand. If we win, I''ll distribute it evenly to the rest of the group, so you can rest assured."


    "I''m relieved to hear that. However, I''d be happy if you could give us different amounts based on our performance, not uniformly."


    He made it clear that he wanted to be paid more for taking the initiative, though it wasn''t mandatory.


    "Well then, I''ll leave for a bit. I should be able to have a talk or two during my free time."


    As if cherishing every second, Hashimoto quickly left the shared room.

 Chapter 474: 2.4

    <h4>Chapter 474: 2.4</h4>


    Thus, the first day of the exchange meeting and the first round began.


    The school sent us the game and rules.


    The group we were going topete against was Group Nine. From Horikita''s ss, Ike and Keisei were there.


    The game was ''oshibana creation.'' The location was an oshibana ky��shitsu.[5]


    [TL/N: A specialized workshop space for teaching and practicing the art of oshibana, equipped with the necessary tools and materials]


    Some students might haveughed when they heard it.


    But I was very serious.


    The question was how topete with oshibana, and in this case, the quality of the finished product was of utmost importance.


    Thebination of many types of flowers.


    Whether or not you could find petals with the right amount of moisture, and the selection of appropriate flower materials of different sizes.


    Whether you could finish it without breaking or damaging it because they were delicate.


    The winner would be decided by the total score of these factors.


    I hadn''t been able to experience anything since I hadn''t been to the training camp yet and I was called up, so I decided to go straight to the actual facility.


    We received a brief lecture just before, but this seemed much more in-depth than I had imagined.


    The work itself was done by all participants at the same time, and in the end, we wouldpete in a one-on-one format.


    From the first to the fifth, who would be in charge was decided in advance.


    At the designated production site, there were participants from both groups, ten people and two leaders, and a few spectators including Hashimoto.


    Among them was Takahashi Osamu, a first-year ss A student from the Nagumo group.


    By the way, following the instructions from that time, I participated as the third person in line.


    "Do you also make oshibana, Ayanok��ji-senpai?"


    Nanase Tsubasa from the first-year ss D, who was among the opponents, walked up to me and asked.


    "No, I''ve never done it. I just got a little guidance from a friend."


    By the way, that friend was Hiyori.


    She had been making bookmarks with oshibana for a long time and had a lot of experience.


    "I see. I thought you were good at it because you were the only boy participating."


    Perhaps because it required dexterity, as Nanase said, nine out of ten participants were girls.


    I was the only male participant, so I was a bit out of ce.


    I had a match with Nagumo, but there was no need to tell Nanase, who was irrelevant to ourpetition.


    "I''ve only done it once or twice, so I don''t know if I can do it well."


    "Please go easy on me."


    I was worried that the scoring criteria might be somewhat vague, but it seemed that the person in charge of oshibana, the same person running the facility, was well-informed and judged strictly.


    Fortunately, the first-year girl who was my opponent wasn''t very good, so I was able to fight her head-on and win.


    And as for the group''s victory status, although the decision was tangled up until the fifth match, we barely won with three wins and two losses.


    "You''re amazing, Ayanok��ji-kun. I think you''re doing very well for your first time."


    "I''m nowhere near as good as Hiyori though."


    Both were beautiful oshibana at first nce, but the quality was worlds apart.


    If she had been my opponent, I would''ve been utterly defeated.


    "You have a knack for this, Ayanok��ji-kun. If you enjoy it, let''s make it together next time."


    "Yeah, I''d like to get better at this too."


    I was relieved that such a formidable opponent was an ally. It was significant that I had won in the individualpetition.


    If possible, I would''ve liked to stay in the oshibana ky��shitsu and quietly continue making them.


    I wouldn''t mindpeting in making oshibana for three days straight.


    Such feelings were welling up, but unfortunately, I had to suppress them.


    Sorry, oshibana. See youter...


    After the first match, Kiry��in discreetly called out to me.


    "A victory''s a good start. Though, I didn''t feel any tension."


    "Well, that''s true."


    While answering, I kept quiet about how serious I had been.


    Whispering was allowed during the game. It was inevitable that the spectators would find it boring.


    "But if it''s apetition based on experiential learning, it''s not strange for anyone to win or lose. If you consider the school''s intentions, it''s a very interesting way to decide who wins. It''s meaningless to just gather students with high OAA abilities. Every group has a chance to win."


    Even the great Nagumo couldn''t foresee or determine whether Horikita and the others could make good oshibana.


    That being said, the same could be said for us.


    What we could and couldn''t do. Use the spare time to experience as many experiential learning activities as possible and improve our skills. A leader should be in charge of these things...


    "Hashimoto made this list for me, which makes things easier. He''s surprisingly useful."


    To avoid the hassle as a leader, Kiry��in seemed to wee it.


    Well, that was fine too. It was good to enjoy the three days without getting too serious about winning.


    "If we continue like this, there will be almost no need for you to takemand."


    "I''m grateful for that. All I want to see is the match between you and Nagumo."


    As expected, she didn''t seem to have any intention of doing anything.


    "I don''t think the results will meet your expectations."


    While having such a conversation with Kiry��in, I noticed Inogashira was looking at us alone.


    Judging from the situation, she probably didn''t participate in the first game.


    She said she was good at sewing, and she might like oshibana too.


    I thought she hade to experience oshibana in her spare time, but it didn''t seem to be the case.


    "What''s up, Inogashira?"


    When I asked her out of curiosity, she approached me with a bit of nervousness. Seeing this, Kiry��in stepped back to make it easier for her to talk.


    "Um... uh, you''re good friends with K��enji-kun, aren''t you, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Huh?"


    I answered immediately. It was the first time I had heard that I was good friends with K��enji.


    "Is that so...? I see..."


    "What''s the matter?"


    "Well, Tatebayashi-senpai told me to bring K��enji-kun back..."


    Tatebayashi is the leader of the group to which Inogashira and K��enji belong, the third-year ss D.


    "He was really angry."


    "Yes..."


    As a member of the same group and his ssmate, it seemed that the timid Inogashira was forced to take responsibility for managing K��enji.


    "I thought maybe you could do something about it..."


    She had been watching the scene earlier and our eyes had met.


    She must havee to ask for help out of desperation, but the problem was that the other party was too difficult to deal with.


    "Why don''t you ask Y��suke?"


    I tried to offer the most feasible solution, but Inogashira shook her head.


    "I can''t ask Hirata-kun to do something like this... It''s too much to ask."


    I wonder if it''s okay to ask me...? Well, it would be rude topare myself to Y��suke, who was very helpful. If asked, he would ept and if K��enji didn''t return, he would likely continue to persuade him until he did. I could understand why Inogashira would feel guilty.


    "I''m sorry. I can''t help you. There''s nothing I can do."


    "I see... I''m sorry, I''ll try to figure something out..."


    Inogashira bowed her head slightly and slowly walked away.


    "Should we just leave it like this?"


    "I do feel sorry for her, but that man won''t act ording to our wishes. We''ve tried various things over the past two years, and this is the conclusion we''vee up with."


    "Of course, the decision is up to you. Regardless of the details, the fact that she came to us first is significant."


    "You''re serious in strange ways. I won''t deny it, but I''m not enthusiastic about it."


    My thoughts and policies towards K��enji had solidified thest time I interacted with Mii-chan. Now, without a special exam threatening expulsion, any unnecessary contact andmunication would be a waste.


    "There''s still some time until the next game, why not give it a shot? From what I''ve seen, Tatebayashi''s group is small and unlikely to win, but if K��enji ispetent, the situation might turn around somewhat. Right?"


    He didn''t seem like the type to worry about others, but it would be inappropriate for me to say that.


    I wanted to try many different things, but opportunities like that seemed hard toe by.


    "I understand. I''ll try contacting him for now. If K��enji wins, he might appreciate the private points he''ll earn."


    "That''s a good idea."


    In fact, that was the only thing that could potentially motivate K��enji.


    While thinking that I had been asked to do something troublesome, I decided to give it a shot.

 Chapter 475: 2.5

    <h4>Chapter 475: 2.5</h4>


    I wanted to find K��enji during the 30-minute interval between matches, however, it wasn''t an easy task.


    I went to K��enji''s shared room, but as expected, he wasn''t there, and he wasn''t in the lobby or the lounge either.


    After wandering around the building for about five minutes, asionally asking acquaintances for information, I obtained a promising clue about 20 minutes before the next game.


    I found K��enji a little way up on a mountain path behind the building.


    I arrived at an open area that used to serve as a dog park.


    It seemed to have be quite a wastnd, perhaps because it was no longer in use.


    "It took me quite some time to find this ce. I didn''t know there was a ce like this here."


    I found K��enji, who was running around joyfully, kicking up the wastnd with his strong horse-like legs.


    I couldn''t help but wonder what he was doing here alone, but if I worried about it, I would lose to K��enji.


    Seeing a rare spectator, K��enji slowed down and approached me.


    I thought he would continue to ignore me, but I was met with a surprise.


    "Ayanok��ji boy, do you need something from me?"


    I thought it was just a whim, but I couldn''t waste the opportunity.


    "I saw you leaving the group on your own. I thought I''d ask you about how you felt."


    "I see. As long as you didn''te to call me back just because someone was counting on my abilities, that''s fine."


    I guess this man didn''t need any pretense.


    "Inogashira was looking for you. She appeared quite anxious."


    "So what?"


    "Why don''t you go back and help the group a little?"


    "You already know the answer, don''t you?"


    "I don''t know. Why won''t you cooperate?"


    "I''ll tell you something special. One plus one equals two. The answer doesn''t change no matter how many times you solve it."


    "That depends on how you look at it. In decimal, that''s true, but in binary, one plus one equals ten."[6]


    [TL/N: The statement contrasts arithmetic in decimal (base-10) and binary (base-2) systems. In binary, used inputing, 1 + 1 equals 10, representing the decimal value 2]


    K��enji didn''t lose his smile even when I responded to his ridiculous statement with a ridiculous answer.


    "Hahaha, you have a sense of humor. But your answer is nonsense. You see things in a twisted way, with logic-biased thinking. One plus one equals two is the answer. The world is always simple and clear."


    K��enji expressed again that he had no intention of getting along with me.


    "They should win using their own tactics, even without my ability. Isn''t that right?"


    "Your group doesn''t have that power. That''s why I intended to consider you. If you''re present here, it''ll improve your impression. Won''t it be easier for you in the future?"


    "I pride myself on being the only, the best, and the strongest person. There''s no need for me to show that to others. Your questions are all nonsense."


    K��enji sneered and turned his back to me.


    "This time, I''ve decided to take aplete break. In other words, I''m not involved in the exchange meeting at all. The game can be yed smoothly with just five people, right? Please make sure to convey that."


    Indeed, there was no obligation for all group members to gather and hold an exchange meeting.


    If K��enji was uncooperative, it was a waste of time to invite him.


    "I shouldn''t really say this to others, but I can''t do anything about your uncooperativeness. It''s beyond my understanding."


    "Hmm. Beyond understanding, is it? Do you want to know why I''m uncooperative?"


    As I was about to give up and turn back, he stopped me.


    "Are you going to tell me?"


    "I don''t mind. But before that, can I ask you a question?"


    When I turned back, K��enji started talking.


    "If a paper test is conducted here without any prior notice. Let''s say, a test that questions basic academic abilities, who do you think would win, you or me?"


    If it wasn''t K��enji, I wouldn''t have answered seriously.


    But here, I intuitively felt that it was best to speak from the heart.


    "I would win."


    Without hesitation, I answered immediately, but K��enji wasn''t surprised.


    Rather, he immediately responded as if it was the answer he had expected.


    "Your high confidence is not bad. Let''s assume that your answer is yes in this situation. Then, do you think that our superiority, excellence, and value as human beings are determined by that alone?"


    "No. That alone doesn''t determine it."


    It was just a difference in the written test on basic academic abilities.


    "Then next��if you and I fight seriously, what do you think the result will be?"


    A question about strength, not about brains or anything like that.


    Having watched K��enji Rokusuke for two years, I already had the answer in my mind.


    "If it''s a fight based on specific rules, I think you''d have the advantage."


    In terms of physique and muscle mass, K��enji would undoubtedly be superior.


    This was a number that couldn''t be overturned.


    If rules were imposed here, such as boxing or judo, and K��enji''s skills were at least equal, I couldn''t deny the possibility that it''d be a tough battle.


    "That''s a funny answer. It''s different from what I''d say, but I''ll evaluate your thought as it is."


    From K��enji''s point of view, there was no possibility of losing, regardless of the presence or absence of rules. Of course, no one could deny that unless we actually fought.


    "Do you think you can judge who''s better or worse with just this information?"


    "It''s a difficult question. But if I think about it in general terms, a third party would have to objectively and fairly evaluate both sides from variousprehensive perspectives, including not only written tests but also physical aspects, and quantify them. But that doesn''t mean they can objectively perceive human value."


    "That''s correct. No matter how objectively you look at it, determining human value isn''t something that can be easily judged. Even if you talk aboutprehensive perspectives, you can''t see everything."


    "If you have topare, I would support the method I just mentioned."


    "I disagree, Ayanok��ji boy."


    "Then, how do you judge the value of a person?"


    As if waiting for me to ask that, K��enji grinned.


    "The answer is extremely simple. Whether it''s me or not. That determines the superiority or inferiority."


    Even though he made me think a bit, in the end, it came down to that.


    "What''s the basis for your confidence?"


    "I''ll dly tell you. The source is adaptability. I won''t sumb to any environment. I have the confidence to survive in any of them. Whether it''s in arge corporation or a jungle full of beasts, I have the power to adapt perfectly and perfectly[7]. This is something that a third party cannot measure."


    [TL/N: Thetter word "perfectly," is written in Katakana for emphasis]


    He must be well aware that the "perfectly" and "perfectly" are redundant.


    "This long question and answer session was meaningless. Even if you''re perfect, it has nothing to do with your reason for not cooperating, does it?"


    "If so, it''s just that you didn''t understand. Can you stand shoulder to shoulder with kindergarteners who can''t do anything and work seriously? There''s that much of a gap between me and the people around me. The reason I went out of my way to get first ce in the deserted ind test was to distance myself from such kindergarteners."


    He doesn''t feel likepeting side by side because he looks down on those around him.


    That was K��enji''s reason for being uncooperative.


    "You''re not suited for this school."


    "You and I arepletely different beings, but I thought you had a somewhat simr perspective. I didn''t expect you to say that. I also think it would be more meaningful to devote myself to training by revisiting China than entering this school. I had circumstances that prevented me from doing so."


    No matter how I thought about it, it was a dead end.


    When it came down to it, whether to cooperate or not was a decision he had to make.


    I couldn''t me K��enji for sticking to his guns.


    "It''s a shame, K��enji. If you were different, you could attract more attention in a better way."


    "Like you, who''s starting to be relied on by those around you?"


    "I''m not really attracting much attention, though."


    We had our conversation.


    Strangely enough, I often had the opportunity to talk with K��enji like this.


    I wondered if the atmosphere was simr atst year''s training camp.


    I was reminded again of the enigma that was the person in front of me.


    "You understand now that you can''t control me, don''t you?"


    "Yeah, I guess so."


    "So why do you bother with me? I''m not even in your group this time."


    Indeed, it was a strange story.


    If someone else looked at my situation now, they would all say I should just leave him alone.


    It could waste time and potentially affect my bet with Nagumo.


    "Even though I know it''s useless, I can''t help but try��"


    "Because if you step out of the ss, you won''t be able to protect Horikita girl, right?"


    As if linking with my thoughts, K��enji said so.


    I saw K��enji as a hindrance to Horikita, who would continue to fight in the future.


    This man saw through that.


    His extraordinary instinct was truly unpredictable.


    Despite not giving many hints, he seemed to feel what wasing.


    "If that''s the case, there''s no need to hesitate. You can try to exclude me at any time."


    "Didn''t I tell you before that I don''t feel like doing that?"


    "Huhuhu. Well, if that''s the case, there''s nothing I can do."


    K��enji, who never doubted that he was the best human being.


    So far, there had been several people whom I urged to grow for the future of Horikita''s ss.


    And if I thought they were beneficial, I had done the same for other sses as well.


    This man, who had excellent abilities but a difficult personality to work with, was simr.


    But the reason I didn''t urge K��enji to improve was because I judged the risk and effort of the measure to be high.


    Just like how you couldn''t turn an ipetent person into apetent one with a simple task like flipping a coin.


    The man in front of me wouldn''t change with just one or two steps.


    It was easier to eliminate him before he became a nuisance than to change him into an asset. That was my conclusion.


    "See youter then. I''ll go back to my self-improvement time."


    Seeing that further conversation would be useless, K��enji started running again.


    After watching his back for a moment, I decided to turn back.

 Chapter 476: 2.6

    <h4>Chapter 476: 2.6</h4>


    I came back near the inn to report on K��enji''s case.


    But I couldn''t find Kiry��in, and I didn''t know where she had gone.


    When I asked a few people, they told me there was a park with a handmade feel on the east side of the building, and they saw her walking there.


    There wasn''t much time until the next game, so I wondered what she was doing there.


    The park had several wooden yground structures.


    Unlike the rusty dog park, this ce seemed to still be in use, with seesaws and bnce beams that looked usable.


    Now, where was Kiry��in��she was on one of the two swings.


    Not alone, but with Asahina, a third-year student.


    From a distance, it looked like Asahina was happily talking to her, and Kiry��in was listening with a warm gaze.


    I thought it was an unusualbination as I approached to tell her about K��enji.


    "We don''t usually have a chance to talk, so it''s kind of fresh... Really unusual, isn''t it?"


    "Are you that happy to talk to me?"


    "I''m d. You''re always so cool, F��ka-chan. A lot of girls really look up to you."


    Asahina''s eyes sparkled. Perhaps Kiry��in was the type to be more popr with girls than boys.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    This must''ve been because she rarely interacted with students belonging to the same year.


    I think Kiry��in was a special case, but it seemed that this kind of interaction was also happening.


    "Ayanok��ji, you''re back."


    "What were you talking about?"


    It seemed better to tell her about K��enji''s situationter. With that thought, I asked about the content of the conversation.


    "We were talking about various things, but right now, we were talking about our future ns. I was curious about F��ka-chan''s future."


    I remember she said she would be a schrship student and go to university when we met before.


    "So, which university are you going to?"


    The conversation had just started, and Asahina asked that question.


    Kiry��in openly named the specific university she was nning to attend.


    It was a famous university that I would''ve heard of many times if I had lived normally.


    "It''s theirw department. But I''m not particrly attached to the department."


    Asahina shuddered at the thought of going to such a high-level university, thinking it was impossible for her.


    "What do you n to do, F��ka-chan?"


    "Hmm? I''m not aiming for anything. I''m not trying to be anything."


    Just as she had told me before, she nned to live as an ordinary person.


    She told Asahina that.


    "Eh~ Isn''t that a bit of a waste? You seem like you could be anything."


    She had no intention of showing off her talents, which would be envied by those who didn''t have them.


    That might be a waste, but it might also be the ultimate luxury.


    "I can be anything. I don''tck confidence, but there are many different things."


    "So you don''t have a dream?"


    "I have a dream of not bing anyone. Does that answer your question?"


    "That might be a dream, but I think it''s better to have an ambitious dream. Whether you can fulfill it or not, whether you can do it or not, isn''t it something to think about?"


    This was true especially if you were Asahina, who was expected to graduate from ss A. Kiry��in understood this andughed.


    "That''s true. It''s not that I''ve never thought about such a dream."


    "Then tell me. I might aim for it too."


    Kiry��in reluctantly told Asahina, who kept her eyes sparkling.


    "If I had to choose a job to achieve something, I might aim to be a politician."


    "A politician!? Wow... but it''s notmon to think of bing a politician... even Miyabi has never mentioned bing a politician, and I''ve never seen anyone around me do it."


    Asahina, eager to know how she came to have that dream, listened attentively.


    "Do I have to talk about it?"


    "No? Though, I think this might be thest chance to leisurely talk with you... I want to hear it."


    At Asahina''s request, Kiry��in said it was special and revealed the reason.


    "When I was little, I had a lot of opportunities to meet politicians because of my family rtionships."


    "Oh, so that''s why you wanted to be one?"


    "No? It was because of opportunities like that that I decided against bing a politician. I just let their talk go in from one ear and out the other."


    "Ah, I''m biased, but... politicians seem to be mostly bad people."


    "That''s right. Most of them were corrupt people who were often featured on TV and in the media. It''s not a profession I admire at all."


    If that was the case, there must''ve been another reason why she mentioned it as a dream.


    "Because it''s such a corrupt world, there are also those who shine. He was one of the few people I admired."


    "What''s the name of the politician? Do I know him?"


    "It''s Kijima-san. He''s be quite important now."


    "Eh, Kijima? Eh? The Prime Minister?"


    Kiry��in affirmed. Asahina seemed quite surprised.


    "I thought it wouldn''t be so bad to aim for the same stage as him. He''s active on the front line."


    "But you''re not aiming for that... right?"


    "I don''t n to at the moment."


    "It seems like you, F��ka-chan, could even be a politician."


    "Didn''t I tell you there''s a lot going on?"


    The more she stood out, the more she hated having the Kiry��in name follow her around.


    "Why don''t you aim to be a politician instead of me, Ayanok��ji, fulfilling my dream?"


    "That''s quite an unexpected suggestion. I''ve never even considered a career in politics."


    "My intuition tells me you might do surprisingly well."


    "I''m fine with being ordinary. I''ll go to some suitable university and get a suitable job."


    "I see. Since I''m also aiming for the same path, we''re both dream chasers in our own way."


    "Whether it''s Miyabi or F��ka-chan, inviting Ayanok��ji-kun, it must be something special, huh?"


    "I''m just being targeted by curiosity seekers. The next game is about to start."


    If we continued talking, we wouldn''t be able to avoid beingte.


    "Oh, is it that time already? I need to hurry!"


    Asahina jumped off the swing and waved frantically at us.


    "See youter!"


    "Don''t rush and fall."


    "I know! Whoa, whoops!"


    She almost fell as she started running.


    I didn''t expect to see the same pattern twice in one day, let alone in such a short time.


    "Did you get to meet K��enji?"


    "I did talk to him. It was a waste of time though."


    I told her the purpose of my visit here, that I couldn''t get K��enji to participate in the exchange meeting.


    "I see. So K��enji is uncontroble after all, huh?"


    "I tried to find a way in, but there was no opening."


    "So there are things even you can''t do, Ayanok��ji. I''m d."


    I was praised for my inability.


    "Did you send me to see this result?"


    "I can''t deny that I wanted to see it."


    I thought it was strange to favor another group, but she was a rather mean-spirited senpai.


    "But Tatebayashi is harsh. It''s true that I can''t bear to see a k��hai being oppressed."


    "It would be nice if he could be tough on K��enji, but it doesn''t affect him."


    Besides, there was a huge difference in ability.


    Considering the possibility that K��enji might bear his fangs, it wouldn''t be strange for Tatebayashi to direct his stress toward another person in the group.


    "Well, we can''t help it. Let''s move on to the second match."


    The game proceeded as follows.


    <strong>[Pottery]</strong>


    Everyone was a beginner, so it was a low-level battle. I took the lead with my dexterity and won.


    <strong>[Table tennis] �� 2</strong>


    It was the same game twice in a row, but I had some experience with table tennis at school, so I won easily.


    <strong>[Jewelry making]</strong>


    I was worried about how it would go, simr to oshibana, but my opponent was also inexperienced, so I was able topete on equal terms.


    Including the oshibana, Takahashi was following all the games, probably because Nagumo had instructed him to confirm the results.


    I thought I would be forced into a game with more luck elements, but overall, it was a good first day.


    And perhaps influenced by my five consecutive wins, the group also managed to win five games in a row without losing.

 Chapter 477 - 3 : Request from Horikita and Request from Ayanokōji

    <h4>Chapter 477: Chapter 3 : Request from Horikita and Request from Ayanok��ji</h4>


    THE NIGHT OF the first day of the exchange meeting.


    This was probably the biggest difference fromst year''s camp:


    The rooms assigned to each student were grouped together. In other words, the first and second-year students slept in the same room.


    Depending on their personalities, this time of the day could be the most stressful time for both first and second-year students.


    That was why Hashimoto hastily created an environment where they could break the ice.


    It seemed to be working, as the first-year students had already gotten close enough to Hashimoto to be able to talk to him with a smile. Among the eight people in this room, I was the one who was the most reserved with everyone else.


    "You did great winning all your matches on the first day, Hashimoto-senpai."


    "We didn''t know who our opponents would be, so we honestly had no idea what would happen."


    Toyohashi and Yanagi happily said so.


    Each of them had a turn at table tennis in today''s third and fourth rounds, which probably influenced their mood.


    Shintoku and Obokata also seemed to agree, nodding several times, but they seemed a bit shy.


    "I''m sorry. We haven''t participated even once yet..."


    "Don''t worry about it. From what I saw today, about half of the students haven''t participated. Honestly, the gaming aspect is really just a bonus. For those who haven''t participated, their role is just to experience the games."


    The experiential learning format, where students collect stamps on a point card, was initially met with skepticism, but the system seemed to be more used than expected. It provided a good opportunity to deepen friendships by inviting friends, senpais, and k��hais.


    As far as I could see, there wasn''t a single group that was eagerly aiming for a win in the five games yed today. Maybe that freedom had contributed.


    However, that didn''t mean it was easy to reach first ce.


    Considering today''s game progress, a tough battle was expected from tomorrow onwards.


    There were four groups, including ours, that won all five matches. Three groups won four out of five matches. There were also four groups that lost all five. The distribution of wins and losses showed the prizing approaches to the exchange meeting.


    Among groups that won one or two matches, there might''ve been some that were seriously engaged, but it was uncertain what would happen if they couldn''t break into the top ranks from tomorrow onwards.


    From the second day on, it seemed that we would bepeting for first ce with about half of the groups.


    "Nagumo-senpai''s group is a first-ce contender, aren''t they?"


    Takumi Oda, from ss 2-C, muttered, reflecting on the five matches.


    "I thought so too. They seem to have won all their matches as well."


    Many students in that group were serious��that was their group''s strength.


    There wasn''t a single student who thought it was okay to ck off. It was safe to say that it directly contributed to their win rate.


    It was easy to imagine that they had been exposed to various experiences, gaining valuable lessons along the way.


    Because it wasn''t a battle of academic ability, we were able topete equally in that aspect. Though, it could also be said that a gap was created because many of the students were inexperienced in multiple games.


    "By the way, Hashimoto-senpai, about my ss��"


    The conversation wasn''t just about the exchange meeting, but also included trivial personal topics.


    I watched the seven-people conversation, feeling somewhat detached.


    Even though the group had only been together for a few hours, the first-year students already seemed to admire Hashimoto, and the conversation was naturally lively with him at the center.


    As expected of someone who prided himself on his ability, there was no other way to put it.


    He was beginning to build rtionships as if they had been acquaintances or even friends for a long time.


    Y��suke and others who were good at blending in with their surroundings are also simr, but he was a different type.


    What was a little disconcerting was that Oda had also managed to fit in quite well...


    "But, it was a surprising day in many ways."


    Hashimoto groaned, holding a memo in his hand that recorded the wins and losses of each group announced by the school.


    "Ry��en''s group lost twice, and Sakayanagi''s group even lost three times. They might drop out of the race to the top tomorrow."


    Today, we didn''t have a match with either of those two groups, so the details were unknown.


    If Hashimoto hadn''t taken on the role of organizing the first-year students, he might have gathered more information, but it seemed that he couldn''t manage that.


    "It''s surprising. I''ve always had the impression that Sakayanagi-senpai was strong. I wonder if it''s different because a third-year student is inmand."


    ording to the OAA, a third-year ss D student named Iki had generally poor grades, especially in terms of academic ability. His grade was D+, which was quite unsatisfactory. From this, it seemed unlikely that he was participating as part of the college-bound group.


    "If Sakayanagi wanted to win, it would be normal for her to takemand, regardless of whether it''s a third-year or whatever. She wouldn''t back down even if her opponents were Nagumo-senpai or Kiry��in-senpai. Especially Iki-senpai, right? No matter how you think about it, she would quickly seize control... No, even before that, she''s the type who would want to leave everything topetentrades."


    It seemed that Hashimoto knew a little bit about what kind of person Iki was.


    "So, is it simply ack of ability?"


    Kosumi, who had been quiet until now, muttered that, but Toyohashi immediately denied it.


    "At least the first-years are quite good. The second-years are probably the same, right?"


    As Toyohashi said, the group Sakayanagi was assigned to was not that bad.


    Iki also seemed to have chosen reasonablypetent members from both years and considered the possibility of winning.


    So it was only natural that Hashimoto questioned why she had lost to an opponent she considered inferior in today''s match.


    "Whether it''s a special exam or an exchange meeting, Sakayanagi always aims to win."


    Hashimoto, who had been by her side all along, knew this better than anyone.


    Looking at the results of the three losses, Hashimoto must have had doubts in his mind.


    "I think so too. I wonder if she''s up to something."


    Oda also seemed to be troubled by Sakayanagi''s three losses and was deep in thought.


    However, thinking about it here wouldn''t yield any answers.


    Eventually, the seven of them started to get excited about apletely unrted topic.


    After a while, Hashimoto distanced himself from the first-year students and walked over to me, who had been watching from afar. On his way, he picked up the TV remote and deliberately turned on a variety show to make the room noisy.


    "Could it be that the damage she took from losing Kamuro was significant?"


    Hashimoto, who wanted to confirm the reason for the three losses, asked me this.


    "Maybe."


    It was difficult to judge based on the current results alone, but there was no evidence to the contrary.


    "If she''s really getting weaker, it''s a good thing for me. If we go into the end-of-year exams like this, I might have a chance to win."


    As he said, Hashimoto wasn''t simple enough to take these results at face value.


    "Can you find out what the real situation is with Sakayanagi, Ayanok��ji?"


    "That''s your specialty, not mine."


    I tried to immediately refuse, but Hashimoto whispered in my ear just in case.


    "Please spare me this time. I''m ss A''s most wanted man right now. Especially Kit����he seems to be really angry. It''s okay for now because Sakayanagi hasn''t said anything, but who knows what will happen when my betrayal bes clear."


    He muttered as he imagined it and hugged himself.


    But his expression remained faintly amused.


    "You don''t seem to be scared, do you?"


    "If I can''t even bluff, I wouldn''t have the right to betray the ss."


    That made sense too.


    "Besides, I''ve moved on thanks to you. I''m grateful for that too."


    Hashimoto, who had visited my room on the day of the two-person meeting, hadid himself bare.


    Now he can face forward thanks to the benefits of that conversation, but the effect was probably temporary.


    Once the impact of his betrayal began to take effect, it would no longer be the case.


    Hashimoto''s time was running out.


    "You can contact Sakayanagi directly, right?"


    It was fine to feel a little better, but that was one thing, this was another.


    "You are free to wish for whatever you want, but when did I be your ally? I don''t intend to stick my neck into any trouble."


    "I''m thinking about it separately from that. But at least in this exchange meeting, we''re on the same team. Even if she''s lost three times, as long as Sakayanagi is there, she''s a first-ce candidate that we should be wary of. Considering that we might face each other tomorrow, it''s not a bad idea to scout her out now."


    The man who didn''t care much about group battles was brave in his public appearance.


    "That''s reasonable. But as long as you and I are in the same group, Sakayanagi will be more wary than usual. I don''t want you to expect useful information."


    "I understand. I''ll just consider it as a bonus, okay?"


    "...Alright. I''ll just do as much as I can for now."


    "I''m counting on you."


    I also wanted to know the reason for the three losses.


    But whether or not I would pass on the information I gained to Hashimoto was another matter.

 Chapter 478: 3.1

    <h4>Chapter 478: 3.1</h4>


    The quickest way to get in touch with Sakayanagi was, needless to say, to contact her directly. However, it would be difficult to know her current situation in detail. She might speak honestly to me, but I could also predict that there would be many things she would intentionally hide.


    Another option was to indirectly extract information from someone who knew Sakayanagi''s current situation in detail.


    But this also carried risks. I was interested in Sakayanagi''s situation��it was unavoidable that they''d know that. Hond�� and Shinohara from Horikita''s ss are assigned to the same group as Sakayanagi, but neither of them were the type to keep their mouths shut or were good actors.


    In the meantime, I decided to go out to the lobby to slowly organize my thoughts.


    Depending on the timing, I might have been able to find Sakayanagi out and about.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun."


    As I moved to the lobby, one student noticed me and approached.


    It was Sanada from the same ss as Sakayanagi.


    He seemed to have just gotten out of the bath, as his hair was wet and I could see a few droplets of water on his sses.


    "Can we talk for a bit? There''s something I''ve been meaning to ask you."


    "I don''t mind. What did you want to ask?"


    I was also grateful to have run into Sanada.


    On the first day, he had won a game against the group Sakayanagi belonged to.


    "It''s about Hashimoto-kun from your group. I guess you''ve heard various rumors about him."


    "Like how he had a hand in Kamuro''s expulsion?"


    "I don''t intend to pry into it without any solid evidence, but regardless of the truth, I''m curious about his current situation... I wonder how he''s doing."


    Now, in ss A, not only Sakayanagi but also Hashimoto was attracting a lot of attention.


    It wouldn''t be strange if there were students like Sanada who were concerned about them.


    "There''s nothing particrly different from usual. He seems to be doing well, not just putting on a brave face."


    "I see... That''s good."


    "But how about Sakayanagi? Has there been any change with her?"


    Following the flow of the conversation, I tried to touch on Sakayanagi.


    "As far as I could see at school, she seemed to be the same as always."


    "I thought the fact that her group had lost three times at the exchange meeting might have had some effect."


    "I''m not sure, but that might be the case. However, we haven''t seen each other much since we came here, so I don''t know the details."


    At least for now, Sanada answered that he didn''t have a grasp on the situation.


    "But didn''t you y a game against Sakayanagi''s group today?"


    When I pointed that out, Sanada quietly shook his head.


    "She didn''t participate. I didn''t see her giving any instructions nearby either."


    She might''ve just been absent from that game, but it seemed more likely at that point that she hadn''t been involved in the exchange meeting at all.


    "What about you, Ayanok��ji-kun? Do you know anything?"


    "Unfortunately, no. The information I have is probably the same as yours."


    In fact, I might have had even less information.


    "I''d be happy if you could keep an eye on Hashimoto-kun, as well as Sakayanagi-san, even a little."


    "As a member of the same group, I intend to keep an eye on Hashimoto as much as possible, but I don''t know the details, so it''s not my ce to interfere. What do your ssmates actually think? Do they think Hashimoto really betrayed them?"


    "That is��"


    Unable to immediately answer, Sanada couldn''t continue.


    "I haven''t talked directly with my ssmates, so I can''t say for sure who thinks what. But there are definitely people who assume that''s the case."


    The first person who came to mind from the conversation with Hashimoto earlier was Kit��.


    He was a man of few words, but he had always been obedient to ss A.


    He and Kamuro seemed to get along well, as they were often together.


    After that, I talked with Sanada a little more, and then I spotted Horikita looking at us from a distance. She seemed to want to talk to me, so I ended the conversation at a reasonable point.


    As soon as I was alone, Horikita approached me. Even though there were only 20 third-years, it seemed that the chances of running into someone were still high despite therge number of students.


    "I''m d I ran into you. I have a little favor to ask... Is that okay?"


    Horikita, who started off with a friendly attitude, didn''t seem to have a problem with the exchange meeting.


    It wasmon knowledge that Nagumo''s group had been undefeated and was in first ce with five consecutive wins since the first day.


    "What''s the favor?"


    When I asked back, Horikita pulled my sleeve and forced me to move to the edge of the lobby.


    "It''s about Amasawa-san... It''s not something I can talk about out loud."


    "She''s in your group, isn''t she? Did something happen?"


    When it came to confidential matters, the first thing that came to mind was trouble.


    But that guess seemed to be off, as she immediately denied it.


    "She talks a little too much, but she hasn''t done anything problematic. She''s been behaving well so far."


    Relieved at that, I waited for Horikita to continue.


    "Did you know how good her physical abilities are? It seems that she''s also quite skilled in martial arts."


    "Setting martial arts aside, I do regrly check the OAA and have a rough grasp of it."


    While giving a nomittal response, I urged for more information since the full picture was not yet clear.


    "I think you wouldn''t know about it unless you heard it from Amasawa-san, but I owe her a bit of a ''debt''��something I can''t repay in my typical school life."


    Martial arts and the word ''debt.''


    Although she avoided direct expressions, it seemed that she had a confrontation with Amasawa at some point.


    Looking back, without thinking deeply, it seemed that the only stage for such a confrontation would have been the deserted ind exam.


    "It''s hard to imagine the circumstances."


    I decided to say something that most people would say upon hearing this story.


    "Well, various things."


    Horikita evasively responded, showing no intention of borating on the ''debt.''


    Since it wasn''t something I needed to pry into, I decided to move on.


    "So, what''s next?"


    "I''ve been doing my best every day. But I don''t know if I''m at a level that canpete with her. So, I want you to evaluate my current strength."


    "I understand you want to repay your debt to Amasawa, but it sounds quite dangerous."


    "It would be under normal circumstances, but her strength isn''t normal."


    "Even if you say ''strength,'' I don''t know how strong Amasawa is. I can''t be of much help."


    Without knowing the exact strength of the opponent, preparing a measure was meaningless.


    ��Well, in reality, I did know.


    But I decided to keep that to myself.


    "You just need to judge my strength in your own way. Of course, I would be happy if you could give me some advice."


    From her tone, it seemed that she might''ve been more interested in my advice.


    "It''s up to you if you want a rematch, but has Amasawa agreed?"


    "Not yet."


    However, Horikita quickly continued.


    "If she refuses my proposal, I won''t force her to do it."


    Despite her answer, it seemed that Horikita didn''t consider the possibility of Amasawa refusing.


    After all, she had gone through the trouble of confiding in me and asking for special training.


    "Would you... ept my request?"


    "epting is a problem in itself."


    Facing Amasawa would be quite disadvantageous.


    No matter how much Horikita had trained after her defeat, it was unlikely that the gap in their abilities could close that easily.


    "Why don''t you ask Ibuki over there? She would be happy to help."


    I called out to someone who was probably hiding nearby and listening in.


    "Tch, you noticed."


    With an annoyed click of her tongue, Ibuki showed her face from around the corner of the hallway.


    It was clear that this was a prearranged n between the two, as Horikita didn''t seem surprised.


    "Unfortunately, I''m tired of sparring with Ibuki-san. There''s little to gain from fighting the same opponent over and over."


    Ibuki, standing next to her, seemed to have a simr ''debt,'' showed a simr reaction.


    It seemed that this was a request made after doing everything they could.


    "You''re strong, so you should be willing to help a little."


    "Are you also up for it, Ibuki?"


    "Of course. I can''t stand losing to a little girl who''s only been here a year."


    After throwing a few punches, she showed off a clean high kick.


    She seemed desperate tond that kick.


    It was nice to be enthusiastic, but even though she referred to Amasawa as a little girl, there was only a one-year difference between them, and in terms of actual physique, Ibuki was actually smaller...


    "You decided to do this during the training camp because you wouldn''t have trouble finding a ce to spar, right?"


    "It would be too conspicuous to have a fighting rematch at school."


    Horikita, who gave a small nod in response, seemed determined. Ibuki too, for that matter.


    "I wonder... Honestly, there''s nothing in it for you..."


    "Indeed, I don''t have anything to gain from this."


    "But if you were to ept, I''m willing to offer private points aspensation��"


    She seemed ready to offerpensation, but it was pointless to ept such a thing.


    "I don''t know how much it will help, but if you ept my conditions, I''m willing to take it on."


    I interrupted Horikita''s offer and responded.


    "Really? I wasn''t expecting that at all..."


    "Whether or not both parties agree to it, there are more disadvantages to getting into a fight at school. If you want to pay back some kind of debt, you don''t want to miss such a great opportunity. However, you can''t just go out at night."


    "Thank you. I couldn''t ask for more cooperation. So, what are the conditions?"


    There were absolute conditions that had to be epted in order to face Amasawa in a rematch.


    "The first is to talk to Amasawa today. You''re in the same group, so it shouldn''t be hard to find an opportunity to do so. Of course, to avoid making a fuss, make sure no third party finds out. The timing should be early morning on thest day. You should get Amasawa to ept the rematch at that time."


    The chances were slim, but if she refused, the special training would be meaningless.


    "Of course, I understand that. What are the other conditions?"


    "I''ll talk about that once you''ve finished this one. There''s no point in special training if Amasawa doesn''t ept. Besides, we can''t do it in the middle of the night at the training camp, can we?"


    Since this was a discussion based on the premise that she would ept, there shouldn''t be any objections even if they didn''t hear the remaining conditions.


    "I''m ready to do it right now, you know?"


    "You should keep quiet."


    Horikita, unlike Ibuki who had quickly agreed, had propermon sense.


    "If I get permission from Amasawa-san, I''ll send a message."


    "Please do. I''ll be ready in the morning."


    Amasawa wasn''t the type to refuse a fight.


    On the contrary, if these two wanted a rematch, she would be happy to ept.


    She would understand that this camp was the perfect ce with fewer watchful eyes.


    As Horikita nodded and was about to return to her room, I stopped her.


    "This isn''t rted to the exchange meeting, but there''s something I want you to investigate."


    "What is it?"


    If she was nning to propose a rematch, she could probably deceive Amasawa''s sharp sense.


    I made a small request to Horikita.


    "I don''t quite understand, but I just need to keep that in mind, right?"


    "Yeah. Don''t tell Amasawa."


    "I understand. It''s not a big deal."


    I thanked Horikita, who readily agreed, and the meeting was over.


    "Well..."


    I decided to look for Sakayanagi a little longer.


    However, I wandered around the training ground aimlessly, but I couldn''t find Sakayanagi.


    Around 9 p.m., as the crowd began to thin, I decided to call it a day.


    When I returned to my room, Hashimoto, Toyohashi, and Shintoku were preparing to go to the bath and were waiting for me, so I decided to go to therge bath with them.

 Chapter 479: 3.2

    <h4>Chapter 479: 3.2</h4>


    After enjoying the bath at therge bathhouse for about an hour, I returned to my shared room with the three who came with me.


    Then, I saw the third-year student, Tatebayashi, standing in front of a room, looking displeased and fidgeting with his right foot. He seemed quite irritated.


    "You finally came back..."


    Tatebayashi''s gaze wasn''t directed at us, but further back.


    It was K��enji, who had been doing as he pleased all day.


    It was expected, but judging from Tatebayashi''s behavior, he hadn''t been able to make contact even after all that time. He didn''t care about the irritated senpai and went to the front of the room.


    "Could you move? You''re in the way."


    "What the hell are you��"


    Before the lecture began, K��enji pushed Tatebayashi''s shoulder and entered the room.


    It wasn''t that he had forced his way in, but rather that he had overpowered him with his superior physique and strength.


    Rumors about K��enji should have spread enough among the third-years, but if you didn''t have any direct experiences with him, you''d just feel some irritation. Without even trying to close the open door, Tatebayashi followed K��enji who disappeared into the room.


    "Hey, are they going to fight?"


    Shintoku, a first-year, looked at Hashimoto for instructions on what to do.


    "K��enji really is a handful. Should we just watch for now?"


    If the door had been closed, they could have ignored it, but it was left wide open.


    Everyone casually peeked inside.


    K��enji, who had entered the shared room, was already on the futon at the far end.


    Three first-years and... it seemed that all the second-years except K��enji were out.


    He started stretching as if he ignored Tatebayashi, who was standing and looking down.


    I wondered what feelings Shintoku and Toyohashi had when they saw this.


    "I don''t want to get involved with K��enji-senpai..."


    "Same here..."


    Disgusted, they said such things without thinking.


    "What have you been doing until now!"


    Tatebayashi, who had a reputation as a leader, questioned him.


    "Me? It''s obvious, isn''t it? I''m polishing myself."


    "Huh? Polishing yourself? Don''t talk nonsense!"


    No matter how loud he shouted, it wouldn''t resonate with K��enji.


    "Cooperate properly tomorrow! We''re on the edge here!"


    "That''s an impossible request."


    K��enji answered without looking at Tatebayashi at all.


    The eyes of the first-year students peeking in at K��enji were beginning to turn cold.


    It was hard to adapt to this guy in a short period of time.


    The k��hais in the same room were silent, seemingly unable to move. The atmosphere was heavy.


    "Impossible request? Do you even think about the group?"


    Tatebayashi continued his relentless attacks.


    Without caring about his group mates, K��enji turned over the futon on the spot.


    "Then I''ll sleep at the edge."


    "Don''t decide that on your own! I''m supposed to decide where to sleep!"


    When Hashimoto quietly entered the room, he asked the first-years in the same room to stop Tatebayashi.


    He quickly stood up and rushed to Tatebayashi''s side, trying to calm him down with soothing words.


    Tatebayashi, who was breathing with both shoulders, noticed the presence of the k��hais and regained a little calmness.


    "Okay? You still must obey the leader''s instructions, right?"


    But��


    "I refuse. I hate going through unnecessary steps. Can you be quiet now?"


    That was thest straw.


    Tatebayashi, who had beenforting the k��hai, pushed them aside and shouted.


    "It''s not that I hate it!! There are first-years here too, I can''t set an example as a senpai!!"


    "Don''t you know the saying, ''One should undergo hardships in their youth even if they have to pay for it''? At times like this, young people should take the lead and give the better ce to their seniors."


    "Ah, yes, that''s right. Don''t worry about us... yes."


    If a second-year student told them to give way, most first-year students would have no choice but to obey.


    "Then I, a third-year, will order you. Undergo hardships!"[8]


    [TL/N: There isn''t really a good way to trante this, basically just telling them to actively seek out and embrace challenges/hardship]


    "Come on, Senpai, calm down."


    Hashimoto stopped Tatebayashi, who was about to raise his fist in anger, by putting his arm around him.


    He then turned his attention to us and asked us to go back to our rooms.


    "Let''s go back."


    "But, is it okay?"


    "Hashimoto should be able to handle this situation."


    Leaving Hashimoto behind, we returned to our shared room.


    Ten minutester, Hashimoto returned to the restless first-year students.


    "Was everything okay?"


    "He calmed down. It seems he was desperate because he really wanted to win."


    ss 3-D had little money to spend freely due to the tribute to Nagumo and their low ss points. Because the rest of their school life was just nearing its end, they seemed to want every bit of pocket money.


    "Nagumo-senpai and the other senpais took most of the good students, so they didn''t have much leeway. So they took K��enji from the leftovers and aimed for a one-shot reversal, and that''s what happened."


    If he could''ve handled him, he might''ve been able to make him take action. It was no wonder he was angry if such faint hope was betrayed.


    "It must be hard for you, Ayanok��ji-senpai... having someone like that as a ssmate."


    I didn''t think anything of it, but I gained some newfound respect from the first-year students.


    "Well..."


    From here, we started preparing for bed, but there was still a problem that Hashimoto hadn''t solved.


    That was who would sleep where.


    Like K��enji and Tatebayashi had been arguing, it was a trivial but unavoidable part.


    I remembered that when students slept together, there was often a fuss about where to sleep.


    Especially on school trips, it was a big deal when Ry��en and Kit�� had a pillow fight.


    "Let''s decide the issue fairly here. To avoid something like K��enji, right?"


    Hashimoto volunteered to take on the unpleasant role.


    "No, we really don''t mind where. Right?"


    "Yes. If anything, Ayanok��ji-senpai can decide next!"


    "No, no, why Ayanok��ji? You''re fine with treating me badly?"


    Hashimoto retorted with a bitter smile.


    "It''s not like that... Ayanok��ji-senpai is our aspiration!"


    "Me too, Ayanok��ji-senpai! I respect you!"


    Shintoku and Toyohashi, with their eyes shining, revered me.


    "...You seem to be admired in a short time."


    "Well, even if you say that..."


    I was the one who was most confused.


    Until just a moment ago, there was no such thing.


    Shintoku and Toyohashi, who had drastically changed their attitudes, were just tilting their heads, as were Kobayakawa and Yanagi, who were also first-year students.

 Chapter 480 - 4 : A Strange Discomfort

    <h4>Chapter 480: Chapter 4 : A Strange Difort</h4>


    THE MORNING OF the second day.


    The time was still before 6 a.m.


    It was getting a little brighter, but it was hard to say that there was sufficient visibility.


    I moved a short distance away from the building to avoid being seen.


    Even without worrying, there wouldn''t be many people who woulde out at this time.


    Soon, as promised, Horikita and Ibuki appeared.


    "Yawn... I''m sleepy. And it''s cold."


    Ibuki yawned and stretched, shivering.


    "If you don''t like it, you can just go back to your room."


    "You''re kidding. I can''t let you get revenge on your own."


    Rather than against Amasawa, it seemed that the main driving force wasn''t wanting to let Horikita have her way.


    "It seems she was happy to ept the rematch."


    "Yes. She agreed immediately. But I faced unexpected resistance."


    "Unexpected?"


    "I asked for the morning of the fourth day as promised with you, but she negotiated to change it to the morning of the third day."


    "She wanted to move it up a day earlier."


    "Of course, since the condition for you to cooperate was the morning of the fourth day, I told her I couldn''tpromise. In the end, she gave in, but it didn''t seem like she was any less inconvenienced. I wonder if she had some ns."


    "In the early morning? It''s hard to say. Since she epted it, isn''t it okay to ignore it?"


    If you hate getting up early, there wasn''t much difference between the third and fourth day.


    "Since I was the one asking, I didn''t dig too much into it since it was a private matter. There might be some problems unique to girls, so if you understand, could you give us permission to change it to the third day?"


    Indeed, there was a cycle that could potentially be disadvantageous for women due to their physical structure.


    But that was the same for Horikita and Ibuki, and I didn''t think Amasawa would use that as an excuse.


    "If the other party has agreed despite the inconvenience, we should proceed as nned. We should not reduce the number of special training sessions."


    "You''re relentless."


    "The morning of the fourth day is the decisive day. If you can''t follow that, I can''t apany you in the special training."


    "...I understand. I feel a bit guilty, but let''s stick with the current n. Is that okay?"


    "Don''t think about holding back out of consideration for the other party."


    Horikita seemed to be troubled by something.


    "I understand. She probably doesn''t think she''s going to lose at all. She''s even worried about me."


    She didn''t seem to like that, but there was nothing she could do about it since she was on the side that wanted revenge.


    "I''m going to beat her to a pulp."


    Ibuki was fanning the mes of revenge next to me.


    It was up to the individual to fan the mes, but going too far could be a big problem.


    "Don''t injure her face, okay? It''s a hassle if the fight gets out."


    "Huh? If it''s a weak point, I''ll aim anywhere. Actually, the first thing I should do is kick Amasawa in the face, right?"


    Even if I warned her here, she would probably still kick mercilessly when the time came.


    "It''s good that you''re motivated."


    For now, I decided to leave it at that, as she was showing a positive attitude.


    "Could you tell me the additional conditions for epting the offer?"


    "Yeah. There''s only one more condition left. Promise to fight two against one if you judge it''s difficult to win. Don''t hesitate."


    When I conveyed what I had decided in advance, neither Horikita nor Ibuki seemed to be able to swallow it immediately.


    "I''m sorry. What do you mean by two against one��"


    "Of course, you and Ibuki are the two I''m referring to. If you can''t ept that, then I''m not willing to cooperate."


    When I told them again, Ibuki kicked the ground and thrusted her fist at me.


    "Huh!? What''s this two-against-one in a match? That''s some. It''s impossible."


    "I''m not saying you shouldn''t do one-on-one. I said, ''if you judge it''s difficult,'' didn''t I?"


    "It sounds like you don''t think we''d win on our own."


    "I''d like to sugarcoat it, but yeah, that''s about it. I''m sorry, but the chances of beating Amasawa one-on-one are almost zero. I''m not going to go along with something that''s just a waste of time."


    Honestly, even if they managed to make it two against one, there''d be a higher chance of it turning out likest time.


    "I don''t like it. I can''t ept that condition."


    "I don''t like it either. But from the way you talk, it seems you know exactly how strong Amasawa-san is, don''t you?"


    "That''s right. To be honest, it''s not exactly a match, but I''ve seen her strength."


    "...And you think there''s that much of a gap between us and her?"


    When I nodded, Ibuki seemed to be even more upset and looked away with a click of her tongue.


    "I can''t do this. I don''t need Ayanok��ji''s help, I''ll do it alone. In fact, you should do the same."


    "Indeed... you''ve put forward an unexpectedly hard-to-swallow condition."


    She must''ve been nning to ept most things without hesitation beforeing here.


    It was no wonder she was wavering now, but it was meaningless to receive special training without a purpose.


    "If that''s the case, that''s fine. It''s easier for me if I don''t have to cooperate."


    "Let me ask you again. You understand Amasawa-san''s strength, don''t you?"


    "I think I understand it better than you or Ibuki, at least. Although it''s only for reference, I can also fight by estimating Amasawa''s strength."


    Horikita probably just wanted a simple match, but if she could fight against an opponent of simr strength, she couldn''t help but find it appealing.


    "��I understand. I''m fine with that condition. But what if Ibuki-san refuses?"


    "This conversation is over. It''s only possible if the two of you cooperate."


    "Will you judge after seeing my improved strength?"


    "That''s right. Let''s give it a try then."


    I slowly pulled my foot back and drew a small circle on the ground, about one meter in diameter. Then, standing at the center of the circle, I positioned my left hand forward and my right hand back.


    "I won''t move from here. And I''ll only attack with my left hand."


    "Huh?"


    "If you can make me struggle in this state, you should be able to put up a good fight against Amasawa."


    "Are you mocking me?"


    "You''re free to interpret it however you wish, but you''re the one who asked me to show you, right?"


    "Funny. Well, I''ll burn that arrogance to ashes first."


    What an interesting way to put it.


    Ibuki, like thest time we faced off, fought mainly with kicks.


    Her sharpness might''ve improved, but honestly, it was a negligible difference.


    I quickly determined the direction of her foot and dodged.


    "How cheeky! If I can grab your left arm, it''s my game!"


    Apparently, Ibuki intended to grab my left arm to prevent me from attacking.


    If that was what she wanted, I''d let her grab it to her heart''s content.


    When I deliberately held my left hand in an easy-to-reach position, she seized the opportunity and grabbed my left wrist. Immediately after, I spread the fingers of my left hand and took a big step with my left foot, ced right behind Ibuki.


    While drawing my captured hand in an arc from left to right, I used my left foot to step out and free myself.


    Ibuki, who was brushed off, was left in a defenseless state with her back fully exposed in front of me before she realized it.


    "Eh��!?"


    I thrusted my clenched left fist into Ibuki''s back, who was still catching up on what happened, and lightly tapped it.


    "W-What the hell...!?"


    "It''s a kind of Aikido[9]. The result won''t change no matter how many times you try."


    [TL/N: Aikido (�Ϛݵ�) A type of Japanese martial art. The use of twisting and throwing techniques and in its aim of turning an attacker''s strength and momentum against themselves]


    In a one-on-one fight, the difference in ability couldn''t be overridden no matter how many times you fought.


    To have a chance, you needed to ept a two-on-one and outnumber your opponent.


    "Could you switch with me, Ibuki-san?"


    "Do you have to experience it to understand it?"


    "That''s not it. Even with the short exchange just now, I could fully recognize the extent of your strength. That''s why I want Ibuki-san to see it objectively. There wouldn''t be any progress if you don''t know what happened."


    She seemed to want to let Ibuki gain experience on her own.


    "Simrly, I''ll also bind your left hand. But I don''t intend to let it go down the same way."


    "That''s better. It''s foolish toe and purposely get defeated in the same manner."


    I let Ibuki step back and now Horikita stood in front of me.


    "You can start anytime."


    "I intend to."


    I thought she might take a moment to breathe, but she started moving immediately.


    She quickly tried to grab not my left wrist, but further down.


    I guess she wanted to test my instincts before she said anything else.


    However, by skillfully adjusting myself and pulling my arm, I forced her to grab my wrist.


    "Kuh...!"


    Instead of grabbing me, she ended up being grabbed herself. Even if Horikita recognized this, she had already started the motion and couldn''t stop halfway. Even though she understood in her head that it was a disadvantageous position, she moved in the exact same way Ibuki did.


    Instead of letting hertch onto where she aimed, I forced her to take hold of what she didn''t want to.


    The human mind is a strange thing, and even if you knew you shouldn''t grab it, your brain would still judge it would be better than to not do so.


    It was because she hadn''t umted the experience that not grabbing could turn the situation to her advantage.


    "So the pattern I was caught in was the same as just now..."


    "That''s right."


    "...I wasn''t going to let the same thing happen to me, but before I knew it, I was forcibly taken..."


    While oozing frustration, Horikita''s eyes stared at me intensely.


    "This is the difference in ability between us and Amasawa-san right now, isn''t it?"


    "Yeah. At least, unless you can make me break the rules I set for myself, I don''t see any chance of winning."


    Whether to drive me out of the circle or make me use my right arm.


    Challenging for revenge without achieving either of those would only beughable.


    "Are you convinced now? How reckless it is to fight Amasawa one-on-one?"


    Horikita was still keeping her expression in check, but Ibuki was clearly showing her frustration.


    Let''s assume that she''s stopped boasting about defeating her and made some progress in understanding her situation.


    "How much is it...?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "The difference between me and Amasawa. Can''t you tell me in a way that''s easier for me to understand, like with numbers?"


    Indeed, just having a vague feeling of it might not be enough to maintain future motivation.


    "If we talk about physical ability, if we treat you two as equals and give you a score of 50, then Amasawa would be 60, so a difference of about 10."


    When I answered like that, both of them looked at each other, perhaps surprised that the difference was less than they thought.


    "However, if we include technical skills, it''s a different story. You two focus on one style of martial arts, while Amasawa focuses on a wider variety of them. Taking that into ount, the difference bes even bigger."


    I used numbers as a rough estimate, but this was just a guideline.


    The oue could change due to the conditions of the day, unpredictable events, misreading, and luck. But the greater the skill difference, the more trials would be needed.


    "From now on, you two will fight me at the same time."


    "I don''t like it."


    "I agree with you, Ibuki-san. But you understand why it''s necessary, don''t you?"


    "I''ll definitely make him use both hands. Okay?"


    "I wonder about that. I think it''s easier to drive him out of the circle, don''t you?"


    "I don''t care. You should adapt to me."


    They started arguing about how to fight before they even started.


    Horikita and Ibuki were like oil and water. They probably didn''t have any intention of cooperating from the very start.


    For now, I''d let them do as they pleased without mentioning it.


    "We can''t adjust to each other. Fine, let''s attack as we please."


    "I agree."


    It seemed they weren''t going topromise, but rather attack at the same time, each doing their own thing.

 Chapter 481: 4.1

    <h4>Chapter 481: 4.1</h4>


    "Shall we stop here?"


    Both of them were greatly exhausted, partly because they were forced to fight as an unfamiliar pair. When I called it a day, they both sat down at about the same time.


    "Even if we do this for another day, it won''t make much difference, but it should be somewhat better."


    If they had challenged Amasawa for revenge without receiving any guidance, they wouldn''t have any hopes of winning.


    "How did you be so strong...?"


    "I''ve been learning martial arts since I was little. That''s all there is to it."


    "I''ve been doing the same. I''ve been trying not to lose to those around me, with karate as my main focus."


    Maybe I was a little too harsh. Did I damage Horikita''s confidence? It seemed to have been backed by her experience.


    I was thinking of inserting some mental care in a hurry, but it seemed that there was no need to worry about that.


    "But I''ve decided to think of you as an exception. The fact that my brother recognized you is now a great source of support for me."


    "Hmm..."


    Unlike Horikita, Ibuki, who was still grumbling, stood up and turned her back away.


    "I''ll definitely make you use both hands tomorrow."


    Leaving those words behind, she stomped on the ground and returned to the camp.


    "She really is a sore loser."


    It wasn''t a bad thing, but it was a shame that her vision was narrowed because of it.


    I wasn''t sure if she was able to absorb all the moves and fighting styles.


    "It''s okay. I''ll have a talk with herter and review today''s experience. Even if I have to force it upon her."


    That was reassuring.


    I walked back to the camp with Horikita.


    "I didn''t think you would cooperate so much. I thought you would hold back more, or stay within a safe range..."


    There were several reasons stacked up, but the main reason for not revealing too much of my hand was that I had judged it to be too harsh for the future Horikita.


    "Sometimes I do charity work."


    "It''s suspicious. I can''t help but suspect there''s something behind it."


    "There''s no choice but to be prepared for when it happens."


    When I said that, with deliberate implications, Horikita narrowed her eyes in disbelief.


    "Right. Let''s be patient with each other."


    After she epted it, I parted ways with Horikita in front of the building and decided to return to my room separately.


    It would be better if Amasawa didn''t know that I was teaching them.


    And by the time I returned to my shared room, it was just before seven o''clock.


    It was just then when Hashimoto was waking up and sitting in his bed.


    As we were quietly conversing, the first-year students were also waking up from their shallow sleep, and soon after, everyone in the shared room woke up.


    "Alright. Then I''ll leave for the morning bath. What about you guys?"


    I decided to join Hashimoto and enjoy the bath.


    "Oh, is Ayanok��ji-senpai going too!?"


    "That''s the n��"


    "Yanagi, Kobayashi, Kozumi, let''s go too!"


    "Huh? No, we..."


    "Juste! Ayanok��ji-senpai is calling for us!"


    No, I''m not calling for anyone at all.


    I would appreciate it if you didn''t say anything that could be misunderstood as power harassment.

 Chapter 482: 4.2

    <h4>Chapter 482: 4.2</h4>


    After we finished bathing, Kiry��in''s group, at Hashimoto''smand, gathered all the remaining members, including the girls.


    Then, during breakfast, we exchanged ideas about today''s exchange meeting.


    That being said, more than half of the conversation was from Hashimoto, and the rest were little bits from the other students.


    "I don''t really understand, but the boys'' unusual excitement... it''s creepy."


    Morishita, who was whispering next to me, spewed venom.


    "Really? I thought it was kind of cute."


    Hiyori''s remark seemed to neutralize it.


    Having heard the conflictingment of calling it cute, Morishita stared at the first-year boys again.


    Regardless of whether they were cute or not, it was true that they were unusually excited. They were mostly shrinking in front of their senpais when they gathered as a group yesterday, but that hadpletely disappeared.


    Rather, they were making iprehensible gestures with their hands and even bursting intoughter.


    "Is it cute?"


    "I think it''s cute."


    "I''m sorry, but it''s still creepy. Shiina Hiyori is strange."


    "Is that so?"


    Watching such an exchange nearby, I felt that Hiyori had changed a lot since we met.


    She used to be a student who didn''t show her heart and was less emotional.


    No, rather than saying that her personality had changed from the bottom up, it might''ve been more urate to say that she started to reveal her true self.


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, is something wrong?"


    Because I was unreservedly observing her, Hiyori noticed my gaze.


    "It''s nothing. Don''t worry about it."


    "Is that so?" She tilted her head slightly but showed a smile without suspecting anything.


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai! Can I join you in the bath again tonight!?"


    "Huh? Oh, I don''t mind at all."


    While feeling a strange pressure, given that it wasn''t a bother, I agreed.


    Then, just with that, the first-year students bubbled up again.


    "In less than a day, you''ve tamed the first-year students so well. What kind of magic did you use?"


    Kiry��in, who had finished her meal early, leaned on the table and muttered with interest.


    "Honestly, I''m also confused. I haven''t done anything special."


    "Do you intend to hide it from me too?"


    It seemed that she thought I was keeping a secret, but in reality, I didn''t understand.


    "Do you not get why your k��hais respect you?"


    Hashimoto, who had been eavesdropping on our conversation, chimed in.


    "I might not understand it myself, but there''s a part of me that admires you��or rather, fears you."


    "Fear?"


    Fear was the feeling of terror towards someone with overwhelming power.


    Though, I don''t remember using any form of intimidation like Ry��en or H��sen...


    "I was surprised too. You''re really a man among men... It''s not surprising that the first-years would act this way once they found out about ''that.''"


    "Huh? I don''t quite understand, but it sounds very interesting. What is ''that''?"


    "Sorry, but it''s a secret between men. I can''t tell you about it."


    "Hmm, a secret between men. That''s not so bad."


    For some reason, Kiry��in seemed satisfied with that exnation and stood up from her chair.


    As she was about to pick up her empty tray, Hashimoto stopped her.


    "We''ll clean up. You don''t have to worry about it, Senpai."


    "I appreciate the thought, but I can clean up after myself. Let''s meet again at the next exchange meeting."


    With that, she picked up her tray and walked towards the return counter.


    "Whether it''s easy or hard to deal with, she''s a difficult senpai to understand."


    Hashimoto voiced his thoughts on the departing Kiry��in.


    In terms of choosing the right person to match his description, he was right.

 Chapter 483: 4.3

    <h4>Chapter 483: 4.3</h4>


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    After finishing my meal and passing through the lobby, I found Sakayanagi sitting alone on a sofa.


    "Good morning. You look a bit sleepy."


    She seemed to be a bit out of it, so I probed her. She nodded without denying it.


    "Yes. It seems I''m not good at sharing a room, so I couldn''t sleep well. I decided to take a short break after I had a light meal."


    Even if she wasn''t exactly dozing off, closing her eyes might''ve had some effect.


    "I see. There''s no guarantee that you''ll be able to rx even if you return to your shared room."


    "Usually, I get eight hours of sleep a day. It seems I''ll struggle for a few days."


    Considering her personality, it was possible that she slept exactly eight hours.


    "Did you get along with your group members?"


    "I don''t think there''s a need to get used to them, but I''m in charge of ss A. Without me doing anything, they approach me, so I''m not having trouble getting into conversations with them."


    It seemed she wasn''t having any problems in that regard, so that was good.


    "How about you? Are you having any problems with sharing a room with unfamiliar people?"


    "Well, I''m having a good time."


    "Ayanok��ji-kun, you''re in the same group as Hashimoto-kun and Morishita-san. How is Hashimoto-kun doing?"


    "He''s acting as usual, but he seemed to be scared of something."


    "Speaking of him, there''s a strange rumor going around. Something about him betraying the ss. I''d appreciate it if you could warn him to be careful."


    "I don''t think a warning would help."


    "Hehe."


    Sakayanagiughed a little, but she didn''t seem as confident or rxed as usual.


    "Are you getting along with your group?"


    "This isn''t a special exam, just an exchange meeting, so I''m not doing anything special."


    "That''s a bit different from the information I got. Hashimoto said you''d aim to win in any way."


    "You''re not usually one to take things at face value, Ayanok��ji-kun. It''s probably just one of the excuses he used to have you scout me."


    Hashimoto''s statement might have been a bit exaggerated, but it wasn''tpletely off the mark.


    "Certainly, right after Masumi-san left, there was unexpected damage. You know that too, Ayanok��ji-kun. But, I won''t dwell on it for long."


    Sakayanagi answered with suchposure.


    "If there''s a reason why I didn''t do anything at this exchange meeting, it might be because I''m focusing on identifying someone who can be my new hands and feet."


    Indeed, Kamuro had been a significant presence as an assistant until recently.


    It was certain that her absence would make it difficult to move.


    "The person I keep close to me must be someone I can trust as much as possible."


    "What about Kit��?"


    "His loyalty is unmatched in the ss, but naturally, I''m reluctant to involve someone of the opposite sex. Yet, even among the girls, no suitable candidate has emerged."


    The only girls in ss A that I interacted with were Yamamura and Morishita. Both of them had their strengths, but they weren''t suitable for taking care of Sakayanagi.


    "Have you decided on a sessor?"


    "Not yet. So I''m expecting to be on my own for a while. I am prepared to ept this as a consequence of my own misjudgment."


    It seemed more like she wasn''t seriously looking for a recement, rather than that she couldn''t find one.


    It might''ve been an exaggeration to call it a punishment for losing Kamuro, but she seemed to be choosing to live a life of inconvenience for a while.


    That was also Sakayanagi''s choice, but there was another problem that needed to be resolved.


    Suddenly, I felt a presence behind me and turned around to see Kit�� approaching with a scary (as usual?) look on his face.


    "Good morning."


    "...There doesn''t seem to be any problems."


    Ignoring my greeting, Kit�� spoke those words to Sakayanagi.


    "There is no problem at all. Thank you for your concern."


    Watching their exchange, I understood that Kit�� had approached Sakayanagi out of concern for her.


    At a time when she was unstable after losing Kamuro, not only would it be reasonable to be sensitive to contact from Hashimoto, but from foreign existences outside the ss as well.


    "Don''t take it the wrong way, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I understand. It''s probably best to be suspicious right now."


    "Good morning!"


    As I was confronting Sakayanagi and Kit��, Amasawa slid into the gap between us.


    "Good morning, Amasawa-san. You seem to be in good spirits this morning."


    "Being energetic is one of my strengths, you know."


    Kit�� stepped back from Sakayanagi a bit, but kept his mouth shut so as not to interrupt the conversation.


    "I thought I''d give you a little encouragement before the second day of the exchange meeting starts. It seems like Ayanok��ji-senpai has been winning all along, but... you lost three times on the first day, Arisu-senpai. I''m worried that you might be in a pinch already."


    "Unfortunately, I am not inmand this time. I have left it all to the third-year."


    "Hmm? So if you lose, it can''t be helped? I was hoping for a little bit of interaction with other years this time, as it''s a valuable opportunity."


    "There''s no need to set limitations within constraints. If you wish to challenge me, I am always ready to ept, so please rest assured."


    Ignoring the exchange meeting, Sakayanagi conveyed that she was ready to take on any challenge at any time.


    However, upon hearing this, Amasawaughed it off instead of getting excited.


    "You''re bluffing. I''ve heard that you lost in the previous special exam and ended up at the bottom."


    She seemed to have thoroughly collected information about the second-year students and confronted Sakayanagi without hesitation.


    And then, the moment Amasawa tried to touch Sakayanagi as if to tease her, Kit�� grabbed her wrist mercilessly, demonstrating his role as a shield.


    "What are you doing, Kit��-senpai? Isn''t this something you should do to Ry��en-senpai or someone?"


    She portrayed herself as a weak woman, but Kit�� didn''t loosen his grip.


    "Whether it''s Ry��en or anyone else, I''ll act if necessary. Of course, I won''t choose the means to do so. Be prepared for that."


    Kit�� made such a statement against Amasawa, who was smiling but showing hostility.


    "You''re like a knight protecting a princess, but it''s interesting. I don''t mind even if you''re violent against a girl... Maybe I went too far with my joke."


    Amasawa apologized, indicating that she had no real intention of doing anything. As soon as Kit�� loosened his grip, she backed away.


    "I''ll y with you again next time. Please be ready to give it your all, Arisu-senpai!"


    Amasawa hopped away, turning around and waving her hand several times.


    "The calm atmosphere has been ruined."


    "Maybe so."


    After a little bit of that exchange, I decided to leave.


    I didn''t want to draw unnecessary attention to Sakayanagi by hanging around too much.

 Chapter 484 - 5 : The Watcher, The Watched

    <h4>Chapter 484: Chapter 5 : The Watcher, The Watched</h4>


    THE SECOND DAY of the exchange meeting began at 9 a.m.


    Today and tomorrow, given that students had toplete seven games each day, those who were ordered to participate in as many games as possible by the leader would have a slightly busier time.


    However, what they had to do was no different from the previous day.


    When the time came, they followed the delivered instructions, met up with the opposing group, and yed the game.


    On the other hand, those who didn''t participate were free to do whatever they wanted during their free time.


    Students with a high chance of winning should probably just go through the experiential learning and make sure to collect the stamps to receive the reward.


    The sixth game was ''Sculpture Experience.''


    It was a full-fledged activity where you could use professional tools to carve a stone, which was obviously different from what you would do in a school art ss. It was truly an exciting experiential learning activity.


    For me, who was determined to participate in all the games, I didn''t have much time to have an experience on my own. So, there were still many things left to learn that I hadn''t experienced yet.


    If I could, I would''ve liked to stay there for a week or two, not just these three days.


    I was lost in thought as I looked at the uncarved stones and tools prepared for the students.


    However, the two groups that had gathered were not interested in the raw stones of the works��that were full of charm��but were busy chatting about this and that.


    For ordinary students, this experiential learning is just a part of their school life...


    Well, it was easier for us to do it if it was a bit more rxed, right?


    If a specific person continued to participate in the game consecutively, it would seem to stand out a bit, but it didn''t attract attention at all.


    This was because experiential learning was always taking ce here and there, and the school didn''t disclose information as to who the participants of each group were.


    Since there were no students who were eager to gather information, no one cared whether I won or lost.


    Even if I participated in all 19 games, the only one who would know this fact would probably be Nagumo''s group, who never missed a chance to scout individual performances.


    "It seems that your group had a good start with five consecutive wins yesterday, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Kushida said while she approached me. She was assigned to the first opposing group of the day.


    "It''s just that the first-year students are doing their best. You also have four wins, so it seems you''re doing well too."


    I found out that the only game they lost was against Nagumo''s group, who were among the top contenders for first ce.


    "We decided not to worry about winning or losing. But that''s because we decided to do our best and enjoy ourselves. But everyone just wanted to take it easy and kept asking me for favors. This is my sixth consecutive participation."


    After saying that, she revealed her true feelings without breaking her smile.


    "It''s really stupid. Experiential learning is some. I wish this training camp would end soon."


    "What you say and what you do arepletely opposite."


    It was impressive that she could spit venom without moving her facial muscles much.


    "I just do it because I don''t want to lose out if I don''t put on a good face. Honestly, I don''t think we need to take this exchange meeting seriously. There are people''s eyes everywhere, in the shared room, in therge bath, at meals, and I don''t have time to rx."


    She seemingly wanted to be sent home as soon as possible, not needing any rewards or anything.


    It appeared that she felt extreme stress from having to act like a good girl in an environment that was smaller than school.


    "Don''t let the stress build up and explode."


    "I think I''m okay for now. Lately, I''ve been able to let off steam by dealing with those two."


    It went without saying that ''those two'' referred to Horikita and Ibuki.


    "It seems you lost to that Horikita group."


    "Since sincerity is their only merit, isn''t it because they''re working on various things with a straight face? Yesterday, Katsuragi-kun seemed to be immersed in practicing sswork because he couldn''t do it well, and he lined up many times."


    When it came to making things in experiential learning, many people couldn''t participate at once due to the number of instructors, equipment, and other problems. If it ovepped with the game time of the exchange meeting, they could hardly use the free participation slots, and a waiting line was inevitably formed.


    "Nagumo is determined to win, and his members are serious, so he won''t hold back."


    "Do you think they will win as expected?"


    "If we don''t take action, there''s a high chance of that happening."


    When I answered, Kushida asked back with a curious look.


    "But, even if you say ''take action,'' all we can do is practice and hope that the game we can perform well in is chosen, right? Maybe the leader can choose the right person, but..."


    "There are various other ways to increase your winning percentage to be a first-ce candidate. For example, you could buy off the opposing group and have them give us the win. If you ask with a certain amount of money and sincerity, there should be plenty of room for negotiation, right?"


    Of course, efficiency was another matter.


    It was just one example of a way to increase the chance of winning.


    Kushida imagined a scene where she was approached by an opponent for consultation.


    "Indeed, if they give me 10,000 points, I have less reason to refuse, and I would be happy to give them the win. But if I keep doing that, won''t I be in the red?"


    Of course, it depended on how much you negotiated with them. If you gave 10,000 points to five opponents, it would be 50,000 points, but you could also use a bribe to the leader to settle it for 20,000 or 30,000 points.


    However, the reason such a strategy was unlikely to spread was that there was little incentive in this exchange meeting.


    Even if the Kiry��in group could win 16 or 17 games in a row by repeatedly buying off their opponents, groups like Nagumo, who were determined to win first ce, would naturally reject being bought off, and we would have to sh head-on. As a result, if they ended up in second or third ce, they may not even be able to recover the money they used for the bribery.


    "So that''s why no one does it. It''s not profitable."


    The only one who wanted the title of victor regardless of profit and loss was probably Nagumo.


    "Is there a way to do it without spending money?"


    "It requires effort and isn''t shy, but there''s also a method that involves sealing off some experiential learning activities and not letting your rivals practice. Popr activities, as you said, form a line."


    Surrounding the students of the rival group and repeatedly dying them was also effective.


    "It sounds like something Ry��en-kun would happily use."


    "Yeah, but the reason there''s no such movement happening at the moment is because it causes the same problems as bribing does."


    "So it''s not worth it, and the risk doesn''t match the reward, right?"


    "That''s right."


    An instructor in overalls appeared and instructed the students to gather.


    "I''m rooting for your group, by the way. I''d be happy if you could let Horikita-san taste defeat."


    Even though they were now on friendly terms, she still wanted Horikita and Ibuki to lose.


    That was probably why the rtionship between the three of them was miraculously bnced.


    "Does that mean you''re going to give us the win in this game?"


    "I wonder about that."


    She had a cute smile on her face, but she didn''t seem to be going easy on us.


    Still, the result of the game with Kushida''s group was a 3-2 victory for our group.


    Thanks to my passion for artistic activities, which other students didn''t have, I was able to win.


    After that, the games of the exchange meeting continued solemnly without any shy movements, both in the morning and in the afternoon.


    <strong>[Trump]</strong>


    [TL/N: Trump refers to the card game category]


    In the seventh game since the first day, it was the first battle where luck yed a big part. As a result, the whole group, including me, suffered a spectacr defeat and recorded our first loss. This meant that I could only afford to lose one more game. However, among the rather modest exchange meeting, the card games brought quite a bit of excitement, and many students were enjoying it much more than the six games we''d yed so far.


    <strong>[Chalk Art]</strong>


    Drawing pictures on a reasonably sized ckboard with chalk. The fact that we weren''t drawing original works, but copying made it surprisingly easy to tackle. Chalk was a bit different from colored pencils and crayons, which we usually used to decorate with color.


    While I struggled with the unique texture, it was also a moment when I touched a new world of art.


    As a result ofpeting for the quality of the copies, I was able to win in the individualpetition, and as a group, we were able to win 3-2.


    <strong>[Miniature Golf]</strong>


    From the indoor exchange meeting in the morning, we went outside on a small golf course for experience.


    Before the start, there were many male volunteers, and taking all that into consideration, the leader''s choice led to a slightly unusual situation where all the participants were male. Furthermore, everyone was inexperienced in this game. Whether this level ying field worked against us or not, the game was just as exciting as the trump card, if not more. Although I won in the individualpetition, the other four lost by a small margin, resulting in our second group loss.


    <strong>[Patchwork]</strong>


    It was a word you might not hear often. Patchwork was a type of handicraft where small pieces of cloth were connected to make arge sheet. How much could bepleted within the time limit, and the design, etc., were evaluated. The opponent who appeared here was the Tatebayashi group, which had a dispute on the first day due to K��enji''s selfish behavior. Their record so far was one win and nine losses.


    All five participants were girls and experienced sewers, a formidable enemy. Moreover, the misfortune of colliding with Inogashira, who excelled among the experienced sewers, resulted in my second individual loss. The group also suffered its third loss.


    <strong>[Archery]</strong>


    The 11th game, where we wanted to avoid consecutive losses, was another outdoor sport.


    Even if you hadn''t done it before, you could probably imagine the rules. It''s apetition using a type of archery called recurve, where we aimed at a target one-on-one. Normally in recurve archery, you shoot an arrow at a target 70 meters away, but in this experiential learning, it was set at 20 meters. Each person was given six arrows, and the total points werepeted for. The center of the target was ten points and the outermost part was one point.


    Morishita, who volunteered to participate, entered the game but was unable to handle it well and couldn''t hit the target even once, a slight ident, but both the group and I were sessful in avoiding consecutive losses.


    <strong>[sswork]</strong>


    Thest match of the second day was sswork. This facility had arge workshop prepared, and the items made could be taken home, making it a popr experiential learning activity among the students. The opponent didn''t care much about winning and had a low win rate, and each person made what they wanted to make, so I was able to win in the judging for the individualpetition in terms ofpletion and speed.


    On the other hand, in the grouppetition, Hiyori showed her skill once again and contributed to the victory.


    At the end of the second day, the halfway point of thepetition, the total group results of the exchange meeting were twelve games, nine wins, and three losses.

 Chapter 485: 5.1

    <h4>Chapter 485: 5.1</h4>


    It was just before 6 p.m., a time to rx after the exchange meeting.


    The rest area inside the building was a bit crowded.


    This was because a free drink corner had been ced so the tired students could rx. There were several types of tea and juice, and there was a row of small paper cups, stacked upside down.


    "Your group seems to be doing quite well."


    Sanada said as I ran into him. We stopped by the rest area at almost the same time.


    Kiry��in''s group was tied for sixth ce with nine wins and three losses.


    Depending on tomorrow''s results, it was possible to aim for the podium.


    "I have reliable allies helping."


    I distinctly recognized how good at detailed work Hiyori was.


    Her ability to handle things like oshibana and sswork was far higher than that of an average student, which required not only technical skills but also aesthetic sense.


    This was something I would never have noticed if I hadn''t spent time with her in experiential learning.


    "How are the students of ss A? Are they cooperating well?"


    He asked hesitantly, seemingly concerned about his ssmates.


    "Hashimoto hasn''t participated in any activities yet. He''s in more of a support role. Yamamura is participating in the matches, and her honesty is helpful."


    However, Yamamura had seemed listlesstely, but I didn''t mention that.


    When I talked positively about them, Sanada listened with joy as if it were about himself.


    "Then there''s Morishita... Well, cooperative... no, creative, I guess."


    "Creative. That might be true."


    Morishita, in contrast to Hiyori, was not dexterous with her hands, but rather clumsy.


    I think she''s seriously trying, but she''s not producing results. There might be something artistic about her ability to create bizarre things.


    Even her attempt at archery was terrible.


    While talking, the two of us stood in a short line, and I took a paper cup and poured tea into it. Sanada seemed to have chosen hot coffee.


    "I see. Honestly, I''m d that the three of them are in the same group as you this time."


    There might be some elements of courtesy in his words, but something about Sanada''s statement bothered me.


    "Why do you think so? There should be many others who are more approachable."


    Even if we limited it to Horikita''s ss, Y��suke and Kushida would be much more capable.


    "Well, it''srgely because of how Sakayanagi-san sees it. Even I can tell that she treats you in a special way. After thest exam, Kit��-kun has been on edge, but I think he''s still able to keep his self-control in check because you''re by Hashimoto-kun''s side."


    For Hashimoto, it had been a series of unexpected good luck since the day he came to my room.


    "Are all three of them blending well into the group? I think Hashimoto-kun will be fine, but I don''t think Morishita-san and Yamamura-san will."


    "I wonder. I''m honestly leaving the girls to the other girls... Are you worried?"


    Does he specifically have concerns about the two of them, or is he just worried about his ssmates?


    Both have distinct personalities, so it wouldn''t be surprising.


    "Actually, I''ve been watching over Morishita-san quite a bit since our first-year."


    "If Miya heard that, she might cry."


    "Eh, what? No, not at all. I only have eyes for Miya-san!"


    Sanada, who was usually calm, hastily corrected himself.


    His reaction strongly conveyed his desire to not be misunderstood.


    "Part of it is because we sat near each other in our first-year... She''s the type to say everything she thinks and doesn''t shy away from anything, so she''s had her fair share of small troubles."


    Indeed, she had recently made several remarks that had taken Hashimoto aback.


    "She seems to be an outsider in the ss."


    "Yes... It''s a bad way to put it, but she is perceived that way."


    It wasn''t like Ichinose''s ss, where everyone was friendly. There were people you liked and people you didn''t. It was normal to show it in your everyday attitude.


    "I''m not familiar with the situation, but Morishita doesn''t care, does she?"


    If Morishita enjoyed being alone, it wasn''t for others to judge.


    That was probably why Sanada said he had been watching over her.


    "Yes, well I''ve never seen her seem to care..."


    "I don''t think you need to worry so much. But I understand what you want to say, Sanada. I''ll keep an eye on her for the uing day and a half we''re in the group."


    "...Yes. Thank you."


    Sanada took a sip of the hot coffee he had poured into his cup, lightly cooling it with a gentle blow.


    He seemed to finally be able to rx.


    "Sanada-senpai!"


    While we were resting shoulder to shoulder, a girl from ss 1-B, Miya, spotted Sanada and ran over.


    Realizing that I was talking to Sanada, she hastily bowed.


    "I''ll be in the way, so I''ll go back to my room. See youter, Sanada."


    "Yes, see youter."


    They haven''t been together for long, but they seem to be getting along very well.


    They could always be together in the brass band club, and they must''ve been having a lot of fun together as students.


    It''d be wise to leave quickly before causing any unnecessary trouble.

 Chapter 486: 5.2

    <h4>Chapter 486: 5.2</h4>


    After dinner, most students were rxing in their rooms or baths.


    Tokit�� quietly left the shared room upon receiving a phone call from Ishizaki.


    H��sen Kazuomi, the most problematic first-year student, was in Tokit��''s group. However, Tokit�� didn''t see H��sen''s existence as a problem and even criticized his arrogant attitude.


    He wasn''t particrly exceptional in fighting, intelligence, or talking.


    The only reason Tokit�� could stand without fear was because of his rebellious spirit that he maintained under Ry��en''s control. It was undoubtedly thanks to that two-year experience.


    The area where the experiential sses gathered, their destination, was already deserted and quiet.


    The ce where Ishizaki called him was in front of the pottery ss.


    When he peered in through the window in the hallway, he saw a line of student-made works.


    The pottery and other items made here, like the sswork experience, could be shipped to your home after they were fired[11] if you wished, this includes his work in the ''painting'' activity that Tokit�� participated in during this morning''s game.


    [TL/N: In order for y to dry and harden, it has to be exposed to high temperatures, typically within a kiln. This process is called "firing."]


    "...You call someone out, yet you''re not here."


    He was about to take out his phone from his jersey pocket in irritation. That was when it happened.


    "Hey, sorry to keep you waiting."


    "What do you want, Ishizaki?"


    Tokit��, irritated by the leisurely approaching Ishizaki, called out to him, but Ishizaki walked up without answering his question.


    "Don''t you know what I want?"


    "How would I know... You didn''t write anything specific."


    The message he received only suggested urgency, saying ''Come quickly.''


    "Well, I guess you wouldn''t know. To be honest, I don''t even know what I want."


    It was strange that Ishizaki, who had called him, didn''t know about it.


    "You don''t know? I don''t understand at all��"


    Just as he was about to voice his dissatisfaction, Tokit�� felt a strong pressure on his back.


    And immediately after, he realized that he had been forcefully pushed against the wall.


    "Hey. What the hell do you think you''re doing?"


    A devil whispered in his ear with augh.


    "Ry��en...!? What do you mean? What... what are you doing!"


    Surprised, but managing to keep his shock to a minimum, he turned his gaze behind him.


    "I thought you needed more discipline, so I made a surprise appearance."


    Held down forcefully, Tokit�� couldn''t escape.


    Even if he could momentarily break free from his restraint, he knew that Ishizaki, who was watching nearby, woulde to help.


    "I don''t... understand..."


    His arm was tightened to the limit and the pain crept up to his back.


    "Do you really not understand?"


    There was one thing he actually remembered, but he couldn''t say it and yed dumb.


    "I didn''t do anything..."


    "Really? I''ve got a report from my underlings about you."


    "W-what? W-what is that!? What are you talking about!?"


    He insisted that he didn''t understand, but his heart was palpitating in his chest from his anxiety.


    He hoped that what he had sensed had nothing to do with him, but that hope was shattered immediately after.


    "Sinceing to the training camp, I''ve received four reports that you''ve been trying to get along with Sakayanagi."


    When the name Sakayanagi came up, Tokit�� gave up on ying dumb.


    "I just happened to meet her, and we just chatted. I don''t understand what''s wrong with that...!"


    "That''s possible, but unfortunately, I don''t believe it."


    Considering how frequently they spoke��people who weren''t even in the same group��it was hard to pretend it was just a coincidence.


    "And you don''t know what''s wrong? That''s a funny story."


    "Ugh..."


    Tokit�� averted his gaze, having his pretense seen through.


    Ry��en pursued him, forcing eye contact as he brought his face closer.


    "She''s on the decline now. She''ll fall and be done by the next end-of-year exam. That''s why I told you not to carelessly intervene, didn''t I?"


    Ry��en had particrly warned Kond�� and Jima, who were in the same group as Sakayanagi when they were announced on the bus. There was no way Tokit�� hadn''t heard the warning in the silent bus.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    "So does a casual conversation... require an intervention or something?"


    "It doesn''t. And I told you this before too, right? Either ignore Sakayanagi or, if possible, inflict psychological damage and corner her thoroughly. Did you interpret that as some sort of light-hearted chat, Ishizaki?"


    "Absolutely not!"


    "That''s right, isn''t it? You, someone smarter than Ishizaki, should have understood."


    In reality, Tokit�� did the exact opposite.


    Reports hade in that he was often seen caring for and supporting Sakayanagi, not just having casual conversations.


    "You even told Isoyama, who saw you talking, to keep quiet, didn''t you? You should''ve known whose order he''d follow, mine or yours."


    Ishizaki, who was listening nearby, aggressively nodded several times.


    "Learn your lesson, Tokit��. It''ll make things easier for you. Even Ry��en-san will forgive you."


    If he pledged obedience here, he would at least be released from constraint.


    But Tokit�� bit his lip hard and red at Ry��en while trying to shake him off.


    "I... I just..."


    "Just what?"


    With no point in hiding anything anymore, and feeling foolish for trying, Tokit�� spat out his agitated words.


    "I just wanted tofort Sakayanagi, who was sad about her friend being expelled...!"


    "Huh. You want to fuck Sakayanagi that bad?"


    [TL/N: (�S) While not inherently sexual in any way, Ry��en purposely interpreted fort'' as a double entendre. The word ''Fuck'' is not a mistrantion. See (����.)]


    "No, that''s not it! It''s not like that!"


    "Is that so? It sounds like that to me."


    Ry��en,ughing, continued his words.


    "Should I set up a stage for you to assault her then? Even thatposed woman will be torn apart physically and mentally if you fuck her."


    At such a devilish whisper, Tokit��''s anger shot through the roof in an instant. With a sudden increase in strength, he broke free from Ry��en''s restraint.


    "Don''t mess with me!"


    Driven by his enraged emotions, he tried to grab Ry��en with both hands, but hisughing figure disappeared from his sight. He received a kick flying up from below, gritted his teeth, and was restrained again.


    "Hehehe, don''t take it seriously. But if you''re up for it, I could let you take on the role to corner Sakayanagi."


    "...I won''t obey you... I''ll never ept this...!"


    He refused to yield to the threat and seemed to have expressed his intention to continue his treatment of Sakayanagi.


    Recognizing that his spirit and determination were genuine, Ry��en didn''t stop his harsh treatment.


    "Then shall I make you understand with your body?"


    "Don''t mess with me, you can''t��"


    Before Tokit�� could finish speaking, Ry��en clenched his left fist and rammed it into Tokit��''s abdomen without hesitation.


    "Ugh...!"


    With an agonizing yelp from the unfamiliar intense pain, Tokit��''s knees buckled.


    However, Ry��en''s grip on him didn''t allow him to rest on the ground.


    "There are no school surveince cameras here. Right, Ishizaki?"


    "Yes! I''ve confirmed that there are none in this area!"


    "To think you''d obey such a guy...!"


    Tokit�� condemned, irritated by Ishizaki''s attitude.


    "I understand what you want to say, Tokit��. I''ve been rampaging with full control of the ss, but I once gave up that position. You must have felt good then, right?"


    "Yeah... I felt like I''d driven out the naked king...!"[13]


    [TL/N: (�����) From The Emperor''s New Clothes, refers to someone in a position of power being in denial or unaware of their own ws or mistakes, while others are too afraid to point them out]


    At Tokit��''s mercilessment, Ishizaki put his hand to his forehead, as if saying ''Oh dear.''


    If you said something disrespectful, you''d be purged. That was the norm, and it was ingrained in his body.


    However, Ry��en opened his eyes in amusement rather than inflicting any more physical pain.


    "That''s too bad. After all, I''m back in my former position and doing whatever I want. It must be frustrating."


    He looked at himself objectively, without a need to think about how he was perceived by the people below him.


    That being said, Ry��en didn''t change his attitude.


    "Do you hate me?"


    "I hate you... to death..."


    "Then don''t hold back. Show me you can take me down by force. I won''t run or hide. But if you raise your fist, I''ll corner you no matter what. The only way out is expulsion. Be prepared for that."


    Everyone, not just Tokit��, understood well that Ry��en wasn''t afraid of defeat.


    That was why they would only rise in revolt if they were absolutely determined to overthrow him.


    "Got it? This is my advice. If you understand, don''t ever help Sakayanagi again."


    Despite the pain in his restrained arm, he gently told him that he could still turn back.


    "What if... I disobey... your order...?"


    Ry��en pleasantly smiled at Tokit��''s question, which didn''t need to be asked.


    "I''ll crush you. Simple as that."


    The same would happen even if he didn''t raise his fist.


    He''d relentlessly attack those who didn''t obey.


    "...!"


    Despite being threatened, Tokit�� continued to re at Ry��en without losing his rebellious spirit.


    "That''s good, Tokit��. I find that part of you interesting. So let''s see how long you can keep that look in your eyes."


    While looking down at his aching arm, in this inescapable situation, he made up his mind immediately.


    "You can rest assured knowing that I won''t let Ishizakiy a hand on you."


    Ry��en, who gave Tokit�� the time to catch his breath and the right to strike first, took a step back and widened his arms.


    "I''ll do it... I won''t lose... to someone like you..."


    He reassured himself and rubbed his fists together.


    There was a significant gap in theirbat abilities.


    But he was prepared to go all out and punch Ry��en in the face at least once.


    If he was prepared for the bacsh, he should be able to do it.


    Just as he was about to make up his mind, an unexpected person appeared.


    "I came looking for Paisen[14]. I sent him on an errand, but he didn''te back, and what do I find here?"


    [TL/N: (�ѥ�����) Paisen, a disrespectful/ng way of saying senpai, derived from switching sen and pai]


    The one who appeared on the scene, hand on his neck, was H��sen from ss 1-D.


    He had a long-standing rtionship with Ry��en since middle school.


    "What''s going on, Tokit��-paisen?"


    "...It''s nothing..."


    Although they were in the same group, Tokit�� couldn''t cry to his first-year k��hai.


    But there was no way nothing was going on when he was confronting Ry��en with his fist clenched. He had pride as a senpai who couldn''t cry to his k��hai in the first-year, but this was also a problem within the ss. He didn''t want to cause any trouble to his group because of this.


    "Get lost. You''re in the way."


    Ry��en tried to shoo him away with a light wave of his hand, saying it would spoil the mood.


    "If there''s nothing going on, go buy us first-years some drinks right away."


    H��sen, for his part, ignored Ry��en and spoke to Tokit�� in a strong tone.


    "Huh? Drinks? What on earth...!"


    Tokit��, who had been given the right to strike first, was dumbfounded and missed his opportunity. Ry��en''s arm reached out again. He pressed his left forearm against his throat and mmed him against the wall.


    "Ugh...!?"


    Tokit�� let out a scream of agony, unable to fully voice his pain.


    "Back off, H��sen. I''m not dealing with you right now."


    "I don''t care about that. I''m talking to Tokit��-paisen here. You''re the outsider, so back off. Or do you want to die?"


    "...Ha! You came all this way to look for him? Don''t make me fall asleep."


    Ry��en suspected that someone was behind H��sen.


    "No, H��sen has nothing to do with it... I just told Ishizaki that I was called to this ce."


    "Huh? Hey Ishizaki, what kind of message did you send?"


    "Huh!? It-it was just a normal one! I just told him to hurry to the experiential ssroom area, that''s all!"


    Ishizaki''s careless mistake of not taking into ount the potential risks in telling people where to go when they''re vacating the dormitory.


    Seeing Ry��en smirk slightly through his nose, Ishizaki realized he had made a mistake.


    "Sorry, Ry��en-san! Hey, H��sen, you go over there!"


    Ishizaki tried to make amends by grabbing H��sen''s thick right arm, but he was easily shaken off.


    "Don''t touch me. I''ll kill you."


    "Uh...!"


    Ishizaki flinched at H��sen''s intense intimidation, which waspletely different from the feared Ry��en''s.


    Instead of leaving, H��sen started walking towards Ry��en and Tokit��.


    "It seems he wants to y. Albert, you handle this guy."


    Without making a sound, Albert appeared in front of H��sen, blocking his way.


    "As always, you can''t do anything without relying on your underlings."


    "Fighting isn''t just about charging in alone like an idiot."


    H��sen yawned, then immediately spat phlegm on the floor.


    "I''ve always wanted to fight you, Albert. It might be more fun than ying table tennis."


    In the chaotic situation that was unbefitting of a training camp, Ry��en shifted his gaze from H��sen and looked directly at Tokit��.


    "Now that the nuisance is gone, let''s continue the fight��"


    "Excuse me, but could you let go of your hand, Ry��en-senpai?"


    "Huh?"


    The person who spoke up to stop Ry��en, who was about to impose further punishment, was Utomiya Riku from ss 1-C.


    "What? Utomiya, you came too?"


    "W-What''s going on?"


    The only one who was disturbed was Ishizaki.


    "Huh? Oh right, you were listening to Tokit��-senpai too."


    "I came to see if you were going to raise your hand against Senpai."


    "Where are your eyes? There''s no way I''m going to raise my hand."


    Despite looking at H��sen with contempt, Utomiya walked towards Tokit�� and Ry��en.


    Ishizaki tried to stop him, but he was pulled in by H��sen''s long arm, which was holding the sleeve of his jersey.


    With no one to stop him, Utomiya fearlessly closed the distance and grabbed the upper arm of Ry��en, who was still holding down Tokit��.


    "Tokit��-senpai is a member of my group. If he gets injured here, it could have an effect tomorrow. No matter how much it''s an in-ss issue, I can''t overlook it."


    Without needing an exnation, Utomiya intervened to mediate the situation, sensing trouble from the tense atmosphere.


    "I don''t care. Don''t join in the barking at this shitty exchange meeting."


    "...The problem is the guy who''s using his position to threaten others at this shitty exchange meeting..."


    Far from backing down, Utomiya increased his anger and spoke out against Ry��en.


    "What? Then why don''t you try stopping me?"


    "Are you okay with that? You''ll be embarrassed in front of your friends as a senpai."


    Having given up on using politenguage, Utomiya quickly prepared for a fight.


    "Hey, hey, hey, hey! Don''t start with Ry��en on your own!"


    H��sen, opposing the development, yelled loudly throughout the corridor.


    "Shut up, H��sen. I don''t need you. Don''t cause unnecessary trouble."


    "Huh? What''s with you? Do you know who you''re talking to?"


    "Even if I talk to a big gori, words won''t get through."


    It seemed that Utomiya hade to support Tokit��, but he treated H��sen the same way as Ry��en.


    "Fine, then. I''ll start with you before Albert-paisen."


    "How many times do I have to tell you? I''ll take you on anytime."


    Seeing the first-years start to quarrel, Ry��en couldn''t help but burst outughing at the unfamiliar sight.


    "Hehehe. This school''s getting quite noisy. I thought it was full of boring, serious people when I entered, but now, quite a few hot-blooded ones are showing their faces. I''m more than weing of it."


    With the addition of H��sen and Utomiya, Ry��en released his hold on Tokit��.


    He took his gaze off Tokit��, who was sitting down and coughing roughly.


    "I''ll take your revenge match right here, H��sen. I''ll take on you first-years all at once while I''m at it."


    Ry��en, who no longer cared about Tokit�� in this situation, said.


    "Sounds good. This camp is getting fun. First, disappear!"


    H��sen''s powerful fist was caught by Albert''s hand, and Albert''s lips were tightly closed.


    "Oh, you can endure it! That''s how it should be!"


    The situation was beginning to look like it wouldn''t settle down unless it turned violent, but H��sen''s loud voice brought the situation to an abrupt end.


    "What''s going on? What are you guys doing?"


    Several boys and girls, led by the third-years, began to appear in the experiential ssroom area after hearing themotion.


    "Tsk. It was getting interesting."


    "Damn it."


    H��sen, ignorant of being the one who raised their voice, clicked his tongue just like Ry��en.


    "This isn''t a fight, is it?"


    "No, it''s not. We were just having a light-hearted conversation."


    Utomiya immediately went in front of the third-years and covered everything up with that im.


    Seeing how bad the situation had gotten, Ry��en and H��sen, while ring at each other, naturally turned their backs and kept their distance.


    "Let''s go, Albert, and you too, Ishizaki. I''ll teach you lotster."


    "Y-Yes! Thank you!!"


    The three of them ignored the two first-year students and Tokit�� who were ring at them, and left the scene.


    As he was leaving, Albert looked at H��sen''srge back and muttered.


    "His fighting ability may be equal to or greater than Ayanokoji. He''s a tremendous freshman."


    The weight of the punch he received was as intense as Ayanok��ji''s, as the numbness in his hand had told him.


    It was a telling statement, implying that it wasn''t a good idea to fight him.


    However, Ry��en couldn''t help butugh at Albert''s remark.


    "Don''t make meugh. If it''s just simple power, he might be able topete with him, but if youpare their overall strength, there''s noparison. The source of Ayanok��ji''s strength is not so simple."


    After opening his fist and looking at his palm, Albert recalled the incident on the rooftop and agreed.


    His heart remembered. He was an opponent who transcended the ordinary standards of weight.


    "But Tokit��, he seemed to be quite into Sakayanagi... Don''t we need to do something? Like Hashimoto''s betrayal..."


    Ry��en had already anticipated Ishizaki''s anxiety without him having to put it into words.


    "Tokit�� is not that stupid. We should leave it at that. We''ve already nailed him enough."


    "...Yes. If you say so, Ry��en-san."


    "We''ll focus on ss A. The most troublesome one right now is Kit��, not Sakayanagi. He could go berserk at any moment."


    "It feels like a war."


    "War, huh? Indeed, anything could happen from here on out."


    The end-of-year exams that will start soon.


    Ry��en, who understood that turmoil would ur, began to prepare for what was toe.

 Chapter 487: 5.3

    <h4>Chapter 487: 5.3</h4>


    At the time, I had no way of knowing that there was a war going on between Ry��en, Tokit��, and H��sen. After the bath, I was sitting on the sofa in the lobby, leisurely looking at the ceiling.


    It was right next to the seat where Sakayanagi was sitting this morning.


    The investigation Hashimoto requested��I made contact this morning and was personally satisfied with the results, but I hadn''t reported anything back, so he was probably still expecting me to produce results. Even though I didn''t feel like it, I thought I should at least do something that looked like it, so I came here.


    "Ah~! Ayanok��ji-kun! Hey, can you listen to my story~!?"


    Sat��, who was about to return to her shared room, changed her course when she saw me and approached with a frustrated look.


    "What happened?"


    "It''s the exchange meeting��the exchange meeting. I was seriously aiming for the top, so..."


    She didn''t try to hide her disappointment, and her shoulders slumped dramatically.


    "I wanted to buy something, and I tried my best in my own way. Ugh."


    Sat��''s group had finished 12 matches in two days, garnering seven wins and five losses.


    They were doing well enough, but they were in a tough spot if they wanted to finish in third ce.


    "If you keep up the good work, there''s a pretty good chance you''ll finish in the top ten, isn''t there?"


    They could get 5000 points just by achieving that cement. Not a bad amount.


    "Yeah, that''s definitely the goal. But what worries me is that the group''s motivation has dropped quite a bit because of today''s results..."


    If they were aiming for a high ranking, it was natural to feel down.


    The difference between the top and bottom was extreme in this exchange meeting.


    The losing groups had 11 or 12 losses in 12 games, and they just couldn''t win.


    As a result, the wins were concentrated in groups like the Nagumo group, who were taking it seriously.


    The difference between the third-ce group and Sat��''s group was three wins. Quite a significant amount.


    "Thest game for today��I regret it..."


    "Which was thest group you were up against?"


    I asked because I didn''t know which group Sat��''s group was fighting against.


    Sat�� showed a slightly regretful face, but told me.


    "��It was Minamikawa-senpai''s group."


    She was from ss 3-C. I remember Onodera being in Minamikawa''s group.


    It was a well-known fact that Sat�� and Onodera, who had been at odds to begin with, were not on good terms. If they felt they had misspoken, it seemed reasonable to assume that was the cause behind their discord.


    Both Sat�� and Onodera were typical female students as far as I could tell.


    From an outsider''s perspective, it wouldn''t be strange for them to get along, but that wasn''t how human rtionships work.


    Is she still not fond of Onodera? It would be easy to ask, but it wasn''t something I should ask.


    "You have no choice but to carry that regret into tomorrow. There''s still a chance depending on how hard you try."


    "...Yeah."


    After changing the topic and talking for a while, Sat�� was called by her group and left.


    After that, without gaining anything significant, I returned to my shared room.


    "There''s no one here."


    The room was empty except for a slightly disheveled futon.


    When I turned on my phone, I found a message from Hashimoto that had arrived about ten minutes ago.


    [I''m going to the girls'' room, so let''s meet up there.]


    He was quite carefree for someone who requested an investigation.


    Well, going to the opposite sex''s room to y might be one of the staples of a training camp.


    After restoring the trampled futon, I decided to head to the girls'' room.


    About five minutes after reading Hashimoto''s message, I arrived at the girls'' shared room.


    The same building, the sameyout, the same furniture, and decorations.


    It was a matter of course, but there really was no difference from the shared room the boys were using.


    The only difference was the presence of the opposite sex.


    Even though it''s neither more nor less than our shared room, why does it look so different?


    Whether you perceived this as a good or bad space was up to each individual.


    From the first-year students to Kiry��in in the third-year, all the girls were present.


    All the first-year boys looked tense but somewhat happy.


    Yamamura looked a bit down, her expression darker than usual. She had no role in this exchange meeting, and I knew the least about how she was spending her time in the group.


    "Hey, you came."


    "You called me."


    The boys seemed to be having more fun than I thought.


    But the girls'' energy was lower than I thought it''d be. In other words, they didn''t seem to be having fun.


    Those two pieces of information entered my brain in an instant.


    Hashimoto probably brought the boys to the girls'' room to y, somewhat forcibly.


    "We''re a bit stuck. Do you have anything to liven things up? The room''s atmosphere is a bit heavy, isn''t it? How about a one-liner to dispel that?"


    "I don''t have such a gag, but how about this for a bit of fun?"


    I took out a certain case that I had stuffed in my jersey pocket and showed it to him.


    "Oh, that''s nice. You''re quite thoughtful."


    Since the game list for experiential learning also included cards, there were plenty of them prepared and they could be obtained immediately.


    Hashimoto seemed to wee this, reaching out his hand and asking to borrow it.


    When he took it, he opened the case and took out a deck of cards.


    "ying cards is the most ssic of ssics, isn''t it, Ayanok��ji?"


    Kiry��in, who had been sitting and looking at her phone, spoke to me without getting up.


    "I was once told by a blonde senpai that ying cards is a staple of training camps."


    "Huh? Could it be Nagumo?"


    She sat up, leaning back in her chair, and asked with interest.


    When I nodded in confirmation, Kiry��inughed a little as if she found the fact amusing.


    "That man also does such clich�� things."


    "Besides, today was the first time our group lost in a card game, so I''m also reflecting on it."


    "ying cards, huh?"


    Morishita, who had been looking out the window near Kiry��in, muttered as if she had noticed something.


    Then, while sitting in seiza[15], she approached by kicking the tatami mats with both hands.


    [TL/N: (����) Seiza, where one sits on their heels with legs folded underneath the thighs and the buttocks resting on the heels, maintaining an upright, straight back]


    "Let''s do that. That. The game where the person who has the Joker at the end loses."


    "You seem very excited... Do you like ying cards?"


    "I can''t say whether I like it or not. I''ve never done it before."


    "You''ve never done it? There really are fossil-like people who still exist?"


    Hashimoto was surprised, his eyes wide.


    "There were no people worth ying cards with."


    Does that mean she didn''t have any friends that she could do this with until now?


    "Wait a minute. That''s strange. Didn''t you give yourself a five for being good at cards?"


    Indeed, Morishita had given herself the highest rating, a five, for ying cards.


    "I thought I would excel even if I was inexperienced, given my talent. After all, it was not a confirmation of whether I was good at it or not, but a one-to-five evaluation of whether I had confidence, right? So, it''s a five."


    She answered confidently, puffing out her chest. She certainly seemed sure of herself.


    "But you didn''t seem to be called for today''s game."


    Only Kiry��in, the leader, knew the answer to why she wasn''t chosen.


    "That''s right. Why didn''t you choose me?"


    "Isn''t it suspicious to say you''re confident in ying cards? That''s why I left you out."


    It seemed she made that judgment based on the rating list. Her impression was correct.


    "Well, never mind that. Let''s y cards anyway. Please distribute them quickly, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    I can tell that she really wants to y, so I don''t feel bad for bringing it. But not everyone can y at once, so what to do?


    "How about this? Four yers per game. A game for boys only and a game for girls only. Then a mixed game."


    Hashimoto, noticing my indecision, suggested a way to arrange the yers.


    "That''s not a bad idea. Let''s go with that."


    Morishita was already eager, showing no signs of refusal. I thought the quiet Tsubaki might not have wanted to y, but it seemed that the other first-year students, Tsubaki included, were surprisingly enthusiastic.


    "How about youe over, Yamamura?"


    I called out to Yamamura, who was sitting alone in the distance, but she shook her head from side to side.


    "Um... I''ll... watch."


    "Are you sure?"


    Yamamura, who seemed to have no intention of participating, nodded slightly in refusal.


    "There''s no need to include someone who says they don''t want to y. Come on, let''s get started."


    Under the pressure of the energetic Morishita, the girls'' card game match immediately began.


    "This exchange meeting is a good exchange meeting."[16]


    [TL/N: This just the way she speaks]


    "That''s a cheap evaluation. Are you satisfied just because you can y cards?"


    Hashimoto, sitting cross-legged, muttered, resting his elbow on his knee.


    "I''m satisfied, but please don''t look at my cards from behind."


    "I won''t reveal your hand."


    "I don''t know when Hashimoto Masayoshi might betray us."


    While saying that, she hid her hand with her body.


    Hashimoto''s smiling bitterly, but he really is a traitor...


    "But it''s starting to be clear now."


    Morishita was having her first experience, but she wasn''t just enjoying it, she was also doing her own analysis.


    "There are several strategies in this game."


    Saying that, Morishita held only one card in one of her hands so that it stood out conspicuously.


    "Please go ahead, Shiina Hiyori. Don''t hesitate to draw any card you like."


    "Somehow... I''m a little curious about this one card."


    "Is that so? This is the advanced strategy I came up with."


    By the way, Hashimoto couldn''t see it anymore, but from where I was sitting, I could clearly see Morishita''s hand.


    Apparently, the isted card seemed to be the Joker.


    Because it was so suspicious, there was no way it''d be the Joker��that seemed to be the aim.


    From a strategic point of view, it might not be a bad move.


    Although it couldn''t be proven that the likelihood itself increased, it seemed to have a big enough psychological effect to make her want to draw that one card, to make her want to try it.


    "What should I do...?"


    Hiyori, who was suspicious, tried to escape to the four cards on Morishita''s right hand, but her fingertips stopped.


    She seemed to be bothered by the one card in her left hand.


    "Please choose as you like."


    Morishita''sck of emotions,bined with her personality, made for a perfect distraction.


    After a long thought, Hiyori was mesmerized and ended up drawing the one card on her left hand.


    She pulled it towards her, turned it over, and was disappointed to find out that the card she had picked was a joker.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    Everyone must''ve realized who had drawn the Joker from her obvious reaction.


    "You still have a lot to learn if you show it on your face."


    After that, the game continued in silence for a few rounds.


    The first one out was the first-year student Eikura, followed by Hatsukawa.


    Morishita, who had sessfully passed the joker early on, ended up losing to the two first-year students in the subsequent card matching, and it came down to the final showdown with Hiyori.


    And then it led to a scenario where Hiyori held two cards and Morishita held thest one.


    "Please go ahead, Morishita-san."


    She smoothly held out two cards in the same way.


    Morishita, staring intently, grabbed the trump card on the right side from our perspective with her fingertips.


    But she didn''t immediately pull it. She asked Hiyori a question.


    "Is this it?"


    "...What?"


    "I thought it might not be the Joker."


    "I can''t answer that."


    "I think it''s the Joker."


    "I see... then you might want to avoid it. Do you want to switch to the opposite card?"


    "Is that okay? You''ll lose, you know?"


    "But I don''t actually know which one the Joker is."


    "You''re naive, Shiina Hiyori. The mystery is all solved."


    Morishita let go of the card she was holding, grabbed the one on the left, and pulled it out with force.


    The card Morishita showed us was... a five of hearts.


    "I win."


    "I lost."


    Hiyori seemed to be enjoying, even if she lost. However, she did look disappointed.


    On the other hand, Morishita seemed to have been driven by a desire to win at all costs.


    After that, they yed a boys-only game, followed by a mixed game with both boys and girls.


    "Let''s move on to the next game! The next game!"


    Morishita still wanted to y, but I voiced a concern that had been on my mind for a while.


    "Isn''t it about time for Yamamura to join in?"


    "...No, I''m... fine..."


    She had been watching us the whole time, but her gaze didn''t seem to fall on the game.


    She looked distracted and not at all energetic.


    I had hoped that ying cards would cheer her up, but maybe that was too much to ask.


    "Yamamura-san, won''t you join us? It''s fun."


    At that moment, Hiyori approached and invited her.


    "But..."


    "Come on, please join us."


    Unable to refuse Hiyori''s gentle demeanor, Yamamura reluctantly joined in. But as soon as the game started, unexpected troubles arose.


    "Um, it''s my turn..."


    "Oops, sorry, Yamashita-senpai. Please, go ahead and draw."


    Yamamura, who was about to be skipped by the student next to her, hastily offered her cards.


    They got her name wrong, yet she didn''t even bother trying to correct it.


    Even though we were all sitting in a circle, the student drawing from Yamamura''s hand skipped her.


    Maybe she had been avoiding the card game because she feared this would happen.


    A single mistake could be overlooked, but when it happened repeatedly, it was noticeable even to me, watching from the sidelines.


    Was Yamamura''s presence really that faint?


    I had known about her tailing skills for a while, but it was usually impossible to overlook her when watching with the naked eye.


    However, it was unclear whether this was because I was consciously trying to be aware of Yamamura, or because others were not paying attention to her.


    I decided to ask someone the next time I had the chance.

 Chapter 488: 5.4

    <h4>Chapter 488: 5.4</h4>


    On the way back from the girls'' room.


    When I looked at my phone, I realized that it was already quitete, with only about 20 minutes until lights-out.


    "Man, that was fun! But why do girls'' rooms smell so good?"


    "Right, right... And wasn''t Tsubaki-san cute?"


    "Really? Are you a fan of Tsubaki?"


    The first-year students couldn''t hide (or didn''t want to hide) their excitement about their first visit to a girl''s room.


    "It looks like they had fun."


    Seeing the excited k��hais, Hashimoto seemed satisfied that it was worth bringing them along.


    But the next moment, the smile disappeared from Hashimoto''s face, reced by a stern expression.


    "Sorry, but could you guys go back first? Ayanok��ji, could you stay with me a little longer?"


    When he instructed everyone but me, they all obediently agreed and went back to their shared room.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "You''ll just go to sleep when you return to your room, right? I haven''t heard anything about Sakayanagi."


    "If you were expecting to learn something, I''m sorry to disappoint you, but there''s nothing."


    "But you did meet Sakayanagi today, didn''t you?"


    Indeed, I had encountered Sakayanagi in the morning.


    Whether he had obtained information from somewhere or was simply trying to fish for it with a lie, I didn''t need to probe.


    Either way, my answer was already decided.


    "I did put some pressure on her, but it''s Sakayanagi. Honestly, I couldn''t get much out of her. You know she''s a tough opponent, right?"


    Regardless of what I said, Hashimoto would likely be suspicious, so I continued speaking calmly.


    "Besides, I didn''t have time to have a leisurely conversation."


    I incorporated a subtle excuse into my words to avoid delving too deeply into the matter.


    "...Well, it''s fine. Either way, the oue won''t change in the future."


    That oue, needless to say, was something Hashimoto wouldmunicate, not me.


    "Sakayanagi and Ry��en dropped out of the winning lineup on the second day. It''s like a very anticlimactic end to a very anticlimactic tournament.."


    Sakayanagi''s group had five wins and seven losses in twelve matches. Ry��en''s group had three wins and nine losses in twelve matches.


    Unless there was a major shakeup in the following day''s seven matches, their chances of ranking high were hopeless.


    "Well, I guess they gave up on the exchange meeting. Those two didn''t show up at any of the experiential learning sessions. They probably didn''t intend to receive any rewards from the start, right?"


    "That seems to be the case, but you don''t look too happy about it."


    "Well, of course. It''s unsettling. It''s weird that those two dropped out so abruptly."


    Hashimoto was naturally suspicious.


    Both groups disappeared from the top ranks without ever making aeback.


    I could understand why Hashimoto would be cautious just based on the results.


    But that was probably an unnecessary worry.


    Ry��en valued private points, but as announced beforehand, the private points avable at this camp were special. They were limited to shopping.


    Of course, it was good to have them, but it wasn''t unreasonable for Ry��en not to prioritize them.


    Rather, being able to move freely for three days might''ve been more advantageous from an information standpoint.


    It would be better to keep an eye on Sakayanagi''s situation for now.


    On the other hand, Sakayanagi, who lost in the survival and elimination special exam, should use this exchange meeting to cool down for the future.


    Spending a leisurely time in nature and letting her wounds heal was one of the best courses of action.


    That was why Hashimoto should beposed, but in reality, he wasn''t.


    He was trying to keep calm, but he couldn''t hide his impatience.


    "I thought Sakayanagi, being smart, would have me investigated every now and then..."


    Even in the rxed exchange meeting, she might''ve been aiming to expel him��Hashimoto must have had such a sense of danger.


    "It''s not like Toyohashi and the other first-years have already been won over by Sakayanagi, right?"


    He didn''t verbally confirm it, but the first thing Hashimoto did was to get along with the k��hais, presumably to prevent that from happening.


    "Could it be that Sakayanagi had set up a spy even before we formed the group?"


    "Don''t you have a better understanding of the rtionships within the first-years, Hashimoto?"


    Long before the exchange meeting, k��hais had been working as Sakayanagi''s legs since shortly after entering school. That was still true.


    "Yeah... probably not... Basically, Sakayanagi didn''t make direct negotiations. I was basically the one who interacted with the promising first-years. But indirectly��"


    He was desperately trying to maintain his smile, but he was pushing himself too hard.


    "It isn''t easy to expel someone specific except in special exams."


    I tried to calm him down a bit, but while my words reached him, he couldn''t fully digest them.


    "I know, I know, but... it''s Sakayanagi. I can''t deny the possibility that she might do something I can''t imagine."


    After saying that, he stopped, perhaps realizing that he was stuck in a difficult predicament.


    "Let''s stop. I should forget about Sakayanagi for now."


    "That''s better."


    Hashimoto took a deep breath, filling his cheeks with air, and forcefully exhaled to regte his breathing.


    "Alright, I''ll stop by the lobby toilet before I go back. You can go back and sleep first."


    "It''s almost lights out, don''t be toote."


    "Yeah."


    Did he find it difficult to use the bathroom in the shared room, or did he have another purpose in mind?


    Either way, Hashimoto went into the lobby toilet, which was devoid of people.

 Chapter 489 - 6 : A Quiet Resolution

    <h4>Chapter 489: Chapter 6 : A Quiet Resolution</h4>


    TODAY WAS THE third day living with other years.


    By tomorrow afternoon, we''d probably be on the bus back to school.


    The exchange meeting was nearing its end, and a battle with Nagumo''s group was looming, but Horikita and Ibuki were still showing up early in the morning.


    "You, do the match with us blindfolded today."


    "You''re demanding right off the bat, and it''s an unreasonable request at that."


    "I have to kick you at least once, or I''ll be frustrated."


    Such an unreasonable proposal was obviously uneptable. If the opponent was inexperienced in martial arts, it would be a different story, but against Horikita and Ibuki, even I would struggle if I were blindfolded.


    Especially since I was focusing on defense, it would just be taking on unnecessary risk.


    "Blindfolding him won''t help with the training, so rejected."


    "Well said, Horikita."


    "But if you insist, let''s do it after the special training."


    "That''s not it, Horikita."


    I corrected Horikita in less than a second.


    "I can understand your feelings, Ayanok��ji-kun. But first, we should prioritize defeating Amasawa-san, right?"


    "...Well, yeah."


    Even though I was helping quite devotedly, it was quite a thing to say.


    In any case, it seemed that they were determined to seed in their revenge against Amasawa no matter what.


    "Then let''s start right away��"


    Just as I was about to speak, Ibuki stopped me.


    "Toilet."


    "Haven''t you finished yet?"


    "I thought I was fine. But when it gets cold, I have to go a little, so wait for me."


    "Really..."


    Although Horikita was exasperated, it was cruel to tell her to hold it in.


    If by any chance, she moved around a lot and it were to leak, it would be a big problem.


    While seeing off Ibuki who went back to the toilet, Horikita started talking.


    "There''s something I realized today."


    "What''d you realize?"


    "The reason you set the revenge match against Amasawa-san on the morning of the fourth day as a condition. It could''ve been to increase the amount of special training sessions as much as possible. However, if you wanted to make time, you didn''t need to limit the sessions to early mornings; you could''ve also done them discretely at any time. The main reason you chose thest day was to manage the risk of injury, wasn''t it? If I get injured in a selfish fight before the exchange meeting is settled, it would be uneptable to those who were seriously participating."


    Horikita''s group was a candidate for first ce, unlike Ibuki''s group, which lost the chance to win on the second day. As someone who stood on top of the leaderboard, It seemed she was able to notice that.


    "With your skills, you can handle these sessions without injuring me, right?"


    "What if I get injured?"


    "...Is that even a possibility?"


    "No, it isn''t."


    As soon as I replied, she showed a slightly irritated expression.


    "If a normal person said that, they would definitely get a frown in return, so be careful. Maybe I should have you fight blindfoldedter?"


    "Please don''t. I don''t think you''d need to hold back against me. I wouldn''t say such a thing to anyone else."


    "Is that something I should be happy about...?"


    "You should be. It''s special treatment."


    "That''s not a good kind of special treatment."


    Recently, I was having more and more casual conversations with Horikita.


    There must''ve been other people in the world, past and future, who were having simr exchanges as us, getting angry andughing at each other.


    "This ispletely unrted, but whoes to mind when you think of a student with a small presence?"


    When I asked that, Horikita thought for a moment and then gave her answer.


    "You, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "...Me?"


    "At least when you first entered school, you were one of the less noticeable ones in the ss."


    "I see. Indeed."


    Among the 40 students at the time of admission, if you were to rank us in terms of visibility, it would''ve been overwhelmingly faster to find me if you were counting from the bottom up.


    "Recently, you''ve been gaining more presence, so it doesn''t apply now."


    Indeed,pared to the beginning, I think I had changed a lot.


    The surrounding environment had changed more than anything else.


    "I wonder what factors determine how noticeable or inconspicuous someone is."


    "Hmm, is that so? If you want to be unnoticed or don''t want to stand out, I think you naturally be inconspicuous. You probably won''t speak much either."


    All of these characteristics fit Yamamura.


    Each one may not have been a big deal, but whenbined, they''d make a big impact.


    "Is something wrong?"


    "No, I was just wondering about something."


    "Really? Oh right, about the matter you asked me to look into��"


    When Horikita brought up the topic of special training, I had asked her to do something.


    Horikita was now reporting the results.


    "...That''s about all I noticed... Will it be of any use?"


    "Yes, it will be very useful. Thanks for looking into it. You can consider the request fulfilled."


    Horikita, who had faithfullyplied, didn''t seem to understand the meaning from, but she didn''t try to inquire deeply about my reasoning.


    "And by the way, that Ibuki sure is slow."


    "Indeed. I wonder what she''s doing."


    If she had just gone to the bathroom in the lobby and returned, it wouldn''t have taken this long.


    "Did she go back to her room and fall asleep?"


    "I''d like to think not... but with Ibuki-san, you never know."


    "What about her phone?"


    "She said it would be a nuisance and left it in her room."


    "I see. I hate to say this to you, Horikita, but if Ibuki doesn''te back, we''ll have to cancel today."


    "It can''t be helped. The condition was that Ibuki-san would fight with us."


    The special training from yesterday was just a drop in the bucket, but there was nothing we could do.


    It might be best to propose to postpone it. Hopefully, there will be another opportunity to go out together to a ce withx supervision, like a training camp or a deserted ind.


    Horikita and I were looking in the direction of the building, waiting for Ibuki to appear.


    "There''s an opening!!"


    With that voice from behind, a presence rapidly approached. When we moved away from the spot, Ibuki''s foot was extended where we had been standing just a moment ago.


    She was clearly intending to kick me by surprise.


    "Damn! I missed! I even took the long way back!"


    "It''s fine to be frustrated, but don''t announce your attack. You''re doing the same thing as Ishizaki."


    "Ugh...!? I don''t want to hear that...! But I just instinctively shouted!"


    Shouting by instinct wasn''t excusable.


    Unless you were certain it would defeat your opponent, announcing your attack would only serve as a disadvantage, especially against an opponent with high odds of winning.


    "Ishizaki-kun? Have you had a dispute with Ishizaki-kun too?"


    "I just witnessed a simr scenario. I wasn''t involved."


    I thought I could deceive her by saying something appropriate, but it seemed to be a rash judgment.


    "You had a dispute with Ry��en-kun on the rooftop, didn''t you? It was that time, right?"


    I looked at Ibuki. Her frustrated expression had changed to a malicious grin.


    "Hmph, I don''t remember you telling me to keep my mouth shut. Even if you did, I''m free to talk about it."


    "I don''t mind, but this makes a lot of sense now."


    This may have been the reason why she asked me to help her to take revenge on Amasawa.


    "I pretended not to know in front of others, but this might be a good opportunity. Do you admit that you had a big fight with Ry��en-kun and his group?"


    "I can''t deny it in this situation."


    "I see. But for me, it finally makes sense. I didn''t doubt Ibuki-san''s story, but it wouldn''t be strange if there were exaggerations or mistakes mixed in."


    "Huh?" She tilted her head and kicked up the dirt towards Horikita''s knees.


    "Don''t act like a child."


    While scolding her like a teacher, Horikita continued as if she had been waiting for this opportunity.


    "Do you have anything else you''re keeping from me? Like other people you''ve had disputes with?"


    "None."


    "Really...? I still have a few things I''m suspicious about, like the Yagami-kun incident."


    "Yagami? Why is Yagamiing up now? I don''t use violence against my k��hais. I''d like to exclude the H��sen incident though."


    "Who''s Yagami? Was there someone like that?"


    "...Fine. We don''t have much time, so can we start the special training?"


    Unable to exin everything to Ibuki, Horikita cut the conversation short. She began to distance herself from me.


    "Basically, the rules are the same as yesterday. The important thing is to understand how the two of you will move, not my movements."


    If they had faced each other many times in the past, they would''ve inevitably ingrained each other''s patterns in their minds.


    The teamwork that was honed here would undoubtedly be higher than in the previous fight with Amasawa.

 Chapter 490: 6.1

    <h4>Chapter 490: 6.1</h4>


    After finishing their morning training, the two were out of breath for a while, but they couldn''t sit there forever.


    "It''s getting brighter. Should we head back soon?"


    "You say that so casually. How can your body not be tired after all that action?"


    "Are you a cyborg or something?"


    I had to correct their misunderstanding.


    "I''m tired too. I just don''t show it on my face."


    "You say that, but you''re not even breathing heavily. It''s not convincing at all."


    Despite herints, Horikita stood up, brushing off the sand.


    "We do need to go back soon."


    Seeing this, Ibuki also stood up immediately, even giving a high jump.


    She seemed to bepeting, but her efforts were not reciprocated.


    "By the way, Ibuki-san, what are you nning to do today?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "The exchange meeting game. Is your group nning to fight to the end?"


    Ibuki''s group was already at a hopeless two wins and ten losses.


    "Oh, that? I don''t know. I haven''t participated even once."


    "Then your stamp card must be nk."


    Ibuki snorted and crossed her arms. She probably wanted the reward, but she seemed more likely to skip the troublesome work than gain a mere 1000 points.


    "I''m free, so I might as well go with you, Horikita."


    "...Why would you do that?"


    "I might get to see you lose at the exchange meeting or something."


    Ibuki''s motivation was clear, or rather, she never wavered.


    Just like Kushida, did she really want to see Horikita lose that much?


    "Eh? Are you actually going to stick around?"


    "Of course."


    "Even if you were sure to lose, would you obey the third-years if they tell you to participate?"


    "I won''t obey. I''ll just have someone else do it."


    I wouldn''t be surprised if Ibuki pushed that role onto a first-year.


    Each group had its own circumstances, so Horikita had no right to dismiss Ibuki''s thoughts.


    "Whatever... do as you like, but why not go with Ayanok��ji-kun? You might get to see him lose too."


    "Didn''t he lose twice yesterday?"


    My information was undoubtedly shared within Nagumo''s group.


    "Speaking of which, Nagumo-senpai was really happy. He sarcastically said it was a disappointing end to a winning streak, losing at cards, of all things. Did you lose another game after that?"


    She didn''t seem to know much. Perhaps Nagumo didn''t share my individual results with the entire group, but only with a select few students?


    "I waspletely beaten by Inogashira in ''Patchwork.''"


    "Normally, aeback like that would never happen. I just wanted to witness where you could be defeated, regardless of the game."


    "So you''re no different from Ibuki."


    At that retort, she seemed a little disgruntled, but eventuallyughed and nodded.


    In other words, she couldn''t help but want to see someone she disliked lose.


    "He doesn''t seem to mind losing, does he? He might even lose on purpose."


    "I don''t know about ''on purpose,'' but he does seem to regret it. At least, judging by his current state, those two defeats were genuine. Right, Red Panda-kun?"


    "Are you still going with that joke..."


    I wish she wouldn''t arbitrarily nickname me ''Red Panda.''


    "Well, I guess I''ll go with Horikita. I''d like to keep an eye on Amasawa too."


    "I see, that might not be a bad idea. If she''s even slightly aware of you, it might put pressure on her for tomorrow."


    Horikita had found merit in Ibuki apanying her.


    "Can you hurry up and get back? It''s getting cold."


    Naturally, a body that had warmed up from exercise would cool down if it remained still for too long.


    "Just don''t get in the way."


    "I can''t promise that."


    She couldn''t help but sense Ibuki''s eagerness to interfere.

 Chapter 491: 6.2

    <h4>Chapter 491: 6.2</h4>


    In about 15 minutes, the opponents for the third day''s first exchange meeting would be announced.


    The game was ''shogi.''


    The participants Kiry��in chose were me, Morishita, Hashimoto, Hiyori, and Tsubaki.


    Despite this, the group was about to face this match one member short.


    "Where the hell did Morishita go? It''s her turn next..."


    "The call doesn''t seem to be connecting."


    Hiyori, holding her phone to her ear, informed me that she couldn''t reach her.


    "When was thest time you saw Morishita?"


    "Thest time I saw her was at breakfast. She left with you, right?"


    Since we finished eating at the same time, I remembered leaving the dining hall at the same time.


    It was over 30 minutes ago, but she said she was going for a walk.


    Could she still be on her walk, or did she get lost?


    Normally, she wouldn''t lose her way, but if she had forced herself to go into the mountain path, it would be a different story.


    Given Morishita''s personality, it wasn''t impossible.


    "She was saying that she was absolutely confident in shogi..."


    "She said she had trained with online matches."


    "That''s honestly suspicious..."


    Kiry��in had chosen her based on that statement and confidence.


    She must''ve wanted to redeem her disgrace in archery.


    "If Morishita is out, we''ll have to find a substitute. We still have a little time, so I''ll go look outside. Hashimoto, can you check inside?"


    "Okay. I''ll contact you if I find her."


    I eagerly set out to search and found Morishita in just a few seconds. She didn''t seem lost.


    Before calling out to her, I sent a message to Hashimoto that I had found Morishita.


    After that, I approached her.


    "It''s almost time for the exchange meeting."


    Despite my call, Morishita didn''t respond.


    She was just quietly touching a tree.


    She isn''t asleep while standing up, so what''s she doing?


    "Morishita?"


    "Could you please be quiet? I was listening to the voice of the forest."


    Morishita quietly murmured.


    "...Huh?"


    However, I couldn''t process her words in my head and inadvertently asked her again.


    "The voice of the forest? What is that?"


    "Don''t you understand? The forest is alive. If you touch arge tree like this, close your eyes, calm your mind, and listen, then you might understand what I''m saying."


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    "...I see?"


    So far, I hadn''t been able to understand what Morishita was saying at all.


    It might be a good idea to try doing it.


    I stood next to Morishita and pressed my hand against the tree in the same manner.


    Then, I closed my eyes.


    All I had to do was calm my mind and listen.


    "Do you hear it? The voice of the forest."


    "No..."


    "Then maybe you''re still distracted by something."


    Distractions. Unfortunately, I was emptying my emotions.


    There was no way such a thing could be mixed in...


    As I thought so, I couldn''t hear anything at all. There was no way I could.


    "Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth."


    But Morishita still insisted.


    "Does that make any sense?"


    "Well, when I had a cold before, I was instructed to breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth at the otryngologist''s office."


    "Isn''t that how you use a nebulizer...?"


    In a way, I was forcibly filled with distractions.


    Anyway, I couldn''t hear the voice of the forest.


    "What are you doing?"


    When I opened my eyes and looked at Morishita, she was pointing her cell phone camera at me.


    "I was recording Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka being fooled by my lies in high definition."


    "Hey..."


    "There''s no way you can hear the voice of the forest. You''ve watched too many dramas and movies."


    "You''re the one who started it. You seemed to be practicing it."


    "Don''t be shy. I''ll keep it a secret that you were trying to listen to the voice of the forest."


    I wished she wouldn''t record me and leave evidence like that.


    "But I didn''t know that the aspiration machine in the hospital is called a nebulizer. I''ve learned some useless knowledge. Thank you."


    The fact that she called it useless knowledge meant that she wasn''t really grateful.


    "Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka, you''re an interesting person."


    I wonder if I was the only one who thought Morishita was overwhelmingly more interesting.


    "By the way, do you need something from me?"


    "I came to look for you because you didn''t show up when it was time to gather."


    "Now that you mention it, I feel like I might''ve been at fault."


    Upon giving a statement that seemed somewhat like an apology, Morishita stepped away from the tree.


    She started walking towards the building where Kiry��in was waiting.


    "Can I ask you something?"


    I turned my gaze towards Morishita, silently urging her to speak.


    "What do you think about Hashimoto Masayoshi?"


    "That''s a pretty loaded question."


    "I thought I needed to ask. I''ve been looking for an opportunity several times, but I couldn''t find the right time."


    "Did you think I woulde looking for you because you were with the trees?"


    "I did think you woulde looking for me on your own."


    She had a strange personality, but she was a strategist.


    "What do you think of him as a fellow ss A student?"


    "I thought you''d ask. Of course, I think we should unite as a ss and exclude him."


    She decisively called Hashimoto a nuisance.


    "What if I were on Hashimoto''s side? Wouldn''t that be a slip of the tongue?"


    "I thought if I lied, I would only be lied to in return. So I thought being honest was the best choice here."


    She understood negotiation well.


    If she had hinted at supporting Hashimoto with just some poor excuse and got caught, she wouldn''t be able to earn my trust.


    Her judgment was quick and sharp, and she didn''t mince her words.


    Among the students I had seen within the second-years, she was quite exceptional in this area.


    Indeed, you couldn''t understand such a personality unless you met and talked face-to-face.


    "I intend to respond to your honesty, but frankly, since I''m from another ss, I don''t think it''s a problem that has anything to do with me. Whether Sakayanagi tries to exclude Hashimoto in the future, or Hashimoto tries to exclude Sakayanagi, they can do as they please."


    "So you''re saying you have no intention of siding with Hashimoto Masayoshi?"


    "None."


    I nodded without hesitation, strongly appealing that this was the truth.


    She might''ve doubted it, but in fact, I was speaking the truth. It wasn''t a lie.


    "Of course, as a member of the same group now, I will maintain an appropriate distance and a cooperative rtionship."


    "Is that so? I feel a little relieved."


    It might''ve been closer to saying I was anti-Hashimoto rather than aligning with Sakayanagi''s faction.


    "I just want to ask for reference, but would it be a problem if I sided with Hashimoto?"


    "It would be, yes. I think Sakayanagi Arisu would win nine out of ten times, but if Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka were to side with Hashimoto Masayoshi, that might be in jeopardy."


    Apparently, Morishita seemed to value my existence more than I had imagined.


    "Is it strange? That I highly value you, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    "I didn''t feel that way when we first talked."


    Of course, I understood that I was being watched, but not to this extent.


    "Usually, there''s a difference between expectation and reality. It''s typically disappointing, so I had lowered the hurdle, but looking at the reactions and gazes around me, it doesn''t seem to be the case."


    It seemed to be more of a gut feeling than something she had directly seen or heard.


    An evaluation based on her high intelligence and senses.


    A female version of K��enji��it would be rude to call Morishita that, but in terms of archetype, they might be a little simr. Like subtracting the entricity and adding more reasoning...


    No, no matter how I expressed it, it wasn''t right topare her to K��enji.


    "Then, is there a possibility that you will side with Sakayanagi Arisu?"


    "None. Rather, she''s not someone I should interfere with."


    Originally, Hashimoto was a much weaker opponent for Sakayanagi. It wasn''t a situation where I should lend a hand.


    "But..."


    "But?"


    "I do think that both Hashimoto and Sakayanagi should fight without holding back. It''s best to decide the winner after they both exert all they''re able to. That''s just my opinion though."


    Hashimoto was still charging ahead alone without the leisure to observe his surroundings. And since his betrayal dragged Kamuro along with it, Sakayanagi might be hindered from exerting her full capabilities.


    If I could eliminate the problems they each had, I would like to do so before the match.


    "I understand your thoughts well, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka. Thank you."


    Perhaps having cleared something in her mind, Morishita slightly smiled and bowed her head.


    "I hope this problem will be resolved as soon as possible. If the infighting continues for half a year, or even a whole year, it will only be a detriment for ss A."


    "That''s true."


    If that was the problem, Morishita''s fears were unfounded.


    The problem between Sakayanagi and Hashimoto was already set to end soon.


    Morishita started walking away from under the tree.


    "Well, let''s get going. Don''t y in the forest forever. You''re such a child."


    "You''re the one who was ying..."


    I was just a victim who got dragged into this.


    To add, Morishita was as good at shogi as she boasted.


    Her skills, honed through daily online matches, were not just for show.

 Chapter 492: 6.3

    <h4>Chapter 492: 6.3</h4>


    At times like this, I wonder if we''ll face Nagumo''s group in the final 19th match.


    That''s what you might think, but things don''t always go as nned.


    In the 17th match, with two personal defeats, we shed with the still-undefeated Nagumo group.


    Following a game of table tennis, the uing game was ''archery,'' making it the second ''archery'' match in the exchange meeting.


    In this case, doesn''t it work in our favor that the game isn''t solely based on craftsmanship or luck? Archery, a skill-based activity, provided an interesting opportunity for others to shine.


    Nagumo was present as their leader, but he didn''t speak up.


    This time, Nagumo and I had a personal bet, but few knew about it.


    Even the first-year students who had been ordered to gather information might not know the details.


    "So, why are you here, Morishita?"


    "Of course, I''m here to do archery. I came to fight."


    Her results yesterday were disastrous, but she was still trying to participate without being discouraged?


    Looking at Kiry��in, she gave a sincere nod. It seemed she had epted Morishita''s participation.


    "That''s how it is. You can think of it as being on the winning ship, Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka."


    "Let''s hope it''s not a sinking ship."


    The instructor started speaking again, exining safety procedures to students who had never handled archery before and for those who had, he repeatedly emphasized the importance of learning the correct shooting form.


    Unlike the original rules, the format was to switch teams after shooting six arrows instead of taking turns one after the other.


    Hashimoto, who had seen the five opponents, approached and whispered in my ear.


    "Katsuragi apparently practiced quite a bit yesterday, and he scored a maximum of 36 points. There''s a chance you could lose if you face him."


    I was impressed by his thorough research as I reflected on myself.


    Yesterday, my scores were 2, 2, 4, 7, 6, 9, for a total of 30 points.


    I understood his concern, but to put it bluntly, I probably wouldn''t lose to Katsuragi.


    The problem was elsewhere. Soon, the match-ups were announced.


    First Match: Horikita Suzune vs Yanagi Yasuhisa


    Second Match: Hirata Y��suke vs Hashimoto Masayoshi


    Third Match: Amasawa Ichika vs Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka


    Fourth Match: Kanzaki Ry��ji vs Shintoku Tar��


    Fifth Match: Katsuragi K��hei vs Morishita Ai


    In the 16 matches so far, I had always fought as the third yer.


    "Nagumo had skillfully arranged for our opponents to match our fixed positions in the lineup."


    "Nice to meet you, Senpai."


    "Your opponent is a first-year girl. You''re lucky."


    Hashimoto, who apparently didn''t have information about Amasawa, answered optimistically.


    While everyone watched, Nagumo''s group, who were up first, started aiming at the target all at once.


    You could tell by their calm demeanor and rxed expressions.


    Amasawa had finished practicing archery yesterday and seemed to have gained solid experience.


    Without hesitation, the smoothly released arrows pierced the yellow nine-point area.


    She obtained a score of 9 points, 9 points, 10 points, 9 points, 10 points, 10 points, for a total of 57 points.


    The uracy was so high that not only the participating students but also the instructors were surprised.


    "No way..."


    Katsuragi, who came in second, had scored a substantial 37 points, but it was iparable.


    In order for us to win, we needed to score 10 points with every shot.


    With everyone still shaken, it was time for Kiry��in''s group, who were on the defensive, to take our turn.


    In the silent gallery, I fired the first arrow before anyone else got a chance.


    It pierced the yellow eight-point area.


    While the other students were still fumbling with their preparation, I shifted to fire my second arrow and waited for permission.


    This left us with only one point of leeway, but that didn''t matter.


    Immediately upon my first shot, I corrected my trajectory, which was slightly off.


    The second arrow pierced the yellow ten-point center.


    If this had been a 70-meter distance, it might have been impossible due to factors like wind, but at 20 meters, there were no drawbacks.


    As the instructor collected the arrows, I shot without a moment''s dy.


    I repeated the same motion like a machine.


    The same motion, the same position��I just needed to maximize the repeatability.


    Without worrying about how many points the others had, I just kept shooting the remaining four arrows straight into the center.


    The score was 58 to 57. I took the victory into my own hands.


    I received a strong apuse from Amasawa, with whom I had a close match.


    "You''re amazing, Senpai. It''s frustrating, but I lost, didn''t I?"


    "The rules helped me in many ways. The target was close, but if it had been the regr rules where we had to take turns, it wouldn''t have been strange for the game to go either way."


    Once Amasawa had a fixed score of 57, she couldn''t make any other moves.


    She had no choice but to surrender to my results.


    "I was trying to put pressure on you, but it didn''t work, did it?"


    I had blocked out all the surrounding noise, so I didn''t know.


    "You hadn''t practiced archery other than yesterday''s game, right?"


    "I watched some tutorial videos in the middle of the night."


    Not just archery, but everything I experienced at the camp.


    "It''s amazing that you can produce results like that. Nagumo-senpai might get angry."


    Even though she lost, Amasawa scored 57 points, so Nagumo probably couldn''t me her.


    Ibuki, who had been watching from afar, tantly looked away in boredom.


    Horikita won against Yanagi, Amasawa lost but scored an overwhelmingly high score, and then I won against Amasawa. It must not have been interesting at all.


    "It wasn''t risky at all. You were so consistent..."


    After watching Amasawa return to report to her group, Hashimoto expressed his admiration.


    "But she was strong after all."


    The archery match between Nagumo''s group and Kiry��in''s group ended with one loss and four wins.


    "Indeed. They were worthy opponents, the top contenders, but it was a close game."


    Morishita, who had given it her all, showed a satisfied look on her face.


    By the way, the only one who scored a total of six points and suffered a big loss in this game was Morishita.

 Chapter 493: 6.4

    <h4>Chapter 493: 6.4</h4>


    After that, the round-robin tournament ended, and the 19 total games came to a close.


    Kiry��in''s group''s final record was fifteen wins and four losses within the 19 games. My personal record was seventeen wins and two losses.


    Our final ranking was fourth ce. It could be described as a great sess.


    And Nagumo''s group, which had beenmended as the top contender from the beginning, came in first with eighteen wins and one loss.


    The one defeat was due to a card game that was picked in the final match, and they were unlucky the whole time. They were defeated by a group that had only won three times so far, which was a fitting end to the game.


    In the empty rest area, Nagumo and I were alone.


    "Allowing me to lose up to two times was what caused your defeat, wasn''t it?"


    "Indeed, I''d like to say so, but since you were the only one who participated in more than twelve games and had two or fewer losses, it would be absurd toin about that."


    Nagumo could get detailed information from each group''s leader at any point, so it wasn''t strange that he seemed to know the individual results from all of the matches. Contrary to his appearance, he was very observant.


    "Your most skillful yer, Amasawa, had a great performance though. She hits her targets quite gracefully."


    "Don''t tter me. You were purposely going third, weren''t you? It was obvious that you were setting it up so that I could be somewhat satisfied when I faced you."


    "I wish you would sincerely ept the intentions of a k��hai who''s trying to praise you, Senpai."


    "Then do it better. It sounds like you''re just provoking me."


    I see... Maybe I should''ve used a more natural and skillful way of speaking.


    "I managed to win against Amasawa in the individual match, but in terms of the group match, we werepletely defeated. Everyone in our group was giving it their all, but it was clear that everyone in your group was ying the game skillfully."


    His group members thoroughly gained experience over the three days, directly leading to their victory.


    "When I decide to win, I strive towards it without mercy. It''s only natural. Well, we both got yed by the card games, didn''t we?"


    "Indeed."


    He showed up at an exchange meeting that he didn''t have toe to, and even used his own money to make our personal match happen. Regardless of his victory or defeat, I couldn''t imagine that it was satisfying for Nagumo.


    "What do you think would''ve happened if you and I had beenpeting based on group performance from the start?"


    "Knowing the conclusion, I don''t think I could''ve won even if I had been in charge."


    I honestly admitted defeat.


    "Is that so? Couldn''t you, with your ability to manipte things behind the scenes, have proceeded in a more solid and reliable manner?"


    However, the man in front of me didn''t believe in my defeatist statement any more than I did.


    "Your group won fifteen times without your interference, so you''re doing great, but wasn''t there a way to win the other matches? Or were you just not willing to take me seriously?"


    "That''s irrelevant. Even if I tried to pick up a win by buying my opponent''s defeat, if you were serious, you''d buy it back. You could''ve also tried preventing it in advance. You have control over all the third-years, so you should be good at that kind of thing."


    If I tried to influence things, Nagumo would naturally sense it and try to influence things as well.


    I couldn''t win even if I stood on my head in a battle of financial power.


    "Even if we were able to buy out three wins, we would''ve been stuck in the 17th game of archery anyway."


    "It doesn''t sound like you''re serious about that either."


    "Well... if I was told to win at all costs, I might''ve manipted Horikita and Y��suke to miss the target so that I could win."


    They were students who took it seriously, but depending on the reason, I might''ve been able to get them on my side.


    Even if Nagumo had made a contract to ensure that they''d do their best, he couldn''t corner them if he was betrayed at that point because there was no guarantee that they''d always hit the target.


    "I guess so."


    "But if you could foresee that, you would''ve switched the assigned members."


    It was only natural that he''d select students who weren''t affected by my negotiations.


    "So what would you do on top of that��no, this is just unnecessary talk that doesn''t mean anything anymore."


    Feeling empty, Nagumo ended the conversation himself.


    Looking at reality, this was just an exchange meeting.


    It was nothing more than experiential learning that we didn''t have to stress about, something that the school also acknowledged.


    It wasn''t something to invest a lot of money in or something that required a lot of negotiation.


    This conversation was just a fantasy, something that never came to fruition.


    "I enjoyed the experiential learning, seriously. If a fair fight couldn''t be realized, I thought it would be polite to reveal the truth as it is."


    Nagumo had always wanted to know my strength.


    So, in some form or another, he must''ve been able to see my true self without any of my clumsiness since his group members, such as Takahashi, were glued to all the games.


    He must''ve recorded and checked the matches.


    "That''s right. The game of archery was especially impressive. I could tell that your hands are unnecessarily dexterous."


    "I don''t know if you were satisfied with this approach."


    "Satisfied? There''s no way I could be."


    Nagumo tilted his head in disbelief andughed.


    "But you''ve be quite talkative and more outspoken."


    "I was blessed with a good senpai that allowed me to learn a lot."


    Nagumo took out his phone and flicked the screen with his fingertips.


    "I have no intention of belittling your victory. I''ve transferred the money. Check it."


    "I trust you on that. But is it okay? Those funds could be used to save some of the third-year students."


    "How long do you think I''ve been reigning at the top of ss A? I have several million yen just in my personal pocket. What''s the problem with paying from part of that?"


    As he put away his phone, Nagumo took a nce outside.


    "Do you remember what I told you when I came here? About going to college."


    "Of course."


    "I was quite serious about inviting you. We can''t have shy battles at university like we do in ANHS, but on the other hand, we can do more things side by side, right?"


    "Maybe."


    "If you want,e to the same university. I''ll make your boring personality a little better."


    "I''ll keep that in mind."


    Saying that, Nagumo gently patted my right shoulder as he passed by.


    "See you."


    "Can I ask you to pass on a message for me, Nagumo-senpai, since you''re graduating?"


    "Huh? A message? To Horikita-senpai?"


    "That wouldn''t be bad, but no."


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    When Nagumo stopped, I showed him the message for a certain person.


    Having heard it, Nagumo, who still didn''t fully believe it, listened to the end without making fun of it.


    "That''s a strange message."


    "I hope you can convey that. After that, the decision is up to the other party."


    "I certainly heard it, but is this your farewell gift to me? If you kept quiet, who knows what the oue would''ve been. There are people who wouldn''t be happy about me graduating from ss A as it is."


    "At the very least, I think you''ve left enough achievements and qualifications to graduate from ss A."


    That was the reason I entrusted Nagumo with the message.


    "I''ll go a step ahead and start the second phase at Horikita-senpai''s ce."


    ''Feel free to join if you feel like it.'' Thosest words contained a message from such a senpai.

 Chapter 494 - 7 : A Settled Night

    <h4>Chapter 494: Chapter 7 : A Settled Night</h4>


    IT WAS PAST 11 p.m., after the lights-out time.


    In the shared room, it seemed that everyone was still awake, spending time talking quietly or looking at their phones. At the beginning of the camp, the unfamiliar members made the atmosphere ufortable, but now I didn''t care what that atmosphere had turned into.


    While asionally participating in conversations with Hashimoto, Oda, and k��hais, nodding in agreement now and then, my phone vibrated as I was watching a patchwork video.


    [Are you still awake?]


    A message from Hiyori was disyed at the top of the screen.


    [I''m awake. All the boys are still awake, so don''t worry.]


    I told Hiyori to make it easier for her to continue sending messages.


    [Thank you. Actually, I just noticed that Yamamura-san is missing.]


    Yamamura is missing? It was basically forbidden to leave the room after lights-out.


    [You mean outside the room? What about her phone?]


    [It seems to be left in the room. I was contemting whether to go and look for her now... I was wondering if I could ask for your help, Ayanok��ji-kun.]


    Hiyori probably wasn''t good at this kind of thing, to say the least. Especially if she couldn''t act stealthily, a patrolling teacher would easily spot her.


    It could be said that it was the right decision to ask for help here.


    The camp was almost over, but it seemed better not to leave Yamamura alone.


    She had a particrly gloomy expression during yesterday''s card game.


    A possible reason why came to mind. I should go and look for her right away.


    [I understand. I''ll go and check on her, so Hiyori, please wait in your room. We need a way to confirm if Yamamuraes back.]


    When I told her that it would be more useful for her to stay in the room without leaving, a reply came back with a cute animal stamp saying ''Thank you.''


    "I''m going out for a bit."


    "Eh? Hey, it''s past lights-out, you know? If they find you, you''ll get in trouble."


    "I''m going looking for something. I''ll try toe back without being noticed, if possible. If something happens, you guys can get mad at me."


    When I gave my answer, Hashimoto and the others didn''t try hard to make me stay. Instead, they seemed quite happy and saw me off cheerfully.


    The corridor was, of course, dark and silent since the lights were off.


    Now... where should I start looking?


    Wandering aimlessly wouldn''t be efficient.


    There were two possible reasons why Yamamura, who wasn''t the type to break basic rules, left the shared room: either she was called out by someone, or she left the room voluntarily. However, in this case, the possibility of the former was quite low since she left her phone behind.


    I proceeded with the assumption that she left voluntarily.


    The next thing to consider was why it had to be after they turned the lights off.


    In contrast to the night''s silent environment, countless distracting thoughts flooded my mind.


    There might''ve been times when you''d want to run away from the surroundings after all that


    But at that time, it wouldn''t be strange to subconsciously seek a ce where you could feel at ease.


    The conclusion reached by the line of thought belonging to a student named Miki Yamamura��if I were to derive that...


    I quietly showed my face in the lobby.


    Immediately after, I felt someone''s presence and hid in the shadows.


    It seemed that a patrolling teacher was walking around with a shlight.


    The visibility was poor, but it was easy to see where the light was shining.


    He thoroughly illuminated the surroundings, but he didn''t seem to be actively seeking a rule-breaking student who had left the shared room.


    He was just doing it as part of his job as if he was doing it out of obligation.


    Therefore, it was very easy to get past him, and his presence disappeared from the lobby as soon as I waited a little. It seemed he went to check the dining hall.


    Considering the route he took, he must''ve gone to either the shared rooms or the experiential ssrooms afterward.


    There was a brief pause. I headed straight to the vending machine without hesitation.


    I had a hunch that the odds were high, and I was able to confirm my guess immediately.


    There wasn''t a girl sitting alone, instead, she was leaning against the vending machine, looking down.


    The hallway was chilly, so she might''ve been trying to keep warm, but that might be reading too much into it. I thought she would''ve noticed me eventually, but she didn''t seem to be aware of my presence at all.


    There was no change in expression, no sighs, as if nothing triggered a memory.


    She just stared at a single point on the floor, not moving at all.


    "The teachers probably don''t even think there''s a student here."


    I couldn''t just keep watching her, so I decided to call out to her.


    "Ah... Eh!?"


    Yamamura, startled, turned her face towards me.


    Her eyes were filled with fear, but as soon as she realized it was me, that fear dissipated.


    "Wh-wh-wh-why are you here...?"


    "They''ll get mad if they find you. I came to take you back before that happens."


    "I was confident that... I wouldn''t be found... but if you found me, I can''t use that excuse, can I...?"


    Yamamura could certainly avoid the teachers'' surveince and even return to the shared room.


    "...How did you... notice I was gone?"


    "There''s no special reason. Hiyori just noticed you were gone, and she told me about it. She was worried."


    "I''m sorry... I just really wanted to be alone..."


    "You can''t be alone in a shared room unless you lock yourself in the bathroom."


    She nodded slightly, indicating that I understood.


    "Can I... stay here a little longer...?"


    "Do you have to be next to the vending machine?"


    "Yes. When I listen to the sound of the vending machine, the unnecessary voices in my mind disappear..."


    This behavior seemed to be a standard way for Yamamura to protect herself.


    "Then I guess this is the only ce. So? Did the unnecessary voices disappear?"


    "Wh-why are you asking that...?"


    "If they don''t disappear and I take you back, you might run away again. Besides, I hate to say it, but it didn''t look like it was working."


    "Usually, they stop immediately and it''s resolved... usually..."


    In other words, it was different now. From Yamamura''s downcast expression, I could tell something serious was going on.


    "If you have something bothering you, you should try expressing it."


    "...No. I''m fine."


    "Really? I''ve been watching you here for about five minutes, and I didn''t get that impression at all."


    "F-five minutes!? Really...!?"


    "Sorry, I lied. It was about 30 seconds."


    The fact that she didn''t doubt even an arbitrary number of minutes suggested that she wasn''t aware of her surroundings.


    "Do you not like talking about your troubles with others?"


    "It''s not about liking or disliking, I just... don''t have that kind of experience..."


    Even without discussing it much, it wasn''t hard to imagine Yamamura''s life.


    She probably spent a lot of time alone from a young age and spent more time with her mouth shut rather than open.


    Even though our circumstances and situations were very different, I could tell that we had simr experiences.


    "I''m not good at talking either. If there''s a small problem, I tend to keep it to myself or try to solve it on my own. So I rarely have the opportunity to consult with someone about my troubles."


    "You too, Ayanok��ji-kun? But to me... you seem normal. You seem to have a lot of friends. And Shiina-san too. She''s bright and cute... I''m jealous..."


    If you only look at the present, it probably wasn''t unreasonable to feel that way.


    However, everyone has had a less mature side in their past, different from who they are now.


    "Can you picture how I was during the earlier part ofst year?"


    She probably wasn''t helping Sakayanagi at the time, so she wouldn''t know.


    "...Now that you mention it... I don''t know anything."


    "Right? So you could only be sure that I wasn''t a student who left an impression on many people. Fortunately, I was pulled along by my lively ssmates and was able to build some rtionships, but that wasn''t something I arranged myself."


    "But why have you be like this now?"


    "I wasn''t close with those around me, but at least in thesest two years, I''ve started to try to close the distance, little by little. I think that''s had an impact. I''ve started being able to express what I''ve wanted to say around that time."


    Yamamura still couldn''t understand it.


    "I''m... probably scared. Of voicing my thoughts. And of those thoughts spreading unintentionally. I''m scared of being known..."


    Yamamura''s style until now had been the opposite.


    Picking up other people''s thoughts in secret and passing them on to a third party.


    It wasn''t unreasonable to feel a strong resistance when transitioning from being the one who knows to being the one known.


    "I won''t force you. You should judge for yourself."


    Without making her too conscious, I slowly sat down in front of the vending machine, leaving some distance.


    I could feel the slight vibration of the vending machine and the sound of the fan through my back.


    Yamamura wasn''t the only one who feared loneliness.


    Whether it was Y��suke, Kei, Ry��en, Sakayanagi, or any other student, human nature was the same.


    Unable to bear loneliness, they couldn''t live alone.


    That was why those who stood by you without asking anything in return were important.


    Even though I didn''t feel it applied to me, I understood that it was an answer.


    The contradiction it contained.


    No, that fact doesn''t matter now.


    The Yamamura in front of me wasn''t foolish.


    She wasn''t seeking loneliness, nor did she think loneliness was right.


    If there was someone who could offer a proper helping hand, she wouldn''t make a mistake.


    "...Can I talk to you?"


    Yamamura, who sensed no hostility, began to voice what she had been holding back.


    "Since thest special exam ended, I''ve had one question in my mind..."


    It was about the details of what happened in ss A during the survival and elimination special exam.


    In a situation where defeat was certain and a dropout had to be chosen, Sakayanagi chose to draw lots. No matter how she decided, there would be pros and cons.


    Since everyone didn''t have the same abilities, there would always be those who were dissatisfied, whether you directly named them or yed rock-paper-scissors.


    To Sakayanagi, who saw all students other than herself, as equals, the lottery was probably the most equitable decision.


    However, she must''ve realized that it was a mistake.


    Even if she was disliked by those around her, she should''ve kept the person that was most convenient for her.


    If Kamuro had stayed, Sakayanagi''s weakness wouldn''t have been exposed.


    But Sakayanagi wasn''t the only one who was hurt.


    Yamamura was standing on a side of the scales that separated the final two choices in the lottery, life and death.


    "When I hesitated to draw a lot, Sakayanagi-san said she would stop the lottery. If you didn''t have the courage to draw a lot, it was the same as abstaining..."


    If she refused to draw for a long time, it was certainly a choice she could make.


    But Yamamura felt that it was too quick a judgment to call it a careful consideration.


    "Did Sakayanagi value Kamuro and try to cut you off?"


    Yamamura quietly nodded. It wasn''t just a guess, but Yamamura''s conviction.


    "I strongly felt that Sakayanagi-san wanted me to withdraw at that moment."


    And she continued.


    "I understand that it can''t be helped. At least, whenparing me and Kamuro-san, the value was clear. I didn''t wish to have special treatment. I didn''t even want to be greedy and wish to be considered a friend. But... I was shocked to know that my existence was something that could be discarded in an instant... even though she used me, saying I was a valuable person..."


    Sakayanagi had found Yamamura, who had always been alone, and highly valued her ability. However, when she weighed her against Kamuro, she realized that the difference between the two was so great that it wasn''t even a contest.


    In the end, she knew Kamuro would be chosen, but she thought she would hesitate.


    Yamamura''s small wish, one that she belittled herself for, was mercilessly denied.


    "Sakayanagi may have indeed seen a difference between you and Kamuro, but whether she thinks you''re irrelevant or not, isn''t that a separate issue?"


    "...I want to believe that, but..."


    She probably hadn''t had any contact with Sakayanagi since that day.


    So she must''ve been questioning herself this whole time.


    "I''ve been thinking about talking to Sakayanagi-san during this camp, but I couldn''t muster the courage. I couldn''t call out to her..."


    Although she had spotted her several times, it seemed she had never managed to speak to her. It must''ve been a considerable hurdle for Yamamura, who usually waited to be spoken to.


    "More people were clinging to her than I thought. In the middle of it all, Tokit��-kun got into trouble... It looked like a difficult time."


    Yamamura expressed her thoughts, revealing Tokit��''s attempt to extend a helping hand to a dispirited Sakayanagi.


    However, being witnessed led him to be summoned to an experiential ssroom and interrogated.


    "As a result, Tokit��-kun was... forcibly restrained and threatened by Ry��en-kun and his group."


    It was probably an appropriate decision on Ry��en''s side, who was tense in preparation for the end-of-year exams.


    If the opponent they were going to fight in the future was unexpectedly weak, they would either leave them alone or weaken them further. Although some parts were too radical to ignore.


    He seems to have established a strong sense of alertness, intending to approach the next end-of-grade exam thoroughly prepared.


    For Ry��en, who was confirmed topete with Sakayanagi in the end-of-year exam, it was natural to think that he didn''t want to stimte and revive her.


    He seemed desperate to take advantage of the situation where she''d been tripped up by an unexpected defeat.


    In other words, it was proof that Sakayanagi was an opponent who couldn''t be underestimated andcked weaknesses.


    Tokit��''s purge in the flow of things was expected toe to a fast end. However, Tokit��''s groupmates, H��sen and Utomiya, joined in, and there was a risk of a brawl. It seemed that the situation was resolved when the number of students who heard themotion suddenly increased all at once, and they dispersed.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    "But I''m impressed. You watched the whole thing and no one noticed?"


    "That''s all I''m able to do..."


    Yamamura was perfectly suited to gather information, utilizing herck of presence.


    Sakayanagi''s skill in promptly recognizing and utilizing that ability was once again impressive.


    This time, Yamamura was able to witness the scene because she herself was concerned about Sakayanagi.


    Indeed, Sakayanagi was now on a downward slope.


    "What do you want to do?"


    "Huh...?"


    "As a ssmate and as someone who''s likely to be abandoned by Sakayanagi, what do you want me to do?"


    "I, um..."


    "I want to hear your feelings."


    "I have... two wishes. One is... I want to know what she thought of me then, and what she thinks of me now. "


    "And the other one?"


    "... I think... Sakayanagi-san doesn''t suit losing... I don''t want to see her struggle in the end-of-year exam... I hope she wins."


    There were no personal calctions, no wanting her to win just because she was a ss A student, just a genuine concern for a student.


    "Is that so...? I see."


    Sakayanagi might need a little push. And soon.


    "Why don''t you try telling her? No one has the right to condemn your actions."


    "What if... what if... she doesn''t even want to listen to me...?"


    "In that case, let''s say, I''ll get stuck in between some vending machines and talk it over."


    When I told her that, Yamamura looked at the vending machine a little shyly and nodded.

 Chapter 495: 7.1

    <h4>Chapter 495: 7.1</h4>


    It was just before 1 a.m. on the fourth day of the training camp.


    Long past lights-out, Nagumo was quietly walking down the hallway alone.


    He knew he''d get a little warning if he was found, but there was no clear penalty.


    Of course, this wasn''t the case if he resisted, such as not returning to his room after being found.


    Considering the risks, it had already been demonstrated using other students the day before.


    Above all, he''d investigated that the teachers'' patrols would end at midnight.


    Therefore, Nagumo was hardly worried about being found.


    The lights in the lobby were kept to a minimum, and only the sound of thepressors of the lined-up vending machines annoyingly reached his ears at such a time.


    He passed through the lobby and moved on to the cafeteria area, where no one was supposed to be.


    He couldn''t feel anyone''s presence, but his intuition was working.


    She''s right in front of me, he thought.


    "You came as promised."


    From the back of the darkened cafeteria, such a cute voice reached him.


    "I''ve never refused a woman''s call before," he spoke into the darkness.


    "Yawn, what a cheesy line. Honestly, I hate your type."


    "Rx. I''m not into women like you either."


    Nagumo, who snorted in amusement, stepped into the cafeteria with his hands still in his pockets.


    "So, there was no need to threaten me. That might''ve been an unnecessary move."


    As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, a female student emerged.


    "Amasawa, did you really want to be alone with me that much?"


    "Opportunities to be alone with a former student council president don''te around often, do they?"


    "I want to confirm something. What would you have done if I hadn''te?"


    "I would''ve beaten up your precious Asahina-senpai, Nagumo-senpai."


    Many would''veughed off Amasawa''s response as a joke, seeing her smiling face.


    And Nagumo did the same, but his eyes weren''tughing. He was convinced that the first-year student in front of him would''ve carried out her threat.


    "Did you show your skills in archery with Ayanok��ji to make your threats more effective?"


    "Well, yeah. If I don''t show that I''m capable, people might dismiss a woman''s threats."


    "Okay, let''s get to the point. So, why did you threaten me to call me out?"


    "There''s a problem that only you can solve, Nagumo-senpai. That''s what I want to talk about."


    "You had plenty of chances to talk during the exchange meeting."


    While responding, Nagumo internally braced himself.


    He sensed that the girl in front of him was not just any girl��her presence was faint.


    A student with a strange presence, simr to Ayanok��ji.


    And the owner of unusual abilities, one that he had glimpsed during the archery match.


    That was more than enough to put him on guard.


    "By the way, I''m thinking of seriously injuring you, Nagumo-senpai."


    "Seriously injuring me? That''s quite sudden."


    Amasawa, who was trying to enjoy Nagumo''s surprise at the unexpected proposal,ughed in disbelief.


    "Is it too unrealistic? Or do you think you can''t lose to a girl?"


    "I wonder. Maybe it''s both."


    "Will you run away?"


    In this situation, Amasawa used her words to corner Nagumo, to make sure he wouldn''t escape.


    A measure to prevent the former student council president from running away like a scared rabbit.


    But Nagumo''s demeanor was confident, showing no signs of worry.


    "Can I at least hear the reason?"


    "The reason? Hmm, let''s just say it''s a personal vendetta."


    "Personal vendetta, huh?"


    "Yes, a personal vendetta. Now, if we take too long, the teachers might find us, and it would be embarrassing if the fact that you were beaten by a girl got out, so can we start?"


    "Just to confirm, do you really think you can beat me?"


    "Haha, I''ve been waiting for you to say that. Let''s give it a try."


    "It''s easy to say, but there''s nothing in it for me. It would be a problem if I retaliated against a girl who came at me out of personal vendetta."


    "It''s pointless to resist anyway, you can just let me beat you up. That way, you''ll lose your pride, but you won''t get penalized by the school. I rmend it."


    "Aren''t you afraid of being expelled?"


    "Of course not. If I get expelled, I have nothing to lose."


    "So, persuasion is impossible?"


    "Yes, I have no ''value.'' In other words, I''m invincible."


    Nagumo slowly pulled his hands out of his pockets.


    If he had been holding his phone, Amasawa would''ve immediately jumped on him to prevent him from calling for help.


    "I didn''t bring my phone."


    "Oh..."


    Amasawa had slightly licked her own lips.


    "Did you get cautious because of the recording? Go ahead and answer without holding back. State the reasons behind this so-called personal vendetta."


    "You teamed up with Ayanok��ji-senpai and expelled Yagami Takuya, right? It''s payback."


    Nagumo had been considering various things, but he waspletely surprised by the unexpected.


    "Yagami? Don''t tell me, you were Yagami''s girlfriend?"


    "That''s not it, but we were like siblings who had surpassed that kind of rtionship."


    "Then aren''t you targeting the wrong person? I wasn''t the one who led that."


    "I know that. I told you, this is just a personal vendetta. Unfortunately, even if I stand on my head, I can''t beat Ayanok��ji-senpai, and I thought about beating up Karuizawa-senpai and expelling her, but that''s a bit scary."


    "Scary? Of getting revenge from Ayanok��ji? I don''t think he cares about what happens to Karuizawa."


    "Ayanok��ji-senpai has his own goals. I don''t want to interfere with that."


    By expelling Karuizawa, it would interfere with Ayanok��ji''s n.


    As someone who knew the circumstances, Amasawa thought she couldn''t do such a thing.


    "People like Nagumo-senpai are well-suited for stories where the character ultimately faces their downfall at the conclusion."


    "It suits me, huh?"


    Usually, Nagumo would''ve been displeased and angry if such words were said to him.


    But now, emptiness welled up before such emotions.


    Thinking it was a waste to spend any more time, Amasawa stepped forward.


    "Last year and the year before, the one always causing a stir at this school was Horikita Manabu."


    But something unexpected began, and she stopped.


    "This year it''s Ayanok��ji. I''m sure it''ll be the same next year after I''m gone. I was indeed enrolled at this school for three years. I also served as student council president. Even if I attracted attention within my year, it didn''t resonate at all with the upper or lower years. There''s nothing more empty than that."


    That was why he desperately continued fighting.


    "I realized it just before graduation. It''s not Horikita-senpai or Ayanok��ji that''s to me. It''s me who couldn''t reach that realm."


    That was why he couldn''t get angry when told that downfall suited him.


    If only Nagumo was more capable.


    The names Horikita, Nagumo, and Ayanok��ji would''ve been treated as equals.


    Realizing this, there would be no need to seek rity in challenges or establish a hierarchy; they would''ve been on par.


    "But... that''s not the case. I wouldn''t have been satisfied with that situation either."


    If the three of them were lined up, he''d still want to rank them and be number one.


    "That''s why I won''t quit this game. Next year I''ll do it again with Horikita-senpai. And someday I''ll have a real match with Ayanok��ji and settle it."


    A part of him could be honest because he was talking to Amasawa, who had nothing to do with him.


    Although he didn''t vocalize it, Nagumo was grateful for this situation.


    "Before you put anything into action, I have a gift for you."


    Amasawa, who wasn''t at all interested before, was intrigued by Nagumoying everything bare.


    So she stopped and listened to the end.


    "A gift? I''m the type to throw away presents from men I''m not interested in without opening them."


    "I see. Then it might end with you throwing it away without opening it. After all, it''s just a message from Ayanok��ji."


    "...Ayanok��ji-senpai...?"


    Her body stiffened involuntarily at the sound of his name.


    "If it''s a lie to save yourself, it will only widen the wound."


    "Believe my words or not, it''s up to you. The message from Ayanok��ji is ''You still have value. Don''t waste it.'' "


    The reason Amasawa approached Nagumo at the exchange meeting was all for this moment of vengeance.


    Ayanok��ji noticed something suspicious about Amasawa from the first day.


    Pretending not to know the rules of the exchange event, despite having obtained all the information in advance from Tsukishiro. The emergence of a contradiction due to the lie, fabricated to prevent Nagumo from realizing the true reason for approaching him.


    The moment she heard that message, Amasawapletely lost her will to fight.


    "Is this just a coincidence? The message seems to have foreseen even the fact that you would despairingly dere yourself someone without ''value.''"


    The fact that Amasawa was targeting Nagumo and that she would take drastic actions because she had nothing to lose.


    What he''d been told at the time of their parting actually happened right in front of Nagumo.


    He''s a guy I don''t like. Nagumo cursed in his heart.


    Yet, Nagumo felt a slight sense of satisfaction.


    Now, it would be a waste to seriously fight Ayanok��ji.


    "I''m tired, so I''m going back first. You should return to your room before you catch a cold."


    Nagumo left the dining hall, leaving Amasawa standing still.

 Chapter 496 - 8 : The Courage to Step Forward

    <h4>Chapter 496: Chapter 8 : The Courage to Step Forward</h4>


    IT WAS SUNDAY, the fourth day of the training camp. Today was the day to say goodbye to the familiar campsite. We had to leave the amodation at 10 o''clock.


    The fight with Amasawa was set before breakfast, at 7 o''clock.


    Before 6 o''clock, after waking up, I came to the still dimly lit lobby.


    I had some time to spare until Horikita and Ibuki showed up from their shared room, and considering the risk of waking up the sleeping students, I decided to use my phone to kill time.


    The lobby was chilly and cold, perhaps because the heating had just turned on.


    "It seems everything is fine."


    In the silent corridor, I muttered to myself while looking at my phone screen. The only message left from Nagumo, which had arrived in the middle of the night, was ''I won''t say thank you.''


    If Amasawa hadmitted a crime, the rest of the camp would''ve been a big mess.


    After a while, as I watched the sunrise through the window, I heard footsteps.


    "It''s still quite early in the morning after all, isn''t it?"


    The one who approached me with a sleepy voice was Tsubaki from the same group.


    The probability that it was a coincidence was pretty high, but...


    "For the past two days, I heard from Hashimoto-senpai that you''ve been getting up early in the morning."


    Especially since going out in the morning was something I didn''t need to hide, even if someone were to ask, the impact would be negligible.


    Even if Tsubaki noticed the special training, the probability of the information reaching Amasawa wasn''t that high.


    "So, you came looking for me?"


    "Not so much looking for you, but I just thought I''d check if you were here."


    Tsubaki, who didn''t change her attitude towards anyone, looked at me with a slightly suspicious look.


    "But if you were here, that would change things quite a bit."


    "I don''t think there''s any reason for you toe see me anymore. The special exam given only to first-year students has been canceled."


    The student who expelled me would be given 20 million private points.


    That was the hidden special exam known only to a few, as Tsukishiro was involved.


    "I wasn''t interested in the prize money from the start, but I''m disappointed. I''mmenting the loss of the right to expel you in a dignified manner."


    "That''s dangerous talk. I don''t remember you ever resenting me."


    I looked back on my school life, but of course, there was nothing to worry about.


    "Don''t you think there are more things you don''t realize? People unknowingly incur resentment, you know?"


    I could somewhat understand what Tsubaki was trying to say. It was true that there were both people who knew they''d be resented and still chose actions that led to resentment, and those who didn''t think they would be resented but ended up being resented anyway.


    "I can''t tell if you''re joking or serious."


    "Someone mighte here, so why don''t we take a walk?"


    "It''s still dark outside."


    It was getting a bit brighter, but it was still hard to see and it was quite cold.


    "It''s not inconvenient for you, right?"


    "Well, okay."


    Anyway, I was nning to go outside to apany Horikita and Ibuki for their final special training.


    The two of us left the lobby and started walking outside in the cold.


    "I thought it would be snowing quite a bit in the mountains of Tochigi, but it''s not as much as I thought."


    "February has a drastic temperature difference. Maybe it''s because we''ve had a few warm days recently."


    In reality, it wasn''tpletely snow-free, and there was a bit of snow left on the side of the road. The water droplets on the cars, presumably belonging to the staff here, were slightly frozen and covered with a thin film.


    "Do you like snow, Senpai?"


    "I don''t particrly like or dislike it. I just think I enjoy the scenery when it snows. Do you like snow, Tsubaki?"


    "...I guess I do. At least more than you, Senpai."


    She squatted down on the side of the road, picked up a bit of the remaining snow with her fingertips, and stood up.


    She ced snow on her palm and showed it to me.


    "Can you look at this?"


    When she asked, I stared at the snow on her palm.


    Because it was a small amount, it melted and disappeared quickly due to the warmth of her hand.


    "Being in this school feels like being cut off from the outside world, doesn''t it? Who do you want to see first when you graduate next year, Senpai?"


    "You ask strange questions."


    "Maybe."


    For me, the only people I knew beyond their faces in the outside world were my father and his associates.


    I didn''t have any one-sided feelings of wanting to see any of them.


    "Probably just my family."


    So I chose a safe answer that wouldn''t surprise anyone.


    "Family... Anyone else?"


    "Not really. I don''t have any close friends, so that''s about it."


    "I see... Then, can I ask you one more strange question?"


    Tsubaki kept asking questions that seemed to have meaning and yet didn''t.


    "Imagine if you had a brother, and you didn''t know about his existence because your parents hid it from you for years. But one day, you were told he was actually family, would you be able to love him as a family member? Of course, assuming there is a genuine blood connection."


    "That''s a difficult question."


    As far as I knew, I didn''t have any siblings.


    But, this was a hypothetical situation where they''d be hidden, so in reality, it was possible.


    If that man had a son other than me... I wonder how I would feel when I met him.


    I was interested in the thought for the first time, but that didn''t mean I felt any unexpected emotions.


    "I might not feel anything. Of course, I think it would greatly depend on the other person''s personality and situation."


    If we were raisedpletely separately, it would be difficult to suddenly ept and interact with him as a family member.


    "I see. I think I would probably feel the same way as you. But, if I knew that the other person had special circumstances and a sad past, I would want to grow closer. I would like to know more about my sister, who I had been separated from."


    She''d asked me about a brother, but Tsubaki used a sister as an example. It wasn''t unreasonable to imagine that she was justparing it to the same gender, but the way she expressed her emotions sounded like it was based on her own experience.


    "I am confused. Ayanok��ji-senpai, from this school��"[17]


    [TL/N: This sentence appears to be intentionally vague and fragmented]


    Just as she was about to continue, Tsubaki''s gaze shifted to the building behind us.


    The promised time was approaching, so Horikita and Ibuki appeared.


    And for some reason, Kushida was also there.


    "We''ve been interrupted... Let''s talk againter."


    Tsubaki seemed to have no intention of letting the other students hear her story, and she returned to the building, shivering from the cold.


    She gently nodded to Horikita and the others as they passed by, but she didn''t say anything.


    "That was Tsubaki-san, right? What were you talking about at this hour?"


    "She said she woke up early. The training camp is over today, so we were just chatting. Though, why is Kushida here?"


    "Ibuki-san here carelessly leaked about her rematch with Amasawa-san. Carelessly."


    She emphasized the word ''carelessly'' twice, expressing how foolish it was.


    "It''s not my fault! It''s Kushida''s fault for tricking me into it!"


    "That''s what you call being defiant."


    "Shut up! It doesn''t matter if there''s one or two more spectators!"


    "So that''s it. I heard that you''re going to fight with Amasawa-san, and I got interested."


    "If both of you agree, I have nothing to say, but who are you cheering for?" My personal interest lies there.


    "For me, it''s like a win-win situation no matter who loses."


    She had a dispute with Amasawa during the cultural festival.


    In other words, no matter who won or lost, it would be a satisfying match for Kushida.


    Kushida looked back at Tsubaki, who had already disappeared from our sight.


    "About Tsubaki-san earlier, was it about love? I''ve been thinking for a while, but Ayanok��ji-kun, you''re surprisingly popr, aren''t you?"


    "Is that so?"


    Tsubaki''s goal waspletely different, but it seemed Kushida had assumed such.


    In sync with that, Horikita also started talking.


    "But you''re aware of it, right? You''re dating Karuizawa-san after all."


    "On the contrary, let me ask you in return, are you confident that you''re popr?"


    "Why me? I''m not popr."


    "At least Sud�� has shown some interest, hasn''t he?"


    "Really? Horikita? Haha, you''d make a good match with that idiot."


    "Stop calling Sud��-kun an idiot. He''s be several times smarter than you now."


    "But I can knock him down with my kick!"


    I didn''t understand how the basis ofparison turned intobat ability, but if he really tried, Sud�� would probably be stronger.


    "Well, but��"


    After looking at me from top to bottom, Ibuki spat out forcefully.


    "How this guy''s so popr��I just don''t understand at allllllllllllllllllllllllll."


    It was the first time I had seen someone hold such a prolonged ''l'' sound in their words.


    "You feel the same way as well, don''t you, Kushida?"


    "Eh?"


    "Not ''eh?'' I''m asking, you don''t understand Ayanok��ji''s appeal either, do you?"


    "...Well, it''s not that he doesn''t have any appeal, right? If you look around, you can see that there are no other decent men, right? Compared to such riffraffs, he might look better."


    It seemed like apliment, but it probably wasn''t.


    "I think they''re the same to me...!"


    "Then, if you had to date either Ry��en-kun or Ayanok��ji-kun, who would you choose, Ibuki-san?"


    At Kushida''s question, Ibuki fell silent for a while, maintaining a puzzled expression.


    Eventually, she broke the silence and came to a conclusion.


    "I can''t choose between curry-vored shit and shit-vored curry."


    Horikita and Kushida quickly distanced themselves from Ibuki to avoid getting involved.


    No one wanted to hear such a topic out loud.


    If I ran away, she''d probably chase after me, so I had no choice but to be a human shield.


    "What kind ofparison is that?"


    I decided to retort for the time being.


    "What do you mean, ''what kind''? It is what it is."


    I didn''t mind any analogy, but thatparison hurt a bit.


    And I wondered whether I was the former or thetter.


    No, I don''t want to be either.


    But... I deliberately thought about it.


    If I had to eat one of them, I would choose thetter.


    Even if the taste was improved, it would be extremely dangerous to ingest arge amount of E. coli. On the other hand, thetter would cause great damage to your taste and smell buds, but it''s still fundamentally curry. In other words, the adverse effects on the human body would be greatly limited.


    However, if your brain were to determine that it was dangerous solely from your sense of smell, you may suffer unexpected health risks...


    "What''s wrong, Ayanok��ji? You''re spacing out."


    "It''s nothing..."


    I thought too deeply and felt a little unwell, so I decided to forget about it.

 Chapter 497: 8.1

    <h4>Chapter 497: 8.1</h4>


    Since the rematch was right after the special training, we finished after some warm-ups.


    "We''ve done what we can. Now let''s see how far you''ll get in the real match."


    Without taking too much time, I called out to the two of them as their breathing calmed down.


    "Yes, thank you. Thanks to you, our chances have increased."


    Horikita, who bowed her head politely, urged Ibuki to thank me as well.


    Whether she had no intention of following suit, Ibuki turned away and snorted.


    "I won''t say thank you. I think my way of thanking you is to kick you someday."


    "If that''s your idea of gratitude, I don''t want it in the future."


    "Really..."


    "Well, I''ll go back first, so do your best."


    "Eh? Aren''t you going to watch, Ayanok��ji-kun? I thought we were going to watch together."


    Kushida, who had been watching from a distance, seemed to think we''d be together the whole time.


    "If it''s revealed that I''m involved in this matter, it will only harm Horikita and Ibuki."


    If I made Amasawa suspicious, the surprise attack wouldn''t work.


    To increase the odds of winning by even one percent, it was better not to be present.


    "I see. Then I''ll make sure to watch it all. I even brought my phone as well."


    She probably thought that it''d be a great opportunity to take photos if anything embarrassing were to ur.


    Since Kushida dered that she''d be the witness, I decided to leave that role to her.


    Besides, I had one more thing to do this morning.


    Just before 7 o''clock, naturally, there were hardly any students using the park.


    That was why the student I had called here was sitting on a bench, waiting for me to arrive.


    "It''s cold, isn''t it? You didn''t have toe earlier than the promised time."


    "Don''t worry about it. It''s not often that you call out to me, Ayanok��ji-kun. I enjoyed waiting."


    "Can I sit next to you?"


    "I''ve kept it open for that purpose."


    Sakayanagi, who was smiling, weed me as usual.


    "I''ll get straight to the point. I''ve got Yamamura waiting in the dog park nearby."


    "Eh? The dog park? Yamamura-san? What do you mean?"


    "Didn''t you expect Yamamura''s name toe up?"


    "She was in the same exchange meeting group as you, wasn''t she? Did she do something problematic?"


    Pretending not to know, Sakayanagi made up a reason.


    "You knew about it. That Yamamura and I were in the same group."


    "That''s a surprise. Naturally, I had already figured out which group each student in the ss was assigned to when we got on the bus. I was just observing this time, so I didn''t interfere with the exchange meeting."


    Of course, I already knew that Sakayanagi had figured out where all of her ssmates were assigned.


    So, once I told her what I was about to say, Sakayanagi wouldn''t be able to escape.


    "On the second day of the camp, when we talked in the lobby, do you remember what you said? ''Hashimoto-kun and Morishita-san are in the same group. How is Hashimoto-kun doing?'' That''s what you said. It''s impossible for you to overlook ss A''s group assignments, as you seem to pride yourself on. Yet, you didn''t even mention Yamamura''s name, did you?"


    This proved that Sakayanagi was subconsciously avoiding talking about Yamamura.


    "That''s��"


    No matter what excuse she made, she couldn''t twist the conclusion that she ''avoided'' it.


    "...Yes, that''s right. I admit that I didn''t mention Yamamura-san''s name at that time. But it''s none of your business, is it, Ayanok��ji-kun?"


    "Indeed, it''s none of my business. I''m probably meddling in others'' affairs by doing this."


    But I continued. Sakayanagi knew everything, so I didn''t beat around the bush.


    "You lost Kamuro. And at the same time, you were entrusted with her feelings. But that doesn''t mean everything is back to normal. You haven''t even finished choosing who to keep by your side, have you?"


    Beside me, a white breath escaped from Sakayanagi''s lips.


    "Indeed, I haven''t decided yet, but are you suggesting that I should appoint Yamamura-san?"


    "That''s not what I meant. People have their own strengths and weaknesses."


    It was hard to imagine Yamamura boldly supporting Sakayanagi.


    "The survival and elimination special exam��there are some people that still seem to be trapped in that exam."


    "...Are you talking about me and Yamamura-san?"


    "That''s right. Yamamura is suffering and can''t move forward, even though her situation is very different from yours."


    The two who had yet toplete the survival and elimination special exam.


    If Sakayanagi was the light of ss A, Yamamura was the shadow.


    It was safe to say they had an inseparable rtionship that couldn''t be cut off.


    "If you''re still bothered by that, you should resolve it."


    "...What you''re saying is strange, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Strange?"


    "I thought you were just going to stand on the sidelines from now on. Isn''t your unnecessary intervention excessive?"


    "That''s right. I also thought until a little while ago that I should just stand on the sidelines from here on."


    Sakayanagi no longer needed any further assistance.


    It was enough to wait for her to stand up on her own.


    However, the situation had changed significantly since before the special exam that led Hashimoto to betray them.


    That was why I was doing what I thought needed to be done now.


    "I don''t particrly want you to have anything to do with Yamamura. I don''t have any such hopes at all. Whether you want to get closer or more distant, or even cut ties, is up to you. But if you''re going to talk, now is the only time."


    Neither parties would benefit from postponing the issue.


    "Wouldn''t it be smartest to leave everything behind at this training camp?"


    "...But..."


    Sakayanagi''s frustrating resistance.


    I wasn''t one to talk, but she was just as bad at friendships.


    She didn''t know what to do because she had no prior experience.


    "As I said earlier, I have Yamamura waiting in the dog park. She''s been waiting for you in the cold for over 20 minutes now."


    "If that''s the case, aren''t you being a bit mean, Ayanok��ji-kun? The time you promised to meet me was 7 o''clock. We haven''t even been talking for ten minutes yet. Doesn''t that mean she''s been waiting since before that?"


    From Yamamura''s perspective, waiting for an unnecessarily long time would make the experience quite tough.


    From Sakayanagi''s perspective, she would be overwhelmed by guilt for making Yamamura wait.


    "This is also part of my strategy." I told her.


    She was quick to notice these kinds of things. It was indeed Sakayanagi.


    "I guess there''s no choice. I can''t let her catch a cold because of me. Let''s go pick her up for now."


    Sakayanagi, who couldn''t admit her weakness straight away, stood up for an appropriate reason.


    That was fine.


    If she spoke one-on-one with Yamamura, they''d be able to talk honestly.


    "It''s a bit of a distance, but even you can walk there in about five minutes. Go ahead."


    I also stood up and told her so.


    However... Sakayanagi didn''t step forward.


    "What''s wrong?"


    My question was met with no response, and a brief silence ensued.


    During that time, Sakayanagi tried to start walking, but she didn''t move forward at all.


    "...My... leg..."


    Her leg? Could it be hurting? I thought for a moment, but...


    "My leg... I can''t move it... I wonder why."


    It was immediately clear that it was not a physical problem, but a mental one.


    Even though she acted bravely through her words, as she''s typically like, her body didn''t seem to agree.


    It seems that the change in her heart, the change that Kamuro brought to light, was also evident here.


    "Don''t feel like you can show this side to anyone else?"


    "...Yes, that''s right..."


    I grabbed Sakayanagi''s left hand as she stood bewildered, unable to walk.


    Having waited for me before the set time, her fingertips were very cold.


    "Then, just for now, I''ll be your legs. That should make it easy for you to walk."


    "...I''m sorry."


    "It''s okay. It''s my own meddling that started this."


    After that, we moved forward slowly without exchanging words.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    Eventually, the dog park came into view.


    Seeing Yamamura standing in the shadow of the big tree in the distance, Sakayanagi raised her hand slowly to make her presence known, despite her confusion. When I gently pushed Sakayanagi''s back, she started walking on her own, albeit with a cane.


    From there on, it wasn''t my ce to interfere.


    Sakayanagi and Yamamura would have to talk and find their own solutions.


    Expecting a bright future, I turned away and left.


    Thus, the three-night, four-day exchange meeting came to an end.

 Chapter 498: Epilogue : Who is the Challenger?

    <h4>Chapter 498: Epilogue : Who is the Challenger?</h4>


    WITH THE END OF the exchange meeting, an event that brought changes in rtionships, our usual school life resumed.


    Recently, it had be customary for me to meet up with Kei in my room or lobby every morning and go to school together, but today was different. I left on my own this time, about 20 minutes earlier than usual.


    I got off the elevator, arrived at the lobby, and went outside.


    It was unusually cold today, perhaps because of the strong wind.


    Soon, February would be over.


    Next month would be busier than ever.


    First, I had to deal with the issue concerning Karuizawa Kei.


    Nothing special was needed for this.


    I just needed to proceed with the process as originally nned.


    Next, the issue concerning Ichinose Honami.


    The leader of a ss that was struggling topete with the other three, with nothing special among the four sses.


    My prediction was correct��ss D was in decline as the end of the second-year approached.


    However... unlike Kei''s problem, some adjustments might''ve been needed.


    I could decide after the end-of-year exam results came out.


    No matter how much Ichinose grew, there would be no major changes.


    I thought I just needed to proceed with the n as I originally intended.


    But...


    One problem arose that wasn''t in the n.


    That forced me to, in turn, make changes.


    There would be some negative effects as a result, but not all changes would be bad.


    As soon as I started walking to school, I stopped.


    "You''re early."


    In my field of vision, I spotted the person I was meeting up with.


    There was still some time until the scheduled appointment, but they were already waiting.


    They didn''t notice me and asionally breathed out white clouds as if they were cold, but they soon noticed my gaze.


    "Good morning, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    As I approached, a morning greeting came flying.


    "Good morning. Sorry for calling you out so early."


    "It''s okay. So, what do you want to talk to me about? Something hard to say over the phone?"


    As ssmates, we knew each other''s contact information. Normally, we couldmunicate using our phones.


    She questioned why I didn''t do that.


    "In a way, maybe."


    Horikita lined up next to me and soon started walking by my side.


    "In a way? That''s a scary way to put it."


    "There''s nothing to be wary of."


    "Really?"


    She looked at me with doubt in her eyes, but there was no prickliness like when we first met.


    It was a natural friendship, with a tenderness that could be described as such.


    "I often talk to you about special exams and ss-rted matters, but sometimes I want to talk about things that have nothing to do with that."


    "Huh? Sorry, I don''t understand. What do you mean?"


    I regretted that my words were clumsier than I''d imagined.


    I had thought of a more casual way to say it, but I decided against it because it might bother her depending on how she took it.


    "I wanted to have a meaningless conversation with you, unrted to our interests. Does that make sense to you?"


    "...I see?"


    She seemed to be in thought for a moment, but apparently, she didn''t understand.


    "We''ve been ssmates for a while. It''s not like we''ll have the opportunity to talk forever."


    "Forever is an exaggeration. Sure, that''s true, but we still have over a year until graduation, right? We don''t have to arrange meetings like this, I can chat anytime."


    "What if I were to be expelled at the end-of-year exam?"


    "That''s a jump. I don''t think you''ll be expelled. But seeing how easily you getmon sense questions wrong, maybe there''s a possibility..."


    After giving a serious answer, sheughed a little, finding her own words amusing.


    "Are you really worried that you might be expelled? Is that why you wanted to talk so early in the morning...?"


    "Thest special exam has be a bit of a trauma for me."


    "Then why don''t you try to remember moremon sense questions? You''re good at studying."


    She retorted, expressing that I was aware of my weak points.


    "So, can you memorize game and anime terms as effectively as studying for other subjects?"


    "Huh...? I wonder. When Onizuka tried pushing me to y a game before, they were talking about DP... something, DEF something, cooldown something, but my brain refused to remember those words and their meanings..."


    "It''s a simr feeling. I just can''t seem to want to remember it."


    I wanted to absorb as much information as I could, but I also had such preferences.


    "Don''t worry. From a ss perspective, your existence is essential. Even if you struggle withmon sense questions, I''ll always back you up. In other words, you won''t be expelled."


    Horikita made that clear.


    "That''s reassuring."


    I tapped Horikita''s shoulder with a gentle chop from my left hand. She was taking this conversation seriously.


    "Do you really worry about your own expulsion? It doesn''t seem like it. What''s the real issue?"


    "Actually, I''m not worried about myself, but about the possibility of your expulsion."


    "In reality, that seems more likely."


    She showed a slightly annoyed expression, but it didn''t seem serious, and she quickly returned to normal.


    Compared to when she first entered, Horikita''s emotions had be much more varied.


    "Thest special exam resulted in only Kamuro''s expulsion. However, next time, there might be more."


    "...You''re expecting new dropouts."


    "Yeah. At least one from our year. Depending on the exam content and its developments, we could lose several people."


    "...That many?"


    "It''s better to think that way. The school has said it before��second-year students are progressing through school life with few to no dropouts."


    "So they''re going to force an exam to increase the number of dropouts? That''s... a bit extreme. Our year didn''t have that many weak spots. It should''ve been a good thing."


    If you looked at it positively, it was true.


    But sometimes, a sieve was needed.


    "It depends on how it looks from the outside. For example, the government is also involved in the school''s operation. If the goal is to drop ten people a year, and we second-year students do not meet that standard, then it would be nice if they simply saw us as exceptional, but it''s unknown how much the people at the top are aware of and acknowledge the finer details of those numbers."


    "Toply with the government''s policy, they''ll make the rules more strict?"


    "Last year, because there were no dropouts, it was forcibly changed from zero to one expulsion. I wouldn''t be surprised if several people will get expelled in the uing end-of-year exam."


    The third-year''s advice from winter break��that might not have been just for the survival and elimination special exam. But in reality, the third-years probably didn''t know about the second-year students'' future.


    "Aren''t you overthinking...?"


    "Of course, it''s just spection. I just feel that way based on what I can see right now. I can''t provide any concrete evidence."


    "In that case, I guess so. I''d like you to work hard too."


    She requested cooperation half-seriously, half-jokingly.


    My answer to that was already decided.


    "If there''s a situation at the end of the school year where I can help, I intend to cooperate as much as possible."


    "That''s a rather unusual answer for you. Between the special training and now, you''ve been a bit too cooperativetely. Even with the Amasawa-san situation, you didn''t look displeased even once."


    "I''ve left many things to others so far. I have to lend a hand at least a little."


    "That''s a noble reason, but... it''s still not like you to be so cooperative."


    "I wonder. There might be a catch."


    "I''d rather not have that, if possible."


    At that point in the conversation, Horikita and I made eye contact.


    We probably both thought of the same thing simultaneously.


    "Haha, you invited me to chat, but in the end, we''re talking about the exam."


    "Right. There''s no point in calling you here if it''s like this. Alright, let''s end the discussion about the exam."


    With that, I put an end to this topic.


    "I heard about the results from Kushida, it seems you fought well, but you lost."


    "She''s really strong, isn''t she? Even if we fought two against one, we still couldn''t win in the end."


    However, I heard that Amasawa, after being hit a few times, was able to analyze them.


    "You should be able to have a better fight next time."


    "Two against one?"


    "Do you dislike it?"


    "Well, yes. Ibuki-san said she wouldn''t team up with me again."


    "It''s fine. She forgets things quickly."


    Horikitaughed at my exaggeration.


    "By the way, it looked like Amasawa-san noticed your influence right after the fight started. But she seemed very happy. What''s your rtionship with her?"


    "She''s my ex-girlfriend."


    "Are you serious? Or was that a joke?"


    "It was a bad joke."


    "If that''s the case, it wasn''t funny at all."


    A harsh response came back.


    "Someday, I want to hear the truth from your own mouth, Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "I''ll think about it. But don''t expect��"


    "I''m not."


    Horikita narrowed her eyes and smiled in response.


    At that moment, Horikita, who was changing colors, showed a smile.


    I guess I was also learning a lot from Horikita.


    This rtionship between us would end soon.


    Horikita would have some tough experiences in the future.


    But there is no need to keep worrying.


    Her growth and the support of her ssmates should guide her.

 Chapter 499: E.1

    <h4>Chapter 499: E.1</h4>


    Rewinding time a little from mymute to school with Horikita and the exchange meeting.


    It was when Hashimoto came to my room asking for help shortly before the exchange meeting began.


    Why did Hashimotomit this seemingly reckless act of betrayal?


    Why did he take the risk at that time?


    The circumstances were exined in detail by the person himself.


    "...Before I tell you what''s next, there''s something I really need to confirm with you."


    Hashimoto must''ve had an extraordinary determination to make such a decision.


    What he wanted to confirm.


    It was how much information I had at the moment.


    That was an important factor that this man couldn''t miss.


    "I''ve been tempted to betray Ry��en since before the previous special exam. Not just temporarily teaming up, but moving sses based on that premise."


    It was obvious, but there was no merit for Hashimoto, who was in ss A, to move to Ry��en''s ss.


    Except for cases like Katsuragi who lost his ce, if you were to look at it from a while ago, ss A should''ve established a more stable position than its current status.


    "Of course, I didn''t take such an invitation seriously at first. However, right after that, I heard from Ry��en that if I didn''t move sses, I''d definitely regret it at the end of the school year."


    "Regret? Is it because Ry��en himself is confident that he''ll win?"


    "It seems that even you don''t know about the content of the bet that Ry��en and Sakayanagi agreed on."


    "A bet, huh? I don''t know if it applies, but I''ve heard a little about the exchange in thest deserted ind exam. Unfortunately, I don''t know the details."


    After I told him what I knew, Hashimoto rubbed his fingers together and made a sound, as if to prove that this was what he wanted to confirm in advance.


    "I''m d. Then there was a reason for me toe here."


    epting that the key points of the story matched, Hashimoto slightly raised the corners of his mouth and smiled.


    Afterward, Hashimoto detailed the bet that the two made.


    "When I first heard about it, I thought it was a joke, but it turns out it''s serious."


    "I see. So you had a reason to betray them during the survival and elimination special exam."


    It was clear that it wasn''t a spur-of-the-moment idea at that point.


    "It''s not unreasonable to doubt the bet itself, right? No matter how you look at it, Sakayanagi is at a disadvantage."


    "That''s true. However, Sakayanagi wouldn''t choose to reject the bet just because of the disadvantage."


    She was the type who, like Ry��en, believed in her ultimate victory without a doubt.


    <strong><Illustration></strong>


    "Do you think Sakayanagi simply conceded or were there certain conditions set?"


    Hashimoto, unable to suppress his overflowing emotions, leaned forward and asked.


    "Both are possible, but the details of the bet will eventuallye to light. Considering that, it must be thetter. She must''ve allowed Ry��en to umte private points."


    "Nice. That''s fast. Yes, if that''s the case, there''s plenty of room to maneuver."


    "Who else knows about this bet besides you and the parties involved?"


    "Unless Ry��en was lying, no one. You''re the fourth. Well, both would hate to lose the bet by having it leaked."


    That spection was probably correct. It would be preferable to make it public after everything had been confirmed.


    The only one Ry��en leaked it to was Hashimoto, but that must''ve been a considerable risk.


    If it was around the time the deserted ind exam ended, about half a year had passed since then.


    "It took a while... for this day toe."


    Having kept the secret hidden, Hashimoto had been worrying alone.


    "Whether Sakayanagi wins or Ry��en wins, honestly, I couldn''t make a judgment... No, I was kinda thinking that Sakayanagi might win."


    As if he had momentarily lied, Hashimoto immediately corrected himself.


    "But even then, it''s like 55 to 45. Seriously, it''s not decisive, is it?"


    I agreed.


    Unless it was a nine to one chance or at worst a seven to three chance, you couldn''t tell which way a match would go.


    "So I''ve been looking for a decisive factor, and what I thought that would be was��"


    Slowly, Hashimoto''s gaze turned to me.


    "Me?"


    "If you were to follow Sakayanagi, I would''ve been ready to die with my current ss without hesitation. That''s why I advised Sakayanagi... to recruit you as an ally."


    And Sakayanagi refused.


    So he decided to betray them...?


    While it seemed to make sense, it was still unclear at its core.


    I understood that the oue of the confrontation between Sakayanagi and Ry��en was unpredictable.


    I understood that he thought Sakayanagi could win if I joined.


    But that didn''t change the fact that it was too reckless.


    "I will make Ry��en win. No matter what the content of the end-of-year special exam is, I will thoroughly assist them. If I miss this opportunity, I will most likely be the one to disappear."


    Of course, Sakayanagi would be on high alert against Hashimoto and wouldn''t share any information.


    But if there was a confirmed traitor within the ss, it would inevitably be a handicap.


    If the ss''s umted exam scores were to determine the oue, it would be a tough situation if Hashimoto intentionally scored zero.


    "If Sakayanagi had followed my instructions, whether that would be before or after I betrayed her in the previous special exam, I was nning to betray Ry��en and join her at the end of the year."


    He spoke with a lot of determination, but I wasn''t sure how much of what he was saying was true.


    Right now, the only thing I could be sure of was that everything he said was ambiguous.


    "It''s fine if you want to make Ry��en win, but did you propose the same thing to him as you did to Sakayanagi?"


    "You mean about recruiting you? Yes, of course. The answer was the same as Sakayanagi''s, but there was a condition. If we could defeat Sakayanagi in the end-of-year exam, he would recruit the both of us to his ss."


    Ry��en said that?


    Considering the past, Ry��en was the same as Sakayanagi.


    It was clear that he wasn''t the kind of person who would try to win by recruiting me.


    And it would take a whopping 40 million to recruit two students from different sses.


    Did Ry��en''s shallow lie fool Hashimoto?


    No��that probably wasn''t it.


    Hashimoto wasn''t telling the whole truth.


    If I were Hashimoto, I''d make sure to have a safety in ce for my reckless betrayal. I wouldn''t decide to betray solely based on the possibility that Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka might move to the ss I had in mind.


    It''d be strange if the reward for betraying Sakayanagi wasn''t enormous.


    The contract to transfer 20 million private points��


    That would make sense.


    If he helped defeat Sakayanagi in the end-of-year exam and took the credit, he''d gain that privilege from Ry��en.


    That would make the challenge worth it, even at the cost of betrayal.


    Even if Ry��en couldn''t immediately prepare thatrge sum, he could collect the private points thate into the ss every month, and it would be enough to pay by graduation.


    In the end, it didn''t really matter to Hashimoto which ss won or where I was. As long as he had the privilege to be part of ss A, that would be Hashimoto''s victory.


    Everything was for himself.


    It was the answer he chose based on the patterns he had mentally simted.


    By betraying the ss in the survival and elimination special exam, Hashimoto confirmed Sakayanagi''s true intentions.


    If she decided to ept me there, things would be simple. If she collected private points from each of her ssmates, there was a high possibility that she could easily reach 20 million points. If I epted the ss change, Hashimoto would''ve chosen to fight alongside me and Sakayanagi as the two main yers.


    If he was rejected, he could make a secret agreement with Ry��en and get 20 million private points. However, though thetter had an advantage in terms of graduating from ss A, he couldn''t avoid risking expulsion due to his betrayal. Not only would Sakayanagi be an enemy, but he would also be at risk of being targeted by a third party.


    The reason he approached me and told me the details of the betrayal was all for himself.


    "What do you want from me?"


    When I asked, Hashimoto smiled nervously.

 Chapter 500: E.2

    <h4>Chapter 500: E.2</h4>


    With the end of the exchange camp, time was slowly but surely passing.


    Sakayanagi was quietly spending time while waiting for someone toe, sitting on the sofa in the career counseling room.


    Next to her stood her homeroom teacher, Mashima, with his arms crossed in confusion.


    "What are you nning to talk about? And with whom?"


    Mashima, who had been brought here without being told anything, sent a quizzical nce.


    Even though he didn''t understand the situation, he definitely sensed something unusual.


    "You seem restless, Mashima-sensei. Don''t worry, you''ll understand soon."


    "But..."


    More than ten minutes had passed since the two of them entered the room.


    "...Here hees."


    Sakayanagi sensed it immediately after.


    The moment a hand was ced on the door, she knew that man would appear.


    "You''re five minuteste, Ry��en-kun."


    "The star of the show always makes ate entrance."


    The one who opened the door to the counseling room was Ry��en Kakeru.


    And behind him was the figure of his homeroom teacher, Sakagami.


    "What''s going on here, Mashima-sensei?"


    "Well... I''m also trying to gauge the situation."


    The two teachers who ran into each other couldn''t understand the situation and looked at each other, puzzled.


    Ry��en sat down in front of the sofa where Sakayanagi was sitting, spreading his legs wide.


    An odd situation was created��two students were sitting and the teachers were standing.


    "Even if you were to deceive Hashimoto-kun, you made him do something quite bold."


    When Sakayanagi asked, Ry��en immediately responded.


    "He must be feeling insecure under you, can''t me him."


    "That would be fine. But he must''ve been tempted by a cunning viin''s sweet words. He believes lies to be true and truth to be lies. He might be another victim."


    The exchange of words between the two began, leaving the teachers behind.


    "You seem energetic for someone who''s sunk so low."


    "I indeed felt emotions I had never experienced before, but if you thought that was the end, it''s too early."


    "Heh, Ayanok��ji did something unnecessary too."


    Ry��en naturally grasped that Ayanok��ji had approached Sakayanagi at the exchange meeting.


    After the meeting, Sakayanagi had returned to her usual self.


    Noplex reasoning was needed to connect the dots.


    "As you say, I was saved by him... by Ayanok��ji-kun."


    Taking Sakayanagi''s gaze head-on, Ry��en felt it on his skin.


    A change in her gaze, which until now had only looked down on others.


    Sakayanagi also felt it.


    The man before her had a conviction that had grown evenrger than when they first met.


    "So you were also saved by Ayanok��ji-kun."


    "Huh, don''t make meugh. We''ll never get along. I don''t remember being saved by Ayanok��ji. Rather, what I got was hatred. Hatred for revenge."


    His trampled strength and pride.


    He had been defeated miserably in the ring where he had absolute confidence.


    "I see. Hatred��so that''s what drove you here."


    "Are you any different?"


    In response to Ry��en''s counter-question, Sakayanagi inadvertently smiled.


    "What''s so funny?"


    "I''m sorry. If my smile seemed rude, I apologize. I was simply happy that you''vee to recognize Ayanok��ji-kun''s strength in the process of getting here."


    Unlike her fury towards Hashimoto, which was not based on personal experience, the Ry��en before her had directly experienced the cause of his emotions.


    She thought he was qualified.


    No, Sakayanagi immediately revised her thoughts. It wasn''t just that.


    She felt a change in her emotional switch within her, starting with the incident involving Kamuro and Yamamura.


    "Are you saying you had your eye on him earlier?"


    It was a well-known fact that Sakayanagi had been paying attention to Ayanok��ji from the start.


    But Ry��en didn''t know where their first contact was, so he tried to find out.


    "Yes. You unfortunately only learned of his existence at this school. However, unlike you, I''ve been following him with my own eyes since childhood."


    At such a triumphant attitude, Ry��en stopped moving.


    "...Quite an interesting statement, isn''t it? You know about his childhood?"


    "I know it well. I consider him as something like a childhood friend."


    Upon hearing that statement, Mashima also remembered the story Sakayanagi had told him before.


    And there was nothing ruder than interrupting the two of them.


    "I lost to Ayanok��ji. I thought it was okay to lose as many times as I wanted as long as I won in the end, but that man mercilessly crushed that indomitable spirit. I was so drained."


    But over a yearter, he was trying to return to that stage.


    "Although our motives are different, it seems that our final goals are the same, Ry��en-kun. I have been wishing to fight him since long before you. We only have one year left in our school life. I need to get rid of any obstacles before then."


    "Ipletely agree. I''ll defeat you quickly and take my revenge on him."


    Sakayanagi, who had always looked at others with cold eyes, certainly felt her heart warming up.


    Not towards Ry��en. She was thinking of Ayanok��ji, who was waiting ahead.


    Ry��en felt the same way. His emotions were surging to defeat Ayanok��ji, who was waiting beyond Sakayanagi.


    "Your revenge will not be fulfilled. You will stumble just before it."


    "You''re probably nning for a showdown on the throne, but that scheme will fail."


    Unable to remain silent in the face of the escting exchange, Mashima intervened.


    "You seem to be moving the conversation along on your own, but could you exin the situation?"


    "I apologize."


    In response to the slightly indignant Mashima, Sakayanagi apologized softly and started speaking.


    "It would be better not to waste any more time. Shall we get to the point?"


    "Yeah, that''s right."


    Sakayanagi lined up the two teachers and turned them towards her.


    In front of Sakayanagi, who stood up on her cane, Ry��en also stood up and turned around, facing the teachers.


    "We''re about to make a big bet. Normally, we would make some kind of verbal promise for ordinary matters, or if we couldn''t trust each other, we would make a contract. This time, however, because of the nature of its content, we decided it would be safer to have the teachers in charge of both sses present."


    From the course of the conversation they had heard, both Mashima and Sakagami felt tense.


    "What are you nning to decide among yourselves?"


    Sakayanagi announced the details of the bet.


    "For the end-of-year exam, the loser will leave this school��that''s what it''s about."


    "The loser will leave...? What are you talking about? The content and rules of the exam haven''t been announced yet. We don''t even know if there''s a way to expel students within the exam yet."


    Confused, he answered sternly, exining that there was no guarantee of a method to expel the opponent.


    "Mashima-sensei, what are you misunderstanding? The content and rules are irrelevant. We are only betting on the oue of the end-of-year special exam. As a result, the loser will voluntarily drop out. That''s all there is to it."


    "You teachers were made witnesses to this exchange just to ensure certainty. Even if Sakayanagi cries and screams, proceed with the expulsion process ording to the contract. Of course, if by any chance I lose, the same applies to me."


    Both parties epted the dangerous condition��epting expulsion��upon defeat, cutting off 100% of their retreat.


    Due to its coercive power, the school''s cooperation was essential for the bet''s smooth execution.


    Mashima, who had taken in the situation, tried to speak, but the words didn''t immediatelye out.


    "Do you really intend to make such a bet? You have a Protection Point��"


    Compared to Mashima, the calmer Sakagami voiced his doubts.


    "A Protection Point is meaningless if we''re voluntarily withdrawing. For fairness, it''s been decided that we''d request additional private points to fill the difference that the Protection Point makes, but the amount is kept to a minimum. If we take away his money, his ss will really have nothing left."


    "It''s like counting your chickens before they hatch. If you lose, there''s no need to calcte money."


    Mashima understood that this wasn''t a joke. The contract was serious.


    He straightened his posture and made a stern expression.


    "Are both of you really okay with this? If we agree, we will have to enforce the expulsion forcibly based on the end-of-year results. Both of you are in important positions; you two y the leader role in your sses. Major disruption is inevitable."


    "Yes. It will be virtually impossible to repair the defeated ss, and it will be impossible to avoid dropping out of the four-way battle before advancing to the third-year."


    As she said these words, Sakayanagi thought of Ayanok��ji again.


    Thepetition between the four sses that Ayanok��ji idealized had be impossible when the bet with Ry��en was decided. Even if Ayanok��ji transferred and steered towards bncing the forces, considering Ichinose''s declining ss, there wouldn''t be enough yers.


    "Please don''t hope for a draw to invalidate the bet, okay?"


    "I won''t recognize a draw. If that happens, we can decide by lottery, just like how you abandoned Kamuro."


    "That''s also fun. Let''s look forward to it."


    Both parties cut off their method of retreat. Though, since the beginning, they didn''t anticipate a draw urring.


    It could only be victory or defeat.


    A rtionship simr to the two sides of the same coin.


    The bet was officially established when Sakayanagi and Ry��en acknowledged it, and both homeroom teachers understood it.


    The loser would disappear.


    The end-of-year special exam, with stakes set on expulsion and no escape... was about to begin.

 Chapter 501: Afterwards/Credits

    <h4>Chapter 501: Afterwards/Credits</h4>


    <strong>Author''s Postscript</strong>


    Somehow, I was able to release this in four months. I''m Kinugasa with a hernia. Thank you all for your support this year as well. A year really goes by quickly, and before I know it, one of my children will be starting elementary school this spring. I believe that ying with all their might every day at kindergarten or daycare is a child''s social role, but the fact that they are about to jump into a society that includes studying... As a parent, I''m half excited and half worried.


    Well, let''s put my story aside for now and talk a little about ''ssroom of the Elite.'' Following the previous time, the story has entered the third term of the second-year. After the hard-hitting development during the previous volume, I provided something slightly more rxed this time. And next time, it will finally be thest special exam of the second-year, the end-of-year special exam. Those who have already finished reading the main story will understand, but I am nning a story that will greatly affect the main characters up to this point. And currently, the third season of the ''ssroom of the Elite'' TV anime is airing. I would be happy if you could check that out as well!


    Finally... As I wrote at the beginning, about the condition of my herniated neck. These days, there''s nothing I can do about it, and my work pace has slowed down considerably. The pain is so severe that I hate sitting in a chair. When I was healthy, if the ratio of work time was six and rest time was four, I made it nine for work and one for rest to somehow cover the slowdown. But there''s no way I can keep this ratio forever, and I think my body is at its limit... So I''m considering taking a little time off topletely rest in the future and focusing on recovery. In that case, the release of the next volume may be dyed. I intend to work harder than ever when I recover, so I would appreciate your understanding. ''ssroom of the Elite'' is of course the first priority, but I have many other things I want to do besides that.


    Well then, everyone, hoping for the quickest possible reunion��see you again!


    <strong>RoyalMTL''s Afterword</strong>


    Hey there everyone, Cast here again. I''ll jump straight into it by saying that this volume definitely turned out well. There were some points in the story that didn''t sit right with me like the fact that Horikita and Ibuki''s fight with Ichika was done off screen, or theck of detail surrounding Kiyo and Nagumo''s match. Nevertheless, this was still a very good volume all around and I want to give a massive thank you to my team for helping produce the best quality trantion that we could under the circumstances for this volume. As some of you may have noticed, the digital version of the Japanese release for Volume 11 came out about a weekter than usual. This did throw some holes into our schedule for the trantion but luckily, we were still able toplete it in a timely manner for you all.


    Once again, thank you so much to the author, Shogo Kinugasa, for writing this series. Everyone, please consider buying one of the official copies for ssroom of the Elite so that we may be able to support the author even more.


    In his postscript, Kinugasa seems to be dealing with some health issues so let''s all hope for his speedy recovery.


    Hope you guys enjoyed this volume and thank you for your continuous support! Keep checking in on our website to be updated on ssroom of the Elite trantions and consider joining our discord events and early ess!


    -Cast (Trantor)


    /


    /invite/royalmtls


    Also follow us on Twitter for updates and potential leaks.


    /royalmtls


    Credits


    Yasaseru �C Japanese Reader


    "They didn''t let me cook enough on the TL Notes... but what''s more important is how Kinugasa ruined Ichika & Arisu''s characters even more..."


    D3nj4l �C Japanese Reader


    DoSomething �C Editor


    "Huh? Ichika v.s. Hori/Ibuki happened? When? Where? Who even is Ichika?"


    SuperSkillz �C Editor


    "What did I get hyped up for... I''m about to start endless yapping if I continue ranting"


    Unknown �C Editor


    "I can feel Kinu cooking something big"


    Spoopykay �C Editor


    "Shit better be fire next volume or this fr turning into lobotomy kaisen."


    Meyobos �C Editor


    "JJK manga is popping off hard rn Yuta is the GOAT, also shout out to my fellow TL team members."


    Kall_tho �C Editor


    "Hail the glorious king Ayanokoji... ''Put Chabs back in the bunny suit'' - Meyobos"


    Budos �C Editor


    "Please be kind to each other. RIP Hana Kimura 5/23/2020."


    Reito �C Editor


    "After reading Hiyori SS, I think that bookworm might even be more relevant than I had originally considered her to be."


    Ash �C Editor


    SnOrT NeSqUiK? - EPUB Maker


    "Brug #3"


    ZF - Illustrator


    "???? ?s ?o?u? ou ?u ?2?11?"


    Reversi �C Illustrator


    "Ichika Goddess... Akira Toriyama R.I.P."


    KyoIshigami


    I was Busy with Work, After finishing my work, I realized I didn''t have myptop with me. So, I used my smartphone to upload the volume, which took much longer than I expected. It was quite a difficult task.


    Let''s pray for Sensei''s health; the next volume might be dyed, as Sensei mentioned in his postscript.


    Anyway, I''m curious about the age range of our readers here. I know most of you are teenagers, but I''d like to know specific ages. Please tell me your age in thement.


    Thank you for reading. �i��Ǥ����������꤬�Ȥ��������ޤ�.


    See you in the next volume!

 Chapter 502: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori’s SS - Memories I Don’t Want to Forget

    <h4>Chapter 502: Short Story 1 : Shiina Hiyori��s SS - Memories I Don''t Want to Forget</h4>


    MORISHITA-SAN, HOLDING A card in her left hand, swiftly extended her arm.


    Four cards were held in her right hand.


    "Please go ahead, Shiina Hiyori. Feel free to draw any card you like."


    In this game, the person left holding the Joker at the end loses.


    So... does that mean the single card in her left hand is suspicious?


    "Somehow... I''m a little curious about this one card."


    "Is that so? This is the advanced strategy I came up with."


    But would she make it that obvious that she''s holding the joker?


    "What should I do...?"


    Instinctively, I felt I should choose one from the four, but Morishita-san''sposure was palpable. Was she trying to make it seem like a one-in-four chance by isting a safe card instead of making me draw the Joker from a one-in-five chance?


    No, perhaps that was exactly her n, and that was the Joker?


    ��I had no idea.


    As I was seriously contemting, I happened to nce over at Ayanok��ji-kun, who was sitting behind Morishita-san. His eyes were focused on Morishita-san''s cards.


    And then, at that moment...


    Even though there was nothing apparent in his expression...


    I strangely felt like I could read Ayanok��ji-kun''s thoughts.


    ''The isted card Morishita-san was holding was the Joker.''


    I felt like he was looking at it that way.


    "Please choose as you like."


    That was why I felt a bit guilty and couldn''t choose from the four. I just pulled out the isted card.


    When I turned it over... that card was indeed the Joker.


    I was a bit shocked, but more than that, I felt relieved.


    I felt validated that what I sensed from Ayanok��ji-kun wasn''t wrong.


    I continued to enjoy the game after that.


    School life, where I could spend precious time with friends I couldn''t have imagined when I first enrolled.


    Spending precious time with the person I cared about.


    Memories I wanted to remember forever.


    I couldn''t help but wish that this school life would continue for even one more day.

 Chapter 503: Short Story 2: Sae Chabashira’s SS - The Student in Front of Me

    <h4>Chapter 503: Short Story 2: Sae Chabashira��s SS - The Student in Front of Me</h4>


    AFTER SCHOOL, the one-on-one meeting with K��enji Rokusuke ended, and the career counseling room fell silent.


    "Phew... K��enji is such a troublesome student."


    The conversation wasn''t making sense, and the sections that the teacher was supposed to fill in were a mess.


    I sighed, staring at the tablet screen that I wanted to look away from.


    His career aspiration was to be a free person, he didn''t need human rtionships, his only concerns were about improving his own body, and so on.


    "If I submit this, who knows what the higher-ups will say."


    But I couldn''t just rewrite it and lie.


    My only option would be to submit it with some minor modifications to the wording.


    "If only K��enji was the only oddball, it would be easier for me..."


    Thest one left was Ayanok��ji, who could be equally as troublesome as K��enji.


    Honestly, I couldn''t imagine what kind of one-on-one meeting it would be.


    As I was adjusting K��enji''s profile, there was a knock on the career counseling room''s door.


    "Excuse me."


    With that serious tone, Ayanok��ji entered the room.


    "You''re finally here. Have a seat."


    I switched from K��enji''s profile to Ayanok��ji''s, disying a nk list.


    I wondered how much of this would be filled in during the uing meeting.


    "You seem busy."


    "As a homeroom teacher, I can''t help but be busy during this time. But I feel a little better knowing that the two-person interviews will be over today. It was a good decision to leave the two oddballs forst."


    First, I instructed Ayanok��ji to sit down, facing each other.


    "Two oddballs, you say?"


    "What, are you shocked to be treated on the same level as K��enji?"


    Their personalities werepletely different, but there was no doubt that they were both oddballs.


    "I''d be lying if I said I didn''t think anything of it."


    "Do you think K��enji is more of an oddball? Well, I can understand why you''d think that, but to me, there''s not much difference. You''re quite the oddball yourself."


    One thing was for certain, he didn''t want to bepared to K��enji.


    "Well, I don''t have many opportunities to talk with each student. Before we talk about your future ns, let''s talk about your school life. If there''s anything you want the school to improve, I''d like to hear it."


    "I don''t have anything in particr. As an individual, I''m satisfied."


    "I see. Do you have any trouble in your rtionships with friends, or anything you want to consult about?"


    "I don''t."


    He was definitely an oddball. Unlike K��enji, he was concise and efficient, but like K��enji, hecked substance.


    "Most students give one or two opinions, or at least show some sign of thinking, even if they don''t have any. I don''t think you''re holding back..."


    I tried to draw out as much as I could as a teacher, but Ayanok��ji''s responses didn''t waver.


    "I actually don''t have anyints."


    "Well, if that''s the case, it''s fine... but you really don''t have anything?"


    "There''s nothing. I''m satisfied with my school life and there''s no particr trouble."


    "I see... Well, that''s very good."


    "Chabashira-sensei, you''ve changed quite a bit too."


    My hand, which had been typing on the tablet, stopped.


    I felt as if Ayanok��ji was interviewing me, which was strange.


    "I don''t think I''ve changed. But I might''ve be more honest than before."


    The student in front of me is a whole generation younger than me. Yet, why does he sometimes seem like someone who''s lived as long or even longer than me?


    It took courage for me to ept this feeling.


    If someone was in trouble, I would lend a hand, and if someone was wrong, I''d correct them.


    A teacher''s gaze upon the children in the ss must always be equal.


    But...


    Ayanok��ji would casually cross that boundary.


    There were times when I felt like I wanted him to know my weaknesses.


    Though, this was originally the feeling that we wanted students to have toward their teachers.


    "... Anyway. If there''s anything you''re concerned about in your school life, don''t hesitate to tell me."


    I cleared my throat to dispel unnecessary thoughts.


    The person in front of me now was an important student.


    Nothing more, nothing less.


    "I''d like to know whether you''re hoping to go on to higher education or get a job. If you''ve made up your mind, please tell me."


    I decided to move the conversation forward to distract myself from that strange feeling.

 Chapter 504: Short Story 3: Ai Morishita’s SS - Please Listen in My Stead

    <h4>Chapter 504: Short Story 3: Ai Morishita��s SS - Please Listen in My Stead</h4>


    THE EXCHANGE MEETING was already on its third day.


    I was keeping my eye on Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka to track Hashimoto Masayoshi''s movements, and by chance, we happened to be in the same group. Yet, I was having trouble because I couldn''t get any information.


    I wondered if those two had connected.


    Have they decided to team up, or is it just me needlessly worrying?


    I wanted to know.


    Not to protect Sakayanagi Arisu, nor to protect ss A.


    I did it for myself.


    And to satisfy the approaching needs for esteem.


    Surely, detectives who came across murder scenes must''ve been fighting such impulses every day.


    "It''s almost time for the exchange meeting."


    I heard a voice from behind.


    "Morishita?"


    When I didn''t respond, my name was called.


    But I ignored it and tried to pick up the voice from the part of the tree where I had ced my hand.


    "Could you please be quiet? I was listening to the voice of the forest."


    I shook off the disturbance from behind and focused my attention.


    "...Huh? The voice of the forest? What is that?"


    How noisy.


    It seemed he fell into the trap I set, but he was a bit of a nuisance right now.


    "Don''t you understand? The forest is alive."


    I continued to give a simple exnation.


    "If you touch arge tree like this, close your eyes, calm your mind, and listen, then you might understand what I''m saying."


    "...I see?"


    It seems he didn''t get it.


    Well, that was fine. It seemed I''d sessfully lured him out.


    Ayanok��ji Kiyotaka was a very interesting existence.


    No matter how close I got, I couldn''t see his true nature as a human being.


    The line between how much was serious and how much was a joke wasn''t clear.


    I wanted to know. I wanted to know more about him. I couldn''t help but want to know.


    Let''s have him listen to the voice of the forest instead of me.

 Chapter 505: Y2V12 Synopsis

    Chapter 505: Y2V12 Synopsis


    The long second year is finally drawing to a close, and the final special exam, the "Year-End Special Exam," is about to take ce. Each ss will select three representatives��vanguard, middle guard, and general��beforehand, and they''llpete in elimination matches against representatives from other sses. However, the contents of the exam will remain unknown until the day of.


    "I''ll show my true strength to Sakayanagi and to you. It doesn''t suit me, but I''ll defeat you fair and square."


    "After we finish the year-end special exam, let''s take our time over some tea. After defeating him, I''ll face off against you, Ayanokouji-kun, as a third-year."


    Only one will survive��Ryuuen or Sakayanagi.


    The climax of the hugely popr school apocalypse series, second-year arc!


    "If we both manage to avoid expulsion in the special exam, let''s make some time for each other then."


    Release Date: 25 July (Japan)

 Chapter 506: Y2V12 Trail

    <h4>Chapter 506: Y2V12 Trail</h4>


    Y2V12 Trial is 12 pages preview of the volume release before the full Volume the digital version of Y2V12 will be release on August 1.


    Chie Hoshinomiya''s Monologue


    FOR ME, SAE-CHAN is my best friend.


    For me, Sae-chan is also a rival.


    It might seem contradictory, but surprisingly, it works.


    And having these two feelings coexist isn''t so unusual, I think.


    Despite my appearances, I have quite a few friends.


    Friends from elementary and middle school, ANHS, friends I met in college, and friends I made after bing a working adult.


    But the rtionship where I could really share my true feelings continued only with Sae-chan.


    I don''t know what she thought about it.


    Even if I were to lose to anyone else, I just can''t lose to Sae-chan.


    We were in the same ss, and the days we spent together aiming for ss A instilled such feelings in me.


    Originally, Sae-chan didn''t want to be a teacher.


    But on that day, the day she understood that she couldn''t graduate from ss A, I realized that Sae-chan wanted to be a teacher and aim for ss A again.


    That was why I decided to be a teacher too.


    Honestly, it''s a profession far from what I want to do.


    Every day, I''m disrespected by cheeky students, and I can''t expect much in terms of sry.


    Yet, I became a teacher.


    There was just one purpose.


    To eliminate all hopes from Sae-chan''s dream, her goal of graduating from ss A.


    It makes sense, right?


    That day, because of Sae-chan''s worthless feelings of love, I couldn''t graduate from ss A.


    Otherwise, I wouldn''t have be a teacher and could''ve had a more morous life.


    Yet, only Sae-chan gets to graduate her students from ss A?


    And she feels satisfied with herself, settling her past?


    I can''t allow that.


    I''m still trapped by the past.


    So as long as I can breathe, I absolutely wouldn''t let her win.


    (TL NOTE: Literally "So as long as I can see")


    If my ss loses in the year-end special exam...


    If Sae-chan''s ss bes ss A��


    At worst, I would have to stop it by any means necessary.


    I don''t care if I''m branded a failure as a teacher.


    I''m fine with being driven out of this profession.


    Even if it means dragging others down, I absolutely have to stop it.


    I swore that in my heart.


    The end-of-year special exam for the second years is about to begin.


    Depending on the oue of this exam, the fate of my ss, which has been pushed to the brink, would be decided.


    For me and my students, an important battle that we absolutely can''t lose is about to begin.


    Chapter 1:


    Unusual End-of-Year Special Exam


    IT WAS THE second week of March, Thursday. Our second year of school life was finally reaching its climax.


    This year, likest year or even more so, was filled with unforgettable days.


    There might''ve been many good and bad moments, but for those enrolled in this school, the answer would drastically change depending on whether they could sessfully ovee the next challenge.


    The end-of-year special exam was given a role that distinguished itself from the other special exams.


    I want you to remember the special exam conducted during the first year.


    A one-on-one ss battle in selected subjects.


    A seven-match contest, where each victory would steal 30 ss points from the opponent.


    In the end, it was a close match, but if we had won seven games in a row, we would''ve gained 210 ss points.


    Moreover, the winning ss received a reward of 100 ss points.


    In other words, there could''ve been a maximum difference of 520 points between the winner and the loser.


    That alone showed how significant the end-of-year special exam was.


    "Good morning."


    Chabashira-sensei appeared in the ssroom with a calm demeanor. The morning greetings from the students were sparse. For the past few days, the students had been paying attention to what Chabashira-sensei was saying after her greetings.


    Although it hadn''t been anything important before, today, it seemed like the time had finallye.


    "I will now announce the end-of-year special exam and its contents. But before that, I would like to share a little personal story."


    Chabashira-sensei, our homeroom teacher, had told us numerous things about special exams.


    However, this time, the introduction was clearly different.


    "This is my eighth year as a teacher at the Advanced Nurturing High School. For six years, I had been in charge of two sses. But during those six years, I had never managed to move up from ss D. Looking back at my behavior when I first joined, it''s not particrly surprising."


    It was quite hard to imagine now, but at the time, Chabashira-sensei used to respond quite coldly.


    For me, who knew a bit more about the circumstances than other students, it wasn''t a story that required much thought.


    "When I was in charge of the two sses, I had only one thought in mind��that I wouldn''t get emotionally involved and would continue to observe from a fair and calm standpoint. I believed that maintaining a distance as a teacher, whether in good times or bad, was the right thing to do. Of course, this aligned with the school''s educational philosophy, and it wasn''t wrong. But now, I feel that this was also my way of escaping due to my immaturity as a teacher."


    The students listened silently to Chabashira-sensei''s words.


    "Fairness is important. As a teacher, I must not intervene in sspetition and skew the results. However, overlooking opportunities for students to grow is something that shouldn''t be done as a homeroom teacher, as an adult, and as a working professional. I''ve only recentlye to realize this."


    It was a statement of self-reflection.


    "The ones who made me realize this were none other than the students of this ss. You might''ve heard about it when you first enrolled��that it was taken for granted that ss D would never rise and would just continue staying at the bottom. Rumors spread, and students assigned to ss D were increasingly ridiculed as ''defective goods.''"


    Chabashira-sensei paused for a moment before speaking again.


    "However, no one calls you defective goods anymore. It''s fair to say that this ss has dispelled the negative images that had been built up over the years."


    It was apliment to the students.


    Chabashira-sensei operated the tablet and turned on the monitor.


    This disyed the rankings and situations of each ss as of the first of March.


    ss Points:


    2nd Year ss A 1098 points


    2nd Year ss B 983 points


    2nd Year ss C 730 points


    2nd Year ss D 654 points


    To rify, ss A was led by Sakayanagi, ss B by Horikita, ss C by Ry��en, and ss D by Ichinose.


    Although ss points would change significantly if a special exam were held, typically, in a month without any events, the number of ss points would only decrease slightly.


    Initially, points were often significantly reduced due to tardiness, absences, and unknown negative evaluations, but such changes were no longer expected.


    Looking at the ss point rankings anew, it was clear to see just how much this ss was improving.


    It wasn''t just the students who felt this way.


    "We have 983 ss points. No matter how many times I look at it, it''s an unbelievable number of points. It''s hard to believe this is the same ss that lost all its ss points just one month after enrollment."


    Chabashira-sensei also looked at the rankings with admiration and a hint of hesitation, reflecting a bit on thest two years.


    "Above all, ss 2-B. ss B. No matter how many times I say it, there''s a sense of incongruity that I can''tpletely shake off. But ss B isn''t the goal. Depending on the results of this end-of-year special exam, this ss could potentially be ss A."


    At the moment, the lead held by ss A was about 100 points.


    It was the path to ss A that Chabashira-sensei had dreamed of, or rather, hadn''t even been allowed to dream of.


    It was now within reach.


    "However, I don''t want you to becent. Now that it''s within reach, you mustn''t rx but continue to strive towards your goal. This is a request from an ipetent teacher."


    Chabashira-sensei bowed to the students once.


    Then, she slowly raised her face and took a deep breath before opening her eyes wide.


    "I will now exin the overview of the end-of-year special exam."


    With these words from our teacher, the students were surely prepared.


    No one panicked, and they took her words head-on.


    As the teacher operated the tablet, the details of the special exam appeared on the monitor.


    [Overview of End-of-Year Special Exam]


    Exam Venue: Special Building


    Competing sses:


    2nd Year ss A vs. 2nd Year ss C


    2nd Year ss B vs. 2nd Year ss D


    Arrangements:


    Each ss must select three representatives by the deadline: vanguard, middle guard, and general.


    (At least one representative from each gender is required)


    It''s possible to designate any number of substitutes in the case of absences on the day of the exam.


    The school will randomly select representatives if there are less than three representatives on the day of the exam, including substitutes.


    Exam Rules


    Representative Overview:


    Each ss''s representatives (vanguard �� middle guard �� general) willpete in a knockout format.


    The vanguard will be given 5 lives, the middle guard 7 lives, and the general 10 lives.


    The ss whose general lost all their lives first will be defeated.


    The matches will be one-on-one within the set rules.


    There will be no draws; the exam will be extended as necessary until a conclusion is reached.


    Only the sses that would be facing off (which we already knew in advance), the points under "preparations," and the unusually simple rules were shown on the monitor.


    At this stage, the specific content of the matches remainedpletely unknown.


    "We will need to make some arrangements before your end-of-year special exam. You should be able to understand this by looking at it, but I will exin it verbally just in case. After this exnation, you will need to discuss with your ssmates and decide on the three representatives. These are very important roles in determining the oue of the special exam, so discuss it thoroughly and make decisions you won''t regret."


    The defeat of the three representatives would spell the ss''s defeat. The importance of this was clear regardless of the exam content.


    It seemed that anyone could be chosen, but we had to keep in mind the restriction on gender, so a team couldn''t consist of three boys or three girls.


    A substitute would be arranged just in case the representative was absent.


    There would be no harm in nominating multiple candidates just in case.


    "While selecting someone, you would also decide which of the battle positions they take��vanguard, middle guard, or general. The representatives'' battle will be in a knockout format. Initially, the vanguards from each ss wouldpete, and the winning vanguard would continue with their current lives against the opposing ss''s middle guard and general until they lost all their lives. In theory, if a vanguard could defeat all three opponents including the general, their ss would win at that point. If you think the most capable student should be the vanguard, such a possibility might seem feasible... but I wouldn''t rmend it."


    Chabashira-sensei described an intriguing, yet realistically difficult scenario.


    Since the general was given more lives, a total of ten, than the vanguard and middle guard, it was clear that it was overwhelmingly more advantageous to ce capable studentster.


    The likelihood of benefiting from bringing leaders like Sakayanagi, Ry��en, or Ichinose as a surprise vanguard was lowpared to the definite benefits it would bring if they weren''t in the role.


    Of course, if it were an ''exam advantageous for the vanguard,'' it would be different, but the current exam rules didn''t suggest that, and Chabashira-sensei''s attitude made it seem like that slim chance could be ignored.


    "There isn''t much time left to decide on the representatives. The deadline is this Sunday. If the deadline passes, the school will randomly select three students."


    That was a typical rule.


    Naturally, no ss would surpass the time limit.


    "Are you saying that the oue of the special exam is decided by just these three representatives?"


    It would make sense to think so after hearing the exnation so far.


    Y��suke was concerned about this and asked Chabashira-sensei.


    "Indeed, that''s how it might seem from the arrangements and exam rules. However, of course, a significant role is also given to students other than the three representatives. All remaining students, other than the representatives, must fulfill their assigned roles diligently."


    "A significant role...?"


    Chabashira-sensei operated the tablet and switched the monitor''s disy.


    Exam Rules


    Participant Overview:


    Students other than the representatives will participate in the exam as participants.


    If the number of attendees falls below 35 due to illness or other reasons, a penalty will ur.


    ��Penalty: 5 ss points per person.


    ��sses with more than 36 participants will receive 5 ss points for each person beyond the 35.


    "All students other than the representatives will participate in the special exam as participants. As mentioned, there is a penalty, but our ss has 38 people. Subtracting the three representatives leaves 35. This means if even one person is absent for any reason, a penalty will be incurred. Conversely, sses with extra students can handle unforeseen circumstances and receive some benefits."


    Horikita''s ss had 38 people, and Sakayanagi''s ss had a total of 37, so there were no extra participants.


    Ry��en and Ichinose''s sses had 40 people, so they would gain an extra 10 points.


    While it wasn''t a significant amount of ss points, it was still better to have them than to receive nothing.


    That was a weing element regardless of the oue.


    It was impossible toin about this point as being unfair.


    Ichinose''s ss had fought continuously for two years without anyone being expelled.


    Even if you considered this their reward for that, it wasn''t sufficient.


    After Manabe was expelled, Ry��en''s ss had invested heavily to bring in Katsuragi. Their situation wasn''t simply beneficial either.


    However, not only the representatives but also the role of participants was bing less clear.


    Still, it seemed certain that the representatives'' tasks and participants'' tasks were different.


    Just when it appeared more details would be disyed, the screen suddenly cked out.


    It seemed to be a technical issue or an operational error, but apparently, it wasn''t.


    "Now, this is all I can tell you guys."


    "What do you mean? Honestly, I don''t understand anything about the content of the special exam."


    Horikita, who had been silent until now, responded to Chabashira-sensei''s unusual statement.


    "That''s right. But as I''ve just told you, I can''t tell you anything beyond what I''ve exined. It''s not that I''m being mean and hiding it; I myself haven''t been told the details by the school. Those details will be revealed on the day of the special exam."


    The ss atmosphere changed drastically upon hearing this unexpected statement.


    It was clearly abnormal that even the homeroom teacher hadn''t been informed of the details.


    This was an unprecedented announcement that we hadn''t seen in the past two years.


    "The first task assigned to you is to select three representatives. There are no merits to bing a representative, but at the same time, there are no demerits. Simply put, taking on the role won''t earn you arge amount of private points, nor will you risk expulsion even if you lose."


    All that was certain was that this was an important position.


    "I understand that you don''t know the rules, Chabashira-sensei, but currently, we have no measure to decide on the representatives. What should we base our selection on?"


    "I wish I could tell you, but unfortunately, I don''t know anything about the rules either."


    As she wasn''t even informed of the criteria for selection, she showed a troubled expression.


    "I can''t say for certain, but considering that the special building is the exam venue and that we willpete regardless of gender, it seems unlikely that it will involvepeting in physical abilities."


    She mentioned only what could be predicted.


    It seemed she couldn''t guarantee it, but given the location and rules, that guess seemed likely.


    Then, should we perhaps take the opposite route and choose students who are good at studying as representatives?


    The answer was probably no.


    If it were apetition solely based on academic ability, it would be unlikely to keep the information hidden.


    We wouldpete, one-on-one, in something that is neither studying nor sports.


    Then what could it possibly be?


    "...A battle through conversation... Could that be a possibility?"


    Horikita, who had stood up from her chair, muttered almost to herself.


    "That''s quite possible."


    It couldn''t be said for certain, but the possibility of it being a dialogue or something simr couldn''t be denied. If smoothmunication skills were necessary, students like Y��suke or Kushida might be the prime candidates for selection.


    Even if the exam content had nothing to do with dialogue, both of them, being highly versatile, seemed capable of adapting flexibly. In essence, it was a situation where they should choose students who couldpete in any context.


    "And as for the crucial reward, the winning ss will earn 200 points. If they lose, they simply won''t receive any reward. However, this result will also reflect the choices made in the unanimous special exam, so in your case, if you win, you will earn 250 ss points."


    The first thing that became clear was that there were no ss points to lose if we lost.


    Not having to worry about losing points was one relief, but the difference in points would still be significant.


    Considering the veryrge reward, the damage to the losing side would be considerable. For Ichinose''s ss, who were already in a desperate situation, it would be quite ominous how much they could recover even if they won all the special exams held over the next year, as the gap in ss points with the top would widen further.


    "That''s all for the exnation. Once the representatives are decided, please contact me."


    With that, Chabashira-sensei concluded her talk.


    End of trial. Go to discord.gg/royalmtls for updates on Year 2 Volume 12 release.


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