『』『』『』『』『』
"I can't sleep."
Lying on his bed after the conversation he had with Kushida, Kumagawa, and Horikita, Ayanokouji returned directly to the dorm afterward and decided to just go to sleep. But strangely enough, he couldn't.
Even though it was still a little early to sleep, with everything that happened today, Ayanokouji simply felt tired enough to want to rest.
It wouldn't be a lie if he said he wasn't slightly restless as he was officially standing on the opposite sides of Kugamawa, but it would also be a lie if he said he was worried. Maybe for Horikita, but Ayanokouji didn't think that much about it and he didn't have any doubt that if Horikita do her part well, everything is going to be fine.
Seeing that his efforts weren't bearing any fruit, Ayanokouji got up from his bed, grabbed a jacket he had bought before, and left his room.
The night was cold, but the jacket was fairly thick, so he felt somewhat warm. Still, the cold air managed to slip through it little by little.
"I guess winter is coming soon."
In just over a month, winter would probably arrive.
Ayanokouji wondered what winter in this school would feel like.
After boarding the elevator and heading down, Ayanokouji stepped out of the dorm's main hall and headed directly toward the convenience store.
Thankfully, there was one near the dorm, so he didn't need to walk far just to buy a warm drink on a night like this. Better quality drinks were probably sold somewhere in Keyaki Mall, but honestly, that was too far away, and Ayanokouji didn't feel like making things difficult for himself.
After walking for a while, Ayanokouji finally arrived at the convenience store, only to unexpectedly run into a familiar face right after entering.
"Ichinose?"
"Hmm? Ayanokouji-kun?"
Ichinose was paying for the things she bought just a few feet away from where he stood.
"What are you doing here?" Ichinose asked as she slowly walked toward him.
"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd get a drink first. Maybe some hot tea."
"Ahaha, sleep? I didn't expect you to be the type who sleeps early, Ayanokouji-kun."
The two of them chatted casually while Ayanokouji picked a warm drink, paid for it, and eventually left the store together.
Right now, he and Ichinose were sitting side by side on a bench near the dorm.
For Ayanokouji, having a conversation with Ichinose was honestly refreshing. Most of the girls he regularly interacted with recently have a heart colder than the Arctic, or a traumatic girl, and even an angel with a completely rotten personality and a tendency to lie. There was also Hasebe, but he still wasn't particularly close to her yet. Most of their interactions only happened during study sessions.
"By the way, Ayanokouji-kun, I heard you were paired with Kumagawa-kun. Are you going to be okay...?" Ichinose asked worriedly while tilting her head slightly.
How did she know?
Before he could throw the question at her, Ichinose said, "Kushida-san told me."
"Kushida, huh..."
Well, it wasn't like he didn't expect her to casually talk about his unfortunate situation behind his back.
"Huh," Ayanokouji tried to sound grunted. "I never saw Kushida as the type to go around
discussing other people's situation, though."
Though it came out as monotonous
"Oh, maybe I didn't word it right. I was secretly listening in when Kushida-san and Horikita-san were talking the other day."
"...You certainly didn't word it right."
Hearsay was already bad enough, but somehow it had turned into straight-up eavesdropping.
Still, putting that aside, it seemed Kumagawa's academic reputation was surprisingly well-known without him realizing it. Even Ichinose looked worried for him. Ayanokouji honestly didn't know whether he should feel happy or depressed about that reaction.
"Well, if I'm being completely honest, I'll probably be fine. It's true that things will be difficult, but I have a pretty good memory. If I put 120% into studying, I should be able to score pretty high."
"Hahaha, in that case, good luck, Ayanokouji-kun."
"...?"
For some reason, it felt like Ichinose didn't believe him at all.
Was she looking down on him?
Ayanokouji considered that possibility for a second, but quickly dismissed it. He knew Ichinose wasn't that kind of person. So it was probably meant as genuine encouragement.
"But rather than me, what about your class?" Ayanokouji asked, deciding to ignore the pointless thought from earlier.
"What about us?"
"I mean, your class ended up against Class C, right? In terms of academics, your class is probably facing the strongest opponent."
Even if Sakayanagi's class had been demoted to Class C, their academic ability should still remain the same. The difference might not be overwhelming, but it was still true that Ichinose's class was facing a difficult opponent.
"Hmm... it's true that Sakayanagi-san's class is a difficult opponent..." Ichinose put a finger on her chin as if searching for the right words. "But it should still be manageable, I guess? Everyone in Class A is studying really hard right now, so whether we want to or not, we have to face this together as a class."
What a very Ichinose-like answer.
"I see. In that case, you must be preparing pretty carefully for the exam questions too."
"Hahaha, whether we're really preparing well or not is hard to say. Honestly, this exam mostly comes down to memorization."
"Memorization?"
Ayanokouji didn't quite understand what she meant.
"That's right. By the way, speaking of memorization, is there any subject you're good or bad at, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"Subjects, huh? If I had to say, I'm relatively okay at math since it's not entirely based on memorization," Ayanokouji answered. "Formulas and equations are kind of like special moves in a video game, aren't they? It'd be nice if every subject worked like that."
Even though Ayanokouji himself didn't really have much experience with video games, it still felt like an easy enough comparison for Ichinose to understand.
"If things were that convenient, nobody would struggle with studying." Ichinose took a sip from her drink before continuing. "But putting aside actually learning the material, since the exam questions are made by another class, all we can really do is try to predict what might appear on the test. It's basically gambling, so I don't really recommend relying on it too much, but we don't exactly have many options unless we start spying on other classes. And in the worst case, as long as you avoid scoring below forty, you should still be safe."
When she explained it like that, it actually sounded like a fairly reasonable method. She had clearly thought this exam through carefully.
Of course, that didn't mean every class would play fairly.
Ryuen's class definitely wouldn't. As for Sakayanagi, she either already had some kind of plan or intended to brute force everything through pure academic ability. Either way, with their overall level, they probably had far less to worry about than the others.
"In regular exams, especially in subjects focused on memorization like geography or history, teachers usually have certain things they're required to ask," Ichinose continued. "But this time it's different, so we have to work around that. There's also the fact that internet use is allowed, which makes things more complicated than usual. Still, since the questions are reviewed beforehand, they probably won't go too far beyond what we've already learned. So basically, we're taking a very focused approach while also making broad guesses at the same time. You don't want to get stuck on questions you can't answer and lose points on the easier ones."
"How impressive," Ayanokouji admitted honestly.
"Hehehe, you're going to make me blush, Ayanokouji-kun." Ichinose smiled awkwardly as she said that.
Ayanokouji himself hadn't even considered approaching the exam that way. Though to be fair, he hadn't put much thought into the exam-making side in the first place. That was more Horikita and Hirata's territory.
Still, smart students really did see exams differently from everyone else.
"I enjoy our little talks, Ayanokouji-kun." Ichinose slowly stood up from the bench.
"You're leaving already?"
"Hehe, I still need to review my classmates' test answers for our next study session. Bye-bye."
Ichinose then promptly left, while Ayanokouji watched her disappear into the dorm building, leaving him alone on the bench in the cold night air.
Ichinose Honami.
She really was a capable student.
Probably even more capable than the current Horikita. To the point that Ayanokouji sometimes wondered if the school had placed her in the wrong class from the very beginning. In terms of personality, leadership, and academic ability, she felt much closer to what people would normally imagine from a Class A student.
"But still... over five million points, huh..."
When Ayanokouji entered the convenience store earlier, he had accidentally seen the amount displayed on Ichinose's account while she was paying.
Even if Ichinose lived frugally, with the current class points her class possessed, it should've been impossible for a first-year student to save that much private points. In fact, unless someone received a massive reward from a special exam, having more than three million points as a first year was already unrealistic.
Which meant she must have gotten those points from somewhere else.
"...What's wrong with me?" He let out a small sigh.
Ayanokouji wondered why he was thinking so seriously about something that had nothing to do with him. Even if he was curious, the most important thing right now should still be the upcoming exam.
He slowly stood up from the bench and, just like Ichinose earlier, headed back toward the dorm.
『』『』『』『』『』
"What am I thinking...?"
Sprawled listlessly across the table inside one of the restaurants somewhere in the Keyaki mall, Kushida kept muttering that to herself.
『Come on, Kushida-chan, drink up. Have some dessert while you're at it. 』
Kumagawa waved a magazine around while lazily flipping through its pages, his eyes still focused on it as he gave that half-hearted encouragement. There wasn't even any food or drink on the table.
Besides, was that really encouragement?
At least put more strength into it.
『Hey, don't you look a little too dead? Or are you actually dead already? 』
"Why would I be dead...?"
『Then why are you making that face? It's like you've already reached the end of the road. Did you do something bad enough to get expelled by any chance? Even if it's you, I can't just abuse my power and help if you're in some kind of trouble. 』
"Rather than helping, aren't you usually the one causing trouble for me...? But whatever."
The bet she had made with Horikita.
It was originally supposed to be an advantageous deal. If things went well, she could corner Horikita and even force her out of the school. But somehow, things had completely flipped around, and now she was the one risking expulsion if she lost.
Well, to be fair, part of it was her own fault.
What else was she supposed to do back then? She had gotten too caught up in the atmosphere, and seeing that baffled look on Horikita's face made her accept almost everything without thinking properly.
There was also the fact that she wanted some kind of proper closure.
But still...
"By the way, Kumagawa-kun, realistically speaking, do we even have a chance of winning? Putting the bet aside for a second, I'm not even sure I can properly beat Horikita-san."
She would need to put in a ridiculous amount of effort just to beat Horikita in math. And even then, she still didn't feel confident about winning fairly.
『A chance of winning? Did we ever have one? If you can't defeat Horikita-chan, then obviously we lose. 』
"So you don't actually have a plan?"
『I'm still thinking about one right now. If I come up with something, maybe we can at least avoid losing without putting up a fight. 』
"Then, if you really have a plan, do you think it'll work?"
『Huhu. 』
"...."
There went her chances of winning.
And there went her proper sense of closure too.
Well, it wasn't like she had been expecting much from someone whose luck was practically nonexistent, but she had at least hoped he would pull off something like he did during the cruise ship exam.
『But still, isn't the food taking a little too long? 』
"Eh? Did you actually order food?"
『What kind of question is that? 』 Kumagawa tilted his head. 『We're inside a barbecue restaurant, right? Why wouldn't I order meat? 』
The place Kumagawa brought her to was, in fact, a Japanese barbecue restaurant.
It was fairly unusual. Today, Kumagawa had been the one to invite her out and even offered to treat her to dinner. Naturally, Kushida wasn't going to refuse, especially when she wasn't the one paying. And considering how luxurious the place looked, calling it just a "barbecue restaurant" honestly felt a little lacking.
Soon enough, the waiter arrived carrying their food.
『Come on, eat up. Have some meat. There's no reason to order vegetables at a barbecue place. If that's what you want, I'll send you to a grocery store nearby. And leave the grilling to me. 』
As he spoke, Kumagawa picked up the tongs and transferred slices of meat onto the grill. But instead of properly cooking them, he only lightly seared the surface for the briefest moment before moving them away from the heat.
She guessed he liked them rare.
Well, at such a fancy place, the meat was of a quality where you could even have it raw...
『Eat meat while we're young. Meat makes people happy, Kushida-chan. Whether you're young or old, worries never disappear, but delicious meat can solve almost everything. There's no victory in cold meat. 』
Did a barbecue even need winners and losers?
Still, Kushida couldn't just let the meat on her plate get cold.
Compared to Kumagawa, the meat hadn't done anything wrong.
Itadakimasu. After saying it properly, Kushida picked up her chopsticks and started eating.
『How is it, good? It's good, isn't it. 』
"..."
『Hey now, where's your courtesy? You're eating meat, so don't look so gloomy. 』
"...You won't get any courtesy from me."
『Not toward me. Toward the meat. Meat is life. Don't forget that what you're eating right now used to be alive. 』
"...It's delicious."
What else was she supposed to say when he held the cow hostage like that?
What a coward.
Although, knowing him, she had honestly expected him to say something more along the lines of: The points used to buy that meat came from my wallet. My points mean my life. So right now, you're literally eating my life, Kushida-chan. At least wipe that sulky look off your face.
Something along those lines?
Well, private points in this school were partially tied to survival, so it wouldn't even be completely wrong. Though considering Kumagawa was probably one of the richest first-years right now, he was hardly someone who needed to worry about spending money.
"My, my, what an unpleasant coincidence."
Hmm? Whose voice was that?
While they were eating, another voice suddenly called out, making both of them look to the side.
What entered their view was a blond-haired boy with his usual condescending expression on his face.
『Kouenji-kun? What are you doing here? 』
Without even bothering to ask properly, Kouenji casually gestured for Kushida to move aside because he wanted to sit there.
Kushida immediately felt irritated. She wanted to tell him to sit next to Kumagawa instead, but knowing Kouenji, he probably had no interest in sitting beside someone like him either. In the end, Kushida silently moved to the side, and Kouenji naturally sat down as if he had every right to be there from the beginning.
He even started grilling Kumagawa own share of meat without hesitation as if it were his own
And to think there was another person like this among the second-years too...
Kushida suddenly found herself worrying a little about the future freshmen who would eventually have to deal with all these people with completely abnormal personalities.
『Speaking of which, Kouenji-kun, since you're here, can I ask you something? 』 Kumagawa said.
From the looks of it, he didn't seem bothered at all by Kouenji's presumptuous behavior.
"Of course, Misogi-boy. A perfect individual always has time to satisfy the curiosity of others."
And somehow, his words were even more presumptuous than his actions.
『About the exam. Why are you suddenly being cooperative? 』
"Hmm?" Kouenji slightly raised an eyebrow.
『It's about Horikita-chan's request regarding the pairings. It's pretty unusual for you to agree so easily. Are you perhaps falling for her by any chance? 』
Kushida honestly wondered about that too.
She also hadn't expected Kouenji of all people to cooperate with Horikita regarding the pairings. Knowing him, he should've ignored her completely and done whatever he wanted instead. Rather, she had been hoping he would make things more difficult for Horikita, but it didn't come to that.
And as for Kouenji falling for Horikita...
That felt even more impossible considering how incompatible their personalities were.
And as expected, her assumption was correct.
"Hahaha! There's no way someone as perfect as myself would fall for such a boring and uptight girl like that Horikita-girl." Kouenji laughed openly. "Well, let's just say I happened to meet someone rather unexpected. Quite a brave little boy, I might add."
"Someone...?"
Kushida wondered who he meant.
Naturally, she only wondered it internally—
『I see. So it was Ayanokouji-kun, huh.』
—Before she could even think further, Kumagawa casually answered her unspoken curiosity with that same empty grin of his, as though it had been obvious from the start.
"Hooh. And what makes you so certain it was Ayanokouji-boy?"
Kumagawa then turned toward Kushida, who still looked confused,『Kushida-chan, remember that day after our visit to Class B when we found Ayanokouji-kun waiting in front of the dorm?』
"I remember, but what does that have to do with this?"
The thought process itself wasn't completely unreasonable, but connecting it to Kouenji still felt like too much of a leap without proper evidence.
『Well, this is just my own deduction, but didn't Ayanokouji-kun convince Horikita-chan and the others so he could pair up with me?』
Kushida nodded.
The only reason Ayanokouji had taken such a ridiculous risk was because he needed to make a deal with Kumagawa to erase the incriminating evidence against him.
Still, she couldn't see where this was going.
『And since Ayanokouji-kun needed to pair up with me, the student with the lowest score, he would need to become the highest-scoring student himself. But with Kouenji-kun around, he can't take first place, which means he can't pair with me. So naturally, he needed to remove Kouenji-kun as a variable. That way, Ayanokouji-kun could safely secure the top score while also making sure Kouenji-kun wouldn't disrupt the pairings they worked so hard to arrange. 』
"..."
『That's probably why he waited for Kouenji-kun in front of the dorm. He needed to confront him directly to make sure things went smoothly. Maybe he made some kind of deal, or threatened him, or whatever. Either way, the goal was probably to make Kouenji-kun cooperate so Ayanokouji-kun himself could take the highest score and pair up with me. 』
Kushida found herself speechless.
It was an absurdly far-fetched theory.
And yet, at the same time, it made perfect logical sense.
At least from her perspective, the reasoning connected together so naturally that she couldn't easily deny it.
What surprised her even more was the fact that such strangely coherent logic was coming from someone as fundamentally illogical as Kumagawa.
"Hahaha." Hearing that deduction, Kouenji couldn't help but laugh.
"What an interesting theory," he said. "Though I won't confirm nor deny your accusation."
The fact that he neither confirmed nor denied it almost felt like confirmation itself that Ayanokouji had indeed been the one meeting Kouenji that day.
"Kukuku. What a strange combination of people we have here. Mind if we join?"
Once again, another unfamiliar voice suddenly interrupted the table.
『Hmm? Hiyori-chan? 』
Of course, it was Ryuen along with Hiyori. But for some reason, Kumagawa only reacted to Hiyori and completely ignored the tyrant standing right beside her.
"Hey, cockroach. Don't ignore me."
『Eh? Ryuen-chan? Since when did you get here? 』
"..."
That had definitely been intentional.
Still, unlike Ryuen, Hiyori simply gave Kumagawa and Kushida a small wave along with a gentle smile.
Kushida also noticed Ishizaki standing behind them, though strangely enough, he seemed to be trying not to stand out. That alone already felt unusual considering how rowdy he normally was.
"Tch, whatever. I don't have any business with you right now," Ryuen said before shifting his gaze toward Kouenji. "Did you receive my gift?"
"Hah, gift? I'm afraid I'm not free enough to receive presents from someone like you, dragon-boy. Especially from another man. Though it would be a different story if a graceful lady such as her offered me one. In that case, someone of my stature should naturally accept it properly."
Kouenji's tone somehow became more condescending with every sentence.
"So? Did you notice anything, Hiyori?" Ryuen asked while glancing toward her.
"What do you mean by 'notice anything'? I can't say much at this stage," Hiyori answered calmly.
"Didn't you say the same thing earlier too? Are you even trying?"
"Ryuen-san, even if you tell me that, it's impossible to figure things out in only a few seconds. It's the same earlier with Ayanokouji-kun and... what was the other person's name again?" Hiyori tilted her head slightly.
"Yukimura."
"Right, Yukimura-san. Why are faces and names so hard to remember?"
"It sounds more like you only remembered Kumagawa at the first meeting."
"Well, Kumagawa-kun is a rather unique book—I mean person."
While Kumagawa and Kouenji paid little attention to Ryuen and Hiyori's conversation and remained in their own worlds, Kushida found herself slightly surprised by the way Ryuen interacted with Hiyori.
Ryuen was known as a tyrant.
So naturally, she had expected him to treat every classmate roughly. But from the flow of their conversation, he was clearly taking a much gentler approach with Hiyori.
Was Hiyori perhaps more important within Class B than Kushida originally thought?
『Ah, by the way, Ryuen-chan, didn't I ask Hiyori-chan yesterday about your usual meeting place? 』
"What about it?"
『Can I visit you later with Kushida-chan? 』
"Kushida and... you?" Ryuen sounded slightly skeptical.
Even if he had told Hiyori to do whatever she wanted, it wasn't as though he lowered his guard around Kumagawa.
Ryuen then looked toward Kushida, who simply answered with her usual friendly smile. Seeing that, Ryuen snorted lightly.
"Hah. Do whatever you want."
"By the way, Ryuen-san," Hiyori suddenly said, "I know we don't have any proof, so maybe I shouldn't say this yet, but... I don't think Kouenji-kun is the one."
Hearing that, Ryuen glanced at her briefly.
"Is that so...?"
After saying only that, he turned around and headed straight toward the exit.
But just before reaching the door, Ryuen suddenly stopped and looked back slightly toward Kumagawa.
"Room 003. You'll find me there later."
After leaving behind those words, he finally left together with Hiyori and Ishizaki.
"Huhu. That was quite an interesting little event. But sadly, I should also take my leave now. Being around him is rather uncomfortable. I thought I could tolerate it somehow, but even for someone like me, Misogi-boy is simply incompatible."
With that, Kouenji also left the restaurant.
And just like that, the table once again belonged only to the two of them.
"...What was that all about?"
Kushida felt slightly overwhelmed by the sudden series of unexpected encounters. Though whether they were really coincidences or not was debatable. At the very least, Kouenji's appearance was probably accidental.
Ryuen's definitely wasn't.
『Who knows? But more importantly, do you want to come with me? 』
"To Ryuen-kun's meeting place?"
Well, calling it a "place" was questionable. It was more like a hideout Ryuen had claimed for himself using public property. Still, it worked well enough as a base.
『If you don't want to, then you don't have to come. I don't expect there to be even the slightest bit of fun anyway. 』
"That's an awful thing to say... You could completely destroy someone's motivation with that." Kushida let out a small sigh before continuing. "No, I'll go. It's about the upcoming plan, right?"
He did say he might come up with something that would at least stop them from losing without a fight. Since they were already heading there, Kushida figured it would be better to discuss things with Ryuen too.
Though honestly, she wished Kumagawa would try a little harder and take things more seriously.
Still, there was no use crying over spilled milk.
Or as the Chinese proverb said:
'The wood is already a boat. Heaven's will is difficult to overturn.'
『』『』『』『』『』
And as soon as the day ended, both Kushida and Kumagawa headed toward the karaoke place Hiyori had mentioned the other day.
"Is this the place...?"
『Well, it should be? Even if this one's wrong, maybe the karaoke place across from it is the correct one.』
There were several karaoke shops gathered around this section of Keyaki Mall.
Well, in a place packed with students like this school, having only one karaoke shop would honestly be ridiculous. It wouldn't even come close to handling the number of students if everyone suddenly decided they wanted to sing.
The problem was that Hiyori had only mentioned that Ryuen usually gathered with his group at a karaoke place. She never specified which one. Even Ryuen himself only gave them the room number and not the actual shop name. If Ryuen really was inside one of these karaoke places, then logically it had to be one of them, but—
The first shop was a miss.
After checking the second one, they finally found him inside Room 003.
"You're late, Kumagawa. Kikyou."
Ryuen Kakeru—as usual, he sat sprawled lazily across the sofa as if he owned the entire establishment. Or at the very least, the room itself. Without even bothering to sit properly, he greeted them off the bat in his usual arrogant tone.
There was a snack and a glass sitting in front of him that looked almost like alcohol, though considering he was still underage, it was probably just sparkling water or something similar. There weren't any cigarettes around either. though honestly, one would've matched the atmosphere perfectly.
『Hey there, Ryuen-chan. Did you wait long?』
"I've been waiting so long I was starting to fall asleep."
While Kumagawa was smiling─
Ryuen was smirking.
Written out, "smile" and "smirk" look similar, a difference of only two letters, but seeing their expressions up close, Kushida received very dissimilar impressions that were pretty much diametrically opposed.
Ryuen was definitely smirking, but there wasn't much arrogance behind it right now. What she mainly felt from him was suspicion toward Kumagawa. As for Kumagawa, his expression was simply too lighthearted, so lighthearted that it felt unpleasant. The man almost looked artificially made to seem fake.
No wonder Ryuen seemed so wary around him.
"Well? What do you want to talk about? I sacrificed my precious time for this, so it better be worth it."
『Rather than something I want to talk about, there's actually something I want your help with.』
"Quit screwing around. Even if you got down on your knees, I don't have any obligation to help you, right?"
Of course Ryuen wouldn't willingly accept a request from someone as shady as Kumagawa.
『I knew you'd say that, Ryuen-chan. It's not like I'd ask for your help without offering any benefits. But don't worry, what I want to discuss is related to the exam. 』He said it casually.
Hearing that, Ryuen's expression became slightly more serious.
"Continue," he said.
『You know how unusual this exam is, right? Compared to the previous ones, this exam is actually pretty straightforward aside from the pairing system. But even then, there's still an interesting twist to it. 』
Paper shuffle.
Even Ryuen had been interested in the structure of this exam.
There probably wasn't another school in the country where students themselves created the exam questions and used them to attack other classes. The pairing system was unique too, but compared to the core mechanic of the exam itself, it felt secondary.
『And by now, it's common knowledge that Class D is facing Class B. Some people are even calling it a battle between brainless idiots and muscleheads. 』
"Huh? They are?" Kushida asked.
Even this was the first time she had heard that.
『It's a lie, of course. I just made it up. 』
"....."
Kushida honestly wondered why she even bothered reacting to his words anymore. From now on, unless absolutely necessary, she decided she would just stay quiet.
『Anyway, since it's already publicly known that Class D is facing Class B, I want your help betraying my class. 』
"Betray?" but instead of questioning Kumagawa, Ryuen turns to Kushida instead, "Do you plan to sabotage your class again, Kikyou?"
Kushida simply responded with silence.
Or rather, her silence itself became the answer.
It was a vague response that gave a very obvious answer to Ryuen
"So? What exactly are you planning?" Ryuen asked as he turned his attention back toward Kumagawa. "For now, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and hear you out."
『Well, rather than me doing something, it's probably going to be you doing all the hard work here, Ryuen-chan. 』
"Me?"
『That's right. What do you think is the most important thing to pay attention to in this kind of exam? 』
"The most important thing? That's a pretty broad question."
『Even if it's broad, someone like you should already know the answer by now. 』
There were a lot of important aspects in this exam. But just as Kumagawa implied, there was one thing that clearly stood above the rest in terms of priority. And Ryuen, as a class leader, had already identified it from the moment the rules were explained.
"It's the exam questions."
『Correct. 』
That was their lifeline for winning the exam.
If they had to prioritize things, it would probably go: Exam questions, pairings, then studying.
『The exam questions are the most important part of this exam aside from studying itself. The school designed it that way from the very beginning. 』
"So what exactly are you trying to say?"
『Since the exam questions are the most important factor, then rather than focusing on protecting your own questions, shouldn't you focus on the other class's questions instead? 』
"Do you think I haven't already considered that?"
For someone like Ryuen, who was willing to use any underhanded method available, the moment he understood how important the exam questions were, the next thing he thought about was naturally how to sabotage the other class's questions.
『I figured as much.』 Kumagawa shrugged lazily. 『You probably considered things like spying on the other class, bribery, or anything else that smells like cheating. 』
"...."
『It's not a bad way of thinking, but instead of directly sabotaging their exam questions, why not use your own questions to sabotage theirs? 』
"Hah?"
『Think of it like taking a test while the teacher accidentally leaves the answer sheet face-up on your desk. Since the actual objective of this exam is simply to achieve a higher overall score than the opposing class, then instead of making your questions harder for them, wouldn't it be easier to make sure you already know the answers to their questions? 』
"What are you—"
Just as Ryuen was about to question him further, he suddenly stopped speaking.
A serious expression crossed his face as he quietly thought things over.
After a few minutes, he looked back at Kumagawa with a predatory grin.
"Kukuku... I actually considered something similar before, but I discarded it because too many conditions needed to line up. But now that you're involved, I think it might actually work."
Despite remaining cautious around Kumagawa, Ryuen had to admit that the person sitting in front of him had a truly nasty way of thinking.
Kushida, who had remained silent this whole time, also became curious. But since she didn't feel like thinking things through herself, she simply looked toward Kumagawa.
"Can you explain it, Kumagawa-kun?"
『Eh? You still don't understand, Kushida-chan?』
"..."
Bear with it...
A retort would only cause the knife to dig in deeper...
『Ahaha. People often say ignorance is a crime, but stupidity isn't. Since it's not a crime, it becomes the punishment instead. 』
"Who the hell are you calling stupid!?"
She couldn't bear it.
She lacked the necessary mental fortitude.
Especially when those words were coming from someone who struggled with basic multiplication.
"Hahaha!"
Meanwhile, Ryuen was laughing openly from the side.
『Well basically, instead of Ryuen-chan directly sabotaging Class D's exam questions, he's going to use his own class's questions to sabotage them instead. 』 Kumagawa answered her question.
"...?"
Wasn't that already the entire point of the exam?
To create difficult and confusing questions in order to sabotage the opposing class? That was naturally what Kushida thought, but there was obviously some important distinction in Kumagawa's explanation that she still wasn't understanding.
『You have to remember that in order to attack another class, the questions first need to be submitted to the teachers so they can be approved and used for the exam.』
"Right..."
『So instead of directly sabotaging the other class's questions, wouldn't it be easier to simply submit our own questions to be used against us instead? Basically, we'd be making the opposing class attack us using our own weapons. 』
"...!"
Kushida's eyes widened slightly.
『And since we're the ones who created the questions in the first place, naturally we already know all the answers. Which means the overall score gap would become overwhelmingly one-sided. 』
Well, how should she put this...
It wasn't like she had expected anything from Kumagawa in the first place. Honestly, part of her even thought he would eventually give up halfway through and simply accept expulsion rather than seriously trying.
But at the same time, hearing him come up with something this nasty somehow didn't feel surprising either.
"But how are you going to do that?"
『Why are you asking something so obvious? Since we're betraying the class, then naturally you'll be the one submitting the questions. 』
Well, when he put it that way, Kushida suddenly felt a little stupid for asking.
"So in the end, I still have to create the questions myself, huh..."
『No, you don't.』
"I don't?"
Now Kushida was genuinely confused.
From the impression she got earlier, since she would be the one submitting the questions, she assumed she would also have to create the questions and secretly hand the answer sheet over to Ryuen. It wouldn't be easy, but she figured she could just grit her teeth and do it somehow.
But apparently that wasn't the plan at all.
『Even if you're the one submitting the questions, that doesn't mean you have to be the one who created them, right? The important part is simply who submits them. Since there's no way Ryuen-chan can personally hand his class's questions to Sae-chan-sensei, naturally it has to be you instead. It's a strategy that only works because we have a traitor inside the class. 』
"Oh... if you put it like that..."
It really was a strategy that could only work with an insider cooperating.
Which also meant she didn't actually have that much to do besides submitting the exam questions. Well, she would probably still need to help a little with preparing them, but compared to what she originally imagined, her role was surprisingly simple.
And honestly...
It sounded like a pretty solid plan.
Kushida then turned toward Ryuen.
"Ryuen-kun, can we work together again like last time? I'm sure this time everything will go smoothly." Kushida tried to make herself sound innocent here.
"Kukuku. You really are completely rotten, Kikyou." He said.
At this point, being called rotten by someone rotten like Ryuen hardly meant anything anymore.
"Well sure, why no—"
Ding!
Ryuen's words were suddenly interrupted by a message notification from his phone. Naturally, he pulled it out from his pocket and checked the message.
And his eyes narrowed slightly.
After reading it, he quietly put the phone back into his pocket before looking toward Kushida again.
"I hope there won't be any screwups this time."
"Ahaha, that's what I should be saying to you. Maybe you should keep your classmates under control unless you want something to go wrong."
And just like that, Kushida and Kumagawa formed a cooperative relationship with Class B.
『』『』『』『』『』
After sealing their cooperation with Ryuen, or rather with Class B, both Kushida and Kumagawa initially headed back toward the dorms... Well, at least that was how it should have gone before Kumagawa suddenly veered off in another direction.
Kushida didn't question it and simply returned to the dorm by herself.
Meanwhile, Kumagawa walked along the deserted path near the dorm building.
It was the same area where Ayanokouji and Horikita had confronted both him and Kushida before. The exact spot was slightly different, but the scenery felt mostly the same.
And from the opposite side of the path, another person slowly approached him.
"What are you planning?" The person pulled out his phone.
Displayed on the screen was a short message:
Let's meet separately later.
That was all it said.
『Just like the message says, I simply wanted to talk with you alone.』
"What is this? Are you planning to stab Kikyou in the back—behind her back?"
『Ahaha, what are you talking about, Ryuen-chan? There's no way I'd do something that despicable. I'm someone who'd do anything to protect my classmates and class, you know? I'd even gladly sacrifice my own body for them. 』
Ryuen stared at him with narrowed eyes full of uncertainty.
It was obvious Kumagawa was lying. And yet, at the same time, it somehow also felt like he was telling the truth. Everything about him was so mixed together that the concepts of truth and lies barely even mattered anymore.
『By the way, what do you think about Horikita-chan?』
"Suzune? You called me out here just to ask about her?" Ryuen sounded openly suspicious.
『It's not exactly that I want to talk about her specifically, but since she's related to the topic, I figured I might as well bring it up.』
"...What do you want to know?"
Since Kumagawa had dragged him all the way here already, Ryuen decided he might as well hear him out.
『What would you think if Horikita-chan got expelled?』
"Suzune getting expelled?" Ryuen smirked slightly. "That'd be boring. I'd lose one of my favorite toys. I still haven't had enough fun breaking her yet."
『Ahaha, I figured you'd say that. You really never disappoint, Ryuen-chan.』
Kumagawa understood that much already.
Since Ryuen was someone who drowned himself in pleasure and amusement, losing Horikita as someone to toy with before properly enjoying himself would obviously be something he disliked. That was why he dragged out what happened during the sports festival instead of simply crushing her immediately.
He enjoyed watching her struggle.
Watching her slowly corner herself mentally.
If he truly wanted to, he could have pushed things much further back then. Of course, expelling her outright probably wouldn't have been realistic even for him at the time, but the important point was that he deliberately chose not to go that far.
Because playing with her was more entertaining.
"So why are you asking me this? Don't tell me you're trying to get Suzune expelled too, just like Kikyou."
『Well, rather than "trying," Horikita-chan is already standing on the edge of expulsion, you know?』
"...Hah? What the hell happened?"
This was the first he had heard about it.
He knew Horikita was uptight and somewhat narrow-minded, so if she had really ended up standing on the verge of expulsion, then she must have gotten herself involved in something serious enough to warrant it.
But Ryuen couldn't think of any incident that could have cornered her that badly.
Nor had he personally done anything recently that would push her to that point.
『Kushida-chan made a bet with her. A proper zero-sum game where the loser gets expelled.』
He answered.
That was an extremely crude oversimplification of the situation, even by Ryuen's standards. But because it was simple, Ryuen immediately understood the general picture.
Even without hearing the details, he already understood the level of malice Kushida held toward Horikita.
"And what does their bet have anything to do with what you wanted to talk about?"
『Well— 』
Kumagawa then began explaining what he wanted to discuss with Ryuen in detail. The conversation continued back and forth for over ten minutes before it finally stopped.
"...Are you serious?"
『Well, it's a gamble. If things have already come this far, then I should at least bet this much. 』
"You do realize I don't actually want Suzune expelled, right?" Ryuen smirked slightly. "Even without X, I still wanna keep playing around with her for a while."
He then narrowed his eyes.
"So what're you gonna do if I reject your proposal?"
『Then I lose. 』
"And if things don't go the way you expect?"
『Then I lose. 』
"What if I cancel our cooperation right now?"
『Then I simply lose. 』
"...."
『There are already plenty of situations where my defeat is guaranteed even when things are advantageous for me. Now that I'm betting everything on this, naturally there are even more chances for things to go wrong along the way, where my defeat becomes even more certain.』
Kumagawa answered without hesitation. as if he had already expected every single question Ryuen would ask him beforehand.
『But well, setting aside whether you want Horikita-chan expelled or not, if by some chance she really does get expelled... then I'll become your new toy instead.』
Kumagawa grinned.
And then continued.
『Didn't you want payback for what I did to you back during the uninhabited island exam? Whether it's betrayal from friends, revenge from an arch-enemy, or even violence from complete strangers, I'll accept all of it.』
His tone sounded like that of a demon.
And like that of a nightmare as well.
"Ha... hahaha... hahahahs... hahahahaha!"
And because of that, Ryuen burst into laughter.
"Fine then. I'll play along with your little gamble for now." A grin spread across his face. "But don't get the wrong idea. I can still change my mind depending on how things turn out. Everything you said is still nothing more than your own assumptions."
He looked at Kumagawa.
"But this is going to put all the initiative in my hands. If I don't play along, things are obviously going to end in disaster for you, right?"
『It's not like it's the first time for me. 』Kumagawa merely shrugged his shoulders.
"But seriously..." Ryuen smirked. "You're betting way too much on something this uncertain. Even I wouldn't go this far."
Even Ryuen himself would hesitate to throw everything onto a table with no guarantee of victory.
『Kumagawa Misogi is someone who enjoys gambling under extreme conditions.』
"So you're really okay with that? Throwing yourself into a gamble where you might lose everything?"
『Yes. This is Kumagawa Misogi's nature as a gambler.』
Kumagawa smiled.
A calm, terrifying smile.
『The gamble made by the detested. 』
『END』
『』『』『』『』『』
Here you go peasants, another chapter.
Anyway, that's it for today's chapter.
Hope you enjoyed it.
Happy Eid Mubarak to all those celebrating
Wishing you joy, peace, and countless blessings on this special day. Thank you to everyone who continues to support my stories and stay along for the journey.
Hope you all have a wonderful Eid al-Adha with your family and loved ones!
[Thanks for reading!]