『』『』『』『』『』
Horikita followed Kushida and Kumagawa slowly from behind.
She looked completely listless, and even her steps lacked strength. If someone were to lightly push her right now, she would probably collapse onto the ground. That was how dispirited her current appearance was.
Ayanokouji, who quietly followed behind them as well, could not help but feel worried that this might completely destroy Horikita's confidence. Not only had she become someone else's plaything during the sports festival, but even now she had been thoroughly cornered. Even if the class managed to avoid expulsions and achieve a favorable result overall, Horikita's personal situation was completely different.
Soon enough, they arrived at the special building once again.
"Do you have anything to say, Horikita-san?" Kushida was the first to speak.
"....."
"Hahaha, don't ignore me like that. Don't be such a sore loser and answer my question already."
Horikita couldn't say anything as she kept her head lowered.
"But really, I'm actually very reluctant to let this happen." Kushida let out a small sigh.
"H-huh?" Horikita slowly raised her head.
"Ahaha, don't look at me like that. Did I say something strange? I really do mean it when I say I'm reluctant about this."
"What do you mean by that?" Horikita couldn't help but ask.
"It's unfortunate that you lost your own bet," Kushida said. "It's also unfortunate that you ended up learning about my past, and that Ayanokouji-kun learned about my true nature as well. And now, in the end, you're going to be expelled from this school while being in such a miserable state. But a bet is a bet, right?"
A stroke of misfortune.
That was how their unfortunate story began.
After staying quiet behind Horikita for a while, Ayanokouji stepped forward and looked at Kushida
"Did you cheat, Kushida?" Ayanokouji asked directly.
"Huh? Are you accusing me of cheating?"
"I'm not accusing you. It's just hard to imagine you beating Horikita academically."
Ayanokouji did not doubt that Kushida was a capable student comparable to those from Class A, but the difference between Kushida and Horikita in academics was obvious enough that it was difficult for him to believe Horikita had simply lost fairly.
"Hahaha, you really look down on me, don't you, Ayanokouji-kun?" Kushida laughed lightly. "But accusing someone without proof seems a little unfair, don't you think?"
"So you're not denying it?"
"Did I ever say I cheated?"
"....."
If Ayanokouji continued pushing the conversation, it would probably just go in circles.
Still, he was certain Kushida had cheated. As for how she managed to do it, Ayanokouji shifted his gaze toward the person standing beside her.
『Huh? Did I just get accused of cheating? 』
"You did something, didn't you, Kumagawa?" Ayanokouji asked without hesitation.
『We worked together with Ryuen-chan, of course. 』
Kumagawa admitted it immediately.
Compared to Kushida, who continued pretending not to understand anything, Kumagawa did not even bother acting innocent. Or perhaps he simply lacked the desire to hide it in the first place. Maybe he never had any intention of denying it at all.
"So you admit you worked with Ryuen-kun?" Horikita spoke this time.
『Wasn't it obvious? I mean, didn't you already suspect it to some extent? There's no way Kushida-chan could beat you in a fair academic match, Horikita-chan. In other words, this was a rigged match and a rigged bet from the beginning. And if it's already rigged, then naturally we're going to play dirty, right? 』
She couldn't deny it.
"...What are you planning to do if I record those words?" Horikita asked quietly.
『And what would that achieve? The bet never specified anything about playing fair, right? Besides, the agreement was only about your match with Kushida-chan. There were no rules saying we couldn't cooperate with another class. Everything we did was completely within the rules. 』
He said.
『So technically, it's not my fault! 』
Hearing those words, Horikita fell silent.
As far as the agreement itself was concerned, there was nothing Horikita could use against them. Even she had tried using the teachers to gain an advantage before, so arguing against Kumagawa for involving another class did not hold much weight.
Still...
To admit it so shamelessly...
『Ahaha, don't look at me like that, Horikita-chan. 』
"....."
Horikita looked at Kumagawa with clear hatred in her eyes, but at the same time, there was also a helpless expression on her face.
Ayanokouji glanced at Horikita and could not help but feel somewhat helpless himself.
As far as Ayanokouji was concerned, the exam should have gone in at least three possible directions depending on that man's choices, and the most likely outcome should have been Horikita's victory.
But that did not happen.
Instead, Horikita lost by only a two-point difference. Even with her cold personality, being cornered and outplayed like this would naturally be frustrating, especially with her expulsion on the line.
It was a truly an unpleasant situation.
That was why Ayanokouji was certain that Kumagawa's involvement was what made things turn out this unpleasant.
And he was right.
Kushida was supposed to lose.
She should have been expelled.
If not for what happened that day—or rather, what Kumagawa did.
"Well then, what are you going to do now, Horikita-san? Give a farewell speech in front of the class? Or maybe meet your brother first? I can at least give you time to settle things with everyone. I still have that much conscience left."
Without removing the smile on her face, Kushida spoke those cruel words casually.
Horikita could not respond.
She had lost. That alone was the result of their bet.
It would not be strange if her confidence completely crumbled apart with just one more push. At this point, the only thing she could possibly do was beg, but that was never going to happen. Kushida was completely determined to expel her. Even if Horikita begged, Kushida would never agree.
And more than anything else, her own brother was the witness to this bet. If he saw her reduced to such a pathetic state...
The brother who was already disappointed in her would probably become even more disappointed.
That was why...
"Ayanokouji-kun...."
Even though she called his name, Horikita could not bring herself to look at him.
Because of her.
Because she dragged him into this, Ayanokouji would also be expelled alongside her. Even someone like Horikita still felt guilt over what had happened.
"Don't worry, Horikita," Ayanokouji said calmly as he looked at her. "Even if you hadn't dragged me into this, Kushida probably planned to expel me sooner or later anyway. Besides, I'm the one who chose to get involved in your bet, so you don't need to feel guilty."
"But—"
"I told you it's fine. But..."
Ayanokouji turned toward Kushida.
"You cheated, didn't you?"
"...."
Kushida's only response was a smile.
"Even if you stay silent, it won't change the fact that you cheated, Kushida."
"...Do you have any proof, Ayanokouji-kun?"
As he pointed toward Kushida's blazer, Ayanokouji said. "Why don't you check the inside pocket of your blazer?"
The smile that had remained on Kushida's face this entire time slowly disappeared as she looked at Ayanokouji.
Slowly, she reached inside her blazer and felt an unfamiliar piece of paper.
She clearly remembered never placing any paper there over the past few days. Which meant someone else had put it there.
When Kushida unfolded the paper, her expression froze slightly.
"What do you think, Kushida?" Ayanokouji asked. "You cheated, didn't you?"
Inside the paper was a list of questions and answers specifically for the math exam where Kushida had scored a perfect hundred.
And they were the exact questions from the exam two days ago.
"...Why is this inside my uniform?"
"Who knows."
Kushida stayed silent as she listened to Ayanokouji's answer and looked back down at the paper in her hand.
Cheating.
Kushida had indeed cheated.
Slowly crumpling the cheat sheet in her hand, Kushida stuffed the paper back into her blazer before looking back at Ayanokouji with a terrifying smile.
Ayanokouji and Horikita were both surprised by the expression on her face.
It was a smile filled with pure malice.
But at the same time, there was no emotion behind it at all.
"...Was this your doing, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"I didn't do it."
"So you didn't do it directly, huh...."
Ayanokouji himself had not placed it there, but that did not mean he was uninvolved. It seemed Kushida had already understood the meaning behind his words.
"So? What are you going to do about it?"
"You already know the answer don't you?"
"...."
There was no need for her to answer.
The result was obvious.
Kushida would be expelled.
Chabashira-sensei had explained it clearly from the very beginning of the exam. Cheating would immediately lead to expulsion. It was a simple rule, but at the same time, it was an extremely effective countermeasure against Kushida.
If Ayanokouji reported this to the school, there was no doubt the school would side with Horikita, and there was a high possibility that the agreement itself would also be annulled. With Horikita's brother acting as the witness, someone who strictly followed the rules and remained completely impartial in situations like this, he would most likely side with the school as well.
In other words, no matter what Kushida did now, she would be expelled.
"Was this your plan from the very beginning?" Kushida asked quietly.
"It was more of a failsafe than anything else. I never doubted Horikita would beat you. And apparently, it worked exactly as I expected."
Thankfully, he had managed to prepare this failsafe at the last moment. Though in the end, it only worked because of Horikita's own actions, which made things easier for him.
"So you're really going to expel me?"
"W-wait a mome—"
Before Horikita could finish speaking, Ayanokouji cut her off.
"That's right," Ayanokouji answered without hesitation.
He had no intention of sparing Kushida anymore.
If this had happened before, perhaps Ayanokouji might have hesitated. Kushida was useful to the class in ways nobody else could replace. There were things only Kushida could do, things that even Karuizawa, Hirata, or Horikita themselves could not manage.
But after seeing that expression on her face earlier...
Ayanokouji couldn't help but feel that if he let Kushida stay, he would regret it someday.
It was not a logical conclusion backed by evidence.
It was simply instinct.
『Ahaha, it's your complete loss, isn't it, Kushida-chan. 』
Compared to the tense atmosphere, Kumagawa simply laughed at Kushida's unfortunate situation.
He then looked toward Ayanokouji and Horikita,『Congratulations on your victory, Ayanokouji-kun and Horikita-chan. As the loser, I'll praise you properly. 』
"I don't think this counts as a victory. In the end, we almost got expelled ourselves."
『No, no. You don't need to be so modest. This was definitely our complete defeat. I understood that in a fight with rules, , even if we resort to dirty tactics like cheating, we still can't beat you people. 』
"...Speaking of that, are you going to fulfill your side of the deal?"
Ayanokouji did not explain what he meant. Horikita most likely had no idea what they were talking about, since only three people knew about it.
『Don't worry, Ayanokouji-kun. I erased it the moment we made our agreement a few weeks ago. 』
So that meant it had already been erased a long time ago.
Did he really trust Ayanokouji enough to carry him without any problems? Maybe that was also the reason he scored zero on all eight subjects. If that was really the case, then Kumagawa truly had some nerve.
『So Kushida-chan, 』Then Kumagawa turned toward Kushida.『Since you're the one who got caught cheating, what are you going to do now? Want me to save you? 』
Ignoring Kumagawa's words, Kushida quietly played with her phone for several seconds before slipping it back into her pocket.
After that, she looked at Kumagawa.
"Let's go, Kumagawa-kun. It seems Ayanokouji-kun has no intention of changing his mind."
Immediately after saying that, Kushida turned around and walked away from Ayanokouji and Horikita.
Ding!
Suddenly, Ayanokouji's phone received a notification.
Honestly, he didn't have a good feeling about it, especially since it appeared right after Kushida had been using her phone. Knowing her, there was definitely some meaning behind it.
Ayanokouji pulled out his phone and looked at the notification he had just received.
But rather than a message... It was more accurate to call it a video.
"Wait, Kushida."
Kushida stopped walking and turned toward Ayanokouji with a smile filled with nothing but mockery.
"What is it, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"...."
Horikita also looked toward Ayanokouji in confusion. Ever since earlier, almost nothing that happened here had made sense to her. Including Ayanokouji's actions behind the scenes. She knew nothing about it, but now was not the time to ask.
"What are your intentions?"
"Ahaha, why are you asking me that? Shouldn't I be the one asking what your intentions are now that you have that recording in your hands?"
"Is this a trade?"
"No. This is blackmail."
Yeah.
This was definitely blackmail. But at the same time, Kushida probably wanted some kind of deal out of this recording.
"Horikita," Ayanokouji called out.
"...What is it?"
"If you had won this bet, what were you planning to do with Kushida?"
Horikita didn't understand why Ayanokouji was suddenly asking that question, but she still answered. "As the bet stated, Kushida-san would probably have been expelled. But personally... I didn't want that. Even if Kushida-san betrayed the class, she's still someone useful to it. So if she had asked for another chance... even if she lost the bet, I had no intention of expelling her."
"That's what she says, Kushida," Ayanokouji said as he looked at her. "Since that was her intention from the start, why don't we make a deal?"
"A deal?"
"I won't report your cheating to the school. In exchange, I want you to erase every copy and backup you have of that recording."
Ayanokouji didn't want to ask how Kushida managed to record it back then. Right now, it was probably better not to know.
This recording was far more dangerous than what Kumagawa had recorded on the rooftop before. Even if Ayanokouji could avoid the worst possible outcome from it, the recording itself would still create unnecessary trouble later on.
"Erase it? Isn't that asking for a bit too much?" Kushida tilted her head slightly.
"I could probably manage even if you released it. But your cheating would immediately lead to expulsion. I'd say that makes this an even trade."
"So all I have to do is erase the recording?"
"That's right."
"Well, okay then."
"...."
"But in exchange, you have to give up on reporting me to the school, okay, Ayanokouji-kun?"
Ayanokouji slowly nodded.
Honestly, it was unsettling how easily Kushida agreed to his proposal, but there was not much he could do about it. While he had prepared countermeasures beforehand, he never expected Kushida to possess something like this.
Even if he reported her to the school now, Kushida would probably drag him down together with her. The only people who would remain unharmed were probably Horikita and Kumagawa.
He and Kushida would both end up expelled.
One because of cheating.
The other because of the incriminating recording.
None of it had anything to do with the bet anymore.
"Then we should make an agreement later to make things official, right? I'll send it to you afterward. Bye bye, Horikita-san and Ayanokouji-kun. I hope nothing changes between us."
Leaving behind those words filled with obvious sarcasm and double meaning, Kushida immediately left together with Kumagawa.
After the two of them disappeared, only Ayanokouji and Horikita remained inside the special building.
"Ayanokouji-kun... what exactly did Kushida-san send you?" Horikita asked quietly.
Even though they had managed to avoid the worst possible outcome, Horikita still could not understand what happened between Ayanokouji and Kushida. It was obvious that Kushida had blackmailed him with something, but she had no idea what it was.
"Horikita, you don't need to know."
"What are you saying!?"
"Just consider it payment for helping you avoid expulsion. That should be enough, right?"
"...."
If Ayanokouji said it like that, there was nothing Horikita could really say back.
"...Fine, I won't ask. But what exactly did you do to stop my expulsion?"
"I'll explain later. For now, why don't we head back? I'm sure you still have a lot of things you need to process. This would be a good time to organize your thoughts." Ayanokouji spoke calmly, but his tone left no room for refusal.
Once again, Horikita could only nod weakly.
Ayanokouji himself also needed time to organize his own thoughts.
He expected problems to appear along the way, but instead of a small obstacle, he ended up crashing straight into a wall.
If Horikita won, Kushida would be expelled, and if Kushida won, Horikita would be expelled. That was why Ayanokouji prepared a countermeasure to avoid the worst possible outcome. Yet in the end, nobody was expelled.
Nothing changed.
The relationship between Horikita and Kushida remained the same. Kushida would still continue obstructing Horikita, and Horikita would still have to deal with her.
Nothing changed.
Even the threat of his own expulsion remained. Kushida had just proven that she possessed a weakness of his without him ever realizing it.
Which meant...
Nothing changed.
In the end, nothing had truly changed at all.
There was no victory.
There was no defeat.
Everything simply returned to the exact same place as before.
Everything had merely reset back to zero.
"Zero-sum game, huh..."
How truly unpleasant.
『』『』『』『』『』
As they walked out of the special building, Kumagawa glanced toward Kushida.
『By the way, Kushida-chan. What did you send to Ayanokouji-kun earlier? 』
"Ah, that? It was the recording from what happened on the cruise ship."
In other words, the recording involving Karuizawa and Ayanokouji.
『But isn't that kind of a waste? Using a recording like that for something like this? 』
"What are you talking about...? Aren't recordings like that supposed to be used for this kind of thing?"
『Well, for example, I could use a recording like that to make Karuizawa-san do all sorts of things for me. Isn't that what those kinds of recordings are usually for? 』
"What kind of human trash do you think I am...?"
Kushida let out a tired sigh before continuing.
"But anyway, you still have the recording, right? Ayanokouji-kun only said that I needed to erase every copy and backup I had. He never mentioned anything about you. So for me, this isn't really a loss at all."
Ayanokouji only demanded that Kushida erase every copy she possessed, and the agreement itself had not even been finalized yet. Later on, she could simply leave the contract details to Kumagawa. After all, making things ambiguous and simply unpleasant was his specialty.
"So putting that aside, what exactly did you do?"
『Hmm? What did you mean? 』
"I never got the chance to ask, but why did Ryuen-kun suddenly change the questions at the last minute? You know I spent a lot of effort memorizing those cheat sheets in such a short amount of time, right?"
Those cheat sheets had been sent by Kumagawa just one day before the exam.
Even though it took considerable effort for Kushida to memorize everything in time, it was still better than nothing. Besides, it was the very reason she managed to beat Horikita, even if it eventually came back to bite her.
Just from the contents of the cheat sheet alone, it was obvious that Class B's questions had been changed.
If not for Kumagawa, Kushida might have ended up dragging the entire class down with her.
『Why don't you just ask Ryuen-chan? I'm sure he'll gladly answer every single one of your questions. 』
As he said that, the two of them arrived at the rooftop.
The moment Kushida opened the door, they found Ryuen already waiting there.
"You're late, you lovebird couple. What, did you two spend some alone time together before coming here?" Ryuen mocked with a grin.
『Eh? Do we really look like that?! Yahoo! 』
"Don't encourage him, Ryuen-kun. I'm the one who'll have to deal with the consequences later..."
"Kukuku, whatever." Ryuen simply laughed it off before turning toward Kumagawa. "Anyway, what do you think, Kumagawa? Too bad things didn't go the way you planned."
『Ah, don't worry. It's not like I expected you to follow my plan obediently anyway. 』
Ryuen then shifted his gaze toward Kushida.
"But you're pretty lucky, aren't you, Kikyou? If not for that hopeless person over there, you probably wouldn't have beaten Suzune."
"Umm... what exactly are you guys talking about?"
Kumagawa still had not explained anything to her, so Kushida genuinely had no idea what they meant.
Didn't you tell her?" Ryuen asked.
『Ahaha, I kinda forgot. Besides, she never asked, so I just assumed she already figured it out. 』
"How highly are you overestimating me exactly...?" Kushida muttered.
Maybe if Kushida had some mysterious ability like that fortune teller woman fromback then, the one who somehow knew her name without being told, then perhaps she wouldn't have needed to ask.
Unfortunately, she was not capable of anything like that.
『Anyway, didn't I mention before that I had a little failsafe prepared in case things went wrong? 』
"You did?"
『Eh? Didn't I say something like that once? 』
"No, you didn't... If you actually had, then obviously I would've asked about it."
『In that case... 』 Kumagawa shifted his attention from Kushida toward Ryuen. 『Did you receive the message just like I expected? 』
Ryuen pulled his phone out from his pocket and tossed it toward Kumagawa.
"Here. But honestly, I'm impressed, Kumagawa. Even if it wasn't completely exact, it was still more or less what you predicted."
After catching Ryuen's phone, Kumagawa showed the screen to Kushida.
The subject line simply read: 'Transaction.'
As for the contents:
'Horikita is already one step ahead of you. In exchange, hand over the questions and answers Class B prepared for the final exam, or significantly alter the questions given to Kushida Kikyou.'
『I made another deal with Ryuen-chan so that he would provide you with a new cheat sheet if he ever received a message like this. 』
"Something like this...? You mean you knew someone would try it?"
『Since the most direct way to sabotage you during this exam is through the exam questions themselves, and the most direct way to sabotage those questions is by changing them, I figured it was worth preparing a failsafe. Though, of course, that failsafe ended up backfiring and nearly put you in danger instead. Ahahaha. 』
"...."
What kind of failsafe was that supposed to be?
A failsafe was supposed to protect them, not put them in even more danger.
Kushida had to admit that Kumagawa was impressive in many ways. Not that she considered any of them admirable, of course. It was already difficult enough to associate him with anything nomal, let alone anything good.
"...Putting the failsafe aside, why did you even need to make a separate deal with Ryuen-kun?" Kushida asked as she looked between the two of them. "If Ryuen-kun changed the questions, shouldn't he have given us a new cheat sheet anyway since we were cooperating?"
There should have been no need for an additional deal if that were the case.
Was she missing something?
Ryuen stepped forward and looked at her. "Kuku. Normally, that would be true. But didn't you hear what that cockroach just said? The easiest way to sabotage someone is to replace the original questions with completely different ones."
"So?" Kushida tilted her head.
"The questions you submitted were useless, Kikyou. Suzune moved before we did and stopped the school from formally accepting your question."
"Ahead of time?"
"Suzune actually used her brain this time. She made sure what happened during the sports festival wouldn't happen again." Ryuen then glanced toward Kumagawa. "But thanks to your partner over there, we managed to avoid the worst-case scenario."
"Worst-case scenario? But didn't your class lose?"
The battle between Class D and Class B had ultimately been won by Class D. Even though Kushida and Kumagawa had sided with Class B, Class D still came out on top.
Ryuen merely shrugged.
"Even though we played dirty, it was still a fair fight in the end. Both classes changed their questions, so it ultimately came down to which class was better academically."
"What exactly did you do, Kumagawa-kun?"
Hearing all this while realizing that she was the only one asking questions made it obvious that she really knew nothing. She had been completely left out of the loop. Though it was a little frustrating, Kushida strangely did not mind it that much.
By this point, Kumagawa was reading a shounen magazine by the wire fence.
『Remember the exam questions you submitted? They were originally questions the school used in the past, and you and Daneka-kun modified them a little before submitting them, right? 』
"It's Kaneda-kun... but yes, that's right."
Using his authority as the vice president of the student council, Kumagawa managed to obtain questions that had been used by the school in previous years, and Kushida and Kaneda modified them slightly so they could be used to attack Class B. The original questions were neither particularly difficult nor particularly easy, and by modifying them a little, they could be submitted and accepted by the school.
Even if the questions ended up becoming harder than the originals, it wouldn't matter either way since they already knew the answers.
That was why Class B didn't need to spend much time or effort creating the questions.
While it could certainly be considered an abuse of power, the process itself required almost no effort on Kumagawa's part. If anyone else tried to obtain the same information, they would normally have to spend points. But since the school hadn't reprimanded him, Kushida assumed it still remained within acceptable limits.
『Since we already established that the most direct way of sabotaging the exam is by changing the questions, I warned Ryuen-kun that Horikita-chan might attempt something like that. That's why I obtained the past exam questions from the school. It allowed Class B to avoid wasting effort creating questions that were neither too hard nor too easy, and instead focus on preparing another set that could replace or overwrite the previous one. 』
"...So that means the exam questions I prepared were useless?"
『Well, pretty much. If Ryuen receives that kind of message and doesn't have a backup set ready, his class is basically finished. That's why I gave him a little support. I also warned him about a few other things, like studying and all that. Honestly, as a student, what kind of future would you even have if you didn't study? Good grief. 』Kumagawa let out a dissapointed sigh.
"Look who's talking..." Kushida muttered.
『But still, in the end Ryuen-chan lost even after I told him to study and not rely on the questions you submitted. It seems Horikita-chan's questions were simply better. 』
"Kuku. Don't make it sound like I got crushed," Ryuen snorted. "The difference wasn't that big. Besides, if Suzune hadn't interfered beforehand, I wouldn't have even needed that backup plan in the first place."
『Ahaha, that's true too. 』
He laughed.
Then Kumagawa turn to Kushida.
『By the way, Kushida-chan. How did the cheat sheet end up inside your blazer anyway? 』
The cheat sheet inside Kushida's blazer.
The one Ayanokouji had used against her.
Though Ayanokouji claimed he hadn't planted it himself, he definitely knew about it. He might not have been the one who put it there, but he clearly knew who did.
Based on everything that had happened so far, a certain person came to Kushida's mind.
But before she could voice her thoughts, Ryuen cut her off.
"It was Karuizawa, wasn't it?"
"Huh? You already figured it out, Ryuen-kun?"
It would be a shame if Ryuen figured out Ayanokouji's identity now. It would be much more interesting if he suffered trying to uncover the mastermind behind Class D, only to take another hit when he finally learned the truth.
"How could I miss something that obvious? I still don't know who X is, but at the very least, I know he's someone deeply connected to both Horikita and Karuizawa."
Thankfully, he still hadn't figured out who X really was.
『While I can sympathize with being left out of the loop, what exactly are you two talking about? 』Kumagawa joined in.
Now that she thought about it, Kushida still hadn't told Kumagawa what happened at the karaoke place that day.
So she explained everything in detail.
『I see... so Karuizawa-san did that to make sure you only had one blazer. 』
"But what was the point? Wasn't it just because she hated me? Though I knew she was faking it. There's a difference between real hatred and fake hatred after all."
"Kukuku."
Hearing that, Ryuen couldn't help but laugh.
"Once they made sure you only had one blazer, everything became much simpler," he said. "The school gives each student two blazers. By making sure you only had one, it became much easier to plant evidence."
Kushida looked at him.
"You knew about the cheat sheet?"
While it had technically been part of the plan, Kushida had never mentioned being blackmailed or having a cheat sheet planted on her. She couldn't understand how Ryuen had figured it out.
"Hey, aren't you underestimating me, Kikyou. The moment I agreed to play along with X's request, I knew he was planning to plant evidence on you. The most incriminating evidence would obviously be something found on your person. Though he probably spread a few backups around too. Inside your books, your desk, things like that."
"...."
It seemed Ayanokouji had been much more thorough than Kushida had originally thought.
Thankfully, she hadn't acted rashly earlier.
"Well, whatever I'm not really interested in that. Even if it was close, I'll admit that Suzune was a step ahead. Still, it wouldn't be any fun if things didn't turn out like this."
As he said that, Ryuen headed toward the door.
"Anyway, enjoy your time, you lovebirds."
After leaving behind those parting words, Ryuen opened the door, stepped inside, and closed it behind him.
Kushida simply watched his figure disappear beyond the doorway.
Ryuen's entire strategy had depended on the questions that she and Kaneda had prepared in advance. In the end, however, those questions were never meant to be the real weapon. Their purpose was simply to save Class B the effort of creating a balanced set of questions from scratch and to serve as a cover for the second set they had prepared behind the scenes. Because of that, the quality of the actual questions never suffered by Horikita unexpected action.
Kushida had to admit that the questions Class B created were comparable to Horikita's. Though they were slightly inferior, the difference was only marginal. In terms of pure academics and overall quality, Horikita still came out ahead by a small margin.
So when Ryuen suddenly received that kind of message, it was only natural that he would hesitate to hand over the answers. Without Kumagawa's preparations, her entire strategy could have fallen apart right the—
Hmm?
Wait a minute?
Kushida felt as something was seriously wrong here.
"Doesnt that mean that Ryuen is holding all the iniative?"
Setting aside the deal Kuamgawa made with Ryuen, it does really sound like that what will happened is depend on Ryuen's whims.
For starters, if Ryuen had received that message without Kumagawa preparing a backup plan, there was a high chance Kushida would have lost to Horikita. Without the correct answers, there was simply no way she could beat Horikita academically.
On the other hand, if Ryuen chose to cooperate and gave her the correct answers, Kushida would win the bet.
But that would only create another problem.
The moment Kushida won using the cheat sheet, Ayanokouji would expose her cheating. Once that happened, expulsion would be waiting for her.
In other words, Ryuen had the power to decide whether Horikita or Kushida would be pushed toward expulsion.
『But does it really matter? 』
"Huh? What do you mean?"
『Even if Ryuen-chan was holding the initiative, whichever option he chose, it would still end in our complete defeat. You know why, right? 』
Kushida paused.
Then she immediately understood what Kumagawa meant.
"The cheat sheet..."
『That's right. If Ryuen-chan helps you, then you need the cheat sheet to win. But the moment you use the cheat sheet, you've already left evidence behind. And if Ryuen-chan abandons you, then you lose to Horikita-chan anyway. 』
Ayanokouji's single move invalidated every action Kushida could have taken afterward.
"What does Ryuen-kun even want?"
From his actions, it didn't seem like he wanted to expel Horikita. At the same time, however, he had agreed to cooperate with Kushida in her attempt to expel her.
『Didn't I tell you before? Ryuen-chan is the kind of person who chases pleasure however he can, though usually through underhanded means. In this case, the outcome that gives him the most enjoyment is probably one where neither you nor Horikita-chan gets expelled. As long as he can keep playing with both of you, he's satisfied. Though his main target is most likely Horikita-chan. 』
"Isn't that kind of twisted?" Kushida couldn't help but say.
The way Kumagawa described it made Ryuen sound like some kind of sexual predator stalking his prey. In reality, he was more of a sadist who enjoyed other people's misfortune, especially when he was the one causing it.
『Ahaha, isn't that exactly what makes him Ryuen-chan? 』
"That's a terrible personality."
『Coming from Kushida-chan, that's a pretty harsh criticism. 』
"What's that supposed to mean?"
『Nothing at all. 』
Kumagawa casually turned another page of his magazine.
Looking back on everything that had happened, Kushida couldn't completely deny his explanation.
"...So does that mean that even before the exam started, I had already lost?"
『Hahaha. Don't look so shocked, Kushida-chan. It's the expected result for people like us. Betting everything under the worst possible circumstances, losing before the fight even begins, and accepting defeat without an ounce of shame. The moment you decided to rely on cheating, the battle was already lost. 』
"...."
Kumagawa was basically telling her that he had entered this battle without ever expecting to win in the first place.
"Then why bet on our expulsion if you didn't expect to win?"
『It's to even things out. 』
He answered without hesitation.
『In a battle of rules and luck, there was no chance we would win in the first place, especially when the situation was already advantageous for us. That's why I went all in and put our very future on the line. But as expected... 』
Looking out at the school grounds from the rooftop, he spoke those words once more.
『I couldn't win again. 』
He could not win.
That was the very nature of Kumagawa Misogi.
"...So, what am I supposed to do now?" Kushida asked.
Now that she had lost, she failed to expel Horikita.
And even if she had won, she would only have ended up expelled herself while still failing to get rid of Horikita.
『Since you lost, doesn't that mean your sense of closure failed too? 』
The ending of her story.
The proper conclusion she had been searching for.
『If that's the case, then just keep messing with Horikita-chan until you get that so-called sense of closure. 』
"...."
Letting out a sigh, Kushida gave a small smile.
"Ahaha, I guess you're right."
Without a sense of closure, there could be no proper ending.
And if there was no proper ending...
Then her story would have no choice but to continue.
Class A : 683 ▼ (–100)
Class B : 483 ▼ (–100)
Class C : 574 ▼ (+100)
Class D : 248 ▲ (+100)
『VOLUME 6』
『END』
『』『』『』『』『』
Heya.
I guess this marks the end of Volume 6.
I'm not sure whether this was a satisfying conclusion or not, but this is the best ending my brain could come up with. If it ended up feeling disappointing, then sorry about that. Hehe.
Anyway, I'll probably be moving on to Volume 7 next. That said, I might take a short break for a few days first. I still haven't fully decided what direction I want to take the story in since there are two completely different scenarios I have in mind for what Kumagawa might do. Because of that, I'll probably spend some time rereading Volume 7 before I start writing again.
I also have a job interview coming up soon, so depending on how that goes, updates might become less frequent... or maybe even more frequent. Who knows.
Anyway, that's it for today's chapter.
Hope you enjoyed it.
[Thanks for reading!]