"I figured out how to clear the final task."
Just as Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu stepped out of the school building, he heard the girl beside him clap her hands sharply, a look of realization flashing in her eyes.
"What?"
Intrigued, Kitagawa asked. This was his first time encountering a special exam like "Unanimous Decision." From his perspective, if Class D faced such an exam in real life, they would surely struggle.
This wasn't a problem that could be solved unilaterally by a capable leader. Tomoda, who had brought Class 3-B to this point, was undoubtedly a highly competent student. Before this exam, the class had appeared united and determined. Yet in the end, they still met a tragic failure.
Anything tainted by anonymity inevitably breeds bizarre phenomena. This "Unanimous Decision" exam was no exception. Self-interest, exclusivity—emotions usually buried in the heart—ran wild in the anonymous environment.
Even Kitagawa Ryo wouldn't claim to truly understand what every student in his class was thinking. Every person was a variable. That was the true difficulty of this exam.
"In the end, it's an art of compromise."
Sakayanagi Arisu had seen through this. As she recalled the scene they had just witnessed, she began to calmly explain:
"In fact, there are only three possible outcomes for the final task."
"First, expel one person and succeed. That clears the Unanimous Decision exam and earns 150 class points."
"Second, expel no one and succeed. That clears the exam with 50 basic class points."
"Third, either try to expel someone and fail, or fail to reach a unanimous decision in any way. This results in a deduction of 300 class points."
"From the perspective of class point gain, Option 1 > Option 2 > Option 3."
"Naturally, no one in Class 3-B wanted Option 3. So the only division was between achieving Option 1 or 2, which is where the initial conflict began."
"Tomoda initially opposed expelling someone and supported Option 2. But he couldn't withstand the psychological pressure and eventually chose to compromise, hoping to achieve Option 1 by sacrificing himself."
Sakayanagi paused, glanced back, and shook her head.
"But he miscalculated. He forgot he had just started dating a classmate, and the two of them fell into a strange mutual-protection loop, which ultimately led to Option 3."
"From Tomoda's point of view, the opposing side would eventually have to compromise with the majority. That's why, using his authority as class leader, he tried to steer the result toward Option 1."
"But he missed an important factor in the negotiation process."
"Ryo, do you know what it was?"
Sakayanagi turned with her hands behind her back, smiling.
"It's that no one wanted Option 3 to happen. Tomoda ignored that factor."
With just that hint from Sakayanagi, Kitagawa quickly understood the key.
"Exactly."
"Option 2 gives fewer points than Option 1, so of course someone would want to pursue Option 1."
"But Option 3 has the heaviest price. It's the true bottom line for everyone."
Sakayanagi tilted her chin confidently.
"If I were Tomoda, I would have dragged things out and firmly opposed expelling anyone."
"As long as the vote was pushed to the final round, everyone would be forced to choose Option 2. Because Class 3-B couldn't afford Option 3. At that point, even those who supported expelling someone would have to obediently vote against it, as there would be no time left to choose who to expel."
"That's certainly one way."
Kitagawa nodded in agreement, but quickly added:
"But that would be Tomoda's method. Arisu must have her own way."
"Do you really think I'm the type of leader who would sacrifice someone for class points?"
She answered his question with a question, locking eyes with him as if trying to find an answer in his pupils.
"Your approach would probably match mine."
Kitagawa folded his arms, his expression calm.
"Because at the end of the day, 'expulsion' and 'Class A'..."
"Have never been all that important to us."
"It may sound cruel, but just like our performances these past few months, it's all been about creating the illusion of celebration."
The third-year special exams had ended. More and more third-years were leaving their classrooms, discussing the results with urgency.
Class 3-A had actually chosen to expel a student in exchange for 100 class points. Everyone gathered to console the expelled student, with many girls tearfully mourning.
"We're truly sorry! Even after graduation, we'll remember what you did for us."
Izumitani, the Class 3-A leader who had hosted quiz contests and sold practice materials during the cultural festival, bowed sincerely to the expelled student.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
Others apologized over and over.
Their faces were full of sorrow, but their tone betrayed a certain relief now that the decision was final.
The expelled student, unable to understand the spirit of sacrificing for the class, laughed and cried, ultimately accepting his fate and trying to express the value of his "noble act."
But before he could finish, news arrived that Class 3-B had failed the Unanimous Decision exam and lost 300 class points.
The atmosphere, which had been somber and tragic, suddenly turned awkward—almost comical in its silence.
Everyone averted their gaze, aware of the implications.
To be blunt, even if they hadn't expelled anyone, Class 3-B couldn't catch up anymore.
Even Izumitani had no idea what to say. He just pressed his lips together and patted the expelled student on the shoulder.
Realizing his expulsion was essentially meaningless, the expelled Class A student collapsed, drained of all strength, drawing a chorus of gasps and concerned shouts.
Meanwhile, Class 3-B sank into an oppressive mood, as if mourning a death. If the homeroom teacher weren't watching, a fight might have broken out.
Chabashira Sae and Tomoda sat at their desks like their souls had been taken away by the end-of-exam bell, eyes closed, lost in thought.
Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu watched these two farcical scenes from nearby. He murmured thoughtfully:
"Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School... really is a strange place."
"Isn't the White Room you came from the same?"
-------------------------------------
"Children generally can't remember anything before the age of three. This phenomenon is known in academia as infantile amnesia. Most children's memories begin around age three, and anything before that usually exists only as vague, fragmented impressions."
Facing the camera, a well-dressed assistant in a suit spoke confidently against the stark white background.
"But Ryo is different. He can clearly recall everything from before he was three. This is one of the signs of his exceptional learning and memory capabilities."
"Moreover, our White Room has implemented specialized early-stage educational programs from the very beginning. Not just Ryo—many of the children from the same batch have also displayed extraordinary precociousness. This is one of the key achievements of the White Room thus far."
Following the previous episode filmed at the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, the newest episode of Daily Life of Geniuses had finally come to the White Room—or rather, a curated and sanitized version of it, pristine and reeking faintly of bleach.
"Looks like the interview's going to take a while. You two can move around freely for now."
The field director of the production crew looked helplessly at the overly enthusiastic White Room assistant on camera, and gave permission for Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu to move about freely. Another cameraman followed them to collect some daily footage.
This was only Arisu's second visit to the White Room, so the moment she heard they were free to roam, she turned to Ryo and asked eagerly:
"Ryo, where do you live? Can you show me?"
"Sure, no problem."
Ryo had no interest in listening to the White Room staff spin more lies on camera, so he took the opportunity to lead Arisu out of the studio.
Compared to the past, the White Room now resembled a typical training facility. Everything from before had been buried under a pristine layer of metaphorical snow—pure white, sterile, and devoid of its former atmosphere.
After a short walk, they arrived at Kitagawa Ryo's room. The lock on the door had been added later—locks, after all, symbolize both protection and imprisonment.
Arisu was naturally curious about Ryo's living space, and the moment the door opened, she stepped inside. Unlike the other children's rooms they'd passed along the way, this one had a bunk bed with both upper and lower bunks.
Before she could ask about it, her eyes fell on a girl about her age sitting on the lower bunk.
The girl wore an immaculate white smock and was wrapped in an equally white blanket. The lights in the room were on—bright and warm. The girl, rubbing her eyes as though just waking up, looked as soft and delicate as a newborn child.
Sakayanagi Arisu had seen this girl before—at the venue of her first direct confrontation with Kitagawa Ryo.
So she looked at her.
And the girl looked back.
It was like looking into a mirror, their reflections gazing at one another.
Their eyes were equally clear.
Down to the finest detail.
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