"Oh, isn't this Kanzaki? Speaking of which, I should thank you. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be able to easily control Class B like this. How about this: since you've given me such enjoyment, I'll give you a chance. As long as you, Kanzaki, crawl over here and bark three times like a dog, I'll return the key card to Class B and won't even glance at the key card holder's name."
The condition Amane offered was incredibly tempting, especially the final promise: not to glance at the key card holder's name.
That is to say, Amane was willing to give up all the benefits she could gain from Class B.
However, behind tempting conditions often lies an unacceptable price. Now, most of Class B's students had woken up. Amane had specifically named him, Kanzaki, to crawl over and bark like a dog. It was imaginable that if he really did that, even if everyone didn't say anything bad to his face, and even praised him for enduring humiliation, the gossip behind his back would definitely be endless.
"Amane, your demand is a bit too insulting..."
"I refuse."
Before Ichinose could refuse, Kanzaki preempted her.
For a moment, everyone's gaze turned to Kanzaki. Although everyone, after putting themselves in his shoes, felt that Kanzaki's refusal was reasonable—after all, Amane's demand was a complete insult to one's dignity, and being refused was only natural—Kanzaki, as the person involved, making such a decision was not surprising. However, the speed of his reply caused dissatisfaction among some people.
When Class B decided to support Ichinose as their leader, it was established that the collective interest of Class B was greater than individual interests.
Once collective and individual interests clashed, Ichinose, as the representative of Class B's will, would arbitrate.
Now was the time for Ichinose to judge whether the other party's request was reasonable, but Kanzaki had preempted Ichinose's decision by stating his own stance.
This way, if Ichinose intended to make Kanzaki bark like a dog, it would be impossible to force Kanzaki to carry out such a humiliating act, given his explicit refusal.
Kanzaki's actions were not wrong, but his behavior undoubtedly prioritized individual interests over collective interests. Even if Kanzaki had hesitated, everyone could understand, but Kanzaki's almost immediate reply indicated that he likely hadn't considered what benefits Class B would gain if he agreed.
In other words, Kanzaki hadn't considered the collective interest at all.
Kanzaki, who was extremely sensitive to others' gazes, immediately realized that he had been too quick to refute, leading to everyone's disapproval. He quickly spoke, trying to defend his actions.
"Why are you all looking at me? You should go to the lake and look at the expressions on your faces right now. The fact that you're showing such dissatisfied expressions means you've already fallen into Miyako's trap."
Kanzaki's astonishing words left everyone stunned for a moment.
"Classmate Kanzaki, what do you mean? Have you seen through Amane's intentions?"
Ichinose turned back to Kanzaki in surprise. She hadn't noticed any trap from Amane, but Kanzaki insisted that everyone had unknowingly fallen into Amane's trap. This made Ichinose become vigilant.
Even Amane pricked up her ears, intending to hear what trap Kanzaki had discovered. She had just said an impossible condition to stall for time, her goal being to make both sides argue.
She hadn't expected Kanzaki to discover a trap she hadn't even noticed. Amane immediately perked up.
"I know, some of you must be thinking that Kanzaki refused so quickly because he wanted to save face and sacrificed the collective interest, right?"
As Kanzaki spoke, his gaze swept over the few people who had been glaring at him. Without exception, these people averted their eyes from Kanzaki.
"If you think that, you're wrong, and you're very wrong!"
Kanzaki had originally just intended to defend himself, but as he spoke, he actually came up with a perfect self-defense in his mind, and so, at this moment, Kanzaki's voice was firm and resolute.
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It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
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