The sun rose over the ocean horizon on the third day, but its rays brought no warmth. For the students of Advanced Nurturing High School confined within the cruise ship Speranza, that light merely signaled the beginning of the final act of this exhausting game of nerves.
08:00 AM. The signal arrived simultaneously. Not through the loudspeakers, but via a mass vibration in the pockets of hundreds of students eating breakfast in the cafeteria.
Seiji Koroizumi set down his spoon. He picked up his phone, wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin, and read the message that appeared on the screen.
[ZODIAC EXAM ADMIN ANNOUNCEMENT]Remaining Discussion Time: 4 Hours.Current Status:Number of Completed Groups (Guesses Submitted): 0Number of Betrayals: 0
Additional Warning: The school would like to remind you that the Class Point gap between Rank 1 and Rank 2 is currently less than 100 points. A single correct decision in this exam could permanently flip the school's hierarchy. Are you certain the person sitting next to you isn't typing your name right now?
"Cheap provocation," Seiji murmured softly, closing the message.
The school administration was beginning to panic. A stalemate scenario where everyone won was an absolute nightmare for a system designed to measure the disparity in ability. They were trying to shake the tree so the fruit would fall.
And the shaking worked. All across the cafeteria, the clinking of spoons ceased. Suspicious whispers began to ripple through the air. The students' eyes darted wildly, staring at their groupmates from other classes with a newfound gaze: the gaze of a starving predator or terrified prey.
"They're trying to pit us against each other at the last minute," whispered Hirata Yosuke, sitting beside Seiji. His face looked exhausted after two days of plastering on fake smiles in the Taurus Group.
"Of course they are," Seiji answered calmly. "They are reminding Class A that their position is not secure. And they are reminding Class B that the throne is right before our eyes."
Seiji looked toward a table across the room. There, Ichinose Honami was staring at her phone. Her usually bright face was now cast in shadow. Her eyes were unblinking as she read the sentence: The gap is less than 100 points.
Ichinose raised her head. Her eyes met Seiji's. For the very first time, Seiji saw no warmth there. He saw cold calculation.
The real exam has just begun, Seiji thought to himself.
Meeting Room C — Gemini Group (10:00 AM)
The atmosphere in the Gemini Group's base had changed drastically. If the previous two days had been filled with polite literary discussions and Kouenji's naps, today the air felt suffocatingly heavy.
Ichinose Honami sat upright, her hands folded on the table. There was no friendly smile. No offers of candy. Across from her, Seiji Koroizumi was pouring green tea from a thermos into his cup with slow, meditative movements.
Glug. Glug. The sound of the pouring water echoed loudly in the silent room.
"Koroizumi-kun," Ichinose called out. Her voice was flat, devoid of intonation.
"Yes, Ichinose-san?" Seiji set the thermos down. "Tea?"
"No, thank you." Ichinose stared straight at Seiji. "The list of names from the school was clearly randomized," Ichinose stated sharply. "At first, I didn't see the common thread. But as the leader of Class A, it is only natural that my classmates chosen as VIPs would secretly report to me for instructions."
Ichinose leaned forward.
"Fukuyama-kun from the Capricorn Group, and Miyazaki-san from the Aquarius Group, reported to me," Ichinose continued. "When I checked their profiles, I found an anomaly. Fukuyama-kun's ID number ends in 10... corresponding to Capricorn, the 10th zodiac. And Miyazaki-san's ID number ends in 11... corresponding to Aquarius, the 11th zodiac."
Shiina Hiyori, who had been reading her book, now shifted her eyes to look at Ichinose with intense interest.
"But two samples from my own class aren't enough to prove the school would use such a lazy system," Ichinose looked straight into Seiji's eyes. "I needed student data from other classes to prove my hypothesis. And the golden rule of this school is... everything can be bought with Private Points."
Silence crept through the room. Kouenji Rokusuke stopped snoring and opened one eye, grinning widely.
"This morning, before the school's announcement chimed, I met with Hoshinomiya-sensei in secret," Ichinose's voice flowed coldly. "For the price of 500,000 Private Points, she agreed to sell me the Student ID Numbers I requested. Yukimura-kun from the Aries Group... his ID ends in 01. Hirata-kun from the Taurus Group... ends in 02."
Ichinose locked her gaze onto Seiji's.
"And S01T009903... that is your ID number, in the Gemini Group. The third zodiac. The pattern is absolute, Koroizumi-kun. I've already bought the mathematical proof for a high price."
Seiji took a sip of his tea. His faint smile didn't fade.
"Incredible, Ichinose-san. You weaponized your points into lethal intelligence," Seiji praised sincerely.
"Of course, I know you three aren't the only VIPs from Class B," Ichinose continued, her voice growing colder. "There's still Kushida-san in the Leo Group, Karuizawa-san in Virgo, and the others. Now that I hold the key to the formula of this exam, I could easily order my classmates to dig up their IDs, or buy them again from Hoshinomiya-sensei to annihilate the entirety of Class B."
Ichinose pulled out her phone, placing it on the table.
"But I don't need to go that far to turn the tide today. If I discard my morality and execute only these three names I hold with absolute certainty—Yukimura-kun, Hirata-kun, and you..."
Ichinose searched Seiji's eyes for even the slightest reaction.
"...Three simultaneous correct guesses from Class A. My class will gain +150 points. And Class B will suffer a -150 point penalty. Our point gap will skyrocket from 65 to 365 points. That is an absolute safety cushion."
Seiji set his cup down. He was no longer smiling. His face turned serious, yet remained calm. "So, you want to carry out a simultaneous massacre and betray the peace agreement just to build that wall? That is... very Ryuen of you, Ichinose-san. Not very Ichinose."
"Don't lecture me on morality!" Ichinose's voice rose slightly, the cracks in her calm facade beginning to show. "You were the one who taught me! You were the one who said in that park: 'Be a smart leader. Protect your people with strategy.' Protecting Class A's position is my duty as a leader!"
Shiina Hiyori closed her book slowly. She could feel the tension. Kouenji Rokusuke was now sitting up straight, highly intrigued by the unfolding drama.
"True," Seiji admitted softly. "I did teach you that. And I am proud you remembered it." Seiji spread his arms. "In that case, do it. If you are certain you want to build that wall by shooting me down, submit my name. Koroizumi Seiji. Go ahead."
An open challenge. Ichinose's hand moved toward her phone.
Meeting Room D — Cancer Group (11:30 AM)
In another room, Ryuen Kakeru was glaring at his phone with murderous intent. The message from the school was like gasoline poured onto the fire of his ambition.
He knew who the VIP in this group was. Manabe Shiho. His own classmate. He couldn't guess Manabe to get the points. The rules forbade inter-class attacks (except for internal betrayals, which yielded no class point bonuses).
And if he tried to guess a VIP from another group, the shadow of Seiji Koroizumi's pitch-black eyes on the north beach returned to haunt him. Ryuen was still traumatized. He knew that if he moved recklessly to destroy this peaceful system, that monster had undoubtedly prepared a counterattack scenario that would crush Class D. Ryuen would not take Seiji's bait.
But he could leak it. He could signal Horikita Suzune.
Ryuen glanced at Suzune. The girl sat quietly, her eyes closed, as if meditating.
If I tell Suzune that Manabe is the VIP... Suzune will guess her. Class B gets 50 points. Class D loses 50 points. Why should I do that? Ryuen smirked insanely. Because if Class B's points go up, Class A will panic. Chaos will ensue. And in the midst of that chaos, I can prey upon them all.
Ryuen wanted to see the other classes in disarray. He wanted to shatter this boring status quo. "Oi, Suzune," Ryuen called out softly.
Suzune opened her eyes. "What?" Ryuen typed something on his phone screen, then flashed it briefly toward Suzune.
Just one word: MANABE.
Suzune's eyes widened slightly. She glanced at Manabe, who was biting her nails in the corner of the room. Ryuen had just sold out his own subordinate. "A gift," Ryuen whispered. "Use it. Destroy this stupid peace."
Suzune looked at Ryuen, then at the terrified Manabe. Suzune's hand gripped her phone. +50 Class Points. It was a massive temptation.
But then, Suzune recalled Seiji's words: Absolute Defense. Do not take risks unless victory is served on a silver platter. This was a silver platter.
Ryuen served it. But is this platter poisoned? Suzune thought. Is Ryuen lying? Is the real VIP someone else, and he wants me to guess wrong so Class B gets penalized?
Trusting Ryuen was the biggest gamble in the world. Suzune stared into Ryuen's eyes. She searched for the lie. But all she found was pure madness. "You don't have much time," Ryuen said.
Meeting Room G — Libra Group (11:45 AM)
Sakayanagi Arisu sat comfortably, smiling as she read the school's provocative message. In her phone, she was actually ready to crack this exam wide open. Realizing the pattern of the last two digits of the Student ID Number was far too easy for her. She could press the button right now and destroy all the classes.
But... that was boring. Winning an exam like this wasn't interesting, and she still wanted to see if Seiji Koroizumi's utopia could crumble from within.
"A sweet attempt by the school," Sakayanagi commented.
She looked at Yamauchi and Kaneda, who looked anxious after reading the message. "You aren't thinking of doing anything stupid, are you?" Sakayanagi asked gently. "N-n-no!" Yamauchi exclaimed quickly. "I'm loyal! I want the 500 grand!" "Good," Sakayanagi nodded. "Remember. I am the VIP. And I hold the nuclear button. If anyone moves, we die together."
The threat of Mutually Assured Destruction implemented by Sakayanagi was simply too strong. Not a single student in that room—not even Kaneda—dared to risk destroying their future for temporary points. Here, the temptation of betrayal was extinguished by absolute terror.
Back to the Gemini Room (11:55 AM)
The final five minutes. Sweat dripped from Ichinose's forehead. Her finger still hovered over the name Koroizumi Seiji in her email draft. Seiji had finished his tea. He wasn't talking anymore. He just sat there, awaiting the verdict.
That resigned attitude only confused Ichinose further. Why isn't he afraid? Even though the mathematical proof I bought is absolute? Or is it because he knows I won't be able to go through with it?
"Ichinose-san," Hiyori's voice sounded softly amidst the suffocating silence.
Ichinose turned her head in surprise.
Hiyori closed her book slowly. She didn't look at Ichinose, but rather gazed out the ship's window.
"The sky is incredibly clear today," Hiyori said, her fingers stroking the cover of the book on her lap. "It would be a terrible shame if this peaceful day had to end with the destruction of mutual trust."
A simple sentence. But to Ichinose, it felt like a heavy slap.
The destruction of mutual trust.
"You are hesitating," Seiji said, breaking the silence, his voice piercing yet gentle. "The mathematical proof is in your hands. But your conscience is rebelling. You realize that if you press that button, you will be robbing 500,000 Private Points from everyone in this room who believed in our peace agreement."
"Be quiet..." Ichinose said, fighting the turmoil in her chest.
"This school system specifically designed this exam to make us selfish," Seiji continued relentlessly, dissecting the girl's soul. "The school wants you to secure Class A's position by stepping on the other classes and sacrificing your groupmates. If you press that button, you prove that this school system successfully changed you."
Ichinose Honami looked at her own reflection in the dark screen of her phone.
Who am I? she asked herself.
She had always wanted to be a leader who protected everyone, not just her own class. If she won by sacrificing the beacon of peace painstakingly built in this group, she would be no different from a cold, unfeeling point-calculating machine.
The clock ticked. 11:58. 11:59.
Ichinose's finger trembled violently above the screen. Seiji watched her. His gaze was that of a teacher waiting for his student to make the hardest decision of her life.
"Your time is almost up, Ichinose-san," Seiji whispered. "The decision is in your hands. Surrender to the cold school system at the expense of your allies, or hold onto your idealism that wishes to win together."
Make your choice, Honami, Seiji thought. Which path will you take?
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