Epilogue: Contrasting Decisions

(Introduction)

Although many students became depressed from the days of repeated studying, time still passed by.

And then winter came. After entering into December, the final exam was finally less than three days away. Tomorrow, the school will be closed for the weekend, then the final exam will be waiting for us on Monday.

To be honest, the challenge of the exam itself wasn't too much of a worry. As far as Class D is concerned, everyone has sufficient consistency and the results of the study groups are excellent. I can also assert that even Sudō, and the others who are often close to failing, have been working harder than ever.

The problem lies elsewhere. It's not too much to say that the problem lies with Ryūen and Kushida. No doubt they've begun to move under the water's surface, and I can roughly guess what they're going to do.

Ryūen's goals are to 'beat Class D's overall score' and 'smoke out the existence hiding behind Horikita'. For the former... that is, the tactics available to him to beat our overall score are inevitably limited. The proper methods would be for Class C as a whole to study zealously, or to come up with super difficult questions. Either one works, but these are general strategies that Class D can also resort to.

I hardly know whether or not Class C has gathered for a large-scale study group. They haven't appeared in cafes, libraries, classrooms, or any other typical studying location.

Is it just a coincidence that I haven't seen them, or has Class C been working hard somewhere I'm unaware of? Even if they've studied hard, as long as Class D isn't overwhelmed, they'll be forced to fight a difficult battle. This doesn't seem like their tactic for winning the fight regardless.

Then, it's easy to imagine that they're looking at strategies from other perspectives.

"Thinking about something?"

"Oh, my bad."

Since I was at a standstill, Horikita looked up at me from the base of the stairs. I hurried downstairs to catch up with her.

She had a large brown envelope in her hand. It was stuffed with the questions that she had created with Hirata and the others over the last month. It held the fate of Class D itself.

Because of this, she didn't even let me in on the questions, making the information out to be strictly confidential. Since it was ultimately compiled by Horikita, she was the only one who knew all of the questions.

"What are the odds?"

"Hard to say. I hope you're not expecting too much. After all, the school has also been making big adjustments to the questions. However, there's no doubt that we've finished the most difficult part of the exam that we've been given so far."

Horikita portrayed a certain level of confidence. Should I consider it to be solidly completed?

The question then becomes: 'how do we protect the questions until the end?'

We came across another student in the corridor on our way to the staff room.

"Yo, Suzune."

Ryūen was there with a fearless smile, holding the same brown envelope as Horikita.

"Is this a coincidence or an ambush?"

"It's inevitable. I've been waiting for you to come."

"An ambush, then."

Horikita gave a disgusted sigh and proceeded to walk past Ryūen.

"Hold up, you're also submitting your questions at the last minute, right? Let's go together."

Ryūen spoke, displaying his envelope in front of Horikita.

"Since I don't know who's going take a peep, I understand that you're also going to be cautious."

"You're worrying about someone in your own class? Are you feeling okay?"

"Kuku. No idiot would actually try to betray me."

"And despite that, you've waited until the last moment to submit your questions like I have."

Horikita used an aggressive approach to return provocation for provocation. Ryūen should find this incredibly enjoyable.

We walked on and he proceeded to follow after us.

"I hope the wisdom you managed to squeeze out of your defective classmates works out well for us."

Horikita kept walking, ignoring Ryūen's existence.

"Ayanokōji-kun, have you been studying properly? I'm curious about the status of your partner as well."

"As it is, I think failure can be avoided."

"There's no use in just thinking it. We can't have any drop-outs at all. Do not be negligent even though we're confident about anything Class C might throw at us."

It appears that Ryūen didn't intend to remain silent, as he once again responded to Horikita's verbal jabs.

"Huh? Are you worrying about someone in your class? That was an interesting remark. It seems like you're finally grasping our way of doing things."

"Who knows. Maybe it was just a cheap provocation. It's just like you."

"Maybe so."

Horikita called for Chabashira-sensei as soon as we arrived at the staff room. Shortly afterward, Chabashira-sensei showed her face.

Ryūen also called for Sakagami-sensei. Sakagami-sensei, who came first, took the brown envelope from Ryūen quietly.

"Will you accept this?"

"Aah. I'll ask you later."

After their short exchange, Chabashira-sensei showed up and changed places with Sakagami-sensei.

"Looks like you've brought it."

It seems that she already knew what was going on, and only looked down at the brown envelope.

She didn't seem to pay particular attention to Ryūen on the side.

"Chabashira-sensei. These questions that I'm submitting are the final versions."

"I'll take it."

Ryūen watched over the conversation with an eerie smile.

Horikita saw her teacher's hand ready to receive the brown envelope and paused for a moment.

"I'd like to ask you something. Is right now alright for you?"

"Ah."

"These questions and answers are equivalent to the success or failure of Class D. We must avoid any leakage of this information, by any means. After I give it to you, would you please refuse anyone who asks for you to show it to them? I don't want them to be seen by anyone, including me."

Horikita negotiated in light of her recent failure at the sports festival.

I don't know if Chabashira-sensei would understand that either.

"You want me to refuse to disclose the information?"

"Is that difficult?"

"That's not the case. I can understand your fear of an information leak, and your desire to make sure that doesn't happen. The school has no reason to refuse your request either. But, of course, it's conditional."

"Conditional, is it?"

"I have to determine whether or not it's the general will of the class. Has everyone approved of it?"

"I didn't take their words for it, but... I think it's safe to consider this to be everyone's general will on the matter. Since no student wants their class to lose."

"You can't say that either. I've said something like that before, but each individual person can have an unexpectedly different opinion. It wouldn't be strange for there to be a student who wanted to lose."

"That's..."

Chabashira-sensei crossed her arms and added further:

"Furthermore, can you guarantee that the exam questions you have there are what your entire class expects? Your class hasn't collectively consented to the questions before you brought them here."

"Are you telling me to prove it? Do you want me to circulate the questions to everyone and confirm that there aren't any issues?"

"I didn't say that. I mean, things aren't that simple. It's impossible for me to tell if the student, Horikita Suzune, standing here before me is acting for the sake of her class. Nevertheless, I'll grant you your request. If any students are to come in contact with me, I will never disclose the questions and answers that you've created." 

"Thank you very much. With this, I can face the exam at ease."

"However. I'll dare to tell you one more thing. In general, it's not a good thing that you have to restrict information like this. It's evidence that the class isn't uniting together very well."

This is certainly a reality that can't be denied. If we didn't have any suspicious classmates, we wouldn't need to make this request in the first place, and also wouldn't have anyone leak information like this. Although this is just part of my imagination, it's probably impossible for something like this to happen for Class B.

"What harsh words. I'm seriously dedicated towards improving intraclass relations right now."

Upon hearing this, Chabashira-sensei smiled a little bit.

"You've changed too, Horikita."

"...Some things can't always stay the same forever."

"I've definitely accepted your request. However, there may also be cases where disclosure should be permitted when necessary. Unforeseen situations can always happen. Therefore, I would like to add a condition to our deal. If, with your permission, someone asks to see the questions and answers, I will then disclose the information. Is that okay? If I had to assert that I would never show it to anyone, it would be a risk to you too, right?"

In short, 100% non-disclosure is not formally possible.

It doesn't appear to matter how, Chabashira-sensei seems to want some means of disclosure to remain possible.

"That's okay. However, please consider my presence to be another requirement."

"That's a good idea. It's possible for someone to lie about having received your permission. Let's recognize it then. If someone comes asking for the questions and answers, I will tell them exactly what you've said. That you did not want to disclose the information out of fear of an information leak. After all, I cannot afford to lie as a teacher."

"That's alright."

Horikita was relieved that the negotiations had been successful for the time being.

It's definitely not going to develop the same way as the sports festival now. Whether it's Kushida or anyone else, even if they wanted to check the questions, it's impossible without Horikita's presence. There shouldn't be any tricks here, as well.

Even if someone was willing to pay a number of points to scrap it, it's obviously not enough of a reason to overturn this decision.

However, something's strange.

I felt this as I listened silently to Chabashira-sensei and Horikita's conversation.

The answer to this problem doesn't emerge immediately, but there's no doubt that something's strange. It all seems to be going well so far. The questions were completed with an exquisitely high degree of difficulty; definitely worthy of the effort of Horikita, Hirata, and the others. It's fine up to this point. Horikita then presented it to Chabashira-sensei while also putting measures in place to prevent the information from being leaked to others.

Even if Kushida obeys Ryūen and tries to get at the questions, a mechanism that requires Horikita's permission and presence has been successfully established.

Everything is solid. There are no loopholes anywhere...

I see. So that's the reason.

While there's nothing out of place with their conversation, there's distinctly something out of place with Chabashira-sensei.

Chabashira-sensei's eyes, movements, and attitude don't show this.

She solemnly accepted the exam questions and allowed Horikita to leave.

There was also Ryūen's confident attitude. Something about that laid-back behavior took my attention.

"Let's go, Ayanokōji-kun. We've finished our business here."

I didn't listen to her and instead looked into Chabashira-sensei eyes. She responded by staring into my own.

Realize it Horikita. Before it's too late--

I can't speak carelessly in front of Ryūen, and I can't send any excessive eye contact.

Even if we get through this, we might be in a situation where we don't have enough time to come back here again.

Horikita began to leave the staff room but immediately stopped in place.

"...Chabashira-sensei. You just said you wouldn't lie to me, right?"

"Yes. As a teacher, that much is only natural."

"Then I ask you, will the questions and answers I submitted to you just now be accepted?"

She sensed it.

It was a slight wish, but Horikita caught on to the problem on her own.

"It's unclear whether the questions will be accepted or not until it's confirmed that there are no issues with them."

"What's the matter, Horikita?"

Horikita didn't pay me any notice as I asked such a question.

"Then I'll change how I'm asking. Before we introduce the current exam questions, there's nothing like 'we've already accepted different questions' or 'other questions are scheduled for acceptance,' right?"

In the face of this inquiry, sensei's eyes and mouth came to a standstill.

"What do you mean, that..."

"Whatever happened, the answer can only come from Chabashira-sensei's mouth."

"...I have a single answer to that question. The school has already finished accepting and reviewing the exam questions."

So we were told. The truth of this situation was pointed out to us.

"This... Does this mean someone else submitted the questions and answers?"

Her thoughts and feelings couldn't catch up with the conversation.

"That's right. In this situation, the questions that you've made won't be accepted."

"Please cancel the acceptance at once. The correct questions are right here."

Horikita spoke, pointing to the brown envelope the teacher was holding.

However, based on the conversation so far, I knew it wasn't such an easy thing to allow.

"I'm sorry, Horikita, but that's your own selfish subjectivity. I received the exam questions from another student and already completed reviewing and accepting them. They were worried about similar things too. They wanted me to keep the exam questions and answers private to avoid an information leak, and if someone who wants to change the questions shows up, to just take their questions and keep them. They also wanted me to tell them who came by afterward."

"How could this happen..."

Horikita fell limp on the spot.

It's just too brutal a reality.

"Please, who is that student. You can tell me, right?"

"Kushida Kikyō."

The answer was already obvious.

Horikita originally intended to block Kushida's betrayal, but this means that Kushida struck the first blow. Kushida freely took bold and drastic action simply because we already knew about her other side.

"Depending on the situation, the accepted questions can be changed, right?"

"Right. Let's deal with this unexpected situation. Do note that the deadline ends today. If you want to change the questions, please bring Kushida here."

"Such a thing..."

Impossible. Kushida wouldn't obediently say yes.

To overcome this problem, we'll have to visit Chabashira-sensei with Kushida.

However, even if we start looking for her now, Kushida would never be caught in time. She could almost 100% escape from us by simply turning off her phone and hiding in her room. No, isn't there a high probability that she isn't even in her room? Today is surely going to end without us finding her whereabouts.

"Horikita or Kushida… I can speculate about which one of you two is lying, but I don't know the truth. It's also possible that an unknown third party is pulling the strings. It's a problem for me if you don't settle this intraclass dispute."

"...How much longer do we have today? Until we can't correct the questions any longer."

"By six P.M."

I checked my phone. It's just before four in the afternoon, so in other words, we only had about two hours left.

"Kukuku... K-kuhahaha! What the hell are you doing, Suzune!"

Ryūen had been watching the entire conversation and laughed.

The man who should have known about this from the beginning, spit out laughter at our desperate resilience.

"Aren't you already damned? The questions that you created are completely meaningless!"

"Did you instigate this? You're the one who instructed Kushida-san to turn in the questions, aren't you!?"

"Aah, I don't know. There's no way I'm gonna know about Class D, is there?"

Horikita raised her voice as she responded to Ryūen's obvious lies.

"I can't stand for this conversation to be eavesdropped on any further by this outsider...!"

"Oh so scary. I suppose I'll head home obediently. I'm looking forward to the results of the exam."

"...Aren't you going to look for Kushida, Horikita?"

"...I hate the pointless effort."

Even if we manage to find Kushida, the odds of her complying with us are nonexistent. This game has already been decided.

"Did Kushida-san instruct you to not show the exam questions?"

"No, I haven't received an instruction like that."

That wasn't a surprise. Rather, it's more like a reaffirmation of what we already believed.

"Let me see them, please."

As she had permission, Horikita requested for Chabashira-sensei to show her the exam questions that Kushida submitted.

After a glance, I immediately had a single thought.

"These have a superb difficulty."

"Yeah... really."

The questions that Kushida secretly submitted shouldn't be that different than those prepared by Horikita. These were arguably a set of well-refined, splendid exam questions. So good that no one but the author would know which is which. Considering that Ryūen is involved, this is probably Kaneda's handiwork. Because of this, a third party wouldn't be able to know which side is telling the truth. If they were problems that even Sudō and the others could solve, Kushida would be suspected for submitting such simple questions. However, if the difficulty is similar, the truth immediately blurs.

Horikita had made a promise to not reveal Kushida's past, and Hirata, who's afraid of intraclass conflict, also wouldn't say a word about it. In short, the situation was that of first come first served.

If you know the answer ahead of time, it doesn't matter how difficult the questions are.

If all the students in Class C share the answers, they can get a super high score.

Having judged this, Kushida thoroughly camouflaged the information to such an extent and carried out their strategy.

Despite attending the study sessions and accepting Horikita's bet, she managed to solidly handle the situation.

If Class D loses, Horikita, who has taken the role of the leader of the class, would inevitably face part of the blame. Lowering her cohesive power, Ryūen is then used to drive Horikita into a desperate situation.

If it's just the creation of the exam questions, the situation can still be saved. So far, there's no helping the worst outcome.

However, the most important thing at hand here is the bet Horikita proposed.

The collusion between Kushida and Ryūen is certain, and it's entirely conceivable that in exchange for her cooperation, she will receive Class C's questions and answers.

In which case, Kushida will probably score 100 points. Then, if Horikita misses even one question, she will have to voluntarily choose to drop out of school.

Horikita wouldn't break her promise either.

If she loses the bet, she will choose to drop out of school, even if it goes against her own will.

"Is there nothing more that can be done?"

With this, Class D's victory disappeared.

Kushida's preemptive strike should have impacted a great deal of damage on Horikita.

At first glance, she doesn't seem to have done anything to improve the situation, but that's not the case.

However, this was all caused by Horikita's careless planning.

If it was me--

"Anytime is fine, Horikita. Ryūen left."

Chabashira-sensei spoke such words to Horikita, who had her head hung low.

What's going on here?

Chabashira-sensei also didn't seem to be disturbed at all, diligently maintaining composure.

"I'm sorry, I was extremely cautious so I kept up the act for a long time."

As Horikita said this, she lifted her head. There were no signs of depression in her face at all.

Then I understood.

"You took countermeasures?"

"Yes. I was defeated at the sports festival, so I couldn't afford to be defeated again in a similar way. When the details of the final exam were first announced, I immediately consulted Chabashira-sensei. I had two requests: 'I have the right to make decisions about the submission of the exam questions' and 'I want you to pretend to accept them if anyone else comes to submit their own.'"

In other words, Kushida was misdirected into believing that her exam questions were accepted.

"They must be convinced that the exam questions were changed. If they aren't studying for the exam, there may be dropouts in Class C."

I never thought that she would make such a beautiful counterattack, I didn't even expect anything close to this.

Chances are Ryūen won't be able to notice Horikita's movements and predict her first strike.

"Nevertheless, this is a daunting situation. Until now, I have never heard of a request like this. Even from the Class D I've been placed in charge of. I didn't expect my class to be so cautious and deceptive of each other in a school system like ours. Things won't always go so smoothly, Horikita. If there are traitors in the class, any exam that could have been won won't be won."

Chabashira-sensei showed a rare look of worry.

That's exactly right. To prevent exam questions from being submitted, and to lie about accepting it. They're unnecessary actions that the other classes would never need to do. Even for the divided Katsuragi faction and Sakayanagi faction of Class A, they probably wouldn't have gone so far.

To that extent, this indicated that we need to be precise with how we deal with Kushida.

"I understand. However, I intend to end this matter with this final exam."

I could feel her determination to bring this conflict between comrades to an end.

"Really? In that case, let's look forward to it."

Horikita breathed a sigh of relief as she watched Chabashira-sensei return to the staff room with the brown envelope.

"I'm sorry for keeping you in the dark about this."

When the two of us were alone, she bowed down and apologized.

"No, that's fine. To be honest, I wasn't aware of this at all."

Although my opportunities to work with Horikita had diminished, I really underestimated her.

"I don't know how many times he's knocked me down, so it's about time for me to learn from that."

This not only shattered the definite victory of Class C, but Class D also got one step ahead.

However, Horikita's tough challenge still remains.

"All that's left is to beat Kushida-san's score on the final exam, and with that, this will end without incident."

That's right. Horikita has no future here if she doesn't beat Kushida's score on the finals.

In order to ensure that she doesn't lose, it's a requirement for her to score full marks on the math portion of the final exam.

(Intro End)

(Part 1)

Today, the first half of the final exam begins. The required overall score for each pair was determined to be 692 points. It's lower than expected, but we can't be careless. It should be safe to say that this match will be decided by the end of the day today.

It's a match where the outcome is determined by the difficulty of our questions and their ability to apply pressure on the students in the other class. The first day of the finals consists of the exams for four subjects: Japanese, English, Social Studies, and Mathematics.

This means that Horikita and Kushida's fates will be decided today as well.

As I walked down the corridor on the way to the classroom, I met up with Satō who appeared to be waiting for someone.

For better or worse, the person she was waiting for appeared to be me, as she came close when she saw me.

"Good morning, Ayanokōji-kun. The exam is just around the corner."

"Aah. Did you sleep well last night?"

"I went to bed after studying til one o'clock, but I'm starting to feel a little nervous."

With that, she put her hand on her chest and took a deep breath.

"Though I can't say it will be easy, let's do our best for each other. You should be able to do well if you just demonstrate what you've studied."

"Yeah!"

No matter the form, we're still a pair. I can't deny that we're a coexisting body now that we're sharing the same fate. If Satō fails, I fail, and if I fail, Satō also fails. We could easily drag each other down into the abyss.

"Good morning, Satō-san."

"Oh! Good morning, Karuizawa-san."

Having arrived at school, Karuizawa saw Satō and called out to her.

"By any chance, did you already have arrangements with Ayanokōji-kun? You two are a very unusual combination."

"N-no. Not at all. We just met up by chance..."

"Is that so? Well, why don't we grab a drink at Pallet together before we head to class?"

"Yeah! Well then, I'll see you later Ayanokōji-kun!"

She spoke a bit bashfully as she turned away from me.

Karuizawa looked my way for an instant before heading off with Satō.

"Huh, so they were on good terms?"

"I suppose Karuizawa can be quite the jealous girl, surprisingly."

"Eh?"

The one who spoke was none other than Hirata.

"Good morning."

"Good morning. What did you mean by that, just a second ago?"

"I've spent a lot of time together with Karuizawa-san while playing the role of her boyfriend. I've faintly noticed that she has started to pay more attention to you, Ayanokōji-kun."

"No, I don't think that's it."

Karuizawa had been forced to change her parasitic host from Hirata to myself, so it can't be helped that he would see it that way.

"Is that so? From where I stand, I'm glad it turned out like that. After all, I don't think it's healthy to be in a fake relationship. Sorry, that's me being selfish so pay it no mind."

That said, the two of us started towards the classroom.

"The questions Horikita-san thought up should definitely hinder Class C. As for what remains, I don't think it will be very difficult to win as long as everyone handles the exam well."

Hirata was also overflowing with confidence.

To a certain extent, he seems to see the path to victory for this exam.

Even though an unexpected pair of students had been matched up with each other, everything had more or less happened as expected.

"By the way, There's something I wanted to ask you, Ayanokōji-kun. Do you know Shiina Hiyori-san?"

"She's a Class C student, right? We met the other day when they showed up at Keisei's study group."

"They came to mine as well. It appears that Class C is looking for the mastermind working within Horikita's shadow."

"It seems so."

"Ayanokōji-kun, you're the person they're looking for, aren't you?"

Hirata wasn't asking because he wanted to know, he was asking because he wanted to confirm. 

"Ah, no. Of course I wouldn't tell anyone else. You probably have your reasons for keeping this hidden. It's also true that Class D sees benefits as a result of your actions."

"Is that so? I'll take your words as a warning then."

"So you don't deny it."

"You wouldn't believe me even if I did."

"That's… yeah. Maybe so."

"I'm not some hero, and I'm not hiding my true colors. I just don't want to stand out. That's my real intention and how I truly feel."

"Then I assume that you probably had a reason for doing what you did at the sports festival. But was that a safe thing to do? Class C has started making their move. If it turns out that you need my help, I'll gladly cooperate."

I appreciated Hirata's offer, but it just isn't necessary at the moment.

"I'll figure something out. I'll rely on you in case something happens."

"I see."

We arrived at the classroom. I examined the expressions of Sudō and the others from a distance. There was a clearly different look about them compared to previous exams. They were composed, using their time to make whatever final confirmations they needed to instead of memorizing the subject matter in a panic. It wasn't just one or two people, nearly half of the class was concentrated and engaged.

"This is quite the difference, right?"

"Truly."

If you showed this scene to someone who had witnessed Class D several months ago, they still wouldn't be able to believe it.

If this school didn't emphasize results above all, this might not have been the case.

"Have you prepared yourself?"

My neighbor Horikita was reading a book instead of studying for the exam.

"What are you reading?"

"And Then There Were None."

"Agatha Christie? Let's hope there are some left after this."

Horikita closed her book to reject my dark joke.

"Nobody is going to disappear. It goes without saying that you and I won't as well."

"The look on your face says that you're going to win no matter the opponent."

"Naturally. I've prepared to take first place in our school year this time."

"If Class C's questions turn out to be too simple, placing first will be very difficult."

"I'll win despite that. It keeps me motivated."

Then I'll really be looking forward to it. Show me your unshakable confidence with the final exam.

(Part 1 End)

(Part 2)

When the preliminary bell rang, everyone packed up their study materials. We were obligated to store anything unnecessary for the exams in the lockers at the back of the classroom. The only thing we were allowed to leave at our desks was a writing utensil. Additional supplies could be obtained if, for example, a pencil gets too short or breaks, a mechanical pencil runs out of lead, or an eraser gets used up. The only thing we would need to do is report it to Chabashira-sensei.

"You'll take your first end of term exam after this: Modern Japanese. It's forbidden to turn your paper over until I give the signal to start. Pay attention to this."

Chabashira-sensei didn't have the student at the front of each row pass the exams backward but instead placed the exam sheets on each desk one at a time.

"The exam lasts for fifty minutes. Try to avoid calling in sick or the need to use the restroom as much as possible. If you aren't able to wait it out whatsoever, please let me know by raising your hand. You aren't allowed to leave the classroom for any other reason after the start of the exam."

She told us about the rules for the conduct of the exam as she finished handing out the exam papers to everyone.

None of the students were whispering to each other anymore. Everyone's attention had been set on their exam sheets.

Shortly after, the next bell rang, announcing the beginning of the exam.

"Well then, you can start."

As soon as she spoke, everyone turned the exam over at the same time.

If everything goes according to Keisei's prediction, the questions will have an overall trend so our countermeasures will hit right on the mark.

I skimmed through the questions from top to bottom to see whether my classmates would be able to solve them.

There were merciless questions lined up, starting from the very first one. Despite this, there wasn't anything unsolvable. There were quite a few questions that had already been predicted with pinpoint accuracy and quite a few that could be solved as long as you remained calm.

In other words, this means that Keisei's objective was successful.

Moreover, there were large revisions to the content as instructed by the school.

Although there are traces that show attempts at making misleading questions, there are also traces of these questions being forcibly corrected.

Nonetheless, it's unlikely that we'll be able to stop our average grade from falling lower than the last midterm exam. If there's a student who's behind in their studies, they might end up with 10 to 20 points. Taking this into consideration, the supporting partner definitely needs to take more than 50 points, or preferably more than 60 points, if possible. 

If it's the skilled people in the class, it seems like they'll be able to pass the 60-point hurdle, but they still can't be careless.

The largest problem in this situation is the groups of students in the middle like Haruka and Akito. They'll have to stand firm in this situation. Their weak point, the humanities, absolutely must be defended as if their lives depended on it.

From the seat next to me, Horikita immediately picked up her pen and started on the first question.

Horikita was investing herself into a fight she absolutely couldn't afford to lose.

I spun my pen in circles as I thought about what I should do.

Relative to other students, Satō was enthusiastic about attending the study sessions, so I anticipate that she'll score higher than Ike and Yamauchi. However, there's also a need to compliment her score with a suitable score of my own.

This time around, individual scores won't inadvertently raise the classes failing line. So after considering the future, I decided to take the exam on a 60 point basis.

More than that, the important thing is-

I raised my head.

My eyes crossed with Chabashira-sensei who was watching the class from the podium.

However, Chabashira-sensei wasn't the one I was paying attention to.

Instead, I took note of how Kushida Kikyō was handling the exam in front of her.

Even though the exam had started, there was no indication that her arm was moving. She appeared to be checking something as she went over the questions several times.

She made sure of everything for two or three minutes before she finally began to solve the exam questions.

In this way, the tense exams continued past the first without any time for leisure or idle chatter.

However, there was a slight incident during the fourth exam.

It happened during the math exam, which is supposed to be when Horikita and Kushida's direct confrontation would be decided.

It was immediately after we turned our exams over after the start signal.

"Why..."

Kushida's voice leaked out despite her attempt to suppress it.

"What's wrong Kushida?"

"N-no, I'm sorry. It's nothing."

Our classmates expressed their concern for Kushida, whose voice leaked out for a moment, but she started on the questions immediately anyways.

I looked carefully and understood.

Her unrest was an unimaginable appearance compared to Kushida's usual composure.

It appears that man decided to make 'that' choice.

Horikita worked on the math problems without being distracted by Kushida's agitation.

It's a straight and proper matchup, just to demonstrate the fruits of this last month's effort.

It's powerful because it's simple.

Well. Should I concentrate on the exam now that the source of my troubles has faded away?

(Part 2 End)

(Part 3)

"...Fuu."

Horikita sighed and slowly looked up at the ceiling of the classroom.

"You look like you've done everything you can."

"I've never considered studying to be a pain, but I studied more than ever before for this exam."

"What score would you give yourself on the math exam?"

"100 points... at least that's what I want to say. Since there was one particularly unclear question, at the very least I can say that I scored 98 points. There were some questions with a reasonably high degree of difficulty mixed in."

She instantly asserted her self-graded score without any hesitation.

"It's also possible that you made a mistake or omitted an answer. Is there a chance of getting anything lower?"

"None. I'm absolutely confident that I've overcome this exam, at the very least. I think that I managed to get nearly perfect scores in the other three subjects as well."

"That's great…"

"I challenged Kushida-san to this bet on the assumption that she would manage a score of 100 points. I was thorough in my approach in order to not make even the slightest of mistakes. As a result, however, it's just shameful since I might have failed to score the final two points."

Humans make mistakes. It's also possible that she scored below a 98.

This is because the problems that Kaneda created weren't easy ones.

I don't know if even someone like Keisei would manage to score above a 90.

Regardless, It's not possible to say for sure right now.

If she did, in fact, take a perfect score, she would undoubtedly get the top grade in the class.

Despite tutoring many of her classmates, Horikita managed to overcome everything with her own willpower and spirit.

"Suzune, I have something I'd like to report. Do you want to head back together?"

Finished with the exam, Sudō came over with his bag in hand, a little low-spirited.

"Something you want to report? I'm sorry, but could you please say it here?"

"Today's exams… I don't think I reached 40 points in every subject. I'd like to apologize for that. My bad."

It seems that he planned to apologize to Horikita on their way home, but he ended up apologizing here.

"It's not a bad thing. The difficulty of the exam changes every time. Considering what was on today's tests, you've done a good job."

This exam was more difficult than usual, so getting lower scores is inevitable.

"I have some plans, so you can head back with your friends."

"Are you staying too, Ayanokōji? Going home together or something?"

He gave the two of us a look, skeptical about whether or not we were going to do something.

"It has nothing to do with him. I have an appointment with Kushida-san. Is that also a problem?"

"With Kushida? No problem."

Sudō withdrew immediately after he realized that she intended on meeting with another girl.

"I'll head home and study then."

"Yes, but considering tomorrow, please go to bed early."

"I know. Kanji, Haruki, let's go back together."

Sudō offered to head home with them with a calm attitude, nothing like his usual harsh appearance.

You can naturally avoid the risk of failing if you learn to study. And because we can respond to each test separately without panic, a clear mind is born as well.

"By the way, what's your arrangement with Kushida?"

"It's not that important. Both of us should have put forward the effort to keep track of our scores, so I intend to confirm things with her."

There's some free time until the results of the test are announced.

If their self-evaluated scores make it clear enough, the winner of the bet could be decided without the need to wait for the official results.

However, I've already been convinced.

Horikita Suzune has won.

There isn't any need to ask about the results. The outcome is clear just from looking at Kushida's shaken appearance.

Kushida stood up and unsteadily walked out of the classroom.

"I wonder what's wrong with her..."

"She's probably realized that she scored lower than she expected to, right?"

"I hope so. However, he's also pretty whimsical, after all."

"Are you wondering about what's going on with Ryūen?"

"In the event where he gives her the answers, there's a possibility that she'll score perfectly on the exam. In which case, my only options would be to lose or to draw. You and I would also have to voluntarily drop out."

"In that case, do you intend to prostrate yourself to Kushida and beg for forgiveness?"

"Is that sarcasm?"

"What?"

"Nothing."

Horikita ran to catch up with Kushida, and I decided to follow in her footsteps as well.

"Kushida-san."

As Horikita stepped into corridor she called out to Kushida, who slowly stopped walking.

"What, Horikita-san?"

Her face was tired and weary.

"Is right now a good time? There's something I'd like to confirm. There will be people coming and going here, so can we change places?"

"It depends on what you want to talk about, but this location may be an issue."

"Before you make your decision, do note that Ayanokōji-kun will be coming along as well. Since he's been dragged into all of this, you don't mind, right?"

Kushida didn't say anything, but she also didn't refuse.

She checked the time on her cell phone and nodded.

She should have arranged to meet 'somebody' after this.

There were still a lot of students in the school. To be on the safe side, we moved to the special building.

"The thing you want to confirm with me is, of course, our bet on the final exam, right?"

"Yes. Even though the results won't be released until later on, we should have been keeping track of our scores."

"Yeah... I did."

In this bet, Horikita gambled her future at the school, whereas Kushida gambled a substantial amount of her dignity.

Whatever the form, it is impossible for her to not have kept track of how many points she will get.

"I'm confident that I got at least 98 points. How about you?"

Although it's small, there was anxiety and doubt in Horikita as well.

If Ryūen lends a hand to Kushida, it will have a significant impact on our fate.

Kushida wasn't surprised to hear Horikita's results. No, it's as if she already knew.

"The outcome is clear even if we don't wait for the results."

She muttered, a slight amount of self-mockery in her voice.

"I couldn't have scored better than 80. No, probably not even 80. So… it's your victory, Horikita-san."

"Is that so..."

Since Kushida's score was lower than she expected, Horikita felt a little puzzled.

"I thought you would place higher if you focused on your studies."

"This is just the kind of person I am."

She answered disparagingly, and then sighed.

"Officially, this lasts until after the results are released... I wonder if it will become my win?"

Since the school announces the results of the exam, there's no room for mistakes.

"That shouldn't be necessary. You won this bet. Are you satisfied, Horikita-san?"

Kushida also understood that even if Horikita made a mistake in her scoring, there wouldn't be an error of nearly 20 points.

"Can I believe it then? That you'll cooperate with me in the future?"

"I'll fulfill my promise. No matter how much I disagree with it. Do you want it in writing?"

"No need. Let's start by trusting each other."

As Horikita spoke, she held out her hand.

She wanted to come to an agreement with a handshake.

Kushida was completely motionless. She stared at Horikita's hand with colorless eyes.

"I hate you, Horikita-san."

"I know. But I think I can work hard to change that."

Horikita received her emotions head-on.

"It seems that I'm beginning to hate you more and more."

Kushida walked past Horikita without so much as an attempt at taking her hand.

Horikita's outstretched hand grasped at the air in vain.



"I won't interfere, but I will never cooperate with you. Don't forget this."

"...Is that so? It's a shame, but it can't be helped. Those are the conditions, after all."

"Don't forget, Horikita-san. The only condition is to refrain from getting in your way."

While her gaze was weak, the dark color of her eyes still latched onto me.

"That's-"

Kushida left without another word, as if she was saying that she didn't want to face Horikita for even one more second.

Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Horikita was no longer her target, but does that mean it's now my turn?

It seems like an argument for argument's sake, but my safety was definitely not included as a term of the bet.

"I should have weighed the stakes of the bet a bit more carefully."

That said, it's likely that nothing will change with this.

I had come to a single conclusion. Kushida won't keep her promise forever.

Because this isn't something that she can easily come to terms with. In order to protect her own existence, Horikita and I are absolutely in the way. For Kushida, we're just foreign substances.

As long as we're still around, Kushida won't be able to embrace a secure future.

The most that I can expect is for this temporary rest to last a second longer.

(Part 3 End)

(Part 4)

After parting ways with Horikita, I thought about the future.

The Ryūen Kakeru of my imagination is not the type of person to leave things unfinished like this.

Horikita certainly did a good job this time. She confined Ryūen, who manipulated Kushida, with a well placed preemptive strike.

Originally, her approach wouldn't be very useful during a class conflict where it's difficult for allies to betray each other, but it's truly an effective strategy when a traitor is already lurking. However, her method can't always be used. It's limited to situations such as the sports festival and exams like this one.

That's why she took the initiative to secure her brother as a witness, effectively creating a one in a million opportunity. Class D studied intensively for the month before to the final exam, so it shouldn't be possible for us to lose to Class C. Overall, this could be considered to be a complete victory.

My phone began to vibrate.

[What are you scheming?]

I received such a message.

It's not just me. Aren't you scheming something too, Ryūen?

[I'll make you pay the price for using me.]

He sent another short message, followed by another one shortly afterward.

There was a file attached this time.

It was an image file. After I opened it, it turned out to be a single photograph.

There was no text included in the message because the image alone says it all.

"As expected, Manabe and the others confessed after all."

Although I already knew this the moment Ryūen came into contact with Hiyori.

Even if I don't see how he handles things, I can easily imagine.

He probably utilized threats similar to intimidation and extortion in order to get to the traitor.

And now, names like Keisei's and my own will be on his mind, deepening his suspicions.

However, he has no evidence. He also can't come to any conclusions, given the possibility that the mastermind might still be lurking.

That being said, Ryūen's move to corner me here undoubtedly has to be for that reason.

It isn't necessary for me to think very hard about what his intention is with this photograph.

The fact that he has this photograph in the first place means that her background is known to a certain extent.

Depending on the situation, Ryūen's fangs will also turn towards the person pictured in this photograph.

No, it's more like hanging the bait in front of him is a declaration of war.

"He should've stayed silent after all."

To think that he would reveal the information he obtained so easily. Is he enjoying this?

I was already getting somewhat tired of his obsessive searching.

I closed my cell phone and hardened my will at the same time.

It seems that there's no reason to go about this half-heartedly if my goal is to dampen his mental strength.

If he's intent on waging war, I'll match up with him.

"Come at me with full force so you have nothing to regret afterward. I'll play this game with you on your own playing field."

I was reluctant, but I couldn't help feeling a little excited.

(Part 4 End)

(Part 5)

"You're late, Kikyō. Were you having trouble slipping away from your classmates?"

"What do you mean by that, Ryūen-kun?"

Kushida appeared on a remote rooftop. She drew closer to Ryūen without trying to conceal her true nature.

"Ah?"

"The questions and answers you gave me turned out to be completely different from the ones on the exam."

"Oh, yeah. I switched out the questions right before the deadline. What about it?"

He laughed a bit scornfully before taking a drink of mineral water from his plastic bottle.

"Like I told you. I will force Horikita to drop out no matter what I have to do. Solely for this reason, I betrayed my classmates and secretly submitted Class D's exam questions. The condition was that I'd get the questions and answers for Class C's math questions in return. If you had kept your promise, Horikita would've voluntarily withdrawn herself from school by now. And yet, you betrayed me."

"What? Are you mad about something like that?"

"Something like that? You come out ahead against Class D, and you're just going to end it with that?"

"You're fundamentally misunderstanding the situation, Kikyō. The questions you made weren't used on the exam."

"Huh? What are you talking about? I turned in the exam questions as soon as possible just as you instructed. I also confirmed everything with Chabashira-sensei. There were no mistakes."

"You haven't noticed yet? Suzune took the steps ahead of time to prevent your exam questions from being formally adopted. Thanks to that, we not only failed to come out ahead, but also narrowly avoided expulsion. The whole class was depending on this strategy."

"Wait a second... Ahead of time? Such... No way..."

"Just wait for the results of the exam if you don't believe me. Ten to one, Class C lost to Class D. In other words, our agreement is invalid. I can't afford to show you the correct answers to the exam questions if I don't receive anything in return. That's the natural turn of events."

"Tsk...!"

"Though I'll tell you this, Kikyō. You have no right to bear any grudges against me so how about thanking me instead?"

"Thanking you!? I lost to Suzune, you know!? What do you want me to thank you for!?"

She thought back to the humiliation of being forced to declare defeat before Horikita. It was enough to make her blood boil over in anger.

"For you to get caught in this trap without even knowing it, you sure take things easy."

Ryūen drew close to Kushida and grabbed her uniform.

He then forcibly unfastened the button of her blazer and began to reach inside.

"Hey! What are you doing!?"

Ryūen smiled as Kushida pushed away from him in a panic.

"Jeez, I'm not going to do anything. Search inside your pocket."

"...Inside my pocket?"

While still on guard, Kushida slowly reached into the inner pocket of her blazer.

There was a paper feeling that she wasn't expecting to come across. After taking it out, she found a folded piece of paper.

"What is this..."

Ryūen shouldn't have had the time to put something inside just now. In other words, it had already been placed there beforehand. When she opened the paper, she found a list of questions and answers for the recent math exam.

However, these weren't the questions that were on the exam that was given today. Instead, they were the ones that Ryūen originally said he would submit.

"Why is something like this in my blazer..."

"There'll probably be more than that. There should be several cheating materials scattered throughout your personal belongings. You'll find them if you try looking for them later."

"I don't understand what this means."

"Someone in Class D was prepared to take you out. What would happen if you were accused of cheating during or shortly after the exam? What if I decided to use those questions after all? What do you think would happen if they found that paper on you after you had done well on the exam?"

"I'd be expelled? Even if I didn't cheat? That's stupid!"

"There should be some way to prove it if you're truly innocent, but it's also true that you got the answers beforehand by joining forces with me. So even if you're determined to be guilty, it can't be helped."

Of course, it's possible for her to claim that the situation was designed by somebody else. Although she's more innocent than guilty, she'd still be tainted with suspicion. This is because of the undeniable fact that Ryūen had supplied her with the questions and answers for Class C. Even though it's not against the rules to give these to another class, the suspicion still wouldn't disappear. Even if she managed to avoid expulsion, suspicions of guilt would still remain and the results of the exam would become invalid. Even though these suspicions would never be anything more than speculation, Kushida would've also jeopardized Class D's position, and the trouble would downpour onto Class C as well.

"When did this cheat sheet manage to..."

"You don't have any idea? Have there been any strange things going on around you recently?"

"It's possibly... no, but... I went to the final strategy meeting with Horikita and the others at Karaoke last week. I suppose something a little strange did happen then. It's not clear why, but a girl began to throw accusations around and then poured her juice on me out of anger. After that, she insisted on taking it to the dry cleaners to make up for it. It's understandable given the situation... and I don't think there's any connection... but it's somehow still on my mind."

"I'll take a guess at who that girl is. Karuizawa Kei, right?"

"...How do you know that? Don't tell me you saw it?"

"How could I have possibly seen it? The reason is simple."

Ryūen tapped his finger against the side of his head to emphasize his deductive capability.

"Explain it in detail, starting from the beginning."

Though Kushida still felt dissatisfied, she fully explained the details of the incident at the Karaoke box. That Horikita and Hirata summoned everyone together, that she had been seated at the table with Ayanokōji, Sudō, and Karuizawa, and that in the middle of the discussion, Karuizawa had picked on her and ultimately poured juice onto her blazer.

Having listened to her in silence, Ryūen connected the reasoning a step further.

"No doubt, that was a set-up."

"Not possible. I gave my blazer to the laundromat, but I definitely checked the pockets when I handed it over. Besides, the store would have told me if there was anything I missed when I came back to get it. So even if Karuizawa had tried to set a trap back then, wouldn't it have been meaningless?"

"Indeed, that feat would be next to impossible to pull off at that point in time. However, that wasn't her goal. Didn't someone want to know whether or not you had a spare uniform?"

"Spare? Even if that were the case, it's still impossible."

"What makes you so sure about that?"

"Are you saying that everyone there had set a trap for me and I wasn't able to see through it? I'm not an idiot. I'm always observing the behavior and conduct of the people around me. I definitely would've felt something out of place if they were all lying to me."

"Well, that's probably right. However, the number of people who were lying to you was one or two at most."

"Haa? How did something like that-"

"There's nothing to worry about. If there was someone who read the situation perfectly, deceiving you is just par for the course. Someone able to trace everyone's thought patterns, characteristics, habits, and reactions to what's going on around them. What kind of remarks you would make. Someone who managed to completely predict everything. Someone who planned out the script to your story as you wrote it."

As Kushida thought back to that time, she began to think all of this might be possible. In particular, Hirata's had a way of thinking that was consistently pacifist. He would be concerned if the blazer got stained, and he would also want to deal with Karuizawa's unreasonable anger. Since it was just before the test, he would definitely want to ask whether or not she had a spare uniform as well. She began to think that might just be the case.

"Once they learned that you only had one blazer, the only thing left to do is plant the cheat sheet in it during gym class or something. It isn't strange that you didn't check the inside pocket of your blazer during the one or two days after you got it back from the cleaners. I suppose that there were a lot of other times where they could have tampered with it too. Nevertheless, the important question here is who thought of it. Not Suzune or Karuizawa, at least. They're not the type who could do something like that."

"So you're saying that I was ensnared by them?"

"Not long before the exam, there was a letter that charged Ichinose with illegally getting her points, right?"

"It's the one where you set her up. Why was that? There didn't turn out to be anything illegal after all."

"It's a strategy that adequately shows what type of person the mastermind is."

"What?"

"I'm not the one who sent out that letter. The guy in Class D who set you up did."

"I don't get what you mean."

"Do you think I would bother putting a letter preaching of Ichinose's suspicions in every first-year student's mailbox and print my name on each one? No, I wouldn't, but since my name was written on the letters, it's only natural that everyone will think I'm the principal offender."

"You should've denied it if wasn't you."

"Do you think I would?"

"...No."

Kushida understood right away. Ryūen has always had a tendency to pursue the exciting. He would've definitely found the situation amusing if someone sent out letters in his name. Furthermore, since he'd never heard of the suspicions against Ichinose, he'd also want to know the truth.

Then, why did they specifically write Ryūen's name as the sender of the letter? Because if the sender is unknown, the credibility of the message would be greatly reduced. This doubt might cause the situation to be handled even more irresponsibly.

"But what was the point? They leaked out strange information, and also put you on guard."

"I don't know... I've thought about it, but it's unclear. Did he simply want to know for a fact about Ichinose's large quantity of points? Or... No, that's not possible. It can't be for such a stupid reason."

Ryūen was about to say it, but then he stopped himself. It was simply too out of touch with reality.

"Hey, Kikyō. I don't know about your past, and I'm not really interested in that sort of thing. However, if you continue persistently trying to have Horikita drop-out of school, you're going to be wiped out."

This strategy was prepared with great care and executed without mercy. This was definitely the character that Ryūen is looking for, X.

"Things aren't looking good for you either. Isn't it bad for Class C to lose this special exam?"

"That's right. With this, your Class D is now within reach of promoting to Class C."

"How do you feel about getting dropped down by that defective Class D?"

Ryūen didn't feel anything in particular, even in response to Kushida's relentless question.

This was because he never had any interest in such trivial matters from the very beginning.

"It feels fantastic. Whether it's with class A, D, or whatever, the showdowns so far have only scratched the surface of what there is to reveal."

"...What does that mean?"

Of course, Ryūen wouldn't answer. However, his objective still hasn't changed since he entered the school. While there've been times when things haven't gone according to plan, preparations for promotion to Class A have been well underway.

"Do the best you can and aim for the upper class."

Ryūen said this and then turned around, intending to leave.

"This cheat sheet...!? Wait! Isn't there something a little strange!?"

"Kuku..."

Kushida had noticed something inexplicable after looking at the cheat sheet.

"Tell me what's going on, Ryūen."

"You noticed?"

Some contradiction. Something that shouldn't be there. A new problem had swelled up.

"Why does someone in Class D have the test questions that only you and I should have? I can't think of any reason."

"That's right. The reason why X was able to use these questions is because I gave them to him."

"So you betrayed me."

"That's not true. It was a necessary deal to make with him."

Ryūen took a look at his cell phone. There were pictures of the questions and answers before he changed them out.

Ryūen sent these pictures to someone's unidentified email address.

"However... He understands me well."

Before Ryūen sent the pictures, he had received several messages from X.

The first one had a title that read 'Transaction'. The content of the message was this:

[Provide Class C's finalized questions and answers for the end of term exam.]

[Otherwise, make significant changes to the questions and answers you provide Kushida Kikyō.]

This was the message that Ryūen had received.

Usually, Ryūen wouldn't respond to something like this.

However, X had given him useful information that benefited Class C with no strings attached.

The information was that Horikita Suzune had seen through Ryūen and Kushida's tactics, and had made a preemptive strike. This had come out of the blue for Ryūen, who had been anticipating complete success with Kushida's replacement of the exam questions.

If not for this information, some of his classmates who were behind in their studies might have had to drop-out. Knowing this, Ryūen had three options available to him as to how to proceed.

The first was to disobey X and let Kushida win. However, this was something that Ryūen, who didn't want Horikita to drop out of school, wanted to avoid as much as possible. The second was to not change out the exam questions and let X expose Kushida for cheating and make her drop out of school. However, it wasn't fun to abide by X's ideal progression of the situation, so he didn't consider this option. 

Ryūen's final option was to change out the exam questions and let Horikita win the exam.

"So he managed to protect Suzune, while sealing off Kikyō's options at the same time?"

Suzune was fighting on the surface, and someone else was controlling things behind the scenes.

Ryūen couldn't help but laugh as he thought about how his strategy of using Kushida was in turn, used against him.

"But I'm about to push him over the edge. If he doesn't show his true colors-"

He opened up the image file that he sent to X once again.

"At that time, I'll just have to destroy him."

Ryūen was convinced that the person in that photograph is an important piece to the puzzle of uncovering that person's identity.