Classroom of the Elite Vol. 4 Chapter 2 Part 1

Chapter 2: A Vast Array of Thoughts

Breakfast time. I made sure to avoid the buffet popular with the students and turned back towards the deck of the ship. On the deck there is a cafe called "Blue Ocean" where there are hardly any students. I chose to sit there in an empty table in the shade and called for the waitress. The current time is 7:55 AM. One minute just before the designated meeting time the person I was waiting for appeared before me with an empty expression. "You're here early". It was my fellow classmate from Class D Horikita Suzune. She sits next to me and one of the few people I could call a friend in this school. And she also happens to be a very problematic existence who knows a little about my true capabilities. She sat down in the seat in front of me. "I was waiting for an hour" I complain to her. Of course I was only trying to tease her a bit. "I don't care since I arrived by the designated time, even if you waited 10 hours in advance for me I couldn't care less". Ok. I suppose I can't tease her like this, it'll only end up hurting me. "...you don't want to order anything?" I ask. "No. There's no need for that. Let's continue our chat from yesterday". Horikita, who does not like idle chitchat, wanted to go down to business and seemed to want to report her situation from yesterday to me. The only thing she told me beforehand was the location of this meeting.

"So? Did the students called by the school form a group?" I ask her. "Yes. Just as you said, 12 groups with 4 possible outcomes and the "target" being announced to us today by mail at 8:00 in the morning. If there are any small differences, I suppose you could chalk it up to the difference in teachers" she told me. "Who are your group members and how many are there?" I quickly ask her. I knew some of the students from yesterday but I didn't bother telling her that. "It was quite amazing actually, almost as if it was on purpose and not just coincidence" Horikita tells me. After telling me that, Horikita hands me a slip of paper. It seems she memorized the names of her group members and wrote it on a separate piece of paper to show me. The name of her group is (Dragon) and below were the names of her group members.

Class A: Katsuragi Kohei, Nishikawa Ryouko, Shita Shinji, Koharu Yano

Class B: Ando Sayo, Kanzaki Ryuuji, Tsukabe Hitomi

Class C: Oda Takumi, Suzuki Hidetoshi, Sonoda Masashi, Ryuuen Kakeru

Class D: Kushida Kikyou, Hirata Yousuke, Horikita Suzune

First of all, it seems Hirata and Kushida were the ones chosen from Class D for this group. Two honors students to represent our class. Leaving aside the usually solitary Horikita, putting these two together on the same team would most likely form the strongest combination that Class D currently has to offer. I had expected another person to be in their group like it was with mine but seemed to not be the case. Kouenji has an overwhelming power but even if he were to be added to the group, I doubt he would be useful. Honestly I'm not sure what group he was put into or whether he even cared enough to go for the meeting. "I see...looking back I suppose this combination was inevitable" I muttered. Even if I list the names I currently know it'd be Katsuragi from Class A, Kanzaki from Class B and Ryuuen from Class C. These are big names representing their classes. It's almost like a dream team in soccer terms.

"But there's also something unnatural here". If the intention is to gather the big names in one group, I felt it was unnatural that Ichinose was in our (Rabbit) group and not in the (Dragon) group. "You're worried about Ichinose-san in your group, right? Right now, only her class knows just how excellent she truly is. It's not always that the face of the class is the leader" Horikita tells me. "Are you referring to yourself?" I ask her. But I do feel Horikita has a point. We still don't know what Ichinose is truly capable of yet. It may also be that her academic ability is surprisingly low. "From this I can somewhat understand how they've divided us up into 12 groups. Ayanokouji-kun and Karuizawa-san are very similar right? In terms of grades. Perhaps they are grouping us in terms of our current points. But the only flaw in this theory is that Yukimura-kun is also in the top grades and the same goes for Kouenji-kun..." Horikita trailed off. It seems Horikita was trying to come up with a hypothesis for the grouping by going over our mid-semester and final exam results to find a reason for the specific division of students.

"But you do have a point, me and Sotomura have similar grades as well...then there's you and Hirata". On the other hand, if we were grouped purely based on our grades Kouenji should be at the very top. Naturally, I have no doubt grades are taken into consideration, although there must be some unknown factor playing a part in the grouping as well. If possible, I would like to see the other group lists to ascertain this for myself. "In any case this is a problem, to effectively lead this group and clear the exam". Of course it was inevitable the moment all these people with excellent abilities gather in one group. And then there's the fact that Horikita's compatibility with Ryuuen is like fire and water. Horikita probably won't accept it even if I tell her this so I chose to keep quiet. However, on the contrary, I do believe Horikita will be able to work efficiently with a straightforward type of person like Katsuragi. Their way of thinking, down to the smarter person takes all, means their compatibility is high after all.

"It's about time, I wonder if the mail really will come". Once the clock hit 8:00 AM both our phones vibrated at once without even being a second apart. Immediately we both confirm the arrival of the mail. The moment I finished reading the contents of my mail, Horikita pushed her phone and the mail displayed on it towards me and I do the same to check the details of the mail while comparing it to the other's. It said the following:

After a period of thorough consideration, you have not been chosen as the "target". Please act together as one and challenge the exam in that manner. The exam itself shall begin from 1:00 PM today onwards. The exam will be held for three days from this point onwards. If you belong to the (Dragon) group please come up to the room marked as such on the second floor immediately.

The mail sent to me and Horikita were 'almost the same'. Except for the difference in the names of the groups the other words in the mail all line up perfectly. "I suppose if we were chosen as the "target" the mail would be slightly different informing us of this fact". "It seems neither of us have been chosen as the "target" for our groups. I don't know whether to be overjoyed at this or sad".

"If you're the "target", depending on your personal choices, you would be able to lead your group to any one of the four possible outcomes" I said. In other words, being the "target" student in this exam gives said student an overwhelming advantage. If you can keep up a good poker face you would easily be able to obtain at the very least 500,000 private points. "I still don't like it though. It's almost as if they're telling me I don't qualify as the "target" student" Horikita tells me. Even after being placed in a dream team lineup like her group, Horikita still thinks she's the best. I suppose that's expected of her though. "In this exam, there is a massive difference between the student selected as the "target" and the ones not selected. Since all the other students must by default struggle to uncover the identity of the "target" and there is always the possibility that the point gap between classes may be closed after the exam" Horikita says.

That's right. Of course even if Class D fails, our points will not dip into the negative. But the slight lead we gained after the uninhabited island test may shrink or disappear entirely depending on our performance here. I also begin to internally form a strategy to approach this exam. Considering the members of my group and the mechanism by which the exam operates, the goal I must aim for becomes clear. "I don't know how the students whose names I don't even know will act, I'll need to interact directly with them for that. But I have thought of a way to get rid of them if necessary" I admit to Horikita. But it's obviously not a strategy that can be executed on the spot. It needs to first be set up and the timing needs to be perfect. But it is possible.

"I'll be looking forward to your results" Horikita finally tells me. "Me too. I'm looking forward to seeing what direction you will lead your group in" I reply to her in kind. Still. I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling I had. The selection of the "target" is not random, Mashima-sensei's words yesterday only strengthened my resolve of that. There is a certain difference between the ones that would be selected and the ones that would not be selected. "In either case I'll ask you this now, but who in our group are you most suspicious of right now? Judging from the flow most of the other classes should have already gotten the same information we have" Horikita tells me. Horikita has been acting strangely ever since receiving this information, but considering who her group members are, it can't be helped I suppose. "Ryuuen" I admit to her. "What a quick answer". "Because there's no one as suspicious as him" I reply. "What about Katsuragi-kun? It's only because of him that Class A was able to secure the most desirable spot in the island test. That's also something notable. Wouldn't you say we should be suspicious of him?" Horikita asks.

"Of course that is an excellent accomplishment for a 1st year student. So if you're asking me who's the most excellent student in the group I'd say Katsuragi. On the other hand, the most suspicious one would undoubtedly have to be Ryuuen". During the island test, beyond the shadow of a doubt, Class D won. However, Ryuuen also managed to secure a slight victory in a sense. But Ryuuen, because of that fact, made himself easy to read for me. But thinking in reverse, that also means Ryuuen might now be wary of Class D as well. At any cost I would like to avoid revealing myself. He cannot know that it was thanks to me that Horikita achieved all those successes on the island test.

"While the identity of the "target" is something to be worried about after reading the mail just now I was thinking about something. Isn't something strange about the mail sent to us from the school? And the strict..." before Horikita could finish the sentence I quickly silenced her by putting my index finger in front of my lips and making a hush gesture at her. Speak of the devil, a shadow appeared before us. "Nice weather isn't it, Suzune? What are you having for breakfast?". Two people approached us while grinning. It was Ryuuen of Class C and there was also another person with him. "Don't call my first name so casually, Ryuuen-kun. And you, it's quite amazing you'd dare to show your face in front of us again after what you did, Ibuki-san" Horikita fires away at both Ryuuen and the girl beside him, Ibuki Mio who also happens to be in my (Rabbit) group.

Ibuki seemed to be slightly provoked by this but simply tightened her lower lip without saying anything. Ryuuen, on the other hand, was grinning as if he was enjoying the whole situation. In the uninhabited island test, Ibuki infiltrated our class as a spy. Eventually, Horikita discovered her and they had a fight in which Horikita received a direct hit. Horikita insisted that she lost only because she was sick during the test, although I couldn't care less which one of them was stronger. Besides, Ryuuen was already ordering Ibuki to remain silent anyways while glancing at us with a condescending look. "I believe the mail has already arrived, so how was it? Did you become the "target"?" Ryuuen asked. "There's no way I'd tell you, or perhaps you're going to tell us" Horikita counters. "If that's what you wish" Ryuuen said as he sat down on a vacant seat nearby. "But before that please do tell me, how did you manage to achieve that result in the island test?". "I have nothing to tell you" Horikita sharply retorts.

Horikita was completely calm in her response, I could not even detect a quiver in her voice. Indeed, she possess a tremendous amount of acting skill. But Ryuuen did not seem to be provoked by her response at all. "I don't care either way, but according to her report, you didn't do anything much during the island test to allow your class to achieve those results" Ryuuen says while pointing at Ibuki. "I'm not such an idiot that someone like her would be able to figure me out. I was just saving my strength back then thanks to my fever". In response to that provocation, Ibuki immediately stood up and declared "Then let's have a rematch right here and right now, let's fight" she said to Horikita.

Horikita did not rise to that challenge, however, and simply said "I'll have to decline, unfortunately, since violent will be a violation of the school's rules for this exam. If you do happen to use violence on me, however, I will report this to the school. Please do as you wish then" to Ibuki. Ibuki angrily stepped towards Horikita after that, but stopped just shy of actually laying a hand on her. Using violence here will undoubtedly result in penalties laid upon you by the school. And most importantly, Ibuki, as one of Ryuuen's subordinates, had no right to her personal desires here. The talented Ibuki who hates Ryuuen. That was the very reason she was chosen by Ryuuen as the one to be sent to Class D as a spy in the previous test. "Since we're all here, let's have some coffee. It seems to be a good time as any to drink" Horikita surprisingly held herself together and ordered the waitress for her morning coffee. I also ordered the same coffee. However, Ryuuen seemed to show no signs of leaving and instead seemed to want to continue the conversation while silently observing Horikita. Then he finally said "From the looks of it yesterday, Katsuragi was acting quite cautious of you" to Horikita.

"Unsurprising. After all, he never would've thought that someone from Class D like me would be capable of such feats after all. Isn't it the same for you and Ibuki being here now? You're all on your guard against me aren't you?" Horikita replies to Ryuuen. "Kuku. I'm not going to even deny it. I am indeed here to confirm your capability for myself" Ryuuen says while Horikita takes a sip of her coffee. "But you should also know that my methods are different from that Katsuragi's, besides a serious-chan type girl like yourself would definitely not be capable of formulating a strategy like the one on the island test". "I don't care either way, but how would you know what my strategy during the island test was? All that was announced were the results after all" Horikita tells him. Against a calm Horikita, Ryuuen only grinned at her. He seemed to be saying "Katsuragi doesn't know the method you used" which might as well be him saying he knows how the results of the island test were achieved by our class. "I wonder if you can explain how we did it then?" Horikita asks.

Ryuuen simply laughed before saying "At the end of the exam when the leader names were to be written, the only reason why we answered wrong was because the leader had been changed to someone else previously before the exam's end and was no longer you". "That's nothing impressive, anyone could figure something as simple as that out with a bit of thinking, even the Katsuragi you just made fun of" Horikita retorts. "No, no. He thinks you were the one that planned it all. But from my perspective, even you shouldn't have been able to predict you'd be the leader or that you'd have to retire before the end of the exam" Ryuuen tells her. "It's just insurance to prepare for the most basic of obstacles. I took everything into account the moment Ibuki-san infiltrated our class. There's nothing groundbreaking in what you just said" Horikita replies to Ryuuen.

"Anyways, the important thing is that the new leader of the island test, the one who switched with you at the very end. They are the one pulling your strings from behind the scenes" Ryuuen said that while looking straight at Horikita and also quietly observing me as I was standing right behind Horikita. I don't know how serious he was about that statement, but if he figures me out here he'll most definitely attack me at once. "I don't know what you're talking about, I barely have any friends to scheme with anyways. The only one I can consider somewhat close to me would be Ayanokouji-kun here but he's just been holding me back and not being much of a cooperator anyways". By drawing attention to my presence, Horikita was actually able to make me out as someone irrelevant to the grand scheme of things. "Perhaps he's the one pulling my strings" Horikita tells Ryuuen. "I see". Ryuuen gently looks at me once before averting his eyes.

It seems the act we put up worked and Ryuuen no longer paid any attention to me. Believing he has understood my standing in regards to academic ability, physical ability and communication skills from Horikita's act. After all, such parameters can easily be used to assess someone's threat level in most cases without any misunderstandings. Apparently things did not go according to plan in this meeting but Ryuuen still smiled at us without any shame or anger in his expressions. "It's a shame, when I thought I'd finally found someone who schemes just the way I like it. But it's too bad the one pulling Suzune's strings made their move a bit too early. The trump card they used in the island test should have been saved for this exam but they've ended up showing their hand too early into the game. Suzune, if you meet the one pulling your strings later, please pass this message onto him for me" Ryuuen finally told Horikita.

"Thanks for the advice" Horikita coldly told Ryuuen. "No need for thanks". "You really think someone's pulling my strings don't you" Horikita asks him. Ryuuen did not answer her question. He must have no doubts about his conviction even though there was no proof or confirmation from Horikita's side. After all, the man named Ryuuen believes in himself above all else and does not look like the type to accept someone else's advice. He seemed to have taken this failure in stride and just seemed to find fun in chatting with Horikita. Suddenly, Ryuuen whipped out his phone without warning and before anyone could react, quickly snapped a photo of Horikita without her permission. "Don't take my photo!" Horikita tells him sharply. "Don't say things like that, I'll tell you something good" Ryuuen says while looking at the photo of Horikita he'd snapped in his phone. "There is someone else in Class D who's scheming other than you" Ryuuen gives Horikita a hint. "That's a good thing, instead of asking me for everything they should be able to make their own decisions" Horikita fires back. "In any case, I'm glad I got to talk to you, Suzune. Remember, this is a game. I'll definitely find the one sneaking around in the shadows. Everything is a target for me" Ryuuen tells her.

"Let me just ask one last thing. I understand being cautious of me, but why obsess over me so much? Aren't there others you care about? Like Ichinose-san in Class B or Katsuragi-kun in Class A and then there's the person known as Sakayanagi according to the rumors. There should be guys above Class C you'd normally worry about. You said you'd tell me something good so answer me that much at least" Horikita asks Ryuuen the reason why he focused so much on Class D. "It's because I already know more or less their capabilities and none of them are capable enough to be my enemies. If I wanted to crush them, I could crush any of them whenever I want" Ryuuen boldly said. "How about the rumored Sakayanagi?". The person who asked that question was not Horikita but rather Ibuki. It looks like Ibuki herself wanted to confirm this fact with Ryuuen. And Ryuuen, who spoke ever so smoothly until now, waited for a while before replying. "I'm saving that woman last for dessert. It'll be a waste for me to eat Sakayanagi now" he said at last. Ryuuen then stood up and together with Ibuki, left our table.

"Are you perhaps dissatisfied?" I ask Horikita once Ryuuen had left. "No. I have no such sentiments. I simply disliked the way you handled the situation. In the first place, on our path to Class A, I was the one supposed to be drawing the attention and not you" she said in reply. "That may be the case, but this guy Ryuuen. He's an unpredictable one". I thought to myself despite what he showed us earlier, Ryuuen already suspected me somewhat in his mind. Of that there is almost no doubt. I, of course, don't know what Ryuuen is thinking. But the timing with which he appeared here was nothing short of dangerous. "It could've been he was spying on us from the start, but the timing with which he appeared was too good". Perhaps Ibuki is involved in this. The very fact that Ryuuen brought her to the meeting with us should mean we need to assume she would attempt to gather information on us in our group as well.

"I doubt anybody actually suspects you're the one working behind the scenes. The reputation you've built up throughout the semester as an 'ordinary' person will be very hard to shake" Horikita tells me. I'm not sure whether to take that as a compliment or an insult but it is true that no matter how much one investigates me, they are bound to find nothing special. Normally no sane person would deliberately lower themselves to such mediocrity the way I have so I should be more or less safe from Ryuuen's scrutiny. However, the very fact that I'm close to Horikita should put me on a to-watch list of his. Also, the fact that Ibuki is in the same group as I am means I'll be under some measure of surveillance. Once I saw students starting to come out onto the deck I got up from my seat. "The discussion's over for now, right? In that case, I'm going to back to my room to sleep" I told Horikita.

"Yes, for now there's nothing left to discuss. All we have left to do is proceed in our own groups. Good work for today. Do make sure to report if anything comes up" Horikita tells me as I leave. At least I've seen that when faced with adversity, Horikita has shown a willingness to fight back. But regardless of personal compatibility, Hirata and Kushida should be able to rein her in. I suppose I'll go back to my room and sleep until afternoon. Despite the fact that the exam has officially begun, there's nothing to do until then anyways.

1

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Geppu, geppu. If you eat three heavy meals for lunch you'd naturally be full. I thought of going on a diet but it seems like a failure". Sotomura came up to me while rubbing his belly that had swollen up from all the food he'd eaten earlier. It conveyed a completely different image from someone who claimed to want to go on a diet. He came to the location me and Yukimura were waiting in front of. "It is troublesome that the exam has started, I've barely eaten". "Is that a 'I'm currently unable to use my full strength' flag?". "...I've been wanting to say it for a while now, but can't you cut it out with that weird way of speaking?" Yukimura retorts to Sotomura. Of course, from the perspective of someone who doesn't quite understand Sotomura, his words may seem almost like witchcraft. But you just have to get used to it, I guess. On the contrary, sometimes talking in an unusual manner like that can be interesting. But if I speak out now, I might incur Yukimura's wrath and so I let him continue on with his tirade. "Pofu~ Did you not like my way of speech? What would suit you then, Yukimura-dono?". "Just speak normally" Yukimura replies to Sotomura.

"Ok, from this point onwards I'll be the weakest, strongest protagonist. I'll normally have no motivation to do anything but the truth is, I have a power capable of destroying the world worthy of naming me Cheat-kun. As is the current trend". Yukimura, having given up on convincing Sotomura, simply starts walking ahead of us. Since we were slightly late, we started walking in a hurry towards our destination. "Ayanokouji, there's something I wish to ask you, answer me". He's speaking in a tone befitting a protagonist type character. "What would you like to ask?". "I was wondering what your favourite type of dialect is, since you'd surely be happy if a cute heroine were to speak in such a dialect". The way he said it itself sounded cool, but the content of the dialogue was always the same with him. "No...there's no particular dialect I like". Since I was born and raised in Tokyo, there's no way I would know about such dialects. "Have you not yet had the chance to experience the dialect of 'moe'?" he asks me. Just how many students in this school does he think possesses the attribute of such a dialect? I could just shut him off now but until we reach our designated meeting room I suppose I could kill some time by talking with him. "Do you have a favourite dialect?" I ask him.

"Of course, I'll tell you via my own ranking system for dialects. In third place would have to be the Kansai dialect. It gives off a strict yet rough impression. Second place would be the dialect of the beauty in the snow, the Hokkaido dialect. The use of the dialect in the 2D world is also widespread so it's a surekill moe dialect. I did say I wanted to kill time by talking with him, but none of this made any sense to me. But before I could reply in any manner, Sotomura started whistling a strange onomatopoeia sounding like 'doururururururu'. "The number one in my dialect ranking would have to be the dialect that lolis to Onee-sans all use in a versatile manner, the Hakata dialect. It's said to be the ultimate dialect with a wide variety of slangs. These three dialects are my best 3" Sotomura continues on. Unfortunately, I couldn't understand what he wanted to tell me although I did realize he was quite passionate about the subject. But it seemed it at least succeeded in killing time since by the time we finished the conversation we had arrived in front of the designated meeting room with the name of our group (Rabbit) written on a plate in front of it on the second floor. Since the exam was already underway, students crowded the corridor and gave me a sense of claustrophobia.

"Playtime ended yesterday. From here on out, expect to fight for yourself and for the sake of your class". Yukimura mainly directed those words at Sotomura, but I also nodded at him in acknowledgment. "Haaa...no matter how many times I look at it this is a sorry team I have". That statement came from one of the girls who entered the room, looked at us and sighed. It was one of the pretty girls of Class D (although a bit gaudy). Karuizawa Kei. Including her, 11 people were currently in our room sitting in chairs arranged in a circular formation. Given the number of chairs still left empty, I thought we were probably the last ones to arrive. I wouldn't be able to identify them from the list alone but there were several students besides Ichinose and Ibuki in the room that I recognized. There was a male student from Class A who approached me during the island test to propose an alliance to sabotage Class D. But I don't recognize most of the other male and female students in the room. It seems like we, who were rivals just yesterday, were going to be forced to cooperate in this exam.

Naturally, it's not only our class but the other classes that were also feeling confused and awkward from this sudden arrangement. We opted to sit in the chairs since standing would just make us stand out even more. Students almost instinctively sat in groups based on classes, but Karuizawa and Ibuki both sat further out from the circle of students almost as if they were both isolated from the group. "Hmm...what's wrong?". "Did you notice something, Ayanokouji?". "...no. It's nothing". I had thought Karuizawa would confront Ibuki the moment she saw her. After all, it was Ibuki Mio in front of us who was responsible for stealing her underwear back on the island test. I thought she'd go for revenge immediately, but perhaps Karuizawa is more mature than I expected, or was it that she'd finished with her revenge already. In either case, the fact that Karuizawa did not even seem upset was unnatural. But before I could voice those questions, an announcement came from the onboard speakers installed in the rooms of the ship. "From this point onwards, we will begin with the first group discussion". Just that. A short announcement, but since no one in the group from different classes know each other well, there was no one willing to take the initiative in starting the discussion.

As such, an awkward air came over the room. Then, the girl named Ichinose Honami stepped up with a glowing smile and after confirming that no one else would be taking the initiative. Spoke. "I do know most of the people here, but I suppose in accordance with the school's instructions, we should introduce ourselves firstly. Since there are also people who might not know each other yet" she spoke to the group. It's definitely not easy being the leader of a group like this, one must be able to inspire students, some of whom might even be from opposing classes, and bring them all together as one to clear the exam. But Ichinose didn't seem to dislike it, in fact, she seemed to be having fun leading the group. Some students from Class A could not hide their surprise at her unexpectedly taking the lead. "I don't think there's any need for that. The school's just saying it as a formality. Only the ones who want to introduce themselves should do it" it was Machida who said that to Ichinose. "If Machida-kun doesn't wish to do it, then I certainly can't force you to. But there may be a recorder hidden somewhere in this room. If we blatantly disobey the instructions from the school, it may not just be you but the whole group that gets punished, you know?" Ichinose quickly replies to Machida. Basically, being selfish here may cost the entire group. Putting it like that, she made it so even the guy named Machida from Class A cannot help but accept her reasoning.

She then started the self-introductions by introducing herself. I think back to the first day of high school and how I messed up my self-introduction back then. But when my turn to introduce myself to the group came, it ended up being the same, dull and monotonous introduction as that day. "Yaa~ho Ayanokouji-kun. It seems we're in the same group. Let's get along" Ichinose called out to me with a friendly and consoling voice as I get back to my seat. Once everyone's self-introductions were over and done with, Ichinose once again stepped up to speak. "So, we've done as the school instructed. How would you guys like to proceed from now on? If any of you object to me being the leader, would you please tell me so?". Ichinose spoke in a tone as if asking if anyone would like to take the leadership position from her. Of course, saying it in a way like that ensured that no one would ever wrest the leadership spot from her. There may be students among us who are not satisfied with the way Ichinose does things, but fearing the possibility that the responsibility of leadership would be thrust on them, none would speak up now.

"Since no one would like to take the leader spot, can I proceed? Firstly, I believe we should discuss aspects of the exam some don't quite understand yet, or any other questions and concerns you might have regarding it. Otherwise, this ambiguous situation will continue on as it is" Ichinose said as she proposed the first topic of discussion. There was no resistance from the group to her suggestion and there were no hands or voices raised against her. Things like that can often happen when strangers gather together as a group and the fact that one can act without fear of such opposition is the mark of a true leader. Ichinose then put her hands on her hips and smiled resolutely. "I'd like to ask everyone here something and I'm going to ask everyone assuming that no one here is the "target". I'd like to ask if everyone here would like to work together to clear this exam through outcome 1. I'd like to ask you if you all think this is the best course of action or not?" Ichinose asks us. "Huh? What do you mean? Isn't that obvious?" Karuizawa was the one who replied to her question. She acted like she understood yet more likely than not she didn't, but in a situation like this, the first one who speaks their mind can decide their place in the group hierarchy, whether it be superior or inferior. Yukimura, and a girl from Class C named Manabe also seemed to realize this, replying in the same manner as if to be in sync with Karuizawa. Obviously, if at all possible, it makes sense everyone here would want to aim for the first possible outcome.

As if to agree with Ichinose's statement, one of the male students from Class B raised his hands. If I recall, the name he gave during his self-introduction was Hamaguchi Tetsuya. "I agree with her, of course, cooperating with each other as a group is the obvious course of action here" he said. It wasn't a bad question to start the discussion out with, I must admit. It seems quite a few of the students haven't noticed it yet, but by asking a seemingly casual and obvious question like this, it may be possible to discern who is not the "target" while fostering a positive attitude amongst the members of the group. If one plays it right, they may even be able to narrow down the list of suspects for the "target" at this stage. It might still be difficult to decide black or white for certain with this one question. Ichinose, the one who asked the question. Karuizawa, who first answered her. Then Yukimura and Manabe who followed up on Karuizawa's answer. And Hamaguchi of Class B. It wouldn't be surprising if the "target" were among them and boldly answered the question without missing a beat.

I went along with them so as to not ruin the atmosphere they had right now. "We're a group after all, and our private points are all low right now anyways, I'd like to cooperate if possible. How about Sotomura?" I ask. Sotomura, whose stomach seems to now be in pain from eating too much, was rubbing his belly when I called out to him all of a sudden, causing his shoulders to jump in surprise. "Of course, I'll also cooperate since I get points from doing so too" he replies. It seems Sotomura is still trying to keep up his cool, mysterious character act. And observing all of us, were the students of Class A who only consisted of male students.

They seem to be calmly observing us to see what direction the group's discussion will take. "Ichinose, that question is unfair isn't it? If you're not the "target" by saying that, you manage to gather the entire group up as one against the "target", and there's no one who would blatantly disagree with you and declare themselves as a traitor after your statement. It's almost like you're painting the "target" as the bad one for not speaking out, I believe this is a very inappropriate question you've asked us". It was Machida who told that to Ichinose in a stern tone of voice.

He seems to be clearly different from the students of Class D and Class C who simply went along with the flow and agreed with Ichinose. It almost seemed as if this were an interrogation and he was watching and criticizing Ichinose's words. Hamaguchi, having heard Machida's complaint, replied to him calmly "Isn't this a reasonable question for this sort of exam? Ichinose-san did not use any sort of threat to force us to cooperate or divulge information, if you don't want to all you have to do is stay silent". Hamaguchi quickly puts a stop to Class A's criticism of Ichinose. It seems civil war is breaking out amongst the group already, Machida was not surprised at all by Hamaguchi's retaliation, almost as if he'd already expected this would happen. "Indeed, we have the right to remain silent. And as such, that is what me and the rest of Class A will be doing, keep our silence". Machida bluntly rejected Ichinose's offer to cooperate. And the remaining Class A students follow his lead. And following their lead in turn, the remaining students who have not yet answered also chose to keep silent. "Perhaps I came on too strong with that question?". In response to this unexpected rejection, Ichinose smiled bitterly.

"No, Ichinose-san. Your question was perfectly reasonable. But I suppose their wariness was slightly stronger than we expected. Tell me, then, Machida-kun. What questions here would you consider appropriate? We could talk about our favourite foods and hobbies, but I doubt the exam will cover anything of the sort. That would mean you have nothing to offer the group except your silence" Hamaguchi tells Machida. "Nothing else to offer? No such thing" Machida tries to respond. "I myself do not know what Ichinose-san intended with that question, but in this exam, I know that discussion between students is vital. In the case that you still refuse to keep your silence, we will have no other choice but to continue our discussion without Class A in it. At the very least, you could help us decide what topic we should start the discussion on" Hamaguchi retorts to Machida. Hamaguchi is right, exactly as he said, just by keeping silent you won't get any closer to finding the "target" or clearing the exam. Machida should know this as well, despite him crossing his arms and keeping silent. Seeing the situation as a castle gate closed shut, Ichinose tries to break through.

"In that case, although reluctant, I guess we'll have to decide the leader with a majority vote. There will undoubtedly be suspicion directed at the ones who refuse to answer the question and we can name the "target" later. Would everyone be ok with that?" Ichinose broke through the castle known as Class A with those words. Horikita also thinks similarly to Ichinose, but the difference between them is that Ichinose is easily able to rally the people around her to her side. To fight a battle while receiving the approval of the people around you makes her a very powerful presence in this situation. Frankly, Ichinose already holds the majority vote in her hands the moment she took the initiative in the discussion. As far as I could tell, no one else in the school is capable of doing the same thing she does. Katsuragi and Ryuuen would not be able to do what she did. Hirata and Kushida would not be able to do it either.

"...Are you threatening me?". "Don't get me wrong, we just want to discuss things with you all. You're free to decide for yourself what you wish to discuss and what you wish to not discuss. But I would like people to participate in the discussion at this stage, since it is a required condition in this exam". Machida seems to not comprehend her words and starts muttering to himself strangely. "This exam, can it really be resolved just by talking? Do you really think we'll figure out the "target" just by talking with each other? Or are you going to lower your head and beg them to reveal themselves?" Machida finally tells Ichinose. I see, it looks like Class A's approach to this exam has already been decided, but this approach doesn't seem to be Machida's. I think I'm starting to see the man acting behind Machida. "So, is there another way?". Ichinose asks Machida, having full confidence in her approach. But of course, this is something Class A already expected her to ask. "...Yes. There is a way to easily and definitively clear this exam". One of the students from Class A suddenly spoke up. Both Ichinose and Hamaguchi could not conceal their surprise at this. "...could you explain your strategy to us?" she asks them. "Sure. We are a 'group' after all so it's natural to share such information". Machida, no, the whole of Class A came up with an extremely simple strategy. "The strategy we came up with is...to not talk at all from the start of the exam until its finish" he said at last.

He said it loud enough for us, sitting on the sidelines of the discussion, to hear as well. It seemed both Karuizawa and Sotomura also understood what he meant to say. "Now that's a pretty unique proposition, but how do you propose to clear the exam without any discussion at all. Or are you suggesting we let the identity of the "target" remain completely hidden to the end?". Instead of Ichinose, it was Hamaguchi who cut in and spoke out. "Indeed, the real shortcut to clearing this exam as efficiently as possible is to do so without talking to each other at all." Machida said in reply. "I can't believe this. This is starting to make us think that the "target" student is among the students of Class A and this action is being taken to help protect their identity while sharing information amongst your classmates only." Naturally, if the "target" is already in your class, there's no need to talk to anyone else nor participate in any discussion. It can't be helped that Hamaguchi would be suspicious of them after that. Not only Hamaguchi, but it can't be helped if everyone else suspects them after that.

"No. It doesn't matter what class the "target" is in, it won't affect the outcome. If we simply do not talk to each other we can win, that is the strategy that Katsuragi-san devised for us". "Katsuragi-kun?...I see" . Ichinose seemed to understand too the moment she heard Katsuragi's name being mentioned. Machida then turned towards Yukimura, who did not seem to understand his explanation, and began to explain his strategy. "There can only be four possible outcomes in this exam. I believe you have already been briefed on them all. What do you think is the outcome we should all aim to avoid in this exam?" Machida suddenly turns towards Karuizawa and asks her the question. "Ehhh...the outcome where someone figures out the "target"'s identity and betrays the group?" she replies. "Exactly, the moment a traitor emerges we lose as a group. Whether the traitor answers correctly or incorrectly, both paths lead to a loss. But, thinking in reverse, what about the other possible outcomes?" Machida looks towards Yukimura for an answer.

"The other possible outcomes? An outcome where a negative result does not occur?". "Indeed, there are no demerits in either of the remaining two possible outcomes. The class points will neither rise nor fall drastically, and in addition we gain a tremendous amount of private points as well. The only loser in this scenario would be the faculty. There is no need to find the "target" student. By discussing amongst ourselves, we will only end up suspecting each other of hiding the "target" and end up slipping up somewhere and make a mistake".

"We do recognize the soundness of this strategy to a certain extent, however, as long as we don't know which class the "target" belongs to, there is always the possibility that the point gap between the classes may widen further. If the "target" belongs to a certain class and ends up favouring that class, said class may gain millions of points in the form of private points. Although the class point itself will not be affected, I'm sure everybody understands the impact a difference in private points can make for a class." Hamaguchi counters Machida's points.

Hamaguchi is right, private points are also extremely useful. One can buy test scores, for instance, or even change classes depending on how one chooses to use them. Hamaguchi is correct in assuming that the "target" may choose to favour their class to use those private points in such a manner. But this argument won't work against Class A, after all, Katsuragi must have already realized the "trick" hidden in this exam. They would not have boldly proposed this strategy to us otherwise. "Think about it carefully, the school would definitely not give any class an unfair advantage in an exam like this. To the point they emphasized their impartiality before the exam's start during the briefing. Of course there's no denying the fact that there is only one "target" in each group but that is not important. The important thing is that every class has an 'equal' opportunity to have the "target". There's no denying the fact that in this exam, both Class A and Class D would start equally at the same starting line" Machida says. For those advocating Katsuragi's strategy, they would naturally insist that there would be no discussion and allow points to be equally distributed amongst the classes regardless of which class the "target" belongs to.

But Hamaguchi responded to Class A's unexpected proposal promptly. "I admit the school made sure every class starts out equally in fairness. And if you take their word for it, certainly you're train of thought is not wrong. But, we cannot be certain of that fact yet". It was the hard truth, but Hamaguchi did his best to voice it anyways. The school would certainly try to avoid bias by not assigning the "target" student to specific classes. That much would be easy to guess for anybody. "I believe you understand as well, but by talking amongst each other now, we will only create suspicion and doubt and could cause a breakdown in our group relationships. There is indeed the possibility that you will find the "target" this way, but you also run the risk of a traitor emerging and causing the group to suffer for their own sake." Machida continues.

"You're right, it's not a bad thing if we all profit while having the school lose out in the process" Ichinose says as she accepts the strategy Katsuragi devised for the exam. Machida was looking at us with a face that seemed to be saying he was the one who proposed the logical course of action, but it doesn't seem like Ichinose is willing to meekly accept their strategy. "But to execute that strategy will be difficult, perhaps even more difficult than if we simply talked with each other. I will not talk, I will not doubt and I will not betray. Unless every student here can abide by that, that strategy is pointless. Since the school already gurantees anonymity for the students, trust between each other also becomes an issue. It would be great if the points can be equally distributed between all of us at the end, but couldn't there also be a risk of someone breaking that trust and taking the points for themselves?". In that case, one student in one class would get the points for themselves while hiding it from the rest of the class. It would indeed bring about an awkward atmosphere.

It seems like Katsuragi's plan is to stick to defense, almost as if building a barrier for the group. That is his strategy. Getting cooperation from everyone in the group would surely be difficult, but the strategy itself only requires one to not talk at all, a simple tactic that everyone can easily abide by. It can almost be said to be a strategy that overturns the school's plans and renders the exam moot in the first place. "Isn't this fine? I don't see any problems in this. Once the exam is over, we can simply talk amongst each other in our classes and share the points from the exam". Sotomura's sentiment seems to be shared by students from Class C as well, since the girl named Manabe also agreed with him.

"I agree too, as long as we can share our points after the exam is over that's fine. Better that than to run the risk of a traitor emerging and sabotaging the group, it's not realistic too to try and figure out the "target" simply by talking to each other". Yukimura seemed to be deep in thought as he said that, but even he raised no objections against the strategy. Sensing that the opposition has died down, Machida slightly laughed. "I see, indeed as Machida-kun says, the problem can be resolved after the exam in each class, hmm?" Ichinose says with her arms crossed as she looks at her own class, then at Class D and Class C.

"I'd like to get a consensus from the group, would that be ok? If you agree with the strategy, please raise your hands" she then says. Yukimura and Sotomura from Class D as well as some students from Class C wavered at that, but after a while, although scattered, they raised their hands. "Ibuki-san, how about you? May we hear your opinion too?" Ichinose then asks Ibuki. "I don't have any opinion in particular, there's nothing happening now anyways so continue as you want". It doesn't seem like Ibuki wants to give anything away at this stage. She's clearly different from the other three students from Class C.

Since Manabe and the others didn't seem surprised by it, this seems to be Ibuki's usual attitude. "I see, that's your idea then. How about Karuizawa-san?" Ichinose asks Karuizawa.

"Really...I'm irked by this whole thing. Whether we get points, or I get points is a different matter. It's not like we're guaranteed to get points by talking to each other right?...I'd just like this exam to be over quickly so I can go back to having fun" she said. Despite Karuizawa just speaking her thoughts, it seems her words resonated with quite a few other students as well.

"Then what about Hamaguchi-kun?". "We will leave our decision to Ichinose-san" he quickly replies to her. It seems the trust towards Ichinose from her class is unshakeable as the other two students from Class B also nodded in agreement. "Thank you, then lastly, what about Ayanokouji-kun?". Ichinose then turns to ask me, the last one who hasn't given their opinion yet. "I think the strategy's just fine, besides, the majority have already agreed with it anyways. And I'm the type who's bad at talking anyways". I said that in favor of Katsuragi's strategy. But...it doesn't seem like Ichinose will simply accept Katsuragi's proposed strategy obediently.

Or rather, if they simply bow down and accept the flow of things here, Class B's future would be a dark one indeed. Because in Katsuragi's strategy, there is an element of it that's hard to agree with. "It's decided then" Machida speaks out.

"Wait. Machida-kun's...no Katsuragi-kun's strategy is certainly not a bad one, there'd be no need to doubt anyone, hunt anyone or hurt anyone. I can understand why everyone would want to follow this strategy. It's hard to see any demerits in this strategy, but if you think about it carefully, isn't it because you're from Class A that you are able to propose such a strategy? There is a demerit that we cannot see hidden in this strategy" Ichinose then says. Ichinose made a comeback that almost seemed like a sunken submarine suddenly emerging from the sea with a splash. "A hidden demerit? What would that be?" Yukimura asks Ichinose with a voice that sounded like he hadn't thought of it that far.

"Indeed, assuming every class has an equal chance of having the "target" assigned to it, not talking to each other is the best way to obtain a large amount of points for all of us. There are only advantages to this strategy in that case. However, it would be unfair to the lower classes to let this one chance go to waste" she explains.

"T-that's!....". "We still don't know how many special exams will occur before graduation. And the current difference Class A has from the other classes is remarkable. The strategy of working together with other classes was brought up during the island test as well. In other words, every time there is an exam, Class A will keep on using this strategy causing the final position of the classes to be unchanged at graduation" Ichinose explains. Yukimura's face immediately tightened at that explanation, as if wondering how he did not notice such a simple thing. Machida had worded his proposition so cleverly that everyone's attention was focused only on avoiding a "loss" that they did not consider anything else. That was why even Yukimura was quick to accept it without considering the long term result of it.

"Even if we can surely gain points this way, I cannot overlook such a valuable chance" Ichinose concludes. "Looks like Ichinose-san's made her decision, we will follow her lead" Hamaguchi then says.

"Wait a minute, Ichinose. I know what you're trying to say, but if we act according to your proposal instead, there's only one possible outcome. But even if we all cooperate together, all classes will get the same amount of points. The outcome you wish for will not occur. Or are you trying to figure out the "target" through discussion and Class B will betray us to get all the points in one stroke? You deliberately asked everyone if they desire the first outcome just now. But I don't think you're trustworthy" Machida counters.

"You say the gap between the classes won't change either way. But that's wrong. Look at the number of students from each class. 4 from Class D and C. 3 from A and B. Either way the amount of points each class will receive will change and the gap can change too, right?". "Indeed, but will you and Class B with fewer numbers accept this outcome? Are you saintly enough to sacrifice your class's standing to help the lower classes rise?" Machida asks Ichinose.

"If not, Class A will certainly stand to benefit from the current strategy. It would be especially troublesome if the "target" happened to be in Class A after all." Of course, if the "target" is not in Class A then there would be no need for Ichinose to be this aggressive. However, as long as that possibility exists, she would insist on the necessity for dialogue. "I agree with Ichinose-san too, we cannot allow Class A to gain the lead with this strategy" Hamaguchi follows up. I was impressed the first time I heard the Katsuragi faction's strategy but now that Ichinose and Hamaguchi have pointed it out, it now sounds more like a bluff than anything else. Something that was planned the moment they were briefed on the nature of the exam.

I suppose it's only because she knows Class A's methods that she was able to counter their arguments like this. Even the students that once stood in favour of their strategy would probably now be neutral or perhaps even stand on Ichinose's side. The battlefield has now turned into Class B led by Ichinose and Class A led by Machida while D and C are the classes being fought over by them and could be swayed to either side. And now the tide will turn in favour of Class B. "I see, then you've made your decision too. Just remember we of Class A have already made our choice. For whatever reason it may be, we will not talk to you henceforth. You all are free to discuss whatever you wish amongst yourselves" Machida finally says and with that the three students of Class A moved over to the corner of the room in silence.

It appears they'll be spending the rest of the allocated time like that.

I'm sure the other Class A students are doing the same thing in the other groups right about now as well. By doing this, if the "target" happened to be from Class A, it would be exceedingly difficult to find them. "Now, what should we do?" Ichinose faces the remaining three classes and asks. "I hate to be the one excluding you guys, but if that's your class's decision it can't be helped. If you wish to join our discussion, please say so anytime" Ichinose directs those words at Class A.

Ichinose did her best to call out to Class A like that, but it seems they've already made up their mind. Class A remained silent and did not reply at all. "Isn't it impossible to find the "target" without the cooperation of Class A?". It was Yukimura who asked that question as if in complaint to Ichinose. His attitude was now completely different to only a while ago when he was ready to go along with the more convenient strategy of Class A, but I suppose Yukimura wants to keep Class D as an active participant in the discussions. "Yes, if the "target" is in Class A it would be rather difficult to pinpoint them. But I would say probability is in our favour in a 3 to 1 ratio. Even if we don't know the "who" if we know "where" it will be easier on us at least, wouldn't you say?". Ichinose doesn't seem to want to find out exactly "who" the "target" is as much as she wants to know which 'class' they belong to, especially if they are in Class A.

"It can't be helped that they refuse to talk. And if the "target" is in one of the remaining three classes, I will have treated them horribly. But if the "target" is in Class A, I'd like to discuss what we should do after that". Ichinose struck back boldly against Katsuragi's strategy by forming an alliance between the three remaining classes. "...I still can't trust you". It was Yukimura who spoke out against Ichinose now. Manabe from Class C also seems to agree with Yukimura.

"Even if the "target" is in Class A, wouldn't it be hard to identify them?". "I don't think we need to think ahead that far just yet, right now, narrowing down the class to which the "target" belongs should be enough, isn't it?" Ichinose replies. If you look at it from the perspective of the "target", the idea of three classes joining hands to locate them would be terrifying. "This is just my proposition at the start of the discussion. If we continue our dialogue, surely better ideas will appear. I mean, the exam's just begun. We can take our time deciding whose ideas to use or not" Ichinose continues. To begin with, no one could've argued against either Machida's idea or Ichinose's idea since no one has anything else to offer. As Hamaguchi said, it wouldn't be fair to them to reject their proposal without having a better one to offer. For now, I shouldn't rush things without first ascertaining how the others will act. After all, people with a low communication ability tend to get dragged with the flow in situations like this.

"You're Karuizawa-san, right? There's something I want to ask you" the girl from Class C named Manabe called out to Karuizawa. Karuizawa herself didn't seem to be expecting her name to be called out here, and she quickly turned away from her phone. "What?". "Perhaps it's just my misunderstanding, but over the summer holiday, did you have a quarrel with Rika?" she asked.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean? Who's Rika?" Karuizawa asks. "She's from our class. The one wearing glasses? She wears her hair like a dango? You don't recall her?" Manabe replies to her. "I don't. You've got the wrong person". Karuizawa brushes them off as if they had nothing to do with her and glanced back towards her phone. But Manabe's next words caused a change in Karuizawa's expression. "Isn't it strange, then? We heard a different story. That Class D's Karuizawa bullied our Rika. That she was waiting in line at the cafe and you pushed her out of it" Manabe says. "...I don't know what you're talking about. Do you have a problem with me?" Karuizawa replies.

"Not really, just checking. If that's true, I want you to go apologize to Rika. Rika's the type to keep quiet over matters like this, so it's our job as her classmates to stand up for her" Manabe says. It looks like it's not just our class, Karuizawa has a reputation as a troublemaker in other classes as well. I turn my eyes away from them. After all, even Class C can be a pain to deal with. Karuizawa also tries to ignore them but it seems to have made Manabe angry.

Manabe then takes out her phone and points the camera towards Karuizawa. "Then you won't mind if I check again with Rika, will you? If you didn't do anything, then you surely won't have a problem with that right?". And at that moment, Karuizawa suddenly stood up and grabbed the phone from Manabe's hands. She used quite a bit of force as the phone flew through the air and fell down to the floor with a thud. "What the hell are you doing?!" Manabe shouted at Karuizawa. "That's my line, don't take photos of me without my permission, I already told you I didn't do it!". Both sides were denying the other's claims, and as their argument heated up, Ichinose stared at them as if trying to discern who's in the right and who's in the wrong.

"What're you going to do if my phone breaks?". "What? Just tell the school and get yourself a new one!" Karuizawa sharply replies to Manabu. "...there were some precious photos in that phone" Manabu tells her as she picks up the phone and stares at Karuizawa with eyes harboring a grudge. Two other students from Class C backed up Manabe by standing in front of Karuizawa as if to intimidate her. "What.....are you trying to say I'm the bad one here?". "If you really are innocent, why are you so defensive? Let me take your photo" Manabe tells Karuizawa. "I....don't want to". I expected Karuizawa to respond with even more force, but she sounds surprisingly weak. Or more precisely, despite her trying to sound tough I could hear the fear in her voice. Perhaps that's just my imagination. "Aren't you just trying to hide your acts?" Manabe locks the camera onto Karuizawa as if forcibly trying to take a picture of her. The girls from Class C watch this unfold while cruelly laughing as if enjoying it. Only the last Class C student, Ibuki, took a different attitude and did not join in. She looked at Manabe as if in disgust but did not stop her. "This is stupid" Ibuki said.

"Stupid? What's that supposed to mean? This has nothing to do with you, Ibuki-san. You're not even Rika's friend" Manabe tells Ibuki. "That's right, I have no stake in this. So I'm just observing" Ibuki said with her arms crossed as she looked away from the scene. Manabe did not seem to like the attitude Ibuki took with her, but instead of confronting Ibuki, she started to raise her voice against Karuizawa instead. That might be because there is a definitively established hierarchy in Class C in which Ibuki ranks above Manabe. "In any case, I'm taking that photo" Manabe finally says. "No!...please say something to stop her" Karuizawa looked towards Machida from Class A and pleaded with him for help. "Manabe, if Karuizawa is objecting to it, then stop" Machida then speaks out. "T-this has nothing to do with you, Machida-kun".

"It doesn't matter, from what I've heard it seems like you're in the wrong Manabe. If Karuizawa refuses to let her photo be taken, it's wrong to forcibly do so against her will. It would be much better if you talked with your friend yourself to confirm your story" Machida rebukes Manabe.

Of course Machida is in the right if what she says is true. But taking photos of someone against their will is a violation of manners. Manabe also recognizes this fact as she withdraws when confronted with that argument although it does not seem like she was satisfied stopping here. "S-stop with the strange accusations, really. And thank you, Machida-kun" Karuizawa looked at Machida respectfully and thanked him. Even though he was from Class A, it didn't seem like he was completely heartless. Takemoto and the other students didn't seem to be interested at all though. "...I only did the right thing" Machida replies to Karuizawa with a slight blush.

Perhaps this is the beginning of a new love for Machida and Karuizawa? But Karuizawa already has a boyfriend named Hirata so there's a slight problem there. But it seems like the conflict between Class C and Karuizawa will be a problem going forward.

2

The argument was never settled after all. 1 hour had passed and an announcement by the school was made allowing the students to leave their designated meeting rooms. The Class A students were the first ones to leave. "You're free to do as you please". With that, they left the room and slammed the door shut behind them with a bang, throwing the room back into silence. Even though Ichinose had rejected Katsuragi's strategy, in the end, there was no discussion between us. Is she still hiding something? Or did she really not think about anything beyond that? "Well, there will be 5 more discussions like this after all, so let's end this session here shall we?" Ichinose says with a refreshing voice. Basically, it seems the consensus we've reached is to spend time on our own than to discuss for now. Having processed quite a bit of information, Class D and probably Class C as well are bound to be exhausted. Perhaps it's not such a bad idea to disband the group for now. "I'm going back" Karuizawa promptly said that as she stood to leave, but her legs were shaking as if she were feeling numb.

But in her panic to leave the room, Karuizawa accidentally stepped on Manabe's feet. "Ow!" Manabe screamed in pain. "Ahh...sorry. I didn't mean to" Karuizawa softly apologized before quickly leaving the room. "What...what the hell!?" Manabe shouted at us. She seemed to be angry both from the pain and Karuizawa's attitude and is lashing out at us. I quickly avert my eyes to avoid getting involved and escape. "Let's go too, I'd like to hear from Hirata as well". Since the other classes were already making their moves, it seems Yukimura wants to come up with a strategy for our class too. Sotomura stood up in response to Yukimura's statement. At the very end, only the three from Class B and Ibuki were left in the room. "I'm hungry again, do you think there's a lunch buffet going on?" Sotomura asks. No, no, you're the abnormal one here. What kind of body do you have to be able to digest all that food you ate in one hour. Normally, you'd get fat if you eat that much. But I doubt my sincere advice will reach his heart.

"Hey Yukimura, did you notice Karuizawa was acting strange?" I asked Yukimura immediately after we left the room. But Yukimura only made a strange face towards me in return. "She's always strange" he said earnestly. A straightforward response, but that's not what I wanted to hear, it's just my intuition but there was something definitely off about Karuizawa's behaviour. Sotomura didn't seem like he noticed a thing. I switched on my phone which I had turned off when entering the room and there were messages from Sakura. I checked the contents and it seems she wants to meet me if I have time. "Perfect timing". I was just thinking about contacting Hirata and Horikita to ask how their meetings went, but I might be able to gather more information from Sakura as well. "Hmmmm...where should we meet?". I think for now, the same meeting place as yesterday should do fine.

When I mailed that to Sakura, I instantly received a reply. There will certainly be crowds of students at this moment but if we ignore them they surely won't pay any attention to us as well. Since the first group discussion had just ended, a furious crowd of students awaited me at the elevator.

Since only ten people can ride the elevator at one time, it would be more time efficient to use the stairs, I thought. And as I was heading downstairs via the stairs, a new message arrived in my phone. "It's getting a little crowded so I'll head towards the ship's bow...sorry". "Ahh...it looks like Sakura can't handle a crowd". I then changed directions and started heading towards the bow as well. It is a ship filled with all sorts of facilities built for luxury, but the bow gives a wide view of the sea from the deck. As such, at the current time, there were few students there. In fact, it seems there's nobody there right now giving me monopoly over the whole area.

But even with the entire deck monopolized for our use, Sakura was still hiding behind a corner near a pillar in wait for me. It would be rude to call out so I approached her instead. "...I'd like to...how about it?". It was a small voice I heard coming from her over the wind, but I could not hear her well. "W-w-would you...d-d-date....m-m" Sakura was muttering away to herself but it simply looked creepy to me.

"Sakura. What are you doing?" I ask her quietly as to not surprise her. "Toooooooooooooooooouuuu!!!" Sakura screams as she jumps slightly. It actually surprised me. "S-s-s-s-s-since w-w-w-when did you get here?". "I just got here" I told her. Her wariness of her surroundings almost reminded me of a small animal being cautious. But was Sakura talking to her imaginary friend or a ghost? "Did you hear? Did you hear what I just said?". "Bits and pieces. But I don't know what you meant by those words". Sakura seemed relieved I had not heard what she said. "And? Why did you want to see me?" I asked. "Eeehh....that's....yeah oh r-right. I was feeling anxious about the exam". She then pushed a piece of paper towards me, and when I took it from her and looked it over it contained a list of names.

Class A: Sawada Yasumi, Shimizu Naoki, Nishi Haruka, Yoshida Kenta

Class B: Kobayashi Yume, Ninomiya Yui, Watanabe Kihito

Class C: Yuuki Yuuya, Nomura Yuuji, Yajima Mariko

Class D: Ike Kanji, Sakura Airi, Sudou Ken, Matsushita Chiaki

It seems Sakura belongs to the (Cow) group. It seems things are also intense in this group. The males in the group are Sudou and Ike, men who wouldn't sympathize with Sakura's plight. And in this exam, one is forced to spend time with fellow group members from the same class no matter what. If I'm in the same group as her, I could help her out but as it stands, there's not much I can do right now.

Once it's time for the group to fight as one, they cannot afford to be scattered or hesitant. I could help her by secretly contacting her via phone during the middle of the exam, but if I adopt this unnatural behaviour in the middle of the exam, I would suddenly draw attention to myself. And in an exam like this, an action like that might as well mean the difference between life and death. "I thought it'd be great if there was somebody you knew from the other classes, but I suppose you wouldn't" I said. I thought about it, but if I wanted to help her, Ichinose and Kanzaki are the only ones I can ask help from. But since Ichinose is already in my group, it'll be hard for her to help too. I don't trust Sudou and Ike with Sakura, after all. "Sorry...I don't have any friends either" I tell her. "Oh, please don't apologize, I have no friends at all too" Sakura tells me. This is just sad, we're like two people competing against each other to see who can be more pathetic.

So instead of being proud of my lack of friends, I switched over to a different topic. "By the way, I also wanted to ask you something, Sakura" I told her. "Eeh? Me? What?".

"I was wondering if Yamauchi contacted you in any way since the discussion period ended" I told her. "Yamauchi-kun? No he hasn't. Is something wrong?" she asks. "I see". Back on the island, in order to make use of Horikita, I was forced to use Sakura first. To manipulate Yamauchi, I promised to give him Sakura's address in exchange for his cooperation. Of course, I have no intention of giving the address to Yamauchi without Sakura's consent but I haven't told Yamauchi of this yet. I was worried he might have approached Sakura but it seems like I was worried for nothing. "In the meantime, if there's something on your mind contact me" I tell her. "Is it ok?". "Yeah, that's the least I can do for you". Even though I just gave her those vague words, Sakura's eyes lit up like an innocent child. Perhaps she's just happy interacting with me like this.

"I'll definitely call you then!" she exclaims to me. "Sure". Different from the image Sakura usually puts up, right now she seems full of life and vigor. It seems like she's learning to be more aggressive day by day. Although only a few days have passed since the island test. Sakura has grown considerably strangely enough. Since it was a crazy and taxing test, it seemed to have impacted a growing high school girl like Sakura. She didn't change completely, but even in a tough situation like this, she's learned to keep herself positive.

3

"Aaaaaaayyyyyyaaaaaoooooooookkkkkoouuuuuujjiiiii!!!". And as soon as I went back inside the ship, a shadow fell upon me. With his hands flailing above his neck, he came in a hurry and seemed to be panicking. It seemed like a serious situation. That was what I saw when I turned back around, I saw the figure of Yamauchi Haruki, my classmate who had now taken the form of a demonic Asura.

"W-what's wrong?" I ask. Of course, I already knew what the reason was but I asked him as a matter of formality. "What are you asking that for? You promised to tell me Sakura's address, what the hell happened to that?". Unfortunately I had run into Yamauchi now of all times. I should think of something. "I wasn't aiming for you in particular, but I just wanted to know" he said. "Do you actually think a loner like me would know Sakura's address?". I tried my hand at explaining it to him and tried to make it sound sincere so he would understand.

"Could it be?...you were trying to ask Sakura her address...just now?" he asked me. When I nodded, Yamauchi's face broke down into an expression of shock and he crumbled onto the floor on both knees. "Then that means...you didn't know her address...and you still used me?" he asked me.

"It seems like I did that yes" I admit. "And, what happened? Did Sakura give you her address?". "...sorry" I apologized to him. "Sorry. What do you mean sorry? I'm not asking for an apology right? I'm asking for her address" Yamauchi tells me. An emotionless reply like that reflected Yamauchi's disappointment in me. "How dare you...how dare you lie to meeeeeeeeee!!!" Yamauchi yells at me. I do think I've done a bad thing by using him like that, but I still cannot give him Sakura's address like that without her consent.

Even if he asks her directly, she should reject him straight up bluntly. "Would you give me some more time?" I ask him. "What time? A liar is the start of a thief" he tells me. Out of everyone in Class D, I never imagined the first one to call me a liar would be Yamauchi. It's a shock. "Then are you going to forcibly ask Sakura?". "Yeah, I'm going to do that" he tells me.

He seems to be blinded by anger and is not thinking straight, he's seemingly intending on getting Sakura's address by force if need be.

"Sakura said she hates men who are only talk". "That's just you making it up, Ayanokouji" he says. "Yes. It can't be helped if you dislike me now, but it should also be obvious why I'm not giving you her address. And trying to ask her the address forcibly is pointless" I tell him. "...is just an excuse. You never knew her address in the first place right?" Yamauchi lowers his head while averting his eyes from me. "But you know Sakura likes digital cameras, right? The truth is, I heard her current one is an outdated model but she doesn't have enough points to buy a new one, see? If Yamauchi, you buy her a new digital camera, it would be a great present for her, wouldn't you agree?" I tell him.

"Ohhh...I think that's great...but I don't have any points either" he finally admits. "You see, in this exam, by hiding the "target", becoming a traitor, or guiding your group together to victory you can easily gain enough points to buy her a digital camera, am I wrong?" I tell Yamauchi. "S-so, if I work hard, there's still a chance I can get close to Sakura?". Now I've ensured that there's only one conclusion Yamauchi will reach. "Right now, you, Yamauchi Haruki, need to work hard to show your masculinity. That's the only way you can get close to the former idol Sakura" I encourage him. There is a possibility that by stimulating him like this, he would work to his fullest potential and achieve better results in this exam.

"I'll do it. I'll do it. I'll do it! I'm going to work hard and get Sakura for myself!" Yamauchi excitedly says. "Yes Yamauchi, you can do it. If it's you, you'll definitely succeed" I encourage him. "Ooooooohhhhhhh! I'm definitely going to win in this exam!". Somehow it seems like I managed to direct his anger in a different direction towards the exam. Maybe his anger towards me will return when the exam is over but for now I seem to have avoided the problem. If there's one scary problem here it'd be the fact that Yamauchi would be too fired up and aim for the "target" directly instead.

"I'll tell you this just in case but..." I decide to tell him this for his own sake.

"What?" he asks me. "Nothing. But if you find the "target" in your group, don't let the other classes beat you to the punch" I tell him. "Of course I won't". But it'd be best if Yamauchi doesn't find the "target". Long term benefits over short term benefits and all that.

4

Since it is a fact that only Class A is guaranteed 'any choice of further education or employment' after graduation, it is certainly difficult for other classes to cooperate with them. Class B and Class D hold hands to defeat Class C and Class A. That also means, in reverse, Class C and Class A can form an alliance to defeat Class B and Class D. Keeping that in mind, when all these classes are forced into one group, what would happen? It's almost like trapping carnivores and herbivores in one cage. There is no feasible way to organize such a group.

However, by pure chance, it is possible for unity between even classes like that to occur. As long as its people with strong personalities like Hirata or Ichinose who take the lead. But even that is still a difficult task.

Class A did not participate in the second discussion period. But since Class A was deliberately keeping quiet, it was also impossible for the other classes to have an earnest discussion and time slowly passed in silence. I started to observe how the students from each class would react. It's not like everyone there had bad intentions, but most students were keeping to themselves in an attempt to stay on the safe side. "So for now, since it's the second gathering for us like this, I think we should get down to business as soon as possible since the number of times we gather like this is limited" Ichinose once again took the initiative. As expected of the peaceful Class B. Hamaguchi and the other Class B student were exactly the same too. Always attempting to start a joint alliance without hesitation.