Vol. 4: Chapter 26 - Changes

Final Day, 9:00 PM.

When the Dragon Group separated, Horikita got up and briskly walked out of the room. I immediately went after her with Kikyou and Hirata following along in a panic.

"Horikita," I called.

She turned around with a glare to which I replied...

"I know you're wondering why the Dog Group didn't submit the answer."

Horikita stopped in her tracks. She probably planned to ask the Class B students in the Dog Group. After all, the VIP of that group is from Class D. Horikita already told them who their VIP is, but they haven't submitted their answer even until now. It wasn't part of Horikita's plan at all.

"Ayanokouji-kun... Were you the one responsible for this?" she asked.

"Yeah, I never had the chance to tell you because Ichinose and the others were there," I nodded.

"Alright. Since you're the one who planned this, I won't go out of my way to confront Yokoyama-san and the others." Horikita turned around before glancing back at me. "In return, I want to know everything that you did behind the scenes."

"Sure, how about the 9th deck? Kikyou and Hirata can come along."

The two caught up as I spoke those words.

"H-Haa... I-Is everything alright, Kiyotaka-kun, Horikita-san?" Kikyou asked while panting.

"That's fine with me, let's go." Horikita led the way as her raven-black hair fluttered beautifully.

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The four of us sat in a cafe. The bright lights illuminated the coldness of our last night on this luxurious cruise ship.

"The representative of the Dog Group was supposed to be Rino Akari-san. However, neither she nor Yokoyama-san and Makida-kun submitted an answer."

"And based on what we've heard earlier, Ayanokouji-kun was the one who made them not do so?" asked Hirata.

"That's right, I've contacted them in advance. Now that the exam is finished, my reason should be obvious to you guys," I replied.

"This was your trump card to protect Kushida-san, right?" Horikita answered with a side-eye.

"Protect me...?" Kikyou slightly blushed with a confused expression.

"Now that I think about it, that should indeed be the case. If Rino-san submitted the answer along with the other ones, the only group that'd remain is the Dragon Group. If that happens, everyone will know that the VIP is from our class. With amazing students like Katsuragi-kun, Ichinose-san, and Ryuuen-kun, it'll be hard to maintain the secrecy of your identity, Kushida-san," explained Hirata.

"I don't think Ichinose-san will try to interrogate us, but Ryuuen-kun would most possibly will. And since Katsuragi-kun lost horribly, being backed to a corner might make him join Ryuuen-kun's last assault on us."

"But isn't that weird, Horikita-san?" Kikyou cocked her head to the side. "Ryuuen-kun already knew that the Dragon Group's VIP was one of us, right? Why didn't he try to get the name earlier...?"

Hirata and Horikita started to ponder. Kikyou's query was sound and valid. Ryuuen's silence was indeed a mystery. That said, I have no intention of giving my opinion on the matter.

"Well, Ryuuen-kun aside, what were the specifics of this plan, Ayanokouji-kun?" Horikita turned her attention back to me.

I created this plan knowing full well that I'd get busted in the end. All I can do now is tell them the truth.

"I made a group chat with the four of us."

I showed them the contents of my phone. Since I didn't bother deleting any of my messages or call histories, everything could be seen by the three of them.

"So you really were in contact with Matsushita-san." Horikita crossed her arms.

"She was my assurance. I knew you wouldn't contact me about your findings, so I asked her to tell me instead. As you can see from my group chat conversation with the Dog Group, we've been in contact with the Class D students along with their VIP. Should something happen that could affect the negotiations, I need to be quick in updating them. And those changes will depend on your answers," I explained.

"Is this Karuizawa-san...?" Meanwhile, Kikyou took note of a different name.

My conversation with Karuizawa was plain and simple, though.

(19:53) [Manabe and her friends haven't done anything as of late, right?]

(19:54) [Yes.]

(19:54) [Everything's alright.]

"I was the one responsible for resolving her matters with the Class D girls. I thought I'd check on her every once in a while."

"But Hirata-kun could do that, too, right?" Kikyou gently pressed with a subtle change of tone.

I glanced at Hirata, pleading for any form of assistance. Kikyou's angelic smile was a lot more terrifying when you know what's behind it.

"I'm checking on her regularly, Kushida-san. But I also think Ayanokouji-kun's involvement is necessary at this stage. He was present when they confronted each other, after all," he explained, smiling bitterly.

"I see~! Remember to take care of your girlfriend, okay? That's your job as her boyfriend, after all~!" Kikyou happily preached to him.

"Of course." Like the stud that he is, Hirata Yousuke took Kikyou's words with a smile.

In the end, I explained our negotiations about triggering Outcome #1. I warned them about Class C's last-ditch attempt to find the VIP, as well. With the students of Class B and D working together to negate their plan, Sumida and the others' efforts failed to yield anything.

"Wait, wait, wait... Isn't there something weird about all this, Hirata-kun...?"

"You've noticed it, too, Kushida-san?"

Kikyou and Hirata finally realized something as they looked at me with strained smiles.

"Kiyotaka-kun, you've been talking about negotiating with the Dog Group's Class D students, but wasn't this group chat made much earlier...? Then how did you know that the VIP was from Class D...?" mused Kikyou.

"And although you've asked Matsushita-san for help, she didn't really give you any VIP names. So you wouldn't have known anything in the end..." added Hirata. "Unless..."

Horikita sipped her drink with utmost elegance. She then opened her mouth and spoke with a detached expression.

"Yes, your suspicions are right. Ayanokouji-kun figured out the pattern way before me."

"E-Eh..." Kikyou's forceful smile made her cheeks twitch.

Even Hirata couldn't do anything but chuckle nervously.

"You could've told me about it from the start, you know?"

"I can't afford to distract you when you barely even made it."

"That's true."

Horikita also understood the reason why I didn't bother telling her anything. She was better off focusing on her job than worrying about my involvement.

After our short meeting, we decided to go our separate ways. Of course, not before setting the final schedule— the schedule to see the results.

"So we'll meet here again at 10:50?" asked Hirata.

"Yes. No matter what the final results are, I'm sure they'll be worthy of discussion." Horikita started walking away.

It was currently around 9:30 PM. We have a lot of time to spare. Horikita probably wanted to go back to her room and Hirata told us that he'd get in touch with Karuizawa.

"Do you want to go together, Kiyotaka-kun?" asked Kikyou.

"Sure, but to where?"

Kikyou and I went up to the topmost deck. The cold breeze made contact with our skins.

"Fuu~... It sure is chilly up here."

She ran up to the railings and held the steel bars.

"Look, Kiyotaka-kun, some students could be seen from here!"

I approached her with unhurried footsteps. The night was dark, but the ship was as illustrious as it could be. I can clearly see Kikyou's impeccable figure from where I'm standing.

"We're still in our uniforms, you know? You might catch a cold at this rate."

"What are you saying? I won't get sick that easily." Kikyou dismissed me with a smile.

"Well, if you say so."

The two of us silently observed the students hanging out on the fifth deck. Most of the restrictions were lifted given how this was our last night. Of course, ordering alcohol from places where they're sold is still strictly forbidden.

"Say, Kiyotaka-kun... Do you think we're going to become Class A after this exam?" Kikyou broke the silence with an innocent question.

"Most likely. Everything went well, especially with Horikita figuring out the pattern."

"Yeah... And at this point, the Dragon Group would probably trigger Outcome #2. If that happens, then we'll go up by a hundred class points passing Katsuragi-kun's class."

"Yeah," I replied with a sigh.

"After this, you'll finally stop being our class's leader, huh?"

"I've accomplished my first goal after coming to this school. Now... All I want to do is live a peaceful high school life until I graduate."

"Mhm... You said that a bunch of times already. I'm sure the others would understand."

"Instead of worrying about what the school or our rival classes might do, I'd rather focus on being a normal student," I shrugged.

"Well, a nice high school life should be awaiting you then..." Kikyou subtly faced me, her head looking down. "You know, Ryuuko-chan confronted me last night."

"Ryuuko, huh? What did she tell you?"

"It's about you, of course."

I see. To be honest, I kind of knew that already.

"Ryuuko-chan is a serious girl, much like Horikita-san. She's smart but also sociable. She and Ichihashi-san were like the big sisters of our group. They were both mature and cool-headed. And that Ryuuko-chan told me that she wanted to get closer to you... with a childishly adorable face," she narrated. "She was basically asking for permission, even though she didn't need to. I was the closest girl to you, after all. Everyone in the class was aware of the romantic tension between us, and even the people from other classes tended to think that we were actually dating."

"What did you tell her then?"

"I told her that nothing was going on between us— that she can just go for it. She was sincere. Far more sincere than the loathsome people I've encountered back in middle school. There's no way I can think of anything bad about her. Like Kokoro-chan, I can feel like they'd think of me as a friend regardless of how kind or popular I am."

"Are you ready to tell them the truth about yourself, though?"

"Ahaha... To be honest, I'm still afraid. What if I'm wrong? What if they come to hate me and in turn, I'd come to hate them as well? It's funny, right? I always thought of everyone to be below me— that I was always the better person, but I don't want to lose the friends I've made now."

"Isn't that natural, though?" I posed a question, looking straight into the moonlit, starless sky.

"Natural?"

"When a kid does something wrong, everyone tolerates them because they're just kids. They can easily grow from the mistakes they've made as long as the people around them put in the effort to correct them," I explained. "Isn't that the same as your middle school friends, then? For all we know, Ryuuko might also have an unpleasant past as someone who's extremely unlikable. However, she changed for the better after entering high school. She grew, just like the ones who turned their backs on you before."

"So you're saying that there's a shot for reconciliation between me and my previous class?" Kikyou scoffed, looking disgusted with the idea.

"Maybe. They were normal kids... while you were different. You had a clear goal— you wanted to be the best and you did everything you could to do so. However, that came at a price. Your mind couldn't bear the stress, so you had to vent your ugly inner thoughts and feelings. And of course, we all know how that ended."

"I admit that. I felt like dying every time someone did better than me or if the people I actually hated acted like we were the best of friends. It makes me want to puke every time. That's just how I abhor losing..."

"But you don't feel that way anymore, right? At least not towards Inogashira and Ryuuko."

Kikyou chuckled softly.

"I don't intend to change my way of living. I still crave the love and attention of others, and losing still makes me feel upset..." Kikyou turned to me with a melancholic smile. "But perhaps... the kindness that I'm showing to you and my closest friends could be considered genuine."

Horikita, Karuizawa, Kikyou, and a lot of our other classmates were starting to change. In the last four months, our class had tons of opportunities to grow. Some took those opportunities and some didn't. But regardless, I'm looking forward to seeing how everything will go from here.