T/N: Yes, I accidentally skipped number 153, it's not wrong. I won't fix it because I would have to do that with all the other Patreon chapters.
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"Geniuses might exist." Houtarou said, "She's the opponent I mentioned before, the one you'll need to defeat if you want to climb to Class A. I once thought about leaving Class A to her.
But Suzune, I don't want to see you withdrawing like this. You've been studying excessively lately — you need to consider your health. What's important is improving efficiency. I suggest studying less but more effectively. Constant illness won't help you progress."
Suzune: "..."
If she could improve her efficiency, she would.
It wasn't as if she wanted to study ten hours daily. It was just that both her brother and Houtarou were exceptionally talented.
"This is—"
Before she could finish, she noticed Houtarou placing a book in front of her.
[Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience]
[Time Management Method - Alexander Alexandrovich Lyubishchev]
"Just read these two books today." He said, "I read them when I was younger, trying to figure out how to handle difficult tasks and reduce study time. You might find them helpful."
"Oh." Suzune frowned slightly, then accepted the books.
These two books were well-known.
One of them, Flow, explored how to achieve complete concentration and absorption. The other focused on dramatically increasing efficiency: Turn One Day into 48 Hours! The Legendary Life of the Father of Time Management, Revolutionizing Your Understanding of Efficiency!
Houtarou had specifically chosen these books for her.
Masumi: "..."
She observed their interaction with curiosity.
Their dynamic seemed peculiar, like a married couple moving from disagreement to reconciliation.
Moreover, while Suzune maintained good grades, Houtarou showed particular concern for her wellbeing, yet Masumi's own academic plateau went unnoticed.
Could it be that his interest lay not with Arisu but with this solitary girl?
No, no, no. Someone with Suzune's personality couldn't possibly be in a romantic situation.
Masumi shook her head quickly.
After spending the afternoon unsuccessfully working through the VIP students materials, Houtarou escorted the two girls out.
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Masumi lent her phone to Houtarou.
Arisu had sent her deduced information about the VIP students from Classes B and C.
According to him, this information about other classes' VIP students could serve as leverage.
First, they needed to verify it. The three of them set out to find Rokusuke.
Masumi explained that she and Rokusuke were both in the Monkey Group, and during the morning discussion, he had complained about these tests being tedious, requiring two gatherings each day.
He'd declared it a waste of time to associate with ordinary people.
In other words, as a self-proclaimed genius, Rokusuke already knew the identity of the Monkey Group's VIP, and there was a pattern to who became one.
Houtarou had received from Arisu the identities of VIP students she had deduced through this pattern. But they needed to verify if her deductions were correct.
Rokusuke, who didn't want to waste time with ordinary people, was the perfect candidate for verification.
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Later that evening, after their afternoon nap, Kakeru gathered his small team again. This time, they had also invited Mio — not for discussion, but to report on Houtarou's situation in the Rabbit Group.
"Oreki seems quite ordinary." She said, "As a Class A student, others like Machida show more initiative. He directly proposed going for the big outcome without losing Class Points."
So Houtarou hadn't just said this to him — he'd said the same thing to Honami in the Rabbit Group. But how much money could he get with the outcome they wanted? Even if he could mobilize the Class A students in the Rabbit Group, that was only three people, including himself. Not to mention, he would need cooperation from other classes.
After hearing this, they dismissed Mio.
Kakeru continued discussing with his think tank team.
"Why did you have Ibuki leave first?" Hiyori asked.
"She is too naive." Kakeru replied, "When Class A students picked her up before, she was immediately handed over to Ichinose by Oreki. During this process, Ibuki didn't struggle or think of any countermeasures. She's not suited for tasks that require brain power."
Actually, Hiyori suspected it was because Kakeru thought Mio was naive. Since she was still in the Rabbit Group and would have to continue discussions according to test rules, she would likely meet Houtarou again. She might accidentally reveal their plans.
Indeed, that girl was quite single-minded.
"Wait a minute... I think I understand now." Hiyori suddenly said, "I see why Oreki is fixated on this outcome. It can get huge points from the school. Each student in a group can get 500,000 points, and an entire group could get 7-8 million. What if he could bundle together all the groups' points — what if all twelve groups went with the plan?"
"All groups?" Satoru pushed up his glasses, thinking her idea was too extreme.
Would the school really give out 80-90 million Private Points if all students went with the first outcome?
Moreover, while Class C and Kakeru wanted points, Honami and Class B definitely wouldn't agree.
After all, Class Points were crucial, and Class B was at risk of being overtaken by Class D.
Besides, this plan would require cooperation from every student in their year. Could such a challenging task even be possible?
"Even just in his Rabbit Group, someone might betray him." Kakeru shook his head, "How could he make everyone listen?"
"Well then." Hiyori said, "What if there's a pattern to who becomes VIP?"
These words caused quite a stir.
"That's right."
What if there was a pattern to how VIP were chosen?
If it was just about rewards, they could still refuse. But if their class's weakness was exposed, they would have no choice.
Because if they opposed, their class's VIP student would be exposed and they would lose Points.
Who could accept that?
Then wouldn't that mean he could use information about other classes' VIPs to control how the test progresses?
"Damn it! I get it now!" Kakeru finally realized. "Oreki must know his own class's VIP information, and all that nonsense about Class D students switching to backup phones—those guys were clearly tricked by him! When Horikita collected the phones, she must have learned Class D's VIP information too."
While thinking this—
Ding!
Tomonari's voice suddenly came over the ship's speakers.
[The Monkey Group's test has ended. Monkey Group students no longer need to participate in tests. Please act freely, but do not disturb other students' tests.]
"..."
The VIP test allowed for answering first.
"Ryūen."
Everyone looked over. The think tank team members also knew their class's VIP student information. And the Monkey Group's VIP was in their Class C.
In other words, if someone who answered first got it correct, their Class C would lose another 50 Points. If someone who answered first got it wrong, their Class C would gain 50 Points.
And the result?
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Houtarou was now at the gym looking for Rokusuke.
He looked at the Monkey Group VIP student information that the guy gave. The name matched the information that Arisu had sent for Class C.
It was Nagisa Isoyama.
{T/N: I picked a name at random from people that never showed up. The anime or manga don't reveal it either, though it changed from Class B to Class C the one who loses points.}
After getting this information, he immediately forwarded it to Kakeru.
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