"I get the position you're coming from, Shirogane."
"As classmates in the same year, I also think it's better if we stick together."
"So I'll think carefully about how to handle this."
In other words, Ichinose is keeping her promise and being cautious. If she joins Nagumo's side, sure, she might get help—but once another grade gets involved, then whether the school steps in or not, her class will lose its freedom.
So it's still better to stick with their own year group.
Also—
Right now, even though Shirogane's and Ichinose's classes are both in B and C Class—and even if Shirogane's class has been pushing against Ichinose's—the truth is that in the end, only one class will graduate as Class A.
So—
They actually share the same real enemy.
That enemy is the current Class A.
Naturally—
Shirogane's first goal is to beat the current first-year Class A.
That means someone is already going after Class A, so Ichinose's class just needs to stay put and watch for now.
That's what Ichinose said before she and Shirogane went their separate ways.
Shirogane headed back to his dorm. Even though the school had a closed-campus system, each student was given their own private space. The dorm room wasn't big, but it had everything one needed. It even felt kind of cozy when you walked in.
Shirogane thought this kind of living environment was actually pretty nice.
However—
Once he got back, he sat down in his chair, finally able to relax a little.
He pulled out a small notebook but didn't write anything in it.
"When we ran into Sakayanagi earlier, why did you suddenly speak up like that?"
"It was like you could read my mind."
Shirogane said.
[Hmm? You're asking me that? Well, how should I put it... I'd say it's a bit of a psychology trick. When someone's emotions are running high, it's easier to figure out what they're thinking.]
"You figured it out just by that?"
[More or less. Actually, that classmate of yours—Ryuen—he's really good at this.]
Hmm.
When he heard Ryuen's name, Shirogane paused for a moment.
Ryuen might use violence to control others, but back when he was dealing with those two upperclassmen, even though he hit them, he still managed to get into their heads and keep them from speaking up.
Basically, they got hit for nothing.
And Ryuen really did have a talent for this kind of thing.
Even if Shirogane hadn't stepped in, Ryuen could've pushed their class up to Class B on his own thanks to his natural ability. So there's no doubt he was capable.
But thinking about that now didn't mean much—because they were already in Class B.
Now the goal was to aim higher than just Class B.
To surpass Sakayanagi's class.
Since this test was based on old material, even though the students in Class A were very smart, it was unlikely they'd get an average score above 70. That's because 30 points of the test were from topics that weren't covered in the usual curriculum.
Earlier today, Sakayanagi borrowed some of the older textbooks, but she had left the planning and coordination entirely to Katsuragi.
Which meant she probably wouldn't be helping him much directly.
Most likely, Sakayanagi's plan was to let Katsuragi take charge, and when he failed to manage the class properly, he'd realize he wasn't fit to lead and step down on his own. That way, she could fully unify Class A under her control.
So this move that looked like her just giving up was actually a very clever finishing touch.
After all, she only had to let them lose a few times before Katsuragi would understand.
Also—
Since this test was all written exams, Class A seemed to have the upper hand and didn't really need much directing.
So Sakayanagi had no reason to take command.
As a result, if they relied only on Katsuragi, Class A wouldn't be able to score full marks. But Shirogane's Class B had a real shot at hitting the top score, which meant they could cut the point gap between the two classes even more.
[I think you might be underestimating Sakayanagi.]
Just then, the system's voice popped up in Shirogane's head.
[Sakayanagi seems really excited about this test. She's planning to organize all the advanced topics from the textbooks into key points.]
[She'll help Class A go for a perfect 100.]
[She probably wants to make it harder for you to move up. She'd enjoy watching that.]
Uh.
Yeah.
Sakayanagi really does have a pretty nasty personality.
Shirogane couldn't deny it right away. And when he was planning how to take down Class A, he never thought about ignoring her—he actually considered her as a key player.
But this time, after interacting with her, she even sent Kamuro to secretly record Chabashira-sensei breaking the rules.
If that video got discovered and reported, both Kamuro, Chabashira-sensei, Sakayanagi, and even he himself would get punished. That made Shirogane feel like he and Sakayanagi had gotten a bit closer.
Like they were partners in crime.
But now, he could see clearly—Sakayanagi was still the same Sakayanagi from Class A.
[Actually, the reason Sakayanagi went to borrow old textbooks today was just to confirm a theory. She had no intention of helping Katsuragi.]
[The moment her attitude changed… was probably after meeting you today. That's when she decided to help Class A gain +100 class points.]
"..."
So, why?
Sakayanagi had totally checked out before—now suddenly she was getting serious again.
And when she talked to Ichinose earlier today, she clearly seemed annoyed.
Shirogane kept thinking about what had changed.
[Hmm.]
Right then, the narrator system suddenly let out a sigh.
"What's wrong?"
[Nothing. Just feeling a bit drained.]
[And kinda useless.]
[But... it feels like you forgot someone today. Do you remember who?]
The narrator system gave a little hint.
Who did Shirogane forget today? Was it Sakayanagi?
But he had already politely invited her to dinner, and she had politely turned him down.
And besides—
Shirogane checked the time on his phone.
It was 8:50 PM.
And based on what he knew, Sakayanagi always went to bed at 9:00 PM. That left just 10 minutes to contact her.
Since she changed her mind about helping Class A right after meeting him—was there still a chance to reach out and change her mind back?
But—
That would make it look like he couldn't handle losing.
It was a matter of pride, and as a guy, Shirogane couldn't let that go. So he decided not to.
Besides, he already had a plan for Sakayanagi.
If she really could help boost Class A's points, then in the future, when his class reached Class A and he tried to bring her over, it would be even more obvious how useful that move would be.
But since Shirogane didn't have that many points, he could only wait for Sakayanagi to collect the full 20 million on her own.
When the time comes, all he needs to do is complete her task, get the 20 million points, and then buy her.
Since Ayanokouji comes from a special institution, his abilities are off the charts. If Shirogane can beat him, his own skills and stats will improve a lot too.
So, in the end, Shirogane will gain something as well.
That means no one loses.
Also—
If Class A scores a perfect 100 on this written test, it might not be such a bad thing.
Because Shirogane thought about how Ichinose was recently contacted by Nagumo.
"Speaking of which…"
Realizing there were only a few minutes left before the narration system would pause at 9 p.m., Shirogane quickly asked:
"Isn't it kind of strange that Nagumo-senpai reached out to Ichinose this time?"
Shirogane doesn't have a good impression of Nagumo. Based on what happened with Shiina, Nagumo seems to really like pretty girls, even taking the chance to get their contact info. But not all girls are into that kind of behavior.
At the same time, Shirogane was sure that when he went to the student council today, Nagumo started treating him like a rival.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have walked past his desk multiple times.
Clearly, he was keeping an eye on him.
Still, Shirogane is just a first-year and only a secretary. It shouldn't be enough to make Nagumo feel threatened.
Beep!
Just then, Shirogane received an email. It was from Horikita Manabu, sent through the student council's public account.
[The school has released a new notice. The report you filed last month about a store staff member breaking the rules has been processed. Besides you, Kamuro Masumi from Class A also helped the school get rid of this problem. Both of you will be rewarded with 30,000 points each, and your class will receive 50 class evaluation points.
Because Kamuro Masumi initially denied it, the reward had been delayed or even canceled. But now the school has reinstated it.
Tomorrow, the first-year Class A's evaluation score will be updated.]
[Also, the previously canceled 30,000-point anonymous reward card for Kamuro will now be issued.]
Here are the current evaluation scores for each class:
First-Year Class A (Katsuragi's class): 924 points
First-Year Class B (Ryuen's class): 735 points
First-Year Class C (Ichinose's class): 560 points
First-Year Class D (Ayanokouji's class): 0 points
With the extra 50 points, Class A's score will rise to 974.
That's a scary number.
And now the gap between Class A and Class B has widened even more.