96 - Hikigaya Stands Above Life
"Heh, are you doubting me? See for yourself."
Shimotsukiuri Ouri let out a cold laugh and slowly revealed the rule card in her hand.
What was written on it was exactly the same as Saotome's deduction.
Ougatou Naoko tilted her head in dissatisfaction and looked at Hikigaya Hachiman. "But why… your signal was clearly…"
"You were too careless…"
Hikigaya's previously lazy gaze turned sharp as he opened his palm and placed it on the table, knocking on it in front of the two sisters.
"The signal you're referring to is the one that uses fingers and the number of taps, right?"
"Even if Saotome and I came up with our signals last-minute, we wouldn't be dumb enough to make them that simple."
Naoko's expression froze. As she calmed down, she immediately realized where she had underestimated them.
They had likely prepared two types of codes. And specifically, only for this round, they used a different code from before.
The code itself was hastily created and not complex—it was easy to crack. However—
Two codes were a different story. Because they couldn't know which code was currently being used, it was essentially the same as being unable to decipher the code at all.
The simplest example: just by changing the suit each finger represented, the meaning of the code could change completely.
Even if it was hastily made, having two weapons at the ready increased the threat level significantly.
'Damn it. When did they change the code? What was the signal for that?'
Naoko and Houko exchanged glances.
At the same time, they both thought of Saotome's earlier, overly dramatic declaration.
'No doubt… it was then!'
'I underestimated Saotome Mary. That girl's acting completely fooled me.'
"Damn it." Naoko clenched her delicate fist tightly.
"Finally figured it out?" Saotome Mary's golden twin-tails bounced as she lightly covered her mouth with five slender fingers and mocked, "Looks like the real small fries are you two~ Seems your gambling skills aren't all that great either."
"Calm down, Naoko!"
For the first time in front of outsiders, Houko revealed the position she usually had with her sister in bed—the dominant one.
With an assertive tone.
"It's your turn to be the dealer next round. No need to panic."
'Yeah… Houko's right.'
'Which signal Hikigaya and Saotome are using should be determined by another signal. If we can crack that, and then decipher their new code, the victory will still be ours.'
'As long as we stay calm, we can do it.'
'This game has evolved from simple gambling into a match of information gathering and codebreaking! What we're competing with now is brainpower!'
'And since we've been in control of the codebreaking until now, there's no way we'll lose! We sisters are the goddesses of codes!'
Besides being completely in sync emotionally, the Ougatou sisters also possessed a special ability that ordinary people couldn't comprehend.
That was—mental synchrony. For example, when performing complex calculations, the two could exchange data just by eye contact. In other words, when cracking Hikigaya's code, they could divide the work between them, doubling their efficiency!
'Then, starting from this round, we'll tear them to pieces without mercy!' Ougatou Naoko made up her mind.
Round six began.
To create the conditions needed for her younger sister's victory—ensuring the win belonged to the sisters alone—she deliberately selected an extraordinarily difficult rule.
"Hearts A. Invalid."
Saotome cautiously played a card: "Hearts 2."
"Invalid."
"Clubs 3."
"Valid."
"Hearts 6."
"Valid."
Hikigaya Hachiman nodded slightly, and within the memory palace in his mind, fifty types of rules rapidly floated before him. Finally, one of the most complex rule sequences flew toward him.
Hikigaya toyed with that rule card, pondering whether or not to announce it.
The Ougatou sisters had made a fatal mistake—thinking that a complicated rule could stop him from deducing the correct answer. But what they didn't know was:
The more complex the rule, the more conditions it had. As long as you remembered all the rules, it was easier to quickly arrive at the correct one.
In contrast, it was the simple rules that were harder to identify—too many overlapping conditions meant you had to painstakingly eliminate each one.
But now, that wasn't the key issue.
The real issue was—
Shimotsukiuri Ouri.
Despite her constant provocation, Hikigaya Hachiman wasn't angry. In fact, he felt a little sympathy for this girl named Shimotsukiuri Ouri.
She was a genius—no doubt about it.
'This girl… has an ability similar to mine.'
From the information provided by Juraku Sachiko and his own analysis, he had confirmed it: Shimotsukiuri Ouri possessed something akin to dynamic memory, allowing her to remember anything she wished.
It was quite similar to Hikigaya's own memory palace ability.
Hikigaya could feel that what she pursued was true "justice." Unlike Mibuomi Aoi's fake idealism, she genuinely wanted to free the livestock students of Hyakkaou Academy from Kirari's rule.
Unfortunately, despite possessing dynamic memory, she couldn't see through people's hearts, couldn't see through Mibuomi's true nature.
A girl who's gone astray… do I kill her? Or save her?
In the memory palace, time slowed to an infinite crawl, giving Hikigaya Hachiman ample space to think.
He pulled up the memory of Shimotsukiuri Ouri entering the clubroom and initiating a life-or-death match. The dilation of her pupils, the unconscious swallowing in her throat, the tension in her muscles… Hikigaya boldly made a hypothesis—if she loses this match, she will really kill herself.
To prove her resolve with death.
There really were such completely foolish people like this. Hikigaya cursed under his breath.
He had already seen through Shimotsukiuri Ouri's entire plan. With her dynamic memory, she had memorized all 50 rules beforehand. Once the game reached its halfway point, she would launch a dramatic comeback.
If Hikigaya wanted her to die, she wouldn't get a single opportunity to answer in time. She would become the last place, fall into the status of a private livestock, and unable to bear the humiliation, take her own life to prove her ideals.
If Hikigaya wanted her to live, he would need to precisely control everyone's scores. The Ougatou sisters must not come in first, Shimotsuki must be in second or third, and as for himself—whether first or last, it didn't matter…
Anyone who has taken an exam knows—score control is far harder than getting a perfect score. That was the challenge Hikigaya now faced.
He held a deep reverence for life and could never bear to watch a pure, innocent life wither away in front of him.
They say "the general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand corpses," but Hikigaya Hachiman did not agree with that sentiment.
Seconds and minutes passed.
After a long contemplation, Hikigaya slowly exhaled the stifling air in his chest and returned to reality.
His gaze was now crystal clear.
He had made his decision.
Shimotsukiuri Ouri—he would save her.
"But," Hikigaya murmured, "if I'm going to go to all this trouble to keep you alive… there's no way I'll just let you go."
"From now on, you'll live on—as my tool."