novel volume 8-10

by flametornadohd

this is volumes 8 - 10 of y1 picks up after season 3 of the anime

32. Chapter 32

THAT EVENING, my stay-home date with Kei started, something that had

become a regular happening for us. The topic of our conversation today mostly

centered around groups, starting with Ike and Shinohara's break up due to their

fight earlier.

"So, um, hey… Kiyotaka, who are you planning to group with for this exam?"

asked Kei, looking up at me as she asked that question with a somewhat bashful

look on her face.

"I'm not planning on joining a group with anyone right now," I told her.

"Huh? Wh-why?"

I could sense that Kei had wanted to be in a group with me, but even if we did

team up, it wouldn't work out in my favor. It wasn't like she was lacking in

ability or anything. It was more that, considering we would be going up against

Tsukishiro, she'd be unfit for the task.

"There are definitely advantages in forming a group. However, that doesn't

necessarily mean that you can't win on your own. In fact, if anything, there are

advantages in being able to stand freely without being influenced by others. In

addition, depending on how things go, you might be able to save other groups.

If a group is about to get eliminated, you could step in and cover for them," I

told her.

"So, you're saying that in general, you could be more resourceful and

adaptable if you're going it alone," answered Kei.

Whether you were a boy or a girl, you were still allowed to take part in this

exam by yourself. In other words, there was a chance for students who prided

themselves on their versatility to be able to win on their own.

"If a student were to take first place and they were acting alone, that would

mean only their class would be getting 300 Class Points," I told her.

"Do you think you could get first place, Kiyotaka? I mean, considering the fact

it's you."

"What do you think?" I asked.

After I turned the question back at her, our eyes had met. We stared at each

other for a while, as Kei stiffened, lost in thought.

"I-I feel like…you would get first place without even breaking a sweat. Huh?

But wait, hold on. If you get first place, it'll get even harder for me to tell people

that we're going out, won't it?!" she wailed, immediately starting to imagine

what the future would be like, panicking.

"If you get first place all by yourself Kiyotaka, I think I'd be so happy that I'd

swoon. I would think that you're super cool. But, but… Ah! I don't know what

the best thing to do is!" she added.

"You're getting overly excited. Don't worry about it. It's not like getting first

place is that easy," I answered.

"S-so hold on, does that mean that you don't think you can win?" she asked.

"Let's just say my chances are about fifty-fifty," I replied.

"Just saying that you have a fifty percent chance is still absolutely incredible

though…" said Kei.

"Anyway, the thing you should be concerned with right now isn't who you'll

be partnering with, Kei."

"Huh? Wait, isn't that really important though? If I slip up, I might get

expelled," said Kei.

"That's right. There is the threat of expulsion in this special exam. If you slip

into the bottom five, then you'll get penalized. However, you can't just freely

choose someone to partner up with," I told her.

"Okay. To be honest though, I wanted to partner with you, Kiyotaka… I want

you to protect me," said Kei.

Kei had basically asked me as much before, albeit in an indirect way. But now

she had come out and honestly said how she felt.

"There are ways to save you without me having to protect you though, right?

By that I mean you can hold onto the number of Private Points that you need to

save yourself."

"Well, yeah, that's true, but…" said Kei, trailing off and pausing for a moment.

Although it required a substantial number of Private Points, if you put it

another way, that meant that as long as you held onto that number of points,

you'd never get expelled.

"So, yes, it is true. But even if you form a group of six people during the exam,

you'd still need a million points to avoid getting expelled, right? I don't have

that many," said Kei.

"How many points do you have left now?" I asked.

"Let's see… 240,000, I think. A-Anyway though, I have been saving points

pretty well lately though!" said Kei.

I didn't really say anything that indicated I was blaming her for her lack of

points though. Since I was in a comparable situation financially, I couldn't really

criticize her.

"So, you're short 760,000 then," I replied.

I had about 250,000 points on hand. Even if I handed them all over to her, she

would only have a total of around 500,000.

"Kei, you've got the Free Ride card, right?" I asked.

"Yeah. What's it worth, in terms of value?" she asked in return.

"I couldn't say it's a good card, to be honest. For better or worse, it seems the

be the card that has the least impact on the holder. It's not the sort of card that

will add to your efforts or help you when you make a mistake," I told her.

You could basically only bet on whatever group was likely to win. In terms of

simple value, you could say that her card had the least value.

"Yeah…you're right," replied Kei, letting out a dejected sigh. She had already

known that was the case, more or less. "You have the Trials and Tribulations

card if I remember right, Kiyotaka. Yeah? It has some powerful effects if you

win, but if you lose, it would be really traumatic… Oh, well, I know that you're

not going to have any problems at all of course, Kiyotaka. I was really hoping I

would have gotten the Half Off or Nullify card."

I suppose that from Kei's point of view, it was natural that she would feel

more appreciative of a card that could save her in this exam.

"It's not like there aren't any hopes for your card, though. Chances are there

are many students who feel like the Half Off or Nullify cards are worthless. In

those students' eyes, there may be value in the Free Ride card," I replied.

Unlike the Head Start and Bonus cards, her card might not really resonate

with students who were confident in themselves. On the other hand, though

this card was targeted for the middle-of-the-road students who didn't think

they could win. Furthermore, the middle-of-the-road category was likely to be

comprised of the greatest number of students, making it easier to find someone

who would want to trade.

However, cards like Half Off were greatly desired by some students both in

that middle range category and in the lower range category. They'd want it so

badly that they could taste it. Depending on who was holding the card, some

cards might seem worthless, while others might shine like they were solid gold.

"I'll take care of the points," I told her.

"Huh? You'll take care of… But how?" she asked.

"There are several ways to do so. Selling off the Trials and Tribulations card to

get the funds we need is one way," I answered.

"But that means you might have to give up your card… Are you sure?" asked

Kei.

"It's more important to make sure that you don't get expelled," I replied.

"O-okay… Th-thank you," she replied, blushing.

Afterwards, we went on to talk about summer vacation, which was exciting,

but new developments in our relationship were being put off for later.

4.11

THE SCHOOL had allowed us to form groups of up to three people up until the

summer special exam started in earnest. However, there was a conversation

happening that didn't cover just that. It was also about looking ahead to the

future.

"I'm glad that you've come, Ichinose-san."

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Sakayanagi-san."

It was after school on the first Friday after we were given permission to start

forming groups. Sakayanagi had called Ichinose and asked her to come to the

café.

"Is this a good time? I was thinking that you might have turned down my offer

since I had made this request so suddenly," said Sakayanagi.

"It's a perfectly good time, no problem at all. Though to be honest, I was a

little surprised since I didn't think that you'd contact me, Sakayanagi-san."

That day, just an hour before they had met up with one another at the café,

Sakayanagi had suddenly contacted Ichinose and asked her to come out. If

Ichinose's schedule had been packed, it wouldn't have been surprising if she

had turned down the offer, of course.

"I really wanted to meet you today and talk with you, Ichinose-san."

That was a lie on Sakayanagi's part. Inviting Ichinose so suddenly and without

any advance notice was part of her strategy. It was meant to give Ichinose no

time to think. If they had arranged in advance to meet in a few days, Ichinose

would have thought about what would be discussed. And depending on how

things went, she might have even sought help from her classmates, like Kanzaki.

This was a precautionary measure on Sakayanagi's part to prevent that from

happening.

"At any rate, why did you accept my sudden request to meet, anyway?" asked

Sakayanagi.

"Why? Well, I didn't really have any plans today," said Ichinose.

"That isn't what I meant. I have done some terrible things to you before,

Ichinose-san. I thought it wouldn't be surprising if you hated me," said

Sakayanagi.

Sakayanagi had secretly gotten details about Ichinose's past out of her in their

conversations as part of a plot to bring Ichinose down. Sakayanagi had

tormented Ichinose by taking something from her past that she didn't want

other to know and revealing it to a great number of people. If someone you

trusted and talked to betrayed you, many people would end up hating that

person. Or even if they didn't come to hate that person, they should feel an

intense sense of distrust, and want to keep their distance.

However, not only did Ichinose immediately respond to Sakayanagi's sudden

request, but she didn't give the slightest impression that she held anything

resembling a grudge.

"No, actually, I don't think you've done anything particularly horrible to me,

Sakayanagi-san. It's true that what I did in junior high was something that I

needed to reflect on anyway, and I'm ashamed of what I did. But it's not like I

had explicitly asked you to keep a secret from everyone, so it would be wrong

of me to blame you for what happened," said Ichinose.

What Ichinose was saying was that in the end, she herself was the one who

revealed her past, so she was the one to blame for what happened.

"You are, without a doubt, a truly good person, Ichinose-san," said

Sakayanagi.

"I'm not so sure about that. I don't really know, myself," said Ichinose

somewhat sheepishly, lightly scratching her cheek. She seemed to be

embarrassed, averting her eyes away from Sakayanagi like she couldn't bear her

gentle gaze.

"So then… What did you want to talk about?" asked Ichinose.

Perhaps Ichinose felt like it would've been awkward if they continued

discussing that topic any further, because she urged Sakayanagi to start talking

about the matter at hand.

"As you wish then, I'll get down to business. However, I suspect that you

might feel uncomfortable about what I wish to discuss with you," said

Sakayanagi.

After Sakayanagi had prefaced what she was going to say with that warning,

Ichinose quietly muttered to herself. "I hope she goes easy on me."

"Please pardon my bluntness, but I'm not so sure that you'll even be able to

make it back to Class B, let alone Class A. I would like to know your thoughts on

the matter. Would you care to share them with me?" said Sakayanagi, pointing

out the current situation that Ichinose was in without an ounce of hesitation or

restraint.

"Ah ha ha… Well, that really was honest," Ichinose replied.

For a brief moment, Ichinose's mind went blank. Then, with a bitter smile on

her face, she started to fan herself with her hand. Sakayanagi, with a deliberate

smile plastered on her face, simply watched, and waited for an answer.

"It's certainly true that the situation we're in now isn't good, by any means,"

said Ichinose.

As of the first of May, there was only a twenty-six-point gap in Class Points

between Ichinose's class and Ryuuen's class, with Ichinose trying to play catchup. Since those points fluctuated based on things like tardiness and absences

every month, she thought that her class might be able to catch up if there

weren't any special exams. In fact, the Class Points that her class had

accumulated over the past year had largely come from smaller amounts of

points being gained from those kinds of daily activities and evaluations building

up over time.

However, after their positions in the rankings had been reversed and

Ryuuen's class became Class B, they didn't show a single weakness to exploit. In

June, the gap between the two classes had narrowed slightly, but only by a

mere two points. Ichinose could feel Ryuuen's and his followers' strong will to

never let her pass them. That was something that Sakayanagi, who was now

being pursued by Ryuuen, could sense without even needing to say anything

about it.

"I am well aware that they're very formidable opponents," added Ichinose.

"Even though you're aware of that fact, there are still some things that you

just can't seem to do anything about, aren't there? Ryuuen-kun's boisterous,

excessive class hasn't been causing any problems lately with their behavior,

which is so surprising that it's practically unthinkable. If you cannot catch up to

them from daily activities, then you have no other option but to put your heart

and soul into future special exams," said Sakayanagi.

Ichinose nodded meekly. Sakayanagi was by no means intending to answer

with sweet, gentle words in response, though.

"He's not the sort you can defeat so easily. It is no exaggeration to say that he

would be the most difficult kind of opponent for you, Ichinose-san, as someone

who takes a very honest, straightforward approach," said Sakayanagi.

That point was something that Ichinose understood quite well herself, having

faced Ryuuen directly at the year-end special exam. Ryuuen was coercive,

abnormal, and certainly wasn't loath to break the rules. Ichinose's true

intention was probably to avoid fighting him, if possible.

"But, well, that's something that I can't avoid running into on the path to get

to the top. And while it's true that Ryuuen-kun is a difficult opponent to face,

it's not as though you're someone who could be defeated so easily either,

Sakayanagi-san," said Ichinose.

Even there had been a brief struggle with Katsuragi, who was also in Class A,

they had nearly double the points that Ryuuen's class had, creating a strong

lead. Class A was undeniably far, far ahead of everyone else in the running.

Even if Class A were to be defeated once or twice, it would be difficult to shake

them out of first place.

"Even though there is more than two-hundred-point gap between your class

and Class D, what do you think might happen, considering their momentum?

Are you confident that they won't overtake you?" asked Sakayanagi.

"Horikita-san's class is also rapidly gaining strength, by leaps and bounds. In

terms of individual abilities, they have people who can stand toe-to-toe with

those from any other class… When I look at things that way, I can say that I

definitely do not have that much room for error," said Ichinose.

"Indeed, there are certainly several interesting and exceptionally gifted

individuals in Class D. First, you have Hirata-kun and Kushida-san, both of whom

have excellent communication skills and well-balanced grades. Then there's

Sudou-kun, who is the sole student to have earned an A+ rating in physical

ability. And you have Ayanokouji-kun, who made a surprise attack like a soldier

lying in wait by getting a perfect score on the mathematics section of the exam,

which was an exceptionally difficult subject. And then we have Kouenji-kun,

someone whose true abilities still can't be discerned fully, making him yet

another dangerous person," said Sakayanagi.

Sakayanagi had made Ichinose once again feel the depths of what Class 2-D

had to offer by deliberately making mention of their strengths.

"Lastly, there's the leader that they rally around, Horikita-san. She is quite

gifted both academically and physically, and I even heard that she had joined

the student council the other day," she added.

Sakayanagi had once again confirmed the situation that Ichinose was in.

"I am terribly sorry to keep saying such harsh things, but I think that it's only a

matter of time before your class is demoted to being Class D, Ichinose-san."

"Well, I think there's no arguing that we do warrant that kind of evaluation

right now. But—" said Ichinose, before being interrupted.

"Are you going to say something abstract, like you'll make it through hard

work and friendship?" said Sakayanagi, cutting her off.

Ichinose had been made to swallow her words when Sakayanagi had precisely

taken them right out of her mouth beforehand.

"It is impossible for you to win with such vague ideas. Every class has clearly

grown in power over the past year, but I don't see any significant growth

coming from your class, Ichinose-san."

"That's… That's not true, though. Everyone has been really coming along."

"I didn't see that you haven't grown. The problem is by how much," said

Sakayanagi.

"You might not believe this, but I don't think we'll lose, Sakayanagi-san," said

Ichinose.

Sakayanagi, with a faint smile on her lips, simply shook her head from side to

side, slowly.

"If you look at OAA, the answer is obvious. If you compare the overall ability

that all four classes have this year versus where we were at last year, you can

see that your class is undoubtedly the one that has demonstrated the smallest

degree of growth among them. I had thought you would have at least checked

into it that much, Ichinose-san… But perhaps you already knew that and

pretended not to notice anything or maybe you were too afraid to afraid to

check for yourself…" said Sakayanagi.

Ichinose firmly recalled a time before when she had been alone with

Sakayanagi. It was almost like an adult with a child. It was only natural that

Ichinose felt like she was being talked down to, driven further and further into a

corner. She was unable to say anything back to Sakayanagi, who was accurately

exploiting her weakness.

"You are a smart student. In an honest and equal tête-à-tête, I don't think you

would fall behind me by any means. However, you're unable to demonstrate

your abilities when put in a disadvantageous position. Both then and now, you

could only stay silent as your weakness was exploited. However, both I and

Ryuuen-kun, who you are facing off against now, are able to bare our fangs

when placed at a disadvantage. Do you understand?" said Sakayanagi.

"Ye… Yes, I do."

Those two would not doubt their strength, regardless of whatever situation

they were in.

"I think it's safe to say that as you are now, Ichinose-san, you have no chance

of winning."

"Is that what you called me here to talk about?" asked Ichinose.

"If I were simply trying to harass you, I could do that anytime, anywhere. I

wouldn't waste precious time," said Sakayanagi.

Then, Sakayanagi decided to tell Ichinose the real reason she had called her

here today.

"Why not join forces with me, Ichinose-san?"

"Huh…?"

Sakayanagi's shocking proposal came as such a surprise to Ichinose that she

was at a loss for words.

"Wait, but that's—"

"A cooperative relationship between classes isn't a terrible thing. In fact, if I

remember correctly, you had a similar relationship with Horikita-san from Class

D during our first year, didn't you?" asked Sakayanagi.

It wasn't strange that Sakayanagi had heard about their alliance.

"Now, this is merely speculation on my part, but I believe that Class D might

have already nullified their partnership with you. Even though they are at the

bottom of the class rankings, they have accumulated more Class Points than any

other class has in one year, and they are gaining momentum. In comparison,

Ichinose-san, your class has fallen a step behind and has been demoted to Class

C. From the perspective of Horikita-san and her peers, continuing to collaborate

with you would have no benefit whatsoever," said Sakayanagi.

Sakayanagi had perfectly and succinctly summed up what had happened,

almost as if she had witnessed the conversation that Ichinose and Horikita had

firsthand. Ichinose couldn't deny any of that. She responded in a way that

halfway sounded like she was openly admitting to it.

"Yes, I suppose so… Partnerships can't last forever," said Ichinose.

"Yes. For a collaborative partnership to be maintained, a certain condition

must be met. Your class and Horikita-san's class had fulfilled that condition last

year. And it was precisely because of that that you were able to successfully

establish a good relationship without fighting each other in vain," said

Sakayanagi.

Ichinose nodded meekly in agreement.

"And that certain condition was…the difference in Class Points," added

Sakayanagi.

In fact, that was exactly it. The truth of the matter was that the reason

Ichinose and Horikita's classes made a ceasefire agreement was because of the

difference in Class Points they held.

"Although I don't think this was intentional, there is now quite a substantial

difference between my Class A and your Class C, Ichinose-san. In other words, I

think that it wouldn't be impossible for us to join forces," said Sakayanagi.

"The sad thing is though; I can't really think of this as a happy proposal.

Because it implies that our class is insignificant to you, we're not even worth

being cautious about, Sakayanagi-san."

"If I may be so bold, that's because that's exactly true."

The merciless reality of what Sakayanagi was saying struck Ichinose. But

Ichinose didn't stop smiling. Although emotional denial would've been easy, she

couldn't turn away from the reality that her class was in a crisis.

"I can't imagine that there are any benefits for you in partnering with us

though, Sakayanagi-san."

"No, that's not quite true. If we look at things purely in terms of power, then

yes, it is true that you come up short. However, you possess a powerful weapon

that no other class has," said Sakayanagi, with a smile.

"And that weapon is…trust. I can say with absolute certainty that during the

time in which our classes are allied with each other, you will not betray me, no

matter what happens. That is of foremost importance in looking for an ally,"

said Sakayanagi.

A partner that you could rest easy about and trust to watch your back.

Sakayanagi was saying that alone was worth an alliance.

"While I'm happy that you think so highly of me, we're in a situation now

where we can't really care for appearances, right?" said Ichinose.

"Yes, that is true. However, I cannot imagine that you would abandon that

weapon called trust, which you have built up so much so far, Ichinose-san. If

you do abandon that trust and betray me, then the blame would fall squarely

on me for having judged incorrectly," said Sakayanagi.

Even if this were a trap that Sakayanagi had laid for her, Ichinose couldn't

help but feel that being trusted wasn't a bad thing. However, she already taken

into consideration the fact that Sakayanagi was someone she couldn't drop her

guard around.

"Could I ask that you please give me some more details about what you're

thinking?" asked Ichinose.

"Can I take this to mean that you wish to move forward with this

partnership?" replied Sakayanagi.

"…Yes, that's right."

"In that case, let's discuss."

Sakayanagi started to act, to take Class 2-C, led by Ichinose, under her banner.

"The upcoming special exam, where we need to survive on an uninhabited

island has some rather troublesome rules. We can only form groups with

students from our grade level and the rewards are distributed equally. This

means that even if you were to bring together the best of the best from each

class, it wouldn't create any gap in Class Points whatsoever," said Sakayanagi.

"Yes, you're right about that. Which is why it's inevitable that we'll have to

make a group that's capable of winning from within our own classes," said

Ichinose.

"But in that scenario, you couldn't say that you're able to handpick the best of

the best in forming your group, no? There would inevitably be certain areas that

each class won't be able to cover on their own… However, what if two classes

were to work together? I would say it'd be a different story if we could freely

choose between a total of seventy-nine people," said Sakayanagi.

"So, if your class and our class worked together…"

"Although you wouldn't be able to chip away at the lead that Class A has, you

would be able to overtake Ryuuen-kun's class and widen the gap with Class D as

well," said Sakayanagi.

"But… If we do this, that means we'll be losing an opportunity to catch up to

your class then, Sakayanagi-san."

"As we head into the second and third semesters, isn't your first priority to

return to a stable position? Even if you refuse to join forces with me here, that

doesn't necessarily mean that you're going to win. Am I wrong?"

"Well…"

"On the other hand, if you lose to the other classes, you will be demoted to

Class D, Ichinose-san. You will lose out on a lot of Class Points, thereby putting

you in an extremely tricky situation. If that were to happen, it would be close to

impossible for you to aim for Class A, wouldn't it?" said Sakayanagi.

Ichinose had once again fallen silent, unable to respond to what Sakayanagi

had said.

"I think that you still harbor some doubts about me. But I don't think there

are going to be many chances for the other classes to team up with each other.

Neither Class B nor Class D would ever join forces with me, as they are

intending to catch up to Class A. Their only option would be for D, C, and Class B

to form a clique and to challenge Class A together. That way, they could form

strong groups," said Sakayanagi.

No matter how strong Class A was, if B, C, and D worked together, Class A's

chances of winning would be slim.

"I'd be lying if I said that I haven't thought about that myself already," said

Ichinose.

"Yes, quite. However, D, C, and B working together isn't a realistic strategy.

Ichinose-san, have you received word from anyone about that yet, in the few

days since we've been notified that we're allowed to create groups?" asked

Sakayanagi.

Ichinose, eyes cast downward, slowly shook her head from side to side.

"If three classes joined forces, that would mean the Class Point rewards

would be divided equally amongst them. Even if you did your utmost and were

able to take first place, you would only close the gap between us by a mere one

hundred points. If you placed second, then sixty-seven points. And if you got

third, that would be thirty-three points," said Sakayanagi.

Even if Classes 2-B, 2-C, and 2-D had managed to secure all of the top

positions, that would still only decrease Class A's lead by a mere 200 points.

Although that was by no means a small amount, it would be difficult to

monopolize the top spots in this special exam in the first place.

"It's natural to want to win on your own, and to close the gap by 300 or 400

points," said Sakayanagi.

"But, if we enter a partnership, Sakayanagi-san, then Horikita-san and

Ryuuen-kun might make a partnership, to… And besides, there are people who

have already formed their own groups in our own classes already, aren't

there?" said Ichinose.

"Yes. Rather, I've been waiting for the group-building to begin. So, while we

are currently seeing a trend where the individual classes want to join forces and

instead compete on their own, I propose that we team up, and focus on a main

fighting force," said Sakayanagi.

"And what would this main fighting force be?"

"Just like last year, I am unable to move around on the island, because of my

legs. However, I am allowed to participate. Albeit in a somewhat special

position, though."

"Special?"

"Students who are unable to participate due to reasons like illness or injury

are eliminated from the beginning, yes? However, I will be participating in this

exam as a 'partially-eliminated' student."

"Partially eliminated?"

"I cannot walk around freely on the island because of the state of my legs.

However, I have the right to remain at the starting point and compete just like

everyone else, while adhering to the same rules. Meaning that if you come

seeking my opinion, I can give it to you, and if there's a difficult problem, we

can solve it together. However, if the point comes where I am the sole

remaining person in my group, then my group will be eliminated from the

exam," said Sakayanagi.

"So that's what you mean when you say you're participating via a special

position then," replied Ichinose.

Although there would be a need to be a way to remain in contact, Ichinose

immediately understood that having Sakayanagi function as the brain of a

group could be a major factor in the exam.

"You can freely choose anyone out of myself, Hashimoto-kun, Kitou-kun, or

Masumi-san. We are undeniably the main fighting force of Class A. And from

Class B, I suppose that would be you, Ichinose-san, Kanzaki-kun, and then

Shibata-kun."

All the students that Sakayanagi had just listed then had not yet formed a

group and were monitoring the situation. At this current stage, there were no

inconveniences for either side.

"That's right. If you consider that physical strength will be required on the

island, I think that's true. However, there's no guarantee that we'll be able to

merge groups as we'd wish once the actual special exam begins, right?" asked

Ichinose.

"Although it will be difficult to merge groups, it's not exactly impossible,"

replied Sakayanagi, smiling broadly.

Her smile showed that she was confident that they could form groups no

matter what difficulties there were.

"Sakayanagi-san, may I tell you my honest thoughts?" asked Ichinose.

"Of course."

"Sakayanagi-san, you really don't want B, C, and D to fight together. Even

more so than I had originally thought. Actually, if anything, you're afraid of that

happening, aren't you?" said Ichinose.

"What makes you say that?" asked Sakayanagi.

"You said that I and my class are partners that you can trust, and I think that

you really do mean that. However, the most important thing for you is that you

want to avoid a situation where B, C, and Class D were to work together and get

on Class A's tail. It's certainly true that the amount of Class Points we could earn

if we won would decrease, but there's no guarantee that the three classes

below you won't continue to work together in the future, should that happen,"

said Ichinose.

Ichinose, who had been relentlessly pushed around during this whole

conversation so far by Sakayanagi, struck back with the feelings she had been

holding onto.

"If we successfully managed to pull it off, the idea of the three classes banding

together and chasing after Class A, then that would mean you'd be forced into

fighting an uphill battle from this point onward, Sakayanagi-san… Am I wrong

about that?" said Ichinose.

Sakayanagi looked surprised, albeit only a little, after witnessing Ichinose's

counterattack, since she had only been on the defensive this whole time.

"Apparently, it looks as though I've underestimated you a little, Ichinose-san."

Sakayanagi didn't care at all if any of the classes below her happened to win

this particular special exam on their own and gain the 300 Class Points. The

most important thing to Sakayanagi, whose Class A was so substantially far

ahead, the thing that she wanted to avoid the most, was the three lower classes

banding together and gaining a sense of solidarity. What Sakayanagi was doing

here was making a preemptive move in anticipation of more tests like this that

may come in the future.

If there were someone who could rally the three other classes together, it was

highly likely that person was Ichinose Honami. Which is exactly why Sakayanagi

had decided to take Ichinose into her hands first.

"So, regarding my proposal to form a partnership, does this mean you will not

accept? Or will you?" asked Sakayanagi.

After acknowledging what Ichinose had said, Sakayanagi had come out and

pressed for Ichinose's cooperation.

"If you do collaborate with me, I don't mind giving you a pledge for three

person's worth of deposits. I will loan you a total of three million points, for the

students who are at a considerable risk of expulsion. In the unlikely event that

you are to be penalized, you may use those points to save those students. I

would think this is quite a helpful proposal to you, Ichinose-san, since you wish

to avoid letting anyone get expelled more strongly than anyone from any other

class," said Sakayanagi.

Sakayanagi, fearing that her offer would be rejected, held out her hand.

"Would you mind giving me enough for five people? That way, I would feel

totally reassured, I think," asked Ichinose.

"My, my, quite greedy, aren't we? Although I had been planning to distribute

a similar number of points in the near future, I will offer you a special loan," said

Sakayanagi.

Class A had been continuously receiving the highest number of Private Points

out of any class for over an entire year. As a result, the amount of funding that

each of their students had accumulated was far beyond what any of the other

classes had.

"Okay, I suppose we have a deal then. But to be honest, I would have chosen

to work with you even if you hadn't mentioned the financial help, Sakayanagisan. Our ultimate goal is to get to Class A, of course. But as you said, I've been

demoted to Class C, and we really have our backs against the wall now. If we

were to be demoted to Class D, I'm sure that the class's motivation would drop

significantly. I don't want that to happen," said Ichinose, offering her hand to

Sakayanagi, for a handshake.

"So, regarding your proposal that Class 2-C and Class 2-A fight this battle

together… I accept," she added.

Now that the two of them had shook hands on it, both classes had mutually

entered an alliance.

"And now I'll be able to fight without worry. I apologize for how sudden this

might be, but I do have one request," said Sakayanagi.

"I'm guessing that it's about how to maximize our chances of winning, that

it'll be necessary to start things off by handing over the 'One More' card to Class

A's main fighting force… Right?" replied Ichinose.

Now that Ichinose was their ally, she had already started to think about the

best path forward for their battle, as an allied force. By using the "One More"

card, of which there was only one of in their grade level, you could form a group

of up to seven people. This was also one of the reasons why Sakayanagi had

decided to fight together with Ichinose.

"I sincerely appreciate that you understood what I meant so quickly," said

Sakayanagi.

"But even still, Ryuuen-kun and Horikita-san are both formidable opponents,"

said Ichinose.

Sakayanagi also was absolutely not going to underestimate those two, by any

means. It wasn't going to be an easy fight, considering the lingering shadow of

Ayanokouji looming behind Horikita. However, Sakayanagi had chosen to fight

together with Ichinose because she was sure that she would definitely win.

"First place is ours to take. Thus, I do not intend to skimp on the efforts

necessary for that goal," said Sakayanagi.

With their forces consolidated, Sakayanagi was going to challenge Ryuuen and

Horikita's respective classes, as well as both the first-and third-years.

Chapter 5:

Battle of the First-Years and Third-Years

IT HAD BEEN ALMOST three months since the new students first started here at

the Advanced Nurturing High School, and they had begun to understand the

state of things at this institution. The first-year students were also right in the

midst of forming groups for big upcoming special exam. However, it wasn't long

after the school gave the students permission to start forming groups that

things already started to not go so smoothly. The students in Class 1-D, led by

Housen Kazuomi, stubbornly refused to join any groups and rejected offers to

trade cards. If a student from another class came to them wanting them to be

in a group, the Class D students demanded points in exchange, or otherwise

they wouldn't join.

Because of that, the new students were put into a situation where they

couldn't freely form groups. Although representatives from each of the other

three classes had been hoping that Housen would have changed his mind

sometime in June, even today, on the first of July, the situation still hadn't

changed. There were classes within their grade level who tried to ignore Class

D, but Yagami Takuya from Class 1-B put a stop to them.

While it was easy for the other students to ignore Class D and to create

groups just from their own three classes, competition with the other grade

levels was an important part of this special exam. Yagami had voiced the need

that, in the event that issue was to be prioritized, they would absolutely need to

handpick the best of the best from each and every class to make optimal

groups. At about the exact same time, with the support of students who shared

Yagami's views, the three other classes had agreed to take a wait-and-see

approach until July.

However, Housen's continued deliberate ignoring of the situation meant that

those previous talks wound up becoming meaningless. And today, now that the

deadline had arrived, the representatives of the four classes from their grade

were supposed to gather to resolve the situation. Yagami had proposed that the

gathering be done in a simple manner so as not to intentionally raise the level

of confidentiality of the meeting. It was agreed that the leader of the class or

someone close to the leader would attend. But as the time came after class

ended that day, there was no response from Class D, the class that was at the

center of all these issues.

In a hallway lined with rather unsurprising, nondescript first-year classrooms,

the first person to show up to the meeting was Yagami from Class 1-B. That was

because he thought it necessary that he show up before anyone else as the

original advocate of the proposal. Not long afterward, Utomiya Riku from Class

1-C had shown up as well.

"Seems like it's still just you here, Yagami."

"Oh, hey Utomiya-kun. I was kind of expecting it would've been you

participating in this talk," replied Yagami.

"Although it's not really like me to be a leader or anything, I came because no

one else wanted to. While the kids in my class kinda like to go ahead and say

whatever they want, they seem to not like these kinds of headache-inducing

things," said Utomiya.

"I think it's because they know that you're such a dependable person that

they asked you to come. I saw the updated OAA values this month. It says that

your Societal Contribution score got bumped up to a B, didn't it?" said Yagami,

with a bright and chipper smile.

Utomiya, despite the fact he was being complimented, responded by

wrinkling his brow. The person he was talking with, Yagami, had a C in Physical

Ability, but an A in Academic Ability. In addition to that, his Adaptability and

Societal Contribution scores had gone up to A thanks to his repeated

contributions to Class B. In terms of overall ability, he was certainly a cut above.

More importantly though, Class C wasn't exactly in a situation that they could

be happy about.

"We've lost somebody. To be honest, I think it's a pretty big loss," said

Utomiya.

"I didn't think that Hatano-kun would've gotten expelled either. It is really

unfortunate," said Yagami.

"…Yeah."

Hatano was a male student from Class 1-C. He was a valuable student too,

with an A in Academic Ability. However, he had been dealt a fatal blow as a

result of him being involved in actions that, once discovered, resulted in a

penalty of immediate expulsion. The somewhat relaxed first-year students were

once again reminded of this school's harshness. Though at this point, it had

already been a month since Hatano had been expelled.

Utomiya, his classmate, didn't even have the time to regret his loss,

unfortunately. Now that he had lost one of his best students, he needed to get

definite results on the upcoming special exam.

"It seemed like you and Hatano were pretty close," said Utomiya.

"He said he wanted to join the student council together. He wanted to make

the school a more fun place to be," replied Yagami.

Utomiya nodded lightly and then directed his gaze towards the Class 1-D

classroom.

"Do you think that Housen's gonna come?" asked Utomiya, wondering about

the very person about which this discussion was taking place over.

"I guess I'd say it's about a fifty-fifty chance," replied Yagami.

"Fifty-fifty? Wow, you sure put a lot of faith in Housen, huh. I'm betting he

won't show," said Utomiya.

"If he doesn't show up to this meeting, then the matter is settled. We'll go

ahead and form groups with students from our three classes. If that happens,

then Class D and Class D alone, which has been trying to push for getting a lot of

points out of us, will be left out in the cold. Then any chance they have to win

will disappear," said Yagami.

"If he thinks that he can make us fork over our Private Points, then he really

has a massive ego. He objected to the idea of trying to smoothly form groups

with people from all classes together. Since the second-and third-years are our

enemies here, we really ought to work together. Yet Housen still refused

anyway," said Utomiya.

Even though they were all in the same grade level, Housen wanted to

compete in areas where they didn't even have to.

"It seems that way, at least on the surface. But I can't imagine that's what

Housen-kun actually planning, deep down."

"I can understand that it's a bargaining tactic on his part. But it's one that's

not going to pay off for him."

"If he really intends on playing that game though, then I have to wonder if

that might actually be a blessing in disguise for us. Because that means that

Housen-kun isn't that much of a threat to us then," said Yagami.

"…Yeah, you're right," replied Utomiya.

Yagami explained that he had arranged this meeting to gauge what Housen

was thinking. As the two of them were in the midst of their debate, a third

person showed up.

"Oh, hey! Riku, Takuya. I figured it'd be you two!" shouted Takahashi Osamu,

from Class 1-A, greeting them in a loud voice and waving as he came closer.

Though he had a low Academic Ability ranking, just a C+, he was particularly

good at getting to know people no matter who they were. He was often called

up to participate in discussions. He had many friends in other classes and other

grade levels too.

"Osamu-kun, did you come because you were forced into handling things for

your class again?" asked Takuya.

"Well, the leader of our class is the kind of person who hates dealing with this

sort of hassle, y'know? So that's where I come in," replied Takahashi.

"Well, this discussion is going to move a lot more smoothly now that you're

here, Osamu," added Utomiya.

Just like in Utomiya's case, the leader of the class didn't have to come to this

discussion. On the contrary, it would have been more appreciated by the other

classes if the students who came for these talks were the ones who excelled in

conversation.

"All that's left is Kazuomi, huh?" said Takahashi.

There was only about three minutes left until the appointed meeting time. If

he didn't show up, the three other speakers would proceed with their meeting

without hesitation.

"Don't you all think it'd be better if we teamed up right at this stage? Because

honestly, I really want to isolate Class D so we can crush them as soon as

possible," said Utomiya.

"We've been told that the exam on the uninhabited island is going to assess

more than our academic abilities though. If you're looking at academic ability

alone, then Class D is at the bottom of the rankings, but in terms of physical

ability, they're a close second. It's possible that they could play a key role in

group-building," said Takuya.

"Look, I get what you're tryin' to say here Riku. My class is feeling pretty darn

frustrated with the situation too. But don't you think it's a little too early to just

give up on Class D? I mean, we can't say for sure that there aren't going to be

more exams like this in the future where all the classes in our grade have gotta

work together, right?" said Takahashi.

While Utomiya had advocated for ostracizing Class D, Yagami had continued

to maintain that they needed to support Class D. Takahashi, meanwhile, didn't

really take a firm stance on either side, remaining in the middle.

"If we just need to work together to tackle this exam, then we'll be fine if it's

just us our three classes. I'll admit that yes, there certainly are some capable

people in Class D that we could use, but they're not worth enough to the point

where I want to make a request to Housen and try to get in his good graces.

Besides, it's just about time for our meeting to start. I'd like our three classes to

start talking about reaching an agreement between ourselves," said Utomiya.

Just then, almost as if he had anticipated how their conversation was going to

go, the person in question appeared, with a relaxed attitude.

"'Fraid that things aren't gonna work out that way, Riku," said Housen.

"It seems like you came after all then, eh, Housen-kun?" replied Yagami,

greeting Housen with a smile on his face.

On the other hand, Housen approached the three of them while bearing his

white teeth in an unnerving manner, like he usually did. Utomiya shot a quick

glance over at Housen, and then averted his eyes, looking out the window.

"Hey Kazuomi, who showed up at a great time!" exclaimed Takahashi in a

friendly manner, without fear of Housen.

Takahashi's feeling was that he wanted everyone to get along. That's all that

he wanted.

"Don't say my name like we're all buddy-buddy. I'll kill you," snapped Housen.

Housen, after trying to intimidate Takahashi, turned his eyes back to Yagami

and Utomiya.

"So, decided to pay up?" he asked.

"Don't make lame jokes. We're not paying you a single point," replied

Utomiya.

"Now, now, let's calm down, okay? We can't hold a discussion if you're fixing

for a fight right from the get-go," said Yagami.

"All right, now that everyone's here, I guess we can get this thing started. For

the groups, we—"

"Don't just start yammerin' outta nowhere," snapped Housen, shoving

Takahashi by his shoulder, causing him to fall down hard on his bottom.

Utomiya, displeased by Housen's actions, shot him an intense glare.

"Housen. Don't bring your violent attitude here."

"Oh? What, you plannin' on gettin' in my way?" replied Housen.

"If necessary, yeah," said Utomiya.

"Hmph, ain't that interestin'. If you feel like you can bring it, then go ahead

and try," said Housen.

When Housen raised his left hand in the air, Takahashi scrambled back to his

feet.

"Wait, wait, hold on! Look, I just slipped and fell, that's all, man. Come on,

calm down, Riku," shouted Takahashi, in a panic.

"See, that's all it was, yeah?" said Housen.

"Unfortunately for you, I'm not as nice as Takahashi," replied Utomiya.

"In that case, why don't ya show me what ya got?"

Just when Housen made a fist, Utomiya reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Oh…?"

Housen smiled happily upon feeling the strength of Utomiya's grip being

applied to his arm. The look in Utomiya's eyes showed that what he was doing

wasn't just for show. He had the determination to fight right then and there if

necessary. Housen had thought it'd be fun to have a fistfight right there, but

then he reconsidered it. Housen certainly craved fighting against the other

grade levels more than anyone else, although he did things in a unique way.

"Well, seems like I'm gonna have fun playin' with you. I'll save the fun for

later, though," said Housen.

"You think violence is a game, do you?" replied Utomiya.

"Sure it is," answered Housen.

"How stupid. But if that's what you want, then I'll give it to you right now. You

don't have to wait until next time. But only on the condition that you never lay

a hand on any of my classmates ever again."

During this situation where things seemed like they could go off at any

moment, both sides glared at each other, unyieldingly.

"Hey, hey, whaddya mean by that, huh?" said Housen.

"It means that I'm guessing you were the one who got Hatano expelled. He

wasn't the kind of student who would have broken school rules so easily," said

Utomiya.

"Come on, that little small fry just got all scared of getting' expelled, and he

blew himself up. That's all it was, right?" said Housen.

"I clearly remember the look on Hatano's face after he got expelled. He got

screwed over by somebody."

"And yer sayin' that's me?" said Housen.

"Who else could it be but you, jerk?" snapped Utomiya.

Although Housen had backed off a little earlier, sparks started flying once

again.

"Hey, come on, calm down, both of you. Riku, if you just start throwing down

right here, you'll just be doing exactly what Kazuomi wants, man," said

Takahashi.

"Takahashi-kun is exactly right. The important thing right now is focusing our

efforts on the upcoming uninhabited island survival exam," added Yagami.

"Oh, right, right, we can make groups with peeps from other classes. That

upcoming special exam," said Housen, speaking as though the thought hadn't

occurred to him at all until just now.

"So what? You refused to work with the other classes. This is none of your

business then, isn't it?" said Utomiya.

"Hey now, if you really insist, and I mean like, really insist, I'll work with ya.

See?" said Housen.

"Enough jokes. I wouldn't team up with you even if you were the last person

standing," replied Utomiya.

"Talk about ice cold," said Housen.

Utomiya slowly released his grip on Housen's arm. Yagami, who had been

watching the situation unfold, cut in right then, determining this moment to be

the right time.

"We're wasting time. Shall we get started?" said Yagami.

"Wait, who said I'm joinin' your little conversation here? I ain't startin'

anything," said Housen.

"Then why did you even come here? Just to kill time?" said Utomiya.

"And if I said yeah?" replied Housen.

"I wouldn't believe you. You're not that stupid," mocked Utomiya.

Even though he was speaking with Housen, Yagami smiled unabashedly.

"This whole uninhabited island survival thing certainly sounds like a farfetched idea, but the second-and third-year students have already experienced

it before. We first-years have to take this test while at a significant

disadvantage," explained Yagami.

"But we're also gonna get a handicap in our favor too though, right?" said

Takahashi.

In the face of the optimistic Takahashi's comment, Yagami continued to

explain his stance in a calm and gentle manner.

"The second-and third-year students have an advance in both academic

ability and physical ability because they're older. That fact remains unchanged.

If we can't work together, the upperclassmen might eat us alive. You see?" said

Yagami.

That was exactly why Yagami was stressing that cooperation amongst their

four classes was essential.

"Spare me your weak sauce nonsense, Yagami. Second-year or third-year, I'm

confident I can crush 'em," said Housen.

"Yes, there are some students who are more exceptionally talented than

others, of course. But there's no hiding the fact that in terms of overall ability,

our grade level is inferior. Not everyone is as blessed as you are, Housen-kun,"

said Yagami.

Yagami's constant gentleness and the fact that he demonstrated he highly

valued Housen's abilities were what kept the conversation from falling apart.

"Which is why I think it's necessary that we need to band together, and form

one optimal group with students from our grade level. One strong group made

up of four people. We need to bring together a group of students who can we

definitely say, similar to what Housen-kun himself had said earlier, won't be

defeated even if they take on second-or third-year students," said Yagami.

"Meaning that we're not going to be competing with each other over Class

Points in this special exam?" said Utomiya.

"The rules make it difficult to cooperate within your grade level, which is why

the second-and third-year students who have less time left here are having a

harder time accepting the lost opportunity for Class Points that comes with this

particular special exam. But we still over two whole years left here. That's why

we should so deliberately forego the Class Points this time around," said

Yagami.

The difference in Class Points between Class A and Class D in their grade level

was still only 300 at most. While Yagami had suggested that there was no need

for them to panic, Utomiya seemed to have different thoughts on the matter

and wrinkled his brow in response.

"The benefits from cooperating with the other classes are too slight, though.

Just throwing away Class Points would be a waste," said Utomiya.

"If we get eaten alive by the upperclassmen though, losing Class Points isn't

the only thing we'll have to worry about," said Yagami.

"But it means no one is going to pull ahead in our grade level, though,"

argued Utomiya, stressing that if problems arise like Yagami suggested after

their battle, then that was simply inevitable.

"Oh, hey, hold on a second. I'm kind of curious about one thing you said

earlier, Takuya. Why just one team? The groups who place in the top three will

all get Class Points, right? Also, if we consider the fact that we can form up into

bigger groups during the actual island part of the exam, then wouldn't it be

better for us to make lots of strong groups?" said Takahashi.

"You are absolutely right. However, if we try to make a lot of strong groups

from the get-go, we're going to have to think about the balance of each group.

We're going against the older students. They aren't going to be easy opponents

for us to beat. In that case, it's important that we focus on making our strongest

possible four-person group, to reliably ensure that we can take first place.

Besides, it sounds like it will be difficult to freely form into larger groups during

the main exam part, and even if the upperclassmen really do their best to work

together, they can still only form three-person groups, representing three

classes," responded Takahashi quickly, in an effort to quell Takahashi's doubts.

After Takahashi heard Yagami's response, he understood what he was getting

at.

"So, if we get first place, the rest doesn't matter. Even in the worst-case

scenario and we throw everything else away," said Takahashi.

"I do think that yes, we could make a strong enough group if we were to

ignore Housen-kun and just work with our own three classes. However, then

we'd be essentially playing by the same rules as the other grade levels. The

reason I'd like all four classes to work together is not just so that we can hand

pick the best possible people. It's also because I think it will help unify our will

to fight together, as one, across our entire grade. We first-year students were

the only ones given the option to create groups of up to four people. It would

be a waste for us to throw away that valuable handicap we were given," said

Yagami.

If Class D alone were left out of the equation, it would naturally lead to a

situation where they would try to hinder everyone else in their attempts to get

first place. And if that happened, it was clear that Class D would do anything

and everything in order to prevent the other classes from winning. Yagami was

saying that if the four classes can cooperate fully, they should shoot for that

ideal structure. Then, Yagami turned to Housen once more.

"I understand that you and you alone can hold your own in a fight against the

older students. So, I hope that you'll lend us a hand," said Yagami, appealing to

Housen that they needed all four classes.

Utomiya though, eyed Housen suspiciously. He didn't think that the person

who had refused to even discuss the matter for more than two weeks would

agree to such a thing.

"All right. I'll work with ya," said Housen.

However, Housen had readily accepted Yagami's proposal.

"…What are you plotting, Housen?" asked Utomiya.

"Whaddya mean, what am I plottin'? You said you wanted my help. And how

can I not listen to such an adorable little request?" replied Housen.

"All right then, let's hear your conditions," said Yagami.

After considering how quickly Housen changed his stance on the matter,

Yagami quickly urged him to speak as not to waste any time.

"Two spots in the main big group gotta be reserved for Class D students. That

is an ironclad requirement," said Housen.

"What?" balked Utomiya, naturally disgusted by Housen's proposal, which

had the possibility of benefitting only his own class.

"But what happens if we can't form the kind of big groups we want on the

island? What then?" said Yagami.

"I already told you. My conditions are that Class D students are included in

the main group. No buts," said Housen.

"I see. If we can't bring two Class D students into the group on the island,

then we'll clear it with just the initial four students," said Yagami.

"'Sides, if we got the four best o' the best in a group to begin with, it

shouldn't really matter, right? Ain't gonna mess with our chances of winnin'."

"That's enough of your crap, Housen," said Utomiya.

"I ain't bullshittin'. If ya don't like it, then you can screw off."

"Look here, jerk…"

Utomiya was about to get up in Housen's face because of the absurd

demands he was making, but Yagami quickly slid in between them, separating

them from each other.

"Please calm down, Utomiya-kun. I'm okay with his condition," said Yagami.

"You're just going to hand them the chance to get all the benefits on a silver

platter?" asked Utomiya.

"Our priority right now is for our grade level to come together as a unified

front. We absolutely cannot lose to the other grades," said Yagami.

"If we just let Housen get what he wants right now by acting this way, he's

gonna do it again," said Utomiya.

"If we abandon Housen-kun's class right here and now, will anything be any

different?" asked Yagami.

"Well, I…"

"What matters is that our grade wins the upcoming exam. Anything else isn't

that big a deal," said Yagami.

"I gotta say, I agree with him on this one, Riku. I understand how you feel, but

first we have to work together as a grade," said Takahashi.

Utomiya clicked his tongue defiantly but gave in thanks to Yagami and

Takahashi's efforts to persuade him.

"Fine then. No other demands on top of that, though. You get that, Housen?"

said Utomiya.

Housen didn't respond to Utomiya's statement though. He simply turned his

back to him as if to say that this was the end of the conversation.

"There's one last thing that I wanted to mention that I think that our grade

needs to be together on. I think that the item cards should be carefully redistributed throughout our entire grade level to avoid any in-fighting, and so

that we can use them to their maximum effectiveness. It's also important to

make sure that the students lacking in ability and in the groups that are more

likely to sink towards the bottom of the ranking have the Half Off card. I assume

that you will agree to that as well, Housen-kun?" asked Yagami.

"Do whatever you want," replied Housen.

Housen then immediately left without any signs of reluctance. While the

three others watched him go, Takahashi leaned over to speak to Yagami.

"Hey, by the way Takumi, who are you plannin' on pickin' from Class B?" he

asked.

"Suffice to say, I think that the four of us who came to this meeting here

today would be the best people for making our strongest group. That includes

Housen-kun, of course. Do you think I'm wrong about that?" said Yagami.

Yagami looked at Takahashi, Utomiya, and then at Housen as he walked away,

with his gentle but piercing gaze.

"Even if we admit that Housen is capable, it's wrong to bring him into the fold.

He's—" said Utomiya, before getting cut off.

"Well, we can take our time and carefully decide who will be in the group

later. Don't you feel like it's enough that we manage to find a unified direction

for the time being?" said Yagami.

"…All right," said Utomiya.

"If we work together, we can get first place. Let's shoot for that, for right

now," said Yagami.

Although Utomiya was reluctant, he still found himself convinced and agreed

to what Yagami had suggested. Afterward, they each went their separate ways.

5.1

AFTER CLASS THE NEXT DAY, at the café in Keyaki Mall.

"I hate that kind of watch. The way the second hand on the clock moves is so

irritating, like tick-tock, tick-tock," said Amasawa, expressing her dislike for the

wristwatch that Housen had on his left arm as he sat directly across from her.

"Ugh, shut the hell up. Do you even have any clue how much this thing is

worth?" he snapped.

"Worth? Is that like a premium one or something? I don't have time to learn

about stuff I hate," said Amasawa.

"Pft, this is why chicks're so stupid," said Housen with a smile, briefly stroking

his watch.

"Hey, look here you… Well, whatever, forget it. So, what did you want?"

asked Amasawa.

"I called you here to talk 'bout the upcoming island exam thing. Team up with

me, Amasawa," said Housen.

"Oh, you want my help again, huh? And on the island too, hm. You thinking

about something naughty?" said Amasawa.

"What?" replied Housen.

Even though Housen furrowed his brow and glared at Amasawa, she

responded by flashing him a devilish grin, without an ounce of fear. Then, after

slowly lowering her crossed legs, Amasawa quietly spread them wide.

"You wanna see my panties? You can peek from under the table if you want.

Okay?" said Amasawa.

If he crawled under the table, he could see right between her spread legs. In

the face of this temptation though, Housen leaned forward, placing his right

elbow on the table.

"You seriously think I won't raise my hand against a girl?" said Housen.

"Oh no, I do think you would, absolutely. Don't worry. I figure you're the type

who would have no problem beating on a girl without a second thought," said

Amasawa.

"In that case, stop spoutin' stupid crap. It's a waste of time," said Housen.

"Oh, a waste of time, hm? Well, all right then, let's hear it. Your plan. Why are

you inviting me?" asked Amasawa.

"'Cause you got the kinda guts not to hesitate when it comes to gettin'

Ayanokouji expelled," said Housen.

"Well, sure? I mean, there are lots of people who know about the bounty and

aren't doing anything about it, or they're willing to take a shot but only halfheartedly. I figure that if there's two million at stake, you would do everything

in your power to crush it. Isn't that normal?" said Amasawa, without showing

any signs of shame or guilt whatsoever. "So, what am I gonna get in return for

helping you? I'm not cheap, you know."

Just then, after Amasawa had asked Housen what she could get for this, a

stern voice came from behind her.

"We will all be equal. I believe I said as much before."

That voice belonged to none other than Nanase, who had arrived at this

gathering slightly late.

"Equal? Wow, you've got such a cute face, but your words sure aren't that

sweet. You just came right out and said it. So, does Housen-kun appreciate the

fact that you're not timid at all?" said Amasawa.

The three of them were now seated around the table.

"All right. So, Housen-kun was thinking of having us three together in a group.

Who's the fourth person though?" said Amasawa.

"Don't need a fourth. The winner o' this island exam thing ain't gonna be

anyone from the second-years or third-years. It's gonna be us three," said

Housen.

"Wow, aren't you the confident one? But it does seem like there are lots of

senior students who're tougher than the first-years, don't you think?" said

Amasawa.

"Doesn't matter. I'm gonna crush 'em all," said Housen.

"Well, supposing even if you're number one in terms of ability, Housen-kun…

Didn't we first-years talk about cooperating? You know, all four classes

together? If we're talking about the heavy hitters in Class D, then I'm pretty

sure that you two would be the top picks for that, right?" Amasawa.

"I'm the one in charge of Class D. That's for me to decide. You get what I

mean?" said Housen.

"Yeah, you mean that you're going to unashamedly send in a couple of small

fries from Class D to represent us as our main forces, for the group. You're

gonna be making enemies in all directions," teased Amasawa.

"That all depends on what you consider the criteria for our 'main forces' to

be. If we send in students who have high academic or physical ability at the very

least, then there won't be that much risk. Besides, if we place Housen-kun in

that supposed strongest group, there will be problems," said Nanase.

"Yeah, sure seems like he doesn't exactly play well with others, that's for

sure. In that sense, it's safer that we leave him out of that group. Anyway, back

to the topic at hand, how much are you gonna give me?" said Amasawa.

"There aren't any points for us to give you. As I had just said earlier, we will be

equals in this partnership. Of course, we will give you an equal share of the

Private Points that Class D receives," replied Nanase, implicating adding, "Is that

not enough to satisfy you?"

"But it's not like our level of contribution is necessarily equal though, is it?

After all, I'm confident that I can contribute more than anyone else, on the

uninhabited island or wherever. Seems like this exam is gonna take an awful lot

of stamina. Nanase-chan, you're a little cutie. Can you keep up with me?" said

Amasawa.

"Shall we test that?" replied Nanase, responding to Amasawa's provocations

with one of her own.

Amasawa turned her gaze onto Housen for a moment, but then without

warning, Amasawa extended her arm, reaching for Nanase's face. She was

intending to catch Nanase off guard and surprise her with a slap to the face to

rattle her. However, Nanase didn't show any hesitation either and quickly

grabbed hold of Amasawa's arm as she extended it towards her.

"You're pretty bold, aren't you? Thinking you can test me right here,"

snapped Nanase, in a harsh tone.

"Oh wow. You can hold your own pretty good, huh? I just love strong girls,"

said Amasawa.

"You're not exactly normal either," said Nanase.

"Hm, maybe? Wanna test things a little more?" said Amasawa.

While one of them was smiling, the other was stone-faced. It was as if they

were spending that time assessing each other's strength.

"You, me, and Nanase are gonna make a group of three. Got it?" said Housen.

"Well, I get that Nanase-chan can hold her own more or less, but I still can't

think that we're really on equal terms, y'know."

"Why? Is that because the two of us are from Class D?" asked Nanase.

"I don't care about that. I mean, sure, it seems like the Private Points will be

evenly split between everyone, sure. It's just… Well, since you're asking me to

help you, I think need something extra for it," said Amasawa, putting her left

hand into a fist, and then making the gesture of asking for a tip by pinching her

thumb and index finger together and then rubbing them.

"I mean, it's only natural you'd wanna sell yourself for a high price if someone

comes along and wants to pay you for your services, right?" added Amasawa.

"You sure got a hell of an ego. Man, you chicks, both you and Nanase, have

more guts than Yagami and Takahashi," said Housen.

"Oh, don't you know? Girls these days are stronger than boys," said

Amasawa.

"All right then, fine. I'll hear you out. What do you want, aside from the group

rewards?" asked Housen.

"Getting first place, of course. But that's not the only important thing here,"

said Amasawa.

Then, Amasawa stopped making the tip gesture with her left hand, and

brought her hand up to her neck with her thumb raised and pressed against her

neck. Then she slowly slid her thumb from the right side of her neck to her left,

in an execution gesture.

"I get everything. All the points from getting Ayanokouji-senpai expelled.

That's my condition for helping you," said Amasawa.

"Pfft. Now you're really makin' some unreasonable demands. Those are terms

I can't just sit back and agree to so easily," said Housen.

"Oh, so are you gonna turn me down then? But what are you going to do

without me? If you don't have any allies you can trust aside from Nanase-chan,

you're going to have a pretty tough time in this special exam, aren't you?" said

Amasawa.

Just like Amasawa had suggested earlier, Housen had already been making

enemies on all sides. Moreover, since the four classes were planning to work

together, if Housen went ahead and just formed his own group aside from

them, there was no way other students would be willing to give him a hand. At

least no one besides an odd duck like Amasawa, that is.

"And besides, if I team up with Housen-kun, I'll be even more isolated in Class

A than I already am. Isn't it only natural that I'd ask for appropriate

compensation in exchange before I could say yes to you?" said Amasawa.

Housen and Amasawa exchanged long, hard looks.

"It's true that if you hand over the entire bounty to me for getting him

expelled, that means you won't be getting a single point yourself. But you'll get

all the credit for being the one who got Ayanokouji-senpai expelled, Housenkun. Isn't that good enough?" said Amasawa.

"There's no need to accept her conditions. If you think about our future, if

Class A were to get an extra twenty million points, then—"

"Shut up, Nanase," said Housen, cutting Nanase off before she could finish

giving her advice, as he continued to stare intently into Amasawa's eyes.

"I'll give you the bounty," said Housen.

"Thanks. You know, I think the fact you're not a stingy tightwad is actually

pretty lovely," said Amasawa, getting up from her seat in a smooth motion.

"Looking forward to the exam!" she added.

Now that negotiations had been concluded, Amasawa had decided there

wasn't any reason to stick around much longer and she left without batting an

eye.

"Are you really okay with this?" asked Nanase.

"It's fine," replied Housen.

"I understand. It is your decision to make. But are you sure it's okay to trust

Amasawa-san? I think she's the type of person who would betray her partners

without losing any sleep over it," said Nanase.

"Trust? Don't just assume I'm trusting her. I don't trust her or you," said

Housen.

"Then why did you decided to make a group with her?" asked Nanase.

"'Cause she's different than the rest of the trash out there. There are parts of

her I can't figure out. Just like with you," said Housen.

"I see. I suppose you might be right about that. But even so, twenty million

points is an absurd condition," said Nanase.

"It was just a verbal agreement. I don't give a damn about it. As long as the

fact remains clear that I'm the one who got Ayanokouji expelled, then I'll be

gettin' those points, of course. Doesn't matter to me if she comes cryin' about it

later," said Housen.

Housen was saying that he never had any intention of honoring his promise

from the beginning.

"You really are a terrible person," said Nanase.

"Don't matter if it's Ayanokouji, Ryuuen, or anybody else. Anybody comes

barin' their fangs at me, I'll crush 'em. I'm gettin' fed up, bein' all caught up in

the crazy stupid rules at this school," said Housen, looking like he was having so

much fun that he could hardly contain his laughter.

5.2

SUMMER VACATION was approaching. It was now July 6. With the exception of

Akito, who was on headed over to his club activities, everyone in our group was

gathered around my seat near the entrance to the classroom. That was because

we had promised to meet up at Keisei's room later. As soon as we had left the

classroom though, I was approached by Kushida, who called out to me.

"Ayanokouji-kun, may I have a moment?" asked Kushida.

"What's up?" I asked.

This was a bit unusual though, as I had been approached by Kushida less and

less frequently as of late. Even though I sent her points once a month as per our

agreement, all we did was make an exchange. We didn't engage in

conversation. And since the number of Private Points each person in class

received would normally be the same, there wasn't any need for students to

thoroughly check every person's account for anything.

"To tell you the truth, a first-year student says that they want to meet with

you, Ayanokouji-kun… Would right now be a bad time?" asked Kushida.

Kushida gave an apologetic glance to the Haruka and the others in the group,

and then continued speaking.

"I think that it'll probably take about an hour or so. They asked me to help set

up a meeting between you," she added.

"What's up, Kiyopon? Maybe some first-year girl is gonna tell you she's got

the hots for you or something?" teased Haruka, her joke causing Airi to panic.

"H-huh whaaat?! R-really?!" wailed Airi.

"If it is true, then I feel like we can't allow him to go," concluded Haruka.

She was the one who arbitrarily suggested it was about a girl, and now she

was arbitrarily telling me that she was not giving me permission.

"…Is that true?" I asked, deciding that I ought to check with Kushida if it

actually was the case, just to be on the safe side.

"Huh? U-uh, well… It was a boy who said that he wanted to meet with you…

Sorry," said Kushida, apologizing to me with a somewhat uncomfortable look on

her face.

Well, she really didn't need to apologize to me for that at all though. Even

though I didn't think it was something like what Haruka suggested in the first

place anyway, I was relieved to her Kushida tell me that.

"Well, it's fine for you to go, don'cha think? I mean, I think it's a good thing to

have a little tête-à-tête with the new kids, right?" said Haruka.

"Yeah, I agree. Our circle of friends isn't particularly good at relationships with

people, so it wouldn't be a bad idea for Kiyotaka to get to know some more

first-years," replied Keisei.

Putting aside whatever this student's intentions were, Haruka and Keisei were

saying it would be a good thing to at least have some face time, if only a little.

Airi felt relieved that it wasn't anything romantic and appeared happy and

willing to send me off. In that case, I supposed there wasn't any reason for me

to refuse the offer.

"Okay. What am I supposed to do?" I asked.

"Oh, thank you! Um, well, I'll go ahead and tell him that you said it was okay,

Ayanokouji-kun," replied Kushida.

Kushida then took out her phone and started dialing someone's number.

"Welp, we'll be heading out then already. We'll meet up with you later," said

Haruka.

And with that brief exchange, the other members of the Ayanokouji Group

went on back to the dormitory ahead of me.

"Sorry about that," said Kushida.

I'm guessing that the call must not have connected yet, because Kushida had

apologized to me, with the phone still up against her ear.

"It's no big deal. Nobody in my group is going to complain about something

like this anyway," I replied.

Shortly afterward, the first-year boy seemed to have answered the call, and it

connected.

"Oh, hello? Yes, Ayanokouji-kun says he'll meet up with you now. Okay. Yeah,

okay. Oh, really? Well, we'll just wait here, then," said Kushida.

Kushida had finished her call in less than ten seconds.

"It seems like he's already headed this way. Let's just wait here so that we

don't miss him then, okay?" said Kushida.

Apparently, this new student who wanted to meet with me had already set

his signs on the second-year classrooms.

"It seems like you're already on pretty good terms with the new students,

Kushida," I told her.

"Huh? Oh, well, it is already July, right? I think that's already plenty of time…"

she replied.

"…Yeah, I suppose so," I replied.

It had already been more than three months since the new students had

arrived at this school. As I gazed out the hallway window, I saw the sun shining

high in the sky, with its shining, scorching hot rays hitting the ground down

below. It was just about time for the first great chorus of the year of the cicadas

to begin. So, I supposed that from my perspective as someone who has trouble

communicating with others, it's "only" been three months, but for Kushida, that

was more than enough time to connect with people, huh?

"Ayanokouji-kun, have you made any friends out of the new students?" asked

Kushida.

She had said that in such a way that it sounded like it was only natural that I

should or would have, but no, that wasn't the case.

"I still haven't met anyone I could call a friend, no," I replied.

"I-I see. Well… There's no need to rush. There's still lots of time," said

Kushida.

Kushida had offered me kind, considerate words, but her assurance seemed

somewhat hollow. There were certainly several first-year students that I've

started talking to, sure. However, we hadn't developed any kind of relationship

where we'd be contacting each other privately. My conversation with Kushida

came to a sudden stop once the mood got awkward. Just when I was wondering

about what I should talk to Kushida about next as we stood here in the hallway,

the first-year student in question showed up.

"Kushida-senpai."

The student who appeared after just turning the corner was none other than

Yagami Takuya, who had attended the same junior high as both Horikita and

Kushida. Seeing Yagami's appearance as a chance for her to dispel the

awkwardness hanging in the air, Kushida flashed a smile.

"Yagami-kun is the boy who said that he wanted to meet with you,

Ayanokouji-kun," said Kushida.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you, Ayanokouji-senpai. Thank you for making the

time to meet with me today," said Yagami.

Because he was a first-year student who was reaching out to me via Kushida, I

had a certain idea of what he was like in mind.

"If I remember right… You're in Class 1-B, right?" I replied.

"Yes, that's exactly right. My name is Yagami Takuya."

As one of the bystanders who saw what happened during that fiasco before

with the new students, I remember that I saw Yagami there, but I didn't end up

speaking with him at all. This was the first time we had actually had a

conversation, right now, before the start of summer. It was said that he had

emerged as the leader of Class 1-B, but I had to wonder how far his influence

has reached. He was affable, friendly, and had a cute look. That, combined with

his prominent level of academic ability, made it seem like he was quite popular.

"Well, I suppose it might not be appropriate for us to have our conversation

standing around here, but how would you feel about heading to my room? I

actually have just gotten my hands on some rather rare black tea leaves that I

had ordered. It takes a while to brew, but it is quite delicious," said Yagami,

adding that if I would like some, he would love for me to partake.

I didn't normally drink black tea, so I was a little curious. But if we did that,

then we might not be able to get this meeting completely wrapped up within

the hour.

"Oh, sorry Yagami-kun. To tell you the truth, Ayanokouji-kun is supposed to

be meeting up with some friends later. I think it would be better if the meeting

could be kept under an hour, if possible…" said Kushida.

Kushida had guessed that Yagami's proposal would take some time, so she

went ahead and gracefully rejected his offer on my behalf.

"I see. That's all right. Well then, how about we have our talk in the café at

Keyaki Mall?" he suggested.

Although he seemed a bit disappointed, Yagami readily went along with it,

having understood my situation.

"Well, let's be going then. Shall we, Ayanokouji-kun?" said Kushida.

I nodded in response, deciding to head over to Keyaki Mall together with

Kushida and Yagami.

"Oh yes, that reminds me. The special exam on the uninhabited island is

about to begin, right? Kushida-senpai, Ayanokouji-senpai, you had experienced

a similar exam last year, right?" asked Yagami.

"Yes. It was a tough time," said Kushida.

"Could you possibly tell me what rules there were in that exam? And about

what had happened then? We first-year students don't have the benefit of that

experience, so we'd like to least gather some information," said Yagami.

"Well, I don't mind sharing that with you, but…I'm not too sure if it'll be

useful. It does seem like the rules this year are completely different from what

they were last year," said Kushida.

"Yes, I understand. I've also heard that the exam that you had taken was

different from the island exam that the third-year students had before as well,"

said Yagami.

"Oh yes, now that you mention it, the third-year students did have an

uninhabited island exam too, didn't they?" said Kushida.

"From the sounds of it, they had also taken it in their first year, like you. It

seems that before, this uninhabited island special exam had only been

conducted once during a student's educational career at this school… Is this

year an exception? Or has the rule changed starting this year?" asked Yagami.

Apparently, Yagami had a lot more information than we did.

"Do you find it strange? That I have information about the third-year

students?" asked Yagami.

Yagami had directed his comment at me. I had been quietly listening up until

that point.

"It's because I joined the student council. In doing so, I was able to ask

President Nagumo, and he gave me new insights into the uninhabited island

survival exam that had been held the year before last. At the time, students

were divided into groups of four within their classes, and a total of twelve

groups had competed with each other, apparently," said Yagami.