(Introduction)
Thursday; The weekend would soon be upon us. I brought Horikita along with me to the library after classes were done for the day.
This was because we had arranged to hold a discussion with the Class 1-D students that Nanase would be bringing along with her today.
On the way to the library, Horikita and I spoke with each other about the special exam.
"Have you taken a look at today's OAA update yet?"
"17 more pairs were finalized, bringing the total up to 73."
While the number of new pairs wasn't all that unexpected, there was one thing that made this update distinctly different from the previous two.
Two students from Class 1-D had decided on a partner.
Slight traces of activity could be seen within the class that had laid dormant over the past three days.
"I'm a little annoyed. I thought Hōsen-kun would wait and see how the situation developed for a little while longer. I tried to make some light conversations with several Class 1-D students during lunch today, but they all just brushed me off by saying they didn't know anything about the two students who were involved."
"There's a fine line between them actually not knowing anything and them having a gag order in place."
It wouldn't be surprising if they had been instructed not to leak any information nor partner up with someone unless they receive a substantial number of points.
"That's true. Either way, it's good that we've decided to meet with Nanase-san after this. If it's her, we might be able to ask her about it too."
Horikita had only ever made contact with Nanase once, and they had never really had a proper conversation with each other.
Nevertheless, Nanase, the girl who had been together with Hōsen, stood out as a student who seemed easy to communicate with.
I had personally felt a strong impression of honesty back when I had spoken with her.
Somehow, she had a straightforward, upright personality that reminded me of Ichinose.
We arrived at the library and set foot inside.
"Oh my. It seems the library has some rare visitors."
The first person to greet us was not Nanase, but rather, Class 2-C's Shiina Hiyori.
As expected of a bookworm, it seemed she had made her way here as soon as school was out for the day.
"It might be just a little noisy today. We're here to have a discussion with some first-year students about the special exam."
"I see. Well, I think the seats at the far end of the room should be good for that. That way, you won't be too much of a nuisance to the other library patrons, so it should be alright for you to talk a bit. If someone tries to approach you, you'll be able to notice right away."
We opted to take the advice that Hiyori had considerately offered to us.
"Are things going well in Class C?"
"Yes. There's a lot going on right now."
Because our classes were direct competitors, it was difficult for her to let us know about the internal affairs of her class.
We parted ways with Hiyori after exchanging a few more simple words and decided to go take a seat since we had arrived before Nanase. Although I was vaguely concerned about Hiyori's situation, I went along with Horikita to the seats at the far end of the room.
"Nanase-san aside, now that we're getting involved with Class 1-D, the question is whether or not Hōsen-kun will show up."
"That's right. Whether or not he comes with her will make all the difference."
Since there weren't any prior restrictions on who could come, there was no guarantee that Hōsen wouldn't tag along with her.
In which case, we would have to negotiate a big deal under rather turbulent conditions.
"Can I ask you something before we get to the full-blown discussion? Have you been studying?"
"Well, somewhat. Is there something wrong with that?"
"As I've got the advantage of choosing the subject we'll compete in, I've just been wondering if you've been taking enough time to study."
"Why? Are you trying to show humanity to your enemy or something?"
"No way. I'm not so kind that I'd give up my own advantage. This is a competition I must win."
Although she says this, she still seemed to care about whether I was studying properly or not.
In other words, she was worried that I'd end up making excuses if I lost our bet, saying that I had been too busy with the special exam to study.
"I could say the same to you, given that you've spent all your time trying to put Class 2-D in order recently."
"I'm just as diligent with my studies as always, so there are no problems on my end."
It seemed she was pretty confident in her daily study routine.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to lose."
"It's fine if that's the case, but…"
She didn't exactly trust me so she didn't really think I was taking our bet very seriously.
There was one more thing I wanted to ask her in relation to that. Horikita had many different shoes to fill. On top of working to organize the class, she had to both study for herself, and tutor others. I wasn't sure if she could keep this pace until the day of the exam. However, just as I was about to ask her about it, Nanase arrived at the library alone. She noticed the two of us immediately, bowing her head before she approached. It seemed that Hōsen wouldn't be showing up for the initial discussion.
"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Senpai."
"We only just got here ourselves."
Greetings were shared as Horikita motioned for Nanase to take the seat on the other side of the table. The discussion had begun.
"I'll reintroduce myself… I'm Horikita Suzune. Thank you for taking the time to hold this discussion with us today."
"I─ No, that's not right… I am known as Nanase Tsubasa. I haven't done anything worthy of your thanks. Rather, I should be the one expressing my thanks to the two of you." (TLN: The first 'I' Nanase uses here is Boku, whereas the second and all future pronouns she uses for herself in this part is Watashi. I have no idea how to translate it so I'm just doing this to explain it as it's an important detail later.)
They were fellow Class D students, both having started from the very bottom.
As soon as she heard Nanase's polite introduction and response, Horikita cut to the chase.
"This might seem rather intrusive, but could I ask you about something?"
"Of course."
"First of all, as a baseline premise, I'd like to hear about Class 1-D's policy moving forward. Only today did two students in your class finally decide on their partners. However, the direction of the remaining 38 students is still up in the air. You're one of them, aren't you Nanase-san?"
While it wasn't known if it was Hōsen or another Class 1-D student, it was clear that somebody was giving the class instructions.
"You're correct. I thought that you'd inquire about that. You asked Kajiwara-kun this very same question earlier today, right?"
Kajiwara was the name of one of the many students in Class 1-D. Apparently, Nanase had already found out that Horikita had attempted to contact several Class 1-D students during lunch today. In which case, it seemed reasonable to assume that Nanase also knew that we had contacted Shiratori and his friends on the first day of the exam.
"I'm surprised. It seems you guys do a great job reporting, communicating, and discussing things."
"Many students have already begun taking action in accordance with Hōsen-kun's orders."
Instead of being ambiguous, Nanase readily confirmed that Hōsen was the one in charge.
"Is it because of his aggressive attitude? No… I think there's more to it than that. What on earth did he do?"
Nanase pondered for a moment before finally opening her mouth to speak.
"I'm immensely sorry, but I'm afraid I can't provide you with any specifics. It's a strategy that Hōsen-kun has come up with in order to unify the class. Although I don't know if his strategy is correct or not, leaking the information to an outsider would be an act of betrayal."
"Oh well. You've made the correct choice."
In response to Horikita's words, Nanase lightly bowed her head in appreciation. Just because we were her upperclassmen didn't mean she had to tell us everything. Just as she had expressed in her conversation with me yesterday, Nanase possessed the resolution expected of a student devoted to her class.
"Then, let's get down to business. I'd like to know if our class can collaborate with Class 1-D, just like the two people who finalized their partners yesterday."
"I believe you've heard this from Shiratori-kun already, but our doors are always open to you. As long as you present us with at least a fixed number of private points, we'll accept the partnership without the slightest bit of hesitation."
Sure enough, our conversation with Shiratori and his friends had managed to reach Hōsen's ears.
From this, I could hazard a guess that the two Class 1-D students in question had been bought for a large number of private points.
"But what I'm asking for today is completely different from settling an agreement with points."
"I understand that. I heard a little about it from Ayanokōji-senpai before, but you're looking to establish a cooperative relationship where our classes help cover for the more academically incapable students, correct?"
"That's right. The fact that you've come here despite knowing that, already leads me to believe that we have room to negotiate, right?"
"There is─ or at least that's what I'd like to think."
With that, Nanase's expression clouded over before she continued.
"Hōsen-kun's way of thinking is thoroughly rooted in the mindset of individualism, and he enforces that on those around him. At this rate, the students with low Academic Ability ratings won't be able to find partners and will end up getting left behind. While it's not a very big problem that they'll lose out on three months of private points, I fear that they'll be branded as losers who weren't able to find themselves a partner. Well, no, that might not be that big of an issue either… What really gets to me is the thought that this individualistic mindset might never go away, preventing us from being able to unite as a class in the future."
After hearing what Nanase had to say, Horikita vocalized her predictions on what she thought might happen to Class 1-D moving forward.
"Yeah. If nobody is ever willing to help the class as a whole, the ongoing individualist battle would naturally accelerate. The weaker students would have no choice but to fend for themselves. And, as soon as that becomes the expected standard, nobody will be willing to help each other, even if somebody asks for it. The class wouldn't be in any position to do something if confronted with an exam that requires cohesion."
That was why, in order to avoid that, Nanase was willing to single-handedly take part in negotiations with Horikita.
"You're not afraid of Hōsen-kun, Nanase-san?"
"Yes."
An immediate, unfazed response. And then, Nanase turned and set her sights on me for the first time since we started the discussion. She had that same look in her eyes that I had seen only twice before. I was reminded of what I had heard yesterday, when she had said 'I will never yield to violence.' Although I wasn't without concerns about her identity, Nanase may very well be the only person capable of bringing Class 1-D over to our side.
If we had truly met through a chance encounter, then I was honestly grateful for her.
"Then, let me ask you more of an in-depth question here. How many students are struggling to find partners right now in Class 1-D? Please tell me to the extent you know you can answer, Academic Ability ratings aside."
While the OAA app would tell you which students hadn't found a partner yet, it didn't say anything about whether or not a given student was likely to find a partner.
For that, you had no choice but to ask somebody personally involved with the class in order to find out.
"At this point, I believe that approximately fifteen students would find it difficult to search for a partner on their own."
"Fifteen… That's more than I expected."
However, many Class 2-D students hadn't decided on a partner yet either.
As long as they coordinated properly, there should be enough room for our classes to work together.
"Nanase-san. If you'll allow for it, I'd like to come to an agreement with you and your class."
"An agreement, is it?"
"I'm hoping that you and I can decide on a combination of fifteen sets of partners and get this over with all at once. It wouldn't matter what Academic Ability rating they might have. And, naturally, there wouldn't be any points involved either. It would be an equal, collaborative relationship based on helping those who need to be helped."
In other words, a relationship based on an understanding of mutual concessions and compromises.
As we would be giving and taking from each other, private points and feelings wouldn't need to get involved.
The chances of somebody being expelled would go down a lot with the establishment of this agreement alone.
However, things weren't that simple, and both Horikita and Nanase were aware of that as well.
"This is on the premise that we can make that agreement in the first place, but there is no guarantee that we will be able to save those in Horikita-senpai's class with Academic Ability in the vicinity of an E rating. The majority of the students in my class who are struggling to find partners have Academic Ability ratings of C or D."
If, for example, the maximum Academic Ability rating they were willing to put forward was a C+, there would still be huge risks associated with pairing them up with someone who has an E rating from our class. It wouldn't be unreasonable to say that, for us, the disadvantages would be far more prevalent.
"That's why I'll need you to do your best to make sure it doesn't turn out like that."
"Yes, I know. Even if that's the case, I still don't believe we will come to an agreement very easily."
Nanase spoke her thoughts without denying anything.
"Hōsen-kun would never allow us to help you out for free. Especially not now."
Class 2-A had managed to maintain a high number of class points ever since enrollment and had an ample amount of funds saved up as a result. Class 2-C, despite coughing up a large number of points to save Ryūen late last year, had the luxury of a steady supply of funds due to their contract with Katsuragi and Class A. The Class 2-C students probably had a certain amount of points saved up as well.
Given that the two classes were contending for students with such a huge number of points on the table, it was only natural for the first-years to sell themselves to the highest bidder.
You could say that Hōsen's plan, the policy he had put in place, was the best way to handle this exam.
However, while asking prices were high across the board, there was no doubt that Class 1-D was asking for much higher prices than all the other first-year classes.
This was evident by the low number of Class 1-D students who had already finalized their partners.
"Even though it would benefit everyone in his class? There shouldn't be any downsides in it for him."
The downside was that the students who weren't able to join with a partner wouldn't receive the private points they would've gotten otherwise. Though, this was probably implied by this point.
"I understand what you're trying to say, Horikita-senpai. I can also get behind the vast majority of what you've outlined for me so far."
It looked like, personally, Nanase was impressed with Horikita's proposition.
However.
"It's just… I still don't think Hōsen-kun will allow it."
There was a short silence. I could vaguely guess what she happened to be thinking about, so I spoke up.
"The only thing I know for sure is that Hōsen isn't just collecting points for himself."
"What do you mean?"
"I originally thought Hōsen was demanding a huge number of points for partnerships because he wanted to horde all of the points for himself. But if that were the case, he'd be actively looking to help his classmates with low Academic Ability ratings. In the most extreme scenario, he'd be reaching out to those students, telling them to just hand over the points they'd get and he'd find them a partner."
"That's indeed true… Three month's worth of private points is nothing to sneeze at. I'd rather give half of the points to Hōsen-kun and save myself instead of failing the exam and not getting any points at all."
Judging from his actions so far and what I could gather from conversations with Nanase, that wasn't what he was doing at all.
"It's just as Ayanokōji-senpai has speculated. Hōsen-kun has not received any compensation from our classmates."
He was controlling the class, imposing rules.
And then, when someone breaks those rules, they'd be completely ostracized by Hōsen and the students who followed him.
Therefore, they wouldn't dare find a partner without Hōsen's permission. They couldn't.
The Class 1-D students didn't show up at the meet-and-greet because they knew it'd be useless to attend from the very beginning.
"Couldn't you use your influence to control even a couple of the academically capable students in your class?"
Horikita wasn't asking for anything in return for her proposal. It was merely an act of mutual cooperation between classes.
Compared to the second-year students, the first-year students didn't have as much of an emotional attachment to their class and friends.
It was just too unreasonable to expect them to have bonded within the first week or two after enrollment.
"I've tried asking several of them, but none have said that they'd be willing to consider it."
"So compensation is still an absolute requirement?"
"If we only need a couple of people, couldn't we just make an agreement using points?"
I asked Horikita the question. If our goal was to take first place overall like Class 2-A and 2-C, we'd need an enormous sum of points to recruit such a large number of capable students. However, since our goal is just to prevent expulsions, we only needed to recruit a couple of students, so the monetary cost would be reduced accordingly.
"Yes… If we really end up with no other options, that's what we'll have to do. But a relationship built upon private points can only be further maintained with more private points. I want a relationship that goes beyond that."
After responding to me, Horikita turned and looked straight at Nanase.
"What do you mean by that, Horikita-senpai?"
"Right now, the first-years and second-years are on different playing fields. First-years like you are at the advantage because you don't have to bear the risks of expulsion. However, that dynamic surely won't last forever. Sooner or later, the day will come when you have to face the risk of expulsion as well. If you've never done anything more than establish relationships that revolve around points, what are you going to do when the time comes and Class 1-D doesn't have enough?"
While some students would probably be saved, chances are that there would also be those who would not.
"That's why I want to work with you as equals without creating a hierarchical relationship based on points. And, I want to build up trust. A special relationship of trust that comes from being in different school years."
With this, Horikita was advocating that, when a Class 1-D student was in trouble, they'll be able to consult with us on an equal footing. In short, it was similar to the trust-focused strategy Ichinose was implementing.
The primary difference being that it didn't require the entire grade's cooperation, but just that of a single class.
Horikita wasn't looking to appeal to everyone. She was just limiting the scope of our cooperative efforts to Class 1-D.
We had already embarked on the fourth day of the special exam. We couldn't afford to waste too much of our time.
This had probably given Nanase a solid understanding of Horikita's intentions.
But even so, her strained expression never brightened.
"I completely understand what you're saying, but I don't think my peers can understand that yet. Most of the first-year student body is eager to save up as many private points as possible. Given that, partnering up with somebody without any form of compensation would be seen as nothing more than a waste."
In this respect, the only option was to give them time to understand how the school worked.
"So basically, you're saying that there are two obstacles to working together with Class 1-D right now. Persuading Hōsen-kun, and persuading the honor students who want points. The latter of which remains the same no matter which class you're dealing with, but…"
It was true that, at least on the surface, the benefits that would come with working together with Class 1-D seemed small because of the many obstacles, Hōsen in particular, that would need to be overcome. However, the reality was different.
Was Horikita aware of this as well?
"Please let me discuss things with Hōsen-kun."
Horikita voiced her request, having decided that it was impossible to move discussions forward any further than this without Hōsen.
"You're right… If we want to push this relationship any further, I suppose there's no getting around it."
"I'd be ready to meet with him right now, if that's alright with you."
"Okay. I'll go call him."
Nanase took out her cell phone and headed toward the entrance of the library.
"It seems that Hōsen-kun's influence is more widespread than I imagined."
"Yeah."
"Trying to work together with Class 1-D like this… I'm not making a mistake, right?"
"Establishing a relationship that looks forward to the future isn't a bad idea. You could even say that it'll be essential. Sakayanagi and Ryūen have been trying to build up trusting relationships with the talented first-year students using their reputation and points. Ichinose doesn't have any points whatsoever, but she's trying to build up her own trusting relationships by saving the weak. And your strategy is similar to Ichinose, but you're trying to build up trust with only one class, right? The strategies all take different shapes and sizes, but in the end they're all the same. You're already in the process of becoming a leader capable of competing with the three of them."
Horikita nodded lightly upon hearing my words. With this, it was up to her to make sure that the negotiations ran smoothly.
After waiting for a while, we noticed Nanase poke her head back through the entrance and beckon us over to her.
"I wonder if something happened?"
"Let's go and find out."
The two of us left the library and joined back up with Nanase.
"Pardon me, Senpais. Uhm… Hōsen-kun is on the line."
Nanase held out her muted phone, presenting it to Horikita.
Horikita took the phone, set it to speaker mode, and set about confronting Hōsen.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
[Yo. I've heard the gist of it from Nanase.]
"I'd like to meet in person and explain it to you myself, if I could."
[No need. Meetin' up won't do jack shit.]
After an audible laugh in the background of the call, Hōsen spoke.
"By that… you mean you're not even willing to negotiate?"
[Exactly. I didn't even wanna talk with ya on the phone, but Nanase was bein' stuck up 'bout it.]
"But Hōsen-kun, I think we should consider what Horikita-senpai has to say."
[Shut up bitch. Who the fuck you think you are? Huh? I'll fucking kill you.]
"I have no interest in being killed, but please meet with Horikita-senpai at least this once."
[Don't contact me again unless yer willin' to fork over the points.]
Nanase tried to say something else, but Hōsen hung up the call.
She immediately tried to call him back, but no matter how many times she called, he never picked up the phone.
"…I'm very sorry!"
Nanase lowered her head as far as she possibly could, apologizing to the two of us.
But Nanase hadn't done anything wrong.
"Raise your head. My plan is completely different from Hōsen-kun's, so it's not going to be easy to get things right. I'm very grateful that you've been willing to lend us a hand like this."
"That…"
"Let's leave it at that for today. We'll have to come up with something if we want to discuss things with Hōsen-kun. Either way, I'd like to get this wrapped up by the end of this week."
Any longer than that and Horikita would probably have to shift her focus to a different class. That said, I really hoped it wouldn't turn out that way. Fighting the other three classes for students after most of them have already been taken would take an almost daunting amount of effort.
"I'm very happy that you haven't given up yet, Horikita-senpai, but…"
Nanase held back the words that were about to leave her mouth. She had probably wanted to say that it was impossible to form an equal, collaborative relationship with Hōsen, but thought it would all be over if she did.
"At least he got a sense of what I want to do. That should be enough for now."
Though time was running out and patience was wearing thin, Horikita reassured Nanase as she brought the conversation to a close.
Horikita offered that we all return together, but it seemed like Nanase had somewhere she needed to go.
And then, after telling us that she hoped to meet up with us in the library again tomorrow, she left.
Perhaps she went off to go meet up with Hōsen.
"Let's head out. I still have a lot left to do today."
It seems that Horikita has plans to hold a study session with Sudō and a few others after she got back to her room.
"Ah, and it's about time you clarify what your plan is with finding your own partner too. Are you going to figure it out on your own, or do you plan on delegating it to me as well? It might affect how things turn out later on down the line."
After all, if we managed to start negotiations with Hōsen, we'd have to make adjustments to the exact number of people involved in the agreement.
"There's already somebody I have in mind for that."
"So instead of looking for somebody with a certain Academic Ability rating, you're looking for somebody specific? Who?"
"That's a secret."
"A secret…? Do you really need to keep it from me?"
"I only have a surface-level impression of them right now myself."
"Does it really matter that much? Everybody's had to do what they can to get help, you do know that right?"
"You're not wrong. I thought I'd have a better idea today, but… Well, I'll make my decision by the end of this week at the latest."
"If you say so, but… I can't make any promises if you come crying to me at the last minute, alright?"
"I'll keep that in mind. Anyway, I was meaning to ask earlier, but how are you feeling?"
"…Are you worried about me?"
"While there's no need to worry about your stamina right now, there's still a fair bit of time until the special exam."
If she were to run out of energy right before the end, it could possibly affect her performance on the day of the exam.
She was holding study sessions day after day, coupled with all the time she had spent dealing with Amasawa's cooking challenge yesterday.
It's only natural that fatigue would gradually continue to accumulate.
"It's true that I might be wearing myself out, but I don't have time to rest right now. I'm not going to collapse until the special exam is over."
Rather than a simple show of courage, this was more like she had adopted a mentality fitting of someone looking to lead the class into battle.
Yōsuke and Kushida offering their help was one thing, but students with excellent Academic Ability ratings like Keisei and Mii-chan had also offered to help Horikita ever since the very beginning of the exam. As such, Horikita decided to push forward with her plan to work together with Class 1-D in the future.
After all, if the leader falters, unable to make decisions, it would only serve as a bad influence on the class as a whole.
In a race against time, the most crucial part of all of this was figuring out how to solidify our class's course of action during the early stages of the exam.
(Introduction End)
(Part 1)
It was a bit chilly that night. I stood in my kitchen, cooking with the large quantity of leftover ingredients from yesterday's shopping spree. Of course, this time I was using recipes and videos as references for what I was doing.
I was making the dish that I had made for Amasawa before, wanting to try it for myself.
The name of the dish, tom yum goong, was a combination of three different Thai words, meaning 'boiled', 'mixed', and 'shrimp' respectively.
"It's got a unique taste, but it isn't bad."
The way its spicy yet sour flavor spread through my mouth and its distinct aroma pierced my nose made it seem like it'd be an addictive dish for certain types of people.
After cleaning up, I turned on the ventilation fan above my stove, looking to let out the smell that had filled the room. I eventually noticed my phone vibrating on my bed, the sound drowned out by the noise of the fan. I thought about just calling back later, but it never stopped ringing, so I picked up.
[You took like, forever to pick up.]
This was the first time Kei had been the one to contact me in a few days now. The last time was back when the special exam had just begun.
The first thing out of her mouth was a complaint.
[You're the one who told me to call around this time. Get a grip, would ya?]
"My bad. So, did you find out about that thing I asked you to look into this morning?"
[I'm only calling cuz I did my research properly, so don't you think you aren't, like, being grateful enough?]
"I'm very grateful. So…?"
[It doesn't seem like you're grateful at all… Well, whatever. According to the store person, only one of 'em has been sold since April. They told me that they like, pretty much never sell that model compared to the other similar ones they've got, and that they're lucky to sell even one or two of 'em a year. But the thing is, apparently one of the new students tried buying one too.]
There was no need to tell me about the identity of the person who bought one recently. I was far more interested in the new student who tried to buy one.
"Tried buying one, huh…? So they didn't buy one, then?"
There was no physical way this new first-year student wouldn't have been able to buy it unless they had done something absurd like spending all of their points immediately after they first came to the school.
And, given this year's batch of new students, I didn't think they'd do something that foolish.
[I tried asking the clerk about that too, just in case. Apparently, just as the first-year was about to pay for it at the register, somebody else showed up and stopped them from going through with the sale. Anywho, the clerk told me the student who tried to buy one looked…]
As Kei described the student's appearance, I began to sort out the situation in my head.
It was a little… no, considerably different from what I had in mind at first.
I never would've expected that 'that person' would be involved in all of this.
"Did the clerk say anything about the person who stopped the first-year from buying it?"
[Nope, they didn't know much about that. They just said they were pretty sure it was a girl.]
Students have to present their student ID cards to make purchases, so while the clerk knew the name of the person who tried to buy the item, they didn't know anything about the person who stopped the sale.
[Is my information useful?]
"Yeah. It might be much more useful than I thought it'd be."
[Hehe, I'm like, super talented, after all. Make sure you thank me properly, kay? But like, why'd you have me look into something like this? I seriously don't get it at all.]
"Me neither."
[Wha?]
I had hoped that having her ask around would help explain the mysterious behavior, but this development was far beyond anything I had imagined.
In fact, because it was so far off from what I had imagined, it made me wonder if any of this was even relevant at all.
"Come to think of it, I heard that you've already found a partner for the special exam."
[Ah, yep. Shimazaki-san from Class 1-B, was it? Feels like I've been saved thanks to Kushida-san.]
Now that our main business had been dealt with, I changed the topic ever so slightly.
"I don't think you've got a bad partner, but Kei, have you been studying properly?"
[Well, uh, how do I put it…? Like, I was thinkin' it'd be fine if I like, just put it off 'til later, you know?]
I knew it. I hadn't heard anything about her attending one of the study sessions yet.
"This exam isn't something you can get through all on your own. Your rating is a D+. If you aren't careful with your grades, you might end up suffering later."
[I know I know, I just can't get myself interested, and like… even if I went to a study group, it's not like you'd be there or anything.]
"So what, you'd study diligently as long as I'm around?"
[…Uh, yeah? I'd work hard in front of my boyfriend.]
I wasn't sure if that was true or not, but since she said so, the solution was obvious.
"Then let's see… How about you come over to my room at around 6:00 tomorrow?"
Considering that we'd be meeting with Nanase after school tomorrow, that seemed like a fair enough time to schedule things.
[I can come hang out at your place!?]
"You'll be here to study, not to hang out."
[Eh?]
Don't 'eh' me.
"I'll help you study. That should at least get you motivated, right?"
To start out, I'd evaluate the full extent of her abilities.
And if it turns out that she needs to participate in additional study sessions, then I'd urge her to do so.
[You're worried cuz you'd be real sad if your girlfriend were to get expelled, huh~?]
She suddenly asked, noteworthy traces of excitement in her voice, almost as if she thought she had the upper hand now. I was tempted to tease her a little bit in response, but I figured that she'd feel more motivated to study if I just went along with her and agreed.
"Well, naturally? If the girlfriend which I had only just started dating got herself expelled, it'd be no laughing matter."
[I-I see~ That's true isn't it! Well then, I guess I have no other choice. I actually had all sorts of things planned for tomorrow, but I'll make a special appearance, just for you.]
While it wasn't very straightforward, it was a small price to pay to get her to push forward with her studies.
[What should I bring with me?]
"I have everything you'd need in my room already. Just don't be late and that should be fine."
[Okay~!]
"Well then, I'll be hanging up now."
[Wha!? Hold up! Wait! We've, like, only talked about the special exam and studying so far, though!]
Apparently, she wanted to chat about something completely unrelated to any of that.
"I guess you're right about that."
[Hrmph, you seriously…]
While we didn't talk about anything related to the exam or studying after that, she continued to chew me out nonetheless.
(Part 1 End)
(Part 2)
On Friday, the fifth day of the special exam, the number of pairs finalized had increased to 81, meaning that a little over half of all students had made their decisions. The number of students in Class 2-D who had found a partner had begun to increase as well.
The same was true of those whom I was close with. I had already known about Kei's decision due to our talk yesterday, but both Airi and Haruka from the Ayanokōji Group made theirs as well. The driving force behind this had been none other than Kushida. She was largely responsible for introducing our classmates to students from Class 1-B thanks to her collaboration with Yagami, an underclassman from the same middle school as her. However, this was by no means a perfect solution for everything. Although Yagami was gradually gaining a positive reputation within his own class, it didn't seem like he had any intention of being a leader. As such, he was simply cooperating with us as an individual. It wasn't reasonable to expect him to be able to provide enough students to cover for everyone who needed a partner in Class 2-D.
Yagami had offered his help under only one condition: That he partner up with Kushida.
And, as indicated by the information provided in the OAA app, that was exactly what had happened yesterday.
We had to use Kushida, one of our more academically capable students, but Horikita didn't seem to be dissatisfied with that in the slightest because the benefits had far outweighed the cost incurred. Besides, we still had several talented students left on the table, such as Yōsuke, Keisei, Mii-chan, Matsushita, and even Horikita herself.
In any case, just because one's partner had been finalized didn't mean that one could just take it easy.
A proper amount of studying was a reality that simply couldn't be avoided.
In fact, you could say that the exam had only truly started once one's partner had been chosen.
Even though I didn't speak with them very much, I could feel a sense of unity in our class as everyone began to help each other out.
It was probably only possible because we were comrades who had stuck together through thick and thin over the course of the past year.
But despite the unified atmosphere─
One student rose up from his seat, seemingly about to return home for the day.
Horikita proceeded to speak up to him, as if she had been waiting for him to attempt to leave.
"It seems you still haven't found a partner yet, Kōenji-kun."
"And what's wrong with that?"
This was an intervention with the only person in the class who wasn't a part of this sense of unity.
"As your fellow classmate, I just thought I'd ask you about your current situation."
Even for students that usually did things on their own, they'd normally still talk about it with others so you'd still know what they were up to.
But Kōenji wasn't one to say anything to anyone, so it was hard to know what he was up to.
"You're smart. You've never even considered the idea that you might get expelled, have you?"
"Of course."
"Fair enough. Knowing you, even if you were to pair with a student with ratings similar to Ike-kun, you'd get close to 400 points easily. I think you're pretty safe."
Generally speaking, one would want to make use of Kōenji as one of the most academically capable students in the class.
That was probably why Horikita had reached out to him, but sure enough…
"Fufufu. I have no intention of doing anything for this special exam. All that matters is that the one who becomes my partner scores at least 150 points. As long as they accomplish the bare minimum, it should be effortless for me to attain a score that exceeds the passing criteria."
According to Chabashira, everyone should be able to score a total of 150 points on the exam at the very least. Unless you were in my shoes and you ended up partnering with the White Room enforcer, it was unthinkable that one's partner would intentionally score a zero.
However, the need to rely on your partner was inevitable.
Indeed. You would probably never find somebody that was 100% guaranteed to score at least one point on the exam, no matter how hard you looked. Both first and second-year students had to move forward on the assumption that their partner would score at least 150 points, but this was no more than a 99.9% guarantee. In order to make that guarantee as close to 100% as possible, the school had come up with a rule, stating that students whose scores deviate from what was expected of them, given their Academic Ability ratings, would be expelled. And it was because of this that Kōenji could afford to be confident.
He didn't need to go to the trouble of attending discussions or building up relationships with the new students.
"In other words, you're saying that it doesn't matter who you end up partnering with, right? If so, would you allow me to find someone for you? I know you think you'll be fine no matter who you end up with, but it'd be safest to avoid incurring the 5% penalty that would come with not finding a partner."
She was offering to just leave everything to her, a proposition that had essentially no visible downsides.
"You're definitely not wrong, but allow me to refuse."
"…Why? Can I ask that you give me a reason?"
"Because I am who I am, naturally."
Simply put, he didn't want to be used at Horikita's convenience.
Kōenji was Kōenji regardless of the situation.
If I were to find myself in a position where I had to make use of Kōenji in order to come out on top, then I probably should've done something different before getting into that position in the first place.
"Satisfied?"
Having been asked this, there was nothing more Horikita could say.
After all, Kōenji wasn't an opponent she could force into action even if she tried. It would be a waste of effort.
"Yes. For now. But, you can't keep going on like this forever. When the time comes and the class really has to work together, you'll have to do your part as well."
She wasn't talking about this particular special exam. Rather, she had her sights set on what would come after that.
Horikita wanted him to keep that in mind.
"I understand why you'd want to rely on somebody as perfect and flawless as me, but I probably won't take part in a~ny of that."
Unwilling to lend his ear to Horikita any further, Kōenji turned and left the classroom, headed off to who-knows-where.
"Kōenji is impossible, isn't he?"
I poked my nose into what had happened and spoke up, albeit somewhat unintentionally.
"I'm just irritated because our class would be so much stronger if he took things seriously."
There was nothing more frustrating than having a secret weapon you couldn't control.
It was the feeling of expectation that made her despair when he didn't perform as she thought he would.
"If it were me, I wouldn't have counted on him from the very start."
For the sake of the future, it would probably be easier for her to think of Kōenji as an exception and leave it at that.
"I won't give up."
"…Is that so?"
Well, while running around in circles accomplishing nothing wasn't the best use of time, at least she was motivated.
(Part 2 End)
(Part 3)
From the moment we stepped foot into the library, I noticed that it was shrouded in a completely different atmosphere compared to the other day. Many students, both first and second-years, were gathered inside, notebooks and tablets spread out before them as they participated in what appeared to be various different study groups.
It seemed most students hadn't grown complacent after finding a partner, instead, they had begun taking action right away.
For some reason, I was reminded of back when our class held a study session here a year ago.
"Well this is a bit troubling. There are more people here than before, so we might stand out a bit."
"Let's just try to blend in then."
Fortunately, the seats we used yesterday at the back of the library were still available.
Since it wouldn't have been strange if the seats were occupied, I turned and looked over at a certain someone elsewhere in the library.
It wasn't long before Hiyori noticed my gaze and waved at me with a gentle smile on her face as she approached us.
"I thought that Ayanokōji-kun and Horikita-san would surely visit today as well, so I made a special request and had these seats reserved for you."
"Are you sure that's fine?"
"It would be a different story if the library was close to maximum capacity, but there's no need to worry about that."
Given the size of the library, there was plenty of space for everyone. Nonetheless, I appreciated her consideration.
"Please go ahead, feel free to take all the time you need to discuss."
With that, Hiyori left, not particularly interested in lingering around any further.
"She's awfully kind, isn't she? Do you think she overheard our conversation yesterday?"
"It's hard to say. I think it'd be difficult given the distance though."
We sat in the same seats as yesterday, as they had been expressly left open for us.
And then, we took out all of our study materials from our bags and began acting like we were there to study.
However, no matter how long we waited, Nanase never showed up.
"Nanase-san. She's late."
The meeting time was supposed to be after school at 4:30, but it was already past 5:00.
I had sent her multiple messages by now, but it seemed like she hadn't read any of them yet. At this rate we might have to personally go and check up on her, though that in itself would be tricky since we didn't know her current location.
"Should we go take a look in the first-year classrooms for the time being…?"
Just as we were about to go look for her, Nanase showed up at the entrance to the library, seemingly flustered.
Once she noticed where we were, she approached our table, visibly out of breath.
"I-I apologize. I've kept you waiting for quite some time…!"
"It's fine. I was just worried that something might've happened to you along the way."
"I was busy negotiating with Hōsen-kun, trying to get him to come along with me somehow."
"Is that so… It doesn't look like there's been much progress on that front."
Given that she had come alone, it didn't seem like anybody else would be joining us.
"That said, he didn't stop you from coming to talk with us today?"
"He did not. He probably doesn't think that anything will be finalized without him."
No matter how much Nanase may try on her own, Hōsen had the final say.
Given his confidence, he probably couldn't care less about micromanaging every little thing Nanase wanted to do.
"It seems that we have no choice but to force him to meet up with us after all."
"That's…"
"I already understand that things won't be resolved easily. But unless we discuss this in person, we'll just keep beating around the bush forever."
That seemed like the last thing Horikita wanted to do without further preparation.
"That is certainly so… But…"
Nanase's words trailed off as she seemed somewhat hesitant about something, but she quickly made up her mind and continued.
"Horikita-senpai wants to build an equal, collaborative relationship with Class 1-D no matter what it takes, right? Or am I misunderstanding something?"
"Yes. That's exactly right."
"Then… might I get you to hear out a proposal of mine?"
From the sound of it, Nanase had come here with a few ideas of her own.
"Even if I were to suggest to Hōsen-kun that we enter into an equal, collaborative relationship, it's clear that I would end up being rejected. I think it would be the same even if Horikita-senpai were to meet up with him personally. That being the case, how about you and I proceed with negotiations in secret?"
"Proceed with negotiations in secret? But your classmates wouldn't just obey without Hōsen-kun's permission, would they?"
"Yes. However, that's because I have yet to come forward as a leader."
With that, Nanase presented us with an unexpected proposal.
"I have judged that my class will not survive for much longer if we continue with Hōsen-kun's way of doing things. So, it is my hope that I become the leader of Class-D before his dangerous ideals become instilled in the class's mindset. And, as a stepping stone for that, I'd like to form a relationship with Class 2-D."
Both Horikita and I had never expected that she would propose something like this.
A tale of how Nanase Tsubasa would defeat Hōsen and become the leader of Class 1-D.
If that happened, Horikita's goal of establishing an equal, collaborative relationship suddenly wouldn't be that far off anymore.
"We don't have the basis to judge which one of you is better suited to be leader. Either way, the only thing I can say for sure is that we're running out of time."
With the special exam fast approaching, we simply couldn't afford to get involved in a fight over leadership right now.
"Many of my classmates don't approve of Hōsen-kun's way of doing things. In fact, after bringing it up these last few days, I've managed to get seven of them to agree to help me."
"And that's not just students with low Academic Ability ratings?"
"Yes. Of those seven students who are willing to negotiate, three have Academic Ability ratings of a B- or higher."
"…I see."
Horikita pondered over this for a moment. Three people was by no means perfect, but if that number were to increase just a bit further, forming a collaborative relationship with Nanase as the focal point might not be the worst idea after all.
"Wouldn't it be problematic if Hōsen-kun realizes what we're doing?"
"Needless to say, that would be a disaster. That's why we'd have to keep everything secret from now until the deadline for choosing our partners on the day of the exam. If we submit the applications at the very last minute, he won't notice anything."
"But then it'd be difficult to win over the students who can study, wouldn't it?"
There was no changing the fact that the students with high Academic Ability ratings wanted to receive private points as compensation.
"Our class will help compensate you for that. Those of us who aren't very good at studying will get to avoid the three-month penalty thanks to you and your classmates. In other words, they'll have three months' worth of points to help supplement your losses. That way, even if you pay 200,000 points to help win over these students, you'll ultimately end up getting your money back. Although it would be for far less than the 500,000 points per person that Hōsen-kun is after, it should still be within the scope that my classmates would find acceptable."
In short, this meant that they would be cleaning up their own mess.
Originally, we were the ones who had to entice the honor students with points, but with this strategy, the less capable Class 1-D students would be the ones using their funds to help entice their peers.
"This way, we won't cause any problems for you and your class. Of course, Hōsen-kun will get angry once he learns of what we've done, but I will take full responsibility so that no harm befalls those who have lent a hand. What do you think?"
"That's… No matter how much you want to become your class's leader, wouldn't this proposal place far too much of a burden on you?"
"It's fine. You've gone through the trouble of extending a helping hand, so I don't want to lose out on the trust you've shown or the opportunity you've presented me with."
Nanase seemed to be saying that it was a cheap price to pay if it meant that her classmates would be saved.
"Besides, even if I'm not recognized as my class's leader, at least I'll have helped your class in this exam."
If you only considered the immediate profits, then Nanase's proposal was by no means unattractive.
I found myself wondering how Horikita would respond to it.
"Thanks to this, I'm now absolutely certain that I want to have a collaborative relationship with Class 1-D."
"So, does that mean that you're okay with my proposal?"
"No. I can't take you up on your proposal."
"But there's no other way…"
"All of Class 1-D's problems will be solved if you could just get Hōsen-kun onto your side. I don't think you actually want to be your class's leader; You just don't like the way Hōsen-kun is doing things, do you? That being the case, if Hōsen agrees to negotiate, there should be plenty of students willing to pair up, right?"
"That's… well, yes. I'm sure of it."
"Plus, if you and Hōsen-kun are in conflict with each other, it's possible that Class 1-D will be split into two instead of being united as one. There's no way I'd let that happen. So, how about you let me help you change his mind instead?"
Apparently, this conversation with Nanase had caused Horikita to realize something as well.
That, as long as we can get through Hōsen, the rest of our problems would be solved.
"It's a risky gamble. If we fail, it may not be possible for Class 1-D and Class 2-D to work together in the future."
"I'm prepared for that… Well, that's not true. I think there's a good chance that our classes can work together. And that's not just me, I'm sure that Hōsen-kun is thinking the same thing."
"Even though he was so rude to you over the phone yesterday?"
"I'll just tell myself that he was being tsundere. At least for now."
Having understood what Horikita was trying to say, Nanase nodded in agreement.
"I was right to make time to meet with Horikita-senpai and Ayanokōji-senpai again today. It seems my hunch wasn't incorrect after all."
"What do you mean by that? I rejected your proposal, didn't I?"
"No, you didn't reject anything. You and I have been on the same page since the very beginning."
"That… Does that mean you were thinking of trying to persuade him this whole time as well?"
"That's right."
Apparently, the proposal Nanase had put forward about becoming her class's leader had been a test of sorts.
She had given Horikita the choice to slight the future of Class 1-D in favor of short-term profit. If Horikita had taken her up on the offer, she wouldn't have been willing to collaborate with us any further.
"Just as Horikita-senpai said earlier, we're running out of time. We can't move forward without getting the two of you in the same room together, even if it means we have to force the matter. Could you give me some time so I can get everything in order for the two of you to meet? I'll definitely bring Hōsen-kun before you by Sunday, the day after tomorrow."
It didn't seem like Nanase was testing us this time, given how earnestly she lowered her head to Horikita.
By waiting until Sunday, the amount of time we had left would naturally decrease by that much more.
Due to this, Horikita turned and looked at me, her eyes hesitantly seeking confirmation.
Thinking that there was nothing wrong with taking a risk, I nodded to her in response, and with that, the hesitation in her eyes vanished.
"I believe you. I'll look forward to meeting with Hōsen-kun on Sunday, the day after tomorrow."
"Yes… Absolutely. However, I'd like to avoid meeting in a public place as much as possible. After all, Hōsen-kun may act rather reckless depending on the circumstances."
"Alright. Then how about we rent a Karaoke room? I'm also fine with meeting up at night sometime if that's more convenient for him."
Indeed, meeting in the dead of night on a Sunday would substantially reduce the risk of being seen by others.
"I understand. I'll make sure he knows."
Just as the conversation was beginning to come together, Horikita's cell phone vibrated.
After looking over the message she had received, she let out a sigh.
"What's up?"
"The study session. It seems like they're short on hands since I'm not there."
Before I realized it, it was already 5:30.
"I think we've just about wrapped up this conversation. Could I ask that you take care of the rest, Ayanokōji-kun?"
"Will do."
After a light bow to Nanase, Horikita quickly gathered up her things and left for the study session.
Horikita was responsible for supporting the entire class, and as such, was always tasked with moving about everywhere.
"Horikita-senpai is quite busy."
"That's what it takes to lead a class."
"I hope I can be an amazing student like her a year from now…"
"Horikita didn't ask about this in detail, but what do you plan on saying to lure Hōsen out?"
"That… Well, while I don't mind answering that for you, why don't you tell me about yourself first, Ayanokōji-senpai?"
"About me?"
The sun was beginning to set for the day, dying the world outside a brilliant shade of orange.
"Horikita-senpai is the leader of your class, but you're different, aren't you?"
I see. Nanase wasn't sure if it was appropriate for me to be here or not.
If I said that Horikita was just forcing me to come along with her, that'd probably be enough to shut her up.
"Senpai… What kind of person are you?"
When I didn't answer, Nanase propped her arm up on the table so as to hide part of her face.
It seemed like somewhat of a defensive posture, done so as to prevent anyone other than me from seeing her mouth and eyes.
"Won't you answer?"
"It doesn't seem like you're looking to ask me about my relationship with Horikita, are you?"
It was something different than that. She was looking to ask about what kind of human being I was.
"Yes. I suspect that Ayanokōji-senpai may be a wicked, dirty person. At least, that's what I think."
Her words were both intense and direct. Though, despite that, Nanase was looking at me with eyes full of honesty and confidence. I wasn't sure what I had done to make her look at me that way. Given all of our interactions so far, she couldn't have been able to find out very much about me. While she and I weren't the most compatible, I couldn't remember saying anything that would warrant her calling me 'wicked'. Nanase Tsubasa may in fact be the enforcer who I've been looking for.
There was a reason why I suspected this.
Even though my expulsion was the primary objective for the White Room student, there would probably be more to it for them than that. They would surely look to make contact with me up close, interested in observing the human being known as Ayanokōji Kiyotaka. At least, that's how I saw it. They weren't merely interested in my expulsion; They wanted to prove that they were better than me. If they didn't, 'that man' would never approve of them.
This was probably the thought process I would have if I was the one tasked with expelling the person known as Ayanokōji Kiyotaka. However, for someone supposedly from the White Room, her words felt a bit out-of-place.
"When I'm with you like this, Ayanokōji-senpai seems like an ordinary person to me."
"By that, are you saying that you normally see me as an unordinary person?"
"…No. That's not it."
Although Nanase denied it, I found myself wondering if that was what she truly thought.
I had met with Nanase a total of four times now, and I had noticed that strange look of hers each time. It seemed as though I was just about to find out where she had come from, but I could feel my chance to pry deeper slip away from me.
"I'm sorry, please forget I ever asked. The most important thing right now is figuring out how our classes can cooperate with each other."
Together, we rose up from our seats and turned to leave the library.
As we dispersed, I remembered that there was something I wanted to ask of her.
"Come to think of it, back when we first met, you said that you'd only lose out on 240,000 private points if you lost three months' worth of points. Why was that?"
By now, Nanase's expression had gone back to usual, without even a trace of how it had been only moments earlier.
"Why, you ask? I simply calculated that, as long as our class maintained the 800 class points given to us upon enrollment for three months, one person would end up with 240,000 points…"
Nanase responded as if bewildered that I had even asked.
Apparently, this new batch of first-years had started out with a different sum of class points than we had.
"The number of class points we were given at the beginning of last year was 1000."
"Eh? So you're saying that there's a 200 point difference then?"
"That seems to be the case. I wonder what it's like for Class 1-A and 1-B?"
"I believe they have 800 points as well. At least, that's how Shiba-sensei explained it to us."
Why was there no official notice though? I would think that it would feel somewhat unfair if they found out that they were given fewer class points than in previous years. Was it because 80,000 points a month was still quite a lot, so the school didn't think it mattered very much? No, if that was the case, the school would have notified them of that from the start. It would've made more sense for the school to come clean about it to the students rather than try to hide it and give them a reason to be dissatisfied later.
There were probably several other things different from last year that I still didn't know about.
"You know that your lifestyle has an influence on your class points, right?"
Back when Shiba-sensei, the homeroom teacher of Class 1-D, broke up the conflict in front of the second-year classrooms, he had mentioned something related to that, saying: 'I'm sure you've been hounded on the school's rules to the point where your ears hurt.'
"Yes. We've been told that tardies, absences, and talking during class can all affect our class points."
Was it possible that the school had lowered the initial amount of class points as compensation for explaining the rules to them at the start of the year? Even if the school tried to hide it, the first-years would've probably realized the importance of following the rules due to the Social Contribution category in the OAA app.
Although I could accept this line of reasoning, Nanase seemed to be lost in thought altogether.
Then, she let show an expression that seemed as though she had thought of something, but that disappeared almost immediately.
It was very subtle. Something that I had only noticed because I had met with her so many times over the past several days.
However, since Nanase didn't seem to want to say anything, I had no interest in asking her about it.
Together, we left the library and, after a while, we arrived at the school's entrance.
"Well then, Senpai, I'll take my leave now."
"Nanase. This isn't meant as a way of thanking you for telling me about your class points earlier, but have you ever heard about something called a protection point?"
As we were about to part ways, I called out to her and asked her one last question.
"Protection points? No, this is the first I've heard of them."
"It's a point system where a student who has one can use it to protect themselves from an expulsion. Although, even amongst all of the second-years, only a select few students have one, so it's not surprising that you didn't know."
"I see. That's good to know… But why are you telling me this?"
"You gave me information. I just thought I should return the favor."
Saying no more than that, she and I parted ways.
I had decided to test Nanase. To see if she had the skills to make the best use of the information I had given her.
(Part 3 End)