'...': Writing
'...': Sign language
"...": Text to speech
It was the final exam day, and I couldn't wait for this to end. There was heavy tension in the air.
"Kuku, I want to start this meeting by announcing that I know the VIP in the Dragon group," Ryuuen announced.
"There's no need to do it," Kanzaki said, "I'm the VIP."
Many of them were shocked that Kanzaki would come out and admit it.
A creepy grin appeared on Ryuuen's face, "You're saving me the trouble. You understand I could put your name down and end the group."
"You won't because you want Outcome #1. If Class A were the VIP, you would attempt to end the group," Kanzaki responded.
"Kukuku, am I that obvious?" The smirk didn't disappear from Ryuuen's face.
"What if you're bluffing about being the VIP?" Nishikawa asked.
"If you want proof, I could show you my email," Kanzaki said.
"Wait, Kanzaki-kun, are you sure...?" Andou seemed concerned.
"Yes, I already discussed it with Ichinose-san," Kanzaki reassured her.
Kanzaki reached into his pocket and pulled his phone, showing us his email.
"I want to see," Nishikawa asked.
Kanzaki gave his phone to Nishikawa. It looked like she was checking for something. A sigh escaped her lips, "It's the real deal."
She passed the phone back to Kanzaki.
"It's possible to switch the SIM cards in the phone. He could have switched with Andou-san or Tsube-san."
With this new information shared with the group, Ryuuen pondered before his eyes shot.
"Kuku, why didn't I think of that shit?" An evil grin formed on Ryuuen's face, "It doesn't matter because Class C will be the victor."
~Timeskip~
Ayanokouji's POV
The ship sailing in the deep, dark sea seemed somewhat lonely.
As 11 p.m. drew near, more and more people started arriving. Before I knew it, the café I had planned to go back to was bustling with activity, and seats were being occupied quickly. A girl came up to me while I had already reserved seats.
"Sorry for making you wait," The girl who shyly came over was Karuizawa Kei. Something about her expression seemed to be different than usual.
"Sorry for calling you out this late," I told her.
"No, that's fine..."
As I had nothing to say, I gazed at the silent scenery. Karuizawa's stare made me turn to face her.
"Ahh, umm...I was wondering if everything went alright," she asked.
"It's fine. I'm sure the guys from Class A sent the mail to the school with my name on it."
I can confidently say this because I had a backup plan in place. In addition to switching Karuizawa and Yukimura's phones, we had pre-planned to work together to maximize our synergy. With this strategy in place, there was no need to worry about any potential issues arising.
There was a problem with that, though. It seemed Ichinose was determined that Karuizawa was the VIP, which was strange.
"How can you say that for sure?" She asks.
"Isn't that because the paper you gave me meant something, Ayanokouji-kun?"
The boy Karuizawa had tried to break up with, Hirata, surprised us from behind.
"Good work on the exam, both of you. Mind if I take a seat?" he asks. "Of course."
Karuizawa shifted uncomfortably and looked away from Hirata but showed no signs of outright rejecting him. It is now 10:55 p.m. In 5 more minutes, a mail will be sent to all the students.
"It's almost time. Is Horikita-san not coming yet? Shouldn't we contact her?"
"She's the type always to cut it close. We can afford to wait another four minutes," I replied.
"Ahh. It looks like she's here with Kagurazaka-kun."
Kagurazaka's POV
"If I see this bunch meeting in front of my eyes like this, I can't help but sigh," Horikita said.
"You've finally arrived. By the way, what's that behind you?" Ayanokouji asked her.
"If you pay any attention to him, you lose. Just think of him as a ghost riding my back and ignore him that way," Horikita replied.
Yeah, Sudou is also with us. I think he was ensuring I wouldn't do anything to Horikita. When will this end?
"Don't say that, Horikita. I thought you would be anxious during the exam period and got worried about you; that's why I called out to you like that."
"You're in my way; get lost," Horikita told him.
"D-Don't say that. I challenged this exam with my best efforts, you know," Sudou replied, "Besides, what about this guy?"
"Unlike you, Kagurazaka-kun put in the effort," Horikita said.
I'm getting questioned by her later.
"I was only a step away from that. But it looks like someone faster than me sent the mail first," Sudou said.
Horikita didn't seem to care as she took a seat. I did the same thing, causing Sudou to panic and quickly move to pull over a chair from a nearby table.
"You're still in the way," Horikita tells Sudou.
"It's fine, right? I'm just going to listen to you. Also, don't exclude me," he replies to her.
Despite this being a rather unusual gathering of members, it seems Sudou has no interest in hearing our side of things.
"More importantly, the chain of emails we got earlier..."
"Yeah, I was also curious about that."
Eight emails were sent to our phones, one after another. The contents of those emails informed us of the end of the exam for several groups.
The Rat, Tiger, Dragon, Snake, Sheep, Rooster, Horse, and Pig groups had ended.
"The Horse group is where the "target" was Minami-kun, right?"
"Yes. In other words, there's a possibility someone uncovered his identity."
"In the other groups, is there a possibility that one of us had sent the mail?" Horikita anxiously asks. If the "target" makes a mistake, the damage they would incur is nothing to laugh at.
"I was inquiring about that and asked around in several groups earlier. As far as the boys' side goes, they're saying none of them is the traitor that sent the mail," Hirata tells Horikita.
Everyone turned their attention toward me like I had done something. I stare back with a deadpan expression, 'Yeah, it was me. I told Ichinose-san."
"Why would you do something like that?" Horikita was glaring at me.
'Do I need to remind you that Ryuuen-san could've ended the exam?'
"In the end, this exam. I wonder why the briefing was done with such a small group?" Hirata murmurs that question, though he could not grasp its meaning.
"This exam tests 'thinking'. In other words, how we think. It's not like every question has an answer...or something like that," Horikita replies to Hirata.
"More importantly than that, what I'm worried about is the fact that those eight emails came in almost simultaneously. The window for betrayal is 30 minutes. But even so, having all the betrayals happen within the first 1 and 2 minutes. Is it even normal?" Horikita asks.
"Isn't it just... a coincidence?".
From the perspective of Sudou, who had just been listening in on our conversation, it may all have seemed like a coincidence.
"When Koenji-kun sent the betrayal mail, the response from the school was immediate. If we assume that they reply as fast as an automatic response..."
"The possibility that the emails were sent together simultaneously is extremely high. In other words, one class may be responsible for all the betrayals."
"It may have been that they timed their betrayal emails to let us know it was them who did it."
"Yes. I also cannot think of any alternative reason than that. And there's only one man who would do something like that..." Horikita said.
Horikita and Hirata naturally exchange those words. I'm just grateful this would end without me having to say anything unnecessary.
And there is meaning in using this cafe we have used many times before to meet tonight.
"As expected, you were here."
It seems we have another guest.
"Ryuuen...!" Upon noticing Ryuuen, Sudou stood up to intimidate him, but Ryuuen paid no attention and sat beside Horikita on a vacant chair.
"I thought I'd come and enjoy the results with you. Thanks for being here in such an easy-to-tell place," Ryuuen said.
"Yes. I chose this place especially so that even you, with your stupidity, could find this place. Thank me," Horikita replied.
"But even so, Suzune. This is a rather large gathering for you. What's with the change of heart?" Ryuuen asks Horikita.
Ryuuen said this while looking at the five of us gathered at the table while ignoring Sudou completely.
"I was bothered by your persistent nagging. I was consulting them about it here," Horikita replies.
"Don't give Horikita any trouble!" Sudou roars at Ryuuen.
"Sudou-kun, shut up" Horikita said.
Having been stopped by Horikita, Sudou obediently sinks back into his chair. He's a surprisingly honest one.
"I thought you didn't have any friends that were friends. Well, that's fine".
"The results will be announced soon. Did you get any results?".
"More or less. You look pretty relaxed," Horikita replies.
"Kukuku. I wouldn't be out here if I weren't. It also seems like the same people from last time are here".
"Oh, that's right. Last time during the results announcement, you lost miserably after acting all high and mighty."
Sudou laughs at Ryuuen and points a finger at him, seemingly remembering something. Horikita also looks at Ryuuen with a disgusted expression.
"Stop it, Suzune. If you do this now, you're just going to embarrass yourself later, you know? I already know the "target" of the Horse group," Ryuuen said.
Whether those words were the truth or a lie, Horikita was not shaken. Perhaps it's because she already had confidence that she would not lose to Ryuuen.
"Tell me then. Who is the "target" of the Horse group?" Horikita asks him.
And as if he were waiting for her to say that, Ryuuen raised his hand while laughing. He peeps through the gaps of his fingers like a beast as if preparing to leap into the throat of his prey.
"Minami Setsuya," Ryuuen said that name.
"Eh?"
Horikita, who had not reacted to Ryuuen's words until now, froze with a small, surprised voice.
"I'm sorry, but from the second day of the exam, I already knew who the VIPs in Class D were," Ryuuen said.
"This is a joke...right? If so, you could have ended the exam by sending the betrayal mail. But the exam didn't end like that. That means you only realized it after the exam ended through some other means. Am I wrong?" Horikita asks him.
"I empathized with you when I saw how hard you tried to shield the "target's" identity. But then, witnessing your overconfidence and arrogance towards others, I no longer felt sympathetic. That's why I played along until the very end." Ryuuen told Horikita.
"How did you figure it out?" Hirata asks Ryuuen in response to his words in a tone that is a mixture of curiosity and fear.
"Unfortunately, the answer to that...involves you, Suzune," Ryuuen tells Horikita.
"Me?"
"I realized it from the movement of your eyes, breathing, movement of your mouth, tone of voice, and everything else about you," Ryuuen told Horikita.
"Stop with the jokes".
"Joke? Then are you claiming to know how else I would have known the truth?" Ryuuen quickly replies.
"That's... surely you heard that from someone else just now".
"I understand that you may hesitate to admit it, but it's not fair to label yourself as the most worthless in the group, Suzune. Please don't blame yourself for the situation. It seems like you may have just chosen the wrong person to confront. Additionally, the exam was chaotic, especially with Class A being a major concern. Please try to relax." Ryuuen told Horikita.
"W-What are you s-saying you've done?" Horikita asks Ryuuen.
"You'll know the answer soon enough," he replies.
And once 11 p.m. arrived, an email arrived on our phones.
And without sparing Ryuuen a gaze, we all looked down to see the results.
Rat: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Cow: Outcome #4. The traitor answered incorrectly.
Tiger: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Rabbit: Outcome #1. VIP's identity was shared.
Dragon: Outcome #1. VIP's identity was shared.
Snake: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Horse: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Sheep: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Monkey: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Rooster: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Dog: Outcome #4. The traitor answered incorrectly.
Pig: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.
Class A: Minus 50 cp; 5 million private points
Class B: No change; 4.5 million private points
Class C: Minus 50 cp; 5.5 million private points
Class D: Plus 50; 5.5 million private points
"Class D... is on top?" Horikita and the others seemed shocked at the results.
"Ha, in your face!" Sudou boasted.
"Kukuku, I am fascinated by these results," Ryuuen didn't seem disappointed, but he was rather amused about the results, "It seems like someone got in the way."
Ryuuen's attention was on me, "You did something, didn't you? You were vocal during the discussions in our group."
Negotiation can be a powerful thing.'
"Kukuku, it looks like there's a bastard I have to look out for in Class D. I can't wait to bury you six feet under," Ryuuen flashed an evil grin before leaving the table.
"What did you do, Kagurazaka-kun?" Hirata asked with curiosity.
'I don't want to talk about it while people are around.'
"I see... I understand," Hirata smiled.
~Timeskip~
It was late at night when I met up with Chabishira-sensei, and she was smoking a cigarette. She was leaning against the railing.
'You know smoking is bad for you.'
"The students and co-workers stress me out," she said, taking a drag.
A smile appeared on her face, "You did a good job."
'It doesn't feel like I did...'
"Hey... I heard about the incident on the island," Chabashira-sensei said, "I was thinking about expelling you until someone came forward."
That's news to me.
"It looks like you get to stay," Chabashira-sensei said while extinguishing her cigarette, "Congratulations."
"How did you do it?" She asked.
'It's a long explanation...'
"I've got time," she responded nonchalantly.
I don't think I'm getting out of this one. It will be good practice if I explain again.
I told her what I did, and she kept a serious expression. When I finished my explanation, she chuckled, "Tired?"
I nodded.
"You deserve the rest after what you did," she patted me on the back, "You did an amazing job, Kagurazaka. Keep up the good work, and enjoy your summer break."
I listened as she walked away with her footsteps getting quieter.
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