"Huh?"
At that moment, the sumo wrestler watching from the sidelines suddenly looked terrified. She had seen the face of death on everyone participating in the tug-of-war—except for Saiki Kusuo.
Fortunately, the vision only lasted an instant before disappearing.
*Was I mistaken? What just happened?*
*Damn...*
Saiki Kusuo, usually expressionless, suddenly widened his eyes, a hint of fear in his gaze. Distracted by the psychic prediction, he lost control of his strength, and his hands snapped the rope—though no one noticed.
*Phew, close call...*
Saiki pressed his hands together, pulling the broken ends of the rope in opposite directions, hiding the break between his palms.
*Good thing no one's noticed... If the rope snapped here, it'd be trouble. No ordinary person could break a rope this thick...*
Sweat formed on Saiki's forehead. He'd narrowly avoided disaster. If he hadn't regained control, his strength might've sent both teams flying like sticky goo. Thankfully, that didn't happen.
"What's going on? Why can't we move?"
Both teams wondered the same thing. They were essentially pitted against Saiki alone—no matter how many people pulled, they couldn't win.
*Hmm?*
Farther away, Horikita Manabu watched intently.
*The white team was ahead, and the red team was sure to lose. But now it's a stalemate. No one else seems to notice, but I do. It's because of the earlier pole-toppling contest that I noticed you, Saiki Kusuo.*
*You weren't even trying at first—I could tell from your face. But now you're putting in some effort, and the tide has turned. You've been controlling the match all along, haven't you? Interesting. I've got my eye on you now, Saiki.*
Horikita smiled, adjusting his glasses. His sharp gaze never left Saiki.
Meanwhile, Saiki, at the center of the tug-of-war, focused solely on the rope in his hands.
*The rope's broken. I'll need my restoration ability... But the ends need to touch first...*
There was a small gap between the broken ends in his hands.
*I'll just press them together gently. That'll make restoration easier.*
Saiki carefully adjusted his strength.
On the other side of the rope, Ryūen Kakeru looked confused.
*What's going on? I switched sides and even 'motivated' them, but we're still losing?*
*We were winning a moment ago. Why can't we finish them off?*
*Maybe... they're holding back too? We can't exhaust ourselves. Let's forfeit this round. It's best two out of three, after all.*
Ryūen had already planned tactics. If needed, he'd order his team to let go suddenly. In the heat of the match, the red team would lose balance and fall—exhausting them and possibly provoking them. Someone like Sudō Ken might even lash out, costing them the match.
Ryūen had a strategy for everything.
*That's it.*
He prepared to signal his team—but suddenly, the rope in his hands surged with force, pulling him forward. The entire white team was yanked forward, losing balance. Several fell, including Ryūen.
The balance between the teams was instantly broken.
"Red team wins the first round!"
The referee blew the whistle.
"Whatever," Ryūen shrugged.
"We're amazing!" cheered the red team.
Saiki released the rope, relieved. The break was restored, unnoticeable.
*Close call...*
Saiki sighed. *I lost control at the end, but it's a team event. No one noticed—except Ryūen.*
*How is this possible? Why did the red team suddenly gain so much strength?*
*Damn... Did Ryūen suspect something? He can't possibly suspect me...*
*Maybe...*
Saiki tensed slightly.
*Maybe the red team saw through our tactics and was hiding their strength? They were stronger all along but pretended to struggle to exhaust us. Now we can't win the next round. And some of us have other events—we can't waste energy!*
*Nice one, Ryūen.*
Hearing Ryūen's thoughts, Saiki relaxed. His dislike for Ryūen lessened, even earning some respect. Ryūen had saved him trouble.
"We forfeit this round," Ryūen told his team during the break.
"What? Why?" asked Ishizaki Daichi, confused. They'd almost won.
"Idiot, don't you see? We fell for their trap."
"Huh?"
"They're far stronger than us. Their earlier struggle was an act to make us think we could win, exhausting us. We can't win the next round. Plus, some of us have other events—we can't waste energy!"
"I see! Ryūen's so sharp!"
"I underestimated them... We might lose this sports festival..."
Ryūen shook his head and informed the referee of their forfeit.
"Forfeit? What's going on?" Kanzaki Ryūji from Class C was baffled. With Class D forfeiting, Class C couldn't compete alone.
Classes A and B were equally confused.
"Why did Ryūen and Class D forfeit? Did they give up?"
"Ryūen's definitely planning something."
Ryūen ignored their complaints and walked away. His phone buzzed with a message from Kushida Kikyō.
*Kushida: Yamauchi Haruki is likely behind everything.*
*Kushida: I saw him after meeting you. He claimed to use the bathroom, but it wasn't that way. He was probably following me.*
"Figures," Ryūen smirked.
"We gained something from this festival. We'll settle the score later. First, I need to confirm something."
Ryūen and Ishizaki headed to the girls' resting area. Manabe Shiho was warming up for her event.
"Ryūen... What do you want?" she asked, suspicious.
Though Ryūen controlled Class D, many resented him, including Manabe.
"Manabe, you're hiding something, aren't you?"
Ryūen grinned like a wolf.
"What?" Manabe feigned ignorance, but her brief panic gave her away.
"There's a traitor in our class—I think it's you. Let me check your phone."
Ryūen narrowed his eyes.
"Confess, and I'll forgive you."
He smiled, but his words were threatening. He needed to know why she betrayed them.
"I..." Manabe hesitated, seeing Ishizaki behind Ryūen. She handed over her phone.
Lying was pointless now.
Ryūen scrolled through her messages, noticing an unknown contact named X. Strangely, X used two different accounts.
The first account sent a video of Manabe bullying Horikita Suzune on a cruise ship. Saiki appeared at the end, stopping the bullying.
*So this is why Manabe was threatened. If this video reaches the teachers, it's serious. But Saiki isn't X—he appeared in the video.*
The second account ordered Manabe to buy pudding and stay near Ryūen to record him. Ryūen had already noticed her and prevented it.
*So X used Manabe to spy on me.*
*But why two accounts? Is X two people? No... X is arrogant, showing off by hiding his identity. His actions reveal his pride.*
*Your arrogance will be your downfall, Yamauchi Haruki. I've traced you.*
Ryūen's gaze sharpened.
*Your disguise is impressive, but you're no match for me. I'll tear you apart—but first, I need more info on Yamauchi. I'll start with those close to him.*
Ryūen replayed the video, focusing on Saiki's appearance.
*Saiki's a pawn, used to cover X's tracks. I can use him to learn more about Yamauchi.*
Ryūen, like a hunter spotting prey, turned to Ishizaki.
"After the festival, meet with Saiki."