Ryūen Kakeru turned to Kushida Kikyō, a slight smirk playing on his lips, and asked,
"Has anything unusual happened in your class recently?"
"Nothing so far. We just discussed some details about the upcoming minor exam. There's nothing else to report."
Kushida, hiding her true intentions behind a charming smile, replied,
"They mentioned that the results of this minor exam will influence the partner pairings for the final exam. Those with lower scores will be paired with those who scored higher."
"Just as I suspected. And if I'm not mistaken, your class plans to target Class D, right?"
"Correct."
Kushida nodded,
"Horikita Suzune said Class D has the lowest academic performance, making them the ideal target."
"Hahaha, judging by class rankings alone, that's true. I'm sure Class A or Class C would target us too. But our goal is clear. I've said it before—I'll crush Class B and Horikita Suzune. If your class targets us, it'll likely turn into a showdown between our two classes."
"You talk about crushing Horikita, but during the sports festival, you didn't manage to do that."
At that moment, Kushida's expression shifted. She stepped forward, her gaze locking onto Ryūen,
"I don't want you to be worthless, Ryūen."
A chilling intent radiated from Kushida.
*Is she really talking to Ryūen like that?*
Ishizaki Daichi stared in disbelief, shocked by Kushida's bold move.
"Oh? Kikyō, you're bold. You're the first woman to speak to me like that."
Ryūen's smile remained unchanged, showing no annoyance.
Though Ryūen favored violence, he was highly rational, using it only as a means to an end.
He understood that he and Kushida were allies, sharing the goal of defeating Horikita Suzune.
Kushida aimed to use Ryūen, and he intended to use her in return.
To destroy Horikita and Class B, they needed to cooperate.
"Horikita found out about our alliance after the sports festival."
Kushida continued.
"That was inevitable. She'd discover it sooner or later. Kikyō, this exam's questions are student-made, which gives us an opportunity."
Ryūen narrowed his eyes,
"You need to prepare the questions before anyone else, submit them to your homeroom teacher, and ensure no other questions are accepted. Then, share the exam with us. That way, Class D will dominate the final exam."
"Understood."
Kushida nodded, exchanged a few more words about Class B with Ryūen, and then left.
*These two are a handful,*
Saiki Kusuo thought, heading to an isolated spot and deactivating his invisibility.
*I can't ignore this.*
Though he avoided unnecessary trouble, Kushida and Ryūen's plan to secretly prepare the exam questions piqued his interest.
*I'll tell Ayanokōji later. He can handle it. For now, I'll check out that new cake shop…*
---
The next day, morning.
Chabashira Sae gave the students a class period to discuss the upcoming exam.
Horikita Suzune stepped onto the podium, her tone serious,
"Thanks to your efforts, we've performed well in the sports festival, minor exams, and midterms."
*Horikita's changed since enrollment,*
Ayanokōji Kiyotaka observed, resting his cheek on his hand.
Initially, she looked down on everyone, but something shifted after May of the previous semester.
Ayanokōji wasn't sure why, but it was likely related to Saiki Kusuo.
"During the sports festival, I even saw Sudō's growth—from a troublemaker to someone with responsibility…"
Hearing this, Sudō Ken blushed, awkwardly scratching his head.
"For the next minor and final exams, I want us to unite. We're close to Class A. Let's work together!"
"That makes sense, but do we have a strategy? Like, how are partners decided? We don't know that, right?!"
Yamauchi Haruki shouted, voicing his confusion.
*He already knows. He's just pretending,*
Saiki Kusuo thought, glancing at Kushida.
*You're good at hiding your true self. No one in class knows. I'll make sure you and Horikita drop out!*
Kushida's inner monologue contrasted with her focused expression.
Saiki pretended not to hear, looking away.
"We've figured out the pairing rules. If all goes well, everyone can get their ideal partner. Hirata, please explain."
"Okay."
Hirata Yōsuke nodded, walked to the podium, and wrote the rules on the board. After yesterday's meeting, he'd confirmed their theory with his soccer club seniors.
The top scorer pairs with the lowest, second with second-lowest, third with third-lowest, and so on.
For example, a 100-point scorer pairs with a 0-point scorer, and a 99-point scorer with a 1-point scorer.
"This is the pairing rule. It's simple."
Horikita pointed to the board.
"Wow! You figured it out, Horikita! You're amazing!"
Yamauchi's voice was the loudest, praising her.
*This is basic. Why are they so impressed?*
Kushida's frustration grew.
"With this rule, high and low scorers pair up, but there's still room for surprises. We need a strategy for precise pairings. Here's my plan."
"Based on past results, we'll support students worried about their scores and pair them with top performers. We can't help everyone, so we'll prioritize the lowest-ranked students."
"For the midterm's bottom ten, just write your name on the minor exam. It won't affect points, so a zero score is fine. Conversely, the top ten must score at least 85."
Horikita instructed.
"What does that mean?"
Yamauchi remained confused, turning to Ike Kanji for clarification. After understanding, he nodded.
*Kushida's in the top ten… So I might pair with her!*
Yamauchi's smile widened.
*Others want him expelled, yet he's happy about his low rank…*
Saiki sighed, amused by Yamauchi's positivity.
*What a big-hearted guy.*
Saiki began planning his approach to the exam.
He and Ayanokōji ranked in the middle, with nearly identical scores.
Following Horikita's method, they'd likely pair up…
*Absolutely not!*
Saiki knew pairing with Ayanokōji would bring endless trouble.
"The middle twenty students split into two groups of ten. Top half aims for 80, bottom half for 1 point. This should create balanced final exam pairs. I'll confirm the details later."
Horikita continued.
Saiki ranked 20th, Ayanokōji 21st—a clear dividing line.
With low scores of 0 or 1, pairings would be slightly random, reducing the chance of Saiki pairing with Ayanokōji to one in ten.
If Saiki could control the randomness, he could alter his partner, but he didn't know the school's pairing method.
Anyone but Ayanokōji would do.
"Kōenji, any objections?"
Horikita turned to Kōenji Rokusuke.
"None. It's a nonsense issue. I already know the exam content."
Kōenji stretched his long legs onto the desk, uninterested.
Kōenji's exceptional intellect and judgment meant he'd figured out the rules, and his scores were impressive.
But his unconventional thinking made his actions unpredictable, even to Horikita.
"Can I expect you to score 80 or higher?"
"Who knows? Depends on the exam."
"If you intentionally score zero and pair with a top student, it'll disrupt the balance. Please cooperate, Kōenji."
"I'll consider it, Girl."
Kōenji smiled, his thoughts unreadable.
---
Days later, the minor exam arrived. The questions were simple, even for Sudō and Yamauchi. To ensure smooth final exam pairings, everyone followed Horikita's plan.
Saiki, usually an average scorer, sighed and aimed for 80 as instructed.
The next day, Chabashira entered the classroom.
"Your scores show you've figured out the final exam pairings. Well done."
She smiled, nodding in approval,
"Now, I'll announce the final exam partner assignments…"
She posted the list on the board:
Horikita Suzune and Sudō Ken, Hirata Yōsuke and Ike Kanji—Kushida Kikyō and Yamauchi Haruki.
Seeing Kushida and Yamauchi paired, Saiki looked at Yamauchi with pity.
Yamauchi, oblivious, beamed.
*Amazing! I'm with Kushida! Not only is my score secure, but… I might get closer to her!*
Yamauchi rejoiced internally.
Beside him, even the disguised Kushida's smile stiffened.
*Yamauchi, did you intentionally pair with me?*