So, he decided to bring his cat from home to school as a way to appease her.
He had learned from Kikyō that giving gifts could help when a girlfriend was unhappy.
"...??"
But then Houtarou realized something — he and Arisu weren't even dating.
So why should he care about her feelings?
Still, refusing would seem cold-hearted, especially since she seemed so excited about it.
This was truly a complicated situation...
"What's Ryūen trying to do right now?" A voice suddenly asked.
It was someone who couldn't follow their conversation and was confused by Kakeru's reaction.
This person was Masumi, the purple puppy.
Before the island exam, she had privately approached Houtarou about maintaining Class A's position. She was a Class A student eager to benefit from her class's momentum toward the school's rewards.
Simply put, she cared deeply about class rankings and wanted Class A to stay on top.
In this exam, Kakeru's class had fallen to Class D, and now the school's Class A and Class D formed the Red Team.
A win would add 100 Class Points, while a loss would subtract 100. If Kakeru's class refused to cooperate, it could jeopardize the larger team's victory.
"Don't worry about Ryūen's actions." Houtarou said, "Third-year Class A is dependable enough. And since second-year Nagumo-senpai's classes are just putting on an act, he'll step in if Ryūen causes too much trouble. He won't allow a loss."
Won't allow a loss?
As someone close to both Arisu and Houtarou, Masumi knew more than most.
She knew something was off about the second-year students' Class Points — they were being controlled. With that control in place, there was nothing to worry about. They could simply claim "Oh, I fell down" or "Everyone forfeits".
As for Kakeru's intentions, Houtarou had figured them out almost immediately after his stunt.
That guy had a unique mindset: find rules, break them, and reap the benefits. While his actions seemed provocative, his approach made perfect sense.
First point: Staying behind to discuss cooperation with Class A was pointless.
After all, what benefit could come from working with Class A?
Among the competition events, only three allowed inter-class cooperation: the pole toppling competition (boys only), cavalry battle (girls only), and the recommended four-way tug of war.
For Kakeru's perspective, Class A would give their all regardless of cooperation since they wanted to maintain their position. They would participate obediently either way.
Therefore, staying for discussion was pointless — it would only waste time.
Second point: Working with Class A wasn't worth considering since victory was nearly guaranteed. The Red Team consisted of Class A and D, meaning they had first-year, second-year, and third-year Class A — the school's most excellent classes. With such powerful allies, other classes barely posed a challenge.
This meant they would easily secure the 100 Class Points from the Red vs White competition.
Given this certainty, there was no need for discussion — they could simply let themselves be carried to victory.
Thus, Kakeru's focus wasn't on the school-wide battle but on the first-year competition. His real concerns were improving Class D's total score and sabotaging other classes.
To achieve this, he wouldn't use legitimate methods — something Houtarou had anticipated.
Kakeru currently possessed around 4 million points, and his Class D students each had 150,000 points. Combined, they could amass about 6 million.
After nurturing this opportunity for several days, they could finally swindle away all his points during the sports festival!
Houtarou felt genuinely excited about this prospect.
According to Arisu, he had found an interesting toy. Though the comparison seemed extreme, it heightened his anticipation.
With Kōhei clarifying the situation, first-year Class A decided to leave.
After all, Kakeru had independently led his team away. Among the combined Class A and D, only Class A remained — leaving no one to discuss with.
Houtarou then glanced toward first-year Class C.
The students stood in two rows, boys and girls, but their front-row arrangement seemed random — Yōsuke, Suzune, and Kikyō weren't leading.
Even after advancing a class, Class C maintained their usual style.
Meanwhile, Rokusuke had departed after confirming points wouldn't be deducted. His absence suggested he wouldn't participate in this exam, as his 20 million-point plan required minimal effort.
However, they still needed to collect payments from Class C students who wanted to avoid placing in the bottom 10.
So, while returning to Class A, Houtarou composed and sent messages to the necessary contacts.
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"Looks like Class A has left too."
They watched as Kakeru led Class C away, with Class A students following suit.
Now only Class B and Class C students remained in the first-year area, both grouped together as part of the White Team.
Unlike Kakeru's independent nature, Class B's representatives were more restrained. As members of the White Team in the Red vs White competition, they were already at a disadvantage.
Class B's Honami and Ryūji approached with their classmates.
"Class A students have it tough too, being grouped with Ryūen and his class." Honami said, glancing between Yōsuke and Suzune, "I probably shouldn't say this, but he always acts independently, so we can't let our guard down during this sports festival."
Her sharp intelligence showed through as she quickly grasped Kakeru's intentions, prompting her to warn Class C.
"Thank you for your warning, but from your tone, is that based on experience?" Yōsuke replied.
This "nice guy" Yōsuke had a talent for damaging relationships. His single comment visibly affected both Class B representatives.
First was Honami.
"Ugh."
Her discomfort stemmed from when Kakeru had sent Mio and Satoru to spy on their team leader information, forcing her to stand alone in the rain — a truly embarrassing situation.
Moreover, according to Houtarou's analysis, while Kakeru had placed spies in Rokusuke's class, he had changed their team leader. Their side, lacking such resourcefulness, hadn't changed leaders, though Rokusuke's leadership information remained secure.
Consequently, Class B had been forced to transfer 600,000 points — worth 150 Class Points — to Kakeru that morning, as per their agreement, despite they themselves being damaged during the test.
These matters were better left unspoken.
"Hirata-kun." Ryūji stepped forward, seeing Honami's discomfort, "What are your thoughts about this sports festival?"
"Thoughts? We haven't discussed this sports event yet." Yōsuke said.
They were indeed the Class D — or rather, Class C now.
Though Class B students typically avoided looking down on others, Ryūji felt they couldn't allow Class C to catch up, especially with only 190 Class Points separating them.
"And your class's Kōenji..." He remembered the man who had ruthlessly raided their island base camp, forcing them to relocate overnight — a traumatic experience.
However, this golden-haired student was nowhere to be seen among Class C.
"Kōenji... That guy actually said, 'I'm a genius, you mortals will get depressed competing with me, so I won't participate. Be grateful for my generosity'." A Class C student said angrily.
The speaker was Ken.
His strong physical abilities were well-known, as were Rokusuke's — information available both at school and on the ship. Without that arrogant blond participating, Class C had lost a powerful asset who could have earned them significant points.
Though these words should have been concerning, they actually made Ryūji feel relieved.
Although Class B and Class C both belonged to the White Team and shared the same large group, beyond the school-wide Red vs White competition, they still competed for grade point rankings. The difference in Class Points between the two classes remained precariously small.
Rokusuke's unwillingness to participate provided Class B with greater security.
"Regarding this point." Suzune suddenly interjected, "These things aren't important."
"Oh?"
Her initiative drew everyone's attention.
Honami looked over too.
She understood somewhat. During the preferential treatment exam, Houtarou had spent considerable time with Suzune. He had also determined the VIP exam's outcome, with Suzune being the last to depart.
Compared to Yōsuke or Kikyō, Honami felt more concerned about Suzune's thoughts. After all, it was difficult to tell whether she was acting on Houtarou's instructions.
"Rather than discussing class arrangements for this sports festival." Suzune said, "I've collected money from my classmates to secure them a safety net. They don't want to end up in the bottom 10 of the individual rankings — they'll lose 10 points per subject in the next written exam. I hope Class B students can cooperate.
This isn't something we need to hide — our Class C students genuinely lack athletic ability. For the mandatory individual competitions, I hope Class B can throw some matches. When your class competes against our less athletic students, I want your participants to strategically forfeit."
"..."
"..."
"Uh???"
Everyone drew in a sharp breath.
Such matters — collecting money and Class C students paying Suzune to avoid the bottom 10 — weren't meant for open discussion.
While Kikyō maintained her cute demeanor, she watched attentively.
She wanted to know Houtarou's proposed plan for helping Class C's struggling students survive the sports festival.
The result was shocking — directly asking Class B students to throw matches?
And announcing it publicly!
Class C students: "..."
The classmates surrounding Suzune stood stunned.
Class B students: "..."
Passing second-year Class A students: "..."
How could anyone say such things in public?
This was the gymnasium. She was openly discussing having Class B students fake races!
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