Haruno's words instantly stirred everyone's emotions and mindset, taking complete control of the situation.
Even Hikigaya couldn't help but be impressed. With just a few words, Haruno had turned the whole situation around, completely shifting the dynamics with nothing but speech.
Originally, this special exam was designed as a competition between the four classes. For Haruno to achieve "Result One," all four classes needed to set aside their rivalry and work together. That was the core conflict of the situation!
But Haruno skillfully shifted this conflict onto the school itself, turning the tension between students from different classes into a confrontation between the students and the school.
Not only that, but Haruno also understood the psychology of the students. Even though people like Hirata, Katsuragi, Ichinose, and Ryuen acted mature, they were still just first-year students—teenagers around 16 years old. At this age, a sense of rebellion was natural, even if they usually kept it well hidden.
Rebellion, seeking excitement, resisting authority...
These were all emotions teenagers experienced at some point. Haruno took advantage of this, stirring up their desire to challenge authority.
Most of the time, if only one person acts out of line, they might feel scared and hesitate. But when a second, a third, or even a whole group joins in, fear turns into excitement and courage.
Even those who seemed like obedient, well-behaved students often had hidden, untapped thoughts of defiance.
From Hikigaya's perspective, Ishizaki and Ibuki were already convinced by Haruno. Hirata and Horikita also seemed shaken, but more because they had no other choice.
If they refused, Class D could end up being picked apart by Classes A and B.
"How can you guarantee there won't be betrayal?"
Ryuen suddenly sat down, staring at Haruno with a dark expression. His action itself was a kind of compromise.
Haruno smirked slightly. "All 160 students will sign a contract. Anyone who breaks the agreement will voluntarily drop out. Of course, additional measures will be in place. Since the school won't reveal the identity of any 'traitors,' students will be monitored by their own classmates and dormmates. Anyone who reports a betrayal will receive an extra 500,000 private points."
Haruno also added various precautions, such as sealing each group's VIP student's name in an envelope and only allowing it to be opened after 9:30 AM on the last day of the exam.
It was clear Haruno had already planned everything out in detail.
"I have a question."
Horikita suddenly spoke up. "This contract is based on the agreement of all students in each class, but what happens if something uncontrollable occurs?"
Everyone immediately understood what she meant. Unlike the other three classes, Class D—or more specifically, Hirata—had far less control over its members.
Class D had the most independent and unpredictable students. Koenji was the best example of that.
Horikita was worried that even if 39 students agreed, Koenji might go against them. If one person refused to cooperate, the entire class could suffer. It wasn't impossible.
If that happened, the other three classes would feast on Class D.
"Then, unfortunately, any group with a student unwilling to sign will lose the 500,000 private points."
Haruno said this casually.
"But..." Haruno added, "since the reason for the failure would be Class D, the missing private points for the other students in the group will be deducted from the rest of Class D to compensate."
This statement made both Horikita and Hirata frown deeply.
Haruno was saying that if Koenji refused to cooperate and caused a group to fail "Result One," the total loss of 7.5 million private points would be taken from the other 11 groups in Class D to compensate the affected students from the other classes.
Of course, the compensation wouldn't include the Class D students in that failed group.
In other words, if one person refused to cooperate, the entire class would suffer a loss in private points.
Since it was Class D's fault, they had to bear the consequences.
On the surface, this seemed fair.
But on closer thought, it was a ruthless move.
This would completely isolate any uncooperative student...
Even turning them into the enemy of the entire class.
Becoming the target of the other students' resentment!
Just as Horikita was about to say something, Haruno spoke first. "So, to prevent this from happening, everyone must do their best—especially those in Class D."
It seemed like Haruno was well aware of the internal issues in Class D. But based on Hikigaya's understanding of them, once they learned they could get 500,000 private points, they would definitely agree without hesitation. The only unpredictable factor was Koenji.
"Alright, the deadline for the contract is noon the day after tomorrow. I hope everyone can come to a good decision."
Haruno clapped her hands and then turned to leave the meeting room. Katsuragi, looking like he had something to question, quickly followed her out.
Ryuen let out a cold snort and also left the room, leaving only Ichinose, Horikita, and Hirata behind.
Just as Ichinose was about to leave, Horikita suddenly stepped forward and asked, "Ichinose, there's something I'm curious about. Can you answer it for me?"
Ichinose's face showed a hint of awkwardness, but she still nodded.
"Logically speaking, your class is in the lead. Why did you choose to cooperate with Yukinoshita's class? That's the one thing I can't figure out."
This was what puzzled Horikita the most. The reason Haruno was able to find out the identities of the other classes' VIPs was largely due to Ichinose's class helping her. But from Ichinose's class's perspective, this situation seemed quite odd.
Even though the roles had reversed between the two classes, they were still in a competitive relationship. By all logic, Ichinose should be wary of Class B catching up during this exam. It would have made more sense for Ichinose's class to take a conservative approach like Katsuragi. But instead, Ichinose unexpectedly chose to work with Yukinoshita?
Hearing this, Ichinose let out a bitter smile and sighed. "Sorry, Horikita, I can't tell you the reason. But right now, if we follow Yukinoshita-san's plan, the class rankings for this VIP exam won't change. For us, that's already enough."
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