"Everyone, this class will be self-study for now. Miyako-san, come out with me for a moment."
To prevent the situation from escalating, Chabashira chose to stop the class discussion.
And called Amane out alone.
"Amane..."
Horikita intended to stand up and follow Amane out.
But Amane pressed her down.
"It's fine."
If it was about age.
Then Chabashira-sensei undoubtedly had an overwhelming advantage.
But if it was about other things... hehe.
Amane still had a tiny bit of confidence.
Amane followed Chabashira-sensei out the door.
However, Chabashira-sensei didn't seem to stop.
Instead, she walked straight towards the rooftop.
Speaking of which.
Amane originally thought Chabashira-sensei would talk to her in the staff office or the tea room from last time.
But this time, Chabashira-sensei chose the rooftop.
During class hours, the rooftop could be said to be almost the safest place.
Normally, very few teachers would come to this place.
Of course.
Chabashira was an exception.
Amane saw Chabashira-sensei skillfully pull out a lady's cigarette from her pocket.
Then, she lit it in front of her, a student.
Amane recognized the brand; it was a box of ten slim lady's cigarettes, very expensive.
She didn't expect that being a teacher at this school would bring such high income?
"Want one?"
Chabashira casually offered one.
Amane took it, subconsciously reaching into her pocket.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she quickly handed the cigarette back to Chabashira Sae.
"I'm still a child, I don't smoke."
Chabashira's gaze immediately turned strange.
After a long while.
Chabashira Sae just softly hummed in acknowledgment.
Thus, Chabashira slowly enjoyed the taste of her cigarette in front of Amane.
She had no intention of communicating or interacting with Amane at all.
However, Amane was not in a hurry.
Although she had never formally negotiated with anyone.
She still knew the anecdote of Sasaki Kojiro and Miyamoto Musashi dueling on Ganryujima.
In a negotiation, the one who can't hold out first will be the loser.
So, if Chabashira didn't speak, Amane wouldn't rush her. Now it was Chabashira's turn to be surprised. Amane, who seemed so carefree and a bit of a chatterbox, should by all accounts be impatient.
But she didn't expect that Amane could hold back from speaking in such a situation. Perhaps she had underestimated her.
Chabashira thought of the interviewer's evaluation of Amane.
Such an exaggerated evaluation didn't match a single point.
The two stood there in a stalemate for about half a class period.
Finally, Chabashira spoke first.
"Miyako-san, do you have any dissatisfaction with my actions?"
Chabashira intended to test Amane's attitude towards her.
If it was just dissatisfaction, there might still be a chance for her to salvage the situation, but if it was strong opposition, then it would be bad.
Although she knew about Ayanokoji, Chabashira still harbored doubts about him being a talent or a genius.
She also didn't believe that after losing Horikita, who was capable and needed to prove herself, Ayanokoji would still desperately fulfill his promise to her.
Perhaps… Ayanokoji would soon realize she had deceived him, and he might even seek revenge.
What a headache.
Why couldn't she achieve her dream from her student days?
"Yes, I'm dissatisfied. Even if you want to abandon Suzune, you shouldn't use such disgusting methods."
Facing Amane's accusation, Chabashira actually breathed a sigh of relief.
Although Amane's words were harsh, her tone was normal, which meant there was still room for maneuver.
She knew that Amane was someone who could influence Horikita. If she could appease Amane, perhaps she wouldn't have to do this.
"I think you've misunderstood something. I never intended to abandon Horikita. I just want to use this method to temper Horikita. Don't you think that Horikita, who can mess up even a study group, has flaws in her personality?"
Chabashira tried her best to carefully avoid Amane's trigger points.
To avoid provoking Amane.
But what Chabashira didn't expect was that Horikita Suzune herself was Amane's "trigger point."
"My Suzune doesn't need you to temper her."
"Yours? Heh, how interesting. How long have you two known each other? Do you really understand Horikita Suzune? Do you know why she must move up to Class A?"
Chabashira showed a mocking smile.
She believed that Amane was only unable to tolerate Horikita being hurt even a little because they were close.
But… only setbacks are the fastest catalyst for people to mature.
Only by enduring humiliation, learning to compromise, learning to kneel, understanding concrete power, and understanding that there is no absolute right.
Only then can one be truly mature.
Amane, who understood nothing, dared to speak so presumptuously in front of her. Chabashira only found it laughable.
"I know, but does getting into Class A mean you have to bring along hopeless people? Chabashira-sensei… I seriously suspect that you were the one holding others back during your student days, weren't you?"
Amane's words provoked Chabashira.
"Whether I held others back or not, what does that have to do with you? Do you know what it means when someone drops out?"
"It means the class can proceed more smoothly. Also, I said there's more than one way to get into Class A, didn't I?"
Amane slowly approached Chabashira.
She looked up and met Chabashira Sae's gaze.
The cold eyes made Chabashira Sae involuntarily take a few steps back.
"I-it seems you know about that too? That's right, with twenty million points, you can move up to Class A. But this is an impossible task. Since the school was founded, the most individual points anyone has ever had was just over ten million, and that was obtained through deception…"
Chabashira-sensei hadn't finished speaking when Amane interrupted her with a hand.
"What if I can do it?"
"What are you talking about!!! Do you know how much twenty million points is? Even if you're in Class A, getting two hundred thousand points a month until graduation would only be seven million two hundred thousand points."
Chabashira felt as if Amane was joking with her.
She even lost the desire to talk to her.
In her opinion, Amane was just being unreasonable, not wanting Horikita to experience setbacks.
"Then, do you think it's better for third-year students nearing graduation to spend all the points in their cards, or do you think it's more useful to turn the points into actual cash?"
Chabashira, who was about to leave, stopped at her words.
"You should know that points and currency are equivalent, right?"
Chabashira-sensei turned her head and looked at Amane.
"Of course, I know."
"That's twenty million points. If you count yourself, that's forty million points. Forty million…"
"Is that a lot?"
Amane's single sentence left Chabashira speechless.
She wanted to refute this outlandish idea.
But her intuition told her.
If there were no external interferences.
Amane's idea, given sufficient funds, had considerable feasibility.
Assuming each person in Class A of the third year had three million points, only thirteen or fourteen people would be needed to gather forty million.
If individuals had fewer points, they could simply aggressively acquire them from the four classes.
Nearing graduation, some people would definitely have ideas… This plan seemed to have never been considered by anyone.
This little one, it seems she's going to corner me.
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