Chapter 250 - The "V.I.P." of Rabbit Group / Black Stockings or White Stockings
Rabbit Group, fourth meeting.
The faces of Ichinose Honami, Shiranami Chihiro, and Hamaguchi Tetsuya showed no signs of distress, even though one of their "V.I.P.s" had been identified previously. At least in Shimizu Akira's eyes, their expressions and behavior were no different from usual.
It seemed Ichinose's comforting words had worked well.
The flow of this meeting was not much different from the third; Ichinose once again took the lead in suggesting everyone sit in a circle to play cards. The atmosphere remained steady. Manabe Shiho and Yabu Nanami from Class C, along with Takemoto Shigeru and Tanihara Mao from Class A, remained seated quietly to the side, making no moves throughout the process, as if they were merely observers of this meeting.
As the clock ticked quietly to 8:30 PM, everyone's phones rang almost simultaneously with a familiar notification sound. Shimizu Akira picked up his phone, and as expected, the familiar notification popped up on the screen:
"The exam for Ox Group has ended. Students of Ox Group do not need to participate in the exam further. Please act carefully and do not disturb other students."
Ox Group ended already? Shimizu Akira's heart stirred.
Could it be Sakayanagi Arisu's doing? After all, he had just received news not long ago that she planned to V.I.P. Class B. He subconsciously looked toward Ichinose and the other two; although they showed a bit of surprise, there was no obvious worry in their eyes.
'It looks like the Class B V.I.P. isn't in Ox Group.'
"It seems that after Monkey Group ended early, everyone has become a bit restless," Ichinose sighed as she put down her phone.
"It's no wonder," Hamaguchi nodded in agreement. "If you guess the V.I.P. correctly, you get 500,000 private points individually. Even if you guess wrong, only class points are deducted, which has nothing to do with the individual. Plus, the whistleblower's name isn't made public. Anyone would be tempted."
A class like Class B, which was united enough to have students fully obey collective decisions, was unique among the four classes. Not every class had students who could honestly follow arrangements without playing their own little games.
"Could it be Ryuen Kakeru from Class C? Maybe he bribed people from other classes to intentionally guess the wrong V.I.P. and stir up trouble?" Karuizawa Kei muttered with a frown.
"Hey! Karuizawa, don't just go throwing mud at Class C!" Manabe Shiho immediately put down her phone and retorted bluntly.
"Exactly! When Monkey Group ended early last time, it was clearly because your class's Koenji Rokusuke took it upon himself to vote recklessly! If we're talking about causing trouble, maybe it was your Class D!" Yabu Nanami chimed in.
"Alright, alright, everyone calm down," Ichinose quickly stood up to mediate. "Right now, it's just speculation. There's no need to argue over this. How about we play cards together?!"
"Who wants to discuss plans with you! Maybe it was your Class B behind this!" Manabe didn't let up. "You intentionally tried to test for the V.I.P. in the group during the first round. Now that Ox Group ended suddenly, maybe you guys pulled some strings behind the scenes!"
"Class B absolutely did no such thing!" Shiranami Chihiro, seeing that Ichinose hadn't spoken yet, rushed to retort, fearing they would be misunderstood.
Before the argument could stop, Karuizawa took the opportunity to interject again, implying in her words that Manabe was just trying to divert attention. Manabe immediately turned back to snap at her, even digging up old grudges. Before long, Matsushita Chiaki couldn't help but join the fray, speaking up for Karuizawa.
The group went back and forth, arguing incessantly, their voices rising several levels higher than before.
Shimizu Akira sat to the side, truly having his eyes opened. It was the first time he had witnessed the intensity of girls arguing; it was much fiercer than disputes between boys.
When boys bickered, it might at most end in a physical fight, but when girls started talking, their rapid-fire words could leave one with no way to counter. They could even dig up small past incidents as evidence. The scene was so chaotic he couldn't even find a place to chime in.
Just then, his phone vibrated, interrupting the noise in his ears. When he clicked it, it was indeed a message from Sakayanagi Arisu:
Sakayanagi Arisu: Yes, the Ox Group matter was my doing~
Sakayanagi Arisu: It was an old acquaintance, Hashimoto Masayoshi, who did the deed himself.
The culprit had finally admitted it. Shimizu Akira's lip twitched, and an image immediately flashed in his mind. Sakayanagi Arisu was likely sitting in some comfortable corner, a delicate coffee cup in front of her, slowly scooping with a small spoon, typing on her screen with a triumphant smile in her eyes.
However, since the end of Ox Group seemingly had nothing to do with the Class B V.I.P., could it be that something happened to the Class A V.I.P.? The "Civil War Goddess" Sakayanagi Arisu had finally started making her move.
.
.
.
The third day of the special exam.
When Shimizu Akira picked up his phone, the message was from Horikita Suzune.
Horikita Suzune: At 9:30 PM, I'll wait for you in the lounge.
Shimizu Akira: ? What do you mean?
Horikita Suzune: Do you remember what I promised you the day before yesterday?
Horikita Suzune: Today is a rest day; none of the 12 groups have meetings. I have time.
Horikita Suzune: In short, you can proceed to the next step.
Shimizu Akira: Okay, I understand.
After the message was sent, Horikita did not reply further. Looking at the chat interface, Shimizu Akira couldn't help but chuckle. Is she being shy? Even her explanation had a sense of haste, as if she were in a hurry to end the conversation.
He carefully recalled the rules of the special exam. This exam lasted four days in total. On the first, second, and fourth days, there were two one-hour group meetings at 1:00 PM and 8:00 PM. Only the third day was a rest day for the first-year students of all four classes; no meetings were required, serving as a time for adjustment provided by the school.
However, "rest" was relative. The reporting mechanism did not pause. As long as students took out their phones, they could still report the "V.I.P." of their group at any time, unaffected by the rest day.
To be honest, until now, Shimizu Akira still had no clue about the V.I.P. of his own group. It was the same old problem—too many people in the group remained silent. Everyone was hiding their thoughts, and he couldn't find a breakthrough to test for information. There were even several people he knew among the members of Class A and Class C, which made things harder to handle. For example, Kamuro Masumi from Class A, and Shiina Hiyori and Ibuki Mio from Class C.
Ibuki Mio was fine; he wasn't close to her anyway, so if he found out she was the V.I.P., he'd feel no psychological burden reporting her directly. As for Shiina Hiyori, the two had discussed class positions before, so even if he did report her, given her personality, she likely wouldn't be too angry.
Only Kamuro Masumi was the one who gave him the biggest headache. Just yesterday, she had specifically sent a message saying she was still angry about him reporting her name before. If he misjudged and reported her again this time, with her temper, she might really find a chance to punish him.
Ahem, of course, who's to say the so-called "punishment" wouldn't turn into some other form in the end?
Just as that thought flashed by, today's daily intel refreshed right on time, clearly listing three pieces of information:
The V.I.P. of Rabbit Group is Kamuro Masumi from Class 1-A. Yamauchi Haruki from Class 1-D sent 10,000 private points each to Hondo Ryotaro, Miyamoto Soshi, and Onizuka. Horikita Suzune from Class 1-D watched many movies about romance in advance.
"Ah! It really is her!" Shimizu Akira stared at the first piece of intel, genuinely stunned for a moment. He never expected that the V.I.P. of Rabbit Group would truly be Kamuro Masumi.
This was great; he didn't even have to bother with reasoning.
The intel provided rock-solid proof without a hint of ambiguity.
Thinking further based on the intel, the only time Kamuro spoke proactively during the Rabbit Group meeting was to refute Ichinose. It turns out that when she broke Class B's rhythm, it wasn't just to help Sakayanagi, but because she was the V.I.P. herself and didn't want the meeting to proceed smoothly for fear of exposing her identity.
The logic was completely sound.
Could it be that Sakayanagi Arisu knew Kamuro was the V.I.P. all along and specifically gave her advice behind the scenes to let her stir up trouble by refuting Ichinose?
Originally, Shimizu Akira had planned that as soon as he deduced the V.I.P.'s identity, he would report them immediately. That way, he and the others wouldn't have to attend the meeting tomorrow, and he would get 500,000 private points and 50 class points—killing two birds with one stone.
But now that he knew the V.I.P. was Kamuro Masumi, his thoughts changed instantly.
That was Kamuro Masumi! From the start of school until now, even though they belonged to different classes, she often lent him points and treated him to meals. During the deserted island exam, she had truly helped him out. How could he throw that sentiment away for a few points?
Shimizu Akira barely hesitated before completely abandoning the idea of reporting her. Even if the report was anonymous and Kamuro likely wouldn't know it was him, "others not knowing" and "not having done it" were two different things.
To him, 500,000 private points and 50 class points weren't nearly as important as Kamuro Masumi herself.
Looking at the second piece of intel, the content about Yamauchi Haruki surprised Shimizu Akira. He actually gave three people 10,000 points each? How did Yamauchi suddenly become so wealthy?
One must know that although Class D's class points had reached over 800, these were only just acquired this month. According to the rules, they wouldn't be converted into 80,000+ private points for each student until next month. Class D was still the most point-starved of the four classes. But Yamauchi? He was someone who spent points recklessly in the first month. For him to suddenly produce 30,000 points to give away—did he come across some windfall lately? Like selling information, for instance?
As for the last piece of intel... Horikita Suzune watched many romance movies?
Shimizu Akira couldn't help but smile slightly.
Could this be in preparation for her meeting with him tonight? He didn't expect her to do something like that; it was actually quite cute.
If the intel hadn't stated it clearly, it would be hard to imagine that the usually cold, almost expressionless Horikita would specifically watch romance movies and silently ponder over such delicate matters.
But ultimately, the first piece of intel was the most critical.
Although Shimizu Akira had decided not to report Kamuro, he couldn't help but worry: what if others in the group noticed something was wrong and accidentally discovered she was the V.I.P.? After thinking it over, he decided to send a message to Kamuro Masumi as a reminder.
Shimizu Akira: Are you free today?
Kamuro Masumi: Today is a rest day, why wouldn't I be free? Just say it.
Shimizu Akira: How about we find a secluded spot to talk in person?
The matter of the V.I.P. was too sensitive; he couldn't leave any digital traces by typing on the phone. It was safer to speak while alone. But not long after the message was sent, Kamuro's reply stunned him.
Kamuro Masumi: Hey! You aren't thinking of something gross again, trying to use the rest day to get touchy-feely with me, are you? Like that time I went to your dorm!
Shimizu Akira subconsciously narrowed his eyes. His mind did uncontrollably flash back to the sight of her in black stockings and those slender, beautiful legs. But this time, it really wasn't that! He truly had something important to say!
Shimizu Akira: No, you'll know when you get there. It's for your own good.
Kamuro Masumi: For my own good? Shimizu, you're getting bolder and bolder.
Kamuro Masumi: So, black stockings or white stockings?
"Huh?" Shimizu Akira stared at the screen, his mind going blank. Black stockings or white stockings? What was that about? Was it what he thought it meant?
Shimizu Akira: ???
Kamuro Masumi: Most of Class A knows about you spending 5 exam-specific points to buy me snacks on the deserted island. I even shared some with Yamamura Miki. Don't think I didn't notice what you liked when I went to your dorm last time, hmph! Although I'm not used to it personally, since you helped me, I'll satisfy your little desire this time.
Seeing this, Shimizu Akira was indeed tempted. Kamuro in black stockings... just the thought was very alluring.
But he immediately snapped back to reality. No, business first!
Shimizu Akira: Didn't you also help pull strings for me last time so I could get 500,000 points? There's no need for a special reward.
Kamuro Masumi: I just mentioned it in passing! Can that compare to your 5 class exam points? Idiot! Stop talking nonsense and I'll ask one more time: black or white?
Shimizu Akira struggled for two seconds before honestly typing two words: Black stockings!
There was no helping it; in terms of compatibility, black stockings definitely suited Kamuro's vibe better.
Kamuro Masumi: Heh~ men~
Kamuro Masumi: 8:30 PM, come find me in the lounge. If you dare to be late, you're dead!
Shimizu Akira looked at the threatening text on the screen and shrugged helplessly. Regardless, the meeting time was set. It just seemed that... this meeting could involve doing something else on the side, in every sense of the word. They could talk business, and they could do "leisurely" things.
Kamuro Masumi had promised it herself.
Thinking about it, it was hard not to feel a bit excited. It's only natural to have expectations when something like this happens.
But.
He suddenly realized—wasn't he supposed to meet Horikita Suzune in the lounge at 9:30 PM tonight? One at 8:30, one at 9:30, and the location was the lounge for both.
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