Chapter 115: The VIP Exam! Sakayanagi Arisu Makes the First Move!
Compared to the gravity of Class B and the oppression of Class C, the dormitory area of Class D presented a completely different scene.
Karuizawa Kei and her group of gyarus were all in the dormitory, sitting around the bed, laughing and sharing snacks. The air was filled with a relaxed atmosphere, seemingly unaffected by the upcoming exam. Karuizawa was dressed in a casual short-sleeved top and skirt. Having likely just showered, her long blonde hair draped loosely over her shoulders, and a faint smile played on her lips.
They were currently playing cards in the dorm. Of course, this wasn't in the room shared by Karuizawa, Horikita, and Sakura Airi.
Sakura's personality was too timid; she would practically explode if so many gyarus gathered there. So, they were currently in Sato and the others' room.
Just then, the phone in Sato Maya's hand suddenly vibrated. She picked it up casually, glanced at the screen, and the smile on her face froze instantly. Her expression turned frantic as she hurriedly nudged Karuizawa beside her, her tone urgent. "Kei! Kei! Look at your phone! The school sent a notice. They're adding a special exam in three days, and the results will be factored into the Class Evaluation Points!"
Upon hearing this, the smile on Karuizawa's face faded. She quickly pulled out her own phone, clicked on the official notification, and scanned it. After reading, her brow furrowed slightly, and her expression turned solemn.
The notice called it a "temporarily added" exam. What did "temporarily added" mean? It meant the rules were unknown and it would affect class ratings—undoubtedly a heavy blow to Class D, which was already at the bottom.
Of course, to them, whether it was Class D or not wasn't the main concern. What mattered was how to obtain Private Points as a class unit. Especially since, earlier at noon, she had received a massive windfall as a member of Horikita's group: 990,000 points.
990,000 points. That was an amount even she had never seen before.
So, after seeing the exam notice, her first instinct was to open her contacts and find Horikita Suzune's name to send a message. After all, Horikita truly had some skills; setting aside physical ability and academic performance, her cleverness alone was much higher than theirs. Karuizawa wasn't good at thinking for herself and was used to following orders. Logically, whether it was class affairs or exam-related matters, she should notify Horikita immediately to see what arrangements were being made.
But just as she was about to type, "Horikita-san, the school is adding a special exam, what should we do?", Hachiman's figure flashed through her mind, along with those words she had etched into her very bones:
"Then... you said those things to Horikita, and now you're telling me to do things for you... So, are you... willing to protect me?"
"As long as I am in this school, I can promise you that.
In exchange, I need you to do things for me."
Though it was a transaction—chilly on the surface—it brought her a sense of peace. And in their subsequent interactions, she felt the transaction gradually gain warmth. Hachiman's arrangements for her didn't seem to treat her simply as a tool for a trade, but rather... like raising a pet.
She thought this because she occasionally saw the "small animal" demeanor of Sakura-san and made the connection. Perhaps Hikigaya treated her like his little dog.
However, even if she was a dog, as long as the owner was strong enough and could protect her forever, it seemed acceptable.
At this thought, all intentions of "following Horikita's arrangements" vanished instantly. Horikita was indeed powerful and reliable, but in front of Hachiman's silhouette, she ultimately felt insignificant.
So, her finger paused. Without the slightest hesitation, Karuizawa deleted the text in the input box, decisively exited the chat with Horikita, and opened her dialogue box with Hikigaya Hachiman.
It wasn't that she didn't recognize Horikita's ability; she knew Horikita was quite capable at exam strategy.
But in her heart, Hachiman's priority was forever the highest.
No matter how amazing Horikita was, she was only her group leader. Hachiman, however, was the one who could truly protect her.
Thinking this, her cheeks flushed slightly. Her fingertips carefully tapped the screen as she weighed her tone, fearing her words might not be proper enough. She typed: "Hikigaya-kun, I saw the school's notice. There's a special exam in three days. Is there anything extra you need me to help with this time? I will definitely cooperate and follow your arrangements completely."
After sending the message, Karuizawa gripped her phone tightly, her eyes full of expectation and her breathing slightly hitched. She knew Hachiman was meticulous and must have already started planning for the exam. She didn't want to be a burden; she only wanted to do her best to share some of his pressure and be a "competent little dog."
Before long, the phone vibrated. It was Hachiman's reply. Karuizawa quickly opened it to find a simple line of text: "There is indeed something I need your help with, but there's no rush now. Rest well and save your energy. I'll notify you of the exam arrangements before it starts."
Seeing the reply, Karuizawa's tense nerves instantly relaxed. A smile returned to her face, and she nodded vigorously as if Hachiman were standing right in front of her.
Actually, she had wanted to ask if the "exam review" previously agreed upon with Horikita was truly just about the review, or if they had talked about other things—and whether he had other feelings toward Horikita. But now, she decided to let it go.
Seeing her expression soften, her gyaru teammates gathered around, whispering questions. "Kei, how is it? Did Horikita-san reply? What should we do? Should we ask Horikita-san? She's so capable, she'll definitely have a way to handle it."
They assumed Karuizawa had just contacted Horikita.
After all, during the island exam, Karuizawa had been intentionally cooperating with Horikita's plans. And today, Karuizawa had privately distributed 100,000 points to each of her close friends out of her 300,000-point share, claiming it was income from cooperating with Horikita during the exam.
Otherwise, if everyone knew she was making money privately while they got nothing, the team would eventually fall apart due to suspicion.
Karuizawa vaguely sensed that the members of her small team weren't just ordinary gyarus; they each hid their own secrets to some degree.
Such a complex and fragile team required shared interests to stay together. She had learned this by consulting Kushida.
Kushida had extensive experience in interpersonal relations.
"You're asking me? That group of yours is indeed quite delicate. However, I think if you can develop it into a 'community of interest' that rises and falls together, it will be much more stable," the "Master Kushida" had said back then.
At the time, Kushida had even seemed slightly surprised. "Karuizawa, you're actually not afraid of my true face and even dare to consult me about this?"
Karuizawa had responded: "Well, we're already on the same team now, so it is what it is. As long as you don't expose me, I won't expose you."
Pulling her thoughts back to the present, Karuizawa looked at her puzzled friends and said, "The exam content hasn't been announced yet, and Horikita said she doesn't have any leads for now. But since the exam is in three days, for now, everyone..." She paused and added, "There's one thing I want to make clear: Class D basically has no hope of rising up."
"We understand that," Matsushita Chiaki said, her tone calm. "Even if we stay in Class D forever, the benefits here are better than in the outside world. And to be honest, these special exams are quite fresh; I feel like we can learn some practical things for when we graduate."
She was actually the most rational person in Class D.
After all, she had the strength of the original Class A, but Class D was a lost cause. She had already felt the pain of being a "wolf in sheep's clothing" who couldn't turn back into a wolf. Now that Karuizawa was taking the lead in divvying up Class D's interests, she didn't have any objections—as long as points were coming in, it was fine.
Furthermore, she had already set a higher goal: Hikigaya Hachiman of Class B might be the person she needed to focus on during this period.
Thus, this subtle team of people hiding things from each other underwent yet another quiet change.
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The four classes on the ship each had their own concerns and plans.
However, Class A—the top of the school—currently lacked the composure typical of elites. Instead, they were thrown into a state of panic by the sudden exam notice. The air was thick with unprecedented chaos and anxiety.
They were gathered in the third-floor lounge area. Usually, this area was filled with an orderly atmosphere of academic discussion and strategic planning. Now, it was filled with noisy arguments and sighs. Every student's face was written with unease, their former confidence and pride nowhere to be found.
"What do we do? Why was a special exam added so suddenly? We're not prepared at all!"
A boy gripped his phone, his tone frantic. "In the last island exam, even though we kept our Class A position, the score gap wasn't large at all, and we even ended up in debt. If we can't hold out in this exam and get overtaken by Class B, our status as Class A will be completely gone!"
His words struck a chord, and students around him joined in, their anxiety intensifying.
"Yeah, we didn't gain much from the island exam to begin with, and then the school pulls this. It's too sudden!"
"Leader Katsuragi is amazing, but the last exam took too much out of him. Can he still lead us to secure our Class A position this time?"
"It looks grim. Katsuragi-kun hasn't been in a good state the last two days; he looks haggard. If he can't hold it together, we're really finished! I don't want to become Class B when we return to school!"
These were the members of the Katsuragi Faction within Class A. Even as his supporters, they couldn't hide their pessimism.
Discussions rose and fell. Everyone was worried; no one even mentioned the idea of "earning points" anymore. They were only left with the fear of losing their class status. At Advanced Nurturing High School, Class A meant being an elite and having infinite future possibilities. Once you fell from Class A, you were labeled a "failure"—an outcome no Class A student could accept.
The last Class A to fall was their second-year seniors. Looking at those seniors, they were basically out of the running. They absolutely did not want to repeat those mistakes!
However, the greatest source of unease was Katsuragi Kohei himself—the leader of Class A seemed to have lost his usual confidence and edge.
The uninhabited island exam had shattered Katsuragi's resolve.
While everyone was in a panic, a soft sound of footsteps was heard. Katsuragi Kohei walked in slowly. He was wearing the standard red blazer uniform, but in just one day, he seemed to have become very despondent. He was still bald, but he lacked any aura of "having become stronger"; instead, he gave off a sense of decadence. His movements lacked his former composure and confidence in controlling the situation.
Seeing Katsuragi enter, the chatter stopped instantly. Every student's gaze fixed on him—some with expectation, some with worry, and some with a hint of doubt. After all, those present weren't just members of the Katsuragi Faction; members of the Sakayanagi Faction were there too.
Katsuragi stopped, his gaze slowly scanning the students. Seeing the panic and unease on their faces, his Adam's apple bobbed. He wanted to say something, but he hesitated. He knew in his heart that their worries weren't baseless. During the island exam, to protect the position of Class A and to win, he had exhausted his mind and formulated a meticulous strategy. Yet, in the end, he had failed to pull away from the other classes and had even ended up 50 million points in debt.
He himself was trapped in a massive state of mental exhaustion. But he couldn't break down—he had just received the school's exam notice. If even he collapsed, the class would be even less able to handle the exam.
After a long silence, Katsuragi finally spoke, his voice slightly hoarse but his tone feigning firmness. "Everyone, be quiet. I know you're all worried about this exam and our Class A position. But please believe that our Class A still has a foundation and enough strength; we won't fall just because of one temporary exam. As long as we are united and prepare according to our previous rhythm, we will surely stabilize our points and protect our status.
And this time, we will no longer believe in any 'pie in the sky' methods of gaining points.
We will completely reject any further transactions proposed by Class B," Katsuragi stated.
But his words failed to soothe the crowd. Seeing his haggard appearance and hearing the uncertainty in his voice, the students' unease didn't dissipate; it grew stronger.
Finally, a girl hesitated for a long time before summoning the courage to speak, her tone dissatisfied. "Katsuragi-kun, we want to believe you, but in your current state, can you really lead us through this exam? After the last exam, everyone's living expenses were cut. If we lose more this time, there will truly be no way back."
"Yeah, if only Sakayanagi-san were here!" a member of the Sakayanagi Faction added immediately. "She certainly wouldn't be like Katsuragi!"
As Sakayanagi's "dogs," this was the perfect time to fight for influence. They spoke for her.
"And you should be held responsible for the failure of the island exam, Katsuragi! Are you sure you can lead us forward in this exam? I think you should step down as leader; you can no longer put the students of Class A at ease!"
As soon as these words were spoken, many students nodded in agreement, their faces showing longing. But this scene was somewhat absurd—Class A had two class representatives; as soon as one failed to secure benefits for the class, they immediately turned their hopes to the other, never thinking for themselves or taking initiative. They placed the fate of the class entirely on someone else.
Such a Class A was perhaps not as excellent as it appeared. If Sakayanagi stopped caring about the class in the future, Class A would likely collapse entirely.
Standing in the crowd, Kamuro Masumi watched the chaotic scene and thought exactly that. She had always thought her classmates were excellent—after all, her own academic ability wasn't great while those around her were all top students. But now she suddenly realized that these so-called "top students" might have worse mentalities than her.
Her brow furrowed slightly, her expression complex.
However, since they were currently off-campus, this exam had to be led by Katsuragi, and she figured she couldn't help much. The previous experience had proven that simply eavesdropping on Hachiman's heart wasn't enough to save Class A. Therefore, the only thing she could do was temporarily appease the Sakayanagi Faction and follow Sakayanagi's original instructions to temporarily obey Katsuragi. After all, protecting Class A's position was the most important thing right now.
And that was what she felt was important. However, at that moment, she noticed the phone in her pocket suddenly vibrate.
Hmm?
Kamuro froze for a moment because the phone in her left pocket wasn't her own; it was the phone Sakayanagi had entrusted to her. Having returned to the ship, she naturally had Sakayanagi's phone.
But why would Sakayanagi's phone vibrate?
Thinking this, she instinctively pulled out the phone, thinking it was some spam message. But when she saw the content on the screen, she froze completely. Her eyes widened, her face filled with shock and disbelief, and the phone almost slipped from her hand.
The surrounding students noticed her strange behavior and looked over. Someone asked curiously, "Kamuro-san, what is it? What happened?"
Kamuro didn't answer immediately. She just stared fixedly at the phone screen, re-reading the words to make sure she hadn't seen them wrong.
Because there was only one short message on the screen, and the content was clear and concise:
[I am Sakayanagi. Tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM, I will arrive at the ship. I will participate in the exam.]
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