Cote : I Just Want to Grant Your Wish!

Although Kaoru did not say it out loud, Arisu understood what he was thinking, so she smiled and sent him on his way.

When he returned to the dormitory, just as expected, Karuizawa Kei and Kushida Kikyō were waiting for him.

"W-wait, what do you mean you want to act alone? Wouldn't it be better if we formed a group together?"

Kei could not understand Kaoru's plan at all, and her expression was especially stunned.

"If you group with me, the pressure on you will be even greater."

Kaoru explained, "This exam isn't only about the rankings on the surface. Nagumo, Ryūen, and other people will all have their eyes on me. If Kei is in another group, you'll actually face fewer problems."

"Mm... but doesn't that mean you need help even more?"

Kei looked unwilling to accept it.

"Kei grouping with the others is already helping me."

Kaoru patted her head.

In truth, the biggest issue right now was how to trick Nagumo Miyabi into focusing all of his attention on Kaoru.

"Fine, fine. If you put it that way..."

Kei muttered, cheeks puffed out. "I still feel... kind of frustrated. We could've been in the same group."

Kaoru could only pretend he had not heard that. Then he met Kikyō's gaze, which had become rather meaningful.

"If you don't group with us, how are you planning to protect us?"

Sure enough, Kikyō asked exactly that. Kei also became a little uneasy at once.

"Kei wants to group with you because she's worried Nagumo might do something to us again. If it gets bad enough to cause expulsions, that'd be terrible."

Kaoru thought for a moment. "He doesn't know how many private points I still have. The only visible amount right now is Class A's private points. He'll probably suspect that I can freely use those points."

"How many private points does your class have?" Kei asked innocently.

"In an extreme situation, we could probably squeeze out around thirty-five to forty million private points."

Kaoru spoke an astonishing number, leaving Kei stunned.

"Good grief. You people are filthy rich!"

Kikyō normally did not care much about private points, but even she became indignant now. "Why is Horikita even fighting you? At this rate, you could probably buy her over as your maid!"

With that many private points, Class 2-A could tempt plenty of students into betraying their own classes. That was a real transfer-ticket fund—enough to move two students into Class A in one go.

"Wow. With that many private points, this uninhabited island exam is definitely Kaoru's win!"

Kei looked delighted. "Now I feel relieved. We don't need to worry about Nagumo at all!"

However, Kaoru immediately poured cold water over her excitement.

"I can't use those private points. Using them for class purposes is fine, but using them for private matters will cause complaints."

Kei immediately wilted, looking up at Kaoru pitifully.

Seeing her like that, Kaoru could not help smiling. "But the fact that even you think I can use Class A's reserve means Nagumo will probably react the same way."

After learning that Class 2-A possessed a massive amount of private points, Nagumo's first reaction would probably be that he could not fight a war of attrition.

A strategy like last time, attacking Kei, Airi, and the others, would most likely not work.

"He'll still try to attack you this time, but he won't go all out. He'll only want to force me to feel pressured and make me distribute private points to you."

Kaoru said softly, "In other words, it's a feint. You don't need to be too nervous."

Whether during the previous training camp exam or the last voting expulsion exam, Kaoru had gradually created the impression in Nagumo's mind that he fiercely protected his own people.

As long as someone was his, he would protect them.

Based on that, it was very natural for Nagumo to try using Kei and the others to apply pressure on him.

On the other hand, because Nagumo did not know how many private points Kaoru could actually use, he could only use this method to force Kaoru to burn through resources.

One group required six million private points.

Five groups would require thirty million.

Even then, Nagumo would not know whether that was enough to exhaust Kaoru's resources.

Because of that, Kaoru instead needed to reveal a little bait on his own initiative.

"Next, Kei should group with Kikyō. It would be best if you can bring Airi and the others in too."

Kaoru said, "If you form a large group, Nagumo will think you have six million private points on you."

"Eh? Is that enough?"

Kei was a little uneasy.

"Silly. This is called using his plan against him."

Kikyō explained, "In Nagumo's eyes, if we're all gathered together, there are too many high-value targets in one place. He'll actually think that the perverted foot-lover is protecting us. Otherwise, it'd be too easy for him to wipe us out in one move."

Their grouping together would be an important signal. It would show that they were guarding against Nagumo attacking them again. After all, Nagumo could not see the pages on their phones, so he could only assume Kaoru had given them enough private points.

"Exactly."

Kaoru nodded. "Even if he doesn't take the bait, I'll still be nearby watching over you."

In truth, the chance of expulsion was not that high. The bottom five groups across the entire school would be expelled. If only six-person large groups were counted, there would be nearly eighty groups in total.

The only thing Kaoru needed to guard against was whether Nagumo would resort to underhanded methods. Looking only at the visible rules, there was no way Nagumo could make Kei and the others drop to expulsion level.

It was precisely because he was worried about that possibility that Kaoru felt acting alone would be better.

It would give him more freedom, and it would also make it easier to secretly deal with Nagumo.

Strangely, after hearing his words, Kikyō suddenly giggled.

"So you'll be nearby watching over us. No wonder you want to act alone."

Kikyō winked at Kaoru with a bright smile. "No problem. Master's grand arrival will be welcome at any time."

Kaoru felt that she had probably misunderstood something.

After thinking about it, he chose not to explain.

"Eh? What secret code are you two using? I want to know too!"

Kei was dumbfounded.

Were they secretly matching brainwaves again behind her back?

"Ahem. Master's meaning is very simple."

Kikyō held back her laughter. "Although we can't group together, that doesn't mean we can't act together, rest together, or sleep nearby, right?"

Kei froze.

Then a blush quickly spread across her cheeks.

"Master wants to act alone because he can sleep near our tent tonight, then near little Honami's tent tomorrow, then go over to Sakayanagi's side the day after that."

As she spoke, even Kikyō felt that her master truly was an impressive pervert. To think he could come up with a method like this—he really was amazing.

"Besides, the school will probably check personal belongings, so we might not be able to bring protection. Is Master planning to—mmph!"

Seeing that she was getting more and more ridiculous, Kaoru simply pressed her down onto the bed.

He had not finished teaching her a lesson last night, and she had run off this morning.

"How strange. It looks like the little angel is broken. I'll repair her again today."

"W-wait... uuu... I'm sorry... I shouldn't have exposed Master's plan..."

"What plan? You're clearly doing this on purpose to make me think about it!"

After a few firm warning smacks, the little angel could only lie on the bed and whimper.

...

The next day, the school distributed the item cards as scheduled.

Since the information was public, everyone could check each other's item cards on the OAA.

Kaoru drew an Insurance card. Its effect was that if the cardholder became unwell, they could receive one day of rest.

In a sense, it was a slacking-off card.

Kaoru glanced over the list and found that the special card holders were all familiar faces.

The Additional Member card was in his own class.

The Invalid card was held by Shiranami Chihiro.

And the Trial card's owner was Ryūen Kakeru.

Suzune and the others were somewhat unlucky. None of them had drawn a special card, though it did not have too much impact.

Kaoru then looked at the third-year situation. Nagumo Miyabi's class had received the Additional Member card, while the Invalid card and Trial card were both in Class 3-C's hands.

So Kaoru sent a message to Kiriyama Ikuto and the others. No matter what, the Invalid card must not be allowed to fall into Nagumo's hands. Even if Nagumo obtained the Additional Member card and Trial card, that would not matter.

Ikuto quickly replied that he would keep an eye on the Invalid card.

Although he did not express too much excitement, his response speed said plenty.

The Invalid card's effect was to avoid expulsion. Kaoru's intention in forbidding Nagumo from obtaining this one special card was very obvious, so Ikuto was naturally delighted.

Kaoru did not have much time to keep wasting here. He planned to deal with Nagumo in one go during the uninhabited island exam and save himself future trouble.

Even if Nagumo really got the Invalid card, it would only be somewhat troublesome.

A single Invalid card could not stop Kaoru's actions, and Nagumo would understand that as well.

Because of that, while Kaoru was giving instructions, someone else had also begun to move.

That afternoon, Ryūen Kakeru suddenly invited Ichinose Honami and Horikita Suzune to a café in Keyaki Mall.

"I didn't think you'd actually come. Ibuki said I wasn't popular, hahaha. Looks like she was wrong."

Suzune looked at Ryūen sitting casually in the chair opposite them. She did not see Ibuki Mio, who was always cold-faced whenever Suzune saw her.

"What do you want to say to us?"

The one who spoke was Kanzaki Ryūji. He had followed behind Honami, probably because he was worried Ryūen might do something to his class leader.

Suzune glanced beside her.

She also had a small follower with her: Ayanokōji Kiyotaka, the boy with almost no presence in class.

Because he seemed to be hiding his strength, and because he usually obeyed her instructions, Suzune had simply let Kiyotaka continue following her.

Regarding what happened with Class 1-D last time, Suzune sometimes suspected Kiyotaka might have been involved.

"Don't be so tense. Everyone sit down and have a chat."

Ryūen waved a hand. "Order whatever you want. It's on me."

Ryūji frowned, not knowing what this man was scheming. But before he could speak, Honami had already sat down naturally.

"Hehe, then I won't hold back."

Seeing his class leader really preparing to order, Ryūji felt helpless. It would be terrible if someone saw them getting too close to Ryūen.

However, even students from Class C had come, so people would probably be even more confused about why they had gathered here.

"Can I really order?"

"Hehehe, drink seven or eight cups if you want. I may not be as rich as those Class A whales, but a few drinks and desserts are nothing."

"So Ryūen-kun has quite a lot of private points too?"

"Interpret it however you like."

"Oh, so Ryūen-kun has saved up quite a bit."

Facing Honami's small probe, Ryūen did not continue denying it. Instead, he turned toward Suzune.

"Horikita, how does it feel to rise to Class C?"

"As expected."

"You talk pretty big too. More interesting than Hirata. That guy shut down just because someone was expelled. No backbone at all."

"I don't know what you're planning, but you brought several classes together, and there's nobody from Class A here. Are you planning to form an alliance?"

At this, Ryūen's originally grinning expression finally faded. He looked Suzune over again.

"You came straight in with something heavy. Do you really want to climb to Class A that badly?"

"I won't waste time chatting with you. If the topic has nothing to do with Class A, don't involve me."

Suzune looked at Ryūen calmly.

"Hahaha, you really are interesting."

Ryūen laughed for a while, then suddenly said, "Someone said you and Mitoma are working together, that you're that guy's woman. But I'm not so sure."

Suzune's heart skipped slightly, though her expression did not change.

Not many people knew about her relationship with Kaoru. If she could hide it for one more day, she would.

"Ryūen-kun, are you talking about me?"

Honami cut in. "Kaoru is my boyfriend, but that doesn't mean I'll go easy on Class A. Fair competition is my life principle."

"Fair competition?"

Ryūen snorted. "There's no such thing as fair competition in this world. If you want to beat your boyfriend, saying it with your mouth isn't enough. Class A approached you today, didn't they?"

Seeing the topic shift elsewhere, Suzune gradually relaxed and said, "You mean Class A wanting to buy item cards?"

The item cards had only just been distributed today, yet Class 2-A had already spread the word that they were willing to purchase everyone's item cards with private points. No matter how many there were, they would buy them, showing a posture of having absolutely no shortage of money.

That was exactly why Suzune had agreed to Ryūen's invitation.

She genuinely feared that Kaoru might use money to crush them without any reason.

"Did anyone from your classes sell?"

Ryūen smiled as he looked at Suzune and Honami.

"How could we sell them? If we sell cards like Free Ride or Trial to them, wouldn't it become even more troublesome?"

As she spoke, Suzune especially emphasized the Trial card, her gaze fixed on Ryūen.

That special card was in his hands.

However, Ryūen shook his head.

"The reason I called you here this time is cooperation. If individual classes sell item cards on their own, they'll suffer losses. If someone deliberately messes around and ruins the market, that'd be bad."

Suzune was stunned for a moment.

Did he mean they were not only going to avoid stopping the sales, but actively sell to Class 2-A?

"I see. You want everyone to sell item cards at a unified price?"

Ryūji thought for a moment. "Item cards don't offer us that many benefits. If we can exchange them for private points, that isn't bad."

Cards like Double and Free Ride were more useful the higher one ranked. If a class was too far behind, they were more like dead weight. Selling some of them would not be a bad choice.

"Heh. How about one hundred thousand per card?"

Ryūen smiled. "Class A's whales aren't short on money anyway. We might as well slaughter them together. If they pay enough, we can even sell special cards to them."

Suzune instinctively wanted to refute him.

In her eyes, wouldn't this be funding the enemy?

But in the next moment, she calmed down.

Although Ryūen's method went against instinct, it did make sense. Most item cards existed to earn private points.

A group ranked in the top 50% would only receive ten thousand private points per person. If an item card could be sold for one hundred thousand private points, then they would be the ones profiting.

Of course, Class 2-A was aiming for the top three rewards, which was why they wanted to buy item cards.

"That's too expensive. If we all set the price that high together, Class A will quickly realize we've joined hands."

Honami reminded them, "Also, Class A may not need that many item cards."

"Then we sell as many as we can before they stop buying."

Ryūen did not care. "Ichinose, Horikita, your classes are short on private points right now. If you don't sell, someone might get expelled."

To protect their students, Class 2-B had basically spent all its private points during the March exam.

Class 2-C had only recently advanced and had no reserves at all.

"We can do it ourselves. We don't necessarily have to cooperate with Class D."

Ryūji said calmly, "As for your credibility, I don't think you can be trusted."

Ryūen had proposed an alliance between three classes. It could not be only about selling item cards. He was probably planning to form cooperative groups during the upcoming uninhabited island exam as well.

"I feel the same. What Class D did to Yamauchi-kun before isn't something we can forget with a few words."

Suzune had learned the details from Sudō Ken, and she had already been wary of Ryūen. The look she gave him was full of suspicion.

"Looks like you've got a lot of resentment. Does Ichinose feel the same?"

"Sorry. After what happened to Mako-chan, it's very hard for me to trust Ryūen-kun. Of course, I'm grateful that you're treating me to a drink."

"What if I kneel?"

The moment those words fell, everyone froze at the same time.

"I don't like it, but if kneeling helps me beat Mitoma, then I don't care."

A fearless smile appeared on Ryūen's face. "Whether you want me to kneel here or kneel to Amikura, I'll do it. That should be enough to get rid of your resentment, right?"

For the first time, Suzune stared at this man in a daze.

Honami also looked utterly disbelieving.

"You... you're not joking, are you?"

"Why would I be in the mood to joke? If I want to beat Mitoma, then I need the resolve to pay any price. How about it, Ichinose? Is this enough for you to trust me?"

"W-wait! You're really going to kneel?!"

Ryūen was not joking.

If Honami had not hurriedly stopped him in a panic, the man really would have prostrated himself right there.

Watching this scene, Suzune clenched her fists.

Even Ryūen had this level of resolve.

Then what kind of mindset should she have if she wanted to defeat Mitoma Kaoru?

Was the only way to overcome Class A now to unite the strength of three classes?