During the final dodgeball match between Class A and Class D…
Class B and Class C had just wrapped up their fourth round.
Although the content of each exam differed, and naturally the duration varied as well—for instance, written tests required at least 50 minutes, and physical events involved changing venues and outfits—even with all that taken into account, the overall progress shouldn't have diverged this much.
The reason lay in the first two rounds of the test, during which several Class B students suddenly claimed to feel unwell, stirring up quite a commotion.
This caused a slight delay in the exam process—but ultimately, it was only temporary.
"Hey, I'm talking to you teachers."
Inside the multipurpose classroom, Ryuuen banged the desk with a look of complete impatience, shouting, "Hurry up and start Round Five already. If Class B couldn't take care of their health during the exam, that's on them. No way we're giving up time for their sake, right?"
"Watch your mouth, Ryuuen," warned Chabashira-sensei.
"What? Am I wrong?"
Ryuuen wasn't the least bit bothered by her scolding.
"Or is this your way of abusing your authority to give Class B special treatment? That'd be pretty outrageous, don't you think?"
"Just bear with it for a bit. With so many students feeling unwell at once, the school's in a tough spot too."
"That's exactly what I find suspicious," Ryuuen said mockingly. "Sure, they're claiming they're not feeling well, but what are the odds a few of them suddenly experience 'physiological issues' at the same time? For all we know, they're in the bathroom cooking up a strategy. Why not have the school send someone to monitor the stalls? If you do that, maybe I'll let it slide."
"Oh my~ Who knew Ryuuen-kun could joke around like this too?"
Trying to defuse the tension, Hoshinomiya-sensei chimed in from the sidelines with a deliberately teasing tone.
"We're all in the same grade, you know. A little tolerance isn't a bad thing~ Besides, winning without a fight's just boring, isn't it?"
As a homeroom teacher, she was technically supposed to maintain neutrality, but this level of bias was still within acceptable bounds.
Unfortunately, Ryuuen wasn't someone easily silenced.
"Kukuku… Quite the opposite, actually. In my eyes, getting a free win is the most delicious kind."
Currently, the score was 3 to 1—Class C in the lead.
To be honest, if Class B hadn't forfeited due to "illness" in nearly every round, Class C might not even have one win to their name.
Ryuuen might've looked indifferent on the surface, but inside, he was determined to take advantage of Class B's instability and crush them completely. No way was he letting them stall any longer.
"Anyway, just get the next round started. Otherwise, I'll have to file a complaint about misconduct from the exam supervisors."
"...Yes, well, Ryuuen does have a point," Chabashira-sensei finally said, shooting Hoshinomiya a look urging her to proceed.
Hoshinomiya glanced at Yamamura, who stood beside her with a blank expression, and gave a helpless smile.
She sympathized with Class B's situation, but the delay had already stretched to its limit. There wasn't much else they could do.
A few seconds later, the next event was revealed.
Math test.
"Oh come on," Ryuuen leaned out from behind the screen, grinning as he needled the opposition. "You're Yamamura, right? I don't know where you crawled out from, but not bad at all—four out of five events have been Class B's specialties. What'd you do, bribe the system? Mind teaching me your trick?"
"…"
"You look like a dead fish over there. Say something, would you?"
"…"
No matter what he said, Yamamura didn't respond. He remained entirely focused on selecting the test-takers for the round.
From the very beginning, Ryuuen had been using provocative language to mess with him, but Yamamura didn't so much as flinch—he was treating Ryuuen like he wasn't even there.
Still, Ryuuen wasn't about to give up. Just because someone didn't talk back didn't mean they weren't affected. Even the slightest reaction could be used as an opening.
Eventually, Chabashira-sensei seemed to lose patience. "That's enough, Ryuuen. Tone it down."
"But didn't you say we were free to chat?"
Even as he spoke, Ryuuen didn't pause, continuing to click the mouse and pick his team.
"And I've got plenty of reasons to be suspicious. First there's the mystery illnesses, now four straight events drawn in Class B's favor. Hard not to think something shady's going on, don't you think?"
"Relax. That's not possible," Chabashira replied coolly.
"Heh, coming from this scam of a school, that's not exactly reassuring."
"Say whatever you want. If you don't believe it, then go find some proof."
"Now that's not something a teacher should be saying, is it?"
Ryuuen smirked as he watched the exam room on the monitor, already imagining how things would unfold.
So Katsurugi finally stepped in, huh… Heh, that shiny dome of his sure stands out.
But more importantly, what was Sakayanagi doing?
With only chess left among Class B's specialties, she still hadn't appeared.
Could it be they were treating her as the final boss, their trump card?
If that was the plan, it'd be downright stupid. After all, all of Class C's remaining events were athletic. If none of the draws landed on Class B's categories, Sakayanagi would never even get a chance to play.
Or maybe… that little girl had totally checked out and refused to lift a finger for the class?
Just as Ryuuen was weighing those two possibilities, something suddenly changed in the exam room.
One of the students from Class B raised their hand and said something to the proctor—then suddenly clutched their stomach and bolted out.
"Hah! What the hell was that?" Ryuuen burst out laughing. "Whether it's real or fake, at least pretend you're fine till the test ends. What are you, kindergarteners?"
With someone leading the charge, the other two couldn't hold back either and rushed to the bathroom as well.
Class B descended into chaos. Only Katsurugi stood up and tried to stop them, only to give up after a second thought.
No matter how important the exam was… if you lost control, well, that'd be a literal disaster.
"Sensei, I object."
At that moment, Yamamura, who'd been silent this whole time, suddenly spoke up.
"So far, a total of eight students from our class have been forced to forfeit due to sudden illness. If it were just one or two, I'd understand, but this number clearly doesn't make sense. I request that the exam be suspended."
"Trying to make excuses now, are you?"
Before the teachers could respond, Ryuuen cut in again. "No matter how many people got sick, that's still your own fault. And hey, you can't rule out the possibility that you're just faking it because you're scared of losing, right?"
Utter nonsense, of course.
Anyone could see there was a clear strength gap between the classes. But subjective impressions weren't enough to refute this kind of baseless claim.
Yamamura, being no fool, ignored Ryuuen's wild accusations and focused squarely on Hoshinomiya-sensei.
Hoshinomiya looked troubled, tapping her chin. "Yeah~ What to do… I mean, I do think… eh? Yamamura-san, what's wrong?"
"I… I…"
Yamamura's usually expressionless face suddenly contorted in pain. She bent over, clutching her stomach tightly, as though enduring some terrible agony.
"Sorry… I have to go too!"
With that, he didn't wait for a reply. She jumped up, pushed the door open, and ran out.
"I'll go check on her. Sae-chan, you hold down the fort," Hoshinomiya-sensei said as she dashed out.
"…What even is this? So what now?" Ryuuen turned to Chabashira-sensei, sneering. "According to exam rules, is the commander even allowed to leave mid-test? That should count as an automatic loss for Class B, right? Not that it makes much difference at this point."
Even though Class B had the highest average score in the year, losing three people at once made it nearly impossible for them to catch up to Class C overall.
If they lost this round, it would mean Class C secured four victories, clinching the win.
But Ryuuen wasn't satisfied with just that.
He wanted to take the last two events as well.
"Hold on, I'll report this to the higher-ups and get clarification."
Due to the unforeseen situation, Chabashira-sensei pulled out her phone to make a call and confirm how to proceed.
A few moments later, Hoshinomiya-sensei returned—but without any good news.
"No luck~ Looks like Yamamura-san won't be back anytime soon."
"What the hell am I supposed to do with that?"
Ryuuen grew even more arrogant at those words, sneering as he said, "Could it be that woman ran off because she saw she was going to lose and got scared of having to take responsibility? And what, if she doesn't come back, is the exam just gonna stay deadlocked like this forever?"
"Indeed… The test should continue," Chabashira-sensei nodded in agreement, then shifted the topic slightly.
"However, regarding the commander, I've already confirmed with the school. Given the special circumstances, Class B is allowed to make a substitution."
"What? That makes no damn sense!" Ryuuen frowned, clearly displeased.
What he wanted was to be declared the winner directly—not to go through all this unnecessary hassle.
"And why wouldn't it make sense?" Chabashira countered. "Didn't Class D switch to Hikigaya when Ayanokouji fell ill and couldn't attend school? You were there when it happened."
"Yeah, but the test has already started."
"That's not a problem. Don't forget, during the uninhabited island exam, you were injured and Ibuki took over as leader."
"...Tch."
She had a point. In the end, the school always had the final say in these matters.
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Ryuuen chose not to argue further. Instead, he asked, "Well, if that's the school's stance, I guess I have no choice but to accept it… But y'know, this fifth event—our class is about to win it. That would make it our fourth victory overall, meaning we'll have won the entire exam."
He smiled, as if he found the whole thing quite amusing.
"If Class B really does plan to change commanders at this point, who's going to take the fall and get expelled if they lose?"
"…Naturally, the new commander."
"Heh, good to hear."
Satisfied with the answer, Ryuuen leaned back in his chair, hands resting behind his head, completely relaxed.
He was curious to see if anyone would be dumb enough to take on that role, knowing full well they'd be expelled if they lost.
"—That's the situation."
Meanwhile, in Class B's room, the teachers and students had relayed the school's message.
Given the unusual circumstances, a change in commander was permitted—on two conditions.
First, the replacement must either be someone who hadn't participated in any events yet, or someone eligible for a second appearance. Second, the new commander would have to take full responsibility for the outcome of the exam.
The entire class fell silent.
After a brief pause, someone raised their hand. "Sensei… the commander dropped out during the fifth event, right? Does that mean this event can be restarted?"
The three students who had gone to the restroom still hadn't returned. Even if they did, it was unlikely they'd make it back in time to answer the questions.
Several students had already realized the bitter truth—that their class was on the verge of losing.
"No, once it's started, there's no redoing it."
"Then who the hell would volunteer?!"
Class B didn't have many idiots. No one was going to throw themselves under the bus for the class.
But then, a new realization struck them.
"Wait, if we don't appoint a new commander… then for the remaining two events…?"
"Class C would automatically win."
"That'd make it one win and six losses—we'd lose 150 points… Huh? That would mean…"
A few quick thinkers in the class immediately started calculating the aftermath.
Right now, Class B had 783 class points. Subtracting 150 would leave them with 633.
That was more than just a painful blow—it wasn't even the worst of it.
Don't forget, Class C would also gain 250 points for the win.
The sum of these outcomes…
"We'd end up dropping below Class C again…"
In the heavy silence, Kamuro's murmur cut through with eerie clarity.
Several students wore bitter expressions. Falling to Class C was a whole different kind of despair.
And honestly, who could blame them? That's just how this school operated—Class A and B were the privileged classes eligible for graduation perks. Classes C and D were seen as the dregs, just here to drift along.
No matter how unwilling they were, there was nothing they could do but watch it happen.
"If this keeps up, we might even end up in Class D."
"Please, don't jinx it…"
While the whole class was sinking into gloom, a small white figure stepped forward.
"If no one minds, I'll take on the role."
"Eh? Sa-Sakayanagi?!"
Everyone's heads shot up in unison, staring in disbelief at the girl who was, without question, the class's de facto leader.
Facing her classmates' shocked expressions, Sakayanagi simply smiled. "No need to look so surprised. I just intend to serve as a sacrificial pillar and contribute to the class one last time."
"B-but—"
"It's fine. Consider it my apology for all the trouble I've caused everyone up to now."
"No, don't say that…"
Sure, plenty of them had grievances with Sakayanagi, but none of them had expected her to be the one to step forward in a moment like this. It was hard not to feel conflicted.
If Katsuragi had been here, he'd probably have stopped this reckless decision—but he was still out on the field.
Even the teacher standing at the podium frowned and asked, "Sakayanagi, are you sure about this? You know what the consequences are."
"Of course."
Her reply came without a hint of hesitation. Using her cane, she rose from her seat and slowly but resolutely walked toward the classroom door.
Everyone's eyes followed her silently.
"Well then, everyone,"
She turned back, wearing her usual serene smile.
"I'll be back soon."
"…"
At that moment, an indescribable mood settled over the classroom.
Everything had happened so fast that their minds hadn't caught up—before they knew it, the girl named Sakayanagi Arisu had vanished from their sight.
What followed was a wave of solemn determination.
Even knowing the class had already lost, Sakayanagi still chose to sacrifice herself—to lessen the damage that would follow.
And it was all… thanks to Ryuuen!
They had no proof, but they weren't stupid. Ever since the first student had fallen ill, some had already started suspecting that shameless thug.
The classroom was terrifyingly quiet.
But within that shared silence, an unspoken consensus spread among them all.
They had to win the remaining two events.
They absolutely could not let Sakayanagi's self-sacrifice go to waste!
This might've been the most united Class B had ever been since entering the school.
And somewhere, far from the sight of her classmates…
"Sigh, my classmates really are just the cutest little innocents."
Sakayanagi smiled to herself as she made her way slowly toward the Special Building.
That's right.
From the moment the exam events were announced, every part of this situation—every reaction—had played out just as she expected.
That it would come to this was simply… part of the plan all along.
T/N: It's been a while since I updated. Had reasons, now I will finish this fic. 🥲