"Holding back... I'm only slightly better than Hirata." Houtarou said, "So there's no question of holding back."
"Oh…" Ryūji said, already positioned at the starting line since the first group had finished.
Ken from Class C had taken first place, and the second group would begin soon.
By engaging Houtarou in conversation while getting into position, Ryūji had given himself an advantage — a deliberate tactic to distract his opponent.
It seemed Class B's angels were learning to use every trick at their disposal in this school.
In response, Houtarou "used everything he had" to finish just ahead of Ryūji and claim first place.
"First place!"
Houtarou crossed the finish line with Ryūji following in second.
Ryūji: "..."
He appeared dazed. Despite his superior physical abilities compared to Yōsuke, his attempt at distraction had failed.
Though not particularly clever as tactics go, it proved how intimidating Class A students could be. After all, Houtarou had claimed to be only slightly faster than Yōsuke, yet won even while distracted — suggesting he had indeed been holding back.
"Class A students are such a pain…" He muttered as he withdrew.
As a Class B student, he aspired to advance to Class A. But for the current Class B, that goal now seemed even more distant. Their only hope lay in scoring points during the recommended mixed-gender three-legged race with him and Sō.
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After finishing his event, Houtarou checked on the girls' side and sighed softly.
For the girls' team, he had advised Suzune on Class C's participation order. Their strategy was simple: have the athletically talented students score points.
Class C's athletically gifted male seed players were: Yōsuke, Ken, Kiyotaka, and Rokusuke.
Class C's athletically gifted female seed players were: Suzune, Kayano, and Kikyō.
Rokusuke had already declined to participate, while Kiyotaka placed only fifth in the first group with Ken. This showed that Sae's ace still wasn't revealing his true capabilities — making him unreliable.
Among the girls, Kayano competed in the first group against Mio from Class D. Suzune ran in the third group but managed only third place, with two athletic girls from Class D — Minori and another — taking first and second.
Kikyō faced similar results, finishing third behind two athletically talented Class D girls.
The pattern was clear: Kakeru's class had obtained Class C's participation chart and used it to systematically suppress them. Class C had truly become a nest of spies.
But this didn't concern Houtarou — what did Class C's spy problem matter to his Class A?
Rather, Kakeru's effort to obtain Class C's participation chart and target them specifically showed he was taking this Sports Festival very seriously. Clearly, he intended to make a move against Class C during this Festival. That was good news.
Houtarou had spent 300,000 Points on the voice recorder — though not a huge sum, he didn't want to waste it. Still, he needed to warn Suzune to be careful.
After some consideration, he approached the somewhat dejected girl who had placed third.
Houtarou knew Suzune was the serious type. She had trained diligently for this Sports Festival, jogging every morning from 5-6 AM. Now, before she could even demonstrate her abilities, she was facing the harsh reality of the skill gap.
"Kinoshita and the others you competed against are dedicated track and field club members. They have natural talent and years of training, so losing to them is nothing to be ashamed of." Houtarou said.
"..." Suzune went silent before responding, "I know, I'm just a little disappointed."
"You shouldn't be disappointed." Houtarou said, "Why do you think you, Onodera, and Kushida all ended up facing seed players from Ryūen's class in your heats?"
"You mean…" Suzune caught on.
"It's probably like that." He said, "Ryūen got hold of your class's participation chart and deliberately arranged his students to suppress your scoring. So he has already started moving. That's good news for our plan."
In his and Suzune's plan, they had predicted Kakeru wouldn't be able to resist using underhanded methods during this Sports Festival. Their job was to catch him in the act and report it.
He already had a record with the Student Council — another report would be fatal. At that point, he would have no choice but to comply. Even if it meant handing over all his Points, he'd have to agree.
That's why this plan was called Operation Assault Kakeru.
While his class might recover without Points, for now they'd have to serve as an ATM.
The core of this plan hinged on Kakeru breaking the rules — getting him to use underhanded methods.
But that guy wasn't stupid. So what to do? Sacrifice Ken.
However, the plan had shifted — Kakeru wasn't just targeting Ken but suppressing all of Class C's girls, suggesting more malicious intent. He seemed determined to make Class C finish last in the Sports Festival.
They might target Class C's female seed players — the athletically gifted students: Suzune, Kikyō, and Kayano.
Houtarou wasn't very familiar with Kayano, so he'd set that aside. But Suzune needed attention.
So...
"I failed to consider something earlier." Houtarou said, "Now that Ryūen is suppressing even your female students, sacrificing just Sudō might not be enough. He's ambitious. I suspect Ryūen isn't just aiming to take down Sudō — he's probably targeting you too. After all, you're sitting on a considerable number of Points."
"Me...?" Suzune was taken aback.
She knew that during the last event, Houtarou had hugged her and slipped a voice recorder into her pocket. At the time, she thought it was just for her protection.
But now she wondered if that voice recorder would indeed prove useful.
"Don't forget, other students see you as quite wealthy now." Houtarou said, "And Ryūen desperately needs money. Since Class C students have already handed over 4 million Points to avoid the bottom 10, targeting them won't yield much. That's why I believe he'll try to scam Points from you first."
Suzune remained silent.
Could that be true?
It made sense. After the VIP Exam, when Houtarou had taken half of all examinees' Points, each class's total had become substantial.
If Kakeru wanted Points, Class C seemed the obvious target as they appeared weakest. Yet because of their weakness, many of the athletic underperformers had already sought her help.
Those students had contributed 4 million Points. Following Houtarou's advice, she'd approached Honami, and the Class B angels agreed to throw their matches.
She had handed the 4 million Points directly to Houtarou, who split it between herself, him, and Kikyō.
From Kakeru's viewpoint, though he aimed to gather all of Class C's Points, they had already collected a significant portion. Was he now expecting her to make up for this shortfall?
"What an unpleasant person." Suzune said.
"That's why I gave you the voice recorder." Houtarou said, "To protect yourself."
"I understand." Suzune nodded, "But I should be fine if I'm careful. After all, I've worked with you many times now — I think I can handle it."
Indeed. With the voice recorder and heightened vigilance, Suzune had proven herself trustworthy.
"What are you two discussing?" Kikyō approached them.
She had noticed their earlier conversation but, out of courtesy, had kept her distance. Now that Houtarou was about to leave, she came over.
"Nothing much." Houtarou said.
The announcement broadcast that after the break, the pole toppling competition would begin.
He needed to get busy.
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