Chapter 18: The Truth Comes to Light
Hashimoto: "He even managed to trick the princess! How is that possible... he's a born fraud."
Hayato: "Although I don't quite understand what's going on, still… Princess didn't see through his real self."
Sakayanagi: "Every move he made was perfectly natural, not even a single wasted gesture. Strictly speaking, he wasn't lying. Blending lies with truth to protect himself—that was the smartest choice."
Kamuro: "To think there's such a brilliant person in Class D… makes me wonder if the school's placement system is broken."
Sakayanagi: "This time, we were the ones who got deceived."
From the video's perspective, they could clearly see Hikigaya's inner thoughts and feelings. But their counterparts in the footage had no idea.
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"So that girl was Sakayanagi... good thing I got away quickly."
The memory of being blocked at Class A's door was still vivid. The "Sakayanagi" mentioned by the side-ponytailed girl must have been that terrifying leader of Class A. What he hadn't expected was that she turned out to be a silver-haired fairy.
Seeing it with his own eyes, he could confirm—she really was terrifying. Best to stay far away.
Sakayanagi could see right through him from the very start, as though nothing was hidden from her gaze.
But that was fine. Just like when he first met Class B's leader, Ichinose, Hikigaya believed it wouldn't be long before both of them forgot about him—just a nobody.
After all, all he wanted was three years of quiet peace. In a sense, he wasn't their enemy.
Hikigaya thought about this as he stared at the science book in his hand until his mind spun into a storm.
"As expected… science and the like should just be forgotten."
He didn't know how much time had passed, but eventually Hikigaya collapsed onto his bed. Compared to cramming science, the comfort of the dorm room's big bed was far more attractive.
Now that he had solved the issue of class points, seen the school's true face, and managed not to make any enemies—Hikigaya finally allowed himself a proper night's sleep.
---
But he still underestimated just how hopeless Class 1-D was.
After a day of rest, Hikigaya trudged back to class in a sour mood.
If he had the choice, he'd rather just lie comfortably in the dorm. After all, he couldn't even nap through math lessons anymore. This kind of life was unbearable.
When Hirata Yosuke saw that everyone had arrived, he wore his usual gentle smile and stood up slowly.
"Everyone, I'd like you to listen for a moment."
Since the very first day, Hirata had become the class's backbone. Loved by the girls, respected by the boys—he was the kind of person Hikigaya hated most.
Still, popularity had its uses. His words carried ten times more weight than Hikigaya's ever would.
As expected, the moment Hirata spoke, every student in class turned their full attention to him.
"Thanks to Hikigaya's discovery, and after our own verification, we've uncovered the school's hidden rules. In reality… this place is far more terrifying than we thought."
Karuizawa Megumi blinked in confusion: "Hikigaya? Who's that? Eh, whatever—if Hirata says it, it must be true."
Shinohara: "Yeah, yeah, we believe you, Hirata."
Yamauchi: "Go on, Hirata, tell us more."
From the sidelines, Hikigaya wasn't surprised. It didn't matter who he was, or even where the information came from—so long as Hirata was the one delivering it, no one would question it.
Still, there were exceptions—students who didn't care for Hirata in the slightest.
People like Sudou the red-haired hothead, Koenji the golden lion king, Sakura the shy idol, or Horikita the aloof lone wolf. Those wild cards were outside of Hikigaya's control.
Whether they'd accept Hirata's words or not, he couldn't say. The only relief was that Koenji seemed to have figured out the unspoken rules long ago and hadn't caused any violations. Horikita too had always been disciplined. For the rest… maybe they could be persuaded.
While Hikigaya was mulling this over, Hirata continued:
"About the 100,000 points we were given at the start… I need to share some bad news. Any violation of school rules will cause deductions—until our points reach zero."
"And furthermore, it seems the rankings of Classes A through D are determined by these points."
The class erupted.
Over the past week, everyone had been throwing their points around recklessly. Some were nearly broke already. And now, to hear this?
Yamauchi: "What… Hirata, are you serious?"
Ike: "I thought the class divisions were random! Don't tell me we really are the worst class?"
Hikigaya (muttering): "Are you a caveman? That reaction speed already proves we're the dumbest class."
Karuizawa Megumi: "What do we do now…?"
Shinohara: "Yeah! I barely have any points left. If we don't get more next month, I'll be stuck eating relief meals!"
The uproar grew. No one had expected this revelation. Even though it was basic common sense, they'd been blinded by the 100,000-point bait and hadn't bothered to think.
Hirata Yosuke raised his voice:
"In short, we have to protect what's left of our points. From now on, no more oversleeping, skipping, or being late. I hope everyone will hold each other accountable, and we'll get through this together."
His words inspired the class. One by one, they nodded in agreement. They swore to look after their remaining points, to supervise each other, and to take their classes seriously.
After all, as long as they didn't break the rules or cause serious problems, their points wouldn't be deducted.
That was the bare minimum expected of any student. For most ordinary people, it really wasn't that hard.