Chapter 050: Sakayanagi: No, No, No, This Is an Invitation He Sent Me!
And so, after watching Katsuragi obediently finish filling in the answers for the three test papers, Hikigaya began to speak.
He explained that this exam was a welfare benefit—it used old questions to test the students' understanding of the school's rules. One could not view this school through the lens of normal logic.
Currently, Classes B, C, and D had all obtained the old papers from last year's freshmen.
Now, only Class A was missing them.
Of course, Class A could choose to report this, but the price would be destroying the common interest of Classes B, C, and D.
Class A would then have to consider whether they had the courage to face the combined fury of the other three classes.
"So, you're here to bribe me?" Katsuragi asked, frowning.
"Of course not. I simply hope Class A won't do anything to sabotage the interests of the entire first-year grade," Hikigaya responded calmly.
"Special exams where the school purely rewards Class Evaluation Points don't happen all the time. It would be foolish to refuse points when they are being handed to you."
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After taking back the papers Katsuragi had written on, Hikigaya handed five fresh, blank sets of the old exam papers to him.
Although Kamuro didn't understand why Hikigaya gave Katsuragi blank papers instead of the ones with answers, the meeting ended there.
Once Katsuragi had the papers, he hesitated for a moment but ultimately chose to re-fill the Chemistry, Physics, and Math papers he had just completed.
After all, the answers were still fresh in his memory.
The other two subjects were handed off to other high-achieving students in Class A to complete.
With the task done, Kamuro returned to Sakayanagi's side. She recounted everything that had happened that day to Sakayanagi without missing a detail.
"So, that was the reason the Class B representative called you over?"
Sakayanagi Arisu was in her dorm room. Her slender fingers picked up a white pawn and placed it gently on the board; she was playing a game of Western chess against herself.
She was highly intelligent and, being used to spending time alone, had developed the habit of pitting her left brain against her right.
Even a solo game of chess was something she found immensely entertaining.
However, while listening to Kamuro's narrative and playing her game, Sakayanagi's hand paused slightly. A playful arc curved her lips as she detected something amiss.
"Yeah. It looks like he wanted a trade to make Class A shut up. I guess because Katsuragi and the others kept reporting Class C, the other classes are traumatized," Kamuro said expressionlessly.
"Katsuragi suspects Class C might have bribed Class B to act as a shield."
Class C. That unlucky Class C again.
"Did Hikigaya-kun contact the students of Class C before he reached out to you?" Sakayanagi asked casually, her eyes still fixed on the chessboard.
"Yes. Someone in the class witnessed it," Kamuro confirmed with a nod.
"So, the alliance between Classes B and C is pretty much set in stone.
Naturally, Class C is under the most pressure for this exam since they're full of academic failures. They probably begged Hikigaya to step in. Besides, if it really is old questions, Class B wouldn't be able to meet the other 50-point requirement—having a class average above 60—on their own.
"The syllabus for those papers has discrepancies with what we're learning now; they're like papers from eight years ago," Kamuro said with a serious face.
"To get the full 100-point reward, there's no way other than getting the old papers and memorizing them. But if the leak is reported halfway through and the school changes the test, everyone loses the chance for points. That's why they need us to stay quiet."
"How foolish." Sakayanagi let out a light chuckle, her voice carrying a sense of superiority. "You, and Katsuragi-kun as well, have been tricked by Hikigaya-kun."
Is that so? Tricked again?
But what did this "again" mean? And why did she refer to Katsuragi as "Katsuragi-kun" but Hikigaya Hachiman as "Hikigaya-kun"?
On the surface, both "Kun" and "San" (implicit in the formal address) are polite honorifics.
However, as Sakayanagi's "lapdog," Kamuro knew very well that while Sakayanagi appeared polite, she was incredibly arrogant to her core. Her use of honorifics wasn't out of respect for others, but rather a form of polite condescension.
So...
By giving Hikigaya a more familiar "Kun" compared to the way she viewed most, did it mean Hikigaya was actually more important in her eyes?
"So, what's Hikigaya's real angle?" Kamuro asked with a stiff face, filled with confusion and a hint of frustration.
"Katsuragi-kun mentioned that Hikigaya-kun's math score was 9 points, right?" Sakayanagi finally shifted her gaze from the chessboard, looking at Kamuro with great interest.
"Yeah." Kamuro nodded emphatically.
"Because Hikigaya did that to test the 'internal recommendation' nature of the school. He believes students are already sorted into classes before they even enroll."
Clearly, she refused to believe anything other than the school's pre-selection as the reason for someone with 9 points ending up in Class B.
"Hehe—" Sakayanagi Arisu let out a short, amused giggle as if she had heard something hilarious.
"If it were just a test, why 9 points? Why not a direct 0? Or 50 points across all subjects? Wouldn't those moves be bolder and more investigative?"
??
Kamuro's eyes widened and her pupils shrank as she realized...
'That actually makes sense.'
So, why was Hikigaya's math score exactly 9?
10 points would look better than 9, even if both were low.
Could it be...
"Is it because Hikigaya could only score 9 points?" Kamuro had a sudden realization, followed immediately by a surge of anger at being played. Her voice rose.
"So it wasn't Class C asking Hikigaya to make Class A keep quiet so the whole grade could get 100 points—it's because Hikigaya needs it himself!"
"He definitely can't handle the test being changed. If the leak is exposed and the questions change, he won't be able to hide his status as a failure anymore!" Kamuro felt she had finally grasped the key, her words coming out faster.
"This isn't some shared wish of Classes B, C, and D, or a grade-wide benefit. He's personally trapped in this!"
"..." Sakayanagi looked at Kamuro silently, a trace of helplessness flickering in her eyes, seemingly disappointed in her lackey's comprehension.
However, Sakayanagi didn't correct her this time.
Her gaze drifted back to the empty air, as if looking through the walls at a certain figure.
"His goal should still be for the entire first-year grade to pass smoothly," Sakayanagi analyzed calmly.
"After all, as he said, if the exam uses old questions, it's a welfare benefit from the school. To lose resources when you could have had them, only to be deducted points later, would be a major loss.
Furthermore, there are benefits to the whole grade passing: Classes C and D won't have any expulsions," Sakayanagi continued.
"Academic failures are dead weight for a class. He doesn't want Classes C and D to be able to prune away that dead weight."
Ah.
I see.
So, by keeping the failing students in the lower classes, they continue to drag those classes down.
For Class A, that was indeed advantageous.
"However, the fact that he didn't meet me in person is likely because he thinks he can't hide his status as a failure from me. I'm not as easy to trick as you all," Sakayanagi Arisu said, tilting her refined chin slightly with the pride of a sage.
"What do you mean?" Kamuro was still somewhat lost.
"Don't you see?" Sakayanagi shook her head slightly, her tone like a teacher's.
"He made Katsuragi do the math paper, then two more. What is that? It's purely using Katsuragi-kun for his brainpower."
"Katsuragi-kun thought it was a meeting, but he was hoodwinked into finishing three exam papers. He probably thought that since the old questions were likely the real deal, even if Hikigaya didn't give him the papers, he could memorize them by working through them quickly—so he worked hard and finished them.
And none of you even noticed," Sakayanagi concluded, her tone tinged with faint mockery.
"..." Kamuro pursed her lips, speechless. A flush of embarrassment crossed her face at having been called out.
"So, we just respond honestly and cooperate?" Although it was a grade-wide cooperation proposed by Hikigaya, Kamuro—being one of the academic underperformers—felt a bit swayed and asked in a low voice. After all, once she saw the papers, she realized she'd only score in the 40s on her own due to the syllabus gap.
Accepting the deal meant Class A would pass easily and get 100 points.
That was a good thing, right?
"The first-year exam papers are trivial," Sakayanagi said, shaking her head decisively. "However, there is a challenge I think I might accept."
"Oh?" Kamuro tilted her head, looking confused.
Sakayanagi stood up gracefully. She walked over to the hat rack, reached out a pale hand, and with a sense of solemn ceremony, took down a beret. She placed it carefully on her head and adjusted the angle.
"Hikigaya-kun specifically told Katsuragi-kun to bring you along. He knows very well that you are on my side. So, while he invited you, he was actually using you to invite me."
"He's sending me a challenge.
For this exam, he has already shown me his hand—how he intends to take the test.
So, while maintaining this status quo, how will I take the test?" Sakayanagi Arisu said.
"He wants to find that out."
Wait, what?
Looking at Sakayanagi's unusually solemn posture, Kamuro's heart skipped a beat. She suddenly felt that while Sakayanagi had called her unrealistic for daydreaming earlier... Sakayanagi herself looked a lot more like she was daydreaming right now.
Because this wasn't just cooperation between classes or a common welfare exam for the grade... it was a formal declaration of war from Hikigaya Hachiman to Sakayanagi Arisu?
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