Chapter 078: Lady Sakayanagi: I Will Absolutely Not Be a Love-Struck Fool! Oh? Really?
Hachiman knew he was a transmigrator and that this world was a parallel universe based on the light novel Classroom of the Elite he had read.
Even as a transmigrator, he held the advantage of knowing the plot.
However, the actions of some characters seemed to deviate from the original plot far too smoothly or rapidly.
For instance, Horikita Suzune—who was supposed to be a stubborn mule in the original story—had been convinced by him so easily.
Even though he used her brother's words to fool her, she shouldn't have been that easy to manipulate.
Looking back, weren't the clues everywhere? Kamuro's immediate reaction just now and Sakayanagi's unnaturally precise perception were no accidents.
Hachiman suppressed the waves in his heart, maintaining his expressionless dead-fish eyes. While appearing calm on the surface, he quietly began a test in his mind.
He had to figure out the rules of how his inner thoughts were being heard.
After all, he was the class representative of Class B. If his inner thoughts were leaked to students of other classes, then he wouldn't just be worried about Kanzaki being a potential traitor—he, Hikigaya Hachiman, would be the biggest spy in Class B.
There's no logic in telling everyone your plans.
Realizing the severity of the situation, he deliberately narrowed his chaotic thoughts, focused his mind, and silently recited Arisu Sakayanagi's name in his heart before letting a thought float up.
'Speaking of which, Sakayanagi must have a specific reason for calling me here today. After all, the exams are over, and she already took the remaining 2 million points promised from the Nagumo deal. Since she chose to take that money, that whole incident should be settled.'
As he finished the thought, he used his peripheral vision to scan the two girls.
Sakayanagi's fingertips paused for a microsecond, but she maintained her polite smile. There was no visible reaction.
However, Sakayanagi was an expert at surface-level acting; she rarely showed her true feelings to outsiders. It was impossible to tell if she heard it.
Meanwhile, Kamuro beside her still looked miserable, her gaze steady, even subconsciously shifting her feet. She clearly hadn't heard a thing.
Hachiman's mind raced. He immediately adjusted his thoughts, this time reciting Masumi Kamuro's name first.
'Kamuro is clearly terrified of me, yet she doesn't dare refuse Sakayanagi. She's being controlled too tightly and lacks the courage to resist. A new month of special exams is about to start, and next month's exam involves leaving the school.
Sakayanagi's health won't allow her to go, so maybe I should try to turn Kamuro. Without Sakayanagi's leash, she's likely built up massive stress.
She might even resort to shoplifting again during the off-campus exam. If I catch her... it might not be impossible to "NTR" Sakayanagi's little puppy. Sakayanagi probably doesn't realize the biggest traitor will be right by her side.'
The moment his thought ended, Kamuro snapped her head up, staring daggers at Hachiman.
Her cheeks flushed red—the look of someone whose sore spot was poked but who was powerless to act. Sakayanagi, on the other hand, continued to stroke the pages of her book slowly, but a flicker of displeasure finally crossed her eyes.
Clearly, this time she heard it, and because it involved him "stealing her puppy," she couldn't fully mask her mood.
From this perspective, Sakayanagi wasn't entirely impossible to read.
Two tests gave him a moment of enlightenment. It seemed that if he didn't mention a specific person present, they couldn't hear him. But if he recited their name, they could.
If these were the rules, he could avoid leaking secrets. Furthermore, if the other person heard him but acted like they didn't, they were clearly trying to extract intel from him.
'Fine. I am Hikigaya Hachiman, but from now on, I'm going to start lying. There are no wrong tools, only owners who aren't skilled at using them.'
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Since he had a plan, he still had to face Sakayanagi.
She likely called him to review the exam or because she heard he lent points to Hirata to save Class D. That move placed Class B in a position where they had influence over both Classes C and D, leaving Class A isolated.
It could also be about next month's special exam. The more desperate the situation, the more challenging it was for Sakayanagi. If Class A were to face a B-C-D alliance, she would likely be excited to issue a challenge.
However, he had already thought: "Next month's exam is off-campus, and Sakayanagi can't go." Since she "heard" it, she probably wouldn't mention fighting him in the next exam.
But Sakayanagi, despite hearing his thoughts, never mentioned them.
She was playing dumb.
"A new month is starting, and the next special exam will likely be scheduled soon," Hikigaya said directly.
"Sakayanagi, did you call me here because you want to clash in the next exam? I don't mind. But having other classes get caught in the crossfire of our fight..."
Sakayanagi: "..."
Sakayanagi didn't respond immediately. She had Kamuro call him because he had bought off Class D and Class C had challenged Class A. It was going to be a challenge for Class A.
Under those circumstances, she wouldn't mind a rematch with Hikigaya.
But now, this guy was being truly wicked.
He had already thought that she couldn't leave the school for the next exam, yet he still said this—suggesting a "clash" that he was initiating.
Was he doing this on purpose?
However, she couldn't let him catch on. Although hearing Hikigaya-kun's thoughts felt like an unfair advantage, he seemed completely unaware of it; otherwise, he wouldn't reveal so much. If he started being defensive, his inner thoughts might become poison instead of intel.
While Sakayanagi considered herself smart, she couldn't read everyone perfectly. She still wanted to read his heart directly.
Thus, in the time it took for Hikigaya to make his offer, her mind had already completed three full rotations.
"A clash? It seems Hikigaya-kun is prepared," Sakayanagi chuckled.
"Very well. Since you've issued the challenge, I accept."
She appeared to accept it gracefully, but Hachiman saw through it—she was pretending not to know about the off-campus restriction.
If she couldn't go, she would likely send Kamuro (who could also hear his thoughts) to spy on him, gather intel, and pass it to Katsuragi.
Attacking through someone else's hands was still a form of clashing.
She was planning to use his own strategy against him.
'How truly evil, Sakayanagi the brat.'
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After lunch, while walking back to class with Kamuro, Kamuro finally couldn't hold back her curiosity.
"Speaking of which, your way of addressing him seems to have changed."
"Oh?" Sakayanagi blinked gently. "How so?"
'Do you even need to ask?'
You always called him "Hikigaya-kun" in a polite tone, but today it was "Hikigaya-kun" in a much respectful tone the whole time. Is that intentional?
"Why the change today? Are you finally looking up to him?" Kamuro pressed.
As Sakayanagi's confidant, she knew her "politeness" was usually fake social etiquette. Honorifics didn't mean respect—like calling Katsuragi "Katsuragi-kun" while looking down on him.
Using that tone for "kun" for Hikigaya now felt different. It felt like genuine honorifics.
"I have decided to hold him in high regard. He indeed has reasons to be respected," Sakayanagi said calmly.
"I'm starting to suspect that we aren't the only ones who can hear his thoughts. Perhaps other girls can, too.
And he himself is completely oblivious to it.
But even if one knows the destined outcome, will they truly struggle against it? I'm curious about that," Sakayanagi's eyes sparkled with interest.
"Whether it's Ichinose or Class D's Horikita Suzune, the upcoming changes will be very interesting. The difficulty of the school's special exams will rise accordingly.
Under these conditions, Hikigaya-kun managed to bring Class B to this height. Calling his name with a more respectful tone is not an exaggeration."
This was her honest recognition of Hachiman. Kamuro remained silent. In last month's seemingly ordinary exam, those two teamed up and almost turned both grade levels upside down. To the second and third-years, they were equally matched troublemakers.
'It's just... others can hear his thoughts too? Aren't you always daydreaming about being the heroine of a novel? Now that this supernatural thing is happening, you're not annoyed, but excited for the chaos? Is a normal life not good enough?'
Kamuro grumbled internally but dared not speak.
"Since you care so much about him, you must have heard his thoughts just now," Sakayanagi continued.
"Next month's exam is off-campus. Due to my health, I cannot go. At that time, I'll have to rely on you to stay close to him and listen to his thoughts."
'Oh. I see. Why! Why me!' Kamuro thought.
She was being turned into a spy again. But one thing bothered her. When she was near Hikigaya before, she heard him think that she would be expelled in her second year. And Sakayanagi would be expelled too.
That was a nightmare.
"What do you think... should happen if I get expelled?" Kamuro asked.
"His thoughts mentioned my ending. I'm expelled in the second year."
"Don't worry," Sakayanagi said with certainty. "I will not let you be expelled easily. If you are expelled, I will simply get expelled to accompany you."
'Oh. Is this a reassurance? What kind of development is this? If Sakayanagi gets expelled too, doesn't that make my expulsion meaningless?' Kamuro didn't think this was a great solution.
"But since you're so worried," Sakayanagi had another idea, "the off-campus exam might involve physical activity, which I indeed cannot participate in. Class A will need to maintain its status while surrounded by B, C, and D. Some people's hearts will surely waver."
"What do you mean?"
"If you don't want to be expelled, choose an expellee first," Sakayanagi said.
In other words, select a sacrificial lamb? It was reassuring, but it meant sacrificing a classmate.
"I don't think that's very good..." Though Sakayanagi wanted to save her, Kamuro couldn't agree with sacrificing an innocent classmate.
"You don't understand," Sakayanagi said. "I won't be at the exam, and not everyone in my faction is completely loyal."
"You mean..." Kamuro seemed to catch on.
"In Hikigaya-kun's thoughts, you are expelled in the second year. I don't believe I will be defeated by Katsuragi, which means I will still be the representative of Class A. If you, my right hand, are still expelled under those circumstances, there is only one reason."
Sakayanagi's eyes were calm but her tone grew cold.
"There is a spy in my faction. A spy who believes the Class A I lead has no hope, so they choose betrayal. I won't be at next month's exam, but Hikigaya-kun will definitely move. That spy is very likely to act then. We just need to control that. Since they don't trust me, we will let their betrayal manifest early. We'll record it, and from then on, they will be the designated expellee."
'I see.'
"But why someone in your faction? Why not someone from Katsuragi's side? Like Totsuka?" Kamuro asked.
"Or Katsuragi himself out of resentment for losing power?"
"You must realize that while I am the winner, Katsuragi-kun's character is upstanding; he himself will not betray. As for Totsuka-kun, he won't follow me even if I win, so I'll send him away even earlier.
As for the other Katsuragi supporters, their leader has surrendered—they have no choice but to be obedient under my leadership." Sakayanagi analyzed confidently.
'Oh. I see.'
Such a person wouldn't be hard to identify.
Kamuro immediately thought of the few members Sakayanagi currently entrusted with tasks. There was herself (the puppy), Yamamura-san (the tracker), and Hashimoto (the information gatherer).
Sakayanagi's evaluation was that Hashimoto had high initiative. Then there was Kito Hayato, who was recommended for the Student Council after they bought the Secretary position from Class B.
Kito-kun looked old and scary and was a man of few words, but he was the physically strongest boy in class.
That left only one candidate for the spy: Hashimoto. Whether it was a proactive betrayal or someone catching him with leverage, he was the most likely.
"And since Hikigaya-kun challenged me, it proves one thing," Sakayanagi changed the subject.
"What?"
"He has a high opinion of me. Clearly, he thinks Class A is dangerous specifically because of me," Sakayanagi said, a confident smile curling her lips.
'I see.'
Sakayanagi is dangerous. She attacked the third-years and correctly analyzed Hikigaya's reason for helping Class D today.
She definitely has the skills. Especially since these past two months, Kamuro had learned another of Sakayanagi's identities: she is the daughter of the school's Chairman.
She isn't just a "Little Princess" or a rich girl.
Maybe she could be trusted.
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For Sakayanagi Arisu, knowing she couldn't face Hikigaya head-on next month made her pout with annoyance. She decided to visit the Student Council.
Kamuro learned about her expulsion from Hikigaya's thoughts, and Sakayanagi herself had heard his low opinion of her—that she would be expelled just because of one sentence from Kiyotaka Ayanokouji. This made her even more annoyed. It suggested she was some sort of love-struck character.
Granted, when her father told her about the White Room, he mentioned its head was Ayanokouji's father.
Ayanokouji had been in that heartless institution since birth, raised on an assembly line like a machine. Having grown up with her father's love, she felt a sliver of sympathy. But that didn't mean she would fall for him years later just because he entered this high school.
'Time to investigate.'
If Ayanokouji-kun—the White Room's masterpiece—was in this school, she could face him as an opponent. Defeating the "masterpiece" would prove his father wrong. But she, Sakayanagi Arisu, would never be expelled for any reason. Especially not over a man.
Even if Hikigaya-kun really was a transmigrator and her world was just a novel where she was a character, she wouldn't surrender easily.
Lady Sakayanagi had her pride.
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On the other side, after parting with Sakayanagi, Hikigaya took out his phone. Even though he knew some girls could hear his thoughts, he needed to confirm the exact range. From the initial Shiranami-san and Ichinose-san to Kamuro, Sakayanagi, Horikita, Kushida, and Karuizawa.
Could Shiina Hiyori, whom he met when he went to Class C to fool Ryuen, also hear him?
'Damn. These people's acting skills are too good.'
[Hikigaya Hachiman]: I suddenly realized, can you guys hear what I'm thinking?
Almost instantly, a message from Karuizawa Megumi popped up.
[Karuizawa]: Was eating, wait. What? You found out?
[Karuizawa]: I wanted to tell you when I first heard it, but I couldn't say it. It was like a gag order.
[Karuizawa]: I tried so many times. Like this: Tra...ns...mi... I still can't type it out.
'What?'
Looking at Karuizawa's message, even Hachiman was shocked.
Karuizawa... this girl... He had a mountain of praise for her, but only one phrase came to mind.
'Good dog!'
He had only met Karuizawa formally once. During that meeting, she realized she could hear his thoughts, confirmed their deal (his protection for her service), and tried to tell him this vital information right then. He recalled the strange things she had said at the time.
"Tra...?" "ns...?"
She really was desperately trying to warn him.
Hachiman hadn't been very interested in gathering points before, thinking that since this transmigration happened suddenly, he might just as suddenly return at the "end of the story." But now, he felt he needed to carry some responsibility.
And so, with Hachiman starting to "go bad" in his thoughts, a new month arrived!
At 7:00 AM, all students received their allowances based on class evaluation scores. This month, the whole school got money since the "Welfare Exam" had ended.
Class 1-A received 105,500 private points. Class B received 101,100 private points. Class C received 10,000 points per person. Class D received 8,000 points.
Because Hirata found the points in time to save Sudo and Yamauchi, and they met the "no expulsions" requirement, they got their 50-point evaluation back.
"If it weren't for Ike, we'd have 10,000 points!"
"The 2,000 points we lost should be charged to Ike."
"Yes! And it's not just 2,000 points. We're here for three years. That's over 3 million points lost over time. And Ike lost a lot of points last month too!"
The class began to grumble.
"Why is this all on me? Everyone lost points at first. You guys all played on your phones in class. I only played 35 times..." Ike Kanji defended himself innocently.
"I was scammed by Class C! I'm innocent!"
But since he spent last month ranking the girls' bodies, he was already disliked by the girls. His defense was ignored.
Shinohara Satsuki, from Karuizawa's group, looked at him with utter contempt.
As soon as Hirata entered the classroom, Sudo approached him: "Hirata, thanks for before. I'll pay back that 100,000 myself. I don't have much this month, so I'll start with 5,000. If I make the basketball regulars, I get a 10,000 point subsidy. I'll pay the rest with that."
"Those points—" Hirata wanted to say he would cover it himself, including the 34,000 borrowed from the class.
But Sudo taking responsibility was a good thing; it showed he was a reliable teammate.
"I'm not paying a cent," Yamauchi said, noticing Sudo's action and immediately distancing himself.
"If you force me to pay, I'll just get expelled. My expulsion will drop the class evaluation to zero, and then no one gets points.
I asked Chabashira-sensei. Unjustified expulsion results in class point deductions."
'Crap.' Yamauchi really wasn't afraid of becoming the enemy of the whole class.
The students glared at him, and even Hirata was caught in the crossfire—if Hirata hadn't insisted on saving Yamauchi, he would be gone instead of staying here to disgust everyone.
Chabashira Sae stood at the door, watching with a complex expression.
She knew this was Class D—or rather, the true Class D. But it wasn't completely like the previous ones. This was her third Class D, and the previous two weren't this disjointed before things even began.
There was even a public enemy threatening the whole class with expulsion.
If an exam requiring expulsion truly appeared, the students would surely pick Yamauchi. But there was no doubt Yamauchi would collaborate with other classes for help, likely at the cost of leaking all Class D's intel.
Yamauchi Haruki would betray Class D.
Why did this Class D turn out like this?
Her gaze fell on the back of the room. Horikita Suzune was quietly reading, as if the noise had nothing to do with her. Next to her was a boy with a very low presence.
Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.
He entered the school with special permission from the Chairman, having scored exactly 50 on every entrance exam. When Hirata was about to take the fall for Sudo and Yamauchi, it was he who stepped up and gave the most beneficial plan for Class D—saving Hirata for future use while getting the 50 points back.
Those two moves were indeed more valuable than expelling Yamauchi.
Could she understand this as Ayanokouji actually caring about Class D? That he might work hard for them... and maybe even lead them to the top?
In the midst of the chaos, Chabashira walked in.
"It's noisy. Everyone, get back to your seats."
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