Chapter 132: Taking the Field, Koenji! The Monkey Group Exam Ends!
At exactly 10:00 AM, the broadcast rang out on time.
"Notice to all students: The third small group discussion has ended. Please leave the rooms in an orderly fashion. The fourth discussion will take place tonight at 9:00 PM. Repeating..."
In the Dragon Group's discussion room, twelve people stood up one after another. Just like the previous two times, this hour-long discussion yielded no substantial content; instead, the atmosphere was even more subtle than the past two days.
Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was the first to rise. With no intention of staying, he headed straight for the door. Hirata Yosuke hurried to catch up and whispered something behind him. Ayanokouji's pace faltered for a moment before he gave a slight nod, and the two walked out of the room one after the other.
Hachiman retracted his gaze from their retreating backs, his heart stirring slightly.
'Hirata wants a private word with Ayanokouji?'
Given Hirata's personality, it was likely about Ryuen's disclosure this morning—Ayanokouji using "honey traps" to seduce Class C girls, bullying Class D classmates, using video recordings for blackmail... No class monitor with a conscience could sit idly by after hearing such things. Especially a "Saint" like Hirata. He would even protect Yamauchi; there was no way he wouldn't protect the other girls in Class D.
And Ayanokouji had agreed to the talk.
This was somewhat interesting. Was Ayanokouji planning to show his dark side to Hirata?
Hachiman pulled back his thoughts and was about to call out to Ichinose and Kanzaki to leave when he felt a gaze land on him.
Turning his head, he met Kushida Kikyo's eyes.
Kushida stood near the door. Her burgundy eyes lingered on his face for a second before she looked away nonchalantly and followed the direction of Hirata and Ayanokouji. But Hachiman understood the meaning behind that glance.
She wanted to talk to him privately. Was it because of the Ayanokouji incident this morning?
But not today. He had other things to do. Today, he had to start dealing with the exam.
Thus, Hachiman withdrew his gaze and turned to Ichinose and Kanzaki. "We'll leave last."
Ichinose was stunned for a moment but quickly nodded. "Okay."
Kanzaki didn't ask questions either; he simply sat back down in his chair.
Noticing their strange behavior, the students from other classes chose not to stay.
People filtered out of the room. Katsuragi and Hashimoto walked out side-by-side; Hashimoto cast a glance back as he exited, his eyes pausing on Hachiman for an instant before he quickened his pace.
Ryuen stood up grandiosely, signaling Kaneda Satoru and Shiina Hiyori to follow. However, when Hiyori reached the door, she suddenly stopped and turned around.
"Hikigaya-kun." Her eyes searched Hachiman's face. "Are you planning to stay behind to discuss the exam strategy?"
Hachiman looked at her but didn't speak.
'Because this is way too blunt, Shiina-san! Is that how you ask questions?'
Furthermore...
Hachiman noticed that in Hiyori's clear eyes, there was a trace of seriousness and... expectation? She stared at him directly as if waiting for an answer.
'No, do you really think you can get an answer like this?'
No wonder Shiina-san didn't have many friends.
Ryuen stopped at the door and frowned at Hiyori. "Shiina, let's go."
Hiyori didn't move, still looking at Hachiman.
Hachiman remained silent.
Ryuen's face darkened. "Let's go. Even if you want to gather intelligence, you have to learn a bit of social maneuvering."
There was a hint of frustration in his tone; clearly, Ryuen had also discovered Shiina Hiyori's shortcomings in social interaction.
Unfortunately, it wasn't that Hiyori lacked social skills.
It was just that sometimes she didn't want to use them.
Being so direct today was because she hadn't managed to gather any intel from the group discussion yet. She was attempting a probe. After all, Hikigaya-kun's inner voice this morning had shocked her enough; she felt that if she didn't do something, Class C would lose this exam.
However, it seemed no more intelligence was forthcoming. She felt a slight sigh in her heart.
Yet, the moment she turned around, a clear voice suddenly entered her mind.
'Hiyori is leaving too. Actually, Ryuen is quite smart. Attacking Ayanokouji in today's discussion seemed reasonable, but he shouldn't have repeated it. He's not the type to enjoy redundant tasks. It seems like he has other motives.'
Hearing this, Hiyori's steps faltered slightly.
'And now Ryuen is leaving so obediently; as expected. He deliberately lingered for dozens of seconds when the meeting adjourned—he must have made some preparations. For example, sticking a recording pen under the table? But that technique is a bit crude. Halfway through the discussion, I noticed his hand was under the table the whole time.'
Hiyori's pupils contracted slightly.
'A recording pen?'
Hiyori instinctively wanted to look back, but she felt that doing so might ruin Ryuen's operation, so she forced herself to keep walking.
However:
'But Ryuen's painstaking efforts are useless. Even if he figures out there's a pattern to the 'VIP' list, Class C doesn't have enough names to deduce the rule. Unless she can immediately get the VIP lists of other classes—but if they can't, tomorrow night I'll start harvesting the lists. Once I have the points, I'll force everyone into Outcome 1.'
Hiyori's breath hitched.
Tomorrow night.
Harvesting.
Forcing Outcome 1.
She finally confirmed it—the VIPs did indeed have a pattern. And Class B, which possessed the most names, had mastered the pattern earliest. Hikigaya-kun had already planned the timeline; he would start moving tomorrow night.
This piece of intelligence was far more valuable than Ryuen's little tricks.
Hiyori lowered her eyelids and quickly walked out of the room. The door slowly closed behind her.
-
-
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The room finally fell silent.
Kanzaki Ryuji stood up, walked to the door to confirm it was closed, and then turned to Hachiman.
"Hikigaya-kun, shall we discuss the exam strategy now?" He paused, a hint of concern in his voice. "Though, I feel it might be safer to talk in the dorms. This is a discussion room; if there's a wiretap..."
"I think it's better to talk here," Ichinose interjected, a serious expression on her face. "There might be cameras in the room. The teachers might be watching our every move. If we can show enough analytical ability and strategic level here, we might get extra points in the teachers' evaluations."
Kanzaki was slightly taken aback, then nodded.
"Makes sense. In my club, I heard senpais say the school gives opportunities to highly-rated students, though slots are limited and mostly involve working for the school later. But getting good evaluations from the school is indeed a good thing."
Hachiman didn't speak; he just walked over to the spot where Ryuen had been sitting, bent down, and looked under the table.
Ichinose and Kanzaki exchanged a confused look.
"Hikigaya-kun?" Ichinose stepped forward. "What are you looking for?"
Hachiman didn't answer; he just reached under the table and tore something off.
It was a red recording pen.
"This is..." Kanzaki's eyes widened.
Hachiman placed the red recording pen on the table, walked over to where Hashimoto had been sitting, and bent down again. A few seconds later, he tore a black recording pen from under that table as well.
The two recording devices sat side-by-side on the table, very conspicuous.
Ichinose's expression shifted. "Ryuen and Hashimoto..."
"Yeah," Hachiman nodded. "Ryuen left a phone, and Hashimoto left a recording pen. Both wanted to see if they could record Class B's conversation after the meeting."
Kanzaki was silent for a few seconds, remembering Ayanokouji's actions in Class D and Hashimoto's involvement with the Class D girl... He couldn't help but sigh and remark:
"These people... they really stop at nothing."
"Well, as long as we find them, it's fine," Hachiman said.
After all, he had used similar tactics before... he couldn't exactly take the high ground.
However, Hachiman looked at the two items on the table, a slight curl at the corner of his mouth. "But now, we can't talk here."
Ichinose nodded. "Then we..."
"Go back first," Hachiman said. "We'll talk this afternoon."
The three left the discussion room. The door closed softly behind them, and the hallway returned to silence.
Half an hour later.
Ryuen Kakeru strode down the hallway, followed by a bewildered Ishizaki Daichi. He stopped at the Dragon Group door and turned to Ishizaki. "Wait outside."
Ishizaki nodded and stood obediently by the door.
Ryuen pushed the door open and walked in.
The room was empty, sunlight streaming through the windows and casting patches of light on the floor. Ryuen walked straight to where he had been sitting, bent down, and reached under the table.
Empty.
He frowned and felt around carefully—the tape was still there, but his newly bought red recording pen was gone.
"Tch."
Ryuen straightened up. Just as he was about to look further, the door opened again.
Hashimoto Masayoshi walked in.
The two locked eyes, and the air instantly froze.
Ryuen raised an eyebrow, a meaningful smirk playing on his lips. "Yo, Hashimoto. What brings you here? Don't tell me you forgot something?"
Hashimoto's steps faltered, a smile forced onto his face. "Yeah, forgot a little something. Ryuen-kun too?"
"What a coincidence." Ryuen leaned against a table, arms crossed. "Me too."
Hashimoto walked to his previous seat and bent down. A few seconds later, his movement stiffened.
Empty.
He stood up, his smile fading. "It seems... someone collected them for us."
Ryuen sneered. "Stop acting. You came to get your recording gear too, right? Wanted to see if you could record Class B's talk?"
Hashimoto was silent for two seconds, then sighed softly. "Aren't you the same?"
"Of course I am," Ryuen said bluntly. "That guy Ayanokouji might be trying to plant spies in my Class C, but that's another matter. When it comes to getting info on Class B, our goals are aligned."
He walked to his spot and pointed under the table. "I taped a recording pen here. What about you?"
Hashimoto hesitated but spoke. "A recording pen."
"Not bad, Hashimoto, you were well-prepared," Ryuen laughed. "But now they're gone. Who do you think took them?"
Hashimoto didn't answer; he just walked to the spot Ryuen pointed to and looked down. A small piece of tape remained under the table, feeling slightly tacky.
He looked up, his gaze landing on Ryuen's face. "When you came in just now, did you see anything else?"
"Nothing," Ryuen shook his head. "Empty as can be, just me."
The two were silent for a few seconds.
Hashimoto suddenly spoke. "Do you think... Hikigaya took them?"
"Duh." Ryuen rolled his eyes. "Who else could it be? Ichinose and Kanzaki don't have the brains for it. Ichinose is a 'Saint,' and Kanzaki wouldn't even think of such a thing."
Hashimoto sighed and turned to leave. But Ryuen suddenly spoke. "Wait."
Hashimoto stopped and looked back.
Ryuen's eyes scanned the room as if searching for something. "I don't think Hikigaya would just leave so cleanly. That guy... he definitely did something else."
Hashimoto frowned. "What do you mean?"
Ryuen didn't answer; he began carefully checking every corner of the room—under the tables, under chairs, near the windowsills, even rummaging through the trash can in the corner.
Seeing him like this, Hashimoto hesitated, then started searching too.
The two turned the entire discussion room upside down.
Finally, under a table in the furthest corner, Ryuen felt something hard. He pulled it out—it was a phone.
However, it was gray, identical to the spare phones used by Class B students. The screen was still on, displaying a recording app interface—a red dot was pulsing, and over half an hour had elapsed.
"..."
Hashimoto and Ryuen stared at the phone, momentarily speechless.
Ryuen hit stop and clicked the audio file. Clear voices came through the speaker:
[Stop acting. You came to get your recording gear too, right? Wanted to see if you could record Class B's talk?]
[Aren't you the same?]
[Of course I am. That guy Ayanokouji might be trying to plant spies in my Class C, but that's another matter. When it comes to getting info on Class B, our goals are aligned.]
The recording ended there.
Ryuen and Hashimoto looked at each other, seeing the same emotion in each other's eyes.
Speechless.
Because those were Ryuen and Hashimoto's voices!
That guy Hachiman Hikigaya hadn't just discovered their recording devices; he had left a move of his own—placing a spare phone here to record their every action.
"Crap." Ryuen tossed the phone on the table, his expression extremely complex. "That guy... he really predicted everything."
Hashimoto remained silent, picking up the spare phone and turning it over. "Luckily we didn't say any dangerous intel just now. And this spare phone is clean; there's no info on it."
Ryuen cold-laughed. "You think he put this phone here to record what we said? He's telling us—I know your little tricks perfectly well. And we can't do anything to this damn phone. If we damage it, he can report us immediately because it's school property. Plus, there's a camera in here."
Clearly, during the search, Ryuen had noticed the camera in the room.
Under the school's watch, they truly couldn't destroy the spare phone Hachiman left behind.
Hashimoto said nothing.
The two stood in the empty room, sunlight hitting their faces but failing to brighten their complex moods.
After a long while, Ryuen spoke. "Fine, let's go. Staying here is pointless."
He turned toward the door, stopped halfway, and said without looking back, "Hashimoto, we're probably not getting our recording pens back. Hikigaya has definitely tucked them away."
Hashimoto gave a bitter smile. "I know."
They couldn't destroy the school-issued spare phone Hachiman borrowed, but their own recording pens... were gone.
With that, Ryuen pushed the door and walked out.
Hashimoto stood there, looking at the spare phone with the glowing screen.
'Hikigaya Hachiman.
This man is truly too difficult to handle.'
He shook his head and left. The room returned to its quiet state.
Sunlight continued to bathe the floor and the gray phone. The screen gradually dimmed, finally fading into darkness.
.
.
.
On the other side, in the Class D dorms.
Sunlight poured through the porthole, casting light patches on the floor. Hirata Yosuke stood by the window, his expression much more solemn than usual. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka sat on his bed, still expressionless, his gaze on Hirata, unreadable.
Yukimura Teruhiko stood at the door of the three-person dorm, looked at Hirata, then at Ayanokouji, and finally pushed the door open and left. Only two remained.
Hirata was silent for a few seconds before slowly speaking.
"Ayanokouji-kun, the things Ryuen said... are they true?"
Ayanokouji looked at him and said nothing.
Hirata took a deep breath and continued, "About the matter with Manabe-san, and Karuizawa-san. Do you really intend to use those methods..."
Manabe was named by Ryuen himself, but Karuizawa was Hirata's own deduction.
He felt that the person Ayanokouji wanted Manabe to target must be Karuizawa Kei from their class. After all, if it were a physical altercation, targeting Horikita probably wouldn't work since she knew martial arts; as for Kushida, her popularity was too high, and Manabe wouldn't dare attack her. Thus, the only target for Ayanokouji would be Karuizawa, who was also a "gal."
Hirata could not ignore such a thing. So he questioned him directly.
"It's true." Ayanokouji interrupted him.
Hirata's expression froze slightly.
He hadn't expected Ayanokouji to admit it so bluntly. No explanation, no concealment, just stated it straight out.
"Why?" Hirata's voice carried an incomprehensible confusion. "Why use that method? Karuizawa-san is our classmate; you should protect her, not—"
"Protect?" Ayanokouji repeated the word, the corners of his mouth curling slightly, though the smile held no warmth. "Hirata, isn't your understanding of this school a bit too naive?"
Hirata frowned.
Ayanokouji continued, "Do you know why Class D's private points were sold so quickly during the deserted island exam?"
Hirata blinked. "That was Hikigaya-kun's proposal..."
"Proposal?" Ayanokouji shook his head slightly. "That was a deal. And the ones who facilitated that deal were Horikita Suzune, Karuizawa Kei, and Kushida Kikyo."
He paused, his tone becoming meaningful.
"They teamed up with Class B's Hikigaya. From that moment on, Class D already had spies from another class."
Hirata's face changed slightly.
He thought of himself. To prevent Yamauchi and Sudo from being expelled, he owed Hachiman a massive amount of points. At that time, Hachiman's condition was—betray Class D when he needed it.
If he followed Ayanokouji's logic, he himself was a "traitor." Or rather, in terms of chronological order, he was the first.
Thus, Hirata fell silent.
Seeing him like this, Ayanokouji added a question, "What did you think of?"
Hirata didn't answer but asked back, "So, what do you want to do? Find all the 'traitors' in the class?"
"At the very least, I can't let them continue influencing Class D's decisions," Ayanokouji said expressionlessly. "My goal is to lead Class D to Class A. In that process, any unstable factor must be eliminated."
Hirata remained silent.
Then.
He looked up, meeting Ayanokouji's eyes directly. "What if I say I don't support you?"
Ayanokouji looked at him, his golden pupils showing no ripples.
"Then you are an opponent," Ayanokouji said.
This made Hirata's brow furrow even tighter.
Ayanokouji continued, "Hirata, I know your thoughts. You don't want to see anyone expelled; you want to protect everyone in the class. But in this school, that thought itself is the greatest risk."
He paused, his voice still flat, but now carrying an underlying chill.
"If you oppose me, I will make sure Class D has expulsions."
Hirata's body stiffened slightly.
He looked at Ayanokouji, the boy who was usually quiet and had a low presence, but who now exerted a pressure he had never felt before.
"Are you... serious?"
"I never joke," Ayanokouji said. "Either cooperate with me and lead Class D upward together, or watch people get expelled. Your choice."
Hirata was silent.
He stood by the window, sunlight bathing him, but failing to reach his complex mind.
Finally.
Hirata spoke, his gaze very firm. "I can cooperate with you, but I don't support your methods. Even if some students don't feel a strong sense of belonging to Class D, they shouldn't be entirely negated. We can use other ways to unite everyone, rather than using threats and expulsions to solve problems."
Ayanokouji looked at him for a long time.
The room was silent, save for the faint sound of waves outside.
Finally, Ayanokouji gave a slight nod.
"I understand."
His tone was still flat, devoid of emotion. But Hirata knew what that answer meant.
It wasn't agreement, nor was it a compromise.
It was just "I understand."
Hirata opened his mouth to say something but ultimately stayed silent.
Ayanokouji stood up.
"Hirata, you are a good person," he said softly. "But in this school, good people often don't last long."
Hirata didn't speak.
The two stood in the room, each looking out the window with their own thoughts.
In the hallway outside, Yukimura Teruhiko leaned against the wall, looking at the constantly updating class group messages on his phone, sighing softly.
He had overheard bits of the conversation but couldn't hear clearly.
He just instinctively felt that the atmosphere in this dorm might never return to what it was. Of course, he could no longer support Ayanokouji. If Class D really had such a representative... then Class D was beyond saving. He had no desire to support a class that rose through threats, coercion, and blackmail.
He felt that what he could do now was continue studying without being expelled, maintain his academic ability, and then rely on that to get into the university he wanted after graduation.
'From today on, I have to work even harder at studying.'
Yukimura Teruhiko thought secretly to himself.
Announcement
Hello everyone!
As always Thank you for your support!
I'm happy to announce a new Fanfiction! There are already 40 chapters!
You can find it in my secondary account: VarieTL02
COTE: I've become a substitute
Mikage Touji transmigrated in the world of Classroom of the Elite with no explanation and entered the class 1-A, well at least he as a cool power even if a bit weak for now.
Until Ayanokouji Atsuomi asked him: "Is this you?" referring to a photo of Kyotaka.
"How could I possibly be that gloomy guy in there?!"
"Drop these useless excuses, Kiyotaka. Did you think that by changing your name and getting plastic surgery, you could escape my control?
Your enrollment materials are completely fabricated; not a single person can prove you ever existed. Furthermore, the timing of your appearance completely coincides with the time and place of Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's disappearance. And you're still saying you aren't Ayanokouji Kiyotaka?"
"Pfft..." It turns out that when people are truly speechless, they really do laugh.
"If you're looking to cause trouble, take a left out the door and find a police station. And another thing..." Mikage Toji helplessly spread his hands. "The one you are looking for is Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. What does that have to do with me, Mikage Toji?"
[Harem - No Ayanokouji - Sakayanagi Arisu in class D.
I really recommend it even if it doesn't have Hikigaya XD it's very funny and the first girls are not the usual ones (Spoiler: Morishita Ai, Yamamura Miki and Shiraishi Asuka)
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting