Meanwhile, in the coffee shop.
"An unexpected situation has occurred."
Kiyotaka Ayanokōji looked at the Class D group chat on his terminal, where messages were popping up nonstop, and spoke calmly, "All of Class D's VIPs have been wiped out."
Across from him, Suzune Horikita raised her coffee cup, glancing at him nonchalantly as she asked, "It's rare for you to approach me. Do you also intend to reach Class A?"
"No, I just really don't have any points left to use."
Ayanokōji scratched his head, feigning slight distress. "I'm probably still in debt for over 200,000 private points. You should be in a similar situation, right?"
This was a lie. The points didn't matter, and neither did Class A.
In truth, he couldn't even understand himself, what kind of thoughts were driving his actions now—
Perhaps it was regret, curiosity, resentment, or perhaps a competitive spirit... He himself couldn't discern what this "emotion" that had appeared in him since the end of the uninhabited island exam truly was.
But one thing he was sure of: whatever the reason, at least for now, he craved victory. That was enough.
Suzune Horikita glanced at him and said calmly, "I see. Do you have any ideas? Right now, we don't even know which class ended the exam."
Her intuition told her Ayanokōji was lying, but she didn't care. Even if their objectives were different, as long as they desired the same outcome, that was sufficient.
"That's not important."
Ayanokōji lowered his gaze and spoke flatly, "What's more important now is to figure out the pattern behind the VIPs' existence. You should understand that, right?"
Suzune Horikita nodded. "Guessing the VIP incorrectly costs 50 class points. No one would do something so irrational. Considering the situation in Classes A, B, and C, the possibility of a traitor is minuscule. So this is likely the only possibility."
"Well, well, Suzune, you're pretty sharp too."
Kakeru Ryūen had appeared beside them at some point. He casually pulled over a chair from a nearby table, sat down swaggeringly, crossed his legs, and looked at Ayanokōji with a playful glint in his eyes. "How about it? Having fun? Little mouse."
Suzune Horikita's eyes flickered, and she stated coldly, "I see. So it was Class C's doing? Ending the exam early."
"Suzune, a girl needs to learn to be gentle,"
Ryūen reached out and lifted Horikita's chin. As their eyes met, he teased her playfully, "You should get some pointers from Shiina when you have the time. Of course, that look in your eyes right now isn't bad either."
Smack! The sound of a slap!
Ryūen raised a hand to touch his slapped right cheek. The curve of his lips gradually disappeared. After glancing up at the security camera above, he expressionlessly withdrew his hand.
Suzune Horikita took out a handkerchief and wiped her hand, her pretty face as cold as ice. "Have you calmed down now?"
Hiyori Shiina had demonstrated it in the library, and now she was quite adept at this move herself.
It's great to have someone draw the fire—
Kiyotaka Ayanokōji watched the two confront each other and calmly asked, "The three remaining groups are from Class C, right? Are you planning to sell class points like before?"
"No, I doubt you can afford it," Ryūen sneered. Just as he was about to say more, the bell on the shop door suddenly rang, and a man and a woman walked into the coffee shop.
Suzune Horikita and Ayanokōji turned their heads at the same time and saw Class B's Kanzaki and Ichinose walk in, one after the other.
"Hi~! Good morning, everyone." Ichinose greeted the three of them energetically, a bright smile on her face.
Ayanokōji's expression was indifferent: "..."
Horikita was expressionless: "..."
Ryūen gave a cold stare: "..."
Ichinose scratched her cheek in embarrassment and asked tentatively, "Um... did we come at a bad time?"
Kanzaki paid no mind to their interaction. After glancing at the two from Class D, he met Ryūen's gaze and got straight to the point, "You asked us to meet here. What's this about?"
Ryūen raised an eyebrow, looking with some surprise at the silent Ichinose beside him, and said with a pleased look in his eyes, "The information on Class C's three VIPs, worth 150 class points. Does Class B want it?"
Kanzaki was taken aback. After a moment of thought, he said, "I can offer 6 million private points."
Ryūen gave him a cold look. "Do you think I'm an idiot?"
Kanzaki returned the cold look. "Do you think I'm an idiot?"
If private points were liquid capital, then class points were fixed assets that could only be cashed out after three years. In the end, if it weren't for the high expected returns from the uninhabited island exam, he would never have stood by and let Ichinose sign that long-term debt contract.
Ding-a-ling! The door opened.
Class A's Katsuragi pushed the door open and walked in. Seeing the five people present, he walked forward with his arms crossed and said calmly, "Apologies, it seems I've come at a bad time."
"Not at all," Ryūen waved his hand, repeated what he had just said to Kanzaki, and then asked with a smile, "If it were you, how many points could you offer?"
Katsuragi exchanged a seemingly casual glance with Kanzaki, then shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I don't plan on offering a higher price either."
Ryūen had called them together for no other reason than to make them bid against each other. But the problem was—he only had a little over 300,000 private points himself, not nearly enough to compete with Kanzaki's bid.
Noticing the subtle exchange between the two, a cold glint flashed in Ryūen's eyes. His mind raced.
Turning back to the others at the table, he thought for a moment before speaking with a smile, "In that case, are you all planning to go for 'Outcome 1'?"
Suzune Horikita put down her handkerchief, stood up, and said coldly, "Do you really think that's possible?"
"Sorry, I refuse." Kanzaki shook his head and turned to leave.
Katsuragi waved his hand. "Apologies, Class A cannot accept such an outcome."
Seeing the three of them seemingly ready to leave, Ichinose hesitated for a moment and tried to make them stay. "Um... everyone..."
Halfway through her words, Ichinose looked at the others who had turned back simultaneously to stare at her coldly, and she silently swallowed the rest of her sentence.
She actually knew it very well—in the current situation, Class C would gain 450 class points, while Classes A, B, and D would each lose 150. If the remaining three groups then chose 'Outcome 1', it would seem like a win-win on the surface, but in reality, it would be a complete collapse. No class could accept such an outcome.
After leaving the coffee shop, following behind Horikita, Kiyotaka Ayanokōji silently took out his terminal and sent a message to Hirata:
『Kiyotaka Ayanokōji: Hirata, help me gather the group information for this exam, as well as the meeting times and room numbers. If you can, also help me collect information on the VIPs from other classes that have already been exposed.』
『Yōsuke Hirata: Do you have a plan, Ayanokōji-kun? I don't have many friends in the other classes. I'll go ask Kushida. Please wait a moment.』
『Kiyotaka Ayanokōji: I do, actually...』
At the same time, Suzune Horikita frowned and turned around, looking at Ayanokōji following behind her. "Can I consider this harassment?" she asked coldly.
Ayanokōji remained silent, raising his hand to show her the chat messages on his phone, his face unreadable.
Horikita silently averted her gaze, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Remember to send me a copy," she said, slightly embarrassed.
"I know," Ayanokōji nodded.
"Overconfident girl, such a turn-off"—that's what you'd say at a time like this, right?
...
_____
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