This particular exam was quite unique. Since the number of third-year students had dwindled, the school decided to hold a joint examination. All students—from the first-years to the second-years, and even the third-years—were tossed into the same testing pool.
In short, everyone was taking the exam together. This made things much easier for the administration, as they didn't have to devise separate curriculum contents for each grade. There was even talk that this might become the new standard moving forward; it was simply more efficient. Why complicate matters when you can settle everything with a single exam?
The leader of Class 3-A, Kiryuin Fuka, had already reached out to Ryunosuke ahead of time.
The two were currently locked in a cooperative alliance. Fuka's move had been a calculated one. She had anticipated this development, knowing that the remaining third-years couldn't possibly run a normal exam without any competitors. Allying with an underclassman was only logical. The only thing that caught her off guard was the fact that the first-years had been dragged into the mix as well.
Meanwhile, at a juvenile detention facility...
Yagami Takuya had been granted an early release due to good behavior. He rolled his wrists and asked Amasawa Ichika—who had come to pick him up—in a flat, detached tone:
"What's the situation out there? Fill me in."
Having been locked away for a month, Yagami was completely in the dark, so he turned to her for answers. Amasawa answered him honestly.
"Same as before, mostly. Though our tool, Housen Kazuomi, has been expelled."
"Tch!" Yagami snorted in derision. "That idiot was useless to keep around anyway."
"By the way, they didn't do anything to you, did they? Given where that knife came from, they must have guessed you were the one who swiped it."
Amasawa waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. Even I didn't expect that useless father of mine to have connections with the school's Chairman."
"I was on the verge of being expelled by Akasaka-senpai, but somehow I was pulled back from the brink. Talk about a stroke of luck."
"Oh? And who is your father?" Since most residents of the White Room were orphans or had lived there since infancy, almost none of them knew their parentage. This was exactly why Yagami asked.
Amasawa didn't hesitate to drop the name.
"Tsukishiro. Tsukishiro Arisu... wait, no—Tsukishiro is the name of my bastard father."
(Note: Referring to the acting director Tsukishiro).
The name was intimately familiar to Yagami; it was the name of the administrator of the White Room. But he didn't care about that. He had only one goal: to surpass Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and prove once and for all that he was the White Room's true masterpiece. He turned to Amasawa.
"Help me. I want to challenge Ayanokouji-senpai again."
This time, however, Amasawa uncharacteristically refused.
"Give it a rest. You got thrashed last time. You really want a repeat performance?"
Yagami's eyes narrowed with dissatisfaction at her refusal. "I'm stronger than you, so you follow my lead, you 'eternal second place' loser."
A vein throbbed on Amasawa's forehead. "Hah! You've got some nerve talking like that, you prick! Believe it or not, I'll take you down myself."
"Try it if you can." Yagami replied, his face a mask of indifference.
Amasawa didn't actually intend to attack. She knew she couldn't beat him. As he said, she was ranked one level below Yagami, but that gap was like the distance between heaven and earth.
Much like with Ayanokouji, Amasawa had nearly been dismantled in a single encounter. Even Yagami had been rendered helpless by Ayanokouji, despite the man only using one hand.
It proved that even among those at the "top rank," there was still a massive divide—let alone for someone like her at rank two. Amasawa proceeded to explain the rules of the new exam, which was to be held on a remote island.
Even though they had their secret missions, their current status was that of students, meaning they had to participate. If they didn't, they wouldn't be able to stay at the school.
Upon hearing the rules, Yagami's eyes thinned. He realized that since the exam was held across all grade levels simultaneously, he still had a chance to challenge Ayanokouji!
"Haaah..." Amasawa sighed, rolling her eyes. Her partner was a lost cause. Why was he so obsessed with Ayanokouji?
She failed to realize that not too long ago, she had been exactly the same—perhaps even worse than Yagami. It was just that, currently, her level of interest in Ryunosuke far eclipsed her interest in Ayanokouji.
The two walked back toward their respective classrooms.
Yagami was the leader of Class 1-B, while Amasawa led Class 1-A. As a side note, Nanase Tsubasa headed Class 1-D, while Class 1-C was co-led by Tsubaki Sakurako and her childhood friend, Utomiya Riku.
Utomiya said to Tsubaki, "This is the perfect time to deal with Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. Use this special exam to teach him a lesson."
Tsubaki lazily plucked a lollipop from her mouth and replied in a casual drawl. "Fine by me. I've been wanting to see just what level Ayanokouji-senpai is actually on anyway."
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
Soon, the special exam began.
The students were transported by ship to a remote island.
Unlike the previous island, this one featured twelve castle-like structures, seemingly representing each of the classes. However, since the third year was short by three classes, three of the castles had been sealed off and forbidden to enter.
Ryunosuke could sense that the exam content likely revolved around those castles. Shortly after, the school announced the regulations.
Each class chose one castle to inhabit. Inside each castle was a card scanner—specifically, a portable blue crystal roughly 20 centimeters in diameter. Students had to defend their own castle while finding ways to assault the castles of their opponents. They had to scan a leader's identity info (a green card) into the crystal for three hours to occupy it.
When the exam concluded, the winner would be whoever had scanned the most crystals and controlled the most castles. Each additional castle seized would grant 100 class points. Each crystal scanned also added 100 class points.
There were nine castles in total (the unsealed ones). This meant that if you were capable enough, you could rake in 900 class points from the castles alone, not counting the crystals. In total, the maximum potential was 1,800 points. Simply holding your own castle also counted; even if a class did nothing, as long as they defended their base, they would receive 100 points, plus another 100 if their own crystal remained secure (a total of 200 points).
Currently, Ichinose Honami of Class 2-A had opted for a defensive stance. She felt their class points were already sufficient. There was no need to be greedy; it was better to play it safe and stay stable.
As the strategist, Hikigaya Hachiman had no choice but to agree. He wasn't exactly the fighting type himself, so this suited him just fine.
However, he didn't know if the other classes would be as cordial. Hachiman wasn't convinced they would be satisfied with a measly 200 points. His primary concern was Class C—Ryunosuke's class—which possessed the most high-end combat power.
The second person on his radar was Asuna from Class 2-B. Hachiman was deeply wary of her. Ever since witnessing Asuna's terrifying strength during the previous sports festival, he had categorized her as "non-human." He placed her on the same pedestal as Ayanokouji, Ryunosuke, and Koenji.
It was a clear sign of just how much Hachiman overestimated Asuna...
Regardless, Hachiman wasn't going to sit idle. He instructed those around him to set up traps surrounding the castle—pitfalls, nets, and various hunter's snares. Naturally, this equipment was purchased using points, but the cost was negligible.
Basically, Hachiman's budget didn't exceed 100 points—half of the minimum profit they stood to gain. As long as they didn't lose points, it was enough. He was thinking purely in realistic terms.
But this was inevitable; given that his leader wasn't the type to hunger for victory, he could only follow Ichinose's lead. Hachiman spoiled her, honestly—after all, she was his "light" and his conviction. He'd had a brief crush on Ichinose once, but the moment he realized she already liked someone else, he had immediately given up.
It was fine. He was used to it. After all, he'd "had his heart broken" over a hundred times already, hehe...
A dark, depressive aura continued to radiate from Hachiman's body, proving that he wasn't nearly as at peace with it as he claimed to be.