Natsukawa arrived at a teahouse on the third floor of the cruise ship at the time agreed upon on his phone.
This was the place Katsuragi Kohei chose, perfectly befitting his steady demeanor.
However, at this moment, Katsuragi Kohei, sitting across the tea table, was clearly not calm.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, Katsuragi opened his eyes.
"You're here."
"My apologies for making you wait."
Natsukawa Sosuke took off his shoes and calmly entered the teahouse, sitting cross-legged opposite Katsuragi. He glanced at the tea that had already been brewed on the table but remained untouched, a playful curve forming at the corner of his mouth.
"It seems Katsuragi-kun isn't in the mood for tea."
"Cut the small talk." Katsuragi Kohei's voice was low and direct. "You said in your message that Horikita has already figured out the pattern of the 'beneficiaries' for this exam? And you want to discuss cooperation with me?"
His gaze was sharp, fixed on Natsukawa, trying to find a flaw in his expression.
"It's been less than a day since the exam started. In such a short time, even if you collected information on all the beneficiaries in the class, the sample size wouldn't be enough."
"Such boasts are taking Class A for fools."
Facing Katsuragi's skepticism, Natsukawa Sosuke simply poured himself a cup of tea unhurriedly.
"Katsuragi-kun, you seem to lack a certain reverence for the word 'genius.'"
He took a sip of tea, put down the teacup, and said in a calm tone, "Don't always use the thinking of ordinary people to speculate about a genius. Her nose for loopholes in the rules far exceeds your imagination."
"Since you don't believe me, I'll show you some sincerity first."
Natsukawa Sosuke leaned forward slightly, extending three fingers.
"Zi (Rat) Group, You (Rooster) Group, Hai (Pig) Group."
With each group name he announced, Katsuragi's pupils contracted a little more.
"The beneficiaries of these three groups are all from your Class A. Am I wrong?"
"…"
Dead silence.
Katsuragi Kohei's hands, resting on his knees, clenched tightly.
Absolutely correct.
The beneficiaries of these three groups were indeed Class A students, a secret known only to him and a very few core members!
An unprecedented chill crawled up Katsuragi's spine to the back of his head. He had initially thought that in the deserted island exam, Class D was just lucky, happening to encounter Sakayanagi's faction's betrayal, but now it seemed that might not be the case.
"It seems I was right."
"Do I need to report the specific names of those three people as well? For example, the beneficiary of the Rat Group is..."
"No need!"
Katsuragi interrupted him. "I believe you have the information."
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and re-evaluate the negotiation.
"Is this also... Horikita's plan?" Katsuragi's voice held a trace of disbelief. "But I was in the Dragon Group with her. She showed no signs of being confident at the discussion, barely even speaking. If she really saw through everything, why didn't she give any indication?"
"Disguise."
Natsukawa Sosuke lightly uttered two words.
"A qualified hunter does not show their fangs before the trap is set. Her silence in the Dragon Group was merely to lull the other classes into believing that Class D was doing nothing."
He looked at Katsuragi. "You should learn from this, Katsuragi. As a leader, being too rigid and upright will only become a weakness to be exploited by others."
"Don't let that little girl Sakayanagi lead you around by the nose all the time. Look at Class A now, what has it become?"
Katsuragi Kohei's mouth twitched.
The aggressiveness and insubordination of the Sakayanagi faction indeed left him exasperated. And the profound cunning and terrifying control displayed by Horikita Suzune forced him to re-evaluate Class D's threat level.
(That woman... is not only exceptionally intelligent, but also such a skilled actress...)
Katsuragi internally raised Horikita Suzune's danger level directly to the highest rank.
"...I've learned a lesson."
Katsuragi said in a deep voice, "You don't need to worry about Class A's internal affairs. Let's talk about business."
He looked up, his eyes regaining their resolve. "What kind of cooperation does Horikita want to achieve by sending you?"
"It's simple, same old rules."
Natsukawa Sosuke spread his hands. "I sell class points to your class, and you pay me private points. Fair enough, right?"
"You should also be clear about the rules of this exam. Only by 'betraying,' that is, correctly guessing the beneficiary in advance, can you obtain 50 class points from other classes."
"Horikita knows who the beneficiaries of the other groups are. But she doesn't want Class D to step forward, because that would be too conspicuous. So, she wants to sell this scoring opportunity to your Class A."
Katsuragi's brows furrowed.
"Class A currently cannot afford too many external debts," he said cautiously. "The 200,000 monthly payment for the deserted island exam has already caused quite a bit of grumbling within the class. If you're going to demand an exorbitant price, I advise you to give up that idea."
"How could I?"
Natsukawa Sosuke showed a
"I'm always thinking of my clients. The price remains the same."
"Information on each beneficiary, which is 50 class points, in exchange for your monthly payment of 200,000 private points to me."
"As for the 500,000 points the school rewards to an individual for correctly guessing the beneficiary... let's consider it a gift for our second collaboration, all given to your classmate responsible for answering the questions. How about it?"
This condition... Katsuragi fell into a long period of thought.
If viewed in the long term, exchanging monthly private points for permanent class points is definitely a profitable deal.
Moreover, the one-time reward of 500,000 points could also be used to appease the class's internal sentiments. No matter how you calculated it, this deal was worthwhile.
"...Alright."
After a long pause, Katsuragi finally nodded. "I can accept this price. However, there's a prerequisite."
His gaze became extremely serious. "Since it's a collaboration, it must be reciprocal. You must guarantee that you will absolutely not leak Class A's beneficiary list to any other class."
"If Class A is penalized due to information leakage, then this transaction will be meaningless."
Hearing these words, Natsukawa Sosuke suddenly burst out laughing.
"Katsuragi, Katsuragi, you're really... adorably naive."
"What are you laughing at?" Katsuragi was somewhat annoyed.
"I'm laughing that you're still guarding against outsiders, but you don't realize your own backyard is already on fire."
Natsukawa Sosuke reined in his smile, leaned forward, and said word by word:
"Do you think only we know Class A's beneficiaries?"
"To tell you the truth. Just this afternoon, Hashimoto Masayoshi, that key figure from the Sakayanagi faction in your class, already handed over the entire Class A beneficiary list to Ryuuen Kakeru."
"Bang!"
A loud thud.
Katsuragi Kohei, known for his composure, lost his temper in front of Natsukawa for the first time.
His right hand slammed heavily on the solid wood table, making the tea cups splash. His resolute face was now filled with shock and fury.
"What did you say?! Hashimoto...?!"
"What, is it hard to believe?"
Natsukawa Sosuke looked at him coldly. "Sakayanagi wants to rise, so she has to bring you down. And making you fail in two consecutive exams is the best method. Even sacrificing Class A's interests for that woman is just a necessary pawn."
Katsuragi's chest heaved violently. He didn't want to believe it, but he had to. Because it perfectly aligned with Sakayanagi's style and logic.
Internal and external troubles.
Class A was truly on the edge of a cliff now.
If he didn't take action, if he didn't get enough points to fill this huge impending hole, Katsuragi Kohei would truly be finished.
A moment later, Katsuragi closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, the anger in his eyes had been forcibly suppressed, replaced by a desperate resolve.
"...I understand."
Since that's the case, tell me, how many beneficiary pieces of information do you plan to sell us?
"It depends on how big your appetite is."
Natsukawa Sosuke shook the empty teacup in his hand. "Given the potentially huge losses Class A might face this time, I've personally decided to give you an allowance of 300 points. How about it?"
"300 points?!"
Katsuragi's eyes widened. "That's information for 6 groups' beneficiaries? Including Class A, you really have mastered the pattern of all groups' beneficiary distribution?!"
"I told you, don't question Horikita's abilities."
Natsukawa Sosuke said proudly, "How about it? 300 class points. If you secure these, even if Ryuuen guesses your people, you'll still be the winner of this exam. You might even significantly widen the gap with Class B."
"This is a crucial move that could determine the class rankings for the next three years, Katsuragi-kun."
Katsuragi Kohei's hand trembled slightly.
Six beneficiary pieces of information, even without calculating the 300 class points, just looking at the private points, would amount to at least 3 million points... The temptation was simply too great.
But the cost was also enormous. An additional 1.2 million private points monthly, plus the previous 200,000, totaling 1.4 million.
This was a huge sum of money.
However, if he refused this deal... Katsuragi suddenly gritted his teeth, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.
"Good! We'll take all 300 points for Class A!"
"Excellent!"
Natsukawa Sosuke clapped his hands. "I admire a leader with such boldness. I hope we can continue to cooperate in the future fight against that crazy woman Sakayanagi."
"But..." Katsuragi's tone shifted. "This matter is too important, involving such a large sum of money. I cannot make the decision alone; I must get the consent of the class members."
He had to go back and call an emergency class meeting to persuade the neutral faction and even some wavering members of the Sakayanagi faction. Only by uniting could they devour this large cake.
"Understood."
Natsukawa Sosuke nodded and glanced at the time.
"However, time waits for no one."
"Before I came, I already told the name of the monkey group beneficiary to my roommate."
"That guy has a short temper. I told him to send the email directly to the school administration at 10 PM, and he probably won't wait a second longer."
"What?!"
Katsuragi glanced at the time; it was already nine-twenty.
"So, I only have a little over half an hour?!"
"Yes, dear."
Natsukawa Sosuke corrected with a smile, "If you deliberate too long, or hesitate... Horikita, with her impatient nature, might even sell the information to Ichinose or Ryuuen to cut her losses."
"You...!"
Katsuragi Kohei looked at the smiling tiger before him, and his apprehension towards Horikita Suzune once again rose to a new level.
"I understand!"
Katsuragi abruptly stood up. "Please wait here! I will immediately gather the class members for a discussion!"
"Go ahead."