Sumr break was flying by, and in the blink of an eye, it was August 26th. The sun outside remained rciless, with heatwaves and the incessant buzzing of cicadas washing over everything, making even the air feel scorched.
Shimizu Akira had decided early on that he wouldn't be running around this morning. Staying in his dorm with the air conditioning was the optimal solution. The cold breeze drifting from the vent dispelled the midsumr heat perfectly. However, at this mont, he wasn't alone in his room.
Just two minutes ago, there had been a soft knock at the door. Upon opening it, he found Shiina Hiyori from Class 1-C standing there. She wore a refreshing light blue T-shirt that complented her fair skin, her smile as gentle as ever.
Looking at Shiina Hiyori sitting in the chair opposite him, Shimizu thought about how he used to view her as a re "Library NPC"—gentle and averse to conflict. But looking closely today, he realized she actually knew how to dress quite well.
Suddenly, Hiyori's eyes swept across his desk and lit up as if she'd rembered sothing. "Shimizu-kun, I've finally discovered your computer!"
"You caught at last!" Shimizu spread his hands.
He knew exactly what she ant. During their previous battle of wits, he had used a sleight-of-hand trick to temporarily leave his laptop with Karuizawa Kei.
Later, needing it for work, he brought it back to his dorm, and today she had finally caught him red-handed.
A faint smile touched Hiyori's lips. In her heart, that little "detective ga" they had played finally felt complete. She paused, then looked up and asked, "Speaking of which, Shimizu-kun, you should have nearly 20 million personal points by now, right?"
"Mhm." Shimizu nodded. Actually, with the 1 million transferred from Class B recently, he had about 22 million.
"Do you have any plans to transfer classes?"
"Not at the mont."
"Then... have you considered transferring to Class C?"
"Class C? I'll pass." Shimizu shook his head without a second thought, his tone one of straightforward distaste.
"I really dislike that Ryuen guy. Besides, he probably feels the sa way and can't stand the sight of ."
Hiyori couldn't help but offer a bitter smile. It was exactly as Shimizu said. Lately, Ryuen Kakeru had been gathering Class C to ticulously dissect Shimizu's past maneuvers; in Ryuen's eyes, Shimizu was already his number one rival. Ryuen respected him as an enemy, which made the idea of Shimizu joining Class C completely unrealistic.
Hiyori spoke again softly: "Shimizu-kun, there's actually sothing about the last special exam I still don't quite understand."
"It's about the VIP information for the Rabbit Group and individual groups." She sat up straighter, her tone turning serious.
"Although the school said the pattern follows the Japanese syllabary (Gojuon), when I reviewed it later, I noticed that in the Rabbit Group, both Karuizawa Kei-san and Kamuro Masumi-san have nas starting with the 'Ka' sound. Yet, the school chose Kamuro Masumi, not Karuizawa Kei. There were similar cases in other groups as well."
She frowned slightly. "I figured out that when the first syllable is identical, the VIP is determined by the second syllable's order, but the school didn't seem to leave any obvious hints about that."
"Actually, they did. The hint was hidden in the initial list sent on the first day."
Shimizu stood up, went to his desk, and wrote down the Rabbit Group mbers:
Class mbers
Class A Kamuro Masumi, Takemoto Shigeru, Tanihara Mao
Class B Ichinose Honami, Shiranami Chihiro, Hamaguchi Tetsuya
Class C Ibuki Mio, Shiina Hiyori, Manabe Shiho, Yabu Nanami
Class D Karuizawa Kei, Sakura Airi, Shimizu Akira, Matsushita Chiaki
After writing, he pointed to two nas in Class A. "Look at the school's initial sorting. In Class A, Takemoto Shigeru and Tanihara Mao both start with the 'Ta' sound. However, Takemoto Shigeru is listed before Tanihara Mao because the second syllable of his na cos earlier in the syllabary. In several of the other eleven groups, there were similar instances of 'sa first syllable, sorted by the second.' That was the hidden hint provided by the school."
Hiyori stared at the nas on the paper, her finger lightly tapping the nas "Takemoto" and "Tanihara." Her brow gradually unfurrowed. A few seconds later, her eyes sparkled as the logic finally clicked.
When she had reviewed the exam, she had deduced the second-syllable rule, but she was working backward from the result. Shimizu was different; he had used the clues provided by the school to step-by-step deduce the creator's logic.
"On the third day, I was so focused on how to distinguish identical first syllables that I didn't realize the clue for second-syllable sorting was right there in the initial list. I was stuck at that exact step."
Shimizu looked at her realization and explained, "It wasn't that difficult. Since the school claid the rules were consistent, they wouldn't leave a loophole in the Rabbit Group. They simply hid the key clue elsewhere to see who could connect all the pieces of information.
Shiina, if you figured out the rule by the morning of the third day, you're much more impressive than ," Shimizu added after a thought. "I had to rely on knowing four different VIPs to slowly piece the pattern together."
Being praised like that caused a faint blush to creep onto Hiyori's earlobes. She whispered, "No... it was just luck."
Knowing her personality, Shimizu realized that continuing the topic would only make her more self-conscious. He pulled out his phone to change the subject.
"By the way, your horoom teacher, Sakagami Kazuma, suddenly tried to add as a friend a few days ago. Tell , is your teacher actually interested in boxing?!"
The ssage from Sakagami had claid that because of the recent boxing match, he found Shimizu's skills impressive and wanted to exchange insights. So far, Shimizu hadn't accepted the request.
First, Sakagami's professional ethics were subpar; second, the excuse was too cliché. After that match, at least thirty to fifty students had tried to add him for the sa reason. If he accepted them all, his phone would explode with notifications.
Hiyori shook her head gently.
"I watched the whole boxing match, and I didn't see Sakagami-sensei in the audience. If he said he admires you because of the match, he's likely lying."
Shimizu twitched his lips in annoyance. What was Sakagami Kazuma up to? Using such a transparently thin excuse was just lazy.
Hiyori stood up, glanced at the ti on her phone, and then looked at Shimizu, her eyes briefly passing over the doorway. "Thank you so much for clearing up my confusion today, Shimizu-kun. I owe you one. It's getting late, so I won't keep you. Judging by the new shoes by the door, you must have plans to go out?"
Shimizu nodded. He was indeed going out with Ichinose Honami that afternoon; the casual shoes he'd just bought were for that occasion.
"Then I'll be going. I promised Ibuki I'd check out that fortune-telling shop with her; she seems quite interested in it," Hiyori added.
"Alright, take care then," Shimizu replied, stepping aside to let her through. Hiyori nodded, said "Goodbye," and walked out with a light step.
Shimizu saw that it was still a while before his 2:00 PM date with Ichinose. He leaned back in his chair and picked up his phone. Suddenly, the screen lit up with a ssage from Hasabe Haruka:
Hasabe Haruka: Shimizu-kun! Because of the VIP intel you provided, I ended up with 500,000 points!
Hasabe Haruka: I'm a little curious though, why did you suddenly call ? There were other classmates in the Dog Group...
Shimizu recalled the VIP exam. To counter Ryuen's sches, he had indeed called Hasabe in the Dog Group to give her the key info on Class B's VIP. The reason was simple—it wasn't a complex calculation. At that ti, only the Dog Group remained active for Class C; the other groups had ended early because Class A guessed wrong.
To counter Ryuen, he had no other choice. The Class D mbers in the Dog Group were Hasabe Haruka, Hondo Ryotaro, and Miyamoto Soshi. Kushida had ntioned that the latter two had previously talked behind his back with Yamauchi Haruki. Even if he had called them, they likely wouldn't have followed his instructions out of spite and might have even sabotaged the plan.
Naturally, that left Hasabe. There was also a minor personal reason: he simply didn't want Hondo and Miyamoto to cruise to the end and get an easy 500,000 points.
He wasn't exactly the most magnanimous person; if people were unfriendly to him, he wouldn't actively go out of his way to let them profit.
Shimizu thought for a mont and replied with the honest truth:
Shimizu Akira: Because I personally dislike Hondo Ryotaro and Miyamoto Soshi.
Seconds later, Hasabe replied:
Hasabe Haruka: Pfft! Shimizu-kun, you're so blunt, it's actually interesting! Do you hate anyone else? I can't quite imagine what you look like when you're being hateful!
Hasabe Haruka: Regardless, thank you so much! Little Kiyoshi~ you're a good guy! You might even be rated higher than Hirata-kun in my mind now!
Hasabe Haruka: I definitely owe you a big one. If there's ever anything I can help with, just say the word!
Shimizu's lip twitched at the overly familiar nickna. He patiently typed out a reply.
Shimizu Akira: Wait! Who is "Little Kiyoshi"?
Hasabe Haruka: That's you!
Hasabe Haruka: As the saying goes, to get on good terms with soone, you have to start with a cute nickna~
Hasabe, who seed cold and quiet in class, actually had this nickna-obsessed personality in private? The contrast was quite large.
He didn't dwell on the na and moved to the question he cared about more.
Shimizu Akira: So, Hasabe-san, why did you trust so much back then?
When he had called, she hadn't even asked for a reason—she just laughed and said "Got it." It was incredibly obedient for two people who had barely spoken.
After a mont, her reply appeared.
Hasabe Haruka: Actually, it's because Airi and I were in the sa cabin on the cruise.
She talked about you all the ti, saying you were the one who helped her out in June. I've always trusted Little Kiyoshi's character because of that, so naturally, I listened to you when you called~
The mystery was solved. "Airi" was Sakura Airi. The school dorms were four-person rooms; during the VIP exam, he'd heard from Karuizawa that she was roommates with Sakura and Matsushita Chiaki. It appeared Hasabe was the fourth person.
"So she was building up my reputation behind my back," Shimizu shook his head helplessly. Sakura Airi was an obedient, shy girl who never looked for credit. He'd almost forgotten about helping her, yet she'd kept it in her heart and told her roommates.
He temporarily ended the chat with Hasabe and opened his dialogue with Sakura Airi.
Shimizu Akira: Thank you, Sakura. I heard everything from Hasabe-san. Thanks for speaking up for ; I owe you one.
The reply was almost instantaneous, as if she'd been holding her phone waiting for him.
Sakura Airi: It's an honor to do sothing for Shimizu-kun!
Sakura Airi: It was really nothing at all, please don't let it bother you.
Sakura Airi: Calling it a favor is too much, I... I just did what I should have...
Shimizu rubbed his forehead.
'Who is the one being "too much" here?'
Sakura's tone was so humble it gave him the illusion she would do anything he asked without question.
Shimizu Akira: I owe you a favor, no more arguing about it.
Shimizu Akira: Also, we've been seatmates for months. Just call Shimizu from now on, no need for "kun," got it?
Seconds later:
Sakura Airi: O-Okay, I understand... Since Shimizu-kun said so, I'll rember.
Sakura Airi: I'm sorry! I-I used the wrong na again just now, please forgive ... Sh-Shimizu.
The last line was typed so quickly he could imagine her face turning red and her hands gripping the phone nervously.
His two seatmates were polar opposites: Horikita Suzune was haughty and looked down on most people, while Sakura Airi was excessively humble and obedient. Being sandwiched between them made Shimizu feel like the only "normal" person balancing two extres.
Hasabe's ssages popped back up:
Hasabe Haruka: Ohho~
Shimizu Akira: ?
Hasabe Haruka: Little Kiyoshi, as soon as you found out Airi helped you, you went and contacted her imdiately?
Hasabe Haruka: How cute!
Shimizu didn't like the look of that.
Shimizu Akira: Wait, are you right next to Sakura right now?!
This feeling of being monitored in real-ti wasn't a first.
Last ti he contacted Yamamura Miki, Kamuro Masumi caught him. Now Hasabe? And "How cute"? He felt like Hasabe was looking at him with the eyes of an older sister, which was a subtle, weird feeling.
Hasabe Haruka: Yup, I'm in her room! Little Kiyoshi is a reliable guy, so I'm a bit more at ease now!
Hasabe Haruka: Well, we're going to get our fortunes told now, see ya next ti!
She stopped replying after that. It seed Hasabe and Sakura had beco good friends after the VIP exam. Shimizu felt sowhat relieved; their personalities complented each other—one shy and frail, the other outgoing and bold.
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Shimizu killed so more ti in his room reading. Before he knew it, it was 11:00 AM. A sudden, urgent knocking ca from the door. He opened it to find Sudo Ken and Ike Kanji.
"Shimizu! Rember the VIP exam? Thanks to you, I got Shinohara's contact info!" Ike said. "Lunch is on today as a thanks!"
"Sure, let's go."
Plans between n were simple. A knock, a look, and the other person would pocket their phone and follow. Sudo turned and knocked on the neighboring door: "Ayanokouji! Lunch at the cafeteria!"
Ayanokouji Kiyotaka opened the door, nodded in his usual stoic manner, and joined them. The four walked toward the cafeteria. Shimizu recalled that during the cruise, all als were free, and everyone got used to luxury. Returning to the basic cafeteria sets was a struggle for many at first, but looking around now, most students had accepted the school's rhythm again.
"Speaking of which, I think yesterday was Inogashira-san's birthday," Ike ntioned through a mouthful of pork cutlet.
Sudo shrugged. "I didn't get a gift. We aren't that close anyway."
Ike turned to Sudo. "By the way, Sudo, how did that thing with Katsuragi go? Did the gift get delivered?"
"Oh! Yeah, it's done!" Sudo nodded. "Since the basketball club's national tournant allows us to leave campus, I took the chance to deliver the gift to his sister."
Shimizu ate his chicken cutlet rice in silence. He hadn't gotten a gift for Inogashira either, but Kushida had thoughtfully bought an extra one and sent it in his na.
As for the Katsuragi business, he rembered it.
A few days ago, Ike had seen Katsuragi in a shop holding a cute gift and speculated with Sudo and Ayanokouji whether Katsuragi had a girlfriend.
Shimizu, having the intel, casually ntioned the gift was for Katsuragi's twin sister. Since Katsuragi couldn't leave campus to deliver it himself, Ayanokouji had suggested using Sudo's club trip to help him out.
The trio had grown quite a bit. In the first month, they would have just gossiped; now they were willing to help soone from another class with no personal gain.
Midway through the al, Ayanokouji asked about the logic of the VIP exam. Coincidentally, his questions were identical to Hiyori's. Shimizu didn't hide anything and explained the second-syllable rule and the school's hidden clues. Ike and Sudo yawned through the explanation.
Ike stood up first. "You guys chat. I'm going to find Shinohara and try to get closer!"
Sudo followed. "Club practice, gotta run!"
Once they were gone, Ayanokouji spoke up: "Chabashira-sensei seed very unhappy with the results of the VIP exam. She doesn't want other classes getting huge amounts of personal points."
Shimizu shrugged. "Don't worry about her." He guessed she was worried about other classes accumulating enough points to "buy" people later. But it was too late—he already had 20 million points.
"Why did you step in during the last exam? What did she say to you?" Shimizu asked, curious about Chabashira's role.
Ayanokouji's expression stiffened for a fraction of a second.
"I don't want to leave this school."
"She threatened you with expulsion?" Shimizu's lip twitched. Her "professional ethics" were consistently surprising.
"It's a bit complicated," Ayanokouji shook his head, not ntioning that his father was the one trying to force him out.
"Fine, if you don't want to say, don't. If you run into trouble, co find ."
Suddenly, Ayanokouji remarked, "The school's freest man has arrived."
Shimizu looked up to see Koenji Rokusuke. He was admiring himself in a small silver mirror as he strolled through the cafeteria. If it hadn't been for Koenji's "free action" during the VIP exam, Ayanokouji's plan to end the exam early with a Class D/B alliance would have worked.
"He doesn't owe you a favor anymore, right?" Ayanokouji asked.
Shimizu nodded. "We cleared that up on the island. I just helped him out by chance."
"You actually helped him again, indirectly, during the VIP exam," Ayanokouji added.
Before Shimizu could respond, a shadow fell over their table. Koenji stood there, silver mirror in hand, staring at Shimizu with undisguised appreciation.
"Koenji-kun, why are you staring at ?" Shimizu wasn't fond of n looking at him that way.
"Shimizu boy! You've solved another one of my worries!" Koenji snapped his fingers.
Ayanokouji explained: "I was in the sa group as Yukimura-kun. He told that after the second day of the VIP exam, so people in Class B were hostile toward Koenji because he correctly guessed their VIP. But because you gave one of Class D's VIP slots to Class B so they could get extra points, the hostility vanished."
"Good! Ayanokouji boy is exactly right!" Koenji snapped his fingers again.
"I don't care about the opinions of mortals, but being glared at by a group of n every day is simply bad for my mood! So, Shimizu boy, you have earned my 'grace' once again."
He humd a tune and strolled away.
"Shimizu, I assu this was all part of your calculation? Impressive," Ayanokouji remarked.
Shimizu gave a complicated smirk. He hadn't considered Koenji at all! He'd given that slot to Class B to balance the situation and do Ichinose a favor. He hadn't expected it to help Koenji as well.
Killing multiple birds with one stone again?!
He had thought Koenji was the freest man in school, but he'd have to take that back. After this, it seed he had the right to command Koenji one more ti.
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