There were still 33 days left before she could add points.
Shiina Hiyori continued living her extrely routine life.
Three points in a line.
Dorm, classroom, library.
Maybe with a stop at the supermarket in between?
Preparing lunch in batches ahead of ti was quite convenient. The ti saved could be used to read a few more books.
"..."
Today, her "reading companion" had left early.
That was nothing unusual.
Shiina Hiyori didn't mind at all.
After all, not everyone could devote nearly all their ti to reading like she did.
She fully understood that everyone had their own lives.
Yes, she understood that very well.
…Alright, maybe she did feel just a tiny bit dissatisfied.
When soone left early, it gave her a subtle sense that she wasn't very important to them.
And that feeling… didn't seem to be an illusion. It was probably true.
"…I'll just read today's diary." With a small sigh, she closed the book in her hands and opened her palm.
The diary dropped into her hand.
She wondered whether he would just share sothing casual today, or finally write more things she didn't know after so many days.
She hadn't figured out what to write as a comnt yet. Not having a ready ssage made her feel slightly uneasy.
Ryuuen seed to be plotting sothing lately. Asakusa often carried traces of soone else's shampoo scent.
And she…
Was the sa as always.
"…When the sun reaches its highest point, the special exam will begin."
Her fingers traced the words as she softly read them aloud.
"A good day for confession… basic interpersonal relationships…"
Even though there weren't many people in class she could talk to about novels, surprisingly, Shiina Hiyori actually had quite a few friends.
In fact, to so extent, she could be considered the… "leader" of the girls in her class?
Shaking her head, she continued reading.
Then she saw the now almost customary "little princess."
…It really felt like he had to ntion the little princess every ti lately.
She wondered what Sakayanagi Arisu had done to provoke him so much.
And then—
"Pfft…" A small laugh escaped her lips. "Dragon Boy… does that an Ryuuen?"
That nickna was so strange—especially when used for Ryuuen.
It was a pity Ryuuen couldn't see this diary. Just imagining his expression upon seeing himself called that made her mood lift for no reason.
…She suddenly felt like she understood why the diary always targeted Sakayanagi Arisu.
"Hmhm—" The corners of her lips lifted, but then her expression paused.
Because after "Dragon Boy," the diary had once again ntioned "her"—this "NPC."
But only briefly.
After a simple "I like her," the topic was casually dropped.
"So… that reply back then really was just an answer to the question?" Shiina Hiyori murmured softly, her eyes brightening slightly. "The one he likes most… is ?"
For no particular reason, she felt a little happy.
…No, there was a reason.
What she felt toward the person behind the diary wasn't romantic. So it wasn't that she was happy because he liked her.
Rather, this interest ca from the perspective of a "story."
Her question had contained four conditions:
"past," "present," "future," and "this school."
Together, they ford a "story."
And within this story she was part of, the character he liked most… was Shiina Hiyori—herself.
No one wouldn't feel happy about that.
"Flip—" Her slender fingers turned the page.
Once again, her eyes caught the keyword "Dragon Boy."
Her lips curved again, though she didn't laugh this ti.
While it wasn't wrong to show emotions while reading, she still preferred quiet, peaceful reading.
The diary listed three titles.
Once narrowed down to Class B, it wasn't hard to identify them.
Ichinose Honami, Asakusa Toru, and Kanzaki Ryuji.
They all had flaws, which was why they weren't placed in Class A.
…How unexpected.
Soone like Ichinose Honami having flaws at all.
As for Asakusa having flaws, Shiina Hiyori didn't find that surprising. He was never the rule-abiding type.
She wasn't familiar with Kanzaki Ryuji.
But… who was the mascot?
A girl who would confess to Ichinose… Shirahata Chihiro?
As she thought about it, that na surfaced naturally.
She did rember Shirahata Chihiro.
Back when midterms were approaching, she often studied together with Asakusa and Ichinose.
A surprisingly cute girl.
How unexpected—she turned out to like girls.
Shiina Hiyori had assud she definitely liked Asakusa.
As for the "baby" ntioned later… she couldn't figure out who it was.
There wasn't enough information.
"—Haa." Letting out a breath, Shiina Hiyori gently closed the diary.
Anyway, she had worked her brain hard again today.
Amazing, amazing.
...
"Flip—"
The mont the pages turned, Sakayanagi Arisu knew the diary had been updated.
Bored, she reached out her hand.
Recently, the diary hadn't really stirred her emotions, but the school itself had been rather dull lately.
Compared to that, the diary was still sowhat interesting.
So of course she would read it.
Let's see what he wrote today.
Sakayanagi Arisu and Shiina Hiyori had very different focuses.
She imdiately noticed the phrase "ultimate masterpiece" at the very beginning.
"In endlessly escalating stress tests… an 'ultimate masterpiece' that doesn't know when to stop."
This wasn't referring to Yamauchi Haruki. It was clearly about the White Room's masterpiece.
She had already suspected that the person behind the diary knew about the White Room. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used terms like that.
But this description suggested he knew even more than she had imagined.
Soone involved?
A student from the sa generation as the masterpiece? Harboring resentnt toward the White Room and using Yamauchi as a scapegoat in the diary?
Hmph. How boring.
As for the special exam timing, she only glanced at it.
Vague hints like that weren't worth paying attention to.
Just like when he ntioned the rules of the behavioral exam but hid the connection to class points—if she blindly trusted his information, she'd only get played.
Not that she needed soone else's information to win anyway.
And besides, he hadn't actually said anything useful.
Better move on.
"—Go die."
The mont the words "little princess" appeared again, Sakayanagi Arisu's veins bulged as she instinctively cursed out loud.
Even though he couldn't hear her.
Why was he so annoying?
Always taking shots at her for no reason—did he like her that much?
Her teeth clenched in frustration, but aside from gripping her small fists and pounding the diary pages, she had nowhere to vent her anger.
They were only two points away from reclaiming their position this month—but those two points were enough for Ichinose's class to stay above them.
It was all because her classmates were incompetent—even as pawns, they lacked ambition!
"..."
She pressed her lips together, suppressing her anger as she read on.
Soon, her eyes narrowed slightly.
Of course.
Everyone not placed in Class A had their reasons.
So why was soone as perfect as Ichinose Honami placed in Class B?
If she could uncover that flaw, bringing Ichinose's class down would be effortless.
As for that so-called "only girl who likes girls" mascot confessing next month…
Did he really think she'd believe that?
The only good thing in today's diary was clarifying his orientation.
Even if barely anyone would see it.
Oh, and that ridiculous "baby" section at the end—who even was that supposed to be?
Anyway, it wasn't Sakayanagi Arisu.
...
"—Beep."
After a short tone, the call was finally answered.
"Busy person, finally decided to pick up?" Horikita Suzune said with rare sarcasm.
Without hesitation, Kushida Kikyo fired back, "Yeah, unlike you, Miss Antisocial, who can only cling to Mommy Kikyo and can't function independently."
"You should really go out and make a few more friends."
"Sticking to mommy forever won't help you grow."
"..."
Horikita fell silent for a mont and looked away. "I don't need you to tell ."
Even though it was just a phone call, she had the strange feeling that Kushida was sitting right across from her, giving her a look of exasperation.
She knew she needed more friends. She had known from the start—that was why she approached Kushida.
But that was as far as her initiative went.
The biggest problem was that she didn't know how.
Even though Asakusa had pointed her in a direction, she only understood that she needed friends.
But what kind of people were suitable? How should she approach them?
She had no idea.
The only thing she knew was that going to Kushida was the right choice.
After all, they both knew each other's secrets.
More importantly, they both possessed copies of the diary.
Other than Kushida, she couldn't think of anyone else she could trust to discuss it with.
Sakayanagi Arisu?
Forget it. That frail girl probably had worse judgnt than her.
Without her father, she'd probably be in the sa class as Horikita.
"Let's just read today's diary." Horikita decided not to dwell on it.
Not just anyone could beco her friend. She wasn't interested in low-quality ones either.
Soone like Yamauchi Haruki wasn't even worth talking to.
…But if there was soone suitable as a potential friend—
There was one person.
The only na in her contact list.
"…Flip."
As her voice faded, the sound of pages turning followed, and soon, today's reading ended.
"I'll go first?" She exhaled and set the diary down.
"Go ahead," Kushida replied softly.
"This entry marks a return to form after a while, so there's quite a bit of information," Horikita said, tapping the table thoughtfully. "First—the special exam."
"The diary has ntioned 'special exams' three tis so far. The first was the behavioral rules exam, which determined our initial class points. Back then, he called it the 'first month's special exam,' so I assud they were monthly."
"But there was nothing in May, so the frequency isn't fixed."
"The second was the 'unanimous decision exam' he ntioned while criticizing Chabashira-sensei. That's a third-year exam, so it's irrelevant."
"The third is today's entry… which ans we'll face another exam before the end of this term—or this sumr."
She paused briefly before continuing.
"He ntioned his 'girlfriend' again, but that's obviously just bait—fabricating a nonexistent girlfriend to provoke us."
"I don't know what he gains from that, but perhaps he finds it amusing."
"More interesting are the three people he ntioned." She hesitated, then nad the obvious ones. "Ichinose Honami and Asakusa Toru. I don't recognize the 'noble boy,' and I have no idea who the mascot is."
"They were placed in Class B due to flaws."
"This information… no, it's not useful to us."
"As for the 'baby' at the end… I can't identify who that is."
With that, Horikita finished her analysis.
Silence fell over the room.
"…Well?" she asked hesitantly, seeking a response.
"..."
After a mont, Kushida replied casually, "Didn't you do pretty well?"
"From now on, you can handle this part. It's good to divide responsibilities."
"But instead of calling, it'd be easier if you just sent your conclusions as a ssage."
"Do your best, Horikita Suzune."
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