Once Ichinose's class finished the Unanimous Vote Special Exam, the girls crowded around Ichinose, whispering through watery eyes.
The boys, on the other hand, drifted up to the podium without even needing to talk about it. They sat down on the floor with Kanzaki, and one after another, they came over to pat his shoulder—then swapped out so the next guy could do it. Little by little, Kanzaki looked like he could finally breathe again.
Even after everything he'd done, nobody blamed him. If anything, the class felt even more tightly knit than before.
Watching from the hallway, Yukio couldn't help being impressed. Seeing that Ichinose was still busy comforting the girls, he sent her a quick message and quietly left.
Ichinose felt her phone buzz, checked it, and saw Yukio praising her—telling her she was amazing today. Her eyes narrowed happily, and she immediately invited everyone out to eat together and lift the mood. Of course, the whole class agreed.
…
Class D.
Just like the other three classes, they cleared the first four questions without much trouble. But the school trip question dragged into multiple rounds—wasting a good chunk of time.
By the time they reached the final question, they had a little over two hours left.
Which, honestly, was perfect—because it meant Yukio could stand there and watch the whole thing from start to finish. Even he hadn't expected Class D to burn that much time on the first four.
Inside Class D's classroom, Chabashira's reaction to the final question was the strongest by far. Her face dimmed instantly—like she'd been yanked back eleven years, to the memory of a class shattering apart over this exact kind of prompt.
It was like someone had turned down her color and contrast. The grayness in her expression was obvious enough that the students noticed… but nobody had the spare attention to focus on her right now.
The last question completely stole the room.
First-round results: Approve — 2 votes / Oppose — 35 votes.
The classroom immediately started buzzing.
Chabashira, though, stared at the numbers like she'd been stabbed. Her face went rigid—almost bluish with tension.
Not again… Is this really how it ends again?
During the mandatory ten-minute discussion window, Class D's students were already voicing their anger.
"Who the hell voted approve? Are you seriously trying to ditch one of us for class points?"
Class D wasn't like the other three years. Sure, they had a few standouts—but most of them were struggling in both academics and athletics.
That was exactly why the "oppose" count was so high… and why even two "approve" votes made everyone panic.
They jumped up, trying to figure out who had voted for it.
Kushida's heart skipped. She'd voted "oppose." She'd gotten a heads-up last night, thanks to Yagami, that a someone gets expelled question was coming—so she'd been mentally prepared.
But seeing those two approve votes anyway made her thoughts veer into a bad direction.
Did Yagami threaten two more people in Class D too? Is he still trying to force Ayanokoji out…?
The noise in Class D got messier.
"Come on—say it to our faces! You vote approve but won't stand up and own it?!"
"We're classmates! How do you even think about dumping someone like it's nothing? Do you have ice where your heart's supposed to be?"
Horikita didn't jump into the shouting. Instead, she looked straight at Matsushita—silent, but clearly asking.
Horikita and Matsushita had talked beforehand too. To guarantee they'd get a discussion window, they'd agreed Matsushita would pick the first option and Horikita would always pick the second.
But Matsushita gave a small shake of her head.
"I voted oppose," she murmured. "This is the kind of question where one wrong move turns into pointless chaos. I wasn't risking it."
Horikita frowned. So it wasn't Matsushita… which meant two other classmates had been willing to sacrifice someone for points.
And then the shouting started drifting toward the one person Class D never trusted to act like part of the class.
"Hey—Koenji! Was that you?! Did you vote approve?!"
It fit. Koenji was basically the poster child for not a team player. He skipped group events, skipped tests, skipped effort—almost always.
The only two times he'd lifted a finger were: The training camp, when Matsushita persuaded him with the threat of rooming him with Ike and Yamauchi. The second uninhabited-island exam, when Horikita bought his cooperation with a deal: Help once, and I'll never bother you again.
Everything else? Koenji blew it off. Even last summer's first island exam—he'd casually returned to the cruise ship and cost Class D thirty points right out of the gate.
Nobody had forgotten.
Koenji looked at the crowd of furious classmates… and gave them a bored, contemptuous shrug. Arms crossed, he nodded, perfectly calm.
"Hohoho! Have you gathered here to admire the beauty of my approve vote?"
"Of course. No one can resist my beauty! Ahahahaha!"
That smug, roaring laughter made people see red.
"So it really was you?! What the hell is wrong with you?! Do you not have a conscience?!"
"If we're expelling someone, you should be first, Koenji! You've done nothing but drag us down!"
Koenji didn't even flinch. He shifted his feet slightly, stepped out into the aisle—looming over his desk—and casually crossed one leg over the other.
"What arrogant little threats," he said, looking down on them like they were ants. "This exam is designed for students to make their own choices."
"So I will vote as I please—an expression of my beauty—and it has absolutely nothing to do with any of you."
The room exploded again.
"What do you mean it has nothing to do with us?! This question is about expelling someone in our class! It has everything to do with all of us!"
Koenji yawned through their fury.
"Then that is your problem."
Then his smile sharpened—like he was delivering a grand lesson.
"Besides… allowing so many unbeautiful blemishes to remain in this class is what truly ruins the view."
"If you ask me, removing a few people who lack beauty would let my beauty shine even more perfectly."
"Ahahahaha!"