It was obvious that Horikita Suzune was having trouble containing her emotions.
If they could resolve the trouble that was Sudo Ken, it would undoubtedly be good for the class.
Sudo Ken possessed excellent athletic abilities, ranking among the top in his grade.
Losing him would be a severe blow to Class 2-C.
Horikita Suzune's objective for this exam was clear.
Under the condition that no dropouts were allowed, she aimed to minimize point deductions. While first place wasn't necessary, she couldn't afford to be last.
Thus, if Amasawa Ichika were willing to team up with Sudo Ken, it would virtually guarantee he wouldn't be expelled.
Considering this, it was no surprise Horikita Suzune's emotions were stirred.
"Are you going to team up with me?"
Sudo Ken wore an incredulous expression.
Yet, facing his hopeful gaze, Amasawa Ichika flashed a sly, mischievous grin.
"No, actually, that wasn't my intention either."
Instantly, Horikita Suzune's mood plummeted.
She felt played by Amasawa Ichika.
"Not teaming up with me?" Sudo Ken's eyes widened. "Wait, what do you mean?"
"Well, I was recently reserved by a senpai. Though he hasn't made a final decision yet, defying him might lead to... unpleasant consequences."
As she spoke, Amasawa Ichika blushed as if embarrassed, her expression conjuring questionable imagery.
"Who is this person?"
Horikita Suzune ignored her feigned shyness and cut straight to the point.
"Eh? Is Horikita-senpai curious?"
Amasawa Ichika feigned surprise. "I could tell you, but he strikes me as a dangerous character."
Horikita Suzune first thought of Ryuen, then Nagumo, but neither seemed quite right.
"Is it Ryuen?"
Sudo Ken voiced the question for her.
"Congratulations, Sudo-senpai!"
Amasawa Ichika clapped mockingly. "Wrong guess!"
Sudo Ken looked utterly bewildered. If he was wrong, why the applause?
"Forget it. If you don't want to say, we're not interested in gossip."
Horikita Suzune turned to leave.
This teasing little devil gave her an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
"How mean! Can't we chat a bit longer?"
Amasawa Ichika sighed dramatically. "Though I can't team up with you myself, I know someone who can."
Horikita Suzune halted and turned back, her expression calm rather than excited.
"What are your conditions?"
Having witnessed Amasawa Ichika's twisted sense of humor, Horikita Suzune wouldn't easily trust her words.
Amasawa Ichika smiled without immediately answering. "Horikita-senpai must have heard plenty from Class D by now? With Classes 2-A and 2-D buying people off, everyone's waiting and watching. Top students are holding out for the right price, while average students seem to be gathering around Class 2-B."
Thanks to Ichinose Honami hosting exchange meetings, many less confident students had gathered there, successfully earning their trust.
In contrast, Class 2-C was in an awkward position—ignored by everyone, receiving only dismissive responses even when they tried to reach out.
"Even if Horikita-senpai were willing to offer 500,000 Personal points, how many students could you actually win over?"
The answer was obvious.
Horikita Suzune stared impassively at Amasawa Ichika.
"What are you trying to say?"
"Hmm, what was I going to say?"
Amasawa Ichika also seemed troubled, but she quickly had an epiphany. "Ah, right! The earlier condition—the condition was that you answer my question, and then I'll help solve your problem. How about that?"
Horikita Suzune remained expressionless. "What question?"
"Of course, we continue guessing."
Amasawa Ichika smiled faintly. "You already have an answer about who my senior is, don't you, Horikita-senpai?"
Sudo Ken glanced back and forth between her and Horikita Suzune, completely lost about what kind of riddle they were discussing.
"If you guess wrong, I'll take back what I said earlier. Let's pretend we never met today."
Amasawa Ichika narrowed her eyes. "It's just a name—surely you can say it, Horikita-senpai?"
Horikita Suzune fell silent for a moment. "Is it Mitoma-kun?"
"Oh ho! As expected of Horikita-senpai. You really do know who the most dangerous person is!"
Amasawa Ichika immediately clapped her hands. "Correct! It was Mitoma-senpai who threatened me not to team up with anyone else!"
She seemed unaware that she'd said something shocking. If anyone overheard, it would undoubtedly spawn a flood of new rumors about Kaoru.
Even Sudo Ken couldn't help but waver at this point, his mind filled with thoughts of the Hypnosis App.
"What did he threaten you with?" Horikita Suzune asked coldly.
"I can't say. That's my weak point."
Amasawa Ichika raised her index finger, making a shushing gesture. "However, if possible, I'd like Horikita-senpai to tell me information about Mitoma-senpai. In return, I'll tell you how to get along well with Nanase-san."
"Nanase-san?"
Horikita Suzune frowned. "Didn't you say if I answered your question, you'd help solve Sudo-kun's partner problem?"
"I already solved it! No one in Nanase-san's Class D has formed a team yet. Even though they're Class D, they do have students ranked B or higher."
Amasawa Ichika said leisurely. "If Horikita-senpai can build good relations with them, Sudo-senpai's problem will be easily resolved."
That's completely useless information!
Horikita Suzune felt irritated. She'd just been extorted by a Class D first-year student, and now this girl was toying with her.
Even with her good temper, she was reaching her limit.
"From how you're talking, do you think you can help me deal with Nanase-san?"
If Amasawa Ichika kept trying to provoke her, Horikita Suzune swore she would turn and leave immediately.
"Don't be fooled just because all Class D students listen to Hosen-kun. Actually, the only person in Class D who can stop Hosen-kun right now is Nanase-san."
Amasawa Ichika maintained her smiling expression. "Hosen-kun visited your classroom yesterday, right? When he caused that scene, it was Nanase-san who stopped him, wasn't it?"
Horikita Suzune recalled the scene.
Because Tsubasa Nanase had been standing silently beside Hosen Kazuo, she had overlooked the girl at the time.
Now, with Amasawa Ichika's reminder, Horikita Suzune did sense something unusual about Tsubasa Nanase.
"If Horikita-senpai tells me, I'll correspondingly teach you how to deal with Nanase-san."
Amasawa Ichika lowered her voice. "What do you think of this trade, Horikita-senpai?"
Horikita Suzune fell into deep thought, feeling as if she'd returned to when Nagumo tried to recruit her to deal with Kaoru.
However, Amasawa Ichika was just a freshman who had recently enrolled.
What did she want with information about Kaoru and what had Kaoru done to her?
More importantly, why was she asking her about it?
Horikita Suzune was filled with doubts when she saw Amasawa Ichika across from her break into a smile.
"Ah, that's right. Whether Horikita-senpai agrees or not, you can't tell Kaoru-senpai about today's matter, okay?"
The little devil junior stared intently at Horikita Suzune. "You won't tell him, will you, Horikita-senpai?"
Could she have already seen through her relationship with Kaoru?
Horikita Suzune couldn't help but think this.
On the other side, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka silently watched this scene.
Was this meant to dispel his suspicions of her?
Unfortunately, he already knew.