For this exam, if the only goal was to win, then choosing Class D as the target for attack would be the best option.
But Kamio felt that would be a complete waste.
As lower-ranked classes, when facing higher-ranked classes, many students feel a natural disadvantage, or a lack of confidence.
This lack of confidence was partly shattered during the previous sports festival, but that was only in sports.
As for academic ability, after hearing that Class D would only calculate the scores of 38 people, the students in Class C immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
From this, it's clear that they were actually a bit afraid to go head-to-head with a higher-ranked class in an academic test.
However, if they want to be promoted to a higher class through class struggles, then they absolutely cannot back down in an exam where they have to compete academically like this.
If they could win against Class B or Class A in this exam, it would definitely be a good thing for Class C.
Although having a numerical advantage might seem unfair, a win is a win. As long as they win, the students of Class C will surely be energized.
So, it all depends on what Ryuen decides next.
And Kamio Tatsuya will decide his future course of action based on Ryuen's answer.
If Ryuen has the ambition to be promoted to Class A, then Kamio Tatsuya will fully assist him.
If not, Kamio Tatsuya plans to return to his life in Class D, and only occasionally oversee class affairs.
"Hmph, did you even have to ask?" Ryuen asked with a smug grin, "Of course, we're aiming for Class A and taking down that cripple Sakayanagi!"
…
They're skipping Class B and aiming directly for Class A?
And Sakayanagi isn't a cripple; he has a heart condition.
But is he doing this for the class or for his own desire to take down Class A? The motive is a bit questionable.
"Now that the target is set, the next step is to come up with 400 questions within a month."
Kaneda basically couldn't get involved in class decisions, but when it came to creating questions, Kaneda was the authority. After all, he was Class C's academic ace.
"But 400 questions, it feels like time might be a bit tight. Let me help too," Shiina offered.
Seeing Kamio Tatsuya busy with Class C matters, Shiina felt she should do something too.
With a month until the deadline, that's an average of over ten questions a day. Even with weekends for focused work, they still have classes during the week.
And since they've chosen Class A as their target, the quality of the questions can't be too low, otherwise, even with an extra person, it might be for nothing.
"And we have to ensure the quality, after all, our opponent is Class A this time."
Although the final assignment hasn't been made yet, the students in Class C are already treating Class A as an imaginary enemy. It must be said, this is a good sign.
"Hey! Before we discuss this, shouldn't we resolve the group formation issue first? The board clearly states that several groups of students are expelled every year because of this!"
Just as the discussion was proceeding smoothly, a slightly impatient voice rang out.
Asking that question at this point? Who is it?
Unconsciously, not only Kamio Tatsuya, but Ryuen and Kaneda also turned their gazes towards the speaker.
Ah, it's Ibuki. Never mind.
Kamio Tatsuya glanced at Ibuki and gave him a sympathetic look.
"Hey, what's with that look?"
Being looked at like that by Kamio Tatsuya, Ibuki immediately got angry.
Ibuki knew he wasn't the smartest, but they couldn't just mock him silently!
"No, it's nothing."
Kamio Tatsuya clearly didn't want to explain, which made Ibuki feel even more offended.
"Oh, Ibuki, don't rush. Since big brother Ryuen hasn't mentioned it, he must have it handled," Ishizaki said, trying to smooth things over.
Clearly, he also didn't understand why Kamio Tatsuya wasn't mentioning the grouping at all, but he hadn't raised the issue like Ibuki did.
It's because he absolutely trusted Ryuen and the others. Ibuki's question just showed his own foolishness and distrust of Class C's brains.
Did this guy damage his brain from practicing martial arts?
"The team formation rules are simple: based on the results of the next mini-exam, the first place and last place will be paired, the second place and second-to-last place will be paired, and so on."
Finally, Ryuen spoke up to explain.
"Yes, I think so too," Kaneda nodded.
Finally, both of them looked at Kamio Tatsuya.
"Furthermore, Sensei Banzai also said that several groups of students are expelled every year, which means that students from higher grades have definitely gone through this exam.
We can just have the students ask them about it later."
Upon hearing this, Ryuen and Kaneda nodded.
Ibuki, however, looked a bit dumbfounded. Was it that simple?
Quite a few students in Class C were also involved in clubs. For example, Komiya and Kondo were in the basketball club, and Shiina was in the tea ceremony club.
Therefore, neither Ryuen nor Kamio Tatsuya were particularly worried about the group formation.
"So, the next steps are creating the questions and organizing study groups, right?"
Kaneda spoke, clarifying Class C's direction.
However, after thinking it over, Kamio Tatsuya shook his head.
"There's no need for you to create the questions, Kaneda. You just organize the study groups. I have other ideas about the questions."
Other ideas?
Kaneda was confused. Doesn't he trust me?
Kaneda, who was confident in his academic ability, couldn't help but frown.
"Don't misunderstand, I'm not planning to create all these questions myself."
"Then..."
"Alright, Kaneda, you and Hiyori go prepare for the study groups. Banzai-sensei's reminder is quite clear. If you want to move up to Class A, you'll have to address your academic shortcomings sooner or later.
Also, compile the academic status of the class members and prepare for the next mini-exam so we don't have any mishaps."
Ryuen interrupted Kaneda and dismissed the people around them.
"Alright, now that everyone's gone, you can tell me your ideas," Kamio Tatsuya said with a smile.
"Ryuen, do you still have enough points?"
"Why are you asking that?"
"It's not the end of the semester in a month, and the lessons will probably not be over by then," Kamio Tatsuya said with a smile. "Even if Kaneda and the others preview future material, without fully grasping it, what do you think the quality of the questions they create will be?"
"Probably not very good."
"So, I plan to directly ask senior students to help us with the work," Kamio Tatsuya's smile didn't fade. "The second-year students, except for those in Class A, are all quite short on living expenses.
But whether it's Class B, Class C, or Class D, there are very talented students. They'll likely be willing to earn some extra cash."
Ryuen looked at Kamio Tatsuya and then nodded.
At least he hadn't thought of the idea of getting outside help.
As for whether those hired hands would leak the questions, there's no need to worry. There's nothing a contract can't solve.
While Class C confirmed its basic strategy, Class D's Horikita Suzune also took action.
Although this exam was practically ruined, she didn't intend to do nothing. At the very least, she wanted to use this exam to achieve something.
That's right, she planned to find the informant Kamio Tatsuya left behind in Class D and persuade them to stop feeding Kamio Tatsuya information.
The students in Class D didn't plan to discuss this within the classroom but wanted to move the discussion to the school cafe.
"Ayanokouji, during the sports festival, we made plans and realized that Kamio had an informant in Class D, remember?" Horikita Suzune brought up the topic as they walked towards the cafe with Ayanokouji.
"That's right, and you said you had a clue about his informant." Ayanokouji nodded.
"Though you might not believe it, I think Kamio-kun's informant is Kushida-san."
After hearing Horikita, Ayanokouji fell silent for a moment.
"Uh, what's your basis for that?"
"Sort of." Horikita sighed. "Kushida-san and I actually attended the same middle school. However, I didn't recognize her at first. But looking back now, she probably recognized me from the start."
Ayanokouji recalled Horikita's appearance when she first enrolled and nodded. At that time, Horikita wouldn't have paid attention to anyone else.
"The first time Kushida made an impression on me was during the study group before the midterm exams last semester. The way she was so kind to everyone reminded me of someone from middle school.
In middle school, she was just as gentle to everyone as she is now, always surrounded by friends. Although she didn't seem to join the student council, she had a strong sense of cohesion."
"Does that have anything to do with why you think Kushida is Kamio Tatsuya's informant?"
Horikita nodded with a heavy expression.
"The reason I think Kushida is Kamio's informant is related to something I heard.
However, I can't guarantee it's true. It's just a rumor I heard. What actually happened, I'm afraid only Kushida herself knows."
After a pause, Horikita Suzune continued to explain what she knew.
"It was near the end of my third year of middle school, one day in late February, when a class experienced a mass absence."
"They weren't all sick, were they?"
"Ayanokouji, has anyone ever told you that you lack a sense of humor?"
"No. And I was just stating a reasonable guess."
"Shut up and listen carefully."
Hit forcefully in the abdomen, Ayanokouji promptly shut his mouth.
"This wasn't a small matter, so it caused quite a stir. They said it was because of some girl that the class broke down, and then, that class never recovered to its original state until graduation."
"You think that person was Kushida?"
"That's what I believe. If that person was Kushida, then the reason she was assigned to Class D becomes clear."
Horikita said this, and Ayanokouji hesitated for a moment, then spoke up.
"Actually, after the celebration party for the midterm exams last semester, I saw something..."
Then, Ayanokouji told Horikita about seeing Kushida furiously kick a railing to vent her emotions, and that Kamio Tatsuya had recorded this incident.
"Why didn't you say something so important earlier?"
Horikita glared fiercely at Ayanokouji.
"Uh, so, because you didn't ask?"
After glaring at Ayanokouji again, Horikita frowned.
"At first, I thought Kushida betrayed Class D because she disliked me. But if what you just said is true, then perhaps she was just being coerced by Kamio."
Horikita Suzune suddenly felt a headache coming on.
Because if Kushida was coerced into helping Kamio Tatsuya, then she was truly out of options.
From Kushida's perspective, she certainly wouldn't want Kamio Tatsuya to reveal the evidence he held.
And from Horikita Suzune's perspective, she couldn't ask Kushida not to provide Kamio Tatsuya with information, because doing so would expose Kushida's other side.
And for Class D right now, if they wanted to make a comeback, Kushida's power in stabilizing the class's morale was indispensable.
Revealing Kushida's future might help her break free from Kamio Tatsuya, but it would essentially be sacrificing a crucial trump card.
This was absolutely an undesirable choice.
"This is really quite a mess you've gotten me into, Chabashira-sensei."
At this point, Horikita also felt resentment towards Chabashira.
If it weren't for her overthinking things, how would Kamio Tatsuya have left Class D?
Even if he didn't actively contribute to the class, Horikita Suzune felt that if she had asked, he might have helped.
Regardless, it would have been much better than him leaving Class D and becoming an enemy.
And although Kamio Tatsuya didn't help as a teammate, he was truly ruthless to Class D as an enemy.
"It looks like I'll have to talk to Kamio-kun. I hope he'll give up holding onto Kushida-san's leverage."
"Do you think you can succeed?"
"Are you kidding me?"
Horikita glared at Ayanokouji again. Clearly, she was very angry at the moment.
Class D's strength was not inferior to other classes in the slightest, but Kamio Tatsuya's departure almost caused Class D to explode. It was a testament to her composure that she hadn't gone to Chabashira to yell at her.
After finishing their discussion with Ryuen and the others, Kamio Tatsuya approached Ichinose.
He didn't need to worry about Class C organizing study groups. The academically strong students like Kaneda would naturally handle those, as it was their area of expertise.
And Ryuen would handle negotiations with second and third-year students to get them to create the questions.
If it were in Class D, he would have had to do these things himself.
However, Kamio Tatsuya wasn't idle. His task was to confirm the target of this attack.
Class C had already set up their battle plan with Class A as their imagined enemy. It would be quite embarrassing if they couldn't designate Class A as the target in the end.
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