Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test

Vol. 4: Chapter 9.4 - The Peak of a Monolith

Rest Day, 6:00 PM.

Hirata-kun and I were invited for an early dinner. Of course, the invitation was from Ichinose-san and Kanzaki-kun. It was finally time for us to discuss the upcoming climax of this exam.

"Now then. How do we take Ryuuen-kun's words?" asked Ichinose-san.

"In the little time that we of Class C have mulled over the situation, we've surmised that there's still a big chance Ryuuen was bluffing," said Kanzaki-kun.

"Horikita-san and I have talked about this, too. Both of us can agree based on the evidence," followed Hirata-kun. "Would you mind filling them in, Horikita-san?"

"Of course," I replied. "I'm sure you've already figured it out by now, but the VIP from the Horse Group is someone from our class. By extension, the VIP from the Cow is someone from your class."

"Yes, we won't deny that." Kanzaki-kun answered with a nod.

"However, it's easy to spot the trick behind Ryuuen-kun's deduction," I said, looking at Ichinose-san.

"Yep~. Katsuragi-kun is working with Ryuuen-kun, right? Then he could've just revealed the 3 groups that Class A's VIPs belong to. Doing that would eliminate 6 groups and the last 6 would naturally belong to our classes." Ichinose-san explained it without much issue. I guess something like this is child's play for her.

"That's why we've concluded that Ryuuen's implication shouldn't pose much of a threat," added Kanzaki-kun.

Ryuuen-kun left out one group from Class C along with our Dragon Group... I still don't understand his reason for doing so. That said, it was certainly a blessing in disguise.

"Well, we say that, but there's no way we're letting our guards down. We have to protect our VIPs until the very end."

The serious look on Ichinose-san's face made something clear...

"Ichinose-san... You still haven't given up, have you?" I said. "You still plan to win by finding the VIPs in different groups."

Ryuuen-kun and Katsuragi-kun-- both of them, including me, already guessed that Class C had something in mind.

"Ahahaha, of course, Horikita-san. Staying idle won't do us any good, after all," she said. "I don't know what Class A is doing, but if we don't take Ryuuen-kun into account, you're the only opponent that we're most wary of. After all, unlike them, you're really trying to find the pattern. We wouldn't have been too threatened by your efforts, but you have a fourth name in your arsenal. I personally can't do an estimate on how much it helps you since we gave up on trying to find the pattern, but we had no other choice than to take a gamble."

Finding the VIPs without finding the pattern...

"A gamble in which Class C will win if Horikita-san can't figure out the VIP before the exam ends, right, Ichinose-san?" asked Hirata-kun.

"Yes," she nodded.

"By that logic, you must be planning something massive on the last day."

"On the last group discussion, to be exact. It's not that massive, but it is a straightforward plan that requires the innate social and cold-reading abilities of my classmates."

"Ichinose-san, is it possible for you to tell us the specifics of your plan?"

Her words were like honey. They tempted us into asking for more. With that, I immediately knew that I fell for Ichinose-san's bait.

"Of course!" Ichinose-san narrowed her eyes with a smirk. "If we win, we'll choose to spare Class B. In exchange, in the event where Class C loses the gamble and Class B figures out the pattern before the exam ends, I want you to spare our class instead."