COTE: The Quiet One Can Be Dangerous

Vol. 11 Chp. 5: Class A vs Class C

English Test 

Required Participants: 8 

Time: 50 Minutes

Rules: The test will be within the scope of the first-year English curriculum. Victory will be decided based on the class with the highest overall score.

Commander Intervention: The commander can answer a single question on behalf of one of the participants.

The third event was a written test - something we all expected to happen sooner or later. The key to this exam was determining how to win in the events suggested by the opponent. Winning this event would give us an advantage far more significant than just a victory.

I created a team of students skilled in English, starting with Mii-chan. However, it was frustrating that I couldn't use strong players like Horikita and Keisei yet. 

Class A suggested three different written tests - English, Math, and Modern Literature - making it challenging to distribute students with better academic abilities evenly.

Horikita had planned two strategies in case two written test events were chosen. The first was to aim for both wins by evenly distributing the capable students between the two events. 

The second was to deliberately lose one of them and focus on winning the other. Sakayanagi quickly decided on her eight participants, but I took a moment longer to consider my options.

"This is the first time you've had to take time to think. It seems that Horikita-san left you with more than one option."

I am faced with a dilemma. There is no guarantee that another test will get chosen later, and there is also no guarantee that we will be able to win now. The most frustrating part is that Class C tends to perform worse in English. 

I have to choose between two strategies. Should I balance the two teams and go for both wins or give up our chances to win this one?

"Will you give up on the English event? Or... maybe you'll choose to fight and use up all your strength here?"

Sakayanagi prompted me with a question, struggling to contain her excitement.

However, I was not afraid of losing her.

"I can tell what you're thinking, Ayanokouji-kun. You're afraid that we anticipated the fact that you might choose to give up on the English test and, as a result, preserve our better students for the later tests, aren't you? After all, if we were to compete with a suboptimal team, it would give you a chance at winning. It's not easy to give up on this event, right?"

After some thought, I decided to give up on the English event.

"Based on recent global trends, it seems that girls tend to perform better in various subjects than boys and score higher than boys. And, as it turns out, English is one of those subjects. But of course, those are just trends. It's just a reference for you if you will."

As I was about to finalize my decision on who to include in the event, Sakayanagi spoke up one last time. She was giving me unnecessary information to put pressure on me. However, Class A couldn't afford to lose in the English test, so I knew she would choose several powerful contenders for the event. 

After the participants were chosen, their names appeared on the larger monitor. The eight students selected for Class C were Okiya Kyousuke, Minami Hakuo, Karuizawa Kei, Satou Maya, Shinohara Satsuki, Inokashira Kokoro, Sonoda Chiyo, and Ichihashi Ruri. 

They were all students who wouldn't be needed in any events that would come up later. The eight students selected for Class A were Satonaka Satoru, Sugio Hiroshi, Tsukaji Shihori, Tanihara Mao, Motodoi Chikako, Fukuyama Shinobu, Rokkaku Momoe, and Nakajima Riko.