Even after returning to our tent, Sudou showed no sign of calming down. I
took my distance from him to give him some alone time to cool off.
Karuizawa called out to me and Hirata once we came back from our cavalry
battle.
"Hey, Kiyotaka. Isn't this bad?".
"What is? Wait, why did you just call me by my first name?".
"Why you say?.....I've begun to call him Yousuke-kun so I'm doing the same
for you too".
Then why are you only dropping honorifics for me? Are you saying I'm even
lower than him in your eyes?
I don't even have to think deeply about it.....it's probably just that.
Hirata : kiyotaka‐kun , you shouldn't bad mouth yourself.
Kei : That's not it Kiyotaka, I used your first name since we were beginning to know each other well. ' Seriously, why would he think like that , I mean I know that our relationship at that time wasn't very good but still , hmmm. Maybe I should do something later to make him happy , hehe.'
Haruka : ' So Karuizawa‐san was the first to call kiyopon by his given name huh. Somehow I feel a little sad for airi.'
"More importantly, it's about Horikita-san. Isn't she having a hard time for
quite a while now? Even during the cavalry battle just now, she was a mess.
Even if I try and follow up for her if it's like that, it's just absurd".
"That's right".
Sudou : Yeah , it was like the other participants were targeting suzune.
Ike : Yeah , I think so too.
Horikita is being tormented by the contests and not just the team
competitions but as a whole, her rankings have fallen significantly. The
reason for that is an obvious one. Due to her fall during the obstacle course
race, her right leg has been injured. One would normally suggest withdrawing
but if that were to happen, Class D as a whole would be taking a huge step
backwards.
"Well, I don't intend to blame her though. Her opponents are just too much".
Like Karuizawa said, it's not like it's Horikita's fault. Each and every time she
keeps running into difficult opponents. No matter what contest it may be, if
she keeps having to face students who happen to be the best in their clubs,
then naturally winning would prove difficult.
But this is far too biased to write off as a mere coincidence.
Katsuragi : isn't that quite strange.
Ichinose : Yeah, it can't be a coincidence. It's impossible for the enemy to put strong students in each event Horikita-san participates.
Matsushita : 'So what ayanokouji said about a traitor leaking the participation table was true after all , huh.'
"It can't be helped. She's being targeted after all".
Onodera : So she was really being targeted by the other classes.
"Targeted? So you mean it's not a coincidence that she keeps running into all
these amazing people?".
"I can't think of anything but that. You should also know just how athletic she
is".
It's not that Horikita is bad, it's just that the opponents she's forced to compete
against happen to be superior. However, by consecutively placing bottom,
she couldn't help but stand out to both enemies and allies alike.
More so because people have started to take notice of Horikita in particular.
The fact that she was the first one targeted in the cavalry battle only means
that they're targeting the root. And in all likelihood, the one who ordered that
is---the one conducting himself like a king in the enemy camp, Ryuuen
Kakeru. No one but him would do this.
He's progressively prioritizing attacking Horikita over leading Class C to
victory.
Sudou : That bastard.
Class D glared at ryuuen and ryueen just laughed it off.
Sakayanagi : fufu, How can you be this cruel dragon boy‐san.
Ryuuen : Kukuku , don't forget that I kicked your class pretty hard too , loli.
Hashimoto : Well I can't deny that isn't that right Katsuragi.
Katsuragi didn't say anything.
"It's what you'd call harassment".
Ryuuen : Kuku , oh come on now it can hardly be called harassment , right suzune.
Horikita just glared at ryueen.
"You're saying someone's harassing Horikita-san...? But, how.....".
"By the way, it's not just Horikita. They know everyone's group numbers for
the contests. They fed weak opponents to the more athletic ones like Sudou
and Onodera and for the unathletic one like Sotomura, Yukimura and Ike,
they had them compete against students who are capable of barely winning.
Basically, what it means is that we're being toyed with".
Then there's the fact that it's all students from Class C.
"...the class's information slipped out...the list on the participation table was
leaked?".
"That's right. All of this was set up in advance and the information was
communicated to Ryuuen".
"That sort of thing.....if I recall, Horikita-san's opponents were always---
Yajima-san and Kinoshita-san...does this have something to do with the
traitor you were talking about earlier?".
I nodded slightly. I made her understand just how bad of a situation this is.
Keisei : So there really was a traitor in our class at that time.
Sudou : I'm really angry now.
Shinohara : Just why would someone wanna lower their own class ranking.
"That sort of thing...how did you find out....? How should I put it, it would be
less strange if you told me you're the traitor.....that's not it right?".
"Unfortunately enough".
Ike : Yeah , how did you even know there would be a traitor.
Kanzaki :that's what I would like to know too.
Matsushita : ' just who is this traitor anyway.'
Leaving aside the 'who' for now, what's important is that the class's
information is being leaked.
Our order of participation in the contests that we agreed on, with Hirata being
first on the list, as well as our strategies, all of it is known to Ryuuen. Based
on that information, he did two things.
One is to feed weak students to the talented students like Sudou and Hirata.
And then he forces unathletic students like Ike and Yamauchi to compete
against students who excel in sports beyond the shadow of a doubt in order to
rack up wins that way. Of course, we are also taking that into account when
coming up with our combinations but since Class C knows everything, they
simply wait for us to make our move. That way, there's no mistaking the fact
that Class C would produce better results.
The other is his targeting of Horikita. But that has nothing to do with leading
his class to victory. He himself, for the sole purpose of crushing Horikita, is
sending out powerful pieces to attack and crush her.
As a matter of fact, she's already losing face. If we rank Class D, then
Horikita is already sinking to the very bottom of it. These strategies indeed
reveal the peculiarities of the man known as Ryuuen Kakeru.
If he truly did not wish for his strategy to be revealed, he could have made
sure to switch up the students in detail. However, the fact that he didn't do so
would mean that he wishes to shock us by having us catch onto his strategy,
it's because his desire to scare us that way is clear.
Ryuuen : kuku , so did you maggots like my gift.
Sudou : Don't get too ahead of yourself you bastard.
Sudou was getting his breaking point , but he still had some control.
"So you're not going to help her?".
"How?".
"That's....something I don't know".
"The participation table for this sports festival has already been confirmed.
There's nothing we can do about that".
"So you're saying Class D might lose like this?".
"I suppose so".
"Is there nothing we can do?".
"Rather than consult me, I think this is something you should go over with
Hirata".
"That's---that's true but...somehow if it's you, I thought you'd be able to think
of something.....".
Satou : Ohh , you really think of him highly , huh.
Kei blushed a little. Why does she have to always blush like this , the others might suspect it. Well she's looks cute , so I won't complain.
Shinohara : Why did you think ayanokouji-kun's more reliable than hirata‐kun , Karuizawa‐kun.
Koenji : haha , you can't even understand it even after watching all these videos , truly defects.
Ryuuen : Damn right, blondie.
Hirata : Yes, kiyotaka‐kun is the most reliable person in our class.
Mii‐chan : Yes , I agree with Hirata-kun. Ayanokouji-kun really is a reliable person.
This sports festival is open for public viewing. Unlike the uninhabited island,
there aren't very many blind spots. Since we're being watched by a great
many people, both teachers and students will find pulling something off
without being noticed a difficult task.
You could say that fighting upfront like Ichinose and Katsuragi, or taking a
risk and using cowardly tactics repeatedly like Ryuuen are the only methods
one can utilize.
Even in Ryuuen's case, from his movements and attitude, I could tell that he
committed foul play only after thorough rehearsals and practice. In short,
what it means is that most of the results have already been decided from
before the sports festival even began.
Ike : Damn , it's all because of that traitor.
Sudou : Hey , ayanokouji do you know who this traitor is.
Ayanokouji : It will probably be shown in the next video.
Kushida : ' Ohh.. Shit Shit Shit.. Fuck Fuck.'
"What do you think of Horikita?".
"What......I don't like her. She's conceited and impertinent".
Kei : Sorry for being like that at that time , Horikita‐san. I no longer think of you like that. I understand that your presence is important to our class.
Horikita : Don't worry, I don't mind.
"But you're still worried about her".
"Maybe I saw her as being similar to me".
Targeted, taking concentrated fire and forced into distress. So she's projecting
her old, bullied self onto her.
Horikita : Thank you for worrying about me Karuizawa‐san.
Kei : Ohh , it's nothing.
Both kei and horikita have matured a lot.
"Right now, Class D is last place right......? Is there any way left to win?".
"Not to worry. So far everything's going as I predicted".
"So you have been putting some thought into it after all. So? How do we
win?".
"Win? I don't intend to win in particular. Right now what's truly important is
that we do nothing".
"Ehh?"
Karuizawa opened her mouth agape when I answered like that.
"For this sports festival, just do what you can. By doing that, it'll prove
beneficial later".
Ike : Hey hey , what does that mean ?
Miyamoto : Yeah , how is doing nothing going to help us.
Ayanokouji : The participation table was leaked, so there was nothing that we could do.
Shinohara : So if you already knew there will be a traitor, then why didn't you tell us.
Okitani : Yeah , you could have warned us.
Koenji : Hahaha , Even if ayanokouji‐boy told you , would you idiots even believe him.
Class D : Well that's......
I didn't expect Koenji to say it but what he said was true so the others couldn't say anything more.
Kanzaki : First you say you have a plan and now you say there's no need to win. Just what are you thinking anyway.
Katsuragi : Yeah , it's really hard to understand him even after hearing thoughts.
Sakayanagi : fufu , if you try to find out what ayanokouji-kun is thinking, then you might turn into a mental patient.
Ryuuen : Kuku , you are right about that.
Matsushita : ' The other class leaders really have high opinions about ayanokouji-kun.'
Authors notes
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