“The exam is tomorrow, how’s your studying going?” “Not good, not good at all!” “Tonight, I’m pulling an all-nighter to study.” Class D’s morning was as noisy as usual.
Since the midterm exams were tomorrow, most of the talk was about that.
Despite some saying things weren’t good, they looked pretty relaxed.
The only ones not present at Hirata’s study session were the three idiots of Class D.
Yamauchi Haruki, Ike Kanji, and Sudou Ken were all studying with grim faces.
They skipped Hirata’s study session, and after Horikita and Kushida tried to teach them, they broke up due to Horikita’s bluntness.
Now, the three had no confidence in passing.
“Horikita, have you seen Kushida?” Ayanokouji Kiyotaka asked, his expressionless gaze falling on Kushida Kikyo’s empty seat.
He felt like something he had anticipated was going wrong.
Even Sakura, who always arrived about a minute before the bell, was here.
Kushida shouldn’t be absent.
“No,” Horikita replied, holding her book and not even looking at Ayanokouji.
“I think Yamauchi and the others are in trouble.
Can you still study so calmly?” Ayanokouji pressed on.
“Didn’t you say you wanted to lead the class to Class A?
Don’t you know if there will be deductions in class points if someone gets expelled?” “I checked.
There won’t be.” “During the sports festival, wasn’t Sudou really useful?” “Ring ring— Ring ring—” The bell for class rang.
Ayanokouji couldn’t ask further.
He just glanced at Kushida’s seat again.
It was still empty.
Meanwhile, Kushida was happily lying on her dorm bed playing on her phone.
On her desk were more than ten test papers from different subjects she had already taken.
These were mock exams and midterms that second-year students had taken during their first year.
The mock exam papers were exactly the same as the ones the first-years had taken last time.
This was given by Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.
“You used me, you used me.” “I’ll mess with you.” As she spoke, Kushida’s two shapely, snow-white legs were cheerfully bouncing up and down.
While she was tempted to show off the old exam papers in front of the class, tricking that gloomy guy Ayanokouji wasn’t bad either.
After all, it was Hikigaya’s request.
Taking a day off by feigning illness made her feel so much better and not have to attend class.
…..
“Hikigaya, you seem really happy.” As soon as class ended, Sakura Airi approached Hikigaya.
She could feel that Hikigaya was a bit excited today.
“Because I set a trap for someone I dislike.” Hikigaya looked at Ayanokouji’s seat.
Ayanokouji, who was looking at his phone, had an even deeper gaze, like it held unfathomable darkness.
Last night, when he found out Ayanokouji had guided Kushida to buy the second-year past exam papers and wanted Kushida to show them off under her name to save the three idiots who were about to be expelled, he knew his chance had come.
Because Ayanokouji was a sly old fox who liked to hide behind the scenes, Hikigaya had always wanted to trick him.
Now, he had finally revealed his true colors.
At this moment, Ayanokouji should have received the text message he asked Kushida to send, saying she had a fever and couldn’t get out of bed.
Ayanokouji’s request for everyone to see the past exam papers would now fall on him alone.
Now, his options were limited.
His only friends were Kushida, who wanted to be friends with everyone, and the three idiots.
The matter of the past exam papers had to be revealed.
If the three idiots were expelled, his own situation would be dangerous.
They were the bottom four in the class.
If the three idiots got expelled and there was a special exam where students voted to expel others, he would be in danger.
Furthermore, if he didn’t reveal the existence of the past exam papers, Kushida might turn around and bite him.
If he knew about the past exam papers and didn’t tell his friends, he would definitely be hated by the entire class.
“Ah…
I see.” Sakura slumped onto her desk.
She didn’t know how to respond.
However, she still believed Hikigaya was a kind person.
If he set a trap for someone, it must be because that person was bad.
As Ayanokouji stood up from his seat, Hikigaya also stood up.
He approached Hirata before Ayanokouji and kept him talking until class started.
After this happened twice, Ayanokouji realized Hikigaya was targeting him.
During the break before the last class, Ayanokouji had to turn his attention to Horikita Suzune.
But Horikita was as unmoving as she was before class that morning.
She didn’t even care when he revealed the existence of the past exam papers.
Horikita Suzune had also been bribed, Ayanokouji concluded.
The mastermind was likely the dead-eyed guy talking to Hirata.
Kushida and Horikita didn’t get along, so the mastermind who could get them to cooperate and trick him must be a third party.
Hikigaya Hachiman, what exactly are you trying to do?
With this question in mind, after the fourth class ended, he had to quickly rush to the podium.
“Everyone, please don’t go yet.
Let me tell you, I accidentally found a way for everyone to pass the midterm exams.” Before Ayanokouji could continue, Hikigaya slammed his hand on the table.
“I, Hikigaya Hachiman, Student Council Secretary, declare your intelligence as the strongest in the entire class.” “I was just lucky to find it…” “I’m a good judge of character.
You definitely didn’t find it by accident.
You’re a genius,” Hikigaya interrupted again.
“Ayanokouji, I am sure he is a very capable person.
He’s just been hiding his abilities,” Horikita added, also standing up.
She hated people who had abilities but didn’t use them.
The moment Hikigaya approached her, she agreed to help.
“….” Ayanokouji almost lost his composure.
When did he offend Hikigaya to incur such a deep grudge?
He just wanted to be an ordinary student.
Why was he being pushed into the spotlight?
“Let’s not discuss this issue for now.
Ayanokouji, please tell us about the method to ensure everyone passes the midterm exams,” Hirata said, quickly trying to smooth things over.
Of the four regulars in Hikigaya’s dorm, only Hirata was not informed of the plan.
This was because if he hadn’t stepped forward, Hirata would have inevitably given the old exam papers to the struggling students of Class D, or he would have directly complied with Ayanokouji’s wish to remain in the background.
Although this time he exposed his hostility to Ayanokouji, it also forced Ayanokouji to step forward and attract the attention of many classmates.
This also instilled a bit of vigilance in Ayanokouji, who had been hiding his strengths.
With Ayanokouji mentioning things like being careless and lucky, the existence of the past exam papers was revealed to everyone.
The last three questions of the mock exam before the midterms clearly exceeded the syllabus, hinting at the existence of the past exam papers.
After all, seven people in Class D had an average score below passing.
The school didn’t want to expel nearly a quarter of the class so soon after the semester began.
This was the school’s only mercy.
There would be no past exam papers for the final exam.
Taking out his phone, Hikigaya suppressed a laugh and took a picture of Ayanokouji on the stage.
He titled it ‘Shocking, Class D’s Number One Genius Discovered the Method for Everyone to Pass Midterms’ and sent it to the leaders of other classes.