Volume 13, Chapter 3: Summers almost here, a premonition of a fierce battle Part 5

This was the first time Id visited Alberts room.

Although he was of a greater physique and size, the layout of his room was still the same

However, each room had its own arrangement, and this was a bit unique.

A large American flag and a Japanese flag adorned the center of the room. Not only that, flags of countless countries, such as those of China, Italy, and some African countries, though small in size, decorated one of the walls. They werent just made of printed paper, but out of fabric, which gave us a sense for his passion.

Alberts a flag fanatic. Surprised aintcha?

Ishizaki had probably been to his room before, which is why he was able to explain all of this to us in such a calm fashion

That seems to be the case.

After he released me, Albert casually urged me to sit.

Once I confirmed that all of us were seated, I proceeded to ask them what they wanted.

So, what do you three want?

The three of them looked at each other.

For some reason, they all had large smiles on their faces.

And then, Ishizaki, as their representative, told me.

Lets cut to the chase, heres my proposal. Lets form a group for the next special exam!

As expected, it was about the special exam.

Forma group? Can you give me more details?

More details? Thats all there is to it

It doesnt seem like that at all to me. I cant even identify who Im supposed to be grouping up with.

The number of people present here were four, which was one more than the rules allowed. Also since Hiyori was a girl she didnt qualify as a teammate due to the gender ratio rule, so it probably meant that I had to group up with Ishizaki and Albert. But if he didnt elaborate on this clearly, Id have no idea about it.

With whoever you want. It can be me, Albert, Shiina, anybody really. The point is that you team up with somebody from our class.

What a lofty and brazen proposal.

In a sense, it was the type of proposal that could only be made because Ishizaki was the one offering it.

In other words, you want me to enter into a group with two people from your class?

Right. And then when the exam starts, youll combine your group with another three person group from Class B, so itll be a perfect six person group. With five people from our class, and you being the sixth, Ayanakouji, lets aim for first place!

Although such a proposal could move one to tears, there was an urgent need to think it through first.

Hiyori, did you carefully explain the exam rules to Ishizaki?

No.

Hiyori gave a forthright answer.

If Id interrupted and tried to explain, I felt like there wouldve been something I needed to correct within 5 seconds. So, I thought it would be better to let him carry on with his momentum.

Better? Definitely not.

Indeed, 5 seconds into the conversation and it already looked like Ishizaki hadnt understood the exam rules.

Although Ive got many questions, Ill narrow it down to two No, three questions. First off, after the special exam starts, theres no guarantee that you can easily form your ideal big group.

In fact, our class teacher had already told us that it wouldnt be an easy thing.

If we could form big groups by just thinking or saying, lets group up, or lets do it, then there would be no point forcing students to form groups of three right now. There wouldnt be much advantage to it.

Its precisely because its difficult to form a big group during the official exam, that we were given freedom of choice to form smaller teams now.

Really?

Ishizaki seemed completely baffled, with an incredulous expression, he tilted his head towards Hiyori as if he needed her to explain.

If you organize the exam description, thats what it means. Basically, depending on the situation, we might have to work with a group we didnt expect or want.

Wha. I havent a clue what you mean.

During the exam there might just be certain conditions that we need to meet in order to combine our groups. Thats what Im talking about.

What the heck are those?

If wed known that, then it wouldnt have been so troublesome.

We dont know the details. Judging from the schools explanation, theres no doubt that they wont be easy to meet.

But Even if there are conditions, we have to prepare under the premise that well be able to form our groups right?

Well, if you put it that way, its true.

Then were good. For the exam, just follow my proposal and prepare accordingly.

Its kind of respectable that he was able to think simply at this point.

Hiyori also listened to Ishizakis proposal with great interest.

Aint no point in worrying about things I dont understand.

Was this Ishizaki Daichis unique charm?

Well then my second point.

Since it seems like I couldnt make him understand the first point, I went ahead with the next one.

Other than me, who else have you talked to? Or who else were you planning to talk to?

We didnt talk to anyone, and we dont intend to. Right?

The two of them nodded in agreement with Ishizakis statement.

So that means its only me. Whys that?

Well, course its just you. I reckon youre just as powerful as Ryuuen Nah, if I had to say, its cuz I now think that youre even better than him. Youre strong as hell at fighting, and your mental agility is even acknowledged by him. Plus, in the spring exam, you got a perfect score in math. That was truly incredible. The group which has Ayanokouji has the exam in the bag. So I see no reason for us not to invite you, eh?

That was high praise, Ayanokouji-kun, but my opinion is also the same.

Albert nodded without hesitation.

I initially said I wanted to ask three questions, but now Ive got a fourth one. That was, how much Japanese Albert understood, and how much he could speak. Although I havent seen him in class, I think he uses Japanese to learn

They didnt hesitate to mention that they needed to acquire me.

Then, the third this proposal, how does it benefit me? If I assume that the top places are taken by Class B, then its just you guys that benefit.

Even if the class points were evenly split, thered be a huge difference in the amount of private points I get versus their class with the majority of the members.

The heck, of course you cant be the only one who doesnt get any benefits! If were promoted to Class A, well give you 20 million points to come to our class, Ayanokouji. Waddya say?

After answering confidently, Ishizaki continued.

In other words, you can get either your class into Class A, or our class into Class A. This way, you have a 50% chance of graduating from Class A.

How about that? He put this proposal forward with a proud smile on his face.

That reasoning wouldve been true if all four classes had equal chances of moving up to Class A. However since each class differed in various factors such as abilities and points, it was impossible to calculate the accurate probability of a class ascending to Class A.

Of course, theres no doubt that having another class I could move to whenever I wanted was a big advantage.

Are Hiyori and Albert of the same opinion?

Yes. Wed love to have you.

YES.

Both of them went along with Ishizakis proposal, knowing that it was absurd. Was that what was happening? Nevertheless, before I accepted this absurd proposal, I had to get to the bottom of this. So I asked my final question.

Was it Ryuuen who decided to invite me? Or is this Ishizakis arbitrary decision?

Ishizaki, who had been replying with ease till now, suddenly had a tense expression for the first time.

Its my own decision. Ryuuen knows nothing about it.

So it seemed that Ishizaki had thought and decided on this plan himself.

Although I had speculated this would be the case, this really was reckless.

Now, I could understand why Ibuki who normally hung around Ishizaki wasnt present here.

So Ishizakis supporters are Albert and Hiyori?

Have you thought about what would happen if Ryuuen found out about this?

Never thought about it! No need to dwell on that! Even so Im ready for that.

Although Ishizaki was slightly scared, he tried his best to put on a brave face.

The rules allow us to form groups with students from within the same year, right? So I thought Ayanokouji was absolutely necessary in order to form the best team. Whats wrong about that?

That was true. As long as forming a group within ones own class wasnt their policy, Ryuuen had no right to be dissatisfied with Ishizakis actions.

The key point of this special exam is to prevent the 2nd year students class points from being taken away by the others. Of course, its also necessary to aim for the top spots in the overall ranking. For which, Ayanokouji is indispensable.

Thats right.

Anyway, even though there are still many aspects to this plan that Im concerned about I understand what you mean.

Then, will you join our group?

Although I dont think theres anything wrong in inviting me, I cant say yes to it right now.

Wh-why?

Its because he has his own class to deal with, right?

Even though Hiyori supported Ishizakis plan, she understood why I had refused without even having to ask me.

Besides, I think the terms weve offered him are weak as well.

Weak? You sayin 20 million points aint enough?

Im not saying anything like that. I think its certainly an exceptional amount, that is, in terms of quantity. But in effect, the only thing wed really be giving him is the right to transfer over to our class, yes?

B-but we cant just fork over 20 million and let im transfer over to Sakayanagis.

If I was allowed to freely use the points theyd be giving me, its only natural that Id use them to secure my place in Class A in the end. Class B wouldnt be able to bolster their forces in the meantime by adding me to their class.

Additionally, Ishizaki-kun did say that itd be fine so long as Ayanokouji-kun joins up with somebody from Class B, but theres a problem with that as well. Surviving on the uninhabited island wont be a one-man effort. If youre really aiming for the top spot, youll be better off with a strong team to back you up.

Hiyori, who had mostly just been quietly listening to the discussion unfold before this, brought up the shortcomings one after another.

And, with each correction, Ishizaki began to panic, his brow visibly dampened with sweat.

Th-then anyone would be fine!

If it was up to me to choose the small group Hmm. Ryuuen-kun, Kaneda-kun, and Ayanokouji-kun, those three. Its fine if Kaneda-kun is replaced by Yamada-kun, but Ryuuen-kun is indispensable.

There were only a few people in the 2nd year who had his authority, and were bold enough to create tactics that would break the rules without hesitation. This fact that he was the only one from his class who stayed behind in last years island exam, and went unnoticed till the last minute, was a testament to his ability and value. The other choices would be Kaneda who possessed high academic ability or Albert who prided himself on his iron fist.

Indeed, in order to maximise the odds, having two of those three would be necessary.

Dont be ridiculous! Do you think Ryuuen-kun will ever approve of our plan!?

I dont think he will.

Exactly!

Kaneda-kun is the same, he wont ignore Ryuuen-kuns orders and participate in a strategy hes unsure of.

Then what should we do?

At this stage, I guess it cant be helped.

Well Thats troubling

Ishizaki crossed his arms as he racked his brain, but couldnt come up with anything on the spot.

We were able to convey ours and Ishizakis thoughts to you, so we should be satisfied with that for now.

It seems like that was Hiyoris objective all along.

She knew from the beginning that forming a group with me wouldnt be easy, therefore she judged it would be better to just show me their intent to form one, for now.

Perhaps Albert also understood that this was a reckless attempt, and he patted Ishizakis shoulder gently.

I get it. Well, if thats the case, theres no helping it

Although reluctantly, Ishizaki agreed after listening to both of them.

I dont know if I can do what you want, let me think about it for now.

In this situation, I judged this was the best answer.

That being said, I didnt plan to form a group with anyone at the moment.

This was because of Tsukishiro and the White Room student lurking in the 1st year.

The first semester was almost over.

Theres no way they were going to keep putting it off and let me just spend my campus life like this.

Im afraid the next special exam will be the final showdown between me and Tsukishiro.

In other words, he may attack regardless of anything else.

If I formed a group, others would surely get involved.

If that really happened, I needed to make sure that I was the only one who dropped out to ensure there were minimum casualties.

I left them, while confirming this in my heart once again.