"What kind of joke is this, Chabashira-sensei? How could the points already have been bought? And I've never heard anything about 100,000 points—even Hirata-kun said it was only 50,000 points, didn't he?"
Ichihashi Ruri's voice was loud and agitated as she confronted the teacher.
"Ichihashi, if you can't calm down, this conversation ends here. I trust you understand what I mean?"
Chabashira-sensei's words caused Ruri to settle slightly, though she was still visibly upset.
Seeing that Ruri remained shaken, Kushida couldn't help but step in and ask about the points.
"Chabashira-sensei, Ichihashi-san was just caught off guard—that's all. Please understand. But we truly haven't heard about 100,000 points. Both Hirata and Miyako said it was 50,000. Could there have been some kind of mix-up somewhere?"
Hearing Kushida's question, Chabashira's demeanor grew a bit more serious. After all, she couldn't treat Kushida the same way she had Ichihashi.
"That's something you'll have to reflect on yourselves—whether there was a miscommunication somewhere. Buying a single point has always cost 100,000 private points, and each class is only permitted to purchase one."
Kushida nodded slightly, taking in the teacher's words, but she couldn't accept such an irresponsible explanation. If this rule existed, why not inform everyone clearly from the start?
Now Ruri had brought the 50,000 points she worked so hard to win, hoping to buy a point to save herself from expulsion—only to be told she needed 100,000. It felt like some kind of cruel prank.
And what Chabashira said about the point already having been bought… that really got under Kushida's skin.
She refused to believe that Hirata and the others knew absolutely nothing about this.
"Kikyo-chan, what do we do now? There are only three minutes left…"
Tears were already streaming down Ichihashi's face. After fighting so hard for a chance to stay, to have it slip away so easily—who could possibly accept such a harsh outcome?
"Don't panic just yet. Chabashira-sensei, could you at least tell us who bought the point?"
Kushida's first suspicion fell on Amane. In Class D, she was the only one who could produce 100,000 points in one go.
If it really was Amane, then it was basically game over. Amane, who had always supported Sakura, would likely use that precious point on her.
So Kushida prayed silently—Please, don't let it be Amane.
As long as it wasn't her, there was still a chance to negotiate and buy the point from whoever had it.
"The point was purchased by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka."
"What? Ayanokoji-kun? How could it be him?"
Both Kushida and Ichihashi stood frozen in place, stunned.
On their way here, they had even run into Ayanokoji. In their rush to buy the point, they'd still taken the time to greet their classmate.
But who would've guessed that Ayanokoji was the one who had bought the last point?
But if that was the case… if Ayanokoji had bought the final point…
The questions swirling in Kushida's mind only multiplied.
First and most importantly—where did Ayanokoji get that many points? 100,000 was no small amount. How could Ayanokoji personally hold such a huge sum?
If the points were connected to Amane, then why would she go to such lengths to hide it? And why would she lose 50,000 points to Ichihashi in the competition?
All these doubts seemed to whisper to Kushida that something wasn't right—and maybe it was better not to dig any deeper.
Her face darkened.
For the first time, she felt completely powerless.
Beside her, Ichihashi had sunk to the floor, sobbing loudly, yet Kushida could do nothing.
There wasn't enough time to help her gather 100,000 points—and besides, their chance to buy a point was already gone.
Refusing to give up, Kushida called Hirata, hoping to confront him about the points issue.
But she was told that behind the scenes, Ayanokoji had quietly provided 50,000 points, and the remaining 50,000 had come from the fundraising.
That shut down any further argument.
All the evidence pointed to Ayanokoji.
Yet they had no way of understanding why he had done it.
Time slipped away, minute by minute.
Finally, the clock passed 5:30 PM. Ichihashi's phone rang—the dorm supervisor was urging her to pack her things and leave the school.
"So in the end… I still lost."
Ichihashi wiped her tears roughly, frustration written all over her face.
"Ichihashi-san…"
Kushida watched her with a complicated expression.
"There's nothing else to do. This is as far as I go. I'll transfer my remaining points to you, Kikyo-chan—please use them well. And… one more thing."
"I don't think Amane was directly involved, but somehow… I feel like everything was still under her control. And it seemed like she was targeting you, not me."
"I was just collateral damage. But… that's just my guess. I don't have any proof."
Having said her piece, Ichihashi transferred all her points to Kushida, then returned to her dorm alone to pack.
Kushida stared blankly at her updated balance, lost in thought.
--+--
That evening.
Horikita's room.
The table was filled with delicious dishes, yet both Horikita and Amane sat motionless.
While Horikita's face was calm, Amane's expression was cautious—she kept stealing nervous glances at her.
"Suzune, I'm hungry."
Amane tested the waters with a coaxing tone.
"Then, Amane, would you like to explain how another girl's hair ended up on your shoulder?"
Horikita smiled kindly.
"Ehehe… I really don't know how it got there either—"
Thud.
The cup Horikita had just been drinking from was set down heavily.
"Go on."
Gulp gulp.
Beads of sweat began forming rapidly on Amane's forehead.
She'd only hugged Airi…
How could she have known Airi's hair would cling to her?
And of course, Horikita had noticed.
Then, she just "happened" to hear from Ayanokoji that Amane had been giving special attention to that girl, Sakura Airi.
All of it combined stirred a sense of unease in Horikita. She felt unsettled, but didn't know how to express her displeasure to Amane.
So things had ended up like this.
Seeing Horikita's rising emotions, Amane quietly slid closer to her.
"My dear Suzune~ How about we eat first?"
"Who's your 'dear Suzune'? Don't use such cheesy words. Hmph, I bet you say things like that to other girls, too."
Horikita pushed Amane away, a look of disgust on her face.
"Horikita Suzune!!"
Amane suddenly stared straight at her, expression serious.
Horikita was taken aback. Since when did Amane get so bold, speaking to her so loudly?
The next moment—
Amane lunged forward, tackling Horikita to the floor.
"Amane, what are you doing?! Get off me!"
Horikita flailed, trying to push her away, but Amane held tightly around her waist.
"I don't care! I'm not getting up until Suzune forgives me!"
Hearing Amane's unrepentant tone, Horikita was momentarily speechless.
Since when did people who were supposed to be apologizing act this bold?
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.