Under Horikita Suzune's pressing questions, everyone gradually came to their senses, or rather, tacitly abandoned Yamauchi Haruki.
"That does seem to be the case. Yamauchi was too harsh on Kikyo and Karuizawa."
"Exactly. Believing Karuizawa and the others betrayed everyone based on some rumors is completely unreasonable."
"And he made Kikyo sad. Yamauchi is just awful!"
Hearing these voices, Yamauchi Haruki's expression shifted repeatedly. He grew increasingly agitated and panicked.
When he looked toward Ike Kanji and Sudo Ken, he found that his two good friends showed no intention of helping him.
An inexplicable anger rose within him.
Even though Horikita Suzune had called out both of them too, instead of refuting her together with him, they had surrendered without a fight.
What was that supposed to mean?
At this critical moment, he might actually get expelled.
Yamauchi Haruki didn't want to be expelled.
He still wanted to enjoy himself here a while longer, and someone had promised him corresponding rewards that would keep him comfortable for a long time.
"I-I refuse to accept this! You say I'm making baseless accusations, but you can't produce any evidence either!"
Yamauchi Haruki shouted loudly, "You can't possibly expect someone to obediently drop out just based on your few comments, right? How do you know I haven't been working hard? You have no right to decide who gets expelled!"
Horikita Suzune remained very calm. After Yamauchi Haruki finished shouting, she said calmly.
"I don't have that authority, but at this point, are you still going to keep hiding it?"
Her expression, as if she had seen through everything, made Yamauchi Haruki's heart skip a beat.
The panic on his face became even more obvious, and his earlier momentum diminished by more than half.
"W-what do you mean?"
Yamauchi Haruki asked with a trace of fear, inevitably thinking of a certain figure.
Noticing this, Horikita Suzune's mind stirred slightly, and she revealed a light smile.
"Although you thought you were being discreet, occasionally someone might pass by and accidentally overhear something."
Hearing these words suddenly in front of everyone, Yamauchi Haruki looked horrified, panicking so much that he retreated several steps and nearly bumped into Ike Kanji.
"Hey, Haruki, what's wrong with you?"
Ike Kanji felt something was off - this was the first time he'd seen Yamauchi Haruki with such an expression.
Hearing his voice, Yamauchi Haruki seemed startled.
"I... I don't know what you're talking about! I haven't done anything! You're talking nonsense! Don't go spreading things without evidence!"
Horikita Suzune originally hadn't been very confident and had only wanted to bluff him, but she didn't expect him to become so incoherent.
Now anyone could see there was a problem.
"As for evidence, isn't it in your hands?"
Horikita Suzune smiled slightly. "Since you could make Karuizawa prove her innocence and have Kushida hand over her phone, correspondingly, I can have you show your chat records, right?"
"Guh... W-we just happened to run into each other! What's strange about exchanging contact information?" Yamauchi Haruki was still trying to distance himself, unaware that Horikita Suzune was skillfully extracting information from him.
Meanwhile, those around them grew puzzled, unable to decipher the cryptic conversation between the two.
"Exchanging contact information?"
Horikita Suzune's smile vanished instantly. "Accusing others of colluding with Class A and betraying the class—and in your words, it becomes merely 'exchanging contact information'?"
Sudo Ken and the others were startled. Had Yamauchi Haruki betrayed the class?
"Wait, Haruki, who did you collude with? How could you betray the class? What's going on?"
Faced with the stares from Ike Kanji and the rest, Yamauchi Haruki grew even more flustered.
While insisting he hadn't betrayed the class, he clutched his head in agony, clearly never expecting Horikita to uncover his secret.
Under everyone's gaze, he felt his mental defenses crumbling.
Each pair of eyes felt like knives stinging his face.
Desperately trying to shield his burning cheeks, his shoulders trembled.
At every accusatory remark, he shook his head vehemently, as if this could ward off the surrounding scrutiny and hostility.
Yet, despite his state, Horikita Suzune showed no intention of letting him off.
"Attacking both Karuizawa and Kushida simultaneously—I believe this was also under their instructions. Given your usual temperament, I doubt you'd have the courage to do such a thing on your own."
"No, that's not true! I didn't!"
"How long will you keep denying it? Once the exam results are out, whatever he gave you will come to light, won't it?"
"Guh..."
Yamauchi Haruki was shaken to his core.
Ike Kanji, trying to make sense of the situation, kept shaking Yamauchi and demanding an explanation.
Horikita shifted her gaze away from him and addressed the others. "I think we can proceed with a vote now. To avoid further chaos, cutting our losses promptly is the best course of action. I'll be writing down Yamauchi-kun's name. If anyone has doubts, you might want to ask him directly."
In an instant, everyone's eyes turned to Yamauchi Haruki.
Whether it was Horikita's relentless pressure or Ike Kanji shaking what remained of his sanity to the breaking point, Yamauchi Haruki suddenly screamed.
"Impossible! How could you possibly know about my dealings with Ryuen? We were in a private karaoke room, just the two of us!"
As his words hung in the air, Ike Kanji and the others stared at Yamauchi in stunned silence, while he remained oblivious to his slip-up.
"Haruki, you really betrayed us?"
Sudo Ken said in disbelief, "Didn't you claim you saw Karuizawa and the others discussing the exam with Mitoma?"
Of course, Yamauchi Haruki had never witnessed any such thing—it was all a lie to placate them. But now, there was no turning back.
"Horikita, even if you all cast your Criticism Votes against me, I won't be expelled!"
Yamauchi Haruki tore off all pretenses. "I have 40 Praise Votes from Class C! I won't be expelled at all. You'd be better off listening to me and casting your Criticism Votes against Karuizawa!"
Indeed, the terms Ryuen Kakeru had offered him were highly favorable.
First, he promised that Class C would cast all their Praise Votes for Yamauchi.
Then, if Yamauchi managed to expel either Karuizawa Kei or Kushida Kikyo, he would receive an additional 1 million personal points.
Beyond this, Ryuen Kakeru somehow learned that Yamauchi Haruki held special feelings for Sakura Airi and expressed his intention to help him take down Kaoru in the future, assisting him in winning a lovely girlfriend.
Although Yamauchi Haruki felt terrified of Ryuen Kakeru, with Class C's Praise Vote and the chance to retaliate against Kaoru, he only hesitated briefly before immediately agreeing to Ryuen's conditions.
Worried that someone might discover his conversation with Ryuen, the transaction took place in a karaoke booth, and Yamauchi was certain no one had followed him.
There was no way Horikita Suzune could know—she was lying!
As if venting his inner frustration, Yamauchi's voice momentarily stunned the entire class.
Everyone widened their eyes, seemingly frightened by his outburst.
Noticing this, Yamauchi revealed a smug and crazed expression.
He knew there was no turning back, but so what?
What could these people possibly do to him?
Among the crowd, Kushida Kikyo could barely conceal her shock.
She stared intently at Horikita Suzune—this girl alone had managed to resolve the predicament facing both her and Kei Karuizawa.
Could it be that Kaoru wasn't just bluffing?
Was it possible Horikita Suzune would continue to grow?