And she, without a doubt, was the one standing at the true pinnacle, watching with pleasure as Subaru jumped up and down on the chessboard she had set up, just like watching crickets fight.
As for the 770,000 personal points at stake, they didn't matter at all.
If Subaru wanted them, she would just give them to him; it made no difference.
From beginning to end, the only thing Arisu Sakayanagi wanted was for Subaru to play chess with her, to alleviate her somewhat boring daily life. That was all.
As for personal points, as long as Sakayanagi wanted them, she could get them at any time.
The 770,000 was merely something she had earned in passing. If she really wanted to, Sakayanagi believed she could obtain an amount of personal points similar to, or even greater than, what Subaru had at any moment.
"You're letting the 770,000 personal points go just like that?"
"Then why did you make me work so hard stalking him everywhere, running here and there?!"
Hearing Sakayanagi's words, a look of disbelief appeared on Masumi Kamuro's face.
Kamuro herself didn't care much about who the 770,000 personal points on Sakayanagi belonged to.
After all, they weren't hers. Whether Sakayanagi won the bet or lost the bet had nothing to do with her.
However, for a bet where the outcome didn't matter at all, to make her run around for half a month... that was a bit excessive.
"I'm not idle enough for that kind of thing!"
Saying this, Kamuro crossed her arms and turned her face away.
"Oh my, Little Masumi is angry~~"
Sakayanagi tilted her head slightly, looking with interest at the somewhat sulking Kamuro, and said with a smile, "But~~~ although the result isn't important, it doesn't count as something 'meaningless'."
"Tracking Yamauchi-kun, understanding his logic of action and interpersonal dealings."
"Observing how Natsuki-kun faces the attacks initiated by me, collecting Class D's reactions... Every piece of intelligence Little Masumi collected for me possesses its own unique value."
As she spoke, Sakayanagi's gaze drifted out the window.
"Every move on the chessboard, even if it seems irrelevant, may become a key winning move in the near future."
"Are you saying this intel will be useful later?"
Kamuro looked at Sakayanagi with some suspicion.
Having spent over a month with Sakayanagi, Kamuro was very clear about her bad taste. Apart from looking decent on the outside, this person was black through and through on the inside.
"Maybe it will be useful, maybe it won't."
"But possessing intelligence itself is a special kind of pleasure, isn't it?"
"Little Masumi's work has never been meaningless."
"It is precisely because I have such a reliable 'Knight' running on the chessboard that I can sit here peacefully and see the whole situation clearly."
Sakayanagi also knew very well what kind of personality Kamuro had.
Simply put, she was like a donkey that needed to be stroked with the grain; smooth her fur a little, and one could very successfully bring Kamuro under one's control.
In Sakayanagi's view, she was a very useful tool who could complement her well.
However...
"As compensation for making Little Masumi angry~ shall we go drink a cup of tea together later?"
"I remember there is a nice shop over there. Little Masumi should like their black tea~"
Sakayanagi issued an invitation to Kamuro.
Even tools needed to be maintained properly so they could be of use at critical moments.
"...Whatever... I don't really care anyway."
Kamuro remained silent for a while, but finally sighed slightly, considering it a compromise.
Although it was said that Sakayanagi held leverage over her, in reality, Kamuro felt that this was just an excuse she used to convince herself. Even without it, she estimated she would still end up hanging out with Sakayanagi.
"Then, it's happily decided."
Sakayanagi clapped her hands cheerfully and said, "After all, a good chess player also needs to reward her companions at the right time."
Sakayanagi herself was completely unaware that the moment Kamuro agreed, her smile carried a few more degrees of genuine feeling.
There was about a week left until the midterm exams at the end of May.
However, the originally highly oppressive atmosphere in the class vanished directly, becoming somewhat relaxed once again.
The day after having afternoon tea with Kamuro, Sakayanagi informed her spy in Year 1, Class D of the intelligence that 'past exam questions do not change' under the guise of a good friend.
The spy naturally didn't hide it and shared this intelligence directly.
The final results of the midterm exam would increase class points based on the average score of each class. Of course, the higher the score everyone in the class achieved, the better.
If they could get the maximum one hundred points, that would be a full one hundred class points.
Being able to possess ten thousand personal points every month—with this, although still somewhat tight, it wouldn't be so uncomfortable. Originally, before coming to this school, most people's monthly pocket money was only about ten or twenty thousand yen.
On the other hand, those in the class who were originally somewhat nervous because of the midterm exam also all breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Taking the test themselves might not guarantee absolute certainty; everyone has times when they make mistakes.
But if the scope of the exam could be determined in advance, or even be specific down to every single question, then it would be different.
"Hahahaha, what the hell!"
"So the exam questions every year simply don't change at all!"
Haruki Yamauchi laughed loudly and wantonly in the classroom, with a faint hint of complaint in his voice, saying, "It made me study so hard during this period. If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have needed to work that hard at all!"
"Exactly."
"I feel like I've read more books in these past few days than I have in the past half-year..."
Kanji Ike also followed up with complaints after hearing Yamauchi's words.
Facing Yosuke Hirata's dominance, whether it was Ike or Yamauchi, they both felt somewhat guilty at heart.
Especially after seeing Ken Sudo forcibly controlled that day, this was even more so.
Now, having the questions for the midterm exam, naturally, there was no need to study painstakingly every day.
"Hey, Hirata!"
"With this thing, we don't need to attend that study group of yours every day anymore, right?!"
Sudo shook the photocopy of the past exam papers in his hand and shouted loudly to Hirata in the front row of the classroom, "I've asked for too much leave from the club for the sake of studying during this period!"
Compared to Yamauchi and Ike, who had accumulated a lot of dissatisfaction toward Hirata in their hearts, Sudo actually didn't have much of an issue with Hirata. After being forcibly subdued by Hirata last time, he had been studying honestly.
He could be considered the best performer among the trio.
With Sudo's voice falling, the originally somewhat noisy classroom also suddenly became a bit quiet. Most people looked toward Hirata's position in unison.
During this period, it wasn't just the trio who complained repeatedly about the study group. Many others were also somewhat battered and exhausted by the high-pressure study process, having almost no spare time.
Kikyo Kushida was the most extreme among them.
Kushida, who had the best popularity and very good academic ability, was almost the main force second only to Hirata.
Sometimes, Kushida envied Subaru and Suzune Horikita more than once.
Because Subaru could directly refuse without considering anyone's perception, and Horikita also didn't need to consider her classmates' moods, calling them idiots at the drop of a hat.
So in the end, no one wanted to be tutored by Horikita.
In general, it wasn't just the students with poor grades; even students with good academic ability like Kushida wanted to take a break at this time.
"Everyone, I know everyone has been working very hard."
"However, we still cannot relax our vigilance just like this."
Hirata stood up and quickly comforted the classmates around him.
"Today, everyone can relax a little. We won't hold the study group."
"Sudo, regarding your club activities, you go ahead and participate first. But next, I will organize targeted study groups appropriately based on everyone's grades."
Hirata did not blindly subject the class to high pressure.
Past experiences made Hirata very clear that complete high pressure would only make a collective collapse faster. It was necessary to relax appropriately. Even without the matter of the exam papers, Hirata had been thinking about relaxation.
Now, since the issue of the unchanging past exam papers had made everyone look forward to a more relaxed arrangement, then resting for a day would give the people of Year 1, Class D a break.
"Targeted study group?"
Haruki Yamauchi had a bad premonition in his heart.
Perhaps because Subaru had explicitly said that day he wanted to expel Yamauchi, the one Hirata pressured the most was Yamauchi. So as soon as Yamauchi heard 'targeted study group', he automatically applied it to himself.
He felt that the target was him.
"That's right."
"Even if the exam papers were the same every year before, no one can guarantee that they will be the same this year."
Hirata nodded upon hearing Yamauchi's voice and said, "If it were some insignificant matter, then having a little bit of a fluke mentality would be fine."
"But this time, once you gamble on luck and lose, the outcome is expulsion."
"I do not wish for any classmate to fail the midterm exam and be expelled because they didn't study properly."
"Everyone has been very hard at work during this period, so the targeted study group will be held by me alone. Based on my understanding of everyone's grades, I will invite three to five classmates daily to participate and study."
As he spoke, Hirata's gaze fell upon Yamauchi.
Yamauchi's feeling was correct.
Hirata's targeted study group was targeting Yamauchi, whom Subaru had explicitly stated he wanted to expel.
"..."
Yamauchi opened his mouth wanting to say something, but really couldn't get anything out.
Hirata stood completely on the moral high ground, and Yamauchi couldn't compare in terms of physical force either; he had absolutely nothing to say.
"Finally, we can relax a bit."
"You and Horikita really have it easy, Natsuki."
Kiyotaka Ayanokoji mimicked the behavior of the ordinary students around him and grumbled.
The most relaxed people during this period were Subaru and Horikita. Even Ayanokoji wasn't this relaxed.
Because he truly understood what 'ordinary' was, Ayanokoji had performed very ordinarily during this period, actively participating in the study group and actively sharing some pressure within his capabilities.
"Easy?"
Horikita turned a page of the book in her hand and said without lifting her head, "I also have a lot of my own things to do every day. Not participating in the study group does not equate to me being very relaxed."
"Furthermore, some guys in the study group would only make the time I invest meaningless."
"However, speaking of which..."
"If the past exam papers haven't changed, the idea of wanting to expel Haruki Yamauchi is probably going to be at a dead end..."
Saying this, Horikita's gaze fixed upon Subaru.
"Although I don't know specifically how many personal points are needed to expel a student, now that there is the matter of the past exam papers never changing... it is inevitable that Haruki Yamauchi will score high marks."
"In this way, the price to expel Yamauchi should not be something you can afford right now, Natsuki."
Perhaps because Ayanokoji was overly successful at being ordinary.
Horikita's attention was almost not on Ayanokoji at all, but always on Subaru. Horikita was very curious if Subaru had anticipated this current situation.
And, having reached this stage, did he still harbor the thought of expelling Yamauchi?
"If your hypothesis really happens, Horikita-san..."
"The personal points on me probably won't be enough."
Subaru did not deny it.
The points Subaru could mobilize were only about six million, and that was counting Airi Sakura's five hundred thousand.
If Yamauchi really managed to score twenty points in all six subjects—enough to pass even if deducted—then Subaru would only be able to use some other methods.
However, judging by Yamauchi's current performance...
There was a high probability that Yamauchi would completely slack off because of the exam papers matter.
Looking at Horikita, Subaru smiled and said, "But, I don't think Yamauchi-kun can score high marks."
"In other words..."
"Natsuki, you can't do anything right now and can only look forward to Haruki Yamauchi performing abnormally, is that right?"
"To be able to achieve one's goal only by 'expecting' the opponent to make a mistake..."
Horikita frowned slightly, looking straight at Subaru with sharp eyes.
"Eh?"
"Horikita-san seems to harbor a special kind of expectation for me."
As Horikita's voice fell, Subaru smiled gently.
Today's Horikita was a bit different compared to any time before; her aggressiveness was a little stronger.
'Did something special happen?'
Subaru thought aimlessly. Horikita's desire to probe was almost overflowing.
___
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