"Senpaku, I am Sakamoto. What brings you here?"

It bears a strange resemblance to the way Sakamoto influenced Class A.

Could it be that……

There is some unknown connection between Ryuen and Sakamoto.

Or perhaps Ryuen received some kind of inspiration from Sakamoto, or even obtained information directly.

This speculation made Hashimoto feel that there seemed to be a clue to explain Class C's absurd score of 910.

If Ryuen really did get the key information from Sakamoto and used it to effectively reorganize Class C, then getting a high score is not entirely impossible.

With this in mind, Hashimoto Masayoshi made a decision.

We can no longer remain at the level of peripheral investigation and speculation.

He needs more direct information.

It's time to formally make contact with Long Yuanxiang, the "leader" of Class C.

First Grade Midterm Exam: Chapter 051: Sakamoto Who Didn't Leave After School

After the class points system was officially introduced, the atmosphere in each first-grade class quietly changed.

The morning's classes ended in this novel atmosphere.

The get out of class bell rang.

The air in the classroom seemed to move instantly.

Katsuragi Kohei hesitated almost without hesitation.

His imposing figure rose from his seat, his gaze fixed directly on the seat by the window.

All morning, Class C's bizarre score of 910 felt like a thorn in my side.

This prevented him from fully immersing himself in the classroom.

He needs answers, or at least a direction.

And the one in Class A most likely to discover the truth is...

It was undoubtedly the person who first revealed the rules—Sakamoto.

To his surprise, Sakamoto didn't act as usual today.

The moment the bell rang, he would leave the classroom with such precision and efficiency, heading to his part-time job at the coffee shop.

He calmly tidied up the stationery and textbooks on the table, his movements elegant and composed.

Time seemed to flow exceptionally slowly around him.

Kamuro Masumi sat not far away, glancing at Sakamoto.

Kamuro Masumi knows the reason.

At that moment, Kamuro Masumi was pretending to pack her schoolbag, but in reality, she was watching everything that had just happened out of the corner of her eye.

She wasn't surprised at all when she saw Katsuragi go to Sakamoto to discuss it.

She had asked Sakamoto in a phone chat a few days ago about why he no longer rushed to the coffee shop.

She mustered her courage and asked a whole bunch of questions at once, including this one.

She discovered that Sakamoto always seemed to answer her questions patiently.

He's not nearly as aloof as he appears.

Sakamoto told her that his contract with the coffee shop only covered the right to work there for the first month of the semester.

Furthermore, he reached a new agreement with the store manager:

After that, he will no longer receive a fixed "salary". Instead, he will receive personal points as a reward based on the increase in sales he brings during his shift.

Kamuro did a quick calculation and, based on the customer traffic brought by Sakamoto, the personal points he accumulated over the past month...

That's probably already a fairly considerable number.

She then seized the opportunity to ask how to specifically handle the matter of Sakayanagi and Ryuen joining forces.

Sakamoto's reply was still very much in his style.

The gist of the message was "wait and see, and act accordingly," without providing any specific action plan.

However, it seems that Sakayanagi has really given up, at least on the surface.

Kamuro himself decided not to pursue the matter any further, since bringing up old issues would only disrupt morale when the class had just achieved a perfect score.

However, the student in Class C who scored 910 points...

It was indeed like a thorn, stuck in the hearts of her and many other students in Class A.

Kamuro withdrew his gaze, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and walked out of the classroom.

She wasn't worried that Sakamoto wouldn't be able to handle these situations; he always managed to solve problems in a way that was both baffling and irrefutable.

Katsuragi Kohei walked up to Sakamoto's table and stopped.

His tone was calm and composed, with due respect:

"Sakamoto, do you have a moment? I have some questions about the rankings on the blackboard, especially the scores of Class C."

He got straight to the point, without any unnecessary pleasantries.

Sakamoto had just closed the cover of his last book.

He looked up, his gaze behind his black-rimmed glasses calmly meeting Katsuragi's questioning eyes:

"Katsuragi-kun, please speak."

"Class C, 910 points."

Katsuragi lowered his voice, making sure the surrounding classmates wouldn't easily hear.

"This is extremely unreasonable. Given Class C's performance at the beginning of the semester, it's absolutely impossible for them to have reached this level on their own. I suspect..."

He paused, his gaze sharp.

"They knew the rules in advance. And the source of those rules was our Class A."

He didn't directly say the word "traitor," but the meaning couldn't be clearer.

Sakamoto listened quietly to Katsuragi's words, his expression unchanged.

A few seconds later, he slowly spoke:

"The operation of rules always leaves traces. There must be an inherent logic behind Class C's high score."

This answer remains ambiguous.

Katsuragi frowned, about to ask further, but Sakamoto continued speaking.

"Katsura-kun,"

Sakamoto's gaze seemed to pierce through his glasses and land on Katsuragi's face.

"Focusing too much on a single internal 'channel' might cause us to overlook the broader competitive landscape. Sometimes, changes in information are just the prelude to a larger upheaval."

Katsuragi was slightly taken aback.

Sakamoto's words...

It was as if they were guiding him not to focus too much on the internal investigation.

"The essence of competition lies in the ebb and flow of power."

Sakamoto seemed to be explaining a basic principle.

"When internal noises arise that are difficult to clarify immediately, turning our attention externally to clarify the true landscape of adversaries and allies may be a more appropriate choice."

True adversaries and allies.

Katsuragi's mind quickly flashed through the rankings on the blackboard: Class A 1000, Class C 910, Class B 820, Class D 0.

Class C came on strong, with scores neck and neck.

Its leader, Long Yuanxiang, is ruthless and ambitious, undoubtedly the biggest threat and opponent.

Although Class B is currently lagging behind, the atmosphere is united, and the leader, Honami Ichinose, has a good reputation and should not be underestimated.

They could be potential allies to be won over, or future competitors to be wary of.

Class D... seems to be no concern at the moment, but it has the greatest potential for change.

Sakamoto was implying that instead of spending a lot of energy now investigating an internal "leaker" who might exist but could not necessarily be found immediately, it would be better to avoid spending too much energy on this.

Instead, we should first address the already clear competition from other classes, thus securing greater strategic space and advantages for Class A.

This shift in thinking brought Katsuragi a sudden sense of enlightenment.

Indeed, internal investigations are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and prone to causing internal friction.

In the early stages of class competition, it is crucial to quickly establish external advantages and either unite with or suppress other classes.

This seems to be a more urgent and advantageous strategy for Class A.

"I understand……"

Katsuragi's voice calmed down.

Sakamoto nodded slightly, which was taken as acquiescence.

"Thank you for your guidance, Sakamoto-kun."

"You are Welcome."

Katsuragi turned and left, his departing figure carrying a newfound resolve.

The internal investigation can be put on hold, but Class A's edge cannot be dulled in the face of external challenges.

The classroom gradually emptied, and the last few students left one by one.

Only Sakamoto by the window remained.

as well as……

Sakayanagi Arisu quietly remained in her seat.

Unlike the others, she didn't leave immediately, but sat there calmly.

His fingers rested lightly on his cane, and his gaze fell on Sakamoto, who was about to get up.

"What a clever way to shift the blame, Sakamoto-san."

Sakayanagi Arisu's clear voice broke the silence of the classroom.

A playful smile played on her lips.

Sakamoto paused slightly before resuming his movements.

He turned around to face Sakayanagi.

They seemed completely unsurprised by her statement, as they had anticipated her attack at this moment.

“I’m not surprised that Katsuragi-kun could guess that there might be a problem internally.”

Sakayanagi Arisu continued speaking, her tone relaxed.

"After all, Class C's scores were indeed strangely high. And there was no evidence pointing to me, which was to be expected."

Her gaze swept across the empty classroom.

"The only two people who know the truth are Kamuro and you... One is a 'whistleblower' who values ​​class honor highly, and the other is the core of maintaining a certain balance in the class. Neither of you will, or rather, are willing to directly accuse me without any evidence, thus causing internal strife in Class A."

She leaned forward slightly and smiled.

"But what I didn't expect was that you would actually... 'protect' me? Or rather, protect this temporary peace. There's an old saying, 'To fight external enemies, one must first pacify internal strife,' but you've jumped straight to 'stop the civil war and unite against external enemies'? What an astonishing choice."

She was slightly surprised that Sakamoto didn't take the opportunity to shift the suspicion to her, but instead guided Katsuragi to focus on external competition.

She should have been grateful to Sakamoto.

But at the same time, an even stronger desire to explore surged up.

This ever-composed and seemingly invincible Sakamoto would actually choose a method that is almost "covering up" potential problems in order to maintain the superficial stability and unity of the class.

Could this be considered a "white lie" told for a greater purpose?