I have a life simulator.

"..."

At the same time, Miki Yamamura silently appeared behind Kikyo Kushida.

"Please calm down first. After all, we have no intention of revealing your secret to anyone. In my opinion, this is a very normal thing to do, and there is no need to be upset about it."

As the class leader of Class C, Katsuragi Kohei's eloquence was not a problem. Seeing that the situation was deadlocked, he immediately began to persuade in a gentle tone.

"Even whether you betrayed the class or not, that can be let bygones be bygones."

Following the script that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had taught him beforehand, Katsuragi Kohei continued speaking.

“Both Ayanokouji and I believe that you, Kushida, were just temporarily coerced. As long as you can reveal the real spy you know who is hiding in the class, everything in the past can be put on hold. If a situation like today happens again in the future, Ayanokouji and I can vouch for you.”

Provoked by Katsuragi Kohei's sincere words, Kushida Kikyo hesitated. After all, if she agreed, not only could he pretend he hadn't seen what happened tonight, but his past espionage activities could also be put on hold.

but--

“The other party also knows my secret. If I expose him, he will expose me. That’s the kind of relationship we have.”

Kikyo Kushida rejected Kiyotaka Ayanokouji's proposal.

The reason she and Hirata Yosuke have remained platonic for so long is that they both know each other's biggest secrets. As for Katsuragi Kohei's promise to let the espionage activities be put on hold, it's no exaggeration to say that compared to having her two-faced personality exposed and her perfect image collapsing, Kushida Kikyo has never worried about Katsuragi Kohei and the others finding out about her spy identity.

Even if you found out, would you really dare to expose it to the public?

The tragedy during the special exam on the deserted island was still fresh in her mind. It was through that small test that Kikyo Kushida realized the power of her strategy, which was also the biggest source of her confidence that she was not afraid of her spy identity being exposed.

"As long as that person doesn't find out, it'll be fine."

“Once you make a move, the other party will definitely know that I leaked the information, because I am the only one in the class who knows my identity. Unless you can expel the other party directly without giving them any chance to speak, but that is impossible.”

He finished another round of questions and answers at lightning speed.

Seeing that Katsuragi Kohei and his group were indeed hesitant to do anything to her, Kushida Kikyo's tense mood relaxed a bit, and she took the initiative to move her arm away from Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's neck.

But just as Kikyo Kushida calmed down a little, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, who had just been 'powerlessly' pinned against the tree, suddenly sprang up and slashed directly at her neck with his palm as if it were a knife.

He was trying to recreate the scene from when Amazusa Ichika was there, to see if this posture of threatening to beat her up would really make Kushida Kikyo submit.

As it turns out, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, as the masterpiece of the White Room, didn't even need to imitate it. He only needed to recall the scene of taking down a dozen strong security guards in his childhood, and his eyes and temperament underwent a complete transformation, perfectly simulating the strange madness and even murderous intent that Ichika Amasawa displayed at that time.

Kikyo Kushida's pupils shrank instantly in terror.

Following Tianze Yixia, she once again felt the fear of being forcefully etched into her bones by the other party.

"It's... Hirata Yosuke."

"Thank you."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji withdrew his hand, his tone calm, as if nothing had happened.

Chapter 431: The Final Bet (4k5)

Yosuke Hirata.

When the name was uttered by Kikyo Kushida, apart from Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, who still maintained a poker face, both the usually composed class leader Kohei Katsuragi and the usually inconspicuous Miki Yamamura could hardly suppress the shock on their faces. Clearly, none of them had expected that the real spy hidden in Class C, exposed by Kikyo Kushida, would be Yosuke Hirata.

To put it bluntly, in the entire Class C, if Katsuragi Kohei, the class leader, is the top leader in name, then Kushida Kikyo and Hirata Yosuke are undoubtedly the second-in-command. In fact, in terms of their reputation among the boys and girls respectively, even Katsuragi Kohei might not be able to match them. Without their help and cooperation, Katsuragi Kohei alone would not be able to manage the entire Class C.

It was precisely because of this that the news of Kikyo Kushida's betrayal had already made Kohei Katsuragi feel a sense of despair towards the class. But he didn't expect that the worst was yet to come. Thinking back to a certain period in the past when he, as the class leader, discussed the class's next decisions with the class teacher, Sae Chahashi, Kikyo Kushida, Yosuke Hirata, and others, he felt that he should immediately run to the Detective Conan set next door, call Gin down, and go up and act in it himself.

Besides, doesn't Gin have a loyal vodka who can only drive?

Oh, so Totsuka Yahiko has already been expelled from school.

Kohei Katsuragi couldn't help but recall the crushing defeat they suffered on the deserted island last year when they were still in Class A. He vaguely remembered that the members of the group that Class A had put together with the goal of winning first place were him, Yosuke Hirata, Kikyo Kushida, and Masumi Kamuro.

Even the cleanest one among them, Kamuro Masumi, seems to have an ambiguous relationship with Kitagawa Ryo. During the ambush targeting Kitagawa Ryo this morning, some other students in Class C noticed that Kamuro Masumi had briefly disappeared for a while, presumably to inform Kitagawa Ryo.

Katsuragi Kohei sighed, feeling very tired.

How can I manage a class well when I'm surrounded by these traitors and spies?

After a brief moment of confusion and disorientation, Katsuragi Kohei began to think about how to handle the aftermath of the incident.

Frankly speaking, even with Hirata Yosuke's spy identity exposed, they still couldn't easily alert him, because he was essentially a male version of Kushida Kikyo. If things weren't handled properly, it could trigger an explosion in the entire class, just like the lesson learned on the deserted island.

Moreover, Katsuragi Kohei was reluctant to make a decision based solely on Kushida Kikyo's account. After all, Hirata Yosuke's character and abilities were evident to everyone in the class, and without direct evidence of his betrayal or concrete information, such unfounded accusations would not be convincing.

When it comes to accusing someone of being a traitor, the weight of the person's words is equally important. When Totsuka Yahiko accused Chabashira Sae, nobody cared. But if the person who stood up was Katsuragi Kohei, the situation would be different. At least he wouldn't be seen by the whole class as someone making a desperate, reckless accusation.

Of all the people in Class C, the one who most easily gained Hirata Yosuke's trust was actually Kushida Kikyo, who was standing in front of him. However, she was unlikely to do such a thing openly. This dilemma of knowing about a spy but being unable to expose it frustrated Katsuragi Kohei greatly, so he could only turn his attention to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka in front of him.

Do you know the specific reasons why he betrayed the class?

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was still pressing for answers.

"I don't know, but I feel that he and Kitagawa probably knew each other before he enrolled in Tokyo Advanced Educational High School last year, just like me."

Temporarily subdued by Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's absolute violence, and with her psychological trauma expected to be even greater than before, Kushida Kikyo obediently revealed everything she knew:

"I saw him meeting Kitagawa late one night during the special exam on the deserted island last year, but I was caught by Amaze, who was keeping watch for them, and that's why I was forced to become a spy for a short period of time."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji actually quite agreed with this speculation about Kikyo Kushida. After all, he had already deduced last year on the deserted island that this spy might have had a relationship with Ryo Kitagawa before entering school. However, at that time, he was distracted by Kikyo Kushida, who had also had contact with Ryo Kitagawa during junior high school, and was unable to investigate further.

"How to do?"

Seeing that Ayanokouji Kiyotaka had almost finished asking his questions, Katsuragi Kohei, whose mind was in turmoil, stepped forward and asked him in a low voice.

"Wait first."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka simply uttered those two words, then released his hold on Kushida Kikyo:

Nothing happened tonight.

“…I’m going back.”

Upon hearing this, Kikyo Kushida glanced back at Kiyotaka Ayanokouji with a complicated expression, as if it were the first time tonight that he had exposed the true nature beneath his mask. This was also the first time she had truly realized that Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, who had remained inconspicuous in the class for the past year and seemed to be just like Yahiko Totsuka, a follower of Katsuragi, actually had such a true face.

After Kikyo Kushida left first, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji nodded to Miki Yamamura again, who then quietly walked back to her dormitory room under the cover of night, having already completed all her tasks for the night.

Seeing that only he and Ayanokouji Kiyotaka remained, Katsuragi Kohei, unusually unable to contain himself, anxiously asked several more questions:

"Ayanokouji, what are your thoughts on this? Should we confront Hirata in front of the whole class? Or should we ask him privately?"

"I plan to observe him for a while first."

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji simply shook his head slightly at this.

"If you want to accuse us, we have no evidence."

Then, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka added an explanation:

“Katsura, you should have noticed that we currently have three confirmed spies in our class. Kushida and Chahashi betrayed us later. This is actually a double barrier that Kitagawa set up to protect Hirata. If I didn’t expect it, since the end of the special exam on the deserted island last year, Hirata has not had a single private secret contact or any spying operation with Kitagawa. This is because Kitagawa doesn’t need to activate his deepest-buried spy to easily obtain information about our Class C through other channels.”

As Ayanokoji Kiyotaka led Katsuragi Yasuhira away, he continued to whisper some of his thoughts:

"If possible, we still need to devise unplanned raids similar to this morning's. This time, Kamuro was lured out, but she was probably just acting on impulse for the first time. Next time, we can try setting a trap for Hirata, conveying to him the message that he is indispensable, and luring him out."

"Of course, if we can't find a good opportunity, then we'll continue with the current situation where I'm in the dark and he's in the light... As long as Hirata doesn't do anything like espionage, he'll always be a student in Class C."

Kohei Katsuragi nodded, understanding Kiyotaka Ayanokouji's meaning as well. Firstly, Class C really couldn't withstand any major upheaval. Secondly, as the saying goes, "A person who has been hypocritical all their life is truly virtuous," if Yosuke Hirata didn't do anything to harm the class's interests afterward, Class C really didn't need to take him too seriously. After all, he was one of the pillars of Class C with the highest OAA overall rating, and they would definitely continue to use him if they could.

If you were a nobody in the class who nobody cared about, the next day Kikyo Kushida would have taken the initiative to make trouble and dump you on the spot.

After briefly explaining the temporary solution for Hirata Yosuke, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka helped Katsuragi Kohei climb over the wall of the girls' dormitory again, but he had no intention of leaving with him.

"I still have some things to take care of here, you should go back first."

After saying that, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka ignored Katsuragi Kohei outside the wall. Although Katsuragi Kohei was quite curious about what he was going to do there, given his physique and agility, he really couldn't climb back over the wall by himself without Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's help. He could only turn around with a wry smile and prepare to go back to the boys' dormitory. He secretly prayed that the first school announcement he would see when he woke up the next morning would be a public reprimand and punishment for Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's trespassing into the girls' dormitory.

After bidding farewell to Katsuragi Yasuhira, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka didn't venture too far into the forest. He casually turned a couple of corners into the dense woods before stopping and casting his gaze toward a corner behind him. However, he didn't utter any classic lines like "Come out, I've seen you," because the person behind him had already revealed himself.

"You were following me after all."

"Same here, right? A few nights ago when I went out, Ayanokouji, weren't you hanging on behind me the whole time?"

Kitagawa Ryo, who emerged from behind the woods, simply smiled and shrugged. He could only say that the advantage of the lower bunk was that it made it very convenient to observe the actions of the upper bunk. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka had just left when Kitagawa Ryo followed right behind.

"I thought you would stop me from doing what I'm doing tonight."

"That's not necessary."

Kitagawa Ryo took two steps forward and stood side by side with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka under the same tree, raising the corners of his mouth at him:

"Just like you just said to Katsuragi, Hirata hasn't done any espionage since the special exam on the deserted island last year, and he won't do it again in the next two years. It's no big deal if you discover such a so-called 'spy'."

"It seems you two have a good relationship."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji turned his head away. Kitagawa Ryo's words just now made it quite clear that he wanted Hirata Yosuke to be able to spend his three years at this school peacefully.

"I just don't want you to keep an eye on him and make him drop out of school because of this."

"If you could add this sentence, we could remove the word 'it seems' from the previous sentence."

After saying this, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka remained silent for a while:

"When did we meet?"

"It was probably during junior high school when I saved his best friend."

"Just because of this one thing?"

"Well, what sounds like just a sentence to you now might be a crossroads in Hirata's destiny."

"Ok."

Whether he truly understood the sentence or simply thought Kitagawa Ryo was being deliberately mysterious, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka nodded slightly.

"First grade is coming to an end."

"Yes."

"Looking back now, it seems that the outcome of our competition in the first year was already determined when we chose each other before entering school. From the homeroom teacher to the students in the class, you planted quite a few landmines for me."

"Perhaps, but it's just a temporary victory or defeat. Aren't there still second and third year students?"

Upon hearing Kitagawa Ryo bring up the second year, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka couldn't help but recall last year's cultural festival. Unlike the selection process before enrollment, he was undoubtedly more confident in this selection. After all, before enrollment, he had only looked at the interview judges' information and ability assessments. During the cultural festival, he had conducted a genuine on-site investigation. If nothing unexpected happened, the final list he submitted should all become the top students in the first year.

"Actually, there was no need for us to compete for this special exam from the beginning, since the rules designed by the school were intended to give points to all classes together."

Kitagawa Ryo suddenly blurted out this sentence.

Although this special mixed training camp exam has a penalty mechanism, aside from the almost impossible expulsion, all students can basically obtain a certain number of protection cards from the daily card draw to reduce these penalties. Students who receive rewards can also obtain a considerable number of boost cards to increase the reward multiplier. As a result, the individual points obtained by each student may be different, but for the class, the final class points will definitely be positive.

To have managed to turn this special exam, where everyone scores points and the course content is all related to morality and character, into what it is now, it has to be said that Kiyotaka Ayanokoji is indeed a genius at stirring up trouble.

"With the right timing, location, and people, we'll always want to give it a try. At least now we're on a more level starting line for the final exams."

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji remained noncommittal. The main differences between him and Ryo Kitagawa in their daily classes over the past few days were in the breakfast preparation and presentation sessions. Although the carefully planned challenge this morning did not completely defeat Ryo Kitagawa, the gap between the first and second-to-last students in the school quickly narrowed their original score difference, resulting in the current situation where one of them is first in the school and the other is second.

Moreover, he successfully gained control of the class through this special exam and identified three hidden 'spies': Hashimoto Masayoshi, Kamuro Masumi, and Hirata Yosuke. The class points will also increase significantly due to his superior personal ranking, so it can be considered a sure win.

However, what was perhaps more important to Kiyotaka Ayanokoji was the story about his name that he had heard from Ryo Kitagawa.

"Alright, let's compete fairly like we did at the sports festival. By the way, I've assigned the longest road relay race distance to both of us, 3.6 kilometers."

Kitagawa Ryo readily agreed, since he and Ayanokouji Kiyotaka were in the same group. The higher their scores were in the final exam the day after tomorrow, the higher the group's total score would be, and the more generous the ranking rewards would be.

Regarding Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's actions during this special exam, Kitagawa Ryo actually felt that he had kept things within certain boundaries. The worst thing he did was probably to have Motohi Chikako steal Shiina Hiyori's ring. However, firstly, she did intend to return it intact afterward, and secondly, half the responsibility for this matter should be attributed to Sakayanagi Arisu's tacit approval. Moreover, Horikita Suzune eventually got it back.

"But simply competing in the previous match isn't very interesting. Let's add something extra for each other."

Kitagawa Ryo thought for a moment and then made this suggestion again.

"On the day of the final exams, if I get a higher total score in all four subjects, I hope you, Ayanokouji, can kick Nagumo out of Toyu University."

"You're the one who deliberately threw this at me, I promise you."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka nodded without the slightest hesitation:

"If I win."

He suddenly remembered Yosuke Hirata.

Or rather, it was Hirata Yosuke, whom Kitagawa Ryo had just explained to him, whom he intended to protect.

This incredibly thick encyclopedia of love, which is constantly adding pages, shows no signs of being finished so far. Kiyotaka Ayanokouji feels that he should take a step back and first find and experience another kind of connection that is easier to obtain and easier to establish, but which also cannot exist in the White Room.

"Let's be friends."

Chapter 432: I already said bunk beds are toxic

"friend?"

Upon hearing Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's request, Kitagawa Ryo was momentarily stunned, instinctively tilting his head as if he'd stumbled into a movie set filled with overly devoted, "loser" female leads.

What is your specific definition of a friend?