Although Hikigaya acted as if it was no big deal, in reality, almost no one could replicate what he had done.
At least, no first-year student could pull it off right now.
The reason was simple—while they were busy preparing for Paper Shuffle, the upperclassmen had their special exams to worry about.
If it were just a casual connection, there was no way anyone could convince a senior to help. At most, they could do what Hirata and Kushida did—gather some information in their free time. But anything beyond that was impossible.
After all, no matter how much one wanted to help underclassmen, prioritizing their class was the logical choice.
However, Hikigaya's relationship with Horikita Manabu was different.
Beyond the bond they had formed through the student council, there was also a crucial exchange of interests—Nagumo.
His speech during the succession ceremony and the almost fanatic response from the second-year students had left Horikita deeply concerned about the school's future.
At the same time, he realized that restraining Nagumo would be far more difficult than he had initially imagined.
So, even if it was just in a small way, he wanted to repay Hikigaya.
With Horikita's participation, the progress of the four-person team in creating exam questions went smoothly, encountering almost no obstacles.
Having experience in this field since his first year, Horikita's knowledge has grown significantly over the past two years. Even though the difficulty level needed to be within the range of first-year students, it was still at the highest possible level.
They worked tirelessly until the afternoon, completing nearly a quarter of the questions, and more importantly, the quality was exceptionally high.
Honestly, if Hikigaya were to attempt the test himself, he probably wouldn't even get half of the answers right.
"It's almost three o'clock…"
Glancing at the clock, Hikigaya subconsciously touched his stomach.
For lunch, the four of them had only eaten the instant noodles and snacks he had bought, and now hunger was starting to set in.
"Horikita-senpai, how about we take a short break? Besides, your sister looks pretty tired too."
"Can you not use me as an excuse?"
Horikita glared at him with displeasure, but her brother had already put his pen down.
"Well, considering your hand still isn't fully healed, it's best not to push yourself too hard."
That said, those words weren't just meant for Hikigaya.
Ever since his relationship with his sister had gradually improved, Horikita Manabu himself had changed—just like how Suzune had.
Compared to when Hikigaya first met him, the atmosphere around him had softened considerably.
Even Tachibana had once mentioned, both delighted and troubled, that "Horikita-kun has become even more popular than before."
…Tch, handsome extroverts should just explode already.
"By the way, how about playing a game for a bit?"
Hikigaya pointed at the Nintendo Switch sitting next to the TV.
"A new one just came out recently, and I'd love for you to try it, senpai."
Saying that he stood up, grabbed a game cartridge from the desk, and inserted it into the console.
The other three watched the screen with curiosity—only for Horikita and Kushida to simultaneously reveal looks of disgust.
…It was a GalGame.
"Hachiman, what exactly is going on inside your head?"
"So you're saying my brother would never play something like this."
"Hah? What do you mean 'something like this'?" Hikigaya immediately retorted. "This is an all-ages game! The audience isn't limited by gender, so don't have such outdated prejudices!"
Besides, plenty of girls play other games.
In the end, isn't romancing beautiful girls and romancing handsome guys essentially the same thing?
Well, whether these two liked it or not didn't matter. After all, they weren't today's main focus.
"So, how about it, Horikita-senpai? Want to give it a try?"
"Sure."
To everyone's surprise, Horikita Manabu agreed without hesitation.
"I just haven't played this type of game before. What exactly do I do?"
"Don't worry, it's simple."
Hikigaya was overjoyed—he had finally found his opportunity.
"First, you have to enter the protagonist's name, which means your name. You should always use your real name."
"Understood."
Watching Horikita Manabu carefully enter his name with the controller, Hikigaya almost burst out laughing.
Heh, heh, I still haven't gotten my revenge for Mario Kart!
This time, let's make Horikita-senpai embarrass himself in front of the girls!
Thirty Minutes Later—
"Senpai, what are you even doing?!"
"Hmm? Was that choice wrong?"
Initially, Hikigaya had only wanted to humiliate Horikita Manabu, but as he watched, he found himself getting drawn into the story.
Then, he nearly lost it from how oblivious his senpai was.
"Of course it was wrong! The girl invited you out, so why the hell did you choose to go home alone?!"
"But I'm playing as a high school student," Horikita Manabu replied seriously. "A student must study. If I get into a good university, women will naturally find me more attractive."
Don't go spouting life lessons in a galgame!
Reality is already cruel enough—at least let people dream in a game!
On the side, Horikita Suzune watched the scene unfold with an expression of deep discomfort.
"Please… stop… I don't want to see my brother playing a dating sim..."
"Heh, and he's even picking the little sister-type character," Kushida added with amusement, taking the chance to tease her rival.
"Your brother's a siscon, and you're a bacon… Horikita, you better be careful not to go down the wrong path."
"I will not!"
As they spoke, the girl on-screen looked downhearted, and a message appeared:
[In Senpai's eyes, I must be an unattractive woman… I guess I should give up… Thank you for everything… Goodbye.]
[Bad End]
"Ah."
Horikita Manabu scratched his chin in confusion.
"How did this happen? Strange."
"What do you mean 'strange'?!" Hikigaya couldn't help but explode. "You've known her for nearly three years and haven't even held hands! Of course, she'd give up!"
"But I planned to act after graduation."
"By then, the game is already over!"
Sigh… I never thought watching someone play a game could be this exhausting.
At this rate, Hikigaya was going to start worrying about his blood pressure.
He silently prayed for divine intervention for Tachibana-senpai's love life.
"Hey, Horikita, your brother just got dumped," Kushida said gleefully.
"Brother…"
Horikita Suzune's emotions were complicated.
She had always viewed her brother as perfect. But now… No, there was no such thing as a perfect person.
She had simply placed her expectations on him, burdening him unnecessarily.
Their sibling relationship had returned to how it was at the start of the school year.
But in the end, it was thanks to this school that they had a chance to truly understand each other.
"Thank you… Hikigaya-kun."
"Huh? Why are you suddenly saying my name like that? Gross!"
Even though it was barely a whisper, Kushida still caught it.
Horikita casually flipped her hair. "It's nothing. I was just wondering… Would that girl's ending in the game also happen in real life?"
"Wait." Kushida frowned. "Can you not look at me when you say that? Also, unlike you, I'm not a little sister-type character."
"Unfortunately, neither am I."
"Lies! You're a little sister!"
"Only to my brother."
At least, in front of her peers, Horikita never acted like anyone's younger sister.
Still, it wasn't just Horikita who was surprised by her brother's behavior—her changes hadn't gone unnoticed by him either.
"Suzune has grown," Horikita Manabu muttered. "She's even made a friend she can bicker with… That alone means she's surpassed me."
"Your standards are weird."
"…Enough about that. I have something to ask you."
Horikita Manabu ignored Hikigaya's comment, raising his voice so the others could hear.
"Hikigaya, whenever I gave you work in the student council, you always complained about how much you hated it."
"Uh… Why are you bringing that up now?" Hikigaya asked warily.
"Yet someone who never cared about class affairs suddenly took the initiative this time. And you even took on the most troublesome part yourself."
At the time, Horikita Manabu hadn't questioned it. He assumed Hikigaya wouldn't pry further.
But it seemed Hikigaya had simply been waiting for the right opportunity.
"So… should I take this to mean that you're aiming for Class A?"
"Uh…"
Both Horikita Suzune and Kushida perked up at the question.
Even if Hikigaya said he was doing it to deal with Class B, he didn't seem like the type to make efforts that outweighed the benefits.
Horikita knew he was targeting Ayanokoji.
But forcing Ayanokoji to reveal his true strength didn't quite connect with taking down Class B.
"Honestly, it's nothing big," Hikigaya replied casually. "I just want a certain brooding guy to step into the spotlight. And maybe take some of the trouble off my hands."
"I see…"
Horikita Manabu immediately understood.
That "brooding guy" must be Ayanokoji—the one who had suddenly shown his strength during the sports festival.
Back then, Horikita Manabu had been surprised. Thinking back, Ayanokoji might have intentionally caught his attention to achieve some goal.
Perhaps the answer would reveal itself soon.
As for "future trouble," that likely referred to Nagumo.
It seemed Hikigaya was trying to get Nagumo to target Ayanokoji.
It was a solid strategy.
In fact, after that relay race, Nagumo immediately approached Horikita Manabu for information on Ayanokoji.
If Ayanokoji stood out in Paper Shuffle, Nagumo would set his sights on him.
Hikigaya really was devious… And it seemed Suzune had been tricked into going along with it.
For some reason, that annoyed Horikita Manabu.
Adjusting his glasses, he said deliberately, "Speaking of which, Hikigaya, didn't you once say your dream was to become a househusband?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Then you should aim for Class A even more."
Before Hikigaya could argue, Horikita Manabu explained.
"Graduating from Class A would get you into Tokyo University, or even allow the school to send you abroad. Elite university women generally come from wealthy backgrounds. Since you want to be a househusband, you need to meet rich potential partners, right?"
"Wait… huh?"
He had never thought of it like that before.
Was Horikita-senpai making sense?
Before he could process it, Kushida shouted, "Hachiman! Don't let him fool you! You need a girlfriend first!"
"Urgh…!"
Double attack!
"Enough! Mercy, please! I won't daydream anymore!"
Hikigaya quickly surrendered.
…Wait, weren't they supposed to be making test questions?
Why did this suddenly turn into a roast session for him?
It feels like ever since Horikita-senpai stepped down as student council president, he's been getting more and more cunning. Is this what they call an unsealing?
If that's the case, at least do it properly like in anime, and take off the glasses!
…
As November rolled in, Class D's study sessions also reached their peak.
The official exams were set for early next month. A month of review wasn't exactly short, but it wasn't long either.
However, in Hikigaya's view, this time, the outcome wouldn't be decided by Class D—it all depended on Class B's performance.
Considering that their opponents were a weak and undisciplined delinquent class, there was a good chance that many students from Class B would let their guard down… If that happened, it would be a huge help.
Aside from that, Hikigaya figured it was about time to move forward with the next phase of his plan.
Hopefully, Chabashira-sensei wouldn't slip up. If the Masterpiece caught on, it wouldn't be fun anymore.
That's right—it just wouldn't be fun.
Even if Ayanokoji figured out the truth, he would still have no choice but to play along with Hikigaya's script.
But if he managed to find a way to break through it…
Then maybe, just maybe, Hikigaya would sincerely acknowledge him as the Masterpiece.
Unfortunately, judging by his current performance, that possibility seemed nonexistent.
It wasn't that Hikigaya underestimated Ayanokoji's abilities. If anything, he had simply determined that Ayanokoji didn't have the resolve to pull it off.
Lost in thought, Hikigaya unknowingly arrived at the school building.
However, as he stepped inside, he found the entrance shoe lockers completely blocked by a large crowd.
What are these guys up to now?
It's nowhere near Valentine's Day… At the very least, don't block the way for others!
Wait, why is everyone holding a piece of paper? Could it be that someone is spreading misfortune letters?
Before long, Hikigaya found a letter in his own shoe locker as well.
[First-Year Class A – Ichinose Honami may have used improper means to collect points. — Ryuuen Kakeru]
Hmm… I see.
That really is unfortunate.
In that instant, several faces flashed through Hikigaya's mind, but in the end, his thoughts settled on one person.
So, it was him after all, huh?