For most students, the fact that Ayanokoji scored a perfect mark in all eight subjects was simply unfathomable.
With their level of reasoning, the only explanation they could come up with was cheating.
However, that was absolutely impossible.
Setting aside the presence of invigilators, every corner of the classroom was equipped with surveillance cameras. If there had been any suspicious activity, the school would have already launched an investigation.
Even if Ayanokoji somehow managed to evade the cameras, unless someone reported him on the spot and incriminating evidence was found, no accusations would be acknowledged.
As long as he wasn't caught, it wasn't considered cheating.
Unfortunately, most people didn't understand this principle. They always assumed that their own thoughts were the ultimate truth.
And just as expected, the first to cause an uproar was none other than Yamauchi, the resident fool.
"Chabashira-sensei, something's wrong with these results! How could that guy Ayanokoji possibly score full marks on everything? He definitely cheated!"
"Yeah! I remember his usual scores were only around fifty or so, right?"
"Could he have done something shady behind the scenes?"
With Yamauchi leading the charge, a chorus of doubt rippled through the classroom.
Whoa, whoa—it's one thing to think that way, but don't just blurt it out like that.
Hikigaya couldn't help but chuckle. He had already predicted that no matter how much Yamauchi disliked him, his first target would still be Ayanokoji.
He probably thought they were all the same—just a bunch of underachievers. But now, not only was Ayanokoji faster at running, he was also a genius in academics.
At this point, Yamauchi's mental state was probably on the verge of collapse.
To think these two were once friends… So that was the extent of their so-called friendship.
This development wasn't dramatic in the slightest—if anything, it was completely predictable.
"Alright, that's enough. Quiet down."
Despite the commotion, Chabashira-sensei remained completely unfazed.
"I understand your concerns, but there is no issue with the exam results. The school has verified them multiple times, and we will not entertain any further questions."
With the school backing the results, the classroom gradually fell into silence.
However, the doubts lingering in their hearts were not so easily erased.
"Then, what about Hikigaya?!" Yamauchi still refused to give up. "That guy didn't even show up for the exam! How could he have a score?"
"His right hand hasn't fully healed yet, so he applied to take the exam separately in the audiovisual room," Chabashira-sensei replied.
"What?! I've never heard of such a thing before!"
"This falls under personal circumstances. There was no need to specifically inform you all. Besides, if you were so concerned, why didn't you just ask him directly? You're classmates, aren't you?"
Faced with Chabashira-sensei's sharp counter, Yamauchi fell silent.
Failing to stir up trouble, he could only sit down in frustration… What a waste of energy.
That said, with things spelled out so clearly, Ayanokoji must have realized by now that he had been set up.
But he would have no idea why he was being targeted.
If Hikigaya's true goal was to have him expelled, he wouldn't have bothered taking the exam at all. He could have simply cheated and dragged everyone down with him.
In the end, Ayanokoji could only assume that Hikigaya was trying to gauge his true capabilities.
To return to a peaceful school life, Ayanokoji would likely take some measures—perhaps even eliminate Hikigaya.
Unfortunately, at this stage, he lacked the means to do so.
First, as the rumored "X," Ayanokoji was still under Ryuuen's watchful eye. Before dealing with Hikigaya, he would likely have to handle Ryuuen first. Otherwise, causing too much of a commotion would only put him in a completely passive position.
Second, though it might sound conceited, Hikigaya was not someone who could be easily taken down.
If Ayanokoji thought he could make Hikigaya drop out with a few minor tricks, he was sorely mistaken.
Of course, Ayanokoji wouldn't be that naive. He would undoubtedly make a serious move.
However, if eliminating Hikigaya meant exposing his own abilities, it would be a pointless endeavor.
For now, there was no perfect solution.
And the most important factor of all—
Hikigaya held evidence that could indeed lead to Ayanokoji's expulsion.
This imagined battle never even existed from the start.
"Since there are no more questions, let me share some good news with you all."
Chabashira-sensei redirected the students' attention.
"The results of this Paper Shuffle exam are in. Not only did your class surpass Class C's average score, but you even scored four points higher than Class B."
"Huh? S-So that means…?"
Almost instinctively, the students found this news hard to believe.
But Chabashira-sensei nodded with certainty and even wrote the detailed results on the blackboard.
"That's right. This exam was an overwhelming victory for you all. You did very well."
"O-Oh, the teacher actually praised us… Wait, we really beat Class B?!"
Like waking from a dream, the students of Class D finally realized this wasn't a joke.
The classroom erupted in cheers and excited shouts.
For the longest time, Year 1 Class D had been treated as the school's failures. Yet now, they had achieved a result that defied expectations—defeating the former elites of Class A in academics.
Only those who experienced it firsthand could truly understand the feeling.
Of course, not everyone was swept away by the excitement. Horikita, for instance, remained serious, eyes locked onto the blackboard as she took notes.
As the person in charge of designing the questions, she knew exactly what had happened.
Simply put, Class B's exam was the hardest, pushing the school's difficulty limits, while Class D had likely received the easiest version.
Thinking about it this way, their victory wasn't as worth celebrating as it seemed.
There was still a huge academic gap between the two classes.
However, if Horikita could prevent her classmates from getting carried away and use this opportunity to spark their interest in studying, it might not be a bad thing after all.
Additionally, aside from Ayanokoji's perfect score, Koenji—who had an average of 96—also contributed significantly due to the doubling of his score, as he had no partner.
Regardless of their personal intentions, they were undoubtedly the biggest contributors to the class's success.
Yet, neither of them seemed eager to take credit… How humble of them.
As Hikigaya mused over the results, he glanced at the detailed breakdown on the blackboard.
The outcome was largely as he had expected. Class C, the academically weakest, suffered a double loss and had 100 class points deducted. However, Class A and Class B's results were somewhat surprising.
Class A lost by just two points.
No… Perhaps "lost" wasn't the right word.
Though he didn't know how difficult Sakayanagi's questions were, they likely weren't as harsh as the ones Horikita and Kiriyuin had designed.
In other words, Class A didn't lose because their opponents were too strong—they lost because they got complacent.
This wasn't surprising. They had climbed from Class B to Class A within just one semester, an unprecedented feat that could easily lead to overconfidence.
The worst part? They had Ichinose in their class.
Ichinose possessed a strong sense of unity, usually resolving conflicts and keeping everyone together.
However, that same inclusiveness stifled dissenting opinions, making it difficult for the class to recognize—or even acknowledge—their weaknesses.
Even if they faced failure, they would likely brush it off with a simple, "We'll do better next time."
To put it bluntly, Ichinose was like an overindulgent mother, making her classmates believe that as long as they followed her lead, everything would be fine—eliminating the need to think critically.
If they continued with such a naive mindset, Class A's downfall was only a matter of time.
As Chabashira-sensei concluded the homeroom session, Yukimura and several students immediately approached Ayanokoji.
Although winning the exam was a relief, their concerns hadn't disappeared—in fact, the victory only made them even more suspicious.
"Ayanokoji, can we talk?"
The fact that Yukimura had reverted to using his surname indicated that he was deeply unsettled.
It was understandable. He had spent over a month tutoring Ayanokoji, treating him as a friend, only to discover that Ayanokoji was a genius who aced every subject.
From Yukimura's perspective, his efforts and sincerity had been completely trampled upon.
"Sorry, Keisei, just wait a moment. I need to make an announcement first." Ayanokoji's composed response showed he had anticipated this situation.
Of course, he had a backup plan.
He walked up to the podium and pulled out his phone.
"Everyone, I understand you have a lot of questions about my exam results. But before you ask, please check the group chat. I just sent something."
"Huh? What is it?"
Curious, most students immediately pulled out their phones.
Hikigaya, unwilling to bother, simply glanced at Matsushita's screen next to him.
It was a file containing all eight exam subjects' questions.
And the questions looked… familiar.
Ah, so that's how it is.
Hikigaya had to admit—it was a clever move.
Although flawed, it was enough to fool the simple-minded members of Class D.
"This... is the exam's questions and answers?" Hirata asked in confusion. "Ayanokoji-kun, where did you get this? The test papers haven't even been handed out yet. And what does this 'X' at the end mean?"
Ayanokoji shook his head. "No, I received this document two days before the exam began."
"Huh?!"
Everyone gasped in shock.
Ayanokoji continued, "The person who sent it to me reached out anonymously. I have ways to investigate their identity, but in the end, all I could confirm was that they signed off as 'X'."
"X..."
Thanks to Ryuuen, Class D students had at least heard rumors about someone named X, though most never took them seriously.
If such an incredible person existed, their class wouldn't still be stuck at zero points.
Yet now, Ayanokoji was standing here, claiming that X was real—and that they had even contacted him directly.
"Wait, I don't understand!" Yukimura suddenly shouted. "Are you saying this 'X' somehow got hold of the test questions and then sent them to you? That's ridiculous!"
"Yeah! And if you had the exam papers, why didn't you tell us?!" Yamauchi also raised his voice.
"Because I couldn't be sure if it was a trap set by the enemy."
Ayanokoji's calm answer instantly silenced the complaints.
"Think about it carefully. If this was misinformation planted by Class C and I carelessly shared it, some people might choose to memorize the answers instead of studying. If that happened, the consequences could be disastrous... But at the same time, I couldn't rule out the possibility that X genuinely wanted to help."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to Yukimura.
"Keisei, I've told you before, right? My memory isn't too bad."
"Ah... yeah, you did mention that."
"So I decided to test it out. I memorized all the difficult questions and later confirmed that this wasn't a trap from Class C. Thanks to X's help, I managed to score full marks."
Ayanokoji's explanation left everyone exchanging glances, struggling to accept it.
Then, skepticism arose.
"Hey, that excuse sounds completely fake." Karuizawa scoffed. "Leaving aside how X even got the questions from Class C—if they were that capable, why didn't they just score full marks themselves?"
"I assume it's because of Ryuuen."
"Ah... yeah, that makes sense. It's Ryuuen, after all."
Karuizawa didn't spell it out, but everyone understood immediately.
Getting targeted by Ryuuen wasn't something to take lightly, so it was easy for them to believe that X was simply afraid of him.
However, Karuizawa wasn't ready to back down just yet. "Still, something doesn't add up. If your memory is that good, then why were your grades so bad before?"
"Because I hate studying," Ayanokoji answered matter-of-factly.
"What kind of answer is that?! Are you showing off?!"
His response was exasperating, yet strangely convincing.
Even with perfect memory, if someone refused to study, their grades wouldn't improve.
Just like that, the class's focus shifted from questioning Ayanokoji's perfect score to figuring out X's true identity.
The classroom was soon filled with excited discussion.
But to certain people who knew the truth, this was nothing more than an elaborate lie.
"Hey, Hachiman-kun." Matsushita tilted her head and whispered beside him. "Karuizawa-san was helping cover for him just now, wasn't she?"
"Probably." Hikigaya discreetly moved a little further away.
"In that case..."
Matsushita glanced around before lowering her voice. "Should we expose them? I can help if you want."
"Forget it. This is fine."
Hikigaya shook his head without hesitation.
He didn't care, but there was no need to drag Matsushita deeper into this.
In truth, Ayanokoji's excuse had a major flaw.
To the other students, someone could score a perfect hundred, but the idea of memorizing every single question verbatim was another matter entirely.
They had never even considered the possibility that the document had been fabricated after the exam.
But now, Ayanokoji himself had claimed to have an exceptional memory—essentially proving that the file could have been created post-exam.
Exposing him wouldn't be difficult. But it wasn't necessary.
Hikigaya had no intention of making Ayanokoji's life in Class D any harder.
He simply didn't care about trivial things like this.
So, if the class was fooled by that guy's nonsense—so be it.
Even though "X" was used as an excuse, the rumors mainly circulated between Class C and Class D.
For everyone else in the school, the only thing that mattered was the fact that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka scored full marks in all eight subjects—especially for Student Council President Nagumo.
Before long, news spread rapidly from the student council to various clubs and then across all three grade levels.
Ayanokoji's name quickly reached the ears of every student.