Chapter Summaries

Hiyori thanked Oreki for protecting her from being drawn into Ryuuen’s trouble and asked him to help her pursue a future library career if he ever had the authority. Meanwhile, Ayanokouji suspected his father had arranged to sabotage him through the Pairing Exam and sought Oreki’s help, while Oreki and Horikita renewed their daily handshakes.

• Oreki told Hiyori that Karuizawa had known nothing about his meeting with Ryuuen, and Hiyori declined Points in favor of keeping a favor owed to her.
• Hiyori said she would prioritize saving Points after Ryuuen’s withdrawal and asked Oreki to give her an opportunity to work at the National Library if he could.
• Oreki borrowed Genius from the library and realized his sister had tricked him into reading a complicated story about a painter’s affairs and eventual return to his family.
• Ayanokouji reasoned that his father had bribed his Pairing Exam partner, who scored zero in every subject, and decided to use information he had obtained as leverage to seek Oreki’s assistance.
• Oreki contacted Horikita that night, and she agreed to resume their daily handshakes after he said the kissing matter was over.
• Horikita warned Oreki to keep his distance from Kikyou Kushida, but Oreki said he had other arrangements for Kikyou.

Oreki returned to school after summer break, received the final repayment from Hiyori, and warned Sakayanagi that Class D might prioritize earning Private Points under its new leadership. The new semester began with the school announcing class evaluations, but the chapter ended before all four classes’ standings were shown.

• Oreki noticed Sakayanagi spending time with Ichinose, and Sakayanagi said she had contacted Ichinose because she had heard interesting news about her.
• Oreki returned home before the semester began, found a cowboy hat and note from his traveling sister, and kept the gift.
• On October 1, Oreki received his monthly allowance and the final million Private Points owed by Ryuuen’s class, which Hiyori had transferred.
• Oreki warned Sakayanagi that Class D might focus on earning Private Points now that Ryuuen had stepped down, and he predicted Hiyori would seek ways to gather money.
• Teacher Majima announced the start-of-semester class evaluation figures, including 2,051 Points for Class A and 920 Points for Class B.

The classes received the rules for their first monthly exam, which covered new textbook material and left no opportunity to rely on past papers or other shortcuts. Class 1-C struggled with its depleted Points and fractured trust, and its students turned to Hirata for help after Kōenji refused to teach them.

• Teacher Majima announced a five-subject exam based on the month’s lessons, with class rewards tied to average scores and expulsion for students who failed.
• Katsuragi said Class A should be able to handle the exam, while Ichinose proposed study sessions for Class B.
• Teacher Chabashira told Class C that the exam used newly issued textbooks, leaving students to prepare through honest study.
• Class C’s students had transferred their Points to Hirata for debts owed to Horikita and Kōenji, while more than a dozen had made contact with other classes as spies.
• Hirata asked about the exam reward, then Ike Kanji and other students asked Kōenji to hold study sessions.
• Kōenji refused to teach students who had previously rejected his lessons, so Ike Kanji and the others gathered around Hirata instead.

Ayanokouji considered Kōenji’s influence and the class’s prospects as students prepared for the exam, while Kushida resented her growing closeness with Oreki and her need to help Horikita. In Class 1-D, Kaneda and Shiina arranged a paid deal with Kōenji to help them pass, as Ryuuen remained detached; Oreki then met Horikita and Kushida to discuss the exam.

• Ayanokouji suspected Kōenji had a plan for the exam and observed that Horikita’s earlier studying would still help despite the new textbooks.
• Kushida offered to organize study sessions with Horikita, while privately resenting Sato for kissing Oreki and disliking the kissing that had become part of her own time with him.
• Kaneda announced that Class 1-D would hold study sessions and pay Kōenji 50 Points if he helped them avoid failing and earn class points.
• Shiina’s class pursued the deal with Kōenji as Ryuuen read by himself and showed no interest in their decision.
• Oreki had lunch with Sakayanagi Arisu, then arranged to exchange exam opinions with Horikita and Kushida.

Oreki arranged for Kushida to help Horikita raise her popularity through study groups, hoping to protect her from resentment and the new Principal’s expulsion schemes. When Horikita struggled to teach and Kushida worried that her own betrayal could get her expelled, Oreki questioned whether she would actually be targeted.

• Oreki asked Horikita and Kushida to hold study groups and build Horikita’s popularity, concerned that classmates would resent her for collecting Private Points.
• Oreki considered the new Principal’s efforts to expel Ayanokouji and identified seven Class C students with evidence of contact with other classes as possible sacrifices.
• After the exam rules were announced, Ichinose’s Class B students booked a milk tea shop to study because upperclassmen had filled the library.
• Kushida complained that Horikita’s blunt teaching frustrated the students, and Oreki told her to slow the lessons down and said he could sacrifice spies if Horikita was targeted.
• Kushida asked whether she might be expelled if her Sports Festival betrayal came to light, and Oreki questioned whether she would be targeted.

Oreki accepted a quest to earn 100 million Points and warned Kikyou Kushida about the future threat of Ichika Amasawa. As the exam approached, Class D hired Kōenji to tutor them, Karuizawa finally grasped her studies, and Oreki met Hirata at a Cafe after being invited by him.

• Oreki accepted the quest to earn 50 million Points from upperclassmen and 50 million from new students, with a reward that let souls leave bodies and a penalty tied to Kikyou Kushida.
• Oreki warned Kikyou Kushida that Ichika Amasawa would enroll as a new student and knew about her dark history, leaving Kikyou unsettled.
• Kōenji tutored Class D for fourteen days under a deal that promised him Points if they failed or class evaluation points if they all passed, while Arisu Yanagi learned the terms from Oreki.
• Sakura told Oreki she felt relieved about the exam, and Karuizawa said she had finally understood her studies and asked Oreki to teach her.
• Oreki held a private study session with Karuizawa, then met Hirata at a Cafe after Hirata invited him.

Hirata asked Oreki how his class could get through the special exam, and Oreki proposed lowering everyone’s scores to ensure they passed. After Hirata left, Nagumo praised the plan and considered using it for his own class.

• Hirata told Oreki that his class’s study group was struggling and asked for a way to get through the exam.
• Oreki suggested that Hirata’s class could forgo the reward, then explained how keeping everyone’s scores low could lower the passing line.
• Hirata said he would think over Oreki’s proposal and left the Cafe.
• Nagumo approached Oreki, praised the plan, and said he might copy it for his class.

Houtarou Oreki confronted Nagumo Miyabi about manipulating second-year scores and discovered that Nagumo had accumulated over ten million Points. Oreki revealed he wanted fifty million from upperclassmen, leaving Nagumo worried that Oreki planned to let his funds grow before taking them.

• Oreki warned Nagumo that score manipulation would make the school view him as a pest, and Nagumo grew irritated.
• Oreki asked how many Points Nagumo had saved, making Nagumo suspect he was about to be swindled again.
• Nagumo claimed he had less than five million Points, but Oreki estimated that he had just over ten million from his various income sources.
• Oreki said he wanted fifty million Points and told Nagumo to keep accumulating more, which made Nagumo fear Oreki was fattening him up to take his money later.
• Oreki decided not to target Nagumo yet because he needed fifty million Points from upperclassmen and the Hard Exam left little room for maneuvering.

Oreki watched the students take the five-subject exams after Hirata’s plan to protect the struggling students was rejected, and he wondered who in Class B had been contacting other classes. His meeting with Honami Ichinose left him convinced she was still acting like an angel, but he asked about her frequent meetings with Sakayanagi Arisu.

• Nagumo arranged for strong students from his class and Class 2-B to tutor students in Classes 2-C and 2-D, while Oreki decided to wait for an opportunity to take points from the upperclassmen.
• Most of Class C rejected Hirata’s proposal for everyone to aim for low scores, so Hirata asked capable students, including Kei, to score 51 Points in each subject.
• Oreki and the other students completed their mathematics, english, physics, chemistry, and biology exams from October 27 to 29.
• Oreki met with Horikita and Kikyou Kushida after the exams, and Kushida said Hirata had asked thirteen students to score 51 Points in every subject.
• Oreki met Honami Ichinose to ask whether anything had changed among her classmates; after hearing that Class B was still working hard, he asked why she often met Sakayanagi Arisu.

Oreki learned that rumors exposing Horikita Suzune as Student Council President Manabu Horikita’s younger sister had spread through Class C, and he went to confront the situation. He arrived to find classmates pressuring Horikita for exam answers and private points.

• Ichinose wondered whether she had intruded on Oreki’s time with Sakayanagi, and Oreki struggled with whether to warn Ichinose about Sakayanagi’s plans.
• Kushida messaged Oreki that Horikita was being attacked by rumors in Class C and asked whether Horikita really was the Student Council President’s sister.
• Oreki realized the rumor would deeply upset Horikita because she feared becoming a burden to Manabu and had wanted their relationship kept secret.
• Oreki went to Class 1-C and found Yamauchi, Yoshiko Banjo, and other classmates crowding Horikita and demanding exam information and points from her.

Oreki pulled a distressed Horikita away from the classroom after rumors about her being Manabu Horikita’s sister spread, and he told her Kushida was behind the scheme. He reassured her that the revelation could strengthen her reputation, while the rumor continued spreading among the first-years.

• Oreki took Horikita outside after noticing she was dazed, and he told her Kushida had likely spread the rumor about her brother.
• Horikita panicked that the rumor would damage Manabu’s reputation and make her a target for students seeking favors.
• Oreki explained that Horikita’s rise from Class D to Class C could make the connection an asset rather than a source of shame.
• Oreki held Horikita to calm her and checked reports that students across the first-year classes had learned she was Manabu’s sister.
• Oreki decided the rumor did not need to be stopped, though Horikita still needed help handling it.

Oreki had Kushida take the blame for the rumor that Horikita Suzune was Manabu Horikita’s younger sister, causing Horikita to leave school for the day. He then explained that the rumor could help Horikita transfer classes, while Kushida demanded that he clear her name.

• Oreki told Kushida to pose as the rumor’s mastermind, and she agreed after he promised to protect her from Ichika Amasawa.
• Kushida approached Horikita and urged her to return to class and explain herself, but Horikita ignored her and left for the dorms.
• Kushida complained that Horikita had treated her coldly, and Oreki said Horikita now believed Kushida was behind the rumor.
• Oreki told Kushida to help Horikita request leave and said he would let the rumor spread because it could support Horikita’s eventual transfer to Class A.
• Oreki accused Kushida of realizing Horikita was Manabu’s sister and backing down because she feared his retaliation.

Oreki let rumors about Horikita Suzune’s relationship to Manabu spread, while Sakayanagi recognized their possible value in the Student Council election. After Class C received no Class Points for its exam, Horikita found that twelve classmates had withheld her share and demanded access to test answers in exchange for their Points.

• Sakayanagi asked whether Oreki was letting rumors about Horikita Suzune spread to help him pursue the Student Council presidency, but he said he had no interest in the position.
• Oreki asked Kushida to spread the rumors among upperclassmen, and Manabu Horikita’s silence led students to take the claims as confirmation.
• Horikita returned to class, where Chabashira announced that Class C had earned no Class Points because its exam average was too low.
• Twelve classmates refused to transfer Horikita’s share of the class’s Points to her, despite the earlier agreement.
• When Horikita offered to help with study sessions, a classmate demanded test answers supposedly available through her brother’s authority in exchange for continuing to give her Points.

After Horikita Suzune was driven from class by accusations and rumors that she would receive 20 million Points from her brother, Oreki learned how the examination changed the classes’ evaluations. Class A remained far ahead, Class D returned to Class C, and the chapter ended with Oreki reading a message from Kikyou Kushida.

• Horikita Suzune left class again after classmates accused her of benefiting from her brother and claimed she would receive 20 million Points when he graduated.
• Teacher Majima congratulated Class A on earning 100 class evaluation Points, bringing its total to 2,151.
• Kaneda led Ryuuen’s class as it earned 50 Points, returned to Class C, and prepared to pay Kōenji for tutoring.
• Hoshinomiya Chie praised Class B’s hard work after it earned 100 Points, but she privately despaired over its chances of catching Class A.
• Oreki read a message from Kikyou Kushida after Class A’s homeroom period ended.

Oreki met with Sakayanagi and reassured her before arranging to meet Ichinose about ending the rumors surrounding Horikita. He explained that the rumors had achieved their purpose, and Ichinose wondered why he had asked her instead of Kushida.

• Oreki told Sakayanagi he would stop rumors about her quickly, easing her jealousy about his plans to help Horikita.
• Kamuro realized Oreki's promise to Sakayanagi did not mean Horikita's rumors would be handled the same way, and Oreki caught her watching them.
• After lunch with Sakayanagi, Oreki met Ichinose and asked whether she had heard anything about the rumors.
• Oreki told Ichinose he wanted the rumors about Horikita to end now that their purpose had been achieved.
• Ichinose questioned why Oreki had come to her instead of asking Kushida for help.

Oreki asked Ichinose about the rumors targeting Horikita, and she traced them to Class C and suspected Shiina Hiyori. As Oreki and Ichinose headed to Horikita’s dorm to help, Horikita remained overwhelmed and saw Ichinose waiting at her door.

• Ichinose told Oreki that rumors about Horikita being Manabu Horikita’s sister, receiving exam information, and inheriting twenty million Private Points had spread among first-years.
• Ichinose traced the rumors to Class C, while a message from Karuizawa reported that Shiina Hiyori had been lurking outside Horikita’s room.
• Oreki suspected Hiyori was exploiting Horikita’s predicament for money or leverage, and asked Ichinose to teach Horikita how to handle the rumors.
• Horikita withdrew to her dorm room, blamed herself for running away from class, and remembered that Hiyori had offered to resolve the rumors for one million points.
• Horikita checked her video intercom and saw Ichinose at the door, but could not find Oreki in view.

Oreki confronted Horikita about her response to the rumors and reminded her that he had been helping her for some time. Horikita accepted his help, while Ichinose watched their close exchange and felt awkward.

• Horikita opened her door to find Ichinose and Oreki waiting together.
• Oreki said he had come to deal with the rumors after hearing Horikita had left class, and Horikita admitted she felt weak and unworthy of his help.
• Oreki criticized Horikita for losing her composure over problems concerning herself and revealed he had arranged for Sakura to return the Voice Recorders during the Sports Festival incident.
• Oreki told Horikita he was used to helping her and was fulfilling Manabu Horikita's request, then offered her his hand.
• Horikita took Oreki's hand and asked him to keep helping her, while Ichinose felt awkward watching them.

Oreki helped Horikita calm down after rumors about her being the Student Council President’s younger sister caused her to lash out, and Ichinose offered her support. Horikita returned to school the next day, while Oreki’s classmates avoided attacking her because they knew it would offend him.

• Ichinose interrupted Oreki and Horikita’s intimate conversation, then offered to help Horikita with anything she could.
• Horikita explained that ignoring rumors had worked for her before but admitted she had mishandled this situation by losing her temper and running away.
• Oreki advised using influential students to suppress the rumors, while Ichinose offered to discourage Class B from discussing them.
• Oreki described a plan for Kushida to spread more outrageous rumors to prompt the school and Student Council to crack down, though Ichinose worried it would harm innocent students and Kushida’s relationships.
• Oreki and Ichinose revisited Horikita that evening, and she recovered enough to go out for tea and discuss the situation.
• Horikita returned to school the next day, and Oreki’s classmates refrained from using the rumors against her because they knew it would offend him.

Hirata publicly challenged the rumors about Horikita and blamed Ryuuen, prompting students to defend Horikita while others objected to her behavior. Horikita still suspected Kushida, leaving Kushida frightened that Horikita might use the recorder against her as she sought Oreki’s help.

• The class had to address three days of rumors about Horikita, and Oreki arranged for popular student Hirata to clear her name while Kushida remained unable to help directly.
• Hirata told Class D that someone had spread the rumors to divide them, and he pointed to Ryuuen’s past attacks on Sudou and Kouenji.
• Sudou, Hasebe, and Sakura supported Hirata’s account, but several girls argued that Horikita’s connection to the Student Council President and her harsh treatment of classmates still troubled them.
• Horikita looked toward Kushida and continued to believe she was behind the incident, despite carrying a recorder of Kushida’s Sports Festival conduct.
• Kushida messaged Oreki in fear that Horikita might release the recording, while Oreki assured her that Horikita was rational.

Horikita Suzune countered the rumors by apologizing to her classmates and presenting herself as devoted to the class, while Karuizawa shut down the girls spreading the accusations. Kushida recognized that Horikita’s display was calculated acting that restored her standing and protected her ability to collect Points.

• Karuizawa and Sato challenged the girls who accused Horikita of getting exam information from the Student Council President, and the accusers backed down.
• After receiving Oreki’s signal, Horikita apologized for snapping at her classmates and asked them to move forward with her.
• Horikita said she liked the class and wanted everyone to stay together through their three years, prompting her classmates to applaud and shift away from the rumors.
• Kushida concluded that Horikita’s humble speech was an act that made her a trusted companion and helped secure the Points owed to her.