Ken Sudō's expression shifted from eager anticipation to frozen disbelief in an instant.
The smiles on the faces of the three Class C students, who had been looking forward to the show, stiffened. They were replaced by sheer astonishment.
They clearly hadn't expected D Class's "reinforcements" to switch sides at the last moment.
Chabashira Sae's pupils contracted sharply as she looked at her student's back, disbelief filling her eyes.
Tachibana Akane's hand, clutching her pen, froze in midair. Shock was written all over her face.
Even the student council president, Horikita Manabu, who had always seemed as unshakable as a mountain, showed a faint flicker of surprise deep in his eyes.
He looked at his younger sister, and a complex emotion he hadn't even noticed himself flashed through his eyes.
"Horikita... you... what did you say?"
The first to recover from the shock was Ken Sudō.
He whipped around and reached out, trying to grab Horikita Suzune by the collar. His eyes burned with the anger of someone who felt betrayed.
"You... What the hell are you talking about? Weren't we... weren't we companions?
"Didn't you say... you'd take us all to Class A?"
He roared, his voice hoarse with fury.
In the face of his tirade, Horikita Suzune slowly turned to look at him.
"I only stated the facts."
Horikita Suzune didn't even take a step back. She simply looked at him coldly.
"Companions? Sudo, I think you've got something wrong."
"First, you got the class points deducted because of your behavior in class. Then, during the Midterm Exam, you nearly got expelled because of your laziness. And now, once again, your inability to control your Violent Impulse has dragged the entire class into danger."
"When have you ever truly fulfilled your responsibilities as a 'companion'?"
"We gave you