That question got right to the heart of it.
"Probably Class C."
"Class C?"
Hoshinomiya Chie raised an eyebrow. "Class C?"
"Yeah."
"Now that, I don't quite understand."
Hoshinomiya Chie's curiosity was piqued. "That Horikita girl is famously tough to crack. She's dead set on taking her class to the top."
"Instead of putting pressure on Class D, which actually has a weakness you can exploit, you're going after a tough nut like Class C. What are you getting out of that?"
"Who knows? Maybe I just like her..."
"You mean... Horikita Suzune?"
"She and I have a bit of a connection."
Kazehara Tetsu didn't deny it. "She wants to take Class C up to Class A, and I want more people to graduate from Class A. Those might look like two different things, but further down the line, there's no reason they can't become the same path."
"Besides, Horikita isn't the only promising student to emerge in Class C this year. A few of them have the academic ability to meet Class A's standards. Their class ranking is holding them back, keeping them from getting Class A's points. Bringing those people up is a much better use of effort than endlessly trying to coax Class B into cooperating."
"As for Suzune herself..."
Kazehara Tetsu left that thought unfinished and merely smiled.
Hoshinomiya Chie stared at him for a couple of seconds, then suddenly laughed and shook her head.
"Now I get it. You're not just trying to pry a class loose. You've got your eye on their class leader and all the promising students under her, too."
"I wonder what face that Horikita girl would make if she knew what you were planning."
"She already knows. And she might not be against it."
"All right, then. I can't be