In Classroom of the Elite, Ichinose You Will Regret It

Facing the Class B students, who all wore different expressions, Ichinose revealed a gentle smile.

"Everyone, what are you doing here?"

The group exchanged glances, and thirty-some different answers tumbled out at once.

"Playing games!"

"Working out!"

"Club activities!"

Ichinose's smile grew even brighter as she immediately posed another question.

"Then... who organized this activity?"

In an instant, thirty-some fingers from the entire class pointed simultaneously at Uesugi Gen in the center, and they shouted in perfect unison, "Him!"

The members of Class B didn't hesitate to stab Uesugi Gen in the back, choosing to sacrifice him to appease Ichinose's anger.

Hey, hey, aren't you guys kneeling and surrendering a bit too quickly? You were just calling me the hope of Class B a moment ago, and now you're abandoning your hope in the blink of an eye?

Uesugi Gen cursed inwardly while silently retracting the finger he had been pointing to the side.

"Uesugi-kun~"

Ichinose took a light step forward, tilting her head as she looked at Uesugi Gen with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Uesugi Gen took a deep breath to steady himself, then steeled his heart and said loudly, "That's right!"

"The plan to follow Ichinose this time was formulated by me, Uesugi Gen."

He glanced at Shiranami Chihiro, who was so embarrassed she was practically digging a hole in the ground with her toes, and added, "But I didn't expect things to turn out this way either. I didn't know it was Shiranami who wrote you the love letter; this was purely a coincidence."

Hearing Uesugi Gen's words, Shiranami Chihiro looked up in shame and anger, her expression clearly saying, "Do you really think I'd believe your nonsense?"

"Alright."

Kanzaki Ryuji, who had been observing for a long time, spoke up to stop this bizarre scene.

If he let this unreliable guy Uesugi Gen keep talking, he felt like Shiranami would be ready to emigrate to Mars by tomorrow.

However, Kanzaki Ryuji couldn't be certain... was Uesugi Gen really not doing this to get back at Shiranami Chihiro for writing a love letter to Ichinose?

Judging by the results, Uesugi Gen was the biggest winner in every aspect, so perhaps this guy's unreliable act wasn't just an act at all.

Could it be... that this guy is actually a black-bellied schemer?

Thinking of this, Kanzaki Ryuji shivered and hurriedly steered the conversation back.

"The reason we came here is because Uesugi saw that Ichinose received a love letter. Uesugi was worried it might be a conspiracy from another class, so he called us to come and take a look."

After Kanzaki Ryuji finished speaking, he looked at Shiranami Chihiro on the side, his face showing some awkwardness.

"It turns out it wasn't a conspiracy at all, but instead..."

Faced with the explanation provided by Kanzaki Ryuji, Shiranami Chihiro still wore an expression that said she wasn't listening, that it was definitely Uesugi Gen's conspiracy.

On the contrary, Ichinose, who had been a bit angry just a moment ago, saw her eyes light up after hearing Kanzaki Ryuji's explanation. She turned her head to look at Uesugi Gen with joy.

"Is that true, Uesugi-kun? Did you come here because you were worried about me?"

Uesugi Gen felt conflicted. Should he tell her?

Actually, this was a misunderstanding. He had just acted on a whim, thinking it would be fun, so he dragged the whole class along...

No!

Uesugi Gen quickly dismissed that thought.

If he said that, the prestige he had worked so hard to build up in front of the whole class through this activity would collapse in an instant.

Therefore, under Ichinose's expectant gaze, Uesugi Gen helplessly squeezed out a few words.

"If you say so, then it is."

Having received Uesugi Gen's answer, Ichinose's anger dissipated all at once.

"Honestly, you could have just asked me about something like this, and I would have told you."

Ichinose looked at the boy before her who had gone to such great lengths to follow her for so long, feeling both annoyed and amused.

"How was I supposed to know what you were thinking? You called me over looking all mysterious that day, and I thought it was something major. Turns out it was just a misunderstanding."

Uesugi Gen retorted frantically.

The two of them went back and forth, bickering like this.

Meanwhile, Shiranami Chihiro watched their interaction, gritting her teeth.

What do you mean by a misunderstanding, what do you mean it's not a big deal?

It was clearly me who was first; whether it was meeting Ichinose first or becoming friends with Ichinose first, it was all me...

After dealing with Uesugi Gen, Ichinose turned around and spoke to the students of Class B in a serious tone.

"Also, I'm still a little angry about what happened this time. I'm fine, but don't pry into other people's privacy so casually next time; it's a very impolite behavior."

"Yes!"

All the students of Class B lowered their heads powerlessly, admitting their mistake.

"However,"

Ichinose shifted her tone, speaking with genuine and heartfelt sincerity, "Regardless, thank you all for this. To do something against your own will for someone like... me, it must have been very uncomfortable, right..."

"Not at all, I think I gained a lot from this experience too."

"The feeling this time was actually quite novel for me."

"Trying something new once in a while is a pretty good choice."

The students of Class B looked at Ichinose's expression, feeling a bit strange, and one after another, they expressed that this matter was no big deal.

Ichinose shook her head, signaling that she was fine.

She quickly adjusted her emotions, then turned her head and said with a smile to the whole class, "It's rare for everyone in our class to be here, let's go have a meal together."

Then, she grabbed Uesugi Gen's hand, "You can't refuse me this time."

"I know, I know."

Uesugi Gen responded helplessly.

Finally, Ichinose reached out her other hand and extended an invitation to Shiranami Chihiro, "Let's go together, Chihiro-chan."

The group left the back of the gymnasium in a grand procession.

At this moment, Uesugi Gen scratched his head in confusion.

Why does it feel like I've forgotten something?

Forget it.

Uesugi Gen waved his hand, deciding not to think about it for now.

Since I can't remember it, it probably isn't anything important...

Click, click, click, writer's block. Every time I write a romantic scene, I don't know how to proceed. Do you readers have any good suggestions?

Chapter 49: Horikita Manabu's Reputation Damaged

Approaching the final exams, in the Class B classroom.

"The school never gives out benefits without a reason, just like the 100% employment rate before enrollment or the 100,000 points at the start of the term. Therefore, I believe that what Hoshinomiya-sensei said about a vacation on a southern island must have a deeper meaning, and it might even cause large-scale fluctuations in class points."

On the podium, Ichinose was explaining the deductions she had made with a spirited and heroic air.

"I see!"

"As expected of Ichinose."

"An exam that will cause large-scale fluctuations in class points, huh."

The students of Class B echoed Ichinose from below the podium.

Uesugi Gen also clapped his hands with a blank expression.

Oh, you're so amazing, you actually managed to figure out that the school would hold a special exam.

Like hell you did!

And then what? Since you've already thought this far, shouldn't you use the advantage of having information to do something to expand that lead?

For example, investigate the specific content of this exam more deeply.

Uesugi Gen looked at Ichinose, feeling that she was failing to live up to his expectations.

But then again, It wasn't just Ichinose; even that guy Ryuen must have seen something, at least to some extent.

Ever since he suffered such a huge loss last time, Ryuen Kakeru had been constantly sending students from Class C to harass Class B, and amidst Ichinose's confusion, he kept reporting the entire Class B to the school administration.

However, ever since Uesugi Gen performed a scene of "Who dares to accuse this official in my court?" in front of Ryuen and sent the frustrated Ryuen packing, he had completely given up on that line of attack and started targeting Class B from other angles.

Recently, however, the frequency of his harassment toward Class B had decreased significantly.

The only explanation was that there were more important matters for him to attend to than seeking revenge against Uesugi Gen.

After all, while Ryuen Kakeru might appear on the surface to be a self-centered tyrant who didn't care about the lives of his classmates, he was actually the type of loyal big brother who would face difficulties head-on, telling everyone else to stand aside, and would pretend nothing happened even after being beaten to a pulp by outsiders.

This time, he must have sensed the special exam and pulled his class's strength back in, preparing to strike with everything he had.

As for Class A, on the other hand...

Uesugi Gen rubbed his chin.

Having watched the tigers fight from the mountaintop for so long, they still hadn't made a move. Was it because the class leader hadn't been chosen yet, making them unable to make effective decisions?

Given the physical condition of Kamuro's leg, it was highly unlikely she would participate in this special exam, so the leader of Class A this time should be that steady man, Katsuragi Kohei.

Finally, adding in Horikita from Class D and the unfathomable Ayanokoji...

Gradually, the general landscape of this special exam began to take shape in Uesugi Gen's mind.

There was no need to worry about Class C and Class D for the time being; even in a special exam, the school wouldn't grant rewards that could instantly reverse the class point gap between the lower and upper classes.

Class A was the main opponent for Class B in this special exam.

Given the current gap in class points between the two, this special exam would undoubtedly be a fight to the death between the two classes.

However, the problem was that this year's Class A didn't know if their luck was good or bad, as they had ended up with two class leaders. Moreover, they weren't the type who could cooperate like him and Ichinose; they were truly incompatible, the kind where one had to fall.

In that case, the room for maneuvering became much larger.

Judging by the fact that Sakayanagi Arisu kept leaking information about Katsuragi Kohei to Uesugi Gen through The Thief Lady, her own desires seemed to far outweigh the collective interests of Class A.

Thinking about it this way, things were starting to get interesting.

You want to strike at Katsuragi Kohei, and I want to strike at the Class A led by Katsuragi Kohei—how could such a coincidence exist...