It's All Ryou's Fault

"It's the last day of gacha pulls. Besides the guaranteed pull, please give me another 0.5% boost card!"

"Ship out! Ship out! Ship out!"

"I'm willing to sacrifice a month's worth of craftsmanship afterward!"

Unlike before, when the number of card draws was determined by grades, today all students received a maximum of three draw opportunities. Since everyone knew that their group and the larger group would rank among the top in this Special Exam, the students in the Third Group were particularly eager for the amplification cards. Before each draw, everyone wished they could take a bath, burn incense, and pray on the spot. However, apart from the 0.5x amplification card guaranteed by the school, very few students drew the amplification card with the lowest probability.

When everything had settled down, there was no need for anyone to hide anything anymore. After drawing cards, everyone immediately started calculating the final multiplier, but most of them saw an increase of just over one times, and very few exceeded two times.

Kitagawa Ryo remembered that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's boost multiplier before today was 2.6, which was 0.1 less than his 2.7. He wondered if things would turn around after these three gacha pulls today.

As the two students who had almost secured the top two spots in the entire school's scores, Kitagawa Ryo and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's card draw naturally attracted the attention of the entire dormitory. However, neither of them performed any mysterious wishing rituals and quickly drew out their respective three cards.

Kitagawa Ryo's final result was one guaranteed 0.5x multiplier card and two 0.3x multiplier cards.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's luck was somewhat worse than his. Apart from one guaranteed 0.5x multiplier card, the other two were both 0.1x multiplier cards. Even Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who never cared about such things, was a little doubtful about his life and couldn't help but recall the fortune teller's prediction for him last summer.

Thus, Kitagawa Ryo's final boost multiplier was locked at 3.8, while Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's was 3.3. Although the level of the other students was unclear, judging from the situation in the Third Group dormitory, a boost multiplier of 3 was definitely among the highest.

After the card draw, the school seemed to have finally completed all the statistical work and issued a notice to all students to gather at the Gymnasium.

So, all the male students were gathered in the Gymnasium just like on the first day.

After that, the female students gathered one by one.

Although today's exams were very busy, it's already 5 PM. If we wait until the results are announced before taking the bus back to school, it's foreseeable that we won't get back to ANHS until midnight.

"During the eight days at the Forest School, everyone worked very hard. Although the exam content will vary, this is Special Exam that only comes around once every few years. Compared to the last Special Exam held at the same location, this year's overall evaluation is much higher, and I believe everyone has gained something from it."

It seemed that a director from the academic affairs office walked onto the stage. He seemed to know exactly what the students wanted to hear most, so after a brief greeting and a word of congratulations, he immediately began announcing the results.

"First of all, regardless of whether they are boys or girls, excluding Nagumo who left the exam midway due to an accident, not a single student failed to reach the minimum passing score. Therefore, this Special Exam achieved the excellent result of zero dropouts. Congratulations to everyone."

The moment the man revealed the truth, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, compared to things like Private Points and Class Points, whether or not to drop out of school has always been the most important issue for students at Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School.

"Now, I will be announcing my personal achievements and awards."

"The top 50% of students will receive a Private Points reward of 20,000, the top 20% will receive 50,000, and the top 10% will receive 100,000. Students in these tiers can check their scores via their mobile phones later. Their specific scores for each subject will also be available at that time. If they have any questions, they can contact the school for assistance."

"The students who achieve the top three positions in this grade-wide Mixed Training Camp Special Exam will also receive additional recognition."

"First, the third-place winner of this Special Exam, Horikita Manabu Horikita, from Class 3-A, will receive a reward of 200,000 Private Points, and his class will also receive 20 Class Points. Of course, these are the basic rewards; the final rewards will be accumulated based on the multiplier obtained from the gacha draw."

"Then comes the runner-up of this Special Exam, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka Ayanokoji from Class 1-C. He will receive a reward of 500,000 Private Points plus 30 Class Points."

"Finally, there's Kitagawa Ryo, from Class 1-B, who came in first place in this Special Exam. He'll receive one million Private Points plus fifty Class Points."

After the names of the top three students in the entire school and their corresponding awards were announced, there was a bit of a commotion in the Gymnasium. However, most students were not surprised, since these three had been the top three in the entire school before today's final Final Exam. They didn't expect that their rankings would remain unchanged after the Final Exam.

"Next, I will announce the rankings for each group."

"For the boys, the rankings for First Year are: Third Group, First Group, Sixth Group, Fourth Group, Second Group, and Fifth Group. The rankings for second grade are: Third Group, Fifth Group... and for third grade are: Second Group, Third Group..."

The group rankings were largely as Kitagawa Ryo had predicted. Their Third Group undoubtedly took first place among the First Year, with Ken Sudō's First Group following closely behind. The Sixth Group was Katsuragi Kohei's group. The second-year students were lucky to get a spot. Originally, the Third Group, with Mizowaki and Tonokawa, would not have dared to beat the Fifth Group, with Miyabi Nagumo. However, Miyabi Nagumo suddenly withdrew from the exam due to an accident. The Fifth Group, having lost an important member, was overtaken by the Third Group at the last moment and dropped to second place.

However, such a miracle couldn't happen again in the third year, as Horikita Manabu's Second Group firmly secured the top spot in the grade.

After reporting the boys' rankings, the school staff paused for a moment before continuing to report the girls' rankings.

As expected, the Second Group, led by Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei, won first place among the First Year. Suzune's Third Group also surpassed Arisu's First Group, with the two taking second and third place respectively. On the contrary, the Fourth Group, led by Kushida Kikyo, which was highly favored before the exam, suffered a Waterloo and fell to the bottom half. Kitagawa Ryo didn't care much about the rankings of the second and third-year students, and just casually noted them down.

"Finally, here is the group ranking."

"On the boys' side, from top to bottom, they are the Third Large Group, the First Large Group, the Second Main Group, the Sixth Large Group, the Fifth Large Group, and the Fourth Large Group."

"For the girls, it's the Second Main Group, Third Large Group, Fourth Large Group, First Large Group, Sixth Large Group, and Fifth Large Group."

After all the results were announced, the students in the Third Group of the First Year finally started cheering. Thanks to the outstanding performance of the Third Group of the First Year and second years, the Third Large Group was finally promoted to first place in the final group ranking. This surprised the third-year students, including Fujimaki and Ishikura, as they had essentially won first place without any effort.

"In conclusion, this Mixed Training Camp Special Exam has now come to an end. Thank you again to every student and teacher for their hard work. You can check your Private Points and Class Points earned or deducted later on your mobile phones. Thank you!"

After that, the students from each grade and class excitedly received their phones from their homeroom teachers and eagerly began checking their scores and awards from this Special Exam.

Kitagawa Ryo was no exception. Although he had actually calculated the answer in his mind the moment the results were announced, he was still somewhat surprised when the number appeared in front of him. The Class B students gathered around him didn't even bother to check their own awards, but instead exclaimed his score.

The individual with the highest total score will receive one million Private Points and fifty Class Points.

First place in the group: 30,000 Private Points and 5 Class Points.

First place in the group: 10,000 Private Points and 3 Class Points.

Total multiplier for the enhancement card: 3.8x.

Total Private Points: 1,040,000 Private Points multiplied by 4.8 equals 4,992,000 Private Points.

Total Class Points: 58 Class Points multiplied by 4.8 equals 278.4, which is rounded to 278 Class Points.

With just one Special Exam, Kitagawa Ryo brought nearly 300 Class Points to the entire Class B. If we consider Private Points, this is almost enough to recoup the 20 million yen he transferred from the class.

Aside from him, the other students in Class 1-B also had some pleasant surprises. Although Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei didn't make it into the top three in the mixed-gender individual rankings, they performed well in the group and overall group rankings, and the multiplier cards they received were 2.3 and 2.2 respectively. As a result, they both received 26 Class Points. Together with another Class B student in the same group, Shiranami Chihiro, they had more than 70 Class Points.

Just like Kitagawa Ryo and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka casually mentioned, this Special Exam for the Mixed Training Camp was actually a benefit distributed by the school to all classes in the entire grade. Although it seemed that half of the students in each class were in the top half and won awards, while the other half were in the bottom half and were penalized, those who won awards received boost cards, and those who were penalized received protection cards. Therefore, in the end, the Class Points gained would definitely be more than those deducted. It just depended on the final outcome.

Judging from the results, thanks to the outstanding performances of Kitagawa Ryo and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, this was undoubtedly a victory for Class 1-B and Class C.

After calculating all the Class Points earned or deducted by all students, the class rankings for First Year changed again.

Class 1-A, Grade 1: 969 points (originally 850 points).

Class 1-B: 963 points (originally 551 points).

Class 1-C: 559 points (originally 248 points).

Class 1-D, Grade 1: 310 points (formerly 222 points).

In just one Special Exam, Class B, which had a score difference of more than 300 points, caught up with Class 1-A one go and almost surpassed them. Class C, which was originally struggling alongside Class D, also pulled away from them in one fell swoop.

Discussions about these things could be heard everywhere. After dodging a seemingly uncontrollable hug from his homeroom teacher, Hoshinomiya Chie, Kitagawa Ryo quickly ran away.

Compared to these things, Kitagawa Ryo was more concerned about the outcome of his match against Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, so he quickly opened his grade sheet and found the Final Exam section.

Perfect scores in meditation, Written Exam, speech, and Road Relay Race... I casually took a screenshot of these and was about to send it to Kitagawa Ryo Ayanokoji Kiyotaka when he sent me a message first:

"My individual score is problematic, the match is suspended, we'll discuss it back at school."

"Okay, let's talk about it when we get back to school."

Despite some doubts, Kitagawa Ryo still casually replied with this message.

The setting sun gradually sank into the forest behind the western mountains. Winter nights always come exceptionally early. Kitagawa Ryo dragged his suitcase back onto the bus he had come on. However, the sleepy students had no mood to chat or play cards anymore. Most of them were asleep, slumped in their seats. Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei were also unusually close-eyed, leaning against each other, seemingly exhausted as well. Kitagawa Ryo casually snapped a photo of them.

The students who were awake nearby saw this interaction between the couple but pretended not to. As for why there were three people, well, KFC also has a three-person set meal for Qixi Festival. I suggest you go and ask them together.

After taking the photos, Kitagawa Ryo returned to his seat, covered his face with his hat, and leaned back in his chair.

Regardless of the consequences of this Special Exam or when the Student Council election will officially begin, he plans to take a nap for now.

Finally, it's time to go back to school.

Perhaps for him, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he went home.

After all, the fireflies were right there.

... Compared to the days when I slept on the top bunk with the Masterpiece of the White Room, it was definitely more comfortable to hold my younger sister in my arms.

Chapter 441: It's all Liang's fault

As expected, by the time the bus carrying all the students arrived back at the Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School campus, it was already past 10 p. m. However, even so, the class schedule for tomorrow remained unchanged, and they still needed to get up early for class as usual. After all, they had just had a full day off yesterday, and their winter vacation had long ended. The first day of this Special Exam was actually the first day of the third semester for first- First Year students.

Dragging his suitcase into the First Year dormitory building, Kitagawa Ryo first glanced at the crowded elevator, then decisively chose to take the stairs. Anyway, his room was on the fourth floor, so rather than waiting for the packed elevator, he might as well just carry his luggage up on foot.

With a few quick movements, Kitagawa Ryo lifted his suitcase and rushed up the stairs, quickly reaching his room on the fourth floor. He walked to room 408, took out the key from the hidden compartment of his bag, and inserted it into the lock. He had returned to his dormitory after more than a week.

A single dormitory room is much more pleasant than a dormitory room for twelve people. After quickly putting his suitcase into the entrance hall, Kitagawa Ryo didn't even change his shoes before immediately closing the door. Because the corridor had been full of First Year students dragging their suitcases back to their rooms for the past few minutes, Hotaru was quite obedient and didn't give him a welcoming ceremony right away. Instead, she patiently waited until Kitagawa Ryo closed the doors and windows and drew the curtains before nimbly jumping out from her hiding place and leaping towards Kitagawa Ryo, only to be caught by him with both hands.

"Meow--"

Kitagawa Ryo naturally lay back on his bed and, as always, buried his face in the fluffy cat fur, enjoying a good cat-cuddling session.

It can only be said that Hotaru in her cat form has its advantages. Even though she already knows that the one inside is actually her younger sister, after so many years, Kitagawa Ryo has long been used to such intimate interactions. It's nothing like how she felt a little uncomfortable being hugged and cuddled by another Hotaru on Christmas Eve.

"You're finally back... Hope Hotaru hasn't caused any trouble this past week?"

Because this guy had pulled off two big stunts last summer, after enjoying the warmth of their long-awaited reunion, Kitagawa Ryo immediately asked him this question. Hotaru rolled her eyes at him, shaking her head with a hint of resentment, as if to say, "What do you take me for?"

After all, this Special Exam for the Mixed Training Camp involved all three grades of students from Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School. The entire ANHS High School campus was practically deserted for the past week, so there was nothing she could do even if she wanted to create some big news.

"That's good. I'll go take a shower first, and then I'll talk to Ying about the Special Exam —phew, at least I don't have to go to the public bathhouse."

After greeting Hotaru, Kitagawa Ryo took out a change of clothes from his suitcase and went into the bathroom. Although the bathroom wasn't very big due to the limited space of the dormitory room, Kitagawa Ryo enjoyed the free and easy atmosphere much more than the past few days when he was stared at by everyone every time he went in. He even thought about singing a song while he showered, which was quite unusual for him.

After a quick shower, Kitagawa Ryo changed into his pajamas, turned off the lights, and rushed into bed with lightning speed.

It's still late January, deep winter. Although I'm still warm from the shower, it's best to warm up the bed first, just in case.

Unfortunately, Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School has always prohibited heating products such as electric blankets and kotatsu, which are prone to causing safety accidents. Bringing your own air conditioner is not very effective, so you still have to warm up the cold blankets yourself.

Once the bed was warm enough, Hotaru gracefully moved from her own little nest to Kitagawa Ryo's bed palace, lifted a corner and slipped inside. He then pulled her into his arms and began to listen intently to Kitagawa Ryo's account of the Mixed Training Camp Special Exam.

She kept talking like that, one sentence after another, until Kitagawa Ryo himself drifted off to sleep. Then Hotaru drooped her ears again, closed her beautiful, firefly-colored eyes, and with her two front paws pawing at his shirt, she too drifted off to sleep.

A peaceful night's sleep.

Perhaps because the daily morning training session was canceled during the recent eight-day Mixed Training Camp Special Exam, Kitagawa Ryo once again forgot about his morning training with Sakayanagi Arisu on the second morning. However, Arisu seemed to have overslept as well, and Kitagawa Ryo didn't wake up from his bed until the usual time for the morning training to end.

"Yawn--"

Looking at his phone, which was still considered early for an average student, Kitagawa Ryo yawned again. Hotaru had woken up earlier than him and was sitting on the edge of the bed, washing her face with her front paws. When she saw him get up, she raised her tail and swayed it back and forth a couple of times as a way of saying good morning.

"Good morning."

As Kitagawa Ryo got dressed and got out of bed, he casually sent a text message to Sakayanagi Arisu asking for her opinion:

"Arisu slept with you too?"

About two minutes later, as the message status changed to read, Sakayanagi Arisu quickly replied:

"Just woke up, and I'm really tired... I ran more than two kilometers yesterday, but I did my best."

Seemingly to confirm her statement, she sent a photo along with the reply, which appeared to have been taken recently. It was probably taken from a top-down angle by holding up the phone. In the photo, Sakayanagi Arisu is wearing pajamas and a nightcap, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

Although the camera angle was very high and the pajamas were in a rather disheveled state due to just waking up, with the collar and neckline appearing quite loose, they actually didn't reveal any curves that might otherwise be shown. In fact, they looked even flatter, prompting Kitagawa Ryo to suggest that Arisu should add some decorative ruffles or ribbons when wearing a swimsuit in the summer to make up for it.

"Come eat here after you've washed up."

After sending that message, Kitagawa Ryo began brushing his teeth, washing his face, and cooking as usual. Just as everything was almost ready, Sakayanagi Arisu knocked on his dormitory door.

"We were so close to swapping the positions of our two class signs."

Without any hesitation, Sakayanagi Arisu sat down at the table, spreading jam on her toast as she muttered this comment.

"Although the Sports Festival also uses a competition format where boys and girls are ranked together, judging from the results of this Special Exam, it's still not very effective. The top three spots were all taken by boys."

"There will probably be some changes to the next Special Exam. This time, besides putting boys and girls together, comparing students from all three grades together is quite something to complain about. During the Sports Festival and the Cultural Festival, they deliberately separated students by grade."

After all, high school students, especially boys, are in the prime of their development. Even if there's a year or two between First Year and second or third grade, you can still feel that some students in the class have grown taller and their physical abilities have increased significantly after just two or three months.

"So, the school might not have intended for us to compete in this special Mixed Training Camp Special Exam at all. As Arisu saw, even the bottom-ranked Class D got over a hundred Class Points for free this time."

Faced with Kitagawa Ryo's opinion, Sakayanagi Arisu remained silent, wiped her mouth with a tissue, and shook her head.

"But the only result that the students in Class A can see is that Class B is now only a few points behind Class A."

"To be honest, I'm not afraid or worried that Liang will win this Special Exam. Rather, I think that only in this way can I truly put pressure on many students in the class, and make it easier for me to better integrate them."

At this point, Sakayanagi Arisu rested her chin on her hand and looked at Kitagawa Ryo with her cheek propped up on her hand:

"Actually, the rumor that Suzune and the others spread about me was quite interesting. It's just a pity that I never even had such a thought in my mind. So, after a while, the rumor will naturally fall apart."

However, Sakayanagi Arisu then changed the subject:

"And to be honest, Suzune's idea is closer to that of bringing Ryo back to the class, otherwise Sudo and the others wouldn't have switched their support to him, and in the end they'd probably end up shooting themselves in the foot."

The current situation in Class 1-A can be clearly divided into two factions: most of the girls are leaning towards Sakayanagi Arisu, while the boys are more inclined towards Horikita Suzune. However, regardless of which side they are on, given the precarious situation of Class A, they must maintain a facade of unity against external forces.

In response to Sakayanagi Arisu's statement, Kitagawa Ryo simply stated:

"I will publicly support Suzune in the upcoming Student Council President election."

"... What?"

Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly froze, not because she was surprised by the sudden change in the Student Council President election, but simply because she was unwilling to believe it. After all, it was easy to think about it more deeply and even worry about it.

"I promised Suzune during the Uninhabited Island Special Exam. Back then, Arisu was just a figurehead in the Student Council. Who would have thought things would turn out like this?"

Kitagawa Ryo was quite speechless about this. After all, there were only two First Year students who joined the Student Council: Horikita Suzune and Sakayanagi Arisu. And only the former was actually doing any work. When he said he would support them, he hadn't really thought that much about it. It was a situation where even without his help, Suzune would have been the only candidate in the end.