The Exposure of the Favored

"The evening discussion time is almost here, so I'll be heading out."

"Um, I..."

Kushida watched Nagami's retreating back, wanting to say something, but her voice was too soft for him to hear.

"Information gathering isn't exactly my strong suit for this exam. Besides, I've already got the points, so I might as well just slack off."

Nagami put on his headphones and opened the latest gacha mobile game to start playing.

The room was dim with the lights off, and he didn't notice at all that someone was sleeping on the sofa next to the meeting room.

It wasn't until he sat down on the sofa that he realized.

"Oh my~ so it's Nagami-kun."

Suddenly, he felt a sense of pressure. Ichinose rubbed her eyes.

"Why did you sit on me? You're so heavy. Are you teasing me?"

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't notice there was someone on the sofa."

(Honami is so cute, of course I'd really, really love to tease her, but this time it really wasn't intentional.)

"You're so mean. Hmph!"

"By the way, regarding the information on the Class B VIP, after a vote by the majority of the class, we still feel that the risk of telling you is too high."

"Even though you helped us a lot on the uninhabited island."

"It's fine, I don't mind."

(Because the information sold for a good price.)

The two looked at each other in silence, and the atmosphere became awkward.

"How long are you planning to sit there? It won't be good if the other students see us."

(Her fleshy legs are softer to sit on than the sofa; this doesn't feel half bad.)

Just then, the sound of footsteps approached. Nagami was as agile as a cat and immediately dodged to the side.

Yukimura and Ayanokoji arrived, and after turning on the lights, they saw Nagami and Ichinose alone together.

"You two are here early, Nagami and Ichinose-san."

"Are you two perhaps having a suspicious secret meeting?"

"We're good friends. Honami is a good friend of mine," Nagami said.

"That's a very intimate statement. It's still very suspicious, as expected."

Yukimura cast a skeptical look at the two before taking his seat.

At 20:00 sharp, everyone in the Rabbit Group began to take their seats.

"Everyone, listen to me. Hamada-kun has a suggestion."

"Yes, I have a proposal. The ultimate goal of this exam is to find the VIP, right?"

"Of course. Right now, we can't find the VIP, so we have nothing to talk about."

"Instead of waiting until the exam ends like this, why don't we check each other's emails? The school's emails cannot be faked. It doesn't matter if you don't want to show your phone; as long as we check each other's phones, we can narrow down the scope."

"In the end, we'll be able to find the VIP."

"But if we do that, what if there's a traitor who is the VIP?"

Machida Koji from Class A said.

"Of course I know that, but I'd rather make a mistake than do nothing at all."

"As the one who proposed it, I'll show everyone first."

With that, Hamada-kun held up his phone to show the email sent by the school to those around him.

(Very capable, Hamada-kun. If the emails can't be forged, then you're right. But the email only uses the third-person 'you' and doesn't contain a name. In other words, if we swap phones, how will you handle that?)

"I agree."

Ayanokoji and Nagami from Class D agreed to show theirs, and then Ibuki from Class C agreed as well. The situation began to tilt in one direction. The strategy of Class A to stay out of it was still being affected.

"Only Class A and Yukimura from Class D are left."

"Everyone, I am actually the VIP. Please don't report me."

(This acting... I hadn't noticed before, but Yukimura's acting is so good. He's disguised himself so well.)

While everyone was shocked that the VIP had been found so quickly, Ichinose dialed Ayanokoji's phone.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Like a death knell, Yukimura's phone displayed an incoming call from Ichinose.

The school's SIM cards are bound to the hardware identification code of the phones and cannot be swapped.

(It seems they were still one move behind? As if. Karuizawa is the VIP. So Ayanokoji used points to unbind the school SIM?)

Yukimura looked shocked, his face turning terribly pale, as humiliated as if he had been caught in public hiding inappropriate manga in his drawer.

"The person I called is Ayanokoji."

Honami showed the contact on her phone screen.

"What is going on, Class D? To think you'd pull such petty tricks."

"So that's how it is. The real Target is Ayanokoji."

Machida said, while the people around him remained stunned. It was a scheme within a scheme within a scheme.

(At this moment, a handsome guy had already seen through everything.)

"Nagami, why have you looked like you had everything under control from the very beginning?"

"Ah, because the Target doesn't matter to me. As for the reason, sorry Honami, I can't say yet."

"Hey~ sigh, if only I could be as smart as you."

Honami said.

The one-hour time limit passed quickly, and the people in the conference room began to disperse.

(Will Class A expose it? If my information is correct, Katsuragi should have ordered all members not to report the Target without authorization.)

On the third day, half an hour after the meeting ended, the people from Class D gathered at the cafe to discuss their next strategy.

At this moment, text messages from the school began to arrive; the special exam had ended.

Class A: Class Points +50, Private Points +4.5 million.

Class B: Class Points -50, Private Points +2 million.

Class C: Class Points +100, Private Points +5 million.

Class D: Class Points -100, Private Points +1.5 million.

The room began to grow noisy, filled with voices of various tones.

"Class C actually took first place? Class D really lost miserably!"

"Damn it! That wretched Class C."

Sudo slammed his fist heavily onto the table to vent his frustration. For a gorilla, asking him to restrain his emotions was simply too difficult.

At this moment, Ryuen from Class C walked over with his lackeys, looking malicious.

"Suzune, what a great expression you have there. So pathetic and defeated."

Ryuen had taken first place in this exam, restoring Class C's reputation, and he was in an incredibly good mood. The gloom from before had been swept away.

"As you can see, I found most of the Targets."

"Don't say anything unnecessary. Spare me the mockery. This failure in the special exam doesn't prove anything; just wait to get a zero next time."

"The Target for the Snake Group is Kushida Kikyo, right? I discovered that a long time ago."

So Kushida had been up to something too. That was why Nagami's expression remained natural and calm when he lied to Kushida about being a double agent.

Upon hearing this, Horikita's pupils constricted as she looked at Ryuen.

She had to admit that in this exam, she had lost without being able to do anything—she had lost for no apparent reason, and it was a huge blow to her.

Compared to Ryuen of Class C, Horikita, who had very little social interaction, was at a significant disadvantage in this exam.

"Compared to Nagami, you really are weak. You don't even make me want to fight."

"In the days to come, struggle to your heart's content and entertain me."

"Hahahaha!"

Ryuen left with his lackeys, laughing loudly.

Ayanokoji watched Ryuen's back, a trace of suspicion toward Kushida forming in his heart.

If you can't find the book title, try searching for the author; perhaps the name has just been changed!

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