Chapter 3

It is all about ability; I believe this is the meaning of the word "ability" as used by Kinugasa Shogo in the title. With this concept in hand, let us analyze who should take the blame for Airi's expulsion. Everyone knows I am a Kei supporter, but I am fair and impartial, taking no sides. Suspect Number One: "Little Angel" Kikyo Kushida. Reason for accusation: She had been secretly casting votes against others, a heinous crime, and her danger to the class was clearly far greater than Airi's. Defense: 1. The people Kushida wanted expelled were Kiyotaka Ayanokoji and Suzune Horikita; what did that have to do with you, Airi? 2. Was Kushida truly Airi's friend? Did she care if Airi lived or died? 3. Kushida is innocent! After her meltdown, she had clearly given up struggling and was waiting for expulsion; she even kept leaking secrets to accelerate her own demise. 4. After her self-destruction, Kushida no longer had the tools to blackmail everyone, making her harmless. Moreover, she is indeed more capable than Airi, a point I will explain in detail in the thought process of the next suspect. In summary, Kikyo Kushida is not guilty. Even if she were, she wouldn't care; you Airi supporters can go ahead and bite her! In any case, Kushida has never feared others holding a grudge against her. You hate me? I hate you too! I hate the whole world!

Suspect Number Two: "Leader" Suzune Horikita. Reason for accusation: Favoring Kushida and giving blind orders. Defense: 1. Horikita's favoritism toward Kushida is reasonable! Because she wasn't close to Airi in the first place. In fact, she isn't close to anyone; the only person she is familiar with is actually Kushida. Ever since she realized she needed helpers to reach Class A, she sought out Kushida. It was Kushida who refused to cooperate, a one-sided infatuation. Given a choice of two, of course she would favor her future "sister"! 2. But how can a leader put personal interests above the public good? Please, why does Horikita want to be good sisters with Kushida? It's just because she covets her ability! Otherwise, why wouldn't she want to be sisters with you, Airi? Remember Kinugasa Shogo's definition of ability? Airi's ability is inferior to Kushida's; this was something Horikita determined long ago when looking for helpers. Keep this firmly in mind; this is a hard metric for Airi's failure in the PK. 3. After her self-destruction, Kushida is beneficial and harmless. This issue must be traced back to the bet between Horikita and Kushida in their first year. At that time, Horikita won the bet, but Kushida still stated she would not assist her. But did Horikita say anything? She didn't care. All she cared about, or rather, coveted, was Kushida's ability. As for Kushida wanting her and Ayanokoji gone, that wasn't a problem; she had confidence she wouldn't die. Ayanokoji? That guy is tough as nails! He won't die. Therefore, Kushida casting a vote against them in the special exam was not strange to Horikita; she had long known Kushida wouldn't surrender so easily. She adopted a tolerant attitude of enduring it again and again, even waiting for the day Kushida would self-destruct, looking forward to using her afterward. Furthermore, after the bet, Kushida at least stopped betraying the class. In Horikita's eyes, Kushida might have even improved! Because Kushida kept her end of the bet. After the self-destruction, Kushida had no more means to sabotage the class, and everyone in the class—and even those outside who got wind of the rumors—would be wary of her. Ayanokoji, the pillar Horikita designated, was once and for all rid of Kushida's threat. In this way, besides creating GDP and getting along with Horikita, the only person who still wanted to be her friend, Kushida had only one path left: expulsion. As expected of Kushida, she chose death over surrender to Horikita's desire to "possess" her! She chose expulsion after her self-destruction, but Horikita was precisely waiting for this situation to arise; how could she let her go? 4. Unlike Lord Yamauchi, who fell for a honey trap, neither Kushida nor Airi made a mistake this time. Of course, wanting Ayanokoji and herself gone does not count as a mistake in Kushida's eyes, according to Horikita. Since neither was wrong, and one had to die, the whole class was put on the same starting line to compare their abilities. 5. Airi's ability is indeed lacking. In the eyes of the impartial leader Horikita, there must be a class ability chart, and Sakura is undoubtedly at the bottom. Why? Even for things beneficial to the class like testifying or participating in the maid cafe, Airi had to muster all her courage just to contribute. By comparison, Ike, who is willing to charge to the front for the class, is much better. Expelling Airi would indeed offend some people, but it could also spur others on; the gains and losses cancel each other out. These are all things Horikita has weighed. In summary, aside from her stubborn belief that Kushida would be of use to her, Horikita did nothing wrong. To put it bluntly, a Kushida who cannot be used is still more contributory than Airi. After all, in regular exams and special exams, Airi's grades were not ideal compared to Kushida's; she was often the type who needed extra help. If you say Horikita's decision is problematic, who told you to choose her as leader? This shows that in the minds of the majority, Horikita is already the most impartial and capable. If the lord wants a subject to die, and most people agree, then it is not the lord's problem. Would an inactive lord be better?

Suspect Number Three: "Joker" Kiyotaka Ayanokoji. Reason for accusation: Abandoning a friend when he had the ability to stop it. Defense: 1. Ayanokoji is being unfairly maligned here! He has never considered anyone a friend; this is something he has repeated over and over again. How can you accuse him of abandoning others! If you ask me, he abandoned her well! Because tools should act like tools. What is Airi's situation? She doesn't even count as a qualified tool. She was unilaterally relying on Ayanokoji, and Ayanokoji? He was likely in a state of annoyance, right? You say you are useless, and causing trouble is one thing, but you also whine and waste my Ayanokoji's precious time—what crime should that be? Imagine, Ayanokoji was so excellent in the White Room; were there no people there who treated him as a friend or a backer, or even helped him? Surely there were, but Ayanokoji abandoned them all. For the sake of his own victory, even useful tools can be discarded, let alone a "useless" person like you? Of course, I have no intention of belittling Airi; I am just reconstructing Ayanokoji's cold-blooded mental journey. Whether you call an Ayanokoji with this mindset a god or a clown, he is just that kind of person. It's not that easy to change; at the very least, the one who can change him won't be the timid Airi. 2. When Kushida was no longer a threat, the biggest "threat" became Airi. Whether Kushida was expelled after her self-destruction or not, she could no longer use any means to blackmail Ayanokoji. In the future, Ayanokoji could even openly refuse her requests for help without affecting others. What about the useless Airi? It's one thing that she wasted time consulting him during special exams, but what if she asked Ayanokoji for help when she was at the end of her rope? Our cold-blooded Ayanokoji would, of course, refuse. But would this cause a little psychological fluctuation in other useful tools? Thereby lowering their evaluation of Ayanokoji? Can such a potential burden be kept? No! All possible threats must be eliminated. So, I give a thumbs up to Kei here; her discretion on the rooftop was tight, and the sense of security she brought to Ayanokoji was absolute. A tool that will never betray or drag him down at any time is a super good tool. In summary, if Ayanokoji had developed feelings for Airi, that would be a collapse of his character, and the show would be over. (Perhaps Kei can do it in the end? Let's wait and see! In any case, it's not now.) 4. Other suspects: Hasebe, Yukimura, etc. Reason for accusation: Betraying friends. Defense: