Once they'd laid everything out in the open, it was easy to talk about anything, even if Beihai's intentions hadn't exactly been noble. Who would want to be friends with him, anyway?!
He'd exposed the other person's identity outright as a warning: if you kept bothering me, I'd expose you. Forget staying here for three years—you'd find even two days too long.
By then, Kiyotaka Kiyotaka wouldn't even need to consider a way out. Just weighing what each side stood to gain or lose would prove everything.
The imagined outcome—that they would leave each other alone—hadn't come to pass. Kiyotaka Kiyotaka was even doing the exact opposite now.
Of course, Beihai hadn't expected the other person to be such a terrifyingly fast learner. Even when they'd moved on to university-level problems, he'd still handled them with ease.
They'd studied for a long time, but people still needed to rest.
Beihai's dorm didn't have much in the way of spare supplies. The television and Game Console hanging on the wall had both been bought by Kiyotaka Kiyotaka.
The two of them headed downstairs to get some snacks and drinks. They used their points at the vending machine to buy two bottles of Marble Soda.
Then they sat on the bench beside the vending machine to take a break.
To open a bottle of Marble Soda, you just had to tear off the plastic wrapping around the top to expose the marble.
Then you put the cap on and pressed down hard. You couldn't let go, or even ease up; otherwise, once the marble dropped into the soda, the bubbles would rush straight out.
Beihai pressed down firmly with both thumbs, and not a drop of soda spilled.
It was Kiyotaka Kiyotaka's first time opening one. He pressed down with his thumb, but hadn't pushed hard enough, and soda sprayed out at once.
"What a waste. So much of it spilled."
"If you've never had one before, you're bound to get caught out the first time. Don't worry about wasting it. I have two tissues here. Take them and wipe your hands."
Kiyotaka Kiyotaka set the soda on the ground and took the two tissues. As he wiped his hands, he said what he'd been wanting to complain about.
"Horikita Suzune's attempt to start a mutual-aid group was a complete failure. The three people she called over, plus Kikyo Kushida—not one of them stayed for even three minutes.
"At the Special Exam in May, I'm afraid someone really will fail. The final outcome will probably be expulsion, and it could affect us."
Beihai naturally understood what he meant. If someone failed the exam, who knew what their homeroom teacher would do? What if it affected the two of them?
But at the thought of that Black Long Hair, Horikita Suzune, Beihai couldn't help bursting out laughing.
"I've only ever misjudged four people in my life, but I never expected to encounter a fifth master.
"Those five masters are:
"Thunderclap Hand Wen Tailai, Iron Leg Water Glider, Imperial Sky-Shattering Fist Wu Liushou, Heaven and Earth Society Branch Leader Chen Jinnan, and, now, Horikita Suzune."
Kiyotaka Kiyotaka listened quietly without interrupting. He took a sip of the Marble Soda in his hand. He didn't know the first four, but he did know the fifth.
"What makes you say that?"
"Isn't it obvious enough? When we first met, I really thought she was something special. But after seeing how she behaved, I realized I'd read too much into her. And her personality is the kind that easily makes people dislike her."
"Hmm, I see. I actually think she's all right."
Beihai gave the master beside him a curious look. Never mind. Everyone had their own preferences; one was willing to fight, and the other was willing to take it.
This had nothing to do with being aloof or refusing to make friends. The problem was that she wanted to control everything and have the final say, despite lacking the ability to do so.
She also lacked even basic social skills—or thought she didn't need them.
On top of that, she was always so sharp-tongued, with an almost forceful streak. If anyone dared defy her, she'd jab them with a compass.
This was beyond being aloof or tsundere. It was just plain absurd.
"Hey, Beihai, what would you do about those three who are going to fail?
"I've already given up on them studying hard for the upcoming exam. There isn't enough time, and they're already failing."
"Are you really that worried it'll affect you? Is it because they might get expelled?"
Beihai found that strange. Even if they got expelled, it shouldn't affect anyone else—especially not this guy, who could control his scores.
In a regular exam, unless he deliberately bombed it because he'd lost his mind and wanted to get expelled, Beihai couldn't imagine anyone being able to threaten him in that regard.
Kiyotaka Kiyotaka didn't hide anything. He simply nodded and admitted it, because he knew there was no point hiding things from Beihai.
Even if he was good at concealing things, a little interaction was all it took for Beihai to figure out most of what was going on. There was no need to waste the effort.
In fact, it was a relief not to put on an act and just be honest. And, of course, he knew what Beihai wanted.
They understood each other, and their insight into each other went both ways. Beihai had seen through him in every respect.
And he had seen through Beihai just as thoroughly. So he threw out a trump card Beihai wouldn't refuse.
"Tell me, and I'll teach you university-level material."
Beihai had been about to refuse, but he swallowed the words before they could come out. He figured they could talk about it, since all he had to do was explain his point of view.
"All right. Do you think Class D still has room to improve?
"You think they can't catch up if they start studying normally now. Then would you resort to underhanded tactics? You could cheat for them the first time, but what about the second or third?
"We're already at zero points. Even if they fail the exam and get expelled, that might only benefit the class as a whole.
"Even in the worst-case scenario, all that would happen is a deduction of Class Points. Those points affect the class's overall progress, but so what? They don't have negative points here.
"Think about it carefully. Those three aren't exactly easy to deal with. If you want to lead the class,
"this exam is the best chance to get rid of all the troublemakers at once.
"Once the class earns points, even if it's only a few, you'll be in for a hard time."
Kiyotaka Kiyotaka understood, of course. This was the perfect time to be ruthless and give the class a major shake-up. But those three were his friends, at least on the surface, and they still had some value.
The relationships he had with his friends in the class were already a complete mess, and he didn't want to lead the class to a higher level.
He genuinely didn't care what happened to the three. If they were saved, Horikita Suzune would be the one with a headache. It had been her decision, after all.
He had already made his choice about whether to let them stay or not.
"Enough. There wasn't much Marble Soda to begin with, and we've finished it. We should head upstairs and keep studying."
Beihai didn't sit around doing nothing. Unlike the person beside him, who was still lost in thought, he drank the rest of his Marble Soda one sip at a time.
Kiyotaka Kiyotaka picked up his soda and hurried after Beihai. Just after the two of them left in a rush, two people emerged from the alley behind the vending machine. They had quietly listened to everything.
"Did you hear that? You shouldn't have come here, and you still haven't dealt with your own problems."
Before you continue