The Warm, Happy Feeling of a Family / Hoshino En's Plan, Conflict Erupts
Then, the interrupted emotions surged up again, and this time Shiranami Chihiro threw herself into Hoshino En's arms, one hand around his shoulder and the other around Ichinose Honami's other arm, and began to wail uncontrollably.
Hoshino En: "..."
Why are you hugging me? Shouldn't you be hugging Ichinose?
He and Ichinose Honami exchanged a glance, and both shrugged helplessly.
"Chihiro-chan, this isn't your fault..."
"Shiranami, it's just an exam, nothing to worry about..."
The two of them went together, comforting this delicate, weeping Little White Flower as if it were their own daughter.
First Semester of First Year:
Chapters 167 and 158: A harmonious and joyful atmosphere, like a family.
Shiranami Chihiro's renewed crying unsurprisingly caught the attention of another key member of Class B, who in turn unsurprisingly discovered the man Shiranami Chihiro was leaning on.
"Hoshino —why are you here??"
Ryuji Kanzaki walked over with a hostile expression, looking at Enishi Hoshino, who was "embracing two women," with a gloomy face.
Ever since their parting at the library, he had already discovered this man's "scumbag" nature, and he never expected that he would now extend his clutches to their Class B.
"Let go of Shiranami and Ichinose! If you want to find women, go look in Class A, Class C, or even your Class D. The girls in Class B aren't for a scumbag like you to mess with!!!"
His offhand accusation and unreasonable misunderstanding startled Hoshino En for a moment.
What could possibly be the reason this guy has such a strong prejudice against him?
"Kanzaki, did I do something to upset you? Why do I feel like you have a lot of complaints about me?"
"Also, Shiranami, loosen your grip a little. It's fine to cry, but don't get your snot on my clothes."
Hoshino En glanced down again at Shiranami Chihiro, who was still clinging to her.
His question immediately stopped Shiranami Chihiro's crying.
Immediately afterwards, she moved the hand that was holding Ichinose Honami over, and together with the other hand that was originally on Hoshino En, she tightly pressed Hoshino En's body in front of her, and then—
Hmph--
She used Hoshino En Emi's clothes as a tissue, letting out a torrent of nasal secretions caused by excessive self-blame.
Then, she quickly left Hoshino En's embrace, turned and threw herself into Ichinose Honami's arms, making a face at the disgusted Hoshino En.
"Hehehehehe--"
Hoshino En: "..."
This rebellious little girl does exactly what the adults tell her not to do; she's definitely not grown up yet.
However, since she's in the mood to do this, she probably won't cry anymore, right?
"Ichinose, get me some paper."
"Oh!" Si
Ichinose Honami set Shiranami Chihiro aside, took some tissues from her pocket, and used them to wipe the dirt off Hoshino En Hoshino's chest.
While wiping, she apologized to him on behalf of Shiranami Chihiro.
"I'm sorry, Hoshino-kun, Chihiro-chan lost her temper because of the Key Card. I hope you won't take it to heart."
"It's alright, I've always been very lenient with children."
"Who are you calling a child?!"
Hearing him say that, Shiranami Chihiro was displeased.
She's Little White Flower who softens up to everyone, but she's surprisingly tough when it comes to Hoshino En.
"Whoever answers is a child~"
"You--"
"Alright, alright, stop arguing!!"
Ichinose Honami stopped the two from arguing again.
Watching the three of them getting along so well, like a family, Kanzaki Ryuji suddenly felt a sense of absurdity: Why did he feel like he was the one who was superfluous here? He was supposed to be a member of Class B, Hoshino was the odd one out from the other class!
Despite the bickering, under Ichinose Honami's guidance, the topic eventually returned to the matter of the "Key Card being stolen".
Even when facing Hoshino En, the delicate Momoka couldn't muster any strength when this topic came up.
Kind Little Angel can intensify the guilt they feel for their own mistakes.
But what Hoshino En next immediately cheered her up.
"The stolen Key Card is indeed a serious problem, but even so, you still have ways to turn things around."
"Do you have any ideas on how to fix this?"
Shiranami Chihiro immediately darted in front of Hoshino En, looking at him with hopeful eyes.
"Of course there's a solution, you just need to change the 'Leader'."
"Changing the 'Leader'... is such a thing even possible?"
Ichinose Honami raised a question.
"Doesn't the school rule say 'No change of Leader is allowed without a valid reason'? Then--"
"So, all you need to do is create a 'legitimate reason'."
Hoshino En looked at the Little White Flower, her eyes fixed on her gaze.
"Shiranami, are you prepared to sacrifice yourself for the class?"
"That's for sure!!"
Shiranami Chihiro looked back at him with the same expression and said decisively.
"So--"
"Wait! Wait!!"
Ichinose Honami shielded Shiranami Chihiro behind her, her face displaying the serious expression characteristic of someone acting as the class representative.
"Hoshino-kun, please explain your plan clearly, including all the pros and cons—of course, I will reward you; but if your plan is to use us against other classes, then please forgive me for refusing."
"Exactly! And didn't your Class D not give up on the exam? Well, for the sake of fairness in the class competition, you, from another class, should just leave!"
Kanzaki Ryuji also seized the opportunity to chime in.
To be honest, he didn't think Hoshino En would come up with any good ideas for them. His thoughts coincided with Ichinose Honami's uneasy guess— Hoshino might be trying to lure them into action for his own benefit!
The current losses are still within their acceptable range, but if they adopt Hoshino En's method and it turns out to be unreliable, they will not only suffer losses because the "Leader" was guessed correctly, but they may also have to pay a new price for his unreliable method.
They are kind, not foolish, and they haven't reached the point where they are "being treated as innocent victims and slaughtered without even realizing it."
Ichinose's refusal was within Hoshino En's expectations. Ichinose, Ichinose was the class representative, and if her personal relationships affected her judgment of the overall situation, then Hoshino En would have to reconsider her value.
However, as he stated before, he was really just here to have fun, so he didn't care about any compensation today.
He could even compromise again.
"Then I'll give you some intelligence first— Class A and Class C have joined forces. Your class's 'Leader' Key Card has been stolen by Class C, and Class A will also know this news."
"When the exam ends on the last day, you will lose 100 points because the 'Leader' was guessed correctly. Oh, and that also includes the points earned from checking in at the outposts over the past few days."
"Oh, right, there's one more thing. Class D already knew about your class's 'Leader' two days ago, so to be precise, you'll be losing half of your Exam Points, which is 150 points."
"Of the remaining 150 points, because of your class's cooperation with me, 120 points belong to me. So, your actual gain this time is only 30 points. Do you think this return is worthwhile?"
"How could this be...?" / "You must be joking..."
Class B clearly hadn't known about this beforehand. Ichinose Honami and Kanzaki Ryuji showed expressions of shock, while Shiranami Chihiro was also speechless with astonishment.
Putting aside how Class D found out about their class's "leadership searcher" identity, the fact that Class A and Class C joined forces is enough to give Little White Flower some food for thought.
She didn't understand why the top students in Class A Student Council agree to cooperate with Class C.
"It's not just Class B; Class A has also been harassed by students from Class C on multiple occasions. Why are they still willing to cooperate with Class C?"
"It's because of interests, Little Shiranami. A-Sho offered enough benefits to sway Katsuragi, which is why Katsuragi disregarded past grievances and reached a cooperation agreement with him."
Katsuragi? A-Sho?!!
Hoshino En's drastically different ways of addressing the class representatives of the two classes once again caught Kanzaki Ryuji's attention.
The fact that Hoshino addresses Ryuen Kakeru of Class C so affectionately shows that he's just like that guy!
No, I can't let Ichinose be fooled by this guy!!
He decided that no matter what proposal Hoshino En made later, he would firmly stand against it!
First Semester of First Year:
Chapters 168 and 159: Hoshino En's Method, Conflict Arises
"Ichinose, you want to hear the details? No problem! I won't even ask you to pay me. After all, Little Shiranami is my friend, and I can't bear to see her stay depressed because of this."
As she spoke, Hoshino En subconsciously ruffled the Little White Flower's bob haircut, a gesture so natural that it left the three members of Class B stunned.
The three didn't react, so Hoshino En took that as confirmation of his statement and explained to them, "The only way for you to get out of this predicament right now is to 'change the Leader,' but according to the rules of this exam, you need to come up with a 'legitimate reason' that can convince the school."
"But the school also has a rule: 'If a student has obvious physical discomfort or serious injury and is deemed by the school to be unable to continue the exam, 30 Exam Points will be deducted.'"
"Therefore, if the class's 'Leader' has to withdraw from the exam because of this rule, wouldn't it be logical to change the Leader?"
"So, Shiranami-- "
Hoshino En looked at the Little White Flower under her palm, her gentle gaze fixed on the girl's eyes.
Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for the class?
"As long as you get a minor bump or fall, or catch a cold or fever from a cold shower, you can easily make up for your mistake of 'not watching the Key Card properly,' and save the whole class from a loss of 150 Exam Points with a mere 30 Exam Points."
"Moreover, even if this method doesn't work, you can calmly say 'I've done my best,' and that way, even if others in Class B have opinions about your mistake, they will eventually forgive you."
"Are you prepared for this?"
Hoshino En's explanations, one after another, were like heavy hammer blows, striking Shiranami Chihiro's heart one after another, and also striking Ichinose Honami and Kanzaki Ryuji who were listening in.
Despite his resolute stance, Kanzaki Ryuji hesitated upon hearing Hoshino En's suggestion.
The difference between 30 and 150 is the difference of 12,000 Private Points per person per month. If all 40 people accumulate this number of points, their class can accumulate an extra 480,000 points per month, and nearly 6 million points per year.
Adding to the points they were already accumulating, they might be able to save the nation's fortune of 20 million in just over a year.
This is no small sum; it's the price to pay.
"No way! If it has to be at the cost of Chihiro-chan's safety, then I'd rather give up these extra 120 Exam Points!"
Upon realizing what was happening Ichinose Honami quickly refused.
The voluptuous young woman stared intently at the bewitching villain, her eyes burning as if with flames.
"Points can be earned again, but we cannot put our companions' health and safety at stake."
"Honami-chan..."
Ichinose Honami's words deeply moved the innocent-looking Little White Flower. Looking at her "older sister," her eyes, already flushed, welled up with tears again, as if she were about to throw herself into her arms at any moment.
"That's right!"
Ichinose Honami's declaration solidified Kanzaki Ryuji's resolve.
Some things can never be touched. Once you cross the line, the principles you once used to restrain yourself will become a tempting devil, causing you to break the rules again and again.
"No matter what, we in Class B will absolutely not condone trading our comrades' safety for personal gain!!"
He looked at Hoshino En, his wariness deepening once more.
"Hoshino -kun, thank you for the information and for your suggestion, but Class B will absolutely not agree to such a thing, even if we get nothing from this exam."
"Shouldn't you discuss it with the other classmates?"
"I believe everyone will make the same decision as us."
Wow, so decisive?
That's true. After all, it's a class made up of "unity," so naturally no one would want to see a classmate sacrifice for the class.