Because We're Opponents, I Won't Show You All My Cards

"Boss, the announcement says the club fair starts at five this afternoon in the First Gymnasium."

Before long, Ishizaki and Albert returned to the Activity Room, carrying the Mountain Vegetable Set Meal.

"Let's go check out the fair together this afternoon. I haven't submitted the three of your application forms yet, in case there's something better suited to you."

I took the application forms Ryuen and the others had filled out yesterday from the drawer and laid them on the table.

"We should definitely go gather some information at the fair. Sudo was dominating the basketball court yesterday afternoon. If he chooses the Basketball Club, we'll be able to take action soon."

Ryuen looked at the information he'd compiled on the C Class students on his phone and began picking out suitable students to use as bait.

After school, Hiyori and I went to the Activity Room.

Classes ended at three, which meant the club fair wouldn't start for another two hours.

This time, instead of drinking tea and reading like before, I took the plum juice I'd brought with me and the writing materials I'd prepared out of my luggage.

I took out three paper cups, poured juice into them, then carefully sealed the bottle.

Meanwhile, Hiyori sat quietly by the desk, looking through the materials I'd organized.

I stayed silent too, waiting to hear what Hiyori thought of them.

"The stories jump around a little in time, but once you take the time to put them together, they form a very coherent story.

"A story made up of these tales would surely cause a sensation in society. Masaryu-kun, your understanding of Japan is truly penetrating."

This work really did have that kind of magic. It was as if it had a special appeal to Japanese readers, drawing them in and leaving them entranced. Hiyori's assessment was spot-on.

"In my mind, I've already pieced together the whole story, but I'm not satisfied with it as it stands. Still, as an outsider, it's hard for me to dig any deeper."

As I finished speaking, the door to the Activity Room creaked open.

"Masaryu-kun, are you ready to welcome me?"

The person who walked into the Activity Room was Sakayanagi.

"Looks like you got the wrong idea about what I did yesterday."

Yesterday, I'd tapped Sakayanagi on the head three times with her cane. Then, when returning it, I'd used the cane as the hour hand and Sakayanagi's hand as the clock face, turning time forward.

"Men who say one thing but mean another are disliked by girls, you know. I've read Journey to the West, hm?

"I recognize the taste of this juice. It's quite like the plum wine Father brought home that day. It seems Masaryu-kun is trying to clear things up for me."

Her tone was full of reproach. It seemed Sakayanagi was indirectly asking why I hadn't been more considerate of her.

That was understandable, since during lunch I'd specifically asked Ryuen and the others to set up a few minor obstacles in the Activity Room.

They wouldn't stop an ordinary person, but for Sakayanagi, they were practically impassable.

"Hiyori is much more considerate."

Still, the obstacles hadn't really had any effect on Sakayanagi, since Hiyori had brought her over to the desk by another route.

"Isn't there a rule against that in Japan? Are you allowed to drink?"

I was more interested in what Sakayanagi had said earlier. Plum juice and plum wine didn't taste all that different; the wine just had a little extra sugar, which covered up the tartness.

"Not exactly. Father had only just brought the wine back to the estate after the interview when Grandfather confiscated it. Then, well, it showed up on the dinner table that evening. Father only got a tiny sip, while Grandfather poured himself a full glass."

As if remembering something that made her happy, Sakayanagi leaned her cane against the desk, smiled, and spread her hands.

"What a sad story. If it were me, my elders would never know how much I'd stashed away."

I covered my face with one hand, doing my best not to laugh out loud.

No wonder Chairman Sakayanagi had kept drinking glass after glass during the interview that day. Once he took the wine home, it didn't belong to him anymore.

"If it were my father, he wouldn't dare touch alcohol without Mother's permission."

It seemed Hiyori's father had it even worse. The original story had only mentioned that Hiyori's father wrote detective novels, with no mention of her mother at all. It looked like there was quite a story there.

"Let's stop talking about this topic that's making me ha—making the chairman sad. There's a club fair this afternoon, isn't there? Is there a club you're interested in joining, Classmate Sakayanagi?"

The announcement said the fair started at five, but when Hiyori and I passed the First Gymnasium, we'd already seen lots of clubs setting up tents and arranging their materials.

"Oh? I've already cleaned out the Board Games Club in this building. I'm not interested in them. But right now, I'm interested in Masaryu-kun."

Just like Hiyori had earlier, Sakayanagi picked up the materials I'd left on the desk and began looking through them.

But before she'd arrived, I'd already put the latter half of the materials away in the drawer. I'd come up with a bold idea.

"Since we're friends, you don't want to go after that woman? Masaryu-kun must have more than just these pages, right?"

Sakayanagi smiled at me, intrigued.

"You could smile until flowers bloom, and I still wouldn't tell you what happens next. Since we're opponents, I won't reveal any more of my cards."

To carry out our points strategy, we had to maintain good relations with the other classes. In that regard, Class A, led by Sakayanagi, was quite a formidable rival.

Sakayanagi could sell off her class as if it were a commodity without batting an eye. That was incredibly tempting.

My plan for dealing with Sakayanagi was to keep her interested in me by continually giving a little and pulling back.

"What if I joined your club, Masaryu-kun? Would we still be opponents then?"

Sakayanagi was trying to glean more information from my words.

"From the moment I entered this school, Classmate Sakayanagi and I automatically became opponents. Unless something unexpected happens, we'll remain that way until I leave. After that, I'd be happy to become friends with you, Classmate Sakayanagi—if you're still willing then."

Ryuen and I were planning to seize the Sakayanagi Family's assets through our points strategy. Our hypothetical enemy was the school administration, and Sakayanagi could be counted among them. So, for now, we couldn't be friends.

That would only change once Road Tyrant had Tsukishiro take over the school. Then Sakayanagi and I would have interests in common, and our relationship could temporarily change.

"I think I understand Masaryu-kun and Ryuen-kun's plan now. You had a chance to lead C Class to a comeback and raise it to A Class in the first month, yet you threw it away. Instead, you're trying, against all reason, to preserve the other classes' Class Points.

"Ryuen-kun seems aggressive, but in reality, he's doing everything he can to force D Class onto the right path. I'm very interested in whether your plan will work."

Sakayanagi quickly picked out the key points in my words, understood the implications, and saw through Ryuen and my intentions.

It wasn't a big deal. I'd never thought a plan like this could stay hidden for long. There was no need to conceal an open strategy.