The Mastermind Behind the Scenes, Starting from *Fullmetal Alchemist* Chapter 43

"Hey, Su Wei."

Just as Su Wei was considering whether to join the commotion, Ichinose Honami suddenly paused and spoke softly:

"I was thinking... since there is a 'random selection' mechanism, and this person is essentially an extra aid for our exam."

"Then, could we ignore individual needs and pool all the points we earn from hunting monsters together?"

"We could supply them to whoever needs them most, until every student dragged into this has enough points to exchange for a Combat Suit?"

Ichinose's eyes grew brighter as she spoke:

"That way, even if more people join the exam as an Intruder, they should be able to survive, right?"

After listening, Su Wei mercilessly burst this beautiful bubble.

"The idea is nice, but it's not very practical."

"Even without considering the selfishness of others besides the two of us, the point values of the monsters in these few exams simply can't support your 'big pot of rice' approach."

"There are too many wolves and too little meat; if you try to make everyone full, the only result will be that everyone starves to death."

Ichinose Honami lowered her eyes and fell into a long silence.

Taking advantage of this gap, Su Wei turned toward the bickering members of Class D and said:

"Horikita."

"What would it hurt to let them participate once?"

Horikita Suzune frowned, just about to retort.

Su Wei continued: "I think that once they truly face a life-or-death crisis... they won't be fighting you for this spot anymore."

Faced with such harsh remarks.

Chabashira Sae cast an intrigued glance at Su Wei but did not step in to stop him, as if she were watching a good show.

On the contrary, the "problem trio" she had treated as air instantly reacted.

"Huh?!"

Sudo Ken violently rolled up his sleeves: "You bastard, are you looking down on us?!"

"Since it's for the sake of the class, why does Horikita have to go every time? Am I not a part of Class D too?" Yamauchi Haruki chimed in.

Horikita Suzune took another deep look at Su Wei and finally compromised.

Although she valued honor and recognition above all else, she also understood that blindly blocking them would only make these idiots think she was hogging the benefits for herself.

"Fine."

Horikita Suzune stepped aside, her voice cold:

"Since you insist so much. You can have the spot this time. I hope you can keep your word and achieve a better ranking than I did."

"Heh! Why didn't you just say that earlier!"

Yamauchi Haruki clicked his tongue triumphantly: "Saying things like that, who are you looking down on? Do you really think we'll lose the first-place spot?"

Ike Kanji, however, sensed something was wrong. He tugged on Yamauchi Haruki's sleeve and whispered:

"Hey, Yamauchi... I don't think the information Hirata gave us is fake... Even though that guy Su Wei talks harshly, he doesn't seem to have a reason to lie to us... We should probably tone it down."

Yamauchi Haruki was actually nervous inside.

But in front of the girls in the class, especially the girls' leader Karuizawa Kei, he absolutely could not admit defeat to Horikita Suzune.

He stiffened his neck and snorted: "What are you afraid of! Sudo, you go! I believe you're definitely stronger than these girls!"

Sudo Ken scratched his head.

Things had reached this point, and being roasted on the fire, he had no way out.

"I'll do it! Who's afraid of who!"

He strode up to Chabashira Sae: "Teacher! I want to sign up!"

His cronies let out a cheer, but it failed to elicit any agreement from the girls.

Karuizawa Kei held her forehead, looking desperate: "I have a feeling this is going to end badly... Can we really not wait for Hirata and the others to come back before making a decision?"

Beside her, Matsushita Chiaki keenly noticed the same black material under Su Wei's sleeve as the one Ichinose wore. She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything, merely nodding in agreement:

"I hope we don't get points deducted like Class C... I don't have many left, and I still wanted to buy some cosmetics."

"Ha—!"

Sudo Ken exhaled again.

But before he could even get a few harsh words out, someone pointed at his feet in horror:

"Sudo... you, why are you disappearing?!"

"Huh?"

Sudo Ken was stunned. He looked down and saw that the blue scanning light had already spread to his ankles: "Wait, what's happening to me?"

"Once Teacher Chabashira submits the names and the tally is complete, the Black Sphere exam naturally begins."

Horikita Suzune said coldly, "You don't actually think you'll be walking to the exam venue yourself, do you?"

At this moment, some busybodies noticed something was off.

"I see, Ichinose from Class B is like this too, so she's participating in the exam... But why is Shiranami Chihiro from her class the same? And Su Wei?"

Hearing the name Su Wei, Horikita Suzune glanced over.

Watching Su Wei get swallowed by the blue light right after Ichinose Honami, she merely sneered, too lazy to offer any explanation.

In any case, since Kushida Kikyo was a "participant" and loved to be in the spotlight, she could be the one to explain it.

She didn't have the time to waste.

After all, staying with idiots for too long really would lower one's own intelligence.

As the dizziness receded.

When Ichinose Honami opened her eyes again and adjusted to the shift in perspective, she hurriedly turned her head to look around, wanting to find that unlucky person who had been randomly selected—

The first thing that came into view was the Class A group.

Besides the bald Katsuragi Kohei, Sakayanagi Arisu was sitting on the ground, puffing out her cheeks and pursing her lips, looking as if she were sulking.

And beside her...

"Kamuro-san?" Ichinose was somewhat surprised.

Kamuro Masumi had an "I want to die" expression on her face, standing blankly in place.

Clearly, although Sakayanagi Arisu had kept her promise not to force her, the Black Sphere had not let her off.

The others: Ryuen Kakeru, Shiina Hiyori, Su Wei, Sudo Ken, and Shiranami Chihiro.

These were all within expectations.

What truly left Ichinose stunned was the man standing in the corner, curiously examining his surroundings.

"Kanzaki-san?!"

Ichinose Honami couldn't help but exclaim in surprise:

"Why are you here... Could it be because of the test?"

Hearing the call, Kanzaki Ryuji turned around.

Seeing Ichinose, his expression softened slightly:

"In the test just now, I reached a deal with Ayanokoji and the others."

"On the condition of disclosing the winner's information and protecting them in future exams... I became the sole 'winner'."

Speaking of this, he paused:

"Although the first condition, the so-called 'disclosing information,' is already practically non-existent."

"But I believe I still have a responsibility to fulfill the other conditions I promised."

"Therefore."

"Among the S Points, the exemption from two Class B intrusion rights, and the special quota for participating in the selection..."

"I chose to participate, and... to obtain some information regarding the hidden monsters of this exam."

Chapter 38: Using Martial Arts Instead of Guns?

"S Points, exemption from intrusion rights, and information on hidden monsters... This reward is being a bit too generous, isn't it?" Ryuen Kakeru raised an eyebrow.

Before Kanzaki Ryuji could respond, Shiina Hiyori spoke up at the right moment:

"Three rewards to choose from. If the outcome is decided by violence, even if the other three students forced to intrude are mentally prepared, I'm afraid their chances of survival upon entering the exam venue would be very slim..."

"Trading three people's lives for one winner; I don't think this reward is too excessive."

Kanzaki Ryuji had no intention of hiding anything, briefly explaining the game theory rules of the 'Wolf and Sheep Game' from the preliminary test.

After hearing the description, Ichinose Honami was thoughtful:

"As Shiina-san said, during the last exam, we barely managed to rescue three students even after rushing. If we were thrown directly into that pile of monsters while exhausted... I'm afraid few would survive."

"You've really worked hard, Kanzaki-san."

"My plan's success ultimately relied on the prestige you built, Ichinose..."

Kanzaki Ryuji shook his head with a wry smile, just about to say something humble.

Sudo Ken, who had been unable to contain himself, suddenly squeezed over.

"Wait, wait, wait!"

He interrupted Kanzaki with an excited face:

"That means you have information on the hidden monsters for this exam right now?!"

"Holy crap, doesn't that mean we've got an all-seeing eye now? We're going to take off, woo-hoo!"

Ryuen Kakeru glanced at this fool who didn't know how to fear death, closing his eyes as if too lazy to bother with an idiot.

Katsuragi Kohei, on the other hand, crossed his arms over his chest and took the initiative to offer a reminder:

"Given Ichinose and her group's stance, it is indeed unlikely they would conceal information... but assuming that having information guarantees success is not a good thing."

"Information is merely a reference; reality changes in an instant. Over-reliance on it will only invite disaster."

"Tch, nag."

Sudo Ken curled his lip in disdain and rolled up his sleeve to show off his bicep:

"Who are you looking down on? I might not be good at exams, but fighting... heh! I'm a professional!"

Withdrawing his gaze from this vapid farce, Su Wei turned his head to look at Sakayanagi Arisu, who was still slumped on the ground in a rather unladylike fashion.

He sighed and reached out a hand:

"I'm telling you, this can't go on like this. Why don't you ask the Black Sphere if you can use points to buy special permission to bring a cane into the exam hall?"

Sakayanagi Arisu shot him an annoyed glare, yet she still naturally took his hand to pull herself up.

"And whose fault do you think this is?"

The young girl smoothed out her disheveled skirt, her tone lingering and melancholic:

"I had already prepared to come find you to discuss a strategy the moment I learned there would be a preliminary test. And the result? I discovered you had run off to have a secret meeting with Ichinose."

"I waited and waited, until the flowers withered. Then I looked again, and well, your secret meeting was over, and there was no time left. What was I supposed to do?"

"Being forcibly teleported under such circumstances, it wasn't as if I could have dragged Kamuro along by force... wouldn't you agree?"

As she spoke, the girl's eyes grew increasingly resentful. She first glanced at the unfortunate Kamuro Masumi, then fixed her gaze on Su Wei's face, attempting to discern more expression.

Su Wei remained as indifferent as ever, showing no intention of taking the bait.