The Mastermind Behind the Scenes, Starting with *The Fruit of Grisaia*

"Tsk."

Sakayanagi Arisu pursed her lips in dissatisfaction, taking the opportunity to vent her annoyance on a certain someone:

"Isn't that obvious, Classmate Ryuen?"

"Without a certain violent maniac who only knows how to charge in brainlessly, we managed to have 'everyone survive' and clear the stage perfectly."

Ryuen Kakeru raised an eyebrow.

He climbed up from the floor, stretched his waist—which had been restored to existence—and couldn't help but sneer:

"Stop trying to gild your own lily. Looking at that sickly appearance of yours, anyone can tell the hero wasn't you."

"Likewise."

Sakayanagi Arisu didn't yield an inch, elegantly smoothing out her disheveled skirt:

"Then, through simple variable control, Classmate Ryuen, who do you think was the biggest problem in this exam? And who acted like a clown by throwing away their life right at the start?"

The air between the two grew thick with hostility.

Kushida Kikyo and Ichinose Honami, however, were in no mood to jump in and play peacemaker.

The two girls remained immersed in the lingering aftermath of what had just transpired.

Even though reason told them that everyone possessed "three lives," and even though Ryuen Kakeru was standing right there in the flesh.

The sight of blood spraying and a person being torn apart alive had completely shattered the worldview they had built over the last sixteen years.

Fortunately, those who could enter this school were, after all, no ordinary people.

After a brief silence and emotional release, their reason gradually returned to the forefront.

"Since the exam is over..."

Ichinose suppressed the unease in her heart, walked to the center of the room, and tentatively reached out to touch the black sphere's screen.

"Are we... allowed to leave now?"

"There's also the scoring."

As she touched it, ripples spread across the surface of the black sphere.

Familiar white text emerged:

[Since you have all returned alive, let the scoring begin.]

"Scoring?"

Kushida Kikyo also leaned in, curious despite her lingering fear.

"By the way, do we count as having zero points for this exam? After all, that monster was killed by Classmate Su Wei, right?"

As she said this, she looked toward Su Wei.

As Kushida's voice trailed off, the black sphere seemed to respond to her expectation:

[Ichinose Honami: 0 points.]

[Kushida Kikyo: 0 points.]

[Comment: Aside from screaming and trembling, were you acting as mascots at the convenience store entrance? Try harder next time; don't become worthless vases.]

Seeing the mercilessly sharp-tongued evaluation, the cheeks of both girls turned bright red, feeling both ashamed and unable to refute it.

Immediately, the screen changed.

[Ryuen Kakeru: 0 points]

[Comment: Commendable courage, but lacking in brains. Even if you are going to act as a meat shield, please try to last a little longer. You still have two more chances to waste your life, so cherish them, you brute.]

"Tsk."

Ryuen Kakeru clicked his tongue, though he didn't bother to argue back.

"Since Classmate Ryuen has no points..."

Su Wei spoke up at the right moment, breaking the awkward atmosphere.

"Then, we only need to see if Classmate Sakayanagi has any points to determine the judgment mechanism of this exam."

"Whether it's based on 'contribution points' or 'kill points'."

"I am quite curious myself."

Sakayanagi Arisu sat on the floor and suddenly reached out toward Su Wei.

Under his slightly puzzled gaze, Sakayanagi put on a pitiful yet beautiful, childish expression:

"I'm sure you've seen it; I have a congenital heart condition and my legs are weak."

"The battle just now exhausted my stamina... I think that should be quite obvious, right? Or is Classmate Su Wei going to heartlessly refuse the small request of a sickly girl?"

Su Wei raised an eyebrow.

He had to admit, just based on Sakayanagi Arisu's face, even knowing she was pretending, the destructive power was still astonishing.

He took hold of Sakayanagi's hand:

"I had assumed your legs had been healed along with your injuries."

After steadying herself by leaning on Su Wei's arm, Sakayanagi Arisu lightly covered her chest with one hand, looking somewhat regretful:

"I can feel that my body is much lighter, and the wounds no longer hurt. But it seems GANTZ is not as merciful as you had hoped."

As she spoke, she stopped dwelling on it and turned her gaze toward the black sphere:

"Then, let us go and verify your hypothesis, Classmate Su Wei~"

Ichinose Honami noticed the movement between the two and carefully stepped aside to clear their line of sight.

On the screen of the black sphere, text flickered once more.

[Sakayanagi Arisu: 0 points]

[Evaluation: For a disabled person, that shot was passable. But that is all.]

It was still zero points.

Finally, the screen settled on Su Wei's name.

[Su Wei: 3 points]

[Cumulative score: 3 points]

[Evaluation: Whether it is luck or strength, only those who survive are qualified to be evaluated. Keep it up; you are 97 points away from freedom.]

Seeing the numbers on the screen, the room fell into a brief silence.

"Such a dangerous monster, and it's only worth three points?"

"If we follow what the black sphere said earlier about a one-to-ten conversion rate for class points... that would mean thirty points, right?" Ichinose Honami said.

"The problem now is that we still don't know the true value of these 'class points,' do we?"

Sakayanagi Arisu leaned against Su Wei's arm, seemingly treating him as a human crutch, and interjected in a leisurely tone:

"Though one can guess that it is highly likely linked to our future class rankings..."

"If S-Points can truly be exchanged for class points!"

Kushida Kikyou's eyes lit up, her tone carrying undisguised joy:

"Doesn't that mean our Class D is already a step ahead? And there are two of us..."

"Naive."

Ryuen Kakeru interrupted Kushida's fantasy without mercy:

"It looks like a benefit for the bottom-tier classes, sure. But for points that clearly hold such high value at a glance, who says they must be contributed to the class?"

He stared intensely at Su Wei:

"Furthermore, even if converted to class points, it's only thirty. Without the school announcing the rules, who knows if it's a hundred-point scale or a thousand-point scale? Only an idiot would waste points for such petty gains!"

"What do you think?"

Clearly, he was curious about how this previously invisible background character from Class D would choose.

Sakayanagi Arisu also tilted her head slightly, as if wanting to observe the man's micro-expressions up close.

Under the gaze of the others, Su Wei paused for half a second:

"I'll hold onto them for now."

"We can use the weapons for free right now, but who knows about later? What if, once we become veterans, we are required to spend points to purchase ammunition or repair equipment?"

It was an impeccable reason.

Upon hearing this, Kushida Kikyou nodded repeatedly in agreement. As if she had thought of something, her tone suddenly became somewhat urgent:

"That's right! Didn't the black sphere say points could be used to redeem one's own life? Perhaps one hundred points is that threshold!"

"As long as we save up enough, maybe it could exempt us from these terrifying exam summons until graduation..."

Having said that, she remembered the physically frail Sakayanagi beside them and added:

"Perhaps it could even repair physical injuries? Like Classmate Sakayanagi's heart condition..."

"After all, this is a place where even lives can be resurrected at will; surely spending a few points to buy good health isn't a difficult task? If we have to team up for exams in the future, a healthy teammate..."

"Stop right there."

Ryuen Kakeru waved his hand impatiently:

"Deal with future matters in the future. Who knows if it will even be these same people next time?"

"What if it's organized by class in the future?"

"For those of us who aren't in Class A, isn't it a huge blessing that this crippled princess remains in this half-dead state?"

These words were nothing short of naked malice, not even bothering to pretend otherwise.

Ichinose frowned slightly, seemingly wanting to refute Ryuen's overly cynical remarks, but seeing Sakayanagi's indifferent smile, she swallowed the words back.

Sakayanagi Arisu smiled faintly.

Her gaze drifted past the crowd toward the door, which had silently swung open at some unknown moment, and she spoke in a soft voice:

"Rather than these pointless arguments, I believe our top priority right now should be to confirm our current situation, don't you think?"

"For instance... contacting the friends who were by our sides at the time to verify how long we have been missing from reality."

"Ah! Right! My phone!"

Honami Ichinose snapped out of her daze and hurriedly pulled her phone from her pocket.

The "No Service" indicator that had been displayed before was now replaced by full signal bars pulsing on the screen.

"There's a signal! Um, why don't we all exchange contact information? It would make sharing intelligence easier in the future, right?"

No one rejected this proposal.

In a life-or-death game like this, even the dullest person understood the importance of sharing information.

The group quickly exchanged phone numbers and email addresses.

Once that was finished, Arisu Sakayanagi gave a slight nod and put her phone away.

Then, she suddenly turned her head toward Kikyo Kushida, lowering her eyes and her tone:

"Kushida-san, as you can see, my physical condition makes it difficult for me to walk back to the dormitory on my own."

"So, would it be possible to borrow Su Wei from your class for a moment to see me back?"

"Eh?"

Kikyo Kushida instinctively glanced at Su Wei, then immediately beamed, reverting to her usual energetic self:

"Of course, no problem! Helping each other out is only natural, right~"

"..."

Su Wei watched the two women who had reached an agreement all on their own and let out a helpless sigh.