Ripples After the Midterm Exam (2)

"Then what do you think of his philosophy?" Horikita Manabu chose to probe here to see exactly how much Kitahara knew and to determine which side he stood on.

Fully aware of Horikita Manabu's intentions, Kitahara "honestly" replied, "Uh... what is his philosophy?"

Watching the blank look on Kitahara's face, Horikita Manabu narrowed his eyes slightly.

He pondered to himself whether Kitahara was truly ignorant or just playing dumb.

"He advocates for absolute individual meritocracy, meaning he doesn't care about so-called class competition."

"Oh, is that really what he thinks? But if individual meritocracy is above all else, shouldn't that go against the philosophy proposed by the school?"

"Yes, that's correct. The school does have concerns in that regard, but currently, the entire second year is basically under his control."

"Is that so? But is his ability really that strong? To be able to control an entire grade level," Kitahara said, feigning surprise.

Seeing the shock in Kitahara's eyes, Horikita already mostly believed that he likely didn't know many specific details, only that there was a rivalry between Nagumo Miyabi and himself.

"That's right, his ability is indeed outstanding; otherwise, I wouldn't have chosen him to join the student council back then."

"Uh, so the culprit behind this current situation is actually you," Kitahara said, wearing a look of realization.

Horikita rubbed his forehead and said speechlessly, "Indeed, from that perspective, it is indeed my responsibility."

"So, what is your decision?" Horikita pressed, his tone deepening.

Sometimes, Kitahara found it quite speechless; he hadn't expected Horikita to be so serious—he was carved from the same mold as his younger sister.

"Ahem, President Horikita, you don't actually need to probe me like this. If I were on Nagumo Miyabi's side, would I still be here making a secret deal with you?"

Upon hearing this, Horikita eased his stern expression and said, "Start explaining the deal you want to make now."

Oh yeah, finally back to the original topic. That was not easy at all.

Kitahara cleared his throat and said, "President, do you want to cause trouble for him in this upcoming exam?"

"Hmm? Trouble? This exam doesn't affect other grade levels at all," Horikita replied.

"No, President, that's not necessarily true," Kitahara said with a meaningful smile.

"Heh, then what method do you have to influence him?" Horikita asked with an interested look.

"Ahem, before that, I must ask President-sama to first..."

"..."

Horikita looked speechlessly at Kitahara, who was reaching out his hand to ask for points.

"You haven't even said anything yet, and you're already counting your chickens before they hatch."

"Isn't that just because I'm afraid of affecting our relationship?" Kitahara continued shamelessly.

"Heh, then how many points do you want?"

"Sigh, not much, just 2 million points," Kitahara said, waving his hand.

"Is that so? Then we'll see if you have the ability to swallow them," Horikita nodded, effectively agreeing to the price.

"Rest assured, President, I definitely won't let you down," Kitahara replied with a confident look.

"By the way, President, how is your control over the third year?"

"..."

"What do you mean by asking that?"

"It's just that I need you all to cooperate... it's such a simple matter, surely President Horikita can manage that?"

"That, I might actually be unable to do, because I can only ensure that my own class is absolutely obedient," President Horikita said awkwardly.

"..."

Kitahara fell silent. He hadn't expected that Horikita Manabu, as the student council president, could only control one class—and his own at that.

"..."

"Actually, that's not very important. What matters is, do you have any of your own people planted in the second year?"

"Hmm, as for that, I do have a few people."

"That's good. In that case, we can drag him into the water," Kitahara explained to Horikita:

"President, what do you think would happen if a piece of information that had been hidden in the dark were suddenly exposed?" Before Horikita Manabu could respond, Kitahara continued:

"Just as we discussed in the conference room, the school might tolerate such methods but would never let them be exposed. Once they are exposed, what do you think will happen to the person who committed such acts?"

"Clearly, the school won't let this matter slide easily. It will signal the student council to issue appropriate punishments."

"..." After a brief moment of contemplation, Horikita Manabu said, "According to what you've said, we could only punish the few individuals involved; it wouldn't affect Nagumo Miyabi."

"Heh, President, have you forgotten the current state of the second year we mentioned earlier?"

"With Nagumo Miyabi as the controller of the second year, regardless of whether he knew he was being set up or not, given the school's current attitude toward him, do you think they would pass up such an opportunity to knock him down a peg?"

Hearing Kitahara's reasoning, Horikita already understood his plan. At the same time, he was very clear that the school would definitely take this opportunity to strike. As for which class in the second year would win the 'prize,' that would depend on fate.

Watching Horikita's state, Kitahara knew clearly that he had already made his decision.

"Ahem, well, President-sama, do you think my plan can meet your expectations?"

Horikita looked at the smug Kitahara before him, never expecting such a simple strategy to be so unexpectedly effective.

Feeling as though he had been taken advantage of, Horikita Manabu had no choice but to agree to his terms.

Upon hearing the definitive answer, Kitahara said happily, "Then many thanks for the President's generosity."

As he spoke, he opened his student terminal, his intentions blindingly obvious.

"Heh, I will hand over those points once the midterm exams are over."

"Why not now? Are you still worried about something?"

"Heh, consider this the price for deceiving me just now!" Horikita Manabu flashed a triumphant smile.

"..." Kitahara stared at him, wondering how he had discovered the deception; hadn't he already trusted him just a moment ago?

But as Kitahara recalled the content of what he had just said, he quickly realized why.

The plan he had proposed already incorporated the information the President had introduced, but that plan had been conceived beforehand—at a time when, according to Horikita Manabu's perception, he shouldn't have known anything about it.

So that was why he said I deceived him?

[Damn it, I should have just admitted I knew all the inside information when I was explaining it earlier; otherwise, I wouldn't be in this situation now.]

Sensing Kitahara's frustration, the corners of Horikita Manabu's mouth curled up into a smile of "sweet revenge."

After all, he had been dealt blow after blow by Kitahara just moments ago.

"Alright, go and prepare yourself. Once you succeed, those points will be yours." Having said that, Horikita turned to leave.

But just as he was about to walk away, Kitahara's voice came from behind him.

"President, before you go, I have one more small question," Kitahara said with a "sinister" grin.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Ahem, well... President, logically speaking, you don't really have any reason to target Nagumo Miyabi, do you? After all, you're about to graduate, so what happens to the school afterward shouldn't concern you, right? So..."

Seeing that Horikita Manabu hadn't reacted yet, Kitahara pressed harder, continuing, "You actually want to protect your own sister, don't you? After all, given her personality, if she really followed his philosophy, then..." Kitahara didn't continue, as the outcome was already obvious.

Upon hearing this, Horikita still didn't respond, but Kitahara understood he was merely feigning composure as he watched his shoulders tremble slightly.

He continued, "I never expected that you, President Horikita, might seem harsh toward your sister, but you actually care about her quite a bit. You're quite the tsundere."

Hearing this, Horikita quickened his pace and left in a hurry.

Watching his retreating back, Kitahara chuckled and said, "Didn't see that coming, did you? I'm still the one who outplayed you. I couldn't handle you? Think again."

Just as Kitahara was basking in the glow of his victory, a voice drifted back from the direction Horikita Manabu had departed.

"Once you join the Student Council, I will personally 'tutor' you on how to handle official business."

Hearing this, the smile on Kitahara's face stiffened instantly; he hadn't expected retribution to arrive so quickly.