Sakayanagi's IF Route: A Smile Can Also Be Shown

"Has the leader been decided?"

"Hirata Yosuke."

The reply came remarkably fast.

Oreki thought to himself.

He hadn't been in contact with Karuizawa Kei for a long time.

Perhaps...

He had simply forgotten about it while he was with Sakayanagi Arisu.

But there was no need to dwell on it.

After all, his relationship with Karuizawa Kei was merely one of mutual utility.

"By the way, you and Sakayanagi are really close."

"Not sending a message for so long..."

"You definitely forgot about me, didn't you?"

Following that came a small complaint from Karuizawa Kei.

It had been about three or four days since they last spoke.

It was only natural for her to be angry.

Oreki ignored Karuizawa Kei's message.

After all...

Whenever the topic of Sakayanagi came up, he couldn't keep his cool.

This wouldn't do.

What he needed right now was the usual Houtarou Oreki.

Not someone who had lost his composure.

--＜100,000 points transferred＞

--?

--Last time I checked, you had less than 30,000 left. You must be short on money right now.

--That's true... but, I just feel! Never mind.

--Goodbye then.

--Eh? So soon? You could at least...

Oreki didn't read the rest.

He didn't have the time for it right now.

Hashimoto Masayoshi wrote the tallied votes on the blackboard.

Houtarou Oreki: 19 votes

Katsuragi Kohei: 2 votes

An overwhelming victory.

Although there were quite a few abstentions, it didn't have much of an impact.

"Hmm, it seems it's been decided. Oreki, you will serve as the leader."

"Understood."

"Very well. I'll leave the next hour to you all. By the way, if you're interested, take a look at who the other classes have chosen; it's never a bad idea to associate with capable people."

The homeroom teacher left after saying that.

It seemed he really didn't intend to interfere.

Should one call it confidence, or just laziness?

It didn't matter, though.

Delegating authority like this was the right move for someone like him.

...What a drag.

Even though he had been prepared for it.

Now that it was his turn to step up, Oreki still found it troublesome.

Not only that, it was also a bit awkward.

He didn't particularly enjoy standing in the center of attention, with so many people staring at him.

But for the sake of Sakayanagi Arisu.

Oreki finally stood up.

He walked to the front of the podium.

"Step one, guess the leaders of the other classes."

The room fell into a deathly silence.

No, it was more that many people's brains hadn't caught up yet.

A long while passed.

Finally, a boy tremblingly raised his hand.

"Please, go ahead."

"...Um, may I ask why we need to do this?"

"The reason is simple."

Oreki wrote a, b, c, and d on the blackboard.

Each represented one of the four classes.

There are generally two types of draws.

One is a numerical draw.

The four classes send three people up to take turns drawing.

Either odd numbers in one group, even numbers in another...

Or consecutive numbers in one group, non-consecutive in another...

In short, there are many, many methods.

But these methods all share one common point.

And that is...

Only three people are needed to draw.

That's right, there's no need for all four to go.

In other words, choosing three leaders is sufficient; there is no need to add an extra one.

Furthermore...

Was the leader specifically chosen just for the draw?

Impossible.

The homeroom teacher's words must have been intended to mislead the students.

The other type is a text-based draw.

There are many variations of this, but the most common...

Is to write down one's own class.

Then, four choose one to go draw.

The key lies in how that one is chosen.

That is the significance of the leader.

Suppose...

Each class has to guess the leaders of the other classes.

Then the class that guesses the most correctly gets to draw.

"I see..."

"That makes sense."

"It's a good thing we voted for Houtarou."

Seeing more and more people praising Oreki, Katsuragi couldn't help but stand up.

He voiced his own question.

"Why are you so certain?"

"Certain about what?"

"That there will definitely be a round for guessing leaders."

"What Mashima said before he left."

"What?"

"As I said, stupidity is a fault..."

Oreki sighed.

He didn't want to waste his breath on this.

But Katsuragi wasn't buying it.

"I am thinking of everyone's best interests."

"See who the leaders of the other classes are... Mashima just said that, didn't he?"

"So what if it is?"

"Why would Mashima, who is usually a man of few words, specifically emphasize that sentence? Could it really be because the leaders of the other classes are so exceptional?"

Oreki tapped the desk impatiently.

He continued:

"The answer is obvious."

"It isn't!"

"Since it isn't, there must be another reason, which means there will be a segment where we have to guess the leaders."

"Am I wrong?"

Katsuragi Kohei was left speechless by the retort.

He quickly sat down and remained silent.

It was obvious.

Oreki was right.

"Pfft..."

An undisguised laugh rang out.

It was Hashimoto Masayoshi.

Seeing Katsuragi get slapped in the face so hard, he felt great inside.

More than just great.

With Hashimoto Masayoshi starting it, the snickering gradually grew louder.

It seemed...

After this, Katsuragi Kohei's popularity would drop to an all-time low.

Conversely.

Those following Houtarou would only increase.

The unification of Class A was just around the corner.

"Quiet."

Upon hearing Oreki's command, those snickering quickly shut their mouths.

Yes, they had already defaulted to Oreki as the leader of Class A.

Not just for this weekly test.

For the first year...

No, perhaps for these three years, Oreki would be the leader of Class A.

Next was the time to assign personnel.

For liberal arts, Oreki would handle it himself.

For science...

Kamuro Masumi and Yamamura Miki, perhaps.

Although Kamuro Masumi was usually quite casual, she was actually decent when it came to academics.

The other one...

Was a girl with a single ponytail.

Her gaze was cold.

Combined with her thick bangs...

She gave off a feeling of keeping others at a distance.

Her strength was that she was very good at science.

"It's decided. Raise your hand if you have any objections."

Oreki waited quietly.

No one objected.

It seemed Katsuragi Kohei had no choice but to agree with his plan.

"If there are no objections, everyone prepare yourselves."

He walked down from the podium.

A half-hour meeting.

It was truly exhausting.

In the past, Oreki would never have done this.

Not even if he died.

It seems some things have changed, Oreki Houtarou.

A change made for the sake of someone?

Oreki returned to his seat.

A portion of the girls cast curious gazes toward him.

That makes sense.

When someone who usually has a low presence suddenly shines brightly, anyone would feel curious.

Though, it would be best if it were only curiosity.

Because...

The current Oreki would not fall for anyone.

Except for Sakayanagi Arisu.

Oreki picked up his phone; the mailbox he opened this time was not Karuizawa Kei.

It was Ichinose Honami.

--To be continue