Earlier, they had stayed quiet out of concern that they might affect Shinohara and Sato's state of mind. Now that Shinohara was safe, the tension they had been holding and the guilt Kei felt had both eased.
"Mm-hmm, I wasn't expelled. Thank goodness I wasn't expelled!" Satsuki Shinohara, who had seemed rather decisive earlier, hurriedly hugged Matsushita and Kei, but she nearly burst into tears now.
Because that had been truly terrifying.
She had almost—almost been expelled.
"Ugh..." There really was someone crying now.
It was Sato.
Yes.
Sato had yet to draw a lot, meaning... she was still facing the risk of expulsion.
"L-let's leave it to luck." With no other option now, Shinohara could only offer that advice. "But if possible, it should be safer to draw as late as possible."
"Ugh... okay." Sato could only nod obediently.
All she could do now was wait.
Five of the fourteen balls had already been drawn: white, red, white, white, white. Nine balls remained, two of them red. This was brutal!
"Next!" Teacher Kogiso continued.
Thus, people from Group 17 finally began stepping up again.
But—
"W-why do I have to go first? I want to go later too!"
Though there was still some commotion, someone finally went up to the stage.
And the ball was—
"White ball. Safe!" the teacher announced.
"Yeah!" The student who had just been protesting immediately beamed.
But with him drawing a white ball, the risk of expulsion for everyone else increased once more.
Very soon—
The seventh person stepped up, then the eighth. Both drew white balls. But the ninth person... drew red!
A random girl B who had drawn the red ball burst into tears on the spot.
But she was no longer given the leeway to cry.
Since she was a girl,