Don’t panic!

  Kaneda Satoru reassured himself.

  He’s just some guy who made Ryūen-san suffer a few small losses. A mere nobody—not worth fearing…

  He mentally pumped himself up.

  And yet—

  The monster of Css B had nded on the shores of Rouen…

  The insatiable demon king, the vice president of the student council, marched toward Graz…

  The shameless and despicable Uesugi Gen entered Grenoble…

  The supreme leader of Css B arrived in his loyal Paris…

  As Uesugi stood before him, Kaneda quickly lowered his head, his face filled with despair.

  Nope. There’s no way. If even Ryūen-san couldn’t deal with him, what chance do I have?

  Seeing Uesugi approaching, Sumida—the one who had brought Kaneda back—spoke up.

  “Uh, Uesugi… He was apparently kicked out of Css C for going against Ryūen. He’s been camping outside ever since. I saw him yesterday, but he wouldn’t respond when I called him. Today, when I went to gather firewood, I found him again.”

  “He looked like he was in pretty bad shape. If this kept up, I was worried he wouldn’t make it, so I brought him back.”

  Hearing Sumida’s expnation, Uesugi turned to look at Kaneda.

  Instantly, Kaneda felt cold sweat pouring down his back.

  Say it, Kaneda! Say the lines you prepared!

  Under Uesugi’s gaze, Kaneda’s heart pounded like it was being struck by a sledgehammer.

  Finally—

  “…I appreciate your kindness, but I don’t need your css’s pity.”

  Kaneda lowered his head, slowly rising to his feet. His voice was hoarse but firm.

  “Our csses are rivals, aren’t they? My attempt to rebel against Ryūen failed, and now that Css C has spent all its points and withdrawn from the exam…”

  “But!”

  Kaneda lifted his head, his tone unwavering.

  “I will continue to participate in this exam on behalf of Css C. I will keep trying to guess the leaders of other csses to earn points.”

  “So I am still your enemy. If I stay in your camp, it will only increase the risk of exposing your leader.”

  “Forget about me. No matter what, I will see this exam through to the end.”

  At that moment, Kaneda overcame his fear of Uesugi and gave the performance of a lifetime—an image of a man burdened with the weight of his css’s fate.

  As soon as he finished, his entire body was drenched in sweat. If his clothes hadn’t already been damp, Uesugi probably would’ve noticed.

  He didn’t dare look at Uesugi’s expression. Instead, he turned away, pretending to pick up his bag, ready to leave.

  He was prepared for failure.

  Ryūen-san had told him—Uesugi will never let you into Css B’s camp.

  But that was fine. Over the next few days, he would "coincidentally" run into Css B students multiple times, pnting seeds of sympathy.

  Eventually, there would be a divide between those who wanted to let him stay and Uesugi, who insisted on kicking him out.

  Uesugi… I’ll make you experience what it’s like to be betrayed by your own css.

  Kaneda suppressed his excitement and kept his face neutral.

  Now… Just say the words and kick me out…

  But just as Kaneda was about to leave, Uesugi, who had remained expressionless, suddenly changed his demeanor.

  “Oh no! So you were bullied by Ryūen and driven out of your css? If something like that happened, why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

  “As the vice president of the student council, I must seek justice for you!”

  Uesugi grabbed Kaneda’s hands and shook them vigorously before turning to Sumida.

  “And you, Sumida! Why didn’t you tell me immediately when you saw a fellow student in need? Because of that—”

  “…Uh… What’s his name again?”

  “Kaneda. His name is Kaneda Satoru.”

  “Right, because of that, our dear Kaneda Satoru had to spend a night freezing outside! This is completely unacceptable!”

  “……”

  At that moment, both Kaneda and Sumida had the same reaction.

  ?

  This… This isn’t what Ryūen-san predicted.

  Sumida silently screamed in his mind.

  Uesugi, is there a chance that I didn’t bring him back earlier because I knew you’d react like this?!

  Then, Uesugi turned to Kaneda with a serious expression.

  “Kaneda-kun, we cannot ignore such a severe case of school bullying. Come, let’s go confront Ryūen right now and demand justice.”

  He grabbed Kaneda and started dragging him toward Css C’s camp.

  “……”

  First off, my name is Kaneda.

  Second, if I actually go back to Ryūen-san, he’s going to kill me.

  “N-no! I can’t!”

  “Hm? You refuse to report Ryūen for what he did to you?”

  Uesugi gnced at Kaneda, his expression full of suspicion.

  Kaneda’s mind raced.

  “…This is an internal matter of Css C. If the school finds out, Css C will lose points. I… I can’t let my personal grudge cause harm to my css.”

  Kaneda clenched his fists and spoke through gritted teeth, his face filled with apparent reluctance.

  “Oh? That’s how you feel?”

  Uesugi nodded thoughtfully. Then, he sighed dramatically and gripped Kaneda’s shoulders tightly.

  “But what do we do, Sakata?”

  “…It’s Kaneda.”

  Uesugi ignored him.

  “You’re the only one left in Css C! If we don’t act, Ryūen will drag your entire css into the abyss!”

  “I—”

  “Don’t hesitate, Kintoki!”

  Kaneda screamed internally.

  Forgive me, Ryūen-san! I swear I’m still loyal to you!

  Clenching his fists, Kaneda shut his eyes tight.

  Finally, under Uesugi’s relentless psychological warfare, he made his decision.

  “…I… I want to overthrow Ryūen Kakeru!”

  “Yes! That’s the spirit!”

  “I want to become Css C’s leader and lead them to greatness!”

  “Excellent!”

  “My feud with Ryūen is irreconcible!”

  “See? You heard him! He and Ryūen can no longer coexist!”

  Uesugi raised both hands in triumph—directing his voice toward the distance.

  “Hear what—?”

  Kaneda followed Uesugi’s gaze…

  And in that moment—

  His body turned ashen.

  Two Css C students—who had come to provoke Css B—stood frozen in pce.

  Mouths agape, their hands still holding onto their snacks, completely paralyzed by what they had just heard.

  Even their food had fallen to the ground, unnoticed.

  “…No way… You… I… He…”

  Kaneda could no longer form words.

  “Oh, did you hear that?” Uesugi beamed, rubbing salt in the wound. “What Kaneda meant to say was, ‘Go back and tell Ryūen—I will overthrow him. Tell him to wash his neck and wait for me.’”

  Uesugi turned to the Css C students with an arrogant smirk.

  One of them shakily pointed at Kaneda, their voice trembling with disbelief.

  “Kaneda… I can’t believe it… You actually betrayed Ryūen-san… He won’t forgive you for this…”

  Without waiting for a response, both students turned and sprinted away, not daring to look back.

  As they disappeared into the distance, Kaneda’s jaw slowly dropped.

  No… No… This isn’t…

  I didn’t betray Ryūen-san… I’m loyal…

  Believe me…

  Please, believe me!!!

  ---

  T/N: good for you kenoki! stand up for yourself!