Chapter 85: The Game of Power

  "You really think I didn’t verify the authenticity of these past exam papers?"

  From the moment Ryuen obtained the past exam papers, he approached them with absolute skepticism. He used various means—bribing different senior students for intelligence and having Kaneda and others carefully examine the exam questions and content to check for any inconsistencies.

  The results were clear: the current second-year and third-year students had also used these exact past exam papers to pass their first midterm exams after enrollment. Their accuracy had been confirmed.

  In other words… this midterm exam was, in reality, another test of the students' capabilities set by the school itself!

  Since the feedback showed no issues, Ryuen was confident that these past exam papers were indeed the correct answers for this midterm.

  As for Hikigaya’s so-called threat to report the "exam paper transaction" to the school, Ryuen scoffed at the mere thought of it!

  At first gnce, Hikigaya’s argument sounded reasonable, but if one thought about it carefully, it fell apart. The key question was whether the school would recognize exam paper transactions as a viotion. Based on the intelligence Ryuen had gathered, the school's stance was to "turn a blind eye and take no action." From the very beginning, exam paper transactions had been within the rules of this midterm!

  In other words, Hikigaya’s so-called "threat to report" was meaningless from the start!

  "You’re just using clever wordpy and exploiting information gaps to bluff your way through! This kind of cheap trick might work on an idiot like Ishizaki, but not on me!"

  Ryuen was utterly confident, looking at Hikigaya as if he were nothing more than a pathetic clown.

  However, what disappointed Ryuen was that Hikigaya’s expression remained completely unfazed. His eerie calmness gave Ryuen an inexplicable sense of unease.

  "Ryuen, looks like you still don’t get it."

  Hikigaya shook his head, then turned to Ishizaki and Albert, slowly speaking a few names:

  "May 19th, Third-Year Css D, Nendou, 25,000 points."

  The moment Hikigaya said that, Ishizaki’s face changed drastically. It was as if he had seen a ghost. He trembled and pointed a shaking finger at Hikigaya.

  "H-How do you know that?!"

  What Hikigaya had just revealed was the exact transaction details of Ishizaki purchasing the past exam papers from a senior student—down to the date, the person involved, and the amount of points exchanged. That level of detail left Ishizaki completely shocked.

  Hikigaya chuckled lightly. "Surprised?"

  "So what if you know?!"

  Ishizaki tried to talk tough, and from Ryuen’s perspective, he was right—exposing this information didn’t actually mean much. As long as both parties refused to admit anything, combined with the school's attitude, Hikigaya’s so-called "threat" was still useless.

  Suddenly, Ryuen cpped his hands mockingly and smirked at Hikigaya.

  "I see. You think reporting this to the school will get them suspended, making them miss the midterms and forcing them to drop out? That’s your big move to threaten me?

  You really think I haven’t considered the consequences of getting reported?"

  Ryuen’s tone was dripping with disdain.

  "That’s why I already reported Ishizaki’s exam paper transaction to Sakagami."

  Sakagami Kazuma—the homeroom teacher of Css C.

  "W-What?! Ryuen-san?!"

  Ishizaki nearly colpsed to the ground. His legs went weak, and even Ibuki and the others—except for the ever-expressionless Albert—were left speechless by Ryuen’s revetion.

  As expected of Css C’s tyrant—his way of thinking was beyond ordinary comprehension. But even more terrifying was his ruthlessness.

  Hikigaya, however, remained cold and indifferent, his expression unchanged.

  "Heh, guess what Sakagami said?"

  Ryuen sneered.

  "He said he would report the matter to the school and told me to wait patiently for the school’s decision."

  As he spoke, Ryuen pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and waved it around.

  "This is the school’s official response: Ishizaki has received a severe verbal warning and a deduction of css points."

  "Th-That’s it?! That’s all?!"

  Ishizaki’s eyes widened in disbelief. He had been expecting a suspension—maybe even an expulsion. But instead… it was just a verbal warning? Not even an official demerit?!

  Ryuen crumpled the slip into a ball and tossed it to Ishizaki before turning back to Hikigaya with a cold smirk.

  "Now do you get it? Even if you run off and report ‘exam paper transactions’ to the school, it won’t affect us in the slightest!"

  At the same time, this response from the school further confirmed Ryuen’s suspicions about this midterm exam. More importantly… it revealed just how lenient the school was toward css and student competition.

  If properly utilized, this leniency would become an incredibly powerful weapon!

  "You're still just a piece of Css D trash," Ryuen sneered. "But at least you're a useful piece of trash."

  As he spoke, Ryuen turned back to look at Ishizaki, Ibuki, and the others, snorted coldly, and said, “Even now, you guys still haven’t realized that you’ve fallen into this guy’s verbal trap!”

  “Huh?”

  Ishizaki, Ibuki, and the others froze in pce.

  “From the very beginning, you were misled by this dead-fish-eyed guy’s words!”

  Ryuen stared at the silent Hikigaya across from him, with an expression that said, I’ve already seen through your tricks, and mocked, “First, a very simple logical misdirection—the result of a ‘test question transaction’ at most would be punishing the students involved. It wouldn’t change the school’s exam rules, and it definitely wouldn’t lead to the canceltion of the past exam questions!

  “Besides, with the school’s attitude, they even turn a blind eye to ‘test question transactions.’ So how could they possibly make a decision to cancel the past exam questions?

  “So from the beginning, the cim that ‘the past exam questions are invalid’ was just this dead-fish-eyed guy’s assumption! He was deliberately confusing concepts. But this little trick of his can only fool you brainless idiots!”

  The correctness of the past exam questions, the school’s attitude, and the punishment after being reported…

  Ryuen had already considered all the worst possible outcomes. That was the very reason he dared to act so recklessly—his true confidence!

  “Damn it, I was almost fooled by this dead-fish-eyed bastard! What a despicable liar!”

  Ishizaki finally came to his senses and shouted angrily.

  Cp! Cp! Cp!

  Hikigaya started cpping and couldn’t help but praise, “Even though I don’t really want to admit it, Ryuen, you really do have a talent for arrogance and conceit. Looking at it now, everyone has been fooled by your appearance. You deliberately put on an air of arrogance and disregard for others, but in reality, you’re more cautious than anyone else. Your real goal is to lull the other csses into carelessness, isn’t it?”

  At this point, Hikigaya’s tone suddenly shifted: “But the more that’s the case, the more it proves that you’re just a paper tiger—all bark and no real bite.”

  “Ryuen-bro, let me teach this damn liar a lesson! Ryuen-bro, Ryuen—huh?”

  Ishizaki, furious, looked ready to step forward and give Hikigaya a proper beating. But suddenly, he noticed that Ryuen, standing behind him, hadn’t reacted at all. For a moment, he was stunned.

  At this moment, Ryuen’s face had darkened unexpectedly. He was staring intently at the still-composed Hikigaya. Did I overlook some crucial information?

  Especially those dead-fish-like eyes of Hikigaya’s—they made Ryuen feel an inexplicable sense of unease and irritation.

  “Ryuen, everything you just said is correct—completely correct, even. You’ve perfectly passed this school’s test. As a reward, I’ll be merciful and give you a piece of information… The midterm exam doesn’t just have one set of test papers.”

  After speaking, Hikigaya looked at Ryuen with a half-smiling expression. Ryuen’s face suddenly changed as if he had realized something. Meanwhile, Ishizaki, Ibuki, and the others were still completely clueless.

  “Haha… The school deliberately left past exam questions as the ‘answers’ for this midterm exam—that part is true. But think about it. If there was a problem with these ‘past exam questions,’ what would the school do? Do you really think they wouldn’t have any backup measures?”

  For some reason, a wave of fear and unease flooded over everyone present.

  “Ryuen, your greatest reliance is simply your assumption that even if ‘test question transactions’ were discovered by the school, the school wouldn’t punish the students involved. In fact, the school might even tacitly approve of such behavior, right?”

  In reality, Hikigaya agreed with Ryuen’s perspective. He also believed that in this matter, the school wouldn’t heavily punish the students involved—perhaps not punish them at all. At most, they would make a lot of noise but ultimately take little action. This meant that the ‘test question transaction’ posed no real threat or harm to Css C or Ryuen.

  So from the very beginning, Ryuen had misjudged Hikigaya’s true objective.

  Hikigaya’s goal was never to get the school to punish the students involved in the test question transaction. Instead, his goal was… to force the school to change the midterm exam’s test questions!

  And that brought things back to the key point Hikigaya had first mentioned—to make the past exam questions in Ryuen’s hands invalid!

  “What the hell are you talking about? I already told you, even if you report the ‘test question transaction,’ it won’t affect the test questions at all.”

  Ibuki frowned. Even after everything had been exposed, he was still insisting on his point?

  Hikigaya gnced at Ibuki before shifting his gaze to Ryuen, whose expression was growing darker and darker.

  “You’re not wrong, but… you’ve overlooked one premise. This is a school, after all! ‘Test question transactions’ may be tacitly accepted by the school, but have you ever thought about why they are merely tacitly accepted rather than openly allowed?

  “No matter which school it is, a ‘test question transaction’ is an extremely serious issue. That applies even here! And even more so in a school backed by the government, funded with massive resources and educational investments!

  “The big shots at the top need their reputation and image. They also need this whole thing to remain their ‘image.’ Sound familiar? Isn’t that exactly how politics works? Everyone knows what’s really going on, yet they still go in circles, put on a show, and do all this nonsense—all for the sake of appearances!

  “A half-open secret and a completely exposed secret are two entirely different things. There are many things in this world that can be done but can never be said outright. I think you, Ryuen, understand this concept best.”

  Hikigaya’s face was filled with undisguised mockery and contempt—not just for this school but also for Sobu Middle School and the high-ranking officials above them.

  “If I report this to the school, for the sake of their image and their so-called ‘fairness, justice, and openness,’ what do you think the big shots up there will do? Maybe they won’t punish you guys in any serious way, but… do you think they won’t repce the midterm test papers? Tsk tsk… I’m really looking forward to it!”

  Hikigaya looked at Ryuen, Ibuki, Ishizaki, and the others with a teasing smile.

  For a moment, nobody except Hikigaya himself could ugh… or so it seemed.

  “Hahahaha!!”

  Ryuen suddenly covered half of his face and burst into ughter, as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world. He ughed so hard he almost bent over. “I was wondering what kind of trump card you had up your sleeve… and in the end, it’s just empty talk! Dead-fish eyes, what you just said sounds reasonable at first, but it’s simply impossible!

  “Do you really think you can disrupt the bance of an unwritten rule? First, you’d need power to match it! At the end of the day, who do you think you are?! Do you really think the school would change the entire exam system just because of a mere Css D student? You’re overestimating yourself way too much!”

  In reality, Ryuen wasn’t wrong. Everything Hikigaya had just said was based on the assumption that he had enough power to challenge the school. It was like an ordinary citizen filing a report about corruption versus a high-ranking official doing the same—the impact would be completely different. That was simply how reality worked—brutally and unchangeably.

  Simply put, "Bro, who do you think you are, and who do you think I am?"

  Hikigaya, just an ordinary student from Css D, was well aware that compared to the massive entity that was the school, he was nothing more than an ant before an elephant. The two were on completely different levels, utterly incomparable. His report was like a stone thrown into the ocean—barely capable of making even the smallest ripple.

  "So you're still bluffing even now? You really are the trash of Css D, haha—thinking you can challenge and shake up the school all by yourself..."

  Ryuen ughed loudly, mocking Hikigaya’s foolishness and overestimation of himself. But suddenly, as if he had realized something, his ughter abruptly stopped. His eyes widened as he stared at Hikigaya.

  "Huh? Come on, keep ughing!"

  Hikigaya looked at Ryuen with a fake expression of surprise. But Ryuen remained silent, his face twisted into something resembling that of a predator ready to pounce.

  "Oh, right!"

  Hikigaya adjusted his colr and looked at Ryuen with a smirk. "Since you’ve so sincerely asked, allow me to introduce myself again. First-year, Css D, Hikigaya Hachiman. My current position? Just a small member of the Student Council. I don't have many skills, but the one thing I'm best at is... handling garbage."

  The moment Hikigaya uttered the words "Student Council," Ryuen could no longer ugh. A strange silence fell over the scene.

  Unlike Ishizaki and the others, who were still confused, Ryuen’s expression had darkened to an almost terrifying degree. He had finally realized Hikigaya’s true leverage.

  "Student Council!!!"

  Ryuen’s voice had lost its previous arrogance, as if this revetion was the final straw that broke the camel’s back. He gritted his teeth as he shouted.

  And Hikigaya’s st remark was a direct jab at how Ryuen had once mocked both him and the Student Council in the café.

  Seeing through the st shred of hope Ryuen was clinging to, Hikigaya grinned. "If you think I’m still not qualified enough, then what about the Student Council President? He’s someone who values fairness and justice. If there’s a serious viotion of school rules, I’m sure the president would handle it properly, don’t you think?"

  This was Hikigaya’s true trump card. He never thought he alone could shake up the entire school. If an ordinary student tried to pull this off, it would likely end in failure. But if he had the backing of the Student Council? That changed everything.

  Of course, he was only using Horikita Manabu as a bluff to intimidate Ryuen. But if Ryuen refused to back down, Hikigaya wouldn’t mind making that bluff a reality.

  The Student Council held a special position of power within the school. Ordinary students might not realize it, but those at a certain level understood just how influential it was.

  Horikita Manabu had emphasized this many times—the school had granted the Student Council the authority to "adjust" the system when necessary. In essence, the Student Council had the power to correct and revise school policies.

  To put it simply, while the school issued decisions and policies, the Student Council had the ability to propose modifications. Officially, the Student Council was subordinate to the school, but in terms of power, they stood on somewhat equal footing.

  And this very role of the Student Council was the leverage Hikigaya pnned to use to shake the "elephant."

  The school could not afford to completely ignore the opinions of the Student Council. At the same time, the Student Council would show due respect to the school’s authority.

  Thus, the most likely compromise between both sides would be exactly what Hikigaya predicted: the students involved in the "exam paper trade" would be lightly punished, while the school, to maintain its image, would change the midterm exam questions—at least to create an appearance of fairness.

  This was how the real world worked—the game of power.

  Ryuen’s face was livid, his clenched fists trembling with frustration. It was obvious he was seething with rage yet powerless to act.

  At that moment, as if suddenly realizing something, Ishizaki clung to a desperate hope and pointed at Hikigaya. "Hikigaya, you’re the one who first brought up the 'exam paper trade'! As a member of the Student Council, you knowingly broke the rules. If we go down, you’re going down with us!"

  "And don’t think we don’t know! That Ayanokouji guy from your Css D and Kushida were also involved in secret 'exam paper trades.' Both Albert and I saw it happen!"

  The sungsses-wearing Albert nodded in agreement.

  Wearing sungsses at night? Do your eyes glow or something? Hikigaya couldn't help but mentally roast the guy, but at the same time, Ishizaki’s words confirmed a suspicion Hikigaya had been considering.

  "Ishizaki, you shouldn't spout nonsense. I’ve never once told you anything about 'exam paper trades,' nor have I ever vioted any school rules."

  "You bastard! Back in the library, you clearly said—"

  "Shut up, idiot Ishizaki!"

  Ibuki finally lost her patience and snapped, gring at Hikigaya. "Don’t you get it? That guy was deliberately saying it for us to hear! And you just fell for it like an idiot! I even warned you back then!"

  "Huh?"

  Ishizaki’s mind finally caught up, and he realized—he had been pyed.

  "You bastard, Hikigaya!"

  Ryuen stared at Hikigaya with a dark expression. "Do you realize the consequences of this? Maybe our Css C will have a lot of failing students... but don’t forget, your Css D also got the past exam questions. Your css will suffer just as many expulsions!"

  "Hah, so you’re not completely stupid after all."

  Hikigaya sneered. "But do you really think you can use Css D to threaten me into backing down?"

  Ryuen’s heart sank.

  "After all, someone like me—even as a Student Council member—gets ostracized by my own css. Everyone looks down on me, mocks me behind my back. Do you really think I’d say something as ughable as 'I won’t betray my css' or 'I care about my css'?"

  These were Ryuen’s exact words from half a month ago, when he had ridiculed Hikigaya. And now, Hikigaya was throwing them right back in his face. For someone as prideful as Ryuen, this was enough to make him vomit blood.

  This was a btant, merciless humiliation!

  Watching Ryuen’s face turn purple with frustration, Hikigaya couldn’t help but feel immense satisfaction.

  Damn, this felt good.

  No wonder so many people loved those over-the-top "face-spping" light novels. Turns out, it really was addictive!

  Bckghosts