COTE: Hikigaya's Classroom of the Supreme Being

Hikigaya had no intention of getting involved—at least, not openly. He wanted to avoid any direct interaction with Tokito and his group.

But now that Nagumo had called his name, he had no choice but to step out from the shadows.

—How annoying. I don't want to work.

…Well, whatever.

Not everything in life goes as planned. Minor unexpected incidents were still within acceptable limits.

The real problem, however, was the troublesome person he had to deal with.

"Hikigaya?!"

Seeing him appear, Tokito's shock quickly turned into outrage.

"Don't mess with me! Why is he here?! I don't need help from someone like him!"

"Oh? Do you two have some kind of conflict?" Nagumo asked curiously, shifting his gaze to Hikigaya.

"Well… I wouldn't exactly call it a conflict," Hikigaya scratched the back of his head, looking slightly unsure. "We exchanged a few words during the Preferred Student Exam. He got the impression that I was looking down on him, so now he doesn't like me… Is that about right?"

As he spoke, he turned to Tokito for confirmation.

That, however, only seemed to further enrage him.

"You bastard, are you kidding me?!"

Tokito roared as he lunged forward, reaching out to grab Hikigaya by the collar.

—Seriously… Just give me a break.

With a sigh, Hikigaya casually sidestepped the attack.

"Hey, hey, are you a delinquent too?" he asked in exasperation. "I kind of got that vibe the first time I saw you, but isn't Class C's delinquency rate a little too high? Let's count, shall we? You, Ryuuen, Ishizaki, Albert, Komiya, Kondo, Ibuki—"

He started ticking them off on his fingers and soon ran out of fingers to count with.

"—And then there's Manabe over there. What's up with your class? Do delinquents just naturally attract each other?"

"Hold on a second! I'm not a delinquent!" Manabe suddenly shouted in protest.

Hikigaya gave her a sidelong glance and said coolly, "Oh? Have you forgotten about your little delinquent act on the cruise ship? Want me to remind you right here?"

"Wha—No, that's not—!"

Hearing that, Manabe instantly shrank back.

Most of Class C didn't know the details of what had happened back then. At best, they only knew that she had been caught by Class D and had no choice but to betray her class.

Logically speaking, Hikigaya shouldn't know the full story either… unless he was working with Ayanokoji.

Other people might not see the connection, but Manabe had been personally threatened by "X" before. Ever since then, she had been keeping a close watch on these kinds of matters. When the rooftop incident happened, she immediately connected the dots between the people involved.

Well, anyone with a bit of intelligence could probably figure it out.

Seeing her lower her head and stay silent, Hikigaya lost interest in pressing further.

—Man, she was easier to deal with than expected. Just a little threat, and she caved.

For someone who dressed like a gyaru, she was probably another one of those types—tough on the outside, weak on the inside, just like Karuizawa.

The admirable thing was that at least she understood the difference in strength between them. She knew better than to make futile resistance or try to argue.

That alone made her better than Tokito, who was too full of himself.

—Ahh, if only there were fewer idiots in this world.

"Tokito, let me clear something up for you while we're here." Hikigaya's tone turned serious. "Back during the Preferred Student Exam, I wasn't acting, I meant every word I said. And I wasn't looking down on you."

"I don't care what you think," Tokito sneered.

"Don't be so hasty—I wasn't finished."

After a brief pause, Hikigaya continued, "Since the start of the school year, you haven't achieved anything worth noting. So to be precise, it's not that I looked down on you—I never even considered you in the first place."

"You—!"

Tokito immediately raised his fist, completely forgetting what he had just said moments ago.

—And this is why dealing with delinquents is a pain…

Just as Hikigaya was thinking about how to get Tokito to calm down, Nagumo suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"Let go of me!"

"Enough, cool down for now."

With a slight push, Nagumo sent Tokito stumbling backward.

"Don't lose sight of what you want. Your true enemy is Ryuuen, isn't he?"

"…Tch."

Under the sharp gaze of the student council president, Tokito clicked his tongue but finally backed down.

"That's more like it." Nagumo smiled in satisfaction. "It's true, Hikigaya's words can be irritating, but his abilities are the real deal. You'd only benefit from working with him."

"But! That guy has some shady relationship with Ryuuen! I don't trust him! He might even leak information to him!" Tokito shouted.

—Oi, oi, why are you yelling so loudly?

Hikigaya sighed. Dealing with this guy was going to be a nightmare.

"Hikigaya, is that true?" Nagumo's gaze turned toward him.

"Well… my relationship with Ryuuen is complicated," Hikigaya admitted. "If I had to put a label on it, I guess I'd be Class C's… creditor? No, maybe their landlord? Or would 'tax collector' be more accurate?"

Hikigaya hadn't planned to mention his contract with Class C, but at this point, there was no hiding it.

If he had to guess, Tokito—being the idiot he was—would probably blurt it out himself anyway.

And sure enough, the very next second, Tokito snapped, "You have the nerve to bring that up?! Do you even realize how much damage you've caused our class?!"

"Oh? So that's what's going on?" Nagumo's interest was piqued.

Tokito immediately launched into a rough explanation of the contract.

After hearing it, Nagumo raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "Hikigaya, I didn't expect you to be up to things like this in the background. You're more capable than I thought."

While Hikigaya preferred to keep this under wraps, it wouldn't be a big deal even if it got out.

He was more surprised that Nagumo hadn't figured it out until now.

Kiryuuin had managed to piece it together early on with just her intuition and observational skills. Yet Nagumo, who supposedly had a grasp on the entire second-year student body, only found out by accident?

The gap in ability was obvious.

"It's nothing special," Hikigaya replied indifferently. "The only reason it worked is because my opponents were too dumb."

"Hmph!"

Tokito scowled, seemingly offended by the indirect insult. Then he suddenly snapped, "If you wanted to take down Ryuuen, you could just use that contract! That would get rid of him easily!"

"I could," Hikigaya nodded without hesitation. "As long as you're willing to be the one who violates the contract, that is."

"W-Why should I be the one?!"

"Because it was your idea?"

Hikigaya looked at him like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Tokito, suddenly realizing the implications, shrank back slightly.

The logic was simple. Violating the contract could indeed expel Ryuuen—but the person who did it would also be seen as a backstabbing traitor. There was a high chance they'd end up getting targeted instead.

Tokito had neither the ability nor the resolve to pull it off. He was all talk and no substance.

No wonder Ryuuen never saw him as a threat.

"Haha, I don't think that's the best approach. Let's consider a different strategy." Nagumo chuckled, easing the tension.

"Before we discuss anything else, there's still one more issue!" Tokito stubbornly pointed at Hikigaya. "Even if he's your subordinate, he's still from Class D! I don't trust him!"

"That's where you're mistaken."

Nagumo gently shook his head.

"If you had been there during the hearing, you would have understood that Hikigaya was siding with Class C. Otherwise, do you really think the student council would have accepted such a ridiculous argument so easily?"

"President Nagumo, I only accepted that argument because Class D couldn't provide solid evidence," Hikigaya refuted.

"Sigh, why are you still pretending in front of me?" Nagumo's lips curled into a smile. "I can tell, you have a good relationship with that girl Shiina, don't you? Even Horikita-senpai's little sister was glaring at you fiercely. You'd better be careful."

"...Did she? I didn't notice."

Despite his words, Hikigaya felt a little uneasy.

Strictly speaking, neither side had been able to produce evidence during the hearing, so the student council had to judge which side's argument was more credible.

And he, knowing the truth yet choosing to feign ignorance… had avoided checking the dozen or so messages Horikita had sent him since.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

"At any rate, I can vouch that Hikigaya isn't your enemy," Nagumo declared.

Only then did Tokito ease his guard slightly—at least for now.

Not that Hikigaya needed his trust anyway!

Nagumo was starting to get on his nerves. When was this guy going to get to the point?

"As I said before, using underhanded tactics to take down Ryuuen isn't something to be encouraged. If you target a classmate, you'll end up suffering yourself."

Anyone familiar with Nagumo's track record knew this was complete nonsense.

He was the last person who should be preaching about not targeting classmates.

"So instead of framing Ryuuen, why not take a different approach… like eliminating Ayanokoji, the one who defeated him?"

At last, Nagumo's fox tail was starting to show.

Ryuuen wasn't even someone worth his attention anymore—just a convenient excuse.

He had gone through all this trouble to rope Tokito in, only to use him as a pawn against Ayanokoji.

A disposable one, at that.

Of course, Hikigaya had played a part in this setup as well.

He had deliberately hinted that Ayanokoji might be secretly influencing Tokito and controlling Class C from the shadows.

There was no way Nagumo would let that slide.

More importantly, being able to strike before Ayanokoji must have fed his ego.

"You mean Ayanokoji, but..."

Tokito hesitated, even an idiot knew that guy was no pushover.

No matter how much he hated Ryuuen, he had to admit the guy could fight. And back then, he had been with Ishizaki, Ibuki, and Albert—four against one—and still lost.

"Yes, Ayanokoji might be a genius, but victory doesn't always depend on ability. There are countless ways to take him down."

Nagumo's voice carried an enticing allure.

"Think about it. Ryuuen, who once ruled over your class, was beaten so badly by Ayanokoji that he was left crawling on the ground. Class C has become a laughingstock to the other classes. But if you step up and defeat Ayanokoji, not only can you get your revenge, but you'll also become your class's hero. As for Ryuuen? You wouldn't even need to say anything—he'd be too ashamed to keep his position as leader."

Putting aside the reality of the situation, the offer was tempting.

Tokito's expression wavered, and Manabe seemed just as intrigued.

After all, she had suffered greatly because of Ayanokoji. The chance for revenge was hard to pass up.

However, unlike Tokito, she remained level-headed, weighing the pros and cons.

Nagumo then added fuel to the fire.

"As a gesture of goodwill, let me tell you something useful. There's a special exam in this school where each class is required to vote out one student for expulsion. First-years may not face it yet, but eventually, you will. If you can't take control of your class… just think—who do you think will be sacrificed when that time comes?"

"...Wait, is there such an unreasonable exam?"

Manabe and Tokito exchanged doubtful glances.

"Believe it or not, I'm offering you valuable information," Nagumo shrugged.

"President Nagumo, you're an upperclassman," Hikigaya suddenly spoke up. "Are you sure it's okay to be telling us this? Didn't the school impose a gag order?"

"Heh, doesn't matter. There aren't any cameras here, after all."

Hearing this, Manabe and Tokito found themselves believing him even more.

Under Ryuuen's orders, they had often tried to gather intel on special exams from upperclassmen—through persuasion, bribery, anything they could think of—but had never gotten any real answers.

Not because the school had omnipresent surveillance, but because the seniors saw no reason to take that risk.

Yet here Nagumo was, casually revealing inside information.

It was as if he were saying—Go ahead, report me to the teachers. I don't care one bit.

Seeing Tokito's growing interest, Nagumo pressed on.

"Listen carefully. Once winter break ends, the school will immediately launch a special exam—a large-scale off-campus event involving all three grades."

"What?! You even know that?"

"Heh, not only do I know, but I also had a hand in shaping some of the exam's rules."

As Tokito and Manabe looked at him in shock, Nagumo began laying out his plan.

But to Hikigaya, it all sounded completely different.

On the surface, Nagumo seemed fixated on taking down Ayanokoji, but that wasn't the whole truth.

This was merely a probe—his true objective lay elsewhere.

Not to mention… Hikigaya could tell Nagumo was still wary of him.

The upcoming special exam might serve as a test. He had to prepare accordingly.

Of course, there was no need to warn Tokito about that.

For now, Hikigaya and Ryuuen had a strategic alliance. It was best to deal with unstable elements like Tokito and Manabe sooner rather than later.

Besides, if he wanted to execute the 800 million plan, securing the student council president's position was a must.

Normally, by the second semester, the previous president would step down to give their successor time to adjust.

But thanks to Nagumo's "reforms," the guy planned to cling to the seat until graduation.

If he didn't get lost soon, it would be a disgrace to humanity.

So why not take this chance to saddle him with some incompetent teammates?