The large groups were formed.
Under the guidance of the instructors, Hikigaya and his teammates arrived at a rustic dormitory nestled deep within the forest school. Inside, wooden bunk beds lined the walls—sixteen in total, neatly arranged to house their entire group.
Hikigaya entered with his hands in his pockets, casually surveying the layout. Without hesitation, he made his way toward the deepest corner of the room, climbed the stairs, and claimed the top bunk right next to the window.
From here, he could see a sweeping view of the forest outside. The spot was quiet, peaceful, and isolated from the bustle below. The lower bunk was more convenient, sure, but the top bunk meant fewer disturbances—perfect for someone like him.
This was arguably the best spot in the room, and he claimed it without a word.
The other students from Class A exchanged silent glances. Some frowned, but none said anything. After all, they were all in the same class. They moved to assign themselves beds with a quiet, unspoken understanding.
Then came a voice from below.
"Hikigaya-san."
A girl approached—Sena, a composed and bright student. She stopped at the foot of his bunk and smiled up at him politely.
"As we discussed earlier, all you need to do is try your best during the exam period. If you have any thoughts or requests, feel free to let us know. Class A will do its best to accommodate you. Let's all get along these next few days."
Her words were courteous, but the subtext was sharp: You just grabbed the best bed in the room without asking. That's rude.
Under normal circumstances, Hikigaya would've waited until everyone else picked first. But not today.
He leaned against the wall of the bunk, a subtle smirk on his face. "Seems like we're supposed to make our own breakfast here," he said lazily. "So I'll leave that to you all. Also, I won't be participating in the daily activities or the exams. Just act like I'm not here."
"...?"
There was a beat of silence.
Shinji's smile twitched, and the other students around the room began to frown.
"What… do you mean?" Shinji asked carefully, though his voice carried a hint of warning.
A boy with short hair and glasses stepped forward, eyes narrowed in suspicion. The tension rose immediately.
They all understood now—Hikigaya was throwing in the towel. He was planning to tank the entire exam.
"Hikigaya-san," Sena said, her voice still polite but colder now, "let me remind you. While we won't deliberately drag someone down, if you intentionally sabotage the group, Katsuragi will bring you down with him without hesitation."
"Relax," Hikigaya said with a shrug. "Expulsion only happens to the bottom-ranked group. As long as your scores stay above the threshold, you'll be fine. With people like Horikita-senpai and all of you, you can just carry my share. No way we'll end up last, right?"
It was a harsh truth.
Their team was stacked—fourteen Class A students, all high performers. Even if Hikigaya refused to participate, they had the brains, unity, and firepower to carry the weight.
But that didn't stop the growing resentment in the room.
Shinji clenched his fists, glaring. "So you're just going to coast and let us do all the work? Sabotage the team because you don't want to try?"
"Exactly," Hikigaya said bluntly.
Holding the team back was far easier than working hard. And if it meant dragging Class A down a few ranks, even better.
If their group landed in fifth place, Class A would lose 42 class points. Class B, Hikigaya's class, would only lose 3. A massive strategic win.
There was, of course, a risk. If their group ranked last, Katsuragi would take Hikigaya down with him.
But Hikigaya doubted that would happen. With Horikita Manabu and the others giving their all, they would at worst land somewhere in the middle.
The cost-benefit was obvious. Why sweat it?
"You piece of—!" the short-haired boy growled and took a step forward, ready to punch. Only Sena's quick grab stopped him.
"Hikigaya," Sena said icily, her patience wearing thin, "if you insist on this course of action, we will let the exam fall apart. And when this group lands dead last, you'll go down with Katsuragi."
"As you like," Hikigaya replied, unfazed. "Even if we fail, Class A will lose more. It's not my class that'll take the biggest hit."
There was real weight to his words. Class A stood to lose far more than he did.
That hit home.
The short-haired boy looked at Hikigaya like he'd grown another head. "You're not even afraid of dropping out?!"
"Nope."
"Enough." Katsuragi, calm as always, spoke from his bunk. "This is a calculated move. Based on Hikigaya's assessment, this action benefits Class B more than it harms him. It may be irrational, but it is strategic."
"Don't give me that crap!" Shinji snapped. "If you side with him, Katsuragi, don't expect to be spared! You can both get lost!"
Perfect. Now the room was officially divided. Hikigaya leaned back against the wall, arms folded, and watched the chaos brew.
Katsuragi, for his part, didn't flinch.
"Even if I drop out, it will not be in vain," he said calmly. "Neither Class A nor Class B has anywhere close to 20 million points. If I and Hikigaya are both expelled, both classes lose 100 class points."
That kind of mutual destruction would be catastrophic.
"Class A would fall behind Class B, possibly even Class C or D," Katsuragi continued. "The opportunity to use this test to widen the gap would be lost."
He spoke the truth, and everyone knew it.
No matter how much they hated it, the numbers were on his side.
But that didn't stop the boiling anger.
"I don't care about the logic!" the short-haired boy exploded. "We're just supposed to put up with this guy dragging us down? He's not even trying!"
"I know it's frustrating," said a small silver-haired student from the corner. "But let's think practically. Even if he contributes nothing, we can absorb that loss. One guy won't sink us."
"Oh, now we're just accepting this?" the boy shouted.
Hikigaya chuckled to himself. Even within the ranks of elite Class A, unity was starting to crumble. And all it took was a little pressure.
"I'm losing it," the boy growled, glaring at Hikigaya. "Aren't you even ashamed? What will Ichinose think when she hears what you've done?!"
Hikigaya tilted his head. "She'll probably lecture me."
There was a pause. No one could argue with that. Everyone knew Ichinose's kind, righteous personality.
"But," Hikigaya added, "I'm doing this for Class B. So we can rise to Class A. That's all that matters."
The logic was unshakable, even if it was unpleasant.
"You think Sakayanagi didn't expect this?" Hikigaya continued. "Why else would she assign me to this group? Your 'Bansaka Ryu' or whatever clearly wasn't up to the task."
That jab was meant to provoke. And it worked.
"Don't listen to him!" Katsuragi warned. "He's trying to divide us. His goal is to make you lose your cool so that Class B benefits."
Yet Katsuragi's voice remained calm. Despite being betrayed time and time again by Sakayanagi, he still stood firm for his class. That was real leadership.
Even now, with the team on the verge of collapse, Katsuragi's presence kept things from falling apart completely.
Maybe that's why Sakayanagi kept him as the figurehead. He inspired stability, even when everything was in flames.
"Katsuragi," the short-haired boy spat, "don't act like some noble leader. We know the truth."
Everyone turned their hateful glares on Hikigaya.
The tension had hit a breaking point. One punch was all it would take.
Sakayanagi probably assumed some people would slack off—but not that someone would flat-out declare war on the team from the start.
They didn't know what true shamelessness looked like.
But they were about to find out.
---------------------------------------------------
Get membership in patreon to read more chapters
Extra chapters available in patreon
patreon.com/Dragonscribe31
-----------------------------------------------------