"I object."
Amane's opposition left Tachibana Akane momentarily stunned.
She never expected someone to actually oppose the verdict handed down by the student council president, Horikita Manabu, especially when the outcome seemed all but decided.
The crucial point was, apart from the slightly harsher punishment for Hirata, the ruling for a retest was entirely in Class D's favor—it could even be said to be their salvation.
There were several days of free time.
If someone could gather the entire class and conduct intensive tutoring, it wouldn't be hard to believe that everyone could pass.
Tachibana couldn't understand why Amane would choose to object.
Horikita Manabu felt a pang of emotion.
He had already seen the determination on Amane's face earlier.
He had a premonition she was going to challenge the student council's decision.
But when she actually said it aloud...
It still gave Horikita an unreal feeling. He even found himself somewhat unable to comprehend Amane's actions.
Whenever someone makes a decision, it's usually to achieve some personal goal.
Amane was no exception. But what goal could she possibly achieve by opposing the student council's ruling?
After turning it over in his mind, Horikita could only conclude that Amane intended to save Hirata.
Save Hirata?
It seemed a simple and direct objective. But it was nearly impossible.
First, Hirata had already admitted to buying and selling test papers and leaking exam questions.
According to school regulations, Hirata had to be expelled.
It was precisely Hirata's expulsion that bought Horikita's leniency—the chance for a retest for all Class D students.
Even if, by some miracle, Amane did save Hirata...
What would happen to the other Class D students facing expulsion?
To save Hirata, the cheating result would have to be overturned. Sacrificing one to save fifteen was completely different from sacrificing fifteen for one.
If it were a question of quality, even Horikita wouldn't hesitate to choose saving Hirata.
Because Hirata's value as a key individual far surpassed the combined worth of the fifteen others facing expulsion. But unfortunately, this was a simple numbers game.
Saving Hirata would mean losing fifteen people at once.
That was a price Class D could not bear.
Horikita was even confident that if he asked all Class D students whether it was better to save Hirata or the fifteen others—assuming they could be objective—he could guarantee at least thirty-nine of the forty would choose to save the fifteen and abandon Hirata.
Simply because losing Hirata was the lesser cost.
And among those thirty-nine would be Hirata himself. Because Hirata had already resolved to be expelled. As long as his expulsion held value, he would have no regrets.
And now, Amane was publicly objecting.
"Miyako-san! I appreciate your kindness, but this sliver of hope was hard-won. I don't want—"
"What you want has nothing to do with me. I just think what you're doing is incredibly foolish. So I object."
Foolish?
Hirata never expected...
Amane would label his actions 'foolish.'
"Miyako-san!! You can say it's due to my poor judgment, or my lack of ability—that I couldn't lead the class to the end myself. But you can't insult me like this!"
Hirata couldn't understand why, even after choosing the path of self-sacrifice, someone would still deny his choice.
He looked at Amane, bewildered.
Amane met his gaze without flinching.
"What? Do you truly believe your current course of action is correct, Hirata?"
Their eyes locked as Hirata prepared to retort.
The sheer determination in Amane's gaze made him hesitate. Her eyes showed a firm will to save him. But even he had given up on saving himself.
How could Amane believe she could save him?
"Maybe numerically, 1 is less than 15. But that's no reason to easily abandon that '1.' Especially not for a self-sacrifice meant for those fools. It sounds utterly ridiculous just hearing it. Don't tell me you're just doing this for self-satisfaction, Hirata?"
Amane's harsh words pierced Hirata's heart.
"Sacrificing myself gives Class D a fighting chance. I don't believe I'm wrong in this. Everything I've done is for Class D to go further, not for some self-gratification."
Hirata's explanation seemed to drain all his strength.
Once the words were out, he slumped powerlessly back into his chair.
"You're wrong, Hirata Yōsuke. How do you know your sacrifice has any value at all? Your biggest mistake is equating the verdict for the cheating retest with your own expulsion."
"The cheating is an established fact. No matter who the source is, the retest is inevitable. So the one granting Class D this final chance is President Horikita, not you, Hirata Yōsuke."
Hirata's eyes widened sharply.
What Amane said... made sense.
If the retest was inevitable...
Why did he tie Horikita's decision to himself?
Just because he was the one being expelled, did that give him the right to claim this outcome was bought by his sacrifice?
No, that wasn't it.
He was just the one being punished.
He understood now...
Hirata finally saw it clearly. While the outcome was intricately linked to him, even if he were removed from the equation entirely, the retest would still happen.
His so-called 'voluntary sacrifice' was based on his violation of school rules. Being punished for breaking rules didn't deserve a term like 'sacrifice.'
Amane saw the dawning clarity in Hirata's eyes.
She knew he had finally understood. Now, it was time to dismantle another of his foolish notions.
Was trading him for fifteen others worth it?
The answer was no.
"Hirata, you're too trusting. That's why you accepted this '15 is greater than 1' logic. If you get expelled now, who will organize the class for the upcoming retest? Karuizawa? Or Kushida? I don't mean to be cruel, but they completely lack the ability to rally a scattered group."
Amane's words caused Kushida, standing to the side, to pale.
Even though both Horikita and Hirata seemed intent on upholding the verdict...
Amane gave off the aura that if she willed it, even the seemingly hopeless situation of test paper trafficking—a clear violation of school rules—could be easily resolved.
"Everyone should cooperate with Kushida-san and the others to study properly. After all, if they still don't take their studies seriously, they'll be expelled even after the retest if they fail."
Even now, Hirata naively believed...
That simply saving those who failed...
Meant they would study seriously for the next exam.
Thereby avoiding expulsion.
"How laughable. Hirata, when will you ever stop being so naive?"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.