“There’s no need for an in-depth account of the conversation. I’ve got a good idea of that,” I replied.
When I gave her the names of everyone involved, even Matsushita, who had been trying to maintain her usual attitude, started to stumble over her words.
“Oh, um… Err, yes. That’s certainly everyone. But then, what is it that you want to ask me?” asked Matsushita.
“Knowing you, I thought that you might have caught something in that discussion,” I replied.
I had called Matsushita for two reasons. One was for final confirmation that what I’d learned from Yamamura was correct. I had determined that there wasn’t any problem with that information, as the names of the classmates matched. The other reason was to test to see whether Matsushita could be seen as a student worthy of evaluation. Matsushita, having quietly figured out the reasons for her being summoned, sighed and muttered something under her breath.
“It feels like I’m being evaluated,” said Matsushita.
“Who can say?” I replied.
The hard look on her face melted away, and Matsushita smiled warmly.
“I’m going to answer you seriously because I think you’re testing me. I remember it well. There definitely were things that stuck out to me. The things we were discussing, the members present—there was this feeling that something was off about everything,” she said.
Then, while digging up those memories, Matsushita began to tell me her own version of events. I listened to her speak, but once I was sure of the consistency of her story with the facts, I interrupted her.
“That’s enough,” I told her.
“…You said that you’ll show me your true abilities, but what do you plan to do?” she asked.
“If I get a turn in the upcoming special exam, I intend to show you the results of what you wish,” I answered.
“I see. If I can get Ayanokouji-kun’s seal of approval, then I suppose I can rest easy about this upcoming special exam.”
“I can’t do it alone from here on out though. The entire class needs to grow.”
“I understand. But if our class could unite as one someday, then we probably won’t lose to anyone.” She said that part with a smile, but she was also keeping today’s events firmly in mind. “Anyway, I’ll pretend that our conversation today never happened. Contact me anytime.”
It was a small thing, but the fact that she was able to make such considerations on her own was an important factor.
3.5
THAT NIGHT, after ten o’clock, I heard a light knock at my door, which I immediately opened to greet my visitor. It was none other than Class 2-A’s Hashimoto, unconcerned with his surroundings and dressed casually.
“Did anyone see you?” I asked.
“I had to check out what was going on, so that ate up a lot of time. I took the proper steps as I moved around, just in case,” said Hashimoto.
“If so, then good. I’m sure that no one would be welcoming of the idea of you and I meeting at this time,” I replied.
“If you have business with me, couldn’t you have just called? Or at least put more thought into the location,” said Hashimoto as he turned his gaze toward me, like he was probing me. That was probably the unconscious behavior of a person who was always suspicious of others.
“There are some things that you can’t talk about over the phone. Besides, meeting outside carries its own risks,” I replied.
“Well, okay. So? What did you wanna talk about?” asked Hashimoto.
I wasn’t going to make him stand there and listen to me talk, so I invited him inside and made space for him to sit.
“I thought we should talk, now that the End-of-Year Special Exam has been announced. I just wanted to ask again where you stand on it,” I asked him.
“The school didn’t disclose what the rules are though exactly, right? I don’t know what I’m going to do yet,” said Hashimoto.
“I didn’t ask about what you were going to do, I asked where you stand. You said before that you were going to be on Ryuuen’s side,” I answered, thinking back to just the other day when Hashimoto was talking to me, here in this very room.
“Nothing’s changed,” he said. “The only way for me to survive is to let Ryuuen win. Though, I can’t say that things are going well. I was planning to assist Ryuuen once the exam was announced, but I never imagined that the school wouldn’t even tell us the rules.”
It was certainly true that, depending on the exam rules, it was possible for him to have lent a hand during the preliminary preparations stage.
“If you’re going to betray your class, you should actually be considering this to be convenient,” I told him.
“Huh?” he blinked. Hashimoto was vocally lamenting this turn of events, but that was based on the assumption that his betrayal wasn’t going to be discovered.
“If the contents of the exam had been disclosed to us, then Sakayanagi would have used that to devise a strategy to trap you and Ryuuen. However, as long as we don’t know the contents, she can’t produce any countermeasures in advance. The most she can do is not select you as a representative. She can’t predict what you’ll do in the actual exam,” I explained.
For Sakayanagi, the progression of the special exam was actually starting from a negative.
“I see. That’s one way of thinking about it,” said Hashimoto as he nodded, deeply interested. But he didn’t seem like he was going to be putting his confidence in that line of thinking at all. Rather, he seemed restless, as though the main issue lay elsewhere. “I think it’s ’bout time you gave me your answer, Ayanokouji. I’ve been waitin’ for a long time, y’know?”
“About whether I’m willing to transfer to Ryuuen’s class, right?” I asked.
“Yeah. I decided to take a substantial risk and betray Sakayanagi. That’s because the class you put yourself in and stay in will determine my future path too,” said Hashimoto.
As usual, Hashimoto responded with a mixture of truth and lies. If Ryuuen emerged victorious from the End-of-Year Special Exam, the first part of Hashimoto’s plan would be on track. Then, if I decided to transfer classes afterward, he would achieve his goal.