Demon Slayer: I was taken home by Shinobu Kocho at the beginning.

Only what you earn through your own efforts truly belongs to you! We're only in our first year of high school; we have a long future ahead of us. Are you really going to give up here?

Horikita's voice resonated in the hearts of most of the students in Class D.

Since signing the contract with Tatsuya Kamio, most of the students in Class D have started to just get by day by day.

Without a goal or direction, it was like a small boat lost in a thick fog, unable to find its way to shore.

But Horikita's wake-up call was like a lighthouse, illuminating their path forward.

Yes, so what if we can't graduate from the class? So what if we don't have a ticket to success? Students from other schools don't have the same privileges as students from the class either.

At least compared to them, our food and lodging are free, and our learning and living environments are much better than theirs.

In that case, what right do we have to lose ourselves here?

“That’s right, Horikita-kun is right. Even if we can’t graduate from class, we should still strive towards our life goals.”

Hirata played the role of a great straight man, imprinting Horikita's words once again in the hearts of the students in Class D.

"Yeah, even if it's not for a promotion, we can't keep going on like this for the sake of our future allowance."

"You're right, no matter how many times you eat the mountain vegetable set meal, you can never get used to the taste."

……

Horikita breathed a sigh of relief as he watched Class D regain their spirits.

Although I don't know how long this situation can last, I'll take it one day at a time.

Meanwhile, after settling things with the project, Tatsuya Kamio went to the coffee shop in the shopping mall alone because Kamuro told him that Sakayanagi wanted to meet him.

"Tell me what you want from me."

"Oh dear, it seems like Kamio-san doesn't really want to see me."

When Sakayanagi saw Kamio Tatsuya arrive, he smiled and made a provocative remark.

"Now that you've figured it out, why don't you disappear quickly?"

"That won't do. We haven't even discussed the important matters yet. How can I just leave like this?" Sakayanagi tilted his head, showing no sign of anger.

When did this guy become so shameless?

Please don't steal my good points, okay?

"Tell me what's going on."

At that moment, Kamuro walked over carrying a tray with three drinks on it.

"This belongs to Tatsuya."

"Thanks, Masumi."

After accepting the drink, Tatsuya Kamio's mood improved considerably, which made Sakayanagi somewhat resentful.

"I was the one who treated you, so why did you only thank Masumi-kun?"

"Really? Here you go."

As he spoke, Kamio Tatsuya pushed the drink he had already taken a sip of from the table in front of Sakayanagi.

Upon seeing this action, Sakayanagi's eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

That bastard!

"No need, consider this my treat."

"Well, you're quite generous, aren't you?" Kamio Tatsuya picked up the drink again. "But then again, you don't have to make offerings to Ryuen every month."

I feel like I'm going to have a heart attack if I talk to this guy for even a couple of minutes.

"I'm looking for you because of this exam."

"Exams..." Tatsuya Kamio gave Sakayanagi a strange look. "You're not thinking of teaming up with me, are you?"

"Can't you?"

The current class is the Ichinose Class, and joining forces with lower-ranking classes to fight against higher-ranking classes has always been a tactic that Kamio Tatsuya excels at.

Now Sakayanagi actually wants to use this trick; you're stealing my moves!

Are you Kakashi Hatake?

Well, just kidding.

It's a common practice for lower-ranked classes to unite against higher-ranked classes, so Kamio Tatsuya wasn't surprised that Sakayanagi used this tactic.

That's why he was able to guess it.

But to say it's not surprising is also quite strange, because given Sakayanagi's arrogance, this guy shouldn't have used such a method.

If Sakayanagi knew about his idea, he would definitely point his finger at him and scold him.

Who do you think caused me to do all this?!

Before entering high school, Sakayanagi had always lived a carefree life. Although he was in poor health, it was something that couldn't be changed, and Sakayanagi had pretty much accepted it.

Moreover, before high school, there was no one among his peers who was worthy of his attention, except for Ayanokouji, whom he had met once many years ago.

However, after entering high school, she suffered repeated setbacks at the hands of Tatsuya Kamio, which made her doubt whether she was a genius or not.

Are they just flattering me when they say I'm a genius?

"Of course you can, but do you think I would agree?"

"If we team up with Class B to target Class 9, and we can successfully defeat Class 9, then Class D will definitely take advantage of Class 9's misfortune as well."

This way, we can eliminate the class as quickly as possible, which is good for us all.

Sakayanagi said confidently.

Well, you're right, that's definitely a good thing. Kamio Tatsuya thinks so too, but he has a problem now.

That is……

Isn't it a bit unfair to bully Ichinose like this?

Moreover, if they really agree, then an unwritten rule will emerge in the first grade: every time there is an exam, the three lower-ranked classes will team up to target the lower-ranked class.

Kamio Tatsuya wasn't worried, because he held the reins of Class D in his hands. What he was worried about was whether Sakayanagi would regret it and be unable to sleep if he knew the news.

In short, Tatsuya Kamio had no reason to refuse Sakayanagi's proposal, as it would also be beneficial to Class C.

I just wonder what kind of expression Sakayanagi will have when his class is eliminated and he faces a mixed doubles match between classes C and D.

"In my memory, you shouldn't be someone who's keen on class rivalries, but now you're actually taking this exam so seriously."

You must have some other purpose, right?

Tatsuya Kamio looked at Sakayanagi as if he wanted to see right through her.

Meanwhile, Masumi Kamuro, listening to Tatsuya Kamio's eloquent speech, silently sipped her coffee, inwardly giving Tatsuya Kamio a huge thumbs up.

Hmm, as expected of Tatsuya, he saw right through Sakayanagi.

As expected, I don't need to worry.

Although she couldn't give Kamio Tatsuya hints as a student in Class B, she was still very happy to see that Kamio Tatsuya had discovered Sakayanagi's purpose.

“There’s no point in hiding it now, so I’ll just say it straight.” Sakayanagi was quite straightforward at this moment. “One of the five projects in Class B is chess, and that’s the project I’ll be participating in.”

Chess...

Tatsuya Kamio glanced at Sakayanagi, then began to ponder.

In the game of chess, Tatsuya Kamio felt that he could not beat Sakayanagi, and probably no student in Class C could beat him either.

However, since Sakayanagi has directly exposed this project, it means that she definitely won't choose Class C for this project.

Or is this guy doing it on purpose?

Is he trying to see that I know about this project, but I'm completely helpless about it?

Is this retaliation for manipulating the protection points of Class B?

This guy shouldn't be as bored as me, right?

Or is it for Ayanokouji?

"So? You're planning to use this project to steal a victory from Class C?" Tatsuya Kamio raised an eyebrow.

"What if I said yes."

"Class B will have to wait until they get to draw this project. Of course, if you're the first one to draw it, then never mind."

Kamio Tatsuya pursed his lips.

"Hehehe." Seeing Tatsuya Kamio's expression, Sakayanagi laughed happily. "I didn't expect there would be things you couldn't do."

Before Kamio Tatsuya could retort, Sakayanagi continued to explain.

"Don't worry, I didn't sign up for this project for Class C. My real target is Class D, or more precisely, Ayanokouji."

Ayanokoji, just as I thought.

When Sakayanagi introduced the White Room, she mentioned that the reason she learned chess was because she saw Ayanokouji playing chess.

Therefore, Kamio Tatsuya felt there was no problem with Sakayanagi's words.

Even if there are problems, there's nothing Kamio Tatsuya can do about it; Class C simply can't win this project anyway.

If Sakayanagi were to use this project against Class C, then Kamio Tatsu would simply throw Manabe up there and have Manabe launch a mental attack on her.

Even if we lose, we won't let her feel good.

However, if what she said is true, then her desire to deal with Ban becomes understandable.

If it were a free-for-all between the four classes, it wouldn't be surprising who would be eliminated first, because everyone has learned a skill they are good at, which at least guarantees a 6% chance of winning.

However, if everyone targets Class, then Class will be very likely to be the first to be eliminated.

Once a team is eliminated, the number of remaining projects will decrease. For example, if a team is eliminated with 0-4 projects, then the remaining four projects for that team will be useless.

This will increase the probability of drawing the chess event. As long as Class B persists for two more rounds, they will eventually get it.

Therefore, Sakayanagi's request to join forces with him was not for the purpose of winning, but simply because he wanted to have a formal chess match with Ayanokoji.

As for how the two, one a player and the other a commander, can compete, I believe it won't be difficult for Sakayanagi. The rules of the commander system are very flexible and varied.

Having seen through this, Kamio Tatsuya narrowed his eyes.

"Hey Sakayanagi, you're not doing this just because you want to have a chess match with Ayanokouji, are you?"

Hearing Tatsuya Kamio say this, Sakayanagi's expression didn't change, but Kamuro was stunned.

As the commander, she couldn't bypass Sakayanagi's actions, so naturally she had told her about the plan long ago, and Sakayanagi was aware of it.

But she never expected that Tatsuya Kamio would be able to guess Arisu Sakayanagi's true purpose from just a few sentences of conversation.

Amazing!

Tatsuya is amazing!

I really like!

Sakayanagi knew his purpose had been exposed just by looking at Kamuro's expression. "That idiot, he can't even keep a poker face."

This guy calls himself a commander? He's just asking to be sent to his doom.

Well, never mind, it's not important anymore.

"That's right, that's why I wanted to eliminate the classes first. If there are only three classes left, it will be easier to maintain a balance."

You talk as if you can control your balance.

Tatsuya Kamio glanced at Kamuro, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Then Sakayanagi sighed.

"Indeed, it would be quite difficult for Masumi-san to take control of the whole situation, so could I ask you for help then?"

"We'll see when the time comes, and it's also possible that we'll draw chess as the first item," Tatsuya Kamio said with a smile.

Sakayanagi paused for a moment, then gave a helpless smile.

Since Tatsuya Kamio said that, it means the conversation has basically fallen apart.

In fact, this conversation was completely meaningless.