I'm in a real religion, why are all the people who confess to me girls?

Yukimura did not back down despite Shinohara's assertive attitude.

Seeing that Yukimura was showing him no respect, Shinohara stood up abruptly.

"What kind of person I am is none of your business, and you don't need to interfere in my affairs. Mori and I will just compete based on our own abilities."

After finishing his sentence, Shinohara picked up his backpack and strode off as if to leave.

But a strange thing happened: none of the people present tried to stop her. Feeling utterly humiliated, she turned and slammed the door shut as she left.

"It seems that Shinohara-kun's manners still need improvement."

After giving his assessment in a lukewarm manner, Yukimura turned his gaze to Amane.

"I've already driven them away for you, now you can speak your mind, right?"

Yukimura's annoyed look made Amane smile.

"I didn't expect that you and I would have such good chemistry."

"Hmph, your eyes are blinking like they're twitching. I may not be very good at socializing, but I'm not blind. Even the most clueless person would know what you're up to, right? I just happened to guess that you wanted Shinohara to leave. Now that I've played the villain, if you don't give me a satisfactory explanation, I won't let you off easily."

Yukimura made it sound so easy, but in reality, probably only a handful of people in Class C could immediately figure out what Amane was thinking after seeing her hints.

Yukimura's ability to perceive that Shinohara was the problem demonstrates his capabilities. However, like Horikita, his development path was primarily focused on learning, which is a real shame.

"Wait, why am I starting to not understand what you're saying?"

Mori Nene turned her head back and forth between Yukimura and Amane with a confused look on her face, but she just couldn't understand what the two of them were talking about.

Wasn't everyone gathered here to resolve her conflict with Shinohara? If that's the case, then why did they have to drive Shinohara away? The intense thinking made Mori Nene's head start to throb.

"It's okay, practice makes perfect, you'll get used to it."

Matsushita calmly reassured Mori Nene.

Although she didn't quite understand what kind of riddle Amane and Yukimura were playing, there was no better way than to believe Amane now.

Upon hearing Matsushita's words, Hasebe immediately raised his head and nodded vigorously.

"That's right, I also found it hard to understand at first, but I got used to it. I just need to follow their plans. As for the thinking part, let those who are good at it handle it. But Mori, it's already amazing that you're only falling behind now. San San and I couldn't understand it at all in the first place."

Three three?

What a strange name!

Amane glanced at Miyake, who was deliberately turning his head to the side. She was surprised that these two people, who were usually so aloof from social interaction, actually had a good relationship.

However, now is not the time to dwell on this issue.

"I think the problem this time still lies with Shinohara. Do you guys think Satoka from Class A is an idiot?"

"Please don't joke like that. There's no way Rikatsu-kun could be an idiot."

When Mori Nene heard Amane say this, Rina quickly spoke up to defend him. Matsushita seemed to understand something, so he continued speaking in accordance with Amane's words.

"First of all, Li Zhong's classmates are definitely not stupid. If they were stupid, they wouldn't have made it to Class A. Even the worst students in their class are above the average level of our class. Class A can be said to be a truly elite group."

Although it's hard to admit, the excellence of Class A is undeniable. If it were based solely on academic ability, Horikita and the others would probably never be able to get into Class A in their lifetime.

Class A possesses such overwhelming dominance in academic ability.

"Since Rikatsu isn't stupid, why did he choose to confess to two people?"

"Intelligence and character are not necessarily linked; there's also the possibility that he might be an excellent student but a scumbag."

Unexpectedly, Hasebe, who had been silent all along, made a surprising remark, immediately hitting the nail on the head.

However, Tianyin shook her head.

"You underestimate smart guys. If he wanted to be a jerk, why would he let you know? Besides, his circumstances... to put it bluntly, he wouldn't even have a chance to confess to anyone, right? Christmas is coming soon, that guy probably has a whole box of love letters he's received."

Hasebe was even more confused when he heard Amane say that.

"What you mean by that day, Yin?"

"Shinohara lied."

Chapter 58: The Outsider

lie.

It's something that no one can avoid.

No one goes through life without ever telling a lie. After all, lies can be white lies. If someone says she can't lie, then that statement itself is a lie.

Lying is human nature; humans are capable of telling lies on a whim, and the smarter a person is, the more perfect and logical their lies are, making it difficult for others to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

On the contrary, honesty is something that people need to learn, but some people may never learn to be honest, which is why people say that honesty is precious.

What lies will Shinohara tell?

"If Shinohara is lying, where should we begin to investigate?"

Matsushita reviewed Shinohara's remarks but found no obvious flaws. To be honest, she had been a member of Shinohara's clique before, and among those present, no one knew Shinohara better than her. While Shinohara did indeed boast and occasionally lie, he was known for his bad behavior.

However, his own abilities were limited, and the lies he told were relatively easy to see through. That's why Matsushita wanted Amane to help him solve the problem, precisely because he didn't find anything wrong with Shinohara's description.

Could it be that Shinohara, like her, is hiding his true strength? And is actually a master liar? Don't be ridiculous, how could such an absurd thing happen in the world?

"The lies she told were hidden from our view."

Tianyin's tone became very gentle, but it sent a chill down one's spine.

"She mentioned communicating with Richu before, but didn't specify the content of those conversations. The so-called chat logs she showed me were just screenshots of the most recent messages, making it impossible to determine whether she had previously encouraged Richu to confess. Come to think of it... confessing through chat seems rather insincere, doesn't it? It's more like a test than a confession. Shinohara sensed Richu's lack of sincerity and that she was just testing her, so she resorted to delaying tactics... Up to this point, everything seems normal."

Tianyin paused for a moment, then her tone suddenly changed.

"But what's the premise? Why did Rinaka make such a tentative confession? If Shinohara hadn't done anything, would a guy suddenly confess to a girl he doesn't know very well?"

Tianyin's words made everyone fall into deep thought. Just then, Sen Ningning seemed anxious and wanted to speak.

"Mori-kun, is there something you want to say?"

"N-No, that's right. Although what you said makes a lot of sense, Ri-chan also confessed to me..."

"Sigh... Mori-kun, you might not be able to accept what I'm about to say, but I think my deduction is pretty accurate. If it all started because Shinohara got involved with Rinaka in order to hook up with a high-quality guy and hinted that she liked him, Rinaka would probably find it difficult to refuse a girl like Shinohara, even if he wanted to. So he planned to test Shinohara. If Shinohara really liked him, she would probably ask to develop a relationship further. But Shinohara saw that Rinaka wasn't sincere, so she chose to give up..."

Tenon and Mori Ningning looked at each other.

"What will the students in the village do after they realize they've been tricked?"

At this point, everyone looked at Mori Ningning with pity.

Even if Mori Ningning is stupid, she can understand the meaning behind Amane's words.

"You mean... Rikatsu-kun is planning to get revenge, which is why he's targeting me..."

"Yes, that's it. If you don't believe me, you can agree to meet with Li Zhong to discuss it in detail, but I feel there's a high chance he'll stand you up, and then you..."

With a loud bang.

Mori Ningning suddenly stood up, attracting the attention of many people. She lowered her head and hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"Excuse me, I'm suddenly feeling a bit unwell. Please ask me for the dessert later, Matsushita-san. I'll be going now."

Before Matsushita could even get up to stop her, Mori Nene ran out without looking back after saying that.

For a moment, everyone fell silent.

No one expected that what was supposed to be a happy occasion of being confessed to before Christmas would turn into such a ridiculous thing.

"Tianyin...is everything you said true?"

Miyake, still somewhat incredulous, asked, unable to understand how Amane could deduce that Rinaka confessed to Mori Nene out of revenge.

"Of course it's true, but it's obvious that someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Tianyin picked up the now-cold milk and took two big gulps.

"Katsugi or Sakayanagi?"

"It should be Sakayanagi; Katsuragi isn't that petty."

Based on Amane's understanding of Sakayanagi, only she would fight in this way that Amane is most skilled at, but... her technique is still a bit immature.

The content of the confession letter is problematic because it states that if there is any interest, the writer hopes to contact the writer instead of agreeing to meet on the day of the confession. This does not fit the characteristics of someone who genuinely wants to confess.

Because if it was just a prank to get revenge on Mori Nene, even if she was accused, she could just say, "I was just joking and asked her to contact me. Liking someone doesn't mean you have to confess."

However, if you meet them on the spot and tell them that you are retaliating against the other students in Class C because of Shinohara, you will definitely be regarded as the enemy of the girls. In the end, even if Shinohara is infamous, he will become a rat that everyone among the girls hates. Let alone finding a boyfriend, it would be a good thing if he is not expelled from school.

That's why this kind of confession-like approach is used to mislead people.

Perhaps Rinaka changed it without permission because she was afraid of being criticized, or perhaps Sakayanagi was just trying to make a harmless joke.

In short, this flaw was left by the opponent.

I have another question.

Matsushita cutely raised her hand, like a primary school student raising their hand to answer a question in class.

"Qianqiu, is there anything you still don't understand?"

"If it's really revenge as you say, then if Mori makes his actions public first, his image will also be damaged. I feel like that price is too high?"

Matsushita wasn't wrong. While such retaliation from Rinaka certainly satisfied his ego, the situation might have been reversed if Mori Nene had used public opinion to her advantage.

Even Yukimura is waiting for Amane's answer this time.

"Then he'll reveal what Shinohara was hiding from us, and everyone will know that Shinohara tricked Sato in the relationship. So Sato will play a joke on Mori Nene. Although Sato still bears some responsibility, it's obviously nothing compared to Shinohara... And it will also cause a conflict between Shinohara and Mori Nene. After all, Mori Nene needs to regain the face she lost, and the two of them have been getting along quite well with Sato lately... Sato will probably feel quite troubled, right?"

Tianyin revealed a meaningful smile.

Matsushita, who had a keen understanding of the situation, widened his eyes in surprise.

In other words... this confession incident was just a way for Class A to create trouble for Sato from the outside while simultaneously putting pressure on her, in order to cooperate with the rumors circulating in Class C recently. Sato alone cannot fight against Class A, so it is Sato who needs to deal with this incident. If she does not handle it properly... those rumors, whether true or false, will instantly turn into a raging flood and swallow Sato whole.

Have the rumor-mongers joined forces with Class A?

Chapter 59: The Malicious Sakayanagi

The short holiday that allowed people to relax and rejuvenate has finally come to an end.

Today, everyone will face the challenge of final exams.

However, contrary to the tense atmosphere the school was trying to create, neither the first-year nor the upperclassmen seemed to take the exam too seriously, even though failing it would lead to the expulsion of both partners.

Even the older students were still chatting and laughing as they entered the exam room, clearly having plenty of experience to ensure that they and their partners wouldn't be expelled from school in this exam.

Many of the first-year students looked as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

After all, this is the first time that we've collaborated with Ichinose in a sense, so it's understandable that everyone feels a little uneasy.

Even Horikita showed a rare look of unease. Whenever she thought about what would happen if Ichinose tricked her, and how many students in Class C would be expelled given their current study progress, Horikita felt a throbbing pain in her stomach.

Looking at the whole class, besides Koenji, the most composed person right now is probably Amane. Faced with this exam that doesn't motivate her, Amane has already decided to finish it quickly and then catch up on some sleep. As for whether Ichinose will go back on his word, Amane hasn't thought about that. Ichinose isn't stupid enough to ruin her class's reputation for a hundred class points; how could he do such a thing?

She had advised Horikita yesterday not to worry so much about the exam, but Horikita still had reservations because of what happened between Ichinose and Sakura. This distrust had accumulated over time and was not something that could be put at ease by Amane's words alone, especially since Horikita was now the leader of Class C.

The decision to have Class D pass the exam perfectly was made by her. This was the first time Horikita had made a class decision on her own. If a major problem occurred on the first try, it was foreseeable that Horikita would immediately fall into a crisis of trust and eventually be abandoned by everyone.

Of course, Tianyin believed that such a thing would not happen.

The exam began quickly, and as Tianyin had predicted, the test papers prepared by Class D were completely consistent with the provided answer key.

Horikita breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the test paper, and many students in the class couldn't help but let out excited sounds after seeing it.

This exam is practically a sure thing for Class C.

But for some classes... this is undoubtedly the beginning of a nightmare.

Class B exam room.

Shiina filled in the multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions for the history subject set by Class A with a relaxed expression. The questions and the answers provided by Totsuka were quite compatible. It has to be said that the questions set by Class A were quite difficult. Without the answers, it would be difficult for everyone in their class to get a passing grade.

However, all of these questions were ones that Shiina could answer correctly without memorizing the answers, so Shiina answered the questions very quickly. Not long after the exam started, Shiina finished the last few fill-in-the-blank questions in the history subject.

However, Shiina couldn't help but exclaim in surprise when filling in the last few fill-in-the-blank questions.

"what?"

Although the voice was very soft, it was still very noticeable in the examination room.

"Shiina, remember to maintain order and keep quiet during the exam."

Sakagami casually offered a nonchalant reminder.

Shiina clasped her hands together apologetically to Sakagami, but the doubts in her heart were still not resolved.