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

In an attempt to save face, Kamuro made a harsh statement.

It seems to make sense, since everyone has a 50% chance of guessing correctly, and with so many people, there must be some who are lucky, right?

But the problem is...

Everyone has a 50% chance of guessing correctly and a 50% chance of guessing incorrectly.

Even if Class A uses sheer numbers to overcome Class B's challenge, she'll probably have already recouped her investment by then.

"Anyone can talk tough. If you really want to win, send someone with real strength. I don't like bullying the weak."

Horikita's words angered Kamuro, who stomped his foot and stormed out of the room through the back door.

Richu also dejectedly followed Kamuro and left.

Sakayanagi wasn't surprised to see Rinaka and Kamuro fail. After all, it was a big gift that Amane had prepared for her. If Kamuro and Rinaka could easily break it, Amane would be underestimating her.

"Let's try another group."

This time, Sakayanagi chose Tsukaji and Kito as his partners.

From male dominance and female subordination to female dominance and male subordination.

Sakayanagi wanted to test whether the target of the other party was a boy or a girl by using different combinations.

If the target is a boy, she can confidently take on the challenge. But if the target is a girl, she'll only be there to assist the boy in the challenge. And since Hashimoto can't easily make an appearance, it's difficult for her to find a boy she can trust who also has enough ability.

If Katsuragi were still alive, she probably wouldn't need to conduct such a test.

Unfortunately, Katsuragi has already been poached by Tenon... No matter how much you think about it, something that doesn't exist can't just suddenly appear.

"If that still doesn't work, then I'll have to give it a try."

……

While Class A and Class B were engaged in a tense and fierce battle, the challenge between Class C and Class D was also underway. However, compared to the extravagant behavior of Class A and Class B, who could freely squander their points to arrange tests, the scene of the challenge between Class C and Class D was quite deserted.

Hiyori Shiina was in charge of leading the challenge in Class C, while Hayate Shibata was in charge of taking on the challenge in Class D.

Both sides have their own strengths in terms of individual ability, but this exam really tests an individual's ability to compete against a difficult problem that a class has painstakingly devised. The difficulty is naturally far different from defeating a single individual.

The challenge value for Class D is 150 points, and the challenge fee is 15 points. The price isn't expensive, but it's not something that can be easily wasted on arranging for people to take the test.

After all, Class C's class points were not particularly abundant.

"Kinda-kun, I'll trouble you to make the trip."

"Then let me give it a try."

There were only two people, Shiina and Kaneda, who came to challenge Class D this time. Shiina actually wanted to be the first to take the test, but since Ryuen appointed her as the team leader, she had to try her best to avoid the embarrassing situation of failing as the team leader right away.

Therefore, we can only trouble Kaneda to participate in the challenge first.

Kaneda opened the door to the room.

Sakagami-sensei sat there meticulously, looking somewhat unhappy. Kaneda glanced at Shibata and immediately knew that Sakagami-sensei was implying that Shibata's question was of the disgusting type.

Seeing this, Jintian also became serious.

"I am Kaneda Satoru from Class C, Grade 1. Nice to meet you."

"I am Shibata Hayate from Class D, Grade 1. Let me briefly introduce the rules. Our rules are very simple. As long as you answer the question correctly, you will pass. There is only one question in our test. The rules are very simple and it all depends on your personal ability, Kaneda-kun."

Hearing Shibata speak so casually, Kaneda became even more alert. If it were really as simple as Shibata made it sound, Sakagami-sensei wouldn't have such an expression. Since Class D planned to decide the winner with a single question, then that question would obviously be extremely difficult.

"Okay, I understand. Shibata-san, please give me the question."

Question: Which is more numerous, the stars in the sky or the sand on the ground?

hiss.

Even with his extensive knowledge and experience, Kaneda was stumped by this question.

He truly didn't expect anyone to ask such a shameless question. Did Class D even know the answer to this question?

"Sakagami-sensei, does this question really meet the requirements of the special exam? As far as I know, there isn't even an accurate number of planets in the universe, right? Not to mention the sand on the ground. Did Shibata-kun and the others count every single grain of sand in the desert?"

Kinda, his anger palpable, questioned Sakagami-sensei about the validity of the problem.

After a moment of contemplation, Sakagami-sensei actually nodded.

"Shibata has already told me the answer to this question. It is solvable and falls within the range of questions that a high school student can solve."

Without hesitation, Sakagami-sensei passed on the crucial information to Kaneda.

It is within the scope of what a high school student can answer.

Therefore, neither more stars nor more sand should be correct, and neither answer can yield a precise number, so they cannot be the correct answer, otherwise it would violate the school rules.

So why did Sakagami-sensei say that this question did not violate any rules?

The answer is simple: this question isn't about determining which quantity is greater, but rather a logic problem. The correct answer should be a very simple one: "the same quantity."

But just as Kaneda was about to answer, he suddenly remembered that Shibata's question did not provide any options.

He asked who has more, so is 'the same amount' really an option in the answer?

Kaneda hesitated for a moment.

Seeing Kaneda hesitate, Shibata revealed a rare smile.

He came up with this question, and it's a bit difficult for some idiots because anyone who doesn't know which is more will definitely answer 'the same amount' as the correct answer.

However, he judged that Class C wouldn't waste class points by letting a bunch of idiots challenge them, so the probability of encountering smart guys would be very high.

The smarter a person is, the more suspicious they become. It is by exploiting this psychology that Shibata deliberately takes a shortcut in his questions, not providing any answer options, thus making those who could easily answer correctly suspicious.

If he's lucky enough to make Kaneda and Shiina fail their challenge, the remaining people probably won't choose to come up and embarrass themselves, and he can subdue them without a fight.

On the other hand, no matter how he thought about it, Kaneda felt that the correct answer should be the same number.

But he didn't dare to gamble; if he succeeded, everyone would be happy.

But what if the gamble fails?

Kinda knew Ryuen's personality very well, and he wouldn't allow Kinda to make a mistake on such an important exam.

Although he hadn't used violence against him since Ryuen took over Class C, he believed that Ryuen's brain might be useful in some special exams. However, Kaneda was well aware of what would happen if he proved to be useless.

There are many ways to fail, but he can't gamble on the most risky one.

It's best to leave this to Shiina.

Kaneda believed that even he could see the answer to Class D's challenge, so it shouldn't be a problem for Shiina.

Moreover, Shiina has the means to gamble; even if he fails, Ryuen won't blame Shiina too much for not liking to take the special exam.

"I think there are more stars than grains of sand."

"I'm sorry, Kinda-kun, you answered incorrectly."

"I think so too."

Kaneda's composure caused Shibata's smile to slowly freeze.

"Such clever tricks won't fool Shiina-kun. Winning against you guys is actually very simple, it just so happens that I don't have any stakes on hand."

Jintian chose the safest approach: as long as he didn't gamble, he wouldn't bear the consequences of gambling; losing, however, was a different matter altogether.

Realizing that his cleverness had been seen through, Shibata was at a loss for what to do and could only watch helplessly as Kaneda left.

Not long after Kaneda left, the door opened again, and unsurprisingly, the challenger this time was Shiina Hiyori.

Although the person asking to leave cannot speak or make any gestures that hint at an answer, Kaneda's relaxed expression doesn't resemble that of a loser.

Shiina quickly realized that Kaneda had seen through the other person's answer, but was unable to answer for some reason, which was why he acted this way.

"Honestly, Kaneda is just too cautious. Ryuen could answer anyone with confidence."

Shiina patted her cheeks to encourage herself and then clenched her little fists.

"I am Hiyori Shiina from Class C, Grade 1, and I've come here to challenge Class D."

Chapter 174: The Decisive Battle (6K)

Shibata felt a little uneasy about Shiina's challenge.

He had already learned from Kaneda's words that Kaneda had guessed the answer, but even if he had guessed it, it didn't matter, because Kaneda was a loser at this moment and would never have the chance to pass the answer to Shiina.

But if... Shiina could also guess the answer, then his persistence would lose all meaning.

However, since everyone trusts him and has left him here alone to defend against the challengers from Class C, he must fight to the very end no matter what.

This is also to ensure I have no regrets.

"Shiina-kun, are you ready? There's only one question on the test. If you answer it correctly, you'll pass the challenge. The rules are quite simple, but you might need a little luck to answer it correctly. Kaneda-kun's luck didn't seem to be very good just now."

Shibata made lighthearted jokes while observing Shiina's changing expressions, but to his disappointment, his pressure did not make Shiina back down. His calm and composed demeanor clearly indicated that he had come prepared.

"If that's the case, then that would be perfect."

Shiina's words caused the smile on Shibata's face to gradually fade.

"The best thing to do is..."

"I mean luck. I'm usually pretty lucky. If the challenge for Class D were entirely based on luck, I might have passed it very easily."

In just a brief conversation, Shibata immediately realized that Shiina might not only have good grades as her only advantage. Shiina now reminded her of the first time she met Ichinose.

Beneath that humble and gentle nature lies an unwavering heart.

"We can begin. I forgot to eat breakfast this morning, so I'm a little hungry. To put it simply... I'm in a hurry."

The truth will be revealed once the truth is revealed.

Shiina was clearly retaliating against Shibata for pressuring her after Kaneda's defeat.

She's a girl who's absolutely unwilling to suffer any loss, and her personality is quite similar to that of Tianyin.

Shibata had already raised his alert level to the highest level and was in top condition. He was now ready to see if Shiina's strength was even half as good as her mouth.

"Now, Shiina-kun, listen to this question: Which do you think exists more, the planets in the sky or the sand on Earth?"

Shiina raised an eyebrow. The first reaction to this question should be that it is outrageous, but if you think about it differently, you will find that the question is incredibly simple. The only thing that puzzled her was why Class D would use such a simple question as such an important exam question?

"The answer is..."

Shiina hesitated for a moment, then thought of another way to win besides answering the question.

What is the answer?

There is one more grain of sand on Earth than there are planets in the sky.

"Hahahaha, sorry Shiina-kun, your answer is wrong. It seems I have won this challenge."

Upon hearing Shiina's answer, Shibata was overjoyed. He knew that Class C had sent Kaneda and Shiina to challenge him, and now that he had defeated both of them, the rest of the class should have nothing to say, right? If Kanzaki lost... then it wouldn't be his problem.

"Shibata-kun, where did I go wrong with my answer? Shouldn't there be one more grain of sand than a star?"

"Shiina, you're too naive. The number of planets and grains of sand is simply countless. Let alone the grains of sand, there isn't even a precise number of planets in the sky. How could you possibly know that there's one more grain of sand than planets?"

"So... Shibata-kun, you yourself don't know whether there are more planets or sand?"

Shiina narrowed her eyes, giving off a dangerous vibe.

However, Shibata thought the challenge was over and didn't take it to heart. But soon, he would find out who was the naive one.

"Of course, how could I possibly know something that even scientists don't have a definitive answer to?"

As soon as Shibata finished speaking, Shiina flashed a bright smile.

"It seems that naivety really is Shibata-kun."

"Ok?"

Before Shibata could react, he saw Sakagami-sensei stand up.

"Shibata, your Class D violated the rules of the special exam. According to the rules, the use of questions without clear answers is strictly prohibited in this special exam. Therefore, the results of this special exam are invalid, and you are directly disqualified from the competition."

Sakagami, in a serious tone, informed Shibata that Class D had been disqualified from the competition for violating the rules.

Even at this moment, Shibata's face still held the smile of victory.

"Sakagami-sensei, are you kidding me? Didn't I already report the questions and answers to you at the beginning? You clearly said at the time..."

"This answer is correct, right?"

Shibata gritted his teeth. It wasn't that they hadn't prepared other contingency plans. The reason they chose this question was partly because Shibata himself had come up with it, and he believed it would be more difficult for the top students in Class C than the math problem Kanzaki had come up with.