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

4. There must be no situation in the competition where the results cannot be determined. For example, competitions where the evaluation of poems or articles by other people is prohibited.

5. In contact sports, the activity should be limited to near misses; causing serious injury to others is strictly prohibited.

No one had any objections to this requirement. After all, the purpose of the competition was simply to compete for class points. It wasn't a life-or-death feud, so there was no need to be so ruthless. Everyone understood that it was necessary to determine a winner and prepare for other possible competition rules.

But at that moment, Nishino, representing Class C, raised his hand.

"Nishino-kun, is there something you want to ask?"

"Yes, if I remember correctly, the generals' duel requires the Command Tower to propose it and the student who will serve as the general to agree before it can proceed, right?"

Teacher Sima pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"As you said, the condition for a showdown between the generals is that both the commander and the general must agree. So, Nishino-kun, what is your question?"

"What if the other side doesn't accept the challenge of a general's duel? Is the side that first proposed the challenge simply considered the winner?"

Nishino's question is extremely important.

Previously, everyone's attention was mainly focused on what kind of problems to prepare for, the extent to which the commander could control these matches, and whether the generals had absolute dominance over these matches.

Almost everyone overlooks this crucial question: what if your side proposes a general-versus-general confrontation and the other side refuses?

"That's a very good question. After one side proposes a match-up, the challenged side can choose to refuse. If they refuse, they won't gain any class points even if they win the match, but they will lose double the match points if they lose the match. In addition, refusing a match-up once will result in losing the reward of 100 class points for a seven-win streak. However, if a match-up proposal is refused, then even if they lose the match, they will not lose any class points."

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up.

Originally, all the participating classes thought that the "general" role was just a way to fight back in a one-on-one match when their class was at a disadvantage in a particular event.

However, if the other party simply refuses a one-on-one fight, then winning or losing is a win for both sides. In such cases, choosing a highly intimidating figure might play an unexpected role at a crucial moment.

Their true task as commanders should be to provide assistance in academic exams while accurately determining whether each match should be played normally or a match between top players.

Upon learning that the role of the Grandmaster matchup had been greatly enhanced and that they would no longer need to participate directly in the competition, Nishino and Totsuka both visibly breathed a sigh of relief. Compared to directly participating in the competition, sitting in the command room and directing others to participate in the competition would be less stressful.

"It's important to note that you must convey this to your class members: except for the Command Tower and General, all other students can only participate in each competition once. When submitting your ten competition entries, you must ensure there are an appropriate number of participants. You can't just focus on your favorite competition. Okay, now let me show you the special machine the Command Tower will use..."

……

"So this competition really is a competition for everyone?"

Tenon couldn't help but raise an eyebrow after hearing the news that Koenji brought back.

Things didn't seem to be as simple as she thought.

"That's how it is. I've already brought what I needed to. If there's nothing else, I'll be going with the lovely girls and Yue, so I'll head out now."

After finishing speaking, Koenji picked up his backpack and walked out of the classroom.

"Kōen-ji Temple..."

Horikita was about to call Koenji to stay and discuss the matter when Amane stopped him.

"It's after school now, so he's free to do whatever he wants. Don't worry, Takaenji should be able to cooperate with whatever activity he chooses."

Horikita looked at Amane with some confusion. She didn't remember Amane having any dealings with Koenji. How come Amane seemed to be very familiar with Koenji?

Are you really sure there's nothing wrong with that house?

"It shouldn't be a big problem."

Horikita was skeptical of Amane's answer, but since everyone was waiting for them to speak, Horikita had no intention of dwelling on such trivial matters.

"So what should we do about this exam? It's true that five of the ten competition events we submitted are just for show, but they will take up class spots. If there are too many participants, we won't have enough people to fill our favorite events. If there are too few participants, it will be easy to tell which ones are our favorite events. Tianyin, what do you think we should do?"

Horikita is more worried this time than ever before.

At this point, the disadvantage of insufficient class size became apparent. If Amane hadn't persuaded Katsuragi and Ichinose to come, Horikita wouldn't even have known if the remaining students were enough to fill the class.

There are currently 37 students in Class B. However, if we remove one student each who serves as the commander and general, then there will be 35 students left.

What Class B needs to do is to find a way to distribute the thirty-five people into 10 competition events, while ensuring that there are enough people available for their assigned events, and that the events are not so predictable that they can be easily figured out.

To give a simple example, if Class B wants to prepare a soccer event with 11 participants, the number of participants will have to be reduced when other events are submitted because this event takes up a large portion of the class's population.

But in other competitions like English tests, there are only one or two participants, while in football there are eleven.

Despite the reasonable circumstances, the other party could immediately tell that the English test was not as important as football.

Perhaps this method of releasing smoke bombs could be used to disrupt the opponent's judgment, but this kind of competition requires relatively outstanding personnel due to the small number of participants.

The sheer number of students was enough to leave Class B undecided.

Why did five students in Class B drop out at once in the early stages? Classes with sufficient students, such as Class B or Class C, shouldn't have this problem.

As for Class D...

The difficulties they face may be even more severe than those of Class B. Having lost five students so far due to withdrawals and transfers, and with the deduction of the commander and general candidates, they are left with only 32 participants, yet they have to prepare participants for ten events. It is truly a tight situation.

Chapter 187: Every Family Has Its Own Troubles

"Well, Totsuka-kun, you've brought me some good news this time. Since Class B has set its sights on Class D, it means they don't intend to clash with us anytime soon. This gives us time to sort out our internal affairs. Do you agree, Totsuka-kun?"

While sipping his coffee, Sakayanagi softly spoke of his future goals.

Totsuka, sitting opposite Sakayanagi, felt extremely uneasy, as if he were sitting on pins and needles. Even though Sakayanagi wasn't looking at him, he felt as if her gaze was constantly fixed on him.

The pressure that Sakayanagi brought him far exceeded the feeling he had on the rooftop. After his previous defeat, Sakayanagi locked himself in his room and meditated for a whole day. When he came out of seclusion, Sakayanagi seemed like a completely different person. The Sakayanagi who had used false gentleness to cover up his sharp and outspoken personality had disappeared.

At this moment, Sakayanagi appeared to be neither sad nor happy, and others could no longer guess her thoughts by observing her facial expressions. At the same time, she, who was used to acting alone or with Kamuro, now had an extra person by her side, namely Kito Hayabusa.

Sakayanagi explained that this was to ensure that he would not encounter any deliberately arranged couples from other classes, and that additional personnel were needed to guarantee his safety.

In fact, Totsuka guessed that Sakayanagi probably did this to prevent a second person in the class from daring to openly rebel.

If it weren't for his intervention, Totsuka was quite certain that Sakayanagi would have won the match. Although Horikita seemed to have the upper hand in that match, Totsuka was shocked by Hashimoto's explanation in the post-match review.

At the time, Sakayanagi somehow managed to leave an "S" mark on the white chess piece. Perhaps he rubbed it on the ground or scratched it with his fingernail while talking to Horikita, but that doesn't matter anymore. In any case, Sakayanagi knew what color chess piece he was holding when he betrayed him.

In other words, Totsuka ruined her victory right in front of Sakayanagi.

However, Totsuka did not regret it at that time. He wanted to avenge himself when he was beaten on the rooftop. After all, it was Sakayanagi who instructed him to frame Ryuen and promised to help him clean up the mess. In the end, he watched helplessly as Ryuen was beaten. He had to get revenge no matter what.

On the other hand, Amane gave him a hint through Katsuragi: if he was willing to betray, Amane was willing to pay 20 million to buy him into Class B, and if Sakayanagi wanted him to drop out of school, Amane would also take responsibility.

It was with Amane's support and encouragement that Totsuka chose to rebel during the most important exam without hesitation. Totsuka originally thought that Class A would definitely fall to Class B this time, and the class's prestige would be greatly reduced. At that time, he directly confessed that he had Amane's support and was willing to support Hashimoto as the new class leader.

This trick was taught to him by Tianyin, who told him that this trick would definitely cause internal strife in Class A after their ranking dropped.

This was his last act of disgust towards Class A before leaving them.

Tenon's arrangement made Totsuka feel genuinely satisfied.

And that's how he was turned.

But he never expected that although Sakayanagi lost the game, he left behind a backup plan that allowed Hashimoto to win. This not only preserved Class A's ranking but also made Hashimoto fear Sakayanagi's abilities, thus preventing him from openly taking the lead.

With Amane's support, Totsuka wasn't afraid of Sakayanagi. He would say things like he wasn't afraid of being expelled or dropping out when facing Sakayanagi. But his confidence vanished without a trace after Koenji assigned him to Class D.

He didn't know why Class B changed their opponent, but even if Totsuka was slow to react, it wasn't hard to see that Amane didn't intend to risk a decisive battle with Sakayanagi for a few class points, but rather planned to exploit the weaker class.

This decision coincided with Sakayanagi's. Totsuka wasn't sure if it was the right decision, but if even Sakayanagi made the same decision, then Amane's decision must have some merit.

Amane might see this decision as reasonable, but Totsuka saw it as a death sentence!

The shift in Tianyin's strategic focus means that he, the mole whose identity has already been revealed, is about to face the most brutal reckoning, and it will happen in this special test that cannot be saved.

Totsuka even felt that Amane and Sakayanagi shared a tacit understanding and wanted him to disappear.

Fearing the consequences, Totsuka completely lost the arrogant attitude he had shown towards Sakayanagi after the special exam.

Why aren't you saying anything?

The crisp 'snap' as the cup landed on the saucer startled Totsuka, but what truly terrified him was Sakayanagi's questioning.

"I'm so sorry, I was thinking about something and got a little distracted, so..."

"Totsuka-kun, are you trying to say that you were distracted while we were talking? We're discussing a crucial topic that concerns the fate of our class, and you're actually daydreaming about other things at a time like this. You're such an unqualified commander."

Sakayanagi stretched out his hand, and Kamuro quickly placed the cane in Sakayanagi's palm. Sakayanagi, holding the cane, gently tapped Totsuka's shoulder with the end of the cane.

"You have a heavy responsibility on your shoulders that concerns the fate of the class. I hope that Totsuka-kun can live up to the expectations and trust that everyone in Class A has placed in you, and at the same time... don't let me down."

*Splat*

The cup in Totsuka's hand suddenly slipped from his grasp and crashed to the ground, shattering into irreparable pieces. The sound attracted the attention of many onlookers.

Among them were some familiar faces.

Sakayanagi merely snorted, then glanced disdainfully at Totsuka before turning and leaving the scene.

"Masumi-kun, could you please use my phone to pay the bill? Oh, and that cup is on me."

……

The members of Class C, who witnessed the entire process, fell silent.

If Ryuen is called a tyrant because he violently ruled Class C, then the magnanimity and authority that Sakayanagi just displayed far surpassed that of Ryuen. This means that Sakayanagi may not have used his full strength in the school's special exam at all.

"Sigh, it seems things aren't looking good this time. Just now, I felt like someone was choking me, making it hard to breathe. This woman is too dangerous. I shouldn't have become her rival, at least not now."

Although Kaneda's feelings might sound like he was boosting the morale of others while diminishing his own, they were all true.

Even Ibuki, who was always defiant and defiant, was speechless at this moment. As a girl herself, she felt extremely insignificant in front of Sakayanagi and couldn't muster any resistance.

Seeing that everyone's morale was already somewhat low before the fight even started, Shiina, who hadn't spoken until now, knew that he should give everyone a boost.

“Kinda-san is right, Sakayanagi-san is indeed very dangerous, and now is not the best time to fight her. But the problem is that we didn’t choose to fight Class A this time. Instead, Class B designated Class D, so we have to face Class A, a strong enemy. Although Class A is very strong, it’s not without weaknesses…”

For the first time, Shiina, who has always disliked intrigue and strife, brought up this topic.

Kaneda wasn't stupid. He had only been intimidated by Sakayanagi's aura and thought that Makoto of Class A was no match for him, but he immediately realized what was going on after Shiina reminded him.

"Shiina-san, are you talking about Totsuka? I admit that Totsuka is definitely a good breakthrough point right now, but... this time the loser is destined to sacrifice themselves in the cruel exam to become the commander. Even if Totsuka agrees to make some deals with us, I think it's meaningless. Moreover, I don't think Totsuka would use his own expulsion to get revenge on Sakayanagi. Also, it's hard to say whether the farce they just put on was just for show for others."

When it comes to weaknesses, not only Kaneda but everyone else immediately thinks of Totsuka. If it were any other Special Exam Class C, they would definitely choose to contact Totsuka without hesitation, even though they had just fallen out not long ago. When it comes to common interests, any deep-seated hatred can be put aside for the time being.

Unfortunately, the conditions for this special exam were too harsh. It can be said that the school's move almost completely blocked any possibility of students in the command tower betraying their class.

They would be expelled if they lost the game; it was clear the school was determined to expel at least two of them.

Faced with this situation, no one in command would dare to act rashly, let alone Totsuka, who already had a grudge against Class C.

Ryuen, who had been silently listening to Kaneda and Shiina's discussion, suddenly interrupted Kaneda.

"Shiina doesn't mean cooperating with that good-for-nothing Totsuka."

Ryuen was the only one who realized Shiina's thoughts. After seeing that Ryuen understood her intentions, Shiina smiled and stopped participating in the discussion.

"Not Tozuka? Then... wait, Ryuen, you don't mean..."

Kinda's eyes widened. He was stunned by his own guess. He looked at Ryuen in shock. If Ryuen was really as he guessed, then from Kinda's perspective, he would undoubtedly think that Ryuen was crazy.

“That’s right, I’m going to collaborate with Sakayanagi this time.”

"Wait, Ryuen, I still don't understand. No, what are you guys discussing? What's this about collaborating with Sakayanagi? I can't understand a word you're saying."

Ishizaki scratched his head in apparent pain.

He couldn't understand how he could lose track of what everyone was talking about after just a moment of distraction.

Why are we suddenly going to collaborate with Sakayanagi?

Ryuen showed no interest in responding to Ishizaki's question. He told the other members of Class C that this idea was not something for them to discuss, and that no one could change his decision.

Since Totsuka has become a pawn, we might as well squeeze out the last bit of value from him. As for who we cooperate with... as long as the benefits are enough, it doesn't really matter if we cooperate with a demon.

Class C desperately needs an inspiring victory right now.

……

"Are you kidding me! Why would Class B suddenly designate us? Did you say something you shouldn't have, Ninomiya, that made them target us?"

After losing Shibata and two other high-achieving students, Kanzaki became unusually irritable.

This caused people who didn't have a good relationship with him to gradually distance themselves from him.

At this point, Kanzaki no longer cared about these things. He just wanted to get rid of all the disobedient people first, and then earn enough class points to cover the normal expenses of the class before he decided to leave everything else alone.

Anyway, his grades are good enough to get him into a decent university, so let whoever wants to take over this mess do it.

So Kanzaki began to implement high-pressure management on Class D, the reason being that if they didn't work hard now, they would lose even their meager class points of just over one hundred next month.

In order to obtain a meager 10,000+ personal points at the beginning of next month, the members of Class D had no choice but to bite the bullet and step forward to help Kanzaki devise a plan. However, they deliberately kept their distance from Kanzaki to avoid him going crazy and doing something incomprehensible as his mental state deteriorated.

"I just told them that if a weak and trash class like Class D isn't going to declare war now, what are they waiting for? Then Class B thought what I said made sense and decided to challenge us. Are you satisfied now?"

Ninomiya showed Kanzaki no kindness whatsoever.