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

With tears in her eyes, Amane clung to Horikita's arm and shook it back and forth, trying to evoke Horikita's sympathy while managing to get away with her cuteness. Unfortunately, Horikita had long since developed a resistance to Amane's cuteness tactics, so Horikita only glanced at Amane before Amane quickly let go of Horikita's arm and obediently sat down opposite her.

"Take a look at this first. These ten projects are the ones we selected to compete against Class D. If you also think there are no problems, we will report them."

Horikita handed the notebook to Amane. When it came to serious matters, Amane also put away her playful expression and seriously accepted Horikita's notebook.

The notebook first listed five competition events that would act as smoke bombs.

1200m Relay Race

"50-meter swimming"

"Kyudo"

100-meter sprint

"One-Minute Jump Rope Competition"

Tianyin raised an eyebrow upon seeing these five projects used as a smokescreen.

"Lingyin, are you sure this is a smoke grenade competition? From my perspective, our class should be quite good at these kinds of events. At the very least, we can solve it through one-on-one battles or command tower intervention, right?"

Tianyin's question was not wrong. It was a real pity to use these competitions as a smokescreen, because there are many people who are good at some of these events.

For example, in the 1200-meter relay race, even without using the singles challenge format, it is sufficient to build a team around Ayanokoji, with Hirata, Makita, and Maezono as supporting players. The real key is simply the last leg.

Some might think that once a gap is created at the beginning, no matter how strong the last group is, it won't make a difference and they won't be able to turn the tide.

If you really think that way, you're sorely mistaken. If someone like Amane, Ayanokoji, or Koenji were to run the last leg, in a 1200-meter relay, the last leg would still be a strong contender unless the opponent had run more than 250 meters ahead. That's the power of a true champion.

However, since this project has already been used as a smokescreen, there's no point in saying anything more, which is a real pity in Tianyin's opinion.

"I have considered that, but... what if our final draw is the worst-case scenario?"

This special test involved both sides submitting ten competition items, five of which were fake items used as smokescreens, while the other five were their actual events.

Then the school will randomly select seven items from the ten main events of both sides for the competition.

In other words, if you're unlucky, all five events might be the opposing class's specialty. In that case, even if you win the remaining two events, you still won't be able to win.

Furthermore, one cannot rely entirely on Tenon and Koenji. For example, the instructions for the general's duel state that the general cannot appear repeatedly in the same type of competition.

For example, if Tianyin participates in a modern Chinese exam competition, she cannot participate in any subsequent academic ability tests.

Such requirements undoubtedly limited the general's performance, and the role of the command tower was actually quite limited, because unlike the general changing the competition to a one-on-one duel, the role of the command tower was to guide and intervene.

If Koenji interfered in an English test competition and scored a perfect score while everyone else couldn't even get 60 points, and the opposing team averaged 90 points, then no matter how outstanding Koenji was, he couldn't turn the tide of the battle.

So while this special exam may seem to emphasize the performance of the top students in each class, it actually assesses the level of mutual understanding among students and the average level of students in the class.

Class D's overall strength is truly negligible, but the opponent's average strength is far superior, only slightly inferior to Class A. Almost all of them are of a very average type in all aspects, which makes Class B's tactics somewhat passive.

The most important rule is that players who have played in a match cannot participate in other matches. In other words, each person can only be used once, and the class must be divided into seven groups to ensure that there are enough people.

This is a great test of the class leaders' abilities for each class. Fortunately, Class B, despite the heavy losses incurred by Amane, brought in Katsuragi and Ichinose to bolster their strength and increase their numbers, ensuring that they wouldn't lose due to a lack of manpower.

If you lose a contest, you can at most say you were outmatched in skill, but if you lose because of a numerical disadvantage...

I'm afraid I'll be so angry that I'll wake up in my sleep at night.

Amane nodded slightly upon hearing Horikita's explanation.

Indeed, if luck is not on your side, you will definitely need to prepare a lot of top students to wear down the other side. Even if you draw your class's specialty, you might still find yourself in the embarrassing situation where your top students have already been used and can't go on stage again.

Then, Amane was assigned to five competition events that Horikita marked as her "favorite." Since these events were considered class secrets, Horikita kept an eye on Amane's surroundings while she watched the events to prevent any accidents from happening.

"Checkers" (My favorite game)

"Mental Arithmetic" (My Destiny)

Aikido (My Natal Style)

Arm wrestling (my passion)

Rock-Paper-Scissors (My Favorite)

Upon seeing these five items that Horikita had solemnly marked in red as her favorites, Amane's first reaction was to feel somewhat amused and exasperated.

What are these strange and unusual competition events?

While checkers and aikido are somewhat difficult and not particularly popular here, there aren't many skilled players in Class B, are there? Are they going to have a bunch of noobs fight it out and then send someone who's even slightly better to win?

Mental arithmetic was the only competition that Tianyin considered somewhat normal; at least it was more reliable than arm wrestling and rock-paper-scissors.

Amane looked up at Horikita but couldn't help pointing at the competition and quietly asking Horikita a question.

"Aren't arm wrestling and rock-paper-scissors a bit too casual?"

Chapter 208: Stop thinking about those people all the time.

Faced with Amane's questioning, Horikita seemed much calmer. Although her performance in the special exams had always been unsatisfactory, she had ample experience and logical thinking that far surpassed that of ordinary people.

Judging solely from their level of excellence, even Kanzaki might not be a match for Horikita in Class B. Although the outcome of a real match is uncertain, in some respects, a top student like Horikita understands better what kind of thinking and ideas a class full of top students might have.

"The school emphasized that physical fitness-related events were easier to select for this special exam. So, although the school's statement was cryptic, we couldn't ignore it. Whether it's arm wrestling or rock-paper-scissors, these events may seem like childish competitions, but it's undeniable that they meet many conditions that are advantageous to us."

"For example, these two are physical fitness competitions, which means they are selected with much higher priority than the academic competitions that might appear in Class D. Secondly, these two competitions are absolutely fair. Arm wrestling tests strength and skill. Even if you are not good at skill, as long as you are strong, you can still come up and try. There is no shortage of backup personnel. Rock-paper-scissors tests observation and luck. Even if you are not good at observation, you can still come up and try as long as you feel lucky."

"In other words... these two projects are competitions with no entry requirements, are very fair and do not favor one side over the other, and have high priority. We have no reason to reject them, do we?"

Horikita's explanation made Amane nod in agreement. In her opinion, if the initial consideration was not the competition where they had an advantage, but rather fairness, that is, neutralizing the opponent's advantage in certain competitions, it could be considered a strategy that took an alternative approach.

However, this would greatly reduce the chances of winning, so it's a trade-off.

Choosing between events that your class excels at but the opposing class also excels at, and events where both sides have to rely on luck, can be quite a difficult decision.

Fortunately, Tianyin is quite good at these competition events, so even if any problems arise, we can just let her go up and fight the other side one-on-one.

"Then let's submit this project."

"Well, we can also take a look at what kind of projects they submitted."

The classes on both sides can view each other's list of ten competition events, but they will not be notified which ones are their favorite events. In other words, they need to further guess the other side's five favorite events in order to prepare for intensive training.

Otherwise, we would have to cram all ten projects submitted by other classes, but it would be a pipe dream to master all ten projects in less than a week.

No class would make such a foolish decision.

That noon, Horikita submitted the competition projects for Class B and also learned from the teacher about the list of ten competition projects for Class D. Almost all of the competition projects were ones that Class B had guessed.

Despite the school's repeated emphasis on the fact that physical fitness events are more likely to be selected, for Class D, it's better to launch a crushing attack on Class B in their areas of strength rather than compete with Class B in areas they are not good at.

It's called an overwhelming attack because...

"Modern Chinese Exam"

Chemistry Exam

English Exam

"Math Exam"

Sociology Exam

"Japanese History Exam"

"Geography Knowledge Test"

World History Exam

Biology Exam

"Physical Fitness Test"

They almost entirely favored using academic ability tests to put Class B in a tough position.

Furthermore, in order to achieve their goal, they even separated some subjects in the social sciences and treated them as independent items, which shows how confident Class D was in its academic ability.

The final physical fitness test was the highlight. It might not seem as concrete as track and field or swimming, but it was far more daunting. This was because the physical fitness test involved completing a full set of entrance physical fitness tests, including the 1500-meter run for men, the 1000-meter run for women, and sit-ups and bench presses for both men and women.

It doesn't sound difficult, but it's actually a trap. For example, when it comes to sit-ups, boys need 31 per minute and girls need 24 to pass.

A little exercise shouldn't lead to failing, but this isn't a real physical fitness test; it's a special exam where there's no passing or failing grade, it's all about winning or losing.

In other words, having only a few is not enough; one must be more outstanding than the other contestants. If one mistakenly believes that reaching the passing level is enough, one may suffer an unprecedented and painful lesson.

After receiving the list of competition projects submitted by Class D from Horikita, Amane immediately called a small meeting.

The main members are Hirata, Horikita, Koenji, Ichinose, Katsuragi, and Ayanokoji.

These people gathered together basically represent the top strength of Class B, so generally speaking, there shouldn't be any problems that can't be solved.

"Take a look first. This is the list of competition projects submitted by Class D."

After Amane handed out the list of competition events for Class D, Hirata frowned immediately after just one glance.

"Class D's competition events are too targeted, this might be a bit difficult for us."

Hirata knew the academic situation of the students in Class B all too well. There were at most about ten students whose grades could be considered excellent, about fifteen students in the middle level, and about ten students who either failed or were hovering around the passing mark.

This level of academic ability is at most slightly better than Class C, and the pressure would be enormous if they wanted to compete with Class D in academic ability.

"Is it really that bad?"

Katsuragi was somewhat puzzled by Hirata's attitude. He had only been here a short time and did not yet have a clear understanding of the academic abilities of the students in Class B. In addition, Katsuragi had never worried about the academic performance of the students in Class A. Therefore, when he saw the list of competition items, he was initially indifferent. If it were Class A, this list of competition items would definitely be full of easy points.

That's why he found it somewhat unbelievable after hearing Hirata's statement.

"It's terrible. Katsuragi-kun, you may not know this, but based on Class B's current test scores, if we are selected for the competition, we can basically say that we are doomed."

Horikita's words made Katsuragi frown as well. He had tutored some of the poor students in Class B before, but he thought those were just isolated cases. Now it seemed that the overall academic level of Class B was probably seriously problematic, and it was definitely not a problem that had just appeared recently. This made Katsuragi wonder how they had managed to win the special exams time and time again and finally climb up to Class B.

"I think the key now is not to discuss whether everyone's grades are good or bad, but to discuss what we can do?"

Ichinose succinctly raised his question, then turned his gaze to Amane.

Originally, no one expected to invite Ichinose to participate in the discussion, since from the beginning, Ichinose seemed to want to avoid suspicion. However, as an important figure in Class B, they couldn't really not invite him. So Horikita casually asked Ichinose. Horikita thought that Ichinose would choose to politely refuse, but to his surprise, Ichinose changed his attitude and chose to participate in the discussion on the operation against Class D.

"I think Ichinose is right. Now is not the time to worry about academic ability, but to consider what preparations we need to make next."

Ayanokouji knew from just one glance at Class D's competition that they were determined to fight to the death, because the worst-case scenario of losing this time would be a deduction of 210 class points.

For Class B, winning would certainly be a cause for celebration, as they might be able to advance to Class A by winning this special exam. However, even if they lost the competition, they would only feel regret and wouldn't really care.

After all, there is a gap of nearly 400 class points between Class C, which is ranked third, and Class B. This means that even if Class B loses all seven matches, it is impossible for them to drop to Class C. Therefore, Class B has almost no pressure in this special exam.

In contrast, Class D is different. Several students dropped out of Class D and barely managed to get a little over 100 class points. If they lose the game this time, all their previous efforts will be wasted and they will be back to the embarrassing situation they were in during the Sports Festival. Wouldn't the students who dropped out have sacrificed themselves in vain?

Furthermore, the commander of the losing side in this special exam will also be expelled, which means that if they continue to lose, the already scarce class members will be further reduced.

Over time, Class D will fall behind other classes in terms of sheer numbers. So what will Class D do in the special exams that follow?

Therefore, for Class D, this special exam was almost a do-or-die battle with no way out.

The difference in mindset between the two sides could very well affect the final outcome. Considering this, Ayanokouji actually hoped that Horikita and the others could focus more on the arrangements to come, rather than complaining about the poor academic performance of their classmates.

If everyone was a top student, how could they have been assigned to Class D in the first place?

Besides, everyone has almost been in this school for a year, and should all be used to the poor academic performance of the B class students.

"Among the ten projects, there are definitely some smokescreens to mislead us, but... these competition projects have too many things in common, making it difficult to determine which ones are actually smokescreens... Ichinose-kun, do you have any suggestions for us to consider?"

Horikita felt a little strange about Ichinose's active participation in the discussion, so she took the initiative to ask Ichinose a question, hoping to judge Ichinose's stance in this special exam based on her answer.

Upon hearing this, Ichinose lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then finally shook his head.

"I don't have any advice to offer. Everyone in Class D has very average academic abilities, so it's really hard to judge which events are your strengths based on these competition events."

"That's such a shame."

Horikita was very satisfied with Ichinose's answer. Although Ichinose did not provide any valuable information, she also did not take the initiative to analyze some competitions that might be her favorites, nor did she try to pass on some Class D reports that could not be confirmed at the moment. This greatly increased Horikita's trust in her.

She didn't expect Ichinose to play a crucial role in the match against Class D, but she didn't want Ichinose to make any mistakes. If Ichinose did something harmful to Class B, the first person affected would be Amane, who insisted on allowing Ichinose to transfer to Class B.

It's one thing for someone like Katsuragi, who's completely hopeless in his class, to be moved to Class B. After all, Katsuragi's abilities are undeniable, and with Sakayanagi's approach of eliminating Katsuragi's faction, Horikita isn't worried about Katsuragi causing trouble in Class B.

However, Ichinose is different. Ichinose was only temporarily deprived of power, and Ninomiya was not able to complete the power transfer in the end. It can be said that as long as Ichinose returns to Class D, he can immediately take control of the entire Class D. It is more appropriate to say that Ichinose went to Class B for refuge rather than joining Class B.

Horikita had never been able to completely trust Ichinose, a highly controversial figure, but Ichinose's actions today changed her perception of her.

If it were anyone else, whether they wanted to prove their worth or provide false information to help their former class, they would need to provide some information to gain trust or confuse the public. However, Ichinose directly admitted that she could not provide any useful information. Even though she did not want to harm her former class, Horikita could accept Ichinose's approach.

Because at least Ichinose didn't have any ill intentions towards Class B.

"Koenji-kun, is there anything you want to say?"

Horikita's gaze swept past Amane, who was sucking on a lollipop, and fell upon Koenji, who had remained silent in almost every discussion since the special exam began.

"I don't think I have much to say. Actually, you don't need to pay too much attention to my opinion."