Hachiman Hikigaya, who returned from his studies after completing his training.

If you've broken up with me, then keep your distance properly, you bad woman, Ichinose.

Thinking of Ichinose's annoying way of being fawned over by everyone, Karuizawa couldn't help but show an uneasy expression. Seeing Karuizawa's uneasy expression, Hikigaya quietly swallowed the words he was saying to her to keep her distance.

Despite not showing any fear or unease in front of Shiina and the others, Karuizawa even volunteered to take on the Rabbit Group's misleading mission.

"Although it's not very credible to say this now, I will definitely protect you, Karuizawa."

Because his right hand was being held, Hachiman could only awkwardly use his left hand to gently stroke Karuizawa's head, trying to dispel her unease about Manabe and the others. However, what he didn't know was that Karuizawa's unease wasn't because of Manabe and the others.

Instead, he was afraid that Ichinose might suddenly change her mind and become a bad horse, going back to Hachiman, who had returned to him.

She knew that even her best friends, Sato and Shinohara, wouldn't necessarily lie and say that she was better or more popular with boys than Ichino.

Call me Hui.

Feeling the warm touch on her head, Karuizawa hugged Hachiman's arm even tighter. She wanted to quickly improve her relationship with Hachiman and win him over before Ichinose turned back.

"Wouldn't that seem a bit too intimate? Look at my reputation right now, especially with Manabe..."

"Call me Megumi." Karuizawa interrupted Hachiman's attempt to change the subject, turning her head to gently bump Hachiman's shoulder twice in displeasure.

Who is Manabe? What she wants now is for Hachiman to call her name.

Today, she would be content as long as she heard Hikigaya call her Megumi.

Chapter 118 Himeno Yuki at the Bow of the Ship

"Megumi." Unable to resist Karuizawa's persistence, Hikigaya could only comply with her.

"Hey hey hey."

The sound of silly laughter broke the gloomy atmosphere that Hachiman had created for himself.

Even though he had only called Karuizawa's name softly, she responded with a sound that conveyed intense joy, which stirred a ripple in Hachiman's heart.

He felt he had no right to make the lovely Karuizawa so happy because of him, which was why he had broken his promise to her today.

They couldn't intervene in time, nor could they find any leverage to force Manabe and the other two to drop out of school. The only option was to compromise and sow discord between them, laying the groundwork for their eventual expulsion.

"The person behind Manabe is Ayanokouji. I don't know if he will continue to use your past to spread rumors. My plan is to fight rumors with rumors, but that will only reduce most of the attention on you."

After Karuizawa calmed down, Hikigaya analyzed the current situation for her. The situation was not optimistic for Karuizawa. As long as the rumors spread, she would definitely attract the attention of her close friends and family, such as Shinohara Sato.

What he needs to do now is to mend the fence after the sheep are lost.

"I think you can inform Matsushita in advance so she can cover for you. I've observed that she's a smart girl. Whenever there's a hint of a fight in your group, she'll quietly nip it in the bud."

At the coffee shop, Matsushita caught Hachiman's eye, so he deliberately recalled Matsushita's every move in class to try and understand her behavior.

Her academic performance was only below average, probably just to cooperate with those with poor grades like Sato and Shinohara. She was very good at reading people and acted as a lubricant for the Karuizawa clique.

Prioritizing the stability of small groups, they hide their own excellence and deliberately cater to other girls.

Hikigaya disagrees with Panasonic's way of life, but he wouldn't say it's bad either; everyone has their own ideas.

"Listen to you."

"...Should we also tell Sato if there's a problem? You saved her once, so I think she'll continue to support you after she finds out." Hachiman had a bad feeling.

"It's all up to you."

Karuizawa, please give me some feedback and think about it!

Hachiman, who appeared calm on the surface, was inwardly going crazy. If everyone listened to him, wouldn't any problems be entirely his fault?

Furthermore, Karuizawa trusting him too much to entrust everything to him without thinking about anything is a sign of excessive trust. Compared to that, the fact that an accident occurred is his fault and not something that should bother him.

All he could say was that Karuizawa was under immense pressure.

Compared to Matsushita, Sato was not really trusted by Hikigaya. This was because Sato himself had a somewhat gloomy personality, and it was impossible for him not to have some thoughts about Karuizawa, the female leader who had risen to power by leveraging the influence of males.

Karuizawa, who once pleaded for her, may not be able to completely convince her.

"Do you really think it's okay to tell Sato about this? I want to hear your opinion on her." Afraid that Karuizawa would say "I'll listen to you" again, Hikigaya deliberately changed his question.

"Since Hachiman says it's okay, then it's okay."

"..."

Forcibly pulling his hand out of Karuizawa's embrace, Hikigaya pinched her fair and delicate cheeks with both hands and made her make a funny face.

The pouting rosy lips on his ghostly face seemed to express his dissatisfaction, but he was even more dissatisfied now.

"Shinohara, Sato, and Mori Nene, I need a report speculating whether they will continue to support you after they find out about this. Each of you should submit at least 500 words before the end of the special exam."

"......This...can...not...be written...?"

Karuizawa's eyes seemed to be pleading for mercy as her cheeks were being pulled, but Hachiman had no intention of letting her off this time.

“Tell me—I’ll listen to you.” Hachiman increased his pressure slightly.

"I'll listen to...you."

With a mournful face, Karuizawa, who never expected Hachiman to be so heartless, could only helplessly repeat Hachiman's words.

------------------

Hachiman regrets it now. He casually mentioned spending 5 million personal points to buy information on the Class A privileged individuals.

Because he always had over ten million personal points on hand, and he knew that the five million would be gradually deducted from the D class's funds without him having to pay, he didn't think much before asking for the exorbitant price of five million personal points.

Not long after returning to his room from his private meeting with Karuizawa, Hachiman received several anonymous 'preferential treatment' requests to meet, two at late at night and one at 6 a.m.

Terrifying. A chill ran through Hachiman as he received so many applications for help. Unbeknownst to him, he too had been corrupted by this school.

The monthly salary of office workers at the bottom of society is only around 100,000 yen. Now, schools give out more than 100,000 points to each student every month, and many students no longer value money as much.

What are the feelings of students from lower-achieving classes who experience a huge gap between their academic performance and the realities of life after entering society? Do they strive to climb up the social ladder or give up on themselves?

He believes that although many strive to climb up, there will certainly be many who fall to the bottom.

Five million personal points, five million yen, more than two years' salary for a salaried worker.

If he can afford to squander such a huge sum of money so easily now, what will he think after graduation?

Thinking of this, Hikigaya slapped himself to wake up, which caught Hirata's attention.

"What's wrong, Hachiman? Did you have a problem with the special exam? Can I help you?"

"I'm fine with the special exam, I just want to clear my head."

"It's time for you to wake up, you arrogant boy," said Koenji, who was sweating profusely while doing a handstand.

"Yes, you're right. I have indeed become a bit too complacent lately, Koenji." Hikigaya humbly accepted Koenji's new nickname.

After leaving my room, I went to the top deck of the cruise ship and stood at the very front to feel the sea breeze blowing in my face. The faint salty smell came with the sea breeze.

"Can't you see there's someone here right now? Hachiman."

There was someone on the deck at the bow again, and it was that slightly fierce-looking, non-mainstream girl, Himeko.

Her blue-gray twin ponytails swayed in the sea breeze. The girl's eyes looked tired and depressed. Her right hand rested on the railing, supporting her chin. Her body language told Hachiman that she was not in a good mood.

Following Hime's example, Hikigaya also propped his chin up, "Just pretend I don't exist, right? Like you, I just want to feel the sea breeze and ease my bad mood."

"But having you here only makes me feel worse." Ji Ye rolled her eyes at the clueless boy.

"Sigh, that's hard for me to respond to, Hime, can you at least give me some face?"

"Oh no." Ji Ye turned to look at the sea bathed in moonlight. "What are you worried about now? Aren't you very popular?"

With the sea breeze blowing, the girl stopped chasing people away and asking about his troubles.

Chapter 119 Ji Ye's Troubles

"The problem is that they're too popular."

"If you don't want to talk about it, then forget it." Himeko didn't tolerate Hikigaya at all.

"Just kidding, just kidding," Hachiman hurriedly said. "During the exam discussion, I told the students to spread the word about who bought the Class A privilege with five million personal points. Now I'm starting to regret it..."

Perhaps because Hime's relationship with him was neither too close nor too distant, and her personality suited him well and she wouldn't talk too much, Hikigaya felt he could tell her about his worries.

"Are you an old man, Hachiman? You're so extravagant and self-reflective, yet you're all frowning. I feel you're a bit too mature and don't seem like a young person at all."

"It's too much to say I'm old. I'm a vibrant sixteen-year-old boy. My little sister, Komachi, always complains that her brother hasn't grown up since elementary school and just stays at home during holidays."

"That's hilarious, you don't mean to say you're still a primary school student, do you?" Hime was speechless.

"What's wrong with being a primary school student? They can do nothing all day long, and they won't be scolded by their parents if they wet the bed."

"You'll be scolded, you'll definitely be scolded for wetting the bed."

While chuckling and making sarcastic remarks, Hime's gloomy expression eased a little. Seeing this, Hikigaya immediately asked her why she had come to get some fresh air by herself, since it was almost 11 p.m.

There were practically no students still swaying around on the cruise ship at this time, which is why he dared to strike up a conversation with Hime.

The curfew is at midnight, and the school has made it clear that it does not recommend continuing to wander around the cruise ship after this time. There is only one 24-hour lounge that is allowed to stay in.

"I like being alone. There are too many class gatherings in Class B, every few days, and now that we're in the midst of special exams, it's even more frequent." Himeko put her arms on the railing, crossed them, and leaned on it.

She now regrets asking Hachiman about his troubles; now that Hachiman has told her, she feels bad if she doesn't.

"I really like the friendly and united atmosphere in Class B, so I don't plan to disrupt it by not accepting party invitations. However, because I'm not good at communicating, other students will intentionally or unintentionally try to chat with me. Such parties are torture for me."

"I didn't mean to say anything bad about you all, it's just that the excessive attention you all give me makes me feel a little uncomfortable. I wish I could be alone and not talk during gatherings."

“Then he wouldn’t be a student in Class B.” Hachiman interjected.

As Class B has made steady progress recently, the students in Class B are increasingly satisfied with the current atmosphere of unity and friendship and will work hard to maintain it. If any student finds themselves in a situation of being 'lonely' at a gathering, they will not remain indifferent.

Even Himeko, who prefers solitude, enjoys this atmosphere, and for this reason, she hides her true nature and endures her discomfort to attend the party.

Himeno's actions are similar to Kushida's, though not to the same morbid degree, but they have still accumulated a lot of pressure.

"How about we shout out loud to the sea to vent our frustrations?" Hachiman suggested. Shouting is a good way to release stress, and now that it's late at night and the sea breeze is strong, no one should notice if we shout a few times.

"Give me a demonstration first."

"I reject."

It's easy to ask others to do it but difficult to do it yourself. After Himeno said that, Hikigaya was also worried about being recognized by someone who could hear his voice. Although the probability was small, it didn't mean it was impossible.

"Shall we go to karaoke? I know your true nature now, so you should be able to sing your heart out without any problem."

"So, are you going to sing or not?"

"I'd risk my life to accompany a gentleman."

If it were with Himeno, Hikigaya wouldn't be too opposed to karaoke. He would be more mindful of his image in front of Shiina and Ichinose, but not with Himeno.

Anyway, she's called me a scumbag so many times, so adding a "singing like a banshee" prefix before "scumbag" isn't a big deal.

He always asks Hime for help, and now he wants to help her relieve her stress.

"If you dare say my singing is difficult to listen to, I'll just hit you with the microphone, no problem."

"Don't make it sound so scary, Lady Himeno."

"I'm serious."

Hikigaya: "......"

Regardless, we're currently in the midst of a special exam period, so even a class reunion wouldn't be held in a noisy place like a karaoke bar, let alone at 11 p.m.

The waiter was also a little surprised by his and Ji Ye's arrival, but her excellent service allowed her to quickly complete the check-in process, and the fruit platter was served after he and Ji Ye sat down in the private room.

"By the way, how is Kushida-san doing in Class B? Is there anything wrong with him?"

Hikigaya forked a piece of apple from the fruit plate and popped it into his mouth. Kushida had been in Class B for about ten days, and he wanted to know what the ordinary students in Class B thought of her.

“Something’s not right, something’s really not right.” Standing in front of the song selection screen, Hime didn’t turn around. “In less than ten days, she became friends with all the students in Class B. She’s practically another Ichinose.”

"You hate her?" Hikigami asked in confusion. Himeno's statement was like Kushida having a problem.

"How could I dislike Kushida, who's similar to Ichinose? It's just that since she came, there have been more class gatherings in Class B..."

I like the feeling of being the center of attention, so there are more large gatherings in Class B.

"Kushida's like a panda that's fallen into a bamboo forest," Hikigaya exclaimed. "No wonder Kushida rarely hangs out with his old friends from Class D on the cruise ship."

As he was sighing, Hime sat down next to him and handed him the microphone, holding another one in her hand.

You've probably heard of it.