"You've done well."
After listening to Iijima Ryota's report, Nagumo offered a faint word of encouragement.
During their conversation, Iijima Ryota had kept his phone call on speaker, allowing Nagumo to hear everything clearly.
Perhaps the psychological shadow cast by Tonokawa and others ran too deep, making it difficult for Nagumo Miyabi to trust those around him now.
Even a childhood friend could be stolen away—it was a miracle he wasn't more paranoid.
"Will this really work?" Iijima Ryota asked cautiously. "Given the current situation, Class D is likely to cast all their Criticism Votes against Yamauchi-kun. Mitoma-kun hasn't used his Praise Vote yet."
He knew Nagumo's original plan—having Ryuen approach Yamauchi Haruki was Nagumo's decision.
Since the start of the third semester, Nagumo had been meticulously studying the interpersonal relationships around Kaoru.
After the training camp ended, he found himself deeply puzzled.
Kaoru's actions at the time were highly unusual.
If the other party had been aware of Nagumo's plans, he shouldn't have met with Yamamura Miki.
Feigning ignorance would have been the logical way to conceal his intentions.
Yet, Kaoru met with Yamamura Miki.
The moment they made contact, Nagumo knew his plan was likely exposed.
But he was so bewildered at the time, and based on past experiences dealing with Kaoru, he even wondered if Kaoru was deliberately baiting him.
It wasn't until after the training camp ended that he finally realized—Kaoru hadn't been in a rational state of mind at all.
Nagumo let out a soft sigh.
Though he had failed, he had managed to uncover a chink in Kaoru's armor.
If even someone like Yamamura Miki could provoke a reaction from Kaoru, Nagumo suddenly became very interested in the people surrounding him.
Moreover, with rumors proliferating during winter break, it became easier for Nagumo to gather intelligence about Kaoru.
Much of the information even came directly from students in Class A.
Kamuro, Sakayanagi, Morishita Ai, Yamamura Miki, Ichinose Honami, Amikura, Karuizawa, Kushida , Sakura Airi, Hasebe Haruka, Tachibana Akane, Kiryuin Fuka, Asahina Nazuna...
No wonder people called Kaoru the "Harem Overlord."
Even Nagumo was stunned for a moment—the number of girls he himself had hooked up with couldn't compare to Kaoru's.
However, this made Nagumo feel more at ease.
He wasn't afraid of a rival having a harem of three thousand; he was only wary of those who remained chaste and untouched.
With Yamamura Miki serving as an example, Nagumo's next move became obvious.
Since Kaoru had stolen his childhood friend, he would make Kaoru lose a woman in return—a fair exchange.
Class A was clearly not an option.
Nagumo had initially hoped Ichinose Honami might show some reaction, but she displayed no signs of struggling for Personal Points.
He could only conclude that Kaoru had spare Personal Points to support his little girlfriend.
Therefore, the targets had to be from Class D—Kushida, Karuizawa and others.
After observing Class D for several days, Nagumo finally noticed Yamauchi's existence.
The boy constantly complained to his friends about Kaoru's misdeeds and sometimes fantasized about girls in class confessing to him.
When Nagumo heard Yamauchi Haruki claim that Sakura Airi had once confessed to him, he was overjoyed.
Perfect! This was exactly the kind of "brilliant" person he needed!
Indeed, Nagumo Miyabi's plan was to utilize the "brilliant" Yamauchi Haruki to openly attack Karuizawa and Kushida, drawing Kaoru's attention—ideally making him cast his Praise Vote for these two.
Only after that would Nagumo's true target emerge.
"Making him think the dust has settled will also improve our chances of success."
Nagumo Miyabi revealed a faint smile. "It seems Horikita-senpai sister is quite capable. One can only say, as expected of siblings."
Due to Horikita Suzune's intervention, before Kaoru could even get involved, Yamauchi Haruki had already suffered a crushing defeat today.
By the time of tomorrow's exam, Class D's Criticism Votes would likely concentrate on Yamauchi Haruki.
Iijima Ryota remained silent.
Initially, he thought Nagumo's targets were Karuizawa and others, never expecting it to be merely a smokescreen.
Had he not been sent to contact Sudo today, he might have been kept in the dark by Nagumo until the very end.
"Should we meet with her?"
From both Iijima Ryota's and Nagumo's perspectives, Horikita Suzune had absolutely no connection to Kaoru.
In fact, she could even be considered part of the faction hostile toward him.
Horikita Suzune rarely interacted with Kaoru, maintaining an icy demeanor toward everyone—including him.
Moreover, her desire to reach Class A was too intense; she was single-mindedly focused on leading her class upward.
Over time, even Class D came to believe that although this woman wasn't good with words, her intentions were genuine. Some even began to find this trait endearing.
If even her classmates firmly believed this, it went without saying that Nagumo Miyabi, unaware of the details, viewed Horikita Suzune merely as Horikita Manabu's sister—an impression that wasn't particularly deep.
As Horikita Manabu's sister, ending up in Class D must be quite dissatisfying for her, right?
"Heh, of course I'll meet with her."
Nagumo admired Horikita Suzune's decision-making, finding it aligned closely with his own thought process.
Iijima Ryota showed hesitation, as if wanting to speak but holding back.
Nagumo Miyabi noticed his concern and asked, "Are you thinking our current chances of success aren't high?"
"From what I know, Sudo-kun and the others don't have particularly strong interpersonal relationships."
Iijima Ryota's tone was tactful, appearing curious while actually seeking more information.
"Sakura-san's presence may be faint, but I don't believe Sudo-kun has the ability to mobilize the majority."
"Iijima-kun, if you say that, Kanji won't agree."
Nagumo Miyabi smiled faintly. "From what I've heard, this student gets along quite well in their class. Although the girls tend to look down on him, the boys surprisingly welcome him."
If there were a few popular boys in Class D, aside from Hirata Yosuke, it would probably be Ike Kanji.
However, the latter's popularity came primarily from the male students.
Well, the boys in this class weren't shy about commenting on their female classmates' figures, with Ike Kanji and Yamauchi Haruki essentially leading the charge.
"As long as a quarter of them are willing to cast their votes, I can make her withdraw."
Since Yamauchi Haruki had already drawn the obvious fire, many would overlook how the remaining ammunition should be distributed.
They'd likely either vote for someone they disliked or follow Horikita Suzune's suggestion and target underperforming students.
During this process, Nagumo Miyabi had ample room to maneuver.
Instead of having Sudo Ken attempt to rally support to save Yamauchi Haruki, he promised that Ryuen's Praise Vote would be cast for them, ensuring it would offset the Criticism Votes they received.
How should this be executed?
Nagumo Miyabi's idea was to have them contact their dubious friends and gather as many votes as possible.
The specific pretext was that Ryuen's Praise Vote would neutralize the Criticism Votes, making it difficult for Yamauchi Haruki to be expelled.
Therefore, they needed to select another person to ensure the exam concluded safely.
As long as this group felt that merely voting for Yamauchi Haruki was not secure enough and that a backup plan was necessary, Nagumo Miyabi's plan would be halfway to success.
Who exactly should they target?
Of course, it would be someone who contributed nothing to the class, following Horikita Suzune's plan.
Once Sudo Ken, Ike Kanji, Yamauchi Haruki, Koenji Rokusuke, and others were excluded, the answer became obvious.
Sakura Airi—she was almost invisible in the class, with average grades, poor physical ability, and virtually no interpersonal relationships.
Even if she were expelled, no one would feel particularly burdened.
The reason Nagumo Miyabi targeted her was because she was part of Kaoru's study group.
Additionally, Ryuen Kakeru's probing of Yamauchi Haruki easily revealed that Kaoru and Sakura Airi had an unusual relationship.
Thus, Sudo Ken and Ike Kanji had only one task: to persuade those around them as much as possible.
At the critical moment when everyone's attention was on Yamauchi Haruki, if Sakura Airi accumulated a certain number of Criticism Votes, it could very well deliver a surprise.
After all, Criticism Votes and Praise Votes would inevitably concentrate heavily on the top candidates.
Nagumo Miyabi only needed to trim the top recipients of Criticism Votes.
He held Ryuen's Praise Vote.
If Sudo Ken could secure some additional Praise Votes, there was a strong chance of neutralizing the Criticism Votes for the top three candidates, allowing the fourth or fifth—Sakura Airi—to rise to the top.
Of course, secrecy was paramount.
Nothing could be leaked.
He needed to ensure Kaoru remained completely unaware.
Even so, Nagumo Miyabi was well aware of the risks involved.
Just as Iijima Ryota had said, it was entirely possible that all this effort would come to nothing.
He wondered if he could persuade Horikita Suzune tomorrow.
A quarter of the votes would be highly probable, while one-third would guarantee victory.
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