It's Almost Your Turn

Hikigaya couldn't understand why Ayanokoji had suddenly done something like this. While the Borrowing Race wasn't exactly a high-stakes competition, this guy wasn't the type to make such a blatant move.

Unless… never mind. There was no point in overthinking it now.

As long as he followed the original plan, the rest didn't matter.

After all, his goal wasn't to deal with Ayanokoji but to uncover the truth behind all of this.

The most interesting part was that instead of directly investigating the three key individuals—Ayanokoji, Karuizawa, and Manabe—Hikigaya had taken a long detour and gone straight to Ryuuen.

Even the so-called "masterpiece" wouldn't have seen that coming.

Of course, there was always a simple way to resolve everything.

That is if Ayanokoji was truly innocent in this situation—if he had never instigated Manabe and her group to bully Karuizawa—then Hikigaya was simply overthinking it.

But if he had done such a thing, it was only a matter of time before evidence surfaced.

There's no such thing as an airtight secret. Even the most powerful politicians frequently found themselves caught in scandals, let alone a mere student.

Returning to the spectator stands, he noticed that Sakayanagi was already sitting there.

"Welcome back, Hikigaya-kun."

Sakayanagi greeted him with a mischievous smile, her tone full of amusement.

"I saw your last match just now. You became the center of attention."

"…Don't bring that up." Hikigaya was at a loss for words.

It was as if this manipulative white-haired girl couldn't be satisfied without teasing him at least once.

The worst part was that he was starting to get used to it… No! What the hell? Who's a masochist?!

Shaking off that horrifying thought, Hikigaya changed the subject. "By the way, why are you back now? I thought you'd already gone back to the dorms."

"No, I just stopped by my class for a bit."

"Then why come back?"

"What, am I not welcome?" Sakayanagi playfully teased. "Besides, I was worried you'd be lonely, so I came to keep you company."

"Well, thanks for that, I guess."

Hikigaya rolled his eyes, only to receive a casual "You're welcome" in return.

This girl was as shameless as ever.

"Speaking of which, let's continue our conversation from this morning," Sakayanagi suddenly said.

"This morning?"

"Yes, about Ayanokoji-kun and chess."

A faint look of self-mockery crossed her face.

"Though I don't like to admit it, I understand it well… However, the reason I want to defeat Ayanokoji-kun isn't just to prove my skill in chess. Rather—"

Her tone suddenly shifted, turning serious and resolute.

"Burying a false genius is a task only I am fit to undertake."

"…Huh?"

"Hehe, as expected, you don't understand."

Seeing Hikigaya's bewildered expression, Sakayanagi smiled again, as if her previous seriousness had been nothing more than an act.

"Don't mind it too much," she said, shaking her head lightly. "I can't explain in detail, but I believe that in this entire school, you alone are qualified to be the sole spectator."

"Haa…"

"When the time comes, I hope you'll bear witness."

"Oh."

Hikigaya responded as if he understood, but in reality, he already had a good idea of what she meant.

Just hearing the words "false genius" was enough.

This girl was going through a chuunibyou phase.

A "false genius," huh…? According to Sakayanagi's claims, Ayanokoji had defeated professional chess players at a young age. If that wasn't real genius, what was it?

Even if that secret organization refused to call Ayanokoji a genius, what was the point of clinging to their ridiculous definition?

And "burying" him, of all things…

Sigh, now that he thought about it, Haruno-san had said something similar before too.

How the hell did they manage to say such chuunibyou lines with a straight face?

...

The next few events were uneventful.

Ryuuen had stopped causing trouble, so Hikigaya had no reason to act. He idly chatted with Sakayanagi while keeping an eye on the competition.

He had already calculated the final scores for the Sports Festival. The Red Team was undoubtedly going to win.

As for Ryuuen's Class B? At best, they'd place third among the first-years—maybe even dead last.

Class D might be weak overall, but that depended on who they were up against.

More importantly, Sudo had maintained a strong mentality, securing first place in every event he participated in. His presence had also motivated the rest of Class D, allowing them to perform at their expected level.

In contrast, Class B had suffered significant setbacks. Ryuuen's strategies had failed, and their losses in Tug of War and Cavalry Battle had cost them dearly.

If they ended up in last place, it would be a great outcome for Hikigaya.

Soon, the festival reached its final event—

The all-grade 1200-meter relay race.

The stadium's atmosphere reached its peak. After all, this was a showdown between the best athletes in the school.

From the lineup, Hikigaya spotted Horikita Manabu, Nagumo… and even Ayanokoji.

Wait.

Ayanokoji?!

"Sakayanagi, look at Class D."

"Yes, I see it," she replied, staring at the track intently. "Hikigaya-kun, if I may ask, was he originally chosen for this event?"

Hikigaya immediately knew she was referring to Ayanokoji.

"No. I remember Horikita was supposed to be the final runner. Ayanokoji must be a substitute."

He recalled Kushida mentioning that Horikita wanted to run alongside her brother, so she had specifically requested the anchor position.

But now that she had sprained her ankle, she obviously couldn't compete.

Still, Ayanokoji wasn't the logical replacement.

He had always slacked off in class, showing no particular athletic ability. If they needed a substitute, there were better choices.

Which meant—this time, Ayanokoji had volunteered.

…Why?

Hikigaya was increasingly baffled.

Was this guy planning to start a showboating student life?

...

The race began.

Twelve students, one from each class across all three years, ran together. Since there weren't twelve lanes, everyone started in a straight line—whoever was fastest could claim the inner lane.

Simply put, the team that gained an early lead would have a huge advantage.

Class D had chosen Sudo as their first runner, and he certainly lived up to expectations.

With overwhelming speed, he pulled ahead of the others, securing a fifteen-meter lead.

The baton was then passed to Hirata.

So far, everything has been going smoothly.

If this pace continued, Class 1-D might just pull off an upset.

But upsets were called upsets precisely because they didn't happen easily.

Class D's overall ability was still lacking. Against the upperclassmen, they were powerless.

By the third runner, their lead had begun to shrink. By the fourth, they had already been overtaken by the second years.

By the time the baton reached Kushida in the fifth leg, Class D had fallen to seventh place.

As for first place, it initially belonged to Class 3-A—until one of their runners tripped, allowing Class 2-A to seize the lead.

Hikigaya glanced at Horikita Manabu and Nagumo, the final runners.

It seemed Nagumo had dodged a bullet—he wouldn't get humiliated by the student council president.

Then, the final leg began.

Nagumo took off first, followed by Shibata from Class 1-A.

As expected, A-Class had the best athletes. The other three first-year classes were far behind.

"…Huh?"

Then, something unexpected happened.

Horikita Manabu, who was supposed to run third, didn't start immediately.

Instead, he remained in place, saying something to Ayanokoji…

Ah, so that's it.

"Hikigaya-kun, you look surprised," Sakayanagi said with a smile.

"I just didn't expect the student council president to fall for such a cheap provocation."

It was obvious to Hikigaya—that Horikita Manabu wanted to personally confirm Ayanokoji's ability.

So he had deliberately waited for Class D's baton, ensuring a fair race.

"Yes," Sakayanagi agreed, watching intently.

"Finally… we'll see Ayanokoji-kun's true strength."

Moreover, he had always been resistant to any contact with the student council president.

But this time, he actively drew the president's attention... Did he have a special purpose?

As Hikigaya fell into deep thought, Kushida finally handed the relay baton to Ayanokoji.

Immediately, a tremendous cheer erupted across the field.

Everyone present was shocked by the speed of both Ayanokoji and Horikita Manabu.

Especially the former—almost no one had heard of his name before, as if he had suddenly emerged out of nowhere.

Regardless of the final outcome, this race would undoubtedly leave a deep impression on everyone.

"What a truly moving competition."

After watching the race, Sakayanagi couldn't help but sigh in admiration.

Hikigaya could understand her sentiment, but he still wanted to retort, "Yeah, that so-called 'fake genius' of yours has already been buried by the president. Seems like it's not your turn anymore."

In the end, Ayanokoji didn't win—not because he was slower, but because the runner ahead of him was startled by their sudden sprint, stumbled, and fell, blocking his way. That allowed Horikita Manabu to overtake him.

Had it not been for this accident, the outcome might have been different.

But on the other hand, a loss was a loss. Luck was also part of one's strength.

"Hikigaya-kun, you don't seem the least bit surprised by Ayanokoji-kun's display of strength."

Sakayanagi wisely chose not to respond to his previous remark and instead shifted the topic on her own.

"What's there to be surprised about?" Hikigaya said lazily. "Don't forget, I'm in the same class as that guy. I already noticed his strength during swimming class. Just a quick glance is enough to tell."

"But your classmates don't seem to have noticed," Sakayanagi pointed out with a smile.

"…That's because they're blind."

"Let's just go with that."

Sakayanagi shook her head without arguing, then propped herself up with her cane and stood.

Looks like she was finally heading back.

"Well then, I suppose it's time for me to take my leave. But before that, could you pass a message to Ayanokoji-kun for me? Tell him I'll be waiting for him on the third floor of the Special Teaching Building."

"…A declaration of war?"

"Hehe, as expected of you, Hikigaya-kun. Nothing gets past you."

With that, Sakayanagi gave a slight bow before turning to leave.

It wasn't a hard guess. Now that she had seen Ayanokoji finally put in effort, there was no way she could hold back anymore… Hm?

Wait a minute!

Who agreed to pass on the message?!

Realizing this only after the fact, Hikigaya hurriedly wanted to call out to Sakayanagi, but in the blink of an eye, she was already gone.

…Forget it, it's not a big deal anyway.

He sighed to himself and turned his gaze toward the massive electronic scoreboard.

As the closing ceremony began, the final results were announced.

The screen, divided into the red and white teams, started a countdown before displaying the points accumulated from the thirteen events.

Just as Hikigaya had calculated, the winners were the red team—the AD alliance.

Next came the announcement of the overall class rankings.

The twelve classes were displayed in three groups on the screen, with their respective scores revealed.

"Haha… this is amazing."

Upon seeing the rankings, Hikigaya couldn't help but laugh.

Year 1, Class B was in fourth place!

That meant they were about to be deducted 200 points!

Ryuuen had worked so hard in the Preferential Exam to earn 250 points, and now he had almost lost all of it.

Meanwhile, in Year 1, Class C, which placed second, would only be deducted 100 points.

In other words, Ryuuen hadn't even had time to warm his seat in Class B before being thrown right back into Class C.

Hmph… Not only had his strategy failed, but his class ranking had also fallen back down.

Hikigaya felt that coming to this sports festival had been worth it—giving that headset to Sudo had been the right choice.

After this event, his goal was even closer than before.

—Just wait, masterpiece.

Your turn is coming soon.