Classroom of the Elite: Surviving with the Intel System — Chapter 110

Chapter 110: Checkmate

Arisu Sakayanagi: This month, do not even think about earning a single point from the special exam.

Arisu Sakayanagi: Even if I waive the fee and distribute the information to the other first-year classes entirely for free, it changes nothing for me.

Arisu Sakayanagi: As for the second and third-year seniors, I hardly need to explain, do I? They are already well aware of the trick regarding the old exam papers. Your little scrap of intelligence is completely worthless in their eyes.

Sakayanagi stared at the chat box illuminated on her phone screen. The digital silence stretched on for a long time, devoid of any new incoming messages. A soft, airy laugh slipped from her lips, breaking the quiet of the room.

“Checkmate,” she murmured softly.

It was the precise, satisfying sensation of cornering an opponent’s king on a chessboard. She mentally retraced her logical steps, carefully verifying that she had not miscalculated a single variable. The reality was simple. She had acquired the crucial intelligence regarding the upcoming exams at almost the exact same moment as her unseen adversary.

Just as she had typed, the strategic benefits of publicizing the information far outweighed hoarding it. She had absolutely no reason to hold back. Sometimes, maintaining a solitary monopoly was a foolish endeavor, especially when the only tangible loss was allowing the rival classes to scrape together a meager thirty-something class points.

However, the most pressing objective was to disseminate this intelligence to her own class, thereby cementing her absolute authority over them.

When the lunch break arrived, she commanded the attention of the entire room. Gathering her classmates, she elegantly laid out the hidden mechanics of the school. She revealed that the midterm exam scores would directly add class points based on the class average, and she provided the critical clue regarding the reuse of old exam papers.

“As expected of Sakayanagi-chan! So amazing!”

The very first person to break the stunned silence with applause was a blonde boy sporting a casual posture and pierced ears. Sakayanagi cast a brief, analytical glance his way, instantly pulling his profile from her memory. Hashimoto Masayoshi.

She recalled the results of the previous exams. Hashimoto had scored comfortably over eighty points across all subjects. He had flawlessly answered the standard curriculum, only dropping points on the intentionally brutal trick questions. He possessed excellent stamina during physical education and wielded a highly adaptable social charm. She frequently observed him effortlessly handling conversations with various cliques, and he had already established a network of acquaintances in the other classes.

By the standard metrics of academic and physical ability, he sat comfortably in the upper echelon of ordinary people. Her initial assessment of him was that of an all-rounder. To phrase it politely, he was a versatile talent capable of adapting to any situation. To phrase it accurately, he was a mediocre pawn who lacked true exceptionalism in any single field.

“Sakayanagi-chan, we owe you our thanks for discovering this critical information so early in the month.” Katsuragi Kohei stood nearby, his arms crossed and his expression rigidly serious as he nodded in agreement. “According to the contribution system Class A established last month, you will undoubtedly receive the highest A-level rating for this. The class has decided to reward you with two hundred thousand private points. Since half of the class funds are currently under your management, you may withdraw it directly from the pool.”

Class A had instituted a strict reward and punishment policy the previous month. Anyone who made a significant, measurable contribution to the class’s standing would receive a corresponding payout in private points. Katsuragi, drawing inspiration from the school’s own tier system, had divided the rewards into four distinct brackets: A, B, C, and D. These corresponded to payouts of two hundred thousand, one hundred thousand, fifty thousand, and thirty thousand points respectively.

Uncovering the hidden mechanics of the midterm was undeniably a massive contribution. This single piece of intelligence could secure the class over ninety class points, granting them a dominant head start over the rest of the year. It was the textbook definition of an A-level contribution. Rewarding Sakayanagi with two hundred thousand points was entirely justified by the rules.

Katsuragi had clearly learned a bitter lesson from the previous month. Even though he viewed her as a rival for leadership, he understood that withholding a deserved reward simply because of her position would only fracture the class.

“Do not rush, Katsuragi-kun. I have not finished speaking yet.” Sakayanagi shifted her gaze toward him, a faint, condescending smile lingering on her lips.

She found it amusing that he was celebrating a victory that had only just begun.

Without missing a beat, she announced her decision to leak the exam information to the other three classes, casually laying out her strategic reasoning to the bewildered room.

“Unite with the other classes? Is it really necessary for Class A to go that far?”

“Actually, there is no need to notify the others, right? We have always been in the lead. Isn’t it better to just crush them and stay far ahead?”

Exactly as she had predicted, the immediate reaction was a wave of vocal opposition from the more short-sighted students.

“I think it is a fine idea. Sakayanagi-chan is actually correct here. Being too dominant this early on isn’t necessarily a safe position.”

“If the other three classes realize we hoarded the information and decide to unite against us, even Class A would have a hard time surviving that kind of coordinated assault.”

“And it is only a little over thirty class points anyway. Let’s just consider it doing them a favor. Who knows, it might come in handy later. Like Ichinose from Class B. Everyone knows her personality, right? Doing her a favor is definitely a worthwhile investment.”

That single statement acted as a catalyst, instantly shifting the mood of the room and drawing nods of agreement from the hesitant students.

“Ichinose-chan? Yeah, I actually really trust her character.”

“Indeed. If we do Ichinose Honami a favor now, she is the type who will absolutely repay the debt in the future.”

Sakayanagi felt a slight, involuntary frown tug at her features.

She had calculated that the class would split evenly down the middle, half opposing the leak and half supporting the diplomatic approach. What she had entirely failed to anticipate was that the mere invocation of Ichinose Honami’s name would instantly unify the dissenting voices into agreement.

‘Is this the terrifying benefit of establishing a flawless, benevolent persona?”It seems Ichinose Honami from Class B is going to be far more troublesome than I initially estimated.’

She pondered the shifting dynamics silently. Since the vast majority of the class now supported the motion, there was no longer any need to waste breath debating the issue.

She turned and walked slowly back to her seat, her cane tapping rhythmically against the floor. Sitting down, she lightly drummed her slender fingers against the surface of her desk.

‘In that case, Tsuki Ao’s little screenshot should be completely useless as a weapon now, shouldn’t it?’Given her usual disposition, she would never have bothered gathering the entire class just to explain her methods. If it were not for the looming threat that the person operating under the alias Tsuki Ao might use that screenshot to incite chaos, she would have kept her silence. In a very real sense, her unseen opponent had forced her hand, compelling her to make the intelligence public to neutralize his use.’So, which class should I approach first?”Wait. Aside from knowing that Ichinose acts as the undisputed leader of Class B, I actually know absolutely nothing about the internal structures of the other classes.’

Ichinose was wildly popular across the entire first year, universally recognized as the public face and representative of Class B. As for the political landscapes of Class C and Class D, Sakayanagi was entirely in the dark. Class A had never bothered to lower themselves to gather intelligence on the bottom feeders.

But then again, her immediate priority needed to shift. Before she could manipulate the other classes, she needed to acquire a few capable hands. Winning over Kamuro Masumi had to be her first move.

While Sakayanagi possessed a brilliant, unmatched intellect, her physical constitution was incredibly frail. She obviously could not run mundane errands herself. More, doing so would be entirely undignified. What kind of queen scurried around the school grounds handling menial tasks? Such labor was meant to be delegated to useful subordinates.

What Sakayanagi truly valued was Kamuro’s specific set of skills. Those talents, which others might dismiss as mere petty theft, were not to be underestimated. In the cutthroat environment of this academy, a shadow operative could prove exceptionally useful at a critical juncture.

, she was bound by the terms of her previous wager with Shimizu Akira. She had exactly one week to recruit Kamuro Masumi as her loyal subordinate.

‘But I cannot threaten her with the shoplifting incident.’

That particular weapon had been cleanly dismantled by Shimizu Akira. The can of beer Kamuro had attempted to steal had been paid for by him on the spot, legally nullifying the act of theft before it could even be registered. If he had not intervened, she would not have lost one hundred thousand points to him in the first place.

However, Kamuro Masumi was still human, which meant she still had a weakness.

For example, Shimizu Akira himself.