As I was mid-conversation with Matsushita, a voice came from behind her.

“Hey, hurry up and answer me. Why Matsushita-san of all people? Since when exactly? So what, I wasn’t good enough after all!?”

Kushida barked.

I had been hiding it, sure, but I thought that even if it came to light, it wouldn’t really be that big of a problem.

“Calm down. I’ll answer your questions. I can’t talk to you when you’re like this.”

“How am I supposed to calm down!? The shadows was supposed to be my territory, but it turns out some stranger had actually been barging in with their shoes on the whole time, right!?”

I see now. So that’s the reason she’s not calm.

Even so—

“Calm down. This is an order. What do you think would happen if students from other classes saw you like this?”

Kushida took a deep breath, then let out another sigh.

“Fuu. Well, yeah, you’re right. I was just getting worked up on my own. I’ve calmed down, so hurry up and tell me.”

She’d been seriously fired up, but it seemed she’d managed to calm herself down somehow.

“Sorry for answering a question with another question, but answer honestly. Which side do you think the capable people of our Class D belong to?”

This should be the easiest way to explain it.

“Is Ken front, or back?”

“…Front.”

That’s right.

Ken isn’t suited to sneaking around behind the scenes in the first place.

On the uninhabited island, I had him watch Kaneda, but that was physical labor and it only worked because he was acting on my instructions.

He’s improved somewhat on the intellectual side, but unless someone can think things through on their own, it’s difficult to use them on the back side.

“What about Hirata?”

“Front.”

That goes without saying.

Hirata is popular with the girls.

But that doesn’t mean the boys resent him.

That’s because he doesn’t have a girlfriend.

Thanks to that, Hirata also has the boys’ trust and is supported by the class as a whole.

“What about Horikita?”

“…Front.”

Up until the special exams, other classes might not have been paying attention to her, but on the uninhabited island it became widely known that I personally took her around and this time she was in the Dragon Group.

Besides, Horikita isn’t the type to sneak around behind the scenes.

Her direction is different, but I think she’s the same orthodox type as Ichinose.

If you made her do it, she probably wouldn’t be incapable, but still.

“What about Kei?”

“Front.”

There’s no way Kei, the queen of Class D and the top of the girls’ caste, would be handling the back side.

She’s been standing out from the start as my girlfriend and has been marked the entire time.

“Kōenji is basically like a bomb, so we’ll leave him out.”

“…”

Now then, the real issue.

“Kushida. What about you?”

“…Back.”

“That’s wrong. You’re not just for the back side. You already know this yourself, but your role is both.”

Kushida is obviously front side material, given how popular she is on the surface.

I had her handle the back side as well because I judged it suited her personality.

In the current Class D, it’s fair to say that everyone is covered through the girls led by Kei, the girls and boys led by Hirata and the girls and boys led by Kushida.

If those three move in sync, there’s no opinion that won’t pass.

“And needless to say, I stand out. Even if I tried to do something behind the scenes, it would only make people wary.”

I can force things through with power plays like Ryūen or Ichinose, like this time.

As a complete aside, within the class, the side of me that people fear is probably stronger.

That’s exactly why people who can bring the whole class together are necessary.

Even if I were the one giving instructions, there would be a difference in morale between me saying it and Kushida or the others saying it.

“To put it simply, both you and I are already marked. If we move, people will be wary no matter what. But that also means that only conspicuous people like us are watched and those hiding in our shadows won’t be exposed so easily.”

It’s like directing people’s line of sight.

When someone conspicuous makes a big move, people’s attention naturally goes there.

And if the ones moving are you or me, other classes can’t afford to ignore it.

“After hearing this again, you should understand. Class D simply doesn’t have enough people suited for indirect tactics. That’s why I thought from the beginning that Kushida’s burden was too heavy and if there were someone suitable for shadow work, I wanted them to help. That’s why I desperately wanted someone who didn’t stand out, who looked completely ordinary to outsiders, but was highly capable. And I found someone who deliberately hides their own ability so as not to stand out.”

They were truly the perfect fit.

When I found them, I remember thinking that Class D really did have all kinds of people.

‘…Someone who doesn’t want to stand out would just take a middling rank. As long as they don’t come in last, there’s no problem.’

I realized she was hiding her ability during swimming class.

From my perspective, it was obvious at a glance that she was holding back.

“Oh really. So you weren’t just staring at the girls in their swimsuits like a creep. Though you did seem awfully fixated on my chest back then.”

You’re getting off topic, stop it.

In that sense too, I’m just a normal, healthy high school boy.

“…After that, I confirmed several more times that she was holding back. I made contact after the midterms.”

‘There are a lot of troublesome people who deserve to be called defective products, but this class is by no means weak.’

Based on the odd feeling from swimming class, it didn’t take long to realize that she could actually study as well.

That said, up until the midterms, everyone was busy with their own training and studying.

You could say that the final puzzle piece—the midterm scores—fell into place at that point.

“On the day before the final day on the uninhabited island, she lit the fire, chased the fleeing Ibuki, confirmed her retirement and then sent Horikita back to the ship. She did all of that. I didn’t move until Ken woke me up and after that I was just giving instructions for damage control.”

That was also to make Kushida sense something was off.

Since I’d entrusted the back side to both of them, I thought it was necessary to connect them.

“Explaining to the class that Ibuki did it meant that the uninformed classmates would think Ibuki was responsible, while Horikita and Kei would conclude that Kushida did it. Ibuki herself would also judge that Kushida, as a collaborator, carried it out. And I knew that Kushida, the only one in a position to notice all the inconsistencies, wouldn’t tell anyone.”

That was the result of reading Kushida’s personality.

And I was right.

“During this exam—no, even before that—I’d told her that I wanted a pawn in Class C. When the opportunity came, she acted.”

When and how she noticed Kei’s inconsistencies, I don’t know.

Something must have happened in April.

Since Kei herself didn’t say anything, that means she read it from her behavior.

Kei started training with Ken fairly early, so the later it got, the less likely it was to be exposed.

In the end, I still underestimated her observational ability.

“Wait, I wasn’t told any of that at all. So what actually happened?”

“Well. A Class C girl picked a fight, got beaten back and that’s about it. Kei just changed a bit in the process.”

It was dangerous in more ways than one.

At least I made sure to tell her that I hadn’t told anyone else her secret and since I didn’t want misunderstandings, I ended up telling her about Matsushita’s existence too.

Honestly, I hadn’t planned on telling Kei, but with the Kei she is now, it shouldn’t show on her face.

“I’ve drilled all the stealth techniques I’ve learned into her. The reason you were able to come here today is probably because she read my intentions and decided that letting you follow me was the right move.”

What I taught her aren’t techniques that normal people would notice.

The fact that she was noticed leaving the room in the first place is strange and if she’d wanted to shake someone off, she could have.

“I’ll say it again. It’s precisely because there are conspicuous figures like you and me acting behind the scenes that those even further behind—those wriggling in the shadows—remain unnoticed.”

From a general perspective, someone who doesn’t look particularly good at studying or sports, has no standout achievements, keeps social interactions moderate and blends in as an ordinary person.

Until Matsushita’s existence is exposed, she’ll function as an invisible, unavoidable blade.

On the surface, Horikita leads intellectually and Ken physically.

Kei, Hirata and Kushida adjust the whole.

On the back side, Kushida and from the shadows, Matsushita supports.

And then there’s the secret '?' weapon, Kōenji.

The strongest formation.

With this, even if I only move when something goes wrong, I think we can more than fight the other classes.

* * *

No, seriously.

That may be true.

But you should’ve told me earlier.

“…Haa. There are tons of things I wasn’t told and plenty I want to poke at, but let me say this. In the end, I was just… so scared, wondering if I was actually needed by you, Kiyotaka-kun. Since I didn’t light the fire, I started thinking that maybe there was a real traitor behind that final incident on the uninhabited island.”

—Or that you relied on someone else instead of me, that there was some collaborator I didn’t even know about.

Yes.

More than the possibility of a traitor, the idea that there was another collaborator besides me was what terrified me.

I was afraid that if there was someone better than me, I’d be thrown away.

“And then I see you having secret meetings with Matsushita-san. Of course I’d raise my voice.”

Yeah. Seriously.

I’m not the type who’s confident in myself to begin with.

I know I’m just an ordinary person who can do some things a bit better than others, but can’t ever be the best.

That’s exactly why the thought of even more strong people gathering around him was unbearable.

“I get it. But let me say this. I told you at the end of the uninhabited island exam, didn’t I. ‘From start to finish, everything was in the palm of my hand.’ At that point, you’d already half-grasped Matsushita’s existence, so I selfishly thought those words would put you at ease. It seems I was wrong. If I made you that uneasy, I’m sorry. I truly am.

I’ll be clear. From my perspective, everyone has a role and something I expect from them. No two people are the same and Matsushita and Kushida’s roles can’t be swapped. You fundamentally have low self-evaluation, but that’s just something you’ve decided on your own. So there’s nothing for you to worry about, Kushida. You’re more than capable and I need you.”

An indescribable vortex of joy was about to swallow my body whole.

…No, wait. Don’t get swept away.

It’s true that hearing this makes me happy.

It’s true that I can feel my core desire for approval being satisfied.

But getting swept away here isn’t right.

You could have told me.

I don’t know what happened with Kei-chan yesterday, but deciding to tell her in the end means you judged it wouldn’t show on her face.

That’s supposed to be my specialty more than Kei-chan’s.

For me, making expressions is child’s play.

In the end, my anxiety hasn’t actually disappeared.

“Well, I’m happy about that, at least. But I think an apology is in order. You made me this anxious and you’re probably going to keep using me hard from here on out.”

That’s right.

I’ll make good use of this.

“…Yeah. You’re right. Sorry. So what do you want me to do?”

I’m anxious no matter what.

That’s exactly why I need to carve my existence into this monster.

So—

“Hold me.”