Hachiman’s Classroom of Strength’s Supremacy

Chapter 049: Sakayanagi – “Katsuragi is Reliable, But His Dog is as Dumb as a Pig!”

The three of them remained in the student council office.

“Hikigaya, you’re actually quite sharp,” Horikita Manabu remarked. “You understood my hint just now.”

“Vice President Nagumo was promoted by me, but there are certain things best kept from him,” Horikita added.

?

Meanwhile, Tachibana Akane, the secretary, seemed a bit confused.

She had already recognized this first-year, Hikigaya, as the same student she saw on the first day of school—the one who went with his classmates to scout out the third-year building.

She remembered that back then, the President had spoken quite highly of him.

But now…

She didn’t understand.

She hadn’t noticed any secret signals from President Horikita to this first-year from Class D.

And beyond that…

Certain things couldn’t be said?

Did that mean there was some connection between President Horikita and this first-year from Class D?

Or could it be…

The two of them shared a secret they couldn’t tell anyone else?

Tachibana stood there, completely bewildered.

Of course, she had no idea that Horikita Manabu was simply protecting information about his sister.

At this school, strength is everything, and the ultimate goal was graduating from Class A—the dream of all students.

That meant the moment competition arose, underhanded tactics were fair game.

So, someone like Horikita Suzune—if her relationship with Horikita Manabu were ever exposed—it would definitely be used against her.

That was why Horikita Manabu had stopped Hikigaya from mentioning it earlier—to make sure that information never got out.

In other words, there were people in the student council that even Horikita Manabu couldn’t control.

Even as Student Council President, he couldn’t rule with absolute authority.

So, in the end…

People who are too upright and insist on sticking to their principles—they’re always struggling against the system.

That must be exhausting.

Hachiman thought to himself.

—

“So, what’s your real reason for coming here today?” Horikita asked.

“The security camera thing was just an act, right? Playing dumb to lower people’s guard?”

“Nope.”

Hachiman replied.

“I was genuinely here to ask what the consequences would be for breaking a security camera.”

??

“You really did something that reckless?”

Horikita Manabu almost stood up from his seat.

Since he was the one who personally transferred 100,000 points to keep the other party quiet, Horikita Manabu recognized Hachiman’s keen insight and perceptiveness.

And he didn’t believe that Hachiman would do something so foolish.

“This isn’t recklessness,” Hachiman said. “It’s a carefully thought-out decision.”

“Because I want to climb up. More precisely, I want to use Class A as a stepping stone, so I can’t let my class be completely crushed in this first month.”

“Breaking the security camera will definitely result in school punishment, right?”

“Compensation is one thing, but what I want to know is—will this action drag my entire class down? If it will, then I’ll do it.”

If it will drag the class down, then you’ll do it?

What kind of grudge do you have against your class?

You’d actually sabotage your own classmates?

And you already have your sights set on Class A, yet you still want to make your class lose points? Are you insane?

Wait a second…

Sabotaging the class… dragging them down… but there has to be something to drag down in the first place.

“……” Horikita Manabu furrowed his brows, sitting in his chair, deep in thought.

He was trying to figure out why Hachiman, who aimed for Class A, would intentionally make his own class lose points.

After about a minute, he understood.

Horikita adjusted his glasses slightly.

He had misjudged Hachiman—even just a little.

“You…” Horikita said. “I take back what I said about you. Your ambition is terrifyingly big.”

“Do you want to join the student council?” He extended an invitation, rather than just telling Hachiman to submit an application.

“??”

Tachibana Akane, on the side, was completely lost.

Why were the President and Hachiman once again talking about things she didn’t understand?

Earlier, she hadn’t noticed any secret signals between them, but now… she was completely unable to follow their conversation.

.

.

.

Meanwhile, as the student council president extended his invitation…

Katsuragi had already returned to Class A with Yahiko.

Yahiko’s full name was Totsuka Yahiko.

He was the proud and ambitious type, but after entering this school and meeting Katsuragi, he was immediately won over by him.

“Katsuragi, Totsuka, you’re back.”

As soon as they stepped into the classroom, students immediately came up to greet them.

And as Katsuragi’s right-hand man, Totsuka had earned the respect of the class.

The person greeting them was Hashimoto Masayoshi, a student who had joined Katsuragi’s faction the day before.

Tall and slim, skilled in various areas, and also quite handsome.

By now, the students of Class A had already divided into two factions—Katsuragi’s group and Sakayanagi’s group—while a few students still remained neutral.

Hashimoto belonged to Katsuragi’s faction.

“Did you submit your student council application?” Hashimoto asked.

“The student council president said he would review it,” Totsuka replied.

“That’s great. If we can get someone into the student council, it’ll be a huge advantage for our class.” Hashimoto said, feeling pleased.

This school was all about strength, and students were given a great deal of freedom. The student council had tremendous power.

If one of their own joined the council, it would be easier to gather intel and secure benefits for their class.

As students of Class A, this was reassuring.

“……” Katsuragi remained silent.

He simply watched as Yahiko and Hashimoto conversed.

Right now, they were still in class, and Yahiko had openly announced that he had submitted the student council application.

His goal was likely to show off to the students who were still undecided, trying to sway those who hadn’t chosen between Katsuragi’s faction or Sakayanagi’s faction.

He was sending a message: choosing the stable path is the correct choice.

Even though Katsuragi wasn’t particularly interested in this kind of political maneuvering…

He did agree that Sakayanagi, while incredibly aggressive and intelligent, was ultimately too reckless.

He couldn’t let her do whatever she wanted with their class.

For example, when they privately discussed class strategies, Sakayanagi had actually suggested that even if Class A lost, it wouldn’t matter.

They still had three years to climb back up.

And the experience of falling and rising again would serve as a valuable lesson for the students.

But…

What if they fell and couldn’t climb back up?

What if they failed once, twice, or even three times and never made it back?

The psychological damage would be devastating.

That was why he refused to take such a risky approach.

Based on the data and the experiences of past seniors, the best method was Katsuragi’s steady leadership—maintaining Class A’s dominance all the way to graduation.

So, he allowed Yahiko to do whatever he needed to win people over.

“By the way, when we went to the student council, we saw that first-year Class D’s Hikigaya Hachiman was there as well.” Yahiko remarked.

The students of Class A would always gather intel on students from other classes.

But as for the first-year Class D students, most of them had been largely ignored.

That said, there had been an incident where Sakayanagi arranged for Kamuro Masumi to approach a first-year boy from Class D.

And after that…

Sakayanagi Arisu herself had even gone out for a meal with him.