After all was said and done, our group managed to raise 249,000 private points for the auction. Akihiro's group had raised 160,000 private points while Mitsuba's group had raised 171,000 private points.

"Huh... this is strange."

Mikitaka, who had been placed in charge of their group's finance, turned to me.

"What is it?"

"Our auction fund... it suddenly spiked."

"What do you mean?"

Mikitaka showed me the number on his device. It had jumped from 171,000 points to 215,000 points. A huge 44,000 sum had just been anonymously deposited to their account.

"...that's a lot of points."

"Normally, I'd be happy, but... this feels wrong."

"In what way?"

"It's really suspicious. There's no way someone would just casually donate to our group 44k like this... it either has to be a scam, or somebody made some kind of mistake here."

From their perspective, it makes sense. Mitsuba's group hasn't been in contact with anyone except from mine and Akihiro's groups, but neither of us had tipped that amount to them.

It had to be one of the other six groups, but none of them had a motive for doing so. In the first place, it would be foolish to give up that amount of money in a challenge about buying things. Unless a deal had been made, then it was unlikely to be one of them.

"...perhaps this is the bonus you got from the last challenge?"

When I suggested that, Mikitaka clicked his fingers.

"Brother, you genius! That makes total sense! They said the remaining private points would be transferred over to our group, so this must be it!"

The worry on Mikitaka's face disappeared and he grinned stunningly once again.

"Our group is filthy rich, I can't wait to see the excitement on my best friend's face when he sees how much bank we're packing for the auction! Takayuki-san is going to be so proud of us!"

"You really like Nora-san, huh?"

"Please, who doesn't? You can't hate Takayuki-san, he's just too cute!"

"...well, I can think of one person."

"Machida isn't a person. He's barnacle scum pretending to be human."

I thought I could see Mikitaka's eyes glow dark red as a demonic shadow fell over his face.

"Ah... you don't like him, do you?"

"After what he did to my best friend? Of course not. Don't tell me, after spending three days living together with that guy, you've come to like him..."

Mikitaka shuffled away from me. I shook my head.

"Nah. I don't like Machida-san either."

"That's a relief. For a moment, I thought you lost your way, brother!"

"My way?"

"The way of loving Takayuki-san! Don't think I didn't notice your lecherous gaze fall on him multiple times yesterday. I get it man, he was looking like a real snack when cooking. I'm so glad to have finally found a person who understands the charm of my best friend!"

"...I'm going to check out the auction."

"But brother, we could spend the hour discussing how cute, kind, innocent, wonderful, and sexy Takayuki-san is! We can even talk about large his phallus is if you want! Please, wait!"

I'm leaving even harder now.

In the main hall, a live video of what was going on in the auction room was being broadcasted to everyone from the whiteboard. I took a seat and watched as Hiden-sensei began to explain the rules to all the buyers.

"Hello all once again, and thank you for waiting! Welcome to the actual auction part of the challenge, where you buyers are going to be spending the hard earned points your group gathered on items made by every group!"

Sitting down next to me was Zyriot, who let out a relieved sigh.

"Hey, Yuuto-san. How did you and Matsushita-san do in the quizzes?"

"The auction process is simple. The school has evaluated the worth of every item the groups have submitted and given it a baseline price tag. This is the "starting price" of the auction!"

"We did fine. How about you guys?"

"We managed to get the mugs done just in the nick of time... the hardest part was definitely carving out my name, since it's written in katakana."

"There will be two rounds to bid, with the first round showcasing each item at full price, and the second round showcasing each item again, but at half price!"

"I'm glad to hear. You look exhausted though..."

"Oh, thank you for your concern, but it's nothing to worry about. Funny enough, it wasn't the process that was tiring, but it was trying to keep up with Machida-san. You'd be surprised at how fast he is working with wood."

"When you want to bid, raise your hand, and when I point at you, shout how much you're offering! We'll repeat this process until no one raises their hand anymore. After that, the item will be sold off to the highest bidder, and your points will be automatically deducted from your group's auction fund!"

"I wonder if Ryouta-san and Satou-san will be okay..."

"Knowing Ryouta-san, he's figured out the trick behind this challenge like you have. It all depends on how many points our group raised."

Zyriot perked his head, tilted it towards me, then whispered into my ear.

"How much did you guys get?"

"...nearly 250k. We were 1,000 points off."

Zyriot's eyes widened. He looked at me with a face of disbelief.

"No shot... how did you manage to do that?"

"...it's a long story."

But it involves a three way deal with our group, Mitsuba's group, and Akihiro's group. Despite our team effort, it was still no match for Shimada's group, as they managed to get 294,000 points. It was only a mere 6,000 off from 300k.

It's clear they were going to be the winners of this challenge. However, second and third place were still fair game. I was secretly hoping that my group and Mitsuba's group would be able to claim these spots.

"Looks like they're starting."

Zyriot pointed at the screen as the first item came out. It was a scrunched up piece of tinfoil with three toothpicks sticking out of it.

"This is a piece of abstract art, aptly named "Don't Sit". It's a strange and unique little piece made impressively in under five minutes, and we'll be auctioning it off with a starting price of 500 yen!"

"They're really setting the bar low here, huh...?"

"If the school allowed that to be auctioned off, I'm scared to ask how bad were that group's other creations."

As expected, no one was interested in buying a glorified ball of tinfoil. Hiden-sensei swiftly moved on to the next item. Likewise, this one wasn't that impressive either. No one was interested in buying it.

"You know, I think it's kind of eye opening seeing how bad everyone is at arts and crafts..." Zyriot said.

"We really are useless at creative endeavours, huh?"

The cycle of disappointing items coming out continued for the next two rounds, and no one had yet to spend any points still. However, things were about to change in the fifth round, as a stunning piece of art was wheeled out by the staff.

"Wow, would you look at this? For the first time in this auction, a genuinely impressive item has been unveiled! This expertly done and beautiful drawing looks to be a watercolour sketch of a pair of buyers in the crowd, Shinhon-kun and Paradox-kun! Dare I say it, this might look better than the real thing!"

A tic mark appeared on Shigeru's forehead while Masamoto laughed.

"All jokes aside, the group has named this one "For the Leader", and it will be going for the starting price of 58,000 private points! Any buyers?!"

Immediately, Shigeru and Masamoto nodded at each other. Masamoto shot his hand into the air.

"We'll buy it for 86,000 private points!"

"Utto, it's our first bid of today! Shinhon-kun has offered 86,000 points for "For the Leader"! The current bid is now at 86,000 points, does anyone else want to bid?"

No one else in the auction room raised their hand.

"Looks like they went all in." Zyriot said.

With how cunning Shigeru is and how smart Masamoto is, it didn't surprise me that they figured out the trick behind clearing this challenge as well.

In some ways, it was a good thing they went first, since it revealed to all the other buyers the best way to approach the auction. In the case Ryouta and Satou hadn't figured it out yet, they should understand it now after seeing that.

"Yeah. It must be the work of Sugiura-san, since he's really good at drawing."

Sugiura's personality aside, he's one of the best artists in our year. It was obvious that it was his work just from the technical style and signature alone. He made it even more obvious it was meant for the Shigeru's group by drawing the two buyers.

"Going in three!"

However, the amount they bid was minuscule compared to what the amount other groups have. 86,000 was a drop in the bucket compared to what our group, Mitsuba's group, and Akihiro's group raised.

"Going in two!"

There was no point in counter bidding either, as it would just be helping them increase the value of their item and potentially push them up the rankings. By leaving things as it is, Shigeru's group would end up in the middle of the pack.

"Going in one!"

And that's fine by us.

"Sold! To Paradox-kun's group for 86,000 private points!"

Hiden-sensei slammed the gavel and pointed at them.

"I wonder when our items are going to come up..."

There was a hint of anxiety in Zyriot's voice as he said that. The auction continued on, with no one bidding on round 6, but Yahagi's group bidding on round 7.

The item was a pre-constructed Vanguard deck from the Tachikaze clan, but there was only a single copy of every card in it, except the triggers. In other words, it was Tachikaze Highlander.

Their buyers, Keisaki and Takizawa, managed to buy it for 143,500 private points. It was a respectable amount, and put them above Shigeru's group, but it still wasn't enough to beat Akihiro's group.

Round 8 began, and finally our group's item went on sale.

"Next up, we have a set of seven handmade wooden mugs! Refined with a glossy coating and made of dark oak, these would be perfect to drink from while you're in a log cabin next to a warm and cozy fireplace. Interestingly, the names of Torisu-kun's group is engraved on the side of these mugs!"

Satou's eyes widened as Hiden-sensei pointed out that small detail. Satou turned to Ryouta, who nodded in response.

"The group named this item "Leader's Meeting", and the starting price for this cute set will be 8,500 points!"

Immediately, Ryouta fired his hand into the air. Hiden-sensei pointed at him.

"249,000 points!"

All the buyers in the room looked shocked as Ryouta shouted that obscene amount. Even Yahagi's group, who seemed confident in their 143.5k purchase, were stunned by the massive 100k gap that existed between our group and their group.

"Good god, that's more than double the starting price! Torisu-kun has offered a whopping 249,000 points for "Leader's Meeting"! The current bid is at 249,00 points, does anyone else want to bid?"

The auction hall went silent. No one seemed to move their hand.

"Alright, we've got this!"

Zyriot cheered, believing that our group's auction fund was unbeatable. However...

"Going in three!"

There was one group in the auction hall who was unfazed by Ryouta's bid.

"Going in two!"

I looked over to the right side of the screen, where they sat in complete silence until now.

"Going in one!"

One hand shot up in a last minute challenge.

"Annnnd, we have another bidder! Denshou-kun, what are you offering?!"

It was Yukada Masahiro from Shimada's group.

"Yukada-san, what are you doing? We have to save our points for our group's item."

Nakajima tugged on Yukada's jersey, trying to get him to stand down. However, Yukada had already made up his mind. He slicked back his hair, took a deep breath, and sighed.

"...250,000."

Ryouta's eyes widened. Similarly, a wave of shock filtered through all the buyers once more. No one had expected for there to be another group that was richer than us, let alone one that would try and help us win.

On the outside, this action was just nonsensical. But when you consider Nakajima's face of disbelief, Yukada's guilty smirk, and Shimada's treatment of his group, everything made sense.

Yukada betrayed his group, making them lose on purpose by throwing the challenge. It was his way of getting back at Shimada in revenge.

"And by a margin of 10,000 points, Denshou-kun has beaten Torisu-kun's bid! The current bid is now 250,000 points! Does anyone else want to bid?"

"Yukada-san... why?"

Yukada hunched his back as Ryouta asked him that.

"Going in three!"

"...because I'm sick and tired of following Shimada's stupid orders."

Nakajima took out their group's device and checked their auction funds. It was blurry, but you could see how many private points they had from the angle the camera was pointed at them.

"Going in two!"

"I hope this is enough for your group to win, Ryouta-san."

Their balance was exactly 250,000 points. Yukada spent everything on beating Ryouta's bid.

"Going in one!"

"Why... why my group, Yukada-san? Why not spend it on one of your class's groups, like Kirishima-san's, or Koishi-san's?"

"Because you're the only one capable of putting him in his place one day."

Hiden-sensei slammed the gavel and pointed at Yukada.

"Sold! To Ekirei-kun's group for 250,000 private points!"

"Yukada-san..."

Ryouta muttered, frowning as Yukada lifelessly resigned his fate.

He was well aware of what would hit him the moment he left the auction hall, but the momentary joy he got from screwing over Shimada in this challenge was more than enough to justify the heavy toll his body would take later.

"You're not the only one who's going to be in trouble, Yukada-san. I'm also going to be in hot water for not stopping you..."

Nakajima sighed, rubbing his temples. Yukada shrugged a little.

"Yeah, right. I'm sure he'll let you off the hook anyways... you two are so buddy-buddy with each other, it makes me feel sick."

"Buddy-buddy? Please."

Nakajima looked down at Yukada.

"I hate Kuroshi most of all."

I abruptly got up from my seat and headed towards the double doors. Zyriot looked at me over his shoulder.

"Yuuto-san, where are you going?"

"Back to our room. I'm not interested in watching this auction anymore."

Our group won, after all. I left the hall and went outside, where one man was sitting by the waterfall alone.

"You're late, Yuuto."

"I wasn't going to spend my time waiting around and doing nothing for someone even tardier than I am."

It was Shimada, who was smirking at my response.

"Is that so? I'm sure he would be disappointed to find out how much of a slouch you've become."

I ignored him as he tried to bait me into talking about <that>.

"Did you see how the auction go?"

"Nah. Can't be assed to waste my time on something like that. I already know what the results are anyways."

Shimada dunked his hand into the waterfall and lifted a handful of water.

"Hane's group will come in first place. My group will come in second place. Jun's group will come in third place."

As he spread open his hand, the water trickled between his fingers.

"Masahiro will betray my group and spend everything I gathered on Hane's group, giving them first place. Hane will worry over Masahiro's safety and end up spending all his group's points on my group's item to try and cover up the fact he betrayed me, giving my group second place. I gave Jun's group 44,000 points, easily making them the third most rich group."

"...that's exactly right. How did you know Yukada-san was going to betray you?"

Shimada laughed, punching the waterfall.

"He never liked me from the very beginning. Give someone dissatisfied an inch to rebel, and they'll take the whole length of it."

"So you sent him in with Nakajima-san on purpose, huh?"

"Yep. It was the perfect chance to sabotage me since I wasn't there to watch over everyone. I also sent in Rokurou with him since there's no way Masahiro would stop if a student from a lower class told him too. Plus it gives me an excuse to soften him up before the big day."

"Huh... so I guess that means you intended to hit both of them from the very beginning if Yukada-san betrayed you?"

"Absolutely. I'll make an example out of Masahiro, and inflict maybe about half of the same punishment on Rokurou. If he tries to resist, it'll give me reason to use even more force."

It was honestly terrifying seeing just how far Shimada was willing to go to get what he wants.

"I see. What makes you so sure that Ryouta-san will spend the points on your group though? Logically, he'd be better off spending it on Yahagi-san's group since they're from the same class."

"There's no way Hane would do something as shallow as that. He's painfully aware of the other people in his group, and knows that if he pulled a stunt like that, it'd piss off everyone."

I had to agree with that. Ryouta worked on a basis of "democratic equality", meaning he would want to consider everyone's opinion before committing to a decision.

"He's also seen first hand just what I'm capable of. With a heart as pathetically empathetic as his, he'd do everything in his power to save Masahiro and Rokurou from receiving the beating of their lifetime from me."

"...does that mean you've fought him before?"

"Fought him is putting it nicely. Kicked his ass is more appropriate."

I should've seen that coming.

"Regardless, Hane will think that the only way to stop me from going on a rampage is by making them produce results, since the point of the sabotage is to make us lose. He'll identify our item and spend all 249k points on it to secure us second place. That will give Masahiro and Rokurou an excuse to say that Hane's group simply earned more than us, which is why we came in second. What he doesn't know however is I knew every group's auction fund from the very beginning. And it's all thanks to you."

"All I did was tell you the final amount of points my group, Mitsuba-san's group and Akihiro-san's group gathered..."

"That was the information I was missing since I only faced off against all the other groups in the quizzes. While I could calculate their funds, I had no clue what the scores were on your side since you three never challenged anyone else."

"Even so, you still managed to earn more than the three of us despite the fact we were working together."

Indeed, Shimada's original total auction fund was 294,000 points. After he gave 44,000 points to Mitsuba's group, it was reduced to 250,000 points, the amount Yukada spent.

"What can I say? When I want to, I can produce results."

If this was the usual Shimada, he probably wouldn't even bother taking this special exam seriously. The only reason he's working so hard and doing all this is because he has something else in mind he wants to achieve.

"Your strategy was pretty interesting though, Yuuto. Cooperate with three groups to rig the outcome of each quiz, as well as how many points you all got at the end."

That's how my group, Mitsuba's group, and Akihiro's group acquired such small fortunes in this challenge.

Prior to the quiz starting, we'd decide beforehand who would get first, second, and third place. Then, in the actual quiz, we'd coordinate our answers so two of us would answer wrong to make sure the last team would earn three points.

After all was said and done, the scoreboard would be a clean 30-20-10 to each group, and we'd receive a payout of 70k, 30k, and 15k respectively.

"Thanks, I guess... it's not all that impressive since I did a similar thing on the first challenge."

"I noticed."

"Yeah. Doing something like this was only possible because Mitsuba-san's my classmate and Akihiro-san used to be a classmate of mine."

"You're really gunning for Jun's group to win this special exam, huh?"

"If I wasn't, then I wouldn't have asked you to give them your excess private points."

"That's cool and all, but just keep in mind that you can't keep requesting things from me forever."

"I'm aware, but think of it was a prepayment for my cooperation. It's the least you could do for me until day four."

"Sure. But after that, no more."

"That's fine. I'm sure they can handle themselves for the rest of the week."

Shimada laughed.

"So, are you prepared for tomorrow's challenge, Yuuto?"

"...more or less. I have a place in mind I want to go to already."

"That so? Is it going to be the Underworld?"

"Don't be ridiculous..."

"But you can make a killing down there. If you want an easy win, just pay a visit to the First Knight of Diamond Table."

"From the sounds of it, that's where you're going to be headed."

"Eh, yeah. It'll give my group a day off. They're gonna need it after I bash Masahiro's skull in."

At this rate, Yukada is going to be retired from the special exam. I wonder what happens to a group if they lose a member.

"...well, I better get going. The auction's probably wrapping up by now and I told my group I'd be in our room. I guess I'll see you again this evening, Shimada-san."

"I'll be spending the entire night taking a nice, long soak in the hot springs. If you're lucky, I'll piss in the water."

I walked away, returning to my group's room.