Ever since exchanging a badge with Kaoru Mitoma, Nagumo Miyabi had been feeling increasingly powerless.

No—it wasn't just powerlessness.

He had lost all worldly desires.

Even the sight of a girl's skirt fluttering barely stirred anything in him.

At first, Nagumo thought it was just a temporary phase, that he'd recover after a while.

But as he waited and waited, time passed until he finally had to face the truth.

He was broken.

Nagumo tried to rekindle his old feelings with his childhood friend, believing that just being near her would restore his worldly desires and let him enjoy life again.

Yet, even Asahina Nazuna, his childhood sweetheart, failed to awaken his dormant desires.

All that remained was a pure, platonic affection for her.

Nagumo couldn't understand why.

Even if he had lost interest in women, shouldn't he at least still feel something for Asahina Nazuna?

Though she had never agreed to date him—their relationship had always stayed within the bounds of childhood friends, never progressing further—he had long considered her his personal possession.

Nagumo admitted that he often played around with other women, but it was just casual fun, a mutual exchange of needs.

Desire was desire, and his true love was his true love.

Nagumo believed he had always kept them separate.

Had Kaoru Mitoma not stopped him back then, he might have coerced Ichinose Honami into dating him—but it would have been nothing more than a fleeting amusement.

He would have treated her like a delicate vase, drained her of her value and then discarded her without a second thought.

A fine plan—but reality had shattered it.

Nagumo glared coldly at Kaoru Mitoma.

Even if he didn't understand how this had happened, it didn't stop him from resenting the other boy.

After all, if not for him, Nagumo wouldn't be in this state.

"Katsuragi, as your senpai, I'll give you a little advice," Nagumo suddenly said to Katsuragi.

"When you hold a sharp blade, don't underestimate yourself. Class A is yours now—lead them to victory. Don't lose."

Since Kaoru had delivered Katsuragi to him, Nagumo was confident he could completely consume Katsuragi.

He refused to believe that a spy who ascended to the throne would remain without ambition or continue obeying Kaoru unconditionally.

Thus, without hesitation, Nagumo openly reminded Katsuragi in front of Kaoru about everything he now possessed—even the power to help him seize control of the class.

Katsuragi froze for a moment before murmuring.

"I won't let you down."

Ichinose Honami tilted her head in confusion, completely lost about the context of their conversation.

Kaoru showed no reaction, silently relieved that he had retrieved another badge and renegotiated a contract with Class C of the third year.

Otherwise, the consequences now would have been disastrous.

Seeing his indifference, Nagumo Miyabi frowned slightly before letting out a cold laugh.

No matter.

He still had another plan.

...

"I feel like Nagumo is about to make a move against us."

On their way back to the dormitory, Katsuragi walked beside Kaoru.

Honami didn't joined them, apologetically explaining that she needed to make a stop at Keyaki Mall.

"Don't just feel it—he won't let such a good opportunity slip by," Kaoru thought to himself, realizing that he shared the same intention.

With the sports festival involving inter-grade alliances this time, he wouldn't hesitate to exploit the situation.

However, Nagumo Miyabi's other scheme was just as overt—an open declaration that he would eventually turn Katsuragi against him.

Even if he failed to sway Katsuragi, the seeds of doubt would be sown between them.

Understanding this, Katsuragi had immediately stayed close to Kaoru after leaving the student council.

"Regarding the competition, I plan to assess everyone's abilities first before deciding who will take charge of the assigned events," Katsuragi said, intending to finalize the selections for the assigned competitions before strategizing for the group events.

Currently, there were thirteen events in total—nine group competitions and four assigned ones.

The group events included the 100-meter dash, hurdles, pole toppling (boys), ball throw (girls), gender-segregated tug-of-war, obstacle race, three-legged race, cavalry battle, and 200-meter dash.

The assigned competitions were the scavenger hunt, four-way tug-of-war, mixed-gender three-legged race, and the inter-grade 1200-meter relay.

According to school rules, all events would take place within a single day, leaving almost no time for rest.

"Aside from the scavenger hunt, which relies on luck, the other events are brutal," Kaoru mused.

"I recall our class has quite a few physically capable students—like Kito, Shimizu, Machida, Motodo..."

Katsuragi gave him a strange look.

He seemed to know the class's capabilities even better than he did.

"How do you plan to arrange things?"

"Me?" Kaoru stopped walking and gazed at the dormitory ahead.

"I'm considering whether we should lose one match."

Katsuragi was stunned.

"Right now, everyone believes you can lead Class A to continuous victories, which is why they follow you. But that also means the weight on your shoulders will only grow heavier."

In truth, it wasn't just about the burden of responsibility.

Although it was only a faint sign at this point, Kaoru Mitoma still noticed an air of arrogance and complacency beginning to permeate Class A.

Take Totsuka Yahiko, for example—he had clearly abandoned critical thinking, dumping all responsibility for leading Class A onto Katsuragi while cheering from the sidelines.

Not that this approach was inherently bad, but with Sakayanagi Arisu watching from within Class A and Nagumo Miyabi and Ryuuen Kakeru lurking outside, a single misstep could be endlessly magnified, leading to a sudden reversal of fortunes.

Rather than waiting for them to launch a sneak attack, it would be better to strike their own ranks first—this way, the losses could be minimized.

Katsuragi fell silent for a moment.

"Only those who win have any real value, don't they?"

"No," Kaoru chuckled. "Those who lose but fight their way back to victory are even more impressive. We've been in the spotlight too much lately. Sometimes, taking a step back allows you to move two steps forward."

Katsuragi's eyes flickered with complex emotions.

He truly had to admire Kaoru's insight now.

"By the way, how's your sister doing?" Kaoru suddenly recalled the summer vacation incident.

"I asked a classmate who was leaving for a club competition to deliver the gift for me," Katsuragi replied tersely.

The school strictly limited students from leaving campus, and even student council members had no special privileges.

"With a gift from her brother, I'm sure she was happy." Kaoru smirked teasingly.

During summer break, he had been on his way to report exam results to Horikita Manabu when he unexpectedly ran into Katsuragi.

Contrary to his rough exterior, the guy had been preparing a birthday gift for his sister and even planned to ask Manabu for permission to leave campus or mail the gift—only to be refused.

At Kaoru's teasing, Katsuragi awkwardly rubbed his shaved head, unsure how to respond.

Still, he felt a strange warmth in his chest.

He hadn't expected Kaoru to remember such a trivial matter.

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