On the luxury cruise ship's deck, with the special exam finally over, it was the usual split—some people thrilled, some people miserable. Outside, students reacted in every possible way. Inside, certain people were being questioned very carefully.
At the very top deck, the school had even arranged a temporary office for Tsukishiro. Right now, he sat inside sipping tea, having summoned Yagami and Amasawa for a talk.
Amasawa still wore that bright, carefree smile—pretty, composed, like nothing could shake her.
But throughout the whole meeting, she didn't take a single sip of tea.
That alone said everything about how nervous she really was.
Back in the I2 area, Tsukishiro had seemed like he wasn't going to pursue her "mistake"—but that was only on the surface. That had been said in front of Yukio.
Whether he would scold her afterward… whether he would report her…
That was the real question.
Honestly, even if Tsukishiro yelled at her, Amasawa's thick skin would treat it like background radio—one ear in, the other out. She wouldn't truly care.
But if he decided to report it?
That was serious.
Once they were back at the White Room, whether it was the instructors or the top brass—Kiyotaka's father himself—if they came after her, her small frame wouldn't survive it.
Yagami, meanwhile, stayed arrogant as ever.
Even after being called in by Tsukishiro, he acted like he was above the room—silent, stone-faced, sitting there like some mastermind who didn't need to explain himself.
Tsukishiro had a mild headache.
These two White Room fifth-generation students were a pain to manage.
In the end, he spoke first.
"You both know why I called you here."
"At the start, I pulled you two out of the White Room for one purpose—assist the mission and get Kiyotaka expelled."
"When I designed the cross-grade pairing exam, Amasawa at least helped that First-Year Class D kid—Housen—with some work. But you, Yagami, looked down on it."
"Fine. You looked down on it—so I designed this large-scale Uninhabited Island exam. Two full weeks. That should've been more than enough time for you to act."
"And what happened?"
"You didn't show your face even once."
His tone sharpened.
"Yagami… have you been out too long? Did you forget the White Room's rules?"
Yagami's irritation flared—and so did his panic.
Because Tsukishiro wasn't wrong.
He'd gotten so consumed by Yukio that he'd temporarily forgotten Ayanokouji entirely.
And yes—during the entire island exam, Yagami's reason for not moving against Ayanokouji was simple:
He wanted revenge on Yukio.
He'd felt humiliated.
That moment—when he'd chewed on a tree and made a fool of himself in front of Yukio—he'd sworn to pay it back.
So he traveled all that way, slipped close while Yukio was busy with a task, and left that note—because he wanted to stay hidden, use Amasawa, and crush Yukio without ever stepping onto the stage.
In Yagami's eyes, that was style.
He prided himself on being the best. He despised direct, brute confrontation. He wanted schemes. Layers. Control. The feeling that only he stood in the shadows, pulling every string.
That's why it wasn't just "a note."
It was a performance—meant to prove his superiority.
Except he never expected Amasawa to fail.
A White Room student losing to a normal person like Yukio?
To Yagami, that was unforgivable.
Embarrassing.
He looked down on her even more after that—barely even bothered to speak to her when they met.
Of course, in his own twisted logic, he didn't consider his loss to Yukio during the trivia task an embarrassment for the White Room. To him, it was simply a debt that demanded revenge.
Some people are like that—Amasawa loses and it's disgrace, he loses and it's vengeance.
Still, with Tsukishiro pressing him like this, Yagami had to respond. And deep down, he really was afraid of White Room discipline.
He cleared his throat.
"Tsukishiro-sensei…"
"I had already planned how I would deal with Ayanokouji. But when I saw you were going to use force, I abandoned my plan and waited for your good news."
"But I didn't expect that even you—personally—would fail to bring Ayanokouji back."
It wasn't just dodging responsibility.
It was a jab.
A quiet insult: I held back to let you take the credit, and you still couldn't do it.
Tsukishiro took it in stride. He heard the implication and didn't care.
Because he hadn't called them here to argue.
He'd called them here to split the blame—and absorb Ayanokouji's father's wrath.
So Tsukishiro smiled, and casually lifted his phone—still on speaker.
"Ayanokouji-sama… that's what he thinks."
The air froze.
Yagami shot up from his seat, all his cool mastermind pose shattered, glaring at Tsukishiro like he wanted to tear him apart.
This old bastard!
He'd set him up.
Amasawa blinked, startled, flicking her gaze between Tsukishiro and Yagami—hesitating, unsure if she should stand too.
Then Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's father's voice came through the speaker—violent, furious.
"YAGAMI!"
"I'm disappointed in you. As the most outstanding student of the White Room's fifth generation, you've had this long… and you still haven't completed the mission!"
Yagami completely panicked.
Facing just a phone, he still bent at a perfect ninety-degree bow.
"I'm sorry, Ayanokouji-sama! This is my failure—please punish me!"
After so many years in the White Room, he understood one rule better than anything:
When Ayanokouji was interrogating you, the one thing he hated most was excuses.
You either took the blame and accepted the punishment…
Or you sank into Tokyo Bay.
So Yagami didn't dare resist.
"Trash!" the voice snarled. "Useless! What did we even cultivate you for?"
"And listen carefully—Tsukishiro, you too."
"If you still can't finish this mission, your acting chairman position can be replaced."
"And Yagami—forget becoming the White Room's next successful example."
"Yes, Ayanokouji-sama," Tsukishiro replied calmly—almost leisurely—while inwardly feeling a quiet satisfaction.
He'd pushed the blame onto Yagami again.
Another delay.
Just stall until the cultural festival.
That was all he needed.
"Yes! I won't disappoint you!" Yagami barked, still bent in submission.
Only after the call ended did Yagami finally straighten—eyes blazing.
He glared at Tsukishiro.
"Hmph. Next special exam, I'll definitely get Ayanokouji expelled!"
He tossed the threat behind him like a cape and stormed out—acting like none of that humiliation had ever happened.