COTE : There is Something Wrong With Hikigaya-Chapter 177: Their respective cards.

Hikigaya had completely figured out Ryuen's plan. At first, he thought Ibuki and Kaneda were just spies placed in Class D and Class B to uncover the identity of the leaders. But now, he realized he had underestimated Ryuen's gambling nature.

A digital camera purchased with private points? Why go to such lengths?

Did Ryuen not trust Ibuki and Kaneda? Was that why he had prepared a backup plan?

No, that didn't make sense. If Ryuen had chosen them as spies, trust wouldn't be an issue. The real trust issue must be with someone other than Ryuen.

Following this logic, the answer was clear—it was Katsuragi.

Katsuragi was a cautious person who never took unnecessary risks. He wouldn't just believe Ryuen's claim about the identities of Class B and Class D's leaders. He would need solid proof, or he wouldn't gamble on a guess and risk losing 50 points.

Ryuen's goal was obvious—he wanted to make sure that Class B and Class D left this special exam empty-handed.

The next afternoon, at the agreed meeting spot, Hikigaya met Kamuro again. But this time, she wasn't alone—Hashimoto was there as well.

Compared to Kamuro, Hashimoto clearly didn't trust Hikigaya's abilities. His attitude was as casual as ever, making it clear that if not for Sakayanagi's orders, he wouldn't have bothered dealing with Hikigaya at all.

Still, Hashimoto did his job. He had already gathered a detailed understanding of Class A's situation, and now, he leaked all that information to Hikigaya.

"The survival exam only has three days left, so how are you planning to deal with Katsuragi?"

Hashimoto asked casually. He never really expected anything from Hikigaya—he had his own plans anyway.

"No rush. There's still plenty of time."

Hikigaya replied calmly. Timing was crucial, and it was too early to make a move. Since he knew Ryuen was also working in the shadows, he wasn't in a hurry to reveal his own cards.

He needed to wait—wait for Ryuen to make his move first, then adjust accordingly.

To Hashimoto, though, it just looked like Hikigaya was pretending to be calm. He had no idea why the "princess" even trusted such an ordinary guy. ƒrēenovelkiss.com

"Alright, alright, got it."

Hashimoto waved dismissively and walked away.

"You're not leaving?"

Hikigaya looked at Kamuro, who was still standing there. She frowned slightly, then stepped closer and studied his expression.

"Hikigaya, what exactly are you planning?"

Unlike Hashimoto, Kamuro didn't underestimate Hikigaya. Even though she couldn't explain why, she had a strong feeling he was up to something.

Maybe it was just a woman's intuition?

"If I told you now, it might affect things. Are you sure you want to know?"

"Never mind. As long as I know you're not just messing around."

Kamuro waved her hand dismissively.

Hikigaya was a little surprised. He hadn't expected her to give up so easily. After a moment of thought, he said, "But there is something I need you to keep an eye on..."

Kamuro's expression turned strange after hearing his request, but she didn't ask any further. Just as she was about to leave, Hikigaya suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, one more thing."

"Can't you just say everything at once?"

Kamuro sighed impatiently. "Fine, what is it?"

"It's about... Yukinoshita. Has she been acting strangely?"

The only unpredictable factor Hikigaya was worried about wasn't Katsuragi or Ryuen—it was Haruno, who had been oddly quiet this whole time.

Kamuro's face changed slightly at the mention of Haruno's name, but she quickly regained her composure and thought back on Haruno's recent actions. There was nothing unusual—she had simply followed Katsuragi's instructions, acting like any other student, without doing anything out of the ordinary.

Hikigaya should have felt relieved, but instead, he had a bad feeling about it. He hoped he was just overthinking things.

"Also—"

Hikigaya had just started speaking when Kamuro's eyebrows shot up as if saying, "Are you done yet?!"

"This is really the last one."

Ignoring her expression, Hikigaya quickly continued, "Did Katsuragi ever mention anything to your classmates about D-Class and B-Class?"

"D-Class and B-Class?"

Kamuro looked confused. "What do you mean? Ever since Katsuragi accepted C-Class's 200-point supplies, he's been playing it safe. He mostly focuses on A-Class students, especially keeping an eye on those of us in Sakayanagi's group. Hashimoto and I have to be really careful whenever we leave the camp—we don't know if Katsuragi's people are following us."

"Got it. Thanks, Kamuro."

Hikigaya had mainly wanted to confirm whether Katsuragi had revealed that "D-Class transferred 100 points worth of supplies to B-Class."

Based on Kamuro's reaction, it was clear that Katsuragi and Totsuka had kept this information hidden, probably to avoid causing unrest within A-Class.

Afterward, Hikigaya returned to D-Class's camp and quietly waited for Ibuki to make her move. Her goal was to find out who D-Class's leader was, so she'd likely act soon.

And sure enough, on the morning of the fifth day, Hikigaya and most of the boys were woken up by the sound of girls arguing outside.

Hirata, looking tense and serious, shook Hikigaya awake.

"Hirata, what's going on?"

"Hikigaya-kun, sigh... Anyway, this is a big problem. Please help wake up all the guys in class."

Hirata didn't explain what had happened and just went around waking up the boys one by one.

When Hikigaya stepped out of the tent, he saw a group of girls gathered together. Karuizawa stood at the front, glaring angrily at the boys. Meanwhile, Kushida was comforting Shinohara, who was crying. Many of the guys were surprised by the scene—after all, Shinohara was known for being strong-willed and arrogant. Seeing her cry was definitely unexpected.

Noticing the guys looking amused, Karuizawa and the other girls couldn't hold back anymore and started shouting at them.

"One of you stole the underwear! Hurry up and confess!"

"Yeah! You guys are disgusting!"

The accusations immediately made the boys angry. No one wanted to be accused of stealing underwear, and soon, the argument turned into a full-on shouting match.

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