The next morning, in the classroom.
Sudō Ken sat in his seat, looking completely drained and lifeless, with dark circles clearly visible under his eyes.
"Sudō, why do you look so listless?"
Ike Kanji noticed Sudō's appearance and asked curiously. Usually, Sudō was full of energy, but today he seemed like a different person.
"I didn't sleep well last night..."
Sudō sighed, sounding helpless.
"I had nightmares all night..."
"Nightmares?"
"In my dreams, all I saw were math formulas... I barely slept, and every time I dozed off, countless formulas flooded my mind... It was terrifying..."
As Sudō spoke, he shuddered.
"What you think about during the day reflects in your dreams. It shows you've been focused on studying lately."
"Don't remind me... Every time I try to do something, I feel like someone's forcing me to study. Whenever I pick up my phone, math formulas pop into my head... Now I'm even afraid to touch it..."
Sudō kept complaining to Ike, and their conversation was clearly heard by Saiki Kusuo.
All of this was Saiki's doing.
'Can't blame me for this, Sudō,' Saiki thought.
'High schoolers should focus on studying.'
'If you score well, we can avoid these study sessions. You'd rather use this time to practice basketball, right? So, bear with it for now.'
The night before, while Sudō slept, Saiki had used his telepathic abilities to implant various formulas into his mind. Even if Sudō didn't understand them, he'd memorized them.
'Last night was Sudō, tonight it'll be Ike and Yamauchi...'
Saiki's gaze shifted to the other two, like a predator eyeing its prey.
Once all three had studied enough, there'd be no need for these study sessions.
Victory was within Saiki's grasp.
...
After school that afternoon, Horikita Suzune led everyone back to the library. She handed out a stack of papers to the group.
"These are some questions I prepared. Finish them in half an hour, and I'll grade them."
The questions were based on the topics she'd covered the day before, to test everyone's progress.
'These aren't difficult. If they understood yesterday's lesson, they should be fine.'
Horikita thought to herself.
'But... no doubt those three didn't review. They'll fail miserably.'
'Why do I even expect anything from them? They're just dead weight...'
'No, stay focused. The goal is to reach Class A.'
'You're really pushing yourself to tutor them.'
Saiki now slightly understood Horikita's struggle. He glanced at the others.
"Horikita, where's my test paper?"
Kushida Kikyō smiled flawlessly, looking at Horikita.
'Is she provoking me again?'
Kushida and Horikita were practically at odds, but with others around, Kushida maintained her perfect image.
Horikita, however, was oblivious.
"Your grades are fine. You don't need this. Just help me grade their answers later."
'Is she mocking me because my grades are better?'
"I want to review too! I've forgotten a lot of points!"
Kushida insisted, sounding determined.
Horikita frowned. She hadn't printed an extra copy for Kushida, thinking she didn't need it.
"Sorry, I didn't print extras."
"Well, I'll just study while grading then!"
'She's definitely doing this on purpose.'
Saiki pretended not to notice, glancing at the others.
'These are yesterday's questions... but I don't remember anything... What do I do? Horikita's going to scold me!'
Ike and Yamauchi shared the same anxious thoughts. They hesitated to start, which didn't surprise Saiki.
'What's Sudō doing? Writing so fast?'
Sudō, on the other hand, seemed inspired, quickly filling in the answers.
'I don't know how, but these are like the formulas from my dream last night! I can't forget them...'
'Good.'
Saiki nodded inwardly.
'These questions are almost identical to yesterday's lesson. Horikita must've prepared them carefully. The solution to this one is...'
Ayanokōji Kiyotaka instantly knew all the answers but didn't rush to write.
'Should I score fifty? Half right. But since it's Horikita's lesson, maybe aim higher. Strangely, Sudō looks confident. Did he study last night? That's unlike him. And what about Saiki?'
Ayanokōji subtly shifted his attention to Saiki, who had already noticed.
'Still watching me? Annoying.'
Saiki felt helpless but also realized he was in a dilemma.
How many points should he score on Horikita's test?
Usually, Saiki could gauge a moderate score based on others' thoughts, but right now, no one around him was a reliable reference.