Chaos in Classroom of the Elite: Class 1-C

Through the collective effort of first-year students, third-year students, and some workshop staff, the raging fire was finally extinguished in time.

The white mist that rose during the firefighting gradually dissipated, as if it had never existed, leaving only a lingering scent of charred wood and thin, wisps of smoke rising from the scorched beams to testify to its presence.

Takahashi's yukata workshop was not reduced to ashes; only the separate warehouse area was completely burned, leaving a blackened charcoal structure, barely standing and ready to collapse at any moment.

As for the main workshop area, only about a fifth was damaged, making it look like a row of brown buildings with an abrupt, charred black one in the middle. Due to the high temperatures of the fire, the exterior walls of the two adjacent buildings were slightly scorched and blackened—likely fixable with a coat of oil and paint.

"Where's Yukio?" While everyone else was relieved, surveying the aftermath of the fire and appreciating the fruits of their united efforts, President Horikita sought out Ishizaki and the others, asking the same question each time he encountered someone, determined to find Yukio.

Ishizaki and his group, of course, weren't about to reveal anything to Horikita. They all claimed that Yukio had indeed been there, but they weren't sure where he'd gone afterward. Horikita, like an ant on a hot stove, showed a rare, visible anxiety.

But he didn't need to worry for too long. Soon, Yukio appeared alongside Takahashi. "President Horikita, were you looking for me?"

"Hmm?" Horikita's gaze, framed by his glasses, widened instantly. He had considered many possibilities. Why would Yukio do something like this? Was he trying to throw the whole thing off the table and stop playing?

Was it because Horikita had persuaded Takahashi to suppress Yukio's efforts, thus preventing his class from securing orders, and forcing Yukio's hand to upend the game entirely? If his class couldn't earn points, neither would any other, and they'd all start from scratch.

But upon further thought, he realized something didn't add up. Those small orders Yukio had secured were clearly problematic; otherwise, they wouldn't have led to so much trouble, almost resulting in Takahashi's yukata shop's disqualification from the competition.

Unable to make sense of it all, President Horikita only wanted to quickly find Yukio to ask what exactly he was planning.

Because of this urgency, he frantically questioned the members of Yukio's class, and now that he had finally found Yukio, he should have been ready to demand answers.

But the moment he saw Yukio laughing and chatting with Mr. Takahashi beside him, Horikita immediately understood.

This fire wasn't just Yukio's doing—Takahashi was involved too!

Everything became clear. Why there was a fire in the warehouse and the workshop, why all the fire equipment, which he had specifically arranged to be checked, failed—now he understood. The owner of the yukata shop was in on it! It made sense; there was an insider, a big one!

At that moment, President Horikita felt as if it were snowing, the wind howling. Even though the fire had just been put out, he felt a strange chill.

He really wanted to ask Takahashi a single question now: "We were prepared to fight to the death, so why did our leader surrender first?" With the shop owner already defected to the other side, how were they supposed to continue?

There had been many questions he'd wanted to ask, but upon realizing the truth, Horikita's mind went into overdrive. Standing before Yukio and Takahashi, he couldn't find the words to ask anything.

"Ah, Horikita-kun, it's you. Are you alright?" Takahashi, the seasoned businessman, mastered the art of diplomacy, showing no hint of guilt and pretending he knew nothing. He addressed Horikita without a trace of awkwardness, even expressing concern.

This left Horikita speechless, to the point that he couldn't even make his habitual gesture of adjusting his glasses. He could only sigh inwardly at the thought: "So this is the way of people in society?" Clearly, he still had a lot to learn.

Perhaps this was part of the school's intent behind setting up this special exam: not only to let them experience the kinds of situations they might face in society but also to teach them that, in many cases, thick skin is an essential skill.

Realizing this, Horikita put away his frustration and anxiety, returning to his usual calm demeanor as he nodded politely, "Thanks to the help from Yukio's class in extinguishing the fire, we came out unscathed."

"That's good, that's good!" Mr. Takahashi "reassuredly" patted President Horikita on the shoulder with a look that said he was just relieved that he was unharmed.

President Horikita smiled slightly, then turned to Yukio, now calm and unperturbed. "This time, I've lost the special exam. Could you tell me the strategy you planned?"

Admitting defeat, Horikita wasn't one to refuse to accept a loss. Though the final results hadn't been announced yet, he had already accepted the outcome. They had agreed to test each other in this special exam back in the student council.

Now, the results were clear.

Takahashi had gone so far as to allow this major incident without any consultation with him, which meant he had fully embraced Yukio's strategy. And with Yukio's classmates being the first to put out the fire, there was clearly more to this plan.

Horikita understood that, no matter the subsequent steps Yukio had prepared, he stood no chance without having any countermeasures himself.

With part of the yukata shop burnt down and production halted amid a major incident, it was bound to trigger numerous unpredictable challenges. Yukio was undoubtedly well-prepared for these complications. As for Horikita? He had nothing.

In such a situation, rather than stubbornly refusing to accept defeat, it was better to admit it gracefully. Horikita had no objections to losing to Yukio this time.

"Of course." Yukio began explaining the strategy he had conceived at the outset of the special exam. "Initially securing orders and angering competitors was part of the plan."

"Through these actions, no matter what you tried to do afterward, Takahashi Yukata's reputation would only worsen. From the perspective of competitors, your actions seemed underhanded from the start."

Now, Horikita understood. No wonder their yukatas had made it into the top three of the contest, yet orders were still scarce. Yukio's preliminary strategy to undermine them had made any subsequent efforts practically useless.

"With a bad reputation, customers in the consumer market would be even less inclined to buy, creating a vicious cycle that would eventually drive Takahashi Yukata to bankruptcy."

"But one fire changes everything. As long as Mr. Takahashi can put on a sufficiently sorrowful display afterward, public opinion in the consumer market can be turned in his favor, silencing competitors from making careless criticisms."

"And the cost? Just a bit of the workshop burned down. As long as everyone's safety is assured, Mr. Takahashi will come out ahead this time."

While Yukio spoke confidently, Mr. Takahashi, who had been grinning knowingly beside him, only added to Horikita's shock. "Using fire to change public opinion? How… how could that even be possible?"

"How are you going to pull it off? Once public opinion sets in, it's nearly impossible to reverse it."

"You'll see soon enough, President Horikita."