Chapter 75: Side Story - Decision

Nanami’s monologue, POV

———-

Ginton walked back to his seat, not saying a word after.

TRANSACTION PROTOCOL

[At each designated interval, faction leaders will submit their intended transactions.]

[Transactions are binding once confirmed.]

[All declarations are processed through the Lex Veritas Protocol.]

So, in other words, participants cannot knowingly provide false statements. This will force them to omit information, use conditional statements, or provide technically truthful information that may encourage incorrect assumptions.

I exhaled slowly.

The rules didn’t prevent deception completely.

They merely prevented lies; those were not the same thing.

A student in Faction A raised her hand. “How are Stability Scores calculated?”

That was technically the same question that had run through my head. Fāng Xuě must have asked the student to ask about it, or maybe it was just the student just pointing out an obvious fact.

The monitor responded immediately.

[Stability calculations are dynamic.]

[Specific calculation parameters will not be disclosed.]

I’m guessing the school or the teachers are the ones responsible for the calculation parameters.

A collective groan filled the hall. If so, then some information is hidden and not disclosed. Well, it’s just a possibility, since it might be obvious or noticed later once the test begins.

Ichika whispered. “They’re joking, right?”

”No.” Nanami’s voice was quiet. “I don’t think they are.”

Every student seemed to have been watching and studying all the three factions. This wasn’t a test where students could simply discover the optimal strategy. The institution had intentionally created an incomplete-information environment. There was no perfect formula or guaranteed move here.

Every decision changed the information available to the others; successful prediction punished the predicted parties, predictable behavior could lower ‘Stability’, and every attempt to become unpredictable could itself become predictable. This situation isn’t funny.

It was a feedback loop. My mind began constructing possibilities.

If B transferred 200 units to A, C might predict it. If C predicted it correctly, B and A would lose the prediction reward.

Therefore, B could make the transfer appear unlikely.

But if B intentionally made it appear unlikely, C might infer that B wanted them to think it was unlikely. Then C might predict it, but B could anticipate that. Unless C anticipated B anticipating them.

Unless…

I stopped.

The chain could continue indefinitely; that was the point.

You can’t outcalculate infinity.

The only viable approach was to restrict the number of variables. I needed anchors.

Reliable behavior, relationships, incentives, and probabilities.

I opened my tablet.

I created a new document in a Microsoft Word application. I typed a single sentence.

Do not attempt to predict actions directly. Predict incentives.

Reina read it.

”Better, I guess,” she muttered.

Masayuki looked over. “Still incomplete, though.”

I nodded and added another line.

Separate genuine incentives from manufactured incentives.

Kinko leaned over. “And how do we do that?”

I looked at him. He did have a point there, but that’s not the point I was raising.

”We don’t,” I replied.

Kinko blinked. “That’s reassuring.”

”We estimate?” he added.

”Obviously,” I replied.

Ichika leaned across the desks. Her posture seemed lazy, but at the same time was full of this energetic vibe.

”Can we at least agree on one thing?”

”What’s that?” I asked.

”We’re not trusting anything C tells us anymore.” Ichika seemed cautious about Faction C’s presence after the incident and trap the faction had fallen for earlier just as soon as the test started, five weeks in advance.

Masayuki shook his head. “No.”

Everyone looked at him.

He continued. “We shouldn’t trust anything anyone tells us.”

That silence was different. I didn’t say a word. Honestly, I just don’t know if he’s trying to make the situation more complicated than it should be.

The monitor chimed.

The examination had officially begun.

?? INTERVAL 1 ??

[Leaders must submit initial transaction intentions.]

Three interfaces appeared.

A.

B.

C.

Each faction had sixty seconds.

The room became chaotic. Students turned toward their leaders; some were quiet and calm, while others waited for their leaders.

Faction A began arguing. But most of those reactions were not real. A bait of confusion. Faction C remained surprisingly quiet.

I looked at my own faction.

Several members were already waiting for my decision.

All the leaders, including me, had one thousand units. The first transaction was crucial, not because of its immediate value, but because it would establish a pattern.

If I transferred too much, I risked capital loss, and if I transferred too little, I could appear conservative.

Or if I transferred nothing, I could appear predictable. If I made a large transfer to A, C could potentially predict it, or if I transferred to C, I would reveal a willingness to cooperate.

But perhaps cooperation itself was valuable. I stared at the interface.

”Nanami.” Kinko’s voice was quiet and reserved.

I glanced at him. “What?”

”You’re thinking too much,” he added. Thinking too much? Was I thinking too much on this?

I stared at him.

Kinko smiled, faintly. “You do that.”

”I know,” I immediately muttered. So why bother even calling me out that I’m panicking if he’s still going to say ‘continue’. No wonder the girls don’t like him.

”Then stop,” he suddenly muttered.

”Uh? Why?”

”Because everyone else expects you to,” he answered, his voice low and his face leaning closer to my ear.

My eyes narrowed.

Kinko continued. “You’re the leader. If they know your struggles, they’ll assume your first move is the result of extensive analysis.”

My gaze moved toward Faction C. Ginton was not looking at his interface. He was looking at me. Fāng Xuě didn’t seem as much of a threat, but her eyes seemed to shift a bit toward the both of us.

He expects me to overthink. My lips curved slightly.

”Interesting.”

”…” Kinko shifted away from me slowly; he didn’t say a word. Now that I think about it, he was the closest to me aside from ‘Shion’ and the others.

Now is not the time.

I stood up, turning to the others, who seemed to have been doing their own deep thinking about the situation. I liked this sight; they weren’t panicking or just waiting for my orders, but were preparing several means to pass.

”I’ve decided.” The faction fell silent.”

———–

“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”