Kiyotaka Ayanokōji/Relationships

According to Kiyotaka, he usually has trouble making friends, but he has managed to gain some close associations and connections with some of his classmates which also extend to those of other classes and even the Student Council. These are the known relationships of Kiyotaka with those who have interacted with him thus far.

## Family

A great deal remains unknown about Kiyotaka's family, but according to himself, he was barely allowed to meet any of his relatives while in middle school. His father was said to be in charge of the White Room where Kiyotaka was training as a child. Kiyotaka's father is also the only specific member of his family to be directly mentioned in the series so far.

### Professor Ayanokōji

Only a few contextual interactions have been seen between the two. During the school cruise, it was revealed that it was his father who had contacted Sae and requested Kiyotaka be expelled from the school for as of yet unknown reasons. Kiyotaka remained unfazed by the threat, as he most likely caught onto his father's involvement early on. He was infuriated once Sae attempted to blackmail and manipulate him into reaching Class A otherwise face the requested expulsion made by his father.

During the survival island test, he had reflected on his past once again and he remembered that an unnamed man told him that only fools would waste their greatest talents. It was hinted that the mysterious man was actually his father, due to him having a similar facial feature as him and he also spoke in a very familiar manner, such as by addressing him by his first name "Kiyotaka" rather than his last name "Ayanokōji". This interaction with him may provide a hint as to why Kiyotaka hides his true capabilities from others, giving him the motivation to do things without revealing his true talent.

After the survival test, it was further confirmed that it was indeed his father's wish to expel him and stated that Kiyotaka will soon pick expulsion out of his own will. Undeterred, Kiyotaka simply stated to Sae that he will continue to defy his father's wish by carrying on his usual school life the way he sees fit.

He later met his father in an office, where he showed no surprise in meeting him and remarked on the time they last saw each other. Despite being father and son, Kiyotaka did not show him the proper respect even telling him that they were far from the place his orders were law.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, Kiyotaka's father, Prof. Ayanokōji showed up at school and presses the issue of getting his son to withdraw from the school. He reasoned that his son will far exceed his expectations and he would one day rule Japan. It was mentioned that Prof. Ayanokōji was very proud of his son for being the only child to survive in the White Room, which proved that he was exceptional and above the rest.

After a meeting with the school's headmaster, Kiyotaka discovered that neither his father nor Sae Chabashira has any real leverage to use in order to expel him from the school. With that, Kiyotaka abandoned his attempts at trying to get to A-Class since he had no reason to advance and is now free to live a simple school life.

Kiyotaka would later learn his father was not done trying to reclaim him. Tsukishiro proceeded to give Kiyotaka a message from his father, threatening him to come back to the White Room, Kiyotaka was undaunted and unsurprised thus he ignored and refused to retaliate against Tsukishiro's continued provoking.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
## Advanced Nurturing High School

### Class 2-D

#### Suzune Horikita

Suzune was the first person that Kiyotaka had interacted with while entering the school. He first caught notice of her when they were on the bus witnessing Kikyō trying to persuade Rokusuke to offer up his seat to the elder woman but to no avail.

They formally met when she inquired as to why he was looking at her as he stated he saw a similarity between them in the bus incident. She told him not to compare them, as she chose not to involve herself in such a trivial matter as he noted that she's worse than him. They were later shocked to learn that they were classmates, which Suzune stated was a bad coincidence after they were seated alongside each other.

After a few days, the two appeared to get along in class since they were both loners who barely associate with their classmates. In fact, it was noted by Kikyō that Kiyotaka was the only one in the entire class that Suzune had interacted with. For that purpose, she tried asking him to help her befriend Suzune but failed. In response to his supposed connivance, Suzune forced Kiyotaka to aid her in reaching A-Class and though reluctant, he complied after pressure was put on his choice.

Though technically forced to help her reach her goal, they appear to be quite close as when he noticed her about to be assaulted by her brother Manabu, he quickly intervened on her behalf and demanded him let go of her. When she cried out for him to stop, he was surprised as he noted on the sincerity in her voice, which he never saw in her. But before he complied, she soon witnessed him dodge Manabu's onslaught of attacks, leaving Suzune in awe. After her brother left hinting that Kiyotaka was more than he appeared to be, she herself inquired about him only to receive vague answers. In response, Kiyotaka asked Suzune if she had ever considered her anti-social behavior as the reason for her placement in D-Class which left her unable to answer.

It seemed that after all that, Suzune had started recognizing his talents as she immediately knew that Kiyotaka had a hand, helping the class pass the tests as opposed to Kikyō.

Suzune later asked him about his close association with Kikyō, noting in a rather tense tone at how he seemed more inclined to help her, but this only left him confused by her sudden change in behavior.

He helped her come back to her senses when she was scared by her brother's presence at Ken's hearing and she was able to give her speech. A day later, they worked over the case with Ken by putting his accusers in a losing situation which forced them to withdraw their complaint. Despite Honami and Manabu believing he masterminded the plan, he told the people at the celebration party that Suzune was responsible for it. He soon met up with Suzune (who spoke to Sae about him) as they walked in the rain and she accused him of manipulating her and decided to ask about his motives and told him if he truly wanted to help her reach A-Class, he'd have to be honest with her. He told her that she only forced it on him and that he may have gone along with it as he was just looking out for a friend, but she disregarded this as a lie pushing him to reveal his history, which caused him to briefly reflect on his life. He told her that he will help her reach her goal but sternly commanded her to not inquire about his history, marking the first time he was somewhat aggressive towards her.

Despite that conversation, they are shown to still be on good terms as Kiyotaka invited her to the pool, asking her to aid him in sabotaging the boys of their class from peeping on the girls during the summer break. Kiyotaka also tried to get her to loosen up by having her play with the students, though she still wondered why he hid his physical capabilities. While Kanji was stuck in the girls changing rooms, she gave a speech to distract everyone, helping him sneak out and while everyone was still in awe. The former took the chance to stop the plan. Kiyotaka thanked her and tried again to get her to have fun by pushing her in the pool, which caused her to do the same in reply, and successfully got everyone else involved, accomplishing the goal.

Later that night, Kiyotaka sent Suzune a picture of her with the other students. This gave her objective, pictorial evidence that she in fact could socialize with others, enjoy the company of others and that she just needs to open up a little more.

During the school survival test, Suzune asked Kiyotaka about his future but got no answer. After the panty incident, D-Class goes on alert and the girls asked for Yōsuke to keep an eye on the boys while moving from the camp, with Suzune making sure that Yōsuke is also watched by Kiyotaka, being put on guard duty as well. When he asked why she did this, Suzune stated she doesn't trust Yōsuke as he seemed secretive, which implied that she trusted Kiyotaka to a degree. Also, Kiyotaka discovered that she was sick and that she was hiding it from the class, expressing concern for her health.

Later on in the test, he found Suzune injured after her fight with Mio and took her to a tree before she awoke. They talk where he discovered her reasons for wanting to reach A-Class and noticed she did want allies before imploring her to withdraw from the test, but she refused out of pride, though fell unconscious, forcing him to carry her and have her withdraw due to her ailing health. After the test, D-Class won and she caught up with Kiyotaka and questioned on how the class had won the test and unlike his other times; he told her his plan of outsmarting the other classes. His tactic and ingenuity left her in amazement at his intellect, she questioned as to what drove him since he didn't want to reach A-Class. He also gave her credit for the correct guessing of the other class leaders, much to her dismay.

In the anime, Suzune later caught up to Kiyotaka and confronted him once more as he calmly stated that she needed allies as he noticed she finally changed her ways. After he confirmed that he did everything to help her, she got flustered and even was blushing before begrudgingly thanking him as she stated that she will see him as an ally. However, it is revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't truly acknowledge her as an ally, but merely a pawn into helping him win in the end.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, their relationship is similar to the one in the anime as it is shown that Kiyotaka tried to 'befriend' her but quickly failed due to her cold personality, though he is still the only person she ever interacts with within their class. Kiyotaka doesn’t treat her with as much trust as others and rarely if ever reveals his plans to her beforehand. There have been numerous times where she fell short, only to be surprised that he already factored in her failure.

These two in particular have been under constant speculation to be in a relationship since the start of their first year due to their close proximity and interaction with one another. However, both disregard these baseless claims and turns a blind eye to them.

As the Light novel progresses so does their relationship. After the events of the island exam, Suzune often asks for advice or his opinion of the current special exam, but Kiyotaka often feigns ignorance unless that knowledge leads to Suzune's growth as seen with his advice regarding Sudō during the sports festival. Instead, Kiyotaka prefers to work behind the scenes to ensure Suzune is successful never explaining any of his plans to her. When Suzune begins to suspect that he is working behind the scenes especially after the sports festival, she begins to doubt his true intentions.

When Kiyotaka loses his reason to aim for class A, he naturally drifts further away from Suzune. in spite of this, he sees her as someone their class needs and is a priority for him to protect. Due to the fact, Suzune and Kiyotaka are often seen talking and Suzune rarely speaking to other students. The majority of the school continues to mistake them as lovers and having romantic feelings for one another.

Despite these accusations, whenever questioned about it, he constantly refers to her as just his neighbor. Although he tends to always keep a certain distance with Suzune, only conversing about when necessary such as in special exams, Kiyotaka often inadvertently gets involved in her personal life, often trying to encourage her to talk to her brother Manabu and even questioned Manabu on his ill-treatment of her. He even planned to comfort her after she broke down after seeing her brother off but before being able to do so, she quickly recovers which causes them to return to their usual banter.

As revealed during his monologue after seeing Manabu depart, Kiyotaka is interested in seeing her potential to grow as a leader, and that she may be one of the things in the school worth investing his time and effort in, making Kiyotaka possibly view Suzune as somewhat of a mentee who he has helped shape over the course of the light novels for his own amusement.

As of Year 2 Volume 4, Suzune has admitted that at the moment, she now views Kiyotaka as her first and only friend. Although she is unclear as to how Kiyotaka sees her in return, he believes that she is someone that should be protected from expulsion for the sake of the entire class. He also felt that it is still his responsibility to take care of her during her journey through the school after her brother tasked him as the only person whom he could trust to take care of her sister. Although on the surface they may seem close, he is often off put by her personality and doesn’t trust her to the extent of others like Kei Karuizawa whom he regards as someone irreplaceable and indispensable in his life.

Her mindset has developed to the point that, she resolved herself to know more about him as a friend despite being told off and warned not too many times before. She also likes to think that she knows about him than most of the student body, only to be surprised that there are many things about him that only a handful of people know, admitting that in reality, she knows little to nothing about him even after all the time they spent together.

In Year 2 Volume 5, Kiyotaka took on all of the class hatred and ire that was originally meant for Horikita, when he nominated Airi for expulsion. He was surprised when Horikita adamantly vouched against expelling Kushida, despite all of her egregious actions having been revealed to the class. Deciding to see how the current Horikita would move forward, he decided to swallow his own personal feelings towards the matter, in turn, Airi was expelled after having the person she loves turn his back against her. Suzune apologized to him after the incident and lamented at her own weaknesses, though he tells her not to worry too much about it. Horikita could tell he was holding back his true feelings and decided to leave when Airi wanted to talk to him one last time.

In Year 2 Volume 6, Kiyotaka made a declaration in his mind that he would leave the class after he lost interest and finish seeing through her growth. He would then personally show her the truth and reality that the class she thought was invincible, would meet a reality that she can’t defeat. He affirms that once he becomes her enemy and showed her what true defeat meant, everything would be set in stone. He states how he's not doing it for anyone but himself, that as long as he wins at the end, nothing else matters. He welcomes her attempts in trying to defeat him but he already knows the outcome, despite hoping it could be different.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Kikyō Kushida

She was one of the first people in his class to initially interact with and befriend him. His first impression of Kikyō is of her being a bubbly sweet girl who will be extremely popular in the class. He got along very well with her having no problem in playing part in her attempt to befriend Suzune.

She was surprised at how clever Kiyotaka was after he got the old test scores for the class and told her to take the credit for it since he didn't like drawing attention to himself. She seemed to be aware of his capabilities, as she asked Kiyotaka if he had anything to do with preventing Ken's expulsion, which caused everyone to stop their activities at the celebratory party to confirm it, but he passed the credit onto Suzune, much to her dismay.

He was surprised to see her violent personality wondering if that's who she really was. Kikyō threatened him with the false accusation of sexual harassment by putting his hand on her breast. She threatened him not to tell their class about her secret which he promised to not expose as she went back to her bubbly-self, causing him to wonder which was her real self. From then on, he treats her with much more caution and always kept an arm's length away from her.

In Episode 4, he was shown to be a little uneasy about her as he was surprised to see her with Suzune and had a little problem in talking with her. When Honami inquired if they were together, Kikyō stated that they were not as he told himself that's probably what she really thought of him. He also tried to stop her from asking Honami for help thinking it might be a prank, while Kikyō seemed curious about his relationship with Honami after she said that she owed him a favor.

In Episode 5, it was shown that while he is still able to hang out with her, he still has his doubts about her due to noting Airi's uneasiness about her, wondering if it was due to noticing that Kikyō was hiding something. Airi told him that her eyes were hiding something dark and thus she was wary of her. His close association with Kikyō was questioned by Suzune, as she inquired as to why he is hesitant in doing a request for her, but all willing with Kikyō, to which he couldn't answer.

During the school cruise, he talked with her and noticed that her bubbly nature almost makes him forget about the more violent persona he saw in Episode 3. When he tried to leave, Kikyō stopped him, shifting back to her darker personality to make him talk with her. She inquired as to if he was nervous being alone around her, to which he confirms as she went back to her other personality, telling him that she just gets lonely when left alone. She appeared to want to tell him something but backed out at the last minute and simply left.

After the survival test, they talk as she explained that she hates Suzune because of her supposedly not having a hidden side. She also asked if he had to choose between siding with her or Suzune and when he remarked he didn't know, she jokingly called him mean. However, it's revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't acknowledge her as an ally, but merely a pawn in helping him win.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, their relationship is similar to the anime until he discovered her other personality.

After that Kiyotaka becomes wary of her, due to her personality so he doesn't seem to associate with her as often. In return, she revealed to him that she has hated his guts from the very moment she met him for reasons unknown.

During volume 5, she tells him that since he has started associating himself with Horikita, he would also be added to her expel list.

During volume 9, he agreed to give half of his private points every month to her, in return for knowing the secrets of the class and making himself valuable to her.

In Year 2 Volume 5, Kushida attempts to expel Kiyotaka after failing to drag Horikita down. Despite having the majority of the class supporting her, she was unable to convince people like Kei and Hirata to join her. Deciding that she served her purpose and is just a detriment to the class, he begins to unravel her true personality to the class by slowly breaking her down psychologically. Kushida tried to save herself by saying that his fingerprints are still on her uniform, though he refutes how absurd they would be considering it's been more than a year since that incident and that she no longer had any proof.

Instinctively, dropping her innocent facade she grabbed his collar furiously, though it only served to support his claims as he also reveals all her secrets. Having the tables turned against her, she resigns herself and lamented that she was taken advantage by him in the end. In the verge of expulsion she started to expose everyone's dark secrets that were shared with her.

Horikita stood up for her which in turn caused Kiyotaka to switch tactics. He understood how unwavering and impossible it was to have the class now unanimously vote against Kushida considering the time limit and so, he nominated Airi for expulsion. He decides to leave Kushida for Horikita to deal with since he had more than done his part, and it’ll be a good determining factor whether what she did was right or wrong.

In 2nd year volume 7, Kiyotaka saved her from Ichika and said she is an important person for the class

In 2nd year volume 8, they were placed in same group and went skiing. Kikyō asked Kiyotaka if did he know Takuya, which Kiyotaka hid the truth and told her a false thing. At the end of volume, Kiyotaka said he finds it easy to talk to Kikyō now that she shows her true personality and said some people like her true personality which shocked her. After his words, Kikyō turned to the wall with blushed face and, not even wanting to admit it, she fell in love with Kiyotaka.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Airi Sakura

Despite being classmates, the two didn't take notice of each other until Suzune pointed out that she was the only person that could help Kikyō out. Kiyotaka reflected that he barely remembers her by appearance. They officially met when Kiyotaka and Kikyō went to talk to her for help. However, Airi didn't want to get involved and ran off, leading to accidentally breaking her camera. She soon requested that he and Kikyō accompany her to get it fixed though he did ask her why he had to come before realizing her shy personality was something the flirty and pushy store clerk took advantage of. He helped her by telling the clerk to send him the notice for the camera and writing down his own address which caused her to look at Kiyotaka while blushing. She later thanked him for this, as Kiyotaka simply told her not to act formally around him, since they were the same age and that he was just helping her out.

While Kikyō was away, he remarked to himself on how it was awkward to be alone with Airi who only ever stares at him. However, she broke the silence and asked him what she should do about Ken as he told her that the decision was up to her. He then asked why she wanted advice from him, with her replying that it was because his eyes weren't 'scary', causing Kiyotaka to be confused by her remark. He told her to do what she felt was right and that the decision Airi makes shouldn't have to burden her. Airi then blushed at his words and became flustered when Kikyō returned while trying to cover up her embarrassed face. Because of his inspiring words, Airi decided to help him in his case to save Ken from expulsion and went to the hearing and provided evidence for the incident. She was also willing to show her gravure idol pictures to those present which has many explicit images as evidence if it had helped him.

After the hearing, Airi apologized to him for not working up the nerve to help out sooner, but he told her not to worry as she proved herself helpful. When Manabu hinted that a side of her could be lying, Airi got intimidated for a while, but Kiyotaka quickly intervened by saying he believed Airi, much to her relief. Despite Kiyotaka dodging Manabu's attack, she was worried that a fight may break out because of her before the president left.

The day after, he met up with Airi in class and tells her that she was a big help. He then told her that if she ever needed him for anything he would be there. This heartened Airi and she tried to ask him something, but before she could, he had to leave for something promising to hear it later. It is shown they exchanged contact information, as Airi soon made an urgent call to him asking for help. Although he seemed confused by the sound of her voice, he put two and two together to realize that she was in trouble. When the store clerk (who previously made advances on her) attempted to force himself on her, Kiyotaka quickly came to her aid by appearing on the scene and threatening the man with incriminating evidence as well as having Honami Ichinose and the school police subdue him.

When Airi apologized for dragging him into the incident, he comforted her by replying it was not her fault. She decided to reinvent herself by embracing her status as an idol and discarding her glasses. He offered advice for her in any future burden she may face before helping her up, while she looked at him in surprise and blushed. These events and discussions led Airi to develop romantic feelings for him. It appeared that Kiyotaka is unaware of her romantic affections for him, though whether he felt any romantic affections for her or if he knows of her feelings is unknown. However, Kiyotaka considered Airi to be a very sweet girl due to their close interactions. He tends to help Airi out and enjoys having her with him.

During summer break, it was mentioned that he invited her to the pool. They hung out by playing volleyball with the other students, seemingly having fun although Airi was nervous while interacting with others. Later, most of the students started splashing each other and she did the same to him but was seen nervous and slightly blushing after he looked at her. Catching a glimpse of him, his stare caused her to apologize and sink into the pool out of embarrassment.

On the cruise, Kiyotaka found Airi alone talking to herself, trying to practice her confession to him as he stopped to speak with her. To Airi's surprise, this led her to get flustered as she asked if he heard her. After confirming Kiyotaka didn't hear her earlier words, Airi is greatly relieved and instead asked him if he could help her in socializing with their class since she still had problems talking with them. When he agreed to help her, she becomes elated and grabbed his hand out of gratitude. However, this moment between the two ceased when Kikyō appears and Airi quickly excused herself. Kiyotaka was confused by her sudden change and looked on, wondering if she was still afraid of strangers.

During the survival test, she was paired up with Kiyotaka in a group and travelled through the forest with him. When they discover a spot, Kiyotaka has to hide Airi and cover her mouth after she tried moving ahead when Kōhei appeared. While being held tightly by him, Airi was shown heavily blushing full red before the coast was clear, even until Kiyotaka finally released her from his grip. He apologized for his sudden action, but Airi was seen still heavily blushing and squirming on the ground, as she nervously mumbled that it was fine, much to his confusion. Kiyotaka also asked her to come along with him, to look for branches for a campfire, after he initially requested help from Suzune who refused. Airi was seen staring at him blushing and made a sound gesture, sounding happy when he invited her, though Haruki was also seen deciding to tag along with the two of them. The group returned with an injured Mio Ibuki.

Later on, Airi explained that she was down on the school trip due to not having friends, but was now glad that she came. Airi then admiringly looked at him and stated regrettably that she wanted to have her camera so that she could take a great picture of him, which hinted that she probably thought that he would look good in a picture, as he was seen expressing confusion at her words.

At the final day of the survival test, Airi helped Kiyotaka clean up the campsite, where she asked him how many points that he thought their class was going to get. Kiyotaka then pondered on the topic and looked at Hirata afterwards. Due to his monologue at the end of the anime, is it unknown what he really thinks of her.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, they have a close relationship as it is shown that he doesn't use manipulations to gain her trust or cooperation, as he did with others. It seems that he genuinely cares for her, where it is shown that Airi is the only person that Kiyotaka downright simply refuses to take advantage of or use as a tool in his various grand schemes for the sake of their class proving that he truly cares for her. Further on in the light novel, Airi forms a very close bond with Kiyotaka, where she is shown to be always by his side. At the same time, Kiyotaka and Airi mutually refer to each other on a first-name basis, showcasing how incredibly close they are to each other. At first, Airi kept calling his name and smiling but got embarrassed after he asked her why he keeps doing that. Kiyotaka also cheered on Airi at the sports festival, where he also treated her after the festival was over, causing her to become happy and grateful. When Kiyotaka asked which ice cream she wanted, Airi replied that she wanted the same flavor as him.

During the panty theft incident, as everyone started accusing and mistrusting Kiyotaka for being the culprit with the other boys, Airi was the only one who defended him and even helped him look for firewood when others refused, showing her concern for him. Kiyotaka also didn't approve of Haruki's advances toward Airi and protected her by not complying with his order of leaving the two together, due to her timid nature. When Airi received a love letter, she mistakenly thought it was from Kiyotaka and she got flustered about it not knowing what to do, which he corrected her afterward saying that it was from someone else who forced him to deliver it.

Her romantic feelings for him were further shown in the light novels as well, as she got very jealous after Maya happily clung to his arm and remarked on how cool he was in a flirty tone. Later on at the cinema, she overcame her shyness to clear up her doubts by directly asking Kiyotaka why Maya is acting like that with him. Kiyotaka replied that she was just his partner at the recently finished "Paper Shuffle" exam. Airi immediately retorted to Kiyotaka that he could have let go of her hand if he really wanted to, while he reassured her that he won't be repeating such same mistake. Despite what his real thoughts are, he is shown to dislike making her upset or unhappy for some reason. It was also hinted in Volume 6 that the reason she joined his study group was her happiness of being next to Kiyotaka, due to her romantic feelings for him.

In Volume 7, Airi asked Kiyotaka about his plans for Christmas and who he will be spending his time with. Unbeknownst to him, when he was having lunch with Hiyori from class 1-C, discussing books with her, caused Airi to become very jealous and made her assume something was going on between them. Airi broke her character by openly scolding Kiyotaka for allowing Sato to easily grab his hand before calming down. It was to his pleasant surprise that she changed and promised to not allow it to happen again. She then told him to leave it to her to continue watching him closely to which he hoped it was not too closely.

Kiyotaka has already realized her romantic feelings for him early on but has made it clear that he will reject her feelings and only views her as a hatchling who has only just begun to leave the nest and needs to depend on herself. With that said, he still cares enough for her to ensure that there will be others to support her unconditionally if she ever broke down after his rejection by inducting her into his group and allowing them to break her shell while he watches far away, allowing the growth to happen. Her below-average grades for everything are also a cause of concern for him, to which he prays that there will be a big improvement for her and the class' sake.

He heavily ponders the entire concept of having more than one lover in a relationship, due to the issue presented by Airi's love for him but resolved himself to commit to one person at a time. That said, he is sympathetic towards her and pre-planned cushions to help deal with her inevitable heartbreak. He ensured that she established a sense of self in the Kiyotaka group and have friends there for her once he decides to reveal his relationship with Kei. Whenever the issue of revealing his clandestine relationship arises, he will eventually think about Airi's feelings. He considers and told her that she may be the least valuable student in their class but admitted that with her new determined outlook, she may change for the better in a year's time.

During the exam in the Year 2 Volume 5, Kei decides to reveal her relationship with Kiyotaka. The greatest reaction came from Airi as she broke down and cried throughout her rest period with Haruka consoling her. Haruka then decides to act as the intermediary to find out more information. She found out that Kiyotaka was the one who confessed first, yet finds solace that relationships can be capricious, with Airi still possibly having a chance. Kiyotaka then tells that they may soon organize a class event where she and Airi would have to cosplay as maids, with her remarking the timing couldn’t be any worse.

During the last question of the exam, Horikita adamantly defended Kushida. This forced Kiyotaka to publicly nominate Airi for expulsion due to her being the weakest student in their class according to the OAA. Despite Haruka's vehement protests, Airi herself agreed to become the candidate. After the decision was unanimously made, her expulsion became irreversible. Kiyotaka knew that out of everyone, with him as the sole nominator, Airi would have no choice but to follow through with it. As Horikita consulted Kiyotaka after the fact, he finds himself making up excuses and only looking at the bright side in an attempt to push away the painful feelings.

Airi then approached Kiyotaka with her updated look and asked for his thoughts. He comments on how she looks different and it was no wonder Horikita had a hard time recognizing her. She bewails but smiles wryly at the fact of how it was too late for her to be brave. She then bid her final farewell to him with the biggest smile he had ever seen on her as she made her way to the door. She made one last request for Kiyotaka to take care of Haruka on her behalf. As she walked forward, her pace gradually slowed as her silent weeps could be easily heard, even so, she never looked back once.

Kiyotaka felt nostalgic as he remembered seeing similar scenes numerous times within the White Room, commenting on how those who lose always look back at their inability only when it's too late, be it the school or the White Room.

When Kiyotaka went to meet with Chabashira on the roof, he admits that it was far too late to choose anyone else with the state of the class at the moment and that sacrifices had to be made to ensure their class advanced, no matter how it personally affected him. He added that the decision did hurt him and he wished the outcome could have been different but he ultimately sacrificed his happiness for the class.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*

#### Kei Karuizawa

During the survival test, when Suzune selected Kiyotaka to serve as a guard along with Yōsuke Hirata to watch over the boys in the class, she noted on him being invisible to the rest of the class. Kei agreed with Suzune as he didn't seem lecherous to her, which seem to indicate that she doesn't take too much notice of him.

Due to his monologue at the end of the first season, it is unknown what he thinks of her.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, their relationship is much more complex than it is in the anime.

Much like the anime, Kei initially did not think much of Kiyotaka. She often looked down on him for being an "unremarkable guy" despite not having anything personal against him. After he and Yukimura overhear Manabe and her group bullying her, she starts to hold a dislike towards him, unable to look at him without an angry expression and was mad when Hirata arranged a meeting with her but brought Kiyotaka with him.

It was soon discovered from Hirata that her condescending attitude is a facade she maintains to hide her true self. He explains that Kei has been a victim of bullying for the past nine years since she was little and also revealed the fake relationship between her and Hirata. After learning about Kei's past, he set up Manabe and her group to bully Kei in an isolated ward, then he blackmailed her, but promised that he'll protect her from being bullied in exchange for aiding him in his schemes.

Afterward, he seemed to form a very close trusting bond with her, where Kiyotaka is shown to trust her more so than others, even more than Suzune. In volume 6 of the light novel, it appears that she has developed a crush on Kiyotaka. Her crush on him was hinted further in the light novel when she became jealous of Maya's flirtations with Kiyotaka. Kei is one of the few people who refer to Kiyotaka by his first name. She was also the first person to celebrate his birthday, causing him to hesitate in deleting her text messages, which he usually does. He also learned of her birthday and decided to do the same for her.

In Volume 7, Kiyotaka decided to cut ties with Kei after he lost a reason to reach A-Class after Chabashira turned out to hold no leverage over him. In spite of this, Kiyotaka soon changed his mind and considered Kei as an efficient and valuable pawn after saving her, but in truth, her usefulness or not is a secondary concern for him as all that's important to him is that she remained to be his.

Despite this view of her, he appears to genuinely care for her as he protected her by violently attacking Kakeru and defeated him with ease through sheer strength and intense fear for threatening her. That was his first facial expression which indicated genuine anger. His actions surprised Kei as she watched him easily take down the group of C-Class students single-handedly. She was shaken by his true abilities but hugged him as she was relieved that he came to her aid as he mentioned his promise to protect her.

In volume 7.5 Kei realized she is in love with Kiyotaka and in the epilogue they talk about Karuizawa breaking up with Hirata, which Ayanokōji agrees with since it was the plan from the start. Ayanokōji now states he’ll call Karuizawa by her given name, Kei, too. He then shows that he was worried about her. Kei was scared to break up as she thought that he might not find her useful anymore to which Kiyotaka dispelled the thought and said it was for the best. The entire premise of Kiyotaka rejecting Sato was because of Kei. He views her as someone indispensable, someone who wouldn’t crumble when faced with overwhelming foes like (Honami, Sakayanagi, Ryumen, Nagumo, the teachers, and most importantly his father). He knew that the only thing that would break her would be him dating another girl so he chose Kei as the person he will share his joys and sorrows with. She took pride in being the only person who knows Kiyotaka's deepest secret and in her mind she criticized Sato for being so shallow as to only like him for his running speed. She was a bit crestfallen when she thought Kiyotaka was asking her to call him by his last name but was shocked instead as he also starts calling her by his first name.

In volume 11.5, Kei sees Kiyotaka and Hiyori Shiina going on a date and becomes jealous. She is also jealous that Kiyotaka has the same hobby as Hiyori.

In the epilogue of volume 11.5, Kiyotaka declares his love for her and she accepts. He told her that he only hung out with Hiyori to see whether she would get jealous. Her emotions were about to burst out before he comforted her by calling out her name which made her heart skip a beat.

In 2nd Year Volume 1, Ayanokōji invited Kei to his room to study together with him and made Kei take the test exams Keisei made, afterward Kei asked Ayanokōji if his academic ability is actually C since Ayanokōji is teaching Kei, Ayanokōji replied saying he can get 400 points which Kei stated is equal to academic ability A which Kei doubted and asked if he really can do it and Ayanokōji replied that there hasn't been a problem that he can't solve ever since coming to the school. Later that evening Kei noticed a strand of red hair on the floor and inquired Ayanokōji to who it belonged then the doorbell rang and the figure of Amasawa is shown on the monitor which made Kei grip the strand of hair in her hand. Kei introduces herself to Amasawa and inquired what is her relationship with Ayanokōji. Amasawa told Kei that Ayanokōji is her personal chef then Amasawa bend over to look for her lost hair rubber under the bed then Amasawa teased Ayanokōji saying stop looking at her butt which made Kei stared at Ayanokōji in anger.

In 2nd Year Volume 2, they almost kissed but were interrupted by a sudden guest. It has become a common practice for him to allow Kei into his room. So much so that they have a protocol such as hiding her shoes, having specific knocks for meet-ups, and setting up a student table in case of unexpected visitors. He decided to sell his trial cards and give all of his remaining private points to her so that she could save herself in case of expulsion. They are completely comfortable in each other's presence and tend to tease each other whenever the situation allows.

In 2nd Year Volume 3, he initiated and gave his first kiss to calm her nerves when she was having complicated feelings about him and their future together during the 3rd night of the Unmanned Island Exam. They are at ease with moderate physical contact with one another but still decide to keep their relationship secret. He tasked her to look into 'someone' not yet revealed and was heartened that she was openly jealous of him when he was hanging out with Nanase.

In 2nd Year volume 4.5, they decided that it was time to reveal their relationship to the public and also decided to do so after the holiday was over. She called him to clarify the rumors circulating around him. He decided not to voice his thoughts in fear that it may cause unnecessary problems and waited for Kei to tell him what she heard before crafting his reply. He reassures her that he won’t cheat after she made it clear that she has zero tolerance for it.

After clarifying the rumors of Satou and Nanase, he decided not to bring up Ichinose's confession to her. Near the end of their call, he said 'I love you' to her for the first time which caused her to chuckle out loud after she asked if he does. He repeated the phrase once again though with more reluctance than the first time after she selfishly asked him to do it again. She then said the phrase back to him and announce that she would not let anyone else have him. They then ended the call by wishing each other goodnight as Kiyotaka that love wasn’t a bad feeling.

Later on, she went to his room. She was excited yet a little fearful of announcing their relationship to the school. Kiyotaka told her that she does not have to force herself if she didn’t want to, to which she immediately rejected his suggestion, gleefully saying that he would protect her.

After sipping his coffee, he surprised her by kissing her on the lips twice without prior warning. He then reflected that he has to work on his timing better. After asking if she was ready, she nodded and they engaged in their first deep kiss which lasted for more than 10 seconds. They then repeated the kiss as he reflected on how she needed to learn to manage without latching onto a host.

Furthermore, he reflects on how this relationship has a limited timeframe as they soon have to meet their greatest challenge which was his father. Regardless, he hopes that he will be able to experience and have many happy moments before that time inevitably comes.

When Airi was expelled, Kei was deeply affected by it and asked fretfully whether Kiyotaka would do the same by nominating her if she served no further use to their class. Kiyotaka answers that it wouldn’t happen as Airi and her were fundamentally different people and that it's redundant to compare them since the situation would be different. Dissatisfied by his answer, Kei chastised him by saying that the correct answer would be how he would protect her at any and all cost, no matter what. Kiyotaka then admits that he still has much to learn about romance before attempting to quell her anger.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Ken Sudō

Their first interactions involved Kiyotaka trying to get Ken to join Suzune's study group, but he initially turned it down. Kiyotaka later saw Ken when he was facing Kakeru and his men before Honami broke it up. He then stopped Ken from escalating the brawl even further before inviting him again to the study group, although Suzune had to convince him further to join

When the whole class passed the test, Ken is the only one who didn't get a passing grade and was at risk of being expelled, but Kiyotaka came to his aid along with Suzune by sacrificing 50,000 points each to prevent it. Later on, a celebratory party was thrown at Kiyotaka's room where Ken and his friends attend. When Kikyō hinted that Kiyotaka helped Ken out, everyone stopped their activities and looked to see if this was true but he passed the full credit to Suzune.

When Ken was accused of attacking students of C-Class, Kiyotaka decided to help prevent Ken's expulsion by enlisting aid from others, including Honami and Airi who both helped gather evidence.

In Episode 5, he is one of the few students who encountered the Student Council to help prove Ken's innocence in the fighting incident.

When C-Class withdrew their complaint against Ken, he happily informed Kiyotaka of this news. Once again, Kiyotaka hid his involvement in the act by congratulating Ken and giving Suzune the credit, leaving Ken to wonder if Suzune really did help. After the brief celebration, Ken left for practice as Kiyotaka looked on.

During the sports festival, Ken was surprised and impressed by Kiyotaka's speed and remarked how he was hiding his ability.

Due to his monologue at the end of the first season, it is unsure what Kiyotaka thinks of their relationship.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, they are shown to be on good terms and appear to be close friends but it's unknown if he truly sees him as such. Much later, Ken was shocked to see some of Kiyotaka's true talents at the sports festival and was dismayed at Kiyotaka's new popularity among the girls.

Unlike Kanji and Haruki, who are jealous and feel an inferiority complex to Kiyotaka, Ken still hangs around him despite his new popularity.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Yōsuke Hirata

They first met when D-Class introduced themselves and Kiyotaka immediately guessed Hirata would be popular. Hirata also applauded him for making an effort in his introduction.

They didn't properly interact until the cruise, where Yōsuke tried to get Kiyotaka to become a mediator in getting Suzune Horikita to get on better terms with the class.

During the survival test, he and Yōsuke would work together in setting up camp. When Kei's underwear is stolen, Yōsuke searched the boys for them, and Kiyotaka thought he might be caught as Yōsuke found them on him (after Kanji placed them on him). However, Yōsuke covered for him much to Kiyotaka's surprise. Kiyotaka asked why as Yōsuke revealed he knew that Kiyotaka wouldn't do such a thing. This implied he trusts him to a degree, despite barely knowing him.

After the survival test, it is revealed that Kiyotaka doesn't acknowledge Yōsuke as an ally, but merely a pawn in helping him win.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, Kiyotaka doesn't fully trust Yōsuke despite hearing the trauma about his friend's suicide that led him to become a failed student and end up in class D. Kiyotaka suspects that it isn't the real reason and can't tell whether he's lying or not. In return, Yōsuke appeared to have caught onto Kiyotaka's involvement in their class' success.

In volume 11, when Yōsuke got depressed since he felt useless for not being able to save Yamauchi, Kiyotaka went to consult Yōsuke. Yōsuke then finally experienced part of Kiyotaka's true nature: ruthless, cold. Although Kiyotaka was using terrible words to consult Yōsuke, the emotion that has been bottled up within him rushed out along with his tears. He then thanked Kiyotaka.

After that, in volume 11.5, Yōsuke went and seek help from Kiyotaka about this relationships and love, after solving that problem, Yōsuke asked if he could call Kiyotaka by his first name, and of course, Kiyotaka agreed. That was a big step for Yōsuke since aside from Kei, and their fake relationship, he treated everyone equally and never called people by their first name since the incident in middle school. It meant that Yōsuke has probably moved on from that incident. Hirata has a huge amount of respect and trust placed on Kiyotaka, and would defend him if the situation ever arises such as when the class suspected him of cheating to get full marks on the Math test.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Teruhiko Yukimura

Teruhiko was briefly seen in the survival test, where he berated the girls heavily due to their over dependence on the points given to them. Kiyotaka recognized his maturity in the survival test since he was willing to accept a logical answer, especially when Kanji had sound reasoning for allowing the girls a proper toilet.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

Teruhiko became acquainted with Kiyotaka after being groupmates during the summer special test in the Speranza. He had the first impression that Kiyotaka and Kei were airheaded because they seemed like they couldn't understand instructions given by Mashima Tomoya, one of the coordinators of the exam. In the end, he gently explained to them the full details of the matter.

Although he kept giving sharp remarks, in volume 6 of the light novels, his relationship with him changed into a more familiar setting. He is very close to Kiyotaka and the members of the Ayanokōji Group, where he is seen to be more open with Kiyotaka as well as other members of the group. Both of them are also on a first-name basis with each other.

In Volume 7, his closeness was emphasized when he candidly remarked that Kiyotaka has no principle with girls since his female friends change and differ from time to time. After this, they hung out with the group to discuss C-Class, Christmas and other things.

In volume 2 second years, when Kiyotaka revealed one of his true abilities, by passomh a test Keisei is the most angered of all students in class 2-D. He even considered that Kiyotaka cheated just because the tests weren't possible to get a hundred score, and the fact that no other students except Kiyotaka gets a perfect score. Even though Horikita explained the situation to the class, Keisei found it hard to believe and had planned to leave the Ayanokoji Group because he can't trust Kiyotaka anymore. But, after Airi and Haruka intervenes, he decided to stay under 1 condition, which Kiyotaka must help him during study session. Kiyotaka agrees.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Haruka Hasebe

There was no interaction between them in the first season.

In the manga, he expresses no knowledge of her identity.

During Season 2, they first interact when they put in a study group. She is initially rude by remarking on him being invisible and how she did not witness his race with Manabu. Kiyotaka paid it no mind and decided to help her study. He was also mildly annoyed by her nickname for "Kiyo-pon" him and the fact that she named their study group after him.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, Kiyotaka was unaware of her identity only hearing of her from Ike and Haruki Yamauchi.

However, Haruka got interested in Kiyotaka at the sports festival in volume 5, where she became enthralled by his physical prowess in his race against Manabu Horikita. She began to show her growing interest in him by hanging around him, going as far as to even consider him her ideal guy. However, her interest may or may not have faded once she realized that her friend Airi has intense feelings for Kiyotaka, in which she decided to support her.

In volume 6, she began to form a very close relationship with him as well as the other members of the Ayanokōji Group, a group which was founded by her and dedicated it to Kiyotaka. She also gave Kiyotaka the nickname "Kiyo-pon" or "Ayanon" because they sounded cute, hinting that she enjoyed teasing him a lot. The two are on a first-name basis, which seemed to reflect how comfortable they are with each other. Haruka appears to enjoy talking a lot with both Kiyotaka as well as other members of the group. She is also more open with Kiyotaka and the other members of the group than the others in the class.

In Volume 7, they hung out with their group to discuss C-Class, Christmas and other things.

In the Second-Year Volume 5, the extent of their friendship was tested during the special test. Before the exam, she acted as the mediator and intermediary for Airi after Kei revealed her relationship to Kiyotaka in front of the entire class. She was optimistic that Airi may still have another chance as she continued bombarding Kiyotaka with questions pertaining to his relationship while calming down Airi as he asked her to in previous volumes.

She then sighed heavily when Kiyotaka reveals that they may have to cosplay as maids for their class event, complaining that the timing couldn’t be any worst as she can’t predict the emotional turmoil in Airi. Nonetheless, she was still cheerful and held nothing against him as she made it clear he had every right to love anyone he fancies, though his choice did personally surprise her.

When the class was debating on the expulsion of Kushida due to the surprise intervention of Horikita defending Kushida, seeing as time was running out, Kiyotaka shocks Hasebe by nominating Airi Haruka.

She was infuriated by his perceived betrayal of their group dynamic and vehemently rejected all his claims about the decision having an advantage for their class in the long run. Despite her protests, she continued addressing him with a familiar tone, irrespective of her anger.

No matter who was against Airi, Hasebe thought it would be alright as long as Kiyotaka was on her side, however, this sudden proclamation shattered all her hopes. She passionately wanted those two to be together longer, especially after Airi informed her that she wanted to show Kiyotaka something after school beforehand.

Thus, she even nominated herself for expulsion in the place of Airi as she still had hope for their relationship to foster but even that was squashed when Airi volunteered herself to be expelled. Furthermore, she beseeched Hasebe to vote for her. Hasebe was utterly devastated when the unanimous decision was made as she couldn’t go against a personal request.

For Airi's final request to Kiyotaka, she begged him to take care of Hasebe in her place which he agrees to.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Akito Miyake

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In Volume 7, they hung out with their group to discuss C-Class, Christmas and other things.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Maya Satō

In the first season of the anime, she was put off by his awkward introduction to the class. Beyond that, they do not have much interaction in the first season.

During Season 2, Maya watches him compete in the sports Festival and was in awe at his great speed when he raced Manabu Horikita. She later approached him and shyly asked if he was dating someone and gets excited by him denying such and asked for his number. He was confused but obliged, though questioned her on why and she reveals that she found him amazing in the race, before blushing and leaving in a hurry.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

Maya became infatuated with Kiyotaka after seeing how fast he ran in the relay race, which is comparable to Manabu Horikita's performance. She was seen trying to flirt with him on how handsome he looked, questioning if he had a girlfriend while also asking for his contact number, causing Kei to be jealous. Later on, in the theatre lobby, she grabbed his arm and remarked if he was with someone at the cinema in a flirty tone. Little did she know that Airi was also present in the lobby, and appeared to be jealous of the exchange.

When Airi asked Kiyotaka why Maya is clingy with him, he replied that she's just his partner at the recently finished "Paper Shuffle" exam. Amidst such denial, the fact that Maya may have a romantic interest in Kiyotaka could not be hidden and maybe indisputable as she could just be covering it up with the other girls.

Later in the series, right after the Ayanokōji Group planned to go to Keyaki Mall, with an apologetic voice, Maya called out for Kiyotaka asking if he's free at the moment. However, the latter immediately retorted his unavailability due to his prior commitment to his study group. Seeing Maya's shoulders droop in disappointment, Kiyotaka made a curveball to the awkward situation by asking if it's fine to ask her out for the winter holidays. Maya gasped with the unexpected response. Kiyotaka explained that it seemed rude for him to refuse her twice in a row (the first one being his lame excuse that his muscles were too stiff). She then hugged his arm in front of the entire class much to his embarrassment. Maya excitedly asked for affirmation of what he promised, and the scene ended with Kiyotaka saying he'll send the details via mail. On the other note, while going on their separate paths, Maya joyfully left the class with Satsuki as Kiyotaka perpetually mused on what made her interested in him.

He actually enjoyed their date together and even though he rejected her, he made it clear that it was by no fault of hers, but it was because he wasn’t ready for a relationship yet. He promised to hang out with her again but before anything else could be said, she ran away as her emotions were about to busted forth. He later told Kei that he felt terrible for rejecting her and missing out the chance to ascend to adulthood with her. If she had been a worthy replacement for Kei, he would had chosen her, but after her bashful encounter with Nagumo where she was submissive, Kei was the only one who tried to defuse the situation. With that, Kiyotaka had made his decision on his future partner. Although, Kiyotaka rejected her, he reflected that he will carve into his memory that it was Maya who was the first person to ever confess to him.

Maya still has vestigial feelings for him and will defend him on the sidelines, despite being rejected. Although Kei thought she would get over him quickly, she still may become her future rival in love as she hasn’t completely given up on him. Not much contact has been shown after the rejection, but she still has been looking at him very closely. Kei even told Kiyotaka that if he had accepted her, she would had been there for him through thick and thin but the decision had already been made and there was no point turning back.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Chiaki Matsushita

There is no direct interaction in the first season of the anime. However, she was confused by his awkward introduction.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, they initially did not interact, but she was amazed by him when he challenged Manabu Horikita in the Sports Festival.

Not too long later, he came on her radar when he selected her to participate in the Flash Mental Arithmetic event.

She began following him in an attempt to learn more of him. Ayanokōji was well aware of her activities and confronted her, with Chiaki wasting no time in getting to the point of asking if he was actually holding back on his abilities after considering everything-his mental arithmetic skills, his running speed, and him consoling Hirata. Kiyotaka admits that it did indeed looked like he had been holding back, explaining that he had done so to avoid attracting attention. After asking him to contribute more to the class if he could, and that she would vouch for him to lead if ever needed, she asks him about his relationship with Kei. She asked him why Kei thought he was special enough for her to even leave Hirata for him. Faced with her questions, Kiyotaka admitted that Kei probably thought he was indeed special. He then said that his relationship with Kei was special in the way that Kei just had a sort of "strange awareness" around him, leading to both Chiaki and him looking at each other in confusion at his words. To explain his words, Kiyotaka then proceeded to suddenly grab her hands and ask her to date him since he liked her, causing her to momentarily panic, but calmed down when she realized he didn't mean it, and understood what he meant. She promised him that she would not tell anyone else about his affiliation with Kei, and they parted ways.

Regardless of this meeting, they have more pleasant interactions and it is shown she is similar to Ayanokōji in regard to them both hiding their true abilities and sharing the same sense of superiority that they can both outclass all.

In Light Novel 2nd Year Volume 2, Chiaki approached Kiyotaka after having followed him while he talked with Hirata, to discuss with him about the Uninhabited Island Exam. She said that she wanted him to rely on her if he needed to, saying that the Trial Card(which he possessed) was a dangerous item, which needed to be properly utilized. She further added that she would follow all his instructions, whichever he may give her during the special exam.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Mei-Yu Wang

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In Volume 9, Mei approached Ayanokōji invited him to a cafe and asked him for advice with regards to Hirata. Mei told Ayanokōji that Hirata told her that Ayanokōji is the most reliable and level headed person in their class, then Mei asked Ayanokōji if Hirata is dating anyone after Hirata broke up with Karuizawa, Mei then told Ayanokōji that she liked Hirata but she doesn't have any confidence because she has many rivals and that she hadn't fallen in love before. Ayanokōji told her not to be impatient since Hirata is a good person and after Hirata broke up with Karuizawa it is unlikely that he will accept any confessions to him quickly. After that Mei told her impression of Ayanokōji, that she thinks that since Ayanokōji is a silent person. People usually think that Ayanokōji is a scary person but her impression on Ayanokōji change. She thought of him as someone approachable and good at listening to other people's thoughts as well as giving sound advice.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Other Classmates

Besides Suzune, Kikyō, Airi, Ken and Yōsuke, he does infrequently interact with his other classmates. In Episode 1, when the class was asked to introduced themselves, he tried to make a good impression but had a plain explanation when talking which confused the other students. He noticed that he blew it. In Episode 2, Kiyotaka was downcast that everyone else made a friend while he was still alone. During Episode 3, a celebratory party is thrown in his room after a recent quiz and while he was happy he had friends around, he was concerned about the mess. He hid his involvement in preventing Ken's expulsion by giving Suzune the credit for the plan after Kikyō mentioned that Kiyotaka had something to do with it. In Episode 4, he appeared to work well with his classmates as they all try to find evidence to prove Ken's innocence. When Honami Ichinose offered to help out saying she owed him a favor, the group wondered why exactly someone so beautiful had already owed him a favor. In Episode 7, Kiyotaka agreed to be part of the group of boys who wanted to peep on girls, although his real intentions were to stop them from getting their class in trouble. With Suzune's help, the plan was successfully foiled. This was a change from the original light novel where he enlisted the assistance of Kei to foil their plan.

During the survival test, his lack of prominence in the class was brought to light when Suzune volunteered him as a guard after Kei's underwear was stolen, causing Kei and a few others to note he doesn't stand out that much. However, a majority agreed to put him on guard duty because he didn't look lecherous unlike the other boys in the class.

Due to his real thoughts, it is unknown what he really thinks of his classmates. However, it seems that his actions helped them out in the long run as shown in the survival test where the class won, but he covered his tracks by giving Suzune the credit.

During the Sports Festival, Kiyotaka amazed his peers when he challenged Manabu Horikita to a race with a few asking him on hiding his prowess.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, his lack of prominence in the class is the same as many barely take note of him due to him hiding in the background.

However, when he challenged Manabu Horikita to a race, he showed a glimpse of his true physical abilities at the sports festival. Though he lost the race, the class was truly amazed by his prowess and started to see him in a new light, with him even gaining popularity among many of the girls in his class, much to his surprise and the other boys' dismay.

By showing off his true talents, a few of the students have even formed a study group known as the Ayanokōji Group, which is a group of students who more or less hide in the background with him. He became close friends with a majority of the members, even getting on a first-name basis with them. Kiyotaka doesn't seem to consider them pawns and appears to genuinely care for those he has befriended. Though in later volumes, he has distanced himself from them so they can fend for themselves and grow while also focusing on more specific people.

Very soon, he showed a glimpse of his true intelligence after he got a full score in Math, though many of his classmates accused him of cheating and lambasted him for not contributing to the class more and hiding his true abilities. This came to a stop after Kiyotaka's true friends like Kei, Suzune, and Hirata came in for his defense, much to the chagrin of his classmates. Many doubts his intentions and loyalty due to his association with other classes and are also jealous of his relationship with the cooler students. They still do not think much of him nor trust him to a great extent, which was what he originally intended.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
### Class 2-C

#### Mio Ibuki

    Kiyotaka first met Mio on the school cruise where he witnessed her being knocked down by Albert after being shunned by Kakeru. He went to help her up but she angrily slapped away his hand telling him to stay out of her business before running off. He noticed with this exchange that Class C was falling apart.

They met again in the survival test where he found her injured in the forest. Kiyotaka even found himself stopping Haruki from approaching Mio at first because of how suspicious the situation was. He later said it was nothing as they let her come to their camp. Though Ibuki refused help from an enemy class, she accepted the offer and returned to their camp, but made it clear she isn't trying to be friendly with them.

On the day after Kei's underwear is stolen, he is approached by Mio who asked if he believed she was responsible for the underwear theft since she was an outsider, but he replied that he knew she didn't do it. He stated that while the other students in his class don't trust her, he does which led to her nervously thank him for having belief in her as he said he was just being honest. She was curious about him, glancing from behind when Kikyō and Haruki commented on how incredibly close Suzune and Kiyotaka were.

After the survival test, it was revealed that Kiyotaka knew Mio was really a spy and he outsmarted and manipulated her by using various tactics which helped his class pass the test.

During Season 2, when he came to rescue Kei, he revealed he was the mastermind of D-Class, as she disbelieved him because he didn't know she was a spy. However, she was shocked to learn that he was the one who sabotaged her plans in the survival test. She was further shocked when seeing him take down Albert and Daichi with ease, becoming speechless as he emerged without a scratch. She similarly charged at him, angrily calling him crazy like Ryuen for his manipulations. Despite her best efforts, she was countered and easily knocked out.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In light novels, both her and Kiyotaka were seen together wearing casual clothes and heading for a fortune teller. In Volume 7, when the latter appeared at the rooftop where Kei was being held as a victim, the former couldn't initially believe that he was "X" all along. This is rooted from the fact that during the special summer test at the deserted island, Kiyotaka expressed his full trust to Mio, which in turn, made her think that he's just a stupid and too nice a guy.

However, things turned out into what she wasn't expecting as she was shocked to confirm that he was indeed the mastermind of D-Class after learning he was the one who sabotaged her plans on the survival test.

She was awestruck when seeing him take down Albert and Daichi with such ease and not getting a scratch. She similarly charged at him, while at the same time expressing her disbelief at his abilities but was instantly beaten and knocked out cold by Kiyotaka with a solid kick. This would make the two enemies, due to his attack on her class.

In their next meetings, things are really awkward since Mio is now aware of his abilities and intellect while unable to understand his logic.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Kakeru Ryūen

No direct interaction was made in the first season of the anime, although they saw each other face to face in the survival test. Kakeru did not appear to think much of Kiyotaka, while the latter took note of former's camp. He soon realized Kakeru's plan and foiled it brilliantly and flawlessly.

In Season 2, Kiyotaka realizes more of Kakeru's plans such as his attempt to flush out the hidden leader of D-Class and his brief alliance with Kikyō and quickly put an end to their plans. When Kakeru held Kei hostage, he was pleasantly surprised to see Kiyotaka is the mastermind. He began to mock him on being boxed in by his gang only to be impressed by his stoic nature and witness him defeat Daichi and Albert. He remarked on how Kiyotaka was more than he appears.

Kakeru and his gang took Kei Karuizawa, thinking she is involved with the mastermind. When Kiyotaka arrived and confirmed he was indeed the mastermind of his class, Kakeru realized his suspicions were true and noted that he was why he always associating with Suzune and realized he did it to hide under the radar. Kakeru soon ordered his followers Albert, Mio, and Daichi to attack but they were easily beaten down for it, which proved that Kiyotaka was and has the pedigree to be D-Class' mastermind.

Kakeru complimented his skill and decided to step in and began to ponder on ways to brutalize Kiyotaka. However, he was attacked by Kiyotaka and attempted to fight back only to be easily overpowered by the latter who continued to violently thrash him, to the point that Kakeru was considered broken. In desperation, Kakeru tried to provoke him into giving in to his rage but Kiyotaka was unfazed and beat Kakeru to the point, where he got greatly frightened when he saw the lack of anger and emotions in Kiyotaka's attack.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, Kiyotaka spread rumors about Honami's huge amount of points, which was revealed to be legally obtained by her. This was part of Kiyotaka's plan to trap Kakeru, who thought that someone else besides Suzune is pulling the strings for D-Class. Catching on to this, Kakeru decided to play along in order to find the true mastermind of D-Class.

In Volume 7, Kiyotaka, wanting to put an end to the conflict with C-Class, revealed himself as D-Class' mastermind to Kakeru and his gang, with some being unable to believe him. Kakeru, on the otherhand voiced how Kiyotaka led the class by hiding behind Suzune after recalling seeing them together. All doubts were relieved after he gave them enough evidence. He was then attacked, but he easily defeated Kakeru's pawns. This sight impressed Kakeru who decided to battle Kiyotaka. However, Kiyotaka easily overcame him and broke Kakeru physically and mentally, beating him up and leaving him terrified. Thus concluded the conflict between the two classes.

Afterwards, in the days after the confrontation, it is shown that Kiyotaka covered for Kakeru and his followers by taking partial credit for their vandalism when they took Kei and not launching a complaint against them. Kiyotaka even informed Albert and Daichi about Kakeru's possible plan to drop out which led them to nearly do the same. Kiyotaka later heard rumors of Kakeru giving up his leadership of C-Class and isolating himself from his gang.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Hiyori Shiina

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

Kiyotaka first met Hiyori after Kakeru and she made contact with the members of Ayanokōji Group, who were studying together around a group table. It is possible that Hiyori noticed Kiyotaka for an indefinite span of time since she's aware of him being someone who frequently hung around Suzune.

In Volume 7, between the bookshelves under the library's section for the mystery genre, Kiyotaka met Hiyori. While the former was thinking on borrowing another book, he observed a girl who was trying hard to reach the book titled, *Wuthering Heights* by Emily Brontë. Kiyotaka helped the girl without realizing that it was Hiyori. After he grabbed the book and gave it to her, the latter expressed her gratitude, and later Kiyotaka spontaneously asked whether Hiyori liked Brontë's works or not. Hiyori responded by telling that she doesn't have any special preference over the author and she just wanted to put the book in the right place.

After her disclosure, with an interesting outlook, Hiyori noticed the book titled *Farewell, My Lovely* by Raymond Chandler, that Kiyotaka was holding — the exact book that he got from Suzune. That book, as Hiyori claimed, is a popular masterpiece that is being borrowed by a lot of sophomores, making the book's occurrence to be rare. She wanted to re-read it but didn't have the chance to find it. However, Hiyori stated that there's no problem with Kiyotaka borrowing the book since she had a collection of interesting books in the library at her disposal. Hiyori boldly declared that she'll read each of them until she graduates.

Kiyotaka was about to leave the scene to execute the purpose he initially had in the library, but Hiyori didn't seem to be satisfied with their small talk after finding someone who has similar tastes with her in books. To continue the conversation, Hiyori asked if Kiyotaka wanted to borrow another book, to which he denied. Hiyori then immediately turned her attention to one of the shelves in the mystery section and asked if he had already read Dorothy Sayers' works. Kiyotaka claimed that he has read Christie's but not any of Dorothy's. Hiyori recommended the first among *Lord Peter* series by Dorothy — *Whose Body?*. She affirmed that once Kiyotaka starts reading the book, he'll be entranced to keep reading.

Hiyori noticed that Kiyotaka is not particularly interested in the matter but didn't have the heart to refuse her, so she immediately apologized afterwards for talking about books. He cleared up Hiyori's uneasiness by telling her that he's just perplexed but was genuinely interested in borrowing the book she recommended. Hiyori was pleased with his response and invited Kiyotaka to have lunch. While the latter didn't expect this development — thinking that the whole thing is a fragment of Kakeru's plan — the former stated she's just a girl who doesn't have friends to talk about books with. Though classes 1-C and 1-D are currently in conflict, she doesn't have any interest in getting involved as she stated that mingling with him will not be a problem.

After mutual consent, both of them had lunch in the cafeteria. There, Hiyori had a problem in choosing a meal from the menu but in the end, bought what Kiyotaka had chosen. Kiyotaka offered a helping hand after noticing that Hiyori was having trouble handling her tray due to her bag. Kiyotaka went to carry the latter's bag and noticed that it was quite heavy — due to the fact that it was filled with mystery-related books. As they sat next to each other, Kiyotaka started a conversation by asking whether Hiyori usually has lunch in the cafeteria or not. She replied no and claimed that she buys lunch from the convenience store in the morning and eats in the classroom. She asked a similar query to him and said that he preferred the taste of food in the cafeteria than from the convenience store.

Meanwhile, in Kiyotaka's monologue, he noted that the way Hiyori holds the chopsticks is exceptionally charming. After that, Hiyori affirmed that the cafeteria food is indeed delicious and the way Kiyotaka compared the taste of foods sold between the two sources will be kept in mind. After finishing their meals, they talk again about books. While Hiyori was taking out the book from her bag, Kiyotaka immediately acknowledged that her choice was nice. Knowing and confirming that both of them indeed like mystery, Hiyori looked elated. Kiyotaka noticed that the book she took out of her bag isn't from the library. Hiyori confirmed that it was from her personal collection of books that she always brought. The lunch break ended with Hiyori allowing Kiyotaka to take the book titled *Ellery Queen* and his promise to return the book to her soon.

She was fine with intimate contact with him such as when she grabbed his arm and put it to her chest to cut off his escape route and forcing him to stay. She only did so to spend more time with him, her words being even if it was just a second longer.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Other C-Class students

Kiyotaka met a few of them during their attempts to frame Ken and foiled their plans with help from B-Class, Suzune, and Airi. He also prevented Shiho Manabe from bullying Kei, by blackmailing her into backing off.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, when he found them bullying Kei, he is enraged by it and went to confront Kakeru. Albert and Daichi attempted to stop him but he easily took both down while he went for Kakeru.

Despite what had happened, he later informed Albert and Daichi about Kakeru's possible plan to drop out. They went to do the same, but Kakeru prevented them from doing so.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
### Class 2-B

#### Honami Ichinose

Kiyotaka had first met Honami when she passed by the school store after Kikyō stated they had already become friends. He later watched her prevent Ken from getting into further trouble with Kakeru Ryūen and his classmates in C-Class but there were no attempts to talk.

They met formally at the dorm ground floor where he and Kikyō bumped into Honami, who asked Kikyō if she was dating Kiyotaka, but is told that wasn't the case. Honami later called on him and begged him for aid by asking him to pretend to be her boyfriend after one of her friends gave her a love letter. This showed in spite of just meeting him, she trusted him to an extent as she could have chosen anyone. When he initially refused, she continually begged for advice saying she didn't know how to handle it before her admirer showed up. When asked what kind of relationship they had, Honami tried to nervously "confirm" that they were a couple, but Kiyotaka immediately interrupted by saying that he and she were simply friends. Both girls were surprised by his bold statement. He left Honami, telling her to talk it out with her friend due to the courage she mustered up to confess. She was amazed by his wisdom and proceeded on by deciding to follow his advice. This event showed he was willing to help her, though whether he truly sees her as a friend is yet to be revealed.

After Honami turned down Chihiro, she thanked Kiyotaka for helping her out and apologized for dragging him into her mess, though he was fine with it as Honami smiled and stated she owed him for his help. She later offered to help him and his class in proving the innocence of Ken. She stated that her intentions are pure and slyly winked at him after she reminded of the debt she owed him, while he simply gave a blank but understanding expression. This display got attention from Kikyō and the other male students who wondered exactly what an attractive girl like Honami owed Kiyotaka.

Honami acted on her word as she helped him gather evidence for the case that may help in the investigation. Kiyotaka noticed she had no problem trusting him after she let him borrow her phone, before seeing how many points she had and seemed curious that she amassed such large points until she took back her phone, but still promised to help in the future.

He soon requested her aid by borrowing points from her to use cameras that would cause C-Class to withdraw their complaints. Afterward, he spoke to her to pay her back for the help as Honami expressed amazement at his intelligence and started questioning why he was placed in D-Class but got a vague answer in response. She noticed his uncomfortable attitude and simply smiled in response, probably out of consideration for his privacy. The two later worked together in saving Airi from a crazed stalker who attempted to force himself on her. This interaction would suggest they are indeed friends since she was willing to help him save Airi though she had no obligation to help.

They later hung out at the pool where they had fun with their classmates.

Unknown to him, while on the cruise, Honami spoke with her homeroom teacher, Chie, about his intelligence and was curious enough as to why he hides his talent.

In the survival test, Honami showed him and Suzune around the camp before giving them supplies for their camp. After that when he and Airi went to the camp for C-Class, he asked her about Kōhei Katsuragi and Arisu Sakayanagi with Honami giving him information on the leaders of A-Class.

Due to his monologue at the end of the first season, his real thoughts towards her are unknown though he seems to consider her as a valuable associate as they get along well. In the survival test, he considered their class alliance when naming the other class leaders.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novels, Kiyotaka acknowledged Honami's beauty when he first saw her, and she became one of the many girls in his phone contacts. He helped her in facing her admirer's love confession and they became acquaintances after the event. After that, they spoke very often with each other and the only reason for B-Class working with D-Class can be attributed to their closeness. This association is emphasized when Honami had no problems with him seeing her face while sleeping and there were moments where she teased him through playful flirting.

In the light novel, during the "brain game" - the second half of the summer vacation special test - Honami was very observant of Kiyotaka's moves, taking note of his strategies and correctly deducing his moves.

In Volume 6, Kiyotaka spread rumors about her huge amount of points, which were revealed to be legally obtained by her, to trap Kakeru from C-Class, though the latter caught on to it and decided to play along in order to find the true mastermind of D-Class. Because of his actions, it can be assumed that Kiyotaka saw Honami as a pawn to help him win thereby making it unclear as to whether he genuinely cares for her at that point in time.

During the events of Volume 9, Honami finds herself in trouble with a rumor called “Honami Ichinose is a criminal”. Kiyotaka decided to save her, so he came to her room and she confessed her past wrongdoings.

After saving her, she asked him about wanting to rely on him after her past as a shoplifter was revealed. Kiyotaka comforted Honami by accepting her request. Afterward, she gave him chocolate even though Valentine’s Day already passed. He gratefully received her chocolate.

This shows that Kiyotaka now truly cares about Honami even if she’s from a different class, and the closeness they share is more emphasized as they spend more time together. He repaid the chocolate gift by giving his own on White Day. Despite initially stating that she only likes him as a friend, Honami begins to subconsciously develop genuine romantic feelings for Kiyotaka as they spent more time together, and the closeness they share becomes more emphasized.

Although the alliance between their classes was no more, Kiyotaka admits to Kanzaki that he doesn't consider Honami to be an enemy to which she also shares the same sentiment.

In 2nd year volume 4, after overhearing Tsukishiro's desire to expel Kiyotaka, and being threatened by him to not divulge it to him lest her class gets utterly destroyed, she decides to continue following her heart and inform Kiyotaka of his plan. To make it to him on time, she had to run through uneven terrain without rest for numerous kilometers. Furthermore, she had to sacrifice her team's standing and her alliance with Arisu, with the despair of her class weighing on her mind.

Nevertheless, her priority at that moment was Kiyotaka above any other. Once she reached him, he could tell she was exhausted as her leg gave out when crossing a river. He caught her in the nick of time as she revealed everything to him. Kiyotaka was astonished at how highly she put him and thought that it would be better if she had prioritized her class. Honami rejects that saying Kiyotaka is just as important and that he is the one person she couldn’t turn her back on him no matter what.

She "unconsciously" blurted out directly to Ayanokoji that she likes him. She then realized what she said and became panicked & flustered. Kiyotaka overheard and asked her about it. Initially, she tried to deny it but she decided to make herself clear by repeating her words so that there was no confusion, as she thought there was no point in going back.

She apologized to him, saying that her feelings were not worthy of him and that all she was doing was cause trouble for him to which he adamantly rejected that notion. Although surprised, he thanks her for being truthful but answers that he couldn't give a response to her feelings yet, as he felt conflicted especially when they’re still in an exam. Through this, it was neither a rejection nor acceptance of her confession as it’s been postponed. Kiyotaka even remarked that she was the second girl to confess to him.

He then pats her head to reassure her as he says he will go to Tsukishiro's intended location for him. Honami tries to change his mind by saying it's dangerous, but he tells her that it is the only way to guarantee her and her class's safety. He thanked her one last time before departing.

He openly admits that if they had been in the same class, he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from falling in love with her due to her bright nature. She in turn feels that if they had been in the same class, she wouldn’t have felt so conflicted about going all out and would have more confidence in reaching Class A. He was the only one to have ever seen her in a vulnerable state more than once. She was fine and felt reassured when he touched her hair, cheeks, and lips when she was in his room.

He also had the feeling that she would be fine if he had touched her under her clothes but chose not to do so. He was not judgmental of her weaknesses and has never revealed them to anyone or used it against her. He wanted to see her again in the same spot next year and promised to do everything he can to ensure that she doesn’t get expelled, much to her surprise.

They promised each other to meet again in his room so he could tell her what he was thinking about during their prior discussion. He then decided that if she ever lost herself again in the coming year, he would be the one to personally take her out quickly and painlessly, not giving the chance to Sakayanagi or Ryuen who will no doubt take advantage of her. From this, it can be seen that he views Honami as a good friend and cares deeply for her.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
### Class 2-A

#### Arisu Sakayanagi

No direct interaction has been seen and established yet between the two in the anime. During the survival test, he asked Honami about Arisu and learned of her prominent stature in the school.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In Volume 5 of the light novels, it appears that Arisu has encountered Kiyotaka in the past. Arisu cryptically stated that she not only knew him but also knew everything about his hidden secrets, mysterious past and the White Room. According to her, she knows him very well while he does not seem to recall her.

In her short story, she revealed how in her dream Kiyotaka seemed to be faster than Manabu in the race. When she woke she requested Masumi to watch Kiyotaka closely, as she wondered why he chose to come to this school in the first place and his placement in D-Class. She noted how much he has grown since the last time she saw him and stated how she will continue to look forward to their next encounter while also expressing her desire for making him her own. She also didn't seem to mind the idea of becoming his enemy in the near future.

It is later revealed in Volume 7 that Arisu had visited the White Room along with her father eight years ago and witnessed Kiyotaka finishing the training that the facility had put him through. How much Arisu knows about Kiyotaka is yet to be revealed.

In Volume 7.5 Sakayanagi met Ayanokoji at Keyaki mall and they had a small chat which regards the fall out within class C and that Sakayanagi had a suspicion that Ayanokoji may be behind it. Ayanokoji stated that he knows that Sakayanagi is the daughter of the school chairman.

In Volume 9 Sakayanagi called Ayanokoji to meet up. Upon meeting up with each other, Sakayanagi stated that she knew Ayanokoji moved behind the scenes during her attack on Ichinose and helped her stand up on her own. Ayanokoji told Sakayanagi that he knew that Sakayanagi used Kamuro to lure him into taking action. Later on, Sakayanagi challenged Ayanokoji to battle her in the next exam with the conditions that if Ayanokoji wins Sakayanagi will drop out. On the other hand, if Sakayanagi wins, she will reveal to the whole school of Ayanokoji being the mastermind behind Class C. Both accepted the terms and conditions.

He has great amount of respect for her as she was the only one who has ever challenged him to a great extend and made him serious such as when they were playing chess, admitting that out of 10 games, each of them would win 5 each. He was grateful that she was willing to go to such extents to protect him from expulsion, and even got some teachers on their side before he even said anything. They decided to put their personal competition aside to ensure that he doesn’t get expelled with the actions of the new acting director.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Kōhei Katsuragi

They first met on the cruise, where Kiyotaka witness Kōhei reprimand his classmate Yahiko Totsuka for insulting the class. However, there were no attempts to interact.

During the island survival test, he questioned Honami Ichinose about Kōhei and learn, next to Arisu that he is one of the leaders of Class A. While exploring the island, Kiyotaka overheard Kōhei talking and realized that the latter was trying to deceive any eavesdroppers by pretending to be the leader. However, he outsmarted the latter and obtained victory for his class.

Following the Sports Festival, Kiyotaka came under Kōhei's radar for his impressive performance against Manabu. After Manabu stepped down as president, Kōhei approached Kiyotaka to compliment him on his speed and Kiyotaka accepted before he noticed there was more to it than the race. Kōhei issued a warning to him over Kakeru and told him to ensure Suzune got it, as Kiyotaka agreed.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

Their first interaction was in Light Novel Volume 4.5, where Kiyotaka was tasked by his class into researching Katsuragi and he started following him. However, the latter confronted him asked what Kiyotaka was doing, he was still holding his gift bag. Kiyotaka stammered to make an excuse before Katsuragi helped him pick up scattered boxes, while ignoring Kiyotaka's pleas to do so. Katsuragi said that Kiyotaka didn't need to worry as the mess might make other customers uncomfortable so they should clean up quickly. They finished cleaning up before they knew it, and Kiyotaka thanked him. Katsuragi asked whether Kiyotaka was buying a present for his girlfriend. Kiyotaka denied it, explaining it was for his classmate's birthday before returning the question to Katsuragi. On being asked about his uniform, Katsuragi answered that he had been going to the school for some private matter. He talked to Kiyotaka about the disadvantages of attending this school, explaining further by stating that he didn't mean being divided into classes, but something that affected all students equally. As Kiyotaka couldn't answer, Katsuragi told him what he meant was the stipulation that you couldn't contact anyone on the outside and asked if Kiyotaka never thought to contact his parents or siblings. After some further exchanges, Katsuragi said that he was the kind of person who tends to agonize over things even if it was just a single present, saying that he couldn't make a snap decision when someone's feelings were involved, that's why he had been visiting the store three times. Thinking that questioning Katsuragi in a roundabout way would get them nowhere, Kiyotaka asked straightly about who the gift was for, to which Katsuragi dodged the question by replying it was personal. With that, Katsuragi headed back toward the dormitory.

Kōhei did not understand why people such as Arisu and Kakeru held Kiyotaka with high regard and respect. When Kakeru told him the truth about Kiyotaka, Kōhei approached Kiyotaka and gave him a warning that he would not have the quiet school life he always wanted with this way.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
### Student Council

#### Manabu Horikita

Kiyotaka first saw Manabu give a speech at the first-year students' entry ceremony and soon wondered if he was related to Suzune after hearing they have the same last name.

They had their first encounter when he found Manabu about to assault his sister Suzune but quickly intervened by grabbing Manabu's hand, admonishing him for his actions before telling him to release Suzune despite her begging for him not to get involved. He complied but Manabu unleashed his fury by assaulting Kiyotaka, who responded by dodging all his attacks and pushed the latter back, gaining Manabu's respect. Impressed, Manabu questioned Kiyotaka over the fighting style that he practiced only to receive a vague answer before recalling Kiyotaka as the student who scored half the total score on his entrance exams and his recent quiz. He then inquired about this, hinting that Kiyotaka was hiding his intelligence on purpose, but the latter shrugged this off.

They met again by both being present in Ken's case. It was shown that Manabu had high expectations for Kiyotaka, stating that he believed Kiyotaka's presence at the hearing meant that he had a strategy, but his question was disregarded. Manabu attempted to attack Kiyotaka again, but the latter dodged his strike by slightly moving his head. Manabu questioned him if he has something planned to which he only received a vague answer.

When C-Class's complaint against Ken is withdrawn, Kiyotaka met with Manabu and his secretary, Akane, in the hallway. He talked to him about the event before congratulating him on his victory, but Kiyotaka once again gave Suzune all credit for the act. Glaring at Kiyotaka showing that he highly doubts that, Manabu asked Tachibana if they had an opening on the secretary post of Student Council, which she confirmed. Manabu offered the position to Kiyotaka, showing that he truly saw him worthy of a higher status and shouldn’t need to continue being with the weak despite being a Class D student. Kiyotaka turned down the offer in favor of living a normal school life. Manabu conceded by accepting his decision showing mutual respect for one another.

During the sports festival, they met again and after bantering for a while, Kiyotaka challenged him to a race, which Manabu accepted. While they let competitors get ahead of them initially, both of them ran at an almost equal and unimaginable speed. Kiyotaka unexpectedly stopped after nearly crashing into someone on the track, thus leading to the end of the race with Kiyotaka losing. He voiced disappointment at this, though this feat led to his new popularity in his class.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novel, they pair meet the same way and Manabu took an interest in Kiyotaka. On the other hand, Kiyotaka was surprised by Manabu's fighting history and that he held his own against him.

They met again during the sports festival. After bantering for a while, Kiyotaka challenged him to a race, which Manabu accepted. While they let competitors get ahead of them initially, both of them ran at an almost equal and unimaginable speed. One of the other competitors panicked after seeing how fast the two raced against each other and fell to the ground. At such a split moment, Kiyotaka unexpectedly stopped after nearly crashing into someone on the track, thus leading to the end of the race with Kiyotaka losing.

Later on in the series, Manabu visited Kiyotaka in his room while the latter was cleaning and enjoying his new life with no pressure. He told him that he feared the new school system set by the new student council will increase the number of expelled students. Thus, Manabu requested Kiyotaka to do something about it - may it be to use Suzune, whether it is openly conducted or not. Manabu explained that Miyabi, the current student council president, has full control of all sophomores and forced Honami into the council, thus concluding that bringing Miyabi into the student council and failing to show him a path was a mistake on his part. They both bid each other goodbyes with Kiyotaka stating that he needed to think about it.

Additionally, Kiyotaka asked for Manabu's assistance during Kei's ambush by some members of C-Class on the rooftop. The former wanted the latter to serve as a separate, non-affiliated reliable witness in the following event. In return, Kiyotaka promised Manabu that he will certainly reciprocate his help with his request to him earlier.

This shows that just from their brief interaction, they trusted each other to handle their respective tasks without discontent. The former is even willing to give him her sister and full permission to do whatever he needs to protect her under the new system. He was the first one to recognize his full potential and understood that he will definitely be a key player whether he wills it or not. Since his time was up in the school, he chose Kiyotaka to bequeath the responsibility of taking care of the school despite him only being a 1st-year student.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
### School Staff

#### Sae Chabashira

Sae is his homeroom teacher and didn't personally interact with her in the first few episodes. After a class test, he convinced her to halt the expulsion of Ken by offering her points. Having learned it was within the rules, Sae is amused by his offer and demanded a sum that will require nearly all his points, but his efforts were aided by Suzune, who offered to pay half the sum. Sae was amused by their actions as it was something that has never happened in the school and relented in expelling Ken, telling the two to continue in making things interesting for her. Unknown to Kiyotaka, she has an opinion of him being the most "defective" of the class as he has extreme intelligence and talent that he keeps secret from others but placed in the lowest class instead of the higher classes he could've placed in.

During the school cruise, Sae talked to Kiyotaka, informing him about an unknown man who wanted to expel him. She promised to protect him, but only if he will work alongside her to become A-Class. However, Kiyotaka refused to comply with her ultimatum. When she promised that he will be expelled, it leads him to grab her by the collar in a threatening manner to get her to back off and warn her not to manipulate him or else she will regret her actions. This was remarkable as he never usually resorts to physical threats. She was unfazed by this as she said that she had already had a lot of regrets in her lifetime. It's currently unknown why she wanted him to advance to A-Class. Her reason might because she felt he is wasting his talents and that he is better suited for the upper classes unlike the rest of her class.

After the survival test, Sae summoned him to the theatre where she commended him on his victory over the other classes and revealed that it was indeed his father who had requested to expel him. Once again, he refused her demand to advance to A-Class which she doesn't protest like last time. Instead, she simply laughed and revealed her knowledge of his past after he stated he won't do anything for her without explicit proof to what she claims to have. Sae then asked him what he plans to do now, to which he gave her a vague answer, leaving her smiling in response.

In Season 2, she has him meet with his father. After the meeting with his father and the school chairman, she asks how it went but was surprised when he revealed he is aware of her deception. He reveals that he knew that she never contacted his father and the Chairman told her that he was a special student to look out for and how she lied to him as well. Kiyotaka told his teacher that he will cease trying to advance in classes and warns her not to threaten him again. As he walked off, she tried to ask him what he intends to do now but was coldly ignored by him.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In Volume 7, after a meeting with the school's chairman, Kiyotaka discovered Sae had never contacted his father and she was only told by the chairman that he's a special student. He noted that his teacher deceived him and pointed out to her that she both lied to him and the chairman. He then realized that neither she nor his father has any true leverage to use in order to expel him from the school, thus he was not a slave to her blackmail and abandoned trying to go to A-Class since he had no reason to advance, ignoring his teacher's protests that he's wasting his talents.

In their later meetings, it appears she has accepted his choice and they have no problems.

In Volume 11.5, Kiyotaka called Sae to a meeting with him and Arisu, along with her colleague Tomonari. She expressed her disappointment about Kiyotaka's loss in the chess match against Arisu. During the meeting Sae was highly surprised about Kiyotaka and Arisu's explanations on Chairman Sakayanagi's suspension and Tsukishiro's arrival. She then agreed to help him.

In 2nd Year Volume 1, Kiyotaka came to her help and Sae tend to his wound so that his confrontation with Kazuomi Hōsen wouldn't be exposed.

In 2nd Year Volume 2, Sae was overjoyed after Kiyotaka showed some of his true powers by getting a perfect score in the maths exam.

In 2nd Year Volume 8, when seeing Sae relaxing on a massage chair, Kiyotaka adjusted it out of curiosity and left her visibly annoyed.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Chie Hoshinomiya

Despite not having any interaction in the first season of the anime, it appears that Chie has suspicions about his intelligence, as while talking with Honami, she recognized him as a person from D-Class to watch out for the most.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In the light novel, they had a unique type of relationship, where she was shown to tease and playfully flirt with him, despite being a teacher. This only got more prominent when he showed more of his innate abilities such as going toe to toe with Arisu in chess, getting full marks in Math when even she couldn’t solve some questions and being the fastest runner in school.

Kiyotaka, however, was shown to be a little put off by her antics and eccentric nature and tries to ignore her. He was irritated that she wasn’t taking her own class seriously and was offered to join her class and that if he was with them they would definitely reach Class A when she vented to him. He was offended and told her to take care of her own class much to her dismay.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### School Chairman Sakayanagi

Kiyotaka met him in Season 2 of the anime, where Sakayanagi came in between the meeting of him and his father. Kiyotaka noticed that he had the same last name of Arisu. He watched as the Chairman refused his father's request to withdraw him from the school. After the latter left, Kiyotaka spoke with Sakayanagi who confirmed that he was Arisu's father and that he knew of Kiyotaka's history. Kiyotaka was surprised by this but the meeting allowed him to gain insight into his teacher's manipulations.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

In Volume 7, when asked by Kiyotaka's father, Professor Ayanokōji, as to why he was allowed to enter the school even though he wasn't on the list of examinees nor underwent an interview assessment, Chairman Sakayanagi's answer revolved around having known about Kiyotaka's reputation in the White Room. He revealed that he had first met Kiyotaka behind the glass when he visited the facility around eight years ago with his daughter, Arisu Sakayanagi. He stated that in meeting Professor Ayanokōji, at that time, the latter was very proud of Kiyotaka and considered him as his greatest masterpiece for having persisted in the training.

Though Chairman Sakayanagi didn't talk with the latter directly, he knew that Kiyotaka was experiencing an environment devoid of love. Thus, with such a childhood background, Chairman Sakayanagi wanted to provide him with a niche where he can live in a comfortable-yet-isolated-from-outside-world kind of place — that is the Advanced Nurturing High School, surreptitiously showing the love of a parental figure despite not being his actual parent.

In Volume 11.5, after receiving a call from Kiyotaka, Chairman Sakayanagi said he would help him and recommended Sae and Tomonari for assistance. He also asked about what Kiyotaka would do after graduation. Kiyotaka told him he would return to the White Room and follow his father's footsteps. Chairman Sakayanagi wished that Kiyotaka could enjoy this 3 years of school life, something that Kiyotaka himself also wanted to protect.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
#### Tsukishiro

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

They met when Kiyotaka and Arisu Sakayanagi were talking about the circumstances of the special exam that had just ended. Kiyotaka learned that he was the new acting director of the school. After exchanging some words, he started walking past them and suddenly kicked Arisu's cane. After Kiyotaka swiftfully caught her, he was pushed by Tsukishiro against the wall soon after. Tsukishiro replied that the surveillance camera had been replaced with a false image, so his acts won't be recorded. He proceeded to give Kiyotaka a message from his father, threatening him to go back to the White Room, to which Kiyotaka wasn't surprised. Despite Tsukishiro's continued provocation, Kiyotaka chose not to retaliate, in case the camera was actually still recording. Tsukishiro then released Kiyotaka and left, announcing that he'd formally start working at the school in April. He then decided to work with Arisu in hopes of getting rid of him.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*

## White Room

As a young child, Kiyotaka was a part of this unknown organization, which greatly contributed to his vast and extreme intellect, talents, and skills. In a flashback on Episode 10, it can be seen that he was taking an examination, that can be considered as extremely and immensely challenging, let alone, heavily advanced for a young child. This emphasized and proved that he had an extremely advanced upbringing, which could explain his vast and extreme intellect, giving him very high mental prowess. It is also assumed that he was not only undergoing heavy mental training there but also went through a very intense physical regime, such as studying martial arts and learning various self-defense techniques, giving him a very high physical prowess. However, it is unknown what his experience there was like and whether he had any friends. Later on, it was shown that Kiyotaka gets very angry towards any subject concerning his past. As shown in his talk with Suzune in Episode 6, where he sternly warned her not to pry into his past ever again.

It appears he picked up the belief that winning is everything from the place and doesn't hesitate to use people as a means to do so. This harsh upbringing would likely explain why he lacks emotion and interest towards other people's feelings.

  **Spoiler warning:** *Plot from light novel beyond official English releases details follow. Click here to show spoilers.*

As a child, he spent most of his childhood in the room that was run by his father. Kiyotaka was the only successful candidate in both the mental and physical capacity. At some point, the White Room was temporarily shut down for one year and this gave Kiyotaka a chance to escape with the help of Matsuo (Kiyotaka's butler) who told him to enroll at the Advanced Nurturing High School where his father cannot reach, and he would be able to live a normal school life.

  *Spoilers end. Click here to hide spoilers.*
## References

*You-Zitsu* Light Novel — Volume 10
*You-Zitsu* Light Novel — Volume 11.5
*You-Zitsu* Light Novel — Volume 11.5
*You-Zitsu* Light Novel — Volume 10