Kikyo Kushida

Reader's Guide

Kushida's public persona is that of an airheaded but lovable girl who wants everyone to get along. She uses this mask to lower defenses and gain the trust of Class D, positioning herself as a unifying force. In reality, she is a cold, vindictive manipulator who thrives on chaos. Her role in class dynamics is that of a saboteur, deliberately creating friction between the class leaders to prevent them from succeeding while she climbs the social ladder unnoticed. Her key manipulations include fabricating bullying incidents, spreading malicious rumors about Horikita's personality, and orchestrating situations where others appear to be the aggressors. This contrasts sharply with her anime debut, which initially portrays her as a standard comic relief character before slowly revealing her darker side. From Light Novel to Anime, her character arc remains consistent in its core deception, though the pacing of her reveal differs. The novels provide deeper insight into her internal monologue and detailed planning, whereas the anime emphasizes the visual contrast between her smiling face and the horror her actions cause.