Chapter 144 - Classroom of the Elite: Checkmate 8

Chapter 8 - Cheap Shot

Wednesday, May 1st.

The classroom was louder and more chaotic than usual.

There were three people, however, that weren't as surprised.

One of them was Kouenji Rokusuke.

Just like any other day, he admired his own reflection in his trusty white hand mirror. His pearly whites sparkled as the morning sun shone through the transparent windows. He grinned, practically laughing at the surrounding students, which were losing their heads like chickens that were being hunted down by a sly fox.

The man in question glanced towards me before narrowing his eyes. After observing me for a moment, his gaze wandered towards the last person who was rather relaxed, since she had also expected what was about to unfold: Matsushita Chiaki.

The girl bit her lip in frustration as a hint of regret flashed across her charming face.

This was an understandable reaction after taking into consideration that Chiaki had only found out about the schools system because a curious classmate had prodded her until she realized that something was off. I wouldn't be surprised if she was cursing herself for not having thought of this sooner. She might even have been able to prevent this altogether if she had informed everyone of her suspicions.

Unlike her friends Karuizawa and Satou, she kept a clear head. Neither of them noticed this, however, as they were too busy freaking out over the lack of points.

Had she prepared questions for our homeroom teacher to verify the accuracy of her own assumptions? Was she interested in learning what she had missed out on? Or had she determined that the best course of action was to act like she usually did and hide her knowledge from everyone?

A few minutes passed and Chabashira-sensei strode into the room as the bell rang, holding a rolled-up poster in her hand. The expression she wore today was even worse than usual, which showed that even though she had expected us to fail, it was much worse than she wanted to imagine.

That or menopause had set in.

I had a sudden, inexplicable urge to ask her, but I felt that she would beat me to death with her bare fists if I were to do so. Not only did I value my life very much, but I also needed my place at this school, which is why I decided to desist from sexually harassing my teacher for the foreseeable future.

"Hey, sensei, did you start menopause or something?"

Once again, I had to remind myself to keep as far away as possible from Ike. His deranged thought pattern had already eroded mine, which was the only explanation that the two of us had the same obscene thought. Even though he was Class D's most dangerous secret weapon, I was opposed on using him, since I felt bad for my enemies.

Chabashira-sensei ignored his disrespectful remark, which could also have been interpreted as sexual harassment, before placing the materials and poster on the teacher's desk.

Her gaze flew over all thirty-nine students present in the room.

"Your morning homeroom is about to begin. Before we get started, are there questions? Now is the time to ask."

It was a given that she, as our homeroom teacher, was aware about Class D's terrible situation. Even students as dense as my classmates should have questions after they hadn't received their 'promised' points on the appointed day.

"Sensei, I checked my point balance this morning, but I didn't receive any additional deposits. Points are given on the first day of every month, aren't they?"

"Correct. Points are deposited on the first day of the month. I have confirmed that the points for this month were wired with no issues."

Most of the students pulled out their phones and rechecked their current balance in the naïve hope that they had looked at their points before the new ones were deposited this morning. This alone was more than enough evidence to emphasize the fact that they had understood nothing about the way this school worked.

"Uhm, okay... but nothing was deposited in my account, though."

Hondou looked down at his desk with a saddened expression.

Usually, he could be seen slurping on a pack of orange juice, which would be placed on the right corner of his desk as soon as it was empty. The absence of this specific beverage made it obvious that the boy had burned through all his points before today, and didn't even have enough left to buy a juice, costing 250 yen.

"Are you kids really that dumb?"

Her usual fascinating tone was worlds apart with the one I had just listened to. The woman in front of us wasn't angry or disappointed. She was livid. According to her darkened expression, she couldn't comprehend that students could be this stupid.

"Dumb? What?"

"S-sae-chan-sensei?"

Hondou's shaking voice was followed by a low stutter from Ike.

The two of them weren't the only ones surprised by her change of attitude, but the other students were too shocked by her previous words and couldn't react at all.

"The points were deposited as promised. There is absolutely no chance that we forgot anyone in this class. Is that understood?"

"Even if we understand that. How come we have received no points then?"

Hondou grew dissatisfied, since this conversation did nothing but move in circles. The problem was that he just wasn't astute enough to realize that the discussion had already reached its expected destination.

He, just like everyone else in this class, had all the information that he would need to draw a sound conclusion from the facts that he had received until this point in time.

If all points were deposited without fail and we had received none, then what did this imply?

Aside from Chiaki and Kouenji, not a single student understood what Chabashira-sensei had been hinting at throughout this conversation alone. The class was at an impasse, unable to fathom why they hadn't received their promised points, and why our teacher was unwilling to spell it out for them.

"Hahaha, I see. So it's like that then, teacher? I think I've solved the mystery."

Kouenji's rather reserved attempt to show the class up surprised me somewhat. Since he held himself in high regard, and dubbed himself as a perfect existence whenever he had the chance, I had expected something more flashy.

"It's simple. We're in Class D, so we didn't receive a single point."

Did I overestimate his abilities?

No... I was fair in my evaluation from what I had seen from him, but his weak statement confirmed that he wasn't sure about his deduction. He was both right and wrong, and this was his way of fishing for more information. He had noticed that something was off, and he had proven that even Kushida wasn't able to deceive him with her angel-act.

Could it be something like Cold Reading?

This would explain why he had picked up on the inconsistencies in Kushida and me, but not on the true systems behind this school. If he were proficient in Cold Reading, then he would have recognized that Chabashira-sensei's explanation at the beginning of the year was misleading, which was why he knew that something was off from the start.

The problem was that he was unable to narrow it down any further.

After acquiring this single, missing piece, I solved a part of the puzzle named Kouenji Rokusuke.

He cared little about this school, which was proven after his half-hearted introduction that was only meant for the girls and him not bothering to find out more about this school after his initial hunch. He excelled in physical abilities and was smart enough to realize that this school was weird, even without his Cold Reading. After adding this speciality to the list, he would have an edge over most people he would be confronted with in his lifetime.

He was indeed a competent heir for the Kouenji group, even though his narcissism might become a hindrance to him in the future. Kouenji would know if he was being set-up or lied to by a business partner before the latter could finish his sentence, which was an invaluable advantage to have in a corporate environment.

While I was focused on analyzing one of my most interesting classmates with the new information I had received, the conversation between Chabashira-sensei and the students continued. The last question my subconscious skimmed came from Hirata, as he asked her to explain the reason we hadn't received our points this month.

"Seventy-six absences and late arrivals. Three hundred and seven incidences of talking or using cellphones in class. And last but not least, one expulsion. Those are quite a few infractions over one month. In this school, your class's results are reflected in the points that you receive. Your behavior resulted in a loss of all 100.000 points that you should have received. That's what happened."

The entire class fell silent, and all color drained from their faces.

Chabashira-sensei kept hammering the cold hard truth into us without a single shred of mercy.

"I already mentioned it on the very first day, did I not? The amount you receive reflects the evaluation of your worth. In other terms, throughout this month you were evaluated to be worth nothing. That's all."

My classmate and seat neighbor, Horikita, noted down everything she said, including the number of absences, late arrivals, talking, cellphone usage and the expulsion. From what I had gathered from her, she tried to make sense out of the new information that was now available to her.

I was curious what she would come up with on her own, but curbed my enthusiasm and watched everything unfold with my never-changing bored expression before turning my attention back to the rest of my classmates.

They were shocked, unable to do anything but sit in front of their desks with their mouths agape. Thus, the important task of gathering as much information as possible in the limited time we had left fell into Hirata's capable hands. If he did his job well, the class could then try to find a solution to their current predicament.

"Chabashira-sensei. I do not recall hearing you explain to us that —"

"What? Are you incapable of understanding something unless it's explained in vivid detail? Should I draw you a picture next time? Maybe sing a song?"

I'd love to hear her sing. Could we take an anonymous vote?

"It was never mentioned that our points would be reduced due to misbehavior and —"

Hirata stopped talking at once after he realized how stupid his argument was.

Even grade-schoolers knew that they should be punctual, quiet, and that cellphone usage or disrupting the class was strictly prohibited. It was simple, fundamental behavior which every school and workplace would require without the need to mention it. There was no reason to explain this to a bunch of high schoolers, since they should have acted according to their prior education without having to be reprimanded first.

"You seem to realize that your argument is flawed beyond words. If you had simply acted properly, like it was taught to you before, then your points wouldn't have dropped all the way to zero. Did you really think that you'd just receive 100.000 yen a month without strings attached? At a school established by the Japanese government for the express purpose of training gifted people, no less? That's unthinkable."

Hirata clenched his fists in frustration, but he wasn't as volatile as before.

None of his classmates were at an immediate risk of expulsion, which is why his mind still worked properly. His thoughts should spin around in his head, trying to salvage this situation. This behavior stood in stark contrast to the conduct he displayed during the incident with Yamauchi.

One could learn a lot about another person while observing them in a crisis.

Would they stay calm? Lash out at someone? If yes, who? Would they scream or get physical? Stay level-headed, perhaps? When would the different changes in their behavior take place? Did a certain phrase trigger the transition? Was it some sort of stress threshold that was crossed? Was the change tied to a specific person, or a group of people?

It was interesting, refreshing even, to see most of these people crumble down, unable to utter a single word in their despair. They stared at each other with a blank look on their faces like a flock of headless chickens, before glancing at our teacher with baffled expressions.

Chabashira-sensei was the perfect villain in this scenario, and I couldn't have wished for anyone else to stomp on this class in such an enthralling way. The school had arranged this whole situation to perfection.

The harder they fell, the more I could learn about and exploit them in the future. This whole performance was a goldmine of knowledge which the school had created without realizing it. All I needed to do was to sit around and observe their reactions to her taunts and process any further movements from their side.

"Well then, could you at least explain how points are added or deducted for future reference?"

Even Horikita stopped writing upon hearing this question and raised her head.

"I cannot tell you. We cannot disclose the methods behind our students' evaluation. It's the same as any other organization. However, I'm not cruel, and I'm not trying to be cold..."

Well, that's a lie...

"... In fact, this situation is so pathetic that I will give you one bit of guidance."

The faint, yet cruel smile on her face told me everything I needed to know.

This wasn't the sweet and charming kind that would guide you through trouble, but a cold and evil one, that a devil might flash while he tied a rope around your soul before dragging you down to the pits of hell.

"Let's say that you stop being late to class and have no more absences. Even though zero points will be deducted from this month, your points won't increase either. That means next month you will still receive zero points, no matter how often you are late or using your phone. In that specific sense, you are not really at a loss, are you?"

I began to like this woman more, the better I got to know her.

Ever since I spent some of my free time with Ike due to my Sudou-observation-days, I noted a stark increase in some weird tendencies which I had awakened during our companionship.

I should tone down my exposure to him before I forget how to play chess...

The expressions of my classmates sank by a considerable degree, while I was struggling with the fact that my secret weapon was also effective against me. Even Chiaki couldn't help but despair at this situation, which must have been far worse than she could have ever imagined.

Kouenji didn't mind the current state of our class one bit, which affirmed my assumption that he planned to buy himself into Class A at the end of the third year.

The anxious students had little time to deal with Chabashira-sensei's harsh words, as the bell rang, which informed us that our second homeroom period just began.

"It looks like we spent too much time on this topic already. I hope you understood the gist of it. Because now it's time to switch to the main topic."

Our homeroom teacher spread out the poster she had brought with her this morning and stuck it to the blackboard with four magnets. The still confused and fearful students stared at the banner with wide eyes.

"Are these the results for each class?"

My seatmate was right.

Class A through D were listed on the poster in the following manner:

Class A 0940

Class B 0650

Class C 0490

Class D 0000

Since we were given 100.000 private points last month, it was safe to assume that we had started out with 1000 class points. This meant that the classes lost 60, 350, 510 and 1000 class points respectively due to misconduct on the students part.

The distance towards the top was massive, and I couldn't have been happier with this outcome.

First, I needed to climb up at least 950 points until we would ascend to Class A if the points stayed as they were. This, however, wouldn't be the case, which meant that I would need to make up for at least a 1000 points, and likely more. The good news was that we couldn't lose any points this month since we were already at zero. This would give the class some time to get a grip and come up with a better game plan for their future.

Class B took a rather large hit as well. Their behavior wasn't always perfect, apparently.

I still knew too little about Class C, but I assumed their results stemmed from the shenanigans they had pulled throughout this month, which was a fair assumption to make after taking into consideration the information I had gathered from Ichinose and some of her classmates.

But the difference in ability between Class A and B was absurd.

If I converted the lost points into percentages, Class A only lost 6% of their total points, and would have received a whopping 94.000 yen this month. Meanwhile, Class B's loss was already at 35%. Even if Class A kept their losses steady through the next months while Class B managed to stay at the same level, it would take them another five months to overtake Class A's tremendous lead.

"Isn't there something odd?"

I prodded my seatmate to give her something to think while we were being bullied by Chabashira-sensei's brutal remarks.

"Yeah, the numbers look too even."

Even Horikita noticed that the point allocation with the same starting conditions was rather weird.

It was almost as if it had already been decided beforehand.

"You've all been doing whatever you pleased this past month and the school has no intention of preventing you from such behavior. Your actions affect the points you receive. It is as simple as that. The same goes for how you use your points, how you choose to spend them is entirely up to you."

"This isn't fair, though. We can't enjoy our time like this!"

Ike, like most of the other students in this classroom, hadn't seen the bigger picture. They were too hung up on the points they had lost and wouldn't regain due to their stupidity throughout the past month.

"Look here, morons." Chabashira-sensei knocked on the poster which displayed the class points. "Every other class got points. The amount of points we gave you for the first month should be plenty for you to live on."

"W-wait! How do the other classes still have points? Isn't that weird?"

"All the classes were evaluated and scored using the same rules. Despite that, they didn't lose as many as you. That's the truth."

"But how come that there is such a large difference in our points?"

It took a while, but Hirata had also noticed the insane difference in point values between our classes. It was painful to watch that only a handful out of these thirty-eight students were in the right state of mind to talk and think more or less objectively.

"Do you finally understand why you were placed in Class D?"

Once again, Chabashira-sensei brought down the hammer without batting an eye. It was nothing but a senseless slaughter of hens, which were devoured by the vile fox, with no chance to escape. Every time the predator opened its maw, another inkling of hope vanished in its dark abysm.

"Why we were placed in Class D?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Isn't it normal to be divided up like this?"

"What are you saying, Sae-chan-sensei?"

Most of my classmates were even more puzzled than before after this sudden, yet expected, revelation.

It was nothing short of horrifying to know that these people were my pieces.

I was glad that some of them were usable, or else I would have had to play a match with only pawns. There was no way to win such a game if your opponent didn't assist you under normal circumstances.

But it might have been possible in this game due to the difference in rules.

Chabashira-sensei's faint smile turned into a vicious sneer. Upon realizing this, Ike and the other pawns swallowed their saliva in fear about what was to happen.

"In this school, students are sorted by their level of excellence. The superior students are sorted into Class A, while the least capable are dumped in Class D. In other terms, you are trash. The worst of the worst. Defective products that don't amount to anything." She knocked on the poster once again. "Simply put, you as a class and individuals are worth nothing. Even the air you breathe is wasted, much less the space we had to free up in your dorm rooms."

Horikita dropped the pen that had been dancing over the paper until now.

Listening to such harsh words must have been a tremendous shock to her ego.

She was smart, yes, but also narrow-minded and too full of herself. Her condescending attitude and lack of friends or any social contacts pushed her even more down in the realm of uselessness.

If she didn't change her ways, I had no use for her.

If she kept walking this path, I would rid myself from this nuisance sooner rather than later.

People needed time to change, which is why I allowed her a small grace period. If she stayed useless and arrogant after this period was over, her life at this school would end.

I had no qualms about sacrificing my pieces in order to win.

"However, I have to say this year's Class D was phenomenal. You not only managed to spend all your points in the first month. You even accomplished something the entire faculty found impossible: you lost a student after merely five proper school days. That's just wonderful. I've never heard about such an incompetent class in the entire history of this school. You kids can be proud of yourselves for setting such a record."

Chabashira-sensei's false and hostile applause echoed through the classroom. Her sneer couldn't have been any more wicked and condescending as she figuratively spat into our faces.

This was the breaking point for Sudou. He snapped out of his stupor and kicked the desk in front of him with such force that it tumbled over and crashed into the ground, almost hitting the student in front of him.

"Are you shitting me? How are we supposed to live here with zero points until we graduate? We're a damn laughingstock to the other classes."

As expected of a ticking time-bomb, his temper once again roamed free after he had recovered from his initial shock.

At least in basketball, Sudou was used to being favored, relied upon, and maybe even looked up to, due to the stellar performance he had delivered every time he entered the court. But the other first-years would view him in a different light from today onwards. It didn't matter how good he was in basketball.

They would use this opportunity to look down on him, since they couldn't do so during the game.

Even if this wasn't the case, Sudou would begin to deteriorate, since the free meal sets weren't enough to provide him with the correct nutrients he needed for his training and future tournaments. Everything he had built up would crumble, and he was also aware of this.

"The dorm rooms don't cost you anything and there are free meals, as well as free necessities, in the stores around campus. Your life will suck, true, but you won't die. If you want to change that, then work to advance your class into the best one."

"Huh?"

"Your class points aren't just linked to the amount of points you will receive. They also indicate your class rank."

"I don't understand a fucking thing."

Sudou, as well as a few others, knitted their brows. They were unable to comprehend her words, contrary to some other students who managed to follow at least this far.

If we were to gain points, we would not only receive our monthly allowance, but might also overtake the other classes, thus reaching for Class A. The reason we would want this, however, wasn't mentioned by Chabashira-sensei.

I could only cheer for these idiots in my mind, hoping that someone would ask the important questions.

In the end, it came as it had to come...

I was disappointed.

"Now, there is more bad news I'd like to share with you."

She stuck another sheet up on the blackboard as Ike and the faction of morons bumped their heads on the table in despair. Hirata's whole body trembled due to the cruel and malicious words Chabashira-sensei had thrown into his classmates' faces.

It had been a while since he was part of the conversation, likely because he tried to calm himself down before he exploded.

If anyone other than a teacher had said those words to his comrades, I was positive that they would have already received a straight punch from him.

That's how furious Hirata was.

But this made me even more curious. It was indisputable that he had a dark history. Something that molded him into the person called Hirata Yosuke. But what had this boy gone through to become the person he was?

I gathered and compared everything I knew about him and began to analyze the clues I had received so far.

He was overprotective towards his classmates to the extent where he would rather sacrifice himself than to see one of his classmates expelled or hurt, which is why he reacted strongly as soon as Yamauchi was found guilty in front of the whole class.

Even if he could have stayed at school, he would have been ostracized by the girls after what he had supposedly done. The boys as well, would have remained distant towards him in fear of the girls retaliation if they were to associate with him any further.

This would have created an outsider inside his own class.

Hirata knew all of this and still thought about sacrificing himself to save Yamauchi. If he had taken the blame, Yamauchi wouldn't have ended up this way, at least in his naïve way of thinking. I was sure that he would have gone through with his plan if I hadn't told him that thirty-eight people that needed his help would outweigh one person.

Right now, Chabashira-sensei acted like a bully that kept beating and spitting onto her victims. She drove them deeper and further into helplessness and despair, without a single shred of hesitation. She didn't care if she hurt one or all of Hirata's classmates, because it was simply none of her business if they felt bad.

Ostracism and bullying.

Both facts angered Hirata to such a degree that he had to hurt himself to keep him from acting rash. I didn't believe for a second that someone like him was bullied, as he was far too capable in the social sphere to have been an outcast before.

A bullying victim would have reacted differently as well. Not with anger, but angst. When Chabashira-sensei spat at us, called us trash and laughed about our misfortune, a victim would have winced as their memories of these sinister times flooded back into their reality...

... just like Karuizawa.

Hirata, however, was a person who would get angry at someone else's behalf, and not on his own. This meant that there must have been someone else that was being bullied in his class or somewhere in his proximity. I didn't know if he felt guilty because he didn't or couldn't help the person in question, but the why and how was irrelevant.

The important part in all of this was that something must have happened to this individual. Something so terrible that it had transformed Hirata into the one I knew today. It didn't matter if the victim left the school, got drowned by bullies in a toilet, attempted suicide or even succeeded in killing themselves.

Hirata Yosuke must have experienced a scenario similar to this, which explained his actions and behavior, as well as the emergence of his savior complex. There was something inexplicably dark in his past, something I could uncover in time.

This newfound information also explained the weird feeling I had whenever I watched Hirata and Karuizawa. These two weren't in love. They weren't a couple or anything close to it.

They were protector and protectee.

While I was dissecting both Hirata and Karuizawa, the heated conversation between Chabashira-sensei and my classmates went on. Aside from making fun of us and our low scores, she informed the class that six students would have been expelled if the mock test had been a real one.

My classmates were anything but pleased by her continuous assaults, so they got angry. They cursed and bombarded her with questions until the conversation suddenly panned towards Kouenji, who had done nothing during his time here but stare into his hand mirror, yet managed to tie for the top spot with 90 points.

For them, it meant that he must have been using underhanded tactics to achieve such a score. For me, it proved that he had solved at least one of the difficult problems, which supported my assumption about his high intelligence.

After this excursion, Chabashira-sensei revealed the fact that threw the students into chaos yet again: the 100% employment rate was only reserved for Class A graduates. The other classes would gain nothing of that sort upon their successful graduation, no matter how good their grades were.

This was when another student, Yukimura Teruhiko, complained about not having known about this.

He was brave enough to drag Kouenji into his argument, as they were tied on the top spot, which had played out as expected. The blonde boy didn't care about anything Yukimura said. Even if he dropped out, he would still be the heir of the Kouenji conglomerate group.

As the bell rang a third time, Chabashira-sensei packed up her materials and left us with one final nail in the coffin.

"Your midterm exams are in three weeks. Please think things over and be careful not to drop out."

The class erupted into pure pandemonium as soon as Chabashira-sensei left the room.

Some were discussing what she had meant with all of this and how they were supposed to handle the situation going forward, while others threw a tantrum, and cursed the school as well as 'Sae-chan-sensei' for being so cold and heartless.

Yukimura was one of the loudest voices, who kept complaining about his placement in Class D.

He reminded me of a certain, raven-haired neighbor I had, and I wondered if the two could become friends.

As I turned towards my acquaintance to check her reaction to these stimuli, I noted that she was taken aback, like the rest.

This sort of pleasant commotion went on for a bit until Hirata managed to calm down sufficiently to rein everyone back in. He took a deep breath, stood and turned towards the class with his familiar, amicable smile.

"I understand that you are all confused right now, but everyone needs to calm down. Let's try to find a reliable way to get our points back and make sure that we don't lose anyone else."

Kushida was about to chime in as well, likely to support Hirata's proposal, as a furious Yukimura eclipsed her soft voice.

"How are we supposed to calm down? In her words, we're a bunch of failures. I don't agree with how we were sorted. I don't belong with people like them." He pointed towards Sudou, Ike and the others that could have certainly been dubbed failures.

"I understand that you feel angry, however —"

"What the fuck did you just say? You think you are better than me? Huh?"

Sudou grabbed Yukimura by the collar and bared his fangs at him. Hirata tried to appease them, but was held back by both Sudou's and Yukimura's cold stares as they were about to smash their heads in.

Contrary to his appearance, the boy wearing glasses didn't seem at all scared by Sudou, which was rather impressive considering their difference in build.

Sudou could wipe the floor with him with little effort, if he wanted to.

"Please everyone, can't we just calm down first? I'm sure she only said those harsh things to inspire us to do better. I'm sure, Yukimura-kun and Sudou-kun as well, didn't mean it like that. Right? Yukimura-kun? Sudou-kun?"

This was Kushida's stage, since she could handle the boys far easier than Hirata could. Not because she was superior in terms of social abilities, but simply because she was a cute girl.

The power of cute girls was terrifying...

Her tiny hands pushed both Yukimura and Sudou away from each other. She wasn't strong enough to accomplish such a feat, of course, but both men took steps back on their own due to her involvement.

"This is only our first month here. Shouldn't we all try to do better together? Do you guys think I'm wrong about that?"

Kushida's words were calculated to a shocking degree. If anyone were to say 'yes' to answer her question, they wouldn't deny the idea, but her beliefs. It didn't matter whether the idea was flawed. Boys like them would never tell a cute and popular girl like Kushida that she was wrong.

"Eh, no. I mean... Of course you're not... but..."

"You're r-right. I guess... yeah... maybe I overreacted..."

Both men were dancing in our angels' palm, not realizing how powerful and determined her move had been. Together with Hirata, she pacified any ongoing arguments and gathered everyone's opinions on various topics about our current predicament. She then began to discuss with each of them how we could best handle the situation going forward.

Hirata threw me a quick glance, which wasn't hard to understand.

I nodded in agreement and turned to Horikita while the two of them were taking care of the rest of our classmates.

"Did you arrive at a conclusion?"

"Huh? Oh, no. Not yet. Not really. There's just not enough information."

I let out a disappointed sigh and tilted my head to the side.

"Well, if even you won't get any smarter staring at these numbers, then it would be a waste for me to try."

"About how many points did you spend last month, Ayanokouji-kun?"

I expected a snide remark. Something like, 'at least you are aware of your flaws'. But nothing like that came back, which was undeniable proof that her current state of mind was in turmoil. The revelation about this school's system must have shaken her to the core.

Similar to Yukimura, she was dissatisfied to be placed in Class D and labeled defective.

"I still have around 60.000. So I should be fine for now."

Most of our classmates weren't this lucky, however.

Ike, the Professor, Okitani and a few other guys had wasted their points on handheld consoles and games. Karuizawa, Satou, Mori and probably most of the girls had wasted theirs on clothing or beauty products they had deemed necessary.

The worst part was that even I was low on points thanks to the ridiculous, expensive necklace I had gifted Fuka and the other present I had given Chiaki on her birthday.

"That's pretty decent, considering what the others have left."

"Attention, everyone. Before class begins, I'd like you to listen for a moment. As you all know, we didn't get any points this month, so we are all in the same boat if we like it or not." Hirata turned to Sudou, who clicked his tongue. "Since it's impossible for us to make it to graduation with zero points, I'd like to make sure that we are all trying our best to eliminate the loss of points as much as possible. This means we should try being punctual and attentive during lectures, like Chabashira-sensei mentioned. In addition, we should limit our cellphone usage to the breaks. The fewer penalties we gather, the easier it will be to get points next month."

"We don't even know how to increase our points, so why should we care? We can't get below zero points, so it should be fine behaving like we want until you actually know how to increase them. Come talk to me once you have found a way and don't involve me before. Understood?"

Sudou grabbed his bag and left the room with those parting words.

The rest of the class, especially the girls, were furious about his behavior. I doubted that they cared about his attitude as much as the fact that he had been hostile to Hirata, which should have been the primary reason for their dissatisfaction.

"Is Sudou-kun serious? He's the one who was late to class the most. Couldn't we still get some points even without Sudou-kun? What do you think?"

"Yeah, he's the worst. Why is he in our class?"

"He's always angry as well. Why the hell do we have to put up with him?"

Hirata clenched his fists and tried to calm the angered girls, who were badmouthing Sudou. During that time, Chiaki walked over to my desk and gifted me a kind smile as she played with her bracelet.

I was very imaginative about presents, which is why I also tried punning her name. This didn't work out too well, since she didn't seem like someone who enjoyed reading much. In the end, she was happy with the tree of life bracelet I had gifted her, and that's all I wanted.

"Hirata wants to talk about ways to increase our points after class. Are you coming too, Kiyotaka?"

Horikita looked up in surprise, her gaze alternatively wandered between the two of us with a mysterious expression.

"Oh, sure. Whatever helps. This situation isn't very favorable for us, after all."

She nodded before turning to Horikita.

"What about you, Horikita-san? He'd like you there as well."

"Me? Ask someone else. I'm not particularly good at discussing things with others."

Chiaki flashed a wry smile and left it at that.

She finally understood how taxing it was to have a conversation with that block of ice beside me. Hirata would have probably pushed her a bit more into joining, but Chiaki couldn't care less about her after she was done with her errand.

It wasn't like she was very outgoing either, so I expected as much.

"See you later, then. I still have to ask a few others. Bye Kiyotaka."

"See you later, Chiaki."

After she was out of earshot and occupied with some other classmates, Horikita turned to me, impressed.

"Wow. I'm speechless, Ayanokouji-kun."

"Right?" I smirked.

"Don't get ahead of yourself."

So snappy... Maybe she's just jealous. Yeah, that had to be it.

"Huh, fine. So what do you plan on doing now?"

"I'll have a talk with Chabashira-sensei, or even the Chairman if I have to. I don't belong here after all."

That's where you were wrong, Horikita.

This was exactly the place for someone like you. In fact, right now, you are on the same level as Sudou.

Most of the students weren't aware of this just yet since they hadn't received the corresponding information about the special exams that will soon follow, but it was the truth. Both you and him were refusing to take part in class discussions. Sudou excelled in physical abilities while you were good in academics and had a moderate physique.

There was not much difference in your usefulness from the schools point of view.

And from mine...

Well...

Hirata began to prepare the blackboard for our upcoming discussion after the last lesson of the day had concluded.

Thanks to his and Kushida's influence over our classmates, almost everyone decided to stay and figure things out together. For every rule was an exception, which is where Horikita, Sudou and Kouenji came in. The three fled the classroom as usual and left us to our own devices.

Ike stayed, which came as somewhat of a surprise after the angry glare Sudou had shot him before he took off. The only reason he was rebelling against one of his best friends was, of course, a woman. Ike was hellbent on impressing Kushida with his thirst for action and the great ideas he was going to pitch to us.

I was more afraid that he would dumb down the whole room in the process, but I digress.

Speaking of Kushida, she walked over to me with a captivating smile and sat down on Horikita's desk. I didn't know if she showed up to talk to me or if she wanted to mark her territory.

"Things must be really tough for the students who spent all their points, huh?"

She sounded rather sullen as she observed Ike, Okitani and the Professor with a worried expression, while the three of them tried to dump their electronics on some of the other students who still had points left. They kept undercutting each other, hoping that one of their friends would pay even a few points since they had basically emptied their balance before today.

"It seems so. What about you, Kushida? How are you running on points?"

"Mhh, I used up around halfway. So I'll be fine for now. I need to hold myself back on casual spending, however, since our points won't be increasing anytime soon. It might be quite hard for some of them to make it through this month..."

If we receive any points in June, that is...

"Hey, Kushida-san, Ayanokouji-kun, do you guys have a minute?" Karuizawa charged at us with a pleading expression. "Honestly, I've spent way too many points. I'm seriously running low. Some of the other girls lent me a few points, and I was wondering if you could help me out too. We're friends right? I only need like 2000 points from each of you."

I was certain that she didn't even need our points anymore, and just wanted to stock up on anything she could get her hands on as long as this was still possible. We'd all lose our points day by day, so if she were to gather some from everyone now, she'd have a bigger buffer for herself in the coming days.

It was a fact that she had emptied her balance, but since she was quite popular, she had managed to gather up around 20.000 points from our other classmates during the time it had taken her to visit us if she had borrowed 2000 points from everyone she had previously talked to.

While I tried to find a way out of this unfortunate situation, Kushida had opposing plans.

"Sure!"

I was doomed.

"I... guess..."

My heart received hundreds of stab wounds while I was squeezing out the two most difficult words I had ever spoken. If she were at least earnestly working to fix her spending habits, I wouldn't have hesitated to lend her some points.

But this was just shoving money down the drain.

"Thank you! This is what friends are for, huh?"

No, I don't think that's the case Karuizawa.

"By the way, here's my number, Kushida-san. See you later." She waved us goodbye before stalking her next prey. "Ah, Inogashira-san! You know, I've used up too many of my points, so would you mind..."

"We'll probably never see those points again, huh?"

Kushida let out a cute giggle and nodded in agreement.

"Most likely, yes. But I can't just ignore a friend in need, you know. Karuizawa-san has a lot of friends as well, so it's hard not to spend points."

If she had said this to me before, I would have thought that she wanted to tease me because I had no friends, but it was different now, thanks to Hirata and the girls. Even Kushida herself could be considered a friend of sorts.

"Well, burning through 100.000 points in a month seems pretty irresponsible to me. But while we are at it, I need 48.000 points. Would you mind lending me some?"

Kushida almost dropped her phone upon listening to my request. The shock on her face turned into understanding and then a bewitching laugh. She tapped my shoulder once... twice... until I felt Ike's cold gaze drilling a hole into my head.

"You really had me for a moment, Ayanokouji-kun. I thought you were serious."

I was pleased that my joke seemed to have been a success. This was my first time cracking a joke for her, so I was glad that it worked out so well. Kushida's laugh made me happy for some strange reason, but it was the same for the other girls as well, so I didn't think too much about this.

"Ayanokouji-kun, how do you transfer points, anyway?"

"It's not that hard. Karuizawa gave you her number. You can wire them to her through that."

"Ohh. That sure is convenient. As if they expected something like this to happen."

Another adorable chuckle followed her soothing words as she happily sent the 2000 points to Karuizawa's account. My heart stung a little as I did the same, since I was sure that these points could have been used better, even if I had to give them to Ike.

For the second time since coming to this school, the loudspeakers came alive and issued another robotic announcement.

"Ayanokouji-kun from first-year Class D. Please come see Chabashira-sensei in the faculty office."

A few of my friends turned around in surprise.

Hirata nodded, as I wordlessly excused myself from the upcoming discussion. Chiaki could fill me in later, or tomorrow, when we planned to meet up. Even though I doubted that something useful would come of this conference, I was looking forward to my meeting with her.

"Seems like the teacher wants to see you."

"Yeah, sorry. See you later, Kushida."

I was rather surprised that Chabashira-sensei wanted to speak to me, since I had done nothing that would warrant such a situation. If she wanted to talk to me about my scores during the exam, she could have done so discreetly.

My classmate's uncomfortable stares kept piercing through the back of my head until I left the room and vanished from their line of sight. Some girls began whispering as I strolled past them, since a new opportunity to gossip opened up for them.

A moment later, my phone vibrated.

Even without checking the sender, I had a hunch that it was a certain senpai.

[03:03:03 PM][Fuka ] Oya, oya. What did you do Kiyotaka?

With a sigh, I ignored the message and hid the phone in my pocket.

After trudging through the building for a while, I found the faculty offices and peeked inside. I couldn't find Chabashira-sensei, no matter where I looked, so I called out to another teacher who was inspecting her appearance in the mirror.

"Excuse me, is Chabashira-sensei here?"

My mistake in this specific instance was that I had called out too hastily. As the first few words left my mouth, regret covered my otherwise emotionless expression as I realized that I had stirred up a hornet's nest.

"Hmm ~ nooo ~. Sae-chan just left. But she was here a moment ago, Ki~yo~ta~ka-kun."

Ugh. I messed up...

"Nene, Kiyotaka-kun. Why didn't you visit me again after barging into the room so ravenously the first time?"

The beautiful, adult woman with chest-length light-brown hair hopped towards my direction while watching me with a curious smile. The two mounds on her well-endowed body jiggled, and I couldn't help but avert my gaze.

"H-hey, Hoshinomiya-sensei, that's a really terrible thing to say out loud. Not only is it misleading but also —"

"Also what? True? Hmm, why did Sae-chan call you? Hmmm? Hmm? I'll let you off the hook if you answer one of those."

She stuck out her tongue in a teasing manner and crept over to my location. I backed away from her as far as possible until the back of my head hit the corridor's wall.

"No idea why she called me."

"Huuuuh? That's suspicious, don't you think? But you're cute as expected. My memory didn't mislead me. Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No..."

"Really? That's unexpected. If we were in the same class, I'd never leave you alone. Are you perhaps innocent? Or playing hard to get? I don't mind putting in the work, you know?"

"That's... flattering?"

Hoshinomiya-sensei caressed my cheeks with her smooth and incredibly warm hands.

She was as ferocious as a certain irritating senpai, but not someone I could deal with in my current situation.

Back when Fuka cornered me, I had enough time to set up a stage that was favorable to me. I prepared a way out before I revealed myself to her, in case she turned out to be an enemy, which was the reason I had lured her onto the roof.

The situation right now, however, was different.

She'd probably stop if I did something unexpected, but nothing except perverted thoughts surfaced in my mind when I looked at the intoxicating contours her clothes drew due to her curvaceous figure.

Curse you, Ike!

A loud thud rang through the corridor, whereupon Hoshinomiya-sensei let go of me. Apparently, at least according to the sound and the leftover motion of her right hand, Chabashira-sensei had hit her on the head with a clipboard.

The cute but somewhat troublesome homeroom teacher of Class B crouched down and gripped her head in pain.

"Owowowowow. What was that for Sae-chan?"

Her reaction stood in stark contrast to what I had expected from her. Instead of a ferocious beast, a small and scared cat that wanted to be caressed kneeled in front of me.

My arm moved forward on its own, but I barely managed to hold myself back from doing something inexcusable.

"For getting involved with one of my students."

"I wasn't involved with him. But I'm glad you would only hit me with a clipboard if that were to happen."

The cheeky instructor, whose behavior reminded me of everything but a woman nearing her thirties, stuck out and twisted her tongue while throwing me an adorable wink, as if to say, 'Let's keep this a secret from her'.

Thud!

"Owowowowow. I'm just kidding!"

She winked yet again, which made me doubt her qualifications as a teacher.

Women were troublesome. All of them. Without exception.

"Thanks for waiting, Ayanokouji. Let's head to the guidance office."

"Did I do something wrong? I've been trying to keep a low profile."

"A good answer. Come."

She didn't seem too eager to respond to my question, but this much was fine.

Due to the course of our first interaction, where I had asked her on reference material for her lessons, she already suspected that something was off about me. Even though she must have been aware of my entrance examination scores back then, she had left me alone.

Until now.

Something must have changed, or she wouldn't have made the first step. She must have been worried about today's revelation of our class points in particular, which was why she decided to call me to the guidance office to take me to task.

I had a hunch that she would want to meet eventually, but I didn't plan on this eventuality to be today.

With a somewhat sour taste in my mouth, I followed Chabashira-sensei. Class B's tutor followed me with a sparkling smile while ignoring her colleagues' cold glares.

"You. Stay." My homeroom teacher gazed at her like a manager would at one of their subordinates, who had just messed up the treatment of an important VIP client.

"Come on, don't be so cold. You are not the type to give one-on-one guidance. Pulling a new student like Kiyotaka-kun into the guidance room out of nowhere... Are you after something I wonder?"

Hoshinomiya-sensei scooted behind me and placed her soft hands on my shoulder. I wasn't able to see her face without looking back, but I was sure that she was wearing the most beautiful smile, since Chabashira-sensei frowned in return.

Was this how a child felt when their mother was proud?

Banishing those irrelevant thoughts, I focused back on the troublesome teacher behind me.

She smelled incredible and was eerie similar to Fuka, as she was also using her charms to get what she wanted. Since she was suspicious about the reason Chabashira-sensei had summoned me, I had involuntarily entered her radar as well.

Her citation had screwed me over, which meant that I had to convince Hoshinomiya-sensei that I wasn't a threat to her.

"Sae-chan. Are you perhaps looking to be dominated by a younger man?"

I noted this down as one of the things I should look up before the end of today.

"Don't say such stupid things. That wouldn't be possible."

I was at a loss. Truly.

"Heeh, you're right. It wouldn't be possible for you, Sae-chan."

The two of them kept taking shots at each other until a third party intervened. At first, I was delighted that someone would separate these two feral cats, but after I recognized the girl's voice, my expression sank even further.

She couldn't have arrived with worse timing.

"Hoshinomiya-sensei, do you have a moment? The student council wishes to discuss something with you."

This almost sounded as if she had managed to join, which didn't come as much of a surprise. I was happy for her, since Ichinose was perfect for the jobs that a student council member handled.

But why did she have to show up here now?

The girl's happy gaze wandered between Chabashira- and Hoshinomiya-sensei until she caught sight of a poor boy who stood between the two bickering women like a lost child.

"Ayanokouji-kun! I hope you did nothing bad."

She bent forward and waved her index finger in front of me in a scolding manner while charming us with an adorable chuckle.

"Heeeeeh?"

I ignored the glares from both teachers, who had now unanimously decided to be suspicious of me.

"No such thing. I'm as confused as you are."

"See? You have someone who needs you. Move on."

Chabashira-sensei smacked Hoshinomiya-sensei's butt with her clipboard. The sound that followed was vague, yet for some peculiar reason, absolutely satisfying. I couldn't help but be amazed by the harmony this clipboard managed to produce.

"Aw, she'll get mad if I hang around any longer. See you later, Kiyotaka-kun. Let's go Honami-chan."

"Uh, huh? Ah... yes. Uhm... good luck Ayanokouji-kun."

"Thanks, Ichinose. You too."

The troublesome teacher turned and winked at me one last time with a knowing smile on her delicate face as the two outsiders left. Ichinose watched this whole 'exchange' with a curious expression.

These women had way too much energy...

After they had left our line of sight, Chabashira-sensei and I entered the guidance room, which was located right beside the faculty office. I shut the door and turned towards the woman who had called me.

"What am I doing here?"

Cutting straight to the chase was the quickest way out of here, so I didn't feel the need to beat around the bush. Horikita would probably arrive soon, and I wanted to be gone before this occurred. I also needed some time to figure out how to deal with Hoshinomiya-sensei going forward, depending on what she'd do.

"Well, about that... Before we begin, please come here."

She glanced at the round clock, which ticked away at the wall, and placed a kettle on a nearby stove. I used this time to familiarize myself with the layout of the room and began to study the surroundings.

It was my first time in here, which is why I wanted to get to know this foreign environment.

"I'm going to make tea. Is roasted green okay?"

She opened the cabinet door without waiting for an answer and turned around with a serious expression that could send shivers down a person's spine.

What in the world is wrong with the women in this school?

"Don't make any unnecessary moves. Shut up and get in there. Understand? Don't make a sound and stay until I tell you it's okay to come out. If you don't do as I say, you'll be expelled."

My eyes met with hers.

I didn't like it when people tried to intimidate me. I would even claim that no one enjoyed being coerced against their will, especially not when the threat was to take away a person's quiet and peaceful life.

Something they had longed for.

"Unnecessary?"

The tone and the impression of my voice changed drastically. The woman before me noticed this as well. Before she could open her supple lips again, I grabbed her by the collar and pushed her into the cabinet in one swift motion. Her two thin, brown almonds trembled in surprise as I forced her against the back. I pushed my legs against the wall, spreading and separating hers.

"Shut up and listen carefully now, Sae-chan-sensei."

My usual carefree and bored demeanor was nowhere to be found. Instead, she glimpsed at nothing but darkness as she stared into my eyes with a terrified expression. Her pupils began to dart away, clearly uncomfortable by the pressure my gaze exerted onto her mental state.

While she was intimidated by this sudden and unexpected turn of events, I let my free hand roam over every nook and cranny of her body. Starting with her shoulders, I made my way down her arm. Done with that, I focused my attention towards her chest area.

My hands closed in on her breasts and she tried to push me off with every bit of force she could muster. The restrictive way I held and pressed her against the wall didn't allow for much, however, which is why she soon opened her mouth.

"Ayanokouji st —"

I released my grip on her for a moment and shoved her into the back wall with my right arm before pulling the sleeve of my uniform over my left hand. Afterwards, I spread my fingers into an arc and pushed them into Sae's mouth, increasing the pressure further.

Due to the fabric and special grip I had used, her sounds were muffled. She wasn't able to bite me or get rid of my control in any other similar way either, since she couldn't exert enough force with her jaw without hurting herself in the process.

"I told you to shut up." Continuing where I left off, my right hand roamed around and in between her breasts and left arm before making its way towards her lower area. During the whole time, my homeroom teacher kept struggling to break free. "The one who shouldn't do anything unnecessary is you, Sae. I don't know what you are planning, but I believe that Horikita was looking for you."

Her fear-stricken eyes widened for a split second, which betrayed her thoughts.

I kept scanning her body's curves without a shred of hesitation or excitement. After a few more centimeters, my hands reached low enough to arrive at the pockets of her blazer. I slipped my fingers inside to check her phone for any signs that she was recording this meeting.

Chabashira kept wriggling around, but she was simply too weak to do anything in her current situation.

"If you were planning on revealing my scores to Horikita, then I'd advise you to overthink that decision carefully. Remember the last time we talked? The questions you asked me? The answer is yes, as you could see from my score this time around as well. If you reveal my existence to anyone in this school, I will rip this class apart before the month ends. That is a promise."

Two knocks echoed through the otherwise eerily silent room. Someone, most likely Horikita, stood in front of the outer door of the guidance room, seeking entrance.

I pulled my hand out of Sae's mouth and dragged her figure out of the cabinet before rearranging the collar to look all prim and proper again. Her unusual expression betrayed the unease and wonder she felt every time our eyes met. She swallowed her saliva and calmed her frenzied heart while I straightened out her business-oriented attire.

"Almost as good as new." I patted her shoulders twice. "You should get the door. I'll be waiting inside then, just as promised. We will talk as soon as Horikita is gone."

Sae stared at me in surprise as I slid into the cabinet like a shadow.

I wasn't overly shocked that she was taken aback by my behavior, as I had returned to my usual self as if nothing had happened before. After making sure that my teacher had processed and understood my demands and the problems she would face if she dared to disobey me, I shut the door and readied my phone to take an audio recording in case she got another dumb idea.

"Ah, Horikita. Come in. So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Her voice was still shaky in the beginning, but she soon adjusted her cadence and tone and got a hold of herself.

"I will be frank. Why was I sorted in Class D?"

She had mentioned it before, but I was surprised that she was dissatisfied enough with her placement to bother a teacher about her misgivings. What a troublesome student indeed...

She just couldn't understand that she wasn't as excellent as she believed herself to be. Academics aside, she didn't present herself as smart, because she hadn't even noticed a single hint that had been thrown at our faces during the last month.

Aside from her book-smarts, there was nothing special about her.

She hadn't taken my repeated hints towards the weird rules and regulations serious either, even though they were right in front of her the whole time. This, as well as her crappy attitude, made Chiaki a far more promising piece. Compared to Horikita, she was superior in every single way, except for her physique, which wasn't as developed.

It was also a fact that Chiaki had only received average scores during this exam, but I had no reason to believe that she went all out after she had hidden her knowledge from everyone for almost an entire month. Even if this were all she was capable of, academics could be supplemented in time. Perception and instinct could not.

"Today, you told us that the school sorted superior students into Class A. You said that Class D was filled with leftovers, that they were trash. I can't accept being lumped in with them."

"So you consider yourself a superior person then, correct?"

"I solved nearly every problem on the entrance examination and I made no substantial mistakes in the interview either. At the very least, I should not have been sorted into Class D."

"I just so happen to have your answer sheet right here. You are indeed correct. Just as you said, you did well on the entrance examination. You even had the third highest score among the first-year students, close to the highest and second-highest scoring. Your interview was evaluated highly as well."

"Then why am I in Class D?"

"Why are you dissatisfied with your placement?"

"Who would be happy with an incorrect evaluation? Furthermore, the class rankings impact our future prospects. Of course I'm dissatisfied."

"Incorrect evaluation? Your self-evaluation is the only incorrect one I can see." Chabashira-sensei let out a laugh to ridicule her. I could only imagine Horikita's sour mood, and the frigid glare that would pierce through Chabashira-sensei's head. "Your academic ability is excellent. I can acknowledge that, and the school did so as well. However, who decided that academically excellent students are categorically superior? We never said that."

"But... that's just common sense."

"Do you still not see that this is not a common school? You speak of yourself as a superior person but can't even properly wrap your head around something that simple? You might be academically gifted, but what did that do for you in the last month? A truly superior student would have found out about the system in the past weeks, even if their classmates didn't. What did you accomplish in that timeframe, Horikita? You still don't realize that students are not solely admitted because of their academic abilities. Or how did you think Sudou and Ike managed to attend this school in the first place?"

"Tch..."

Horikita clicked her tongue after yet another verbal beatdown. There was not much she could retort, since Chabashira-sensei was correct. Even Horikita should have realized this by now.

I was gradually losing hope in her ability to change after everything that happened today, as she still had trouble understanding her own flaws and shortcomings.

"It is a fact that you weren't sorted by mistake. You definitely belong in Class D. You are at that level."

"Is that so? Then I will ask the school again, at another time."

"You'll get the same answer from anyone in a higher position. So please, go on ahead and ridicule yourself even further. If you are not pleased with your placement and want to change it, then work for it and overtake Class A."

"How in the world could those immature Class D misfits gain more points? I can't see how that's possible."

"You still don't seem to grasp that you are also an immature Class D misfit. You do not differ from them, even if you yourself believe to be."

For some strange reason, I enjoyed Chabashira-sensei bullying students.

"Well, I suppose that's enough for now. However, I am still not convinced that I was sorted correctly."

"I'll keep that in mind."

A chair squeaked against the floor, signaling that the discussion was over. My classmate took a few steps towards the door and stopped for a second as Chabashira-sensei poured herself a tea.

"Do you also want one?"

I could practically see the sneer on her face through the cabinet door.

"No, thank you. I'll be taking my leave."

With that, the door opened and shut. A moment later, the door of the outer room did the same.

I waited for around ten seconds after her departure before opening the cabinet door. Chabashira-sensei glanced towards me with a mystified expression as she set two cups of tea on the table and sat down on one of the empty chairs.

"If you gave her some kind of signal and she happens to 'coincidentally' run into me when I walk out of this room, then we will have a serious problem."

"Noted. Please sit."

Following her request, I sat and began to stir the tea in front of me. After blowing into the liquid a few times, I took a small sip. The tea was still hot, but the aroma was pretty good and the taste was satisfying as well. I only needed to be careful to not burn myself by accident.

This was my first time drinking tea, but I enjoyed it quite a lot, which is why I decided that I should make a habit out of trying the different flavors if I had the chance. I remembered that I saw a lot of them back in the convenience store and began to generate a preliminary list with the styles I was most interested in.

"You really are an interesting student, Ayanokouji."

Oh, right... business first.

"Not at all. I'm certainly not as interesting as a teacher with a strange surname like Chabashira."

"Would you speak like that to every Chabashira in the nation? Hmm?"

This was a weird question, but an easy one to answer since I was usually nice to the people I met. There was no reason to believe that I would behave any differently in front of another Chabashira who hadn't threatened me.

"If I were to find one, which I honestly doubt, then no. I'd probably be quite nice to her."

"Is that the real you?"

The real me, huh?

What a stupid question. What even was real?

Every person's behavior changes in front of different people. There wasn't just one 'real' person. Every single human had multiple facades for every situation and person they'd come across. Their behavior would change according to the conditions, place, time and even if they were hungry or not.

Some differences were just nuanced, while others were more extreme.

This question perfectly reflected her true feelings behind the stern exterior she had put up to protect herself. Sae was confused, surprised, shocked and even somewhat scared of me, which was exactly what I had intended from the beginning.

"So, what was your great plan? Showing her my test scores to make her aware of my hidden abilities? Hoping that she could manage to win me over in helping her achieve what she sought to do?" I took yet another sip from the freshly brewed tea. "What kind of idiot would fall for such a cheap shot?"

Her calm smile vanished, replaced by a grimace.

"I'm pretty disappointed. You were planning to force me into the open. Why?"

"I wanted to help you, of course." She said, as if this was a matter of fact.

"In other words, you wanted to help yourself. Alright."

I leaned back into the chair and raised my head to meet her eye-level.

"How does revealing my abilities help you? Let's see. If the students get advantages for being in a higher class, it's a fair assumption that the teacher would benefit similarly. Assuming that much is correct, you wanted to use me to overtake Class A. But you didn't know what I was capable of. Even with our past interaction in mind, it could have just been a lucky shot by an unusual thinking student, which is why you stopped acting and just observed from afar until today. Did you really think I'd solve the quiz in that way if I didn't want to stand out to you? The class needed a beating, which is why I hadn't acted until now. The first month was needed, and you did great to educate them sensei, so thank you. I'll let your unprofessionalism in trying to sell me out slide this time for a job well done."

I took another sip of tea, giving Sae some time to take in all the information.

It was indisputable that the teachers would have an interest in making their own class reach or stay in the top spot. A school like this wouldn't just randomly assign teachers to certain classes by rolling dice, they would also have to work for their position in the hierarchy.

I didn't know how long Chabashira had been working here, but it was a fact that she was Class D's homeroom teacher at this point in time. Even if it were her first year as a homeroom teacher, she would be dissatisfied with her current position and was hoping to reach greater heights.

"There is an especially simple solution to your problem, however. I'll get this bunch of misfits, as Horikita called them, to overtake Class A. All you have to do is play nice and leave me alone. If I ask you for your assistance, you will gladly oblige without questions. If I don't, then you'll treat me like any other student in the class."

Chabashira kept quiet for a moment, evaluating me, as well as the pros and cons of the offer I had presented her with. She must have calmed down enough by now to realize that my behavior, even if physical, wasn't rash or executed without careful consideration of my surroundings.

When I first entered the room, I skimmed it for cameras and listening devices. While I assaulted Sae, I checked her person for any object that could be used for surveillance.

If she still had doubts now, then...

"How can I trust you to keep your word? How can I trust that you alone could overtake Class A? Since you already know what I was planning, I'll tell you the reason: I concluded that Horikita and you might bring the class forward if you were working together."

Her initial plan was quite sloppy, but turned out as expected.

Even if I had declined Horikita's advances, she wasn't someone who would go down without a fight if it meant reaching Class A, which was clear by the way she behaved herself in class today. She would have bothered me throughout our time here, which would prompt me to lend her a helping hand in the best case.

At least that's what's should have gone through Sae's head.

"Observe me and decide after the first special exam is over."

Even though she usually wore a straight and serious poker face, her mask cracked for the third time today, due to the pressure the two words 'special exam' conveyed. Her eyes shot open in astonishment and confusion, while her mouth gaped ever so slightly, which demonstrated how surprising the knowledge I possessed was.

Thanks to Fuka, I knew that these examinations were really labeled 'special exam' by the school. At first, I simply generated this name because the exams couldn't be normal ones, and were thus special.

After the initial impact, it was now the perfect time to enact part two of the deal: the icing on the cake.

"If my assumptions are correct, the first should take place at the beginning of August. To make it a safer option for you, I promise you right now that none of your students will be expelled during that time, or you may reveal my grades to the entire class if you wish to."

Revealing parts of myself to Fuka was more beneficial than initially anticipated. She informed me that the first special exams would be held shortly after the final exams, after I had inquired about how the school addressed them and notified her of my observations regarding these special tests.

Since they followed the same blueprint the last two years, this year shouldn't have been any different.

Class D's survival during the midterms was already set in stone as well, since I had received last year's questions and solutions from Fuka, who assured me with proof that they would be the same this time as well. The final exams in July wouldn't be a problem either due to the extra tuition that Kushida, Hirata and the others will give in the coming weeks.

"Alright. It's a deal, if we sign a contract stating that you'd prove your abilities in the next special exam and not a single Class D student gets expelled in the midterms or the finals. In case you cannot accomplish even one of these tasks, then I'll be allowed to share your grades and you will actively work with the class to overtake Class A. Breaking the contract will lead to your expulsion."

I picked up the teacup and swiveled it around.

"In extension to this, you may not share or mention the contract itself or its contents with anyone during my time at this school. This also applies to my scores and exam results until now and in the future, as well as the favors I might need from you. If any of these conditions were to be broken, then you would be the one to leave this school."

I took a sip of tea, which was now much more enjoyable due to the lowered temperature.

"What favors are we talking about here? I cannot agree to this term in particular, as long as I am uncertain about their scope. Even if I agree to comply with your favors, I cannot break any school rules while doing so or help you in any way that isn't allowed."

"That's not a problem. I don't need your help to get you into Class A. Everything that has to do with the class competitions will be done by abiding the rules and regulations this school has set. The favors will be for other matters regarding possible future developments which I can't influence right now. These favors won't be of sexual nature or anything that would get you in trouble with the school."

Sae eyed me with a bewildered expression.

"It's a fair assumption that you might lean into thinking that I was sexually attracted to you due to the actions I had taken before Horikita showed up. I added this simply to give you peace of mind that I wasn't looking for indecent services in exchange for my help."

This didn't mean that I wasn't sexually attracted to her, though, but I should keep this to myself.

After our discussion, Sae began to set up the contract. This soon evolved into both of us setting up the contract, as I was telling her which specific words and phrases to adopt for the details she needed to respect. I couldn't leave in any loopholes to exploit, after all.

The two of us signed the contract and made a copy. This way, either of us had a document to fall back to if our deal were to go awry. The binding agreement between us was beneficial to her, since she knew to count on me, and myself, because it would keep her off my back, which would allow me to continue my normal life here.

"With that out of the way, what are you planning to do now?"

It was a given that she was intrigued after talking to me, due to the appalling difference in behavior between this 'me' and the one I presented to anyone else. Each word was chosen with care, and I was much more confident in my appearance and overall bearing, which stood to a stark contrast to my usual demeanor, which was on the quiet side.

"That's none of your concern. Just sit back and relax. I will take care of everything from here on out. You will know what you need to know. That's it."

"Why so tight-lipped? Wouldn't it be better if I was assured of your abilities?"

"It's simple, really. I cannot trust you. You already did something unnecessary in playing games with me until Horikita came by. If you hadn't done that, Hoshinomiya wouldn't have become suspicious of me. Even more so after she noticed that I was acquainted with Ichinose from her class. Because of you, I'll already have more work since I need to think of a way to get Hoshinomiya off my back. The less I involve you, the less of a hindrance you will be to me."

I drank the last remains of my tea and exhaled loudly in satisfaction.

"Your words are pretty harsh, Ayanokouji. Talking like that, to a teacher no less, is rather unbecoming."

She leaned back in her chair, satisfied with the conclusion of our discussion.

"Then expel me. Good luck getting those morons to not die from hunger for the next three years."

This was a bluff, of course, because there was no way she would expel her best chance to reach Class A. I had left her more than enough clues to come to this conclusion herself. The only doubt in her mind should have been the question on how I planned to handle staying low-profile while catapulting this class up the food chain.

But that was none of her concern.

I stood and began to clean the empty teacup at the sink while glancing around the room. Chabashira finished her cup as well and strode over a few seconds later. I slipped to the left, making some room for her, and began to rummage through each cabinet and drawer to make sure that no one had planted a recording device inside.

"What are you looking for?"

"Just checking if you or someone else did something unnecessary."

She seemed quite dissatisfied with my answer, but didn't let it show on her face, which was almost as expressionless as mine after she had calmed herself. Seeing her bewildered like before was quite a sight to behold.

"Hm. Next time, just ask for my phone if you want to check if I'm recording."

"I did no such thing. I just felt the sudden urge to touch you all over. Locating the phone was a total accident."

She got rather agitated after my disrespectful remark and glared at me like a certain classmate of mine. A sudden urge overcame me, so I took the clipboard that she had placed on the nearby table and slapped her butt with it.

Thud!

What a beautiful sound...

"What the hell are you doing, Ayanokouji?"

"Just wanted to check how it feels, I guess." Still conflicted over the pleasure I just felt, I ambled over towards the door. "It was interesting, seeing Sae-chan-sensei flustered for once. Usually you are wearing this cold, almost callous expression."

The woman I had just sexually harassed frowned, proving the point I just made.

"I'll be taking my leave then, Chabashira-sensei. Thank you for your guidance."

After my chat with our beloved homeroom teacher, I used the rest of the day to catch up with Chiaki and the others.

She told me how the discussion went and that everyone, except Sudou, Kouenji and Horikita, who didn't take part, agreed on toning down on all the points Chabashira-sensei raised during homeroom. To acquire points, it was decided that we should try to get good grades in the midterms, since that might lead to a point increase across the board.

Hirata wanted to create study groups for the weaker students, but chose to discuss this at a later date, since the previous discussion took quite a long time. It seemed it wasn't easy to convince the boys and girls to tone down on using their phones and such, even after what happened today.

[06:38:12 PM] Are you in my room?

[06:39:17 PM][Fuka ] No, do you want me to come over?

[06:39:59 PM] Yes, I have something to discuss. I'm making Tempura, if you are hungry.

[06:40:05 PM][Fuka ] Count me in!

Upon reading through her reply, I bought a few additional ingredients and made my way back towards my room. It was dark when I opened the door, meaning Fuka hadn't arrived yet. I noticed many students who were meeting up in front of the dorm, so she was likely waiting until she could sneak in unnoticed.

I took off my blazer and began to prepare some ingredients while booting up my PC.

After I was done with the manual labor, the food still needed some time to cook. Since I had nothing to do at the moment, I began to browse the internet for the question I had due to Chabashira- and Hoshinomiya-sensei's talk.

While the savory aroma traveled through the room, I checked the pictures, texts and videos while thinking to myself that this was totally normal behavior, aside from the sexual implications. Whipping was a normal punishment for a minor deficiency in the White Room, that as well as other kinds of beatings, choking, electric shocks, etcetera. The only new experience I learned through these educational videos was the usage of wax to inflict pain, or pleasure, in their case.

We didn't have something like this in the White Room...

It was probably too colorful, huh?

Immersed in my reading and the video footage, I barely noticed the door opening and closing. The female intruder strode over with large, gentle strides before resting her head on top of mine.

"Oya, oya, Kiyotaka. I didn't know that you were into that sort of thing. I wouldn't mind trying it out if it's you, you know?"

"This is purely for research purposes."

Fuka began to snicker.

"Research purposes, huh? You sure?"

What kind of question was that? And why was she giggling? I was researching. What's so weird about that?

"How was your day?"

My guest heaved a disappointed sigh, disheartened that I wouldn't endure her weird interrogation any further. She tilted her head to the side, as if lying down.

"Boring. But yours wasn't, I bet. Why were you called to the faculty office?"

"The mock exam."

"Heh? Your teacher is interesting, isn't she?"

"I don't know about interesting, but she has a strong desire to reach Class A, which makes her usable under the right circumstances."

She moved her head away from mine and closed in on my ear.

"You know I'm getting all tingly hearing you talk like that."

"Gross."

She let out a laugh while taking a few steps back towards the Tempura to check on the progress. Fuka seemed to be comfortable in the kitchen, since she was helping me most of the time. I had a pretty good grasp on her overall abilities thanks to all the time we had spent together.

"So, what did you want to discuss with me?"

"How hard would it be to get rid of a teacher?"

She dropped whatever she was holding at the moment and glanced at me before she began to howl.

"I knew it. You're the best Kiyotaka."

Come on, tone down, would you? People could hear.

"That's not the answer I was looking for."

I closed the browser and shut down the PC before turning the chair around to her.

"Well, the teachers also get paid monthly. Since they are living here, their entire paycheck should turn into points. I guess there's some kind of stable salary as well as bonus pay. Likely..."

"... depending on the class they are teaching. Since our worth is the teacher's, chances are high that the bonus pay is an accumulation of their respective class's worth. Which would explain Chabashira's attitude this morning since the bonus pay was precisely zero."

I concluded the explanation she began, whereupon she nodded as well.

All of this was only just conjecture on our part. Clear by her words, she knew nothing for certain except for the stable salary, which was a given. The teachers likely had an extra rule that allowed them to cash out their points once they retired, which would make the most sense.

"So you want to get rid of Chabashira if she becomes a hindrance? I'd be careful with that. I don't know what would happen to a class that lost their teacher. As far as I know, this has never happened before. For obvious reasons."

"My target isn't Chabashira but Hoshinomiya. Do you know how long they've been at this school?"

"I'll ask around and come back to you on that. Some of the third-years might know."

"You are acquainted with third-years?"

She made a dumbfounded expression, which looked kind of cute.

"I'll have you know that I am highly popular with the opposite sex. The whole grade and a plethora of upperclassmen ran after me last year until I shot all of them down at least once. It shouldn't be hard to get such trivial information from either of them. But..."

She crept closer and bend over.

I could see everything, as she deliberately loosened her uniform for me to take a quick glance at the black bra, which was utterly failing at hiding her voluptuous twin peaks. After breaking away from this breathtaking sight, my vision drifted over her necklace before I locked eyes with her.

"You are the only one who doesn't seem fazed at all, no matter what I do."

"Well. If you do that to everyone, then it really isn't special, you know?"

Her grin grew wide as she edged her way towards my ear.

"How insolent. I never did something like this before. You are my first Kiyotaka."

Her breath tickled my ear again and again until I managed to break away from this pleasant feeling.

"The food should be ready soon. You need to get off me."

All I could hear was a deep, disappointed sigh, but I didn't understand why she felt so interested in me. If it were the missing reactions to her body, she was bound to be disappointed. Of course, my body would react upon seeing such perfection right in front of me.

I just didn't show it. That was all there was to it.

She wasn't the only girl this happened with either, just the most aggressive, which made her troublesome.

Fuka prepared the tableware while I finished up with the meal. We both sat down and ate.

It almost felt like living together, as she came over often.

Would married life feel like this?

"Can I borrow some points?"

"How much do you need?"

All of them would be nice, but I didn't want to ask her for too much. The problem was that I had barely 4000 points left after my expenses increased exponentially due to a certain girl which kept me company right now.

"I'll be able to get by with 10.000 for a while, so that should do. I'll pay you back as soon as I can."

"You don't need to pay me back. I assume you are in trouble because of the necklace you gifted me." She grabbed and carefully caressed it. "Aside from that, you've been buying food for two people almost every day for the past two weeks, so those 10.000 points should barely reimburse you for that."

Fuka threw me a toothy smile before placing her phone in front of me. She leaned her head on top of her hand and prompted me to give me the points myself.

With a sigh, I grabbed the phone and typed the four-digit code which had previously unlocked the device. Since she hadn't asked about it, she must have realized that I saw it when she typed it in during our first meeting.

I was quite surprised, however, that the code didn't work anymore.

"The code's wrong."

"Yes. I changed it."

Her smile grew even more radiant.

If I was that weird vampire Mii-chan told me about, I would have sparkled right about now.

"To what?"

"Guess."

She stuck out her tongue and held out three fingers.

The first code was 9264, which didn't work anymore. I also couldn't find a connection between those numbers and her, which is why I figured that they were randomly typed in. Every phone came with the student's birthday as standard password, which she likely changed to the one I saw.

Thinking that she may have reversed her change, I typed 0410 into the password field.

One finger vanished, leaving only two.

I had nothing to go on except that she was overly interested in me. Since she should know that as well, it should have something to do with me. Fuka was a girl, meaning she would likely remember every 'first' we had, from our first meeting to our first meal together. I was sure she knew any date by heart. I typed in 0411, which was the day I revealed myself to her. This should be the most important first, as our relationship began developing on that day.

Reality was cruel, however.

The next finger vanished, leaving the last.

Since it was impossible to know which other first she could have meant, and I only had one try left, I took another route.

Fuka was highly intelligent. She started this game, and I believed she discerned how it would play out. She'd knew that I'd go simple first, and then branch out to our relationship once her birthday didn't work. After taking the most obvious date, I would realize that randomly trying another one wouldn't result in the phone being unlocked, which is why I would change my pattern yet again. The only safe number that was left came from my side, more precisely from my birthday.

Just like I knew her birthday through the contacts, she knew mine as well.

Before I even punched in the first number, Fuka's voice rang through the room.

"Ding, ding. Congratulations."

As her voice halted, so did my movement as I sat in front of the unlocked phone after typing 1020. She had a rather hefty amount of eight million points, which didn't surprise me in the least. I quickly transferred the 10.000 points I needed and handed Fuka her phone back.

"Buh, you didn't even react."

"You should have known that already, no? You also knew that I'd solve your little puzzle."

"Yeah, as expected. Hanging out with you is fun."

She stretched herself and gifted me one of her signatures smiles.

After solving her riddle, I walked over to the chess boards in the corner of my room. Fuka followed me with a curious glint in her eyes. Like a child that was about to see something for the first time, she trembled in anticipation.

Yes, this would be yet another first for us.

The first time I would move the chess pieces around with her by my side.

Since it was a special day, I started with Fuka's class and placed every single piece on the board. This wasn't anything new for her, since she knew all the pieces by heart.

Afterwards, I focused on the first-year board. The red rook moved forward two tiles. Besides that, I also placed the first knight for Class D on the right side of the board in its default position.

"Hmm, that rook... You didn't take the pawn, meaning it's currently not possible or advisable. That move basically did nothing but bring him closer to danger. Is he in trouble?"

"He will be soon."

At least according to the scores I had seen this morning and the fact that he wouldn't go out of his way to study. I was pretty sure that he'd be in trouble.

"Who's the knight?"

"She's currently on the sidelines, but might come in handy in the future. I only placed her because she is a fixed component of my offense going forward."

Fuka studied the board, trying to decipher the people behind the pieces. Some would be easy to figure out for her, while others would be impossible, since I had never mentioned their names. The genders I had used should have given her enough hints, however.

"What about Hoshinomiya-sensei?"

"A good question. Previously, I thought that the teachers would remain on the sidelines during the class conflicts. But after what Chabashira tried to do today, I cannot be sure. Depending on what Hoshinomiya would do for her class, she might promote to a queen, which is why I'd like to get rid of her before that happens. If our theory is right, however, this could prove quite difficult, if not impossible, depending on whether they may cancel their own expulsion, so to speak. I figured that they weren't allowed to do certain things like helping the students in the special exams, but that's not something I should count on. It is a fact that, as long as the teacher didn't leave any evidence, nothing would happen to them. Some might even go as far as lying for their students if it meant overtaking Class A, which is why I need to prepare for any eventuality that might come to pass."

Of course, there was still the possibility of expelling her over and over until all her points were drained, but that would be everything but a walk in the park. The teachers should have far more points than we students could ever have, meaning with similar rules, they could buy much more information and favors.

If I were to attack Hoshinomiya, or any other teacher, and wasn't able to get them expelled in one swift strike, I could say goodbye to my place in this school.