The announcement Chabashira Sae made during the morning class had a considerable impact on Yukinoshita Haruno.
For the rest of the morning, she remained in a state between anxiety and deep thought. Even during class, she was constantly jotting down notes, flipping through handouts, marking certain questions, and then falling into moments of intense contemplation.
She barely paid attention to the lesson.
Fortunately, Advanced Nurturing High School wasn't particularly strict about classroom discipline. It only punished clear violations like using mobile phones, chatting, or sleeping during lectures. Other behaviors—like doing homework from different subjects—were generally overlooked. Even the cameras installed in the classroom weren't high-definition enough to catch minor distractions.
This state continued until noon.
As the lunch bell rang, signaling the break, the teacher wrapped up the last topic and dismissed the class.
A collective sigh of relief spread across the room.
It wasn't that the morning classes had been particularly difficult, but rather, everyone seemed to be caught in an escapist mindset.
It was like how students never got enough sleep from Monday to Thursday, yet on weekends, they stayed up even later but somehow woke up earlier without alarms.
That same mentality applied to Class D right now.
Their future was uncertain, and a make-or-break midterm exam loomed over them next month, but for now, during this lunch break, they could still enjoy themselves. They could go to the cafeteria, have a good meal, and spend their points freely.
Simply put, they were living in the moment.
"Haah..."
Yukinoshita Haruno let out a long sigh.
Unlike the others, she wasn't sighing out of forced relief. She was genuinely exhausted.
After all, she had been writing and organizing notes nonstop all morning without even taking a bathroom break. Anyone would feel drained.
"What's wrong? Figured out a solution?" Kure Ragna asked casually from the side.
"Nooo."
Haruno stretched her arms upward, arching her back in an exaggerated stretch. Her ample chest pressed against the fabric of her shirt, but luckily, the buttons and stitching held firm.
"Although I haven't found a surefire way to ensure everyone passes, I did spend the morning sorting out all the knowledge points we've covered so far. I also compiled a list of students at risk of failing the exam."
"As long as their basics aren't too terrible, I think I can tutor them properly. If they can grasp these fundamental concepts, passing the midterm shouldn't be a problem."
"Yeah, but..."
Kure Ragna clicked his tongue, unimpressed.
"This exam isn't just about basic knowledge. Even the people who passed in middle school barely scraped by. And let's not even talk about Sudo—his basics are practically at an elementary school level. Even if you had the full two months since school started to tutor him, it still wouldn't be enough to save him."
"Also... huh?"
Haruno flinched, suddenly caught off guard.
"Wait, Kure Ragna, what did you just say? Repeat that last part."
"Huh? I said, 'Even if you had two months to tutor him, it wouldn't be enough'?"
"Yes! That's it!"
Haruno's eyes lit up.
"Kure Ragna, have you ever read any infinite flow novels before?"
"...Oh."
Ragna paused for a moment before realizing what she was getting at.
A knowing smirk played at the corners of their lips.
In unison, they said:
"The system never assigns impossible missions."
"Exactly!"
Haruno's eyes burned with newfound confidence.
"Although this is just a hypothesis, now that I've thought it through, I'm at least... no, I'm eighty percent sure!"
"Alright, then the real question is—how do you plan to get this Schrödinger's cheat sheet?" Kure Ragna asked, suddenly intrigued by her next move.
"Hmm..."
Haruno thought for a moment before giving a cautious answer.
"If our assumption is correct, then this 'cheat sheet' must be an open secret at this school. Not just among students, but even teachers should be aware of it. That means Chabashira-sensei might know something."
"But, as they say, too many cooks spoil the broth. I should handle this alone."
"The last class this morning wasn't taught by Chabashira-sensei. She should've gone to lunch with Hoshinomiya-sensei from Class B by now. This is the perfect chance to catch her and ask directly."
Haruno gave Kure Ragna a look that practically said, Leave this to me, before turning toward the classroom door.
At the same time, some of the other students who were heading to the cafeteria stopped and looked at her in confusion.
"Eh? Yukinoshita-girl, aren't you coming to lunch with us?"
"Yeah, she's really focused on the midterm results," Kure Ragna replied, watching her leave. "She's probably off to see if she can get some hints about the exam scope from the teacher."
"Eh? Couldn't she just ask after lunch...?"
"Who knows? Maybe she has her own plan."
Kure Ragna shrugged and got up from his seat.
"Not that I expect anything surprising, but I'll follow her and see how it goes."
"Ragna, should I grab lunch for you and Yukinoshita?"
As expected of the class's well-known nice guy, Hirata immediately offered when he saw Ragna wasn't heading to the cafeteria.
"Hmm... Thanks, but no need," Ragna replied after a brief thought. "It shouldn't take long. I'll grab food myself when we're done."
"Got it."
"Alright then, I'm heading out."
Before leaving, Ragna glanced at Karuizawa Kei, who had been silent in the crowd the entire time. Raising an eyebrow, he casually added:
"Remember to eat well."
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