Chapter 051: Surveillance Destruction, First-Year Class D Loses 50 Points!
Sakayanagi Arisu often contradicted herself, but there was no denying that she was incredibly useful.
Her intellect was exceptionally sharp.
According to her own words, even though she wasn't blessed with a healthy body like ordinary people, when God closed one door for her, He opened another.
Her intelligence and comprehension abilities far surpassed those of normal people.
In other words—she was a genius.
She could master anything she learned at an astonishing speed.
And when it came to strategizing, things were even simpler for her.
This was something Kamuro Masumi understood well.
Having served under Sakayanagi for the past few days, she had gained even more insight into her abilities.
For example, despite only being in high school, Sakayanagi had already self-studied college-level courses.
It was absolutely absurd.
"However,"
Having just touched on the topic of romance, Sakayanagi gripped her cane and spoke again.
"Our lives may soon face a challenge."
"Kamuro, choosing to place your bet on me might just be the smartest decision you make in these three years of school."
"..."
Kamuro gave her a flat look. "Are you just praising yourself? Yeah, yeah, fine—I admit you're better than Katsuragi. Happy now?"
"That's not what I meant, Kamuro." Sakayanagi chuckled. "What I'm saying is, the full-scale class war is about to begin."
"And our Class A will be swept into it as well."
"The advantage that Class A was planning to establish and maintain in this first month will likely be disrupted."
"Katsuragi's so-called 'stable strategy'—it's ruined."
But—
Kamuro stared at her, her clear eyes filled with confusion.
Sakayanagi had already assessed Kamuro's intelligence and knew she was the type with strong physical abilities but a weak mind.
Kamuro simply wasn't good at thinking deeply, but that was fine—Sakayanagi could handle all the thinking.
Kamuro just needed to do the legwork.
If anything, when Sakayanagi first arrived at this school, she had some concerns about whether she could adapt to the campus life due to her physical limitations.
But in the end, Kamuro turned out to be a gift from the heavens—her perfect tool.
And because Sakayanagi valued her tools, she treated Kamuro with considerable patience.
"This school prioritizes ability above all else. It expects students to grow through competition, using the class system as the foundation. This is already common knowledge."
"Upon enrollment, in the interest of fairness, each class was given the same starting point—1,000 Class Evaluation Points."
"Then, as standard procedure, the first month serves as an evaluation period based on behavioral norms, determining whether students meet the standards of Advanced Nurturing High School."
"Any inappropriate behavior results in point deductions."
"All of this is well-known information."
"But—what if a problem arises during this process?"
"What if something forces the school to announce the results earlier than the originally scheduled date of the first of next month?"
Sakayanagi gripped her cane tightly and continued,
"Then the Class Evaluation Points—which ordinary students don't even know about—along with the entire class competition system, would be exposed."
"So, essentially, we paid 2 million points to get ahead and acquire the exam questions, and now they've been leaked."
Sakayanagi Arisu said this as she picked up her cane and poked it at the ground, then continued to explain.
"This is a terrifying outcome."
"Even the average students in Class A would probably be panicking now."
"That's why, during lunch break, I said we accidentally unleashed a demon king. And this demon king is really aggressive."
"Demon king... well, let's call him Demon King Hikigaya Hachiman," Sakayanagi said.
She appeared completely relaxed, even giving Hikigaya a nickname.
But—
"It's impossible, right? The first month of school is the standard behavior and ethics exam, and the results are usually announced on the 1st of next month. Isn't that the custom?" Kamuro said quickly. "So why would the school announce it early?"
"Because of an unexpected incident, like the surveillance cameras being damaged. Once something like that happens and the class evaluation points are affected, it's necessary to update the student council as well."
"Our school administration is separate from the student council, but both have significant authority."
"Sometimes the student council even has the power to intervene in special exams every month."
"Especially since President Horikita is someone who is very upright and will enforce the rules fairly. So, when he notices that enforcement is needed, he will act. It's only natural that the evaluation points for all four classes will be published in a timely manner."
"So that's the real reason why Hikigaya went to the student council for consultation."
"He probably wanted to have his own class points deducted in order to reveal the evaluation points. This guy is truly bold."
"And meanwhile, our Class D's Katsuragi completely ignored it." Sakayanagi Arisu pouted.
She seemed to be starting to doubt the abilities of her teammates.
Because if Katsuragi had been steady enough, he would have been more cautious upon hearing about Hikigaya's ridiculous actions. He should have been more alert.
Instead, it turned into a situation where everyone was left passive.
But—
"Ah... so that's how it is... What should we do now..."
Kamuro finally realized what had happened and started to feel a panic building up.
After all, she was just an ordinary student from Class A.
"Well, we just have to let it go." Sakayanagi Arisu said. "At this point, we have no other choice but to accept it. And our class won't lose. After all, even if they know the exam questions, there will still be people who fail, right?"
"So, what we need to worry about is Class B."
"They are the closest in strength to our class."
Sakayanagi Arisu seemed to have come up with a solution.
But then, she suddenly smiled.
"If it really comes to that, I'll be quite interested in the so-called class competition."
"Before, the opponents were too weak, which was boring, but now, I'm kind of excited."
"Earlier during lunch, I was wondering what Hikigaya's direct declaration of war against us meant. Now I see..."
"Hikigaya, you really have surprised me in this school life."
"But how will you handle the remaining 20 days of this month?"
"Because, as you said, even if the students in your class are notified of the open-book exam, there will still be people who fail."
After this conversation between Sakayanagi Arisu and Kamuro, the following day—
During lunch break, a new announcement appeared on the student council's bulletin board.
At the same time, the first-year students were surprised to see student council members with armbands heading to their first-year classroom building. They wrote something on the small, low-profile blackboard.
First-Year Class A: 996 points
First-Year Class B: 834 points
First-Year Class C: 611 points
First-Year Class D: 530 points
But soon after, an additional correction appeared—Class D's 530 points were crossed out and replaced with a deduction of 50 points.
Class D's final score was revised to 480 points.
On the side, the student council also posted an explanation regarding the 50-point deduction for Class D.
[First-Year Class D, Hikigaya Hachiman, due to damaging the school's surveillance cameras, the student council has imposed a 50-point deduction from Class D's evaluation score. We hope this serves as a warning not to repeat such actions.
Student Council Announcement]
And then—
The first-year students… exploded.
Chapter 052: Look, it's simple, right? A world where no one gets hurt is complete!
The first-year students indeed exploded.
Today was the sixth day since the new students enrolled.
Most of the new students were still immersed in the fantasy that the school was amazing — no tuition fees, free accommodation, pocket money, and direct recommendations for graduation. It felt like heaven. They hoped to enjoy a nice campus life here.
But now...
They were suddenly caught off guard and left in confusion.
The first to notice that the student council members had arrived at the lower-year classroom building was Katsuragi from Class 1-A.
He had submitted his student council application along with Yahiko the day before.
The student council in this school had immense power. Sometimes, they even acted on behalf of the school administration. From what he had learned from the upperclassmen about joining school clubs, the student council president even had the power to directly intervene in special exams.
This was quite terrifying.
Because the essence of this school was to make students compete with each other by class.
The specific implementation was through repeated special exams. The scores obtained in these exams determined the ranking of classes. By the time students reached their third year and graduated, the ones who could maintain their position as Class A would be the representatives of the school's graduation.
They would then receive a series of rewards from the school.
It was the peak of life.
Upon realizing this, Katsuragi set his sights on the student council position.
He didn't aim to become the president, but if he could become a member, he could gain more information and possibly serve his class.
Of course, there might even be a chance to compete for the president's position later.
After all, the president was a student too, and they would graduate eventually.
So joining the student council early might provide an opportunity.
Katsuragi was a careful and steady person.
So when he noticed that the student council president, Horikita, had specifically come to the lower-year building during lunch break, he immediately paid attention.
Now,
He was observing from the crowd of new students as the student council members worked.
He saw Horikita himself writing on the small blackboard next to the bulletin board.
First-Year Class A: 996 points
First-Year Class B: 834 points
First-Year Class C: 611 points
First-Year Class D: 530 points
Hmm... this number, he knew.
He knew this represented the evaluation scores for the four classes.
The ranking of classes in this school was fluid. Only the class evaluation scores determined the ranking.
If another class's evaluation score exceeded Class A's, it would be crowned as the new Class A.
Similarly, if the original Class A was surpassed by another class, it would drop down.
After learning from their homeroom teacher, Mr. Majima, about the class evaluation score system, he and Yahiko went to investigate.
They visited the first floor of the second and third-year buildings and saw the small blackboards and their scores.
They confirmed that the second and third-year classes were indeed competing in this manner.
Class A always managed to maintain a lead over the other classes.
Just like now.
Class 1-A was outstanding. Out of a base score of 1000, they had only been deducted 4 points.
This was a reasonable result, but also an unbelievable one.
Because it suddenly occurred to him — wasn't the rule that the class evaluation scores for all four classes would be revealed after the entire month had ended, on the 1st of the next month?
And now...
Why was it announced directly?
Had the exams ended early, or was there a problem?
...
Meanwhile, for Class B…
The students of Class B had heard that the student council members were at the bulletin board filling in the data.
"Ichinose..."
Coming down from the upper floors with Class B's students was a cute girl with short golden hair.
She was Kushida Kikyo from Class 1-D. She was well-liked and had a strong sense of approachability.
Recently, she had started interacting with students from other classes. More accurately, she had become friends with Ichinose Honami from Class B.
It could be said that Kushida liked interacting with students from other classes.
Because the quality of the students of Class B was very high. Almost everyone was like a little angel — kind, pure, and optimistic, like winners in life.
And the atmosphere in Class B was great. Even though only a few days had passed, the students in Class B had already formed a spontaneous trust in each other, almost as if they had a central figure in the class.
That would be Ichinose Honami.
She had long, golden-pink hair, delicate and exquisite features, and a very good figure.
But what caught people's attention the most was her approachability.
Kushida thought she was already very approachable, but when it came to Ichinose, she felt slightly inferior in that regard.
Even though the school had just started, Ichinose already had more than 50 friends.
This was really frustrating.
Of course, Kushida had become good friends with Ichinose now.
So, that could be considered something to comfort herself with.
"This is..."
Ichinose Honami from Class B stared at the small blackboard that the student council members were filling out.
She saw that her Class B score was 834 points.
"This is..."
Ichinose noticed that Kushida was looking at the information on the bulletin board.
The bulletin board?
She quickly looked over as well.
And she too noticed the information on the bulletin board.
Class 1-D, Hikigaya Hachiman, had been deducted 50 points from their class evaluation score due to damaging a camera.
"This school..."
"It might really be something else" Ichinose said.
Even though she didn't say it outright, she also felt there were various things in the school that needed attention.
...
Now, for Class 1-C.
There were no students from Class 1-C present.
Hmm.
Class 1-C was still in the process of consolidating.
So, even though they were the class closest to the bulletin board, not many were paying attention to it.
Now, in the bathroom.
"Ryuen, you son of a—are you shameless?!"
"Shut up! You have no choice but to obey me!"
A man with red, center-parted hair held another man by the neck and slammed him against the wall.
This was Ryuen Kakeru from Class 1-C. After coming to this school, he discovered how rich the rewards were for students.
He brought out his old tactics.
He had been a delinquent in middle school.
And now,
He was using those same tactics—violence—to take control of his class.
He was very strong, but being strong alone was useless, so he targeted the strongest person in the class.
Albert.
He was 2 meters tall, a mixed-race student, very muscular, and looked like a giant. His strength was as formidable as his appearance.
Of course, the next day, Ryuen was defeated by Albert, but that didn't matter. Ryuen used harassment tactics, constantly bothering Albert, even attacking him while he was in the restroom.
And now,
Albert was desperate, so he followed Ryuen's orders.
Ryuen was now taking control of the male students in the class.
As for the female students... Hmph, when half the class's boys were under control, did the girls have any other choices?
Class 1-C was soon going to have only Ryuen Kakeru as a Leader and voice.
...
Elsewhere,
On the rooftop.
Chapter 053: Kushida Kikyo: Hikigaya-kun, you've done this for the class, haven't you?
On the other side, the rooftop of the school building.
There were two long benches, one of which was in the shade, and Hachiman remembered that previously, Sakayanagi Arisu had sat on this bench.
However, Hachiman didn't come here just to sit on the bench that Sakayanagi had used before.
There were three people present.
He, Hachiman Hikigaya, the homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae, and the black-haired, fox-eyed girl who stood with her left hand resting on her right elbow, looking down at the crowd near the bulletin board.
Horikita Suzune.
The three of them, all aiming to rise to Class A, had gathered here.
Chabashira-sensei folded her arms and looked down from above.
The members of the student council had already left.
"That was quite the move," Chabashira Sae commented.
"Because of the punishment that involved the student council's intervention, the scores that were supposed to be revealed next month have been shown now."
"It can't be helped," Hachiman spread his arms and said. "If no intervention happens now, then following the normal procedure, our class's evaluation score would probably be reduced to zero by the 1st of next month, if not negative points."
"..." X2
This casual remark made the two girls present fall silent at the same time.
As the homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae could check the daily deduction of points for the class.
And Horikita Suzune was probably the only one in the class who hadn't had any points deducted. Although she couldn't confirm the exact items and the deducted points, she didn't have much hope for the students in this class.
At the beginning, all four classes had 1000 points, which could be considered a fair starting point.
However, if after one month the 1000 points were reduced to 0...
Let's not even talk about advancing to Class A. It was likely that they wouldn't even surpass Class C.
"So, what are you planning to do next?" Chabashira looked at Horikita and then turned her gaze to Hachiman. "I can't provide you with more than what is within my authority."
In other words, within the range of what you can say, you'll cooperate fully, right?
Hachiman thought to himself.
"On one hand, I'll report to you about the progress of the task, telling you that I'm properly fulfilling the agreement," Hachiman said.
"Well, you are obedient," Chabashira seemed to praise him.
But it wasn't exactly that, Chabashira-sensei.
Hachiman had chosen to bring Horikita along so that Horikita could confirm that you truly stood on the side of advancing to the next class.
Once that common goal was confirmed, Horikita would probably become more willing and cooperative.
Hachiman didn't think he was strong enough to handle everything alone, so if someone helped, the convenience and success rate would increase significantly.
"And what's the second point?" Chabashira asked.
"Well, I guess it's to wait for the school to notify you," Hachiman replied. "My actions exposed the evaluation scores of the four classes ahead of time, so the school will definitely take some measures."
"And those measures could include ending the special exam for the first month early, which would secure the 480 points for Class D. That would be the ideal outcome."
"Of course, the school might also continue the exams. And that would be troublesome. If that's the case, we'll need to make some arrangements."
Hachiman paused as he said this.
"After all, this exam puts too much pressure on our class."
Hmm.
That was true.
None of the three disagreed.
If they did nothing, the students of Class D would end up deducting all their points by themselves.
It was too cruel.
And Class A, which already knew the exam rules, was nearly 1000 points ahead at the start.
How would they catch up with that?
So, they had to build up the base points.
If the school ended this behavioral examination early, they could achieve this goal.
"Logically speaking, the gap between the four classes that has been exposed now is roughly at the level of previous years."
"Class A and B are about a hundred points apart, while Class C and D are about three to four hundred points behind the higher classes."
And what Horikita had released were the real-time scores.
First-year Class A: 996 points
First-year Class B: 834 points
First-year Class C: 611 points
First-year Class D: 480 points
The distances between the classes roughly matched the situation of previous years.
"But," Chabashira added. "This year's Class A is too outstanding."
Indeed.
To only deduct 4 points in six days—what a monster.
But everyone knew that Chabashira hadn't finished her thoughts.
That is, Class D was much worse than in previous years.
Because.
It was now the sixth day of the new semester, and Class D only had 480 points left. If they did nothing, Class D's score for the first month would be zero.
Both Hachiman and Horikita looked at Chabashira.
At that moment, Chabashira felt the pressure herself.
"Ding!" At that moment, Chabashira looked at her phone.
Her brow furrowed.
"The school has sent information," Chabashira said.
"They've issued instructions for the homeroom teachers of the four first-year classes to inform students about the school rules. However, the behavior assessment for this month will continue."
Saying this, Chabashira looked at Hachiman and Horikita.
"Unfortunately, our wish has been dashed."
"The school is not satisfied with the scores that have been revealed and has decided to carry out the behavioral assessment for the entire month."
"In other words, although your actions exposed the class evaluation scores ahead of time, the school is treating this as an unexpected situation and responding accordingly."
"And they have a very negative impression of Class D."
Indeed.
The students of Class D had damaged the cameras and had their points deducted by the student council.
Since that was the responsibility of the student council, the points were deducted, and the results were announced.
On the surface, the school wouldn't consider whether the students did it intentionally or if they had already realized the nature of the school and acted on their own accord.
"So, is there any other information?" Hachiman asked.
"There is," Chabashira replied. "The items for the behavioral assessment are also allowed to be disclosed."
"The school has allowed the teachers to list the items of the assessment."
"But they won't reveal the specific points deducted."
Oh.
I see.
Well, this just means the plan was a little derailed.
Because Hachiman hadn't expected the school to be charitable, so it was within his expectations that the school would choose to continue the assessments.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to have Kushida spread rumors.
The purpose was to spread the rumors and confirm that the school was this harsh. That way, students would be forced to self-regulate for their own sake.
It's just that.
This school is quite interesting.
Very humanized.
Although the assessment, which was originally supposed to take a month, is now being cut short, the school probably didn't want that.
But they still released the assessment content.
In other words, even though this was an unexpected situation, they handled it accordingly, and gave you an open-book test. Now, can you manage it?
Therefore, Hachiman thought that the chairman of the school board must be someone who truly wants to do education.
Chapter 054: Sakayanagi is the Greatest Traitor of Class A!
Although they had never met face-to-face, Hachiman had developed some impression of the chairman of the school.
He felt that the chairman was probably quite an open-minded person.
Previously, Chabashira-sensei tried to trick him into a deal by purchasing the permission to exchange points for cash from the school. Later, the school sent him the information and granted him this permission.
And with it, they made some restrictions.
This showed that the school valued points above all else. As long as there were points, anything could be bought.
However, it couldn't cross the line completely.
The school was flexible, but it also had boundaries.
And this was exactly what was being demonstrated right now.
Since the first-year class evaluation scores were forcibly exposed, the exam questions were also directly revealed, turning the closed-book exam into an open-book one.
Was there any meaning behind doing this?
Yes.
On one hand, the displayed scores already aligned with the potential gaps that could emerge between the four classes after they entered.
But there were still more than 20 days left in this month, so whether they could maintain their advantage or avoid being deducted more points had become crucial.
Thus, it was important to further observe the students' reactions.
Hachiman felt that if he were the chairman, he would probably adopt a similar plan.
This way, the scope of the assessment would be expanded.
However, this idea was too far-fetched.
Hachiman didn't know the chairman.
Moreover, he didn't think there was a way for him to rise; coming from Class D, making money was the main thing for him.
If he could get Class D promoted to Class A once, he could earn 10 million yen in cash from Chabashira-sensei.
And in the process, if he could gain more points, he would also try to do that.
"Well, I'll head out first," Chabashira Sae said.
Although she had received the school's message, she needed to attend a meeting.
That meant she had to synchronize the messaging—what could be told to the students and what needed to be kept under wraps.
Teachers had a tough job too.
...
Watching Chabashira-sensei leave, Hachiman and Horikita didn't stay behind.
However...
"The plan is still the same," Hachiman said to Horikita Suzune as they walked downstairs from the rooftop.
"The school has decided to expose the content of the behavioral assessment. This saves us some trouble. Otherwise, we'd have to figure out and create specific behavioral guidelines for the students to follow."
"Now we can directly turn it into an open-book exam, which is the best scenario."
"But there's still one issue we need to handle—actually, it's a big problem exclusive to the lower-ranked classes," Hachiman said.
"What do you mean?"
"Once Chabashira-sensei announces the school's rules, the situation where Class D is penalized 50 points for damaging the camera will definitely lead to an attack on us," Hachiman explained.
"A fast way to unite a group is by having a common enemy, but I don't really want to play that role for this class."
"And then..."
Hachiman paused. "That's when you'll need to step in, Horikita."
"..."
Suzune remained silent.
Suzune Horikita only then understood.
This guy was making her take the fall.
...
Thus, after the lunch break.
After the afternoon classes ended, all first-year students were kept in their classrooms.
This was because the homeroom teacher had received a sudden notice.
They would be given an explanation about the school's rules.
"At this school, only students who graduate from Class A will have a 100% rate of progression to higher education or employment. Students from the other classes will have to take exams on their own. The school uses a class competition system to train you."
"When you entered the school, each class was given an equal 1000 base points, which will accumulate until graduation."
"And the 1st of each month is when the school issues living expenses."
"However, the monthly living expenses will no longer be 100,000 yen. Instead, they will be adjusted based on the evaluation of the base points."
"In other words, the class evaluation scores that have been announced now indicate that your class still has 480 points remaining."
"So, on the 1st of next month, each of you will receive living expenses of 480 times 100, which is 48,000 yen."
"However, this score will change, and the score on the 1st of the month will be used as the basis for determining the living expenses."
"At the same time, the class rankings are fluid. The class with the highest evaluation score will be Class A."
"So, if after any exam, your class's evaluation score exceeds that of Class A, your class will become the new Class A."
Chabashira Sae, the homeroom teacher of Class D, explained the rules to her students.
...
Meanwhile, in the old Class A.
The homeroom teacher of Class A, Mashima, was explaining the same rules.
However, this was the second time he was explaining them. On the first day of school, this year's students used a huge amount of points to buy the school's rules from him, as well as the news about the behavioral norms assessment for the first month of school.
It was essentially like buying insider information.
By obtaining this information and secretly developing their plans, they would ultimately achieve higher scores than previous Class A students.
They could create a safe gap from the lower-ranked classes.
And now.
First-year Class A: 996 points
First-year Class B: 834 points
First-year Class C: 611 points
First-year Class D: 530 points
Class A had already distanced itself from Classes C and D.
However, Class B still had 834 points remaining.
So they hadn't distanced themselves from Class B yet. If Class B only had six or seven hundred points left, it would feel much more secure.
With that,
Class representative Katsuragi from the "safe path" side furrowed his brows.
This caused the members of the Sakayanagi faction to become even more eager as they looked at their leader – the little princess Sakayanagi.
The little princess seemed to be contemplating something, her cute brows slightly furrowed.
However, in reality, Sakayanagi wasn't thinking about how to handle the exam.
Instead, she was thinking about this:
The information that Hachiman had obtained about the school was from her.
And the fact that Hachiman had exposed their class's evaluation score by causing their class to lose points was also something he learned from her.
This meant that the class competition hadn't even started yet.
She had already aided the enemy, and not just once, but twice.
What a complicated experience.
So, did this mean that she had become a traitor to Class A?
Sakayanagi Arisu pouted.
Chapter 055: Mother Yosuke Saves the Day! Suzune: Did Someone Steal My Job??
Sakayanagi Arisu was contemplating whether she had become a traitor.
However…
She did notice the gazes of her classmates around her.
Was it because they realized that their current situation couldn't give them an advantage? Were they now thinking that relying on the steady Katsuragi might not be reliable and wanted Arisu, the more radical one, to lead them?
Did they want Arisu to lead them to pull ahead of the other classes and then be assured?
Arisu understood their thoughts.
But students, the one you were hoping for has already aided the enemy, Hachiman, twice.
From this perspective, it was indeed a little embarrassing.
Arisu thought to herself.
But since it was something she had set up, she should finish it off properly.
And now, the homeroom teacher Mashima had handed over the stage after announcing that the behavioral norms assessment would continue.
Arisu glanced over at Katsuragi. Katsuragi was frowning deeply.
Once the students were divided into the factions of Sakayanagi and Katsuragi, the boundaries became very clear.
Katsuragi's faction sat closer to the classroom door.
While Sakayanagi's faction sat by the windows.
Even the classroom desks had been moved into two distinct directions.
Each faction had two rows of desks.
Katsuragi's faction had 20 members, while Sakayanagi's faction had 16.
The remaining students, who were neutral, had been pushed to the back.
"May I say something?" After thinking for a moment, Sakayanagi Arisu spoke.
As she said this, she had already stood up, leaning on the desk.
"I don't think there's any need to worry."
"We are Class A students. Whether the exam is open-book or closed-book, we will still score high."
"But for the other classes, I don't think they have the same level of self-discipline. Like Class B, even if they know the exam rules, they'll still lose at least 150 points."
"So, even if we do nothing, we can still create a gap of nearly 300 points between us and Class B."
In other words, is Class A still at an advantage?
Yes.
The requirements of the behavioral norms mostly focus on self-restraint, and if students from other classes had this level of self-control, they would have been placed in Class A.
And we've only lost 4 points in 6 days.
So, even if this exam continues, we can still score over 950 points.
This score has never been achieved in the history of this school, not even by the most outstanding student president, Horikita-san, from the previous Class A.
So, our highest score is already secured.
But the other classes will only continue to lose points.
"Right now, I still suggest that we don't do anything, and instead focus on getting the high score that belongs to our class."
Finally, Katsuragi, the steady one, spoke up.
In other words, Class A would continue to face the exam calmly.
After informing them of this, Sakayanagi Arisu sat back down.
Putting aside the thought that she might be a traitor, Arisu raised her left hand lightly.
Supporting her cheek.
As she had said to Kamuro, even if the closed-book exam becomes open-book… as long as the students don't self-discipline, their scores will continue to be heavily deducted.
So Hachiman, how will you control your classmates who can deduct 500 points in just five days?
If you want to unite the group, the only way is to become the enemy. So, will you choose to become the enemy of the whole class?
And even if you do that, your classmates won't listen to you, the enemy, next time.
So, how will you handle such a dilemma?
…
But Hachiman hadn't done anything yet.
He hadn't gotten into any trouble.
While Class A had finished their briefing, things weren't going smoothly for Class D.
Because,
As soon as they learned that next month's living expenses would not be 100,000 yen, and that the 100% employment and graduation rates were also false…
The students in Class D exploded.
So they couldn't care less about listening to Chabashira's explanation of the behavioral norms assessment.
"This… This is too much! This is fraud, this is a scam!"
Immediately, a student protested.
"Yeah, wasn't it said that entering this school would waive tuition fees, and then that the graduation and employment rates would be 100%?"
Hmm.
These students were focused on that point.
Chabashira, at least, felt a bit relieved inside.
"By the way, next month's living expenses will only be 48,000 yen. This is barely enough!"
"What should I do? I only have 10,000 points left. I won't get more until the 1st of next month!"
But quickly, the conversation shifted to this topic.
Because it was related to next month's living expenses.
Very materialistic, these students from Class D.
Hachiman sat at his desk, noticing that Suzune Horikita beside him had taken out a small notebook and began to write down the important points Chabashira had announced.
Although she had already seen them on his phone, she still diligently wrote them down.
What a serious person.
And Hachiman knew that her private account still had 93,000 points.
Meaning she had over 90,000 points left.
She was very frugal.
Compared to that…
It was the sixth day of school, and after the students received the huge sum of 100,000 points, they immediately began spending, spending, spending, buying, buying, buying.
It wasn't just the girls; the boys were doing the same.
Various mangas, bought!
Various doujinshi, bought!
Various light novels, bought!
Then there were game consoles, computers, clothes, and all sorts of food, etc.
In short, everyone's living expenses were quickly running low.
Because they were thinking that they would get another 100,000 points next month, so they were all spending without any restraint.
For example, the little angel, Kushida, bought several kinds of perfumes.
Her funds were probably running low now.
And now,
It turned out that they would only receive points on the 1st of next month, and there would be no 100,000 points but only 48,000 left? That was a direct halving!
"By the way, didn't the notice say that Hachiman was deducted 50 points?"
Ike suddenly said. "Kushida, you saw that, right?"
"Ah... yeah." Kushida didn't expect to be mentioned, and a hint of hesitation appeared on her face.
Because if she brought up the Student Council's announcement now, Hachiman might be attacked by the classmates.
After all, he had been deducted 50 points.
And these 50 points came from the class. This deduction affected everyone in the class.
As a result, Hachiman had deducted 50 points all on his own.
So, was Hachiman about to fall into a deadlock?
This thought made her hesitate.
But after Ike pointed it out, most of the students turned their attention to her.
At that time, she was with Ichinose, and she was one of the first to notice the Student Council's punishment announcement for Hachiman.
But given the current situation, she realized she could do nothing to help.
So, she just nodded.
Yeah.
Hachiman understood.
Kushida wasn't reliable.
Only Suzune was reliable. So Hachiman looked toward Horikita Suzune.
Suzune noticed his gaze.
She seemed to sigh lightly before putting down her pen.
"About this..."
But just as Suzune was about to stand up to intervene, someone else stood up and spoke.
"I'd like everyone to quiet down."
"First of all, Chabashira-sensei is still in the process of delivering the announcement."
"Then..."
"I don't think we should involve Hachiman in this. Although he damaged the camera, if it weren't for him, would Chabashira-sensei and the others have informed us about the real situation of this school?"
Saying this, Hirata looked toward Chabashira.
Hirata was very popular in the class, and he had helped many people during this time.
As a result, both the boys and the girls trusted him very much.
So everyone turned to look at Chabashira.
Chabashira nodded. "According to past procedures, the notification would have been made on the 1st of next month."
Hirata seemed relieved and then continued to speak to everyone.
"So, if it weren't for Hachiman, we might still be in the dark about everything."
"I think this is Hachiman's merit. So, we shouldn't target him. After all, with 1000 points, we have all lost over 400 points in these six days." Hirata continued, "So, what we should be thinking about now is what to do next."
Hirata's argument was reasonable.
At the same time, he directly pointed out that everyone was losing points, and by distributing the responsibility for the 50-point deduction from the broken camera, he spread the blame across the whole class.
Hirata's words made Ike, who had initially brought up the 50-point deduction, seem a bit embarrassed.
But Hachiman noticed that the girl with black hair and fox-like eyes sitting next to him had been staring at him.
Her gaze was sharp.
It seemed like she was asking:
You already have someone who's helping you, so why do you keep involving her as well? Isn't it unnecessary?
But,
It wasn't like that.
Hachiman's expression conveyed that message.
Because,
Hirata wasn't actually someone Hachiman had arranged.
Chapter 056: Kushida: So, Hachiman, you are doing this for the class! Part 1
Hirata wasn't actually arranged by Hachiman.
Rather, it was his own initiative.
In fact, yesterday, when Kushida was spreading rumors, Hirata seemed very enthusiastic. He even went to the soccer club to verify the truth of the rumors. By joining the club, he was able to get the number of second- and third-year students from the seniors.
He confirmed that after coming to this school, a large number of students had dropped out.
But he also learned some new information.
The third-year class A, where Horikita Suzune's brother was, was the only class among the upper grades that started with 40 students and still had 40 students when they reached third year.
This class had no dropouts.
All of this information was gathered by Hirata and shared with everyone.
The data was in the class group.
And now, Hirata actually stood up to defend Hachiman when he was being attacked?
However...
Unfortunately,
Being kind and helping others are very good qualities. But Hirata, you were assigned to Class D of the first year.
It's the class considered to be the bottom, so what didn't you say? What is it about your past that made the examiner ignore all your merits after reviewing your information and place you in Class D?
So, although Hirata stood up to help, Hachiman felt pressure.
But he made a mental note of Hirata's favor.
With that thought, Hachiman shifted his gaze to the girl sitting next to him on the left.
"..." Suzune Horikita.
Hmm.
Now, Suzune's eyes were sharp because it seemed like there was no room for her to interject.
According to Hachiman's plan, if he was surrounded by classmates, or if he was penalized 50 points and forced to take responsibility, then he would have Suzune stand up to intervene.
Her method of intervention would also be similar to Hirata's.
As the saying goes, "the fault lies with the crowd."
But in the entire class, except for Horikita Suzune, everyone had done something wrong in class. Even Hirata couldn't escape blame.
So, they would shift the responsibility—since everyone was losing points, why single out Hachiman's 50-point deduction?
However, this plan was already executed by Hirata, and it was highly effective.
Hirata was very popular, and when he said to distribute the blame, no one opposed.
Everyone returned their attention from Hachiman to Hirata.
At this point, Hachiman thought about whether Suzune standing up would achieve the same effect so quickly.
First of all, she didn't have much popularity, aside from being extraordinarily beautiful and having an aloof aura.
Aside from Kushida's ulterior motives of flattering her, she didn't have much popularity.
So, it would be hard for her to do what Hirata did, getting the class to agree after some hesitation.
...
"Now, I will announce the parts of the school's rules that can be relaxed," Chabashira-sensei said as the students quieted down and continued with the announcement.
"This is the first challenge every new student faces after enrollment."
"The assessment period is one month."
"Each class is treated as a unit. The basic score for each class is 1,000 points, and points are deducted for actions that do not comply with the rules."
"The specific items are: no tardiness, no leaving early, no using phones, no reading novels during class, no sleeping during class, etc..."
"After school, you cannot litter or damage the environment..."
"Fighting is a serious crime."
"Behavior norms—"
"..."
This list of rules left everyone in a daze.
But some of the students began to understand.
"Wait a minute!"
A girl spoke up.
It was a golden-haired girl with a single ponytail sitting in the front row.
She was a very cute girl, and Hachiman had taken note of her a few times. She was one of his classmates who had made it into his notebook.
Karuizawa Kei.
It seemed that over the past few days, she had become the leader of a group of girls who hung out together.
"Chabashira-sensei, are you saying that from today until the end of this month, we have to follow these behavior rules for a whole month?" Kei Izumi asked.
"Yes," Chabashira answered, glancing at her. "Normally, you would all finish your exams after a month, and then the scores would be revealed. But due to Hachiman's penalty, the scores were exposed prematurely."
"This is the first time this has happened in the history of this school."
"You're just lucky that you can see the changing scores early, but the exam has not been stopped."
In fact, Chabashira-sensei was kind of helping Hachiman out.
At this moment, the attention of the classmates, who had previously been dispersed after Hirata's intervention, returned and focused on Hachiman again.
And Kushida, the little angel who had explored the school with Hachiman on the first day, also looked over.
Her eyes gently blinked.
It seemed as though she was saying, "Did you break the camera on purpose? Was it actually for the class?"
In other words, she finally understood that he wasn't the kind of troublemaker, but that he did it intentionally?
To reveal the current scores to everyone.
However, Kushida, even though you are blinking so adorably right now, it's useless. You didn't help him earlier, and that has already made him think you're unreliable.
That's what Hachiman thought to himself.
Chapter 057: Offending the Entire Class in 3 Minutes, Only You Can Do It, Horikita!
After being informed that there would be more than 20 days of behavior norm assessments ahead...
"There's no way we can do that!"
A boy said. "I mean, we got over 500 points deducted in just six days, and now there are still more than 20 days left this month—there's definitely no way we'll have any living expenses next month!"
"I don't want to!"
The boy continued. "And all the stuff about exempted entrance exams and employment rates, that's all a lie!"
"The school has deceived us!" the boy said.
"Oh?" Chabashira Sae's slender eyes looked over.
"Then you can choose to drop out," Chabashira said.
"And this is something I need to hand out to you."
Chabashira took a stack of documents from the podium and walked over to the first row of students, asking them to pass it down.
It looked like she was handing out exam papers.
However...
This was not an exam paper.
"I, XXX, due to personal reasons, voluntarily choose to drop out of School.
Signature."
"..."
Hey, hey, hey, what is this?
Is she casually making people drop out?
Of course, it's casually making people drop out, but it's just a warning.
Chabashira had experience as a class teacher, so when dealing with troublesome students, she could just slap out a drop-out proposal.
"Wh-What is this...?"
The troublesome student received the agreement.
But he didn't fill in his name.
Because...
Although it's quite excessive, with accommodation, tuition, and living expenses waived—these are things that no other school could offer.
So, if you're not an idiot, why would you voluntarily choose to drop out?
Meanwhile, Chabashira was no longer looking at the student.
"Once the application for drop-out is accepted, it will be submitted to the student council. After being stamped by the student council president, the applicant must leave the school within two hours. If there is no action, violent enforcement will be applied."
Chabashira said coldly.
"Ugh—"
She was so good-looking and appeared like a mature older sister.
But she spoke such cruel words with a calm demeanor.
Some of the girls were already backing down.
"Everyone, being able to come to this school is fate," Hirata quickly said. "So, please don't casually bring up dropping out."
He probably didn't want to see any students cause trouble or drop out.
After all, in everyone's eyes, he was like a little sun, embracing everyone.
"But now that we know the rules we have to follow, if we hold on, we can pass safely," Hirata continued. "And even if we can't save 400 points, if we can save 300 points, each of us will still get 30,000 points for next month's living expenses."
"Eh..."
Although Hirata was very popular, this time, people didn't seem to agree with him like they did before.
Because...
Now it was the sixth day since enrollment.
The class had only 480 points left from the 1000-point class evaluation.
The average deduction for the first six days was 74 points per day.
And now, it was May, so there were 25 days left.
Even if they divide the 480 points by 25, it feels hard to even deduct just 20 points a day.
"Everyone—"
At this moment, the previously mentioned Kushida joined the battlefield.
After all...
Although proposing that everyone follow the behavior norms might lower her popularity...
She was the class's little angel, always thinking about everyone, so naturally, she couldn't just stay silent.
She joined Hirata's side, hoping that everyone would follow the rules properly.
"In order to be promoted to Class A, or even if that's not possible... we still need to work hard for next month's living expenses."
"If we can save 300 points, the 30,000 points for next month's living expenses will be enough, even if we have to be frugal."
Kushida joined her hands in prayer as she spoke.
But now, the evaluation was related to next month's living expenses. Even if others had no ambition to upgrade to Class A, they would still try their best.
"So, it's all related to living expenses," someone murmured.
Yes.
It had become closely related to them.
"And if we don't get 300 points, and only get 200 points... then there will still be 20,000 points for living expenses. The cafeteria's minimum daily expense is 600 points; that should be enough."
Some students began to waver.
Because if they don't comply with the school, they'll be expelled.
Of course, no one wants to be expelled.
So, they decided to work hard to earn their living expenses.
However, the so-called 300 and 200 points couldn't even meet Hachiman's requirements.
If they wanted to "fake" their way into Class A, they'd need at least 400 points as a base score.
But for this class, even with someone leading the discipline, it was hard to say whether they could even save 200 points in the end.
So... not enough. Still not enough.
If merely agreeing verbally was enough to do it, they wouldn't have lost so many points over the last few days.
So, Hirata and Kushida's suggestions were still too mild.
Not enough.
"..."
Hachiman.
He turned his attention to the student sitting to his left, Horikita Suzune.
Although Horikita had felt that Hirata had stolen her lines earlier, since Hirata had done the work of resolving Hachiman's issue, there was no need for her to step in.
But now...
Horikita Suzune furrowed her brows.
She was probably surprised by the behavior norm requirements.
After all, things like not fidgeting during class, not being late or leaving early, and not using phones—aren't these basic qualities every student should have?
So why did everyone around her look so serious?
At this moment, Hachiman glanced around at his classmates.
Some students had seemingly backed down, deciding to just follow the rules and take the exam.
However, many more students showed signs of hesitation.
And he didn't believe that Hirata and Kushida's gentle persuasion would guarantee that every student in the class would comply.
So...
As expected.
Discipline was needed.
And this discipline...
Hachiman looked at Horikita Suzune.
"..."
Horikita Suzune finally noticed his gaze.
Oh?
Was he hoping she would help?
But now...
Yes.
She had to step in.
Hachiman had already exposed the points.
And Hirata and Kushida's so-called friendly persuasion couldn't make these students, who had lost 500 points in six days, act and comply.
So...
"I think you guys are ridiculous to be afraid of this exam" Horikita Suzune stood up. "I'm Horikita Suzune, and I haven't lost a single point in these six days. I don't think this is difficult. Rather, it's quite laughable that you guys can't do it or are afraid."
"Although it's an exam for the class as a whole, could you please not drag me down?"
As expected of Horikita.
She offended everyone the moment she spoke.
Can't you see everyone staring at you in shock?
But...
"Horikita, that's too extreme, isn't it..."
Karuizawa, who had asked the question earlier, said.
"Not losing a single point, and all that..." Karuizawa seemed to find it hard to believe.
Because can Horikita Suzune really leave her phone alone and not touch it during class?
Chapter 058: If We Have to choose someone to Drop Out, Then We Choose Koenji!
Facing Karuizawa's doubt...
"If it's just the rules listed by Chabashira-sensei, I've followed them all," Horikita Suzune said calmly. "I can confirm that I haven't lost a single point, and as for you all... After just a few days, you've already lost so many points. Your performance is what's truly shocking."
These words might have been sincere.
But they were a manifestation of her lack of emotional intelligence, and yet the impact was extremely strong.
"Hey, that's too much, Horikita!"
"Yeah, how can you say something like that, Horikita?"
"I didn't lose that many points..."
Even the students who had been quiet until now suddenly spoke up.
They started attacking Horikita.
But Horikita Suzune remained calm, her expression unchanged.
She seemed like a person standing in the rain without an umbrella.
This made Hachiman start to think.
Actually...
A role that can unite a group is the appearance of an enemy.
To attack that enemy, even a team that wasn't united at first can come together.
But Hachiman didn't assign Horikita to play that role. What he had asked her to do was to help deflect the students' attack on him regarding the points deduction.
And he had also prepared methods for later restraining the students.
However, just with a few words, Horikita had completely stood on the opposite side of the students.
Was it her bravery, or was it her lack of emotional intelligence that made her stand out?
It couldn't be denied, though, that she wasn't wrong.
The fault lay with the class.
Like Class 1-B in their first year; despite not knowing the rules of the school at all, after a few days, they still had over 800 points remaining. This indicated that normal students should be like that.
Not like Class D, which lost several hundred points right away.
"Regarding this..." Hachiman stood up as well.
"I also want to have living expenses next month, and I hope to earn at least 400 points in the class evaluation."
"So, I hope everyone can try their best to follow the rules and avoid losing points," Hachiman said.
"This is impossible!"
Immediately, a student tried to rebut Hachiman.
Because now the class evaluation points had dropped to only 480.
In other words, to keep 400 points, they could only afford to lose 80 points in the next 25 days.
Hey, hey, hey.
Only a few points per day?
How could that possibly happen!
"Everyone, please stop!"
Hirata quickly stood up again to try to ease the tension.
He had noticed that the atmosphere in the class had become lively, but it was developing in a bad direction.
"Then let's make an agreement," Hachiman said. "Everyone contributes 10,000 points."
"Then we'll all put them with Chabashira-sensei. And we'll use them on the 1st of next month."
"Eh!"
"What does that mean?" The classmates were confused.
Even Kushida looked over in confusion.
Based on Hirata's earlier explanation and Chabashira-sensei's confirmation, she had already figured out that Hachiman's actions—like breaking the camera—were likely because he had discovered the true nature of the school. He was using this method to make the class evaluation points appear in front of everyone's eyes.
If viewed from this perspective, Hachiman was indeed contributing to the class.
What he wanted to do was remind the students that we don't have much left in terms of points to lose.
So, we need to save.
Everyone should work hard together, and so on.
However, now, Kushida seemed to sense something unusual in the air.
"From today until the 31st of this month," Hachiman said. "Pay the points to Chabashira-sensei, let her supervise, and then wait until the 1st of next month for her to announce the point deductions for each student."
"Because I don't trust you all," Hachiman continued. "At that time, the person with the most deductions will be punished."
"Hachiman-kun!"
The voice that had just supported Hachiman, Hirata, now turned stern.
"We are all part of a collective, there's no distrust here, or rather, we all trust you," Hirata said.
But that might not necessarily be true, Hirata-kun, Hachiman thought to himself.
"In other words, I think that the motivational method can't restrain the class, so it's better if it's turned into a punishment system," Hachiman continued.
At this moment, a boy with golden hair sitting in the back row, in front of Sakura, suddenly spoke up.
"Interesting proposal, maybe it could be useful."
"But I don't want to participate."
This boy had a unique appearance, with a rugged, almost Western-European look. His golden hair and crimson eyes stood out.
Rather than being muscular, his build could be described as aesthetically fit.
He had a unique sense of beauty in his muscularity.
And he was holding a small mirror, gazing at his own face, seemingly enamored by his appearance, which made him rather narcissistic.
Almost as soon as the boy started speaking, Kushida, sitting in the front row, suddenly said:
"Koenji-kun, why are you saying such things? Isn't it better to cooperate with everyone?" Kushida asked.
This directly addressed Koenji's name.
After all, although it was the sixth day of school, there were still some classmates whose names weren't fully known.
Some students were still unfamiliar with the boy who suddenly spoke up.
But now that a classmate mentioned his name, everyone's attention shifted to him.
It seemed like Kushida didn't like Koenji very much.
Hachiman observed quietly.
"I'm not interested in your so-called efforts to save on living expenses," Koenji said indifferently. "If you have money, just spend it. If you don't have money, the school provides some free meals."
"Just eat those when the time comes."
"And as for the so-called dream of retaining class evaluation points to get into Class A, I think it's better to give up on it sooner rather than later."
"Horikita-san, Hachiman-kun."
Koenji said. "I don't think you can achieve it."
"After all, look at this class."
Koenji continued, then raised his small mirror to admire his face again.
"..." Hachiman.
Hmm.
Koenji had a unique perspective—he could see through the illusion of saving living expenses. It was just a smokescreen.
The real intention was to retain the class evaluation points for Class A.
But...
"Koenji! What do you mean by that? What do you mean 'look at this class'—aren't you part of it too!"
Sitting to Koenji's right, a red-haired boy named Sudo immediately became upset.
But this anger likely wasn't a result of the present situation, but from yesterday's PE class, when Koenji's swimming performance had outdone Sudo, who prided himself on his physical prowess.
It made Sudou realize the gap between him and Koenji.
So Sudo remembered.
But continuing to argue like this wouldn't be good.
Therefore...
"Since you choose to refuse cooperation, Koenji-kun, would you consider dropping out?" Hachiman suddenly stood up and said. "Or, if our class has to have a dropout, can we all choose you to drop out for the whole class?"
"..." X40
All 39 students, including the class Chabashira-sensei, focused their attention on Hachiman.
Chabashira felt that this year's Class D was different from the last.
She had misjudged.
This class's troublemakers just kept coming.
Their offensive power was formidable.
And even Horikita, who had initially dismissed the whole class, didn't seem so prominent anymore.
Chapter 059: I, Koenji Rokusuke, can't be voted out by you fools!
Yesterday, rumors spread around the class, and even in the class group chat, discussions were held.
The rumors were about the dangerous situation at this school.
They said that the eight classes from the senior years didn't have the full 40 students, and that a large number of senior students had been expelled.
Of course, these rumors seemed too unbelievable.
Hirata, however, went as far as joining the soccer club and, as a result, obtained information from a senior.
As a freshman, it was not safe.
You could be expelled during your time at school for various reasons, such as failing exams.
And today, after Chabashira-sensei explained the school rules, everyone became more aware of this.
Because every month, there are special exams! Isn't that incredibly terrifying?
So now, when Hachiman suddenly brought up the possibility of a vote for someone to be expelled... what would happen?
And so...
The eyes of the class began to turn toward Koenji Rokusuke.
In fact, from the moment he spoke earlier, Koenji had already attracted the attention of his classmates.
But now, these gazes clearly had a different meaning. Some were of reassurance, and some were filled with schadenfreude.
Heh.
"Why does it have to be me who gets expelled?" Koenji leaned back against his chair.
"Because you don't fit in," Hachiman said.
"If everyone works hard to complete the school assessments, but you're the one holding everyone back, and next month, everyone ends up with zero living expenses."
"Do you think you don't need to take responsibility for this?"
"So."
"My suggestion is, if Koenji, you keep standing against everyone, then being voted to be expelled is inevitable, right?" Hachiman said.
"..." Koenji Rokusuke.
Koenji Rokusuke, who had been leisurely looking at his own reflection with a small mirror, now…
"You little brat, you're quite interesting," Koenji said.
Because despite both Horikita and you, Hachiman, standing against the class, you turned it around and claimed that it was him standing against the class.
So, this blame suddenly fell on him.
It felt as if it had been dropped on him out of nowhere.
Koenji was surprised.
…
"Hachiman,"
At this point, Hirata stood up and said, "I think your statement just now was unreasonable."
"We are all part of Class D, so there shouldn't be any idea of voting for someone to be expelled."
"Like in the third-year A-class, they are united, and no one from third-year has been expelled. I think that's the best outcome."
"So, I think your statement was inappropriate. Please take it back," Hirata Yousuke said.
Is that so?
Hachiman then glanced at Hirata, the one who had initially helped him and, like a little sun, had been accommodating toward the classmates.
He could almost confirm it.
If Kushida was a bomb, then Hirata was also one… your bottom line has appeared.
He did not allow classmates to be expelled.
As the bridge that connected everyone, the adhesive.
Is that what you're striving for?
Hachiman still owed him a favor and didn't intend to take things to the point where someone had to be expelled.
So he said,
"I was just making a point."
Hachiman said, "If anything was offensive, I apologize."
Offensive?
Koenji Rokusuke had already directly felt the impoliteness earlier.
And… the threat.
Because.
His personality was carefree, and even after Chabashira-sensei announced the rules of the school, he still thought little of it.
Because these days, he had obtained some information.
As long as he collected 20 million points, he could join the class of his choice.
So, as long as he gathered the points, he could still graduate from Class A in the end.
He had already figured out how to get the 20 million.
So, the situation of Class D, the class, the class evaluation score going to zero, and no living expenses next month.
He didn't care.
But.
Now, he was starting to feel some pressure.
Because the surrounding classmates were all fools. If he really got voted to be expelled by them, and was expelled…
It would be disgusting.
The excellent Koenji would become a laughingstock.
"I also hope everyone will be here when we get to third year," Hachiman continued.
"After all, getting into this school wasn't easy. I had to put in a lot of effort to stand out from over a thousand candidates in the exam entry."
This was a bit exaggerated, but it wasn't a lie.
The classmates thought about the written and oral exams they had before enrolling.
Yeah.
Although the principal had come to them, saying they could apply to this prestigious school every middle school student aspired to, they still saw a lot of applicants before the interview and written exam.
So, they were selected out of the masses.
And then they came here.
So, why should they make such an easy decision to expel someone?
"..." Koenji's left hand was resting on the desk.
Suddenly.
He raised his head and said,
"My physical ability is exceptional."
"And my academic abilities aren't bad either. If it really comes to the point of being expelled, I suggest you expel the people who are useless to the class."
So, you're saying you're useful?
"Koenji, don't worry. We won't abandon any of our classmates," Hirata immediately reassured.
"..." But Koenji had already picked up his mirror again.
It seemed like he didn't want to engage anymore.
But there was still one gaze focused on him.
It was Chabashira Sae.
Chabashira Sae observed the development of Class D. As the homeroom teacher, she understood these students more than anyone else.
For example, the profile of Koenji Rokusuke was already forming in her mind.
This is how his file described him:
[Koenji Rokusuke.
This student has exceptional intelligence, athletic abilities comparable to those of athletes, and comes from a very famous family. Though his statistics in various areas are exceptionally impressive, his personality is narcissistic and arrogant.
During the interview, he was repeatedly rude to the interviewers. Eventually, it was found that he lacked the ability to collaborate and was placed in Class D.
I hope he will understand the importance of teamwork and make improvements.]
In other words, the reason Koenji Rokusuke ended up in Class D was mainly due to the subjective opinion of the interviewers and Koenji's unwillingness to cooperate.
Of course, his family background was extraordinary.
It was said that he was the only son of the Koenji conglomerate, so he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
So, the so-called team was ultimately supposed to serve him.
As long as he could use people instead of working with them.
So, even if his abilities were off the charts, Chabashira didn't believe she could motivate him.
But now, Koenji seemed to have learned [cooperation].
Chabashira was a bit surprised.
However, she decided to continue giving the stage to that dead-eyed boy who had surprised her.
Chapter 060: Hirata: Can I borrow Hachiman for a moment? Sakayanagi: I'm not familiar with him.
Class D First-Year Agreement.
1. All students in Class D will continue to participate in this month's behavioral standards exam with the goal of achieving a class evaluation score of 400 or above.
2. If the class achieves a score of 400 or above, everyone will be happy.
3. If the class score is below 400, points will be paid to the homeroom teacher to inquire about the specific deductions. The three students with the highest deductions will contribute 100,000 points as class fees (installment payments are allowed).
4. If the class can achieve a score of 400+ in the class evaluation, then in the next special exam, if there is a potential expulsion situation, the class will provide mutual support to ensure the safety of the student in question.
Above.
"So, your class signed such terms?"
A sweet, lovely voice from a cute girl echoed.
This was a private room on the third floor of the cafeteria.
Hachiman had been invited by a silver-haired girl, or rather, her dog-like classmate, Kamuro, had been waiting for him in the corridor outside his classroom.
Then, when they realized he was alone, they directly brought him over.
However, Hachiman also provided some information.
His class, First-Year Class D, had already prepared to continue with the exams.
In other words, by signing the agreement, both rewards and punishments were put in place to ensure constraints.
The behavioral standards exam was not about testing students' intelligence or academic ability but was about assessing their self-discipline.
So, as long as self-discipline was ensured, no further deductions would occur.
Maybe they could perform like the students in Class A.
The question was, would the students actually obey?
After all, these were students of Class D.
However, the very fact that they were able to sit down and sign this agreement showed that Class D students had made a certain level of determination.
So, even though it was surprising to see the determination of Class D students, it was still noteworthy.
After all, 500 points in 5 days—such a high deduction rate—was something that even upperclassmen were surprised by.
And now, they were going to challenge the goal of having fewer than 80 points deducted over the course of 25 days?
Although the exam content was basically what an outstanding student should do, it wasn't about doing problems or forcing students to answer questions in class.
But if all 40 students were individuals who could have points deducted, it would require a lot of restraint.
"This is indeed an agreement that has made progress," said Sakayanagi Arisu. "But I'm curious."
"Would your class's students be that easy to manage?"
Of course, they wouldn't be easy to manage.
From Horikita to Hachiman, Koenji, and Hirata, all four had exploded one after another to get this agreement.
It made one feel like a gathering of talents, but it was actually a bunch of turnips having a meeting.
Because other classes wouldn't face such problems. For example, Class A had already managed to reduce deductions to only 4 points over 6 days, and Class B was probably already reflecting and thinking they shouldn't relax anymore.
So the atmosphere in other classes was much better.
Unlike in Class D, where, in order to save some class evaluation points, everything turned into a battle.
"It's just that it's difficult through conversation, so I chose this method." Hachiman said. He then picked up his phone and showed the screen to Sakayanagi Arisu.
It was the school's forum interface.
"Which cafeteria window has the worst free food?" by Hikigaya Hachiman.
When you clicked on it, you would find that a senior had responded.
They advised to absolutely avoid the third window, as the free meal there was awful today.
"I went with the class to the third window to get the free food and brought it back to the classroom." Hachiman continued. "Each person got a serving, and everyone thought it was disgustingly bad. If we ate that every day, we'd go crazy."
"If you don't have any points, the school still provides emergency rations, but they taste awful."
"Even the meals are cold."
"Although there is the option to buy a microwave and heat it up, for those with no points, microwaves are too expensive to afford."
"So I let them experience the food firsthand, and then everyone became more disciplined."
"After all, it's easier to eat this only once than to eat it for three years." Hachiman said.
"Oh." Sakayanagi Arisu understood.
So that's why he invited him over and just watched her eat.
At first, she thought he had developed some new odd taste, but it turned out he had already eaten.
Because Class D's dinner today was a free mountain vegetable set meal.
When Sakayanagi Arisu learned about this school's free food program, she also knew that students like Katsuragi had specifically tried it out.
But Sakayanagi didn't even glance at it.
After all, with her affluent family background and as a student in Class A, she would never fall to that level.
However, when occasionally browsing the school's forum, she noticed that seniors from lower-ranked classes had worked on improving the food.
For instance, some pooled money to buy a microwave, or if the food lacked enough salt, they went to a convenience store to buy salt.
If the food was too salty, they would rinse it to reduce the saltiness.
These were just small life hacks.
.
.
.
"Um..."
"Hikigaya-kun, are you there?"
At that moment, a blonde-haired boy appeared at the door of the private room.
His blonde hair had a hint of green in it, giving him a very sunny and handsome look.
This was the shining star of Class D, Hirata "Mom" Yousuke.
"This is a classmate of mine, Hirata Yousuke..." Hachiman was about to introduce.
"That won't be necessary." But Sakayanagi Arisu immediately rejected it.
As a representative of Class A, a student from Class D wouldn't catch her attention.
In fact, if it wasn't for Kushida or Hikigaya's performance upon entering school, she might not have crossed paths with him.
But...
It was undeniable that due to her physical condition, she had been absent from school and had always longed for campus life.
At first, she had high expectations of the school, but after realizing its true nature and landing in the stress-free environment of Class A, her interest waned.
But now, thanks to Hikigaya, even a class competition she wasn't initially interested in sparked some curiosity.
She was a bit curious about how Hikigaya, despite having a class like this full of misfits, intended to use it as a weapon.
And then, he even declared war on her.
She wanted to see how far he could go.
But...
At least, she wouldn't be defeated.
Despite her sweet and cute appearance, Sakayanagi Arisu now had a formidable presence.
...
Meanwhile, Hirata, who wasn't introduced, had taken the initiative to step forward.
"Can I borrow Hikigaya-kun for a moment?" Hirata asked.
Being someone with high intelligence and emotional intelligence, Hirata, noticing Hikigaya was with a girl from another class, appeared polite.
But this politeness was misplaced.
"Feel free." Sakayanagi Arisu said. "But please don't misunderstand, as I'm not really familiar with Hikigaya-kun."
After probably finishing her meal, she appeared quite graceful and directly grabbed her cane before leaving.
Although Kamuro Masumi, who had been waiting at the side, reluctantly followed.
But Kamuro's gaze was fixed on Sakayanagi's back.
She wanted to rebut what Sakayanagi just said.
Was it true that Sakayanagi wasn't familiar with Hikigaya?
Clearly, just earlier, she was complaining about Hikigaya not sharing meals and even insisting on splitting the bill for the private room. But now, she had served him dessert, and didn't ask him to pay at all.
And it was quite scary how he got her to treat him, not feeling embarrassed at all.