Bai Lan: "Don't worry about that. Just tell me whether you want it or not."
Sakayanagi: "How can you guarantee that your information is true?"
Bai Lan: "You can verify any information I provide using the rules the teacher mentioned. As an elite of Class A, don't tell me you lack even the ability to check the answer and distinguish truth from falsehood?"
"If you provide sufficient information."
"It has to be sufficient—both sufficient and necessary for the price. At worst, if you discover afterward that my information is wrong, I'll compensate you."
"Fine."
"9. If I offend you someday, will you use your family's power to have me expelled?"
After they had tentatively agreed on the deal.
The two sides began negotiating the price.
Bai Lan: "Do you have 900,000 points?"
Sakayanagi: "I was just chosen as Class A's representative. Everyone in Class A is willing to pool 500,000 points with me."
"That works too. I'll sell another 500,000 points' worth to Class B later."
"If you can guarantee that the people in your class won't leak the information to Class B, I'll buy Class B's share too. One million in total."
"I know how loose their lips are, but they'll be a little more careful for the sake of profit. At least they won't reveal it in the short term. That should be enough for you to widen the gap."
Bai Lan had deliberately mentioned in class the possibility that "class rankings" were related to living expenses, precisely to keep those people from Class D quiet.
When rankings were related to living expenses, the people in Class D would see the other classes as rivals. They wouldn't casually reveal such important information and let their opponents prepare. The more ruthless among them might even deliberately lead students from other classes into making mistakes and losing points.
Of course, given that the members of that group had minds of their own, while their mouths and hands acted on their own and their brains couldn't control them.
Although they wouldn't reveal it "casually," they could still leak it "inadvertently." Still, they should be able to keep their mouths shut for a few days, right?
"In the short term... then I can only offer 400,000 points per class."
"What about Class C? The people in Class C don't play fair. They might resell it to Class B, letting Classes A and B fight each other while they sit behind you and pick at the leftovers."
"Can you watch what you say? What do you mean, fight like dogs?" A bald student couldn't help standing up when he heard his class compared to dogs.
"Bai, your analogy was indeed a little excessive~"
Bai Lan hurriedly turned to the people of Class A and said apologetically, "Sorry, I've been studying in Japan for less than half a year, so my Japanese isn't very good. If you're unhappy about it, come hit me! Besides, this is just the kind of extra service you get with information worth 400,000 points~"
Class A instantly erupted.
"I..."
"You..."
"Bai, please stop teasing them. I'll take your information. Of course, you have to guarantee that it's really worth the price."
"And Class C?"
"Same 400,000 points. Let's round it off and make it an even one million?"
"That's quite a round-off. You might as well say Class C gets half price. Fine~ After all, we're competing with the official seller. Deal!"
"Teacher, sorry for the trouble, but please act as our witness. Anyone who violates the agreement will have to spit back out double what they took in~"
Before long, a notification reading "1,000,000 points received" appeared on Bai Lan's phone.
After receiving the money, Bai Lan revealed the information he had confirmed.
Most of it consisted of things he had previously said in Class D, only with the "contamination" removed.
Besides that, he had also extended some points slightly based on the "ambitions" that the elites of Class A were likely to have.
After Bai Lan finished speaking.
Sakayanagi sorted through her thoughts and summarized, "In other words, every class's evaluation will be quantified and expressed in points. The school will deduct or add points based on students' daily conduct and exam results.
"In addition to representing living expenses, the class points' ranking is also important. First place will receive a major reward.
"The initial number of points cannot be determined. It could be 100, 1,000, or 10,000... This information is far too vague, isn't it?
"The first-place reward and the exact number of points are both uncertain. I want a refund."
Bai Lan: "None of that matters. What I've told you is already enough to give you ample reason to plan your class's future direction, isn't it?
"Does it matter whether the maximum is 100, 1,000, or 10,000?
"Just don't lose points!
"What else could the first-place grand prize be?
"Just treat everything the school advertised as part of your grand prize.
"Surely, if you've done the best, you won't fail to receive the best reward?
"If that happens, even better!
"You can sue Advanced Nurturing High School for false advertising. The evidence will be irrefutable, and the compensation will be enough to feed you for the rest of your life!
"On the other hand, the other classes besides first place are in danger. At the very least, I don't think the school will send every one of those people in Class D to Todai University... If it did, the university's alumni would have gone mad long ago.
"An employment and further-education rate of 99% is an upper limit. The lower limit could be anything.
"More than that, the school will certainly use some method to ensure that all the 'unqualified' people fail to graduate by the time graduation approaches at the latest. As long as they don't graduate—or are even expelled—the school won't have to fulfill any of the things it advertised...
"I've seen this trick before. It's nothing unusual.
"To improve its competitiveness and prevent people from thinking that 'second place is good enough' and then slacking off, the gap between the rewards for each rank will certainly be enormous.
"It might even become a case of 'the winner takes all, and the losers eat dust.'"
"You see? You've added quite a lot of valuable information yourself, haven't you? Also..." At this point, Sakayanagi's face revealed a somewhat stiff, "polite" smile. "You really know how to joke~ How could Advanced Nurturing High School possibly engage in false advertising? This is an experimental super-high school with official backing and investment from major conglomerates. Those rewards are nothing compared to that."
"You're defending it pretty fiercely. Anyone who didn't know better might think your family owned the school."
"..."
"Hm? No way, no way. Does your family really own it? If I offend you someday, will you use your family's power to have me expelled?"
What an unexpected gain~
For a moment, Bai Lan silently added another potentially viable method of dropping out to his notebook: opposing Sakayanagi.
Sakayanagi's brow twitched, but she maintained her smile. "All right, all right. The opening ceremony is about to begin. We need to prepare. Please make yourself scarce."
The Class A representative issued Bai Lan an order to leave.
After Bai Lan had gone some distance away.
Sakayanagi said to Mashima, "Teacher Mashima, you already know the information we've obtained. Could you help us fill in the details Bai didn't mention?"
Mashima: "Please wait a moment."
Mashima made a phone call.
A short while later.
"500,000 points."
"Understood." Sakayanagi prepared to collect another round of "class fees."
Someone was unhappy and raised an objection:
"Sakayanagi! What are you doing? Why didn't you just spend 1,000,000 points to buy it from Teacher Mashima in the first place? Why buy information from that Class D student as well? You wasted so many points for nothing!"
Sakayanagi shook her head. "Honestly, Katsuragi, please discipline the puppy you raised yourself~"
"Sakayanagi, you!"
"First, he's my friend, not a dog. Second, Yahiko, sit down. Sakayanagi must have her reasons for doing this..."
Katsuragi, whose conspicuous bald head stood out among the others, said, "Sakayanagi, I more or less understand your approach, but many people may not. Could you explain?"
Sakayanagi: "Since you insist, I'll show you a little something."
"I did this first to test Class D's situation and determine the abilities and working style of the person called Bai Lan in Class D. Second, it was to keep the information from spreading..."
10. The Angels of Class B, Honami Ichinose, the Archangel
"I did this first to test Class D's situation and determine the abilities and working style of the person called Bai Lan in Class D. Second, it was to keep the information from spreading..."
Sakayanagi continued explaining:
"Through this test, we learned that Class D lacks the organizational strength to gather a large number of points and purchase information as quickly as we can.
"The information came entirely from Bai's individual abilities.
"However, Bai Lan didn't use this information to maximize his class's interests. Instead, he sold it for points.
"Therefore, Class D is no threat.
"But Bai Lan himself is very capable. Fortunately, he's greedy for money, so we can buy him off with points. In the future, we can use points to recruit him and have him work for us.
"We shouldn't worry too much about the gains and losses of this transaction. Consider it an expression of sincerity that will make further cooperation easier in the future.
"As for keeping the information from spreading.
"Among the classes with overall qualities comparable to ours and qualified to challenge us, only Class B is worth worrying about. Classes C and D are no threat. Only if Class B remains unaware of this information can we use our information advantage to create an impassable chasm between us in one stroke.
"Once the information is leaked to Class B, the information in our hands will depreciate.
"To preserve its value, we have to spend more points to raise its worth and maximize its value, creating the largest possible information gap between us and Class B.
"All of this is meaningful!"
There were still some things Sakayanagi hadn't said. In truth, she had already deduced most of the information Bai Lan had revealed long ago. Although there were some differences, they were largely the same.
Nevertheless, she had still proposed spending "wasted points" to purchase information from Teacher Mashima. Her goal was to use the official source's words to make those who harbored lucky hopes, believed that "second place might be good enough," and wanted to enjoy a carefree education finally give up!
Then they could throw themselves decisively into this cruel class war!
Bai Lan left Class A and then went to Class B.
Under the contract, he naturally couldn't sell the information he had already sold to Class A.
But what he had sold Class A was only the "basis on which the school evaluated classes and individuals." He still had plenty of unrelated but equally important information that he could sell.
For example: "Points can buy anything, including information."
(Bai Lan: The information that was bought out was sold to them by the school, not me.)
Before you continue