Just Want to Be a Slacker

Kamio Tatsuya wasn't particularly surprised by this, since he'd already suspected the school might pull something with academics.

And now Chabashira-sensei had dropped the bombshell that failing meant expulsion.

So it wasn't that shocking.

Still, why was thirty-two the passing line?

On a hundred-point test, shouldn't the cutoff be sixty?

Did this school have a different standard for passing?

Then Chabashira took out a red marker and drew a line across the name of the seventh person from the bottom on the score sheet.

All seven of them were close friends with Ike and Yamauchi, and naturally Ike, Yamauchi, and Sudo were included.

"Um, sensei, how exactly is this passing line determined?"

With stakes this high, Kamio Tatsuya couldn't keep playing ostrich anymore. He raised his hand to ask, because his own fifty-one points felt far from safe.

"Simple. Divide the average score by two, and that's your passing line."

Hearing that, Kamio Tatsuya breathed a sigh of relief.

"Finally, I'll give you one more piece of information. This school prides itself on a one-hundred-percent advancement and employment rate. That's not fabricated—it's a well-known fact.

But that kind of good fortune doesn't fall on everyone's head. Especially not you trash."

Tsk tsk, her words were getting harsher by the minute.

"Th-then, does that mean only those who advance to Class C or above can enjoy that treatment...?"

"Of course..." Chabashira-sensei began, then a wicked grin spread across her face. "Not. Only students who graduate from Class A get that privilege. Have I made myself clear enough?"

After enduring blow after blow, the students of Class D mostly looked like they'd been broken.

"It seems the cheerful atmosphere has been swept away. If you understand just how dire your situation is, then this guidance session of mine might actually mean something.

You have three weeks until the midterm exam. Think carefully, and avoid expulsion. I believe there are ways to avoid failing and make it through the test.

Oh, and it's a little late, but I still want to say: welcome to the classroom of the supreme meritocracy."

Chabashira closed the door with a bit of force, announcing her departure.

Kamio Tatsuya started thinking about how to avoid failing. He'd already saved up so many points—he didn't want to get expelled for bombing a test.

Even though he'd scored fifty-one on this quiz, and the passing line wouldn't exceed fifty, he didn't feel safe at all.

Because this was a comprehensive test—scores from multiple subjects were added together.

And when the midterm came, each subject would likely be graded separately.

When that happened, he really couldn't guarantee he'd pass every single subject.

Three weeks until the midterm. Twenty days.

In that time, he had to raise his grades to a level where he could coast through the exam safely.

That's right—coast through safely. Not scrape by with low scores, but pass with confidence!

If the exam was an enemy and academic ability was a weapon, Kamio Tatsuya felt like the deep-seated fear of insufficient firepower from his very soul had crossed over with him.

Chapter 30: Horikita Suzune's Future, Visible at a Glance

While Class D was holding their meeting, the other classes were naturally doing the same.

But even though the homeroom teachers conveyed the same information, the atmosphere in each class was worlds apart.

Take Class A, for example. After learning the truth about the school and seeing Class A's overwhelming score of 994 points, the students instinctively puffed out their chests, a sense of "it's all up to me" swelling within them.

This mental state was a stark contrast to Class D's.

And for bringing about this result—Sakayanagi Arisu and Katsuragi Kouhei—the Class A students felt even more respect.

If there had been some dissatisfaction when their private points were collected back then, seeing the gap now made those complaints vanish instantly.

Private points?

What did that matter? The right to guaranteed advancement and employment was the most important thing.

Even Class B couldn't match them. 650 points—compared to their 994, that was a gap of 344 points, nearly an entire Class C.

After all, Class C only had 490 points. They'd hardly be a threat.

As for Class D.

Please, don't make me laugh.

A class that got docked a thousand points in the very first month—how could they be worthy opponents?

"Congratulations on maintaining 994 points at the end of the first month. Even since the school's founding, this is the highest score ever recorded. You've shown the composure expected of Class A students."

Class A's homeroom teacher, Majima Tomoya, seemed to have a hint of a smile on his stern face.

Teaching good students was easy.

Then he thought of another unprecedented record—this year's Class D score was also the lowest ever.

Zero points. He wondered just how much of a headache that was giving Chabashira.

Though he didn't mean to gloat, Majima Tomoya couldn't help but want to laugh when he thought about it.

If anyone had told him something like this before, he would have definitely taken it as a joke.

Some say humans have no limits—it seems that applies not just upward, but downward as well.

Compared to Class A, the students of Class B were clearly not as proud; some even felt guilty, because based on the placement, their abilities should have been second only to Class A.

Yet they had only obtained 650 Class Points.

The gap with Class A was 344 points—more than half of what they had.

Even quite a few students who had violated school rules felt deeply remorseful.

At any rate, they were a hundred times better than those in Class D who recklessly broke the rules without any sense of regret.

And true to being second only to Class A, after a brief period of imbalance, they quickly adjusted their mindset and began to face their future life positively.

As for Class C, they were relatively relieved—no, they were extremely relieved.

Many even turned their gaze toward the man sitting in the last row of the classroom.

A head of red medium-long hair, eyes as sharp as a viper's.

Ryuen Kakeru—that was this man's name. Not long after enrollment, he had used violent measures to unify Class C, making everyone in the class fear for their own safety.

But it was precisely his violent methods that at least kept Class C students from being too unruly during class.

So while most feared his methods, without him, Class C's fate probably wouldn't have been much better than Class D's.

At least now they still had 490 Class Points, while Class D had zero.

And compared to the gap between Class B and Class A, the gap between Class C and Class B was only 160 points—far less than 344, not even half.

Class C students even felt they could soon replace Class B.

In Class D, after Chabashira-sensei left, the classroom fell into a brief silence before immediately becoming noisy again.

It wasn't just students like Ike and Yamauchi who had failed; even a boy with decent grades couldn't accept reality.

Yukimura Teruhiko, a student with excellent academic performance, seemed unable to accept being placed in Class D.

"What the hell? Why am I in Class D!"

"I understand everyone's confusion, but let's calm down for now."

Facing the chaotic Class D, Hirata Yosuke tried to get everyone to settle down, since arguing like this would get them nowhere.

But the blow to the students in the class was greater than expected, and they couldn't calm down anytime soon.

"How can you expect me to calm down? Being called the bottom of the barrel—aren't you frustrated?!"

"Even if we're being called that now, can't we just work together to turn things around?"

"Turn things around? I can't even accept being placed in this class from the start!"

"I understand how you feel. But complaining here won't get anything started, will it?"

"What did you say?"

Yukimura closed the distance as if about to grab Hirata by the collar.

"Both of you, calm down, okay? It's only been a month since school started, right? Like Hirata-kun said, can't we just all work hard together from here on? Isn't that right?"

"W-Well, that is... what Kushida-san says is indeed not wrong..."

Thanks to the efforts of Hirata Yosuke and Kushida Kikyo, the class temporarily quieted down.

Kamio Tatsuya had noticed Yukimura Teruhiko over the past few days—he was the type of student who took his studies very seriously. His interactions with classmates weren't as good as Hirata's, but they weren't bad either.

Sure enough, after Kushida's soothing words, he quickly calmed down.

Kamio Tatsuya wasn't entirely sure why someone like him had been placed in Class D.

But compared to him, Hirata Yosuke—who excelled in academics, athletic ability, and even social skills—seemed like an even bigger problem.

Class D students were defective products. Chabashira-sensei probably wasn't exaggerating.

"Defective product" refers to a product whose quality doesn't meet relevant standards or agreed requirements, having flaws, defects, classification errors, inaccurate descriptions, or missing parts.

If someone as outstanding as Hirata Yosuke counted as a defective product, it meant that what he showed was only his normal—or even excellent—side.

But everything has two sides. If he was this excellent on one side yet still placed in Class D, it meant the other side he was hiding had serious issues.

By the same logic, that girl named Kushida Kikyo probably had no small problems either.

As for the others...

Kamio Tatsuya glanced at Horikita Suzune. Forget her—her problems were too obvious.

If things continued like this, Kamio Tatsuya could even predict her future.

Wanting to do everything herself, not realizing that one person's strength is limited.

One person challenging the impossible—there are many impossibilities.

A group of people can challenge the impossible.

Even if she did manage to graduate successfully and land a job at her desired workplace, she'd probably crumble before long.

She'd be isolated by her coworkers, then someone would deliberately trip her up at work, she'd make mistakes, get called in for a talk by her boss, and finally get fired.

Chapter 31: Horikita, Want to Be My Tutor?

As he analyzed Horikita Suzune's future, Kamio Tatsuya's gaze toward her gradually took on a hint of pity.

"What's that look supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, just that your future's probably going to be pretty miserable."

"That's none of your concern."

Kamio Tatsuya spoke plainly, while Horikita Suzune's face darkened.

Indeed, with her current shortage of points, her life was pretty miserable. She had only a few hundred Private Points left, and she'd probably be eating the Mountain Vegetable Set in a couple of days.

Huh?

No, wait—maybe it was like the free set meal. Perhaps the ingredient section had free stuff too. She'd check it out after school.

Though the two were talking about different things, it oddly lined up.

"Kamio-kun, could I bother you for a moment? To increase our points, I'd like to discuss what to do next after school. I'd really appreciate it if you could join. Is that okay?"

Hirata Yosuke's eyes were full of anticipation.

After all, Kamio Tatsuya was the first to notice the clues, and he hoped to borrow Kamio Tatsuya's wisdom.

Looking at Hirata Yosuke's sincere eyes, Kamio Tatsuya almost couldn't help but agree on the spot.

But after thinking it over, he immediately refused. And did they really need to discuss ways to increase points?

Bro, are you out of your mind?