Class D's Little Rumors

His gaze shifted to the other students...

[Target: Shiranami Chihiro (Status Refresh)]

Information Synthesis: B-Rank (Active) - Currently conceptualizing how to abstract the complex campus information flow.

Concentration: B-Rank (Highly Focused)

[Affection: 38 (Neutral) → 39 (Neutral)] - Approaching the critical point!

Toudou Shizuka's heart stirred. Shiranami's affection was just a little bit short! He casually turned his body, displaying a sketch on his drawing board, full of tension and depicting "the constraints of rules and inner turmoil," within Shiranami's line of sight.

Shiranami Chihiro was frowning at her own drawing board, seemingly troubled by how to express the abstract sense of "rhythm." She caught sight of Toudou Shizuka's sketch, and her eyes lit up slightly!

The simple yet impactful composition accurately captured the campus atmosphere she felt but struggled to express—the competitive pressure and desire for breakthrough beneath a calm facade! This gave her great inspiration!

She immediately lowered her head and revised her composition. Her lines became more directional and conflict-driven, conveying her message more clearly.

[Shiranami Chihiro Affection +1 (Gained value recognition through inspiration). Current: 40 (Friendly)!]

[Unlocked Target (Shiranami Chihiro) Skill: Information Synthesis B-Rank Simulation Permission!]

Success! Toudou Shizuka's heart settled. He calmly withdrew his gaze and continued to refine his work.

Thirty minutes passed quickly. Miyazawa-sensei reviewed everyone's work with great interest.

Kobashi Yume's painting was bright, filled with jumping dots and lines, exuding pure vitality and strong infectiousness;

Shiranami Chihiro's work had calm, restrained lines but a clear structure and strong sense of information;

Toudou Shizuka's painting was full of inner tension, the conflict between rules and breakthrough striking directly at the heart.

Final Judging:

1st Place: Toudou Shizuka (500 Points) - Profound conceptual communication, strong visual impact.

2nd Place: Shiranami Chihiro (300 Points) - Clear structure, unique informational feel.

3rd Place: Kobashi Yume (200 Points) - Vibrant, outstanding infectiousness.

"Congratulations to the three students!" Miyazawa-sensei announced with a smile. "Your works have all captured a wonderful facet of 'rhythm' very well!"

Kobashi Yume jumped up happily, and Shiranami Chihiro also revealed a rare, faint smile. Toudou Shizuka humbly expressed his gratitude, pocketing the 500 points. After all, even a mosquito's leg is still meat.

After class, Toudou Shizuka did not leave immediately. He walked over to Miyazawa-sensei, who was tidying up teaching materials, with the respectful curiosity of a student seeking guidance: "Miyazawa-sensei, today's activity was very interesting.

I was wondering, are there many such individual reward activities at the school? Or, is there a more direct way to improve the entire class's evaluation level and points?"

Miyazawa-sensei stopped what he was doing and looked at Toudou Shizuka, smiling gently. "Toudou-kun is very concerned about the class.

As for individual reward activities, teachers in various subjects occasionally set up small prizes, but they are quite random. As for improving the class evaluation..." He lowered his voice slightly, with a hint of suggestion, "The key still lies in the overall performance of 'Class Behavior.'

Daily discipline, academic culture, and cooperation are the foundation, but what truly widens the gap and significantly improves the evaluation are those 'Major Events' that showcase the class's comprehensive strength and decision-making abilities.

For example, the various large-scale activities and competitions organized by the school, especially... well, the 'Special Exams' you should have heard of. Performance in these 'Major Events' is the core weight that determines the rise and fall of class levels. While gradual accumulation is important, seizing key moments often leads to twice the result with half the effort."

"Class Behavior," "Major Events," "key moments," "Special Exams"! Although Miyazawa-sensei's words still did not reveal specific rules, the direction was extremely clear!

This confirmed Toudou Shizuka's previous speculation and emphasized the core position of "Special Exams" in the evaluation system.

"Thank you for your guidance, Miyazawa-sensei!" Toudou Shizuka thanked him sincerely and left the classroom with a sense of accomplishment.

Just as Toudou Shizuka was taking action to obtain crucial information, the storm caused by Class D's Zero Points was brewing. During lunchtime, Toudou Shizuka sat with Kanzaki, Kobashi Yume, Shiranami Chihiro, and others in a corner of the cafeteria.

"Hey, have you heard?" Kobashi Yume whispered mysteriously. "Over in Class D... it seems someone is borrowing money privately!"

"Borrowing money?" Kanzaki Ryuji's brow immediately furrowed. "Points? On-campus Point Lending?"

"Yeah!" Kobashi Yume nodded. "It seems someone was in a hurry to buy study materials or daily necessities, their points were cleared, so they asked classmates with some savings to lend them... I heard... I heard if they borrow a thousand points, they have to return eleven hundred in a few days!" Her tone was filled with disbelief.

"Interest Lending?" Kanzaki Ryuji's expression turned grim, his gaze behind his glasses sharp. "High-interest loans of any form are strictly prohibited on campus! This is a serious violation of school rules! Once discovered, both the lender and borrower will be heavily penalized!"

"Ah? It's that serious?" Kobashi Yume was startled. "Then... then why are they still borrowing?"

"Because the suffering and days without points make it impossible for them to adapt compared to their lives when they had 100,000 Points, and also because they are short-sighted."

"After all, they received 100,000 Private Points when they first enrolled and spent them all within a month, showing they lacked reasonable planning and restraint, assuming they would always have 100,000 Points. Therefore, they didn't set aside a portion. This perfectly corresponds to an ancient saying: 'It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality.'"

Toudou Shizuka calmly interjected, stirring the soup in his bowl with his spoon. "Zero Points means even the most basic learning and living necessities are problematic. Textbooks, stationery, even meal money in the cafeteria might be a struggle.

Although they can rely on the free supplies within the Academy to last until the next month, not everyone can accept such a life.

Under immense survival pressure and panic, people easily lose rational judgment and drink poison to quench their thirst." He paused, his gaze sweeping over the thoughtful faces of the others, and added pointedly, "Moreover, in a closed environment, this kind of small-scale 'mutual aid' lending, if both parties are willing and the interest is 'reasonable' (like only returning a few dozen more points as a favor), is indeed difficult to supervise and can be exploited.

But the risk is extremely high, like walking a tightrope. Once reported, or if the borrower is unable to repay and a dispute arises, the consequences are unimaginable. This is not a solution at all; it will only drag Class D into a deeper quagmire."

His analysis was calm and thorough, pointing out the root cause of Class D's predicament (survival anxiety caused by Zero Points), highlighting the risks of lending (violations, disputes, vicious cycles), and subtly implying that "small-scale, voluntary, low-interest" might be a gray area to exploit the rules currently, but it is by no means the right path.

Sigh: (They could have walked slowly on their own feet, and life would have become more ordinary, without needing to borrow from others to make themselves flustered) ૮ ºﻌºა On watch.