"So that's how it works... The class evaluation is directly tied to our income." Katsuragi Kouhei murmured to himself. He had finally understood the system's core principle.
"Then, sensei..."
Katsuragi Kouhei stood up and asked the question on everyone's mind. "Is there any way to increase our Class Points?"
"Of course. You can earn Class Points by achieving excellent results in the various exams and activities held by the school. On the other hand, poor performance in these activities or major misconduct that violates the School Rules could lead to a large deduction of Class Points—or even leave them zeroed out."
"Zeroed out?!" The word made everyone gasp.
If their Class Points were zeroed out, that meant their monthly income would also become zero.
In a school where they needed Points to buy everything, that was no different from a death sentence.
After a brief commotion, the Class A classroom quickly fell quiet again.
They had immediately realized something else.
"Sensei, what about the other classes...?" one student couldn't help asking.
Majima Tomoya seemed to have expected the question. He wrote on the blackboard:
Class A: 920
Class B: 650
Class C: 490
Class D: 0
"...Zero?"
"Did Class D have all their Points deducted? What did they do for a whole month?"
"Compared to them, the 80 Points we lost are nothing..."
The enormous gap restored the Class A students' sense of superiority.
They weren't just in the lead. They were far ahead of every other class, with an overwhelming, crushing advantage.
"That's the reality. At this school, the classes are in complete competition with one another. Every effort you make, every time you let your guard down, affects your class's future. And..."
Majima Tomoya paused for a moment. "This school is managed by the state and prides itself on its high rates of university admission and employment. But... there's no such thing as getting something for nothing. The world isn't so simple that just anyone can go on to higher education or find a job."
Majima Tomoya's words carried across the classroom.
"If you want to achieve your goals of finding a job or going on to higher education, you have to be in Class A at the end!"
The classroom erupted. Everyone realized just how cruel this competition was.
"So we have to work even harder to hold on to our place in Class A."
"Finally, there's one more thing I need to announce. In three weeks, the school will hold this term's Midterm Exam. This Exam is different from the Quizzes you've taken so far. If a student fails to reach the Passing Score in even one subject, then..."
He paused, each word seeming to be forced out through clenched teeth.
"...that student will be expelled immediately."
"E-Expelled?!"
"Is the school really that harsh? They'll expel us for failing one exam?"
The word exploded through the classroom like a bomb.
"Sensei, what's the Passing Score?"
"You're worried about the Passing Score...?"
Majima Tomoya glanced at the documents in his hand. "Based on your scores on this Quiz, our class average is about forty points higher than the estimated Passing Score. In other words, as long as you maintain your performance from this Quiz—or even slip a little—there shouldn't be any problem with everyone passing the Midterm Exam."
His words instantly eased the Class A students' worries.
"Forty points higher..."
"So even if we do really badly, it'll still be hard to fail, right?"
"You scared me... But seriously, the lower classes are such trash. They only got those scores on an exam like this?"
"I see... This rule was basically made to weed out the deadweight in the lower classes."
Majima Tomoya watched as the classroom settled down again and said nothing more.
He closed his folder, announced the end of the Class Meeting, and turned to leave.
The moment he left, the classroom erupted into lively discussion once again.
This time, though, they weren't talking about the deduction of Points. They were talking about the "Expulsion Rules" and Class A's enormous advantage over the other classes.
"Hey, Kagihara, you really stole the show this time!"
Hashimoto Masayoshi came over, dropped into the empty seat in front of Tetsu, and turned to face him. "The only Perfect Score in the class—how does it feel? Have lots of cute girls started lining up to give you love letters?"
Tetsu glanced at him. "I'm not interested in love letters. But if they're willing to offer me their Personal Points as one, I might consider it."
"Haha, you really don't beat around the bush!"
Hashimoto Masayoshi laughed, then lowered his voice. "Seriously, what do you think about the expulsions? The teacher said our class was safe, but I can't help feeling there's more to it than that."
Tetsu lightly tapped his fingertips against the desk. He didn't answer Hashimoto's question directly. "Hashimoto, what do you think rules are for?"
"What are they for? Obviously, they're there to be followed."
"No."
Tetsu shook his head. "Rules are there to be broken and exploited. Especially when they let you easily remove your opponents from the board."
His voice was quiet, but Hashimoto Masayoshi's smile vanished instantly.
"Remove them... from the game?"
Hashimoto Masayoshi's voice dropped without him realizing it. "Hey, hey, Kagihara, don't scare me. Expulsion isn't a joke. We're all classmates, after all..."
"Hashimoto, are you still asleep? Didn't you hear what Majima-sensei just said? From the moment we set foot in this school, the people in the other classes stopped being our 'classmates.' They're our enemies, stumbling blocks on the road to graduating from Class A."
"There are only so many seats in Class A. Every time a student from another class gets expelled for failing, that means one fewer potential threat. And if we could make another class collapse completely because a large number of its students were expelled, wouldn't that make the road ahead much easier for us?"
A sheen of cold sweat appeared on Hashimoto Masayoshi's temple.
He had always known that Tetsu was no ordinary person.
He had earned Sakayanagi's favor and scored the only Perfect Score on the Quiz. He was clearly no one to underestimate.
But Hashimoto Masayoshi had mostly seen him as a powerful potential ally.
Only now did he catch a glimpse of the ruthlessness Tetsu had been hiding.
From the very beginning, this person had never intended to "coexist peacefully" with anyone. He was thinking about war—a war of annihilation that would crush every opponent.
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