Strength Above All

May had finally arrived, and the students sat quietly in the classroom, waiting for Chabashira-sensei to begin the class meeting.

If 100000 Points had been deposited today, Hirata's standing in the class would have plummeted. But that was impossible. The points had already been deposited equally into every Class D student's account.

11000.

First, it had been confirmed that points were indeed distributed by class. The sudden drop from 100000 Points to 10000 Points made the atmosphere in the classroom tense.

The figure surprised Konoe. He hadn't expected that even after Hirata had tirelessly tried to persuade everyone from the very beginning, he still couldn't get their points up to 30000 Points.

Konoe understood that he'd been far too optimistic before.

Chabashira-sensei entered the classroom with a poster tube in her hand. Her expression was sterner than usual, though the students looked much the same.

"We'll begin the class meeting now, but before we do, does anyone have any questions? If so, ask them quickly." She sounded as if she was certain someone would have a question.

"Um, Sensei... Why did we only get a little over 10000 points this month? We won't be able to get by like this." Ike stood up to ask.

"Will we keep getting this amount every month from now on?" asked a girl who had spent a great deal of money on points. She often wore expensive accessories.

Most of the students looked serious, and Hirata seemed especially dejected.

"What a bunch of foolish students."

Konoe sensed a change in Chabashira-sensei's manner. The indifference she usually exuded had vanished, replaced by something chilling.

"Ike, sit down. I won't say it twice."

Ike immediately did as he was told. He'd never heard Chabashira-sensei speak in that tone before, and the other students were just as stunned.

"Isn't it obvious? It means Class D only earned 11000 points this month. Even though someone in this class knew the details in advance, I can't believe you still managed to earn so few points. I'm speechless." Chabashira-sensei sneered.

"Sensei, may I ask a question?" Hirata already knew the whole story, but he raised his hand anyway for the sake of his classmates, who were growing uneasy.

"Please tell us why we were only given 11000 points..." Hirata asked, his heart aching as he spoke.

"You were late or absent a total of forty-eight times. You talked during class or used your phones in class 151 times. At this school, your class's performance is reflected in your points. In fact, considering your abilities, it's impressive you still have 11000 points. I told you when you enrolled that this school judged students by their abilities. You've simply received the evaluation you deserve."

The result was far worse than he'd expected, and Konoe felt terrible too. He remembered that a month ago, he might have been able to buy the exact details of the evaluation.

If he'd had solid evidence to show his classmates, even if each person had saved only half their points, that would have meant twenty-five people... And with evidence, they could have traded the information with other classes for points.

But when the opportunity had come, he'd only had 100000 Points, and he hadn't wanted to go to the trouble of finding another 700000. No wonder Ayanokoji had thought it was worth buying.

What would Ayanokoji be thinking right now? Konoe wondered as he looked over.

Horikita looked furious at Chabashira-sensei's merciless assessment. Ayanokoji, sitting beside her, looked calm. He must have had plenty of points left.

Hirata immediately asked the question he really cared about. "Please tell us the details of how points are added and deducted... so we can use that as a reference going forward."

"That's impossible. It's like a personnel evaluation. When you enter society and join a company, do you expect them to tell you every detail of what they look for during an interview or internship?" After answering Hirata, Chabashira-sensei looked toward Konoe.

She's trying to get me to spend my points, isn't she? There's no point buying something that's already been lost. Konoe looked away.

"I'll tell you one good thing as a special exception." Chabashira-sensei smiled faintly.

"Even if you start behaving from this moment on and no one breaks the rules again, your points still won't increase. In other words, next month you'll still get the same amount, provided that no one really breaks any rules. But look at it another way: for a mere 10000 points, you can give up on them and be late or absent as much as you like. How does that sound?"

Even Hirata's expression darkened at that. Hearing such a pessimistic suggestion might make students who wanted to improve their discipline give up altogether.

Konoe suddenly thought: Why not just give up on the points and drag everyone in the other classes down with us? But he shook his head. The evaluation was already over. Doing that would probably get him expelled by the school.

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of the class meeting. But Chabashira-sensei's real meeting had yet to begin.

"We've been talking for too long. It's time to get down to business."

Chabashira took a thick sheet of white paper out of the poster tube and unfolded it, then used magnets to stick it to the blackboard.

Is that the Class Points Table?

It listed Classes A, B, C, and D, with a number beside each. Class D had 110.

Class A: 940.

Class B: 850.

Class C: 590.

The gap between Class A and Class B was so small that Konoe suspected it might be the result of his information. But he was surprised that Class B had somehow managed to act so cohesively despite only guessing that the information was true.

After all, they'd found out about the information here on the first day, told Hirata on the second, and passed it on to everyone in Class D first thing on the third. Yet Class D still had only 110 points.

"The school won't object to you doing whatever you please here. It will simply be you who suffers the consequences in the end. The same goes for points. How you use what you have is up to you, and the school won't restrict you."

"But I can't even get by like this!" Yamauchi and Ike wailed. One of them had only 11000 points this month, to make matters worse...

"Idiots, do you understand why you were assigned to Class D?"

"Were we assigned to Class D instead of being placed there at random?" Hirata only knew that the classes competed with one another, but he'd probably guessed something was up when he'd seen the results.

"This school assigns students to classes according to their merit. The most outstanding students go to Class A, while the useless ones end up in Class D. It's nothing unusual in society, either. Put simply, Class D is a trash can... Pardon me. You're all defective goods of the worst kind, and the school has confirmed that the points you earned are an appropriate outcome for defective goods like you."

Konoe hurriedly looked at Horikita. As expected, she was stunned, as if she'd taken a blow.

Horikita had a great deal of pride, and she was talented both academically and athletically. She excelled in both the arts and sports, so it was only natural that this result shocked her.

"You're pathetic enough to have such a terrible result even though you knew the information in advance. But thanks to that information, at least you didn't end up with zero points." Chabashira-sensei clapped pointedly, the sound carrying across the classroom.

"So, from now on, are we going to be looked down on by everyone else?" Sudo kicked his desk with a bang, remembering what had happened at the convenience store.

"So you care about your pride after all, Sudo? Then work hard to move your class up."

"Huh?"

"Class Points don't just determine how many points you receive each month. They also directly affect your class ranking. In other words, if Class D gets 600 points, it will become Class C."

Chabashira-sensei then put another sheet of paper on the blackboard. It listed the names of everyone in the class, with a number beside each name.

"These are the results of your last Mini-test. It seems we have quite a few talented students in Class D. I'm delighted. Had you never received a textbook before? If this had been an official exam, seven of you would already be expelled, and it's barely been a month since school started."

"E-expelled? What do you mean?"

"Didn't I tell you? This school's rules say that you'll be expelled if you fail even one subject in either the Midterm Exam or the final exams. Based on these results... everyone who scored below thirty-three would be expelled. You really are foolish, aren't you?"

The classroom erupted in wails, especially from the Idiot Trio.

"Let me add one more thing. This school is officially recognized for its high rates of advancement to higher education and employment. I imagine most of you, even in this class, have goals of continuing your education or finding a job, right?"

"But... opportunities don't fall from the sky. The world won't make things easy for defective goods like you."

"Do we need to be promoted to Class C or higher to get a job or continue our education?"

"Hirata, that's wrong too. If you want this school to help you achieve your future goals, the only way is to be promoted to Class A. This school won't offer any guarantees to students outside Class A."

"H-how can that be? I never heard anything like this before enrolling! It makes no sense!" A bespectacled boy stood up to protest. He was Yukimura Teruhiko, who had scored 90 on the Mini-test, tying for second place with Kogenji and Horikita.

"How unsightly. A man in a panic is a truly pathetic sight." Kogenji sighed.

"Kogenji, aren't you upset that you were assigned to Class D?"

"Upset? Why should I be? At the end of the day, this is only the school's assessment. It merely proves that the school is incapable of measuring my abilities and potential. I acknowledge, respect, and revere myself more than anyone else, and I consider myself a great man. Even if the school expels me, I don't mind. Afterward, the school will be the one begging me to come back. One hundred percent."

Kogenji's arrogant speech carried across the classroom. Konoe didn't mind being assigned to Class D either, but he couldn't match the other boy's confidence—or his narcissism.

"Besides, I have absolutely no need to worry about finding a job or going to college. I'm destined to inherit the Kogenji Zaibatsu. Whether I'm in Class A or Class D makes no difference."

Kogenji already had everything most people wanted, so it was true that their concerns didn't apply to him.

Yukimura could only sit back down, at a loss for words.

"Looks like you understand your situation now. Then perhaps the time I wasted on you today wasn't in vain. The Midterm Exam is three weeks away. Think carefully, and do your best to avoid expulsion. If you want to change the school's assessment, then challenge it with the abilities and actions to back it up."

Chabashira-sensei shut the door behind her with a bang and left the classroom.

The students who'd failed hung their heads in dejection. Even Sudo, who usually did whatever he pleased, was subdued now.