Classroom Performance

"Look, Yuto, does this eraser look familiar to you?"

That evening, in Amasawa Yuto's room, Yuki suddenly pulled an eraser from her pocket and showed it to him with a flourish.

Yuto stared at the eraser. For a split second, he thought there was something wrong with the text on the wrapper, but it took him a moment to realize what it was.

"It's the eraser provided by the instructors during every exam in the White Room."

In the White Room, everyone wore loose white garments. They had no personal belongings other than what was provided for washing and changing. Even the stationery used for daily study and every exam was distributed on the spot by the instructors.

And this was the exact style of eraser they used.

"It seems the White Room's supplier also has ties to this school. Though, considering Sakayanagi is involved with both, perhaps he was the one who bridged the connection."

Seeing an item familiar to the White Room after eight years, Yuto couldn't help but feel a bit dazed.

It was as if he had been transported back to the day Ayanokouji Kiyotaka disappeared.

"By the way, Yuki, the reason I didn't recognize it immediately just now is because the White Room relocated once after you left. The erasers weren't this style in the new White Room, so I haven't seen one like this in eight or nine years. That's why I didn't recognize it right away."

"Hmph, excuses. I recognized it instantly. When it comes down to it, your impression just wasn't deep enough. Sigh, the bond is fading." Yuki toyed with the eraser, her mood appearing exceptionally high.

This was the real Yuki. Yuto watched her; this was the side of Yuki she used to show in the White Room.

After all, she was the kind of child who could take the initiative to talk to others and laugh happily in that place.

Since crossing over into this world, Yuto admitted that he had underestimated the White Room. That place was absolute hell.

After staying there for so long, even the most abundant emotions would be worn away.

Not to mention the original emotionless machine Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, even Yuto, who had originally been a normal person, was gradually leaning toward Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's way of being after fifteen years in the White Room.

The fluctuations of his emotions were becoming fewer and fewer. How long had it been since he last smiled?

It was like the equivalent exchange in alchemy: he had gained immense power, but lost his emotions.

Coming to this school, perhaps he was hoping to find the emotions he lacked, just like the original Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.

Although he didn't know the future plot, Yuto believed this must be a story about a cold boy gradually being healed by others and finding salvation, right?

If so, perhaps he and Yuki could find salvation here as well.

Perhaps it was with that thought in mind that he and Yuki had come to this school.

The next day, official classes began, and Yuto met the homeroom teachers for each class.

Since the teachers were responsible for all four classes, their homeroom teacher, Mashima Tomoya, was also the one teaching English to classes A, B, C, and D simultaneously.

There was also the chemistry teacher and Class B homeroom teacher Sakagami Kazuma, and the history teacher and Class D homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae.

Class B homeroom teacher Hoshinomiya Chie did not participate in teaching; she was the school infirmary teacher.

Mashima-sensei taught well and was very responsible toward his students.

I had originally thought that with Chabashira Sae's slacker personality, she would just go through the motions during class, but to my surprise, she was quite serious and even taught well, occasionally cracking a joke or two.

Of course, the study atmosphere in Class A was also excellent. Even if Katsuragi hadn't suggested that everyone behave well, they likely would have listened attentively anyway, as their average level was already the highest among the four classes.

In class, everyone was listening intently; no one was making noise or whispering.

Even Sakayanagi was taking notes seriously.

It seems that a teacher's enthusiasm for teaching can also change depending on the level of cooperation from the students.

History education was not a focus of the White Room, and Amasawa Yuto had only memorized historical knowledge within the realm of common sense.

Therefore, he found some of the explanations quite interesting.

As for the science courses, Yuto found them a bit boring to listen to, as he had already fully mastered that knowledge by the age of six or seven, and now he had to listen to it all over again.

Especially since Sakagami-sensei's teaching style was standard, serious, and rigid.

Class D was a completely different scene: students sleeping in class, whispering, secretly playing on their phones, playing with handheld consoles, zoning out, and some even putting their feet up on their desks.

However, the teachers at the podium turned a blind eye to all of this. They didn't care that there were probably only a few people actually listening; they just kept lecturing to themselves. They didn't criticize the students, and when class ended, they didn't drag it out—they just left.

Although Tsubaki Yuki had left the White Room at the age of seven, she had already mastered the basic knowledge for all three years of high school, so she was also somewhat distracted during class.

Moreover, she wondered if that bunch of noisy problem students had any self-awareness about disturbing others; it didn't look like they did. Had she overestimated their moral standards?

And then there was Koenji, who was brazenly putting his feet on his desk during class, combing his hair in front of a mirror.

Come to think of it, wouldn't he go bald if he kept combing his hair for that long? Even with her own long hair, she lost quite a bit every time she washed it.

Beside her, Horikita Suzune was taking notes diligently, even in such an environment.

Although it was only the second day, the embryonic forms of various cliques were already faintly visible in the class.

First, on the boys' side, everyone was basically operating in their own camps. Although Yosuke Hirata had a few boys around him, he was mostly surrounded by girls.

Then there were Kanji Ike, Haruki Yamauchi, and Sudo Ken in the corner, privately referred to by the girls as the "Three Idiots." They were slacking off and making noise every day, the standard template for failing students.

Then, on the girls' side, they could basically be divided into three types: the first was the largest group centered around Kushida Kikyo, the second was the small circle centered around Kei Karuizawa, and the third was the outcasts like her and Horikita.

However, she was different from Horikita; at least she still maintained basic social interactions with the girls, whereas Horikita had truly cut off all ties with the class.

Even yesterday, Kushida Kikyo had come to ask if I had Horikita's contact information. Unfortunately for Kushida, although Tsubaki Yuki sat next to her, even she didn't have Horikita's contact information.

Tsubaki Yuki had currently identified four such loners: herself, Horikita Suzune, the plain-looking girl with red twin tails Sakura Airi, and the girl with long blue hair and an excellent figure, Hasebe Haruka.

Incidentally, the reason Kei Karuizawa was able to form her own clique outside of Kushida Kikyo's influence was that she had announced her relationship with Yosuke Hirata on the second day of school.

Although I didn't know if the two had even known each other beforehand, or if they had actually taken the time to understand each other before entering such a lightning-fast relationship on the second day of school.

However, to onlookers, the impression of both of them would likely have diminished; after all, such fast-food-style dating made it seem like they didn't take relationships seriously.

Those girls who also liked Yosuke Hirata and had been beaten to the position of his girlfriend naturally harbored resentment toward Kei Karuizawa.

But Kei Karuizawa didn't seem to care. She appeared to be a very strong-willed girl, which fit her gyaru image perfectly.

Sato Maya, Shinohara Satsuki, and Matsushita Chiaki, who were by her side, also seemed to share that same gyaru image.