"Looks like you all understand. Then we should get down to business."
What Chabashira had to tell them wasn't limited to personal points. The poster roll in her hand was the real main event.
She pulled out a thick sheet of white paper, unfolded it, and pinned it to the blackboard with magnets.
It clearly listed the names of Classes A through D, with a number beside each one.
Class A: 940 points.
Class B: 650 points.
Class 1-C: 490 points.
Class D: 0 points.
"These numbers show the gap between you and the other classes. They represent your Class Points. A proportion of your Class Points is converted into personal points and deposited on your student cards each month."
Seeing it laid out like this made things much clearer. Apparently, one Class Point could be converted into 100 personal points.
Even Shinjo was a little surprised. He'd expected there might be a large gap between his class and Class A, but losing only 60 points in a month was far too much.
And judging by the point totals of the four classes, the gaps between Classes A, B, 1-C, and D were enormous.
"I'll make this clear first: the school's evaluations are absolutely fair and impartial. As for why the difference is so great, you'll have to ask yourselves."
"So... do you understand now why you were assigned to Class D?"
?????
Chabashira's question had clearly touched a blind spot in the students' knowledge.
Horikita Suzune in particular reacted very strongly. She hadn't thought there was any difference between the classes, but now she seemed to realize that wasn't the case at all.
"What? Wasn't this just the result of random class assignments?"
"Since it's come to this, I'll tell you. This school assigns students to classes according to their level of excellence. The best students go to Class A, and the most useless ones go to Class D. Simply put, you're the school's most defective products."
"Class Points don't just affect your monthly personal points. They directly determine your class ranking. In other words, if you had 500 points right now, you'd be Class 1-C."
There was some logic to putting excellent products or fresh fruit together with other excellent products, and rotten fruit with useless things.
After all, bad things could drag good things down with them.
At this point, Chabashira Sae unfolded another sheet of white paper. It showed the results of yesterday's quiz.
She really takes her job seriously. She graded every test in just one day...
"These are the results of yesterday's quiz. Seeing how many 'talented' students you have, I'm absolutely delighted. Hey, what on earth did you study in middle school?"
Leaving aside the handful of students with high scores, most had scored around 60. Shinjo Katsuya was among them.
Further down, Sudō had gotten an unbelievable 14, Ike had gotten 24, and yet the class average was 64.
"Do you see? If this had been an actual exam, seven of you would already be expelled, and we've only just started the school year!"
At some schools, students who scored less than half the average would be held back a year. Advanced Nurturing High School was different. It only cultivated elites and had no place for trash.
"Expelled?!"
"What? Didn't I tell you? At this school, if you score less than half the average on a midterm or final exam, you'll fail. And any student who fails will be expelled!"
"Aaaaaah?!"
The classroom erupted in anguished cries.
Yesterday, it had been, "The whole place is on me, gentlemen!" Today, it was, "Your expulsion today is on me, gentlemen."
Anyone would have found that hard to accept.
"Sae, stop joking around! Tell me, tell me you're just trying to scare us!"
Ike even wondered if he was still asleep. He pinched his face hard, but the sharp pain told him he wasn't dreaming.
"Heh, I told you this class was full of ugly people~"
At a time like this, Kōenji stepped forward and started insulting everyone.
His remark earned the furious ire of the students who had failed:
"Kōenji, what the hell are you saying?! You must be in the group that failed too, right?!"
"Heh, BOY, you'd better take a good look."
Ike searched from the bottom of the list upward, but couldn't find Kōenji's name. It wasn't until he reached the top that he spotted it—and Kōenji had even scored a 90.
Chabashira Sae took a moment to catch her breath, drank from her thermos, and cleared her throat.
"One last thing. Of course, I doubt you'd have figured it out on your own. You've all heard of this school's exceptionally high rates of university admission and employment, haven't you?"
Naturally. Most students had come here for those very reasons.
"The school does have that kind of influence, but it won't let low-level students like you go and bring shame upon universities and companies. Do you understand what I mean?"
"You mean... if we want to receive those opportunities, we have to advance to Class 1-C or higher, right?"
Chabashira shook her head.
"No. If you want your wishes to come true, graduating from Class A is your only option. This school won't write recommendation letters or provide guarantees for anyone outside Class A."
That bombshell was the worst news of all for the students of Class D.
They had dreamed of a bright future for so long, only to see it vanish in the space of a single lesson.
"H-How could that be?! I've never heard anything like this! Not once!"
A thin boy with glasses stood up. Unlike the others, he was a genuine top student. He'd not only earned the highest score but could also apply what the teacher said in class to new problems. He was a smart kid.
Before Chabashira Sae could answer, Kōenji's mocking voice rang out:
"How pathetic."
"Kōenji! Aren't you at all unhappy about being assigned to Class D?!"
"Hahahahaha! It's simply that the school can't measure my potential. I respect and believe in myself more than anyone. Whatever the school thinks of me is meaningless."
"Besides, I've never expected the school to solve any problems for me or make my wishes come true. I'm going to inherit the Kōenji Conglomerate, so I don't care whether I'm in Class A or Class D."
It was hard to know why someone like Kōenji had come to this school. The excellent education he'd received growing up was no worse than what Advanced Nurturing could offer, and yet he'd still come here.
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