Kōenji's Intelligence

"So, you knew I was coming all along?"

Looking at the Brunch Cake pushed in front of him and the other's smug, triumphant grin, Shintō Katsuya finally understood.

"Well, it is one of the most effective charms to use on you. Someone who treats sweets as their lifeblood wouldn't miss out on this monthly limited edition, would they?"

Even when facing Shintō, Kōenji continued to go his own way, using a comb to groom his hair.

"Regardless, thanks. If it weren't for you, I might have really had to wait another month."

"Hahaha, enjoy the favor I have bestowed upon you to your heart's content."

"So, what do you want from me?"

Kōenji was the quintessential synonym for someone who wouldn't move without profit. On this point, even Shintō had to admit he was inferior.

"That's certainly straightforward. But that's fine, too; I want you to owe me a favor."

The smile on Shintō Katsuya's face stiffened; a favor from this guy was nothing to joke about.

"Hey... you haven't developed some kind of delusion, have you? You want me to work for you over a mere cake?"

Kōenji simply held up a finger and shook it a few times:

"No, no, no. I'm certainly not that naive. This cake is a gift. As a condition, I'll tell you a piece of information regarding the school. How about it?"

"That depends on how valuable your information is."

Kōenji laughed heartily, satisfied. Shintō was a person who valued profit just like him, so he wouldn't go back on his word over information that would eventually come to light anyway. Thus, he spoke slowly:

"Regarding private points, you must have already discovered something, right?"

"Oh my, oh my. Isn't this supposed to be you telling me useful information? Why are you asking me instead? Don't tell me you, the young master Kōenji, are trying to pull a fast one?"

"Heh, you're still as suspicious as ever. Fine, you only need to know that if things continue like this, most of the people in our class will be penniless by next month. Furthermore, private points are far more useful than you think."

Shintō Katsuya nodded calmly upon hearing this; he had already mentally prepared himself for that much.

Kōenji didn't say anything else upon seeing this. Whether the other party already knew this information or not, he wouldn't let any cracks show in his expression.

However, since the other party hadn't spoken yet, it meant Shintō wasn't satisfied with the value of that information.

So, Kōenji picked up a mirror to check his reflection, then continued:

"The four classes of this school, A, B, C, and D, seem to be arranged according to some kind of rule. And our class is ranked as Class D."

As for the details, Kōenji was, of course, crystal clear.

Money makes the world go round. As the only son of the Kōenji family, he could easily exchange promises of future rewards or employment to upperclassmen in return for information or rare resources like private points.

But he had no intention of dumping it all on Shintō Katsuya at once.

Although there was no change on Shintō's face, he was muttering to himself deep down. If Kōenji hadn't pointed it out, he truly never would have thought of it in that light.

A, B, C, D—generally, in games or exam results, these reflect excellent, good, passing, and failing.

Coupled with the "meritocracy" mentioned earlier by Chabashira Sae, and the fact that his classmates all had more or less some kind of flaw, it was hard for him not to think in a negative direction.

"Well, let me give you one last hint. The irrationality of this school can be explained by some kind of rationality. The fact that the school would admit so many ugly characters is an irrationality in itself, so how could one make that rational?"

Kōenji spoke in riddles, but he had no intention of explaining them to Shintō Katsuya.

"That's all I have to say. It's worth a favor from you, at the very least. I have a date now, goodbye, Yorozuya~"

With that, Kōenji stood up and left the private room.

Shintō Katsuya automatically ignored the teasing; he was busy trying to organize the information Kōenji had left behind.

Now it was known that the evaluation criteria for private points were closely tied to daily performance. His class was the bottom-of-the-barrel existence in the entire grade.

The "ugly" people Kōenji spoke of naturally referred to those who had no value and would only drag others down.

If graduates of Advanced Nurturing could freely choose their careers and further education in the future, did that mean these dead weights would have the same opportunity?

No, that was absolutely impossible.

The school's funding came from society and the state; the state wouldn't spend money to raise a bunch of freeloaders.

In other words... the immense rights of graduates upon entry might be something they couldn't enjoy at all, or perhaps they might not even be able to graduate...

Combined with the gap between A, B, C, and D...

Does that mean the students of Class D are... unworthy?

Shintō Katsuya, having figured it out, gasped, then quickly exhaled.

"What does this have to do with me? I don't care about free career choices. Once I graduate, won't I still have to take over that complex and heavy burden anyway..."

As for Kōenji's point that private points were far more useful than he imagined, he still didn't quite understand. Besides acting as currency, what else could points be used for?

Surely they couldn't be used to buy something intangible, could they?

Wait...

"Anything within the school can be bought with points. That's what Chabashira-sensei said at the beginning, right?"

"Anything can be bought"—the weight behind those few words was truly immense.

Although, a normal person wouldn't really pay attention to such a thing; who would go around nitpicking the fine print of a manual?

However, this school seemed to enjoy playing all sorts of word games, either leaving things half-said or hiding the most crucial conditions.

As for the seemingly infinite possibilities of the points, Shinjo's mind began to race. The reason he came to this school was to live a few years of peaceful life; he didn't want to work, didn't want to take risks, and didn't want to get involved in schemes.

But happy days would eventually come to an end; once he graduated from high school, he still wouldn't be able to escape his future fate.

Yet now, a golden opportunity lay before him. If it were truly possible, using points to purchase the right to stay for a fourth or fifth year—as long as he had enough points, couldn't he live in this school for his entire life?!

A lifetime might be pushing it, but then again, who would complain about having too much of a good thing?

"Better to be prepared than sorry. No matter how much power these points actually hold, I should get my hands on them first... but where exactly am I supposed to earn money?"

(But is there a possibility, Shinjo, that the very reason you came to this school was to avoid having to earn money?)