Tuesday's Kushida

"Hey, Ayanokoji-kun, Natsukawa-kun, how was your swim?" Kushida Kikyo asked, her face alight with an energetic smile as dazzling as the summer sun.

She wore the standard school swimsuit. Though conservative in style, it perfectly outlined her voluptuous figure. The fabric across her chest was stretched taut, emphasizing her ample curves, while her waist was surprisingly slender. Beneath the swimsuit, her full, rounded thighs looked brimming with youthful vitality. Droplets slid from her short brown hair, tracing her fair neck and collarbones and adding a healthy allure.

"It was fine," Ayanokoji replied, as terse as ever.

"Barely passing," Natsukawa said with a smile. He met Kushida's gaze calmly, while his mind raced and he began observing her.

Kushida's smile was flawless, but deep in her eyes, as she looked at Natsukawa, lay a hint of scrutiny. "You seem new to me, Natsukawa-kun. Unlike Ayanokoji-kun, whom I met on the second day of school. Where did you go to middle school?"

Here it comes. Natsukawa understood. As expected, his "antisocial" behavior at the start of the school year had caught the attention of this social butterfly. He was prepared. He put on a suitably nostalgic expression. "A private school nobody's heard of, over in Kansai. I came to Tokyo because of a change in my parents' jobs."

He skillfully put his cold-reading technique to use, his gaze seeming to casually pass over Kushida's unconscious habit of rubbing her fingers together. Though her smile was bright, he looked into her eyes and said, "You seem pretty fixated on collecting 'friends,' Kushida-san. Do you feel like you need to connect with everyone to feel safe? Or maybe... you once felt really uneasy because you couldn't fit in with a certain group?"

Kushida's smile stiffened for a fraction of a second. She quickly recovered, but the shock in her eyes was hard to hide. She gave a nervous laugh. "W-what are you talking about, Natsukawa-kun? I just like being friends with everyone..."

Natsukawa knew when to stop and didn't press further. Instead, he said in a lighthearted tone, "Just kidding. Still, it's an honor to be friends with someone as popular as you, Kushida-san. I went abroad with my family a few times in middle school and saw some interesting customs, like..." He brought up an unusual foreign experience that didn't come up in everyday conversation, successfully changing the subject and piquing Kushida's curiosity.

The two chatted back and forth, and the mood gradually grew livelier. Natsukawa didn't deliberately show off. Instead, he encouraged Kushida to ask questions and answered them with ease, displaying broad knowledge and a composed manner of speaking that set him apart from an ordinary high school boy. The look Kushida gave him shifted from cautious appraisal to genuine curiosity and interest.

"You know so much, Natsukawa-kun!" Kushida said sincerely. Then she turned to Ayanokoji. "You too, Ayanokoji-kun. You look slender, but I didn't expect you to be so toned. You're a great swimmer, too."

Just then, Kanji Ike, who had been watching Sudō and Koenji's showdown, spotted Kushida chatting and laughing with Ayanokoji. Like a dog guarding its food, he dashed over and slung an arm around Ayanokoji's neck, whispering, "Kushida's my future target! You guys better not get in my way, okay, Ayanokoji!"

Ayanokoji nodded, his expression still blank. Natsukawa was sure that, inwardly, Ayanokoji was criticizing Ike for overestimating himself.

Watching the unexpected commotion, Kushida let out a soft laugh. Sunlight, the pool, a girl's laughter, and boys roughhousing made up a seemingly harmonious picture of youth.

The poolside commotion gradually faded, and the quiet of night settled in. Natsukawa had just finished his daily evening workout and was walking back to the dormitory. He had started his rehabilitation training on the second day of school; after all, his body was his capital. Just as he returned to Room 403, wiping away his sweat, the Personal Terminal in his pocket vibrated.

He took it out and saw that the message was from Ichinose Honami.

"Good evening, Natsukawa-kun. Sorry to bother you so late. About the 'precautions' you gave us today... Class B discussed it and came up with an idea. Could we tell the students in Classes C and D about the things that could easily get them points deducted, too? If everyone stays unaware of the rules and loses points without understanding why, or even risks being expelled, it just feels... kind of sad."

Looking at the message, so full of kindness and even a little naïve, Natsukawa could almost picture Ichinose's earnest face, tinged with hesitation. He smiled, almost able to imagine how the "good people" of Class B had unanimously approved this "selfless" decision.

He sat down at his desk and quickly replied:

"Ichinose-san, was this decision made out of your personal goodwill, or was it a decision by Class B as a whole?"

Her reply came almost instantly.

"It was my decision, but it was everyone's decision, too! We all think we should help each other instead of watching students from other classes fall into trouble."

Just as he'd expected. Natsukawa shook his head, reflecting on how precious such purity was in a ruthless competitive environment. He tapped out a reply:

"Should I call you adorably naïve, or excessively kind? I understand and respect your decision. Since I sold you the information, it's your freedom to decide what to do with it. I have just one request—the existence of the 'S-System' and the core mechanics of how it works, especially the parts about Class Points and Personal Points, must absolutely not be revealed. You can warn them about what they shouldn't do, but don't explain the consequences, and don't mention Class Points. Can you do that?"

"Of course! We absolutely won't reveal anything about the S-System or you, Natsukawa-kun! We just want to give everyone a few kind reminders, like friends would!" Ichinose's reply was light with relief, and she added a cute emoticon (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ).

"Kind reminders, like friends..." Natsukawa murmured, a complicated smile touching his lips. He already knew how things would turn out, but replied anyway: "All right. I hope your 'kindness' bears good fruit."

He put down his terminal and walked to the window, gazing out at the still night. Class B's actions had been within his expectations. That was one of the reasons he had chosen to sell the information to Class B rather than another class: they were the only ones likely to spread it in the form of "kindness." That could stir up the first-year classes to some extent, which wasn't a bad thing for him.

Day after day passed, and D Class remained a picture of "thriving life and all things vying to flourish." Whispering during lessons, openly playing on their phones, and even dozing off now and then were still common sights.

Before long, rumors reached D Class.

"Hey, have you heard? Those Class B guys have apparently been running some kind of 'school etiquette' campaign lately."

"Huh? Is something wrong with them? Pay attention in class, don't be late or leave early, take care of school property... Even elementary schoolers know that stuff."

"Exactly. Acting like they're so virtuous. Must be that goody-two-shoes bug."

"Who cares? We'll do what we want!"

Kanji Ike, Yamauchi Haruki, and the others scoffed at it, even turning it into a joke to pass the time. Ken Sudō couldn't have cared less; all he ever cared about was Basketball Club practice. Even Kushida Kikyo, though friendly to everyone on the surface, put no real effort into maintaining order in the class. Her "friendliness" was mostly just for show.

Ayanokoji remained a robot, while Natsukawa was glad to have some peace and quiet. He spent his days in class, worked out after school, and kept refining his program at night. He wanted to improve its functions. It wasn't just a way to pay the system's price; if he used it well, it could also make his school life much easier.

Class B's kind reminders were like a pebble tossed into the stagnant waters of D Class. They created only the tiniest ripple before everything quickly returned to normal. Nobody looked into why Class B had suddenly started doing this. They just thought they were a bunch of out-of-touch "old fogies." Most of D Class carried on as before, lost in the pleasant illusion of their first month at school and recklessly blowing through the "fortune" they had just received. They bought all kinds of unnecessary snacks, drinks, and games, as if those hundred thousand points had fallen from the sky and would never run out.

And so, amid this strange and starkly contrasting atmosphere, time quietly crept toward the end of April, then finally reached May 1.

The morning sun was bright as ever. Many D Class students, including Kanji Ike and Yamauchi Haruki, still looked tired from staying up late playing games or reading manga, but their eyes shone with anticipation. Out of habit, they took out their Personal Terminals, ready to collect their new month's "allowance," and excitedly discussed which long-awaited new game to buy or which newly opened restaurant at Keyaki Mall to visit for a feast.

Their anticipation made the atmosphere in the classroom feel a little restless. But as time passed, what they'd been expecting still didn't happen.

"Huh? Why haven't my points come in?"

"Mine either... That's weird. Sae said they'd arrive right on time."

"Could the system be delayed?"

At first, only a few people were puzzled, but soon their confusion spread like an epidemic. More and more students checked their accounts, their expressions shifting from anticipation to bewilderment, then to a faint, barely noticeable unease.

Their homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, appeared at the podium right on time. She still wore her usual stern expression, but unlike before, she now held two rolled-up, poster-like items. Her gaze swept calmly over the students beginning to grow restless below, as if she had expected this all along.

Without wasting a word, she announced clearly in her distinctive, emotionless voice:

"I will now announce the results of this class's Class Points settlement for April."

She paused, her gaze seeming to pass over several students still whispering to one another.

"Class 1-D, final Class Points for this month: 0."

"Therefore, each student will receive 0 Personal Points this month."

"..."

A deathly silence fell over the entire Class 1-D classroom.