Paradise Unfolds

"Students, let me introduce myself. I am Chabashira Sae, the homeroom teacher for Class D. I am in charge of teaching Japanese history. You will not be changing classes for the next three years at this school; you will be classmates for three years, and I will be your homeroom teacher for that same duration. I will now distribute the enrollment materials and student IDs. Please pass them from the front to the back."

The students in front passed back a manual and a mobile phone. It seemed this phone was what they called a student ID.

"This school has unique rules. During your enrollment, you are all obligated to reside on campus. Furthermore, external communication will be strictly regulated. Even if family members wish to visit, you are not permitted to make contact without the school's permission."

"Of course, the school is equipped with numerous comprehensive facilities for your relaxation and entertainment, and all necessary daily supplies are readily available. When making purchases, you only need to touch your student ID terminal to pay. The deduction is made using the points on your terminal, where one point equals one yen."

"On the first of every month, the school will deposit a certain amount of personal points into each student's account. And for this month—the first month of your enrollment—the points have already been deposited." Chabashira Sae's lips seemed to curl into an imperceptible arc. "The amount is... one hundred thousand."

"Eh? Really? There's actually 100,000 points in the account!"

"Every month?!"

"Are you serious!"

The classroom instantly erupted. Almost every student wore an expression of surprise, excitement, or even ecstasy. One hundred thousand yen! For a group of high school students, this was undoubtedly a huge sum, enough for them to live a quite comfortable life at this school.

"Are you surprised by these 100,000 points? Rest assured, this school has always upheld the creed of meritocracy. Since you have enrolled, it means you are worthy of these points. Everything in this school can be purchased with points, so feel free to spend them boldly."

One hundred thousand points...

Natsukawa knew clearly that there was no such thing as a free lunch. These 100,000 points were merely the first net to filter out the weak. In this school that prioritized ability, a person could only possess wealth matching their strength. If they indulged in this sugar-coated bomb of false prosperity, he could almost foresee the cruel awakening that awaited those who were cheering for these 100,000 points.

After reading out the rules, Chabashira Sae looked at the students, most of whom were immersed in joy. She remained silent for a moment before finally asking, "...So, are there any questions?"

Natsukawa always felt that Chabashira had placed a slight emphasis on the word "questions."

No one raised their hand. Everyone was still immersed in the excitement of receiving a "huge sum." They could not perceive the crisis lurking beneath the rules, and no one was thinking about the price behind this "gift."

A trace of faint disappointment flashed in Chabashira's eyes, but she said nothing. She simply announced, "If there are no questions, head to the gymnasium in one hour for the entrance ceremony." With that, she turned and left the classroom without a hint of reluctance.

Once the homeroom teacher left, the atmosphere in the classroom became lively again, with everyone excitedly discussing how to spend the 100,000 points.

"Hey, Natsukawa, is this school really that generous? 100,000 points every month, huh."

Wang Meiyu tilted her head, sharing her excitement with Natsukawa.

"That's hard to say. The teacher didn't explicitly say we'd get 100,000 points every month. You'd better spend it sparingly, Meiyu."

"Really? Then why didn't you ask the teacher that question just now?"

"Because I don't want to be the nail that sticks out, and Ayanokoji probably thinks the same, right?"

"Ah, I suppose so. An average student's monthly allowance is only about 5,000, so 100,000 is way too exaggerated no matter how you look at it."

Horikita Suzune, sitting in the row behind Wang Meiyu, heard this conversation. She glanced at Natsukawa, who was sitting diagonally across from her, wanting to say something, but hindered by her reluctance to join the conversation, she eventually lowered her head and continued reading.

Just then, a blonde, handsome boy radiating a "normie" vibe raised his voice, successfully attracting the attention of most people. "Everyone! Please quiet down! To get along better in the future, let's introduce ourselves! I'll go first. My name is Hirata Yosuke. I like playing soccer and my goal is to join the school soccer club. Please treat me well."

Hirata's call received some response. Immediately after, a figure stood up from her seat with vibrant energy and turned to face everyone. She wore a sweet smile that could melt ice, and her voice was crisp and pleasant.

"Hello everyone! I'm Kushida Kikyo! My wish is—" She clasped her hands together, her eyes sweeping over everyone in the class, filled with immense sincerity, "—to become good friends with everyone in this class! So, feel free to come to me for anything! I'll give you my email and contact information later. Please treat me well!"

Her speech was like a pebble thrown into a chaotic pond, stirring up widespread ripples. Many boys, and even some girls, began to introduce themselves actively.

"My name is Yamauchi Haruki. I'm currently recovering because I got injured during the national high school tournament in middle school..."

"Who the hell participates in a national high school tournament in middle school..."

Kushida Kikyo, a woman with terrifying charisma. In middle school, she dreamed of being the most noticed person in class. Relying on her sweet appearance and gentle words, she successfully established good relationships with everyone in her class, becoming the person everyone confided in. However, unable to bear the negative emotions poured onto her by classmates every day, she vented anonymously online.

Later, she was discovered by students from the same school on the internet. The next day, she was cornered in the classroom by her classmates. Faced with the choice between being bullied and apologizing, she chose to bully the entire class. She exposed all the bad things the students had said about each other behind their backs, causing the entire class to turn on one another, descending into total chaos.

Natsukawa did not want to have any intersection with such a "suicide bomber." Therefore, when Kushida was introducing herself, he deliberately turned his head away to avoid looking, preventing his gaze from being drawn to her by some inexplicable gravitational pull. However, he missed one thing: in a crowd flowing downstream, the figure moving upstream is undoubtedly eye-catching.

His unusual behavior instead attracted Kushida's attention. She looked at Natsukawa with a smile, then took a deep look at Horikita, who was sitting diagonally across from him, and after smiling slightly at everyone, she sat back down.

Just as the students finished their introductions one by one and the line was about to reach Natsukawa, he looked expectantly at the redhead sitting in the back right of the classroom.

"Bang!"

The hot-tempered red-haired boy kicked his desk violently, making a huge noise that instantly silenced the entire classroom.

"So noisy! Self-introductions? That's a game for elementary schoolers, right? Don't joke around!" He roared, his face full of impatience and contempt.

The atmosphere in the classroom dropped to freezing point. Hirata tried to mediate, but Sudo didn't buy it at all. Muttering curses, Sudo left the classroom. Several other students who didn't want to introduce themselves took the opportunity to leave as well.

"Ayanokoji, let's go too. Let's look around the campus early and get familiar with it. Or did you want to give a unique self-introduction?"

"...That's probably for the best. Let's go, Natsukawa."

Although Ayanokoji had prepared several self-introductions in his heart, having already made a friend (in his own estimation), he intended to leisurely enjoy his ordinary high school life and didn't plan to create any extra trouble.