Yamauchi's Expulsion (Including the 1,000-Word Exam Results)

Good evening, Alice.

Softly, the pavilion where she sat welcomed the guest she had been waiting for.

"Ah, good evening, Ichinose," she said.

A girl named Ichinose Honami sat down to the side.

After a brief silence, waiting for the other to speak first, Ichinose Honami Sakayanagi Arisu, softly broke the silence. "Are you still standing here in the wind so late? You'll catch a cold, won't you?"

"Your body should be kept warm."

"My body...?" Sakayanagi Arisu felt that Ichinose Honami's words seemed to have a hidden meaning.

She wanted to laugh, but didn't know how.

Is a normal laugh acceptable, or should I give a cold laugh, a sneer, a mocking laugh, or even a bitter laugh?

She didn't know, so in the end she just gently propped her cheeks up with her index fingers.

"If it's just a gentle evening breeze, it's fine," she said. "Even if it's not, it will eventually become fine, right?"

Although she was talking about herself, for some reason, she spoke as if she were asking Ichinose Honami for an answer.

"..." Ichinose Honami was silent for a moment, as if she had heard something, and said softly:

"You should ask him about that."

You won't get an answer if you ask me.

"I will."

The brief conversation abruptly ended again. Despite their seemingly tacit understanding in meeting late at night, the two girls appeared completely lost, exchanging words only to fall silent again.

Scattered.

It was partly a pointed remark, and partly a casual remark.

Sorting through her scattered thoughts, she knocked down the block, then reassembled it. The messy blocks lay scattered on the ground, Sakayanagi Arisu casually picked one up.

What does it feel like to like someone?

She asked it casually.

"I have no idea."

She answered casually.

"You didn't know?" Sakayanagi Arisu, somewhat surprised.

Ichinose Honami nodded slightly:

"I have no idea."

"Maybe my feelings were never really 'like'."

"But it doesn't matter, even if it's not love, even if it's just a twisted and ugly emotion." She paused for a moment, then raised her head. "He will accept it gladly."

In a sense, they should truly be called Archangel.

It wasn't Ichinose Honami, but him, Asakusa Toru.

At least that's what Ichinose Honami herself thinks.

"Eh..." Sakayanagi Arisu uttered a noncommittal sound.

She wasn't really interested in so-called feelings; the purest feeling she had ever experienced in her life was only once.

The purest form of desire he unleashed within that dreamlike illusion.

So, whether you like it or not, whether it's distorted or not, whether it's ugly or not, etc.

She didn't have much to say about it.

I was just asking casually.

Um, just asking.

Ichinose Honami's answer was somewhat irrelevant.

She was asking about her feelings.

She answered with herself.

"SOX, are you happy?" Looking up at the night sky, Sakayanagi Arisu picked up the scattered building blocks once again. "You should be very happy."

But this time, instead of waiting for Ichinose Honami's response, she answered her own question.

Although she doesn't remember much, a lingering feeling keeps telling her.

That made me very happy.

Very happy.

If she recovers, she can be just as happy, even in real life.

"..."

Is there anything else she wants to ask?

Or is there anything else you want to ask?

If not...

"Hey, Alice."

Now it's my turn to ask.

How much self-esteem do you have left?

Ichinose Honami asked this question.

Chapter 285 Yamauchi (Including a 1000-word Exam Summary)

"Hey, you over there, yeah, you, the one with the blond hair, go clean up!"

After a brief period of adjustment, Yamauchi Haruki quickly became accustomed to his role as the person in charge, and even more so to using that role as an excuse to order his classmates to do his work.

"What are you looking at? I'm the person in charge. I took on this responsibility at the risk of being expelled from school. What's wrong with asking you to clean up a bit?"

"If I keep looking and then drop out of school, I'll take full responsibility and expel you too!"

Yamauchi Haruki was extremely arrogant, and with the other students' tolerance, he became increasingly arrogant.

From course notes to dormitory hygiene.

Although he initially declared that he would aim for a high ranking and receive a reward, he never actually did anything about it.

That's enough. Not dropping out is a victory in itself. As for the top three, that depends on the efforts of the second and third-year students.

It was precisely because of this mindset, and because of this casual attitude towards the Special Exam that might lead to expulsion, that I thought this would be just like all the other midterm and final exams that I had mentioned before that could lead to expulsion.

As long as you put in a little effort before the exam, and as long as your classmates lend a hand on the day, you'll be fine.

Then you'll have nothing to worry about.

Therefore, when the true ending arrives, Yamauchi Haruki still feels a sense of disorientation.

"First, regarding the last-place group, it's the group led by Yamauchi Haruki from Class 1-D."

It seems like only yesterday he was instructing other classmates to do what he was supposed to do, and in the blink of an eye, time has flown by to Thursday, the last day of the Special Exam.

Zen, public speaking, road races, written exams...

The exam, with its predetermined order, ended abruptly and cleanly, leaving the audience with almost no sense of reality.

And at this moment, the exam results were announced by a teacher in his forties who was meeting the first-graders for the first time.

"I want to talk about the results first. All the female students' groups exceeded the school's passing standard, which is the best summary of zero dropouts."

Before announcing the results, his opening remarks brought a moment of reassurance to everyone, and then a moment of tension.

All the female students met the requirements; no one dropped out.

But...

Where are the male students?

The last place in the male student group, the group below the passing standard.

He will be expelled from school.

"It's really a pity, but one of the boys' groups achieved an average score that didn't even reach the passing grade."

With an expression that showed absolutely no regret, the middle-aged teacher announced the last group, which was led by Yamauchi Haruki.

This means that in this group, one of the group leaders from grades one, two, and three will be expelled from school.

Despite the lingering hope, anyone would know who should be expelled.

"Next, the groups with scores below average..."

"We're both first-year students."

"--The group led by Yamauchi Haruki. That's all."

Yamauchi Haruki's mind went blank.

Is it really true that I'm going to drop out of school?

He spoke out because of his dissatisfaction with the distribution of benefits, became the person in charge because he was swayed by Asakusa Toru's words, and ordered others around because of his lazy and undisciplined attitude, enjoying the power that came with being in charge.

Then he was expelled from school.

Dropping out of school isn't really a big deal.

Since they can no longer graduate from Class A, there's nothing to do but drift through life at school. The surrounding environment and the disdain others show towards Class D will likely make them more inclined to change schools.

But it's clear that students have more to consider than just things on campus.

Things outside of school are also important.

His parents' expectations, how his former social network would evaluate his decision to drop out of school, and then there's the seemingly insignificant but absolutely crucial factor for many: money. Tuition and living expenses could perfectly alleviate the family's pressure. Twenty thousand yuan is indeed not much, but the thought that it's free might make it seem like a lot.

The whispers of self-interest, the current situation, and others lingered in my ears, while the teacher's announcements buzzed around me.

The surrounding sounds became distant and blurry in that instant, and he could no longer perceive his classmates' gazes.

Should we despair?

Should I become hysterical?

Should we condemn this injustice?

Should we question the school?

What kind of reaction should be made in this situation?

"Hey, hey, hey, what, what kind of joke is this?" Instinctively, Yamauchi Haruki's voice trembled as he uttered, "There must be some mistake, there must be some mistake, because, because..."

I only became the person in charge because of the atmosphere at the time.

Why did it ultimately come to the point where I had to drop out of school?

He froze for a moment, then hesitated for a moment before speaking.

Finally, finally, Yamauchi Haruki's emotions surged up.

"Is this some kind of nonsense?! Why should I have to drop out of school because of this Special Exam?"

Following his instincts, he revealed a distorted expression.

"I didn't do anything, did I? I shouldn't be the one getting expelled, should I? No one from the girls' group is expelled, so why do I have to be expelled?"

"What are the passing standards the school has set?! Isn't it intentional to not have a clearly defined passing score?"

"And, and, and--"

Yamauchi Haruki suddenly turned his head, as if he was about to look in the direction of Asakusa Toru.

But his words, which should have been hysterical, stopped abruptly just before his gaze brushed against Asakusa Toru's face.

He dared not.

Whether it's accusation or pleading, whether it's complaint or hatred.

He wouldn't dare.