Classroom of the Elite, After the Intel Refreshed, They Always Want to Conquer Me! 17

[Ding~ Today's intelligence has been updated]

[Intelligence 1: The school will tally the Class Points for each class at the end of every month]

[Intelligence 3: Kushida Kikyou's way of venting her emotions is by kicking doors and cursing]

He was stunned for a moment; the value of these three pieces of intelligence far exceeded his expectations, especially the second one—the glaring number hit his retinas like a heavy punch.

(Zero points? Class D is actually... a big fat zero?)

"Heh..."

A mocking curve tugged at the corner of Shimizu Akira's mouth, and he suddenly let out a low chuckle.

There was neither joy nor surprise in this laughter, only a cold amusement at being entertained by an absurd reality.

This was the only thing that could keep him from getting angry.

"I figured this class was a disaster... I just didn't expect it to be this rotten."

Even the most pessimistic prediction should have had a baseline score—like having an elementary school student take a college entrance exam; they would at least get a single-digit score by guessing a few multiple-choice questions correctly.

But zero points? This meant that Class D had not only achieved nothing, but had likely triggered every single penalty clause available.

(Could it be that they hit zero because there were no more points left to deduct?)

In this instant, Shimizu Akira clearly felt something collapsing—not the dignity of Class D, but the disillusionment of the last shred of hopeful expectation he had held for this class.

(As expected... this class is beyond saving.)

This conclusion was like a cold blade, cleanly and decisively severing his last trace of hesitation.

In truth, he hadn't held any expectations for this class from the very beginning, and this intelligence was merely laying the cruel reality bare before him.

If this grading system had more tiers, they probably wouldn't even qualify for Class D and would be relegated to even lower tiers like Class E or Class F.

(The gap between us and Class C is a full 490 points...)

This reminded him of the college entrance exam, where a single point could separate a person from a whole stadium of others.

And now, standing between Class D and Class C were 490 such "stadiums"—this was no longer just a gap, but an almost insurmountable chasm.

Shimizu Akira's current situation was like being forcibly shoved into a project team on the verge of dissolution.

The old hands in the group were either scrolling through short videos at their desks or watching the clock waiting to get off work.

At every monthly performance review, this team never received a single bonus because they were always at the bottom for attendance and failed to meet their KPIs.

As a newcomer, he clearly saw this dead end, yet he couldn't pull himself out due to the constraints of his contract.

He could only secretly take on side jobs, struggling to maintain a basic existence in the cracks.

It wasn't just Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji who were frequently late or absent; even the group of gyaru girls that Karuizawa Kei belonged to often played with their phones during class.

It could be said that nearly half the students in the entire class had violated school rules at some point.

(The third piece of intelligence! So Kushida Kikyou really is lying? Her way of relieving stress is actually kicking doors and cursing?)

Shimizu Akira was not surprised by this. He had long known that she was a person who wore a mask.

After all, no one is perfect, and everyone needs an outlet to vent their emotions.

If one suppresses negative emotions for too long, it is easy to fall ill from the pent-up stress.

Shimizu Akira himself was not a perfect person, and at this moment, his mood was also a bit gloomy after learning that Class D was a total zero.

The classroom soon became lively.

As soon as Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji entered the door, they couldn't wait to discuss the pool activity, their voices loud enough to reach the hallway.

Seven or eight boys soon gathered around them, surrounding the laptop opened by the bespectacled boy known as "Professor".

"Hey, hey, I bet Sakura is at least a D!"

"Are you kidding? It's definitely an E! I'm putting up 500 points!"

"Kushida has to be a D, right?"

Amidst the rising and falling lewd laughter, they even listed out betting odds with great seriousness, completely oblivious to the disgusted gazes cast by the girls around them.

After a week of adjustment, a few core figures had gradually emerged in Class D.

At the forefront was Hirata Yosuke—relying on his outstanding appearance, excellent social skills, and his status as a member of the Soccer Club, he had won widespread recognition for his fair and gentle way of handling things.

The other was Kushida Kikyou. This girl was known for her infectious, cheerful smile and could always keenly perceive everyone's emotional fluctuations.

She had not yet arrived—otherwise, those boys would never have dared to discuss her so unscrupulously.

Hirata was already in the classroom, chatting with a few classmates.

Noticing the commotion in the corner, his brows furrowed slightly, and he then walked toward the group of boys with a steady gait.

"Everyone," his voice was gentle but brooked no argument, "there are girls present in the classroom; this kind of betting isn't really appropriate."

"Ah... it's Hirata."

"Got it, got it."

The boys dispersed sheepishly.

As the leader of the class, Hirata Yosuke's words certainly carried weight.

However, Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji remained where they were, their faces written with defiance.

Hirata Yosuke maintained a gentle smile, skillfully changing the subject: "Instead of doing things like this, why not try finding a girlfriend?"

"A girlfriend?" Yamauchi suddenly raised his volume, then lowered his voice with a feigned sense of mystery, "Speaking of which... Sakura confessed to me." His voice was just loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.

"What?!" Ike Kanji widened his eyes exaggeratedly, "That Sakura who always wears glasses?"

Hirata was taken aback, his gaze sweeping over Sakura Airi's empty seat, the smile at the corners of his mouth gradually freezing.

He weighed in his mind how to handle this situation—although Yamauchi was clearly spouting nonsense, it was difficult to expose him on the spot while the person involved was not present.

Just then, the harsh sound of a chair scraping against the floor suddenly rang out from the back of the classroom.

"Are you sure?"

Shimizu Akira suddenly stood up, his gaze sweeping coldly over Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji.

Yamauchi's Adam's apple bobbed violently, and his face turned deathly pale in an instant.

"Cough, cough... I must have mistaken her for someone else! It was another plain-looking girl with glasses from the class next door!"

Like a rabbit targeted by a predator, he scrambled back to his seat in a panic.

Ike Kanji's reaction was slightly calmer, but he too froze the moment he met Shimizu Akira's eyes.

He tugged at the corners of his mouth awkwardly, and in the end, retreated to his own seat in silence.

(Shimizu Akira from the Boxing Club... Last time at the entrance ceremony, Yamauchi said something he shouldn't have and was almost beaten up by him. It seems he finally learned his lesson this time.)

(Is this how Shimizu-kun solves problems?)

Hirata thought to himself, then cast a look of gratitude toward Shimizu Akira.

030 Hirata Yosuke: ??? Violence cannot solve any problems

Sakura Airi was an extremely introverted girl.

Almost no one in the class took the initiative to talk to her, and during lunch breaks, she always sat alone in the corner, head down, eating her bento in silence.

Because Shimizu Akira's seat was to her left, he occasionally had simple exchanges with her, but that was as far as it went—her responses were as quiet as a mosquito's hum, let alone initiating a conversation.

Such a Sakura Airi, suddenly confessing to Yamauchi Haruki?

It wasn't that he looked down on Yamauchi, but this guy was truly... hard to describe.

He spent all day spouting off about "girls" and "romance," with nine out of ten sentences revolving around his lower instincts, bragging about how popular he was, when in reality, the vast majority of girls in the class couldn't be bothered to look at him.

He had an average appearance, mediocre grades, average athletic ability, and couldn't even find a single trait worth liking—because no one would bother to remember anything about him.

Shimizu Akira swept a cold glance at Yamauchi.

Thinking of the outrageous lies this guy usually told, combined with Sakura Airi's personality, which was so introverted it was almost transparent—the answer was obvious.

Yamauchi just thought Sakura was easy to bully and wouldn't refute him, so he dared to make up such a boring lie about her.

It was normal for men to brag, but there should at least be a bottom line.

Bragging about getting a high score or being popular in middle school, no matter how absurd, at least only involved oneself.

But Yamauchi? In order to gild his own lily, he didn't hesitate to use a girl who didn't even dare to speak loudly as a stepping stone.

This wasn't just simple vanity; it was a mental issue.

Shimizu Akira was already fuming over the news that the entire Class D had received zero points, so he retorted without any restraint.

The result was exactly as he had expected.

Yamauchi's expression froze instantly, his lips moving a few times, but he couldn't squeeze out even half a decent rebuttal.

In the end, he could only mutter "...mistook the person..." with a flushed face, and slink back to his seat in disgrace.

(In this school, can students be expelled...)

Shimizu Akira looked at Yamauchi's hunched back, this subtle thought suddenly flashing through his mind.

Yamauchi Haruki was like a walking burden—bottom-tier grades, no special skills, and only capable of causing trouble all day long.

Even in Class D, known for its "problem children," he managed to be the one at the very bottom.

One could imagine just how pathetic he was.

But all things considered, since the entrance ceremony, Yamauchi hadn't directly provoked him.

Although he was full of nonsense this time, he at least admitted his mistake honestly after being called out.

Shimizu Akira noticed the concerned gaze cast by Hirata Yosuke and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

(Hirata-kun... he doesn't think I'm going to resort to violence, does he?)

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but chuckle.

Although he wasn't in a good mood right now, he wouldn't resort to physical force over such a trivial matter.

Furthermore, he actually held Hirata, the class representative, in quite high regard—that sunny youth always took the initiative to help introverted classmates integrate into the group, tirelessly tutored those with poor grades, and even paid out of his own pocket to organize class gatherings.

Although he himself could never become such a "saint," as a fan of JOJO in his past life, he had always held a sense of respect for people who shone with a "Golden Spirit."

Shimizu Akira took out his phone and typed a few lines into the chat interface.

During a casual conversation last week, Hirata had taken the initiative to exchange contact information with him; he hadn't expected to use it so soon.

Shimizu Akira: Please rest assured, Hirata-kun. No matter how annoyed I might be, I wouldn't resort to violence in the classroom; this is a place for learning.

Shimizu Akira: Violence cannot solve any problems. I have always advocated for convincing people with reason.

After sending the message, Shimizu Akira habitually glanced in Hirata's direction.

Unexpectedly, that usually composed classmate was currently staring at his phone screen, a rare look of astonishment appearing on his face.

Hm? ...Did I say something outrageous?

Shimizu Akira frowned in confusion. He considered himself to have said nothing more than standard, ordinary pleasantries—stating his position without making things difficult for Hirata.

Logically speaking, with Hirata's emotional intelligence, he should have been able to handle it with ease.

Yet, the other party's reaction right now was as if he had received some statement that completely subverted his worldview.

This made Shimizu Akira start to wonder if he had inadvertently stepped on some kind of landmine.

His phone suddenly vibrated, interrupting Shimizu Akira's train of thought.

He looked down to see a message from his homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, displayed on the screen:

[Chabashira Sae: Come to my office after school. We need to talk.]

Shimizu Akira's brow furrowed involuntarily.

Why would this homeroom teacher, who had always taken a laissez-faire attitude toward her students, suddenly seek him out?

Could it be because... I didn't share that key intelligence with the whole class?