Classroom of the Elite: After Their Information Was Updated, They All Wanted to Win Me Over!

Horikita Suzune's expression froze.

Only then did she realize she had fallen right into the other woman's verbal trap.

Hoshinomiya-sensei was watching her, yet she had deliberately brought up another girl's name.

(That name... where have I seen it before?)

Horikita Suzune suddenly remembered the contact list on Shimizu Akira's phone, which he had shown her last week. Amid all those densely packed names, she had indeed seen "Ichinose." The girl's full name was probably Ichinose Honami.

(She did that on purpose. She absolutely did.)

Horikita Suzune's gaze gradually turned cold.

Her deliberate snub just now had clearly invited this carefully planned counterattack.

(These teachers are each more unqualified than the last!!)

Horikita Suzune reached her cold conclusion.

First, there was her own homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae—the woman who always left on time in her high heels.

Since the start of the school year, she had barely bothered with class meetings, let alone the most basic class matters.

The other classes had already chosen their class leaders, but Class D was still leaderless, like a flock of sheep left to fend for themselves.

And this woman standing right in front of her...

Hoshinomiya Chie tilted her head as she played with the ends of her softly curled hair. With those long legs beneath her miniskirt, she looked just like a flashy girl from the streets of Shibuya.

What was even more absurd was that she was openly prying into a male student's romantic life right outside the teachers' office—and taking petty revenge for being ignored just a moment ago.

Horikita Suzune stepped back half a pace, her face cold. "The hiring standards for this school's teachers are questionable. Just looking at your frivolous outfit, you're already completely out of line with professional standards for teachers."

"Eek! A tiny little 'Chabashira Sae'! So scary, so scary~" Hoshinomiya Chie theatrically clutched her chest, but her smile only grew brighter.

She suddenly rose onto her tiptoes and pointed to the surveillance camera in the hallway. "But you know, if a teacher publicly questions the School Administration under a camera, they can lose quite a lot of points~ Looks like Little Chabashira's plans have fallen apart again. I'm afraid she's about to hit me again!..." As she spoke, her lips suddenly drooped in an exaggerated pout, and she looked pitifully at Shimizu Akira. "Shimizu, you have to be my witness! She was the one who started it!"

"Right? Shimizu, you even bought me beer, so you're going to protect your teacher, aren't you? Don't worry! As long as you protect me, I'll give you a generous 'reward.'" Hoshinomiya Chie reached out in a coquettish manner, but Shimizu Akira swiftly stepped back half a pace to avoid her.

He never would have guessed that the first person he'd use a boxing retreat against after learning Boxing would be the frail-looking Hoshinomiya Chie.

(I see...)

He finally pieced together what had happened. The cans of beer he'd given as a thank-you had been passed on by Ichinose Honami to her homeroom teacher.

And this teacher had taken a student's thoughtful gesture for granted, treating it as a sign of interest in her.

So she was a drunk, too?

(That "reward"... surely it isn't really what I think it is?)

The ambiguous word kept fermenting in his mind, making him doubt the conclusion he'd been certain of. Maybe that "physical need" really did mean what he'd first thought it meant.

Advanced Nurturing High School was visibly getting better, too.

It was incredibly strict with students, yet exceptionally lenient with teachers.

(Still... she really is Class B's homeroom teacher!)

Shimizu Akira suddenly realized something, and his eyes flickered.

Hoshinomiya's seemingly offhand behavior—the deliberately flippant way she had provoked Horikita and the argument she had picked in a spot where the surveillance camera could clearly capture everything—was probably all part of a carefully planned trap.

Just as Hoshinomiya had expected, Horikita Suzune had lost her composure, and some of her Class Points had already been deducted.

From the perspective of another class, tripping up a rival like this was certainly unbecoming of a teacher.

But from the perspective of a Class B student, wouldn't they be lucky to have a homeroom teacher who always put the class's interests first?

Overall, though, he couldn't say he thought much of this female teacher.

No matter how he looked at it, a teacher indirectly going after students was seriously problematic.

P.S. To make the novel more readable, I'll be strengthening some characters' abilities.

P.S. 2: Many thanks to all the wonderful readers for your votes and comments.

Hoshinomiya Chie: It seems a shark has slipped into Class D

Horikita Suzune watched her with a cold stare.

Every one of this Class B teacher's remarks was like a carefully mixed potion, slowly eroding her patience.

Behind those seemingly casual jokes, her purpose was clear: provoke Horikita, and then... deduct those so-called "points"?

So what exactly did the "point deduction" Hoshinomiya mentioned mean?

There was nothing about it in the school rules Manual. Was this another hidden rule set up by the School Administration?

Her mind rapidly sifted through the possibilities.

Was there some kind of point system at this school?

If a student broke a particular school rule, would they lose a corresponding number of points?

Because she had bought information from Shimizu Akira, she had already paid eighty thousand Private Points. Her account balance had fallen to less than ten thousand. If she lost all of it, she would have to get free ingredients from the supermarket and make her own lunch.

Dealing with people had never been her strong suit, and it was even harder when her opponent was someone who combined the authority of a teacher with exceptional social skills.

In a purely intellectual contest, she was absolutely confident she wouldn't lose.

But facing someone like Hoshinomiya Chie—an expert at social maneuvering who also had the advantage of being a teacher—had left even her at a loss.

Hoshinomiya Chie, however, had already turned her attention away from Horikita.

After all, Class D had already lost some Class Points. The cold, high-achieving student no longer had any value to her.

(Hehe... just imagining Little Chabashira's angry, furious face is enough to make me laugh.)

Now she was more interested in Shimizu Akira, who stood nearby.

"Little Shimizu~" She playfully twirled a lock of hair around her finger, a dangerous curiosity gleaming in her eyes. "I heard you took our Ichinose to meet some second-year students? Come on, tell your big sister everything. What did you go there to ask?"

Shimizu Akira discreetly stepped back half a pace, his back nearly touching the hallway wall.

He really couldn't understand why this Class B teacher was pursuing him so relentlessly.

She shouldn't know that Class D was probably already at zero! There weren't any points left to deduct!

Could she have realized that Shimizu Akira knew about the S System?

Was she trying to suppress a potential threat from another class to protect Class B's advantage?

But the more he thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed.

Class D was at the very bottom. Class B's real rival should have been Class A. Besides—

(Didn't she keep saying she and Little Chabashira were best friends?)

Was this what she called being "best friends"? When it came to class interests, she would even scheme against her friend's students?

Shimizu Akira couldn't help wondering if homeroom teachers in the other classes all behaved like this.

Facing Hoshinomiya Chie, he could definitely feel the natural pressure that came with her position as a teacher. It made his skin crawl.

After all, one careless move could earn him the label of "disrespectful toward teachers."

"Teacher Hoshinomiya! What are you doing?"

A clear voice suddenly broke the deadlock.

At the end of the hallway, Ichinose Honami was watching them with an exasperated hand against her forehead.

Ichinose hurried over to Hoshinomiya Chie's side. "Please don't give students from other classes a hard time. Can't you see how uncomfortable Shimizu and the others are?"

"Oh my~ My dear Class Ichinose leader is here!" Hoshinomiya Chie blinked in feigned surprise, then reluctantly stepped back a couple of paces.

"Hoshinomiya! Stop harassing my students!"

With hurried footsteps, Chabashira Sae finally appeared at the end of the hallway.

She was breathing slightly hard, and her sharp gaze fixed on Hoshinomiya Chie. Without another word, she raised her hand and lightly rapped her on the head with the side of it.

"Who told you to go after Shimizu Akira?" Chabashira's voice carried a rare note of anger.

"Ow~" Hoshinomiya Chie rubbed her head in grievance. "He came to see Little Chabashira on his own. I was just keeping him company while you were away~"

Chabashira Sae snorted. "You could've just left him alone."

She turned to Shimizu Akira and Horikita Suzune, her tone softening a little. "Sorry to keep you waiting. This isn't a good place to talk. You two, come with me to the Counseling Room."

"Let me come, too~ I'll just listen in for a little bit~" Hoshinomiya Chie sidled up like a clingy cat, her eyes gleaming with curiosity.

"No!" Ichinose Honami grabbed her wrist before she could get any closer. "Teacher Hoshinomiya, our class has important matters to discuss!"

Chabashira Sae brought out her trump card. "If you follow us, I don't mind making sure you spend the weekend recovering in bed."

She added flatly, "That'll save you from going out and causing trouble everywhere this weekend."

"Eek~ You're both so mean!" Hoshinomiya Chie slumped dramatically like a puppy caught in the rain. "One of you is my very best friend, and the other is the class leader I trust most... How could I possibly disobey you~"

Once Shimizu Akira and the others had disappeared around the end of the hallway, the bright smile on Hoshinomiya Chie's face slowly faded like the receding tide.

"Little Chabashira..." she murmured. "Surely you're not really planning to defy your superiors? I won't be the first to let something like that happen."

"Teacher Hoshinomiya?" Ichinose Honami tilted her head in confusion. "What did you just say?"

"Oh my~" Hoshinomiya instantly returned to her usual cheerful expression. "I was just saying bad things about Little Chabashira~"

"But aren't you two best friends?"

"Because we're best friends... when we turn on each other... it's all the more terrifying."

"Teacher, you're saying strange things again..."

"Hehe~ You're still too young for that sort of thing, Ichinose! Anyway, how did our class do last week?"

Ichinose's expression immediately darkened. "Not very well... A few students who were near the bottom of the class saw that you didn't do much to enforce classroom discipline, and lately they've often been playing on their phones or skipping class..." She anxiously twisted her fingers together. "As class leader, I didn't feel comfortable being too harsh with them, so... I let it go for now."

Hoshinomiya Chie sighed. "My dear class leader... You spent four whole lunch breaks last week with those second- and third-year students. Are you telling me you really didn't notice anything?"

Ichinose blinked in confusion. "We were just making friends..."

Hoshinomiya Chie didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

(Even Ichinose, with her A-level intelligence, didn't notice anything... So why did that Class D student...)

Suddenly, her eyes widened as though she had caught an important clue.

(Wait... that girl was so easily provoked into breaking the rules, but when she heard the word "points," she looked at me with such confusion... Something doesn't add up!)

(Either he got no information at all from the upperclassmen, or... he chose to keep that hidden information from his classmates.)

"Ichinose!" Hoshinomiya Chie suddenly turned around and placed both hands on her student's shoulders. "What was the name of the upperclassman Little Shimizu asked you to contact? And why did you suddenly show up here?"

"It was a second-year student named Yamamura xx... And, well, Shimizu actually asked me to come help out!"

At that, Hoshinomiya Chie narrowed her eyes slightly.

(So he deliberately called my Ichinose over.)

(Looks like I really need to meet this Yamamura myself...)

(It seems a shark that doesn't belong in the shallows has slipped into Class D...)

(I hope my instincts... are wrong this time, too.)

You want me to be class leader? And you're using a million points from the class budget to buy information?

Counseling Room.

As Shimizu Akira watched Chabashira Sae's shoulders rise and fall slightly, he suddenly realized he might have misjudged his homeroom teacher.

He glanced down at his phone. Only three minutes and thirty seconds had passed since he'd sent the message asking for help, saying, "Teacher Hoshinomiya is targeting Class D."

And now Chabashira-sensei stood in front of him, her hair a little disheveled, her uniform collar slightly askew from running hard, and her breathing still hurried.

Putting aside what had happened before, at least this time Chabashira-sensei had done a decent job of protecting the class's and her students' interests. "Thanks to you, Teacher Chabashira. You got us out of that mess just in time."

Those words hit Chabashira Sae like an unexpected spell, making her come to an abrupt halt.

Ever since she had chosen to take a hands-off approach to being a homeroom teacher, it had been far, far too long since she had heard anyone thank her like that.

(No... I should say, it's already good enough when the students don't give me the cold shoulder.)

Chabashira Sae cleared her throat and quickly composed herself.

"Shimizu, let me ask you something—" Her voice carried a hint of hesitation. "I heard Hoshinomiya say that you went to see some second-year students. Given your personality, you wouldn't do something pointless. Besides the class assignments and points, have you already learned about some of the other information the School Administration has deliberately kept hidden?"