Classroom of the Elite, A Hypocritical Gray Life

"But doing this kind of thing must be tiring, right? Honami-chan, you can take a break. It's no problem to leave it to me."

"It's no problem. As long as I can help everyone, I am satisfied. I hope we can all stay together until graduation."

"As expected, Honami-chan is the best."

I tried hard to distinguish Shiranami's voice from the escalating argument, attempting to ignore the mottled noise, yet it had already reached a point where it was difficult to tune out.

"There seems to be a dispute over there..." I put down the book I was reading and cast my gaze toward the students of Class D. Looking at the scene, it wasn't an internal conflict within the class, but rather a point of contention sparked with another class.

"Those are... students from Class C."

"Chihiro-chan, you all continue studying. I'll go over there and see what's happening."

"Then I'll come help too," Shiranami said, hurriedly standing up from her seat, wanting to follow Ichinose.

"It's fine. Please keep a good eye on everyone while I'm away, Chihiro-chan."

"But what if an accident happens—"

"Don't worry, I won't get into any trouble. After all, this is the library. It's a public space, after all. Just wait for me to come back, Chihiro-chan."

"O-okay. Then please be careful."

"Heh, hehe! Pride goes before a fall? Don't make me laugh."

"We aren't studying to avoid failing; we're studying to get better grades. Don't lump us in with you. Besides, you're all happy over there just because you brought up Francis Bacon? Is your brain broken? What's the point of reading things outside the exam scope?"

Taking advantage of the time while Shiranami was making her suggestion, the intensity of the argument rose another level. There was a faint sense that they were about to resort to physical force, and besides, that red-haired man from Class D didn't seem to have a very good temperament.

Seeing this, Ichinose hurried over.

"Can't those guys from Class C just settle down for a moment?" Ninomiya couldn't hold back her opinion at this moment either.

"Settle down?"

"Yeah, ever since this month started, people from Class C have been causing trouble for our class from time to time... Doesn't Raku-kun know about this?"

"Sorry, I don't think I've heard about this." Why does it always feel like my information is incomplete? Even though I'm a student in the same class, am I really that out of the loop?

"I thought all the boys had already been harassed."

"Harassed? Do you mean the Class C students are harassing the boys in our class?"

"Yeah. Before, Shibata-kun was intentionally tripped by them, and Okabe-kun was bumped into. They also deliberately threw a basketball at Sugiyama-kun's head, and his glasses were broken at the time. There are many other things like that. Basically, all the boys in the class have had such experiences. Hasn't Raku-kun encountered any?"

That was close!

"Perhaps they forgot about me."

"As expected, the people in Class C probably don't have any intention of bullying Raku-kun. After all, he looks harmless to both humans and animals no matter how you look at him," Tsube chimed in.

Eh? Eh? Eh? What is this? Saying that to my face is a bit too damaging to a man's self-esteem!

"But then again, why would the people in Class C do this? Is it just a simple provocation?"

"I don't know," Shiranami shook her head. "Honami-chan has reasoned with them several times, but she couldn't get anything out of them. The people from Class C just said it was an accident and gave us a perfunctory apology."

"If something like that happened to me, I would absolutely fight them to the bitter end."

So, is someone plotting these things behind the scenes? And for what purpose?

"If you want to keep reading here, you need to behave yourselves. That is all." In the distance, Ichinose successfully persuaded the group from Class C to leave, threw that final sentence at Class D, and returned with a brisk air.

"Is everything okay now?"

"Yes, at least they shouldn't cause any more trouble in the library after this. The people in Class C are really going too far, offending other students everywhere... By the way, did Raku encounter any trouble?"

"Just now, I heard that Class C has offended all the boys in our class, but it seems they forgot about me."

Although I felt a little bit of relief about that, why is the sadness impossible to stop?

"That's good. If they give you any trouble, you must let me know, okay?"

"I will."

"But I really feel like Raku-kun would never be targeted."

"Hmm, is there any special reason for that?" Ichinose asked Tsube, looking puzzled.

Please, can you stop whipping my corpse with the phrase "harmless to humans and animals" over and over again?

"Because Raku-kun's presence is just too low. Honestly, if it weren't for the study session, I might not have even noticed that there was such a person in our class."

Isn't that even more hurtful?!

"Eh, really? I don't have that feeling at all," Ichinose replied, surprised.

"Y-yeah, that's right, I don't really know either. As for Class President Ichinose, that's a given, after all, your relationship isn't ordinary, right?" Ninomiya chimed in, nodding.

"Is that so for you too, Chihiro-chan?" Ichinose asked, still not convinced.

"No, I notice him quite often."

I knew it... wait, what's with that murderous look from Shiranami? Where did I offend her again?

Under Shiranami's gloomy gaze, I swallowed a mouthful of saliva in fear.

After this incident, no more accidents occurred during the study sessions, and we successfully finished today's tasks just like that. Ichinose reminded me to eat dinner as she always does. Although I really wanted to stop her from doing this, the feeling of being cared for by someone else is truly addictive.

On the other hand, Kanzaki still had to continue for a while longer because he needed to conduct research for his materials. As a "best friend" of sorts, I resolutely decided to stay behind to keep him company, taking the opportunity to look for new books to borrow in the library.

I usually enjoy reading mystery novels, and occasionally I also try to understand the aspect of human nature. Although these two categories might seem straightforward and uninteresting among the vast sea of books, they never fail to serve as personal sustenance for me.

The value of a book is measured by the results of one's own considerations.

The Thirteenth Hour, Death Notice, And Then There Were None, The Silence of the Lambs, and—Ayanokoji.

"Yo, good evening." Regarding this kind of thing, I can only be unfazed.

"Has your study session already ended?"

"Yeah, this time it was a little earlier than usual; it usually continues for another half hour... I saw you guys having a dispute with the students from Class C earlier, did something happen?"

"It's because the commotion on our side was a bit loud. That student named Ichinose must be from Class B, right? I really have to thank you guys for this, otherwise, it would have truly caused trouble."

"She genuinely wants to manage things well, too." I gave a wry smile.

"By the way, are you aware of the changes to the scope of the midterm exams?"

"Yes, last Friday, the homeroom teacher notified us that the scope for all subjects in the midterm exams had been adjusted... You guys didn't know?"

Come to think of it, I seem to have heard the name Francis Bacon as well, which is not knowledge within the scope of the exam.

"It's possible we didn't hear it... Sorry, I'll excuse myself for now; I need to confirm the scope with the homeroom teacher. Thank you for the reminder."

"Don't mention it."

This is interesting, isn't it? Whether it's from the perspective of the Class D homeroom teacher or the person known as Ayanokoji.

What exactly is the thing called strength?

I continued to pick out books to borrow.

Chapter 18 Do I Long for Death?

"It's fortunate that you're here; so far, none of our members have been eliminated." The man approached me pleasantly and stretched his body.

"Elimination" has always been the euphemism here, and it is also the illusion they use to escape the truth.

"What's in that cup of yours? Is it cola?"

"Stamina recovery agent."

"It's a rare moment of celebration, after all; don't you plan on drinking something else? Ever since you first arrived here, you haven't seemed to eat a proper meal... Aren't you going inside to chat with them for a while? I can watch the outside for you."

"..."

"Tsk, still the same as before. Forget it, suit yourself; just stay here by yourself." After saying that, he returned inside.

It seems he was simply inviting me out of courtesy.

I downed the remaining pale yellow drink in the cup in one gulp. Due to the color difference caused by the night, he mistook what was in my cup for cola. I could let him continue to misunderstand, but doing so has no meaning whatsoever. For a person who is about to die, there is no meaning in the future.

After I finished eating the last energy bar, footsteps sounded behind me once again.

"Oh my, oh my, it really is no wonder that the team led by the No. 1 hasn't had any personnel eliminated so far."

"..."

"Don't look at me with such cold eyes; I am, after all, the instructor who cares about you the most."

"Proctors are not allowed to interfere in this exam." I repeated the examination rules, yet he didn't care in the slightest, as if he were the rules themselves, with right and wrong decided by him.

"The theme of this exam isn't about which team has the fewest eliminated personnel, but rather the benefits the team can obtain in the end. You aren't clear on this point yet, are you?"

"I am clear."

"Clear?" He sneered at me. "How can there be benefits without sacrifice? Your methods up until now are simply nauseating to us."

"Your actions have already violated the rules." I stuffed the wrapper of the energy bar into the test tube that originally held the stamina recovery agent and tossed it far away.

Do not harbor wishful thinking about storing items; dispose of useless items in a timely manner.

"How could that be? I only came to kindly remind you. Failing to use the abilities you possess will only end in death."

"I appreciate your kindness."

"It had better be that way." The man curled his lips in annoyance and walked away quickly into the darkness.

Was he informing me of their dissatisfaction out of genuine kindness? Or was he specifically sent by someone to deliver a reminder? If that is the case, then who is the person behind this?

And which person who is about to die is it?

1

After long preparations, the midterm exams came to an end three days ago.

The warm atmosphere was the same as usual; the only change was that it was mixed with a little tension. Because the next homeroom period would be when the midterm results were announced. Taking advantage of the free time between classes, I wanted to organize the special system adopted by this Advanced Nurturing High School, known as the "S System."

The scope covered by the system is very broad. According to the testimonies of seniors from all grades, from the school's founding until now, no student has truly grasped the full picture of the system, and even the teachers are not clear about it.

But what is certain is that the core around which the system revolves is S Points.

I took out the mobile phone issued by the school, opened the application pre-installed by the school, and entered my student ID and password to log in. Then, I opened "Balance Inquiry" in the menu. In this small program, we can perform various operations, such as checking our own points, checking the points held by the class, or the function of giving our own balance to others.

There are two types of points.

One type is class points, and the other is private points.

The suffix for class points is 'cl', which is an abbreviation for 'class', and the full name is 'class point'. The purpose of these points is to indicate the data held by each class as a unit, and at the same time, on the first of every month, each class is granted private points equal to their class points multiplied by 100. Finally, they are also used to rank the classes.

'pl'—private points, which is an abbreviation for 'private point'. Private points are deposited into each student's account on the first of every month. Upon realizing that these points could be used to purchase many things unimaginable to the average person, everyone in Class B unanimously agreed to save them. All the class's points are deposited into Ichinose's account, with each person only keeping 30,000 yen per month for living expenses. Of course, if that is not enough, one can also request an increase from Ichinose.

The school bell, which used the Big Ben as its background sound, rang, forcing me to wake up from where I was buried in my arms.

Teacher Hoshinomiya entered the classroom right on time, carrying her poster tube, her steps bouncy and her mood cheerful. Seeing this, most of our class breathed a sigh of relief. After all, no teacher would be happy about a student in their class being expelled, especially a homeroom teacher with such a strong drive as Teacher Hoshinomiya.

"Next, I'm going to announce the midterm exam results. Is everyone feeling nervous?"

"Since Teacher Hoshinomiya is so happy, that must mean there are no students in our class being expelled."

"Uwah, is it that obvious on my face?! That's no fun at all. I was planning to scare you all."

"Teacher, your acting is truly clumsy. Also, you must have been drinking at lunch today, right?"

"No! Teachers are not allowed to drink before class, so I didn't! If I had been drinking, everyone's homework would be doubled today. Did everyone hear me clearly?"

"Isn't that just an obvious threat?"

"And how can you call this a threat? This is a fact. Hosokawa, you wouldn't want to be punished, would you?"

As a homeroom teacher, it's amazing how you manage to maintain such a childish mentality.

"Since everyone already knows, I'll just announce the results directly."

A table recording the subjects, student names, and their corresponding scores was posted on the blackboard once again. Aside from the number of report cards being different, it was no different from last time.

Immediately after, Teacher Hoshinomiya wrote the average score for each subject and the passing line below the report card.

"For mathematics, our class average this time is ninety points. According to the calculation formula for the passing score, our class's passing line is forty-five points, so—the whole class passed!"

"Nice! I'm not in last place." Okabe looked at the total score ranking list and cheered excitedly.

"You're only second to last this time, don't get too happy too soon. If it weren't for Raku being so lazy and not putting in the effort to get a score closer to eighty, you'd still be in last place." Shiratori patted Okabe on the shoulder, trying to get him to calm down.