Welcome to the Classroom of the Elite

The atmosphere in the classroom was suffocating. For a moment, no one spoke.

It was Hoshino who finally broke the silence: "Teacher Chabashira, please continue with the second document."

"The one on the right shows the current class standings."

Class D is at zero points. Class C has four hundred and ninety points, Class B has six hundred and fifty points, and the top-ranked Class A has nine hundred and forty points.

"Just as I thought."

Hoshino's murmur was heard, and his classmates turned their gazes toward him.

"Judging by the scores of each class, these class points must be linked to the personal points deposited every month. My guess is that every class started with 1,000 points in the first month, and the class points are converted to personal points at a 1:100 ratio—meaning one hundred thousand points per person."

"But... if every class started with 1,000 points at the beginning of the term, then..."

"Exactly. This means the other three classes did not have their points wiped out like we did. They still received their deposits this month."

Although it wasn't a massive sum like one hundred thousand points, even Class C, with the lowest score, had forty-nine thousand points—enough to cover their daily lives.

Hirata was sharp; he must have already reached the same conclusion, but he simply couldn't bring himself to believe it.

"Most importantly, looking at the number of points deducted from each class, it seems the ABCD classification wasn't just random."

This information was so shocking that the classroom fell into a stunned silence. Then, the sound of clapping echoed—it was Teacher Chabashira.

"To be able to deduce this much just by looking at the chart, you are a sharp student, Hoshino."

"I truly wish I had been wrong this time."

"You weren't. Your assessment is correct—in this school, classes are divided based on student merit. The most excellent students are placed in Class A, and the most useless are placed in Class D. Do you understand? Class D is a gathering of the bottom-tier students of the grade. You are the most useless, defective products."

There were no small number of students stung by Teacher Chabashira's biting words. Especially those with high grades; they considered themselves academically gifted, and being placed in the worst class was a gap they found difficult to accept.

"No, that's impossible! It shouldn't be like this!"

A boy wearing glasses stood up and shouted. His name was Yukimura Teruhiko, and he had scored a high ninety on the recent test.

"Accept it, Yukimura. This is the truth."

"How could I possibly accept this! Teacher, there must be some mistake!"

Seeing Teacher Chabashira shake her head with an expressionless face, Yukimura turned around in agitation.

"Ho, Hoshino! You got a perfect score! You must not be able to accept this either... how can you still be smiling!"

"Haha, sorry, I just remembered something happy."

"...What happy thing?"

"No, it's nothing. Just consider it me rambling."

Hoshino had come to this Advanced Nurturing High School on a whim after hearing from Arisu that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had enrolled. Because he had already missed the registration deadline, Hoshino had approached Koenji Rokusuke, the young master of the Koenji Conglomerate who had also applied, and struck a costly deal with him. With the help of Arisu's father, Mr. Naruse, he had managed to take over Koenji's spot to enter this school.

Now, thinking about how it should have been that guy Koenji who was placed in this defective Class D, he couldn't help but be amused.

Although, given that guy's personality, he wouldn't have cared in the slightest, and would likely have said something arrogant like, "The school is incapable of accurately judging my strength," but the mere thought of it made Hoshino find it hilarious.

Because of Hoshino's distraction, the atmosphere turned somewhat strange. Seeing this, Teacher Chabashira nodded as if quite satisfied.

"I will add one final thing. This school is famous for its high rates of advancement and employment. Many of you here likely came for that guarantee."

Rumor had it that this school boasted a 100% advancement and employment rate; graduating from here meant guaranteed admission to top universities or entry into highly selective companies.

"However, use your heads and think. If people of your low caliber could be guaranteed advancement and employment, how could such a good thing exist in this world?"

"Then... does that mean the goal of advancement and employment is impossible in Class D?"

"Hirata, you are still too naive. It's not just Class D; even Class B and Class C won't make it. In this school, only graduating from Class A provides that guarantee."

These cold words became the thorn that pierced the students' last shred of hope.

"What on earth did I come to this school for?"

Students with weaker mental fortitude had already begun to doubt themselves.

"If you understand how cruel the environment you are in is, then this long lecture might have had some meaning. The midterm exams are coming soon. If things continue as they are, more than one of you will be expelled. Struggle as much as you like, work hard, and try to survive the exams first."

After saying this, Teacher Chabashira slammed the door shut and left the classroom.

The students who failed the test hung their heads in despair. Even the usually arrogant Sudo looked dejected.

"If we don't have any points from now on... how are we supposed to live?"

"I just spent my last points yesterday..."

"What should we do? Expulsion is no joke."

"Damn it, why is it like this? Why am I in Class D?"

After Teacher Chabashira left, the classroom immediately descended into chaos.

Anxiety over points, fear of expulsion, and anger over the class division—all sorts of emotions were mixed together.

Hoshino watched it all in silence. Just then, his phone received a message. The sender was Arisu.

"Akira, how is the situation? By my calculations, you should have heard the teacher's introduction by now."

"Yes. By my calculations, I also figured you would be contacting me soon."

"Thank you for your expectations of me. So, how is the situation?"

"It's not looking good, in every sense of the word."

"I've also noticed the publicly released Class Points for Class D."

"Yeah, they've been wiped to zero. Honestly, I didn't expect them to lose that many points. My classmates are truly something else."

According to Teacher Chabashira, having their points wiped to zero within a single month is something no previous Class D has ever experienced. In a way, they've made history.

"It's only natural to fall into chaos when suddenly told so many things. Even here in Class A, it's the same."

Although Arisu said this, Hoshino couldn't imagine a reason for the students of Class A to be in chaos. They had only lost sixty Class Points over the course of the month; it was easy to imagine that the students in Class A were disciplined and self-regulated. For students like that, even if their grades were poor, they should be able to focus on their studies and avoid failing.

"Akira, don't hold the students of Class A in too high regard. Excellence is relative, after all; they are still just first-years."

As if reading Hoshino's thoughts, Arisu offered a reminder.

"I suppose you're right."

In Hoshino's view, the students of Class A were merely "normal"—they were simply doing what students were expected to do. It was the level of the students in Class D that was abysmal.

"Besides, I had a hand in it, too. I did meddle a little bit behind the scenes."

"...Being in the same class as you, the students of Class A are somewhat unfortunate."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Despite having such a personality, Arisu was indeed exceptionally capable. Under her leadership, Class A, whose students were already above average in ability, would surely become a formidable rival for Class D.

As for the agreement he had made with Arisu to settle the score, Hoshino didn't have much of a plan in mind.

"By the way, Akira, are you having any trouble with your points? Do you need me to bail you out?"

Hoshino thought for a moment, then sent a "Rich lady, I'm hungry, feed me" meme.

Arisu's reply came quickly:

"Very well, come to my room tonight, and I'll feed you."

Seeing the message, Hoshino instinctively shut off his phone screen and glanced around. Of course, no one was paying attention to him.

Sigh, what am I feeling guilty about? Hoshino thought to himself, and then began to look forward to it.