Counseling

Chabashira Sae's gaze swept over the several exam papers spread across the desk. Her fingertips hovered above them as she unconsciously tapped the wooden surface.

She took a deep breath and silently reminded herself, It doesn't matter. The data won't lie. The conclusion seemed to suppress some emotion for the moment.

She looked up at Ayanokoji Kiyona, standing quietly before her, and the corners of her mouth curved into a subtly meaningful smile. "Ayanokoji, you really are an interesting student."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was clear enough.

Chabashira Sae picked up a sheet printed with the entrance exam results, then glanced at another quiz paper beside her, as if searching for a connection.

"I got the entrance exam results earlier and planned to think carefully about how to give each of you individual guidance, but..." She paused, her sharp gaze settling on Kiyona's face.

"After seeing your results on this exam, I noticed something very interesting. I have to admit, I was quite startled at first."

Chabashira Sae pulled out a score sheet and pointed to the marks as she read them aloud, her tone deliberately calm, as if analyzing a mystery. "Japanese: fifty. Math: fifty. English: fifty. Social studies: fifty. Science: fifty..."

When she finished, she pushed the score sheet to the middle of the desk and added, "For the record, you got fifty on every subject in this quiz, too. Every score landed exactly at half the full marks."

Chabashira Sae leaned forward slightly, her gaze moving across Kiyona, Kanade, and Horikita's faces. Her voice grew more emphatic as she asked, "Do you understand what this means?"

Horikita Suzune, standing off to one side, was drawn in by the question.

She leaned in slightly, her gaze sweeping across the score sheet like a blade as she confirmed the glaring rows of "50."

Then, with obvious confusion and curiosity, she turned to look at Kiyona beside her. A hint of sharp scrutiny flashed through her usually cool eyes.

Kiyona, the one being addressed, barely changed her expression. She seemed to shrug casually and replied in a slightly dismissive, joking tone, "It's just a kid taking a test for fun. You shouldn't take it seriously." Her words sounded light and careless.

Chabashira Sae's brow furrowed slightly. She got straight to the point. "You did it on purpose?"

She stared at Kiyona, pressing her for a reason. "Why take the test like that? Why control your scores so precisely?"

Kiyona didn't seem bothered by the direct question. Still showing little emotion, she gave a brief reply. "It's interesting." The two words were crisp and carried a hint of indifference.

In truth, Kanade had already talked it over with Kiyona beforehand.

Kiyona did as he'd asked. As her eyes passed over Chabashira Sae's furrowed brow, a ripple stirred inside her. Kanade's precise prediction of Chabashira Sae's actions deepened her understanding after a moment of confusion: his ability to read people and control the situation was a level she had never managed to reach. (In reality, Kiyona was overthinking it.)

She lowered her eyes to a crease in her sleeve, as if decoding Kanade's riddle, and replayed the game he'd laid out so casually in her mind. From his meticulous control of the exam scores to the direction of this conversation, every variable had apparently been accounted for in Kanade's calculations.

Chabashira Sae fell silent for a few seconds.

She had prepared a speech to expose the ability to manipulate scores hidden behind Kiyona's results. Now, it had become entirely useless—Kiyona had admitted it so easily, without even bothering to offer a decent explanation.

It had completely thrown her off.

Chabashira Sae turned toward the window. Kanade, who had been leaning against the wall, had somehow ended up resting against the window frame, still looking as if nothing in the world concerned him.

"What about you, Kanade?" Chabashira Sae's scrutinizing voice turned to him. "You got full marks in every subject on the entrance exam, and your written test ability is top-notch. But your interview evaluation was terrible. Your scores for 'cooperation' and 'group spirit' were nearly failing."

She folded her arms and challenged him. "Can you tell me why you don't fit in? And haven't you thought about improving your situation and earning more Class Points each month? With your abilities, you could easily help Class D earn more points, and you'd benefit personally, too."

Kanade pulled his gaze back from the window and glanced lazily at Chabashira Sae. He replied listlessly, "I just don't care which class I'm in." His tone was as flat as if he were talking about the weather. "Besides, I don't want to play those boring 'bonding with people' games."

As for the points, Kanade was openly dismissive. He waved a hand carelessly. "Points? So what if I don't have any? There's free food to fall back on. I won't starve, even if I'm not full. It's not like I can't get by."

As soon as this declaration of giving up had left his mouth, Horikita Suzune's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

Watching his utterly indifferent, completely resigned attitude, Chabashira Sae could barely hide her disappointment and irritation.

An impolite but strikingly apt thought flashed through her mind: This guy... is a hopeless slacker. He had completely given up on the chance to get ahead, and even the valuable Class Points seemed to have nothing to do with him.

However, the feeling of helplessness passed in an instant.

A more practical question immediately came to mind: of the three people before her, one was Ayanokoji Kiyona, who could control her scores with precision; one was Kanade, whose way of doing things was hard to predict; and one was Horikita, who had decent abilities but was prickly toward her classmates.

How can I turn these three rusted gears and make them mesh into an engine that drives Class D forward? Chabashira Sae's mind raced. It was a crucial question she had to consider, even if it was a thorny one.

Just then, the clock on the wall struck the hour.

Chabashira Sae snapped back to her senses, glanced at her wristwatch, and quickly began gathering the papers on her desk.

"I have to go."

She picked up her coat and draped it over her arm as she stood. Her brisk, professional tone returned. "The staff meeting is about to start. This office has to be locked up."

Chabashira Sae walked to the office door and took out her keys. "You three, head out now."

At that, Horikita Suzune didn't look at Chabashira Sae again, nor did she pay any more attention to Kiyona or Kanade. She simply set off first, heading straight for the door, her back still radiating an aloof air that kept others at a distance.