Points Crisis and Initial Probing

On the last day of April, sunlight streamed through the classroom windows, glaringly bright. In Class D's classroom, the usual noise had reached its peak, like water in a boiler boiling over. The students gathered in small groups, excitedly discussing the impending point settlement.

"Hahaha, I've been living frugally this month and saved up quite a lot of points!"

"Yeah, yeah. I heard people in the class next door have nearly spent all theirs. Class D's doing pretty well."

"Once the points come in, can I buy that limited-edition game controller?"

Voices mingled together, brimming with anticipation for their future point spending. The smiles on their faces were like blooms of foolish flowers.

Natsume Yu sat at his desk, propping his chin up with his right hand as his calm gaze swept across the classroom. He did not join any discussion. He merely watched, as though watching a farce about to unfold. These "lambs" were immersed in what they believed was their victory.

Chabashira Sae entered the classroom. Her expression was as cold as ever, perhaps even colder than usual. She walked to the podium without exchanging any unnecessary pleasantries and pointed the remote in her hand at the display screen at the front of the classroom.

The screen lit up, displaying every Class D student's name and the remaining private points in their accounts.

"Everyone, these are your private point settlements for this month." Chabashira's voice was like clashing ice cubes, oddly out of place in the noisy classroom.

Her gaze swept across every student like a sharp blade.

"According to school regulations, you receive one hundred thousand private points every month."

The students nodded, their faces full of pride.

"However, the school also stipulates that points will be deducted if a class performs poorly."

At that, Chabashira paused. An extremely sarcastic curve formed at the corner of her lips.

"Unfortunately, Class D's performance this month fell completely short of the school's expectations."

The classroom's original clamor began to fade. An ominous premonition coiled around the students' hearts like an icy snake.

"So, according to the regulations..."

Chabashira paused once more, her gaze falling on the display.

The numbers on the screen began to jump wildly under everyone's watchful eyes.

They were not increasing. They were decreasing.

The points beside one name after another rapidly dropped from tens of thousands to zero.

"Everyone's private points have been reset to zero."

Chabashira's voice was as flat as if she were merely stating a fact.

Yet those words were like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, instantly shattering all the liveliness in Class D.

Boom!

In an instant, the classroom shifted from extreme noise to utter silence.

Oppression.

An invisible yet immense pressure bore down on everyone like Mount Tai, leaving them unable to breathe.

Their eyes widened and their mouths fell open, yet no sound came out.

The glaring zeroes on the screen seemed both mocking and condemning.

Their expectations, their dreams, their plans—all of them turned to bubbles at that moment.

The dead silence lasted for around ten seconds.

Then panic spread swiftly like a plague.

"What?!"

"Zero? How could this happen?!"

"Are you kidding me?! My points! I barely spent anything last month!"

"Teacher! Did you make a mistake?!"

The students' emotions instantly spiraled out of control. Some slammed their desks and sprang to their feet, knocking chairs to the floor with a piercing scrape. Others pointed at the screen, their faces drained of color as their bodies shook uncontrollably.

"How can the school do this? This is a scam!"

"This is too much! We didn't even do anything wrong!"

Complaints, curses, and sobs blended together, turning the entire classroom into a massive dumping ground for emotion.

"This school is nothing but a scam!"

"We were tricked! We were tricked!"

They complained about one another, and some even began blaming the classmates beside them.

"It's all your fault! You never pay attention in class!"

"What right do you have to say that? You're no better!"

Chaos.

Absolute, utter chaos.

Natsume Yu remained seated, unmoving. The cold light of the screen reflected off his glasses.

He was not surprised in the slightest.

Everything had gone exactly as he expected.

Watching his red-faced, emotionally collapsing classmates, a barely perceptible curve appeared at the corner of his lips.

What foolish lambs.

Like a transparent bystander, he stayed out of it and enjoyed the amusement this chaos brought him.

He observed everyone.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, seated to his front left, showed a trace of surprise, but quickly regained his composure. Unlike the others, his eyes held neither anger nor panic. Instead, there was an extra hint of inquiry. He seemed to be thinking, analyzing.

Horikita Suzune's expression changed slightly as well. Her lips were pressed tightly together, her gaze sharp as though searching for something. Rather than joining in the pointless complaints, she swiftly turned her attention to Chabashira.

Natsume Yu made an initial assessment of the two of them.

Not bad.

Their reactions are in line with my expectations.

At the very least, not everyone was completely controlled by their emotions.

His gaze shifted to the other side of the classroom.

Kushida Kikyo.

At that moment, her expression was so helpless, so pitiful.

Her eyes brimmed with tears, yet she stubbornly kept them from falling. She reached out and gently patted the shoulder of a crying female classmate beside her.

"Don't cry, everyone. Teacher... Teacher will definitely give us an explanation." Her voice quivered with tears, but she tried hard to remain gentle.

"We... we'll think of something, okay?"

She worked hard to maintain her "angelic" image.

However, Natsume Yu's eyes caught the fleeting emotion in hers.

Anxiety.

And a hint of impatience.

It was subtle, fleeting.

But it was enough.

The corner of Natsume Yu's lips rose once again.

Two-faced.

Her two-faced nature had been exposed even more clearly at that moment.

To him, such a disguise was so fragile, so laughable.

He withdrew his gaze and continued observing the various expressions of the people in the classroom.

This farce had only just begun.

A few days later, in the study room.

Natsume Yu sat by the window with several books spread out before him. He looked as though he were studying seriously, but in truth, he had been keeping an eye on the study room entrance from the corner of his eye.

"Casually," he placed a plainly covered book at the edge of his desk.

Its title was: Essentials of Contract Law.

Before long, the study room door was pushed open.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked in. As usual, he surveyed the room, looking for a quiet corner.

His gaze swept over Natsume Yu's desk.

Essentials of Contract Law happened to catch his eye.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's steps paused slightly beside Natsume Yu's desk. He seemed somewhat interested in the book.

Natsume Yu neither looked up nor made any unnecessary movement. He simply maintained his original posture and continued "reading."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka merely glanced at it before continuing toward the back of the study room.

Guidance.

A meaningful smile curled across Natsume Yu's lips.

A seed had already been planted.

When would it take root, sprout, bloom, and bear fruit?

He was looking forward to it.