Midterm Exam Continued

On Monday morning, two days after the midterm exams, the atmosphere in Class A was not exactly heavy, but it was tinged with a certain nervousness regarding the results.

As soon as Mashima Tomoya walked into the classroom, he felt countless expectant gazes land on him in unison.

He cleared his throat and said with a smile, "It seems everyone is very concerned about the midterm results, so I won't keep you in suspense."

With that, he pulled a white sheet of paper filled with names and scores from his folder and posted it in the center of the blackboard.

"First, congratulations to everyone. You all achieved good results this time, and there wasn't a single failing grade in the entire class. More than half of you even scored a perfect mark." As soon as he finished speaking, he started the applause himself.

Applause erupted throughout the classroom, the hearts of those who had been anxious finally settling, and many faces broke into excited smiles.

"The specific results are on the blackboard. You can check them yourselves in a moment, but be careful not to let it interfere with class time," Mashima Tomoya cautioned before turning and leaving the classroom. The moment he left, the students of Class A couldn't hold back any longer and swarmed forward, chattering as they searched for their own scores and those of their classmates.

"Uesugi, aren't you going to check your results?" Kamuro Masumi asked, unable to help herself as she saw Uesugi Hara still slumped over his desk.

"Kamuro, you didn't fail to get a perfect score even after copying the answers, did you?" Uesugi Hara looked up and asked with a confused expression—he had already provided the past exam papers, so logically, getting a perfect score shouldn't have been difficult.

Kamuro Masumi: I'm such a fool, really. I shouldn't have opened my mouth to ask him!

She took a deep breath, ignored Uesugi Hara's infuriating remark, and turned to walk toward the blackboard, leaving Uesugi Hara sitting there, completely bewildered.

Uesugi Hara scratched his head, full of confusion: What's wrong with her? Was there something wrong with what I just said?

(;￣Д￣) -- Is copying answers actually difficult? He truly couldn't fathom it.

"Uesugi Hara is unexpectedly dense." A helpless voice came from in front of him, as if to say that someone was already beyond saving.

"Morishita-san, that's a bit harsh," Uesugi Hara retorted, though he wasn't actually angry. "It seems Kamuro really didn't get a perfect score. Did my words just now hit a nerve?"

"...Even if Kamuro Masumi relied on the past exam papers, she still studied seriously for a long time. If you start off by saying 'copying answers,' no one would want to hear that." She looked at Uesugi Hara with an expressionless face.

Uesugi Hara paused, recalling Kamuro's reaction just now, and only then realized: "Oh... so that's where the problem was."

"I feel like Kamuro Masumi is so pitiful. Not only does she have to be exploited by Sakayanagi Arisu, but she also has to suffer at your hands. She really is too strong," Morishita Ai said with a sigh, looking at Kamuro Masumi with pity.

Uesugi Hara: Where did this sudden sense of guilt come from? Forget it... I should be nicer to Kamuro in the future.

He changed the subject, "Morishita-san is unexpectedly sharp."

"Of course. Don't lump me in with a loner like you." Morishita Ai gave a light huff.

"A 'loner'? Do you mean someone who stays in the dark corners of the class? Isn't that what you are too, Morishita-san?"

"No, no, no!" Morishita Ai wagged her index finger and stared at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes, "Uesugi Hara, not only are you in a dark corner, you look like a loner, and even your thoughts are those of a loner."

"Morishita-san, I think we need to have a samurai duel," Uesugi Hara said with an expressionless face, swatting her hand away and "threatening" her in a flat tone.

"Uesugi Hara, you aren't getting angry out of embarrassment, are you? No way? Really?" Morishita Ai deliberately dragged out her tone to provoke him.

"If I punch you, you might cry for a long time."

"I'm going to go check my results." With that, Morishita Ai trotted toward the blackboard.

Uesugi Hara sat in his seat, watching her run off.

But Morishita Ai didn't stay still for more than a few seconds in front of the blackboard before she turned to glance at him. She happened to meet his gaze and immediately turned back, pretending to be seriously checking the results.

Uesugi Hara counted silently in his heart: One, two... three.

The moment he reached three, Morishita Ai turned to peek at him again. Seeing that he was still watching her, she immediately turned back around.

Uesugi Hara: ...The person who invented Morishita Ai is truly a genius!

"Kamuro, was the review effective?" Uesugi Hara asked, feigning indifference as he saw Kamuro Masumi return from the blackboard.

"It was, why?" Kamuro Masumi sat back in her seat, her tone softer than before.

"Is that so? That's pretty good." Uesugi Hara nodded with a friendly expression.

"Of course. I did that past exam paper myself; otherwise, how could I have been so confident after the test?" Kamuro Masumi lifted her chin, looking quite proud.

"Impressive!" Uesugi Hara immediately offered a compliment. "If you need any help with future reviews, feel free to come to me."

Kamuro Masumi, however, stared at him suspiciously, her eyes filled with disbelief: "Uesugi, did you take the wrong medicine? Would you really be this kind? Could you be plotting something!" As she spoke, she even scooted her chair to the side to put some distance between them.

Uesugi Hara: ...That bit of guilt from earlier was definitely a hallucination!

"Kamuro, do you know what you are?" He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging emotions.

"What am I?" Kamuro Masumi asked warily.

"You're 'jumping high in a toilet'."

Kamuro Masumi frowned: "Speak like a human."

"Too much!"

Kamuro Masumi: "..."

She rolled her eyes hard and turned her head away. Communicating with this guy was simply a waste of time!

Uesugi Hara: As expected, I can't be too nice to Kamuro. I just got led around by the nose by Morishita again, tch.