Classroom of the Elite, Oh No, I've Become a Stand-in

"Ahaha, that's only natural. Our class students are a bit dull, after all."

"Hmm..."

"Besides, I'm someone who finds it easy to sense other people's emotions. Of course, the most important thing is that the smile you had just now was far too forced; even I could tell something was wrong."

"..."

"Others might have noticed long ago, they just didn't say anything—"

"Thud—!"

From where Ichinose Honami was sitting, a crisp sound of an aluminum can hitting the ground suddenly rang out...

Mikage Touji slowly lowered his voice. The girl with long, gold-pink hair, who had been saying "as long as they're happy, it's fine," was already sitting in her chair, sleeping peacefully. The midday sun spilled onto her fair face, revealing a sense of serenity.

And she said it was fine... As if it were fine, right?

Mikage Touji twisted his body, sat cross-legged on the chair, rested his chin on his hand, and silently watched the girl's sleeping face.

Ichinose Honami, a girl who was both gentle and righteous.

But how did that saying go? People who are both gentle and righteous have a hard time surviving in this world, because it is neither gentle nor righteous.

Come to think of it... did I just aid the enemy with my behavior? She is the leader of Class B; if she gets her act together, wouldn't that put our Class A in danger?

Also, should I wake her up? Leaving her here alone feels dangerous, but if I don't, I'll have to stay here until she wakes up.

Mikage Touji fell into a state where his left brain was elbowing his right brain.

Time slipped away along with the leaves falling from the trees, and the shadows cast by the sun moved bit by bit across the gray-white ground.

The girl on the bench let out a soft moan and slowly opened her sleepy eyes. The breeze from the woods brushed against her eyelashes, carrying the scent of grass and damp earth. The accumulated fatigue seemed to be washed away, and her limbs stretched out as if reborn.

"Ha~"

Mikage Touji let out a long yawn and put his phone away. "You're awake."

"..."

The girl's brain short-circuited for a moment.

The next instant, a cry of surprise echoed through the small woods, startling a blackbird on the tree into flapping its wings and flying away.

"Looks like you slept well, you're full of energy," Mikage Touji added.

"Mikage-kun, you should have woken me up sooner." Her troubled voice carried a hint of reproach.

"Isn't this fine—"

Mikage Touji stopped, pursed his lips, and tried hard to suppress a laugh as he pointed to the corner of his own mouth. "Ichinose, that..."

Ichinose Honami wiped the corner of her mouth in a daze. Seeing the liquid glistening in the sunlight, her face, realizing what had happened, flushed a deep crimson.

"Pfft—hahaha..."

Mikage Touji couldn't hold it back anymore and burst out laughing.

"Please don't laugh anymore, even I get embarrassed, you know," Ichinose Honami said, her face still red as she took out a tissue to wipe it off.

"Haha... I just thought, so the perfect Ichinose isn't actually that perfect after all..."

"Oh, right!"

Ichinose Honami seemed to remember something and hurriedly took out her phone. "How long have I been asleep? Komako and the others were supposed to meet me for some shopping."

Then she discovered that her phone screen was completely black.

Ichinose Honami looked up in confusion at Mikage Touji; she clearly remembered leaving her phone on.

Mikage Touji gave a thumbs-up, looking quite proud. "I saw it kept beeping, so I turned it off for you. How about that? Don't you feel refreshed?"

"Ahhh! That's not it at all!"

Ichinose Honami squatted down in frustration and hugged her head, then quickly shook it to pull herself together.

"Anyway, I have to go meet up with them. They've probably realized I'm missing by now. Mikage-kun, I'm heading off." This hurried pace of speech was something the usually gentle Ichinose would never show.

After gathering her things, Ichinose Honami lifted her legs and ran toward the school building with a patter of footsteps.

"See you next time." Mikage Touji waved goodbye to her with a cheerful smile.

Suddenly, Ichinose Honami, who was still running ahead, came to a screeching halt.

"Um... Mikage-kun..."

Ichinose Honami turned around, opened her mouth, and hesitated for a long while before speaking: "Next time, could you please accompany me like you did today, without saying anything?"

"No way!"

Mikage Touji refused unexpectedly.

"You'll have to wait until I have time next time. I'm not like you; I'm very busy."

Ichinose Honami nodded heavily. "Mm!"

Chapter 33: I don't dare spend a single cent...

Returning to the Class A classroom, more than half of the students had already returned.

Seeing Mikage Touji return, Hashimoto Masayoshi took out the bread and milk he had prepared and tossed them toward him.

"Mikage-san, catch!"

"Thanks."

Mikage Touji caught his lunch and tore open the packaging. "How are the other classes doing?"

"Class B is the same as always. That woman Ichinose is truly terrifying. Even with the S System being revealed—such a major event—she managed to calm her classmates down instantly, as if everything was still perfectly harmonious and unaffected."

I had already witnessed that for myself just a moment ago, Mikage Touji thought, poking a straw into his milk carton.

"As for Class C..." Hashimoto Masayoshi shrugged. "Still the same. They neither submit to Ryuen's rule nor have they elected a new leader. It's a total mess, but at least they aren't fighting in the open anymore."

"As for Class D..." Hashimoto Masayoshi teased. "Just check the forum and you'll see."

"That mysterious?"

Mikage Touji bit the straw and pulled out his phone, tapping the screen with one hand to log into the school forum.

[Selling the latest Nintendo game console, cheap! Used by a girl, 99% new!]

Mikage Touji nearly spat out his milk. "Cough, cough. Where did this talent come from? Class D?"

"It seems most of their class spent all their points, naively thinking they'd get another 100,000 points this month. Now they're scrambling to make some quick cash." Hashimoto Masayoshi laughed with a hint of schadenfreude.

"So, should we make a move?"

"Let's wait for now, especially with Class D. They don't have a single point left; who knows what kind of bizarre things that group of geniuses might do." The situation was too chaotic; it was better to observe for a while.

"Mikage-kun, haven't you eaten yet?" Katsuragi Kōhei approached and asked with a frown.

"Ah." Mikage Touji took a bite of bread and chewed vigorously. "I got held up by some things."

He didn't mention the fact that there were answers available for the Midterm Exam. At the end of the day, whether in this school or in society, one ultimately has to rely on their own strength. Taking this opportunity to improve the class's academic standing wouldn't be a bad thing.

There was absolutely no thought in his mind like, Since I have to suffer here, you guys might as well keep me company.

"Is it about the Midterm Exam?"

"Hmm... partly..."

"Regarding that, I plan to organize a study group. Those with strong academic abilities will help tutor others, focusing on students at risk of expulsion. Of course, if students with extra capacity are willing to join, they are welcome to study together as well."

"Additionally, I plan to call on the students in our class to store a certain percentage of their points as class funds each month for emergencies. For example, this month it would be 40,000 private points, and next month we can adjust it based on the class's total points, but it won't exceed half of our current balance. We can then use a portion of these points to reward students who contribute to the class."

"For instance, for this tutoring session, we can use some as compensation for the tutors. If someone makes an outstanding contribution during a special exam, they can receive a reward from the class in addition to whatever the school provides."

Katsuragi Kōhei laid out his entire plan without reservation.

"Katsuragi-san," Mikage Touji rubbed his chin, looking at Katsuragi Kōhei with some surprise. "You really are a reliable person."

This was essentially a simple tax system. Although the percentage was a bit high, these were points issued by the school, so it made sense to route them through the class. It could also be used to motivate the students.

The average level of students in Class A was indeed higher than the other classes, but there was one problem—they were too individualistic!

Unlike the troublemakers in Class C and Class D, they were too quiet. When they encountered problems, they would immediately weigh the pros and cons. If there was an effortless way out, they would decisively choose it, do their own part, and leave the rest to others.

Likewise, if they had objections to a class proposal, even if they were dissatisfied, they wouldn't explicitly voice their opposition if the majority of the class was in favor.

They were likely thinking, They all agree, so what's the point of me opposing it alone? Even if I speak up, I might just end up in trouble, so it's better not to invite the hassle in the first place.

To some extent, the students of Class A already carried the aura of corporate slaves, numbed by the grind of work in society.

Establishing appropriate reward and punishment mechanisms could be an attempt to reignite the passion in their gradually cooling hearts.

"Fine, I agree with this proposal. However, choosing someone to hold the private points will be a difficult task, right?"

"Regarding that," Hashimoto Masayoshi, who had been eavesdropping, leaned in at the right moment and volunteered, "I think I'm a pretty good candidate."

"..."

Mikage Touji remained silent for a long moment before blurting out: "How is that any different from giving a chicken to a weasel? At least the weasel would leave some bones behind; with you, there wouldn't even be bone fragments left."

"Just kidding, just kidding." Hashimoto Masayoshi raised his hands in surrender. "I'm well aware of the image I have in class."

"Regarding this, I want everyone to vote on the person. We'll choose someone whom the majority trusts. That way, even if an accident happens, it's the responsibility of the whole class rather than the fault of one individual."

"Just leave the decision to you; after all, you're the leader of Class A." Mikage Touji snapped his fingers crisply.

Once the entire class had returned, Katsuragi Kōhei held a brief class meeting.

Regarding the proposal to hand over a portion of their private points as class funds for future emergencies and as compensation for students who perform well in special exams, the class reached a decision to approve it with rare speed and little discussion.

In fact, among them, except for Morishita Ran, who liked to buy things indiscriminately, most people hadn't spent more than 50,000 points. Some had even spent less than 10,000, making one wonder if they were conducting an intense wilderness survival challenge at school.

However, when it came to choosing the person to hold the points...

"Hi!" Katsuragi Kōhei's fanboy, Totsuka Yahiko, raised his hand high. "I choose Big Brother Katsuragi!"

"Yes!" Mikage Touji also raised his hand in agreement. "I choose Teacher Katsuragi!"

The class fell silent for a moment, and in the next second, the students of Class A began to discuss among themselves.

"How about Mikage-san... he's so free every day."

"Hmm... Mikage-kun is indeed a good candidate. I often see him wandering around the school grounds."

"Besides, no one would ever think that we'd put our points in the hands of such a weirdo, right?"

"Look at him, doesn't he look like one of those squinty-eyed weirdos who hides in a crowd? And then, after slicking back his hair, he'd say something chuunibyou like, 'From today on, I shall stand above Kouiku'?"

"Can't argue with that, it really does sound like something he would say..."

The students of Class A sat in their seats, gossiping about Mikage Touji as if he weren't even there.

"Hey!"

Mikage Touji slammed his hands on the desk. "I'm still sitting right here! If you're going to talk trash about me, could you at least do it in private? And what 'squinty-eyed weirdo'? My eyes aren't that small! Also, please don't come to me with this kind of work that clearly has an impossibly high difficulty for embezzlement! I'm very busy, I have to work hard every day thinking about what to have for dinner!"

"..."

"It's decided! Mikage Touji!"

"Yes, it's Mikage Touji!"

"We collectively nominate Mikage Touji!"

"I also agree, Mikage Touji."

On the podium, Katsuragi Kōhei watched the scene and raised his hand along with them.

"Nani! Katsuragi-kun, have you also surrendered to that weirdo? Don't give up!"

"That's right! Katsuragi... don't give up, you have to believe in the us that believes in you!"

The opposition in the class had now formed a united front.

However, despite Mikage Touji's desperate resistance, he was no match for the sheer number of his opponents.

In the end, following "weirdo," Mikage Touji gained yet another title—"The one who holds 103,000 erotic books" (crossed out), Class A's Mobile Vault.

Chapter 34: Friendly Non-Aggression Pact

"In the opening part of the third chapter, 'Sensei and His Testament,' of Natsume Soseki's Kokoro, pay special attention to his complex emotions at this moment..."

It was the last class of the day, and the sunlight slanted across the desks, giving the room a sense of afternoon lethargy.