Time passed.
Before long, a month had gone by since the start of the school year.
The vegetation along the roads of Advanced Nurturing High School had grown increasingly lush, as if to suggest that the fresh batch of students who arrived in April had adapted to life in the fully enclosed school.
Today was the day the school distributed points.
Classes A, B, C, and D had all received their respective points, but their moods were far from the same.
Chabashira Sae's words sent the bewildered students of Class D spiraling into despair.
This month, they had received only a quarter of the personal points they had gotten the previous month—the least of all four classes.
Meanwhile, Classes A, B, and C had received , , and personal points, respectively.
Typical Class D!
Chabashira also announced the S System, which formed the foundation of the school's education system, along with two important pieces of information.
Each class started with 1,000 Class Points, and each student's personal points were calculated by multiplying their class's points by 100.
After the first month's conduct evaluation, Class D had lost 750 Class Points and was left with only 250, so each student could take home only personal points.
Class Points would be gained or deducted in future evaluations based on the results. In other words, if they wanted a decent allowance each month, they had to strive for good results in evaluations and avoid being punished for finishing last.
Important information one: only Class A enjoyed the right to choose their employment freely.
Class Points were the sole measure of which class was Class A. In other words, whichever class had the most points was Class A.
If one class had more points than another, it took its place. It was a system that was fair and ruthless.
Important information two: evaluations didn't just affect increases and decreases in Class Points. Some exams also came with special punishments and rewards.
Punishments included expulsion, while rewards included a one-time exemption from expulsion.
Keyaki Mall.
Ayanokoji sat on a bench beside a vending machine, leaning his head back and gazing up at the sky.
He'd already anticipated how many personal points he would receive this month. What surprised him was that the amount was a little higher than he'd expected.
How much had it been in the original story?
He couldn't remember.
At any rate, he hadn't spent extravagantly last month, so he didn't need to worry about covering his living expenses.
With this month's points, he even had over 110,000 personal points.
And since personal points were apparently converted into cash after graduation, he had even less reason to spend them carelessly.
As he sat lost in thought, Hirata returned from buying a drink and held out a bottle of something cold.
Ayanokoji glanced sideways at him and reached out to take it.
"How is it? Does it taste all right?"
Only after watching Ayanokoji take a sip did Hirata ask.
"Surprisingly good," Ayanokoji replied, his tone as calm as still water, though he felt a little moved inside.
His gaze flickered as he picked up the bottle and examined it.
"Haha, glad to hear it." At Ayanokoji's praise, Hirata gave him a warm, boy-next-door smile.
"If you want another, I'll buy you one."
"No, that's okay." Ayanokoji's brows drew together slightly.
It wasn't that he wanted to be polite to Hirata. He still had a hefty 110,000 points saved up, after all, so it made no sense to let Hirata, who had only 30,000 left, treat him.
As for why Hirata had just received 25,000 points but had only 30,000 left, Ayanokoji had his own theories.
Aside from lending points to other people, he couldn't imagine Hirata—whose spending habits were as restrained as his own—using up that much.
Ayanokoji glanced at Hirata, who had fallen silent, and asked with some concern, "Are you all right, Hirata?"
"You've only got 30,000 left, even though the points were just handed out..."
"It's fine. I don't usually spend much, so I should be able to get by this month..." He paused for two seconds, then forced out another smile. "Let's give it our all this month and work together to get good results on the midterms. Then we'll have plenty to spare next month."
Damn, this was making him tear up.
But, Hirata, you shouldn't be saying that to me.
All I can do is help you out when you don't have enough to eat.
Ayanokoji murmured to himself.
Hirata smiled wryly. He knew the class had a lot of problems: a lack of discipline, no unity, and everyone looking out only for themselves...
Still, he was extremely grateful that Ayanokoji had stepped forward to help the class during their first month. Without the information Ayanokoji had provided, it wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say that Class D would have received nothing at all this month.
Though Hirata was the only one who knew that.
That was why he'd invited Ayanokoji out today to thank him, even if all he could afford at the moment was a drink.
Hirata gazed at the deep blue sky in the distance and let out an unconscious sigh.
The road to becoming a strong class was long and arduous.
After saying goodbye to Hirata, Ayanokoji decided to wander around.
It was the weekend, so there was no reason to head back to the dorm too early. The only friend he could say he was in touch with had just met up with him. He couldn't exactly go and meet him twice in one day.
He wandered aimlessly down the shopping street, his gaze drifting from shop to shop. He also spotted quite a few familiar faces.
A pink-haired girl surrounded by other girls in a café; Karuizawa and Sato in a clothing store; and Ike and Yamauchi, looking utterly dejected as they sat in the rest area outside a convenience store, their living expenses depleted...
By chance, Ayanokoji's wandering gaze landed on a strangely dressed girl in front of an electronics store.
She wore a hat and a mask, and her pink hair was tied in low pigtails. Compared to the other girls on the street, her outfit looked a little old-fashioned.
But the magnificent curves rising beneath her chest revealed that she was far from ordinary!
That alone was enough to put her ahead of 99 percent of the girls at school.
That was what he thought.
As someone who was naturally curious, Ayanokoji still wanted to find out why the girl was dressed like that. As it happened, he had reached the electronics store.
At this prestigious, government-funded school, there was little need to worry about personal safety. Yet this girl had bundled herself up so thoroughly, as if afraid to let even an inch of skin see the sun...
Ayanokoji rested his chin in his hand and pondered for two and a half seconds.
Could she be a member of the Darkborn?
Obviously not.
The girl in front of the store fidgeted, her voice barely audible as she spoke with the shopkeeper about something.
She kept refusing, and as the line behind her grew longer, the shopkeeper's expression became increasingly impatient. He even seemed to be on the verge of forcing a sale.
Ayanokoji finally couldn't stand watching any longer. He quietly walked over and learned that the girl wanted to get her broken camera repaired, but she didn't dare fill in her personal information because she was afraid of exposing her privacy.
Cautious—far too cautious.
What, was she some kind of popular idol streamer?
But then, seeing how the shopkeeper's gaze seemed fixed almost entirely on one spot, Ayanokoji changed his mind.
What a sleazy old creep! Even I'm not that shameless about it.
Without saying a word, Ayanokoji took the form and, after getting the pink-haired girl's permission, wrote down his own phone number and address. Then he led her away from the line.
By the vending machine, Ayanokoji handed the girl a bottle of soda and took one for himself. He opened his and gulped down a big mouthful.
Ahh—Hirata really knew his stuff.
After taking a swig, Ayanokoji glanced at the unopened drink in the girl's hand and said calmly,
"Go ahead and drink it. It's fine. My treat."
At that, the girl lifted her dewy eyes and glanced at Ayanokoji, then immediately looked down again. Her gaze darted around as if she'd done something wrong.
Seeing her reaction, Ayanokoji fell into thought.
Uh... I've seen people who were shy, but never anyone this shy.
Before you continue