"Why are you still sucking up to that Odd Jobs Agency, Nagumo? Is it just to do Horikita-senpai a favor?"
Hayato Kojima couldn't understand why he'd been toyed with by a junior like a fly for several rounds. What was the point of it all?
"Heh, let's say that's it. But the Odd Jobs Agency was right about one thing: even if we sold the midterm answers to other people, we'd only end up with a few more points in our hands. Besides, if some third-year senior decided to sell the answers first, we wouldn't even make that little."
"Giving them a little something up front is also my way of doing Horikita-senpai a favor. Whether that Odd Jobs Agency is his smokescreen or not, it can't hurt to make connections with them first."
Hayato Kojima nodded thoughtfully. In just one more year, the world would belong to their second-years. By then, the Odd Jobs Agency... would be utterly insignificant.
"Then... that first-year girl from before, you..."
"Hm? Oh! You mean her. Heh, I just can't stand Horikita-senpai's rigid way of thinking. He's very capable, but just like those stubborn old people running the school, he doesn't understand that only young people can create a better future for this school. And I happen to be willing to do that."
Meanwhile, in Class 1-D.
"Teacher, weren't you supposed to announce our exam results today? When will you do that?"
A faint, cold smile played on Sae Chabashira's lips.
"You don't have to be so impatient, do you? An exam of that difficulty should have been a piece of cake for you, shouldn't it?"
"But..."
Chabashira waved a hand to indicate that she wasn't finished.
"All right, I'll announce them now. If I waited until after school, we might not have enough time to complete all the necessary procedures."
Shinjo glanced discreetly at Sudo, whose face was tight with nerves. If he wasn't mistaken, something unexpected had happened.
Chabashira pinned the sheet of paper to the blackboard with a magnet, just as she had last time. A rare smile crossed her face.
"I really have to hand it to you. More than twenty of you got perfect scores in math, Japanese, and social studies! And you did remarkably well in the other subjects, too."
The results spoke for themselves. The rows of perfect scores sent the students cheering with delight.
But that wasn't the point. The important thing was that Sudo had scored around 60 in four of his five subjects, while his English score was 39.
"All right!"
Sudo sprang to his feet and shouted. His 39 was much higher than the 14 he'd gotten last time, but he clearly hadn't calculated the minimum passing score.
Chabashira picked up the red pen beside her and drew a red line through Sudo's name.
"What a shame, Sudo. You were just a little short."
Even she found it baffling. He'd gotten the answers a whole week in advance, so how had he still scored so poorly?
Had having the answers made him too confident, so that even after getting them early, he'd put off studying until the day before the exam?
"Huh?! Wait! What's going on?!"
"Have you forgotten? I warned you that this time anyone who scored less than half the average would also fail. The average score this time was 79.6, so the cutoff is 79.6 divided by two: 39.8."
"In other words, you were 0.8 points below the cutoff. You were just a little short..."
Sudo looked as if he'd eaten something foul. His face contorted, cold sweat beaded across his forehead, and his body trembled as he struggled to believe his ears.
"So you're expelled, Sudo!"
"Wait, Teacher!"
Hirata couldn't sit still any longer. He hurried to his feet and called out to Teacher Chabashira.
"Hirata. Do you have something to say?"
"I... I want to say that Sudo has worked so hard, and everyone can see that he truly wants to stay here. So, could you... give him one more chance?!"
"Don't be ridiculous!"
Sae Chabashira's expression changed abruptly. She slammed her hand down on the lectern in front of her.
"These are the school rules! And school rules cannot be broken! What do you think Sudo is? Do you think the school will make a special exception for him just because he studied hard?! I'll tell you this: plenty of people at this school work harder than you do! But reality has never given them a chance to take back their mistakes!"
"But..."
"And another thing... Sudo, did you really work that hard? If you did, why did you still fail after getting the answers a whole week in advance?!"
Even Hirata didn't know what to say now. This time, he was completely in the wrong. But he still couldn't accept seeing a classmate expelled! Even knowing he was being unreasonable, he couldn't accept it!
"You're kidding... I... I'm getting expelled?"
Sudo was stunned. At last, the cruel reality had shattered him completely.
"It's only been a short time, but you still have time to say goodbye to your friends. After school, please submit your withdrawal application. You'll need to be accompanied by a guardian, and I'll contact them."
Chabashira matter-of-factly pronounced Sudo's fate.
"Wait!"
"What do you want now, Hirata?"
"C-could I look at Sudo's exam paper?"
It was the best idea he could come up with. He could only pray for a miracle.
"Looking at it won't help. I guarantee there were no grading mistakes. But it doesn't matter. If you want to see it, go ahead."
As if she'd been prepared for this, Chabashira tossed Hirata the only exam paper she had with her, hoping to make him give up.
He took it and carefully examined each question. After checking again and again, he still couldn't find anything disputable or any mistake in the teacher's grading. He sank helplessly into his chair.
"I see you understand now. That concludes homeroom."
In truth, only a few people were saddened by Sudo's impending expulsion. The Idiot Duo, for instance—Sudo was one of the few friends they had.
And Hirata, who sincerely regarded everyone as a companion.
But most of the others would have been glad to see Sudo expelled as soon as possible.
After all, how could anyone like someone who was crude, constantly caused trouble for the class, wasn't very bright, and often hung around with the lowest of the low?
Chabashira watched the students below the lectern with a cool gaze. But the person she was truly focused on was Shinjo, who hadn't changed his expression or shown any intention of speaking from the very beginning.
You'll only do what an ordinary member of the Student Council would do. In other words, at a moment like this, you don't intend to save the world? If Yamauchi were the one getting expelled this time, I'd do it without hesitation. But Sudo...
"Shinjo."
Before you continue