Class B Gathering

At 5:00 PM, inside a KTV private room at Birch Shopping Center.

An Xiao sat in a seat, though he felt somewhat uncomfortable.

If you ask why...

Perhaps it was because there were quite a few people, and everyone was seated close together. As An Xiao sat there, he could clearly smell the fragrance wafting from Honami Ichinose, who was sitting right beside him.

However, that wasn't the most important thing. The most important thing was...

An Xiao rested his hands on his thighs, but his peripheral vision drifted past Honami Ichinose to the girl sitting on her other side, a girl named Chihiro Shiranami.

For no other reason than the fact that while this girl occasionally interacted with others, her gaze would land on An Xiao from time to time, and her eyes carried a kind of... it was hard to say, a very complex, perhaps even hostile, meaning.

I shouldn't have... provoked her, right?

An Xiao thought to himself, but as he pondered, he began to zone out.

Time passed slowly, and the people from the class arrived one after another.

Honami Ichinose clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention, and then said, "I'm very happy that everyone was able to come to this gathering, and I'm also glad that you all took what I said on the phone earlier seriously."

"Here, An Xiao and I will explain everything to everyone properly."

An Xiao, who was still zoning out, was suddenly cued by Honami Ichinose. He shuddered, and noticing that the entire class's eyes were now fixed on him, he felt terrible, his gaze turning somewhat stiff as he looked at Honami Ichinose beside him.

"An Xiao, you start first, since you were the one who discovered these rules," Honami Ichinose said.

"Actually, it doesn't matter who explains it; it's just playing a recording... fine, I'll do it."

An Xiao felt a bit helpless. Although he knew Honami Ichinose's purpose in doing this, it was... such a hassle!

Just this one audio clip—it felt like he had played it nearly ten times in the last two days alone.

An Xiao sighed, took his phone out of his pocket, skillfully pulled up the audio file, placed the phone in the center of the group, and played it for everyone.

However, if that upperclassman knew he would be known by so many underclassmen in this way, would he die of social embarrassment on the spot?

An Xiao thought this, but his hands moved quickly. Whenever the audio reached a part mentioning the rules, he would replay that section a few times to ensure everyone understood the rules clearly.

This resulted in the group listening to the short audio clip for a long time, with no one speaking in between.

Even after the entire audio finished playing, the room remained silent, with everyone plunged into deep shock.

"An Xiao, do you think we came to the wrong school?"

Sitting on An Xiao's other side, Soh Shibata spoke in a dry tone, resting a hand on An Xiao's shoulder.

After all, the information revealed in that audio clip was enough to shatter his worldview.

Is this really a normal school?

This thought surfaced in everyone's minds simultaneously.

"Even if we did, what can you do? Drop out?" An Xiao said with dead fish eyes, patting the hand on his shoulder and speaking with annoyance.

"Although many of the rules in this school are quite inhumane, generally speaking, it still follows the rules of a normal school."

"Everyone's daily life isn't actually that different."

"Unless other classes come looking for trouble."

Recalling his conversation with Hoshinomiya earlier in the office, An Xiao added this final sentence.

After all, it was only the second day of school, and his homeroom teacher had already asked him to target other classes. Perhaps in a few days, other classes would start doing the same, so it was better to give them some mental preparation.

Thinking of this, An Xiao spoke again: "Although it isn't fully reflected in this audio, there will definitely be no shortage of scheming and backstabbing between classes in the future."

"If possible, it's best to carry a voice recorder or something similar to prevent people from setting you up."

As he spoke, An Xiao tapped his phone lightly with his finger.

"Just like this upperclassman."

"That is indeed quite necessary."

Seeing the classmates nod in agreement with no other questions, An Xiao looked at Honami Ichinose, who was busy recording something, signaling that it was her turn to speak.

Honami Ichinose didn't delay, standing up to share an idea of her own with everyone.

"I don't know if you all noticed earlier, regarding what can be done with 20 million points."

"You mean using them to transfer classes and avoid expulsion, right?" Ryuji Kanzaki said, adjusting his glasses.

"There's no way we could ever save up that much, no matter how you look at it," Yuki Himeno, who had been huddled in the corner without saying a word, couldn't help but interject.

"That's only if you look at it from an individual perspective," Honami Ichinose said with a smile. "If it's the whole class, if we work hard, it's actually achievable."

"There are 40 of us in this class. Assuming everyone contributes 50,000 points per month, we could save it up in less than a year."

As Honami Ichinose spoke, she pulled up a photo on her phone—it was a picture she had taken of the class sizes posted on the upperclassmen's bulletin board.

"Judging by the situation of Class B last year, this amount of points is more than enough."

"So, it's like buying insurance," An Xiao nodded, summarizing with approval. "But this action is indeed quite necessary."

"Indeed," Ryuji Kanzaki continued after An Xiao. "Even if not as insurance, for any future class activities, we will definitely need the support of those points."

As he spoke, Ryuji Kanzaki opened his phone and efficiently transferred that portion of points to Ichinose.

As Ichinose's phone chimed, it was as if a switch had been flipped, followed immediately by a rapid succession of notification vibrations.

Watching this scene from the side, An Xiao couldn't help but click his tongue in wonder.

It really had to be said that Ichinose was impressive; to have gained the trust of so many people in just a few days.

One had to realize that after giving up fifty thousand points, everyone had less than half of their points remaining. While it was enough to get by, there would undoubtedly be a significant sense of loss.

To be able to make everyone hand them over willingly and with such peace of mind.

It was truly amazing; at any rate, if it were him, he certainly wouldn't be able to do it.

While transferring his points to Ichinose, An Xiao thought to himself.

Suddenly, a cold sensation instantly spread across his cheek.

"Hiss~"

"It's a drink!"

Ichinose rubbed the canned drink against An Xiao's cheek, her movements identical to those from the morning.

Watching An Xiao shiver beside her, she couldn't help but let a smile tug at the corners of her mouth.

"Since the serious business is finished..."

"Then let's have a toast!"

"Cheers to a wonderful tomorrow!"

"Cheers!" xn

Listening to the chorus of cheers and laughter beside him, An Xiao's own mood couldn't help but be lifted.

This school... it actually had its good points after all.

He took the drink from Ichinose's hand, then gently tapped it against hers in the air, saying with a smile.

"Then cheers, Ichinose-san."

"Mm, cheers, An Xiao-kun."

Looking at the relaxed, somewhat languid boy in front of her, the corners of Ichinose's mouth couldn't help but lift as she mimicked An Xiao's action and tapped her drink against his.

Class B of the first year—officially established.

ps: Seeking recommendations and follows. Starting today, I will officially maintain a schedule of two chapters per day.