Study Session

"There are quite a lot of people here!" Honami Ichinose said in surprise.

"After all, nobody wants to get expelled out of nowhere," An Xiao said with a shrug. "And if you do well on the exam, you can earn some points, too."

"That's true."

"All right, stop looking around and find a seat so we can get started." An Xiao turned to Soh Shibata and the others, who were still glancing around behind him, and ushered everyone toward the empty seats.

For this study session, Honami Ichinose had used the results of the last quiz to divide the students who wanted to participate into several groups, each of which would study separately.

Most of the students in Class B had pretty good grades, so there were really only one or two people in the whole class who needed help catching up.

There were five people in An Xiao's group: An Xiao, Honami Ichinose, Ryuji Kanzaki, Yuki Himeno, and Soh Shibata.

The first three ranked near the top of the class. Ichinose had told him that Yuki Himeno's grades weren't great, but they weren't bad either; she could at least pass for sure. So...

Yep, you guessed it. Soh Shibata, you were one of those few.

"Hm? What's up, An Xiao? Why are you looking at me like that?" Shibata asked, scratching his cheek, clearly confused.

"Nothing. I was just reflecting on something."

"All right, everyone, we should get started." Honami Ichinose clasped her hands together and clapped lightly a few times.

No one said anything else, and they began reviewing.

Time passed quickly, and everyone gradually got into the swing of things.

Except...

"You're saying I'm both ignorant and useless?"

"Huh? You bastard, say that again if you've got the guts!"

An Xiao paused while explaining a problem to Shibata and turned around, bewildered.

Wait, who was that? Had someone lost it from studying too hard?

It wasn't just An Xiao. Ichinose, Ryuji Kanzaki, and most of the people in the library had also been drawn to the voice.

Some were curious, some disdainful, and some annoyed...

An Xiao hadn't planned to get involved. With the threat of expulsion hanging over them, it was understandable that people might get a little short-tempered.

He picked up his pen and was just about to continue when Honami Ichinose, sitting on his other side, prodded him with hers and said uncertainly,

"An Xiao, isn't that the girl who sat next to you during swimming class?"

Hm?

He hadn't paid much attention earlier, so An Xiao hadn't noticed who the red-haired boy was shouting at. Now that he looked more closely, who else could the girl sitting there be but Horikita Suzune?

Sitting beside her were Ayanokoji, whom he'd met last time, and another girl who looked vaguely familiar. Across from them, besides the redhead, sat several other boys.

Were they holding a study session, too?

An Xiao scratched his cheek, his mind suddenly going blank.

Over the past month, he'd often tried to talk some sense into her over meals. It hadn't changed her much, but it had helped a little.

At least her extremely self-centered nature had softened ever so slightly. She was no longer so bad that An Xiao could tease her by calling her "Horikita Suzune the Infant."

But judging by how dissatisfied she was with everyone in Class D, she didn't seem like the type to join a study session like this.

At most, she'd do what An Xiao had suggested last time and find a few reliable people to help her prepare for the school's exams.

"I'll go see what's going on. I know her, after all." An Xiao stood up and said something to the Class B students around him.

"I'll come, too." Honami Ichinose stood up as well.

The two of them soon reached the table where the red-haired young man had been shouting.

But as soon as they got there, An Xiao's brow twitched.

Horikita Suzune, who was sitting there, had apparently said something else. The red-haired young man looked even angrier now. He reached out and grabbed the hand Horikita had been holding her pen with, pulling her slightly upward along with it.

"Honestly, you can't even solve a system of equations. It's terrifying just imagining what your future will be like."

Horikita's expression didn't change after he grabbed her hand. She continued to fire back at him.

"You bitch!"

The red-haired boy tightened his grip, and Horikita's face showed discomfort, but she still kept her expression cold.

"That's enough. Let go of her." An Xiao hurried forward and knocked the red-haired young man's hand away.

Seriously, given what had just happened, An Xiao wouldn't have been surprised if the other guy had actually hit her.

If that really happened...

Thinking of a certain tsundere siscon, An Xiao couldn't help shuddering.

"Hey, who the hell are you guys?"

Sudo glared at An Xiao, who had stepped in and knocked his hand away.

"I guess... I'm her friend... maybe?" An Xiao said uncertainly. At the end, he tilted his head toward Horikita, who was sitting beside him, as if to make sure.

Horikita didn't say a word, but when she saw An Xiao arrive, her expression clearly improved. She straightened the clothes Sudo had disheveled.

"Let's just say I am, then." Seeing her reaction, An Xiao replied helplessly.

"Who cares whether you are or not!" Sudo's anger, which had just subsided, flared up again. He clenched his fist and slammed it hard against the table in front of him, then looked at Horikita's indifferent expression.

"What's the point of studying?"

"With all this time, I'd rather practice basketball and aim to become a pro..."

"Actually, most professional athletes at the national or state level have pretty impressive academic credentials," An Xiao couldn't help pointing out. "After all, even professional athletes need a certain level of education."

"Take Jordan, the most famous basketball player in the United States. Besides being great at basketball, he also earned a bachelor's degree in geography from a university."

"And then there's Shaquille 'The Big Aristotle' O'Neal. He's tall and built like a tank, but he has a bachelor's degree from Louisiana State University, an MBA from the University of Phoenix, and a doctorate in education from Barry University."

"You might want to come up with a different argument."

After An Xiao finished speaking, Sudo was clearly stunned. The others around them were also dumbfounded.

"Y-you... I..." Sudo stammered for a long time without managing to form a complete sentence. The color in his hair seemed to spread downward, and his face turned bright red.

As everyone watched, Sudo gritted his teeth, dropped the bag he'd already halfway picked up back onto the floor, grabbed the book in front of him, and began reading furiously.

His expression was absolutely murderous.

Had the kid... just been completely broken? An Xiao wondered as he watched.