Chapter 10

"Student, I believe I already stated that everyone has been issued 100,000 points..." Sakagami-sensei replied, looking somewhat surprised. "Excuse me, Sakagami-sensei... I wanted to ask if the upperclassmen were also issued 100,000 points? And will this figure remain unchanged in the future?" I pressed on, refusing to let it go. "Upperclassmen?" The surrounding students looked at me, confused. "Exactly. In my view, if everyone is issued the same amount of points, it would actually be quite strange. Especially since Sakagami-sensei just mentioned something about ability..." Hearing my statement, the classroom gradually quieted down. Indeed, when you think about it, 100,000 points as monthly pocket money is far too much. If a student's worth is measured by ability, wouldn't the points distributed to each person vary based on their individual capabilities? Sakagami-sensei nodded with a satisfied expression and took over the conversation: "As for how many points the upperclassmen received, you should ask them yourself. However, they might not necessarily answer you! As for whether this figure will change in the future, I cannot say for certain. Kitazawa-kun, are you satisfied with this answer?" "You can't say for certain? I see... Thank you, Sakagami-sensei." It's not that he doesn't know, but that he cannot say for certain? In other words, it might change, or it might not... Sakagami-sensei made that very clear. Moreover, looking at his satisfied gaze, asking directly in front of the class was the right choice. If this were a test, Sakagami-sensei's attitude should have been one of frustration for failing to keep a secret, right? If I were a teacher and my student saw through the game at a glance, I wouldn't be wearing such a satisfied smile. In other words, letting the whole class understand a portion of the situation is part of the plan? Could the total sum of points held by the class affect Sakagami-sensei's evaluation? The amount of information is still too scarce; I can only be certain that these points, which can buy anything, must have a major purpose. Buy anything!? I see, so that's how it is! If one were to be expelled, could these points be used to cancel that decision!? Then, for the sake of my own safety and that of Koenji, I need to start collecting points. Come to think of it, these points are essentially money, and I suddenly had a grand strategy!

"Kitazawa, what are you thinking about? Sakagami-sensei has already left! Why don't you help me out with something..." Kaneda, who was beside me, nudged me. "I have things to do..." "Are you trying to pick up girls on the first day of school? No way, you at least need to get to know everyone in the class!" Kaneda grabbed me without giving me a choice and shouted to the whole class, "Can everyone stay for a few minutes? It's the first day of school; we should at least get to know our classmates, right?" "Don't we have three years for that? Is there any need to introduce ourselves like children?" Ishizaki Daishi, on my left, interjected with dissatisfaction. "I think it's very necessary! Everyone heard Kitazawa-kun's question earlier; the point system at this school is not as simple as we thought. If we unite and help each other as a class, there will surely be many benefits." "That doesn't mean we have to share points, does it? Even if points are distributed based on ability, students with good grades won't necessarily bail out those with poor grades." Ishizaki clearly had personal experience with this; he spoke with such empathy. "But there's no harm in making friends and getting to know each other, right? Although I'm not as good at academics as Kitazawa, I can tutor you for free! After all, I'm very willing to make more friends in high school." "Alright then..." Having persuaded the troublemaker Ishizaki, Kaneda managed to stabilize the situation in the class, and everyone began to take the stage one by one to introduce themselves. Of course, there were still those who went their own way and left. For instance, a guy who looked like a delinquent named Ryuen; Ishizaki said he was a tough guy, so Kaneda didn't dare to stop him. There was also a silent mixed-race student who didn't introduce themselves at all. However, after listening to the round of introductions, I didn't come away empty-handed. At least I learned that the cute literary girl in the seat in front of me is named Shihi Hiyori and that she likes detective novels. However, due to her quiet nature, she isn't very popular, much like Ibuki. Other students had also formed various small cliques of different sizes. There was the athletic, muscular group like Ishizaki Daishi, the typical girls' group dominated by a strong-willed girl like Manabe Shiho, and the honor student group like Oda Takumi, who was currently trying to recruit me. It's all Kaneda's fault for spreading the word that I was the top student in Class C; I never wanted to be any kind of leader. Taking care of a bunch of dead weight is out of the question—having the young master Koenji as dead weight is already enough of a headache for me. Kaneda seems to be planning to start with the boys, not only pulling me, who had become the center of the honor student group, into his circle, but also not intending to let Ishizaki and the others go. He really looks like he's preparing to run for class president! Whatever, let him exhaust his youth on class affairs. "Kitazawa-kun, how about we go to the cafeteria for a meal together?" Oda invited me. From the earlier introductions, I learned that the people beside him were Sonoda Masashi and Suzuki Hidetoshi. These three could be considered the top students among the boys in Class C; naturally, they wouldn't hang out with muscular guys like Ishizaki. "Sure, but it's still early. Why don't we go buy some daily necessities first?" My grand strategy isn't urgent; it's only the first day of school, and the upperclassmen must be very busy. Besides, the news that the young master Koenji has enrolled hasn't reached the upperclassmen yet, has it? Although, given the legendary young master's ability to pick up girls, I estimate it will spread in a couple of days. Handsome, rich, and physically fit—he's the textbook definition of a magnet for trouble. "Right, right! I was just thinking about that too." Suzuki is the talkative type, "This is all thanks to Kitazawa's reminder; we're rich now!" "I wouldn't call us rich, would I? Didn't he say points might fluctuate?" Sonoda is the cautious type; he always has his brows furrowed and doesn't speak much. "No matter how they fluctuate, as long as our grades are good, we'll be fine, right? Easy... having 100,000 a month without anyone nagging us like at home is going to be awesome!" "What do you think, Kitazawa? Do those of us with good grades really have a huge advantage?" Oda asked, following up. "Just call me Minya. Hidetoshi makes a fair point, but there is a blind spot." I used our first names to close the distance between the four of us. Although I don't intend to make friends widely, I think having my own small group wouldn't be bad. "A blind spot?" Suzuki tilted his head, confused. "Sakagami-sensei said it was about ability; he didn't say ability meant grades, did he?" "That's true, but isn't evaluating a student's ability just about their grades?" "No, I noticed that there are actually quite a few students in our class with very average grades. If it were based solely on grades, why bother admitting them? As far as I know, there are plenty of honor students who didn't get into this school; I had classmates in middle school like that." I explained patiently. "That makes sense. Nowadays, the national education system is also promoting some kind of comprehensive development..." Sonoda expressed his agreement. "It's easy to say, but these abstract..."