When he woke up the next day, there was no one beside him. What had happened the day before felt just like a dream. If only it had been one.
"Good morning, Kikyo."
"Good morning, Ju Ji... Ptooey!"
He ran into the last person he wanted to see in the elevator first thing in the morning. After the little angel greeted him with a cute smile, Kikyo immediately changed her expression and gave him a look of utter disdain as she flipped him off. He really had gone too far the day before.
He had no idea when she had woken up and left, and Ju Ji hadn't noticed at all. In a way, his sleep really was sound.
On the second day of school, since it was the first day of classes, most of the lessons were spent explaining things like the curriculum.
The teachers were all cheerful, even so friendly that it was hard to believe this was an academic school. Plenty of students must have been sorely disappointed. Even Sudo was already acting like a big shot, sleeping through almost every class. The teachers noticed, but didn't try to admonish him.
Quite a few students were just like Sudo. Some played on their phones, others read manga, and even Ike played games. The teachers didn't rein them in. Their Class Points had probably already taken quite a hit, though.
Whether or not to attend class was up to the students, so the teachers didn't interfere. Was this how the school handled high schoolers who weren't legally required to attend?
Of course not. This was simply the method the school used from the start to lull its students into complacency and see whether they had what it took to excel.
Before long, the easygoing atmosphere gave way to lunchtime.
"Everyone, could you stay for a moment before you leave? I have something important to tell you. It won't take long. To make it up to you, I'll treat everyone to lunch afterward."
Just as planned, Hirata stood up and said exactly that. He was popular in class, and the promise of a meal was tempting, so most people stopped getting up to leave.
As expected, Hirata was the class's natural winner. Without his help, there was no way Ju Ji could have pulled off something like this.
"What's this about? I have something I need to do."
Some people agreed to stay, but others didn't want to waste their time.
"Everyone, please. Could you hear me out? I'm sure it'll be helpful."
Even after yesterday, Kikyo still remembered Ju Ji's request. And she'd carried it out without a second thought. She really was an angel.
"If Kushida says so, I guess I can listen."
"For Kushida's sake."
And, true to her introduction, where she'd said she wanted to be friends with everyone in the class, she was popular not only with the boys but with the girls, too. She'd already achieved her goal. If Ju Ji's Friend System appeared on Kikyo, she'd be invincible.
At the same time, Hirata and Kikyo nodded to Ju Ji, signaling that he could go ahead. Ju Ji walked up to the podium, with Horikita following behind. She took out the projector they'd bought and cast the image onto the blackboard.
"[Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to listen to me. You must be wondering about the relaxed atmosphere at this school.
"There are also an unusually large number of cameras around campus. Yesterday, Horikita and I toured the school, and we noticed a few things.
"First, all kinds of facilities have provisions for students who've used up their points—in other words, free items. The supermarket and cafeteria, for example. Don't you find that strange?
"Second, some students at the school wear expensive jewelry. From what I've learned, they're all from the top three classes, A, B, and C. Meanwhile, quite a few students eating those awful subsidized meals in the cafeteria are from Class D. We're supposed to get 100,000 points every month. Even if they've been spending too much, this is still strange.
"Third, this is a photo of the blackboard showing the Class Points for the second- and third-year classes. Doesn't Class D have far too few points? And the rankings follow the class order, with the points increasing from D to A. Have the gaps between the classes always been this large?
"Fourth, the numbers of students in the second- and third-year classes clearly don't match the numbers they started with. Given the atmosphere we've seen so far, are there really no underperforming students at this school? If there are, where did they go? And how can the school still boast a 100% employment rate? I think the school expels its worst students.
"According to what I learned from Teacher Chabashira in exchange for 10,000 points, my guess is correct. Anyone who fails the midterms in two months will be expelled.]"
As Horikita switched out the projected photos, Ju Ji explained the information he'd gathered during their tour of the school. Combining text and images made his claims more convincing. To be safe, he also used a skill called Hypnosis, though its effect was technically more like suggestion.
At some point, Teacher Chabashira had come to the doorway, but she made no move to enter. Of course, Ju Ji hadn't bought any information from her. That part was a lie. But Teacher Chabashira didn't seem inclined to call him out.
"Fail the exams and get expelled? What kind of joke is that?"
"These are just guesses, aren't they? How can you prove any of this is true?"
"Don't waste our time."
Ju Ji had no standing in the class yet, so plenty of people wouldn't believe him. If Hirata and Kikyo weren't here, those students probably would've left already.
"[Of course I have no proof. But there's something that affects every one of us: how many points we'll receive next month. I asked Teacher Chabashira a question earlier, and her answer was that we'd be fine as long as we acted like proper students.
"Doesn't that mean the school's evaluation of us—and therefore how many points we receive—could depend on whether we attend class and behave properly?
"So I propose that, for the first month, we attend every class on time and follow the rules for students. I believe the results will be clear in a month. I'm asking you all to stick with it for just one month.]"
"I don't think sticking with it for a month is that hard. And studying properly is what we're supposed to do anyway, right?"
"If Shinomiya's willing to go this far, he must have a good reason."
"We'll be in trouble if we don't get any points next month."
After hearing Ju Ji out, plenty of people were swayed. Most of them probably believed him, too. Many had noticed the same things he'd mentioned; they just hadn't thought much of them.
"Are you kidding me? It's my own time you're wasting."
Of course, some people still didn't want to go along with it.
"Everyone, give Shinomiya a chance. He has no reason to lie to us. We all came to this school wanting to study hard, didn't we?"
"I'm asking you all, too."
"It may sound unbelievable, but it's true. Of course, everyone can choose for themselves. The decision is up to you."
Just as they'd agreed beforehand, Hirata, Kikyo, and Horikita each spoke up. One person's words might not carry much weight, but four people's? Now everyone would take notice. That was how rumors became truth.
"Then let's vote by show of hands. Raise your hand if you agree."
Seeing that people were still hesitating, Hirata suggested a show of hands to decide whether they would go through with it.
Ayanokoji and Karuizawa, who'd agreed beforehand, raised their hands first. Once people saw them, most of the class followed suit. After all, no one wanted to be ostracized, and they'd come to this school wanting to study hard in the first place.
But some people had other ideas.
"Are you kidding me? Go play this kind of make-believe game yourselves. I'm not joining in."
That was Sudo, the unpredictable factor. Ignoring the mood in the room, he simply walked out of the classroom. Fortunately, the other unpredictable factor, Koenji, didn't oppose the plan.
In the end, everyone who remained voted in favor, and Ju Ji felt a weight lift from his shoulders.
At least Class D wouldn't get zero points next month. But how many points they'd actually receive was still up to fate.
"Now that everyone's agreed, let's work hard and study this month. If anyone needs help with their studies, you can ask me or Kushida. And now, as promised, lunch is on me."
Most of the class cheered when they heard Hirata was treating them.
Teacher Chabashira had also left the doorway at some point, as if she'd never been there at all...
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