Hirata stood in the middle of the platform, raised both hands, and clapped several times, loudly and clearly.
"Clap! Clap! Clap!"
The applause sounded a little out of place in the noisy classroom, but it successfully drew most of the students' attention.
Hirata Yosuke looked around the room, took a deep breath, and spoke in his gentle voice, trying to calm Class D's agitation and unease:
"Everyone, please quiet down and listen to me!"
At the sound of his voice, the students' chatter gradually died down.
Hirata Yosuke's gaze swept over the faces below him, some frightened, others bewildered. His voice turned grave, more solemn than usual:
"I know everyone's shocked and worried right now. But what's done is done. Complaining or panicking won't solve anything.
We need to calm down and think carefully about what to do next."
He paused to make sure everyone had heard him, then continued to assess the situation. His voice carried the urgency of someone thinking of the whole class:
"From what we know right now, the only way to earn Class Points again and change our situation is to completely give up our old, careless ways!
We have to approach our studies with the attitude of real model students!
Especially with the midterms coming up, we have to give it everything we've got and earn high scores if we want a chance at those precious 100 Class Points!
This is the only clear opportunity we have to earn Class Points right now!"
His gaze slowly swept over everyone below him, trying to convey a sense of urgency and resolve:
"If we keep failing to earn Class Points, what will our school life become?
Are we supposed to scrape by on zero points and the school's free supplies all the way until graduation?
Is that really the kind of life we want?"
Those words hit a sore spot for most of the students in Class D.
The students who had already blown through their 100,000 Private Points in April, or even spent more than they had.
Their faces instantly grew even more troubled, and they started clamoring over one another, their voices full of anxiety and dread:
"Of course not! Without points, I can't even afford a bottle of soda!"
"The free cafeteria meals are enough to fill you up, but they taste awful! How are we supposed to get by without points to spend on food at the shopping street?"
"Are we really going to keep wearing the free underwear the school gives us and using the cheapest toiletries? That's such a miserable way to live!"
"I even bought a game console on an installment plan... If I don't have enough points to pay next month, will I get disciplined?"
Hirata Yosuke patiently listened to the complaints without interrupting, nodding slightly to show that he understood.
He maintained his attentive posture. Only after the students had vented their feelings and the noise began to die down did he speak again.
This time, his voice was firmer, carrying an inspiring strength that seemed meant to bring scattered grains of sand together:
"So! Everyone!" He raised his voice slightly. "We have to give it everything we've got over the next month!
This isn't about any one person. It concerns everyone in Class D!
Only if every one of us takes action, helps one another, and works together can we change our situation, earn points, and escape this zero-point predicament! We're a team!"
Most of the students nodded in agreement, their faces full of determination and resolve.
Their most immediate interests, the quality of their future lives, and whether they could stay at the school were all at stake.
At that moment, Class D displayed a kind of unprecedented "unity."
Under the circumstances, a few of the girls who usually studied hard had already begun quietly discussing whether to form a study group.
Even boys like Kanji Ike and Haruki Yamauchi, who usually slacked off, wore miserable expressions that seemed to say, "Looks like we actually have to study this time."
However, just as a hint of unity against a common threat had begun to take shape—
"Tch!"
A disdainful snort rang out, completely undisguised.
Ken Sudō abruptly stood up from his seat in the back row. He was tall, his face dark, and his expression radiated impatience.
He glanced coolly at Hirata Yosuke on the platform and at the classmates who had "suddenly gotten serious," then scoffed:
"Go ahead and hold all the study sessions and make all the plans you want. Just leave me out of it! I don't give a damn about this kind of thing!"
With that, he shoved his desk, making a harsh scraping noise, then slammed the door behind him as he stormed out!
(Sudō's seat was right by the back door, so he could just stand up and leave.)
"Bang!"
The loud slam echoed through the classroom, making many of the students flinch.
The classroom fell into a different kind of silence.
Many students looked indignant and muttered after Sudō:
"That guy... He's so selfish!"
"This concerns the whole class! How can he act like that?"
"What a rotten apple!"
But some looked worried and helpless. In the end, no one dared to get up and chase after him, and no one tried to stop him.
Everyone knew that Ken Sudō was hot-tempered and impulsive, and that he might start a fight if someone said the wrong thing. Nobody wanted to provoke him or cause themselves unnecessary trouble right now.
Hirata Yosuke looked at the door, still trembling slightly, and a deep sense of helplessness flickered in his eyes.
He wasn't someone who gave in easily to setbacks, but seeing someone openly undermine this "team-building" effort right as it began, with nobody daring to intervene, still left him feeling exhausted.
Bringing together a class that was like a pile of loose sand, with obvious "troublemakers" and "hidden risks" within it, was far harder than he had imagined.
Lin Mu had taken it all in.
Leaning back in his chair, he popped a new cola-flavored lollipop into his mouth. Its tart, fizzy sweetness danced across his tongue.
He had seen the helplessness in Hirata Yosuke's eyes, the other students' pent-up frustration, and the huge cracks beneath the class's outward show of "unity."
(An order maintained solely for personal gain.)
But none of that had anything to do with him.
Since Hirata Yosuke, the born "goody-goody" leader, had already stepped up to take charge and try to solve the problem,
there was no reason for a pure "bystander" like him to stick around and watch their "passionate motivational rally."
The show was over. Time to leave.
So, just as Hirata Yosuke was about to speak again and try to salvage the mood or lay out a specific study plan, Lin Mu slowly stood up.
(You give road dā yo! I'm outta here, bros...)
In the now-quiet classroom, his movement drew an unusual amount of attention.
He casually waved toward the platform and said in an even tone:
"Carry on. I'm heading out. Don't worry, Hirata, I'll fully support your decision."
(Activity period: May 1 to May 5.)
Before you continue