Kitagawa Kai was just about to rise and head to the lectern. He cleared his throat, ready to ask his deskmate to move out of his way with an "Ichinose, let me through for a moment."
Then it would be his showtime.
But Hoshinomiya Chie had barely left before a crowd of girls gathered around.
Shiranami Chihiro naturally pressed close to Ichinose, all but hugging her.
"Right, right! Let's buy up all the limited-edition snacks at the school store!"
"I want to see the latest movie!"
"Let's sign up for all the popular clubs first! It sounds so cool!"
They enthusiastically discussed how to spend their wonderful school days ahead.
Kitagawa Kai skirted around the group surrounding Ichinose from behind and to the side, raised his voice, and stood up to address the whole class:
"Now, could everyone please return to their seats?"
Within a few short seconds, the noisy classroom miraculously fell quiet again.
Ichinose's puzzled yet still adorable voice rang out.
"Kitagawa-kun, did you discover something?"
"Ichinose, that's exactly what I'm about to discuss." He turned and gave her a confident smile.
Now, I'm going to give you all a little shock.
Kitagawa Kai slowly walked up to the lectern.
"I have a few things to say behind closed doors."
The student beside the door immediately took the hint and quickly closed it.
"First, I'd like everyone to forget that figure of a hundred thousand points for a moment. Think about this: at the beginning of a normal semester, what would a teacher do during the first homeroom session?"
He answered his own question, guiding their thoughts.
"She would introduce herself, explain the school rules, hand out textbooks, and then announce the upcoming schedule.
"Everything should be clear and explicit. We need to know what the exams are, what the scores are, and the basic rules by which this school operates."
"But what happened today?"
"Hoshinomiya-sensei didn't clearly explain the rules for distributing points. She only said that points would be issued on the first of each month, while remaining vague about the actual amount."
"There must be something wrong here."
"Imagine you're in charge of the school. Each class requires a payment of four million a month. Including the upperclassmen, there are twelve classes in total."
"That means the school has to spend nearly fifty million on points alone every month, with nothing coming back."
Fifty million.
That number struck everyone hard.
Fifty million! That was no small sum. It was enough to make any company's finance department sit up and take notice.
"That's practically impossible. Hoshinomiya-sensei also just said that this was a reward based on our abilities."
"A person's abilities aren't fixed, and the same goes for a class."
"So what a reward based on ability really means is that the points distributed will be directly linked to the results of each class's ability assessment."
"Therefore, I think the points issued next month might not exceed a hundred thousand."
The classroom was deathly silent, with only his voice echoing through it.
"Then... what should we do?" An unremarkable student couldn't help asking the most practical question. "Can we still spend these points however we want?"
If the points weren't fixed, could they freely splurge this huge sum now?
"I suggest everyone spend normally, but don't use too many points. Wait a few days and observe the other students at school first."
Of course he knew all the rules, but openly, he had to offer this most logical hypothesis.
Otherwise, he would seem far too impossibly knowledgeable.
"Also," Kitagawa Kai added seriously, "the hypothesis I just gave is for Class B alone. Remember, don't tell anyone from another class."
"Over the next few days, keep a close eye on everything happening around campus and see if you can gather any more useful information."
Everyone in Class B was so well-behaved that not a single person objected.
"At the same time, pay attention to the students in the other classes, especially anything unusual around you."
As he spoke, Kitagawa Kai looked straight at Ichinose and raised his eyebrows.
Ichinose Honami immediately snapped out of her thoughts, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She nodded vigorously, with a touch of eager anticipation:
"Yes! Leave it to me!"
"I'll handle it, Kitagawa-kun!"
The other students were swept up in the positive atmosphere too, nodding in agreement and chiming in, "Yeah!"
"You can leave it to us too!"
The school bell rang, and the students of Class B left the classroom in groups.
A large crowd of girls chattered around Ichinose.
Shibata Sō fell into step with Kitagawa Kai, wearing an enthusiastic, outgoing air.
"Kitagawa, want to go shopping at the supermarket together afterward?"
"I'd like to look around on my own first. This is where we'll be spending the next three years, after all."
"I see." Shibata nodded lightly.
Looks like Kitagawa-kun is more of a loner...
I'll have to find a chance to help him fit in somewhere else later.
At that moment.
There were already plenty of people inside the Gymnasium. Judging by the ties on their uniforms, the upperclassmen had arrived too.
Each class had been assigned a different area.
The atmosphere differed completely from class to class.
Kitagawa Kai unobtrusively swept his gaze over the other classes.
Class A was a gathering of elites.
Katsuragi Kohei had effortlessly united Class A into a disciplined formation.
Sakayanagi Arisu stood quietly at the front with impeccable poise, like an elegant, adorable princess.
Only occasionally, she turned toward Class B, as though searching for someone.
When her gaze briefly met Kitagawa Kai's across the room, she revealed a dangerous smile.
Class C, meanwhile, was shrouded in a heavy atmosphere.
A tall, unruly young man with long red hair wore an utterly impatient expression.
Ryuen Kakeru.
Only, his face was covered in bruises, and the students around him kept their distance, whether deliberately or otherwise.
On the other side of Class C, a Black international student stood out. He was far taller than others his age, with an unusually massive frame.
He was extremely imposing.
Yamada Albert.
Kitagawa Kai turned his gaze to the last class, and sure enough, it was a complete circus.
If Class C was a gang gathered together, then Class D was a collection of defective products.
Most of them were the absolute cream of the crackpots.
They stood in clusters of three or five, without any semblance of organization or collective pride. The scene was utterly chaotic.
The blond young man at the very front was Hirata Yosuke.
He seemed to want to say something to raise morale, but looking at the unresponsive students before him, a hint of helplessness appeared on his face too.
Class D's other central figure, Kushida Kikyo, had adorable features. The ordinary school uniform bulged on her; one look made it clear she belonged in Class D.
In the least conspicuous corner, a boy watched everything expressionlessly, as though the surrounding clamor had nothing to do with him.
A human imitation, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
Just then, the Chairman's voice came from the stage.
"New students, welcome to Advanced Nurturing University. I am the Chairman of this school, Sakayanagi Narimori. You will spend three pleasant years here, which I believe will become unforgettable memories in your lives."
The school leader spoke at length onstage while the students below struggled to stay awake.
That long, tedious welcome speech was nothing short of a merciless assault on the limits of their mental endurance.
Its content amounted to clichés such as "cultivating talent," "free development," and "merit above all," interspersed with the usual disciplinary requirements.
Why was it always the same routine, no matter where I went?
If I'd known, I would've found an excuse to leave.