Two days had passed since the midterm exams ended, and an almost leisurely sense of anticipation filled Class B's classroom.
Everyone expected results they would be thoroughly satisfied with, and their conversations between classes had long since shifted to the Luxury Cruise Ship trip.
Wednesday morning was bright and sunny.
"Ta-da! Sorry for the wait, everyone~" Hoshinomiya Chie entered the classroom right as the bell rang, as always, as though she had some special skill.
"The midterm results you've all been waiting for-are out!"
"Ooh-!!!"
Low cries mingling anticipation with a little nervousness instantly erupted throughout the classroom.
Although they had expected this, when the moment of the official announcement arrived, many still involuntarily straightened their backs, their eyes fixed on the teacher at the front.
"First, congratulations to everyone in Class B. Your class average this time was excellent!"
"And it was quite a bit higher than Class A next door!"
"Waaaaah-!!!"
"Seriously?! We beat Class A?!"
"We won against Class A?!"
After a brief, stunned silence, an enormous sense of accomplishment filled every face.
Hoshinomiya Chie smiled at the uproar before her. Only after the initial explosive cheers subsided a little did she gracefully raise a hand, gesturing for everyone to settle down.
"Most importantly, every single student in Class B passed these midterms! Not one person fell behind. You all crossed the passing line together!"
"That's great!!"
"Everyone passed! Awesome!"
This time, the cheers held an added warmth of collective belonging.
In a corner of the classroom, Ichinose Honami wore a gentle smile as she softly told Kitagawa Kai beside her, "Kitagawa-kun, thank you. It's all thanks to you."
Kitagawa Kai looked at the girl before him and said warmly, "Honami, weren't we working on this together right from the start?"
"And you still dare thank me."