What an Ugly Existence.

"Why? Why isn't that guy Sudō on the expulsion list!"

"This can't be right. There's no way Sudō scored higher than me!"

Haruki Yamauchi stared at the scores on the blackboard in disbelief.

Before the scores were announced, he'd held on to a faint hope that he wouldn't be expelled.

Even if he was expelled, he'd be going with people he usually hung out with in class. At least he wouldn't be alone.

After all, even though he'd been one of the students at risk of expulsion in the first month's surprise exam, he hadn't been at the very bottom.

Ken Sudō had been the lowest scorer on that exam, so in Haruki Yamauchi's mind, Sudō was sure to be expelled this time.

"That guy Sudō definitely cheated, right? Hey, hey, hey! How did he get eight points more in English, his worst subject, than he did on the last exam?"

Seeing that Ken Sudō had scored above the passing mark in every subject, Yamauchi felt a surge of fury.

It was the feeling of being betrayed.

He was probably the type who feared his buddy might have it rough, but also feared he might buy a fancy car and leave him behind.

"What do you mean by that!"

Sudō had been saddened by Yamauchi and the others being expelled, but now he felt rage surging through him.

Passing the midterm exam had come as a pleasant surprise,

but that didn't give anyone the right to slander his grades.

So Sudō, whose temper was always fiery and who never beat around the bush, immediately shoved his desk aside and strode toward Haruki Yamauchi.

As Sudō came straight toward him, Yamauchi's expression hardened. He shouted,

"Your grades were worse than mine. How did you pass this time? What else could that be but cheating?

"You really think studying for half a month before the midterms could get you results like these?

"That's not the ability of a muscle-brained guy like you!"

Everyone in the classroom was drawn to the farce.

Suzune Horikita looked at the scores with some displeasure. She hadn't expected that red-haired baboon Ken Sudō to get lucky and avoid expulsion.

Some of the other students who shared that opinion glanced at their own scores regretfully.

If they'd just worked a little harder and scored a few more points, there was a good chance Sudō would have been expelled along with them.

By the window,

Rokusuke Kouenji was still idling away. He took out a mirror to check his hair, then pulled out a nail file and tidied his nails.

He was absorbed in his own activities, as if the commotion in the back of the classroom had nothing to do with him.

"That's enough! How long are you going to keep this up!"

After learning that seven people were going to be expelled, Yousuke Hirata had completely changed. His face dark, he stared at the back of the classroom.

"Hirata, what are you putting on an act for? You think I'm getting expelled? Whose fault do you think all this is!

"It's all your fault! If you hadn't said anything about those past exam papers, I would've passed!"

Yamauchi tore himself free from Sudō's grip on his collar, his face twisted with rage. He seemed ready to vent all the frustration he'd been bottling up.

He angrily kicked over his desk, snatched up a chair, and, as everyone watched in horror, ran straight at Hirata and raised it to strike!

After all, Hirata had been jumped by seven or eight people just yesterday, and he still had bruises and cuts all over him.

He'd needed someone to help him into the classroom that morning, so he had no way to dodge Yamauchi's attack now.

"Argh!!! I'm getting expelled because of you!"

Haruki Yamauchi held the chair above his head, ready to bring it down. His gaze was vicious, and he kept roaring!

Smack.

Just as the heavy chair was about to hit Yousuke Hirata on the head,

a hand suddenly seized one corner of it and yanked it away.

"How ugly, Yamauchi boy. Sneaking up on someone and bullying an injured person—both are perfectly in keeping with your despicable character."

Rokusuke Kouenji slowly tossed the chair he'd taken from Haruki Yamauchi onto the floor, his face still wearing a proud smile.

But when he noticed the vicious look in Haruki Yamauchi's eyes,

the smile at the corner of his mouth faded somewhat. He remained proud, but his words carried a chilling coldness:

"You... seem to have directed murderous intent at me... So from now on, whatever I do to you, you won't complain, understood?"

At his icy gaze and the words that were clearly no joke,

Yamauchi instinctively took a step back. Fear and timidity showed in his eyes.

"Heh. Yamauchi boy, you're unexpectedly spineless."

Without paying any further attention to Yamauchi, who stood beside him like a pest,

Rokusuke Kouenji glanced at him disdainfully, then returned to his seat and took out his mirror to admire his face.

After this farce, everyone had seen Yamauchi for what he was.

The disgust in their eyes deepened, and they no longer bothered to hide the hostility in their words.

Yousuke Hirata's expression grew darker and darker. He didn't know how to make things right or how to keep the seven people facing expulsion from being expelled.

Even now, only a few people in Class D knew that points could be used to buy anything in the school.

Most were still only vaguely aware of how it worked. They thought points could be used to buy daily necessities and, like yen, to pay for entertainment.

The biggest reason for this was that Kiyotaka Ayanokoji didn't want to get involved.

Suzune Horikita was quite happy to see those people expelled.

As for Rokusuke Kouenji, he simply didn't care. As the only son of the Koenzai Zaibatsu,

it didn't matter to him whether he graduated from Class A or not. Helping idiots had never even crossed his mind.

So, starting that afternoon, seven students were officially expelled from Class 1-D, leaving thirty-three.

Naturally, the news spread to every class in every year at the school.

"That's astonishing. It's only the second month since enrollment, and seven people have already been expelled. Should we call that lucky or unlucky?"

"Seven people expelled at once? That's even more terrifying than Miyabi Nagumo in the second year. At least Nagumo has only expelled a dozen or so people so far."

"..."

Karaoke.

After the students in Class A received their points, they turned in fifty percent and gathered here once again.

The largest private room was easily big enough for all forty students in Class A.

"Everyone, you worked hard on the midterms. Cheers!"

"Cheers!" 40

Ichinose set down her glass of juice with a resentful look in her eyes.

She grabbed Teacher Hoshinomiya beside her with both hands and shook her, pouting as she grumbled,

"Teacher Hoshinomiya, why did you steal my line? I was supposed to say that."

"Come on, Honami, what does it matter? Don't worry about it."

Teacher Hoshinomiya had already downed two bottles of alcohol. She hugged Honami in a drunken stupor, her eyes growing hazy.

People in the private room took turns selecting songs and inviting their friends to sing.

Below, students gathered in small groups and played different games.

Some discussed where they'd go during the break, while others talked about what they'd buy with their remaining points.

Yuki Gyakukai was among them. Just as he was laughing and chatting with everyone,

a message popped up. He glanced at it, and the smile vanished from his eyes, replaced by a sudden chill.