Class B, Everyone (Part 1)

The usual cheerful atmosphere of the break between classes was absent, replaced by a heavy air lingering in the room.

Apart from a few students focused on organizing their notes from the lesson, the rest were more or less gathered around Ichinose.

"What are we going to do? Our Personal Points for this month have been cut by nearly half."

"Yeah, it feels like our expenses are getting tighter... so annoying!"

Two girls started the conversation, their tones a mix of complaint and genuine worry.

"Daily expenses shouldn't be affected, though. Even just these points are enough for high schoolers to live quite comfortably."

Ryuji Kamizaki, overhearing this, chimed in with his opinion.

"Girls' expenses are totally incomparable to guys', you know."

"Even so, it still shouldn't really impact our normal life as students."

"If you don't get it, you could just not say anything."

The gloomy atmosphere, already tense from the near-halving of Personal Points, seemed ready to ignite from the sparks flying between their words.

Ryuji Kamizaki frowned.

He opened his mouth, about to say something.

"So I'm not the only one worried about the points issue..."

A familiar, cheerful voice came from behind him, cutting through the unpleasant tension.

"But rather than worrying about these problems, what's more important now is for everyone to work together and earn those points back."

He eased the brewing argument and shifted the conversation toward a more crucial direction.

Sou Shibata, wearing a smile, placed a hand on Ryuji Kamizaki's shoulder.

Frowning, Kamizaki reluctantly turned his head away, choosing not to continue the dispute with the girls.

"Shibata-kun, do you have any ideas?"

"Ah... sorry, I can't think of a way to increase the points right now either."

The usually optimistic Shibata gave a wry smile.

This small discussion might have ended on a low note, just as I thought.

Ichinose, who had been sitting quietly, set down her fountain pen.

A crisp sound echoed through the classroom.

In an instant, all eyes in Class B were on her.

Does Ichinose have a plan?

Gazes like that converged on her.

"Eh!? I don't have any leads on increasing Class Points either..."

Though she felt everyone's expectations, Ichinose seemed unable to meet them...

The last oasis was being eroded by sand...

The atmosphere was suffocating, but Ichinose didn't seem affected by it.

"Still, rather than looking for ways to increase Class Points, I think it's more practical to make sure they don't decrease any further."

"Teacher Hoshinomiya said class rankings are based on overall strength. We don't know exactly what that 'overall strength' includes yet, but... as Class B students, the school has given us a certain level of recognition, hasn't it?"

"I think everyone can take a moment and not panic over something sudden. Even though Class A has pulled ahead by a fair margin, we still have an advantage over the other two classes."

"Getting flustered or rushing things could lead to even more Class Points lost. We should first avoid letting that happen."

"R-Really, as expected of Ichinose-san!"

"As expected of Ichinose-san, amazing..."

"If we were too eager for quick results, we might lose even more. I guess I was letting that small setback get to me."

Without getting lost in the praise, Ichinose added.

"I still don't know how to increase Class Points, but if we do our duty as students, like Teacher Hoshinomiya said during morning reading, we should be able to prevent them from dropping."

"And as students, the tests for increasing Class Points are probably just things like exams. I'm sure everyone will be fine!"

"As a Class B student, I've never thought we were inferior to students from other classes."

Ichinose's words were like a shot of adrenaline, pumping into the blood of every Class B student.

Even I couldn't help feeling a surge of excitement...

The bell signaling the end of class had already rung, but unlike the usual scene of students waiting by the door to leave the moment it sounded.

Today, the math teacher on the podium was still going strong, spittle flying.

Especially since the students in the class were all quite attentive, his teaching mood grew even more fervent.

But even with their break time cut short, none of the students showed any dissatisfaction on their faces.

Sure enough, compared to heartfelt persuasion, people only truly care when their own interests are directly harmed.

"That's all for today. If anyone still has questions, you can find me in the office."

The math teacher straightened the textbook and tapped it lightly on the podium.

This could truly be called the real bell for class dismissal.

First-year Class B finally welcomed the first day of May—a rather important moment.

Ah, sorry.

Maybe it's just because I skipped breakfast that I'm looking forward to lunch a little.

I tidied up my desk, ready to head to the cafeteria with Ryota and Tetsuya.

If possible, I'd like a bowl of eel rice today.

"Um, Hajima, do you have a moment?"

Huh?

A pale palm waved back and forth in my line of sight.

My gaze followed the swaying fingers.

The knuckles were slender, without being overly bony. The nails weren't kept long, nor were they flashy like manicured ones.

Neatly pressed together, they inexplicably gave me a sense of pure beauty.

"...Hajima?"

"Sorry, I was captivated... ah, no! I mean... spacing out, spacing out."

I quickly shifted my gaze to Ichinose's face.

"I feel like I heard something pretty rude just now..."

She cupped her face, as if pondering something.

"What's up?"

"Want to have lunch together?"

"Ah!?"

Why... suddenly invite me to lunch?

"You're not free..."

Seeing my strong reaction, she furrowed her brows and pouted a little, looking disappointed.

"Of course I'm free... but I already promised those two I'd go with them."

"You mean Hamaguchi and Beppu by the door?"

"Yeah."

"Are you sure you promised them?"

"Of course."

The words came out as naturally as one plus one equals two.

But Ichinose let out a soft laugh.

"Then... why are they waving goodbye to you?"

Waving... shouldn't that be a signal for me to hurry up?

Following where her finger pointed, I only saw two desolate backs.

Seriously, they're walking away from me—so why do they have a melancholic filter on them!?

"Maybe they were really hungry and went ahead."

"Then let's go together too. It wouldn't be good to keep others waiting."

"There are others too..."

"Yeah. Originally, they didn't plan to invite you."

Ichinose suddenly lifted her face, as if gathering courage.

But looking into my eyes, her voice involuntarily dropped.

"But... I hoped you could come with me..."

"What?"

I could barely hear the second half of that sentence.

"I mean... I hoped you could help me think about what to eat for lunch."

The way she averted her gaze really made me wonder if she'd changed her words.

"We can think about it on the way."

"Okay~"