Paper Shuffle (Continued)

After all, students of this age are mostly ranked by their grades and athletic abilities, just like Horikita when he first entered school.

As usual, the exam results posted by Chabashira-sensei were arranged from top to bottom, and this time, the first place was not Shuichi Kanda.

Although he was very confident in his answers, he had lost a lot of points because he had previously ranked last in several tests and had missed a few sessions. Even so, his score was still among the top.

"The passing score is 42 points after averaging all the scores. Those who score below 42 points will be expelled."

"In addition, the scores published this time also reflect the results of the Sports Festival. Although some students' scores exceed one hundred if the reward points obtained in the Sports Festival are added, they are also treated as one hundred points."

Yes, that's right, I'm talking about Hirata. This guy is not only academically strong, but he also won first place many times in the Sports Festival. All in all, he got more reward points than Sudo.

Of course, there are bonus points and deduction points. Just as mentioned before the Sports Festival began, the ten students who scored the fewest points at the Sports Festival will have ten points deducted.

Shuichi Kanda, Teruhiko Yukimura, and Wang Meiyu all achieved excellent grades; even if ten points were deducted, they would be fine.

Oh right, and there's also Koenji, who missed all the events. He was also one of the bottom ten, tied for last place with Sakayanagi.

The only person who might be expelled for this reason is Hideo Sotomura, known as the Professor, who not only performed poorly at the Sports Festival but also had mediocre grades.

Besides, those underachieving students who didn't receive any penalty points were also very nervous. For example, Ike, Yamauchi, and Sudo were all staring intently at the report cards on the blackboard.

"Oh, oh no! No way!"

This time, the ranking was based on the difference in scores, but the top name was no longer Sudo as everyone expected, but his good friend Yamauchi Haruki.

"This can't be real, right? I'm actually last place?"

Yamauchi was not only in last place, but his English score was also only one point above average. He almost failed miserably.

Next up is Kanji Ike, followed by Sotomura, Inogashira, and Sato.

These three people usually have better grades, but because they often came in last place in the Sports Festival, they had a lot of points deducted from their scores.

Especially those from Sotomura, who not only came in last place many times, but also fell into the bottom ten of the entire grade, resulting in a deduction of nearly twenty points from their written test scores.

It's amazing that he can still get an average score of over 42.

However, Sudo's name is still not on the list, and everyone seems to think that Sudo has been forgotten about this result.

"Wow! Great! Did you see that? My average score this time is fifty-seven! That's a new record for me!"

Oh, your record is really low.

However, Shuichi Kanda also found it a bit strange. Although Sudo's scores in the Sports Festival were generally over thirty points, if averaged across all subjects, they would only increase the average score by about five or six points.

Even if you subtract those five or six points, his score will still be higher than fifty.

The Advanced Nurturing High School's passing score is the class average divided by two; 50 points guarantees a passing grade. So, is Sudo starting to cheat?

You know, this guy only got a score in the teens on his first quiz at the beginning of the semester.

In contrast, Ike and Yamauchi, who also participated in the Horikita Manabu Group, performed very poorly.

No, it's completely different!

"Don't make a fuss over a score like that. Your behavior is only because of the bonus points from the Sports Festival. It's really unbecoming."

"Hmm, oh, oh oh."

Horikita's stern tone immediately calmed Sudo down, and he obediently sat back down.

It seems that Sudo's significant changes during this period may be partly due to Horikita.

"What does it matter? Even if we subtract the bonus points from the Sports Festival, Sudo's average score this time should still be over fifty points. I don't think it's a problem to be a little more proud."

Horikita's words had calmed Sudo down and relieved the struggling students in the class; it turned out Sudo had added bonus points.

After all, being surpassed by Sudo is a bit embarrassing to even think about.

However, Shuichi Kanda's words forced them to confront a harsh reality: Sudo's grades seemed to have genuinely improved.

"Can't you just watch quietly? What if he gets arrogant and fails the next exam? Can you take responsibility?"

"What does this have to do with me? I just think that progress should be praised. If someone becomes arrogant, then it's because you, as their teacher, haven't done a good job of providing psychological guidance."

Shuichi Kanda and Horikita Suzune started arguing as if no one else was around, neither willing to give in.

You weren't in a hurry at all when the results were announced, so you must have been confident by then, right? You're such an unreliable person.

"Knock knock, if you want to argue, you can argue after class. I have something important to say."

After Chabashira-sensei tapped the blackboard, he stopped Shuichi Kanda and Horikita Suzune from arguing.

The reason these two were arguing so brazenly during the morning meeting was because their current attitude towards class and other aspects were not showing any signs of being reflected in their grades.

Otherwise, not to mention Shuichi Kanda, Horikita would definitely have put up with it and then argued with Shuichi Kanda after class.

"As you can see, zero students dropped out of school this midterm. Congratulations on passing the exams without incident."

Chabashira-sensei praised the students of Class D, which was unusual for him.

"Besides, in the three years since I took office at this school, you are the first Class D to have not had any dropouts by this time. You have done a great job."

Three years... does that mean we're the second class of students that Chabashira-sensei has taught since he came to this school?

Chabashira-sensei praised the students of Class D without reservation, but this rare attitude left many students in Class D feeling flattered.

Some people were even starting to panic because Chabashira-sensei's attitude was really too strange.

"Um, Chabashira-sensei, you can say whatever you want to say. I think we can handle it." Finally, someone couldn't stand Chabashira-sensei's unusual attitude and raised their hand.

"I see. It seems you're really starting to become excellent."

Chabashira-sensei's repeated praise made some students in Class D feel uneasy.

"As you all know, the school will be holding quizzes on eight subjects next week for the second semester's Final Exam. I imagine some of you have already started studying for the exams, but to prevent you from becoming complacent, I'll remind you again today."

"Ugh~ Didn't we just finish our Midterm Exam? Why are we having exams again?!"

As expected, Chabashira-sensei was right; some people were indeed unaware that there would be a quiz next week.

"That's right, I haven't heard anything about an exam next week!"

The Midterm Exam have just ended, and the next exam is coming up immediately. Most students can't handle this high-intensity exam schedule, so it's understandable that they feel distressed.

Seeing the suffering on these people's faces, Shuichi Kanda shook his head. This is nothing compared to what's to come.

In my past life, when I was in my senior year of high school, I had an exam every week.

However, that kind of exam is different from this one; there's no rule that failing means expulsion, so they can't be compared.

"Don't worry, Ike." Chabashira-sensei smiled, as if to reassure her student. "There will be a quiz next week with 100 questions, worth 100 points. The content will be at a third-year middle school level. Also, like the quizzes in the first semester, it won't affect your grades. Even if you get zero, you won't be expelled."

"Oh, is this really true? That's wonderful!"

It's incredibly naive to believe something like what Chabashira-sensei said.

The quizzes last semester were meant to guide students in finding ways to pass the Midterm Exam later, and they weren't meaningless. I suppose this quiz will be the same.

If we follow the relationship between the previous quiz and the Midterm Exam, then this quiz should also have an impact on the next major exam—the second semester final exam.

As expected, what Chabashira-sensei said next immediately made it clear that this quiz was not so simple.

"However, while the results of this quiz won't expel you, they're not entirely meaningless either. The reason is that the results of this quiz will have a significant impact on the next final exam."

Sure enough, is the school up to something again?

Shuichi Kanda narrowed his eyes, a hint of anticipation on his face.

The last Sports Festival was so boring that even Shuichi Kanda was annoyed. Since the school is going to cause trouble again, I guess I'll look forward to it a little!

Not only Shuichi Kanda, but other students with sufficient insight also realized that this quiz might be the prelude to the next Special Exam.

"Um, Chabashira-sensei, what was the huge impact you mentioned earlier?"

"Don't rush, I was just about to say that. The school stipulates that the results of this quiz will be used as a basis to divide the students in the class into pairs, and then the students will work together in pairs to prepare for the Final Exam."

The written test also involved group work?

The students in Class D were unsure of the meaning behind Chabashira-sensei's words.

"Let me give you an example. This Final Exam has eight subjects, each worth 50 points, for a total of 100 points, and the passing score for each subject is 60 points."

However, if the group's score in any subject falls below 60, both students will be expelled. The group score, however, is the combined score of both students.

"To put it simply, for Hirata, if you and Ike form a group, then as long as your combined scores exceed 60, you pass. Even if one of you gets zero and the other gets 60, it's still fine."

Upon hearing what Chabashira-sensei said, the students immediately felt that this was a blessing in disguise.

It's difficult for one person to get 60 points, but for two people to get 60 points is as easy as anyone's hand, right?

"What?! Isn't that super easy?!"

Chi's nose immediately perked up, and he was extremely smug.

You really don't learn your lesson! You've been here for over half a year, and don't you ever think about whether this school has ever actually given you any benefits?

"Don't rush me, I'm just talking about one way of failing."

See? I told you so.

"There's a second one? No way Sae-chan!"

"The second way to determine failure is by the total score. Even if the combined scores of both students exceed 60 points in each subject, if the total score is below 60, both students will be expelled."

"Teacher, how is the passing score calculated?"

Hirata immediately realized the seriousness of the situation and stood up to ask for more detailed information.

"The passing score for the total score hasn't been officially announced yet," Chabashira-sensei shook her head slightly. "What I can tell you is that the passing score in previous years was over 700. In previous years, during this Special Exam... commonly known as the Paper Shuffle, one or two groups of students would drop out. And most of those who dropped out were from Class D. This is not a threat, but a fact, so I advise you not to be careless."

A score of over 700 means that each subject must have a combined score of over 90?

It doesn't seem difficult at all; Shuichi Kanda himself.

So, let me see who my little darling is who I'll take flying with me!

Not only Shuichi Kanda, but other students were also starting to look for teammates. After all, if they could latch onto a high-achieving student, wouldn't they be able to pass the exam without any problems?

As expected, he's Akito. His grades are average, and he doesn't have many friends in class. If he fails the test, wouldn't that be like attacking my wallet?

The sight of the students preparing to find partners also caught the eye of Chabashira-sensei.

"I know you want to decide on your exam partners now, but unfortunately, you can't choose your partners yourselves. We'll tell you the specifics after the quiz results come out."

"What? Does that mean we have to leave our fate to luck?"

Chabashira-sensei's words immediately caused an uproar in the class.

That's not entirely wrong. If they end up being Yamauchi together, we can hold an early withdrawal ceremony for them and let them enjoy a few more meals at school before the exams.

However, the group assignments will obviously not be so simple and straightforward, and as Chabashira-sensei said, the specific method will be announced after the quiz.

In addition, as Chabashira-sensei mentioned earlier, quizzes would have a significant impact on the Final Exam, and Chabashira-sensei just deliberately used Hirata and Ike, a pair of top students and underachievers, as examples.

She was practically ready to write the pairing method on the blackboard and point it out to everyone.

You're quite capable, Sae- chan.

However, just Shuichi Kanda can figure it out doesn't mean that others can, such as Sudo grades have just started to improve.

"What if I end up partnering with the bottom-ranked guy? That would be the end of us." As he spoke, he glanced, seemingly casually, at Yamauchi Haruki, who was standing not far away.

"Ugh, damn it! I never thought I'd be looked down upon for my studies! I'm determined to study hard this time and prove myself!" Yamauchi said Yamauchi on the table, looking resentful as he noticed Sudo's gaze.

"Then you absolutely mustn't just say it. I, for one, will study even harder!"

Regardless of whether it's true or not, Sudo's attitude is at least more upright than Yamauchi's and Ike's.

"Furthermore, regarding penalties for formal exams, although it's only natural, I must emphasize again that cheating is strictly prohibited. Anyone caught cheating will be immediately disqualified and expelled along with their partner. This applies not only to this exam but to all midterms and finals."

Hearing this, Shuichi Kanda frowned. If someone deliberately self-destructed, wouldn't that implicate another member of the group?

They even punish those involved together! How low-class!

Or, to put it another way, does this exam also test interpersonal skills?

Before Shuichi Kanda could continue thinking, Chabashira-sensei continued to explain the key points of this exam.

"In addition, this exam will also test your other abilities."

"Could you please tell me what exactly happened?"

"First, you will be responsible for creating the exam questions yourselves. These questions will then be used as the exam questions for one of the other three classes, and you can choose which class to use. In return, you will also be forced to submit a set of questions from one of the other classes as the Final Exam questions."

"Teacher, I understand what you're saying, but what's the point of doing this?"