Midterm Exam

"Same here."

Looking at the three of them, Horikita Manabu was speechless. And that last one—who'd even asked him?

"You haven't changed at all. You still misunderstand what it means to be proud and alone. If you really want to move up to a higher class, then struggle with everything you have. There's no other way."

With that, he walked away without looking back, disappearing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

After Horikita Manabu left, the atmosphere fell silent again for a while. Then Shuichi Kanda gave a light cough.

"It's about time. Akito, let's go."

"Wait."

Huh? Couldn't you have said something sooner?

You wasted my time, so I'm not waiting.

"This world doesn't work by making everyone do whatever you say, especially when you have no power."

Shuichi Kanda's words left Horikita Suzune speechless. Miyake glanced at the somewhat bedraggled Horikita, then followed Kanda out.

"Oh, right." At the corner, Shuichi Kanda stopped as if he'd just remembered something. "Ayanokoji, don't forget to come by later and pick up last year's past exam papers."

Shuichi Kanda didn't care at all that he'd just slighted Horikita Suzune, nor was he afraid she'd retaliate.

If she dared lay a hand on him, Shuichi Kanda would make sure she learned what humiliation meant.

Come to think of it, Horikita Suzune probably wouldn't hold a grudge over something so small.

Of course not. Horikita Suzune was still thinking about what Shuichi Kanda had just said: this world didn't work by making everyone do whatever you said.

People who obeyed your orders expected to get something out of it, whether benefits, status, or your body.

For now, Shuichi Kanda expected nothing from Horikita Suzune. If he wanted to watch a show, watching those two idiots, Ike and Yamauchi, perform every day was more than enough.

The hardest people in the world to deal with were those who wanted nothing. Shuichi Kanda couldn't quite be called desireless, but Horikita Suzune had nothing to offer him that could sway him.

Unless she offered up her 36D!

"Is it really fine to just ignore her like that?"

Once they reached the dorm lobby, Miyake asked him.

"Why wouldn't it be? Ayanokoji's still there to deal with her. I'm going back to check my answers. You should take a copy of the test back with you later, too."

After watching Kanda and Miyake leave, Ayanokoji also prepared to quietly slip away. But unlike Shuichi Kanda, he couldn't just walk off. He was the one who'd jumped into this mess in the first place.

About half an hour later, Ayanokoji looked at his right hand, which was clasped with Horikita's, and seemed to understand something.

Kanda, you set me up again! He'd completely forgotten that he'd been the one to call Shuichi Kanda out just moments ago.

Horikita Suzune was a huge nuisance right now. Once you got close, you'd be dragged into her affairs whether you wanted to be or not. That was why Shuichi Kanda hadn't wanted to go out in the first place and had made Miyake take the fall for him instead.

But Ayanokoji had been so observant that he'd immediately broken Miyake's resolve and called Shuichi Kanda out himself.

You set me up, so I have to get you back, right?

So he'd immediately called Miyake over to leave, and at the corner he'd made sure to deliberately remind Ayanokoji about the past exam papers.

Did you think Shuichi Kanda had told Ayanokoji about them?

Wrong! What were you thinking?

He'd said it on purpose so Horikita Suzune would hear.

She might have been an idiot, but she wasn't stupid. She'd definitely figure out that Kiyotaka Ayanokoji also knew about the past exam papers. What trouble Horikita Suzune caused Ayanokoji after that was no longer Shuichi Kanda's concern.

Back in his dorm room, Shuichi Kanda began checking his answers against the test papers. Sure enough, he'd scored full marks. Every answer was correct.

He'd also gained a thorough understanding of the exam. More than ninety percent of the questions came from the areas the teachers had designated as test material, while at least ten percent of the rest wasn't even in the first-year textbooks.

So regular exams were also a way to screen for the top students?

Knock, knock, knock!

The familiar sound of someone knocking nearly made Shuichi Kanda fall right out of his chair. Hearing that sound never led to anything good.

It was probably Ayanokoji, right?

Decision made! This time, he absolutely wouldn't let him in.

He took the test papers to the entryway, then looked through the peephole. Sure enough, it was Kiyotaka Ayanokoji, and he was alone.

"Hey, you're back. These are last year's past exam papers. I got them from a senior in my club. Sorry for the trouble, but could you give them to Horikita?"

The moment he opened the door, Shuichi Kanda shoved the photocopied test papers into Ayanokoji's hands. Then he stepped back and quickly shut the door to Room 404, leaving Kiyotaka Ayanokoji standing there, speechless and bewildered.

No Entry Plan!

Success!

Chapter 60: Midterm Exam

After giving the past exam papers to Horikita, Shuichi Kanda didn't stop there. He took out a notebook and began organizing the topics covered by the questions.

Given Horikita's personality, she probably wouldn't hand out the past papers ahead of time. That would make the Idiot Trio think everything was taken care of and slack off on studying.

She'd finally gotten the chance to put them through the wringer for a week. How could Horikita possibly let it go?

So this was where Shuichi Kanda came in. He compiled the material covered in the test and gave it to the three idiots to memorize.

Whether the idiots took it seriously, and how much they managed to learn, wasn't Shuichi Kanda's problem. After all, there was no shortage of idiots in this world who could fail even an open-book exam.

As for Horikita, all of this was covered by the exam anyway, so she couldn't really object.

Besides, Shuichi Kanda thought, studying material that would be tested still counted as studying, didn't it? Otherwise, why had she asked Chabashira-sensei to confirm what was on the exam? It was because there was too much material to review everything.

All he was doing was narrowing down the scope a little further for her.

Sure enough, at the study session the next day, Saturday, when Shuichi Kanda brought out his summary, the three idiots didn't suspect a thing. Horikita only glared at him, but didn't say anything.

The three idiots thanked Shuichi Kanda profusely, though Sudo was clearly sincere while the other two were just going through the motions.

I spent several hours writing this by hand, damn it! You two should be thanking me with all your hearts!

Every class really did have a few annoying people. It had been that way in his previous life, and it was the same here.

But Shuichi Kanda was used to it. Adults had to be a little more tolerant.

One thing worth mentioning was that although everyone had already received their allowance of ten thousand points, nobody chose to leave the study session.

Oh, right. Except for Koenji. That guy had taken his ten thousand points and left immediately.

All in all, it had been a great success.

And so, it was now Thursday, the day before the exam.

Thursday's classes ended, and it was time to go home.

After Chabashira-sensei finished the class meeting and left the room, Kushida immediately got to work.

Kushida carried a thick stack of A4 papers up to the podium. It was obvious what they were.

Shuichi Kanda looked over at Horikita. With such a great chance to win people over, why hadn't she stepped up and made herself known? Was she an idiot?

Don't talk about whether she was suited for the job or not. No matter how many obstacles lay ahead, getting from Class D to Class A was still the hardest thing of all.

Besides, the class had finally started to come together a little. If she stepped up now and made herself more visible, with Hirata's support, she could easily earn the trust of her classmates. But instead...

Even though you were both Horikita, you really did fall far short of him!

"Everyone, sorry to stop you. Could you listen to me for a moment before you head home?"

Kushida called out to all the students who were getting ready to leave.

"I know everyone's worried about tomorrow's Midterm Exam, but don't worry. I have a set of practice questions that should help."

As she spoke, she handed the questions and answers to the students in the front row, who passed them back.

"These are actually last year's exam questions. I got them from a third-year senior last night." Kushida wore a sweet smile. "I also heard that the Midterm Exams from the year before last and last year were exactly the same. So I think if you study these papers, they'll definitely come in handy for tomorrow's exam."

"Seriously? Thanks, Kushida!"

"She really is the angel of Class D!"

Yamauchi and Ike excitedly grabbed the papers. The other students who'd been anxious about the exam could hardly contain their excitement, either.

Sudo also breathed a huge sigh of relief. Then he picked up the papers and began reading. He planned to study in the classroom for two hours first, as he usually did.

But as he looked over the papers, his expression grew stranger and stranger. Before long, he'd read through all five subjects.

Th-this is...!

Sudo looked up at Shuichi Kanda, who stood not far away.

Shuichi Kanda seemed to sense it, too. He looked at Sudo, smiled faintly, raised his left hand, and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Keep this secret from the other classes! We'll get high scores and shock them!"

Ike shouted smugly, and everyone agreed with him.

They were all competitors. There was no need to hand weapons to their enemies unless it brought them an even greater benefit.

Besides, Class D's students had all been looked down on by the other classes one way or another lately. They'd all been seething with frustration!

Shuichi Kanda packed his bag and called Miyake over, ready to leave.

As he passed by Sudo, he made a point of reminding him, "You should head back early today, too. Don't study too late. You've been tense for days, so get some proper rest tonight."

"Ah, thanks, Kanda!"

Kanda smiled and patted Sudo on the shoulder. "Good luck!"

On Friday morning, Class D was finally about to face the terrifying Midterm Exam.

"No one is absent. Looks like the whole class is here."

Chabashira-sensei entered the classroom through the front door, holding a clipboard in one hand.

"For you bottom-ranked students, this is your first hurdle. Are you ready?"

"Everyone's been studying hard these past few weeks. I don't think anyone in this class will fail!"

"Hirata, you certainly sound confident."

After teasing him, Chabashira-sensei took the exam papers from her clipboard and handed them out.

"If no one fails this exam or the final exam in July, I'll take everyone to a southern island for vacation over summer break."

"A vacation?"

"That's right. I'll let you spend a dreamlike week on an island surrounded by the sea."

The beach in summer... Of course, that meant seeing the girls in their swimsuits...

For a moment, even Shuichi Kanda was tempted. He was a man, after all...

Too bad, Shuichi Kanda didn't think something that good was going to happen.

After all, in a way, nightmares were dreams, too.

"Everyone... let's give it our all!"

"Woooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

The thunderous roar startled Shuichi Kanda. Couldn't you guys keep it down? Didn't you know he was easily startled?

And why was Ayanokoji joining in?

Nice glare, Horikita!

Soon, everyone had their exam papers. When Chabashira-sensei gave the signal, they all turned them over. Shuichi Kanda did the same.

The first thing he did after getting the exam paper:

Write down his full name: Shuichi Kanda.

Then he began reading the questions.

Sure enough, just as he'd predicted, this Midterm Exam was the same as the previous quiz. It was exactly the same as last year's exam.

Not merely similar—the questions were identical.