Grouping and Second Elective (3K)

After swimming class ended, You En arrived at the classroom. Hirata had messaged the group for all students to return to class first, saying there was something important to discuss.

"Stare--"

After taking her seat, Horikita Suzune's gaze remained fixed on his face.

But You En pretended not to notice her.

"Everyone, listen up. I confirmed something with a senior from the Soccer Club."

Hirata Yosuke said. Since You En probably didn't intend to stand out, he didn't mention him.

He continued, "Every exam, if you don't reach the minimum line by the end of the month, you'll be expelled."

Shinohara Satsuki frowned. She was the center of one of the larger female groups in the class.

"What, why didn't the homeroom teacher say anything?"

Sato Maya looked a bit incredulous. "No way, just failing an exam means expulsion?!"

"Why, though."

Yamauchi grumbled.

"Everyone, don't panic,"

Hirata Yosuke went on:

"What I just mentioned is the expulsion line, not the passing line. Passing requires 50 points per subject and 100 points total.

The expulsion line varies depending on each class's situation. Since our class has a relatively low average score, it's set at half the average. You only need 36 points per subject to avoid expulsion."

You En noticed Hirata wasn't talking about a single exam, but all quizzes. What about previous exams that had subjects below the expulsion threshold?

Could it be a retake?

"For previous exams, we all have one free retake opportunity. If you don't pass this time, the second retake will cost points."

Hirata Yosuke continued sharing the information he'd gotten from his senior.

You En spoke up to ask:

"For those who already passed the passing line, can they retake the exam?"

Hirata Yosuke, seeing it was You En asking, immediately replied:

"Of course, but these two exams take the average score, not the highest. So I wouldn't recommend You En-kun retaking it."

Because You En had a perfect score, even if he got another perfect score, it would still be a perfect score.

But if he scored lower, his grade would drop, so there was no need.

"Suzune, want to give it a try?"

You En asked Horikita, who was still staring at him.

Horikita Suzune, hearing it was about something serious, set aside her little mood.

"Hmm... there's a need for it. Even though I can't catch up to you, it's good to close the gap a little."

"I'm thinking of dividing the class into several study groups. What do you all think of this suggestion?"

Hirata Yosuke stated his idea:

"Students with better grades can help those with poorer grades."

Shinohara Satsuke said uncomfortably, "Isn't that unnecessary?"

Sato Maya chimed in:

"It's only 36 points anyway. I can study on my own and still pass."

It wasn't just the poor-performing students who were unwilling.

Yukimura Teruhiko adjusted his glasses. As someone who scored well, hearing that high achievers could retake exams, he didn't want to give up the chance to improve himself either:

"I'm busy with my own retakes. It feels like a hassle."

Of course, there were supporters too, like a few idiots.

Ike Kanji spoke his mind, not caring about his relationship with the others or the occasion: "Study group! It'd be great if little Kushida taught me. Would we study in her room?!"

Yamauchi Haruki and the others also got excited.

Kushida Kikyo could only grit her teeth inwardly, putting on a polite smile on the surface.

You En felt that Hirata's idea had good intentions, but the reality was complicated.

Most students didn't support it. Simply put, one side didn't want to learn, and the other didn't want to teach.

Did Yukimura really think poorly-performing students were a hassle? When some classmates went to ask him questions during breaks, he answered patiently.

It was probably just that he found certain people troublesome, not all students with bad grades.

You En's thoughts were a bit more complex.

"What are you thinking about again?"

Horikita Suzune looked at him and asked.

"Nothing, I just feel a little proud that I'm now someone earning over 1,000 points per hour."

Horikita Suzune let out a helpless sigh. He was still so childish. Outside of school, his hourly wage was at least...

Wait. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized You En was reminding her that they were charging points to tutor Class B students.

If they agreed to set up a study group for the class and held sessions for free, that would be unfair to Ando Sayo, Tsube Hitomi, and the others.

Besides, judging by the looks on their classmates' faces, most of them seemed unwilling to attend free study sessions, let alone pay points for them.

Hirata asked around and managed to find a few students willing to form study groups, but those who could teach others were few.

"You En-kun, could you please take charge of some people too?"

"No."

You En shook his head, refusing directly without explanation.

Hirata looked a bit troubled, but afraid that the classmates might hold a grudge against You En, he said, "Oh, I heard from upperclassmen that joining clubs is tough, and that includes elective courses. You En-kun has to maintain his grades while participating in various activities. He barely has any free time, so it's normal that he can't spare any... Sorry, I didn't consider your situation."

Hearing this, You En felt like doing something again, simply not wanting to make things too hard for a good person.

"Suzune and I have some notes from our previous lessons. You can take them and make copies. They should still be useful."

"Oh?! Can I take a look?"

Hirata Yosuke immediately walked over. He understood clearly inside.

At this rate, there were bound to be classmates who failed the makeup exams, so he couldn't afford to let any opportunity slip by.

"Yeah, let him see?"

You En asked Horikita Suzune in a consultative tone.

"It's not impossible."

Horikita Suzune took the notebook out of her bag and handed it over.

Hirata Yosuke thanked her as he took it, then quickly flipped through it.

His intelligence wasn't bad either; he was just held back by class affairs and his classmates. The many annotations and notes inside directly clarified the logic.

"Thank you."

Hirata Yosuke finally felt a bit relieved. With these notes, it wouldn't be hard for students with a foundation to score high, and those without could follow step by step and at least pass.

"I have class next, so I'm off."

You En said. Last week's elective courses were all canceled because the teachers had sudden business, so this week they had to make up for all of them.

This afternoon's elective courses would be two consecutive sessions, probably running until evening.

After You En left, Horikita Suzune also planned to study at the library or in her dorm, waiting for him to finish class so they could have dinner together.

Those willing to join the study sessions stayed behind.

Ayanokoji's scores in both subjects added up to exactly 100, barely breaking the hundred mark, and he was assigned as a group leader.

Hirata posted the group assignments in the chat.

"Kushida Kikyo (Leader), Inogashira Kokoro, Shinohara Satsuki, Sato Maya, Ichihashi Ruri"

"Hirata Yosuke (Leader), Kei Karuizawa, Sonoda Chiyo, Ishikura Kayoko, Airi Sakura"

"Wang Meiyu (Leader), Matsushita Chiaki, Hasebe Haruka, Mori Nene, Onodera Kayano"

"Ayanokoji (Leader), Ike Kanji, Yamauchi Haruki, Sudo Ken, Sotoyama Hideo, Hondo Ryotaro"

"Kushida-chan isn't with us?"

Yamauchi Haruki was very dissatisfied with Hirata's grouping.

"Just let me join that group. One more won't make a difference."

"Yeah, yeah!"

Ike Kanji chimed in.

Hirata Yosuke glanced at the grouping members and rationale You En had sent, then said, "This study group was set up so that people familiar with each other can help one another. You guys are close with Ayanokoji, so teaching each other shouldn't cause any friction."

"That's true, I guess."

Ike Kanji and the others looked regretfully at Kushida Kikyo.

"Boring."

Sudo Ken, seeing he wasn't placed in Kushida Kikyo's group, put his terminal back in his pocket and left the classroom without looking back. The others also made excuses and left, leaving only Ayanokoji behind.

Hirata Yosuke was truly helpless. "Ayanokoji-kun, I'll leave it to you to put in extra effort."

"..."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka felt he didn't want to, but had no choice but to nod.

"Meiyu-chan, I'm leaving it to you!"

Haruka slung her arm around Wang Meiyu's shoulder, feeling this group assignment was too good for her. First, Wang Meiyu had a great personality—she usually got along well with Haruka, was patient, and never looked down on students with poor grades.

Then there were the other three in the group: Matsushita Chiaki, Onodera, and Mori Nene—all easy to get along with.

Wang Meiyu nodded seriously. "I'll do my best! Feel free to ask me anything... If I don't know, I'll ask You En-kun!"

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Matsushita Chiaki responded gracefully, feeling this grouping wasn't something Hirata Yosuke could have come up with.

Judging by how he'd been looking at his terminal just now, it was probably someone who sent it to him—likely You En.

Back when they first enrolled, You En hadn't struck her as particularly impressive.

What had changed?

Arriving at the entrance of another elective classroom.

You En locked eyes with Ibuki. Sure enough, only the two of them were left.

Teacher Edward walked over. The vigorous old man said:

"Sorry, last week the elective teacher made a small mistake and got called to a meeting by the school, so the class was delayed. I'll have to make it up to you today with a bit more time.

Kids, sorry for taking up your break time."

You En and Ibuki didn't mind. Although Wilderness Survival class had its dangers, what they learned was solid. It might not be much use in modern society, but it was far more interesting than other classes.

"Last class mainly covered how to find and process food, and overcoming fear.

But overcoming fear is actually a core thread running through all survival."

Edward began the second lesson. "Once we can stave off hunger, we have to consider a new danger: enemies. They could be beasts... and possibly humans, though that's not in my teaching scope.

Just knowing how to find food and water isn't enough. Only when we can face and defeat these threats do we truly establish ourselves in the wilderness."

You En suddenly had a bad feeling. He recalled the beast's roar from behind that partition last time.

Was he supposed to slide-tackle a ferocious beast together with Ibuki?