Since We're Colleagues, We Should All Go Down Together

Seeing that Mashima Tomoya nor Sakagami Kazuma showed any curiosity in their eyes, Hoshino En changed the subject.

"It seems the other two teachers knew as well, so it seems there won't be any problem if we don't avoid it this time."

He adjusted the position of his arms so that Hoshinomiya Chie could lie down more comfortably.

So—would you be willing to tell me about it?

His gaze was fixed on Chabashira Sae.

However, Hoshino En's inquiry did not receive any definite answer, Chabashira Sae remained silent.

Clearly, she didn't want to discuss this matter further with her students.

"Hmm, no wonder Hoshinomiya-sensei said that about you. At first, I thought she went a bit too far, but now it seems... Hoshinomiya-sensei is really pitiful."

"May you have sweet dreams tonight, 'selfish, womanizing, and ungrateful Sae-chan '."

Upon hearing Hoshino En's final "blessing," Chabashira Sae's pupils constricted sharply, and her entire body stiffened.

She mechanically took the unconscious Hoshinomiya Chie from Hoshino En's arms, not even noticing when he and the other two homeroom teachers had left.

----near

The last two days of indulgence passed quickly.

On the afternoon of July 18th, all the first-year students at Kodo Ikusei returned to their beloved campus as scheduled.

"Damn it! How did this Cruise Ship trip end so quickly?! I didn't even have time to visit all the shops!"

"But we've been playing without a care in the world for five whole days. Aren't we pretty much done playing by now?"

"Hey~ what are you thinking! This is a completely free Cruise Ship trip, requiring absolutely no points! If we don't take this opportunity to visit all the shops and eat at all the restaurants, wouldn't we be missing out?! Will we ever have the chance to travel on such a luxurious Cruise Ship again?"

"..."

Of course, this "longing" is the opposite of the sentiment; a large number of people, especially the members of Class A, simply do not want to go back to school.

After all, here they can enjoy luxurious meals and wear all sorts of beautiful clothes; but at school, until their Private Points for the next month are distributed, they have to tighten their belts and live a tight and "frugal" life.

As for the 4.5 million Private Points obtained in the VIP Exam, since all the students who submitted the answers were Karuizawa Kei's people, in addition to giving each of them 50,000 Private Points as a reward, the remaining 4.05 million Private Points were all kept by Karuizawa Kei alone.

Even Hirata Yosuke would be happy to accept the offer, citing the reason that it "serves as class funds to improve the class's ability to withstand risks."

The nine students originally wanted to increase their compensation, but after Karuizawa Kei proposed that "either accept the status quo or give them all the compensation, but she will take 30% of the class's Private Points each month as class funds," they gave up.

The latter would offend the entire class, and they didn't want to become the same target of public criticism as Yamauchi Haruki.

Even without including today, the 18th, there are still 13 days until the points are distributed at the beginning of next month.

They earned 13,000 points this month, spread over 13 days, which is 1,000 points per day.

After a week of indulging in luxury, how could 1000 points a day possibly be enough for them?!

"Speaking of which... we've increased our Class Points by a full 1070 this time, plus the 130 we already had, that's 1200 points. Does this mean that—everyone will receive a full 120,000 Private Points every month from now on?"

"Really? That's 20,000 more than the 100,000 points in April! That's amazing!!"

On the bus back, the students in Class A inevitably discussed the issue of Private Points.

They all came from poverty in May and June, and they care more about their Private Points than the Class Points.

"By the way, Chabashira-sensei, summer vacation is coming up soon, right? Will the school still give out Private Points?"

Someone asked Chabashira Sae, who was sitting in the front row of the bus.

"You can rest assured about that. Even during holidays, the school will not stop issuing Private Points."

"However, each of you will not receive 120,000 points, but rather 93,000 points. According to the agreement signed before the Uninhabited Island Exam, any portion of the final rewards exceeding 500 points will belong to Hoshino alone."

"Ah! How could this be?!"

Some people were unwilling.

Greed is one of the worst aspects of human nature. Seeing that they could have received 120,000, they won't be satisfied with only getting 93,000.

"How can Hoshino En get so many points?!"

Some people were unhappy about this.

If one person takes 27,000 Private Points, then the whole class will have to give out 1,080,000 Private Points. Adding the 93,000 points that Hoshino En still has, he will eventually get 1,173,000 points, and that's just for one month.

Jealousy is also one of the inherent flaws of human nature. The fact that people at the same level can have incomes more than thirteen times apart will undoubtedly cause resentment.

In particular, when the person is not popular, has obvious flaws, and is not present, these undercurrents that were originally hidden beneath the surface will become even more obvious.

However, in Class A, the "most" girls were Karuizawa Kei's "Empress Group" and Kushida Kikyo's "Friend Group," while the "most" boys were Hirata Yosuke's "Honor Student Group" and other boys. Most of them were Hoshino En Enishi's "Best Friend Group," so these small ripples did not cause much of a stir.

"Kikyo- chan, I feel like something about you has changed since the Uninhabited Island Exam?"

"Really? I'm still the same as before! Xiaomei, aren't you overthinking it?"

"Definitely not! But I can't quite put my finger on what's different... However, it's definitely a positive change! Because—I like Kikyo even more now!!"

"Xiaomei..."

After taking off her mask, Kushida Kikyo is actually living a more comfortable life than before. Congratulations!

Meanwhile, on the bus in Class B—

Following the same route they had taken, Hoshino En accompanied Sakayanagi Arisu throughout the entire return journey.

Although the surrounding atmosphere was very oppressive and heavy, it did not affect their harmony in the slightest.

"En-kun, your birthday is the day after tomorrow, right? Is there anything you want?"

Sitting behind them, Kamuro Masumi, "..."

Oh~ it's my little sister Xiao Si from Jiu! A birthday present isn't something you can prepare for three times. Three‰[%≥[

If you ask that, how can they possibly be surprised or delighted?!

She felt that Sakayanagi Arisu must have never celebrated anyone's birthday before, otherwise how could she have made such a clumsy mistake?

"Hmm... there is one—I want to know about Chabashira-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei's past. Their relationship is so abnormal now, something terrible must have happened in the past. I'm really curious about that now."

Hoshino En's reply left Kamuro Masumi speechless.

What the hell kind of request is this?!

Sure enough, it was no coincidence that these two ended up together. She was starting to believe Sakayanagi Arisu's old saying, "Only he can do it."

Even the most ordinary person couldn't stand your crazy, eccentric behavior!!

First Semester of First Year:

Chapters 189 and 180: Since we're colleagues, we should all be neat and tidy.

"Hmm... this is a bit difficult. Spying on other people's privacy can damage one's image!"

"But I don't think you're the kind of person who would care about this kind of thing."

Hoshino En's fingers slipped between Sakayanagi Arisu's fingers, turning a simple hand-holding into an interlocking of fingers, and she gently squeezed her palm.

Even if your image in other people's eyes drops, I don't think you'll be disappointed; on the contrary, you'll be even more excited, right?

"After all, isn't the kind of abuse that forces those who hate you to bow down to you and make them submit to your control exactly what you're good for?"

"... You really understand me!"

Sakayanagi Arisu, her lips brushing against Hoshino En's Adam's apple, which she could just reach.

What are these two talking about? Can't we talk about something positive, healthy, and uplifting?!

Kamuro Masumi now desperately hopes they can be as carefree as ever, showering everyone around them with affection, so at least they won't be talking about anything frightening.

Industrial saccharin is a better topic than this tightrope walking exercise!!

It wasn't just Kamuro Masumi; these were the thoughts of the other members of Class B who were forced to listen. (Rin)

Because they had failed miserably in the exam—at least that's how they perceived it—there was no other conversation on the bus besides the two of them.

In an environment where you could hear a pin drop, their conversation was practically like a broadcast throughout the entire area, audible to everyone.

But no one dared to speak up and stop their dangerous conversation; after all, in Class B now, Sakayanagi Arisu.

"But being given a lower rating for no reason would also bother me, so--"

"So?"

Sakayanagi Arisu raised her head and met Hoshino En's gaze. Her crystal-clear eyes, like glass, sparkled with a mischievous light.

"You'll have to pay more."

"If En-kun join our Class B, I'll help you find out about Chabashira-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei's past."

Others: "..."

No, sister, you're really going to do it?

However, if they could use this to get Hoshino En onto their Class B team, this deal wouldn't be so bad, would it?

"By the way, I'll also dig up the dark history of Sakagami- sensei from Class D and Mashima- sensei from our class and send it to you."

Mashima Tomoya, sitting in the front row. "..."

Are you taking me for a fool?

"Then let's forget about it."

Hoshino En rejected Sakayanagi Arisu's bargaining.

Little Sakayanagi wants more? Sure, but Hoshino En can't possibly comply with her request.

"The atmosphere in your class is too materialistic. I don't want to be morally blackmailed by them using the class's interests after I transfer here."

If he were to be transferred to another class, he could almost foresee that future.

Completely opposite to Class A, Class B now craves Class Points far more than Private Points. Hoshino En feels they're capable of anything to make everyone play a role in the class competition.

Seriously, what's the point of getting an A now? This position is only valuable when you graduate from the third year.

Before that, wouldn't it be better to enjoy campus life and improve yourself along the way?

Moreover, to be honest, Hoshino En doesn't have a very good impression of the former Class A, now Class B. (crying)

"They all think they're so great, all talk and no action. Don't they ever consider whether they're even qualified for the best spots? The school says class assignments are based on quality, do they really believe that?"

"Schools can package an exam as a trip, lure people in, and then kill them. How can they be so naive as to believe the lies the school uses to fool them?"

Mashima Tomoya: "..."

While the school is at fault for setting up a lie in the Uninhabited Island Exam, does it warrant condemning them outright? Class assignments are indeed based on student quality!

"If that's the case, then how come Class A at the beginning of the semester—who should theoretically be the best students in the first year—suddenly faltered when it came to serious competition? Not only did they drop to Class B, but they also couldn't advance in the second exam?"

Hoshino En Mashima Tomoya's ears; judging from the pitch, he was speaking directly to Mashima Tomoya.

Mashima Tomoya: "..."

Is he talking to me?

"Yes, Mr. Mashima, I'm asking you."

It's a ghost!!!

"You need to understand, the class weighing on you and your students right now is the school's undisputed 'defective' class, and one that has broken the school's record by losing all 1000 basic points in the first month—the worst Class D in the history of the Kodo Ikusei."

"Losing to a class like this, don't you and your students feel any shame? Using the school's class assignment criteria to belittle other elites?"

Hoshino En's last sentence was directed at someone sitting in another row of seats.

His sudden lowering and emphasis made Sakayanagi Arisu and Kamuro Masumi, who knew him well, realize: Hoshino En was probably really angry now.

Moreover, as Hoshino En's intimate bedmate, Sakayanagi Arisu had long noticed that when Hoshino En was emotionally agitated, the stars in his eyes would twinkle like real stars.

Right now, Hoshino En eyes were flashing intensely, filled with a sense of oppression, indicating that his negative emotions were about to explode.

Well... let's not talk about class assignments anymore. En-kun already has a preconceived prejudice against Class B.

It's all Katsuragi- kun's fault!! And his little dog!! He didn't know that things could be done secretly, and he's always talking recklessly in public, offending people wantonly.

Now look what's happened; it's dragged down the impression scores of everyone in Class B.

Faced with Hoshino En's questioning, Mashima Tomoya... he had nothing to say.

What Hoshino En said—whether it was the failure of the worst original Class D, the original Class A, or the insults and attacks by the students of the original Class A against other classes—these were all facts. What could he possibly argue about?

" At Kodo Ikusei, teachers don't interfere with students' decisions; how they approach exams is entirely up to them."