Classroom of the Mediocre Supremacist

"Tomorrow... I'll go to the library... and take another look... at where this school doesn't have surveillance..."

The next day, at 5 a.m., Hoshino En woke up in an unfamiliar bed.

"This bed's a bit soft. Not used to sleeping on it."

He yawned, harshly criticizing the school's unreliability.

Shouldn't they have sent out a survey in advance and assigned things based on needs? Damn it!!

After a quick wash, he put on the school-issued gym clothes and walked out of the dormitory.

Although Sakayanagi Arisu had called him a [genius] on par with herself, Hoshino En knew very well that he wasn't any [genius]—just a [mediocre person].

He didn't possess any innate talent that set him above others; everything he had, he had earned through his own efforts.

His superior academic ability came from years of reading. But later, he realized reading was time-consuming, so he deliberately learned methods to concentrate and improve learning efficiency, thereby reducing the time spent on studying.

His excellent physical fitness was also the result of daily, fixed exercise. A healthy body spared him unnecessary trouble in many situations.

His keen insight—that came from reading A Study in Scarlet as a child. In it, when Holmes first met Watson, he deduced the other's background just from a handshake. Hoshino En thought that was incredibly cool, so he trained himself in it deliberately.

Even the etiquette he'd shown yesterday while supporting Sakayanagi Arisu—he'd seen it in a movie, thought it was elegant and cool, looked up materials to learn it, practiced the movements in front of a mirror, and eventually incorporated it into his bodily habits.

Of course, he couldn't say these [self-deprecating] words in front of Sakayanagi Arisu. It would be taken as a denial of her judgment. She'd fly into a rage, and then he'd be in trouble.

And he hated trouble.

Leaving the dormitory, Hoshino En arrived at the track field and began his morning exercise as usual.

First, a 10-kilometer run as a warm-up. The school track was 800 meters per lap, so that meant 12 and a half laps.

Hoshino En: "..."

Back in the day, he used to run along the streets. In the early morning when no one was around, he could see plenty of unique [scenery]. Now, running around this monotonous, unchanging track—it really didn't feel the same.

But even if it didn't feel right, there was no helping it. Trapped here for three years, he'd just have to adapt.

To suppress his restless mind, he emptied his thoughts, letting his body's subconscious reactions alone keep him moving.

"Are you a new student? I haven't seen you before."

Suddenly, a man's voice came from the side. The sharp surprise snapped Hoshino En's mind back into place, and his body froze on the spot.

Seeing that his words had made him stop, the man also slowed to a halt.

"Did I startle you?"

He looked at Hoshino En, a hint of confusion surfacing on his calm face.

"We've already run five laps together."

So why was he scared?

"No, no... Well, a little. But I was spacing out just now, so I didn't notice you, Horikita-senpai."

The man who had been running five laps alongside Hoshino En was none other than Horikita Manabu, whom he'd briefly seen at the opening ceremony.

"Spacing out? While running?"

His words seemed hard for the other to believe. Physical activity consumed not just the body but also the mind—how could a normal person zone out at a time like this?

"Yeah, I emptied my thoughts. That way, running feels less tiring subjectively. As for the distance, my body's been trained—it'll automatically slow down and stop when I've run about enough."

Horikita Manabu: "..."

If possible, I'd like to know how to train that kind of neural reflex too.

"Ah, right. I'm Hoshino En from Class 1-D, Horikita-senpai."

Class 1-D? That was...

"Senpai's little sister is also in Class D, I saw her yesterday. She seems like a pretty aloof person—she hasn't actively talked to anyone else in the class."

Not that he had actively sought anyone out either.

"...It seems she still hasn't changed. She can't tell the difference between being aloof and being alone."

Horikita Manabu's reaction piqued Hoshino En's interest.

Generally speaking, the relationship between siblings of similar age—brothers and sisters—tends to be one where [they act annoyed with each other but back each other up in front of outsiders]. But between this Horikita-senpai and Horikita Suzune, it didn't seem to be that way.

He really seemed to dislike Horikita Suzune.

But Hoshino En wouldn't so easily believe his act, because there's no such thing in this world as a brother who completely dislikes his sister.

So what Horikita-senpai said—just take it with a grain of salt. If he got any more involved, he'd be dragged into their family's troubles.

"Ah, senpai, my warm-up is done. I'm going to start my serious training now. Excuse me."

"It's fine. I was the one who interrupted you first."

After their brief exchange, the two resumed their respective workouts.

After running another 5 kilometers or so of interval training, Hoshino En finally returned to the dormitory.

He took a shower, changed into formal wear, and washed and hung up his dirty gym clothes.

Looks like he'd need to buy a set of lightweight, quick-dry sportswear later.

With that thought, Hoshino En pushed open the door and stepped out.

Then, he saw Ayanokoji Kiyotaka stepping out from the room next door.

Once again, their eyes met.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."

Seeing Ayanokoji Kiyotaka frozen, unsure how to react, Hoshino En greeted him first: "Good morning, Kiyotaka."

"...Good morning, En."

"Let's go have breakfast together. We're in the same class anyway."

"...Yeah."

After the dry exchange, they walked together toward the elevator.

The elevator doors opened—

"Ah, Hoshino-kun, good morning."

"Good morning, Hoshino-kun."

It was Kushida Kikyo and Ichinose Honami.

They each had a Wang Meiyu and a Shiranami Chihiro in tow, respectively.

In the corner of the elevator stood a lone Horikita Suzune, head down, reading a book, showing no intention of greeting Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

"Good morning, Kushida, Ichinose."

Hoshino En pushed Ayanokoji Kiyotaka into the corner where Horikita Suzune was, while amiably returning their greetings. But as he stepped into the elevator, Wang Meiyu, hiding behind Kushida Kikyo, immediately squeezed closer to Horikita Suzune's direction.

Hoshino En: "..."

Was it really necessary to be that scared?

"Um, Xiaomei was really frightened yesterday, she's still a bit on edge. Please don't mind her, Hoshino-kun."

Kushida Kikyo apologized for her friend's rudeness, then pulled him and Ichinose Honami into the opposite corner of the elevator.

"Hoshino-kun, about the deduction you mentioned yesterday—I've already told all of Class B about it last night."

Before Hoshino En could say anything, Ichinose Honami dropped a bombshell.

Hoshino En: "..."

"Did you mention me?"

"Not yet, because I thought you seemed..."

"Good!"

Hoshino En pressed down on Ichinose Honami's shoulders, warning her solemnly.

"Remember, you came up with that on your own yesterday at the café. It has nothing to do with anyone else."

"You joined our table only because of Kushida, and I'm just a poor soul who got caught by Sakayanagi from Class A and forced to be the wallet."

"Got it?"

Ichinose Honami: "..."

"G-Got it."

Hearing her assurance, Hoshino En turned to the other side, facing Kushida Kikyo, who was watching him and Ichinose Honami awkwardly, and warned: "Same goes for you, Kushida. If you want to use this to score points with the class, go ahead, but don't drag me into it."

"I know. And 'scoring points' or whatever—I'd never do something so fake... I'm sincere with everyone."

Even as she said this, Kushida Kikyo's face couldn't hold its formulaic smile after hearing Hoshino En's words.

"Of course I know you're sincere. Otherwise, you wouldn't have to suffer so much."

Kushida Kikyo: "..."

Kushida was sunk.

"Um... Hoshino-kun, could you... let go of your hands?"

Kushida Kikyo had gone silent, and Ichinose Honami suddenly couldn't speak either.

Hoshino En turned his gaze back and saw a Honami-chan whose face was bright red.

Though her body trembled slightly from the shock, and her face was as flushed as a ripe peach, she made no attempt to resist.

"Hoshino-kun, that's... too close."

She turned her face away, her voice as faint as a mosquito's.

Hoshino En: "..."

He looked down and noticed that his hands, pressing on her shoulders, were just brushing against the soft curve of her chest.

The gesture itself wasn't improper, but the problem was the subject was quite formidable.

Seeing this scene, the first thought that popped into his mind was—

95F. This was a realm Sakayanagi would never reach in her lifetime.

"Star-kun!!"

"Honami-chan!!"

Beside him came Kushida Kikyo's startled cry, and from behind, the voice of an unfamiliar girl.

Hoshino En had no time to react before his body was shoved toward the door side; a girl with a brown bob cut rushed to Ichinose Honami's side to comfort her, occasionally turning back to glare at Hoshino En.

Yesterday Honami-chan said you did her a favor, so I convinced her to go over... I never thought you'd be this kind of person!!

Hoshino En: "..."

"No..."

He looked at Kushida Kikyo and asked in a low voice.

"Did I say that out loud?"

Kushida Kikyo nodded, a wry smile on her face.

"Are you a monkey ruled by your lower half? Shamelessly in heat first thing in the morning."

From another corner, Horikita Suzune also sent her [congratulations].

When he looked over, Wang Meiyu, hiding near her, let out an even more frightened sound.

Hoshino En: "..."

He turned to the other male in this space, only to find him casting a pitying glance back.

"We're about the same, aren't we, Kiyotaka."

So don't look at me like that, or I'll end up looking even more pathetic!

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."

Recalling his own repeated failures in trying to approach Horikita Suzune, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka realized he really couldn't claim any superiority.

"I suppose so."