Classroom of the Mediocre Supremacist

Eavesdropping... Now it's a four-person group openly watching:...??

"Classmate Hoshino, what are you suddenly saying?"

"Moreover, you should have already obtained the roster of all new students, right? Since the Student Council is in the Special Building, as long as you spend points, a roster with names and photos is easy to get."

"From the time the girls at the table next to us left until the four of them sat down, the number of times your gaze lingered on your phone increased. I'm guessing you were confirming their names and some personal information that could be recorded on the roster through their appearances?"

The four:...!!!

"Hey hey, that sounds terrifying!"

"And hearing this, Classmate Sakayanagi's expression hasn't changed at all, which means Hoshino-kun is right on all counts."

"No, isn't this a school? Why does it feel like we've stumbled into some spy movie?"

"You deliberately said their names, also guessing that I would figure out your thoughts, right?"

"Then, based on the information recorded on that roster, how much do you know about me?"

Sakayanagi Arisu: "..."

"You really are a genius, Classmate Hoshino."

She opened her phone, looked at the information on Hoshino En recorded in the roster sent to her, and shook her head helplessly.

"To be honest, the information you left on the roster isn't even as much as what I've gathered from interacting with you today. Just looking at this intel, it's too misleading."

The four: "..."

"Those 100,000 points weren't spent very well."

The four: "..."

100,000 points, a month's living expenses, just thrown away like that?

"And your people—will you have them leave on their own, or should I point them out for you?"

"By the way, one of them has a hairpin in her bangs. You're not threatening her with some leverage to make her work for you, are you? The way she looks at you seems pretty resentful."

Sakayanagi Arisu: "..."

She picked up her phone and sent a message. Then, two girls stood up from a two-seater table to the right and behind Hoshino En.

They skirted around Shiranami Chihiro, who was staring longingly at Ichinose Honami, and under the gaze of the four-person group, went to the counter to pay, then hurriedly left.

One of them had waist-length hair, and in her bangs were exactly two hairpins.

"Kamuro-kun is still too careless, getting caught without even realizing it... She needs further **."

The four: "..."

"** a puppy, don't just keep swinging the stick. Even if she looks like a masochist who says no but her body says yes, you still have to give her the occasional sweet carrot."

The four: "..."

"Of course. I'm paying her a salary of 200,000 points a month."

"Manipulability test?"

"Oh my? You're quite knowledgeable too!"

The four: "..."

Kushida Kikyo:...!!

No... What's with these two? How can they discuss such a sinister topic as if no one else is around?

Compared to them, Kushida Kikyo felt like even her own true nature seemed a lot kinder.

Ichinose Honami: "..."

Classmate Hoshino... I never thought he'd be this kind of person...

But I'm also a sinner, so I have no right to say anything about him.

Rather, he extended a selfless hand to me, a criminal—I don't need to correct him at all.

Karuizawa Kei:...!!

Hoshino-kun is so cool!!!

Wang Meiyu:...!!!!!

So scary~ So scary~

First Semester of First Year:

Chapter 11 Chapter 011 Round Two, Probing

"Probably can't hear from outside either. You don't need to chase off those two you placed outside the shop."

Hoshino En's gaze passed through the coffee shop's glass window, sweeping over a Blonde Flirtatious Boy and a Curly-haired Gloomy Boy skulking outside, then settled on Sakayanagi Arisu in front of him.

The smile on her face was flawless, as if having all her underlings seen through was within her expectations.

The casual atmosphere had vanished, and it was clear that an important conversation was about to begin.

The four at the next table also stopped talking, focusing intently on the clash between Hoshino En and Sakayanagi Arisu.

"Let me ask first—after thinking about it all afternoon, have you figured out how I saw through it?"

Hoshino En stared directly into the other's eyes, trying to spot a crack in her defenses.

However, Sakayanagi Arisu, having already been broken through once, was clearly on guard.

"After holding Arisu's hand and playing with it all afternoon, I can't believe Boyfriend-kun still has the nerve to ask Arisu such a question. How heartless."

She deflected, completely avoiding a direct response.

Hoshino En: "..." Well, if she won't answer, then I won't hold back, right?

"After the morning homeroom ended, I went to check out your Class A to gather intel on the other classes. I only glanced in from outside the window, and I didn't see your cane, but I did notice one thing: your skin is very pale—so pale it's almost sickly."

"Plus, from your profile, I didn't see any traits typical of white Europeans or Americans, so you're not mixed-race; that paleness isn't from bloodline. So I guessed you've probably stayed indoors a lot since childhood, rarely leaving your room, and have always been physically weak."

Hoshino En's explanation drew the gazes of the four onlookers to Sakayanagi Arisu's face. Since close friends don't casually compare such things among girls, they'd all subconsciously overlooked it before.

Now, comparing Sakayanagi Arisu's complexion to theirs, they could indeed see that she seemed a whole shade whiter than them, as if God had turned up her brightness setting when creating her.

As fellow members of the yellow race, such a skin tone was clearly abnormal.

Under their stares, Sakayanagi Arisu showed no unnatural reaction. After all, she was cute and long accustomed to such attention.

"Then, in the Special Building, I saw you leaning on a cane and instinctively thought you might have injured your leg. But you were wearing thigh-high stockings. If your leg were injured, wearing such restrictive clothing would not only hinder walking but also affect recovery. I didn't think you were the type to sacrifice health for a good look, so I ruled out a leg injury."

The four girls' eyes dropped to under the table, staring at the stockings that wrapped up to above her knees, leaving only a sliver of thigh below her skirt. They nodded in agreement.

Right, if her leg were hurt and she still bundled up that tightly, she'd be completely disregarding her physical well-being.

Though they were all female, Sakayanagi Arisu wasn't used to having her thighs gawked at. She shifted her hips uncomfortably, pressing her legs together.

"So I can't want both looks and health? What's wrong with me liking thigh-highs?"

Suppressing her physical unease, she glared at Hoshino En and retorted.

"If that were the case, you wouldn't be walking with just a single cane."

Hoshino En didn't spell out the deeper reasons, but Sakayanagi Arisu understood.

Undeniably, if she were as willful as she claimed, she probably wouldn't have even been able to enroll and enjoy campus life—her father would never have allowed it.

Her silence served as an answer, and Hoshino En grasped her meaning.

He continued his explanation.

"Ruling out a leg injury, if you still need a cane to walk, there are probably only two reasons: one, nerve damage in your leg making walking difficult; two, insufficient leg muscle strength to support your body weight."

"If it were the former, your walking wouldn't be so smooth and natural, and a thin cane probably wouldn't be enough, so I rule that out. That leaves the latter."

"Insufficient leg muscle strength. Either long-term disuse has caused muscle atrophy, or poor blood supply means your muscle cells can't get enough aerobic respiration, and the energy converted can't sustain normal function. Given you're about sixteen now, the latter is more likely."

"Inside the body, the heart's beating keeps blood flowing. Poor blood supply to your legs means there's a problem with your heart—a big one. Add my earlier guess about you being frail since childhood, and the answer is pretty clear, isn't it? Miss Sakayanagi Arisu, unfortunate sufferer of Congenital Heart Disease."

Atmosphere Group: "..."

Kushida Kikyo: Impressive as it sounds, but analyzing a girl that closely is kind of creepy, Hoshino-kun.

Ichinose Honami: Amazing, Hoshino-kun.

Karuizawa Kei: Hoshino-kun is so cool!!!

Wang Meiyu: To pick up on so much information in one go... terrifying.

Sakayanagi Arisu: "..."

"So you're saying, not only did you suppress me earlier, but you also had the leisure to analyze my physical condition?"

Her expression turned cold.

Precisely because Hoshino En's final conclusion was nearly spot-on, she was somewhat irritated.

She felt as though she was being underestimated.

Though many had looked down on her for her frail appearance, those were mostly mediocre commoners she didn't care about.

But Hoshino En was different—this man who had defeated her at first sight, this genius on par with her. She couldn't tolerate him not taking her seriously.

Seeing her face darken as if it could drip water, Hoshino En quickly explained: "No, no, I wasn't distracted when I faced you."

From Sakayanagi Arisu's earlier declaration, he had roughly grasped her mindset: she was a girl who cared deeply about the name of "genius."

And her standards for "genius" were harsh: only those she acknowledged were considered equals, worthy of being defeated by her.

But precisely because of that, she absolutely couldn't stand being looked down upon by someone she deemed an "equal."

Hoshino En could guarantee that if he dared to agree with Sakayanagi Arisu's implication, he'd be targeted to the point of collapse for the next three years—maybe less.

So he had to take a step back and confess honestly.

"I made the agreement with you first, then analyzed your physical condition. It wasn't like you said."

But—

"From the moment we made the agreement to when you brought this up as we were about to leave, not even a minute passed. Are you saying that in less than sixty seconds, you analyzed all that and reached a definitive conclusion?"

Sakayanagi Arisu seemed even angrier.

Hoshino En: ... Huh?

Her reaction caught Hoshino En off guard. He didn't know how to answer.

Seeing him at a loss for words, Sakayanagi Arisu looked away.

She raised a hand to summon the waiter, then ordered several expensive desserts from the menu.

After ordering, she said nothing, just stared blankly at her unfinished coffee.

Faced with this situation, Hoshino En glanced over at the Atmosphere Group beside him.

What's going on? Why is she still angry?

Based on my understanding of her, after hearing an answer like that, she shouldn't be mad anymore!

Help me. Help me.

Catching Hoshino En's plea for help, the four members of the Atmosphere Group blinked in unison.

Then they looked at each other, their gazes connecting like radio waves.

Their four pairs of eyes converged in this quiet space, tense and struggling, countless carefully worded suggestions condensed into simple glances and brief looks.

A few minutes later, Kushida Kikyo, sitting closest to Hoshino En, spoke on behalf of the four and quietly offered him advice.

"Classmate Sakayanagi was angry because she thought you were looking down on her. Do you understand that?"

"Of course I know that. That's why my next sentence was meant to clear up that misunderstanding."

"But wasn't what you said way too exaggerated? Figuring out such complicated logic in under a minute—don't you even bother to fact-check when you brag?"

"But... I was telling the truth."

Kushida Kikyo: ...Ah?

Looking at the serious and innocent expression on Hoshino En's face, Kushida Kikyo froze.

"And doesn't that sentence carry the meaning of 'I gave it my all when facing her, I wasn't looking down on her'? So why is she still angry?"

Hoshino En couldn't figure it out.