The Respite Ends, the VIP Exam Begins

The commotion in the camp did not last long; the school soon issued instructions, organizing all students to return to campus for a three-day rest. During these three days, the four classes were each preoccupied with their own thoughts. Everyone assumed there would be a peaceful period of recuperation, but no one expected that an unannounced exam was about to quietly begin.

At 5:30 PM, all students received an email from the school on their mobile phones simultaneously. Without any prior warning, the content of the email was concise and cold, directly announcing the start of the special exam—the VIP Exam. The attachment detailed the exam rules, grouping, and relevant requirements. Immediately afterward, another text message popped up on Yoshikage Kira's student terminal. The text was neatly formatted but carried an undeniable sternness: [Please gather at the designated room within the specified time. Those who are more than 10 minutes late may be subject to punishment. Please arrive at Room 404 by 18:40 today. As the process will take about 20 minutes, please set your phone to vibrate or silent mode, or turn it off, after taking care of personal matters.]

Yoshikage Kira swiped his fingertip across the terminal screen, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. After reviewing the message content repeatedly, he confirmed he had about an hour left.

He opened his student terminal to contact Honami Ichinose. "Did you receive the school's email?" Honami did not reply directly. After a short while, she sent a copy-pasted email that was essentially identical to Yoshikage Kira's. However, students in the class group chat for Class B had compared notes and discovered that the location and time requirements varied among different students.

A faint sense of unease took hold; given this information, the message had been highly suspicious from the very beginning.

First, this was undoubtedly an exam targeting the entire first-year cohort, so dividing them into groups for testing was perfectly logical. However, the fact that the gathering times differed was bizarre and extremely unfair.

Students who received the exam questions in advance could leak them to those waiting to be tested. This led to two possibilities: either leaking the questions was useless because each group was assigned different ones, or the exam was designed on the premise of mutual leaking. Regardless, he decided to go to the meeting place first to see.

After a brief preparation, Yoshikage Kira stood up and headed toward Room 404 in the school building. He was always rigorous and never allowed himself to make low-level mistakes like being late. When he arrived at the door of Room 404, it was exactly 17:58, leaving only two minutes until the designated time.

He pressed the doorbell, and the crisp sound echoed in the hallway for a moment before the door was slowly pulled open. The person who opened the door was Honami Ichinose. She already wore a gentle smile on her face, but when she saw it was Yoshikage Kira standing outside, her smile deepened instantly, and her tone carried a hint of lightness: "It's Kira-kun, please come in. You're the last one."

Yoshikage Kira nodded slightly and stepped sideways into the room, his gaze quickly sweeping across the interior. The room was spacious and bright, furnished with a round conference table surrounded by a few chairs. Several people were already seated—at this moment, the room contained only Honami Ichinose, two ordinary Class B students, and himself.

Just as he was deep in thought, a voice that sounded somewhat lazy yet lacked no authority rang out: "Kira-kun, you've come just in time. Since everyone is here, let's begin."

Everyone followed the sound to see Chie Hoshinomiya standing at the head of the conference table. She was still wearing her school staff uniform, a half-serious, half-playful expression on her face. She held a stack of documents, which were the materials related to this VIP Exam. She was usually casual, but she was extremely rigorous when it came to work; though she wore a smile, her eyes revealed a seriousness that allowed for no slack.

Chie Hoshinomiya walked to the conference table and distributed the documents to each student present. She slowed her tone, yet she read out the content and rules of this special exam clearly and forcefully, ensuring everyone could hear every detail: "This special exam is the VIP Exam. The specific rules are as follows; listen carefully and do not miss any details."

This special exam divides all first-year students into 12 groups named after the zodiac. The exam is held within each group, and its purpose is to test the three basic skills required of a professional: action, thinking, and teamwork. Only those who possess these three qualities are qualified to be considered elite talent.

The Uninhabited Island Exam held a while ago placed teamwork first. However, this exam tests thinking ability—the capacity for deep deliberation. It is about clarifying the process of problem-solving, preparing for solutions, and using imagination to create new value.

In this special exam, there are only four possible results for each group; no other outcomes are possible. It will ultimately end in one of these four situations. This is the structure of the exam.

The subject of this exam is based on the "VIP" assigned to each group. By submitting an answer to the school through the prescribed method, one of the four results will inevitably be derived.

To facilitate understanding, materials recording these results have been prepared, but it is forbidden to take these materials out or photograph them. You must confirm them here.

○ At 8:00 AM on the day the exam begins, all students will receive a text message. At the same time, those selected as the "VIP" will be informed of the fact that they are the VIP.

○ The exam period lasts from tomorrow until 9:00 PM four days later (with one full day of free time interspersed).

○ Group members must gather at a designated time and place twice a day to talk for one hour. The content of the conversation is decided entirely by the group members themselves. The "Answer Time" is from 9:30 PM to 10:00 PM after the exam ends, during which text messages accepting the exam results will be processed. Each person has only one chance to submit an answer.

○ An answer will only be accepted if sent via the student's own mobile phone to the designated email address.

○ The "VIP" does not have the right to submit an answer via text message.

○ Answers regarding zodiac groups other than the one to which the student is assigned will be considered invalid.

○ At 11:00 PM on the final day, a detailed exam result message will be sent to all students.

Result 1: Everyone in the group, excluding the VIP and the VIP's classmates, answers correctly. Private points are paid to all members of the group. (The VIP's classmates will also receive private points as companions.)

Result 2: One person in the group, excluding the VIP and the VIP's classmates, fails to answer or answers incorrectly. 500,000 private points are paid to the VIP.

Result 3: Someone who is not the VIP informs the school of the answer before the exam ends and answers correctly. The class to which the student belongs receives 50 class points, and the person who answered correctly is awarded 500,000 private points. Conversely, the class that had its VIP identified loses 50 class points. The exam within the group ends at this point. If the VIP's classmate answers correctly, it is considered invalid, and the exam continues.

Result 4: Someone who is not the VIP informs the school of the answer before the exam ends and answers incorrectly. The class to which the student who answered incorrectly belongs loses 50 class points, 500,000 private points are given to the VIP, and the class to which the VIP belongs receives 50 class points. The exam ends when an incorrect answer is submitted. If the VIP's classmate answers incorrectly, it is considered invalid, and the answer will not be accepted.

The school has made this exam completely anonymous. Only the results of each group and the increase or decrease in class points will be announced when the exam ends. In other words, the names of the VIP and the person who answered will not be disclosed. As long as the individuals involved keep their mouths shut, there is no risk of being discovered after the exam.