Without the slightest hesitation, Kengo turned and headed straight for the Class A classroom. Their lesson was at a crucial point. The teacher was citing sources and speaking at length, while the students sat ramrod straight, their pens flying across their notebooks. Even their breathing seemed tense with concentration as they immersed themselves in the highly focused atmosphere.
Kengo didn't care in the slightest. He pushed open the classroom door, which had been left ajar, and the faint clack of the door against its frame instantly shattered the silence.
As the stunned gazes of the teacher and students froze on him, he strolled right to the center of the classroom. His leather shoes clicked sharply against the polished floor, making his presence impossible to ignore.
"Sorry to interrupt." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a steady force that instantly plunged the classroom into silence. "I have two things to share. First, class rankings directly determine how many personal points you receive, at a rate of roughly one to a hundred. Second, the school's cameras record rule violations, which then result in deductions from your class score. I believe this is the school's first test."
As soon as he finished, a soft, amused female voice came from the front row. "What an interesting person."
Kengo turned toward the voice and saw a girl with pale blue hair sitting upright at her desk. Her skin was as white as snow, her eyes like clear blue gemstones, and a faint smile played on her lips. She was Sakayanagi Arisu, the central figure of Class A.
She rested a fingertip lightly against her chin and studied Kengo with keen interest, as if his words had sparked her curiosity.
At the same time, a chorus of sharp inhales rang through the classroom.
The students' focused expressions gave way to disbelief. Some instinctively glanced up at the camera in the corner of the ceiling, their eyes filled with suspicion and scrutiny. Others quietly clenched their pens until their fingertips turned white, clearly struggling to process this astonishing information.
Kengo gave no indication of how he felt about Sakayanagi Arisu's response. With his hands in his pockets, he added, "If you don't believe me, you can check the ranking board in an upperclassmen's classroom, or spend points to buy the exact answer from a teacher."
With that, he ignored the teacher's dark expression, Sakayanagi Arisu's probing gaze, and the students' complicated reactions. He turned and calmly walked out of the Class A classroom. The door closed softly behind him, leaving the room full of whispers.
His next target was Class B. Kengo pushed open the door just as unabashedly, and the lesson came to an abrupt halt. Every eye turned toward the unexpected visitor.
"Nice to see you again, Hoshinomiya-sensei." Kengo lifted his chin toward the podium, his tone easy and casual.
Hoshinomiya Chie set down her textbook and smiled at him, her eyes hiding a mischievous glint. "Did you come all this way especially to see me, Tendo?"
"More or less. I've already figured out the school's first test." Kengo walked straight to the center of the classroom and repeated, word for word, the two things he'd told Class A.
As soon as he finished, Hoshinomiya Chie covered her mouth and laughed. She walked lightly over to him, her fingertips coming close to brushing his shoulder, and teased, "Does Tendo like his teacher? You came all this way just to bring me such a big surprise~"
Her evasive answer—and the fact that she'd teased him instead—only further confirmed that Kengo's information was accurate.
Kengo was briefly stumped by her unusual train of thought. Then he looked her up and down and joked, "You're certainly attractive, Hoshinomiya-sensei, but making a move on a minor—are you trying to get locked up and live off the state? Still, I wouldn't report you in private."
"What a naughty little guy~" Hoshinomiya Chie's smile deepened, the corners of her eyes growing even more mischievous, but she didn't come any closer.
"See you later, Hoshinomiya-sensei. I have another class to inform." Kengo waved and headed briskly for the door. Just before he left, he glanced back and added, "By the way, I cracked the school's test on the very first day. I wonder if there's a hidden reward?" Then he dashed off, leaving behind a classroom full of whispers and Hoshinomiya Chie's knowing smile.
The process in Class C was much the same as in the first two classes. Kengo pushed open the door and quickly shared his key findings. The whole thing took less than a minute.
But as he turned to leave, the corner of his eye caught a red-haired boy sitting in the back row. He wore his uniform jacket open, revealing a black T-shirt underneath, and sat with his hands in his pockets and an arrogant, brash posture. His eyes were fixed on Kengo with undisguised scrutiny and provocation, like those of a delinquent.
Kengo couldn't be bothered with him. He simply shut the door and left.
After making his rounds, Kengo returned to the Class D classroom. As soon as he pushed open the door, he sensed something was off: several seats that had been occupied before were now empty. Apparently, some students had seen him skipping class and decided to copy him by sneaking out, too.
He walked to the center of the classroom, ignored the lingering noise and whispers, and cleared his throat. He repeated the rules about class scores, the points ratio, and the cameras, then shifted topics, his tone turning more serious. "Also, I can confirm that the school has an elimination system. We don't know the exact rules yet, but before long, our class may have a few fewer students."
His gaze swept across the room, taking in the students' shocked, anxious, and dismissive expressions. "Class D is the worst class in the school, so our remaining score is probably the lowest. If we keep letting discipline fall apart, we'll rack up more and more deductions for rule violations. At that point, we won't just miss out on points—we may not even be allowed to stay at this school."
Having said all that, Kengo paid no further attention to the uproar he'd ignited. Some students anxiously whispered to each other, some looked around in panic, and others remained dazed, slumped over their desks. He went straight back to his seat, propped his chin on one hand, and gazed out the window, considering how to verify the exact rules of the elimination system.
The commotion in the classroom continued to grow. Several hot-tempered students stood up and rushed to the podium, surrounding Chabashira Sae as they urgently asked, "Chabashira-sensei! Is what Tendo said true? Are class scores really linked to points? And what's this elimination system?"
Chabashira Sae remained expressionless, lightly tapping the podium with her fingertips. Her voice was utterly flat. "If you can give me two million points, I'll tell you all the rules."
"Two million?!" The figure hit like a bomb, and the classroom erupted.
"That's way too expensive! We each started with only a hundred thousand points. There are over forty of us, so that's more than four million altogether. We'd have to give the teacher half of it?" someone wailed at once.
"But if we don't know the rules, we'll be eliminated sooner or later!" someone else retorted, their voice full of anxiety.
Amid the chaos, Yosuke Hirata stood up. With a composed expression and sincere tone, he suggested, "Everyone, calm down. There's no point arguing right now. How about we each put up fifty thousand points to make two million and buy the answers from the teacher? We can work out how to split the cost once we have more points. What do you think?"
Kikyo Kushida nodded along, a warm smile on her face. "Hirata's right. We have to stick together to get through this. Fifty thousand points isn't that much for each of us, and it's better than being eliminated."
But as soon as she finished speaking, a lazy, scornful voice came from the corner. "I disagree."
Everyone turned toward the voice. Rokusuke Koenji was leaning back in his chair, his hands clasped behind his head as he looked around the room with contempt. "Why should I hand over my points for you people to use? You're a bunch of idiots who can't even figure out the rules. Even if you learn the answers, it won't change the fact that you're trash."
His words were like a fuse, instantly igniting everyone's anger.
"How can you say that? We're all in the same class. We should help each other!"
"Why shouldn't you have to pay? Aren't you afraid of being eliminated?"
"Who knows? Maybe you already know the rules and just don't want to tell us!"
Doubts and accusations flew back and forth, and the already chaotic classroom descended into utter turmoil.
Some students joined in with Rokusuke Koenji, some insisted they should pool their money to buy the answers, and others were caught in the middle, unable to decide what to do. The arguing grew so loud it seemed ready to tear the roof off.
Sitting at his desk, Kengo propped his cheek on one hand and watched the farce with interest, a playful smile curling his lips.
The chaos over two million points had exposed Class D's fatal weakness: a lack of unity. A class like this would have a hard time surviving at a school this ruthless.
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