Horikita Asks (Seeking Everything)

Watanabe Hayabara watched Sudo Ken's reaction as if he were looking at a joke.

Horikita Suzune frowned, clearly disgusted by Sudo Ken's behavior.

Most of the class was dejected; the upcoming exam was difficult, which came as no surprise. Of course, this was only true for the average student. For Watanabe Hayabara, it had little impact; all he needed to do was earn more points and slightly raise the class average to weed out more trash.

After the exam, a heavy, negative atmosphere hung over the classroom, with everyone sighing in despair.

"Horikita, what did you think of this midterm?" Ayanokoji asked, probing Horikita Suzune.

"Class A's Ijuin Wataru is indeed formidable; the level of the questions was very high. Aside from the final two problems, I managed to solve everything, though the volume of calculation and thought required was much higher than our usual practice papers. How about you, Ayanokoji?" Horikita Suzune spoke with ease.

"I should be able to pass," Ayanokoji replied flatly, devoid of emotion.

"Watanabe, how did you find it?" Horikita Suzune poked Watanabe Hayabara, who was sitting in front of her. Watanabe Hayabara turned around and offered a smile. Ayanokoji also looked over.

"Easier than ever. Horikita, we'll be able to weed out quite a few pieces of trash this time." Watanabe Hayabara was clearly speaking for Ayanokoji's benefit, having already given Horikita a hint earlier.

Ayanokoji's brow twitched slightly, a movement Watanabe Hayabara caught.

"Ayanokoji, do you have any objections to what I said?" Watanabe Hayabara's smile was chilling.

A dangerous person, was Ayanokoji's assessment of Watanabe Hayabara, though he responded with his usual indifference. "I just don't think one should judge a person solely by their academic ability."

"If they can't even handle something as simple as studying, then they are useless," Horikita Suzune interjected before Watanabe Hayabara could respond.

Ayanokoji shook his head slightly and withdrew from the conversation.

Watanabe Hayabara had nothing more to say to Horikita Suzune, so he turned back around, ending the chat.

The moment Chabashira Sae stepped into the classroom, time seemed to freeze. Her surprised gaze swept across every student like lightning, as if searching for something specific. The students felt the strange atmosphere, and their already tense nerves tightened further. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the midterm results to be revealed.

An unusual atmosphere permeated the room, like the calm before a storm, making it feel oppressive. Chabashira Sae's expression seemed slightly off; her brows were furrowed, and her lips were pressed tight, as if she were deep in thought.

Just then, Yosuke Hirata broke the silence. He stood up and asked with slight anxiety, "Teacher, I heard the exam results are being announced today. When will that be?" His voice sounded particularly abrupt in the quiet classroom, and the other students' gazes converged on him in unison.

Chabashira Sae glanced at Yosuke Hirata, a faint, imperceptible smile touching her lips. "Hirata, there's no need to be so anxious, is there? An exam of that level should have been quite easy for you." Her tone was light, yet it seemed to hide a deeper meaning.

Yosuke Hirata pressed on: "...Could you tell us when?" His persistence made the other students restless; everyone was desperate to know when the results would be posted.

Chabashira Sae seemed to realize the students' anxiety. She paused for a moment, then said slowly, "I am going to announce them now. If I wait until after school, we won't be able to process the various procedures in time." With that, she turned to the blackboard and posted a large sheet of white paper listing the students' names and scores.

The students' eyes were instantly drawn to the blackboard. They stared at the paper, searching for their names and scores. When most saw their results, they let out a collective sigh of relief, thinking to themselves, Thank goodness I passed. That sense of relief was like a heavy stone being lifted from their chests.

However, there was no red line marking the failing grades on the paper. Just as everyone was congratulating themselves, Chabashira Sae pulled out a red pen and drew a line across the paper. Below the line were three names: Haruki Yamauchi, Sudo Ken, and Ijuin Wataru.

Chabashira Sae's expression was stern. "It is a pity, but three people did not pass. Come to me after school to process your withdrawal!"

What a shame, only three?

Ijuin Wataru didn't react much, remaining silent; his presence in the class was never very strong.

Haruki Yamauchi, however, shrieked, "How can this be?!!!"

Sudo Ken flew into a rage, slamming his fist onto his desk with a loud bang. The entire class turned to look, and under the gaze of everyone, he kicked his desk over.

"How could I have failed!! There must be a mistake!!"

Chabashira Sae chose to ignore Sudo Ken's behavior. "The rest of you did very well. Without a doubt, you all passed. To avoid failing the final exam, you must continue to improve yourselves. Now, for the next matter—"

"T-teacher. Are those three students really going to be expelled? Is there no remedial plan?" Yosuke Hirata raised his hand to ask.

"This is a fact. If you fail, that is the end of it. They will be expelled."

"The students being expelled are to come to the faculty office after school. That is all." Chabashira Sae announced the result coldly.

"Chabashira-sensei, may I ask a few more questions?" Horikita Suzune raised her hand.

"Horikita, that's quite rare. You're actually raising your hand to ask a question. What is it?"

"May I ask if a student being expelled will have any impact on our class points?"

Not a stupid question, Horikita.

"Of course it will. When a student is expelled, the corresponding class is deducted a certain number of class points as a penalty. However, you don't need to worry, because your class points are currently at 0. Since class points cannot go negative, it won't have any impact on the other students. Do you understand, Horikita?"

"I understand, teacher." Horikita Suzune sat back down.

"Teacher, is there really no way to remedy this?" Kushida Kikyo stood up to ask.

"No." Chabashira Sae's response to Kushida Kikyo was firm and final.

"I see." Kushida Kikyo sat down, disappointed.

You're really trying hard, Kushida. After all, as the one who actually implemented the plan, you must be quite troubled by the blame from the incompetent.