Facing Karuizawa's doubts.
"If it's only the rules Chabashira-sensei listed, then I've followed all of them," Suzune Horikita said calmly. "I can confirm that I haven't lost a single point. As for the rest of you... to lose this many points in just a few days, your performance is what's truly surprising."
Perhaps those were her honest thoughts.
But it only showed how little emotional intelligence she had, while being extremely hurtful.
"Hey, how can you say that? That's way too harsh, Horikita!"
"Exactly, Horikita, how could you say something like that?"
"I haven't lost that many... I haven't lost many points either!"
The other students, who had remained quiet until just then, all spoke up at once.
They began bombarding Horikita with criticism.
Yet Suzune Horikita remained composed, her expression unchanged.
Like someone standing alone in the rain without an umbrella.
That made Hachiman start thinking.
Actually.
The role that could unite a group was that of an enemy.
To attack that enemy, even a team that had not initially been united would come together.
But Hachiman had not asked Horikita to take on that role. What he had asked of her was to help clear up the matter of the class attacking him over the point deductions.
He had also prepared a way to restrain the students afterward.
But with just a few words, Horikita had completely placed herself on the opposite side of her classmates.
Was it better to say she was brave, or that she had no emotional intelligence?
Still, it could not be denied that she was not wrong.
The one at fault was this class.
For example, First Year Class B had still retained over eight hundred points after several days, despite not knowing the school's rules at all. That showed what an ordinary class of students should be like.
Not like Class D, which had lost several hundred points right away.
"Regarding that." This time, Hachiman stood up as well.
"I also hope we'll still have living expenses next month. I hope we can earn at least four hundred class evaluation points."
"So I hope everyone will follow the school rules as much as possible and avoid losing points," Hachiman said.
"How could we possibly do that?!"
A student immediately tried to refute Hachiman.
The class evaluation points were now down to just 480.
In other words, if they wanted to keep 400 points, they could only lose 80 points over the next twenty-five days.
Come on.
Only a few points per day?
How could that possibly be done?!
"Everyone, please stop arguing!"
Hirata hurriedly stood up again, hoping to ease the atmosphere.
He had already noticed that the class had become lively, but it was developing in a bad direction.
"Then let's make an agreement."
Hachiman said, "Everyone will contribute ten thousand points."
"Then we'll hand it all over to Chabashira-sensei and use it after the first of next month."
"Eh?!"
"What does that mean?" The students were confused.
Even Kushida looked over in confusion.
From Hirata's explanation earlier, along with Chabashira-sensei's confirmation, she had already concluded that Hachiman breaking the camera had likely been because he had discovered the school's true nature, then used that method to force the class evaluation points into everyone's view.
Seen from that angle, Hachiman had been contributing to the class.
So what he wanted to do was probably remind everyone that they did not have many points left to lose.
They needed to save them.
Work hard together, and so on.
But now, Kushida sensed something unusual.
"From today until the thirty-first of this month," Hachiman said, "you'll transfer points to Chabashira-sensei for her to supervise. Then, on the first of next month, she'll announce how many points each student lost."
"Because I can't trust you," Hachiman said. "At that time, the person who loses the most points will be punished."
"Hachiman!"
Hirata, who had just been speaking up for Hachiman, suddenly sounded stern.
"We're all part of the same group. There is no such thing as not trusting one another. Rather, we all trust you," Hirata said.
But that wasn't necessarily true, Hirata.
Hachiman thought to himself.
"So you think the incentive method can't restrain your classmates, which is why you've switched to a punishment system."
At that moment, a blond-haired boy sitting in the back row, one seat in front of Sakura, suddenly spoke.
"It's quite an interesting plan. It might prove useful."
"But I refuse."
The boy had a very distinctive appearance, with the rugged features of a Westerner, blond hair, and crimson eyes.
Rather than burly, his build was more like that of a fitness model.
He possessed a unique, sculpted sort of beauty.
He held a small mirror and examined his own face. He seemed intoxicated by his own looks, thoroughly narcissistic.
And almost the instant the boy began speaking.
Kushida, seated in the front row, suddenly spoke.
"Kōenji, why would you say that? Wouldn't it be better to cooperate with everyone?" Kushida said.
She directly called out Kōenji's name.
After all, although it was already their sixth day at school, it was normal that there were still classmates whose names people could not remember.
Some students were even somewhat unfamiliar with the boy who had suddenly spoken.
But now that a classmate had mentioned him, everyone focused on him.
It seemed Kushida did not like Kōenji very much.
Hachiman watched closely.
"I'm not interested in your little attempt to save up living expenses," Kōenji said indifferently. "If I have money, naturally I'll spend it. If I don't, the school provides some free meal sets."
"I can just eat those when the time comes."
"As for the ambition of preserving class evaluation points and striving for Class A, I think you should give up on it as soon as possible."
"Horikita. Hachiman."
Kōenji said, "I don't think either of you can achieve it."
"After all, this class is like this."
Kōenji said that, then raised his small mirror again and continued admiring his face.
"..." Hachiman.
Well.
Kōenji had rather sharp eyes. He had seen through the fact that saving everyone's living expenses was merely a smokescreen.
The real purpose was to preserve class evaluation points and aim for Class A.
But.
"Kōenji! What the hell do you mean by that?! What do you mean, this class is like this? Aren't you part of it too?!"
Sudō, the red-haired boy seated to Kōenji's right, immediately became dissatisfied.
But that dissatisfaction had probably not started today. During yesterday's physical education class, Kōenji had outperformed Sudō in swimming, despite Sudō priding himself on his athletic ability.
It had made Sudō feel the gap between a cheater and an ordinary person.
So Sudō had remembered it.
Still, letting things continue like this was not good.
So.
"Then since you've chosen to refuse cooperation, Kōenji, could you choose to withdraw from school?" Hachiman suddenly stood up and said. "Or rather, if someone in our class must be expelled, could the whole class choose you to be expelled in everyone's place?"
"..." ×40
All thirty-nine students turned their attention over, including their homeroom teacher, Sae Chabashira.
Chabashira felt that this year's Class D was different from the previous one.
She had misjudged them.
The troublemakers in this class came one after another.
And every one of them had incredibly strong offensive power.
Even Suzune Horikita, who had initially scorned the entire class by herself, no longer stood out as much.
Rokosuke Kōenji Can't Be Voted Out by Idiots Like You! (Fourth Update)
Rumors had appeared in class yesterday, and there had even been discussions in the class group chat.
They said this school was a dangerous place.
Things like how eight classes of upperclassmen could not even gather enough students to fill one class, and how large numbers of upperclassmen had been expelled.
Of course, those rumors had sounded unbelievable.
But Hirata had even obtained information from upperclassmen at the cost of joining the soccer club.
Entering the school as a new student was not safe.
During their time at school, they could be expelled as punishment because of various exams.
And today, after Chabashira-sensei explained the school's rules, everyone understood that even more directly.
There were special exams every month. Wasn't that absolutely terrifying?
So now, Hachiman had suddenly said that if a situation arose where they had no choice but to vote someone out... what would they do?
So...
The students' gazes began shifting toward Rokosuke Kōenji.
In fact, Kōenji had already drawn the class's attention the moment he started speaking.
But.
Now, those looks clearly carried different meanings. There was relief, as well as schadenfreude.
Heh.
"Why should I be the one expelled?" Kōenji leaned back in his chair.
"Because you don't fit in," Hachiman said.
"If everyone works hard to complete the school's assessments, but you drag us all down by yourself and everyone ends up with zero living expenses next month."
Before you continue