First Learning Mission

Three days after the cross-class groups were announced, Chabashira handed out the formal task instructions during the homeroom session.

Kanzaki Toru opened the printed assignment. The title was brief: "Summary of School System Changes: Rules and Evolution." Each group was required to map out a complete history of rule changes based on school archives and submit a report of no fewer than three thousand words. The grading criteria were divided into three tiers: Pass, Good, and Excellent. Members of groups that achieved an "Excellent" rating would receive an additional 10,000 private points and a commendation in their personal files; groups that failed would have to resubmit within a week, and a second failure would result in a deduction of 5,000 private points from every member.

Chabashira stood at the podium, adjusted her glasses, and added in a tone no different from reading a weather forecast, "The results of this task will also serve as a reference for future class point evaluations. Please take this seriously."

With that, she left the classroom. As usual, there were no extra explanations or detailed guidance, leaving only the rules themselves. After a brief silence, Class D descended into chaos—Sudo declared on the spot, "What does this research crap have to do with me?" only to be shut down by Horikita's retort: "If you don't do it, the whole group loses points." Ike Kanji whispered about wanting to switch groups, but his hopes were extinguished by the teacher's earlier declaration that "group assignments are final."

Kanzaki folded the assignment and tucked it into his pocket. School history research, rules, and evolution. To others, this topic might seem like a dry pile of historical data, but to him, every word on the page felt custom-tailored—he already possessed the Summary of School System Changes provided by Shiina Hiyori, and page thirty-seven clearly recorded the crucial information that the cooperation model had been frozen rather than deleted. If utilized well, this material would not only make their group report stand out but also allow him to legitimately access more sealed documents regarding old regulations.

But before that, he needed to solve a problem within his own group: Yukimura Teruhiko.

During lunch break, the group gathered in the library discussion room.

Yukimura pulled a math reference book from his bag, placed it on the table, and began to state his systematic views on how the historical data should be organized, starting from the very first page. He spoke with great seriousness, his tone growing increasingly assertive. By the fifth minute, he was no longer discussing; he was assigning roles to everyone.

"I will be responsible for the chronological organization and logical framework of the data. Kanzaki, you are responsible for checking the primary sources. Sakura, you handle the layout and charts. Shiina, you assist with data verification. Hamaguchi from Class B will handle contacting the old student council records on their side. Regarding the schedule, I suggest—"

"Yukimura," Kanzaki interrupted.

Yukimura stopped and adjusted his glasses. "What is it?"

"Your plan is excellent. But the purpose of grouping is cooperation, not having one person act as the commander." Kanzaki's tone was steady, devoid of criticism. "Shiina is more familiar with the old library materials than any of us. The information she can find might be more important than your timeline. Let her say what she is good at, rather than you deciding for her."

Shiina Hiyori sat by the window, flipping through a yellowed old booklet. Hearing her name, she looked up, her light brown eyes observing Yukimura from over the top of the pages, saying nothing. Her silence was an attitude in itself.

Yukimura opened his mouth, then closed it. He wasn't stubborn; he was simply too accustomed to doing things alone and then telling others what to do. In the two months since arriving in Class D, he had almost no experience with genuine teamwork—others found him too pedantic, and he found them too slack. But Kanzaki didn't dismiss his ideas outright like others might have; instead, he took the content Yukimura proposed and adjusted the focus.

"You should still handle the chronological organization; that direction is fine."

Yukimura paused, then gave a small, barely perceptible nod.

Following this, Sakura Airi placed her camera on the table and pulled up a few photos. They were architectural details she had captured around the old school building the day before. "I've looked at the floor plans from previous years. The old school building used to be the main teaching block before it was converted into club rooms. These doorplates and corridor notice boards still bear traces of those years; perhaps they could serve as visual materials for our research." Her voice was soft, but her words were fluid. She opened her notebook, which already contained preliminary sketches for the "School Building Evolution" layout.

Shiina Hiyori gently closed her book and parted her lips. "At the end of the east corridor on the third floor of the old school building, there is a locked staircase. Behind the wall, there is an old wooden cabinet containing iron-cased files from the school's founding period. I can take Sakura to see that part."

People who were originally strangers began to place the pieces of the puzzle they were best at onto the table. Kanzaki said nothing more, simply opening his notebook to record everyone's direction. As the conversation naturally flowed to the next link, he felt a gaze directed at him—Shiina Hiyori was tilting her head slightly, watching him for two seconds, the shimmer in her brown eyes like a line of text picked up from between the pages of a book, before she looked away as if nothing had happened.

When the discussion ended, everyone began to rise and leave. As Kanzaki packed his materials, he noticed a detail: when Yukimura left, he didn't take his math reference book with him. He had left the book in his bag, taking only the assignment sheet in his pocket. Bringing the reference book had been to study during gaps in the discussion. The fact that he hadn't taken it out meant he hadn't been distracted once during the entire meeting. The bookworm had started to take this group seriously.

The sun was bright in the hallway. Sakura and Shiina walked ahead, chatting about something; Sakura tilted her hat toward Shiina, nodding from time to time. Shiina listened, then suddenly curved her lips into a faint smile and offered her a candy.

Just as he was about to catch up, Sakura slowed her pace. After Shiina entered the library, she turned around, holding a light green bento box. It was the shrimp spring rolls she had spent most of the weekend making in the kitchen; the shrimp inside were visible through the thin, reddish skin. She held the box out, then hesitated and started to pull her hand back, only for him to take it firmly.

"Kanzaki-kun didn't eat much at lunch; there was still a third of your bento left on the table in the discussion room." She kept her head down, quickly adding, "You don't have to force yourself if it doesn't taste good."

He opened the lid, picked up a spring roll that was still slightly warm, and took a bite.

"It's delicious."

This time, Sakura didn't look away. She raised her head and offered a full, genuine smile. The sunlight streaming through the corridor glass made her expression bright and real. She crinkled her eyes, whispered a soft "thank you," and then jogged to catch up with Shiina.

Kanzaki watched her back disappear into the library entrance and carefully closed the bento box. What he didn't notice was that around the corner of the hallway, Karuizawa Kei was standing there. She had intended to head to the vending machine but had stopped when she saw the scene. She looked down at the new red bean soup she had just bought, seemingly losing her appetite. She placed the can gently on the windowsill and turned in the opposite direction. Water droplets condensed on the surface of the red bean soup can slid slowly along the metal edge onto the white paint of the windowsill, leaving a small, dark ring.

After school, Horikita waited for him at the classroom door. She held a tablet, her expression more serious than usual, her purple eyes shining unnaturally under the fluorescent lights of the hallway. She turned the tablet to show him—the screen displayed a feedback page for an application to access student behavior records.

"I tried to use my privilege to pull Ryuen's records, but he got there first and had the request rejected." There was a rare hint of frustration in Horikita's tone. "He was faster than me. Or rather, he didn't even have to pull them himself—he has someone in the Student Council's Disciplinary Committee."

"The Disciplinary Committee?"

"A second-year. It's a relationship he built by helping them after that incident with the old school building last year. He trades help with their dirty work for access to files." Horikita closed the tablet. "This person isn't just provoking you. He's building his own intelligence network. The cross-class group task involves old regulations; he will definitely use those permissions to dig up information first and interfere with the other classes' judgments."

The word "interfere" made a previously vague clue in Kanzaki's mind suddenly clear. He raised his eyes. "Then we won't let him interfere."

"What do you intend to do?"

"Research the old system," Kanzaki said. "Not just in the library. Research it from the mouths of the living who actually executed those old rules. Mr. Sakagami, who teaches the third-year social studies class, is the longest-serving teacher currently at this school. He was here in the third year of the school's founding."

Horikita looked at him for a moment, as if confirming how much preparation lay behind this seemingly casual detail. Then she nodded. "Mr. Sakagami's desk is in the fourth-floor social studies preparation room. But he never answers students' questions voluntarily; you need to be prepared."

"He doesn't need to answer voluntarily. As long as he pauses for a second when he hears a certain question, that will be enough."

The wind outside the school building already carried the muggy heat of early summer. The sounds of soccer from the field were scattered and distant. Looking over, a blonde figure did not linger near the crowd playing soccer. Karuizawa Kei walked alone on the path to the dormitory, not moving quickly, without her red bean soup, and not walking alongside any companions. A few grey-feathered birds pecked at grass seeds near her feet; she paused for a moment to watch them, then continued on her way alone.

Kanzaki stood at the entrance of the school building, watching her retreating figure. A moment later, he withdrew his gaze and turned toward the fourth floor. He had been clutching the Summary of School System Changes for days, and the heartbeat beneath the ice was still knocking. Now, it was time to go and ask the person who had frozen the ice into the rules all those years ago.