A little idle conversation

December was more than halfway over.

With the final exams over, the tension that had gripped the campus for over a month finally eased.

The hallways were no longer full of students hurrying along with their heads buried in textbooks, but with the leisurely chatter of small groups talking about their daily lives.

No class had any expulsions.

On the day the results were announced, quite a few people breathed a sigh of relief.

Who else could the three gathered here have been but Takahashi Ren, Ishida, and Toba Shigeru?

They got together roughly once a week, with no fixed schedule, to chat about nothing in particular.

Depending on the circumstances, some weeks they never met, and others they met several times.

"So nobody got expelled after all," Toba Shigeru said. "I thought Class C and Class D would lose at least a few people."

"Instead of worrying about whether other people get expelled, you should worry about yourself first." Ishida hit him right where it hurt.

"Ah-speaking of which, that was close." Toba Shigeru hurriedly changed the subject. "I didn't expect the gap between us and Class B to be so small."

In this exam, Class A had beaten Class B by two points overall, taking a hundred class points from them. The gap between the two classes had thus widened to two hundred points.

Meanwhile, Class D had won its showdown with Class C.

"Classmate Sakayanagi made the right choice after all," Toba Shigeru said. "At this rate, we can stay in Class A all the way to graduation, right?"

"Yeah." Ishida agreed on that point.

Class A had beaten Class B, widening the gap in class points again. Judging by the results, Sakayanagi's aggressive approach had indeed worked.

"Do you really want to graduate from Class A that much?" Takahashi Ren suddenly asked.

"Of course." Toba Shigeru sat up straight. "Class A's privileges alone make it worth fighting for."

"Why are you suddenly asking that?" Ishida asked in return.

"No reason," Takahashi Ren said. "I was just wondering whether anyone might think it wouldn't matter if they didn't graduate from Class A."

He said no more. What he had actually wanted to say was that whether it was Class A or any other class, as long as you had the ability, wasn't graduating from any of them the same?

But saying that would probably strike them as strange.

There was no need.

"No way," Toba Shigeru said as though it were obvious. "Since we're already in Class A, who would want to drop down?"

"It's a little cruel to the other classes, but privileges only belong to a select few in the first place," Ishida said.

"That's true," Takahashi Ren replied.

"What about a situation like this-"

Toba Shigeru suddenly spoke excitedly. "In the last exam before graduation, every class ends up with exactly the same number of class points. Then everyone gets a happy ending and graduates from Class A. Isn't that an interesting idea?"

"That is interesting," Takahashi Ren said.

"Unfortunately, I don't think that's possible." Ishida pushed up his glasses.

"Why?"

"I heard about it from an upperclassman in my club," Ishida said. "If there's a tie in the final exam, they'll add another special exam to determine the rankings."

Takahashi Ren understood.

This school wouldn't let students exploit a loophole like that.

"What kind of exam would it be?" Toba Shigeru pressed.

"Who knows? There's never been a tie before."

"What a shame." Toba Shigeru sighed. "For once, I thought I had a brilliant idea."

"It was a good one," Takahashi Ren said.

Toba Shigeru gave a smug smile at that.

"Speaking of which-" He changed the subject. "Why did you choose your clubs? Ishida, you first. Why did you pick the tea ceremony club?"

"No particular reason."

"No way." Toba Shigeru wouldn't let it go. "This school has so many clubs, and you picked tea ceremony. There has to be a reason."

Ishida was silent for a while.

"My grandfather likes collecting tea sets," he said. "I thought I might as well try learning a little about it."

"So your grandfather influenced you?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure."

"I guess that's how people get started doing things."

Coming from Toba Shigeru, that was a rare moment of seriousness.

"What about you, Takahashi?" Toba Shigeru turned to ask him.

"A promise," Takahashi Ren said. "With my older brother."

"You have an older brother?" Toba Shigeru looked surprised.

"Yeah."

"Your biological brother?" Ishida asked.

"Yes."

"Did he go to this school too?"

"No."

"Oh, so you're like Ishida. Someone else influenced you too."

"Back to you. Did you not join a club because nobody influenced you?" Ishida asked.

"Who said I didn't want to join one?" Toba Shigeru retorted. "This school just doesn't have any that interest me."

"What would you want to join, then?" Takahashi Ren asked.

"First, a gaming club."

"This school certainly doesn't have one," Ishida said. "Universities probably do."

"Next, a club for fans of anime heroines."

"..."

"A cosplay club."

"And then..."

"I don't want to hear any more," Ishida interrupted.

"Agreed," Takahashi Ren said.

"Stop." The two spoke almost simultaneously.

"Huh? I still have loads more." Toba Shigeru looked aggrieved.

"There's no need," Takahashi Ren said.

"I think even talking about what to eat today would be more worthwhile than listening to this," Ishida added.

"All right, all right." Toba Shigeru raised his hands in surrender. "What should we talk about next, then?"

"Hmm... have you noticed what Class C has been doing lately?" Ishida asked after some thought.

Takahashi Ren said, "I've seen people from Class C seemingly keeping an eye on people from Class D a few times."

"Exactly," Ishida said. "After this exam, Class D is only eighty points behind Class C."

"And Class C lost another hundred points for a serious violation," Ishida said. "The school didn't announce the details, but it's no surprise."

"So Class D will move up to Class C next term?" Takahashi Ren said.

"Yeah." Ishida nodded. "Ryuuen has no choice but to take Class D seriously now."

"Heh, you're both only looking at the surface." Toba Shigeru suddenly put on an inscrutable air.

"What great insight do you have this time?" Ishida looked at him skeptically.

"According to my reliable sources-" Toba Shigeru lowered his voice. "Class C is looking for a hidden strategist in Class D."

"Seriously?"

"Of course." Toba Shigeru spoke with an air of authority. "Apparently, this person made huge contributions to Class D on the uninhabited island, in the exam aboard the ship, and at the Sports Festival."

"'Apparently' means you don't have any evidence either," Ishida pointed out incisively.

"Well..." Toba Shigeru faltered. "Anyway, Class C is definitely looking for someone in Class D."

"Takahashi, do you know anything?" Ishida turned to Takahashi Ren.

"I don't know." Takahashi Ren shook his head. "So I don't have anything to say."

He had always stayed out of things that had nothing to do with him whenever he could.

"Right, Class C and Class D's business has nothing to do with us." Ishida brought the topic to a close.

The three sat quietly for a while longer.

"It must be nice having so many female friends, Takahashi," Toba Shigeru abruptly remarked.

"What are you talking about now?" Ishida looked at him helplessly.

"Christmas is coming." Toba Shigeru sighed. "Ishida and I will be lonely again this year."

"Leave me out of it," Ishida said. "It's just another day to me."

"The thought of Takahashi getting a bunch of invitations from girls that day fills me with sorrow." Toba Shigeru clutched his chest, acting wounded.

"You're getting carried away," Takahashi Ren said. "I'll be busy that day."

"Yeah, busy managing your schedule." Toba Shigeru waggled his eyebrows.

"...I have club activities all day."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Takahashi Ren said. "The Light Music Club has already received invitations to perform at several shops."

"What about you, Ishida?" Toba Shigeru turned to ask.

"Reading, probably," Ishida answered without hesitation. "I feel like I still have a lot to learn."

"You both have things to do. What am I supposed to do?" Toba Shigeru looked utterly hopeless.

"That's easy," Ishida said. "Study with me for a while, then go watch Takahashi perform. A fulfilling day."

"That's a good idea," Takahashi Ren said.

"No, no, spare me." Toba Shigeru waved his hands repeatedly. "I'd rather lie in bed all day."

Looking at his hopeless display, Takahashi Ren couldn't help laughing.

Ishida shook his head too.