"If we don't get any more points, what am I gonna do...?"
"I can't live with just 9,000 points..."
"Does this mean we can't get into college now? Why the hell did we even go to this school? Does Sae-chan-sensei hate us or something?"
During the break, the classroom erupted into chaos. It's like their teacher's words was a bomb that exploded, and this was the outcome. Most of the boys and girls were in despair from this turn of events, some were calmly assessing the situation, and then there was Koenji who didn't care at all.
"Forget about the points. What about this class? Why was I put into Class D?!" Yukimura cried, obviously upset about his placement in a class whose students were considered 'failures'.
"Everyone, I know that you are all confused, but we all need to calm down. Causing a ruckus won't help anyone," Hirata, sensing that the class was about to delve deeper into chaos, stood up and attempted to act as the voice of reason.
"How are we supposed to calm down? Sensei just called us a bunch of failures! Aren't you even frustrated with all of this?!" Yukimura continued to rant, giving in to his emotions and letting his anger take over.
"Even if I was, it's better for us to work together in order to turn things around."
"Turn things around? I don't even agree with how we were sorted in the first place!"
Hirata nodded his head in sympathy. "I understand. However, whining about our situation won't help us right now."
That was something that Yukimura didn't take kindly. Marching over towards Hirata, he grabbed the blonde teen by the collar forcefully. "What did you say?" he growled.
"Please calm down, you two. I'm sure that Chabashira-sensei talked to us harshly so we'd do a lot better next time," spoke Kushida, walking towards the two and gently prying them away from each other. Yukimura didn't resist at all, and simply listened to the girl who continued to speak. "Besides, it's only been one month since we started here. There's still plenty of time for us to get our points up, but we can't do it when we're all divided like this. Come on, everyone."
"I-I mean... I certainly wouldn't say you're wrong, but..."
Yukimura's anger vanished in an instant. With that, the girl shifted her attention towards everyone else and flashed a sincere smile. "It's better for us to band together. There's no need for us to fight against each other. That would only make things worse, don't you think?"
"I'm sorry. I lost my cool," Yukimura apologized.
Hirata waved the apology off. "It's all right, Yukimura-kun. I should have chosen my words a little more carefully, so we are both at fault."
While Kikyo brought everyone together effortlessly as if she was a goddess of sorts, Kiyotaka took a picture of the poster in front and observed it closely. Suzune noticed his action and immediately grew curious.
"What are you doing?"
"Figuring out how points are calculated," he replied, not taking his eyes off his phone.
"Didn't sensei already explain how? Points are immediately deducted when a student arrives late, does something else in the middle of a discussion, and other acts that are not befitting of the proper student."
"Yes, Chabashira-sensei did explain how points are deducted. However, she didn't explain anything about how they can be increased," he pointed out. "Of course, it's possible that our points may never increase again, but from sensei's words earlier, it's possible for us to overtake Class A. We simply need to find out how a class can increase its points."
"Wouldn't it be difficult to figure those details out at this stage? Furthermore, I don't believe you can resolve this by simply investigating. You'd have to get everyone to listen to you as well."
As Suzune said those words, Kiyotaka noticed something different from her. Normally, the girl was cool and composed, but now it felt like those aspects of her were gone. He also noticed that she sounded rather impatient now. Was it because of their current dilemma as a class?
"Are you also planning to get into a college after graduating from this school?" he asked, turning his head to face her.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, when we learned about the differences between Class A and D, I noticed that you looked shocked. Were you hoping to receive 100,000 points like everyone else?"
"I wasn't, but it was certainly a surprise to find out that points are a reflection of our performances," she admitted. "Regardless, not having points won't hinder our lives here. We have free options whenever we need it, right?"
He nodded in agreement. Ever since he heard from Yamauchi that the cafeteria offered free food, he began to take notice of some students who ordered the free meal instead of a normal one. "That's true. Though, this is a tragic fate for those who spent all of their points this past month."
Suzune clasped her hands together and let out a sigh. "While unfortunate, they've simply reaped what they've sown. And like what Chabashira-sensei said, we still managed to retain at least 97 points after the first month. If anything, they should feel lucky that we didn't end up with 0, or we would have not received any points in our balance."
"That's also true, which is why we have a chance to turn things around. We simply have to find out how a class can increase its points. Getting everyone to listen should be easy with people like Hirata and Kushida leading the charge," he replied calmly.
"If you say so," she sighed, not even sounding convinced by his words.
"Attention, everyone. Before class begins, I want you to listen seriously for a moment."
The classroom was still in an uproar until now, but Hirata quickly claimed everyone's attention when he stood at the teacher's podium. His presence was enough to calm his classmates, though it didn't make their situation better.
"While we won't be receiving 100,000 points this month, all hope is not lost yet. We still have the 9,700 points that were sent to us, but we can't afford to take this lightly anymore. Now that we are aware that our points can be deducted, we have to tread lightly and be careful about what we do in this school. I'm sure nobody wants our points to go any lower than they already are right now, right?"
"Yes, Hirata-kun is absolutely right!" one of the female students shouted, her worries immediately remedied by Hirata's mere presence.
Hirata gave a kind nod in response, before continuing. "Therefore, we must work to increase our points next month. In order to do that, we all need to cooperate with each other. So please, take care not to be late to class or to talk during a lecture. Using cell phones during class is prohibited too, of course."
"Huh? Since when do you get to tell us what to do?" Ike asked, displeased with the fact that a pretty boy like Hirata was ordering them around like he was the class leader.
"Do you have a better idea, idiot?" Sudo spoke up from behind him.
"You don't get to talk like that, Sudo! You were next to the lowest score in the exam!"
"So? It just means I'll have to do better next time," he shrugged, surprising a lot of the boys in the room. Normally, that would have caused him to lose his cool and prepare for a fight, but Ken remained where he was. "All of us were caught off guard with the thing about points and the exams. None of us could have seen it coming."
Even Ike was surprised, but he hid it behind a smug grin. "Hah! I wouldn't even be surprised if you fail the next exam and cause yourself to get expelled, Sudo!"
Sudo didn't even look annoyed one bit. Instead, he felt amused.
"Really? Want to bet on that?"
"Sure thing! If I get a higher score in the next exam, then you have to walk around this room on all fours, barking like a dog!"
"Deal," he agreed in a nonchalant voice, shocking almost everyone in the class at how easily he agreed to such a ridiculous demand. Still, he didn't seem bothered. "But if I get a higher score, then you have to burn all of the doujinshi and porn magazines that you have in your room."
Ike's face turned comically white.
"What the—? How the hell did you know about those?!" he demanded, before realizing that everyone was now staring at him because of what was just revealed. He quickly shrunk from everyone's gazes. "I-I mean... sure, bring it on! I'll whoop your ass in the next exam, Sudo! You'll be crawling around here like a dog, I'll make sure of it!"
Onodera didn't hesitate to stand up from her seat and run towards her friend, sending him a look of worry. "Sudo-kun, what are you doing?" she asked.
"Don't worry about it," he reassured her, which didn't really ease Kayano's worries one bit.
"Interesting..." Kiyotaka thought, feeling surprised at this turn of events as well. "I'm tempted to lend Sudo a helping hand in this, but I suppose I'll just watch and see this unfold. He looks like he already has the situation under control."
"Right..." Hirata sweat-dropped at what just happened, before shifting his focus back to the task at hand. "Well, I hope everyone understands what we must do from now on. Chabashira-sensei may have been harsh in her words earlier but like what Kushida-san said, she likely acted that way to make us do better next time."
After finishing his little speech, Hirata then stepped down from the podium. Strangely enough, he didn't go back to his seat and instead, walked towards Ayanokouji's desk.
"Horikita-san, Ayanokouji-kun, do you have a moment? I want to speak with you about how we can increase our points. Is it fine with you?" he asked.
"Why us?" asked Kiyotaka in return, feeling curious why Yosuke turned to them of all people.
"I want to hear everyone's opinions. However, I feel that if I ask for everyone to state what they think, more than half of the class probably won't take it seriously."
"I'm sorry, can you ask someone else? I'm not good at discussing things with others," said Suzune.
"I am not forcing you to speak up, Horikita-san. If you could think of something that can help, then it would be good. A simple suggestion would be good enough."
"I'm sorry, but I have no interest in something meaningless."
"This is the first challenge that we'll be facing together as a united Class D. We have to—"
Suzune looked at him coldly. "I refuse. I will not participate."
From her words alone, Yosuke understood that the girl wasn't going to change her stance. "I... I see. I'm sorry if I bothered you. If you change your mind, you are welcome to join us."
Feeling dejected, he turned his attention towards Kiyotaka this time.
pαndα,noνɐ1,сoМ "What about you, Ayanokouji-kun?"
Kiyotaka wanted to join so that he can get some possible ideas on how their points can be increased, but he was curious about Suzune. What exactly was her problem? He noticed that she was acting strange ever since their teacher left, as if she had become more distrustful of other people than before. It's probably for the best if he deals with this right now, otherwise it might come back to bite him in the ass in the future.
"I'll pass... although I might change my mind."
"I see. If you do change your mind, then please let me know." Yosuke seemed to understand his stance, since Kiyotaka didn't reject him strongly like Suzune.
As their blonde classmate left them, Kiyotaka didn't waste time and turned to look at Suzune. "Mind explaining what that was about?" he asked whilst raising an eyebrow.
"I already said it. I'm not good at discussing things with others," she repeated.
"You don't seem to have any problem discussing things with me," he rebuked.
The girl sighed. "You are different, moron."
"Oh, I see. I'm different because you like me," he teased.
Suzune blushed for a brief moment at that claim, before she sent him a scowl. "I'll stab you with this pen if you don't stop," she threatened, raising her pen for emphasis.
"Stopping now," Kiyotaka conceded. He definitely didn't want to see this girl get angry, because the system might do something to fuck him over if he does.
Suzune kept on glaring at him regardless, checking to see if he was really going to stop. When he didn't say anything else, she took a deep breath to calm herself. "It would have been pointless to discuss things with Hirata-kun. If our situation could be easily solved by talking, then it would be fine. However, if an unintelligent student who has no idea how to deal with the issue at hand tries to lead the discussion, then the group will simply fall apart. I doubt that Hirata-kun actually knows how to increase our points."
"You have a good point," he nodded in agreement. It was clear that Hirata had no idea how to actually help their class, and is simply doing this in order to prevent the whole dynamic from falling apart. That's why he was asking for others' input on how they could increase their points.
"Besides, I can't meekly accept my current situation. You shouldn't, either."
He looked at her in confusion. "Can't accept? What do you mean?"
Suzune didn't answer his question. She only stared at the poster that Chabashira-sensei left for them.
"If we don't get any more points, what am I gonna do...?"
"I can't live with just 9,000 points..."
"Does this mean we can't get into college now? Why the hell did we even go to this school? Does Sae-chan-sensei hate us or something?"
During the break, the classroom erupted into chaos. It's like their teacher's words was a bomb that exploded, and this was the outcome. Most of the boys and girls were in despair from this turn of events, some were calmly assessing the situation, and then there was Koenji who didn't care at all.
"Forget about the points. What about this class? Why was I put into Class D?!" Yukimura cried, obviously upset about his placement in a class whose students were considered 'failures'.
"Everyone, I know that you are all confused, but we all need to calm down. Causing a ruckus won't help anyone," Hirata, sensing that the class was about to delve deeper into chaos, stood up and attempted to act as the voice of reason.
"How are we supposed to calm down? Sensei just called us a bunch of failures! Aren't you even frustrated with all of this?!" Yukimura continued to rant, giving in to his emotions and letting his anger take over.
"Even if I was, it's better for us to work together in order to turn things around."
"Turn things around? I don't even agree with how we were sorted in the first place!"
Hirata nodded his head in sympathy. "I understand. However, whining about our situation won't help us right now."
That was something that Yukimura didn't take kindly. Marching over towards Hirata, he grabbed the blonde teen by the collar forcefully. "What did you say?" he growled.
"Please calm down, you two. I'm sure that Chabashira-sensei talked to us harshly so we'd do a lot better next time," spoke Kushida, walking towards the two and gently prying them away from each other. Yukimura didn't resist at all, and simply listened to the girl who continued to speak. "Besides, it's only been one month since we started here. There's still plenty of time for us to get our points up, but we can't do it when we're all divided like this. Come on, everyone."
"I-I mean... I certainly wouldn't say you're wrong, but..."
Yukimura's anger vanished in an instant. With that, the girl shifted her attention towards everyone else and flashed a sincere smile. "It's better for us to band together. There's no need for us to fight against each other. That would only make things worse, don't you think?"
"I'm sorry. I lost my cool," Yukimura apologized.
Hirata waved the apology off. "It's all right, Yukimura-kun. I should have chosen my words a little more carefully, so we are both at fault."
While Kikyo brought everyone together effortlessly as if she was a goddess of sorts, Kiyotaka took a picture of the poster in front and observed it closely. Suzune noticed his action and immediately grew curious.
"What are you doing?"
"Figuring out how points are calculated," he replied, not taking his eyes off his phone.
"Didn't sensei already explain how? Points are immediately deducted when a student arrives late, does something else in the middle of a discussion, and other acts that are not befitting of the proper student."
"Yes, Chabashira-sensei did explain how points are deducted. However, she didn't explain anything about how they can be increased," he pointed out. "Of course, it's possible that our points may never increase again, but from sensei's words earlier, it's possible for us to overtake Class A. We simply need to find out how a class can increase its points."
"Wouldn't it be difficult to figure those details out at this stage? Furthermore, I don't believe you can resolve this by simply investigating. You'd have to get everyone to listen to you as well."
As Suzune said those words, Kiyotaka noticed something different from her. Normally, the girl was cool and composed, but now it felt like those aspects of her were gone. He also noticed that she sounded rather impatient now. Was it because of their current dilemma as a class?
"Are you also planning to get into a college after graduating from this school?" he asked, turning his head to face her.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, when we learned about the differences between Class A and D, I noticed that you looked shocked. Were you hoping to receive 100,000 points like everyone else?"
"I wasn't, but it was certainly a surprise to find out that points are a reflection of our performances," she admitted. "Regardless, not having points won't hinder our lives here. We have free options whenever we need it, right?"
He nodded in agreement. Ever since he heard from Yamauchi that the cafeteria offered free food, he began to take notice of some students who ordered the free meal instead of a normal one. "That's true. Though, this is a tragic fate for those who spent all of their points this past month."
Suzune clasped her hands together and let out a sigh. "While unfortunate, they've simply reaped what they've sown. And like what Chabashira-sensei said, we still managed to retain at least 97 points after the first month. If anything, they should feel lucky that we didn't end up with 0, or we would have not received any points in our balance."
"That's also true, which is why we have a chance to turn things around. We simply have to find out how a class can increase its points. Getting everyone to listen should be easy with people like Hirata and Kushida leading the charge," he replied calmly.
"If you say so," she sighed, not even sounding convinced by his words.
"Attention, everyone. Before class begins, I want you to listen seriously for a moment."
The classroom was still in an uproar until now, but Hirata quickly claimed everyone's attention when he stood at the teacher's podium. His presence was enough to calm his classmates, though it didn't make their situation better.
"While we won't be receiving 100,000 points this month, all hope is not lost yet. We still have the 9,700 points that were sent to us, but we can't afford to take this lightly anymore. Now that we are aware that our points can be deducted, we have to tread lightly and be careful about what we do in this school. I'm sure nobody wants our points to go any lower than they already are right now, right?"
"Yes, Hirata-kun is absolutely right!" one of the female students shouted, her worries immediately remedied by Hirata's mere presence.
Hirata gave a kind nod in response, before continuing. "Therefore, we must work to increase our points next month. In order to do that, we all need to cooperate with each other. So please, take care not to be late to class or to talk during a lecture. Using cell phones during class is prohibited too, of course."
"Huh? Since when do you get to tell us what to do?" Ike asked, displeased with the fact that a pretty boy like Hirata was ordering them around like he was the class leader.
"Do you have a better idea, idiot?" Sudo spoke up from behind him.
"You don't get to talk like that, Sudo! You were next to the lowest score in the exam!"
"So? It just means I'll have to do better next time," he shrugged, surprising a lot of the boys in the room. Normally, that would have caused him to lose his cool and prepare for a fight, but Ken remained where he was. "All of us were caught off guard with the thing about points and the exams. None of us could have seen it coming."
Even Ike was surprised, but he hid it behind a smug grin. "Hah! I wouldn't even be surprised if you fail the next exam and cause yourself to get expelled, Sudo!"
Sudo didn't even look annoyed one bit. Instead, he felt amused.
"Really? Want to bet on that?"
"Sure thing! If I get a higher score in the next exam, then you have to walk around this room on all fours, barking like a dog!"
"Deal," he agreed in a nonchalant voice, shocking almost everyone in the class at how easily he agreed to such a ridiculous demand. Still, he didn't seem bothered. "But if I get a higher score, then you have to burn all of the doujinshi and porn magazines that you have in your room."
Ike's face turned comically white.
"What the—? How the hell did you know about those?!" he demanded, before realizing that everyone was now staring at him because of what was just revealed. He quickly shrunk from everyone's gazes. "I-I mean... sure, bring it on! I'll whoop your ass in the next exam, Sudo! You'll be crawling around here like a dog, I'll make sure of it!"
Onodera didn't hesitate to stand up from her seat and run towards her friend, sending him a look of worry. "Sudo-kun, what are you doing?" she asked.
"Don't worry about it," he reassured her, which didn't really ease Kayano's worries one bit.
"Interesting..." Kiyotaka thought, feeling surprised at this turn of events as well. "I'm tempted to lend Sudo a helping hand in this, but I suppose I'll just watch and see this unfold. He looks like he already has the situation under control."
"Right..." Hirata sweat-dropped at what just happened, before shifting his focus back to the task at hand. "Well, I hope everyone understands what we must do from now on. Chabashira-sensei may have been harsh in her words earlier but like what Kushida-san said, she likely acted that way to make us do better next time."
After finishing his little speech, Hirata then stepped down from the podium. Strangely enough, he didn't go back to his seat and instead, walked towards Ayanokouji's desk.
"Horikita-san, Ayanokouji-kun, do you have a moment? I want to speak with you about how we can increase our points. Is it fine with you?" he asked.
"Why us?" asked Kiyotaka in return, feeling curious why Yosuke turned to them of all people.
"I want to hear everyone's opinions. However, I feel that if I ask for everyone to state what they think, more than half of the class probably won't take it seriously."
"I'm sorry, can you ask someone else? I'm not good at discussing things with others," said Suzune.
"I am not forcing you to speak up, Horikita-san. If you could think of something that can help, then it would be good. A simple suggestion would be good enough."
"I'm sorry, but I have no interest in something meaningless."
"This is the first challenge that we'll be facing together as a united Class D. We have to—"
Suzune looked at him coldly. "I refuse. I will not participate."
From her words alone, Yosuke understood that the girl wasn't going to change her stance. "I... I see. I'm sorry if I bothered you. If you change your mind, you are welcome to join us."
Feeling dejected, he turned his attention towards Kiyotaka this time.
pαndα,noνɐ1,сoМ "What about you, Ayanokouji-kun?"
Kiyotaka wanted to join so that he can get some possible ideas on how their points can be increased, but he was curious about Suzune. What exactly was her problem? He noticed that she was acting strange ever since their teacher left, as if she had become more distrustful of other people than before. It's probably for the best if he deals with this right now, otherwise it might come back to bite him in the ass in the future.
"I'll pass... although I might change my mind."
"I see. If you do change your mind, then please let me know." Yosuke seemed to understand his stance, since Kiyotaka didn't reject him strongly like Suzune.
As their blonde classmate left them, Kiyotaka didn't waste time and turned to look at Suzune. "Mind explaining what that was about?" he asked whilst raising an eyebrow.
"I already said it. I'm not good at discussing things with others," she repeated.
"You don't seem to have any problem discussing things with me," he rebuked.
The girl sighed. "You are different, moron."
"Oh, I see. I'm different because you like me," he teased.
Suzune blushed for a brief moment at that claim, before she sent him a scowl. "I'll stab you with this pen if you don't stop," she threatened, raising her pen for emphasis.
"Stopping now," Kiyotaka conceded. He definitely didn't want to see this girl get angry, because the system might do something to fuck him over if he does.
Suzune kept on glaring at him regardless, checking to see if he was really going to stop. When he didn't say anything else, she took a deep breath to calm herself. "It would have been pointless to discuss things with Hirata-kun. If our situation could be easily solved by talking, then it would be fine. However, if an unintelligent student who has no idea how to deal with the issue at hand tries to lead the discussion, then the group will simply fall apart. I doubt that Hirata-kun actually knows how to increase our points."
"You have a good point," he nodded in agreement. It was clear that Hirata had no idea how to actually help their class, and is simply doing this in order to prevent the whole dynamic from falling apart. That's why he was asking for others' input on how they could increase their points.
"Besides, I can't meekly accept my current situation. You shouldn't, either."
He looked at her in confusion. "Can't accept? What do you mean?"
Suzune didn't answer his question. She only stared at the poster that Chabashira-sensei left for them.
