The first morning of the new month began with an atmosphere far heavier than the usual Class D chaos. Even Ike and Yamauchi, who normally acted like human alarm clocks with how loudly they arrived each day, were strangely subdued as they stepped into the classroom. Students sat in small pockets of nervous whispering, glancing repeatedly at their phones.
No one had received their monthly points.
Not a single yen.
Miyamoto Sōshi sat in the back row, arms crossed as usual, rings clinking softly against the desk. His ponytail, tied behind his head, shifted slightly as he scanned the room with lazy, observant eyes. The tattoos creeping up his neck—black waves, abstract fire motifs—peeked from the open collar of his uniform. He looked calm, but internally, he already knew exactly what this meant.
A storm is coming.
Airi sat beside him, hands trembling slightly as she held her phone. She had gotten used to eating lunch with him, walking with him, even sticking close whenever other boys tried approaching her. But even she could feel the tense aura swallowing the classroom like a cold fog.
"S-Sōshi-kun…" she whispered, voice soft. "The points… I didn't receive anything."
"None of us did," he said simply.
"Is it… is it really bad?"
He didn't answer. He didn't need to. Her face fell.
The sliding door slammed open.
Every head in the classroom snapped toward the front as Chabashira Sae walked in. Her heels clicked with the sharpness of a gunshot. Cool. Merciless. Completely unimpressed with their confusion.
"Sit down," she ordered. "Homeroom begins now."
Even the loudest students obeyed. Not because they respected her—but because something in her tone promised that today was not a day to test her.
She walked to the front, placed her attendance folder on the podium, and surveyed the class like a judge preparing to sentence criminals.
"I assume," she began, "that many of you have already noticed something unusual this morning."
Eyes widened. Desks creaked. A few throats swallowed hard.
Hirata raised a hand politely. "Um, Chabashira-sensei, no one received any monthly points yet—"
"And that," she cut in sharply, "is because Class 1-D received exactly what you earned."
Silence.A stunned, impossibly loud silence.
"W-We earned nothing?!" Ike shouted.
"That's ridiculous!" Yamauchi added, nearly standing up. "We're supposed to get a hundred thousand points each month!"
Chabashira's lips curled into a cold, humorless smile.
"That was true—if you demonstrated merit."
A wave of dread passed through the room. Even Sōshi, who already expected something like this, leaned forward slightly.
Chabashira continued, opening a folder.
"In this school, class points determine your monthly point income. And your class points are determined by your behavior, academic performance, and overall contribution during each month. That includes:"
She held up a finger.
"One: Attendance."
Another.
"Two: Classroom behavior."
A third.
"Three: Test performance."
The boys paled. A girl in the front whispered a small, panicked prayer.
"You, Class D," she said with an edge of amusement, "have failed in every one of these areas."
She lifted a projector remote and clicked.
A large digital display lit up on the board.
Class A – 940Class B – 650Class C – 490Class D – 0
The room exploded.
"ZERO?!"
"That can't be right!"
"What the hell?! We didn't do anything that bad!"
"You did," Chabashira said flatly. "In fact, you did exactly enough to prove yourselves worth zero. Every tardy, every skipped class, every time you used your phones during lessons, every disruption—was recorded and evaluated."
She spread her arms mockingly.
"And the school has deemed you worth nothing."
Hirata stood. "Sensei, this must be a misunderstanding. Everyone was told we'd receive one hundred thousand points per month—"
"Conditional points," she corrected coldly. "Given only if the class shows merit. I told you on the first day that this school evaluates students thoroughly. I simply didn't explain the mechanism."
"That's the same as lying!" Yamauchi barked.
"No," she replied. "It is the same as you failing to assume responsibility."
The weight in the air grew crushing.
Airi trembled, whispering, "S-Sōshi-kun… this is bad…"
"Mm," he murmured. "Told you something felt off."
His calmness steadied her.
But the rest of the class descended rapidly into fear.
Chabashira clicked the remote again. Another screen appeared.This time showing their mock exam results from a week ago.
She smirked. "As you can see, your academic performance has also been abysmal."
The scores were embarrassingly low, with nearly a dozen students in the red zone.
"In fact," Chabashira continued, "had this been a real exam instead of a mock one, seven of you would have been expelled. Immediately."
Gasps. Cries. Someone slammed their desk.
Kushida covered her mouth in shock. Horikita's brows lowered in deep irritation. Even Koenji glanced up with mild interest.
Chabashira pressed forward mercilessly.
"Oh, and one more thing—only Class A students are guaranteed the full post-graduation benefits of this school. You in Class D currently stand to gain absolutely nothing from graduating."
Yukimura shot to his feet. "This is absurd! The school promised us guaranteed advancement after graduation!"
"Yes," she said smoothly. "To Class A students."
He froze.
The reality hit everyone at once.Their dreams. Their futures. Their lives—Held hostage by their own failure.
"And," she added, "even if you behave properly from today onward, your lost class points will never be refunded."
Screams erupted. Despair-filled. Angry. Confused.
Chabashira smirked, enjoying the collapse.
"In three weeks, you have your midterm exam. Should any student fail to reach the passing score, they will be expelled immediately. That will be all."
She closed her folder and walked out, heels echoing like the sound of doom.
Class D Implodes
The moment she exited, the classroom exploded.
"It's rigged!"
"This school is hell!"
"How the hell are we supposed to live with zero points?!"
"Why didn't anyone warn us?!"
Some students cried. Others accused each other. A few blamed the "Three Idiots." Sudō in particular became a target.
"You were tardy almost every day!"
"You disrupted class!"
"You always argued!"
Sudō's temper rose. "Shut the hell up! This isn't just my fault! You idiots didn't do shit either!"
Hirata tried desperately to calm the room, but even he struggled.
Kushida stepped forward, soothing voice cutting through the tension. "Everyone, calm down… fighting won't solve anything…"
Airi hid partly behind Sōshi, who leaned against the wall, arms crossed. His presence alone kept several boys from escalating.
Ayanokōji and Horikita remained quiet, talking in low voices.
He watched the chaos with an expression that said: told you so.
Horikita whispered something sharp. Ayanokōji shrugged in response. They exchanged analysis more than emotions—like two people playing chess while the rest of the class burned.
After about ten minutes, Hirata approached Ayanokōji and Horikita.
"Would you two like to discuss possible ways to raise our points?"
"I'll pass," Ayanokōji said.
"I decline," Horikita echoed.
Hirata looked discouraged but didn't push.
Soon the bell rang, and the class slowly scattered, defeated.
The loudspeaker crackled.
"Student Ayanokōji Kiyotaka, please report to the staff room. Immediately."
Sōshi tilted his head and smirked slightly.
Interesting.
Airi tugged his sleeve. "You're going too?"
"Just following," he said casually. "Might be something fun."
"A-as long as you stay out of trouble…"
"No promises."
He followed at a distance, moving quietly despite his muscular build. His parkour-trained steps were soundless, gliding through hallways with unnerving stealth.
Inside the staff room, Ayanokōji encountered Chie Hoshinomiya from Class B—bright, flirtatious, with a mischievous smile.
"Oho? Ayanokōji-kun, you're a cutie, aren't you?" she flirted.
Sōshi, hiding around the corner, raised an eyebrow.This woman… is dangerous in a different way.
But before Hoshinomiya could escalate, Chabashira returned and shut her down.
"Stop teasing other classes' students."
"Ehhh? You're no fun!"
Chabashira directed Ayanokōji to the guidance room, and Hoshinomiya tried to follow. Only when Honami Ichinose arrived—calm and warm as always—did Hoshinomiya finally give up.
Sōshi slipped silently behind the group, staying just far enough to avoid being caught.
Inside the guidance area, Chabashira guided Ayanokōji into a small kitchen-like room.
"You will wait in here and remain silent. If you speak, you'll be expelled."
Ayanokōji nodded.
Sōshi smirked from the shadows outside the window.
This guy gets dragged into weird crap.
A few minutes later, Horikita Suzune walked in.
She confronted Chabashira fiercely.
"There must be a mistake. I placed third on the entrance exam. My academic ability is superior. There is no reason for me to be placed in Class D."
Chabashira responded coolly:
"Your academic ability alone does not determine merit. You lack social skill, cooperation, and adaptability. These are also merits."
Horikita stiffened.
"This school evaluates everything. You are in Class D because you lack important qualities."
Their exchange grew heavier. Chabashira poked through Horikita's pride ruthlessly.
Then—
"Kiyotaka, come out."
Horikita whirled around as Ayanokōji stepped from the side room.
"You were listening?!"
Chabashira nodded. "I instructed him to."
Horikita's eyes narrowed sharply.
But Chabashira wasn't done. She pointed at him like a prosecutor.
"Ayanokōji Kiyotaka. Your mock exam score: fifty points. Exactly the passing score. On every subject. The probability of achieving 50 across all subjects by coincidence is near zero. Furthermore, you answered one of the hardest problems correctly—but got an extremely easy problem wrong. Care to explain?"
"It's a coincidence," he replied flatly.
Horikita stared at him like he was a puzzle she suddenly couldn't solve.
Sōshi watched through the window with mild amusement.This guy is way more interesting than he lets on.
Chabashira dismissed them shortly after.
Outside the guidance room.
Horikita immediately cornered Ayanokōji as they walked out.
"That score of yours—coincidence? Impossible."
"It happens," he replied.
"You're hiding something."
"Maybe."
"Then tell me."
"No."
She grit her teeth but followed him anyway.
They discussed the class point system, midterms, and the grim future of Class D. Horikita walked beside Ayanokōji with a forced calmness that barely concealed her frustration.
Finally, she said:
"We need to solve this. The midterms. The class points. Everything. You will help me."
"No thanks."
"I wasn't asking."
He sighed.
Sōshi, leaning against a vending machine nearby, spoke for the first time:
"You two are noisy."
Horikita jumped slightly.
Ayanokōji glanced at Sōshi with mild surprise. "You were here?"
"I follow where the entertainment goes," Sōshi replied lazily.
Horikita glared. "Were you eavesdropping too?"
"Yep."
"You—!"
He shrugged. "Relax. Not my business."
Airi popped out from behind him, panting from trying to keep up. "S-Sōshi-kun! You walk too fast!"
He rested a hand on her head. "You should train more."
"A-are you trying to kill me?!"
Their bickering softened the tension in the hallway, even if Horikita looked like she wanted to scold all three of them for different reasons.
The sun had dipped low outside the tall windows, casting long shadows through the quiet hallway as students slowly made their way toward the dorms.
Class D's month of ignorance had ended.
The month of consequences had begun.
Horikita crossed her arms. "Ayanokōji, we will raise this class. Just watch."
Ayanokōji scratched his cheek. "I'd prefer to avoid trouble."
"You don't have a choice."
Sōshi smirked. "Have fun."
Airi clung to his sleeve again. "Sōshi-kun… i-it's really happening, isn't it? The class might fall apart."
"Yeah."
"What do we do…?"
"We wait," he said simply. "Then we move."